The Here and There of a Dead's Wake

Last night, we went to the wake of a colleague’s father who died of cancer. It was at St. Peter Memorial Chapels along Quezon Avenue. The place was quite put out of place, I think. It was located along a very busy street. Next to the building was an adult entertainment house that goes by the name of a flying horse. When we get inside, it was like going inside a mall. Of course, a lot of people was there visiting other wakes but what confused me was outside at the front hall, there was this promotional campaign for the memorial chapel. It was like a party of some sort, loud music and all. Well, what better place to hold the promo but on the place itself. There was a flat lcd screen outside to tell you if you don’t know what chapel you will go.

Back in the province where I come from, there are no memorial chapels. The wake is being held in the residence of the departed. The coffin, for those who can’t afford buying an expensive one, is just carpentered out of plywood, painted to look presentable. Here, the cost of the coffin alone is equivalent to the over-all expenses for the entire wake including interment in the province.


The chapels have evolved. Packages now include a room complete with bathroom that nobody will use for add-on convenience. Only to discover it becomes a “bodega”. And recently, they have introduced new innovations like “eBurol” and “eLiving”. No need for relatives to go home especially if they live abroad. They just log in to the internet and watch the wake from the computer. While in the province, there’s no need for that, the house becomes fully packed of relatives from far places who will surely go home just for the wake. Sometimes, wakes are being extended to weeks for someone important has yet to arrive.

In the chapels, seldom we see someone cries. If someone cries, you will only see tears. So unlike in the province, that if you see someone cries, you hear them loud and clear.


The only one thing that I don’t notice in the chapel that is very, very usual in the province is gambling. In the province, if someone dies, gamblers are always present.
Well, the truth is we all have to die but not sooner. No matter where someone dies, no matter where someone’s wake is being held, all of us will only have one direction to go. Up there, Someone is waiting for us.

Pilipinas Got Happy Feet!

The recently concluded Pilipinas Got Talent Season 2 has showed the diverse talents of the Pinoys from all over the world. Many flocked to auditions just to show what they got. But what really catched my attention was this brothers from Libona, Bukidnon. Their talent: tap dancing!

They were able to reach the grand finals! And the audience has expected them to win, including me. I voted for them. I like them a lot. Their talent is unique and very rare for two brothers to share the same passion. A passion that's difficult to do, i tried doing it. Hehehe.

Here is the video for their Finals perfomance:


I hope since this brothers has captured the heart of the millions of Pinoys, they will continue with their dreams and continue to love each other.

Marcelito Pomoy of Batangas emerged as the big winner, bringing home with him P2 million.

Philippines' Largest National Flag Carrier

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have just landed at Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Cebu Pacific welcomes you to Manila… Cebu Pacific, the Philippine’s largest national flag carrier.”
Every touchdown in Manila aboard Cebu Pacific flight, this is what I hear from the flight attendants over the microphone. And I always wonder whatever happened to Philippine Airlines (PAL). As we all know, PAL is the first airlines in the Philippines since 1941. They have international flights as far as the Middle East, Australia and the US. And Cebu Pacific started operating in 1996 only and does not have international flights in the Middle East, Australia and the US, only Asia Pacific. What could have been the basis for being the LARGEST? Fleets? PAL aircrafts are way too far bigger the Cebu Pacifics. Destination? Hmmm, they have domestic routes unreachable by PAL like Tawi-tawi. Number of passengers onboard? I am really sure. I really don’t know, that’s why I wonder.

Here’s a comparison of Cebu Pacific to Philippine Airlines courtesy of wikipedia.org:


I don’t have anything against the two airlines competing with each other. I don’t know if both airlines are of the same level of competition. Both airlines have unique qualities in them. Cebu Pacific for having the earliest flights possible and domestic routes that PAL doesn’t have. And PAL has free snacks on board, sophisticated planes and international flights as far as the US.

Well, I think the passengers are the ones who benefit most from this competition of airlines. The fare for air transport has been reduced since the introduction of low fares from Cebu Pacific and other airlines are following.

The Rightful Owner of Spratly Islands

One of the problems our nation is facing right now is the claim to the Spratly Islands. As of now, neighboring countries of the Philippines are also claiming ownership of the islands. They are People’s Republic of China, Taiwan (as Republic of China), Malaysia, and Vietnam. Majority of the islands are occupied by the Philippines including Thitu, the second largest island has an airstrip being used by the military and telecommunication is available. Itu Aba, the largest of the islands is occupied by Taiwan.
Compose of 650 islets, reefs, atolls, cays and islands in the South China Sea now called West Philippine Sea, the Spratly Islands is located in between the Philippines and Vietnam. Coral reefs predominantly structured these islands. Little vegetations provide foods for the wildlife composed mostly of seabirds and sea turtles. The discovery of Camago-Malampaya oil reserves in Palawan has just proven that the islands may contain a rich deposit of oil and natural gas as indicated in the surveys.
Our nation claims the islands on the basis that the islands were discovered by Tomas Cloma, a Filipino citizen. He named the islands, Freedom Islands (Kalayaan) and turned it over to the Philippine Government. Ferdinand Marcos in 1972 declared Kalaayan as a municipality and was incorporated in the Province of Palawan. The second argument used in this claim is the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea (UNCLOS) which states could claim two hundred miles of jurisdiction beyond its land boundaries. The Spratly Islands as you can see on the map is located just off the coast of Palawan.

On the other hand, China has based their claims on the belief that the islands are in a way part of their history as archeological surveys had shown that relics of their history are found in the islands. They claim to have discovered the islands since 2 BC in the Han Dynasty. They are not occupying any of the islands, but controls several reefs. There are frequent visits of the Chinese Military vessels on the islands.
Taiwan (as Republic of China) who ruled mainland China before they were confined in the island of Taiwan, insists that they have the right to claim as much as the People’s Republic of China. Malaysia claims on the basis that the islands are part of their continental shelf as it is near Sabah, Malaysia. However, Sabah, is being claim also by the Philippines. While according to the Vietnam atlas, the islands are part of their territory and that these has been recorded in the Vietnamese literature and history since 17th century.
Until now, the dispute over these islands is still unsolved prompting United Nations to investigate. Our political leaders are divided in their stand against the claim as many fear that if this dispute is not settled peacefully, the other claimants will resolve to war, which our nation is not ready at all.

Forbes' 40 Richest Filipinos

Forbes.com has just released its list of the richest Filipinos and according to the website, thirty-two tycoons are richer. The list's collective worth is $34billion, up from last year's $22.8 billion.
This year's list is a record breaking as the number of billionaires has more than doubled to 11. Four from 2010 list were replaced. Newcomers includes a property developer, a founder of biscuit maker and the youngest in the list, who sold a barbecue chain to Jollibee.

Here is the complete list:

#1 HENRY SY - $7.2 billion

#2 LUCIO TAN - $2.8 billion

#3 JOHN GOKONWEI JR. - $2.4 billion

and the rest of the list:

4. Andrew Tan - $2 billion
5. David Consunji - $1.9 billion
6. Jaime Zobel de Ayala - $1.7 billion
7. Enrique Razon Jr. - $1.6 billion
8. Eduardo Cojuangco Jr. - $1.4 billion
9. Roberto Ongpin - $1.3 billion
10. George Ty - $1.1 billion
11. Tony Tan Caktiong - $1 billion
12. Inigo & Mercedes Zobel - $980 million
13. Emilio Yap - $930 million
14. Andrew Gotianun - $795 million
15. Jon Ramon Aboitiz - $760 million
16. Beatrice Campos - $685 million
17. Manuel Villar - $620 million
18. Vivian Que Azcona - $555 million
19. Robert Coyiuto Jr. - $400 million
20. Mariano Tan - $375 million
21. Alfonso Yuchengco - $370 million
22. Enrique Aboitiz - $310 million
23. Oscar Lopez - $280 million
24. Jose Antonio - $245 million
25. Eric Recto - $200 million
26. Gilberto Duavit - $190 million
27. Menardo Jimenez - $185 million
28. Alfredo Ramos - $180 million
29. Betty Ang - $165 million
30. Felipe Gozon - $163 million
31. Tomas Alcantara - $160 million
32. Benjamin Romualdez - $155 million
33. Wilfred Uytengsu Jr. $150 million
34. Manuel Zamora Jr. - $145 million
35. Jacinto Ng Sr. - $115 million
36. Frederick Dy - $110 million
37. Luis Virata - $100 million
38. Bienvenido Tantoco Sr. - $95 million
39. Eugenio Lopez III - $90 million
40. Edgar Sia II - $85 million

KHAMAKA "ek ek" BREKKER

I think this video is the funniest thing on youtube.com. I can't help but laugh everytime i play it. Well, i really don't know if this one is a real call or just a plain call center training simulation. Whoever uploaded this one on youtube, thanks for sharing this. But on the other hand, i realized, it's a bit sad because what if this one is a real call. The caller had almost cried because he doesn't know what to do. Did the caller find Khamaka Brekker in the end? I hope he has.
Well, it's better if you take a look at this video and find out if you will laugh or be sad for this poor guy.

ZXReader on my N5800XM

Finally, a free ebook reader on my nokia 5800 Xpressmusic. Hehehe, yeah, i have an old nokia phone but i'm proud to say, this phone is very useful in anyway.
Sadly, it can't open pdf files but i have found a way. I convert pdf to txt and viola! my free ebook reader!!! I rate this application very useful and efficient.


Key features:

» Supported formats: TXT, FB2, ZIP (containing TXT or FB2), TCR;
» Support for most encodings;
» Automatic change of portrait/landscape mode when the phone turns;
» Support touch control;
» Full screen mode;
» Fonts settings, including third-party *.ttf;
» Pages autoscrolling;
» Backlight control: brightness, constancy;
» Text processing: hyphenation words, bonding lines (cutted into the line of certain width in text editors);
» Split screen on a few active zones, for each of which can to set a certain command.

What’s new:

» Fixed bugs with RTF.
» Return to the Menu from other windows if they were called from the Menu.
» Background image for Read mode – Setting in the Screen section.
» Scaling pictures in the book to the full screen, if width is greater than 75%.
» Books are not entering into any group to list on a par with the groups.
» Implemented a multi-level grouping in the library.
» To group 1 level added option – by source.
» Folders in the library now have a lower height than the book, to save space on the screen.
» Fixed bug examining sections of a title as different chapters in the TOC.
» Fixed bug when closing the program transition to a chapter in the first page of which is the picture.
» If the mapping section with specific settings, string ends with unneeded character, then they are transferred to the next line.
» For N8 improved protection against hidden icon display the menu if no other keys are configured/zones for the menu.
» Added possibility to set/unset the tag “Favorite”.
» Added filtration of Menu of the library – show all books or just favorite ones
» Added command – Show Favorite.
» Fixed a significant inhibition at the opening of library with a large number of books with disabled cover.
» Fixed display contents fb2, when name of the head contains a few paragraphs.

[NOTE]: Symbian 9.1 – not supported!