Photographs and Memories

Today my in-laws and I went to my hubby's grandmother's apartment to get stuffs because she was transferred to an assisted home. We were to pick-up things that she can't use anymore. While I was looking through the things in the cabinets, I found several albums full of pictures, mostly old pictures and pictures in frames. The pictures were amazing! I even found an album of my in-laws wedding and I can't wait to show it to my husband. He said he has not seen them in years. Looking at the pictures made me smile especially those of my hubby when he was still a kid wearing that sheepish grin!lol


Photographs are one of the very effective ways of capturing each treasured memory. They can stay with us in good shape as long as we take very good care of them. For instance, I still have my mother's pictures when she was still so young and they are still clear enough to be able to know who she was with in those pictures. Each photograph that we take and keep is a story of our lives and our moments with our loved ones. They are the captions of not only the special events in our lives but the everyday events as well that are just as good. Photographs really do have sentimental values for the events that happen in our lives because such events are unique in their own way and they just happen once.

Nature's Wrath

The Midwest series of storms and torrential rains have left serious flooding. Major rivers have long reached their crests and overflowing already causing the flood. The flooding also affected as far north as Minnesota and Wisconsin where some houses were literally flushed away. Parts of Indiana and Illinois are flooded that's affecting both residential and agricultural fields. The plantation of produce have been delayed because of the series of storms that swamped the fields. In Iowa, there's up to 100 blocks downtown that's affected by the flooding which was due to a broken levee on the Cedar River. Thousands of people are evacuated from their homes. Hospitals and establishments in Iowa's second-largest city the Cedar Rapids, are flooded that people use boats in rescue missions.


Not only were there storms and flooding in the Midwest but a series of tornadoes as well. It has destroyed fields and people's houses that left them homeless. Still in Iowa, a tornado killed four young boys during their boy scouts camp. One boy who survived said "It's probably the longest 8 seconds in my life", when interviewed about what happened when the tornado hit the area.

After all of the nature's rage, prices of produce that are common in the Midwest such as corn and soybeans, are expected to go higher as they already are.

Friday the 13th

When we say or hear someone saying about Friday the 13th, one thing immediately comes to mind, bad luck. Both Friday and the number 13 have been considered unlucky. Friday, being the day when Jesus Christ was crucified and 13, the number of people in the Last Supper of Jesus Christ. Thus Friday the 13th is considered bad luck in a lot of countries around the world such as Austria, Germany, Estonia, Finland, The Netherlands, Belgium, Republic of Ireland, Poland, Bulgaria, Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Philippines, and in most English, French, and Portuguese-speaking countries.

Paraskavedekatriaphobia is the fear of Friday the 13th. It derived from Greek words, Paraskevi and dekatreis, meaning Friday and thirteen respectively. While phobia means fear. Friday the 13th is a very widespread superstition. In tall buildings, the 13th floor is ommitted. In a dinner, 13 people seating by the table must be avoided because it is said that the first person who leaves the table will die within a year. It is also common among us not to travel on Friday the 13th because chances are there will be mishap or accidents. In contrast, my trip to the US last year was of all days, Friday the 13th! It was during a peak season and that day was the only day available for us to book. It was quite a journey for me since I was not only traveling to another city but I was actually traveling to another country. Moreover, the fact that it was Friday the 13th, I couldn't help but be afraid. However, prayer is still the best practice, not only when we travel but in everything that we do.

110th Philippine Independence

Every 12th of June, Independence Day is celebrated in the Philippines and anywhere in the world where there are Filipino communities. The declaration of the Philippine Independence was on June 12, 1898 which was proclaimed by General Emilio Aguinaldo after he and his forces fought and defeated the Spaniards who colonized the Philippines for a century. The highlights of the event were the display of the Philippine flag and the playing of the Philippine National Anthem. The said ceremony was held in the balcony of the General's residence.

In the Philippines, every town and city celebrates Philippine Independence Day with programs which include parade and cultural shows. In our city, there will be a gathering in the city's park. Every program starts with prayer and the raising of the Philippine flag accompanied by the singing of the Philippine National Anthem.


Filipino communities around the world celebrates this day. In the Northeast USA, particularly in New York, they held the annual parade and cultural show featuring Filipino celebrities last Sunday. The parade featured colorful and meaningful floats with beautiful ladies as part of the event's beauty pageant. They also had a street fair displaying Filipino foods and things that are Philippine made. On the other hand, in the west coast, Filipinos celebrated Independence Day in San Francisco Civic Center. The event is called "Fiesta Filipina". Filipino foods and merchandise were also showcased. There was also an entertainment show with Filipino celebrities.

In Europe, particularly in Holland, celebrated this year's Philippine Independence Day full of arts and music. This is showcasing the artworks and music by Filipino artists. The event was held at the De Duif Church in Amsterdam.

This year is the 110th year of the Philippine Independence. Every year of celebration commemorates all the men and women who died fighting for our Independence.

While in the Middle East, the Filipino communities celebrated with week-long activities commencing with tree-planting. There's also the Ambassador's Cup by the Abu Dhabi Bowling Club of which the proceeds goes to the Philippine Labour Office and to the Bantay Bata 163, which is the emergency hotline for abused kids in the Philippines.

Debut Tradition

Debut(among other meanings), refer to an event where a debutante(who is the celebrant) is introduced to the society as an adult. The event can be a ball dance. In the Philippines, it is an awaited moment for young women to turn 18. It's in this age that they'll be celebrating their debut.

A debut is held in a hotel's ballroom or any restaurant. It's a big party with foods and drinks and most especially the cake which is one of the highlights. Another highlght would be showing a video or compiled pictures of the debutante that are arranged in chronological order. The guests include the families, relatives, and friends who are all dressed properly for the debut especially the young ladies and guys who are part of the 18 Roses Dance and 18 Candles. The 18 Roses Dance is a part of the event wherein the debutante dances the traditional waltz(or any dance that the debutante decides on) with 18 men each one offering a fresh-cut rose to the debutante. The first dance of the debutante would be with her father. Then there's the 18 Candles Presentation wherein 18 ladies light candles which signifies guidance to the debutante as she enters maturity and adulthood. Upon presenting the candles, each lady expresses her wishes to the debutante. At the end of the program, the debutante makes a speech and expresses her gratitudes to her parents and families who made the arrangements of the debut and for their significance in her life as well as to her friends who gets to share the important event with her.

A Farewell

Rudy "Daboy" Fernandez, a very respected and famous actor in the Philippines passed away last Saturday, June 7, 2008. He was battling with periampullary cancer for 2 years. A periampullary cancer is the enlargement of the ducts from the liver and the pancreas. Both he and his wife, Lorna Tolentino who's also a very famous Filipina actress, came to the US for some treatments. During his last days and hours, families and close friends were there with him.

He was born on March 3, 1952 to a film director and medical practitioner father and a mother who came from a famous showbiz clan. He started some films in 1960's but was really discovered in the early 1970's. He was a very good action star that he's garnered Best Actor awards. He was known as the Prince of Action.

In his last days, he requested that when he dies, his wake should be in The Heritage Park in Taguig City, Philippines. His wake is also open to the public so not only his family and friends can view him for the last time but most especially his fans who are all falling in line to get a glimpse of their action hero. His interment will be on June 12, which happens to be the Philippine Independence Day as well.

T.G.I.F.

No, my topic is not about the famous restaurant. I will be talking about the famous line "Thank God it's Friday!". A lot of us look forward to this day because it's a day to end the whole week of work (not that we don't have to work at home!), the day to finally let out a sigh of relief after all the hard work and the stress we have at work. This is the day when there are plenty of people who go to restaurants, movies, malls, and most especially bars. For people who are working days, Friday night is the perfect night to go out and stay late. It's the time to sleep in the next day. My hubby always ask me, "Is it Friday yet?", then I would reply him with either "Almost..." or "Of course it's Friday yet!", I would answer him with "almost" even if it's still Monday or any day but Friday so that he'll feel good (he knows that of course). Then I would answer him with "Of course it's Friday yet!"(with the word yet in it just to copy the last word of his question), also to make him feel good. This has been a light joke for us giving a big significance on the day Friday which means getting closer to the weekend.

Friday derived from the Anglo-Saxon word frigedaeg, which is a combination of two words, being a goddess Fria in old German and daeg which means day in old English. For the Muslims, Friday is the Sabbath day and it's the equivalent to Sunday for Christians going to church and worshipping. Moreover, it's a day in memory of Christ's death, hence a day of fasting and prayer.