Survival of the Fittest

I was stunned when I stumbled on this picture. It sent shiver to my spine. The vividness of the shot is amazing. This is one of those pictures that stir up so much emotions. A thousand words it paints. Indeed.



Photo credits goes to David Maitland Click Here to Read More..

Nekkid

The University of the Philippines, which I am an alumnus, has one little tradition every 16th of December -- the oblation run. At the sound of siren at 12 noon, you'll see some men run around the campus with a red rose... naked. Actually it's an annual tradition of one of the most prominent fraternities of the university, the Alpha Phi Omega (APO).

So where did the idea of men running in their naked glory come from?

The Oblation is a sculpture and the iconic symbol of the University of the Philippines -- a "completely nude figure of a young man with outstretched arms and open hands, with tilted head, closed eyes and parted lips murmuring a prayer, with breast forward in the act of offering himself", as described by its sculptor Guilermo Tolentino. It symbolizes selfless offering of one's self to his country. Others say that it also represents truth -- that truth is naked.

The bronze-colored concrete sculpture is 3.5 meters in height, symbolizing the 350 years of Spanish rule in the Philippines. A leaf called siempreviva (always living) and locally known as kataka-taka (literally means "startling") covers the oblation's genitals. Kataka-taka has a characteristic of starting shoots from its very leaf. The sculptor, said that the leaf symbolizes "the deep-rooted patriotism in the heart of our heroes". The rocky base represents the rugged Philippine archipelago.

There are inscriptions on all four sides of the statue's pedestal. On the front panel is an excerpt from Jose Rizal's "El Filibusterismo," a passage from Padre Florentino, asking where are the youth ready to offer their lives and their aspirations for the country?

At the back of the statue is one stanza from Rizal's "Mi Ultimo Adios," again referring to the giving of one's life, "in combat or in martyrdom." Still another stanza from that poem appears on the right side of the statue, again talking about offering one's life, "without doubts, without sorrow."

On the other hand, APO's oblation run started in 1977 to protest the banning of the movie, “Hubad na Bayani,” which depicted human rights abuses in the martial law era.Today, it became and expression of protest to the current political or economic situation of the country.

I was able to witness the oblation run when I was a freshman and it was my first and last. I just think it's not a pleasing sight and an exhibitionism rationalized. The symbol of the Oblation, though, is something that every UP alumni should be pondering upon.
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Make My Day!

Guys, this is massive!! It's this blog's third week and I'm so excited to tell you that THIS BLOG is nominated as Filipino Blog of the Week! Awesome, awesome!

Now, I'll be needing your help in this. If you are convinced that my blog is worthy of accolade, cast your vote at http://salaswildthoughts.blogspot.com/.

Scroll down the page and on the the right side bar, you'll see the poll. Click on the check box before typicalpinoyuppie (that's this blog) and you are off to make my Christmas merry and bright. ;-)

I appreciate your votes! Thanks so much! Click Here to Read More..

Promdi*

Internet? Are you kidding me?

It was only in my second year in college (I was 18 at that time) when I learned to surf the internet. I entered college with zero knowledge on how to use a computer. I mean ZERO knowledge. Yeah, I'm Tarzan who just had his taste of the city.

I grew up in one of the poorest (they actually say it's the poorest) provinces of the Philippines. My eyes grew in wonder like an awed caveman when I first saw the bright light of an electric bulb when I was 7 years old. I watched my first television show when I was 9. Life was so simple back then. We are way behind the latest technology but we are blessed with natural riches -- fresh clean air, beaches, seafood, and there's a gold mine in our little town

I passed the entrance exam of one of the universities (the BEST they say) in the country so I got to see a more civilized world. Then I have to confront myself of the reality that computer is going to be an important part of my college life. You could imagine the frustration! I didn't even know how to turn it on and off. I used to spend hours and hours of typing just a page of an essay because I didn't know about choosing and adjusting font, doing the margins... you know, those stuff a grade-schooler can chew like a bubble gum. In many instances, I lost my files and start all over again because I didn't know that you actually save them. Yeah, you can call me Tarzan now. Thanks to my kind friends from the small fellowship I was attending that time who taught me how to use Microsoft Office.

Then the internet. I used to just watch my friends do stuff with the computer. Internet is quite a popular word but I'm a complete dumb about it. Then one night, I was quite depressed and I got nothing to talk to. I mustered my strength, gathered all my courage and went off to a computer cafe near the university. Internet here I come... It was just the "e" I thought. That's what my friends usually click! Good thing I can read and I just followed what the screen told me after the clicking the "e". The rest was history.

So yeah, it's a long journey until I learned this blog thing. It's always good to take a pause and look back and see how far you've been. Makes you continue with the journey with a fresh wide eyed anticipation of life's next treats.

By the way, there is still no internet access in our little town. But since the last time I visited, network games (through LAN) like DOTA is becoming the kids' new addiction.



*Promdi is a Filipino slang for people "from the" province.
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So Far So Good

It's barely three weeks after I started my personal blog and I'm happy, thrilled and excited with my progress so far. My sincere appreciation to my visitors and readers. Thanks thanks!

So what's up with the bar graph? (I feel like I'm writing one of those technical reports in my research. Hehe) Alright, that's my Sitemeter statistics from November 28 (when I started this blog) up to December 9. In the recent summary sent to me by Sitemeter, it says that I have an average of 46 readers and an average of 105 page views per day from Nov. 8 up to today. Not bad for a newbie.

So that I'll get noticed, what I did was subscribe to social networks like Blog Catalog, My Bloglog, Twitter, Google Friend Connect and Rejaw (for which I just registered today). For those who wants to add me, my username in all these communities is mand3rd. I also (agressively) promote my blog to my friends in Multiply, Friendster and Facebook.

This blog is also earning pretty well. Just a few dollars (or cents) per day but it's ok. Better than nothing. Hopefully, by January I'll be able to reach Adsense's quota. This is actually my fund raising effort for our church's national conference this coming April.

Don't you think I deserve a pat on the back?
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Happy Birthday Meg

It's my good friend's birthday today and I thought of giving her a little tribute.

That's Meg. I first met her in our church's little old red car. Our "cell" group (that's how we call our small group fellowships in the church) and theirs joined for a little pool party. She was so shy and frail that she almost shrunk when she was introduced to the people inside the car. She hardly talked but she always wear that shy smile.

It took a while before we became "really" friends. Of course it was always me who initiates a greeting every time we would see each other on the street. I would call her "Tipay" then. That's the nick she used in one game that we played during the party.

Nine years after, here we are, really good friends! And her shyness has already "shyed away". She was one of my college crush (or maybe more than that... hahaha!), which she knew. I was so embarrassed when I knew that she knew and I couldn't look at her in the eye (yaiyks! talk about being cheesy)! But we went past that and our friendship now is one that is bound by God's love and "with absolute purity" as said in 1 Timothy 5:2. It's just a blessing, looking back, how God nurtured such a beautiful friendship.

One thing that exudes in Meg, more than the pretty face, is her love for God. She faithfully serves God as a tamborinee in our church and she does it with grace and utmost worship. It was just lately that I discovered how tough a woman she is. Amazing how God changed her from a frail little girl that she was. She has a gargantuan appetite, by the way. She loves to eat and to cook. She loves the camera and the camera likes her, too. Fortunately.

Relationships, like friendship, are among the wonderful things in the world. It's God's gift. In many ways, God shows His love to us by friends who care, laugh, cry and rebukes us.

Dear readers, in case it crosses your minds, she's not my girlfriend. Just pure love for a sister in Christ.



By the way, we have a huge huge collection of pictures together as both of us likes the camera's flash and shutter. It's in here.

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Portable OS?

I'm not a techie person, though I have an adequate (I hope) knowledge about computer and stuff after working as tech support in a call center, but this article caught my attention. An operating system that you can carry around? Awesome! The good thing about this is 1GB flash drive would be enough.

Click this link to guide you through. Screen shots were provided.

Thanks sriraminhell of BlogCatalog. Click Here to Read More..