X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Among the mutants, Wolverine has always been my favorite. When it was adapted on film, I loved Wolverine more. Thanks to Hugh Jackman. Hugh Jackman fits Wolverine to the t.

I watched X-Men Origins: Wolverine just tonight and the anticipation and interest generated by the movie prior to its showing is really well-founded. Hugh Jackman is really a good actor with a body to die for. He IS Wolverine. He was able to show Wolverine’s rage, independent spirit, athleticism and even his gentle side.

The action scenes are quite awesome and I can really symphatize with Hugh’s despair and frustration when the work print of the said movie leaked days before the showing date because the movie is really quite good. So, for this Labor day holiday weekend. Get on and check out the movie. It is really worth watching.

Litratong Pinoy#48 Tulay(Bridge)

This is the wooden bridge/walkway in Cloud 9, Siargao Island. It is usually used by surfers to get near the sea especially during low tides. Last 2004, it was heavily destroyed by big and strong waves, it has to be repaired and replaced with more durable wood materials.

Cloud 9 is a well-known place in Siargao Island for its thick and hollow waves that is known to be one of the most difficult waves to ride for surfers. This place is a favorite destination among foreign surfers.
Pilipino: Ito ay ang tulay na kahoy ng Cloud 9, Siargao Island. Ginagamit ito ng mga surfer para mapalapit sa dagat lalo na tuwing pagbaba o pagkati ng tubig. Noong 2004, ito ay malubhang sinira ng malalakas at malalaking alon na kinailangang palitan ng mga mas matitibay na kahoy.

Ang Cloud 9 ay isang kilalang lugar sa isla ng Siargao dahil sa kanyang makapal at hungkag na alon na sinasabing isa sa pinakamahirap masakyang alon ng mga surfers. Ang lugar na ito ay paboritong bisitahin ng mga banyagang surfers.

Let Us Unite Against Hunger

I have seen and experienced poverty first hand. Not surprising because I live in a country where the disparity between the middle-income family and the lower-income family is so extreme, it is mind-boggling.

While I experienced hardships at a young age, my parents made sure that meals on our table were there three times a day which was why it was so hard for me to understand what I saw firsthand during one of my school’s exposure activities in college.

We visited a house near our school that was being run by the Missionaries of Charity. At that time, adults occupied the first level of the house and children occupied the second level. We were assigned to visit the second level of that house. Cribs of different sizes occupy almost the entire second level. The bigger of the two rooms had big cribs that several toddlers and babies occupied.

The smaller room was where I saw something that was heartbreaking, gut-wrenching sight of children left by their parents to the care of the nuns. Children who were so undernourished their extremities looked like sticks sticking out of their bodies, children whose eyes were almost sticking out of their sockets but cannot properly see because they went blind and could just stare unseeing at the space, children who cannot hear the music from the playing radio inside their room because they got deaf due to constant lack of food, children that should have been running and playing around but could not stand on their own because their bones could not support them and children whose physical appearance were that of a one year old baby but were actually around 6-8 years old. Children who were too undernourished that the effects of malnutrition, like getting blind and/or deaf, cannot be reversed and will remain with them for the rest of their lives.

I could go on and on but one thing is for sure, those children do not deserve to suffer and to be perennially hungry, to get really sick due to severe undernourishment because in some places I have seen food that were overflowing, I have seen people wasting food and throwing them nonchalantly.

The nuns at the Missionaries of Charity and other organizations addressing this problem can only do what they can but we really should do our share. Reach out to the nearest person especially child who is suffering from hunger and poverty. Share what you have. Do not waste because for each morsel of food wasted, it could actually feed others. If you want to help but do not know where to start, check out your church, local health offices or even the online sites like: www.freerice.com, www.thehungersite.com, www.heifer.org.

Even a little help could really go a long way, let us start now.

Twilight Saga: The Wolf Pack of New Moon

I am a big fan of the Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer and I am excitedly waiting for the next movie installment that shall be shown sometime November 2009. Recently chosen for New Moon’s wolf gang pack were Chaske Spencer, Alex Meraz, Kiowa Gordon and Bronson Pelletier plus of course, Taylor Lautner. Kiowa, 19, makes his film debut as Embry Call. . Bronson, 23, plays joker Jared, and has appeared on Canadian television. Alex, 24, plays shape-shifter Paul. Chaske, 34, plays Sam Uley, and has appeared on stage and screen.

Major requirement for the role as part of the wolf pack is they have to have Native American heritage and should have the paper to prove their heritage. Of course, they have to be in good physical shape for their role as wolves and last but not the least, they have to be able to work half-naked even in the chilly Vancouver weather where they would be working on location.

Swine Flu, Pandemic Potential?

I was listening to the TV news while blogging tonight when the swine flu news caught my attention. According to the report, there are already 81 people in Mexico who died of swine influenza virus. The scarier thing is the swine flu that is affecting Mexico and parts of USA have the pandemic potential according to the news.

In the Philippines, airports now are being closely monitored but it is not really such an assurance for me because our country being an archipelago, people can come and go almost undetected. People are now being encouraged to be more vigilant and to be more careful with their health.

Let us just pray that this disease shall be contained soonest to prevent it from spreading further

PhotoHunt#27 Protect(ion)

Under protection by law as it is considered endangered, the Philippine Tarsier is commonly found in the southeastern part of the Philippines. It measures about 4 to 6 inches in height. Its eyes are fixed in its skull and its head can rotate at 180 degrees. The tarsier is considered to be the mammal with the biggest eyes. It is gentle, nocturnal, quite shy and solitary.

We took these tarsiers’pictures at the Loboc, Bohol’s Tarsier Sanctuary captive display a few years ago. In the so called sanctuary, caged tourist viewing sites can provide visitors to see up close and interact with these mammals.

I was actually surprised and worried to see them on display as tarsiers rest during the day and are only active by night to hunt for food. To have them caged and in close interaction with humans caused undue stress and disrupted their nocturnal lifestyle. As locals have said, these tiny mammals could actually commit suicide by banging their heads on their cages and/or by stop eating altogether.

I was really relieved and happy to hear that recently, the local government of Bohol has prohibited the possession and display of tarsiers in the towns of Loay and Loboc. I really hope this law is being implemented properly and judiciously as these tiny mammals are not meant to be pets and should be left alone in their natural habitat.

This is my entry for:

For more photohunters, go here.

Back to Running

I am just pleased with myself today . I ran for about 1.5 kilometer today and it was my 3rd time for this week. It was a modest comeback but I am happy with my achievement considering that I have a love-hate relationship with running/jogging. Yes, running is part of my routine when I do boxing or tennis or some other activities but to do it exclusively, it was hard for me. My target for this week was to do a total of 5-km on weekdays but I feel good today even if I did not reach that target.

I was quite an active child and I preferred running when going from point A to B; but when it comes to running/jogging as a sports or discipline, I would rather do other things. For me back then, running/jogging is like pulling teeth manually by myself. Painful and unnecessary.

Last year, i started joining our club's running club and even bought the club's jersey to get serious with running. The jersey remained unused until now . I did start to run late last year until a lump poked out on my left ankle early this year that forced me to stop. It was only just last month that I started testing myself again. Ugh! It was torture at first and could hardly reach one kilometer per run. But this week, I feel good enough to go straight pushing for 1-km per run in addition to my cardio routine (boxing and/or group exercise program) or weights program. I am challenging myself to reach the 5-km target for the weekdays. Let's see if I can do it this coming days.

Litratong Pinoy#47 Gusali(Building)

This is the white island in Camiguin as seen from Mt. Hibok-hibok. It is usually shaped "C" on high tides and S-shaped or E-shaped on low tides.

Pilipino: Eto ang puting isla na nasa Camiguin habang nakikita galing sa Mt. Hibok-hibok. Karaniwang korteng "C" ito kapag mataas ang tubig at korteng "S" o "E" kapag panahon ng pagkati o pagbaba ng tubig.


Except for the floating huts like the one above, this island has no other buildings.

Pilipino: Maliban sa mga nakalutang na kubo gaya nang nasa itaas, ang islang ito ay walang nakatayong gusali.

Clean with spectacular views, this is a favorite destination for locals and tourists for bathing and picture taking.

Pilipino: Malinis at may napakagandang mga tanawin, paborito itong puntahan ng mga lokal at turista para paliguan at kuhanan ng litrato.

Let Us Help Save Mother Earth

The Earth is the only place we have and yet, we abused and still abusing it relentlessly for so long now. There are now indications that our Earth is having a hard time coping with overpopulation, air and water pollution, overfishing, extensive and unmonitored usage and dumping of toxic chemicals, and a whole lot more abuses.

If we do not take action in preventing and reversing the effect of our abuses to the Earth, the future generation will not have something to live on.

April 22 is the beginning of Green Generation Campaign. This two-year initiative will culminate with the 40th anniversary of Earth Day in 2010. With negotiations for a new global climate agreement coming up in December, Earth Day 2009 must be a day of action and civic participation, to defend the Green Generation’s core principles: Family with windmills: Renewable energy for future generations.

I am, therefore, enjoining everybody to start doing things even the smallest ones that could help lighten the load of Mother Earth. Recycle, reuse, reduce. Plant some trees (I did that 2 years in a row now). Walk if you can or go into carpool to reduce gas emission. Teach your children and be a role model in doing these things because it is so much easier to teach children especially if they have role models to emulate on.

To get you all thinking, here is a list of the life span of commonly discarded litter I saw from http://www.dot.state.pa.us/Internet/pdkids...istics?OpenForm

Glass Bottle ------- Approximately 1 Million Years
Plastic 6-Pack Collar ------- 450 Years
Aluminum Can ------- 200 – 500 Years
Plastic Jug ------- 70 Years
Rubber Boot Sole ------- 50 – 80 Years
Steel Cans ------- 50 Years
Leather ------- Up To 50 Years
Nylon Fabric ------- 30 – 40 Years
Plastic Film Canister ------- 20 – 30 Years
Painted Wooden Stake ------- 13 Years
Degradable Plastic Bag ------- 10 – 20 Years
Disposable Diapers ------- 10 – 20 Years
Wool Clothing ------- One – Five Years
Cigarette Butt ------- One – Five Years
Cotton Rag ------- One – Five Months
Orange Peel/Banana Peel ------- Two – Five Weeks
Piece Of Paper ------- Two – Four Weeks
Traffic Tickets ------- Two – Four Weeks
Rolled Newspaper ------- Two – Six Weeks
Candy Wrapper ------- One – Three Months
Rope ------- Three – 14 Months

Let us help save Mother Earth!

International Bloggers Community Tag

Thank you for this tag, Junelle.

The rules are as follows:

1. Link the person who tagged you.

2. Copy the image above, the rules and the questionnaire in this post.

3. Post this in one or all of your blogs.

4. Answer the four questions following these Rules.

5. Recruit at least seven (7) friends on your Blog Roll by sharing this with them.

6. Come back to BLoGGiSTa iNFo CoRNeR (PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE THIS LINK) at http://bloggistame.blogspot.com and leave the URL of your Post in order for you/your Blog to be added to the Master List.

7. Have Fun!

Questions and My Answers:

1. The person who tagged you: Junelle
2. His/Her site's title and url: Nellypie's Chatterbox
3. Date When Your were Tagged: April 19, 2009
4. Persons you tagged:

Alf, Earthlingorgeous, Janeth Vicy, Juliana's Pinaywahm, Sunnysideup, Ylan, Zeb

PhotoHunt#26 Purple

The sky looks so purple in this picture taken at Siargao island, Surigao, Philippines. That is not the sun but the full moon at dawn. The picture was taken while we were on a ferry on our way to the mainland.

On the other side of the full moon is this purplish sky covering the port of Dapa in Siargao, Surigao.

This is my entry for:

For more photohunters, go here.

The Amazing Susan Boyle

I have seen and heard Lea Salonga sang I Dreamed A Dream. I have always find the song beautiful. However, when I saw Susan Boyle sang the same song at the Britain’s Got Talent, I was flabbergasted.

With her simple looks and unassuming ways, one would not know that Susan Boyle could really sing beautifully. So much so that looking at Simon Cowell’s reaction was a priceless thing to see.

My first reaction upon seeing Susan Boyle getting interviewed prior to her amazing performance was she was just the female version of American Idol’s William Hung. Happily, she proved me and everyone quite wrong with her jaw-dropping performance. Right now, Ms. Boyle is enjoying immense popularity in the internet especially on youtube. Her previous recording of a cover song entitled Cry Me A River has been dug up and I tell you, it’s another beautiful rendition from the now famous Ms. Boyle, go here..

I Cannot Sign In To My Blog

Finally! I have been trying to access my blogger accounts earlier and I could not. I already checked and followed blogger's help options but still, nothing happened. I cleared my cookies, caches, restarted my computer twice. Argggh!! that got me worried and it is a good thing that after several tries, I got in. Now, let me start updating this blog in a few minutes..be right back.

Litratong Pinoy#46 Hardin (Garden)

We spent our first night in Camiguin the other week at Enigmata. Enigmata is a well-known hostel in Camiguin. It is a unique place because not only because it is a treehouse hostel but also of its artistic objects that you can find around the place.

Upon entering the place, you will see their garden that is full of plants and big trees. I will not be surprised if Tarzan will suddenly appear swinging among the vines with Jane.

Pilipino: Unang gabi namin sa Camiguin noong isang linggo, sa Enigmata kami tumuloy. Ang Enigmata ay isang kilalang hostel na nasa Camiguin. Kakaiba ang lugar dahil hindi lang sa bahay-puno pati narin sa mga likhang makasining na makikita sa iba't ibang panig nito.

Pagpasok mo pa lang, tatambad ang kanilang hardin na punung-puno ng iba't ibang klase ng tanim at naglalakihang puno. Hindi ako magtataka kung biglang susulpot si Tarzan kasama si Jane na palipat-palipat sa mga baging .

There are unique artistic items in the garden like this giant wormy thing.
Pilipino: Meron pang mga kakaibang makasining na mga bagay sa hardin gaya nitong higanteng mala-bulate.

Here is another one..they have this guy who is comfortably resting with his back on a smiling crocodile.
Pilipino: Eto pa ang isa..may lalaking nagpapahinga at nakasandal pa sa isang nakangiting buwaya.

All in all, Enigmata was fun. What they need to do is spruce it up and clean up more the surroundings.
Pilipino: Sa kalahatan, nakakatuwa ang Enigmata. Kailangan lang sana nilang mas ayusin at linisin ang kapaligiran nito.

Happy Christ’s Resurrection Day!

taken from: Via Cruces, Old Vulcan, Camiguin Island

PhotoHunt#25 Triangle

This is the chapel of the Benedictine Monastery of the Transfiguration located in Malaybalay, Bukidnon. It was designed by the National Artist of the Philippines for Architecture Leandro V. Locsin. The monastery is situated atop a hill overlooking the mountains and valleys of Bukidnon Province.

This is my entry for:

For more photohunters, go here.

Went Hiking In Old Vulcan, Camiguin

I really need some good massage right now. My body took a lot of beating today. First, I did not get some sleep last night as we travelled from Davao to Cagayan via Bukidnon. When we arrived in Camiguin, we immediately went sightseeing and did some hiking in Old Vulcan, Camiguin. It was supposed to be done later today when it was cooler but we decided to do it earlier.

Unfortunately, we did it at high noon and it got more tiring for me because I was only wearing slippers as we went up the mountain to do the Way of the Cross. I was actually wishing I wore some comfort shoes as my feet were really hurting and burning from the heat.

One of our friends who is not used to any physical activities wondered if his Ugg Boots will help his feet feel better. We actually thought he would pass out as he was really breathless while we were hiking up the mountain. It was a good thing that the hike going down was easier.

After we did our hike, we had our lunch and went to the Sto. Nino Cold Spring afterwards. This spring is government-run and is a quite popular destination not only by the tourists but also by the locals. I had a cold shock when I got in the pool as it was really, really icy cold. We ended up huddled and shivering together in our corner of the spring pool.

Afterwards, we went to the Sunken Cemetery and the Gui-ob Ruins. We wrapped our day with a soak in the Ardent Hibok-hibok Hot Spring before dinner. This one gave much relief to our tired muscles but it made me feel so sleepy.

Tomorrow, we shall be doing some more sightseeing around Camiguin Island. I will keep you posted as soon as I can. Meantime, off I go to a much needed rest.

Litratong Pinoy#45 Paboritong Litrato (Favorite Picture)

Marami akong paboritong litrato kaya hirap na hirap akong mamili para sa tema ng Litratong Pinoy ngayong linggo. Karamihan sa mga litratong gustung-gusto ko ay iyong mga kinunan sa Pilipinas gaya ng Batanes, Siargao,Ilocos, Palawan at marami pang iba. Pero dahil kailangang mamili, eto na:

Translation:
I have many favorite pictures and it has been so difficult for me to choose for the Litratong Pinoy theme this week. Most of the pictures that I truly like are the ones that were taken in the Philippines like Batanes, Siargao,Ilocos, Palawan and etc. But I have to choose, so here it is:

Takipsilim sa Panglao, Bohol (Sunset in Panglao, Bohol)

Malaking Lawa ng Miniloc, El Nido,Palawan (Big Lagoon of Miniloc, El Nido, Palawan)
Kuha ito ng kaibigan naming si Zaldy habang abala kami sa pagkakayak sa malapit (This was taken by our friend, Zaldy, while we were busy kayaking somewhere nearby).