What I Miss About the 1970’s and the 1990’s

1.       With a salary of 200 php a month, you could already purchase home appliances and furniture sets.

2.       One hundred pesos will have you leaving the supermarket with 2 paper bags full of grocery items.

3.       Bomba films (though I never got to watch any of those starring Rosanna Ortiz, Scarlet, and Stella Suarez)

4.       Afternoon cartoon shows like The Super Friends, Batman and Robin, Superman, Yogi Bear, Shazam, Spy Shadow, the Herculoids, Moby Dick, and Mightor and morning cartoons like Popeye and Gumby and Pokey

5.       Prenoontime shows like Cafeteria Aroma starring Apeng Daldal

6.       The evening radio programs of Johnny de Leon and Ngongo (Ba’ang Ma’amis!), Ben David’s Dr. Horror, radio programs of Inday Badiday, Ike Lozada, Helen Vela, Espie Fabon, Eddie Ilarde, and Eddie Ilagan

7.       Playing “turumpo” , “teks (cards which are like cut up comic strips), “agawang base”, “habulan”, and “taguan”

8.       Racing Popsicle sticks with designs        

9.       Lips and Tweet candies

10.   The slides, swings, and seesaws at the back of the Quirino Grandstand in Luneta Park.

11.   The sight of the double deck buses passing by Rizal Park.

12.   Watching movies at State, Ideal, and Universal theatres along Rizal Avenue or Avenida

13.   Swimming at the beach near Baclaran Church( when it was not yet a reclaimed area)

14.   Real balanced programming of Channels 2, 7 9, and 13 meaning English TV shows are shown along with Filipino shows.

15.   TV shows like Combat, SWAT, Charlie’s Angels, The Twilight Zone, Free Spirit, Alf, the Working Girl, The Champions, UFO, the Gemini Man, Little House on the Prairie, and The Six Million Dollar Man.

16.   Filipino TV comedy shows like Ang Biyenan Kong Mangkukulam, Ginang Milyonarya, Si Tatang Kasi, Si Tatang Sa.., Mana Mana, My Son My Son, John and Marsha, Super Laff-in,  Plaza 1899, Padre de Pamilya, and Kuwentong Kutsero.

17.   Filipino TV suspense shows like Ang Mahiwagang Daigdig ni Doray, Gabi ng Lagim, Limbo, and Malikmata

18.   Filipino action and fantasy TV shows like Ora Engkantada, Monza, and Apollo at Kidlat

19.   Johnny Hero action figure which you can dress up in different sports gear.

20.   The sights and sounds of Quinta market during the Christmas Season.

21.   Jingle Magazine

22.   Big number of bands during the Quiapo Fiesta

23.   Family gathering during the New Year at our home in Mandaluyong

24.   Family excursion and swimming at Pansol, the original resort with red rocks on the bottom of the pool and hot steam at one side of the pool for old people.

25.   Bruce Lee movies

26.   Family gathering in Pakil, Laguna for the Turumba festival.

27.   Going up Mount Ping-as in Pakil, Laguna with my brothers, sister, and cousins and having a picnic at the top of the mountain.

28.   Family Visita Iglesia

29.   Fiesta Carnival

30.   Magnolia ice cream in canisters with dry ice at the bottom

31.   Animated Christmas display at COD and at San Miguel Brewery near Malacanang

32.   Attending the Apalit festival and waiting by the riverside for the image of Apong Iro on a boat to pass by.

33.   TV Times magazine

34.   Buying 45 rpm records

35.   Shell Action Transfers. You rubbed images from sticker sheets onto backgrounds like the sky, the jungle, field ,and battleship

36.   Going with Papa to Avenida to buy new clothes for Christmas

37.   Tagalog comic books like Aliwan, Happy, Pinoy Klasiks, and Wakasan

38.   The skating rink with a lighted globe in its center and the dancing fountains with music at Luneta Park.

39.   Driving my go kart on our driveway.

40.   Clubhouse 9 with Tito Pepe Pimentel on channel 9 and Uncle Bob on channel 7

My First 3K Run

    
    I never really intended to run in a 3k race. Joining the 3k run was wife's idea who suddenly got interested in the sport after finding out that she could jog in spite the fact that she was almost as heavy as I am. I had to thank her doctor for spurring her on to exercise after she underwent a "raspa" operation because the walls of her uterus became too thick which caused her to menstruate heavily. Doc told her to exercise and lose some weight. When my wife decided to get on with her exercise program, we intended to play badminton at the complex of the Rizal Capitol building. After getting off the jeep and crossing the street, we were shocked to see that it had been levelled to the ground. We haven't been to the capitol for quite some time. So what to do? We decided to brisk walk through the Ortigas area. She enjoyed it so much that we resolved to do it every Sunday. We also tried new sites like the newly built park in Ayala in Makati. Walking eventually progressed to jogging and to my surprise, I found out I could run for 1K while listening to my music playing on my MP3 player. I was suprise to hear her say that she would join a 3K race and I thought I was only dreaming.

     And then came October 10, there we were. By the way I was the only one who ran because she wanted to gauge how long 3K was. I was a bit disappointed though because most of the people there, particularly oldies and students taking up NSTP decided to just walk. But nevertheless, it was a wonderful first for me.

     We will be running again in a 3K race sponsored by HSBC. Hope everybody runs.

Waking Up in the Morning Is already a Miracle in Itself

     A lot of people nowadays still look for miracles in order for them to beleive that there really is a God who watches over us. They wish that God would send down manna from heaven, make water spring from a rock, or make fishermen haul in netfuls of fish just like what He did in the stories of the Bible. But don't they realize that God still continues to perform a miracle in a person's life every morning? When you open your eyes every morning, that itself is a miracle because there are a lot of people who don't make it through the night. What else can you ask for?