Heard yesterday from the president that the company will be closing its california location in 9 to 12 months. Not totally unexpected, but depressing as well. But before all that, there will be an upramp of production. I wonder how that will go. It will be difficult I believe.

So I'm watching some cop show. What do they do? They are doing a sting on prostitution. The bad part is that the undercover officer is really cute. Jeez, if they are that cute, what can a horny old guy do? Nothing much but ask her for sex. Hey, it was only $20. What is that? Three hours in McDonalds? If I were a fifty year old ugly m*therf*cker, and I was taking care of a pscyho momma like this guy is, why wouldn't I take her up on her offer? Why don't she want a ride?

I'm surprised that $20 will buy you something. Damn, it's depressing in the east and midwest. Shiyet. $20 will buy you something.

Part 2:

Tatang: And welcome back to the fanciest, the schmasiest and bestest talk show on blogland! Tonight we have an interview with the current Prez of the US of A, President Bush the Younger!



Tatang: Welcome to the cyberadobehouse President Bush the Younger. Tell me, does it bother you when I call you the Younger?

Bush the Y: Actually no. I am pretty laidback. Give me some chicharon and some beer and we can bring it on to Iraq.

Tatang: Oh, how about Iraq? We finally killed the sons of Saddam. How are we doing in trying to get the main enchilada?

Bush the Y: I have raised the price on his head from $10 million to $25 million. After all, if the CIA and FBI can not find him, some other poor guy will try to get the $25 million. Look at what happened to Ude and Bude. We got them and it only cost the US $5 million a piece.

Tatang: Now some would say that we would be better off if we spent that money here in the US. How do you respond to that?

Bush the Y: Screw the US!!! DO you know how long Saddam has bugged my family? Ever since Bush the Y was palling around with him in my pappy's spook career! My pappy knew he was bad. My pappy tried to get him. He still cries about not getting Saddam. That's why I figured, I will get Saddam for pappy. It's pappy's Christmas gift this year. The head of Saddam.

Tatang: I see. But how about this weapons of mass destruction? What's the story on that?

Bush the Y: Well, you see, I had to tell the world something; otherwise, I can't just invade the Iraq! Condeleeza won't let me! Nor would Colin Powell!

Tatang: And how is Colin Powell?

Bush the Y: Well ever since he's joined my cabinet, he's like a dog whose been neutered. Bwahahahahhahah.

Tatang: We'll take a break.

I'm sure everyone has heard of the shooting in New York where a councilman was killed by one of his challengers in an upcoming election. There are interesting threads about it. Lies, deceit, blackmail and death definitely make a good story.

In the twisted world of politics, Mr. Davis usually asked and placated his defeated rivals by giving them an opportunity to become his allies. This is what seems to have happened to Mr. Askew (NY Times). He had been seen around Mr. Davis.

Before that though, Mr. Davis played hardball with Mr. Askew. He suggested that Mr. Askew quit or certain private things would be revealed such as the homosexuality of Mr. Davis and previous misdemeanors in the streets of New York. Apparently, this is acceptable politics in Brooklyn (NY Times). How bizarre!!! I always thought that you allowed everyone else to run against you and you treated them with respect. There goes another mirror in my life crashing and breaking into a thousand different pieces.

It is odd that one would poke, prod, threaten and corner an opponent and then try to give them food and shelter after having defeated them. From what I can gather, natural selection got Mr. Davis. He underestimated the ability and insanity of Mr. Askew and now, both are dead. I can only look at the situation and hope that a better candidate will ascend to the councilman's chair.

I hate those f*cking Democrats. They are such f*cking wimps. They could not find one mean body in their body if they needed it. Does anyone believe Bush that they made a mistake about weapons of mass destruction? You mean to say that Bush included inaccurate information in his speech without him knowing it? Yeah right.

This thing smells to high heavens. But do you see any Democrat willing to crucify Bush? Jesus f&cking Christ. The Republicans crucified Clinton for a blowjob. I guess it's okay to lie about a war, but blowjobs are a no-no. If the Democrats ever get brass balls, Bush will not be back as president.

Just use his line…Are you better off now than you were four years ago? With the recession, the answer will be simple. Heck, run an ad about Bush Sr. ten years ago giving us a recession. His son Bush Jr. gave us another recession. Do you really want him to get another term at the helm?

But look at this guy. This guy is not that great of a manager. You don't hear jack crap from the White House about how Bush lied. It's always blame someone else lower. Jeez, what a president. As Jon Carrol said, the buck stops nowhere with Bush. There, that's another motto to run for those against Bush.

And don't get me started on those fucking Nader voters. Yes, I despise them more than I hate the Democrats. Fucking Nader. Fucking protests vote my ass. Do you really think Bush is better than Al Gore? Then go back to smoking your fucking joint.

Work this week has been rather draining. One of the new hires which was expected to train and help people are not working out. So much so that I have had to ask the manager what she thinks about the new hire. The challenge is that the smooth working of the group is affected tremendously by someone who can not focus.

Ah yes, focus. I thought that focus was a simple thing to do. Apparently, a lot of people out there are not into this focus thing. How else to explain the simple mistakes they are doing? Ahh, it is not good to bring work stuff home. I have to let it go.

Last night's dinner was KFC. However, the SO took the other chicken thigh. You know, I love her because I gave her the chicken. I care for her so much that I would give her my food. I don't know, maybe having kids will not be a good thing. I will probably be willing to give them food too. Wow, I might have to settle for macaroni and cheese instead of chicken wings. Crap! I hope my children will not be gluttons. Bwahahahhaha.

I can finally pay off the visa bill completely. Wow, it only took me five years to completely pay it off and control myself. The visa card now has a rubber band around it so that it reminds me to ask if using it is absolutely necessary. I had to because I ended up spending over $600 in a month. That is a lot of money I would rather keep than spend. And what do I buy? It's silly stuff that I don't need or I desire for that one moment. As soon as I get home though, I regret it.

Hmm, had an argument with one of the co-workers yesterday. What I believe happened is that he was transferring his anger to me. Apparently, he had a bad day with one of the people I work with shouting at him. I used the methods of TOC (theory of constraint) as applied to resolving personal issues. The methodology allowed me to analyze the problem. It led me to believe that the resolution of the problem was not within my sphere of influence.

Sally who is one of the prime pillars of the company I work for (let's call it STD) has decided to leave. It makes it hard for finance to take because Sue's job function is tied so much to the finance department. I briefly thought about going for the position, but decided against it. I am not into trying to learn Expandable 2.0 when the current Expandable is at something like 5.0.

More drama. On the previous day, Vangie one of the finance people made a remark very loudly about one of the people at work always working at home. I did not have control of my tongue and I ended up saying some very truthful opinions. Suffice it to say, I had to speak with the person who overheard. I personally hold that whatever I say to the back of the people, I can also say to their face. I believe that there can be two fronts to it. Both of my fronts are the same.

Maybe I should call some other people.

Today was an excellent day. It was the day in which I had to let go of a lot of things from the past. Garage sale folks! But you are not here to hear about my garage sale experience, are you? Nope. You are here to bask in the glory that is food. Food, I haven't written about it in a while even though I have been eating some of the best. Just remember, each time you dine, you must savor the moment. SAVOR the moment.

So, my friend's mom made the classic LUGAW, or as other Asians know it, overboiled rice (jook comes to mind). But, being Pin@y, certain things were added as extras such as sliced pieces of chicken thigh, whole boiled eggs (the good kind and not the one with the nasty green ring due to iron sulfide), garlic and saffron. The lugaw was heavenly. Hey, it was a meal by itself!

The second course was spaghetti made the Pin@y way. This means Vienna sausages straight from the can, tomato sauce sweetened by sugar, and cheese. Yum, yum, yum!!!!

We also had lumpia which contained tuna instead of the usual beef and also contained raisins and corn. Another set of lumpia had the traditional pork stuffing. I believe this particular type of lumpia is called lumpiang Shanghai.

But when the lugaw contians hard-boiled eggs, nothing can top that off. Unless of course dinner comes rolling around. And it is now 7:30 so dinner is right around the corner.

REtongBulalakaw

Session three
Three hours of uncluttering my bedroom has passed. I have seen lost shorts, unused shirts and memories of the past well up. I have had to make strong decisions on whether or not I have to sell or let go of something. Some are reasonably easy to let go. For example, anything associated with graduate school was let go. That includes data for all the experiments I had. Others are not so easy. Clothes that my mother bought me for instance makes me suddenly sad. I miss her.

I suppose this is all the more the reason to let go of the physical so that I can savor the memories and not be sad at missing her. Odd that when you remember someone who has passed away, you might remember the good things and feel happy. On the other hand, when you hold something that they physically bought for you, you feel the emotional loss.

I hang onto these physical, material objects with the hope of bringing back the memory and the moment. Why do I do that? At any instance, I can remember my mother. I don't have to remember her in her physical decline. I can remember her as a sweet, charming, funny, aggressive, principled, tolerating and smiling person. Each time I see an old Pin@y walking down the street, I feel like speaking to them. Trying to know them as individuals, but knowing that what I am looking for is a connection to a mother who has passed away. I have stacks of tapes that contain her voice. I hold on so that my children can hear her voice. Is that morbid? To wish that your children can hear the voice of your mother?

In the end, I know that in order for new lives to enter my life, I must physically let go of these things. In my closet, I have a whole bag of clothes which my mother bought me. I do not have the physical courage to open it. I am reduced to near tears by an unopened bag of clothing from fifteen years ago.

Am watching Martin Yan of Yan Can Cook. Did you know that he started his own chain of restaurants. As a capitalist, I have to applaud Martin Yan. He has expanded his image and leveraged it to acquire new business opportunities. It is a great achievement in capitalism.

Some of my co-workers mentioned that Martin Yan uses a fake accent. Mr. Yan supposedly attended UC Davis with a major in food science. He uses his accent to make the show more authentic.

Initially, I was offended that someone would use a Chinese accent to be more accepted in the white dominant hegemony. My objection comes from the differentiation of the other from the dominant majority. However, why shouldn't Martin Yan use his accent? Don't we know of numerous French chefs who are less famous than Yan who use their accent to make an illusion of class? Yan uses his accent to further promote his show's acceptance into the dominant hegemony. Good for him. God Bless Martin Yan. God Bless America, and Nowhere Else.

Give me soybean or give me tofu!!!

Wow, talk about amazing. I have lost an additional two pounds the last two weeks. Although now that I think about it, it is probably muscle that I lost. Crap. At any rate, I was saying that I have been watching what I eat. Bread, olives, and cheese are the food that I eat. I just weighed myself and found it to be 192. Hmm, I better go to the gym later tonight to make sure that I don't lose too much muscle mass. After all, I have the body of a god... BUDDHA!!!

I always wondered how people ate so much bread. I mean, the loaves in the stores are huge. If you are alone, what do you do to the bread? In college, I used to place them in foil and hope they don't dry out. Guess what Sherlock... the refrigerator preserves material by drying it out!!!

This year, I began to steam bread without conciously knowing about it. My oven is on the fritz and has been since I tried to clean the damned thing four years ago. Crap, this is why I hate cleaning. Something usually breaks. I hate that. I hate it more that I would have to ask someone I don't know into my abode, my fortress of solitude, my home of contemplation.

The SO however has given me the power of steam. She bought me a Chinese bamboo steamer. You gotta love the innovation of the human mind. Use bamboo to steam material. Excellent!!!

So I am even now become more of a steamer. Two day old naan from an Indian restaurant? No problem. Place it in the steamer and it will be soft and delicious in ten minutes.

I have drastically reduced my intake of meat. Hell, I don't even have any chicken or pork in the refrigerator unless I go to a restaurant. It's nice to be slim. I don't do it for the looks. I do it for the longterm benefits on health. I want to live!!!

I was walking in Stonestown Galleria last night. The walk emphasized to me in much more realistic terms how old I have gotten. Teen-agers look like ten year olds. I shake my head at how fast time has passed on by. I try to savor each day. I thank God for the beauty and the opportunity of living each day.

As I was walking, I also saw just how much the stores are geared towards satisfying the desire of the consumer. It was amazing. They have stores to cater to five to seven year olds. The Gap and all those other stores were basically set up for teen-agers to give up their money to. God Bless America and Nowhere Else!!!

I ended up going to Borders Books. I bought a Tom Clancy book and this book Clear your clutter with feng shui by Karen Kingston. What can I say? I enjoy techno thrillers. Although, I was also looking for mage and magic stories at another bookstore called "The other change of hobbit."

The clutter book is to allow me to let go of things and process who I am the last few years. I have been holding onto so many mementos that I guess I am stuck. It's time to let go. I fear of letting go because I think that then I will not know who I am. Perhaps, it is time to think that who I am depends on what I do from now on? I have to find things for the garage sale.

Music recommendation tim. Vic Chestnut. I saw his performance in David Letterman's show. I was intrigued because he was in a wheelchair. Yet, he sang with such passion that I was pulled in. I thought it was remarkable that this person could reach this height of performance though he was disabled.

The song Band Camp is what drew me to him. It sounded like a song by Natalie Merchant. But then I found that the other songs were not really of that ilk. Maybe I will get to like them once I listen to them. I obtained the CDs Silver Lake and left to his own devices. For some reason, his latest cd of silver lake does not play in my computer's cd player. bummer.

Second topic:

A friend told me that she worked in Costco's optical section. She told me that private opticians raise the prices of glasses by two to three times. Glasses at Costco cost $65. Wow, and here I am ready to plop $230 for just the frames. I guess I have to visit Costco's optical section. The money I save, I'll just put forward to paying the VISA bill.

It's amazing how much the markup is on glasses. Damn, I'm impressed with the rates. I saw some Flexon glasses and they were originally priced at $150-$170. When SiteForSoreEyes repriced it, it went to $300. One hundred percent profit. If that is not capitalism, I don't know what.

I'm interested in buying some Marchon glasses. Apparently they make the glasses for Calvin Klein. Since I have never gone for the trend, I hope to buy some glasses that don't have the CK insignia. The last thing I want to be is to become a billboard or a trend following fiend.

My friend also asked why I wear large glasses. She commented that I looked older. I guess I want to maintain my ability to be intimidating with the large glasses. People have to take me seriously. That way, when I try something funny, they don't expect it.

11 July 2003

The moon is described as waxing gibbous by the Mac application Moondock. The moon is 97% visible in the sky. It winks at me from the skye. Hiding its left side, the moon is bright tonight. It will be larger and bigger tomorrow.

Perhaps the moon has made me more philosophical tonight. But I find myself blogging after taking a break for about two weeks or so. I went to Sinugba in Daly City and dined on the Pusitsilog breakfast dish. As always, the dish was great comfort food. Grilled squids as large as your fingers, two eggs looking like the sun, rice topped with fried garlic. Only Filipino will eat fried rice and meat for breakfast. I blame the heat of the Philippine day for forcing Pin@ys to develop the breakfast of athletes. One needs the extra carbohydrate load of rice because of the heat in the Philippines. Otherwise, you will pass out in the jeepney ride on the way to work.

If you think about it, there is a constant stream of food being served into the caverns of Pin@y stomachs. Again, it is probably to combat the burning gaze of the sun. Feeling tired? How about some pan de sal? Feeling hot? How about hopia? Feeling hungry? Time for lunch. Lethargy setting in? Have some champurado for merienda. Got home from school or work? Have a snack. The sun just set? It's time for dinner. With enough carbohydrates, you too can become Pin@y. Heart disease and diabetes, anyone? Anyone?

An acquaintance Darlene is going to the Philippines on Sunday. Darlene's extremely excited about the trip. She was vibrating while we ate dinner. I wished her luck on her trip. She asked why I never went back. I replied that it was interesting to me how Pin@y-Americans and even some older Pin@ys always enjoyed going back. I personally felt that a certain part of innocence will die once you see the extreme poverty in the Philippines. I don't think I could face it again. I can't help being a coward. I guess for me, it is better than being someone who ignores it. Of course, as I walk everyday, I see the poverty here too. I don't do anything to ameliorate the situation. Damn, I'm a double coward.

Actually, I do act on poverty. I try not to give money to chronic panhandlers. After all, I figure that decisions led to each person's situation. They got to that point, it is up to them to get out of it. I have to believe in the general abilities of people to get themselves out of the situation that they fall into. I can because my family did it. Of course, it had to be my parents who sacrificed their lives. But in the end, each life must have sacrifices.

I made a deal with Darlene. Videotape your Philippine adventure and give me a copy of the video, and I buy dinner. Not a bad deal for her. Not a bad deal for me. She had the bangus, I get to see the good old motherland with its searing heat.

It's been a while. Sorry for not being here, but I've been under the weather and been coughing a lot. I did not want you to get infected.

Work has been difficult this time because two of the techs I work with are on vacation. One is actually rehabilitating from surgery. So lots of the job goes to me.

Has anyone here seen Charlie's Angel? Can you tell me why Lucy Liu is so cute? Forget Drew Barrymore and the other one, I'm all agag over Lucy. And I can't figure out why.