babangon ako

     naitanong ko sa sarili ko, at sinikap kong sagutin: pano babangon ang mga nasalanta ng yolanda?  sumulat ako ng isang awit kung saan sinikap kong bigyang katugunan ang pagtatanong ng isipan ko: simpleng alay ko sa mga sumapit ng kalunos-lunos na trahedya.  paglalarawan din ito ng sinapit ng mahal nating bansa.    

pasakalye: C-

C              Em

   "saan ka  pupunta
F                             C

   kung walang mapupuntahan?
E7                   Am

   saan mo hahanapin
             F       D7         G7

ang pag-asa ng    kinabukasan?"

C            Em

   ako ay nagising
F                          C

   sa masamang panaginip
E7                     Am

   wala akong makita

              F   D7                G7 
kundi pinsala    sa aking paligid!

C                 Em

   ako ay nag-iisa
F                              C

   wala kahit isang pamilya

E7               Am 
   ano ang gagawin?ha - 
   F                D7              G7

ayaw ko na'ng    mabuhay pa!


koro:

Am                     D7

      baba - ngon ako!
Am                       D7

      haha - napin ko ang daan
Am                 D7

      lala - kad ako!
Am                                    D7 

      haha - nggang aking matagpuan
      F                Em       F                G7

ang bagong pag-asa ng aking kinabukasan

(ulitin ang koro:)
(gawin ang pasakalye:)


C                   Em

   salamat sa inyo
F                  C

   lahat ng kaibigan ko

E7                         Am
   di nyo ako pinabayaan
     F            D7                  G7

maraming salamat sa tulong nyo!

C                  Em
   ako ay nag-iisa
F                             C

   wala kahit isang pamilya

E7                Am
   ngunit nasisilayan ko na

   F          D7                  G7     
liwanag ng    bagong pag-asa!

(ulitin ang koro: 2 beses hanggang maglaho)

yolanda

     

     time stands still in tacloban, and elsewhere where the unforgiving fury of "yolanda" was unleashed.  O, what a regal name - yolanda - for such a cold-hearted warrior who dashed both children and elderly alike to the ground with no remorse!  i witness the aftermath, the devastation.  i witness the howling tempest of "yolanda" only through the news channels and facebook, only days after the cataclysm.  i wasn't there myself.

     i grew up in a flood prone area in manila: as a kid, i played in the flooded street of maria clara in sampaloc along with my friends.  i recall my friends and i taking a detached roof of a jeepney and turning it upside-down into a boat, we frolicked through the floods.  typhoons, super typhoons and floods were part of my normal life.  they come, they go: i lived with that, i took that for granted.

     rumbles, brawls and word arguments escalating into fisticuffs were also commonplace in the streets where i grew up.  they were also part of my normal life, growing up in that area; though i was never a part of any of the violence, i was an "uzi" to all the rough and tumble: my blood rushes through my veins in excitement when i watch trouble brewing.  i smile at the storm.

     with this frame of mind, had i been in any of the sorry places where "yolanda" wielded her contemptuous sword, i might have become a casualty: dead.  i would probably have been curious as to what a storm surge was and waited until the last moment on the shore when i saw the water bulge and swell before i ran to higher ground - if i had earlier thought of that escape plan - like the man i saw on the video who got chased by the storm surge and ran as fast as he could and jumped to the trunk of a nearby tree.  i don't know if he escaped the mini-tsunami: the video was cut after he leaped to the tree trunk.

     probably like many others, i would have told my wife and kids that our house was strong enough to withstand a typhoon, or for that matter, a super-typhoon: we've been through hundreds of that.  i would have awakened jaded and distraught, or would not have awakened at all: dead.

     the worst that have hit us of recent years was the "habagat" - in fact, both "habagat" of august 2012 and 2103.  but the worst part of it was that the flood waters have gone into our house and inundated the back rooms and both bedrooms... ankle-deep!  would we have been hit by a super typhoon of "yolanda's" ferocity, (i have no doubt) our roof would fly off our house in a huff and every item inside our house fly off with a puff, and we would end up all wet, bruised and wounded, fearful and tearful, jaded and distraught: or dead. 

     where would the poor fisherfolk that lived near the shorelines have gone to evacuate?  the fish ball vendor?  i suppose nowhere safe from the cruel screaming rage of "yolanda". 

     the next time a typhoon of "yolanda's" proportions develops over the pacific and is heading towards where i live, i will not smile at the storm.  

     i have learned my humble lesson: prepare or prepare to die.

3-chili pinoy hot pot

     

     we were booked on a flight to legazpi city (albay) tomorrow, thursday, nov.7, but we cancelled the trip due to the incoming super typhoon, "yolanda".  those of us who are now in their late forties or early fifties couldn't escape associating this with the 1970's howler, "yoling" - a name that remains of what we remember about super typhoons when we were growing up.

     bicolandia, (of which legazpi city is a part of), of course, is well-known for its ginataan dishes.  although, i'm not too sure if this pinoy hot pot is a bicolandia dish.  but it has gata and sili - a mainstay in bicolandia food.

     so, if we cannot go to bicolandia, we will let bicolandia come to us!

     gear up for "yolanda" - be safe, everybody!

     ingredients:
     1/2 kilo pork belly, sliced into bite-size cuts
     20 strands, string beans or sitaw, cut into 2-inch segments

     3/4 cup kakang gata of 1 niyog, grated
     2-3 cups ikialawang gata of same niyog
       
     6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
     1 large onion, peeled and sliced
     1 thumb-size ginger, whacked on kitchen tile with flat side of kitchen knife
     (or something to that effect)
     3 siling labuyo or any red sili
     2 tsps bagoong alamang
     1/2 tsps patis
     dash of salt and pepper

     procedure:
     PUT ikalawang gata, garlic, onion, ginger, siling labuyo, bagoong alamang, and patis in a wok or saucepan
     BOIL 1 minute
     ADD pork slices
     SIMMER until liquid is reduced to half its original quantity
     ADD string beans
     SIMMER for about 10 minutes or until desired softness of string beans is achieved
     ADD kakang gata
     BOIL for 1 minute
     (ADD water if more sauce is desired.)
     ADD salt and pepper to suit taste.

     serve warm with rice.

good eats !!!

banana-oatmeal pancakes

   

     i am not a pancakes type of person.  my wife is - pancakes are a comfort food to her.  she regularly buys pancake mixes at the supermarket to have something at hand in the cupboard when the need arises.
     i usually make her banana-oatmeal pancakes when i have leftover bananas, milk, and eggs from baking - when there are orders for banana cakes.  the rest of the ingredients, viz., sugar, oil - we always have.
     doesn't require a degree in astro-physics to get this one right the first time...

     in a bowl, COMBINE 
     1-1/4 cup ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR 
     1/2 cup OATS 
     2 Tbsp BAKING POWDER (yes, Tablespoons) 
     1/4 tsp. salt 
     1 tsp. CINNAMON (optional).

     in a separate bowl, COMBINE 
     1 EGG 
     1-1/4 cup MILK 
     1 Tbsp OIL

     ADD the EGG MIXTURE to the FLOUR MIXTURE and BLEND WELL
     DO NOT OVERMIX
     ADD 2-3 pcs RIPE BANANAS (MASHED) and MIX until WELL BLENDED

     place skillet or griddle in medium-low heat 
     grease lightning, ah, eh, i meant, grease lightly
     pour approx. 1/4 cup batter onto griddle or skillet
     when bubbles start to appear, turn pancake over
     watch pancake rise
     makes 4-6 pancakes

     serve with butter, syrup, fruit preserves or fresh fruit 

good eats !!!