Organized religion will always be the death of authentic culture.

Prolonged anger and resentment cause cancer.

John reported for work this morning. Lunch served by M.'s cafe,

Now cleaning up the encoded copy of Nobyembre. He reads the dialogue aloud, though under his breath, while encoding, but he seems quite stoic about it. As for myself, I end up weeping and blowing my nose while reading my plays silently because of all the emotions I have to go through all over again.

Because of Oktubre, Nobyembre, and Disyembre, Nonon Padilla calls me the Pinoy Strindberg.

Wake up! Do you revel in the shallow pleasure of being a popular Tarot card reader? Are you satisfied that people come to you to serve as an emotional crutch or to provide after-dinner entertainment?

Those people are just using you. They are not even providing you the money you need to pay your bills, go shopping whenever you want to, and walk into any restaurant of your choice to take your next meal.

Take on a lucrative job, preferably one with good retirement benefits. Work and save money for yourself.

It's about time your "clients" read their own cards.

Akoya blue pearls for my granddaughters Angelique and Aubrey. The pearls take their blue color naturally from the blue interior of the shells the oysters are in. Not all of the oyster shells are blue, that is why blue pearls are rare.

Middle-class students manifest erratic and violent behavior because they frequently take energy drinks, especially when they ae cramming for exams.

Teachers who are ahead of their time are always resented by their educational institutions--and then sorely missed, years later.

Work hard to achieve the best reward of all--a happy, loving, close-knit, non-dysfunctional family--and you will also have achieved treasures greater than what other men have.

February 12, 2025

John, I, and Henson. We are standing in front of the bookshelf containing my treasured, Judge Dee volumes.

Photo by John Tigno

February 12, 2025

Pre-Valentine's Day visit from Henson. Brought me goodies from Vietnam.

Henson is the grandson of the Wongaihams, who translated _The Oracle of Kung Ming_ from Chinese to English. (Which I then translated to Filipino.) 

https://tonyperezphilippinescyberspacebook4.blogspot.com/

He is also the last, remaining, Wongaiham in the Philippines. The other, his cousin Vincent and son of Tony Wong, lives in Germany..

I'm counting this as the 33rd Bilbo Baggins afternoon, since Henson selected an item from the table of give-aways in the breakfast area.

Photo by John Tigno

The voting public is comprised of ungrateful children.

It is her refusal to pay up that makes her lose out on many deals.

The warm breezes forebode an early summer.

At the workplace, it is all right to lose the battle if you will end up winning the war.

White dumpling plates

I gave the green set to my sister Alice, because she also hosts meals for our sisters and brothers-in-law whenever they come visiting from Sydney.

All of these will do. I don't need any more dumpling plates.

Photo by Neil de Leon

George sends Angelique flowers for Valentine's Day.

 Always light joss sticks round the house.

Live to continue living, not to wait for your life to slowly deteriorate.

More dumpling plates

The shell-shape honors the goddess of the ocean, the color green, her son, the god of iron.

I will say it again here: If you love your family, you will take continued interest in upgrading your dinnerware.

Photo by Neil de Leon

Your enemies die first because he who dies last will always have the last word.

When light is turned off, it just goes. It doesn't trail off like sound or like liquid.

The most common karmic situation develops when one decides that he/she doesn't like the family that he/she was born into.

The men and women who decided to live alone in the 1990s--simply because it was "fashionable"--now wish they hadn't.

The 4:30 AM night class had a second session, on auras. I must say, auras are best viewed against a midnight blue background. 

An aura is not just comprised of "one color." If you look very closely, it has rainbow-colored particles, like prismatic refractions on a cold, icy milk sherbet. 

Consider having a blank wall in your bedroom painted midnight blue. where you can stand against it with a full-length mirror in front of you. 

Dumpling plates for charcuterie, assorted dimsum, sushi, sashimi, tempura, sliced green mangoes, horseradish, water turnips, celery, fish fillet, French fries, breaded onion rings, sliced cucumber, chicken lollipops, pork barbecue. satay, omelets, chips, ham sui kok, taro pie, oyster cake, sausages, baked mussels, lumpia shanghai, fried spring rolls with sprouts, salted biscuits, rice rolls, and fish balls.

Our favorite dips are Thai sriracha chili sauce, mayonnaise, Heinz tomato ketchup, mustard, Barrio Fiesta shrimp paste, pickles, Kikkoman soy sauce with kumquat juice and red chili peppers, sweet sauce, wasabi, white vinegar with shrimp paste, Chinese black vinegar with sugar or honey or cooking wine, rock salt, croutons, kippers, shaved parmesan cheese, quick-melt cheese, and cream cheese 

I will say it again here: If you love your family, you will take continued interest in upgrading your dinnerware.

A friend from Bicol, now a seaman and visiting, are with M. and Neil in the cafe. Quite wonderful that such persons from the past turn up and come to the cafe, their watering hole. There always seems to be an ongoing party because of this.

Modern images of Eshu and Pomba Gira by Gabrielle Veronese of Design Toscano. Still wondering if she is a descendant of the Renaissance mural painter Paolo Veronse.

Bought the image of Pomba Gira for Karen, a former Spirit Questor, because she loved gothic art and I felt the statuette looked like her, but she somehow dropped off my Friends List and I haven't seen her in maybe 20 years.

Photo by Neil de Leon

Lunch at home with my sisters Remi and Alice.

Deliveries.

Big Toto reported for work this morning. Neil and he resumed cement and steel work on the front corner and side of our house.

Day 13 of the Chinese New Year: A day of dieting and temperance.

Our Guadalupe relief is now spotlighted.

I am thinking of eventually switching the bulb to warm white, though.

I find it both sad and strange that the fighters who abandoned Team Lakay seem to have lost a lot of their original power.

Could it have something to do with the change in the quality of their training?

Or is this simply a case of hubris?

Chinese New Year, Day 12: More bonding and celebrations with family.

Our family mahjong day and Siunday dinner

January 30, 2025

More books from my youngest sister, Sylvia in Sydney

Big Toto reported for work today. Neil and he continued cement work on the front corner and side of our house.

Work to resume on Monday.

 January 30, 2025

My youngest sister, Sylvia, sends me a complete set of Judge Dee books from Sydney. These are six of them. 

Back from my second eye injection at Makati Medical Center. Marvin and my sisters Remi and Alice escorted me.

Then we had lunch at home.

Wednesday, February 5, 2025

Finally, a  moment of solitude after the overextended holidays. My greatest wish now is, for the rest of  the year, to be left alone to myself, my literature, my art, my jewelry, and my money.

To be left alone thus is the true meaning of "Resting In Peace," because it is resting from OTHER PEOPLE.

My necklaces: Above, faceted red amber; Below, black pearls interspersed with red, Chinese burial beads. The bigger beads are also antique and from the Mexican Galleon Trade. The carved, wooden female goddess pendant was a purchase from Ifugao Province many years ago. It reminded me so much of Eshu's consort, Pomba Gira.

The red scarf round my shoulders is a Chinese maiden's bridal veil.

Photo by Neil de Leon

Sometimes all you need is to be forgiven.

Wednesday, February 5, 2025

Ryan and Peachie visit with assorted goodies. Ryan flies back to Abu Dhabi on Satirday.

After more than 30 Bilbo Baggins afternoons, I look around me and see all of the treasures I decided to keep and not give away, and everything looks so good.

 

January 30, 2025

My youngest sister, Sylvia, sends me a complete set of Judge Dee books from Sydney. These are six of them.

Sunday, February 2, 2025

Dinner with my eldest sister, Lourdes, brother-in-law Manny, and family at Choi Garden Gateway 2, Araneta Center

Photo by Neil de Leon

Sunday, February 2, 2025

Dinner with my eldest sister, Lourdes, brother-in-law Manny, and family at Choi Garden Gateway 2, Araneta Center

Photo by Neil de Leon