A relatively heavy breakfast: dirty rice with toasted garlic, pork knuckles in black vinegar, an onion omelette, two kinds of native sausage, iced soda, and two cups of very black coffee.

And then I might go back to sleep again.

The last dream I had before I finally woke up was of Darwin Ramos, the Filipino boy nominated for sainthood. He asked me to do a painting of him. I saw him dressed in colors I would not have chosen to clothe him in.

I wonder if that painting would be accepted at Maryhill School of Theology.

I am willing to heal and help only persons in my facebook Friends List, not strangers who e-mail or Message me for healing or ask for help out of the blue.

The full moon did not spare the werewolf despite his desire to sleep. I had many astral visitors from different countries last night. I might as well have announced night classes. The main topic of discussion was how fever occurs on different levels, and how a person in fever can be quickly healed with proper care.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sun sits on the tin rooftops of early-morning hawkers' stands.

In all, a productive week. Almost done with layers for the portrait I'm working on. I should be glazing next week.

A shredded beef and vegetable dish and unsweetened pineapple juice at M.'s cafe. Didn't watch a movie in the cafe tonight. Maybe tomorrow.

In bed earlier than usual.

Aubrey arrived from university and dinner out. Now I can lock up for the night.

Dinner at home with Angelique and J.

Waiting for Aubrey, who is having difficulty getting home because the trains temporarily went out of commission.

A good deed may be passed on, but a bad deed must be made up to the aggrieved person rather than to someone else.

Chito visited.

The neighborhood is talking about an earthquake that allegedly occurred this afternoon, but I didn't feel a thing. We also have lots of things suspended from our ceilings--chandeliers, lanterns, glass planters, Moriones masks, necklaces, and bells (and the bells would surely toll)--and none of them moved.

Perhaps it pays to have one of the 36 Wands and a taladro of A.T.A.R.D.A.R. hanging on one's wall.

Worked an hour on fifth layer.

Okay, that does it. I used to buy different varieties of mooncake and all of my family members would take but a sliver or a bite, and the rest of the week I'd be the only one consuming the rest of them. IT'S BEEN TOO LONG AND IT'S BEEN TOO MANY YEARS LIKE THIS.

From now on will buy round cakes, most probably blueberry cheesecakes, and we'll celebrate with those. It's the sacred, geometrical symbol of the circle that counts, anyway.

And then there even are Oreos, Reese's peanut butter cups, cupcakes, M & Ms, and doughnuts without holes.

And those will ALL disappear before the Mid-Autumn Festival is over.

Angelique off to a study session at one of her favorite coffee shops.I also asked her to buy replacements for the pen case and pens that one of her law school mates stole from her. So disconcerting that, as early as law school, our future lawyers are already thieves.

The clouds are white, Escher staircases.

Good day, Cubao!

Slept ten hours last night.

Lunch at home with Angelique.

It was a wet day all day in Cubao. The rains stopped on or about 5:00 PM, when my son Chito arrived. 

Angelique arrived from college. Ordered a pork chop, tomato, and rice dish from M.'s cafe. Sat with her while she had her dinner in the dining room.

Aubrey and R. arrived from university and dinner out.

A shredded beef and vegetable dish and unsweetened pineapple juice at M.'s cafe. Dark Phoenix played and I stayed to watch all of it. Alas, if that is a sample of twenty-first century movie-making, I am happy to stay away from all of it. The scenes were disjointed, the casting seemed B-grade, the location choices were unimaginative, and the performances were mediocre. No Bel Ami models, which was the saving grace of previous episodes. Everyone in this movie strutted across the screen announcing, "Yoo-hoo! I'm an X-Man! Watch me depict my character!" Worst of all was the horrible script and decadent dialogue, which, I observe, is often the disaster that results when a director decides to write his own screenplay. The whole story seems to have been written backwards, from the climax backtracking to the very beginning--a surefire process by which the writer flounders for the most appropriate point of attack.

Now back inside my bedroom with _Towards Zero_ which I am actually reading rather than rereading. I recall that, years ago, I made it only through the first five pages and then abandoned it, deciding that it was uninteresting. Now that I've retired, I'm giving its author a second chance. 

Angelique off to college.

Chito visited.

Worked an hour on fourth layer.

Lunch alone. Then worked an hour on third layer while Angelique took her lunch in the dining room. Aubrey at university.

The Hermit comes and goes. That is his nature.

Wet day in Cubao. Woke up three times this morning but kept going back to sleep for hours more.

Good morning, Cubao!

The rain is a parade of silver carriages bedecked with crystal prisms.

A sliced pork and vegetable dish and unsweetened pineapple juice at M.'s cafe.

Now to bed with Hercule Poirot.

I see them die for what they believed in. Then I hear their enemies say, "Good riddance".

And life goes on.

Finished rereading Poirot Loses a Client. Retrieved Towards Zero for rereading tonight.

Angelique and J. arrived from college.

Aubrey arrived from university and dinner out.

Dinner at home with Angelique and J.

Calling it a day for painting. Will resume tomorrow.

Worked an hour on second layer.

Worked half an hour on first layer.

Chito visited to give his motorbike a check-up.

So hilarious that people keep announcing goodbye to everyone, intending to leave facebook forever. They might as well say goodbye only to themselves and their personal records, period. They needn't bother to say goodbye to anyone because 9/10 people really don't care. They care only about maintaining their own accounts.

Worked half an hour on construction lines.

Lunch at home alone.

Worked an hour on construction lines.

This portrait begins today, September 11, 2019.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sun rests at a window and looks into an artist's studio.

A spicy beef and vegetable dish and unsweetened pineapple juice at M.'s cafe.

Ready to snuggle up in bed with Hercule Poirot.

If you can't buy mooncakes especially because no one in the family likes them, buy any round cake of their choice instead.

This day is over so soon. My brief respite from painting is done.

Will commence construction lines on the new portrait tomorrow.

No spontaneous and unscheduled visitors will be admitted.

Angelique arrived from college and ordered dinner from outside.

Aubrey arrived from university.

Dinner at home with Aubrey.

Brought some food to M.'s cafe staff.

http://www.chineseamericanfamily.com/mid-autumn-festival/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mid-autumn-festival&mc_cid=cde270e54e&mc_eid=b29e5b905b

Reread more pages from _Poirot Loses a Client_.

A two-hour, afternoon nap.

Lunch at home with Angelique, then went to the center for a coffee meeting with a facebook Friend I'd never met before. Signed one of my books for him. Also gave him a set of paperbacks I no longer want and am sure my grandchildren will never want.

Angelique now off to college.

Home alone.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is a cluster of rocks upon which the rain flows in rivulets.

Installation Of Four Paintings At Maryhill School Of Theology (September 9, 2019)

An early lunch with V. Now waiting to be picked up and proceed to Maryhill School of Theology.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sun shines on all bridges between worlds.

A spicy beef and vegetable dish and unsweetened pineapple juice at M.'s cafe. Didn't linger. The place was too full for my comfort.

Dinner at home with Angelique.

Brought some food to M.'s cafe staff.

The granddaughters are now in their rooms upstairs.

Sunday is over.

After a hot shower, will cuddle up in bed with Hercule Poirot.

Finished rereading What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw. Retrieved Poirot Loses A Client to start rereading before painting again.

Aubrey back home from a late lunch and dinner out with R. and his family and a purchase of shoes for school.

Aubrey joined R. and family for a late lunch and dinner.

Angelique and J. walked Keiko Kashigawa on the compound and then took a late lunch in the dining room.

Ben  arrived. Three-hour, deep tissue massage.

A brief drizzle in Cubao.

An early lunch alone, then put together an emergency retouch kit to bring to Maryhill School of Theology tomorrow for the installation of four paintings.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sun will send you a bouquet of yellow flowers.

Angelique and J. arrived home from college and dinner out.

Locked up for the night and will probably have a small snack in the kitchen. I don't want to go to M.'s cafe with carousers there.

Aubrey back home from the family dentist's.

Dinner at home alone. Brought some food to M.'s cafe staff.

The neighborhood elfin mound is alive with carousers on a Saturday night.

Corrections to the Taladro Ng A.T.A.R.D.A.R.

In the taladro of the A.T.A.R.D.A.R., the word "PRINCIONUM" should be corrected to "PRINCIPIUM".

The phrase "PROCTUCTUM REDEUS" should be corrected to "PRODUCTUM DE DEUS", though an awkward combination of Latin and Spanish.

The phrase "CREUM DUM DEUM" should be corrected to "CREDO IN UNUM DEUM".

Remember that oraciones were copied by hand from albularyo to albularyo, often furtively and in haste, or, worse, they were dictated, and that such typos were frequently committed.

Back home from photo shoot of a female writer for yet another portrait in my series of portraits of contemporary Filipino writers.

Chandra, Hindu goddess of the moon

Angelique and J. off to college.

Lunch at home with Aubrey.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sun sits on window sills and plays a golden guitar.

Beauty has become important because we constantly condition ourselves that it is so. We therefore seek it out in ourselves, in our fellow human beings, in the world, and in Nature

Life is not short, it is long. It only seems short whenever we rush and make mistakes.

Never fear the night, for it gives you peace of mind more than the day does.

Angelique and J. arrived from the coffee shop and dinner out.

Had a sliced pork sandwich and pineapple juice at M.'s cafe.

A finger of rum on the rocks. Feeling woozy again, but not too woozy to reread more pages from What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw in bed.

Bought some stuff at D.'s store.

Evening chores.

Dinner at home alone.

Brought some food to M.'s cafe staff.

Aubrey arrived from university and dinner out.

Tony Perez's Art of War: Be polite to those who are polite. Be rude to those who are rude.

Angelique took her lunch in the dining room, then went to a study session in one of her favorite coffee shops.

I am back to bed with What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw.

Breakfast, a two-hour, mid-morning nap, and then an early lunch alone.

Preparing for a photo shoot of a female writer and friend tomorrow. Hers will eventually be the fourth portrait of my series of 12 portraits of contemporary Filipino writers.

Good morning, Cubao!

The clouds are lists of weekend duties.

A finger of rum on the rocks. Feeling woozy.

Dinner at home alone.

Brought food over to M.'s cafe staff.

When nothing else is newsworthy, news writers will take a piece of tired news and blow up aspects of it.

The item on the menu says "Cheeseburger with Fries" but you don't want fries?

Here's what DOESN'T work: "I want a cheeseburger only. No fries."

Here's what DOES work: "Charge me for the fries anyway but serve me the cheeseburger only."

Know that all items on a menu exist as packages with set prices and are encoded in a computerized cash register known as a point-of-sale (POS) billing system. Neither the waiters nor the cashiers themselves have the authority to revise those packages.

A cup of tea and a lit candle inside our carved, soapstone holder while I sat in the foyer, looking out onto the driveway. Next week this little break will be over, and I shall be painting again. At least, for now, the aches my body acquired from unusual positions while painting over the past weeks have gone.

In bed with What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw. This is the life I have always dreamed of. Others think that to do nothing but lounge about makes one feel unimportant. Not I. My curriculum vitae as of 2015 was completely satisfactory to me. I haven't felt the need to update it since then. I love resting. To me, it's the ultimate reward.

Good noon, Cubao!

Slept nine hours last night.

Lunch at home with Angelique. Aubrey at university.

A BLTC sandwich and root beer at M.'s cafe. I often take a late night snack there because I set our dining table for meals everyday and would like to be served food and waited on before I call it a day. I also like watching P. Tuazon Boulevard and its night denizens through the glass windows.

In the meantime Angelique arrived from college and dinner out.  

Back from jalan-jalan at the center. Paid our electric and phone bills. Met Elline's family twice, which I found strange, Cubao being far away from their home, then I figured out that it was basketball day at the Coliseum. I heard the drums beyond the Skyway.

Visited my Muslim  friends.

A banana split.

Later, Chito visited, and we had an afternoon snack.

Lunch at home with Angelique. Aubrey at university.

The clouds are stacks of white bread smeared with lemon butter.

Good morning, Cubao!

Slept eight hours last night and woke up to a warm, sunny morning.

A dish of sauteed vegetables from M.'s cafe.

Aubrey arrived from university and dinner out.

Dinner at home alone.

Angelique arrived from college. We ordered sisig and rice from M.'s cafe. Sat with Angelique while she took her dinner in the dining room.

Retrieved What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw a.k.a. 4:50 from Paddington to reread. Started rereading in the foyer overlooking the driveway, with a lit candle in the carved, soapstone holder. A soft drizzle outside. It's the kind of Miss Marple novel I like, in which she is not someone else's guest but is in her own house in St. Mary Mead. Tea, homemade wine, dinners. After the fist chapter I couldn't help but have a cup of tea with two vanilla cupcakes.

V. visited and broke my cozy fantasy, though.

Home alone. Angelique off to college.

Changed my bedding. Wrapped the cushion with two, antique, Tausug malongs, oillows with two bohemian pillowcases, laid a flannel blanket, and over ll that an Ifugao pinagpagan for a cover.

Lunch at home with Angelique. Aubrey at university.

The sun writes lengthy novels, but only of brightness.

Good noon, Cubao!

Slept nine hours last night.

I love the way our incandescent lamps create pockets of warm light on the objects around them.

Angelique arrived from college and ordered a take-out dinner.

Had spaghetti and iced tea at M.'s cafe.

A brief cloudburst.

Dinner at home alone.

Aubrey arrived from university and dinner out.

Brought food over to M.'s cafe staff.

Swung by the neighborhood grocery to buy a few more things.

I hope that the brouhaha over foreign construction workers is over. I have always believed that a Chinese contractor and a Chinese foreman should prefer Chinese construction workers for ease in communication. Moreover, Chinese construction workers seem to:

--report for work consistently early
--not ask for vale
--not take merienda
--work rain or shine
--follow instructions to the letter without making shortcuts
--do their jobs without malingering
--do not absent themselves because they are sick or because their relatives are sick or because a distant relative died
--do not absent themselves because they still have money in their pockets.

If I could only speak Chinese, I'd probably hire a few to remodel our house.

Sometimes, Pinoy pride gets in the way of Pinoy progress.

A mid-afternoon snack, then brought Angelique's bed linen to the laundry. Outside, a young man was being tattooed Chinese characters on the right side of his neck. Stayed awhile to watch and talk tattoo shop with everyone. 

He preaches about the diamonds of the spirit and frowns upon the diamonds on my fingers. He has absolutely no clue that, in this world, one can have both. 

Our September gnomes

Finished reading Come, Tell Me How You Live last night. Very piquant. I wish there'd been more descriptions of Middle Eastern art, but then again the author was on archaeological digs and had access only to excavated pottery and amulets.

Retrieved one of my books on Velazquez. I want to revisit his painting techniques. Yes, plural.

Now back from jalan-jalan. Bought a lot of housekeeping stuff.

Angelique in college.

It is quite heavenly to be a materialist and have many friends who shun materialism. They never envy you or begrudge you anything, and you can continue shopping for yourself without guilt.

Lunch at home with Angelique.

Angelique soon off to college, and I have to go jalan-jalan at the center.

Today, when we would like to identify or know about something, we encode a word or phrase in the Google window and do a search for it.

Before ten more years will pass, Google will develop a way for us to enter a PHOTO in its window and do a search for it.

A meatballs and vegetable dish and a Pepsi at M.'s cafe.

Hesitate before acting. Wait for at least three signs from your spirit guides.

Since my bedroom has a south window looking out onto the security guard's outpost, a secret door opening out onto the driveway, a north door opening out onto a small porch that looks out onto the interior of the compound, a door and window to the rear passage, and a door opening out onto the writing area and foyer, I've decided that I CANNOT move to another bedroom on the ground floor after all. Where I am right now, I am able to hear the water tank's overflow and can respond to deliveries and callers at the side entrance.

Wherever there atchays, there is corruption.