I know I said I will try my best not to be emo this year. And I'm trying my hardest. But indulge me for a moment. I am sick and it's a gloomy Monday afternoon. My friends reminded me of The Script and this song is precisely how I feel right now... (And yeah, also a bit of The Man Who Can't Be Moved.) No, a man has not broken my heart again. Not yet. Just that I can totally relate to this song. :) Needless to say, I'm still recovering from my last heartbreak and I can't help but feel like I was and still am at the losing end. I'd like to think he wasn't the best part of me, but he certainly gave me plenty of reasons to be happy about. Most of which was how much I could depend on him to be on my side. All the time, no matter what. I'm not sure if he's happy right now. Or if he's better off without me. But I'm hoping there will be better days ahead for me. And for him. Because even if our hearts didn't break evenly, we both deserve to be happy. Here's…
Month: March 2011
Tuka Bay Marine Sanctuary
The Soccsksargen Experience (SEx) continued with lunch at Lourdes Park courtesy of the Kiamba LGU. Kiamba is one of the municipalities of Sarangani Province. Among other dishes, we had a sumptuous lechon de leche for our lunch feast. It was definitely a delight. :) After lunch, we rode a boat for a tour of the Tuka Bay Marine Sanctuary... The coves are really nice for a relaxing day at the beach. The waters are pristine and the beach is deserted. Sad to say, however, that the nice coral reefs below the surface are being overran with Crown of Thorns Sea Stars which are overpopulating the sea. As a consequence, it is stifling the corals and affecting the life cycle of many fish and other aquatic species. The Kiamba LGU is looking at holding education seminars for local divers, fishermen, and residents so they can help in harvesting the Crown of Thorns Sea Stars to help save Tuka Bay. If you are interested in helping out with this initiative, please send me a message at riajose at gmail dot com. Many thanks to the Kiamba and Sarangani Province LGUs, Avel Manansala, and the Soccsksargen Bloggers for the wonderful and educational Day…
A Trip to Maitum, Sarangani
The Soccsksargen Experience (SEx) Tour opened with a trip to Maitum. Soccsksargen stands for South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Saragani, and General Santos, the provinces of South Central Mindanao, Region XI. Maitum is a town in Sarangani Province. And it paved the way to get the SEx Tour participants excited with the event. The first stop was the Maitum Town Hall which also housed the Maitum Museum. The museum housed cultural and historical artifacts of the town and its indigenous people. The most remarkable artifacts were the clay jars which held the bones of the early people of Maitum. The museum also had a display of indigenous music instruments and costumes including several tinalak belts and textiles. Up next was a hearty breakfast prepared by Cresing's Food Products. It was a cornucopia of seafood, organically grown rice, salted eggs, veggies, and rice coffee drinks. I absolutely enjoyed it and want to go back for more, more, more. Our last stop in Maitum is the Maitum River where some of the participants enjoyed a rough tube ride through the white waters of the river. It was certainly a trip with all the right ingredients combined for a total experience: history and…
Lakan at Lakambini ng Gen San 2011
On February 23, 2011, 20 of General Santos City's most charming men and most beautiful ladies competed to win the title of Lakan at Lakambini ng Gen San 2011. After the grueling closed door casual interview with the candidates, I was excited to see them on stage at the Atrium of the Gaisano Mall of Gen San. The program was brief and enjoyable. It opened with the candidates donned in their black and white outfits, introducing themselves to the eager audience. After which, the candidates wowed the crowd with their beautiful bodies as they modeled in their swimsuit attire. They also ramped on stage wearing their casual attires sponsored by Freego Jeans. They were also given the chance to showcase their wits and communication skills as they bantered with the pageant hosts. The candidates' had their last chance to wow the crowd and the distinguished board of judges as they wore elegant Filipiana formal wear by Johnny Abad. After which, the top three Lakan candidates and Lakambini candidates were announced. The top three males were Jomie Faulda, Francis Lagudas, and Richard Nuñez, while the top three females were Dallen Baldonado, Gensan Kabatingan, and Joanna Tan. The six contender's intelligence and…
On the “National” Bloggers Association
This is my personal statement regarding the formation and organization of the supposed "National Bloggers Association." This is not the formal statement or position of the Mindanao New Media Group nor of the Davao Bloggers Group. About a week ago, I was informed of the existence of a "Bloggers' Manifesto" that was forwarded to a selected group of bloggers. After asking around, I was forwarded the manifesto which was tagged as "Not for circulation." After the manifesto, there was a solicitation for feedback. The manifesto was forwarded to bloggers by Tonyo Cruz. In the email, there was no mention of who the authors of the draft manifesto are and who the convenors of the National Bloggers Association are. Since it was supposedly a manifesto supporting the formation of a "National Bloggers Association," I immediately consulted the officers of several bloggers' groups in Visayas and Mindanao. I consulted them the same day I was forwarded a copy of the manifesto. That was March 2. Of the twenty persons I consulted, only 2 of them have received a copy of the manifesto. Among those who didn't receive a copy of the manifesto are: Marie Claire Bretaña Ponsaran, President of Iloilo Bloggers, Junelle…
Up Close and Personal
The first time I watched the Lakan at Lakambini Pageant was 2010. Back then, I was just a spectator and my friends were the judges. Needless to say, I was impressed by the pageant and the depth of talent and grace that the candidates had. They were a fun batch of young kids I enjoyed talking to. And they were good looking too. So when my good friend, Orman Manansala master events engineer of Project O! Consultants, invited me to judge the Lakan at Lakambini ng Gen San 2011, I immediately said yes. The pageant show was going to be on February 23, 2011 and I was going to General Santos City on February 22. On February 21, 2011, I received a call from Orman asking if I would be able to make it to Gen San on February 21, 2011 for the closed door casual interview with the candidates. After re-arranging my schedule, I said yes and braced myself for an interesting afternoon with 20 of the most gorgeous and dashing youth of General Santos City. The Lakan at Lakambini ng Gen San 2011 is a beauty, talent, and personality search and 25% of the final scores of the…