Nature has its way of providing us with unusual and interesting experiences. They don't occur often, but they do happen.
My friend George Villareal wrote an article about the unusual number colorful butterflies that appeared around his home in Northern California for about a week, covering the trees, blanketing his lawn and transforming the blue sky into a mosaic of colors when the creatures were disturbed. A phenomenal occurence he had never seen before, he wrote.
George's story brought back memories of a certain experience I had long time ago. And I mean way,way back... when I was eight or nine years old.
Raining frogs. Yes, frogs falling from the sky. Sounds too far-fetched, but it's something I've seenand will never forget. Even my mother did not believe me when I told her right after it happened.
It was a late afternoon/early evening sometime in the early 1950s. We were living in a compound in Kamuning along with extended family members at the time. My mother and relatives were busy cooking for a party to be held the next day. I was alone in the backyard when a rainstorm came.
It was really pouring when I noticed the strange looking tiny objects falling from the sky. I looked closely and found out they were frogs! Frogs of varying sizes from about the size of my thumb to smaller ones the size of a fly. They were not tadpoles. They were freaking four-legged frogs!
There must have been hundreds of thousands of tiny frogs and I'm not exaggerating. Within minutes the backyard was full of jumping frogs. I wanted to run inside the house to tell the folks what was happening but decided not to, for fear of getting scolded for playing out in the rain and knowingthat everybody was busy.
I found an empty candy jar - the common garapon, and started scooping the little creatures with my hands. The onslaught was over after a few more minutes. It stopped raining and the remaining frogs hopped away into the bushes. I had a jar full of tiny frogs when my mother saw me soaking wet. It was getting dark and she was wondering where I was. She did not believe me when I told her what just occured. She assumed that I was out catching frogs in a creek a few blocks from our house.
Even my playmates who saw my jar of frogs later on did not believe me when I told them where they came from.
Today, almost 60 years later, I wondered if the Internet would show any recorded accounts of similar occurences. I went to Google.com and typed in "frogs from the sky"
Aba meron nga! Wow! There's quite a few sites about the subject. Here's a couple that I picked:
http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/index.php?topic=20177 http://allaboutfrogs.org/weird/general/raining.html
I want to share this experience with everybody, especially now that I have something toback up my story.
* * * * *
I sent a copy this to George. Below is his response with another link.
Tony,
Your narrative about the raining of frogs is amazing at several levels -
1. It is a true story based on a first hand account (yours) and corroborated as scientifically possible by similar occurences in other times & places;
2. The phenomenon has biblical antecedent, and
3. For those with literary bent, it is a metaphor for "unbelievable truth" as one observer wrote. The movie, "Magnolia" starring Tom Cruise has a scene depicting the "raining of frogs" phenomenon and it raised speculations as to its meaning and relevance. Thought you might enjoy what folks have said about it.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=1005101900005
George
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
A Summer Animal Story
My friend Joebing Malabanan told me to watch out for storks, raccoons and other animals when I proudly told him about the koi pond that I built in my backyard. Joebing is a general contractor who has built ponds and knows what he's talking about. He knows that koi ponds, eventually will attract fish predators.
One late afternoon after feeding the fish and the two turtles in our pond, I left the canisters of food pellets on a table in my patio. The following morning they were gone. A few pellets were scattered all over the place. I found the empty cardboard and metal canisters in one corner of our backyard, all crumpled and full of scratches.
I also found out that some potted aquatic plants were lifted from the pond and were scattered near the water edge, a tell-tale sign that a creature indeed was after the fish and the turtles in our pond. Whatever it was, it must have been a large animal. I was quick to assume that the next door neighbor's cat was responsible, knowing that the cat frequently roams our backyard.
But it happened during the night. The pet cat was probably back in its home next door sleeping. Certainly it's not a stork in the middle of the night. So it had to be a nocturnal animal. Like a raccoon.
I had problems with raccoons before when we were living in Illinois. They were nasty and bothersome. I spent a lot of time and money to get rid of the raccoons that invaded our property. It got so bad that a family raccoons settled inside the ceiling of out house. I surely don't want to go through that trouble again here in California.
So I went online and bought one of those large animal traps from eBay for $39.95 including shipping. It came via UPS after a couple of days, set it up in our patio using a piece of left-over pizza for bait. I checked it the following morning. Nothing. The trap was still set up the way I left it the night before.The stale pizza was still there.
What I did next the following night was to sprinkle a trail of fish and turtle pellets on the patio floor leading to the trap. I checked it the following morning. It worked! We got a trapped animal. It's not a raccoon.
It was an opossum!
It looked young but large, a full grown seemingly healthy creature with nice fur, black set of ears, black round eyes with pink nose and toes. It's only slightly smaller than our neighbor's cat.
I was ready to release the trapped opossum inside a forest preserve some distance from our home but Ampy thought we should consult with the forest ranger to make sure that we do the proper procedure in humanely getting rid of the animal. So we went to Lytle Creek Ranger station about 10 miles away. The ranger said: "It's not our jurisdiction, sir. You should talk to the Fish and Wildlife Department. They will tell you what to do. She then handed me the phone number that she quickly scribbled on a piece of paper.
The person at the F&WD said I should get permission from the owners of the land where I intend to let the opossum loose before doing it or else that will be considered littering. She then added: "Or why don't you just kill it?"
I am not much of an animal lover but I just don't want to kill a helpless captive animal. I could not believe somebody from Fish & Wildlife would bluntly tell me to "just kill it".
We ended up releasing the opossum out into a roadside forest near a creek in some remote area. I later learned that the Dept. of Agriculture that owns most of the land charges $10.00 per animal that you release into the wild. We know a lady friend in the area who trapped 9 opossums in one summer.
One late afternoon after feeding the fish and the two turtles in our pond, I left the canisters of food pellets on a table in my patio. The following morning they were gone. A few pellets were scattered all over the place. I found the empty cardboard and metal canisters in one corner of our backyard, all crumpled and full of scratches.
I also found out that some potted aquatic plants were lifted from the pond and were scattered near the water edge, a tell-tale sign that a creature indeed was after the fish and the turtles in our pond. Whatever it was, it must have been a large animal. I was quick to assume that the next door neighbor's cat was responsible, knowing that the cat frequently roams our backyard.
But it happened during the night. The pet cat was probably back in its home next door sleeping. Certainly it's not a stork in the middle of the night. So it had to be a nocturnal animal. Like a raccoon.
I had problems with raccoons before when we were living in Illinois. They were nasty and bothersome. I spent a lot of time and money to get rid of the raccoons that invaded our property. It got so bad that a family raccoons settled inside the ceiling of out house. I surely don't want to go through that trouble again here in California.
So I went online and bought one of those large animal traps from eBay for $39.95 including shipping. It came via UPS after a couple of days, set it up in our patio using a piece of left-over pizza for bait. I checked it the following morning. Nothing. The trap was still set up the way I left it the night before.The stale pizza was still there.
What I did next the following night was to sprinkle a trail of fish and turtle pellets on the patio floor leading to the trap. I checked it the following morning. It worked! We got a trapped animal. It's not a raccoon.
It was an opossum!
It looked young but large, a full grown seemingly healthy creature with nice fur, black set of ears, black round eyes with pink nose and toes. It's only slightly smaller than our neighbor's cat.
I was ready to release the trapped opossum inside a forest preserve some distance from our home but Ampy thought we should consult with the forest ranger to make sure that we do the proper procedure in humanely getting rid of the animal. So we went to Lytle Creek Ranger station about 10 miles away. The ranger said: "It's not our jurisdiction, sir. You should talk to the Fish and Wildlife Department. They will tell you what to do. She then handed me the phone number that she quickly scribbled on a piece of paper.
The person at the F&WD said I should get permission from the owners of the land where I intend to let the opossum loose before doing it or else that will be considered littering. She then added: "Or why don't you just kill it?"
I am not much of an animal lover but I just don't want to kill a helpless captive animal. I could not believe somebody from Fish & Wildlife would bluntly tell me to "just kill it".
We ended up releasing the opossum out into a roadside forest near a creek in some remote area. I later learned that the Dept. of Agriculture that owns most of the land charges $10.00 per animal that you release into the wild. We know a lady friend in the area who trapped 9 opossums in one summer.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
July 29, 2008 EARTHQUAKE
It was indeed a strong shaker that hit Southern California shortly before noon today.
I was on the topmost floor of the 9-story tower of the Loma Linda University, waiting for Ampy to be discharged after an overnight hospital stay for a routine physical exam.
Suddenly the building started swaying while I was walking towards the Nurses' Station. There was this overweight blonde nurse right next to me who got excited and said: "Earthquake!.. I need to hug somebody!" I thought shewas kidding, but went ahead and put her arms around my neck, almost wrestling me to the floor. The swaying lasted for about 12 seconds. She then let go and asked: "Are you OK?" I said yes, but actually I got a little scared, not only of the quake but the fear of a heavy body landing on top of me.
I then ran to Ampy's hospital room where I found her squatting on the floor with her arms draped over her head. She said she was worried the heavy Zenith hospital TV would fall from the ceiling.
I checked the California Integrated Seismic Network website when we got home.It was a 5.4 magnitude at 11:42:15 AM with the epicenter in Chino, in San Bernardino County. It's about 30 miles from my location.
Well folks, that's life in California. Something we have to live with. An earthquake can hit anytime without warning. We'll just have to be aware and be prepared.
And avoid standing next to an overweight blonde nurse.
It was indeed a strong shaker that hit Southern California shortly before noon today.
I was on the topmost floor of the 9-story tower of the Loma Linda University, waiting for Ampy to be discharged after an overnight hospital stay for a routine physical exam.
Suddenly the building started swaying while I was walking towards the Nurses' Station. There was this overweight blonde nurse right next to me who got excited and said: "Earthquake!.. I need to hug somebody!" I thought shewas kidding, but went ahead and put her arms around my neck, almost wrestling me to the floor. The swaying lasted for about 12 seconds. She then let go and asked: "Are you OK?" I said yes, but actually I got a little scared, not only of the quake but the fear of a heavy body landing on top of me.
I then ran to Ampy's hospital room where I found her squatting on the floor with her arms draped over her head. She said she was worried the heavy Zenith hospital TV would fall from the ceiling.
I checked the California Integrated Seismic Network website when we got home.It was a 5.4 magnitude at 11:42:15 AM with the epicenter in Chino, in San Bernardino County. It's about 30 miles from my location.
Well folks, that's life in California. Something we have to live with. An earthquake can hit anytime without warning. We'll just have to be aware and be prepared.
And avoid standing next to an overweight blonde nurse.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Ako si Antonio, dating taga Chicago
Nagsawa sa lamig at sapin-saping snow
Lumipat sa Fresno, dala ng pagkakataon
Yun pala naman ay sobra ang init doon.
"Lipat tayo sa LA..." ang sabi ko kay Ampy
Mahusay na trabaho, nasa malaking city kasi
Marami doong makikita at mapapasyalan
Magagandang tanawin, panahon ay ayos lang.
Pero...
Talaga palang Wild Wild West dito sa LA
Drive-by shooting at car chases sa freeway
Madalas na mapanood ang mga ito sa TV
Hindi movies ito, kundi tunay na nangyayari.
Narito ang Disneyland, Universal Studios at Hollywood
At iba pang mapupuntahan hanggang abutin ng pagod
Dito'y marami ding nagbabakasaling maging artista
Kasabihan nga hindi ba, kahit ipakain sa buwaya.
Sobra naman ang presyo ng real estate dito
Paano ka namang makakabili, kung maliit ang sweldo?
Baka naman nagdidildil ang iba... ng hot dog at hamburger
Para lang makabili ng bahay sa Rancho Cucamonger.
Pero...
Ayos lang dito sa Southern California
Maraming kababayan, lalo na sa West Covina
Mga tindahan ng bangus, bagoong at pandesal
Para kang nasa Pilipinas, may estatwa pa ni Rizal.
At saka...aba, teka, tila yata nahihilo ako
Bakit gumagalaw itong computer table ko?
Yumayanig itong building... naku po earthquake ito!
Diyan na muna kayo, kailangan akong tumakbo!
Ako si Antonio, dating taga Chicago
Nagsawa sa lamig at sapin-saping snow
Lumipat sa Fresno, dala ng pagkakataon
Yun pala naman ay sobra ang init doon.
"Lipat tayo sa LA..." ang sabi ko kay Ampy
Mahusay na trabaho, nasa malaking city kasi
Marami doong makikita at mapapasyalan
Magagandang tanawin, panahon ay ayos lang.
Pero...
Talaga palang Wild Wild West dito sa LA
Drive-by shooting at car chases sa freeway
Madalas na mapanood ang mga ito sa TV
Hindi movies ito, kundi tunay na nangyayari.
Narito ang Disneyland, Universal Studios at Hollywood
At iba pang mapupuntahan hanggang abutin ng pagod
Dito'y marami ding nagbabakasaling maging artista
Kasabihan nga hindi ba, kahit ipakain sa buwaya.
Sobra naman ang presyo ng real estate dito
Paano ka namang makakabili, kung maliit ang sweldo?
Baka naman nagdidildil ang iba... ng hot dog at hamburger
Para lang makabili ng bahay sa Rancho Cucamonger.
Pero...
Ayos lang dito sa Southern California
Maraming kababayan, lalo na sa West Covina
Mga tindahan ng bangus, bagoong at pandesal
Para kang nasa Pilipinas, may estatwa pa ni Rizal.
At saka...aba, teka, tila yata nahihilo ako
Bakit gumagalaw itong computer table ko?
Yumayanig itong building... naku po earthquake ito!
Diyan na muna kayo, kailangan akong tumakbo!
Monday, July 7, 2008
RHYMES, REASONS and RECOLLECTIONS
The Musical Side of Kamuning
(Updated 07/07/08, previously published using the by-line Harry K. Santos)
Let's start with the town's distinctive name. Kamuning was named after a tree also known as Walis-walisan. I'm glad they picked the name Kamuning over Walis-walisan. Kamuning sounds more musical. Much more musical sounding than other Quezon City district names like say, Cubao or Galas. Cubao rhymes with lubluban ng kalabaw. Who knows, maybe that's what it was in the old days. Maybe that's where the name comes from. You never know.
Galas sounds rough, provincial, rhymes with "No Class" and "nagalas", the Ilocano word for ugly. La Loma is something else. The place is synonymous with the cemetery, isn't it? Strangely enough, La Loma rhymes with Colma, the California cemetery town near San Francisco.
Speaking of which, the next Quezon City district on our mental list is San Francisco. Del Monte, that is. I'm not sure how the town got its name, but I don't think it was named after that famous city in Northern California, simply because the place doesn't look like that at all. Not even close. And I doubt it very much if Tony Bennett would ever consider leaving his heart, or any other bodily part of his, in San Francisco Del Monte.
Quirino District is... just that, a plain, characterless town with boring subdivision names Project 2, 3 and 4. Roxas District is an earlier version of Quirino. Project 1, according to Philippine Homesite and Housing Corporation records.
Anyway...
A good number of musical artists hail from or have lived in Kamuning at one time or another. Quite a few of them became big time performers. Big enough to be well known in show business, or at least among friends, classmates and townfolks of Kamuning.
Joey "Pepe" Smith, front man for the Juan de la Cruz Band, became a rock star in the 1970s. A nephew of mine, obviously a fan, says Smith is considered a legend among rock music fans in Asia. Known as plain Joseph as a kid, son of an American GI Smith grew up on K-3rd Street and still lives there, again according to my nephew.
There was a group of kids in the mid-60's who spent a great deal of their time singing Beatles songs at street corners of Kamuning. It didn't take long before they started playing their own musical instruments and sounding more and more like their idols from Liverpool. They were known as Dynasonics, later became Dynasouls when they changed managers and really made it big as concert and recording artists. Drummer Walter Pennington, another American mestizo, was "more cute than Ringo Starr", die-hard girl fans insisted during the group's heyday.
Vic Valdez was an Elvis-wannabe in high school. A big fan of the King, he signed classmates' autographs as "Elvic". He did not make it in the Elvis Presley of the Philippines contest, but settled to become a finalist in the search for a Filipino Neil Sedaka conducted by the then popular Student Canteen Radio/TV noon-day show. The semi-kinky haired Vic, who took third place in the contest, "looked more like Sammy Davis, Jr." said show host Leila Benitez.
Freddie Alde, who technically was not from Kamuning (OK, he's from Roxas District) but went to QCHS and was once trained by our high school music teacher Mr. Asprec, also became a Student Canteen pseudo-Elvis teenage idol during the show's popular run.
Elvis must have been the most influential figure to many QCHS musical aspirants during our time. Caridad Santos did one of the greatest and most unique impersonations we have seen in high school. "Karing" passed away last year.
We never saw Virginia Galla sing or perform on stage, but she was also known as a female Elvis at the time.
Then there's the Penaranda Family of talented musicians and singers. Gloria Penaranda who is a member of my QCHS class (1958) performed professionally at ManilaGrand Opera House and was known to have coached Pilita Corrales in guitar techniques. Gloria now livesin the Seattle area.
Other notables who made it into the musical limelight were Nonoy Zuniga who was and still is, a well-known recording artist and Vida Revilla who sang regularly on the Tinno Lapuz show on radio DZBB and TV Channel 7 in the '60s. Not too long ago, in one canned TV show from Manila we watched, Boboy Garovillo of the relatively newer singing trio Apo Hiking Society ad-libbed "doon sa amin sa K-3rd" during a skit.
There were other countless musically inclined people from our town, not only those Hollywood copycats, but also those who were formally trained in classical music and in the more traditional musical instruments like piano and violin. Special mention also goes to those who chose to maintain and preserve the true-Filipino traditional kundiman. Among them were high school performers Jose Balce and Clemencio Mergal. Rolando Landicho, another kundiman enthusiast, still sings regularly on the radio.
Estela Salvosa-Villanueva, until recently a resident of Toronto, sang, wrote, arranged and produced religious music recordings. Estela passed away recently.
Romeo Luz, now a Chicago resident, earned the moniker "Cugat" as a popular Kamuning neighborhood piano player and occasional night club performer. Danilo Jarquio and Tony Victoria, both US residents now, were among the many talented back-up and session musicians of our town.
The name Kamuning rhymes with the Sinatra song "Ring-a-ding-ding". The place may not be Ol' Blue Eyes' kind of town, but at the very least, it's a town with a cool sounding name. The place is a far cry from the grandeur of Nashville or Motown, but Kamuning, inspite of its diminutive image, has its own rich musical history.
The Musical Side of Kamuning
(Updated 07/07/08, previously published using the by-line Harry K. Santos)
Let's start with the town's distinctive name. Kamuning was named after a tree also known as Walis-walisan. I'm glad they picked the name Kamuning over Walis-walisan. Kamuning sounds more musical. Much more musical sounding than other Quezon City district names like say, Cubao or Galas. Cubao rhymes with lubluban ng kalabaw. Who knows, maybe that's what it was in the old days. Maybe that's where the name comes from. You never know.
Galas sounds rough, provincial, rhymes with "No Class" and "nagalas", the Ilocano word for ugly. La Loma is something else. The place is synonymous with the cemetery, isn't it? Strangely enough, La Loma rhymes with Colma, the California cemetery town near San Francisco.
Speaking of which, the next Quezon City district on our mental list is San Francisco. Del Monte, that is. I'm not sure how the town got its name, but I don't think it was named after that famous city in Northern California, simply because the place doesn't look like that at all. Not even close. And I doubt it very much if Tony Bennett would ever consider leaving his heart, or any other bodily part of his, in San Francisco Del Monte.
Quirino District is... just that, a plain, characterless town with boring subdivision names Project 2, 3 and 4. Roxas District is an earlier version of Quirino. Project 1, according to Philippine Homesite and Housing Corporation records.
Anyway...
A good number of musical artists hail from or have lived in Kamuning at one time or another. Quite a few of them became big time performers. Big enough to be well known in show business, or at least among friends, classmates and townfolks of Kamuning.
Joey "Pepe" Smith, front man for the Juan de la Cruz Band, became a rock star in the 1970s. A nephew of mine, obviously a fan, says Smith is considered a legend among rock music fans in Asia. Known as plain Joseph as a kid, son of an American GI Smith grew up on K-3rd Street and still lives there, again according to my nephew.
There was a group of kids in the mid-60's who spent a great deal of their time singing Beatles songs at street corners of Kamuning. It didn't take long before they started playing their own musical instruments and sounding more and more like their idols from Liverpool. They were known as Dynasonics, later became Dynasouls when they changed managers and really made it big as concert and recording artists. Drummer Walter Pennington, another American mestizo, was "more cute than Ringo Starr", die-hard girl fans insisted during the group's heyday.
Vic Valdez was an Elvis-wannabe in high school. A big fan of the King, he signed classmates' autographs as "Elvic". He did not make it in the Elvis Presley of the Philippines contest, but settled to become a finalist in the search for a Filipino Neil Sedaka conducted by the then popular Student Canteen Radio/TV noon-day show. The semi-kinky haired Vic, who took third place in the contest, "looked more like Sammy Davis, Jr." said show host Leila Benitez.
Freddie Alde, who technically was not from Kamuning (OK, he's from Roxas District) but went to QCHS and was once trained by our high school music teacher Mr. Asprec, also became a Student Canteen pseudo-Elvis teenage idol during the show's popular run.
Elvis must have been the most influential figure to many QCHS musical aspirants during our time. Caridad Santos did one of the greatest and most unique impersonations we have seen in high school. "Karing" passed away last year.
We never saw Virginia Galla sing or perform on stage, but she was also known as a female Elvis at the time.
Then there's the Penaranda Family of talented musicians and singers. Gloria Penaranda who is a member of my QCHS class (1958) performed professionally at ManilaGrand Opera House and was known to have coached Pilita Corrales in guitar techniques. Gloria now livesin the Seattle area.
Other notables who made it into the musical limelight were Nonoy Zuniga who was and still is, a well-known recording artist and Vida Revilla who sang regularly on the Tinno Lapuz show on radio DZBB and TV Channel 7 in the '60s. Not too long ago, in one canned TV show from Manila we watched, Boboy Garovillo of the relatively newer singing trio Apo Hiking Society ad-libbed "doon sa amin sa K-3rd" during a skit.
There were other countless musically inclined people from our town, not only those Hollywood copycats, but also those who were formally trained in classical music and in the more traditional musical instruments like piano and violin. Special mention also goes to those who chose to maintain and preserve the true-Filipino traditional kundiman. Among them were high school performers Jose Balce and Clemencio Mergal. Rolando Landicho, another kundiman enthusiast, still sings regularly on the radio.
Estela Salvosa-Villanueva, until recently a resident of Toronto, sang, wrote, arranged and produced religious music recordings. Estela passed away recently.
Romeo Luz, now a Chicago resident, earned the moniker "Cugat" as a popular Kamuning neighborhood piano player and occasional night club performer. Danilo Jarquio and Tony Victoria, both US residents now, were among the many talented back-up and session musicians of our town.
The name Kamuning rhymes with the Sinatra song "Ring-a-ding-ding". The place may not be Ol' Blue Eyes' kind of town, but at the very least, it's a town with a cool sounding name. The place is a far cry from the grandeur of Nashville or Motown, but Kamuning, inspite of its diminutive image, has its own rich musical history.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Seattle
I came back to California after spending a few days in Seattle with my college friends.
On my first day back at work, my co-worker greeted me:
"Welcome back, Tone. How's Seattle?"
"It's great, man. We enjoyed the reunion with my friends."
"Did you go to Pike Market?"
"Yes, my wife bought some stuff there."
"Did you take the Boeing tour?"
"Yes, I bought myself a nice "Future of Flight" jacket there."
My co-worker who is also an architect continued asking:
"Did you see the Seattle Library?"
"Yes. Interesting architecture." I answered.
He then asked:"Did you go see Bruce Lee's grave?"
"No, man. Why would I do that?
My co-worker who like me is also Asian, snapped back:
"Shoot, man, what kind of Asian bro are you. You went to Seattle and didn't pay your respects to Bruce Lee. His son Brandon is also buried there, next to him." He then raised his hand in mock disgust, squinted and did a quick karate stance a la Bruce Lee.
Anyway, I tried to continue working where I left off the previous week, but I could not concentrate. My mind was still in that part of the city called Tukwila, where most of us in the
group stayed. It was just great hanging out with college buddies again, many of whom I have not seen or heard from in some 44 years.
Ampy and I liked Seattle inspite of the rain. We enjoyed looking at the lush vegetation, something we don't have in our arrid location in San Bernardino. Next time we get a chance, we'd like to visit Seattle again. Hopefully we can stay longer, explore and see more places in the city and surrounding areas.
Including perhaps a Bruce Lee gravesite tour.
On my first day back at work, my co-worker greeted me:
"Welcome back, Tone. How's Seattle?"
"It's great, man. We enjoyed the reunion with my friends."
"Did you go to Pike Market?"
"Yes, my wife bought some stuff there."
"Did you take the Boeing tour?"
"Yes, I bought myself a nice "Future of Flight" jacket there."
My co-worker who is also an architect continued asking:
"Did you see the Seattle Library?"
"Yes. Interesting architecture." I answered.
He then asked:"Did you go see Bruce Lee's grave?"
"No, man. Why would I do that?
My co-worker who like me is also Asian, snapped back:
"Shoot, man, what kind of Asian bro are you. You went to Seattle and didn't pay your respects to Bruce Lee. His son Brandon is also buried there, next to him." He then raised his hand in mock disgust, squinted and did a quick karate stance a la Bruce Lee.
Anyway, I tried to continue working where I left off the previous week, but I could not concentrate. My mind was still in that part of the city called Tukwila, where most of us in the
group stayed. It was just great hanging out with college buddies again, many of whom I have not seen or heard from in some 44 years.
Ampy and I liked Seattle inspite of the rain. We enjoyed looking at the lush vegetation, something we don't have in our arrid location in San Bernardino. Next time we get a chance, we'd like to visit Seattle again. Hopefully we can stay longer, explore and see more places in the city and surrounding areas.
Including perhaps a Bruce Lee gravesite tour.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Los Banos
I considered settling down in Fresno when I was working in that Central Valley city. Fresno is not San Francisco nor San Diego or LA. Not even close, but as a latecomer to California, I assumed it's probably the most affordable city for me to get settled in. So what if it's hot? I could adjust to that, I reasoned.
But coming from the Midwest, I was surprised to find out that housing in Fresno was a lot more expensive than I thought. My high school buddy Romy Antonio has a sister who has been a Fresno resident for several years. She told me to check out Los Banos, CA, a small town in the direction of Gilroy, California's garlic capital. She said I might find that housing over there to be more affordable.
Los Banos? Aba maganda siguro doon. The name obviously reminded me of the town with the same name in Laguna back home. Palm trees, banana plantation on the hillsides, lush vegetation din siguro. I'm sure there's an equivalent of Mt. Makiling over there, knowing that California's terrain is somewhat similar to Laguna and other parts of Luzon. They probably have hot springs there too, that's why they call the town Los Banos, I said to myself.
So I checked Mapquest for its location and driving directions. 71.66 miles from Fresno. Not quite a commuting distance to my place of work. So scratch the idea of moving to a home in Los Banos. Kahit na ba affordable, kung ganoon naman kalayo..."
But what if I can find employment in Los Banos? Puwede rin siguro. Maybe it's a college town like U.P. Los Banos or maybe there's something like International Rice Research Institute, knowing it's in California's farming region. Hey, I did some architectural work for U.P. LOs Banos and IRRI when I worked for Leandro Locsin in Makati. I have the experience, so it's worth checking out the town.
Armed with that enthusiasm, I drove to Los Banos one Saturday morning. It was a boring drive on flat terrain of seemingly endless farmlands, going through Madera, Chowchilla and other nondescript small towns in the Central Valley. "It should get better when I get to my destination", I assured myself.
After about an hour and a half, I finally saw the "Welcome to Los Banos" sign. Well... I was still on flat land. Tumbleweeds were rolling across the highway that windy morning. Pretty soon I was in the town's paved but dusty two lane main drag with the usual fast food places on each side... Macdonalds, Del Taco, Jack in the Box... A tower at a small Wells Fargo branch showed it was approaching 100 degrees and it was not even 11:00 in the morning. I noticed a good number of businesses selling chiminea and other Mexican style pottery on the road side. Pretty much like those you see in Tijuana. It did remind me of that Mexican border town.
That's about it. I did not see any large office buildings. No banana plantation on hillsides. In fact, no hills around. It's all flat with cactus, yucca and other desert plants. OK, I saw a few palm trees in the residential section of town. I doubt if there's any hot springs anywhere near there. The town looked so dry. Nowhere near to what I imagined it to be. Los Banos, California is a desert town, not quite like Los Banos, Laguna.
I decided to continue driving west until I reached Gilroy where I ate lunch of spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread. I bought a bunch of garlic and some locally grown fruits to take home with me and started driving back, not stopping at Los Banos, having lost my interest. I continued on to get back home, passing through the boring flat lands of Chowchilla, Madera and finally, back in Fresno.
Given time, Los Banos, CA will probably develop into another booming real estate area, just like othersmall towns in the state. It may happen sooner or later. Or maybe not in my lifetime. who knows...
It took a little while for me to get used to hearing people here say "Los Ba-knows" instead of "Los Ban-yos". Same thing with "Paso Rubbles" for Paso Robles, one of California's wine regions.
But coming from the Midwest, I was surprised to find out that housing in Fresno was a lot more expensive than I thought. My high school buddy Romy Antonio has a sister who has been a Fresno resident for several years. She told me to check out Los Banos, CA, a small town in the direction of Gilroy, California's garlic capital. She said I might find that housing over there to be more affordable.
Los Banos? Aba maganda siguro doon. The name obviously reminded me of the town with the same name in Laguna back home. Palm trees, banana plantation on the hillsides, lush vegetation din siguro. I'm sure there's an equivalent of Mt. Makiling over there, knowing that California's terrain is somewhat similar to Laguna and other parts of Luzon. They probably have hot springs there too, that's why they call the town Los Banos, I said to myself.
So I checked Mapquest for its location and driving directions. 71.66 miles from Fresno. Not quite a commuting distance to my place of work. So scratch the idea of moving to a home in Los Banos. Kahit na ba affordable, kung ganoon naman kalayo..."
But what if I can find employment in Los Banos? Puwede rin siguro. Maybe it's a college town like U.P. Los Banos or maybe there's something like International Rice Research Institute, knowing it's in California's farming region. Hey, I did some architectural work for U.P. LOs Banos and IRRI when I worked for Leandro Locsin in Makati. I have the experience, so it's worth checking out the town.
Armed with that enthusiasm, I drove to Los Banos one Saturday morning. It was a boring drive on flat terrain of seemingly endless farmlands, going through Madera, Chowchilla and other nondescript small towns in the Central Valley. "It should get better when I get to my destination", I assured myself.
After about an hour and a half, I finally saw the "Welcome to Los Banos" sign. Well... I was still on flat land. Tumbleweeds were rolling across the highway that windy morning. Pretty soon I was in the town's paved but dusty two lane main drag with the usual fast food places on each side... Macdonalds, Del Taco, Jack in the Box... A tower at a small Wells Fargo branch showed it was approaching 100 degrees and it was not even 11:00 in the morning. I noticed a good number of businesses selling chiminea and other Mexican style pottery on the road side. Pretty much like those you see in Tijuana. It did remind me of that Mexican border town.
That's about it. I did not see any large office buildings. No banana plantation on hillsides. In fact, no hills around. It's all flat with cactus, yucca and other desert plants. OK, I saw a few palm trees in the residential section of town. I doubt if there's any hot springs anywhere near there. The town looked so dry. Nowhere near to what I imagined it to be. Los Banos, California is a desert town, not quite like Los Banos, Laguna.
I decided to continue driving west until I reached Gilroy where I ate lunch of spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread. I bought a bunch of garlic and some locally grown fruits to take home with me and started driving back, not stopping at Los Banos, having lost my interest. I continued on to get back home, passing through the boring flat lands of Chowchilla, Madera and finally, back in Fresno.
Given time, Los Banos, CA will probably develop into another booming real estate area, just like othersmall towns in the state. It may happen sooner or later. Or maybe not in my lifetime. who knows...
It took a little while for me to get used to hearing people here say "Los Ba-knows" instead of "Los Ban-yos". Same thing with "Paso Rubbles" for Paso Robles, one of California's wine regions.
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