Muslim Faithfuls Gather for Eidel Adha Prayer at Pikit Plaza

I can still recall that Cat, BME and I had mentioned about posting this event in Cat's blog 'Padayon Pikiteno' sometime mid-December, or at least days before that tragic news about her brother (Toto) came about. And so, in deference and respect to the 'mourning at the Payag', this posting was delayed on purpose; nevertheless it is hoped that its significance does not fade out as it was allowed to be overtaken by some events.

And so, here is that part of Pikit, Nort Cotabato in that Eidel Adha congregational prayer on December 28, 2008..


Facing west, towards the tennis court (as Muslims, in prayer, face towards the Holy Kaaba in Mecca), below is the left portion of the congregation..


the center portion..


and the right portion..


The event was doubly significant as Eidel Adha coincided with the feast of the Immaculate Conception - which also meant that these two major Faiths of the world (Islam and Christianity) have good reasons for the celebration and magnitude of the merry-making that was in Pikit last Dec. 8.

In my own terms, I tried to figure out what could have enticed Cat and BME (and other friends from the Payag too) to see a group of Muslim faithfuls gather in such multitude at the Pikit Municipal Plaza (which I estimated to be between 4 to 5 thousand). I surmised that the reasons for such could be the following: 1) some kind of longing to see the place; 2) seeing a multitude of Pikitenyos portrays the festive mood; 3) in such a multitude of Pikitenyos, it's good to imagine that you are one of them. 4) the people and the background, as well, give a complete sense of feeling like you are one with the people and the place, and 5) people have not gathered at the Plaza in such big number in the recent past (3 or 4 yrs. ago and beyond).

We hope it will always be like this one, or see more of this kind in the future. Well, they say that it is always better said than not at all, and so, no matter how belated it is, I say: "Happy Eidel Adha and Happy Feast of the Immaculate Conception to all."

Blogging: Is it already being threatened?

As we all know, there are four basic freedoms guaranteed by the United Nations and subscribed upon by the free world countries and societies. These are: 1. Freedom of speech or expression; 2. Freedom of religion; 3. Freedom from want or hunger; and 4. Freedom from fear. The Four Freedoms are goals famously articulated by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the State of the Union Address he delivered to the United States Congress. In an address also known as the Four Freedoms speech, FDR proposed the four points above as fundamental freedoms humans "everywhere in the world" ought to enjoy.

I was toying over a foolish idea, after I read some restrictions on blogging in some countries by some governments, that blogging should be the fifth freedom that every citizen of the world should have access to or use at will for purposes of expressing oneself. I know this would fall under the first freedom and I also know that every freedom entails some kind of responsibility. As it has been said, your freedom ends where the freedom of others begins. You are free to swing your arms as wide as you can for as long as it does not hit the other peron's face.

It rocks the senses when you read that countries like Montenegro, a former Yugoslav republic, banned the Facebook and Youtube from being accessed and Vietnam restricts her citizens from blogging about the government or state affairs. If they are simple regulations to restrict public and private workers from accessing the internet during official time or while at work, then there is nothing to worry about. The State, as well as private firms, have the right to do that to optimize productivity of the workers.

Vietnam has tightened curbs on bloggers to ban views seen as opposing the state or undermining national security, according to a new edict which asks online service providers to provide data on users.

The Internet has given Vietnamese people a forum to express themselves that cannot be found in the traditional media, which are closely controlled by the communist authorities. It has produced a flourishing blogosphere, but the government said earlier this month it wanted closer regulation.

Paris-based media watchdog 'Reporters Without Borders' lists Vietnam as among the "enemies of the Internet" with censorship practices "almost as thorough as those of its Chinese big sister."

Vietnam courts have already jailed a number of cyber-dissidents and earlier this month upheld a prison sentence of two and a half years on a high-profile blogger.

In the face of these looming threats to the 'Fifth Freedom' we bloggers so loved, it is high time to unite in solidarity. Certainly we cannot sit idly on the wayward and watch this kind of restrictions spread across some continents. I have already joined a group that calls itself "Care2 Causes". This is an advocay group that entice people to join and express whatever critical universal issues one can post on its petition site (www.care2.com/causes). But I think that is not enough. Maybe we need a more focused group whose only concern is to stand on guard against violations or looming violations of our 'Fifth Freedom' and share information among members from across the five continents.

I am contemplating on a one-site blog or website that member-bloggers (with signed-in passwords) can report or share information of this kind. Then a local-based bloggers group, serving as country advocacy group, can lobby upon their respective governments to dramatize the issue and hope that in the short run the issue may reach the level of the UN-based human rights organizations and take appropriate actions.

I am no technical savvy yet, and so maybe someone with the skill of putting up this one blogsite or website, can initiate the building of that technical infrastructure that shall serve as our home-base. I know this is technically feasible.

We shall await for your reactions. Anyone please!

Pricelss gifts that don't cost a cent

Been pondering on what gift to give this yuletide season? Or you don't have much to spend on presents this Christmas season? These ideas cost next to nothing, but offer priceless memories, yet more often than not, they are the most forgotten ones. Now let's try them, not only because they cost nothing except little efforts, but because they are wonderful and significant.

Smile! Take a wonderful photo of your recipient's child or pet. Make a paper frame or enclose it in a pretty card.

Important tips. Volunteer the gift of a skill: Show a friend or relative how to knit, swim or use a digital camera best.

Babysitters' Club. Offer the couple down the street a free evening of looking after the kids. Or you can promise them some pet-sitting while they're on vacation.

Something from your Garden.If your garden is in season, give flowers, fruits or vegetables.

Make a Bookmarker. For the constant reader, use holiday or other cards to make bookmarks. Cut the cards into strips that show complete scenes (Santa coming down the chimney, for example). Punch a hole at the top of every strip and pull a ribbon through it.

Website Map. Give your recipient a list of off-the-beaten-path Web sites related to her interests (gardening, antiquing, computers, mobile phones, knitting, etc.). Add a brief comment for each site. For a striking holiday background to your list, download free color pages from activityvillage.co.uk. (Click on the Seasonal Pages link on the left side of the main page.)

Words of Love. Send an audio letter to a faraway relative. If you have young relatives who don't live near you, record yourself reading a children's book so you seem that much closer.

Write It Down. If you like to write, compose a poem or a very short story for your recipient. Include references to events in her life and jokes that just the two of you share.

Memorable photo. Share a copy of the most memorable phot you had with the recipient. Write a brief note about the picture and paste it at the back. You can put the picture in a transparent photo frame.

Now you see it, now you believe. There are many wonderful things that we can give this Christmas and they don't cost anything but little efforts and extra thoughtfulness. May your Christmas be merry and bright. And may the new year brings new and better opportunites for us.

Dubious Dubai's First Refrigerated Beach?

The tallest building in the world is now in Dubai - Burj Building with 160 stories and soaring up more than a half kilometer (508 meters); the highest tennis court (atop a hotel) is in Dubai; now, the first refrigerated beach in the world, if ever, is being contemplated in dubious Dubai. Is it the ultimate in construction vanity in Dubai? Maybe not, but one hotel just wants to make rest and recreation real enjoyable for the rich in Dubai.

It's hot in Dubai, averaging 40C (104F) and often hitting 50C (122F) in summer. Perhaps tourists visiting this desert locale don't check this out before they book their junket (or the rules about what you can do on the beach Green bikinis are okay, right?). Or perhaps if you can afford to stay at the new Palazzo Versace you expect nature to be bent to your will. You expect cool sand. That is what Soheil Abedian, founder of the hotel, thinks:

“We will suck the heat out of the sand to keep it cool enough to lie on,” he said. “This is the kind of luxury that top people want.”

According to Times Online, Abedian is seriously planning ways to cool the sand to try and keep visitors from burning their feet: The beach will have a network of pipes beneath the sand containing a coolant that will absorb heat from the surface.

The swimming pool will be refrigerated and there are also proposals to install giant blowers to waft a gentle breeze over the beach.

The scheme is likely to infuriate environmentalists, but nothing really surprises environmentalists about Dubai any more. As Rachel Noble of Tourism Concern, a UK group that promotes sustainable tourism, told the Times: “Dubai is like a bubble world where the things that are worrying the rest of the world, like climate change, are simply ignored so that rich people can continue their extravagant lifestyles.”

I won't be surprised the next time around I hear a skating rink in Dubai in the middle of the burning desert.

Tonight's Full Moon is Largest and Brightest of 2008

If tonight's full moon appears larger and more luminous than usual, it's not because you're loony or due for a new pair of glasses. The moon, you see, orbits Earth in an ellipse with one end closer to Earth than the other; tonight's full moon corresponds closely with the orbit's perigee, the closer end of that ellipse. (The more distant end of the ellipse is known as apogee.) What's more, tonight's perigee will bring the moon and Earth closer together than they have been at full moon since 1993. (Left photo courtesy of NASA).

That means that tonight's moon will appear 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than the usual full moons this year. While the size of the moon can be difficult to gauge in the middle of the night sky, its luminosity should be more readily apparent: the nearby moon should light up the outdoors tonight "like a cosmic floodlamp,".

I have my own shot of tonight's heavenly wonder courtesy of my mobile phone's camera(picture at right). I waited patiently for the moon to appear at its largest and brightest which was said to be at around 7:45 p.m. (Manila time zone), Saturday night, the 13th of December 2008.

A lot of stories, both fact and fiction, have been associated with full moons. The full moon has been linked to crime, suicide, mental illness, disasters, accidents, birthrates, fertility, and werewolves, among other things. Some people even buy and sell stocks according to phases of the moon, a method proven to be quite successful according to some who practice this one.

Numerous studies have tried to find lunar effects on the many aspects of human life and behavior. So far, the studies have failed to establish much of interest. Lunar effects that have been found have little or nothing to do with human behavior, e.g., the discovery of a slight effect of the moon on global temperature which in turn might have an effect on the growth of plants. Of course, there have been studies here and there that have tried to establish correlations between various phases of the moon and this or that phenomenon, but nothing significant has been replicated sufficiently to warrant claiming a probable causal relationship.

For now, we can only believe those that were proven through scientific investigations. And for the more fascinating stories link to full moons, some of them may be proven in time by science.

Hello and goodnight, full moon.

SM Mall of Asia: Largest in Southeast Asia, 7th Largest in the World

From a department store in Quiapo, Manila, SM has come to define the country's biggest and best malls. As early as the 1970's they built their branch in Makati which was then a sizable one. In 1997, they built SM Megamall, the biggest mall of that time. Cut to May 2006, and they've done it again by building the largest mall now.

The SM Mall of Asia is the largest shopping mall in the Philippines and the 7th largest shopping mall in the world. In terms of gross floor size, it is next to the South Dongguan Mall, Golden Resources Mall, Central World Plaza, Seacon Square, Runwal Arcade - Mumbai.

The name SM Mall of Asia has captured the imagination not just of Filipinos but also of tourists from around the world. The sheer size and uniqeness of it is enough to draw the day tripper's curiosity.

The numbers can be mind boggling: 600 shops, 150 restaurants, 5,000 parking spaces and an Olympic size skating rink which is described as the biggest of its kind in Southeast Asia. Two elevated walkways from the second level of the mall that extend across an avenue towards the Manila bay. The result is a clear and wide ranging view of the most spectacular sunset in the world.

One of the mall's main attractions is the first ever IMAX theater in the country, along with a Director's Club Theater for intimate screenings, a Premiere Cinema, and the CenterStage Cinema which can used for live musical concerts and theatrical performances.

The Mall of Asia is far from just being a mall, it's an extension of the Filipino home for the rest of the world to see and visit.

Post-Mortem on Pacquiao-Hoya Bout: My Faltered Forecast

Now the outcome of the Pacquiao-dela Hoya bout turned my fearless forecast into a faltered one. (Please read below).

But I had never doubted Pacman’s big heart. More than anything else, that has been his most potent weapon. On the other hand, I just thought that dela Hoya was such a formidable foe for him considering all the tales of the tape. Matter of fact, I was not alone. Many, if not all fans and followers of Pacquiao, were also as arbitrary as anyone. Proof was the betting odds (100:165) which never changed until the last minute. Manny was the underdog all the way.

Then the actual fight was a bit different. From the first to the eight round Manny was slightly ahead of dela Hoya on points (10-9 per round). Though on the last few minutes of the first round dela Hoya unleashed some few combinations which Manny skillfully evaded, though he was hit a couple of times. As expected Manny came in the aggressive fighter landing 169 punches on the first 6 rounds as against dela Hoya’s 69. Dela Hoya was trying to conserve energy by dancing around and giving occasional shots while Manny was relentlessly coming into his face and body until on the fifth round he caught up with dela Hoya on the left eye.

By the seventh round, dela Hoya had an obviously swollen face. Manny took advantage of this and continued to unleash a barrage of punches on the eight round hitting dela Hoya all over. This time, dela Hoya’s left eye seems to be badly swollen.

Then came the buzzer for the ninth round. Surprisingly, the handlers of dela Hoya threw in the towel signaling the end of the fight. They must have sensed that with a badly swollen left eye and the way Manny is attacking dela Hoya, it was safer to give up the fight that early rather than suffer humiliation by seeing their protégée fell down to the canvass. That was still a technical knockout (TKO).

This fight affirmed more than ever that the big-hearted Manny Pacquiao is the greatest Filipino fighter today and of the recent past.

Mabuhay ka Manny! Mabuhay ang Pilipino!

The Pacquiao-Dela Hoya Caper: My Fearless Forecast

Much has been said and written about the Pacquiao – Dela Hoya encounter on Sunday, December 7, 2008 (Manila time zone). And there is almost no more room for another analysis much more a fearless forecast, so-to-speak. But even then, I feel that I still have the right to assert mine, and me - never been an authority in boxing – notwithstanding.

In terms of height dela Hoya is 5-inch taller (5’11”) than Pacquiao (5”6”) but this gap shall be made even by Manny’s speed and agility.

In terms of reach dela Hoya has 6-inch advantage (73”) over Pacquiao (67”) but this will be overcome by Manny’s ability to dive in with his punches and pull away at the blink of an eye. This time, he should do a Muhammad Ali: “sting like a bee and dance like a butterfly”; and one more thing: he should heed Tyson’s unsolicited advice: “never approach dela Hoya head first, rather ride on a barrage of punches..”. Fine.

In terms of experience dela Hoya held the champ belts in six divisions while Pacquiao is king in four divisions but Pacquiao had 49-3-1 record compared to dela Hoya’s 38-5-2. By number of fights, Pacquiao had more.

Pacquiao’s only edge are his youth (7 yrs younger than dela Hoya), his speed and agility, and probably his punch power too. But we have yet to see the effect of added pounds on Pacquiao’s punch power and agility since he is climbing up a heavier weight class. To some boxers this was an advantage, but to some it turned out to be a jinx.

Dela Hoya says, they can box, counter-punch or brawl and this is the kind of fight that's gonna end in a knock-out. Pacquiao says, this is the most important fight in his boxing career.

I say that this fight is gonna end like this:

The fight shall go the distance with both men still standing up to the last round and the winner shall be declared by a split decision. In such case, nobody is real winner and loser. That will be good for both of them in their boxing career and the re-match will certainly be more exciting than this first one.

Ros-Lehtinen hangs up on Obama. Twice!

Is Ileana Ros-Lehtinen a little paranoid?

Maybe.

On Wednesday, the Republican congresswoman got a call from President-elect Barack Obama, didn't believe it was him, and hung up on him. Twice.

According to Ros-Lehtinen's flack Alex Cruz, the congresswoman received the call on her cell phone from a Chicago-based number and an aide informed her that Obama wanted to speak to her. When Obama introduced himself, Ros-Lehtinen cut him off and said, "I'm sorry but I think this is a joke from one of the South Florida radio stations known for these pranks." Then she hung up.

Moments later, Obama tried again, this time through his soon-to-be chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel.

"Ileana, I cannot believe you hung up on the President-Elect," Emanuel said. And then--yes, you know what's coming--she hung up on Emanuel saying she "didn't believe the call was legitimate."

A short time later, Ros-Lehtinen received an urgent call from Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.), the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, who informed her that she indeed hung up on Obama.

So, Obama tried again and this time he was successful. (Phew!)

"It is very funny that you have twice hung up on me," Obama said. Ros Lehtinen responded by telling Obama that radio stations in South Florida always make these sorts of jokes. Obama said similar pranksters reside in Chi-town.

"You are either very gracious to reach out in such a bipartisan manner or had run out of folks to call if you are truly calling me and Saturday Night Live could use a good Obama impersonator like you," Ros-Lehtinen joked with the president-elect.

Ros-Lehtinen then congratulated Obama on his victory and pledged to work together on behalf of all Americans. She also asked Obama to call Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Rep. Albio Sire (D-NJ) to discuss Cuba policy.

Here's hoping they don't hang up on him.