Down the Rabbit Hole

The Philippines made history last November 9, 2013. The strongest typhoon of the current Pacific typhoon season AND what is claimed to be the strongest typhoon to ever make landfall in the history of mankind slammed the eastern coastline of the central part of the Philippines. Super Typhoon Haiyan (known locally as Yolanda) was estimated to have hit the Philippines with winds at 195 mph... yes, the wind speed was in miles , not kilometers! Aside from the strong winds, Haiyan also came with a storm surge whose waves easily wiped out buildings. Not surprisingly, the towns and cities along the typhoon's path were decimated. Initial estimates indicated that as many as 10,000 people died in this typhoon. Tacloban, Leyte is one of the hardest-hit cities, transforming into a virtual wasteland in a span of a few hours in front of spectators glued to their tellies. Who wouldn't be moved by the heartbreaking stories captured by media practitioners? As soon as the DSWD National R...

While All Saints' Day is traditionally when people visit the dead, it is also the time to reunite with the living.  October 28, 2013 With the road going to Manila Memorial Park being notoriously heavy on this time of the year, I opted to visit the grave of my paternal grandfather, Lolo Bats, a few days ahead (right after I voted at the Barangay Elections). With me was my grandma, Lola Bats, who's age and health condition prohibit her from walking long distances. And with her was the househelp, who had to assist her with the short walk to Lolo Bats' grave. If it were just me, I'd have also visited an uncle (buried on a hilltop), his dad (I couldn't seem to find his grave each time I try),  and the Aquinos (buried near my grandpa's site). After the pleasant afternoon outing, we then went to visit her daughter, Tita Ising. This was the first time that Lola Bats saw her youngest great granddaughter, Elise, because she is overseas with her parents...

I opted to wait the rain out before I went on the road today. However, the rain wouldn't quit so I decided to go and hope that my trip would be uneventful. After all, it was no longer raining fighting cats and dogs at that time. The initial portion of the trip seemed promising because the traffic condition wasn't so bad. The road was pretty much clean too... Until I reached Real, Calamba... Take note, visibility was so low that drivers had to turn on the headlights at 8:30am. Yes, 8:30am! The drive was pretty slow too, thanks to the wet asphalt. I should have taken the scenic route but it's way too long, so I continued driving on the National Highway. The flooded section of the  Los Baños-bound road in front of Monte Vista (in Pansol, Calamba) did not convince me to turn back. The commuter buses led the counterflowing because the water was just way too deep on the right side of the road. We, with the smaller vehicles, followed suit.  I finally changed my mind when I saw the...