Bushido 武士道

Once upon a time there was a swordsman who was adopted by an old general from the east to learn the classical ways of fighting. The apprentice grew in stature and prominence as he learned from him. They fought together in wars alongside other warriors. He swore loyalty to him and in turn was recognized for his achievements. He worked with different commanders and has proven his worth even in the most challenging of times.

Sadly, he would hear of stories from the others that the old master was not as honorable as he thought. The other commanders who swore loyalty to him eventually left him oftentimes disgruntled and never came back. The swordsman often wondered about this but dismissed the rumors said of him. Others who came under the general's tutelage would leave in the hopes of finding greener pastures.

In time, the general grew his army by acquiring new recruits and commanders. New warriors were signed up to replace those who left. The swordsman grew to become a teacher himself to the new recruits. He was respected by others of different class and rank. He was often recruited to better masters but he decided to stay with the old general. He believed that he can learn a few more of the ways and perhaps become a commander himself for his loyalty.

multiply revisited: enchanted by siquijor

It was the summer of 2007 when we decided to take a detour from Dumaguete and take the road less taken to Mystical Siquijor. The provincial island is unspoilt and eerily calm and peaceful. Folklores abound when you hear of the province and it adds to the mysterious vibe when visiting the islands.

kapitolyo has arrived as a foodie destination

You know that your side of town has become the place to be when it gets featured in popular blogs and gets its own pretty little map for a foodie app.

Judging by the places mentioned here and places i've tried - I missed going only to 3.

Being a local of this place and to help adventurous patrons who would like to try Kapitolyo, I made a list of my favorites

1. Poco Deli - craving for quality sausages? pasta? imported wine and beer? go here!

2. Charlie's Cafe - best burger in town. they come in black angus and wagyu! works best with dirty fries and some hoegaardens! yum!

3. Cafe Juanita - craving for some Filipino fare? like some quirky ambiance to go with it? Kare kare is a must!

4. Mad Mark's - care for some  artisanal ice cream to cap off your binge? they serve awesome wings too

5. Rub Ribs - hard to find but no longer a secret. They serve good ribs at a good price! falls off the bone!

Map was created by the talented Kitkat Pecson for Looloo. Thanks to Reah for pointing this out.

matteo's dedication and first birthday

I'm back!

I haven't updated my blog lately not for the reason I was locked up because of my previous post nor have I returned for the reason the #CyberCrimeLaw has been put in TRO. The family has been very busy preparing for the biggest event since the wedding and Matteo's birth - Matteo turned ONE.

We decided to make it more meaningful so we decided to celebrate in one event our baby's dedication and first birthday. The dedication was described in Luke 2:22-24

The dedication was officiated by our dear friend, pastor Sur

We appreciate how the dedication was conducted as it made the witnesses active participants of the event

We chose the ninongs and ninangs as people who we think will be most involved and present during the growth of Matteo. They were mostly close friends from church and relatives.

After the dedication, the food booths are made open for everyone to enjoy

philippine internet freedom is under siege

note sure if we learned from the Marcos administration or we are a people of with short term memory problems...

read more in:

http://pifa.ph

and


Digital Martial Law: 10 scary things about the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012

protip: upload to blogger with minimal pain

The initial reaction to knowing your blog host is shutting down may vary from mild sadness to the extreme stages of denial, anger, bargaining, depression to acceptance. This blog is not about counselling you on how to get over the stages but to help you make a less painful transition. I'm talking about moving your ton of  precious photos from one dying blog like Multiply to Blogger. It may also be read as "How to upload your 5Gb of vanity shots from your camera to Blogger painlessly."

Before we get to the meat of the matter, I have made a few assumptions to make this blog less wordy and more picture-y (that's how I roll)

• You've already downloaded your media from your old and dying blog *cough *MULTIPLY
• You have a google account including the following
• google drive
• google plus
• blogger
• You don't trust Picasa to do the uploads for you
• You're not a grammar nazi or something related to it

To begin:

STEP 1 - Organize your photos by folder

Why? You'll thank me later

STEP 2 - Copy your photos to Google Drive and allow to simmer and sync.

my happy place

we can be mistaken for twins

Singapore 2012

wisdom from snoopy

I've always been familiar with Schulz' Peanuts comic strip ever since I was a kid. I've always thought of it as any other comic book. The preparations to our baby's party allowed me to appreciate and read the comics again. I'm realize that there's a treasure of truth behind the humor it presents. Take time to glean of the wisdom behind Snoopy and the gang. Consider me an old new fan!

Copyright United Feature Syndicate, Inc. 1950, 1954, 1959

Blogging with the iPad still stinks

I'm trying to use the blogger app for ios. Meh.

Please create a decent ios app for iPad...

I'm in SG

I didn't bring my netbook to SG. I'm using the iPad and I'm now trying to post on blogger after a fun and tiring day with family.  It's so fun i'll actually post the photos after we return back home to Manila.

Blogging on the iPad stinks too. Meh.

1st year of fatherhood

I was looking at my baby's pictures and can't help but get awed by the experiences behind the photos. I could still remember the stress and the sleepless nights my wife and I had to contend with. There's the underlying fear of SIDS and other bugs that the baby could get. There were the challenges of colic and thoughts of homeopathic solutions. I never knew of taking care of kids as much until I finally had my own. I learned immediately how to cradle, changes nappies, give baby baths. Our lives were instantly changed! And yet through all adjustments and hardships, nothing, as cliche as it sounds, nothing can ever replace the joy you find in the laughter of your child. I'm starting to understand why 1st year birthdays are special. It's not really for the baby to have fun, it's a celebration for the parents that we made it - We survived the first year!

Again, I'll never tire of saying this - Thank you God for being a Father to us and loving us the same no matter how difficult as children we become.

multiply revisited: awed in batanes

Back when life was simpler and uncomplicated, when all I cared about was myself, I had wanderlust. Back in the summer of 2006, I embarked on a journey to beautiful Batanes, one of the northernmost remote islands of the Philippines.

I'd thought I wanted to share a few pictures of my travel back in 2006.

photos were from my old and now dying blog host: http://capncrisp.multiply.com

got paper?

I finally gotten myself to purchase the tools for a complete Paper experience. Why did it take so long? i'm unashamedly cheap.

I hope you'll like some of the Paper creations i'll be posting soon in my site. Hopefully this will be a refreshing break from the other posts I make.

You can find the iTunes app from the link below:

matteo's favorite things: kids songs stories

If there's one app in the iPad that my one year old is crazy about, its the Best Kids Songs·Stories by Samsung publishing, inc. You can sing along with classic nursery songs in cute Japanese style animations. They have musical storybooks, games and coloring books. All inside one app. I'm probably learning a lot more nursery songs now than I've ever had.

You can find the iTunes app from the link below:






I'll let you in on their secret. They occasionally give away free songs from within. I'm actually considering of buying their best of the best songs for $9.99 to carry us through on our upcoming trip.

SG and back again

quiet anticipation

this skyline may have already changed

chinatown

It will be 6 years since I've last been to the Merlion City. It was the time when we accompanied my sister to start work in a foreign land. Life is hard in Manila and she's looking to grab at the opportunities made available there. 

She has since found a boyfriend, got engaged and married. She gave birth to a beautiful baby girl last year. The family kept in touch with each other through Skype and Facebook. 

In the coming days, the record streak will be broken! We're going to Singapore! This time with my wife and my own baby in tow. We'll be there for only a few days but we're ready to make new memories.

Ill try to post new photos of Singapore 2012 soon.

Photos were from my old blog at http://capncrisp.multiply.com/photos/album/16/singapore-revisited

bargain luxury: dunlopillo therapillo

We passed by HMR , a surplus depot store in Pioneer St, Mandaluyong, last Sunday hoping to get some good finds. A lonely item quickly caught my attention. It was a Dunlopillo Therapillo memory foam pillow. I'm not familiar with this particular item but I know Dunlopillos command a premium for luxurious naps. 

I glanced upon the price tag. My instincts tell me it's a steal for PHP990 or 23.50 USD. 

It's looks new and undamaged in it's original packaging. I hadn't let go of it inside the store knowing it's the only remaining item. 

Once home, I started my research on this mysterious pillow. It received mixed reviews mainly about the chemical smell although there were suggested fixes for it. It's is being sold in online stores based in Australia for AUS$ 100, that's PHP4300++. 

I got a premium pillow at 25% of the original retail price. Not bad! I've already had the covers cleaned up and can't wait to catch some luxurious Zzzzz's on this thing.

photos taken from Dunlopillo resellers website

busy september

September has arrived!

To many here in Manila, it marks the start of the Christmas season. No kidding. Expect christmas carols played in the malls, jeeps and radio. I suspect it's a corporate conspiracy of lengthening Christmas for Filipinos to start saving up for their commercial offerings.

For us at home, it marks the birthdays of the new members of our family. Sister gave birth in SG to their firstborn baby girl on Sept 14 while wife gave birth in MNL to our firstborn boy on Sept 29. So this month is BIG!

We, well more like the wife, have been busy brewing whizits and whatsits galore. I do the creative implementation of her ideas. We haven't planned anything as big since our wedding too.

Wife came up with a unique theme for the party based on her favorite iPad game, Snoopy Street Fair. Watch out for the details we're cooking up!

Sadly though, we also remember our beloved uncle Pet. He passed away the same day our baby Matteo arrived. There's no better way to describe the feeling but bittersweet. Someday though, we hold on to the promise that we'll see him. Until then...

photos from 

http://www.snoopystreetfair.com

Copyright United Feature Syndicate, Inc. 1950, 1954, 1959. 

goodbye multiply

dear multiply,


I was caught unaware that you have ceased to hold my photos, articles and videos. I know haven't been faithfully keep you up to date since Twitter and Facebook came along. In spite of it all, I've never treated them the same as I have treated you. I told you of my travels, shared with you my photos. I told you my life. I told you of my love story with the woman I will marry. I shared things which inspired me.

Now i heard that you'll be leaving and you changed careers. I'm mad that you sold out. 

I understand. You have to survive. You became a souvenir of a once vibrant era. I hope you'll make the transition easy. I won't forget you though. I'll remember you here. I'll share my old stories perhaps. my old pictures too. Maybe someday we'll meet again. maybe in a different form.


capncrisp

why extraordinary meh?

I've been thinking of a blog title for a couple of days now and have been drawn by oxymora. I find them funny, dramatic and ironic. 

I think I personify oxymoron. 

I hate writing and I detest school essays. I don't know my grammar and my writing cohesion. I almost flunked my English. I'm more of a Science and Technology kind of guy. I have the attention span of a dog... SQUIRREL!!!

I hate getting attention. I'm more of a wallflower. I'm probably perceived as anti-social. I'm actually shy. Really! 

I see myself to be more visual. Unfortunately, work and stress has squeezed the life out of this passion. Then they invented the cheap digital camera. The right side of my brain has been resurrected. Id like to rekindle that old flame. You'll probably see more pictures here than do writing. Whatever.

Now here I am. I attempt to blog. Ironic. Give me a break. I'm going out of my comfort zone.

But there's one thing I'm passionate and never ashamed to talk about. This meh life. It's not much but it's a work in progress. That one day is meh life will someday be extraordinary. By His Grace. So bear with me while I find the extraordinary in this meh life.

Let the blogging begin...