Simply Belle

I thought I would make a public announcement through my blog about our forthcoming reunion on April 7 & 8, 2010. Who knows I might be able to reach out to some of you who might be reading my blog. Our last reunion was held a little over 10 years ago, and sadly, I was unable to make it. It was the year right after super typhoon, and I wasn’t too excited to see Catanduanes in brown, treeless landscape. Thus, I didn’t go.

I was waiting for the next reunion to unfold but I don’t foresee it happening in the near future. That is why I thought about organizing one with help from my batch mates who are based in the USA, and a few other ones from Catanduanes. Why not reunite now while we still look half decent and have the stamina to travel around? It should be fun getting reconnected with my batch mates and reminisce old times. Although my high school experiences weren’t actually as exciting as others’, so there is not a whole lot of fun things to recall except perhaps for some embarrassing moments while dancing with my prom partner, which I will not elaborate until reunion day.

I also had the liberty of inviting one of the best teachers we had in Bato who is based in the USA for the last 25 years, if I am not mistaken. She is actually my first cousin. Gladly, she accepted my invitation and is looking forward to meeting her former students and faculty. I plan on making her reunion’s guest of honor. I know a friend of mine is thrilled to find out that teacher T is coming. Who wouldn’t be?

If we cooperate and organize this event superbly, there is no doubt that we will expect a good turn-out. I hope my co-organizers don’t lose the enthusiasm in tracking down my batch mates as the reunion unfolds.

So, if you are from batch 78 of Bato RDHS, Catanduanes, and you stumble on this post, please leave me a note and contact information so we can get a hold of you. And if you know anyone from out batch, please help spread the news. Thank you!

I lifted the pictures from the friendster site of Cynthia of Bato here.

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Ahh, my darling Melanie. She is the daughter of my caretaker. I brought her two pink dresses and some bows which she wears every single day. Coincidentally, pink dress is her favorite. In the evening, she would ask her mom to wash the dress that she dirtied so she can wear it the following day.

One day, my husband, Melanie, and I went for a little walk on the beach. My husband was ahead of us and so I asked Melanie who was that guy in front of us. She blurted out, “si kano mo baga” (your amerikano). I thought it was funny.

When I took this picture, she wasn’t too happy because we were leaving and she was not coming. I learned from her mother that she cried hard all day. Poor girl.

She is a hardworking and fun lady. She works every single day. I tried doing her job for a day and it made me so darn tired all for a handful of fish…hehehe. My share was good enough for a meal though, which if translated to pesos, it amounted to php30. But, I developed blisters on my hands and sustained some sunburn. My husband warned me not to ever do it again because he was afraid that it might injure my working arm and shoulder. So, I watched them from the sideline from then on.

The boy holding the little girl doesn’t go to school because he has to take care of his siblings while his mother is working for a living. His mom does all kinds of odd job in order to survive. When I took this picture, these three kids were sitting on the beach watching their mom work. Sadly, their mother barely earns anything- sometimes only php30 a day and a handful of little fish.

I thought this boy is smart. He invented a fishing device that brings in result. It is called “Tora-Tora.” This “Tora-Tora” has plenty of fishing lines with hooks on it. He uses artificial bait made out of cloth. He walks up and down trolling his “Tora-Tora,” which floats in the water like little boat. Very clever invention, I thought. I would watch him intently from the water where I was swimming. When he passed by me, he would pull the lines closer to the shore so it would not tangle with me.

Sometimes, he brought in three medium-sized fish at a time. I was so fascinated at what he was doing that me approach him and ask question. “How many fishing lines do you have in your Tora-Tora,” I asked. He said, he purposely didn’t count them for good luck. It makes sense.

That same day, I asked my nephew if he would be interested in catching fish using Tora-Tora and I would have someone make one for him. He said he would. The first day he went out fishing, he caught about nine little fish. I was so excited that I even volunteered to clean the fish for dinner. We fried those little fish and they were so delicious. Even my husband preferred them over the bigger fish.

So, if they don’t have anything for dinner, all my nephew has to do is go out and troll up and down the beach.

Vinyl was recently crowned the Queen of our town, Bato, during the town fiesta 2008. Her very first project that she joined in was the Tree Planting Expedition. We planted about 100 mahogany trees in the mountains to help retain the water from running off fast. You see, our barrio, neighboring barrios, and sometimes the town of Bato have relied on this spring water for drinking for so many years -even before I was born. This spring water is the best water I have ever tasted-so pure and refreshing. The past years though, people have noticed that our source of water has diminished significantly during hot summer months and we are afraid that it would dry up eventually if we don’t do something. Thus, the Tree Planting was organized for this reason.

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I just found out that someone took these pictures from my friendster’s account and named them incorrectly right infront of me. It is like stealing money in my purse.  It is infuriating!  The least she could have done is ask permission or site the sources where she lifted them from.  Hope she gets the message.

my boat taken at dawn.

can you see the Mayon volcano on the horizon?

my unfinished nipa hut

Bahay kubo

Steve’s catch

the fisherman

taken at twilight

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She was not expected to win. She is the “hampas lupa” as what the parents of the affluent and the highly favored contestant described her. They were right! An hour before the competition, 19 year-old Vinyl wasn’t quite ready. She hadn’t found the accessories that would embellish her outfit. They were searching hard here and there and suddenly they spotted me in the crowd. Good thing, my sister-in-law reminded me to take my jewelry to the event just in case she needed them. Fortunately, the necklace and the bracelet went well with her evening gown, and her costume respectively. I brought those jewelry actually as pasalubong or give aways but I had no particular persons in mind to give them to. God surely does have a way of putting things together at the right time, doesn’t He?

I came just for the fun of it with my camera in tow. Once again, it was yet another blessing for her because there was hardly anyone taking pictures of her. She is the “hampas lupa” or the destitute, you know. Her family can’t afford a camera or anything of that sort. To make up for her deprivation, I took tons of pictures of her from a distance because I only bought the cheapest ticket thinking that I may not like the show and head home early. No problem with the distance because I had the long lens with me.

But, as the night progressed, the pageant became interesting and stimulating. Our own Vinylwalked off the platform and sashayed the night away with ease and confidence. Not only that, she seemed to be the only one who answered every question intelligently in perfect English. She eventually enamored the audience- with increasing applause each time she nailed the question. The “hampas lupa” had what it took to win and she did it! She won!

To add drama to this story, our baranggay captain visited me early in the morning after the pageant in my hut soliciting money for the queen’s gown to be worn at the parade. I said, ” she is now the queen of Bato, the town of Bato should provide for it.” I am sure they made quite a bit of money from the pageant’s paid admission. The entrance fee ranged from 20 pesos to 300 pesos and the house was packed. There should be enough money to rent a gown for the queen of Bato, right? Where else would they allocate the proceeds of the event????

Anyway, after I made my point, I relented and handed the captain php1,000 so, at least, the queen would look decent at the parade. To rent a white gown, they needed to come up with php800, so there was enough money even to cover for the transportation.

This costume made out of abaca paper was sewn together by the queen’s mother including the necklace and earrings. The bracelet was the one I lent her.

Didn’t the necklace fit perfectly with her gown? How did I know she would be wearing navy blue gown?

First runner up went to Jenelyn Bonao of Bato ilawod, on the far left. Second runner up went to Christina Montano of Bato libod, 3rd runner up went to Jenelyn Temena of Sibacungan, and 4th runner up went to Marivic Tubalinal of San Roque.

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In keeping with our CNA Christmas tradition, Rus, our hardworking secretary, traveled to Catanduanes on December 22nd to take charge of the annual Christmas party for our combined CESP (elementary and high school) and CSP (college) 34 scholars. To each child, she handed out a php400 gift certificate from Century Mall in Virac. Also, we served simple food consisting of spaghetti, fried chicken, cup cakes, and juice. To spice up the festivities, we gave each of the scholars a chance to showcase their hidden talents, that is, for those who came prepared. Indeed, some of the scholars (from Pandan town, to be specific) came geared up displaying their talents to a crowd of about of 60 people. Way to go Pandan!

In a nutshell, the Christmas party was a success due to the efforts and diligence of our secretary who orchestrated the whole proceedings to make all these possible with help and support, of course, from our volunteers and one of them was prof Gerry who, by the way, took the pictures below. Thanks sir Gerry!

Rus handing out allowance to the scholar.

Our college scholars all in their sophomore years.

Our elementary and high school scholars at the dinner table.

Some of these girls left their homes in the wee hours of the morning and traveled several hours to attend this party.They came from the northern part of Catanduanes, a place I have never set foot in.

A scholar from Pandan showcasing her talent – declamation. Wow!

Pandadanon scholars in their coordinated outfit , once again, entertaining the crowd with their dancing prowess.Clap! Clap!

Misc: My husband kept asking me if the girl he is sponsoring made it to the party. I was told by my cousin that my husband’s little girl was the only one who didn’t make it due to a mix up of the venue. You see, we had a last minute change of venue, and I suppose she was the only one who didn’t receive the updates (no cell phone, I presume) or who didn’t seek the right person in Virac. Now, I don’t have the heart to tell my husband about this unless he goes to my blog, but he rarely ever does.

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The Catanduanes Net Association’s secretary is leaving today for Catanduanes to distribute the allowances of 26 elementary scholars, 4 high school scholars, and 5 college scholars. She plans to travel to every municipality not just to hand out the allowances but also to meet the scholars and their families in person. She is utilizing her annual leave of 10 days to accomplish all these–all for free. Now, how is that for dedication! Thanks Rus!

This quarter, the Association is launching for the second time its “Feeding and Nutrition Program” whose focus is to give nourishment to selected kids in the province by allotting some money per kid for the whole duration of the Program, which would cover the menu of either lugaw and boiled egg or spaghetti and macaroni. So far, the Association has selected a barangay in Viga, Catanduanes to administer 30 children whose weight is considered to fall under the malnourished group. The age group of these kids ranges from 6 months to 7 years old.

To get favorable and positive results, I am strongly hoping that we can find donors for vitamins so we can fortify our feeding for these malnourished children. Anyone who can donate, please contact me @liwayway07@yahoo.com.

Lastly, thought I would share these letters from our college scholars. Thanks to our dear sponsors for making it all possible for these children.

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Familiar with the scenery? Beautiful, isn’t it? It is a picture of idyllic setting in my hometown. My daughter took this picture when the rice plants were all green, which made it interesting. Yes, we do have rice terraces that we can call our own.

When I was little, about 11 0r 12 years old, I took a job of planting young rice plant for people, and I got paid Ph6. 00 a day for it. Boy, for that money, it was a hard job! Not only that I had to slog hrough the mud for more than 8 hours, the job was backbreaking! I started at 7 AM and ended at 5 PM. When I came home, I couldn’t see straight from over fatigue. Right after I finished dinner, I went straight to bed and slept through until morning. When I woke up, my whole body ached. I was literally lifeless! It took me several days to recuperate. Then, I began to realize that it was not worth it for me. I told my mother that I would/could not do this again, and she understood. I swore to never submerge my feet again in that muddy soil.

Trike or tricyle is a major form of transportation in the province as shown in the picture. It is not a comfortable ride, and it produces significant noise and air pollution. My husband had tried it once and wasn’t thrilled about it. Since half of the road in the province is paved and the other half is not maintained, it is hard to avoid the potholes, thus, making the ride hellishly unpleasant. My husband preferred renting a van instead to take him to and from. Fortunately, there are available cars and vans for rent in Catanduanes for reasonable cost, and usually, it comes with a driver for free. Of course, tip is optional. I ended up tipping my driver because he was very nice and helpful to us all throughout our trip.

Naturally, I don’t mind hopping in the tricycle because I grew up with it. My brother owns one and just like car, it takes us anywhere and whereever we want to go and yet, it is not expensive to operate and maintain. For people who have limited money, owning a tricycle is the way to go.

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