Back in the U.S. now.

Here's a couple of super exciting videos. Getcha popcorn ready, as T.O. once said.


Walking through the Pasig wet market.


Riding a jeepney through a flooded area of Pateros.

An old friend of mine, Rich Cunningham, died earlier this month, after battling cancer for four years. I didn't find out about it until another friend emailed me today. I knew Rich from the punk scene back in New Jersey; we were also at Rutgers at the same time. He was a great guy, everyone who knew him loved him. As the years went by, though, we ( Read more... )

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1) how did the locals treat you when they found out that you were an american? respect? disrespect?
2) what do they eat for breakfast there?
3) is filipino humor just as corny as the other asians' sense of humor?
4) do all the pinoys think herrokitty is weird too?

I think, in Manila, most people are very much used to seeing and interacting with ( Read more... )

Rainstorm moving in.

How different was day-to-day life in the homeland compared to the US?
Did you find a big change in terms of diet? And where has the better grub?

Daily life in Manila, for the average middle class joe, is pretty much the same as in any other big city. People wake up, take the jeepney and/or the bus to work, work, then go home. ( Read more... )

Is your girl coming Stateside too?
Do you have to bribe everyone to get something done there? That's the vibe I get from folks.

I sent in my petition for JTD's fiance visa last month. It can take up to six months for it to be processed and approved. She even needs to have a medical check-up at the hospital, as well as a short interview with a ( Read more... )

I'm planning on leaving the Philippines and returning to the U.S. around the middle of September. I've been here for a little over a year now, and I've enjoyed my time here, rediscovering my homeland and all that jazz. I feel like I should write more about what I've learned about the country, and I'm sure I have plenty to talk about, but I can't ( Read more... )

Apparently our Pittsburgh gunman had a second website. I looked through it, nothing super exciting, but the way he writes is just odd. He's in a few of the pictures.

www.crazygeorge.com

Man, I think I want to buy that domain name once it expires on him! Why didn't I think of that first?

Password is "crazyg".

Not sure if you guys have heard about the shooting in the Pittsburgh gym (guy walked into an aerobics class full of women and started shooting; killed several women then killed himself) but here are entries from the gunman's blog. It's pretty sad and depressing, actually. 48 years old, single, no real friends. The guy was extremely lonely and had ( Read more... )

I was reading up on the People Power revolution on Wikipedia, and I came across this description of Filipinos entering Malacanang Palace immediately after Marcos and his family fled:

"Looting by overly angry protesters occurred, but mostly people wandered inside, looking at the place where all the decisions that changed the course of Philippine ( Read more... )