You have to watch this all the way until the end, I promise you it’ll be worth it!
I swear, Pinoys are best when it comes to stuff like this. Amazing!
Here’s another one. I don’t understand a thing, but inasmuch as I feel guilty laughing at what seems like a horrible thing happening to someone, I can’t help it.
Many people I know (especially women) bristle whenever this word is used to describe them. It’s a raw nerve that’s hit whenever a girl is called high maintenance. Boys are never really called this, because usually, it’s the boys who do the maintaining. So usually, a girl is either high maintenance or “one of the boys” or in Tagalog, “koboy”.
May 15, 2009 → The Top Ten Signs That You Are High Maintenance – Sent in by: Specialist
For the second straight year, Monster Radio RX 93.1 launched its Monster Scholar program to help deserving youths to continue their education by way of sponsoring their first semester for school year 2010. Last year, Monster Radio decided to sponsor 2 students, but to our surprise, an additional 3 students were sponsored through the support of groups of listeners who offered their aid as well. So what should’ve been just 1 scholar, ended up as 5.
This year however, expectations were not only matched, but exceeded beyond expectations. Monster Radio RX 93.1 decided to sponsor 2 once again, but an overwhelming response from our listeners enabled us to award a scholarship to all 10 finalists! In all, we were able to raise P281, 651.oo in donations from listeners alone! This amount is separate from what RX contributed. We were just overjoyed to see such support from our listeners, enabling more students to continue their education. From Areane whose father had a heart attack in Saudi Arabia, to Mary Grace whose twin sister has heart problems, to Rainne who’s taking care of her father who recently suffered a stroke, to Rochelle whose mother is battling breast cancer, to Hazel whose mother suffers from Bipolar disorder, and the others who are all struggling to process what life has dealt them the past couple of years.
On a personal note, Delle and I are just so proud of The Morning Rushers, who, with no prodding from us, got together and came up with a fund drive among themselves, plugged it on The Morning Rush Forum, and was able to gather enough funds to co-sponsor 2 scholars. I’m sure many of them don’t have much themselves, but you found a way to give, no matter the amount. Some even from Rushers abroad. I’m so proud of you guys, more than you can ever imagine! Not only are you fun and witty and smart, but you have big compassionate hearts as well. I know we joke a lot, but with all seriousness, we’re truly honored to have people like you listen to Monster Radio RX 93.1.
These are the 2 scholars that the Rushers are co-sponsoring with other kind souls:
Rochelle Piramide
(taking up Nursing at UERM-MMC)
Rainne Paz-Ferrido
(taking up Secondary Education at UST)
Again, we cannot thank enough everyone who pitched in for a worthy cause. If not for the help of all the donors, we would only have 2 sponsors this year. But because of many people’s generosity, this year we have 10 Monster Scholars. And the experience of helping out people in need enriches both giver and recipient. It gives us all a sense of community, that we are not alone. That in times of need, there are people, although they may be few, there are people nevertheless who would help in whatever capacity they can. And should the time come when you’re the one who’s in a position to help, that you’d do the same. Days like these, my faith in human nature shines a little brighter.
This coming Sunday, me and my Yorkie, Cairo, will be at Bonifacio High Street (in front of Hobbes and Landes) for Dog Wash Weekend. I’ll be doing some hosting duties around 3pm, then Cairo will be washed and groomed as well. Then, we’ll have our picture taken, after he’s all cleaned and groomed. I heard fellow RX jock Gelli Victor and her Pomeranian, Colette will also be there. So I’d like to extend the invitation to you all in case you’d like to join us. We’ll be there by 3pm, but the event is a whole day thing, starting at 10am and ending at 6pm. If you’re an animal lover, you’d might want to have your dog groomed. Or if you’re pet-less, you might want to just look at some amazing dogs who would probably be there with their humans.
Why join us when you can just bring your dog to your regular groomer? The money you’ll pay for services rendered will go to a good cause. Proceeds will be donated to Animal Kingdom Foundation in their efforts of rescuing and rehabilitating dogs bound for the slaughterhouse. As described in their website, “AKF’s mission is to support, protect and promote welfare and the rights of animals; to eliminate the practice of illegal slaughter of dogs for human consumption and to introduce legislations or amendments in the existing animal-welfare laws of the Philippines.” If you have pets you love like your own family, or any person with a modicum of love for animals will surely be disgusted at what people still do to dogs in this day and age.
Please learn more, check out their website: Animal Kingdom Foundation.
So if you’re free on Sunday, do try to check it out! Even if you’re not inclined to be a freedom fighter for animals, you might enjoy even just being around all those wonderful dogs. I also heard that the day before, Saturday, May 22, CARA Welfare Phils will be having an adoption booth for rescued animals also at Bonifacio High Street, at the same location opposite Hobbes & Landes, 4pm – 9pm. You might also want to check that one out. I know I will!
Check out CARA’s website as well: CARA Welfare Phils.
Underwater photography while snorkeling is extra challenging for me because one, my vantage point is always from the top, which is never fish’s good angle; two, I struggle so much trying to sink that all the jerky movements tend to scare the fish away; and three, since I’m so far away, I have the tendency to depend on the zoom, which diminishes the picture quality to a large extent. So the quality of snorkeling pictures is nowhere near as good as photos taken while diving, which gives so much better perspective. Plus I used my waterproof Canon D10. I prefer the photo quality of my Olympus Camedia 5060. For me, huge difference.
These were the photos I took while the RX staff went snorkeling in the Dive & Trek house reef. I swear, the few minutes we spent there yielded so many sightings of different species of fish. Those I can identify I will, for the others that I can’t specify, I’ll try to come as close as I can. I remember that when taking my advance course in diving, I loved the part where we did fish identification. When you see the biodiversity of Philippine waters, you really get a strong urge to try and keep the ocean life alive and prospering. Sadly, if we don’t do anything collectively to preserve the ecology of our waters, we might live to see the day when we can no longer find fish as stunningly beautiful as these to take photos of.
The next two photos are quite blurred because these fish are so skittish, that I could barely manage to shoot from afar before they swam away:
Crocodile Longtom
Trumpetfish
Bluespotted Rockcod
Moorish Idol
The next three photos are from the family of fish that’s pretty common in reefs, very easy to find, and lots of colorful species to enjoy. These are just three of plentiful versions of this beautiful fish.
Lattice Butterflyfish
Vagabond Butterflyfish
Pacific Triangular Butterflyfish
Brown Tang
Anemonefish
Either a Lizardfish or a Grubfish
Jeweled Blenny
If you hear crunching sounds under the sea, there’s probably one of these nearby. They feed on corals, so you’d probably find them crunching away at the hard corals with their parrot beaks. I could never distinguish the different species of this rainbow-splashed fish because they all look the same to me. I don’t know if this is an endangered species, but I often find these fish offered as grilled fare every time I’m in Puerto Galera.
Dusky Parrotfish
Scribbled Filefish (juvenile)
These are pretty hard to photograph when snorkeling. They usually stay in open deeper water, so they’re harder to sneak up on. Although the bigger versions of the unicornfish are much braver so I’ve had a couple of close encounters with those during some dives. These can get really huge.
Bignose Unicornfish
Possibly my favorite of the reef fish, the triggerfish. I find them very regal. Although I’m petrified of the biggest of the bunch, the Giant Triggerfish, mainly because it really bites when you’re in its territory, I’m fascinated with the smaller cousins, the more harmless variants of this stunning fish. The designs on their bodies are rarely matched in the ocean kingdom.
Striped Triggerfish
Paddlefin Triggerfish
Black-blotch Triggerfish
This one I’m really stoked to have found. It’s very rare to find juveniles of many fish species mainly because they usually hide in rock crevices and wisely stay out of the open water. This is a breathtaking fish to behold with its bright blue stripes that stand out like neon in the water. No wonder they hide a lot, they’re so easy to spot.
Half-circled Angelfish (juvenile)
Here’s how this fish will look like as an adult, an old photo I took from a previous dive. It’s a humongous fish, but very gentle. The sheer beauty of this large fish is awesome to behold. This specific fish had the diameter of maybe a coffee table.
Half-circled Angelfish (adult)
I refuse to admit that I’m sleazy. I prefer to describe myself as “open-minded” to life’s many “pleasures”. But some actions, statements, etc., are across-the-board sleazy, I guess, and these are some of them. I’d like to think I dabble more on the grayer side of the spectrum.
May 14, 2009 → The Top Ten Signs That You’re Sleazy – Sent in by: Astroboy
Just before summer ended, RX management took us out for one last summer hurrah in Anilao, Batangas. If you noticed none of the RX jocks were on board last Saturday, it was because we were all on a bus for one of the nearest ocean getaways to Metro Manila, Batangas. The ride took about more than 3 hours. We got there in time for lunch, then in the afternoon, some people went waverunning while the others swam by the shore.
Then at night, after dinner, of course it’s not an RX gathering without the requisite inuman! And some night swimming, of course. Quote for the night for me: (someone told me) “Dinala ko yung nipples mo kanina, naiwan mo eh…” I’m not naming names.
But the highlight of the whole outing was the next morning, when we all joined the island hopping, which was basically a stop for snorkeling in the Dive & Trek house reef, and a stop for some sunbathing and relaxation at Sampaguita beach.
We got all that done and still got back to the resort in time for lunch! Talk about making the most of the little time left. We finished lunch, packed our stuff, and was headed for home at around 1pm, because some of the jocks had to be back in time for Sunday boardwork. It was a fun trip, one of the rare moments in a year when everyone, from the air staff, sales, traffic, technical, admin, etc., get together as a group and just let loose. Again, thanks to the RX management for the trip!
I’ve had my share of partying hard. People who only met me in the past 10 years probably wouldn’t believe how wild I was back in college and during my early days in RX. I guess that’s why I’m such a good boy now, because my body is now asking for retribution after all the abuse I put it through. No more drunken nights that I remember nothing of the next day, no more going straight to boardwork still groggy without sleep, no more.
May 12, 2009 → The Top Ten Signs That You Partied Too Hard – Sent in by: Alexa
A couple of weeks ago, we got a text from 2299 from someone who wanted to email us something. I forwarded our email addresses and I thought it had something to do with business, like a hosting gig or something. When I finally got the email, it was something I wasn’t quite expecting. With permission from the sender, allow me to share with you the contents of the email, verbatim:
Dear Chico and Del,
I have been wanting to write to you guys since March of this year. I have tried through your web and somehow can’t figure out how I can get a message directly to you.
In any case, let me introduce myself. My name is Raffy Aguila, 47 years old, graduated Mechanical Engineer from UP Diliman. I was introduced to your station by my wife, Maribeth Aguila more than ten years ago. From that day I was hooked, just like my wife when she started listening to you. My daughter, Erika, 11 also knows what station to listen to and has a bad habit of tuning in to 93.1, even when we are in a friend’s car or home.
You don’t really know Maribeth Aguila, but perhaps you might be more familiar with the name “Bewitching or Bwitching,” the name she fondly uses as her ID with your station. She is a not so regular contributor to your top ten, but it must have been 3-4 times when she was nominated top entry. One of her entries for your “top 10 signs” was “hair.com,” in case you might remember.
We both enjoy your morning rush so much that our radio dial could be described as permanently stuck to 93.1. I do not even remember moving it. I can’t help smiling everytime I see my wife in front of her computer giggling. I am sure that she is again listening to your live stream. Everytime I drive to work, my wife will call me on my mobile when she hears something really funny from your station. She makes sure that I listen to your top ten everytime she has an entry.
My wife’s hobby is scrapbooking. She has her circle of friends, mostly professional doctors, businesswomen, and housewives, who meet once a week just to scrap. She chooses different photos, mostly about me or my daughter or many times the whole family, depending on what the theme of the scrapfest (as they call their “eb”) is going to be. She also takes pictures of our Dachshund named Kwankee, flowers, and many others, but what she never fails to take pictures of are the food that we ordered in many restaurants just before we devour it. She has become an expert in photography, more so after she took up lessons from that guy whose name I no longer remember, holding school at Greenhills. She became obsessed with taking the perfect photo for her scrapbook page. Her love for photography has enticed me to buy hear a D90 for Christmas. Lately, she asked me if she can set aside some money to buy a macro lens for the new camera.
Last year, we had the opportunity to travel to Europe. I took her with me on my business trip and we went from Germany to Amsterdam, and then to Italy where we met with my mother and sister who came all the way from Canada so we can enjoy the short vacation. She still had the old Kodak 5 megapixel then, but the pictures she took are so vivid and clear.
Maribeth is a housewife. She graduated Industrial Engineer with honors also from UP. She stopped working 6 years ago from a high paying job so that she can pay more attention to our daughter’s studies. Erika will be on her 6th grade this coming year.
I am writing you this email because I will no longer hear her contribution to your top ten. Nor will I get the phone calls on my mobile on my way to work. You see, she became a victim of robbery in our home, and she got stabbed in the process. The last thing we talked about was our plan to go to Canada, this time with our daughter for a vacation next year, and jokingly asking me what is in store for her this coming Mother’s Day.
I miss her smile everytime I came home from work. I miss her cooking as we try to have dinner together as much as we can. I haven’t been to the restaurants we frequent for simple meals or for special occasions like CYMA, Cosa Nostra and many others. I tried once with my daughter, but we felt so strange as there are now 2, when there used to be three of us. No one would wake me up anymore in the middle of the night when I snore too much. No one to make coffee for two every morning. I still keep saying goodnight every night hoping that somewhere she is responding and saying goodnight, as she always does. I miss holding her hand before we sleep.
I hope there has been an opportunity for you to know her. She will always be my best friend. God has been good in giving her to us. After 22 years of marriage, and 11 years from the time Erika came into our lives, we will be spending Mother’s Day without her. This will be a year of firsts for us. I failed to mention that i call her MAMSKY, and she calls me FAFA. The first Mother’s Day, her first birthday without her, the first time Erika will will attend first day of school without her, my birthday, Erika’s birthday, and so on……
I just want you to know that acceptance is so hard. Has God been good or has been cruel to us? As mothers are the light of the family, our lives seem so dark.
My daughter is staying for the meantime with our Aunt. I, meanwhile keep coming home to our house, where I try my best to feel her, and where I can freely talk to her. I keep looking at her work area where she has her 2 computers, her digital camera, her ipod, 2 printers, a long working table and her computer chair, surrounded by her scrapbooking materials, hoping that I can still get a glimpse of her with her headset, smiling and giggling while listening to your station, and greeting me with her wonderful smile and say “Hi Fafa.” Just one last time, I would like to hold her, kiss her and lovingly say “Hi Mamsky!”
I do not intend to bore you guys with this outlet of mine. Listening to your station has kept the memory of my wife so alive. I see her so clearly when I listen to you. And can’t help but smile and cry on my way to work.
As long as you are in the airwaves, me and my daughter will always be your listeners.
Raffy Aguila
In memory of: Maribeth “Mamsky” Aguila (June 1 1963 – March 10, 2010)
To be honest, I was quite stunned. It’s hard to process so much raw emotion from a complete stranger, but who, within the span of a short email, suddenly became strangely familiar. We often forget that there are people on the other end of the microphone. If not for the textline and Twitter, we would often forget the fact that we’re not really alone in the booth, that there are many people who join us wherever they may be listening from.
I really feel for Raffy and Erika, but I won’t belittle their grief by saying I know how it must feel because I don’t. Unless you’ve had a loved one wrenched from you by some untimely, unfortunate circumstance, you wouldn’t really know. But I admire their courage, it takes a certain amount of both grace and fortitude to carry on despite seemingly insurmountable odds. I really appreciated how Raffy reached out to communicate with us, to tell us their tale. So I thought I’d ask permission if I could share their story on this blog, and Raffy agreed, adding that Beth used to visit this blog and even showed him some posts which she’d find interesting.
I guess it’s also a wake-up call for me, how sometimes I tend to carp about everything that I feel is wrong with my life, not realizing that merely being bestowed with the gift of life is the biggest argument for staying grateful. That whatever we may have, be it scant or bountiful, it could be taken away from us in a heartbeat. But I also learned that in the face of great adversity, hope is a powerful ally. That in the most abysmal darkness , it shines a light, however dim, to help keep you going, even if it’s only a day at a time, in the hope that better days lay ahead.
It’s a sobering feeling. So let this be a little homage to Maribeth; we may not have known her personally, but we feel we know her a little bit better through her husband Raffy. It’s the least we can do to somehow celebrate her life, however cut short it might have been, to help remember her during happier times. And to Raffy and Erika, thank you for reaching out to share with us the memory of a beloved wife and a mother. We are humbled that you saw fit to make us part of your lives, as you are now, somehow part of ours.
Maribeth “Mamsky” Aguila (1963–2010)
I must say, I usually hold my tongue. Most of the time. But sometimes, when the situation calls for it, I can unleash as well. I don’t usually gravitate towards mataray people, but surprisingly I have a lot of mataray friends. The usual pattern would be, I’d hate their guts, then I’d get to know them a little better, then sometimes, we even end up good friends. There’s a nice kind of maldita, the type that incorporates genuine humor, and then there’s the outright mean one – that type I stay away from.
May 11, 2010 → The Top Ten Taray Quotes – Sent in by: Astroboy
