GMA Nalintikan

Can't they see the sign? When PGMA was addressing her allied bishops and priests at Baguio Cathedral, a particularly loud thunderclap hit the vicinity. It was so strong where I was at SM, that the gang of boys beside my table shrieked. I twittered about jokingly that the media should prepare for lightning as PGMA was set to talk. And she did and it did thundered. I don't know if the brownout was caused by the lightning but I wouldn't be surprised. Of course, she thanked the bishops for their support to her regime aka kleptocracy. And of course, she told them about her anti-poverty program which of course did not include her stepping out of office and killing the Gonzales twins and the Abalosers. And since it is the opening of the poverty summit, she should have just worn a Tshirt with THE CAUSE written on it. She looked so holy and the bishops just loved it. But God showed her disgust by throwing lightning at the Cathedral. The media will not include that phenomological aspect in their writing, of course. They will talk about her program like it's their first time to hear it.

The Midland Update

It's getting worse. Baguio Midland Courier, the biggest weekly in the North, was hit by a strike by its former distributors so it has to resort to other non-news outlets. Now I (and probably all the media here) received an email from a certain Warren Cristobal listed the "sins" not only of the Midland management but their reporters as well. Uh uh. Midland's publisher answered back by asking if Warren is real.

Midland and the Sunday Habit

Every Baguio boy knows the Sunday habit. It's not Mass but then, some churchgoers usually go down the steps of Cathedral and get into it. The Sunday habit is reading Baguio Midland Courier, which had been around for 60 years. In reading Midland, you have to start at the end which is the obituary. Young and old, Midland readers read about who died so they can have something to talk about. The problem this Sunday was that, suddenly Midland can not be bought anywhere. Turns out the dealers had a strike against Midland. So the newstands in Session Road and even in SM do not have Midland for sale. I bought one at a barber shop. Midland had their side on the issue in their editorial and even reserved No. 10 of their much-anticipated True of False on the issue. So they are prepared for this battle of wits. Midland increased their price to P12 and the dealers wanted to increase it further. It's a battle of wills. Don't die this week. You may not be read.

Judge Brawner

Farewell, Judge Brawner

The Dave Tabligan Quartet

Natayen ni Manang Dave

Dave Tabligan died today. Here's my original story on him:

BAGUIO'S PIANO MAN

"He says, "Son can you play me a memory
I'm not really sure how it goes
But it's sad and it sweet and I knew it complete
When I wore a younger man's clothes"
Piano Man, Billy Joel

Robert David Tabligan was 23 when this song came out. He had been playing the
piano for 17 years when he got his first piano lesson at six. He was already working
as a professional piano man in 1973 for seven years.  

Billy Joel may have composed that song for himself but people who know or
were touched by Dave and his piano-playing would always equate that song to him.

"I can not imagine being anything else," Dave said.

We, too, can not imagine Dave anything else but a piano man.
Born February 10, 1950, Dave was only six when he first got his piano lesson.
His mother sang and also a piano player. His grandfather was also a musician.
Other than these, there was no answer from nature how Dave got his ear for music
and how he can effortlessly play your memories.

He was 16, a high school student of SLU Boys High and already playing for the 
University of Baguio Science High and PE Department when he was recruited to
play at the A&D Inn in what is now Nevada Square.

There was a casino there or maybe a clandestine one because the chips,
roulette tables and other paraphernalia can easily be hid and the whole place
transformed into an instant birthday party when the police raided, Dave recalled. 

Dave played then for Helen Cruz. 

I was so naïve then. I asked Helen if she had a husband," Tabligan said.
Helen Cruz as it turned out was one of the first transgender siren who later dated
famous people like Indonesia's President Sukarno and celebrities Troy Donahue,
Ricardo Montalban and Matt Monroe.   

 Dave played for Helen at the La Playa and Trader's Hotel in Manila. That's where
he met a band that was about to go to Japan. Dave told the manager that he, too,
wanted to go. He was fitted with the same suit as the band and they played at the 
Riviera's Club at the Roponggi District in Tokyo. Dave went solo while the band
went back to the Philippines and played piano at a bar near a US military base in 
South Korea. Then he went back to Japan. The rest in the comments

Yano takes over as 38th AFP Chief: Philippine Star Headline

Who among them? Si Dong Abay o si Eric Gancio. Sabay sila? Wow, galing naman. Tangina, naalala ko pa ang mga iyan noon. Hindi pa bipolar si Dong. Si Pepe ang front act sa UP Baguio. Parang weird di ba? Na siya yung front act. Asteeg pa noon ang Yano. Noong kinanta nila:

Kumusta na, ayos pa ba
Ang buhay natin, kaya pa ba
Eh kung hinde, paano na
Ewan mo ba, bahala na?

Sigawan ang lahat. Sabi ko sa sarili ko, Kwayet!!! Seryoso ang kantang iyan. Tayo iyan, di niyo ba alam? Akala natin mirakol ang EDSA, iyun pa rin pala ang buhay natin. Saan na ang APO? Ang Magkaisa na slo-mo? Ito ang kuwento ng EDSA. Ang galing ng Yano. Iyun nga lang, hindi maiwasan ang sobrang pag-iimbibe ng realidad. Nakabalik naman si Dong. So pasilip nga yung Star uli? "Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano will be installed today..." Ay puteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek. Para, mama. Para! Maglakad na lang ako. Puteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek.

Battle of Disclaimers

In the past two Baguio Midland Courier issues, XDZ (those are her complete names with Z a famous Baguio name) issued a disclaimer saying that XDZ also known as XG is not X T. Z and caveat emptor or whatever to those who might transact with X T. Z who might be representing her. This week here is the answer of X T. Z (the emboldened letters are hers):

I, X (first) T. Z (family name), am definitely and decidedly not that X G (who might also use X D. Z) who represents one Sioco Z estate, or the Bureau of Internal Revenue, or whatnot, past, present, or future. I also have no idea of who would ever like to be her. Furthermore, I am definitely and decidedly not involved in any and all representations Ms. G makes for said or other offices. Puh-lease.

(Sgd) X Y. Z

I can not use the real names because I know these two people involved but I have a feeling they don’t beso-beso anymore, present or future.

Burnham Park is now a WiFi Zone

Burnham Park is now a wifi zone. I am not sure if it is a free wifi zone. The challenge now is to surf without snatchers, preachers, vendors and badings pestering you. Try renting a boat and surf in peace unless they turn on the fountain. But isn't that a fun thing? Wifi in Burnham.
Cafe by the Ruins is also now a free wifi zone. People there will tell you I was the one who nagged them into it.
Also Cordillera Coffee in SM, Hotel Elizabeth, Nagomi Spa at Midland, Burnham View Hotel and Zola are free wifi. Also Igorot Lodge where the UP Writers Workshop would be holding their thing!

Cafe by the Ruins Turns 20

Cafe by the Ruins will be celebrating 20 years of Feeding Souls and Pleasing Palates since 1988. From March 26 to 29, there would be food and frenzied performances galore. The opening of the installation and photo exhibit would be on the 26th with Ruel Bimmuyag and friends doing the pattong. The video on Robert Villanueva, one of the founders of the cafe, would be shown at night. The Thanksgiving Canao would be on the 28th featuring performances from Karlo Altomonte and Pinikpikan. Karla Delgado will be holding a food writing workshop in the morning of 29 and at night, the Baguio Writers Group will hold a poetry reading. Nancy Pobanz would be conducting a mixed media collage workshop followed by a performance from Yazon Banal and a jamming concert from Repolyo Republic, Alikabok and Spaceflower Show.

Jinky Ong, where are you? US3 M waiting for you

This seven year old daughter of chess superpower Bobby Fischer is set to inherit US$3 million.
Former Benguet Gov. Raul "Rocky" Molintas, director of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines, said that somebody connected with the estate of Fischer told them that the heir of Fischer is entitled with this windfall. Fischer died of kidney failure in Iceland at the age of 64.
Molintas said that they needed the birth certificate and other documents that can ascertain that the father of the heir is indeed the eccentric but brilliant Fischer. Justine Ong's birth certificate was reportedly filed at a hospital in Baguio. Molintas said that they have started looking for Jinky and her mother, Justine, in Davao City, their last known where-abouts.
One problem is that a national newspaper printed the wrong name and a NCFP official in Davao started looking for Fischer's surrogate wife as Marilyn Young. That started the confusion in NCFP.
Jinky Ong was born in early 2001. Reports about her are sketchy and her whereabouts are known only to close friends of Fischer like Filipino grandmaster Eugene Torre.
Tim Krabbe, Dutch writer and chess champion, once wrote about Jinky.
Krabbe said that in May 2000, Fischer came to Baguio from Japan and sought the help of friends about perpetuating his genes.
Krabbe said that Fischer's friend, Gene, set him up with possible candidates including a 22-year-old lady named Justine Ong.
"A contract was signed, Justine received the genes, and nine months later she gave birth to a girl, who now grows up in Davao City, under the name of Jinky Ong," Krabbe wrote.
Rene Chun, a New York-based journalist, also said that Jinky Ong does exist.
In his Atlantic Monthly article last December 2002 and entitled "Bobby Ficher's Pathetic Endgame," Chun described Justine as the girlfriend of Fischer.
Chun said that Justine was a twenty-two year old (in 2002) Chinese-Filipina from Manila "who couldn't care less about chess and had no intention of writing a tell-all memoir."
He also said that Fischer's friend tried to keep his fatherhood a secret and hoped that he would change.
Fischer visited his daughter every one and a half months until his detention in Japan in 2004.
While in Japan, Fischer's supposed relationship with Miyoko Watai, 64, a four-time Japan chess champion, was brought out in the open.
Watai said that they have been living together since 2000 whenever Fischer was in Japan. When Fischer went on exile in Iceland, Watai followed.
Iceland was where Fischer beat Russian grandmaster for the World Chess Championship in 1972. It was the height of the Cold War between the US and Russia and Fischer's victory was played up to the fullest by the West. Fischer failed to defend his title against Russian challenger Anatoli Karpov in 1975 because of the American's eccentric requests which were not granted.
Karpov's successful defense of the crown against Viktor Korchnoi of Switzerland was held here at the Baguio Convention Center in 1978 after 43 games, making it the longest ever.
Fischer had slid into obscurity, although in some instances, most notoriously right after Sept. 11, 2001, Fischer riled against the US and the Jews using Bombo Radyo in Baguio.
Because of his Cold War victory, Fischer was called the most powerful chessplayer by the New York Times in their obituary.
Watai in news reports disputed claims that Fischer has a wife and child in the Philippines.
There are indeed doubts whether Justine was married or even a girlfriend of Fischer but the existence of Jinky is most certain. Only, her hereabouts remained unknown.
Because if Ong is not found, an Icelandic newspaper said that Watai is set to inherit the money.
Visir, an Icelandic newspaper, said that Watai will get 140 million Icelandic Kronur (about $2.1 million) plus his apartment there. Most of the money came from the prize money worth almost $3.5 million which he got for a rematch with Spassky in 1992 in Yugoslavia. Fischer won but he lost his American citizenship because he fought in a disputed area.
The money is deposited in a Swiss bank, Visar said.

Big J

There is a book about the 100 top basketball players in the country. There is only one born in Baguio but then he's The One. Ok, Number Seven. The Big J. Robert S. Jaworski Jr. Born March 8, 1946 in Baguio City of a Polish father and Pinay mom. He's mum about his Pop but when i was young, I thought his father is Leon Jaworski, the Watergate prosecutor. Jawo was the point guard because he loves to point when he was a coach and say, This is you. This is me. Jawo's nicknames were "Big J" and "Living Legend." So what's the S? Eh, di "Sonny." Ha ha ha. Funny, but it stands for "Senador." OK, "Salazar." He became a senator, becoming the third basketball legend to become one. There was one time when he came to Baguio to discuss about some titled lots in Engineer's Hill. Robert Jaworski Abano and I covered him just because naman ano. Know where he held his consultation. On the basketball court, of course.

David

When I was still studying at the UB Science High School. our Christmas Cantata was never complete without our Gregorian chanting and Dave Tabligan, who made it his panata to go home from somewhere in the world to play on piano Handel's Hallelujah Chorus. He used to have an Afro then and he was jolly and funny. Years ago, he went home for good and now plays at the Piano Bar at John Hay Manor. He is diabetic and slowly lost his signed. He also lost his Afro. I visited him yesterday and I have to introduce myself, short of telling him that I was a tenor till 4th Year. Ha ha ha. We became good friends back when I still go to Luisa's Cafe. Dave can still play any song ever recorded by a major label and some obscure ones and he still does it wonderfully. Merry Xmas, Manong Dave. Here's to you and dear Emmett, wherever you are.

Now You Know Why Only Baguio (and Sagada) Have Chimneys

A Plague of Girl Suicides: Another One in Baguio

An 11-year-old girl was found hanging inside their rented house in Cabinet Hill last Monday. She was found dead by her sister who had to climb up the roof because the door was locked. The girl did not attend school that Monday because of a stomach ache, her parent said. She was said to have been left to the care of their neighbors and she was last seen watching TV. This is the third case of suicide among 11 years old girls this year in the country. An 11-year old girl in Davao committed suicide last November and left a suicide note saying that her family was too poor to send her to school and that she thought all her simple Christmas wishes for her family are not bound to come true.

Photos from the Condom Party at Rumours

I would like to thank DKT International (maker of Frenzy, Premiere and Classic condoms), Baguio Writers Group, the media, the Rumours people and of course, the PNGOC for these tasteful and very educational contests. Sonny Tikwala won a toaster over for "Putting On The Condom Orally," Sol for "PUTCondom Manually" (winning a sandwich maker) and Vhong Dominguez for the Condom Blowing Contest (a blender). A member of the DKT taught the jampacked audience how to do it properly and the poets taught them how not to have sex. Thanks Zaldy C for the photos. Marami pa if you want to sumbong me to the CC.

Ompong's Baguio Panorama

Photographer Ompong Tan posted this panoramic shot of Baguio's CBD from Camp Allen. I think he used his 6 mm camera. If you want a bigger version, go to ompongtan.multiply.com

Journaling Workshop by the BWG

THE deservedly-famous Baguio Writers Group will conduct a creative journal writing workshop Nov. 23-24 at the Episcopal Church in the Philippines Mission Center's conference hall on 356 Magsaysay Ave., Baguio City. Yes, this is for those who spent a long time at the cemetery thinking, "What if everubody remembers me only for my name, dates of birth and death and "In Loving Memory." I need to be immortal!" The workshop, which starts Nov. 23 at 1:30 p.m. and resumes on the 24th at 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., is open to college students and adults who would like to learn the discipline of keeping a journal and drawing writing and other artistic ideas from it. Facilitators are the dynamic duo of Prof. Grace Subido, who teaches literature and writing courses at the University of the Philippines Baguio, and Merci Javier Dulawan, a teacher-writer enrolled in advanced studies to enable her to teach the Ira Progoff method of journal writing. Twenty slots are open for participants. Workshop fee of P1,200 covers handouts, snacks, lunch and certificates. To reserve call or text Babeth Lolarga at 0916-242-1637.#

Repolyo Republic

A highly interactive UP Baguio alumni e-group organized by Gino Orticio is known as the Sayote Republic. What’s in these names, now the hottest music group on campus calls itself the Repolyo Revolution. For one thing the names ground (useful verb) these groups, localized bondings, suggesting Pinoy identity or the defining of such, in all sorts of modes and genres. Fred Pablico, a “founding father” of Repolyo, speaks of their music as a way of consciousness-raising: “Ang pagmulat sa iba na mayaman ang ating kultura at m e r o n t a y o n g maipagmamalaki sa buong mundo. Hindi natatapos ang musika bilang avenue for entertainment. We use this too for progress and enlightenment….” More
Kasama si Shanti, ang anak ni Carol Gamiao!

God Weather

When it drizzles, we in Baguio say, "agsapsapri ni Apo Dios (God is showering i.e. while He speaks). When it really pours especially after a tragic happening (rains after the July 1990 Earthquake), we said, God is crying. We never had tornados (that will be the day!!!) or more precisely, waterspouts. Because then we would say, God is...