Thursday, January 28, 2010

The Rockabilly Three



Picture taken January 16, 2010 in an office somewhere inside the University of Santo Tomas in Manila.

At Home

It is only now that I am able to face the computer again and recollect my thoughts after three days of hanging out with the boys as my father lingered in the hospital due to some sickness that somehow turned my ran over daily routine into a life learning experience.

Staying at Home

Two whole days being with Ponso and Paco (Andres is in school) changed my way of appreciating people who give their full time taking care of children. Ponso and Paco are hurricanes as they run around trying to pick on everything anytime anywhere inside the house, except when they were asleep. Paco would have his morning nap at around 10:00 a.m. and Ponso would play Plants vs Zombies from 10:30 to 12:00 nn.

Then we eat whatever is available in the house then watch cartoons on television. They take a warm bath at 2:00 pm then sleep until 5:00 pm. Then they do their staple wrecking ways as I just sit and wonder what is happening outside the world, then realizing and smiling that being with them is actually the world, nothing else, at that precise moment. Ponso was sick for the past four days and had to take antibiotics. There was a time he gave me a hard time that merited Paco to sneak inside the bathroom and stir the toilet bowl water with his left hand impishly smiling as I ran shouting invectives at the world while I grab him for a thorough hand scrubbing, then seeing Ponso barfing in the living room because of too much running in circles after drinking the medicine and milk. Shit. It’s a sid vicious cycle of cleaning, puking, swearing (by me), and actually, laughing at what’s going on, observing myself and the two boys as we go through a day in a life.

Swearing the swear word

Ponso does the pogo whenever he is on top of the bed and I was about to shout to prevent him from doing the pogo when I heard him saying some words repeatedly like a machine gun pop and it sounded so much like the fucking Filipino swear word. I have to stop swearing in front of the children. I have to control myself even if they are spilling shit all over the place, or when Paco is slowly sneaking on Ponso ready to strike with his heavy milk can or small matchbox cars, whatever is available, to cause pain and reaction from his older brother. Fuck it, I quit right this moment.

More than Empathy

Seeing Ponso in a weak moment and not in his usual composure melted my heart. I can safely say that most, if not all fathers and mothers in this world, would rather get sick and carry the burden rather than their sons or daughters. Ponso can sure always give me the piss with his shitty crazy ways but him seeing all weak and vulnerable due to some viral infection made me real sad and helpless even with those antibiotic dosages. Children do not deserve to get sick, they just have to get tired and sleep because of heavy playing, and not sleep due to sickness.

Hugs and Kisses

They may be small crazy boys but they really do need hugs and kisses. They love it. They might punch or kick out of a hug but it is just for show. It was fun telling Ponso to watch Paco as he dance to an MTV and correcting me that his baby brother was actually dodging, and not dancing. It’s a boxing move he learned from Wii while doing it as he punches in the air. That wit surely deserves a hug and a kiss.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Plants vs Zombies part 2


Ponso made me laugh out loud yesterday as we rolled through the grocery aisle checking out real food for our week's food supply. He was sitting in the grocery cart calmly when he started to freak out and shouted "there's jalapeno! Jalapeno!" And I said "what the..." then laughed remembering jalapeno's fire power to blaze them marching zombies to oblivion. Then he pointed out Garlic! then squash! while shouting out their names like it was him who has the sole patent right to name these vegetables (who are prime operators in the plant vs zombies wars.)

Next he was on a lookout for "Cherrybombs" but there was no fresh cherries so we checked out the aisle and found bottled maraschino cherries. Cherry bombs!

He was however unconvinced that it was shrooms I was holding due to its texture and dried, pathetic look. So we prowled again and saw mushrooms, mushroom picture in a can. There were no wall-nuts but the local peanut variety readily made up his complete cast to defeat his zombies.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

plants vs zombies


It was Ponso who first raised the level of zombie appreciation in our home when he got hooked in the computer game Plants vs. Zombies in Thelma’s office one time. He has this focused fixation to defeat the zombies using different plants that could either spit peas, explode like landmines, and do other tricks to beat the shit out of the zombies who are hell bent to eat your brains out.


The zombies look adorable and whimsically cute as they try to eat you while you plan your lay-out in your garden or backyard or roof (depending on your level) to fortify your defenses and collect suns and coins for bonuses and purchases of equipments for zombie extermination.


We also watched Zombieland and had a few laughs and fun seeing the walking dead invite humans to join their posse by goring their mortal brains off.


It was when we got a copy of the computer game that zombie love reached a new high in our home with Andres and Ponso making them stars in their story world with an all star cast of zombies as defined and described by the computer game. They know the different types of zombies by heart and embrace the different zombie capabilities and strengths like their own. Ponso would shout “Michael Jackson!” whenever the dancing zombie would come out and raise its back-up dancers from the abyss of limbo. Andres is motivated to finish his school assignments earlier to get that chance to bludgeon the zombie imps and reach the dreaded Dr. Zomboss who, I think, is the overlord of the zombie world. They imitate the zombie walk and how the plants blow their pea missiles.


I am at level 4 of 6 at the moment and is still struggling to get the right combination of plant purchases for that balanced defense needed to stay in the game. We cheer each other as we blow zombies to damnation while Thelma tends the backyard hoping that the praying and water plants survive the projected el niño phenomenon that will hit the country starting this summer.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

On Children

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

- Kahlil Gibran

Saturday, January 2, 2010

bloodied but unbowed

It was a full day as we prepared to attend a party in the late afternoon with the three boys in tow. They had the whole of morning and lunch to do their stuff at home wrecking and putting things in disarray. But Ponso went a bit far as he doubled his effort to cause chaos in the different spots of our humble home in the guise of “clean fun.”

The three boys did not sleep the whole time that might have caused that extra surge of their energy like a battery before it dies out or a bulb before it poof its way into oblivion. Anyway, there they were, three little bastards running around doing their own rowdy antics and we have to prepare for the party. Ponso, as stated earlier, was already showing signs of restlessness not listening to orders. Hell do I campaign for a law against corporal punishment but my experiences with the boys sure gives me second thoughts on my stand on the issue. He was reprimanded and was asked to stand in the corner. To no avail, he was then dealt differently with a gentler approach of just asking him to sit on their inflatable red elephant and watch the telly with Andres.


Five minutes and he was a goner sleeping with his Invictus-like posture of a “bloodied but unbowed” red elephant conqueror slumped dignified in front of Spongebob Squarepants trying to put one over Patrick Starr.