I’m sure many have experienced being asked by a friend or relative to co-sign a loan. And, even if we don’t really like it, we usually oblige with the thought that we are just co-makers. The belief is that we are only going to have problems if the principal will refuse to pay. Not necessarily.

A friend of mine, Nelson Getigan, a lawyer and entrepreneur, warns us of the consequences. In an article entitled “The Unknowing Debtor: A Discussion on the Liability of Co-makers“, he talks about Palmares vs. Court of Appeals, a decision of the Philippine Supreme Court which says that a creditor may go after the co-maker even without going after the principal first.

The article is posted at www.gccs.com.ph, the official website of GCCS and Associates, a company specializing in debt collection and credit investigation here in the Philippines. It is the first of a series of articles related to our laws on debt collection. The lesson is that we should know our rights and avoid paying for someone else’s loan.

Vista Transformation Pack 7 for Windows XP is the most popular skinning utility for Windows XP, it also works for Windows 2003, and this one includes the new start menu. Here are some of the additions and fixes…more

The “WordPress For Dummies” book was launched yesterday, October 29th here in the US and is now available at local bookstores, Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Books-A-Million and Dummies.Com. The e-book version can be purchased from Wiley.com.

Btw, the author is giving away 5 autographed copies of the book as part of her 5th blogging anniversary celebration.

Contine reading WordPress For Dummies..

Brazilian Beauty Ariani Nogueira is the FHM Cover Babe for November 2007.

More Images at Paradise Philippines

Yes, fellow Harry Potter fanatics, it’s true. Pasabog mismo ni J.K. Rowling. Our beloved Albus Dumbledore is gay.

Check out this link: http://hogwartsphilippines.org/book7/?p=180

Actually, huli pala ako sa balita, hehe! A co-teacher/friend/HP fanatic texted me last night and said, “J.K. Rowling just outed Dumbledore.” But since, wala akong kamalay-malay, I replied, “Ha? What do you mean?”

The Eavesdrop Writer is Vienne and her blog transforms overheard conversations from just about anywhere into remarkable short stories. Read the character(s) come alive! Feel the character. Be the charcter. What you are about to read is part of her developmental project where each week, she posts a conversation- overheard of course, and invites readers to partake in finishing the story. Anything goes. You make your own ending. This is mine.

Meme’s are the new interactive revolutionizing experience to blogging! Know more about it and join in the fun- not to mention exposure!

To read the beginning of the story, click on the above button which will lead you to the Eavesdrop Writer’s own blog; and when done, read how I end story.

The video above was taken at the National Book Development Board’s monthly book club meeting, held at Mag:net Cafe Katipunan yesterday. The featured author was Butch Dalisay, multi-awarded author of books, plays and screenplays, who spoke about writing short stories with no grand designs, but small challenges like starting with one sentence and seeing where the story goes. More…

I just want to post this because I’m quite proud of this paper when the rest of my classmates discussed about the romance in the novel. I had to retype this because I only have the original hard copy which I submitted to my professor. This post is slightly altered from the original paper to include my teacher’s comments and corrections. Unfortunately, I forgot her name but Ma’am MZM(S?or L?) thank you for your interest in my paper and for the grade.

Read:

An Analysis of the Three Sisters in the novel “Like Water for Chocolate” as Representatives of Women from Different Social Classes

My relationship with her has always been that of love-hate. I love her the most when we’re not talking or when we’re apart. I love her when she’s away or when I’m away. As long as I don’t see her or talk to her, I love her. It’s almost impossible for us to stay in one room without us having a fight. Our conversation kicks off okay but moments later, we’ll be discussing points then arguing then fighting then ending up not talking altogether for days… Those are my youthful recollection with her in my life.

She was 26 years old when I was born. She was just starting a career in the food business and was she enterprising! Her whole world revolved around the business. She worked ludicrous hours, performed tasks for what could be done by three or five people at one time, laboured like there was no tomorrow. She was unstoppable. She made night, day and worked some more in the wee hours of the night. I didn’t ever see her asleep!

She’s always working 24/7 it seems. And though it paid off, she lost me and my sisters in the process, me especially. My memories of my childhood are somewhat vague to me. Much as I try hard to recall, I could only come up with snippets of it. Perhaps I’m repressing it or unconsciously trying to forget that part of my life. Not that I had a completely messed up childhood. For the most part, I lived in a happy, loving, comfortable home but it’s something I’d rather not recall. She was never on it anyway. So what was there to remember?

I do remember that I was mischievous, naughty and rebellious as a kid. I had my share of corporal punishments- alot! But that’s not why I was angry at the world and taking it against her. I was mad because I never felt truly loved as a child. I was always craving for attention. It was the classic middle child syndrome. I felt I wasn’t always good-enough. My eldest sister was the responsible one. She was graceful, pretty and she had the fairer skin and nice, curly hair. My younger sister was the center of attention for she was the baby. She was cute, sweet, adorable and very smart! As for me, I was dark, short, average and anything but graceful! The result? I tried to lived up to how they saw me. I was seen as the female version of Dennis the menace so I gave them problems! It was easy to be bad. (It still is easy now! Ha!)

When I was 12, I joined my eldest sister in Manila for High School. That was just to get away from her as far as possible. Together we tried living responsibly as teenagers in the ‘big’ city. We stayed for four years in Manila and only visited our hometown, General Santos on summer time. Even then, I couldn’t befriend her. I would annoy her on end and rebel against anything she says. I always looked at her as THE enemy. I blamed her for all the bad memories of my youth. WHO IS SHE? FIND OUT HERE.

The Peace and Equity Foundation is enjoining the Filipino Youth to be part of its effort on poverty alleviation through a creative writing and photo essay contest with the theme dubbed as “Mga kulay ng kahirapan, hamon ng kinabukasan

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n author and freelance writer based in Hawaii, Patricia was crestfallen by what she sees as the obliteration of our nation’s soul — culture, traditions, the arts. So along with a group of artists and writers, she decided to do something about it by envisioning the Manila Center for the Arts.

Its intention is to provide a platform for established and emerging Filipino artists, students, and untapped talents, educators and arts enthusiasts. It will be “a convening venue to serve as a cooperative for Filipino visual and performing artists, musicians and writers whose work is pushing boundaries in content and form, and whose passion involves challenging the status quo.”

Click here to read complete article. 

Is she the secret weapon of this musical comeback? I am obviously biased here because we share the same Filipino heritage. However, when Les Misérables (The Miserable Ones) re-opened in November 2006, it initially advertised itself as a limited six-month engagement. Now ten months later, it has an open-run date and has scheduled shows all the way to January 2008. She wasn’t among the original revival cast, she came in 3 months prior to its supposed closing in May 2007. In that short time the role Lea currently plays had to be replaced not once but twice before everyone was comfortable with the character fit. Although majority of the original cast are no longer in the show for various reasons, Lea maintains her role (7 months and counting) with the only two remaining original revival cast Adam Jacobs and Ali Ewoldt, who happen to be Filipino-Americans!

It is a pleasant surprise that it is still playing in New York. I saw the musical in May this year and I was among those who weren’t totally impressed with this version. The critical reviews were rough. Learning that, I wasn’t inclined to watch until they especially singled out Lea Salonga to ‘save’ Fantine’s role. It would have been really les misérable for me to sit through an almost three hour musical if I didn’t at least see Lea Salonga.

Les Miz as it’s devotedly called has pretty good statistics to brag about- 16 years in New York Broadway, 22 years in London West End, ranks third as the longest-running show in Broadway history, and has been witnessed by over 54 million people in 38 countries and 21 languages since its first London performance in October 1985. The original Broadway production opened in 1987, garnering 7 Tony Awards, including Best Musical for that year. The Broadway production ended in 2003 after 6,680 performances.

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“MISS IS THIS SEAT TAKEN?” The husky voice belonged to a handsome man in his early twenties. I was startled by the sudden intrusion and I could only mumble a quick, “no”. Corny as it may had looked but that was how it all started. Plain and simple. We were both on our way home to Davao. He was in Cagayan de Oro on a business trip I was told. I wanted to ask what kind of business but decided it was none of my nosy concern. I told him that it was my first time to go outside the city over the weekend unchaperoned. “Hmm, good for you,” he commented. I can’t say that I felt comfortable talking with him right away although I noticed that I was the one bringing the conversation. He seemed distant at first. There was something in him that was quite strange. I guess it was his eyes and the way they stared at me; reaching into my inner being, searching into my soul as if trying to convey something yet afraid to let me know. Sometimes, I had to stop midway my sentence to ask if something was wrong and he would just say “nothing, please go on” and so I would continue as though his eyes weren’t beginning to bother me at all. His soulful eyes-they haunt me to this day. LIKE SHORT STORIES? THERE’S MORE HERE.

… I still blame myself for what happened. My story is classic. I should have known better how to handle it. It’s been written, it’s been talked about- I didn’t see it coming to me! I who fell in love with my best friend. I whose only fault was build my world around her.

We had the best of times and the best of everything. We shared our best cries and laughs and worst imaginable moments with each other. I knew she cared and loved me but not in the way I did. But that’s okay. I shouldn’t have confessed. I should have been contented! What was I thinking?! I didn’t even get that far in my dreams what to do next after telling her. I didn’t expect to be loved the same way. I only wanted the truth out and hoped that she’ll take it and we’ll just both laugh hard about the whole thing. She didn’t find it funny.

Perhaps from the very start it wasn’t meant to be. I met her in Thailand, a country both foreign to us. We hit it off right away! We shared three beautiful years of friendship. She with her boyfriends on the side and me with mine. We were just friends. However, not for long. One day, it hit me. I suddenly saw her in a different way- in a much deeper level. All that while doing the dishes with her after a usual shared dinner. I did it! I broke the first law of friendship; Never fall in love with your best friend. And still I broke the second law; If you did, never tell. THE WHOLE STORY IS HERE.

I remember that day as clearly as a screaming vagina. Meaning to say, if ever I do see a vagina actually screaming I can pretty much bet both my testicles that I’ll never forget it until the day I die. A sight like that would probably ruin my sexual appetite so thoroughly that the mutilation of my reproductive organs wouldn’t be a big issue anymore. Might as well tear out the horrible little thing and be done with it.

As I was saying: I remember that day clearly. There he is– little Squid– coming home from gradeschool one November afternoon in 1987, all snip and snails and puppy dog tails. Little Squid is in the mood for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a treat he plans to devour in his room while he reads Moby Dick. So far, he doesn’t understand half of what he’s already read in that lumbering beast of a novel since he’s only eleven years old, but at that age he already recognizes that what he’s reading is really crazy shit.

Little Squid enters the house humming the theme from the Transformers. He doesn’t see anyone in the house but knows his mother is somewhere around. He goes to the refrigerator for the peanut butter and passes by a window overlooking the backyard. There’s something strange going on there. Little Squid sees his mother crouched on the ground like a heathen idol, burning a pile of oddly familiar scraps of paper. Then little Squid recognizes the green plastic envelope with the He-Man stickers melting atop that pile…

OH YES SHE DID

Every time I bring a new book in school, my blockmates would always ask me what I am doing. Can’t they see? I’m reading? Isn’t obvious? And then, they would ask me what is the title of the book that I am reading. Finally, they would comment that they’re not fond of reading (as if I care). I’ve heard those lines for the nth time! Seriously, I’m getting tired of hearing those lines all over again and again.

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I think it’s safe to say that for our comic book geek generation, Wally West is The Flash. But for all the old timers out there, I bet it’s Barry Allen all the way. I can’t really blame them because the deceased Flash was totally awesome. Observe:

Legend has it that fans had a hard time relating to The Flash and his amazing quickness, so the Flash creative team made an issue featuring a fat Flash. Fans related to the Scarlet Speedster in no time.

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“Mammal.” Atheist author Christopher Hitchens drops this word into his new book god is not Great no less than 20 times (believe me, I checked), and I imagine its effect on you depends on whether you accept his premise. Either the world is purely material, or it is not. Either we can understand the world without resorting to the supernatural, or we cannot… (read more…)

IPR-Photo Philippines is the brainchild of photographer-participants in the ‘Seminar on Collective Administration of Visual Arts in the Philippines’ which was organized by Intellectual Property Office-Philippines (IPO) and International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CSAC) last July 12, 2007.

The group aims to help and promote Intellectual Property Rights for Photographers through discussions/ fora, sponsored talks, establishing networks and linkages with other like-minded organizations, and advocacy programs specifically aimed towards promoting viable photography industry in the Philippines.

More info on how to Join IPR-Photo Philippines eGroup at Shutter Box Philippines.