It looks great and really promising. I like how they foreshadowed the V’s true intentions in the first contact scene. Just hope it doesn’t falter midway. (Something Flashforward seems to be doing. The show is still plenty watchable, but the novelty and excitement is wearing thin)

Loving Elizabeth Mitchell here (always have) but I’m wondering if it’s a coincidence that she’s met up with another Jack.

SPOILER ALERT!!! (highlight area below to see)

Is it just me, or is Alan Tudyk a tad underutilized in the premiere?

I came across the word in a Seed magazine article that I stumbled upon while trawling the web for weather reports  (thankfully, storm “Santi” didn’t create as much of a ruckus as the two previous typhoons).  IMHO, I think the article is spot on in calling for closer scrutiny of these organic products and the “reduced” environmental impact they claim to have. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against the move towards “organic” farming methods. But I also understand the fact that as the world’s population continues to increase, we need to produce more food, and unfortunately, we’re running out of land to grow food on.

Of course, inequitable distribution of wealth is inextricably tied with this issue. But it seems to me that even if we managed to redistribute wealth and resources, we will still eventually bump into the problem of having too many people, and not having enough food.  This seems all too real in the Philippines, a relatively small country  with a large population and a correspondingly huge rice appetite. We are, apparently, the world’s largest importer of rice.

Taking that into consideration, one question that comes to mind is “How are we ever to address our inability to grow enough rice to feed the country?”  Is going organic the answer? Maybe. Maybe not. Truth be told, there are many social, economic, environmental and political factors that need to be considered before arriving at a satisfactory answer to this question.  But IMHO, we cannot discount the role science can and must play in achieving our country’s food security. Again, I have no problem with the whole organic trend. But it seems that it becomes a problem when we start equating “organic” with “sustainable”. Which really isn’t always the case.

From what I’ve heard, it appears that the turning of the Wheel has been left in very capable hands. I am once more excited about the series, and I am looking forward to the dramatic (and satisfying) conclusion of a series that began almost 20 years ago.

Hearing the music and seeing the artist roster makes me want to buy the album when it comes out. And see the movie, of course.

Leaked New Moon Soundtrack.

It’s also not surprising how government officials are quick to pin the blame on a deity (It’s an act of God!) and more recently, climate change (It’s Global Warming!) —  effectively relieving themselves of responsibility in the matter. I mean, who in the Philippine government would want to claim any measure of responsibility for the flood? Nobody’s gonna say, “Oh my bad. I allowed entire mountain slopes to become denuded.”

Or “I’m sorry, we really didn’t think this drainage problem through.”

Or  “There was some sort of well-thought out urban master plan…but I lost it. Can I haz cheezburger?” (Sorry couldn’t help the Lolcat reference).

What’s surprising is how a lot of people seem to accept these excuses.

Really?

I understand that a lot of Filipinos have a fatalist perspective, but couldn’t we consider that we are all somehow responsible for this? Not even for a little bit?

Or can’t we at least realize that we can do something about it?

There are things we can’t change. There will be typhoons. This year and the coming year.  Whether or not you believe that God sends them to these here parts is irrelevant.

And there will be climate change. There will be global warming. There will be rising sea levels. There will be heavier rainfalls and more severe storms. IT CAN’T BE STOPPED. At least for now. The ball has been set rolling and it will be awhile before it stops. Even if somehow we miraculously regulated the emission of greenhouse gases tomorrow — it will be years, decades even, before we see results.

But there are also things we can change. Things we can TAKE RESPONSIBILITY for.  We can start reducing our carbon footprint– not just for our sakes but for children and grandchildren’s sakes. We can start by making sure we as a country are prepared for what’s to come—that means better drainage, better land management. We can get involved and make sure that our government takes the environment into consideration.

At the very least we can make sure our sewers and waterways are not clogged by garbage.

I know we Filipinos have a tendency to be fatalists. Or perhaps we feel there is nothing we can do.

But we can do something. In fact, we HAVE to do something. The recent disasters are giant messages that shout we have to do something now. We have to take responsibility. We have to act now.

PS: As I ended this, I looked out the window and saw that one of my neighbors threw an empty bag of potato chips on our lawn.

I mean, REALLLY?! And we have the gall to blame it all on global warming.

“Please wake up! The house is flooded!”

And with those words, the day began.

Technically.

Technically because when I went to bed,  it was just 7:00 AM, September 26, 2009.

When my wife woke me up four hours later, it was the day Manila went under.

“Please wake up! The house is flooded!”

I jumped out of bed, my feet hitting the wet floor. I looked down to see water slowly coming into the bedroom from the living room. Rushing out, I found the entire living room flooded, with water making its way not just into our bedroom, but also into the workroom, where we kept our video production equipment.  The water wasn’t deep, but as with most things electronic, even a little drop could ruin our gear.

The first thing we did was to unplug all the electrical equipment in the house.  I thought of shutting off the electricity altogether, but after seeing that every outlet we had was still 8 inches above the water, I figured we were still safe. Besides, it was dark. We needed the light.

So we set off to work. We took our computers and video equipment into a more elevated part of the house.  With our equipment secure, we started taking our other stuff beyond the flood’s reach.  We didn’t need to move a lot. Outside of our video equipment, there’s not that much stuff in the house. We were always too late for the carpet and rugs, but we were quick for everything else. And fortunately, the ref (which the wife and I would’ve been hard pressed to move) stood on a platform and was located in the highest part on the house.

With our stuff secure, we went about investigating the cause of the flooding. A quick look out the window told us that it wasn’t flooded outside. Strange we thought. And after peeking through a few more windows, we found the culprit.

Our small veranda/balcony/patio (forget it, I don’t have a word for it), was filled with water and wouldn’t drain properly. The pooled water, looking for release, found small cracks that unfortunately led into the living room. Thankfully, I still had some sealant left over from a roof repair in March. Mystery solved. Cracks patched. Flooding stopped.

Now all that was left was to drain the water.

Or so we thought.

As we started scooping out flood water, the wife started complaining.  Apparently, she was told,  before we rented the place, that it never floods in the area. She was upset. She said that she has  never lived in a house that flooded and  she wasn’t about to start now.

I on the other hand wasn’t that upset. Growing up near a river, floods were a part of life in my home town.  To me, floods are an unavoidable part of life. It rains and sometimes the water gets into your house. No big deal. A hassle of course. But just like, taxes, traffic, corrupt politicians and clogged toilets — completely unavoidable.

And as we scooped water out of the house,  we talked about flood experiences—of how she didn’t have any, while I had lots.  After an hour  so, the water inside the house was almost gone, save for a puddle or two. And while we were tired, there was a sense of accomplishment. We’d kept it together. We saved our stuff. We dealt with the problem. We were successful. We were victorious.

And then it happened.

All of a sudden, water started rushing through the door. I heard the neighbor cry “Pumapasok na! Pumapasok na!” (It’s getting in!”). In a matter of seconds, the water level was above what it was when we woke up. And it was rising. Fast.

Suddenly, the higher elevation we put some of our belongings on, wasn’t so high anymore. My wife started grabbing stuff that was getting wet. I rushed to get old clothes, used bedsheets, pieces of wood—anything I could get my hands on. The water was coming only through the front door. My plan was to build a makeshift dam and block the entrance. I knew I couldn’t  stop the water from rising, but i could at least delay it and buy us some time. As I was building the dam, my wife was frantically trying to save our equipment.  ‘Has anything gotten wet?”, I shouted.

“Not yet. But soon!”

I took a quick glance outside. The flood kept on coming. But the water level outside was still higher than it was inside. The dam was working. But barely.

I knew the electrical sockets would soon get flooded so I ran to the circuit breakers and main power switch  and turned them off.

Darkness.

I grabbed the flashlight, gave it to my wife. I opened all the curtains. And we tried to save as much as we could, as fast as we could. Outside, the rains continued to pour, as if mocking all our efforts. In my head, I made a list of everything that must be saved, and how best to save them. We took plastic bags and wrapped everything we thought was a priority.   The water continued to rise. It was as if our house had turned into an hourglass, and everything in it served to mark how quickly the clock was moving.  There was so much to do, and we were running out of time.

We prayed for the flood to recede. And the rain to cease. But more than that, we prayed for the wisdom and the strength to make it through.

As we watched the water rise, we set a deadline.  My experience with floods taught me never assume that it will stop rising. And when I considered the fact that it was still raining heavily, my gut told me to prepare for the worst.

My wife and I decided that if the water reached a certain mark, it was time to leave and seek higher ground.  I tried to run the logistics of evacuation through my head. It was all sound. It was logical. It was efficient. But sometimes, even the littlest thing could turn a good plan awry.  And outside, lay a thousand little things, just waiting to mess up the plan.

“Bumababa na! Bumababa na!”(It’s going down!) shouted someone.

I looked out. Somehow the rain wasn’t falling as hard. And the flood wasn’t rising anymore.

After a few minutes, I looked again. The water was subsiding.

It was over, it seemed.

After an hour, the flood was all but gone outside. But inside, the water remained—the dam we had built to keep the water out, now kept the water in. I took the makeshift dam apart, and the water flowed out.

For the first time since the day started, I breathed easy.

We checked the phone. They still worked.

There was no power. No tap water.

I looked at the time. It was 4:00 PM,  September 26, 2009. We had made it.

We were relieved.

However, our relief was soon  intruded upon by troubling thoughts. Our house was situated at a fairly high elevation (In fact, our neighbor later confirmed that in the 25 years he’s been there, he’s never experienced a flooding in the area). And if an area like ours could become flooded: what about the lower lying areas of the metropolis?

Turning on our battery operated radio confirmed the worst.

Everything that happened in our little corner suddenly faded into insignificance as we realized what so many others were still going through.

It dawned on us.

We had it easy.

Oh well, so I like zombie related stuff. BFD

Which reminds me, I’m really backlogged on my East Shore recaps. And I tell you, since the last episode, the show’s gotten really exciting.  Plus, in the next few weeks, it’ll be the East Shore gang on the East Coast—awesome stuff!  So i’ll get crackin’ on those recaps ASAP, and get y’all up-to-date  : )

In summary, a zombie outbreak is likely to lead to the collapse of civilisation, unless it
is dealt with quickly. While aggressive quarantine may contain the epidemic, or a cure may
lead to coexistence of humans and zombies, the most effective way to contain the rise of
the undead is to hit hard and hit often. As seen in the movies, it is imperative that zombies
are dealt with quickly, or else we are all in a great deal of trouble.

As someone fairly well-versed in zombie lore, and who’s fresh off a successful Plants Vs Zombies campaign (Oh my God, y’all have to try this out), all I can say is—DUH!