F R E E D O M ! ! ! ! ! ! !






[This blog is continued on http://www.tonyperezphilippinescyberspacebook24.blogspot.com.]

For the record, I stopped updating my curriculum vitae three years ago. I was 60 then, and, already, I asked myself what the point of it all was. I could have added a long list of cyberspace publications, presentations, speeches, workshops, and conferences, but I looked at my family members and friends, and saw that none of them were interested in constructing their own curricula. The people I love are not concerned with immortality--why, then, should I be?

Similarly, I lost my enthusiasm to pursue a Ph.D. in anything. I looked at former classmates who are now presidents, deans, and department chairpersons, and what did I see? I saw that, while their knowledge was their happiness, their knowledge was also their loneliness.

Arrived home 5:00 PM.

A glass of Pepsi Max.

"You'll remember the love you found here/
You'll remember me somehow/
Though you don't need me now/
I will stay in your heart/
And when things fall apart/
You'll remember one day . . ./" 

With Julius and JR at separate times this noon

Last view of the sky from the Octagon

1:30 PM Filed leave for tomorrow because the traffic is sure to be worse than the worst. Frankly, the real root of the traffic problem is overpopulation, and that is something that everyone is doing nothing about.

2:30 PM Turned in my Blackberry to Jude. As I mentioned in a previous entry, I have no intentions of enslaving myself to a mobile. The only way I can be reached is through e-mail and Google+.

3:00 PM Turned in my badge at HR. I asked to skip the exit interview; that is only for employees with grudges and gripes and I have none.

3:30 PM Unable to find Mario the tricycle driver, and so I went on board another tricycle with the gift I was supposed to give him.

4:00 PM Took the LRT1 to Doroteo Jose.

4:15 PM Took the LRT2 to Araneta Center-Cubao.

Lunch with Julius at Emerald Garden.

JR, Joy, Richmond, Randolph, and Ej were at another table in the adjoining room.

Meeting up with JR during the holidays.

I don't buy bags that are too small to put all of my things in.

No one in this world will ever be known to everyone in this world, no matter how hard anyone campaigns for it.

The same is true of your gods and your heroes.

Rich Tagalog: Words of Peacemaking

"O sige na, sige na!" spoken in exasperation means, "Go ahead, if it makes you happy!"

A recent, idiomatic development of this is "Ikaw na!", which subliminally means the same thing. "Ikaw na!" does NOT mean, "You're the man!"

It is not enough to know your assets. You also need to know how to put them to good use.

Aubrey's last day of school before the long holiday.

Countdown: ONE work day before my official retirement!

Looking back over the past five years, the single and most memorable event that occurred in my life was my Haring Bakal initiation in Santander, Cebu. Over several months I visited two masters, who gave me sheets of oraciones to memorize. I used three kinds of oil in separate bottles. I underwent a rigorous grilling, after which a ritual called "pandong" (prayers over one's head) was performed on me. A candle was lit on an altar and its flame was carefully observed. The master then struck me with the blade of a katana the requisite number of times on my stomach and legs. (It hurt; my flesh wasn't slashed but bore welts and bruises for three weeks.) I had four "mutya"s (implants) inserted in my forearms. (That hurt also, and the instruments used were a rusty razor blade and a used matchstick to push the "mutya"s in.) I got terribly sick afterward because I forgot to abstain from using anything of metal for 49 days, and my forearms remained swollen for a month--you can actually see them in some of my Album photos. I was required to wear a "bakus" (belt with pouches and inscriptions) and three kinds of "chalecos" (vests) and keep a blessed coconut on my bedroom altar.

There are many other things related to Haring Bakal, of course, that I do not have the liberty of revealing on this blog.

Tony Perez's Art of War

A colleague who practices magic once gave me this piece of advice:

Never set your magical defenses (taladros, panyos, libretas, talismans, oraciones, obras) too high. It is like building tall walls around your castle. If your ramparts are too high, it is true that your enemies will be unable to penetrate them and attack you--yet, the wolves and tigers within your courtyard will also be unable to leap out and devour them.

Rich Tagalog: No Measuring Spoons for These

Did you know that Filipinos have more words for less of something than for more of something?

Here are the words for less of something:

Kaunti = a small amount, a little of, a few

Kalahati = half of

Kapiraso = a piece of

Kakapiranggot = too small to satisfy

Kukurampot = a tiny amount, the rest withheld by another due to selfishness

Katiting = insubstantial

Ga-kurot = a pinch of

Butil = a grain of

Patak = a drop of

Latak = dregs

Bahid = merely a trace of

Three years ago, during a festival in Baguio City, a friend showed me a talisman she'd been keeping for quite some time. It was given her by someone who did not explain to her what it was for. I identified the talisman for her; it was "Kinalulugdang Anak", and she was quite delighted with the name. I did not tell her what that talisman is really for, simply giving her the catch-all phrase "for protection".

"Kinalulugdang Anak" and "Sagrada Familia" are attractive talismans to many because they depict scenes of love, unity, and affection. Unbeknownst to them, such scenes are masks, or disguises, for their real purpose. These talismans, with the correct oraciones and llaves, are actually used for offense and aggression, known by the catch-all phrase "pamatay".

Arrived at the office 5:45 AM.

Wearing Kiehl's Original Musk Oil.

To enlighten the underprivileged en masse, organize museum and art gallery tours for them, ensuring that there are docents who can communicate with them on their own level.