Has bloging taken over my life? Maybe...Here I am sitting in a strange internet cafe that's inside a small residential apartment. One of those hole-in-the-wall places that have sprouted all over the city. It reminds me of the underground net cafes in China that I kept reading about last year. I couldn't resist coming over. I saw the sign that said "Internet" and I ran for it. Darn. I'm hooked for life. After I picked out a nice spot, I immediately started blogging.

With this much blogging going to my head, my wife is complaining. And I've taken it a step further, too. I just recently joined an online community of Pinoy Bloggers. When asked to introduce myself and why I started blogging, I responded: "Ed here 27, from Angeles City, Pampanga. Started blogging October last year to share my neurotic and trivial thoughts with complete strangers. Blogging beats lying down on a couch and talking to a therapist/shrink who'll charge you mondo bucks for rephrasing everything you say. Blogging is therapy. Blogging is good. Blogging is the embodiment of enlightenment on the internet. Say it with me .... * ohm * "

Lately though, I've been stuck to my own blog. So much for enlightening oneself with the insight of others. I haven't read anyone else's blog in a while. I've become the hermit that I so despised. I'm stuck in my own selfish universe once more and I'm determined to get out again. So, I've resolved to visit the blogs I've listed on my sidebar. I've decided to tag their tagboards, to zonk their zonkboards and to scream obscenities at their shoutboxes to make myself heard. Okay, that's enough. I'll do it tomorrow. I'm racking up paid time here.

Kaninang umaga, inayos ko ang crib ng anak ko. Maliit na kasi yung bassinet para sa kanya. Nung una, Graco playpen na may bassinet sana ang bibilhin namin. Nampucha, P7,000 ba naman. Eh kahit na ba portable at foldable pa 'yun, eh sobra naman ang presyo. 'Yun ngang pinsan ko na naka-abroad ang asawa namamahalan pa 'dun, ako pa kayang pobre? (Drama, ano?)

Tuloy ang binili na lang namin eh P3,500 na playpen na gawa ng Vera's Furniture. Lokal at gawa sa aluminum, pero may crib na maliit s'yang dumuduyan-duyan sa gitna. Ibinili ko na lang ng sangkatutak na baby wipes at disposable diaper ang natipid naming P3,500.

Medyo masikip na kasi yung duyan para kay baby. Six months na kasi ang munting damuho ko, at naglililikot na. Atat na kasing gumapang ang loko. Kanya kaninang umaga inalis ko na 'yung munting duyan, para lumuwang ang lugar n'ya. Pagkatapos, tinanggal ko rin 'yung lapag nung playpen mismo. Pwede palang ilapat yung ilalim n'ya sa may bandang gitna ng frame, para hindi masyadong malalim. Ayos, 'di ba? A playpen that grows with my baby's need. Hehehe. Tiyagaan lang nga, kasi aluminum ang buong frame ng playpen at sandamakmak na screw ang tinanggal at kinabit ko para lang maayos ko sa gusto kong taas yung lapag ng crib.

Nang matapos ako, nilagay ni ermats ko yung bagong labang kutson sa crib. OK na. Pwede nang sumakay si baby. Medyo nanibago yata s'ya nung hiniga namin s'ya sa playpen. Hindi na s'ya bumabalikwas kada 5 seconds. Nakatingin lang s'ya, nagmamasid. Kinuha ko lahat ng laruan sa duyan n'ya. Nilagay ko ang mga 'yun sa mga sulok ng playpen, tulad ng ayos nila sa duyan n'ya. Ayun, naglaro na ulit. Wagi! :D

Darn. My BlogPatrol counter just conked out on me. I tried giving it a few days but it still didn't show. Today, I tried going to their site and even the site isn't working. I suddenly realized that I had to go back to good old reliable Sitemeter. She may not be a looker (the counter, that is), but at least she's dependable.

Everybody's been asking me lately why I didn't apply for the job position in Training. It was afterall a promotion. Well, I did apply for it. I talked about it a few weeks ago (march 16 entry). I got an interview. I didn't pass. Last week, they announced the 4 guys that did pass.

Every time someone asks, I've had to fight off an unnerving urge to run away screaming, pretending I've gone stark raving mad. I just don't have to heart to tell everyone that I failed miserably. Sometimes I manage a pathetic reply like, "I'm more comfortable where I am right now..." or a some other vaguely similar excuse. Other times, all I can muster is a shrug and an equally miserable, "Nah!"

I'm actually OK with it, except when someone mentions it and reminds me I failed miserably because I couldn't hack it. I had it in me, I know. But I buckled under pressure. I choked. And I'm making up excuses again. Damn! Will I ever see the end of this?

Which Cartoon Character Are You?

After news broke out about a coalition missile hitting a busy market in northern Baghdad, no comments were forthcoming from coalition forces HQ in Doha. Typical. When they make mistakes, they run the press statements through spin doctors before they release them.

I wonder how many actual civilian casualties there are? I mean they've ripped through 200 miles of Iraqi countryside. Who knows how many more civilian casualties were hidden from the press. The coalition's soldiers are so paranoid and trigger-happy, they've turned on their own. First a Tornado, then a Challenger tank.

By the way, Bush was on TV last night. He was addressing soldiers in FLA and doing what he does best. He was spewing useless rhetoric again about "liberating" the people or Iraq through the use of "decissive force". What I found intriguing was whenever he paused to let his audience applaud, the left corner of his mouth flinched. Could he be lying through his teeth? Maybe he knows something we don't. Only he knows. God forbid Bush unleashes hell on earth with what he knows.

Case in point. The Europeans are abuzz with incredulity at Rumsfeld's statements. I tell ya, that man has balls of steel to be able to say that. If he doesn't, then I suspect that he may be as disillusioned as his president -- LOL.

I've finally succeeded in installing a new shoutbox. This one is from dEkap.com. I was looking for a shoutbox that was hosted, just like tagboard and zonkboard. I found dEkap's shoutbox and struck gold. The only problem was that I had to upload that darn code to a server of my own -- which I don't have since my blog is on blogger. Good thing I discovered they have hosted boxes too. I was tipped off by a friend. I signed up and voila! I now have hundreds of smileys and IP banning (a useful tool against recidivist trolls who have nothing better to do than make other people miserable). I'm still experimenting with it though. I sure hope these guys can keep their service free. I'd recommend it to anyone.

Try it out! Gimme a shout! :D

I was watching BBC last night when I had a gut feel something was about to happen. So I switched channels to CNN. Since 9/11, I've switched to BBC for news. CNN had since showed bias when delivering the news. BBC is a bit more objective. Plus I love the accent -- LOL.

Anyway, CNN was broadcasting a press briefing by Donald Rumsfeld. He was yapping that the Iraqi's shouldn't be broadcasting American POW's being interviewed on TV and that if they did they would be violating the 3rd Geneva Convention. He added that it would be "humiliating" for American POW's to be treated that way.

Wow! All of the sudden the Geneva Convention exists again. Wasn't the Geneva Convention sidelined when the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay were denied access to lawyers? Are their rights not violated when they are being subjected to humiliation and isolation? Didn't the US contravene the very principle of just treatment when it denied POW status to these prisoners? Oh, and don't forget that they refused to recognize the ICC because they wanted immunity for US servicemen. Which basically means that they can get away with violations on both sides of any conflict. The international community can't touch US soldiers. They can't touch the US's prisoners too.

Rumsfeld sure has balls. He can invoke the Geneva Convention when American soldiers are captured, but turns a blind eye when it comes the prisoners of Guantanamo Bay. *tsk, tsk*

Yesterday, I took the day off and took my wife to SM to buy stuff for our baby. Our baby turns six months tomorrow, so we wanted to buy some stuff that would help stimulate his senses. We had a real good time trying out all the toys at Toy Kingdom. I tried a lot of the toy instruments. Electric guitars, violins and trumpets, pianos, etc. A surprising number of them played classical music.

There was a wide assortment of stuffed toys. We saw bedtime dolls that played "Hush little baby, don't you cry...", most of them pricey Mickey and Minnie dolls from Disney. There were a lot of Winnie the Pooh toys too. I played around with a plush doll made in the image of Blue, that cute inquisitive dog of Blue's Clues fame. When you squeezed the doll's tummy the ears would go up, just like in the show. Cute! I also picked up the usual stuffed characters and showed them to my wife, often trying hard to mimic the voices to get a laugh or two from her. It worked quite well with Mojo Jojo and Taz. One of the salesladies even smiled when she saw me sneaking up on my wife, a Wile E. Coyote doll in my hands. She muffled her giggles of delight when she turned to face me. My wife likes the Looney Tunes. Who wouldn't? We grew up with them We're the generation that had TV's for nannies after all. Her absolute L.T. fave would be Marvin.

On the next aisle, I found 6 inch-high Teletubby stuffed toys. I picked each one up and smiled. I'm fond of these characters. They remind me of the 2 short years that I took care of my nephew. Dylan was my dear dead brother's son. He was born a few months after my brother died. It was a joy to raise Dylan like he was my own son. My mother and I took turns caring for him when his mother took off and started a life of her own. Sad thing is his bitch of a mother spirited him away before his 2nd birthday. We haven't seen him since. Being the sentimental fool that I am, I wanted to buy one of the dolls. I put back the plush likeness of Po and told my wife he was my favorite. Letting go is so difficult.

We went around the aisles a bit more, reminiscing at the toys from our childhod that we missed. Matchbox here, Tonka toys there, a few Zoids thrown in for a good measure. After romping around like two overgrown kids, we settled on a Winnie the Pooh stacking toy and a set of those colorful rubber mats that had large alphabet cut-outs. This morning I placed the stack toy in his crib. It made me smile when my son stared at it and regarded it with awe. He must like the colors. I never thought Winnie the Pooh could ever make me happy.

Well, they started it alright. The war on Iraq has begun. I just pray this'll be over real soon. With the war still in the early stages, no one can say how many people will be displaced. The buzz word being used in the international and diplomatic community is "humanitarian crisis". A crisis it will be. Imagine hundreds of thousands of refugees huddled in refugee camps inside and outside Iraq, with no provisions for food and medicine. And with the war on, humanitarian aid and supplies will be scarce or at best delayed. The UN recognizes it must move to help refugees. The European Union has already decided to help with 20 million Euros in immediate aid. That goes to show you that when the US goes war-mongering, everybody else will have to help the victims of the conflict.

Oh, and just amuse you, I found out they're sending Optimus Prime to Iraq. That'll ensure the definitive victory that George W wants. LOL

Remember the bra thing I wrote about a few days ago. I was leafing through the September 2002 issue of Good Housekeeping (US edition). I found out that Playtex is marketing bras with gel straps. Goes to prove that Asics Gel was a better idea than Nike's air soles. Eventually Gel found itself supporting a body part other than the feet. LOL

Today, I was supposed to write about donuts I bought yesterday. But something happened early this morning. I woke up from a dream, afraid and angry. In my dream, war was upon the Philippines again. My own home was wrecked. I was frantically looking for my wife. When I found her, my heart broke. I woke up after that and frantically turned to my right. I saw her, asleep and peaceful. Not at all like the frightened, hurt image in my dream. I gave her a hug, so tight it woke her up. With a drowsy stare, she looked at me and asked if there was something wrong. I told her everything was alright, and that I loved her. I kissed her and went back to sleep, still hugging her tight.

Me and the wife were grocery shopping the other day. We were on our way to the check-out counter when she spotted Quaker snackbars. We bought a box of chocolate chip granola just to see if they taste any good. They actually taste great. These granola bars are actually tastier that any run of the mill candybar. The chocolate chips were tasty morsels of semisweet chocolate. The granola was crunchy and quite sweet. A little too crunchy for my wife, or so she says. She likes her granola bars chewy ;C) . I find it just right, though. I'll have to buy a few more boxes when we go back to the supermarket.

I'm actually eating more cereal and bread today than I ever did in the past. That's a good way to start getting some weight off, or so they say. Which reminds me. I need to read Quaker newsletter I subscribed to. I haven't been reading the issues they emailed me in the last three months -- LOL. Talk about taking it to heart.

Have you seen the logos at the bottom of my sidebar? It already looks like a collection of boyscout merit badges - LOL. But it seems my blog listings have paid off. Today, I found a message from a fellow blogger. Her short tag came at exactly the right time. I've been pondering about giving up blogging, since I don't have a computer at home anymore. Blogging on means going to Internet cafés where the ambience isn't really conducive to writing (ambience daw!). I've also been feeling a bit down lately after I botched up an interview for a promotion. Feedback from the interview was that I was articulate, but I lacked focus. They also noted that I needed a refresher course in English grammar. Damn... They tried so hard to make the feedback as quaint and nice as possible, but it was nevertheless insulting.

Jenni's message was short, but it came at a time when I needed to be appreciated. It makes me realize how powerful words are. A few can ruin us, even fewer can lift us up. After reading her tag, I've decided to go on sharing my life with the world. This is inexpensive therapy after all. And anything that saves me from a trip to the shrink is a blessing in itself.

Nang magising ako kaninang umaga, parang may mali na hindi ko mawari. Nag-umpisa 'yun sa panaginip na gumising sa akin. Nandudon raw ako sa bahay ng ka-opisina kong si Jovy. Madilim ang paligid, maliban sa liwanag na nanggagaling sa monitor ng lumang computer na ginagamit kong pang-Internet. Nakaharap ako sa monitor na parang walang pakialam sa mga nangyayari sa paligid. Wala na raw si Jovy at tulog na. Ang naiwan na lang na gising ay ako at ang tatay n'ya. Tuluy, nilapitan ako ng tatay n`ya at nagtanong ito. Hindi naintindihan ng tainga ko ang salitang ginamit n`ya, pero malinaw sa isip ko tinatanong n'ya. Hindi pa raw ba ako matutulog? Sinabi ko sa sarili ko na hindi ako pwedeng matulog duon dahil hindi ko bahay 'yun. Duon na ako nagising.

Pagkagising ko ay napabalikwas ako. Pupunta nga pala ako sa doktor ko. Tanghali na, 10:30 na pala. Kailangan kong makarating sa ospital bago ala-1 para mauna ako sa pila. Pumanaog na ako sa baba at dali-daling uminom ng gamot. Isang oras kasi ang hihintayin ko pagkainom ko nito, bago ako kakain. Nag-banyo na tuluy ako habang hinihintay ko ang isang oras. Pagkatapos magbihis at kumain, nagmamadali akong umalis.

Isipin n'yo na lang ang pagkayamot ko nang dumating ako at ang bumati sa akin ay isang notice sa pinto ng kwarto ng doktor. Ang sabi eh isang linggo s'yang wala, may conference daw. Nampucha! Napagod lang ako. Lumabas na lang ako ng ospital at bumili ng isang bote ng tubig. Nakalimutan kong magdala ng tubig sa pagmamadali ko. Kasi, kapag bigla akong ginutom, kakain ako ng Graham crackers. Eh, ang hirap lunukin nun kung walang panulak. Kanya panay ang baon ko ng tubig.

Pagkatapos makabili ng tubig, sumakay na ako sa isang jeep papuntang maingate ng Clarkfield. Susunduin ko na lang ang misis ko. Pamatay oras ang byahe. Nadaan ang jeep sa may Casino Filipino. Huminto ito sa harapan nuon para magbaba ng pasahero. Patapos na pala ang Casino. Sa tuwing dadaan ako duon, hindi ko mapigilang mangilabot sa sa mga naglalakihang rebulto sa harapan ng 200-talampakang gusali nito. Ang isa ay tikbalang, ang isa'y taong-kalabaw na may nakatayong nuno sa balikat. Paano ka ba naman hindi kikilabutan n'un, sa dinami-dami ng pwede nilang gamiting theme eh lamam lupa ang mga pinili nila. Mistula tuluy Temple of Doom ang dating nito, lalu na't ang tanging daanan papasok eh isang 50-talampakang hagdanan. Naisip ko tuluy na kahawig nito 'yung mga bahagdan ng mga makasaysayang templo ng mga Inca, 'yung pinagdadausan nila ng human sacrifice. Hinihintay ko na nga lang may kumanta ng, "Ho-shige-shige, Ho-shige-shige, Um-de, Fumaley-ar!..."

Ilang sandali pa'y umusad na ulit ang jeep. Sa bandang Fields Avenue, may nakisakay na ale. Akala ko eh masosolo ko ang upuan sa harap. Pumorma siyang sasampa, kanya umusog ako sa tabi ng driver. Dangkasi naman, ang luwang na sa likod at walang pasahero,nakitabi pa s'ya sa harap. OK lang sana, kasi chick naman 'yung nakitabi. Ang kaso eh muntik ko nang napalo ng palad ko ang noo ko. Ang suot nung ale eh shorts na kulay aquamarine. Isinuot n'ya 'yun sa ibabaw ng isang pares ng cycling shorts na alanganing fuschia-alanganing pink (pareho lang ba 'yun?). Nang umandar na ang jeep, pumaimbalot sa amin ang halimuyak ng Nenuco. Napangiwi ako. Buti na lang hindi ako nakita nang katabi ko. Busy s'yang dumudukot ng barya sa coin purse n'ya. May 30-anyos na yata 'yung ale, Nenuco pa ang pabango n'ya. Naalibadbaran tuloy ako. Buti na lang at mabilis ang jeep. Kung hindi, humingi na ako ng saklolo kay Shaider.

I did a search on my name again. I was curious as to how many criminals might have the same name as I did. Well, I was disappointed. All the search came up with was a huge list of medical doctors and Pinoy scholars in the US with the same surname. There was a pleasant surprise though. I found my dad's name in a Philippine Jurisprudence case file. He was called to testify as a prosecution witness on a Supreme Court appeal. His name will henceforth be inscribed forever in history. Case file records on jurisprudence are preserved indefinitely. My grandchildren will have something look for when they eventually do geneological research. Neat!

I've finally been able to fix a nagging problem. My archive index on the left-hand side of me blog hasn't been displaying correctly since I changed my template. Being the code dummy that I am, I wandered aimlessly on the web looking for a palpable solution to my dilemma.

It came in the form of another Blog, Phil Ringnalda's in particular. In his archives, he lists an archive script generator for Blogger blogs. Thanks to the very precise instructions, I was able to fix my problem with a drop-down archive list. I thank the divine creator for people like Phil, who unselffishly share their talent to benefit Blogkind. Thanks, Phil ! You're a life-saver. :-))

I miss being able to experiment with food. I'm not as flexible now. I don't cook with the same fervor anymore. My wife gave me a pasta cookbook last November. I was delighted to get such a precious gift. My wife always had this uncanny ability to read my mind. She almost always buys something that's in my secret wish list. Anyway, I also watch Keith Floyd's cooking show all the time, even when I was in the hospital.

The two were sources of inspiration. But now, I can't stand reading the cookbook. It only reminds me of what I can't have. It's like a see-through pandora's box with little poisoned tarts so beautiful to behold. LOL.

I still watch Floyd, though. They air his shows over Discovery Travel and Adventure. It always amuses me to watch him flamboyantly cook in exotic locations. Quite a chap, that Floyd fellow. He's quite the typical Brit merchant and restauratuer; well-traveled, charming and witty. The irreverence of his English wit never fails to make me smile. He also sips a lot of wine while he's cooking. Quite famous the UK, he's considered a celebrity chef. Discovery is even sponsoring a contest for free passes to see him in person. They're bringing him to Singapore. Unfortunately, the contest is open only to Singapore residents. I would've loved to meet him. But then again, no.

Having no travel experience, I think I have a better chance of getting a date with Drew Barrymore than getting a travel visa to Singapore. The immigration authorities of Singapore are naturally suspicious of Filipino tourists (the opposite is true for UK tourists). They surmise Pinoys have a tendency to stay illegally after their visas expire. Even if I do get my travel arrangements in order, what would I say to him when I meet him? I mean after years of traveling he must have already heard every accolade conceivable in the English language. I think I'd be better off wishing for Drew Barrymore. LOL .

Browsing an Avon catalog one fine weekend morning, I noticed that most of their brassieres were on sale. Yes, I confess. I occasionally shop from the Avon lady. My wife is swamped with friends who sell Avon, so why not make the best of it. That way, I don't even have to lift a finger to buy perfume.

Anyway, I asked my wife about the bra business. She tells me Avon is lowering prices to be more competitive in the C, D and E markets. There are a lot of brands out there that are really selling well despite their price, so Avon got muscled out of the A and B markets. Take for example Wacoal or Marks & Spencer. They may not be as popular where they're from, but here they fetch a high price. Imagine 2,000 pesos for a single pair. I mean, no frickin way! 2,000 pesos pays rent. I rent my apartment for 3,500 pesos, so 2K is a lot of money.

There's also stuff out there that takes the cake when it comes to improving the brassiere. Take for example, the Aloe Vera bra. It's supposed to moisturize and cool in addition to supporting cleavage. Triump has also launched a similar Aloe Vera product on top of its protein-laden bras.

Human modesty has come a long way since the fig leaf. I wonder what they'll come up with next?

I went out for a walk a while ago. I was surprised to realize it had rained. Pretty hard, or so it seems. The roadside around the office was overrun with miniature streams and a a few puddles. For a place like Clarkfield, that isn't normal. This place probably has the biggest and widest roadside ditches anywhere in Luzon.

The smell of humid rain made me reminisce about my carefree days. In my college days, I would often go with my fraternity brods. The most likely places we would go to would be their homes in the barrios. There, we would gamble, drink and be merry, all in the midst of the torrential rains. It was even more fun just sitting around, exchanging political and not-so-political views over a pack of Marlboros. Moreover, it was challenging to try to keep ourselves and our cigarettes dry. Those were the days.

Today, I face an even bigger challenge. That is to go and leave my past ways where they belongs - to the past. Wish me luck as I move forward :-))

Bought a few things for the wife. It's our anniversay after all. Been a lot of things on my mind lately and I don't know if she'll like the stuff I bought. My decision-making abilities suffer in the chasms of unproductive neurotic thoughts. It's about as succinct as i can put it.

I bought a dozen white roses and a Norah Jones CD. I hope she likes them.

To get myself exposed into writing again, I sent an old friend an article I made about blogging. He was once my editor and now he runs his own publication outfit. He agreed to publish the article and actually offered to give me a column. I accepted and immediately set about writing the next article. It was so long that I had to cut it up into parts. Instead of having an article for next week, I actually sent my editor a three-part series good for the next three weeks. Talk about luck, because as it turned out I won't have any PC to use in the immediate future. All I'll be able to do now is occassional blogging. And from now on, even that will have to be done in the fringes.

Oh, and the article is here. I'm a bit rusty so bear with me. When i get my creative juices going, I promise a better read.

I've always stood by what I have written, be it a news story or an opinion article. As a writer, I have always believed that what I lacked in writing talent I made up for with integrity. That was the only thing that set me apart from the rest. I stand by what I write, always.

But this time I make an exception, for someone dear to me...

The original post here has been removed. Please do go on reading the other posts.

In other developments, Blogger has just released an FAQ on the Google-Blogger deal. Read it here. Blogger has also started is its very own Audio-Blog service. It's dialing for bloggers -- LOL. This is an offshoot of mobile blogging, which I was discussing on a previous post. Very nice.

If this is a sign of things to come in the aftermath of the Google deal, then the future is bright for Blogger.

Got this in the mail. It was sent by another heathen soul, much like myself...

=========================

The following is an actual question given on a University of Washington chemistry mid term. The answer by one student was "so profound" that the professor shared it with colleagues, via the Internet, which is, of course, why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well.

Bonus Question: Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic(absorbs heat)?

Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law, (gas cools off when it expands and heats up when it is compressed) or some variant.

One student, however, wrote the following:

First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we need to know the rate that souls are moving into Hell and the rate they are leaving. I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving.

As for how many souls are entering Hell, let's look at the different religions that exist in the world today. Some of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell. Since there are more than one of these religions and since people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to Hell.

With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in Hell to increase exponentially.

Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume in Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has to expand proportionately as souls are added.

This gives two possibilities:
1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will increase until all Hell breaks loose.
2. If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in Hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until Hell freezes over.

So which is it?

If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my Freshman year, "...that it will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you," and take into account the fact that I still have not succeeded in having sexual relations with her, then #2 cannot be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and will not freeze.

The student received the only "A" given.

In an open letter to the university, UP's President announced that they will be moving from Windows to Linux. This is a huge news. University of the Philippines is considered as the best state university we have. But a state university it still is. Budget cuts in education have made this haven of liberal education cash-strapped. They can no longer stand to pay licensing fees for their Microsoft software. I mean, who would want to? It's absurd that you have to pay for licensing when you've already bought the software.

The transition to Linux represents not only an economic decision, but a political as well. It about time institutions stood up to corporate software behemoths like Microsoft and say "No more!"

UP will be sourcing it's Linux from the Department of Science and Technology's ASTI (Advanced Science and Technology Institute). They've come up with their own unique Linux OS based on Red Hat 7.2, called Bayanihan Linux. This one is geared for use by school and office users. It's quite a comprehensive package of software too. It comes, "Bundled with the latest office suite, image and text editors, internet and networking tools and multimedia applications..." Quite attractive, wouldn't you say? If you're on Linux, you can surf the Net quite confidently using Pentium II desktop. It's fast, it doesn't freeze on you, and it won't take forever to download stuff off the Net. Check it out folks.