Weather Challenges

     I often and people around me complain about the hot sunny weather in tropical Leyte, Philippines, coupled with high humidity, except for the last two weeks where it has been relatively cold and damp due to the intermittent rain. I know that foreigners from countries with winter long for and love this kind of weather. When I was still working with a Norwegian paint company, I found out most of them have no air-conditioning in their houses, and they avoid car air-conditioning, instead they have heaters in their cars. It was a culture shock for me to be heaty inside the car, uncomfortable for me but the Norwegians relish it as an escape from the extreme coldness outside.

     A friend of mine in the US sent me an overnight snowing of his car in St. Louis, Missouri. It was shocking to see the thick snow deposit on his car roof. It simply shows the hard work he needs to do upon waking up to clear the snow debris and be able to use the car. This confirms there is no good thing in everything extreme wherever part of the earth you are.

Snow covered car

     

Beautiful Weather Has Come

     The beautiful tropical weather is back after several days of raini since few days before Christmas.

Lovely skies 

     It feels good to finally the sunlight, after all the cold and laundry not drying properly. It's time to hang out those still wet and damp laundry. It's comforting to see the beautiful weather proving truth to the proverbial saying there is always clear skies after the cloud and storm. 

     This is fitting to the new year, a new beginning, signifying hope in the better days to come in 2025.

Happy New Year 2025

     Another year has begun, this will be my sixth year in rural Philippines. I've completed five years and now starting my sixth year since I came back for good after my fateful stroke in Singapore. 

Happy New Year 2025

     Despite of the rainy weather for almost two weeks now, we tried to celebrate the coming of a new year with a simple family dinner. I was not awake at the strike of midnight so I had no idea of the joy and gaiety in the community. I had no chance to see the fireworks and hear the noise barrage of the local folks. May the best of 2025 happen to all of us amid the uncertainties and problems!

Watched CNN's coverage of New York's ball drop

Cold December Again

     The weather is cold again although the temperature is not that low but the breeze is chilly, especially there has been no sun since before Christmas. It has been wet since then, there was one day of sunlight which rained in the afternoon. Other days it has been cloudy and misty until our exterior solar lamps cannot sustain light until the break of dawn as before when there was enough sunlight.

Not that low though

     Christmas has been wet, I think my second time to have this kind of weather. If I am right, we had the same weather in December 2021 until it was only in the first week of January 2022 when the sunlight came. It's a blessing it's not raining heavily and it's just cloudy. 

It has been like this for days 

     We had a tamed Christmas celebration, I didn't wake up at twelve midnight as usual. I was asleep by ten in the evening although my family was drinking beer until I didn't know what time they went to bed. We did not have Christmas decorations in the house, no Christmas tree. I had to settle for e-Christmas tree as below which I sent to friends all over the world. 

The chemists' Christmas tree

Water Pump Motor

     Yesterday,  we had a problem with our pump motor pumping out tap water from the nearby spring water source. Rainwater has entered into the pump causing electrical trouble with the engine. We had to take out the motor and bring it to town for repair whatever is needed. Near the town center, we stopped by a mechanic asking if he could repair pump motor. He can but he has a pile of cars and buses to attend to. 

     We moved towards town undecided because we don't really know who could get the job done for us. As we were cruising towards the town, we passed the mechanical shop of a friend, Mhelcor, handling cars. I quickly told my nephew let's ask him if he could do this. We were so lucky that he knew how to repair a motor pump. He came with us back to our village to install back the unit amid the drizzling in the late afternoon. It worked, it was the rain water causing our trouble earlier. We have to make sure we cover it from rain water ingress 

     It solved our problem as we had no water for almost a day. It's restored back to normal. Thank God. Thanks Mhelcor!

Mhelcor came to help install

My New Earbuds

     I've been using wired earbuds if I watch Netflix in my Ipad. Recently my sister is so kindhearted to give me wireless earbuds which are convenient to use when I'm using my Ipad or my phone. It has a superb sound and several days can be used before it requires charging. This is a timely gift from my sister that I can conveniently use with my Ipad when watching Netflix.

My new toy

My College Gang

     A couple of days ago, I met my college friends, my pals in the student publications, although I have met the other two a few times the past three years,  one of them I have not met in more than 30 years, practically since college.

Three previous chief editors and a layout artist

     In the photo, from left to right is me, Atty. Jerry Uy, Journalist Rolex Elmido and Atty. Roy Perez.

     Jerry was my layout artist for two or three years, and being the owner of a printing press, became close to me since we printed our paper with them for the reason that it was convenient for us to edit or change anything along the process of printing. He is a lawyer now and an incumbent city councilor, the first and a staunch opposition to the Romualdez-led city council. 

     Rolex is the one who went on to be a journalist as a profession, now based in Cebu City. He used to be working with Freeman, Cebu's oldest daily but now has stopped working and ventured into both digital and print media. He was in the city to receive an award for outstanding journalism I believe.

     Roy, another lawyer, is a private practitioner, doing a lawyering job mostly regional clients. It was only last night I learned he became chief editor years after I left the school.

     It was awesome to meet all of them again after several years, all professionals in their fields.