The True Cost of Rice...For Some

For weeks now there has been much talk about a looming global rice crisis and the Philippines, despite having vast agricultural lands, is also busy importing rice from countries like Vietnam in an attempt to address this problem.

Just this morning, I hear this news that the NFA provincial manager for North Cotabato has been relieved of his duties and reassigned (take note, reassigned) somewhere in Zamboanga. It seems that the said provincial manager allowed private retailers to purchase 14,000 bags/sacks of rice that are intended for distribution to local NFA accredited dealers. One could just imagine how this happened. How did 14,000 bags/sacks of rice just disappear like that?

Apparently, the ruse was to borrow the "cards" of the accredited dealers and make it appear that they were the ones who purchased the rice. With the deed done, this country and its people suffered one more blow from:

1. Possibly (because, after all, one is innocent until proven guilty) corrupt government official(s) who direly need(s) to learn the basics of public service
2. Unscrupulous traders who appear to be oblivious to the suffering of millions of Filipinos

NFA rice are usually sold at Php18.00++ per kilo. That amount is probably the cheapest that people can buy a kilo of rice for. The government is subsidizing the entire operation to sustain the delivery of this service. This only means that a substantial amount of taxpayers' money is poured into this initiative.

News like this are not exactly "new" anymore. It brings back memories of college days when idealism and hope brought me to places where I found a new way to look at existing realities.

I remember the pragmatism of farmers who till the land but ironically were left with almost nothing come harvest time. These were farmers who do not have enough food left to feed their families because countless middlemen buy their produce at such a very low price. It is when I heard about farmers barely getting by and their children not being able to go to school that my eyes were opened to what injustice truly means.

I think that this rice crisis will blow over, just like those countless other crises that this country and its people weathered. But the true question is, will corruption ever wane? It is always said that hope springs eternal. I will just have to hold on to that thought.

Wrong Click

The cost of making a mistake in doing online booking:

1. Three hours and eight minutes stuck in a room full of equally desperate and restless people. - I arrived at the airline ticket office to process my rebooking at 3:02pm yesterday and managed to survive the longest wait I did for such a task. It was a good thing I brought a book and maximized the time reading instead of staring into space and absorbing the frustrations of the people around me. The irony of it all was, my entire transaction took only about 12 minutes. Finish time: 6:10pm


2. Php2,000 - Say what?!?!? "Can you please tell me again why I need to pay Php2,000?" was all I had to say to the airline crew/staff. She said that was for the upgrade and the rebooking fee. Good thing I had money in my wallet because I was naive enough to proceed to the ticketing office thinking I would be paying a minimal amount for that one lousy mistake I made with my online booking.


3. One more e-ticket that I need to make sure I do not lose. - "But why can't you just give me one ticket?", I said. And the staff said, "because if I do, you need to pay me the Php1,600 for the travel tax". Then I said, "but I have travel tax exemption, I just don't have it with me right now". To which she replied, "Sorry, but I can't give you just one ticket since I need to see the travel tax exemption first". That, I said to myself, I will just have to live with.

It has always been said that something good always come out of something bad. This entire exercise in patience and waiting taught me that lessons really need to be learned. Sometimes, it is better to suffer first to make the lesson stick. I most definitely learned mine. Next time I need to book online, no mistakes will be made, absolutely not if I can help it.

Power Woman

(I think that one of the best things we have for being alive is the time and the opportunity to meet people who can inspire and help us discover more things that we may otherwise fail to notice.

My friend, Ani, is one of those people that are such joy to find. I think that it is our chance to meet and celebrate life with people like her that is truly the amazing thing about every day that we get to wake up and explore.

Ani is truly a power woman. Her feats further make me firmly say to myself that everyone has a story to tell the world. All that is required is the zest to tell that story through actions that resonate far beyond words can ever achieve.)

Cover Story

Power Woman
By Aries Espinosa

Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 03:14:00 03/23/2008

MANILA, Philippines - In recent years, the high walls that surround what has always been described as a “man’s world” have slowly been chiseled away, thanks to women who will not be boxed by tradition. These days, people no longer do a second take when they see women cab drivers, welders, soldiers, scientists and top level politicians.

But nowhere is the concept of woman empowerment more apparent—and more challenged—than in the world of sports. By sheer bulk and brawn—nature and testosterone at work—as well as constant practice under the approving gaze of a male-dominated world, men’s winning performance has set the gold standard for athletics. For the longest time, men have been believed to be the stronger sex.

Well, tell that to the Marines. Better yet, tell that to Ani Karina de Leon, multiple National Triathlon champion, who last Feb. 23 again emerged from the box labeled “petite, fragile woman inside, handle with care,” and emerged victorious in the Ironman triathlon in Langkawi , Malaysia .

Competing among a field of 700 triathletes, 22 of them fellow Filipinos, De Leon swam 3.8 km, biked 180 km, and ran 42 km for a back-breaking, lung-busting, muscle-tearing 12 hours, 21 minutes and 17 seconds, to cross the finish line first in her age category (30-34), leaving many of the supposedly stronger men eating her salty dust.

More importantly, De Leon’s victory earned her the right to represent the Philippines in the mecca of triathlons: the Ironman Hawaii in Kona this October. “I’m the first ever homegrown Filipino in history to qualify in Hawaii,” she says with justifiable pride. (Take that, you chauvinist iron man!)

And there’s no doubt as to her gender, either. This triathlete may swim, bike and run like Mars, but she’s got a soft spot when it comes to matters of the heart. In fact, she admits to a budding romance with another triathlete—a foreign male—but ssssh, mom doesn’t know just yet, she confesses sheepishly. Alright, we can print that, she says, “because I’m about to tell her anyway.”

That’s all in the future though. Right now, what she’d like to tell the world is how she started on the road to Langkawi, and eventually, to Hawaii.

It all started about 21 years ago, when she was 12, De Leon reveals. “I began as a gymnast, then took up swimming when I was 14 at the UP Integrated School.” Her coach and swim buddies apparently noticed her all-around strong physique and encouraged her to run and bike as well, as a way of “cross training” for her main sport of swimming.

In 1994, when she was 19, she joined her first triathlon, a “beginner’s” distance of 1.5 km swim, 40-km bike, and 10-km run. “I was traumatized after that,” she laughs, “and I didn’t join another triathlon until 2000.”

What actually kept her busy during that time was college. She concentrated on finishing her Interior Design degree in UP Diliman and passing her board exams. As an artist De Leon also painted, and was already working for an interior design firm when competitions beckoned once more.

She joined the national team from 2000 to 2006. “At first, my life was like 70 percent devoted to career and 30 percent to the sport, but then the ratio just slowly swung in favor of the triathlon side. Now, my life revolves 100 percent around the sport,” she explains.

More like 120 percent, if you look at De Leon’s typical week. That’s because aside from training her already well-conditioned body (read: 12-percent body fat) for upcoming triathlon events this year, she also trains the next generation of triathletes.

De Leon runs a race series for children 15 years old and below for the Superkids Youth Development program of the Triathlon Association of the Philippines (www.triathlon.org.ph, click on the Superkids link).

“More than just developing their skills and preparing these children physically for multi-sports such as triathlons, this program also develops their confidence to face life as a whole,” she explains.

De Leon also manages to find time to run the Pinay in Action race series and fitness programs. Pinay in Action, as described in www.pinayinaction.com, was “created primarily to uplift the lives of the Filipina…to empower women and girls by providing venues for a healthier lifestyle and tools and information for a better future. Organized by Senator and fellow triathlete Pia Cayetano, Pinay in Action’s principal advocacies include a year-long program that involves conducting running clinics nationwide for public schoolgirls (Check out pinayinaction.com).

“We’re trying to remove the typical stereotype of women as being emotionally and physically weak, using the sport of running as our main medium to get the message across,” stresses De Leon.

Actually, De Leon and her family ARE the message. Older sister Sinag is considered one of the female pioneers of triathlon in the country. Younger sister Daniw has already begun participating in run races, and 12-year-old niece Raya has already started doing triathlons.

Mom Anna Leah Sarabia, a known advocate of women’s empowerment, whom De Leon ironically describes as “not having a single thread of athleticism in her body,” serves as her greatest inspiration.

“She has consistently shown strength of character from the time I could remember, up to now. She has always allowed us do our thing, while leading by example,” the daughter muses.

But De Leon is now in lonely territory, being the only homegrown Pinoy to compete in the Ironman Kona in Hawaii this October, an event that only about six percent of all triathlete applicants worldwide can get to start in, much less finish. A lifelong dream for this triathlete, the Ironman Hawaii will test every inch of what De Leon has become, and what she has become, she says, has been the result of thousands of decisions made every single day of her life. These are decisions, she proudly declares, that she has made herself.With such ironclad determination and character, who can doubt that De Leon is made of sterner stuff? Alas, ladies, the IronWoman cometh.

Zip Me Please

My Tita is enticing me to come home to join the family (and some friends) in a planned trip to Camp Sabros. I am really curious about this place because the first time she told me about it, I caught a hint of excitement and something else that I cannot quite define.

When prodded, this is all she had to say: "Dun yan paanan Mt. Apo. Itatali ka sa cable as if lilipad ka parang Superman. Longest cable dito Philippines as in bundok to bundok distance."

And with those words, my mind went into overdrive. I am now imagining myself attached to that cable and freefalling/freewheeling from one mountain to the next. I am sincerely wishing for the heavens to catapult me to Davao so I can join them.

But of course, as reality draws me back from all these musings, all I can do for the moment is learn more about the place through the Internet. Undoubtedly, what I found only strengthened my resolve to visit the place before the year ends!

"The zip line was 380 meters long, affording a good view of Mount Apo's peak, and the rows of pine trees jutting out like toys from below at a height of 180ft. It was an unbelievable sight, and therapy for those with fear of heights, if they dare. "

My feet are longing to feel the grounds of Camp Sabros. I am absolutely sure that they will find their way there soon as well as in all the other places I intend to travel this year. Shanghai will be first (because of this), Sagada is next, then of course Camp Sabros. If I can squeeze in Camiguin Island then that would definitely be a bonus.

(Photos from here)

Sakura Dreams

It is Sakura season once again in Japan (see blooming forecast here). I wonder how it feels to be in the midst of all these trees as they blossom. It has always been a dream for me to visit Japan in spring and stroll in as many parks as I can just to see them.

In the meantime, I have this photo to remind me of that cold November day that I got to see a real Sakura in bloom. It was not often that they continue to bloom so late in the year. But I was lucky enough to see one. I think it was God's way of saying that every hope and dream will blossom in their own time. All I have to do is keep the faith and believe.

At the Pinay in Action Race '08

I first heard of the Pinay in Action advocacy from Ani. We were at the airport, waiting for our flight when she told me about it. I was really fascinated by it that I vowed to join the Pinay in Action race that she said they organize annually. And this was before I took up running again.

Looking back, I guess it was what triggered me to run again. It reminded me of just how good it feels to run, more so if it is for cause. It did not harm either that eight days with Ani in the JASA study tour further inspired me as to the kind of people behind the advocacy. Ani epitomizes a Pinay in Action woman and based from the many conversations we had about this topic, Sen. Pia Cayetano is another inspiring figure behind it.

I felt strongly about this cause because it has issues and concerns that resonate. They beg to be addressed. But more than that, I feel that people like the movers behind this intiatives deserve to be celebrated. And I cannot think of a much better way to do that but to share their gift of inspiration and action to my friends.

Suffice to say, I was so looking forward to joining the race that I invited my friends to participate as well. Hence come race day, I was happy beyond words to see friends from the different pit stops I have had in my journey:

1. ISM friends: Lizeth, Lidie, Tita Myrna (with her daughter), Chrizelle (also with her daughter)

2. Dragon Boat Rowing friends/Manila Dragons teammates: Anna Liese, Mary, Rizzo, Anton (no pictures...)

3. Officemates/former officemates: Bixie, Macky, Mayee, Badette

I think that it was truly a great day to be out so early in the morning and be with friends. It was a great day to celebrate the different facets of being a woman. It was a great day to appreciate humanity and realize that we can all be the best of what we can be regardless of our gender.

Bliss In Disguise

If (by Rudyard Kipling)

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!

A Bible, And Open Road, And Three Books

Lent has always been a time of reflection for my family. It is sad that I cannot be with them again this Lent, but distance does not change how I plan to celebrate it. Lent is really a celebration for me. A time to celebrate my faith and time to worship in forms that I know will always make me feel close to God.

Tranquility and clarity are my goals in my journey to reflection. And to help me achieve that, I have the following to keep me company:

1. The Bible - here the best teachings for meditation and reflection can be found

2. An Open Road - my favorite running route. I have always believed that running is one of the best forms of worship. It is when I feel most open to what life has to give. It is when I can go inward and be closer to myself. It is when I am closest to nature. It is when I feel the energy pulsating from all around me.

3. Three Books - which I all intend to enjoy and finish by Easter Sunday :-)
- How To Travel With A Salmon by Umberto Eco
- Romanov Prophecy by Steve Berry
- Wikinomics

All in all, I am pretty excited to embark on my usual reflective pursuits this Lent. This is a time of unloading to make way for new things. This is a time of death and rebirth. This is all about life...and more importantly...it is all about faith.