Trembles and Eruptions: Natural Disasters in the 90s

            The Philippines is known as a country that has been affected by several natural disasters. Every year, several typhoons attack the country and it has always been guaranteed that there will be problems from infrastructure to the loss of lives. Not only that, there is also the fact that there is not enough support from these disasters so things have been pretty tough during times like these. Filipinos are being tested from time to time during these disasters and it is proven that these events take a lot from the Filipinos.

            There are two notable disasters that occurred in the 90s. One of these is the Baguio Earthquake that happened in July 16, 1990. It happened at around 4:26pm. The quake showed its power in 7.7 magnitude intensity in the Richter scale and it lasted for 45 seconds. These conditions are already bad but what made it worse it the geographical area of Baguio city. It’s located in a mountain so the architecture and soil are not as steady as the ones seen in the plains or on other lands that are considered as flat. Given this idea, the roads going to the mountains are also blocked by the falling rocks and soil. The situation can be called a worst-case scenario for Baguio at this moment. It was also noted that there were several aftershocks after the earthquake so people panicked.

            The next notable disaster is the Pinatubo eruption in June 1991. It also started with a strong earthquake which “awakened” the volcano. There were explosions that followed in the vicinity which prompted the people near the volcano to be evacuated. After weeks from the earthquake, the volcano finally erupted while spewing ash that brought heavy changes in the global perspective as it brought down the average global temperature. This had influenced the global temperature in the following years. On the local scale, it was noted that Central Luzon was heavily damaged as this is where the volcano is situated. Clark Air Base, an American base, was also damaged and this influenced America to give the base to the Filipinos instead. Seeing all of these, it can also be said that people were heavily affected especially in the area of Central Luzon. It was said that 800 people died of this event and this has been proven to be a heavy blow to the Filipinos.

            Seeing these events that happened in the 90s, it can be said that this decade has been proven to be heavy for the Filipinos. Despite the hardships in the economy and living conditions, there were also other things that pushed the Filipinos to their limit. In light of this, my friends and I were fortunate to have not been part of these catastrophes. It’s either we were not yet born during this time or our parents have just been very protective of us during these times. But this doesn’t mean that we should not do anything after these events because the time we are in right now is the time for us to take charge. Our ancestors did their part during these events to protect us and it is our time now to do the same. If a disaster happened again, we should be ready to serve our country just like what we did in Ondoy.

Just givin' an update!
Bowen Romero

Sources:
Article:

Rosenberg, M. (2011, March 2). Mount Pinatubo Eruption. Retrieved August 28, 2011, from About.com: http://geography.about.com/od/globalproblemsandissues/a/pinatubo.htm

The 1990 Baguio City Earthquake. (n.d.). Retrieved August 28, 2011, from The City of Baguio: http://www.cityofpines.com/baguioquake/quake.html

Images:

(n.d.). Retrieved August 28, 2011, from The City of Baguio: http://www.cityofpines.com/baguioquake/quake23.jpg

(n.d.). Retrieved August 28, 2011, from The City of Baguio: http://www.cityofpines.com/baguioquake/quake35.jpg

NoBenta. (2011, June 15). Balik-Tanaw: Ano ang Naaalala Mo Sa MT. PINATUBO ERUPTION Dalawang Dekada Ang Nakakaraan? Retrieved August 28, 2011, from Definitely Filipino: The Blog For Online Filipinos: http://definitelyfilipino.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Mount-Pinatubo-eruption.jpg

Wirraway. (n.d.). Mt. Pinatubo Eruption. Retrieved August 28, 2011, from Trek Earth: http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Asia/Philippines/Central_Luzon/Pampanga/Angeles_City/photo451310.htm

The Candyman Isn't So Sweet

    The Candyman… that doesn’t sound as scary as you think right? Not if you were a nineties kid like me. The movie The Candyman made in 1992 haunted me for years as a child. Sure I watched it when I was 8 years old and was literally half the size I am now but for those childhood years of mine it wasn’t the dark that scared me or the stories of monsters. It was the Candyman. Now you may be thinking that Candyman doesn’t really evoke terror but I’m telling you he is the stuff nightmares are made of. So much so in fact that whenever I think of horror themed characters his name pops up there along with the likes of Freddy Kreuger and Jason Voorhees.

Now suffice to say The Candyman is nothing like those guys. In his movie he is based upon the legend of Bloody Mary, wherein you say her name infront of a mirror 3 times in order for her apparition to appear. In the Candyman’s case he is also an urban legend wherein you have to chant his name into a mirror 5 times. He is the soul of a black man who at the time was a very successful artist in his village but when a white woman is mysteriously impregnated he is pointed out as the culprit. He is then apprehended and has his painting arm cut off to be replaced by a hook and if that wasn’t enough the people who accused him tied him to a pole and smeared him with honey so that bees would sting him until his eventual death. All the while these people were chanting Candyman in order to call the bees attention, since they thought they could speak to the bees (Convoluted, I know) but little did they know they would start a chain reaction that would lead us to the movie.

    I don’t really want to spoil it for anyone because I all think you should experience the movie the same way I did. I remember watching this with my father and that was one of the very few times that I ended up sleeping in my parents bed out of sheer fright. The mind games the movie plays on you as well as the shock factor of some scenes all build up to a very good movie and to add to that Tony Todd (The coroner in the Final Destination films for all you modern kids) with his menacing build and voice really made me afraid of someone like the Candyman because even if he was something of a fantasy in the movie he still seemed so real at the same time.

So if you’re looking for a good horror movie to watch and are in need of something different try picking up The Candyman and I assure you you will be frightened and if you say you aren’t then I dare you to go into your bathroom and shut off the lights, look into the mirror and chant Candyman 5 times.

- Vieo "Wholovesorangesoda?" Lopez 

Sources for images:

www.google.com, retrieved August 20, 2011.

The WWE Attitude Era

Andre the Giant and Hulk Hogan

Before World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) came to be known as what it is today, it also had its beginnings. It started off with wrestlers like Harley Race and Bruno Sammartino (not that well known I suppose) and they paved the way for the company’s golden era during the 80s which includes legendary wrestling figures such as Hulk Hogan, Randy “Macho Man” Savage, Andre the Giant and Bret “The Hitman” Hart. These men paved the way to what wrestling and the WWE is today. Before the WWE was actually called the WWE, it was called the WWF which stood for the World Wrestling Federation. And before it became what it is today, it passed through a magical era in wrestling during the 90s and it is what people call, “The Attitude Era.”

The Attitude Era

The Attitude Era changed the world of wrestling entertainment drastically. Instead of the fans rooting for the wrestlers who were the good guys, they bought into the characters that did not play by the rules and used every tactic to win, in short, the bad guys. This era was all about in-your-face, brash, edgy, smash-mouth fighting which the fans ate up. They didn’t care about the good guys winning. All they wanted was to be entertained and the wrestlers during that era were the very best in their craft. This was an era wherein every piece of equipment would be used in a match like steel chairs, tables, ladders and even plastic mannequin heads and it was totally different to the state the WWE is in right now called the “PG Era” and this era is basically a majorly less violent and offensive version of the Attitude Era.

Steve Austin decking The Rock

What actually made the Attitude Era so exciting was not the type of matches they employed but it was actually the wrestlers of the era that captivated audiences. The wrestlers at that time had the mentality of just wanting to win and get to the top of the business and they did not care what would stop them. They did not care for the fans, their other competitors or their boss, Vince McMahon. Some great wrestlers in this era included The Rock, Triple H and the man who actually headed the attitude era and became the face of the company, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.

Steve Austin

            Steve Austin can easily be called the head of the Atittude Era because of everything he represented. He was very controversial to say the least because he was a foul-mouthed, beer-drinking S.O.B. who did not care who he went up against but just as long as he had a chance to kick someone’s a**. His biggest enemy was actually the man who ran the company, Vince McMahon. In a way, Austin represented an ideal to many people. Here was a man who was not afraid in facing the big guy. He stood up for what he believed in and fought to get whatever he wanted and I guess that was why he was the leader of the company in those times and why so many people were behind him whether he played a Heel (bad guy) or a Face (good guy).

            Suffice to say, the Attitude Era contains too many subjects of praise to contain in this one blog entry. There is no imaginable way to include all the blood lost, all the broken necks and all the careers ended during this era and it was done all for the WWE fans of that time. For those who keep on saying, “Wrestling is fake,” and all that, I tell you this: The Wrestling is not fake, it is the personas created that are fake, the wrestling moves and injuries are all 100% real.

Here's a video just to show you the lengths of what these superstars went through to entertain people:

"Edge spears Jeff Hardy off a Ladder"

So those who are down with the Attitude Era and Wrestling in general, GIVE ME A HELL YEAH!!! And if you’re not down with that, I’ve got two words for you…SUCK IT!!!

            Before I sign out, here’s some wrestling lingo to help out all of those non-smarks out there who are reading this blog J

Wrestling Terms:

1. ANGLE: A wrestling Storyline, the reason behind a feud or a turn.

2. BOOK: To schedule a wrestler for a show.

3. BRASS: Management.

4. CARD: The series of matches in one location at one time.

5. FINISH: The event, or sequence of events, which leads to the ultimate outcome of a match. 

6. HEEL: A bad guy. He breaks all the rules

7. FACE: A good guy. 

8. KAYFABE: Related to, inside information about the business, especially by fans. such as "fake." 

9. PUSH: When a wrestler is promoted on TV and through other means.

10. SCREW JOB: A match or ending which is not clean ... outside the "rules" of wrestling.

11. MARK: A member of the audience, presumed to be gullible.

12. SMART: Person who knows what's actually going on in wrestling.

13. SMARK: A fan who belives he is smart due to a certain amount of inside knowledge he has. Percieved by someone less informed.

So anyway, this has been your man Mark Javellana. Keep on reading "Brother!"

Sources:

BALESTERI, . (2004, July). Wrestling terms. Retrieved from http://www.wrestling-caricatures.com/id97.html

WWE. (2009, March 11). Edge spears Jeff Hardy off ladder at Wrestlemania 27 [Video File] [Pay-Per-View Broadcast]. In WWE Wrestlemania 17. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vfujWSabik

SportyDesktops (2011). Wrestlemania Hogan Andre The Giant [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://www.sportydesktops.com/WrestlemaniaHulk-Hogan-Andre-The-Giant/53032/

Wikia. (n.d.). "Stone Cold" Steve Austin [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://prowrestling.wikia.com/wiki/Steve_Austin

The Phantom. (2010). WWF Attitude [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://bleacherreport.com/articles/394232-the-weekly-top-ten-10-reasons-why-fans-love-wwes-attitude-era

AtotheZeem. (2010). Stone Cold versus the Rock [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://www.audioleak.co.uk/?p=886

AtotheZeem. (2010). Bang 3:16 [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://www.audioleak.co.uk/?p=886

McChildhood happiness!

“I’m hungry!”

     This is the line I would always tell my dad whenever I got home from school during my prep days (6 years old). And, because I’m such a spoiled little girl, my dad, despite being handicapped, would drive me to the McDonald’s located in Quezon Avenue, Quezon City. I would sit at the back of the car, while my dad drove as fast as he could to what I call ‘McDo’.

     In the Philippines, McDonald’s would always be a top choice when choosing a fast food chain to eat at. If wasn’t in McDonald’s, it was Jollibee. But, even though I am full-blooded Filipino, I would always choose McDonald’s over Jollibee, simply because it served some great tasting fried chicken, that truly makes you want to crave for more. The chicken, by the way, was always the meal that my dad would buy for me. We would only go through the Drive Thru service since I wasn’t so strong yet to carry my dad’s walker if ever we would have to go down from the car.

     But, out of all the times my dad and I drove thru McDonald’s, my favourite times would be when he bought me the Happy Meal. The happy meal definitely made me really happy, because not only were the toys so cute, but the box of the meal made the experience a very meaningful one! It was very different if you had to open the Happy Meal’s box to get to have a hold of your ‘Burger McDo’ and your toy, and to go through the challenge of flipping out the cardboard from the side of the box to open it. I just miss that experience, and I kind of feel sad for the kids nowadays because they don’t get to experience the same thing, but only receive their meal and toy in a regular McDonald’s plastic.

     Another McDonald’s element that really sparked up my childhood was the bench with Ronald McDonald sitting on it too! It was so funny, ‘cause when I was around 7 years old, I would always sit in Ronald McDonald’s lap and hug him as if he was a real person. And my mom would always tell me to get off of the statue because we had to leave already. I really miss those times when every McDonald’s branch I would go to would have that bench. Today, I’ve hardly seen one. 

     Even though McDonald’s would be bashed because the food that they serve contains tons of calories and all those other negative effects to our health, I would say that it will still be the most significant milestone during my childhood days. Not just because of the toys I got from the Happy Meals, or the chicken I get to eat almost every day after class [during my kinder days], but it would be because McDonald’s is how I remember my dad today, and how he tried his best to spend time with me. McDonald’s reassures me that I experienced childhood, and that I was the baby girl of my dad, who is now with our Creator since 2002.

     That’s why if I got the chance to talk to every parent in the world, I would tell  them to treat their kids once in a while in McDonald’s, cause that just be the start of a great, heart-warming memory their kids would bring with them even as they grow old and up!

Now rollin' out,
Dom Manahan :)

Sources of images:

www.google.com, retrieved August 7, 2011.