Swimming galore

No doubt it's a great learning experience for me. My might on the pool will be put into a test. I haven't swam for almost a month now. The last time I've done so was when I had my vacation during the Lenten season not on a swimming pool but at a beach few meters away from our house in the province. This habit has been cultivated every time I visit our town.
 
If my memory would not fail me, I learn to swim when I was seven or eight years old. It was basically my past time during my childhood years. We have no formal swimming lessons whatsoever, we've learned the basic movements of the arms and legs to float on the water by ourselves, particularly the dog and frog swim.
 
I took swimming on my P.E. class in college.I've learned the freestyle, backstroke, breast stroke and the butterfly styles. I had no difficulty performing these styles. I can relate it very well to what I knew . It's only a matter of polishing and adjusting the necessary techniques. I grew up doing the stuff in the first place.
 
We had a simple outing together with a senior member of the office.She shouldered the expenses for the accommodation and food.All we have to do is eat and enjoy the place.The group dwelled on the one cottage enough to accommodate the seven of us, adjacent to an elongated sized swimming pool.

The night was entirely full of excitement.After the dinner, with grilled pork, the group collectively plunged on the pool.It was past

ten in the evening, everyone decided to get out of the water. Our unguarded moments was caught by the lens of the camera , cautiously handled to get the best angles .

I took time to condition myself, approximately making ten lapses on the ten meter wide swimming pool. Holding my breath to test my agility under water, which I haven't done for a month now. It would attest the exercise we did in one of our activities, to measure a person's ability to hold his/her breath for a couple of minutes, tantamount to accessing the condition of one's health. Holding one's breath longer means better health condition. I surprisingly got a thirty second time.

The morning made the day more challenging.Dipping into a larger pool measuring about thirty meters long, my companions proposed a contest, wading the waters towards the end. Both swimmers halted at the middle of the pool, not a bad performance.The formers were both bigger and larger than me.

I pumped bubbles to prepare myself and store the much needed air to sustain while under water. I swam towards the end of the pool. I tried to push myself to the limits after the point where my companions stopped.I did made it.Having crossed the pool without breathing at all is an accomplishment for me. I felt dizzy after I popped out of the water.I performed again the pumping of bubbles to catch my breath for several minutes.However, my extraordinary swim was not documented at all.

I liked swimming. Perhaps, it also liked me. In due time, who knows another surprise will surface in our next swimming episode.

The AI Fever

Who doesn't know the singer behind the song" Jesus Takes The Wheel". I have no doubt everybody idolized Carrie Underwood, especially those who want to follow her footsteps. Her angelic face and heavenly voice would somehow lead you to heaven. How about Taylor Hicks, George Clooney's look alike, the famous Hollywood actor who takes every spectator's breath away on his stunts on films. Both Underwood and Hicks, are products of the US singing competition "American Idol".

The AI fever has swept away the globe once again. Millions of fans screaming and yelling to their favorite bets. With Lambert and Allen battling for the season finale performance head to head, the results tomorrow is unpredictable. Would rocker Lambert make it to top or will boyish look Allen take home the bacon, that remains to be seen.

When the season unfolds months ago, I have been a Lambert fan. He's just phenomenal every time he steps on the center stage. The originality he creates on his performance , the technique he adopted when he changes the melody of the song can be likened to a musical genius, as one of the judges described him.

The fever somehow strucked to the office. Two office mates , who are both Kris Allen's fans gambled for five orders of pizza and soft drinks on him. We have nothing to lose anyway. Whoever wins, ultimately we would still enjoy the food together.

The Singing Saturday

Bored of the movie marathon for the last three hours this afternoon, I tried to think of something else that could cater my interest, my passion for music. 

Waiting for the rain to subside, I enjoyed a pack of crackers and a bottle of juice, while watching a fiction movie. The rain stopped, enough to make the humid afternoon cool.
 
I walked along the oldest street in the country, "Colon street" where the heart of business thrive during the good old days and is still vibrant up to this time. Vendors lined on this busy street downtown . Selling varieties of dvd and cd movies particularly those to hit the screen soon.
 
I stopped at my suki for a copy of Slumdog Millionaire. "We don't have a copy of it , maybe next week" my suki quips. I decided to look for videoke songs. I planned to test my singing prowess that afternoon. I came across with a song collection of David Pomeranz and Barry Manilow, which I really liked. It was worth sixty pesos but I had bargained it at fifty.
 
Without wasting any time, I heeded home. I put up the electrical connections to start my singing. The first ten songs turned out to be good. The background video was visible and clear.
 
My neighbor occupying the upper portion of the house commented if a could get my voice louder. Perhaps , they loved my singing.
 
I was very disappointed when the player halted. I pulled out and inserted the disc several times to check if it was ok. But no to avail. I pushed another disc on the player ,but it couldn't be detected. The player must be the problem.
 
My singing was cut short. I probably continue this addiction by the time things go well.What an unlucky day for me!

Solicitation letters

I received a solicitation letter from my neighbor. It aimed to raise funds to defray the transportation expenses to Luzon, for some hopeful seminarians. 

The lady who handed me said that any amount would be appreciated.
 
At first I'm hesitant to give, due to the fact that I've met several persons performing the same acts.Every time jeepneys stop on traffic signals,religious order go inside the vehicles and solicit from the passengers. They would step down as soon as the vehicle moves. This poses their safety,considering how dangerous our streets nowadays.

Weeks ago a salesman came into our office.He claimed to be from the northern part of the country and is having promotional activities to selected places. The product he introduced was a handy sewing machine made out of scrap stapler. He demonstrated to us on how to use it. He did convinced everybody and sold a few pieces.

But we suspected that he just cloak himself under a livelihood arm of the government to make his product saleable. We check on the net to verify what he conveyed to us. We found out that the letterhead and the signatory of his introductory letter did not match with the actual profile of the said agency. We were cheated.

I don't want again to be like a careless mouse incarcerated behind traps. I called the number on the solicitation to verify it's contents. I identified myself to a man on the other line, who happened to be the initiator of the campaign. He did confirm their noble cause.

I returned the envelope together with my donation to my neighbor right after our conversation. I prefer not to flaunt my name on the list attached with the letter and remain an anonymous donor.

Our human instinct of being cautious could counteract these kind of manipulations in these times of crisis, when somebody wants to gain at the expense of others. Generosity per se, is not bad. However, when it is abused that would be another story.

The lucky day

The games of chance like lotto, sweepstakes,and bingo draw a lot of acceptance and attention from all walks of life, particularly those hoping to win the much-coveted grand prize worth millions of pesos. Who doesn't want to? It could instantly change a person's life for good.In most cases, the doors in heaven are stormed with prayers waiting to be answered.Of course, through winning.

I haven't tried my luck betting on lotto and several other games of chance.But I'm not against it.Many times I joined raffle draws but I haven't won. Aside from the fact that I don't have an itch for it, I rather spend my hard-earned money to something more profitable.

It seemed that I put my own words into my mouth yesterday, Labor Day.A raffle draw was held in consonance with the celebration.

During our lunch, everyone in the group agreed to share the prize if someone will win. The casual conversation among ourselves burst into laughter's as jokes came after the other as we dined at Bigbys. The food was delicious, pampering and satisfying everybody in the group. Food lovers.

The activity area became a sea of people as the emcees announced the winners . You can hear the applause and shouts from the audience that made the afternoon lively. From the minor prizes , the tickets were drawn from five tambeolos, representing the five different groups.

One lucky colleague won a minor prize. A box of clay plant pots.Perhaps, he should start gardening.

It was then reduced to a single big tambeolo for the major prize. Gift certificates, hotel and travel accommodations, , various goods , and some appliances were given out to the winners.

When the last winning raffle number was called, my colleagues even joked to me to spell some magical words.We didn't lose hope. Our efforts paid off. We've won the last major prize.Cold cash.

We must be lucky to win the price from among the hundreds of entries. The day must be our lucky day!