Balanced diet

Netnet Camomot

THE difference between a “prime person of interest” and a “person of interest” is the word “prime.”

To the dieter, the word “prime” can also make a difference since it refers to the highest-quality and yummiest beef which may not belong to his healthy diet of tinolang manok, tinolang isda, and veggies.

Take note: it’s tinolang manok, and not chicken nuggets which are considered as “ultra-processed” foods that can cause cancer based on a latest study that was printed in the British Medical Journal.

There was a time when eggs were bad for the health, and that has changed, there’s even a hard-boiled egg diet nowadays. Will chicken nuggets also reach that point of acceptance? Hmmm. Abangan!

Food should be as close to its original form as possible. Thus, prime beef is better than chicken nuggets whose source the dieter should be wary of.

But other experts say all we need is a balanced diet and they’re probably not referring to this meme: “A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand.”

Being balanced is also important for the Philippine Daily Inquirer (PDI) whose mantra is “Balanced News, Fearless Views,” although Special Assistant to the President Bong Go, who’s also known as the “pambansang photobomber,” calls the Rappler and PDI report on his alleged involvement in the Philippine Navy’s P15.7-billion frigate acquisition deal as “fake news.”

Well, that news had me at frigate.

What’s a frigate? Oh, it’s a warship. No, not worship. And frigate is not the same as friggin’, as in, I friggin’ worship you.

For the president’s special assistant to be allegedly involved in a friggin’, er, frigate deal may not affect the way some Pinoys worship the president whose fans are as loyal as Gabby Concepcion is to Sharon Cuneta. Oops! Nope, wrong comparison.

Okay, as loyal as Mocha Uson is to posting only real news on social media. Uh.

Loyalty is rare. Look at the huge number of politicians who are hopping to PDP-Laban. As 2019 nears, don’t be shocked if all politicians in Pinas will be joining the administration party. And once that happens, Election 2019 will be the most boring ever—Whaaaaat, no opposition?! Ho-hum.

At least Cagayan de Oro’s Election 2019 will be alive and kicking, that is, if the Misamis Oriental governor will run for city mayor. If ever that happens, it will be yellow versus violet again. The yellow that turned red.

Yellow and violet were the better colors—mango and ube ice cream! Yum!

Red and violet can also be yummy if you’re fond of sweets: “Roses are red/ Violets are blue, sugar is sweet/And so are you.”

So, who do you prefer, the politician who hops from one political party to another, or the one that remains loyal to his political party. That’s the question.

There are Cagayanons who may still have traumatic memories of the violet curtains inside the mayor’s office, not because of the political party the color represented, but they simply hate anything violet, like the way I hate spiders.

Politicians are nice—“sugar is sweet, and so are you”—when they’re still campaigning. But at least most Cagayanons are already familiar with how the yellow, er, red and violet parties behave, thus, easier for them to choose in 2019.

For this year, though, it’s the barangay elections. That’s why it’s important for the potential mayoral candidate to announce his plans this early, to guide his barangay fans to the right color. But what do I know, huh? Vagueness in one’s political plans can be a ploy to disarm the rival. Kind of a pleasant surprise.

Barangay officials are the ones the Cagayanon can easily approach while city officials are busy running the city. So, if you’re having doubts while choosing candidates in the barangay level, will that affect your choices for the city level? What’s the best criteria, then, for the perfect barangay official who is tasked to solve his barangay’s problems.

In the movie, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” Mildred Hayes (Frances McDormand) is seeking justice for her daughter Angela who was raped and murdered. To hasten the process and put pressure on police chief Willoughby (Woody Harrelson), she rents three billboards for these messages: “Raped While Dying”, “And Still No Arrests?”, “How Come, Chief Willoughby?”

In Cagayan de Oro, however, billboards are avenues for the usual. We’d rather see smartphone advertisements and even the faces of political candidates, than be confronted by mindboggling messages such as, Will he run? Will he not?