I was supposed to have my weekly Artist’s Date on Saturday since there were two interesting movies showing then. But raindrops were already falling on Cagayan de Oro due to Typhoon Uwan, so, I decided to stay home to write columns and read books.
Hot choco and strawberry-jam-and-cheese sandwiches would have been the perfect morning snacks for the stormy weather. This was one of those days when I wished for carbs to be user-friendly for me. Since my body happens to hate carbs, a fact that I discovered only in October 2021, the next best option was to wait for my Saturday lunch of grilled salmon and grilled liempo.
Rain used to be good news when floods were not its usual companion yet in Pinas. Children would dance in the rain; big drums and barrels were there to catch rainwater to be used for watering plants, washing dishes and clothes, and flushing toilets; those who preferred to stay home would prepare food appropriate for the rainy weather — soup, binignit, champorado, sikwate, coffee, tea.
When I was in — ahem — New York, I checked the weather forecast daily before leaving the apartment, so, I’d know what to bring and wear: umbrella, jacket, sweater, etc. That was a new habit for me since I never checked the weather while in Pinas.
Nowadays, I check the weather app days before the day that I’m planning to go out, to see if that particular day will be fine for travel, leaving the house, staying outside till dawn, should I bring an umbrella or not, what clothes to wear, will white sneakers be okay, and so on and so forth.
With roads closed due to landslides and floods, bridges damaged and cut by overflowing rivers and creeks, flights cancelled, ships not sailing, and buses not operating due to typhoons, leaving the house is becoming an obstacle course in Pinas.
Once that house is flooding, the obstacle course will be right there inside the house and its rooftop.
Which way does the Pinoy go now? Tsk tsk. “Rain, rain, go away/Come again another day.”
Cebu, for one, is seeking justice after Typhoon Tino. The Cebuano believes that the floods were caused by graft and corruption.
I already knew that graft and corruption would stay in Pinas way back in 1990. I was managing an auto spare parts store then which required dealing with the government. I immediately realized that the 1986 People Power had not made a dent in the Pinoy style of governance. The rule was — and still is — this: learn to play the game or else. And this rule has produced government contractors like the Discayas.
A simple life doesn’t require playing that game. You study, work, travel, and go home. Repeat. With some parties inserted in between. But once you’re aiming for financial wealth, it takes the whole village to raise it.
It also takes the whole village to help the flood survivor move forward. Therefore, only a loner who’s comfortable with being alone can have a simple life? Hmmm. Each person does need a community, even if it’s for grapevine purposes only. Otherwise he will be dangerously unaware about incoming typhoons.
