storm is over. at least in the Philippines, for now it is.

in my opinion, after that super storm Milenyo (international name: Xangsane) there should be a memorial service or some tribute for the trees it killed/wrecked. people did not only die. we lost a lot of trees too. i went out with Alej the day after the storm and everywhere we passed we saw trees that were uprooted by the strong winds. if not uprooted, the branches were either hanging out of place or were on the ground-- unpicked by whoever was in-charge of cleaning the roads post-typhoon. these livejournal posts from the Peyups LJ community can attest to how much damage the typhoon brought to the beautiful green campus of U.P. Diliman--- 1 and 2. when we also passed by the Quezon City Memorial Circle, it was a chaotic scene-- uprooted or trees with broken branches were everywhere. same goes to the Parks and Wildlife in Quezon City. last i heard, Xangsane or Milenyo left our country with billions worth of damages.

i have a strong opinion regarding the billboards all over the city. some people just won't listen. they are not only hazardous to people but are also destructive to the cityscape. there are billboards along EDSA especially along the guadalupe bridge. they are a distraction to motorists especially the ones that project sexual images of women. i know that in the age of capitalism, advertisements reap fortunes for capitalists and that safety is no longer valued over profits from advertisement. but come on! have a little heart! the Philippines is one of the most visited countries of typhoons and billboards aren't practical for the sole reason that it's not strong enough to endure strong winds. the twisted metals of the billboards are just cringing to look at knowing that it killed a driver when one of those metal things slammed onto a vehicle killing the driver in the midst of the typhoon.

and that's not all. Xangsane is headed for Vietnam today. bless their souls. more bad news? an airplane flying to Brasilia disappeared mysteriously into the Amazon jungle en route to Brasilia. crazy. why? the other week i watched an old t.v. show on AXN (Peter Benchley's Amazon). the plot of this tv show is exactly the same thing that happened to this commercial aircraft!

1. commercial plane crashes into the Amazon jungle.
2. no survivors, search teams declared.
3. turns out that there were several survivors but it was too late. search teams have backed out from searching through the jungle because the Amazon is the most dangerous jungle to be in.
4. survivors find ways to survive, hoping to be rescued.

and it's scary because while i was watching it, i thought about how unfortunate it is for someone to be stuck in that jungle with piranhas and killer ants that feast on human flesh. aside from that, there are cannibal tribes in the jungle too! i can't believe that this happened and in REAL LIFE. i hope the search teams are sure that there are no survivors, though. if you watched that show i mentioned you'd know how sad it is if they pulled out and declared everyone dead when there are survivors in that deadly jungle.

did you have a good weekend? aside from the current events, mine was okay. we didn't suffer from the black-outs except for a couple of hours. we had electricity, cable, dsl, and celphone signal again right after the typhoon hit metro manila last friday. last night i went to the car show where they exhibit kick-ass cars and WOMEN. exploitation of women at its finest. it's just sad that these people turn to women as commodities in hopes of catching the attention of prospective customers. i know, i'm always anal about women's image as mere objects for men to ogle on. i just hate the point they're trying to make and i just hate why some women subject to such practice. this is just me. so hide your projectiles and throw them to someone else. *ducks from view*