February 4, 2006 – Pinay New Yorker

My internet connection is going nuts on me again so I’m drafting on Word and saving my blog entry for posting later. I’ve been indulging in watching some TV watching show after show this Friday in the room as Angel is sleeping beside me. His congestion is much better thanks, I believe, to this new vaporizer we got which gives the room a slight Vick’s scent, but none of us mind because it has helped us sleep sounder at night.

Were people searching for Balitang Pinoy, I wonder.. I checked my Feedback column and found two entries made in response to a post I made way back in April 2005. I’ll take care of the feedback later.. I’ve been cutting up letters and artwork for Angel’s scrapbook. I have dishes to do on the sink but I think I’m going to do that after this episode of “Numbers”. (Watched “In Justice” earlier..) I’m now catching the late night news which is usually the only full newscast I get to catch during the course of the day.

My internet connection is going nuts on me again so I’m drafting on Word and saving my blog entry for posting later. I’ve been indulging in watching some TV watching show after show this Friday in the room as Angel is sleeping beside me. His congestion is much better thanks, I believe, to this new vaporizer we got which gives the room a slight Vick’s scent, but none of us mind because it has helped us sleep sounder at night.
Were people searching for Balitang Pinoy, I wonder.. I checked my Feedback column and found two entries made in response to a post I made way back in April 2005. I’ll take care of the feedback later.. I’ve been cutting up letters and artwork for Angel’s scrapbook. I have dishes to do on the sink but I think I’m going to do that after this episode of "Numbers". (Watched "In Justice" earlier..)  I’m now catching the late night news which is usually the only full newscast I get to catch during the course of the day.  
Fridays used to be a late night in my previous life — officemates or friends would usually put together a gimmick out in town — dinner then dancing or just drinking the night away, and I’d go home late in the evening (or early morning) knowing there was no work the next day.  These days we stay home unless it’s our night out on the town.  We had it last Wednesday so we’re just relaxing spending quality time with our baby and with each other.
Maybe it’s because we’re older now — or maybe it’s just parenthood.  
Past midnight now and I just finished washing the dishes and putting away the food that had cooled down.  I finally got online again… (this has been a struggle but it’s getting better..)
To go online I pull up the yahoo front page first and I must say it was rather disturbing to see "Manila" among the words in the News section:
<blockquote dir=”ltr” style=”MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px”>
• <a href=”http://www.yahoo.com/s/135781/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060204/ap_on_re_mi_ea/egypt_ship_sinks”>Most of 1,400 on doomed ferry feared lost</a> • <a href=”http://www.yahoo.com/s/135782/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060204/ap_on_re_as/philippines_stampede”>66 killed in stampede at Manila game show</a> • <a href=”http://www.yahoo.com/s/135783/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060204/ap_on_go_pr_wh/ford_era_spying”>Papers: Ford White House weighed wiretaps</a> • <a href=”http://www.yahoo.com/s/270048″>King’s death may leave void in civil rights work</a> • <a href=”http://www.yahoo.com/#”><img height=”12″ alt=”video” src=”http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/ww/beta/news/video.gif” width=”12″ /> Video: Russia skinheads attack immigrants</a> • <a href=”http://www.yahoo.com/s/270641″>Federal protection sought for Florida bears</a> • <a href=”http://www.yahoo.com/s/270642″>Detroit Lions haven’t won title since 1957</a>
</blockquote>
I had to read the news article and go to <a href=”http://www.philstar.com”>Philippine Star</a> to get more details and I discovered the stadium the Yahoo article was referring to was the ULTRA and the show the people were falling in line for was <a href=”http://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/promo-wowowee.aspx”>Wowowee</a>.  People from all over seem to be having so much fun with the show because a girlfriend of mine who is leaving for Manila this Sunday for a three-week vacation is hoping to watch the show live.  Of course she won’t be falling in line the night before — they have their connections to get her in — but I think this just goes to show how wide the appeal of Wowowee is.  
It’s just sad to think that 66 people (although some accounts have it at 61) were fatally injured.  Many of the people among the crowd waiting to enter the stadium were poor people hoping to get a shot at the million-peso pot offered by the show.  Poverty has pushed the people’s sense of desperation to the extreme that there was reportedly a couple there who were hoping to win a prize somehow.  The wife was one of the fatalities.