PhotoHunt: MEMORIAL

James K. Polk, 11th President of the United States of America, is honored here at the Genevieve Morehead Memorial Art Rotunda at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. President Polk is "the youngest up to the time, who managed to expand the borders of the United States to the Pacific Ocean, added three states to the Union, started the Naval Academy, the Washington Monument, issued the first postage stamp, and remains the youngest President to die outside those who have been assassinated" (from JamesKPolk.com).

Chapel Hill, December 2009, using a digicam.

Litratong Pinoy: BILANG (Number)

Tatlong pangunahing kulay- pula, puti, asul. Mga kulay na nananahan sa disensyo ng dalawang parihaba na may nakalapat na isang tatsulok. Isang tatsulok na may tatlong tala at isang araw. Araw na may walong sinag. Ito ang mga natatanging kakanyahan ng ating kasalukuyang pambansang watawat. Kahit saang anggulo mo tingnan, saang lugar man siya makita, sa kung anumang dahilan man siya iwagaywag, nararapat siyang makatanggap ng pinakamataas na paggalang at pagtatampok dahil siya ang sagisag ng isang malayang bayan at pinagpipitaganang lahi.

Mga Pambansang Araw ng Watawat ang Mayo 28 hanggang Hunyo 12. Ang tamang pagwagayway ng watawat ng Pilipinas at iba pang alituntunin sa tamang pagtatanghal sa kanya ay mahahanap dito.

BILANG = NUMBER

Three primary colors- red, white, and blue. Colors that reside in two horizontal bands and an equilateral triangle. An equilateral triangle that contains three stars and a sun. A sun from which emanates eight rays. These are the unique characteristics of the Philippine national flag. From whatever angle it is seen, from whatever edifice it flies, for whatever reason it is unfurled, it must be accorded the highest honor and respect as it represents the indomitable spirit of an independent nation.

The National Flag Days are from May 28 to June 12 of every year. The correct ways of displaying the flag, among other protocols related to it, can be found here.

a Gawad Kalinga village in Daraga, Albay, April 2007, using a digicam.

Wordless Tuesday: MEETING

The waters of the South China Sea excitedly embrace the mountains of Zambales province in this beach resort some four hours north of Manila.

Punta De Uian beach resort, town of San Antonio, April 2010, using a digicam.

Tree for Three

Whenever we travel, we try our best to live by this mantra-

Take nothing but pictures.
Leave nothing but footprints.
Kill nothing but time.

We try to be as less obtrusive as possible as regards ecology, whether we are in an urban or a real jungle. Taking public transportation or walking instead of bringing our private vehicles. Bringing our own food and drink containers instead of buying pre-packaged and bottled ones. Reusing hotel towels until they’re threadbare. I would like to think that many of the photos in this blog where taken during trips wherein we made discernible efforts to be, well, green.

However, I wasn’t too keen on the reality that the green points we’ve earned in those trips get used up as I consume kilowatts of electricity while I write my entries and share photos online! Good thing there is now a means for me to declare that my blog is carbon-neutral.

A German initiative via the website Mach’s green promises to plant one tree for each blog owner that chooses to sign up in this website. This endeavor is made possible in partnership with several non-government organizations and publications dedicated to saving the environment using the most creative yet practical means. A report of the trees already planted as well as the sites for the planting of future trees can be seen in the website, among other details, in the spirit of transparency and accountability. The steps towards making your own blog carbon-neutral are very simple and they begin by heading over to Mach’s green.

And so, I celebrate this photoblog’s anniversary number 3 by securing for it a tree to make it carbon-neutral. May this be an auspicious start to more adventures in and more photos of a safer, greener, grander planet.

Litratong Pinoy: PAMILYA (Family)

Ang mga Simpsons ang isa sa pinakakilalang pamilya sa buong mundo. Higit sa 20 taon na ito sa ere at mukhang mananatili pa ito sa ating mga telebisyon. Nakakatawa talaga ang marami sa mga kaganapan sa buhay nina Homer, Marge, Lisa, Bart, Maggie, at kanilang angkan: ang iba ay hindi kapani-paniwala, ang iba naman ay tila salamin ng lipunang ginagalawan ng marami sa atin.

Ang ating mga pami-pamilya ay para rin talagang isang tsubibo sa karnabal: minsan nasa itaas, minsan nasa ibaba. May mga pagkakataon na gusto mo nang kumawala subali't hindi maaari dahil patuloy ang pag-inog nito. Gayunpaman, sa dinami-dami ng magkakahalong sakit at ligaya, sa dulo ng lahat, sa palagay ko ay pipiliin pa rin natin ang ating mga pami-pamilya.

Minsan di ko kayang mabuhay kasama sila, pero mas mas madalas, mahirap mabuhay na wala sila.

PAMILYA = FAMILY

The Simpsons would arguably be one of the most popular families in the world. For 20 years, their eventful life has unfolded inside our TV screens and they're likely to have another season starting in the fall. The lives of Homer, Marge, Lisa, Bart, Maggie and the rest of their clan are just hilarious: some scenes are outrightly inane and impossible, some are mirrors of our own (mis)adventures as families and societies.

Life in most of our families are like carnival rides: sometimes you're up, sometimes you're down. There are times you'd want to jumpship but you just can't because it just keeps racing up and down its tracks. Be that as it may, for its mixture of hurt and happiness, at the end of it all, I'd bet my neck most of us would still choose to be born into the families we are in now.

Families: can't live with them, can't live without them =]

Universal Studios Florida, December 2009 using a digicam.