Banini's World

2006-11-21T21:40:00.000+08:00

SU

2006-11-21T21:14:00.000+08:00

Corregidor

2006-09-13T23:37:00.000+08:00

Ternate Coast

2006-09-13T23:35:00.000+08:00

Talim Island

2006-09-13T23:33:00.000+08:00

Frolicking in FS X

2006-09-13T23:30:00.000+08:00

FS X'ing around Manila

2006-09-08T23:03:00.000+08:00

PAF F-8

2006-09-02T18:31:00.000+08:00

iFDG Airbus 5J

2006-07-21T23:28:00.000+08:00

Ang ganda talaga ng repaint ni Jton!

Nini auditions for Pop Star Kids

2006-02-19T10:18:00.000+08:00

We encouraged Nini to audition for Pop Star Kids. QTV Channel 11 held one at SM Dasmariñas last 18 February.

At first she was very reluctant, you see she is very, very shy. She is often requested to sing at parties but we have a tough time coaxing her to come forward and perform.

We thought that this would be a good opportunity to boost her self-esteem. We told her that if she can sing in front of total strangers; in a public venue then we have accomplished our objective. As an incentive she can buy toys at SM later.

I went ahead to have her photos reprinted (for the application form) and inquire what time the registration starts only to find out that the queue has already begun and loads have already registered. After a quick call to Mina, they rushed to SM.

She did the registering herself. The auditions started with Danny Tan himself overseeing. Our impression was that he was rushing things and was not consistent with the way he administered the auditions. If you happen to be a second-timer, or have your piece miscued, you don't get to sing at all. Those who sang a piece they do not particularly like or mispronounce their English got cut-off and dismissed. He could have practiced a little more tact in talking with the children. We're not really impressed with the way he conducted the screening.

After almost half a day of waiting, her turn finally came up.

The audio technician had a problem cueing her piece. As expected she got cut-off. We were thinking, maybe the best approach to auditions is to commission a musician to make a re-hashed audition piece that will skip the "boring"/"bland" parts and proceed right away to the highlights of the song. Kailangan siguro gulatin mo kaagad para ma-impress yun judges.

We're not disappointed though that she did not qualify, we just set out to prove to her that she can sing in front of an unfamiliar audience. Mission accomplished!

Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta X

2006-02-11T21:03:00.000+08:00

10 February

So off we went to Omni from Cavite with Joey and Nico. Nico had to absent from school para lang makasama sa amin. He had been waiting for this chance to go to Omni. He missed last year's because he had a swim meet to compete in.

We took a bus to SM Megamall and took the Air Asia shuttle bus so we can get down exactly at the Omni gate. Both of them were very excited, my son has been to Omni two times already but it's Nico's first time.

My son and nephew just got to have their photo taken in front of a PAF Bell 205A-1 helicopter of the 505th Air Rescue Group - Angel 321.

Our favourite Cessna, RP-C1513. This plane is owned by Tonet Rivera We jokingly call it the Cebu Pacific Cessna because its colour scheme seemed similar but as Tonet would point out, his colours are of a different shade.

The PAF had an SIAI Marchetti S.211 of the 7th Tactical Fighter Squadron on static display, still wearing 80's camouflage paint scheme and Red Aces markings. The current colour for PAF fighter aircraft is air superiority gray. Note the Caribou in the background.

Another PAF S.211 did touch and go's at Clark.

We arrived around 1330, just in time for the balloon bursting competition.

We saw the participants take off as the balloon release crew got ready amidfield.

The PN BN-2 Islander misses it's first balloon bursting attempt.

The rest were likewise not quite as lucky.

All the while, the PAF S211 circles above.

Didn't take much photos though of this event as the kids were dragging me towards the PA AFV static displays.

They had so much fun scrambling in and out of the tanks, playing with sight of the howitzer and the static vehicle display.

There were scale models also on display inside the hangar.

VF-103 Grumman F-14D Tomcat

IAF Boeing F-15I Ra'am

VF-84 McDonnell-Douglas F-4 Phantom II

PAF 7th TFS Chance-Vought F-8P Crusader

PAF 5th TFS Northrop F-5A Freedom Fighter

PAF 7th TFS Chance-Vought F-8P Crusader & 5th TFS North American F-86F Sabre

Must be from our friends from IPMS-Philippines.

The sunlight filtering through the clouds (silahis) that day was just spectacular, I just had to take these photos.

Bill Wright's Vans RV4 doing the aerobatics that afternoon in lieu of Maynards routine.

The para-thingie's team about to commence their demo.

And off they went... While the demo was going on, the Whiskas balloon was being prepped.

I had a chance to photograph the Navy BO-105 on the flightline, thanks to the Supremo!

This was the last balloon that took off that day.

We linked up later in the evening with Peter, Eric, McTan, Paolo, Rajiv, & Aish.

McTan and son

There was an unexpected guest at Joy's birthday party. Pete must have been guilty of something, he tried to quickly leave but Joy was quick to point him out.

11 February

We were up dark and early the next morning to see the balloons off.

We were able to get onto the field to see the balloons set up and test their burners.

It wasn't that early though, soon the sun started to rise.

That's Mt. Arayat being silhoutted by the sunrise.

The balloonists started unpacking and setting up their balloons.

One by one the balloons started to rise... ...and ascend into the morning sky...

This has been my son's favourite

The Whiskas balloon was in the air already, I don't think this doggie will be able to the catch the kitty today.

Balloons of all shapes and colours

The weather's going to be great that day!

Amidst the festivities, the Air Boss was all-business

This was the Pacific Missionary Aviation Helio Courier that did the STOL demos.

After a quick breakfast, we had to leave for home but not before taking these photos of the PNP AS-350.

Would have loved to stay another day but we have to attend to other commitments.

Til next year!

A friend of mine died the other day...

2006-01-19T14:11:00.000+08:00

Tragic... He already finished a tour, took his leave, got married, and went out for another one. He was really hesistant to go on to this tour.

Our condolences to your family.

40th anniversary

2006-01-18T08:57:00.000+08:00

...na ng Nanay at Tatay ko.

So we went to Picnic Grove in scenic Tagaytay and had a piknit. The week before that kasi naisipan nitong si Edith na yayaing sumama sa pagbabayad ng amillar yung dalawa sa Gen3. Nabanggit ang Tagaytay kaya ayun, umasa.
Medyo nahirapan lang kaming maghanap ng cottage ang dami kasing tao. It's the last weekend of the holiday seasons so most people are still on vacation.

Nanay prepared fried chicken and binalot. Our contribution was LZM Restaurant's fried boneless bangus which is pure heaven. Kaya tingnan nyo naman, taob ang kalaban!

We went horseback riding afterwards, that's my sister and her family on their mounts. The kids were all excited because they can go down the trail up to the ridge where they can get a view of the lake and the volcano.

I will let the kids describe their experience. As for me, pinagsakitan ako ng likod because I rode the horse without a saddle (Mina was the one on the saddle, I got to straddle the horse's hip bone). Poor horse! The sota (guide) did not take us down the trail, I think because we might literally break the horse's back. :-)

Christmas 2005

2005-12-25T10:08:00.000+08:00

Political awareness

2005-08-26T12:47:00.000+08:00

Children exhibit political awareness at a very young age here in the Philippines. Joey was 4 then and he would mouth "Eyap `sign!". Now he's 7 and his slogan is, "Hello Garci!"

Schooling with Joey

2005-06-07T09:00:00.000+08:00

At 4, he had problems with his fine motor skills so he was very slow when he started writing in school. His teacher reported the following scenes:

Joey: Teacher, si Gil Joshua po nangongopya!
Teacher: Naku Joey, ano ang kokopyahin sa `yo eh wala pang laman ang papel mo.

Joey: Teacher, ang sakit na ng kamay ko.
Teacher: Joey, di ka pa nagsisimulang magsulat, masakit na kamay mo?

Joey: Teacher, pwede bang ikaw na lang ang magsulat? Ako na lang ang magsasabi sa `yo. O sige, Teacher, isulat mo: bu - ko.
Teacher: Naku Joey!

When he was in K5, he discovered something wrong with his answer on certain questions (while studying) but could not figure out why. He would say; "Ma, bakit ganito, baka nagkamali sila (the authors)?"

Once her mom was teaching him to differentiate between loud and soft music, the following dialog ensued:

Mom: Is the music playing over the radio soft or loud?
Joey: Soft, parang pillow.

We bought Nini a book of Filipino riddles which they enjoyed very much. What they would often do with their cousins is to take turns selecting and reading a riddle at random and asking the rest for the answer. Of course Joey got into the fray and posed a riddle of his own making.

"Bugtong, bugtong. Si Pedro nagtago sa bakal labas ang mata." And the answer is... "Multo"! Why? That still remains a mystery!

Star Wars 1.5

2005-06-02T16:34:00.000+08:00

Strong in this one, the Force is... hmmm... Bonaki Skywalker - ang Jedi na may sayad.

Like Mommy....

2005-05-29T21:24:00.000+08:00

Mommy: Tandaan mo lahat ng sinasabi ko sa `yo. Dahil paglaki mo, yan din ang sasabihin mo sa mga anak mo.
Nini: E, `di katulad mo rin ako Mommy, sigaw ng sigaw?
Mommy: Oh yes. Ouch!

1st Seamen's Village Invitational Swimming Championship

2005-05-21T17:19:00.000+08:00

Joey got a trophy in his age group (6 and under boys) for winning in all events (Individual Medley, butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle). Well it was really a no-brainer who's going to win, most of the participants were really novices so I told Joey that it would have been embarassing if he hadn't won.

Nevertheless, a trophy and medals are what they are. He got his rewards, Nanay promised P100 for every gold, his Tita Kiletz - a Champ meal for each gold and we let him choose a toy at SM (a Maisto Tailwinds Mig-29).

BTW, his Tita Edith gave him a 1/43 Cararama Porsche 911 GT2.

Easter 5 - 2005

2005-04-27T12:41:00.000+08:00

I was greatly encouraged by last Sunday's readings (Acts 7:55-60, Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16, 1 Peter 2:2-10, John 14:1-14). The dramatis personae of these passages (save the Psalm) were all pre-AD 70 Christians, we used the analogy of the bank in order to understand their courage and confidence in spite of various persecutions, trials and hardships (with even more promised!) that they faced from both Jews and Rome.

As we put our trust in the bank to safeguard our earthly valuables, all the much more that we can trust Jesus to safeguard that which is far more valuable than any of our earthly treasures.

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matt. 6:19-21)

Stephen was able to see beyond the physical consequences of his unintimidated proclamation of the Hebrews' blood guilt and preaching of the Gospel; and instead focus on the treasure that lay ahead for him in Christ. According to the Apostle Peter, Jesus is the chief cornerstone that God had chosen. Man has only two responses to that fact, it's either to take offence, stumble and reject Him, or to put their wholehearted trust in Him and never be put to shame.

But thanks be to God! In His great mercy, He chose us and made us His own. We are now not counted as children of disobedience, but rather as sheep who knows the voice of their Shepherd and gladly heed His call.

IOPN?

2005-04-22T00:56:00.000+08:00

You might be wondering about the weird handle. IOPN looks like the ЮPИ which is "Yuri" written in Cyrillic. Other people have beaten me to "Jerry" and other variations of my name as web logons/handles. Besides I had a great interest in learning the Russian language at that time :-).

Catechism for Children

2005-04-21T15:36:00.000+08:00

Have you ever felt some anxiety against your children's interactions outside of your home? How are we to shield them against "bad influence"? I'd say catechising them is one sure way of doing so. It allows us to structure a Christian reality for them, so they won't be swayed every which way by things they see and hear while outside the home. They are empowered by having God's Word as glasses through which they perceive and interpret their environment.

We bought this book from Doorposts. It is an excellent tool for younger children for quick memorization around the breakfast/dinner table. It contains the essential Shorter Catechism with simplified questions and answers and illustrations that help even non-readers to comprehend the meaning.

We have so much fun during our free-flowing discussions, we are amazed that even as we teach, we also learn along with our children. Employing the book as a guide and using our trusty whiteboard for diagrams and drawings we are able convey the lessons more efficiently.

Album (CD): The Best of Noel Pointer

2005-04-21T11:43:00.000+08:00

I have always enjoyed Noel Pointer's music especially East of St. Louis Melody and I Feel Your Soul. He too was novel in the way he used the violin for jazz. John Lesaca and Tadao Hayashi come to mind. I will be missing his music. Found this one at the Landmark for P 299.00.

East of St. Louis Melody

I Feel Your Soul

Superwoman

Classy lady

Virgie

All the Reason Why

Brookline

Land of Make Believe

Staying With You

Movin' In

Stardust Lady

Savin' It Up

Oh What a Beautiful City

Sa wakas...

2005-04-17T13:12:00.000+08:00

nanalo rin si Joey ng kanyang pinaka-aasam-asam na GOLD, and in the most unexpected of events, 100m freestyle! Sumali ang team nila sa 1st ERST Invitational Swim Meet held at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.

Very consistent ang pacing niya even though may advantage yung kalaban niya sa first lap. He really is very happy that he finally got one. We too are very proud of him!

Kaya naman hayun, sa sobrang pagod nakatulog na sa floor ng mall.

Nini's recognition

2005-04-04T22:25:00.000+08:00

She got a "Most Thoughtful" award (kasi mahilig magsulat ng mga notes at magbigay ng mga regalo sa teacher) and a medal for being the Bible Quiz Bee Champion among those in Grades 1-3. Her lolo and lola from Sta. Rosa came to see and congratulate her!

5th Mango-Ceelin Invitational Swim Meet

2005-03-05T12:18:00.000+08:00

Joey returned to compete after a month-long rest period. The Alabang Gators hosted this invitational swim meet at the Alabang Country Club. He got second place in all the events he competed in.

Davao trip

2004-12-05T10:43:00.000+08:00

Pumunta kami ng Davao, may office event kasi ako doon. So I decided to bring Mina along for some well deserved vacation, after all 10th year anniversary namin. We stayed at the Marco Polo Hotel which is the venue of most of our events, got to meet relatives and friends we haven't seen for a long time, as well as new ones. It was really a pleasure to meet up with Karen Alcantara (batch 84, our resident Sandi Patti), she came directly from work just to meet with us. Sayang lang wala kaming photo-op. Ate Emmie and Kuya Johnny took us suha (grapefruit) and pasalubong shopping. Thanks!

Melvin met up with us at SM Davao then he took us to their factory where we met his wonderful wife who's expecting a child soon then it was up to Jack's Ridge and home as we have other meetings to go to at Victoria Mall. Mina met up with Arlene, her daughter and brother (my apologies Arlene); as I was meeting with PFSG-Davao at Basti's Brew (would you believe we've know each other for over a year but it's the first time we met face-to-face?). Sonny thanks for the treat and the mug, that was one mean salpicao (stir-fried garlic beef) and your durian coffee rocks! Blue skies sirs!

On the way back the plane was an hour late (that's PAL for you), the kids are texting like mad because they miss us already (3-days kami dun) - good thing the office provided a car to take us home. It's a very pleasurable trip, maraming trabaho pero hindi ko masyadong napansin kasi when I turn in for the day, I know Min is there (gosh!).

Joey's vocabulaire du jour

2004-11-27T14:06:00.000+08:00

Use "fiesta" and "department" in a sentence.

Joey: (to Sam) Hindi ka pa pwedeng mag-pa-fiesta kasi wala ka pang department teeth!

CL-415 SuperScooper

2004-05-29T11:17:00.000+08:00

Finally! I got the CL-415 model I bought from the Hobbylinc from my sister. It's 1/72 scale Heller injection molded scale model of the Italian Securite Civile. I plan to finish this in either the yellow SuperScooper (C-GILN) 2002 Asia-Pacific tour colours or in Philippine Coast Guard colours (not that we have one in the PCG inventory). The over-all level of detail is very good, though I think the rivets are a bit over done.

French class

2004-05-28T09:23:00.000+08:00

I'm going to be having another session later today. Hehehe. I'm beginning to regret my decision of enrolling. Dapat sa regular class muna. Sobrang fluent na yung mga classmates ko. I think I'm understanding only about 20% of what is being said. Anyway, wala na `tong urungan so let `er rip!
I'm so sleepy kaya lang I can't Joey still has a swimming competition at ULTRA tomorrow. We have to be up early for the trip. Good thing is I will finally be getting my CL-415 model and DVD from my sister.

Manila Zoo trip

2004-04-10T10:29:00.000+08:00

This was sort of impromptu, it was Holy Saturday and we took the kids to Manila Zoo hoping it was open. Andeng saw an hehepotamus
and we had a photo taken with the an albino python.

The kids enjoyed the trip, we had lunch at the Harrison Plaza where tinungga na lang ni Andeng yung miso soup, then we went biking at the CCP grounds.

Easter at the Westin

2004-04-04T08:56:00.000+08:00

We checked in sa Westin courtesy of my Asia Miles points (na malapit nang mag-expire) nung Black Saturday. Dun na rin kami nag-Easter kinabukasan.

Here are some pics of the poolside as viewed from our room. As you can see, it's packed with people who opted to stay in Manila instead of going to the provinces for the Holy Week.

Joey lounging around, akala mo kanya yung place.

Nini and Joey enjoying the pool...

Too bad, we had to cut their fun short... it's check-out time.

Had to feed them on our way home. After all that pool activity? Kaya sila lang dalawa ang umubos nung pizza.

Sometimes Joey can be serious and thoughtful...

2003-02-03T08:57:00.000+08:00

Joey: Mommy, ipag-pray natin si Daddy.
Mom: Why?
Joey: Di ko po siya nasabihan ng "ingat". (that's before I left for the office)