By Netnet Camomot
HERE’S Cagayan de Oro through the eyes of a friend: Why daw it’s called Night Café if they’re also selling Red Horse? And if you’re drinking hot coffee in this very humid weather, you’re just ambitious. Hehehe.
Summer calls for halo-halo, ice cream, and cold drinks. To those who avoid ice-cold desserts and drinks, all they can have is room temperature water. Ho-hum. So boring. But better that than going through another vicious cycle of tonsilitis and antibiotics.
Humidity can make you hot in a bad way. The distinction is necessary because there’s that yummy kind of hot, the good one that may end up in a room with a theme—Batcave, Casino Royale, Marrakesh… Or the theme could be as specific as Frequency, Sumatra, Desire, Ardor, Passion… Or there’s no theme at all—the backseat of a car, restroom (ewww), or the wall as in literally nakasandal sa pader.
When the weather is humid, the skin is sticky with sweat and dust, and you’re always thirsty. Thirsty for what? Hmmm. You should be thinking water.
As the rays of the sun pierce through the roof and the blood pressure is shooting through that same roof, your mind can be so far away from the yummy kind of hot. All you wanna do is stay in an airconditioned room, preferably the one with no theme—you’re not in the mood, remember? Then, you play Angry Birds. Wait, angry birds? What kind of bird is that exactly? Heh heh.
On a very humid afternoon a few weeks ago, all I could do was play TextTwist while this minute brain tried to fathom the news that an increase in power rates is the only solution to Mindanao’s power woes. If those power woes remain as woes, there will come a time Cagayanons will be playing Word Factory during a blackout. That’s what we do by the way when Cepalco morphs to Cepalong. We go to my bro’s house and play Word Factory. Back to basics.
But if it’s Cepalco and not Cepalong, that’s when the air conditioner is on, prompting the electrical meter to win the gold medal in the Olympics’ 100-meter dash—fast, very very fast. And then I ponder on the pros and cons of using the anahaw fan. Pros: affordable Cepalco bill, exercises the arms, supports makers of native products. Cons: it’s exercise.
Just imagine how political candidates are campaigning in this weather which is definitely not for the faint-hearted. And I don’t think United Nationalist Alliance’s (UNA) senatorial bet JV Ejercito Estrada has a faint heart although he did say, “Every week, if we’re in Manila, we are looking for funding to finance our expenses the following week. We are having a hard time.”
They’re having a hard time with funds. Uh. Estoryahe?
He added, “Of course, it’s but natural. We are in the opposition. Even in local politics, who will provide financial assistance to the opposition?”
Just in case you were hibernating in Siberia and missed the news on some politicians’ offshore accounts, Estrada (or Ejercito—whatever) was among those names included in that oh-so-revealing list. But he blamed the revelation on a particular group of people: “The major media outlets came out with stories that we have so much money. (If that is true) I would not have any funding problem.” Oh, there it is.
So, the solution to an offshore-account issue is to assert that its alleged owner is “having a hard time” looking for campaign funds. That’s after claiming that the allegation is merely a “demolition job.”
Well, the best thing we can do for now is to visit Valenzuela City—one of its candidates for city councilor is giving away cell phones! Hmmm. At least he’s not singing Tom Jones’ “Green Green Grass of Home.”