Tuesday, November 22, 2011

ON CASHEW NUTS

It is very interesting if things are not what they seem...
This appears like a fruit but it is not...
It is a false fruit!
This appears like a nut but it is not...
It is a seed!


THIS IS  THE CASHEW NUT!


Some things in life may not be what it seems.


Even so, we have to make the most of it!



Friday, November 18, 2011

ON PHILIPPINE HIGHWAYS





It is very interesting how our Philippine highways look.
A year ago, I experienced the US highways and I saw that cars can really go fast because there are no obstructions in their roads.

Our landscape has a different look!
I saw a cat crossing the highway...
as well as chickens, carabaos and children!!
Very unsafe I may say, but that is reality and therefore, we have to be very careful!

We have to adjust to what we have and learn how to live with it!!!



Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 3200
130 mm 
0 EV
f/11
1/400

ON APPRECIATING NEW PLACES



ON DOING THE IMPOSSIBLE

A friend sent me this quote... to inspire me to do something new and challenging!!!


" Start by doing what is necessary,
then do what is possible, 
and suddenly you are doing the impossible."


== St. Francis of Assisi





Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5

ISO 3200
24 mm 
0 EV
f/13
1/800

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

ON BALOONS AND JOY

Why do balloons give us joy?

These are symbols of celebration and fun!
They come in different colors, size and shapes.



Sentosa, Singapore


Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 1600
60 mm 
0 EV
f/10
1/400

ON THE COLORS OF THE QUAY


I was on the road when the Clarke Quay caught my attention.

Just like a child, I was attracted to the colors of the quay.


Clarke Quay

Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 1600
105 mm 
0 EV
f/13
1/800

ON SINGAPORE - THE OLD AND NEW



There is always something new for us to marvel...
and deviate us from the beauty of the old!
But, such is life, there are new things and old things...
each contributing to who you are.
The old to give you experiences and molds your character...
The new to give us challenges and upliftment.
And the cycle goes on...
the new becomes old... and newer things come along.
And that is what is important...
For us to get the best of both worlds.

Singapore

Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 1600
95 mm 
0 EV
f/16
1/200



ON GAZEBOS




A place to rest ... or shelter us from the sun and rain...
That is a gazebo for me!
But I remember in High School...
For lack of a proper classroom, we had two large gazebos!
... and I think, that was the first time, I came across the word.
Well, we did use it for the four years we were there and so for other students.
Come to think of it, I don’t think we were really distracted by the passing traffic in the road nearby!



Gazebo in Sentosa, Singapore

Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 1600
95 mm 
0 EV
f/16
1/200



ON MANDARIN DUCK

This is the most beautifully colored duck I've ever seen - the male Mandarin Duck.  

The Mandarin duck is a medium-sized perching duck with vivid coloration especially the red beak, large white crescent above the eye and reddish face and note the whiskers!

It amazed me how a bird could stand on one leg for so long and I did watch and see until when... and still did even if I left.


Busch Gardens, Tampa, Florida

Sunday, September 11, 2011

ON QUEUES AND PATIENCE

When we went out to dinner in HongKong, my friend wanted to bring us to this special restaurant...
Lo, and behold... a superlong queue.... and this picture just shows the tail of the line...


WAITING... Just to eat in this place... and it was already 9 p.m.!
The food must be really good!!!


The day before, we also waited in line and was served after more than an hour... for food!


Well, I guess, we should follow this admirable trait of PATIENCE...




Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections but instantly set about remedying them - every day begin the task anew.





                                        St. Francis de Sales










A restaurant in Tsim, HongKong

Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 4000
18 mm 
0 EV
f/8
1/80

ON MILK TEA

The first time I tried Milk Tea was near the Wanchai Station in HongKong.


Milk Tea has a twist from the usual tea or milk that we drink.


The way I see it, I could think of UNITY IN DIVERSITY in this drink...
Milk plus tea plus chocolate plus sago pearls plus... plus...
And it tastes still so good altogether!




Milk tea near Wanchai station



Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 1600
65 mm 
0 EV
f/5
1/40

ON LIGHT DISPLAYS AND HIGHLIGHTS

The HongKong laser and light display happens every 8 p.m.
As we arrived in the Ferry Terminal, this is what greeted us.
Interesting red lights with fan shadows and of course, with accompanying music.

We look forward to highlights in our life...
We hope it comes everyday...
But, that doesn't always happen.
We cannot depend on someone else to schedule this for us.
We have to make our life worthwhile for us to experience brightness and inner joy.

Maybe, the only one who has a say in the highlights of our life is...
THE LORD ABOVE!

HONGKONG CLOCK TOWER

Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5

ISO 4000
22 mm 
0 EV
f/3.8
1/50

ON CHOCOLATES AND MACADAMIA NUTS

LIFE IS A CHUNK OF CHOCOLATE AND MACADAMIA NUTS!!!


Chocolate is sweet and the nuts are there to keep it crunchy and more delicious...


Such is life, so sweet... and we have to encounter crunches which make life bumpy and now more interesting!


... hopefully, not too many nuts in my life!!!




In a Hongkong choco store



Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5

ISO 4000
40 mm 
0 EV
f/4.5
1/80





Sunday, September 4, 2011

ON THE KEEPER OF THE GARDEN

I envy the "Keeper of the Garden"...
they are able to grow 
beautiful plants and flowers
 from the littlest seeds.

I don't have that talent 
but I may be a keeper in other areas...

Let us find our niche in this world...
and be a Keeper in our own way!


Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 1600
82 mm 
0 EV
f/9
1/1250

ON SNOW-CAPPED SUMMITS AND GOALS

I could only see the snow-capped summits from the plane... or from afar... 
I don't think I would even consider climbing any one of these...
Especially, as our age in years increase, we get less aggressive and less adventurous.


BUT, I still have dreams of reaching summits in other forms...
such as, trying to do better in our present field of work.


Each of us have to find our own summits which we want to reach!


over L.A.



Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 320
32 mm 
0 EV
f/8
1/60

Saturday, September 3, 2011

ON THE TIP OF THE LEAF

Let your life lightly dance on the edges
of Time like dew on the tip of the leaf.
-Rabindranath Tagore



DSC-T300
ISO 200
14.4 mm 
0 EV
f/4
1/100

ON DANCING IN THE RAIN

Life is not about waiting for storms to pass...
It's about learning how to dance in the rain.
Vivian Greene


DSC-T300
ISO 125
14 mm 
0 EV
f/4
1/80

ON THE MIRACLE OF A SINGLE FLOWER...

If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.

Author unknown


Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 3200
200 mm 
0 EV
f/5.6
1/125

ON TREES AND REFLECTIONS

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.
- Confucius

When I brought my son to school, I saw this "pond" on the way and I was attracted by the reflection of the trees on the water, especially with the floating pink waterlilies on the side. Usually, this place isn't noticed and may be a breeding area of dengue mosquitoes, but the beauty of that moment caught me and so I just had to capture it in this photo.




Tumaga, Zamboanga City

Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 400
50 mm 
0 EV
f/10
1/6400

ON DOORS OF HAPPINESS

When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us.

Helen Keller


Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 200
28 mm 
0 EV
f/9
1/125

ON IMAGINATIONS AND DREAMS

If you can imagine it, you can create it.
If you dream it, you can become it.

William Arthur Ward


L.A. sunset from the plane window

Nikon D90 AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-200 mm f/3.5
ISO 200
62 mm 
0 EV
f/9
1/160