she's always a sister to me

she can kill with a smile
she can wound with her eyes
she can ruin your faith with her casual lies
and she only reveals what she wants you to see



she hides like a child,
but she's always a sister to me



she can lead you to love
she can take you or leave you



she can ask for the truth
but she'll never believe



and she'll take what you give her, as long as it's free
yeah, she steals like a thief
but she's always a sister to me



oh--she takes care of herself
she can wait if she wants
she's ahead of her time







oh--and she never gives out
and she never gives in
she just changes her mind



and she'll promise you more
than the garden of eden



then she'll carelessly cut you
and laugh while you're bleedin'



but she'll bring out the best
and the worst you can be
blame it all on yourself
cause she's always a sister to me



she is frequently kind
and she's suddenly cruel
she can do as she pleases
she's nobody's fool
and she can't be convicted
she's earned her degree
and the most she will do
is throw shadows at you
but she's always a sister to me

- billy joel's "she's always a woman to me"

wild about flowers . . .ever

for as long as I can remember,
flowers have always been a passion



and a constant source of inspiration.







i have always been a lover of flowers.



as a child,
I would draw and paint them for hours on end.



i would pick flowers from my mother’s garden
and ‘cook’ them, when we play house.



i would also pick flowers
and offer them to the blessed virgin,
during a month-long festival called ‘flores de mayo’.



as an adult, I marvel at their existence.



growing and tending flowers is an important part of my daily life.



as soon as I had my own space to garden,
I immersed myself to not only picking flowers but also growing them.



i read books about plants and flowers
and earned my calluses from hands-on gardening.



a flower in my garden draws from me a prayer of thanksgiving,
awe for the creator and a sense of commitment to nature.



i am drawn to flowers
because they are symbolic of the most powerful of human emotions:
love,
life,
passion,
also color
and fragrance.

i try to accomplish the same with my images.



if one of these paintings can evoke an individual smile,
tear or memory,
then my body of work,
comprised solely of flowers,
has continued to blossom.

soledad - why is there such a fuss about it?

i first joined Soledad when i was 12,
i did because Ma would get mad at me if i didn’t.
it was okay not to see the meaning of what i was doing then,
i had my excuse – i was young.
and besides, my friends were joining, too,
so it was a chance for me to socialize:
agui-agui, arak-atak, pangisiyan, etc.

then college came,
and i only went back to Baao during breaks:
sem, Christmas, summer.
on said breaks, Ma would again urge me to join
and play for Ina on Good Friday.
and because i was in my age when i’d rather do other stuff
than mingle with the old,
it was annoying,
and Ma & i would fight,
i even got pinched a lot of times,
for resisting her “suggestions”.
but i would oblige, even when i was branded as “sutil”.

career and the pursuit of then, my dreams,
took me to far-flung places
and made me miss some Good Fridays in Baao,
and that meant, i forgot the music, too.
it was only in 2001 that i was able to rejoin,
and to my utter disappointment and mild disgust,
the group was dwindling and the music
(for the lack of a better word) sucked!

my life then was in turmoil,
i needed to do something,
i needed a mission,
a purpose and i found one in Soledad – in my solitude.
and i became determined.
i talked with john and posed a challenge to him,
which he took, so we embarked and journeyed,
although in the middle of the trip john tripped,
i continue to pursue a vision,
that has been quite elusive till now.





a community band named:
“Estudiantinas de la Soledad de Baao”
– the name is quite lengthy, but who’s minding? not me.
with job and audie at the helm of the abandoned reins, the vision is clear.
with the sisters in the hood (ritzie, tootsie, anne lilette)
& the brotherhood of the trees (matt, audie & job),
what can we NOT do?


So, why is there such a fuss about Soledad?

if one is not from Baao, one need not understand nor bother to know. but i, and my friends who are rooted in Baao, know, in our hearts, why we go ways to keep the music playing!

Soledad!
Para ki Ina!
Para ka Baao!
Para ka Jovenes!
Para kanato ngamin!

the curious case of bidibidi buttons

each of my F.A.R.M. bracelet carries with it a love story. . .
a story of a mother,
who suffers in silence
because she cannot send her daughter
to school. . .



a story of a wife,
who quits her job
to provide health care for a sick husband. . .



a story of a daughter,
who has to earn so as not to ask for allowance from her mother. . .



my F.A.R.M. bracelet is about love. . .
my love for my art
and my environment. . .
it is about recycling,
re-purposing,
re-fining and re-finding things. . .
it is about glorifying the old
and the vintage.


my F.A.R.M. bracelet is one of a kind,
never repeated.



it is made from used and discarded curious buttons. . .

why i stay @ pension natividad

this seat is reserved for Ernst


respecting the tree earns my respect


i love the ferns!


clean, shiny floors on the open hallway


a place to meet people. . .
share stories. . .
sip coffee. . .
enjoy a nice read. . .
have breakfast al fresco. . .
. . .and just be myself, by myself.

sister time

it is not everyday that my sis is with me,
so we savor each rare moment
of joy. . .
and of peace. . .
of being together.
i will let our pics do the talking


my sis & i

F.A.R.M. bracelets on sisters




@ the MOA

when is sporting a lipstick such a fuss?
when you are with your sistah!



buttons on a butt. hehehe