Caliraya Dreaming

If you have never read his poetry, you are missing half of your life. It is like trying a majestic strawberry cake for the first time–short cake, I mean. There is a sweetness that is almost cloying; but it leads to everlasting goodness that one cannot help second helpings, a third, a fourth, until there is nothing left.

All his books that can be found in the local bookstores are printed in the Spanish language on the odd-numbered pages and the English translation on the even. I am reading “Neruda Empowered,” translated in English by Alistair Reid.
His translation captures 90 percent of the power of the poem, but I also read it in Spanish (not my native language) because the sounds familiar and touches my emotions more than the English version.

Here is the English translation:

I asked of everything if it had something more,
something more than shape and form,
and I learned that way that nothing is empty—
everything is a box, a train, a boat loaded with implications,
every foot that walked along a path left a telegram written in the stone
and clothes in the washing water
dripped out of their whole existence.

I went from country to country, never knowing where to put down my bundle, now so heavy,
loadied with all my knowings, till with so much seeing and knowing,
moving and moving, asking and asking
every chair, every stone, and later som many men who never answered,
they got me used to answering myself.

Perhaps it’s what happens to a blind man who from so much not seeing then sees everything
and in a single focusing sees with all the intensity of a diver
who descends one single well in the whole ocean and in that place all the fish are gathered.

Well then, when I left off shaking the earth and moving everything from its place,
I though that each of them would bestow on me some little thank you or a smile …

The art of poetry is being personal and ambiguous in meaning. The person who reads it finds meaning according to what he has experienced in his life. The more experiences one has, the more that poetry gives one richness, empathy and affinity with the poet. The poet awakens in us emotions which we had forgotten years ago; for others it brings out a new emotion.
With all the distractions and cares that weigh upon us in daily existence, it would be better to be a “blindman who from so much not seeing,” finds enlightenment. Unlike other forms of learning, poetry makes us work on ourselves to find answers; and there frequently the answer is not final. Because the problems of life are never over. We think we have won but the enemy gets up again and engages us in another match. Such is the case with some addictions. Like people say: “it’s not over ’till it’s over.

Don’t mind the title; it was just to attract your attention.

Here are some practical advice on what to do if you have a close encounter with this hungry denizen of the warm, shallow waters. Did you know that these beasts never sleep, always swimming, always wanting to eat to restore their energy?

10 Tips For Avoiding a Shark Attack
Spending time outdoors at the beach isn’t any fun if a shark attacks you.

By Elizabeth SewardNew York, NY, USA | Sat Mar 07 12:30:00 EST 2009

iStock
READ MORE ABOUT:Animals | Beach | Ecological Footprint | Outdoors
Well, a 15 year old near Sydney, Australia was recently attacked by a shark. And with spring break coming up, partnered with rising temperatures, the average beach population will be increasing, and with it will probably come, unfortunately, more reported shark attacks. It happens this way each year. I mean, it doesn’t happen a whole lot. And I doubt it’ll happen to you. But, ya know, just in case you are going to the beach soon, I’d wager a bet that you don’t want your vacation inconvenienced by a shark that’s out to get you. That would cost you time, pain, money, resources from the hospital, and maybe even a limb or two. You’d also be disrupting nature.
A lot of us have picked up tidbits from the news over the years on how to fight a shark if we’re attacked, but what do we really know? I mean, I know I’m supposed to ‘punch a shark in the nose’, but does that mean I’ll survive? No. And the idea of punching a shark in the nose scares me. And it wouldn’t leave the shark in a great position either…you know, if I, by chance, hit him hard.
The fact of the matter is that we’re invading a shark’s territory when we go swimming in the oceanit’s not the other way around. (And even if it were, they’re the ones with the massive, jagged, terrifying teeth). Leaving a human or a shark wounded shouldn’t have to be the solution. The better thing to do is to avoid contact in the first place. (Duh). Getting outdoors and enjoying the scenery and the sun is good for you and it should be simple and fun. Don’t let a shark complicate this.
So here are some tips on how to avoid a shark attack:
Make sure to swim in a group. Sharks are known to usually attack those swimming alone. The same way human criminals do. Always have a buddy.
Don’t swim too far from shore. It’s less safe and isolates you farther from help. If you’re screaming for help a mile into the ocean, the seagulls might hear you, but they won’t help you.
Don’t swim at night, dawn, or dusk. Sharks are often most active during this time and you’re less likely to spot them, but they’ll spot you.
Don’t ever go into the water bleeding or with an open wound of any kind. Sharks can smell and taste blood on a completely different level than humans. If they smell or taste it in the water, they will trace it back to its source. And then they’ll try to eat its source.
Remove all things shiny before swimming. Sharks are attracted to things that shine because they resemble the scales of fish. Which they eat.
Avoid waters being fished or with lots of bait fishes. Sharks follow bait fishes, so avoid these areas. A good way to tell if there are bait fishes around is if seabirds are diving for them.
Avoid brightly colored clothes; noticeably uneven tan. Sharks’ vision has a great capacity for contrast and these sorts of things stick out to them.
Don’t erratically splash. Unpredictable movements like these are a good way to attract sharks.
Avoid steep drop-offs and sandbars. Sharks love to hang out in these sorts of places, so avoid them. Unless you want to hang out with the sharks. In that case, be my guest.
If you see a sharkleave. Don’t try to touch it, just try to get away before it attacks you. And really, if your first instinct upon seeing a shark is to touch it, I don’t know…maybe you need to get bitten, just a little bit, to learn your lesson.

May 3, 2009 sunday

···It has been weeks since we read an article about Ms. Barbara Gonzales in the Philippine Star, about her experiences with the flea market in posh Makati. Saturdays at Salcedo st., at the Velasquez park at Velasquez st., and sundays at Legaspi st., corner Rufino st., near the Singaporean embassy, where I witnessed a few years ago, crowds protesting the killing of Flor Contemplacion, a Filipino worker who died violently in Sinagapore. Where was I, after I was so easily distracted. May be I shall write about this is a later article . . .

···Gingin said, ” Dad, I need to buy some radish.” So off we went to Legaspi st. to find some radish. Well in addition to radish: mangos, suman, soap, liquid spray skin freshener, platitos, coffee, fresh fish, calamansi, etc.
There are hundreds of articles you can find in such a quaint little space. The market is actually placed in a parking lot; today most of the cars were displaced. Half of the space for cars was lost and cordoned off to accomodate cookers, coal-fired stoves, and food warmers that served paella, callos, crabs, barbecue and a myriad other dishes from enterprising housewives. I was surprised to see the candy counter ran by a Frenchman. I would have loved to try some candy; but I declined, since I didn’t want to add damage to past injuries on my teeth.

···There was a well-patronized stall selling some kind of wanton. There was a table occupied by its patrons having an early lunch, or brunch. If you prefer seafood, you can order some clam soup (halaan), some of which we took home to have for lunch. It was enjoyable; somebody else cooked it. We merely reheated it; but it tasted just as good as if we prepared it ourselves.

···There was stainless steel cookware. The sign says “Cookworks: Beauty and Brawn In One.” Satin finish, stores heat longer, encapsulated bottom. Quite irrestible don’t you think? I would like to try it next time; since I am loaded up to my chest with the packages of Gingin. All these plastic bags are wound up on the two fingers of each hand. Stopping the blood circulation. Why couldn’t I have brought out those green jute bags I have in the trunk of the car? Well I made one of two trips back to the car to deposit these packages that get heavier by the minute.

···The well made tents have always intrigued me. There seemed so well-managed and sturdy when they are providing shade and shelter for the wares, cooked food and plants that are crying out: “please buy me.” Early in the morning, these pieces of burlap and steel frames are unloaded from jeeps and trucks. Then come out the merchandise (some of them heavy stuff), stand there for 8 hours and at the end of the day, are patiently dismantled and re-loaded into the various vehicles, go back to the garage until the next market day. I am reminded of the caravans in the Sahara that are wandering from this market to the other.

I am also reminded of years before our daughter, Victoria was born.

We were operating a news stand at a Makati hotel.  In the morning we would bring all the stuff:  newspaper editions from Asia (South China) and papers from Europe, like the Financial Times and Frankfurter Allgemaine; cigars, cigarettes, magazines, all kinds of toiletries.  Anything which we could fit in our Ford Escort.  There was limited cabinet space in which we could lock valuables.  So at close to midnight, we would return all unsold newspapers, maps, paperbacks and other stuff which were displayed outside the stand–for fear that they would disappear, to the trunk of the car.  It was way past our bedtime, so we would drop things in the parking lot, then return for them.  Then, after sleeping just a few hours, we would ask one of the maids to take the things back to the hotel to be re-displayed.

This is what it means to be a retailer.  We quit it after a year beciause we decided it was more important to start a family.

···When it’s saturday or sunday once again, visit the flea markets at Salcedo and Legaspi sts.

This is what he says about Swine flu:

The key now, I think, is to make sure that we are maintaining great vigilance, that everybody responds appropriately when cases do come up, and individual families start taking very sensible precautions that — that can make a huge difference. So wash your hands when you shake hands; cover your mouth when you cough. I know it sounds trivial, but it makes a huge difference.
If you are sick, stay home. If your child is sick, keep them out of school. If you are feeling certain flu symptoms, don’t get on an airplane, don’t get on a — any system of public transportation where you’re confined and you could potentially spread the virus.
So those are the steps that I think we need to take right now. But understand that because this is a new strain, we have to be cautious. If this was a strain that we were familiar with, then we might have to — then I think we wouldn’t see the kind of alert levels that we’re seeing, for example, with the World Health Organization.

···What the heck, doesn’t any Tom, Dick and Harry know all these things? For crying out loud, why don’t you tell us the world’s richest nation has the scientists who can come up with an anti-virus. In this swine flu virus affair, Barack, I think you are falling short. I know you are not a doctor, but please don’t tell us to do something, like wash your hands. Everybody knows that. We don’t need the president of the U.S. to tell us to wash our hands. In the bible, Pontius Pilate washed his hands, and he probably avoided many strains of flu by doing so. Obama, please don’t treat us like children. My advise to you, if you can’t say something new (that will help save the world) just don’t say anything. Now you may wash you hands, and your feet, your face, and your ears.

]

·..For all young men who aspire to be rocket scientists someday, this article is for you; this blogger lifted this declassified account of the first ever mission Jupiter C in January 1958, of the United States in response to the successful, Sputnik I put into orbit by the Soviet Union.
This is contained in Ken Follett’s novel, “Code Zero,” the exciting thriller of Claude Lucas, known to his friends as Luke. He wakes up two days before the launch of Jupiter C, to find his memory erased (global amnesia). He sets out on a quest to find out what it is that was erased from his memory. Moreover, he discovers that his best friend, Anthony of the CIA, has put out a order to silence him forever. What follows is his attempt to remember what he has lost and in the process change some rash actions that happened in his past life. Enjoy the story!

The historical fact:

The first American satellite, Explorer 1, was launched into Earth’s orbit on a Jupiter C missile from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Aboard Explorer 1 were a micrometeorite detector and a cosmic ray experiment designed by Dr. Van Allen and his graduate students. Data from Explorer 1 and Explorer 3 (launched March 26, 1958) were used by the Iowa group to make the first space-age scientific discovery: the existence of a doughnut-shaped region of charged particle radiation trapped by Earths magnetic field
···
The jupiter C missile stands on the launch pad of Complex 26, Cape Canaveral(Kennedy). For secrecy, it is draped in dark canvas shrouds that hide everything but its tail, which is that of the Army’s
familiar Redstone rocket. But the rest of it under the concealing cloak is quite unique … The rocket is surrounded on three sides by a sevice gantry that holds it in a steel embrace. The gantry, actually a converted oilfield derrick, is mounted on two sets of wheels that run on wide-gauge rails. The entire service structure, bigger than a town house, will be rolled back 300 feet before the launch.

···Stenciled on the side of the white rocket is the designation “UE” in huge black letters. This is a simple code–

···–so UE is missile number 29. The purpose of the code is to avoid giving clues as to how many missiles have been produced.

···The missile is 68 feet 7 inches high, and it weighs 64,000 pounds on the launch pad–but most of that is fuel. The satellite itself is only two feet 10 inches long, and weighs just 18 pounds. Perched on top of the pointed nose of the Redstone rocket is what looks like a large birdhouse with a steeply pitched root and a flagpole stuck through its center. This section, about 13 feet long, contains the second, third, and fourth stages of the missile–and the satellite itself.

···The Jupiter C has been built for the Army by the Chrysler Corporation. The large rocket engine that propels the first stage is manufactured by North American Aviation, Inc. The second, third, and fourth stages have been designed and tested by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory near Pasadena. The first stage of the missile is attached to the second by explosive bolts wrapped abround by coil springs. When the booster is burned out, the bolts will detonate and the springs push the redundant first stage away.

···Because the missile was put together in a rush, the upper stages use a rocket motor that has been in production for some years, rather than a new design. The scientists have chose a small version of the tried-and-tested Sergeant rocket. The upper stages of the missile are powered by clustered assemblies of these small rockets, know as Baby Sergeants. The second stage consists of eleven Baby Sergeant rockets. in a ring around a central tube. The third stage has three Baby Sergeants. motors held together by 3 transverse bulkheads. On top of the third stage is the fourth, a single rocket, with the satellite in its nose. Each Baby Sergeants. motor is 4 feet long and 6 inches in diameter and weighs 59 pounds. Its motor burns for just 6 1/2 seconds. The Sergeant motors have undergone 300 static tests, 50 flight test, and 290 ignition-system firings without a failure.

···Each Sergeant motor has an igniter that consists of two electrical matches, wired in parallel, and a jelly roll of metal oxidant encased in a plastic sheath. The igniters are so sensitive that they have to be disconnected if an electrical storm comes within 12 miles of Cape Canaveral to avoid accidental firing. The igniters were not originally designed to be fired in a vacuum. For the Jupiter rocket, they have been redesigned so that: (i) the entire motor is sealed in an airtight container; (ii) in case that container should be breached, the igniter itself is also in a sealed container; and (iii) the igniter should fire in a vacuum anyway;. This multiple fail-safe is a design principle known as redundancy.

···The upper stages of the missile are contained in an aluminum tub with a cast magnesium base. The upper-stage tub rests on bearings, allowing it to spin during flight. It will rotate at about 550 revolutions per minute to improve accuracy. Rotating the second-stage hub stabilized the flight path by averaging the variations between the 11 individual small rocket motors in the clusters. A stroboscope was used to determine exactly where weights should be placed so that the spinning tub would be perfectly balanced–otherwise the inner cage would vibrate within the outer frame, causing the whole assembly to disintegrate.

···A tape programmer in the tub varies the speed of rotation of the upper stages between 450 rpm and 750 rpm to avoid resonance vibrations that could cause the missile to break up in space.

···The final stage, containing the satellite, is 80 inches long and only 6 inches across, and weighs just over 30 pounds, it is shaped like a stovepipe. The fourth-stage rocket is made of lightweight titanium instead of stainless steel.. The weight saving permits the missile to carry a critical extra 2 pounds of scientific equipment. The satellite is bullet-shaped, rather than spherical,. In theory, a sphere should be more stable, but in practice the satellite must have protruding antennae for radio communication, and the antennae spoil the round shape.Scientists can only guess at the extremes of heat and cold the satellite will suffer in space as it moves from the deep darkness of the earth’s shadow into the glare of naked sunlight. To mitigate the effects of this, the cylinder is partially coated with shiny aluminum oxide in stripes 1/8 of an inch wide, to reflect the sun’s scorching rays, and insulated with glass fiber, to keep out the ultimate cold of space.

···The temperature problem is a key obstacle to manned space flight. To gauge the efficacy of its insulation, the Explorer carries four thermometrs: three in the outer shell, to measure skin temperature, and one inside the instrument compartment, to give the interior temperature. The aim is to keep the level between 40 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit–a comfortable range for human survival.

··· If temperature variations are higher than expected, it is possible that the germanium transistors, will overheat, the mercury batteries will freeze, and the satellite will fail to transmit data back to earth.The instrument compartment has no doors or access hatches. To work on equipment inside, engineers of Cape Canaveral have to lift the entire cover. This is awkward but saves precious weight, a critical factor in the struggle to break free of earth’s gravity.  The instrument compartment tends to everheat prior to takeoff The solution to this problem is typical of the crude but effective engineering of the rushed Explorer project. A container of dry ice is attached electromagnetically to the outside of the rocket. A thermostat switches on a fan whenever the compartment gets warm Just before takeoff, the magnet is disconnected and the cooling mechanism falls to the ground.

···The design of the rocket is based on the V2 bomb used against London during the war. The engine even looks the same. accelerometers, relays, and gyros are all out of the V2. The pump for the propellant uses hydrogen peroxide passed over a cadmium catalyst, releasing energy which drives a turbine–and this, too, comes from the V2. The Jupiter program cost 40 million dollars in 1956 and 140 million in 1957. In 1958 the figure is expected to be more than 300 million The Jupiter C missile uses Hydyne, a secret high-energy fuel that is 14 percent more powerful than the alcohol propellant used in the standar Redstone missile. A toxic corrosive substance, it is a blend of UDMH–unsymmetrical dimethyl hyddrazine–and diethylene triamine.
···The new fuel is based on a nerve gas and is very dangerous. It is delivered to Cape Canaveral on a special train equipped with nitrogen to balnket it if any escapes. A drop in the skin will be absorbed into the bloodstream instantly and will be fatal. The technicians say: “If you smell fish, run like hell.” The new fuel and a larger fuel tank have boosted the Jupiter’s to a force of 83,000 pounds and extended the burning time from 121 seconds 155 seconds. The fuel tanks contain baffles to prevent sloshing. Without the baffles, the movement of the liquid is so violent that it caused a test missile, Jupiter 1B, to disentegrate after 93 seconds of flight. Fuel shoots into the combustion chamber of a rocket engine at a speed of about 100 feet per second. Burning begins the instant the the fuels meet. The heat of the flame soon evaporates the liquids. Pressure rises to several hundred pounds per square inch, the temperature soars to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The first stage contains approximately 25,000 kilograms of fuel. This will be used up in 2 mintes and 35 seconds. The exhaust gases pass through the nozzle of the rocket like a cup of hot coffee being poured down the throat of a snowman.

···The smaller rockets, which power the second, third and last stages, use a solid fuel known as T17-E2, a polysulfide with ammonium perchlorate as oxidizer. Each rocket generates about 1,600 pounds of thrust in space. The missile will take off vertically, then be tilted into a trajectory 40 degrees inclined to the horizon. The first stage is guided, during powered flight, by aerodynamic tail surfaces and by movable carbon vanes in the engine exhaust jet. The flight plan is programmed in advance. during flight, signals telemetered to the computer activate the guidance system to keep it on course. The Explorer’s orbit will be 34 degrees to the equator. Relative to the earth’s surface, it will head southeast across the Atlantic Ocean to the southern tip of Africa, then northeast to the Indian Ocean and Indonesia to the Pacific.

···The first stage engine must be switched off sharply, and separated immediately, otherwise gradual thrust decay could cause the first stage to catch up with the second and misalign it. As soon as pressure drops in the fuel lines, the valves are closed, and the first stage is separated 5 seconds later by detonation of spring-loaded explosive bolts. The springs increase the speed of the second stage by 2.6 feet per second, ensuring that it separates cleanly. A system of compressed-air nozzles, mounted in the tail of the instrument compartment, will control the tilt of the nose section when in space. After discarding the burned-out first stage, the missile will coast through a vacuum trajectory while the spatial-attitude control system aligns it so that it is exactly horizontal with respect to the earth’s surface. Explorer’s elliptical orbit will take it as far as 1,800 miles into space and swing it back within 187 miles of the earth’s surface. Orbiting speed of the satellite is 18,000 mph. The satellite contains two tiny radio transmitters powered by mercury batteries no bigger than flashlight batteries. Each tranmitter carries four simultaneous channels of telemetry. One radio transmitter is powerful but short-lived–it will be dead in two weeks. The weaker signal from the second will last two months. The radio signal from the more powerful transmitter may be picked up by radio hams all over the world. The weaker signal from the second can be picked up only by specially equipped stations.The scientific instruments onboard the satellite have been designed to whitstand takeoff pressure of more than 100 gravities. The telemetry encoder uses hysteresis loop core materials to establish a series of input parameters from satellite instruments. Four whip antennae, protruding from the satellite cylinder, broadcast radio signals to receiving stations around the globe. Explorer will broadcast on a frequency of 108 MHz. The first task of the radio transmitters is to provide signals enabling the satellite to be followed by tracking stations on earth–to prove that it is in orbit.  To help track the satellite accurately, the Jet propulsion Laboratory has developed a new radio technique called Microlock. The Microlock stations use a phased-lock loop tracking system that is able to lock on to a signal of only 1/1000 of a watt from as far as 20,000 miles away. A string of tracking stations stretches from north to sourth roughly along the line of longitude 65 degrees west of the Greenwich meridian. The network will receive signals from the satellite every time it passes overhead. Information from the satellites’s recording instruments is transmitted via radio by a musical tone. The different instuments use tones of different frequencies, so that the “voices” can be separated, electronically, when they are received. The main scientific purpose of the satellite is to measure cosmic rays, in an experiment designed by Dr. James Van Allen of the Stae Univerity of Iowa. The most importan instrument inside it is a Geiger counter. The countdown reaches zero.

···In the blockhouse, the launch conductor says, “Firing command!” A crewman pulls a metal ring and twists it. This is the action that fires the rocket. Prevalves open to let the fuel start flowing. The liquid oxygen vent is closed, and the halo of white smoke around the missile suddenly vanishes. The launch conductor says, “Fuel tanks pressurized.” For the next eleven seconds, nothing happens.

···The last connection hose drops away from the missile. A second later, the priming fuel ignits, and the first-stage engine thunders into life. A huge orange firelick bursts from the base of the rocket as thrust builds. With painful slowness, Explorer I lifts off the launch pad in the blockhouse, someone yells, “Go baby!” The rocket picks up speed suddenly. At one instant it seems to be hovering hesitantly over the launch pad. At the next it moves like a bullet out of a gun, shooting into the night sky on a tail of fire. On the beach, a thousand faces tip backward, watching the rocket rise straight and true, and a huge cheer goes up.

···Explorer I was expected to remain in space for two to three years. In fact it orbited the earth for twelve years. On March 31, 1970, it finally reentered the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean near Easter island, and burned up at 5:47 A.M., having circled the earth 58,376 times and traveled a total of 1.66 billion miles.

Come aboard, Paolo Z., space awaits you and your offspring!

···

Italian scientist, turning 100, still works<
AP – Italian neurologist and senator for life Rita Levi Montalcini, Nobel Prize winner for Medicine in 1986,

ROME – Rita Levi Montalcini, a Nobel Prize-winning scientist, said Saturday that even though she is about to turn 100, her mind is sharper than it was she when she was 20.

Levi Montalcini, who also serves as a senator for life in Italy, celebrates her 100th birthday on Wednesday, and she spoke at a ceremony held in her honor by the European Brain Research Institute.

She shared the 1986 Nobel Prize for Medicine with American Stanley Cohen for discovering mechanisms that regulate the growth of cells and organs.

“At 100, I have a mind that is superior — thanks to experience — than when I was 20,” she told the party, complete with a large cake for her.
The Turin-born Levi Montalcini recounted how the anti-Jewish laws of the 1930s under Benito Mussolini’s Fascist regime forced her to quit university and do research in an improvised laboratory in her bedroom at home. “Above all, don’t fear difficult moments,” she said. “The best comes from them.”

“I should thank Mussolini for having declared me to be of an inferior race. This led me to the joy of working, not any more unfortunately, in university institutes but in a bedroom,” the scientist said. Her white hair elegantly coifed and wearing a smart navy blue suit, she raised a glass of sparkling wine in a toast to her long life.

Characters on the Road
Author: Bam Santiago Olivares

If we were to make a movie about city drivers, we would probably be able to come up with a lot of characters to portray the different kinds of motorists that we encounter on the road everyday. Based on actual observation and a bit of creative thinking, the cast of characters are likely to be the following:

Road Hog. The commonly known road hog is that person we see on the road driving well below the minimum speed limit. On a congested highway where you have bumper to bumper traffic, there are times when we see the cause due to one or more road hogs leading the pack. Road hogs often stay in the fast lane or extreme left lane on a main road or highway. These characters either do not know road rules and what the lanes are for, or simply think that they are driving fast enough for the speed limit.
Read the rest of this entry »