Going jalan-jalan with Angelique and Aubrey in a few.

Chito, Chevy, and Vinci visit.

If a guest keeps accidentally breaking things in your house, it means that the house spirits do not like him.

Beware the student who signs up to you and then constantly tests his boundaries. Such a student has severe father-son problems. Let him resolve all of those problems first, because it is his foremost obligation.

I'm giving American Ninja Warrior a few more months before the ANJ syndrome emerges--a psychological affliction that will beset contestants who want to stop, who know they should stop because other men are more able than they, but who cannot stop.

Never put your eggs in one basket.

Hell is a supervisor you do not agree with.

Past the age of 40 you will learn to abandon all lovers, friends, and students who do nothing but argue with you, because, by then, you will have created your own world and populated it only with persons whom you really like.

Good morning, Cubao!

The clouds are dove's feathers suspended in the sky.

Hold a lavender, glass ball in your left hand to attune yourself to spirit guides.

Everybody home, and the rain has stopped.

Angelique and J. had dinner out.

Waiting for dinner time with Aubrey.

To have and to hold are not permanent states of existence.

Do not retrieve souvenirs from a building that burned down.

Glowering skies over Cubao.

Turned on the incandescent lamps. House looking cozy.

Went jalan-jalan, and glad it didn't rain both ways, to and from the center. Checked out something and was so let down when I discovered it was made of resin. Passed, of course. I want our house to be a resin-less house.

Bought three useful items and also phone cards for the granddaughters.

To divide your year into two, manageable time frames, celebrate the New Year twice--on December 31 and on July 1.

Haven't you noticed that some of the world even divides the year into quarters and therefore celebrates the New Year four times? January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1.

Half the year is over.

Should write _Cubao Ilalim: Ikalawang Aklat_ sometime soon and do a portrait of Keng Sen, for starters.

The June leaf falls off my planner.

Watch your art.

To be clever and to be creative are two different things.

Only after you have settled your obligations can you begin a major work of art.

There are two, big sails on the ship of your good karma--your life dream and your career. While they cannot always be one and the same, they can comfortably exist parallel to each other.

The secret to individuality is to not emulate the persons you would like to be. It is to be content with yourself IN RELATION to those persons.

If it's something you don't see yourself wearing everyday, don't buy it.

Be silent and observe, for your stardom relies on your self-effacement.

Your power animals do not remain the same throughout your life. Some of them move on and others come in, depending on the major changes and your needs as you go through your life journey. That is why you have to keep attuning to them in order to identify them.

The sun is a bangle of white gold.

Good morning, Cubao!

Angelique and J. are off to a basketball game.

Dinner at home with Angelique, Aubrey, and J.

Caught the American Ninja Warrior replay and it was about time someone won--and someone who could use a million USD.

Hold a pink, glass ball in your left hand whenever you need to be gentle, affectionate, and appreciative of others.

I do because I can.

Cool night, cool day.

Angelique and J. went to pay for a bag Aubrey wants for school.

Now Aubrey is at gym.

Read more pages from The Dream Spheres.

Some examples of Philippine power animals:

Bat
Cat
Carabao, Water Buffalo
Cobra
Cow
Crow
Deer
Dog
Dove
Dugong
Eagle
Fish (specify)
Goat
Hawk
Horse
Lizard, Gecko, Salamander
Martinez
Pig
Python
Rat
Rice Bird
Rooster, Hen
Philippine sea creatures, such as Eel
Tamaraw
Tarsier
Turtle
Wild Boar
Wild Cat

All animals in the Chinese zodiac may be included.

I have also observed cases in which insects manifested as power animals.

Numbers of the power animals:

In front: 3

Behind: 1

On your right: 6

On your left: 7

Above: 8

Below: 9

Within: 5

Colors of the power animals:

In front: Red

Behind: Yellow

On your right: Blue

On your left: Orange

Above: White

Below: Maroon

Within: Green

The power animal in front of you leads, and paves the way before you. It is the persona of all your power animals, and is that which people see and by which they form an impression of you.

The power animal behind you follows and protects you. It is your Shadow Animal.

The power animal on your right works with you and helps you get things done.

The power animal on your left nourishes your wishes, dreams, and secret desires, and helps make them become reality.

The power animal above you should have wings, and guides you through your life journey and your careers.

The power animal below you helps you keep stealthy and well grounded.

The power animal within you is your medicine animal. It harnesses all your power animals, heals you when you are ill, and prevents you from psychosis. (Sociopaths are said to have power animals within them that are injured, dying, or dead.) Note that, in many cases, a person always moves like the power animal within him/her and even takes on the eyes and gaze of that animal.

Be careful whom you flirt with--it might be someone who takes you seriously.

Every student mage should be able to tell between real magical items and magical junk, which is comprised merely of cheap trinkets and souvenirs.

You know when pre-adolescents move to adolescence when they think of changing their clothes and their hairstyles.

It is Lizard (or Salamander) who keeps you potent.

Tony Perez's Art of War: You don't need to adjust to the world as long as you believe that the world will need to adjust to you.

When atchays want to get to know a person better, one of the first things they want to know is that person's sexual preference. They cannot proceed anywhere without that knowledge.

To empower a framed taladro with your own essence, hang it in your bedroom or bathroom, where you are frequently naked.

It pays to keep a folded taladro in every notebook and wallet. You will see the results in seven days.

We cannot turn back time but we can change the way we think and feel about it.

A day that unwinds can be rewound.

Lunch at home with the granddaughters.

After yesterday's sojourn, so happy to be spending the entire day at home again today.

You are Square One. That is why you keep going back to it.

You are the drawing board.

You are the coal or salt or opal mine.

You are the clean slate.

You are Ground Zero.

Saw something in a display window that I MUST have! NOW!

Loving rubies that remind me of dark strawberry jam and deep-red cherries.

Good morning, Cubao!

The clouds are treasure chests filled with white sapphires.

Came home with the granddaughters to a dark house and two hungry pet dogs.

The evening torrent brought some water into the house.

Dream only for yourself, never for other people, for you will discover that the dreams and fantasies and fugues of love they have for themselves are very far from yours.

From 2018 - 2021 do not give any baby the name of Roger. He will grow up to be a loser if you do. If you must name anyone Roger, do it from 2022 onward.

On weekday afternoons the Cubao Hogwarts Espresso Station is full of retired, old men like myself. They sit at tables discussing private business deals while I sit alone writing magical spells.

Before we left for the center our compound tenant informed me that he successfully nurtured and nourished the kitten we rescued to normal health. It ran off from his ground-floor unit, though, and joined the other cats on the building roof.

When the rain let up the first time today, I brought my granddaughters to the family dentist's, sat with them awhile, then went window-shopping for glass cloches and lanterns. Afterward I sat in the smoking area of the Cubao Hogwarts Espresso Station with a slice of lemon praline and a glass of pink guava juice. Went back to the dentist's to pick up my granddaughters afterward. Dinner and dessert.

Your lover's battles are his own. Do not fight them for him.

Your spirit guides seldom allow you to witness the suffering of your enemies.

Try mix-matching dinnerware.

You are either waiting for the rain to start or waiting for the rain to stop. Either way you are waiting.

When you're bored, unable to travel, and have nothing on hand to keep you entertained, just sit down and write a novel.

Never take for your own a gift that was not intended for you. It will keep bringing you bad luck.

Every person has something useful to teach, if only you will see it.

There must be something deeper behind the fact that every creature has its own, particular food.

A barangay is like a religious group when it values you not for your mind but for the potential, financial assistance they expect you to give.

When he can find nothing to laugh at, he laughs at other people's clothes.

Every group of employees has a female busybody who meddles in everyone's affairs, presses unsolicited advice, and clucks like a mother hen to compensate for all her personal problems. For many other employees, it is always a pleasure to put her down.

Never resent the success, edge, and advantage of a co-employee. You have no idea how he must viciously toil to keep that position.

Diamonds always sparkle in the sun like a thousand fireworks set in gold.

A nation founded on cheap entertainment will have nothing but hollow laughter after disaster strikes.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is a choker of gray pearls.

One of you will be designing a tree house dollhouse.

Consider having a beach-resort-motif porch, bathroom, or bedroom. It will be relaxing even on rainy days.

Fill a small box, pouch, or dish with ten, shiny, ten-peso coins and place that on your altar table. Ten is the number of the head of the household.

Always treat your daughters like ladies and your sons like gentlemen.

You must have at least one power animal that flies. (And an image of it.) The most common are Eagle and its Shadow, Condor.

Differences between friends are best settled earlier than later.

Boredom brings about the desire to play or the desire to destroy.

Don't fight it. Don't hide it. Man up and match up to it.

Today's fashion is tomorrow's period costume.

As you are beset with problems at work and at home, so are your children beset with problems at school and at home.

Tuesday Madness

B.L. helps me take care of the K.T.

The motif is there, a son who died.

Back from John's.

Organized all my Asian spirituality books in a book case.

"But all is changed with time/

The future no one can see/

The road you leave behind/

Ahead lies mystery/

But all is fair in love/

I had to go away/

A writer takes his pen/

To write the words again/

That all in love is fair/"

--Stevie Wonder

Waiting for the Cubao rain to stop.

Ask yourself what something means other than what it means.

There are times when the embrace of another human being is not enough. There is the love of the divine within you and the love of the divine within the other. Yet, you yearn even more strongly for the actual and physical touch of the divine, and are terrified with the possibility that you could spend an entire lifetime waiting for it.

How many moments are you one not with your lover but with the universe?

Thunder rolls to the east of Cubao.

Whenever the sky sends signals, the primordial man within me looks upward or out the window, and my consciousness rises above the rooftops to scan the neighborhood and the city beyond it. I think of loved ones far and near. I wonder whether the gods and goddesses are displeased about someone or something.

I light a scented candle and take consolation in its steady and unwavering flame.

A man or a woman, though bonded by commitment to another, must also view himself/herself in a unique relationship with the cosmos, for that is how he/she will attain a sense of completion.

A mage obsessed with magnifying lenses discovers many worlds within worlds.

When you think of cycles, think not in terms of circles but in terms of ascending spirals. That way even your times of sadness will be in an upward direction, and will elevate you.

Home alone.

The granddaughters went to university to pick up a copy of Angelique's transcript, after which they are having lunch in a restaurant in San Juan City.

Quite glad that Chito is out of hospital now.

Having lunch alone later, most probably at John's townhouse stand.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is the blank screen on which your spirit guides project your day.

Night Classes

Every house must satisfy not its designers but its residents, whether those residents have good taste or not.

A child who is frequently oppressed and tormented by his siblings will grow up to be a sociopath without a clue that his crimes are not attempts to get back at society but at his own family.

It is distasteful (pun intended) to announce your pride in food that brings you back to your childhood, considering that billions of other people never had a decent meal when they were children (and in many cases all the way through their adulthood).

Do not chuck out withered chili. Dry them out some more in the sun. They will actually taste hotter than fresh chili.

One of the most wonderful effects that Masterchef Australia has on its contestants is that they start out awkward and camera shy and then end up being veteran TV performers who know how to control their hair, their facial expressions, and their body movements, so that they jump right out of the TV screens and unto your lap.

Never think in terms of destiny. It prevents you from being realistic, down to earth, and well grounded.

There will always be war someplace or other as long as primitive man remains the Shadow of civilized man.

Envy prevents people from helping others.

It is envy, therefore, that is the true opposite of compassion.

You never cause other people's karma. They cause it themselves.

To every hermit, it is heaven to be left alone.

You may break a promise to an adult, but never do that to a child.

You need to give your children:

--Love
--Security
--A house/home
--Nutritious food
--Good food
--Education and career opportunities
--The development of their talents
--Religious and moral values
--Avenues to express themselves

All of this they may need to provide themselves after you have gone. And provide their own children as you provided for them.

They will find the box before this year is over.

And then they will visit Venus.

We greet the day and we greet the night. We should also learn to greet midnight and high noon.

Know your neighborhood. It is the context your house is in.

Always measure in retrospect when you stopped savoring ephemeral entertainment after you've done watching it.

A big, sloppy, boardwalk ice cream cone. The stand was closing. Bottom half, chocolate, top half buko pandan.

All the other stands have closed--quite early on a Monday evening.

We're just having pizza for dinner.

Sometimes God makes it such that our perfect partner or our perfect friend is at the other end of the globe.

When you break up a fight between animals, the fight is not over.

When you break up a fight between men, the fight is over.

Or is it the other way around?

The secret to successful parenting is to be a father and a mother, or a mother and a father. Otherwise you will be relegating a lot of responsibilities to your spouse.

Rain over Cubao, with rolling thunder.

After rising high above your status, come down once in a while to help others also rise.

Whenever you finally obtain what you have been dreaming of, you will most certainly begin dreaming of something else.

If your father is a tiger, be a dragon.

If your father is a dragon, be two dragons.

I always keep a notebook and a pen in every part of the house I am frequently in. That way I don't have to lug a notebook and a pen wherever I go.

Negative words cannot ruin you because they ruin only their sources, especially when your spirit guides are standing behind you.

Magic has always been the doorway to science, and science, to magic, and superstition has always been the bridge between the two. Once a person has crossed from magic to science or from science to magic and decides to stay there, however, he usually burns the bridge of superstition behind him.

The Wands must continue pointing to the ground.

If your friends are of the same feather as yours and you have none from other, diverse, groups, then you have no real friends at all.

Lunch at home with Angelique, Aubrey, and J.

Angelique and J. are going jalan-jalan at the center, Aubrey to gym.

The sun is a golden rattle in a baby's hands.

Good day, Cubao!

Slept eleven hours last night, and I feel like a UFC fighter who's just stepped into the arena.

But exceeding wealth brings about exceeding hazards and exceeding disadvantages.

Peace and prosperity descend on them who paint their rooftops green.

Do not be impressed by all artists whose works are highly realistic and very detailed. Some of them simply overlay paint on photo tarpaulins.

Tony Perez's Art of War: Your enemies see and acknowledge that you are better than all of them combined. That is why they remain your enemies.

They are prepared to wait until the sky turns green.

Cozy Sunday evening. Snuggling in bed with The Dream Spheres later tonight.

Reflect on the type of face you usually have a crush on.

Go back in time, year by year, and identify one such type you encountered per year.

Go back further, to your early childhood, doing the same.

You will find that that type of face is directly related to a young father, a young mother, a young father's friend, or a young mother's friend--and someone who carried you, played with you, or smiled at you during a happy occasion, such as a children's party.

Reflect on the activities you do.

--How many of them are really meant to call attention to yourself rather than to the people you serve?
--How many of them actually please you and give you a sense of self-fulfillment?
--How many of them do you do merely to make money?
--How many of them can you actually live without?
--How many of them ironically make you feel insecure and unsure of yourself?
--If you had to streamline your activities, which one would you willingly give up first?

Time plods on ever so slowly as we live and breathe and suffer and strive. And then, when someone dies, we note how fast time is, and are shocked to be commemorating death anniversaries all too soon.

Three-hour, deep tissue massage. This time we used the new ventosa set that I just purchased.

"Happy Birthday to You" and "O Salutaris Hostia" can be sung at the same time.

Learn to look at housework not as a punishment but as a source of domestic bliss.

It is the right combination of food on the table that arouses a healthy appetite.

Always save the baby. It could very well grow up to be a greater person than you are.

Caught BBC's post-disaster documentary on the tragic fire. A moving assemblage of facts and shots.

A blessed Eid El Fatir to all my Muslim friends!

Pray for me, as you always do, on this special day.

Shy Sun does not blaze constantly the entire day. It hides behind one cloud, then another, and then behind an entire sky covered with a sheet of clouds, coming out only once in a while to smile at its closest friends.

The logo and sign of Memo Cafe has a subliminal line that reads "Eat Meet Drink".

The workshop participants asked me: Why not "Eat Drink Meet" since it is logical to eat and drink and then meet and discuss affairs with people.

My answer: The implication of "Eat Meet Drink" is that you eat at the cafe, meet a special someone, have a drink together...and who knows what follows.

Do not seek popularity. Most of your fans will be hypocrites.

Go with the few who have proven themselves to be true to you.

There are two kinds of deep relationships your psyche seeks with persons other than your own relatives: the first is with persons with whom you share a lot in common; the second with persons who are your exact opposite.

The sky will cry out next.

Air and Air, Air and Fire, Air and Water, Air and Earth.

Good morning, Cubao!

The clouds are silver koi in a blue pond.

A +B = C

"The fish are eating."

Does he look like a fish?

Isn't the correct line "The fish are feeding"?

Caught the last third of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban on HBO. That is the volume I like best in the seven-volume series.

Couldn't catch the naughty footprints on the end titles, but I understand it's on the VOX credit shot.

Gnomes and other elementals can appear to you disguised as normal people.

When you fall in love with the wind, do not leave immediately. Sometimes the first person who shows up and comes to you is its personification.

I haven't had a whirlwind affair (pun intended) with the wind in a long, long time. The only other times I recall were when I was a graduate student at university, enrolled in a master's degree course in Clinical Psychology, and when I was a special teacher and stranded one afternoon at Saint Joseph of Cupertino School, both in the 70s; and during my third visit to the Kabayan Mummy Caves as cultural affairs specialist for the Ambassador's Fund for Cultural Preservation in 2012.

During those times I felt that the wind was sexier than anyone I'd ever known, and I wished that it would never stop.

When the wind blows across the earth and the trees flap their wings, I stop and watch, expecting them to take off and ascend into the sky, never to be seen again.

Toward the end of his life my uncle sold off all of his existing property for PHP11M and divided the amount among his nephews and nieces, rather than have all of it go to the religious order he belonged to.

The wind rises in Cubao, shuffling the leaves of our dragon tree like a thousand playing cards.

One cannot rest on an empty stomach and on a broken heart.

First trial Bingo session. I now know what to anticipate, especially the next time around, when we shall have more people. I should hire one of M.s' cafe waiters to wait on us.

Do not spend your entire life proving yourself. At a certain point you need to stop, be content with what you have, relax, and be completely happy.

Every art entails an illusion, every crime, a delusion.

A person who truly loves you stays with you wherever you are rather than takes you to go away with him/her elsewhere.

Go and pursue your dream, and fight for survival if you have to. The shrinking violet gets nothing, and is always the bashful loser.

Family Bingo session in exactly one hour.

This is the first time we are doing this, and so it is an experimental event.

The clouds are white, children's turbans unwinding in the sky.

Good noon, Cubao!

Slept nine hours last night.

"The woods are lonely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep."

--Robert Frost

Night Classes

When I announce night classes I no longer specify a time. I discovered that people attend the classes any time within a 48-hour period after my announcement. Some will feel like they attended a two-hour session within only 30 minutes of sleeping; others like they attended only briefly within eight hours of sleeping. Time is fluid when one is on the astral plane.

All classes are held on my roof deck.

If you sleep with any one of the 36 Wands, your lesson will be on weather changes.

If you sleep with anything else I gave you, such as a book, a medallion, a stone, or a piece of wood, your lesson will be about magic in general.

Dinner at home with Angelique, Aubrey, and J.

The flower man buzzed by, and I bought from him a strand of sampaguita and camia blossoms for the shivalingam. Did an evening libation. I learned that a clean-water libation is not enough--it is not complete without flowers.

Angelique and J. watching movies upstairs, Aubrey at gym.

One-hour, afternoon nap. It was quite delicious. I enjoy waking from a nap and not rising immediately.

Never be a counselor for someone you neither like nor believe in.

Never be a lawyer for someone you neither like nor believe in.

Werewolves are never united because they belong to different clans and packs.

It is the Silver Wolf, however, who is above them all.

Shame can always rise and transform itself to pride.

Religion need not exist in order for anything to be sacred.

I love having different sets of drinking glasses for four, six, and 12. I am partial to translucent glasses because I like being able to see what is inside them.

I believe that one should never have to drink from boring vessels.

After winning the competition she proceeded to put on weight. When that happens to the winners of any competition, it is because they subconsciously believe that they did not deserve to win, and so (also subconsciously) put on weight in a metaphoric attempt to put on substance.

My current vice is having a big, sloppy, boardwalk ice cream cone at the Sitio Catacutan hawkers' center, usually chocolate- or purple-yam- flavored.

Never try to be an impresario for someone you neither like nor believe in.

People you see everyday give you a sense of security. Note that, whenever you do not see someone you ordinarily see everyday, something seems to be off.

She throws a lavish party whenever she is hard up and sad. It is her act of denial. It makes her happy anyway, albeit temporarily so.

Tony Perez's Art of War: Mice may upset you, gnaw at your things, and nibble at your food, but as long as you take the logical and necessary steps they all get poisoned in the end.

Your Messenger message:

"Hi Sir Tony, I just had a vivid memory of my dream last night. I was going to our project site (condo project) in which I was greeted by the owner of our general contactor. He lead to a car, in which he seems to give me. Seems like a black honda accord, not so new but seems okay. Gave me the keys and I drove it. It was a manual transmission car. As I was driving down the rocky ramp of the project site, I was only driving a the first gear. I also noticed the the gear shift stick is attached via a wire. As I approached the highway the wire attaching the gear shift was removed, however I was still able to drive it back to the project site's parking even though Im stuck at 1st gear. By the way the car interior was pretty much very second hand but serviceable. I found it weird since i not know how to drive a manual car and I really had a very real and vivid memory of my feet working the clutch and gear shifts. Hope you could help me interpret such a dream. Good day Sir."


My reply:

Hello _____!

At this time in your life you desire independence and believe that you are ready for it, but your psyche is reminding you that you should never acquire independence at the cost of sacrificing your family.

Your dream seems to indicate a streak of ruthlessness within you. Because of this, you tend to make rash, impulsive decisions. Alas, such decision-making will only lead you to lesser heavens that may not at all give you the happiness you envision, and will merely endow you with regret and resentment.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is a can of whitewash.

Dinner at home with Angelique, Aubrey, and J.

A peaceful Thursday night.

Like the planetary system and outer space, the ultimate frontier will be the human psyche.

Controversial social issues will always run in crests and troughs.

There should be no place like home and no place like your own bedroom.

Rainwater runs first before anyone and anything else.

Criminals, while imprisoned, can be conditioned to become more useful than citizens who are not criminals because they were easily conditioned to become criminals in the first place, and so their psychological and moral state can always be reversed and undone.

Such a program, however, would cost millions, and society is unwilling both to shell out the money and to extend such compassion.

He dreams of overcoats, gloves, and boots in the heat of summer.

Lazy people do not act because they do not wish to learn.

When a person chases you, don't run away. That way he will never catch up with you.

Hole up, keep still, drink lots of water, and you will heal.

To many of those who ask "Why?", the best answer is always "Why not?".

Holiness, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.

Tony Perez's Art of War: Rejecting those who reject you at the most opportune and delicious time is a gratifying act.

The truly successful mage is he who is most able to cross boundaries.

Any color can be a color of healing.

The goddess of the storm is my mother.

Angelique and her friends arrived safely in Metro Manila.

Gave three artist's anatomy books to John, whose son is currently enrolled in an animation degree course.

Writing from The Heart Workshop For TheatreWorks Singapore (May 29 - June 4, 2017)

https://www.facebook.com/pg/tHEATREwORKS.Sg/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1943590879221429

They eliminated him quickly because the men's dorm panicked.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is a tin of assorted cookies.

When going to a costume party, do not accouter yourself with all the trappings and details of your dream costume. Otherwise you may look good, but you will be unable to relax, hang out, and have fun.

If at all possible, keep a plank of wood from the house of your earliest childhood. This will always protect the house you now live in.

Note: Institutions are not houses in this context.

A person's intelligence manifests not in high concepts and theories but in the simplest, everyday matters.

Nightfall. The sky draws its dark blanket up to its chin again. On earth below, people sit down to their supper, and watch TV, and read at their study tables, and turn their bed sheets. Others wait at lighted windows, and take walks in the shadows, and light wishing candles at their altars.

Never be bitter about the little that life has given you, for there are millions of others who have a lot less.

In moments of extreme misery and sadness, when hope is nowhere and one does not like what one sees around him whenever he opens his eyes, the mind can shut down or short-circuit.

The day was fast and I was slow, but I took sweet pleasure in commanding time.

When you say that someone is not  your "type", it is because he or she subconsciously reminds you of someone in your past whom you never considered a sex object.

Met Kay for coffee at the Cubao Hogwarts Espresso Station. She gave me a purple journal and a set of dark graphite drawing pencils that she purchased in Singapore where, ironically, I  recently was. I gave her one of my antique dip pens.

Jalan-jalan at the center. Paid our water bill and did some groceries.

When you give, give unconditionally. You will always feel better for it.

If you feel you have the right to be free to criticize another person's statement, remember that he was free to express that statement first. And will be free to respond to your criticism next.

When the directions of your switches are inconsistent, it is because you hired an uneducated electrician.

You need to wash your gratitude pebbles and the dish they are in from time to time.

They who have no romantic love have not learned to relate and converse with a god or a goddess of love.

Wednesday, Wednesday

You can have your coffee and drink it too.

Two cups very black Italian blend.

Good noon, Cubao!

The sky is a white linen sale.

"Near" and "far" are subjective. When facebook alerts me that friends are "going to an event near me", I check it out only to discover that the event is in Makati or in BGC. Those places are far to me.

My marine antique dealer sent me a shipwrecked yacht's steering wheel. Except for the turned wood handles all of it is in solid brass, though in need of a good polishing. I'm not buying it, though. It isn't quaint enough for me.

So tempted to use Christmas lights as accents or as night lights in my bedroom. Everyone I know who does that is a free spirit.

My only problem is that it doesn't go with my captain's cabin bedroom motif.

Why do vinyl, mah jong cases usually come in alligator skin patterns?

One of the things I could never understand about my former co-workers is their spending hours after work going bowling, playing volleyball, and drinking without giving up time they could have been spending with their families.

Had I done the same I would have become a total stranger to my family, not to mention being too exhausted for anything else upon getting home.

Ultimately it is quality that sells for ages.

Although it needs to be frequently polished, silver sparkles a lot more than white gold does.

People who feel trapped in urban settings like leaving the tap on because it transports them to babbling brooks in cool forests.

When the sun plunges his sword into the forge of the earth, it is to fashion a new and more powerful weapon.

The cloud dwarves are playing ninepins over the Cubao Catskills once again.

Life is a bowl of cherries.

My sister Remi sends me fresh cherries every once in a while. I love them. I believe they keep me alive. I used to dry the cherry stones and fill magical poppets with them.

I remember a time--in the 70s I think--when atchays were scandalized by champagne fountains and chocolate fountains at parties. They must have thought that the champagne and the chocolate abundantly flowed and overflowed and got libated to the earth.

Now that those atchays themselves are buying terracotta water fountains by the roadside, they know that the champagne and the chocolate are recycled in their vessels, and so they have managed to shut up.

There are two ways of building a collection: thinking carefully of everything you want and buying them one at a time; and buying everything you can possibly buy and discarding what you don't want later.

The latter is more expensive, but it gives you more peace of mind. You have the benefit of experiencing all your purchases firsthand, and you don't torment yourself with ruminations such as "WHAT IF I bought the other one instead?"

Take care, though, not to have the same attitude toward people.

Secret admirers and stalkers are cowards who are afraid of rejection and of being hurt.

After spending the middle third of your life in volunteerism, spend the final third being happy entirely by yourself.

The songs of animals take on refrains only when they are not responded to the first time around.

So do your messages of love.

Organize your life and the world will organize its own.

A leisurely Tuesday is a fitting revenge on a world caught up in its own insanity.

And so back to The Dream Spheres. I am now on the second chapter. My progress on this novel is slow, but I am always fascinated with the entire world, language, imagery, and surreal logic of the Forgotten Realms.

Tried to watch Bruce Lee's 1957 film Thunderstorm on youtube but was dismayed that there were no subtitles.

If you are discombobulated and disturbed whenever you look at a boy who likes like a girl and discover that he is a boy or you look at a girl who looks like a boy and discover that she is a girl, you are incapable of gender-less thinking, and probably always look at strangers as potential sex objects.

I believe that I may have subconsciously trained myself to be using the water dispenser at the exact moment when it runs out of water. Only I and sometimes J. can lift the heavy refill and put it on. When the granddaughters are at home without me and J. they have to ask one of the security guards to do it for them.

Lunch alone. Aubrey still in bed, but I think she will go to gym later.

There is a very thin line between fervent religiosity and psychosis.

After an early morning flight Angelique and her friends arrived safely at Kalibo International Airport, and then boarded a bus to Caticlan.

Okay, let it rain again for now between Cubao and the Visayas.

When you kill a man, you kill not only his body but also the entire cosmos of thoughts, visions, virtues, solutions, and feelings that lived within him, and that made him more than just a man.

Your e-mail message:

"Thank you sir for accommodating my inquiries wrt my dreams.

"I just want to ask your view point wrt repetitive dreams. what does this imply?

"thank you again sir"

My reply:

It means that you have not taken the action to make the changes in your life that the dream demands.

Tony Perez's Art of War: It is not death itself that moves a warrior to action.

It is the grief that death leaves behind.

Tony Perez's Art of War: Spraying insecticide in your house may get rid of cockroaches for the time being, but note that you can never really get rid of them forever.

So it is with your enemies. No matter what measures you take, they will always be there.

Good morning, Cubao!

The clouds are silver railroad tracks.

Delighted that it's Monday night again. My favorite TV shows begin airing from now through Friday.

Dinner with Aubrey at home. Angelique is sleeping over at a friend's house.

Bought two boxes of ice cream at the Sitio Catacutan Magnolia Depot: mangoes and cream, and peanut butter and avocado.

The goddess of the storm is my mother.

Tomorrow morning we stop the rain.

Time is as still as an afternoon in a garden fragrant with white roses, while the sound of piano drills drifts through from inside a neighbor's house.

Two cups very black Italian blend coffee.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is a child's basket of dreams.

Your Messenger message:

"Good evening, sir. I would like to consult with you a dream I had today which I feel is of great importance in my present situation. If you have the time to read it, I will be deeply grateful.

"June 18, during the day.
"I was not able to write it down right upon waking because I had to eat for iftar first. "I was with H. (a law student from another school in the city) in what looks like an open auditorium to me. Some friends were teasing because he appears to have a crush on me. So did I in that particular dream. I felt the same way towards him. He was not showing much affection but I somehow knew he cared for me. We were walking; he was right beside me. We went upstairs a sturdy staircase, then went down before finally arriving in our destination. That auditorium was more like inside a mall. I bought something at Watson's. Apparently, I got more than what I paid for when the Cashier mistakenly wrapped the things I took, but later on decided, not to purchase. I did not pay for it. I discreetly took it even though I knew of the case. I left my two bags by the counter (one which I paid for on top of the one I did not). I left it with the thought it might send warning alarms ringing because of the unpaid items. Sneaky, I know.

"*Little segue interpretation just so I do not forget. H. is a law student from another school. This dream may suggest my law school life. I may have been cheating on myself, to carry on in my present school. The items I bought were my tuition fees that I paid for. I did not pay the obvious free bag that I got but still grabbed it. Dean initially allowed me to enroll even if there was a possibility that I may have flunked a few subjects last semester that could cause me to be kicked out of the program. That was the free bag, I guess. I was hesitant to bring it over or to carry on as it may give warnings that could put embarrass me in school in worst case scenario. I fear that I may not be able to continue studying in my present school because of the subjects I flunked. That is why I left the bags on the counter. I decided to go with H. Meaning, I was considering transferring to another school. It will be a smooth journey based on my dream. I will be able to obtain my law degree with ease. Except, with regret of wanting to go back and starting over.

"In my dream, I went back to where I left my bags because I felt the importance of that free bag. It only meant one thing. I will regret not making use wisely of the free bag that I got from the Dean, himself.

"On my way back, I was in this sort of parade where everyone looked like a puppet. Pres. Duterte is the leader. Everyone was unhappy and was just going along with his commands. There were soldiers all over the place with no faces to show. I saw H. from the 2nd storey building, watching over me in case anything goes wrong. I lost my way, though. I cannot remember exactly if I was able to get back the free bag. All I know was I was on my way back to the staircase (this time, it was not sturdy but an old rundown kind of staircase). There was a boy sitting on one of the steps. He had no face. My instinct told me that he will run after me when I get to the peak, and he did just that. He followed me through until I was able to descend the next staircase. I confronted him. He stopped. He did not actually harm me. But I did not know what he felt at the moment since he had no face to show. The rundown staircase was just a challenge for me, I thought. I instinctively tore down that particular place like a piece of paper. I tore down layer upon layers of paper until I saw the light. It was a beautiful scenery. It was like a fairytale come true. That concluded that particular dream.

"Other parts of the dream which are not related or have different themes include:

"1. There was a study lamp on the table, a bright one. I improvised and put a glass-like bulb below it to make it even brighter. "2. I was with my nephew running on the mud. Someone was chasing us. "3. I rode a tricycle when the driver brought me somewhere I was not familiar with. His tricycle broke down so I left. He was whipping me with a human-sized hair tie and told me to go back. I was crying. I said I will because I had no intention of going elsewhere. The crying felt like an act, though. *This particular dream rooted from an unpleasant experience I had commuting which I had to act to be safe.

"Then there was this dream that included my parents which I could not remember. The weird thing is, it was the dream that I had right before waking up. I am still trying to remember what it's about.

"I realized, Sir Tony, that more than what I want to admit, I need help. I cannot seem to break free from my self-destructive behavioral pattern. I lost the will to fight for my dreams. I used to love to improve on every aspect in my life. I just lost the will to do so now. I have been considering your suggestion to look for an open-minded psychologist. I just have not find one yet whom I could talk to without fearing to be judged. I know only a handful of psychologists in the area, and I am not particularly close to any one of them. Am I manifesting any sort of mental illness?"

My reply:

Hello _____!

Your interpretation of the first part of the dream is correct. The dreamer is usually the best interpreter of his/her dream.

Note that, in most of your dreams, there is usually a staircase leading to an upper floor (your higher consciousness), and that the dreams set there are direct messages from your psyche. You and H. are one and the same person--you the trickster part of yourself and H. the sober and responsible part of yourself. The boy without a face is also you. He represents your future, which you are still unable to satisfactorily define.

The episode about the parade seems to indicate your awareness that, while you would like to obtain a law degree and have a successful career, you see that you live in a country in which your practice of law may not be as fulfilling as you want it to be because many people are like puppets who act mechanically and do not think for themselves. Your tearing down the scene that follows reflects the defense mechanism denial.

Your act of making the study lamp brighter is a good thing. It shows your positive attitude toward higher learning.

The episode in the tricycle means that you have no recourse but to stay where you are and continue studying well. Just in case you have been feeling that you are in the wrong country.

You could not recall the final episode, involving your parents, because it might have been painful for your ego to remember it. This could mean that, thus far, you have been a disappointment to your parents, perhaps because of your uncertainty or lack of direction. Or maybe they do not share the same vision that you have for yourself.

Dreams are never indications of mental illness especially if their messages are clear. They are beacons in themselves and function as psychological guides. I suggest that you read up on dreamwork and dream analysis, beginning with the works of Strephon Kaplan Williams.

The food vendor who works on Sundays and on holidays rakes in the biggest profit.

You are particularly compatible with persons whose fantasies overlap with yours.

The blackest shade of black is elemental black.

Every woody area has a fairy path invisible to human eyes.

Never locate a trash bin beneath a table laden with treasures.

A foyer is a defense mechanism and is the unfriendliest space in any house. It reflects what you want to show other people, and what you are not but what you are trying to be.

Whenever you think the worst of someone or something, nine times out of ten you are bound to be wrong.

Organized our three mah jong sets and our Bingo set on the bottom shelf of the studio lounge bookcase yesterday. So glad that the red and blue Bingo chips arrived. They look good enough to eat. Now I want orange, green, and yellow ones.

When they gripe too often, the universe serves them something to gripe about everyday.

The clouds are belly dancers' spangled sashes.

Good morning, Cubao!

Still hibernating, though.

A bedtime snack in the kitchen (leftover snacks my granddaughters don't want anymore, and a great way to clear out the ref).

Now snuggling in bed with The Dream Spheres.

Drifting off to sleep later with BBC.

A hot, sweltering night.

In the year 2004 I went through a Forgotten Realms period. I discovered one of the volumes in my book stash this afternoon--Elaine Cunningham's The Dream Spheres. I set it aside to reread later.

Now that I am retired, I enjoy the pleasure of having a tall cup of coffee at 9:00 AM and a tall cup of tea at 3:00 PM while watching the sunlight and knowing full well that everyone else is at a senseless meeting or doing tedious work.

Never go to a tributary. Always go directly to the source.

To give good closure to a drab day, take delight in something, no matter how simple or how trivial it is, and make a big deal of it in your mind.

An hour of true joy each day will keep you alive and well forever.

You dreamt of two items. Retrieve them and place them near you.

In order to be read by everyone, a social media posting should go no more than 20 lines.

Tony Perez's Art of War: Be indifferent to your critics. It endows you with the time and the energy to advance yourself in the very field they want you to leave so that they can take over.

You are not obliged to be available to someone who says that he wants you all over again.

The sun is a yellow diamond stud earring.

Good morning, Cubao!

Slept nine hours last night.

When something negative happens, ask yourself if it could not be much worse.

Paranoia not only shuts the door, it locks it.

Your e-mail message:

"Dear Mr. Tony, 

I have a... dream that i am hoping you can interpret but this one happened a long time ago, maybe when i was still at my early teens. I always dream about cementeries. But I have never been in those cementeries in reality nor did i see those in any tv, movies or print. I always traversed these cementeries with no purpose (as far as i remember) i just walk through this and would wake up after i reached the outside. 

Thanks in advance

p.s. i stopped dreaming about cementeries when i entered college until now (i remember this detail because occasionally in those dreams i happen to encounter some of my elementary friends along walking through these cementeries)

My reply:

Hello _______!

I have two possible interpretations for this dream:

1) You feel disconnected from your ancestors. This is a typical dream of adopted children who wish that they knew who their ancestors were. 

2) Whether you are an adopted child or not, it could mean that you wish you had a different set of parents and relatives altogether. 

The family you are born into and are raised by is pretty much a karmic situation. You have to embrace it and learn whatever lessons you can learn from it. And, as Robert Frost put it, "Home is where, when you go there, they have to take you in."

 

Psychological distress will always aggravate whatever physical illness you have.

One thing I am learning from retirement is that, while I had a lot of fun when I was young, I can afford to have even more fun now that I am much, much older.

A neighbor and I rescued an abandoned kitten today. I'd seen it mewling in the driveway the past two days and hoped that someone would like it enough to pick it up and keep it. Apparently no one did. According to L., who manages my nephew's tenement houses on the compound, it had a sibling who got run over by a car.

This afternoon my neighbor found the kitten covered with ants outside D.'s convenience store. He picked it up and brought it back into the compound. Someone had apparently stepped on its left hind leg because it was limping. It was a friendly kitten, I must say. Despite its weakness it tried to follow the children who were playing in the driveway. It was already too weak to mewl.

I brought out a dish of water mixed with washed sugar. My neighbor wiped the kitten clean and fed it. I was quite glad that he decided to keep it. I gave him a pink basket and lined it with paper, a dish, a dropper, and a can of milk. I hope the kitten grows up to be a happy, healthy cat in its new home.

Undisclosed interest is always taken to mean disinterest.

Some men live deliberately depriving themselves of everything rather than fully experiencing the wonders of Creation.

Closer and closer to the overwhelming marvels of outer space.

When you rest your head on the chest of one who truly loves you, you drift off into blissful sleep.

Solitude is a must because the company of others can drive you to madness.

Fireflies are stars in the night but mere flies in the daytime.

Allow your children to gradually take over as they grow older and more responsible.

Lazy day.

Lunch at home with Angelique, Aubrey, and J.

Doing a batch of laundry for myself.

The sky is a white hibiscus.

Good morning, Cubao!

Slept nine hours last night.

Raging fire, raging water, raging wind, raging earth.

Never be bored with life, no matter how uninteresting a deal you think you have. No two days are identical, and there is always something new to learn and be excited about each day, if only you pause long enough to see it.

If other people can insist on what they want, then so can you.

Always nap or rest by incandescent light.

Artificial flowers are acceptable only if they are made of semi-precious stones, wax, bisque porcelain, or silk.

Gratitude has a shelf life.

Cloud lions roar.

Rain.

Poorer by thousands upon thousands. Paid Angelique's tuition for her first semester in law school. She is enrolled for 19 units.

Keep still and everything will fall in its proper place.

Go where you are secure, not where you can have the most fun.

Sometimes, after you make a list of everything you want, you no longer want them.

Like tea that must steep before pouring, a message must sink in before it can elicit an appropriate reaction.

Ripe clouds portend a bumper crop of rain.

I recall that, instead of using a pen wipe, my cousin used to pass the nib of her fully loaded fountain pen through her hair.

Every exquisite antique is a portal into the past and into the future.

You cannot put down a man who is destined to be greater than you.

When the woman held out the box of candy and firmly said to everyone, "Take one", I knew that she was the type who wants to always be in control.

It is what you are. It is what you do. It is also what you have.

Sometimes time is what you make of it, and it proceeds according to what you are feeling.

How many more roles can you generate for an actress with a face like that?

Build not because you have the money but because you have good construction workers.

Tony Perez's Art of War: It is too late to make amends with an enemy you have killed.

Two cups very black, Italian blend coffee.

Good morning, Cubao!

Slept nine hours last night.

It is easy to determine whether there are elementals inside a house. Turn off all the lights and take digital photos, using flash, of every part of the interior. If orbs show up, they are indications of the presence of elementals. Note the location that shows up the most number of orbs.

The challenge of love is not to be consistent but to be constant.

An acrylic painter without water languishes.

The village idiot is not necessarily the rag man roaming the streets.

You are blessed to have only one thing if many other persons have nothing.

The death of your enemy is never an indication of your victory.

You are terribly shortchanged whenever you do not express your love.

Remember that the first libation is always to the earth.

Figuratively, to have no reflection in a mirror is either a form of denial or a sign of selflessness.

Be in love but do not be completely absorbed by it. Remain in love but remain yourself.

We learn affection, compassion, playfulness, healing, consolation, contentment, loyalty, patience, and responsibility from pets, that is why we like having them around most of the time.

You can always roll up the day like a flax carpet you want to save for later.

It is the opposite of seizing the day.

Your e-mail message:

"Good Afternoon,

"For several months I've been dreaming several scenarios like being a member of a syndicate then double crossing the mastermind of the syndicate and i would end up running away. 

"what bothers me is that:

"1. at some point in my dream my physical self change into another person but i am still aware that that is me only with different looks. this happens when i started my escape from the mastermind. its like im watching the scene as a movie viewer (outsider) but i know that one of the character is me.

"2. whenever i decide to runaway i became concious that i am in a dream but i just continue dreaming. 

"thank you.:

My reply:

Hello ______!

Your dream indicates that your frequently used defense mechanism is self-sabotage. Whenever you are in control and about to accomplish something, your lack of faith in yourself makes you, albeit subconsciously, destroy everything you have done and bring yourself back to Square One. 

Always see things through. Do not be afraid to be the grand prize winner just because you love your co-competitors. You need to be selfish from time to time.

Good morning, Cubao!

The clouds are chrome-plated, chain-link fences.

Now watching Animation Domination. It helps me laugh at the world.

Never lose a good night's sleep over ANY problem. It isn't worth it.

1) Time will change things and solve the problem.
2) Your mind and your heart will be clearer after much-needed rest.
3) We are all interconnected, and there will always be someone who will help bail you out.

Learn the great pleasure of writing on expensive, high-quality paper. You owe it to yourself. It is one of the few things that separate human beings from all other creatures.

It is possible to reinforce your existing walls with astral walls, and to build astral walls in spaces where there are no existing walls.

To this day werewolf shows have not solved the problem of where the werewolf's clothes go once they are shed, and how plausible it is for the werewolf to go back to where they were shed and put them on again without anyone else being a witness to it all.

Never evaluate yourself based on what other people think and say of you, because you should not live according to other people's opinions.

Always live not only to make a difference but to be different as well.

You never walk alone. At least two or three other spirits walk with you.

The universe will surely tell you when you already have too much of anything.

People flaunt it either to make other people envious or to challenge them to do the same.

It is always ignorance that makes a person condescending toward others.

When in a hot tub, stay in the tub until the water cools down to room temperature.

When drinking ice-cold water, do not ingest anything else until the water inside your body warms up to your body temperature.

Pause and reflect after every activity, not after an entire series of activities.

And now I would like to just stay home and hibernate for the next two weeks.

Back from jalan-jalan at the center. Bought bar detergent and washing machine detergent. Had a banana split.

The Wands must remain pointing to the ground.

Slept earlier than usual last night. I seem to have been exhausted by the lunch and tea for W. and The New Spirit Questors. Benjie is still recuperating from the flu and none of M.'s cafe waiters were available.

I also think I prefer only one or two visitors at a time.

When it is time to be forceful or aggressive, have something of your fiercest power animal on you.

Many transgressions are buried so deeply in your past that you no longer have to consciously make up or seek forgiveness for them. What happens, unbeknownst to you, is that you DO make up and seek forgiveness for them, in bits and pieces, over your entire life due to karma.

When having to face others, do not rely solely on your brilliant mind. You have to be well-dressed and extremely presentable also.

Only old buildings have been witnessing happiness for many years.

When the sky loves the earth too much, it will defy gravity and pull the earth toward itself. They will be united, but the earth will be destroyed in the process.

Sometimes the sky loves the earth enough to swallow it whole.

Here be dragons.

It is terribly uncomfortable to be enlightened and not have the people who surround you enlightened as well.

At the theatre, while waiting for workshop participants to arrive, I look at windows I'd been seeing but never looked out from for the past four years. I decide to approach one. I see a portion of the street I've passed many times before, on the way from the hotel to the theatre. I wonder if anyone has ever seen me walking on that street from that window, as I visualize myself walking on that street from where I am standing, at the window.

I am here and I am there, and so are we all, if only we bother to stand up, come close, and look.

Every house has arms and hands. What are your house's arms and hands?

Whatever you decide to leave behind, someone will always take and make good use of.

There are two situations that jump-start innovation: the routine and the non-routine All you have to do is carefully look.

When we deprive others of their happiness, it is usually because we cannot comprehend what their happiness is all about.

Consider that something is always at the expense of something else.

The ____________s will attempt to do a crackdown.

It is when a person leaves that you learn to appreciate him completely.

Having a mobile actually makes you more anxious than you would be without one.

It is impossible to put another man down if he is right and you are wrong.

Whatever you wear conveys different messages to different people.

Watch but do not react. If he/she prefers to look unhappy, do not take it away from him/her.

"Counseling" is an office term used as a weapon by supervisors who are displeased with their subordinates. When a subordinate does not "conform" to what a supervisor wants, he/she is immediately placed on "counseling".

The use of this term is an insult to clinical psychology, because all counseling is client-centered rather than counselor-centered. The correct term that should be used in offices is "brainwashing". Because that is what it really is.

Movies influence how people talk and behave. As a matter of fact, mere trailers even do.

Teenagers walked out of screenings of the first version of Carrie spouting "Shit".

A lot of men are now saying "Yeah" while swallowing the word, as in the latest Spiderman.

And did you ever see women who kept their mouths hanging open the way Natalie Portman did in a Star Wars episode?

In the course of a day and a night, there will be people kind to you and people unkind to you. Teach your heart to remember only memories of the people who were kind to you.

Stop and smell the flowers, but always observe what is going on elsewhere.

To every uncreative person, life is merely a series of meals and laundry chores.

When a mage gives you a stone, don't throw it away. It is usually a diamond in disguise.

What you really need, the cosmos sends your way in the right place at the right time.

The opposite of love is not hate but fear.

Because the opposite of anything is fear, including fear itself.

Authority is always color-coded.

Big ships are symbols of loneliness. They have no siblings and no friends, and they traverse vast oceans alone under the sun and under the moon.

Know philosophy, but do not use it either as a defense mechanism or as a weapon.

Even when love changes, love should change to love.

The true color of the water is more important than the color of the sky it reflects.

Reflection takes time, insight but an instant.

A person who tastes expensive chocolate for the first time will never be satisfied with cheap chocolate again.

The most successful mages are those who are rational and well-grounded 99% of the time.

One is attractive not to one, specific gender only. When one is attractive, one is attractive to all genders.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is a frosted window pane.

Late lunch at M.'s cafe and tea at home in honor of W., with The New Spirit Questors.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sun is a golden sparkler.

Always visualize energy emanating from the center of your body to the top of your head and the soles of your feet.

Competitive persons typically fear old age and death.

Forgiveness opens the door of heaven to those who have been patiently waiting outside it.

Every person has the innate power to heal himself/herself without having to resort to specialists, except that society and community train us to do otherwise.

A brilliant lesson will always have an underlying sleeper effect.

You cannot uplift the spirit of humankind by depicting the triumph of darkness.

Televised street illusionism that employs camera tricks is not street illusionism at all.

Whenever you open a book, try to see the cloud of energy that rises from its pages.

If an object generates negative energy, transfer it to a different room and wait for its energy to reverse. Do not stow it away. If you do that, the negative energy will merely incubate.

Setting a small mirror flat on your desk creates a pond, and brings the element water to your work.

Whenever you sit under a tree, it will either encourage you to stay or it will drive you away.

What your body looks like never reflects what your spirit is.

It always feels better to be hurting and be held in a loving person's arms rather than be hurting in secret and alone.

Watched a replay of Ghostbusters on HBO. I enjoyed it, and I wonder if many other people did. There is something off about females playing trickster roles. In ancient history, trickster archetypes are male. There are no female tricksters, from African mythology all the way to the anthropology of Joseph Campbell and the depth psychology of Carl Jung.

Three-hour, deep tissue massage with ventosa.

And then one of my antique dealers arrived.

Rain.

Lunch at home with the granddaughters. We ordered food from M.'s cafe. I usually send them our plates, and the food is sent to us through the secret passage between the pantry and the studio foyer.

Though no one else will admit it, I see that luxury and freedom from work comprise the ultimate objective of everyone, artist or non-artist, and that immortality is merely a by-product of one's efforts.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is a garden of white cacti.

Watched The Darkness, Saturday Night Premiere on HBO. Interesting interface with mystical Anasazi stones and power animals.

Dinner at home with Aubrey. Angelique and J. are watching Wonder Woman and having dinner out, even in this weather.

Drizzly evening in Cubao.

Causing others much suffering is probably one of the greatest sins.

Every tyrant really hates himself, especially when no one else is looking.

Organize your trash in a neat and orderly manner. Only then will your life be neat and orderly as well.

There should be, in your possession, one item that reminds you of every major phase or accomplishment in your life.

Sometimes it is the more expensive item that saves you money in the long run.

He who always insists on having the last word never really has it as soon as his back is turned.

Giving and sharing are two different acts of compassion.

A man's apparent failure could very well be an actual success.

It is the well-dressed artist who produces presentable art consistently.

Give, or the cosmos will take from you.

When the rain descends, the clouds lower thousands of water fairies on white swings.

One man's insanity is another man's rationality.

Bought four detail brushes and a brush wallet yesterday. Yes, I'm about to paint someone's portrait again.

Two cups black, Italian blend coffee.

Good morning, Cubao!

The clouds are tubes of titanium white acrylic paint.

I hugged each participant in the circle at the end of the workshop. Three of them drew psychic energy from me.

The werewolf crossed the street to the burger stand.

And to the fruit stand as well.

I still cannot understand why people prefer front-loading washing machines over top-loading ones. I've had both and find the latter more convenient.

Friday afternoon in the smoking area of the Cubao Hogwarts Espresso Station. Angelique is sitting with a chocolate hazelnut drink inside the cafe. We are both waiting for Aubrey to text-message that her session with our family dentist is over.

It is a rainy afternoon. I have never sat here like this before. I am mulling over the fact that the care of children's teeth, when taken seriously, is as expensive as their tuition.

The sky is a dirty white. From where I am I see a brightly lighted, red "Full" sign at the entrance to a parking basement. Above, I see the phrase "IS THE LORD" on top of a building. The tiles on the pavement are as wet and as slick as mirrors. White frangipani flowers fall in a shower like bridal confetti.

The cloud mothers tell me that they scudded all the way from Singapore, where it also rained, and where some of my workshop participants were also sitting down to coffee.

I almost feel as though the workshop participants will walk by me.

Because I am here and I am there.

Nonchalance is the mask of passion.

We always grieve over the irreversible.

Going haute in a Third World country is a dead-end road, because even in First World countries it is not sought out as much as you think.

A beautiful thing is always remembered like a dream.

Expose yourself to pink sunset light whenever you can.

A broken glass or a broken dish should be replaced immediately.

If you are desperate for romance, install a small, tabletop fountain inside your bedroom. Ensure that it is always clean. It functions as a shivalingam. The power may be turned on but a few minutes a day, when you are meditating.

Never let your best friend or lover influence how you think and feel just because he thinks and feels strongly about someone or something.

He/she is merely recruiting allies, beginning with you.

Back from jalan-jalan. Neither Henry nor SM has the table I want. Paid our phone bill, then met up with the granddaughters at the family dentist's. Angelique and I sauntered over to the Cubao Hogwarts Espresso Station while waiting for Aubrey's braces to be adjusted. Bought a brush wallet and several brushes at National Book Store. Gave the granddaughters money to do groceries and buy their girl stuff. Dinner at Inasal after. Grab car going home.

Isn't Filipino pork steak really bak kut teh?

Last messages for workshop participants:

Sunday, June 4, 2017

Beverly: I will be your teacher longer than you think.
Danial: Magic can make impossible things happen.
Eleanor: Curiosity does not kill a cat. It opens doors for it.
Eve: It is safe to be a mother or a sister, but it is more exciting to be a lover.
Ivan: The ball is in your court.
Jasmine: I can see the tears on your pillow. Take life one dream at a time.
Jean: Yes, I know.
Helmi: When one is in love, one loves everyone.
Min: Never feel like the right person in the wrong country.
Sarah: Because you fear break-ups, you break up first. Break the pattern.
Wai Leng: Everybody deserves to have fun.
Wisely: Ask before you receive.
Yvonne: You will never look at things the same way again.

Coming Home

Luggage in airport car
Door shuts closed
What am I taking home with me?
Memories of boys like birds
With broken wings, in need of healing
Bright colors of painted temple gods
The scent of cumin
Love unspoken by a fearful heart

The house glows with lamplight
The night sings
My bedroom takes me in its arms
And shakes the dust off the sheets
But long into dawn
I think of you, of the love unspoken
By your fearful heart

Singapore - Manila, Monday, June 5, 2017

A cup of Robert Timms coffee.

Sat on the balcony after breakfast. The caterer's Filipino waiter employee is at the omelette counter. Actually he looks Chinese; I have no idea that he is FIlipino. When I say, "Omelette, all in" he responds "All in po?" and I am perplexed. Only after he asks "Are you a Filipino?" do I realize what he means. He worked at UAE before coming to Singapore; he likes it in Singapore better because, he says, the pay is higher.

A blackbird goes for the cheese on one of the buffet tables.

Zi Yan picks me up 11:15 M. We check out from the hotel and take a taxi to the airport. We see a flyer seat sample on the way. I do some souvenir shopping for my sister Alice, Angelique, Aubrey, and J. I see a lot of Korean jade jewelry and remember that I have a pendant like that at home.

I drink a root beer and some water before checking into the departure room.

On the plane I watch parts of _The Great Wall_ (nothing but a video game), an Indian movie titled _Budhia Singh_ (an Indian _Karate Kid_?), and another Indian film titled _Akira_ (interesting treatment).

Since there was a slight delay in boarding, we are due to arrive in Manila 5:40 PM.

I take an airport taxi and arrive home 9:00 PM. The granddaughters and Cerefina meet me at the door.

Day 6, Writing from The Heart workshop, Sunday, June 4, 2017

I rise at 8:00 AM and make ready for the 10:00 AM beginning of today's workshop session.

10:00 AM - 13:00 PM Morning session

I take Teow Li and Zi Yan up to the hotel room. Teow Li brings me the Starbucks mugs that my Sylvia asked me to buy for her. Then we take a taxi to Little India.

A late lunch at the hawkers' center in Little India. I buy the shivalingam.

Taxi back to the theatre.

Teow Li observes some exercises, including an emotional truth exercise.

1:00 - 7:00 PM, Afternoon session. We are due to wrap up at 5:00 PM but extend the workshop by two hours.

Dinner with Helmi and workshop participants and staff at BarBar restaurant.

I walk back to the hotel 9:45 PM and pack for tomorrow's flight.

I sleep 1:30 AM - 8:30 AM.

Jalan-jalan day. Taking the granddaughters to the family dentist's, paying our phone bill, checking out a table at Henry's shop, doing groceries, and having dinner out.

Dramatized readings of plays by last year's workshop participants, Saturday, June 3, 2017

I rise at 8:00 AM.

A cup of Robert Timms coffee and a slice of rice cake.

Hotel breakfast. I sit with the caterer on the balcony again.

I use one of the hotel computers on the second floor briefly. I post guidelines and Message Angelique, Jerwin, and a few close friends. It is nice to know that everything is all right back home.

At the theatre I see De Jun, a workshop participant from three years ago, who is fulfilling his Army conscription, which will end November 2018. He was 16 when he joined that workshop; he is 19 now and taller than I am. We have lunch at the bak kut teh stand.

2:00 - 4:00 PM, Dramatized reading of Isaac's play.

5:00 - 7:00 PM, Dramatized reading of Mae Shen's play.

8:00 - 10:00 PM, Dramatized reading of Beverly's play.

It is a long day but Zi Yan managed to purchase the gold- and silver-backed mahjong sets for me in the morning, and I am happy and excited, like a little boy who just received his much-wanted toys.

I do a brief psychic reading of De Jun.

I am back in my hotel room by 11:00 PM.

I sleep 12:00 MN - 8:00 AM.

Our family jeweler visits.

Ordered a pair of gold creole earrings for Aubrey, who wants an ear pierced before classes begin.

Considered going back to wearing gold necklaces again, which was the in thing here in the mid-90s. They went out of fashion for more than two decades, but hey, gold is gold and no one can tell me what to wear and not wear.

Day 5, Writing from The Heart workshop, Friday, June 2, 2017

A late breakfast. Zi Yan delivers a new sheaf of scripts, printed out from last night, to the hotel.

I sit in the swimming pool area while the housekeeping person does my room.

I have two dramaturgy sessions in the afternoon--first with Jacky, then with Kai.

Quite strangely, I have a pang of homesickness. This is something I never felt when Ivy was still with us. I then felt free to take off and do workshops, knowing that she would take care of the house and the granddaughters. Now there are only the granddaughters, plus J., whom I asked to visit the house more often than usual when I am away. I console myself with the thought that this is an opportunity for the granddaughters to take care of the house, their meals, and the pets without my assistance.

Important messages from the O.s and the K.T.s.

Good fifth workshop session.

Day 4, Writing from The Heart workshop, Thursday, June 1, 2017

Hotel breakfast. Sat with the caterer on the balcony again. A double espresso and cigarettes.

12:00 NN dramaturgy session with Pamela, who dipped out of work on her lunch break just to meet with me. Pamela's play won the grand prize in last year's 24-Hour Playwriting Competition. She is moving to Boston with her husband soon but, of course, we will keep in touch within the next year or two.

I always says "a year or two" to the workshop participants even if we actually remain in touch much longer, for the rest of our lives, forever.

Lunch with TT and Zi Yan in Little India. I accepted a dangerous invitation. When I use the rest room, which is way out in the back of the restaurant, I discover a long row of shops selling Indian stuff and I immediately want to spend my money on everything. I control myself.

Zi Yan takes me back to the hotel.

Later, on the way to the theatre to conduct the fourth workshop session, I discover a soda vending machine. The prices are lower than the usual, and so I buy two root beers for later.

Good morning, Cubao!

The sky is a bowl of fresh coconut water.

Day 3, Writing from The Heart workshop, Wednesday, May 31, 2017.

Rose at 9:00 AM.

Read all of the drafts that the participants wrote and sent to the theatre printer last night. Quite good; I am extremely pleased with their output.

A sunny day. Walked to the theatre at 2:00 PM. Dramaturgy session with Nanda. We resume in August because he needs time to write and defend his dissertation.

Couldn't nap today. Watched the news on TV. Marawi is always being featured.

Prepared props for the evening's session.

Last night I did a regression exercise and went back to a previous lifetime. I thought that I would find myself in a foreign country but I saw that I was still in the Philippines. I was a 12-year-old boy--a Sikh (?), because even at that age I was already being required by my father to wear a dark turban. My turban was navy blue. I felt that I was in the 1600s (there were no calendars around where I was). I had a friend, a Mexican seafarer, from whom I ordered a small, silver dagger inlaid with turquoise. It took six months for the dagger to arrive. Other people ordered stuff as well, and everyone looked forward to the coming of the ships. I was still anchored in my conscious, and I thought to myself, "The Mexican Galleon Trade is the amazon.com of the time."

When I opened my eyes a spirit guide told me that comatose patients usually revisit their previous lifetimes as well, but linger in the most crucial one, and not all of them are able to consciously assess what they see.