A typhoon has been long threatening us these last few days with large amounts of wind and heavy rain. Mainland Manila has been flooding but here on the island things have been fairer though not the pleasant paradise my previous pictures have shown. We lost power yesterday afternoon and while this is not all uncommon for an hour or so its return was far delayed by the storm. Only late this evening did we finally regain power. Thankfully we were not without candles and a trusty propane stove. So although our eyes may have been strained slightly while playing cards into the night our bellies did not go unfilled.
One might think or rather hope that while a storm was beating upon our shore that training would be placed on hold. Not so with Master Rodel. We continued our early morning and afternoon Arnis sessions in the pouring rain and at times amid dazzling lightning and thunderous booms. Thankfully our swimming and hiking workouts were canceled and I was able to gather some much needed rest. I have spent the last few days battling a mild ear infection that has left me sleepless and a touch off balance.
In other news our house has gained another tenant aside from Master. As you may have noticed in the photos below we have been joined by a quite loveable crab-eating macaque. Her name is Jenny, though we refer to her simply as “Monkey.” At just over a year old Monkey escaped exportation as a lab money by first befriending the Mad Frenchman DeeDee and now by taking up residence within our lovely domicile.
In other news I am presently about halfway through the Lord of the Rings book series hovering somewhere around page five hundred or just over a thousand. It’s a quicker read than some would have lead me to believe but certainly not what one would call “light reading.” Funny however that amid its pages I found a single dried rose which when discovered drew a smile from my lips but as time progressed simply weighed heavy on my heart. I gave my copy of “The Hobbit” to the young boy Trevor that lives next store as I do not plan on returning with any of my books. In return he brought me a copy of the children’s novel “The Ratastrophe Catastrophe,” a retelling of the Pied Piper, which I may choose to read next if I finish before my copy of “The Mammoth Hunters” arrives.
I will no longer bore you with ramblings on books and the lamenting of bruised limbs. Instead I bid you farewell from the South Pacific. May you grow up but never old!
