Month: July 2010
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Cycling Story
Well-built, genial, and hardworking, Mandie immediately got Lisa’s attention. He came in one morning at the bakery to ease her uncle’s heavy load. Lisa grew fonder of Mandie when he taught her how to pedal. Even her father didn’t find time to do that. Yet this man whom she hardly knew volunteered to teach her. How nice of…
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Pirc Perks
I loved Pirc: 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3, 3…g6. A king-side meek opening for black, it’s often summoned by close-gamers. The main aim is to secure the King’s position through early castling and to allow white to exploit the center (1.e4, 2. d4) at the beginning of the game. A chess arbiter, who happened to be observing my…
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Disfigured
With the pristine sights of green fields, refreshing whizz of winds, chantings of rushing waters, and everything around shaded by sunset, Lisa never felt a slight weariness walking home. “Heavenly”, she sighed in awe. Noiselessly, a grotesque figure with a broad head and a very round face came up and blocked her way. Though horrified, instinct drove Lisa’s feet…
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The Spelling Bee
As big, wide eyes focused on Lisa, she marveled at those tiny creatures glued to branches of trees in the wooded spot where their jeepney passed by. She hoped to stop the driver, yet it was not the time to go nuts. She was competing for a Spelling Bee – in Filipino. She laughed at…
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Zest for School
At the crack of each dawn, Lisa hurriedly gets out of bed and goes to her aunt’s bakery shop tagging along two of her younger siblings to help out. Filing the biscuits on silver trays before they’re put inside the oven is as easy as a pie. That’s why even Lisa’s younger sisters could do…
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Get Lucky
When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other. We all have our fair share of luck – good or bad. Question is: are you ready to get lucky? I’m no feng shui master nor star-reader, I’m just opinionated, ergo, here’s my…
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The Mossy Ground
“What happened to your face?” her Aunt Carol asked. “It’s nothing. I just bumped into something,” Lisa nonchalantly answered. Her bluish-black left cheek was due to Ritch’s punch when she pissed him off while they were swimming. She really had a hard time pleasing her arrogant, bratty, and powerful cousin. Owning a bike is power….
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Coffee, Everyone?
We all probably need coffee or we’re all in peril dozing off in the face of inanity. I was surprised I had to look up the meaning of ‘inane’ just to be sure of what Richard Mitchell meant in his foreword at “Less Than Words Can Say”. The last sentence made me drink my second…
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Settling In
“Is she your only daughter? Ms. Vargas asked. Why would she think I’m an only child? Lisa thought. Now, she had regrets seeing how distressed her mom was having to tell her previous classmates that she already has six kids. “No.” “I think she’s smart enough to meet this school’s high standards,” Lisa felt a lump in her throat upon hearing ‘smart’. “She’s…