At around lunch time, Metro Manila experienced the fury of Typhoon Milenyo. It has center wind of 135kph with gustiness of 160kph. Two hours later, I can see clear sky over Laguna de Bay from our office at 12th floor Philippine Stock Exchange Building in Ortigas. It has moved to China Sea.

Milenyo is not so strong a typhoon compared to Typhoon Dading that hit Metro Manila in October 1964. With center wind of 180 kph it tore a lot roofs and uprooted trees in our neighborhood at La Paz, Makati. Most of the streets of our barangay was inundated by knee deep flood water. Together with my Uncle Carding, we constructed floaters made of banana trunks. We went around the streets of Hawaii, FLeurdelis and Guam. During that time flood water was relatively clean.

Then came Typhoon Yoling in November 1970. With its 200 kph center wind and 240 kph gustiness, one whole roof of a three story apartment at Archimedes St, La Paz came off and landed a few meters away. We had a long school break at MaSci after Yoling. The monicker "niyoling" became a buzz word to describe any devastation like failed exam!

Labels: CEO blog, dading, Efren Ricalde, hawaii, la paz, Makati, Milenyo, ortigas, typhoon, yoling

 
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MaSci to GSI is a documentation of what I longed to share with human history. This blog stores snapshots of things I remembered that makes me today.

MaSci to GSI is not a history book nor an autobiography but links and networks of events, people and ideas as far as I can remember when I was a kid in our home in San Andres street near Singalong Church.

MaSci or Manila Science High School is a key milestone in my life. MaSci to GSI is a spectrum of experiences, knowledge and creative insights.

Before, I only know about my parents home. It crafted my integrity, resiliency and flexibilty. MaSci trained me to become a competitor - an honest and hardworking gladiator.

At UP, I became a First Quarter Stormer! UP my beloved gave my parents a beautiful dream.

Brunei Shell Petroleum made me a photographer, book worm, tennis player, Singapore tourist, and a family man. It changed my technology mindset. GSI or GeoSpatial Solutions, Inc shaped by entrepreneurship and dreams.

GSI, paves my vision for common good, entrepreneuship and nationalism.

This time, I may be able to answer questions, observations and eccentricities such as why I like photography, classical guitar, tennis, physics, poetry and dreams; that as a kid at 9 years old I would stand beside Nanay's sari-sari store in the evening and scan the sky using my home made telescope almost everyday.

Why I can feel and smell the weather. Why I can visualize the photo I going to take the night before a photo contest? Why I went to MaSci, UP, GSI and IBM? What made me an entrepreneur like my Nanay, who is a sari-sari store owner for 40 years! Why are my parents successful in discplining their eight children - including me.

Why I love my parents, kids, teachers,colleagues and soul-mate so much. Why do I dream of making people close to me successful?

Why do I dislike thieves who stole in the middle of the day? My relatives, officemates, honest Filipinos, and God know all of them!

Why I like Ms Cruz of RPES, Mr Valbuena of UP Geology, Ms Suzette Badon of UP Geography, Ms Nelly Ramos Rana & Ms Concepcion of MaSci, Prof Hernandez & Prof Vila of UP Geodetic Eng'g, Engr Bert Tato of GEP, Consul Hermes Dorado & his wife Susan of GSI, Gabriel and Jocelyne Leiva of UNISYS, Mr Jimmy Ledesma of Meralco, Ms Lynette Lim of Zenshin, Mr Jajo Quintos, Peter Laud, Loke Peng Yuen, Tesa Abaya of IBM.

Why I admired IBM.

This is dedicated to my Tatay (father), Enrique and my Nanay (mother), Virginia who are now in peace with God. They are my heroes!

Plato said - "the beginning is the most important part of the work."

This blog starts today, a very important part of my life.

Labels: CEO blog, Gabriel Leiva, GSI, IBM, Manila Science, MaSci, MSHS, nelly rana, plato, quintos, Ricalde, UP, valbuena, zenshin

 
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