Author Archives
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Caro and Chrizly
(A lost tale from over ten years ago during residency) Senior consultant Dr. Angelito Caro, with his authoritative heft and characteristic scowl, towered mightily over me at the nurse’s station. It was the morning after my 24-hour duty in the… Read More ›
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Clarizzie’s Syndrome’s Theory
I decided to watch A History of Swear Words in Netflix while doing a very lazy session on the elliptical. The first episode is about the etymology of the word FUCK. Back in 1998 my college friend Timmy, a self-proclaimed… Read More ›
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The New Scarlet Letter
Got to eat again in Su Zhou, a chinese restaurant in Malate. The last time we ate there was over a year ago. It got closed for renovation sometime in February, then the lockdown caught up to it. The restaurant… Read More ›
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Six Degrees of Separation
The recent White House siege reminds me of something out of the tv series Homeland and its cousin 24. I could have said that it reminds me of that battle between Wonder Woman and Punk Rock Cheetah, but the less… Read More ›
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Fortress of Mold-titude
Was able to spend a few days in my fortress of solitude in Lipa, which is a stone’s throw away from the hospital where I have the bulk of my practice. I decided to purchase it a few years ago… Read More ›
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Apex Predator What?
In 2004, after my duty as an ENT rotator, I watched the Catwoman movie featuring Halle Berry in Robinson’s Ermita. It was bad, but I kind of enjoyed it. It was at least short, it was unintentionally funny, and I… Read More ›
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Aroint Thee, 2020!
Was jolted to wakefulness by a very strong Christmas earthquake. I felt like I was getting exorcised for the advanced alcoholism, pottymouthedness, and veiled blackheartedness I’ve nurtured this year. My friend Namtab Pots who lives on the top floor of… Read More ›
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Still Waiting!
After attending the European Society of Medical Oncology annual convention in Madrid last October 2019, Monique organized a side trip to Rovaniemi, Finland. The trek to the mountains to see the northern lights was not really successful. Vladimir Kromov, our… Read More ›
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Capsule Quest 2012
One of my patients from Tarlac, Marco, texted to ask if he could come to the clinic. He was about to take this new chemotherapy drug, and he wanted me to personally teach him how to do it. It… Read More ›
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Graceless, Poiseless
One day these frantic wang-wangs will crash into me and summarily cause decapitation. Special mention of hate to these political vehicles who feel like they own entire stretches of land, but I am not excluding ambulances. We know that even… Read More ›
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The Summer of Bene Gesserritt
In the summer of 2007 my dear friend Bene Gesseritt experienced true love. A newly-boarded physician, she dashed to Boracay to work as an island doctoress and met all sorts of patients– gonorrheic Germans, kinky Koreans, alliterative Alabanians and all,… Read More ›
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Festering Abortuses
Whenever I see men in power who are seemingly beyond reproach I can’t help but suspect that something must be wrong. Like there’s some disgusting secret lurking in there, beneath the well-pressed clothes and the expensive perfume and the well-combed… Read More ›
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Choki-Choki, Smoketh, Joshua
Choki-Choki and Smoketh tried to have a good lunch in Tagaytay. They tried. But as they have so whined in every stop they’ve made: “Andaming tao!” Our standard for “madami” has drastically changed. Finally they found a bulalo place where… Read More ›
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Tagaytay Titahan
While gorging on organic turon, organic chocolate cake, and organic sweet potatoes Smoketh was regaling us with the things she has to deal with as the training officer in a government hospital. Recently some trainee hellows under her care have… Read More ›
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Yellow
Mr. Joey Santos has long been considered a “high profile” patient, not because of wealth or position, but because he has been extraordinarily compliant with all of his treatments in the past six years. Many in the hospital staff… Read More ›
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The Infernal Pssssst
On our way back from UP we noted that there were already hordes of people flocking outside Quiapo church. I am reminded that my friend Ardee-kid and I used to go to Quiapo over a decade ago… to get DVD’s…. Read More ›
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Cokelya Aspiratoria
While driving along Binan and drinking Coke-in-can at the same time (deadly combination), I came across a huge job wanted sign for a soon-to-open spa that says: Wanted: Female 28-35 Years Old. No Pleasing Personality. No Experience. Hiwalay sa… Read More ›
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Individually-Wrapped Oscha
So many people in UP Diliman on a Sunday, which means that people love parks. We need more parks, rather than more Ayala Malls which, you have to admit, are merely photocopies of each other. Each visit to an Ayala… Read More ›
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Dredged-Up Bitternesses
I’m currently halfway through the fantastic show The Queen’s Gambit, and it dredged up horrible childhood memories. Not really too horrible, but these days one can’t be too histrionic. One of my cousins taught us chess when we were very… Read More ›
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Shock, Engulfment, Tearing Asunder
I’ve been doing a re-watch of old Twilight Zone episodes recently. The latest reboot of Jordan Peele seemed promising but each episode is too long and drawn out. So much time is spent on building the tension up, by the… Read More ›
