WITHIN AND BEYOND THE SEA OF COUDS

Humanity is the Middle Kingdom, a thin place caught between the collision of the Divine (heaven) and the Material (earth).

Such is Binuangan where at 850 meters above sea level, the celestial waters break through the firmanent, copulate with the terrastrial ecosystem, and ejaculate an overcast layer of stratocumulus clouds over the Caraballo Mountains. 

It was this Sea of Clouds that parted to finally expose the mystery of Belance, 823 meters above sea level, a place so often heard in Almaguer where heavy duty upland-designed jeepneys passed through once a week before the paving of the Malasin-DM Junction Road.    

There was Muta (774 above sea level) and Antutot (706 above sea level) in Kasibu, erstwhile lair of communist insurgents, a pensieve that kept the memory of a young boy crossing a stream with his father to a sawmill, to a carinderia that is also a pondahan, once upon a time in Bambang before the emergence of the Edralin Falls. 

And there was Malico, contested by Nueva Vizcaya and Pangasinan at 1,248 meters above sea level, that claims to be the Home of Clouds --- clouds that were absent at Salacsac Pass and the fields that bore strawberry-flavored ice cream at the box office of the M4 Sherman Tank curio.

SNR-Cabanatuan is the Mother House, the crowd that squeezed out a merlot and a camembert from Mariwasa ceramic tiles to incubate prosperity with 12 round fruits, 100 pieces of newly minted 20-peso coins, a red salted egg, and two versions of patatim.  

No, the baked pork ribs and chicken for 2026 were not reheated like the lumpiang shanghai and crispy pata of 2025: it represented the Phantom Biker riding away from the old year to greet the new one but without the usual fireworks.  

After the clouds have cleared, blood was drawn to rinse the inbox of a nuclear imaging test that revealed the severed heads of soured mahi-mahi and red snapper from Goshen, a place where the Israelites lived in Bamban that is indeed "little" but does not resemble Rome at all.

This was the keynote address delivered at the 19th installation rites of the Craft where beer and wine tasted like the delayed serving of lechon baka.

HOW ASAHI BEER STOLE CHRISTMAS

Not exactly "stolen" but "preluded" then "wrapped-up.

In 1889, Japan's first bottled draft beer rose with the sun in Sumida.

136 years later, it was promoted as a super dry lager, 60 pieces procured for Bakal 2 by way of SNR-Dau's "buy 1-take 1" offering of which, 48 ushered Christmas Eve and the remaining 12 closed Christmas Day. 

In other words, Asahi Beer did not steal but eclipsed Christmas by elevating the 24th's pork belly lechon and tokwa't baboy and the 25th's reheated dinakdakan and lengua. 

Sandwiched in between is a Christmas brunch of "unclean" bacon-loaded Carbonara Italiana and "clean" pan-grilled semi-Wagyu cubes. 

On the 4th day of Christmas, the law of Leviticus 11 as applied in Pangasinan was imposed in the kitchen of Bakal 2: kulitis and papait leaves were blanched; scaled maya-maya, salinas, tuna, and Bonuan Bangus were stewed, crisped, sashimied, and grilled respectively;  and two buckets of fried bird pre-ordered from Jollibee. 

But there was Cabernet Sauvignon because apparently, Jesus drinks wine.

In Munoz, holiday early morning lights blinked with an array of Microsoft Outlook correspondence about how the fish monger handed a present enclosed with recommendations for a regional component to Hogwarts where a story gathering and branding for The Convening was advertised as a contract for toolkit procurement that was auctioned in the market --- just too  much text for The Grinch who fled Christmas instead of stealing it.

The Ironman hoarded bank certificates and, during a regular ctach-up, thought of stealing New Year's Eve like perhaps repackaging beer as a tub of Spanish sardines, maybe like siomai in a paper cup, or an inihaw na liempo wrapped in styropor. 

THE BALI WORKSHOP

Is Kuta Beach worth a long walk under a soft rain?

Yes with the following conditions:

• it should be introduced as a project that will promote  inclusion; 
• it must adhere to partnership principles, employs effective communication to enable the thinking hats in  ideating a problem statement;
• it is ethical, with specific stakehoders employing feminist and participatory methodologies, and is sufficiently resourced.

The following can be the initial research questions:

1. How long will 3 kilos of batutay and 4 boxes of silvanas travel from Bakal 2 to 150 Panay Avenue?
2. Why must the Baliwag Bus make a stop at Dau?
3. Who changed the boarding gate for PR 537 twice?

The Orientals, they talk once a week and every three months but have no idea; and so are the harelip who drives a Grab in Manila and the airport transfer hitched through the streets of Bali where a sweeper collected Daily Offerings for the Temple Guards of the Prosperity Tree near a roadside take-out under the Bintang Tree of a tattoo shop.

But yes, it's worth getting lost and wet in Kuta Beach.

The dogs and surfers of Legian Beach concurred while conferring with a horde of tourists, mostly Aussies, at what was once the site of Paddy's Pub, a Balinese-owned Irish-inspired bar that contributed in transforming the Legian area into a thriving nightlife destination, which is probably why the Bali Bombers targetted it.

   

That Manila will host a meeting, a field visit, and a convening is definitive.

Procurement will be daunting as currently is, perhaps nose studed like the young lady aboard the bus to Bakal 2, a trek that is amply rewarded with 3 nights of babi guling (and bebek) because despite the bad reviews, Kuta Beach was a highlight of The Bali Workshop.

Back in Nueva Ecija, Bali is rememered to be sleepless as a caffeinated legislator yet intoxicating like a bottle of blended Scotch whiskey, warm despite the incessant rains) as a Sunday breakfast in Bakal 2.