When The One You Love Is Far Away

When the spouse is left in the hometown and the other half is far away working, either one could fall into some devil's trap. Loneliness, emotional and physical deprivation, intrigues, rumors and peer pressures could lead to some marital disasters.

I've heard of stories of OFWs cohabiting with fellow OFWs in the foreign land, but returning to their separate families when they return here in the Philippines. And when they go back abroad, they continue to live their lives with their partners, or someone. In Cebuano, "basta naa lang kapahungawan sa kamingaw."

I also heard of a story wherein the husband married a citizen of his destination country just to obtain citizenship. The wife was just sent a divorce paper with the assurance that he will return to her someday when he becomes a full-fledged citizen. And the wife just closed her eyes, signed the papers, and wished him all the best.

Some of my colleagues who were assigned to some others places, frequent bars and massage parlors just to relieve themselves. Some one-night stand they say. Maintaining someone is much more expensive. And they would even pressure me to do the same as if we both stood on the same ground. "Ang swerte mo naman! Wala pala asawa mo dito!" How many times I've heard those same phrase.

But I believe that marital fidelity is not just an option or the last resort. To be faithful to the one you love (whether near or far) - that is how it should be. Living alone in Manila while wifey is in Cebu, poses a lot of challenges. But with God's help, and prayers of support from family and friends, we can overcome.

Valentine's Day romantic thoughts and ideas are floating in my mind right now. I miss my wife more and more now that Valentine's day is fast approaching.

Sports and Everything

This 3 year old blog of mine is filled with posts about sports. Yeah, 34 entries under Sports category. It is my habit to read first the sports section of the newspaper and check espn, philboxing, and yahoo sports every now and them. And when I find an interesting item, I blog about it.

And so I set up a sports blog wherein I could write anything and everything about the different sports I love and are familiar with. I had my own predictions of the Pacquiao vs Hatton boxing fight. If the bout will be held in UK, our own hero is in great danger.

As to tennis, my predictions for the Australian Open 2009 Men's Finals is a match between Roger Federer and Andy Murray. Of course, King Roger will have to win. (With apologies to Rafa fans).

As to my sports life, I guess living alone here in Manila will give me more time to blog and play real sports. I can play badminton every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturdays. A work colleague set up the pingpong table at our company's warehouse. A basketball court is right there in front of our house in Sucat. But a busy work schedule and laziness are two things that would deter me from getting back into shape.

Google Giveth, Google Taketh Away

This is the third time that Google took away my pagerank for this blog. From previous high of PR4 at the end of 2007, to nil in 2008's latest PR toolbar update. The update happened while we were all enjoying the holidays.

I was actually hoping for a restoration of my PR. I haven't done any paid post for the last six months, rejected some opportunities, and even included rel="nofollow" in most of my expired paid links.

But again, the big G changed its algorithms for the nth time. No need for me to ask for a reconsideration as everything must have been done within their rules. I have also accepted the fact that no PR is needed in this blog as I am not monetizing it with paid reviews. I was just fortunate to have experienced that PR4 and gained around $500 doing paid reviews for 4 months in the past.

Oh, well! It's life. With or without PR, the fun in blogging continues. And it reminds me not to reject paid posts opportunities the next time it comes.