12 Tips: Be part of excellence, not critical of it.

Snapshots: disturbing views on the road

Dr Abe V Rotor
Lesson on Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid with Ms Melly C Tenorio,
738 DZRB 8 to 9 Evening Class, Monday to Friday

"A picture means a thousand words." 

  

On smoke belching vehicles 

Tricycle on main road 

  Wrong lane, blind rear view

 Road construction hazard 

Double traffic violation

How accurate are folk measurements?

Dr Abe V Rotor

Old folks would tell a child that the total length of the outstretched arms fingertip to fingertip is equivalent to the height of the person. This is based on the drawing of Leonardo da Vinci. Is this true? What don’t you try it on yourself? They also say that the least shadow you make, the closer it is to noontime. This is of course without reference to the declination of the sun, and the season of the year.

How do you count seconds and minutes without a timepiece? When counting seconds, it is more precise to count, “one-hundred-one, one-hundred-two, one-hundred-three, and so on.” This traditional technique is used today in photography (light exposure, shutter speed), games (swimming and track race), and during emergency (CPR, measuring body temperature, pulse rate). It may be useful in our daily routine (cooking, exercise).

There is no assurance of accuracy in these means of measurement. Take for instance when one says “isang sigarilyo lang ang layo” (it takes a stick of cigarette to reach the place), and the guide has yet to light his cigarette and you have gone a long way. Or somebody says, “It is only at the other side of the mountain.” Which mountain and how many are there?


When is a child ready for school?

In earlier times when there were no nurseries, kindergartens, and preparatory schools, this is the simple way to know when children are ready for Grade 1.

The potential enrollee stands straight before the principal or teacher. He is asked to stretch his right hand across the top his head in order to touch his left ear without tilting his head. He must do the same with his left hand to touch his right ear. If he passes this test without difficulty he is ready for schooling. At this stage the child is around seven years old, the age of reason. He is now in pre-adolescence.~

Dog artist

Dog artist
Dr Abe V Rotor

Kulit at home 2013*

An artist by accident or game,  

      she bears the colors of the sun;

Calmly she lays by a stroller,    

     leaving her art when gone. 

*Kulit passed away a week after this photo was taken.  She was 12 years old. 

"Too many cooks spoil the broth."

The Lighter Side of Human Nature
"Too many cooks spoil the broth."

"Too many cooks spoil the broth."
Adapted from a popular story by Dr Abe V Rotor

A teenage son bought a pair of pants too long for him by two inches, he had to have it cut and sewed. Not having the skill to do it, and even if he did, some one can always accede to his request - he is the bunso (youngest) child in the family and the center of attention and service.

But on this particular day, on this particular hour, every one he approached to shorten his pants said, “Later, after I have finished what I am doing.”

His sister was cooking, his mother ironing clothes, his grandmother feeding the chicken. And when each one had finished her work, it was siesta time.

But remembering her grandson's request, the grandmother took the scissor and cut the pants two inches off, sewed it and left for siesta.

Next, the mother remembered her son's request, took the scissor and cut two inches off, sewed it, then took a nap. The sister suddenly remembered her brother’s request, took the scissor and cut two inches off and sewed. When the teenage son woke up, he tried his new pants, now repaired to his expectation.

But alas, his pair of pants has become into a porontong (half-short half-pants)!

What is the moral of the story? ~

United Nations Parade at UST, 2011 Quadricentennial Grand Celebration (1611-2011)

United Nations Parade at UST, 2011

Quadricentennial Grand Celebration (1611-2011)

Photographs by Abercio V Rotor, PhD

Retired Professor, UST Graduate School and Faculty of Arts and Letters

Can you identify the country each costume represents?

The 2011 United Nations Parade at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) was a highlight of the year-long, grand celebration of the university's 400th founding anniversary (1611–2011). 

Held as part of the Quadricentennial festivities, this vibrant event featured students in cultural attire representing various nations, highlighting the university's 400-year history as the oldest existing institution of higher education in Asia.

The main events, including grand parades, officially centered around January 27, 2011, marking the 400th year of the university's establishment.

 The UN Parade highlighted international unity, cultural diversity, and the global reach of the Dominican institution.

The celebration was honored with a video message from Pope Benedict XVI, recognizing the university's long history and contribution to education.

The 2011 celebrations were a major milestone for UST, which was founded in 1611 by Archbishop Miguel de Benavides, O.P.. AI Overview Internet