Fire!

I had a little scare yesterday morning. I took Kristel to St. Paul at around 5:15 am for her little school field trip to Bulacan and on my way back I saw thin smoke coming from inside our village. As I got closer to our house the smoke looked denser, and I was scared shitless that our house was on fire. Turns out the house beside the one in front of us was burning, and there were fire trucks and several kibitzers around in their jogging gear, pure-bred doggies in tow, brandishing their newest professional hobby cameras.


I must say I was relieved to find out that our house was safe, but feel sorry for the people in the burnt house. I also thought it was Yuki's friend Chester's house, but apparently it was the one next door. While I was driving yesterday evening they mentioned the fire on the radio and they found out that it started in the maids' room at the basement. It didn't last very long but it sure was scary.

I remember my parents telling me this story several years after it had happened that when we were living in Mandaluyong (I was probably in grade school) there was a fire in our street in the middle of the night. Everyone rushed out to watch. Some of our neighbors even started carrying their stuff out in case the fire reaches their apartments. My parents stoically watched, and after a couple of hours the fire department declared fire out. While they were walking back to our house, they realised I was missing. Turns out they forgot to wake me up. I fumed when they told me this.

That fire made me realize a few things:

1. Our fire hydrants have water. I'm pretty sure most hydrants outside White Plains don't.

2. A lot of our neighbours are cute.

3. News reporters get it wrong. The news report on the radio said it started at 4 am. I drove past that house at 5:15 and there was nothing so the fire must have happened at around 5:30 to 5:45 am.

4. Our firemen aren't hot. I went out with this fireman from New Jersey several years ago and he looked like an action figure. Our local ones look like they moonlight as grocery bagger boys.














I had a friend from our old counselling group called Albert who was notorious for his spoonerism. One time our friend Daddy JR was telling us how he had a heart attack and had to cough up a ton of money for the operation after their house burnt down and his parents were kind of manic and going crazy. After a pause Albert empathically said, "Naku Daddy, I hope your problems will be over... and over again." Isumpa raw!

wltrrbls