Fernando Q. Kabigting

Last night I met Fernando Q. Kabigting, a painter from the Philippines who gained moderate following in Manila and a bigger following in Negros. I first heard of Kabigting back in 1995 when my mother in law commissioned him to paint the wedding portrait of my wife and me. He worked off a picture of us, as he lived in Flushing, New York City. I was first awestruck by his attention to detail. The lines were so true, he even painted the bend in the glasses I was wearing in the picture, a bend that occurred years before. He gained some moderate fame in the Philippines, having pioneered painting on antique Batya bowls from the late 1800s to the early 1920s that Filipinos used to wash their clothes in. In the 1970s, he had a collection of 13 Batya bowls showcasing various Philippine scenes on display at the Rustan's departments stores, scenes of woman playing guitar, children in the cane fields, in the classic Spanish style balconies. He wasn't sure what would become of them until the owner of Rustan's notified him that the then first lady, Imelda Marcos, had came and picked up all of them. On top of this, he was surprised that Imelda, known as the master of mine, mine mine, paid for all of them.

I had always wanted to know what this man was like. My father in law's late wife had a collection of Kabigtings in her apartment in Los Angeles. They were water colors. I always thought that perhaps she had water colors because the oils and acrylics that he worked with, including our painting created in 1995 were considerably more expensive. She had informed me, erroneously, because of a stroke that paralyzed him in 1999, that he didn't have full control of his painting hand and arm, and the watercolors were easier for him to work with. Only when I met him did I find out how wrong she was. Not only was he still painting with acrylics, in addition to his water colors, of which he can do one water color painting each day, but he was creating his art with his left hand now, as his right hand and arm, his first painting arm, is totally paralyzed. On top of all this, his remaining good eye cannot focus, so he must paint virtually with his nose to the canvas.

We ate dinner at la Taverna Kyclades, a Greek restaurant in Astoria, Queens that is hugely popular with New Yorkers, many whom travel from Manhattan just to sample the restarant's excellent Greek food. Kabingting, who invited 10 of us to dinner at Kyclades, sat across from me. The stroke that felled half his body, but not his mind, caused deafness in his left ear and blindness in his left eye, was very quiet at the dinner table, speaking mostly to my father in law to his left side and his wife, Menchu, to his right. Only later did Fernando explain to me that because of the stroke, his hearing is limited to his good ear, and he wasn't trying to snub me at the dinner table. This was after dinner when we went to his home to take coffee and dessert. Because I am not a coffee drinker and had eaten enough sweets for the day, I spent the great majority of my time conversing with Fernando on his artwork, which is absolutely spectacular.

Because it is often rare to meet the artist, I was absolutely awestruck by this man. Half his body is crippled, yet his mind, which is free to visualize his art, is as sharp as a tack. Kabigting will become big. It is really an honor to have met this man who overcame a serious debilitation and continues to inspire all those who meet him.

Newport

These shots are interesting. Both pictures were taken on the same day. One side of the pier had sand that was all wind whipped into shape, smooth and orderly, while the other side of the pier showed the sand with a more disturbed, rained on look. The only difference that I know of is on the south side of the pier, where the sand was more orderly, the houses are further from the water's edge.





These gulls were just hanging out on the pier.



Now this is just nasty. I am wondering though was there sex on the beach, or did it occur indoors and then the condom gets flushed down the toilet? If it did get flushed, then there is a huge problem with the OC's sanitation system. At least they practiced birth control.



Fake lei, all dirty. plastic lei. Definitely not the Hawaiian spirit.




Cloud cover over Saddleback mountain



Under the pier, the pylings are exposed at low tide.

Catalina Island

Catalina Island is just 26 miles off the coast of Orange County. We took the boat out there one flat day in the fall of 2004. It takes about an hour to get there. It is really unlike Orange County. The air is clean and the water, though cold, is crystal clear. Jeremy couldn't believe how clear the water was. you could see down 25 feet to the bottom with total clarity.

The house at the top is the Wrigley mansion. Yes of Double mint, Juicy Fruit fame.

Freedom from Arroyo

While we really take for granted our freedoms in the United States, in other countries, freedoms are sometimes curtailed in the name of political stability or political viability. In the Philippines, that country's president, Gloria Arroyo, just last week declared a "state of emergency" due to a supposed coup plot, (pitting communists and military adventurists from the left and the right, imagine that marriage) among other things.

She effectively shut down a newspaper that doesn't like the way she governs, has arrested and detained several prominent opposition leaders, including Randy David, a University of the Philippines sociology professor known for speaking his mind, and considered by some to be a radical; arrested other opposition leaders such as Crispin Beltran, banned rallies and assemblies, muzzled the media under threat of retaliation, and a whole list of other things. In doing such Marcosian things, Arroyo is just setting the stage for her final pathetic downfall. She is claiming to preserve national security in declaring her state of emergency, yet it seems that the state of emergency is in her own paranoid mind, and she is walking a serious tightrope in declaring the state of emergency in the veil of national security. Even Estrada didn't pull these stupid stunts. By doing what she has done, she has sent the country back to the early 1970s, when a young president named Marcos took over the newspapers and arrested his political opponents, and declared martial law due to a "communist threat". Sound familiar? Well folks that is what is happening right now.

What Arroyo has done is damaged the democratic principles that cost Ninoy Aquino his life, which his wife Corazon Aquino worked hard to preserve during her six years in office. What is happening is Arroyo is just trying to grab and maintain political power when more than half the country wants her out.

She was eager to be appointed president by the Philippine Supreme Court back when the coup d'etat against Estrada was carried out, and then she fixed the 2004 election effectively extending her term to 10 years. Her husband has been accused of corruption, and yet this country is going backward when a country like Vietnam, which ended a war just 30+ years ago, is poised to over take the Philippines economically and politically.


It is time for Arroyo to go home to the province from which she came.