NEW COLUMN:  With this issue, we welcome the latest addition to our distinguished battery of columnists.  Alex Rodriguez, who was the salutatorian of the illustrious Batch of 1965, debuts this week with his new column, "Dr. Do Little".  He is both an accomplished doctor and an entrepreneur dealing in computers and telecommunications products in Florida, U.S.A.  Aside from sharing his insights on relevant medical and health issues, his column also doubles as a service feature offering free medical advice to all LCHS alumni.   Spectrum readers are invited to send in their inquiries to "Dr. Do Little" (c/o LCHS Spectrum, charlesy@durian.usc.edu.ph).

ANNIVERSARY ISSUE:  The Spectrum will celebrate its first anniversary with a special issue on April 13, 1998.  Our readers are invited to share this occasion by contributing their comments about the Spectrum.  Has the Spectrum been effective in bridging the distance among LCHS alumni?  Are the contents of the Spectrum of interest and relevance to LCHS alumni?  Do you find our weekly issue too frequent?  Do you find the jokes in its "Laughs" section funny or corny?  Would you like the Spectrum to continue with its current format?  Is there any theme or subject matter which you would like the Spectrum to include in its future issues?  In what aspect do you think the Spectrum can still stand some improvements?  Please e-mail your comments now for inclusion in our Anniversary Issue.
 
 

Dateline Buffalo

By Ernesto L. Yu, M.D., Batch 1965 Ernstyu49@aol.com

What if, while swapping warm hellos and comparing sour notes on the mechanisms of limping and aging during the LCHS New Millennium Homecoming, a pack of kamikaze daredevils from out of the blue snatch and tag me as a franchise player for their ransom-oriented commercial transactions? And what if these masked musketeers who are armed to the bone adamantly discriminate against plastic money other than Platinum American Express cards?  I do realize that these roving sharks do dismiss small pufferfish (butiti) like me whose financial net worth are bloated by assets mutually shared by banks’ mortgage and personal loan departments. Yet, who knows if there are uninitiated mom-and-pop kidnapping entrepreneurs who might be deceived by my "Made in USA" label and scooped me up with no second thought as a win-win hostage for whatever existing dollar exchange rate.  Will I be granted the following survival kits by these merchandising dirty dozen while awaiting for my family's positive (most likely negative, dear God) counter offer of a used karaoke machine to their lottery jackpot demand?

Here's a list of personal must-have:  First, a colored 32-inch or larger TV with digital reception of CNN, Seinfeld sitcom and NBA games (TV Guide subscription highly appreciated); Second, no shrimps or lobsters in my menus; freshly sliced, medium rare Delmonico steaks or farm-raised chicken (TRULY government inspected) will suffice as long as served with ground, brewed, hazel nut-flavored decaf coffee (no artificial sweeteners, please); Three, my phobia for darkness makes me ga-ga with brown-outs, need to have a flicker of night light when sleeping under an ultra firm, queen size mattress with matching all-feather pillows to soothe my migraine-prone cranium; Fourth, 24 hours of unblocked scramble to a hot and cold shower facility, supplied with fragrance-free and acid-neutral Ivory soap and shampoo-conditioner (the less abrasive Perla brand is negotiable) and, yes, daily laundered (ironing optional) towels;  Fifth, a PC computer or clone with a minimum of 32 RAM and 15-inch viewing monitor, plus a couple of hours a week of privileged peace in cyberspace to access, scan and print in a compatible colored printer the HTML edition of the Spectrum Newsletter (there, Charles, my shimmering fondness for your weekend hobby!); Sixth, a bug-proofed, preferably air-conditioned and uncluttered, room to be used exclusively during siesta hour, with an unobstructive view of Iligan bay (poolside is fine as long as dotted with reasonable bikini-clad anatomies); Seventh, resounding cheers for my stand-up comedy routines (my jokes, not face!), echoing applause for my vocal cords' attempts at squeaking a harmony, and generous ovation (not eviction!) for my ballroom dancing artistry, and any flash of nauseating grimaces among your lowly ranked zombies should be construed as a hunger for the bazooka's vaporizing caresses; Eight, if my tender wife ignores the  fifth 48-hour ultimatum, adoption procedures should be instituted on an urgency basis, with a discretionary clause that specifically states that I'm legally free to be traded to other summer camps if so desired.

Otherwise, don't bother to touch me when I'm socializing in the LCHS Jurassic Park: recycling mummified tales with the CATE sisters (Charmaine, Aida, Terry, Elsa), Handumon clan, Booc cavalry, Samson troop, the Dy-Lim-Co-Tan-Ang-So-Siao-Tio-Lai-Te-Khu-Ong dynasties (my ABC of comrades), and repackaging updates of rancid gossips with arthritic but vibrant classmates and acquaintances who are now prominent members of LUMPIA  (Lanao Union of Miniature and Pilipino-Integrated Aliases).  It's been thirty years of missing links, you know.  Knitting together the silent intervals of idle talks and friendship renewal demands a good puff of concentration.  So, if you inherited good manners, don't interrupt the solemnity of this festivity.

Better still, just e-mail the commando squad of your Buffalo, New York branch one week after our epic alumni affair and we can have these 'what ifs' staged in a common ground.  Why seven days later?  That is how much time I need to safely stretch the elasticity of my credit lines.  Bet 'ya a grand that your corporate partners will gladly accept Visa and Mastercard!
 

At last, we found a Titanic that is really unsinkable.  It has been sailing into history with box office glories.  This is the latest version of the ill-fated liner which is directed by James Cameron with a blown out budget of US$200 million.

A week before its first showing here in Sydney, the Sunday papers featured some reviews about the film.  I was really curious about the special effects which were cited by the reviews as extraordinary with a set that was just slightly smaller than the actual ship.

So on the second weekend of last December, I joined the long queue at the box office of our local cinema complex for admission to the Titanic movie. To be part of the privileged few who would view the film on its second day of exhibition. It was shown here ahead of the release in the USA by a few days.

And the next three hours and fifteen minutes I was just mesmerized by it.  Enjoyed every footage.  And the story flowed so smoothly that my date just kept her silence understanding everything that she was watching, which was unusual as she keeps on asking questions in many other occasions. This was so relaxing that your brain is just resting without the burden of solving a puzzle.  When Celine Dion started singing the theme song of the movie, "My Heart Will Go On" and followed by the credits I checked my wristwatch if it really ran the whole length of time as advertised. I just could not believe that it was over. I thought I was only sitting there at the darkened cinema for only half an hour! I had not even finished my medium size cup of diet Coke! No wonder thousands of people just keep on coming back for the same movie.

It has just equaled the Oscar awards tally with another blockbuster of 40 years ago - Ben Hur. Now we can also say "bigger than Titanic" as a substitute for "bigger than Ben Hur". If the first half of the 20th century had "Gone With The Wind", it is "Titanic" for the second half. Both movies have something in common.  They are both love stories.  Not a civil war or a giant ship disaster. But just about the most fundamental emotion of human nature.

But after the Academy awards ceremony a few days ago, my memory of the movie is now somehow tainted. Whenever I try to recall the scene where Kate Winslet as Rose was lying stark naked showing all  her curves with only the now famous sapphire necklace posing as model for the
young artist Leonardo diCaprio, what comes in my mind is Billy Crystal naked and not the voluptuous actress.  Maybe I should watch the movie once more.
 

Sentimental Journey

By Henry L. Yu, M.D., Batch 1969

April 3, 1952, Thursday, 1:00 a.m.
It was the day I was born in a city called Iligan forty six years ago.  How time really swiftly glides away!  It seems only yesterday when I was learning to walk by myself, then running around the neighborhood, playing with friends from morning till night.  Then in 1959, I started grade one at Lanao Chinese High School, onwards to the elementary grades, then to high school.  And, as the saying goes, the rest is history.

But what has eventuated from 1952 to the present circa of 1998? Definitely a lot of things.  Childhood experiences.  People I met.  Places I have been to.  Adventures.  And, of course, the many lessons I learned from life as I go along living the life which God gave me for a lease, on character loan, without any monthly amortization nor collateral whatsoever, except that I make good in this borrowed life. But did I really make good with my life?  Did I heed God's voice when He spoke to me and not harden my heart?  That's from Hebrews 3:15.  Human that I am, there are times when I go on following my ways instead of following Him.  And for all the many times I failed Him as His child, I am sorry.  At 46, I still need Him to enlighten my path and guide me in this life through the Holy Spirit.  I will forever be God's child with a child-like faith no matter how old I have and will become.  I am still the God-fearing catechist (having attended catechism classes, circa 1960, under Fr. Yusingco),  turning to Him each time I am sad or happy.  He is indeed the center of my life.  And I thank Him forevermore for being with me in good times or in bad times.  Truly, I cannot be what I am today if not of Him.  As Jeremiah 29:11 puts it, "For I know the plans I have for you.  They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and hope."  Furthermore, Psalm says, "Man makes his plans, but it is the Lord that directs his steps."  Indeed, God's ways are mysterious.  Some messages may not be understood now.  Well, not even for a lifetime.  But calling on Him regularly has made me understand, little by little, the real meaning of life, as I approach the sunset of my life.

In a nutshell, let me just share with you the valuable lessons which I have learned about life and living:

...that life per se is simple.  It is the people who make it complicated.  We are given a free choice - to live it simply or in a complicated way.  The choice is ours.
...that "life is what we make it."  We reap what we sow.  One has to work hard, and not hardly working, in order to achieve one's goals in life.  It is never an instant thing, in the tradition of instant coffee, instant oatmeal, etc.
...that no matter how big our problems seem to be, there is always a solution.  God helps us in our dilemmas and predicaments, reminding us that nothing will happen if He and us cannot handle together.  (Continued next issue)
 

Dear Dr. Do Little:

I have had attacks of sinusitis every now and then ever since I was ten. A few years ago, my ENT doctor prescribed an anti-allergy pill for me called Virlix (cetirizine). It was more of a lifetime prescription since I have been advised to take the medicine as regular maintenance to alleviate my discomfort whenever my sinusitis sets in.  These days there is a growing concern about long-term side effects of drugs.  It's said that some drugs may offer relief but they later also bring in more pain in some other form as a consequence.  What's your advice for me on this?  How about Pycologens?  Do you think this wonder drug is really beneficial and effective in fighting allergy? --From Bryan S. Chona, college student, Cebu, Philippines

Dear Bryan,

In response to your query regarding allergic rhinitis and your medications, let me emphasize to you that allergy is an inborn disorder. Thus you carry it in your genes. The best remedy for this is to find out what causes the allergy or what are you allergic at. This can be done through keen observation on what can initiate your sneeze and running nose.  The easier way is to consult an allergologist who will be able to get a thorough Medical History and complete Physical Examination.  Then most likely you will undergo a series of tests to certain allergens followed by desensitization, if necessary, at such a point.  The best treatment for this condition is to stay away from the allergens that will trigger your allergic reaction. I would like to recommend for you to see Dr. Judith Brigoli of Cebu Doctors' Hospital since she is an allergologist.

Cetirizine is a selective H1 receptor antagonist and is usually effective when you take it before you are exposed to the allergen(s).  The usual side effect of this medication is drying of the mouth.  I would probably be cautious if one is pregnant, in which case you are NOT capable of.  Pycologens is something new to me and maybe we have more new medications in our place than here.  I tried to dig it up in the Physician Desk Reference (PDR) but it's NOT mentioned in the 1998 edition.  Or maybe Pycologen is a commercial name rather than a generic thus is Not found in the PDR.  I hope it is just an allergic rhinitis you are having rather than sinusitis. But I would still recommend you to consult an Allergologist aside from your ENT physician.  Thank you for your inquiry.

Sincerely,
Dr.  Do Little