LCHS SPECTRUM
WEEKLY INTERNET NEWSLETTER OF THE ALUMNI OF LANAO CHUNG HUA SCHOOL
 Vol. II - No. 3, May 4, 1998, Iligan City, Philippines

IN THIS ISSUE:

NEWS
E-MAILS
EDITORS' NOTES
COLUMNS
FEATURE
QUOTE

STAFF:
Charles O. Sy
Henry L. Yu
Editors

Correspondents:
Johnny T. Chen, Iligan
Santiago Ong, Iligan
Teresita U. Racines, Iligan
Igdono U. Caracho, Cebu
Peter C. Dy, Canada
Mike Lee, Canada
Leonardo Tan, Australia
Ernesto L. Yu, U.S.A.
Alex S. Rodriguez, U.S.A.

LCHS SPECTRUM
Founded on August 1, 1968
Published weekly since its
revival on April 15, 1997
E-mail address:
charlesy@durian.usc.edu.ph
Postal address:
P.O. Box 128
Cebu City, Philippines

Hero Cop Gets Awards; Iligan Doctor on Hit List? 

Iligan has a new hero.  Senior Inspector Graciano Mijares, chief of the Iligan City Police Station No. 1, recently received the "Medalyang Sugatang Magiting" award from the regional police command.  Mijares led a police team in thwarting a kidnapping attempt on LCHS alumnus Farley Sy in Iligan last March 30.  Mijares was wounded in the hip and leg during the gunfight with the kidnappers.  City Mayor Alejo Yañez hailed the local police as heroes while Councilor Henry Dy lauded the police for their vigilance and quick response to the kidnapping attempt.  Meanwhile, the Mindanao Scoop, in its April 5 issue, reported that a doctor was also on the hit list of the March 30 slain kidnappers.  Supt. Isnaji Bantala, city police director, said that after Farley Sy, the kidnappers were targeting a doctor next.  He did not disclose the doctor's name. 

Singaporeans Eye Iligan for Investments

Singaporean businessmen are eyeing Iligan City for investments.  They visited Iligan government officials and businessmen recently to discuss possible areas of investments.  The visitors were Marian Sim and Venetta Miranda, both of the Singapore Trade Development Board, and Chu Ang Tsu Lee, of the Singaporean Embassy.  They were interested in the products of the city's two chemical plants, Mabuhay Vinyl Corp. and Maria Cristina Chemical Industries.  Two other investment sites were also offered to the visitors, the NSC Eco Zone and the Metro Iligan Regional Agricultural and Industrial Center (MIRAIC) in Linamon, Lanao del Norte. 

Police Chiefs Gear Up for Election

With the synchronized national and local elections only a week away, police chiefs in Iligan City and Lanao del Norte recently got together at the PNP regional command in Tipanoy, Iligan City, to discuss plans of maintaining peace in their respective areas.  The discussion centered on the role of the PNP during the election period, maintaining peace and order, and providing security escorts for candidates.  Strict compliance of the firearms ban will be enforced.  Checkpoints have been set up at Sta. Filomena in the north, and Nonocan, Suarez in the south. 
 

E-MAILS

On LCHS Web Site

Although I'm not technically an alumna  (I was an exchange student in Iligan in 1992-93), I attended school at LCHS for a year.  The site brings back a lot of memories and good times!  I'll never forget my stay in Iligan.

Susan Kennedy Jensen, Provo, Utah, U.S.A.
susanjensen@usa.net
 

EDITORS' NOTES

Spectrum Staff Home Page

As our second year offering and partly in response to our readers' request, we have now posted a web page featuring the members of the Spectrum editorial staff. The page contains a brief intro and latest photo of each member of the staff.  Hopefully it will settle our readers' curiosity and reacquaint them with the personalities behind the familiar weekly by-lines.  The page still lacks a few photos as they are apparently being retouched to look like Leonardo DiCaprio.  This new feature is accessible under "What's New" on our LCHS web site: http://www.iligan.com/~lchs/alumni/

New Columnist

Very soon a new perspective will be added to spice up the Spectrum with the entry of our new columnist.  Aurora H. Tansiokhian, M.D., will join our pool of distinguished columnists with a  new column called "Mixed Bag from Bunn Hill."  A member of Batch '60, she is a hematologist and oncologist based in Binghamton, New York, U.S.A.  Her column will provide a much-welcomed equilibrium to what used to be the male enclave of our writing staff.  Watch for it in our subsequent issues.
 

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

Jokingly Yours, Collection #2

Laughter has a mysterious way of healing miseries and prolonging mortality.  Unlike a Type-A personality that chases stresses and readily ignites fusses, an aficionado of the comedy club always braves the grinding everydayness with a perseveringly exuberant disposition. Take this scenario of my 80-year old pal who swings by life as a one-liner joker.  He said that his third wife (25 years old, mind you) is an educated but restless shopper who buys anything that is marked down; one day, she brought home two microscopic lingeries and an escalator! "What's your stunningly young roommate Terry up to these days, Mike?" I innocently inquired. "You mean, aside from having a big mouth that can load a banana sideways?" he blurted, "I have not talked to her in two days. I didn't want to interrupt her!"  "Listen, Ernie," he confessed in a humiliating tone, "my sex chemistry these days is rapidly dissolving. I fell bad for my Terry.  The moment I bounce on the mattress, I'm dead asleep." "Mike, worry no more. Here's a prescription."  With a wide smile, he responded, "Gosh, Dr. Savior, redeemer of the oppressed, I hope this will spice my sad world".

"Mike, the pills are not for you.  They are for your baby love.  This way she'll snore as quick as you do!"

---ooooo---
One of the most glittering highlights in a physician's career is being able to burp instantly the correct diagnosis to a patient's malady, especially if it has been through exhaustive bombardments of pin pricks, radiological rays and numerous specialists' head-shaking. "Mrs. Brown, can you point the spots in your body that elicit this chronic excruciating pain? I aborted Sarah Brown’s litany of redundant aching-here-aching-there.  Indeed, every site she touches with her index finger, from head to toes, mimics the same disabling soreness that she has been agonizing for months with no remedy in sight. "Ma'am," I soothingly comfort her, "you have a broken finger."

You are right, Dad, it takes common sense to evaluate common problems.

---ooooo---
Did you hear about the stuttering salesman who sold one hundred fifty Encyclopedias (20 volumes per pop) within 24 hours through old-fashioned, door-to-door commerce? Technique? "I-I-I-fffff, you do-do-dooon't b-b-buuuy from me, I wi-wi-wiilll rrrread them to-to-tooo you."

He now does a 5-minute TV commercial for a local speech clinic. He delivers only five words.
 

Briefs from Down Under
By Leonardo "Eddie" Tan, Batch 1966
edtan@idx.com.au

Life Without TV

Sometime last week, it was reported that a certain area in the U.S.A. is experimenting turning off their television sets for a week.  The small community involved was trying to gauge the other qualities or aspects of life that went missing in a family because of the concentration of the idiot box syndrome.

It has become common knowledge that inter-communication among the family members have deteriorated a lot because of the time spent in front of the television.  School kids prefer the TV instead of doing their homeworks.  Dads get agitated when interrupted while watching his favorite sports show.  Wives miss their chores just to be glued to their important lifestyle shows like cooking, health and aerobics but very seldom put into practice!

How many channels do we get now on our television sets?  Close to a hundred if one is lucky to have a cable system connected.

A special channel even serves as a TV guide.  A non-stop service for all the news around the world coming to our living room instantaneously from all the major networks.  All types of sports.  Latest blockbuster movies and the constant re-runs of old favorite films.  Talk shows with any conceivable subjects under the sun.  24 hour animated cartoon shows and series. We could just sit in front of the TV sets and be totally entertained.

It is argued that television has caused husbands and wives to talk less and figure in more misunderstanding.  The gaps between parents and their children are made wider. The quality of life in the neighborhood has also suffered a lot as we become less active outside the house and be concerned with our next door.  We may be instantly informed now of the happenings on the other side of the world, yet we may not know the last name of our neighbors who have been living there for years!

Has television now become a great social problem?

This is indeed a sad consequences of one of the great inventions of this century.

As a personal experience with my wife and our two adult sons, we really very seldom have talk, I mean really talk and joke and laugh together or enjoy a collective activity than when we all sit against every side of a square table and excitedly say "pong" or shout "mahjong!".  And this time, the TV set is always turned off.
 

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

 Summertime in the '60s
(Last of two parts)

There were also the indoor games of chess, Chinese checker, domino, and dama; or the outdoor games of kondisi, bato lata, patintero, hide and seek, etc., which we still played even when we were already teeners.

I personally remember most the summer of '68 primarily because it was at this time when out of the blue, I decided to say goodbye to LCHS to pursue my 4th year high school in Dumaguete City at Holy Cross High School, such move being not part of my life's agenda then.  All the while, I really thought that I would graduate with honors from LCHS in 1969, along with my classmates since the grade school.  But fate had its twists and turns.  The Campus Keeper incident made the twist.  And I made a turn.  And as the saying goes, the rest is history.  But saying goodbye to a place where you started life as an innocent lad who has grown up to be a class president, an active participant in most of the school programs, etc. wasn't that easy.  For one, there was that feeling of being sentimental about leaving your peers, classmates, friends, and family, to a place where you were but a stranger in their midst.  It was a hard decision, but because of innocent pride, I have to stand to my words.  So, it was such sweet sorrow, parting being a little death.  I remember that particular day on April 27, 1968 (Saturday) when my barkada tendered a despedida party for me, held then at the residence of Alex Handumon. It was fun.  But at the last minute, when the party was soon to end, we cried as we listened to the song "Am I That Easy to Forget?".  And, yes, the Lettermen's "Softly As I Leave You".  Elizabeth "Yu Bin" Lim shed the most tears, along with Sio Hua Vy, Jane Sy, Gloria Tecson, Shirley Co, Betty Bernardo, Janet Lee, and the rest.

The years may have passed, but the memories of classmates and friends will forever linger on like no other.  After all, my grade school and high school days are still the best memories I have in Iligan City, particularly in a school like Lanao Chinese High School.  It was the time when I felt the world was in my hands, that all life meant was jam sessions, bowling, biking, and a lot of fun.  There was less responsibilities then. You spent money lavishly because it was your parents' money.  You bought this and that without thinking much of its value.  You wanted this or that because your classmates had this or that.  But that was yesterday.

Today, thirty something years after, we are no longer the nonchalant teeners that we used to be. We have grown up.  We have more responsibilities now and challenges to face as we ourselves have become parents.  Life is a cycle.  And life has to go on.  And along with it, the fond memories of summertime in Iligan in the '60s.
 

Dr. Do Little
By Alex S. Rodriguez, M.D., Batch 1965
gates1@juno.com

 What is Psychoneurosis?

Dear Dr. Do Little,

I have a friend whose illness has been diagnosed as psychoneurosis.  Her doctor has prescribed Limbitrol which she has been taking for almost a year now.  Her brain scan showed nothing wrong with her brain but somehow her illness still persists.  What is psychoneurosis?  What are its causes, symptoms, and cure, if any?  And what medication do you think is appropriate for this? --Jane Sy-Limtin (Batch '70), Cebu, Philippines.

Dear Ms. Jane Sy Limtin,

It is worthwhile commending your concern for a friend.  This is one virtue that is so common among our race which I'm so proud of.  We always have fond memories to cherish with as we grow old.

Psychoneurosis is a major category in classifying mental illness. It is an emotional maladaptation due to unresolved conflicts which will lead to disturbance in thought, feelings, attitudes & behavior.  There is little, if any, loss of contact with reality, but the patient's effectiveness in performing the usual day to day responsibilities is handicapped.

This is a broad diagnosis because it is classified into 6 categories.

1) Anxiety Reaction: it is manifested as anxiety with apprehension out of proportion to any obvious external cause. In layman's term, this is known to us as "nerbiyos".

2) Conversion Reaction is the unacceptable unconscious impulses which are converted into hysterical somatic symptoms.  To this type of patient, his escape from such uncomfortable feeling is to feel sick and such sickness to him is real.  Therefore the patient believes that he is sick as an escape as compared to malingering which is pretending to be sick to catch an attention or obtain something which is common among addicts.

3) Depressive Reaction is a marked depression which is out of proportion to any obvious cause. Some will have suicidal tendencies.

4) Dissociated Reaction is characterized by dissociative behavior such as amnesia, fugue, sleepwalking, etc.

5) Obsessive-Compulsive Reaction is the persistent, repetitive impulses to perform certain rituals such as handwashing or rubbing hands together or counting even if it tears the skin along the process.

6) Phobic Reaction is an irrational fear.  Remember the different types of phobia like claustrophobia, arachnophobia, etc.?

The cause for this condition is unknown  but the possibility of family history cannot be ignored. Usually, you are born with it and certain degree of traumatic experience whether physical or mental can trigger this condition.

Psychoneurosis cannot be seen with X-ray, MRI or CT scan. It is a sickness of the mind thus is diagnosed through complete medical-psychiatric history and physical exam.  The greatest weight in the treatment of most psychiatric cases is emotional support from the family and friends where the patient is emotionally assured of her safety. Constant close contact with someone to facilitate the patient to express her fear and day to day concern is important where one could based his approach in lessening the patient's concerns and burdens. Time and patience are two essential ingredients in dealing with this type of condition.  Unlike somebody with appendicitis, all you have to do is remove the inflamed appendix plus antibiotics and the magic is there.

For me, medications are just adjunct to the psychotherapy. There is no doubt that medication can help if you prescribe the right one.  Take note that we have divided it into 6 categories and the approach to each condition is different.

If we are dealing with pure anxiety reaction or phobic reaction, then sedative can help to calm down the patient. Depressive state needs antidepressant obviously. It can help a lot if your friend should see a psychiatrist along with close family and friends' emotional support. I want to see a better diagnosis than just psychoneurosis.

Limbritol is a combination of chrlordiazepoxide  which is an agent for the relief of anxiety and tension, and an amitriptyline HCL which is an antidepressant. This is indicated for the treatment of patients with severe depression associated with moderate to severe anxiety.  This is NOT the only drug for depression because depression is classified into different types. That is why you need a psychiatrist who has the expertise in dealing with this kind of condition.

Thank you for your inquiry and hopefully I am able to help you with your concern about your friend.

Ciao,
Dr. Do Little
 

FEATURE

 The Legacy of Yolando Siao
(Last of two parts)
By Charles O. Sy
Batch 1967

I once found myself embroiled in a heated exchange of words with DXIC station manager and Mindanao Scoop columnist Antolin Alcudia over a controversy involving St. Michael's College.  I had assailed Alcudia's criticisms against the school in his column. Our debate in the newspaper had gone a bit out of hand and I was advised by many to desist from pursuing the dispute.  I was fighting the Goliath of Iligan's mass media, they said. Yet Yolando Siao showed his concern by seeking out a stand among a few concerned SMC faculty.  Those who disagreed with me he tried to persuade to my side.  Those who agreed he made them known to me for moral support. When the smoke cleared, I thanked him for his help. To which he replied, "I didn't concur with everything you wrote there, but I went out for you because you fought a good fight."  That was vintage Yolando Siao: always vocal with his thoughts yet supportive through and through as a friend.

I had thought that Lando was too absorbed in ideas and principles, often with a consuming passion. And I told him so.  I once teased him by telling him that he was carrying himself too far by misdirecting his passion on intangible objects instead of the pretty coeds in school. This once he didn't bother to argue. Unusual for a man easily given to fits of spirited rhetoric.

I later learned that I was wrong.  When the school year neared its end in 1970, Lando approached me for help.  He needed a place away from the prying eyes of nosy people where he could talk regularly with someone he cared.  I had the key to our editorial office in school and gave him free access to it whenever he wanted.  I realized then that Lando had a girlfriend.  They were classmates.  She was a girl of impeccable charm and personable trait. Anything short of such qualities would not have merited a second glance from my friend who never compromised his ideals. But fate took a different turn.  Lando was soon scheduled to migrate to the U.S.A. I remember asking him about the girl he would be leaving behind.  And he said, with a sense of determination, that in due time he would work out a way for them to cross paths anew in the U.S.A.

Their paths never crossed again.  Lando passed away shortly after arriving in the U.S.A. and left behind a lingering niche in the memory of many who knew and admired him, and sealed an imperishable legacy of friendship and affection in the heart of a special girl nobody knew about.
 

QUOTE FROM THE INTERNET
The Friendship Ball
Contributed by Alfred Lai II (Batch '89)

A ball is a circle,
No beginning, no end.
It keeps us together
Like our Circle of Friends
But the treasure inside,
for you to see, is the treasure
of friendship
You've granted to me
Today I pass the friendship ball.

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