Joel Banawa: The Peddler

By Taga Ibaan Ako

Hardly we've known what exactly happened to Salaban II-Malainin's water system. I myself will have to admit that I never got the chance to scribe the real score about it. It's one of the most complicated things I've encountered in Ibaan and I am crossings my fingers not to get entangled with it. But a visit in Salaban II brought me an opportunity to cross words with the least, as how others may consider him, personality with whom I can talk with about the issue. Meet Joel Banawa -the peddler.

No. Joel didn't pray for something like that to happen in the area. But just as when everyone is cursing everyone for the lost of the most important thing on earth -water, off their faucets, Joel was the last man to call for.

Joel drives a sidecar bicycle. While everyone is calling every devil's name for bubbles on their eyes, Joel can hear you scream. Why is that? He can peddle for your water needs.

Each day, Joel stays on the road. With a bang on one's door, he'll be on a household's gate to pour in and check on the amount of water he'll peddle on one's divine place. Most of the time, he would fetch 8 gallons of water. In one run from a poso negro, his sidecar will be slugging with water.

And it's only P30.00 for 6 gallons! A house in need of water, he'll make a run twice. And until such time they run out of water, that's only when they get to call Joel.

Joel has been doing the job for almost 3 to 4 months since the water system issue got messy. If things come to a prelude, Joel might be off the hook. Hopefully, Joel still get the job even when the system comes into smooth running.

Yes, he's married. He and wife banks heavily on P30.00 to P60.00 he's earning everyday out of his tiring feet's labor. Out of the amount, he's still able to save some penny on his pockets. He brings them with him everyday. What do you think he's to do with those coins? Joel has been saving to have enough money to buy roof panels for his house. Funny though, he keeps on telling people about it. And that's a big dream already for this peddler.

Still, kudos to Joel. Small man for big needs in Brgy. Salaban II.

Plastic Christmas

Man Is But A Container

By Taga Ibaan Ako

Man is but a container. Life pours in like water and keeps it until it finally rust with ages. There are times when a man would break down and unconsciously allow the water to flow out to nowhere. The life that was once inside the container breaks loose and slowly spills off the ground. Half empty, rain comes along and dauntingly fills the gray area. Rain blends with the remaining water. Serene life is left with no option but to swallow bitter pill brought by the rain to remain filled and occupied. Once lucid, everything now comes to what appeared to be life with the color the rain has brought into the container. Almost everything was forgotten -including portions of water that initially shied away from its shelter.


Man is but an open container. Pure and adulterated blitz of things in different shape, sizes and color jumps into it. Expectations are being bred with the water's lucidity. But when it tries to take in rain aside from what's been there from the start, it is called and considered defiance. Things begin to go heavy, until the bottom of the container cracks on it's own. Unfortunately, crack pitch holes are sometimes get blocked by some unfiltered residue of life's wastes. Not unless the container shakes off itself, or be turned upside down, there remains what blurred the water in the first instance.


Man is but another container. Everyone wants a new one. But once tainted, impressions remain still that much. Any attempt to get cleaned up will always be a futile one. For man is nothing but a container.

University of Batangas: A Catalyst For Community Development

University of Batangas: A Catalyst For Community Development

By Taga Ibaan Ako

University of Batangas is not just an institution that neither provides quality education in different disciplines nor produces caliber graduates that are competent and professional enough to meet the demands of the business world. Although they have undoubtedly achieved numbers of recognitions from different accrediting organizations in the education management industry, they remain afloat and kept themselves within the reach of the ordinary people.

The concrete buildings inside the campus may blow horns for them to speak of their strength and credibility, yet lingered more to exist like human who feels, exists and breaths for his kind. And they’ve proven this by keeping a soft spot for communities and its people that they adopt for five (5) years and with whom they genuinely commit themselves to deliver services for the former’s improvement and development.

After creating a mangrove park in Barangay Gulod, Calatagan, Batangas and after having uplifted the socio-economic life of Barangay Munting Tubig, Ibaan, Batangas, University of Batangas through its Community Extension Service Office once again went out of its comfort zone by adopting Brgy. Sala, Balete, Batangas from 2010 to 2015. While others claim to have lifted a finger to be in the service of the people, UB throws its whole self as an institution and as a partner with all of its resources to brings changes and improve the lives of its beneficiaries. And good run of that was this afternoon’s (November 26) visit to Barangay Sala with three of its college departments providing their areas of specialization to the community.

Leading the pack of wolves hungry to be part of Barangay Sala’s journey to achieve improved socio-economic life, the College of Business and Accountancy Department provided the participants with insights on effective business planning. Dr. Jess Briones, a respected Lecturer in the said field, rooted everyone off their seats by triggering their desire to effectively and efficiently run a business through their initially established group M3 (Mamamayang Masipag Mag-impok).

Dr. Briones emphasized the importance and benefits of planning since everything start with it. According to him, starting out a business will never be as easy as emptying a plate of peanuts; that before one can blast off one’s rocket on a launch pad, every detail must be considered and evaluated from the simplest scratch to the most complicated financial aspect of an enterprise. The seminar might have over loaded and brought the participants in limbo with the volume of information discussed; it still proved to be beneficial as evidenced by their positive response. But above all, they were assured of University of Batangas’ unwavering support and assistance on every step they take to progress and prosperity.

Meanwhile, the University’s Center of Excellence PACUCOA Awardee College of Education representatives tagged along with every child in the community and momentarily housed them in the barangay’s Day Care Center. It is a sad fact that not every kid in Brgy. Sala get the chance to go to school. But with the presence of the University’s highly trained mentors in the field of education, they can be afforded with reading and writing skills. The University’s undertaking does end in teaching the mentioned skills.

They are on a mission to transform every child’s moral fiber to become more socially aware and develop good learning habits that they can carry with them from primary to tertiary education. Much more, it is the University’s dream to inculcate the importance of education and how it can change their lives and the community as well.

College of Engineering on the other hand conducted an inspection on each and every household in the community. They checked on the electrical installations and made an assessment on what they can do to improve them. Along the way, they saw some busted switches and risky electrical connections that may put the family in danger such as fire. With College of Engineering, the country’s number 2 in electrical engineering with a tradition of producing board exam top notches, on top of everything, there’s no reason to worry now. Every electric line will be checked; every curl will be straightened up and every house will be brightened up.

University of Batangas is just starting things with Barangay Sala. There’s still a long way to go since the barangay is adopted for five years. This is just a tip of a giant iceberg that UB will unfreeze for the community. And throughout those five years, threads of life-improving activities will continuously and will perpetually flow into the said community. The people can expect no surprises, but expect for the University’s presence as a catalyst of community development.

Memoirs Of Enselada

Memoirs Of Enselada
By Taga Ibaan ako

I had this enselada yesterday for lunch. I don’t know why. The last time I had this was when I was invited to have dinner with Tita Estrel. Or maybe because I got so tired of dealing with meat dragging me down with so much weight lately. Honestly, most of the time I often feel like I’m having difficulty digesting what I eat, particularly meat, whether they may be pork or chicken. I always feel like to my tummy is about to explode like a pregnant on a wheel chair. A change on eating habits, I guess. But above all, this enselada brings me back in time when we were young.

My family lives on the countryside, commonly called “bukid”. Tatay Peping would have these plants on our backyard, tirelessly tilling open land for some agricultural plants so we can always have something to eat whenever he fall short of his earnings as a jeepney driver. He never complain about his aching back as long as we can have okra, talong, kamatis, camote shoots whenever we go hungry.Back then, I hardly appreciate what he was doing. He would often call me to help him finish the plot as he dig small holes to drop the seedlings. It irritates me a lot doing such since I always feel like playing basketball. But after a couple of months, we find ourselves feasting on soft boiled fresh vegetables on our plates with a half-filled pinch sized bowl of bagoong and calamansi. Life was that simple then. We could have complained about not having fried chicken or any meat on the table. He trained us to not to ask for more than what we have. And I'm proud to say that we all eat vegetables up to now.

My age is beginning to pick me up (or should I say, dragging me down?) these days. So does my Dad. He has grown old these days. He can no longer do the plot for vegetables. I’m working away from home and no one is left back home to do what he used to do. It’s like everyone is living like on the fast lane. And whenever we crave for this kind of stuff, we end up buying on the canteen, like what I everyday do, or browse the market stalls for fresh vegetables when we can actually have them for free. I feel bad I can’t do the farming. I feel proud now remembering Tatay Peping smiling at me as I sweat hard with hands almost torn apart hammering the soil with “asarol” for vegetables back in the old days. Gone are the days. And I miss that.

A Sumptuous Dinner With Tita Estrel

A Sumptuous Dinner With Tita Estrel

By Taga Ibaan Ako

I’ve spent half of my life in Batangas City. Back in college days, my 12 hours a day are burned in here, but still return home at the end of the day. When started working, that’s when I decided to rent a boarding house since my job requires me to be where they are the earliest time possible. That’s when I started missing my Mom’s food whenever I return home from work. I’m a plate monster, I must admit. But I have to tighten my belt for some family and personal financial needs. I lived like a hungry rat in drainage, keeping myself up with ready-to-cook-noodles, cigars, bread and tsitsirya. Real meal was always on my mind.

Starting out with a Disc Jock job at BAY Radio 104.7, I met couple of friends with whom my hungry tummy began going through a revolution. Although I get invited for some dinner, particularly DJ Clark Kent who usually cook and prepare food like as if there’s always a fiesta during ordinary days, everything always end up with bottles of beer. By the end of the session, I again feel the hunger. But of course, I have to thank more of DJ Kent for always inviting me to clean plates full of food with fork and spoon –anytime, anywhere. This time, I have another reason to thank him.

He took me and introduced me to Tita Estrel Mercado of Mega Heights Subdivision, Alangilan, Batangas City. And in one invitation, she was a real-deal kitchen fairy god mother with great tasting and sumptuous dinner meal she prepared for us. And yes, I did the plate-monster-way again (It’s her fault, don’t hate me please). Arriving at her place, I noticed from the entrance gate itself until I reach the inside of the house, the house looks like a heavenly museum filled with Christmas color and decorations. I was told Tita Estrel’s house greets Christmas the earliest; she makes all the decorations as early as September. One could hardly focus his eyes on one corner alone for the whole place is worth the glance. (We’ll talk more of her house in full next time.)

Afterwards, I was led down the patio at the back of the house where the gang is waiting. At first, it appeared to me like an underground. But taking the last steps of the stairs, it’s actually an open area with huge gate leading to other road at the back of the house. And again, I lavished my eyes with humorous decorations as if I’m walking through the aisles of an enchanted kingdom.

Tita Estrel prepared for us (me, Dj Kent, Dj Red Raven, Maby and Omanji) three cuisines for the night: a sweet and sour tambakol, adobong pusit, and enseladang talong placed side by side in one large plate with subdivisions so as to keep the taste of their own. Good thing I haven’t had anything yet that day. I just finished work that day and I am so dead hungry I could fly with my motorbike when I was told it’s going to be a dinner!

Sweet and sour tambakol. One of my all time favorites. I didn’t spare this one of course. The way Tita Estrel made it, I can say even the best fine dining restaurants in the city can’t come any closer to this. The sauce is perfectly blended with the right color; it’s neither too dark nor too pale for us to imagine how it will weight us down on our chairs. It tastes so sweet with a stinging kick of sourness. It works well on top of smoking rice fresh from cooker we could smell its heavenly scent; more than enough to roll thunder and lightning in our stomach. The fish meat are all intact ending on our plates in full shape in their cuts, fried in a way that can sustain the heat of the sauce in the process. And yes, it’s all dressed up with carrots, round green bell pepper, and some tomatoes to blend the taste for more cravings.

I came a bit late. The result, adobong pusit was almost all drained up and weed out of the plate when I ascended on my chair at the other end of the table. I can’t resist this one as well. Throwing them breathlessly into my mouth, the pusit were so tender you hardly need to chew them. The skin we’re deep cleaned down to their tail with nothing to waste from them. Oh well, the sauce always looks a bit black. But it doesn’t draw any line of ink-after-taste once we have them on our throats. This menu was cooked the old fashioned way yet remained classy by its own right.

Ah, the enseladang talong. For enselada, we often have kangkong, okra, tomatoes, and cubes of onion. Sometimes we take on again cubed green mangoes, sometimes with cheese, carrots, and etc. There are actually different combinations we can make with enselada. But this one consisted mainly of soft-boiled eggplants mixed with the usual onions, tomatoes, and bagoong. I am a spicy one, so I took more of the onion. Compared with other enselada where talong ends up like a lifeless pole, Tita Estrel’s are soft boiled you could hear still their crunchiness between your teeth. I don’t know what’s in there, but it doesn’t taste like talong at all; they don’t even result to any tongue irritation like the usual talong would do. They're white anyway, not the violet one. And the bagoong, its taste is somehow neutralized by tomatoes; not itchy either.

By the end of the meal, we appeared like we’ve gained 20 pounds! Everyone enjoyed it. And yes, I pray to God that I will be invited again. I know, it’s gluttony already. But how can you blame me if that’s how Tita Estrel prepare and cook those things? If you’ll get the chance to have a taste of them, you’ll tell me I’m telling the truth. You might as well want to admit you’ll return for more.

Above it all, thanks to Tita Estrel.