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i was on my way to the office, commuting on a bus when typhoon Milenyo was lashing Metro Manila (12nn-1pm)…it was indeed scary.  robinson's galleria lost parts o its roof. it was literally, raining inside the mall.  I got in after pleading to go through the next building, our building, through the bridgeway.  i took videos from my Nokia 6070 cellphone of the upper floors…seeing the sky from inside the mall, whew…..the reporter in me…

….in front of ur building, i caught a glimpse of the flood and the trees trying to resist the force of nature…until a gust of strong wind (whoosh!) made me go back the door, against my free will ("shit! tinangay ako papasok!" —overheard on the video i shot)….upstairs on the 26th floor, oprtaions floor (only call centers, besides the emergency teams of the country, i think, had to go to their jobs that day!)…the windows were rocking mad, you can feel the building move sideways as it tries to sway along the wind gust outside. 

From the windows, we could see the helpless parked cars on the open spaces, easy targets for fying debris…broken windshield there, flying roof here…flying panties?! hahaha…somebody's got less an underwear today.

 ….we went on voluntary go home (VGH) at 9pm, instead of the regular out at 10pm and took the company van up to SM North.   The ravages of the storm that just passed wasn't too obvious in the darkness.  only 5% of Luzon had electricity, we were told.  This was the first time, I have experienced this.   This was confirmed by the news that said Milenyo was the strongest typhoon to visit the Philippines in 11 years….

Even in the darkness, I could see the silhouttes of lying trees.  I had to take a bus, a jeep and a tricycle to get home after riding the company van.  The darkness was scary.  Fear of the unknown, literally.  The night was spent w/o electricity and 36 hours since….still no electricity in our city (Malabon)  as I was told earlier by my girlfriend through phone.  99% of the billboards I saw from monmumento to Ortigas were either flded prior to the lashing or torn during it. 

  Trees…oh, they were the helpless victims.  A tree I fondly called "Makisig" who used to stand in front of Malabon citisquare was not spared.  Trees who were too big, you would think they would survive, were either uprooted or had shed not mere leaves, but their branches.  You would see a tree lying on the road almost every 50 meters.

Bad news of the aftermath surface one by one…still.  I will be going on off for the next two days, but I will not certainly enjoy it.  No electricity, no DVD marathons for me on Sat and Sun - my days-off (first time it'll e a weekend, –how ironic!).  But I guess, I am lucky and I sure am thankful.  As entertainment would be the last item on the concern list of those who were affected or who have lost loved ones. 

  Charge this again to experience, an account worth more than millions in anybody's book. 

p.s. 10/02/06, 9:40pm

electricity was restored earlier at 3:30pm (as i was told, i was @work) –4 days and 4 nights since it went out at 1 pm last friday in our place in Longos, Malabon City…  it's monday now (98 adn 1/2 hours to be exact) , rumors i heard were that Meralco transformers were stolen, so it took longer to restore power than in most areas.  Irritating how thieves would take advantage even of nature already wreaking havoc…humans, sheesh!

Friday September 29, 2006 - 06:54am (PDT)

***taken from my 360 post***