Sunday, April 29, 2012

Haiku and Tanka Project

This is my new craze: The tanka and the haiku. I revel at the challenge of being able to create multiple meanings within five or three lines, depending on the form I choose. I've always been such a talkative girl, writing talkative essays and fiction. But now that I've been writing poetry for a while, I decided I should step up and try out forms instead of my usual free verse. I was really attracted to the rhythmic, almost meditative quality of good haiku and tanka. I searched for journals dedicated to these forms so I can learn and study them more. I found several and was lucky enough to receive compli copies, first from "Kokako," New Zealand's twice yearly magazine of haiku, tanka, haibun and related poetry. I'd post a picture of it had I not crumpled and written on the pages while I was in the beach, enjoying the poems so much I was instantly inspired to write my own O_O

I also came upon a tanka publication called "GUSTS," edited by Kozue Uzawa. She also sent me a compli copy of the magazine, which is published in Canada. Beautiful cover! Just that my camera does it no justice. Plus I couldn't stop my hands from shaking coz of the asthma meds I drank tonight. It's been so hot lately I've been getting sick. Anyway, I'm enjoying the pieces a LOT. I can't wait to write again once my brain is fully functional from these asthma attacks, colds and splitting headaches.

On a not-so-related note, I managed to eat pad thai at last after craving it for months. Only for P80 I got this big plate of decent tasting noodles from the foodcourt :D

best enjoyed with literature about what else? Food :))

Monday, April 16, 2012

Fellows for the IYAS Creative Writing Workshop 2012

Reposted from Panitikan
The IYAS Creative Writing Workshop of the University of St. La Salle (USLS), Bacolod City, has selected 15 Fellows for 2012, out of 81 applicants from the country and abroad. The Fellows for Fiction are Maria Amparao Warren, Brylle B. Tabora (English), Chuckie Perez Manio, and Anthony de la Cruz (Filipino), Daryl Nino Toring Jabil (Cebuano), Fr. Reynaldo Villanoy Jr. (Hiligaynon). The Fellows for Poetry are Miro Frances D. Capili and Ramon Enrico Damasing (English), Early Sol Gadong and GL John Clavel Haro (Hiligaynon), Mariane A.R.T. Abuan (Filipino), Gratian Paul R. Tidor and CD Borden (Cebuano). Fellows for Drama are: Fundador Tipon III (Hiligaynon) and Mario Mendez (Filipino).

IYAS will interface with the Kritika National Workshop on Art and Cultural Criticism sponsored by the De La Salle University Bienvenido N. Santos Creative Writing Center (BNSCWC) and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) which will also be held on the same dates at USLS.

The interface activities are: film screening of “Oro, Plata, Mata” by Peque Gallaga; a craft and reading lecture by Dr. Stuart Cooke; and an introduction to Negrense culture through trips to cultural landmarks in Talisay, Silay, and Victorias cities.

The IYAS Workshop Director is Dr. Marjorie Evasco and the panelists for this year are Dr. Genevieve Asenjo, Dr. Ronald Baytan, Prof. Danilo M. Reyes, Ms. Grace Monte de Ramos, Mr. John Iremil Teodoro, and guest panelist Dr. Cooke from Australia. IYAS Founder Dr. Elsie Coscolluela also sits in the panel.

The IYAS Creative Writing Workshop is co-sponsored by the BNSCWC and the NCCA, and will be held on April 22 – 28, 2012 at the Balay Kalinungan Complex of the USLS, Bacolod City.

Friday, April 6, 2012

Beware these Banner Ads

I'm a sucker for ads despite the fact that I work in the advertising industry. However, there IS such a thing as truth in advertising. We're not out to deceive people that a product will do this when in fact it will do that. We're also not out to steal people's contact info so we can subscribe them to stuff they don't want to be in on. But I guess it's much easier to regulate ads in TV, radio and print than ones online.

Like this one:

There are several versions of these banners by Enterfactory or Club Binbit or whatever they want to call themselves. The one I clicked was for a quiz that was supposed to give me the age of my body based on my current lifestyle. After taking the quiz I was asked to enter my mobile number so I could get my results. NO MENTION OF BEING SUBSCRIBED TO A PAID MOBILE SERVICE!

Thus, I got a pin number sent to my phone, this pin I entered into the field asking for it, and there, I got my quiz results. I did not notice that a message was sent telling me that I will be charged 10 pesos from that day onward.

Days later, what do you expect? The bill piled up and I was shocked. Where'd this come from? I backtracked my messages and found the damned paid subscription service I never even used.

If you're reading this beware. These scam ads are found everywhere and have many versions, but they will always lead to the domain www.enterfactory.com once clicked. The site will give you a simple and very attractive quiz but will not release your results until you enter your mobile number and the system generated pin that will be sent to your phone. Sample:





In very fine print and a barely readable color gray, the following is written at the bottom of the page:
By entering the PIN code you will be subscribed to either Club Binbit, Binbit Music Club or Yeeha Fun club depending on which ad you have responded to. Club Binbit: Handset should be GPRS or WAP enabled. Subscription fee is P10 per day equivalent to 1 credit and additional 1 FREE credit. Each credit can be redeemed for a content. For download help send BIN HELP to 2474 or email support.ph@binbit.com. Binbit Music Club: Handset should be GPRS or WAP enabled. Subscription fee is P5 per day equivalent to 1 credit. Each credit can be redeemed for any type of content. For download help send BMC HELP to 2474 or email support.ph@binbit.com. Fun Club: Handset should be GPRS or WAP enabled. Subscription fee is P5 per day equivalent to 1 credit. Each credit can be redeemed for any type of content. For download help send FUN HELP to 2474 or email support.ph@binbit.com.
I only found these sneaky terms and conditions because I checked back at the site, going through the trouble of looking for their deceptive ads. Much like signing a contract with the Devil, they seek to cover their sneaky asses with a barely readable fine print. Sickening.

I wonder who to report this to?O_O