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Month: November 2016

Parkour and B-boying: Word Wednesday

Two words today as I just could not resist looking up parkour and B-boying after yesterday’s wonderful article by NicNac.  I was a tad surprised to find any entries at all but here they are: Merriam-Webster has this to say about parkour: parkour noun par·kour \pär-ˈku̇r, ˈpär-ˌku̇r\ Popularity: Bottom 30% of words Definition  : the sport of traversing environmental obstacles by running, climbing, or leaping rapidly and efficiently Origin and Etymology of parkour French, alteration of parcours course, route, from Medieval Latin percursus, from Latin percurrere to run through, from per- + currere to run First Known Use: 2002 So now you know! Good old M-W says this about B-boying: B–boying noun B–boy·ing \ˈbē-¦bȯi-iŋ\ Popularity: Bottom 10% of words Definition of B–boying : break dancing…

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Introduction to Bboying and Parkour

 Bboying and Parkour No it’s not Word Wednesday but I bet for most of you bboying and parkour are two strange words. Want to know more? Here is my friend NicNac to explain all. First though let me remind you about NicNac. He is a local young man and lives right here in Bacolod City. He contacted me some time ago expressing his love of writing and I encouraged him to send me something he had written. Click right here to read his work. In the past few days he wrote to me again and asked for some help with his writing. My advice was the same as before – write and write some more. So he sent me the following: Bboying and Parkour are…

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Top 10 Most Beautiful Beach Resorts in Negros Occidental

A travel blog recently posted an article with a list of the most beautiful beach resorts in Negros Occidental. TravelNegros.com listed 10 such resorts and it was incredible that Takatuka Lodge and Dive Resort, Sugar Beach, Sipalay didn’t figure in the top ten. I have written about Takatuka before. I confess that I haven’t been to all of the ten resorts featured in that travel blog but I have been to two or three including their #1 pick, Whispering Palms Beach Resort, Sipaway Island, San Carlos City. That is what is so baffling about the omission of Takatuka. Whispering Palms (WP) is okay and no higher than okay. For a start, the beach there is a bit of a joke at low tide and certainly…

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Discombobulate: Word Wednesday (Improve Your Word Power)

I do love the English language and discombobulate is such a funny-sounding word. When I first heard it way back in school, I really did believe it was a made up word. I was delighted to find it there in the dictionary. Merriam-Webster says this about it: discombobulate verb dis·com·bob·u·late \ˌdis-kəm-ˈbä-b(y)ə-ˌlāt\ Popularity: Top 40% of words Definition of discombobulate discombobulate discombobulating transitive verb : upset, confuse <inventing cool new ways to discombobulate the old order — Kurt Andersen> discombobulation noun Examples of discombobulate in a sentence <our grandmother seems a bit discombobulated by all of this birthday fuss> Origin and Etymology probably alteration of discompose First Known Use: circa 1916 The Facebook comments are often illuminating or humorous – Suzanne Alexander · Foothill College Reading…

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Book Review: Undercover: The True Story of Britain’s Secret Police

This is my review of an excellent book Undercover: The True Story of Britain’s Secret Police by Rob Evans and Paul Lewis. What a disgrace!, 21 Nov. 2016 By SB Verified Purchase(What is this?) This review is from: Undercover: The True Story of Britain’s Secret Police (Kindle Edition) As a former UK undercover detective on the 1970s Operation Julie [ ASIN B01JUTPN30 Undercover: Operation Julie – The Inside Story] who has written a book about my experiences, I thought it was high time I read this book by Rob Evans and Paul Lewis. I am glad I did. It was an eye-opener and revealed a world I hadn’t got a clue existed even though I was part of one of the UKs largest drug busts.…

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Bamboozle: Word Wednesday (Improve Your Word Power)

Bamboozle – now that is a word and a half! Merriam-Webster as usual – verb bam·boo·zle \bam-ˈbü-zəl\ Popularity: Top 40% of words Simple Definition  : to trick or confuse (someone) Full Definition of bamboozle transitive verb 1 : to deceive by underhanded methods : dupe, hoodwink 2 : to confuse, frustrate, or throw off thoroughly or completely <a quarterback bamboozled by an unexpected defense> bamboozlement  noun Examples in a sentence <bamboozled by con men into buying worthless land in the desert> <she’s completely bamboozled by the latest changes in the tax code> Did You Know? In 1710, Irish author Jonathan Swift wrote an article on “the continual Corruption of our English Tongue” in which he complained of “the Choice of certain Words invented by some…

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Spycops! Is There Such a Thing as Ethical Undercover Policing?

My inaugural HuffPost UK blog post – it first appeared on Huffington Post UK on November 15, 2016. Twitter is awash with the #spycops hashtag. It is an omen of things to come relating to the Undercover Policing Inquiry.   I hope that the Pitchford Inquiry asks, “Is there such a thing as ‘ethical undercover policing’?” To some that appears to be an oxymoron. Perhaps it comes as no surprise when learning about some of the antics of former Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) undercover officers in particular. First allow me to make full disclosure – I am a former undercover police officer and was deep undercover on one of the UKs largest drug busts back in the 1970s. I now write, after careers as a…

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Travel Negros Island

Travel Negros Island is to be transformed in the next few years with the building of a new bridge linking Negros Occidental, Guimaras,  Iloilo and Cebu.  It should be a tremendous boost to the local economy as well as improving the infrastructure. Apparently it is said that work will commence in 2017 and will cost $1 Billion. It will also become the longest bridge in the Philippines archipelago taking over that mantle from the one between Samar and Leyte. Obviously there will be enormous traffic snafus during the construction period but hopefully it will be all worth it in the end. One possible unforeseen byproduct will be the futures of the two local airports Bacolod-Silay and Iloilo. The latter already operates some international flights but…

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Unctuous: Word Wednesday (Improve Your Word Power)

Unctuous is a word you don’t hear every day but I bet you know the type of person it describes. Straight to it then, here is what Merriam-Webster has to say: adjective unc·tu·ous \ˈəŋ(k)-chə-wəs, -chəs, -shwəs\ Popularity: Top 10% of words Simple Definition of unctuous —used to describe someone who speaks and behaves in a way that is meant to seem friendly and polite but that is unpleasant because it is obviously not sincere Perhaps the word describes some politicians we all know? Full Definition 1 a : fatty, oily b : smooth and greasy in texture or appearance 2 : plastic <fine unctuous clay> 3 : full of unction; especially : revealing or marked by a smug, ingratiating, and false earnestness or spirituality unctuously…

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Over and Under the Weather

Perhaps it’s because I am a Brit, that’s why I seem to write a lot about the weather here in the Philippines. We British have a reputation of constantly talking about the weather. The subject crops up once more but in the form of being “under the weather.” I have succumbed to a local virus that seems to have affected so many people of all ages. It took the form of a rotten head cold then a chesty cough accompanied by the sweats and aching limbs. It is one of the reasons why I have been quiet lately … quiet in the corner … I can hear you whispering “thank goodness”! Yet it is good to know the Brits are not alone in talking about…

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