Cats in the Cradle - Video Versions

There were at least two popular versions of the song I posted in the previous blog entry. The first video shows the song being performed by its composer, the late Harry Chapin.

This second video shows a remake of the song in the early 90s by Ugly Kid Joe.

Enjoy.

Cats in the Cradle

A child arrived just the other day,
He came to the world in the usual way.
But there were planes to catch, and bills to pay.
He learned to walk while I was away.
And he was talking 'fore I knew it, and as he grew,
He'd say, "I'm gonna be like you, dad.
You know I'm gonna be like you."

And the cats in the cradle and the silver spoon,
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
"When you coming home, dad?"
"I don't know when,
But we'll get together then.
You know we'll have a good time then."

My son turned ten just the other day.
He said, "Thanks for the ball, dad, come on let's play.
Can you teach me to throw?" I said, "Not today,
I got a lot to do." He said, "That's ok."
And he walked away, but his smile never dimmed,
Said, "I'm gonna be like him, yeah.
You know I'm gonna be like him."

And the cats in the cradle and the silver spoon,
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
"When you coming home, dad?"
"I don't know when,
But we'll get together then.
You know we'll have a good time then."

Well, he came from college just the other day,
So much like a man I just had to say,
"Son, I'm proud of you. Can you sit for a while?
"He shook his head, and he said with a smile,
"What I'd really like, dad, is to borrow the car keys.
See you later. Can I have them please?"

And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon,
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
"When you coming home, son?"
"I don't know when,
But we'll get together then, dad.
You know we'll have a good time then."

I've long since retired and my son's moved away.
I called him up just the other day.
I said, "I'd like to see you if you don't mind."
He said, "I'd love to, dad, if I could find the time.
You see, my new job's a hassle, and the kid's got the flu,
But it's sure nice talking to you, dad.
It's been sure nice talking to you."

And as I hung up the phone, it occurred to me,
He'd grown up just like me.
My boy was just like me.

And the cats in the cradle and the silver spoon,
Little boy blue and the man in the moon.
"When you coming home, son?"
"I don't know when,
But we'll get together then, dad.
You know we'll have a good time then."

- Harry Chapin (1942-1981)

Each moment not spent with a child is a moment lost forever.

Continuously Out of Sync

I travel quite a bit in my current job. In fact, that so-called "quite a bit" requires that I be away from home 50% of the time. Though I get to see different places, meet different people, accumulate frequent flyer miles, and get complimentary hotel room upgrades every once in a while, the downside to this whole travel thing is that I find myself in a constant state of jet lag.

The longest that I do get to stay home continuously is three weeks. More often though, it's just around two weeks. A good number of my trips are to the West Coast of the US, three time zones away. After that are trips to the Midwest, one time zone away.

Trips back from the West Coast are often on those "red eye" flights. These flights normally leave the West Coast around 10 or 11 in the evening (local time) and arrive in the East Coast at five or six in the morning the following day. Given the cutbacks in the US airline industry (such as no meal service and less legroom), these flights are often so uncomfortable that getting a decent amount of sleep is next to impossible.

Prior to my current job, I used to average about seven hours of sleep each night. Now, that average is down to a mere five hours. It's been close to a year now since I've had a decent good night's sleep. I used to take decent afternoon naps (average of two to three hours) on weekends too. However, because of my jet lag, I haven't had a leisurely afternoon nap for more than a year now.

The fact that I have to drag myself out of bed at five every morning to make the two-hour commute to work also doesn't help alleviate my jet lag. An option is to either get another job with a different company or request the boss for lesser out-of-town trips. Careerwise, I'm not ready to make either move yet.

Thus for now, I try to make up for the serious lack of sleep by eating fruits, exercise (whenever the outdoor temperatures would allow), and drinking fruit juices. However, I can't help but feel that those measures can only help me up to a point. So far, I'm still able to function at work. I take naps whenever and wherever I can. But their duration of 10 to 15 minutes are a far cry from the two to three-hour naps I used to take. I really need my Zs for the sake of my long term health and well-being.

The Baker's Back!

After a week on vacation, I'm so back, Dear Readers. :)

Sorry for the absence but the Panadero had to take a much needed break from his Panaderia so as to spend much longed for quality time in Hong Kong with the love of this humble baker's life. (Naks!)

Anyway, it was a great and fun trip, to say the least. Yes, more pictures will be published on this blog once they pass review by the Chinese Government's Board of Censors. To prevent this blog from getting unduly flagged for obscenity, the pictures to be published will focus on just the sights, ok? :D

Special Someone and yours truly got to ride on a cable car, toured the Hong Kong island's city streets on board a tram, saw some world famous animated cartoon characters, and took a ferry to the Asian casino mecca of Macau. As for dining, we agreed to totally avoid the fastfood chains (both Western and HK-based) and opted instead to dine at local eateries or "hole in the walls". This was to get a true taste of traditional native cuisine.

We came away very impressed with what the people of Hong Kong have achieved. Signs of economic achievement and wealth were everywhere. Hong Kong was a very nice mix of the old and new. Old sections of Hong Kong with its old residential apartment and commercial buildings, small shops, and eateries were reminiscent of the Binondo and Santa Cruz districts of Manila, areas with a large Chinese populace. Modern high rises and skyscrapers in the Admiralty and Central districts remind one of New York City in the US and Makati City in the Philippines.

Thus, the old section of HK gave one an idea of the entrepreneurial spirit and drive that led to the place's economic success. The shining skyscrapers in the newer sections of HK and modern and efficient public infrastructures such as the MTR (Mass Transit Railway, picture on the left) and impressive highways and bridges provide the perceptive observer with what the Chinese entrepreneurial spirit achieved.

The former Crown Colony's government is also a picture of financial health. In the week that we were there, the government's Finance Secretary reported a record budget surplus of about 115 billion HK dollars. This surplus resulted from robust economic growth and tax revenues last year.

We also found the people to be quite helpful and tourist-friendly. English version of menus were available in all the eateries we visited. Asking for guidance and directions were never problems. Walking the streets at night was never a concern too. Safety was never an issue in any of the places we visited, even the very crowded ones such as street markets.

It was the first HK visit for both of us. The trip was so enjoyable and the experience so pleasant that we both long to come back someday.

Photo credits: Wikipedia.org and hktramways.com

Love and Peace (Amor y Paz) Meme

I have always had a soft spot in my heart for children, especially the orphans, the sick, the hungry, the abused, and the impoverished. For me, they are the most vulnerable. This tag from Bambit made me think of all the suffering children around the world, especially in war-torn areas in Africa and the Middle East. I believe that there are enough financial and material resources to help the world's poor children. The problem however lies in the allocation and use of such resources. Rather than invest the resources in fertilizers and agriculture, for example, there are a number of third world governments that would rather use the money on weapons or lose the money through graft and corruption.

The problem also lies with the failure of the rich nations to develop an effective process that would make sure that their aid reach the parties or groups those nations intend to help.

Here are the rules:

1. If you get tagged or not (or want to play along), take some minutes to meditate about love and peace. Pray for countries that are facing troubles, for those people you love and those you don't.

2. Write a post with links to blogs that you think would like to participate.

3. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.

I am tagging Mec and Miki and all those who wish to participate.

Let there be world peace.