Steve Murphy Photography

See the entire gallery here .  Here in the P.I., a girl's 18th birthday is a Big Deal. A coming-out, it's called a Debut Party and the girl is the Debutante. For boys, it is their 21st. This night was all about Angel. We were invited by Angel's mother, Carmela (Elay, pronounced ELL-eye). You might remember Elay from a year ago when we were doing the Taal volcano refugee relief effort. We had to park a couple blocks away but ended up in front of the house Joelet used to live in. The street urchins quickly gathered around because a foreigner in these parts - especially a white foreigner - is a rarity, a curiosity. I snapped a shot of them after we got out of the truck: When we arrived at the venue (Pines & Palms - FB Link ), the music was too loud for me (ears & hearing not quite what they used to be), so I hoofed it back to the truck to get my ear plugs. Right away, there were my street buddies peppering me with questions, asking my name. I said let's get another

Play video It's been an eventful past week. We have moved from the planning stages on our house to actual construction start. Backstory: We bought 2 lots here in our subdivision, 120 square meters each. We engaged a contractor/foreman recommended highly by Joelet's dad and brother. Now, non-Filipino foreigners (i.e., me) cannot own land here. Period. But I need something to protect myself from unforeseen circumstances so we will consult an attorney to study options. I have heard of some doing a 90-year lease, for example, but also heard that might not be allowed. We shall see, Joelet is fully on board with this.                  Cement work begins                                        Bucket brigade So construction begins on Joelet's birthday, 1/8, and good progress is being made. I would like to tell you about Padugo . It is a concept that essentially helps ensure good fortune, the safety of the workers, appeasement of the spirits, whatever. You can read up on it at the l