Village lore...

The mundane existence of the ten townhouse units here in our quiet neighborhood was given a jolt last Tuesday by the presence of a SNAKE that was slithering its way across my garage and towards my front door! It had come out of the drainage, and probably lived in the empty, grassy lot beside us. Immediately, no less than fifteen carpenters swooped down from the units under construction and started chasing the snake, pumelling its head and tail with large blocks of wood, steel bars, and whatever makeshift weapons they could find (see photo with squashed tail)...Indeed it was a scene straight from Beauty and the Beast - you know that part when the village suddenly comes alive as the angry menfolk head toward the beast's castle holding their pick axes and shovels, led by Gaston the guy in love with Beauty. There, of course, the analogy ends. The only guy who remotely resembled Gaston that afternoon was our maintenance man Mang Rene - not in looks but in role...he was the one who gave the orders to fling the dead squashed snake out into Santolan Road under the mercy of the careening jeepneys and G-liner buses travelling the Quiapo-Taytay route.

Anyway...the three of us - Niks, Luis and I - are now safely ensconced back in our castle awaiting our next fairy tale.. Such exciting times we live in!