How My Love for Books Started

This is a guest post from a friend of mine who also shares the same love as I do: books. Here she talks about books and how the love affair blossomed.

How my love for books started

By Agnetha de Castro

I still remember the day when I started to read books. It was the fault of one Sweet Valley Kids volume that I borrowed from a classmate. I don’t know what compelled me to read that. Maybe it has something to do with the colorful cover or the way my classmate’s face shone with happiness over the written words in those pages. But I am glad that my interest for reading was triggered that day and before I knew it, I consumed the book in almost one sitting and borrowed some more from her.

When I finished reading her books, I became an active member of our library and read all their Sweet Valley collections. When there was nothing more for me to read on Sweet Valley, I explored other books like the Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys and even Mills and Boon series.

That was one of the clearest memories I’ve had of reading. And from that day onwards, I started to read as many books as I could possibly get my hands on.

I never knew such joy and happiness as what I have found between the pages of the books I’ve borrowed and bought. It can never be replaced by momentary bursts of glee over a new gadget or some such thing. It is ever constant and irreplaceable. Such is my love for reading books. And it is a certainty that I would have books above any other material thing.

Even if I would grow old, wrinkled and with very bad eyesight, I would never break the habit of reading books.

Such is my love and passion for it.

About me:

Guest writer for Maimai’s blog. Anime addict. Movie junkie. Faithful follower and reader of many, many books. 

Got a memorable book to share? Leave a comment below!

Paulo Coelho's Thoughts on the SOPA

Coelho expresses his thoughts on the SOPA in his blog

Who else is against SOPA?

Paulo Coelho, that's who.

Here I am, ready to head home, with a good deal of commuting, when I stumbled upon this blog. It belongs to no other that The Alchemist's author himself, Paulo Coelho. And here, he shares his thoughts on the SOPA.

Visit his blog, and you will be surprised to see that he welcomes those who pirate his works.

Click here: Welcome to Pirate My Books

Kung Hei Fa Tsai

So after distributing tikoy to my non-Chinese colleagues, I had to give out a sigh and wondered what I was doing in the studio so early this Monday morning. Because it's Chinese New Year today, every body else is on holiday, (thanks to a President with Chinese roots, we now observe 3 New Years) except for our firm. Being in the media profession has its ups and downs. But there are definitely opportunities which cannot be found elsewhere.

So I'm away from my family this morning, for the second Chinese New Year in a row (last year I was out of town on assignment) and facing the computer. But 2012 promises a good year for those born in the Year of the Dragon, in all aspects (mine being 1988). But the Water Dragon has started its work already, with the city most of the time being drenched in rain. However, I'm grateful that it's not always hot here. I've learned to appreciate the rain as a heavenly blessing.

I've got tons to do so maybe I will continue blogging after I complete the script which is needed tomorrow for the morning taping. (So help me, Lord.)

One more thing, I'm halfway with my book, The Onion Girl by Charles de Lint and I might finish it this week. To everybody, Happy New Year.

Kung Hei Fa Tsai!

SOPA: The Blackout

This issue has brought quite a ruckus on the net.

Wednesday, users of Wikipedia, Reddit and other internet sites based in the US found most of the homepages in the dark. This, as some administrative operators of the sites expressed their opposition to the bill under review by the American House of Representatives, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) authored by Representative Lamar S. Smith (R-TX). The bill seeks to expand the ability of US law enforcement and copyright holders to fight online trafficking in copyrighted intellectual property and counterfeit goods.

If passed into law, this will allow the US Department of Justice as well as the copyright holders to seek court orders against websites accused of violating copyright laws . This could lead to barring search engines from linking to protected sites, and this could also prevent online advertising networks and payment facilitators from doing business with infringed sites.

Pros
Supporters of the bill say it protects intellectual property rights and corresponding job industries, protecting revenues. This will filter access of web users to corresponding sites, and enforce copyright laws, especially from foreign, competing websites.

Cons
However, those who are against the bill have declared it to be violating the First Amendment, that it is internet censorship and will threaten free-speech actions. Protests have already been staged, including boycotts, petition drives and service blackouts of leading websites.

List of sites on blackout here.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg cranked up his Twitter account and tweeted for the first time since 2009:

"Tell your Congressmen you want them to be pro-Internet, [the Internet] is the most powerful tool we have for creating a more open and connected world, we can't let poorly thought out laws get in the way of the Internet's development. Facebook opposes SOPA and PIPA (Protect IP Act- corresponding bill in Senate), we will continue to oppose laws that will hurt the Internet."

My take on the issue

I agree to the need of protecting intellectual rights, especially in the fields of advertising, communications, arts and other major industries, which are major brands of companies in themselves. The Internet, being an endless archive of catalogues, networks, services and massive tool for development, exists in its continuity and fluidity of connecting one user to another. However, what needs to be regulated are sites which contain violence, abuse and those which promote indecency. For as long as there are websites which violate humanity and are proven harmful to children, also those containing immoral content, the censorship should be redirected there.

Texas Republican Representative Lamar S. Smith

When Rep. Lamar Smith announced the Stop Online Piracy Act in late October of last year, he knew it was going to be controversial. But the Texas Republican did not anticipate the response from Internet users.

Have any concerns regarding the SOPA? Share them...

To Keep Reading in Check

To keep reading in check, my lola decided to be my book buddy. =)

And she is one absolutely fun book buddy! I don't call her lola, I call her Mama Lette, shortened for Loretto. Papa calls her Mamang. Grand kids call her Mama Lette, so do her nieces, nephews, and other relatives. She is mother to three sons, (Papa being the middle son) and two girls.

Mama Lette is a retired teacher who also served under the Ministry of Education, during Marcos's administration. She was in fourth year law school when she married Papa Choy, (my lolo) and took up a teaching career when she no longer pursued the bar exams.

Mama Lette and the grandkids (L-R: Jess, Mikee, Mama Lette, Kyla, Tita Bing and Jenica) taken last December during our family picnic

Perhaps the love of books run in the family, and she is very conversant when it comes to talking about books she read, her favorite characters, what she likes about the style, the plot and whatever it is that catches her attention. With good eyesight, she still reads books at night by the bedside.

I brought home a copy of The Help by Kathryn Stockett and she borrowed it, suggesting we exchange books after I read The Onion Girl by Charles de Lint. Mama Lette makes the perfect book buddy, because we can always exchange books and talk about them when I come home from work and when she has finally settled down in the evening from watching her favorite Koreanovela. =)

The book pile

Mama Lette's current occupation 

My current book for the 2012 Reading Challenge, and I'm not even close to half of it yet! 

Awaiting the arrival of Thoughts of a Blogger via Multiply

What books are you currently reading? Leave a comment below! 

=)