the Earth-bound adventures of the Lost and Found

people! need your help identifying something for an article. it's white and smooth, but it's very small (maybe 2-3 inches long max and just a little wider than a strand of hair), and lives in anemones. it has an eye and mouth, it seems. the divemaster said it's a ghost eel pipefish, but i don't think so. it's definitely not a ghost pipefish =P i've attached some photos to help. do you know what it is? hope so! thanks in advance! oh and could you please help me identify these gobies? is it true that they're rare?

September 12, 2006. Was supposed to dive at Apo, but it was too late to make arrangements, so we decided to go Dauin instead. First time to dive in a black/gray sand setting, and what a great experience it was! We went down maximum 15 feet because the currents were really, really strong, but in exchange, we saw these jacks schooling at that depth (usually they're found in open sea). You'll notice that my shot is pretty unsteady--that's the current dragging me along, and you'll see in the video how fast it is.

September 10, 2006. One of the rare occasions I used my underwater camera on video mode. I've always loved looking at schools of fusilier, and here's a perfect example why.

September 11 and 12, 2006. I'm skipping a couple of trips, dives and melodramatic events in my life to upload this album of my visit to Dumaguete via Lilo-an, Santander, Cebu and my amazing dives in two sanctuaries in Dauin to give you (and me) a glimpse of my future home and lifestyle. Just a selection of the most interesting things I saw on the trip. I'm so excited already! PS my new website header (the one you see above) is a picture from the masaplod norte sanctuary in dauin. super strong currents! was hardly moving even though i was finning like crazy. but perfect visibility. also the turtles up there i cut out from a picture of an anemone that you will see below =)

Description: THE WASTE TRADING MARKETS! Sept 8 (and every first Friday of the month) Gold Crest Car Park, Ayala Ctr (along Arnaiz Ave. Makati) Sept 22 (and every third Friday of the month) Alabang Town Center (Alabang - Zapote Rd) These Waste Markets aim to make recycling convenient and accessible, especially for those who frequent commercial shopping areas, and also to show that we all CAN make recycling a habit! Ingredients: Trade scrap paper for new (office/ mimeo) paper! Trade used ink cartridges for new! Sell your electronic waste (junk computers) and old /broken appliances! Sell your used lead acid batteries! Redeem the following for cash: PET plastic bottles and other plastics, aluminum/tin cans, scrap glass. Drop off points also provided for junk cellphones, cellphone batteries, styrofoam... Directions: Please help spread the word and forward this announcement to friends, family and colleagues. For more information, contact Nancy Pilien, Philippine Business for the Environment ...

so we finally arrived in new york last night, at about 8pm. while waiting for conching to come out from being interviewed about her finacee visa, i sat on the baggage carousel checking for a signal. there were two, but neither was good for surfing. my mother's place has a good connection in one room, so i checked and answered my mail early this morning before we left for connecticut because i was afraid i'd be offline the whole time i'd be here. but wonder of wonders! got home at around midnight tonight after playing progressive rummy with my aunts and cousin and brother, and when i turned my laptop on---11 Mbps from an unknown source! here, in the middle of nowhere! really need to be working, though. the silence here is deafening (the house is right beside the thames river), so i had planned on finishing up some articles i owe before going back to busy new york and going on my other trips. but with ths connection here...uh oh. PS imagine my glee upon discovering that ...

before anyone accuses me of being an internet addict, i'm admitting it now, for everyone to know. i'm at the incheon airport now in seoul waiting for our flight to new york and i found SIX wi-fi networks at this particular hallway post alone! before i left davao, i had taken to driving around with my father searching for wi-fi connections late at night. it gives me pure joy to discover wireless networks practically everywhere now in the city, even on the highways! i once spent 14 hours (with just an hour's break in between to change venues), starting at 4pm, just surfing. some people, drink, smoke or do drugs. i wi-fi. and here is a picture of me that conching took just now =P