A merry Christmas party and a case of the Mad-Eye Moody leg

I’ll start with the second part of this article’s title first. I want to apologize for my absence over the last few weeks. You see, this was a case of what I call "the Mad-Eye Moody Leg." Doubtless, most of you have seen what in my opinion is the best movie yet in the Harry Potter saga, The Goblet of Fire. While the book was the best one yet, the movie was pretty well done, too. In this fourth book, there is a highly eccentric and mysterious character named Mad-Eye Moody, professor of the Dark Arts at Hogwarts. For the few of you who missed the movie, a very brief description of this character: as an "auror" who fights and captures followers of the Dark Lord Voldemort, Mad-Eye Moody has sustained numerous injuries from his various encounters including, among others, his "mad eye," a bad limp and an even worse and highly suspicious temperament. The bad limp was caused by the loss of one of his legs, which Mad-Eye replaced with a metal screw-in leg.

Now, before you jump to any conclusions, no, I did not lose one of my limbs. But I severely damaged one as I imagined I was Tracy McGrady going for a fast-break slam dunk in my weekly basketball game with the Philippine STAR champion basketball team, only to have my shoe catch on the court surface and my knee twist upon impact, popping my ACL tendon in the process. It has been my most excruciatingly painful, highly frustrating, and somewhat depressing experience to date, as the accident has limited my mobility. My only consolation here is that my surgery was handled by the best, Dr. George Canlas, and I’m on my way back to a full recovery (which unfortunately will take six to eight months, depending on my rehab progress at the Moro Lorenzo Gym at the Ateneo). Dr. Canlas has been my physician for quite a few years now, handling all sorts of basketball and other sports injuries of mine, and I can tell you, I am in very capable hands.

But this was the first time I had to go under the knife. While surgery was a breeze, post-surgery was a painful nightmare. My advice to all of you over-the-hill Tracy McGradys and Yao Mings out there is this: remember, while the will to perform may be there still, the flesh may be somewhere else. Take extra precautions. Or, as my Dad exasperatedly told me after he heard of my injury, "Pa-basketbol, basketbol ka pa, you should just play golf!"

Well, even golf has its pitfalls, too. ACL injuries are quite common. Why, a few months ago, I was feeling sorry for a friend of mine, Ed Francisco, who was hobbling around in crutches due to an ACL tear. Little did I know that I would be following shortly and Ed would be my trusted mentor.

What has Mad-Eye Moody got to do with all this? Well, before and after surgery, Dr. Canlas made me wear a leg immobilizer to minimize movement in my knee. When my kids saw me wearing it and walking awkwardly, one of them said I had a Mad-Eye Moody leg. I must say I had to agree with them on this one. I even felt like Mad-Eye at times, on the edge and difficult to deal with – just ask my wife!

Anyway, I’m back in the thick of things and thought I should write something to end the year right. Well, what better way to end 2005 than with a great Christmas party with the Philippine Cactus and Succulent Society?

I hosted this event again in the garden where I grew up in Quezon City. There was a good turnout from our membership. The society has been doing well financially and also in terms of a growing membership roster. And the society is always trying to find interesting things to do for its members. Next year, we’re going to Bangkok to visit the now world-famous succulent growers over there. In particular, these growers have been able to culture some of the most beautiful astrophytums I have ever seen. I understand that the Japanese, who’ve developed most of the fantastic astrophytum hybrids like superkabuto and onzuka, are now buying plants from the Thai growers. Hopefully, my Mad-Eye Moody leg will be up for that upcoming trip.

The society’s Christmas celebration was really focused on fellowship and having fun with one another. We sang songs, played games, had a costume party, and exchanged gifts. Serapion Metilla, who co-founded the society 26 years ago, led many of these events. A few members brought some really nice plants to sell, a number of them grown from seed. Cesar Cheng, an expert in pachypodiums and certain euphorbias, brought some really beautifully grown Euphorbia rossii which he grew from seed. He was able to culture these into wonderful bonsai specimens. Even Peter Bangayan, one of the best growers of these plants in the country, commended Cesar’s efforts. Anna Purificacion of Purificacion Orchids fame (Anna and Cora grow a lot of really great stuff beyond orchids, including beautiful cacti and succulents) also had a nice tray of astrophytums, assorted cacti and even some mesembryanthemums for sale. Bimbo Vergara, who’s been quite a force in our society these last few years, also brought nice succulent specimens, some at ridiculously affordable prices. Needless to say, I think his plants were wiped out that day.

I believe 2006 is going to be quite an exciting year for the Philippine Cactus and Succulent Society. Besides the upcoming Bangkok trip, the society will be participating in various local horticulture events, including the annual Philippine Horticulture Society show. We are also planning a number of interesting projects here and there. Send me an e-mail if you are interested in joining our society. I believe you will find it quite worthwhile.

I wish all of you a Blessed Christmas and a fantastic 2006!

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E-mail the author at succulentophile@yahoo.com