By Alex P. Vidal
“History never really says goodbye. History says, ‘See you later.’”
—Eduardo Galeano
AFTER an “unfortunate” incident at past 10 o’clock in the evening sometime in August 1996 inside the Ihawan Restaurant on corner Delgado-Iznart Streets in Iloilo City, the late former Iloilo Second District Board Member Rodolfo “Boy” Cabado and I haven’t spoken again.
Since arriving from Koronadal, South Cotabato where he allegedly “witnessed” the rumble inside a KTV bar on March 18, 1993 that resulted in the murder of popular Asin band vocalist Cesar “Saro” Bañares Jr., BoyCab, a friend of almost every Ilonggo, would always invite me for a few drinks in Ihawan after my editing tasks in Sun Star Iloilo Daily.
The “unfortunate” incident happened in our table when he had one drink too many.
BoyCab, a very humble person and one of the best congressmen Iloilo never had, apologized to me. I accepted the apology but that was the last time we sat together in a beer session. Ihawan was never the same again after a drunken customer was shot dead in the nights that followed.
He became a member of the 9th Sanggunian Panlalawigan in Iloilo years later and subsequently chief of staff of then Iloilo Governor Arthur “Art” Defensor Sr. We never met again.
When the social media beckoned in the later part of the new millennium, we became “friends” this time in the Facebook, but I was already based outside the Philippines.
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He broke the ice with a private message on February 27, 2014, a “lecture” actually about the original Bloody Mary in history.
A brilliant historian-lawyer and lecturer in the Central Philippine University (CPU) College of Law, BoyCab said he was an avid reader of my newspaper columns, thus my “error” in one subject matter I wrote about Bloody Mary didn’t escape his scrutiny.
“Pangga Alex, gin PM ko ini sa imo kay indi ko gusto makita sang iban sa timeline mo- kag basi masiling sila nga strict ako nga history teacher nga la-on! You made reference in your “Tweety” blog about “bloody Mary” being Mary, Queen of Scots (widow of the French King and imprisoned and later allowed to be executed by the then reigning Queen Elizabeth I (daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn). Not quite right. The real “bloody Mary” was Queen Mary I (daughter of Henry VIII with his first queen Katerina, or Catherine, of Aragon, Spain, widow of his deceased elder brother to whose throne he succeeded as king). Mary I was the elder half-sister of Elizabeth I, who reigned after the death of the sickly Edward VI (son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour). Elizabeth I succeeded to the English throne after the death of that real “bloody Mary.”
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Again on June 24, 2016, the great BoyCab sent me another private message:
Hi Alex! I remember reading in one of your articles that you had some difficulty finding a copy of Volume 3 of The Story of Civilization dealing with “Caesar and Christ”. I happen to have a complete ebook set of the entire 11-volume life work of Will and Ariel Durant (in .epub format) and I’d like to share it with you (unless you have it already).
Problem is, Facebook has a limited allowance for attachments (25 MB I guess), so I couldn’t share it with you via PM. Please give me your email address so I can send it to you pronto. All the best and God bless!
October 27, 2017: Pangga Alex, I was just wondering if you received the complete 12-volume Story of Civilization by Will Durant I sent to you some time ago (after I stole it somewhere). Hehe! Please let me know so I can send it again if you didn’t. All the best always!
He made another follow up:
It’s 3:00 AM here. Just let me know when you’re home and we’ll drink ourselves silly, like in the old days. Thanks and God bless!
Yes, I bid you goodnight already. But an inveterate pirate like me is also obsessive-compulsive. I had the complete hardbound set of Copleston when I was studying Philosophy for my pre-law degree. But that was burned in the Capitol fire in 1998. I bought another set (paperbound this time) from Amazon, but that was also lost during the flood of typhoon Frank. Fortunately, I was able to find second-hand paperbacks from different stores here in Iloilo City to complete my third set over a period of time. I put the set on the highest level of my bookshelf – where it’s gathering dust and cobwebs. But I’m sending you the complete set below in .pdf format -accessible from Google Drive via the link below. I hope the files are ok. From one bookworm to another. Enjoy!
I learned that he went home to his Creator on November 3, 2023 at 70. Farewell, Atty. BoyCab, my very kind friend and history lecturer. ‘Till we meet again—in another table afterlife.
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BANK OF AMERICA warned me in an e-mail dated November 3, 2023 to “be aware of these 4 common scams:
— “I thought it was someone from the bank!” Scammers are professional imposters. They’ll pretend to be a relative, a utility company or even Bank of America.
— “They said I had an overdue bill.” Scammers want to make you panic and overreact without thinking. A loved one in trouble, a late bill or an amazing deal are all tactics to throw you off.
— “She needed my account info right away.”Scammers will want your money fast. They’ll tell you to send funds immediately, often via wire transfer or payment apps, where the money is unlikely to be recovered.
— “He was so friendly.” Scammers often use social media to deceive. The bank alerted me that scammers will “try to befriend you, strike up a relationship, then hit you with exclusive ‘insider’ deals and get-rich-quick schemes.
It also warned me of the following:
—Scammers will steal your information, your money and even your identity. Don’t let them!
—Don’t disclose security codes, account info, or passwords/PINs to anyone. We won’t text or call you asking for these and only you should enter codes if prompted.
—Don’t click links in unsolicited email or text messages.
—Verify requests for money by contacting companies.
—Independently research sellers and deals found on social media before you make a purchase.
Thank for the tips, Bank of America.
(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two daily newspapers in Iloilo.—Ed)
