Mr. Russert, you will be missed.

Because of this, here are ten very excellent footballers, that do not inspire female (or male) adulation.

1. Carles Puyol, Defender, Spain



2. Carlos Marchena, Defender, Spain



3. Dirk Kuyt, Forward, The Netherlands



4. Jacek Kryznowek, Midfielder, Poland



5. Milan Baros, Striker, Czech Republic



6. Gennaro Gattuso, Midfielder, Italy



7. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Striker, Sweden



8. Franck Ribery, Midfielder, France (I feel bad about this because, like Carlos Teves, he was in an accident that left him scars. But, hey. He's one of the best players on the planet.)




9. Gregory Coupet, Goalkeeper, France



10. Mauro Camoranesi, Midfielder, Italy

Live from Red Arrow:

1. The Euro Cup finally got a good game, with the Oranje behind van Nistelrooy's heels and van Basten's coaching playing Total Football. Playing in the Group of Death, they surely know how to kill the giants. Champions Italy are unlikely to advance.

2. Paul Newman (with Robert Redford below) is very ill. That's very sad.



3. Did you know that the fingernails in your dominant hand grow faster than on your non-dominant hand? I always thought that that was just due to my more vigorous trimming of my fingernails on my non-dominant hand with my dominant hand (which hand is left to use?). Are you dizzy?

4. Bloggers on Wordpress should know: serious security issues.

5. Iron Man 2 gossip via director Jon Favreau's myspace page: concerns about unreturned calls and the April 2010 release date.

6. See below



7. Heidi Montag, villain of The Hills and erstwhile endorser of John McCain, gets stuck in an ATM vestibule.



8. There's some progress with Ces Drilon et.al's kidnapping. Read here.

9. Researchers, take note: there's a social network for you! This is so nerd!

10. Today should really be the day when you take stock of your freedom. Say something offensive! ;-)

From the shores of Panglao:

1. Tarsiers could be the strangest living things you'll ever see (without getting your feet wet). Go to a Tarsier Foundation accredited tourist site. Other places to see them, like the ones that let you handle them, are illegal, as tarsiers often lose their appetite when they are handled by humans and consequently die. Look, take pictures but never touch.

2. Panglao Beach, and Bohol Beach Club, is 30 minutes away from the airport in Tagbilaran, and no more than another 40 minutes from everywhere else that's fun to visit in Bohol. The beach is wider and whiter than Boracay (I've been told several times over) and the water is much better. From there, you can go to several nearby islands by boat to snorkel and see dolphins and whales in their natural habitat.

3. You can go to and from Cebu via ferry from Tagbilaran. Takes about two hours.

4. Alona Beach on Panglao Island is what the locals call "Mini Boracay". Here, apparently, was where Alona Alegre, the beach's name sake, went topless (hindi "all the way", as our guide makes certain) for one of her early films. I imagine the nightlife here is a lot more hopping, as dozens of bars and restaurants (with not one but two happy hours) are lined up along the shore.


5. The Chocolate Hills are breathtaking. I have to admit, I didn't have high expectations: really they're just peculiar mounds of dirt, right? Well, when you get to the lookout and see thousands of them, it'll make you eat your words. Get those crazy jumping photos by the edge of the lookout when you're there.

6. When staying at the Bohol Beach Club, get a room near the Front Desk and use the free Wifi in your room.

7. Take the Loac River cruise. Lunch is a floating buffet along nipa- and mangrove-lined shores.

8. Visit the local centuries-old churches and structures dating all the way back to the 1500's, where Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and Datu Sikatuna bled their arms in the Sandugo, right along the banks of Bohol. In the Baclayon Church, see altars, vestments, bibles, furniture and other ephemera (handwritten records on cowhide) while traversing across ancient wooden planks. Don't miss the Clarin house if you're a Bohol muebles buff.

9. On Panglao Island, visit the Seashell Museum and their amazing, amazing (yes, twice over) collection of seashells, some worth US$1,500! See shells endemic to Bohol, like the once ultra-rare Gloriamaris (where once there were only 14 specimens in the world, demanding a price of over $10,000 among collectors). And, purchase some as better-than-a-tee-shirt souvenir, like the Gloriamaris, for Php100 for a 3-inch specimen. We spent almost two hours perusing this museum's collection.

10. Also on Panglao Island: the Bohol Bee Farm. With Hibiscus Flower salad, organic vegetarian pasta, a cross-eyed bee for a logo, and a rocky cliff view that will leave you breathless, you'll easily declare that this could be the best place in the Philippines.

I just got back from Panglao Island and Bohol. There's plenty to say, but while I collect my thoughts, I have this: a treehouse off the shores of Panglao.