inhale, exhale

oh, picko!

2011-04-04T00:33:00.001+08:00

this is one of my classic anecdotes. there can never be another picko. i miss this kid already!

August 12, 2010 (Thursday)

Picko was rushing to put on his socks and shoes. Most of his classmates were already lined up. Not wanting to be left behind, he shouted, “Hoy!”

Upon hearing him, Teacher asked him to repeat what he said. Realizing his mistake, Picko corrected himself and said, “Hoy po!” ü

for posterity

2011-04-03T23:43:00.004+08:00

i write anecdotal reports for my students every other month. it's tedious, but they're PRECIOUS. i have former students in high school who still read their preschool anecs every once in a while.

i retell them a lot so my cousin, mama aly, suggested i post some of them. and so, i obey. this one is from zoey's. it will always make me smile... and laugh :)

*English translations in parentheses

February 22, 2011 (Tuesday)
The class was beginning to get unruly from all the excitement of making an origami penguin. Teacher said that only the cute ones will get to make origami penguins. Teacher further explained that the rule included Teacher.

Euan commented that Teacher wasn’t cute, but was, in fact, something else. “I think you are maganda.” (Beautiful)

A student (who shall remain unnamed) retorted, “Di kaya!” (No, she's not!)

Zoey quickly came to Teacher’s defense. “Di kaya! Teacher is maganda… medyo.” ü (Yes, she is! Teacher is beautiful... sort of.)

a very good reason to recycle

2011-03-25T21:19:00.002+08:00

we segregate our trash in school (at least in my classroom, we do). one day, my student, zoey, asked where to discard a foil pack. i instructed her to place it in the non-biodegradable trash can and she did. seconds later, she was back with a piece of plastic wrapper asking the same thing.

looking at her place mat and seeing that she would be making several trips back and forth to me and to the trash cans, i explained. "it's like this, zoey. everything that God made is biodegrable. you see, God created them in such a way that when they die or when they're used up, they decompose, become part of the earth, and can be used as 'food' for the plants and trees."

and in an instant, zoey, my dear 5-year old student, summarizes everything with this insight: "He recycles!"

yes, He does... and so should we.

precious comments

2010-12-02T01:19:00.002+08:00

overheard in class during sign-in...

student: malapit na ang Christmas. malapit nang mag-snow :)

are you there, God?

2010-11-25T00:21:00.009+08:00

prior to the fieldtrip to manila seedling bank, i asked my kinder class what they thought they'd see there. a student replied, "God." well, seeing the explosion of colors and the sheer variety of shapes and sizes of the flora world left me again, in awe and humbled. yup, my student was right, i DID see God at the manila seedling bank!

the php 15k opera fern

hydrangeas in full bloom

a crocodile lurking by the lilies

drip...

drip...

drop!

lotus, very pink :P

APO... bow!

2010-05-28T15:59:00.003+08:00

Photo from APO's FB page

After 40 years of being together, the APO Hiking Society is finally bidding adieu. I was very fortunate to see the first of their last three performances as a singing group last night at the Music Museum and enjoyed every minute of it. As always, the APO did not disappoint.

They don't make them like they used to. For a musical group (can't really call them a band) to stick it out together for 40 years is a feat in itself. They've been APO longer than they've been students, married, parents, teachers, and entrepreneurs. Other groups couldn't put a candle to these three's longevity. Their decision to disband is saddening but very respected, as respected as the APO is, collectively and individually.

I grew up with their music. I will even admit to owning an LP or two of theirs (LP? What's that?! Hahaha!). APO not only knew how to write music, they MADE music. Theirs was whimsical, entertaining, feel-good, and even sexy (I love, love, love "Kumot at Unan"). Maybe it's a sign of my age, but most of what comes out of my radio nowadays is noise compared to the music of my time. Sigh... They don't make them like they used to.

It was fun seeing them on stage again last night. Yes, they've aged over the years, greys and wrinkles here and there but their wit and comedic timing remain sharp. They still poke fun at Buboy's height, Danny's complexion, and Jim, well, for being Jim! (I imagine that they'd still be doing so well after retirement.) As for their music... simply APO perfect. The audience paid them the great homage by singing along, but not too loud so as not to hear the 3-part harmony the APO has been so known for.

Leaving the theater last night, I couldn't help but feel a tinge sad at seeing them go. But everyone's gotta go some time, right? So, to you, APO, take a bow and make it a long one. You deserve it!

Easter "Magic"

2010-04-08T18:35:00.000+08:00

children are always entertaining and are easily entertained. sometimes, all you need is a spoon. see what my cousin beau started in our last Easter family get together...

first, the demo

then the assist

success!

the cousins join the act (with some cheating)

jyo becomes a pro

as does gueli

easter balut :)

A Triduum Martha

2010-04-05T20:18:00.008+08:00

i've always been a martha. that explains a lot about my being a producer: always in the background, making sure that there are no loose ends and that everything runs smoothly.

this triduum, i was still martha, but one with more faith. you see, our triduum coordinator, tito eddie, has this bizarre prayer that we have a difficult time. he's not a sadist (at least, not that i know of). "all the better to rely on Him," he says. he says it each year and each year, the triduum preparations get more and more difficult.

this year took the cake. despite what we thought was an early start on preparations, we found ourselves grappling for time 'til the very end. tito eddie was having a dry spell and i (quite literally) could not find the face of Jesus for the reveal sequence. with less than 2 weeks to go, my lead dancer informs me that she can't make it to our planned rehearsal dates because of a conflict with a sudden school activity and so far, only 5 sisters had signed up for the dance (we wanted at least 10). eleven days before "show day," my assistant director backs out due to a family emergency. less than 24 hours later, my floral coordinator and supplier begs off as well.

i had no script, no lead dancer, no dancers, no assistant director, no production assistants, and no florist. what i DID have was faith.

had these been the circumstances say, 10 - 12 years ago, i would've panicked; not this time. strangely enough, i was very calm. driving from a meeting one day, i heard the Lord say that He was in control. all i could say was "amen."

it really helps when you have a friend in high places. the Lord had all the proper connections and He led me straight to them.

surfing the internet, i found, of all things, a website specifically dedicated to images of the resurrected Christ where i found His face!
a dear friend agreed to do my flowers at my price (with delivery) over a simple phone call. they were beautiful too! plus, she delivered 2 hours early!
a simple e-mail to the sector youth workers instantly yielded the 15 kids we needed to dance the hora tambourine dance (18 actually showed up on rehearsal day!)
on the day of the first dance practice, a sister called me up and couldn't believe what she was about to ask me: "could i still join the dance?" she then shared that during her morning prayer time, the Lord asked how she could dance for her health but not for Him. the moment she decided to dance for the Lord, her schedules cleared up, making her available for rehearsals. she was the 10th dancer that we needed.
last minute, we decide to have kids wave ribbons during the Gloria. i asked the help of a brother who was at the rehearsals (for a different meeting) to do the recruiting and he and his wife got me 29 kids that same night (30 if you count the little boy who took his brothers ribbon and refused to return it. his mom waved it for him.)
a brother and a sister in community (separately) helped me look for an assistant director. a week before show day, i had not one, but two assistant directors!
better still, one of them recruited the four production assistants we needed (on the actual day, i had 3 additional volunteers!).

the Lord provided every need. every task that needed to be done was accomplished, even the unexpected. a third priest helped celebrate the Easter vigil mass (we were only expecting two). no one knew his name. mid-mass, i was informed that a sister knew him and so to get the priest's name (so he could be properly acknowledged), i needed to find her... in a sea of over 2,000 attendees! were they joking me?! while ranting, i turned my head to find, seated in the front row of the group of chairs just behind me, the very sister i was looking for! it brings new meaning to the verse "seek and you shall find."

i finally printed my final script 5 hours before it was to be executed. midway through my final revisions, tito eddie texted to ask how i was doing and i reported to him my status. he rejoiced with me and texted me a prayer for smooth transitions for the day. i replied that i was grateful that his prayer was not that i would have a difficult time. he said that it was no longer necessary because that was already an answered prayer and that i had truly experienced the weight of His glory. he's absolutely right!

when God is in control and ties up loose ends, Marthas get to experience being Marys too. what a glorious God we have indeed!

Being good, one student at a time

2010-03-20T19:09:00.003+08:00

when i was a religion teacher, i preached that "religion is not a subject; it is a way of life." i remember how in sophomore year, our teacher, a nun, made us memorize the entire gospel of mark (because it was the shortest of the four). well, i made it through sophomore religion easy. did it make me a better person? hardly.

i am a product of 16 years of catholic schooling, but it was not until i joined a Catholic charismatic community that i finally met Jesus. after having met him, i thought to myself, "i wish that i had known him earlier." and that, ladies and gentlemen, was one of the main reasons why i went into teaching preschool. it couldn't be just any school; it had to be a school that knew Jesus, too. it had to be cradle of joy.

the school's tagline says it all: shaping young hearts and minds for Jesus. i made it my mission to share with kids that Jesus is real, not just a storybook character like snow white or the three little pigs. i wanted the kids to know early what i knew so late in my own life. and they got it!

a few years into my teaching stint, i was asked to teach at the grade school, at first, for english, then later, for religion. the lessons required more structure (no, i didn't make them memorize the entire gospel) and my audience was tougher, but i still taught what i knew and prayed that someone listened.

early this year, i met a COJ alumni after mass. i'll admit that he wasn't the brightest light bulb in the batch, but a good kid, nonetheless. he shared with me that he was doing pretty well in his new school except in 1 subject: religion.

aaaaaaargh! i failed him!

before i could ask him why, he went on to explain that his religion classes were boring and that all they did was memorize, memorize, memorize. (sounds familiar!) he ended by saying, "at least in coj, they taught me how to be a good person."

yesssss! one down, many more to go.

well, hello!

2010-02-04T03:19:00.002+08:00

haven't done this in a while. ok. i haven't done this in a looooong while.

like riding a bike, i'm hoping that it all comes back to me... more sooner than later, i hope.

awed and inspired

2008-07-19T17:42:00.002+08:00

the following is my entry to the cisv international people's project (ipp) blog that i posted after trekking a mountain to plant a tree and swim by the waterfalls. pictures to follow. to read other ipp entries, go to www.bayanihanipp.blogspot.com

i consider myself to be a spiritual person and in no other instance is God's presence made more evident than in nature. whenever i see nature, like we did today, i am humbled. i look at the waterfalls and i appreciate God's greatness and ingenuity; i see the mountains and marvel at how they look - molded by God's own hands and covered with a carpet of grass and trees. i am awed at how one powerful volcanic eruption can destroy a river, displace population, and change lives... forever. yet it is precisely that destruction 17 years ago that brings 24 people from 10 different countries together to rebuild a culture, a community, and many lives.

i am inspired by these people, who today, made a difference for others... and most likely, for themselves. i am inspired by their determination to push on, despite fatigue and heat, to dig a hole, plant a tree, or climb a mountain.

sometimes, God deals people (and at times, an entire nation) acts of devastation and we question the wisdom of it all. today showed me that perhaps it is not ours to question; the perfection of such an act was in the presence of each of the 24 people in this camp.

ninong benny

2008-07-16T01:04:00.008+08:00

i attempted five times to finish this entry, and failed; each time ended with me sobbing. i still do. but this has to be done. below is my eulogy to my uncle benny whom i sorely miss.

it took his death to resurrect my blog. how ironic. part of me refused to write about him because part of me refused to accept that he was gone. it's like burying your father twice.

more than an uncle and a godfather, what he was to me, was a father. when dad passed, he stood as father, teacher, and counselor, not just to me and my siblings, but to the many whom his life has touched and changed. he was our patriarch; he championed family traditions and values that mark who we, as a family, are today. and though i know that many call him "ninong" as well, i'd like to think that i was the original. i was, after all, his godchild for forty years... and that for me is a big thing.

i share three things with ninong benny.

first is my name -- sulit. in the filipino language, my surname means "worth every centavo." it's not a very easy name to live up to, especially when those who precede you leave such big shoes to fill and cast huge shadows. dad and ninong benny were giants; imagine the footprints they left behind.

ninong benny taught me that anything worth doing was worth doing well. HE certainly did. he worked well, taught well, ate well, lived well, and loved well. just take a look at his house. it took him 10 years to "build" it, so much so that carpenters and painters became permanent fixtures and residents. he went through every meticulous detail and didn't stop until he was satisfied.

like him, i am a teacher. i remember him being pleased with my decision to leave my colorful and high-paying corporate job to teach. he too gave up a lot - an opportunity to raise his family abroad where the grass was "greener." but, no. wife and two young kids in tow, he came back, not just to build his medical career, but more importantly probably, to teach. he taught as a way of giving back to the country he so much loved. that passion made him a much sought-after mentor for only the brave. true to his name, he taught very well... but he also expected the same, if not more, from his residents. i guess he wanted everyone to be a sulit (and what's wrong with that?).

by my many conversations with him, i thought that there wasn't a question that he didn't know the answer to. what he knew, he shared to many... not just his residents, but to his children, grandchildren, and anyone who had the time and privilege to sit beside him and chat with him.

like him too, i am big... but ninong was not just physically big; he did everything BIG. he had a big house and threw big parties. he had to, because he was a man with a big heart. his annual birthday parties were were so well-attended that it went on for hours and was known to blow a fuse or two in more than one occasion.

he gave even when he had nothing to give. so generous was this man that he even shared his own family with me. many times he told me reassuringly, "alam mo naman na anak kita, diba?" (you DO know that you are my daughter, don't you?) THAT i knew, never doubted, and lived out. so enjoined am i to his family that often times, when aly and i introduce ourselves, we claim, "magkapatid kami; iba lang ang mga magulang namin." (we're siblings; we just have different parents.)

he was always known for his hospitality. of this, the bible says, "let brotherly love continue. do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." (hebrews 13: 1 - 2) safe to say that ninong did his Godly duty. i'd like to think that all of us who have benefited from his hospitality are "benny's angels." we should only be so lucky.

whenever i saw ninong, i would always greet him with a buzz on both cheeks. he would insist on it with his hearty line, "other side!" i know that i can longer do that to him... but not forever. i look forward to the day that i could do that again, when we meet "on the other side."

rest well, ninong. it's time to go home.

heroes - no relation to the tv series

2008-01-03T01:31:00.001+08:00

history has come full circle... at least for some of my students.

once upon a time, every child's parent was his / her hero. there was also a time when athletes from all playing fields were placed on pedastals. when war came, heroes were made in a field of a different kind: the battlefield... and in comics. that was when superheroes came to be. superman, captain america, iron man... the whole lot of them.

people need heroes in their lives... to look up to, to aspire to become. back then, everyone wanted to be a baseball player, or a soldier, or a policeman... noble professions back then. realistically, no one could go faster than a speeding bullet or leap tall buildings in a single bound, let alone fly. but regardless of super abilities, heroes, back then at least, were looked upon and admired for what they stood for and upheld: concepts of justice and good triumphing over evil... those kinds of things!

sadly, i remember the time when many children (and adults) in our country wanted to be actors. wannabes, that's what they were. good looks were a ticket in; never mind that they didn't have talent. there were more than enough to fill in the daily slots of "that's entertainment" where televiewers suffered from watching the wards attempt to entertain with their skits, dances, songs, and on-the-spot drama classes. not to be outdone, the other channel had circles of so-called talents. some heroes they were. in an impoverished country such as ours, it was a get-rich-quick deal. fatalists that we are, we went for it, hook, line, and sinker. i remember thinking, "what will our country be in 10 years time? we'll have so many actors and no doctors, no policemen, no teachers..."

these days, a lot of people want to be nurses... not to be of service, but rather, as a ticket out of here and out of poverty. really, who can blame them? thought bubble: hmmm... i wonder if there are actors that became nurses?

i've always believed that to become a strong nation, we need strong leaders. after all, it is the leaders who pave the way, who give the direction. it's a simple matter of command responsibility.

my class discussed leadership qualities in religion class last quarter. we listed qualities we thought good leaders ought to have then evaluated leaders of countries (u.s.a. and the philippines) and our school against these. well, let's just say that bush and gma could not hold a candle to our school directress. we also evaluated Christ. Christ was definitely a good leader. He certainly showed people the way... it was up to them to follow or not. but i digress...

i next assigned my students to interview and report on a person whom they thought was a good leader. i would later ask them to write feature articles on their interviewees for english class. to my delight, i discovered that more than half my class wrote about their parents (most others wrote about their relatives - aunts and a grandparent; one interviewed our school directress). they admired them for reasons such as responsibility, diligence, and optimism. but what struck a chord with me was how my students looked up to their parents for traits like generosity, hospitality, piety, and trust and obedience to God. "my father lives his life for the Lord," said one. another mentioned how her dad could not live a day without praying, praising, worshipping, or talking to God. how awesome is that?! a few of my students refered to their parents as their idols and stated that they wanted to follow in their footsteps. and though their essays may be wanting in organization and spelling, they certainly were not lacking in inspiration.

to my students' parents, congratulations! i'm as proud of you as i am of your own children. it's times like these that i wish i had more than 12 students in my class. imagine what our country would be like 10 years from now if we had more of them.

COJ Concert

2007-12-07T11:43:00.000+08:00

it is done. after months of discussions, weeks of preparation, and an overnight video production, it all seems like a blur. i really wouldn't know how the concert went because thanks to the rain, my students and I were "quarantined" to the backstage (actually, we were OUTSIDE the theater -- where the stagehands smoked).

the kids were great onstage and were behave offstage. this is the most i've seen my kids dance, i almost wanted to cry! hahaha! the concert, to say the least, was a huge success. so much so that gary v wants to do it again with the kids next year... in a better venue. naks! don't worry, we promise to remember you when we're famous.

more great photos of the concert on dennis pilapil's blogsite. one pair of hands in the middle of the black theater photos are mine. plugging! hahaha!

move over, jollibee!

2007-11-02T00:53:00.000+08:00

i remember having jollibee, our local fastfood, as a client when i was an executive producer. i also remember the orientation we had. you see, it's mascot is jollibee, who is, well, by all visual definition, a bee.

but hu-wait! according to the client, who is always right, "jollibee is not a bee; he is your friend." i kid you not on this! confused? i'm not surprised. it's complicated.

i offer you something simpler and much cuter. meet jyo, my newest nephew. jyo is not a bee; he is adorable. (his parents don't look too bad either :P)

when ignorance is bliss

2007-10-29T23:29:00.000+08:00

who would've thought that the next time i'd blog, i'd be forty. yes, forty... it's been THAT long (hahaha!).

officially, i turned the big 4-0 last thursday, but i celebrated that fateful number much, much earlier... four days earlier, to be precise. last monday, i was the pleasant victim of a surprise party. and WAS i surprised!

i was absolutely clueless to the conniving goings-on of the people around me... people at work, people in the community, my family, even CISV! the details, to this day, remain sketchy. from what i was told, planning started as early as 3 months ago. the brainchild was my pastoral leader, diday, ably assisted by my connection to everyone else, amy. how perfect is that? a control freak (and i say this lovingly, mother) and a wedding coordinator planned the party.

they planned everything... the guest list (which i loved! these were the people i wanted to see and be with), the schedule (down to the minutes of the program for the night), the script for my surprise (which i blew because i refused to open the door -- sorry), lootbags, and the food. more on that later.

in a matter of minutes, they transformed the terrace into a happenin' place complete with centerpieces and balloons... all in PINK, thanks to my loving neighbors. the moment i saw the tv, i kinda cringed because i knew that a video was afoot. gehd, had i known, i could have provided nicer pictures (hahaha!).

people brought my favorite fare for everyone to feast on... tocino, kare-kare, pansit pusit (thanks to the layas!), salad greens (yes, i am a leaf eater), diday's neighbor's leche flan, more tocino, and goldilocks mocha cake, to name a few. never thought i was THAT predictable, but hey, i was a happy camper that night!

people, by nature, are egotists. who doesn't want a surprise party?! it was everything i wanted and didn't. funny how people want attention yet shy away the minute it's given to them. that's why i know i can never be a celebrity (hahaha!). turning 40 was a blast! being surprised and surrounded by people i love and who have blessed me these first 40 years of my life have made ageing pleasureable. so pleasurable that i don't mind doing it again next year! *hint! hint!*

lost?

2007-05-25T01:12:00.002+08:00

some things never change. prior to jya camp, the last time i held a compass was for an open water course for my diver's license. that was a very loooong time ago.

as our facilitators were teaching the kids at camp how to read a compass, i was glad to know that i still knew a thing or two about orienteering. it was good to know that the compass, since my diving days, hasn't changed, underwater or on dry land, and that true north hasn't moved. some things never change.

the procedure remains the same as well: stand still, get your bearings, orient with true north, and walk straight towards the way you are directed.

our walk in faith goes by the same procedure... ideally. true, people sometimes lose their way. maybe they're poor with directions... or they forget to orient themselves with true north and opt for money or career or their hearts to guide them... or, like many male drivers, they're too proud to ask for directions or even admit they're lost. *sigh* some things haven't changed.

and through it all, one thing remains constant: true north. it will always point you to where you ought to go; it will never mislead you and you get to your final destination... no matter how many times you get lost, accidentally or on purpose.

getting lost also serves a purpose. Yahweh purposely allowed the Israelites to wander in the desert for 40 years. that's a long time to get lost. you see, He was teaching them a lesson. precisely, it was for them to rely on Yahweh. there are just some things you can't do on your own. faithful as He is, He did lead them to their final destination, the Promised Land.

sometimes, we just have to humble ourselves and admit that we're lost... or stumped. learn from camp. at that point, the best thing to do is to stop, get your bearings, orient with TRUE north, and walk straight towards the way you were directed. thank God, some things will never change.

kids' wisdom

2007-05-20T13:39:00.001+08:00

shuttled some kids from the jya camp reunion to my uncle's house yesterday. inching through the traffic in front of la salle greenhills, our conversation turned to bullying.

here are snippets of that precious conversation that left us all laughing through rest of the ride.

joseph: when you're bullied, you become a bully.
renzo: ano, bully disease?!

--oOo--

joseph: when you're bullied, run! most bullies are fat
anyway.

MWAHAHAHA! haaaay... kids can be soooo cute talaga! :)

ang iniiiiiiiiit!

2007-05-18T19:02:00.002+08:00

as blu in madam foster's says and as gueli and i often repeat, "it's hot... in TO-PE-KA!"

well forget about topeka; it's hot HERE!

it is sooooo hot, i'd like to walk around with an ice cube tied to the top of my head! evenings aren't cooler either; there's not even a breeze!

to make matters worse, the ac in the new admin office isn't working, making the outside even more tolerable than the inside! caramba! so glad my admin stint ended today and i'll be back as "teacher" on monday. (God loves me. Yes, He does!)

when God created the philippines, He forgot to put in the ac :(

perfect mistakes

2007-05-15T23:19:00.001+08:00

post-Good Friday post

once a producer, always a producer. being one for nine years certainly changed me. there was hardly a time when i couldn't watch a tv commercial or movie without wondering where the location was, what time they got up to get the shot, or what time the call time was. i became more sensitive to cinematography, editing, and scoring. i was no longer watching to be entertained; i was criticizing!

oh, but it got better! in the latter part of my producer career, the company ventured into live stagings. my boss claimed not to have the stomach for the stress (i've seen her cry from it, the stress), so she passed the projects on to me. i, on the other hand, thrived on the pressure. there are no take twos here. you had to be think quick on your feet; fix the situation now, now, NOW! when the show wasn't mine, i noticed everything! miscues, misaligned sets, dying batteries, wardrobe malfunctions, and the dreaded dead air. worse, i would mumble solutions... as though the stage manager could hear me!

self-imposed stress. aaaaaargh!

after working for nine years and aging for what seemed like fifteen, i left all that for a more gratifying vocation of teaching... or so i thought.

once a producer, always a producer. years after i bowed out, i found myself wearing communication headsets, marking runsheets, and cuing lights, sounds, video, actors, and multimedia... all in the service of community.

after running a virtually perfect "show" in last year's triduum, a sister asked if i could "do what you (i) did last year." of course, i was only too happy to say "yes."

this year's show was less perfect than what we would've wanted. the inside of the tech booth was chaotic! we had so many miscues, technical slips, and technical malfunctions that i lost count; i was too busy making on-the-spot resequencing and counting down the segments. i wanted it to end, and end quickly!

in the end, we got all the segments in... not in the proper order, but all in, nonetheless. the audience feedback was positive, saying that the recollection was moving, solemn, and effective... and they had the swollen eyes and stuffy noses to back it up. heave a deep sigh of relief.

this year's production was a lesson in humility and faith. before the show, at call time, tito eddie said that it wasn't important that we had a perfect show, but a good one. how prophetic! the slip-ups weren't failures for it wasn't for lack of trying. i remember putting my faith on the ability of the person at the other end of my comm set, trusting that they can do what they said they can do, and not letting me down. i placed my faith in God that He had a better runsheet and that it was i who was being given the cues. quick thinking, agile hands and responsive teamwork were the perfection of the day.

i guess God just wanted a different sequence. He should know; He writes the script... and thankfully, He doesn't criticize.

home alone

2007-05-12T12:21:00.001+08:00

belatedly posting drafts started ages ago. this one was originally drafted last april 8, Easter Sunday.

my family seems to have been bitten by the traveling bug... all, save me.

this holy week, i found myself home alone. everyone else took off to mambusao for a family reunion. even 2 of the maids left! so that leaves me with 1 house, 6 bedrooms, 1 swimming pool, 1 pc, 1 mac, 2 dogs, and 5 cars all to myself. not that i was home most of the time to enjoy it. i would be out, using 1 of the 5 cars (the one with the most gas, of course), working for the Triduum, the reason i stayed behind.

i DID enjoy the quiet. once in a while, it's good to be alone. there's a lot of freedom in being alone. i got to sleep in because there wasn't anyone to wake me, asking if i wanted to play ps2 (at 7:30 a.m.!); didn't have to queue for the pc at 4 a.m.; had the downstairs tv to myself, ditto with the newspaper.

then again, too much alone time drones the head. the house can be defeaningly quiet and can even echo because, yes, it IS a big house, too big for one to be left alone with. not good. (gee! i don't think i'd make a good ofw!)

i know that i don't like crowds and getting crowded, but this is way too much space. thank God for a black saturday swimming tradition and a camp meeting, the house is more than population, 3. the maids got back today; the family returns tomorrow. phew!

ironically, being alone makes me look forward to playing ps2 when the little bugger gets back... maybe at 9 a.m.

super delayed reaction

2007-05-10T23:28:00.001+08:00

i know. i know. i've been remiss in my writing duties. well, posting, actually; i have drafts in the works waiting for endings and finishing touches.

work (yes, i worked this summer!) has been hectic and even emotionally stressful... but that's another entry altogether (hmmm... maybe, maybe not). add to this the lousy internet connection at home lately, and camp.

mama aly was right; i don't have time to write. but at least the works i've done have made it to her greatest 5. *blush* (which she posted a month ago! egad!)

that she thinks i can write humbles me. *more blushing* it's probably in the genes (harharhar! so much for modesty.) i just wish she didn't have to tag me. haaay!

why not?

2007-04-15T21:36:00.000+08:00

because mama aly and freckle-face can :)

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run, forrest, run!

2007-04-14T22:18:00.001+08:00

not enough vitamins, not enough life :)

run, forrest, run!, originally uploaded by barang.

color migueli RED

2007-04-12T03:04:00.001+08:00

entertaining, what color accents of digital cameras can do :) the full color photo is my favorite of our trip to hk.

HK red, originally uploaded by barang.

oh, to be a kid again!

2007-04-10T04:29:00.000+08:00

i cannot, for the life of me, remember the last time my family went out on a family vacation, much more, a family vacation out of the country. nor can i remember the last time i went to hong kong. my brother dennis (and his wife) pretty much remedied that.

his idea of celebrating his 41st birthday was treating us (we were 11 in all) to a trip to hong kong disneyland... airfare, accommodations at hollywood disney hotel, most of the meals, and even the subway fare. not bad... not bad at all! if he had sprung for the shopping, it would have been perfect!

my sis-in-law's mom, tita cel, was probably right when she said that i was the biggest kid in the trip. disneyland will always bring a smile to my face. it brings back memories of my first trip to the park in anaheim where dad billeted us in the disneyland hotel, a free monorail ride away from the park... where he let us free to roam the park on our own, only to come looking for dennis and myself at 9 p.m. (heehee!)

for the days we were there, disneyland was probably "the happiest place on earth." the rides were fun and the shows were great! the hotel and park staff were absolutely out to please guests and i met goofy at the hotel on my way to the elevator. plus... how can i not be elated to find a store in the park that sells mr. potato head disney parts?! all i can stuff in a box for 175 HKD! i was shameless! and to boot, my sis bought me an early 40th birthday present: a repro mickey mouse watch of what dennis and i had to share when i was about 7 years old. it lives! this time, it's all mine! thanks, sands!

best of all, i was with family... a bigger one with migueli and essie's side in attendance. it was a good break, despite the iffy weather and the backlog of work that i brought along. (yes, i brought work with me. sucks to be so responsible sometimes. hahaha!)

honestly, i only dared to dream about travelling abroad again. at least not for a looooong time, i thought. at my women's prayer group, reflecting on Scripture made me realize that He made it all possible. He used my family to grant my heart's desires and dared me to dream not only more, but bigger as well! being God's child, i know that i shall never be without a giving, obliging, and loving Father. knowing that is more than enough to make ANYWHERE the happiest place on earth.

oh, so good to be a kid again!

At home with a cup of coffee

2007-03-22T01:06:00.000+08:00

Sharing for Ligaya North District D's D-Light Newsletter (This explains the observance of proper capitalization.)

As an international camper, I have lived many days from out of a suitcase. I had had to adjust to languages and climates, cuisines and cultures. With limited time and limited couture, you make and try to get the best of what the surroundings have to offer. You try to get comfortable. It takes time, but eventually, you do.

And though the marvels and sights of your temporary “home” take your breath away, you will always long for that place that knows your skin so well. You think of a dress you could have worn or a pair of shoes you should have brought; you crave for a familiar taste in a favorite watering hole or the smell of (of all things) detergent. At a certain point, you find yourself ready to go home.

Being away from North D was just like going to camp. I never quite understood the reason for my sabbatical, but in obedience, I packed my suitcase and made for another district. There, I adjusted to languages and schedules and traditions. I swallowed and breathed the culture and everything that it had to offer. And in time, I got comfortable. But as comfortable as I was, I just knew that there was a place that I would rather be. After two years away, I longed to go home.

I was so delighted to learn that I would be returning to North D. For me, it is where I started to grow my roots in the community. It was where I first declared that truly, I was “Maligaya sa Ligaya.” I loved that although I was (and still am) single, I was never alone. I remember the generosity of married brothers and sisters, be it a chair to sit in, a plastic plate for the Lord’s Day, or the time I was rescued from an overheating radiator. I was awed, humbled and inspired by how service was a way of life in the district. I loved that I was surrounded by whole families with parents mentoring children, mentoring me. I remember the familiar sights and smells of Lord’s Day where you can literally taste and see how good our God can be with Ate Haydee’s flowers and Mel Nepomuceno’s patatim… and the coffee afterwards. There was always coffee, and GOOD coffee at that.

My first return to the district was at February’s District Gathering. Milling around after Mass, I was pleasantly surprised to see an official district coffee maker. (I guess I have been away for a long time.) A sister encouraged me to take a cup and drink my fill. I did… and I intend to over and over again. Oddly enough, THAT was when I knew I was truly home. Coffee never tasted so good; to be home never tasted so sweet.

breaking and entering (my take)

2007-01-21T01:48:00.000+08:00

my friend offered to sell me a brand new digital camera for 11Gs less the original price, to be paid in installments. it was, quite literally, "a steal," as you will soon read. for my accomplice's version, read her entry on mind journeys.

waited for the perfect opportunity and it came. during a lull in a wedding reception, i make my move. i borrow a getaway car and tag an accomplice who was only all too willing to join me for the ride.

armed with a map, we find our target without a hitch. a nissan suv sits in the garage, its engine, cold, i imagine. i knew that the tennant wasn't home. and yet, the lights inside the house were lit. hmmm... strange. i make a call to the landline. no answer. i ring the doorbell. no response. light taps on the iron gate and polite "tao po's" yield the same silence.

i was ready to turn away and throw in the towel. it's been too long; our companions might suspect something's up. i was all set to call it quits when my observant accomplice notices that the gate's unlocked. she has officially given up her claim of innocence.

i give the latch a light tug and it gives itself easily, as if welcoming us. my accomplice and i look at each other and enter the garage. without a word, as if by instinct, we separate: she towards the door; me, towards the service gate. all exits covered.

as i get to the service gate, surprise, surprise! the gate's not locked either. this is WAY too easy, i think to myself. nerves begin to set in. i struggle on whether or not i've gone too far, but the temptation of what i know to be inside the house wins.

i undo the gate and enter. another door is in plain view. another door, another door knob. i am almost sure that this one would be unlocked as well. my heart begins to race. images of a bloodied body race through my mind... and the bloodied body is mine! if i go too far, this might just be my fate.

and then i hear it. the hum of an electric fan in operation. someone's home! relief comes with a capital R! there will be no blood shed tonight. i tap the window next to the door and rouse the help from her slumber. once she regains her faculties and realizes that my voice IS real, she trudges to the door and lets me and my accomplice in without hardly asking me to show any identification.

she hands me the coveted package and we make our leave, back to the wedding reception where we pick up where we left off. our companions suspect nothing. and in the car, tucked behind the driver's seat, a brand new digital camera sits. it's mine. finally!

toy story

2006-12-16T03:28:00.001+08:00

i've always liked toys. i have very fond memories of playing with them. growing up, i didn't play with barbie dolls, though i had one. too pink, maybe. what i DO remember playing with was mr. potato head. i liked its versatility... create and recreate, by dismembering, no less! barbie certainly couldn't do that.

i still have a mr. potato head. got the missus, too. when they weren't available in the philippines, i had a friend buy them for me stateside, under the guise that they were gifts for a godchild. well, they never got wrapped. but they did get out of their boxes... and into my greedy hands. i know, i know. shame, shame. so sue me; i'm a kid-at-heart! going through that extent, you can imagine my glee when i discovered it's now locally available!

i still love playing with mr. (and mrs.) potato head. it certainly gets me out of a rut. case in point... two weeks ago, i went to the bank to pick-up my new atm card (which was 2 weeks overdue itself). nada. still not there. so what do i do to vent my frustration? go to the toy store upstairs and buy alien spud parts! hahaha! the coolest thing about alien spud? you get new sets of limbs (in yellow) and 2 sets of eyes! miguel has a mr. potato head too, so between us, we have 8 arms, 3 pairs of shoes, 5 pairs of eyes, 3 noses, an alien snout, 3 pairs of eye glasses... you get the picture.

i'm such a kid, i'm so easy to please. simple joys. last month, my neighbor co-teacher gave me a belated birthday gift... santa spud accessories! how timely! then last week, mama aly also bought me a belated birthday gift... mermaid spud accessories! bet you'd like to see how that looks! if i only had a camera, i'd start a blog to showcase the different creations miguel and i've come up with. sigh.

and here's what i've got my eye on:

spud trooper and darth tater

artoo-potatoo

c'mon, admit it. they're adorable! i like! i like! hahaha! i'm sure any star wars fan of any age would like to get one of these (or both!). they've actually been given out as gifts to men. not boys, men!

what i'd give to be naive and believe in santa again.

more balls!

2006-12-04T03:23:00.000+08:00

what do you do on a impromptu-declared-no-class-holiday?

add more Christmas balls to the Christmas tree! (discovered more of them in a storage box - properly labeled, of course. some were stored in (surprise!) green plastic bags!)

mama aly would be happy to know that the papier mache balls made it to the tree... but she'll have to "hunt" for santa. had miguel hide it amongst the baubles :) happy hunting, mama aly!

pasko na, sinta ko

2006-11-28T22:01:00.001+08:00

Christmas is officially in the house!

popped in mr. c's One Christmas cd last night and with the strains of "pa-dum-pa-dum" (it's a tradition, yet again) put up the Christmas tree in record-breaking time - 2 hours! that's fast, considering that it's a 10-ft. tree. and that's just decor; the driver put in the lights earlier in the day. took him a couple of hours to do it, too!

not so frilly this year. no glass beads, no poinsettias, no ribbons. just lights, icicles, and balls. lots of balls!

the tree is so busog with balls, i love it! i asked gueli to make sure that each bough had a decor so that it wouldn't be "lonely." he found a lonely branch earlier tonight. needless to say, we fixed the situation.

i'm so tempted to get more Christmas balls. somebody stop me!

must... have... balls!

my date with a turkey

2006-11-27T23:36:00.001+08:00

i hardly know any filipino family that celebrates thanksgiving. you know, the one with the turkey, stuffing, cranberries, and eggnog? well, my family does. for a patriotic family, it's very american. ironic.

thanksgiving in my family is no laughing matter. it has survived four generations so far (and counting). it is THE occasion to be present at, lest you want to be disowned by the stickler of family tradition and patriarch, my (one and only) uncle benny. even being out of the country was not an excuse! you made your presence felt via overseas phonecall... and be sure to call early enough to let everyone know that you called.

i remember struggling with the thanksgiving schedule when i was an executive producer. i kinda received flak for arriving one time with everyone gone. thank God, aly waited up for me. of course, uncle benny (who is also my godfather) waited up too. like a marine, he was not to rest until the last of his "men" came in. there are no excuses to be absent. tardy, maybe; absent, never.

despite the self-imposed pressure, i like thanksgiving. it makes me feel that my family's special. it's also a good excuse to eat and feast! all diets go out the window on thanksgiving. how often do you get to have turkey (and lola's bread stuffing), anyway?

truthfully, i celebrate thanksgiving every morning, when i wake. each day i'm given a chance to be of service or make a difference; to be able to teach, perhaps a child or a colleague... or perhaps be taught by a child, or a colleague, or by God.

this thanksgiving was no different except perhaps for the bigger audience. this year, we celebrated the gift of life like never before. for my uncle benny, for pulling out of a troublesome aspiration. to be given another chance, perhaps because he has more to teach. for the doctors who kept him alive... because he is my one-and-only. for my brother and sister-in-law, for the gift of life in my sister-in-law's womb. to be given a chance to have a family, perhaps be a changed person.

yup, this was one thanksgiving dinner i was not going to miss. not for fear of being disowned but because i truly have a lot to be thankful for. for family and the traditions that keep family ALIVE, we give thanks and celebrate!

creatures, churches and landforms

2006-11-07T03:57:00.000+08:00

my photos, jali's camera, two days well spent.

true love

2006-11-07T00:57:00.000+08:00

title caught your attention, didn't it? :) so sorry to disappoint.

this is what made my day on my last birthday. no one told him to make one and he spelled everything all by himself! it's what i always tell him (it's a weird way to affirm him, i know, but it works!) but he beat me to getting it on paper.

tell me, how could you NOT love this child? :)

redemption

2006-11-06T23:52:00.000+08:00

i forget which sunday it was, but that's not what's important.

it was a ho-hum afternoon, perfect for napping. i was lounging on mom's bed, minding my own business, when in comes mother and son (sis and miguel) who decide to have a tickle fest on the very bed on which i lay. maybe it was envy (me almost dozing off) or maybe it was fatigue (tickle fests CAN get tiring), but my sis comes up with a brilliant idea. "let's include ninang!" she shouts (or something to that effect. i forgot that one as well. again, not important.).

then miguel says, "okay, me and ninang against mommy!" at which point, i leave la-la-land and pin the mastermind under my hands and knees. she is helpless; she is at her son's mercy.

"go for the belly button!" i cry. and the obedient soldier charged on, happily conquering his foe.

aghast and beaten, she exclaims, "you sold me! you sold me!" to which the wise reply came, "well, it was a choice between where i came from or who would win. i chose 'who would win.'"

and win i did. important. mwahahahaha!

surviving milenyo

2006-10-05T22:28:00.001+08:00

not since the 4-hour scheduled brownouts of the 90s have i been in the dark for so long. the last typhoon to cross manila's path, milenyo, not only knocked down trees and power lines; it literally knocked us back into the "dark ages" for 3 days! and with a 6-year old in the house (who that morning said he loved tv more than he did his ninang, me! i ranked no. 3 after his mom and the boob tube), entertainment becomes quite a challenge - both for the entertainer (me again) and the entertained (him).

it bogs my mind how our "forefathers" did it back then. we'd eat dinner before it got dark (although we had emergency lights, my brother refused to use them... in case there was an emergency. duh!) and be in bed by 6:30 p.m.!

some notes on what darkness brings:

conversation, good or otherwise. with the tv dead, we actually spoke to one another again. call it my sweet revenge for placing me in number 3! ha! we were back to making silly stories and composing senseless songs too!
piano lessons from a 6-year old. short of giving a concert, migueli practically played all the piano pieces he's learned... and then some. the kid's pretty good and i admire his industriousness for practicing his pieces. such a far cry from what mama aly and i went through at the same age... but that's another blog altogether.
singing the piano. miguel would sing / hum the right hand notes; i, the left hand. then switch. it's hilarious to hear!
flashlight tag. an old class favorite when i used to have pajama parties in my preschool classes. for variety purposes, you can also do flashlight marksmanship. similar to pin-the-tail except you use flashlights and furniture.
arts and crafts in the daylight... from stenciling to create your own pokemon.
naps galore! it's been a while since the kid's taken a 2-hour nap. perfect scapegoat while i run to school to juice up the cellphone. i even got to have pizza with mama aly and the kids in the process too!
dress up. i have new-found respect for the versatility of a thin sheet blanket. sandygirl has pictures.
count your blessings. surviving the storm, i could not get over how blessed i was / am to be surrounded by family, to be where i was, to have a roof over my head and food on the table, to have ice in my water, to be safe, and much, much more.

God's light surely dispels all darkness!

"do THIS is memory of me"

2006-09-06T10:05:00.000+08:00

as a religion teacher to first communicants, i teach my kids that the mass is an invitation to receive Christ and a "re-enactment" of the last supper. fr. mark gave me a new insight on the above.

in the last supper, Christ offered himself, body and blood, for the love of man. quite literally, He gave it HIS ALL. and THAT is what He wants us to do in memory of Him... to give our all.

all for Christ. how simple, yet very difficult to do.

cheap thrill

2006-08-26T20:14:00.000+08:00

la pacita toast with vanilla ice cream. promise!

and diko makes four

2006-08-24T23:50:00.001+08:00

i probably owe my "career" as a "ninang ng bayan" to mama aly. her brood alone is a bayan in itself!

mama aly and freddie have four children: two of each species. of the four, i am officially godmother to 3: to mara and selene since baptism; to dino since his confirmation only 3 years ago. that leaves diko gian... but not for long.

the other night, while online, he asked me to "officially" become his ninang. of course, i said "yes." truth is, i've been waiting for the invite since his baptism, just like dino. and like dino, i never treated gian any less. the boys were always like godsons to me. they got the whole treatment, including the personalized birthday shopping trips.

that he asked me to be his ninang made my day (i hope as much as i made his). gian was always special because he wanted this as young as 5 or 6... and the kid really knows how to make me feel it, too! part of our ym chat went like this...

"even if you're not officially my ninang, i love you as one in my heart"

awwww... how could you not melt?! i am only too happy to make it "official" in his heart.

i used to be a fish

2006-08-22T18:38:00.001+08:00

i'm a twice certified open water scuba diver... since 1990. twice because my first c-card got lost when i was pickpocketed in shang; had to be re-certified by padi years after since ssi couldn't reissue me a replacement. (come to think of it, my padi c-card was in the wallet that was stolen in camp! oh no!)

i was diving long before it came into fashion. it was such a small diving community back then. we'd have a divers' party twice a month (always on a tuesday) and everybody knew everybody, literally! i remember my lessons costing php 3,750, a big amount back then. oops! i'm beginning to show my age! yes, everything was dirt cheap then.

i loved diving. it's a totally different world down there and one cannot help but marvel and be in awe. truly, only God could have made such a beautiful, colorful playground for the denizens of the deep.

i was addicted to diving. the first 3 months after my certification, i was underwater EVERY WEEKEND. i would come home from trips abroad, rest one day to let the nitrogen in my blood settle, then go off diving with my buddies. tessa and i would go diving on a whim... our "one-day-wonders," we used to call them.

i did some of my best thinking underwater. everything was so calm and tranquil in the deep blue that clarity of mind hit you just as soon as you hit the water.

and the best beer i had came after a dive. i don't know why but i do know that other divers will agree with me on this.

used to. those are the operative words in the title.

you see, i have all this dive gear... and they're all dry. they have been for yeeeaaars now. that they're still in pretty good shape is suprising, actually. i remember spending a fortune on the stuff. dad paid for my reg and asked me to make sure that i got the best (back then) since that was my second heart underwater (spoken like a true cardiologist).

i got an invitation to dive during the last holiday. i passed. after years of remaining on dry land, i probably need a refresher course. i probably wouldn't fit into my wet suit either. i lent my gear to some friends though, so at least they (the gear) saw some action... at least they were able to say hi to the fish again.

maybe i'll get wet again.

"are you okay?"

2006-08-06T11:09:00.000+08:00

"are you okay? my name is leslie. I AM A CERTIFIED FIRST AIDER."

finally, i can say that and mean it!

my camp staff, the pinoy JCs, and some eager volunteers sacrificed 3 weekends (one of which was a sunday!) before camp to take a CPR and first aid course. the board felt compelled we ought to be prepared. fine. at least i was taking the course for free.

throughout camp, we staffies would joke around about "the script" (above) not really knowing if we were certified or not... and maybe, just maybe, half-praying that we didn't actually have to say it for real. well, we are! just got my certificates and IDs yesteday. and though the news comes belatedly, it's good to know that our sacrificed weekends of wrapping each other in cravats faster than a new york minute, cracking your knees with lifts, huffing and puffing into non-breathing manequins, and sludging through fake blood have been rewarded.

don't get too close to me; i might just bandage you for fun.

popcorn at last!

2006-07-30T11:52:00.000+08:00

i hadn't been in a movie theater in about 8 months. now, before you get all weepy for poor, pathetic me, let me explain. there's actually a very good reason for it.

i started preparing for the comprehensive exams for my master's degree towards the end of last year. truth is, i only SERIOUSLY prepared for it about a month before. i know that i had no excuse for not studying but i easily made one up (hehe). somehow, though, i would feel guilty exchanging time in a movie house for time with my books. so hit the books i did.

after february, i borrowed dvds of the movies i missed, guiltlessly staying up til 4 a.m. watching them. after that, well, there wasn't much to be seen in the movies. every time i'd gear up to watch a flick, someone would say that it wouldn't be worth the money to see it. so i'd go somewhere else, or stay home, or be in one of my endless meetings *sigh*.

the dry spell was broken last week, two days after camp ended. not only did it, the dry spell, end, but i ended it in style! a cisv mom invited the jcs and whoever else was free to brave the rains to see superman... in the mall of asia... in the i-max theater... for free! plus popcorn... plus a late lunch after... and i didn't have to drive! later for dinner, the italian jc cooked pasta and the brazilian jc prepared a cocoa dessert (i got the recipe!). how could i complain? then again... ok, there is no accounting for style when it comes to those 3D glasses. thank God they're worn in the dark! and the popcorn at moa isn't great.

which only means that i have to redeem myself! quick! what do we see next?! :)

CD notes

2006-07-24T23:12:00.000+08:00

relief. that's the first word that comes to my mind at the end of the 21-day international village. to have managed to run the village on a non-existent budget not only takes skill and cunning; it also takes a lot of patience and a lot of coffee.

the kids have boarded their planes (and buses) and are safe in their homes, in their respective countries. no more 8 a.m. wake up calls via whistles, gongs and what-have-yous. no more "can i talk with you?" tete-a-tetes with leaders too. i'm so relieved that other than bites, rashes, constipation, lice (yes, lice... but they were imported!), and the occasional leader throwing-up here and there, we did not have any major medical emergencies. growing up in a family of doctors paid off in camp. i think that dad would have been proud of me with my calmness and diagnoses :)

to my think, 21-days is too short for an international camp. although sometimes, having an all-girls leaders' pool made me think that 21 days was too long! hahaha! estrogen level was way too high!

on the good side... camp always makes me feel proud of my being filipino. the staff and i put on a great staff day dancing the tinikling, serving fishballs, kikiam, squid balls, ice candy, fresh buko (fresh coconut), eating lunch on banana leaves with our hands, and giving out free tricycle rides. we also made the kids play simple street games (the one where you put a Php 1 coin on your forehead and contort your facial muscles til it gets to your chin) and had the kids cover their faces in flour and water. for what reason? absolutely nothing! fun without a PS2... priceless!

snaps too for philippine hospitality! we had a great kitchen staff, an "abuseable" resort staff, and generous homestay hosts. like i said in open day, "to run a village, it takes a village."

i love, i love, i love my chapter board! they trusted me to make the decisions in camp and backed them up all the way. i applaud their dedication, working "behind the behind the scenes," always available for consultation, shopping for us, driving for us... and these are moms! they deserve much, much more than a camp shirt!

i loved the delegation the baguio chapter sent over... and so did everyone else! they were REAL people - 3 of the 4 kids were "scholars" (a child of a taxi driver, a child of an OCW - overseas contract worker, a child of a machine operator). now THAT is for whom i truly would like CISV to be. i know that for them, 21 days was way too short. i know that it'll make such an impact on their lives and hopefully give them a boost of confidence and aspire them to be and do better.

directing a camp can be stressful - i got the white hair (6!) to prove it - and rewarding. as camp director, it sucked that i wasn't around all the time. no wonder they call it "running" a camp. i miss being with kids. being a leader is way easier. so, what do you get from being camp director? gifts, a lot more paper and paperwork than i left with, new friendships - i now have friends in luxembourg and guatemala! how cool is that?! - laundry, a sense of relief, and yes, fulfillment.

will i staff again? hmmm... what country are we talkling about? :)

ready-or-not, a-camping, here i go!

2006-06-29T22:17:00.000+08:00

strangely enough, i found myself at home by 8 p.m. for the first time in a looooooong time. camp's been keeping me out of the house and out of the bed lately. i haven't been sleeping much; running on adrenalin. i met the jc from brazil last night, the first of the 40+ foreign delegates coming in for the barangay. i took one look at her and then it hit me. "you're really here. this is really happening."

there are loose ends to tie and they're beginning to unravel. if i look all composed, don't let the look fool you; i'm screaming inside! pray. gotta pray. hard. harder.

crisis management training from my days as an executive producer are kicking in. gotta learn to let go. delegate. ask for help (what, me?!). and when they DO help, do not expect perfection! sigh... so be it.

it'll all be worth it. think of the program. think of the children. it'll be fun. gotta remember to have fun. no more coffee. this will happen. it's got to!

sharing the joy (fm)

2006-06-29T03:44:00.000+08:00

one of the things i love most about getting hooked to a dsl connection is that i get to listen to live broadcasts. that's how i found JOY FM, listener-supported contemporary Christian music broadcasting form st. louis. i highly recommend you give it an ear and "get hooked" of another kind.

i get by with a little help from my friends

2006-06-16T21:14:00.000+08:00

i've been scarce, i know. blame it on work. school has started and it was for me, a photo finish.

for those of you who do not know me, i am not one to ask for help. not that i claim to be able to do everything; far from it. school opening never used to frazzle me; it was almost routine. not so this year, though.

i could handle the added responsibility of being part of the administration and the task to create an entirely new curricula for religion frome grades 2 to 6. i was all geared to hack my crazy schedule of teaching reigion 4 times a week per grade level for 3 weeks just to be able to staff for an international camp. i could even face the challenge of being the homeroom adviser of a "notoriously rambunctious" group of kids. as if this wasn't enough, i agreed to take on a co-teaching assignment at the preschool (because it WAS preschool!).

what i couldn't take was the incompetence of a person who shall not be named. hahaha! i was soooo frustrated. i actually got nervous for school opening.

of course, shy (yes, shy) me wouldn't ask for help. but when help came, i did not say "no." i was so relieved and thankful that people pitched in. the teacher aides put their tasks on hold and converged in one classroom to get the things that needed to be done, done in 2 days! and i could not ever forget the preschool teachers who came up to me one by one to ask if there was ANYTHING they could do to help. i was soooo touched! they took on such menial tasks as coloring my learning center signs and cutting little black felt circles to pad my classroom furniture. truth be told, i suspect that they actually enjoyed what they did for me :)

school's on its second week so needless to say, i survived the first day of school... i got by with a little help from my friends. and so, for friends who extend helping hands even when i don't ask, I AM THANKFUL.

on work and vocation

2006-05-27T03:47:00.000+08:00

one of the beauties of our local language is how descriptive and deep it can be. take the tagalog translation for "work" for instance.

"work" can be translated into "trabaho" which connotes its being menial and burdensome.

then there is "hanapbuhay" (ha-nap-boo-high) which could literally be translated as "looking (hanap) for life (buhay)." in this translation, "work" is more sustaining... it gives you life, not the means to live, but LIFE. otherwise, it should have been termed as "hanap-pera" (looking for money).

and there lies all the difference in why people work. some do it as a means to put food on the table, pay the bills and sustain a lifestyle. then there are those who answer God's call to work as He as mapped it out in the Book of Life that He Himself authored. these people who work with the passion to serve not only get the food on the table and pay the bills, they gain the peace in knowing that they are doing what the Lord put them on this earth to do. the pay may not be great (it may not even exist - ask the homemakers), but these are the people who both LIVE life and GIVE life.

so, nagta-trabaho ka lang ba o naghahanapbuhay? (which work do you do?)

because it's there

2006-05-20T11:19:00.000+08:00

pinoys on top of the world, literally!

i'm so proud.

ninang: "look, miguel! that's the philippine flag on mt. everest, the tallest mountain in the world!"

miguel: "yey! the philippines owns mt. everest!"
well, for a few moments, yes. :)

gone

2006-05-15T20:29:00.000+08:00

it's official. summer's over... for me, at least.

i went back to work last may 4 straight from precamp in cavite. it took me about 3 days to get used to the 7 am wake-up routine, and an additional 2 more to make sense of why i was back in school in may. the school is very, well... blue. they've repainted the walls a lighter shade of baby blue, and what seems to be every door, a darker shade. at least it isn't pink!

i know summer's over because now i can't attend 4 pm meetings in makati anymore, or even 2 pm meetings for that matter.

i know summer's over because i couldn't make the roadtrip last wednesday or do a "far-away-quick" to baguio with ree last weekend.

i know summer's over because my flip-flops are making less and less of an appearance in my wardrobe

sad thing is, i still don't have my UP clearance, i haven't read a book, i haven't cooked (period), didn't get to play with mama aly or mae, and i only swam twice this whole summer. but i did get spend summer with kids and i'm quite fulfilled with the camps, plus the rain's here... and that's a good thing.

i need more spontaneity!

2006-05-10T23:23:00.000+08:00

should I worry? oh no! i'm scaring myself! hahaha!

You Are 30% Weird

Not enough to scare other people...
But sometimes you scare yourself.

How Weird Are You?

cisv curio

2006-05-07T23:55:00.000+08:00

ever try using a colombian's laptop? well, i did this summer (i also used a japanese and indonesian's).

it took a while to get used to the shortcut keys. in colombia, bold is NEGRITA and italics is CURSIVA, thus CTRL N and CTRL K, respectively. it couldn't be CTRL C because that was for COPIAR (copy).

mangoes in japan are $3 a piece. goodness gracious! needless to say, they were in mango heaven for the duration of their stay here.

an indonesian (actually, she's a filiipina who married an indonesian) also brought a pack of coffee candy, with milk in the middle. it's name was "copi susu." hahaha! while we're at it, i also found out that the word "sulit" in inodonesian means "difficult." hmmm... i can easily live up to my name in indonesia!

bgy. kapatid

2006-05-07T23:40:00.000+08:00

our precamp photo.

nine delegations to nine different villages around the world

(ten if you include our own camp in Manila).

have a GREAT village, everyone! carry the Pinoy pride!

mabuhay ang barangay!

thanks to tita tessa for the great photo!

entrapment!

2006-05-05T23:12:00.000+08:00

i consider joining cisv as one of the better decisions i've made. because of cisv, i now have friends all over the world and there is hope for world peace. yes, we're striving to make "world peace" more than a beauty pageant answer.

so, when the opportunity to staff the local village came, i jumped right on it! i was so set on staffing that i even declined a much-coveted offer to lead an outgoing delegation to brazil. being offered the position of assistant camp director was a nice touch, too! aaaah! but there was a catch...

on the day we in the advanced party drove to the campsite, the camp director tells me that her company won the bid they've been working so hard for... which meant that she had to report to work asap... which meant that she could not take a leave for the next six months... which meant that i was the new camp director... not just for the precamp but for the international village in july as well?!?! NOOOOOOOO! is it too late to be the leader for brazil?

fine! leave me with newbie leaders that needed training... leave me with a handicapped staff (one was down with a measles-like virus)... leave me with a bus-load of kids for 4 days, why don't you? and she did. *sigh*

well, precamp's all done and i survived the 5 days (one day was just for leaders). i can't say i'm unscathed though... neither were the kids (one kid burned her skirt in the open day presentation, but she's okay). some leaders thanked me for giving them a slice of village life and for teaching them so much. the kids said that they learned a lot and had lots of fun; a couple even cried at the thought that it was all over. awwww... so i guess i did a pretty good job... for now. i guess i'm back to weekly planning meetings for july's village. but i'll start that all next week. right now, i'm just glad to see my bed and not live out of a duffle bag finally.

to tita cel, you were heaven-sent! thanks for the 3 am post-shower conversations! in a weird way, i'm going to miss them.

in memoriam

2006-04-28T23:52:00.000+08:00

this'll be a quickie since i'm cramming for precamp (leaving tomorrow).

found a scan of my UP ID while rummaging through the computer for something else. it's all that i have left... a scan (*sigh*).

Easter Joy

2006-04-16T09:21:00.000+08:00

stayed up last night for no particular reason and saw morning break.

i view Easter as a new morning, Christ's resurrection as the light that dispels the darkness; death conquered, sins forgiven and our dignity restored. rejoice in the new morning for Emmanuel is with us!

whoever you are and wherever you may be, i pray that you have a good, NEW MORNING!

habulan at taguan*

2006-04-12T14:10:00.000+08:00

*tag and hide-and-seek

what's worse than the summer heat? trying to collect signatures for your clearance so you can graduate IN the summer heat!

it was like playing tag WITH hide-and-seek! 12 signatures, 5 buildings, 2 days... and i'm still not done! "they" were either at meetings, out of the building, in another office, or "get this signature first". add to that their new 4-day work day scheme and my scheduled training at camp rock and tagaytay... i don't think i'll ever get my diploma -- which won't be available until december 2006 anyway!

UP... hanggang sa huli... AAAAARGH!

the SKWEZ is back!

2006-04-12T13:49:00.000+08:00

*skwez - a very tight hug; initiated by the Phil. delegation to CISV JASPARC/APRW 2004 in Thailand; inspired by a billboard ad

after 2 years, i got a skwez from 3 of my former kids (although they're 17 and 18 years old already) to thailand... AND IT FELT GREAT! gosh! i didn't realize that i missed them that much too! my visit was short and sweet; well worth the time i stole to be late for the village staff meeting (hehehe).

i love my kids! i love skwezes! looking forward to getting more of those next week in jasparc ONE in tagaytay!

p.s. david still smells nice. he still uses the same brand of deodorant ü

jya camp lessons

2006-04-11T00:15:00.000+08:00

it's amazing what spending a long weekend with 93 kids could teach 1 adult, me. the adage "never stop learning" was certainly true-to-form.

God all around me

i've always told my students, "lose a game but never lose the lesson." the lesson applies not only to games and contests, but with material things as well. my wallet and cellphone got stolen the night before the kids arrived. i was calm about the whole thing (what's lost is lost, after all) and actually only felt bad about the small things i couldn't have again.

come thursday night prayers, the prayer leader asked the kids to think about God's presence in the day's activities. leave it to foolish me to ask, "where were you, God?" and He replied. "my child, I was in the blanket that kept you warm last night; I was in the people who stayed up with you and worried with you; I was in the shade of the tree that kept you cool this afternoon. you need not look far. I am everywhere. I surround you." cue the tears (i seem to do this every jya camp!). of course, i never doubted that He was there; it was just so strong to hear it come from Him Himself.

only God is perfect.

simple human error can turn what i thought was a well-planned activity into utter chaos. thankfully, calm, common sense, cooperation, and responsibility were a-plenty, and THAT is the perfection God had in mind, no matter how many colors of paper i used.

kids DO grow up

i hardly heard from the COJ kids this year compared to last year; they've successfully blended in with the rest and have made friends beyond school colors. my own niece and nephew hardly looked for me too, except when there was a frog near their bag or a bug in their tent. i guess i needed them more than they did me. it's a happy kind of sad.

family makes for a strong presence

there's nothing like the sight of family members to make you feel so loved. i somehow know that aly and freddie did not only come for their kids, but for me as well. dinner under the tent that night was nothing different from the family gatherings we share... and we were surrounded with friends we considered "family" as well. then there were the COJ parents and classmates from JOD, and my boss (not to mention her daughter, who now lovingly calls me "ninang", that stuck by me all saturday night). ligaya has become my family.

i signed-up to serve the jya camp and got served instead. there really is no losing when you serve the Lord. i truly am BELOVED.

fini!

2006-04-01T23:12:00.000+08:00

as of today, school is officially OVER! WOOHOO! i may not have my clearance yet (ergo, no final pay yet), but i don't care! it's DONE! (why we always end so late, i may never know.)

here's my summer to do list:

catch up on my sleep (only had 40 mins. on thursday)
stay up late voluntarily to catch up on movies i've missed
get a well-deserved massage!
get ready for camps (plural!)... unless i decide to take on the invite to the brazil village (decisions, decsions!)
hopefully, i get to "play" with mama aly and teacher mae this summer
spend many hours in the pool with my nieces and nephews
read a new book
try a new recipe (hmmm...)
have cabinet made so i can move out of miguel's soon-to-be-room
get away from the city (training in tagaytay for cisv does not count!)
drink more yakult! hahaha!

i just want to be brain dead for a month before i have to report back to work in may.

a girl could dream

2006-03-26T22:42:00.000+08:00

it was a fantasy come true! me, sleeping in a room... with 12 boys all to myself!

thing is, they were from grade 1 to grade 6. hahaha! so much for cradle camp :)

good news

2006-03-12T15:48:00.000+08:00

got a phonecall from one of my UP professors in the middle of a ligaya meeting this morning...

I PASSED MY COMPRE!

woohoo!

what a relief!! i'm so glad that i don't have to redo any portion!

thank you! thank you! thank you to all of you who prayed for me and prayed over me and to those who had more faith in me than i did in myself.

you can all just call me MASTER from now on. hahaha!

my first

2006-03-11T02:49:00.000+08:00

lactobacili shirota strain. yakult. i had my first bottle today (thanks to a pre-schooler's loot bag) and guess what... i actually like it!

who would've thunk it?! :)

now i understand why my nieces drink so much of it. gosh, i have so much catching up to do! hahaha!

here's my disclaimer: just because i tried my first yakult does not mean, in any way, that i will EVER eat ampalaya (bitter gourd) or dinuguan (what my dad would explain to our foreigner guests as "chocolate meat." hehehe).

time well spent

2006-03-05T21:16:00.000+08:00

i have always been a believer in sharing. after all, all we have belongs to God and we are merely stewards of what He "lent" us.

in the wake of the leyte landslide tragedy, several calls for donations came out and are still coming out. i never realized the extent of the destruction until i saw the pictures. when things like that happen, you pray... and you stir. i have to do something!

it was very apt that at around the same time, the first reading from the bible was about sharing with the less fortunate. i was convicted. i had neither money nor old clothes to give. then i realized that what i DID have was time... time to forward emails for a drive collecting relief goods, and today, time to volunteer in the relief center.

i worked for 2 hours, but it sure was 2 hours well-spent. together with 6 other "young" volunteers, we sorted sacks and sacks of clothes into male, female, children, and rejects. the activity made me see a whole genre of clothes, not to mention material (gabardine, spandex, wool...). it was hard work. it was tiring. but it was also a lot of fun and fulfilling.

there's a lot more that needs to be done. there are mountains of clothes waiting to be sorted. inside the building (we were outside), more packing was being done. i'd be more than glad to do it again. :)

so, if you're free and able, why not pitch in?

looking for intelligence

2006-02-28T01:00:00.000+08:00

a little anecdote for your entertainment

on free days, i help coordinate weddings for coordinator-friends of mine. last sunday, i did such a thing.

one of the tasks assigned to me and another friend was to look for "intelligent men" to handle the confetti cannons (they came with detailed instructions) towards the end of the mass.

i spotted a couple just outside the church doors. i had seen them inside the church earlier. the man looked intelligent enough in his suit so i decided to go and ask if he could be one of my cannon bearers. my friend followed suit and approached another man outside, wearing a barong tagalog (i.e., traditional Philippine formal wear for men).

when asked if he could be of help to her, this was his apologetic reply: "ah, kasi, may hinihintay din ako eh. ako kasi yung sunod na kakasalin." (i'm just waiting for someone. you see, i'm the groom of the next wedding.)

MWAHAHAHA! :)

yet again

2006-02-27T23:32:00.000+08:00

when history repeats itself, it loses its novelty.

take people power, for example. the first one was thrilling; the second had steam, but no umph. the third time was not a charm, nor were the ones that followed. coup d'etats and their attempts are the same thing.

after a while, these things become bothersome, not to mention disruptive to the economy and personal schedules.

maybe they happen too much too often because we fail to learn the lesson or take the lessons seriously. and in the end, we, as country, are not taken seriously.

it's sad. it's pitiful. it's sickening.

lessons from UP

2006-02-24T16:47:00.000+08:00

when i was (much, much) younger, i remember planning out my life. i'd go to UP for college, work in a bank, buy my own car before i turned 30... stuff like that.

i pretty much stuck to the plan. i DID work for a bank... for an entire month. i "bought" my own car... from my dad, for a hard-earned buck. the studying in UP part i skipped for my undergrad. back then, UP was too radical with their "makibaka, huwag matakot" posters in red; not conducive to studying at all (for the record, i passed the UPCAT and got into ECO, a quota course... ahem!)

so i earned my undergrad, without regrets, from the Ateneo. AAAH! the pampered life! i would learn to appreciate the pampering in years to come.

it took me around about 15 years to re-apply to UP, this time for my masteral. it seemed that "the plan" had a way of working itself out on its own.

what's the big deal about going to UP anyway? why do thousands of HS seniors kill to see their names in the acceptance lists each year? what's so great about getting your degree at the state university?

i will not argue about the great minds that were scholared there. my parents went there, met there, and married there. (dad would later go to harvard; mom won a fullbright scholarship.) so did marcos (and like him or not, he was brilliant!) and ninoy (there's another one for ya!) and many others who would become true leaders in their respective and respected fields.

i do not admit to being an expert in the school's system (or lack of it). i always considered myself "divorced" from the school, going there only if i had a class to attend. at most, i would stay after to grab a bite with my classmates - be it fishballs, monay, taho, or mang jim's.

my boss couldn't understand how it took me a week to enroll into 2 subjects (it would only take half a day in Ateneo); it would even take longer to file for an LOA. i couldn't comprehend why somebody couldn't just come up with a flowchart or a list for pre-enrollment processes. it would save a person a day's commute to find out beforehand that they needed clearance from health services first and to be told that they needed an x-ray to get that clearance. not when they're already there! i couldn't understand how an entire drawer in a library's card catalogue could go missing and the librarian just shrug her shoulders at my dilemma. i couldn't imagine how a girl can go to the college of EDUC's first floor comfort room and not fear for her life!*

after going through these (and much more), that was when i understood what made going to UP so great. it wasn't the school's utilities and facilities, and (sadly) neither was it because of its teachers (but when they were good, they were REALLY good!); it was the process of getting the education. it was learning to be creative and making things work when the system didn't (i did all my research at Ateneo's Rizal library. like i said, no regrets.) it was learning to be patient when you were in one of those long lines that was synonymous to the school's name. UP stood for University of Pila - "pila" means queue for non-tagalog readers. it's commuting back and forth to buildings to obtain a signature; stalking a professor's office for hours to get into what you know would be a good class. it's in exchanging and throwing ideas back and forth with peers to make sense of what a teacher was trying to explain inside the classroom. it's in meeting and dealing with people whose personalities are as varied as there are colors in a pantone guide. it's survival. in short, UP builds character.

now i understand why the school gets only the top students the country has to offer: you have to be good to begin with so you can come out better, if not GREAT. i have my parents as proof for the last note.

*i am happy to report that the bathroom has since been renovated.

it's here!

2006-02-23T22:08:00.000+08:00

it's download heaven

i can search like hell

ALLELUIA!

we now have DSL!

thanks to my bro dennis for making the connection :)

utak sabaw

2006-02-23T20:27:00.000+08:00

utak sabaw. brain soup.

that's how my brain feels like right now after 2 days of MA comprehensive exams. five years of UP night classes summarized in 2 days in 11 questions in 9 blue books in 16 hours.

at least it's all over. i hope i don't have to do that again.

my hand really hurts :(

in search of scratch

2006-01-31T23:05:00.000+08:00

in my mom's world of order, everything has it own place. it's very evident with how things are kept.

take paper, for example. in the supplies drawer is paper... in all sizes and uses. the top drawer is reserved for pristine clean paper, still in its packaging with a portion of the top neatly cut for uncrumpled retrieval. that's for paper that comes in large quantities. there is also paper in resealable plastic and paper in green semi-transparent plastic bags. each of these green plastic bags come with an appropriate label with exact measurements. i kid you not! that is how i know that long is actually 8 1/4 x 11 3/4 and not 8 1/2 by 12.

the second drawer is for reusable paper. in this drawer, paper is classified by size, each in (voila!) a green semi-transparent plastic bag with a strip of masking tape on top properly labeling the contents: scratch paper - A4, scratch paper - short. you'll never get lost. heck, she even labeled MY scratch paper! scratch paper (leslie) - short and scratch paper (leslie) - A4. i'm confused if i should be touched by the gesture or embarrassed that i have so much!

so. if all goes well, a piece of paper in our house should travel from top drawer, to second drawer, to final place of destination... which will not surprise me if it should be one of her many filing boxes, all in red, of course... but that's totally another blog.

you should see her closet.

this blog is brought to you by gransazer

2006-01-31T21:13:00.000+08:00

today, i taught miguel how to draw a star without lifting the pen off the paper. he had a different, more complicated version.

that was this afternoon. before dinner, i asked him to draw me one again, which he did. like the good teacher that i hope i am, i asked him to label his work with the word "star." instead, he wrote all this:

not bad, considering that he did it all by himself! it should actually read: "life goes on a shining star." wah? it didn't make sense to me either until he sang it to me. then came hard laughter.

for those not in the know, it's actually the lyrics (well, not exactly) of a japanese robo-drama called "gransazer." you know, the type with exaggerated acting, a euphemism for "bad acting" although i'm sure that miguel will argue otherwise. but i digress.

the song isn't actually in english... it's mostly japanese, interspersed with english here and there. thanks to a prompt at the bottom of the screen, we know that it goes somemething like "life goes on onichuwo. madara ichiwaishur. nonodo ogaiwata darita my soul! wadisha o shining star!" and hence, the words to the drawing. bow. lest we forget, please note the star drawing.

but i have to admit: there's a childlike wisdom to what he quoted. life CAN go on a shining star. i truly believe that miguel's on one. he just has to hold on for the ride.

gransazer is seen on cartoon network (ch. 43) every weekday at 7:30 p.m. you can catch just the opening song if you want. watching the entire thing is your call. you have been warned.

top hits

2006-01-23T02:07:00.000+08:00

before i forget... heard last Christmas as migueli was playing...

migueli: On the first day of Christmas, my TUNA gave to me...

winner!

retreat-after high

2006-01-23T00:40:00.000+08:00

When God speaks, you listen. I am Samuel all over again.

Be a sojourner
Travel light;
Carry neither lust
nor envy,
nor pride.
For on this earth
I am but passing through

Homeward bound

to my permanent address

with my Father in Heaven.

TA-DAH!!

2006-01-19T11:24:00.000+08:00

after a 3-month absence, I'M BACK! to my fans, i'm so sorry and i missed you too! mwa-ha-ha! having to share 1 computer with a "workoholic-insomniac-retired (?)-working-mom" doesn't make blogging easy... and then there's the work part of the sked to deal with, and our internet connection sucks, too!

well, thanks to a self-imposed leave to study for my comprehensive exams, i finally found a vacancy in mom's pc use... a gem, believe me! i may only have a few for this so let's get on with it!

highlights of the last 3 months, in no particular order...

SAGADA!

i told ree i'd write about this. spent the sem break with 7 other adventurers whose only common denominator was my friend, riya. hence, we were known as chopsuey, inc. twelve hours after leaving manila - including breakfast and coffee in baguio - chopsuey, inc. finds themselves in sagada.

sagada is one place i'm glad i visited before i turned 40. our big accomplishment was that we did the cave connections where you enter one cave and come out another one... 5 hours later! considering that my very first blog was on caving in tuguegarao, let me just say that these caves are WAY more challenging, fun, daring, and scary... but i still love anton c. imagine rapelling from a 45-foot cliff with just a rope tied to a rock -- no harness, no helmet, no first aid kit... also, no guts, no glory. and THAT was just one part of what we had to do in the dark. i'm not so sure i'd recommend the activity to my friends thinking that putting their life in danger was MY idea! we later found out that only crazy people like us would do the cave connections.

we trekked down (the easy part) to the big falls the next day... over, around, through and into (i have the scar to prove it) rice terraces. the sight of the falls was AWESOME! it humbled me knowing that only God can make something as beautiful and powerful as the big falls. a swim in the pool and a packed lunch later, we made our way up again ( the hard part). back in manila, i again found out that grappling over boulders to get to the pool was another thing only crazies did (duh).

there's much, much more to be said about the chopsuey adventures (my bad). this much i know... i have to go back there one day, probably through the back route (batad, banawe). wanna?

MIGUELI

since october, he has...

- been accepted in the ateneo (halikinu!)

- learned how to tell time (not with a digital clock, mind you)

- learned how to tie a bow (and wrap Christmas gifts... no accounting for neatness)

- started piano lessons (albeit the sked has been very erratic)

- been a ring bearer to my bro's wedding... which brings me to...

DENNIS and ESSIE's WEDDING

a great Sulit affair, if i may say so. we finally fitted our gowns and got all dolled up. the effort was well worth it. i have never seen my brother so happy! come to think of it, i had never seen him dance until that night either!

it was a very nice ceremony... short, personal, and sweet. food was good; drinks were flowing; firewroks were a nice touch, too!

my sis-in-law (SIL), essie, is in the house now, very much a part of the family. i really like her. hey, she got my brother to pray and go to mass again... she's good in my book!

CHRISTMAS 2005

did my Christmas shopping for the kids this year with frankie (she begged for my help - haha!). still, Christmas would not be the same without a shopping day with mama aly. it's been some sort of a tradition, like thanksgiving at her dad's and new year's at our place. i'd chuck a wedding just to shop with her during the holidays - which i did (hehehe). well worth it!

i also hosted my annual ateneo college barkada dinner - a 15-year tradition - for the first time! the pressures of being a hostess! the meal was a year in the making since someone had the bright idea that hostesses HAVE TO have souvenirs. well, the theme and cuisine was chinese. thank God for divisoria chinese take out boxes and tita lanelle fernando's soy pots! it also helped that i know the number of hap chan's dimsum supplier :)

going on it's 21st year tradition was my high school barkada Christmas party - also hosted at home. there's around 10 of us in manila, half of which are married with an average of 3 kids per family. do the math on that and shop for all those, plus the moms. not to forget that 4 or 5 of the kids are godchildren so their gifts are a little more special. then again, what's Christmas without the frazzle, right?

PYRO OLYMPICS

what kid doesn't like fireworks? I LOVE 'EM! i'm sorry, but it gets me jumping and screaming like a little girl. got to see the pyro olympics with jali twice on the week that it was hosted. we were there on the first day, on the wall in front of the barge, when australia (who won!) showed-off their nautical shells. our connections paid off when we went again 2 days later with the mendiolas of SM. so blessed to have them in my circles. oh, thanks, jali, for the photos! aren't they pur-ty?! i'm looking forward to pyro olympics 2006 with you and anyone else who loves fireworks!

there, among many other things, is 3 months in a nutshell. my mini-entries may not do them justice, but hey, i gotta start somewhere, right? and considering that i even put in photos... not bad!

rise and shine!

2005-10-17T04:48:00.000+08:00

back during my schooling days, when i was much younger, my friends and i had these myths about our teachers. we were told that teachers went home late (around 7 p.m.) and were in bed by 8 or 9 p.m. since they had to be in school early the next day. rumor also had it that teachers slept with their feet up against the wall, to return the circulation of blood to their legs from standing on them all day. in other words, "they had no life."

when i got to college, i found this not be unnecessarily true. i once had a professor who came in late for class one day, hair disheveled and unkempt. he gave the class a free cut that day on account that he was still hungover from the night before. not the best example, but it showed me that you can be a teacher AND have a life!

being the night owl that i've always been, the biggest struggle i've always had with being a teacher is the "waking up early" part. far be it from me to complain when my colleagues are up before sunrise, just to commute to get to school on time.

recently, i've been finding myself awake way before the sun is up. it's the only time i get to use the computer since mine conked out a few months ago. but i realize now that what wakes me from my slumber is the dedication i have for my job and the kids that depend on me. it has become more than a job; teaching has become my service.

yes, i've become a "teacher." that having been said, i'm proud to be up early. God has blessed me, enough to have "a life" and yet be of service to Him and His. but let me be the first to tell you, I DO NOT SLEEP WITH MY LEGS UP AGAINST THE WALL!

a place called "sanctuary"

2005-10-03T05:02:00.000+08:00

"time stops at the sanctuary." that's what the owner said and she was right!

such a place exists, on a small island in caliraya lake, home to exotic animals and it's weekend owners, peter and esti wallace. the place is beyond words. the common area is very eclectic yet tastefully done. giant masks made into doors, large baubles, totem poles, and carvings infuse to exude a sense of home. the guest cottages are very welcoming, each with a view of the lake and comfort rooms that are really "comfort rooms" (although the glass panels can make you feel a little self-conscious). it's easy to forget where you are... and what you came there for.

and let's not forget the food! i haven't had such a perfect meal in such a long time. we were served sinigang, fried liempo, greeen mangoes with bagoong and crispy shrimps, with buko juice as beverage, and capped with karioka and mint tea for dessert. everything was so tasty; just enough to whet but not overwhelm. and this is homecooking, mind you! we almost forgot that we were there to visit their campsite for next year's youth camp! (the campsite was a great one too, by the way.)

i hope camp gets to be held there next year.

miguel "gets smart"

2005-09-30T05:30:00.000+08:00

once every semester, the preschool children are assessed on their developmental skills. it's a one-to-one visit with the teacher so there are no regular classes on those days. miguel had his yesterday.

when i got home yesterday...

ninang: how was your assessment?
miguel: fine.
ninang: who else was there?
miguel: toni.
ninang: who else?
miguel: patrick.
ninang: anyone else?
miguel: (pauses and smiles mischievously) yes! spongebob!

har! har! har!

loyalty pays

2005-09-26T18:48:00.000+08:00

who doesn't like freebies? for someone who does not win at raffles, getting freebies is especially sweet. and for what, keeping the same mobile number for 11 years? sus! kadali!

what did my loyalty actually get me? P15,500 worth of either bill credit, handset discount, or G-cash. i opted for the last since i only had 5 minutes to decide (pressure!). i'm not fully familiar what to actually do with G-cash. they say i can pay for my pizza (shakey's) and burger (jollibee) plus some school & office stuff from national. they also say that i can cash in my wallet for actual moolah! mwahahaha! not bad for all those years of texting!

the benefits may not be as "hot" as winning an iPod (i'm still weighing if the m&m cd case tops this - haay, babaw...), but these days, you don't get to pick up P15,500 from off the street. so i AM thankful. bow.

back from the dead

2005-09-26T18:11:00.000+08:00

celebrating my quasi-resurrection from oblivion... partially due to the proddings (and naggings) of mama aly.

where've i been? you may ask. on the sidelines, mainly. my PC got "fried" (along with some other household gadgets -- including the doobell) during a thunderstorm more than a month ago. since then, i've been an inginual (in tagalog, "singit") to whenever my mom isn't hawking the computer. today, i was especially lucky; she wasn't home when i got here.

so much the sad story. much has happened and much will be detailed - albeit belatedly. in the meantime, on with the show!

mind play... wala lang

2005-08-06T11:45:00.000+08:00

got this from my officemate

count the black dots :)

looking good

2005-07-26T20:46:00.000+08:00

while in UP, teacher carol asked me if yolando was my father. of course, he was (i gush whenever i say i'm his daughter; i was a "daddy's girl")! when another teacher asked the significance of the name, teacher carol replied, "only one of the best doctors in the country!" hear, hear!

i stumbled on my dad's resume on my mom's dressing room table one morning. it read like an award citation! all his accomplishments on 3 (?) sheets of paper... president of this, chairman of that, medical director of this, awardee for that... teaching posts, positions in both local and international organizations...

i gotta admit, even in death, dad looks good! damn! what a brilliant, brilliant man!

man, i miss him!

fear and an answered prayer

2005-07-26T20:36:00.000+08:00

procrastination paved its way for me not to take my comprehensive exam for my MA this august. turns out that my true copy of grades won't be ready for another 2 weeks and the deadline is... tomorrow! hahaha! will take it in february next year and will still finish in time without penalty.

it's an answered prayer (yes, i prayed about this.). i went to UP with all intention to apply for the exams. my college's registrar sealed my fate.

truth be told, i'm not psyched up for this exam... yet. c'mon? five questions in 2 days to summarize everything you learned in 5 years? you gotta admit, THAT is scary (especially when you feel you really learned diddly-squat... moreso when you haven't read a single word from your notes of 5 years!).

after UP, i went home and did the unimagineable... i read my notes in FLCD 201. ooooh! sometimes, i impress myself. hahaha!

from the desk of...

2005-07-08T21:33:00.000+08:00

like any other person in the workforce, i always look forward to fridays, especially friday afternoons. it's a day when you can feel proud of the work you've done the days before and guiltlessly repay yourself with a nap as you lounge on the bed. friday also happens to be "playstation day."

as i lay in bed, playing a game of solitaire on my palm, in marches a newly-bathed miguel:

miguel (demanding): ninang, you have to play playstation with me!

ninang: i'm sorry, i never got the memo.

miguel: what's a memo?

ninang: it's a piece of paper with instructions for the day.

without another word, miguel then turns around and runs out of the room. minutes later he comes back with this:

he wrote this all by himself! the only help he asked from yaya was the date today. i easily recognized the format of his memo; it's how we write our board messages in school. kudos to teacher mitch and ashley!

after a hearty laugh, a hug, and a kiss, i then happily proceed to whoop his ass in marvel vs. capcom.

yoda, i am

2005-06-29T02:02:00.000+08:00

the teacher factor, it must be. just call me "master!" mwahahaha!

wala lang.

Which Revenge of the Sith Character are you?
created with QuizFarm.com

it's called "kleenex"

2005-06-28T21:25:00.000+08:00

i got to spend last saturday night with some (younger) friends. somehow, the topic of our conversation got to mucous. true to the subject's nature, the topic "stuck" with us for a greater part of the evening (and more than i cared for) despite a car ride and change of venue.

shrills aside, i must say that the conversation had it's entertaining moments. i was particularly amused by how mike narrated and demonstrated to us how many times he can blow his nose into his hanky. a clean one, thank God! apparently, it can accommodate 16 "blows." i think jali can do more. me, i just use tissue. gesundheit! :)

not exactly a million bucks...

2005-06-06T23:50:00.000+08:00

other than a good night at the mah-jong table or a good game of badminton, i never win anything... especially in raffles. i used to win in the annual Christmas office party raffles, but that's because we were assured of winning at least 1 major prize each. still, i never got the washing machine or the mini ref or the trip to cebu. instead, i won the toaster oven, the knife set, the habachi grill and the slow cooker. hmm... makes my winnings sound more and more like "luto!" hahaha! one year, i won cash... all of P1,000 (a big amount back then) which was just enough to cover the expenses on the costumes my group spent for our little number. my sis has better luck in those things. two years ago, she won a dvd player. cool!

so you could imagine that i was very pleasantly surprised when i received a package this past weekend. a couple of months back, i was in the grocery with miguel and i bought a pack of m&m's. they had that promo running then where you text in these sticker numbers to a cellphone account. i thought, "heck, i have nothing to lose and chocolate to eat!" i forget what was at stake. some mini ipods, i think.

what did i win? a really cute m&m cd case and a mini m&m mini radio (something i can use in school). i'll have to take a photo for you to see it (babaw!). i may have not won a million bucks, but with my luck (or lack of it) and my love for m&ms, i sure felt like a winner!

music to my ears

2005-05-26T22:27:00.000+08:00

yesterday, a man said six words that were music to my ears: "no need for a root canal."

phew! what a relief!

what makes you happy?

2005-05-25T13:29:00.000+08:00

i took miguel with me one night on one of my errands. i forget how we got to the topic but at one point, i remember asking him, "what makes you happy, miguel?"

his reply: "playing lego... building blocks... loving ninang!"

AWWW! i made it to the top three! isn't he the sweetest?

knowing that you are loved will make anyone happy. me pa? i'm a very easy person to please (read as "mababaw"). herewith is a short list of my simple joys:

"playing" with kids young and old
good food and even better conversation
receiving shiny P5 coins
finding P100 in my jeans pocket (actually, kahit P20, masaya na ako)
being with my cousin aly anywhere from her house to divisoria
my nephews and nieces
receiving "lubong" from someone else's grocery run
vanilla milkshakes
plain m&m's - not from the fridge, mind you
receiving handwritten letters and thank you notes
a cold beer after a dive (aaaaaah!)
a cold beer (period.)

alphabet for 2

2005-05-16T23:07:00.000+08:00

ever notice that you hardly see a plate number with the letter "i" on it? you'll have a hard time finding one with either the letter q or o in it, too!

this i know because last week, while on our way to school, miguel asked for his usual dose of road games. the task was to complete the letters of the alphabet by spotting them on license plates. we were stuck on i for the longest time until luckily, i spotted a special plate with the word "filipina" on it! we gave up on the o and q.

of course, miguel got upset that we couldn't find plates with the letters i, o and q. but he had a solution. "ninang, i want that when i grow up, you buy me a car. then i can ask for a license plate with the letters i, o and q on it. then we could complete the alphabet!"

post-jya camp

2005-05-02T21:28:00.000+08:00

my back still hurts from being close to mother nature; my face and arms got a nice tan (too bad my legs can't say the same); my right knee is starting to bug me again. and yet despite these aches and pains, i am happy.

the past weekend had a lot of firsts for me. my first ligaya camp, my first all-girls "delegation," my first time to bait a hook with a live earthworm, my first time to catch a fish, my first time to gut, clean, and cook the fish i caught.

got to play pantitero after sooooo many years, if only to prove that we girls are better at it. i also got to say "thank you" to God in a way i haven't in quite a long time. He is truly AMAZING!

and there's a song stuck in my head... "dip, dip, di-ri-ri-rip, dip, di-ri-ri-rip, dip, di-ri-ri-rip..." haaay...

why go camping?

2005-05-02T21:05:00.000+08:00

just got back yesterday from a camping weekend in tayabas, quezon with 80+ kids from ligaya ng panginoon. for 4 days and 3 nights, we prayed, played, sang, ate, sweated, fished, and bonfired. we also slept in tents.

i understand how housing some 80+ kids plus adults in tents would be the most practical solution. it is, after all, a camp. we had the campsite all to ourselves thursday. by friday, we shared the campsite with another group that stayed overnight. they had some activities too. a second group joined us at the campsite on saturday. their main activity, it seemed to me, was drinking.

why anyone would leave the comforts of home in this sweltering heat to go "quasi-camping" (graceland has airconditioned apartelles, restaurants and sports facilities) is beyond me. parang nonsense. maybe they truly enjoy sleeping on hard surfaces, in which case, they could have also done on the floors of their homes.

diba?

what's the rush, miguel?

2005-04-27T20:54:00.000+08:00

yesterday, from nowhere, miguel insisted on having his own bed. so yaya and aida rolled in my brother's old pull-out bed, vacuumed it, and dressed it with linen. miguel had his nap there in the afternoon... quite quickly, too, which was amazing!

it was somewhat strange seeing him on his own bed. all of a sudden, he seemed so grown-up. couldn't help but hear strains of fiddler on the roof's "sunrise, sunset" in my head.

this morning, over breakfast, i commended miguel on his big feat. he replied, "i want to be a big boy fast so i can go to disneyland!"

no wonder.

sweet tooth

2005-04-08T06:46:00.000+08:00

had been wanting to post this for the longest time.

cashed in on my reward for being pink for 2 weeks. so now, i give you... THE COLOSSAL! ta-daaaaaah! good as a stand alone; better when shared; best when it's free! now THAT is the sweet taste of victory.

payback

2005-04-05T19:43:00.000+08:00

be warned; i am about to gloat.

went to school to turn over some school stuff when my boss greeted me with a very cheerful, "congratulations!" huh?

the children took an international standardized test at the start of the school year, and again 2 weeks ago. turns out that the posttest grades for english, the subject i taught, improved remarkably! some of the kids even got the highest score of 110! even the kids with "problems" soared! at the very least, they were progressing towards standard.

sigh... the news truly made my day. after all the hard work, stress, and the tears (literally!), my kids pulled through. this is not only justice; i know that it is God's reward for doing the work He's tasked me to do. to Him be all the praise!

miguelism

2005-03-26T04:38:00.000+08:00

spent a good part of yesterday morning playing with miguel. i wanted to move on to other things (like go back to sleep); miguel planned otherwise.

miguel: ninang, let's play!
ninang: oh, miguel, ninang's tired.
miguel: why?
ninang: ninang's old already.
miguel: you're not THAT old; you're just old enough to be a ninang!
ninang: why, how old should ninangs be?
miguel: eight!

and that is one more reason why i love this child!

not a problem!

2005-03-19T01:09:00.000+08:00

got an invite to a children's party last week. it's set for today. anyway, last week, i asked miguel if he wanted to be my "props" to the party, and he agreed. he got all revved up about it, thinking of a gift for the celebrant, manu.

later in the day, i realized that there was a conflict in the schedule. the party was on the same day as miguel's moving-up ceremony.

ninang: miguel, i have a problem.
miguel: what?
ninang: you can't go with me to manu's party because that's your moving-up day. you might get too tired to perform.
miguel: that's not a problem. a problem is when you ride a plane and the palne's going to crash!

hear! hear! : )

face to face with goofy

2005-03-03T00:36:00.000+08:00

this one's especially for teacher fofem.

there hardly is a dull moment when you work with kids... especially when one of the students is as unconventional, non-conforming, innovative, and as entertaining as isak (pictured below). i saw him as i left the faculty room last week. i thought he was wearing a headband with dog ears. only moments later did i realize that he was actually wearing his socks on his ears! the socks came fresh off his feet, after an entire day in school, not that he seemed to mind.

a good friend once told me that intelligent people never get bored. safe to say that that'll never happen to isak. this is one bright kid!

woof! woof!

timepieces

2005-02-26T15:09:00.000+08:00

i've always liked watches; they're one of my fettishes. watches, hands, and wallets. it's one of the first things i notice in a person. when i watch tv or a movie, i always notice the actors' watches (forget the frontal nudity; did you see his watch?!).

i keep a number of them also, each with a story to tell. i still have to attain my dream watch though... a 2-toned, square-faced, santos cartier (gold screws, please) - just like my dad's. i would've wanted to keep his for myself also if only... but that's another blog.

my first watch was a mickey mouse watch where mickey's arms were the watch's hands. it's gone now but i'm always in the market for another one, but only if the gloves are yellow. my second watch, i still have. it was given to me when i was around 9-years old, so i guess it's kinda like an antique already, hahaha!. it's a silver, metal, tiny, round-faced, seiko timepiece, a gift from my dad. thankfully, the bracelet still fits around my wrist. i decided to have it fixed ("restored" is the more appropriate term, i think) yesterday. thought it would just be a battery thing. guess what... it's de-susi! gosh! it IS an antique! sometimes, it pays to be a packrat, i guess. can't wait to get it back!

dare to be pink

2005-02-19T01:19:00.000+08:00

a pink person, i definitely am not. it's just... too girly for my taste. only very recently did i venture into wearing pink, only because i had no choice as it was our school uniform. some people actually said that i look good in pink. yeah? well, i'm not about ready to change my wardrobe, let alone use it on my cellphone. which brings me to...

the other day, amy and len were tinkering with my (somewhat) new cellphone. then they return it to me with a new wallpaper - a lion with hearts around it, kasi valentine daw - and new color scheme... PINK! ew. it makes sending and reading text a painful endeavor! they're daring me to keep the settings for two loooooooong weeks, in exchange for a treat: old spaghetti house's cookie collosal. hmm...

shet. ang cheap ko. hahaha!

secret garden

2005-02-15T20:07:00.000+08:00

one of the "features" of my new room is that it opens up to a veranda and a mini box garden where, among others, we've been growing basil and oregano for my cooking necessities. the place has potential for a "gimmick area" by adding lighting, a banig, big pillows... must do something about the view though.

i'm no green thumb but i am, kahit papaano, a nature lover. i like plants that are ALIVE. so it was to my dismay that when i opened the door to the veranda this afternoon, it was the sight of parched dying plants that greeted me! i mean, it's bad enough that one of the plants is a funky, slightly tacky, red, pussy-willow-ish / feather duster type. what more a DYING, funky, slightly tacky, red, pussy-willow-ish / feather duster type?!

i tried to water the plants with the use a tabo, but it was evident - and more physically economical - that i needed a hose. i asked the helper in charge of that duty to help (duh) hoist the hose from the ground floor. as if embarrassed, she volunteered to water the plants herself. when i asked her when she last watered the plants, she replied that it had been almost 2 weeks! ugh! siya kaya ang hindi ko painumin ng dalawang linggo! grrr! AKO NA LANG ANG MAGDIDILIG NGAYON.

as i watered them, i couldn't help notice the plants gently swaying with the breeze, as if dancing a "thank you" dance. they're on a respirator for now. will update you on their situation. haay...

fee-fi-FO-FEM!

2005-02-11T01:48:00.000+08:00

maria is now a blogger! welcome to blogspot, teacher fofem! : )

so happy that you can join us. i can't wait to read your thoughts! it'll be like old times.. sorta. miss you tons!