Friday, December 26, 2008
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
For Now
Let Me Say,
Without Hope
Or Agenda
Just Because
It's Christmas-
(And At Christmas
You Tell The Truth)
To Me You Are
PERFECT...
Friday, October 17, 2008
The House Bunny
One boring Sunday Afternoon, I decided to watch the House Bunny at Vivo City... It truly eased my boredom, I loved it:-) There's something about this film that made me happy from start to finish. What I like about this film is it is not a classic and it’s not going to win any awards but it is great, simple, stupid fun...
It is almost impossible not to love Anna Faris in this film:-)
3/5
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Friday, September 5, 2008
Are you a Filipino?
Nomenclature
Your middle name is your mother's maiden name.
Your parents call each other "Mommy" and "Daddy."
You have uncles and aunts named "Boy," "Girlie," or "Baby."
You have relatives whose nicknames consist of repeated syllables like "Jun-Jun," "Ling-Ling," and "Mon-Mon."
You call the parents of your friends and your own parents' friends "Tito" and "Tita."
You have four or five names.
Family
You're related to everyone.
You consider your close friends your cousins.
You greet your elders by touching their hands to your forehead.
You always kiss your relatives on the cheek whenever you enter or leave the room.
You follow your parents' house rules even if you are over 18.
You live with your parents until and at times even after you're married.
You make your children sing and dance to amuse your friends and relatives.
You bring food to your uncles or aunties or whoever anytime you cook food.
Your grandma where's those long dresses w/different designs at home (dasters)
You bring mangoes (or other produce) with you as a gift when you visit peoples homes.
Your parents never go to the movies.
Your mom and all of her MJ friends always complain about how bad each of their children are.
Household
Your house has a distinctive aroma.
You decorate your living room wall with your family's framed diplomas and plaques.
You decorate your dining room wall with a picture of the "Last Supper."
You keep your furniture wrapped in plastic or covered with blankets.
You have carpet runners in your house.
You always leave your shoes or slippers outside the doorstep.
You have a Sto. Nino shrine in your living room.
You keep a fly swatter in your kitchen.
Your kitchen table has a vinyl tablecloth.
You recycle shopping bags as garbage bags.
You have a drawer full of old pens, most of which don't write anymore.
You have a piano that no one plays.
You hang your clothes out to dry in a laundry line.
You keep a tabo in your bathroom.
You own a barrel man from Baguio.
You have some kind of garden in your backyard.
You use the dishwasher as a dish rack.
You have never used your dishwasher.
Consumption
You eat with your hands.
You eat more than three times a day.
You think a meal is not a meal without rice.
You eat rice for breakfast.
You use your fingers to measure the water you need to cook rice.
You eat your meal using a spoon and fork.
You cut your meat with a spoon or fork.
You feed all your visitors.
If you don't live at home, when your parents call, they ask if you've eaten, even if it's midnight.
You always cook too much.
You bring baon to work everyday.
You keep your stove covered in aluminum foil when not in use.
You don't own any real tupperware-- only a cupboard full of used but carefully rinsed margarine tubs, takeout containers, and jam jars.
You wash and re-use plastic utensils, styrofoam cups, and aluminum wrappers.
Your pantry is never without Spam, Vienna sausage, corned beef, and sardines.
You love to eat daing or tuyo.
You prop up one knee while eating.
You eat your meal with patis, toyo, suka, banana catsup, or bagoong.
Your tablecloths are stained with toyo circles.
You love sticky desserts and salty snacks.
You eat fried Spam and hot dogs with rice.
You love to eat, yet often manage to stay slim.
You grab a toothpick after every meal.
You wave a pom-pom on a stick around the food to keep the flies away.
When dining out, you always fight over who will pay for dinner.
When you're in a restaurant, you wipe your plate and utensils before using them.
You put hot dogs in your spaghetti.
Everything you eat is sauted in garlic, onion, and tomatoes.
You eat every last grain of rice in your bowl, but don't eat the last piece of food on the table.
You find dried morsels of rice stuck to your shirt.
Religion
You hang a rosary on your car's rear view mirror.
You play cards or mahjong and drink beer at funeral wakes.
You think Christmas season begins in October and ends in January.
You unwrap Christmas gifts very carefully, so you can save and reuse the wrapping (and especially those bows) next year.
You make the sign of the cross before take-offs and after landings and every time you pass by a church.
Travel
Your second piece of luggage is a balikbayan box.
You've mastered the art of packing a suitcase to double capacity.
You are standing next to eight boxes at the airport.
You collect items from airlines, hotels, and restaurants as "souvenirs."
You feel obligated to give pasalubong to all your friends and relatives each time you return from a trip.
You drive a Honda Civic or Integra.
You have those air fresheners that you buy at Filipino stores in your car.
You have a trendy perfume bottle and some stuffed animals in your car.
You carry a stash of your own food (usually dried)
You can squeeze 15 passengers into your five seater car without a second thought.
Shopping
You can't make a purchase without haggling.
You're a fashion victim.
The condiments in your fridge are either Costco sized or come in plastic packets, which you save/steal every time you get take out or go to McDonalds.
Ditto paper napkins.
Your mom asks you to pick up the extra carton of eggs on sale (but limit 1 only) and pay for it at a separate check out counter.
You see corn beef on sale you buy a lot and send it to the Philippines.
You know someone who can get you a good deal on jewelry or electronics.
Non-verbal Communication
You can convey 30 messages with your facial expression.
You point with your lips.
You greet one another by raising your eyebrows or tossing your head.
You hold your palms together in front of you and say "excuse, excuse" when you pass in between people or in front of the TV.
You scratch your head when you don't know an answer to a question.
You smile all the time for no reason.
You ask for the bill at a restaurant by making a rectangle in the air.
You cover your mouth when you laugh.
Language
You respond to a "Hoy!" or a "Pssst!" in a crowd.
You'll answer "Malapit lang!"--no matter the distance--when asked how far away a place is located.
Goldilocks is more than a fairy tale character to you.
You refer to power interruptions as "brownouts."
You love to use the following acronyms: CR for comfort room, DI for dance instructor, DOM for dirty old man, TNT for tago nang tago, KJ for kill joy, KSP for kulang sa pansin, OA for over-acting, TL for true love, BF for boyfriend and GF for girlfriend.
You're always late for events and parties. (Filipino time)
You say "rubber shoes" instead of sneakers, "ball pen" instead of pen, "stockings" instead of pantyhose, "pampers" instead of diapers, "ref" or "prijider" instead of refrigerator, "Colgate" instead of toothpaste, "canteen" instead of cafeteria, and "open" or "close" instead of turn on or turn off (as in the lights).
You order a "soft drink" instead of soda.
Miscellaneous
You've dyed your hair blonde or brown.
You use an umbrella for shade on hot summer days.
You prefer sitting in the shade instead of basking in the sun.
You can sing and dance at a drop of a hat.
You love ballroom dancing, bowling, pusoy, mah jong, billiards, and karaoke.
You majored in something practical like engineering, medicine, accounting or law.
You have a relative who is a nurse.
You always ring a doorbell twice, assuming that the first ring was not heard.
You let the phone ring twice before answering, lest you appear overly eager.
Your parents send money to their relatives in Philippines
Long distance calls are usually after 11p.m. (given the time-zone difference)
You at least know of the singer "Sharon Cuneta"
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Why Filipinos Are Special
I read this in travbuddy... enjoy reading
Why Filipinos Are Special (by Ed Lapiz) - a must read for anyone wanting to visit the Philippines
From the Special issue of Light Touch Magazine, vol. 8 number 3,Copyright 2004, Glad Tidings Publication
Filipinos are Brown. Their color is in the center of human racial strains.
This point is not an attempt at racism, but just for many Filipinosto realize that our color should not be a source of or reason forinferiority complex. While we pine for a fair complexion, the whitepeople are religiously tanning themselves, whenever they could, underthe sun or some artificial light, just to approximate the Filipinocomplexion.
Filipinos are a touching people. We have lots of love and are notafraid to show it. We almost inevitably create human chains with ourperennial akbay (putting an arm around another shoulder), hawak(hold),yakap (embrace), himas (caressing stroke), kalabit (touch withthe tip of the finger), kalong (sitting on someone else's lap), etc.
We are always reaching out, always seeking interconnection.
Filipinos are linguists. Put a Filipino in any city, any town aroundthe world. Give him a few months or even weeks and he will speak thelocal language there. Filipinos are adept at learning and speakinglanguages. In fact, it is not uncommon for Filipinos to speak atleast three: his dialect, Filipino, and English. Of course, a lotspeak an added language, be it Chinese, Spanish or, if he worksabroad, the language of his host country.
In addition, Tagalog is not 'sexist.' While many "conscious"and "enlightened" people of today are just by now striving tobe "politically correct" with their language and, in the process,bend to absurd depths in coining "gender sensitive" words, Tagaloghas, since time immemorial, evolved gender-neutral words like asawa(husband or wife), anak (son or daughter), magulang (father ormother), kapatid (brother or sister), biyenan ( father-in-law ormother-in-law), manugang (son or daughter-in-law), bayani (hero orheroine), etc. Our languages and dialects are advanced and, indeed,sophisticated! It is no small wonder that Jose Rizal, thequintessential Filipino, spoke some twenty-two languages!
Filipinos are groupists. We love human interaction and company. Wealways surround ourselves with people and we hover over them, too.According to Dr. Patricia Licuanan, a psychologist from Ateneo andMiriam College, an average Filipino would have and know at least 300relatives.
At work, we live bayanihan (mutual help); at play, we want a kalaro(playmate) more than laruan (toy).At socials, our invitations areopen and it is more common even for guests to invite and bring inother guests. In transit, we do not want to be separated from ourgroup. So what do we do when there is no more space in a vehicle?
Kalung-kalong! (Sit on one another). No one would ever suggestsplitting a group and waiting for another vehicle with more space!
Filipinos are weavers. One look at our baskets, mats, clothes, andother crafts will reveal the skill of the Filipino weaver and hisinclination to weaving. This art is a metaphor of the Filipino trait.We are social weavers. We weave theirs into ours that we all becomeparts of one another. We place a lot of premium on pakikisama(getting along) and pakikipagkapwa (relating). Two of the worstlabels, walang pakikipagkapwa (inability to relate), will be avoidedby the Filipino at almost any cost.
We love to blend and harmonize with people, we like to include themin our "tribe," in our "family"-and we like to be included in otherpeople's families, too.
Therefore we call our friend's mother nanay or mommy; we call afriend's sister ate (eldest sister), and so on. We even callstrangers tia (aunt) or tio (uncle), tatang (grandfather), etc.
So extensive is our social openness and interrelations that we havespecific title for extended relations like hipag (sister-in-law'sspouse), balae (child-in-law's parents), inaanak (godchild),ninong/ninang (godparents) kinakapatid (godparent's child), etc.
In addition, we have the profound 'ka' institution, looselytranslated as "equal to the same kind" as in kasama (of the samecompany), kaisa (of the same cause), kapanalig (of the same belief),etc. In our social fiber, we treat other people as co-equals.
Filipinos, because of their social "weaving" traditions, make forexcellent team workers.
Filipinos are adventurers. We have a tradition of separation. Ourmyths and legends speak of heroes and heroines who almost always getseparated from their families and loved ones and are taken bycircumstances to far-away lands where they find wealth or power.
Our Spanish colonial history is filled with separations caused by thereduccion (hamleting), and the forced migration to build towns,churches, fortresses or galleons. American occupation enlarged thespace of Filipino wandering, including America, and there aredocumented evidences of Filipino presence in America as far back as1587.
Now, Filipinos compose the world's largest population of overseasworkers, populating and sometimes "threshing" major capitals, minortowns and even remote villages around the world. Filipinoadventurism has made us today's citizens of the world, bringing thebagoong (salty shrimp paste), pansit (sautéed noodles), siopao (meat-filled dough), kare-kare (peanut-flavored dish), dinuguan (innardscooked in pork blood), balut (unhatched duck egg), and adobo (meatvinaigrette), including the tabo (ladle) and tsinelas (slippers) allover the world.
Filipinos are excellent at adjustments and improvisation, managing torecreate their home, or to feel at home anywhere.
Filipinos have Pakiramdam (deep feeling/discernment) . We know how tofeel what others feel, sometimes even anticipate what they will feel.Being manhid (dense) is one of the worst labels anyone could get andwill therefore, avoid at all cost. We know when a guest is hungrythough the insistence on being full is assured.
We can tell if people are lovers even if they are miles apart. Weknow if a person is offended though he may purposely smile. We knowbecause we feel. In our pakikipagkapwa(relating), we get not only towear another man's shoe but also his heart.
We have a superbly developed and honored gift of discernment, makingus excellent leaders, counselors, and go-betweens.
Filipinos are very spiritual. We are transcendent. We transcend thephysical world, see the unseen and hear the unheard. We have a deepsense of kaba (premonition) and kutob (hunch). A Filipino wife willinstinctively feel her husband or child is going astray, whether ornot telltale signs present themselves.
Filipino spirituality makes him invoke divine presence orintervention at nearly every bend of his journey . Rightly orwrongly, Filipinos are almost always acknowledging, invoking ordriving away spirits into and from their lives. Seemingly trivial oreven incoherent events can take on spiritual significance and will begiven such space or consideration.
The Filipino has a sophisticated, developed pakiramdam. The Filipino,though becoming more and more modern (hence, materialistic) is stillvery spiritual in essence. This inherent and deep spirituality makesthe Filipino, once correctly Christianized, a major exponent of thefaith.
Filipinos are timeless. Despite the nearly half-a-millenniumencroachment of the western clock into our lives, Filipinos-unless onvery formal or official functions-still measure time not with hoursand minutes but with feeling. This style is ingrained deep in ourpsyche. Our time is diffused, not framed. Our appointments aredefined by umaga (morning), tanghali (noon ), hapon (afternoon), orgabi (evening).
Our most exact time reference is probably katanghaliang-tapat (highnoon), which still allows many minutes of leeway. That is howFilipino trysts and occasions are timed: there is really no definitetime.
A Filipino event has no clear-cut beginning nor ending. We have afiesta , but there is bisperas (eve), a day after the fiesta is stillconsidered a good time to visit. The Filipino Christmas is notconfined to December 25th; it somehow begins months before Decemberand extends up to the first days of January.
Filipino s say good-bye to guests first at the head of the stairs,then down to the descamo (landing), to the entresuelo (mezzanine), tothe pintuan (doorway), to the tarangkahan (gate), and if thedeparting persons are to take public transportation, up to the busstop or bus station.
In a way, other people's tardiness and extended stays can really beannoying, but this peculiarity is the same charm of Filipinos who,being governed by timelessness, can show how to find more time to benice, kind, and accommodating than his prompt and exact brotherselsewhere.
Filipinos are Spaceless. As in the concept of time, the Filipinoconcept of space is not numerical. We will not usually expressexpanse of space with miles or kilometers but with feelings in how wesay malayo (far )or malapit (near).
Alongside with numberlessness, Filipino space is also boundless.Indigenous culture did not divide land into private lots but kept itopen for all to partake of its abundance.
The Filipino has avidly remained "spaceless" in many ways. Theinterior of the bahay-kubo (hut) can easily become receiving room,sleeping room, kitchen, dining room, chapel, wake parlor, etc.Depending on the time of the day or the needs of the moment. The sameis true with the bahay na bato (stone house). Space just flows intothe next space that the divisions between the sala, caida, comedor,or vilada may only be faintly suggested by overhead arches offiligree. In much the same way, Filipino concept of space can be sodiffused that one 's party may creep into and actually expropriatethe street! A family business like a sari-sari store or talyer mayextend to the sidewalk and street. Provincial folks dry palayan (ricegrain) on the highways! Religious groups of various persuasionshabitually and matter-of-factly commandeer the streets forprocessions and parades.
It is not uncommon to close a street to accommodate privatefunctions, Filipinos eat. sleep, chat, socialize, quarrel, evenurinate, nearly everywhere or just anywhere!
"Spacelessness," in the face of modern, especially urban life, can beunlawful and may really be counter-productive. On the other hand,Filipino spacelessness, when viewed from his context, is just anothermanifestation of his spiritually and communal values. Adapted well totoday's context, which may mean unstoppable urbanization, Filipinospacelessness may even be the answer and counter balance tohumanity's greed, selfishness and isolation.
So what makes the Filipino special? We are brown, spiritual,timeless, spaceless, linguists, groupists, weavers, adventurers.Seldom do all these profound qualities find personification in apeople. Filipinos should allow - and should be allowed to contributetheir special traits to the world-wide community of men- but first,we should know and like ourselves.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
JUNO
Rating 4/5
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Accenture Days February 2003- October 2005
Oooohh!! My Favorite and First Real Project when I was working for Accenture. Citigroup Asia-Pac. We have the Best Team Leads, the Best Teammates and the Best Team Buildings. It was early 2004 then. Luckily, I was able to find some old photos of my Citigroup days;-)
Team Building at La Luz, Batangas
This one was taken at our office in Citibank.
This one too.
Monday, February 18, 2008
NBA All Stars - I Love this Game!
If you missed out on the NBA All-Stars Slam Dunk Competition, you don't know what you have missed... Athletism, humour and everything you ever wanted in the NBA regular season.. now condensed into pill size. Okie. Don't sweat. My top pick: Dwight Howard's Superman dunk. Check this out!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EO3c8EaxsxQ
Friday, February 15, 2008
I Am so Proud!!
I was able to catch a replay of the Amazing Race Asia... The Filipino team was last to arrive. I was really sad at first but when I saw Marc and Rovilson carrying the Philippines flag all the way to the pit stop I felt really really proud that I am a Filipino. It felt like we still won the race:-D
I just want to share a picture of Marc Nelson that I think is underwear-dropping yummy lol...
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Valentine's Day!
Monday, February 11, 2008
Bangkok Degustation
SILVER PALACE RESTAURANT
...for a place famed for its food, my gastronomic experience somewhat started on quite a disappointing note. (it more than made-up for it later.. phew). We walked through back alleys, maneuvered through the crowd and not to mention survived the stench emanating from clogged drains and what now. Ok, so what restaurant was it? Silver palace restaurant. Not exactly your 5 star restaurant but clean enough inside. Ok, let’s cut to the chase.
Food ratings:
Lunch dim sum: forgettable (1/5)
With the exception of charsiew pau which you cant go wrong.. Unless u are really really bad at making dim sum. (3/5)
Sharks fin with cabbage: something different from the usual chinese sharksfin soup. It’s more similar to its "oh luak" cousin in singapore. (3/5)
SCALA SHARKSFIN RESTAURANT
...is actually a famous sharks fin restaurant situated opposite the Scala Cineplex. For the uninitiated, this is "the" place to get all sharks fin things. There are 2 other similar themed restaurants which are conveniently located just next to Scala. Talk about rivalry. hehe. Prices start from 800THB to an eye-popping 5000THB a bowl. that’s approximately 227SGD for a pot fit for 2 persons. (From what I understand that’s like the whole fin of the shark in a pot... well more or less that is) we ordered the 800THB and we were not disappointed. Sharks fin in its entirety swimming in delicious thick, brown soup. Its cheaper than back in Singapore we were told.
Food Ratings:
Sharks fin - 4.5/5
Fish maw - a spicy, dish with crunchy, spongey fish maw. 3.5/5
Veggies - this is average 3/5
FOOD LOFT
...is a delectable sharp, modern and very chicly designed food court. You cannot take photos inside this eating place... Its architecture is of top-notched. One of the best restaurants to dine in during the trip. The ambience is comfortable with warm lights yet not overly bearing until you feel uneasy. The unique modern interior made the dining experience one to be remembered. Service is excellent with very helpful minders who will even bring you your food when you ordered them at the different counters (like marche). The wide spread of food is a joy not to mention it whetted my appetite to the point of wanting to try each and every one of them. Average price is 100THB to around 300THB. Not exactly very cheap but part of the cost probably goes to paying for those very beautiful decor.
Food Ratings:
Chicken curry - not too spicy, very fragrant with the spices and thick yellow sauce. Yummy 4.9/5
phad thai - somewhat more bland that I expected it to be. Shrimps are very fresh and succulent though. 4/5
Black Pepper Crab - 3.8/5
SOMBOON SEAFOOD(The best Seafood Restaurant in Bangkok)
...ah somboon..what can i say. Save the best for last. A word of caution first, it's somboon and not somboon-dee. Why did i say that? Well... some unscrupulous tuk tuk drivers took us to a “very good seafood" called somboon-DEE. my oh my, thank god we insisted on going to the real mccoy. The food is.... (i am imagining and smacking my lips now) heavenly. Reservation is a must for this very popular restaurant with 5 outlets all over bangkok. Its customers read like a who's who list in hollywood. Ok. I’m lying but guess what, ex-Japan PM, junichiro koizumi visited this restaurant. I did chance upon the reservation list... most are japanese and korean visitors. It must be good. Guess what... it’s really really really good. Did I say its good? Aha.. Ok you get the point. The chili crab... Leaves you on cloud nine. The thick, eggy sauce is so delicious that you can be forgiven for over eating. Bread with sauce, rice with sauce, anything but give me my sauce. haha. Ok, let me try to put it in words... the first mouthful creates this unbridled almost orgasmic pleasure on my palate. I swear I could feel my taste buds dancing with joy. what goes through my mind? Ah... This is the kind of food that leaves me thinking... this is why life is worth living... if nothing else is. haha...
Food Ratings:
Chili crabs 6/5 haha
Garlic king prawns 4.5/5
tom yam 5/5
Sharksfin 5/5
Suckling Pig 5/5
Steamed Fish 5/5
Sunday, February 10, 2008
I am Back!!!
Going back to Singapore...
With a Cute Little Boy
Cab with Ling Ling
Riding a TukTuk with Bit
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Happy Chinese New Year!!!
WELCOME...
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Hallmark Cards u can send
I just want to share this funny email that I have received before... enjoy!
FRONT: As the days go by, I think of how lucky I am
INSIDE: That you're not here to ruin it for me.
FRONT: I've always wanted to have someone to hold, someone to love.
INSIDE: After having met you, I've changed my mind.
FRONT: I must admit, you brought Religion in my life.
INSIDE: I never believed in Hell 'till I met you.
FRONT: Looking back over the years that we've been together, I can't help but wonder:
INSIDE: What the hell was I thinking?
FRONT: I always wanted to be rich, powerful,and well respected.
INSIDE: And while I'm dreaming, I wish you weren't so damn ugly.
FRONT: When we were together, you always said you'd die for me.
INSIDE: Now that we've broken up, I think it's time you kept your promise.
FRONT: I'm so miserable without you,
INSIDE: It's almost like you're here.
FRONT: If you ever need a friend...
INSIDE: Buy a dog.
