Lately, I’ve noticed that I have been using Facebook an increasingly number of times.

Surprising, considering that I do not have a Facebook account.

A friend wants to show me some pictures…she tells me she uploaded it on Facebook and I should just view them there.

On the other hand, a friend wants to get some pictures from me, and I plan to email it to her. She tells me, “Masyado madami yan. Ipost mo na lang sa Facebook.” I tell her I don’t have Facebook, she tells me to post it in Wendy’s Facebook. Gosh! Why didn’t I think of that? Duh!

I need to chat with someone…and although we have always used Yahoo, she informs me that she is now always online through Facebook. I tell her let’s just use Yahoo, she tells me, no, I now use Facebook! I inform her sternly that I don’t have a Facebook account, and she tells me, “Friends kami ni Wendy. Gamitin mo yung account nya!”

Thank God that my friends are Wendy’s friends, and yes, I just use her account. In fact, I have been logging in and out of Wendy’s account a number of times now that Wendy tells me, “Mama, why don’t you just create your own account?”

Hmmm…why not nga naman? I can reconnect with old friends, know what’s going on with my friends’ lives, see if some “likes” my pictures, tell the world how I’m feeling and what I’m doing, and view the pictures of friends! Sounds cool!

I know Facebook has a lot of features, and although most of my friends are in it, none of Facebook’s features really attract me [I'm weird in that way!]. Facebook has no appeal for me. First, I don’t know if I have enough friends. Kakahiya naman kung may Facebook account ako tapos 10 lang friends ko! He he! Second, I don’t really want to know what’s happening to everybody all the time, and I don’t want to stay connected all the time! Third, some stuff written in Facebook are too personal for my liking. [I'm old-fashioned in that I believe that some things should be left said privately to family and close friends.] Meaning, to avoid all these, I will refrain from logging in, and this would make setting a Facebook account sort of useless right? I guess Facebook is not really my cup of tea…I am not a hater, just a holdout.

In any case, if there’s something I want to “shout” to the world, or if there are some experiences or thoughts I want to share, I have my beloved, lovable bahay ni kumareng grace.

PS: Charing lang yan lahat. The truth is, takot ako ma-addict! He he!

The last time I watched a play was around 10 years ago, when I watched Miss Saigon. I wanted to watch it because, well, it was Miss Saigon.

I recently got the chance to watch another play [slash musical] and watched  Cats, Now and Forever at the CCP.

I wasn’t expecting much, for I am not really fond of musicals. I don’t even know what Cats was about. But right off the bat, Cats got my attention. The stage was a production in itself: an alley where the Jellicle cats convene for an annual tradition. As the play started and a pack of cats came dancing and singing, I was mesmerized.

Honestly, I was not able to follow the story as the play progressed. But what the heck? I was content in watching the great solo and group production numbers of the cast. The choreography was fantastic! The actors acted and moved like real cats do and did this while carrying out the specific personalities of their characters. Take for example my favorite charcter, Rum Tum Tugger, who was, in our terms, mayabang.  The actor was so effective because he had this swagger that he kept throughout the show. Kung baga isang tingin lang, alam mo na na mayabang sya!

And do I have to mention the singing? Everyone sang beautifully! I wonder how they get to sing that beautifully while dancing! I can’t even hear them breathing! The voices were cool to the ears, with fortissimos and pianissimos sang right on the money! The production numbers were simply amazing! Ang galing talaga!

And the finale? Gosh, it was spectacular number that I felt kahit yun lang, sulit ang binayad ko!

Special mention goes, of course, to our kababayan Lea Salonga, playing the outcast Grizabella. She sang Memory so beautifully that my hairs started to rise. It was one performance that will forever be in my “memory.” Grabe ang Lea Salonga, super galing at pang world class talaga!

Although there were some boring moments [because everything was sung and, as I have mentioned,  I had a hard time following the story], my Cats experience was truly a wonderful one. I enjoyed the show and am becoming a convert to plays and musicals. Andrew Lloyd Webber is really one musical genius.

Kudos to the Cats, Now and Forever cast! It was one great show!

Forgive me for bringing up such a minute issue. But this is something I really don’t get.

Call me mababaw, call me ignoramus, but please tell me, why, oh why, do we use the towels in hotels as floor mats in the bathrooms?

I rarely stay in plush hotels, even when traveling. I prefer the homey, bed-and-breakfast type of accommodations. But of course, there will be times you cannot get away from these nice hotels.

One practice I noticed that has evolved through the years is the use of hotel towels, most of the time WHITE towels, as floor mats! I don’t get it! I mean, aren’t towels supposed to be used for the body? Is there an unwritten rule about this? Or do these towels have a fine print stating that these should be used as mats? Have I been so out of the loop that I am unaware that hotel towels are now actually made for this purpose?

I remember this conversation between me and my sister years ago when the two of us stayed in a hotel:

KG: Pa-abot nga nung towel.

Sister: Tawag ka na lang sa housekeeping, hingi ka na lang.

KG: Asan na yung mga towels? Dalawa yun diba? Bakit pa ako hihingi ng isa?

Sister: Ginamit ko na yung isa. Yung isa asa sahig na.

KG: What????

For goodness sake! These are T-O-W-E-L-S!

I really didn’t get it. For a time, I was in denial. For me, it just didn’t feel right. I didn’t want to do it, and I refused to do it. But there’s no escaping it, because if I am not the one to do it, whoever I’m with will beat me to it. The towel always ends up on the floor.

To ease this curiosity [and, to tell you truthfully, bit of annoyance], I decided to do a little research…just to see the rationale of the whole thing. Along the way, I find the definition of the word towel, which, according to Merriam Webster, means “an absorbent cloth or paper for drying.”

Aha! Ayun naman pala! So these towels must be for the feet only, for they do end up on the floor! Pwede naman pala sya gamitin sa floor…

So now, I am making an arguable conclusion: There is no one else to blame here but the hotels themselves! Ha! I am saying this for the simple reason that I’m pretty sure they know that people are doing this but are not doing anything about it.

I remember staying in a hotel and making a quick survey of the room, only to find three sets of towels: a bath towel, a hand towel, and a face towel [what we call bimpo], but alas, no floor mat [or even a foot towel]. So again, the towel ends up on the floor.

So, I make this request to the hotels around the world, I beg you, please, please, place floor mats in your bathrooms so that these white, fluffy, soft towels will actually be used for their purpose! I don’t want to see white towels on the floor again [unless they truly are foot towels]!

Otherwise, I really need someone to give me an acceptable explanation.

Wonder what this tree is?

If you are from UPLB, you will instantly recognize this. We call this the “Fertility Tree.”

Stories passed from generation to generation of students say that this is a place where “babies are made” [or where the "process" takes place], hence the moniker of the tree. However, I have never had the chance to know whether this claim is valid or just another trick to lure freshmen into believing an urban legend about our school.

If you look closely, you will see a hollow part of the main trunk. Perhaps, and supposedly, this is where the “milagro” happens.

In my days, the leaves were more abundant, so you can just imagine how beautiful the tree is. Thus, minus the name, it would have been nice to make tambay under the wide branches, sipping fresh juice in the cool shade.

Anyway, true or not, the Fertility Tree is part of the UPLB culture and, thus, of the lives of thousands of UPLB students! Interesting!