Ang Bahay ni Kumareng Grace

A tita texted me asking if Wendy could be one of the flower girls in a wedding she was organizing. I told her no problem with me, but I’d have to ask Wendy first.

Wendy’s reply?

“Ayoko na Mama. I’m already TOOOOO old to be a flower girl!!!” [emphasis on the too]

Sniff sniff!

So soon? Girl, you’re only nine! If I had my way, I’d still be a flower girl!

I turn nostalgic when I see these pictures. After all, aren’t we moms proud when our little girls walk the aisle wearing those cute dresses and carrying bouquets of flowers?

Probably Wendy’s last appearance as a flower girl: at my sister’s wedding last June 20, 2009

In reality, Wendy isn’t really into those flower girl stuff (she considers herself more boyish than girlish). She is actually living out my dream, after all I’ve been a flower girl only twice in my entire life! Yung isa pa doon sa yaya ko, and I fell out of a chair pa! Not one of my fondest memories. So I take my joy in watching Wendy being a flower girl. She’s been a flower girl more than a dozen times, half of which I forced her. He he! But she sometimes admits she enjoys being a flower girl too, especially if she knows her co-flower girls.

But now, an era has ended. Such a sad day indeed.

One of my sister’s friends wrote the following:

While foreign tourists would most likely put the Philippines way down their list of places to go to [because of the hostage taking], I think it’s about time we locals help out and explore our own country.

I’m taking this to heart. I will travel to as many place in the Philippines as I can.

Since I was on office arrest [my boss told me not to take long trips until the end of the year], all I could do were weekend getaways or day trips. I decided to go with a day trip for the meantime.

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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!

After our short but fun stay in San Francisco and Los Angeles [as well as Glendale and Pasadena], it was time to say goodbye to California and say hello to Nevada.

We took the bus from LA to Las Vegas. Our first choice was to drive, but I think my mother wanted to try every mode of transportation there is in the US! He he! I booked our trip via GotoBus, which offers really low fares! Imagine, our bus ride cost only $30 per person!

Going from LA to Las Vegas was like going from one end of the pole to another. One minute, all we saw were buildings. Then after a while, all we saw were deserts!

The bus ride took approximately 5 hours, with one stop. It was like 2 hours of buildings and people and then 3 hours of desert and cactuses. The desert seemed to go on and on and on and on! Ang lawak ng US!

Finally, after what seemed like endless desert, we saw some indication of buildings and finally arrived in Las Vegas. My first thought was, how could a place like this exist in the middle of the desert? Well, I guess that the fact that it was located in the center of nowhere makes it a more attractive destination. Here are some facts proving that Las Vegas is one of the favorite spots of tourists:

• Hotel room occupancy rates average 91% annually.
• Southern Nevada (including Primm, Mesquite, and Laughlin, Nevada) has over 142,000 hotel rooms and is growing almost daily. Vegas accounts for 124,000 alone, with nine of the ten largest hotels in the world.
• 851 flights a day deliver over 2.4 million city visitors each month through McCarran Airport, making it the eighth busiest airport in the world.
• Vegas is the fifth most popular foreign travel vacation destination in the world. It’s also the top summer destination in the United States and the top gambling destination in the whole world!
• Over 30 million people visit here annually. Almost one in five are “forced” to come for a convention. Around 100,000 Vegas weddings were held last year!
• There are nearly 1000 taxis, 330 limos & 32 bus routes in the city.
• Over 1.41 million residents call Las Vegas home! (source)

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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!

The government initiative to transform the current education curriculum from from 6 years of grade school and 4 years of high school to 7 and 5 years, respectively, leaves me thinking hard. Will this be the best solution to the problems regarding education in our country?

Of course, I’m thinking of my daughter and the thousands of youth going to school, who are the future of our country. So any initiative to improve education, I’m all for it.

But adding two more years to basic education? I’m not for it.

I am a product of a school with seventh grade, and I can say with all honesty and from experience that it was not at all needed. Yes, it was learning. But our lessons were an integration of what we learned from Grades 1 to 6 and an introduction of first year high school. The former was not needed, whereas the latter can just be added to the first year in high school.

So I am confused. Why add two more years [and burden to parents and students as well] to schooling when it is the quality of education that needs focus? Instead of allotting budget to putting up additional buildings [adding two more years means more classrooms and facilities], hiring more teachers, or buying more books and supplies, why not allot budget for the training of teachers so that they are not left behind by their counterparts abroad in terms of knowledge and skills? Why not allot budget for the wages of teachers so they are not lured by higher offers abroad? Why not focus on the curriculum itself, deleting what is not needed and adding what is essential? Why not allot budget on activities that will increase the quality of education?

This for me is a classic case of quality over quantity. Focus on quality first; adding two years of schooling will be worthless if the same type of education is implemented, if teachers aren’t well equipped, and if the facilities are not conducive to learning [hello! 100 students in one classroom and just 4 hours of school?].

Just thinking out loud….

Oh, and by the way, Wendy is “so totally against” this initiative. Her reactions were more violent than mine.

I’m referring to the cuteness (*ahem*).

You want proof?

This is my [only] niece Yshy (Alisha Francine)

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“Piglet” flanked by Tigger and Pooh.

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No hair yet at 5 months! We’re all waiting for her hair to grow…

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“What will I be when I grow up?”

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Cute! [Oh yes, I'm a girl!]

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The star takes a rest.

[Oh the things parents do to their kids! He! He!]

Isn’t she as cute as her aunt [that means me]?

Pagbigyan nyo na ako. He he!

Happy Sunday everyone!

Do you think I would pass for a celebrity girlfriend?

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Before you react and think that Richard Gutierrez is out of his mind, this picture was actually cropped from the photo below:

Outside Staples Center, May 27, 2010 (after the Lakers-Phoenix game 5)

With all honesty, I really don’t have the hoots for any of our celebrities here. When somebody points out to me, “uy, si ano oh,” referring to a celebrity, I usually look, then reply with just a shrug. Walang excitement kung baga.

So I don’t know why, when my friend told me that he saw Richard Gutierrez in the souvenir shop of Staples Center when we watched game 5 of the Lakers-Phoenix series, I went gaga and told my friends I had to have my picture taken with him [at all costs!]! And this was with shrieks ha! I patiently waited for him at the exit of the souvenir shop!

I honestly don’t know why I got so excited. I am not a fan of his. I don’t even watch any of his shows! I know him only because he’s a popular star here in the Philippines.

The only logical reason I could think of was that it was so exciting to see a kababayan star in a foreign land. It’s like, wow! Of  all places, sa ibang bansa mo pa sya makikita! I mean, makakita lang ako ng kababayan in other countries, I get excited. What more kung artista pa diba? I remember when we were in Rome, and there was news that Ai Ai de las Alas was there too. Baduy man, but I was always on the lookout for her! He! he!

So jologs na kung jologs, I approached Richard and asked him if I could have a picture taken with him.

Richard was very nice and accommodating. He of course agreed and was all smiles for our photo op. As you can see, me and my two friends were ALL smiles! Parang kinikilig pa! Richard chatted with us for a very short while after ["Ganda ng game ano?"] and smiled and waved at us when he saw us leaving the stadium.

We may not have seen some famous stars in Hollywood, but the NBA night made up for it! At least, I had a small brush with the world of showbiz!

Leaving San Francisco was bittersweet for me, as always. First, I had such a fun time with my cousins there, cousins I rarely get to see. Second, I felt that the time we spent there was kulang pa. And third, absurd as it may sound, I would miss the weather. But leaving meant we were arriving at another destination! Exciting!

San Francisco from the sky: very organized!

Los Angeles was the next place in our itinerary. I must admit that this one city I could go without visiting, after all, it is too touristy for me. But at the end, I had to admit that I had tons of fun in LA too. Lesson: never judge a place until you’ve been there!

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The latest Powerbooks sale has me reading this:

(only PhP75!)

What a fascinating book!

Now, the million-dollar question is, when am I going to actually be there?

Haaaay, nangarap na naman ng gising. He he!