I know what you did on Good Friday

IF the crowds at the various malls last weekend were any indication, hundreds of families spent the Holy Week just here in Manila. Well, I don’t blame them. Why go to Boracay, where it’s all hot and crowded, when you can enjoy the free air conditioning at the malls? It may have been congested like any other weekend, but at least there were fancy shop windows to look into, and you weren’t all sweaty and icky. Never mind if you never intended to buy anything.

A friend who owns a resort in the new summer capital of the Philippines confirmed the same. He said there were fewer bakasyonista in Boracay last week compared with 2007. (On the upside, those who were on the island were Caucasians and other Asians...a development that will surely be welcomed by our hardworking tourism secretary, Joseph “Ace” Durano. It is, no doubt, the fruit of his relentless marketing efforts abroad.)

Time was when Holy Week meant Visita Iglesia, the pabasa, Seven Last Words, Way of the Cross, and processions of religious images depicting the passion and death of Jesus Christ.

Except for last week, normally, school is officially out by the time the Holy Week rolls around. It also heralds the start of the summer travel season. Families are on grand excursions to the beach or vacations in Hong Kong, Baguio and the US. Those who don’t want to add to the crowds in the nearby tourist destinations, or don’t want to spend ginormous sums of money on resorts unreasonably jacking up their rates for the four-day holiday, now choose to stay put in Metro Manila. And, yes, as was prevalent last weekend, they went a-malling.

Many people I know tried to catch up on their sleep and backlog on books they’ve been wanting to read.

Jeff said he was going to watch old cheesy biblical epics. (My favorite has always been The Robe, starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons and that greasy hunk Victor Mature. Ooof!)

Sis had house guests visiting and planned to treat her nephews and nieces to the newly opened Manila Ocean Park everyone has been going gaga about. Even Pangs, who is normally in Bacolod for the Holy Week, was in town working on his editorial assignments, although, lucky dog, he still managed a few laps in the swimming pool.

As for me, the four-day Lenten holiday started out with a visit to a dear friend, Swit, whose brother had passed away unexpectedly from a heart attack. Despite the rather sorrowful circumstances of the visit, it was a rather enjoyable gathering with friends. It took us just an hour from Quezon City to get to Bacoor, Cavite, where the wake was, as there was hardly any traffic on the road. We caught up on the latest gossip and basically laughed ourselves silly, tempting the Almighty to strike us with lightning. (Note to self: Never miss the opportunity to go to a wake in the provinces where funeral parlors donate kakanin to the dead’s bereaved families. I unashamedly devoured a plate of the softest home-made cuchinta courtesy of Samson Funeral Home.)

On Good Friday I started cleaning out my DVD and CD collection, as well as tons of books gathering dust in the attic. While I actually had made plans for Black Saturday, I knew I couldn’t finish the cleaning task in just a day. It eventually turned into an unscheduled spring cleaning of all the stuff I had in storage...and by God! I could not believe the amount of material possessions I had accumulated over the years! I decided to make the spring cleaning my penitencia for the rest of the Lenten weekend.

A lot of my CDs, DVDs and books were still in huge cartons, because that’s where I left them when I went abroad to work for a year. Along with some Pyrex dishes and other houseware, I still hadn’t unpacked them because I kept on thinking I would eventually move out of the parents’ house again and into my own rental one day. The attic dust must’ve shot up straight into my brain as I inhaled, shaking me out of my reverie. How dare I go off into Lala-land and think such crazy unrealistic thoughts! Achoo!

The task was sheer burden as I struggled to decide which items were still worth keeping and which ones I had to let go. Sometimes I had to force myself to label several items as junk just so that I wouldn’t think twice of tossing them out (e.g., college class cards), or undeserved nostalgic shit (e.g., petrified roses from ex-boyfriends).

Twice I had to go through the CDs just to weed out the music I had outgrown, such as the New Age woo-woo and shamanic recordings. (Anyone care to buy my Narada CDs?) As for the books, I decided to keep the classics, bestsellers and all-time favorites (e.g., the Dune series), and let go of authors I really didn’t know but whose books I had bought from the annual cut-price book sale of a popular bookstore chain.

Of course, there were brief moments of amusement amid the grueling task. I sat and sifted through old photographs and marveled at how amazingly thin my friends and I were way back when. True, we may miss our old slender selves (hey, round is a shape!), but not the hideous fashion we wore. It also gave me immense joy to note that over the years, we have remained basically unchanged. To this day, we still have the same ear-to-ear ludicrous grins on our faces. Sure, we’ve grown a bit wiser, but we still haven’t lost our sense of humor and our enjoyment of the ridiculous. Ah, those photos are definite keepers!

Two more days of organizing, filing, cleaning and sweeping...I fell asleep each night utterly exhausted. It was finally over by Easter Sunday evening, and managed to get myself to Mass. Everything was in order, packed and neatly labeled. Piles of stuff I wanted to sell were in one corner, and another pile was for items to give away. After dinner and the usual marathon CSI Sunday shows, I laid back against my pillows and clicked on my downloaded torrent of The Robe. There I lay laughing hysterically at the mala-Goma and Shawie dramatic dialogue between Brando and Simmons, and the constipated expressions on Mature’s face. Before I knew it, I had zonked out, but awoke on Easter Monday completely refreshed.

Thank you, Lord, for a new beginning. I really needed that.

(My column, Something Like Life, is published every Friday in the Life section of the BusinessMirror. Photo from BM)

Sightings

WAS about to have dinner at the Shang Palace in Makati Shangri-La Hotel last night, and as Ms. RP and I were looking for a good table, I espied a function room with its door open. As I passed, Kris Aquino looked up. She appeared very sad, distressed, and obviously in pain. My heart immediately went out to her...the poor girl. She had just had a miscarriage and was dealing with the illness of her mother, former President Cory Aquino. Let's all pray for them please.

In one another table at the far corner of the restaurant was former First Lady Loi Ejercito and her amigas. I think they all have the same cosmetic surgeon.

In yet another function room with its door ajar, were Ambassadors Fred Yao (of Zest-O Corp.) and Donald Dee (chairman emeritus of PCCI) along with Asian Spirit owners Tony Ang (founder of CATS Motors), Toti Turalba (Active Group Inc.), and Lakas party/Ramos power broker Noel Oñate. There were two tables in that room, and all the men were dressed in business suits, while the women were spiffy in their nice cocktail dresses. Were they perhaps meeting about Yao's takeover of Asian Spirit? Could smell the tension in the air. Hmmm...

MS. RP and I eventually found a good table, but to our utter disappointment, there was no dimsum available. Diners can only order those delicious treats at lunchtime. Drat! I almost wished we had eaten at Inagiku instead.

Bilib si Ellen sa Pinoys!

IN case you missed it, Ellen de Generes on Good Friday said she wanted to have as a guest on her show, Arnel Pineda, singer of a local band called Zoo, and who has been doing covers of Journey songs. Apparently, one of the Journey guys (it wasn't Randy Jackson, silly!), saw Arnel singing on Youtube and auditioned him for a chance to sing with the band in States. (Didn't even know these guys were still around, to be honest, and I was never a fan, sorry to Steve Perry fans out there.) And now, Arnel is recording a new Journey album. Waw!

But what was cool was that Ellen proclaimed that "there are very talented people in the Philippines!" Of course, she had wowed her audience only a couple of months ago by featuring Charice Pempengco. Hmmm... I wonder if she'd ever consider doing one of her shows here. We can show her just how many talented singers we really have around these parts.

Anyway, here's the video clip of Ellen and of Arnel Pineda. Another proudly Pinoy moment.

Happy Easter!

Rejoice! The Lord is risen!



("Let your praises be heard" by Bukas Palad. Based on Psalm 66)

Preparing for Holy Week

(Holy Week 2007: A caroza bearing the arrested Christ, as St. Peter denies him. To his right is the Virgin Mary. I took this photo during the Good Friday procession in San Pablo, Laguna last year. More of my Holy Week 2007 photos at Flickr)

FR. VIC, our priest for the 6 pm Mass at the chapel in the village where I live, made some interesting points during his sermon tonight, which I wanted to share with you. I hope I can deliver his thoughts as well as he said them.

WHY is the week called Mahal na Araw? In English it's called Holy Week so shouldn't it be "Banal na Linggo" in Filipino? He said the week is all about Christ's love (in Filipino, pagmamahal) for us, which made it possible for Him to suffer and die for our sins. Thus, Mahal na Araw.

The origin of the Visita Iglesia which is done every Maundy Thursday, he noted, was perhaps a way to keep churchgoers from filling up the Church to the brim as they keep vigil for an hour before the Blessed Sacrament, which represents the body and blood of Christ. As you know, it is only on Maundy Thursday that the Blessed Sacrament is exposed to the public. So the Visita Iglesia helps break down the hour into 10-minute portions so believers go to about seven (7) Churches to see the Blessed Sacrament, this way preventing an overflow of churgoers.

He also said that because the Blessed Sacrament is exposed just one day in a year, we should venerate it. It isn't the time to do the Way of the Cross, which should be done, instead, on Good Friday, because this is the day when the Christ Lord died on the cross.

Because the Visita Iglesia has become somewhat like a tourist attraction already ("Panay pa-picture sa harap ng simbahan kasi maganda", says Fr. Vic), it was better, he said, to just spend an hour in one Church praying and keeping vigil, meditating on the Blessed Sacrament.

The most important holiday, he said, should really be Easter Sunday, instead of Christmas, which is "the beginning" of Christ's life. Easter Sunday, however, is the day when Christ resurrected from the dead. This is the "culmination", he noted, of Christ's life and works here on earth. So actually, we should place more importance on it than on Christmas.

What do you think, guys?

A most blessed Holy Week to all!

What I know about men

Something Like Life
March 14, 2008

THERE are just certain truths about men that all of us women must learn to live with. We should know them by heart, and keep them in mind whenever we’re: a) trying to attract a new man in our life; b) kicking out the old one; or c) considering to become a nun.

These truths I’ve culled from my experiences with most of the nuts I’ve had the tough luck to associate with, as well as from the experiences of my girlfriends in their own relationships. Perhaps in knowing them, we can better deal with our issues with our men.

1. Men like long hair. It’s insane but true. They think long hair makes women more attractive and feminine. Short hair just makes women look butch. Men like to feel the long hair running down a girl’s shoulders and back. They just find it sexy. (All those shampoo commercials aren’t helping us short-haired girls one bit, but thank goodness for extensions!)

2. Men will always have a wandering eye. Don’t be insulted. It’s not because your boyfriend doesn’t love you. It’s just because men are easily visually stimulated. Even if they know they can’t have that gorgeous babe strolling by in a tank top, miniskirt and stilettos, they’d still like to fantasize that they have a chance with her. (And admit it, if George Clooney walked by, wouldn’t you gawk, too?)

3. Men like it when you listen to them. No matter how boring their boardroom battle stories may be, they will love you when you are quiet and attentive, and make the proper supportive comments at the right time. (Besides, they, too, have to listen to you go on and on prattle about your day with your girlfriends, so try to be generous and patient.) Now, a buddy of mine told me, if your man refuses to tell you what’s on his mind, it’s probably because they know you’re not going to listen anyway. Hmmm…

4. Men don’t have ESP. If you believe your man did something wrong, don’t go sulking about the room and just decide not to talk to him. Don’t make him guess what’s eating you up. In the same manner, tell them what you want or need. So if you want your husband to buy you for Christmas that nice bracelet displayed in the jeweler’s window, tell him. Of course, it does take some of the romance out of relationship but, c’mon, would you rather he surprises you with a brand-new set of Teflon-coated pans? (Personally, I’ll take the pans over the jewelry.)

5. Men can be insensitive. Sometimes when you think he’s doing something deliberate to hurt you, this may not really be the case. It may be because he’s really clueless about doing the right thing for you. I remember a friend griping that for her birthday, her husband gave her a diamond ring that once belonged to his late wife. To her husband, perhaps he just wanted to give his new wife a great big piece of rock to show her how much he appreciated her. To my friend, it was just distasteful. (I joked that she should sell the rock and buy what she really wants.)

6. Men don’t like it when their girls talk about their ex-boyfriends. No matter how your present beau acts like the topic is just part of another intellectual discourse with you, it really eats him up. When you talk about your ex(-es), your boyfriend unconsciously feels you are comparing him with whoever came before he turned up in your life. (I made that mistake once and my man kept on bugging my girlfriend how he measured up to my ex. Thank God, I have friends who are would-be candidates for the Best Actress Oscar.)

7. Men are liars...especially when they want their women feel good about themselves. So stop asking them questions like “Do I look fat?” or “Is this dress too tight?” Men will never give you a straight answer. If you need an honest answer about the way you look, go ask your gay best friend.

8. If a man is really interested in you, he will call you or ask you out. He will not pretend that he lost your phone number. Or make some lame excuse, like he’s been very busy. Even if the latter were true, he will find the time to get in touch with you, yes, even if he never was able to get your phone number. He will find a way to call you.

9. Men won’t say “I love you” more than once. That’s just the way it is, girls. He’s said it once, you should have listened. Don’t expect him to say it over and over again just to make you feel secure. Most men think their actions speak louder than words and anything they do for you is proof enough of their love for you.

10. Corollary to the above, men don’t like talking about “us”. He’d rather wing things and rely on his own past experiences or the experiences of others to monitor his relationship with you. If there’s a problem with you, or if he’s feeling uncomfortable in the affair, he will talk to his best friend about it, but try to avoid discussing the issue with you. And, yes, he will make a lot of excuses (e.g., “I’ll be working late”) not to see you, if he’s already feeling unsure about the relationship. If he’s already found a new girl to replace you, he will come right out and tell you it’s over. (Hopefully, you don’t end up like Wikipedia founder Jimmy Whales’s girlfriend, who found out things were over between them when he announced it in a Wiki entry. In retaliation, Jimmy’s ex, Rachel Marsden, has decided to sell his stuff on eBay. You go girl...don't get mad, get even!)

11. Men will do anything for sex. Yes, even tell you they love you and will marry you. I’d like to think it’s just because of their role in the universe, like males in most animal or insect species. It’s their job to help populate the earth with their kind, so they will hook up with any female, whose role in the universe is to bear and nurture the offspring. So, yes, men think with their dicks. And at the slightest opportunity (or in other words, basta makalusot), they will have sex with any female that interests them, even if they are already married or in a supposedly committed relationship.

And lastly,

12. A man will love you more if you’re less intelligent than he is, and if you make less money than him.

Any more truths about men you want to share? E-mail me.

(My column, Something Like Life, is published every Friday in the Life section of the BusinessMirror. Photo from BusinessMirror)

And it's back on again...

BRIAN has had a change of heart apparently and reopened his blog to quash rumors that he had already been paid by the subject of his blog. But in his latest post, he confirms our earlier entry that he has not been paid. He also apologizes that he had to switch off the comments section.

(Looks like GMA is in luck again. No one's gonna pay attention to the ZTE-NBN hearings with the salacious gossip being dished about the pasosyal group.)

* * *
HEARD AND OVERHEARD

At a media event:

(To a lifestyle columnist): "Hala ka, ikaw na ang susunod!"

(Columnist): "Ano na naman ang ginawa ko?" (giggles)

* * * *

Same event:

(To a photographer): "Hoy wag mo kaming kunan! Baka ma-blog pa kami noh?"

* * * *

Over dinner:

"It's closed na daw."

"The blog?"

"Ay baka he got paid na?"

"That's what they should have done in the first place! That's the easiest way to make it go away!"

"Onga. Pinatagal pa nila. Any crisis PR guy would've told them that. Pay the guy. Tapos!"

"Who kaya paid him? E wala naman pera mga yan!"

"Baka si _____? He's the only one among them who has the money!"

"Yeah, kasi his last post was, '_____, you're next!'"

"Ay magandang gawin T-shirt yun a!"

"Mas maganda sana 'yung 'Magbayad ka na!' Sayang."

* * * *

"Poor ______! She got dragged into it. Inutangan na nga pamilya, nasabit pa sya sa gang."

"E kasi nga she's rich. So the commenters just lumped her in with them."

"But they're not rich! Kaya nga umuutang. Si ano can't even afford to clean her house daw. Ang baho!"

"But that was a cool bar."

"Ako I liked the food in his restaurant. In fairness."

"Well, when I met him back then, he was nice naman to me. Well, maybe nga because I was in media and he needed a writeup."

* * * *

"My experience with _____, I was with my friend, and she was buying cosmetics. She's a regular customer e. Then si _____ shows up, siguro there was a media event at the same time there, tries to grab the products my friend was buying and says, 'You can't have this, it's already supposed to be for someone else! I'm _____! I'm the ______.' My friend goes, 'I don't care! I'm a regular customer!' My friend gets the bag and pays for it. I was there, and I was like...ano ba ito? She was really loud."

* * * *

"So why did they kick _____ out from _____?"

"Well, si ano told me, kasi nagreklamo na ang staff. He would arrive at the office midnight and work until the next morning."

"But I thought si ano was there to oversee it."

"E hindi, sya ang creative director e. Minsan daw darating sa office, e naka-layout na ang page, papalitan na nya. So nag-complain na ang staff."

"Well that's the official reason!"

"I'm sure sina kwan knew about what he really did, yung pa-mention, mention ng name or product... but just used the staff complaints as a reason to let him go."

"Ay no comment nalang ako jan. He's a friend."

"But you have to give it to him, he made himself. From nothing when we met him years ago..."

"Oo, masipag yan. He really asked questions. Wanted to learn how to break into the industry."

* * * *

"Naku, ano na ang babasahin natin?"

"Onga, kasi kayo di nyo ginawan ng mirror site agad e!"

"Bitin naman."

"Buti nalang me American Idol mamya."

"Uy magaling yung bata. Si David Archuleta."

"I wanna pinch his cheeks! He's so cute!"

"Yung Pinay magaling din. Big voice ha."

"Pa-cute lang masyado, nakakainis. Pero sana manalo."

"Ay but the other one was an exotic dancer! Gwapo sya. Latino. But he admitted it."

* * * *

"Dapat bigyan ng talk show si Brian!"

"Onga! Tapos sa interview nya, tanungin ang guest, "So what was your favorite part in the blog?'"

"Ahhh, my favorite part was Anonymous 6:49...hahahaha!"

* * * *

"May rally daw ulit sa Friday."

"Where?"

"Sa Ayala ulit."

"Me nag-comment nga sa blog, 'Pati ba naman ito, kasalanan ni GMA!' "

"Hahaha! I read that. E kasi someone said, sa hirap daw ng economy, kay daw di makabayad si _____!"

"Ay magdala tayo ng streamers sa Friday, 'Ibalik si Brian!' "

"Or, "______! Magbayad ka na!' "

* * * *

"He texted me nga, 'it's not true I am small. I'm a medium.' "

"I texted back, "But ___! I told everyone you're large!' "

Blog over

THE blog everyone's been gossipping about in the past few days is now "officially over." There were no explanations from the blogger, an Australian gay man. The archives have been deleted, with only one remaining entry dated March 4 which the first entry to the blog detailing the blogger's purpose in putting it up. All the comments have been removed as well.

When we found out about it, I had still not seen the blog entries for the day, so our first instinct was the blogger had already been paid the $70,000 his blog subject allegedly owed him. Someone in our group decided to call a person with indirect ties to the pasosyals who had been targetted also by the blog, to find out if the blogger had been paid. According to the source, the Australian is still waiting for his money. (Phil. Daily Inquirer finally decided to write about the blog scandal, but declined to name those involved.)

So of course, many assumptions arose about why he had stopped blogging, and why he had deleted most of his entries and readers' comments after March 4: a) the harrassment of the families named in the blog got to him; b) he did it on the advice of his lawyer (after all, there were too many libelous statements already being published including those of commenters); c) the Australian police ordered him to do so; or d) Blogger had requested him to do so after receiving complaints about the blog.

One thing is for sure, a reliable source told us that the father of one of the blog's targets had spoken with the Australian ambassador in Manila to complain about one of its citizens. Not only had his daughter been dragged into the affair, but also him and his ahem, life partner.

We were also told that there was supposed to be a party in support of the group of pasosyals mentioned in the blog, at Embassy at the Fort last night. We don't know if it really took place. But if it did, that was really in poor taste.

Another source also told us that one of the "elder" members of the pasosyal group had already advised the blog subject to pay up, even before the Australian had put up the blog. The elder member had warned his younger colleague that if the latter didn't do so all of them would be dragged into the messy affair. He was prescient. That was exactly what happened.

I must admit that there were also legitimate reasons to have the blog closed. There were other innocent people getting dragged into the affair. Some of them were mistakenly lumped together with the pasosyal group simply because they breathed in the same rarefied air.

There was so much hate being fomented already by the blog, which I attribute to the classic class struggle between the have's and have-nots. The scandal may have validated some people's conclusions about how the rich (mis)behave, and of course, made them feel better about their own selves. Unfortunately, most of the blog's targets aren't even actually rich, but belong to families of political has-beens, poor relations of the few privileged families in the country, social climbers, and users, who all backstab each other all the time. But when emotions run high, and the stream of consciousness tkes over, such distinctions will hardly be even considered.

Well boo-hoo! The public has lost another entertainment outlet. Pretty soon, we'll all start talking about the ZTE-NBN deal again. Perhaps, it's all well and good. There are other more important issues for us Filipinos to grapple with.

Bato, bato sa langit...

I was finally able to stop reading that new vicious blog which has kept everyone glued to their computers for the past two days. Nakakalokah na sya! It's so freakin' addicting! Every few hours there was a new entry from the blogger, then an avalanche of comments, and even more rumors/allegations brought up/stirred up about several pasosyal subjects of the blog...it was tough reading all of 'em. Hay! Nothing like good 'ol chismis about the so-called high society to make the weekend interesting.

I still can't make up my mind whether the allegations on Brian's blog are true or not, or if it's simply a case of an "away bakla." No offense to all the gay people out there, but you know what I mean. It could just be a lover's spat gone awfully haywire.

But if true, nakakaawa naman 'yung Australian na 'yun. Sayang gwapo pa naman sya. Ahem. What I really meant to say was, it really gives us Pinoys a bad name. That one of our own, albeit a socialite wanna-be, allegedly screwed this poor Aussie farmboy out of $70,000 of his life savings?! Shame, shame, shame.

I knew the subject of Brian's blog many years ago when he was just starting his restaurant and bar in Malate...back then when the district was still cool in its bohemian way. He seemed nice, intelligent, and well-mannered. I think back then he was still not surrounded by these ja-fake sosyals. I could be wrong though. Baka na ja-fake nya rin ako. Hahaha! But I have to admit, I liked the food in his restaurant and enjoyed his seriously fabulous bar. He actually has talent in that line of business.

Last time I saw the blog subject was in Boracay in Mandala Spa with a writer (from Metro Society I think) sometime last year. We exchanged a few words of greeting, small chica about how it was great to be in Mandala again — our favorite spa on the island — and how our treatments felt sooo good, etc. etc. Honestly, in the brief chats we've had since I met him, I have never felt any negative or ill vibes from him. And I'm not one to cut down people I know unless I've been on the receiving end of their nasty behavior.

So it's quite surprising to read all the allegations about this guy from his Aussie ex-. Of course the guy is no saint, what with the company he kept, but a thief?! Good Lord! Sayang naman itong batang to kung totoo. Brian's blog makes interesting read, no doubt. Highly entertaining. And definitely more exciting than the ZTE-NBN gossip that have been going around of late. (Madam Presidentita, pls. fire your lousy scriptwriters!)

Will Brian get his money back? Abangan...

Jun Lozada on my mind

JUN Lozada has been on a lot of people's minds lately. From the time he made his first appearance on TV in a press con to talk about his kidnapping, at the Senate where he testified on the corrupt ZTE-NBN deal, to his current speaking engagements, his words and thoughts have shaken up a lot of us to the reality of the evilness of this government.

This may be a belated reaction to his testimonies at the Senate hearing, but I've been truly moved by his bravery, his courage of spirit, and the sincerity of his actions. He isn't perfect. He's no saint. He has admitted to many shortcomings in his past. Which is why he continues to be credible in the eyes of the public no matter how many propaganda stories and gossip churned out against him by GMA's minions.

About a month ago, I stumbled on the blog of Jun Lozada's nephew, Voltaire, and it really pained me to read how his relatives missed him. Voltz talks about his uncle being persuaded to buy them pizzas while he and his cousins play tong-its during family get-togethers and such...just tiny close-up views of his uncle's ordinary life. If you want to read more about what's on Voltz's mind, I've added a link to his blog (Strawberry-filled donuts), which you can also click on from the sidebar at the left.

I hope that this present chaos in Jun Lozada's life and those of his relatives and friends, will all work out in their favor in the end, and benefit the nation. It is heavy burden that they carry and they need all our good wishes and prayers.

MSG=Umami?

THAT elusive fifth taste, which the Japanese call "umami" (a dish is umami when it so savory it makes you swoon) may actually be explained by glutamic acid, an amino acid. Where do you find glutamates? It's in your cupboard kids...the good old reliable Ajinomoto! Tak, tak, tak!

After reading the piece below from the New York Times, I searched for photos of the Ajinomoto bottle, which took me to the company's local site. In its Ajinomoto super seasoning page, the company bravely declares that the product imparts dishes with that savory, or umami, taste. (Click here)

I remember when I was little, I would hang out in my Lola's kitchen and constantly open her bottle of Ajinomoto, dip my right index finger in the white stuff, and stick it in my mouth. Mmmm... When I asked her what Ajinomoto was, she always told me it was pampasarap.

Anyhoo, check out this piece in NYT:

Yes, MSG, the Secret Behind the Savor

By JULIA MOSKIN
March 5, 2008

IN 1968 a Chinese-American physician wrote a rather lighthearted letter to The New England Journal of Medicine. He had experienced numbness, palpitations and weakness after eating in Chinese restaurants in the United States, and wondered whether the monosodium glutamate used by cooks here (and then rarely used by cooks in China) might be to blame.

The consequences for the restaurant business, the food industry and American consumers were immediate and enormous. MSG, a common flavor enhancer and preservative used since the 1950s, was tagged as a toxin, removed from commercial baby food and generally driven underground by a new movement toward natural, whole foods.

“It was a nightmare for my family,” said Jennifer Hsu, a graphic designer whose parents owned several Chinese restaurants in New York City in the 1970s. “Not because we used that much MSG — although of course we used some — but because it meant that Americans came into the restaurant with these suspicious, hostile feelings.”

Even now, after “Chinese restaurant syndrome” has been thoroughly debunked (virtually all studies since then confirm that monosodium glutamate in normal concentrations has no effect on the overwhelming majority of people), the ingredient has a stigma that will not go away.

But then, neither will MSG. (Read the rest at The secret behind the savor.)

Talagang masarap!

(Family suite at Two Seasons. The extra room is to the left. It even has its own dining table and chairs inside. Photo from Two Seasons)

SO I went off to Boracay during my birthday weekend last month and stayed at Two Seasons Resort on Station 1 again. This time, Francine came along with us...how brave of her to leave little Matthew behind. I know how mothers can hardly tear themselves away from their babies so I knew she was making such a big sacrifice to be with us for for 5 days and four nights! Hay naku, I so love my sis! (And of course, I so love my Pangs also for making all of this happen! Great buddies these two.)

We stayed at one of the family rooms in the resort and it was so huge! Great place to stay if you have family or a gaggle of friends with you. Aside from the two king-sized beds, there's a separate room with its own king-sized bed as well, and its own TV, DVD player, and Ipod stereo deck (aside from the ones in the main room). And of course, I just love, love, love the big banyo! Hay, I wish all resorts give some thought on making their bathrooms big and comfortable like what we have at home.

(Crispy rack of pork with char shiu rice, photo courtesy Two Seasons)

It was super cold though when we went there so I really wasn't able to take a dip. And so guess what we ended up doing? Eat of course!

The first time the gang and I stayed at Two Seasons, we were mightily impressed with the food at barLO Resto Lounge. So some of us thought, maybe it was just a fluke. We were just lucky 'cos the resort had just opened so of course, everything was special.

But four months after, when we returned, the food was still superb. I was pretty amazed and I hardly rave over food unless I think it's really good. (Yup, many restaurants now know I don't do favorable reviews if I don't like their food, unlike other food writers who get off from being fed for free.)

Everyday, a new dish ordered on the menu didn’t fail to disappoint — each had the ability to please all senses with its superior taste, aroma, color and presentation. Our favorites include the Home-made Nachos with ground beef, jalapeños, tomato salsa, and cheese; Three Mushroom and Truffle Cream Soup; the exciting and playful salads; the Crispy Rack of Pork with Char Shiu Rice; and the Molten Chocolate Cake with Caramel Sauce and Raspberry Compote, and Pineapple Ice Cream on the side.


(Prawns Marikudo and Spaghetti al Nero)

We were also happy that the restaurant had vegetarian selections such as Spaghetti with Grilled Fresh White Cheese, Garlic, Olives & Sauce Pomodoro. All dishes may be shared and extremely reasonably-priced, which is another surprise for guests. It's just unfortunate that the kitchen closes at 11 pm so if you want to stay in and watch a movie on your DVD player, you gotta order those perfectly crispy Nachos (and beers!) early on.

While part of the fun of vacationing in Boracay is to sample the dishes at various restaurants on the island, I would be very happy and content just eating in at Two Seasons.

The magic 12 of AI

AWWW...my gay crush Danny Noriega was just booted off American Idol. Tch, he was one sassy sistah, good voice, too, unfortunately not great enough to be among the lucky 12 contestants who will be battling it out in the next couple of weeks for the top prize. Sad ako, truly.

I'm sure some people out there will say that Danny was just too much of a beyootch to AI judge Simon Cowell that he got what he deserved. But I could see that Simon actually enjoyed the repartee. It all just came down to style and voice quality. And compared to Chikezie's vocal prowess and the rest of the male contestants, Danny just didn't quite measure up. Sayang, he was fun and made the show actually interesting. I just loved the way he took chances on the songs he chose (nag-Elvis pa!) and enjoyed himself onstage.

But I have no doubt that this cutie will surface someday with probably, not a record deal, but maybe on the Broadway stage. He's still young but he is a performer. (He reminds me a bit of Mark Indelicato, that talented young actor who plays Justin on Ugly Betty.) I think he'll just make it better in a musicale where he gets to stretch his talents, rather than be a flash-in-the-pan recording star which is how most of the AI winners have ended up anyway.

So the lucky 12 are:

1. David Cook (oof! sexy and hot!)
2. David Archuleta (I wish he was my son! wanna pinch his cheeks!)
3. Michael Johns (yummy! He has that Michael Hutchence vibe.)
4. Jason Castro (dreamy eyes, cool dreadlocks)
5. David Hernandez (smokin'! he must have been one helluva male stripper)
6. Chikezie Eze (he's actually cute, in a Santa clause sorta way?)

(Notice how I commmented only on the guys' looks instead of their voices, hehe. Syempre, you gotta have the face to go with your voice, otherwise, you won't be that interesting.)

7. Ramiele Malubay (mejo nakakainis dahil pa-cute, but she's got a big voice. Except for her last performance which was so-so, her performances have been outstanding. So sigue na nga, go Ramiele! Mabuhay ang mga Pinoy!)
8. Amanda Overmeyer (tough girl. strong husky voice. Fab rocker chick. Smile ka naman jan, 'day!)
9. Brooke White (nice girl but can be edgy. Her take on Joan Jett's "Love is a Battlefield" was fabulous! Different rendition which made the song her own. I like her.)
10. Carly Smithson (another one gunning to get the rocker chick title. Powerful voice. She can hit those high notes and hold it, ooh mama!)
11. Syesha Mercado (great hair. But forgettable voice.)
12. Kristy Lee Cook (Ick! Token country singer. I hate country music, no matter how good her voice is.)

Here's the last performance of adorable Danny Noriega on AI. He's so pretty! Just look at that hair. grabeh! Love him!

Reach out and touch someone (updated from my Nov. 2007 entry)

Something Like Life
Feb. 29, 2008

SOMETIME last November, I got a little pissed at Flickr because I could no longer organize my new batch of Boracay photos into a set.

To those still living in a world where they think Wordstar is the best word-processing program ever invented, Flickr is a digital photo-sharing web site where you can upload your photos, organize them, put little captions, and virtually store them all for free (well, almost). You can choose to share the photos to anyone who’s sitting in front of the computer and surfing web sites and such, or just to a small private group of friends or family.

The problem was, I couldn’t organize my new photos into another set, like an album you see, on account of my being a free-account user. Because I’m cheap and didn’t want to spend $25 a year just so I could organize and post an unlimited number of photos and sets, I searched through the discussion forum to find solutions or alternatives to the issue at hand.

Fortunately, some of the guys in the forum mentioned Facebook, the social-networking site, which they said allowed unlimited photo uploads. Hmmm...I thought that sounded cool, although I was still wary of the social-networking phenomenon that began with the establishment of Friendster and MySpace.

I’ve been invited a lot of times by Friendster users to join the site but never did, because I couldn’t figure out how you could call this person and that a “friend” without actually meeting them in the physical world, face-to-face. Some of the users had more than a thousand “friends,” according to their pages. Then there were those reports of kids committing suicide after bullied on their MySpace pages. What ultimately put me off joining these sites was this one guy whom I had never met in person but e-mailed me nonstop to view his Friendster profile, which I found creepy and annoying.

So my joining Facebook was borne out of a real need—that of wanting to have unlimited photo storage online—and partly because I thought it would be a good social experiment.

First of all, I wanted to see how many of my real friends, contacts and regular acquaintances would join the site. I found out that among my e-mail contacts (Yahoo, Gmail, Hotmail), there were a few who were already Facebook members. So I restricted my invites to people I actually knew, my friends, as well as a few acquaintances I was interested in knowing more.

Two days after I joined Facebook, 10 of my friends who were scattered all over the world — the Philippines, Bangkok, Northern Marianas and the US — joined. Hmmm...not bad.

Second, as I plodded through my Facebook friends’ pages, I also noticed that most of their friends were people they’ve worked with, people they grew up with, or went to school with, or even current companions and colleagues at work. There were only very few who appeared to have “friends” whom they met randomly online.

I don’t know if it’s because I belong to a more, ahem, mature generation (my youngest Facebook friend is 25, while the oldest is probably in his mid-60s) who are more protective of their privacy, but only a couple of my friends had about 130 Facebook “friends” on their lists and I, too, knew most of those people, having met them in press conferences or other social events. So they were not strangers at all. So, generally, I think Pinoys are still conservative when it comes to meeting new people, especially online.

Since signing up, I’ve had a couple of “friend requests” from people I didn’t know and thus ignored, which is probably contradictory behavior on what is supposed to be a social-networking site. I’ve also ignored requests from people I do know but don’t particularly care to reestablish any relationships with, due to unfavorable experiences with them in the past. I wouldn’t want to be a hypocrite and pretend I like you now that I’m online, right?

Third, the great thing about Facebook and perhaps other social-networking sites, is that I’ve been able to reconnect with a number of people I have not seen nor heard from in over 15 years who are now living in other parts of the globe, just because I found them on other people’s profile pages.

There’s lovable Bessie with her still long curly hair, now married and living in Shanghai with an absolutely adorable son.

Then there’s Tita Minnie, who used to be part of my barkada, but whom I gradually lost touch with when she opted to join the corporate world before going offshore. She now works in Argentina, the lucky bitch.

Then there’s Nona, who was two batches ahead of me in De La Salle University but I knew her because we both worked at the university paper. She’s now based in Sweden with a grown-up daughter—and married. While we were never particularly close back in college due to our differing political beliefs (I was mostly a fencesitter), we now constantly “feed” each other tiramisu or some other yummy desserts.

It may sound silly to those who aren’t members but on Facebook, we send cybergifts of tequila shots to our friends, feed and race one another’s pets, comment on recently uploaded photos, bless and send good karma to one another, and recently, I became a proud owner of a “Tiffany necklace.” (One friend who isn’t a member thinks that those who join such sites are just “desperate” to meet men, the poor dear.)

Of course, the site is now packed with a lot of annoying ads (it’s the only way for the site’s owners to actually earn from hosting the free service) and, technically, you won’t know what gift you’ve received from another person unless you send out an invite to at least 15 other people to use that particular gift application. So it can be a tad irritating receiving numerous invites to use an application. There’s also a lot of spam being forwarded like chain mail, videos and silly photos.

Then, if you’re like me who makes a living out of using the computer and being online all the time, there is the tendency to keep one’s Facebook page open for hours, and use several applications at the same time. A friend of mine in Boracay says she is hooked to the site, but became embarrassed about being online all the time. She finally had to disable her online status setting.

As of today, I have 56 friends on my Facebook page, which is probably small by average social-networking standards, but if you know me, that’s actually more people than I can handle in the real world on any given day anyway. I like sharing my photos with my friends, and keeping in touch, especially with those who are watching the sun rise at the same time I’m off to bed. It’s also a smart way of greeting your friends simultaneously on special holidays like Christmas and Chinese New Year.

I don’t think social-networking sites will ever replace meeting people and making new friends the regular face-to-face way. But I think these sites are powerful tools to keep relationships going, and keep friendships alive and current.

The only downside in joining Facebook is that I found out that creepy Friendster guy is also a member—and on a friend’s page. Thank God for small mercies like “block this profile.” All you gotta do is click, block and ignore.

Begrudging his bedazzling

"The fact that Obama is exceptionally easy in his skin has made Hillary almost jump out of hers. She can’t turn on her own charm and wit because she can’t get beyond what she sees as the deep injustice of Obama not waiting his turn. Her sunshine-colored jackets on the trail hardly disguise the fact that she’s pea-green with envy."

(Clever. Click Maureen Dowd in today's NYT for the rest.)

Happy 80th birthday Mama!

I WAS in Boracay, just about to go down from my room to have a late breakfast when I received an urgent text message from my sister back in Manila. "It's Mama's 80th birthday pala!" she said. I was like "huh?" Wasn't she just 70-something last year?!

We have never been sure how old our mom really is because she has never come clean about her age. For the longest time, I remembered her saying she was just 45. Then she was 50 for about five years, then 60, so on and so forth. You get the drift.

Then I recall there was this bit about her finding her birth certificate in Manila City Hall's archives, courtesy of an uncle who worked there, and discovering she was a year older than she had always thought. So I still couldn't believe our mom was turning 80...especially if you consider the fact that she really doesn't look it.

Anyway, I texted my sister back, asking what we're supposed to do and she said we should hold a small dinner party for our mom, with just a few of her closest friends and our immediate family. We would have about 25 people tops. Okay, I said, "bahala ka na," and told my Ate I'd just fork over my small contribution for the expenses when I see her. (I had by then already bought Mama a gift which made a slight dent in my budget for the month, so I was totally unprepared for this party.)

The event was hurriedly put together...we had the same menu as we had last Christmas...spaghetti, roast turkey, lengua con setas, and lots of leche flan. Frankly, I thought the menu was a tad boring, but like I said, my sister and I really didn't have much time to plan the party.

(Mama blowing out the sparklers on her cake. Photo by Boo-boo)

Maybe I should just buy a special cake to give the menu some zing. Now if you read dear Ms. Jessica Z's blog, you may have probably come across a photo of a yellow cake covered in flowerettes just recently. The minute I saw that cake, I hyperventilated and texted Jessica because I wanted to have one immediately. It was just so gorgeous and her description of it just made my mouth salivate: "layers of crisp walnut meringue interspersed with thick mounds of delicately sour lemon curd, beneath a veil of chantilly cream and lemon roses." Say it with me people...Mmmm.

Ms. Z sent me the number of her friend, Carlo Estagle (aka "the dessert diva"), and I contacted him a couple of times so we could have coffee and a cake tasting with Jessica and Francine. Unfortunately, our skeds just never came together. Fortunately, Mama's birthday presented a good opportunity for me to finally order the Torta Limone (yes, the one on Jessica's blog), and I was really excited to see it and finally have a taste of it.

After everyone ate dinner, my niece Mitch and I, scrambled to get the cake out of the ref and stick eight sparklers/candles on it. Shet. We were both panicked because the effing candles wouldn't "sparkle" and they started to drip on the cake. But we managed to pull ourselves together, and we brought out the cake as everyone started singing the Happy birthday song. Mama was a bit surprised (she had been making parining the whole evening that she didn't have any cake with her dinner) and I saw her holding back her tears. The stupid malfunctioning sparklers notwithstanding, everyone marveled at how beyoootiful the cake was, as Mama blew out her candles.

I hurriedly cut the cake and passed out small portions to everyone while I smiled and cursed under my breath thinking that yes, I should've ordered a larger size from Carlo. But shet man, it's expensive kasi and I was already on a tight budget. But then I spooned a slice into my mouth and I swear, the breath almost left my body. The sweet taste of the icing first hits the tongue, then I bit into the toasty crunch of the crust and the walnuts. Then the lemony taste of the cream filling gently wraps around the palate. As all the flavors played around my mouth, I felt totally divine. Heck, I thought, the price I paid for that cake was well worth it!

Everyone at the party, especially Mama, loved the Torta Limone and asked who made it. (I played coy at first, then said I made it, before finally admitting who was the genius behind it. Yes Carlo, these women will bug you soon enough.) The cake was gone in an instant, small and delicious as it was. The next day, we ordered another one from Carlo, this time, my mom paid for it. She's always been the cake hag in the family so she knows a good one when she tastes it. Btw, the cake is actually white, and not yellow as I initially thought.

The heavenly Torta Limone aside, Mama had a splendid party and obviously felt happy to see all her closest gal pals around. My sister and I practically patted ourselves on our backs for having put this party together despite the short notice. If we had more time, we probably would have tweaked the menu a bit, invited more of Mama's friends, held it at a different venue...sigh. But it felt really good to see our mom looking still so fabulous at 80, and having a great time on her birthday. She's a nut but we love her just the same.

When you're past your 40th birthday

IT had been a most unusual day.

I woke up rather early, at 5 am, and couldn’t go back to sleep. I watched Cate Blanchett’s Elizabeth: The Golden Age while waiting for Sis to wake up so we could have breakfast. Usually, it is she who wakes up early and eats breakfast while she leaves me alone lolling in Dreamland.

We were in Boracay with Pangs for my birthday last weekend and even before we arrived, the island had been suffering from a spot of unusual weather, battered as we were by strong gusty winds and intermittent rainshowers. Phooey!

There were hardly any people awake as we went down to the resort’s restaurant for our morning meal. We plunked down in an empty cabana, and I stared at the breakfast menu for the first time in three days since we arrived.

After giving out our food orders, we stared at the dark heavy clouds and shuddered in the cold winds. I wondered when I would ever get to swim in the beach and if the sun would ever sneak a peek from behind those billows in the sky. Then the faint strains of some groovy ’70s Motown music started wafting through the restaurant speakers, feel-good doo-wops that my older siblings were singing and dancing to back when I still toddled behind them. Sis and I were like, “Wowwww!” Suddenly the gray morning didn’t look so bad anymore.

As The Moments’ “Love on a Two-way Street” played away, we heartily dug into our bangus belly à la pobre and beef lugao. We swayed and sung along as we laughed and exchanged stories. We were amused at how these songs from our childhood, tunes from Pangs’s CD as we later found out, just put us in a freakishly good mood. They just made us feel that everything was perfect and all right in the world. Stories of Benjamin Abalos and his $130-million cut, the raging controversy on the ZTE-NBN deal, just seemed so far away. It was as if these songs held a promise of better things to come.

We were not disappointed. As soon as we were done with our meal and finished with our coffee, the pillow-like gray clouds began to part, and the sun’s rays finally broke through. Yay! The powdery white sand was finally dotted with shadows from the beach umbrellas, the tables and chairs, and the people walking. Salamat, Lord!

Still, the waters were just much too cold for swimming. I froze my hefty buns off as soon as I set them down on the water, which made me instantly leap up and run back to shore. Brrrr!

But when you get to be my age -- for the record, it is 23 forever -- you learn to appreciate the small stuff. At least the sun was out, and although shaded by a huge beach umbrella as I lounged on the beach bed, I was enjoying a mild dose of vitamin D. I read my magazine, spied on the young gorgeous European hunks nearby playing volleyball, and sipped on my cool mango shake...what more could I ask for?

I take my birthdays very seriously. It is usually a time for me to offer up my thanks to the Great Almighty above for all the blessings in the past year, as I look forward to another one full of exciting possibilities. It’s just like celebrating the New Year, as my reflections take on a more individual, closer-to-the-soul note.

Unfortunately, there are certain realities one cannot escape as one rushes past 40.

Like, no matter how my brain thinks I’m still in my 20s or 30s, there are just some days I wake up in the morning with the wind whistling through my bones. I am creaky all over and feel too tired to get up. Of course, my age is also an advantage, because this is probably the only time in my life when I can actually declare that, fudge all that! I shall stay in bed the entire day! If I were in my 20s and 30s, I’d still get up, despite a hangover or a fluish condition, and haul my carcass to the office.

I can’t hold my liquor as long as I used to. Time was when I could start drinking from 6 pm until 4 am the next morning, and still go to work the next morning. These days, three glasses of red wine is cutting it too close and the sulfites in my drink will deaden my brain right up to next day. (Again, staying in bed is usually the solution.)

My forehead has two fine horizontal lines and I have dark spots on my cheek that refuse to go away. No matter how many anti-aging creams I slather on my face, they just sit there staring back at me from the mirror. Unfortunately, my unpredictable cash flow won’t pay for any Botox injections. Besides, I’m a coward when it comes to needles and even if I had more financial resources, I will probably spend the money on traveling and good food rather than on my face.

I am now prone to allergies. For some strange reason, some food or beverages which I had no problem ingesting only a few years ago, now give me a rash or a headache. Take cheese, for example: I used to eat all my favorite nutty and intense varieties at any time and any day. But now, I noticed that as my period approaches (excuse me, gentlemen), eating cheese gives me a migraine. Added to that, the migraines sneak up on me more often than they used to.

And as I mentioned in this space two weeks ago, I am now on maintenance pills to restrain my hypertension, a legacy from both sides of my parents’ families. Thanks to mom and dad, I have to watch what I eat, making sure I stay away from Aling Mila’s lechon and Two Seasons Resort’s sinfully good Crispy Rack of Pork and Char Shiu Rice forever. I cannot afford to miss a single class of yoga, otherwise my blood pressure may start hiking up a treacherous path.

(UPDATE: Three days ago, my doc took me off the anti-hypertension meds, pronouncing me in the pink of health...well, almost. Just need to exercise more. But at least, this is one reason to feel good on this birthday.)

To top it all, I hate exercising, and any effort spent on a treadmill or stationary bike makes me feel cheap. I love my body and I’m happy with it, but somehow I still feel I need to conform to society’s standards of beauty and wellness.

I don’t have the patience to read books anymore. A bookworm since I knew how to read, I now can’t sit still through three pages of any novel, no matter how high up it was on the New York Times bestseller list, without my mind wandering off somewhere. I think of my schedule for the entire week, the recipe I’ll be using at dinner, or what I’ll wear to an interview I’m conducting the next day. Maybe it’s because I already do a lot of reading on the Internet that having pages of printed words on paper just doesn’t hold my attention anymore as staring at my computer. If I do read a book, it is usually a biography or a collection of short stories. My favorite reading materials now are magazines -- Vanity Fair, Gourmet, Travel + Leisure, Interiors.

Finally, I want someone to come home to other than the mother and the maid. It doesn’t matter if it’s a man or a pet. There are just days when you want to cuddle with someone because you are feeling awful and need to feel secure or comforted. Or just do the nasty with every night. Because Johnny Depp is already hitched to that beyootch Vanessa Paradis, I might have to get a cat instead.

But in all things, I take the bad with the good. You can’t have a happy sunny morning without going through some voluminous rainclouds first. So, thank you, Lord! Thanks for another fabulous birthday in Boracay with my best buddies. Thanks for those relaxing massages I got. Thanks for that gorgeous birthday spread and for all the lovely meals we enjoyed. To all those who remembered my birthday and took the time to greet me, Bless you all! It feels great to be alive and well, the sometimes creaky bones notwithstanding.

The ultimate reality bite: It’s the little things in life that count the most and make me happy.

(My column, Something Like Life, is published every Friday in the Life section of the BusinessMirror. Photo from BusinessMirror.)

From G.'s spot

Something Like Life
Feb. 15, 2008

I MET G. a couple of years ago to do a profile on her and her company for a glossy magazine. She struck me as one of those cool women who were smart and sexy and knew exactly what they wanted in life. Since then, we’ve struck up a casual friendship and have kept in touch largely through Facebook. I always look forward to her new photos with her “boys,” her two teenage sons who obviously adore their mom to death, and their travels together.

But like most of the confident self-assured women I’ve met in the last couple of years, G. is also unattached. In her particular case, she is separated from her husband.

I am single and have never been married, and I’ve always found it a tad difficult to remain engaged in the dating game. Like many single gals in their 40s, I’ve reached a particular stage in my life where I know what I like and dislike in a man, or in a relationship.

But I often wondered how women like G. would do in this arena. Because of her youthful looks and killer bod, I’d presumed that G. would have no problem snaring all the available men she would meet following her separation. And, certainly, this Valentine’s Day, she probably would have a lot of them lined up at her door just begging to be her date on this red-letter day.

G., however, dismisses all my assumptions with a laugh and says she doesn’t even believe in dating. She also feels that she “attracts losers!” Oh, wow, this I couldn’t believe! I wanted to find out more about her take on dating and why, despite her obvious gorgeousness and availability, she still hasn’t found Mr. Right. In the first place, is she actually looking for him?

“I don’t date. With the kind of life that I lead now, I am just too busy maintaining everything at a sane pace. Of course, I still dream of meeting someone, but I just don’t have the time.” She adds that she isn’t the type to actually go out and seek out the men like most young single girls probably would, like go to bars and party every night and such.

But like most women with well-meaning friends who just want them to be happy in a relationship, G. admits that she’s had to give in and allow her friends to set her up on dates. “Friends have always told me to date or sometimes they will bug me because they have someone they want me to meet. But, honestly, I am not into the dating scene. I do give in, once in a while, but I tell you, one look at the guy and I know if it’s going to be a long night or coffee or dinner—you know what I mean? I don’t know, but I think I attract a lot of losers. Sometimes I wonder if I come across as too strong that weaklings naturally find it attractive—parang to harbor ba?”

She adds that her teenage sons are actually open to the idea of her dating or pursuing a relationship. “But I guess, it’s not my time yet...[or] I think I am too old for [it]. Besides, my work already makes me meet a lot of people and, by the end of the day, I am just too pooped to go out and meet some dork. So I’d rather go home and cozy up with a good book. Perhaps, you think I’m too jaded na, but I just don’t like the dating game where the guy would try to impress me. I see a lot of those in my ‘field’ already.”



But I also think G.—like most unattached women who are already past 40—just has slimmer chances of meeting available and date-able guys in the same age group. By their late 20s, most men are already hitched. Even government statistics will bear this out: there are actually more single, separated, or widowed women than men who are in the same categories. Imagine all these gorgeous unattached women fighting over a handful of bachelors or available men? (Or what another bitchy gal pal derisively calls “scraps!”)

“I think I look young for my age because younger men are ‘warming up’ to me—which makes me kind of wary because I am done with mothering.” (Loka! Just think of yourself as Demi Moore to their Ashton Kutchers!)

G. also thinks that she comes “across as too strong, and I don’t think men like that. Well, that’s their problem, not mine.”

But G. isn’t closing her doors to finding love again. She confesses that there’s someone she likes whom she met at work, but because he isn’t based in the country, pursuing the relationship could just be too complicated. “There is this guy and we still maintain contact after all these years; meet up whenever our schedules allow. I am fine with that arrangement for now. I think I am too set in my ways that it will be difficult to again adjust to the demands typical in a relationship.”

Does she have any advice for women who are in the same spot as her? How does one get back into the groove, so to speak, when it comes to men and dating after going through a separation or divorce?

“You know, there’s nothing wrong with dating or going out again. It just didn’t happen to me because we all have different priorities. I was too set on making things work with myself and my family. I guess, being ambitious, competitive and a go-getter make it doubly difficult, because my sights are aimed on something else. But if your friends egg you on to date, by all means, go ahead! What is important is that first and foremost, know yourself. Do you want to date or have a man because you feel incomplete? If that’s the case, you’re already doomed! Don’t! That’s a sure formula for failure and it will be a vicious circle, woman! No one can complete you or make you feel you better but yourself. Work on yourself first—that, I think, is the best step to take when you’ve just gone through a separation or divorce.

“Listen to yourself, your body signals. They usually warn you if you are going into a wrong relationship. Don’t be fooled by the giddy feeling of being in love. Don’t be in love with the idea of falling in love. I know it’s easier said than done but it can be done.

“And lastly, never settle for anything less! We all deserve the best! Darn! Life is already difficult as it is and settling for someone mediocre is selling yourself short! It’s adding to the burden that we all have, one way or another.”

Amen, sistah!

Don't change the gov't without me!

I need a break from all this political squabbling, and brazen lying of the Arroyo government. I shall be conveniently away on vacation beginning tomorrow when the militant organizations' rally in Makati is staged. Then also on Sunday, when ex-President Aquino leads a prayer rally in La Salle Greenhills. (It's my birthday so please excuse me, Tita Cory.) I shall pray with you in Boracay and especially for Jun Lozada...that brave, brave man. I really hope he gets through his ordeal. Nakakaawa na sya talaga. Pati ako naiiyak na sa mga engot at paulit-ulit na tanong mga senador natin. Hay, anovayan!

Someone asked me if I wasn't going to tomorrow's rally because it could already be the "tipping point." Sorry, I don't think entire country is that enraged yet, despite the nauseous Mafioso-like activities of the presidentita and her henchmen. (Just call them The Sopranos.) I really don't know what the people are waiting for. Parang, something is still holding us back from rising up and kicking these corrupt family and their people out of power. I guess, we're all still hoping that the presidentita actually becomes enlightened, shazam! kapow! and she changes for the better. This reminds me of woman in an abusive relationship. Sinasakal ka na, sinusuntok ka pa, pero ayaw mo pa din iwanan ang asawa mo. Feeling mo your love will save him, and he will still change. Paking shet.

Anyway, talk to you next week guys. Just don't change the government without me.

* * * *

AY, and as Jessica says, Happy Kris Aquino Day! (Or Happy Juan Ponce Enrile Day! ick, obvious ba ang leanings on the ZTE-NBN Broadband deal?)

And the winner of Amazing Race Asia 2 is...

...NOT the Philippine team unfortunately. Awww...did I hear a collective sigh of disappointment amongst you? Ah well, when it came down to it, brains won over brawn so the Singapore team of Adrian Yap and Collin Low won the last challenge which was to identify all the flags of the countries the teams visited, and put them all in order. I dunno what Marc Nelson was thinking...he did say he was good at geography, so why did he allow his partner Rovilson Fernandez take up the challenge. Hay anovayan, boys!

(Love your hot bod, Marc! Photo from Kapamilya Photos)

But okay lang actually, because the Philipine team did so much better this year than in the first race last year when Ernie Lopez and his wife Jeena were the first to be booted out of competition. So Marc and Rovilson landing in third place really isn't so bad. The boys performed extremely well and were the most focused among the teams. It's just a bit disconcerting considering that they had consistently landed first place in most of the race's legs! I was literally on pins and needles watching tonight's final episode. It was a nice touch that the boys unfurled and ran with a Philippine flag even if they came in last of the three teams. Hay, sexy ka lang talaga Marc. Now take your shirt off and kiss me. All will be forgiven!

But then it was almost like a fairytale ending where the lead in the story, always with some sort of disadvantage or disability – in Adrian's case, he is hearing-impaired – wins the girl. In this case, he and Collin get bragging rights as the first place winner of this year's race AND! $100,000! Actually I had a sneaky suspicion that they had won the race as their Sony handicam and TV ad kept on playing towards the last legs of the race. Ah well, these guys really deserved it. The winner was a toss-up between the Singapore and Philippine teams so it's good the Singaporeans won. These guys are smart and always remained cool under pressure. Furthermore, Adrian was a good example to all different-abled and physically-challenged individuals by showing that his disability was not an obstacle in accomplishing menial tasks nor grand productions. Bravo!

(The Singapore team of Collin, left, and Adrian. Photo from The Star Online)

Well I was really surprised the Chong sisters of Malaysia made it to second place, beating out the Philippine team. They were constantly fighting and calling themselves stupid. Honestly, I didn't think they stood a chance in making it to the top three. Pamela, the squat sister, just constantly screamed and hurled all sorts of insults at her prettier sister Vanessa (who lost her memory temporarily after diving into a pool, poor girl). Well, this is really what you call, a surprise ending.

To all the teams, congratulations on a job well done. I'm looking forward to next year's exciting , ay Amazing pala, race.

Why Romy Neri refuses to tell the truth (from our mailbox)

For Immediate Release

Contact: Vicente R. Romano III, 0920.9615610
Leah Navarro, 0917.898.1957

Dear Friends,

Here's a short write-up that Jun L wrote sometime in October. He wanted me to disseminate it without attribution. I believe he was motivated both by his genuine concern for a beleaguered friend who was being maligned no end, and his desire, even then, for the truth to somehow surface. He left it up to me as to how and when to disseminate it.

I did not find any compelling reason to get it out then. But now that Jun has told it all, and Neri is being invited back to testify, I believe the public deserves to know what was (and maybe still is) in the mind of Neri – at least from the point of view of a friend. I'm sure Jun will not mind.

Let's get this out in the open.

God bless,

Enteng

* * * *

"What is Neri afraid to say and Why?

Many speculations have been made as to what Neri knows about the ZTE-NBN most particularly the direct involvement of Pres. Gloria Arroyo in this abominable affair. After his damaging “Sec. May 200 ka dito” demolition of Abalos, the discredited former Comelec Chairman, many were left disappointed when Neri suddenly clamped up when the Senators started asking him about the nature of his conversation with Arroyo, no amount of coaxing, cajoling and threats was enough to break his Code of Omerta. The question on many people’s mind was, What was Neri trying to protect when he repeatedly invoked “Executive Priviledge” during that gruelling 12 hour Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing on live television?

We have known the Truth all along as one of the few people that Neri confided his predicament during those fateful days of April 2006, and how he wanted to resign his post of NEDA Director General and Secretary for Socio-Economic Planning over this incident where he lost all his moral respect for Pres. Gloria Arroyo.

We are doing this document to give the public an understanding of this predicament.

What is Neri afraid to tell the public? He is afraid to tell the public that after he reported the Abalos P200 million peso bribe offer, Arroyo casually told him to ignore it and work for its recommendation for approval anyway. That when he protested that it is too controversial and may attract the wrong kind of attention from media, Arroyo retorted back “Pakulo lang ni Joey yan and his father”. When he tried to reason that it may not be accommodated in the Chinese ODA package because it has been filled up with a list of projects already, Arroyo again ordered him to remove the low cost housing project and some water project to accommodate the ZTE-NBN deal in the ODA loan. That when he attempted to reason that it may not be approved in time for the Boao Forum which was only two days to go from that fateful April day, Arroyo with raised voice told him to include the ZTE-NBN project in the agenda of the following day’s meeting of a combined NEDA Board and Cabinet Committee, who as expected promptly approved the project paving the way for the contract signing between ZTE and DOTC in China the next day. Neri is afraid to tell the public that this conversation took place between him and Arroyo because it might spark another impeachment complaint against Arroyo.

Why is Neri afraid to tell the public about this conversation with Arroyo? He is afraid that another impeachment will simply result to more expenses of public funds similar to the Hyatt 10 impeachment crisis, because as DBM Secretary who replaced Boncodin, he was entrusted with the large scale DBM payola operation of Arroyo to Congressmen, Senators and Governors not quite similar to the crude Panlilio incident that the public is witnessing now. He is afraid with a more partisan Andaya at the helm of DBM, more public funds will be spent to buy the silence and favour of these greedy legislators and local executives.

He is afraid that with Arroyo’s firm control of public funds she can buy all the necessary support from most sectors of society to keep her in power.

He is afraid that even if the opposition knows about this conversation with Arroyo, he is afraid that the opposition will not pursue a serious impeachment proceedings against Arroyo, because it is not to their political interest that Noli de Castro becomes President in case Arroyo is impeached and becomes a more formidable political opponent in 2010. This insincere and unpatriotic goal of the opposition is already being manifested by the malicious speed that the Erap pardon is being cooked by Ronnie Puno together with the Erap camp to hastily put a united front of “Birds of the same corrupt feather” coalition against the emerging JDV led political opposition.

He is afraid that even if the Church knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the ZTE-NBN deal, the Church will still not call for her resignation due to the closeness of Arroyo’s trusted lady liason to the Cardinal of Manila who was very effective during the “Hello Garci” crisis. That Arroyo’s Religious Affairs Operators have the Bishops firmly in their “donation” graces, as again manifested by the quick rebuttal of the Mindanao Bishops’ of the call of their fellow bishops in Luzon who where calling for the resignation of Arroyo just after Arroyo gave them a visit in Mindanao.

He is afraid that even if the military knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the fraudulent ZTE-NBN deal, the AFP brass is much to indebted to Arroyo for their position and the perks that goes with their position, that they have demonstrated this twisted loyalty with their willingness to detain, remove from the service and even shoot their own men for voicing out their legitimate concerns regarding the corruption and moral authority of their Commander in Chief. It is a sad spectacle to see the respected warriors of the Marines & Special Forces rot in jail with their ideals, while their men are dying even without receiving the measly P150 per day combat pay that was promised to them by Arroyo due to lack of funds & generals gets a gift bag similar to those given to the governors and congressmen just for having dinner with Arroyo the day after that infamous breakfast & lunch meeting where bribe money flowed scandalously free.

He is afraid that even if the Media knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the ZTE-NBN scam, Media will simply wither in the torrents of cash and favors similar to how the Hyatt 10, Hello Garci crisis were killed in the media headlines and Radio& TV coverages. Although he believes in the integrity of a handful of Journalist, he believes that a handful of these mavericks cannot withstand the hordes of paid lackeys of Malacanang. Especially that the Arroyo crisis team is now being handled by the best mercenary money can buy, from Ramos Sulo Operation, Erap’s DILG and now Arroyo’s troubleshooter, Ronnie Puno. Ably supported by the Media and PR money from PAGCOR being handled by Cerge Remonte to buy positive airtime, headlines and editorials.

He is afraid that even if the Business Sector knows about the truth of Arroyo’s direct involvement to defraud the coffers of the taxes they are paying, the businessmen will be reluctant to rock the boat of the current economic uptrend, especially with the very close personal and business relationship of the so called leaders of the big business like Ricky Razon of ICTSI, Donald Dee of PCCI and Francis Chua of the Filipino-Chinese Federation to Arroyo herself. He is afraid that the hard earned remittances of Filipino OFWs that is keeping the economy booming and that can keep the economy afloat even under any administration is being wasted under this unholy alliance of Arroyo and her favoured businessmen.

He is afraid that even if the Civil Society knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the ZTE-NBN deal, that the Civil Society is now tired of mass actions after witnessing two failed EDSA revolutions, that Civil Society is now afflicted with a “Rally Fatigue” and cannot muster enough public outrage to denounce Arroyo’s “corruption with impunity”. He is afraid that the middle class is now indifferent to the corruption that goes around them, not realising that the middle class are the ones mainly carrying the burden of the loan payments for these corrupt deals. He is afraid that the middle class are more interested to become an OFW & to leave this country leaving their family and children behind, and may not care anymore about the crimes being committed against their country by its own President.

He is afraid that even if the Masa, the students, the workers knows the truth about Arroyo’s direct involvement in the ZTE-NBN deal to steal precious resources from public funds, that they are now too poor and impoverished to be able to afford the time to join mass actions against the abuses of the Arroyo administration, that these former vanguards of mass actions in the country are now completely dependent on financial resources of professional organizers and have turned themselves into a “Rally for hire” groups rather than a true and genuine political gathering shouting for reforms.

He is afraid that the public may not know the extent of corruption in this country and may wrongly believe that they can cure corruption by simply replacing Arroyo with another person. He is afraid that the public may overlook the systemic and institutionalized nature of the source of corruption in this country, he is afraid that the people will again opt for a regime change without concern or a plan to correct the root causes of corruption in the country. He is afraid that people may not realize that it is not bringing Arroyo down that is difficult, it is establishing a new order that is the difficult task.

This is the predicament of Neri which I want people to realize especially to those who are asking Neri to tell the truth."

FORWARD THIS SO THE PUBLIC MAY KNOW.