Britney Spears and the Philippines

One of my favorite past times is watching MYX and I got fascinated watching Britney's latest MTV "Piece of Me" where she mentions our country in the song -

I'm Miss American Dream since I was 17
Don't matter if I step on the scene
Or sneak away to the Philippines
They're still gonna take pictures of my derriere in the magazine
You want a piece of me?
You want a piece of me...

I wonder why the writer pointed out the Philippines... any ideas?

P.S. I was also surprised to see that one of Britney's videos on her Youtube channel had over 20 million views! Wow!!!

I'll Take Care of You - Richard Poon

When Sweetie said we were going to attend an album launch I was quite excited since it's been awhile since we attended one. I got more excited when I was told that Richard used to be with U-Turn (remember their hit single "It's You") and when I watched the music video "I'll Take Care of You" on Myx.

I have become a fan! (Photo by JayDJ)

I had no idea that his album would be very much different from all the other album launches I've attended. His music genre is that of the "standards". (Gulp! Standards! I thought it was my Mom who should've gone but... but... read on...). He said that he never dreamed that he would go into that genre. A lot of people actually doubted that he could pull it off. BUT! Richard who used to be a chef for their family business is a very talented singer, musical arranger and you'd know it's true when you listen to his songs. He started doing the standards (forced by his manager) for a charity event, and let's say the rest is history. Here's Richard talking about why he tried out the genre -



Richard believes and hopes that his music would bridge the gap between the young and old generation. I know the feeling because my Mom forces me to listen to her favorite singers - Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett etc. - and these are Richard's influencers for his music. I'd say I truly appreciated the way he sang old and new songs in his unique "standard" way.

Check out how Richard turned pop music into the standards (really cool!) -



You may want to check him out in some videos I took during his album launch -

I'll Take Care of You (carrier single)
Goodbye (para sa mga emo)
The Last Time (for those in love)
Way Back into Love (feel good!)
Dance with Me and Kahit Maputi ang Buhok Ko
Quando Quando (duet with his sister)
Moon River

I certainly enjoyed Richard Poon's album "I'll Take Care of You". A must buy! Bili na!

For more information about Richard poon check this out.

Life Lessons from George

I've had George for about 4 years now. I remember the day I got him with 3 guy friends. It was quite memorable because I almost had to throw buckets of water on them to stop the mounting brawl that was sure to ensue had I not stepped in to clarify what I really wanted.

You see, George is my desktop PC and I brought 3 guy friends with me the day I bought him at PC Express.

Lesson #1 - Don't bring along 3 geeky guy friends to help you buy your PC. Why? They're going to end up besting each other over the specs for your PC. My 3 guy friends weren't speaking to each other on the way home.

It took about 6 months before George stabilized for use. I had almost given up on him, but eventually my PC doctor managed to shape him up for use. The place where I bought it wasn't very helpful at all, good thing I had my long-time PC doctor help me. I vowed then never to buy from that place again.

Lesson #2 - Buy only from trusted sources and places that have good customer care. I used that principle when I was scouting for a laptop.

I diligently backed-up my files (especially photos), but I always feared that one day George will go into a coma and not wake-up. He was acting up in the last quarter of 2007 and I backed-up my files every 2 weeks or whenever I felt that I had to.

Lesson #3 - Always back-up your files and follow your instincts when you feel that you have to do back-ups.

I unfortunately did not follow my instinct to do back-up before I left last week for CDO. I also forgot to change the passwords so that my son could not use it since I felt that George was on the brink of a collapse.

George went into a coma. His registry files were corrupted and deleted (I have no idea how) and good thing Sweetie taught me how to find remedies by searching on Google. We printed out a 5-page recover document, but I had to set it aside for a couple of days since I was quite busy with work.

Lesson #4 - Do not panic. There is always a remedy for everything.

And so I went through 5-pages of support, doing things that I never imagined myself doing. The last time that I dabbled with the command prompt was about 7-years ago when I had to provide technical support to myself since our family business consisted of me, my parents and 10 workers. I was the only one who knew how to turn on the computer. The companies I worked for always had tech support and all I had to do was dial their local and they came to the rescue. I became lax, good thing Sweetie brought me up to speed on how to resuscitate George. I had to stop at some point though for fear of accidentally deleting my files.

Lesson #5 - Do not allow your skills to go rusty. Keep it and improve on it, BUT get help when you need it.

At least I'm not emo or panicking over my files. I have back-ups on CD and on Happy (for photos). My only angst is on rebuilding my iTunes. Pffftt!

Forever Student (and feeling old)

Earlier today I was watching a group of college kids taking photos of each other. They enlisted the help of their professor to take a group shot wherein they were lying down on the grass in a circle with their heads together. I couldn't help but smile because I remember having a photo with the same shot and it was in the beach with my college friends from the publication office (Malate Literary Folio). I also remember seeing Sweetie's college photo album and they also had the same pose.

I felt old! Eeeeeeps! I did! I've been doing a number of trainings for students and I started realizing that I was old when:

(1) They didn't know who "Lucky" was. Luis Manzano when he was a kid was nicknamed Lucky by his Star for All-Seasons actress-mom Hon. Gov. Vilma Santos. Now I have to find another punchline when I explain "I'm feeling lucky".

(2) They don't know who "Carlo" is in the Purefoods TV commercial... "Dear Diary, Carlo sat beside me today and he's so cute!" Rawr! Carlo was played by Patrick Garcia. They also don't know who Doogie Howser is. So now I have to remember to use "Carrie" (Sarah Jessica Parker) of Sex in the City when I explain what blogging is.

(3) They don't know what a beeper looks like. My very first mobile phone was issued by my employer, Smart, and it wasn't a GSM phone. (Now don't even ask what the model was).

(4) Their jaws dropped when I said that it took hours for my professors to download a 1,000kb file from the internet and during that time only professors had complete access to the internet. I do remember chatting back in college though.

(5) They all giggled when I said the only game I know how to play is Pacman and Tetris. (My parents were really strict about those things, I didn't even own a "Game & Watch" and my prized possession then was a watch where I could play Pacman). And don't even dare ask if I know how to play Super Mario, you just might make me cry.

And on the side, my 9-year old nephew interrogated me last week:

Kyle: Tita, how old are you?

Me: Old enough.

Kyle: Tita! Sige na!

Me: Okay, fine, fine, I'm a year younger than your Mom.

Kyle: So you're 32! (rawr! magaleng mag-math ang batang ito!)

Me: Uhuh, so?

Kyle: Tita Piggy! (he thinks I'm cute and fat!) Antanda mo na! Dapat may asawa ka na!

And then Kyle gives me this really, really wide-eyed (dinilatan) look. Buti na lang cute siya. And my answer -

Me: Eh I don't feel old eh and I'm not really rushing.

Kyle groaned out at that point and scolded me. Thank God my cousin saved me from further torture.

Well going back to my original story. The past few weeks that I've had the privilege of speaking in front of thousands of students I realized that I finally got over being nervous when I do presentations (and stage fright) and that it is indeed a privilege to share my learnings and experiences to kids. I always highlight though that everything is a continuous learning process, that we should always be students, always open to learning new things, acquiring new skills and always keeping your eyes, ears and heart open.

To the students who've been dropping me lines in my email, thank you very much. I hope you picked up some stuff from me (and hopefully not the kalokohans). Hehehe.

Sunday Video: How to

Just having a bawl of laughs with Miguel tonight watching these videos:

How to Be Emo



How to Be Ninja



How to Be Gangster

Tulala

Tulala, is there a one-word direct translation? Normally when one says "I'm tulala" it means you are in a daze, staring off in space. I think I might say that's what I've been feeling lately. I've been updating most of my niche blogs (TWP, Tales of the Moonless Sky and Lakwatsera Ako), but not An Apple a Day. Sometimes I get the urge to blog here in the middle of the night but I'm usually too sleepy or lazy to get up and turn on Happy to blog.

The blogger bug has bitten me again, affecting my muse and I guess I've just been exhausted the past while, but I do have tall tales to tell about my travels. I've done at least 10 planes rides for this month alone and I'm not yet done.

I miss my basement :p

PS My 7 year old (now 49) dog died yesterday =( I remember I made him a famous, exotic dog when I was in the US. How? My colleagues were all bragging about the breeding of their dogs and I said I have the best breed of all, "I have an askal!" Namangha sila lahat! Hehehe. I only admitted that Patch was a streetdog after they dissected his ancestry. Hihihihi.

Remembering Tito Tony

I know it's been a week since I made my last post. Aside from being uber busy, I was just "not available". My favorite uncle passed away last Monday night (January 14) and I guess I was just tulala the whole week. I managed to write this piece about him though and I'm sharing it here mainly for the perusal of my clan.

My Tito Tony

Tito Tony is my Mom’s brother, Dad of my buddy-cousin Tina, Ate Joanne, Ate Joline and Kuya Jeffrey, “Koko” (Lolo) to 9 grandchildren and husband of Tita Josie, but to me, he is Tito Tony, my favorite Tito (shhh! My Mom has 3 other brothers… well they don’t read my blog anyway). My favorite Tito passed away last Monday and the last time I saw him was on New Year’s day during our family reunion. He was very jolly on that day.

I cherish a lot of happy memories with my Tito and these are also the reasons why he is my favorite.

1. Malambing – Tito Tony is my most affectionate uncle. I remember when I was a kid they had to move in our house because their home in Manila burned down and they lived with us for a couple of months. I’d pinch him a lot coz he had a huge tummy and he didn’t mind. He’d usually grab me and tickle me. Maharot some would say, but I loved it since he was generous with hugs.

2. Makulit and Kalog – I know where my cousin Tina got her kakulitan. If you’re my friend and you think I’m makulit, my cousin’s ten times more makulit than I am. She’d probably be a successful stand-up comedienne if she wanted to. Tito Tony’s exactly like that. He’s loud, funny, boisterous and an action-guy.

3. Big Heart – When I had to be exiled from home back when I was 18, I lived at Tito Tony’s home and I never felt I was exiled! I actually enjoyed myself so much because living in Manila is totally different from living in Paranaque. Tito Tony never asked about my condition and just took me under his wing. Of course, my cousins always brought me out to gimmick with other cousins. We were caught, so I was forced to go back home.

4. Jolly – I never saw Tito Tony frown although my cousins said that he’d roar as loud as a lion when he’s mad (I guess I’m lucky I’m just a niece!), but Tito Tony was always a happy guy. His leg was amputated last year due to diabetes, but he never changed, matigas lang ang ulo kasi panay pa rin inom ng Coke.

5. Secretive – We have our share of secrets and it’s unbloggable. Let’s just say that my lips are sealed because my Tito and I have a pact. I don’t want him pulling my leg in the middle of the night if I say anything about what it was (I wouldn’t be surprised if he did anyway just for kicks).

I was heartbroken when I heard the news since I was planning to see him at the hospital. I even had my cousin tell him that he has to wait for his bunso to settle down, but I guess he really wanted to rest already. Seeing a smile on his lips like he’s just sleeping made me realize that his mission in this world is probably done and that it’s time for him to rest and be reunited with Our Creator.

I love you Tito Tony, please watch over us as our angel. Say hi to Mama Lola and Papa Lolo for me.

Tito Ben's Eulogy

We are gathered here before Tony's final journey. Tony as I remember was a member of the Sodality of Mary and devotee of the Sacred Heart of Jesus during his high school days at the Ateneo de Naga. Tony had completed his first nine First Fridays devotion. And with the promise of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, certainly, he met his Creator without traffic, so to speak.

Tony was the fourth child by our parents, Francisco and Merced Enrile. I learned from our relatives and old friends that Tony was a still born baby. With the aide of the doctor and prayers God gave him life. Tony for short was friendly, talkative like a salesman, stubborn but independent. That is Tony, my brother.

During his high school years at the Ateneo de Naga, he was a member of Sanctuary Society, Sodality of Mary, a night league player. During his high school years, he was under the eagle eys of the Jesuit fathers. I remember that the Father Principal of the Ateneo had to write a letter of permission to my mother for a whipping session for her son, Tony. My mother did not object to the punishment.

Finally in 1954 he graduated from the Ateneo de Naga. He was allowed to join the commencement exercise on the condition that he had to complete 50 hours posts/punishment before he can get his high school diploma, again that is my brother Tony.

Soon after graduation he enrolled in the University of the Philippines in Los Banos to take up agriculture. He stayed at UP Los Banos to take up agriculture for 2 years until my father was called by the UP authorities for Tony's dismissal for disciplinary matters. But he did not stop there, I learned that he found a job with the ESSO Corporation, he was eventually employed by many other companies.

In his latter years I could not monitor him for I was tied up with my military career but I know my brother has found the peace he has been longing for and he now joins our Creator and our parents.

Goodbye Tony, please watch over us .