The World of Second Chances

Christmas Memories

December 19, 2009

Wedding & Family Life

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire
Jack Frost nipping at your nose
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir
And folks dressed up like Eskimos

I belong to a religious group where Thanksgiving is celebrated instead of Christmas. For 31 years of my life, I used to celebrate Christmas with my family and childhood friends. I celebrated Christmas even if it’s just for socialization’s sake. What is so magical about Christmas? Isn’t it that the early pagans are the ones who first celebrated this supposedly holy occasion?

Ah, let me regress through the times that I celebrated Christmas with my family and friends.

The year was mid-80’s. I was in 3rd grade when I received a total of 700 pesos as Christmas gift. It was a big amount at that time. I was able to buy a new pair of Mighty Kid shoes because of that. It’s good to have generous relatives during Christmas. =)

When financial crisis hit our family in the late 80’s, I saw my mother’s worried face three weeks before Christmas. I overheard her talking with my father.

“Magpapasko na wala pang damit ang mga bata,” she said. (It’s about Christmas, the kids don’t have new clothes yet)

It was our hardest and poorest Christmas. Thank God, my father was able to get a commission a week before Christmas.

Early 90’s, when money flowed in like flashflood, was the first time that my brother and I got our first signature clothes and shoes. It was also the time when I realized that having signature items would not make me a bigger person especially if the people around me are not aware of what’s original or what’s fake. (Like hello, everyone can have fake LV’s but only a few can tell which is fake and which is not fake!)

My relatives from my mom’s side love to eat. We get together every Christmas and we just eat and eat and eat! Oh, I almost forgot that our family had Noche Buena.

My saddest Christmas was sometime in late 90’s when I pleaded hard to my daughter’s father to please stay with us and don’t go home yet to his parents in the province. It was so sad a Christmas that until now that I no longer celebrate it, I still feel that pain whenever I remember that day.

There was a time when an ex-lover and a current lover would race to give me a call at 12:00 AM or Noche Buena. I should be happy to have two men “fighting” over my attention and affection but the joy was superficial. Who wants to deal with an ex who could not move on and a current who competes with my ex?

Of course, pre and post-Christmas parties with my friends were one of the most memorable. My childhood friends are like my brothers and sisters; I can be my true self when I’m with them.

Christmas or should I say, December 25 would never be the same without my mother who passed away last May 2009. Generally, our home at the province will never be the same without her around. If there is one wish that God would give me, I would ask Him to tell my mother that her kare-kare is still the best. That her crema de fruta is what I can’t replicate. That her hundreds of godchildren appreciate her small tokens. That she doesn’t need to bother giving me Christmas presents. That she is still the BEST mother in the world.

*now I am crying*
Punta De Fabian

December 17, 2009

Travel

Punta De Fabian is an inland resort located in Baras, Rizal. Travel time is 90 minutes from Aurora Boulevard, Cubao. There are other alternative routes to explore though.

Dubbed as the resort where the “water meets the sky,” the place’s serenity is ideal for team building and business planning. Oh, I came there for business planning. (Thanks to my boss who brought me there.)

The things that I look for in a resort are the following:
Note: Ratings are the following:
5-excellent 4- good 3- fair 2- poor 1- very poor

1. Nice staffs – In Punta de Fabian, I had no bad encounter with their staffs. They are friendly and courteous. It seems like their management trained them well in pleasing customers; not one of them can be seen frowning.
Rating – 5

2. Accomodation – The rooms are spacious. Hot shower is available. There is cable TV. There’s complimentary bottled water and hot tea/coffee. But I was looking for a bar. Okay, maybe a bar is somewhat a luxury but what about a telephone so that I can order for food without bothering to walk from the hotel/cottage to the resort’s restaurant? The intercom was not working. What will happen if there’s an emergency? The bed is a little hard and the blanket, so thin so I requested for a comforter.
Rating- 2

3. Food- I am so much into Filipino foods and my palate usually craves for salty and sweet foods. I don’t know if Punta is into American cooking: less salt and less sugar. Personally, I didn’t appreciate their food save it for the very delicious clubhouse that they served at snack.
Rating- 3

4. Security- I wonder how Punta takes care of gatecrashers because I didn’t see much security personnels in the vicinity. The two swimming pools don’t have a lifeguard.
Rating- 1

5. Ambience- The ambience is definitely a “5.” You can see the Laguna de Bay while drinking coffee at the terrace. The air is unpolluted. The ambience reminds me of Tagaytay.
Rating- 5
Ikaw Sana

December 8, 2009

That’s Entertainment

I’ve never been a fan of tele-serye until I got hooked on GMA 7’s “Ikaw Sana.” Let me just clarify that I am not a fan of Jennylyn, Mark and Pauleen; I just learned to love their tele-serye.

Pauleen, in “Ikaw Sana” plays the role of Sophia Montemayor-Olivares. She is Eliza’s (Jennylyn) wicked half-sister. Like a true tele-serye that’s full of drama, the two women fell for the same guy, Michael Olivares (Mark). I’ve never appreciated Pauleen Luna’s acting skill until she played the role of Sophia. Pauleen can internalize and feel her role well. I wonder why she was not given any heavy drama role before. I can’t think of any actress who fits the role of the evil socialite Sophia than the pretty Pauleen Luna.

Mark needs to look matured as he’s still baby-faced; he can still be paired with younger actresses like Ynna Asistio. There’s no question that the Jennylyn-Mark loveteam is one of GMA’s bankable team. The couple (Jen and Mark) has evolved from portraying teenybopper to matured roles. There is chemistry between Mark and Jen. I wonder why Mark and Jen didn’t end up with each other in real life!

Jennylyn has grown prettier since her Starstruck days. I no longer read bad publicities about Jen and I hope that her reported mood swings won’t happen again. She is lucky because GMA gave her another chance after that unplanned pregnancy that gave her a very cute Alex Jazz.

Tirso Cruz (Gener Montemayor,father of Sophia and Eliza) and Maritoni Fernandez (Loretta Montemayor, wife of Gener and mother of Sophia) are seasoned actors and I think everybody appreciates the way they deliver their character. But honestly, my favorite is Ms. Marissa Delgado as Amanda Montemayor, the grandmother of Sophia and Eliza. Marissa is one classy lady that can effectively portray the role of a high-society matriarch. I always wait for her tarayan scenes with Maritoni Fernandez, who is also a classy lady and a LADY in real life. She is a daughter of a British aristocrat, Lord Anthony Moynihan.

Love, revenge and family issues; that’s “Ikaw Sana.”
Postpartum Calorie Watch

December 5, 2009

Life & Love

caloriewatch

If you are calorie-conscious like me, I am sharing with you the attachment that I downloaded from the net several years back.

On December 10, my baby boy will turn three months. That means that next week would be my third postpartum month! While I am among the very few mothers who didn’t gain too much weight during my pregnancy, I belong to the several many who find it hard to resume to our pre-pregnancy figure. Oh, don’t get me wrong that I have the same body type as Nicole Kidman or our local Aubrey Miles who were able to lose several pounds after giving birth. Nicole was said to be back to her pre-pregnancy figure two weeks after giving birth. As for Aubrey, she was proudly parading her post-pregnancy body during a lingerie modelling show some two months ago. If these women were able to shed several post-pregnancy pounds in less than a year, then why can’t the “several many” do the same?

I made a commitment to myself that I’m going to bring back my college days figure. It’s depressing to hear from college acquaintances that I’ve grown big. An old college friend told me not to mind those insensitive people.

“You’re not that big. You were just anorexic in college,” she would say.

Yeah, I was underweight in college. Blame that to those skinny fashion models! Lol!

I know in my heart that I could never bring back my old college figure. I gained weight after college and fortunately,
I didn’t gain a lot of weight during my second pregnancy. I’ll just have to change my idea of “how thin is thin and how fat is fat” and adapt it to my age.
Acidic Pop Cola?

December 5, 2009

Career, Finance & Product

Is someone trying to sabotage Pop Cola? Last night, (just like our ordinary nights) I asked my daughter to buy Pop Cola from our neighbor’s sari-sari store. When she brought home the bottle, we noticed that it doesn’t have the usual black color. The color resembled that of an iced tea.

I took the bottle, opened it and noticed that there was no “spirit.” I decided to taste the soda and to my shock, the liquid burned my tounge! It took me a lot of gargling before the acidic taste went away.

My question is, “Is someone trying to sabotage Pop Cola?” I should have kept the bottle with the acidic soda but panic attacked us last night; we gave back the bottle to the sari-sari store.
Anger Management

December 3, 2009

Wedding & Family Life

I need to undergo anger management seminar. I realize that I’m becoming the evil person that I am not really. Since I experienced a lot of stress this year from my mother’s “mysterious” disease to my father’s troubles to my mother’s demise and to the other stressful problems, I became hot-tempered and suspecting. I learned how to blurt out bad words when I’m pissed off. I learned how to verbally attack a person when I’m provoked.

I hate it. It’s not me.

I realize that I am still angry for everything bad and sad that happened this year.

I need to let go of my anger.

I need time and understanding.

I need God’s help and mercy.
Mindanao

December 2, 2009

Life & Love

Ampatuan vs. Mangudadatu
Nice headline. It projects an image of two warring Muslim royalties.

Maguindanao Massacre
Gruesome headline. It projects an image of a backward civilization.

Since last Monday’s (November 23) massacre, I’ve been surfing the internet for more facts and details about the Mangudadatus and the Ampatuans. I learned that they used to be allies. When we speak of allies, I hope it does not mean that the Mangudadatus supported the Ampatuans wicked activities. One article says that the Mangudadatus are warlords themselves. I hope that the Maguindanao massacre is not some sort of karma as I condemn political killings.

Mindanao is called “The Land of Promise.” But is it really promising? Mindanao’s lands are fertile; the perfect land for agriculture. Its seas are said to be perfect for fishing and tourism. I grew up with an impression that Mindanao is not a peaceful place. Its problems are more political than socio-economical.

How many Abu Sayaffs do we have and why can’t our military forces pin them down? It leads me to think that we tolerate these terrorists because there is business in war. There’s big money involved. And maybe, there are some big families in Mindanao that conspire with this group.

The MNLF and the MILF, in my opinion, do not regard themselves as Filipinos.
“We are Muslim,” they would say but never “We are Filipino.”
Does it mean that being a Muslim give them an authority to ask for an independent Mindanao?

Is there hope in Mindanao?