You are currently browsing the monthly archive for June 2007.
Well, Tess posted a slambook. So I will follow suit.
1.Diversions:
Blogging, Reading Entertainment News, Shopping
2. Frustrations:
Becoming a PTA Officer
Finishing Law School
2. Indulgence:
Starbucks Venti Caramel Latte
Home-Cooked Meals
Lush Handmade Soap
2. Weakness:
Manana Habit
3. Guilty Pleasures:
Meeting with a person I shouldn’t, talking to a person I shouldn’t
Sue me! .. hay.
4. Necessities:
Laptop, Internet, Cellphone
5. Peeves:
Pretentious people and people so full of themselves
6. Like/Love:
Honest, down-to-earth people
7. Middle-term goal:
Finish my contract
8. Long-term goal:
Send my son to an Ivy League school
Have a different State/Province/Country of Residence every five years
Dreaming is free, right? =)
9. Gift to myself:
2 week vacation to New York (when my boss will allow me)..Boss Mike and Tim, I really, really miss NY!
10. WeirdNESS:
I can: .. drumroll please..
Wake up at a definite time without an alarm clock.. *bow*
Caveat: This doesn’t apply when I drank more ..umm.. spirits.. than I should have the night before.
Ahhh.. but to err is human. =)
I read this forwarded message from my classmate Eric. And I just had to repost it.
Winners Losers : From Kris to Ruffa to Gretchen( Desperate Housewives Philippine Edition).
(Or are we reaping some sort of a negative karma to deserve them?)
The month of June is a good time to review what transpired for the first six months of 2007. For this edition, Conventional Wisdom is focusing On showbiz-related matters instead of the usual politics (which in a way is also show-biz but ……for ugly people). Read on.
Kris Aquino. Loser. While she is the innocent one in the whole James-Hope brouhaha, Conventional Wisdom thinks that she could have handled the incident with more dignity and privacy. One wonders why this drama queen wants to inflict her day-to-day saga with the whole planet. From exaggerating her “life-threatening” pregnancy, to lambasting her husband
In public (“O magsalita ka? Totoo naming pina-palayas na kita sa bahay a?”), to actually using Ninoy to promote a cake in her latest commercial. Kris’ next endorsement should neither be beer nor pastries but laundry Detergent for her unquenchable desire to always wash her very dirty underwear in public.
James Yap. Loser. One word : cad. As one As one writer succinctly said : “What do you expect from a provincial boy who suddenly became famous and wealthy?” The last time we witnessed a showbiz cad was during Gabby Concepcion’s time. James is now second in our list. Conventional Wisdom Is giving them maximum of 3 years as a couple. Kris is starting to look More and more mature and matronic. James is still young. Give James sometime, and after Hope – - Faith and Charity will spring forth. Moral of the story. Smoking is bad for marriage: Kris had Philip, James had Hope. Conventional Wisdom can’t take any More of this!!!
Ruffa Gutierrez/ Annabelle Rama : The mother and daughter (MAD) team strikes again. From a filmfest scam that made it to CNN to a Brunie-yuki scandal that merited a senate hearing, and now, the falling out with Ylmaz – - which is desperately being peddled out as Philippines vs. Turkey, Oppressor vs. Victim.
Ruffa Gutierrez: Loser. A desperate act from a has-been, middle-aged B-actress who is trying to make a come-back by capitalizing on whatever publicity that can be squeezed out from this split. From caterwauling One minute “Hindi ko na kaya Kuya Boy!”, to coyly saying the following week “Ligawan nya (Ylmaz) ulit ako” to having her born again baptism rites
captured on cam and then heading off to Las Vegas the following week to relax and do damage control (about his marriage five years ago in Las Vegas). Ruffa, you’re act is getting stale. You have become so predictable and boring.
captured on cam and then heading off to Las Vegas the following week to relax and do damage control (about his marriage five years ago in Las Vegas). Ruffa, you’re act is getting stale. You have become so predictable and boring.
Annabelle Rama. Winner. For always a character that she is. For Being consistent in her act and for being our constant source of amusement. Conventional Wisdom almost fell off its chair when this motor-mouth fish-wife asked Dolly Ann to return the cosmetics she gave her and then, proceeded on by actually naming two unknown women on national television To pay their debts to her since she now has to take care of Ruffa and her grandchildren : “Hoy, so and so…magbayad na kayo ng utang nyo sa akin dahil marami na akong papalamunin ngayon” or something to that effect. Panalo talaga si Bisaya. I strongly suggest to PGMA that we give this woman a postion in the government preferably as Head of our National Defense. Asap.
Dolly Ann Carvajal. Winner and Loser. A lot of people don’t like this woman. For one, she is not pleasing to the eye. Her gay son looks a Lot better than she. And admit it or not, she became a writer thru her connections ? mom and aunt. But being objective about the whole thing, Conventional Wisdom thinks that Dolly Ann is on the right this time. Why can’t the mother and daughter (MAD) tandem just answer the questions Posed by Dolly Ann? Why can’t Annabelle stick to the issues instead of Pointing out something we already know : how ugly Dolly Ann is.
What makes Dolly Ann a loser is her constant use of her departed mom’s legacy and memory whenever someone would diss her out. Honey, stop Hiding under the skirt of your mom. You are not a sacred cow.
Pia Guanio. Loser. What a lousy lousy interviewer. The depth of her talent as a host is as long as her irritating mini skirts. Do us a Favor Pia, ask Bossing to marry you already and then fade into oblivion.
Gretchen Baretto. Loser. One word : Wow. The affectations of La Greta can only matched by her delusions of grandeur. From the looks of it, she is experiencing the early on-set of a mid-life crisis. She has Been picking fights left and right…with Lani Mercado, and then with Dawn Zulueta. From her classic statement about the looks of her own daughter “Naaawa nga ako dahil karamihan ng tao ang sabi kay Dominique, kamukha Sya ng tatay nya?”. And now the “friendly beso-beso” lip-lock with John Estrada. Please explain to Conventional Wisdom – - “How can this be a friendly kiss when you and John looked so orgasmic in that shot?
Gretchen is a classic example of “langaw na nakatungtong sa kalabaw, Pero feeling mataas pa sa kalabaw.” Someone should already tell this woman To seek professional help. Sober up and clean your act sister. You are no
Paris Hilton More like Plaster of Paris Hilton.
These are the people that are giving Conventional Wisdom constant Migraine the past months. If this trend continues until December, aneurysm can’t be far behind.
Pass this on until it reaches the following: Ylmaz Bektas, Mother-in-law of Gretchen., Hope, PGMA.
***
Conventional Wisdom is a writer from pep.ph
I love jazz. I have two modes of listening to jazz. The first one is just to let the music wash over me. I do this when I am listening to jazz while working, driving, reading or simply soaking myself in a tub. The other mode is to actually listen. Listen intently. I take note of the notes, the melody. Usually I do this on live performances or when I sit alone, looking at the view and think of nothing but the music. It’s an enjoyable intellectual exercise. (yeah.. yeah.. )
In this post, I will share with you the music of Acoustic Alchemy. They are a guitar-based smooth jazz band. But mind you, it is not the kind of smooth jazz that puts you to sleep or that you hear while in an elevator. Their brand of jazz has character and drama and is a fusion of different music genres. Although with no vocals, you feel the music telling you a story. I want to upload my Acoustic Alchemy MP3s to my blog, but I don’t know how. =(
Here are my favorite songs from Acoustic Alchemy:
1. Mr. Chow – fusion of Chinese and reggae. Lorenz loves this track.
2. Aart Attack – a bit of a Gospel feel.. love it!
3. The Velvet Swing – youtube video
4. The Alchemist – one of their earlier tracks
5. Who Knows – from their latest album. Modern with an R&B feel.
My favorite albums are “The Best of Acoustic Alchemy” and “Aart” .
There goes my first jazz post. I will learn to upload MP3s or wav files next time. =)
I revisted my past just last week. I had the most honest conversation with my ex for 3 years. Time heals wounds, they say. I totally agree with that. Our relationship had been rife with drama that telenovelas are made up of. And I am NOT exaggerating. We had lied to each other, hurt each other, but always had been together when the chips were most down. We had been in love.
But it was not meant to be.
Our priorities were different. We could not learn to work-out our differences. And circumstances conspired to keep us apart.
What is happily ever after? It is when two people decide to commit to build and spend their lives together. What does it take to make that kind of commitment? Love is a factor, yes. But timing makes a difference.
You are in love but you are not finacially ready. You are in love but your career forces you to be apart. You are in love but you are beset with responsibilties. You are in love but you still have a lot of growing up to do. In the name of true love, others might force the issue and go for happily ever after anyway. We almost went for it, but common sense prevailed.
On the other hand, you are emotionally, financially ready to make that commitment but aren’t in love. Sometimes others are willing to wait for the right one or others settle for the person they could learn to love.
In a perfect world, the pieces all fit. You are ready and the right one comes along. But, hey, only a few people live in a perfect world. In this world, we have to make do with what we have and learn how to make the best of what we have chosen.
We, after a tumultuous relationship, bad break-up, are now good friends for life. We have accepted the reality that we are not meant to be but the bittersweet memories will always stay with us. And that, is our happily ever after.
So what do you do when it’s your child’s birthday? Have a party, of course. With him being new in Manila and all, we don’t know many children so a kid’s party is out fo the question. I decided just to have a small birthday dinner for him on what we term as his “BirthdayWeekend” on Saturday. Then have a small birthday party on Sunday. We just invited the little family we have here in Manila. My parents flew in from Cebu to celebrate Lorenz’ bithday with us. So there you go. It was a simple and fun celebration.
It’s back to school for Lorenz. He was very excited. He woke up 5AM without an alarm clock.
I’m excited too. I prepared him his baon and lunch. Then.. sheesh! I screwed up. The uniform I bought was a couple of sizes bigger. I had all these fears of my son being bullied because of his too-big school shirt
I was scared for my son the whole day. Will he be alright? It is his first time riding a school bus. It is his first time eating lunch alone. Will he be able to make friends? Will he be lonely or scared or be bullied (God forbid)? I have visions of him crying and saying that he doesn’t want to go to school anymore or he wants to go back home to Cebu.
Waiting for him to return from school seems interminable. Finally, he came home looking tired. Anxiously I asked him how his first day of school went. Then a smile lit up his face. “I like my new school mom.”
Whew! Thank God. We are going to be alright.
6AM.. going down the elevator to catch the school bus ride
I was raised by my grandparents in Cebu. Both of them came from Lanao in Mindanao. My grandpa only finished grade 7 there in the mountains but he’s a sharp guy. He’s a farmer. He started of with a small piece of land. Because of his hard work and smarts he was able to expand his farm. With the money he saved he moved his family to Metro Cebu and assigned an overseer for his farm in Mindanao. He designed and built his house and my father’s house in Metro Cebu. He sent his sons to law school.
When I was born, I was the apple of my grandpa’s eye. He took care of me, even watching me as I sleep to make sure no mosquitoes bite me. We used to wake up around 4AM, spend 30 minutes on the multiplication table or whatever math concepts he wanted to teach me. Then like life in the province, we would have “painit” with “puto” and “sikwate”. Around 7am, we would have “pamahaw” or breakfast. Around 10, I have my snack. Then came lunch. Afer a couple of hours, siesta. Then 3PM another snack. Then 6PM we would have dinner. I would spend the night listening to Visayan radyo shows. I was a chubby little kid back then.
I used to sing in the “kapilya”. Or join those Visayan quiz shows on the radio. Or visit Manang Garda in the mountains of Cebu whenever I get sick because they will just massage me. This is “hilot nga Bisaya” with the matching pray-over. Not the massage in the massage parlors. We use to eat in Noy Inting’s carenderia twice a week in Lutopan. I ate “mais” or corn and not rice. I ate “utan bisaya”, kading, adubao. I sold ice water and ice candy to our neighbors. I was raised to be a true blue Bisayang probinsyana.
When I went to school, my lolo would attend my school events. He dresses like a simple farmer and my school is filled with sosyal parents and all. He would look out of place there but I am always so proud of him.
My lolo passed away 2 years ago. I was with him taking care of him in the hospital his last weeks. It was so painful for me seeing him suffering. He taught me so much. He taught me about simplicity and hard work. He taught me to appreciate my culture and he taught me never to forget who I am and where I came from. I am glad to have the opportunity to be with him during his last weeks and serve him in his sick bed. He lived a full life and I know he is in a better place.
I miss Lolo Insiong.
My parents are visiting me and my son here in Manila. Their visit has led me to some realizations that I would like to share with you in an honest and let-your-feelings-out post.
My parents, although they don’t admit it, had been treating me like a child for the past decade. Maybe this was because I got pregnant, then got married and then had the marriage anulled at a very early age. After those incidents, they probably though I am incapable of taking care of myself, much less a kid. I don’t blame them.
I had no decision making powers in the raising of my son . I did not even know that my parents took my son out of the country! I was in Manila that time and they did not inform me. Moreover, my parents always had a say on where I am going or who I am dating, hmm, although I had never been the type to listen. I live in their house and have to follow their rules. They sent me to law school so I have to still be a kid receiving allowance. They know better than I do because they are both successful lawyers and I am just a single mom who gets allowance from them. And I have to defer to whatever their decision is in raising my kid because I am in no position to raise my kid. Well, I guess they never gave me a chance before to raise my kid. Again, no blame here.
Then I made a decision that altered my life drastically. I quit law school despite my passion for it and decided to accept a job offer that although carries with it some risk but is way, way, way better than what my parents expected I can get at my age. After a lot of effort and some trying, difficult and frustrating times, I got a wonderful place. I finally got my son from Cebu and enrolled him in one of Manila’s exclusive schools. I got myself and my son to travel. I got a car and a nanny. I am living the life of a young, independent single mother.
With financial independence I now have my decision-making power. I am actually exercising parental authority over my son. My parents are visiting me in my place and recognizing the fact that I am in charge. They are seeing me as an adult who knows what she is doing. They have given guidance to me in whatever my activities are or whatever my decisions are but they have learned to trust me enough to make the final decision.
It took a long way to let my parents see me as an adult. It quite weird really because my bosses trust me and have always treated me as an adult. Hmm.. maybe because they are Americans. And in the US, when you are 18, you are treated as an adult. You are expected to be financially responsible and even move out of your parents house at that age. Contrast that fact with the fact that Filipinos tend to baby their kids even if their kids reach the age of .. God forbid! .. 40. Extended families live under one roof and single kids most often than not still live with their parents. Parental control extend way beyong the age of majority here int eh Philippine setting.
It has been at times a trying journey for me to reach this level of independence and freedom for myself and my kid. But it has been all worth it! I am now officially an adult, a mother and a professional in my parents eyes. Being an adult and actually being recognized and respected as one is a great feeling. I am thankful for my parents for raising me to become, I hope, a strong and indepedent-minded woman. I am glad with waht I have become and I am thankful for what I have experienced.
I wouldn’t be where I am now if not for my parents. And I like to believe that they are happy seeing me finally taking charge of my life and making my way in the world … although not in the way they expected.
Gosh.. . Woke up late in the afternoon. I went down to the coffeeshop across the street and ordered a latte and a huge piece of cake. I was in sweatpants because I had the intention of hitting the gym. Felt like my normal weekday routine but its not. It is 4pm, Saturday, and I will be working. I have to finish my whitepaper which is turning out to be more difficult than I had thought.
No teacher, no textbook, no courses to guide me. Just research papers from scientists like Salton, Radev, Buckley, Neto and so many more. I reading the 20th research paper. Although these papers are well-written its takes at least two readings for me to get at least a shallow level of understanding. Too many concepts, too much math, too much computer science. Tough!
The learning curve is pretty steep. I lack the prerequiste education. And these papers do not necessarily give you a course outline. Again, tough! I have this empty feeling at the pit of my stomach when I am beginnning to realize some things are beginning to be more than I can handle. I still have to identify the dots then connect them. My job is to sift through the information, structure it and do some creative thinking to apply it to my problem domain. In other words, simplify everything and identify the next steps. Then when I get that done, implement it in industrial level code.
I should learn not to let this overwhelm me. I have to start outlining the concepts I have read. After getting a feel of the big picture, start going to the nitty-gritty of the matter.
I’m doing Information Retrieval/Extraction in Semi-structured documents, specifically text summarization in a multi-document setting. If any of you are doing the similar research, give me a holler! I would certainly like to chat and share ideas with you.
Thank God for citeseer!!!! Definitely the best online repository of research papers on the web.
Goodness, my head hurts. Didn’t help either that we had a party last night. No more parties for me until I get this stuff done! I promise!
Lorenz had his soccer tourney last week. I cheered him on like a good soccer mom. They didn’t win unfortunately. It made my competitive son feel down for awhile so it took some Timezone medicine to cheer him up.
Before the tournament …
During the game… can’t see my son.. the person is blocking him
My son is sad .. =(
Now happy with the promise of Timezone
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