Silent Protest

I feel bad talking about kitschy New York living when my poor country is in shambles. In the past weeks, at least three events in the Philippines made it to the top stories in international papers (all bad news), and I have even been approached by my friends here asking if my family is well and safe.

I keep myself up to date with Philippine current events on a regular basis, and reading about the tragedies, poverty and disorder makes me feel like one of those clueless brats safely tucked inside airconditioned SUV's in Rockwell. Minus the aircon, the SUV and the brattiness, perhaps you would think that living in a place far away from the action adds to the "couldn't care any less" attitude. You're wrong.

Let's put it this way. When you watch the Super Bowl at home, even if you are miles away from the stadium, you still share the same excitement, the same feeling of triumph or defeat, you shed the same amount of tears and the same amount of joy. If your team is defeated, would you recklessly throw rocks on the TV to boo the winning one? Obviously you won't, that's just ridiculous.

The same way happens when you read about people trying to overthrow the Philippine government. You build the same amount of angst like fellows who are actually there first-hand, enough to make you protest, cry and kill like any other. You protest silently, but deep within you, you are bursting with sympathy, anger, disdain and disgust.

I do hope that there continues to be relief efforts in Leyte, that the masses will learn about having false hopes from showbiz personalities from the Ultra stampede, and that Gloria keeps herself together for the good of the country.

Girl Bonding

There is never more than enough girl bonding in my life. I could have it like everyday, just like drinking coffee. I had a dose of it tonight, and it was a pleasure not having men around for a change.

I decided to spend my Friday night out in Soho with the girls to celebrate the big 3-0 of one of my friends. We went to Ghenet, this authentic Ethiopian place at Mulberry Street. We had a huge combination plate of Sega Wett, veggies and different kinds of curry, served with fresh injera (this really soft crepe-like bread that you use as a utensil to eat). We had Ethiopian lager beer in between silly banters and girly talk. The whole dining experience had to be communal, and we had to use our hands - but none of us minded! It was a great night.

Here's a bad photo...



Oh, and this is the cheesecake we shared, very typical.



I ended up taking the last piece anyway. Ha!

Being with people from different places always gets interesting. At one point, we had the restaurant sing a birthday song for my friend, and they served a small flan with a candle on it.
She said, "What is this?" My Indian friend said, "The British call it Creme Custard". My Romanian friend said, "To us, it's Cream Sugar". And then I said, "In the Philippines, we call it Leche Flan." My Hongkongese friend said they don't have dessert of that kind. And then we dove in and finished it.

Sex in Two Cities

People in New York talk about sex, have sex, watch sex, dream about sex, think about sex, love sex, use sex, film sex, pay for sex and never get pregnant. People in Manila don't talk about sex, but they dream, think, love, use, film, watch, pay and have sex... and get pregnant. And then, they start talking about it!

Why is that? Is talking about it the best contraceptive invented?

Lazy Wintery Weekend

A record-breaking 27 inches of snow filled the streets of New York this weekend, which caused plenty of trips, flights and study group meetings to be cancelled. As for me, my weekend plans changed from a drinking birthday party -- to a homemade chocolate fondue surprise! ;-)

Yes, David and I ended up staying at home for most of the whole weekend. We watched 24, yet again, like it's routine - but a very nice routine to do on a lazy, no-homework day. We were watching the 5th season, while devouring on chocolate-covered fruits using this fondue set I got as a Christmas gift, and munching on baby carrots with hummus like it's french fries. Great combo.

Speaking of 24, I never imagined a series could be that intense! I am so hooked that it had already caused me Jack Bauer nightmares! Sometimes, when it's too much blood to handle already, we slow down with some The Office. I love Steve Carrell so much (from the 40 Year Old Virgin) that Rick Gervais (of the British version) can never be up to par! That show reminds me of being back at work again. I've seen characters in real life like those in the show, and it is hilarious as hell. I am in love with it -- finally, I can move on from that SATC stage I took on for a couple of years.

***

I didn't have time to blog about the recent tragic stampede back in Manila, but as soon as I heard about it (just a few hours after it happened), I went online and read more about it in the news. It is horrible. Words failed me.

I received a forwarded email about the incident, and reading it made me feel sorry for my fellowmen back home - at the same time, feeling blessed that none of my loved ones were there. If you have time, this is a very good read you can ponder on when you feel like you don't have enough blessings on earth.

***

Sometime between now and a couple of weeks ago, I learned to accept that people have different measures of success and levels of contentment. Some people are happy and content if and only if they are in investment banking, earning 6 digits a year. Some are fulfilled when they sell enough moisturizing creams to snobby customers. Some just see themselves waiting tables for the rest of their lives. And no matter what kind of "push" or "pull" you do to them, thinking that they can do "so much better", you will get nothing but resistance.

This thought made me remember my Theology class back in college. There was a lesson that tackled Marriage and Relationships, and that a relationship between two people with, let's just say "different goals or aspirations", can never work. For example, let us pair a farmer and a socialite. Although there is dignity in being a farmer, a high-society mogul may not understand this, coming from two different backgrounds. The socialite might resent the farmer if she is not treated like a princess, and the farmer will get very frustrated by her expensive lifestyle. This is of course a very extreme case, but you get the point.

Each person sets his own standards, mostly driven by the people and environment he had grown up to. And if those standards are not met, he thinks he is not getting his money/time/heart/mind/body's worth and eventually breaks away... to look elsewhere for something to fulfill his expectations, whether it's more or less than what he had had.

***

The weather is so cold and depressing now, that I just calm myself with that Kokomo song by the Beach Boys. Aruba, Jamaica, ooh I wanna take you... to Bermuda, Bahamas... Come on pretty Mama, Key Largo, Montego, Jamaica! That's where we wanna go... way down to Kokomo! Those wonderful islands I will visit not too long from now :-)

A Notable Blog

Chewy is super tech-savvy (and in the know) to be able to start a blog about... @$^#&$*(&%??!