I don't have a fancy car, to get to you I'd walk a thousand miles....
Hands up if you know this song. Then give yourself a belly rub for 1) being born before the '90s 2) still being a Backstreet Boys fan.
Anyway, I really just wanted to get that out of my system, as it's been on repeat in my head for the last week. I really can't tell why, but FYI (or TMI) it makes for a great shower song.
Now that we have '90s boybands out of my head (and into yours), I just wanted to do another post on things I'm thankful for. Because it's the little things in life that keep us civil towards each other and to ourselves:
1) Ice sculptures! - just visited the St. Paul Winter Carnival with some friends, and I gotta give Minnesotans a huge kudos for making lemonade out of lemons. It's not easy living in subzero weather 3+ months out of the year, so it's inspiring to see Minnesotans make the most out of what they have the most of nowadays: snow and ice. Go down to the MN State Fairgrounds or Rice Park between now 'til Feb 6 to see some ridiculously beautiful ice and snow sculptures.
2) Eating at legendary restaurants - Can someone say Mighty Ducks 1, 2, and 3? I just ate at the venerable Mickey's Diner in St. Paul. Epic! and Epically greasy! It's like the Pink's or Katz's of Minnesota, you just gotta be there.
3) Weather Channel Blackberry App - so I know if I'm walking outside to -15 degree weather (face mask on) or 10 degree weather (face mask off). I also love the "Feels Like" feature, because that's what really matters, right?
4) Blackberry Messenger - wanna 'text' your cousin in the Philippines? BBM them! Yey!
5) Backstreet Boys - just 'coz they're still doing world tours (with NKOTB, no less!) when they're supposed to be, I dunno, doing Vegas lounges
6) 2010 Oscar-nominated movies - It's an amazing race this year, and I'm trying to make my way through most of the nominees. So far, I can check off The Social Network, Toy Story 3, Inception, The King's Speech (my pick!), and Black Swan off my list. Looking forward to watching The Kids Are All Right, maybe The Fighter and Winter's Bone. Not so sure about True Grit or 127 Hours.
7) Colin Firth - one minute he's dancing shirtless with a man in Mamma Mia, the next minute he's the reluctant King of England. I mean, c'mon, give this guy his well-deserved Oscar! Needless to say, for the latter.
8) Yelp! events - ah, I can't believe how many awesome events I've been to courtesy of Yelp! and it's just January! I like that our Community Manager puts together these fabulous (and free!) shindigs featuring the best local businesses. Minneapolis is BIG on "buy local," which I highly respect.
9) MSNBC.com - I love this website's interface (big photo of the top news of the hour helps), and it's much more news than nonsense, which sadly is what Yahoo is turning into, in my opinion.
10) SouthLAnd - I realize this doesn't really make me friendly or happy, since it's a pretty violent show. But I do appreciate the rawness and authenticity of this drama, not to mention the superb acting. I love that it's shot on location (actual Los Angeles), and I like that they've created a nonconforming gay character in John Cooper.
11) Smart drivers - I am so happy my friend Chad is such a good driver; two weeks ago, we had a really scary experience driving through a snowstorm when the entire windshield suddenly turned dark and we couldn't see a single thing. Using quick thinking and deft driving skills, he calmly maneuvered the car onto the shoulder and did all the right things to clear up the windshield. Phew! and Thank you!
12) Chapstick/lip balm - 'nuff said.
13) Coffee - 'nuff said, part dos.
14) Earth (The Book) - this was my sister and brother-in-law's birthday gift to me, and I am so amused at this cleverly-written textbook. Premise? Aliens who find this book are introduced to Earth and humanity, long after humanity has been eradicated from the face of said Earth. Awesome read.
15) Hearing my nephew Matthew over the phone trying to take my order - mom bought him a McDonald's kitchen set, and it was just so adorable hearing him mumble things like "french fries?" "cheezzzburger?" or whatever else he was attempting to say.
16) Living Social's Amazon.com $20-for-$10 deal - best Living Social deal ever! Here's hoping Groupon does it, too.
17) Heaters - I really wouldn't know what I'd do without it. I really wouldn't be here if I was without it.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Friday, January 7, 2011
The enemy of my enemy is my friend...
...so using that logic, someone who's cynical of being cynical is actually quite hopeful.
[Aside: OK, applying that non-logic isn't the point of the story, I just really wanted to use that line as my opener because I've been playing Modern Warfare 2 and it's one of the last lines in the game (I know, I know, I'm so two-thousand-and-late).]
But, 2011 is the year for hopeful; not for the naive, not for the doe-eyed, but for the one who believes that this year will be good, and make good on that belief. (Yes, circuitous writing is all the rage in this house). It's only been a week since I kicked off 2011 in the company of my cousin, my cousin-in-law, my young aunt and her guy, and dozens of the hippest South Asians in San Jose. So now, in a fashionably late...um....fashion, I present a snippet of my 2011 Goals & Objectives:
1) Use my dictionary/thesaurus widget less: I have found myself easily reliant on this amazing, stupendous, breathtaking, sensational tool when I'm chatting with people online, writing blogs, Yelping! or trying to sound like a pretentious snob. I should bust out and memorize the huge list of "Oxford words" that my AP US Government teacher handed out which, to this day, I still possess.
2) Get physically fit by eating right and exercising more: Yes, undoubtedly the top resolution that gets broken the most . But I think if I put realistic success measures (so, no need to look like Jillian what's-her-face), and definable action steps, then it will actually happen. I think this is starting to sound like a 1:30 PM work meeting, eh? In all honesty though, I'm starting off with a pretty good support group, so I feel great about this; it's all about losing the first 5%, then 10% of your weight, then slowly and steadily reach my goal weight through a steady regimen of (mostly cardio for now, but building in strength) exercise and conscious (but enjoyable) eating.
3) Travel: This is what I work for right now (this, and student loan payments apparently). I think I'll be concentrating on the Stateside first, but hell if I find a deal good enough on Travelzoo, I just might snatch it like the 'carpe dieming' travel bug that I'm turning into. I will always be restless to see the world, and having the capacity to do so literally is so invigorating and gratifying. Realistic destinations this year: D.C., Seattle, Chicago (again), Montreal, Boston, Mexico, Florida, Hawai'i, and Italy (here's hoping).
4) Die less in FPS games: There is virtue in playing video games! My life long dream of acquiring an Xbox 360 S last year will make this goal easier to achieve. That, and the fact that my brother lent me his awesome collection of games that will probably take me 3-6 months to get through (now that's naivete).
I've got a couple more resolutions, but the overarching goal is holistic health and genuine happiness, done in the most (in my true style) practical way. I pride myself for being the person people can rely on. But sometimes I'm the least accountable person to myself. I mean, it's common to buy myself trips, clothes, and other stuff. But, sometimes I've evaded 'long-term projects' that will contribute to my well-being (eating healthier, exercising more, etc.) because the results directly impact me, and that gives me trepidation when one of the possible results is failure.
All that said, I realize more and more everyday that I deserve to take on these personal challenges, even when I fail, because living is both the journey and the destination. Or to put it in less "that's deep, maaaaan" terms, life is like a game of Modern Warfare 2: you are enthralled being in the story, admiring the epic graphics and score of the game. You are "Soap" MacTavish, bad-ass Scottish member of Task Force 141...and then you get shot at one (or ten) too many times or get mauled by a Russian Doberman and die. Do you give up? No, you read a quick quote about war or patriotism from Dick Cheney or Zora Neale Hurston, then you're back in the game and you continue to kick ass. And when you succeed and reach the end of the stage, you're rewarded with an elating sense of gratification and a few Xbox Gold points for an epic trick you did. And then you go on to the next stage.
Yes, I just compared my life resolutions to an outdated first-person shooter game. Resolution #5: make more eloquent analogies when writing.
[Aside: OK, applying that non-logic isn't the point of the story, I just really wanted to use that line as my opener because I've been playing Modern Warfare 2 and it's one of the last lines in the game (I know, I know, I'm so two-thousand-and-late).]
But, 2011 is the year for hopeful; not for the naive, not for the doe-eyed, but for the one who believes that this year will be good, and make good on that belief. (Yes, circuitous writing is all the rage in this house). It's only been a week since I kicked off 2011 in the company of my cousin, my cousin-in-law, my young aunt and her guy, and dozens of the hippest South Asians in San Jose. So now, in a fashionably late...um....fashion, I present a snippet of my 2011 Goals & Objectives:
1) Use my dictionary/thesaurus widget less: I have found myself easily reliant on this amazing, stupendous, breathtaking, sensational tool when I'm chatting with people online, writing blogs, Yelping! or trying to sound like a pretentious snob. I should bust out and memorize the huge list of "Oxford words" that my AP US Government teacher handed out which, to this day, I still possess.
2) Get physically fit by eating right and exercising more: Yes, undoubtedly the top resolution that gets broken the most . But I think if I put realistic success measures (so, no need to look like Jillian what's-her-face), and definable action steps, then it will actually happen. I think this is starting to sound like a 1:30 PM work meeting, eh? In all honesty though, I'm starting off with a pretty good support group, so I feel great about this; it's all about losing the first 5%, then 10% of your weight, then slowly and steadily reach my goal weight through a steady regimen of (mostly cardio for now, but building in strength) exercise and conscious (but enjoyable) eating.
3) Travel: This is what I work for right now (this, and student loan payments apparently). I think I'll be concentrating on the Stateside first, but hell if I find a deal good enough on Travelzoo, I just might snatch it like the 'carpe dieming' travel bug that I'm turning into. I will always be restless to see the world, and having the capacity to do so literally is so invigorating and gratifying. Realistic destinations this year: D.C., Seattle, Chicago (again), Montreal, Boston, Mexico, Florida, Hawai'i, and Italy (here's hoping).
4) Die less in FPS games: There is virtue in playing video games! My life long dream of acquiring an Xbox 360 S last year will make this goal easier to achieve. That, and the fact that my brother lent me his awesome collection of games that will probably take me 3-6 months to get through (now that's naivete).
I've got a couple more resolutions, but the overarching goal is holistic health and genuine happiness, done in the most (in my true style) practical way. I pride myself for being the person people can rely on. But sometimes I'm the least accountable person to myself. I mean, it's common to buy myself trips, clothes, and other stuff. But, sometimes I've evaded 'long-term projects' that will contribute to my well-being (eating healthier, exercising more, etc.) because the results directly impact me, and that gives me trepidation when one of the possible results is failure.
All that said, I realize more and more everyday that I deserve to take on these personal challenges, even when I fail, because living is both the journey and the destination. Or to put it in less "that's deep, maaaaan" terms, life is like a game of Modern Warfare 2: you are enthralled being in the story, admiring the epic graphics and score of the game. You are "Soap" MacTavish, bad-ass Scottish member of Task Force 141...and then you get shot at one (or ten) too many times or get mauled by a Russian Doberman and die. Do you give up? No, you read a quick quote about war or patriotism from Dick Cheney or Zora Neale Hurston, then you're back in the game and you continue to kick ass. And when you succeed and reach the end of the stage, you're rewarded with an elating sense of gratification and a few Xbox Gold points for an epic trick you did. And then you go on to the next stage.
Yes, I just compared my life resolutions to an outdated first-person shooter game. Resolution #5: make more eloquent analogies when writing.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Something that's making me happy this week...
...I listen to NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour every week, at least before I go to sleep. It's a podcast hosted by Monkey See editor Linda Holmes, et al, and they talk about (what else?) pop culture. Anyway, at the end of the podcast they all talk about something that's making them happy this week, and it usually ends up being, like, a book, or movie, obscure TV show, or recently revived Broadway show.
So, I figured, I'm gonna try and do the same thing this week. It's so easy to get depressed nowadays (thank you Seasonal Affective Disorder), and I could use an exercise like this to put things in perspective. With that said, here's what's making me 'masaya' this week:
1) The worst of *this* snow storm is over - as people may or may not know -- and probably wouldn't have known until they saw pictures online of the collapsed Metrodome roof -- there was a crazy snow storm that hit the Midwest this past weekend. The storm dumped about 17" of snow onto Minneapolis, and needless to say there were wipeouts, stranded travelers, and frustrated people digging their cars out of the frozen tundra. But, it's all done, and that's the good thing. People pretty much got back into the swing of things on Monday, and it's like everyone woke up from a dream because the downtown Target was bustling on Monday night. I think everyone was stocking up after getting stranded in their homes the entire weekend. Which reminds me, I really should stock up some Spam and corned beef. Yum.
2) Unlimited text messages - who knew there could be so much joy with having this kind of freedom? I try not to text one word answers still, remembering the days of yore (i.e. two weeks ago) when I only had 200 text msgs on my plan (in- and outbound). But, it sure is nice to not say something to the effect of "stop talking to me". Because everybody knows Mariel loves to talk!
3) Sun Chips Harvest Cheddar - 'coz I'm eating them right now.
4) Starbucks Coffee @ work - Man, I didn't have coffee for the first time today, and only then did I truly realize how much I love that strong liquid power to get me through the day.
5) Amazon.com's awesome $25 + free shipping - gotta love this awesome online retailer for having everything in the entire known universe, and then shipping it for free.
6) Christmas Cards - received some lovely festive cards from family and friends, and for the first time ever, I'm attempting sending some out. I'm so holiday the elf ears are starting to grow.
7) My Pandora's "The Christmas Song" Mix - I love holiday music! Especially while walking outside in sub-freezing weather, nothing puts me in a happy (ok, tolerable) mood like listening to "The Christmas Song" or "Oh Holy Night" or (how apropos) "White Christmas."
8) Elf on USA Network - It's seriously my favorite holiday movie. I think it's going to be a classic in the same way "A Christmas Story" or "Christmas Vacation" now are -- two epic comedies which I still haven't seen, to the shock of others.
9) Gingerbread House decorating - So, we have a competition at work for creative gingerbread house decorating. Our team is SO stoked to build our gingerbread house which has, among other things, Slipknot AND the Beatles. Yep, it's gonna be a rockin' one.
10) Groupon's recent deal on French Meadow - I haven't had their dinner before, but since I had an amazing brunch there twice (goat cheese quiche drool), I immediately snapped this one up.
11) Planning for my Christmas and New Years trips - there's no place like home, and no better loving than from the family. And no better state than California (haha, that's not true on so many levels, but that don't matter).
12) McDonald's on Nicollet - fun late-night run, and I haven't eaten in a McDonald's for a while now. Sometimes, there's nothing better than a medium box of greasy Mickey D fries, eh?
13) My heater - Oh. My. God. Can you imagine if I didn't have one? I can't; which really makes me happy AND grateful for this, as I am for all the other things in my list.
I know that the world's imperfect, and that there's a lot of crap going on a macro and micro level. But, if we spend so much time obsessing over how sucky our lives are, then we miss the many little things that do make our lives livable and, if we're really lucky, utterly satisfying. I know where I stand in the grand scale of personal happiness...actually I don't know. What I do know is I am making an effort to stay positive [on most realms of my life], because positivity begets positivity. And I would really rather live my life as happily as I can every day. :-)
So, I figured, I'm gonna try and do the same thing this week. It's so easy to get depressed nowadays (thank you Seasonal Affective Disorder), and I could use an exercise like this to put things in perspective. With that said, here's what's making me 'masaya' this week:
1) The worst of *this* snow storm is over - as people may or may not know -- and probably wouldn't have known until they saw pictures online of the collapsed Metrodome roof -- there was a crazy snow storm that hit the Midwest this past weekend. The storm dumped about 17" of snow onto Minneapolis, and needless to say there were wipeouts, stranded travelers, and frustrated people digging their cars out of the frozen tundra. But, it's all done, and that's the good thing. People pretty much got back into the swing of things on Monday, and it's like everyone woke up from a dream because the downtown Target was bustling on Monday night. I think everyone was stocking up after getting stranded in their homes the entire weekend. Which reminds me, I really should stock up some Spam and corned beef. Yum.
2) Unlimited text messages - who knew there could be so much joy with having this kind of freedom? I try not to text one word answers still, remembering the days of yore (i.e. two weeks ago) when I only had 200 text msgs on my plan (in- and outbound). But, it sure is nice to not say something to the effect of "stop talking to me". Because everybody knows Mariel loves to talk!
3) Sun Chips Harvest Cheddar - 'coz I'm eating them right now.
4) Starbucks Coffee @ work - Man, I didn't have coffee for the first time today, and only then did I truly realize how much I love that strong liquid power to get me through the day.
5) Amazon.com's awesome $25 + free shipping - gotta love this awesome online retailer for having everything in the entire known universe, and then shipping it for free.
6) Christmas Cards - received some lovely festive cards from family and friends, and for the first time ever, I'm attempting sending some out. I'm so holiday the elf ears are starting to grow.
7) My Pandora's "The Christmas Song" Mix - I love holiday music! Especially while walking outside in sub-freezing weather, nothing puts me in a happy (ok, tolerable) mood like listening to "The Christmas Song" or "Oh Holy Night" or (how apropos) "White Christmas."
8) Elf on USA Network - It's seriously my favorite holiday movie. I think it's going to be a classic in the same way "A Christmas Story" or "Christmas Vacation" now are -- two epic comedies which I still haven't seen, to the shock of others.
9) Gingerbread House decorating - So, we have a competition at work for creative gingerbread house decorating. Our team is SO stoked to build our gingerbread house which has, among other things, Slipknot AND the Beatles. Yep, it's gonna be a rockin' one.
10) Groupon's recent deal on French Meadow - I haven't had their dinner before, but since I had an amazing brunch there twice (goat cheese quiche drool), I immediately snapped this one up.
11) Planning for my Christmas and New Years trips - there's no place like home, and no better loving than from the family. And no better state than California (haha, that's not true on so many levels, but that don't matter).
12) McDonald's on Nicollet - fun late-night run, and I haven't eaten in a McDonald's for a while now. Sometimes, there's nothing better than a medium box of greasy Mickey D fries, eh?
13) My heater - Oh. My. God. Can you imagine if I didn't have one? I can't; which really makes me happy AND grateful for this, as I am for all the other things in my list.
I know that the world's imperfect, and that there's a lot of crap going on a macro and micro level. But, if we spend so much time obsessing over how sucky our lives are, then we miss the many little things that do make our lives livable and, if we're really lucky, utterly satisfying. I know where I stand in the grand scale of personal happiness...actually I don't know. What I do know is I am making an effort to stay positive [on most realms of my life], because positivity begets positivity. And I would really rather live my life as happily as I can every day. :-)
Monday, November 22, 2010
Kung nasa Manila pa ako (If I was still in Manila)...
Paminsan-minsan, pag nakikita ko yung mga pictures ng mga kaibigan ko sa Philippines sa Facebook, nagiisip ako kung nasaan na kaya ako at this point of my life kung nandun pa 'rin ako nakatira. Lalo na ngayon na may mga websites katulad ng Facebook o Friendster (haha, Friendster, that's so two thousand and late), mas madalas kong napagiisipan..."Kung nasa Manila pa ako, ano na kaya ako ngayon?"
OK, I just realized that while it's so much easier for me to speak in Tagalog, it's exponentially easier for me to write in English. How's about them juxtaposition? It's funny, coz I've always written better in English, even though my native tongue is Tagalog, and always will be. Back in my sophomore year of high school in the Philippines, we had to write a minimum of 10-page (I think?) fiction piece, entirely in Tagalog. Oh my word, I think the only other time I've suffered as much writing anything was when I had to bullshit my way through a term paper for an online physics class (yes, online physics, probably the greatest WTF class in the history of man).
Typical digression aside, all the online-stalking of my friends/family in the Philippines, my visit to the PI last year, and just the starkness of this Minnesota winter (so alien from what I grew up in the last 20-some odd years) is making me wonder what and where I would be at this stage in my life, if I was still living in Manila.
Oddly (or maybe, not oddly) enough, the first and loudest answer to that question is: If I was still living in Manila today, I would probably be scrambling to get out of there. I know it sounds anti-patriotic, selfish, and probably why the Philippines is still struggling today, despite its abundant natural resources and wonderful geographic location (read: World War II; thanks for dragging us through the mud, bitches). But, the reality for millions of intelligent, hardworking Filipinos is that their output would probably be better compensated elsewhere. I am sure there are millions of wonderful opportunities in commerce over there. I do remember seeing Deutschbank, Allianz, Accenture, and other top companies with offices in Makati, and there's a lot of 'great' companies like San Miguel Corp., PLDT, and SM. Anyway, I really don't want to delve too deep into this issue, but I will point out that it's absolutely fascinating that even as I'm trying my hardest to formulate my "what-if" scenario, I still keep coming up against the same, stubborn conclusion: it would most likely involve me emigrating.
Ok, let's say we strike out that aforementioned option completely. I think it would be fun to start my phantasmagorical walk from where I left off (that is, when I left the Philippines):
Part I: High School
So there I was, marching down those next few yards towards my high school diploma. As I take my seat on the school stage, I am overwhelmed by happy memories. I look out to my 70+ fellow seniors and think of all our shared experiences in the last 4 years: overnight year-end parties, English week, Linggo ng Wika, camping trips, CAT trips, the Bivouac in Baguio, the quick therapy sessions where everyone get to pour their hearts out over four years of high school/teenage angst, et al.
-PS: I can't help snickering as I type this, because the latter part actually happened to some BAA alumni I know. It's very healing, I heard.
Part II: College
I go through college much like I went through high school: laser-focused and happily oblivious to my geekiness. I still live with my parents, because dorms are only for promdis (haha, how old is this lingo?). They pay for my college tuition, and I get a weekly allowance (I really cannot fathom this anymore). I commute a total of two hours every day, and I have developed an immunity to sweaty people on the Light Rail. During my four years in college, I find a favorite coffee shop by the mall, where my friends and I hang out to kill time until the rush hour dies down a little bit. On the weekends we go to the Mall (Mall of Asia, Megamall, SM North Edsa, Trinoma, whatever; we got them all). I drink a little bit, go to beerhouses once or twice with some friends, eat some street food, sing karaoke a lot, take the day off to watch Manny Pacquiao fight, all that fun stuff.
Part III: Work
I struggle finding a job for a while. It is not easy to get into those multinationals when they hire mostly B-school graduates and ex-patriates. I work, this time for real, at my family's hospital in the province. I like managing the place, but I'm a true City girl. So, I head back to Manila and keep trying. Eventually, I find a [TBD] job that I'm cool with. I now live in an apartment with a roommate, and I like going out to the mall and trying out different restaurants. Still.
Part IV: Religion
I stayed as the pianist for a children's choir until I left for college. Since I went to a non-religious school (against the strong protests of some relatives), I start to think more outside the churchly box. But, my family still goes to the same church every Saturday, and I still play the piano during 2nd Church service once in a while
Epilogue:
That's really all I can think of right now. Oh, I probably would be smaller there coz restaurants don't serve manhole-sized pancakes and 50-piece chicken nugget Happy Meals, and you can't just buy a side of cardiac arrest for a dollar. I find a guy who's slightly taller than me, and we would hang out at the mall. A lot. I'm telling you guys, the mall is to the Philippines what Costcos are to the United States: plentiful, huge, and air-conditioned.
Even with all this hard imagineering, all I've really come up with are generalities and a few scenarios I remember doing last year. I guess it's harder for me to visualize what could have been simply because I haven't been home in the Philippines in such a long time. I don't even know if it's home anymore; it seems more like a distant birthplace and childhood memory now.
There are days when I think, "Oh, how simpler things would be, if I just lived back in the Philippines." But, I know that's a naive statement, because what I'm referring to as 'simple' is my outdated concept of the Philippines from seven years ago, when I didn't have to worry about paying the bills or buying groceries or things like that. Whether I'm in Minnesota, California, or Manila, in 2010 I would be an ADULT, dealing with adult situations. Maybe my next note would be "If I was still a kid." Or, "If I was a millionaire" (I'll be on the cover of Forbes magazine, smiling next to Oprah and the Queen. You know it).
I'm probably going to be writing more about this "shoulda, coulda, woulda" the more I think about it. It's a fun exercise for my brain. The scenarios will change, and the details will evolve, but one truth remains the same: I'm proud of where I came from, and I'm prouder of where that has taken me.
OK, I just realized that while it's so much easier for me to speak in Tagalog, it's exponentially easier for me to write in English. How's about them juxtaposition? It's funny, coz I've always written better in English, even though my native tongue is Tagalog, and always will be. Back in my sophomore year of high school in the Philippines, we had to write a minimum of 10-page (I think?) fiction piece, entirely in Tagalog. Oh my word, I think the only other time I've suffered as much writing anything was when I had to bullshit my way through a term paper for an online physics class (yes, online physics, probably the greatest WTF class in the history of man).
Typical digression aside, all the online-stalking of my friends/family in the Philippines, my visit to the PI last year, and just the starkness of this Minnesota winter (so alien from what I grew up in the last 20-some odd years) is making me wonder what and where I would be at this stage in my life, if I was still living in Manila.
Oddly (or maybe, not oddly) enough, the first and loudest answer to that question is: If I was still living in Manila today, I would probably be scrambling to get out of there. I know it sounds anti-patriotic, selfish, and probably why the Philippines is still struggling today, despite its abundant natural resources and wonderful geographic location (read: World War II; thanks for dragging us through the mud, bitches). But, the reality for millions of intelligent, hardworking Filipinos is that their output would probably be better compensated elsewhere. I am sure there are millions of wonderful opportunities in commerce over there. I do remember seeing Deutschbank, Allianz, Accenture, and other top companies with offices in Makati, and there's a lot of 'great' companies like San Miguel Corp., PLDT, and SM. Anyway, I really don't want to delve too deep into this issue, but I will point out that it's absolutely fascinating that even as I'm trying my hardest to formulate my "what-if" scenario, I still keep coming up against the same, stubborn conclusion: it would most likely involve me emigrating.
Ok, let's say we strike out that aforementioned option completely. I think it would be fun to start my phantasmagorical walk from where I left off (that is, when I left the Philippines):
Part I: High School
So there I was, marching down those next few yards towards my high school diploma. As I take my seat on the school stage, I am overwhelmed by happy memories. I look out to my 70+ fellow seniors and think of all our shared experiences in the last 4 years: overnight year-end parties, English week, Linggo ng Wika, camping trips, CAT trips, the Bivouac in Baguio, the quick therapy sessions where everyone get to pour their hearts out over four years of high school/teenage angst, et al.
-PS: I can't help snickering as I type this, because the latter part actually happened to some BAA alumni I know. It's very healing, I heard.
Part II: College
I go through college much like I went through high school: laser-focused and happily oblivious to my geekiness. I still live with my parents, because dorms are only for promdis (haha, how old is this lingo?). They pay for my college tuition, and I get a weekly allowance (I really cannot fathom this anymore). I commute a total of two hours every day, and I have developed an immunity to sweaty people on the Light Rail. During my four years in college, I find a favorite coffee shop by the mall, where my friends and I hang out to kill time until the rush hour dies down a little bit. On the weekends we go to the Mall (Mall of Asia, Megamall, SM North Edsa, Trinoma, whatever; we got them all). I drink a little bit, go to beerhouses once or twice with some friends, eat some street food, sing karaoke a lot, take the day off to watch Manny Pacquiao fight, all that fun stuff.
Part III: Work
I struggle finding a job for a while. It is not easy to get into those multinationals when they hire mostly B-school graduates and ex-patriates. I work, this time for real, at my family's hospital in the province. I like managing the place, but I'm a true City girl. So, I head back to Manila and keep trying. Eventually, I find a [TBD] job that I'm cool with. I now live in an apartment with a roommate, and I like going out to the mall and trying out different restaurants. Still.
Part IV: Religion
I stayed as the pianist for a children's choir until I left for college. Since I went to a non-religious school (against the strong protests of some relatives), I start to think more outside the churchly box. But, my family still goes to the same church every Saturday, and I still play the piano during 2nd Church service once in a while
Epilogue:
That's really all I can think of right now. Oh, I probably would be smaller there coz restaurants don't serve manhole-sized pancakes and 50-piece chicken nugget Happy Meals, and you can't just buy a side of cardiac arrest for a dollar. I find a guy who's slightly taller than me, and we would hang out at the mall. A lot. I'm telling you guys, the mall is to the Philippines what Costcos are to the United States: plentiful, huge, and air-conditioned.
Even with all this hard imagineering, all I've really come up with are generalities and a few scenarios I remember doing last year. I guess it's harder for me to visualize what could have been simply because I haven't been home in the Philippines in such a long time. I don't even know if it's home anymore; it seems more like a distant birthplace and childhood memory now.
There are days when I think, "Oh, how simpler things would be, if I just lived back in the Philippines." But, I know that's a naive statement, because what I'm referring to as 'simple' is my outdated concept of the Philippines from seven years ago, when I didn't have to worry about paying the bills or buying groceries or things like that. Whether I'm in Minnesota, California, or Manila, in 2010 I would be an ADULT, dealing with adult situations. Maybe my next note would be "If I was still a kid." Or, "If I was a millionaire" (I'll be on the cover of Forbes magazine, smiling next to Oprah and the Queen. You know it).
I'm probably going to be writing more about this "shoulda, coulda, woulda" the more I think about it. It's a fun exercise for my brain. The scenarios will change, and the details will evolve, but one truth remains the same: I'm proud of where I came from, and I'm prouder of where that has taken me.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
"Community" College: I am the Human Being Mascot.
I'm so unabashed about the fact that I went to community college. I really appreciate that decision because it allowed me to:
1) Go to Spain for a month for cheap - a me encanta Espana
2) Work a part-time job at Subway, which allowed me to buy things I didn't need and save up for stuff I didn't even know I wanted, such as my first smartphone and a horrid Compaq laptop.
3) Live on the cheap - nothing beats free boarding and mom doing your laundry every week.
4) Take the time to decide my major, without sucking the money from my wallet hole - not to knock on those that change majors multiple times, but it's definitely better doing it while you're paying $1 a semester versus 10 grand or so.
5) Oh, and pay only $1 a semester - thank you FAFSA.
6) Take the time to vet my top transfer schools carefully - I knew I was only at community to prepare me for the next step, which is four-year. Back in high school, I really wasn't passionate about any particular university. I had only been in the States for about two years at that point, and I've hung out with enough nerds who breathed and sighed "UCLA" or "USC" that I wanted to smash my head in if I heard those acronyms one more time. So, the moment I stepped into Pasadena, I started looking at different schools that fitted the path I was sure I'll take and landed on my dream school (and eventual alma mater): UC Berkeley. Take that Pepperdine, you sickeningly gorgeous, pretentious school (can you sense the animosity of getting rejected, 3 years later? haha).
So, my point of fanning the feathers of community college is because it has an undistinguished rep for a lot of people. But, finally - FINALLY - there is a show that is putting community college in the limelight, albeit not always in the most helpful ways. I think one of my favorite network shows, "Community," is a dichotomous representation of community college: sometimes it's lambasting community college as nothing more than a second high school (like in Episode 1 and Dean Pelton's hilarious welcome speech denigrating his own school), other times it portrays community college as this fantastic (for lack of a better word) community of a diverse student body with secret trampoline gardens, fantastic chicken fingers at the caf, and easy breezy classes like pottery and anthropology taught by Betty White. When I saw the pilot of this show, I wasn't surprised that Community College is portrayed as the former: a joke of an institution where bored old men, single moms, frustrated punks, dumb jocks, and disbarred lawyers go to get a throwaway education (reminded me of this funny SNL sketch). That being said, it still had an amazingly funny plot that got me hooked, and the show only got wildly better from there. And, as the series progressed it was very obvious that Greendale Community College is the eighth (or ninth, if you count Senor/Student Chang as a main) primary character here. Bearing all of community college's high and low stereotypes, the school has served as this fantastic backdrop, world, setting, arc, supporting role, et al. for every stupidly hilarious episode.
To end this on a lazy note, here's a double-whammy list of what is and isn't true about CCs as portrayed in "Community," solely from my experience as a loud and proud CC alumni:
Realistic
1) Chicken fingers are, indeed, the best things offered in the caf. That, and tater tots for breakfast. (S1E21)
2) There are many, many fun blow-off classes, like (and I took this class for real) an online Physics class. Like, seriously. (S1E19)
3) You will definitely meet an old guy trying to stave off dementia by enrolling in community (Every episode; we love our Pierce)
4) You will also definitely meet a neurotic, crazy nerd who is so focused on transferring to a four-year university (all signs point to me) (S1E13)
5) Your 'notable' alumni will run the whole gamut, from super-accomplished people who prove that community colleges aren't just for losers (Pasadena has Jackie Robinson and Eddie Van Halen) to those who you wished just stayed in high school...or their mom's womb (S1E6)
6) Starburns
Not realistic
1) Community Colleges do not have that many dances. In the words of Jeff Winger, "How many dances does this school have?!". They also do not have Transfer Dances and "Tranny" queens (S1E25)
2) There are no fantastic paintball wars that take place and decimate the entire school population in a pool of wet colorant (S1E23)
3) I'm pretty sure you can't get butt-naked playing pool (S1E17)
4) There are NO DORMS in community colleges (S1E23)
5) No professor will survive after shooting his/her student with a multi-weapon contraption. Then again, no professor is as great as Betty effing White (S2E1)
1) Go to Spain for a month for cheap - a me encanta Espana
2) Work a part-time job at Subway, which allowed me to buy things I didn't need and save up for stuff I didn't even know I wanted, such as my first smartphone and a horrid Compaq laptop.
3) Live on the cheap - nothing beats free boarding and mom doing your laundry every week.
4) Take the time to decide my major, without sucking the money from my wallet hole - not to knock on those that change majors multiple times, but it's definitely better doing it while you're paying $1 a semester versus 10 grand or so.
5) Oh, and pay only $1 a semester - thank you FAFSA.
6) Take the time to vet my top transfer schools carefully - I knew I was only at community to prepare me for the next step, which is four-year. Back in high school, I really wasn't passionate about any particular university. I had only been in the States for about two years at that point, and I've hung out with enough nerds who breathed and sighed "UCLA" or "USC" that I wanted to smash my head in if I heard those acronyms one more time. So, the moment I stepped into Pasadena, I started looking at different schools that fitted the path I was sure I'll take and landed on my dream school (and eventual alma mater): UC Berkeley. Take that Pepperdine, you sickeningly gorgeous, pretentious school (can you sense the animosity of getting rejected, 3 years later? haha).
So, my point of fanning the feathers of community college is because it has an undistinguished rep for a lot of people. But, finally - FINALLY - there is a show that is putting community college in the limelight, albeit not always in the most helpful ways. I think one of my favorite network shows, "Community," is a dichotomous representation of community college: sometimes it's lambasting community college as nothing more than a second high school (like in Episode 1 and Dean Pelton's hilarious welcome speech denigrating his own school), other times it portrays community college as this fantastic (for lack of a better word) community of a diverse student body with secret trampoline gardens, fantastic chicken fingers at the caf, and easy breezy classes like pottery and anthropology taught by Betty White. When I saw the pilot of this show, I wasn't surprised that Community College is portrayed as the former: a joke of an institution where bored old men, single moms, frustrated punks, dumb jocks, and disbarred lawyers go to get a throwaway education (reminded me of this funny SNL sketch). That being said, it still had an amazingly funny plot that got me hooked, and the show only got wildly better from there. And, as the series progressed it was very obvious that Greendale Community College is the eighth (or ninth, if you count Senor/Student Chang as a main) primary character here. Bearing all of community college's high and low stereotypes, the school has served as this fantastic backdrop, world, setting, arc, supporting role, et al. for every stupidly hilarious episode.
To end this on a lazy note, here's a double-whammy list of what is and isn't true about CCs as portrayed in "Community," solely from my experience as a loud and proud CC alumni:
Realistic
1) Chicken fingers are, indeed, the best things offered in the caf. That, and tater tots for breakfast. (S1E21)
2) There are many, many fun blow-off classes, like (and I took this class for real) an online Physics class. Like, seriously. (S1E19)
3) You will definitely meet an old guy trying to stave off dementia by enrolling in community (Every episode; we love our Pierce)
4) You will also definitely meet a neurotic, crazy nerd who is so focused on transferring to a four-year university (all signs point to me) (S1E13)
5) Your 'notable' alumni will run the whole gamut, from super-accomplished people who prove that community colleges aren't just for losers (Pasadena has Jackie Robinson and Eddie Van Halen) to those who you wished just stayed in high school...or their mom's womb (S1E6)
6) Starburns
Not realistic
1) Community Colleges do not have that many dances. In the words of Jeff Winger, "How many dances does this school have?!". They also do not have Transfer Dances and "Tranny" queens (S1E25)
2) There are no fantastic paintball wars that take place and decimate the entire school population in a pool of wet colorant (S1E23)
3) I'm pretty sure you can't get butt-naked playing pool (S1E17)
4) There are NO DORMS in community colleges (S1E23)
5) No professor will survive after shooting his/her student with a multi-weapon contraption. Then again, no professor is as great as Betty effing White (S2E1)
Thursday, November 11, 2010
It's coming...
...that's what....ah, that's too easy. Anyway, winter is inevitable. God damn it. There I was, less than 72 hours ago, reveling at the freak experience that is a 'warm' November day in Minnesota. Warm, for my Pacific coast amigos, is low 50's, high 40's. But now, upon checking on my trusty weather widget on my Mac, I find that the next few days are going to be an average high of 37. That being said, I'm still trying to stay zen about the whole thing. I just can't believe that it's going to snow again. It's kinda funny how less than 18 months ago I was so looking forward to seeing a snowflake and putting on my kick-ass sherpa-like snow boots to trudge through the white powder. Now, I'm kinda over it, to be honest. It's fun if you have enough space to run around and make snow angels and snowmen and what-not. It's not fun when, four months into winter, you still see the same, stagnant pile of dirty snow piled up next to the Domino's on 11th street.
Ok, that whole 'zen' thing just totally went out the window, didn't it? Haha. Well, I will make a list of things I want to do to get through the cold weather blues that I didn't get to do last winter season. And I'm making a list because, to Linda Holmes's point, lists are a lazy way to write:
1) Make a snowman
2) Engage in a playful snow fight (ok, my pragmatic, adult subconscious tells me this isn't happening)
3) Go to the Winter Carnival in St. Paul
4) Walk on a frozen lake
5) Stay in someone's cabin. PS: I love it when people use the possessive "MY cabin," like they pay the mortgage on the thing as opposed to the reality, which is that their grandparents already paid off the cabin years ago and they just share it with the rest of the clan.
6) Watch the Nutcracker
7) Volunteer to serve warm meals at a soup kitchen
8) Drink eggnog
9) Sled
10) Be happy!
Any more winter ideas, bring it on.
And, to give everyone a little happy, here's an amazing Taiwanese animation titled US-Sino Currency Rap Battle. Enjoy.
Ok, that whole 'zen' thing just totally went out the window, didn't it? Haha. Well, I will make a list of things I want to do to get through the cold weather blues that I didn't get to do last winter season. And I'm making a list because, to Linda Holmes's point, lists are a lazy way to write:
1) Make a snowman
2) Engage in a playful snow fight (ok, my pragmatic, adult subconscious tells me this isn't happening)
3) Go to the Winter Carnival in St. Paul
4) Walk on a frozen lake
5) Stay in someone's cabin. PS: I love it when people use the possessive "MY cabin," like they pay the mortgage on the thing as opposed to the reality, which is that their grandparents already paid off the cabin years ago and they just share it with the rest of the clan.
6) Watch the Nutcracker
7) Volunteer to serve warm meals at a soup kitchen
8) Drink eggnog
9) Sled
10) Be happy!
Any more winter ideas, bring it on.
And, to give everyone a little happy, here's an amazing Taiwanese animation titled US-Sino Currency Rap Battle. Enjoy.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Don't think, just do!
I don't know what I'm trying to get at with this posting.
1) I think I will just write a haiku about how much I love Wikipedia.
Searching for answers
I rely on humankind
Enlighten my mind
2) Or a free-verse on cheese:
Brie, I am you and you are me
Your exterior so tough and hard to swallow
But inside you are as soft
As a beautiful Daydream
Why bleu cheese, must you be
Existentially
Be the epitome
Of mold?
You are how cheese is made
But sometime people don't want to be told
About the work; but you're bold
I can taste your hard work in my tongue
3) There's a difference between being lonely and being alone. Whoever wants to be the latter just gets tired of the mad crush of humanity once a while. The one who wants the former is lying to themselves.
4) Lastly, more about cheese
American Cheese
Are you real cheese?
You are humble, simple and unassuming
Mocked and sneered at by many
But, when all I want is comfort and compassion
Between two pieces of warm understanding
There's no one else I'd run to
But you.
1) I think I will just write a haiku about how much I love Wikipedia.
Searching for answers
I rely on humankind
Enlighten my mind
2) Or a free-verse on cheese:
Brie, I am you and you are me
Your exterior so tough and hard to swallow
But inside you are as soft
As a beautiful Daydream
Why bleu cheese, must you be
Existentially
Be the epitome
Of mold?
You are how cheese is made
But sometime people don't want to be told
About the work; but you're bold
I can taste your hard work in my tongue
3) There's a difference between being lonely and being alone. Whoever wants to be the latter just gets tired of the mad crush of humanity once a while. The one who wants the former is lying to themselves.
4) Lastly, more about cheese
American Cheese
Are you real cheese?
You are humble, simple and unassuming
Mocked and sneered at by many
But, when all I want is comfort and compassion
Between two pieces of warm understanding
There's no one else I'd run to
But you.
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