Kiehl's Greenbelt 5

At long last, one of the most awaited and highly anticipated brands in the history of cosmetics will be finally arriving on Philippine shores. Kiehl’s since 1851 will be in October 2007 at Greenbelt 5. Founded as an old world apothecary in New York’s East Village over 150 years ago, the brand is going strong as it steadily expands around the globe. As it launches simultaneously in Malaysia and Thailand, Kiehl’s will have its 40 sqm. maiden store at the ground floor drop off area of the soon-to-open Greenbelt 5. Celebrities such as Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes love their Crème with Silk Groom (SRP: P1,175.00), Mischa Barton favors the Blue Astringent Herbal Lotion (SRP: P700.00 for 4.2 oz.), Amino Acid Shampoo (SRP: P750.00 for 4.2 oz.) is Kirsten Dunst’s fave, while me and Julia Roberts can’t live without our Lip Balm # 1 (SRP: P450.00 for . 5 oz.)

The soft launch was held in the lobby of Greenbelt 3 with Shu Uemura’s Tina Tinio in attendance, who is now based in Singapore, and Kiehl’s product manager in the Philippines, Sheena Dy. We savored hotdogs from Muscle Beach, ice cream from Haagen-Dazs, and popcorn from Chimera. Beauty editors and leading editors-in-chief such as Lorraine Belmonte of Mega, Sari Yap of Lifestyle Asia and Myrza Sison of Marie Claire Philippines were in attendance. We were treated with samples of Kiehl’s Facial Fuel and Blue Astringent Herbal Lotion. Receptionists started taking our orders, in a form of prscriptions, as we enter the event. The items will be picked up once the store opens this October. I can’t hardly wait for my orders. Thanks to Tina Daniac, who designed Tina Tinio’s handpainted dress for the launch, and she decided to tag me along.

On hindsight, I even attended the FGD (focus group discussion) for Kiehl’s back in 2004. I got free L’Oreal items after attending it. Kiehl’s is the sister brand of L’Oreal and Shu Uemura worldwide.

The "It" Bag

While watching one of the episodes of “Ugly Betty”, I cried a bucket. The topic was fashion, and how it was good for one’s soul. The bone of contention between Betty and her conscience was about a Gucci bag. It was deemed as the “it” bag of the moment, and everyone at her office wanted to have it from the “sale”. The wardrobe keeper, who happens to be Betty’s friend, reserved it especially for her. When Betty finally received it, it brought back memories of her mother, who gave her a handbag similar to the Gucci one. As mentioned by her sister, it sealed Betty’s position as their mother’s favorite daughter. The sad part came when Betty had to part with the Gucci bag to buy important medicines for her dad since the neighborhood drugstore won’t let them use a credit line anymore. Betty used the bag as “pawn” and exchanged the bag for medicines. And along the way, she bought a fake one to sell to Mark, the gay officemate who wanted it so badly, and she bought one herself as well as to not disappoint the wardrobe mistress about letting go of the “it” bag. Eventually, the wardrobe assistant noticed that Betty was not carrying the genuine article, and Betty was forced to confess about her predicament.

This particular episode tugged a special chord in my heart. Yes, I cried a river, about Betty’s financial woes and my own. That I had to part with my “it” bags as well, my beloved “babies”, because I have to survive. Friends won’t lend me money anymore, and the way Betty can’t buy medicines for her dad, I can’t anymore pay my mortgages. I had to kiss them goodbye, under the positive impression that I will one day earn money to buy them again.

Recently, I got myself a Tod’s “it” bag, an authentic one, from a thrift store./. And I am embarrassed that why bags such as this Tod’s affected thousand of girls one way or the other. Fashion is really good for one’s soul, it uplifts them when things are not going well. Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel, the inventor of “poor chic”, lifted the spirits of women who just emerged with the bitter remnants of second World War, and gave them jersey knit, usually reserved for men’s underwear, because raw materials were still in short supply. To Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, Balenciaga, and a host of other great designers, thank you so much for feeding our souls.

Persevere in running the race..

Hebrews 12:1-4

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction from evil people, and you will not be discouraged or grow weary. Have you already shed your blood in the struggle against sin?"

Lately, I have been reading passages from Bible, especially from the Hebrews. It is all about faith and about perseverance. I can't help it. I only have now faith to keep me running, I have lost a lot of so-called friends. And I am bitter about the series of unfortunate events that have taken place in my life.

Sometimes, people will kill your spirit with their words or actions. It is all about letting them pass unnoticed for they will just weigh you down. Most of the times, what other people will pass on as truth will stop us from doing things. Fear is something that is all in the mind. Fear will stop as from doing things. Today, I have found it out myself. I am a fearless person, quite independent, and as much as possible, try to find things out of my own. However, at times, I don’t know if its plain stupidity that I rely on others. They say no man is an island, that we need others to survive. This led to my own downfall. I relied on others lately, thus losing my own identity. Prior to meeting these people, I was on my own, I lasted 7 years without them around, some of them I don’t even know. You hear phrases such as “Jake, it is not that easy, you need capital”, “Jake, to set up a company requires logistics”, and such. Getting a DTI Business Permit took me 3 hours to get, from application to releasing of the papers. I should have done it before, on my own. I should not have relied on business partners who just took my earnings, prospective partners that even asked for my birth signs and yet, I have never seen them again. Another even suggested a glitzy business address such as Makati ShangriLa, and yet, after 6 months, it never materialized. I guess It can make it on my own, the way I survived without these people. My name and my talents are my proprietary trademarks, God gave me a purpose, and I am thankful that despite the setbacks, I have learned everything out of His own goodness. Now, I have to do everything on my own. I tried asking for help from these so-called friends, and it went unheeded and fell on deaf ears. As they say, “Charity delayed is charity denied”. As they say, “Treat anyone with kindness, even those who are rude to you, not because they are not good, but because you are good”. And I am so fucking good, that is beyond dispute. Enough said.

Abraham's Faith

Faith is the realization of what is hoped for
and evidence of things not seen. 
Because of it the ancients were well attested.

By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place
that he was to receive as an inheritance;
he went out, not knowing where he was to go. 
By faith he sojourned in the promised land as in a foreign country,
dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs of the same promise;
for he was looking forward to the city with foundations,
whose architect and maker is God. 
By faith he received power to generate,
even though he was past the normal age
—and Sarah herself was sterile—
for he thought that the one who had made the promise was
trustworthy.
So it was that there came forth from one man,
himself as good as dead,
descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky
and as countless as the sands on the seashore. These all died in faith, not having received what was promised, but having seen it and greeted it from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city. By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was ready to offer up his only son, of whom it was said, "Through Isaac shall your descendants be named." He considered that God was able to raise men even from the dead; hence, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.

Seaside musings

The storm has passed. It is all quiet and peaceful. After hearing mass at Saint Jude, I decided to hang out at Starbucks by the bay. Looking at Manila Yatch Club from afar as well as the Manila Bay skyline, I can’t help but fall in love with the City Of Man, as addressed by then Metro Manila Governor Imelda Marcos. A lot has changed, with only 3 skyscrapers jostling from the view in the ‘90s, the Manila Diamond Hotel, Silahis Hotel and Ramon Magsaysay Center, Roxas Boulevard is now peppered with a score of high-rise buildings.

I started my professional career in ’93 when I was employed by J. Walter Thompson’s sister company, Lexington/Hill & Knowlton PR. I took my summer practicum a year before that at J. Walter Thompson as well. Our office then was in Ramon Magsaysay Center and it was facing the sea. Cigarette breaks were consumed at the ground floor of the white granite building. I felt so powerful back then, with an office building that reminded me of Rockefeller in New York, and an above-average compensation. My starting salary back then was double as to what my classmates were receiving. I was handling blue chip accounts such as Boeing, Chase Manhattan, Pepsi Cola, AT & T, and HBO Asia, who was being introduced back then since cable was a growing market. After the fall of EDSA, the uppercrust was receiving feed from the US bases thru UHF or FEN, and cable was never heard of. Lexington was really a small office, we occupied barely 1/8 of an entire floor, maybe around 100 square meter. My boss then was an ex-seminarian and an old bachelor who took a liking of me and decided to make me his protégé. Everyday, we ate out of the office, and I did the rounds of popular places, Café Adriatico, Manila Hotel, Bistro Remedios, Tonette’s, the Lobby and Island Café of then newly-opened ShangriLa Makati, the Lobby of Manila Peninsula. Nights were spent drinking at Conway’s, SkyLounge of Diamond Hotel. Then my boss got a call from a headhunter and he eventually left me for another job, with a promise that I will join him in a month’s time.

After my short stint as a writer, media relations manager and account person with Lexington, my former boss brought me to Caltex Philippines. I was placed under the Office Of The President and was in charge of Corporate Communications. From Ramon Magsaysay, I was hoarded into the new and spanking building called 6750 Ayala Avenue. The future looked so bright, I received an offer that was unheard of for someone who was barely in his 20s. I was offered P10,000 when the going rate then was P3,500. I was 19 and on top of my game, working with a Fortune 500 company. I aced the necessary exams that lasted for 4 hours for the job, and the testing center even added a note that I was highly recommended for the position. Friends were joking, now I am “Miss Caltex”, in allusion to the popular beauty search in the 70s producing the likes of Maggie Dela Riva. I started my driving lessons earlier when I was still with Lexington since a car plan was in the offing. I did drive my boss around in his company car and I get to bring it home afterwards. It was a Sentra Saloon in pearlized blue, I wanted mine to be moss green.

Then I fell in love. I met someone, a bisexual flight steward from Philippine Airlines. On the night of our first chance encounter in Malate, I felt he was the one. He was 10 years my senior, a goodlooking man by the name of Jay, a deadringer for Bong Revilla with a gorgeous body to boot. The first date ended up in bed, and it was decided there after that we become an item. I moved in with him in Quezon City and basically, it was my first taste of a working relationship. He was out of the country most of the time, and when he was in town, I was his girl Friday. I cooked for him and his family, washed his clothes, ironed his uniform, and kept the house clean. I became domesticated. It made a toll on my professional life. My boss started noticing that I stopped joining him on his after office drinking session as well as his weekend malling, and stopped being his personal driver. I was usually with my new boyfriend, he usually picks me up after work and we usually spend our weekends in his house in Pampanga.

One day, I received my pink slip and when I asked Caltex HR about the real scenario, I was told that as a probationary employee, their hands were tied since my boss instructed them to terminate me. I felt furious and realized that my boss was a closet homosexual after all. He took everything personally, and on my part, I was guilty of getting the freebies without thinking about the consequences. How one can explain the free lunches and dinners, the high salary offer, the free shopping trips, the occasional cash dole outs. I started suspecting about the nature of the relationship when we shared hotel rooms on out-of-town business trips. At first, it was OK with me given the rationale that maybe, it was cost-efficiency he was after. We used to visit Cebu Plaza Hotel when we were working under Lexington since it was our account. Then Caltex came, one time, a trip to Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte for the Good Roots project, I insisted on a separate room in Fort Ilocandia for which he felt slighted. Given the fact that Caltex was wallowing in cash courtesy of the daily spike in gas prices, I felt I deserved my own room. That was the start of a strained relationship. We did not speak to each other for 12 hours on our way back to Manila.

My personal life also took a dive. My flight attendant boyfriend told me he loved me, and yet, he wanted to take a breather. He felt that I was really young for him, and the 10 year age gap was too much too handle. He realized this four months after we became an item, how’s that for good slap. He said he will be gone for 3 weeks and taking a break in California. When he was on his way back, he sent me a message thru my pager (mobile phones were still a thing of the past then, we communicated with the preferred mode of technology, the beeper or pager, I had a Beeper 150 then, top of the line, alpha numeric 4-liner Motorola model, and I still remember my number, Beeper 150-311822), he asked me to meet him up at the airport tarmac. Since my boyfriend’s brother worked also with Philippine Airlines, he was able to whisk me all the way to the tube connecting the plane at the arrival area. Lo and behold, my boyfriend emerged with a Filipino actor whose sexuality was also under question. It was more than enough to break my young heart. We decided to call it quits and I fell into a depression.

After the premature departure from Caltex and a lovelife gone kaput, I was lucky enough to be hired after 2 weeks by my first advertising agency, Adformatix. I swallowed the bitter pill of adjusting my paycheck from P10,000 to P6,500, still high by industry standards. Adformatix was thee first office I felt home. The organization was basically Filipino, there was the patriarch, Mr. Guillermo T. Garcia, whom we all addressed as GTG. The mother hen was the head of HR, whom we fondly call “Mother”. I was given the account of MY San, makers of Skyflakes and Fita, as well as a start up Filipino personal care company called Splash. My first acid test came when Ruffa Guttierez was involved in an envelope-switching scandal called Manila FilmFest Scam, the now infamous Viveka Vavaji “Take It! Take It” blopper. We had to replace Ruffa as a brand endorser for Splash Extract Ace, her “Kutis Na Pang-Miss World” tagline needed replacement ASAP. Luckily, Charlene Gonzales just emerged as a finalist from Miss Universe held in Manila and she was tapped as the impromptu replacement. After haggling with her mother for the correct talent fee which ended up in seven figure as well since they found out that Ruffa was paid the same, we did a storyboard in a day, got an approval the next day from client, and shoot was scheduled the day after. It was what you call “one week” campaign, from storyboarding to the actual TV commercial. The day before the shoot, guess who was on the phone one early morning? It was Ruffa’s mother, Tita Annabel Rama hurling some unprintables at me. I just sat then at my desk and it was 8 in the morning when I was served with Tita Annabel’s wrath. I first heard “Dong” even before everybody heard about it and which became Tita Annabel’s claim-to-fame. Now, “Dong” delivered by Tita Annabel, with her thick Visayan accent that you could actually serve it as dessert, has invaded our living rooms with her own endorsements as well ranging from pain relievers to some baking brands. Now, she can hold a candle vis-à-vis the number of endorsements Ruffa or Richard or even husband Eddie is doing.

Charlene and I hit it off during the shoot. I met her days before and I made numerous trips to her mother’s house in New Manila for the contract signing and outfit measurements. She was really nice, and we bonded in the shoot that laster for 24 hour straight. She was dating back then Dodot Jaworski and that was one thing we had in common, basketball players. I took a liking with Dodot’s friend, Vince Hizon, and I tried to fish out information as much as I can. Charlene was also studying then in UST, my alma mater, where she was taking her pre-med course.

After the commercial aired with a new tagline, “Kutis Na Pang-Beauty Queen” (we decided that using Miss Universe was out of the question since the Philippines produced only 2 so far, Gloria Diaz and Margie Moran, but has produced numerous beauty queens given the fact that the Philippines is dotted with a lot of beauty searches, thus the tagline is “campaignable” and could be used over and over again) and I had to personally deliver the tapes to ABS-CBN hours after it was dubbed for a Sunday airing in “Sa Linggo nAPO Sila”, the client from Splash decided to do a caravan in the Queen City Of The South, Cebu. Doc and Mrs. Hortaleza had one request, that I personally join Charlene in Cebu. Early on, my clients already noticed that I had my way with celebrities, that my gift of gab was working to their advantage. Off to Cebu then, we did everything in a day, took the first flight out and last flight back to Manila. Mommy Elvie joined us since she usually chaperoned Charlene anywhere. Charlene and I sat side by side in the plane as well as in the car in Cebu, taking the back seats of the Nissan Safari provided for us. She was really a darling to work with, and we did the usual caravan, standing at a back of a 10 wheeler truck and covering Metro Cebu, giving out samples and waving at the crowd. I felt like I was a beauty queen for a day as well, looking back at the photos, yes! Charlene and I had similarities, we could pass off as siblings, no kidding. I had a skin as flawless as hers, thanks to my early initiation of the 3 rules of skincare, “cleanse, tone and moisturize”, which I still adhere to until now. From using Eskinol when I was 9 years old ( thanks Ate Vi for endorsing the brand, the original Eskinol Girl who still look fabulous despite the age), I had no choice but to start using the challenger brand, Splash Extract Ace. On hindsight and as a piece of trivia, guess who endorsed Eskinol, no other than Mikee Cojuangco, who dated Aga Muhlach and is now Mrs. Dodot Jaworski and Charlene became Mrs. Aga Muhlach, as well know. That’s what we may call six degrees of separation, astringent-style.

Meeting Mikee Cojuangco was another story, and will tell you about it in another blog entry. Yes! I do write for a celebrity glossy called Star Studio Magazine for quite some time now and meeting stars have become a job. For my readers, I hope you let me indulge with my calling in life, to be a star, not a megastar, a star for all season, a superstar, a diamond star, but just as a star, maybe a Hollywood star. It is a pity I did not to get to meet Josh Hartnett when he was in Manila during the height of the storm, I dreamt about the day he will be town, and when he did come, I was penniless to buy a ticket to General Santos or Davao, and it was raining hard in Manila to do a stakeout at the international airport. The closest encounter for me with a Hollywood star was with Lea Salonga, Cesar Montano and Paolo Montelibano, who starred opposite Brandy in “Cinderella”. You may also include Iza Calzado, who will be doing the Hollywood remake of “Sigaw”, entitled “Echo”.

I hope Hollywood pays better than my previous jobs in the Philippines, if the time comes. For now, I will take in the view of the world-famous Manila Bay and inhale the seabreeze, it is good for one’s health.


Postscript: I was able to recover from the heartbreak from the first lovelife. I recently saw him in Greenbelt and I was aghast that he gained weight and looked older. Gone was the body I lusted for when he was 30, and in place was a protruding stomach and receding hairline. Yes! He has the most beautiful appendage I laid my eyes and lips upon and I let him be my first guest in the hallowed hallway of my behind, for which I really enjoyed on a daily basis. He told me after the breakup that just in case after 10 years and we bumped into each other, and if I still loved him, then that was a test of true love. Fat chance! I don’t do fat and old guys, and things have come full circle. Now that I am in my 30s, I date guys who are in their 20s and I still get the boot, not the other way. I cannot help but asked, where is justice? The only difference is that I now date straight guys for money (no, they don’t pay me, I pay them) and totally avoided bisexual or homosexual dates. I am just thankful that I still look mid-20s despite the fact that I am already mid-30s. If I could only bring back the hands of time, I should have never smoked, stayed late up to 6 am partying. Well, too late for regrets.

Oratio Imperata..

MANILA, Philippines -- In what may be a sign of answered prayers, a tropical depression hovering over the Pacific Ocean could enter the Philippine area of responsibility Monday and trigger downpours over Luzon and the Visayas in the coming days.
“There’s a high probability of it entering the Philippine area of responsibility within the next 24 hours,” weather forecaster Roberto Rivera said Sunday.
While it may not hit land, the weather disturbance that was spotted north of Guam may activate the southwest monsoon (habagat), a weather system that brings rains, according to Rivera.
“So maybe within the next two to three days, the habagat will induce light to moderate rains most likely in the western section of Luzon and the Visayas,” he said.
“As to whether it will help replenish the water supplies in dams, this will depend on the amount and duration (of the rains),” he said.
‘Oratio Imperata’
In the face of a water crisis in Luzon caused by the dry spell, Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales exhorted the Catholic faithful on Friday to recite the “Oratio Imperata,” a prayer for rain.
The Ilocos region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, the Cordillera Administrative Region and Metro Manila have been hit by a dry spell for two months now.
After two months of inadequate rain, the water in major dams in Luzon, including Angat in Bulacan province, has dipped to way below critical levels, threatening the water supply for domestic use and the irrigation of farms.

Postcript: Prayers are so powerful. After a week, 2 typhoons came and made it clear. When it rains, it pours. Be really careful with what you wish for, you might just get it.

Nostalgia..

After countless calls and convincing, I was on my way to my mom’s hometown in Candaba, Pampanga. An uncle is running on the coming election and I was asked to register as a voter, I had no choice but to give in to their request. A single vote in a sitio composed of 1,500 voters may help after all. I left Manila after lunch, and went down in Baliuag, Bulacan after an hour. North Luzon Tollway has really improved a lot, travel time was cut by half even if toll fees are 300% higher than its South Luzon counterpart. This is where I was baptized, in the Minor Basilica of St. Agustine, founded in 1700s by Spanish Friars. Baliuag is a very historic place, notable among them are Mariano Ponce and the del Pilar brothers among others. People from Bulacan are the original Tagalog, its being a shortened version of “Taga Ilog” (someone who resides by the river). Bulacan is home to Angat River, the source of Metro Manila’s water supply.

I dropped by the historic church to pay homage to St. Augustine, he of notorious crimes such as murder, rape and other unthinkable acts. Thanks to his mother’s countless prayers, he became a convert later on in his life and became a Man of God. That is basically what is happening to me right now, my mother is incessantly praying that I become a straight man, and I hope the Lord grant her prayers. I can’t help but be nostalgic about the town plaza of Baliuag. It has undergone a lot of changes.


I remembered that when I was 8, my father hoarded me on a Baliwag Transit Bus in Cubao and asked me if I could travel alone all the way to my grandparents’ house, and I said yes. That was the time I felt so independent and traveled 50 kilometers by myself, EDSA then was full of tress in the center island and the MRT as well as the flyovers were non-existent. The only modern thing about EDSA was the two underground tunnel, Shaw and Cubao crossings. I made it in one piece all the way to Pampanga, an eight year old who was a 3rd grader in elementary level. I will never do that to my own kid today, given the statistics of looneys lurking around. My utmost fear of traveling then was the bus getting burned due to overheating since the image of roasted bodies on top of each other I saw on the newspaper back then left me paranoid.


My mom is a kapampangan, she is from Candaba, however, the sitio is the first stop in Candaba and sits next to Tangos, Bulacan so the dialect is basically tagalog, not the French-sounding Kapampangan. It has been a running joke that when you bring an “itlog” and cross the bridge, it will become an “ebun” (“itlog” is tagalog and “ebun” is kapampangan for egg). My dad is from Baliuag, but they met when my mom was 18 and they saw a movie together. My dad was my mom’s first suitor and her first date as well. My dad made the simple mistake of putting his arm around my mom’s shoulder and that was it, my mom thought she could not face her parents again since she has been “violated” and “touched” by a man, thus, she was no longer a virgin. They eloped after the movie and 3 years after, I was born on the day of their 3rd wedding anniversary. That was in 1970 and times have changed. Nowadays, a girl can show her clitoris on national TV and make movies with X or R rating by MTRCB and still, that starlet will claim that she is still a virgin and will even take a virginity test just to prove her claims.

I have spent countless summers in Pampanga, and in this place, I have so much memories that I always hold dear. A lot of firsts happened in my grandparents’ place. During the ‘80s, electricity was never heard of in Pampanga, to think that it sits near Angat Dam. Once dusk sets in, it was time to light up the “coleman” and pull out the car battery to use the TV. Voltes V was the hottest anime then, and just like any place in the country, basketball was the toast of the town. There was only PTV 4, Channel 7, 9 and 13. ABS-CBN was still closed back then. “Anna Liza” and “Flor De Luna” battled it out in rating supremacy, and “Gulong Ng Palad” was a league of its own. Student Canteen was still the leading noontime daily show and “Eat Bulaga” was eating dust then. “Kilometrico” Quiz Bee hosted by the late Helen Vela was quality programming. “Horlicks” was my favorite snack, and “Prell” was my favorite shampoo. I usually catch a salagubang (bettle) or cicada and put it inside my toy car since it created a sound akin to an ambulance. Mornings were usually the time when I was asked to gather all the fallen coconut leaves and remove the center of the leaf to make “walis tingting” (broomstick) and also, to rake the dried leaves in the sprawling backyard so that it could be burned and steam the trees to make flowering faster.

Afternooons were spent catching dragon flies or swimming in a “sapa” (stream) or climbing mango trees. Our house sits next to a mango orchard and it wa there that I had my first taste of a red Indian mango called “Mango Apple”. Picking santol, guava, star apple as well as balimbing and duhat was a total pleasure. Running in the ricefields and catching frogs or ricefield mouse or “suso” (snails or escargot), cooking them either as “sinampalukan” or “adobo” or “gata” for escargot was my first time to try French gourmet food, albeit Pinoy style. When I read “A Year In Provence” by Peter Mayle, this anglophile turned Francophile just reinstated the fact that Pinoys are just like the French, they both eat frogs and snails. My school science projects were usually completed going around the bushes, putting together a scrapbook of “halamang gamot” (medicinal plants) such as sambong, oregano, manzanilla, damong maria, bayabas. My first try in making my own eau de toilette was courtesy of the “ylang ylang” tree that abounds, I usually collect the “ylang ylang” and mix them with “sampaguita” and place them inside small bottles mixed with water. During evenings, I was usually asked to gather “talbos ng kamote” or “kangkong” for the “sinigang” which will be served for dinner, as well as “pandan leaves” for the “sinaing” (steamed rice). I had my first taste of knock off designer jeans when my grandparents bought me a pair of “Valentino”.

On weekends, my grandfather usually tagged me along his usual cockfights, and as a favorite grandson back then, I had the privileged of sitting on his lap in the motorcyle or beside him by the passenger seat. He was my supplier of my favorite Purefood TJ hotdogs ( I hated Swifts back then, since Purefoods gave away free “Voltes V” stickers) and “Frostee”. Those things I love, my cousins gave another meaning, they started teasing me how I love “hotdogs” and sucking on “Frostee” iced candies. One time over dinner, my grandfather promised that I could run to him when I need money for tuition, which became a constant “threat” of mine against my father whenever we had misunderstanding over money. When my grandfather whom I dearly calls “Tatang” ( tagalog term for father) passed away when I was in college, I cried a bucket.

A visit to another grandmother entailed free “balot” (embryo) or “penoy” since she owns a thousand ducks. As much as I asked from her a live duckling, she won’t give me and now I just realized that it was for business reason. The ducklings will be raised to become ducks and lay eggs for the “balot” and “penoy”.

My initiation with local showbiz also started in my grandparents’ house. A lot of “Liwayway”, “Kislap”, “Movietime”, and “Teen” opened my world to the “Apat Na Sikat” composed of Winnie Santos, Lala Aunor, Arnold Gamboa and another guy that slipped my mind. Ate Shawie then was but a mere 16 year old teener being introduced via Mr. DJ. We had a turntable and the vinyl collection of my family was awesome. I love playing “Anak” by Freddie Aguilar over and over again, as well as Cherie Gil’s “Boy” and Sharon Cuneta’s “Santo Nino”. When compact discs were introduced in 1982, we had the good fortune to own the first ones in the Philippines courtesy of uncles working as overseas Filipino workers, “Katas Ng Saudi”, as they say. CDs of Abba as well as Olivia Newton John (“Physical” and “Xanadu” was my favorite, guess that was the start of my “sashaying” days, at a tender age of 5, I have been asked to perform “Body Beautiful” moves and I was being called already as “Vivian Velez”, “Pia Moran” and “Freda Fonda”, notable names in the ‘80s for dancing). When Betamax was introduced as well as VHS, we were so proud that we already have a tape collection composed of “Superman”, “Rambo”, and all those “Chuck Norris” films.

Fiesta time was the best, food overflowed and all residences did an “open house”, meaning anyone can just walk in and partake of the food laid on top of the table. Two full grown pigs were usually slaughtered, one as “lechon” while the other was for the ‘adobo”. “menudo”, “afritada” and “dinuguan”. Kapampangan’s dinuguan is usually free of vinegar since they use other “pampaasim” such as sampalok and sampalok tree’s young leaves sprout. Desserts were the usual macapuno, sweet beans, leche flan and sweet “kundol” (gourd that has been cooked and marinated in sugar). My lola usually asks me to sit down on top of the grindstone whenever she makes “puto” or “ginataan”. I also partake in balling the “malagkit” (sticky rice) in making the “bilo bilo” for the “ginataan halo halo”. Nightime was reserved to watch over the “fondahan” (stall) at the fair and the usual “tsubibo” (“caterpillar” ride) and ferris wheel as well as weird attractions such as “Anak Ni Zuma” or “Babaeng Gagamba” were in place.

My father usually fetches me come June since opening of classes was around the corner. By that time, rainy season had set in, and it was a sign that summer vacation was over. And yet, I love sleeping during downpours since the sound of rain is so relaxing and the smell of molds in my pillow was something that soothes me until now. I knew back then that summer was over since my dad would bring my other favorite, ‘sineguelas”, and he would bring me to his father’s house in Baliuag. Once there, I was always called as “Anak Ni Kanduli” (son of a catfish) since my dad was given a monicker as “Kanduli”. My first pet puppy was courtesy of my dad’s father, as well as my first pet chick. They loved seeing me since I didn’t get to stay with them that often the way I stayed with my mom’s family during summer.

Going back to the recent trip I did, after the church visit, I went to “Gloria Romero” restaurant near the town market. I grew up thinking that the restaurant was owned by the Queen Of Philippine Movies, Ms. Gloria Romero, and I just realized that it was just a namesake. They were recently featured in GMA 7’s news and public affairs’ program “100% Pinoy” for their famous “burong isda” (fermented fish with rice). “Burong Isda” is really acquired taste, some people cannot stand the idea of eating something “rotten”, and I am lucky that most of my friends love this delicacy.

When I reached my grandmother’s house, she was so happy to see me. She served her “arroz caldo” with native chicken. Native chickens are the best since they are more flavorful compared to the 45 day-old variety, those chickens we buy in supermarkets. The next time you readers decide to try native chicken, just proceed at the wet market section and look for those live chickens sold by piece, not by kilos. As compared to the 45-day old variety which usually comes in white, the native chickens have dark feathers.

Yes! I admit that I was her favorite grandson, until the next ones after me arrived. It made me feel bad that I was replaced already by the “new arrival” and I had become yesterday’s news. Inside her house, by the stairway, pictures of grandsons and daughters lined the wall. It was a barometer or gauge as how one is being demoted by the arrival of newer babies. I used to sit on top of the heap, and slowly, from being No. 1, there came a time that my photo was not already in the wall. I asked her where did she keep my photo, the one in black and white wearing my jumpers and standing by the giraffe in Manila Zoo since I wanted to get it as posterity. She told me that she had kept it inside her bedroom. I did not insist anymore in getting it although that was one of my earliest memory of childhood, even if it was taken when I was a little over 3. It is quite strange that my memory dates back as early as when I was 36 months, quite advanced and yet, those were the years that really was the start of my homosexuality. I still vividly remember having a different sensation back then seeing in a magazine a photo of a man wearing only his briefs. Yes! I had my first erection over that photo. And I was 4.

This blog has been the longest I have written so far. I have omitted some parts especially the part when I lost my virginity when I was 7. What the heck, as if you would be interested to know about that. You have read my innermost thoughts and some of you did act out of your own kindness. Some of you, just played deaf and acted as if you did not read anything, that how badly I needed help. Well, thanks for your time in reading my blogs. I hope you got entertained or even amused. I am thinking of ending my blog sites soon since as they say in economics, there is no such thing as free lunch. I hope you get a copy of my book once it is out in the nearest bookstore, pakitaiin nyo naman ako since ayaw nyo naman mag-donate sa ChinaBank checking account ko. (Please let me earn some dough since writing is not easy, yes! It is a gift, but I hope to earn thru writing).

Social Pariah

In the book “How To Lose Friends & Alienate People”, British journalist Tobey Young detailed how he left London for New York to become a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. Other Brits had taken Manhattan – Alistair Cooke, Tina Brown, Anna Wintour – so why couldn’t he? But things did not go according to plan. Within the space of two years he was fired from Vanity Fair, banned from the most fashionable bar in the city and couldn’t get a date for love or money. The book is Mr. Young’s best-selling account of the five years he spent steadily working his way down the New York food chain, from glossy magazine editor to carsh-test dummy to interactive sex toys.

I can’t help but relate to this fabulous read. Two years ago, I was on my way up the food chain, I was on top of my game. Then it became downhill after. I have become a social pariah, nobody wants to be near me lately. Becoming jobless is bad, but being friendless is another. Now I have come to realized that people do look up to winners, and avoid losers. Thanks to a handful of real friends, I am able to survive each day. Those who have promised the moon and the stars, made tantalizing plans with me, they have all gone kaput. As they said, charity delayed is charity denied. Well, I can’t blame them, looking back, the foundation of our so-called friendship is not that too deep. I still pray for them in my daily mass, at least I rather take the higher ground. The world is round, and this too shall pass. And when the day comes, at least I will be more picky with whom I shall call friends. For now, beggars cannot be choosers, so I am stuck with these so-called “friends”.

Anna Bayle..

Mega’s Most Beautiful was held in Red of Makati ShangriLa, and Tina Daniac told me to join her. Tina has been my partner-in-crime lately, attending all the parties around. The party started late, and there was an open bar, and we drank to our heart’s content. As expected, attending chi chi affairs like this one, you have to be rich or under a diet, since cocktail food is far and few, we feasted on food that will not sustain a basketball player’s appetite, and yet, it defies logic that the so called “chi chi” people could last the evening without munching anything. Don’t they get hungry from standing on their stilettos for hours? Before we left the party and after raiding the loot bags of Myra E moisturizers and Trufettes De France, I had the honor of meeting Anna Bayle, or make that “The Anna Bayle”. She of supermodel stardom and the toast of New York-Milan-Paris circuit during the ‘80s up to ‘90s. She is now retired from modeling and decided to make New York as her base.

We then proceeded to Embassy for some night out, considering that it was a Monday. We decided to check out the “Happy Mondays” event and surprisingly, the place was jampacked. I am no fan of Embassy due to some people that irritates me, and I will not mention names since most of you readers have a natural dislike to those persons as well. We just ate at Cuisine outside Embassy and stayed all the way to 3 am, hanging out with Tara Tambunting, Lotho, Shahani, Gian Romero, Marc Nicdao, Patrick Ty, Bianca Salonga and Alvin Chingcuanco.

Another night of empty lives wasted on partying, Manila-style.

Road trip..

One rainy Saturday, Nelson Canlas of GMA 7 decided to invite me for an afternoon trip to Tagaytay. First on the agenda was to visit the Pink Sisters’ Convent and hang out in some restaurants afterwards. On our way up, we did nothing but to laugh about mundane matters, together with his housemates Lance and Rozan, but once we were in Pink Sisters’ Convent, it was really silent. The place is well-known for the nuns who wear pink habits and made a vow of silence. We felt we were somewhere in France, with Tagaytay’s balmy weather and pine trees. We wrote our wishes and intentions in a piece of paper and dropped them off in a box so that the nuns may include them in their prayers.

Afterwards, we decided to check out Allana Montelibano’s new hotel, Tagaytay’s Boutique Hotel. Located just after the rotunda, the hotel has a Miami whitewash architecture and inside, the place is an amalgam of various interior designs, ranging from the romantic chandelier, the leather loveseats, the oversized accent chairs, plastic lampshades, but everything just fell into one lovely blend of opulence. We ate at the resto, which is a branch of my favorite’s Boracay Hawaiian Barbecue, and the deck is overlooking Taal volcano. Despite the rains, it did not dampen our upbeat feeling which started from Makati all the way to Sta. Rosa. We stayed all the way up dinnertime and when it was time to get the bill, guess what, dinner was on us, courtesy of Allana Montelibano.

From Boutique Hotel, we decided to get coffee at Starbucks. After a while, Nelson’s friend, a priest from San Carlos Seminary, joined us. It was an evening of discussions about faith and God. Most of us cried from the sharing of thoughts, and sometimes, one can’t help but be really feel blessed when you get to discuss faith with someone who has studied it. We stayed beyond midnight and decided to call it a night.

On our way back, as compared to our laughter on the way up, we were silent most of the trip since the 2 girls fell asleep. They dropped me off my condo and we decided to visit the Pink Sisters’ Convent if we get the time to do it. Masses are just celebrated once a month with the public, which is on the first Saturday of every month at 4:30 in the afternoon. Another pilgrimage on my growing list that included already the mass to Manaoag, In St. Jude, In Sacred Heart of Jesus, and in Our Mother Of Perpetual Help, on top of my daily masses. What the heck, it is for the Lord anyway. Now that I have the leisure of time to do all of them since I have no work, I guess the Lord is trying to tell me something. Maybe He wanted me to devote my time for Him and in return, He will devote His time for me.

The Good Samaritan

The parable of the Good Samaritan contained in the Gospel according to Luke is an all-time favorite of most of us. It constantly challenges us and stimulates us to become neighbor to any human being that needs help, without distinction of race, social status or religious affiliation.

“There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law?” “How do you read it?” The scholar said in reply.

“You shall love the Lord, Your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”

Jesus said, “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.” But because he wished to justify himself, the man said, “And who is my neighbor?”

Jesus replied, “A man fell victim to robbers as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho. They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead. A priest happened to be going down that road, but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side. Likewise a Levite came to the place, and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side. But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him was moved with compassion at the sight. He approached the victim, poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them. The he lifted him up on his won animal, took him to an inn, and cared for him. The next day, he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction, “Take care of him. If you spend more than what I have given you, I shall repay you on my way back.”

Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to the robbers’ victim?” The man answered, “The one who treated him with mercy”. Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise”.

Postscript: To all the Good Samaritans in my life, thank you for bearing with me, you know who you are, I can’t help but be really moved by your kindness. Someday, I will be able to be a good neighbor to others. In trying times like what I am going through, true friends started to surface, thanks for being there. Pay it forward, as you said.

FHM 100 Sexiest..

Last Thursday, World Trade Centre was overflowing with men of all ages as they witness the annual FHM 100 Sexiest. Lines outside the venue started to form as early as 7 in the evening and snaked its way all the way to the main gate. I had to meet Nelson Canlas of GMA 7 who was doing a live feed of the event for News On Q as well as for Saksi. He gave me a ticket for the event.

As usual, I strode past the security guards and went straight to the backstage area, a strictly off-limits part of the venue since all the girls were either dressing up or shall we say, in various form of undress. I bumped into Gwen Garci in the hallway and she told me how a trusted friend of hers used her credit card to purchase a Louis Vuitton wallet in Greenbelt 4. The person is in my Multiply list and I was really shocked to hear about this, we thought they were good friends.

Inside the dressing room, I saw Tina Daniac who is dressing up Katrina Halili for the finale. Tina Daniac is the reason I was able to be in the backstage area since she made me pass as a stylist, although I want to thank Luz for giving me a VIP stamp. It is sad to know that Luz is leaving Summit when she is one of the nicest persons, and she has been Lisa Gokongwei Cheng's assistant for the longest time.

Katrina was still in Sofitel so I sat down with Tina and we spoke about Hong Kong Fashion Week. I cannot imagine seeing a goodlooking male model who was doing a short game onstage, I bet he was having a hard on surrounded by almost 100 women in the flesh. When Katrina finally arrived, the show has already started. Other celebrities in attendance other than Katrina and Gwen were Iwa Moto, Bianca King, Kristine Reyes, Michelle and Ehra Madrigal, Maureen Lardizabal, Alyssa Milano, the EB Babes, and host of other beauties. The host for the night was Asia Agcaoili, and the theme of the night was "rocker chic".

The show finally ended at around 12 midnight. After the show, Katrina decided to invite us for a night cap at her bar, "Barrakz", located at Tomas Morato. I joined her and Tina as well as other friends. We ended up at around 3 am, and Katrina brought us home in Makati. Katrina will be seen as the arch nemesis of Marian Rivera in GMA 7's remake of "Marimar". She won two years in a row as FHM Sexiest in the Philippines, and we are all praying she makes it again for 2008.

Social Climbing, as that TNT said..

The Preview Best Dressed event at the Embassy was a big success.

The person I styled was the hands down winner in her Tina Daniac dress, with the exception of Preview’s editor-in-chief Pauline Suaco and July cover girl and awardee herself, Anne Curtis, was so well-dressed for the event. She was accompanied by her husband and her mother, and we were seated at the publisher’s area. We were with Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng, her sister Robina and brother Lance, and as the old man of the Gokongwei empire John said in an interview prior to his retirement, he is so proud of Lisa for turning a rag tag company into a respectable entity in the local publishing industry, starting with Preview in 1995 followed by imported titles like Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Seventeen, Good Housekeeping, Men’s Health, T3, Entrepreneur, the defunct Prevention & Game Masters, and the soon-to-be-launched Town And Country Philippine Edition, and local titles such as Candy, Real Living, Yes!, and the new food magazine, Yummy! The other awardees were Karen Davila, Valerie De Los Santos, Mia Borromeo, Susie Go, Patty Estaquio, and Marie Lozano of Star Patrol of TV Patrol. When I saw Mario Dumawal, her boss from Channel 2 who was covering the event, he told me that Marie just gave birth a week ago, thus, she couldn’t make it to the awarding.

The event lasted until midnight, and the people transferred to the VIP room of Embassy afterwards. I bumped into Tessa Prieto-Valdes and she just kept on laughing about the Marie Claire interview where she saw my photo with my two pooches, Beaver and Charlie. She was seated with her sister-in-law, Ria Francisco-Prieto, who is also with Phil. Daily Inquirer and was formerly with Summit, prior to her wedding with Paolo Prieto.

After the event, I decided to go home and planned my monthly novena trip to Manaoag. I left Manila the next day, after attending the Meg’s anniversary at Rockwell Tent. I just dropped by to say my hellos to the editorial staff headed by Peewee Reyes-Isidro. I saw managing editor Mabel David-Pilar outside waiting for husband Peejo, and bumped into Meg’s former EIC Pierra Calasanz-Labrador with photographer husband Toto. Other Mega Magazine’s editorial people such as Manual’s Mela De Luna and Paolo Lorenzana, Girlfriend’s Beverly Dalton, advertising staff Iaree Reyes, Ana Celdran and the event’s group headed by Sophie Menor were having their hands full enjoying the party. I also saw my good friend Belle, and she said she saw me at St. Jude hearing mass. It is to Belle that I owe my devotion to Sacred Heart Of Jesus since she introduced me to it last 2002. I told Belle that I am going to the Shrine of Our Lady Of Manaoag and she expressed her desire to visit the Shrine soon. I had 3 cheeseburgers from the Wendy’s booth and 3 fruitshakes from Fruit Magic as well as 2 Cokes, how’s that for an appetite?

It was raining the evening of Saturday and I had second thoughts of leaving for Manaoag. The weather was so perfect for snuggling in bed, however, I felt guilty that I was not able to make my trip last June so I decided to time my trip on the first Sunday of July, which fell on first of July. I waited for 2 hours for the bus along EDSA under the drizzle and it was enough for me to postpone my trip since I won’t be able to make it to the first mass at 5 a.m. I boarded the bus at around 3 a.m. and I am really amazed how God turns things around.

The travel along North Luzon Tollway was a breeze and I just slept all the way to Manaoag, Pangasinan. I was surprised that I was in Manaoag at exactly 6 a.m., a mere 3 hours travel time. The Sunday crowd in the shrine was jampacked, for it being a Sunday. The line alone to touch the Blessed Virgin at the altar took me an hour, I think I should visit the Virgin on a weekday and try to make the 5 a.m. mass since the church’s doors open at 4 a.m., giving me ample time to light candles and be the first in line to touch the Virgin Mother. I heard the 8 a.m. mass and left for Baguio at around 9:30 a.m.

The driver of the van was half-crazy, he darted along the treacherous Kennon Road as if it was a one-way zigzag road and there were couple of times that we almost bumped into an incoming vehicle from the opposite lane. I slept throughout the 30-minute trip, but I heard my co-passengers complaining about the driver’s driving skills, or lack there of.

Upon arriving in Baguio, I was looking forward for my favorite breakfast, the Ole Nick’s Fish Sandwich from Café By The Ruins, followed by a hot champorado (chocolate-flavored rice porridge), and the fruit salad laced with honey as dressing. I was really hungry, and when I went to the resto’s location, I found out that it has been closed for renovation starting last month, June 12, and lasting for 4 weeks. With the exception of Bacquen Realty and the Café By The Ruins’s bakeshop window, the entire place is undergoing major, as in ceiling-to-floor makeover. Now I have another reason to visit Manaoag this month and do a quick detour to Baguio to visit the newly-renovated Café By The Ruins.

Craving for champorado on a balmy Baguio day, I trooped all the way to Max’s restaurant in Burnham Suites, and upon arriving in the building, I found out that they have closed Max’s in that location. I have no choice but to troop all the way to SM Baguio wherein there is another Max’s store. I decided to check first some stores in Session Road, especially the magazine stalls as well as those puppies being sold by the sidewalk. I love puppies, and if I have enough resources, I could have given Lolit Solis a big challenge. Nanay Lolit has 47, count that, 47 dogs in her house. That’s why she has the perfect excuse to make “harbat” (“to get everything” in gay lingo) leftover foods in presscons and showbiz party because she has to feed 47 mouths, plus another set of human mouths.

Upon reaching SM Baguio, I was so famished. I went up and down, up and down, using the escalators, the stairs, but no Max’s in sight. I had to ask the guard which exactly is the third level, which is supposed to be the location of Max’s, then I was told that it is in the viewing deck level or the atrium, how’s that for clear direction. Upon reaching Max’s and I ordered champorado for breakfast, I was told that not all Max’s branches serve breakfast, including champorado. I guess I have to say goodbye to champorado for breakfast.

Out of frustration, I just ate at Andok’s near the bus station and decided to go home since I didn’t find anything in SM Baguio, no books or magazines from Booksale, no sale at Adidas, although Nike Free is being sold at 20% off, and I was tempted to buy one when I realized that I had to pay my Globe bill first since it was disconnected already by Globe. And for the first time after numerous trips to Baguio, I did something out of the ordinary. I bought my first ever “walis” (broom) from Baguio. Yes! I am guilty, the reason I never bought “walis” before in Baguio is that I find it tacky, the things that tourists buy, together with everlasting, peanut brittle, strawberry jam. At P35 per piece, it is actually a steal because I pay P100 to buy “walis” made in Baguio in Shopwise or Rustan’s, so I get to save P65 at least. Well, for this trip, including the P700 round trip fare, a P65 saving means a lot, especially for someone who has nothing much.

Upon reaching Manila, I decided to heat some water and opened 2 sachets of my favorite Maggi champorado, added some more Milo, and I had my serving of what I always wanted 12 hours earlier. Now I should make my Thursday novena at St. Jude before lunch so that I can order champorado at Max’s near Malacanang gate.

How can a social climber eat champorado, buy walis, hobnob with the rich and famous, and stay grounded? I guess all the novenas will do the trick. To you TNT persona non grata, eat you heart out.

Tit for tat..

Posted below is the reply that person who was slighted about his illegal immigrant status in the U.S. Yes, he is very much legal, since he already passed the 5 year period needed to raise th funds to pay an immigration lawyer, thanks to a 3-dayjob scheme, I will leave to you readers to judge who is on the defensive mode, have fun.

"I left the Phils. because I had the opportunity and the resources to do so. I left when i was at the height of my career. Cant stand Philippine politics. I am very much of legal status here. You are in no position to assume anything about me. I honestly feel sorry for you coz you are miserably stuck in a rut! I have no illusions of grandeur. You are out of touch with reality.

I have more respect for Filipino illegal aliens here in the US than for someone who is a pretentious social climber!

You were offended with my message because the things i said are true. You need a total make-over! "Tigilan mo na ang pagpapasosyal mo!" You are anything but sosyal.

BTW Hollister is a cheap brand here in the US.

But i will still include you in my prayers. I really do hope you will have enlightenment. Material things will never make you happy. It's time for you to change! Life is short my dear.

God bless.

Mike

p.s. you dont have to reply. just try to reflect on the things i said.

Ugly Betty..

I was addicted when it was Betty La Fea, then another came out, Betty La Mas Fea, and now, I am hooked with Ugly Betty, the latest reincarnation of the ugly duckling who has turned into a swan. I can’t help but like the latest remake, the fact that it is set in the jungles of New York City, and on the heels of “The Devil Wears Prada”, the setting is in the ultra-chic office of Meade Publications.

Vanessa Williams as the scheming Creative Director and her ally, the very Anna Wintour “Fey Sommers”, together with her gay assitant Mark, is a hilarious triumvirate. Betty Suarez, played by America Ferrera, and her boss, Daniel Meade, as well as Amanda as the receptionist and Henry, the guy from accounting, as well as Cristina from the closet department, plus the sexy Salma Hayek, who is also the executive producer of the hit TV series on ABC, play their roles to perfection. Everyone has made a cameo, from Martha Stewart to Isaac Mizahri, thus proving that Ugly Betty is really a success.

Betty’s loving family from Queens, the dad, the sister, the gay nephew named Justin, Justin’s dad, the hot latino guy, the neighborhood slut Gina, makes one forget about the going ons in one’s life. Betty’s dad run in with the immigration is something that is really moving, when he left Mexico with Betty’s mom. Jumping from Ugly Betty topic, I have to share two letters from 2 people who read my blogs, one is on my friendster’s list, while the other is not. Here they are:

Letter No. 1
Subject: As Stated

we were at a loss for words after reading your blog. i wasn't surpised at all of your your current situation. you had it coming. you've been drinking champagne on beer income. some things never change!

what do you expect from people reading your blog? sympathy? alms? you have got to be kidding me.

anyways, i'll pray for you. i hope you experience enlightenment. funny, at your lowest point you still lack humility.


Letter No. 2
Subject: Ei...

Hi Jake! Haven’t seen u attending mass at OLGC chapel for the past days, or I am soooo disconnected with my prayer life lately.

Anyways, just checkin out on you, Have read your blogs before and I know I can’t offer you anything for I have my own dilemma, but it won’t hurt if I can treat you for lunch whenever you’re around. Please don’t hesitate my office is just around the corner you can look for me either on the 20F or at the chapel. It’s just a small offer but I want to take part for someone you can consider a friend.

Good luck on your job hunting.
God bless!



These are two letters that have different tones. I have decided to omit the senders' name to protect their identities. The first one is from someone that has left the country 7 years ago as a tourist and never came back, a classic case of TNT (tago ng tago) and I can’t help but be on the defense. Being a guy from marketing, this person is reading my blogs even if he is not under my friendster’s list, thus, he is not a target market. However, his tone is something that borders on abrasiveness and callousness. This is a person that broke US immigration laws, and I can’t help but feel sorry for him. He has given up on the Philippines and I am not sure if he is comparable to an OFW, because OFWs leave the country and they regularly send remittances, thus, helping the local economy grow by leaps and bounds. I am still in the Philippines and I have no single plan to give up on this country because I know that the Philippines has still a place for me, and I will help it thru paying taxes and by pump priming the economy thru my local trips and shopping. I wish I could say the same to this person who is not here and who is busy working 3 day jobs just to be able to raise funds to pay his immigration lawyer so that his stay in the US will be finally of legal stature. Again, I am here in the Philippines and even if I am at the lowest point of my life, I can still face people and tell them that I didn’t break any law.

The second letter sender is from someone I have met thru a coffe festival 5 years ago in a mall and has been under my friendster’s list for the past 3 years. We bumped into each lately in the church since we both hear mass in the same place, on a daily basis. If you read thru the content of the letter, the writer is apologetic (typical pinoy, “nakakahiya naman sa “yo…) and yet, she offered a little cheer me up by inviting me to lunch.

Maybe leaving the country really builds character, and I cannot say if it's good or bad character. I read somewhere that California will make you soft, and New York will make you hard. Anyway, Ugly Betty is from New York and of mexican heritage trying to fit into a world where size 0 is the norm and eating cashew nuts made of 25 grams of fat per serving is considered a mortal sin in Mode (that's their take on "Vogue", the magazine that sets the standards for beauty). I can't help but feel that the first letter sender's character is that of Wilhemina, the "baddie" in Ugly Betty.

I will be really honest to all you who is reading this blog. Yes! I may be stupid, I may have brought this to myself, I may be jobless, but you don’t kick someone who is already down. I leave the judgment to all of you, I may be wrong when I took up a close friend’s advice to answer back at the first e-mail, let’s not just waste time. If anyone has nothing nice to say, I suggest they shut their mouth.

To Tenten, who is in the US and just like me is jobless now, thanks for the words of encouragment, tough times don't last, but tough people do. I hope you get better soon and we all miss you. I know you love Ugly Betty since we are both Prison Break devotees. I hope you don't get offended on my behalf for the first letter sender and please pardon me if you get offended with what I wrote about this person whom I barely see.


Now going back to Ugly Betty, the show airs on Studio 23 every Sunday at 9:15 in the evening.

Bikram Yoga...

While styling my friend who will be one of the awardees in this year’s Preview Magazine’s Best Dressed List, the designer I got to dress her up, the very talented Tina Daniac, invited me to join her in checking out Bikram Yoga in Salcedo. After doing a final fitting of the dress, we were on our way to the yoga studio. To be honest, the yoga place is just across the street from where I stay, and I have always wanted to try it out. It was a nice thing that Tina decided to invite me since she had no one to go and try it out. And we are now converts, we did 3 sessions in less than a week. The place is located inside an aircconditioned building, however, Bikram has no aircon and it was really a hot place. We sweat it out like crazy, I had to squeeze my towel afterwards to remove the sweat. I cried most of the times, not out of heat but because I was starting to listen more to what the yoga master was saying. Yoga is actually good for the body and especially for the soul. Affirmations are being recited and all you just have do is to lie down and listen in between the poses. While removing the toxins thru sweating, you absorb positive things, such as “love yourself before you love others”, “you are not your mind, you are your spirit, listen to your spirit and not your mind”, “let go, release all your senseless wandering and just focus”. I never felt so relaxed the past few months, all the anxieties mounting up, my being jobless and all the negative feelings I have inside, the break up, the pent-up anger toward others, friends and foes alike. I am really feeling frustrated, with people that promised you jobs, promised you friendships, promised you love, which of course I took with a grain of salt since I know myself better. I guess yoga is really something I must do, although it is a bit expensive, I am going to feel better afterwards. Clients have started to call, friends starting to call out other friends on my behalf for possible projects. Thank you Ms. Tina for the dress and thanks for bringing me to Bikram Yoga, we are now converts..And we can't hardly wait for the Best Dressed Party of Preview Magazine in Embassy.

Dog Food Galore..

God is really good. The other day, a friend who works as a deputy managing director for an ad agency treated my two dogs Charlie and Beaver to a week supply of dog food. Small acts of kindness, whether by deed or tangible things, will add up to something. Pinoys are known for "bayanihan", which unfortunately has become obsolete nowadays in the times of online journals. People will read about your post and will just forget about what they read, nonchalantly moving on with their other chores. As if they are watching a telenovela unfolding before their eyes, yes! they are involved with the characters, waiting for the twists and turns, but since they are aware that it is just a soap opera, they know it is a work of fiction. Give them non-fiction such as my life, they will just snicker and laugh out loud to their heart's content. As a popular TV commercial says, "You hear nothing, smell nothing, eat nothing, tao po? what's wrong with you my friend?"... Tao po? Bingi ka ba? O bulag? O nag-bibingibingihan o nag-bulagbulagan? To my blogreaders, please stop reading if you will not be part of the solution, in short, sayang ang oras natin pareho, nakikibasa ka na ng libre eh.

Zsazsa Zaturnnah's 3rd serving...

It’s back! He’s back! She’s back!!! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No!! It’s Zsazsa Zaturnanah. I first saw the musicale last year during its CCP staging and I was lucky to catch it on its last day, my lucky angels wanted me to watch it live. Then the movie adaptation came, which was really a blah, this gem of a musical is truly enjoyable in a live stage, where ad libs and improvisations are allowed, where expletives and colorful gay lingo flies out without Chairman Laguardia of MTRCB putting a “bleep” or cutting it off the air.. I had a grand time laughing my heart out, pinoys are really the best, thanks to the comic superhero of Carlo Vergara. A story about a small town gay beautician by the name of Ada that transforms into an anatomically-endowed ( a politically-correct term for “masuso”, “ma-dyoga”, “malaki ang hinaharap”, “bumper-to-bumper” boobs) female superhero named Zsazsa Zaturnah, the play is pinoy’s gayest musical, no pun intended. Mabuhay ang mga bakla!!!!err… Mabuhay ang mga pinoy!!! Ang galing!!

K BROSAS ENTHRALLING AS ZSA ZSA ZATURNNAH

Last weekend was the opening of the fifth and final run of ZSAZSA ZATURNNAH (ZE MUZIKAL) with K BROSAS stepping into the shoes of the heroine, and it was a blast! Audiences enjoyed sitting through the musical, even if they have seen it before. K was consistently good, at times goofy, at times surprisingly vulnerable, always a joy to watch as she went through the moves the role demands. For sure, even EULA VALDES, who created the role and who alternates with K in this staging, will be more than delighted to watch K transform into ZSAZSA and make it her own.

And with NAR CABICO as the new DIDI and VINCE DE JESUS alternating with TUXQS RUTAQUIO as ADA, and the trio of ARNOLD REYES, LAUREN NOVERO and JANVIER DAILY reporting back alternately as DODONG, trooping to the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium at the RCBC Plaza is guaranteed to be more than well rewarded.

Tickets are selling fast, so hurry and buy one now! Call 832-3661 and look for Paolo.

TICKET PRICES:
P800 Orchestra Center / Loge
P700 Orchestra Side
P500 Balcony


TANGHALANG PILIPINO
(Philippine Theater)
Resident Theater Company of the
Cultural Center of the Philippines
Roxas Blvd., Pasay City
Office Telefax: 832-3661
CCP Trunkline: 832-1125 local 1620 & 1621

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Postcript:

I am still penniless and jobless, and I won’t be able to pay P800 for the ticket, I just walked to RCBC Plaza Auditoruium which was just in the corner of my residence.
Thanks to my good friend Nelson Canlas of GMA News And Public Affairs for treating me to an afternoon of laughter and a thai dinner afterwards. “Nelson Canlas para sa Chika Minute, updated sa showbiz happening”. A million thanks.

Thank you...

Help has started to pour in. The other day, a friend left P2,000 in cash for me to be able to buy printer ink, she also left P1,500 last month. Today, 3 bags of grocery items filled with instant noodles, rice, canned goods, instant coffee among others arrived courtesy of another friend. Sales from eBay have been good, I just sold an Alfred Dunhill tailored shirt and my last Jack Spade bag. Another buyer already reserved two pairs of shoes and I am expecting the iSight to be sold. I am still luckless with regards to job offers, but with God’s help, I will find a job soon. I have started to pack my stuff just in case I need to move out anytime soon, no buyers yet for the condo and I all ready to transfer. Payment from the Star Studio Magazine article due at the end of the month, I need to raise P2.5M by September, chances of winning the lottery are high since I make sure that I place my bet. Listed below is the summary of things I have sold on eBay:
Wade Black
Wade Marquette
Wade White
Wade All Star
World Cup England
World Cup Germany
World Cup England
John Varvatos Chucks
Apple Green Chucks
Jack Purcell
Nike Tony Parker
Converse Candidate Ox
Puma Suede
Nike Suede Blazer
Chuck Taylor Slip Ons
Polo Blue
Zara Loafers
Jack Spade bag
Acqua De Parma Bathset
Louis Vuitton Porte Voyage
Lacoste
Polo Blackwatch Document
Polo Blackwatch Shoulder
Polo Blackwatch Tote
Polo Blackwatch Tote
Polo Blackwatch Cookie
Mulberry Bayswater
Alfred Dunhill Polo
Coach Hobo
SPF Weekend
Fino Black Weekend
Fino Brown Weekend
Polo Jeans Co.
Fino Black Carry All
Fino Brown Shopper Bag
Dooney & Bourke
Coach Clutch
Hollister Sweats
ABS Jacket 2 pcs.
Old Navy
ABS Dress
Gucci Clutch
MiuMiu Satchel

"Calamansi" Friends

Last night, after too many glasses of Absolut APeach with Royal in a party, I got tipsy. I bumped into a friend who sells ad placements from a magazine. We had a small discussion about friendship. I told her that since I am no longer working in a company and thus, I no longer buy ad space on her magazine, how come she stopped being around. Is it a case of fair-weather friendship? That we are friends as long as we get something from the relationship?

She used to invite me to attend her fellowship service in Victory Church, and I told her that true worship for God comes in practice, that it is by being the embodiment of what Jesus to others that we become what we preaches. I told her that I do hear mass everyday, and I pray that I become a better person, to be of help to others. She then invited me again to attend church service again this Sunday, and I have to told her pointblank, I don’t even have a cab fare to go to my own church and that I have to walk a block just to hear mass everyday, does she expect me to go all the way to Ortigas just to attend her church service. I had to told her that I have become a pauper, a penniless bum, a poor person, that I cannot even eat lunch at times. She became silent and didn’t know what to say. I ranted her as to what I have become, that I have to rely on the goodness of friends to be able to make it to the next meal. I could not even pay the monthly amortization of my pad, that I have been remissed in payment the past few months. She then told me that I don’t have to tell the entire world of my predicament, that those debts should just be spoken in hush, she said that I don’t look like a person who is in dire straits, with all my clothes on, she thinks that I still look fabulous.

Thanks, but beneath my Costume National shirt, my Seven skinny jeans and my Marc Jacobs sneakers, I have only P40 in my pocket. That I had to walk the entire Bel Air Village from my residence to Fiamma just to be able to take part on the open bar and free food as well as the lootbag. Does she expect me to be in rag clothing to be called poor? I don’t think so, I was tauught that in the darkest hour of a man’s life, or make that a gay’s life, one should be dressed up to the nines. We, the gay community, have looked up to Evita Peron to Brooke Astor to Babe Paley and even Imelda Marcos, that when facing life’s adversity, we should look like a million dollar babe. How do you expect respect if you are shabbily dressed?

Ms. Brooke Astor may have been locked up by his son and became a gossip staple of New York society and yet, you don’t see her to be undressed for any charity event by the Metropolitan Museum. Imelda Marcos was in her resplendent self when she borrowed money from her friend, Doris Duke, the rich Virginia tobacco heiress. Evita Peron might have been from the slums of Argentina and yet, she had no trace of her old persona when she addressed the mammoth crowd of “descamisados” (Argentina’s poor workforce, the “shirtless”) from the balcony of Casa Rosada, Argentina’s presidential palace.

I may be poor now, but it doesn’t mean that I am out, fashion-wise. I may live in the fashionable district of Bel Air Makati and yet my true finances belie my stature, I am facing a future that is nowhere to be found. My friend said sorry for hearing my sad plight, and on our way home since I decided to hitch a ride on her car, she gave me P500, a move that reduced me to a shame and embarrassment. Should I get it or not? I declined to receive it, yet she insisted. P500 is a lot, it can help me buy the latest Vogue issue or it can help me print out resumes for my job hunt. I am torn now between being a beggar and a miser, with little difference.

Life is really a spectator sports, we could always see how other people are faring with little empathy or with no emotions at all. People are really divided into two groups, those who cheer while seeing one falling down and others who cheer while seeing one going up. People love second acts, reinventions, and giving underdogs the muchneeded push so that Davids get to slay life’s Goliaths. That is why Madonna is still much around, Mariah Carey was able to bounce back on top of the charts, Kate Moss survived the cocaine brouhaha with more endoresements, Vilma Santos was able to rise out of bankruptcy brought about by her brushes with BIR and be the Star For All Seasons cum Governor of Batangas, to think she’s from Pampanga.

It got me thinking, if all my true friends, including the 398 listed under my Friendster will just donate P500 each, will I accept it? It is too much for my pride to accept dole outs when I am in the pit bottom and wait for my fortune to improve, or should I just keep quiet about my situation and just fade away to oblivion? Life will really throw you lemons, and it is up to us if we want to make lemonades. And I am not saying that I have lemon friends, come to think of it, we don’t have lemons in the Philippines, maybe I have “calamansi” friends and I rather make “calamansi” juice instead.

Semi-Charmed Life..

I have hit rock bottom, as in I have to scrape the bottom of the barrel. I am so broke and penniless nowadays. A friend even suggested I should sell my other kidney on eBay already since I just need one out of two. Thanks to friendly jollijeeps (those modern-day “carinderia” around Salcedo/Legaspi Village) downstairs, I still get to eat lunch once in a while, I ask them to jot it down (in short, “lista” or “utang”) and will pay them once I have a little cash. I even borrowed P10 from the building’s security guard just to be able to go to my mom’s house on my way to my perpetual novena to Baclaran.

I even walked once all the way to Baclaran, in the dead of the night, traversing Taft Avenue unmindful of the unwanted elements lurking around the corner. My knees are starting to form blisters from my weekly “maglakad ng paluhod” (walking on one’s knees) all the way to the altar. Whenever hunger pangs strike, I just decide to sleep. I haven’t paid the utilities in the unit for the past 4 months and just awaiting eviction from the developer. An old friend from college who works as AVP for one of the multinational companies usually drops by for lunch or dinner to treat me, as well as a managing director from an advertising agency, and I just have to herald them with funny stories as how I am surviving. I even have to borrow money to be able to buy ink supply for my printer just to be able to send resumes around. So far, I haven’t bought new supplies, and I am really disappointed with my life. It has been 6 months of hearing mass everyday, and I admit that days have gone so fast. It has been already middle of the year, and I have to keep my hopes up, my faith will save me.

I walk the dogs 4 times a day, and give them a bath almost everyday, and get to talk to them a lot. Charlie, the Labrador and Beaver, the American Cocker Spaniel, are my only source of joy in this semi-charmed life of mine. They just recently appeared with me on the pages of Marie Claire Philippine-Edition June issue, thanks Kate Alvarez for the feature and to Myrza Sison for being a friend. I maybe the poorest of the poor, but I am still oh-glamorous. I may have kissed all my designer bags and shoes goodbye, together with my other designer clothes, to all those who bought them on eBay, thanks so much, please take care of my other babies, I will definitely miss them. Gotta go, I have to dress up for another party hobnobbing with the society set, at least I get my photos published in the newspapers and magazines and get free dinner along the way, and drinks to boot. Am I so pathetic after all?

“And with all His abundant wealth through Christ Jesus, my God will supply all my needs.” – Philippians 4:19

“Why should I worry and fret when I can cast all my anxiety on Christ who cares for me.”- 1 Peter 5:7

A Has Been..

After a disastrous exam with that multinational company, I was never been so humiliated in the elusive search for the perfect job. I admit that I slacked during my college years but I made sure that I did good in business school, for heaven’s sake, I was even a dean’s lister, garnering an average of 3.5 out of the perfect 4. Looking at my transcript of records from Ateneo, I only had one 2.5 and all of my grades were 3.5. I am so proud of myself.\

Anyway, I just decided to saw my goddaughter’s play, her “finals” for Repertory Philippines summer classes. They did a production of “Once Upon A Mattress”, a fairy tale musical that is somehow a predecessor of “Ever After”, “Shrek” and “Never After”. We grew up with our fairy tales ending in happy ever after, with damsel-in-distress waiting for her knight-in-shining-armor. Lately, we are being told that the princess is actually the one that will save the prince (Drew Barrymore in a reworking of “Cinderella” in “Ever After”), the ogre being a nice being and not someone who is nasty (“Shrek”) and other creative twists that challenge the Disney franchise of happy endings. I must admit, my goddaughter is really good, she’s only 7 and she aced her leading role that requires endless singing and dancing, and beat this, she can act. I can’t help but be proud and a little envious. It is my frustration to do stage, and when I say stage, the legitimate Broadway and West End musicals. I grew up without much exposure to Repertory when I was young, local actor’s guilds then were something of “elitist” and “high brow”. I did the next best thing after high school, to soak up to all the local productions of all straight plays and musicals. And when Lea Salonga was chosen as Kim and a host of other Filipinos as ensemble cast in Miss Saigon, I can’t help but wish I was one of them.

When local musicals started coming out, there were “Magsimula Ka”, “Magnificat”, “Larawan”, “Noli Me Tangere”, “El Filibusterismo” and even “Zsazsa Zaturnah”. Thanks to the musical geniuses like Ryan Cayabyab and other noteworthy composers, Pinoys added another feather to its cap. Watching them with an easy-to-grasp lyrics, these musicals are at par with what the foreign ones had to offer.

Going back to my goddaughter Kimmy, she’s a pro, to think she still has years ahead of her to formally train. I kidded my “kumare” as to where her daughter got her talent, to which she replied, “Of course, not from me!”, which brought the house down.

Kids nowadays are really amazing, and I can’t help but feel the gravity of age knocking on my door. Failing that exam I earlier took, years of smoking and other bad habits have finally caught up on me. It is a sad reality, that despite my experience, I can already say that I am on my way out, a “has been” who “never was” in the first place.

This Is My Now...

Japanese children are given little Daruma dolls weighted at the bottom so they stand up if knocked over. "Seven times down, eight times up,: is a saying they all know...

Finally, the second e-mail finally arrived. After the multinational company called up last week to ask me if I would be interested to try the opening and apply online, which I dutifuly did, I thought I failed the preliminary examination administered at the company website. I persisted and wrote them an e-mail, an upbeat one, and it gladly paid off. I received the dreaded reply, and it said that I am qualified for the 2nd round. They way it was worded was something like "..we are greatly interested to continue with your application".

Mind you, I was told by friends that I am aiming too high for this job, they told me that the company only hire people who belong to the top 5% of the graduating class, achievers like cum laude graduates, and I am sure that I didn't study well in college. The first job I had with a global corporation, a Forbes top 50 company, Caltex or what is now known Chevron Texaco, was not a fluke. I underwent rigorous testing and I was told that I was highly qualified for the position. I received an offer sheet that was 5 times higher that the prevailing salary that time, 14 years ago to be exact. I did not last long in that company, I was assigned under the Office Of The President handling Corporate Communications, I was in charge with his speeches, with the company newsletter, with external media, walking down the hallway of 6750 Ayala Avenue was a dreamjob.

Now, this multinational company will be another challenge to hurdle, and who knows, I might be back again in the hallway of 6750 Ayala Avenue. To get the best from the field, the recruitment department's motto, and I am glad that I always did my best in whatever I do. As Oprah Winfrey said, "Doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next". If we only did our best during every "now", we would have the best past and would be in the best condition for a great future. I am happy to say that I hate mediocrity, and I am against it in every form. Now at 33, I will be giving my best shot for a job that everybody will be dreaming about.

Fingers crossed, I am halfway going there, and there is no turning back. As the old company logo has the moon and the stars, I am reaching for them now. As Jordin Sparks sang in her winning performance in American Idol, "This is my now".

The House Of Mirth

I received 2 phone calls in a day for possible employment. At 33, the job market for me looks bleak. Let’s face it, I am competing against young professionals, and I have come at this part of my life wherein I have made my life complicated. My asking price is quite steep as compared to other applicants, and I have decided to employ a headhunter, who happens to be in a business wherein the pond is shrinking. In this age, no one wants to go out of their comfort zone, everybody is weaving a heavy duty safety net. I am competing against cheaper labor, and for a product, I could be compared to a gas-muzzling BMW when everybody is clamoring for a fuel-efficient Toyota, I could not believe that I have positioned myself as ultra premium when the market is demanding for affordability. I have to admit, I am so disillusioned, with myself, with my present state. I can’t help but remember Lily Bart, Edith Wharton’s tragic heroine in her novel “The House Of Mirth”, I am poor and friendless, beautiful but in the end, she has to kill herself due to her being destitute.

Finally, I finished the 2nd season of Prison Break. What a cliffhanger, I think Season 1 was slow as compared to the fast paced Season 2. Wentworth

Finally, I finished the 2nd season of Prison Break. What a cliffhanger, I think Season 1 was slow as compared to the fast paced Season 2. Wentworth Miller has started to crack in real life, with the rumors abound that he is gay, at least i must say he is a good actor, his Michael Schofield portrayal takes my breath away. What the heck, I won't mind being Wentworth Miller's scratching post if in case he decides to visit Manila. I saw this girl wearing a shirt that says "Mrs. Schofield" and I wanted to give her a slap. Nobody touches Wentworth Miller or Michael Schofield, he's mine....

Finally, I finished the 2nd season of Prison Break. What a cliffhanger, I think Season 1 was slow as compared to the fast paced Season 2. Wentworth

Finally, I finished the 2nd season of Prison Break. What a cliffhanger, I think Season 1 was slow as compared to the fast paced Season 2. Wentworth Miller has started to crack in real life, with the rumors abound that he is gay, at least i must say he is a good actor, his Michael Schofield portrayal takes my breath away. What the heck, I won't mind being Wentworth Miller's scratching post if in case he decides to visit Manila. I saw this girl wearing a shirt that says "Mrs. Schofield" and I wanted to give her a slap. Nobody touches Wentworth Miller or Michael Schofield, he's mine....

41 Centavos..

41 centavos. That is the present balance in my checking account. Sad but true, I am in my poorest nowadays. I don't get to eat 3 times a day, I just sleep whenever my stomach is asking for sustenance. I attend a lot of events lately for free cocktails, at least that could pass for dinner. The other day, Pepato by Gaita Fores was the caterer of a designer's store launch in Greenbelt 3, not bad, at least the poorest of the poor don't get to feast like me. After the cocktail, Randy Ortiz, Tweetie De Leon, Bianca Valerio, Phoemela Barranda, Robbie Carmona, Grace Parma and others decided to go to People's Palace, we joined them but I just ordered water. For breakfast, I started munching on stale food on the cupboard, oatmeal by Quaker Oats has become a staple, for lunch, I wait for invitation from well-meaning friends, and if lunch is not on the menu, then banana cue (that's banana fritters for the uninformed about street food) is the next best thing, at least it has sugar and banana is good for one's health. I have lost already 10 pounds. My eBay account has been suspended for 3 weeks and it has been recently reinstated. My dogs is running low on dogfood since the supply I won from a dogshow in Boracay is almost gone. I have started feeding them carrots and leftovers from a restaurant downstairs. My mobile phone provider is regularly reminding me to settle my overdue bill. I always say to myself, "This too shall pass...", and just like Vivien Leigh as Scarlett O' Hara in "Gone With The Wind", i utter, "As God is my witness, I will never get hungry and poor again..". If poverty could be glamorous like my life, I should start attending more events for free food...at least I get free photo ops and exposure in the magazines or newspapers.