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).