Reconnecting friends from over a decade of friendship!

July 18, 2013 by feyma

Reconnecting friends from over a decade of friendship!

Yesterday I went to see again a friend that Bob and I knew for over a decade now. We knew them through the net. Her name is Effy, she now lives in Texas with her husband John and their 2 kids Jessa and little JP. Now joined by Effy’s mom Ate Ermie.

We met her just not long after we arrived here from the States in early 2000. At that time we used to live in GenSan. Effy just graduated her college and got engaged to her fiancee John from The States. At that time Effy was still the shy girl. Just talking and interacting with her I remember my days with her before meeting Bob and before my days going to the States. The typical Pinay, so shy and timid. Effy really is every parents dream to have for a daughter. Bob met Effy and John when Bob came to Davao for a business trip. John came here to see Effy for the first time. Bob and John had been communicating on the net for awhile. John decided to visit GenSan. We’re so happy to show them around, we brought them to Lake Sebu and Isla Parilla and other nice places there.

The long time friends

We still got in contact with Effy after John went home. One day we had some business to do here in Davao. We then proceeded to Tagum to see Effy. I think at that time she’s working at the hospital there. It happened to be her off day at work, we invited her to come with us to Davao to have lunch. We brought her to one of the restaurant here. I think that was Don Henrico’s Restaurant near Gaisano South. We ordered foods and one of the things we ordered was onion rings. That was the first time Effy tasted onion rings and she really like it a lot.

John came back few months after and they had pre-wedding celebration here in Tagum. Bob and I were invited. It was really a nice and beautiful celebration. Effy’s mom Ate Ermie who is a fabulous wedding planner, she prepared the whole thing. It was grand since her lovely daughter would be married in a few weeks in the States. The party here was for the family of Effy who can’t attend the wedding in the States. We were sort of the grooms family during the pre-wedding. Our friendship did not end after we atteneded the pre-wedding. John and Effy went to the States a few days after the pre-wedding celebration. Effy first lived in Seattle for a few years before settling to Texas until now. John is a chef at RainForest Restaurant.

Aaron and Jessa

Even when Effy was already in the States I am still communicating with her mom. Then when Effy visit her family here after living in the States for a few years. She came to our house and just catch up with our friendship. Then a few years ago Ate Ermie’s went to States. We still continue on our friendship. Thank goodness for Facebook and the telephone. We continue knowing each other activities through there. I can see now that Effy is a very busy mom to her daughter who happens to be modeling. She’s traveling to have shows on some other areas in Texas.

Effy and her mom Ermie also do some wedding planning and flower arrangement on the side for wedding in there area in Texas. Effy also accepts Balikbayan Boxes shipment for the Philippines. If ever you want more info just email me on that.

To Effy and Ate Ermie, little JP and Jessa. It was really nice seeing you guys. Thank you so much for visiting. Thank you for the gifts too. I hope to see you guys before you head back home. Have a good visit with your family here in the Philippines. Have a good trip home.

July 11, 2013 by feyma

The eye popping show!

Been watching shows on TV. One that caught our attention was the show “Restaurant Impossible” by Robert Irvine. The show really is about drowning in debt restaurant owners and asking help from Robert on how to make their restaurant better and more profitable. What Robert will do he will renovate the restaurant and improved the menu for 2 days with the budget of $10,000. He will have help from his few different designers and his builder Tom. Both Bob and I really like the show and the people that help Robert. A lot of time we would be in awe of the outcome of the renovation. I also learned a few menus from him.

Robert Irvine of Restaurant Impossible

It’s really puzzling to me how could any owners let there restaurant be filthy, disgusting and so much gunk. Just watching the show makes my stomach turn upside down. Lots of time my eyeballs just about to pop out just watching those people when picking up the equipment in the kitchen and it’s filth every where. I felt that the workers just didn’t care and I guess the owners too. Too many OMG came out from my mouth in every episode that I watch of that show. It’s just mind blowing that the owners don’t have a clue how disgusting their restaurant has become. Like Bob and I were always commenting while watching the show, why can’t the owner start cleaning when they try to reach out for Robert before he come there to see their restaurant? At least when he comes to visit the resto it is partly clean already. Geez, if I would be the owner I would be embarrassed seeing my restaurant so filthy. Most of the restaurant that Robert would visit he always say its like a pig sty. And I totally agree with him.

Now since watching that show. My gosh, I was telling Bob that I felt like not eating at any restaurant now here in the Philippines, unless it is a newly opened restaurant. If the restaurant in the West goes like that so filthy and so disgusting, to think they had people from the government checking the restaurant regularly. What will be the restaurant here? I am not sure if they have regular people from the government checking the restaurant or do they have strict regulations on maintaining the restaurant here.

When going to the restaurant now all I’m thinking when ordering if the drinks and ice dispenser the inside is it clean? Are the cooking pots and pans cleaned? Are there mice crawling all over the restaurant during the night? Are the meats and veggies cleaned before cooking and serving? Gee, too many questions now in the back of my head. I mean I am not saying that the restaurant be super, super clean. Really it would be nice though if it would. But I would like it to be at least everything’s clean and the plates that were clean be covered that no bugs crawling in. No mice inside the kitchen running all over.

I don’t mind eating and drinking at some other good known restaurants here. Also right now I don’t mind eating at S & R since they just opened and some other restaurant that just opened recently. I know that the drinks & ice dispenser still in good shape.

Have a good eat everyone!

July 4, 2013 by feyma

“Brigada” the new requirements!

The new requirements now to enroll a kid here in the Philippines in a public school for grade school and high school are to do a Brigada. The “Brigada” or also known as Bayanihan. To work together to do something useful for the classroom or the school. It’s mostly and effort of the teachers, parents, students and member of the community. It is actually a week or 2 week long work in school. But you don’t have to work at the school the whole time. One parent or both can go there to the classroom and work there for an hour or more depending on how long you are willing to help out. I guess if ever few kids in the family goes to the school, the parents can do the brigada thing once and they can choose what grade level they want to work with, it surely depend on the parents on that.

Brigada Eskwela

With these efforts some volunteers were so attuned that they also give out or donate I say like paint, brooms, school supply, decor for the classroom, could give curtains and also helping putting them up, can give other stuff that needed there. The volunteers that help out will clean up the whole classroom inside and outside before the school starts. Parents and children will work side by side to paint the classroom or fix the chairs that’s been broken or other stuff that’s needs to be done. It also a good start to know the other parents and the teachers better. If you have some extra stuff in your house like cleaning products you can give it to the teacher-in-charge for the of used of the product.

Sending your kids to public school here it’s really similar to the States that almost everything is free. From the school tuition to the books. The teachers here would not even ask the parents for donations. They will just say that if you want to give you can, but you are not oblige to give.

Some schools they starts asking volunteers early (like the whole summer) to help out especially if lots of major repairs needs to be done like with the ceilings or some broken chair, teachers desk and bathroom leaks or smooth up the concrete walls. They also asked local businesses for assistance that will participate with the brigada.

I just heard that brigada recently when our wash lady was asking for an off day during the week for her to go for the brigada thing. She could tell that I had no idea what she was talking about, so she explained to me. Then I also asked my sister about it. Really it is cool to have it. I think they started the brigada thing during the mid 90′s to late 90′s. I’ve never experienced that when I was in grade school or in high school. It will be good start knowing the other parents especially later if your kid wants to spend the night at the classmates house. At least you already had an idea who they are with.

Feel free to share your Brigada or Bayanihan experience. School just started here, hope everyone is ready. Hope you guys had a good summer. For the folks in the West your summer just started. Have a good one there.

Mabuhay!

April 28, 2012 by feyma

Reality TV Phenomenon

I was riding the jeepney the other day going downtown. While in the jeepney I saw bunch of college students ahead of me sitting just at the rear side of the jeepney. I went ahead and sit not far from the driver. Those students they were gigling and they were talking about the Pinoy Big Brother (PBB) show on TV. They were talking about how cute some of the guys are and they were so fascinated by them. As they continued talking they also talked about how to become a contestant on that show. They said that you have to go through lots of obstacles to get there and they said you have to have money to be one of the contestants. I didn’t bother to ask the students.

PBB

When I got home, while eating our lunch I was asking my nieces and nephew about what I heard from the jeepney. If its true or not? I guess my nephew said that a family of a friend of his already did pass all the necessary stuff to be one of the contestant. I guess the draw back for that friend of his is that they don’t have the money to give to the TV station for some insurance thing. I thought they already have, but who knows. I asked them why would the contestant give any money? They explained to me but I just didn’t get it. My mind was just clouded in disbelief. They said you just take a look at most of the contestants here in the Philippines the families of those people own big businesses. In short they have the money, the rich and the famous.

Really all of us were just saying “Oh well, they are free to accept who they want to accept.” You know what I mean? Can’t force them. I am still hoping that it’s not true. Hmm… I thought that you have to be good at the screening or audition to get into the show. The regular PBB just ended. They were just started the PBB teen edition like a couple of weeks ago. Some people in our house are hooked to it.

I doubt if it’s like that from the West. I know there if you pass the audition, then you’re in. No strings attached. Really interesting for me to hear stuff like that here. I mean I should not be surprised. It’s just not good to hear though. But as what I’ve heard most of the time, here they said its always good to have “who you know on the higher level.” They also said that some people will get into higher position with their intelligence and wit, others if they have a family in a higher level, then they’re most likely the person that will get the next position.

Anyway, back to the subject I was talking about. Like it would be interesting for me to see people from the boonies and be a contestant on the reality TV. Send them to be in the middle of Makati or New York and let them work for food, and the persons from the big city, send them to the deeper mountains and let them work for their food and let them work the manual labor. We will see who will really survives at the end. That would really be interesting.

Survivor

Honestly I am so tired of the survivor, all they do is whining and gossiping. I want that they have to work really hard to earn what they put in their mouth instead of talking garbage with other people, and from the start make alliances. It’s boring. Reality TV is the big money maker now. Look how many reality shows are on TV right now all over the world. Some are good and interesting. Some were just dumb and boring.

What your favorite reality TV show? Time to share here.

Have fun watching on your show.

Mabuhay!

April 19, 2012 by feyma

A conversation with Manny Pacquiao’s close family member!

I went to the airport yesterday to ship something through a cargo plane. I went there with my niece and my sister. We were waiting for the lady at the counter, she was encoding our cargo for the computer. As we were just standing there near the counter waiting, a nice pick up truck with a fancy custom made trunk organizer in the back started to park in the parking lot. I thought to myself when I saw the truck who owns this fancy pick up truck? It could be a politicians or businessman. It has to be somebody rich and famous. I just got curious because I never saw those kind of fancy trunk organizer here in the Philippines only in the States when I used to live there.

Buboy Fernandez - Manny Pacquiao's Trainer/Friend

I was just trying to continue on with our purpose there at the airport. Just then a big ice chest brought by the porter and he place it near to the weighing scale which was just a meter away from me. When the porter opened it and showed to the in-charge to weigh I saw lots of tuna and other fish in it. When he closed the lid I saw a big name written on the lid “TEAM PACQUIAO”. Just then my sister recognized the guy standing next to the ice chest it was the sidekick of Manny. She said the name, and I said really? It confirms by his clothing, and he looks so familiar to me. I’m trying to remember his face I then recognized him on the reality TV show of Freddie Roach. I was just observing him and his people.

As we were waiting there that assistant (close family member) and his driver and other people of Manny were talking. They were making jokes, and they were facing towards us. The head of that group told the others (who were the workers of Manny) that you guys have to be ready since its Sunday today when Manny wakes up you guys cell phones will be flooded with text from Manny about God. It’s going to be a Bible message and nice passage. Someone from the airport asked if is it really true that Manny is transformed now? That assistant said yes it’s true.

That guy (assitant) was talking about a time they were in the States and Manny asked him to read a passage from the Bible and Manny told him the verse of the Bible to read, being he is not a reader of the Bible he didn’t recognize if its old or new testament. He said that he was just scanning the Bible, and he thought that Manny forgot what he was asking since Manny was with other people they were talking about the fight. So what the sidekick did, he excuse himself and he went to the bathroom and he played games. After awhile he went out from the bathroom and thinking Manny already forgot what he was asking for him to do. He was wrong, as soon as Manny saw him, Manny immediately told him to read it aloud now. The sidekick just not really into reading the Bible he told Manny that look even if you get mad at me I just not going to read that passage, it’s just not me and he made jokes to Manny that his doctor advised him not to do any reading for now. He really told us there that he just can’t find the verse in the Bible.

That assistant said that all the night life, gambling, flirting with women were totally not on Manny’s mind now. He even give up a lot of his roosters for cockfighting. His selling it all now. Everyone there at the airport were impressed of that. They were happy for him. The sidekick told us that one of Manny’s worker even asked Manny if they could butcher some of the rooster? They told him it would be a good soup to make for all of them. Manny declined the offer and told his workers he wants to sell all of the roosters since they are from good breed.

He also said that the mom of Manny would be praying right before the fight, and they will teasing some family member that the mom would not be praying on her knees if the camera crew of the TV stations would not be present there. She will be faking her fainting so that its going to be on the news. Honestly everyone there at the airport burst into laughter hearing their jokes. I think he was just exaggerating a lot of his stories just to be funny in front of us. Hey it could be all true. He could tell that his people were too sleepy and so the workers there its too early for everyone there. It was like 4 something in the morning.

We asked him were would those fish in the ice chest heading? He said that Manny will be going to Baguio for training which will starts that day and that fish would be there for one of his diet regimen. He will be flying to Baguio too with Manny. Anyway, I hope that Manny will win again with his next fight. The last fight was really a close one. Lots of people even thinks that the opponent was the winner last time.

Good luck to him and his team Pacquiao.