Mothers' Day came early to my house. I have two people who stand as my mothers. The other is my Ninang, technically my stepcousin (it's a typical Filipino family tree with lots of entangled branches/roots on many levels---to date, I already have five grandnephews and two grandnieces). By now, I have good friends and even nieces to greet (explaining ( Read more... )

It's like a bad case of blackmail. Agitate and get your way. To soothe the militant labor and transport groups, here comes a fare and wage hike. I won't bore you with the lecture on the factors of production and its vicious cycle. Just that it's so evident that no one seems to be aware of the consequences of their actions and all the proposed ( Read more... )

As an armchair economist (non-practicing), I want to throw up my hands is dismay. What is up with these economic policies (or utter lack of appropriate ones)? I wonder why, despite the great number of so-called business experts and economists around the presidents (past and present) and in the government itself, do they still further wage hikes ( Read more... )

Unica hija. Apple of your parents' eye. People think being an only child is great and that you automatically are spoiled, especially if the family is of means. You've got to be joking, right? Imagine the attention at least half a dozen people on you, 24/7---and you don't have redress for privacy issues. = 0 ( Read more... )

It's a drug. I just have to excel at everything I do. When I was younger, I thought it was just having a feisty, competitive spirit. Now people think I'm just plain suicidal taking on the things I do and expecting to be good at all of it. I don't think there's a cure to it. I've been this way as early as I could remember. Sets you up for falls like ( Read more... )

One of the most common conclusions drawn by the general public about civil servants is: they suck. Working for the public sector is often equated with mediocrity and sloth. There are days I’d heartily agree with that sweeping generalization. (And I’m a third generation civil servant. There’s the rub.) >_At this point I would like to make a ( Read more... )

Sunday is my lazy day. (Well, comparatively, at least.) I would sleep in all day if not for CSI reruns (which I am bound to miss during the week because of class) and mass. But yesterday wasn’t as quiet. I woke up to ringing in my ear. My niece called to thank me for her gift and just chat up while her son was kicking up a storm in the background. ( Read more... )

Of my many, many grand/nephews and nieces, M is probably the closest to a baby sister to me. We’re closer in age, we spent a good part of our childhood together playing in the same house and later the same high school. I cringe when she recounts what a bossy little girl I was, my feeble attempt at being "Ate." Being the aunt, our elders never let ( Read more... )

Puzzles me why my classmates keep thinking I'm single and available. They keep forgetting I'm in a relationship even after I introduced my bf to them several times. Especially Yu Sun, a Korean homemaker. All save one of them are married/with children. Yu Sun immediately assumed I was single because I was so outgoing in class. She was downright ( Read more... )

People have often thought of me as an independent, strong-willed lady. Nevermind I have negligible experience in keeping house for myself---which is why I personally find that opinion hard to believe. (Not that I'm clueless. Everytime I go abroad, I acquit myself well with my assigned chores.) I was voted most likely to make it on my own in high ( Read more... )