In my absence

I’m off to vacation again! Wohoo! Thanks to the countless holidays and low-budget airlines [read: Cebu Pacific], I am given the opportunity to relax again!

So, I will be absent from this blog for quite a while, and I’m glad that I won’t be needing home alarm systems for this site the way houses do when left alone!

Anyway, just in case you didn’t know yet, in my absence, I’m holding a contest at my other home. So if you have the time, do head to ang bahay ni kumareng grace for the details!

I’ll see you when I get back!

Almost like the real thing

Princess Wendy now knows what she wants for Christmas: A Baby Alive Doll.

Baby Alive dolls, manufactured by Hasbro, are like the real thing, meaning, they eat, they drink, they cry, they talk, they laugh, and yes, they poop.  Imagine that!

Well, these toys don’t come in cheap, so there would of course be conditions before Wendy gets one for Christmas. And when those conditions are met, all I have to do is find stores that accept credit cards so that it wouldn’t be too hard on the pocket.

What I just don’t like about this is the fact that Wendy is making me a young grandma!

Dreaming…

What would I like more than Orlando vacations right now, as in right this moment [ok, we can go as far as “what I need” right now instead of what I like]?

• A good, relaxing massage
• Mango shake
• A good book
• A whole pizza [which I wouldn’t be able to finish by myself of course]

But somehow, no time for these things right now…so busy with different things!

So just dropping by to wish you all a happy weekend [and a happy week!]!

One proud Pinoy

You know what I love about this picture?

I mean, besides the fact that it is showing a Filipino receiving a CNN Hero of the Year Award [for the world to see…and we may never know, he might be featured in some Amazon books in the future]?

What I love about this picture is that miniature kariton with the Philippine flag that Efren Penaflorida proudly waved in front of the international cameras when he received his award.

Nothing makes me prouder than a Filipino in the international scene showing he/she is proud to be a Filipino.

May your spirit never waver Efren!

On political advertisements

Candidate politicians for the 2010 elections have different ways of campaigning, such as Mar Roxas creating an image of Mr. Palengke or Manny Villar giving a manufactured home or sending OFWs home.

But I guess the most effective and common form of campaign nowadays, besides the tried and tested method of going around and meeting people face-to-face, is TV and radio advertisements.

Nowadays, it is common to see our politicians on TV. And what myrad of characters we see!

What I find amusing though is that message at the end that we see: “Ad paid for by supporters of Loren Legarda [or whoever].“

I mean, are they always real? Do other people really pay for these politicians’ ads?

Probably, as I was expecting this message at the end of Noynoy Aquino’s ad: “Ad paid for by Kris Aquino.”

At least one is honest enough: “Ad paid for by Juan Ponce Enrile.” (Ay, mas mayaman sya kesa kay Manny Villar?)

Calamondin juice

I am not fond of drinking medicine. In fact, I feel I would puke if I try to down one in my body…well, that could be an exaggeration. Bottom line is, as much as possible, I don’t like drinking medicine!

So, with my colds not leaving me these past few days, I resorted to drinking calamansi juice [calamondin]. Lots of calamansi and lots of water [no need for water softeners] plus a bit of muskovado sugar, and I’m off! I feel that it’s more effective than drinking Neozep.

Or is it just all psychological?

The lost meaning

Just finished reading this book:

Unlike The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons though, it took me quite a while to finish it: The Da Vinci Code, 2 days; Angels & Demons, 2 days; The Lost Symbol, 1 month.

I doubt that it has to do with length.

As usual with Dan Brown books, the action happens as if the protagonists are on the search for a fat burner [read: fast paced]; they are always on the run! And, as always, there is a twist at the end, which makes the book interesting. However, I got so lost in the so many technical terms and issues discussed. Perhaps, I just lacked knowledge about Masons and pyramids that I simply couldn’t get it. In the end, I was not really sure what the lost symbol is [although I have an idea]!

I guess it just didn’t have the appeal that The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons had for me [which I literally couldn’t put down!]. Well, there’s always a next time to read, and understand, The Lost Symbol again, and I’ll tell you how it goes!

Growing babies in stomachs

Wendy: Mama, I want a sister! In our whole batch, kami lang ni Violaine ang walang kapatid!

KG: Sige let’s adopt na lang muna!

Wendy: Ayaw! Gusto ko galing sa tyan mo!

She’s really growing up na! Before, ok lang we buy a sister or brother sa Cartimar, ngayon di na pwede! 

[Hay, Wendy, if you only knew, baka by the time you have sister or brother, you’d be needing wrinkle cream already. He! He! Joke lang!]

Cloudy with a chance of…what?

I’m so excited to see this movie:

Yes, I know it’s a children’s tale, but I really loved it as a book!

The book is about two children, Henry and his sister, who listen to their grandfather tell the story of the town of Chewandswallow, where the weather comes three times a day, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and is always food and beverages. The rain is juice and soup, the snow is mashed potatoes, and the wind brings hamburgers. Because of this phenomenon, there are no grocery stores. However, when floods and storms of giant food come, the population is forced to leave Chewandswallow on boats made of bread, and adapt to their new lives in our world where the sky doesn’t feed you. [Imagine not having to worry about food! All you have to think about is cheap health insurance or bargain clothes!]–Wikipedia

I guess I love the “impossibility” of it, as well as the great adventure! I had a great time imagining what it would be like to have your food literally drop from the sky.

I wonder if the movie will be as great! Can’t wait!

Coming soon!

Sesame Street scandals

With the anniversary of one of the top franchises in the 1980s to the 1990s weeks ago, I was surprised to find this article:

TOP 10 SESAME STREET SCANDALS

1. The racy years (1969 – 1974)

When it debuts in 1969, the show’s rather grown-up content alarms some parents. In a reflection of the era, Cookie Monster puffs on a pipe and Grover takes lessons in civil disobedience from a hippie. The first volume of the show’s DVD set now carries an “adults only” warning. (Watch video here)

2. Oscar the Grouch’s mood swings (1969 – present)

The least cheerful muppet has been regularly called out for being too cantankerous and caustic for preschool-aged viewers. Little known fact: Oscar was originally slated to lead an even more alienated life in a manhole, but “Sesame Street” producers decided to soften him up by switching his home to a trash can. (Watch video here)

3. Elmo’s questionable grammar (1979-present)

Elmo’s tendency to refer to himself in the third person (”Elmo scared!”) raises fears that his small, inchoate fans are learning improper grammar. The show’s creators defend the red creature’s diction by saying he engages preschoolers who can’t yet make sense of pronouns. (Watch video here)

4. Bert and Ernie’s sexual ambiguity (1980 – present)

Are these two single men who share a bedroom just friends (with color-coordiinated orange and yellow skin, respectively) or are they gay lovers? Critics have been registering their disapproval for decades, despite “Sesame Street” producers’ assurances that they’re not promoting a same-sex agenda. (Watch video here)

5. Mr Hooper’s death (1983)

After actor Will Lee — who played chatty shopkeeper Mr Hooper — dies in 1983, the program pays tribute with an episode that deals directly with death. Wrestling with grief, Big Bird imparts the lesson that life necessarily ends, a theme many parents feel their children are too young to confront. (Watch video here)

6. A muppet with AIDS (2002)

To fight stereotypes about people with AIDS, “Sesame Street” introduces an HIV-positive muppet named Kami. Some parents protest that their children are too young to face the harsh realities of the virus. (Watch video here)

7. Fears that “Sesame” gives kids ADD (2004)

Some critics say “Sesame Street” is partially to blame for the rise in ADHD diagnoses, noting that the program is broken into 40 short, unrelated segments — the sort of pacing that arguably triggers attention-deficit problems. (Watch video here)

8. Cookie Monster’s scandalous diet (2005)

As childhood obesity reaches epidemic levels, ‘Sesame Street’ is skewered for celebrating a blue beast whose defining characteristic is an addiction to baked goods. In 2005, a reformed Cookie Monster begins partaking of healthier choices like fruits and vegetables, prompting rumors that he will be renamed “Veggie Monster.” (Watch video here)

9. Mahboub the Muppet (2006)

At the height of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in December 2006, two versions of ‘Sesame Street’ air in Israel: One for Arab children and one for Israelis. To try to bridge the cultural gap and reinforce the message of tolerance, producers introduce Arab muppet Mahboub into the Jewish version. Though protests ensue, Mahboub soons endears himself to Israelis. (Watch video here)

10. The program’s “liberal bias” (2009)

In a “Sesame Street” segment that appears to mock conservative Fox News, an irate viewer calls the Grouchy News Network (GNN) to complain that the news isn’t grouchy enough: “From now on I am watching Pox News. Now there is a trashy news show.” After Fox complains, the PBS ombudsman admits that, although the parody was “too good to resist,” it “should have been resisted.” 

SOURCE: Gene Hollywood

 I wasn’t even aware of any of these scandals [well, except the “Ernie and Bert are gays” issue]. Are you?