Filipina At Home

Arnold Clavio may have forgotten that he is a journalist

filipina at home — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 16:43:52 +0000

His censure of the Azkals following a sexual harassment complaint filed by Ms. Cristy Ramos appears to have done little to help Ms. Ramos’ case.

Arnold Clavio’s statements about the Azkals merely pretending to be “kayumanggi” (brown-skinned) has directed attention more to himself than it has solicited sympathy for Ms. Ramos. Worse, he has earned the ire of many Filipinos with his unintelligent remarks.

Saying that the Azkals are not true Filipinos raises a lot of issues, and ones that are beyond the influence of the Fil-foreign Azkals themselves. Whose fault is it that football previously did not receive enough attention in the country and that there is an inadequate supply of locally-based talented players for the national team? Should we blame our dual citizenship laws for the presence of Fil-Americans, Fil-Europeans and such? Should we blame government for being unable to provide sufficient and satisfactory employment opportunities in the homeland, necessitating a decades-long diaspora to other countries and continents?

Of course, being a veteran journalist and one that others refer to as a respected journalist, Mr. Clavio is entitled to his own opinion. But Mr. Clavio studied journalism and we expect his opinions to offer more substance than, say, Floyd Mayweather talking about Jeremy Lin. As clients of big TV and radio networks who make it possible for these companies to make big money, we would like to hear informed opinions, not rants, from so-called broadcasters or journalists.

But wait, was Mr. Clavio only trying to be patriotic and defending the country’s honor that’s in imminent danger of being tarnished by half-breed Filipinos with loose morals?

Possibly.

But he was also being narrow-minded and racist in his argument.

And this I can’t accept.

The fact is, Mr. Clavio’s rant raises an important issue: What does it mean to be truly Filipino?

Is it just nationality, skin color, or citizenship?

The foreign-based Azkals made a conscious choice to represent the Philippines to renew or strengthen ties with their motherland. A number of them have been with the national team way before all the glory, the funding and the media attention came. Some of them have said in interviews that they do it precisely to honor their Filipino parent and take great pride in being with the national team and helping to elevate football awareness and development in the country.

Perhaps he meant pure-blooded or Philippine-born when Mr. Clavio said kayumanggi. But is one’s love for country measured by the color of one’s skin or the number of years one has stayed in the motherland?

In my humble opinion, love for country is shown by the voluntary act of actively promoting the values embraced by one’s culture, and the capacity to sacrifice and rise above adversity, bias and differences in order to bring unity, honor and glory to the country.

Where I happened to be last February 1, 2012

filipina at home — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 12:24:49 +0000

The assault on UP student leader Lordei Camille Hina on February 1, 2012 inside the Student Council office stung the UP Diliman campus and threw the community in a state of shock and anxiety.

Sure, there have been crimes committed on campus before but this is the first one in my memory where the incident took place inside an office of the university. That’s disturbing. The nurse doing the graveyard shift that night at the University Health Service spoke in essence for the rest of the UP population when she said that, “I don’t feel safe anymore. This means I could be attacked while on duty here at the Emergency Room.”

The fact that I happened to be amid the goings-on on this fateful day is quite a story.

I had just asked hubby to drop me off at the UP Health Service as I was feeling some shortness of breath that day. When I noticed a police car parked on the emergency driveway, I hesitated. “I think there’s something strange happening inside. Why is there a police car?” To this, husband promptly responded by checking with the guard. After a little chat, he reassured me that things were all right. There was only ONE patient at the emergency, he said. Good, I thought. I wanted this over as quickly as possible. Husband dropped me off with the reminder to call him when I was ready to be picked up.

At the emergency room, I stared at the man being examined by the doctor. I saw about three police officers inside and wondered if they were assigned to secure the place. I started to feel strange when I saw that the man was in handcuffs. When the doctor lifted the man’s shirt, a heavily tattooed torso was revealed. I gasped, “Who is this person?!”

A few minutes later, this guy was escorted out of the emergency room. I heaved a sigh of relief. I had thoughts of him running amok in the emergency room that I veered away when he passed by.

So it was finally my turn. I stood up and explained to the nurses the reason for my visit. They then asked me to fill out a form. I wasn’t yet halfway through when a young person in a panicked voice opened the emergency room door and shouted “Emergency! We need a wheelchair!!!”

Everyone suddenly sprung into action. I froze in my seat, petrified at the thought of what was to appear before me. Then, a lady with a bloodied face was wheeled in. I heard her companions say that she was attacked inside their office at the Vinzon’s Hall and that she was unconscious. I left my seat near the nurses’ desk to give way to Ms. Lordei Camille Hina and her companions. I kept looking down to avoid gazing at her face the left side of which was severely damaged.

Watching the hospital staff scurry to save Ms. Hina’s life and her companions agonize over the bad fortune that beset her unsettled me and I decided to leave. I also knew it would take a while before I could be assisted by the hospital staff.

When I returned late at night, the same hospital staff greeted me with inquiries as to why I suddenly disappeared that afternoon. They informed me that Ms. Hina had been brought to the Capitol Medical Center Intensive Care Unit.

The man who was being examined when I arrived at the UP Health Service, was, in fact, Ms. Hina’s attacker.

Based on reports, he was posing as a tattoo artist who wanted to hire a booth at the University Fair being organized by the University Student Council of which Ms. Hina was a member.

Ms. Hina’s attacker was ultimately apprehended by the police.

Ms. Hina’s condition is said to have improved by now.

Let’s hope that the security situation on campus improves sooner rather than later.

Fully Booked at Gateway Mall: Lessons in Customer Disservice

filipina at home — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:36:58 +0000

Have you ever been to a place where you felt like you weren’t welcome or where the people make you feel like you’re up to no good? This is exactly what happens to me each time I enter Fully Booked Bookstore at Gateway Mall in Cubao.

I actually do not choose to go there. My children love being surrounded by books and my 6-year old son has made it a routine to drop by this bookstore after taking a roundtrip on the LRT-3 which we do every so often.

What’s the point of having a Kid’s Section with hundreds of colorful books nicely arranged but NOT to be browsed by kids? Imagine the children’s frustration and the parents’ disappointment the moment they discover that the books here are sealed. I mean, unlike with books for grown-ups, the decision to purchase a book for our children hinges a lot on whether they are attracted to what’s written or drawn on the pages or not. Uhhm, this is impossible when the book is all wrapped up in plastic. I mean, even Amazon.com, in spite of being an online store, does not have this challenge, having made it possible electronically for customers to take a peek at the inside pages of the books they sell.

It reminds me of some households in my neighborhood when I was a little girl. Some families put the best and most expensive toys in glass cabinets to impress visitors. But the children to whom they were given have to beg their parents to unlock the glass case so they could play with “their” toys, usually for a limited time only and under the watchful eye of a person of authority. If something is damaged during playtime, then trouble awaits the offender.

It thus leads me to conclude that the staff at Fully Booked Gateway may have come from such households. No wonder their Children’s Section is always empty. And judging from their behavior, the employees prefer to have things this way.

My 4-year old daughter once held a book there. With the swiftness and menacing manner of a guard dog, the Fully Booked employee instantly warned our yaya (nanny) that she should make sure my daughter didn’t ruin the book or else we would have to pay for it. Our yaya, not to be trampled upon by an ill-trained employee, told the man that my daughter’s parents are absolutely capable of paying for any book in their bookstore.

Last Thursday, February 2, when my husband was paying for two books using a credit card, the cashier asked for an ID for verification. He could not believe what he heard that he had to ask her to say it for a second time. When my husband finally understood what the cashier was driving at, he then replied, “You are the first ever person to ask me that. I am never coming back to this place again.”

It seems that the staff here are capable of much worse things than merely making you feel like a nuisance. A quick Google search will lead one to at least two blog posts decrying the poor treatment they experienced at Fully Booked Gateway. (Click here to view post.) One customer even reports having lost some of her valuables there! (Click here to view the post.)

One golden rule in business is to “Know thy customer.” And it is one that the employees of Fully Booked Gateway hopefully imbibe soon.

Azarenka defeats Sharapova to take home 2012 Australian Singles title

filipina at home — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 14:30:28 +0000

Azarenka came home with the title today in her first ever attempt at a grand slam singles championship. As if that weren’t enough, the win also catapults her to world number 1 come Monday.

Viktoria Azarenka

She conceded only 3 games, all in the first set, to former world no. 1 Sharapova before she finally shook off her nerves and found her game, beating Sharapova 6-3, 6-0.

Azarenka loooked disoriented and ill at ease in the beginning of the match. But once she found her range, she began to play clean and solid tennis. And that was enough to defeat the Russian who then started making a lot of errors. Too many, in fact, that she virtually handed Azarenka the match by making 30 unforced errors as against the Belarusian’s 12.

A win for the Russian would have been sweet, and I would attempt to guess that the majority of the crowd was actually rooting for her, including Australia’s Prime Minister…

After being out for a while due to a shoulder surgery and dropping in the rankings in 2008, she has steadily worked her way up to reach world number 4. We would have wanted to see her win another grand slam title as a reward for all the hard work that she has done and as a statement that she is at the top of her game again.

But then again, she still wields powerful serves and groundstrokes and most likely, she will be around for some time more. I would like to see her improve her net game a bit more, though, as that was clearly an advantage Azarenka had over her.

Maria Sharapova

In spite of the loss, Maria’s parents must be rejoicing, too. The country from which the Sharapovas came, Belarus, has finally been honored with its first ever grand slam singles title.

What’s new at Museo Pambata

filipina at home — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 08:53:21 +0000

We found ourselves again at Museo Pambata last Tuesday, January 17, 2012. My son had been asking for another visit to the museum for several months already but I wanted him to discover the other attractions in the Manila area so I brought them to Manila Zoo instead the last time. He was somewhat fascinated by the zoo. However, he still asked to go to his favorite museum afterwards. I did not oblige.

Last January 17, luck was on his side. We were heading to the City of Manila again and I planned on taking them to the Manila Orchidarium. (I honestly wanted to see something new as well and was trying to do everything to keep us from going to Museo Pambata again!) While on the road, I kept looking up to the skies which foreboded rain. With my son’s request to visit the museum echoing in my husband’s ears, he inquired if I could, – or more like, pleaded with me – to accede to my son’s request.

I said, weather permitting, it would be good for them to be introduced to other places in the area.

Our ambivalence was ended by my four-year old daughter when, upon reaching the City of Manila, she vomited her lunch of french fries and milk. Thereafter, the skies suddenly darkened, as if to tell me, “Just go to Museo Pambata. There is a roof, a wash room and benches”.

My son was overjoyed as we entered the gates of Museo Pambata. Having been there countless times before, the place offered me no more thrill.

I’ve seen the exhibits too many times, I was no longer excited as the kids were. Old Manila. The fish tanks. The tropical forest with the little plastic crocodiles. The human body. Empee’s Barbershop. The Palengke, The Carinderia. The Bahay Kubo. The Train. The Science room. And what else? Ah, yes, the library with the strange odor. And the dolls and musical instruments at the back of the building.

But then again, the Museo Pambata was not built for adults like me, who get bored very easily. It’s for kids who never lack for wonder and amazement and who discover something new at each visit.

But lo and behold! The fish tanks, tropical forest and science exhibit were no longer there. In their place were new, interesting and colorful displays about the environment, plants and the forest, among others.

There are lots of information that serve to make us more conscious of how we live. The lesson that I think wants to be imparted to kids is, what we do as individuals, and the choices that we make, have a direct impact on the world around us. If we want to make this world a better place or if we want to save the earth from destruction, the little things that we do CAN help.

This visit was different from the previous ones as I was once again as excited as my kids were to check out the new exhibits at Museo.

I’m sharing with you some photos that I took so you know what new and exciting things await you next time you go there.

Museo Pambata (Children’s Museum) is located at Roxas Boulevard corner South Drive Manila, Philippines 1000 Telephone: (632) 523 1797 to 98, 536-0595 Facsimile: (632) 522 1246

A Brush With The Law

filipina at home — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 15:46:33 +0000

This afternoon, I was heading home from the Cubao area when a police man stopped me. I was exiting Ermin Garcia and merging into EDSA southbound. I had to stay on the rightmost lane as I was going to make a U-turn before EDSA corner Aurora Blvd. He said I was on the wrong lane and that the rightmost is only for public utility vehicles. I had to explain that I was going to make a U-turn up ahead. I added that I had been here several times before and was never flagged down.

After asking for my driver’s license which I readily gave to the first cop, a second police man came up to ask where I was headed. He told me that I should have taken the second lane upon making the right turn from E. Garcia. The first cop then asked the other one whether he wanted to give me a ticket or not.

I stared at them as I waited for the verdict. The older of the two decided to return my driver’s license to me with a reminder to never commit the same offense in the future. As I reached for my license, I had to tell him that his proposition is quite dangerous. And to think that the two rightmost lanes on this part of EDSA are occupied mostly by buses. He waved his hand somewhat dismissively as if to tell me, “Go now before I change my mind.”

I drove away disgruntled. No, I didn’t get a ticket today. But I was reminded how nonsensical some of our rules are.

Good thing I didn’t miss my appointment at 2 pm.

Don’t let your child be a kangaroo

filipina at home — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 10:39:46 +0000

Watch this video and reflect on how the school system, in spite of its best intentions, sometimes unwittingly limits a child’s potentials by failing to recognize each one’s uniqueness.

Conventionalism and predictability are encouraged in the desire to create harmony and productivity in society.

HEDCen vs. Claret School 4-3

filipina at home — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 10:55:28 +0000

We found ourselves heading for Ateneo High School yesterday to watch my nephew’s the football match against HEDCen. HEDCEn is a school in Taytay, Rizal where, according to my nephew, only football is taught in physical education classes. (please feel free to correct me if this is not accurate.)

That’s why my nephew did not want us to watch their match. He said they didn’t stand a chance against this school.

We were just so itching to watch him after being disappointed about two Saturdays ago when we all trooped to Claret School (yes, the small ones included) for the match against De La Salle Canlubang, only to find out that La Salle defaulted. (That sucked! Good thing I didn’t bring my fan horn…:-)

My nephew told me he would rather that we watch a match where they have the upperhand. But then I said. You never know, your team might pull off a surprise.

And they nearly did.

They made 3 goals in the early part of the first half, 2 of them from my nephew, the other was made possible by his assist.

The HEDCen coach quickly adjusted and substituted nearly the whole lineup, and fielded in his national team player too.

They quickly chased Claret’s 3-goal advantage and added one more goal to take the lead.

The bigger players were too much for the Claretians to handle who all played a full 90 minutes.

I kept hoping that they could squeeze in one more goal especially since the HEDCen keeper was obviously injured.

They compensated for this through their tight defense.

At match end, it was HEDCen 4-3 against Claret School.

I told my nephew, don’t feel bad. It’s only as if they made just one goal against your team.

Basketball: 2011 Jones Cup Final Round

filipina at home — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 15:06:00 +0000

The Jones Cup ended today with Iran taking home the championship for the third straight year. Though the Koreans gave Iran a run for their money, Iran were heavily favored to win owing mostly to the presence of 7-foot-2-inch NBA player Haddadi in the team.

Photo: FIBA Asia

Philippine team coach Toroman remarked that Haddadi had improved immensely, making it hard for the Philippines to contain him when the two teams met yesterday in the semifinal round. Toroman was formerly Iran’s national team coach.

In spite of its reputation as the most offensive team in the league, Korea were outgunned by the Iranians when it mattered most. The Koreans held the lead for most of the first half but lost control of the game in the second half. Several times, they came close to tying the match or taking the lead, but did not succeed.

Moon, a naturalized Korean and the team’s versatile scorer, had to be taken out in the first half due to foul trouble. When he was fielded back in during the second half, he could could not find his mark and did not deliver the points for his team. Adding to Korea’s woes is the fouling out of center Ha who was the closest Korea ever got to containing Haddadi.

It was not apparent that Korea were the league’s most offensive team. They struggled with their offense especially in the second half. In the fourth quarter, I expected them to put their offensive guns to good use by outscoring the Iranians who were unstoppable in the paint.

Instead, Korea decided to go inside the paint, instead of shooting from beyond the arch, hoping perhaps to draw the fouls and get Iran into early penalty situation.

However, this didn’t work.

In the end, the better team won, assisted to some measure by poor officiating, which, anyhow, persisted during the entire league.

But ultimately, it was a well-deserved victory for Iran.

Senator Zubiri’s resignation is not honorable

filipina at home — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 08:47:33 +0000

What’s all the hoot about Senator Zubiri’s resignation being an honorable act?

He’s vacating the senate seat four years after he won by way of fraud. Let’s not be too naïve to believe that he was only a beneficiary of the 2007 electoral fraud and that he had no knowledge that it was taking place.

Now that Koko Pimentel has come out winner in the recount, Unsenator Zubiri has resigned from the Senate. Very smooth move indeed, as it will qualify him for a fresh two terms when he runs as senator in the next elections, and the next (assuming he wins the first attempt through honest means).

It’s like he never assumed office in 2007.

Good that you did not pursue a counterprotest. Remember, Filipinos hate kontrabidas. We love underdogs. That is why Marimar soaps are eternal winners here. And as they say that the lines separating politics and showbiz often become blurred, with Mr. Zubiri’s movie star looks, it is not unthinkable for show business circles to start talking about him. Since he now has more time in his hands, Mother Lily might invite him to star in a movie or two, either to capitalize on his newfound disrepute or to help him recover his cute and charming pretty boy image harking back to his days as congressman.

Before I get carried away sir, uhhm, how much pork barrel funds did you leave for the rest of Senator Pimentel’s term? Let me guess. Not a lot…?

He is hurt by all the accusations of election fraud and how this casts him in a bad light. But imagine how painful this must be for the true winner that is Senator Koko Pimentel to have his first senatorial win snatched away from him by the connivance of a president of insatiable greed and equally voracious and conscienceless election officers.

We acknowledge that Mr. Zubiri may have been a hardworking senator, championing environmental causes. Perhaps he knew he needed to work extra hard in order to redeem himself for the unusual manner by which he came to the senate halls.

Mr. Zubiri said on TV that people should look at his performance before anything else.

The fact that we voted for Koko Pimentel means that we wanted to see how he would perform and not you, Mr. Zubiri! Please don’t insinuate that you can do as well as (or better than) Koko Pimentel.

Darn the change in administration, otherwise Mr. Zubiri would have been an Honorable Senator all the way til 2012.

The more than four years that were taken away from Koko Pimentel would never be brought back. The remainder of the term that he serves out will be counted as one full term, regardless of what has transpired.

Congratulations to Senator Koko for fighting this battle even if it meant banging your head against a brick wall.

I wish Senator Koko Pimentel a truly honorable, fruitful and productive career as a legislator.