Times you'd HATE to be in marketing

In the supermarket some days back, James and I noticed that the Nestle infant milks had a new packaging, and wondered what the hell Nestle was thinking...

...until we realized a split-second later that it wasn't only Nestle, but every product in the infant milk aisle!

My jaw dropped in shock. Government regulation strikes again. In the past, to promote breastfeeding, DOH had prohibited pediatricians from endorsing any infant milk; forebade infant milk brands from having any kind of advertising in health centers; and more recently, banned infant milk advertising on TV. Now, DOH is regulating packaging as well. So much for packaging aesthetics. And just imagine the cost and logistical nightmare of replacing every single box and can of infant milk with this new regulated packaging!

In fairness, at least we see one government agency doing its job. Product aesthetics and sympathy for infant milk brand managers aside, there really are products that deserve to be regulated in the interest of consumer well-being. I just wonder when they'll get around to similarly regulating other such products? Apart from the no-brainer of cigarettes being hazardous to your health, there are actually a few others I'd love to see, hahaha:

• On softdrink bottles and junk food wrappers: "This shit is bad for you."
• On processed foods: "You don't even want to know what goes into this shit."
• Outside fastfood joints: "Go eat something healthier."
• On cellphones: "Do you want to know how much sending a text ACTUALLY costs?"
• Outside SM: "Don't support unfair labor practices."

And I'll stop there before I get to beauty products and just shoot myself in the foot. Hahahaha! Happy shopping, consumers!

Move over, Ikea... I've got a new favorite store

Yes, this entry is STILL about Lego. Hahaha. But I'll make it quick.

I discovered Bricks World during my recent trip to Singapore... in the mall below the P&G office, of all places! What an exciting place. Lego everywhere, standard sets as well as rare sets (Lego chess!) and merchandising (keychains, playing cards, cookie jars, magnets) that you don't find elsewhere. You can also buy individual and hard-to-find pieces. And best of all, stuff is WAAAAY cheaper than it is in the Philippines -- by around 30%! Not to mention the stuff on sale pa.

Apart from the merchandise, I also appreciated the service. Even by Singapore standards, it was really good. The shop ladies worked out my purchases such that I could get a Bricks World membership, and a discount too! I think I saved the equivalent of Php1,000... and got a membership card too. :-D

So I bought a ton of Lego: Christmas gifts for my niece and nephew, a set that Joanne made bilin after finding out it was 30% cheaper... and of course, a big set for myself. And lots of little merchandise (haha sucker for marketing). [Incidentally, what's great about this big set -- which I super SUPER wanted after seeing it on the Internet -- is that, the first day I went to Bricks World, it was on sale at S$299 from the original price of around S$380. I decided to give it some thought... which was great, because when I visited again 2 days later, it was down to S$199!! No more second thoughts about a set this great, at this big a discount. :-D]

I got so much stuff that it didn't fit in my luggage on the flight home, and the check-in lady wouldn't let me handcarry it... luckily there was a post office in Changi and I was able to buy a big box, hahaha.

Bricks World has stores in Novena Square and Ngee Ann City in Singapore. I heard they have more but I haven't been able to visit yet. Next time! :-D

Getting back with my old flame

My rediscovered romance with Lego just keeps getting better.

Some history. When I was a kid, I think around Grade 4, I wrote and snail-mailed a letter to Lego. I told them how much I loved their toys, I even made suggestions on new lines (at the time, they only had town, castle, and space -- none of the pirates and agents and racers and underwater stuff).

The experience of writing the makers of my favorite toys was happy enough -- but what a thrill when they actually responded! A package came in the mail weeks later, containing a load of Lego and Legoland magazines and brochures, including a factbook detailing the history of Lego... and a personalized letter thanking me for my ideas! It was a highlight of my childhood life, and that yellow envelope with all the material from Lego was in my schoolbag for months after.

A few weeks back, I wrote my next letter to Lego. This time, it was as an adult, toying with the idea of a job with their company, and via e-mail. Again, like before, I was happy enough to just write them. And, like before, I was thrilled to get a response from them, via e-mail.

I thought that was that. Until many days after, I received a notice from the Mandaluyong Central Post Office that I had a package to pick up. I had no idea what it was, and it was actually quite irritating because I could only go there from 8 AM to 12 NN, Mondays to Thursdays (go figure with the government!), and besides I had no idea where the Mandaluyong Post Office was. (Who goes to post offices nowadays anyway!?)

For several days I ignored the notice. But then I received another notice, this time labeled "Final Notice", and thought to myself, what the hell. So last Thursday, with a relatively light office load (note: relatively), James and I went to the Mandaluyong City Hall. Luckily the Central Post Office was easy to find. And luckily I did go, because when they handed me the pacakge, the first thing I saw was the little red square in the middle of the envelope:

I wanted to tear it open then and there! But I thought better of it and waited till I was back in the car.

I was a 10-year-old kid again, practically jumping up and down in my seat, heart pounding, and smiling ear to ear. Inside the envelope was a Lego Club magazine, a couple of Lego keychains (one with a classic 2 x 4 Lego brick, and one with a Catwoman Lego mini-figure... how did they guess I was a Catwoman kind of guy!? hahahaha), and a personalized letter in response to what I'd written. I hugged that envelope so close to my chest that I crumpled it. Hahaha.

It may have been unlike 20 years ago, when that package was in my bag for months -- but last Thursday, I had that package with me the whole day, and showed it to every officemate I could. "Cool", "Exciting", "Wow", and "Great example of consumer relations" were some of the reactions -- and I agree with them on all points. This "extra mile" of snail-mailing a package in the e-mail age was a great move on Lego's part -- from both the points of view of a thrilled 30-year-old kid and a brand manager (I just bought another Lego set today, and I can't wait till my next set, so this clearly drove purchase, hahaha).

This brand has won me over, all over again.

Slippery situation

Along the corridor of a Singapore hotel a few weeks back, on the way to an Olay training in that hotel, I bumped into this sign:

I have to admit, I was tempted to skip my Olay training altogether and just head for Sir Henry Keppel 1. Sounds interesting naman, di ba? Hehehe.

Installation art spotted at NAIA 1

This first one is titled, "How not to fix a broken faucet":

Well, you have to admit it's inventive hahaha. I couldn't help but watch it for a whole minute.

And this one, outside the bathrooms leading to the boarding gates, is: "Philippine sanitation technology 1 feat. Walis Tambo."

Maybe they have the giant wooden spoon and fork hanging outside the restrooms in the other wing. Hahaha.

Show foreign visitors our Filipino ingenuity, that's NAIA's motto. Walang nasabi ang Changi.

Gay lingo test!!

Got this from James' Multiply site. I rarely read Multiply in the middle of the work day, much less POST, but I just couldn't resist!

90% ang nakuha mo, ateng!

 

Winnie the Pooh ka, bakla! Talo mo pa ang may PHD in Foreign Languages! Walang tsismis na nakakalusot sa yo!

http://www.gotoquiz.com/gay_lingo_fun_quiz" style="color: blue;">Gay Lingo Fun Quiz
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How NOT to do a rebrand, from ZestAir

I love budget airlines for how they've made travel easy and accessible -- especially since we live on an archipelago, where it's next to impossible to get anywhere that's somewhere except by air. That's why AirAsia, Tiger Airways and Cebu Pacific were welcome alternatives to PAL's distinctive balance of ridiculously high fares and unmistakably crappy travel experiences.

Some weeks back, I noticed some small billboards along EDSA advertising a new airline: "ZestAir." How exciting! A new airline would mean a new travel option, and additional pressure on existing airlines to offer even more competitive rates, services, routes.

But when I visited the website (www.zestair.com.ph) hoping to find out what new travel adventures this new airline would open up, I was met by:

1. The knowledge that ZestAir is nothing more than a rebrand of Asian Spirit, now tagged as "Asia's Most Refreshing Airline."

2. Some of the crappiest copy in the world, attempting to explain the thinking behind the rebrand. See below.

3. A HUGE photo of their CEO. It's the first thing you see on their home page, even before the planes, their destinations, their promotions, or even their logo. How refreshing, right? And really now, you don't put your CEO's photo on your website's home page unless your CEO is Lance Gokongwei, Fred Uytengsu, or Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.

Talking about my website visit with some officemates some days later, they asked, " 'ZestAir, Asia's most refreshing airline'... what the hell is that supposed to mean?" I replied, "Maybe it means the planes are open air. Like ordinary fare buses..."

Well, what a coincidence -- a few weeks later, I found out that I was booked on Asian Spirit / ZestAir for our upcoming Boracay office offsite (i.e., company junket). I was mildly curious about what the changes would be.

Here's where the fun started. Along with a handful of others, my Manila - Caticlan flight was supposed to be at 12:30 PM on Wednesday. Hooray, that meant I had a whole afternoon to enjoy the island.

But on Tuesday evening, I got an e-mail saying that the flight had been moved to 3 PM on Friday. Crap, goodbye to the happy afternoon plans.

So I'm in the office on Wednesday morning, taking my time getting work done, since I don't have to be at the airport until 2 PM.

And then, at 12:50 PM, while having a pleasant lunch with officemates, I get a call from Tani, who's on the same flight as me -- "Chad and I are already at the airport, and we just found out our flight has been moved earlier to 2 PM. You have to get here by 1:15 PM otherwise you'll have to take the 3:30 PM... to Kalibo."

WTF, right!? And the nerve of them to not even call us, but rather, leave it to kind colleagues to call us to inform us of the change!? Diva that I am, I said to Tani, "NO, I won't be there at 1:15 PM, duh." And so Falqi, Anj, and I -- the ones who didn't make it by 1:15 PM to catch the Asian Spirit / ZestAir flight -- got tickets on PAL Express instead.

Lucky for me, I was still going to fly Asian Spirit / ZestAir going back to Manila on Saturday. And I learned Asian Spirit's / ZestAir's efforts to educate the public about the re-brand were more aggressive in Boracay. When the girl at the resort's front desk called the Asian Spirit ticket office, she said, "Hello, Asian Spirit? Oh, I'm sorry, yes, ZestAir." Then, when I had to have my ticket stamped for a schedule change, I had trouble finding the ticket office at D'Mall because the once-big Asian Spirit sign above their door had now been changed with a little bond-paper-sized sign, "ZestAir." And at the Caticlan airport, a big ZestAir banner was hanging over the check-in counter (with a little parenthetical remark of an "Asian Spirit" banner hanging below it); the baggage trucks had "ZestAir" stickers; and green and orange flags fluttered along the path to the ZestAir pre-departure lounge beside the terminal.

But the plane was my favorite part. It was still an ancient, zero-maintenance-budget propeller planes -- yes, one of those of those which won them the reputation, "You take off as an Asian and you land as a spirit" -- complete with rusty surfaces, unlaundered seat covers, dripping air conditioning vents, joints that threaten to come off at any minute. The only difference was that the whole plane's exterior was painted white -- naturally, to make way for the orange and green paint that would herald that it was now "ZestAir."

Anyway, our flight landed in Manila half an hour late. Incidentally, the same evening I landed, I found out from Tatay that Tita Inday flew back to Boracay that same day via Asian Spirit / ZestAir -- and found out at the last minute that her flight was rerouted to Kalibo. At least they're consistent, right?

If there's anything worthwhile that came out of this whole experience, it's the amazement that a re-brand could actually be executed so crappily. You don't rebrand unless you have a significant change in consumer experience behind it -- otherwise it's just superficial and disappointing. You don't execute a rebrand until you're ready to rebrand everything -- or else, the piecemeal implementation just falls flat in its early stages. And if you're going to talk about yourself being a "Asia's most refreshing", you'd better make sure people know why -- and it's not about some poorly written copy in a message from a CEO who doesn't look refreshing at all.

Lego responds... the Universe makes her move

I originally posted this as a reply to my "letter to Lego" entry, but I realized it's easy to miss there. So I made it a separate post.

Anyway... two mornings ago, Lego answered! :-) :-) :-) No, not a job offer (in my dreams!), but the Universe has made her move, and it's time for me to make mine.

(In retrospect... when I applied for P&G 3 years ago, it was also a "what the heck" kind of thing. Hahaha)

I'll bring everyone Danish pastries as pasalubong :-D

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Dear Paulo
Thanks for getting in touch with us.

We would like to thank you for the very nice email about how devoted to LEGO you were and still are. It is true that many customers have just very nice memories about their childhood when speaking about those plastic bricks they spent their free time with.

Actually, the idea of LEGO is to bring fun for very long time and to preserve ages. Believe me, here in our company all the colleagues are adult but still loving to play with LEGO.

As for the jobs which are offered in our company, you can find all the positions on our webpage. We update it once a week. So may be you could find something for you as well. Please, just go to the link:

http://www.lego.com/eng/info/default.asp?page=vacancies

(the path is : LEGO.com, scroll down to "about us", then go to "jobs" and finally to "vacancies")
At the moment, as you can see there are only positions in Denmark available but as mentioned, these offers change
and there were already positions for US or UK available, for Germany as well.

We wish you that your dreams for working with LEGO come true and we hope you will have much fun in the future building our lovely sets and models

Best regards,

Peter Sekerak
LEGO Direct

Olay introduces REGENERIST with a ONE-DAY PRE-SALE

Filipina women who have experienced and loved leading anti-ageing line Olay Regenerist from their trips in the United States, United Kingdom, China, Australia and Singapore can now get their anti-ageing fix closer to home as skin care brand Olay launches Olay Regenerist in the Philippines this November.

And this October, Filipina women will even have the chance to try it before it hits the stores through the Olay Regenerist One-Day Pre-Sale to be held during mall hours on October 18 at SM Makati Department Store, SM Megamall Department Store, SM North EDSA Department Store, Watsons SM Mall of Asia, and Watsons SM Cebu North Wing.

Olay Regenerist represents a revolution in anti-ageing as it goes beyond skin care to cell care, giving women dramatically younger looking skin. Inspired by clinical treatments, it helps regenerate your skin at the cellular level through its unique amino-peptide complex, which penetrates and renews skin cell by cell.

Four Olay Regenerist products will be available during the Pre-Sale: Regenerating Serum (50 mL); Regenerating Cream, with SPF 15 (50g); Night Firming Cream (50g); and Eye Lifting Serum (15 mL). Each of these products is priced at Php999.

Since stocks of Olay Regenerist will be limited during the Pre-Sale, women are encouraged to sign up for the Pre-Sale Priority List at www.olay.com.ph, or with the Olay Beauty Consultants at the five Pre-Sale stores. From 10 AM to 2 PM on October 18, the Pre-Sale will be open exclusively to those on the priority list. From 2 PM onwards, the Pre-Sale will be open to the public.

Olay made its anti-ageing debut in the Philippines in 2006, when it introduced Olay Total Effects, which fights 7 signs of skin ageing in just 1 bottle. Regenerist is the skin care brand’s premium anti-ageing line, known around the world for its ability to dramatically reduce lines and wrinkles. Its exclusive amino-peptide complex beautifully regenerates skin cells so skin looks, feels and behaves more like new skin.

Searching for my dream job

Yup, I actually sent this e-mail just now. Who knows, maybe I'll be packing up for Denmark pretty soon! :-)

Hi LEGO team,

My name is Paulo Tirol, 30 years old and living in the Philippines.

I grew up loving Lego. From 1982 to 1992, I acquired over 100 sets. I would spend all my money on Lego; when I got good grades (which was pretty much all the time :-) ) my Mom would buy me Lego; when my Dad would go abroad, he would bring me back Lego; and from time to time an uncle living in Frankfurt would send Lego too.

At home, my bedroom and our living room was filled with castles, pirate lairs, cities, and train sets. All my free time was devoted to playing with Lego -- building, creating dioramas, acting out stories out with it. And around fifth grade, I was thrilled when Lego actually responded to a letter I wrote, and sent a whole bunch of materials on facts and figures, Lego's corporate history, and the Legoland parks.

Today, I work as an Assistant Brand Manager at Procter & Gamble Philippines. I handled diaper brand Pampers for 2 years, then was reassigned to handle skin care brand Olay last June.

Being a busy grown-up and living away from my parents' house where all my Lego was, it had been years since I last touched any my Lego -- until two weeks ago, when I moved into a new flat and thought some Lego would make a nice touch, and I re-assembled my pirate ship (model 6285 :-) ).

It was a thrilling experience that brought back wonderful childhood memories -- and an experience which made me decide to e-mail you.

There have been times when my friends and I in the marketing field talk about our "dream brands" to handle. My answer is always "Lego", a brand which I grew up with, continue to love, and will always believe in. And while I do love my current job at Procter & Gamble, I figure it's high time I tried to see if my dream job is actually something within reach. :-)

With that, I get to the point of my e-mail: are there actually marketing jobs available for someone like me, either in the region (Singapore?) or even outside (Denmark?)? I know that I should have inquired about this through your "jobs" site, but with a 300-character requirement, I don't think any inquiry I posted there could ever have done justice to my passion for Lego. So, I hope that you could forward this message to your HR instead, and I do hope I get a response.

Thank you for your time, and thank you for the unforgettable childhood you gave me, and continue to give to children all around the world. God willing, I would love to be a part of it someday.

Sincerely yours,

paulo

HANGAD: NOON AT NGAYON. Isang Handog-Pasasalamat sa ika-10 anibersaryo ng unang album ng HANGAD.

"Kung aawit ako nang mag-isa, awit ko'y awitin nga ba?"

Block off your calendars for Hangad: Noon at Ngayon, a 10th anniversary concert for Hangad's first album titled "Hangad". The show will feature inspirational and liturgical standards from Hangad's repertoire -- some in their original form, others with fresh new arrangements -- such as Panunumpa, Pananatili, and Pag-Ibig Ko.

Moreover, the show features the launch of a commemorative 5-track CD, also titled Hangad: Noon at Ngayon, featuring new arrangements of well-loved songs mostly from Hangad's first album, plus the first-time release of the upbeat "Walang Ibang Hangad."

Hangad: Noon at Ngayon will be held at 7 PM on August 30, 31 and September 7, 2008, at the St Stanislaus Chapel of the Ateneo High School, Ateneo de Manila University, Katipunan Ave., Loyola Heights, Quezon City.

Tickets are at Php150, which covers entrance to the show and a copy of the commemorative CD "Hangad: Noon at Ngayon." Additional "Hangad: Noon at Ngayon" CD's can be purchased at Php100 each.

"Habambuhay iisa ang Hangad: umawit sa "Yo!"

The Bread Bag: a restaurant I just had to write about

Three facts before I get to my point (Proctoid!):

1. I rarely write about food. The only other time, I think, was Thai Pad over a year ago. Given my limited diet and culinary preferences, I would have little subject matter and even less credibility as a food writer.

2. Among these limited culinary preferences of mine is a love for bread. People are amazed that I haven't had a grain of rice since December 31, 2007. The fact is, I grew up eating more bread more than rice, which made aunts and uncles exclaim, "Paulo! Are you Filipino or American!?" (I would have answered "European", but it wasn't among the options, haha.) In grade school I would devour a whole loaf of mayonnaise-smeared white bread; in college I would have around four huge pan de sals every breakfast; and these days, I'm stuffed way before the main courses arrive in Italianni's because of that heavenly focaccia.

3. The disappointing thing is, there aren't many places you can get quality bread meals in this city. In your everyday, to my mind there are two kinds: cheap fast food sandwiches which aren't good for you, and mega-overpriced sandwiches which claim to be good for you but taste like crap.

But today, I came across a place which I'm crazy enough about to dare to write a food article. It's called The Bread Bag Pandesal Bar, in the Ortigas Home Depot complex at the corner of Meralco Ave and Julia Vargas. What should have just been a quick lunch on a busy Saturday of chores turned out to be a happy discovery for me.

Like Pan de Manila, the place serves pugon-baked pan de sal. But, it takes Pan de Manila a bit further by serving meals. They have Pan de Plato, which is similar to rice topping except that you have a pan de sal instead of rice; pan de sal sandwiches; and soups in bread bowls. Their claim to fame is that they have the same recipes as Casa Marcos, a Spanish restaurant with branches in Gilmore and Morato until the year 2000.

I had never heard of Casa Marcos, but with the quality of The Bread Bag experience, who needs credentials?

Their food is delicious. It tastes fresh and home-cooked, not at all manufactured, and I love that the food they serve actually looks like the menu photos!

I started off my lunch with their soup of the day, cream of chicken and mushroom, in a bread bowl. Like I said, a fresh and homemade taste -- not bad for Php33, when you think about other soup in a bread bowl meals, which range from around Php100 in French Baker to Php175 in Soup Kitchen. While it's not as large as the Soup Kitchen bread bowl, it's a very pleasant starter.

Then I had my corned beef pan de sal sandwich, and it was heaven in a mix of tender tangy home-made corned beef, creamy scrambled egg (none of that McMuffin sunny-side-up shit), fresh juicy vegetables, and pesto-mayo sauce on a slightly toasted whole wheat pan de sal.

And though I had misgivings about the sandwich's filling-ness -- I had asked to see the pan de sals before ordering and felt it looked quite small -- I found that it was quite heavy. You end your meal completely satisfied with taste and portion. And value as well -- with prices ranging from Php77 to 99 for a sandwich with iced tea and kamote chips (healthier than potato chips, say the staff), it's much better value than either Oliver's or Subway.

Lastly, I also have to mention that I appreciated the staff. The lady at the counter patiently and smilingly answered my questions about the dishes on the menu (who had heard of "pan de plato" after all?).

So, go visit The Bread Bag. It's open from 6 AM (mmm, freshly baked pan de sal!) to 1 AM daily. And though it's a bit out of the way, it's well worth the detour. I'll be back with James next week to try out more of their menu items (pan de sal a la cubana, anyone?). And I'm looking forward to them opening more branches soon.

That's *Father* Bitch to you

When Jesus said "Let the little children come to me", I'm pretty sure the little brats weren't bawling in the middle of His sermon on the mount.

In a separate post, I talked about how babies' penchant for spoiling just about any setting has fueled my dislike for them. Movies, restaurants, Masses, airplane rides... just when you think it was all good, they suddenly start screaming, or crying, or running around.

And worse still than the havoc wrought by the little monsters is that grown-ups condone it. Hate, hate, hate.

Ah, but not so some weeks back at Christ the King Church in Greenmeadows. My mind was starting to wander in the middle of the bishop's homily -- when suddenly he faced a child who was scampering from pew to pew along the aisles, and declared with delicious matter-of-factness: "Would someone please attend to that child."

A surge of triumph rushed through me, as the child, still incredulous about what was happening, was apprended by his mother. I was too far from her to see how red she was in the face, but duh, the whole church was looking at her. I loved it.

It was reminiscent of the late Fr Pat Lim, at Sta Maria Della Strada Parish some years back. He was delivering his homily in his usual good-natured manner. A little beast, set loose from his cage by some idiot mother, was literally screaming nonsense in the aisle. Fr Pat stopped short in the middle of his homily, shot out a finger at the boy, and said, "If someone doesn't restrain that child, he will grow up to be a sociopath."

Long live adults with enough sense to want children know what propriety means.

What I learned from over two years in baby care

This entry is neither a shameless plugging of a baby diaper brand, nor a disclosure of marketing strategies and secrets.

Let me start off by saying -- even after 2 years and 3 months of handling Pampers, I’m still no expert.

Unlike most P&Gers, I still have to consult a price list when asked about the pricing of my 34 SKU’s; I don’t know the relative pricing between Pampers and its competitors; answers to questions on value share, channel salience, birth rates per birthing center type, penetration and consumption are far from automatic; and I’m pitifully clueless about trade margins.

On the flipside, in fairness to me, I’ve memorized the variant – diaper size – diaper pack combinations of my entire SKU lineup; the brand’s visual equity guidelines are second nature; with all the practice I got, I can whip up pretty mean bundle packs and on-shelf communication materials; and I like to think I know diaper consumers like I know my closest friends.

But the most important things I’ve learned go way beyond business management, marketing communication, and the physics and technology of disposable baby diapers.

First, I learned about babies. Before joining P&G, I had never liked them. They would screw up the ambience in nice restaurants with their bawling. They would scamper around church during the most solemn parts of the Mass. And they would do nonsensical tricks (beautiful eyes, what the hell!?) that grown-ups, for some reason, would find SO cute.

But over the last two years, I’ve looked into the bassinets of thirty-minute-old, freshly cleaned babies—tight -eyed and open-mouthed and toothless and wriggling and tender-skinned—and realized that thirty minutes before, these babies had not been in this world. I’ve seen mothers spend their days carrying their babies, feeding them, and rocking them to sleep, deriving their whole raison-d’etre from doing nothing but that. And I’ve seen the pride and accomplishment on both the moms’ and baby’s faces, when baby suddenly sits up, stands, walks, or calls her “mama.”

Wonder is abundant during the first months of every human life, and I guess I've realized that babies aren’t all that nonsensical after all.

Second, I learned about our government. Like everyone else, I love to bitch about potholes and corrupt policemen and awful pink pedestrian overpasses and that hellhole called the LTO, and wonder where the hell in all this my tax money goes.

Surprise, there are actually people in government who are doing their job and making lives better for Filipinos.

Before Pampers, I had never before stepped into a public health center, let alone a government maternity hospital. But while handling Pampers, I saw midwives in action at health centers, teaching moms to care for their babies, convincing them of the importance of breastfeeding, urging them to have regular pre-natal check-ups and post-natal immunizations, scolding those who missed the free twice-a-year mothers’ classes. And I saw the nurses at Fabella, the country’s biggest maternity hospital, scrambling to deliver 2,000 babies a month in a place where there is a ratio of two mother-baby pairs to a single bed, and there are urban legends (or are they?) of babies getting switched and being abandoned by mothers who can't afford them -- easily the most surreal, shocking, eye-opening place I'd ever been.

In both Fabella and public health centers, the facilities are sorely in need of upgrading, the services are basic, and the staffing is desperately lean. But what staff there is, works hard, makes do with what they have, and are genuinely concerned for the welfare of the mothers they serve. And it comforts me and makes me proud that, somewhere in these islands, my tax money is actually doing someone some good.

Third, I learned about Filipinos. In my second month with Pampers, I was doing a one-on-one interview with a mom in the sheltered environment of a consumer research agency in Makati. She told me that in the afternoons, she would take the baby outside for sunshine and exercise. “Sa garden?” I asked naively, imagining a large yard with a lawn and maybe swings and a slide, like those in which my cousins and I grew up. “Hindi, sa labas lang,” she said.

I realized only later on that, this mom—like 88% of Filipinos—didn’t have a garden. Rather, she had an eskenita, flanked by dangerously stacked shantys made of discarded wood and unpainted hollow-block walls, and dotted with dark smelly puddles of days-old water, where she and other moms like her would gather in the afternoons, to gossip about the neighbors and artistas and compare babies, until it was time to go back inside and prepare dinner.

I saw how, to such moms, one peso—no, one centavo—would make a difference. Down to the second decimal place, they would memorize the prices of the smallest packs of instant noodles, vinegar, vetsin, laundry soap, shampoo, infant milk and diapers--and any increase would force them to wonder how they would make their husband’s meager earnings as a construction worker, scrap collector, or jeepney driver last the whole week.

On lucky days, they would go to nearby supermarkets—but for the first time in my life I saw a mom declare her budget upon getting to the check-out counter, and be told by the cashier that the last few purchases were already out of that budget. And mom just sighed, paid for the items that she could afford, and resolved to come back for the rest the next payday.

But amidst this struggle, I saw how these people still found never-ending reasons to be proud, and be happy. The discovery of a cheaper product that’s serves the family’s needs anyway, and lets the household budget stretch just a little farther. The eldest son who comes home with news that he’s getting a medal, after all the studying he’s put in. The gruff “thank you” from the man of the house, who comes home exhausted at the end of the day and notices the great job his wife has done keeping everything clean. The baby who smiles up at her in recognition, every time she picks him up. And the hope that, if they their family just keeps working and trusting hard enough, things will get better one day. In P&G's language of market segmentation, these moms are called “resourceful optimists”—and seeing how they smile despite everything life throws at them, it’s not hard to see why.

Fourth and most importantly, I learned about mothers. A mother's love is underestimated. A mother's love will always be underestimated.

Nothing in mothers' lives is more important than caring for their children. Every day they wake up before sunrise to start preparing the kids’ breakfast and see them off to school. During the course of the day’s chores, they drop everything if the baby starts crying. They put off buying things for themselves, and choose to spend on things for the children first. When baby is sick and cries non-stop, the mother’s world falls apart, with the financial burden but more so with the emotional burden of the baby’s pain.

Asked what their greatest wishes in life are, they invariably give two answers—“a good education for my baby, so he can have a better life than mine” and “a house of our own, for our children to grow up in.” And these wishes drive mothers in all they do—whether it’s putting aside every extra centavo for the child’s schooling, helping older children with their studies, or looking for opportunities as DH’s and waitresses abroad, with the knowledge that life as an OFW is their ticket to a good future. And you can’t help but admire them for their devotion to and sacrifices for their children—and be thankful for the devotion and sacrifices your own mother gave you.

So, even after two years, I'll admit that I still haven't learned the nitty-gritty of running a baby diaper business. But learning about a baby's worth, a public health worker's dedication, the Filipino's strength, and a mother's love will last long after the books have been closed.

Starting June, I’ll be moving on to a radically new world. In place of provincial health centers, eskinitas and public markets, I’ll be concerning myself with spas, condominiums, and department stores. My mission will no longer be to care for baby’s health and development, but to make women feel younger and more desirable. With a new category to learn about, I’ll soon forget what facts and figures I memorized from baby care.

But even if I do move on and forget the little details, the eye-opening and life-changing lessons I learned on the way will always stay. And there will always be enough wide-eyed babies and devoted mothers in the world to make sure these lessons do.

Bossa nova: raped, maimed, and left for dead

When I was a kid learning to play the organ (or Electone, as Yamaha thoughtfully branded it), one of my favorite things was a feature called “minipops.” It allowed me to just press a three-note combination with my left hand, and the instrument would churn out a fully arranged accompaniment, with drums, rhythm, bass and embellishments. I could play disco, pop, rock, big band, and a variety of latin beats without hardly any effort.

It was great fun back then, since I was just beginning to explore different genres of music, and had hardly any dexterity in my left hand. With just the push of a button and the press of a few keys, I could hear how songs would sound in slow rock, dixieland, and reggae. Now that I can actually play, I hardly use the feature. But I think it’s great for people just fooling around, or just learning to play.

What bugs me is that these days, there’s a whole revolution in what I call “minipops music.” Like I said, the feature is great for people having fun or learning to play… but to create an entire industry around it is simply disgusting. To commercialize something that involves neither art nor skill is just wrong.

I’m talking about today’s “bossa revolution”, and I call it “minipops music” because it has just as much art as when I was a kid switching the genres of songs through the minipops function. It’s exactly the same as the original version—melody, chords, lyrics, and structure—except you press the “bossa nova” button to change the entire rhythm section, and have it sung by a poor facsimile of a bossa singer. There’s absolutely no original thought involved, and I’d like to know who these sellout arrangers are who make such perfunctory changes and dare call it a new arrangement.

And it’s everywhere! Racks upon racks of CD’s in music stores are lined with “Bossa Carpenters”, “Bossa Bacharach”, “Bossa Beatles.” James and I have walked out of shops and restaurants just because the bossa versions of “Close to You” and “What the World Needs Now” started playing.

I’ve wanted to blog about it for a long time, but never got around to it. But today, having spent six days in Boracay next to a tacky resort whose sound system is all too loud, I’ve been drowning in pseudo-bossa versions of The Police’s “Every Breath You Take”, Kylie Minogue’s “Can’t Get You Out of My Head”, and Santana’s “Smooth.” And with all that crap ringing in my ears, who can I not write about it?

Bossa is not simply about the bossa beat, lazy rhythm sections, sloppy intonation, poor enunciation, and an airy vocal timbre. Bossa is about the sultry soul of Brazil, languidly hanging in the air and waiting to ensnare you.

And the art of arranging is not about making perfunctory changes. And arranging is about introducing something new to a song, to make the listener hear, think, and feel something he never did before from that song.

I dare anyone to listen to original recordings of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Astrud Gilberto, or even Lisa Ono—and tell me it all sounds the same anyway.

Kuya

My brother and I couldn't help but be close when we were growing up. For 17 years we shared a bedroom that was small but filled with personality -- books, comics, CD's, VHS's, Lego boxes, model kits, movie and Broadway posters.

Yes, we had our categorically un-fraternal moments. Me throwing a fit ("inaaaaaaaayyyy!!") when he wouldn't let me play with his Lego, and him throwing a fit ("inaaaaaaaayyyyy!!") when I lost his Lego. Him terrorizing me by teaching me (at 10 years old) about communism and nuclear war. Throwing rolled-up socks at each other, and chasing each other with kitchen knives, which resulted in Inay imposing a TV viewing limit of one robot show per week. Him screaming at me for falling asleep on his bed, me screaming at him for leaving his sweaty basketball clothes all over the floor.

But for the most part, and especially factoring in our differences, we got along pretty well. He eventually gave me all his Lego. He taught me Dungeons & Dragons. He introduced me to Choose Your Own Adventure Books, to the Hardy boys, to Transformers, to Voltes-V, and to the X-Men. He tried to teach me to drive (see related entry, haha) and how to play chess (I gave up). He also tried to teach me how to play basketball (and ended up teaching me that it was something I'd rather not learn).

He was there when I fell off my bike so hard that I chipped a tooth. We learned to play the piano around the same time, and he would have been damned good if he hadn't given up early on. He inspired me to draw, to write, to be editor-in-chief of the Eaglet, to make sure I'd be in 1A, to try out for Dulaang Sibol, to be active in Days with the Lord, and to pour my heart into Tulong Dunong. And when I came out to my family, he put his arms around me and said, "You're still my brother, and nothing can change that."

These days though, we're not all that close. I moved to Cebu in early 2001; that same year, he got married. Today, five years out of that small bedroom, we lead very different and very busy lives and we see each other only around every other month. Needless to say, don't think about him all that much.

When I talk about him, I usually center on how different we are. He's an intellectual; I'm an artist. He studied Political Science, Economics, and English Lit, has a masters in History, and is on his way to a Ph D in Philippine Studies; I have a degree in Communication and I dropped out from an MBA after the very first class. He can answer endless questions in Trivial Pursuit; I have to wait for a question I'm lucky enough to know the answer to. His career in the academe will take him straight to heaven; my career in capitalism requires me to rack up good karma on the side. He still wears socks with sandals; I've discovered low-rise jeans. And that's that.

But tonight, when Igo pointed me to a website that reviews teachers, I felt a surge of pride in having an older brother like Jo-Ed. I knew he was sought after during registration, loved by his students, and recognized by award-giving bodies as an outstanding teacher. But this was the first time for me to actually read people talking about him.

"Very funny. He makes history a bearable subject. He is the best history teacher I've ever met in my whole life because he relates the past events to the present circumstances."

"Best teacher yet. friendly with students. Knows history very well. Insightful, even. Cool teacher."

"His lectures give a totally different perspective of Western History. He makes you realize your role in history. He inspires you to see the whole world in a different light. He does not make you memorize anything, he makes you understand, and think. He's the type of teacher that makes you WANT to do well. Every Tirol class is something to REALLY REALLY look forward to. He's NEVER boring. He's smart, witty, funny, engaging and insightful. You'll learn so much, not just about history, but about life. At the end of the semester, you'll come out a whole different person. Definitely not easy A, but in the end, while you're at it, the 'Tirol education' will be one of the most memorable times in your life. Bottom line: life-changing."

"Probably the best history teacher ever!"

Part of me had to re-read the "funny" and "comedian" bits a few times, and charge it to differences in our senses of humor. Part of me wished that I had had a good history teacher in college, because I didn't. But I had to admit -- people saying "best ever", "every class is something to really look forward to", and "life-changing" had me glowing with pride. That's my kuya. Still inspiring people the way he inspired me.

So, Jo-Ed. I don't know when you'll read this from your unpopulated, "just there so I can read about people" Multiply account. Whenever that is, for the record: as different as we are, as rarely as we talk or see each other --

You're still my brother, and nothing can change that.

See you around. :-)

Here's your chance to hear what I have to say about you! (a.k.a. still more nonsense from Jowi!)

Leave a comment here and...

1. I'll respond with something random about you.
2. I'll tell you what song/movie reminds me of you.
3. I'll pick a flavor of jello to wrestle with you in.
4. I'll say something that only makes sense to you and me.
5. I'll tell you my first/clearest memory of you.
6. I'll tell you what animal you remind me of.
7. I'll ask you something that I've always wondered about you.
8. If I do this for you, you must post this on your journal.

I saw this on Jowi's blog, thought it was fairly interesting, and being a diva who loooooves being talked about, I left a comment. With eight comments prior to mine, I didn't think Jowi would answer. But she did! I guess some people are just really bored. Hahaha.

Seeing how complicated the thread had gotten on Jowi's blog, I asked Jowi if I could just forego # 8. Clearly, I ended up not foregoing # 8. Clearly, guilt is a powerful driver. :-p

Game na!

More nonsense borrowed from Jowi hahaha

I thought the "My First Time" survey I grabbed from Jowi would be my first and last time filling up such a thing. So when I saw this one on Jowi's site this morning, I told myself na magpipigil ako.

But then, having slept for two hours before my yoga class this afternoon, I'm so not sleepy yet. So, might as well.

So much for protecting my byline. Hahaha.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

A) Four jobs I have had:
1) Writer / Editor at Ayala Museum
2) Human Resources Manager at Globe Telecom (I've tried to erase this from my mind)
3) Head of Internal Communication at Globe Telecom
4) Assistant Brand Manager at Procter & Gamble (took the scenic route to get to where i belong)

B) Four movies I would watch over and over:
1) Love Actually
2) The Devil Wears Prada
3) Borat HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
4) Beauty and the Beast

C) Four Places I've lived:
1) Calantas St., San Antonio Village, Makati (1978 to 1984)
2) Kingsville Subdivision, Antipolo (1984 to 2001)
3) Sarrosa Hotel, Mabolo, Cebu; and Acacia St., Lahug, Cebu (2001 to 2002)
4) Paragon Plaza, EDSA, Mandaluyong City (2003 to present)
(Super info!)

D) Four TV shows I love to watch:
1) Project Runway
2) America's Next Top Model (embarrassingly so)
3) Avatar: The Legend of Aang
4) Jeopardy (nerdaz!)

E) Four favourite places I have been on vacation:
1) Hoi An, Hanoi, and Halong Bay, Vietnam
2) Chiang Mai, Cambodia
3) New York City (48 years ago)
4) And of course, Sur Beach Resort in Boracay

F) Websites visited daily
1) paulophonic.multiply.com
2) www.gmail.com
3) www.friendster.com (like ANTM, embarrasingly so)
4) private! teeheehee

G) Four of my favourite foods
1) char kway teow from banana leaf curry house
2) roti canai with curry dipping sauce from banana leaf curry house
3) tofu furai from sushi-ya (di na nagsawa)
4) nuts... peanuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios, walnuts, pili nuts, you get the idea
(dati cookies but i've eased it out of my diet... ahuhuhuhuhu)

H) Four places you would rather be at now
1) on vacation in prague
2) on vacation in istanbul
3) on vacation in vienna
4) on vacation in florence
*sigh*

I) Four Names You Go By:
1) Paulo
2) Tirol
3) Rolti (high school!)
4) Ti*ol (grade school!)

J) Four Things You Are Wearing Right Now:
1) yellow All Boxed Up t-shirt circa 1996 na pambahay na ngayon (in fairness sa tibay)
2) short short shorts
3) nothing else, teehee! :-)

K) Four things you ate today:
1) starbucks tomato mozzarella basil multigrain bagel for breakfast. panalo!
2) club house sandwich at delifrance for lunch
3) about a liter of water after bikram yoga... does that count?
4) salami sandwich on whole wheat bread and a cup of whole grain cereal for dinner

L) Four things that attract you to the opposite sex:
(i assume in my case, "opposite" means "same")
1) mukhang malinis... at sana malinis talaga
2) substance... including wit, intelligence, purpose and passions
3) talent... yung totoong talent ha, hindi yung feeling talented
4) honesty and transparency... hwag yung ma-issues at ma-bullshit

M) Four of Your Favourite Things to do:
1) watch movies with james
2) eat out with james
3) do bikram yoga (not with james :-p)
4) sit at the piano for hours and just play

N) Four Things You Want Very Badly At The Moment:
1) pants that fit.
2) improved performance in yoga (even after 3 months, there's still a load of poses i can't do)
3) to get my car back (no joke getting a cab to and from makati every day)
4) to be in Boracay

O) Four pets you had/have:
1) a bunch of dogs, in succession... Aldus and Alex were my most recent, and my favorites
2) a cat named "Cat" (in retrospect, how very Breakfast at Tiffany's!); and another cat named Furface
3) a couple of rabbits named Clyde and Cassidy. one of them bit my finger, damn him
4) a bunch of chicks (as in sisiw) bought at the grade school fair... ang cute nung maliit, pero di namin naisip nung binili na lalaki pala yun... ayun, lumaki nga, ang ingay at ang baho... kinatay na lang at pinrito ni Inay mwahahahahaha

P) Four things you did last night:
1) ate at Silk with James, Migs and Prime
2) looked around Fully Booked in Bonifacio High Street (ahlaveht!)
3) mornangzed at Coffee Bean in High Street with James, Migs, and Prime, plus Domi, Kenneth, Harry and Dave... and realized there's nothing healthy on Coffee Bean's menu
4) borlogs

Q) Four people you last properly talked to in the flesh:
1) James, before saying good night (kanina pa siya tulog)
2) Prime, after bikram yoga
3) Betty, the Thai bikram yoga teacher
4) my boss Anoop... I told him my computer was being fixed by IT and thus I'd be computerless for 24 hours... and he told me, "Go home."

R) Four Things you're doing tomorrow:
1) choose my outfit for the day (always a challenge)
2) get my computer back and hoping to it's honest-to-goodness fixed this time
3) write an email to officialize a decision to postpone a project... bla bla bla who cares
4) go to the Hangad core group meeting

S) Four people you live with:
1) James
2) Bubba
3) Yunnan
4) Lala
(Bubba, Yunnan and Lala are teddy bears... along with Harrod, Sem-Sem, and an army of others whose names I don't remember right now.)

T) Four silly things you've done:
1) wrote a poem for a girl.
2) wrote a song for the same girl.
3) asked her to a high school dance.
4) told her, when she said "i love you pau" in a letter -- "don't say that, we're not ready"
AHAHAHAHAHA!!!

U) Four foods you dislike:
1) any seafood... yes, including crab, lobsters, oysters and nori
2) pinoy stuff... tinola, kare-kare, pakbet, afritada, sinigang... the kind of stuff lolas make :-p
3) chewing gum, ewwh
4) beer, bleecch

V) Four things you hate:
1) people with issues... whatever it is, my dears, get over it
2) overly perky bibo people. i roll my eyes at them (several times a day, in the office, in fact)
3) mediocrity... both others', and my own
4) people with poor breeding... that includes loud unmodulated voices, distasteful conversation topics, underuse of "pleases" and "thank yous", interrupting you when you're talking... ok tama na

W) Four things you've used today:
1) my cell phone
2) my laptop... until 12 NN today when i gave it to IT support ahuhuhu
3) my yoga mat, whee!
4) james' computer, because mine's with IT support ahuhuhu

X) Four things you're doing/have done today
1) worked... or rather, tried to
2) accompany james to st luke's for a post-laser surgery check-up
3) done bikram yoga with prime (it's his second session! sana may iba pang sumama :-D)
4) read blogs and write in my blog

Y) Four favourite books:
1) Dogeaters by Jessica Hagedorn
2) Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
3) Watchmen by Dave Gibbons and Alan Moore
4) Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote (it's even better than the movie)

Z) Four things you want to achieve in your life time:
1) live in Boracay
2) see the world with James
3) write the music for a complete Mass -- DONE! :-D
4) bring smiles to the faces of friends and strangers alike

Just when you thought my motoring misadventures were over...

Yes, a long 15 months after my last driving-related mishap (i.e., the evil fire hose cabinet shattering my rear windshield... see http://paulophonic.multiply.com/journal/item/26/Motoring_Misadventures), and just when I thought my luck on the road was getting better -- the gods of motoring thought it would be funny to screw with me again.

It wasn't my fault this time. Well, not entirely. There's this guard in the condo who's less alert, less quick, and less pleasant than all the others. He doesn't control traffic at the condo's parking entrance, which has resulted in a quite a few near-collisions as vehicles enter and exit; he takes forever to open the barrier gate to the parking when you're pulling in; and when you drive past, he neither salutes nor nods, he just gives you a blank stare.

Last Thursday, on my way to work, I started down the ramp connecting the 4th floor parking lot to the street. At the bottom of the ramp, Mr Guard lazily gave the barrier gate a push, letting it swing open towards the wall on which it was mounted.

More than halfway down the ramp and having accelerated considerably, I noticed Mr Guard was raising his palm to say, "Uhm, stop." "Uhm", because it was so half-assed and non-committal -- palm up as if patting a dog, or praying over someone.

In fact, I only realized it was "stop" when I noticed that, from the force of his push, the barrier gate had swung fully open, bounced against the wall -- and was swinging back towards my car.

Foot all the way down on the brakes. Screeching tires. Not good enough, with how much speed I'd gained, the incline of the ramp, and Mr Guard's "uhm, stop" coming way too late. The barrier gate's ugly tip connected with the front of my car.

I threw dagger looks at Mr Guard, a few meters ahead of me. He stared back stupidly. "Bakit mo kasi tinutulak lang," I said, getting out of the car. "Sir, ang bilis kasi ng takbo niyo..." he said feebly.

"Saan tumama?" I said, circling towards the front of the car, dreading to find a shattered headlight or a big ugly dent. Surprisingly, none. "Wala sir, lumusot sa ilalim." Sure enough, the gate had gone through the grill below the fender.

Lucky for him. "Sa susunod, hwag mong basta itulak lang," I said sternly, as I got back in the car and drove off, thinking that was that.

Unfortunately, that wasn't that. It took me only a few minutes to notice the aircon, while blowing, was not getting cold. And still fewer minutes after that, to notice a weird clacking sound starting to come from my engine.

I stopped by a gas station, deciding to ignore the clacking and hoping the air con thing was just lack of water. But my worst fears were confirmed when the gas attendant said -- "Sir, nangangamoy yung coolant niyo."

It was only then that I crouched down, peered through the front grill, and saw that there was a huge dent in my radiator, and that stuff was dripping -- no, pouring out of it. Even the water the attendant poured in was just pouring right back out onto the ground.

"Dalhin ko na sa casa, sa Magallanes," I said to myself, aloud.

"Sir, medyo malayo yun, baka hindi na po umabot..."

I steeled myself for the worst. Windows down, I drove back to the condo to pick up my insurance policy. (Why the hell wasn't it in the car?!) On my way out of the building, I raised a complaint to the head of security. Mr Guard still stuck to his "sir, masyadong mabilis ang takbo mo" and his half-witted stare. The head of security said the fault was ours both -- me for my speed, him for just pushing the gate -- so what did I want to do? Well, I said, I don't expect you to do anything, my priority now is to bring the car to Honda, and I don't suppose you have insurance for this kind of thing? No, he said. Bitchy shrug, and off I went. I know far better than to argue with security people.

Not far from the condo, the "overheating" indicator on the dashboard started blinking. Good thing Tatay's and Jo-Ed's cars used to overheat quite often, so I kinda knew how to handle it. I stopped at another gas station for a refill of water. Even so, halfway between this gas station and Honda, the indicator started blinking again.

Finally, I got the car to Honda. In one piece, thanks God. And thank God, again, for Honda's in-house insurance. No funny looks, no interrogations, no red tape. In fact, then and there, I was able to get an estimate of the cost of repairs, and leave the car to have the work started. (Not as if the car was going anywhere anyway.)

So there. With Honda's estimate for the repair timeline, James and I will be carless for 10 days. With a hole in my radiator and my condenser, and a crumpled engine fan, the cost of repairs is estimated at over P45,000. And I've yet to get any sign of remorse from Mr Guard, from the condo's security office, or the property administration. Just they wait till they get my letter of complaint... and anyone who's read hate mail from me should know that these offenders had damn better gird their loins.

On the bright side... First, my insurance will be paying for over 90% of the repairs, which gives me automatic payout and then some on my premium, which was less than 50% of the repair costs. (Just like last year, when repairs on my rear windshield exceeded my premium... I am so blacklisted, hahaha.) Second, even I was surprised that I largely remained calm throughout the whole mess. (Must be yoga training... "breathe... breathe... just... f**cking... breathe...") And third, I feel really lucky that, in all the times I've screwed up on the road, I've never injured myself, or anyone else.

Time to get reaccustomed with the cab-dependent life. And hopefully it will be more than 15 months before my next mishap.

My first time...

Stolen from Jowi's site. These things are such fun! :-)

1. Who was your FIRST prom date? I didn't go to my prom. But when ACMG had a prom-themed induction ball in 1998, my date was Mylene, and we were prom king and queen... I think it was because my socks matched her red dress, hahaha... but it was James who gave me a corsage, teeheehee :-)

2. Do you still talk to your FIRST love? No. Maiirita lang ako.

3. What was your FIRST alcoholic drink? Mompo. Hahaha. Red wine siguro. I don't remember.

4. What was your FIRST job? I interned at Probe Team. That was exciting, since it was the summer of the 1998 elections. But I don't know if that counted as a job because I didn't get paid, hahaha. My first paid job was with Ayala Museum as Writer and Editor.

5. What was your FIRST car? Honda Jazz.

6. Who was the FIRST person to text you today? Kenneth, asking "Whatchadoin?"

7. Who is the FIRST person you thought of this morning? James. Teehee! :-)

8. Who was your FIRST grade teacher? Ms Maria Victoria Tirona. What a bitch. My mom hated her.

9. Where did you go on your FIRST ride on an airplane? Zamboanga. I was 3 and Tatay had to go there for work and brought the whole family. I cried like crazy on the plane.

10. Who was your FIRST best friend and are you still friends with them? My cousin Jebboy. Yup, we're still friends.

11. What was your FIRST sport played? Wahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. Does piko with my cousins count?

12. Where was your FIRST sleep over? With all my cousins at my grandparents' house, a.k.a. "Catmon", because it was along Catmon St. in Makati.

13. Who was the FIRST person you talked to today? James. Pero tulog pa siya so di siya sumagot.

14. Whose wedding were you in the first time? Tito Val. I was a reader. My barong was bitin.

15. What was the fisrt thing you did this morning? Do bikram yoga :-D

16. Where was your FIRST vacation? The same Zamboanga trip as in #9. The only thing I remember apart from bawling on the plane was getting scared of the coin divers outside our hotel window.

17. First tattoo or piercing? I wish.

18. FIRST foreign country you went to? Hong Kong

19. What was your FIRST run in with the law? Driving without a license. See my separate blog entry on that. :-p

20. When was your FIRST detention? Walang detention sa school. Pero the worst sanction I ever got was a jug. Even when my barkada and I tried getting a post towards the end of fourth year high school -- just to experience it, hahaha -- hindi natuloy kasi hindi kami nahuli sa pag-cut ng CAT.

21. What was the FIRST state you lived in? Xushal na tanong!

22. Who was the FIRST person to break your heart? Ay ang sakit! Bakit naman kasi girls ang gusto niya.

23. Who was your FIRST roommate? My older brother Jo-Ed. For the first 22 years of my life!!

24. Where did you go on your FIRST limo ride? Masasagot ko 'to next year pag natanggap na ako sa America's Next Top Model.

Sharing through World Vision

Some years back I watched a DVD of the Jack Nicholson movie About Schmidt. I didn't like it, but there was one thing in it that struck me -- a subplot in which Nicholson corresponded with a child from Africa, whose education he was sponsoring through an outreach program. I found the idea interesting -- that you could not only support a child financially, but also form a relationship with him.

A few days after watching About Schmidt, I learned that there really were such outreach programs when I passed an orange and white booth in SM Megamall with the words "World Vision" on it. From the brochure I was handed, I learned that through this Christian relief, development, and advocacy organization called World Vision, you could sponsor a kid -- which meant making regular donations that would be used for the general welfare and development of the kid and his or her community, and also keeping a regular correspondence with your kid.

I got excited about it, but unfortunately the brochure and sign-up form just ended up in one of my piles of papers at home. It stayed there for several years. Even when I came across it again some months back and filled it up, I never got around to faxing it. Bad, bad me.

Luckily, I came across the World Vision booth again a few days back, in Robinsons Galleria.

Then and there I signed up to sponsor two kids. From a bunch of kids' profiles (you choose your beneficiaries), I chose the youngest boy, 8-year-old Aivan Kahlil, and the youngest girl, 7-year-old Hanna Mae, both of whom live in remote villages in Palawan. On a small piece of paper shaped like a pencil, I wrote each of them my first note: "Kumusta? Ako si Kuya Paulo, mahilig ako sa music. Kayo, ano mga hilig niyo? Ingatan niyo pamilya niyo at mag-aral kayo nang mabuti. Sana mas makilala ko pa kayo..."



The volunteers at the booth, Kenneth and Me-An, explained that I could write as often as I wanted, and I could also expect a letter from my sponsored kids at least once a quarter. And at the end of each year, I'd also get an update on the kids' community, photos, and a copy of the kids' grades. If I wanted, I could even ask for World Vision's help arranging to meet with my kids.


For each sponsored kid, P450 will be charged to my credit card each month. (You can also pay in cash or through check, but credit card is the most hassle-free.) The money goes to programs for the kids and their communities, to provide them education, safe water, medical assistance, health programs and livelihood trainings, among others. And with the relationship World Vision bridges between my kids and me, my monthly pledges become deeper and much more meaningful than a dole-out.

Personally, I'm excited to get my first letters from Aivan Kahlil and Hanna Mae; and excited too about where this will go over the next year. Maybe I'll sponsor more kids eventually.

Here's the welcome kit you get when you sign up for World Vision.
It includes a booklet explaining where donations go
and how you go about corresponding with your kids;
a brief on your sponsored kids' communities;
your sponsored kids' picture folders;
and as a bonus, a baller-type bracelet (is that what they're called?)
with the WorldVision logo on it.

What's sad is that I don't think World Vision gets that many donors. For a whole day in a busy mall like Robinsons Galleria, they're already happy with eight sponsorships in one day. That's why I'm writing -- because I promised the volunteers at the booth I'd tell my friends about World Vision, and hopefully get people interested in signing up.

So do visit http://www.blogger.com/www.worldvision.org.ph or http://www.wvi.org/ and find out more about World Vision. They also have booths in Galleria and Megamall this whole summer -- it only takes a few minutes to sign up. :)