Flowers from Berry

Thanks Cidy for this tag. *smile*

The rules of the award are:

1. The winner can put the logo on her blog.

2. Link the person you received your award from.

3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.

4. Put links of those blogs on yours.

5. Leave a message on the blogs of the girls you've nominated.

This tag doesn't give any reason but after some thought I realized that one doesn't need any reason to give flowers, right ? So with that, I've decided to brighten up the days of the following people:

- Tintin, Mandy, Mec, Sheryll, Arlene, Jane and Thet (nanganak ka na ba?).

Pinoy words of wisdom

The past week has been hectic and fun as we showed my brother around the east coast. I owe some tags from Berry and Sheryl and I'll get to them as soon as I catch my breath (and get all caught up with work).

We took a lot of pictures, courtesy of my new digital camera (the Canon SD1100is), but unfortunately, while we were in Washington DC, we opted not to charge it after using it on day 1 and we ran out of juice in the middle of day 2. We thought that it would last another full day. Thankfully, shoti brought his own digicam and we got some good shots in.

In the meantime, while I try and get things sorted out here on my end, I'll leave you with some Pinoy words of wisdom that I picked up from a blogger-friend, Ayeen.

6 tips for a happier life:

1) Lahat ng problema may solusyon , kapag walang solusyon, huwag mong problemahin.

2) Always remember - kung kaya ng iba, ipagawa mo sa kanila ,bakit mo papagurin ang sarili mo?

3) Hindi lahat ng gwapo may girlfriend , ang iba sa kanila may boyfriend.

4) Di bale nang tamad di naman pagod.

5) Practice makes perfect , but nobody is perfect so don't practice.

6) Don't face your problem if your problem is your face

Counting down the time...

... till I see my younger brother.

He will be visiting us for a week and we're taking him on a whirlwind tour of the east coast. If you don't see me dropping by your blogs, that will be because I'm on tour guide duty :)

Our itinerary includes:
- a Washington DC trip
- trip(s) to NY and a Broadway show, he requested that we watch The Phantom of the Opera

May Contain Nuts

Nothing beats a hot fudge sundae on hot days. We dropped by McDonald's today for a sundae fix after a long day of house cleaning.

Floors and kitchen counters have all been scrubbed clean - all furniture and appliances moved out of the way while the surfaces were being soaped and washed - and everything is so smooth now. In fact, I think the floors are too clean / smooth because I almost slipped twice. We've wiped down all the cabinet doors and surfaces with Pledge too. Saya.

All day long, hubby and I keep telling each other that we should have visitors more often, para ma force kami mag general cleaning. Rugs have been beaten, vacuumed and/or washed and everything has been dusted.

Tomorrow, we're going to the supermarket to stock up and will probably declutter the house by moving some boxes to the basement.

I'm telling ya, we deserve that sundae!

Anyway, we also found this package of peanuts (sundae topping) very amusing. Check out the allergen warning / information at the back of the package where it says "May contain tree nuts".

MAY CONTAIN ? E peanuts nga eh. :-P

Disappointing

We wanted to have Filipino food for dinner and drove all the way to Bergenfield to our favorite Pinoy restaurant, Mama Fina's. I almost cried when I saw their empty parking lot and I wasn't smiling when we saw their closed doors and the dark interior.

Labo.

We decided to eat at another restaurant called Tocino Grill on S. Washington Ave which our friends had earlier recommended and surprisingly, it was closed too. A sign saying "We are close[d] indefinitely" was posted in front.

Labo again.

Went to Baja Fresh instead and I filled up on tomatoes (pico de gallo) from their Salsa bar instead so it didn't turn out too bad.

The best

My little brother who - at 28 - is not so little anymore, is coming over for a visit next week. He arrived in California last night and is staying at our Achi's place right now. It's been more than a year since I last saw him and I'm too excited for words. I have taken a leave of absence from work next week and am looking forward to showing him all the nice places in the East Coast. My bro has been coming to the US annually for several years now but he never comes to NY for a visit, I usually fly there and we all stay with my sister for a few weeks.


Anyway, I've been doing some tidying up of some sort in preparation for his visit. I've been using our 2nd bedroom as a home office since our NJ branch closed last year and it's too cluttered already.


Yesterday, I (finally!) washed the queen-sized comforter that I decided to use as a bedspread / quilt / cover for the bed in the 2nd bedroom. Since it's freshly laundered now, I could put this back in storage and this will be taken out for use next winter.


I store our comforters / sheets and bulky winter jackets in spacebags. Gosh, this is such a convenience! The picture shows a large spacebag with a queen-sized comforter (folded in 6 layers), it's so thin - around half an inch thick.


Note that it's still not perfect though, even though it's nicely vacuum packed and sealed, it doesn't last like that for very long. Air starts to seep in after a couple of months and the package will start getting bulky again. In my case, this isn't so much of a bother because even if the packages start bulking up again, they're already wedged in the shelf anyway. If I take an item out or if I need to add another space bag, I just vacuum the rest of the bags and I have space again.

Quotes from UP Professors

I received this in an email from a fellow UP-alumnus, another friend posted this in her site and I decided to do the same. Super aliw kasi. Note that this is an edited version (from the original email), some quotes/comments about other schools have been taken out.

Reading the quotes brought back so many memories of my years in UP. I have to admit that I do not know the professors who were quoted below but I have my share of very memorable moments:

1) Freshman year, day 1 of Soc Sci I classses.
A young guy walks in and sits on an empty chair and starts listening to conversations. 15 minutes later, he starts a conversation with one of our blockmates
guy: "hey, kilala nyo professor dito ?"
classmate: "Hindi eh, ikaw ? Kilala mo ?"
guy: "balita ko gwapo yun"
classmate: "ah ganon? paano mo nalaman?"
guy: "Ganito" [stands up and walks to the front of the class] "Okay, class, my name is Professor ....."

2) Sophomore year - my friends and I were walking along the AS building when we ran into our Soc Sci I professor from the year before and in a very loud voice, he starts saying:
"O, nandito pa rin kayo ? Ang tagal tagal ko na kayong nakikita sa UP ah, ano ? 7 ? 8 years na ? Hindi pa rin kayo gru-ma-graduate ?"
We were so embarassed :P

---- start forwarded email ----

"The aim of policy making is to invoke action! Because action speaks louder than words! You do not just say I love you. You say: If you love me, enter me! " - Dr. Alfonso Pacquing

"Class, next week na lang ung result sa exam nyo. I am having a hard time checking it. I will seek first the divine guidance on what to do about it. Class dont worry about your grade. Let me worry about it." - Sir de jesus, envi sci 1

(valentines day)
"Ano ba yan? Students ba kayo ng UP? Bakit ang bababa ng scores niyo? Siguro wala kayong date ngayong valentines kaya ganito kayo. Losers!!! When i was your age i had a date. Hindi ba naapektuhan ng UP FAIR euphoria ng grades niyo? Parang di kayo masaya..." (sabay matching tapon ng quizzes sa sahig) "I won't record this. Go find a date." (sabay walk out.) - Sir Doliente, BA

Ma'am: Many people believe that we, psychology graduates can read minds...
(silence)
Actually, we can.
Class: Weh.. Sample..
Ma'am: Right now, you think that I'm bluffin
- Ma'am Chei Billedo, Psych

"I don't give surprise long exams. all exams are announced. Halimbawa, Class, mageexam tayo, NGAYON NA!"
- Ma'am Chei

"The human body is 70% water. Kaya wala kayong kasaysayan lahat. Pag may kaaway ka, sabihin mo sa kanya, TUBIG KA LANG!!!
- Dr. Recio

"Oo, nagpapaulan ako ng uno... baket? aanhin ko ba nun? di naman ako yayaman dun."
- Sir Atoy Navarro, histo I

(commenting on a thesis of a senior student)
'Yang thesis mo? .. Mamamatay ka!! Mamamatay ka!!' - Dr. llanes, UPM.

"Nasa bandang gilid ang fallopian tube. Kaya kung gusto niyong magka-anak ng asawa niyo, dapat nakatagilid kayo habang gumagawa." - Ma'am Meggie, Zoo 10

"Last sem was the first time that I gave a grade of 5, and it felt good!!!" - Prof Goldie, Comm II, circa 1998, first day of class

"atheist ako, pero pag nasa bahay, nagro rosary kami ng Nanay ko, eh kung magalit sa kin yun."
- Socio 11 Prof

"you do not fall in love; you rise in love. That's how you love rationally."
- Dr. FG david

"Try to die! Try to die!" - sir billones, on a student who is palpitating while taking the exam.
He claims that after incident refreshed na lagi yung estudyante. If I
know, pag naaalala ng estudyanteng yun yung moment na yun, kaya siya
laging refreshed, kasi natatawa siya pag naaalala niya iyon.

"Anong molars? You don't say molars because it is an adjective! Do you say beautifuls?"
- ma'am ilao, to a student who said "n molars"

"Kahit magpakamatay ka pa di mo masasagot yang problem set na yan dahil pang-157 (phy chem II) yan!" - ibid

"Do not memorize! Analyze!"
- doc nic, advising us, her students never to memorize reaction mechanisms

"Kaya nga ideal eh, hindi siya nangyayari sa totoong buhay. Pero an approximation is good enough" - sir engle, on ideal and real systems

"Don't take the BAR and yourselves too seriously. baka mabalitaan nalang namin na nag-o-oral summation kayo sa Luneta. O lumulutang-lutang sa Pasig River. Enjoy yourselves, relax, and read at least 15 hours a day. Nakakabobo ang sobrang tulog. MAg relax ka habang nagbabasa. Magrelax habang nagmi-memorize. "

"Pag nananaba ka sa oras ng exams, ibig sabihin di ka papasa."

"Oh the BAR isn't scary. It's terrifying. It might even kill you."

and the unforgettable: "Wow. Rape-able." and "Stand up Miss ___ so that I might see the contours of your body."

alternately encouraging and disheartening ang drama nitong prof na'to.

Ito naman from our Prof. Ancient:
"Mga engineers? Nako. Bihira pumapasa sa BAR."

"UP ka nag-undergrad? Bright ka ba?"

"Sa mga taga-UP lang ako bilib eh. Pagpasok nila sa lawschool, hindi sila disoriented. Bilib ako sa study habits na meron yang mga batang yan. Some of them look like they eat kamote thrice a day, pero ang utak, di ututin!" (ewan ko kung matutuwa ako dito o hindi)

sabi ng aming dean who is 80 yrs old, "class you're laughing now, but i will predecease you all"

prof: O, meron na bang nakapunta sa inyong XXX
class: (tahimik)
prof: (medyo nadisappoint) Ano?! Puro na lang ba kayo aral? Aral na
lang kayo ng aral, ha? Wala na kayong napupuntahan kakaaral niyo!

same prof: Nakita niyo na ba ang Hoover dam?
class: (tahimik uli)
prof: Hehehehe, ang yabang ko talaga!

Second day of classes
Same Prof: (kinuha ang box ng colored chalks) Ano ba naman ito...
(tapos iniitsa sa lamesa yung mga dark colored chalks)
class: (tahimik na nagmamasid)
Prof: Class, sulatan niyo ang manufacturer ng chalk na ito, at
sabihing tanggalin na ang mga walang kwentang kulay na ito... brown,
green, violet. hindi makikita ito sa board. Convince them
class: (tahimik at gulat)
Prof: and .25 incentive sa final grade niyo!

terror prof after an exam (last day na din ng class..): ok class.. see
you next sem!

"The more wisdom you obtain, the more you shut your mouth. This is because the more that you learn, the more you realize that there are even more things that you do not know. The true mark of an idiot is a loudmouth, the true mark of a wise man is humility" - Paraphrased galing kay PI100. Puta best prof sa CAL.

"IE? Di naman engineering yun e" -Thesis adviser

Classmate: Ma'am, pwede po bang next week na kami mag report?
Ma'am: Alam mo, God is good. And I am God. So yes, pwede next week.

galing kay sir U eliserio during creative writing class...
"try everything once except incest"

and one day pumasok ng room, galit na galit. hinagis ang bag sa table, nagwawala sa harap ng room dahil hindi daw nasagot ng previous class niya ang question niya. kaya dapat daw masagot namin, ang makasagot may plus points. kapag walang makasagot, lagot kami. ang tanong.... "class, sinong lalaking artista dun sa TV show na wonder years"?

"Mamatay na mangopya..."
"Ang hindi maka-100, bobo!".

"im gay. so gay i could show you my penis because it is but an accessory to my body" - jean navera, spcm1

FIRST DAY OF CLASSES: "Kung may boyfriend o girlfriend kayo na hindi taga-UP, hiwalayan niyo na agad. Walang pupuntahan yan. Hindi kayo magkaka-intindihan. Tapos yung mga anak niyo, magiging bobo. Gusto niyo ba yun?"

ANOTHER PROF: "Hoy girls, wag kayong kukuha ng boyfriend dito sa UP. Pare-parehas tayong mahirap dito. Kumuha kayo ng mayaman. 80% of the child's intelligence comes from the Mother naman eh. Kayo guys, wag kayo kukuha ng bobong babae. Kahit matalino kayo, magiging bobo anak niyo."

sa PHILO:
"I THINK THEREFORE I AM FROM UP!"

"Class, kaya mahal ang bayad sa mga professors sa ibang school kasi ang bobobo ng mga estudyante dun. Dyuskoh, I used to teach there... at lumuluha talaga ako ng dugo bago maintindihan ng mga students yung sinasabi ko. Ang mahal nga ng bayad, magkakasakit ka naman sa panga kakaulit ng lessons! Wag na lang! Dito na ko sa UP, at least nagkakaintindihan tayo. Diba?"

Dahil kami ang mga huling estudyante ni Dr. David at mahal na mahal namin siya, nag-compile kami dati ng mga quotable quotes mula sa kanya. Ito ang ilan:
"Meanings we find are the meanings we make."
"The measure of a man is how many doors he has opened to other people, especially to those he doesn't know."
"To be born is to die. In between they grow and multiply like flies. 6.2 billion people in the world. Kadiri, ano?"
"Why not life? Why call it soul? Call a spade a spade."
"Earth is the only heaven we can know."
"religion is a successful economic institution"
"Do not live long enough to be worthless."
"Domestication of the human male is one of the greatest achievement of the human race."
"I do not know many. I only know enough to teach my classes."

"We do not accept anyone here in class except for those who are members of a certain minority group. For example, gays are part of a minority group, bakla ka ba? If you admit to this class that you are gay, then I'll admit you"
- Prof "hail to the chair", to a guy student na nagpre-prerog

"kapatid ng sinungaling ang magnanakaw.
"ergo, gma's marriage to mike arroyo is null and void ab initio."
consti law class, 1st sem, AY 2005-06

"running for summa ka? mapapagod ka lang."

"Si Miriam, crush ko 'yun dati. Muntikan na maging kami, kaso nasiraan ng ulo, kaya 'yun, iba ang asawa ko."

"Class, gusto ko kayong i-train na mag-English, so when you're here in class, magsalita kayo ng English! Ako lang ang exempted dahil matanda na ako at ako ang teacher!"

Ma'am Vitriolo (2nd to the last meeting)
Okay class, next week, we start the lecture proper.

more of Ma'am Ilao
"Hindi mahirap makakuha ng UNO sa class ko. yung gumradweeeyt last year na Magna Cum Laude ng Biochem, uno siya sakin sa Chem 18"

Sabi ng Prof ko dahil may kaklase akong recite ng recite w/o raising her hand
"I think this is the first time i have a student w/ tourette in my class..."
Recite parin ng recite yung student
"Wow the ejaculatory comments just don't stop!"

from my socsci1 prof last sem: "Birds of the same feather FLOCK together...don' t forget the L".

"I'll strangle you, strangle you really hard, smack right in your jugular (pause ng mga 5 seconds), you do know where your jugular is?"

"Be ready with your speech because I am going to lambaste you!"
-namutla nalang yung classmate kong freshie after hearing sir navera sa spcm 1 namin

'bakit parang napakaligaya ng klase niyo? maging sad naman kayo, 5 mins.'
- prof ko sa math 100.

"well of course when you sell your soul you have to make an elaborate justification to make yourself feel good." -Sir Walden Bello, Socio 127

"ano bang natapos mo? italian 8?"
"punyetissima! " (sosyal pati mura italian!)
"look at me i'm 433 years old pero ang lakas lakas ko pa. eh kung walang gulay eh di kakain na lang ako ng damo. kung wala eh di tubig, kung wala mag-ipon na lang ako ng laway." -Sir Tiamson, Italian 11, this sem

When you graduate, then you begin to live. -Dr. Carmen Jimenez, Psych 118

from Prof Soresca in my spanish 1 class
Prof:"Mr. Gatbunton, why are you late?!"
Student:"Sorry Mam, galing pa ako Las Pinas."
Prof: "Ladies, don't marry somebody from Las Pinas because they have bamboo organs!!"

"there are only two countries who still use Fahrenheit.. the United States of America and Liberia... a pathetic country in africa" - Sir Argete

Marx is more Christian than Christ and Christ is more Marxist than Marx. - Sir Lanuza.

sa geol11, ayaw mag-recite ng mga classmates ko..
sabi ni ma'am cathy
"wag na mahiya, you have nothing to lose but your face.."

si sir agapito..habang 2nd exam at malakas ang ulan..
"ang lakas ng ulan, ayos yan at least hindi halata pag umiiyak.."

Class: Sir, sa exams po ba nagbibigay kayo ng partial points?
Prof: Hmm, if I see partial wisdom.

"It's okay to smoke inside my class. As long as you don't breathe it out." -Dr. Obsioma, Biodiversity

"Oh, this is good. It's poetic because it's perfectly stupid." -
Ricardo de Ungria last week on my classmate's work.

Prof: Did I remind the class last meeting that we're going to have an exam today?
Class: (dead air)
Prof: Ok, it seems I forgot to remind the class that we're going to have an exam today. I'm giving you five minutes then to buy a bluebook. We're going to have an exam today.

sir tiamson (span 11)
"ayan, di ka makasagot. yung bakal sa ngipin mo naapektuhan na yung pagsasalita mo"

My Nephew

Achi (my sister) called last night and told me a story about my younger nephew, Lyle. She had been out that morning and left her cellphone at home. When she got back to the apartment, the little guy comes running to her ..

Lyle: Mommy, 2 people called you.
Mommy: Really ? Who ?
Lyle: your mother
Mommy: My mother ? Who's my mother ? do you know her ?
Lyle: yes, your mother... my Ama, she called and asked for you.
Mommy: oh, and what did you say ?
Lyle: I said you went to the bank.
Mommy: and what about the other one who called ?
Lyle: it's your sister
Mommy: my sister ?
Lyle: yes, my A-i.
Mommy: what did she say ?
Lyle: I don't know

and the little guy left to play.

There were a few things "off" with that story.

1) Our mom had called my sister that morning but it was the older son, Lance, who took the call. Lyle was probably playing pretend and wanted to give a message to his mommy too.

2) I didn't call.

3) Lyle seems so fond of talking about people in terms of their relationship - "your mother", "your sister", "my brother".

This conversation has made the most impact so far but I can recall other instances when he would say "where did my brother go ?" instead of "where did Ahya go ?" I also remember that he was very fascinated with our family's relationships during my visit last June, these are some of his questions & comments:

• "Are you my mom's sister ?", "Are you and my mom sisters ?"
• "Is my Aku your brother ?", "Is my Aku my mom's brother ?"
• "Who is your mother / father ?"
• "Hey, my Angkong is your father ?"

I remember a time when I heard my sister call from the kitchen, "kids, can you ask your A-i to come out to eat ?" Lyle comes into my room and tells me "A-i, your sister is calling you." We were so amused at that time.

We would correct him, of course, but he would just answer back and say "but she is your sister, right ?" And, how would you counter that ?

... and one time, I called my sister's house to look for my Dad (my parents were visiting and staying with my sister that time), Lyle answered the phone and when I asked for "Angkong", he ran off and I heard this going on:

Lyle: Angkong, your daughter is looking for you.
Dad: Bunny? (that's my sister's nickname)
Lyle: No, Angkong, your other daughter!

It's funny, amusing and given that he's only 4, this is still cute. Lyle's older brother, Lance, did not go through this phase. Ganon ba talaga ? Are there any mommies & daddies out there who've seen the same behavior in their children ?