Given another scenario, what would you have done?

This morning, as we were moving slowly toward McDo's drive-through window, I happened to see two females quarreling. The smaller one had a kid with her and after challenging a bigger lady to a fight, she actually grabbed that other person's hair and started to hit her. Neither was armed and no one was butting in. I just looked on, dumbfounded, the car window closed. Two men were close to them, closer than we were but they just looked on too. What would have been the Christian thing to do?

Years back we were loading our groceries into the car when across us, I saw a man beating up a woman repeatedly. He'd stop, return to her, hit her in the stomach. People just looked, no one intervened. Not even the security guard. What would have been the Christian thing to do?

Even farther back, as I walked to school, I saw a man and a woman fighting near the gate of my school. It was drizzling but that didn't stop them. Straight out of a movie it seemed like. But it was real life. What would have been the Christian thing to do?

Oftentimes, when we go to Megamall, I see a foreigner with a young girl. Pedophile? I wonder. Scary. I'd pray I was wrong, but what would have been the more Christian thing to do?

The Parable of the Good Samaritan would suggest that we should step in, but doing so could well endanger us. A friend of my sister became crippled after he tried to pacify two fighting friends: he was hit by a bullet for his heroic act and now walks with crutches.

Life is such a puzzle, an enigma, a mystery. Sometimes one gets penalized for doing the right thing, the Christian thing; others seem rewarded for doing dastardly acts. But all these judgments are on the superficial level. Maybe deep down, God has rewarded the good and punished the wicked? Is doing the Christian thing always best or should one be guided by such principles as: survival of the fittest? Self-preservation?

What would you have done...

It's past midnight but a few minutes ago, someone insistently rang our doorbell at certain intervals. My husband and son are here in the room with me. Who could that have been?

My husband is asleep, he slept through the doorbell's ringing. My son and I looked at each other, perplexed as to who might have been outside. If it were someone either of us knew, I'm almost sure that person would have called up first or sent a text message announcing his/her imminent arrival or buzzing of the doorbell. But neither of us got any word someone was coming. So who could that have been?

A thought that occurred to me was our maid. We have this boyish maid who has a "girl friend" he/she can't seem to see/get enough of. This p.m., when we got home earlier than is our wont, we "caught" her clad in white pants with a white shirt tucked in, apparently just arrived from who knows where. Yes, without my permission. I asked where she had come from but even before she answered, I knew what the answer was: Mercury Drug. I might as well have had a crystal ball because I was right. An hour or so after our arrival, she asked permission to go to Mercury. At first I automatically said yes, then it occurred to me that, hey, she said she had just come from Mercury when we got back. SO I told her, wait, didn't you go to Mercury earlier? She said, "I was about to leave for Mercury." Incredulous, I said, "OH?" What would you like to buy there?" She said, "Gardan." I said, "I'll give you." End of story. But was it really the end? Did she perchance leave without asking for permission again? My two other maids are related to her: one is her sister, the other her cousin. Were they being mean by not letting her in? Could she have texted them to open the gate but they stood firm and didn't? Why didn't I have my son check regardless?

In this day and age, is it safe to go out and check who could be at the gate? I hesitate to say yes. Hence my deciding not to do anything about it.

Who could it have been?

What would you have done were you in my position?

Desperate Housewives and the Racial Slur

Bully for the producers of Desperate Housewives and actress Teri Hatcher for the racial slur directed at Philippine medical schools (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xL9FHIfnncI). I wouldn't be surprised if as a matter of divine justice or karma, one of these days they'll be in dire need of medical attention and the only one on hand to give it to them is a Filipino doctor or nurse. Who will have the last laugh then?

Mama and school supplies

Lest you thing Mama was a spendthrift all the time, she wasn't. In fact, I will never forget how I would envy my classmate's sandwich brought to school from their home because the slice of luncheon meat in it (generic name then was "Spam") was so much thicker and the bread looked softer. And that classmate also had real art paper -- one side glossy, the other side white-- when we were asked to bring colored paper. Mama's version of colored paper was like colored mimeo paper so the colors were dull, not striking. I always blamed Servando's for that. It didn't carry the art paper which Sunrise Educational Supply did. For scratch paper, Mama would also buy mimeo paper while some of my classmates had sparkling white bond paper. Servando's fault again? Or maybe Mama wanted to save. Now that I'm a mother myself, I try to do the same.

Latest Food Finds

The whole month of September, in the food court of Power Plant Mall, several establishments set up tables/display racks/kiosks. The ones whose products I tried were Vargas and Diamond Hotel's. The Vargas brazos was really yummy. It reminded me of one a friend from Bacolod gave. The custard had that true butter taste. It wasn't at all floury. I tried the chocolate ice box cake but it wasn't too great. The cream stood out and I generally am not too enamored with cream. Up till now, I can't get over the ice box cake someone brought to a party in the house when I was that small. I really liked that and will somehow recall the taste if I get a chance to try it again. I'll just know, I'm sure. Being so young then, I didn't ask who brought it. I think I had a chance to taste it just one other time and no more. Wonder if I ever will. That must have been over 45 years ago. Memories of that prompted me to buy the Vargas version. Like the quest for the Holy Grail. I thought I might just have found it. I didn't. Re the Vargas brazos, the one Blue Kitchen sells (Shang, Power Plant) is similar, I even have this sneaking suspicion they get it from Vargas. A word of caution though: one time I got brazos from BK in Power plant and wow, when I got home , it was rock hard. Like if someone hit me with it, the area hit could have swelled. To their credit, they gave me a new one when which I had to pick up (hassle) the next time I was in Power Plant.

Diamond Hotel: months back, I read a personal account of a young lady who said she didn't mind driving all the way to Diamond Hotel for its chocolate cake. So when I saw the table of DH I was so excited. But I didn't see any cake, just ensaimada. I thought nothing of getting any, as ensaimadas are everywhere. My mistake. The next time we were in Power Plant, I saw the DH rack had chocolate cake. Got a slice and just closed my eyes as it cost over a hundred bucks. I told myself that's cheaper than driving all the way to DH in Roxas Boulevard. And as the ladies selling said the ensaimada was good and I'm usually gullible, I got one. You can forget about the chocolate cake, but do get the ensaimada. Wow, it has butter with sugar and cheese piled high on top of it. Glorious. Divine. The variant I got was chocolate, the only one left of the 4 kinds (ube, cheese, plain and choco). I thought my son wouldn't like it because he isn't too fond of chocolates anymore. But he swooned. One piece is a hundred and it's huge. We sliced it into six so each of us (husband, son and I) had 2 slices. Well ok, it's not that huge, maybe as big as the palm of my hand, but given the price, I'd like to think it was huge. So the next time we went to Power Plant, we got the ham, chocolate and plain. Stop computing how much. And best of all starting 28 September, they'll deliver anywhere in Metro Manila for a minimum order of P1500. That's 15 ensaimadas. I can give away some (Rationalizing yet again?) to my neighbors. I think that's a better deal than traveling all the way to Roxas Boulevard and being tempted to buy other stuff, not to mention the hassle and the gasoline.

Speaking of ensaimada, we have a Christmas suki (source): Cunanan in Valle Verde. Ensaimada topped with queso de bola. Yummy. A bit salty because of the cheese but special. I think a box of 12 cost P450 last December. I'd usually order as early as November for picking up 24 December and 31 December otherwise I might be locked out. When they have too many orders they stop accepting, see? But perhaps this year we'll have DH ensaimada instead. Still on ensaimada, a cheaper alternative is Manyaman (or something like that), available from a kiosk in Unimart and elsewhere. I think one costs P20 plus. "Tastes" (and is) cheaper but not bad. Mary Grace has ensaimada too, P30 plus but too expensive considering that their cheese rolls taste so much better and are cheaper. Speaking of cheese rolls, when we were much younger, Mama would get from Balbina in Iloilo so the thing was called "balbinitas". Just a few years back I think someone gave me but it no longer excited me the way it did when I was younger because I've tasted better since. But of course the memory of getting an order with mama lovingly lingers. Mama and I would also go to this place that sold yummy food for the gods in Iloilo. Can't remember the owner. And bilong-bilong. She was always so excited to eat that and now I regret not having shared her passion for it then. I was so anti-fish because of traumatic bukog experiences. But now I appreciate such. Too late. I don't know if bilong-bilong is still sold in Iloilo, especially where Mama and Lolo used to get them.

Travels with My Mom, on second thought, memories of Mama

Mama was a constant travel companion. She had the wanderlust. Papa would always say she must have moles on her feet as she was hardly stationary. She wasn't athletic and I took after her in that sense. I took after her in a lot of other ways too, like my love for shopping and not just anywhere but in sparsely populated malls. In Bacolod she preferred Servando's to Lopue's though she'd also go to the Central Market, China Rose, etc., if necessary. I think there was one other reason she didn't frequent Lopue's but I don't want to make up stories which might be erroneous. So suffice it to say that she preferred Servando's. But I digress. To our travels...

Travels with Mama meant not too many places but she tried to make them special. For example, I recall we went to Baguio riding the train. Being yet so young, I don't know where the train let us off but that certainly was the first and last time I rode one. Going home that time I remember we took a bus. Oh and one other trip which was cute was this. The Love Bus, the first ever in the Philippines that was airconditioned was a novelty back then. She wanted us to try it. So we did, in Cubao I think, while she let the driver wait for us in the car in Makati. When we'd go to Iloilo she'd bring us to Villa for the lechon, the yummy bibingka. We'd also go to the Jison house for pina products. We'd watch as someone wove the cloth.

In Negros, though, Mama hardly went out of town with us. I recall but one time when the Constantinos were our house guests. That was a surprise move: she asked her friend who had a fishpond for permission for us to go to her friend's place where there was a pool. Generally, therefore, travels with Mama, except for Baguio, Manila, and Iloilo, meant going shopping.

In a sense, I guess I was spoiled because she'd always ask me whether I wanted the doll I was looking at. I also got whatever books I wanted for my teacher-teacher episodes. Back when credit cards weren't de rigeuer besides which I would have been too young to have one, she gave me signing rights in Servando's, but these rights I never abused. I did buy stuff from Servando's using my signature but what were these? Archie comics, Mills and Boon books, Tiger Beat, etc. Nothing extravagant. So okay, maybe I was spoiled but I wasn't a brat (I hope). I recall when I was in college, at La Moda. Mama picked me up from the parlor which sold blouses and other items. She told me to choose a blouse and I chose one. She said, "Get two more." I said no, one was enough. The proprietor, Amy, was shocked. She said, your mom's telling you to get more and you demur? I guess the fact that she was so generous cultivated in me the attitude of not abusing that generosity. I don't really know. But I really loved Mama and miss her a whole lot.

Murphy's Lesser Known Laws

When I opened my email a few minutes ago, look at what I saw: Murphy's Lesser Known Laws. Haven't read them yet but will comment as I go along, if I'm up to it.


1. Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

I like this. It reminds me of this abbreviated line from Macbeth: “It is a tale … full of sound and fury; signifying nothing.” It also reminds me of the expression "dumb blond".

2. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

I'd like to add, and from pay phones.

3. Those who live by the sword get shot by those who don't.

Haha. Corny.

4. Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.

Duh...

5. The 50-50-90 rule: Anytime you have a 50-50 chance of getting something right, there's 90% probability you'll get it wrong.


6. If you lined up all the cars in the world end to end, someone would be stupid enough to try to pass them, five or six at a time, on a hill, in the fog.

7. Things that come to those who wait will be the scraggly junk left by those who got there first.

A lot of time this is true, but sometimes, waiting pays.

8. The shin bone is a device for finding furniture in a dark room.

Ouch, aray, aragay!!!!!!

9. A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well.

The time I received my salary of P600 as a high school teacher, I felt so sad I had to part with some of it for taxes. Can't some professions like teaching be exempted from paying taxes? Pay is so low as it is considering that without teachers where would the rest of the educated world be?

10. When you go into court, you are putting yourself into the hands of 12 people who weren't smart enough to get out of jury duty.