Philippines: Nation of Servants by Chip Tsao

Just read this article from my email and felt all the blood rush to my head. How can someone be so cruel? One word: Inhumane.

This is what the email says:

Due to Philippines claim over the Spratly Islands which China also claims, a Chinese writer by the name of Chip Tsao published a story in the HK Magazine of the Asia City Publishing Group, calling the Philippines a "nation of servants".

The War at Home
By Chip Tsao

The Russians sank a Hong Kong freighter last month, killing the seven Chinese seamen onboard. We can live with that-—Lenin and Stalin were once the ideological mentors of all Chinese people. The Japanese planted a flag on Diàoyú Island. That's no big problem-—we Hong Kong Chinese love Japanese cartoons, Hello Kitty, and shopping in Shinjuku, let alone our round-the-clock obsession with karaoke.

But hold on-—even the Filipinos? Manila has just claimed sovereignty over the scattered rocks in the South China Sea called the Spratly Islands, complete with a blatant threat from its congress to send gunboats to the South China Sea to defend the islands from China if necessary. This is beyond reproach. The reason: There are more than 130,000 Filipina maids working as HK$3,580-a-month cheap labor in Hong Kong. As a nation of servants, you don't flex your muscles at your master, from whom you earn most of your bread and butter.

As a patriotic Chinese man, the news has made my blood boil. I summoned Louisa, my domestic assistant who holds a degree in international politics from the University of Manila, hung a map on the wall, and gave her a harsh lecture. I sternly warned her that if she wants her wages increased next year, she had better tell everyone of her compatriots in Statue Square on Sunday that the entirety of the Spratly Islands belongs to China.

Grimly, I told her that if war breaks out between the Philippines and China, I would have to end her employment and send her straight home, because I would not risk the crime of treason for sponsoring an enemy of the state by paying her to wash my toilet and clean my windows 16 hours a day. With that money, she would pay taxes to her Government, and they would fund a navy to invade our motherland and deeply hurt my feelings.

Oh yes. The Government of the Philippines would certainly be wrong if they think we Chinese are prepared to swallow their insult and sit back and lose a Falkland Islands War in the Far East. They may have Barack Obama and the hawkish American military behind them, but we have a hostage in each of our homes in the Mid-Levels or higher. Some of my friends told me they have already declared a state of emergency at home. Their maids have been made to shout 'China, Madam/Sir' loudly whenever they hear the word "Spratly". They say the indoctrination is working as wonderfully as when we used to shout, "Long live Chairman Mao!" at the sight of a portrait of our Great Leader during the Cultural Revolution. I’m not sure if that's going a bit too far, at least for the time being.

Wow. That's really harsh.

I can't believe Chinese people are such idiots. Yes China is a powerful country but they are not gods. This author is talking like Filipinos should bow at their feet and worship them. And they are making these OFW's suffer because of the Spratly claim. This is so childish.

These maids need not suffer at all. Why do these Chinese men have to humiliate them in public? They are treating them as if they are animals. The Chinese people are lucky that they are so wealthy and progressive but it's getting too much!

Yes we may be a 3rd world country but it's not an excuse for discrimination.

The Hogwarts Sorting Hat - I was sorted! Guess what's House Im in?

Okay so this mornin I was checkin out Facebook and saw this test. I was really intrigued coz it's kinda cool and I love Harry Potter.

When I was in College, I already took a similar test from the Harry Potter website but I kinda answered the things that would make me Gryffindor, so in short, I kinda cheated it. Hahaha! I didn't really answered truthfully.

So this time, I did answered it with my real answers and I was really thrilled with the outcome! I'm a Slytherin! Yeah!!! Hahaha! I'm now a true-blue Snake. Nyahaha!!!

Mark, my friend from High school became Gryffindor. Well, who cares? Hahahaha!

And Duday, became well, a Slytherin also! I love it!!! Hahahaha! Let's go to the common room now!

well gotta go... I need to rest. Tata!

-lorenz adam

Joketime: What the?!!

As usual, I hurriedly woke up this afternoon.

I have an appointment with Paeng at the gym. Gosh, he really made my muscles sore!

After the workout, I ate to gain muscle. I was really making everything fast so I could still watch American Idol and not be late at work...

So I was able to bathe and watch American Idol but thought that I really cant finish it cuz im gonna be late for work so I went off and took a cab.

Carol texted me asking me if I have a shift tonight.

What the? OMG! What is the day today? Checked my calendar and... Fuck! It's Thursday! Wahhh!!! It's my day off! Im all dressed up and I dont have work?! Shit. Im losing it! Bigtime.

Hahaha!!!

Til next time!

-lorenz adam

Nestea Beach Fashion Show

Yes I was there! It was my first time attending a real fashion show. Hahaha! It was cool!

It was the Nestea Beach Summer Fashion Show. The event was held at the Mall of Asia last Friday, March 6, 2009.

I arrived there about 6:20 PM and realized that I just assumed that the fashion show would start at night time; and just thought that it might have been done earlier! Well anyway I went there at the Bay area with my heart pounding. Okay so I am seeing a stage that looks like a runway so I asked the guard what time would it start and he said that it'd be after the fireworks display. I had to eat dinner first so I did.

I went back to the Fashion show and heard the Emcee already talking. Maybe the fireworks display was already finished while I was eating, I guess.


I got excited! The designer is also in my neighborhood. He's PJ Arañador. That means we're close. Nyahaha!


Here are some shots I got from his collection:


Polo Ravales and Niña Jose were also there:



I was so overwhelmed with this event that I forgot about Charice Pempengco's concert the next day. I was also supposed to cover it but it totally slipped out of my mind. Wahh!

Til next time!

-lorenz adam

Paeng's Shocking Revelation

I was not able to workout for how many days since last week. The last time I did, I actually wasn't able to finish it because I threw up (again!). Well I have a good excuse to back it up and that's because I was sick. Yep, I was sick! In fact, I had a fever last Saturday night but was still able to manage to go to work.

Okay so today, despite of my slight cold, I decided to go back to working out again...

-Only to find news that will totally change my gym life! Waaahhh!!!

I was about to finish my workout when a guy asked me, "magwoworkout ka pa ba dito pag wala na si Paeng?"

"Huh?! Bakit? Aalis si Paeng?" I was puzzled. I never expected it.

"Oo, pupunta syang Kuwait", the guy said.

"What the-" I said to myself. Omg what about my dreams? My body? I was just trained by him for a month and I saw a lot of changes with it with that little time. A lot of my relatives and friends were pretty amazed too. Shucks. It felt like my dreams were shattered. How in the world am I gonna look like this in the Summer?


Paeng is a really good instructor for me. He knows my capacity. He told me really good tips that I can use for my development. Wah! I just can't go on with my workout life! He's the nicest trainer I've known... Huhuhu!

Paeng's name is actually Vince. I just knew last week. Once he gets his working visa by April, he'll be flying to Kuwait immediately. He said that he'll still be working as a trainer there.

Gosh. Guess I will be learning to workout by myself later on. *Sniff*

-lorenz adam

January Photoshoot

Last month, I saw Mau's friendster photoshoot pics. I was really amazed because the pictures were really good! I asked her how did she have those pictures and she said that they were taken at a friend's house and a friend helped to make the pictures look professional with editing. Look at how it turned out:


So I said that I wanted to have pictures like those so we arranged with Gaye (our artist friend) to have a photoshoot asap. Gaye served as our photog and editor.

We decided to do it at Greenbelt because we wanted a park-looking place. Here are some of the pictures:


We really didn't care if there were passers-by who kept on glancing whenever we were posing. As Gaye said, 'let's just think that this is a school project'. Nyahaha!

This other pic was taken at our apartment.

We took so many pictures so we could choose the best ones later. Right now I am craving for a Gossip Girl inspired photoshoot, and I know exactly the place where we could do it! I am so excited!!! I just need to prepare our outfits... Mwahahaha!!!

Til next time!

-lorenz adam

Joketime :D

This afternoon, I was working out with my trainer Paeng at the nearby gym. There was a gym member who just noticed that I now have a personal trainer unlike before when I was doing it on my own. I said, "Eh kasi parang walang nangyayari sa katawan ko." Paeng came in and said, "Dapat kasi kumain ka nang kumain kasi kailangan ng katawan mo ng frotein kasi twing magwoworkout ka, nagvevern ka ng calories and fats."

Ah ok. I'll surely remember that, Paeng. :D

My Pre-Valentine Experience: Videoke Madness!

So after the Boyce Avenue concert, Me and my friends ate at Chef De Angelo. It was so good because Vincent treated us all for dinner.

We have planned to go karaoke afterwards and was just waiting for another friend, Galilee. She was still at work that time so we decided to meet at our destination, Top Grill.

Mau said that Top Grill is a really nice place to hang out and sing. You can just order whatever you like and you can sing for free! Well, it's just that you have to sing in front of the whole crowd, that is. Haha! Well that was our agenda, really, -To sing in front of drunk people without getting any tomatoes on our faces.

So we found our table. The place was cold and full of drunk people. There was a small stage where two performers can sing in front of all the people. We immediately ordered a bucket of beer and chose our songs. We can only sing two songs at a time to give way for other people to also sing (duh?).

I can't find a song that I can sing on the songbook so I just let Mau choose the songs for us, we're going to sing together anyway. The first song we sang is Cool with You. I just backed her up on that song but thought I did it very well. Actually, I think I did not do it well, I did it perfectly. Hahaha!

So we sang other songs and I forgot some of them but here are the things that retained on my mind:

Til my Heartaches end- we were appreaciated by the audience. They clapped fairly

I'd still say Yes- again I backed Mau up. I smashed it this time by hitting the Über high notes. Mwahaha!!! Everyone clapped loudly! I wanted to laugh at the sound of it. It gave me a different feeling. Flattered. Wahahaha!!!

Beautiful In My Eyes- my only solo song. Mau said I had to practice singing solo so I did. I love her because she wants to bring out the best in me. Awww... Ü And yeah, I like the people's reaction. Since it was already Valentine's day, the couples one by one dance in front of all the people. It was so sweet. It was really a different feeling seeing them enjoying my music. Gosh.

Well we sang other songs well too it's just that the crowd became too drunk and some of my fans already left. Hahaha! We were actually waiting in line to sing Ever After and Don't stop the music but it was too late so we decided to go home. Mau and Tin had to go to the CR so I waited at our table alone. Surprisedly, the 25-something guy on the other table smiled at me and shook my hand. He said something like 'Congrats'. Haha! Mau and Tin caught glimpse of that and asked, so I said, "Just one of my fans, you know..."

We headed home and laughed happily at all the funny things that we had that night. By the way, our total charge was less than 200php. ÜÜÜ

-lorenz adam

My Pre-Valentine Experience: Boyce Avenue in Manila!!!

Yes! I was there! Who knew that I would be watching the YouTube hit band Boyce Avenue on February 13?! Although it was a Friday the 13th that day, everything went well for me. It was a really blurry day for me but it was really fun.

My roomate Mau told me a week before about the concert and I said, "What the? Why did you just told me about it? You should have told me sooner!". She said that she thought that I wasn't really that into Boyce Avenue. "Well that was before I had a blog! I have to cover that event! Nyahahaha!!!", I laughed.

So I started planning what to do, what to bring, and everything. I was so excited to put it on my blog.

February 13, 6pm. I arrived at MOA. I wanted to freshen up so I went to the CR when suddenly my phone rang. It was Jeff. Jeff is an officemate who just resigned from the company. I guess he was intrigued about the text I sent earlier about me coming to the concert. So I invited him to come. We talked on the phone for about 15 minutes. As usual, he said no and gave some really bad alibis. In short, he wasted my time (duh).


I knew that Jeff would just be wasting my time so while talking to him, I walked towards the concert grounds. The call was disconnected and I really can't hear him so who cares. The stage was really stunning. It's as if I was watching an American rock band (well, kinda) it's just that I only see them on TV or movies. I went straight where I could find seats only to find out that I have to buy a CD to get in. No problem. I went back quickly to where I could buy them and went inside and saved two seats for my friends.

Mau and my friends came from work so they were late. The people became incredibly crazy at about 6:45pm. The audience became so overcrowded. I doubted whether my friends will still make it on time.

6:50pm. There were fireworks display. Everything was splendid! Although, yeah, I felt really alone watching them. It's as if I were in a Disney movie minus a partner. Okay enough of that. Haha!

7pm. Kyla opened the night promoting her new songs from her new album. She sang Heart to heart, Old friend, and You make me feel. I love her rendition of Heart to heart but I swear to God that I promised myself to sing that song once I get my record label done. Ugh!


After Kyla's performance, we still waited a few minutes before the Boyce Avenue came out the stage. I really don't know their names until now. Hahaha! The people screamed and screamed at the sight of them. I felt awkward. Haha!

The guys performed songs like Apologize, Here and Now, With You, Change Your Mind, Wonderwall, The Freshman, Umbrella, and last but not least, my fave, Bleeding Love.

My friends were so late that they ended up watching the show at the far side of the stage. They couldn't get in through the thick crowd. So I literally watched the whole show without company. Anyway, I had fun taking pictures and vids.

There was a Meet and Greet and autograph signing after the show but it was only given to early birds and I wasn't one of them. So sad. :(

My Pre-Valentine experience doesn't stop there! I will be posting my friends' night-out after the concert.

-lorenz adam

Leona Lewis: I will Be

My current most fave singer Leona Lewis has paired up with hottie Gossip Girl star Chace Crawford on her new music video "I will Be".


'I will Be' is also one of my most listened song as of the moment so when I got news about the new video and saw it, I was filled with excitement. In one of her interviews, Leona revealed that she's a Gossip Girl fan that's why she was so excited working with Chace.

I saw how Leona made her dreams come true and if Chace is one of them, go for it, Leona! Heehee! ;)

I just don't like Leona's character on the music video cuz she's a thief. Definitely doesn't suit her.

-lorenz adam

Mad about Gossip Girl

I feel so sorry for myself for being so far behind the hottest things today. Well I really can't keep up with those stuff with my hectic schedule. So I just manage to find ways to still find out what all the people are talking about.


Last Sunday was the first day I got to watch Gossip Girl season 1 and I only watched 3 episodes because I got too hooked up watching other local films on TV so I thought that I shoulda watched GG instead.


Chace Crawford is the only guy who is familiar to me. Well I guess he is the most popular personality in the show. I never knew that he actually looked good on the series. He's like the true-to-life version of Ken (you know, Barbie's Ken?). It's nice he's shirtless most of the time. Lol!


Blake Lively aka Serena Van Der Woodsen was the, well, star of the show. I just don't understand yet why her character seems to be really popular.


Aside from Chace Crawford, cutie Penn Badgly caught my attention. I really like his character being the normal guy with brains and secret admiration for Serena. Can't wait to see what happens next between him and Serena! Another thing I like with his character is being a sweet brother to his sister. Maybe I'm just missing a brother figure coz I never had one. All sisters.

Right now I'm still finding ways for me to catch up with Gossip Girl and it's gotta be fast! I can't afford to be left out.

Mariah Carey: I Stay In Love

I just saw this video last week when I visited my friend at the hospital. I was shocked that a video was already out and didn't know about it.

I just loved the song when I first listened to it so watching the video added extra excitement! It was introduced to me by my high school friend early last year.

Mariah's outfit kinda reminded me of her old music video "Breakdown".

And the guy looks, er, okay... (clears throat)

This scene looks impossible.

I just hope Mariah will choose clothes that will hide her sagging arms, though. Mariah, you are still an icon to me, but please...

***

I just went to our pantry here at work and found a water conservation advisory above the sink that says "Make every drop counts". What's up with that? Hahaha!!! To think that we are in an English-speaking company.

-lorenz adam

American Idol Season 8 and some other stuff

Yesterday afternoon, I have already thought of my plans for the day (Yes, my day starts in the afternoon. How weird is that? Haha!)- to have my pictures printed for my apartment and to go back to the store where I downloaded High School Musical 1 movie, because it was incomplete. 'Twas about 5:55pm when I just remembered that it was Thursday and American Idol will be on in a couple of minutes! Since I was about to take a shower and AI wasn't on yet, I thought maybe I could bathe really fast so I could catch up. I immediately shampooed my hair but in the middle of it, I heard AI already started so I ran out to watch it with all the shampoo dripping on my face. I can't afford to miss every bit of AI - that's how crazy I am with AI!


It was Hollywood week and every contestant was feeling nervous. Simon has added even more pressure with his announcements like, "If you forget the words, you're out". Like, plainly auditioning for AI was too much pressure, with the whole world watching your every move and Simon would add up to your nerves! If I were there auditioning, I would have fainted. Haha!

I haven't noticed whether we have a Filipino contestant this season but it would be really cool if we have one, right?


What's up with this picture? Haha! I hate it when photographers take your picture while you're singing. You make up funny faces when hitting the notes and it will show on the photos.

The Divas group. This bikini brunette acted as if she were a real diva during the auditions. She's really gorgeous and can sing but her attitude was too much for the judge's to handle. If I were her, I'd behave really good at first, and if I win, then I'd act like a diva everyday. Unfortunately, only one from their group made it, the one on the far left.

Adam Lambert. One of my faves so far! His audition was excellent. Nice look and really amazing voice. I am sure that he's going to make it to the finals.

Tatiana - and her group. Ok so Tatiana is the girl at the far right of the picture. She is really a psychotic girl. Hahaha!!! Happy now, crybaby later. Honestly, I am not expecting her to last that long. But she's a really pretty girl though.

Next week, we are going to expect more emotional scenes and great performances from the remaining contestants as AI continues to lower the number down to the final ones.

***

This afternoon, I woke up at 2:30pm. One hour ahead of my anticipated wake up time.

I decided to eat breakfast - sausages and rice. I felt the need to create my first blog so I browsed the web for some inspirations. What to write about? well I really didn't have to think of it because I just want to talk about the things I'm crazy about. So yeah, I thought of writing about AI. Nice idea, right? Haha! :)

Okay, after thinking of what to write, I crammed because I had to go to the gym at 5pm. It was raining! Darn... I'm gonna be a little wet... Anyway, eventhough I was feeling a bit lazy, I still went on because my trainer, Paeng(nice name, huh?!), was waiting for me.

I arrived there just in time. Paeng was looking very trainer-like to me than ever before. I can tell that he put extra effort today wearing a blue Nike shirt and white khaki shorts., maybe because I wore a Nike shirt on one of our sessions. He is shorter than me, (like, who's taller than me anyway? Haha!) probably about my shoulder level but he's built is very muscular, like he can easily squeeze me in seconds.

I just started training with him last Monday and my gym life wasn't the same eversince. Hahaha! That's because our training are really intense unlike before that I wasn't feeling any muscle aches when I was doing the training myself.

So we started training. We're focusing today on my legs and back. I was actually fearing this day when we're gonna focus on my legs. I wasn't really paying attention to them before. We were just doing the first few sets and I was sweating like hell! It felt like I wouldn't be able to walk for a week!

I had a pretty heavy breakfast so when we were in the middle of the workout, I had to go to the comfort room to... yeah actually puke a little. Poor me. Hahaha! The workout was pretty intense for me to handle. Shucks.

At the final part of my workout, Paeng pretty much left me in doing the abdominal crunches. I had to do 3 sets but since I was so exhausted, I only did 2 sets! Well yeah, I cheated on myself rather than Paeng right? But who cares?! Nyahaha!!!

I was soaking wet, not with rain, but with perspiration! My shirt and shorts were literally full with sweat that I could actually squeeze them dry. Gosh. Next time I have to bring a more absorbent towel.

Tomorrow, it will be my day off and I have planned to visit the dentist for an extraction. Nice alibi for me not to workout for a week!

-lorenz adam