Adam Lambert's Mad World

I am a johnny-come-lately when it comes to American Idol. I have not given this reality show any thought until season 8. I came to like the two Davids - Cook and Archuleta after they won the Idol last year. But now I like AI a lot.

I was pretty excited to watch last week's show because the top eight will be singing mostly 80s songs, songs which were popular when they were born. They were all born in the 80s except for Allison Iraheta who was born on 1992 if I remember it right.

I thought Anoop Desai did well singing True Colors. I am biased of course because I liked him the first time I watched him during his audition - in geeky checkered polo and khaki knee-length pants. He's the typical college guy. I thought he's very secure about who he is without working so much about what he wears. You know the kind who wears whatever is clean in the closet and then go.

I thought Adam Lambert was overrated getting a standing ovation from the audience and the judges including Simon Cowell. But tonight I bow to him. WOW!

I listened to Anoop's studio recording of True Colors and he's great. As Paula Abdul said, it was magical.


But Adam Lambert was amazing! Listen. His rendition of Tears for Fears' Mad World is haunting. He deserved that standing ovation.


One has to have real, absolute talent to come up with a version of a song that will show your personality, your style. Adam hit it with his arrangement of Mad World.

But I'm loyal. I still vote for Anoop Dog! :)

All About Costumes

This sounds like a quiz straight from Facebook but what kind of mom are you when it comes to your child's costume needs? As we know, schools, and on some occasions or parties, require costumes depending on the program or theme.

Some moms I know rent gowns and period costumes while a handful borrow. A lot buy ready-made ones in department stores. And a few have their child's dresses made by their family seamstress.

I have never borrowed or rented any of my daughter's costumes nor I had any customized except for gowns which she already used when she was the flower girl in several wedding events of family and friends. I buy her costumes along with the accessories (if needed).

More often than not, the adviser will finalize the needed costumes only a week before the program. Sometimes also the school provides the costumes for uniformity which earns several percentage points when there is intercompetition. Of course the parents are billed before the event.

This picture was taken during Linggo ng Wika at my daughter's school. She was able to use this Filipiniana dress for two consecutive years. I bought her a Muslim inspired set for the school's interpretative song but there was a change of plan. Her role was that of a barrio lass so we opted to use this once again - a midnight blue Filipiniana dress with orange accents with flower designs on the sleeves and matching wrap around on the waist. I used hairnet and ribbon to keep her long hair in place.

I keep all her dresses used in school programs and parties. I wanted to share a Halloween costume but my daughter prevented me from doing so. She's ten and she gets embarrassed already looking at her pictures dressed like a cartoon character, an animal or a walking apple. "But...but...you're so cuuuute!" I told her. It does not work for her anymore. I rest my case.

I just have to share this too, my niece's very cute kitten costume last Halloween for the trick or treat rounds. So cute! This toddler loves wearing costumes. On different occasions she was a pumpkin, little girl santa, a princess and the latest, a pink and white kitten.

She loves dressing up obviously regardless how hot it must be. Haha. She'll go easter egg-hunting tomorrow. She's got her baskets ready and her easter wardrobe.

***See more sharing on children's costumes at Mommy Journey.

A Laidback Night

I am planning to watch a lot of movies this week when most of the usual activities are put to a halt being Holy Week. Old movies are in my list. I was browsing on titles like A Street Car Named Desire, On a Golden Pond, Once a Thief, etcetera, when I landed on Alain Delon's old pictures. He is beautiful.

I then thought of coming up with my list of the most beautiful leading men and women: Montgomery Clift, Marlon Brando, River Phoenix, Brad Pitt, Keanu Reeves, Chace Crawford,Ethan Hawke and Alain Delon. Alain Delon tops them all. I like them brooding.

If Twilight was created during his time, Alain Delon is the perfect Edward Cullen - unapologetically good looking male. And then my daughter said, Marlon Brando will be Jacob Black. Oh, I don't think so. That would be a sacrilege. The Godfather will not allow this comparison. :)

For the women: Demi Moore, Audrey Hepburn, Ingrid Bergman, Grace Kelly, Ava Gardner, Monica Belucci, Kate Winslet, Liv Tyler, Reese Witherspoon. Ingrid Bergman is the prettiest.

If Chace is included, shall I include Gossip Girls, Leighton Meester and Blake Lively? No, I'd rather include Camilla Belle. For both men and women, I like flawed beauty like Keanu and River, Reese and Liv. Not perfect but still mesmerizing.

As I was browsing the internet I came to a site where they feature covers of magazines circa 1960. My daughter browsed with me and remembered I told her Tiger Beat has been around since her aunts, who are way older than I am, was in their pre-teen years. That was early seventies. She asked me to check Google for old issues of Tiger Beat.

What do you know. There are old issues of Tiger Beat dating back as early as 1970s. We had silly grins on our faces because of the hairstyles and how crudely the covers were done. It's like even my daughter can make something like that now. It seems a very simple scrapbook. And it only costs 50 cents. That's how long ago 1972 was.

Tiger Beat now costs around P250-P500 here in the Philippines (roughly 5 to 10USD). Expensive. That's why I don't buy any for my daughter. I can spend that amount on her CDs and books because these will last forever or for a long time. They have value but the movie magazines will only be good for a few days and whatever is in there, she can read online. All her celebrity magazines were sent by my sister.

Going back to Tiger Beat, I rounded up to her some of the celebrities I can remember. I was telling her if you have Zac Efron now, we had Scott Baio before. My cousins were fan girls too of Shaun Cassidy and Leif Garret. Donny Osmond was really that popular before. Just like The Jonas Brothers now, he was in every issue of Tiger Beat then.

I suddenly remembered Scott Baio's sitcom I used to watch, Charles in Charge. I think this was the reference of the local Okidok of Aga Muhlach where he takes care of his nephews and nieces. And of course, how can I forget Zapped, the famous movie about telekenetic powers with the equally famous, super cheesy official soundtracks, Got to Believe in Magic and King and Queen of Hearts. Oh boy. Those were the days.

They were sung by David Pomeranz which went really big in the Philippines. See, until now David Pomeranz produce his concert here. As if the kids of today will mind or the mommies his age will spend precious money to watch him.

Time flies so fast. The next thing we know, there will be new and fresher batches of superstars.

Well, my daughter and I had fun doing this together while digging on chocolate ice cream and potato chips. :D

Games We Used to Play

This is a common sight for a lot of school children during school parties and get-together - they take out their PSPs and DS Lites and play to their hearts' content. They quietly sit in a corner and busy themselves hitting buttons trying to win their games. Sometimes they play together, or should I say they are all lined up, each to his own, all eyes are set on their little gadgets. The school and the parents have a great take on this. Let me talk about that on some other post.

I rarely allow my daughter to bring her toys - electronic or not - at school whether it's a Xmas party or whatever get-together they are having. I encourage her to interact with her classmates, spend more time with them. There are a lot of activities or games they can enjoy together. They swap books and magazines. I'm agreeable to that. They spend time talking to each other, face to face, about what they read or what's on their magazine.

I attended my daughter's school's family day last month. It was a whole day affair but it was a weekend full of fun! It was a pleasant surprise too to see youngsters play the kind of games I used to play as a child. They were playing jackstones and doing some exhibition with the ball and the star-shaped "stones". I was an expert in jackstones when I was in grade school. So jackstones is in again.


A classmate also brought pick-up-sticks. It's great to see them enjoying this game as a group. It fosters team work and healthy competition.


I still remember the games which kept me and my playmates busy. Personal computers were still unheard of back in late seventies and early 80s when I was growing up. What do we play on weekends when there's no school?

* Taguan (Hide & Seek) - We all hide somewhere and pity the girl or boy who was tasked to find each player. The ground's so big it's hard to find us.

* Sungka - It is said to be the Filipino version of a mancala game, a game of counting and strategy. When I was guiding my daughter in her Social Studies, she was totally at a lost thinking how it can be such an exciting game for us as children many summers ago.

* Piko (Hopscotch) - What I find really fun here is drawing the board or the diagram on the pavement.

* Tumbang preso - A game distinctly Filipino as the linked site says. I agree. I love it whenever I hit the tin can with my slippers! I don't know but is this a backyard version of football with a few major tweaks? Haha.

* Luksong-tinik - I'm below average in this game. The highest jumper wins the game.

* Patintero - The idea is to block an opponent from passing through the player's territory. Speed and timing are keys to win this game. I was pretty good in this game.

Do your children still play these games? The only game from the list above my daughter plays now with her classmates at school is hide and seek.

***More snapshots at WS.

Stripes

I thought of sharing my daughter's picture with The Striped One, Ronald McDonald. This was taken right after their activity on the last day of her stint as a McDonald's kiddie crew last summer.

There are Ronald McDonald permutations in other countries. There is an Asian Ronald McDonald for instance.

The picture came from Jackie Chan Kids website. It's the first thing that came up when I searched on Google. I don't know the whole story behind the picture but look at Ronald serving vegetables.

I remembered Super Size Me, the documentary about eating so much fast food. McDonald's introduced Ronald McDonald as the Ambassador of Balanced Lifestyles a few years ago expanding Ronald's role of teaching kids the value of an active lifestyle. Checking out McDonald's website, they have provided food quality check on their products.

Eat fries and burgers but burn all the calories after? We have not totally turned our backs on fast food but we have less of it now and so with processed foods. Eating at home also keeps us within our budget.

Here's something from Wikipedia.

In Thailand, Ronald McDonald greets people in the traditional Thai "wai" greeting gesture of both hands pressed together. The Thai version of the company mascot was created in 2002 by the local Thai franchise, McThai, as part of a "McThai in the Thai Spirit" campaign. The figure has also been exported to India and other Buddhist countries where a similar gesture is used. In Japan, Ronald McDonald is called Donald McDonald due to a lack of a clear "r" sound in Japanese. (Picture lifted from Wikimedia.)

I am aware about Ronald's greeting in Thailand but I did not know Ronald is Donald in Japan. :)

***See more stripes at Photohunt.

Hitting Three with One

Last Saturday, my daughter and I attended the Krispy Kreme event, we dropped by Fully Booked and I met up with a high school friend at ArAma Cafe, Serendra, a restaurant she partly owns which serves organic food. I will be sharing more about this place in my succeeding posts.

Now the details.

A few days ago, Chats, a good friend from Filipino Mom Blog forwarded to us an invite from the organizer of Krispy Kreme's Chocolate Karnival. It got my interest because the doughnut company's billboard along EDSA have long caught my attention. If I may share, their billboards with their featured products always perk up the consumer in me. I have shared a few months back their snowmen doughnuts which my husband loved which we also first saw in their billboard. That's the power of outdoor advertising, at least that's the effect on us.

What was more encouraging about the event was that guests can bring kids along. This should be fun. I asked my daughter if she wants to go with me. She said yes knowing that it will be at Bonifacio High Street where her favorite building full of books is located. We dropped by Fully Booked after the event. Plus she's going see P again, Chats' daughter, who is about her age. Boredom is out of the question.

We caught the event half way. The place was still jampacked with guests. I wanted so much to take pictures but it was not just possible because the store was full of people, young and old, playing games, eating and taking pictures.

I have lifted the picture below from the Chocolate Karnival site. One dozen of chocolate glazed can be claimed after finishing the four games and naming their mascots. The kids definitely enjoyed playing. Thanks to Chats (and P) for my two boxes. I shared them with the people in my shop. Next time I will try chocolate glazed kreme filled.

I am not fond of fancy doughnuts (or any fancy food for that matter) but I am a chocolate lover. I would say too doughnuts are best eaten when hot and with coffee on the side. Microwave and oven toasters come in handy at home. :)

My daughter played 'shoot the doughnut' and enjoyed some drinks. Like me, she's not really fond of big crowds in a cramped place. Who would want that anyway. But I'm glad to note she enjoyed being there. I did not hear a single complain.

There are two major reasons launches interest me. I believe in the product/service. I know I am part of their target market - which means either I am already a user or I can be convinced to be a client and I have the capacity to purchase/avail of the products/services being launched or offered. A great bonus of course is my friends will be there too. I take the opportunity to bond with them.

True enough, two mommies I have not seen for quite a time attended too - Feng and Jane. We missed Cess and Wenchie though. I guess the last time I was with my Filipino Mom Blog friends was last December on our holiday get-together held at Wench's house.



Me, Feng, Jane, Chats with daughter V, Julie with her son J
Thanks to Chats again for forwarding to me our group picture. :)

I hope you had a fun-filled weekend too! And may this week be more productive for all of us.

***More snapshots at WS.

Almost Ten Years Ago.....

Shoes! I have a lot of shoes. I guess most women do. I wear shoes depending on the role we I am playing at a given moment. If I'm at work, mostly high heels. If I am going to the grocery - slip on or flats. If we're going to the beach, I just wear flip-flops. Etcetera.

(Sapatos! Marami akong sapatos. Sa tingin ko halos lahat ng kababaihan ay maraming sapatos. Ang suot naming sapatos ay depende kung ano ang role na ginagampanan namin sa naturingang pagkakataon. Kung ako ay nasa opisina, madalas high heels. Kung ako ay maggo-grocery - slip on or flats. Kung ako ay nasa beach, tsinelas naman. At marami pang iba.)

I wanted to take a picture of the latest shoes I bought but my camera is not functioning. The lens is stuck because it fell on the floor. I really hope it will get fixed the soonest. I always need a camera. I am having separation anxiety.

(Gusto ko sanang ibahagi ang pinakahuling sapatos na binili ko ngunit nasira ang lens ng aking camera. Nahulog kasi sa sahig. Sana lang magawa ito agad. Ako ay nakakaramdam na ng separation anxiety sa aking camera na madalas kong daladala kahit sa opisina.)

For today's Litratong Pinoy, I'm reposting the yellow Sesame Street shoes my daughter wore during her first birthday. I am quite sentimental when it comes to my daughter. Most of her things when she was still a baby are still kept in one of the closets. I gave away some but most are still with us especially the "firsts".

(Para sa Litratong Pinoy, muli kong ibabahagi ang sapatos ng aking anak noon s'ya ay nagcelebrate ng kanyang unang taon. Medyo sentimental ako pagdating sa aking anak. Halos lahat ng kanyang kagamitan noong s'ya ay sanggol pa lamang ay nakatabi pa. May mga ipinamigay na ako ngunjit karamihan ay itinabi ko lalo na 'yung mga ginamit n'ya sa mga unang pagkakataon.)


It's been almost ten years..... (Halos sampung taon na ang nakararaan.....)


***See more pictures of shoes at Litratong Pinoy .