remember when i was out of the country for 3 months?

so i know i haven't been the greatest with updating lately, but the slow realization that my time spent sleeping in and blogging could have been spent coding my research has made me s my p's a little bit.

accordingly, i've been scrambling to schedule last minute interviews, dinners with friends, and fit in time to reflect on my data.

hence, my temporary desk at the department of health.

in lieu of my sorely missed absence on the blogosphere, i'm going to share with you, readers (yes, all one of you...mom) little tidbits of what i hope will be longer blog posts during my break times here in the 'pines.


my personally anticipated foray into examining the filipino celebrity phenomenon

picking my dad up from the airport a few weeks ago, i was fully immersed in the media storm, as they prepared for the concurrent arrival of kris aquino (sister of the current president and daughter of the former president Cory Aquino - sorry we have no relation nor do i think she did anything productive for this country, so i'm not calling her 'tita cory')


either way, the hype was ridiculous, considering kris aquino seems to be the 'oprah' of the philippines. (boy, did my dad have some choice words about her after traveling on the same plane)

as-yet unmentioned filipino obsession with korean music and culture

so that's why all the filipino guys think the kate gosselin hairstyle is awesome - because on the fair-skinned korean popstars, it is. on you, my dark-skinned midget countrymen, not so much.

anywho, seeing channels dedicated to k-pop and the prominence of some annoying, albeit horribly catchy song, the philippines has a sick obsession with korean culture. don't get me wrong, i loves me some bulgogi and i can kimchi my rice to the high heavens, but there comes a point when i don't really appreciate music or television when i don't speak the language.

here's a smattering of k-pop cd's at a store:


a follow-up to my charice post on filipino beauty - skin whitening

i didn't think i would find anything TOO explicit in terms of expressing how filipinos emphasize that white is beautiful.

that was until i was at the mall (where most of my epiphanies regarding this country occur) and i saw this banner:


what.the.f***. essentially, as i draw upon the hackneyed discussions of beauty on various blogs, this poster very clearly tells filipinos:

black and nappy is fugs

white and straight-haired is gorgeous

so by transitive property, chemical dying your skin to look like a cross between michael jackson a la "you are not alone" (sham-oh!) and a bowl of rice will make you attractive.

un.believ.able.

(i say this as i examine my combined acne-fighting/whitening face wash - come on, allow me to indulge myself in one form of filipino vanity, as a fil-am i'm almost expected to!)

the treasure trove of family history that i've learned in the past month

traveling to both my parents' respective provinces, i've learned an invaluable amount about my family and my past.

not to mention finding an awesome pair of raybans in my dad's closet, sitting dustily atop, wait for it, A SIGNED PORTRAIT OF FERDINAND MARCOS.

one of my highlights was speaking to gen. hamilton dimaya, cousin of my grandpa and marcos' legal counsel.

while the rest of family took pity on me, saying that i got lolo milton talking again, i actually enjoyed the 2 hours that we spent discussing the recent history of the philippines and his take on the status quo.

my favorite part was when lolo milton, to disprove his supposed senility, recited:

1. the 79 provinces of the philippines (by region)
2. the 50 US states and their capitals
3. the Gettysburg Address (word for word, shit you not)
4. the Beatitudes
5. and some famous thing in Spanish that I didn't recognize but smiled my way through

i know i get annoyed by old people sometimes, especially when at a stoplight or in line at safeway, but it's amazing how much we devalue the wealth of history and information that they retain and are willing to share.

he told me he wanted to see me again so that we/he could talk more. ( i have a feeling no one listens to his stories. sad face.)

last but not least, FOOD!

anyone who comes to the philippines must go to ma mon luk. i can bath in their broth and shampoo with the siopao sauce.

wholly dissatisfied with my adventures in mexican cuisine, when i tried an enchilida (read: a tortilla filled with liquid nacho cheese), i decided that the filipino version of mexican food is an abomination of the word. much like filipino spaghetti.

to cleanse my body of this desecrecation of my favorite type of food, i ran for the border! not in arizona, sillies - taco bell!

and yes. it tastes the same (glorious) even in another country.

and they even played with their words! how can you NOT appreciate this?

until next time, when i choose from this cornucopia of blog topics, thanks for reading!

wtf, philippines?

driving:

at an intersection

oh, philippines

so as i sit here, alone, eating dinner at CPK - yes, i have become those weirdos eating dinner alone (next is watching movies alone) - the adjacent table exemplifies that cultural aesthetic of fatter is richer.

it's a filipina mother and daughter. as the mother dines on her salad, the daughter (no older than 10 year old) heartily eats through two (yes, two!) plates of pasta and a whole cpk pizza.

proof? here:

(you [surprisingly] can't see the daughter, but after acknowledging there's a white girl here, you can see the 4 plates on the table)

i dunno, it's a mixed bag of emotions and judgments for me.

why?

because i loves me my fatty filipino kids and their unending potential for ridicule and giggles. example:

haha, now that i look at the girl at the table, she actually looks like the little up boy with a ponytail.

either way, the philippines is on a slow path to slow weight destruction and pretty soon with all the new mang inasals and starpops, the philippines will find itself as the new united states of mcdonald's.

SIRvice

"the filipino is worth dying for" - benigno aquino jr, father of current president benigno aquino III (whom i refuse to call noynoy, or worse p'noy, because i'm annoyed by the mockery of politics embodied by infantilization of filipino politician's names)

"the filipino is worth hiring"- roland m. dimaya, awesome blogger

so following the tradition of filipino linguistic ingenuity, i'm calling this entry SIRvice, pronounced 'service.' why? because this is what i'm called everywhere here in the Philippines. although their pronunciation is a bit elongated. 's' hissed like a snake, 'ir' pronounced like a long 'errrrrrr.'

walk into estarbucks. "hi sir, welcome to estarbucks"
walk through a department store. "hi sir" "welcome sir" "sir, would you like to try..."
get out of the car. "good evening sir" [or even more spicy - "hello boss" "boss, kain na tayo"]

i guess this is where i can clarify what i previously described as living at a bus terminal. my family historically owns and operates a bus line, traveling from manila to the northern province of ilocos. in recent years, things have gone downhill for various reasons which i find useless to discuss or even think about. (awkward silence....). anywho, attached to the main bus terminal is where my family lives, in a pseudo-apartment complex. the family cars obviously park in the terminal and since the bus drivers and conductors know my face, they call me 'boss.' ('boss' is usually used as a term for someone you don't know anyway, kinda like 'amigo') now again, i'm not tooting any horns, but i find it interesting that men old enough to be my grandfather are calling me 'boss.' last i checked, i was in no way involved in employing, paying, or interacting with you. in some ways, i feel guilty. here are men that i presume were hired by my grandfather or my dad and by transitive property, work for me.

i know, i know, that sounds like some mighty horn tooting. but i think one thing that i've realized and i've acted on, in silently nodding and smiling as they call me boss, is that they don't work for me. in some ways, this is possibly the difference between my actions and those of say, my family here in the philippines. (horn tooting!)

extrapolating this 'sir'vice to the greater country is something that i think i can attempt to do. as i said, here are these men, who work in various capacities driving, collecting (and most likely, pocketing) money, fixing engines, some for 40 years, some for 4 days. this is their lifestyle, this is their job. part of this job, is clearly showing some type of respect for who they assume to be the 'owners' of the business. again by transitive property and simple observation, as i walk to the car every morning, door opened for me, laptop and belongings carried down for me, they refer to me as 'boss.' this little punk ass kid who farts and burps at the same time, watches mindless vh1 reality shows when bored, and has no clue of the operation of this bus business is defined as their boss? well, sir, i think not. you can call my dad 'boss,' i'm just a douche living here for the summer.

what it is though, is an assumed hierarchy, a title-less caste system the extends beyond the dingy bus terminal and is seen all over the philippines. an assumed sense of entitlement among few and an assumed sense of obligation and subservience among the masses. in this filipino mindset, the masses cannot subsist without these few, an twisted mentality not unlike the aliens in the 'fifth element' - kill the leader, the soldiers cannot operate.

how does this manifest in everyday filipino life?

ubiquitous street beggars, usually children or disabled elderly

a more blatant example of sex tourism, it's usually 'a bit' more discreet with a clothed female (age ~17-23) with an older white man sitting at a restaurant

the most sought out jobs for filipinos, domestically

and my personal favorite, an image of an oathtaking ceremony for filipino nurses.

'come on, roland. you can't blame filipinos for the fact that there are street beggars, sex tourists, and migration for work.' one may say.

point taken. i actually agree. i can't blame every filipino for these phenomenon that are usually common for developing countries. what i can blame though, is the filipino mentality of service, of obligation to a higher power (and i don't mean Jesus - see this post for that discussion).

it's this sense of owed service that's killing this country, that filipinos wait for work to be provided, they don't create it for themselves. in a warped conception of entitlement, the filipino looks for a job to serve, not one that can serve themself.

i was particularly inspired by a meeting with an administrator from the nurse sector here in the philippines:

'trabaho hinahanap, trabaho hindi ginagawa." [work is looked for, work isn't created]

back of the envelope calculations show the current filipino nurse pool: (and in no way are these verified)

150,000 Filipino certified nurses current unemployed
+37,000 Filipino nurses that just passed the board exam in November
+10,000 Filipino nurses now unemployed after the temporary NARS program
-----------
197,000 Filipino nurses
+ ~40,000 that may pass the exam currently being scored
-----------
~230,000 unemployed/other industry Filipino nurses

why unemployed? because the country can only absorb 60,000 nurses in hospitals and the US/UK have closed migration.

why other industry? because of 'lack' of job openings in hospitals or ability to migrate, these nurses work at call centers, retail, other non-healthcare industries

230,000 nurses. potential primary care providers. instead, helping you with your cable bill or selling shoes. why? because the job of a Filipino nurse is limited to a hospital.

while the country boasts the global provider of nurses, it doesn't realize or advocate for the abilities of nurses as primary care providers. instead, the filipino nurse is mass produced (in the interests of foreign employment) to understand their exclusive abilities in a large hospital, as the link between patient and doctor, as a sponger, a bedpan cleaner. and because these functions aren't open due to economic restrictions, a full four years of education and clinical skills go wasted.

the philippines has yet to tap into the abilities of nurses to manage home care operations, to provide private service, the idea of a 'nursing home' is non-existent.

nursing 'service' has shifted from the patient, to their 'boss,' either a nurse manager here in the philippines or a foreign employer. there's no concept of nurses taking charges and utilizing their abilities to, for example, start a nurse cooperative, erect (haha) a private nursing home, develop a contractual nurse service to provide home care. there's no inspiration to create for oneself with one's abilities, instead, it's a passivity. it's an acceptance of the status quo - embodied by quite possibly the most aggravating saying "ganyan talaga ang pilipinas" (that's just how it is in the philippines)

and this isn't limited to the nursing industry. filipinos seek jobs as yayas (nannies), (errand) boys, call centers, and abroad as caregivers, human resource managers. maybe its a cultural aspect attributable to the idea of respect for elders and providers. maybe its the perpetuation of the vicious cycle of pursuit of highest paying jobs. maybe its just a just a blatant observation of supply and demand at its best (and worst).

regardless of my ruminations and wikipedia-based fact inclusions, the root of this problem is the mindset of the filipino. there needs to be a mindshift, a real mindshift. not some bullshit campaign to resurrect remnants of 'people power' and fighting against corrupt powers, so popularly resurrected by new administration. there needs to be a realization that the filipino is capable of more than just service, the filipino needs to realize that he can't just take the easy way out, the filipino needs to elevate beyond her current situation.

until the filipino can realize the 'sir' or 'maam' that exist in themselves, the filipino won't be worth dying for, they'll only be worth hiring.

WTF, Philippines?

-measures Filipinos take to 'beautify' themselves - just one example, that will launch into a full blog soon enough:

reposted from the hotties of Disgrasian:

Charice’s Face-Off

July 19th, 2010 | 5 comments | Posted by jasmine

From Guest Contributor, Intern Jasmine:

When I heard Pinaysian singing sensasian Charice was going to be guest-starring on Glee, I was stoked. She’s young, she’s cute, she can sang, and Oprah loves her. On the show, she could form a Voltron-like Asian power triumvirate with Jenna “Tina Cohen-Chang” Ushkowitz and Harry “Mike Chang/Other Asian” Shum, Jr.

So I was surprised – okay, shocked – when I heard that Charice, in preparation for her Glee debut, in some Botox and a skin-tightening treatment called Thermage. In a press conference with her cosmetologist, who performed the Thermage on her on camera, Charice confessed to wanting “to look fresh on camera” for the show.

Yeah, because we all know how fucking haggard 18 year old girls can look.

Doctor Vicki Belo explained:

“Charice’s face, I’ve been noticing, it’s been getting wider… That’s why she looks mataba, although the body is very small, because [her] face is getting wide. One of the reasons for that, nagchew-chewing gum [siya]… Our chewing muscles, if you chew a lot of gums, it gets bigger.”

So what she’s saying is that Charice’s adorable Asian moon face, supposedly the result of excessive gum-chewing, is so wide that it’s making the rest of her look fat. Clearly, it’s a threat that must be contained.

If that widening face isn’t stopped with the intervention of shots of botulism and a procedure that melts collagen IN YOUR FACE, it will get so wide that Charice won’t be able to fit through doorways without turning to the side. She’ll have to reserve three seats on the plane to the States to film her scenes for Glee. Show creator Ryan Murphy will have to shoot with extra-wide lenses to accommodate her ginormous jaw, which will block everything else in view. Which may not be so bad because, let’s face it, sometimes the choreography on the show is kinda wack anyway.

[Yahoo! News: Teenage singer Charice gets Botox for 'Glee' debut]

awful offal

I realize it's been a while since my last attempt at introspection and blog-al reflection on philippine phenomena. the past week has been pretty busy with interviews, transcriptions, failed attempts at data coding, and routine med school apps. luckily, though, in the past week, i've had had some enlightening (interview with marco santo tomas), mind-boggling (seeing inception) and hilarious (calvin and the barf cheeks) moments.

In this combination of a reflection blog and a WTF, Philippines, I'm pasting a link to my friend Krystle's blog, where she gives a good analysis of the Philippine infatuation with SAUCE.

Krystle in Manila: EFF the KETCHUP, GIVE ME THE ASIAN! (she also gives a good analysis of a philippine phenomena in semantics arising from the almighty text message)

I'll add my two centavos. As you'll see from the menu posted on Krystle's blog, I ordered a combo meal at the movies that included a 'Chicken Ceasar [sic] Salad' excited to finally get some greens in mah belleh. As the mindfuck that is Inception started, I excitedly speared my fork into the darkness of the salad bowl. To my surprise, all i picked up was a single lettuce leaf, presumably the heart of Romaine rib, completely submerged in a pool of Ceasar [sic] dressing. In addition to the dressing, though, there lingered another pungent element on my tongue, which only through further mastication I realized was anchovy. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for following a recipe, but anchovy is supposed to be a mere component, a sprinkle if you will, in Ceasar [sic] dressing, not something as ubiquitous as the crunchy crouton! After eating the single lettuce leaf, my already confused psyche, thinking I was in a Caesar salad dream with this fork as my totem (see Inception), was even more distraught to see that all that remained in the salad bowl was a sea of dressing, through which croutons, pieces of chicken, and anchovies swam.

The love for sauce and dressing and all types of greasy, oily, seemingly similar tasting condiments are EVERYWHERE. And believe me, it's not something as dismissive as a ketchup packet here and there or the awesome onion and relish dispensers at Costco. In the Philippines, the need for 'sawsawan' is as important as the dish itself. At a restaurant the other day, the woman sitting at the table beside me used her lettuce leaf to clean the gravy boat, obviously full of Ceasar [sic] dressing, to pick up every last drop.

I guess this discussion of sauce hits at an integral part of Filipino life in general: food. I've read in various places and spoken to many 'foodies' who explain that what they've had of Filipino food is not something to write home about. Not gonna lie, I myself don't really enjoy Filipino food all that much. I know, how can I say this? Do I dare blaspheme my parents' cooking and my four years of Club Filipino dinners at Georgetown?

When it comes down to it, though, as I think back on the meals I've had here in Manila, they've all followed the same formulaic recipe of a scoop of rice topped with some meat item stewed in thick sauce. Throw in some vegetables, either steamed, boiled, or also stewed in a thick, oily sauce. To some degree, I see critics' points in the unshockingly bland nature of Filipino food. I'm sure many of my Filipino friends may find some fault in these words, but I urge you, to think of Filipino food and try to conceive of a descriptive term, something that really sets the food apart from anything else you've ever had.

Now I'm not tooting my own gustatory horn, but from the Southeast/South/East Asian food I have tasted, something ALWAYS sticks out. Indian - spices of coriander and cumin (thanks Polli!). Thai - the kick of chili peppers (I see you, Fuadi!). Vietnamese - refreshing lime and lemongrass (Hi Trinh!). Japanese - the simplicity of ingredients (Little Tokyo, where you at?). Korean - the nutty sesame oil (Yechon, I miss you!). Chinese - (this can range from pungent to textural to just about anything).

But when I think Filipino, what follows the hyphen? I can't really think of something that sets it apart from other Asian cuisine or even cuisine in general. This could just be 1-month-in-Manila-Roland-who-has-had-rice-for-every-meal speaking. As for the word, I guess, saucy?

Who knows? Maybe this discussion can fit into the larger scheme of what seems to be the identity crisis that Philippines experiences, somehow as a ethnic, cultural, linguistic, comestible hodgepodge of the world. I guess what better example of this, than Filipino spaghetti. Ick, my stomach turns just at the thought. To save myself from barf cheeks, here's a link to visuals and recipe for Filipino Spaghetti. Mrs. Brower, I apologize for even calling this bastardization 'spaghetti.'

Yum. And if by yum, I mean Gross.

To end this discussion in a non-anti-Filipino sentiment, I would describe Filipino food very similar to 'soul food,' or rather the 'soul food' that I've had in the US: fried chicken and gravy, greens, mac and cheese, chitlin's, fried catfish. In the US, when we think of/eat soul food, the most common response is 'comfort food,' something we can imagine a big ol' black lady lovingly stewing up before she gives us a huge hug. Excuse the horribly stereotypical imagery I stir up, but I'm aiming to make a point, historically about the cultural similarities in Filipino and African-American 'soul food.' Let's take a deeper look. Both cultures found themselves enslaved by a world power (black slaves by Americans, Filipino slaves by Spanish/Chinese/Japanese). Both cuisines found themselves localized to certain regions because of their conquerors (the South for black slaves, Pampanga for Filipinos). Lastly, and most notably, because of their enslavement, the staples of both cuisines were consequently the remains or entrails of the entrees of their masters. Chitlin's = chicharon bulaklak, fried pork knuckle = crispy pata, ubiquitous inclusions of oxtail, okra, beans, and most importantly FAT, lard = oil.

So while Filipino food may not be critically acclaimed, nor will it bloom as the new craze in the same way pho or tapas has, I guess it's something to come home to, something that, instead of big ol' black lady, a small little manang has prepared with a smile to fill your stomach. For me specifically, I may not be inspired to grab a Filipino cookbook, but once I start chewing that spoonful of rice mixed with pig intestine boiled in pig's blood (see dinuguan - I swear it's good!), there's a little part of my me, way deep on the inside, that feels like a 5-year-old roland again, unfettered by the chains of conventional cuisine, excited even by the offal, not awful, prospects of my dad's home cooking, the sound of rice hitting the rice cooker, and the legitmately heartwarming sound of "Kain na tayo" (Let's eat). And maybe, in this hectic grown-up life i've assumed, a fork-and-spoon trip to my simple childhood is all the comfort I need to stay sane.

oh, philippines...

i know i haven't posted in a while, research and apps be crazy. in the meanwhile, enjoy this street sign:basically translated into:

CROSSING IS PROHIBITED
PEOPLE DIE HERE
love, the philippines