Drunk Filipinos, Dancing Pinoys, Ugly Philippines

Last night, my friend and I went to the bar. The usual: drink, laugh, scream-so-you-can-be-heard talk, dance, drink a little more, say hi to friends (or acquaintances in this case) you haven't seen in a while, meet new people, and drink a little more.

One Adios M*therf@cker to start. Talk. Smile. Go to second club. One Long Island Iced Tea. Talk. Dance. One more Long Island Iced Tea. Smile. Dance. Dance. Talk. One more Long Island Iced Tea. Whoa! I'm getting buzzed. It's hitting me. Music blares. Beats vibrate. My dancing shoes on the floor. Big smile on my face by now, and I am a social butterfly.

I have not been drunk in a while, but this time, I traded my White Russians for those damn Adios and Iced Teas. Yuck! What a cheap way to get drunk! Note to self: No more alcohol-packed drinks. Nasty. Yuck! Stick to White Russians, please. Be good to body and brain. And soul.

There were a few Pinoys at the club. Of course, we Pinoys are always the best dancers wherever we go. It's in our blood, running through every vein of our bodies. Heck, my Lola dances to every beat. Then there's my mom and my Lola dancing. My aunts, my cousins, my friends. Damn, all of 'em. Where music and Pinoy meets, a dance fiesta occurs. Are you thinking line dancing at the Filipino parties now?

So we're dancing, and a Pinoy comes up to me to start a conversation. You see, the Filipino in the US, they are spread out everywhere, with high concentrations in Hawaii and California. So when a Pinoy meets another, one will get, "So you're a Pinoy too?" greeting, and boom, there's that instant connection. A Pinoy will feel more comfortable seeing another Pinoy in a foreign land. It gives a home a way from home, and that feeling that you're not alone.

I felt differently during my visits to the Philippines in 1999, 2004, and 2005. I saw so many Filipinos everywhere (duh!), yet I felt alone, foreign, and different. True, I was going through some culture shock. I never felt so disconnected from my culture. I began to reject almost everything to the point that I was so stressed out. Whoa! I was supposed to be on vacation, why was I stressing? I just saw so many ugly things that I have never seen before.

Finally, I learned to deal with these ugly things. I learned to continue to embrace the beauty, and accept that these ugly things happen because of ugly people who think they are beautiful. Get it? Let me expound. These graft and corruption and lawlessness and dirty politics and poor economy and poverty and hunger and abuse and suppression and what have you are there because of political cronies who don't belong there and corporate bosses who think they are the kings and queens of the world. Combine that with poor education. Mix in a media that is afraid of politics. Add a dose of nakakabobo and kakadiri showbiz. Whoa! You got the perfect recipe for a Third World.

So last night, I partied too much. No more nasty Long Islands and Adios Mofos. Met with old friends, met new friends. In the past, I probably would not have paid too much attention to another Pinoy saying hello to me. But last night, I said hello, invited him to join the conversation with my friends, and welcomed him to the US as he had just arrived from Quezon City five months ago.

Filipino Filipino+Dance Friends Drinking Alcohol Clubs Pinoys

Filipino Resiliency and Humor

While waiting for the flood to dissipate (like it will
gonna...and it didn't after 7 hours), I have come to observe that Filipinos are
indeed resilient. Many of whom still have the nerve to laugh and used that
moment to socialize with individuals they've only met. I never heard anyone
whining about the situation (well, I think I was the only one complaining).

It's true, to fight a major battle and triumph over it is virtuous, but
to live everyday amongst minor nuances require a strong spirit.

The above quote is an excerpt in Jef's blog (see link below). I have seen the floods the Jef is talking about, and when I first saw them, that was in 2005, I was quite amazed with the horrible infrastructure of Manila. Whoa! I began to imagine diseases and those poor people. Man, the poor are always getting screwed, don't they? I wish the government would really do something about it. I mean, don't we know that it rains six months in the year there?

But according to Jef, people are indeed resilient, especially my beloved Pinoys. Despite the struggles, the rain, and bad government, poor economy, and hurricanes, and heat, and humidity, and poor education system, corrupt officials, jammed traffic, smoke, and smoke and more smoke, jeepneys and taxis and cars beeping, and what have you, the Filipinos can survive to face another day.

Yes, we are a hopeful culture. I'm so proud to be a part of a culture that can put things aside at the end of the day, and hope for a brighter one. At the end of the day, we have tambayan, or hanging out, singing videoke, or just plain drinking the night away with a cuatro cantos gin or San Miguel Light. We laugh, we drink, we eat. We talk stories. Then we laugh, we drink, and we eat again.

As someone who has lived in the US for over 20 years, since I was 9, there are things I take for granted. I should feel so lucky that I am fortunate enough to have been brought up in the US. It took some visits to the Philippines to make me realize that I am very blessed. But these visits also made me become more Filipino again. I began to understand poverty, corruption, discrimination, and the plight of the underpriviledged, and one day, I hope to reach out. Perhaps these writings in my blogs, are the first steps in doing so.

Filipino Filipino+American Pinoy Pinay Philippines Manila Filipino+culture Ilocano Tagalog Filipino+impression Filipino+Infrastructure Flood Filipino+Resiliency Humor

Do Filipinos seriously think the Philippine Education System is Good?

I'd also like to add, that in one of the polls at http://politics.alleba.com , What grade will you give the Philippine Public Education System, 54% out of 310 voters gave the system a Passing and above rating.

Whoa! My head is spinning again. How in the world is the majority of Pinoys think that their education is passing? What is their criterion? I mean what kind of standards are we measuring that the simple majority thinks the education system is passing and better. I mean, a whopping 15% in this poll said it was an excellent system.

Is this symbolic of the Filipino's failures? I mean, if we cannot admit to ourselves that we have a problem, we will never solve the issues. It's just like those who are addicted; if they will never admit to their addiction, they can never really get over it.

Likewise, do we seriously think our Philippine education system is passing?

Filipino English Filipino+English English+Language Taglish Filipino+Taglish Pinoy Carabao Carabao+English American American+Accent Filipino+American Barok Barok+English Tagalog Philippine+Education+System Learning

Filipino and his Command of the English Language

It's so sad that English words are changed into Filipino words with a different spelling. Pipol for People? haha. That's just hilarious; I mean depressing. Why, my beloved Pinoys? And Taglish? That's so weird. Me, I prefer pure Filipino or pure English, with some words interchanged, but totally acceptable words. After all, language is an organic, constantly changing forms.

But Taglish to bad English, to misspelled English words transforming into Filipino words. Carabao English? That is beyond belief. Makes me puke to be honest with you. No wonder only 3% of all college graduates in the Philippines pass the interview for a call center position. Yes, there are jobs in the Philippines in the call center; my advice is, learn good English so that you can have a fall back job if your original plan doesn't work out.

But back to English, I mean Filipino, I mean Filipino English? Carabao English? Barok English? I mean why in the world do Filipinos use so much English when speaking Tagalog/Filipino? My friend from Guam said he understood the Filipino movie because half of it was in English. I love languages, but sometimes, the ways Filipinos change their language stupefies me.

What if I spoke like this, Umayka ditoy, porque yo necesito a hablar with you. Kasi, mamaya, mag-eat tayo. Later on, we will visit our prenz sa bahay!!!

Yikes??? Of course, I wanna throw up on myself after I just came up with that sentence above. You see, I was born in Ilocano, thus the Ilocano dialect. Then I moved to the US, thus the English language. Then I learned Tagalog watching Filipino movies while my aunt and uncle would translate for me, thus the Filipino language. Then I took three years of Spanish, the the Spanish.

So, my beloved Pinoys, imagine if I use all of these languages and dialects at once. Plus my Hawaiian Pidgin, by the way. How would you feel? Yes, you probably would get a headache. Or just like me, you might want to throw up.

Please, please, please, let's try our best to speak good English and good Filipino. Of course in conversation, there are slangs, but even slangs can be use properly. Yes, once in a while it's okay to interject a foreign language, but it shouldn't be overbearing and dominating, to the point of puking.

Otherwise, we will end up talking like Lito Lapid who said, "Dare what it takes to be. Then we shall so because it is. To do or not, now or what else to be without." Did you get a brain hemmorhage with that one too? Me, I'm still suffering from repercussions.

I was inspired by this article A troubling Filipino book for college freshmen.

Filipino English Filipino+English English+Language Taglish Filipino+Taglish Pinoy Carabao Carabo+English American American+Accent Filipino+American Barok Barok+English Tagalog

Filipino Family Structure, A Strong Model

I moved out of the house, not because I wanted to be more independent, but moreso because I wanted my family to be more independent themselves. Over the years, they have relied on me. One of such reliance is the borrowing of money.

Since I'm the only one who graduted from college, my siblings, including my parents have borrowed money from me. I always obliged. But then I saw this over-reliance on me, and I no longer wanted to tolerate it. So after years and years of trying to help them become independent to no avail, I finally decided to move out and get my own place.

Before you know it, in the first week I was on my own, my sister calls me to borrow money. After feeling bad for her situation, I obliged. Then another brother, who already owed me money decided that he was going to pay me partially and the rest would come later. All right. This week, my other brother borrowed money because he gambled it away.

Shame on me for allowing that. I let them walk all over me again. Despite my sibling's gambling addiction, and my constant advice to them, I allowed them to rely on me again. Part of me was telling myself not to do it so that they will learn their lesson. The other part of me is that they needed my help. They are my blood after all. And it wasn't like I couldn't afford what they were asking for.

The Filipino family is a strong structure. This is what makes the Filipino culture something to be proud of. Despite poverty, Filipino families in the PI stick together. They help each other out. They will give what they do not have just so they can help another member. That is one of the reasons why you will probably not see a homeless Filipino here in the US. If a family member was laid off from work, or was not doing well financially, the Filipino family will rally in support until auntie and uncle, brother, sister, cousin, tita, tito, or distant friend, are on their feet once again.

I am hopeful that my siblings will realize that they are now mature adults, and that they need to start acting accordingly. I hope one day, when I too need help, they will be more than willing to lend a hand.

Filipino Family Structure Filipino+Family Interdependence Filipino+Independence Borrow+Money Pinoy Pinay Philippines Manila Makati Siblings