It is Humanities Week at the kids’ school and, tomorrow, they’re supposed to go to school wearing 1980s costume. When they first told me about it, I cocked an eyebrow and said, “1980s costume?” Is that so retro that they’re actually referring to it as costume? For the life of me, I couldn’t remember wearing ... (more)
The mask and yesterday’s horoscope
Posted on November 28, 2008 · 14 Comments
We don’t buy newspapers. Honestly. And even though I write for a newspaper. We read the news online. It saves trees. But, seriously, it’s because no one delivers papers door to door in our subdivision. Not even in the old subdivision where we used to live. If we want the newspaper, we have to go ... (more)
Dorm or driving school?
Posted on November 14, 2008 · 31 Comments
With both girls a few sniffs away from going to college (okay, one for Sam; two for Alex), the issue of transportation has inevitably been discussed for the nth time. Will Daddy bring them to school and pick them up after classes? Will they have to commute? Or will they have their own car(s)? The ... (more)
The relevance of homework
Posted on November 11, 2008 · 22 Comments
(Today’s column) Everyone who has gone to school has experienced homework and projects. I have. Some homework I appreciated because they strengthened my grasp of lessons learned inside the classroom. Some projects I really enjoyed because they involved discovery–like the one about pouring vinegar in a jar with a chicken bone and finding out how ... (more)
The future (vice) president of the Philippines?
Posted on October 13, 2008 · 11 Comments
This is a true story. There’s this girl, a high school junior, whom I’ll call Anita. She was a candidate for Vice President in the student government and she won by a slim two-vote victory. She won. There was no doubt about that. There were no accusations of cheating or anything. As far as the ... (more)
A photography tip for bloggers
Posted on September 26, 2008 · 21 Comments
This photography tip is so obvious and I’m surprised that many people forget it. It doesn’t even require any special skills, just a camera and a steady hand. It has often been said that a good photo is not necessarily one that follows strict technical standards. It’s not always about composition or lines or depth-of-field. ... (more)
The cutest poem
Posted on August 27, 2008 · 15 Comments
It’s Alex’s poem, her entry to their school’s Linggo ng Wika (National Language Week) poetry contest. Everyone in her class was required to join and they all had three days to write their poems. But Alex waited until the last minute and very honestly said so. The result? Although only three winners were supposed to ... (more)
The Ateneo parking lot incident
Posted on August 15, 2008 · 35 Comments
Jojo Robles’ column yesterday was about two e-mails that had been circulating around for the past couple of days. I received the first e-mail four days ago from Ben Razon to whom it had been forwarded by someone else. Let me quote the text in full. This happened to my sister-in-law just this morning at ... (more)
Choices mothers make
Posted on June 26, 2008 · 15 Comments
There is a section in my food Web log about the packed school lunches that I prepare for my daughters. For over two years, I have been trying to document the school lunches with the goal of encouraging mothers to pay more attention to what their children eat. I cook early in the morning, take ... (more)
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