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Children's Poetry Day

A heap of celebrations fill March 21st - International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, National Common Courtesy Day .... Out of thirteen there are two that particularly attracted me: National Single Parents Day and Children's Poetry Day . Raising my kid all by myself makes me fond of National Single Parents Day. On its FB page this About is written: The goal of National Single Parents Day is to empower single parents and their friends and family.... Public awareness of issues affecting single parents is so important. Thank goodness I do not own all single parent-related issues in the world. God must love me this much he has granted me enough financial independence for as long as I can remember after earning work qualifications. To commemorate Children's Poetry Day, let me share this poem from iloveindia.com. I italicized lines that are not true to my son, nor to me.  The rest are. My Childhood My childhood was fun, tough and exciting, My childhood was one

Better

In this post: Booking Through Thursday and Thursday Thirteen Ever read a book you thought you could have written better yourself? I could hardly write my own prayer. If I do not like a book and have difficulty finishing it the book may not be for me. I would leave the writing or rewriting to someone whom the story belongs. With books at work (academic) - maybe edit, adjust examples, or illustrate a concept to fit needs of certain learners.  But then writing it better? I might as well write another book entirely.  Thursday 13: March Celebrations March 21st is full, isn't it? I didn't know most of these celebrations but I'm glad to find a couple relevant to me, like #4 and 8. Which ones interest you? 1. International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination 2. National Common Courtesy Day 3. National Teenager Day 4. National Single Parents Day 5. World Down Syndrome Day 6. National Flower Day 7. Twitter Day 8. Children's Poetry Day 9. Hump Day 10. Memory

Blue

Dove wings, rustling greens deeds penetrate the heavens a whiff of cool blue Now comes the quiet clear blue remnants of Khmer may souls rest in peace Question: what's the deal between green and violet? True color matters Blue Monday ,  Haiku my Heart , Haiku Heights

Shoe rules

“Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you’re a mile away and you have their shoes.” That is one of my fave quotes about shoes. Except perhaps books, nothing excites me more than the sight of shoes . CJ's 4th Crocs are among other pairs I could hardly remember to track. Back when my Ex was drawn to the Casino at the Thai - Cambodia border, I focused in the shoe shops.  Last night I went shopping with a cousin who got this beauty to match her daughter's summer dress - Daughter is due to graduate next week and I surprised my cousin by saying "on me" when she decided to check out this pair - My niece studies at the same school I attended. In my time there wasn't any 'shoe regulation' during commencement exercises, and I didn't hear of any nowadays. A girl friend once said to me that they had shoe guidelines at her medschool graduation, but she wore what she liked anyway. I could have hard

Lessons

In this post: Booking Through Thursday and Thursday Thirteen Have you ever used a book to instruct someone of something or is there anyone for whom you would like to do that? (I don’t mean a text book for a class, but a work of fiction or non-fiction that would get a certain message across either through plot or character). What is the book and what do you wish to impart? Professionally, yes but not necessarily the book in its entirety. I used Don Quixote in an English camp for the Thai teaching staff of a business institute. A drill on the parts of speech served as instrument to carry bits of idealism and realism across.  Personally I use books to instruct a young nephew and niece about life in general. The books are gifts that they are to read if they want something more later. 'More' could mean an all-expenses paid trip to the mall in exchange for learning something from the books. Yes, I could be a doting, strict, crazy aunt. I gave Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl

Calls and attorneys

LDP or long - distance parenting entails lengthy phone calls and expensive phone bills. The latter element of this reality changed when a cousin began selling calls to the Philippines, each lasting 49 minutes for only 110 baht. Quite a break from when I used to pay an average of 4,000 baht a month and sometimes twice that figure; which is more than enough for a low cost two-way Bangkok - Manila ticket. That is something I am greatly thankful for and happy about nowadays. The other thing is learning something new out of LDP:  Special Power of Attorney, which authorizes a guardian to process documents in behalf of a minor. My kiddo's Philippine passport (he has dual citizenship; holds two passports) needs to be renewed as the plan this summer is for him to do some traveling again. This notarial service at the Philippine embassy in Bangkok is efficient. I got the SPA and sent it by registered mail within three hours yesterday. It looks like I'm dealing with airports, air crafts,

Jacquie Lawson ecard

Are you familiar with Jacquie Lawson ecards? Thom , a bloggity friend sent me an animated flash ecard by Jacquie Lawson . That was about three years ago and though he's no longer blogging regularly nowadays, these ecards keep coming. And do I like these cards? You bet! A few reasons why I like, no, love them: Following instructions and discovering what comes out is so much fun. I love what I see so much I take a shot of one scene despite knowing the result won't be as I see it live on screen. They are hand paintings! Just my kind of art.And the music works perfectly for me. Here's an example: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7V_Ya8uRmk&feature=related[/youtube] Back to fabulous Thom Robinson. Except for our blogging interaction I haven't done anything to compel him to send me cards that are costing him . So I call it pure thoughtfulness on his part. Last week I sent him a message thanking him for the Valentine ecard. He replied asking how CJ is . He even re

Different kind of romance: fixation for Blacks

In this post: Booking Through Thursday and Thursday Thirteen Have you ever fallen in love with a fictional character? Who and what about them did you love? Not really in love. Infatuated, more likely. A girl friend enticed me to read the Twilight Series .  She's a medical doctor in her mid 30s; I'm a freaking university instructor in my late 30s, and we giggle over 16-y.o. Jacob Black ?! We liked Edward Cullen too but he's too pale-skinned and can never beat Jake's six pack. Oh la-la! I mean it's awesome to just feel and not think sometimes. And there's Sirius Black of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban fame. Seriously I enjoyed fantasizing over him. Rich, handsome, arrogant, bully.  A lot like my real life ex-husband. No wonder a male friend calls me gaga at regular intervals. But I am completely at peace with the world and my neurotic self about all this . Thursday Thirteen: Love - Hate The wizarding world's characters that I love and hate in simu

Kiddie Fest: sack race partners

"They got second place in the sack race. I asked Maybelle to accompany him. They're getting ready for the mass dance now." That was my mother's SMS on February 17th.  I had forgotten that CJ was in Marbel for the Kiddie Fest, a children's activity organized by the Department of Education, participated in by both public and private school children. Reality poked me again:  I am doing long-distance parenting right now and have to live with bits and pieces of this arrangement until we snag a better option. Fortunately I can be grateful and happy for the presence of loved ones in my son's life while I am not physically around. Maybelle is my deceased cousin's youngest daughter. I took this photo of her and CJ goofing at home last summer. I am glad they get along well.  Thank you, Maybelle for being CJ's sack race partner. I imagine myself leaping about with a 7 year-old in a sack. My mind flies back to a parade of high heels and work suits in my apartment,

Few of my Favorite Things

Julie Andrews allegedly sang a parody of the Sound of Music tune My Favorite Things at an AARP benefit to commemorate her 69th birthday. I thought it was fun and interesting, even though there was no confirmation that Julie Andrews did sing it. Thus, 'allegedly' as About.com-Urban Legends put it. I was thirty-five then, and getting conscious of the fact that in five years my life would begin. I like believing in "life begins at forty." To mark my 40th birthday last year I did my own lyrics revision. And came up with this:  If you are not familiar with my blog: CJ is my son, Mozart is my fur kid (picture on sidebar), my mother is a soprano, and I am usually her piano accompanist. My father's second wife, RIP Father , was the chess; and my mother beat him in scrabble mercilessly. I grew up watching an uncle's ballroom dances and staring in wonder at his trophies. My pet peeve is internet/computer inaccessibility. I hate a runny nose with fervor and although

Holes on the wall

How often do you get to a cafe with part of its walls like this? To be honest I had no idea what was this. But I love literature, and I am always thrilled to spot references to it in places I do not expect them to be at. A bit of skimming tells me this is from a novel called Holes by Louis Sachar .  It won the 1998 National Book Award for Young People's Literature, and was adapted into a film in 2003. What adds to my delight is finding that in 1999 Holes won the Newbery Medal for "most distinguished contribution to American literature for children." 'For Children .' As moms aren't we always on the lookout for media that we would consider sharing to our kids? This post is linked with Happiness is ... and Mommy Moments .

Fan fiction

Have you ever written any fan-fiction? If yes, why and for which book(s)? If no, would you like to and for which books(s)? For that matter, do you ever READ fan-fiction?? No, I haven't and probably never will as I am no writer. But I'm not closing my doors either. Maybe when I'm old and sitting on a rickety rocking chair caressing a china cup of white tea, I will. Who knows... my muse just might poke me. I have Sarah Gray's Wuthering Bites , and Seth Grahame-Smith's Pride, Prejudice and Zombies on my bookshelf right now. I bought them and never read them. At least not yet. Maybe when I'm old and sitting on a .... Right after I finished writing my master's thesis, I devoured fan fiction for Harry Potter. There must have been too much remnant of scientific stuff in my life I felt so deprived of pop lit that much. Recently, I came across The Obituary of Charlotte Collins . It was an excellent travel back through time I almost forgot it was fiction. Just a sid

If the shoe fits

It seems everyone has something to say about shoes. I do. Two years ago I wore the same pair of shoes while exploring Macau and Hong Kong, playing golf, traipsing the largest temple on earth and to the funeral of my Education chief, while dreaming of Cinderella's shoes. Mine must have self- transformation power to have been worn at entirely different occasions, and still got away ticktock gorgeous. Here's what others say - 1. I f the shoe doesn't fit, must we change the foot? - Gloria Steinem                                  A day after Mother's Day; went shopping in Siam Paragon 2. "Why are 'Messiahs' always represented as wearing sandals..? If you think about it, as a society we seem to use open toed sandals to convey the presence of an open mind. Why?: I have no idea, but the trend is definitely there to be seen. " / Nowhere near any temple; this is about to get inside Hard Rock 3. The wearer best knows where the shoe pinches. - Irish proverb / Pin

Airport flowers

A one and a half, early morning flight from Manila usually arrives in Gensan when the sun is blazing. Too hot. I understand why this flower has wilted. Looking at all these DSLR products everywhere tells me this shot is blurred. I am a little dissatisfied of it myself but I am keeping it for good reason. And that is because my son gave it to me at the airport. A friend passed through the same airport a couple of weeks ago. I was wondering if this was the same flower as the one my son gave me. It looks like a flowering tree. I never gave it any other notice beyond vaguely thinking it's pretty and that's that. But I guess now you would know why I think it is more than just pretty. This post is linked with Happiness is ... and Mommy Moments .

Famous dyslexics

Top Gun glamor Tom Cruise. Not new. Einstein, Currie, Edison. Entrepreneurs and nobel laureates - believable enough as research links dyslexia with high cognition and creativity. When Cher acted in the Mask as a mom who could not read, I didn't know she was also dyslexic in real life. Names like Kiera Knightley, Andy Warhol and George Washington made me go 'they too?' Now some 13 other biggies: 1. John Lennon . It was his voice singing "you may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one" I was hearing while traipsing the killing fields in Cambodia. 2. Nigel Kennedy .  ... all those violin music I have been fortunately subjected to lately 3. Leonardo da Vinci .  Just huge. 4. Pablo Picasso .  Portrait de la tante Pepa 5. Hans Christian Andersen.   Fairy tales are so alive in my world! 6. Agatha Christie . I wanna get my hands on The Body in the Library 7. Terry Goodkind, author of The Sword of Truth series. 8. F. Scott Fitzgerald . Hmnn... I have

Dyslexics and Developmental Pediatricians

Let me begin with an observation on the latter.  Developmental pediatricians in the Philippines are a rare breed. Or that's what I noticed. From society and organization websites, to forums, to word-of-mouth, to my own experience, they seem to be outnumbered by people who need their expertise. A parent of a child with developmental delays has to wait weeks or months to see one developmental pediatrician. Only thirty are listed on the Philippine Society of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. Twenty-five in one Filipino autism blog, and that is not purely DevPeds. A child psychologist, child psychiatrist, and pediatric neurologist are mixed in the list, although they certainly are a big help too. At my son's speech therapy and psychology center I hear the same account from other parents - securing a time slot with a DevPed is hard. They are all fully booked throughout what could turn into a year. You may be lucky if someone withdraws but that rarely happens. I'm playing

Books on fire

In this post: Booking Through & Third Sentence Have you ever read a random book left in a waiting room or on a park bench, etc., and did you like it? Often I wonder when will I experience this. I mean finding a book left somewhere which happens to be something I would like to read. Yesterday I browsed the latest arrivals at Kinokuniya. By the time I noticed that I have been standing by the shelves for almost an hour on 3-inch heels, I was tired and sat on a bench where I found some YA fiction left by the inventory staff. I read parts of the first chapter, but aware that the book had to be accounted for in only a few minutes, I put it back on the bench and went to discover a very attractive spot - the Charles Dickens Bicentennial Anniversary collection. Ah... party! Now if i found one of those left on a park bench, I would warm that bench. *More bookish answers at Booking Through Thursday Book : The Wise Woman by Philippa Gregory 3rd sentence : "The walls were orange and scarle

My sin was winning

In this post: Teaser, Top Ten, Tune In Teasers: Should Be Reading My sin was winning. I have hidden myself in the old power, in the old skills, in woman's power. p. 101, "The Wise Woman" by Philippa Gregory • Grab your current read • Open to a random page • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! ( make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others! ) • Share the title & author , too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! Top Ten: Books I Think Would Make Great Book Club Picks The Broke and the Bookish The book club in my town has international membership. I am curious how members (myself included) would discuss, think of, or react to: 1. The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield 2. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon 3. The King's Speech by Mark Logue 4. The Vanishing

Wide awake

Happiness is... rocking a baby in high heels. It was very late. The then husband and I just got back from a wedding. I thought CJ was fast asleep but his Grandma said he was wide awake. I scooped him up. It was my first time to carry him around in 3-inch stilettos and it was rather fun. We stepped outside for a bit of fresh air, at the same time tailing CJ's Dad as he prepared to get the car in the garage. I thought why not have a snapshot of the moment. So we did. This post is shared @ Extra Room for Happiness Hi, My Little Professor is a new blog. I am on the process of importing posts from an old blog which started as musings about the kiddo and mommyhood. That blog has ballooned into many other posts covering a few other different interests. Guess this mom couldn't just shut up. Meanwhile I am updating pages during lunch breaks. The 'organize' bug has bitten me, and I hope the 'rush' bug will bite me as well so I get this site up running smoothly soon. I lo

Writing or riveting?

In this post: Booking Through & Third Sentence What’s more important: Good writing? Or a good story? (Of course, a book should have BOTH, but…) I buy my books. So before buying any I spend time reading blurbs and reviews as of course I want value for my money. One thing that gives me pleasure in books is reading them from start to finish because of both - good writing and good story. Then I am happy knowing I haven't wasted a cent. On the other hand, good writing for me is very instrumental in tolerating a not-so- good plot. I am willing to forget it is a dull story if the writing is really good it can carry me away. *More bookish reactions at Booking Through Thursday Book : Emma 3rd sentence : "Her mother had died too long ago for her to have more than an indistinct remembrance of her caresses, and her place had been supplied by an excellent governess, who had fallen little short of a mother in affection. " Thoughts : Stepmother scenario in my mind here. A child in

A fire was in my head

In this post: Teaser, Top Ten, Tune In Teasers: She had resolved that one and twenty should be the period.  With the fortitude of a devoted noviciate, she had resolved to complete the sacrifice, and retire from all the pleasures of life, of rational intercourse, equal society, peace and hope, to penance and mortification forever. p. 423, " Emma " by Jane Austen (Volume II, Collected Edition) A classic look at misconstrued romance. Foolish, arrogant, sensible, oblivious or endearing characters are excellently portrayed. If you've read this before, marvel anew at how people from way way back are actually alike ourselves nowadays in many ways.  If not, get ready to observe human behavior described with humor and skill that made Jane Austen a much-loved author with millions of fans. *Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading Top Ten: Books I Can't Believe I've Never Read Perhaps easy accessibility was taken for granted. But there's no excuse for not

Skipping

I saw this article the other day that asked, “Are you ashamed of skipping parts of books?” Which, naturally, made me want to ask all of YOU. Do you skip ahead in a book? Do you feel badly about it when you do? It depends; and about two percent of the time. You Don't Say! for example, by Barry Phelps, is about world notables and their misquotations listed alphabetically. In this case I wanted to know first what misquotations Margaret Thatcher or Napoleon Bonaparte made rather than reading accounts in order. Parts that are of least relevance or interest to me - I skip without questioning myself. Conrad Kottak's international edition of Anthropology: the exploration of human diversity once was my bible for a week. I was then preparing a PhD research proposal.  Dissect, synthesize, decide which ideas would be best for an argument on a deadline on top of other university job related readings - I was almost blue in the face as the reading turned mad. And I only needed to nail some

Christmas 2011 - New Year 2012

Friday's Fave Five is a meme wherein participants list five best things from their week. Now not every week is great for everyone, and that's where the challenge to come up with blessings lies. Do you hear gratitude ? Or optimism ? A few days before this just-concluded Christmas, I had to try finding what's good in a week that involved a seriously lacerated forehead on top of having to work on Christmas day . ***** Too much multi-tasking amidst anemic symptoms sent me bleeding to the ER. Two surgeons hovered over me. "Fifty-two," said one to the other. And the stitching began. I gleaned my week's best through sutures, anesthesia and an anti-tetanus shot.     i. It was fifty-two, not fifty-three stitches or more . I'd take that and be thankful.   ii. The presence of a friend . So much for independence and pride in doing things single-handedly. I mean going through all that alone was possible, but someone to whom you can say ouch without worrying how you