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This page is created for potpourri of sorts. Articles, jokes, humors, quotations, poetry and other bits and pieces of information herein contained are quotes from members and other sources that include the Internet and are used for members reading enjoyment, entertainment and information only.
Mila Sapiera – 1/19/10
On our post-Thanksgiving and pre-Christmas party held at the Fil-Am. Community Center last 12-5-2009, we congratulate all the Officers and Members for a super job. It was a group effort. Everyone pitched in.
The hall looks great. Thanks to the artistic talent and creative imagination of Lynn, assisted by Medy L., Evelyn C.,
Linda G., Julie R., Josie D., Marita H., Rusty F., and....can't name them all. The guys set up the tables and chairs, then, VOILA!!
all is set. Thanks to Jim D., Tom A., Pete S., Rosso A., Ed F.
Ticket counter ladies, Gilda H., Vida A., Mely D., and Laarni C., were so gracious in welcoming the guests and visitors as they come in to the hall. Great job ladies!!!
Alice C., was in-charge of assigning where each one had to sit, which table to take and who to sit with. Everything went on smoothly. Everyone had a seat. That was good, Alice!!
In the food line, the servers were all male donned in white apron led by Alex C., assisted by Rollie B., Russell S., Mike C., Mike _., Jing A., Zarate __., Mar S. and Pete S. All the food trays were always well stocked. All was so organized!
Let's not forget the Kitchen Team, who worked so hard to satisfy our appetite, Ping D., Alex C., Dino A., Rudy C. and
Ed F. Ben Q., the president cooked breakfast for the team to boost their energy. Now here's what everyone said about the food. "Gosh! THE FOOD IS GREAT and you can go back for seconds." Job well done, Kitchen Team!!!!!
Here are the couples we need to say, "Thanks a bunch", for pitching in - Rose and Ben who donated the Roast Beef, Mike and Alice - the Turkey, Mely and Ping, along with Pete and Mila - the Ham, Prentice and Priscilla for the Pancit Malabon, Juan and Margie for the huge Lechon, Ed and Rusty for all the paper goods and supplies.
The dessert was provided by a joint effort of all the UPANGS ladies. Thanks to Rex and Marlene for the more than one hundred (100) pieces of suman. To Mely and Gilda, thanks for your cash donation. Juliet, thanks for the 50/50. Pete and Mila, thanks for selling the most tickets. The members donated more than twenty door prizes.
To Alan - we appreciate you for providing the music, otherwise the party would have been dull and boring.
For our entertainment, we had Janaika, the young and talented daughter of Juan and Margie, who rendered some vocals that can surely compete with the finalists from the American Idol. We also had her friend, Beth, who sang the Philippine National Anthem. Edward, son of Rusty and Ed, together with his friend Jeff, did some dance routine. Edward also did the Moonwalk which drew delight and admiration from the audience.
The UPANGS Choral members rendered a medley of Tagalog songs which was compiled and put together by Pete and Mila. Linda Torio along with Lynn, Rose, Josie and Mely, put together the Christmas songs. Nita Agunias did the printing of all the songs, so each member could have a copy.
To make this choral rendition sound soothing and pleasing to everyone's ears, we had Linda, Nestor and Diony help us out with the practices and rehearsals. We admire you guys for putting up with us. Nestor accompanied our singing with his guitar. Our choral performance was okay altho' we needed more practice.
Should I say, "Was the event a success?" I think it was. With all humility, I say - thanks everyone!!!!
To all our visitors and friends, we can't thank you enough for your support.
But wait a minute, I'm not done yet. This write-up won't be complete without giving due recognition to the one and only Ben Quinto, PRESIDENT of the UPANGS, who is the dynamic force of this organization. He sure can get everyone going with just his soft voice and friendly grin.
Congratulate him for every successful event during his reign and he'll humbly say, "I didn't do it, you did it all". Ben was also a President of the TRAVELERS of Pensacola for two terms.
Credit also goes to the Vice President, Alex Carambas and to all the Officers and Members who shared and contributed their time, effort and talent for the success of this event.
We are proud to say, We, the UPANGS have Unity, Solidarity, and Integrity. We think, feel and act as one. We are UNITED. We are UPANGS. That's what we are!!!!!!
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Ed Fernandez 8/2/09
It is Sunday. You went to mass and got blessed. You walked out of church and it’s almost lunch time. So off you go, but not to your house. After all, it’s a day of rest. And manning your kitchen to whip up a recipe is work. For Pete’s sake you stayed out of the kitchen heat even for a single meal.
Today you are going to eat out. At the Golden Corral? No! Okay, at the Kings Buffet. Oh no, too much grease and too much food. How about at Barnhills? No, no, hindi – too country and mashed potatoey. You’ve been there many times before it now looks like a farm to you. How about Manila Garden? But, but didn’t you know it’s been closed kaput? That shows you are not into Karaoke singing. Haven’t you heard Pare Dino and Mare Lynn had the last duet there before it folded?
Where to go, where to go?
You drove towards the airport but not to hop on a plane to eat sandwich in Memphis. You made a left turn and another left. At a convenience store you stopped and parked – for brunch.
Brunch? At a convenience store? Yes, Virginia, it’s not just gasoline, cigarettes, pack of ice, a soda, lotto and scratch tickets, coffee and etceteras that you find at convenience stores anymore. At the Galvan store, it’s more than convenience, at least to a few of us in the Upangs group, who for whatever reason, were on hand to smell and ‘raid’ the kitchen and enjoy Margie and John’s hospitality. It turned out to be a five star brunch (and lunch and dinner). And with the whole store’s refrigerated beverage sections open for the picking, who needs Cognac and Courvoisier after dinner drinks? You can have the slurpees, chillers and ice cream, turbo power drinks and Gatorades all for free. Non-paying special customers, we were. Change that to special guests. Boy, did we enjoy it!
And what a meal it was! A Texas size grilled rib-eye steaks, Cajun-steamed crabs, special pancit, fried rice, cream cheese lumpia and stir-fried asparagus tips. If that’s not a Skopelos competition of a high end meal, you have just been dining at Susan’s Eatery and at the Tilapia House. If we could only have sang on a Magic Sing or the girls stepping to a Jailhouse Creole line dance, it would have been a perfect holiday Sunday – too perfect that you could only be dreaming…and asking too much. There is no doubt, however, that if the dining section of the store is spacious enough, Margie would have hired the Dimensions band to play and have all other regular customers, coming in and out for business join the fun. But that’s where the sheriff would knock on the door to check what’s going on. So we better stick strictly to dining.
The Galvan store is like the convenience stores you see in convenient locations all over Pensacola. What makes it different from most of them however, is that while others have the familiar coffee counters and occasional sandwich shelves, Margie has a kitchen and a dining section where customers can sit down and self-query themselves what makes the lumpia taste so inviting and why the pancit is not your ordinary noodles concoction – all the while scratching their luck for the scratch-lotto windfall. Her daily special-of-the-day menu, keeps regular customers coming back while attracting casual passers by. The aroma of Margie’s home cooked special is just too hard to resist not taking a bite (though she has yet to see an air traveler missing a flight for hanging too long at the store sniffing the scent of the Special of the Day or a student cutting a class waiting for a sub-sandwich or Big Bird stepping out of Sesame Street TV beamed at the studio across the street to buy a lumpia for Oscar, the cookie monster). Call it Mama’s Best. Located at the crossroads or near a municipal airport, junior college and public TV station, John and Margie’s store is what a Business 101 class defines ‘standing on prime location’. It is not surprising that on a Sunday when they are close for business; customers are still streaming in and out, even with us smarting and hollering a crescendo of the Pangasinan dialect. Some even asked to taste or buy the leftover foods on the line. To which Margie is too generous to oblige. Sweet PR, good business and a good heart!
The dining section of the store may only be a small rectangle of a room, but the simplicity and warmth of our reception, beats the grandiosity and wide accommodations of a Beau Rivage. We were home with a friend and a fellow Pangasinense. We were at ease. We felt comfortable. It seemed we owned the place. We laughed at ourselves, our jokes and silly green stories all for fun. Most of all we were stuffed up to the ying yang for the next 24 hours. The rib-eye steaks kept coming, that’s why.
Thanks John and Margie for a hearty brunch and best company. May you win the lotto, to expand the business and employ us as managers. We can also cook and wash the dishes. And we will bring our own aprons.
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Ed Fernandez - 18 March 2008
Where is Pugaro, you may ask? Google map will pinpoint its exact location on the surface of the earth, but except for Pugaroans, people (including Pangasinenses) may not have a clue where on God’s planet is the land purposely laid. For us coming from Florida however, Pugaro is not a bleep on the radar screen but a luminous fixed point. We know exactly where to turn left or right to reach it – by car, jeepney, tricycle, or kuliglig. We can smell it too – from forty thousand feet above the clouds east or west of the international dateline or even at the starting point of a long 24-hour flight.
Of all places, what makes Pugaro stands out in mind? Why not the sandy beaches of Boracay known for its white sands and amenities of pleasures or the rice terraces of Banaue in Benguet and nearby Baguio City, where though it’s the Lenten season and hot, people still wear sweaters in the morning. Well, for the multitudes of inquiry minds, Pugaro is a barangay in Balungao, Pangasinan, where a huge hump of rock, called the Balungao Mountain prominently jots the landscape and identifies the town from the rest of the province. It is a permanent place of itinerary for our previous and 2008 PI visits not because of its hot springs nor its week-long fiesta celebration and brand new municipal hall but because the missus was born here, and the roots of her family is planted in Pugaro. For her, the smell and taste of tupigs, the freshness of camote and everything Pugaro is a gem of smorgasbord worth more than Max Chicken, Chowking or that place they call McDo. It is home where it all started. With her siblings, nephews and nieces, and aging mother around, nowhere else is more fulfilling to spend a short, 45-day sojourn to the old home town. Call it bonding with loved ones. While in PI, Pugaro is THE place - peaceful, quiet and at rest. It is definitely gratifying than wandering at the Mall of Asia or wading at the Tondaligan Beach.
That’s why we are in Pugaro. It is hot as heat goes, but where in PI has a Tokyo weather at this time of the year? There is a Baguio City to the north or a Tagaytay to the south – more comfortable, so they say – but who’s got the bundle of pesos to spare and bear the agony of traffic jams? And why spend precious time away from home, when home is with familiar faces sharing the table with each meal, the meriendas in the afternoon and the endless conversation and reminiscing of the past, a look at the present, and a peek at the future. Priceless moments! Irreplaceable mementos that surely gets golden with time. For the better half, Pugaro is home sweet home, whether she is far or near.
What’s in a typical day in Pugaro? A day starts early at dawn with the roosters crowing to the top of their lungs and tiny birds restlessly chirping to announce daybreak. Across the street, the black martin is touting passers-by with her favorite,’Pangit, pangit’ chant followed by a distinctive man-likes-woman whistle ogling to the delight of the pretty and the in-betweens. Tricycles and motor bikes speed up endlessly in traffic as if vying for the lead in Indianapolis 500. Pedestrians walking the length of San Joaquin St. from both directions; vendors carrying their wares; SUVs, mini-vans and the ubiquitous jeepney trek the road as if it were a national highway. The ‘kuligligs’ take time off the farms too
and ply the road as an all-purpose vehicles. And Myrna’s Adventure diesel sports utility is on ready standby from the kingdom in Fairview for all our transport needs, far and near, to skip the fifteen peso fare per hop charged by the limo-truck-car-mini jeepney all-in-one tricycle wonder, whether it’s 12 kilometers or 12 yards away.
At the kitchen, Necing and Letty works the gas stove for breakfast. (Reggie is the chief chef whenever he is home and not in Payatas in Metro Manila monitoring the MMDA cutting houses in half.) The smell of fried boneless bangus and ‘pingka’ wakes you up. The hot water in the thermos bottle is ready for the much needed morning coffee. Myrna fries the ‘kinirog’ rice in browned garlic and laced with ‘Magic Sarap’. The tasty bread waits for someone to dip it in coffee and the ‘tondal’ and ‘lakatan’ bananas are for the peeling. Soon the table is spread full of heated up ‘natnatengs’ but not without the super fish, Malaga, fried or sinigang. Simple yet special things to wake up to after a restful night of sleep (thanks to the window AC unit installed 3 balikbayan trips ago)! What a treat!
At the backyard, Inang, has been sweeping the grounds all morning long. She is awake before God has risen out of bed. By six o’clock, she has piles of leaves to burn and burn she does. Gilbert fears she might burn his house as well as it is in close proximity. But Inang is a good fire control technician. She’d been lighting up leaves and garbage at both ends of her yard since becoming a senior citizen and has yet to burn a tip of her fingers. To Inang, a morning without sweeping is like breakfast without coffee. One problem though. As sure as sunrise, her ‘siksiket’ aches after her morning routine. This despite everyone’s urging to trade the use of her overused ‘walis tingting’ to a rocking chair. She is now 86 years young and plans to cross the century mark and beyond. That’s still a lot of grounds to sweep and leaves to burn. In ten more years of ground sweeping, her backyard will have sunk to 10 feet below sea level due to lost dirt.
No sooner than the last breakfast plate is rinsed, the last burp cleared, the cat’s meows in thanksgiving for her meal and Beauty, the dog, received her due, lunch prep is underway. Non-stop cooking? You bet. If only the gas stove has the right for complaint, it will be ‘no contendere’ in its favor and wins any injunction for being abused. But life must go on, and lunch is only the second meal of the day. So the propane gas flows, the smell of browned garlic permeates the air as the frying pan sizzles. The ‘utong’ beans are cut, the ‘catuday’ flowers inspected to be worm-free, the ‘escargot’ readied for Yeye and yes, more ‘kinirog’ is on the way. The malunggay fruit is peeled clean and cooked in bagoong along with the other veggies. Not a meat on the menu. The fare for the month is greens. In Pugaro, meat is a no-no during the Holy Week.
Lunch is served. The sun is directly overhead and its presence felt. The ceiling fan swirls to almost maximum speed but only churns warm air. There’s sweat on the forehead. Yet lunch is good. From next door, Christina brings in ‘tahong’ in ginger soup. ‘Naku po, sarap!’ From yet another very next door, Mercy whips and delivers her vaunted hot cakes from scratch. Hotcakes for lunch? Who cares! Before everyone notice the lunch table is covered yet again with something for the palate. Hard to keep up on what’s to nibble next. It’s more difficult to say, NO and much easier to gobble up.
And supper is yet to come. Talk about an exercise in futility in trying to keep the waistline in check. What do you do when merienda is brought out in the patio? You can’t hide and siesta. The ‘halo-halo’ is much too much to ignore under the sweltering sun. And when the fish and squid balls with KRJ sauce (Kathy, Renalyn, Jimboy’s surprise concoction) is ushered in, throw away the diet plan and bring out the cholesterol pill. Ready the milk of magnesia too! And brace for supper, a mere two hours away.
And what’s for dinner? Start with squid adobo and sautéed baby oysters. Add fried tinapa. Mix in the vintage ‘pinakbet’. Stir in the ‘kalunays’ and the all-time favorite ‘camote’ leaves in bagoong and tomatoes. The eternal ‘malaga’ fish finds its place on the table. Then fold in all re-heated leftovers from breakfast and lunch. And what do you have? Why, it’s Pugaro’s mini all-you-can-eat in a strictly local setting. Add the laughter that Jimboy’s jokes generate and you end up eating more. No wonder at times, the stomach gets upset and asks for a Zantac.
This, in a nutshell is a life in a day Pugaro - nothing fancy or special about it. In all of its simplicity, the family is still its epicenter. And that’s more than a ton of gold. While most ‘balikbayans’ trek to the resorts and venues of the pleasure world enjoying the pomp and extravagance of a well-deserved homecoming, we stay put at the patio of Inang’s house. Nothing delights more than to be around people close to you, knowing time and distance will soon separate us physically and uncertain of another chance to be close to them all once again. That is why we sit around at the house and let the days pass us by just savoring each moment of their company. The sceneries of other places can wait. The Mega Malls will still be there. In the meantime, we stay in Pugaro and make the most of it before flying back to the other side of Earth.
Call us ‘balikbahays’. We don’t mind one single bit. The essence of a rewarding PI visit is not found in the luxury of Shangrila or in the entertainment stage of Wowowee or the beauty shops of Dr. Belo. It is the simple, peaceful and quiet surroundings of Pugaro that calls us back.
It is home.
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Ed Fernandez - 03/31/07
A dimension, is the parameter that defines the characteristic of an object within a space —i.e. length, width, and height or size and shape or even time. It’s a term routinely discussed in math classes and in its complex form, by physicists like Albert Einstein.
So what has music have in relation to parameters in a space? Physically, nothing perhaps. But as English composer, Edward Elgar, once said, “My idea is that there is music in the air, music all around us; the world is full of it, and you simply take as much as you require.” In that sense, music occupies a dimension in space. It may not be seen as an object, but a sensation that can be heard and felt…taken and enjoyed. It moves you from your chair to the dance floor. It’s an imaginary, yet fully defined parameter in the hearts and minds of those who thinks that music is something we are all touched by - the vernacular of the soul; an expression of humanity.
For the Association of Philippine Physicians of the Florida Panhandle, a dimension of music emerged at the Mustin Beach Officers Club at NAS Pensacola on a Saturday evening during their 20th Inaugural night. The Dimensions band created their spatial signature in a whirlwind of songs exerting gravitational pull at everyone to the center of the hall for a spin. Their successive rendition of jazz, pop, rock, Latin and even Pinoy music kept the physicians hard at keeping up that they didn’t have the chance to talked about their practice or appendicitis, colonoscopy or Viagra prescriptions in their seats. They found themselves not in a diagnostic dilemma but a consensus to the wonder of their ears and feet listening, dancing and reacting to the sound emanating from the stage. At the end of the night, they were all Pain Management Specialists all in agreement that their foot problem is not a blood clot but chronic exhaustion inflicted by continuous bouncing on the dance floor. For the MDs (and their guests), leftover calories to burn from the Prime Rib dinner were not a problem at all. Neither was it for the band, who nibbled on a foot-long Subway sandwich for a meal.
In a musical point of view, the Dimensions are the shape and sound of things to come in local entertainment. In only the second performance as a group, their music is progressively stirring the tympanic curiosity of the local Filipino-American community. When they play the night revolves around their sound that anyone who can walk can dance; anyone who can talk can sing along with them. The breath of their presence is felt in the depth of the applauding way their audience receive them. If the crowded dance floor and applause at the end of each song is any indication, you’d think they have already reached a crescendo of excellence. But they are a young group, a beginner so to speak, and much is ahead of them. The warm receptions they receive only make them work better. Word of who they are, where and when the next performance is going to take place is spreading not as fast as a brushfire for now but slowly and surely, by whispers and world of mouth. (Maybe by smoke signals too, who knows?).
The Dimensions are light years away from stepping into the Beatles mop-style haircut and footsteps. Nor their becoming the heir apparent to the aging Rolling Stones ever cross their mind or will it ever happens. They don’t worry about how and when the first Dimensions album is cut for the gazillion royalties that follow. And they don’t aspire to be on the cover of entertainment magazines. They play for the love of music and the fun of exercising their favorite past time. To play for the local community, especially the Filipino-American community for private parties, social functions or any occasion where music is a must have, the Dimensions will fill the void.
“Music expresses that which can not be said and on which it is impossible to be silent”, Victor Hugo, once said. In short, where words fail, music speaks. The Dimensions let their music do the talking. When they strum the electric guitars, pound the keyboard, beat the drums and blast the microphone, the crowd reacts approvingly and begs for more. In essence, their sound fills the air, permeating its surroundings in the movement of time…and lively energy. Fellowship and fun inevitably follows. For this, the Dimensions’ dimension of music is etched, whether they knowingly know it or not.
And by the way…about the Einstein guy? He also said, “If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music.” Good thing, he was not. Imagine playing E=MC2!
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By Ed Fernandez - 12/31/06
I can’t believe the last day of 2006 is speeding ever faster to the finish line. Here I am, taking my sweet time enjoying my long leisure and lo and behold, it’s the end of the year… and I haven’t resolved anything yet again…proof of my procrastination which I resolved last year to correct. I better hurry up and beat my deadline or my New Year ritual of self-assessment and self-promise will not carry weight despite my good intentions. That is my own rule, of course.
Will not carry weight? Would that be good for me? Maybe! That would render me pressure-free. But I want to be among the millions of us who has to cling to tradition and can firmly say, “I resolve to…” What is a New Year anyway without a resolution – recycled or something new, serious or silly or otherwise? It’s better to have one than just take a deep breath and hope for the best.
For the last two New Years, I’ve been resolving something about my old station wagon. This year I won’t have to anymore. Not that I finally fixed what needed fixing. For a hefty sum of $100, I got rid of it completely to a stranger who swore his family of four could use a bigger car. I could have just handed the key to him for free. But my long attachment to the old jalopy urged me to accept the hundred bucks for a souvenir. After all, I have devotedly washed, shined, oil changed and kicked its tires for three decades of my driving life. And it still runs like a gem! It was hard to let go but I managed. Scratch that out from among my resolutions at the beginning of 2006. As for the others, heck, I forgot all about them after the New Year euphoria passed away.
So now it’s time to move on to 2007. Taking into account the advancing age and the limitation it imposes, it is prudence to resolve for a few, non-strenuous, easy to remember goals with a higher probability of achievement. Therefore, I’ll resolve for simple things this year – if there is such a thing as a simple resolution.
First off, I wouldn’t even think of owning a Wii even if it’s cheaper than the over priced Play Station 3. For a starter, staying in line for hours for an item which may or may not be available is not my cup of tea. For another thing, I can’t see myself playing against an armless figure outscoring me all the time. Toss this one out from my resolution list. I’m too old for it.
It’s been said that a morning without coffee is like sleep. I wholeheartedly agree and hasten to add that morning doesn't begin til AFTER that second cup of coffee. And a Columbian brew makes it happen. So I will resolve to keep on drinking more…next to water, of course. Coffee is no longer considered a health villain if recent health reports are to be believed. That’s ground for celebration. And since, coffee has been my early drink of choice for as long as I can remember, the chance of forgetting it is nil. No need to remember. It comes as a second nature. That makes this resolution already won even as I write.
Since dieting in general seems forever my failed exercise in self-restraint, this year I’ll focus to a specific diet. I will attempt a drastic cut in my rice intake. That’s a bold statement. I know, I know …it’s easier said than done. With adobo, dinuguan, sinigang or any other mouth watering Pinoy dishes, cutting down on the sticky stuff may just be an exercise in futility. For a food item, that has been a staple since after breast-feeding stopped, it’s amazing how we don’t get tired of it. I know I won’t. I just want to slow it down. Wish me luck.
If you’ve ever sent and received text messages to and from the Philippines, it is not difficult to be drawn to habit. As we Pinoys know, text messaging in the homeland is not just a craze but a way of life. With a PI cell phone on roam here at home, I joined the millions sending conjugated words and abbreviated to the max to save space and speed up typing. It was fun at first but became expensive and intrusive in the long run. So now, I will turn the power off and will only use it on as needed basis. (Question is, how many unforeseen, unexpected as needed basis there are between now and the end of the year?)
There it is. That’s more than enough resolutions for me. Adding more will only clog my memory lane. Come to think of it, my resolutions are things I am doing now. Perhaps a hundred percent claim for success is possible at the end of the year, when the next resolution cycle begins again. It better be or I will resolve to no longer make resolutions…at all.
The funny reality is New Year resolutions, to most, (me included) are something that goes in one Year and out the other. It is a cycle that we delve ourselves into, with best intentions but slowly become a tongue in check proposition. They command our attention for the first few weeks of January and slowly fade away and eventually forgotten.
As Mark Twain observed about resolutions on New Year’s Day, “Yesterday, everybody smoked his last cigar, took his last drink and swore his last oath. Today, we are a pious and exemplary community. Thirty days from now, we shall have cast our reformation to the winds and gone to cutting our ancient shortcomings considerably shorter than ever.”
Three hundred sixty five days from now, before 12 midnight, we’ll have resolutions galore one more time, as the cycle repeats itself.
To my fellow resolutees, Good Luck, and by the way, Happy New Year!
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At a Mothers Day Party hosted by the Fil-Am Association of Northwest Florida (Pensacola) last Saturday evening, May 13, 2006, eight-year old, Kristine Rieta, a student at the Myrtle Grove Elementary School, read this short article as a part of the program. Her childish innocence and excellent delivery earned her a standing ovation and teary-eyed audience.
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By Manny Zabala
As soon as you come home from school, the first thing you ask is "Where's mom?"
When you are in deep trouble, you will invariably hear something
like, "Wait till mom finds out!" "Lagot ka!"
The other side of this is when you want to be too smart for your own good and try to put one over her head, you go to your usually dependable dad for something that your little heart desires and you get an "Ask your mom!" response instead.
So what do you do except roll up your eyes because you know you are now in a very precarious position.
Here is another one. I swear my mom have eyes in the back of her
head and, believe it or not, she's got ESP too! How else can she know what mischief I have planned and up to while she is not looking and in another room of the house?! These are all so remarkably familiar to each and everyone of us and somewhat funny but true. And may I say endearing at the same time.
In retrospect, it unwittingly became the foundation of our
own lives. It made us better individually and philosophically. But above all, mom is love, courage, patience and understanding. When
everyone else has lost faith and hope in you, she will be there to love and comfort you without question. She will even shed tears for you so you don't have to. In times of adversity, uncertainty and disappointment, she will be there to give you encouragement and support to fight for what you believe in.
When you are being callous and difficult, when the only time you visit is when you need your laundry done or have a home-cooked meal, she will still be there for you with open arms, asking nothing in return. In times of pain, tears and sorrow, she will be there to help wipe them all away as only a mom can do.
Today is the opportunity, the first day as it is, to give back to mom what we have taken for granted throughout the long years of living, learning, growing up and moving out. Tell mom how much you appreciate and love her for just being her selfless and loving self. And don't make this day as the only day to tell her that. Everyday is precious and each moment that mom is with you is a gift, but as with all things on this earth, can be taken away.
Don't wait too long to show how much you care and love her before it is too late. Think about it.
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Ed Fernandez - 01/15/06
 Come January 20, 2006, the ‘change of command’ for the Fil-Am Association leadership will occur at the cavernous hall of St. Anne’s Catholic Church’s Family Center during an Induction Ball ceremony. Benito C. Bernal Jr. will take the helm from outgoing president, Romie Tatel and thus becoming the 25th President of the association since its inception in May 1970.
Bennie, (as he is affectionately called by everyone on planet earth) is not a neophyte in the presidential hierarchy. He held the position in January 1982 thru August 1984 as the 13th President. It is no surprise that he would heed the call to serve and lead the association once more. He was also the President of the Travelers of Northwest Florida in 1992-1993.
Benito Bernal Jr. is a native of Baguio City, Philippines. He is married to the former Loreta Gaceta Aromin, an Accounting graduate of Baguio Colleges (now the University of the Cordilleras. They have two children – Robert Bernal, a retired U.S. Army aviator now residing in Alabama and presently on working contract with the State Department and Debra Jean Reyes, a University of West Florida graduate who now works as a Technical Liaison at Frank Borman Elementary School, Tucson, Arizona.
The Bernals have five grandchildren - Bobby (18) - on a delayed program to join the Navy Nuclear Propulsion Program in February - Melanie (16), Savannah (14), Jessica Marie (11) and Brandon Michael (10). Bobby, Melanie and Savannah are martial arts black belt holders in Taekwondo.
Bennie retired from the Navy in 1985 with over 20 years of dedicated active service as a SEABEE Engineering Aid Senior Chief. Shortly after retirement from naval service, he joined the Florida Department of Corrections as Probation & Parole Officer. He retired from the Dept. of Corrections in 2002 after 15 years of service as Correctional Probation Supervisor.
The incoming president is a scion of impressive educational achievement. He holds an Associate Degree in Surveying (Geodetic Engineering) from the Mapua Institute of Technology in the Philippines - 1962; Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology, University of West Florida - 1982; Master of Science in Counseling & Human Development, Troy State University – 1984 and Master of Science in Public Administration, Troy State University – 1988.
The chronology of Bennie’s civic and community affair involvement is likewise noteworthy and emulating:
| 1982-1984 | President of the Filipino-American Association of Pensacola |
| 1991-1992 | Escambia County Commissioner’s (Buck Lee) Citizen
Advisory Committee |
| 1992-1993 | President, Travelers of Northwest Florida |
| 1992-1995 | ECUA Sanitation Variance Committee Member |
| 1993-1995 | ECUA Technical Advisory Committee Vice-Chairman |
| 1999-2000 | Chief Judge’s Gang Related Activities Studies Member |
| 2005-Present | Scottish Rite Foundation Executive Board Member
Juvenile Justice Council Member, Chief Judge’s Children’s
Family Council Member and Director of Family Values
Scottish Rite Masonic Foundation |
Someone has said that nothing so conclusively proves a man's ability to lead others as what he does from day to day to lead himself. Benito C. Bernal Jr’s resume speaks the obvious. He is an asset to any group and a leader to boot.
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(Bennie Bernal Jr. is a UPANGS member for whom the group is proud to have.)
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Ed Fernandez 12/09/05
 It used to be that when the Christmas Holidays are upon us, "Merry Christmas" greetings are words of glee and reverence. Christmas Trees are seen and labeled as such; Christmas songs are heard and sung in exultations, Christmas cards were not Holiday cards and Santa Claus rode his sleigh with Rudolph and his red nose glowing. Children at school were allowed to play Christmas stories, display Nativity scenes, and exchange Christmas presents and parents can talk about Christmas unencumbered by politically correct considerations.
Now a days, assault on Christmas traditions are on the rise and growing. Suddenly, opposition to the observance and celebration of the birth of Jesus has deluged the American contemporary tradition all in the name of diversity and tolerance. The sensitivity argument—that any reference to Christmas at all might make someone feel bad—is responsible for the spread of the anti-Christmas campaign from religious symbols to the purely secular and harmless trappings of the season, including red poinsettias, red-and-green cookies, holiday lights, and anything that has Christmas connotations.
Christmas is a federal holiday and also a Christian holiday. Ninety-six percent of Americans celebrate Christmas. It is sad to see pervasive attempts to stifle religious expression and sanitize Christmas of all religious content. Proponents of non-Christmas expressions hide behind the bogus separation of church and state argument to batter any public displays they find offensive, even if those displays are general and not designed to promote a specific religion.
The reality is, it's ridiculous that we're even discussing whether it's OK to say 'Merry Christmas. ‘ I’m sure just about everyone would rather have a merry Christmas than a meaningless winter holiday. It is a shame to see a long-standing tradition being exorcised from our language and our culture though our population is overwhelmingly in the Judeo-Christian mold.
Those who prefer "Happy Holidays" to "Merry Christmas" must know that "holiday" actually means "holy day". It is holy because it is the birth of the Saviour according to our Christian faith from which this nation was founded upon. So when someone greets you Happy Holidays, go ahead, greet back with a very Merry Christmas, and be proud of it. After all, it is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air.
May Peace be your gift at Christmas and your blessing all year through. Merry Christmas!
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Ed Fernandez 12/26/05
Have you made up your mind and listed your resolutions yet? You know – those things we need to have in place before the New Year is in. If you haven’t done so, the deadline is almost at hand and it’s high time to double step. And while you are at it, maybe it helps if you also lay out a plan to achieve them. As you know, it is easy to write a list but a lot harder to fulfill. How do I know? I’ve been known to forget what resolutions I listed, let alone follow up even if I remember them. I’m not talking about a resolution for me to drive the Lexus 300 series, or move to a 5 bedroom, 3-car garage house with a swimming pool on a 2-acre lot. That’s way up the dream ladder. It is the little things that easily escape the mind, if not etched in stone or a reminder tacked to my forehead – like replacing the threshold at my front door that remains a ‘construction’ project left for yet another day. But let’s set aside my unresolved tasking while we talk about resolutions in general.
When all is said and done, there are only two kinds of resolutions – the difficult and the easy ones. Duh! But what is easy for someone may be unreachable to others and vice versa. And there are those who don’t resolve at all knowing the difficulty to keep it. But is it just a cliché or wise to say that it’s better to have resolved and failed, than not to have resolved at all? This could be the year we’ve been waiting for – when all that we’ve wished in the past would be a reality.
Here are some resolutions to mull about and to look forward to the coming year. A word of comfort: If not met, don’t worry. You won’t go to jail, lose your driving license or kicked out of the house. You’d however sweat the whole year to have had the chance to make good but blew it.
Trim the Bulge: More than half of adult Americans are overweight therefore it is reasonable to expect that most would like to shed extra pounds by any means - through exercise and less visits to the AUCEP (all-you-can-eat places) and slow down on fast foods. A waist is a terrible thing to mind. It feels good when you see your toes while standing upright.
Quit Smoking: Even if you tried your best before to quit but failed, don’t let up. Keep on trying. Smokers who succeeded to see a smoke-free life (and life prolonged) gave up smoking for good after repeated attempts to kick the habit. And what a breathe of fresh air all around, literally!
Quit Drinking: This really goes hand in hand with quit smoking – a two bird with one stone kind of resolution done gradually or cold turkey. New Year can be the incentive and the best excuse for a change in life style. It guarantees passing the straight-line test anytime if and when your friendly sheriff thought you are wobbly driving down the road.
Drive the Speed Limit: Speeding up to arrive earlier has been one of the frequent causes of fender benders and even fatal road mishaps. “Arrive Alive” should always be the driving guide to slow it down. Posted speed limits are there for a reason. While accidents happen whether going turtle speed or speed of light, cruising the safer speed gives you more chance of not losing your car, let alone some limbs. (Not to mention traffic fines.)
Staying Fit: Regular exercise reaps great psychological and health benefits too. Not only will you have the satisfaction of knowing you are doing something positive for your body you'll have far more energy and strength for other activities as well. It helps achieve and maintain weight loss and cholesterol level, lowers blood pleasure, keep arthritis in check and generally make you feel good. It doesn’t need to be a rigorous exercise. Staying busy is key. Even a light exercise routine as walking, bike riding or moving around the house makes the difference between slouching and staying fit. (And you won’t hear yourself telling your mirror twin, ‘you’re old’)
Learn Something New: Who says you can’t teach an old dog a new trick? We can always challenge the mind and learn something new even at the Social Security age – a new name, a new place, a new friend or reaching out for the little things that are hidden in the beauty of nature and in the time that passes between sunrise and sunset. Or even as simple as clicking the Start button of the computer screen to begin viewing and navigating the information highway. The horizon is limitless to the innovative and patient mind.
Easy on the Credit Card: Between Thanksgiving and Christmas people are going to spend $122 billion using their credit cards! It’s convenient; it’s fast and seems limitless. Swiping the Platinum card at the counter seems to be a status symbol. The headache begins however, when the bill arrives one month later. One important fact to remember: Paying back just the minimum payment will keep you in debt forever. So, if at all possible, pay the full balance when the bill arrives. Better still, paying cash right off at the point-of-sale, beats all the interest blues that the plastic money delivers.
Get Organized: Did you misplace your car keys last night? Can you find the stapler in your desk? Did you miss an important appointment? Or is your home organized enough that you can invite someone on a whim without piling the clutter in the closet as fast as you can? Time management and clutter control frees us from unneeded hassle to our already hectic days. There’s a proper place for everything, as the saying goes. Let’s see if the New Year leads us to put things where they belong.
Procrastinate Less: If you have done the “manana habit”, don’t feel bad about it. Everybody, more or less, has done it. To make it less and less a practice however, is a path to enjoying life more. Imagine for example, not waiting for the 15th of April to mail in your tax return. Or mowing the lawn before it overworks your mower. Or paying mom a visit before she calls to complain. Don’t catch yourself lamenting that if it were not for the last minute, you would not get anything done. The best way to get something done is to begin today. Tomorrow is often the busiest day of the week.
Enjoy Life More: This is too general a term and relative in nature. One may point out, it depends on what “enjoy” means. A cup of coffee every morning is enjoyment enough for some whereas a cruise to Acapulco is more enjoyable. Someone said that the formula for living is quite simple. You get up in the morning and you go to bed at night. In between, you occupy yourself as best as you can. Whatever it is that occupies your day, spice it with sugar and laughter. After all, how is best to enjoy than to have a good laugh.
There you have it fellow resolutees. Perhaps you already have them on your list. If not, feel free to add more, chop it, enhance it, ignore it all together or tack it on the fridge. Remember these are just a short list of the countless resolutions that one can make. Whatever they are for you, here’s wishing they all come your way. Many people look forward to the New Year for a new start on old habits. Resolve not to be one of them.
Happy New Year to all.
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Ed Fernandez 10/8/05
She was the star of her own fundraising event. She sings Tagalog and English love songs with passion and feeling that can shame Celine Dion. She dances Hawaiian and the Bulaklak pop ‘dancercise ‘ favorite from the Philippines and a delight to see her innocent moves. And she is only 5 years old. If she is tall enough to reach the range top and allowed to stir the wok without spilling, she may even have cooked dinner for all her guests at the Fil-Am Center. But Saturday, she took care of business with song and dance that she does best. Shirley Temple, move over.
Meet Mekela Angeliq Cadavos - she with an angelic face and cherubic smile that melts the heart. A K5 student at the Pensacola Christian Academy and a bundle of pride for parents Simeon and Lyn Cadavos – themselves very active participants in community affairs, Angel has been wooing audiences with her signature voice and stage savvy at such a young age. She is a natural. Listening and watching her perform is pure delight. You can say she is the proverbial baby ‘born on stage with a microphone.’
It is no surprise that she is introduced early to civic involvement – that of being a candidate for Fil-Am’s Little Miss Philippines. While she may not know the vagaries of the contest and title she is vying for, her young mind is set to just having fun and enjoying it while unknowingly helping raise funds for an association. After all, the heavy lifting is reserved to the ‘older’ folks also known as Mom and Dad and others who took care of the kitchen, while she headed the entertainment section. And as the saying goes, it is for a good cause.
Angel was supported on stage by a monopoly of her peers - young performers slightly older than her. There was Reza, the taekwando kid whose form, board-smashing feet and hand and ‘keyaaaah’ grunts would make any school bully freeze to standstill. There were the trio of teenagers in grass skirts and coconut shell ensemble swinging a Hawaiian number; the country boy James (eat your heart out Travis) dishing a country song heard at redneck parties. There were the eight tiny tots, er, tiny teens, (Angel included) swaying with Pearly Shells and silently chanting along ‘bom teya ya bom, teya ya bom ye ye’ as they exercise their hands, feet and body to the Bulaklak song and dance popularized by ‘kabayans/kapamilya’ watched at The Filipino Channel. And then, there was shy Emmanuel, who first refused to climb upstage but proved to be serious once he got his bearing, teaming in a vocal duet with little Angel. What a sight! How refreshing! Oh yes, there too, were the veteran Mabuhay Dancers, who did not do the chicken dance but the duck and ‘tikling’ bird version. They were the exception to the young performers rule of the night. As usual, no feet were caught between the bamboo poles. Otherwise, little Angel will stick to strictly singing rather than risking her tiny feet someday.
Almost forgot. The emcee, closely related to the star of the show, with his little ‘assistant’ roaming the stage, provided short, wholesome adlibs for the program continuity while Mama Lyn keep an eye on the serving line. It was all in the family, indeed.
If the measure of an event’s success is the presence of a capacity crowd, Angel’s fundraising night is as good as it could be. Tables and chairs have to be added to sit everybody to dinner and removed to make room for the young and the not-a -kid anymore to line dance after the program. One thing for sure: Angel and company entertained and wows the crowd with youthful exuberance and talent – proof once more that they not only sometimes say and do the darndest things but are the hope of tomorrow.
With their example, the Fil-Am is much better served after all is said and done. Did I mention that the fare for the night was a big bang for the buck? I had seconds for it was good!
CLICK HERE TO VIEW MORE PICTURES
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Ed Fernandez 09/19/05
When my good friend and cumpadre Dino, aided by wife Lyn, rendered a duet of a Willie Nelson classic at the Manila Garden Restaurant, he was not taking turns with other karaoke buffs to be the Karaoke Idol of Fairfield Drive or to prove that he mastered his Do Re Mi. Prior to Saturday night, he was never heard belting a tune in public. He was content to hear himself in the shower and at his camote garden.
However, when it comes to fundraising for granddaughter, Angeliques Le, who is a candidate for the Fil-Am association’s 2005 Little Miss Philippines, Dino, a 33rd degree in Masonic hierarchy, raised up to the occasion, if only to entertain the guests in attendance who filled the Manila Garden’s dining hall. If he was shaking at his feet and sweating a bit, he did a good job at hiding it. He was comfortable and even smiley. For Lyn, it was no sweat. She is used to the microphone.
But this is not about Dino’s vocal acumen or his Derring-do. It is about little Angelique’s fundraising for competition with two other little misses for the title of Miss Little Philippines. And who would shoulder the initiative but the grown-ups in her world?
That is why grandma and grandpa invited friends at the Manila Gardens for dinner, dancing, singing and fellowship in exchange for a nominal donation for Angelique’s candidacy. For all its practicability and simplicity, it beats filling up a bus for the casinos in Biloxi (which incidentally will be inoperative for quiet some time) or renting a hall, hiring the Rolling Stones and do all the cooking. Between hard work and easy going, Dino and Lyn choose the latter. That’s why both can do some singing rather than washing dishes. They also provided business for the Garden, which provided an excellent accommodation, menu and service. If it is a new idea in small fundraising activity it sure is competitive to other alternatives. A roast beef dinner is just as good as anything else -anywhere. What little space left between tables was big enough for dancing – line dancing of course and Ning Aguila and husband’s swinging waltz. There was even a light moment for a stand up comic lamenting his friend’s ‘ugliness when born, that the doctor slapped his mother.’ Shades of Rodney Dangerfield’s no respect routine but still evoke laughter every time.
In his thank you remarks, grandpa Dino felt the presence of “a thousand people”, in his words. That underscored his deep appreciation for the company of the friends who came to join an afternoon with their granddaughter.
There will be other fundraisings of other kind in the future for a variety of reasons. Last Saturday’s event was simple, unique and painless – and served its purpose.
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Fil-Am Mrs. Philippines of Northwest Florida Crowned
Ed Fernandez – June 18, 2005
At a gala ceremony of tuxedo, native ‘barong tagalog’ and evening dresses held at Pensacola’s World Landing social hall, the Fil-Am Association of Northwest Florida crowned it’s Mrs. Philippines pageant winner and runners up on Saturday, June 18, 2005. Attended and witnessed by hundreds of Fil-Am members, guests and friends in the community, the coronation climaxed the extended campaign that was interrupted by the devastating Hurricane Ivan that wrought havoc to the city in September of last year.
Crowned Mrs. Philippines for 2005-2006 was Ms. Vivien Moore, formerly from Tunga, Leyte. Ms. Vida Agas, former resident of Bani, Pangasinan garnered the 1st Runner-Up; while the 2nd Runner-Up was awarded to Ms. Dolores Jensen, a native of Caregara, Leyte.
Captain Kevin Hooley, USN, Commanding Officer, Center for Information Dominance, Corry Station, Pensacola, and husband to a Filipina native from Baguio City, served as the guest speaker of the pageant, who talked about cultural diversity in the community and highlighted the contributions of Filipino-Americans in the U.S. military especially in the Navy. He cited numbers and statistics of rank and accomplishments of Filipino sailors, enlisted and officers, whom he attributes credit for their remarkable performance.
Native folk dance performances by the candidates themselves and a number of Fil-Am Mrs. Philippines of past years along with a couple of energetic young ‘Polynesian’ performers provided a colorful display of fashion ensembles and choreographic acumen.
The Mrs. Philippines annual pageant is the major fundraising campaign undertaking by the Fil-Am Association and the biggest source of funds to finance its projects and maintenance operations. The Fil-Am Center mortgage obligation was fully amortized as result of the last pageant’s highly successful returns.
Commenting on the pageant’s expected effect, the Fil-Am president, Romie Tatel said, “Known to be our major fundraising campaign, indeed this contest remains to be the most successful among our yearly efforts. This greatly helps in our Association’s operations.”
Barring any unforeseen interruption by Mother Nature, the search for the next Mrs. Philippines will again be around the corner and the community’s support, especially from the Fil-Am membership will play a vital role to make it a success.
FOR MORE PICTURES CLICK HERE
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First Place Win for a Local Talent
Ed Fernandez
At the American Music Talent Competition held in Orlando, Florida last January, 10 – year old, Janaikha Galvan of Pensacola and daughter of our UPANGS members, Juan and Margie Galvan from Dagupan City won the coveted 1st Prize in the 12 and under age group category. Selected from hundreds of contestants nationwide, young Janaikha edged out 30 of the finalists to win her coveted prize in her rendition of the popular classic, “Tomorrow”.
At 8 years of age, Janaikha began singing at local restaurants. Finding out her own potential, she decided to enter singing competitions. One such break was at her debut at the Cordova Mall talent competition, where after months of competing with local songbirds, she placed first among her competitors. A local talent agent, impressed by her performance, showcased young Janaikha’s singing acumen to other national talent scouts
The renowned Michael Turney Talent Agency recruited Janaikha to represent its interest at the national competition in Orlando. The rest is history and Juan and Margie Galvan couldn’t be more proud of their daughter’s performance.
For young Janaikha, her success at the competition may be a prelude to better things to come. Contestant No. 142, the tag she wore throughout the competition could very will be Number One in the American Idol stage a short few years from now.
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