Why Some Parties Suck

I've been to some parties here (the drinking kind), and unfortunately, I didn't always have a rip-roaring good time. I thought about it a bit, and I have realized why this was so. There were two reasons I could pinpoint.

1. These parties took BYOB too literally. In the Philippines, even at a potluck party, everyone shared what everyone else brought. (Though usually, whoever threw the party was expected to provide endless liquor, and alcohol brought by guests was both optional and a surplus). Here, you brought bottles of whatever you want to drink, and that's pretty much ALL you drink. You drink only what you bring. Such an alien concept.

2. There was no food. How can you drink without "pulutan" (appetizers/fingerfood) to munch on? Unthinkable in my country.

Which brings me to what constitutes a great party. Lots of alcohol, and lots of food. Even if the company is terrible and the music lousy, with enough drinks in your system and good food to binge on, you can't help but have a great time.

My Anti-Stress Snack

I've only been back in school for three days but I'm already overwhelmed by all the academic requirements I have to fulfill. I have twelve units/hours of classes this semester, compared to only nine last fall. I also have to log in around eight hours a week at the school's radio and tv stations and newspaper. I've started to be stressed, and I've responded to the stress as I always have- by eating. Since my allowance doesn't go all that far, I've discovered a snack I could make using ingredients I already have. So, when I feel like stress eating, I simply combine, in random amounts, some cereal (something like honey bunches of oats), peanut butter, whipped cream, and chocolate syrup. I mix them in a cup, and I'm all set. (Actually, I've started eating this for breakfast too. And lunch, sometimes.)

Back in Missouri

After travelling 14 and 1/2 hours from California, I'm back in Columbia. I actually arrived yesterday afternoon, but the long trip was so exhausting I haven't been able to do anything yet, including unpacking. I felt like I came from the Philippines, because of the trip's length. It's a good thing the sun was out when I got back to Missouri and it's relatively warm; otherwise I'd be feeling the post-vacation crash more acutely. I'm going back to school on Tuesday to start the winter semester; there's no class on Monday thanks to Martin Luther King day. That gives me one more day to get off slacker mode (quite a challenge).

What My Nephew Learned about Santa Part 2

On Christmas morning, (after the disappointment of not tasting Santa's cookie) my nephew Aidan was handed a gift "from Santa" from under the tree. He immediately opened it, tearing away at the wrapper as fast as his 3-year-old hands could. When he saw the box of the Thomas the Train set, he smiled widely and said "Look! Santa got it from the store!" I guess he didn't buy the concept of Santa's little elves hammering away at the North Pole workshop.

What My Nephew Learned about Santa

I've been spending the holidays with my brother Jerick, his wife Liz and my nephew Aidan in Buena Park, California. Aidan is three years old, and this is the first Christmas that he was made aware of the "existence" of Santa Claus. His teachers at his pre-school gave him a cookie to leave for Santa when he came by to drop off his toys under the Christmas tree. Aidan wanted to taste the cookie, but we convinced him to leave it untouched for Jolly Old St. Nick, beside a glass of milk. On Christmas morning, he rushed out of his room but instead of checking for presents under the tree, he went straight to check the plate where the cookie was. "Santa finished the cookie," he said, greatly disappointed. "He didn't share."

On Solitude and Eyesight

In the four months that I've lived in the US, I've spent a LOT of time alone. I've never had so much me-time in my whole life. I like being by myself, probably more than a lot of people I know. Sometimes though I find myself getting tired of my company, and over here I don't really have much of a choice, I'm pretty much stuck with just me. Anyway, one unpleasant side effect of being alone a lot is that I'm going to need glasses soon. Being alone has left me a ton of time for reading books (that are not remotely related to anything I'm studying), spending time in front of the computer (surfing, not writing papers), and watching TV (totally no educational value). All these activities have caused my eyes to deteriorate at an alarming rate. That's how I finally made the connection between glasses and personality types.

Lord of the Dance

Yes, it was another free show that I watched, this time a dance production featuring Celtic dance. Lord of the Dance has apparently been watched by a lot of people all over the world. If their website is to be believed, it's "the most acclaimed show in musical history". I can't vouch for the basis of that claim, but it was a great show. Group tap dancing always amazes me, and after watching people do that I always think "I'm a loser! What am I doing with my life? I should have learned to tap dance!" (then again, maybe not.)

The highlight of this show for me was the part where the lead solo male dancer came out wearing a sequined gold 8-inch wide belt with the words (take a guess...) "Lord of the Dance". And another guy actually challenged him to a "dance duel" for it. (You could say this is similar to other sports where the competitors win via "tap out"). The antagonist cheated and got the belt from him. Of course the REAL Lord of the Dance eventually tapped his way into getting it back. A dance concert just doesn't get any better than that.