Getting to Know the Other 62 Years

Flew to Ozamis for my grandmother's 85th birthday celebration. :) 

We've been wanting to have a celebration for awhile now since her recovery from cancer, 2 years ago. Every year has always been a blessing, the realization that life is precious 

just makes it that much more important to celebrate it.

 

If i have the privilege of living to my golden years, i hope i touch atleast half as much lives, or have at least half as much people love me the way my grandmother has. :)

The Preparations.

1. making lola's give aways on the day itself, a lil passion me and my mother share; creating these little tiny random gifts. We started with 100 pcs, but by the time we got to ozamis, there were only 79 left. They were super fragile.

2. my grandmother and one of her apo-in-laws (to the nth degree) about to start make-up.

3. With my aunt who has been my grandmother's caretaker all these years.

 

 

lola's grand entrance :D as usual, mummy forgot to tell the celebrant it was time to enter (just like in my debut) sooooooo.... we almost missed our entrance! hahaha :) but it worked out.

 

For my part, I presented the AVP to lola, which to me was an amazing experience because I was exposed to the other 62 years of her life, it added to the 23 years that I've known and loved her -- the entire night was amazing because you think you know your grandmother, wait til you hear what she'd done in her teen years, etc. :)

 

   

the people who served during the entire party were all somehow "touched" by lola,

as her student, niece/nephew, friend, or some random stranger who had heard about her.

 

one of my lola's best friends who had some words of advice for me on love, boys and families. :)

  

what was particularly fun was that I got to ballroom again. <3

people don't ballroom as much anymore. :(

 

and so did my daddy and baby sis. :))

 

growing up, i felt that i had such a small family... and i never really had cousins... i was always jealous of the big families who had cousins their age during bdays, new years, christmas, random celebrations. But it was nice to realize that despite that, i had a HUGE family pala :) and there was nothing but love that night. :)

   

the relationship between my dad and his mother-in-law is one of the best in-law relationships I have ever seen. ♥ they are absolutely amazing. i teared up during my lola's speech when she said "my children", and other people reacted "diba only child si bebe (my mum)?" and my lola replied "si Toto (my dad) is my son." :)

XOXO,

Joanie

Tiyubibo 2011

So we had TIYUBIBO: ASMPH Annual Christmas Party

on our very last day. After an exaggerated day of stress and thinking, 

it was an awesome end to the year 

-- because everyone went all out to be extra happy for everybody else.

 

Everyone dressed up, and even if they hadn't had sleep for the past few days,

still got together to make out the most epic christmas party yet 

(even if Meralco + a bus accident threatened to give us a dark and warm venue for awhile).

DIVAX opened for DIVEX that night, you'll have to take my word for it 

when I say it was an epic performance. :)

 

Another thing that made it doubly fun was the music -- 90's babies signing to the tune of Spice Girls, Backstreet and 98 degrees. I love my indie and hiphop, but no one can take the 90s away from us. :)

And my first ASMPH family -- ultimEIGHT. :)

To the most amazing batch, keep being amazing! :)

Congratulations! especially to my beloved housie Pia Tecson and her partner Trisha Navarro,

and the rest of the core team and the entire batch led by our beloved Danica Pasia!

(myself included, under promotions, hence the barrage of tarps at the beginning of this post)

Truly was a beautiful night. :)

XOXO,

Joanie

Tiyubibo 2011 from Jeremy Lo on Vimeo.

Tiyubibo 2011 - An Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health Christmas Party

Camera: Jeremy Lo and Rap Santos

Edit: Jeremy Lo

Music: Raise Your Glass by PINK (No copyright infringement intended)

Having a Coke With You

I've always been a fan of words, a sucker for the right combination of sense and sensibility

(hihihi yes, sounds like Jane Austin's book -- even if i havent actually read the book -- those were the right words.)

So I was super amused to hear a poem that had COKE in its title,

and I was even more amused when I read it, not because I knew all of the places in the poem 
(i wish i did though but I dont think that was O'Hara's point with this poem),

but because in the end, i like the idea that the person recognizes that there is beauty everywhere 
-- that there is and always will be something better but despite that, 
they still choose to be with you instead. having a coke. 

im corny and thats my understanding of it, so sue me, read the poem nalang! :)

Having a Coke With You

is even more fun than going to San Sebastian, Irún, Hendaye, Biarritz, Bayonn
or being sick to my stomach on the Travesera de Gracia in Barcelona
partly because in your orange shirt you look like a better happier St. Sebastian
partly because of my love for you, partly because of your love for yoghurt
partly because of the fluorescent orange tulips around the birches
partly because of the secrecy our smiles take on before people and statuary
it is hard to believe when I'm with you that there can be anything as still 
as solemn as unpleasantly definitive as statuary when right in front of it 
in the warm New York 4 o'clock light we are drifting back and forth 
between each other like a tree breathing through its spectacles 

and the portrait show seems to have no faces in it at all, just paint 
you suddenly wonder why in the world anyone ever did them

I look at you and I would rather look at you than all the portraits in the world
except possibly for the Polish Rider occasionally and anyway it's in the Frick 
which thank heavens you haven't gone to yet so we can go together the first time 
and the fact that you move so beautifully more or less takes care of Futurism 
just as at home I never think of the Nude Descending a Staircase or 
at a rehearsal a single drawing of Leonardo or Michelangelo that used to wow me 
and what good does all the research of the Impressionists do them 
when they never got the right person to stand near the tree when the sun sank 
or for that matter Marino Marini when he didn't pick the rider as carefully as the horse

it seems they were all cheated of some marvelous experience

which is not going to go wasted on me which is why I am telling you about it

—Frank O'Hara

Here's Frank O'Hara reading his work shortly before he died.
(Thank you mimi for the link and for remembering)

And here's where I first heard the poem, a chick flick (what'd you think?! ;p),

but the way the poem was read is just love. <3

(Not a huge fan of the movie and of the girl though, disclaimer lang. hihi)

XOXO,

Joanie

Sundays are Music Days 12

Let me share my musical promiscuity on Sundays.

Sundays are music days.

It's been awhile.I could give you a million excuses why I stopped, but they wouldn't make up for the absence,so I'll just tell you I'm back and hope you enjoy this week's list.
What are these lists? Concept (and first list) is explained here.
My previous sunday lists: 2 , 3 , 4, 5,  6. 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Same rules, no judgments, no genre, no limits, just music I tune the world out to. :)

1. So I woke up to a cool December morning, it felt awesome,until I remembered I have an exam EVERY monday.Still, I can't deny it felt great, so here's a song that'll keep the GV going.Maroon 5's Sunday Morning

 
2. A friend introduced me to this song, (thank you Mimi) and its sooooo sad and mmmm at the same time.I often wonder when you become so much of a mess that its not worth it anymore,this song has that hopeful feeling that you'll always be worth it to someone out there.it's still sad though that you have to be a mess. :(Gotye's Hearts a Mess

3. This song is so cute, it just makes you sway and be all lovey-dovey,"They say you're like a Monday morning,but I say you're like a Friday night."But I like its whole strength chorus."This heart's a stone, no one will ever break it."Acid House King's This Heart is a Stone
 
4. So I've been stocking up on christmas songs and found this in the Love Actually soundtrack,personally, I like the 1970's original by Joni Mitchell (here)but this video is better, and it has a good-looking man."I've looked at clouds, love, life from both sides now from win or lose, and still somehowit's cloud's, love's, life's illusions I recall,I really don't know clouds, love, life at all."Hayley Westenra's Both Sides Now, a Joni Mitchell remake

5. Okay I had a very difficult time looking for this song, so I hope it is appreciated!So the video is a lil crazy and fan-made, but it adds to the charm of the song. hahaBut appreciate both separately (the song + the cuhrazy video)."...but because it's real doesn't mean its going to work."The Blow's True Affection

I didn't realize I missed this. hahaYes, it takes a little of my study time, but it sure makes me happy,and its a little contemplation time.Sorry if the songs are a bit slow, dancing hiphop joanie is still asleep. hahaOff to study now. :)
XOXO,Joanie

To be Child-like

In case you haven’t noticed, from my posts and my casual signing-and-dancing-while-doing-normal-things, I absolutely adore the Christmas season. It’s that particular time of the year that my eyes turn glassy and I’m filled with all sorts of warm happy fuzzies in my tummy just because. You can blame the lights, the décor, the coca-cola, the songs, the niceness of strangers, the fireworks, the gifts, the food, the abundance of love and care, and the list goes on and on.

So before I start getting lost in my deep infatuation for the season, I wanted to share one of those serendipitous moments when you hear the right words at the right time – and coincidentally its about Christmas!

I randomly attended mass last Tuesday and the priest’s homily was everything I needed to hear. Let me try to share my understanding of it:

Christmas is all about waiting. We wait for the Savior. We wait for the birth of Jesus Christ, advent.

Life’s dominant theme is waiting.

When you hear that, it kind of depresses you. Does that mean we spend our whole lives in anticipation for the next great thing? Do we put everything else on hold because we are waiting for something we aren’t even truly sure is coming? What if we wait too long and it never comes? Or what if we get tired of waiting?

But before my mind got crazy with so many questions, the priest says 

“And thus we are reminded that we don’t just wait idly.” Whut?!  So what do we do while we wait?

The gospel that day told the story of God dividing the people: the wise and learned AND the childlike. We all strive to be the wise and learned, especially in this world of science and logic that I’ve chosen, and oftentimes we assume we already ARE. That's more often that not the problem, when we start to think we’ve figured it all out. The gospel’s story reminds us that God chose the people that were child-like.

We should all strive to be child-like. No, not ignorant or unaware of the realities of the world, on the contrary, it means to be open, constantly amazed and humbled. When the priest said this, I was like “woohooo, I’m as childish as anyone can get! I got this!” Apparently, he didn’t mean childish.

Open. Because we shouldn’t shut ourselves out to the experiences of the world. A child opens themselves up to the world to experience it fully – no discriminations, no judgments, no biases, they simply live life.

Constantly amazed. Child-like wonder allows us to see the beauty of anything and everything and thus remain passionate and zealous in our waiting. This means that we are able to maximize our experiences. In everything we do, we aim for the best (especially in our studies as med students).

Humble. As children, we are also made aware of our limitations and are thus humbled, as we recognize that our experiences are never fully maximized if not with other people and with some necessary life tools (hard work, determination and discipline for us med students).

If we live our lives according to those three foundations of being child-like we realize that the best way to wait and best way to show love, is to maximize our potential – to be the best that we can be, to live the best life we can live, and in so doing be worthy of God when He arrives.

For this particular time in my life, I find myself patiently waiting for something – as simple as passing the coming exam, as hopeful as the next semestral break, as corny as the start of an epic love story, as serious as the hint of growing up. While these aren’t exactly pressing concerns, the affirmation that patiently waiting (or CREATIVELY waiting as the priest put it) is not a waste of anybody’s time but the time of becoming the person I’m supposed to be when it comes felt nice.

Let’s just hope I will not be like the jews of the Lord’s time, who waited but didn't recognize Him when He came, but that’s a whole different issue altogether; for now, the waiting and the becoming.