The little, pleasurable things in my life...

...these are the first 10 things to come to mind.

1. Sinking my teeth into a toasted onion bagel with crunchy onion bits on top, cream cheese and crispy bacon inside.

2. Watching a glorious sunset from my bedroom window and later seeing the moon cut its nocturnal path in the sky as I bid God and the world a good night.

3. Seeing my little pups happily yelp and jump to try and give me kisses as I walk through the door.

4. Driving during the early hours of the morning, not to work, but to a vacation destination and looking forward to days of vegging.

5. Walking into a squeaky clean house without having lifted a finger to do anything.

6. Being on a beach on a warm, breezy but sunny day, listening to the crash of the waves and the wailing of seagulls.

7. Having the pleasure of catching up with an old friend or relative whom I haven't seen in years.

8. Watching people I care about succeed in whatever they are doing and reach a milestone in their lives. Actually, they don't even have to succeed - just watching them try very hard with little fear already makes me proud.

9. Listening to people boldly tell the truth with no disrespect, reproach, or shame.

10. Going straight downhill on skis.

Method In His Madness (MBA for Hire)

His sign does not predict the end of the world or offer work for food. His sign says, "MBA for hire". He was standing across our building in the Boston Financial District with this sign and a backpack full of his portfolios. Some dismissed him as a nut but I approached him and asked for his resume. Instead, he gave me a portfolio with not only his resume, but reference letters from companies he's worked for, a one-pager personal statement and a really witty memo/cover letter. He has a job in a nearby state but wants to move to Boston and has taken every Friday off with the intention of standing in that corner until he gets a job. I showed the very well-prepared portfolio to one of our executives and she actually went in front of our building where he was standing and chatted with him for a few minutes. Once our pending job requisitions open up, she intends to call him in for a serious interview. A couple of hours later, one of our sales people approached me waving his resume, asking me to take a look at it. I informed him that I already did and have happily passed on his portfolio to our department heads that will be having jobs opening up soon. "If I had an opening, I would have hired him on the spot," he declared, and I agreed.

His resume shows a solid background and the rest of his portfolio showed a personality that anyone would love to have around. His standing there with a sign shows a willingness to do almost anything to get a job done. Who would not want that in an employee or a colleague?

I really admire the guy's self-esteem and fearlessness in looking for a job in this unconventional manner. He didn't want his resume to be in a pile somewhere waiting for someone to pick it up. He wanted to be different, to stand out and make an impression. And let me tell you, he did. Judging from the on-the-spot interviews he was getting every single hour he was standing there, he won't be there too many times more. He will be hired soon and whoever gets to hire him will be very fortunate.

Deceive to Achieve?

The media doctoring of the fireworks presentation of the Olympic opening which was actually shot on a another, clearer night in Beijing; a "cuter" little girl lipsynching "Ode to the Motherland" because the original singer, Yang Pei Yi, was deemed not "flawless in image, internal feelings, and expression" by the Chinese politburo; and to cap it off, the pre-pubescent looking female gymnasts that they all claim are the minimum age requirement of 16 when previous records in competitions in and outside China show otherwise. All are under 4'11" and 79 lbs - one of them 4'6" and 68 lbs.! I was a little shrimp at 16 but I was still bigger than that. These are a few incidents that have arisen and marred the 2008 Olympic Games in the eyes of many.

What other surprises await the world in Beijing? How many more will be uncovered and how many will forever remain hidden? Do you believe that the Chinese Olympic committee members are willing to deceive in order to achieve? Coming from a country where most of the world's fake/imitation apparel and accessory goods come from, you can guess where my inclination lies. Er...was that a pun? Never mind...

Oh, and Yang Pei Yi IS cute and adorable. I'm sure a lot will agree.

The Big Oh for Audie

My good friend and brother Audie Gemora is celebrating a milestone birthday today, at least in Philippine time - not quite yet here in the US but I couldn't wait to send his greetings.

I wanted to take the time to thank him for all that he's been to me - mentor, acting coach, director, choreographer, fellow castmember, churchmate, cheerer, sounding board, eating and movie buddy, true friend and big brother. Audie (along with Ninong Freddie Santos) was very instrumental in helping me develop as an artist and as a person by being a big brother from the time I was seventeen. He is one of those I can trust to gently tell the truth no matter how it hurts because he truly cares. Audie and I even shared a house, albeit at different durations. He moved into my place from Greenhills when I decided to move to Makati.

Auds, thank you for being there for me when times were light and, especialy when they were dark. I haven't seen you in years but know that you will always be one of the dearest persons in my life. I hope you have a beautiful and memorable birthday. May your cup runneth over as you mark this golden milestone. Love you, my brother.