Dear friend,

Nung weekend para kong may flu dahil sa severe symptoms ng hay fever. Di ako makakilos, even combing my hair was a huge effort as my scalp felt really tender. Then the limited breathing. Maaawa ka sa akin, I was breathing through my mouth for 2 days!!! There were times I really felt like dying. I felt guilty too that I couldn’t play with pogiBoy properly. Talagang telly-time lang sya. Friday night I planned on taking him to the town fair and even to the cinema, I didn’t count on my “enemy” arriving on Saturday morning. KAINIS.

This morning when I was about to leave for work, hubby said pogiBoy has temp last night. I felt my stomach lurch. If pogiBoy is not better this evening that will mean one of us will have to take a leave of absence. And that thought made me feel worse because ideally when pogiBoy has a temp, we let him stay at home for 2 days. But if we keep on doing that & he gets fever at least once a month, that would mean our work-attendance will be blatantly pockmarked.

Nakakaloka.

I really hope pogiBoy recovers today. I blame the stupid weather… Come on sky, where’s our Summer sun & warmth?!

As for me, it looks like I will have to wait a little longer for the hay fever vaccine to become available in the UK. Crap.

So how was your weekend again?

Lovingly yours,
me

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Last night, all the news station carried the same story: UK expelled 4 Russian diplomats because of Kremlin’s refusal to hand over former KGB agent Andrei Lugovoi. Lugovoi is the suspect in the murder of former KGB Alexander Litvinenko, was poisoned last year in a London restaurant. The poison is said to be a radioactive material traced in Russia’s nuclear plants.

Anyhow, this post is short & sweet (I’m running out of time) so apologies in advance if you are bitin (left wanting).

It’s a good publicity for Gordon Brown’s early days in Downing Street. Set aside the fact that the Bank of England just raised the interest rates again (& is likely to do it again in 6 months’ time), his government’s response to the recent failed terrorist attack & the continuing investigation seemed to put Brown in a very positive light. You know, Man of Action, no BS. Then we got all these publicities (aka. news reports) that Brown will not be pandering to the US, you get the sense that finally UK is not US’ doormat anymore. The Blair-Bush romance is definitely over.

And now Brown said in his press statement that there is no “apologies” to the UK’s expulsion. In one newscast (I forget if it’s SkyNews or BBC News 24), the reporter said that the speech was a clear warning to any country that the UK will no longer tolerate defiance. Something to that effect, basta it looks like Brown is keen on being seen as a hard man after all. Not the sullen, boring Chancellor of Blair’s.

Now here’s my thought… All well and good. But I can’t help but wonder, if this “pressure” on Russia isn’t a joint scheme with the White House to push Putin over the edge. Recently America & Russia’s relationship has been fraught due to the bases being opened/planned in former Soviet countries. Putin didn’t like it & there were all these talks of the Cold War returning. Now with Brown’s decision, the term “Cold War” is being bandied about again.

It can make you wonder. In exchange for Brown’s PRs about distancing himself from the US, like we-don’t-need-you & Iraq is a mistake kinda-spin, we’re pulling out our troops as soon as we’re able… could it be Russia’s on a two-pronged attack from distant cousins?

On our way to my son’s speech therapy a few weeks ago, we passed by a Chinese herbal/acupuncture shop. This is a common sight in London. You’re bound to see one in almost every town.

Anyway, knowing that I’m toying with the idea of trying acupuncture to cure or alleviate my hayfever, hubby suggested we enquire. The consultation was free, which was a bonus because the last time I asked a similar shop (in 2003) I was told I have to pay to consult. So a very Chinese (by this I mean, I can hardly understand her accent) lady with a sweet-smile welcomed me. She took my pulse looked at my tongue & asked about my symptoms. She even commented on my dry skin. She told me that “herbs” will do me good. But that if it doesn’t work, I should go for acupuncture.

We waited for 20 minutes(!) while the shop assistant measured the herbs. 7 days’ worth cost me £52. I nearly keeled over from shock, perhaps it registered on my face, too. When he talked about the acupuncture, he said we can do it in installment or get it “in bulk” to get one session free. A session is £25 and if I go for 5 sessions, I get an extra 6th session for free. Wow!

I took the woman’s name, whom the guy kept referring to as “Dr”, before I left. I contacted the British Medical Acupuncuture Society and found out that the woman is not registered. It doesn’t mean she’s a fake. It just means she’s not regulated. I will not go to her for acupuncture but I’ve been wanting to kick myself what I’m about to tell you next.

The herbs. The assistant said it will be “very bad tasting” & suggested I use some honey to make it more palatable. When I brewed my first cup, I was gagging from the smell coming from the pot! When I drank it, I was wishing it was boiled oregano instead. It was ssooooo baaaddd. Even now as I type this, I am cringing from the memorable aftertaste, so memorable I’d be gagging an hour after I sip it. I could almost feel my stomach churning (binabaligtad ang sikmura ko). I’d like to describe it further but my 3-year old summed it up when he smelt the steam and came away saying “smell yuckie! ” while waving his hand in front of his crumpled face.

Still I’m desperate & the herbalist said I will have immediate relief. I gulped & gulped. Using anything as chaser – water, grapes, cucumber, kornik, etc. After 4 days, I still feel the same, blocked nose & itchy eyes. I threw my £52 in the bin. What was I thinking?!

This is the shop & that’s hubby looking bored inside the shop

My “prescription”. Can you read chinese scripts?

Can you see the paper plates with many dried whatevers? Those are mine.

P.S. I followed Belle‘s suggestion and I’m currently trying Noni Juice, too. More about it next time.

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Huli man at magaling, matsing pa din?

Sexy Mom, I really feel bad that I have been late in reading about your first “flame” encounter. Reading both Connie‘s & Noemi‘s post alone inflamed me, too. But you were all right, turn something negative into something positive.

What is sex? What is sexy? What is it about Pinays being categorised as “exotic” (dancer, entertainer, bride etc etc)? Nakakainis. Nakakapanggigil.

They say it’s time to fight back & reclaim our identity. Gabriela, Princesa Urduja? Are you girls out there? If you are, hey look at me, I’m here, too.

I am a Sexy Filipina.
Indeed I am a super Sexy Pinay.
If you google it, I can also be a Sexy Philipina.
I am a minx in the bedroom, in the office, and mostly, in my head.
I am to be adored, I am a demi-god.
I am powerful, I am sex incarnate.
I am my husband’s dominatrix.
I am the ruler in the roost.
I am a Sexy Pinay Mom.

Pardon me people if I confess that, yes, I can be a slut, I can talk dirty, I can even tut-tut. But heck, my brain won’t stop churning & cavorting. My imagination’s fertile.

I shake and grind my booty day in, day out.
I leave my scent everywhere I go.
I make my mark on everything I touch.

I am gold.
I bring food to the table.
I take care of our loot.
I look after our children.
I look after my folks.
I also look after me.

I am a woman of the world.
A proud wife, a proud mother,
A very proud daughter,
An even prouder Filipino.

What is wrong with that?

In case someone asks, no I’m not a whore, I’m not ‘for sale’.
I am a woman.
I worked my way to the top.
Challenged men and women and the third-sex alike.
I am me, a modern Pinay.

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I saw this really, really small piece of news in the morning paper a while back: “Headbanging is ruled a disability“. I was on my way to work & I thought the British benefits system is really going to the dogs. But hang on this is happening in Sweden! As soon as I got home & was able to blog, I checked out Mr Roger Tullgren & sure enough he’s in ananova.

So Tullgren complains his Heavy Metal obsession should be classified as a handicap and they did. Now he’s going to receive an estimated £65 per week! Perhaps I should try the same application here as my practise for the Metallica concert is causing me so much problems – I can’t stop listening to “Enter Sandman”.

Seriously though, the number of benefit cheats in any state that offers a good benefits package is unbelievable. Here in Britain they’ve been showing ads on tv and on print about the punishment & threat of detection for as long as I can remember. They’ve been encouraging people on sick benefit to get off their bum and look for work. They even have a monetary incentive for those who do take a job. Then we have illegal immigrants and EU migrants. The British government started paying some of them to leave and go back where they came from. But honestly, isn’t that more like an invitation than a deterrent?

And who is shouldering all these expenses and gleaming glorious benefits system? The tax payers like myself, of course. It gives me a warm feeling inside, especially when the government keeps highlighting that there may not be enough money for me when it’s my turn to ask for help or time to retire. Right now, the pensioners across the UK are being supported by the current workforce, too. And the pension forecast for the working class is that there will not be enough people of working age to support the present future-pensioners!

Then you are also made aware that some people bore a great number of kids in order to receive more child benefits & bigger houses. These people are also often unable to work due to some illness or some just say they don’t want to work because they want to be with their kids – both mother & father! So who’s feeding them? The state! It makes your blood boil. The reality is even grimmer if you look at the fact that a single mum will have more money than a two-parent family because the former receives so many benefits & tax breaks, whilst the typical family is left to fend for themselves.

It can make your blood boil sometimes. But then looking at how it is back “home”, I used to get taxed 35% of my pay & I see nothing come out of it. The Philippines has no benefits system that I know about that actually does what it says on the label, has poor & corrupt Education system, has untrust-worthy policemen who I’d encounter asking for traffic violation money, and public servants you’d want to strangle (ever applied for Tax Code on your own?)! I know, I’m painting a very bad picture of our country, but it’s a reality that hurts me, too.

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So we have the yellow pages, we have them online, we have them at home. A lot of similar services have been sprouting all over the internet, too. Like2Find.com is the new player in town. Its top level categories include: Business Directory, Events, Stuff for Rent, Stuff for Sale, Items Wanted, Jobs, People, and then there’s this section called Everything Else.

At first I thought it was a US only service but actually, no. It’s a global ad site. There is a small charge to list your Business in the Business Directory but everything else is free and there is no limit as to how many free Ads you can place.

8th of July finally arrived. The Jubilee Line to Wembley Park Station was filled with black-shirted fans. Even hubby wore a black shirt! I decided against it so my tangerine blouse stood out in the crowd. Wembley was like a gathering for goths of all ages.

I enjoyed the opening acts, all of whom I didn’t know. But I enjoyed men-watching, too. Too bad for hubby the scores of women were nearly all scary-looking. For the second time in my life I realised how papables some of the young ones these days. Who can blame women for wanting toyboys, eh? Tingnan nyo na lang itong ibang nakuhanan ko ng pictures.

J, if you’re reading this, there have been a lot of times I’ve wanted to take pictures for you & finally eto na. Sensya na at slight lang dahil baka mahalata ako nung mga katabi kong kinukuhanan ko sila.

Of course I also took pictures of the historic place:I also took a LOT of videos. If you want to hear some awesome guitar lovemaking, check out the following:

The concert was sold out but huge Wembley wasn’t even full. Hubby said there were 30K people that night, grabe. For fear of getting crushed going home, we took off after Metallica sang their last song: Enter Sandman. They did two more encores, sana wag namang “Of Wolf and Man”. Kundi sasakalin ko asawa ko.