Christmas, Filipino Style: Hanging Up the Parol

Parols are ornamental star-like Christmas lanterns from the Philippines. They are traditionally made out of bamboo and paper and come in various sizes, shapes and designs. Its shape is said to be inspired by the star on the Nativity of Jesus that guided the Magi to the manger.


Nothing kicks off the Christmas Season like hanging up the parols at Lola and Lolo's house.
Night time view:
The picture below WOULD HAVE been a perfect shot of the entrance to Lola and Lolo's house adorned with the parol except for a nosey passerby...

Twilight

Ok...so if you're a fan of the books I'd say pay full price to watch it. If you haven't read the books yet, do the matinee. I'd actually recommend watching the movie first and then reading the book/books to fill in the blanks. I wouldn't say the movie is BAD...it's like "Footloose"...awkwardly corny but still worth watching. Let's see, the acting was painful to watch in a lot of scenes, the directing was awful, and the movie as a whole had the total flavor of "low budget." But it IS Twilight and they did try to include a lot of details from the book into the movie, of course it didn't follow the book exactly (there's a lot to try to interpret and fit into two hours). So if you're going to see it, go into it knowing it's going to be corny. Despite his bad acting, Robert Pattinson is the perfect Edward and Kristen Stewart playing Bella was kind of flat, but I liked her portrayal of Bella better than the whiney, insecure, co-dependent book version of Bella (except for the SUPER LAME melt-down stuttering scene in the hospital...BARF!). Here's something unexpected: I did end up accepting Taylor Lautner as Jacob. Taylor Lautner is actually a good actor, but the wig needs a SERIOUS upgrade. New major gripe: Who the heck did they cast as Sam Uley? OMG, that guy looks like he's 4'11" and 85 pounds and he's supposed to be the wolf pack leader! Good Lord, the guy playing Embry looks like he could knock Sam out with his pinky. We'll see how they pull this one off when "New Moon" comes out. At least the actors playing Sam and Embry are actual Native Americans.

Ivy gets the lead in High School Musical 3!

(Click on "Play" to start the video)

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Election 2008

Ivy and I went this morning before work/school to vote. Ivy even got a "I Voted" sticker. We didn't have enough time to stop and get our free Starbucks for voting, but that's ok. I think we could both pass on the extra sugar. Though Asia and Bishop didn't go with me to the polling place this time, they (along with Adarius) partcipated by giving me their opinions on and discussing with me the propositions, measures, and candidates last night. It's very interesting to hear what the high schoolers have to say and what they've heard their peers express about what's on the ballot this year. It's a historical election no matter what: Either we're going to have our first African-American President or our first female Vice President.

November Reading Log

Since completing the Twilight series this summer, mine and Asia's reading choices went separate ways. Right before the Twilight series, I read Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth. So right after Twilight I borrowed the sequel to Pillars, World Without End. You could really tell Follett's writing style changed during the fifteen or so years between Pillars and World Without End, but not in a bad way. Asia and I are back on the same reading track. We decided to read two of Gregory Maguire's books: Wicked and Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister. Asia is going to start with Wicked so I'll read the other one, then we'll switch. If we decide we like both, we might read some more Gregory Maguire. We've kicked around the idea of doing a dinner/theater night and going to see Wicked, the Musical in Spring 2009. Ivy is still heading straight to the Usagi Yojimbo shelf when we get to the library. She is currently has Book 18, but she doesn't read them consecutively. She flips around in the books too. LOL, I'm just glad she's developing an interest in reading. So if anyone else is interested in doing a Wicked dinner/theater night, whether or not you read the book, email me and we'll work out the details. It would be so much fun!

Halloween 2008

I took the day off and volunteered with Ivy's kindergarten class. It was so much fun and LOTS of work. Bishop and Asia volunteered at Cerritos Regional again this year so we didn't see them until later at the carnival. Asia worked the coloring and pumpkin booth.

Wonder Woman's boots were slouchy, so she changed into Hello Kitty rain boots, which she really liked.

Ivy named her pumpkin Melinda. Bishop and Jeremy really got into the Halloween spirit.