V-day 2010: Making It Count
Published in SunStar Daily on February 27, 2010 - this is the unabridged and long version of the article.
Its no surprise that on the big v-day there is a rampant booking (and overbooking even!) of restaurants, diners, hotels, flower shops, specialty shops, (motels?) and everywhere else where people are scampering to celebrate Valentine's Day! Its one of those days that capitalists gain so much from overpriced flowers, chocolates, rooms and what have you and we people actually let them. I don't have anything against it though, I mean if you have the buck for it, why not? I guess everyone would do anything (however expensive it is) to make a loved one feel special on the much-celebrated Cupid's Day. I know I would if I had..
What I would like to remind everyone though, is just to make sure that come February 15, you still got some money left to spend especially if your paycheck comes only on the 20th. Its just not practical (this is of course depending on where you are in the human food chain) to spend on flowers that cost almost a thousand pesos because it will still end up with the worms anyway, if its not used as potpourri. Or chocolates that are worth 500 when you know it’s just going to give the recipient migraine or worse diabetes. (I love flowers and chocolates, by the way, and am no cynic; just in case you think that of me already. I am as mushy as they get; poems, cards, name it and am a great fan but I am also still very practical.)
I’m not really writing this to lecture the "V-day-big-spenders" but, instead I am here to share my V-day celebration that was worth only 500 pesos. (The money, which, by the way, I won from a Valentine Day Card-making contest at work, yippee!!)
On Valentine's Day, I spent my entire day at a vacation house fully-furnished with a TV, a DVD, T&B, very accessible to the city, with proximity to shopping areas, a computer shop, a karaoke and even a walk away from the church and most of all - - its all for FREE! Translation: I spent my valentine's day at my sister's place! One that has all the entertainment perks; was beside a bakery, a sari-sari store with computers and was right in front of a karaoke stand.
And my 500 budget got me a long way already... 1 1/2 kilo of pork for roasting ("sinugba") worth 280, a kilo of fresh fish for ceviche (in Bisaya, "kinilaw") worth 80, spices for 50 pesos at the wet market in Lahug and I still had some spare change for motorcycle fuel and some peanuts for "pika-pika".
We had a DVD marathon of a few movies (some, by the way, you can buy at 5 pcs per P20 but I am not advertising piracy of course).. The first movie we watched after all the cooking and eating was done was Find Me Guilty and it was starred by Vin Diesel (who did not look like Vin Diesel) and was based on a true story. This movie would really tickle the lawyer in each one of us and is a nice relief to all the legal drama we've had so much of in our colorful country. The next movie we watched was entitled "Yanggaw" (and I have just been informed that in Ilonggo, it means turned into an "aswang" or "natakdan" in Cebuano). I have heard of this movie as it was once featured on TV and was even awarded internationally. It’s a story of how a young woman was turned into an "aswang" and how her family dealt with it. At first I thought it was an indie film but I realized it’s not because it was produced by Cinema One and based on the cinematography and the shots, it’s no low budget film. This movie made me scream for sure and really hits hometown because I did not feel like I was watching a movie but instead felt like I was watching a narration of something that really happened elsewhere in the Philippines. Although I had to focus on the subtitle, there were some dialogues that I understood because they were also Cebuano words I was used to hearing. I think this is a must-see and I have even campaigned for my officemates to see it themselves. The third movie we saw was Confessions of a Shopaholic and this movie had me laughing hysterically and I am sure those who've see it will agree to me on this one. It’s an obvious chick-flick basing only on the movie title but I think men should also see it because it’s a real "feel-good" movie. The fourth movie we saw was Sherlock Holmes and it was a burst of action for sure. But I like the movie because it makes you think as well - unlike some lame action movie that you watch only to see the explosions and all the effects but never really bother to listen to the dialogue. (I think it looks like I am writing a review but this is needed to illustrate the day I had..) Then to top the evening off, we tried to watch He's just not that into you but it got cut off because it was past 12 midnight already and some people need to sleep you know. (Some people, meaning my partner in crime Itoy and my sister who has to work early the next day. Never mind me, am as nocturnal as a bat, although thankfully not as blind.. hehe…)
So, that was how my I spent my V-day this 2010; with my sister and her family in the safety of her home. I enjoyed preparing our food; I was tasked to prepare the ceviche and my sister's hubby added his own twist to it with coconut milk and "chicharon" sprinkles. Itoy was on the grill with the pork and my sister prepared the rice and the table. My nephew too was there to be a kid and give us a few laughs with his antics. We even had two special guests, my mother and father who ate lunch with us too. The food went a long way for sure because we still had a lot of leftovers for dinner. In the later part of the day, some beer and a bottle of Red Wine was served with some chocolates, a chocolate coated pastry and some peanuts courtesy of my sister's hubby. The day was full of many adventures via the movies, full of goodies and full of memories. It was more than any fancy restaurant dinner or any hotel extravaganza could ever offer and at a very minimal cost too.
So, I dare you in the next events to come, keep the money in your pockets and spend less but make it count. You can't put a price tag on memories anyway, right? Things can break, flowers can wither and die, chocolates can just melt away but memories linger on.
Belated Happy Valentines to everyone and I hope V-day 2010 is memorable for you too...
February 15, 2010
Its no surprise that on the big v-day there is a rampant booking (and overbooking even!) of restaurants, diners, hotels, flower shops, specialty shops, (motels?) and everywhere else where people are scampering to celebrate Valentine's Day! Its one of those days that capitalists gain so much from overpriced flowers, chocolates, rooms and what have you and we people actually let them. I don't have anything against it though, I mean if you have the buck for it, why not? I guess everyone would do anything (however expensive it is) to make a loved one feel special on the much-celebrated Cupid's Day. I know I would if I had..
What I would like to remind everyone though, is just to make sure that come February 15, you still got some money left to spend especially if your paycheck comes only on the 20th. Its just not practical (this is of course depending on where you are in the human food chain) to spend on flowers that cost almost a thousand pesos because it will still end up with the worms anyway, if its not used as potpourri. Or chocolates that are worth 500 when you know it’s just going to give the recipient migraine or worse diabetes. (I love flowers and chocolates, by the way, and am no cynic; just in case you think that of me already. I am as mushy as they get; poems, cards, name it and am a great fan but I am also still very practical.)
I’m not really writing this to lecture the "V-day-big-spenders" but, instead I am here to share my V-day celebration that was worth only 500 pesos. (The money, which, by the way, I won from a Valentine Day Card-making contest at work, yippee!!)
On Valentine's Day, I spent my entire day at a vacation house fully-furnished with a TV, a DVD, T&B, very accessible to the city, with proximity to shopping areas, a computer shop, a karaoke and even a walk away from the church and most of all - - its all for FREE! Translation: I spent my valentine's day at my sister's place! One that has all the entertainment perks; was beside a bakery, a sari-sari store with computers and was right in front of a karaoke stand.
And my 500 budget got me a long way already... 1 1/2 kilo of pork for roasting ("sinugba") worth 280, a kilo of fresh fish for ceviche (in Bisaya, "kinilaw") worth 80, spices for 50 pesos at the wet market in Lahug and I still had some spare change for motorcycle fuel and some peanuts for "pika-pika".
We had a DVD marathon of a few movies (some, by the way, you can buy at 5 pcs per P20 but I am not advertising piracy of course).. The first movie we watched after all the cooking and eating was done was Find Me Guilty and it was starred by Vin Diesel (who did not look like Vin Diesel) and was based on a true story. This movie would really tickle the lawyer in each one of us and is a nice relief to all the legal drama we've had so much of in our colorful country. The next movie we watched was entitled "Yanggaw" (and I have just been informed that in Ilonggo, it means turned into an "aswang" or "natakdan" in Cebuano). I have heard of this movie as it was once featured on TV and was even awarded internationally. It’s a story of how a young woman was turned into an "aswang" and how her family dealt with it. At first I thought it was an indie film but I realized it’s not because it was produced by Cinema One and based on the cinematography and the shots, it’s no low budget film. This movie made me scream for sure and really hits hometown because I did not feel like I was watching a movie but instead felt like I was watching a narration of something that really happened elsewhere in the Philippines. Although I had to focus on the subtitle, there were some dialogues that I understood because they were also Cebuano words I was used to hearing. I think this is a must-see and I have even campaigned for my officemates to see it themselves. The third movie we saw was Confessions of a Shopaholic and this movie had me laughing hysterically and I am sure those who've see it will agree to me on this one. It’s an obvious chick-flick basing only on the movie title but I think men should also see it because it’s a real "feel-good" movie. The fourth movie we saw was Sherlock Holmes and it was a burst of action for sure. But I like the movie because it makes you think as well - unlike some lame action movie that you watch only to see the explosions and all the effects but never really bother to listen to the dialogue. (I think it looks like I am writing a review but this is needed to illustrate the day I had..) Then to top the evening off, we tried to watch He's just not that into you but it got cut off because it was past 12 midnight already and some people need to sleep you know. (Some people, meaning my partner in crime Itoy and my sister who has to work early the next day. Never mind me, am as nocturnal as a bat, although thankfully not as blind.. hehe…)
So, that was how my I spent my V-day this 2010; with my sister and her family in the safety of her home. I enjoyed preparing our food; I was tasked to prepare the ceviche and my sister's hubby added his own twist to it with coconut milk and "chicharon" sprinkles. Itoy was on the grill with the pork and my sister prepared the rice and the table. My nephew too was there to be a kid and give us a few laughs with his antics. We even had two special guests, my mother and father who ate lunch with us too. The food went a long way for sure because we still had a lot of leftovers for dinner. In the later part of the day, some beer and a bottle of Red Wine was served with some chocolates, a chocolate coated pastry and some peanuts courtesy of my sister's hubby. The day was full of many adventures via the movies, full of goodies and full of memories. It was more than any fancy restaurant dinner or any hotel extravaganza could ever offer and at a very minimal cost too.
So, I dare you in the next events to come, keep the money in your pockets and spend less but make it count. You can't put a price tag on memories anyway, right? Things can break, flowers can wither and die, chocolates can just melt away but memories linger on.
Belated Happy Valentines to everyone and I hope V-day 2010 is memorable for you too...
February 15, 2010
