Down the Rabbit Hole

"Grandparents can be very special resources. Just being close to them reassures a child, without words, about change and continuity, about what went before and what will come after."     –Fred Rogers I was not born early enough to have lots of memories with my grandfathers. However, I had the honour of spending time with my grandmothers. They did not give away cookies, mind you, but they loved to feed me, my siblings, and my cousins with chicken sandwiches, pupur, and bulanglang . Both of them enjoyed telling us what it was like for them back in the day (I compiled some on this blog). I particularly enjoyed going with them when they visited their friends. It's that sense of solid family roots that I wish to impart to my son. And that is why I am always happy to see him grow up with my parents constantly in his life. He may be a toddler, but my family's culture—thanks to how my parents parent my siblings and me—will hopefully be instilled in him and strongly influence ...

There's a recession looming; the Fed has steadily been raising interest rates to temper inflation; the demand for hybrid vehicles is driven by the high fuel prices and supply chain issues. It is definitely NOT the ideal time to buy a new vehicle. My timing, therefore, is not the best. But because the car I've been driving, a 2007 Mercedes Benz C230 , has started showing signs of ageing, my parents and I decided that we need to get a new vehicle. I wish I could have held on a bit longer and waited for vehicle prices to go down (as supply eased), but I couldn't handle the risk of driving a faulty vehicle with my son as my passenger.  And so the search for a new vehicle began. Based on my experience, I'm writing down five tips to snag the car you've been dreaming about in a sellers' market. #1 Determine your credit score. This may not be universally applicable. For instance, I didn't have a "credit score" when I was buying my first car in the Philippi...

"Duty, Honour, Country"... They are your rallying point to build courage when courage seems to fail, to regain faith when there seems to be little cause for faith, to create hope when hope becomes forlorn. – General Douglas MacArthur, 1962 Back when I was studying at the University of the Philippines Los Baños, I kept seeing these three words on the university's bluebooks. Three short words that remind students not to cheat during their examinations. I didn't know where the phrase originated until I read an article featuring General Douglas MacArthur's farewell speech in West Point; if I'm not mistaken, this article was in an old issue of National Geographic. The three words resonated in my head once again when I learned that Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom had died on September 8th this year, at 96 years old. She gave a sense of continuity and stability to her realms; she was an image of unity and national identity. The Royal Family boosted the moral...

Sometimes it’s not in our power to choose just what we keep and what we lose. And those who can’t see beyond the cost should consider this tale and what was lost. It ought to sway even a doubting Thomas: Better to lose your purse and keep your promise!” - Robert Browning, "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" A glockenspiel clock is a mechanical clock that, during certain times of the day, showcases a set of figurines that reenact scenes from a fairy tale while bells (e.g., carillon) play some really nice, soothing music. When I was in Switzerland , I was determined to see one; only to learn that I was in the wrong country.  (The Rathaus-Glockenspiel, which I saw on the telly when I was a kid, is located in Germany.) Seven years after my Swiss adventure, I found myself in a German settlement in Michigan called Frankenmuth. The city's vibe reminded me of  Solvang, CA  because of the touristy feel and the architecture. While checking out the Bavarian Inn, I learned that there'...

Daddy and I decided that it would be much better for us if either of us drove rather than Ninang Trining (we're more experienced with long drives than her... and driving with a baby too). It's supposed to be a four-hour non-stop trip north from Troy to St Ignace but I opted to have a few stops along the way so we could all stretch our legs and allow my son some wiggle time and allow for diaper changes. I estimated that our trip would be about six hours long with these breaks. Naturally, my first order of business was to install my son's Clek Foonf into Ninang Trining's SUV. It was an easy installation because I'm already used to doing seatbelt installations and the lock-off mechanism of the Foonf is very convenient. I didn't expect that each time my son had to go on it, I had to check if the seatbelt was still in place. With three people riding in the same row, detaching the wrong seatbelt is easy. View this post on Instagram A post shar...

During my family's trip to Michigan, we had the opportunity to visit Mackinac Island, one of the USA's "summer colonies" that have what Filipinos call  bahay bakasyunan . Mackinac Island is found where Lake Huron and Lake Michigan meet (at the Straits of Mackinac). These lakes are members of the Laurentian Great Lakes. Ninang Trining really wanted us to see Mackinac Island and after a day of touring the island, I can understand why. It is steeped in history pre-dating the existence of the USA, has beautiful architecture and landscapes, and provides a glimpse at what life must be like when motor vehicles haven't dominated the roads. The first European settlers were fur traders and Catholic missionaries. In this way, the Europeans built strong relationships with the indigenous peoples who arrived on the island before the Europeans did. Back in 18th century, the French and the British colonials empires were vying for territory; thus, both empires built forts. Fort Ma...

Tull Lake is a man-made lake in the White Lake Charter Township in Michigan. A day after Ninang Trining's birthday , we drove over to visit Kuya Lemuel and Ate Adora. They have a house by this lake and invited us Californians over to experience riding a pontoon around the lake. Their house is a back split-level home. From the front, the house seemed to have one level. However, the backyard is sloping, with outdoor stairs from the deck leading to the lake on one side, and a lower level visible on another. The deck is equipped with lounge chairs. Mommy certainly had a field day relaxing on the deck. The backyard was huge! My son found a patch of garden soil very interesting and spent a good hour there. He had fun putting soil into a toy bus that we discovered during our exploration of the backyard. In the process, he also smeared soil all over his face and clothes; but no matter because he had such a wonderful time playing. The highlight of our visit was the boat ride around Tull Lak...