What can I say? 2008 is an another wonderful year! I am so grateful for every good things that happened in my life. I am happy that --
* My daughter got casted in a movie, Gentlemen Broncos, earlier this year. * She became SAG-eligible. * She got invited to meet a prestigious LA casting agent. * My part-time businesses are booming despite of the recession. * I met many new good friends. In fact, one of them became my bestest friend!! * And many good things that happened each and everyday of 2008.
This is one of the best Supernatural episodes I've seen! And if you like Jensen Ackles, you'll love this outtake where he lipsync'ed "Eye of the Tiger" with charm! ROTFL!
Couple of days ago, I was waiting for Jizelle to finish her singing class. While I was sitting outside her classroom texting my very best friend, a gentleman in his early 80s came out of his office and joked that I needed a permission to sit on his couch. Then he asked if I was waiting for my turn to sing. I told him that I was actually waiting for my teenage daughter. He looked at me intently and said, "You have a teenage daughter? You don't look old enough to have one." I laughed and I told him that I'm already 42. He looked shock and asked, "What? You're 42? You're kidding, right?" I told him I wasn't. He, then, responded, "You don't look 42. You look like you're only 25! What's your secret?"
I didn't really know what to tell him, but I said, "Thank you! I'm quite flattered!" Many of you (my friends) have asked me the same questions--my secrets of looking young & staying slender--weighing only 104 lbs. to be exact, at the age of 42.
I don't have secrets per se. All I can tell you is to watch your calories intake and exercise. I don't do a lot of workout myself, except sit ups and ballroom dancing.
I don't have any vices either, specifically smoking. Sure, smoking can keep you from gaining weight because nicotine in cigarettes acts as an appetite suppressant, but it can accelerate the normal aging process of your skin, contributing to wrinkles. These skin changes may occur after only 10 years of smoking and are irreversible. So what's the beauty in that? You're slender yet you look like a grandma at 40!
I know it sounds simple ... but it does take a lot of self-discipline. So, that's it! That's my "secret!" :)
Today, I left work early because I had an appointment with my doctor. I don't feel sick or anything like that, but at 42, I think it's wise to have an annual visit with him.
As usual, waiting for him to come in this tiny little room was boring. I read all the charts posted on the wall and had them memorized already. So I took out my phone and text-messaged my best friend who is kind enough to read (or maybe even secretly ignored or deleted) my pestering messages I'd been sending him all day. I told him I was bored, and I was hoping that he'd reply back so the boredom will end. But no such luck for me. So I continued to read the charts half a dozen more times. LOL!
Finally, the handsome doctor came in! Yes, he is handsome. Sssshhh, don't tell my husband that 'coz he hasn't met him yet. He checked and told me that I'm perfect. Then he asked if there was anything else I wanted him to check and I told him that I was bothered by the skin tags on my neck. He checked and then laughed. He thought I was crazy that I was so concern about a few skin tags on my neck, but he offered to freeze them for me anyways.
He left the room and brought back the liquid nitrogen. Pssssst ... went the liquid nitrogen as he applied it on my neck. It made the slushy drink headache feel like a drug rush! I sat straight quickly, but then he dabbed more on again! Whoa! I thought I was seeing my whole life flashing back! Not that I'm dying or anything, it just stung like heck!
After his dabbings, I drove home still feeling the sting that had gotten worst when I turned the AC of my car on. When I got home, I went straight to the mirror and checked out my neck ... and hah! I now look like I got hickies! I'm just glad that it's a labor day weekend ... I can opt to stay indoors for 3 days!!!
Last month, a dear friend of mine told me that one of his favorite movies is "Love Actually." And as dim witted as I am, I thought he was trying to say something and didn't finish his sentence. In my mind, I was asking, "... love actually what?" waiting for him to finish his sentence, until it dawned on me that he was giving me the title of the movie he thinks I should watch! LOL.
It's a 2003 movie, I know. But hey, I'm always 5 years behind in so many things. So yesterday, I got the DVD via mail from Blockbuster. I watched, I laughed, I cried--it was indeed a great romantic movie! One of the best scenes, in my opinion, is when Mark went to see Juliet on Christmas ... without hope or agenda.
The movie, Gentlemen Broncos, is now in post-production. Fox has created a viral marketing website for its main character, Dr. Ronald Chevalier. The site's content is pretty hilarious. Check out the video below to learn the Dr. Chevalier's Art of Relaxating, or visit his site at http://www.ronaldchevalier/ for more information about his upcoming book that he "claimed" he wrote.
On May 27th and 29th, Jizelle attended Ernie Lively's Acting Workshop in Orem, Utah. According to her, it was pretty basic. So after the 2-day workshop, I didn't bother to enroll her again. I know how much she hates it if she had to do something that's not quite challenging.
On June 12th, Jizelle got invited to Ernie's extensive acting class training. According to the invitation, these classes were not open to the public and were by invitation only. That he personally selected her to be a part of these special classes!
The classes were held on June 19, 23, 26, and 30. That's right, 30th! It was my birthday, but I was at the studio waiting for Jizelle until 10:30 pm! LOL! I didn't mind a bit as long as Jizelle was having fun.
After these classes, I decided to make this her regular schedule. I enrolled her again to 3 more sessions before Ernie flew back to Los Angeles for a movie project. She learned a lot and improved a lot more in her acting skills. According to Ernie, Jizelle is ALWAYS good, and that she is a very SOLID actor. She really makes mama proud! :)
On June 21, 2008, Typhoon FengShen (Frank) hit my hometown, Iloilo, Philippines. I didn't realize how bad it was until I read the news that it caused a massive flooding in Iloilo resulting in severe damages to homes and businesses ... and death. Off the shore of San Fernando, Romblon, it capsized and sunk a ferry, MV Princess of the Stars, which had at least 860 passengers on board.
Couple of days after the typhoon, we received a call that Johnny's sister, Melyn and her family, were one of the flood victims. The flood water rose quickly and covered their 2-story home forcing her husband, Leo, and their daughter, Chryzta to climb up to their rooftop. Melyn was at work when this happened. She said she was worried sick not knowing what was happening to Leo and Chryzta. There were no communications between them for several hours causing her to worry up to the point of almost passing out.
Although they lost everything in the flood, we are thankful to the Lord that they are safe now and are doing their best to getting back to a somewhat normal life. Unfortunately, not all victims have the same stories. My classmate's father-in-law died during this ordeal due to hunger and insulin shock while marooned on his rooftop waiting for the flood water to recede.
I know, I know, you want me to feed you with more exciting stories ... but honestly, I don't have anything much to say lately other than I'd been busy at work and my mind is always tired and empty.
Anyways, this month I attended couple of shows--the Vfactory concert and Jizelle's dance recital. Both were good shows! I enjoyed them a lot.
The Vfactory's Jared Murillo is a native of Utah. His dad co-founded the Center Stage where Jizelle is having all her dance classes.
Jared was our substitute teacher in ballroom class. He is a really good dancer. He and his brother were principal dancers in High School Musical. He was also the assistant choreographer in High School Musical 2. And of course he is the boyfriend of Ashley Tisdale. Anyways, go check his and his band's sites at http://www.jaredmurillo.com/ and http://www.vfactoryonline.net/.
Yesterday, while at the set of TNT's movie "Blank Slate", most of us were sooooo bored out of our minds. After doing two scenes with Eric Stoltz and some actresses I don't recognize, everyone at the extras holding were so tired of waiting ... hoping that a crew would come in soon and call it a wrap or call us to do another scene ... anything, just anything to get out of the boredom. But instead we were told that we had to wait another 2-3 hours for the final scene! Uuugh!
So we were there sitting ... going crazy from boredom ... at least, I was going crazy -- I don't know about the others. I stood up and walked around, partly because my right foot fell asleep from too much sitting and mostly because I was bored! One background actor, Jessica, suggested that I teach her folk dancing. She stood up and I showed her some Chinese folk dance steps. Dickson stood up and joined us ... then Jaron and his wife, Kristin joined us also. Pretty soon, I was teaching them the complete choreograph of a Filipino folk dance, "Alay." Ah, dancing--what it can do to and for you. We danced away our boredom, we had our exercise, ... and most of all, we became friends that night. :)
Our trip to Hollywood on March 29-April 1 wasn't just all work ... we also had fun! :D Aside from meeting with Jizelle's talent agent, we also shopped, visited the Walk of Fame, watched superstars coming out of their limousines to attend the red (blue) carpet movie premier of Nim's Island, walked up and down Sunset Blvd., and pigged out in different restaurants. We also visited with our family in Las Vegas. We had fun there too. Oh, oh, we also spotted Joseph Gordon-Leavitt on Sunset. Check out our family pictures!
So I'm just going to skip to the good part here. Last month, Jizelle auditioned for a featured film, "Gentlemen Broncos." After 3 callbacks, she was offered a principal role--the Troll-like Girl. Anyways, it was Jizelle's first audition for a movie, so having been offered the part was very exciting for us all! March 18th--her first day at the set. Jizelle experienced what it was like to be a principal actor and not a background extra. In her own words, she wrote a lengthy email to her agent describing her experience, which I am going to share with you also. :) Hi ... this is Jizelle! I had a really fun experience at the set of Gentlemen Broncos! I had my own trailer, with a bathroom, sink, and tv XD. It also had my name on it, which felt really special. When I went to wardrobe, they dressed me up in several different outfits, and each time the lady took a picture of me. She showed the pictures to Jared, and he decided on which outfit I should wear... (and he picked a really dorky one but that's my part so I can't blame him hehe.) When I went to the makeup trailer, Jemaine was there, but I didn't recognize him... until he asked me "Are you the girl who writes about trolls?" in his really cool European accent. I said "yes" and he put his hand out for me to shake and said "Hi, I'm Jemaine" and I was like "OH OH, you're the bad guy... the ronald... che-che something guy!" Yeah, I was completely blanked out hehe. He was all "yeah I am". I was kinda surprised... how did he know I was the troll girl? I felt really special by that time hehe.
Soon, I was called to the set, and I got a ride... even though the set was like, only 20 feet away from my trailer ROTFL...
They filmed Jemaine over and over again... and he changed around his lines each time. By the 10th time, I had already memorized his lines LOL Soon, Jared approached me and told me to say a new line... which, like my mom said, "triggered a comedic line/response from Jemaine." I didn't know what he was going to say, so after I said my new line, Jemaine went on to his, and I was kinda caught by surprise... his line was HILARIOUS and I was about to explode from laughter, but luckily I didn't... til the director said "CUT" and the entire room burst with laughter LOL. Then the director declared lunchtime. After lunch, (and the tofu was DISGUSTING, let me tell ya O_O) we went back into the room, and Jemaine did his hilarious response to my new line once more... but, it took about like... 2 hours or so for him to go through his line without any mistakes, because he kept cracking up in the middle of each sentence. (Yes, it was that funny!)
When the camera got focused on me, I had to interact... with a piece of tape. Sure, I was ok with that... a piece of white tape. Yeah. How hard could that be? Until... a crew member drew a smiley face on it that had a smile of... a cat being pet by its owner for the first time in 3 months. It was difficult, because in the story, Jemaine gets angry at me, and I can't really concentrate that well on the feeling I wanted to portray because the piece of tape that I am interacting with has this really peaceful smile that just says: "I love you. You are so pretty." and you can't really feel what you want to feel when you stare at that happy piece of tape. Jemaine was right behind the piece of tape, and I could see his face/emotion a little, so sometimes my eyes kinda shift so I can see him, but then I remembered: "PIECE OF TAPE. MUST LOOK AT PIECE OF TAPE."
During the entire time I was on the set, this guy kept taking pictures of me... like, the same angle, pose, and expression, but he took pictures of it about 8 times. Sometimes, I wasn't even aware, then I'll notice about a minute later, that he was right in front of me, snapping pictures. Sometimes, he'll tell me to look someplace else, then he'll take about 10 pictures of me looking away ... it felt like you were being mugged by paparazzi. hehehe.
It was fun, and plus, the crew kept complimenting me, and so did Jemaine and Michael. They actually talk to you when you have a part, unlike when you're an extra... also, extras don't get food til lunchtime (and sometimes I have to wait til 3 pm!!) but when you have a speaking role, there's this huge table filled with precious items that entertain your taste buds... and you can eat from it... ANYTIME XD
Now I know what it's like to be on the other side of the fence... and dude, the grass on the principal side... IS DEFINITELY GREENER. :D
Tuesday, March 4th -- Jizelle and I went to a filming of a Disney Channel movie called "Hatching Pete." It was a really long day ... we headed up to Salt Lake City at 6:30 am, checked in at 7:30 am, sat around in the extras holding until about 10:00 am. Then we were called in to a school's gym. We saw 3 main actors there--Mitchell Musso, Jason Dolley, and Brian Stepanek.
Anyways, we were cheering for the "Rooster" team ... and did that till about 9:00 pm. Everybody was so bored and tired. The only consolation for us, I guess, was when Brian Stepanek posed with Jizelle for a picture. There's rule against approaching the celebrities when you're only an extra for the movie, so Brian posing with Jizelle was a treat. Aaaaaaah, the life of being a background extra ... :)
Jizelle showed me this video from YouTube.com. I think it's really funny and I'd like to share it too!
Get up now! Get up now! Get up out of bed! Wash your face, brush your teeth, comb your sleepyhead. Here's your clothes and your shoes, hear the words I said, "Get up now! Get up and make your bed!" Are you hot? Are you cold?Are you wearing that? Where's your books and your lunch and your homework at? Grab your coat and gloves and your scarf and hat. Don't forget! You gotta feed the cat. Eat your breakfast, the experts tell us it's the most important meal of all. Take your vitamins so you will grow up one day to be big and tall. Please remember the orthodontist will be seeing you at 3 today. Don't forget your piano lesson is this afternoon so you must play. Don't shovel. Chew slowly. But hurry, the bus is here. Be careful! Come back here! Did you wash behind your ears? Play outside, don't play rough, will you just play fair? Be polite, make a friend, don't forget to share. Work it out, wait your turn, never take a dare. Get along! Don't make me come down there. Clean your room, fold your clothes, put your stuff away. Make your bed, do it now, do we have all day? Were you born in a barn? Would you like some hay? Can you even hear a word I say? Answer the phone! Get off the phone! Don't sit so close, turn it down, no texting at the table. No more computer time tonight! Your iPod's my iPod if you don't listen up. Where are you going and with whom and what time do you think you're coming home? Saying thank you, please, excuse me makes you welcome everywhere you roam. You'll appreciate my wisdom someday when you're older and you're grown. Can't wait till you have a couple little children of your own. You'll thank me for the counsel I gave you so willingly. But right now I thank you not to roll your eyes at me. Close your mouth when you chew, would appreciate. Take a bite maybe two of the stuff you hate. Use your fork, do not burp or I'll set you straight. Eat the food I put upon your plate. Get an A, get the door, don't get smart with me. Get a grip, get in here, I'll count to three. Get a job, get a life, get a PHD. Get a dose of,"I don't care who started it! You're grounded until you're 36." Get your story straight and tell the truth for once, for heaven's sake. And if all your friends jumped off a cliff would you jump, too? If I've said it once, I've said at least a thousand times before. That you're too old to act this way. It must be your father's DNA. Look at me when I am talking. Stand up straighter when you walk. A place for everything and everything must be in place. Stop crying or I'll give you something real to cry about. Oh! Brush your teeth, wash your face, put your PJs on. Get in bed, get a hug, say a prayer with mom. Don't forget, I love you. And tomorrow we will do this all again because a mom's work never ends. You don't need the reason why. Because, because, because, because. I said so, I said so, I said so, I said so. I'm the mom, the mom, the mom, the mom, the mom! Ta da!
During our Fil-Am meeting yesterday, there was an excitement among officers about a Filipina being in Dance War. That we should vote for her, etc. etc. The girl is Mariel or Jessica Sarangay.
When I got home I searched and found another Dance War celebrity from Utah: Zack Wilson. No offense Mariel, but I think I'm voting for Zack ... for many reasons ... and because I'm biased :D
He lives in Saratoga Springs. I'm in American Fork. (Utah County)
He's a Mormon. I'm a Mormon.
He is a BYU Student. I'm a BYU alumni.
He is a member of BYU Young Ambassador. I was a BYU International Folk dancer.
He is a pre-med student. I graduated in Psychology.
He can sing and most of all dance! I can sing and also teach/choreograph dance.
He went to Center Stage Performing Arts Company. My daughter and I are still with Center Stage Performing Arts Company.
He is friends (& was engaged) with Julianne Hough and I'm pretty sure, Ashly del Grosso. I am friends with both.
Anyways, here is an article from Deseret News regarding Zack, etc.:
Utahn's star rising as he sings, dances on hot reality show He's making waves as he sings, dances on ABC program By Tad WalchDeseret Morning News Published: January 22, 2008
OREM — Last summer, Saratoga Springs resident Zack Wilson was touring China with the Young Ambassadors performing group from Brigham Young University. Now the hunky 25-year-old is the steamiest item on ABC message boards as a top contestant on the network's reality show "Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann," a spin-off of the smash hit "Dancing With the Stars."
Why is Wilson so hot? For one, he's been engaged not once but twice to Julianne Hough, who has won "Dancing With the Stars" not once but twice, first with Olympic gold-medal speedskater Apolo Anton Ohno and then again with Indianapolis 500 champion driver Helio Castroneves. Some fans eat up Wilson's tie to Hough, which threads right back to the Center Stage Performing Arts Studio in Orem, where Wilson and Hough both trained and where Wilson and Hough's brother, Derek, were buddies.
Others complained the link gives Wilson an unfair advantage with Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba, the judges on "Dancing With the Stars" who picked the "Dance War" contestants and are the team captains on the new show.
Wilson clearly is a favorite of both judges for his combination of singing and dancing skills. The show could have been titled "Song-and-Dance War" because it requires the performers to do both, a combination of "American Idol" and "Dancing With the Stars."
Wilson called the show his final chance to make it in show biz before moving on to dental school. "This is kinda like my last shot," Wilson said before his audition in Los Angeles, part of the show's first episode. "I just heard about this audition and wanted to give it one last shot." A few bars into "Feelin' Good," Wilson forgot the words, but the judges didn't care.
"He's got a different feeling, like a gentleman," said Tonioli, who later called Wilson "so strong, a real leading man" who could be the show's version of Justin Timberlake.
Inaba praised Wilson's "All-American appeal" and said his acrobatic dancing is done so effortlessly that "he's like a ballerina on his feet, he's so light."
Wilson's friends and family back home in Utah Valley are watching with pride.
Young Ambassadors director Randy Booth started working with Wilson when he was 3 and sang "The Little Drummer Boy" in "The Gift of Christmas" at the Promised Valley Playhouse. He had a very different role on the BYU group's tour last year.
"He was the heartthrob for all the girls in China," Booth said. "Zack's a great dancer, a really solid singer and a fun personality. He's a born leader, very charismatic, lots of fun. People are drawn to him, whether in an audience or in person, and they want to be like him."
Wilson attended Young Ambassadors workshops in junior high and high school and began working at Center Stage when he was 14, studio co-owner Alex Murillo said. "Right away we knew he was special, so we gave him more responsibility in singing and dancing, and he handled it."
Wilson served a two-year mission in Ghana and Sierra Leone for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that Booth said turned him outward toward others. Tonioli singled him out as a leader when he made Wilson the first pick for his team on "Dance War."
The show pits Tonioli's team of six against Inaba's. An audience vote based on Monday night's live performances will determine which team "won," and next week the losing team captain will have to eliminate one team member.
Tonioli is convinced that with Wilson leading his team, he has "a slick, lean, song-and-dance machine."
ABC has to be happy with the show, launched in the midst of the writers strike. The show drew 11 million viewers when it debuted Jan. 7 and 10.5 million more for the second episode on Jan. 14.
During those first two episodes, Murillo was struck by Wilson's change from long, curly hair to a short cut, a five o'clock shadow and sleeveless shirts that show off his biceps. "That's a new makeover," Murillo said, laughing. "He's just having fun. When you're having fun, you will succeed in the arts. If anyone deserves to be on stage, it's Zack Wilson. He's worked so hard and has so much talent. The world is about to find out."
Whether Wilson wins the competition, the spotlight should boost the careers of several of the contestants, Murillo said. "That show will lead them to a recording contract, an acting career or Broadway. They're showcasing both their singing and dancing skills at the same time and their stage presence. Zack's getting a chance other kids don't have."
Details about the contestants on ABC's 'Dance War'
• What it's about: The format of "Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann" is simple. Each of the two judges from "Dancing With the Stars" started with six singer-dancers on their team. The two teams compete against each other. The losing team after each performance round must eliminate one team member.
• Utah ties: Two performers on "Dance War" are from Utah. In addition to Zack Wilson, cast member Mariel is listed as being from Chicago, but she has lived and performed under the name Jessica Sarangay in Salt Lake City, an ABC spokeswoman said.
It's another ho-hum day at work. Oh sure, it's Chinese New Year and Rosi's birthday--two reasons to celebrate a little during our lunch break. But an event worth talking about was the plethora of ICE agents in our complex. Sure, we knew for awhile that the Detention facility for Homeland Security is somewhere nearby our workplace, but we never thought that they're actually next door to us!
Two big vans bearing the name "Homeland Security" pulled up our parking lot this morning; every parking stalls were full and 100s of officers were swarming the warehouse complex. "What's going on next door?," someone asked. I thought and said, "Maybe they made a raid this morning and those vans are full of illegal aliens." Little did I know that I spoke the truth. I was too busy to check CNN.com or KSL.com ... so when I got home I searched the news and I was like "Oh, wow! I was right! They did make a raid!" I wish I took a picture of the action ... but I didn't. :(
Thursday, 07 February 2008 Fifty illegal immigrants arrested at Lindon plant Grace Leong - DAILY HERALD
Universal Industrial Sales' HR director faces criminal charges More than 50 illegal immigrants working at a manufacturing plant in Lindon were taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents earlier this morning.
Universal Industrial Sales Inc., a Lindon-based maker of guardrails, bridge rails and sign structures, was charged with 10 criminal counts of harboring illegal immigrants "for commercial advantage" between January 2003 and December 2006, according to an indictment unsealed today in Salt Lake City.
The law enforcement action, conducted by more than 100 ICE agents at 8 a.m. today, affected more than half of Universal's 100-plus work force.
A second indictment, also unsealed today, charges Alejandro "Alex" Urrutia-Garcia, 39, a human resource director at Universal, with two counts of encouraging or inducing illegal aliens to stay in the United States unlawfully.
A naturalized U.S. citizen, Urruita-Garcia of Provo was arrested this morning during the raid. He faces a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison for each count. Urrutia-Garcia is scheduled for an initial appearance in federal court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge David Nuffer in Salt Lake City.
The company faces a potential maximum penalty of $500,000 in fines or twice the amount of any pecuniary gain stemming from the offense, whichever is greater, for each count. The company is scheduled to appear before U.S. District Court on Feb. 26.
"The investigation and prosecution of employers who violate our nation's immigration laws by hiring illegal workers is an important component of a comprehensive immigration strategy which involves apprehending and prosecuting those illegally in the country and those who facilitate the continued unlawful presence of such individuals," U.S. Attorney Brett L. Tolman said. "Today's action should send a clear message to employers in Utah. We expect employers to comply with immigration laws in hiring employees. Failure to comply with these laws hampers our ability to address illegal immigration issues," he said.
"While our country's immigration laws must be recognized and vigorously enforced, we understand that the individuals taken into custody today may have families who have been in the United States for lengthy periods of time. Strictly enforcing immigration laws and having compassion for the families of those involved are not mutually exclusive. We have encouraged ICE to consider and address humanitarian issues as they interview these workers and are confident they are taking steps to do so," Tolman said.
Details on the nationalities of those arrested today weren't immediately available. Workers taken into custody today on administrative immigration violations are being interviewed, photographed, fingerprinted, and processed by immigration officials. The workers are being interviewed by ICE agents and health professionals with ICE's Division of Immigration Health Services to determine if they have any medical, sole-caregiver, or other humanitarian-related issues, which could qualify them for a conditional humanitarian release.
"After they go through the administrative processing, they will be placed in Utah County and Weber County Jails until they are removed from the U.S. or appear before an immigration judge in Salt Lake to plead their case," said ICE spokesman Greg Palmore.
Family members of workers arrested in the operation today can call a toll-free hotline number to get information about the detention status and removal process. The toll-free hotline number is 1-866-341-3858.
Okay, I'm not here to promote Josh McLerran. I just want to blog my "brag" ... if you know what I mean. Josh McLerran is one of the actors in Daddy Day Camp. He served a 2-year Mormon mission in the Philippines. He mentioned in IMDB that he is fluent in several Filipino dialects, I knew instantly that he went to Visayas islands where I'm from.
And so I searched for his name in http://www.ldsmissions.net/ and found his email address. I emailed him telling him about my daughter being in the Daddy Day Camp, etc. etc. And this was his reply:
"Ay! Nami gid! Oo, sa Bacolod gid ang mission ko! Wala ko nakaagi sa imo nga Sampaguita Gardens sa Provo, pero tag-iya ka man sang Sampaguita Gardens sa Aklan, di bala? Kay nakaagi ko didto, kag nami siya kaayo! Nami gid nga nakaupod ang imo bata sa akon sa Daddy Day Camp. Extra siya? Bata sang Pinay ang lalaki ni "Lance Warner" sa film. Nami kaayo. Grabe ang kagamay sang kalibutan naton. Sige, halong kamo, kag regards gid sa imo bata!
Josh"
How cool is that! Basically he answered that he indeed went on a mission in Bacolod. He never been to Sampaguita Garden (our restaurant in Provo), but he was wondering if we owned the one in Aklan also. He also said that it was great to have my daughter in Daddy Day Camp and asked if she was an extra? And then he said that the actor that played "Lance Warner" in the movie is part Filipino. Then he said that it's cool that the world is indeed really small.
Daddy Day Camp DVD is now available! We bought 2 just for the heck of it. Hey, Jizelle is in it ... so why not, huh? :D
Anyways, get your copy now or go visit your local Blockbuster (http://www.blockbuster.com/) and rent one. I know, I know it probably has more thumbs down than up ... but just watch it ... pppppleaaaaase. ;)
My brother Erwin called to tell me that President Gordon B. Hinckley has passed away about 3 hours ago. He was 97 years old. It is a really sad news for me. President Hinckley was one of my favorite Prophets because of his exemplary life.
Quoting the LDS Newsroom, "President Hinckley was the 15th president in the 177-year history of the Church and had served as its president since 12 March 1995."
"The Church president died at his apartment in downtown Salt Lake City at 7:00 p.m. Sunday night from causes incident to age."
January 22, 2008 (Tuesday) was another day at work. It was 4:00 pm and everyone in production was in a rush to go home, as usual.
Isaac (the boss) and "Captain" Leland (the Operation Manager) were upstairs in their offices. I was in mine minding my own duties, when all of a sudden my friend/co-worker, Myrna, was flapping her arms calling my name. I looked up and I saw something bright orange glowing behind her -- a fire in our engraving office! It was engulfing the exhaust hose! I ran towards the fire and told Myrna to get the boss and Captain. But she continued to panic while trying to unhook the fire extinguisher and all the while still flapping her arms. So I told her to just go and get the boss while I unhook the fire extinguisher.
I never used a fire extinguisher before, so I really didn't know how to operate it. And I didn't have the time to stop and read the instruction either. The fire was reaching the ceiling fast. I feared that if it reached the second floor where boss and Captain were, they would be trapped because that's where the staircase is!!! So I was frantically asking myself -- "what to do, what to do?" All I know was what I saw from the movies -- pull the pin off first. I looked for the pin -- "where's the pin? where's the pin?" I found it, pulled it off and I went wild squeezing the trigger --- pzzzzzzzzzzt .... pzzzzzzzzzt ... pzzzzzzzzzt. Phew! The fire was out. And like in the movies, the hero saved the day while the rest of the crew came running in at the last minute just staring in awe. Ha ha! Anyways, Captain and boss came with Myrna looking worried and shocked. The first thing they said though was, "Look at her saving us from the fire; and she even knows how to use the fire extinguisher!" LOL!
When everyone came in to work the next day, some say I should get a red carpet treatment or a cape even! Well, I don't need a red carpet or a cape. I'm just glad that the building was saved, nobody got hurt, and most of all, I finally learned how to use a fire extinguisher and how important it is to keep two or more at your vicinity.
What can I say? 2008 is an another wonderful year! I am so grateful for every good things that happened in my life. I am happy that --
