Congratulations to the following ladies for winning their respective titles in the recently concluded Miss Earth 2009:
Miss Earth 2009
Larissa Ramos (Brazil)
Miss Air 2009
Sandra Seifert (Philippines)
Miss Water 2009
Jessica Barboza (Venezuela)
Miss Fire 2009
Alejandra Echevarria (Spain)
Aside for Ms. Philippines, I was also rooting for Miss Spain because of her stunningly gorgeous face (see above photo). I think though that Miss Brazil is rather charming. I like the way her face lit up in the photo of hers above. Brazil, Spain and Venezuela. Looks like the Latinas “conquered” the “Earth”. Would have wanted to see a “colored beauty” upstage wearing one of the crowns though. I thought Miss Martinique had it but well, I ain’t a judge. Congratulations girls!
No. Efren “Bata” Reyes did not bring home another billiard cup, but, a different Efren did. The Filipino “pushcart educator”, Efren “Kuya F!” Peñaflorida Jr. was recently awarded “CNN Hero of the Year” for 2009 for his advocacy to bring education to out-of-school youth in slum areas of Cavite. His heartwarming and tear-jerking story of how a once out-of-school youth himself fought poverty, illiteracy and the influence of the ills of the society struggled to bring education and health-awareness to children in slum areas inspired millions around the globe to vote for him to name him CNN Hero of the Year. Kuya F! was given a standing ovation while the song “Hero” by Mariah Carey played at the background at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood last November 21.
“Thank you. Our planet is filled with heroes: young and old, rich and poor, men, women of different colors, shapes and sizes. We are one great tapestry. Each person has a hidden hero within. You just have to look inside you and search him in your heart and be the hero to the next ones in need. So to each and every person inside this theater, to those watching at home: the hero in you is waiting to be unleashed. Serve. Serve well. Serve others above yourself and be happy to serve. As I aways tell my co-volunteers at Dynamic Teen Company at Club 8586 Inc.: You are the change that you dream as I am the change that I dream and collectively we are the change that this world needs to be. Mabuhay!” Kuya F! delivered his “thank you” speech in between pauses. Watch the announcement of winner below (courtesy of CNN.com.)
Congrats to Efren Peñaflorida Jr. and to all the unsung heroes of everyday life. Mabuhay! =)
One of my grade school classmates gave birth to a wonderful baby girl. I cried in disbelief when I learned what she named her: Sofia. Nooo. Another Sofia! What’s with the name? This new baby Sofia is the fourth – yep, you read that right – fourth child named Sophia/Sofia among my circle of friends in the last three years. No. I am not exactly antagonistic but I just couldn’t help but wonder why of all names, my friends end up choosing Sofia all at the same time. What’s even queerer? Two of the baby Sofia’s/Sophia’s were named Sophia Angela. Uh-huh. So much for coincidence. This must be stopped! I’ll probably go crazy if I hear of another baby named Sophia within my circle. One thing’s for sure. I won’t be naming mine Sophia anytime in the future! LOL. Shall I start looking for baby names in a free web directory soon? =P
Accreditation brings about the paranoia in everyone. Hidden psychiatric disorders are unearthed as people try to please the gods aka accreditors/inspectors in an attempt to show they live in accordance to their rules and set standards. I remember how my grade school and high school alma mater had put so much pressure in everyone - from janitors, student body and the administrators during the time of ISO accreditation (and re-accreditation). Like a traumatic experience being buried to the subconscious, I hardly could recall the nitty-gritty details of those days but I remember how I hated it - HATED THE PHONINESS that surrounded it. I thought I wouldn’t experience those days again but hell I was wrong.
Today, everyone in the hospital is on their toes, anxiety-ridden and with fingers-crossed that they won’t encounter the gods of JCIA accreditation. Everyone is out putting their best feet forward to please them. It’s funny how things around me now aren’t what they used to be. Areas which were normally untidy are squeaky clean. There are no busted lights around and suddenly everything is working in perfect order. I bet if there’s a need for cattle supplies, it’s gonna be available in a snap of a finger. No, at this time, you can’t make any mistake… at least for the next few days until this hell of a JCIA week is over.
Poor Psych rotators. Looks like we’ll be getting more Psychiatric referral soon.
I have not yet sent Ricardo for repair. Yep. It’s been months since my trusty Sony Ericsson Walkman Phone died and deserted the face of the Earth. Blame it on my busy schedule and the lack of transportation (read: car), poor Ricardo remains to be a useless piece of orange metal in my room. Maybe you’re wondering how I’m getting by without a phone. Truth is I can’t. So I begged Bryan to lend me his old Motorola V6Maxx which we bought early last year. My mom also lent me my younger brother’s old Nokia to use with my Sun simcard for hospital use. Unfortunately, Bryan’s V6 already looks like a piece of crap (sorry Bee) and I realized my brother’s phone was hydrophobic when I accidentally submerged it in a pool of water. I still use Bee’s old phone (whose 2 MP camera I accidentally broke… yep… too many accidents surround me you see) and the hand-me-down Sony Ericsson K310i which my mom bought second-hand. I feel so sorry for myself looking at all these disheveled gadgets I have in hand. I couldn’t believe I once sported a 40K-worth cellular phone. Since Christmas is less than 50 days away, I’ve decided to put up a Christmas wishlist so that everyone who’s planning to buy me something for the holidays won’t be having a hard time choosing a gift for me. (*hint* Bee *hint*)
First on my list is this:
The new Sony Ericsson Xperia!
Oh yes! I can imagine my fingers through its beautiful touch screen as I surf online to use the latest live chat software available in the web. The problem is that Sony Ericsson Xperia is priced at 30-40K in the market! OUCH! At times like this, I only wish it were the future and I’m already earning more than enough to buy me my heart’s desires! But hell. I’m stuck in the present where I’m still a struggling medical clerk. Ugh. I can already hear my heartbreaking. =(
Would have wanted to see a “colored beauty” upstage wearing one of the crowns though. I thought Miss Martinique had it but well, I ain’t a judge. Congratulations girls! 
