A Journey into my Sick Psyche

I would like to say goodbye to all my friends - for about a month.

The Nintendo Wii is coming out this Sunday, and I already had to decline a Manny Pacquiao invite from my friend Eric because I am lining up, braving the gales and blizzard that is Southern California, on fight night, for a chance to score a Wii on select stores that will be releasing them at midnight.

Princess Zelda got herself in trouble again, so I have to set out for another journey to rescue that perennial damsel in distress.

Enjoy the holidays!

Nothing is more rewarding than a parent being proud of a child’s accomplishment - except maybe a very good orgasm, but I digress…

Alvin complained about a loose tooth when I picked him up from school last Monday. He claimed he "bit" the tooth — basically clenching his teeth together until the bite slid off and pushed the lower incisor off a bit, loosening it. I called the dentist to check whether it is something that we should be worried about, but since there was no pain, we did not bother going that day.

Sure enough, the wiggling tooth is not going away, so we dropped by yesterday to the dentist to have it looked at. I thought it would just a simple oh-it-looks-ok-you-can-go-now kind of job, until I realized they were going to take the damn thing off. Not only that, they will take out the tooth next to it.

As they were laying down the tools needed, Alvin spied the syringe, and asked me what it was.. I matter of factly told him it was a syringe, a word he hasn’t heard yet, but explained it as similar to what their Pediatrician uses to give them shots. He asked whether it will hurt, and I told him "yes, but just a little." The dentist was amused with my reply.

After a little discomfort, and some stiffening of the lower body, the shot was administered, and the dentist left while waiting for the area to numb. Hazel, who was in the room with us at the same time, seems depressed. I inquired and she basically said she’s scared because she does not want her teeth "to be broken." I told her she won’t have the procedure until after two more years, and that if kuya can handle it, so can she.

The dentist came back and started tugging at the loose tooth, then the next tooth after that. Hazel mood somehow changed because her face is almost on top of her brother’s trying to watch the teeth-pulling. When it was finally over, Alvin was all smiles with a gauze between his lips.

I know he’s watched his blood being collected with not even a wince (twice), but that was nothing compared to getting your gums worked by a 2 inch needle. So, Alvin, my hat’s off to you. You made your daddy proud. At the end of the day, the tooth fairy got him a dollar and a sealed copy of Mario vs Donkey Kong 2 : March of the Minis (that tooth fairy never gives out used).

Up next: Tuli!

I’ve been catching up with my favorite TV shows using a Powerbook for the entire summer. So far, I’ve completed Battlestar Galactica (2003), The Unit, Veronica Mars, and I’m currently smitten by the Gilmore Girls (and I’m not ashamed of it! Very smart writing).

Lately, I’ve been missing my Powerbook. My wife, who I love dearly, and who only used to check her emails and be done with it, can’t part ways with it. The culprit - YouTube!

Technically not YouTube, but what’s available on YouTube. She discovered that this new soap doing its rounds in the Philippines is actually available in YouTube in its entirety! Imagine my surprise when I woke up Sunday morning at 3 AM seeing her giggling by my side. Then at 4, then 5, then 6 AM. You get the idea.

The show is My Girl. According to this wiki, it’s a romantic comedy about a tour guide (poor girl) falling in love with an heir to the owner of one of Korea’s top hotel chains (rich boy), who is dating a rising Tennis star (rich girl). Thrown in the mix is another son of the hotel shareholders (rich boy #2) showing interest in the tour guide. With me so far? No? Well, neither am I.

I think it’s time to recycle that old Presario we have lying around - or get a Macbook Pro!

Alvin and Hazel are taking swimming lessons every Saturdays at L.A.C.C. I thought I’d supplement their training by taking them to a public pool about three days a week. I took them yesterday to the EG Roberts Aquatic Center. Lanie, after having some surgery done on her tooth earlier in the day, had to stay home and recuperate. I was tasked to taking care of both kids myself.

I would say the trip was pretty productive. Alvin finally got the courage to try and float without panicking, and Hazel does the same thing, albeit next to the wall. She shows me she can let go of the wall, does this "flying" motions with her hand, and gushes proudly how she can float.

After about 45 minutes of this, there was a lifeguard change. It went from an overweight guy to this hot chick! Yummy. Now my attention was divided between Alvin, Hazel, and occasional glimpses to the lifeguard, just to –you know– see if she’s doing her job properly.

Unfortunately for me (well, for the three of us), she was actually doing her job. She approached me at the edge of the pool, looked at me lustfully, and then told me that there has to be one adult per kid to supervise kids under 7. Doh! I didn’t know someone can pour cold water on you while you’re in the pool!

Back in the showers, while I was cleaning up the kids, Hazel asked me why we were kicked out.

"She does not like us Daddy?" she inquired.

I replied that she was just following the pool rules, but what I really wanted to say was…

It’s been more than four years since my last visit to Las Vegas. I remember how our previous trip was business related, and I had to sit through the priceless moment when Bill Gates experienced the pleasure of receiving a Blue Screen of Death during a presentation. Man, that was awesome!

Now it was a pleasure cruise! My bilas was in town, and we had an excuse to travel - plus the fact that my last vacation was three years ago.

We enjoyed the sights, especially the hot women flaunting their stuff, and the pleasure of excess.

We checked in around 4 PM at the Strathosphere Hotel, then we were off to our first buffet at Ballys. My wife, Boyet, and my Mom went to see Lani Misalucha after the meal, while I played and rode around the strip with Alvin and Hazel. They were patient and understanding enough when I told them that the slot machines are not for them. I promised them their time of the trip was the next day, and the anticipation was clearly visible in their eyes.

After the show, we walked the strip for the fountain show at Bellagio. Hazel sneaked through the crowd to get a view from between the railings. Her oohs and aahs heard with each burst of the fountain. Another leisurely stroll along the shops of Caesars Palace followed, then a short trip to the Bellagio gardens concluded our day.

The next day started with our Paris brunch buffet. Paris is my favorite buffet in town. Hold your horses, Vegas regulars. I’ve only been to some of them. Lanie lost her earring in the queue, but it was a fun and satisfying meal nonetheless. Up next was the trip to the top of the Eiffel tower, Vegas style (50% of the original in scale). A short trip to MGM parking lot and we were off to Gameworks for the kids.

Alvin had a blast with his Initial D arcade experience. He loves his cars, I tell you. We followed up the arcade with a trip to the M&M store next door. They have this wall of colored M&Ms that reminded me of the wall of bricks in the Lego store. Gotta love chocolate!

Our last dinner at Las Vegas was dedicated for Alvin. It’s been two days since he’s had his coveted adobo. We were given bad directions, but we made it in time for Salu-salo, a Filipino restaurant comparable to the old Jeepney Grill in Los Angeles. Alvin had three servings of his "adobo and rice."

We went back to the hotel and the kids were put to bed. Alvin refuses to sleep, even at 11 at night, so I setup Monsters, Inc. on the Powerbook for him and his Bae (gandma in Panggalatok). Lanie, Boyet and I went up to the tower to see Vegas at 1,149 feet high. Lanie stayed at the indoor viewing deck, while Boyet and I braved the outdoor deck. After about one minute on the outdoor deck, we were ushered in by the staff because of thunderstorms. Bitch ass mother nature!!

Anyway, we went down to the casino floor for some gambling. Lost about $15 bucks on this crappy 25 cent slot machine. Just my luck. I moved to a dollar slot machine, because if you’re going to lose, you might as well lose big, right? I inserted a $10 bill and hit spin. I got a cherry. Cherry equals $2. Hmmm.. nice. Next spin, another cherry. Sah-weet! Next spin, two double bars and a 10X multiplier. Three double bars equals $20, so times ten is… whoa! The machine made a sound imitation of the coins coming out of the slots, but no coins actually fell. I now had $212 in credits. I played until I lost the $12, and then cashed out. Gave the winnings to Lanie and then had a couple of drinks at the bar with Boyet before retiring for the night.. I meant day.

Sunday morning meant a mass for Boyet and my Mom. Lanie and I camped out at the IHOP restaurant just outside our hotel for our breakfast on the go. It took 40 minutes for the food to be made, and we went back to the church parking lot to finish our breakfast before the drive to Hoover Dam, our last stop.

The tour was nice, but I did not expect to leave Las Vegas at 6 PM. I apologized to Lanie because we won’t be making her part of the trip, the Outlets. I promised her I’d make a special trip to Barstow just for her.

Lanie took over the driving for about two hours, and I finally got my driving break after three days. We had dinner at a Panda restaurant situated in this dingy truck stop at Barstow. Never again…

Finally got back home about 11 at night. My bed sure looked sweet. Ahhh….

I was unfortunate to have seen A.S.A.P. yesterday. They have a new series premiering today, so all the actors of the new show were on hand to promote. They were taken a few days back into a recording studio so they have something to lip sync to for their live performances. Too bad recording yor songs ahead of time does not make it better - at least in this case.

Sad to say that I was only impressed with Angelika dela Cruz. The rest were singing off-key, I swear Simon Cowell would have done himself in had he heard it. Another batch of "singers" came on later. This time, a bunch of pre-adolescent stars. Who put these people together? It is a waste of network bandwidth.

I just wonder what’s going on in Gary Valenciano’s mind when he’s at the sidelines, listening to this. Gary V, the person who picked Eric over that sore loser because Eric sang from the heart. The sad thing is you won’t hear any comments from Gary on this one. He is a nice person, and he knows, like I know, that these kids are just there to earn a living.

I blame this load of crap on those talent scouts. Please do your job. Find some people who actually have talent. Being a good actor does not make one a great singer.

Flames are welcome…

No, not an American Idol. Far more talented, as far as I’m concerned.

Tito, Val and I lunched at Buffet City today. When we got in the restaurant, a short asian guy was ahead of us. When he turned around, we found out that it was none other than John Woo.

We politely asked to be seated close to his party, and the manager of the restaurant gladly obliged.

Tito was the closest to him, Val split a fish with him, and I just gave him a nod - which he returned. Ha!

It will be my 4th week of golf lessons tonight and I’ve got to say, I’ve gained respect for the sport. It’s really tough to compete with others, but it’s worse if you’re competing with yourself - which can be said of this sport.

My only consolation for the frustration of hitting a ball askew is the time I spend with my friends, Bai and Pewee, and the interest my son and daughter has for the sport.

I hope to get better soon. Wish me luck!