Wazzup, Wazzup Noel Driz

I first met Bing at…

                the U.P. College of Music, on October 28, 1988, the first UPCC rehearsal after its 1988 tour. This was way back when we were young and of very basic means, and far, far from the glamour(!) pusses we are now. Imagine: Bing and I used to go home together by bus from our UPCC rehearsals. Egay, en route to his Bayaya house, would drop us off at EDSA Quezon Ave. from where we took the JB bus (Bing's preferred bus as it went all the way through to Baclaran church) which took me to Evangelista (otherwise known as Magallanes Village), and Bing, to Baclaran from whence she took a jeepney to their house in Las Piñas. It might be hard to imagine now, but back then, only Bing's face had any shade of Mestiza (care of Ly-na)— Bing's face and neck were uncoordinated shades of brown and white back then. May I just remind you all that this was pre-glutathione, way back when the only air conditioned buses plying the route were the Love buses, which did not go beyond Ayala-Buendia, and which I was almost always too poor to be able to afford .

I remember Bing…

                 When we first met, Bing may or may not have been sporting gynormous bangs, otherwise known as a 'tsunami' and she may or may not have been wearing enormous baggy pants topped by a tight floral shirt, but that is how I picture her at our first meeting. It was just getting dark when rehearsals started at Abelardo Hall, in a second floor room atop the college library, and, as I remember, Bing was somewhere to my right. We pretended to sight-read songs from the '88 tour repertoire from music sheets to the tut-tutting of the old members. I think what initially brought us together was the fact that she went to Saint Mary's Academy (SMA) —the local sossy-ish school of the Pasay area, and I was from Southeastern College Pasay City, Philippines (the undeniably bakya school). Far apart in lifestyles (breeding???), but bound together by past geographies, and the burgeoning UPCC experience, and yes, a raw brand of humor, Bing and I kindled a friendship of a lifetime. I know Bing as a no-nonsense kind of person: she learned her parts well (I don't recall her getting into trouble for not knowing her alto parts), sang & danced wonderfully and with gusto, but made sure she didn't stick out (so as to keep out of the vizier of old members' wrath). Together, we were UPCC librarians, which meant we took care of the copying, distribution, lending (and the occasional stealing!) of music sheets. We were supposed to know how many scores there were, and made sure that all choir sections had equal/equitable share of it. We were a good team because we made sure that we almost always had enough copies for rehearsals and small-group performances, and were quick to blame clandestine thievery as the short of shortages. As our UPCC experience continued, the acme of which was our 9-month tour of Europe and North America, our friendship deepened and Bing and I, together with Egay, Paul, Meh-Ann & Adrian, became the closest of friends. Bing and I haven't seen each other for decades, but I am sure that when we do, it would be as if we've never been apart.

I’m now based in…
        Leiden, The Netherlands, with my husband, Remy, and our son, Datu. We live in a three-storey, 18th-century house on the banks of a tributary of the Rhein. We are not rich, but we live a very comfortable life, very different from the poverty which dominated my youth. 

 I came here in 1996 as part of the Dutch cast of Miss Saigon, a fact, I'm sure, surprised my friends, as it did me. Sure, I dabbled in some theater when I was in U.P., but I was not what one might call a stage enthusiast; sure I could dance a bit, but my dance training was strictly limited to the passes we had to learn for UPCC concerts and the social dance I learned in college, but it was far too deficient from the dancing that a broadway musical required. That I could sing was a given, I've been doing that for years, but I was a choir boy, so broadway show stoppers had always been in the periphery. Back then, belting was frowned upon in choral circles, and that was exactly what was required in the auditions. One thing is for sure though, my UPCC training got me through the Miss Saigon auditions hurdles. My old members trained me well: adjust, concentrate, energy to the fingertips! I'm sure if Bing did the auditions with me, she would have done the same, and, I'm also sure, she would have landed a better part. And that's the story behind my present home base. 

I’m busy with…

             getting my teaching groove back after a year-long hiatus. I am an English teacher here, but my husband and I decided that it would be best if someone stayed at home to make our son's first year here in Holland go smoothly, with him feeling really at home. I took last year off , but am back in the classroom now and loving it. I've always wanted to be a teacher (a university professor, actually, but that's yet to come), a choice that used to earn me questioning looks from my friends. They used to dissuade me from my education course, but since that had always been my calling, I persevered. Now, most of my friends are teachers.

I can cook…

            anything and everything, but I cannot bake except quick-bake brownies. I can do all the basic Pinoy fare with some flourish. I am very good at whipping up something delish out of whatever there is in the fridge and pantry. But I also own a Great Larousse Gastronomique, which I think is the greatest compendium of French recipes, so I can also cook traditional European dishes. I do my very best in cooking something out of it every once in a while to widen my range.

My closet is full of…
           skeletons, and old clothes that I hope someday to wear again. The chances of my ever getting into my snakeskin pants and favorite cowboy shirts are slim, but I am known to be a conqueror of impossible odds. I'm a polo shirt kind of guy, so a great majority of my shirts are polos. I was hip-hop for a while, and a skater for much longer. There also was a time when we only bought clothes that needed to be dry cleaned after use, but that's over now. A major clothes shopping concern now is if I can run after a 4-year old in said clothes, or if said clothes are able to camouflage lumps of fat. As for the skeletons....

Snake skin pants!

My most fave me-place is...

Barcelona. Why? Because I'm quite tall there, the weather is almost always great, the place breathes culture, the food is excellent, and you can just lose yourself wandering around the city. I associate Barcelona to carefree times, times of living dangerously, being beautiful and shopping. Life is now far from carefree for me as a parent, my beauty is now purely inward and shopping now means hours in a toy store, but Barcelona is still a comfort to the weary soul. It's not at all out of place to reminisce of times past in Barcelona, being there almost requires you to do so.

My obsession is…

literature. It consumes me, but also intimidates me. First of all, there's too much of it, every culture has its own canon, and every language has its own peculiarities. Being a teacher and student of literature can be daunting, the reading lists alone can demoralize the faint of heart. Multiply that to the three languages I read them in, and you have an idea of the enormity of the task; teaching of it is much, much more paralyzing. Secondly, literature is everywhere, so there's a big chance that whilst watching some lame film, or playing a computer game that I, purely by habit, will analyze the story line of said lame film or computer game, which will lead to me comparing it to other story lines etc., ... as I've said, I'm obsessed. Lastly, both the appeal and analyses of literature are subjective, meaning my opinion is not always valid, nor will it be important to people who are not students of mine.

Life is…

             what you make of it. I make it a point to enjoy whatever I have, wherever I am for however long something lasts. Why should I sulk when there are other things that can make me happy? If I'm not totally happy happy somewhere and I'm unhappy, it's up to me to Poor and happy is as good as rich and happy, whether it be the slums or the finest ski resort— as Tolstoy said "happy families are all alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." There are a million things that can make you upset, but why be disgruntled by things beyond your control? I always strive for more and better, but I never forget to celebrate what I already have.

Saas-Grund, Switzerland

I don't mind having more…

Money. Not that I am greedy or anything. I just want to have enough not to have to work for money so that I can do what I really want without having to feel guilty. I know money can't buy happiness, but neither does poverty.

Now, Nu is…

             Who is NU now? Bing and I met when I was just 17, and back then, all except my family called me Noel Driz. My family and near-family called me Nu. Noel, for me sounds formal, and represents the Nu of the past: insecure, mean, impatient. Noel Driz was a notorious character to some people, or so I've heard. But the fact that I became friends with Bing is proof that I wasn't all evil. I wouldn't have made it into Bing's circle of friends if I had no redeeming value. I am first to admit that back then, I wasn't the meek, enlightened person I am now , so there is some truth behind my notoriety. The only explanation to my behavior was that I was a closet case. It is a known fact that a choir is one big closet, and as is with things that want to remain hidden, I was very protective of my cover, and that sometimes outs itself in mean behavior. Luckily for me, I saw the light! Since my escape from the closet, a new Nu was born. So who is Nu now? Nu is a father and a husband, and a teacher. Nu has accepted who he is, but also knows who he can be. Also, he has made peace with his past. Nu has always been a "can do" person, but one who needs some pushing and pulling every now and then. He is now comfortable in his own skin: that he now goes by Nu shows that. Nu is easy to remember, and it encapsulates all the various traits and qualities I have. The new me, I know for sure, is a much better person than the notorious Noel Driz. I am sure there are quite a few who cannot forgive nor forget the old me, well, perhaps with good cause− I can still bring out the bitch if need be. But as I’ve said before, I have seen the light. In fact, my new friends, those who have only known me as Nu, cannot believe it when I tell them of my evil past. It took me 27 years to find the good NU, but I guess it was just the right time when I did.

Dear Bing…

              Before anything else, I would like to strangle you for giving me a set of questions that limits the gossip I can share, and thus forcing me to make singit stories about our glorious, colorful, poverty-stricken, cringe-worthy past in strange sections of my answers to your questionnaire. I didn't even get the chance to tell your readers about that time in Cantonigrós (or was it Aberdeen?) when, after a performance, we pigged out on shrimps, when afterwards, the conductor, which you & Meh-Ann were crushing on went to you and kissed your hand with its sugpo aroma and all. Admittedly, my memory is not that good, and a lot of what I claim to know comes from overheard, whispered, purely eye-contact transmitted info, mostly from Egay, but still, I would have wanted to open the Pandora’s box which is our past. But okay, thanks for asking me to dip my pen in your inkwell (parang bastos yata yun!).

                 As I've told you before, I am jealous of the fact that you are writing. Your blog makes me green with envy. I have desires of someday writing a book, hand-out, flyer or even a grocery list etc., but don't have the time or self-control to actually publish anything. Reading your blog makes me happy for you and admire you for the good job you do, and the voice you write your blog in. Congratulations on both.

                 Lastly, Bing, it’s been forever− we haven’t seen each other in decades! A real, honest to goodness reunion is really due. And while I became fat, then thin, then macho, then fat, then fatter still, you only seem to become more and more beautiful, more and more glamorous. I want to see the new Bing in person, most preferably with the complete Yellow Car Group, or better still at the 50th anniversary of the UPCC. But I know that even with oceans and continents between us, our friendship remains as strong as ever. I love you, Bing.

Labia majora,

Noel “Nu” Driz

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Nu, nu, nu...You made me laugh and cry at the same time with your witty and memory-juggling answers, my friend (with Ly-na being resurrected from the dead!). If we hadn't had met at UPCC, I'm pretty sure we would have still been friends somewhere along the road--not only because of your inner beauty and smarts, but also because you have always been true to me. Someday, we will meet again, with Egay, Paul, and Meh-Ann, and let me warn you that I'd be hugging you for an hour! And as for that book/grocery list, I'll surely be the first to order it from Amazon...

Labiaminora, Bing

P.S. OMG, thanks for this grad pic. I lost all my copies of this. Binuhay mong muli ang katawang kolehiyala ko!

Horrible Bosses

There's always something that we hate about our bosses, no matter how nice they are personally. It may be the way he replaces all his p's with f's. It may be the way he parts his hair. It may even be the way he tells corny jokes you are forced to laugh at. No matter what they do, their actions are always put on a spotlight and there is always something that we can nitpick about them.


But there are bosses who are more horribly hellish than these. They are the ones who seem to get on your nerves no matter how hard you try to be patient. I have had a share of my experience with different types of bosses. Let me tell you some of their weird personalities and demands. (Don't worry, sir/ma'am, I won't post your name here).





The Diva Boss. He was very picky in his hotel accommodation. (Aren't they all?) I remember before he entered his hotel room, I had to check the room first. Complimentary toiletries should be complete. The lights should not be dim. If they were, I asked the housekeeping if they could temporarily change the wattage in the lights. The room should have a view. There should be 3-in-1 coffee in the minibar. If all of his demands were not met, he bitched all day long to us, affecting his mood in our meeting.

The Indecisive/Not-so-Smart Boss. He could not make a single willful decision. While it is a good practice to consult your team to get their inputs on the matter, a good leader should be the one to make the analysis and make his own decision--and stand by it. My former boss always met with us and asked us what he would do. Then when something didn't work out, he was the first one to point his fingers at us.

The Tyrannical Boss. He was the smartest boss I had all right, but he was also running us like a military camp. What he said was always right. Act first, before you ask. Else, we would hear him berating someone with the foulest words our mothers told us never to use. When he arrived at the office, you could practically hear sounds of hearts beating and teeth chattering. The curious thing was, he seemed to be enjoying every second of it.

The Aloof Boss. There's such a thing as micromanagement, the one where your boss seems to check on you every minute, and there's also a thing where the boss talks to you only when there is a problem to be put out. This boss of mine belongs to the latter category. He seemed to avoid his employees like plague. Maybe he was afraid to hear complaints from us or that we would ask for a cash advance? Or maybe he couldn't express himself that well? Or maybe he really just didn't care? Whatever his reasons were, he spent more time holed up in his office than knowing what was going on with his employees. So we also avoided him just as much.

The Unreasonable Boss. When his flight was cancelled, he insisted for us to find a way he could board a plane on the same day. When the hotel was fully booked, he said we should find a way to give him his usual accommodation. When we complained that the target was too high, and the logistics budget was too low, he growled that  there was always a way to achieve our goals. 'No' was something he didn't accept as an answer. He thought he was the only one who had the right to say 'no' to us.











The Dirty Old Man Boss. I had a boss who chose beautiful girls for his staff. He was always putting some double meanings in his jokes. He was touchy feely with us (eeww!) We made sure we were always a few feet away from him when he called us in his office. 










Thank God I survived these bosses unscathed. 

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Movie Recall: Horrible Bosses (2011)

The Story: Nick hates his boss, mostly because he's expected to work from before sunrise to after sunset and his boss, Mr. Harken, calls him out for being a minute late and blackmails him so he can't quit. Dale hates his boss, Dr. Julia Harris, because she makes unwelcome sexual advances when he's about to get married. But Dale is on that pesky list of child offenders so he can't quit. Kurt actually likes his job and his boss, well, up until his boss dies and the boss's coked-out, psychopathic son takes over. But who would be crazy enough to quit their jobs in such poor economic times? Instead Nick, Dale and Kurt drunkenly and hypothetically discuss how to kill their bosses, and before they know it, they've hired a murder consultant to help them pull off the three deeds.

My Review: Although the motive of the characters to kill their bosses is immoral, the light tone of the story kind of makes me turn the blind eye and go along with their plan. After all, who wouldn’t wish to have their boss ‘eliminated’ if he/she is a dictator or a sex harasser or an embezzler? The actors are funny in a subtle way so the audience wouldn’t hate them for planning out something gruesome such as murder. The horrible bosses are actually the stars of the show: Jennifer Aniston is convincing as a sexy bitch boss, something that moviegoers will find very different from her usual roles. Kevin Spacey is believable as  a controlling martinet who is greedy of power. The most indispensable actor here is Colin Farrel. He could have been replaced with any other supporting actor, and he wouldn’t be missed. (What happened to his career anyway?)

Anyway, if only to convince the bosses out there that their days may be numbered if they don’t transform into a more humane form to their subordinates, a copy of Horrible Bosses should be accidentally slipped into their files to wake them up from their megalomania.

Trivia:

While director Seth Gordon encouraged most actors to improvise their lines in various scenes, Jennifer Aniston stated she did not need to because her lines were "beautifully choreographed".

Jennifer Aniston wore a brown wig to make her character a brunette and more oversexed, a departure from her usual lighter roles.

While Stacy talks to Dr. Harris in the dental clinic, an "elevator music" version of Gnarls Barkley plays.

The glasses worn by Jennifer Aniston at the dental clinic are custom made Oakley Radar Path.

Naomi Watts and Sarah Jessica Parker were considered to play Julia.

To promote this film, Warner Bros. Pictures Canada set up a 12-foot Voodoo doll resembling a corporate boss in downtown Montreal. People were given the chance to vent their office frustrations on the doll by stabbing and hitting it with large needles. They were also encouraged to share their best/worst boss story for the chance of winning passes to an advance screening of the film.

Sharing My Nu Moments

Aaah, those Nu moments. My UPCC days would have been less colorful without my friend Noel.

Noel was the most flamboyant (and makapal!) of all the new UPCC members in my batch. He didn’t care an iota if the old members were already annoyed at him. What mattered to him was that he was on key when he sang, he wasn’t stepping on other people’s toes, and most of all, he was having fun.

We shared a lot of fun times, Nu and I.

Take for example, my almost 2-hour commute home. My daily trip from UP to Baclaran via EDSA would have been boring without him. He had an imposing figure so I always felt protected on the bus when I was with him. But don’t be fooled by his size. He usually sat near the window, never near the aisle, because he didn’t want to give up his seat to standing women. The trip down EDSA lane had never been dull with him. I honestly always felt suddenly lonely when he alighted the bus ahead in Malibay.

On tour, the first splurge he made from his $100 cash ‘givenchy’ was a Christian Dior black eyeliner, which was the only make-up the guys used. But he sweetly made me the custodian of the eyeliner. We shared that eyeliner until mapudpod na siya.

He was also my tour bus seatmate. I don’t exactly know why he chose me, but I chose him because he was like a big fluffy teddy bear. The long bus rides through Europe became bearable because he gave me his shoulders to sleep on. And in the morning when we woke up, he was like my talking mirror. “Hoy, Benilda, maghilamos ka dun, chaka ka pag bagong gising ka!”

Somewhere in Italy. Me, Nu, and old members Arnold, Agnes and Tom. At the background is Sir Rey and Leo.

We also shared the same plight as being the lowest rank on having raised the required quota money for the tour. In other words, kami ang pinaka-poor sa batch. Hayun, we were already on the last leg of the tour, but we still had 40 cassette tapes in our luggage. But he always made it a point to carry my suitcase. Hindi niya ako pinabayaan kahit kailan.

So when I see him enjoying all the blessings he now has, in Netherlands, with loving hubby Remy, and adorable son Datu, I just smile to myself and say, “You deserve everything you have, Nu!” 

Pa-share naman dyan ulit ng givenchy, o!

Happy birthday, my dear Nu. Ilabya!

7 Things I Do to Avoid Bad Hair Days

Sometimes it feels like I'm not only having a bad hair day—it's more of like a dead hair day.

I know hair is technically dead cells, right? But there are days when the physical abuse that I do with my hair catches up on me. I ought to be going to the salon more often to have a hot oil or hair treatment, but time constraints (yeah yeah, and money too!), keep me from going to my suking hairdresser at a more regular interval. Wish ko lang nga every week, e!

Good thing that we have miracle products in bottle forms. Let met tell you the seven things I regularly subject my hair to.


1. I wash my hair at night time. You know, so I can save time drying it in the morning. What I do is shampoo it, then let conditioner or an intense treatment mask stay on my hair for an hour. I wrap my head with a shower cap, and while away the time by surfing the net, or if I'm in the mood, by doing zumba. Then I wash it.


Of all the grocery shampoo and conditioner I have tried (and believe me, I’ve tried them all!), I swear by these products to revive my straw-like hair:

I find Pantene products just blah. But these combo passed my standards. 

Though they're a little pricey than your normal Pantene variant. 

The best shampoo/conditioner combo in the market for me. 

True to the brand's promise, they make my hair a tad softer. 

My hair also smells heavenly even after a day of no shampoo. 

Like I said before, this hair treatment is the best in its price range. 

It won't hurt your pocket since it's only P99 a jar. Don't be tempted to buy Pantene intense hair treatment. They feel like your average conditioner. 

Extra tip: Don't be deceived by L'oreal Products' nice packaging. They are not as effective as Anne Curtis says they are.


Note: I usually do my shampooing every other day only, not everyday. Experts recommend not washing your hair daily, since the natural oil will be stripped. True enough, my hair looks shinier on the no-shampoo day. However, if I feel that my hair is a little bit frizzy on that day, I just do the age-old trick of tying it in a ponytail or braiding it. 

2. From the shower, I dry my hair with the use of our ancient electric fan, while I'm in front of the computer playing Words With Friends or checking my email. Again, multi-tasking is the key.


3. Before my hair becomes completely dry, I take one capsule of these Ellips Hair Vitamins and apply it, especially at the ends. I'm sometimes tempted to use two capsules when the hair feels extra dry, but I stop myself, kasi I don't want to make my hair too oily naman.

4. When it's totally dry,  and at times when I am still not contented with how it feels, I put a glob of this night creme. I find Pantene's Night Treatment does the trick. Then I sleep on it.

5. The next day, I wrap my hair with a shower cap when I take a shower, kasi sayang naman ang pinagpaguran ko the previous night if it just gets wet, di ba? Then, after I have made up my face, and dressed up, I use the straightening iron to fix my bangs and the ends of my hair. But before that, I spray the ends with Dove Heat Protectant. Kahit na rebonded and hair na ito, I still flat iron it to create an illusion of no-frizz. If my mood calls for it, I sometimes curl my hair with the iron. 

6. Then I spray my bangs with a spritz or two of this spray net. 

7. Okay, last na talaga. I mist my hair with this corrective treatment. It gives it the extra shine it needs para hindi magmukhang patay na buhok, which is what it really is.

That's it. Now do you understand why I sometimes feel so frustrated when my 'crowning glory' doesn't cooperate after all these 'orasyon'? Sa dinami-daming produktong ito, minsan, hindi pa rin achieve ang ganap. 






I give up. I'm running to the hairdresser right now!

A Homer Obsession

When my kids were younger, they always had this obsession stage on something --- Disney movies and sing-along, Spongebob and other Nickelodeon cartoons, etc. But after outgrowing those cute stuffs, they turned to a quirky, dysfunctional comedy---the Simpsons.

The head of the family, Homer, has been criticized as having a bad influence on children….but I think the absurdity of his reactions to every situation makes it a funny way to teach children how NOT to do it. You know, the old trick of reverse psychology? But this time with a touch of humor.

The kids were so fixated with the Simpsons that we have a reminder of their existence in almost every nook and cranny of our house. When you enter our living room, you see a complete cast of the Simpsons welcoming you…

A collection of action figures occupies the same space as the Hubby’s collection of original DVDs…

You see a big poster of the father and son in the kids’ bedroom…

In the master’s bedroom, some books and more action figures haunt us in our dreams…

Even our bathroom is not spared with Homer’s crass jokes…

We even named our pug Homer.

It isn’t that obvious that our family is in love with the Simpsons, huh?

Notice something in the picture?