When Fire Gets You Hired

Once upon a cold December morn, our local fire department had a parade which passed by our street. On their fire truck was a costumed Santa, waving at the kids who happened to lay eyes on him. I’m not a kid, but I was one of those who happened to be at our front lawn when they passed by, sirens wailing and all.

One of the firefighters, thinking I was a kid because of my short stature, went down from the truck, crossed our grassy lawn, and handed me two candy canes. At that moment, I became a kid—the schoolgirl type, with a silly schoolgirl crush on the young firefighter bearing peppermint sweets.

I’ve long admired firefighters even way before that. The tragic story of 9/11 made me regard the FDNY with solemn respect.

I was ignorant about firefighters in general until I found out that one can earn Fire Service Degrees online. Education has graduated into cyberspace that you can study in the comfort of your own home with online schools such as Lewis University Online.

I do know that firemen don't just respond to burning buildings, but other emergencies as well such as medical ones. That's why Lewis University Online's fire degree course offers subjects such as "Administration of Emergency Medical Services." And since everything we do in life has a legal aspect to it, there's also "Legal Aspects of Fire Service Management." Their online course leads to a Bachelor of Arts in Fire Service Administration which can open many doors for a fulfilling career.

Online education has many advantages for the workaholic who barely has time for his family. The computer now becomes a virtual classroom which doesn't require you to raise your hand just to go to the bathroom.

If you have a burning passion for the firefighting profession, this just may be the right direction!

That Was It

Michael Jackson's "This Is It" was supposed to be his last swan song of a concert, but it turned out to be too ominous of his own demise. Kenny Ortega, the creative force behind this would-be spectacular concert, had the brilliant foresight of recording every phase of the rehearsals, which later became this docu-movie commemorating the "King of Pop."

True to his larger-than-life popstar persona, Michael Jackson's concert would have boasted over-the-edge technological and audiovisual tricks never before attempted in on-stage entertainment. They've updated the thrill capacity of the "Thriller" zombies and added a 3D twist. "Smooth Criminal" became even more silky smooth. It was like Broadway with an MTV vibe and lots of Michael Jackson magic dust.

As every familiar Michael Jackson hit was rehearsed, one can't help but lament over his loss all over again. One can't also help but notice how frighteningly frail he looked, how skinny his body seemed under his loose, shiny jackets. How did he end up that way? I don't imagine him going online to purposefully search for a Medifast coupon code.

He was surrounded by talented back-up dancers who were greatly inspired by him. When they expressed their grief at the beginning of the movie, you feel their deep sense of sorrow, not just the sadness of knowing their big paycheck would be cut short. This was the man who gave them a reason to be the best they could be. Unfortunately, "This Is It" for Michael.

Swine Flew!

Chicago's Millennium Park isn't just about the Cloud Gate sculpture. When I strolled around here last September, I saw some cool art installations that were quirky and got me quizzical. Take this mutant red car with frog-like tongue suspending what looks like a gold swine and two naked people. Now that's what I call "Swine Flew!" He looks a bit tongue-tied, doesn't he?

Seeing this fun-tastic piece of art reminded me of gold bullion and gold coins--the chocolate kind, at least. Although a real gold coin wouldn't hurt either. The only coin collection I have involves the pressed souvenir pennies. The only pressed pennies I have from Chicago are from Sears Tower (which, by the way, is now called "Willis Tower!") and Navy Pier. As for the bullion, I'll buy me a billion when I hit the lotto.

Yankees Run This Town!

Just by that title alone, you already know why I have this New York (the "Empire State") map postcard for you. The Yankees just bagged their 27th World Series Championship, beating the Phillies in Game 6 with a score of 7-3. Who's their hero? Hideki "Godzilla" Matsui...MVP!

Yankees pride can't be prouder than the decorated doors of this sporting goods store in my town selling official Yankees gear:

Even Darth Vader is a Yankees fan!

The ultimate souvenir shirt:

Have you heard the remixed version of Jay-Z's song "Run This Town?" It was recently reworked to rejoice the Yankees' victory with every player's name in the lyrics! Listen to it here.

The Empire State Strikes Back!

What did I say before? Victory is sweeter with home court advantage...and how sweet it is indeed to win in the brand spankin' new Yankee Stadium! The Battle in the Bronx ended favorably for the New York Yankees tonight, yanking the World Series title (their 27th) out of the defending champions, the Phillies.

I knew Game 6 was going to be spectacular! And perhaps the Sports Illustrated magazine I saw at the doctor's office earlier was a premonition of sorts: It had pitcher Mariano Rivera on the cover (Oct. 5th issue).

Hideki (Matsui) is heaven-sent! He deserves the MVP award! And Pettitte's pitching efforts were anything but petty, fueled only by short rest.

The Empire State Building was lit in bright blue Yankees colors tonight. And people are going to be wanting to go to Mo's (Modell's) to get their official World Series shirt. This ALCS Champions shirt sure went old fast!

Gotta hook up a Bluetooth headset to start spreading the news to my uncle who's vacationing in Mexico right now. He's a big Yankees fan...a long time before I became one! Oh wait, it's midnight in Cancun right now, so I'll just send a text message.

There will be a parade in their honor this Friday in the Big Apple at 11am. Weather forecast says it's going to be a chilly 40 degrees for this big day, but the Yankees fans wouldn't mind bundling up to celebrate their baseball heroes! Mayor Bloomberg will also award the Yankees with the keys to the city--what a great honor!

Let's hear it for New Yoooooooork!

Eat, Pray, Love For All Souls

We paid respects to a family friend buried in a nearby cemetery yesterday. We plucked mums from our backyard to decorate her tombstone. Remembering the dead here in the States isn't as hectic as it is in the Philippines. The cemeteries look the same as in any other ordinary day. People are forbidden to light candles on the graves for fire safety issues.

A tradition my family observes is cooking home-made specialties as an offering to departed family members. Usually it's pancit paired with some Filipino pastry. We then take a small portion of the dishes made, put in on a plate, then arrange a table setting and make-shift altar for the souls, with lit candles and flowers. The belief is that they would come visit our home on All Soul's Day and would "partake" of the food, or at least, its "essence."

I had made (Filipino-style) spaghetti for my Nana, because it was her specialty that I had grown up loving, and my mom had made puto, or rice cake. My Nana has never known about whole grain pasta, but that's what I used for the noodles, as well as regular semolina pasta--cooked separately, of course.

Last year, just after my Nana had passed away, I slept in the basement by myself, only two doors away from the garage floor. I left the lamp light at this computer on as my night light, then tried to sleep in the couch. Not long thereafter, the lamp light turned off by itself. The basement went dark. My heart skipped a beat. I stood up to inspect the lamp and saw that it was still very much plugged in. The only reason it could have turned off was that someone switched it off. I reached for the switch to turn it back on....then decided to sleep somewhere else that night, so I switched it off.

This month would mark the first year death anniversary of my Nana. In some of my deeds, I try to be her, therefore part of her still lives on.

Vampire Costume Defined

[comic strip image from foxtrot.com]

We didn't get a vampire trick-or-treater tonight. The very first kid was Godzilla, then there was Indiana Jones whose crusade was for candy, then a boy in a Transformers costume whose head I accidentally hit with our front door. I gave him extra candy for my clumsiness.

It was rainy, it was windy, so we didn't get a lot of kids tonight compared to last year. It's not just the weather affecting this low Halloween candy-harasser turnout, but there's also Game 3 of the World Series tonight airing from Philadelphia. Parents will be wanting to be glued to their tv stands as early as possible rather than drive their kids around houses.

I honestly thought the game would be postponed altogether, but it just had a delayed start. My Halloween movie queue will have to wait.

Ghouls, Goblins, Ghosts on Parade

I watched my little cousin's Halloween parade at her school. This year, she's Lady Gaga. Her mom went "gaga" mad looking for a wig. Okay, so it's a tad too long, but they didn't want to cut the wig short. She's wearing black lipstick, too, keeping her black-and-white motif intact. Her wig's position isn't so intact, though, from walking too fast.

It's amazing how she's grown...my first Halloween photo of her was as a tiny Tinkerbell back in 2004.

Here's a videoclip from their school parade. She's not in it, though. My favorite is Rapunzel at the end, who not only wears long braided hair, but also a tower! Props to her props! Check it out!

My candy provisions for tonight for the kids: Twix (what's left of it anyway, since I've been eating from the bag since last week), Nestle Crunch, and Gummy Tongues. Halloween has already started wet this morning, but I hope it doesn't pour gremlins and goblins tonight.