30. I’m a movie fanatic! I could watch one movie everyday as long as the current movies screening for the entire week are all my cup of tea.
31. I’m a die hard fan of the Hardy Boys! I started reading it when I was 10 running 11.
32. I would save my weekly allowance enough to buy one Hardy Boys book per week.
33. I did not patronize Nancy Drew because I thought she was very feminine ( and I forgot that she was an exemplar of girl power!)
34. My father would buy me Hardy Boys book too from time to time. It was a Father-girl bonding at Adeners bookstore in my hometown. We would go to the second floor and browse the latest titles.
35. Everytime I feel a new, hard bound copy of a Hardy Boys book at that bookstore, I couldn’t help but wish that all would be mine!
36. Believe it or not, I would go to the City Library just to read one Hardy Boys book from cover to cover on saturday mornings because the librarian would not allow me to be a member! Something my 11 year old mind could not understand.
37. I still have my first Hardy Boys book in my parent’s home.
38. Because I normally lend my Hardy Boys book, I lost half of my collection.
39. My first romantic novel was “The Promise” by Danielle Steele. Because of a book report, I read it from cover to cover and made a summary of it too. I was in 5th Grade.
40. In first year high school, I was introduced to Sidney Sheldon books. I never owned a copy, but I almost read all of his novels because a highschool classmate had almost all of the titles.
41. After many years, I never found someone who could write as good as Sidney Sheldon until I read a Dan Brown novel- Da Vinci code- yes, the novel that took the world by storm!
42. # 41 is on the thriller part- but for haunting, disturbing and eye-opener novels, I think Mario Puzo reigns. Sometimes, I would suspect that he might be one of “them” in his The Godfather book.
43. Burials, death, real-life experiences don’t normally move me to tears.
44. It would take me days to realize the weight of the event before I would cry.
45. #44 was a good thing. It would give me time to internalize and process things and live through the grieving process well.
46. Opposite to #43 is my movie experience. One time, I watched My Bestfriend’s Wedding in the big screen with a friend. We both went out with puffy eyes with mine magnified 3x. It took me a week to get over the movie (wasn’t it supposed to be a comedy???)
47. My most embarassing moment was in grade six when our music teacher informed us that each of us will sing as part of our fourth grading grade. I practiced so hard! When it was my time to sing, I noticed my teacher bowing her head and looking at her class record. Wasn’t she supposed to watch me and nod her head agreeingly to my song?
48. I looked at my classmate, they were bowing their heads too. Later, I found out that I wasn’t singing, I was reading the lyrics in a higher pitch!
49. I did not fail that class. After all, I played the piano during rehearsals and on the day of the graduation- our alma matter song. The school didn’t have to pay the pianist they hired who happened to be my teacher (substitute of my original teacher).
50. I did not sing after #48. I liked music and music liked my fingers but never my voice!
51. And to think, I would bet everything just to be one of the madrigal singers.
52. Ofcourse, I know it’s all a wish. And it’s free to dream even in broad daylight.
53. After many years of playing for choirs, I finally shed my tone deaf ears. I can sing a tune to my delight! But, as any musician would notice, mine is just ordinary. Ordinary or like Whitney Houston, I was just overjoyed to finally get the tune right.
54. To sing in public ? or before a class? never again! I know my limits as well as I know that a cat will always be a cat and will never transform into a dog.
55. I was thin most of my life. I never knew now how much until a male classmate in highschool remarked that he could almost see my veins popping out of my thin face.
56. I heard it all, I was called a walking bamboo, a pole, everything to demean my thin frame.
57. I vowed on my second year, that I would be thin, no more!
58. I ate and ate and ate. Finally, my efforts showed- with my thin frame putting on flesh.
59. My classmate never teased me again.
60. My weirdest experience with a guy was during my early 20s. I dumped him after courting me and giving me two weeks to “think things over.” I told him that it’s not necessary anymore for me to think. I kindly told him that I’m not interested. He answered by telling me that” abi ni nimo bin, ge sugo ra man ko ni Heavenly Father na pangulitawhan ka. Dili taman ka choice. Kung ikaw daw bi ignon sa Ginoo na kana ang pangulitawhan maski dili nimo gusto, syempre sundon giyod nimo ang Ginoo, di ba?”
61. With great difficulty, I had to stop myself from laughing.
62. I later learned that he was still under “medications.”
63. The experience was at par with a guy who follows me anywhere in high school. I had to hide under lunch tables, ran 500 meters to my home because he was following me, allow him to take my blank Filipino notebook just to stop him from asking endlessly to borrow any of my notebooks, or hide my face while playing the piano because he is sketching my face.
64. The consequences of my acts? He gave me many loveletters gone to oblivion except for the post script telling me: “You bud character.” I know he meant that I was mean and bad because I later received a drawing from him of a person with a tagline- ”You repent.“
65. I easily miss people. I miss my high school friends, my college and post grad friends and ofcourse my family.
66. I lived in Manila for almost 2 years to earn a master’s degree in Health Social Science. It is an intermarriage between Health and Social Science. We study the social aspect of health. For example, we study why anti- TB moves by the government and NGO are succesful or otherwise.
67. I went there( De La Salle Univeristy) with 9 others to study on a Ford Foundation full scholarship grant.
68. I taught in a university at home for almost 6 years, 3 years straight, then graduate studies and back again for 2 and a half years.
69. I too had an experience of what Manila flood is.
70. Once, we went to SM Manila to buy our groceries. It rained earlier. Surprises of surprises, we were met by knee deep and waist deep flood after going down from the train station.
71. We rode a side-car (i.e. trisikad in my place- a bike with a welded metal on its side that can carry 4 more people).
72. It felt like riding on a boat except that the water is murkier.
73. The food in Manila is, as expected, very expensive. A marang ( a native seasonal fruit in Mindanao with seeds surrounded by succulent fleshy, sweet cover) costs P105! Sevent times more expensive.
74. I was proud to say that I was never duped by a taxi driver in Manila until my ride to the airport after finishing my master’s studies. Because of the driver who drove me towards the airport taking the longest road, I missed my plane home! Plus, he charged me an exorbitant fee. I rode the first trip the following morning.
75. Arriving home, I went back to teach and had so many things on mind. My mother advised me to stay put and get married.
76. I told her that the farthest thing in my mind is to settle down.
77. So I went about my life teaching and doing research for Philippines Health Social Science Association and the university I am employed.
78. One training took me to Zamboanga City. We were treated to a tour of the city, and sumptous buffet! Large crabs, tasty delicacies and a fruit shake that was to die for.
79. I went back to Manila to present a paper and attend a research forum. I have 4 research papers published regionally and nationally.
80. On summer of 2004, my family went to Enchanted kingdom. It was my first time to ride a roller coaster. It was dizzying!
81. Looking back on # 75 and 756, I believe now that she is right.
82. I have a beautiful ( each mom’s child is beautiful), adorable little girl who just turned 8 months.
83. She was born three weeks ahead of schedule. I was due on August 18, but gave birth on July 27.
84. Early in the pregnancy, I had threatened abortion and had to do full bed rest for almost two months.
85. Danielle was so thin, she was just 2.046 grams. Because she was a low birthweight baby, she had to stay in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) for one week. She had intravenous lines attached to her hands then feet, one at a time. It was enough to break any mother’s heart.
86. Her blood type was different from mine. I am type O while she is type A (from her father). Because of that, she developed jaundice and had to undergo phototherapy too.
87. I didn’t experience labor pains until I was about to be induced to give birth.
88. My water bag broke at 7:00 in the morning. I was preparing to go to school to teach ( I would leave in the next two weeks yet). I was frantic because my hubby was not with me at that time.
89. At 10:30, I began to experience slight labor pain. I was given an I.V. and oxytocin to hasten the labor and avoid dry labor.
90. I gave birth at 1:00 PM. I was sedated but awake during the whole excruciating, painful birthing experience.
91. Danielle’s cord coiled around her neck explaining the slowing of her heart beat from 160 plus to 95 when she was about to go out. Thankfully, she was small enough to survive.
92. I met my hubby in Church. We were friends for four years before getting married.
93. Before my hubby, I broke off a relationship with someone from manila. That guy from Manila flew to CDO and beg me to marry him after I ended our relationship.
94. I told him that I made up my mind to marry my hubby.
95. I had no regrets on marrying my hubby who adores and loves danielle and me.
96. I named my daughter from my favorite Bible prophet- Daniel and Abish- from another holy scripture ( I believe in God and believes that the best way to learn more about God is to follow his example).
97. I spend most of my time at home taking care of danielle, watching her educational videos (brainy baby) together.
98. Sometimes, I long to go back to work but whenever I see my daughter, I know that I made the right choice to stay at home for the moment.
99. Yes, I’ll go back to work when she gets older.
100. Thank you for taking the time to read all these 
