Iconic Self Portrait
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My Simple Complicated Life
Iconic Self Portrait
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Posted by Michelle Langomez at 1:21 PM 4 comments
The book You Know You’re Filipino If… by Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz pays tribute to all that is Filipino. The statements started as forwarded messages on emails as a tongue-in-cheek list of quirks and traits that made Filipinos stand out in a crowd. “You know You’re Filipino If…” became popular with Pinoys in the Philippines and abroad.
The author has come up with eleven categories detailing the unmistakable characteristics that make Pinoys stand out in a crowd. It’s like a test where you have to check boxes of any statement that applies to you or you can relate to. Depending on how many items you’ve checked you get a score on how truly Pinoy you are. Let me share to you the statements that best apply to me.
Have fun getting to know what a real Filipino is.
Family Matters
Your middle name is your mother’s maiden name.
Your parents call each other “Mommy” and “Daddy.”
You have uncles and aunts named Boy, Girlie, or Baby.
You have relatives whose nicknames consist of repeated syllables, such as, Jun-Jun, Ling-Ling, and Mon-Mon.
You call the parents of your friends and your own parent’s friends “Tito” and “Tita”
You greet your elders by touching their hands to your forehead.
The prospect of sending your elderly parents to a nursing home is inconceivable.
You abide by your parents’ house rules even if you are over 18.
You live with your parents until-and at times even after-you’re married.
You think nothing about hosting a houseful of balikbayan relatives for weeks on end-and can still smile about it.
You demand that your children sing and dance to amuse your friends and relatives.
Posted by Michelle Langomez at 10:42 PM 0 comments
I was inside a cab driving around San Francisco, California with three Spanish men. One is Miguel and the two other were his friends from Spain, visiting. In a group consist of two or more nationalities conversations about your own counties are inevitable. So there I was prepared for the question “What can you tell me about the Philippines?”
Let’s rewind two years back, it was my first time here in America. I came here with my best friend, Patti, to take an international program at University of California, Berkeley, Extension. I have classmates from different parts of the world, but America. Yes! It’s quite ironic, but our teachers are Americans. Anyways, in a diverse environment like this I was force to have brief history refresher about my own country and be able to tell people of the real identity of Filipinos.
Growing up I read books in English, watch movies in English, listen to English songs, read direction and instruction in English, listen to my teachers lecture in English, English is our -second language and it is widely spoken in the Philippines. I grew up admiring anything that is American. Everybody in our class were surprised to hear us (Patti and I) speak fluent English (at least better accent as compared with our classmates). But what is a real Filipino like?
Let me quote an author, Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz, who wrote a book entitled: You know you’re Filipino If…
Survivors of a medley of colonial influences, many Filipinos were uncertain ofPerhaps this would be the best explanation I can think of when someone asks why we, Filipinos, are the way we are, everything in English and always copying something from other countries.
who and what we were. We confused ourselves and others. It seemed futile to even talk about nationhood or nationalism when we had been so hopelessly
“Coca-Colanized.”
“Perhaps it is in the company of non-Filipinos where Filipinos truly stand out.Guess you will never know what a real Filipino is until you’ve lived with them.
The last few decades have witnessed a great migration of Filipinos in search of
a better life. Even in strange lands and far from home, the indefatigable Pinoy
spirit often prevails, thanks in the great part to an optimistic outlook that is
deeply ingrained in our culture.”
Posted by Michelle Langomez at 7:55 PM 0 comments
Baler is such an isolated town. Being far away from modern ways of life, Baler is a place of refuge for tired mind, body and soul. Although in the past years it has been known to be an undeveloped place, I’ve seen Baler aim to improve its town, in terms of development in agriculture and infrastructure. There might still be a long way to go, but with dedication and determination from its people including its public servants, I know someday Baler and the whole province of Aurora will come forward from its isolation.
I have lived in this place for more than three months and I have seen the potential of the province. In our attempt to promote Baler and the whole province of Aurora we produced this video four years ago with the goal of obtaining funding from foreign countries particularly Spain.
We were successful in our goal. At present Aurora province is continuously being supported by the Spanish government.
I hope you’ll enjoy the beauty of Baler.
Posted by Michelle Langomez at 5:19 PM 0 comments
This video production is based on the insights and personal accounts of Senator Edgardo J. Angara, the principal author of the Philippine-Spanish Friendship Day law, during his trip to Spain. He visited the hometowns of the Spanish survivors during the siege of Baler. The Spanish soldiers were regarded as heroes for their act of bravery during the Spanish-American War in the Philippines.
I had a great time working on this project. The video was presented in a dinner party hosted by the then Spain's Ambassador to the Philippines, H.E. Tomas Rodriguez-Pantoja together with the other senators who co-authored the bill on Philippine-Spanish Friendship Day. After the presentaion I was congratulated by everyone. I was delighted at that time and it was a really nice experience.
Posted by Michelle Langomez at 4:38 PM 0 comments
I was proud to be a part of the first celebration of the Philippine Spanish Friendship Day in the Philippines. I have uploaded a short video presentaion that my team produced. It was shown on the debate floor before Senator Edgardo J. Angara deliver his speech informing fellow legislators on the important meaning of this certain account in the Philippine history.
It is a story of uncommon valor.
In June 1898, about fifty Spanish soldiers held out inside the stone church of Baler, refusing to surrender. Baler being so isolated from the capital city, Captain Enrique de Las Morenas y Fossi, the commander of the fifty soldiers, knew nothing about the defeat of the Spanish fleet in Cavite by Commodore George Dewey on May 1, 1898.
Refusing to believe that Spain has been defeated, the Spanish troupe continues to fight against the Filipino revolutionaries. Several times when Filipinos tried to convince the Spanish about the defeat by sending copies of newspaper announcing that the war is over. But the Spanish troupe stand firm in their decision to fight till the end, ignoring all the news and regarding it as a trick.
In September 1898 Captain Enrique de Las Morenas died of Beriberi and Lt. Saturnino Martin-Cerezo toke over the command.
In any event, on the 28th of May, 1899 there was yet another attempt to get Martin Cerezo to surrender when again, another Spanish officer appeared under a flag of truce and was turned away. Before leaving he left among other items, a copy of a Madrid newspaper which the lieutenant dismissed as bogus. However the paper contained an article in the social column concerning the upcoming wedding of a fellow officer he knew in Malaga. Since there was no way the Filipinos could have known many of the facts in the column including the name of the bride and her parents with whom he was also familiar, Martin Cerezo realized that the paper he held in his hand was genuine and that indeed Spain had lost the war.
After 337 days the Spanish troupe surrendered. As the massive door of the church opened, the trumpet of surrender was sounded and the Filipinos who laid siege to the church shouted, ‘Amigos! Amigos!’ as a total of 33 survivors filed out into the churchyard.
Then President Emilio Aguinaldo went a step further when he issued a decree in June 30, which honored the ‘uncommon valor’ of the Spanish soldiers. Aguinaldo also gave them safe conduct passes and allowed their immediate transport to Spain. This was the first official gesture of reconciliation between the Philippines and Spain after a long and bitter war.
On September 1, 1899, the thirty-three survivors, including Martin-Cerezo, arrived in Barcelona where they were received and honored as heroes.
The decree issued by President Emilio Aguinaldo on June 30th to honor the bravery of the Spanish soldiers was the basis of the passage of the law on celebrating the Philippine-Spanish Friendship Day.
By virtue of R.A. 9187, principally authored by Sen. Edgardo J. Angara, June 30 of each year is now be celebrated by the country (Philippines) as the Philippines-Spanish Friendship Day. The law essentially recognizes the friendship and shared historical and cultural values between the Philippines and Spain.
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Posted by Michelle Langomez at 3:26 PM 0 comments
If there is really one thing I would enjoy doing while working is designing power point slides. I'm a power point junkie. I use it for every project I can think of, invitation, newsletter and presentations.
These are just some of my favorite slides that I made. I hope you enjoy viewing them!
Posted by Michelle Langomez at 9:13 PM 1 comments