CHRISTMAS FEVER IS HERE!

Yes! We've all been afflicted with the Christmas fever. The streets are adorned with Holiday decors and lights, shoppers troop to the malls, Christmas songs are blasting off from stores, the nippy air is everywhere. And yes again...our wallets are flat already, bonuses are gone. Anyway, here's a video to cheer you up for the holidays!

My Own Natan-ok Forebears

Years ago, I toyed with the idea of making a documentary of truly great locals in our city. I noticed that some streets in Laoag were named after people who were heroes or noble in their own right. But there was one name I thought didn't bear much to be honored with a street name.Maybe politics worked that out. Then it struck me...why haven't they thought of my grandpa who has authored books on ichthyology, traveled the globe and served this country as a scientist? He graduated from the University of Washington and is in the list of American Men of Science but opted to come back to his home country to work at the Bureau of Fisheries until he retired and succumbed to cancer. I still remember how the front page of Manila Bulletin appeared with the headline (not the banner head though)FILIPINO SCIENTIST DIES. I felt so proud of him. I still feel the same. While writing this post, memories are running in my mind. I treasure the years I grew up under his and Grandma's care in Project 6, Q.C. I still remember the Sundays he'd hold my tiny hand as we all entered the church. He would be in his suit. On weekends, we'd both trim the yard with his small grass mower, catch fish from the big fishpond at the backyard and just laze around with the family in the little bahay kubo he put up just beside the pond. That was his way of letting us have a taste of Ilocos right behind the main house which was a modern concrete structure that looked like all the houses on Forestry Street in Vasra Village. Oh how I love the task they gave me...that of waiting at the gate for the milk lady to deliver 3 bottles of fresh milk in the morning. More memories are flooding me now: bedtime stories, evening prayers which he and Grandma led ("Now I lay me down to sleep,..."), sumptuous meals( a mix of American and Ilocano), occasional servings of large "boogie" (fish eggs or caviar),big tortoise shells and stuffed fish as wall decors, books and television (kids in the hood would come and watch cartoons in the house). I can mentally see him in his chair and me lying in my small bed while watching "Flintstones" and "Mission Impossible". He had a way of "forcing" us to taste anything new or weird to our taste. He'd say, "You don't know good food!" Well, he is Natan-ok to me and I think he deserves to have a street in Laoag City to be named after him. You might think this is all coming from an airhead but I dare you to google his name GUILLERMO J. BLANCO and maybe add the word FISHERIES or ICHTHYOLOGY and you'll know I have a point. Another name comes to mind: CELESTINO PERALTA. He served as Mayor of Laoag City and was also an author of a Spanish book with Ilocano translation. At least, he has a street named after him already. And more: TORIBIO PERALTA,former Governor of Ilocos Norte and ELVIRO PERALTA (Judge and father of Supreme Court Justice Diosdado Peralta. Toribio and Elviro are sons of Celestino. The person who was truly proud of the aforementioned names was my dad, RUBEN PERALTA BLANCO. He was also a politician who served Laoag City as Councilor for 3 terms. Dad took after his father Guillermo Blanco's fortitude and no-nonsense attitude. Dad stood against the corrupt politicians. He also took after his grandpa Celestino Peralta's adherence to law. His mom (ROSARIO PERALTA and Don Celestino's only daughter) was a teacher. I am humbled by what my forebears have achieved. Their legacy gives me inspiration. I just pray that our generation can keep up with their being truly NATAN-OK.

Video Blogging Mania

November 2011 took much of my time uploading 2 video blogs for a national competition sponsored by Smart. I formed my team late of August this year and named it INCAT Natan-ok ("Natan-ok" means great or eminent). The 2 blogs aim to let the world know about Ilocano culture and famous personages in Ilocos Norte.

The 2 blogs can be followed thru these links:
http://resurrectingtheilocanospirit.wordpress.com and http://tracingthewaytoilocanogreatness.blogspot.com.

All videos of my team INCAT Natan-ok can be viewed in these blogs or on youtube.

The research we did including the travels and sleepless nights of uploading and editing are enough reason for me to proudly share these blogs with you.

Attending a film workshop with famous directors such as Brillante Mendoza and Leo Martinez added richly to the project.

Say "SHAM-SEE" (SHAMCEY)

• I was so irked with the stupid pronunciation of Supsup's first name by TV newscasters. Tiangco and the rest kept on saying "sham-sey" instead of "sham-see" for SHAMCEY. Can you stand these people when they say "stan-ley" for Stanley, "hen-ley" for Henley, "man-ley" for Manley??? Yuck! Send them to Speech School !

SkyBlue's Activity Hub: Birthday Flashes

SkyBlue's Activity Hub: Birthday Flashes: Today, I give God all the praise and honor for the gift of life. I thank Him for always covering me with good health, protection and provis...

YOUNG PEOPLE NOWADAYS DO NOT REALIZE THAT THEY WILL BE SPENDING MORE TIME BEING DEAD THAN ALIVE.

I don't see why young people nowadays do not realize that they will be spending more time being dead than alive. Why are they so in a hurry to die? Why do they love to kill themselves slowly with booze, smoke and drugs? They will die anyway...but why rush? Just live , LIVE now! Live and enjoy being healthy. God lent everyone time to live on earth. We all live on borrowed time. Saying "march to your own drum" is utterly nonsense. March to God's drum because every beat that we follow is HIS!

I am saying this because SOME of the youth that I see and read about everyday are aimlessly heading towards destruction. Those who will attempt to negate are probably guilty.

Johnny Moon: Modern-day Juan Luna

"Looking for Johnny Moon" poster

Director Mark Meily and SkyBlue

Director Soxy Topacio and SkyBlue

Johnny Moon! What a name for a modern-day Juan Luna.
Around 200 participants flocked to Plaza del Norte last July 14-16 to seek for Johnny Moon, thus, the festival's theme:"Looking for Johnny Moon".

It was a delightful search for me and my groupmates ( Gyver, Jonathan and Dondi) because we were able to come up with a short film ("Bubble Gum") as output in Scriptwriting and Directing. The script I wrote won first place. Thanks to our mentors, Director Soxy Topacio and Mark Meily. Until now, the realization of having the creative remnants of Juan Luna in all the participants makes me beam with pride. Juan Luna lives and has resurfaced as Johnny Moon. He has crept into new fields like cinematography, digital photography and animation too.

I can say...I'm Johnny Moon!

Looking for Johnny Moon Found New Juan Lunas

I was delighted to chance upon my blog "SkyBlue's Activity Hub" on the fan page of the Provincial Government of Ilocos Norte. I'm in the loop! Great! Check it out!
The first Ilocos Norte Creative Media Arts Festival dubbed as "Looking for Johnny Moon" was held at the Plaza del Norte last July 14-16, 2011. The said festival was attended by educators, writers, budding film makers and artists from DLSU-College of St. Benilde, University of Baguio, SLU-Baguio, schools from Ilocandia like MMSU, DWCL, INCAT, INNHS, ISALA, Savior's Academy and HSAL.
Resource speakers were Soxy Topacio and Mark Meily, both stage and film directors.
I was the lone representative of INCAT on the first day when Scriptwriting was tackled by Soxy Topacio and Directing was shared by Mark Meily. A tour of the different tourist spots in Ilocos was included to enable the workshop participants to get inspiration for the output, a short film shot on the same day.
I joined 3 young gentlemen, one of them was my actor for INCAT Theater Arts Guild of which I've been an Adviser for years now. We made a short movie, "Bubble Gum". I made the script. The 4 of us acted in the film, one was the camera man, and one was assigned as director.
"Bubble Gum" bested other entries in the short fim category. We won first place with a cash prize of 3k.
"Looking for Johnny Moon" paved the way for discovering new talents in digital photography and animation too.
Awarding of prizes was held in a most fitting place, the house of Juan Luna (Johnny Moon) in Badoc, Ilocos Norte.
The new breed of Juan Lunas will inspire others who have what it takes to be a famous Media Arts enthusiast.
I believe there's a Johnny Moon in each of us. There's a Johnny Moon in every gathering or group. There's a Johnny Moon in every Ilocano.

ENROL at SkyBlue Talent Center this Summer!

Don't let bad grammar and poor pronunciation get in the way. Improve your communication skills. Prepare for a good career.
Enrol now at SkyBlue Talent Center. Take the following English language courses:
Basic Grammar and Spelling
Speech Improvement
Radio Broadcasting
IELTS

Enlist now!!! Classes will start on April 12 at INCAT, RA-1, 8:00-9:00 AM, Monday to Friday.
Contact SkyBlue !

ENROL at SkyBlue Talent Center this Summer !

ENROL at SkyBlue Talent Center this Summer!

Don't let bad grammar and poor pronunciation get in the way. Improve your communication skills. Be ready for a good career.

Enrol at SkyBlue Talent Center now! Take the following English language courses:
Basic grammar and Spelling

Speech Improvement

Radio Broadcasting

IELTS

Classes will start on April 12 at INCAT, RA-1. 8:00-9:00 AM, Monday to Friday.

ENLIST NOW! Limited seats only.

Contact SkyBlue at 09279993826.

WHO RAPED CHELSEA?

Chelsea is a sweetheart. She's always happy to see me when I get home. She lets Tony and I know when she's hungry or full. Chelsea grew up to be friendly...sometimes, too friendly that she allows even the waterboy to caress her hair everytime he delivers bottled water on weekends. Man, when she walks on the street, she attracts attention. She's beautiful!

Four days ago, I got suspicious. Chelsea suddenly gained weight. She just seemed different. She slept a lot and seldom played. But she suddenly became voracious. She could finish two servings and drank a lot of water. Then... I saw her tits. They were more pronounced and seemed swollen! She must be pregnant! Horrors!!! Who raped our Chelsea? Who must have sneaked into our place to touch our baby? I hope it's not that diminutive ugly mongrel my brother keeps. But, someone must have privily taken Chelsea to meet up with a mate unbeknown to us!

After some moments of guessing mixed with a li'l anger and unpleasant surprise, Tony and I finally gave up and took steps for Chelsea's sake. So now, we're getting ready for her babies ( I hope she'd have at least 4 ). We are on the clock waiting for the birthing time. I am thinking of names to give and scouting for a new camera to take pictures of the first sight of the newborns. I'm also printing cute birth certificates for the newbies.

My, my, my. I can't believe we'd be having new pups very soon. Yup, Chelsea is our beloved German Shepherd.

Until now, it's still a mystery who dated our Chelsea.

Who raped Chelsea!??!!

Valentine Date

I had a Valentine dinner with my Mom at Asian Grill. Just the two of us. I picked her up from church. Mom was gorgeous in her red dress, red pumps and black and red purse. I was in a red blouse, black pants and red flats. Hahaha, I thought we were overdressed in red but I found out later that there were many others who wore red too. It was good to listen to Mom recall fun times and enjoy the food.

I deemed it wise to keep Mom company on Valentine's Day so she won't feel too lonely due to Dad's absence.

Dad must have been smiling while watching her two ladies enjoy a quiet dinner on Heart's Day.

WE'RE ON OUR 17TH YEAR!!!

Yup, we're celebrating our 17th wedding anniversary this month. Thank God, our relationship is strong and it gets stronger every day. We celebrate on the 2nd of Feb. for our civil wedding and on the 18th for our Christian church wedding. In between, there's Valentine's Day! February is really LOVE MONTH for me and my husband.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!