Delineating Des

Lumos Maxima! A bored muggle needed sufficient light to pore over the final Harry Potter book not once but twice, thrice or Voldy knows how many times. Yes, we can say the name now . These are lines I remember from The Deathly Hallows for reasons bubbling with toads and whiskers in my cauldron recently: 1. All's fair in love and war and this is a bit of both. - Ron Weasley 2. Mudblood and proud of it! - Hermione Granger 3. Of course it is happening in your head, but why on earth should that mean it is not real? - Albus Dumbledore to Harry 4. I think the answer is: a circle that has no beginning. - Luna Lovegood 5. We teachers are rather good in magic you know. - Minerva McGonagall 6. We did it, we bashed them, wee Potter's the one, And Voldy's gone moldy, so now let's have fun! - Peeves 7. It is a curious thing, Harry, but perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it. Those who, like you, have leadership thrust upon...

"Sanct'akaus!" "reindeer" "Bethlehem," Cj repeats after me. We have been identifying every christmas object we see on available media since December 1st. But recording these moments is the same as the past weeks. He decided to be shy around the camera. I decided to steal shots. We explored the Emporium snowmen he is convinced this snowman is Pinocchio Last week I was told Cj was having classes on christmas day. I was like "are you kidding me?" There is understandably no trace of christmas in his buddhist Dad's house. I am appalled anyway and pulled him out of there as fast as I could, still in his school clothes. We had christmas dinner at a Japanese restaurant where I managed to steal another shot and another along a parade of poinsettias Merry Christmas! Chris at the Mommy Journey hosts

Following someone's midsjudgment of moves on what was supposed to be intense ass-kicking in an Austrian divorce court, I am staying put in Thailand for the rest of 2009. To make up for the cancelled Europe trip, I made sure I had fun right where I was. And I had it in abundance. This week's T13 is a summary of activities that tie up my year: 1 - socialized at a wedding 2 - rode on a submarine 3 - checked out my son's school 4 - discovered that there's more to Sin City Pattaya than just bars and whores 5 - dreamed about making wishes come true (Disney on Ice) 6 - braved a macabre showroom filled with mummified bodies of AIDS patients 7 - travelled back in time (ruins of the French ambassador's mansion in Lopburi) 8 - welcomed the birth of a cousin's daughter 9 - visited an arts and culture centre 10 - threw a party for my son's 5th birthday but bought the wrong cake; he sulked and I ended up promising him Disneyland next year 11 - accomplished requireme...

photosource My pick for this week's TCP theme, a merry christmas movie , is Miracle on 34th Street . Here's the plot summary: A little girl discovers dreams do come true if you really believe. Six-year-old Susan has doubts about childhood's most enduring miracle - Santa Claus. Her mother told her the "secret" about Santa a long time ago, so Susan doesn't expect to receive the most important gifts on her Christmas list. But after meeting a special department store Santa who's convinced he's the real thing, Susan is given the most precious gift of all - something to believe in . Robert Lynch Kikamz hosts ~ more christmas movies at Just About Anything ~

According to legend, King George II of England rose to his feet when the Hallelujah Chorus was sung. Following protocol his subjects rose up as well. Thus began the tradition of audiences around the world rising during the Hallelujah performace. There are many speculations as to why the king stood or if he even stood at all. The Bangkok Combined Choir is composed of volunteer singers of around twenty nationalities. Every year in December, the choir performs Handel's Messiah. I sang once. (pure luck: there was no audition in 2000) Rehearsals got me thinking of the tradition of standing when the Hallelujah Chorus is sang. I googled what people have to say and my today is a list of opinions about audience decorum during the chorus: 1. The Hallelujah Chorus is like an anthem for the church. Whenever you hear it you are supposed to stand up. 2. Standing for the Hallelujah Chorus just interrupts the performance. 3. People should not be taught that they need to stand up at a certain time ...

Last night was the second time I attended an alumni meet because a few friends were there. They're the only reason I show up. If they're not around, I stay home and go cyber. The first time was also my first time to realize that I have been gone from the hilltop (our fond name for alma mater dear) for quite awhile. People were seated according to batches of five years, and oh-oh... I no longer belong to the pediatrics. The nursing home draweth nigh, *pita* Classes of 1990 - 1995 (Read: oi! hindi pa kami laos lol!) A pattern is forming. Last night I repeated what I did with schoolmates after the meet: proceed to Hard Rock. The place looked brighter, and a friendly server dropped by our table to make small talk that left me both smiling and furrowing my brow. She pointed at my neck cheerily, and asked .... "Sorry?," I hollered thru the blare of Guns N Roses' Sweet Child O' Mine. "Your necklace," she bellowed, "torquoise?" This time I heard ...

Siam Paragon was very crowded last weekend. I took my son to this mall for a Harry Potter 6 date. Up and up we went, using the elevators. Then we stopped. It was where a former student had her picture taken. I recognize the background. The car gallery. Or should I say the gallery where the fast and flashy wheels sit on display until some multi-millionaire decides to have them. My globe-trotting former student fancied a meeting somewhere there with me. A quick one. Nothing serious. She was in Bangkok for a couple of days, en route to wherever in the world her job was taking her. And I was en route to a job that has been gluing me to the same metropolis for two years and a decade. Out of the blue Cj thought that despite being usually shy around the camera, it wouldn't be so bad to clown a bit in front of gorgeous machinery. Y chromosomes or the spaciousness of the spot for mimicking movie character actions, documented; or it could be what I didn't speculate at all. He goofed. The...

View more FFF participants at Living to Tell the Story Four out of my fave fives this week happened in one day. No. 3 is serendipity, no. 4 a surprise, and no. 5 a first experience for my five-year old. Here we go: 1. Exam-writing accomplished . Midterms at STech International next week are online. I finished writing and uploading Business Communication exams yesterday. And that means I will have a worry-free weekend :-) 2. Quick wait . My kiddo and I love japanese cuisine. Ok, we dine out at japanese restaurants every week, but the nice thing about Fuji this week is it took the staff only a few minutes to have us seated. 3. Jesada Technik Museum . A Thai businessman with a hobby of collecting different vehicles from around the world, put up some of his collection , rare cars (the rest are in his home province) for public view at Siam Paragon. We stumbled upon his collection while malling. As I'm a sucker for most things old, specially rare (antiques fascinate me a great deal), th...

An advice circulates, 'do not judge a movie by its book.' In a book lover's blog is a little reversal of nouns in the same advice - 'do not judge a book by its movie.' I read Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince shortly after its release in 2005. A few weeks before the film was due, I read the book again purely for entertainment. And as I read it once more this week I find a different kind of appeal with a more reflective approach on its magical contents and what seem to be their counterparts in the muggle world. Before I wax enumerative, I must say I love Samulli 's header from the T13 home, thank you very much. Hmm... that was obvious - a fan that I am of Rowling's genius. Okay, no more further incantations . These are a muggle's 13 musings: 1. The Other Minister - imagine you are premier of your country discussing issues with your wizard counterpart.... Perhaps we can fancy the others for bridges collapsing, the H1N1 flu, or future pestile...

I was at Siam Paragon on Saturday afternoon (18.07.09). The main purpose was to watch Harry Potter 6 but while waiting around for it, I found what I thought at first were expensive toy cars. They turned out to be old cars from Thai businessman Jesada Dejsakulrit's once private collection of practically all means of transport. The decade-old collection includes "everything from a helicopter to a London Bus, and very soon it will have a Russian-made U194 submarine." Mr. Dejsakulrit enthuses, "apart from rare cars, I began accumulating other means of transportation such as boats and airplanes. At the time being we have about 400 cars, including an assortment of old tricycles from all corners of the globe, military and commercial aircrafts and land vehicles." These items are in the businessman's home province. According to the online source available in English (seemingly 98% are written in Thai), Mr. Dejsakulrit conceptualized Thailand's very first museum...

There is a first in everything, or so at least it seems. In my kiddo's case Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince is his first theatre experience. We arrived at Siam Paragon a little before 3 PM yesterday (18.07.09). Friends who came to the same mall for the same purpose were kind to book our Imax seats for 8 PM. So we loitered around the Pride of Bangkok for a few hours while waiting for our magical appointment. All the time I was wondering what would be Cj's reaction when he faces the big screen for the first time. Just as I suspected, Cj didn't want to go in. Well, who would when thunderous sound effects greet you at the entrance? I find them a little unsettling myself, no matter how used I am to them already. Having read reviews of the movie here and there, I already had an idea of what to expect. I sat on the front row near the exit, not my original seat, to keep track of my baby situation . Every few minutes I peeped through the glass, and observed Cj, milk bott...

1. What was your favorite active game as a child? ~ A dodging game called Bakunawa (gigantic sea serpent); played it with cousins in an uncle's wide basketball court 2. What was your favorite board game as a child? ~ Scrabble . Ok that is originally my mother's favorite, but I learned to enjoy it very much although it was difficult to win over a parent who's a scrabble ace. I still love scrabble to this day, and my mother still wins when we play 3. Tell us about a friend you played these games with in your youth. ~ Cousin Angelica looks like her name, is sometimes mean but nice most of the time, as brainy as she's unmotivated to attend school, materially well-provided by a moneyed father (the uncle in #1). Angelica loves to party, collects boyfriends, ends up with a handsome frenchman, and right now is undergoing chemo for breast cancer. I hope she pulls through. 4. What is your favorite card game? ~ I have none, but I play Malunggay when there's nothing else to ...

History repeats itself . The saying threatens to ring true in my son's life. When I became a mom my plan was that Cj would not be an only child like me. But circumstances have a way of twirling people. My son repeats what I was while growing up. The difference between Cj and I as only children is the restriction on friends I was allowed to have time out with. But I'm sure my mother had her reasons. In this lifestyle I and Cj are thrust in, my wish is that Cj would have more human friends and maybe less of feathery friends. I jump at every chance for Cj to mingle with friends. Although not an everyday occurence for him, it does happen, and I am thankful. We went to the province one weekend where Cj got to hang out with a friend's son. Cj is a shy bunny around anyone new, but this is one of those rare moments where he quickly warmed up to a friend's friend. It may sound cliche but I was really happy to see him with people other than myself. Nowadays I go out wi...