Friday Night Dinner

Nomads like us tend to be adaptive to the environment we live in.  We embrace differences in culture and try stuff out, as we don't want to miss out on the experience.  The idea is to try things at least once.  We do this particularly with food.  Some people cringe at the sight of blood soup, balut, sashimi or steak tartare.  But nomads are more open and, without any judgement, seizes the moment.

Outside of the carpe diem matra, though, they are people just missing the environment they are accustomed to.  There are times when we wanted to bask on our comfort zone and not have to tiptoe around other cultures.  I am particularly lucky because I have my fellow Filipino family with me.   When I come home, I can relax, stop trying to adapt, become comfortable speaking my own language and be who I really am. 

It is a different story though for my friend, Pat who is married to an American.  Her struggle to remain true to herself is far more difficult because she has to culturally adjust even at the comfort of her own home.  She therefore cannot just cook a meal like she did from back home if her husband does not like it.  Some Filipino food could admittedly be an acquired taste.  

Sports Nation

When we first got here, I have been wondering about the immense (almost fanatical) fascination about sports in this country.  Their fascination on sports is so great, it is almost comparable to my country's fascination of musical variety shows and telenovelas. :-)  It's a subject in watercooler stations, meeting ice-breakers and lunch break off-work discussion, whether to discuss the game or to have a friendly (and non-so-friendly) bantering.  It was part of the American culture that was so alien to me.

The only sport I have eagerly anticipated on my entire life is basketball.  In my country, despite the lack of appropriate height generally basketball is the official national sport.  It is the only sport I played and understood enough to watch. 

So I decided that if I wanted to contribute to any kind of discussion, I would have to join the sports bandwagon. I'd start off by looking at the NBA.  Because of  regional loyalties, that would mean I'd be cheering for the Boston Celtics.  It was no coincidence also that I'm rooting for a championship contender ever since the Big3 got together.

The Boston Celtics Big 3

Summer Lovin'

We're right smack in the middle of summer and the major heatwave just passed last week.  We're going downhill from here all the way to Freezerville once again in a few months.

sun-drenched during a weekend at the lake

The Modern Day Nomad

I have been a nomad for the past few years, seemingly lost in an unfamiliar territory. I hauled my family from one place to another trying to follow the end of the rainbow in hopes of finding the pot of gold. Although with the digital age, the world has become smaller and somehow being a nomad is not as unusual as it was before.

Along with these changes, the family concept has changed as well since the mid-century. I am not your typical Stepford wife. I am in a sub-modern family unit where the father and the mother both goes to work and are in equal footing on their roles in bringing home the bacon and domestic responsibilities. I struggle to raise my kid in an environment very different from what I was raised in. So everyday I juggle between trying to keep her true to her ethnicity and make her blend well in the culture that she has grown accustomed to. 

So many thoughts run through my head on trying to understand human nature in general. But the fact that I have been transported to practically uncharted waters and the realization of the differences in cultures in the world is something of an adventure in itself.

I think that those thoughts, and my love for writing in general is worth writing a blog about. Thank you for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the read.