Pinoy Blog Machine (Beta)

Enrique Iglesias is featured in Elle Magazine where he talks about his mother and gambling with his lola (grandma) in Miami. Translated from Spanish by yours truly.

Isabel is the only song with a name on your album, with the same name as your mother...

Yes, but it's the only song that I didn't write. It's not about her.

And what are some of the things that you identify with about your mother?

My mother is the one that keeps the family together. She's a 10. She and my father have done a good job in surrounding us with good people.

Since you know yourself well, what is it like being around Enrique Iglesias?

In two words: gili-pollas (laughs). I think I'm very curious and I have a sense of humour, I'm always in a good mood. My dad is also a joker, like my grandfather, who was the one who kept us together. He never got mad. He lived happy to the end. I was very sad about his death, but he died leaving behind a happy life... I hope the day I die, I'll do it with the same happiness as him... Well, I still have my grandma Beba, the mother of my mother, who's also a lot of fun!

Really?

She's the best of my family. I say that because I love her very much. She's a great woman. She lives with me right now in Miami. She also likes to play and joke around. I take her to the casino. She goes crazy. My mother scolds me, "What are you doing over there gambling with your grandma!?!"

Enrique with his lola (grandmother) at their home in the Philippines.

I thank Philippine Airlines and Mabuhay Miles for coming up with the Great Miles Getaway promo. I will be visiting again the very beautiful province of Palawan for the weekend. I exchanged my 5,000 reward miles for a free roundtrip ticket in Mabuhay (Business) class. Without the promo you need 10,000 reward miles for the roundtrip ticket. I only paid for the fuel surcharge and government taxes amounting to 2,324 pesos.

Am I blessed or just lucky because I will be staying with my friend who is a resident of Puerto Princesa. No need to fetch me at the airport as her house is just less than 1 km. from the airport. The last time I’m in Palawan my friend even lend her car and toured me and my sister around.

The fun of free stuffs didn’t stopped there. She told me that she will prepare a picnic basket and we will go to one of the islands in Honda Bay for the day.

Photograph taken from the Philippine Department of Tourism website.

There are two international conferences happening in the Washington DC area.  The first one is the 19th Annual / 20th Anniversary CHADD International Conference which is from November 7 - 10, 2007 at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City, VA at Reagan Washington National Airport. Sharon W. Weiss, M. Ed, the Conference Chair, has summarized the topics that will be discussed by distinguished speakers to address the needs of wide-ranging audience of parents, educators, mental health professionals and physicians as well as those with AD/HD.

…

Topics include:

• Comorbidities and Complicated Cases: Medication Update,
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Adult AD/HD,
• Educating Children and Teens About AD/HD,
• A two part session titled A Parent’s Guide to Managing Problem Behaviors, Understanding Our Socially Challenged Children: AD/HD and  Asperger’s, Overlap of Disruptive Behavior and Mania,
• 504 Accommodations: Accommodating Without Encouraging Dependency,
• AD/HD Doesn’t Discriminate: Considerations Around Language, Color and Culture,
• Medicating Young Minds: How to Know if Medication Will Help or Hurt Your Child. Also part of the program are discussions on Executive Functions, Autism Spectrum, AD/HD and Nonverbal Learning Disabilities, the Neurobiological Basis of AD/HD, Complementary Interventions, Treatments for AD/HD, Coaching, Positive Behavioral Supports and New Findings in Brain Imaging

On the more practical side, topics will include:

• Your Defiant Teen
• Adults with AD/HD: Personal Stories
• Classroom Interventions for AD/HD and Making the System Work for You and Your Child

…

Another event is the ICDL 11th Annual International Conference: Critical Factors for Optimal Outcomes for Children with Autism and Special Needs on November 9 - 11, 2007 at Hilton McLean, Tysons Corner, Virginia (Washington, DC Metro Area). The Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders (ICDL) was founded by Dr. Stanley Greenspan and Dr. Serena Wieder.  ICDL’s mission is to engage in, develop, conduct, support, and disseminate programs, research, seminars, and publications on the prevention and treatment of emotional and development disorders in infancy and childhood.   

…

Morning panels:

• Improving Educational Outcomes, with
  • Howard Gardner, PhD (creator of multiple intelligences theory)
  • T.Berry Brazelton, M.D.
  • Stanley Greenspan, M.D.
• Looking Inside the Brain and Mind as Autism develops: Why Some Children Learn to Develop Creativity, Empathy, and Abstract Thinking
  • Margaret Bauman, M.D.
  • James Stieben, Ph.D.
  • Serena Wieder, Ph.D
• Earliest Indicators of ASD: The Do’s and Don’ts of Early Intervention
  • Rebecca Landa, Ph.D.
  • Stanley Greenspan, M.D.
• New Understanding and Treatment of ADHD, OCD, Anxiety, and Behavior Problems in Children with ASD
  • Ricki Robinson, M.D.
  • Eric Hollander, M.D.
  • Clara LaJonchere, Ph.D.
• The Stigma of Diagnosis
  • Morton Gernsbacher, PhD.

Topics for the afternoon concurrent seminars include: 

• Autism Speaks Research Initiatives
• Research Methodology and Targeted Interventions for Children and Siblings Identified as at Risk for ASD
• Greenspan Social-Emotional Growth Chart: A Screening Questionnaire for Infants and Young Children
• Floortime™ and Social Groups
• Families
• Communication and Language Development
• Mood Swings in Babies and Children
• Understanding Aggression from a DIR® Perspective
• DIR® and Touchpoints
• The PLAY Project
• Transitions: A Parent’s Journey
• Beginning Floortime™: Fostering Early Stages of Engagement and Purposeful Communication
• Finding the Intersect of Language and Affect: How Interdisciplinary Dialogue Informs DIR® Intervention
• Facilitating the Development of Oral-Motor/Speech Skills within the DIR® Framework
• DIR® Programs for Middle and High School Students
• Look into my Eyes! A Floortime™ Parent Project

Click here to view the brochure and registration form.

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God knows that Europe is one of my dream destinations. Its rich history is what draws me to it. One of my favorite places that I would love to see is France. I have a few relatives residing there so it would be a nice country to visit. Maybe we can stay at their home for a few days or if not, we can book ourselves at one of those france hotels where it is near the tourist attractions like the Louvre, the famous eiffel tower and the wineries.

We may specifically stay at one of those paris hotels because that is probably where most of the must-see sites to go. Maybe we can watch a Moulin Rouge show or hop on a cruise on the River Seine. Of course, Versailles is not to be missed!

We could also hop to another place and stay at one of those nice hotels. I am not very familiar with Nice but from what I've read, it is found on the southeastern part of France and is the capital of the Riviera. The Musée Matisse, Musée Chagall, and the Promenade des Anglais are recommended tourist destinations.

No doubt, there is so much to see in France. I hope one day, we can visit it in person and not only in our dreams. :)

Not much opportunities today. In fact, I thought I wasn’t going to get any. Fortunately I logged into Blogsvertise (which I don’t often do) and voila! There was grab bag waiting for me. Thank goodness! I hope more opps will be given out later in the day. I am not used anymore to not writing anything! Besides, I need the cash to save up for something really important. *crossing my fingers*

Amo: Inday paalisin mo nga yung Batang Yagit sa labas ng bahay…

(nilabas ni Inday)

Inday: Go! Under no circumstance this house would relent to such unabashed display of vagrant destitution

Batang Yagit: Oh! I’m so ashamed… Such a mansion of social climbing freaks…

(Nakakuha ng katapat si Inday)

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Filipina singer Shaila Durcal, daughter of Filipino singer Antonio Morales Barreto "Junior" and deceased Spanish singer Rocio Durcal, will be performing on the Latin Grammy Awards airing tonight LIVE at 8 p.m. from Las Vegas and pre-show at 7 p.m. on Univision here in the United States, Spain, and Latin America where she is also nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

Shaila Durcal talks to Elle magazine about how she was "conceived":
«Mi madre me contaba que yo llegué inesperadamente. Mi padre llevaba unos meses trabajando en Filipinas y, cuando regresó, ella ni siquiera estaba en el momento fértil de su ciclo. Sin embargo, se quedó embarazada. Por lo visto fue por la presencia del macho… »

"My mother told me that I came unexpectedly. My father was working for a few months in the Philippines, and when he came back, she wasn't even in her fertile cycle. Regardless, she became pregnant. It was because of my dad's macho-ness."

Shaila's real name is Shaila de los Ángeles Morales de las Heras.
Our Dayanara Torres, beloved among the Filipino people for her years spent as an actress and host in Filipino TV and movies, will also be featured tonight as a presenter. She's on my TV screen right now being interviewed as I type this, I'm recording it straight to DVD right now to my DVD recorder right now and on my Tivo, so we have can have two copies just in case.

With all the unhealthy food and lifestyle that most people live in nowadays, it is no wonder that more and more people are getting more obese. Last month, the American Physical Therapy Association celebrated National PT month, focusing on the US' obesity epidemic.

The key to weight loss is to engage oneself in a regular exercise program. But for the morbidly obese, they might also want to undergo a Tampa Lap band procedure, where a gastric band is placed on the upper part of their stomach to create a small stomach pouch. This bypasses the middle part of the stomach and allows food to go directly to lower end, thereby creating a feeling of fullness even if only a small amount of food was taken in. Recovery is fast as this only a keyhole type of surgery. Weight loss is fast and guaranteed. But experts suggest that it should be coupled with proper diet and exercise.