Happy Halloween!!!

Okay, so let me let you all on a secret: I don't like Halloween.

It's probably the only holiday that we have in the year that I don't care for at all -- even if the "treats" are the best part of it. But I do get into the spirit of it all and enjoy the whole dress up thing. However, I NEVER, EVER dress up in a scary costume! The closest thing I've had as a scary costume was when I dressed up gothic, but I didn't even pull that one off that well....as a matter of fact, I think I got it all wrong!!! My costumes always range from being something cute, funny, original or just plain weird. This year I was a punk rocker...with attitude and all!

I hope you all had a great Halloween! Okay, now the countdown to Thanksgiving day...oh geeze!

Chinchule's Rules of Order

We’ve had so many weddings in our family lately (every 6 months!) and everyone knows that when you attend a wedding, your wedding gift would most likely be the notorious CHINCHULE. But who do we give it to?

I recently had a discussion with my cousin about the “rules of order” for chinchule. I notice that at some weddings, people give chinchule to the parents of the newlyweds, and some give it directly to the newlyweds. But why??? I always thought you gave your wedding gift directly to the newlyweds. OMG! What happens if both the parents and the newlyweds pay for the wedding? Well, I guess I’ll have to split that chinchule in two….oh wait, but which set of parents get the chinchule? The bride’s parents or the groom’s parents?

I’ve searched high and low, and even the great Tun Yoda and Obi-Juan cannot tell me why. After much discussion with my cousin, we both agreed that whoever pays for the wedding will get 100% of the chinchule. Otherwise, it gets split up. I was happy with that decision. But is that the correct one?

All those in favor of giving the chinchule to the person(s) who pay for the wedding, say ‘aye’, all opposed say ‘nay’……

Colorful morning...

On my morning drive to work, I saw a rainbow.

What a beeautiful way to start off my day :)

The Sound of Music

*singing* The hills are alive....with the sound of music...

Call me a nerd, but I absolutely LOVE the movie: The Sound of Music. For those who haven't watched it, it's a classic musical with a love story and a bit of history...mostly expressed in song. For those who don't like musicals, this movie is not recommended for your viewing pleasure.

Maybe it's my love for music that makes me love this movie, but every time I watch it, I feel this happiness that runs though my heart and it's inevitable that there's a smile on my face as I sing along to (almost) every song in the movie. YES - I'm a dork like that!

Please tell me I'm not the only person that cares to watch (and sing-a-long) to this musical.

*singing* So long, farewell, auf weidersehn adieu......

Anti-Socialite

I may not be a super social bird, but I also know that I’m not an anti-social person either…well, for the most part at least. I’ve got to admit that there are those days where I’m just not in the mood for the world. I guess you could call me an Anti-Socialite on those days.

I don’t know what it is, but there are days where I want to step out of my house and enjoy my freedom without being sociable. This ideal day would consist of: going shopping without having to deal with the casual hellos or eyebrow-raising greetings, enjoy a relaxing mani-pedi (manicure-pedicure) without having to talk about my life, let alone other people’s lives, doing a bank errand without having small conversations in line while waiting for the next teller.

Okay, so the Chamorro people would call me matapang in this case, but I do admit that I have those days where I would rather dodge people to avoid any social activity. Do you ever have those days?

YAY!!!

Earlier this week I received confirmation from my brother, Ton, that he, his son (my godson) and his girlfriend will be on Saipan for Christmas! I was beyond excited to hear the news and I'm looking forward to their arrival.

The last time I saw my godson, Anthony Jacob (aka: Anthony Jakey), was when I baptized him in Portland, Oregon in October 2005. Since then, I have seen him grow up through pictures and have only verbally communicated with him over the phone.

Here are some recent pictures of Anthony Jakey...

Preserving our Culture

Today I attended a diversity conference and one of the topics of discussion was about the importance of preserving our culture. The following question was asked: Do you think federalization of the CNMI would impact our culture?

My answer: YES, but we must stay strong and hold on to what we have left of our culture. I see the Chamorro culture on Guam and see the impact it has on the local people. Everything has been so “Americanized” and the Chamorro way of life has definitely changed. I would hate to see that happen here in the CNMI, but the only way to avoid that is to ensure that we all preserve our culture – or at least what we have left.

Language is an integral part of any culture. Our Chamorro language is definitely an area of our culture that is slowly fading away. I believe that your language really makes your culture distinctive and makes you unique. It’s something that can never be taken away from you! Okay, so I am not one to speak – LITERALLY – of the importance of speaking the Chamorro language because I do not speak the language as often as I should, but I am working on it. My “practice time” to speak Chamorro is usually at work. Since I started working at MVA, I can honestly say that I speak more Chamorro that I did before. Why? Because most of my co-workers speak Chamorro. When I speak Chamorro at work, I don’t feel like they’re judging my limited Chamorro-speaking skills. I’m sure there have been times where my Chamorro was all broken up, but my co-workers never made fun of me. I also attentively follow along the novenas in Chamorro and read Chamorro by practicing every Sunday when I read the Chamorro readings out loud from the North Star also fondly known to the man’amkos as the Matuna Si Yu’us.

Family values and respect are also an integral part of our Chamorro culture. As a kid, I didn’t understand why I had to fa’ngingi all my aunties and uncles at family gatherings. Honestly, I thought the only ones that deserved such respect were older people like my grandparents and anyone that had gray hair! But even going through that small act over the years reflected and embraced a part of our culture: respect. If my parents didn’t drag me to those parties, novenas, rosaries or funerals, I wouldn’t know who was part of my family (we’re all related anyway, right?) and I would understand the importance of respect in our culture.