KC Concepcion tweets: “I can’t believe how much we cried seeing each other! Hugging you after SO long was the best feeling in the world. @CloieSyquiaS”

KC with sister Cloie Syquia, Gabby’s daughter with ex-wife Jenny Syquia.

Naguluhan ako for a few seconds while looking at them.

Cloie’s vacationing here in the Philippines with her mom, younger sister and stepdad. And I think this is the first time they’ve met based on their tweets about the reunion.

Here’s another pic from Garie Concepcion (Gabby’s daughter with Grace Ibuna):

Happy no?

Their facial features are mixtures of their mothers’ and Gabby’s. Like when I look at KC, I see a bit of Sharon and (a lot of) Gabby. Cloie also looks a lot like her mother but at the same time takes after Gabby. Garie’s cheekbones are obviously Gabong-Gabo.

By the way, Jenny still looks so beautiful. Hindi tumatanda!

Nice to see that she’s exchanging niceties with The Sharon Cuneta on Twitter.

Yon lang.

So here’s the result.

Kaso pagkakita ni Maru, he said, “Hmmm…something’s still missing.” Wala daw kasing eyes yung crocodile pancake. Ang arte!

Meanwhile, Mike requested for a “mermaid pancake.” At si Mike din, humirit ng “something’s missing.” Don’t ask.

When making pancakes, we usually buy the Maya Think Heart whole wheat pancake mix.

It tastes good and the texture is perfect. Plus, it’s healthier too.

*For those who may be wondering, the higher the mAh of the battery, the higher the capacity. 

But when I got to CD-R King, none of their 4200 mAh stocks worked. Buti I found out that they also have a 3000 mAh variant which sells for only P880, the same price as the 1700 mAh. So ito na lang.

It’s twice the size of the 1700 mAh and, as expected, heavier. I tested it as soon as I got home and so far, I think perfect lang ang 3000 mAh.

Once again, thank you CD-R King.

I was thinking of getting Noontec’s PowerMe which was on sale on Ebay.ph for P2300. Kaso natapos na ang promo and I’m not sure din if it works with a Blackberry.

So I thought, why not check CDR-King? Ume-SM na kasi sya ngayon — they’ve got it all. I checked its website and aside from the furniture, rice cooker and hair dryer, may arts and crafts na rin sya ngayon!

Anyway so I asked the saleslady kung meron silang portable power supply for BB. At aba meron — 1700maH for only P880, a lot cheaper than Noontec. And meron din syang 4200mah for only P990!

It’s so easy to use and it also has several adapters for other cellphone brands. Easy din to recharge, just plug it in your laptop/PC via USB.

Winner di ba? Thank you CDR-King.

But I have really simple goals for 2012 and I think they’re all doable.

1. Get an oven

This is the most complicated of all my goals since it involves finally fixing everything in our new (old na) home and moving into it.  When we’ve done that, that’s the only time I can get an oven.

2. Learn how to bake French Macaroons

Oops! I think this is even more complicated than the first since perfecting the French Macaroon takes a lot of practice.

3. Learn how to drive

This is probably the easiest to accomplish since I can do this by a) getting a student driver’s license, and b) enrolling in a basic driving course.

But now, while writing this, I realized that this isn’t the easiest but the hardest to achieve of all.

Because I don’t want to just drive —  I want to look like Angelina Jolie while driving.

Have a goal-filled 2012 y’all!

But after posting it, I realized that I still have so many things to be thankful for.  Yes, 2011 is the year we lost Nanay. But there are good things that happened in that year, too. It hit me that I shouldn’t let all the bad things overshadow the good. In other words, I should view 2011 as a glass half full.

And so I am thankful.

For the gift of travel with my bestest friends.

For the glorious, glorious food we get to eat.

The random nice things we get to experience.

For unexpected free accommodations, such as this.

For Maru’s first musical theater experience, “Seussical”.

For Guns and Roses, where I had my first stint as a TV writer

The Guns and Roses team.

For new projects.

Family barbeques

Blurred family photos

And never-ending eating sprees

For Maru’s first plane ride

Conquering fear of enclosed spaces

For P45 beef stew chao long that is just so addicting

Witnessing happy unions

For birthdays

And I thank the French for coming up with French Macaroons

High school again

Idols

Reunions

Most importantly, a healthy, happy family

Now I’m looking forward to what 2012 will be.

Because despite everything, 2011 had still been kind to me.

Happy New Year!

Parang kahapon lang, baby pa ang anak ko. Clueless mom pa ako.

Ngayon ang laki na ni Maru. Marunong nang magpalusot. Mag-joke. Mag-drama. Pati ang tuba at triceratops alam na rin niya. Marunong na rin siyang mag-operate ng DVD player, at mambola gaya ng tatay niya.

These days, fixated siya sa dinosaurs at sa Little Einsteins. Na-outgrow na yata nya si Mickey Mouse na dati sobrang favorite nya.

Kanina pa nya ko kinukulit kung pwede ba syang manood ng Land Before Time the series. Pumayag na rin ako, since di ko ma-gets yung pinapanood kong French film na Jules et Jim. And during the opening credits, Maru looked at me and said, “I love you Nanay”.

Hay ang anak ko talaga.

I love you more, Maru. ‘Wag ka muna magbinata ha.

Though he’s been known more as the writer of the films Himala, Moral, Brutal, Baby Tsina and so many other critically acclaimed films, Si Amapola sa 65 na Kabanata is Ricky Lee’s second foray into writing a novel, after Para Kay B.

At the launch, friends, students and, well, fans gathered at the SM Sky Dome to support Sir Ricky, who happens to be one of the most generous people I know. 

I did the interviews for the video presentation shown at the launch and his friends and colleagues all had the same thing to say about him — he has a very generous heart.  When I met him two years ago (it was in a writing workshop sponsored by ABS-CBN for wannabe/budding scriptwriters), he shared with us everything that can be found in his home, from his vast DVD collection, to books and food. But what he’s most generous with is his talent. He never tires with sharing what he knows and is always open to ideas, which is very encouraging for us. At kahit “institusyon” na sya, he never imposed himself or his beliefs on anyone dahil “Ricky Lee na siya.”  

Also present at the launch were Judy Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo, Mart Escudero, Paulo Avelino, Joem Bascon, director Joel Lamangan, Cherry Pie Picache and ABS-CBN President Charo Santos-Concio who all read excerpts from the book. At may very special guest din sa launch na nagbasa ng “Alamat ng Bakla”:

Jon Santos a.k.a. Oprah. 

Amapola sa 65 na Kabanata is now available in National Bookstore outlets for P300. Bili na!