By Ruben V. NepalesPhilippine Daily Inquirer

Hailee Steinfeld beat over 15,000 girls to get the “True Grit” role which earned her a Best Sup-

porting Actress Academy Award nom-ination.

Steinfeld, who is part Filipina (her maternal grandfather is a Filipino), has been earning acclaim since the re-lease of “True Grit.” The 14-year-old actress said of her parents: “My mom is an interior designer, but in the past few years, she has thankfully devoted

all her attention to me. My dad (Peter) is a personal fitness trainer.” When she was a stewardess, Steinfeld’s moth-er, Cheri, got to visit the Philippines several times. Hailee’s uncle is Jake Steinfeld, an actor and a popular fit-ness trainer.

In “True Grit,” a western film by the Coen brothers, Steinfeld holds her own

OPERA BELLESFilipina trio merges opera

with pop, prepares torelease debut album

A&E | PAgE 15

Since 1986 February 5-11, 2011 www.filipinopress.com • (619) 477-0940

BINAY IN L.A.Philippine VP, Makati

mayor visit Los Angeles on recent U.S. tripPiNEWS | PAgE 2

An Award-Winning Newspaper • San Diego’s No. 1 Source of News & Information for the Filipino Community

Female Fil-Am soldier killed in AfghanistanThe U.S. Embassy in Ma-nila said on Feb. 1 a female Filipino-American soldier was killed by an improvised explo-sive device in Afghanistan in January while she was clear-ing areas for an air assault mission.

The embassy identified the victim as Sgt. Zainah “Caye" Creamer, 28, a trained dog handler with the U.S. Army military police.

Creamer was a part of a unit that checked buildings and vehicles for explosives.

The embassy said she died in Howz E Madad, Kandahar, Afghanistan, on Jan. 12.

Creamer was buried on Feb. 4 with full U.S. military hon-ors at the family cemetery in Siquijor province.

Creamer joined the Army in 2004 and served at military posts in Missouri, New York, and Texas. She also served in Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom.

— GMANews.TV

Lincecum lands on cover of gQ, named one of ‘25 Coolest Athletes of All Time’

Filipino-American pitcher Tim “The Freak” Lincecum has landed the cover of GQ’s Feb-ruary issue. The 26-year-old San Francisco Giants pitcher was named one of the “25 Coolest Athletes of All Time” alongside Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Tom Brady and others.

According to CBS San Fran-cisco, the GQ list features “sports icons past and pres-ent, those most remembered and revered; athletes who played the game like it was an expression of who they were, while teaching the fans how to be big-time with grace, style, and swagger.”

Last November, Lincecum led the Giants to victory in the World Series Game 5 against the Texas Rangers, winning the best-of-seven series, 4-1. He has received the Cy Young award in the National League twice.

— GMANews.TV

FILAM NATION

DIET GIMMICKSFitness trainer advises

‘secret’ weight-loss programsoften too good to be true

HEALTHYLIVINg | PAgE 8

GQ.com

Manila Bulletin • Filipino Press

Like a “Grenade,” his chart-topping single, Bruno Mars exploded

in 2010. The song capped a breakout year for the Filipino-American star, as it hit at the top of the Billboard’s Hot 100 and remains at No. 1.

For his accomplishments in

• The 53rd Annual grammy Awards will take place in Los Angeles at Staples Center on Sunday, Feb. 13, and will air live on the CBS Television Network from 8–11:30 p.m.

GRAMMY AWARDS

Fil-Ams up for top awards as Grammys, Oscars nearBruno Mars nominated for seven Grammys after explosive year on the charts

See STEINFELd on Page 16

See MARS on Page 16

Hailee Steinfeld gets Oscar nod for her performance in ‘True Grit’

• The e 83rd Annual Academy Awards will be presented on Sunday, Feb. 27, at the Kodak Theatre at in Hollywood and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network.

ACADEMY AWARDS

Jeff Bridges and Hailee Steinfeld in “True grit.” Steinfeld has been nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for her portrayal of Mattie in the film.

February 14 is a week away, but you the need the time so the Pampered Pinay canhelp you plan your ...

“Sacrifice a little of yourself for me, and I shall sacrifice all for you.”August Strindberg, Swedish playwright, novelist and essayist, to Harriet Bosse, Swedish-Norwegian actress, in 1901

February 14th … Some complain that Valentine’s Day is a commercial evil

meant to guilt lovers into spending obscene amounts of money in order to prove the sincerity of their affection. While in theory we shouldn’t need a special day to show our love (because we should be showing it every chance we get) let’s be honest

— busy sched- ules and daily stress can exhaust our minds and bodies, leaving many with little will to go the extra mile to show the special people in our lives just how much we care. So to a day-long excuse to profess love with wild abandon I say, “Why not?”

Francine Maigue

Pampered Pinay

See VALENTINE on Page 14

By Alicia deLeon-TorresFilipino Press

SAN DIEGO — Celebrations in San Diego kicked into high gear recently with the Viet-namese-American community’s Tet celebra-tion, the Year of the Cat (same as rabbit), at Balboa Park. The well-attended event high-lighted Vietnamese cultural performances, Lion Dancers, Taiko Drums, Miss Vietnam and Mr. Vietnam pageants and a mini-carnival for children of all ages.

Celebrations continue on Feb. 12 and 13 as the 29th Annual San Diego Chinese New Year

Asian community ushers in Year of the Rabbit

The Red Envelope Tree (aka Money Tree) at the Tet celebration on Jan. 29 at Balboa Park.

Alicia deLeon-Torres • Filipino Press

See NEW YEAR on Page 7

State recognizes Feb. 3, 2011, as Lunar New Year 4709; more celebrations on tap next week

2 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com

By Riza T. OlchondraPhilippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA — The Philippine economy grew at its fastest pace last year since the 1986 Edsa People Power Revolu-tion, expanding 7.3 percent due to strong domestic demand fu-eled by the billions of dollars overseas Filipino workers sent home.

Government data showed gross domestic product — the total value of goods and servic-es produced in the country — rose a seasonally adjusted 3.0 percent in the final quarter of 2010, more than double market expectations and a turnaround of a third-quarter contraction.

The National Statistical Co-ordination Board said the strong performance of the Philippine economy — com-ing off growth of just 0.9 per-cent in 2009 — was achieved on the back of the world recovery from the global financial crisis.

“The global economic recov-ery which resulted in record growth rates of foreign trade … contributed to an economic performance in 2010 that well surpassed the government’s target of 5.0 percent to 6.0 per-cent,” the NSCB said.

Also boosting growth were higher remittances from the millions of Filipinos working abroad and the extra money that was pumped into the econ-omy by politicians who cam-paigned in the national and lo-cal elections held in the middle of last year.

“Remittances have been pretty healthy and that has re-ally helped to support private consumption in the Philip-pines,” said HSBC economist Sherman Chan. Remittances from overseas Filipino workers are expected to top $20 billion this year.

The NSCB said industry de-livered its best seasonally ad-justed quarterly growth in at least 15 years, rising 6.7 per-cent in October to Decem-ber from the previous three months, with food manufac-turers and mining leading the way.

“This shows the economy is not losing steam yet. That is in large part due to accommo-dative monetary policy, which has helped to sustain invest-ments even though the govern-ment is pursuing fiscal consoli-dation,” Chan said.

Strong growth from indus-try and recovery by the farm sector more than offset falling government spending, which fell an annual 7.6 percent in the quarter.

NSCB Secretary General Ro-mulo Virola said the 7.3-per-cent full-year GDP expansion was the highest since 1986 when the dictator Ferdinand Marcos was toppled in the Edsa Revolution.

Private sector investment in construction, machinery and equipment resulted in a robust 17-percent growth in gross do-mestic capital formation. .

Industry contributed 3.9 percentage points to total GDP growth on the back of brisk manufacturing, particular-ly electrical machinery, petro-leum and coal products and food.

The services sector contrib-uted 3.5 percentage points to GDP growth, boosted by the strong performance of trade and private services. This was complemented by flourishing domestic investment, robust expansion in business process outsourcing, hotels and res-taurants, wholesale and retail trade and import and export trade.

MANILA — If ex-Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gen. An-gelo Reyes indeed got P50 million in alleged send-off gift (“pabaon”), his two succes-sors were supposedly more resourceful.

Retired Lt. Col. George Ra-busa alleged on Feb. 3 that for-mer Gen. Diomedio Villanue-va was allocated around P160 million while ex-Gen. Roy Ci-matu got P80 million as part of the “pabaon” system.

But Rabusa, a former mil-itary budget officer, said he was not sure if Villanueva in-deed received the P160-mil-lion gift, which he said he had raised from the old “provision for command-directed activi-ties” budget at the AFP.

He said he gave the amount in increments of around P10 million on several occasions to his former boss, then Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia, the mili-tary comptroller.

“I had doubts,” he said in the Senate blue ribbon com-mittee hearing. “I was tempt-ed to ask General Villanueva, but protocol-wise, it seemed that I would bypass General Garcia, so I just let it go.”

But Rabusa said he eventu-ally got the chance to inquire with Villanueva in a phone

conversation after his boss had retired. He said he was then asking for financial sup-port, but Villanueva begged off, saying he no longer had money.

“Sir, hindi ba binigay sa’yo ni Gen. Garcia yung P160 million? (Sir, didn’t Gener-al Garcia give you the P160 million?)” he recalled asking Villanueva, who supposedly replied: “Ha? (What?)”

Rabusa said in Filipino: “He was surprised like he didn’t know about it. So I don’t know now where the P160 million went.”

The amounts for send-off gifts allegedly allocated for Villanueva, Cimatu, and Reyes—who all did not show up at the hearing on Thursday — were contained in a Power-point presentation prepared by Rabusa.

Rabusa was assisted by a new witness, Lt. Col. Anto-nio Ramon “Sonny” Lim, who used to be his deputy at the budget department at the gen-eral headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo.

Lim, who occasionally wiped off tears, asked to be made a state witness and be given immunity from cases that might be filed against him

in connection with his revela-tions.

At one point, Rabusa sought to boost his morale and re-minded him in Filipino: “I suf-fered a stroke but here I am testifying.”

Lim corroborated Rabusa’s account that the latter had de-livered at least P160 million to Garcia in different batches. Lim admitted that he was the one who would arrange (“ka-mada”) the bulky cash in an expandable envelope for ev-ery delivery.

“We placed them in an ex-pandable long envelope,” he said.

Senators took turns in ex-tracting corroboration—or any significant comment—from Garcia, but to no avail. Garcia repeatedly invoked his constitutional right against self-incrimination.

An angry Sen. Jinggoy Es-trada, who had brought Rabu-sa and Lim to the committee hearing, threatened to have Garcia detained.

“Mr. Chair, if this will be the answer of this general all throughout and the Ombuds-man cannot jail him, let us be the one to do that,” he said in Filipino.

—Philippine Daily Inquirer

Rabusa bares AFP corruption at hearing; witness surfaces

Economy soars in 2010Palace admits paying for ‘lease’ on Aquino’s armored Lexus carMANILA — Malacanang has admitted that the Office of the Presi-dent will foot the bill for “leasing” an armored Lexus sedan used by President Aquino for his official engagements.

However, Presidential Communications Operations Office head Herminio Coloma Jr. insisted that riding either in the Lexus or Porsche has not changed the president's “simple” lifestyle.

“Ito ay isang sasakyan na leased vehicle, hindi binili. Ang tumu-long sa pag-lease isa sa kanyang brothers-in-law. Ito ay gi-nagamit sa official function. Walang katotohanan ang paratang ito ay laruan, yan ang paglilinaw,” he said.

When asked if it was the Office of the President that would be footing the bill for the “lease”or if Aquino would be paying for the lease from his own pocket, Coloma said, “maari pong ga-noon (It could be that way).”

However, when asked, “So ang Office of the President dahil sa official na ginagamit ito (So it is the Office of the President that is footing the bill because the Lexus is used for official engage-ments)?” Coloma replied, “opo, opo (yes, yes).”

Aquino gained flak last week after he was seen driving to an official function in an armored Lexus LX-570 luxury sedan (with plate number PIZ 808).

However, Aquino maintained that leasing a vehicle was a better alternative to using government funds to buy a new one.

Coloma reiterated the Lexus was chosen for its “security fea-tures,” adding that the presidential vehicles of Aquino's prede-cessor Gloria Arroyo were damaged by floods caused by tropi-cal cyclone “Ondoy” (Ketsana) in 2009.

Before being seen in the Lexus, Aquino was criticized for buying a Porsche sports car last year.

Aquino explained that it was a used vehicle and that he bought it with using his own funds.

Meanwhile, Coloma said riding in a flashy cars did not change Aquino's simple lifestyle. — MNS

First batch of Filipinos for repatriation leave Cairo on Feb. 5 MANILA — About 25 Filipinos are due to leave Cairo on Feb. 5 among the first batch to voluntarily avail of the governmentís repatriation program even as massive political protests in Egypt appear to have simmered down.

The group is comprised of 13 women, five men and nine minors. Of the adults, three are nurses from the Dar Al Fouad Hospital and the rest are students of the Al-Azhar University and house-hold helpers. The students are with their families who will also be repatriated.

Most of them are from Cairo’s Maadi area, the others from the Dar Al Fouad Hospital in Giza and Nasr City, while others are ac-commodated at the embassy’s Filipino Workers Resource Center.

It is not known when the next arrivals are due. The United Nations-linked International Office of Migration is assisting the Philippine government.

While the Department of Foreign Affairs had assessed the current tensions as manageable at the moment, it also said that Filipinos in Egypt who feel they may be at risk could be transited or relo-cated to neighboring countries or repatriated to the Philippines.

“The Philippine government is focused on ensuring the safety and security of our kababayans (compatriots), and weíll repa-triate those who would like to come home,” DFA spokesperson Eduardo Malaya said.

The protests were against the current regime of Egyptian Presi-dent Hosni Mubarak, who had already given up the post in a late response to his peopleís demand. His move quieted down the protests though pockets of resistance and dissatisfaction con-tinue to mushroom. — MNS

Soldiers demoralized over AFP corruption reportsMANILA — Department of National Defense spokesperson Edu-ardo Batac admitted on Wednesday that the revelations made by retired Army Lt. Col. George Rabusa during the Senate hearing last week over alleged irregularities and anomalies in the Armed Forces have affected the morale of soldiers.

He said this is why it is imperative that an investigation must be done for the truth to come out.

“It is unfair to come up with accusations involving people who don't know anything or come up with judgments that they could be involved in anomalies. We want to get to the bottom of this. We regret that some of our comrades were involved pero huwag sana lahatin marami pa rin opisyal na dedicated and devoted to their duties,” Batac said.

Navy Petty Officer 3 Gilbert Atienza said rank-and-file soldiers in the field should get more support.

“Kung talaga pong totoo na may ganoon, sana po naibigay na lang sa amin. Pandagdag man lang ng aming mess allowance.”

Army Sergeant Aldrin Jimenez, a member of the 4th Special Forces Battallion, echoed Atienza’s statement.

“Bigyan pa sana kami ng mga benepisyo na maitulong namin sa pamilya. Lalo na kami na nasa malalayong pamilya,” he said.

Soldiers' wives are also irked over stories on the alleged luxurious lifestyle of the wives of retired generals Carlos Garcia and Angelo Reyes.

Batac said that after Rabusa’s exposé, DND Secretary Voltaire Gazmin formed a special investigative body to investigate and inquire on the alleged irregularities and corrupt practices involv-ing retired Major General Carlos Garcia and others.

The body was given 30 days, or until the end of February, to sub-mit its report.

A preliminary investigation was held on Feb. 4 at the Armed Forces Commission Officer’s Clubhouse. — MNS

GDP up by 7.3%, highest in 24 years

NEWS IN BRIEF

PiNews PhILIPPINES NEWS & WEEK IN REvIEW

Philippine Vice President Jejomar C. Binay and Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. made a brief visit to Los Angeles on Jan. 31 en route to his official trip to Washington to attend the National Prayer Breakfast. Above left: Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa presents Binay with a book on Los Angeles. Above right: Villaraigosa with Binay Jr., who discussed matters of mutual interest and agreed to strengthen the ties between Makati City and Los Angeles, which became sister cities on Jan. 28, 1992.

PCGLA

Binays visit Los Angeles

MANILA, — Since 1991, February of each year is celebrated as National Arts Month in the Philippines.

From its humble be-ginnings in Metro Manila in the 1990s with a limit-ed number of fields in the arts, NAM has expanded to include the active partici-pation of the seven arts as flagship projects of the Na-tional Commission for Cul-ture and the Arts.

In 2009, the Commis-sion raised the event to in-ternational status with the launching of the Philippine International Arts Festival.

This year, the PIAF aims

to “recharge the Filipino consciousness and regard for local culture and arts” by gathering thousands of arts and artists all over the country for the unveiling of the 2011 “Ani ng Sining.”

Artists from ASEAN-member countries such as Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Bru-nei, and Vietnam, as well as Lithuania, Japan, Taiwan, and Fujaira of the United Arab Emirates will join the celebration.

Four grand openings at the Concert at the Park in Metro Manila, the Davao People’s Park in Mindan-

ao, the Bacolod Provincial Capitol in the Visayas and Baguio's Burnham Park in Luzon will launch the fes-tival. There will be perfor-mances, exhibitions, lec-tures and conferences that will showcase the richness of Philippine tradition and culture.

With the roster of local and international artists invited to the festivities, the country aims to forge deeper understanding and strong socio-cultural ties through the arts through collaborative performanc-es and outreach projects.

— Manila Bulletin

National Arts Month begins in PI

www.facebook.com/filipinopress Filipino Press February 5-11, 2011 • 3

4 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com

YourWorldJASON ALDERMAN

Chances are you or someone you know have been laid off recent-ly. Being unemployed is diffi-

cult enough, but in a cruel twist, the longer you’re out of work, the hard-er it can be to find a job. And, when work does finally materialize, it’s of-ten a lower-paying position. This double whammy can damage your fi-nances for years to come.

If you’ve recently been laid off or worry your job may be in jeopardy, there are several steps you should take immediately to protect yourself financially:

Investigate severance benefits. Employers aren’t obligated to pro-vide severance unless it’s part of an employment agreement, but it doesn’t hurt to ask. Use knowledge of your company’s severance policies — and what others have gotten — to negotiate a better package.

Common severance benefits in-clude:

• Severance pay, usually based on annual wages and years of service.

• Extended health care insurance and assistance paying premiums.

• Temporary use of company re-sources, such as office space or equipment.

• Outplacement counseling.Apply for unemployment. De-

pending on your length of employ-ment and other factors, you may qualify for unemployment insur-ance payments. The waiting period is based on the date you file, not when you lose your job, so apply immedi-ately.

Rein in expenses. Even if you’ve built up a considerable emergency war chest, long-term unemployment can devastate your savings. Analyze your budget carefully and track all

expenses, looking for non-essentials to trim (unnecessary vehicles, eating out, cable TV, new clothes, etc.)

Manage your bills. Ordinarily, making extra mortgage, loan and credit card payments is a great fi-nancial strategy, but if you’re facing unemployment, it may make sense to scale back payments to boost your available savings to pay bills. Just be sure to always make at least mini-mum payments - on time; otherwise, you risk facing higher interest rates and damaging your credit score.

Also, this may be the one time it makes sense to suspend 401(k) con-tributions to accumulate more cash. If you later determine your job is safe, ask whether your employer will allow a year-end catch-up contribu-tion.

Protect your 401(k). After being laid off, you have several options for your 401(k) balance:

• If allowed, leave it in your for-mer employer’s plan, (Although, if it’s less than $5,000, you may be re-quired to close the account.)

• Roll it over into a new employ-er's plan, if it has one.

• Roll it over into a regular or Roth IRA. (With a Roth, you’ll pay income tax on the amount when filing this year’s taxes; however, you won’t be taxed on subsequent earnings at re-tirement).

• Take a lump-sum cash payout. (Rarely a good idea. It significantly reduces your retirement savings and you’ll owe income tax on the amount plus a 10 percent early withdrawal penalty unless you’re over age 55 or disabled.)

Also note that outstanding 401(k) loans must be repaid, usually with-in 30 days of leaving your job, or you’ll owe taxes and an early distri-bution penalty if you’re under age 59 ½. Consult a financial professional to learn more about the financial conse-quences of 401(k) distributions.

Being laid off can be very stress-ful and expensive, but if you’re pre-pared with a good game plan, you can minimize the damage to your finan-cial well being.

Jason Alderman directs Visa’s fi-nancial education programs. To partic-ipate in a free, online Financial Literacy and Education Summit on April 4, go to www.practicalmoneyskills.com/sum-mit2011.

Don’t let a layoff catch you unpreparedIf you’ve recently been laid off or worry your job may be in jeopardy, there are several steps you should take immediately to protect yourself financially.

Make sure you are cyber secureBy Jason AldermanSpecial to the Filipino Press

When Ben Franklin famous-ly wrote, “An ounce of preven-tion is worth a pound of cure,” I’m pretty sure he wasn’t warning his readers about the perils of cyber crime. But in today’s world of phishing, shoulder-surfing and comput-er spyware, his advice hits home.

It’s a sad reality that some people will rip you off if you give them an opportunity. Just as you take safety precautions when handling cash, so should you be vigilant when using credit or debit payment cards for purchases, whether the transaction is in person on on-line.

Here are tips for protecting your account information and avoiding payment card scams:

Prevent online intrusions. Use updated anti-virus and anti-spyware software, only download information from trusted sites and don’t click pop-up windows or suspicious links in e-mails. These can all be tricks to install spyware, which can record your key-strokes to obtain account or other confidential information.

Use secure websites. When purchasing items online, look for safety symbols such as the padlock icon in the browser’s status bar, an “s” after “http” in the URL, or the words Se-cure Sockets Layer (SSL). These are signs that the mer-chant is using a secure page for transmitting personal in-formation.

Protect personal informa-tion. Never provide sensitive information, such as cred-it card or bank account num-bers, passwords, Social Secu-rity number, driver'’s license, or address/phone by mail, phone or e-mail unless you ini-tiated the communication. Re-port requests for personal in-formation to your card issuer by calling the number on the back of your card.

Be wary of “free trial” of-fers. Take time to read and understand all terms and con-ditions. Pay particular atten-tion to any pre-checked boxes in online offers before submit-ting an order. Failing to un-check the boxes may bind you to terms and conditions you

See SECURE on Page 5

www.facebook.com/filipinopress Filipino Press February 5-11, 2011 • 5

We all know someone — maybe a friend, family member or

neighbor — who has strug-gled with their mortgage pay-ment and may even have lost their home. It starts with mak-ing the mortgage payment late each month, a missed payment or two that you couldn’t catch up with or a property tax pay-ment that you just couldn’t find the money for. Regardless of what the story is, most peo-ple are unprepared when they eventually get the notice that their lender has started a fore-closure against their home.

In 2010, more than 22,000 homeowners in San Diego County received a Notice of Default from their lender. A Notice of Default is the begin-ning of the foreclosure process and, if ignored, can result in the loss of your home. If you are a homeowner and are ex-periencing financial difficulty, you need to know what a No-tice of Default is and how it can affect you.

Notice of default. A No-tice of Default is formal no-tice from the lender that a homeowner is behind on their mortgage payments. The no-tice is recorded in the county where the property is located and is a matter of public re-cord. If you don’t know wheth-er a foreclosure has been start-ed against your property, you should check with the San Di-ego County Recorder. A fore-closure can be started if you miss as little as one payment on your mortgage, but typical-ly will not happen with a com-mercial lender until you are at least 90 days behind.

Once the foreclosure pro-cess has begun with a Notice of Default, it can be very dif-ficult to recover. Of the 22,000 San Diego County homeown-ers who received a Notice of

Default in 2010, more than 50 percent actually lost their home to a foreclosure sale; the rest are presumed to be work-ing on short sales, loan modifi-cations or to have given up en-tirely.

As a note of caution regard-ing loan modifications, you should know that a June 2010 Fitch Ratings report predicts that as many as 75 percent of homeowners will re-default on their mortgages after receiv-ing a permanent loan modi-fication. The reason for this phenomenon is that a loan modification does nothing to solve other debt issues that may be affecting your ability to pay the mortgage.

You should also be aware that a trial loan modification doesn’t mean the lender won’t foreclose on the property. In fact, many of my clients have faced foreclosure sales even though they made each and ev-ery trial modification payment

on time. This often catches homeowners off-guard and can lead to the loss of your home if you aren’t careful. You need to be aware at all times regarding where you are in the loan mod-ification process to avoid this potential pitfall.

Notice of Sale. After a No-tice of Default is recorded, there is a minimum 90-day pe-

riod to bring the account cur-rent or to “reinstate” the loan with the lender. If a homeown-er does not “reinstate” with-in this time period, the lender can set the date, time and loca-tion for a public auction of the property with a Notice of Sale.

A Notice of Sale must be sent by certified mail 20 days before the sale date and must also be posted on the property affected by the notice. At the foreclosure sale, the proper-ty may be sold to a third par-ty or returned to the lender. Once the sale has occurred, the property is transferred out of the name of the troubled homeowner and eviction pro-ceedings are started against anyone still living at the prop-erty.

What to do if you receive a Notice of default. If you have received a Notice of Default, you should seek the advice of an attorney immediately — it could make the difference be-tween getting back on track and losing your home. If you are unable to reinstate your mortgage (pay back all past due amounts), a bankruptcy is often the only way to stop a foreclosure sale. A good attor-ney will be able to explain your rights so you can understand

them and help you formulate a plan to save your home, if it is possible.

Grace K. Powell is a San Diego attorney who focuses on bank-ruptcy, real estate and small business matters. Powell is a life-

long San Diego resident with de-grees in engineering and law. She can be reached at FRESH START SAN DIEGO, at (619) 727-1204 or at gkp.esq@gmail.com. This col-umn is for informational purpos-es only and is not meant to con-strue legal advice.

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Legal Notes

don’t want.Track account activity. Reg-

ularly review credit card and bank statements and report any suspicious or unauthor-ized charges to the financial institution or card issuer. Ask whether your credit or deb-it card offers “zero liability,” which means you won't be re-sponsible for unauthorized or fraudulent purchases.

Transaction alerts. Sign up for e-mail or text message transaction alerts from your bank to keep track of purchas-es. These alerts are triggered when the transaction meets certain criteria you select; for example, purchases over a certain dollar amount. In addi-tion, banks generally will con-tact you if they spot unusual activity, such as multiple large purchases made within a short time frame or from different geographic areas.

SECUREContinued from Page 4

Once the foreclosure process has begun with a Notice of Default, it can be very difficult to recover. Of the 22,000 San Diego County homeowners who received a Notice of Default in 2010, more than 50 percent actually lost their home to a foreclosure sale; the rest are presumed to be working on short sales, loan modifications or to have given up entirely.

6 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com

I grew up in a small subdivi-sion in Quezon City where we could see farmers plant

rice in summer and harvest them in September. During our summer vacation, we would sneak into a nearby mango and santol orchard where we would climb the trees and har-vest our own share of green mangoes and sweet santol. The rice fields and the mango and santol trees have long given way to subdivisions and com-mercial plazas.

I distinctly remember the place because in such a small village there lived three gen-erals who distinguished them-selves as truly professional soldiers. They were respect-able and respected. They were all majors when we first moved into the village in 1966. They lived in modest houses and lived modest lives. Their children were simple kids and were disciplined.

In time, they became colo-nels and then brigadier gener-als. Two were constabulary of-ficers and became provincial commanders of nearby prov-inces. One of them was a Phil-ippine Military Academy grad-uate, while the other was an advanced ROTC graduate. The third was an Army engineer and was also a product of the academy.

Even when they became generals, they still lived in their old houses and their chil-dren remained as simple and as disciplined as ever. All those years, these three gen-erals drove dilapidated cars. They were driven to work by a sergeant in wartime military jeeps. I looked up to them with great respect and admiration.

When I became a journalist, I started meeting and hearing of colonels and generals who lived in plush villages, such as Corinthian Gardens, Green-hills and Blue Ridge; generals who bought houses for their mistresses in lesser but ex-pensive villages; generals who were driven in Pajeros with polo barong-clad bodyguards; generals who enriched them-selves receiving bribe mon-ey from contractors and sup-pliers, “jueteng” lords or even crime syndicates; generals who were paid to order their men to turn their heads while smugglers unloaded their stuff

or while politicians switched ballot boxes during elections; generals who ordered the mur-der of activists, union leaders and political opponents; gener-als who robbed their own sol-diers by sucking their pension funds dry; generals who were far from being officers and gentlemen.

In early December 2004, three generals came into the spotlight — one was being investigated by the United States government for laun-dering hundreds of thousands of dollars into the U.S.; anoth-er was being investigated for allegedly faking his birth cer-tificate to extend his obvious-ly lucrative tenure for three more years; the third retired general was being probed on a P167-million land overpric-ing scam.

At the center of the storm was former AFP comptroller Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia, who was being investigated by the Ombudsman and by a mili-

tary court martial for allegedly amassing unexplained wealth during his tenure, with his net worth reportedly surpassing $1 million (P56 million) on a monthly salary of P26,000. It turned out later that the illegal wealth had reached P300 mil-lion.

The investigation was spurred by an incident at the San Francisco airport a year earlier, when customs author-ities confiscated $100,000 cash from Garcia’s son, which he had failed to declare. It was later revealed that Garcia, his wife and two sons had de-clared various amounts during their visits to the U.S. totaling almost $400,000 in five years.

Garcia’s wife arrogantly told U.S. authorities, “there is more where it came from,” explaining that her husband was a two-star general who frequently received cash gifts from contractors and sup-pliers for facilitating their checks.

The grievous mistake of Garcia’s wife and two sons were to haunt him — and the entire military — for years to come.

Retired Commodore Rex Robles, a member of the Fe-liciano Commission that in-vestigated the failed Oak-wood mutiny involving some 300 soldiers, made the revela-tions about Garcia and the oth-er generals, saying it was just the “tip of the iceberg.”

The explosive testimony last week at a Senate hearing of retired Lt. Col. George Ra-busa, who was AFP budget of-ficer under Garcia, affirmed the mutineers’ protest of ram-pant irregularities in the mili-tary, particularly in the higher echelons. The lieutenants and captains who led the mutiny had complained that demoral-ization has pervaded the mil-itary’s rank and file, and the enlisted men are suffering be-cause of graft and corruption in the high places of the armed forces.

For decades, these military and police generals have been coddled by presidents. The late President Ferdinand Mar-cos gave them perks, power and privileges to prop up his martial law government and to keep him in power. None of the succeeding presidents dared touch them despite their abus-es, for fear of being toppled by

a military coup. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo

was no exception. In fact, she upped the ante for coddling the generals. Apparently, she felt she owed these gener-als for installing her to power when they withdrew their sup-port of then-President Joseph Estrada just when hundreds of thousands of people were al-ready gathered on EDSA. She wooed the military by going out of her way to please them, giving nearly every single gen-eral a chance to become AFP chief of staff and appointing those who retired to key gov-ernment positions.

Robles was right in saying that the gripes of the muti-neers were just the “tip of the iceberg.” Rabusa gave the af-firmation last week.

Rabusa said their office had a slush fund, known as the Pro-vision for Command-Direct-ed Activities, which had to be at least P40 million a month, sourced from allocations for the AFP general headquarters and support staff, the three major service commands (Army, Navy and Air Force), as well as that of the Presiden-tial Security Group, the Phil-ippine Military Academy and the AFP Medical Center.

If more money were needed, Rabusa said, they also tapped into the AFP’s "special funds," subject to the approval by the president as commander-in-chief and also into the savings on the allocated budget for the salaries of ordinary soldiers. And they took money allotted for hiring new soldiers.

Rabusa said the bulk of the funds went to the pockets of senior military officials, mem-bers of Congress, and media. He said the PCDA was divided among top military officials, with the chief of staff getting a personal allotment of P5 mil-lion a month, and another P5 million for the “maintenance

and operation” of his office. He said then-AFP chief

Gen. Angelo Reyes, whose withdrawal of support for President Estrada enabled Ar-royo to succeed in her coup, received P50 million send-off money on his retirement. He said the amount was on top of the P5 million a month Reyes received from PCDA, or about P100 million during his 20-month period as chief of staff.

All these fund conversions and diversions went on while the severely underpaid foot soldier went to battle with in-adequate uniform, supply, weapons and ammunition. No wonder the troops are al-ways outfought and outnum-bered; no wonder the military couldn’t lick the New People’s Army and the Muslim rebels.

How will President Aqui-no handle the investigations of these military generals? Will he dare stand up to them and prosecute the scalawags? Or will he continue to coddle them and keep a blind eye to the rampant graft and corrup-tion? Will he continue to re-ward them with juicy govern-ment positions?

Will the investigations go the same way as the avowed pledge to go after Arroyo and her corrupt officials? Or will the expose join the heavy bag-gage of unresolved corrup-tion scandals that now weight heavily on the nation’s ability to move forward?

One thing is certain. The in-tegrity that those three gener-als of my youth built has for-ever been ruined by these shocking revelations. The re-spect that the military earned on EDSA in 1986 has definitely gone down the drain. The mil-itary, as we know it now, is a ruined institution.

E-mail Val Abelgas at valabel-gas@aol.com.

Gov. Jerry Brown de-serves applause for honestly tackling Cali-

fornia’s budget crisis in his re-cent State of the State address, but further action is needed to restore prosperity, policy ex-perts at The Greenlining Insti-tute said.

“What we call a recession is a full-fledged depression for many communities of col-or,” said Greenlining Institute General Counsel Samuel S. Kang. “Balancing the budget is important, but it’s not the same as restoring prosperity. Restoring California’s pros-perity requires action to stem the tide of foreclosures — even to the extent of declaring a state of emergency if that’s what it takes — bolster small businesses and stop the devas-tating effects of health insur-ance rate increases. We also strongly urge the governor and legislature to look into un-tapped revenue sources, such as an oil severance tax in or-der to reduce devastating bud-

get cuts.”Last month, The Green-

lining issued a report, “The State of the Majority,” exam-ining the situation of Califor-nia’s communities of color — the voters responsible for all of Brown’s victory margin last November.

The report, available online here makes a total of seven recommendations, including:

• generate new revenues to protect vital programs. Severe cuts to health, higher educa-tion and other programs will cause tremendous harm. Cal-ifornia should consider new revenue sources, such as an oil severance tax.

• Save our homes and save California’s economy. Instead of allowing new waves of fore-closures to devastate more communities, Gov. Brown and Attorney General Kama-la Harris must pressure finan-cial institutions to offer loan modifications to the 90 per-

cent of eligible homeowners who haven’t been reached by current programs.

• Preserve health reform momentum and stop unfair rate increases. Californians are already beginning to ben-efit from national health in-surance reform. Now it’s time to take the next step and pass pending legislation to protect Californians against abusive, job-killing rate increases.

• Bolster small businesses.The California Public Utilities Commission has an effective supplier diversity program that resulted in over $2 billion in contracts with diverse small businesses in 2009 alone. By replicating this model in other areas, California can encour-age small businesses in the most hard-hit communities.

The Greenlining Institute is a national policy, organizing and leadership institute working for racial and economic justice. Read their latest report online at http://greenlining.org.

Val Abelgas

On Distant Shore

The

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Military as we know it now a ruined institution

Commentary

“There is a mistaken notion among some that to own a paper is to have a license to clobber one’s enemies and attack people we don’t like. A newspaper is an information tool to reach a large number of people at a given time.

A newspaper should inform, educate, entertain and provide viewpoints that could give us the means to make intelligent decisions for ourselves and others.” — Ernie Flores Jr., founding editor and publisher

Brown budget a good start, but further action necessary

Jesse Reyes

For decades, these military and police generals have been coddled by presidents. The late President Ferdinand Marcos gave them perks, power and privileges to prop up his martial law government and to keep him in power. None of the succeeding presidents dared touch them despite their abuses, for fear of being toppled by a military coup.

Guest editorial

www.facebook.com/filipinopress Filipino Press February 5-11, 2011 • 7

With the stunning rev-elations of retired Lt. Col. George Ra-

busa exposing the top brass of the Armed Forces of the Phil-ippines as a fraternity of plun-derers, the question that must necessarily be posed is: Do our leaders have the will to pin down the guilty and exact pun-ishment?

Of course, we are now hear-ing loud noises about the need to go after the plunderers with-out regard for position or per-sonal relationships. But what is said in public can be differ-ent from what is discussed in the Old Boy Network.

The system of dipping into the country’s coffers and us-ing public funds for personal enrichment has been in place for so long that, in the words of Rabusa, it has become a “tra-dition.” But it would be naïve to think that this tradition is only true in the military.

What Rabusa has exposed is only part of the web of patron-age and corruption that has engulfed and suffocated our country for as long as we have been allowed self-governance.

Our country is under the thumb of big and small fief-doms run by provincial war-lords, business overlords, cabinet kingpins, boards of government corporations, po-litical dynasties, pork barrel pirates, military fraternities and criminal syndicates.

The tradition of people in power gorging themselves like

pigs thrusting their snouts in the public trough is true in every branch of government, from the executive to the legis-lative to the judiciary. We have all been talking about this for years and, on occasion, there have been dramatic exposes like that made by Rabusa. But, after all of the sound and fury, nothing ever comes out of it. It’s always a case of the ele-phant giving birth to a mouse.

In P-Noy’s inaugural speech, he revealed the scandalous way officers and board mem-bers of government owned and controlled corporations had been helping themselves to the coffers of their respective fief-doms, giving themselves fat al-lowances and bonuses for ev-ery conceivable excuse.

Shortly after P-Noy’s ex-pose, the Senate conducted a series of highly publicized hearings at which officials of the GOCCs were berated, in-sulted, humiliated — and then let loose, with only their digni-ty ruffled.

In a piece about the scandal, I wrote, “Of course, President Noynoy has ordered the ‘sus-

pension’ of the bonuses and perks of the GOCC brass, but that’s like closing the chicken coop after the foxes have had their fill.

“Meanwhile, what does the rest of the government justice system do about these pub-lic officials who have betrayed the public trust by raiding the Good Old Cash Cows (the al-ternative meaning of GOCC)?

“Whose move is it? The De-

partment of Justice? The Om-budsman? The Sandigan-bayan? The president of the Philippines?

“Who is supposed to take the next logical step to exact justice from these plunder-ers?”

Months have passed. If something has been done, we haven’t heard about it. Of course, Philippine media, like the Philippine Senate, are not famous for sinking their teeth into a scandal and sticking to it until something comes out of the investigation and the guilty are punished or the innocent exonerated.

So, now comes Rabusa with revelations that have brought the issue of plundering among military brass from the hazy limbo of suspicion and allega-tions to the arena of document-ed accusations, of names being named, sums being detailed and the whole can of worms being turned upside down.

The honorable members of the Senate are, once more, in the center of the fray, per-forming impressive theater and vowing to unmask all the guilty parties, without fear or favor.

Again, we would like to ask the question: What next?

In my column on the GOCC scandal, I quipped: “After the Barnum and Bailey specta-cle in the Senate, starring The Raiders of the Hapless GOCCs, what will happen next?

“Going by the track record

of that august body, NOTH-ING.”

Is that going to be the same fate awaiting the Rabusa rev-elations? Or will the Depart-ment of Justice file charg-es against the military brass? Will the Ombudsman prompt-ly act on the charges? Will the Sandiganbayan indict the cul-prits?

Former AFP chief of staff and former Arroyo cabinet of-ficial Angelo Reyes has been named by Rabusa. Will the DoJ indict him?

Once more, I would like to cite the example I gave when I asked the same questions some months ago concerning the “Raiders of the GOCSs.”

“Perhaps they can take a cue from the case of the city of Bell, a working-class suburb of Los Angeles, where one in six residents lives in poverty.

“The other week, Bell May-or Oscar Hernandez and for-mer City Manager Robert Riz-zo were arrested in morning raids on their homes, hand-cuffed and thrown in jail, along with former Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia, Vice Mayor Teresa Jacobo, Council Members George Mirabal and Luis Artiga and former Coun-cil Member Victor Bello.

“Their crime? Helping themselves to the city’s mea-ger treasury and paying them-selves salaries and benefits, to-taling more than $5.5 million.”

Or, maybe, the DoJ can take a cue from the Chinese gov-

ernment in dealing with plun-derers:

In 1995, the wife of a gov-ernment of Guizhou Province was executed for embezzling thousands in public funds. On the way to the execution, she was paraded through the streets, shackled to the back of a truck.

Between 2000 and 2005, some 25 Chinese government officials were sentenced to death for accepting bribes. In March 2000, a former deputy governor was executed after accepting bribes worth more than $600,000. In August 2000, a former vice-chairman of the National People’s Congress was executed for taking $4.9 million in bribes for awarding government contracts and get-ting involved in a sweetheart real estate deal. Some of those who were executed were pa-raded with signs hanging from their necks reading, “Corrupt and Degenerate.”

According to the Chinese government, the harsh pun-ishment was designed to send a sharp lesson to other cor-rupt officials. They called it, “Slaughtering the chicken to warn the monkey.”

In the wake of the Rabusa revelations, can we expect to see some military chicken be-ing slaughtered? Or will the monkey business go merrily on and on and on?

E-mail Greg Macabenta at gregmacabenta@hotmail.com.

Slaughter the chicken to warn the monkeyGreg B. Macabenta

Street Talk

Cosmic alert! If you’re the type of person who relies on mysterious-sounding

locations of stars to determine your personality and outcome in life get ready to be shocked. And if you look to your horo-scope for a preview of your day, look again. You’re proba-bly following somebody else’s supposed fate.

Perhaps you may have not heard that there’s been a change in zodiac signs. Appar-ently, some horoscope readers are also probably still sore af-ter January’s news that their celestial signs might not be, in fact, their astrological sign.

As if world events are not undependable enough, some folks are indeed in turmoil that their zodiac sign is wrong.

The new zodiac signs were a top Google trend last month. It seems that news of the report-edly new horoscope signs has everyone on the Internet in the midst of an identity crisis. My wife feels like a Gemini, but now she’s really a Taurus? For that matter, I have always en-joyed life as a Libra and now I have to adjust to the fact that I’m actually a Virgo.

Actually, this isn’t news. One columnist says, “Astrol-ogy tells us that the sun is in one position, whereas astrono-my tells us it’s in another po-sition” and the shift is caused by a wobble in the Earth’s axis cause by the “gravitational at-traction of the moon to the Earth’s equator.”

This all dates back to around 280 B.C. when the earliest as-tronomers recognized this movement.

Confused?Of course!You’re a brand-spanking

new sign and you have no idea what’s going on. And now you find out that this isn’t news at all. But there’s still a lot to talk about it on Facebook, Twitter and the rest of the Web.

Basically, the Earth is a spin-ning top and its axis changes as it wobbles. So, as this alter-ation occurs, the stars are not aligned. This leads to the belief that those who are Libras like me are really a Virgos — and mind you, other signs have de-viated as well.

The person trumpeting

this “error” in astrology is, of course, an astronomer, Parke Kunkle, a member of the Min-nesota Planetarium Society, who notes that a “wobble” in the Earth’s rotation has caused the position of the heavens to gradually shift in our view over the last 3,000 years. That would mean the zodiac calen-dar is off by about a month and your true astrological sign is the one preceding your birth-day by a few weeks.

And there’s a 13th sign that astrologers should acknowl-edge, Kunkle adds. Enter Ophi-uchus. It’s both a mythological figure and a constellation and it’s upsetting the astrological status quo, leaving some peo-ple to wonder if there will ac-tually be a 13th zodiac sign.

Backtracking a bit, the Min-nesota Planetarium Society made some observations about astronomy as reported in Time magazine recently. Here, as-tronomer Parke Kunkle ob-served that our astrological signs are determined by the position of the Earth to the sun at the time of our birth and that astrology has been faulty since its inception. Such that, though there are 13 constella-tions, the ancient Babylonians took it upon themselves to se-lect 12. Why? So astrological charts would look pretty?

Who knows? Anyway, the constellation

disposed of is named Ophiu-chus and really few in the fore-casting field recognize Ophi-uchi as a 13th zodiac sign. Known as the Snake Bear-er, the origin of Ophiuchus is an interesting piece of Greek mythology. The short of it is that Jupiter zapped him with a lightning bolt because his brother Pluto, lord of the un-derworld, didn’t care for the first doctor. Named AEscula-pius, he went about healing the sick. As he was about to inter-

fere with the death of Orion, Pluto became hopping mad.

Pluto was concerned about his constituency being revived from the dead and compelled his brother Jupiter to take ac-tion. That’s where the celes-tial bolt came in. Ultimate-ly, however, AEsculapius was recognized for his accomplish-ments as a skilled physician and earned a place among the stars, known as the constella-tion Ophiuchus.

However, these new zodiac

signs apparently aren’t going to happen, at least officially — though diehard horoscope fans and followers of “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” may take note of the proposed astrological dates from astron-omer Kunkle.

It’s all scientific blabber and I honestly have no idea what is actually true and what is not. The accompanying chart shows the supposed new align-ment of the zodiac.

You will notice that the zo-diac symbol adjusted the most from this shift is Scorpio, which used to be from Oct. 24 to Nov. 22. But now it has be-come much more compressed, lasting only from Nov. 23-29. In the old days, each sign had at least a full month or so, yet thanks to the new system, Scor-pio got the shortest straw of all.

Note that a few folks will have the same zodiac signs, while others have to claim fresh ones. Will their new sym-bol say any more about them than the old ones did? A few might be so attached to the old signs that the new symbols may mean nothing to them. Yet true believers will intensely study the new horoscope dates and signs to make perfectly sure.

I reckon suddenly “looking for love in all the wrong plac-es” and “money having wings” would have new meanings, eh?

Interestingly enough, just weeks ago, one newspaper re-ported on related research that indicates the adage that “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” is a myth, where-as both sexes act similarly when in love. So, if, for exam-ple, you are a Leo married to a Virgo and the marriage fails, the reason may not lie in the stars after all — and a new zo-diac sign doesn’t change that a bit.

Believe what you will. That’s my own perspective,

by the way. Still, I did not tat-too a Libra on my arm when I was in the Navy which I’d now have to remove with the new discovery.

Nevertheless, I’m staying as the well-balanced Libra.

What’s your sign? E-mail Jesse Reyes at

jtreyes619@hotmail.com.

Some see stars in zodiac changeJesse T. Reyes

Filipino Potpourri

New zodiac sign chartCAPRICORNJanuary 20 to February 16

AQUARIUSFebruary 16 to March 11

PISCESMarch 11 to April 18

ARIESApril 18 to May 13

TAURUSMay 13 to June 21

gEMINIJune 21 to July 20

CANCERJuly 20 to August 10

LEOAugust 10 to September 16

VIRgOSeptember 16 to October 30

LIBRAOctober 30 to November 23

SCORPIONovember 23 to November 29

OPHIUCHUSNovember 29 to december 17

SAgITTARIUSdecember 17 to January 20

The system of dipping into the country’s coffers and using public funds for personal enrichment has been in place for so long that, in the words of Rabusa, it has become a “tradition.” But it would be naïve to think that this tradition is only true in the military.

Food and Cultural Festival gets under way on Third Av-enue in downtown San Diego. Festivities begin at 10 a.m. with the lighting of firecrack-ers to scare away evil spirits and bad luck from the pre-vious years, followed by lion dancers to welcome prosper-ity, good luck and happiness. Cultural performances and demonstrations will run con-tinuously through the two-day event. Admission is free.

California passed Assem-bly Concurrent Resolution 11 on the State Assembly Floor to recognize Feb. 3, 2011, as Lunar New Year 4709. As-semblymember Richard Pan (D –Natomas) presented the resolution, which passed with a unanimous vote.

“California is home to over five million Asian Pacific Is-lander Americans, making up 14 percent of the state popu-lation,” said Pan. “With ACR 11, the California State Leg-islature joins APIA commu-nities from across the state in celebrating Feb. 3 as Lu-nar New Year, the year of the rabbit.”

During the floor ceremony, Pan shared information re-garding the significance of the 12 animal signs representing the different years of the lu-nar calendar. In addition, he discussed symbolic gifts and decorations, such as tanger-ines, red envelopes and koi fish used to promote good luck and prosperity during Lunar New Year celebrations.

“With ACR 11, I would like to extend my best wishes for a peaceful and prosperous lu-nar new year to all Califor-nians,” Pan said.

The U.S. Post Office is celebrating the Lunar New Year with a commemorative Year of the Rabbit “forever” stamp. Stamps are currently available at most post offices, but are predicted to sell out soon.

Families celebrate Lunar New Year by cleaning their homes and sweeping out the bad luck of the previous year, parents gifting red envelopes of money to their children (including unmarried adult children), bringing in lucky plants (such as kumquat tree, chrysanthemums or peonies), and eating lucky foods. The

eating of lucky foods such as fish, clams, dumplings, spring rolls and rice cakes are sta-ples of family feasts dur-ing the 15-day celebrations. While the foods provide a delicious meal, the Chinese words and shape of the food have significant meaning. The Chinese word for fish sounds like “to save more.” Nian Gao (glutinous rice cakes) are eat-en to appease the Kitchen God’s appetite and sticks to his mouth to prevent gossip about the family. The shape of clams and dumplings are similar to gold ingots, while spring rolls are reminiscent of gold bars.

Another popular way of ringing in the New Year is by realigning feng sui each year based on one’s Chinese horo-scope sign in order to ward off bad luck and optimize good luck and prosperity. Feng sui is the practice of architecture as well furniture and auspi-cious items arrangement in order to increase optimum en-ergy flow for prosperity, hap-piness, good health and more.

“Contrary to what feng sui enthusiasts may think, per-sonal feng sui is not station-ary,” said a local feng sui shopkeeper. “It’s constantly moving, changing based on the ‘chi’ of the person which many times relate to their birth time — their sign.

“They should check their luck for the year and change accordingly. Some only need a little fine-tuning. Others are predicted to have a not so good year; they need a lot of help.”

Rabbit years have histor-ically brought diplomacy, change through persuasion and calmer times compared with the unpredictability, dis-agreements and disaster-lad-en tiger years.

Famous rabbits/cats in-clude: Confucius, Albert Ein-stein, Tiger Woods, Johnny Depp, Francis Ford Coppola, Sting and Cesar Chavez.

NEW YEARContinued from Page 1

• The 29th Annual San diego Chinese New Year Food and Cultural Festival is set for Feb. 12 and 13 on Third Avenue in downtown San diego. Festivities at the free festival include food, arts and crafts and other vendor booths.

NEW YEAR FESTIvAL

8 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com

HealthyLiving

The new year is well un-der way but you may still carry those stubborn

pounds you piled on during the holiday season. They are a constant reminder of all the caloric excesses you indulged in, while healthy eating habits and regular exercise tempo-rarily flew out the window.

“It happens every year — many people gain weight in just the few weeks between Thanksgiving and the new year,” said Coach Berry R.B., a personal trainer at “Dare to be Fit” Coach Berry’s Personal Training Studio in Oceanside. “Now they are trying to slim down, but the question is, are they doing it right?”

If you want to lose weight fast, you may be tempted to try one of those “secret” or “rev-olutionary” diet pills or other gimmicks you see advertised on TV. They promise a “quick” and “easy” weight loss while you eat all your favorite foods and don’t spend even a minute exercising.

Berry urges consumers to be cautious about crash diets that are promoted as miracu-lous.

“If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If these products were so wonderful, nobody would be overweight,” he said. “In fact, some of the pills and other products that curb your appetite can have serious side effects, so nev-er take any diet supplements without speaking to your doc-tor first.”

How can you shed those ex-tra pounds safely and effec-tively, and maintain the weight loss long-term?

“Only sensible eating hab-its along with regular exercise can accomplish that,” Berry said. “It all comes down to re-ducing the amount of calories you eat while increasing your levels of activity.”

His recommendations for a healthy, permanent weight

loss:Make smart food choices:

Replace sodas (even diet ones) with water – and drink lots of it. Reduce your sugar and salt intake and eliminate junk foods that are full of artery-clogging saturated fats. Go for whole grains, low-fat protein and dairy, fruits and vegeta-bles. And remember to prac-tice portion control.

Allow yourself an occasion-

al treat: Dieting is not about starvation or excluding all the foods you like. It’s all a mat-ter of quantity. One cookie or a sliver of cake once in a while won't hurt you — as long as you count these splurges in your total calorie allowance and don’t get into the habit of con-stant snacking.

Set a target that’s realistic. Eating 300 to 500 calories less per day while increasing your activity level should lead to a loss of between one and two pounds per week.

don’t forget to exercise: For the most effective weight loss, you need a regular work-out that will burn calories and stimulate your metabo-lism. For example, cardio and strength training. Ask your fit-ness professional to create a routine that meets your per-sonal needs — whether your goal is overall weight loss or a specific spot reduction, such as belly fat.

Coach Berry R.B. is a Re-tired Marine with more than 30 years of experience keep-ing Marines and civilians in top physical condition. From a pas-sion to help people change their lives through health and fit-ness, Coach launched the “Dare to be Fit” program in Oceans-ide in January 2001. Schedules and client testimonials are avail-able at www.rb-berry.com. To learn more about Coach Berry's weight loss program, he can be reached at rbberry@cox.net or 760-967-6847.

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Kasier Permanente program adds more family doctors SAN DIEGO — Kaiser Perma-nente San Diego has received accreditation for a new Family Medicine residency training program that will bring a total of 18 family practitioners to the county of San Diego over the next three years.

“This new family medicine residency program is the first in the county since 1998,” said Dr. Paul Bernstein, area medi-cal director for KP San Diego. “We are thrilled about what this new program will bring to the county of San Diego; our need to address a surge in new health care recipients and train new family medicine physicians to provide access to care for all San Diegans.”

Beginning immediately, KP San Diego will begin to recruit six new residents each year for the next three years follow-ing graduation from medical school. The physicians will receive an evidence-based edu-cation experience that includes training for KP’s state-of-the-art electronic health records system, direct patient responsi-bility to more than 500,000 pa-tients, and a highly structured educational curriculum with intense faculty involvement. Residents will be a part of one of the largest Family Medicine Departments in the world with more than 160 family physi-cians on staff.

Dr. Dereck DeLeon is the residency program director. The administrative faculty members are Drs. Sherwin Gal-lardo, Lance Fuchs, Katherine

Balazy, Dennis Andrade, Joseph Matista, Vidush Athyal, Thomas Maddox, Emanuela Bonfoco, and Gevork Mosesi. Jan Kerr is the residency program coordi-nator.

KP San Diego received accredi-tation through the Accredita-tion Council for Graduate Medical Education. The ACGME is responsible for the accredi-tation of post-M.D. medical training programs within the United States. Accreditation is accomplished through a peer review process and is based upon established standards and guidelines.

The program is slated to begin in San Diego in June 2012. Recruitment will begin immedi-ately.

‘Women’s Focus on Health’ sets world record for cervical cancer- screening tests SAN DIEGO – In honor of Cervi-cal Cancer Screening Aware-ness month, hundreds of San Diegans participated in Kaiser Permanente’s “Women’s Focus on Health” event on Jan. 29 which offered cervical cancer screenings, mammograms, as well as laboratory testing for cardiovascular diseases. By 12:30 p.m., a world record had been set for administering the highest number of cervical can-cer screenings in an eight hour period, totaling 350.

“Setting the world record was the fun part,” said Dr. Paul Ber-nstein, areamedical director for Kaiser Permanente San Diego. “But our goal was to make it

hEALTh NOTES

See NOTES on Page 9

www.facebook.com/filipinopress Filipino Press February 5-11, 2011 • 9

SAN DIEGO — Families and caretakers of children under the age of one can get free pertussis booster shots on weekends through Feb. 13 at six Northgate markets, the county’s Health and Human Services Agency said.

In the last week, five more confirmed cases of pertus-sis, or whooping cough, oc-curred at schools where oth-ers may have been exposed to the highly contagious disease in the past week.

The number of pertussis cases is now 47 in the region for 2011. In 2010, whooping cough cases reached a record-high of 1,140 which included two infant deaths.

“The one-time pertussis booster vaccine will be given two more weekends at North-gate markets in response to the ongoing epidemic,” said Dr. Eric McDonald, San Diego

County Deputy Public Health Officer. “In January, 5,433 people took advantage of the free booster shots at the mar-kets to protect themselves and their loved ones.”

The California Department of Public Health recommends a pertussis booster vaccine (Tdap) for everyone 10 years or older who has not yet re-ceived it, especially women of childbearing age, before, during or immediately after pregnancy; and other peo-ple, including household con-tacts, caregivers and health care workers who have con-tact with pregnant women or infants. Children 7-9 years of age who did not receive all of their routine childhood shots are recommended to receive a Tdap booster dose.

Beginning July 1, all stu-dents entering 7th through 12th grades in both public and

private schools must show proof that they have had a Tdap booster shot before they can start school. The Centers for Disease Control recom-mends that children receive a booster shot of Tdap vaccine at 11-12 yrs.

The CDC also recommends that children get one dose of DTaP vaccine at the follow-ing ages: 2 months; 4 months; 6 months; 15 to 18 months and 4 to 6 years. The vaccine is available from a primary care physician. Residents who do not have health care cover-age may visit a HHSA Public Health Center.

Free pertussis vaccines for individuals who have contact with children under one year of age are available week-ends through Feb. 13 at local Northgate markets from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more infor-mation, call (866) 358-2966.

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easy for women to manage their health. Cervical cancer is the second leading cancer causing death for women. Symptoms are hardly noticeable in the early stages so the key to finding it is through screening.”

The event was held on a Satur-day to provide ease and con-venience for women who work during the week and have not had the time to manage their health. Kaiser Permanente is tak-ing the lead in the fight against cervical cancer, which strikes nearly 10,000 American women and kills 3,700 each year.

Women aged 21 to 65, as well as those at high risk, are candidates for a cervical pap smear screen-ing every one to three years. Detecting cervical cancer in its earliest stages greatly improves survival rates. More than 90 percent of women can survive cervical cancer when it is local-ized and caught early.

NOTESContinued from Page 8

10 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com

SACRAMENTO — Assem-blymember Marty Block (D-San Diego) and others deliv-ered remarks on the campus of the University of Califor-nia Berkeley on Jan. 30 at the first-ever Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Con-stitution holiday celebration, the first holiday in U.S. History named after an Asian-Ameri-

can. Block was joined by Assem-

blymember Warren Furuta-ni (D-South Los Angeles), the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Def Po-etry Jam spoken-word artist Beau Sia and Karen Koremat-su, daughter of Korematsu, to honor a national civil rights hero who showed tremendous courage in resisting the U.S. government’s incarceration of nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans, including 2,000 from the San Diego region, during World War II.

“Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Con-stitution reminds us of the en-

during importance of the Unit-ed States Constitution and the civil liberties it guarantees ev-ery American,” said Furutani. “It is Korematsu’s story, and the stories of other unnamed American heroes, that demon-strates the importance of con-tinuing to fight for the free-doms guaranteed to us by the Constitution in the hopes that it will be extended to others, no matter the extenuating cir-cumstances.”

Korematsu, an American citizen of Japanese descent who lived in California, re-fused to comply with the mil-itary exclusion order that led

to the incarceration of more than 100,000 Japanese Ameri-cans and permanent residents of Japanese descent in concen-tration camps during World War II. He was arrested and convicted of violating the ex-clusion order, which affected his ability to obtain employ-ment long after those incarcer-ated were allowed to leave the camps.

Although Korematsu’s con-viction was upheld in 1944 by the United States Supreme Court, he, along with a pro bono legal team comprised of young Japanese-American and Asian-American attorneys, pe-titioned for a writ of error co-ram nobis in 1983 to overturn his conviction. Judge Marilyn Hall Patel overturned Kore-matsu’s conviction.

AB 1775, which establish-es Jan. 30 as Fred Koremat-su Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution, unanimous-ly passed the state Senate and Assembly, and enjoyed broad support. It was signed by the governor on Sept. 24, 2010.

The Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Con-stitution encourages public schools and educational insti-tutions at every grade level to teach Fred Korematsu’s story as it relates to current civil lib-erties and constitutional rights issues. To access a teaching curriculum on Fred Koremat-su please visit: http://koremat-suinstitute.org/

The San Diego Chapter of the Japanese American Citi-zen League and the Japanese American Historical Society of San Diego hosted a similar cel-ebration honoring Korematsu at San Diego State University.

FEBRUARY5/23 • FREE TAx-ASSISTANCE EVENT A free tax-assistance event will be held at the Logan Heights Branch Library in partnership with Intuit Tax Freedom Project. Volunteers will be on site at 567 S. 28th Street in San Diego on Saturday, Feb. 5 from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on Wednesday, Feb. 23 from 1 to 7 p.m. to help file your taxes for free if you qualify. For qualification information and to avoid waiting in line, call (866) 577-1231 to make a reservation, and mention that you are calling to reserve your spot for the Intuit Tax Freedom Project.

12 • FAPAC SOUTHWEST INdUCTION OF OFFICERS ANd SHINdIg JAM SESSION FAPAC Southwest hosts the Shindig Jam Session hosted by SJS Batch ’81 following the induction of officers for 2011-12 at 6 p.m. at the National City Middle School Auditorium, 1701 D Ave. Attire is smart casual. For tickets, contact Lorna at (619) 477-0940 or visit www.2011sjsgrandreunion.com. Music by DJ Kristina.

12/13 • SAN dIEgO CHINESE NEW YEAR FOOd ANd CULTURAL FAIR Celebrate the Year of the Rabbit at the free Chinese New Year Food and Culture Fair in the heart of San Diego’s Asian Pacific Historic District. On Feb. 12 and 13, lion and dragon dancers, martial artists, acrobats and musicians will perform and food and craft vendors will fill the streets of the Asian Pacific Thematic Historic District at the intersection of Third Avenue and J Street. Inside the museum, we’ll have a delightful array of tea cozies and traditional New Year prints on display as well as a variety of Asian goods for sale. For more information, contact the museum at (619) 338-9888, visit its website at www.sdchm.org, or visit the fair website http://sdcny.weebly.com/.

17 • 17TH ANNUAL LUNAR NEW YEAR CELEBRATION 2011 | YEAR OF THE RABBITThe Asian Business Association of San Diego presents this annual event with the support of title sponsor Viejas, along with supporting sponsors SDG&E and Cox Communications, held this year from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the NTC Promenade at the McMillin Event Center, 287 Dewey Road in San Diego. ABA and partner members: $25; non-members: $30; at the door: $35.. Free parking. For more information, contact the ABA San Diego at erica@abasd.org. The ABA San Diego is headquartered at 5675 Ruffin Road, Ste. 305, San Diego, CA 92123.

19 • POST-VALENTINE dINNER dANCE The Baguio City Association of San Diego will sponsor a Post-Valentine Dinner Dance from 6 to 11:45 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 19, at Holiday Inn On The Bay, 1355 N. Harbor Dr. in San Diego. $50 per person. Besides induction of association officers, this dinner dance is also a fundraiser for association projects. DJ. Contacts and tickets: Edith Donaldson, (619) 224-3095; Lalaine Uvero, (858) 568-8498; Rudy Liporada, (858) 722-1465; Julius Sinlao, (858) 863-7237.

19 • SILLIMAN UNIVERSITY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION INSTALLATION OF OFFICERS The Silliman University Alumni Association and friends in San Diego will celebrate its 11th installation of officers from 6 to 10 p.m. on Feb. 19 at Miramar Marine Corps Air Station's Officer's Club. Dinner, dance and raffle. Tickets: $35 per person, prepaid. Semi-formal attire. For tickets and information, call Amy at (619) 710-8875 or Laarni at (858) 384-2610.

19 • SAN dIEgO CHINESE HISTORICAL MUSEUM 15TH ANNUAL BANQUET & ANNIVERSARY The San Diego Chinese Historical Museum celebrates its fifteenth anniversary at its annual banquet at 5:30 p.m. at the Pearl Restaurant in Rancho Bernardo, 11666 Avena Place. The celebration features musical performances, a silent auction of exquisite antiques from Genghis Khan Furniture and a delectable, ten-course Chinese feast. Tickets are $60 or $120 for a front-row sponsor. For more information, contact the museum at (619) 338-9888, e-mail info@sdchm.org or visit the San Diego Chinese Historical Museum located at 404 Third Ave. in downtown San Diego.

gET LISTEd: To have your event listed in Save the Date, e-mail your information (include date, time, location, cost, and phone/e-mail) to filpress@aol.com. Keep in mind we publish on Saturdays, so ensure your event happens on the day of publication or during the following week.

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COV 28897 Filipino Press_SD_MECH:Layout 2 6/10/10 12:02 PM Page 1

CHULA VISTA — Shige-ru Yamada, known as “Shig-gy” to his friends, is not a nor-mal 28-year-old. Yamada will go down in history as one of the few people to have a pri-vate bill pass both houses of Congress and be signed by the President.

To commemorate the presi-dent’s signing of the legislation to keep Yamada legally in the U.S., Congressman Bob Filner held a gathering at Eastlake High School on Jan. 31 for Ya-mada, his family, friends and

the people who helped make this day possible, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s office.

“This is truly a momen-tous occasion and I’m proud to be able to celebrate it with Shiggy and his family and friends,” said Filner. “We’ve been working on this legisla-tion with Senator Feinstein for several years and he truly de-serves such a happy ending to this story.”

“Shigeru Yamada came to the United States with his mother as a child. As a result

of her tragic death, he was left orphaned. Despite his life hardships, he has chosen to dedicate himself to his edu-cation and community in this country. I was happy to intro-duce a bill in the Senate and work to get it passed on his behalf,” said Feinstein. “With his hard work and giving atti-tude, Shigeru represents ide-al American values and I be-lieve he has a bright future in the United States.”

Yamada, a graduate of East-lake High School in Chula Vis-

ta, is an extraordinary young man who came to the United States legally in 1992 at the age of 10. Due to his mother’s death, he was in danger of be-ing deported back to Japan af-ter he turned 18.

Filner and Feinstein intro-duced similar bills to correct this injustice. Just last month both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives passed the bill. This was the first bill of its kind to make it to the president’s desk in sev-eral years.

Filner, Feinstein help local Asian man stay in U.S. legally

Block pays homage to Korematsu on first U.S. holiday named for an Asian-AmericanNew state law establishes Jan. 30 as day in honor of civil rights hero

www.facebook.com/filipinopress Filipino Press February 5-11, 2011 • 11

Filner introduces legislation to reinstate homebuyer tax credits WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Bob Filner (D-San Diego) has intro-duced the Homebuyer Tax Credit Renewal Act of 2011 (H.R. 330), which would reinstate both the $8,000 first-time homebuyer credit and the $6,500 long-time homebuyer credit for a period of one year.

According to the Internal Rev-enue Service, 479,622 homebuy-ers claimed the credit in 2009. While the numbers for 2010 are not yet available, there is no doubt that the tax credit was in-strumental in helping many first-time buyers achieve the Ameri-can dream of homeownership by increasing down-payments and lowering monthly mortgage pay-ments, Filner said.

“Home ownership is one of the best ways for working Ameri-cans to accumulate assets for retirement and to ensure neigh-borhoods are stable and well-maintained,” said Filner. “Home-owners are also able to benefit from tax deductions like the mortgage interest and property tax deductions.”

Home ownership also benefits children in numerous ways. Chil-dren of homeowners score better on academic tests, graduate at a higher rate, have fewer behav-ioral problems and enjoy a better social environment. Living in an owned home is also a predictor of future success, as homeown-ers’ children earn more than renters’ children, are less likely to be on welfare and are more likely to become homeowners them-selves.

County helps families file taxes, apply for CalFreshSAN DIEGO — About $77 mil-lion of Earned Income Tax Credit dollars are unclaimed each year by San Diego County low-income families and individuals.

That’s why the County’s Health and Human Services Agency recently launched the 2011 EITC Campaign to get more local residents to take advantage of the federal government’s largest assistance program.

Through April 15, hundreds of volunteers — from United Way, the IRS, AARP, local colleges and universities and many others — will offer free tax prepara-tion services at dozens of sites throughout the county and screen families to determine if they qualify for CalFresh (for-merly known as food stamps). Residents should call 2-1-1 San Diego for information.

“The local EITC campaign helps working families and individuals increase their tax refunds,” said Supervisor Pam Slater-Price. “These are tough economic times. I encourage people to take advantage of their EITC. It’s your money. You earned it.”

PNB reaches out to Oceanside Filipino communityLOS ANGELES — On Feb. 26 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., represen-tatives from PNB Los Angeles Branch will be in Oceanside inside Mission Asian Market at 3320 Mission Avenue.

The outreach is aimed at as-sisting our Kababayans who are interested in any of the following thru the bank’s Own a Philippine Home Loan program, such as buying or investing in real estate property in the Philippines, building a house on a previously acquired lot or renovating an existing family home.

Loan officers of the bank will be available for consultation at this time. Bank representatives will also assist those interested in opening a PNB account, whether it’s for pension purposes, savings or to facilitate remittance.

Register by calling (760) 722-8024 or call PNB-RCI Mira Mesa Branch at (858) 549-1253 for more information.

SAN DIEGO — San Diego City Councilmember David Al-varez has set new office hours effect Feb. 4 at two locations in the southern half of his dis-trict. The times and location will give constituents conve-nient access to their council-member in their own commu-nity, Alvarez said.

Alvarez will be available from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the first Friday of the month at the San Ysidro Community Ser-vice Center, 663 E. San Ysidro Blvd. He will also host visitors from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the

third Friday of the month at the Otay Mesa-Nestor Branch Library, 3003 Coronado Ave..

“Being accessible to my communities is a top priority for me,” said Alvarez. “Provid-ing convenient access is espe-cially important for South San Diego, as downtown may be in-accessible for some. I look for-ward to working with my con-stituents on issues that are important to them, and in their own neighborhoods.”

Two options will be available for those wishing to meet with Alvarez. Appointments dur-

ing office hours can be made by calling the District 8 office at (619) 236-6688. Walk-in vis-itors will be taken in the order they arrive based on availabil-ity.

Alvarez is the councilmem-ber for the Eighth Council Dis-trict of the City of San Diego, which includes the southern communities of San Ysidro, Otay Mesa, Ocean View Hills, Nestor, Egger Highlands and the Tijuana River Valley. He is currently the chair of the City council’s Natural Resources and Culture Committee.

Alvarez sets new office hours for southern half of council district

SAN DIEGO — Newly elected Assessor/Record-er/County Clerk Ernest J. Dronenburg Jr. announced that the county clerk’s of-fice will extend office hours for romantic couples seek-ing to marry or renew their vows on Valentine’s Day. The downtown office at 1600 Pacific Highway will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for li-censes and ceremonies. Ap-pointments are recommend-ed, but will not be required on Valentine’s Day.

“Valentine’s Day wed-ding ceremony reservations are filling up quickly,” said Dronenburg. “We will ac-commodate couples who want to be married on this special day by staying open later and assigning addition-al staff to help couples who don’t have a scheduled ap-pointment time.”

Reservations can be made by calling (619) 237-0502. In keeping demands from prior years, more than 100 couples are expected to ob-tain licenses and many cou-ples will also be married by County staff on Valentine’s Day. Couples can save wait-ing time by completing their license application online at www.sdarcc.com before coming into the office.

A “sweetheart deal” is available for newlyweds on their wedding day. The cost of a marriage license and civil ceremony is $100. No blood test or manda-tory waiting period is re-quired. In addition, as a spe-

cial remembrance of their wedding at a minimal cost, couples can also purchase special mementos includ-ing a silver-framed digital photograph, “Just Married” bumper sticker or a decora-tive wedding keepsake cer-

tificate.Couples can tie the knot

downtown at the historical County Administration Cen-ter overlooking the San Di-ego Bay. However, as an alternative to a wedding cer-emony performed by county staff, couples can choose to have a relative or friend per-form their marriage ceremo-ny at another location.

Interested couple must have their chosen friend or family member pay a fee of $50 and submit a brief “Dep-uty Commissioner of Civil Marriages for the Day” ap-plication by Feb. 9 for a Val-entine’s Day ceremony. In-formation is available on line at www.sdarcc.com or by calling (619) 237-0502.

Marriage licenses and civ-il ceremonies are also avail-able at the county clerk’s El Cajon (200 S. Magnolia Ave.) and San Marcos (141 E. Car-mel St.) offices from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Appointments are re-quired and can be made by calling (619) 237-0502.

Extended hours, ‘Sweetheart Deal’ on tap for marriage-minded couples on Feb. 14 at county clerk’s offices

“We will accommodate couples who want to be married on this special day by staying open later and assigning additional staff to help couples who don’t have a scheduled appointment time.”

ERNEST J. DRONENBURG San Diego County Clerk

County clerk continues Valentine’s Day tradition

Vargas drafts bill to protect small and neighborhood businesses

SACRAMENTO — State Sen. Juan Vargas (D-San Di-ego) announced recently he will introduce legislation, the “Small and Neighborhood Business Protection Act,” which will require develop-ers of superstores to submit a report studying the econom-ic impact a proposed super-store will have on the sur-rounding community’s small and neighborhood businesses, jobs, property values, public services, tax revenues, traffic and Main Street business dis-tricts.

The bill will ensure the public has comprehensive in-formation about the impact of superstores that measure more than 90,000-square-feet in size and dedicate more than 10 percent of their floor space to grocery sales, before one can be built in a local jurisdic-tion. The bill will require the applicant of the superstore to pay for the study, resulting in no additional financial ex-pense to the local government that will review the study.

“Small and neighborhood businesses are the backbone of every local economy,” said Vargas. “The public deserves the right to know what will happen to these business-es before a superstore devel-oper comes into a communi-ty and potentially puts these businesses and the entire lo-cal economy at risk.”

The bill will be modeled af-ter San Diego’s Ordinance to Protect Small and Neighbor-hood Businesses, which was supported by a coalition of small business, labor leaders and environmentalists.

12 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com

I’ve been married for the past 56 years to the same man whose mind-

set is a little bit tenacious. He doesn’t change his mind eas-ily. This applies to his fond-ness for driving. My husband loves to drive, having driv-en all types of vehicles from a tractor to a four-door sedan since he was 14. So, at 86, he won’t easily give up the keys to his new Hyundai Elantra. It took a traffic violation citation for him to give up driving al-together. I knew he finally ac-cepted the fact that he will be using public transportation when he went to purchase our first transportation passes at a local outlet.

I also have to change my mindset. I’ve been so used to being driven to wherever I need to go I find it difficult to adapt to public transportation.

I am writing this column af-ter a day’s orientation on how to use the bus pass. But I knew I had to attend a meeting of the Communications Committee of the Foundation for Change, a nonprofit organization com-mitted to supporting progres-sive changes in the San Diego/Tijuana region (of which I am the only Filipino-American member of the board of direc-tors), so I asked my son-in-law to drive me to the meeting.

I was, however, eager to use my new bus pass, so I told my son-in-law not to wait for me. I said, “I’ll take care of myself in going home.”

After the meeting, I board-ed No. 2 bus from University

Avenue to Broadway in down-town San Diego, then Itook a trolley to 24th Street in Nation-al City to give some notes to Rudy Liporada, chair of 2011 Philippine Faire. From there I walked back to the trolley sta-tion and boarded the trolley that took me to H Street in Ch-ula Vista, where I took Bus No. 701, which brought me home.

It was a long ride, but it was a learning experience for me. I did not only learn how to take the bus and the trolley, I also learned the meaning of patience as I waited at the bus stop. I am no longer detached from the problems of commut-ers. I can now advocate for better access to public trans-portation services, especially for older adults.

I anticipated that I would have much time on my hands while traveling from one point to another. So, I brought a fa-vorite book, “Three Simple Rules: A Wesleyan Way of Liv-ing,” along for the ride. The rules are indeed simple: (1) Do no harm; (2) Do good; (3) Stay in love with God. They are

easy to understand, but very difficult to put into practice. It sums up with the Golden Rule, “Do to others what you would like others do to you.”

Reading the book filled my time and made me oblivious to the discomfort of using pub-lic transportation and led me to accept the benefits of using public transportation.

I found that using public transportation can be easy, convenient and inexpensive, especially if one possesses a bus pass, which are available to the riding public at reason-able cost. The book of prayers and inspiration that I brought with me kept me occupied and inspired along the way.

My prayer: Thank you, Lord for giving me the seren-ity to accept the things I can-not change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the dif-ference. Grant me peace that passes all understanding and let me have a new mind set as I deal with the changing cy-cles of life and the challenges they bring. Amen.

People talk about being in “dark places” of discour-agement, hopelessness

or impasse in their lives. It is not uncommon to read or hear the language of dark places for our children, our culture or our world. In both ancient and mod-ern literature, the metaphor of darkness for human error and its penalties is common.

Maybe that is why the per-son and nature of God are de-scribed as light.

“God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5)

One biblical writer even calls him “the Father of lights” and declares not only that there is no darkness in God or his ac-tions but not even a “shadow.” (James 1:17)

It should come as no sur-prise to anyone that the bibli-cal narrative describes God’s entry into flesh this way: Light has come to shine into all the world’s dark places. “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” (John 1:5).

“I am the light of the world,” Jesus said. “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)

In view of all this, who could possibly misunderstand the challenge Jesus gave his dis-ciples in the Sermon on the Mount? Be lights in your world. Be like candles on a stand. Be shining cities on high hills. Be blessings to everyone. Melt them down and put them into circulation!

But some of us have missed his point and have done incred-ible harm in his name. The call to be lights in the world is not a militaristic call. It is not a chal-lenge to form a political par-ty or movement for lobbying political parties. People who have gone that route have giv-en unbelievers cause to indict all Christians as unkind, judg-mental and merciless. They see a strident and angry activ-ism that makes them reject Je-sus on account of the ugly be-haviors of people who profess to represent him. Light tends to

be gentle, appealing, and pos-itive in its presence. It clari-fies the landscape and makes life possible. Even if it makes us flinch and shield our eyes at first, God’s light typically doesn’t come with the blast of a nuclear bomb.

Think about it. Do you think the world needs more caus-tic critics or helping hands? More dark judgments and pre-dictions or persons who model the light and blessing of God’s presence? His encouragement? His grace?

The story is that there was a shortage of hard currency in the British Empire during Oli-ver Cromwell’s reign. Govern-ment agents searched for a sup-ply of silver to meet the need.

“We have searched in vain for silver that can be minted into coin,” began the report. “To our dismay, we have found none — except in our country’s cathedrals where the statues of the saints are made of choice silver. Then let's melt down the saints,” Cromwell said, “and put them into circulation.”

In a world that needs light in its dark places, that’s still a good idea.

Aurora Soriano-Cudal

My Personal Testimony

Danny Hernaez

From Whom All Blessings Flow

The world needs light in its darkest places

Changing our mindsetSpiritualLife

Think about it. Do you think the world needs more caustic critics or helping hands? More dark judgments and predictions or persons who model the light and blessing of God’s presence? His encouragement? His grace?

My husband loves to drive, having driven all types of vehicles from a tractor to a four-door sedan since he was 14. So, at 86, he won’t easily give up the keys to his new Hyundai Elantra. It took a traffic violation citation for him to give up driving altogether.

Losing my chauffeur forced me to learn to love public transportation

www.facebook.com/filipinopress Filipino Press February 5-11, 2011 • 13

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14 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com

This year, pamper your loved ones with a day full of love from the moment they wake to the moment they go to bed. This is my Pampered Pinay Guide to the 24-Hour Valentine — 24 hours, 10 ac-tivities, one unforgettable Valentine’s Day!

Breakfast in Bed“Your words are my food,

your breath my wine.”Sarah Bernhardt, French

actress, to Victorien Sardou, French dramatist

Channel your inner-Iron Chef and whip up some lovin’ that is both sweet and savory. I’ve got some easy (yet im-pressive) tricks even for the most culinary challenged. For a special breakfast that is as beautiful as it is delicious, all you need is a cupcake or muf-fin tin and a few ingredients you probably already have in your fridge and pantry. The best part: clean up will be a cinch, since you’ll only be us-ing one pan!

Savory – Frittatas• Preheat the oven at 375

degrees.• Grease the bottom and

sides of three sections of your muffin tin with a combination of oil and butter.

• Fill each section half way with any combination of your favorite omelet fillers, such as spinach, asparagus, mush-rooms, garlic, cubed ham …even shrimp or crab.

• Beat 4 eggs with a splash of milk, ½ a teaspoon of nut-meg, salt and pepper to taste.

• Pour egg mixture over the ingredients already in the tin.

• Sprinkle in some Mon-terey Jack, cheddar or provo-lone cheese.

Sweet – Bread Pudding• Grease the bottom and

sides of three sections of your muffin tin with butter.

• Fill three sections with torn bread (any type will do, even day-old bagels) and your

choice of dried berries, sliced fruit, and, of course, pieces of chocolate.

• Beat 3 eggs with ½ a cup of milk, 1 Tablespoon of vanil-la extract, a pinch of salt, 4 ta-blespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and ½ a teaspoon of grated lemon or orange zest (a splash of orange juice or lemon-lime soda will also work).

• Pour the egg mixture over the bread, berries and chocolate.

• Bake for 30 minutes or until the center of the fritta-tas are firm and a toothpick can come out cleanly from the center of the bread pudding.

Put one frittata, one bread pudding and a small hand-written dedication (some-thing to the extent of “For my love…” will do just fine) on the plate. Serve with a smile and a cup of coffee.

Tip: Mix the ingredi-ents and fill the muffin tins the night before (once your sweetheart has gone to bed). When you wake up, all you’ll have to do is pop the tins in the oven!

Around the Home“…you complete and satis-

fy, make and magnify me.”duff Cooper, British politi-

cian/diplomat/author, to Lady Diana Manners, English actress and socialite, in 1918

There’s nothing like mak-ing someone smile early in the day. Make some magic with a pen, Post-its and pic-tures.

Pick 10 of your favorite photos or print-outs that cap-ture special moments you and your loved one have shared together. Everything from prom photos to family vaca-tions (even funny accidents) are perfect!

Write little “Remember when…” messages on Post-it notes and stick them on the corresponding photos or print-outs.

Display your 10 “Remem-ber when’s” around the house, especially in places your

loved one will not expect gifts … like next to their tooth-brush, in their sock drawer, on their dashboard — have fun setting up the surprises!

Tip: Use copies of pho-tos that cannot be replaced in case anything gets wet, lost or damaged.

Activities with and for Children

“What we are hoping for and living towards takes stur-dy nerves and real purpose. But I find with you this is not so hard.”

Agnes de Mille, American ballet dancer/choreographer/writer, to writer Walter Prude, in 1944

Valentine’s Day is not only reserved for romance, it’s also a great day for fam-ily love. Show the little ones in your life extra attention on this special day, too. Gifts are great, but children, like adults, appreciate and de-serve some bonus quali-ty time. By involving kids in Valentine activities, you also show them the proper way to display affection. Consid-er yourself a romance role model. It won’t be long before they’ll have crushes of their own! If you want them to be treated well in future rela-tionships, you’ll have to dem-onstrate a quality relationship of your own. Here are some treats and activities both you and the kids can enjoy.

• Enjoy an after-school treat together. Who can pass up some frozen yogurt and an hour in the park?

• Have a family Valentine’s Weekend prior to Valentine’s day. Lunch and mini golf …dinner and a movie (most the-aters have Sunday specials!) … a picnic and mini road trip … the fun possibilities are endless!

• Make a family movie, mu-sic video, or photo slideshow. Capture and include a bit of everyone’s favorite things, talents and adventures. It doesn’t have to be perfect! Sometimes the silliest home

videos are the most entertain-ing. Post your video online and share with family and friends near and far. Voila! You’ve got a Video Valentine!

Tip: Remember to take photos. They will come in handy for your final surprise later in the day!

While at Work…“For some people, love

doesn’t exist unless you ac-knowledge it in front of other people.”

george Lopez in the 2010 film, “Valentine’s Day”

It’s true. There are few things that people enjoy flaunting more than love. Sure, a bouquet of flowers, box of chocolates, even un-usually large stuffed animals never quite go out of style, but giving loved ones surpris-es and special deliveries their co-workers will drool over can get pretty pricey and, even worse, unoriginal. Here is a do-it yourself delivery that is easy to do, easy on your wallet and so easy on the eyes that it will surely warrant co-worker “Awwwwww’s.”

Chocolate Lollipop Bouquet• Line a baking sheet with

wax paper.• Place your choice of

chocolate chips in a micro-wave-safe bowl. Warm the chocolate for 5-10 seconds at a time stirring at every inter-val. (White chocolate melts fastest.) Upon removing the chocolate from the micro-wave stir in more chocolate chips. This is a fool-proof way to temper chocolate without having to use a water bath. (Who’s got the time and tools for that?)

• Place a tablespoon of melted chocolate onto the lined baking sheet and use the back of the spoon to shape the chocolate into a small cir-cle. Immediately twirl the flat end of a barbeque skewer in the middle of the circle then place the skewer flat onto the baking sheet. This will act as your lollipop stick. Continue

until you have used all of your chocolate. Allow the lollipops to harden. (This will only take a few minutes.)

• While your chocolate lol-lipops are hardening, cov-er a piece of Styrofoam (eas-ily found at any craft section of Walmart and the like) with flowers (both real or fake will do). No flowers? No worries. Cover the Styrofoam with alu-minum foil or wrapping pa-per. Layer pieces of Styro-foam for a tiered, cake-like effect. Use skewers as dowels to hold the tiers together.

• Once the lollipops are ready, poke them right into the Styrofoam and arrange them like you would a beau-tiful (and scrumptious!) bou-quet.

Tip: For added decoration and flavor, top your choco-late lollipops with dried fruit, nuts, coconut flakes, chocolate or butterscotch chips, even little candies … there are no rules! Just make sure to add your toppings immediately after inserting your lollipop stick, so they will adhere to the chocolate.

Lunch, With Love“There is no love sincerer

than the love of food.”george Bernard ShawGive your love a taste of

what’s to follow later in the day. Pack them a lunch that caters to the five senses. Pack your sweetheart his or her fa-vorites. It doesn’t have to be fancy. (Trust me, even left-overs can be made sexy with the next step.) Using those handy Post-its write these five notes and attach them to each part of your honey’s meal:

• Soup or Spicy Entrée (Chilis, curries and stews travel well and can, frankly, come from a can.)

“As warm as your touch and every comforting em-brace”

• drink: Sparkling Apple Cider (Sparkling grape juice or soda, if you’re really in a bind, will also work.)

“As bubbly a sight as your sparkling smile”

• Ripe Fruit (I recommend an orange or sliced pineap-ple.)

“As enchanting a scent as you and your perfume”

• dessert (Something with honey or caramel can give folks a break from chocolate.)

“As sweet as your love and the taste of your kiss”

• Noon-time Cd of Relax-ing, Romantic Music

“As soothing a sound as your melodic voice”

Tip: Include a hand-written invitation to meet you at home right after work for a special surprise and dinner they will always remember. Shopping Spree with a Stylist

“Ah! You were born to be happy, or else I shall have been good for nothing in this world.”

Victor Hugo, French writer, to Adele Foucher, French artist, in 1820

Spoil your loved one with a new outfit styled by a pro-fessional for the new adven-ture about to take place. Sim-ply call or stop by your local

department store and let them know what time you’ll be ar-riving. Also, inform them that your loved one will need a complete outfit. (Don’t forget shoes and perhaps a purse, jacket and accessories!) Share with them your honey’s size, favorite color and your bud-get. This way, they can pre-pare and have options already waiting for your sweetheart. Who doesn’t like looking good and having someone attend to their every shopping request?

Tip: To make things real-ly exciting (and to keep you on schedule), tell your love that he or she has ½ an hour to choose an outfit that they’ll get to wear right out of the store!

Photo Session“I would not wish a single

hair on your head to turn any way other than it does.”

Franz Kafka, German-lan-guage novelist, to Felice Bauer, in 1912

Now that you’ve got your loved one all dolled up in a new outfit, it’s time to com-memorate how great you both look on this fantastic occasion as well as how great you both feel in your special relation-ship. Head to a scenic loca-tion (living in San Diego, you have plenty of options) and have a professional photogra-pher meet you there. This is a moment you definitely want to capture on film, display in your home and remember for-ever.

Tip: My favorite photog-rapher for portraits and spe-cial occasions is Anna There-sa. She makes everyone look and feel like a star. Anna The-resa even has special Valen-tine packages to fit different schedules and budgets. To book her for your special day, call her at (619) 997-5138 or e-mail her at annatheresapho-tos@gmail.com. Mention that you heard about her through The Pampered Pinay to re-ceive a special discount!Hors d'oeuvres on the Beach

“The wave swells like the pulse of our love, and it sweeps suddenly very-seem-ingly without cause, just as it is so with our love.”

Kenrio Watanabe, Japanese writer, to Mertyl Meredith, Eng-lish writer, in G.N. Mortlake’s “Love Letters of A Japanese,” written in 1911

One of the greatest bonus-es of living in America’s Fin-est City is being able to en-joy America’s Finest Weather. On a whim, we can choose to take our hors d’oeuvres to the beach. Whether you live in the South Bay or North Coun-ty, the sand, sunset and sooth-ing waves are no more than a few minutes away.

Pack a blanket and a bas-ket of quality cheese, crack-ers and sparkling cider. In-dulge in romantic reminiscing as you stroll with the sand be-tween your toes. Take in the magnificent view of the roll-ing waves as you take your hors d’oeuvres. Cuddle up against your Valentine as the sun slowly melts away from

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GROCERIES • VIDEOREMITTANCES

A SISTER COMPANY OF

VALENTINEContinued from Page 1

See VALENTINE on Page 17

www.facebook.com/filipinopress Filipino Press February 5-11, 2011 • 15

National City Bears tryouts set for Feb. 5, 19 at Sweetwater HighWant to be a Bear?

The National City Bears are looking for football players who are dedicated and want to compete in an organized LCFL Western Conference League.

Tryouts for the Bears will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Satur-day, Feb. 5 and 19 at Gail Devers Stadium at Sweetwater High School, 2900 Highland Ave. Register at D Avenue gate.

All positions are open those 18 and above and have played at any level. There is a one-time $40, which includes a Bears shirt, water and light snacks. Players may be asked to try out several times.

For more information, call (619) 474-5300, e-mail ncbears@nationalcitybears.com or visit www.nationalcitybears.com.

Ranella Rocks has new single available on iTunes

The new single by Fil-Am singer Ranella Rocks, "Get Out My Way," produced by producer Prince Mae-stro, is now available on

iTunes.

To learn more about the power-ful sincer with the five-octave range, visit her webstite at www.RanellaRocks.com.

LIvE! gET LISTEd: E-mail your information (include date, time, location, cost, and phone/e-mail) to filpress@aol.com.

IN CONCERTTHIS THINg CALLEd LOVEJulius Obregon & The Vincent Sisters Where: Clarion Hotel, 700 National City Blvd. When: 7 p.m., Monday, Feb. 14Reservations:(858) 750-8456

CLUBSBEN'S BAR & RESTAURANT1615 Sweetwater Road, National City, (619) 227-8876 A duet with Miss Aira Luna with special performance by Leonard Obal, Tyra Brakes and Raul Maliksi ($20)When: 8 p.m., Friday, Feb. 11; 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 24

LUCKY STAR3893 54th St., San Diego, (619) 229-8228 Filipino Night with Eric de Leon (Wednesdays); Moonlight Serenade Orchestra Big Band (Thursdays); ballroom dancing/karaoke (Fridays)

MCdINI'S dINER & SPORTS BAR 105 E. 8th St., National City, (619) 434-5140Filipino food every Saturday

KARAOKELOURdES BAR AT JAdE HOUSE RESTAURANT569 H St., Chula Vista, (619) 426-5951, (Fridays and Saturdays)

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Opera Belles is a new, all-female classical/crossover singing group composed of three young, classically-trained Filipina women — Jam Valdes, Lara Maigu and Allison Tanner. Originating from the Philippines and already garnering international attention and acclaim, the Opera Belles have their sights set on attaining a level of success in the music industry no other Filipino group has ever achieved. The fast-rising music stars already have international tours, appearances at Araneta Coliseum, Coca-Cola corporate conventions, special concerts across the Philippines and more set in their busy schedules. Represented by Sony Music Entertainment and managed by the Philippine Opera Company, the trio aim to promote classical music to wider audiences. The group is also known for their wide range of musical prowess that includes everything from jazz to Broadway. With their unique style and abilities, the Opera Belles are poised to revolutionize the way in which opera music is presented giving audiences around the world modern entertainment with a timeless art form. Their rendition of Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” and accompanying music video (available on YouTube) has already drawn a bevy of fans worldwide. The Belles’ self-titled album is set to release this month under Sony Music at all record bars in the Philippines. International fans will have online purchasing options. For updates, follow the Opera Belles on Facebook. — Francine Maigue • Filipino Press

Opera Belles

Opera Belles to release debut album

Ana Julaton leaves for U.S. to train under Freddie Roach

MANILA — WBO women’s super bantamweight champi-on Ana Julaton left recently for California to train at the Wild Card Gym under multi-titled trainer Freddie Roach.

Julaton is scheduled to de-fend her title against Franches-ca “The Chosen One” Alcanter on Feb. 25 at the Craneway Pa-vilion in Richmond, Calif.

In an interview, Julaton said she will be seeing Roach upon her arrival in San Fran-cisco with his manager, Fil-am Angelo Reyes, to discuss her training schedule.

“I had been training all year round,” Julaton said. “I have had no break and been training since last year after my June 30 fight.”

Julaton trained for eight fights under Roach.

The fight, dubbed “The Re-turn of the Hurricane,” will be aired by TV5.

— Philippine Star

Mark J Sebastian

Lil Jeth is a young, inde-pendent Filipino hip-hop and R&B artist who plans to make a mark and bridge the gap on the British music scene.

A native Filipino, Lil Jeth found little support and suf-fered a lack of connections — not to mention his lack of "British" English-speaking skills — when he first arrived in the U.K.

Despite these obstacles, his passion for music kept him at it. Lil Jeth started writing lyrics to famous in-strumentals at age 12. In 2009 and 2010, he recorded two mixtapes that got thou-sands of downloads and of views YouTube, he said.

A self-taught musician, Lil Jeth built his own home re-cording studio where he re-cords his vocals, mixes and produces his own tracks. He writes his own lyrics as well as the scripts and storyboards for his music videos.

Lil Jeth is also marking and promoting his newly released album, “It’s Jeth,” which is now available on almost 30 major online retailers.

The singer is currently working on music videos he hopes will appear on one of Britain’s independent music channels.

To find out more about Lil Jeth, visit his website at www.liljeth.com.

Filipino Lil Jeth hopes to make his mark on British hip-hop, R&B

16 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com

2010, the 25-year-old Mars has been nominated for sev-en Grammys at the Feb. 13 award show as a recording artist, songwriter and record producer.

The multi-talented singer-songwriter-producer is also scheduled to perform live in Cebu and Manila on April 7-8, according to Grace Val-era, executive director of the U.S.-based Filipino Migrant Heritage Commission.

Mars, whose real name is Peter Gene Hernandez, was born in Honolulu on Oct 8, 1985.

His family is musically in-clined, Valera said. Mars’ Filipina mother, Bernadette

“Bernie” Hernandez, is a vo-calist and his Puerto Rican father, Pete, is an “incredible percussionist” who is also in a band.

Mars got his nickname Bruno after the famous Ital-ian-American wrestling world champion Bruno Sam-martino. His father was an avid fan of Sammartino.

As for hoow he got the name Mars, he said: “I felt like I didn’t have no pizzazz and a lot of girls say I’m out of this world, so I was like I guess I’m from Mars.”

Mars started singing at the age of 4 by impersonating El-vis Presley and was featured by MidWeek newspaper as “Little Elvis” which land-ed him in cameo role in the film “Honeymoon in Vegas”

in 1992.Mars graduated from high

school in 2003 and moved to Los Angeles to pursue a sing-ing career.

“Through Motown I just started building different re-lationships and while I was signed with them I met Philip Lawrence,” Mars said.

They called themselves the Smeezingtons and co-wrote “Long Distance,” which was recorded in 2008 by R&B singer Brandy.

More offers arrived after that, but it wasn’t until 2009 that Mars put his name on top of the charts by co-writing Flo Rida’s hit song, “Right Round.”

By 2010, Mars seemed to be everywhere: singing alongside B.o.B on the chart-topping “Nothin’ on You,” and co-writing Travie Mc-Coy’s “Billionaire,” both of which became Top 10 hits. Mars used that momentum to launch a solo career, quick-ly becoming the first male vo-calist in two decades to crack the Top 10 with his first four singles.

Mars released his debut extended play album “It’s Better If You Don’t Under-stand,” on May 11, 2010. The EP peaked at the No. 99 on the Billboard 200 and pro-duced one single: “The Other Side,” featuring rappers Cee Lo Green and B.o.B.

Mars’ debut album, “Doo-Wops & Hooligans,” was re-leased on Oct. 5, 2010. The lead single, “Just the Way You Are,” was released on July 19, 2010, and quickly reached the top of the Bill-board Hot 100.

In addition, Mars co-wrote with Cee Lo hit single “Forget You,” which is up for a Gram-my for Song of the Year.

SAN FRANCISCO — At the onset, Filipina philanthro-pist and author Yolanda Orte-ga Stern immediately engages emerging and seasoned aficio-nados with her personal pearl history.

Stern’s introduction in her new book, “Sex and the Wild Pearl,” begins “I came from a family of shell collectors whose ancestors traded shells and pearls for a thousand years,” thus preparing the reader for an educational and entertaining romp through the exciting and luminous histo-ry, romance, science, care, de-sign and marketing of some of the world’s rare, precious and most sought-after wild pearls (aka natural pearls).

Yolanda and her husband, Dr. Tom K. Stern, own T. Stern

Natural Pearls (SternPearls.com), a supplier of exclusive and rare items — with a limited supply — to the world’s natural pearl collectors and connois-seurs. Their private foundation for health and education, One World Institute (www.TheOn-eWorldInstitute.org) adminis-ters a program called “Philan-thropy for Peace.”

Aside from running a free wheelchair program and oth-er programs, such as Water for Peace, Fish for Peace, Herb Gardens for Peace and Pearls for Peace, the couple is com-mitted to balancing commerce and environment.

Stern supervises the acqui-sition of natural pearls only as by-products of her fishing programs. All proceeds from the wild pearls are returned to her communities in the form of community programs to bene-fit the poor.

Tom and Yolanda Stern, to-gether with their friends, cre-ated a group which devotes time and resources to “draw experts, information and the most current science to an on-line nexus for natural pearls.”

The Natural Pearl Society, aka Societe des Perles Fines, acknowledges that Natural-PearlSociety.org is inspired by the works of Dr. Tom K. Stern. At the Arizona Gem Show 2011 on Jan. 31 to Feb. 5 at the Ho-tel Arizona in Tucson, Ariz., the group will provide an edu-cational venue and avenue for merchants and other interest-ed parties to learn more about natural pearls.

Reservations for Stern’s “Sex and the Wild Pearl” can now be made by e-mailing. Stern at WildPearl8@gmail.com or through an online res-ervation form at http://bit.ly/i8A48H.

Filipina philanthropist pens personal history of pearls

against the likes of Jeff Bridg-es, Matt Damon and Josh Bro-lin. She brings remarkable confidence and presence to her character, Mattie Ross, a stubborn girl who is tracking down her father’s murderer.

Will Steinfeld’s first Oscar nod lead to her first Oscar tro-phy? She is up against Melis-sa Leo and Amy Adams (both for “The Fighter”), Helena Bonham Carter (“The King’s Speech”) and Jacki Weaver (“Animal Kingdom”).

Below are excerpts from our interview with Hailee be-fore all the buzz began:

What were your thoughts when you went to that final reading for “True grit”?

My hopes and dreams were nothing but to get the job. I read for the Coen broth-ers with Barry Pepper, Jeff Bridges and Dakin Matthews who plays the role of Stone-

hill. I was really excited for that call because I was work-ing on the material for five weeks. I felt 110-percent pre-pared. I went there dressed in character — my vision of Mat-tie Ross.

What other traits do you share in common with Mat-tie?

The biggest similarity be-tween this character and my-self is that we would both stop at nothing to get what we want. I feel that as much as this girl. The film is her journey.

How was your own journey to becoming an actress?

I was about 8 years old when I found different inspi-rations that pulled me in. I had a cousin who was doing commercials at the time and a close family friend who was doing this play. I was sitting a few rows back from the stage and just watching her. Watch-ing the play ... made me think that it was actually possible, so after that, I went to my par-

ents and asked them if I could start acting. They made me study for one full year before we took any step further.

What did you have to learn for this role?

How to shoot a gun and how to roll a cigarette.

Was that a real snake on your body in one scene?

Yes, it was real (laugh-ing). This is funny — most of the snakes that we used were in the movie “Snakes on a Plane.” So I was working with famous snakes. They were ex-perienced snakes. The snake wrangler was very reassuring and calm about it.

What do you do in your downtime?

My mom and I are involved in a mother-daughter orga-nization, National Charity League. In my spare time, we do volunteer work. We work shifts at NCL which has a thrift shop that raises money for 13 different organizations. I’m very passionate about it.

STEINFELdContinued from Page 1

MARSContinued from Page 1

www.facebook.com/filipinopress Filipino Press February 5-11, 2011 • 17

view, gently kissing the ocean goodnight.

Tip: Keep your hors d’oeuvres light, so you save room for your delectable din-ner. If you want something more than cheese and crack-ers, sushi is a fancier option that won’t weigh you down before your big meal to fol-low. Also, go for the wine only if you have a driver. There’s nothing sexy about car acci-dents.

dinner in the dark by Opaque at the U.S. grant

“…with closed eyes I aban-don myself to you, like a blind man to the hand of his guide.”

Luigi Pirandello, Nobel Prize-winning Italian dramatist/novelist/short story writer, to Marta Abba, Italian actress, in 1929

Send those senses sizzling with a one-of-a-kind dining experience … in the dark! The phenomenon that began in Europe is now taking U.S. fashion-forward cities like San Diego by storm. When you arrive at Grant Hall at the U.S. Grant Hotel, you will be welcomed in a lighted lounge area where you can order a cocktail and peruse the menu. After making your selec-tions, you will be guided into the darkened dining room for an experience of taste, smell, touch and sound you may nev-er forget. You will take your meal in a literally pitch-black dining room. Take comfort, though! You will be guided and served by blind or visual-ly-impaired individuals who have been specially trained to serve meals in the dark. Rest assured that every measure has been taken for your max-imum comfort, pleasure and safety.

To cater to as many ad-venturous diners as possible, Opaque will offer a special prix-fixe Valentine’s menu from Feb. 11-14. The cost for the Valentine’s dinner is $99 (plus tax) per person. Drinks and tip are not included in the ticket price. Tickets for this event must be pre-purchased and are available online at www.darkdining.com. Vege-tarian options are also avail-able upon request.

For more information, call 800-710-1270, e-mail info@darkingdining.com or visit www.brownpapertickets.com/event/153140.

Tip: Make your reserva-tion as soon as possible for this limited time event. Tick-ets will go fast! Be the first of your friends to experience luxury dining in this most unique and romantic way. See, er, feel you there?

Scrapbook“Yesterday was a day of

perfect debauchery.”Henry Frederick, Duke of

Cumberland, to Henrietta, Lady of Grosvenor in 1770

Your memorable 24 hours has garnered you photos, quotes, menus … a romance so sweet, you’ll want to share it with your grandchildren …

and envious friends. Display your collection of the day’s mementos in a scrapbook. Ar-range the items with love to-gether with your honey. On those less-than -perfect days when a healthy pick-me-up is in order, you and your sweet-heart can simply turn to pag-es filled with love and lovely memories of a 24-Hour Val-entine.

Conclusion“1. I will always love you. 9. I will always love you.10. I will always love you.”3 of the 10 rules from a

marriage contract drawn up by Felice Schragenheim, Jewish re-sistance fighter, for Lilly Wust in 1943

Is there anything sweet-er or more necessary than the reminder that someone loves you? When it seems as though our best still falls short, when stress and anxiety force us to face our greatest fears and in-securities, when the hustle of our long days slows down to but a quiet night at home, there is no greater comfort than a love whose only condi-tion is to reciprocate that very love.

Happy Valentine’s Day, my dear readers! May you be pampered with an abundance of joy and love for these 24 hours and beyond!

The Pampered Pinay Special Valentine’s

Facebook Shout-outs:I asked my Pampered

Pinay Facebook Fans, “What

has been your sweetest Val-entine's Day surprise?” Here are the most romantic re-sponses:

Pampered Pinay Fan Mil-lie grijalva wrote, “My hubby took me to Paris and on V-day we cruised the Seine River and toasted on top of the Ei-ffel Tower. :)”

Pampered Pinay Fan Heather McClure wrote, “He is never home on V-day so we always celebrate after ... so it would be getting ENGAGED!”

Pampered Pinay Fan Pam Borkowski wrote, “Has to be the homemade lobster dinner with a new bracelet wrapped around my wine glass. ooola-la...”

Wow, those are some fabu-lous Valentine’s Day stories! Congrats on finding gents that really know how to romance and pamper the lovely lady in their life. Cheers to every am-orous adventure to come!

• Wanna keep in touch and join in on fun weekly chats with other Pampered Pinay fans? Simply check out www.Face-book.com, and search “Francine Maigue.” See you online!

• Check back every week for ways to pamper yourself and those you love. Why? The an-swer is simple: You deserve it!

• Got a business or event I should know about? Wish to agree or disagree with me? Want to send me a love note? (I love those.) E-mail me at the-pamperedpinay@yahoo.com.

VALENTINEContinued from Page 14

18 • February 5-11, 2011 Filipino Press www.filipinopress.com