You say Wistaria, I say Wisteria

3 years from today

Today

Someone once said if you need a friend, get a dog. Not in my book. All I have to do is show up in the garden with my trowel and dirty hands and I attract fellow gardeners or even strangers. On a lucky day, I get dog walkers, joggers, bikers, neighbors waiting for the bus, the postman, the paper boy and some curious Georges. A few of them become my friends.

Although, I’m feeling a little less well-liked these days since my good friend Bobby from Victorville stood me up this week. Sob, sob. Imagine, he said he’d see me when he comes to NY in May and what do I get on Monday but a hurried, nervous call from him while he's on his way to Newark Airport heading back to California (without showing his goofy face to me!). A thousand excuses, nice job Bob, but you’re still on my list – the blacklist! I would still choose you for a friend over a dog. Good boy. Now sit!

Last year, my neighbor and friend Joe, an avid gardener, gave me a small plant which he started growing from a vine he cut from a wisteria that’s climbing on a tree by the ravine near his house. You’re giving me a wisteria plant? That was akin to summoning a mouse to a cheese factory. I won’t say no to that. The only problem was that it was too late then to transplant the little vine and had to wait until this Spring. But I have a plan.

First off I had to find a good place for it to grow, then mark it. Wisteria grows rapidly and can be intrusive. Once it grows you can’t get rid of it, just like bamboo. It can twist and turn, pull away your roof, deck or fence and before you know it you have your roof, or even your neighbor's, on Mars or the moon but with gazillions of purple blossoms on it. On a good starry night that could be a pretty sight.

As a matter of fact the largest living and blooming wisteria in the world is more than an acre in size, over 100 years old and is in Sierra Madre, California. But I’m not looking to grow my plant to reach such a mammoth size.

This morning I found a perfect spot for it – I dug a hole next to a big tree to serve as its host. The challenge is how to train this little vine to climb the tree and make that its home, but that’ll come in time. It’ll take about three years for it to bloom for the first time, but let’s get past the growing part first. Let's also hope that this plant will be safe from those squirrels and our nemesis, the green-fingered plant pilferer Yosef . Maybe I should install a webcam next to my precious wisteria, you never know when these animals will pull their antics. I can always chase one of them away, but the other - I'll definitely put him behind bars! Riker's Island or the Bronx Zoo, I don't care.

Three years from now, I hope to see a ceiling of purple wisteria blossoms, as shown in picture #1, near the children's playground. That should make all my friends happy. Luis, our handyman, said he'd be gone and retired by then but just the same, "You may still come and visit me and my wisteria, my dear friend."

Whichever, wistaria, wisteria....

"Will you ...."

I feel like I'm ogling at what should be a beautiful moment between Amber and Marc, but I'll go ahead and ogle away anyway. Since majority of my readers are family, I'm sure they'll appreciate my fun (?) way of spreading the news.

And so, my grandnephew Marc popped the question. Cliche, but still romantic and Amber said "Yes". Ready for what life might be like together? I bet you are.

So it is N'awlins 2010!
Marc and Amber are humbled but excited about their engagement and so are we. This is epic, and I don't mean in a grand-wedding sense but in a way that made the family proud of the two of them. This is the first wedding in the immediate family we will be having outside the Philippines and we really are excited!

I don't know much about her, but it is neither a mistake nor an accident that Marc found her. When I first met her during the 2007 Revlon Run/Walk for Women which we as a family participated in, (The Pacesetters, remember?), Amber showed the simplicity and the unpretentious ways which you don't see in many people of the younger generation. In today's hurry hurry lifestyle this is a breath of fresh air.

Thanks for the blurry picture Marc, you rock!

And the planning begins. Welcome to the family, Amber.

Honor thy Mother

No flowers, not even a card - today I honored my mother with a simple kiss and a hug that came with the greeting "Good morning Inang, happy mother's day". This was followed by a prayerful Sunday mass celebration as if it were an ordinary Sunday. I chose to simplify things and let it be what I feel it should be - honor my mother everyday with fervent love and gratitude for all the mothering she did and continues to do. I am blessed, she's happy.

Here is an excerpt from an article written by Garrison Keillor in The Writer's Almanac about Mother's Day:

"Today is Mother's Day. Mother's Day as we know it — where we celebrate our own mothers, with flowers, gifts, and cards — is relatively new, but annual celebrations to celebrate motherhood are an ancient practice.

The motherhood festivities have historically been in spring, the season of fertility. In ancient Egypt, there were celebrations to honor Isis, the loving mother-goddess, who is often shown in Egyptian art with the baby Horus at her breast, much like Mary and Jesus in later Christian iconography. The cult of the great mother-goddess Cybele began in Turkey and soon moved to Greece and Rome, and she was worshipped in some form for more than a thousand years. Her priestesses led wild celebrations, full of drinking, dancing, music, and all kinds of debauchery.

As the Roman Empire and Europe transitioned to Christianity, the Church set aside the fourth Sunday of Lent as a day to honor motherhood. It was a day to celebrate the Virgin Mary, and for people to honor their "mother church."

In the 1600s, England declared an official Mothering Day for that fourth Sunday of Lent. It was a time when families were encouraged to get together, and servants or workers were allowed one day off work to go see their mothers, since many working-class families in England worked as servants on separate estates and rarely got to see each other. Mothering Day was also declared an exception to the fasting and penance of Lent, so that families could have a feast together.

When the pilgrims came to America, they stopped celebrating Mothering Day, just as they stopped celebrating most holidays that they thought had become too secular.
Mother's Day was reintroduced to America in 1870 by Julia Ward Howe, who wanted to set aside a day of protest after the Civil War, in which mothers could come together and protest their sons killing other mothers' sons.

But the woman who really created Mother's Day as we know it was Anna Jarvis. Her mother had held Mother's Friendship Days to reunite families and neighbors separated during the war, and when she died, her daughter, Anna Jarvis, worked to proclaim an official Mother's Day to honor her mother and celebrate peace. And so on May 10, 1908, the first official Mother's Day celebrations took place in Grafton, West Virginia, and at a church in Philadelphia. In 1914, Woodrow Wilson designated the second Sunday of May as Mother's Day.

But Mother's Day became commercialized very quickly, especially in the floral industry, and Anna Jarvis was furious. She said, "What will you do to route charlatans, bandits, pirates, racketeers, kidnappers, and other termites that would undermine with their greed one of the finest, noblest, and truest movements and celebrations?" But flower sales and card sales continued to grow, and Anna Jarvis died in poverty and without any children of her own.
In the last U.S. Census, there were an estimated 82.8 million mothers in this country, and about 96 percent of American consumers spend money for Mother's Day."

Happy Mother's Day.

Yosef and his psychedelic dreams!

Over a week of rain and no sign of letting up until next week, there’s not much reason to complain since our tired lawn is looking verdant. With the swine flu hysteria spreading a lot faster than the virus, leaving some of us practically basket cases and avoiding public places, what is one to do?

To start with, there are garden chores waiting to be done. Time to knock off some of the soil from the flower pots I used for container gardening last year. I bought a flew flats of the annuals for my flower boxes over the weekend and they’re awaiting some really decent weather to be transplanted. This time I picked scarlet Verbenas for the window boxes and French marigolds for the rest of the flower beds. The perennials in my garden are quickly covering the front yard, although the tulips have fallen off their stems due to continuous rain.

We were thinking of contracting out the aeration of the soil for the entire property but heck, at such a hefty price who needs that when we have all the squirrels digging away the lawn. Another suggestion is to have our porters bum around on spiked work boots and walk over the grass area all day. That’s what they love to do anyway. Watch them as they watch each other do some work! Hired help these days, I tell you.

Okay, okay, this topic may not be of interest to you and is turning into a gardening blog when I have a separate one dedicated for that. So I admit - I’m a bit out of step and negligent in maintaining My Folia, but I have my excuses. Minutes of the past two board meetings, newsletters and the upcoming annual meeting and board election are on my plate, or at least part of that anyway.

Most mortals would survive being on our board but it ain’t easy, man. People are out there ready to lynch you as soon as you step out of your front door. Just today Yosef paid me a visit and asked me all sorts of questions as to what we've accomplished this year and last.

He’s the same guy I reprimanded for stealing some plants from the common areas of the property. Last summer, I took him by the hand and showed him exactly where he dug out the plants which ended up in his front garden. Crazy guy, I don’t have to prove anything to you!

Hey, if I didn’t think it’s important enough to sit and volunteer for this position on the board, I wouldn’t do it. There are characters like Yosef meandering the grounds looking for faults and plants to swipe. We need to protect our investments and our yard from creatures like him!

Enough said, and he wants us to build another playground behind his apartment? In your dreams, Yosef. Yeah, right; and in the meantime what do we do with the heaving sidewalks and the crumbling pavement in three parking lots? Get out of my sight, kid, before I hose you down! At the rate you're talking, we're going to need a bailout.

Not to worry, I won’t engage in a boxing match with him. I’m just frustrated and in case you’re wondering I’m also human.

Sigh. Where’s a mojito when you need one?
I better just stick to my gardening.

What happens at Grandma's stays at Grandma's

Gotcha! Guess what's going on in this picture. Who's flirting with whom? I think they're both bashful, the "cute" boy managed to quickly escape the closeup as I was about to snap the photo, while Dorothy here in her ruby red shoes gets a kick out of it. Hmmm..

Hey, I can keep a secret and let it "stay at Grandma's", but where is the fun in that if I couldn't blog about it? Go ahead and pick on her, she's gone for the next leg of their trip - Los Angeles.

Weight, weight.... please tell me!
And how much did she weigh when she left New York? 231.50 lbs (in Jupiter!). Gravity? Nah..Between the Hershey's chocolate syrup and tubs of the bite-sized ice cream snacks Dibs, that should do it.

Three weeks with us and a whirlwind of a tour but it was all memorable. We hope you'll enjoy your stay in California but don't forget to go back home in time for school in June. And Tere, I think she bought enough gadgets to furnish a kitchen as large as The White House. This Mama cooks!

Goodbye, we'll miss you.

Veni, vidi ... DC

With only a few days left of Kyla and Tere's visit here in the East, we decided to skip town overnight for a change of scenery. Look no further than the nation's capital Washington, DC for a true taste of culture and history and it's only four hours away. At the crack of dawn Tere, Kyla and I headed for the City to catch the 7:30 am DC-bound BoltBus. I figured why not leave the driving to someone else, when we all know how traffic can be horrible and like NYC, DC can be a hell of a place to navigate and park. The naming convention used for the streets never made any sense to me.

With most of the riders plugged in to their iPods and some glued to their Macs, that made for a really quiet trip. Except for the overnight accomodations, I was totally unprepared for this adventure in DC, no itinerary, no maps, no clue as to how far the bus depot is from the National Mall. We had no choice but to wing it; the last time I visited was maybe a decade ago and many things have changed. I knew that if Kyla was able to master the NYC subways, then the Washington Metro system would be a breeze for her. And it was, yet I'm not a bit surprised!

First order of business as we got off the bus was lunch, what else? A taste of authentic Spain, we had an assortment of Tapas at La Tasca near the Gallery Place station. Hasta luego. From here Kyla took the lead on the Metro system - learning how to purchase a fare card and navigate the red, blue, yellow, orange, etc. lines, at one point even ending up at the Pentagon not by choice! Did you know that there's no photography allowed even at the Pentagon station of the Metro?

So, here she is with some highlights of the visit with The President. In the 90 degree weather and Auntie as a tour guide, mother and daughter were pushed to their limits walking the entire length of the National Mall and the gorgeous Reflecting Pool. So much history within a few miles radius, but with no Segway in sight we pounded the pavements and enjoyed the graceful dignity of the museums, memorials and monuments.

First stop was the Smithsonian Castle, shown here is the breathtaking display of flowers at the Enid A. Haupt Garden.

At the Ripley Center, wall to wall display of art work and studio editions of handblown glass by the famous artist Dale Chihuly. He is known for his art installations in many botanical gardens, museums, etc. Awesome! Be sure to check out these Chihuly Exhibitions. Click on Installations. Not something to drink out of, but definitely great pieces.

The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is the perfect place for the weary tourist/traveler. A quick break for some trail mix, pretzels and drinks, we enjoyed the outdoor collection of some of the best modern sculptures available.

At the Hirshhorn, The Crouching Spider by Louise Bourgeois. No need to be scared of this gigantic eight-legged arachnid, Kyla; it's a magnificent work of art!

What any child would give to see the National Air and Space Museum - How do things fly? How much would I weigh in another world? Aerial photography and spying! Apollo to the Moon. Space and Beyond. Black Holes. The right stuff!

Dedicated in 2004, this is part of the National World War II Veterans Memorial. So much too see but so little time. Our final destination for the day was the White House. Kyla was disappointed that we were not able to see the inside, reservations in advance required, but it was worth the looong walk from the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall.

At the Arlington National Cemetery after visiting the gravesite of Pres. John F. Kennedy, we witnessed the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Learn more about this ceremony The Sentinels of the Tomb of the Unknowns. With almost three hours spent in Arlington, and a hearty lunch that followed in Chinatown, there wasn't much time left to see the rest of the DC sights. Our bus left for New York at 4;30 pm. I'm sure it was an experience Kyla will not forget and for her return trip, she can explore Georgetown and Mount Vernon. On her own!

It was not about proclamation of victory, but rather a learning discovery for a child as bright as Kyla. She can now say "I came, I saw ... and learned a lot in DC."

Study of an 11-year old

Today Kyla turned 11 and what better way to celebrate that than a fun day in the City that never sleeps. Shown here with Vermeer's Study of a Young Woman, she's lucky to have this early exposure to the masterpieces at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

This was taken on Saturday at the advanced birthday celebration at Carol and Ped's home. The funny part was that she's the only kid around, everyone's over 30!

Relics from the past at The American Museum of Natural History, fossils at the Hall of Dinosaurs, mastodons, the giant Seqouia tree, the Hayden Planetarium are just among the valued treasures a child could get excited about. Even us adults!

An evening under the sea with The Little Mermaid on Broadway. It was a choice between Billy Eliot and The Lion King but Auntie Nelsie couldn't get tickets for either one. You could hear the little girls sing Kiss the Girl but utter "yuck" when Prince Eric kissed Ariel. My favorite - the Lobster and Ursula, of course!

An after show treat from Auntie Nelsie - guilty pleasure at the whimsical Serendipity and its famous frozen hot chocolate. It was past her bedtime, but you can tell she's wide awake and having so much fun. It was worth it. The only thing missing - Raymond (her dad) and kids her age!

Happy birthday Kyla!