EMONG'S JOURNALS

We’re Filipinos. We love to play with words in the most creative ways. And in the process, we change the language. Here is just a small sampling of English words you may not have realized didn’t always mean what they mean in the Philippines (in alphabetical order). 1. Bad trip English - a result of one's vacation not such as to be hoped for or desired; unpleasant or unwelcome. Filipino - any feeling that makes you feel bad or uptight or angry or any way but good. e.g. "Wow, Pare, bad trip ! I didn't quite answer all the questions in my exams today." 2. Bedspace English - a space in which an individual bed is or is intended to be placed, especially regarded as an area belonging to the bed's occupant, and including the other furniture, possessions, etc., normally adjacent to it. Filipino - (of a bedspacer) for someone who shares a room with others, mostly catering to students and employees who live far and wants to be nearer to their school or place o...

If you don't know it yet, the acronym "TNT" means a Filipino who is "Tago Ng Tago" (always hiding) from U.S immigration agents. The U.S. Department of Justice had identified eight so-called "sanctuary cities" where the majority of undocumented immigrants are hiding, and threatened to cut government funding on these cities if they will continue to not cooperate with federal authorities on President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. According to ABS CBN News , Trump has vowed to strip federal funds from the state of California; New York City; Chicago; Philadelphia; Clark County, Nevada; New Orleans; Miami-Dade County, Florida; and Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. The federal fund is roughly $29 million in law enforcement aid under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program, which helps local governments pay for everything from forensics labs to drug courts. Sanctuary Cities "Sanctuary cities" in general offer s...

How times change. First let us define the word "Millenial." Millenials, the most tech-addicted generation, has officially replaced Generation X. There are no precise dates for when this legion of youngsters starts or ends, but demographers and researchers typically use the early 1980s as starting birth years and ending birth years ranging from the mid-1990s to early 2000s. There was no actual history on how the term "millenial" came to be, though most people say the word was first coined in the book "Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation (2000)" probably referring to the high school graduating class of the year 2000. Millennials haven’t been on this Earth for that long, relatively speaking, so it’s understandable that they probably missed out most of the things the previous generation had enjoyed so well. Here are a list of those things, which we grouped in three categories: TOURIST ATTRACTIONS 1. The (Old) Nayong Pilipino - L...

How much should a Filipino family earn to have a simple, comfortable life? An animated video explainer from ABS-CBN shows what a a Filipino family of four must earn to have a "simple and comfortable" life. The data came from a survey conducted by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA). Music from Kevin McLeod. Graphics from Angela Maria Salaño & Pamela Denice Ramos. WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS POST? Share your ideas by commenting.

EVER wondered how much the Filipinas have changed over the past one hundred years? A popular YouTube channel, CUT VIDEO, made a time lapse video of the Philippines' beauty trends from the 1900s to the present - showing the transformation of the different hair and make-up fashion of our pretty Pinays. Aside from the Philippines. Cut Video has also created one-minute videos on other countries such as Korea and the United States. WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS POST? Share your reactions by commenting.

HERE'S a situation. You just finished lunch from your favorite restaurant standing in line waiting for your turn to use the ladies room when suddenly a woman comes rushing in flashing a "CAN'T WAIT" card and said she got the priority to use the toilet. Your human nature tells you not to allow her because you were there first, but human etiquette tells you can't just refuse her. The "Can't Wait" card is already accepted widely in places such as Singapore, Britain, Australia, Canada and in some parts of the US. These cards are used by people who suffer from chronic conditions which get them running to the toilet constantly, with very little time to spare. This condition is called Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis. People who have this disease suffer from severe stomachaches and diarrhea, and may need the toilet up to 20 times a day during an attack. Patients under medical therapy still has to use the toilet five to six times a day. We...

Photo taken by Francis Olarte A pple's "Shot on iPhone 6" worldwide photo search have a Filipino photo in its gallery. The campaign picked photos snapped and edited from the iPhone 6 smartphone camera app, then posted them on ad billboards around the world including the United States, France, England, Singapore, and India. The photo, which was taken by Filipino blogger/photographer Francis Olarte, featured fishermen on boats in a Myanmar coast. His photo is now among the many photos featured worldwide via Apple billboards. "Shot on iPhone 6" is Apple's worldwide campaign for their smartphone cameras. Olarte's photo In an ANC interview, Olarte said Apple approached him after seeing his photo on Instagram, "... they saw my photo through the power of hashtag..." he added. Some of the photos featured in Apple's "World Gallery" have been filtered, enhanced or shared with apps such as Snapseed, VSCO Cam, Mextures, Fil...

T he Pinoy "unli-rice" craze has reached New York, USA! The unlimited servings of rice is now available at a Filipino-owned restaurant called the House of Inasal, located at Roosevelt Avenue in Woodside, Queens. The owners, Ricardo Aguirre and his older sister, Emme from Iloilo City, opened the Visayan chicken barbecue restaurant about a year ago and are now introducing the "unli-rice" concept to the New York locals. Customers can avail of the "unli-rice" after 5 p.m., from Tuesday to Friday. Also included on the menu are: La Paz Batchoy, Tapsilog (and more variants of the silog breakfast dishes), Bangus Sisig, lumpiang sariwa, arroz caldo, "tortang talong" omelet, and street food like "kwek-kwek" and "isaw." For desserts, the restaurant offers tres leches cake, ube (purple yam) and ice cream sandwich. Prices are from $2.50 to $15.95, no American Express. Filipino population at the Woodside, Queens has grow...