Pancit Overload

photo courtesy of dbgg1979

Pancit should be named national snack or national celebration food or national something. I mean, we've allowed Manny Pacquiao to be officially tagged as the Pambansang Kamao (National Fist--sounds funny in English really) why not include the ever-present noodle dish in the list of national thingies, right?

It seems to be present in all corners of the archipelago in different noodle varieties, flavors and plating. My Dad comes from a province where they have one called pancit habhab with "habhab" being roughly translated as "wolfing it down"--from a piece of banana leaf no less, after paying the streetfood vendor plying it. That's not all, one can further flavor it with a couple of dashes of local vinegar shaken out from a small bottle nesting on the vendor's cart. Of course, you can get pancit habhab from any of the panciteria (pancit joint/outlet/restaurant) in the area. Yes, they'll serve it to you on a banana leaf as well but don't expect the panciteria staff to include a fork or any flatware in your place setting unless you specifically request it. After all, you're supposed to "habhab" the pancit, right? Right.


But with the pancit being highly popular and common, I definitely have my days when I shudder at the sight of a plate of pancit. Don't get me wrong. I love pancit...ok I simply like pancit especially the bihon guisado type with lots of veggie leaves. I'm also partial to pancit luglug and pancit palabok (I think these two are related or very similar). But there are days when this national noodle dish (there! I've named it myself.) gives me the heebee jeebies. One can only get a plate too many from neighbors and church members on special occasions like birthdays, most especially during town fiestas and of course the holidays...like Christmas! I think it's a close second to the Purefoods Fiesta Ham that's touted to be the "star of the Noche Buena" feast. Then again, maybe not. It's just the safe back-up food plan since it's an all-time favorite.


So what's the point of this pancit ranting? It's this: Please people! Enough already on the pancit overkill! I mean, let's make the dish real special again by not thinking it up and actually serving it every time a baby is christened or your son gets top honors in his class. And how about serving the not so common recipes for it during the holidays, huh? I'm dreading the thought of my neighbors or at least a couple of them might knock on my door and hand a neighborly token of the Yuletide season in the form of a plate of pancit. My kids aren't so hot about it. Oh they'll have a serving or two, especially my daughter. But I end up trying to eat a lot of what's left because I hate food wastage. Pity my ever growing waistline and cellulite-ridden thighs! All those carbs heading to those areas.


On second thought, maybe I don't have a point since I'd probably be shouted down by 90 plus million of my countrymen who adore and savor the ever-present and iconic pancit.

Will we have to relearn how to write with a pen?

I wonder if by the turn of the century (or probably before that time), we'll all be needing to relearn the fast disappearing ability to write with a pen--on paper (the use of paper is vanishing as well! Most companies try to avoid a paper trail. It's now an email trail or electronic trail). Everything in our homes and schools and offices today are 99% manipulated by a button or a series of buttons or a set of keys on a keyboard or keypad! Yeah, pens and pencils can still be found in offices and schools. But mostly in schools, and in the much much lower grade levels. Even middle school kids now use netbooks, not to mention the new definition for notebook--this one isn't made of paper.


Think about it. Most of us work with computers. If it's not with our job, it's at home or in school or all three. We use our thumbs to punch in messages on our cellphones and we use a stylus to push virtual buttons or keys (again!) on the smooth surface of a smartphone screen or PC tablet. Please be reminded that using a stylus is not equal to writing. 


Of course there will probably be some remnant people who will hold on to their skill in wielding a pen or pencil or crayon or any writing instrument that is gripped to write and not punched. People who love the smell of paper and deem as music the faint sound of a nib brushing against a surface, producing lovely lovely script or hasty scribblings or harsh jottings.


But by that time, I'm guessing this remnant pen writers will be labelled eccentric and there might even be an underground movement. Then again, my imagination just might be running away with me again.


Still, I'm one of those who love the scent of fresh, smooth, blank sheets of a journal. And writing my thoughts on them with a scented pen. I love journaling. I even advocate it. I used to do it A LOT! But honestly, these days, the thought of nailing my fast forward thoughts on paper with a pen just seems slow. I worry that those bright ideas might take flight before I can capture them with pen on paper. So, unabashedly, I turn to my PC keyboard to reel in and preserve those thoughts forever on a virtual space where either everyone or no one can read them.


But upon contemplation, I wouldn't want to lose my ability to write using a ballpoint pen or pencil. So I guess I'll just have to practice it--on my journaling. It will help keep me still and meditative as I pace my thoughts with my hands. And who knows, I might be considered as one of the eccentrics while the rest of the world relearns the art of writing with a pen.

Why I left the Facebook universe

My real friends wanted to know why? Yes, why was I leaving such a popular, very convenient channel for getting connected with friends? Why?


Wala lang. Truly. Honestly. It was just one of those things I knew I needed to do that probably seems strange to others for lack of a concrete reason. Okay...

• Maybe I was getting tired of the whole thing. Or maybe bored would be a more appropriate adjective. Except with the handful of people I genuinely interact with.
• Maybe it's because not all my 140+ FB "friends" were really trying to connect. Like I said above only a handful really interact.
• Maybe the 140+ so-listed friends overwhelm me. Being an introvert at heart, I can honestly say I am happier with a few authentic friends than with a gazillion superficial ones. No offense meant to those who have reached the 5,000 friend limit allowed by Facebook. It's just that we're all different.
• Maybe I resent the social network's haphazard use of the term "friend". I mean, other sites are more polite with the use of the term "contact". Then you're given the option to group those contacts accordingly, whether their friends, family, etc etc.
• Maybe because even if it's supposed to connect people, all Facebook really does is keep an online directory of my acquaintances and so-called friends who don't really bother to connect or interact with me after I've confirmed them as a "friend" (I hate using quotations marks but I feel they're necessary in this case.) or have done my part in trying to connect with them.
• Maybe it's the realization that checking out my FB feeds was bordering into an addiction-- not really necessary to check but I seem to be checking every chance I've got. Gotta cut clean before it's impossible to get out.

And the maybe list goes on...


One thing is for sure though. I did not delete my Facebook account primarily because of my hubby's thing about Mark Zuckerberg being an atheist and all. Although I am 100% sure my hubby has a point about a creator's or designer's spirit being present and flowing through the thing he has created or designed and it will affect those who interact with what he has created, I have to honestly say it is NOT my reason for deleting my account. 


I'm just a tad bugged though, that my hubby had to rally his cause before I could delete my account.


Hey, I'd really love for the Facebook founder to have a real relationship with my God, Jesus Christ but we all have to make choices. And God doesn't, and never will, force His way into a person's life. He'd rather that we come to Him on our own volition and with all our hearts. If Zuckerberg wants to risk his life without God in spite of his talent and brilliance being exactly a proof of God's--the Designer--existence, it's his choice.


If I had decided to stay on in Facebook, I'd counter the atheistic spirit with more God-inspired posts, you know. My "friends" can choose to think about them or ignore them. Their choice so they live with the consequences.


Ok. I've digressed again big time.


To reiterate, I left Facebook because I just wanted to. There's no English equivalent for the Pilipino idiom "Wala lang." The English counterpart doesn't quite capture the essence. Anyways, who knows, after a few months I might decide to return under a different name and be more honest and straightforward in adding to my friends list. Then again, maybe not.