Ms. Malu Fernandez, My 'Multiply', and I

 

I have a confession to make: I owe this Multiply blog to  Ms. Malu Fernandez. And it happened like this:

 

Days after returning from holidays in the Philippines last August, I got an agitated call from a Dutch-Filipina friend. “Hey, did you read the e-Mail I sent you about Malu Fernandez?”

 

“No, not yet, I’m still busy sorting out my thoughts about last vacation, let alone washing all those dirty clothes”, I said. But I obliged her and opened my e-Mails in my notebook. And, indeed, messages with subjects “Malu Fernandez’s column on OFWs” piled up in my in-box.  I opened up one and hastily read quotations from the now most-reviled article of all time.

 

It then sounded funny what I read. "What’s all the fuss in there?” I asked my friend  who was still on the other line. “Ah, you’re  an elitist just like her!”, came the reply.

 

Before I could answer her provocation she'd cut me off,  “read ‘thepinoy.com’ for OFW reactions, if you like”. Then I heard that she put her telephone down after murmuring that she remembered just now that she still had something urgent to do.

 

Now I never knew about this website until this call. I usually get my news back home from the alerts of the Philippine Section of the Asian House here. Or I go to  the websites of the Inquirer and Mindanews.com.

 

But I got curious what’s  all the fuss about Malu Fernandez that I went to surf ‘thepinoy.com’ immediately.

 

Like many Pinoys living abroad who have read her article “From Boracay to Greece”, I also found it downright arrogant,  insensitive,  and tasteless.  But what the heck, we live in a “free country”, isn’t it? Freedom to express one’s opinion—no matter how stupid it maybe- is high up there on the  human rights list for all citizens of the free world. All those reported death threats against her because of that piece made me cringed.

 

Frankly, Malu Fernandez's take on being trapped like sardines among Pinoy OFWs with their Axe/Charlie Colognes in a crowded economy class brought me a hearty laugh.  

 

Lucky for her, I told myself, that she didn’t happen to sit beside me during that flight. At least those OFWs she was with were smelling of perfumes- no matter how cheap for her jet-setting standard.

 

I landed unwashed at the Mactan Airport after a 17-hour long flight and I  must have stunk so bad (or at least for those who have ultra-sensitive noses) that my own mom who met me there complained, “you’re smelling, Jack!”.  But good for me my brother came quick to reply on my behalf: “well, you should understand Mom, that Jack is  now a European!”  

 

Needless to say, my wife gave me a dagger I-told-you-so look for not washing myself in the plane. But honestly I didn’t want to go through that long line waiting for my turn in that tiny washroom. Obviously, we flew economy class, too. 

 

But I digress.

 

After reading the Malu-OFW brouhaha, I found myself staring at the picture of  Jim Paredes’ “Haring Liwanag” blog  on the right side of thepinoy website. Oh, he got old, I said to myself. The last time I saw him “live” was 9 years ago or so when we were together attending a 3-day Sesshin in Tagaytay under our Japanese Roshi. I wondered if he’s still practicing Zen now that he’s in Sidney. I found his pieces well-written, some meditative, and some- yes, nostalgic.

 

They brought me to a nostalgic mood. Next I saw was Lea Salonga’s “The World According to Manang” blog. I remembered how I tried  to get a ticket for her Ms. Saigon show in London many years back- in vain, even for a matinee. Oh, my she’s turned up to be a real beauty- a ripe one now.

 

By this time, I have totally forgotten Malu Fernandez--her column, her vandalized face in 'you tube', the pain and indignation she caused to OFWs. 

 

On top of Lea’s blog was the Multiply toolbar with its now familiar blue-ish logo. Out of curiousity, I clicked and clicked my mouse and then when I clicked “Who is on Multiply” —surprise, surprise- who would have thought that on the screen would appear the name of my long-lost college buddy- Dave Llorito! 

 

Thrilled, I immediatly sent him a post. He quickly replied and since then we've been exchanging punches in our blogs. Just like old times! 

 

Albeit only one week old, the rest they say is now history. I have now my own blog “interim thoughts”. And by golly, am hooked on to it daily like crazy. Thanks to Dave, I found now Multiply buddies who welcomed me as if I'm a pro.  

 

The phone rang. Ah, it was again Tina, my Dutch-Filipina friend. “Yes, I’ve already read Malou Fernandez' column…”, I hurried to reassure her.

 

But then she cut me off. “No, Jack! That’s old news now. Did you hear about the arrest of Joma in Utrecht?!”

 

Oh, boy, what awaits me this time at thepinoy.com?