Funny People

For a few months now, i’ve been a teacher for Tutoring Club, helping the kiddies out with their English, Writing, Reading and unbelievably, Math. We get all sorts of kids over there, from different kinds of cultures and walks of life. Seo Jeung over here is one of the more timid ones, incredibly sweet and smart, she makes a fantastic student.

And one of the greatest things about kids is the fact that they can laugh at themselves and often, when they laugh at you, it’s without malice. They just think what happened to you was incredibly funny.

One time, after much running  around, i finally got one of my 6-year-old students to sit down and pay attention. After giving him stern instructions to sit still and answer his worksheet, he slams a fist onto the table, and with wide eyes he shouts “I’M GONNA COOK THIS BABY!”. What?! Where the heck did he pick that up?! I laughed for about five minutes, and his chubby bewildered face stared at me, wondering why this crazy lady is breaking down.

I hope i never stop seeing the world as wonderfully as kids do. I hope i never stop laughing at myself, and finding reasons to laugh at whatever the world is going to bring my way. These kids may be learning fractions and grammar from me, but i’m learning things that are way more valuable from these small, weird, funny people. *cheese

Flip, Grip, Invert!

I have always wanted to be a dancer. Ever since i was little, i would be found in some corner, bumpin’ and pumpin’ to the beat, just dancing my heart out, complete with jazz hands.

Dancing would be my answer to a lot of things — frustration, stress, depression, confusion, happiness, ecstasy. Whatever the emotion, i would lock myself in my room, turn down the lights, turn up the volume and shake shake shake it all off. Films about dance and performance would make my heart soar, and give this relentless need to get up there and join them in flawless unison.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t afford dance lessons when i was younger, and when we finally could i already felt too old, too hard. So i stuck to anything athletic – football, wall climbing, tae kwon do, this and that. but the desire to dance never left me, and i never thought i’d be able to mix both my manliness with my love for movement.  Up until my friend and Polecats founder, Christina Dy, peer pressured me into taking her pole dancing class.

The interest has transformed into love into obsession into something that i don’t think i can give up, ever. And i hope and pray that i will never ever ever have to.

Last August 20, at Brigada’s 5th Anniversary celebration. Wee!

margaret and her killer split moves!

me and my pointing toes! Whose hands are trying to catch me?? haha!

Donna and her bendy back

Amazing Amaya can lift herself, and you… at the same time.

Kayleen – Our baby who is now a lady! haha!

Myla and her fantastic form

AJ – the TomCat!

There were a batrillion people there, and the sweat made it difficult to hold on to the pole, but! it was awesome anyway 🙂

Thank you again to our (incomplete) Police who make sure the stage and pole are secure, that we’re safe and fantastic. So much love to go around!

We weren’t complete that night though! Hopefully we’ll have a gig soon where all of us will be present. More more more to come! 🙂

Cool Cats

I belong to a pole dancing group called Polecats, and we are the only organized pole dancing group in the country, dead set on changing people’s mindset about the dance form. It’s been less than a year and already we’ve been given so many wonderful opportunities to perform at interesting venues. Last July we were invited to join the Wifi Body Festival held in CCP, and we thought nothing could quite top that experience for a while.

Boy was i wrong, and boy am i glad i was!

Tessa Prieto-Valdes held a party for the cast of Cats and she invited Polecats to perform and teach a few basic tricks at the party! How does one say “no” to that? One does not, that’s how!

Tessa, being her fantastic self!

TJohn O’ Hara says a few kind words.

Margaret and her deadly split. This trick is called Jade.

Here’s AJ, our first TomCat, doing the Flag.

Polecats Kayleen, Myla, AJ and Margaret pose a little with John O’ Hara and Lea Salonga. Holy Crap.

As expected, them theater folks were fantastic students. Trained dancers are already so strong that most of the tricks they get on the first try! And they’re so freaking flexible! And they have absolutely no hesitation when it comes to trying things. Bruises? Bumps? Bollocks!

and then afterwards, when you’ve had too much poling, you can get a half body massage upstairs!

Planet Zips was also there to keep things hot and heavy. oh yeh.

Me and Amaya sharing a shot with Tessa. Such a wild lady! Who’d have thought that she was actually a tri-athlete?

Amaya doing the Death Lay. Awesome!

The rest of the night was spent dancing, laughing and poling. It was so much fun and it was such an honor to be able to meet the cast of Cats. Such lovely people! Ah well, hopefully next time we’ll be performing on stage with them instead 😉

And So It Begins!

Well here we go!

I’m always being told that i’m “doing too much” and that my plate seems to always be full. But I never quite feel it is, and somehow it’s like it’s never enough. Perhaps if i put it all on here, i’ll have an idea what everyone’s talking about.