"Describing a Place" Lesson Plan

Presented by

Ma. Angelica Maghinang – Domingo

I.              Objectives: At the end of the lesson, the learners should be able to:

a.    interpret given descriptions of a place through drawing

b.    identify the appropriate adjectives for particular pictures

c.    create a song and dance number using adjectives for a specific place

II.            Subject Matter:

a.    Topic: Description of a Place

b.    Reference: Teaching Guide in English II p. 18 to 29

c.    Materials: Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation and pictures

d.    Skills: listening, speaking, writing, drawing, singing, and dancing

e.    Values: imagination, creativity, appreciation of nature, appreciation for the locality, and honesty

III.           Procedure

a.    Lesson

                                          i.    Draw Me!

1.    Ask the learners to listen to close their eyes and listen to the description which will be read twice: The clear blue skies featured the radiant sun. I can smell the sweet summer blooms. I can hear chirping birds and the water flowing in steady current. It was a perfect day.

2.    After reading the description twice, ask the learners to draw what they envisioned through the description.

                                        ii.    Make Sense!

1.    Ask the learners to categorize adjectives for places according to the sense that perceives the description.

Sight	Smell	Touch	Hearing

big                   black               elegant           fragrant          stinky

breezy            cold                 smooth           silent              noisy

colorful           fruity               scorching      bumpy            quiet

                                       iii.    Discuss the three ways on how learners can describe a place:

1.    Memory

2.    Observation

3.    Imagination

b.    Generalization: How can you describe a place?

                                          i.    A place may be described through the sense of sight, hearing, smell, and touch.

                                        ii.    A place may be described through memory, observation, or imagination.

c.    Application: Ask the learners to identify the best word that describes the following places:

                                          i.    ancient           modern          cold

                                        ii.    abandoned               bustling          deserted

                                       iii.    dirty     dark    picturesque

                                       iv.    polluted          clean              safe

                                        v.    bright              creepy            crowded

IV.          Evaluation

a.    Descriptive Ad

                                          i.    Divide the class into four groups. Give each group a photo of a place. All of these are photos of a place in Tangalan.

                                        ii.    Ask each group to prepare a jingle that promotes the place in the photo. Make sure to use at least five descriptions in the jingle. Learners may use the melody of an existing song’s chorus and just replace the lyrics. Ask them to accompany each jingle with some actions. Give them five minutes to prepare.

                                       iii.    Ask each group to perform in front of the class.

V.           Assignment:

a.    Lonely Planet

                                          i.    Ask the students to make-up their own planet by using their imagination and write a vivid description of it.

                                        ii.    Ask them to consider the following in writing:

1.    Name of the planet

2.    Residents

3.    Plants

4.    Water

5.    Vehicles

RUBRICS

For the Draw Me! activity:

CATEGORY	EXCELLENT	GOOD	NEEDS IMPROVEMENT
Description (7 pts.)	At least five descriptions of the place were included	Less than five descriptions of the place were included	There was no description of the place in the jingle
Presentation (3 pts.)	The jingle was clearly sung and the actions were synchronized	The jingle was sung and the actions were not too synchronized	No jingle and actions were performed

For the Lonely Planet activity:

CATEGORY	EXCELLENT	GOOD	NEEDS IMPROVEMENT
Description and Grammar (7 pts.)	At least five descriptions of the place were included and the grammar is perfect	Less than five descriptions of the place were included and there were some minor grammatical errors	There was no description of the place and the
Presentation (3 pts.)	The jingle was clearly sung and the actions were synchronized	The jingle was sung and the actions were not too synchronized	No jingle and actions were performed

Be a Stylish Cheetah!

Wearing dresses with prints and colors of wild animals suggests make one’s appeal like that of the animals. Lion for example is majestic and fierce so as the leopard. These two cats are some of the rulers of the wild. But unlike these two cats, the cheetah is elegant and graceful. Although it is smaller than a lion and leopard, the Cheetah is known for its one of a kind speed.

Hence, if a woman is wearing a dress with Cheetah prints, she projects the elegance and grace like that of a Cheetah. At the same time, she is quick to grab anybody’s undivided attention even in the middle of a crowd. Dresses with perfect cut and bold animal prints are great for different events and occasions.

Available in MKL Collective Women’s is a Cheetah Ponte Dress with Cut Outs. This absolutely head turning spring dress contains bold Cheetah prints and elegant cut outs on the sides. The cut outs emphasize the narrow waist of the one wearing this dress which perfectly blends with the glamour and elegance made by the Cheetah prints.

This beautiful spring dress is currently on sale from the original price of $38 it is now at only $11.25! It is a very great deal for an alluring dress like this! This dress is manufactured by MKL Collective and guaranteed brand-new and unused. The item includes handmade items in the original packaging like the bag and with the original tags.

The dress has a perfect length that flatters a woman’s beautifully shaped legs and a neckline that can make every man turn.

Place an order now and feel the pride of being elegant and graceful in a spring dress like this. With the biggest sale available for this item every woman will absolutely feel lucky to have this Cheetah Ponte Skater Dress. 

GeniusStrap: Versatility and Utility at its Best

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

GeniusStrap: Versatility and Utility at its Best

Orange County, California, USA – March 12, 2014 – Everyone, prepare for the most versatile utility strap ever. KickStarter is proud to present GeniusStrap, the strap which answers to all organization and dexterity needs! It is set to make people’s lives easier and more convenient with this fast and quiet strap.

The GeniusStrap stays true to its name. It is a genius product which is elastic, adjustable, and self-locking. Some of its unusual uses are being used as shoelaces, a hair tie, and even a DNA visual aid! A GeniusStrap is also a GeniusShoelace. It is a truly adjustable shoelace replacement that adds new lacing patterns which you have not seen before. Kicks will become instant slip-ons and makes them look sleek! It is a ready solution for any strap or lace needs that one can conveniently carry in his or her pocket or worn as a bracelet.

GeniusStrap can be used for those long headphone wires, power cords, data cables, and other pesky wires on top of the table, inside the drawer, or server farms. GeniusStrap can be used to tie loops of wire and keep it in its place. This ensures a neat and organized desk and drawers. It can also be helpful on a crazy hair, gym or yoga day. It can be used to secure flip-flops or slippers for the little ones. It is a more sophisticated and efficient substitute to a conventional rubber band. It also works great as an eyewear strap. It keeps smartphones with flaps from slipping so videos can be enjoyed on desks or tables without stands. It can hold diplomas, scrolls, and napkins in its place. It can be used in arts and crafts without the mess and a great household tool. The GeniusStrap is ideal for artists, housekeepers, fashion designers, architects, teachers, students, astronauts, and people from different walks of life! It makes tasks a lot easier and helps people come up with much better outputs.

“Every second counts,” according to the GeniusStrap creator, Lionel P. Castro. In a world where there are a lot of meetings to attend, too many deadlines to beat, and life tasks, it is important to save time in as much ways possible. As necessity is the mother of all inventions, the idea of GeniusStrap sprung through the often untied shoelaces. From this situation, the ultimate strap was born. Now, it is set to conquer the market through giving people exactly what they need – a simple yet highly efficient time-saver!

Now, anyone can be a Genius Backer. There are different options to choose from. As a Genius Backer 1, one will receive eternal gratitude as his or her name will be listed and never removed from the Kickstarter Backers List. It only costs at a minimum of $1. As a Genius Backer 2, a person will have an additional phone call or email from the GeniusStrap creator. This costs a minimum of $5. To be a Genius Backer 3, one will need $16 or more and he or she gets a Shoelace set which contains eight GeniusStraps of the same color, the phone call or email, and a chance to vote for color choices. Other higher reward tiers can be found on its KickStarter page. The URL is https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/geniusstrap/geniusstrap-the-greatest-utility-strap-in-the-univ. One can also visit KickStarter.com, search projects, and enter “GeniusStrap” (one word.) Lionel with his kids invite people to be a part of technology’s history through making this breakthrough product a possibility! Become a Genius Backer so you can spend time on what matters to you most!

Contact:

Lionel P. Castro
Irvine, Orange Country, California, USA
https://www.facebook.com/lionel.castro.904
http://www.GeniusStrap.com
https://twitter.com/GeniusStrap
https://www.facebook.com/GeniusStrap

Ellen Degeneres brings Fun Oscars back!

Ellen Degeneres changed the game when she hosted the 2014 Oscars. She brought excitement, she brought lots and lots of laughter, and she brought the pizza! She kept everybody in a light mood without deviating from the glitz and glamour that the Oscars always have. Her personal touch to this star-filled event made it extra special. It left everybody with a smile on their faces. It made everybody remember different Oscars moments fondly. It even made way for the ultimate selfie of all time and broke Twitter.

Ellen’s Best Oscars Moments

Never a dull moment with Ellen Degeneres – from reminding how Jennifer Lawrence fell that night just like how she fell last year, to her selfie, to ordering pizza, and to the legendary selfie that broke twitter with its greatness!

Photo from Elle

1 Ellen's Selfie

And this is how the selfie ended up:

Photo from TWIMG

Jennifer Lawrence tried to keep herself from falling but failed. Fortunately, a lot of people, including her boyfriend, Nicholas Hoult, came to her rescue and helped her stand up.

Photo from Radio Times

Jennifer Lawrence seems to start a tradition of falling at the Oscars. Although to others, it may seem like a very embarrassing moment, it just made Jennifer even cuter and more endearing! It also helped a lot that Ellen promised Jennifer not to tell anybody while Ellen was on stage. Some secret keeper!

She probably realized how her “falling” moment will end up and how it funny it is that she seem to enjoy the red carpet too much and how she seem to have fallen in love with the event that she just laughed it off.

Photo from Clevver

Ellen even suggested that they just bring Jennifer Lawrence the Oscar if she wins that night. It will definitely save her the trouble. This is how it happened last year:

Photo from Radio Times

Here’s the most star-studded pizza party ever! Ellen ordered pizza and when you have Brad Pitt distributing the plates, it is definitely a BIG party!

Of course, somebody has to pay for a pizza. Here’s Ellen, collecting pizza money.

From Business Insider

Viewers also get to see Ellen in a dress!

Photo from YIMG

Here’s how the ultimate selfie was initiated:

From Become Gorgeous

This is how it looked like, how it was twitted, and how it broke Twitter:

Photo from Get the Gloss

They, who emerged Victorious

Here is the list of those who went home with the most coveted golden statuette.

From IMGUR

12 Years a Slave bested other nominees like American Hustle, Gravity, and Philomena in the Best Picture Category, Matthew McConaughey left Leonardo Dicaprio still Oscar-less by winning as the Best Actor in a Leading Role while Jared Leto won the Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his part in the Dallas Buyers Club. Cate Blanchett won as the Best Actress in a Leading Role while Lupita Nyong’o won the Best Supporting Actress Award, and perhaps the most shared acceptance speech in social media.

From Zap 2 it

As most people expected, Frozen won the award for the Best Animated Film of the year. Robert Lopez, a Filipino-American song writer and his wife, Kristen Anderson won best Music for “Let it Go” which was performed by Idina Menzel. Her performance was one of the highlights of the whole event even when John Travolta messed her name up.

What is Eye Strain?

Eye Strain or Asthenopia can be very annoying. Likewise, it can be disturbing and it may prevent a person from doing his or her best in specific tasks. Its symptoms are tired, red eyes which may make people want to just close their eyes and sleep, itchy eyes which is very irritating, and burning eyes which can make people very uncomfortable. Aside from being unsightly, eye strain can make people suffer from discomfort and even pains at times.

Eye Strain is rarely a common eye condition and can easily be prevented even just by basic eye care. However, there are also some rare instances when this is not exactly the condition but is just a symptom of a deeper health concern. It is time to see a doctor when the eye strain comes with a headache, when the person suffers from too much discomfort, when one starts to have double vision, or if there is any major change in one’s vision.

Photo from Eye Strain Org

Causes of Eye Strain

Eye strain is usually caused by different activities that demands intense use of a person’s eyes or using the eyes for a very long period of time. Some examples of this condition’s causes are driving, writing, and reading for hours. Likewise, hours of exposure of the eyes to different devices such as computers, mobile phones, and game consoles, can cause a person to suffer from eye strain. This kind of eye strain is also called the computer vision syndrome. This happens when a person’s ciliary muscle gets too tight.

Eye Strain Symptoms

·         Eye irritation. This includes redness and itchiness that can make a person very uncomfortable. Although it may look like the eyes of a person who did not get enough sleep, it is different because of the discomfort that it brings.

·         Can’t focus. Another symptom is when a person cannot seem to focus his or her eyes to a specific subject.

·         Dryness. Some people’s eyes get too dry when they suffer from eye strain. On the other hand, there are some whose eyes get too watery.

·         Blurry. People may also suffer from blurry vision. This may prevent a person from performing his or her tasks well. This is also known as double vision to some.

·         Light Sensitivity. People who suffer from eye strain may become extremely sensitive to any form of light.

·         Pain. Some symptoms are pain in different parts of the body like the shoulders, the neck, the eyes, or around the person’s eyes, and the back.

How to Handle Eye Strain

Although eye strain is not really directly treated, there are some pretty simple ways of getting rid of it or stopping its symptoms.

·         When acquired through reading, one can get rid of eye strain through increasing the lighting and decreasing the glare. One can also take a break more frequently to give the eyes some time to rest.

·         Blinking more frequently can help the eyes.

·         Keep at least 20 inches of distance from the TV or computer screen.

Best "Dance" Arts

The colors and the movements - these factors create exceptional "dance" arts. These are some striking art pieces that captured my eyes and my heart.

Dancing by Leonid Afremov
Image from Des-Way

Ballet Dancers by Edgar Degas
Image from The Guardian

Dancing by Tommervik

Tango by Willem Haenraets
Image from Nikhelbig

Emotional Dancing by Robert Duval
Image from Oil Paintings Sales

Go Raw!

A lot of people believe that raw food is the healthiest way to go. This practice is also known as Raw Foodism or Rawism. Like the name implies, this is a practice of eating only raw foods such as raw fruits, grains, and raw vegetables. Food items in a raw food diet should be uncooked and unprocessed. Usually, these are what most people call organic foods. This is said to be a much healthier of eating food as heating the food causes loss of nutrients. There are also some studies that prove how cooking can make the food harmful for a person. A raw food diet will ensure that a person will eat food that are safe to eat and with all its vitamins and nutrients intact.

Some people choose to go on raw food diet for three possible reasons.

• Weight loss
• Better health
• Environmental causes

Does Raw Food Diet work?

Although the nutrients of food items usually found in the raw food diet, there are usually questions about this diet being a good one for weight loss. There are also questions about the suitability of such diet for people with busy schedules and for people who are always in a hurry. Instead of using the microwave, food preparation is usually done using blenders, dehydrators, and food processors. These are processes that are as quick as when microwave ovens are used, yet produce healthier dishes!

People who go into raw food diet have a good chance of losing weight. The fact that food items in this kind of diet contain low calories, low sodium, low fats, and high fiber makes it a lot better when measuring these against what they eat before this diet. These food items are usually rich in vitamins and nutrients too. This is perfect for busy people to keep them in shape and in their best condition to work and perform their daily tasks.

Monday is Laughday!

While most people, including me, back then, hate Mondays, I realized that it's time to be more positive for the week ahead! With that, I decided to hunt the most infectious "happy" photos in the World Wide Web and these are what I found. Have a Happy Laughday Monday and may these photos make you smile!

Photo from Planting Peace

Make others happy by being happy! Make your happiness so contagious that people around you will feel like smiling too! Be the fountain of happiness in your home, school, workplace, and just about anywhere!

Photo from PR Log

This one says "Gotcha!" or it could be the biggest smile that one can ever see on a Monday!

Photo from Your Billboard

This cat's happiness was made to appear greater by the contrasting intense seriousness of the other cat. Be the happy cat!

Photo from 3 BP

This is perfect for those who prefer to have a "demure" laugh.

Photo from Funny Fun Fun

According to Medical News Today, people can lose weight through laughing!

Photo from Huffpost

That's just pure delight!

Now, it's your turn to make someone else smile today!

Huskisson Accommodation - Make Memories Even More Precious

Huskisson Accommodation offers services that will make tourists enjoy their vacation as much as possible! It puts the tourists' needs and preferences in consideration so it can find the best accommodation for the guests.

There are numerous rooms that Huskisson Accommodation offers. It helps tourists find rooms near the remarkable sandy beach of Jervis Bay so the guests will enjoy the beautiful view that this beach offers. It takes tourists to perfectly and uniquely designed which ensures fulfillment of the guest's needs and preferences. It makes sure that the room provided has complete amenities starting from wood log fires or gas, spa, and a complete cooking facility. These rooms are perfect for couples, family outings, groups, weddings, and different functions. These are brilliantly decorated with delightful color schemes, photography, and various hand made furniture. 
These are some of the gorgeous rooms that the best Huskisson Accommodation offers:

• The Bungalow – This type of accommodation is ideal for family or group that has four members. It has a beautiful fenced garden behind the house where in guest can have a wonderful breakfast with the parrots and kookaburras that visits the garden. The guests can relax as the sound of waves lull them to sleep.  Facilities of this room include griller, gas, CD player, cooking devices, DVD, heaters, iron and ironing board, laundry devices, microwave, and many more. This accommodation is also perfect for long stay. This room costs $120 per night and guests should stay for at least two nights.
• Huskisson Barefoot Retreat - This beautifully renovated house has three great bedrooms, one queen-sized bed, one with a double-sized bed and a master bed room with one queen-sized bed and single beds that can accommodate a large family or group. This room has two perfectly designed bathrooms. This type of room is perfect if the guests wants to have a quiet place to stay  and have an easy access to the fantastic Jervis Bay. This room includes griller or gas, DVD, internet access, complete kitchen and laundry facilities, heaters, television, and an amazing patio. This room costs from $170 per night and guests should stay for at least two nights here. This is a great place for the best accommodation in Australia.
• Anglesea Lodge – This room can accommodate up to 5 persons. It has two perfectly designed bedrooms. One of the magnificent features of this accommodation is its salt-water pool that the guests will definitely enjoy. It has 24- hour reception as well. All rooms are air conditioned. It has complete kitchen and laundry facilities, griller or gas, telephone, and television. If the guest is fond of canoeing and kayaking, this accommodation is perfect for them since this is located only 5 minutes away from canoeing and kayaking facilities. They are welcome to bring their own canoe or kayak or they can rent one. This room costs from $165 per night and guest should stay at least two nights here.
• Beachfront Reserve Apartment- This type of room can accommodate up to 9 persons. It has four perfectly design rooms, two bathrooms, large living room, kitchen, and an underground parking. However, this type of accommodation does not include linens or bath towels. The guests should bring their own. This accommodation offers a wide fenced yard. The yard is a perfect place for kids to play in. The Beachfront Reserve Apartment has easy access to the town’s beautiful attractions and to the sensational Jervis Bay. This room costs from $361per night and guests should stay for at least two nights. This is one of the best Huskisson Hotels.

For guests who want to bring their pets during their vacation, the Bungalow and Huskisson Barefoot Retreat are pet friendly accommodations. All of these accommodations provide excellent customer service to ensure guest’s satisfaction and convenience.
Huskisson Accommodation finds hotel rooms near the famous Jervis bay so guests have an easy access to enjoy the fabulous sandy beach or bask in the the sensational gorgeous view of Jervis bay. The Bungalow is close to a golf course and to a whale-watching site. Huskisson Barefoot Retreat is 50metres away from Jervis Bay National Park where guests can enjoy on-site bird watching and learn more about local birds. Some of the accommodations are located by the lake. These are ideal for those who want to have a quiet and relaxing vacation.  Huskisson Accommodation can help tourists find any type of accommodation that absolutely suits all guests’ preferences to ensure 100% guests’s satisfaction while enjoying a luxurious, comfortable, and memorable vacation.

The Bridges of Stotsenburg

The Bridges of Stotsenburg

A lot of people are fooled by the name of our street – Stotsenburg st. Indeed, it sounds like a street inside a subdivision. From what my uncle told me, it was taken from the last name of an American Officer, a pilot, if I remembered right. However, when I was born in 1982 and while I was growing up, how the place looked is definitely far from how it sounded like.

Stotsenburg st. is not fully concrete. Actually, it should have been called Stotsenburg half street. Half of it is concrete while the other half is a creek. People who have their houses on the opposite side of ours have to build wooden bridges so they can cross to the actual street. In these bridges, the creativity and resourcefulness of the people living in each house are seen. I can still remember my Ninong Cris’ bridge which is perhaps the safest. It is made of two planks of wood, each wider than most of the bridges in our place. I can also remember Mang Juanito’s bridge which is a bit narrow. We have to brave it so we can buy his one peso Indian mangoes and ask him for additional “bagoong” or shrimp paste. I can also remember Aling Victoria’s bridge. It is the second widest bridge next to Ninong Cris’. Of course, I will never forget Aling Lilia’s. It was a tiny one which is attached to Aling Victoria’s bridge. It shows how practical Aling Lilia is.

The creek played a major role in each resident of Stotsenburg St.’s life. One has to fall to the creek before he or she is recognized as an official “batang sapa” or child of the creek. We call the falling process “baptism”. This happens in random – at the right place at the right time. No one knows when they will be “called” by the creek. A friend experienced it when her jump fell short. A cousin experienced it when we were running in the streets one evening and I stepped on his slipper. I experienced it when I was playing tag with my friends and somebody shoved me out of his way while we were standing on Mang Juanito’s bridge.

These bridges served a lot of purposes aside from the obvious. It was also used as the finish line of swimming races whenever it rains too hard and floods. It also served as a gigantic toilet for little kids. I know some people who were “baptized” while doing their “dirty” business.

We lived in a two-storey wooden house. On the first floor, there is the living room which features the black and white tube television which has its own wooden house. Our “sari-sari” or variety store is also there. It also holds the dining room, separated from the living room by a wooden divider which holds diplomas and wood laminated family pictures. It also holds our bathroom with a large blue drum inside, or was it green? I can also remember that the shower works.

On the second floor, there are two bedrooms separated by thin plywood. It also holds a stock room. I love the stockroom. It is like a Filipino version of an American attic. It is like a big treasure chest although it smelled of rust and papers. I can still remember how I felt when I found a bike. It does not have wheels, it was rusty, and there are some broken parts. I convinced my father to fix it for me and he did! It became my best friend for quite a while and I was told that it belonged to my father, passed on to his younger siblings when they were kids. My aunt, their eldest, never had time for it.

Every morning, when I wake up, I would call my younger cousin and we would go to Aling Cora’s. Aling Cora sells a wide variety of breakfast. Sometimes we would try the porridge or the macaroni soup but more often, we buy the two-peso champorado. If we have money, we add a peso for extra milk. We never bought pancit bihon, pancit canton, spaghetti, or palabok. We believe that those are for old people since those are expensive. Each order costs five pesos.

What I love most about our place is how everybody is united. I remember how a burglar was caught by one of the residents. He shouted and every man from each house went out to help. They captured the burglar and he was turned in; not before he got a punch or two, though. When the stealing started, a lot of those men lost sleep because they had to stay up to catch the perpetrator. He must have known that he had it coming.

I also remember Fiesta, Christmas Eve, and New Year’s Eve – Stotsenburg Style. Without much preparation, some of the well-to-do residents would go out and host some games for the kids. They host some games for the adults too. I remember that it was here where I first witnessed the beer drinking game for moms – using a drinking straw. The beers were not cold too. I can just imagine how it tasted. Then, everyone would bring out tables and food and we would eat together with all our neighbors. Of course, drinking will follow and it makes dancing a lot easier and more fun!

Aside of being a “batang sapa”, I was also a “batang kankaloo”. Kankaloo means “Kalookan” which was how the city name was spelled before Rey Malonzo was elected and changed the spelling to Caloocan as his first official action as a mayor. One of the highlights of being a “batang Kankaloo” is witnessing the Flores de Mayo of the Stars. Each year, the Kalookan City government hosts a Flores de Mayo wherein the participants are celebrities. I remember watching the parade for the first time and seeing Manilyn Reynes, Janno Gibbs, Kristina Paner, Cris Villanueva, and a lot of other celebrities. I remember being star struck when I saw the Reyna Emperatriz who is Cristina Gonzales and the Reyna Elena who is no less than Ms. Dawn Zulueta.

Back then, Caloocan City had Ever Gotesco as its mall. I remember the good old days when they would have a mascot show outside the mall, on a platform outside the second level of Ever a few days before Christmas. My family would go there and my father will let me sit on his shoulders so that I will be able to see the show. I also remember my aunt working there as a saleslady. When we went there to buy my school bag, she was assigned to be the bagger in one of the counters and my mom took me there to pay for the bag. When I called her “miss” as my mom instructed me to do, she put her finger on her lips as if to shush me off and then winked at me. I do not understand why she did that even now.

After a few years, Ever Gotesco Grand Central was built. It also played a big role in the lives of Caloocan City Residents. I remember the McDonald’s with stools inside a bus, in the middle of the restaurant. I remember the Penshoppe boutique where I usually buy my clothes and the Blowing Bubbles boutique where I saw Ruffa Guttierez and Zoren Legaspi on its opening day. I remember Gift Gate where I used to buy trolls and Kero Keroppi items. Inside it is a shelf full of Swatch watches that I dream of owning. I remember A&W restaurant where my cousin celebrated her 7^th birthday. I remember the 40-peso movie tickets where I watched my first movie, Fido Dida, with my father.

Before the new millennium, the Asistio brothers, with Boy as the mayor and Baby as the congressman provided funds and the creek was turned into a road – a higher and wider one. It marked a new age for our street. The creek was gone. No one will be baptized as a “batang sapa” anymore.

Kalookan is now Caloocan. Mayor Boy Asistio appealed for a recall election. It was approved but Rey Malonzo emerged as the rightful mayor. The park in front of Caloocan City Hall is gone. It was replaced by commercial spaces.

Ever Gotesco lost its glamour when Ever Gotesco Grand Central opened. My cousin and I still went there once a week, after school, as if paying respect. Now, it was turned to SM Hypermart.

Ever Gotesco Grand Central was burned down just a couple of years ago. When I went back for a visit, I was deeply saddened as I remember the times I spent there with my family and with my friends.

A lot of changes took place. However, when I visited Stotsenburg St., it’s as if nothing has changed. I saw the same smiles, I heard the same laughter, I saw the same twinkle in the new generation kids’ eyes. There was a lot of chatting. There were lots of embraces. There was the usual teasing. I still felt the warmth. It is still my home no matter where I go.