K-dramas

(Part of an ongoing account started on March 13, 2020 of how the spread of COVID-19 in our country and our government’s response has affected our lives.)

Time can really fly when you’re glued to the screen or the monitor, which is probably why so many of those forced to stay home under the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) turn to Netflix.

My sisters are among those who do, so in our video calls the talk inevitably goes to who’s watching what and which episode. These days, it’s all about Korean drama (K-drama).

L-R: Lee Min Ho (Neflix) and Hyun Bin (Esquire)

I find out I am one of those who have not watched “Crash Landing on You.” I also have to search for Lee Min Ho and Hyun Bin on Google so that I can understand why one sister “prefers” the former to the latter. I get lost when someone else mentions “Goblin”. When I find out it is the guy who stars in the movie “Train to Busan” which I really like, I am sold.

But I cannot keep up. The avowed K-drama fan mentions other titles, which I know I will not watch. The only one that is familiar to me is “Descendants of the Sun” because I read a news report of a Filipino remake, which my sister dismisses as she prefers to watch the original.

I am amused by their passion, but I do not judge them for it. I went through “Flor de Luna”, “Mulawin”, “Encantadia” before I graduated to cable TV and found “Downton Abbey”, “The Walking Dead” and “NCIS”, among others.  Now a housewife, I find that I am easily distracted so I prefer not to watch a story that stretches over numerous episodes in several seasons.

So when multi-awarded director Erik Matti takes to Twitter to express his frustration over the Filipino’s preference for K-drama, which he describes as “faux Cinderella stories with belofied actors whiter than white,” that are “all about love in the midst of this pandemic,”  I am amused.

The local film and TV industry is not doomed because South Korean series and movies dominate the top 10 most viewed shows on the streaming platform Netflix.

Netflix, despite its popularity, is not the sole barometer of our viewing preferences, especially because in our country, television still rules despite the rise of digital.  

Matti knows this, in the same way that as a director, he is very much aware of escapism - you know, the tendency to seek distraction and relief from unpleasant realities, especially by seeking entertainment.

I don’t know what he was thinking, but judging from the responses, I think he is getting the attention the tweet deserves.

If he wants Filipinos to be more picky and cerebral about their viewing preferences, he should just come up with an option. Otherwise, let us be. If we do not want to view material depicting social realities, it’s because we’re in one right now, big-time.

“It is the Korean dramas that are getting me through the isolation,” is the simple explanation my sister offers when she sees his tweet.

That’s it, really. That’s all there is to it.

DoH update: As of 4 p.m. of April 18, 2020, the Philippines has reported 6,087 confirmed corona virus cases, including 516 recoveries and 397 deaths.

Following rules

(Part of an ongoing account started on March 13, 2020 of how the spread of COVID-19 in our country and our government’s response has affected our lives.)

I am so tired. I sat in line for an hour and a half to get into the supermarket. It took me about an hour to get everything I need. Then it took me about an hour STANDING in line to pay for everything.

After about 20 minutes with the line barely moving, the man behind me got smart, took the gallon of ice cream out of his cart and returned it to the supermarket freezer.

I thought I’d timed it right. I was at the supermarket at 3:15 p.m., close enough to 5 p.m., when the guards would close the doors on would-be customers to give those who were already inside enough time to do their groceries before the closing time of 7 p.m.

By the time it was my turn to pay, it was 7:35 p.m. You can bet I was watching the clock all the time. I made it home with just minutes to spare before the 8 p.m. curfew. I was all nerves. Never again.

Yes, I am one of those people who follow rules. So I get upset when I see all of these people on TV leaving their homes to play bingo with their neighbors, or attending and betting on a cockfight with their barangay chief in attendance, or having themselves tested for COVID-19 before those who show symptoms of infection.

I seethe when I see two people buying groceries together, in flagrant violation of the provision that only one person should leave the house should there be a need to get food and/or medicine.

I see what they do: One person stands in line while the other does the shopping, leaving very little time queuing up for the cashier. It is efficient. But it is unfair and crafty at this time. 

Those violating the rules do not wait long at all; they get home earlier than the rest of us. Yes, I wish them all sorts of things in my head – none of them good.

I also cannot understand why people think a barangay pass is a permit to cross to the next city just so they can get their choice cut of beef or the other luxuries they are accustomed to. I get doubly annoyed when they post a photo of the goods and I find myself green with envy.

I cannot believe the number of people who get caught on the streets past the 8 p.m. curfew and how they can look very relaxed as they justify why they are not yet inside their homes.

I only know that I drove very fast to make it home before the curfew. It was only at the sight of the village gates that I felt waves of relief wash over me, and I felt myself slowing down.

I tell you. I am so tired.

DoH update: As of 4 p.m. of April 17, 2020, the Philippines has reported 5,878 confirmed corona virus cases, including 487 recoveries and 387 deaths.

Who receives?

(Part of an ongoing account started on March 13, 2020 of how the spread of COVID-19 in our country and our government’s response has affected our lives.)

Today, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) announced it has stopped accepting applications for the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP).

They say that the CAMP budget of P1.6B “is very nearly depleted.” Later, they qualify that DOLE has stopped CAMP applications because the Department of Finance is rolling out its own program for the middle-class, particularly the wage subsidy program.

I think that after DOLE relaxed the documentary requirements and assured employer-applicants that all information provided will not come back to bite them EVER (think unregistered business, double ledger systems, etc.), the deluge was overwhelming.

This goes back again to the fact that there is an underground economy, that small businesses are able to operate despite the lack of permits, sanitary requirements, and non-compliance with labor rules, etc. 

Why the non-compliance? It is so hard to start and sustain a business in the Philippines because of the ONEROUS PROCESSES and RED TAPE that enterprising “fixers” and corrupt government employees are so quick to take advantage of. 

If your pockets aren't deep enough, you're already operating at a loss even before you can start your business. 

This also tells you why the Department of Trade and Industry does not have an accurate data base of businesses, just like the Department of Social Welfare and Development cannot really determine who are the poorest of the poor or the number of families that should be the beneficiaries of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP).

For National Government to adequately serve the Filipino citizenry, they have to go back to the SMALLEST local government unit, which is the barangay. If the barangay cannot even give the numbers, who can?

Barangay officials, however, are so far from the national coffers that they do what they can with what they have, which is not a lot. Some of the tanods are not even on the payroll; they make do with an allowance.

This crisis is teaching us that when government does not have the mechanism to accurately identify its target beneficiaries, aid to those affected will be a loooong time coming, if at all.

News reports carry a version of it every day: barangay so and so appealing for inclusion in the SAP; senior citizens complaining they have not received anything, etc. and etc.

I wish the government thinktank will FINALLY prioritize addressing this inefficiency because it looks like there will still be more interventions, which have to be adequate not only in terms of amount, but also in coverage.

If this does not happen, Government shall have failed miserably and no amount of threatening, ranting, and cursing by our president on late night TV will make up for it.

DoH update: As of 4 p.m. of April 16, 2020, the Philippines has reported 5,660 confirmed corona virus cases, including 435 recoveries and 362 deaths.

Social and good media

(Part of an ongoing account started on March 13, 2020 of how the spread of COVID-19 in our country and our government’s response has affected our lives.)

My phone has been noisy all day with message alerts from the various social media groups that I have joined.

It’s not just the food groups. I am part of two community groups managed by residents within our subdivision as well as another created by our barangay officials. I also follow the official FB accounts of our parish, the City Government and a rather tech-savvy barangay councilor.

Because of these groups, I have learned that:

• The street outside our gate, where the wet market and food vendors are located, has been barricaded off to vehicles (which is why I now park near the gate and walk the rest of the way);
• Deliveries are limited to Gate 1, requiring residents to pick up the goods there;
• Gate 2 has been opened to decongest traffic at Gate 1, but only to accommodate exiting vehicles (which I have used because the area outside Gate 1 area has become parking space for those who did not know about the barricade and who found nowhere else to park their vehicles);
• At least six tricycles have been allowed by the association to operate within the subdivision to enable those without transportation to pick up the food deliveries at Gate 1;
• Residents have set up a tricycle drivers’ fund for the TODA (Tricycle Operators and Drivers' Association) that plies our streets, and has twice distributed food packs since the start of the enhanced community quarantine (which is the best thing I have learned about our community) 💗;
• The association has arranged for fruits, vegetable and seafood vendors to accommodate orders via phone or online, with the goods ready for pickup via “drive-through” near the church on Saturdays;
• Seniors and persons with disabilities can call the security office to have identified utility workers do the groceries for them at stores within the subdivision;
• There are stores within the subdivision that now accept orders via phone (which I have availed of, thank you);
• Residents in the next subdivision have received relief packs (which makes me a little green with envy, I must admit) 😁;
• The route of the Procession of the Holy Eucharist (on wheels) last Good Friday includes our street (which gave us time to set up a small altar outside the house) 🙏; and
• The nearby seminary livestreams masses (which we like since we attended Sunday mass there before the lockdown). 

From these groups, I also have access to news relevant to our community and/or barangay that have been culled from reputable news sources.

I have always maintained that there is nothing wrong with social media as a communications platform. It is only when it is abused that it casts a shadow on the good it can achieve.

It feels good to be right.

DoH update: As of 4 p.m. of April 15, 2020, the Philippines has reported 5,453 confirmed corona virus cases, including 353 recoveries and 349 deaths.

Food talk

(Part of an ongoing account started on March 13, 2020 of how the spread of COVID-19 in our country and our government’s response has affected our lives.)

I have a friend who is my go-to resource for stuff, particularly food.

You mention a restaurant, she will tell you their best dish. Mention a dish and she'll tell you where it is available or the outlet that prepares the most delicious version of it. Mention a locality, and she will tell you what pasalubong you should bring home and where to get it.

I swear by her. She does not disappoint, especially now that some food items are hard to come by because they are off the shelves under the lockdown. She got me into Facebook and Viber food groups that I never knew existed.

I tell you, it is pure temptation. Every time I receive a message alert, I steel myself to resist wants. I go through staples like rice, fish, eggs, fruits and vegetables carefully but am quick to swipe off the tempting sight of cakes, cookies, native delicacies, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, etc.

My friend prefers to have goods delivered because she is afraid of exposing herself to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).  I am not as open to delivery because they cost more, plus I like my fish fresh and not frozen. I also like being able to pick out fruits and vegetables in the quantities that we need.

I also think the food vendors that I frequent outside need my money more. I am nodding acquaintances with most of them and some, who I patronize, always give me a warm welcome… maybe even warmer now.

Then, there’s the chance to leave the house. With the road blocked off to vehicles, I leave the car near the gate and walk the rest of the way. I welcome the exercise. I go early when the sun is still friendly and the produce has just been laid out.

Of course, I am careful. With my quarantine pass on a string around my neck and my face mask on, I stop at stalls, careful to keep my distance from other buyers and close in only when there is space. I am careful not to touch the hand of the seller when I give money and receive change. It’s OK. I notice that they exercise the same care, too.

I do not touch my face, even when moisture starts to gather under the mask because of the humidity. I am not particularly mindful of how I look. I am in decent house clothes, just like everybody else. Besides, no one is looking. We are all just intent on buying what we need as fast as we can without getting too close to anyone.

When I have everything I need, I set the bags carefully on newspaper laid on the floor of the car. I get the alcohol and disinfect my hands before I touch the wheel. When I get home, I leave my slippers outside and get into another pair I left near the door. I then carry the bags to the kitchen where our help will clean them up as best as she can, including the surface where I laid them. She has plastic gloves on.

Meanwhile, I shower. I also disinfect my quarantine pass, the car keys, my phone and wash my face mask. I also set aside my soiled clothes and towel in a basin, to be washed separately.

I check that all food stuff has been sorted out in their shelves and containers. By this time, our help has also thrown out the newspaper on the car floor and wiped down the car door handles and steering wheel. She has also washed her hands.

The whole thing is tedious, even paranoid, I know, but necessary. Last Sunday, hubby left the house on a pretext to gas up a tank that was still almost full and came back with ice cream. He is incredulous when I make him walk into the house barefoot, get the bag from him and direct him to the shower.

Of course he resists and argues, then argues some more before he finally gives in. When he’s clean, he declares it’s the last time he leaves the house under the lockdown. Yeah, right.

Meanwhile, my phone goes off yet again and I laugh when I see that my friend has sent me a very appetizing and tempting photo of biko which she has just bought.

I tell her that if she keeps it up, I might give in. I will gain even more weight, while my wallet will get very lean.

DoH update: As of 4 p.m. of April 14, 2020, the Philippines has reported 5,223 confirmed corona virus cases, including 295 recoveries and 335 deaths.