A Darker Shade of Brown

I got a tan today. It’s the Filipino in me. Out in the sun for ½ and hour without sunscreen, and I turn a darker shade of brown.

The cartoon pig I watched last night was browning in the sun wearing swimming trunks near the pool. As the cartoon episode continued he soon had bacon-like stripes all over his body. Funny!

The cartoon was followed by a “Will and Grace” TV episode—the one where Jack is stalking the actor Kevin Bacon. What's clever is that Bacon cited himself in the third person (i.e. “seven degrees of separation from Kevin Bacon”) in the storyline.

In Hawaii it’s like “two degrees of separation”--where everybody knows everybody. Locals here can give Kevin Bacon a run for his money any day.

Did you see the price of bacon in Hawaii? $8-10 a pack. And did you ever notice that everything tastes better with bacon? From salads to wrapped asparagus to omelette's and baked chicken…I can’t of a single dish made with bacon that didn't taste better because of the bacon.

And I wonder why we dish out the phrase, "What's shakin' bacon?" As if bacon can really dance. As if!

All I know is that after shakin' the sand off my feet, I need to stop bakin' in the sun. Those UV rays aren’t good for my skin and my Filipino blood surely doesn't even help me to dance any better. It just turns me...

a darker shade of brown.

Charity Bachelor Auction – Update Report

I just got home from the Susan G. Komen fundraiser…ahem…“bachelor auction.” Interested to watch the dynamics of the audience and curious to know if celebrities or local guys would be up for bidding, I picked up my paddle number (#202) and was handed a free t-shirt and pink ribbon before entering the rooftop event. The men ranged from professional models to financial planners, were in their late 20s through mid 30s, with washboard abs and fancy dance moves. The women (and men) in the audience reacted with screams and cheers, egging on further entertainment from the men. The winning bids averaged around $200 and the dates often included a water sport or daytime activity complete with dinner.

To my surprise the bachelors were actually quite handsome, though we favored some more than others. There was the blond haired, blue eyed “Ken Doll” guy who earned the most charity money ($675) and whose date included a day trip to Maui complete with massages, jet skiing and dinner. There were also some rather shy guys who looked so nervous that you just wanted to bid for them just to support their efforts (and interestingly these were the ones who got some of the highest bids!). And then there was the “Igor from the Eastern Bloc” guy who was so cocky and overconfident, and whose stage performance looked more like an X rated strip show than a charity dance (completely unnecessary) who I just wanted to boo off the stage. His winning bid earned a mere $150…a huge blow to the ego. And as far as local boys go, the stereotype is true—Filipinos can dance!

The $10 entrance fee was certainly worth the sheer entertainment of it all. Watching the women fight to out bid each other and seeing them participate on the stage with the bachelors was just a show in itself. I also got some pretty good laughs from the mens’ stage performances. The guys did a great job and I appreciate the courage it took for each one of them to put themselves out there for the sake of charity!

Shout out to my gal-pal CG for a memorable evening to remember.