Every step you take, every move you make, I'll be watching you

Privacy is a highly valuable thing.

Our family circle, unfortunately, tends to love gossip. So much so that at times we have to keep secrets from our loved ones simply because we don't want the whole world to know. My grandma's feelings sometimes get hurt because she ends up being the last to know. If we let her know all our plans then nothing would ever be a surprise. Ever.

My mom told me she didn't let my grandma know about my layoff. I'm not sure how to disguise it come Monday when I'm still at home cleaning house, doiong laundry, everything that has been piling up all this time. And that's when all madness will break loose, I'm sure. See, it's not even just the family network that you have to be careful of, it's almost like you have to watch your step with all the Filipinos here in Calgary. Everybody knows somebody else here in town. Your news will be all over town before you can even say "and now for the traffic update." And Calgary's a big city! I've just learned that we broke a million shortly after 2000.

One of Lil_Kee's brothers, when asked why he had a preference for dating white girls, replied "That way I know we're not related." That is so true, you know? Every single Filipino "grown-up" I know is either Tita (Auntie) or Tito (Uncle) to me...it doesn't matter if we're of the same blood or not. And even if you're just casually dating another Filipino both families get involved, or at least that's how it feels. It's like one big union without even getting married. Now that's scary.

That's why I love clubbing in Banff, or even Toronto. There's no way my "wild" (and that is a really exaggerated way of putting it) behaviour will ever get back home, or back to anyone who may know me here. Well maybe not no way, but a very small chance. Smaller than if I went buckwild here in Calgary. They're always watching.