Pity the poor children

Feuding showbiz couples should stop blaming the media for prying into their privacy when they decide to break up. They have nobody but themselves to chastise for drawing attention to their domestic mess. They alert the media when they march to court to file myriad charges against each other — physical and emotional battery, sexual harassment, psychological incapacity and whatever — and bask in the limelight no matter how murky the circumstances are.

And then, they file for a TPO (Temporary Protection Order) to stop them from getting within 100/300 meters of each other (but what if they accidentally find themselves inside an elevator, should one or both of them jump out?), followed by the court clamping a gag order on both parties, a “gag” that doesn’t really stop the protagonists from yak-yaking!

Reason (or alibi) that they give): For the sake, protection and safety of their children. Pity the poor children whom the quarreling parents purport to protect. The couples plead with the media to spare the children, spare the children, when in fact it should be them that the children should be protected from. Look, it’s parents, usually the “aggrieved” wives, who have this bad habit of posting pictures of themselves with their children in social-media sites and, maybe unwittingly, dragging them into the mud and exposing them to all sorts of feedback, mostly negative.

Yes, the poor children, victims of the nationally-televised tugs-of-war between parents who let themselves be ruled more by emotion than by reason and, knock on wood, might grow up paranoid. Imagine the agony that the poor children have to suffer while watching their parents swap dirty linen in public and being taunted in school for coming from a broken family?

Can’t these showbiz couples follow the example of a few of their self-respecting colleagues (and truly concerned about the welfare of their children) who sort out their domestic differences in the privacy of their bedroom, behind closed doors (and not within earshot of the children)?

Lesson from STAR editor’s experience

Have you ever walked into a holdup-in-progress and went home minus your wallet and expensive celfone?

The STAR’s Associate/Tourism editor Tony Paño did and thanked heavens that he was unhurt albeit profoundly traumatized.

On his way home last Saturday night, Tony dropped by Red Ribbon on Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon City, and ordered take-out food. He told the cashier that he was coming back from the grocery store next door to buy something.

When Tony returned, he found the door closed and the security guard stopped him from getting in. But he had to get his take-out food, so he insisted. The guard, although reluctantly, let him in.

And that’s when Tony realized that he walked right into a holdup-in-progress. Those inside, including the cashiers and some customers, stood frozen stiff (you know, walang gagalaw!). Tony said that there must have been three hold-uppers, one of whom ordered Tony to sit beside him while poking a handgun (covered with a backpack) at Tony’s side and demanding for his celfone. When Tony handed him his cheaper phone, the hold-upper said, “Hindi ‘yan’, ‘yung kaninang ginagamit mo.” The expensive one, that is. The hold-upper stood up but promptly came back to ask for Tony’s wallet.

“Everything happened in barely three minutes,” related Tony. “One of the hold-uppers even took an umbrella from a customer before rushing out. The Red Ribbon has glass walls but nobody from outside seemed to have noticed what was happening inside.”

Lesson from Tony’s experience?

Look around for suspicious-looking guys before entering any establishment.

And avoid using your (especially expensive) celfone in crowded places.  

‘Tips for Life’

I just have to share with Funfare readers the following “Tips for Life,” a clipping of which was sent to me by an unidentified reader who said he got it from Ann Landers’ column in a newspaper. The “tips” were sent to Landers by one of her readers and Landers called them “more than tips; they’re solid blueprint.”

Here they are:

Give people more than they expect, and so cheerfully.

Don’t believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you’d like.

Don’t say “I love you” unless you really mean it.

When you say “I’m sorry,” look the person in the eye.

Be engaged at least six months before you get married.

Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt, but it’s the only way to live life completely.

In disagreements, fight fair. No name calling.

Don’t judge people by their relatives.

When someone asks you a question you don’t want to answer, smile and ask, “Why do you want to know?”

 Call your mom.

 Say “Bless you” when you hear someone sneeze.

 Don’t let a little squabble damage a good friendship.

 When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

 Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.

 Marry someone you love to talk to. As you get older, good conversation will be one of the principal elements of an endearing relationship.

 Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

 Read more books, and watch less TV.

 In disagreements with loved ones, deal with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.

 Never interrupt when you are being flattered.

 Mind your own business.

 Trust in God, but lock your car.

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