JessicaRulestheUniverse.com

After they kill each other on the pitch, the rugby ethos demands that the competitors meet for drinks, share a good dinner and be friends. Who would understand you better than the guy whose mission is to stop you?

Following the test match between Hong Kong and the Philippines, the two teams came to dinner at The Establishment in Bonifacio Global City. The event was hosted by Bea Zobel II, whose son Jaime Urquijo is on the national rugby team.

Volcano moms (L-R): Bea Zobel II, mother of Jaime Urquijo; Nita Dian Zappia, mother of Rafael and Rupert Zappia; and Marilou Saunders, mother of Oliver, Matt (absent), and Ben (absent).

At the door we were greeted by a society editor who said, “Oh, are you a rugby fan?” No, we just follow the team around, take tons of photos, watch and report on their matches in the baking sun, and read Rugby For Dummies in an effort to make sense of the chaos, but we’re not rugby fans, we swear.

Our guys are in blue, the Hong Kong guys in red.

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My friend Mike likes trying new restaurants. Which makes him worry about his calorie intake so he walks to the restaurants he will dine in, then walks back to his house. Which makes him worry about the items on his to-do list for the day that he should be attending to instead of going to restaurants. But he has to eat, right, and we all know that if you skip a meal or eat late you will end up consuming more. And he can’t not walk before and after eating, because of the aforementioned calories. But what about all his chores? And what about his resolve to travel more, immerse himself in different cultures, read more books, and watch more movies? Oh no where’s the to-do list for the day? There are ten items and he’s only done three. Where did the day go? Why is life so complicated??

The solution: Start a blog.

Check out Walk and Eat, the daily “review” of restaurants here and everywhere. Review is in quotes because it’s less gastronomic science than “I must cut my food intake. I must cut my food intake. I must. Ooh, five-course meal!” In short it’s like hanging out with my friend Mike, and I recommend it highly.

The other day I got a text message from Noel. “I’m with Bella Flores, wanna speak to her?”

Bella Flores! One of the fiercest, most terrifying contravidas of Philippine cinema! When I was a kid the sound of her voice could freeze my marrow. What would I say to her? “You scared the bejeezus out of me, I’m your fan?” That doesn’t sound like enough of a compliment for the most influential eyebrows of my childhood. And a phone call ends too quickly. . .

“Please record her voice and I will use it as my ringtone,” I told Noel.

Voila! My fabulous personalized ringtone, recorded in a single take by The Bella Flores. It can be yours, too. . .if your name is Jessica.

Bella Bella Bella

Fourth quarter try and conversion by the Philippines in their practice match with HK. In the chaos I couldn’t tell who crossed the goal line with the ball, but it looks like everyone did it.

Stay tuned for all the running, kicking, tackling, scrumming, rucking, mauling and scoring, live from the Nomads Sports Club on Saturday afternoon.

Plus sidelights, chats with the fabulous mothers of the Philippine Volcanoes, sightings, pointless anecdotes, plenty of speculation, and full red carpet green grass coverage (The Lettsies are wearing…shorts! The Zappias…short shorts! What’s Oliver wearing could they be…shorts?!). And don’t forget the post-match interviews.

Brewhuh23, The Chronicler of Boredom and I will be covering the match, so if you can’t haul yourself to Paranaque to see it live, you’ll still hear us shrieking in your ears (Your eyes actually, with lots of exclamation points!!!).

Our coverage of the Philippines-Hong Kong test match is brought to you by Globe. Enjoy Your Globe Your Way.

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1413. On our way to Nomads. It’s an adventure! as none of us have been to the place in our lives. My invisible border for “Metro Manila” is Magallanes.

We had lunch with Mr and Mrs Saunders, parents of The Three, and we learned among other things that Matt and Ben cut each other’s hair. Rugby and hairdressing!

On a more serious note we learned that in Australia where the Saunderses live, professional rugby players must be eligible to play for the Australian national men’s team the Wallabies. If you play for another country’s national team, you cannot become a professional rugby player in Oz. So Ben has to choose between a pro rugby career in Oz and staying with the Philippine Volcanoes. Ben has been on our national men’s team since he was 15; he turned 18 recently. He has to reach a decision before the A5N Division 1 tournament in May.

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Hot damn the Hong Kong rugby team is really good. Final score at their practice match against the Philippine team at IS Manila yesterday: 64-7. Often the score line is not a clear indicator of how the game went; in this case it looked like 64-7.

The Hong Kong team warming up. See the little guy in the middle? It’s the half-Filipino number 9 or 10, Keith Robertson. Heee’s goood.

This is the Philippine Volcanoes squad for the test match vs. Hong Kong. Lots of new guys, especially in the forward positions.
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We did not think a disclaimer would be necessary but we now disclaim that.

Disclaimer. Though we have a lurid fascination with people’s emotional and especially mental problems, we ourselves do not give advice. As we know ourselves quite well, we are aware that our own motives and purposes will come into play (We want material for a story) and we might be less interested in the problematic person’s well-being than in the twists and turns of the storyline. We acknowledge that it is perhaps not a good idea to treat live humans as fictional characters subject to our whims. In short, we (not the Imperial We but the Old Testament We that we use as our model for interacting with humans) are not Auntie Janey.

Auntie Janey’s personality and predilections should be clear to readers who can pick up her/his clues.

Apropos of nothing, here is rubber duckie dressed up as a panda.

Now here’s Auntie Janey.

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Dear Aunt Janey,

Waiting,
Andy
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