Reverse psychology

Netnet Camomot .

HASKANG tugnawa oi! Brrrrr.

Reverse psychology na lang ta ani kay super init na gyud; it has reached the point of what Ruffa Gutierrez may describe as, Grabeh!

To aircon or not to aircon? That’s the question even at the ungodly hour of 2 am. Is this summer hotter than usual? Or are these hot flashes?

The best place to be—if you’re not at work in the air-conditioned office—is the mall. The home office, though, is now possible in Pinas with the consolidated bill on “work from home programs” which may soon become a law. So, that means pajama day even on a working day. Yay!

The bill aims to increase productivity now that an employee can use his precious time working instead of checking out his Facebook news feed while stuck in traffic. The source of stress by then for the stay-at-home work force will be the 24/7 phone calls from their boss.

The stay-at-home employee will probably miss wearing his business attire. Well, there’s one way to find out what he will truly miss. Is “Eat Bulaga” less funny without Senate President Tito Sotto? Is “It’s Showtime” boring without Karylle? Is halo-halo blah without kaong?

When you feel an absence, that’s when you realize something’s missing. Everything is replaceable and easily forgotten once the world has moved forward. And a pair of heels is one item whose absence will never be missed now that women prefer sneakers. Serena Williams even wore sneakers with her Valentino evening gown to the wedding reception of Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan. And there’s Vicki Belo who had to practice walking in heels for her own wedding last year after getting used to wearing flats.

Flat sandals and flip flops are the best footwear for this kind of summer and also for the body weight that has suffered enough in heels. If ever hot weather has a perk, hopefully it will finally encourage you to lose weight since fats can make the body hotter in a bad way. Thus, TGIF may morph into thank God it’s fish—for the diet, that is. Then, pair that with sautéed veggies now that the house help has discovered the wonders of ginger. Yum!

A good weight loss program includes exercise. How to exercise in this weather? Hmmm. Let’s listen to some Q&A with potential senatoriables who are now on a nationwide tour. Question: Are you running? Answer: Nah, not running. Is that your reply, too, when asked about exercise?

You know it’s almost campaign season for the midterm elections when potential candidates start to accept any opportunity to speak in front of an audience.

Midterm is kind of a recess, the oasis in the midst of chaos, the appetizer for the presidential elections.

Now that next year’s candidates know the barangay winners, they can start planning their campaign strategy: One for you, two for me; one for you, four for me; one for you, nine for me. No, I have no idea what they’re talking about.

Campaigning in Cagayan de Oro is usually done in Cebuano. Lahi ra man gyud kung Binisay-on, mas dulot. Ayaw tawon pag-tusok-tusok the bola-bola diri while begging for votes from the madlang pehpohl. And please don’t translate English or Tagalog to Cebuano while you’re onstage, i.e., Good evening, ay, magandang gabi, ay, ano nga ba ’yan sa Bisaya, ay, maayong gabii! The audience may laugh at your attempt in making pa-cute. But it’s an insult to them, as if you’ve already concluded they can’t understand English and Tagalog. Either you use English, Tagalog, Cebuano or mix all three.

Good for you if no one is listening to your speech, if they’re only waiting for you to show them the money.

In case you’re alarmed with the possible inclusion of some personalities as senatorial wannabes, here’s good news: Gina Lopez may join the fray, that is, if Senate President Sotto can convince her. In an interview with ANC’s Headstart, he said, “If she’s willing to join our coalition, why not? She would be a good asset also.”

In another interview last month, also with Headstart, Lopez was asked about running for the Senate, and she said, “I like what I’m doing now, it makes me happy. I like to help farmers and fishermen.” As for the Senate, these were her thoughts: “You will be stuck there. You will just sit there and talk. Lawmaking bores me.”

She’s currently busy with her ILOVE Foundation, and also her Quest for Love which, as described in its website, “is a nation-wide search for Loving Organizations seeking to transform marginalized communities to viable localised economic zones, such as successful resource-based agro-forestry, fisheries, or eco-tourism sites and the like.”

“What I do is I follow my heart and right now, my heart wants to do this,” Lopez added.

Like this year’s barangay elections, the midterm elections next year will also be in May. I gotta feeling that will be hotter, with hot spots, hot issues, hot topics. Wait, reverse psychology—it will be cooler, with cooler candidates, cooler precincts, cooler poll watchers.