Dinner with the U.S. ambassador
Posted on 04-30-10 · Sassy Lawyer Tags: mediaA day after I handed my notice to Manila Standard Today, there was an e-mail from a member of the paper’s staff with the phone number of someone from the U.S. embassy. Understand that I’ve gotten invitations to U.S. embassy functions before (I never went) and I was familiar with the routine — I was being contacted through the paper because whatever it was about, it was related to my post as a columnist.
I wanted to be fair and honest about the situation. So, I called the contact person, I was told about a small dinner party (only seven guests) with the new ambassador and I said I was no longer writing for the paper so I didn’t feel it would be right to accept the invitation. The curious thing was that it didn’t matter. They still asked me to come. Apparently, some VIPs in the embassy read my blog and… oh, you know how anti-American government I can get and they still read me? Weird and flattering at the same time. It was an irresistible combination. The conspiracy theory buff in me wondered if it was a CIA attempt to profile me and I figured I might as well profile the profilers. To make a long story short, I accepted.
And so I went to the dinner party last night. I have to admit that I was a little apprehensive as I didn’t know who the other invited guests were. If I were to sit down to dinner with a bunch of media people who would debate while trying to pretend they were THE authorities on U.S. foreign policies, I felt I would go barf before the salad was served. But it was nothing like that. It was a nice group of people that I met. Name droppables, really, and for a moment, I felt young and awkward and inexperienced. These people knew one another. And, if you’re a long time reader, you’d know that I never socialized in media circles. So, there was an awkward moment there. A teeny-weeny moment. Like a fraction of a second. Then, the ambassador’s deputy says, “Oh, you’re Sassy Lawyer…” and the awkwardness passed.
So I met the Honorable Harry K. Thomas, Jr., U.S. ambassador to the Philippines, who happens to like our climate. No kidding. He likes the heat, he said, and this isn’t all that bad compared to Bangladesh or India, two of his previous postings (I haven’t been to India or Bangladesh and I still say summer this year has got to be the worst in my life). I can’t describe how amused I was when he said, “Please call me Harry” because it sounded so much like a line from one of J.K. Rowling’s books. But he said it like he really meant it and it sounded nice because he wasn’t pulling ranks, so to speak, or being pompous or trying to sound self-important. You know, the way politicians often do. Like Senators insisting on being called “Your Honor” even when there’s no honor in them. Foreign service and politics aren’t the same banana but they do intersect in many curious ways. So, when the Ambassador said, “Please call me Harry” at a dinner party with seven guests, well, it was a gush of fresh air.
Dinner was great, a mix of Thai and Filipino food. Dinner conversation was light and cheerful, peppered with laughter, although I distinctly remember a moment of palpable silence when “oil” was mentioned. Don’t ask me why. I just noticed. I tried — once — to bring up the subject of whether Ping Lacson was hiding out in the U.S. (I couldn’t resist, really) but no one really wanted to talk about him lengthily as most were talking about Obama’s “Yes We Can” slogan and how many politicians after him picked up the line. Curiously, Harry’s wedding ring is engraved with his name, his wife’s name and the line “Yes We Can.” Since he was married way back in 1984, someone joked that Obama plagiarized him.
As an aside, I discovered that, among the guests — all writers — I am not the only one who thinks that Math sounds Greek. I’m not saying that being bad in Math is a pre-requisite to being a successful writer — I’m just saying that there were at least three other writers in the group who, by their own admission, are just about as bad in Math as I am.
So, after dinner, we all posed for photos.
And, as we said our goodbyes, Harry, who’s learning Filipino, wondered if he should say, “Hanggang sa muli” because it sounded so formal and implied that the next meeting would be in the very distant future. And I said, “Say kita-kits.” I’m not joking. I said it. And he repeated it. And everyone laughed. It was that kind of night.
P.S. My compliments to Richard W. Nelson, Counselor for Public Affairs U.S. Embassy Manila, who organized and hosted the dinner. Nice — no, it was great — to have finally met him. Bigger compliments to his wife, a Filipina, for the delicious food.
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Woo-hoo. Good for you.
Can I now drop your name in polite conversation?
hahaha what the heck is “polite conversation” anyway?
haha big time ka friend! di ko kinaya! first name basis kayo ni “Harry”
papuntahin mo sa bahay mo ng makausap ni speedy!
chismis lang, nag sorry si Jessica Soho sa yo? alam mo na yung dati…
Yes, she did. At least, that episode is finally over.
Marvin, yun din unang sumagi sa isip ko when I saw the picture but I guess Ok na kasi magkatabi and all smiles silang dalawa!
Ms.Connie, Congrats! iba na ang level mo!. It’s nice to know that the new US ambassador is doing these little dinners to get to know the people in his new assignment.I hope he will be as friendly as ex- Ambassadress Kenney.
apir tayo beth! kasi naman si connie bitin yung kwento dati eh.
Baka ayaw ni Jarius mag-linger talk ninyo kay Ping.
I don’t think he heard when I mentioned Ping. He was across the table.
Intel on Ping is good bargaining chip, it has its own use.
yey! to you Connie and can I say here’s to another 10 yrs multiple visa hahahah
Beth and Marvin, she did! Okay na. hahaha
Laura, hahahaha Matutuwa si Alex nyan hahaha
“Like Senators insisting on being called “Your Honor” even when there’s no honor in them.” This line made me laugh.
It is not surprising that the ambassador wants to be addressed by his first name. Dito sa north america di uso ang sir at ma’am. It’s always been first name basis. I used to work for an organization who’s board of directors are from the higher ups of the society and even the receptionist calls them by first name. Government officials and richest of the rich walk on the streets without any bodyguards. Mas maere pa nga yung pinoy na nakapwesto kahit councilor lang kasa dun sa mayor dito.
Connie, you lucky dog. But then your writing is both cerebral and intuitive, so invitations from people in the same verve should not come as a surprise.
Just don’t forget us little people, ha?
The guy is a seasoned director. Even if your profile is read as a matter of routine, just the thought of it is interesting.
Seriously, your blog carries some punches to the mainstream.
Eto yata yung hinahanap ko sa blog mo na ito — the Sassy Lawyer socializing with other (media) people. Thanks for sharing it with us here.
Ano po yung tungkol sa inyo ni Jessica Soho? Pa-share naman kahit gist lang ng story.
Carol B., the word “affectation” seems too mild for people who live for their titles.
Jeng, there are no “little people”.
d0d0ng naman, the profile thing is a joke, ‘no? I think that the CIA has a profile on all media people and there’s no need for a dinner party to complete profiles hahaha
Frenchy, read The mercenary culture of media.
True. I know you mean it as a joke.
Look at the picture – 3 highest ranking officials in US Foreign Service at the background. Cool.
And the second ranking, she finally put a face(in person) to Sassy Lawyer. Hehe.
Thanks Ms. Connie. Nabasa ko na. Pasensya na, nasa bundok pa yata ako ng time na yun kaya di ko pa nababasa nun blogs mo. :p
Dapat lang na nag-apologize.
Bad trip, di ba? At least, may closure na.
You’ve come a long way, baby!
It should come as no surprise, though. Congratulations…
Wow, bigatin ka na talaga, Miss Connie.
re: “Oh, you’re Sassy Lawyer…”
It would’ve been super awesome if you replied, I am THE Sassy Lawyer.
Lee, if I were less choosy, there’d have been more entries like this in the past. But I AM CHOOSY hahaha
Karen, hahaha I’ll remember that hehehe
Looks like you had a good time.
Did you take pics of the food?hee,hee,hee
No hehehe It was a sit-down dinner. But the food was delicious!! With 2 exclamation points ha.
I’m kinda worried kasi baka ang pumalit kay Amb. Kenney is way serious and unapproachable. From your post, mukha naman siya mabait and friendly. Amb. Kenney kasi is very down to earth and unconventional which makes her loved by Pinoys.
Well as long as he does his job here (RP has the largest US embassy in the SEA region), it should be all good.
Oh, he seemed very nice. And it’s a plus that very early he’s making an effort to learn Filipino.
Of course, a social event is not exactly the same as, you know, official business. Time will tell.
Congrats!!! Nag-level up ka na!!! And hey Connie, how about some kwento on how great the food was (lalo na you said it was all because of Mr. Nelson’s Filipino wife). You had no pictures, but we trust that the pictures stored in your mind and described in the very great way you write would be enough for us to make our imaginations work.
Thanks again for sharing this great experience.
Soup was tom kha gai; salad had peanut sauce dressing; main courses were chicken and pork adobo, fish fillet with red curry, an eggplant dish and pad Thai noodles; dessert was suman sa latik and a glass of sago (tapioca balls) with coconut cream and topped with pinipig. LOL nagutom na naman ako just recalling that.
I’d say, it was a superb planning para sa dinner menu! And with focus pa on Asian cuisine, which the new ambassador seems to have mastered by now.
And talaga namang very photographic ang iyong memory for things such as these– kahit di mo nakuhanan ng photos! Excellent!
Haha but ask me anything about numbers and I won’t remember hehehe
He he he, you’ve talked about Obama’s “yes we can”. I don’t know how Jarius Bondoc (he’s in the photo isn’t it?) will react on Obama’s “change”. This is the same battlecry of Noynoy. Will it be “better keep the change” eventually just like in the US.
OT. Why is JB in PhilStar now (from Inquirer)?
Ms Sassy ang ganda mo sa photo…
I hope to see you in person sometime. And that will be one of my accomplishments.
Hasn’t he always been in Philippine Star?
Thank you, Trosp. Don’t worry, I look better in person hehehehe
Philippine Star? Or Manila Standard Today?– I mean Jarius Bondoc.
Not Manila Standard Today. At least not in the last 5 years.
Oh, ok… thanks, Connie.
My bad.
All the while this later times, I thought Jarius Bondoc is opeding in Inquirer because of his style of dishing out his opinions(?). He is not the Jarius Bondoc whom I know before.
Nahawahan na rin sya ng GMA Derangement Syndrome. Just good luck to him.
Di na kita maabot! Pwede bang mag name drop ako sa pag-apply ng US visa?
Wag baka ma-deny hahahaha
Jessica Soho, Beth Day Romulo, Tony Lopez, Jarius Bondoc, Babes Romualdez? not sure of the last guy. Am I correct Ms.Connie?
Left to right: Tony Lopez, me, Jessica Soho, Rick Nelson (US EMbassy Counsel for Public Affairs), Beth Day Romulo, Ambassasor Thomas, Pinky Sabinosa Nelson, Leslie (the Ambassador’s deputy), Jarius Bondoc, Mahar Mangahas (Social Weather Station) and Babes Romualdez.
ASTIG! That’s the word that came to mind after I read the kita-kits.
Pooh Math, someday, we can all conquer that most elusive of skills.I plan to do it this year hehe.
Ako, next year na lang hahaha
I missed this post! Way to go Connie!
A day after you sent notice to the paper, you get this? More exciting things are bound to happen!
I’m also glad that the issue with Jessica Soho has been closed.
I think the invitation came when the embassy peeps still didn’t know I was no longer with the paper. The nice thing was still being asked after I told them I was no longer a columnist with MST.
Re Jessica Soho. Yeah, me too.
missed this one, glad you enjoyed your dinner with him.