T This is a story of a woman who dared to dream the American Dream. The saga of an intrepid Boholana is an epitome of one who did dare to dream this elusive dream where others not as lucky ending up trying and fail. In short, those who fail wake up to the reality that the American Dream is quickly becoming the American Nightmare. Like what happened to the victims of the worst period for natural disasters in U.S. history. We are referring to the devastation inflicted upon the residents of Moore, Oklahoma as a result of a tornado hitting the place.  That tornado came almost two years to the day after the deadliest tornado in U.S. history hit Joplin, Missouri.  But of course it is not just tornadoes that seem to be getting more powerful.  Giant sinkholes are appearing at an unprecedented rate,  earthquakes are becoming more frequent and more powerful, 6 of the 10 worst years for wildfires ever recorded in the United States have all come since the year 2000, and the western part of the country is experiencing the worst stretch of drought since the days of the Great Depression.  Is all of this just some sort of a giant coincidence?  If not, what is causing these changes?

We have no ready answer to the twin questions because what we are concerned of in this storyline is the positive spin of American life. We are concerned with the mainstay of this essay who happens to be part and parcel of our checkered life. At this point in time, there’s no sense to delve in its complications since it can be an interesting subject in another column. At any rate, here we go who the main character is, if only to give justice to her life and times as we herald how she conquered the world where even angels fear to tread. She’s no other than the former Jiji Apalisok who is back in town over the week after eight years of settling in Houston, Texas. Back in harness to renew old acquaintances, she is here for a vacation and she enjoys every minute of it. Whatever that means, she is looking forward for another vacation next year if her employer allows her another leave of absence.

Ms. Apalisok is connected as a teller of the International Bank of Commerce and at 40 something, it is already a feat for a latecomer who ventured to search for greener pastures in American soil. Now armed with an American citizenship , she has since adopted the culture she has longed dream of and learn to live with it, for as long as she can. Sporting an American hairstyle, the color of which qualifies her to look one, she is still very much a Boholana in her disposition and taste for Boholano food. Anyway, the homecoming of this “half-baked American” recalls her exciting stint with the Bohol Sunday Post as Lifestyle Editor.

With a baccalaureate on communication arts major in advertising obtained at the Maryknoll College (an exclusive school for girls then ) in Quezon City , Ms. Apalisok lent her expertise in writing and marketing making the Post the major player in advertisement placements among community newspapers. She was credited for highlighting major events in this city and province when she was the paper’s advertising manager earning her the bragging right to rub elbows with those who belonged to the upper crust of Bohol society who do have the purchasing power to buy ad spaces. As lifestyle editor, she was also known for having revolutionized the section where local newspapers found it strange to chronicle the activities of local celebrities in both social and business circles. It was not until Ms. Apalisok who chose the moniker Chic Geek to know the lives and escapades of the rich and famous; that to the prolific pen of the editor, Tagbilaran has arrived as a city because the lifestyle of its people was chronicled in superlative terms courtesy of the lifestyle section. She took the lead, others just followed. In four days the Chic Geek is back in her old haunt as bank teller in the US. But there’s no telling if she will choose to stay here for good because she knows home is where the heart is. Well, if her heart is in the right place, then, who are we to say no!