This Filipino American Life
The podcast explores the diverse and nuanced experiences of Filipinos living in the United States. It covers topics such as identity, culture, family, community, and the challenges of navigating life between two cultures. Through interviews and personal stories, it highlights the complexities of the Filipino American experience. The show aims to create a space for conversation and connection within the Filipino American community.
Episodes
Episode 261 – Eala Mania
Putang ina!!!!! Alex Eala has taken the Tennis world by storm! Over the last year, Alexandra “Alex” Eala has been a sports and popular cultural phenomenon. The 21-year-old Filipino tennis star has sparked an unprecedented wave of national pride and a domestic sports boom for Philippine tennis. In this TFAL episode, Gerlie, Ryan (out of...
Episode 260 – By and By with Mark Kaiklian
In this episode of the pod, Elaine and Kat have a kikihan (kiki + kwentuhan) with Mark Kaiklian of By and By. Mark is a talented graphic designer, artist, performer, and all around good human who shares his journey with us. We learn about his origin story from Tondo, Philippines to Eagle Rock, CA and...
Episode 259 – Honorary Filipinos?
We all have them in our lives. Friends and family who are not Filipino but sometimes we call “Honorary Filipinos.” But does anyone really deserve such a title? Does it become an invitation for more privileged folks to begin Filipino-splaining us and/or become culture vultures? Is this title that we should even dole out? In...
Episode 258 – Chasing the Hollywood Sun with Bernard Badion
Sometimes, you just have to chase your dream, damnit. For Bernard Badion, telling stories was always an integral part of him and has been a life-long pursuit. Growing up in Sunnyvale, California, the acclaimed Filipino American creator longed to tell stories that people can relate to. And in so many ways, he has already written,...
Episode 257 – Random Filipino Food Questions
Is hopia a dessert? What started out as a random argument Elaine and Producer Mike had snowballed into a whole TFAL mini-episode about random Filipino food questions. Listen as the TFAL crew discuss and debate questions like: What is the most overrated Filipino dish? The most underrated? Do you f-ck with Filipino fruit salad? Why...
Episode 256 – Hot Tropiking with Angelo Mendez
If you are into comic books, then you must absolutely know Hot Tropiks, the leading distributor of Filipino comics and children’s literature in the United States. The owner and co-founder, Angelo Mendez, together with his wife, Nadine, began Hot Tropiks to bring the bold, imaginative stories of comics to a global audience. In this TFAL...
Episode 255 – Combo on the Run – Exploring the Enduring Legacy of Eraserheads with Diane Ventura and Ely Buendia
Today’s the day! “Eraserheads: Combo on the Run” is releasing throughout North America across over 60 screens, one of the biggest and widest releases of a Filipino documentary ever. And while the exploits of the band are well detailed in the film itself, we thought it would be worthwhile to sit down with Director Diane Ventura...
Episode 254 – Original Pilipino Musings with Les the DJ – Overdrive, Ligaya, and What Les and Mike Like Right Now
In the 3rd edition of our Eraserheads-themed mini-series, Les the DJ and Producer Mike reminisce about road trips to the tune of “Overdrive”, and can’t get enough of silly love songs like “Ligaya”. But what songs are Les and Mike listening to now? Listen and find out! As a reminder, on April 24th, Combo On...
Episode 253 – Original Pilipino Musings with Les the DJ – Toyang, Alapaap, and Analyzing vs Appreciating Music
In part 2 of our mini-series “Original Pilipino Musings” with Les the DJ, we dive into two seminal Eraserheads classics, “Toyang” from their 1993 debut album, Ultraelectromagneticpop!, as well as “Alapaap” from their 1994 follow-up, Circus. Listen as we talk about what the songs mean to us, and debate whether or not it matters if...
Episode 252 – Original Pilipino Musings with Les the DJ – Eraserheads, OPM+, and Les Lore
In a few weeks, Combo On The Run, a documentary chronicling the rise of the band Eraserheads, is set to hit movie screens across North America. It’s not often that a film from the Philippines gets a release and a reception as high profile as this film has been getting, let alone a documentary about...
Episode 251 – Telling Truths about ‘Here Lies Love’ with Christine Balance
Here Lies Love, the play about the rise and fall of Imelda Marcos as the Philippine dictator’s wife during Martial Law is now playing in Los Angeles. The TFAL crew had the opportunity to watch Here Lies Love when it first opened at the Mark Taper Forum a couple of weeks ago. Love it or...
Episode 250 – Echoes from the Ditches: A Conversation with a Martial Law Activist
For 10 years, TFAL has been trying to amplify voices from our community, but particular voices from sectors of our community that have been historically overlooked. We are especially attuned to the voices without glitz and glamor, without state-sanctioned narratives, and without algorithmic egos. For our 250th episode, and on the heels of the 40th...
Episode 249 – The Fil Am Celebrity Draft
Have you ever dreamed about a TV show with an all-Filipino American cast? What kind of show it would be? Who would star in it? In this TFAL episode, Elaine, Joe, and Producer Mike dream up their ideal TV show by playing The Fil Am Celebrity Draft! Adapted from a game that Joe used to...
Episode 248 – Community Care with Kalaya’an Mendoza
In this episode of the podcast, Kalaya’an Mendoza returns to talk with the crew about community care. This episode is dedicated to the folks in Minnesota and beyond who are grieving, protesting, and resisting ICE kidnappings and intimidation. The crew reached out to Kalaya’an again to check in on how we can support each other...
Episode 247 – Seafood City Late Night Analysis
Over the last few months, the hottest night out can be had at a Filipino supermarket. If you’re lucky enough to live near a Seafood City, you might have seen or experienced the multi-generational viral dance party conceptualized by JP Breganza back in August 2025. What is this phenomenon all about? Why does it attract...
Episode 246 – Scientific Dragons | Flowers for Dom Magwili
Dom Magwili is a prolific actor, writer, and educator who has graced his presence on stage and screen for years. Most importantly Dom has played a role in our lives when he guided Kat as she was PCN coordinator at UCLA and gave Elaine a boost of confidence when she was an emcee for the...
Episode 245 – Filipino American Anthems
What is the Filipino American anthem? Is it Bebot by the Black Eyed Peas? P.T.I. by Carl Angelo? Lemonade by Jeremy Passion? Us by Ruby Ibarra? Do You Miss Me? by Jocelyn Enriquez? Todo Todo by Daniela Romo (you know who chose that one!)?? In this TFAL episode, we look at so-called Filipino American anthems...
Episode 244 – F*ck Cancer with Arthur Yu
In this episode the TFAL crew has a conversation with Arthur Yu. Arthur Yu was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in 2023. Arthur did all the things you needed to do like rounds of chemo and looking for bone marrow matches. Arthur explored the National Marrow Donor Program (formerly Be The Match) for possible matches. ...
Episode 243 – The Politics of Language with Jennifer Delfino
“You’re not Filipino if you don’t speak Tagalog.” “You sound white.” “The national language of the Philippines is Filipino, not Tagalog.” “Filipino is already gender neutral.” Much of our online discourse in the Filipino community is about or related to language. The debates are out there. We here at TFAL want to tackle some of...
Episode 242 – Walk This Way : A Camino Conversation with Kristine Jan Espinoza
Have you ever thought about doing a pilgrimage? Would you want to contemplate your life choices on a hiking journey through the mountainous regions of Europe? Do you just want to hear about someone else doing that and not deal with the physical and spiritual Olympics of it all? Then this episode is for you!...
Episode 241 – Labor of Love – Filipino and Mexican Solidarity with Faith Santilla and Martha Gonzalez
In this episode we have tfal fan favorite Faith Santilla aka “Tita Faith” in her fourth appearance on the pod! Joining Faith is the amazing and inspiring Martha Gonzalez of Quetzal. On this episode Elaine, Kat, and Producer Mike talk story about the exciting and upcoming show at The Ford Los Angeles, Labor of Love....
Episode 240 | I Know You Got SOL – A Convo with Singer / Songwriter Labit
  In this episode Elaine and Producer Mike have a conversation with singer-songwriter Stephen Ordonez also known as LABIT (@labitlabit). Stephen shares his experience growing up with Filipino American parents born in the States and how their love of music influenced his style. Fans of artists like Laufey and Jason LaPierre will vibe with Stephen’s...
Episode 239 – Resistance Pop with Chrissa Sparkles
In this episode of TFAL, Elaine and Producer Mike have a conversation with Los Angeles native (yes, they exist!) Chrissa Sparkles. You may have seen Chrissa Sparkles go viral with her Barbie inspired content on @chrissasparkles. In this conversation we go through Chrissa’s journey as a local kid with no connections figuring out how to maneuver...
Episode 238 – Filipino American Intergenerational Conversations
Dear young people, How do we stay cool? Sincerely, Middle-aged TFALers There are many generations of Filipinos who live in the United States in this day and age. Immigrant generations, 2nd generations, 3rd generations, Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and now Gen Z. Many have different experiences as Filipino Americans, and in many ways, some...
Episode 237 – Filipinos in the San Fernando Valley
Joe wrote a book! Well…kinda. After a few years of gathering photos and writing, Joe has published FILIPINOS IN THE SAN FERNANDO VALLEY, a pictorial history that traces the historical and cultural shifts of this quintessential suburb through the lens of generations of Filipinos who made the San Fernando Valley their home. This book is...
Episode 236: Storytelling with Randy Ribay
  In this episode the TFAL crew has a conversation with author Randy Ribay. The crew has discussed Patron Saints of Nothing multiple times, so this conversation was long coming. In fact, we thought we had already spoken to Randy Ribay! So glad we got to have this conversation with Randy about his journey as...
Episode 235: Joke Lungs w/ Vincent Collyer & Charles Collyer
In this episode Producer Mike and Elaine have a conversation with TFAL graphic designer Vincent Collyer and his brother Charles Collyer about Charles’ experience with a surprise diagnosis of lung cancer. Charles explains how a post Tough Mudder run lead to a rib injury which the X-rays lead to his lung cancer diagnosis. Post lung...
Episode 234 – Dirty Kitchen with Jill Damatac
  In this episode the crew has a conversation with author and filmmaker, Jill Damatac, who shares her journey from the Philippines to the States to the UK all through the lens of an undocumented immigrant. Instead of a traditional cookbook, which predominantly focuses on recipes and then sprinkles in family stories, Jill does the...
Episode 233 – Ryan and Joe Talk Fatherhood
Amidst the chaos, we still have hope. A couple of weeks ago, Ryan and Joe had a conversation about being relatively new dads. With Father’s Day approaching, the two TFAL dads discuss their experiences navigating fatherhood and all that it entails. Listen as they talk about how their identities changed as new responsibilities came, how...
Episode 232 | How Did You Get Here? (Hex Hector Mix) | Gaysians with Mike Curato
TFALpodcast kicks off PRIDE month with a conversation with author and illustrator Mike Curato. In this episode Elaine and Producer Mike learn about Mike Curato’s journey with Gaysians, Curato’s first graphic novel for adult audiences. Curato is best known for Little Elliot, a picture book series, and Flamer, a young adult graphic novel which has...
Episode 231 – Meeting the Moment: A Conversation with Los Angeles City Councilmember Ysabel Jurado
On Election Day 2024, while most of the level-headed American public mourned the re-emergence of the far-right orange man, local folks in Los Angeles had a moment of electoral triumph with the victory of Ysabel Jurado to the Los Angeles City Council. Jurado is the first Filipino/a/x American to ever serve on the City Council...
Episode 230 – TFAL x Dear Flor – A Conversation with Lisa Angulo Reid
In this episode TFAL’s Elaine and Producer Mike have a conversation with Lisa Angulo Reid, founder of Dear Flor @lovedearflor. Dear Flor’s mission is to bring Filipino culture to the world, one flavor at a time. Lisa shares her journey as an entrepreneur and how she transitioned from advertising to the quickly growing cannabis industry....
Episode 229 – Filipinx Studies and its Radical Possibilities with Allan Lumba
In this TFAL episode, Joe talks to Dr. Allan Lumba, writer, researcher, historian, and professor at Concordia University in Montreal, about potential of Filipinx Studies to inspire our community to fight for a better world. Listen how he developed into a brilliant scholar focused on Philippine Studies, the growing number of Filipino and Filipino American...
Episode 228: TFAL talks Animation with Bobby Pontillas (Rise Up Animation)
The TFAL crew is no stranger to the world of animation. In episode 28 (TFAL talks Voice Acting (and Secrets & Fears)), the crew had a conversation with voice actors Eric Bauza (@bauzilla) and Earl Baylon (@earlybgoode). While Producer Mike and Elaine were on their trip in the Philippines, they were able to connect with...
Episode 227 – Coming Home for the First Time – Elaine and Producer Mike go to the Philippines
Is it truly “More Fun in the Philippines? Well technically not any more, because that marketing campaign ended in 2023. Now it’s “Love the Philippines”, but do we? They say there’s “no place like home” (which is especially fitting, since this is episode “227”… look it up, kids), but for Elaine and Producer Mike, who...
Episode 226 – Filipino American Masculinity
For generations, society has taught Filipinos and Filipino Americans what our specific gender roles should be. For men, masculinity is usually associated with ideas of strength, competition, emotion-less, family responsibilities, and protection. At times, these concepts can create narrow definitions of manhood and can pigeon-hole heterosexual men into certain prescribed racial, classed, and gender
Episode 225 – Sexual Pleasure with Goddess Cecilia
Did you know that men from the Philippines prior to colonization wore penis pins and rings in order to pleasure their sexual partner during intercourse? Yes, many of our ancestors had all kinds of sex toys and pleasure enhancers. In many ways, being open to sex and sexual pleasure can be seen as a form...
Episode 224 | Living with the Land – A Conversation with Dennis Arguelles
Episode 224 | Living with the Land – A Conversation with Dennis Arguelles This past fall, TFALpodcast’s Elaine took a California Naturalist Training Institute course with Community Nature Connection (CNC). CNC offers this course to anyone who aspires to be a steward of the land. CNC also offers customized trainings like: Backpacking 101 Camping CA...
Episode 223 – TFAL x Toronto – Sounds of the 6ix with Pantayo and Ruru
If it’s a music episode, you know Producer Mike is behind it! In our 3rd and final episode in our Toronto series, we got to get a hangout with Michelle and Kat, two members of the “queer Filipinx kulintang gong punks” crew Pantayo whose incendiary yet soulful music defies even the sheer idea of a...
Episode 222 – TFAL x Toronto: Politics and Golf with the Honourable Rechie Valdez and Rise Bogey League’s Adam Robles
We continue our Toronto series with discussions on two very important issues that affect us – politics and golf. As with every visit to another city, we love to talk about the local political scene. Here to talk to us about Canadian politics is Member of Parliament and Minister of Small Business Rechie Valdez. She...
Episode 221 – TFAL x Toronto: Welcome to “Torono” with Carlo De La Fuente and Alia Rasul / Pinay Collection with Jovie Galit
In honor of Filipino American History Month, the TFAL crew goes to Canada!!! A couple of weeks ago, we had the wonderful opportunity of visiting our neighbors FAR north, Toronto!!! It’s been a while since we’ve traveled to another city, so we made the most of it! During our short trip, we got to meet...
Episode 220 – Island Women Rise – Ask Tita Faith w/Faith Santilla
Last but most certainly not least in our series of Island Woman Rise episodes, we have returning guest Faith Santilla! This episode is a wee bit different in that we call it “Ask Tita Faith” where Faith answers questions from TFAL listeners. Will this be something we do in the future? ABSOLUTELY! Will we start...
Episode 219: Island Woman Rise – Collective Wisdom w/Kimmortal
Continuing our Island Woman Rise series with a lovely conversation with Filipino-Canadian Kimmortal! The TFAL crew shares how we tried to reach out to Kimmortal in 2019 when we traveled to Vancouver, BC. The interview did not pan out because the universe had other plans for us. They share their journey as an artist with...
Episode 218 – Island Woman Rise – Keepin It Klassy
What what? Another episode of TFALpodcast? Yup. This time the TFAL crew chops it up with Klassy, the youngest artist on the Island Woman Rise line up. Klassy shares her journey as a Historic Filipinotown kid with a talent for drawing and writing lyrics. Find out which TFAL crew member has tattoos done by the...
Episode 217 – Island Woman Rise – Words of Wisdom with Rocky Rivera
Surprise episode drop! Leading up to Island Woman Rise we’re dropping two episodes this week! In this episode the TFALpodcast crew has a conversation with Rocky Rivera who recently dropped LONG KISS GOODNIGHT. Rocky shares her journey as a Frisco city kid turned journalist turned full time artist. Bay area folks, check out Rocky’s album...
Episode 216 | Island Woman Rise: Rising Up w/ Ruby Ibarra
Continuing our series of Island Woman Rise episodes, the TFAL crew has a conversation with the uber talented multi-hyphenated artist who inspired the theme of the show, Ruby Ibarra. Ruby shares her journey joining the Beatrock Music family, her growth as an artist, and drops surprising news to us in the episode! If you haven’t...
Episode 215 | Island Woman Rise: Connecting with Producer Kat Carrido Bonds
  In this episode the TFAL crew talks story with Kat Carrido Bonds, our fam and frequent fill in for food appreciator Ryan. Kat shares her journey from music aficionado to college student turned pcn coordinator turned cultural affairs commissioner to Filipino American cultural events producer. Kat and her producing partners with AKB Media are...
Episode 214 – In the Year 3000: Ryan and Joe Predict the Future
“In the Year 2000…” If you know that line, you remember it was a bit that Conan O’ Brien did during his late night talk show where he and his co-host Andy Richter comically predicted what the world would be like in the year 2000. (Yes, we’re that old). In this TFAL episode, Ryan and...
Episode 213 – Go for Gold: TFAL Talks Olympics
Every four years (two years if you care for winter sports) athletes from around the world come together to compete in sporting events at the Olympic Games. It’s a time when we care about such sports as swimming, track and field, gymnastics, and dressage. (Seriously, how many of us really care about these sports between...
Episode 212 – Sauce-Maryosep: Filipino Flavors with Fila Manila
Ay SAUCE-MARYOSEP!. Have you ever thought of what kind of Filipino sauces and condiments are in your kitchen? Patis, toyo, suka, bagoong, banana ketchup, sinigang packets, etc. These are essential ingredients to all of our wonderful Filipino dishes. OK, so have you also thought of what kind of preservatives and colorings are in them? Sorbic...
Episode 211 – Breaking Bed: Rethinking Sex Education Among Filipino Americans
Who taught you about SEX? Was it through school? Was it through watching porn? Whatever means you learned (or are learning) about the various aspects of sex, we could bet it wasn’t through your parents! With the Catholic Church shaping our Filipino way our being, sex education has been reduced to abstinence and “family life.”...
Episode 210 – Building and Sustaining Healthy Communities in Hawaii
TFAL goes to Hawaii! Well, actually just Joe goes to Hawaii. While attending a conference in Honolulu, Joe took the opportunity to do an additional interview with local Filipino American leader, Chachie Abara. Chachie is an Ilocano language and mental health advocate, runs the podcast and media company KasamahanCo, and is author of a bilingual...
Episode 209 – Tagnawa: An Ilocano Response to the Maui Fires
On August 8, 2023, Maui experienced the largest wildfire in the “United States” in more than 100 years, killing 101 people and displacing 6,500. National media portrayed the disaster as an unfortunate incident to Maui’s idyllic setting for tourism. However, hidden from this mainstream narrative is the larger context of how the wildfires and its...
Episode 208 – Confessions of a Bad Filipino
“Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. I am a BAD Filipino!” What makes you a “bad” Filipino? It’s time to confess!! In this TFAL episode, the crew discusses what makes us “bad” Filipinos…or rather Filipinos who buck the proverbial trend. Which one of us doesn’t like Jollibee? Who doesn’t mano po? Who doesn’t ever...
Episode 207 – Bayani Komixtape with Bayani Teodosio
In this episode the TFAL crew talk with Bayani Teodosio about Bayani Komixtape, the hip hop mixtape follow up to The Realest Bayani, Teodosio’s graphic novel. The crew shares their experience with comic books, pop culture, and learn about Bayani’s origin story that paved the way for the creation of The Realest Bayani. Looking for...
Episode 206 – Experiences of a Filipino Adoptee with James Beni Wilson
Did you know that there are currently over 1.8 million orphaned or abandoned children in the Philippines? While formal adoption rates of these children are comparatively low, a significant number of orphaned Filipino children have been transnationally adopted by families in the United States over the decades. In 2000, for example, there were over 10,000...
Episode 205 – Hilaw Pa 6.0
Here it is again…another edition of Hilaw Pa! For those not in the know, Hilaw Pa is where the TFAL Crew shares our half-baked ideas that should be out there in the world. Of course, we’re not going to do it ourselves – thinking them up is our job. It’s up to someone else to...
Episode 204 – Filipino Psychology and Spirituality with Carl Lorenz Cervantes
How do Filipinos practice indigenous spirituality through Catholicism? Who are these “spirits” our parents or grandparents keep talking about that are around us? What explains the Filipino psyche and the way we make sense of the world? How many souls do we have? Some of these questions have helped many Filipinos and Filipino Americans in...
Episode 203: TFAL talks Palestine w/ Michael Arage & JT | Nevadans for Palestinian Liberation
In this episode the TFAL crew talks with TFAL alum, Michael Arage, and JT of Nevadans for Palestinian Liberation @npl_palestine. In this episode we have a discussion of our history with the Free Palestine movement, why this issue is important to our community, and how we can show our allyship and be a part of...
Episode 202 – Vision Boarding Abundance
New year new TFAL? Or are we back to our usual shenanigans? Actually, for the first time in months, and thanks to Ryan’s terrible internet, we met up in person and recorded an episode! One New Years’ tradition that many of the folks in TFAL (and maybe some of you) partake in is the creation...
Episode 201 – Lost LA: Historic Filipinotown
Last year, some of us on the TFAL crew had the opportunity to participate in the creation of a special episode of the PBS Socal/KCET show, Lost LA, which focused on the Filipino American community of Southern California. The episode premiered this week and is available on the PBS website or on YouTube. In this...
Episode 200 – TFAL 200 Live! Building Community with Faith Santilla and Johneric Concordia
Looks like we made it! TFAL’s 200th episode! (Give or take a few bonus episodes and unreleased things here and there…) Back in October, we recorded our 200th episode live at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy in Los Angeles. (Well technically, it was our 195th at the time but who’s really keeping...
Bonus Episode: “Filipino Balikbayan is Homecoming in a Box” by Gravy Podcast
Before we end 2023, we’re sharing a special bonus episode for you from our friends at Gravy, a narrative podcast produced by Southern Foodways Alliance and distributed by APT Podcast Studios. Named the “Publication of the Year” by the James Beard Foundation, the series showcases a South that is constantly evolving, using food as a...
Episode 199 – The First (?) Annual TFAL Awards!
2023 is almost over! And to close things out before we get to our grand finale of the year, we decided to do something… a little different? Or maybe not? In what is apparently essentially in the grand tradition of our reflections on highlights (Episodes 19.5, 140, 157) and/or airing of grievances (Episodes 4.5, 25.2,...
Episode 198 – “Save the Last Tinikling For Me”: Philippine Folk Dances with Ray Tadio
Rondalla. Kulintang. Bamboo poles. Gangsas. Sway balance. DANCE! We all are quite familiar with Philippine folk dances such as Pandanggo sa Ilaw, Vinta, Carinosa, Banga, and of course, Tinikling. Whether we learned them through P.E. classes back in the Philippines, church festivals in the U.S., on college campuses at a PCN, or even on viral...
Episode 197 – Filipino American History, Settler Colonialism, and Jeremy Passion’s “Lemonade” with Adrian De Leon
When and where does Filipino American history begin? Is it on October 18, 1587 in Morro Bay, California? According to our guest in this TFAL episode, this date and time only reinforces a settler colonialist narrative. Writer and public historian, Adrian De Leon, argues that “Filipino America” actually began in the 1760s in the Philippines. ...
Episode 196 – Dust Your Shoulders Out: Melissa Magsaysay on Filipino Fashion
  Many of us have grown up seeing women in our lives rock the duster around the house. The piece of apparel is synonymous with traditionally women’s work. But what if the duster could be updated? What would that look like? In this episode the TFAL Crew, sans food appreciator Ryan Carpio, have an intimate...
Episode 195 – Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow: Estate Planning and Family Inheritance with Marivel Zialcita
Have you spoken to your parent(s) about estate planning? What will happen to their financial assets when they will pass away? Have you witnessed your family feud over family inheritance or ancestral land? Have you thought of what legacies you’d like to pass on when you eventually transition to the other side? In this TFAL...
Episode 194 – “Our Vibranium is our Culture”: SF’s SoMa Pilipinas w/ Desi Danganan
The South of Market, or SoMa neighborhood in San Francisco is a historical place for Filipino Americans for a century. Throughout its history, many Filipinos have called SoMa home with its affordable apartments, neighborhood amenities, and proximity to jobs in downtown San Francisco. Community advocates have been established cultural institutions and social services for its...
Episode 193 – TFAL is feeling Nervous: A Conversation with Jen Soriano
Have you ever been in constant pain and could not figure out why? Have you ever felt a knot in your back and felt like you could never break it? What happens when family trauma transcends generations and physically manifests itself in your body? In this episode of TFAL join Elaine and Producer Mike as...
Episode 192 – Say My Name, Say My Name: Code Switching and Pronunciation of Filipino Names
How do you pronounce your name? How do you pronounce your last name? Do you Anglicize it? Do you pronounce it differently when talking to other Filipinos or when speaking Tagalog? Do you correct people who pronounce it differently? How would you pronounce the name “Roxas”? In this mini-episode, Ryan, Elaine, and Joe discuss the...
Episode 191 – Wala Ka Lista: You’re Not On The List
This past month an overzealous group of fans found their way to Lea Salonga’s dressing room after a performance of Here Lies Love. The interaction was then uploaded to the internet for the world to see.   SORRY, NOT SORRY. Christopher Carpila, who drew backlash for uploading the viral Lea Salonga dressing-room video, remained firm...
Episode 190 – TFAL Tambayan: Where do Filipino Americans make Tambay?
Where do Filipino Americans hang out? Where is the place where they are allowed to tambay (Tagalog slang for loitering from the English “stand by”)? Where are can one find Filipino immigrants and Filipino Americans alike in public places? According to some sociology scholars, the third place in modern capitalist society refers to spaces that...
Episode 189 – Filipino American Suburbanization with Dr. James Zarsadiaz
Most Filipino Americans today live in the suburbs – Daly City, National City, Carson, Jersey City, Skokie, Oxon Hill, and on and on. When you think of the Filipino American community since the 1970s, we are by and large a suburban community. There are reasons for this, of course, many of which we focus on...
Episode 188 – Money, Money, Money: TFAL talks with Berna Anat, your Financial Hype Woman
Did you know April is financial awareness month? A perfect time to drop this episode with MONEY OUT LOUD author Berna Anat. Berna is your Financial Hype Woman/Manang/Ate/Tita. The moniker “Financial Hype Woman” is her made up way of saying she creates financial education media that lives at @HeyBerna all over the internet. Listen as...
Episode 187 – Baon Bracketology: Filipino Food Face-Off, Part 2
We’re back at it again. Part 2 of the ultimate Filipino food tournament! Listen as we decide between Sinigang and Tinola, Pancit Palabok and Pancit Bihon, and many other hard matchups. Laugh as you listen to TFAL Food Appreciator Ryan nearly gets an aneurysm from our food debates. And of course, find out what is...
Episode 186 – Baon Bracketology: Filipino Food Face-Off, Part 1
This time of year is one of our favorites. It’s March Madness and April is Filipino Food Month. To celebrate these two occasions, the TFAL developed a Filipino Food Bracket! In this Part 1 episode, we explain the parameters of this tournament and go through the first round of 64 Filipino dishes (ulam-only). Listen as...
Episode 185 – This Filipino American Academic Life
Pursuing a career in academia can be both rewarding and challenging. It often requires a significant amount of dedication, hard work, and resilience. From navigating graduate school to being on the job market to balancing research, teaching, and service, scholars face a range of unique experiences and pressures. For Filipino Americans, the added layers of...
Episode 184 – Rex in Effect: TFAL laughs with Rex Navarrete
Tell us if you’ve heard this one: “What size is your panty? You’re not large.. you’re size H… HUSKY” We can still remember listening to this joke in college (before youtube), in an MP3 file that circulated the dorms. Never had we heard a stand up comic that sounded like our uncle. Listening to Rex...
Episode 183 – Scam and Jam – TFAL talks about Scams (Allegedly)
In this episode the TFAL crew talks about make out parties in the 1990s. Just Kidding! In this episode the TFAL crew talks about scams, the criminal kind. The crew talks about their recollection of prominent Filipino American scams that happened in Los Angeles like the infamous Jun Reodica who was the leader of a...
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