312 – On 5 Facts About Yours Truly

Most who regularly view my blog and follow back often wonder at first: Who’s this Monch Weller guy? Is he going to spam our blogs with two- or three-word comments?

While I do have an About page, I believe it doesn’t flesh out more details about me. Thus, let me share five facts about myself so you get to know more about yours truly. This also lets several long-time readers find out more about me beyond the usual food and general lifestyle entries I publish.

Just to clarify: This isn’t one of those award tags you see on WordPress, but more of an extension of my About page. Let’s begin.

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1. My maternal grandfather was a renowned judoka of his time.

Based on what I’ve pieced together from my mom’s side of the family, he was born around the late 1910s. Grandpa managed to visit Japan years before World War II and train at the Kodokan Institute, where he earned his black belt. His skill in judo allowed him to travel around the world, eventually returning to the Philippines.

He had brushes with the Americans owing to his time in Japan, but things turned out well after that – and he even taught the martial art to staff members at the Joint US Military Assistance Group (JUSMAG) back in the day. Later, he taught judo for self-defense purposes at a tertiary institution for criminology in Manila. He passed away in the 1990s – around the time when I was born.

Outside of martial arts, he was a gentleman who had a fine taste in both clothing and music. He was known to wear white suits in his heyday, and would often listen to vinyl records on Sunday afternoons. Mom and I even discovered The Beatles‘ “White Album” in his stash!

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2. My dad’s side of the family has produced several politicians and lawyers.

Dad’s side is known for producing lawyers and politicians. In fact, most of my relatives on his side were expecting me to enter law school – being the eldest. However, I opted not to and instead joined the white-collar workforce. My younger brother did, however.

Dad is not the only lawyer in his clan. Two of his cousins are also included in the national roll of attorneys, with one making it to the Top 10 years ago. Several distant relatives on his side have also served as lawmakers, with the most prominent one being an erstwhile house speaker.

However, his side of the family is notoriously known for espousing conservative views given their strong provincial Catholic background. This definitely goes against my more middle-of-the-ground liberal stance, which I owe to a Jesuit education.

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3. I have Asperger’s syndrome, and I have been bullied because of it.

Being diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at a very young age made me a target of bullies from both a liberal elementary school and a conservative Catholic high school. It also contributed to my parents shielding me from most things as they feared that I wouldn’t be able to survive the real world. Unfortunately, it came with a price; things only improved after I graduated from high school.

Nowadays, there’s a focus on mental health – but I find that it came too late. Where was this when I was bullied? If anything, I would want to publicly slap any bully of mine from those periods. Thankfully, God has intervened – with the last incident almost occurring in 2019.

Allow me to take this opportunity to mention Cherie White of Chateau Cherie, which I discovered during the late half of 2021. Her blog is a treasure trove of resources for victims of bullying, and her advocacy is equally commendable. I often read her posts with the understanding that she, just like me, was a victim but has chosen to rise up.

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4. Despite the rather negative prognosis, I beat all the odds and graduated from a Jesuit university.

Back then, my parents thought I would end up in assisted living the moment I become an adult. Fortunately, people like me who suffer from Asperger’s syndrome can end up as high-functioning people that live rather normal lives. I was around six or seven years old when that happened – but look at how far I’ve reached after two decades!

To top it all off, I managed to graduate from a Jesuit university here in the Philippines. It’s the country’s equivalent of Loyola Marymount University in California, Creighton University in Nebraska, and Fordham University in New York. It’s often described as a university for the rich and smart people, which was an achievement in itself.

I graduated in 2012 and immediately found work months after getting my bachelor’s degree. Since then, I’ve been working in white-collar content writing jobs. Whenever people would ask me about my course, I’d say it’s a combination of literature (theories) and journalism (practical writing). As to questions about if it pays well, I just say I manage to save up a substantial amount doing what I like to do.

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5. My pen name comes from a British musician.

Only one blogger – an enthusiast of mod culture at that – has so far recognized my pen name, that of British musician Paul Weller. The so-called Modfather originally began with The Jam alongside bandmates Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. Weller later founded The Style Council with Dee C. Lee, Mick Talbot and Steve White following The Jam’s 1982 disbandment.

The Style Council eventually parted ways in 1989, with Weller eventually becoming a solo artist and enlisting session and touring musicians. While most of his contemporaries such as Boy George and Morrissey have gained some popularity in the US, Weller did not have much of a fanbase across the pond.

I first discovered The Style Council through another Filipino group – Juan Pablo Dream – that did covers of the English band’s music. Further exploration of the former’s discography led me to listening to most of their tunes, especially during their early period (1984-1985). Now, The Style Council is one of the bands I follow (and often listen to) on Spotify.

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Well, that’s it for five facts about yours truly. If you’re reading this, consider yourself lucky as I don’t usually reveal these things to people I meet in person. Feel free to ask things about these, the comment section is open. This is who I am: Take it or leave it.

Until the next post.

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