Suppose you have tinnitus or ringing of the ears, vertigo, or hearing crickets when you wake up and sleep while nobody else hears it. In that case, this is all part of a nasty virus going around, and I am glad to say that it will all go away after a few weeks. 

Sultry singer and actress Jenine Desiderio recently had one but was scheduled to play the celebrity game show Rainbow Rumble hosted by Rumble Master Luis Manzano.

I was fortunate to break bread with Jenine over a birthday lunch for our friend Evie Berroya. I have always been a fan of Jenine since she got the role of Kim in Miss Saigon. 

Fun fact: did you know that she played Kim 700 times in London’s West End? Thank you, Jenine, for bringing honor to our country. The international singer-actress shared the deets of her experience playing Rainbow Rumble while under the nasty virus. 

“I was struggling during the game. First, the tension to be pitted against my fellow actors of Miss Saigon - Jamie Rivera, Franco Laurel, Isay Alvarez, and Bituin Escalante. To top it all,  half of my senses were not functioning. I could only see through my right eye because my friend Jamie accidentally lent me the wrong eye drops. Instead of a contact lens lubricant, she lent me a sticky antibiotic so my left eye was cloudy. My ears were ringing because of tinnitus; I was dizzy because of vertigo. Luis Manzano even asked me if I was okay because he saw me struggling during the Rally to the Top elimination round. Jamie, Bituin, Isay, Franco, and I  had to battle to outwit each other and answer the questions of the Rumble Master. 

"The goal is to reach the tri-colored tile first. In spite of all that, I emerged as the lucky rumbler because I reached the top first and proceeded to the jackpot round called Rainbow Reveal. I did not win the 1 million pesos jackpot because that requires a lot of luck already. I must get all six different dice colors in six die roller machines in 60 seconds to win the P1 million.” 

Those who missed her episode in Rainbow Rumbler may watch it on YouTube. Rainbow Rumbler is shown every Saturday, 7:15 p.m., and Sunday, 8:15 p.m. on the Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, A2Z, and TV5. 

Of course, my interview would not be complete without asking about Janella Salvador. “We're very okay. I celebrated my birthday with Janella, my apo Jude and my son Russel. Now that Janella is a mother, she understands why rules should be observed in a home. Janella now gets my being over-protective. It is a mother’s instinct. When you are a kid, you will not understand these things, but when you mature as a mother, everything is put in the proper places. I had to go through hell getting bashed by her fans while disciplining her. But what is important for a mother like me is to see my children in a good place …and now she is," Jenine tells Gossip Girl. 

Currently, Jenine is busy doing singing gigs and working with her halo-halo business, MatTeau’s,  located in Greenhills V-mall. Should you wish to order her delicious halo-halo, MatTeau’s halo-halo V-mall Greenhills is available in Food Panda and Grab Food. You can follow her on her Instagram account @j9desire.