In a monochromatic mood, the pop icon, clad in an all-brown, trendy blouse and velvety pants and matching chocolate-brown leather boots, looked like she just stepped out of a Cosmopolitan magazine cover. She smoothly slithered to the seat before me and (voila!) before I knew it she was throwing her dimples at me in casual friendliness.

Hhmmm...Sixteen years in the business and still going stronger each step. What's behind the success of Pops Fernandez? Nothing less than commitment to her craft plus her great balancing personal-life-and-career act.

REEL AND REAL LIVES

Life isn't easy. "Whoever said that it's easy, is just making things sound lighter, because it's really hard," she laments. With rumors always there to put her forever on the spotlight, she has learned to make family and career two different sets of challenges.

"It's tough. Being part of a family or having your own family is like another career altogether. It's tougher than any career, any job that you can find because it's real, serious. It's your life, talaga. It's something that you have forever-something you should be responsible for, something that has its own ups and downs-it's challenging!"

She emphasized, "It's hard to balance both! Mixing them together and balancing them is difficult... Martin and I have always considered our careers different from our personal lives. We've started doing things individually and have started exploring with other people, too, which is not bad because we can grow individually-but not separately."

Fresh from Italy (and looking like she gained weight) where she had a show with Arnel Ignacio, her face lit with enthusiasm as she exclaimed, "It was a success!" (that marked a swerve to another topic-showbiz).

Show business, a significant part of her, has brought forth her talents and more of what she could be. "I've found my place in television; I think it was TV all along for me, then concerts, and I discovered I could do a lot more things. This year we are looking forward to a very busy Christmas," she said with animated gestures.

A new album is being planned as of writing, and preparations are being made for her next major concert. "SHINE was scheduled for December but, we ran out of time so, we're pitching for a major Valentine's concert next year." The Sunday afternoon show she's hosting with Martin Nievera, Ariel Rivera, and Dayanara Torres remains a priority.

HOW'S LIFE ONLINE?

She said "It's amazing!" repeatedly as we course our little chat to her other home open for public access - the Web site (www.stormviz.com/pops/), maintained by Storm Visualization Imaging, Inc.

"A couple of months ago, I started using the Internet and it's amazing how you can discover that there are so many other people around the world that you can be friends with! I guess, the most exciting part is you don't see them but they share their lives with you and you're like 'OK...' (with a mocking accent)."

Nonchalantly, she guessed my next question and mused, "I don't really chat that often. It really is my e-mail that's keeping me busy online. Everytime I go out of the country, I dread opening my mailbox when I come back because of the huge pile in the inbox."

"Amazing! (I told you...) You could make friends, know them without really knowing them." She cited how so many people would e-mail her from all parts of the world. "I have mails from Philadelphia, Singapore, Europe... Imagine, just by looking me up or my Web site they can get the latest news about me."

"It works for them especially for fans and relatives who are not here. Instead of renting as many tapes of TV shows as they can which is pretty hard because they're far away, the computer is the best way to do it!" For her, it is easier for our kababayans to get in touch with the Philippines. "I never knew that can happen. Through my Web site they feel closer to me than ever."

It is rewarding for Pops to personally answer all the e-mail she gets. "It keeps them aware of who I really am and what's going on with my career and my life."

Ronnie Miranda introduced her to this boundless world of the Internet and at first, she didn't really know what to expect. "I have a computer but I was afraid to do something wrong when I touch it because I'm the type of a person who has to study and read about something before doing it. In this case, I just found myself in front of the computer and I was amazed at how easily it could be done."

And so, "The Web has created a different world I never imagined I'd get myself into."

What keeps her busy online? "Well, my site is very personal. I haven't really visited the others, but, with my site, we try to make it a bit more personal." This was an objective she concocted when she got disappointed with Winona Ryder's site. "I was quite excited to feed myself with information about her only to be disappointed that all she had there were photographs. It was good but I expected more. That's why I told myself my site would have a lot of information in it."

Pops' site sure is informative and entertaining. "Aside from the usual pictures and information about me and what I'm doing or what I've done, there's a lot about me personally. You see, most of the mails I get say they get shocked-'I didn't know you were like that' or whatever. They have more to say now, not just 'I want to watch you like this' or 'I saw you on this show.'"

Indeed, her site could be considered one of the most interactive sites with its Real Audio and Video features. Constantly updated, the site is a good place for fans to hear her songs or any of the performances she had on TV. "When my album comes out, we will put snippets of the songs in there for fans to listen to." Much can be expected of the site so much so now that the celebrity has won the Best Performer in a Video award for her recent MTV.

Soon, her visitors will be able to see her music videos and additional write-ups she herself will cook up. Clippings of her live performances in ASAP will continue to entertain Web addicts who have forgotten the term TV.

Like any other Netizen, she admits the tendency to be addicted to it. She found out that once you open the computer, time flies. "I give myself an hour to read and reply to my e-mails. After that, I get stuck and I'm just there. I don't know anymore how to turn it off! I'm really not a chatter but you tend to get addicted to it. All of a sudden, you're like...taktaktaktak (sounds of her fingernails tapping on the table accompanied her mimicry of someone typing).

Smilingly, she snapped out of the small act and said, "It is something we must all discover nowadays. Technology is different. Everything is going high-tech."

What sites appeal to her? Well, our fashionable singer here has been recently awarded #1 Best Dressed Female Celebrity by top Philippine fashion designers, and why not? She's got the looks that could bring out the glamor and style in any apparel. Now that technology allows one to search for anything under the sun, Pops goes online to visit fashion sites.

Aside from the CNN news site, golf is a very interesting subject for her and the Internet is the most convenient place to learn about the sport. "I got stuck there forever..." Other sites like Warner Brothers and Disney fancy her and the kids as well.

The home she has online is a home to most of her followers as well. She's waiting for more of her friends to come in and visit. Well, you won't regret it because she's a great host -TV or not.