What Cha-Cha Camacho builds for love?

For over 16 years, Cha-Cha Camacho has been buying land and designing the townhouses which her company builds and sells. Her current project of three-bedroom homes in Pasig includes eight units with a San Francisco architectural style. A key to her success is that Cha-Cha visualizes these homes as places where she herself would love to live in; the plants, luscious tropical landscapes and small koi ponds that are her passion adorn the Presidio Homes she develops.

Gentle Cha-Cha speaks in a calm voice. Her smiles and quiet ways complement the strength that she uses to keep her crew of 30 people on schedule with their construction work. Buying the required materials, supervising on site all day and dealing with brokers to advertise and sell these medium-cost homes keep this lady focused on her business deals.

A graduate of UP, Cha-Cha also had the pleasure of studying about plants under a scholarship grant which sent her to Berlin. Our bachelorette muses on Bill Clinton, sneaking out and finding a bargain.

What is your motto?

Love thyself first so you can then love others.

On what occasion do you lie?

When my son was younger and he would ask me if I was going out, I would say "no" then I’d sneak out.

What is your thrill?

Finding a bargain.

Which living person do you admire most?

My mother, Leonarda Camacho. She is true to herself. As a widow, she raised six of us with money she earned as a writer. I am fascinated by her.

Which famous quotation would you have wanted to be the author of?

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

What book influenced your life?

Alexander Stoddard’s Living a Beautiful Life is my bible. It teaches me how to live a gracious life by loving myself. It describes the importance of making a ritual out of everything like taking a bath or how to be a friend.

How do you start your day?

At 5 a.m., the first PNR commuter train blares outside my window.

What is your current state of mind?

I’m not exactly happy as when I am in love, nor am I sad. More contented.

What do you most value in your friends?

A real friend is not a burden. We give what we can of ourselves to each other for the moment then go on to live our own lives.

What is your greatest extravagance?

I once bought a watch that cost as much as a car.

What is the first thing you look at when you meet a man?

His shoes. If they are clean and unwrinkled, I know he is neat. His nails, to see if they are trimmed and clean, not manicured.

If you could date any celebrity in the world, who would that be?

Bill Clinton. I want to know if he is really sexy.

Which historical character would you like to have been?

The Duchess of Windsor. Imagine having a king give up his throne for you. What one would do for love!

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

When I find out that I have lost five pounds.

What is your greatest regret?

Not spending more time with my dad before he died. I was a teenager then and he was semi-paralyzed. He was a brilliant lawyer.

What is your favorite occupation?

Pottering around my house, rearranging and cleaning. At 3 a.m. today, I grouted my bathroom, brought out my shoes, polished them and put them back. I enjoy doing these things.

What do you most do with your hands?

I have worker’s hands because I am an obsessive-compulsive cleaning freak.

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E-mail: singles@mydestiny.net