Alimuom

After the wedding of Vince and Jenni, we proceeded to Serendra to talk about our year-end get together (and because Igan has not gone there - akalain mo yun?!). Not all in our barkada were there though as Benjie failed to show up, Arman had to attend their office Christmas Party and Yel was out of town. Actually he is not only out of town, but he has been sooo out of touch the past months. Gani is even "nagtatampo" sort of na sa kanya and have asked, "ayaw na ba niya sa atin?" Oh wow! I wish I could answer that. It is really a mystery to me also on why he chooses to not be with us. Gerald, (the Mr. Spock of the group) suspects that this time he impregnated a guy because he says "if it were a woman he will still show up". (Baka nga!) In fairness to Yel though, he e-mailed me prior to the wedding that he won't be able to make it as he will be in Subic and that he is really sorry for not answering our text messages or calls as he is so very busy with his work.

Well I pity him, because I used to be like that. And I know how exhilirating it is to be "the main (wo)man". But I also have learned that even if I have a lot of money, have a high paying job, and everything seems to revolve around me - it will not be forever. All of it will be gone if I will not share it with friends and family. I have invested on two houses and now thinking of getting a new one but what is it worth without folks to come home to? What is a new car without someone you trust to ask on where to have it waxed and buffed? And if you are feeling blue you just gotta have somebody who knows squat about your work or your troubles and like you just wants to while the time away.

Haaay.. Anyway, back to our Serendra field trip. We made some pictorials at the site and found it somewhat cramped. We therefore trekked from Serendra to Boni High Street and excitedly agreed to go to Krispy Kreme (asukal!!!). Halfway going there, Gani's digestive system acted up again (yes again! he already visited the men's room during the reception) and so he had to quietly excuse himself. At Krispy Kreme, we of course had pictorials (para kaming mga timang see pic) and ordered their brew box (coffee good for 12 people) and a dozen donuts. When our orders were served the seats were not enough though so we opted to just talk outside "al fresco". News about work and family were swapped. Common friends were discussed and common enemies cursed. More talk. More pics.

asan ba yung camera?

ay ayun!

making pa-cute at Serendra

Asukal Fix at Krispy Kreme

Mau and Gani. hindi po sila yung kinasal.

When Regie announced that he wants to go home as he is already sleepy (baka hinahanap na ng nanay niya) it signaled that we had to make up our minds on what to do regarding our annual reunion ekek. And so, it has been decided that it will be held at Igan's place because the Tagaytay option at Gani and Mau's will take an overnight thing. Moreover, Kiko is not agreeable to it as he has an interview on the 3oth at the US Embassy for his 6 months stint courtesy of his current employer. It will just be a lunch to dinner affair on Monday the 29th. Everybody will bring their assigned food and exhange gift has been pegged with Php 500 minimum value. That's it! Salamat at nabuo din. We wrapped up the session proceeded to each of our rides and said our goodbyes.

As I drive home I realize how fortunate I am that I still have time to enjoy simple things with them. Nothing beats coffee and kwentuhan na walang kwenta with good friends.

Vince and Jenni's Wedding

The wedding of Vince and Jenni last Friday (Dec 19) was a blast from the past. Former colleagues were there and as expected it became a kumustahan session as it has been a long time since the barkada with the rest of the McD SCM touched base. Gani, Bradley, Regie and I did not make it to the church ceremonies because it took me forever in the salon so we just hurried to the reception (he he). Good thing, Igan was there to capture the moment.

Here are the pics courtesy of Igan (shemps).

Guadalupe Church - where the wedding was held. So rustic and beautiful.

at the church: -and now I pronounce you husband and wife...

mabuhay ang bagong kasal!!!

with McD Family

Reception at The Fort -Kasalikasan. It was quite windy outside but as soon as you step in the garden it was so still and serene.

Arrival of the newly weds at the reception. (Yehey! kainan na!)

Ay posing pala muna with the bride and groom!

More photo ops... us with Diana and Karen

congratulating Vince

di na kami magkasya sa frame!!!

next to be wed??? abangan...

until my next post. Babush!

Pussit

- is the name of our most recent cat who went AWOL. He is not colored black as one might surmise from his name but he is actually a white and gray "pusakal". I cannot recall where the name originated from or who in the family thought of it. What I can only remember is that, when he was given to us by our neighbor summer time of 2007 he was given the name and that's it.

Unlike most cats though he is one mean psycho. He is grumpy, does not care for anyone and does not have time to socialize. He is not the usual cat that rubs his body against your leg until it is already warm from the friction. He wakes us up by climbing on the screen door, scratches it like crazy and meows his lungs out for his breakfast. After getting his fill, he sleeps the rest of the day until it is time to eat again. At night, he leaves and returns in the morning all dirty with bruises and cuts. He lives a wild night life! Mom used to give him a bath to remove the filth that he collected from roaming around during unholy hours but then it has gotten to a point that it is useless. His white has turned into a dirty white to a dirty gray. He does not like grooming himself I suppose. He just lounges under my car sometimes on top to get some sun, eats, leaves and then comes back all dirty and scruffy.

That was his routine day in and day out until he never came back. A few days after he went missing Alia asked if it is possible that Pussit got run over or got lost. I told her that since he is the type who prefer to do his own thing I would like to think that he just got tired of going back to the house. But then I realize as much as I want to console her that answer was more of my consolation to myself. Although he is not the "malambing" type I still regard that feline as "our" cat.

Deymn I miss that cat!

Parenting 101

My 13 year old daughter Alia gave me a shocker one night. She told me that a boy schoolmate of hers asked if they can go steady and she in turn asked if it is alright with me. Uh oh! (I knew there would be days like these being a mother to a teenager -but it still caught me off-guard!) My immediate answer was of course no. It was actually a resounding NO! NO! NO! in my head but I tried to keep it cool as I did not want to alienate her. I actually had mixed feelings about it as I was proud that she was so honest to tell me her concern but was also a little irritated as I was expecting that she would have said no to the guy outright. But then, being a teen nowadays is just not that easy. Sabi nga ng ating mga ka-friendster "it's complicated". So I asked her if she understood why I gave a negative answer and she said no. Haay...

I therefore proceeded to explain that my take on the issue is -I feel that she will be confining herself too soon to just one boy. That it will take so much of her teenage life and thus might miss out on her socializing with others be it boys or girls. Moreover, I told her in a follow-up discussion that she should be concentrating more on her studies as she needs to maintain good grades to continue enjoying her science high school "scholarship". With that, she said it is ok and that she will talk to the guy about her decision.

After a few days, my wonderful Alia gave feedback that she already discussed the matter with the concerned party and the boy accepted that they just stick it out as friends.

Whew! When I was a teen I never thought that concerns like that was vexing to my mom. Only now do I understand the stress that I subject my parents to. Whoever said that "you will be able to truly appreciate your parents only when you become a parent yourself" is definitely a parent.

Thru Igan's Lens

I asked Igan (the official photographer of the barkada) to give me a link to his photo bucket. I was able to access his most recent shots and he never fails to fascinate me on the pics that he churns out. Above is a photo of Manila from the bay. I never saw Manila like this until Igan's lens captured it. Awesome!

Clear as mud

Here we go again!

Conversation between and guy and a girl in a bookstore..(note: they are not the same couple from my first blog)-

Girl: Hi! You are here din pala.

Guy: May hinahanap akong book eh.

Girl: Anong book?

Guy: Hindi ko alam kung ano yung book.

Girl: Ah... sino bang author? Anong title?

Guy: Hindi ko nga alam eh. Kanina ko pa nga hinahanap. Pero andito lang yun.


I started to tune out after that as I felt that it will be a long talk with no clear ending. But then I might be taking his answers literally? Must be a code or something between the two.


Maybe, the guy meant that he just wants to kill his time and so he is just browsing until he sees something that will catch his interest.


He might have also just wanted the girl to linger a little longer (nagkukunwaring walang alam ang tinamaan ng kulog!).


Or the guy meant, just leave me alone and it is none of your business if I am here so 'wag ka nang mangelam jan.


Well whatever! ... I hope he finds the book though.

A little unwell

My friend Arman indicated in his YM status - "pain is weakness leaving the body". I got curious on where he got the quote so I asked him thru chat on who was his source. As expected, Arman being the "philosopher" in our barkada (sobrang pilosopo nitong tao na 'to! walang kupas... sabi nga ni Vince) he answered with the question "ano namang pakelam mo jan?". Heck! I should have known better not to mess with the guy... And so, to get a better answer, I googled said quote and found out that it was a recruitment propaganda used by the US marines. It was written in the same context as the old adage "no pain, no gain". Nice! It does not apply to me though because although I am in a lot of inexplicable pain, it is not the kind of hurting that you get from constant physical training but more of something that I caught in the air. Must have been the sudden changes in temp that I was subjected to when I went out earlier...


I was a part of a supplier audit team and when we arrived at the site at around 10:00 am it was hot but there was a little drizzle. When we went inside the conference room, a chill went down my spine as the cold air from the aircon hit me. After an hour or so of discussion, we toured the production floor which was hot save for the spots where the industrial fans were whirling like crazy. The tour ended at around past 12noon and therefore we had to leave the place to have lunch. As expected it was hotter outside -worse our car was parked in an uncovered area. Lunch was in a place that is air conditioned (of course) so a wave of relief was felt as soon as we went inside. After eating, we hurriedly left to get back to the office but halfway the ride my nose became stuffy and my head throbbed hinting the beginning of a massive headache. By the time that we arrived the head office, body pain had crept in prompting me to ask for paracetamol from my colleague just to get through the rest of the afternoon.

The medicine did not work though as I spent the rest of the day going through the evening feeling feverish. I had to take another pain reliever before going to bed just so to ease some of the pain. Haay... I just wish this not good feeling will all go away and fast!

Willing the pain to leave the body is not easy though, it takes some time especially if external factors do not warrant it. But when I think of all the people I know, have heard of and have read about who are more ill than I it makes me think less of my pain and more of how lucky I am that I have such minor issues. My 65 year old mom was diagnosed last March with cancer and she had to undergo hysterectomy and six sessions of chemotheraphy. It was physically, mentally and emotionally taxing for her but she was able to go through it without much fuss! Shame on me then for feeling sluggish just because I have a slight fever. Hah! Tulog lang ang katapat nito... good night.

Lack of miscommunication gap

Not a professional writer, nor a professional blogger. Just love to write about what I feel, see, and hear...



Conversation between a guy and girl in a pizza place:



Girl: Andito ka na agad?

Guy: Oo umu-ulan eh.

Girl: Bakit andito ka na?

Guy: Nag-text ako sa 'yo ah.

Girl: Anong tinext mo?

....dead air... (my mind drifted somewhere else so I was not able to catch what the guy texted). After a while the conversation resumed...

Guy: (checking out his mobile phone) meron ka bang charger?

Girl: Meron, mag-cha-charge ka?

Guy: Hindi.

...dead air again...

Girl: Kain tayo.

Guy: Anong pagkain dito? Pizza? Ayoko.

Girl: Sige na kain na tayo.

Guy: Ayoko nga ng pizza.

Girl: Meron namang iba. Pwedeng pasta or chicken.

Guy: Hindi naman ako gutom. Gusto kong magpa-gupit.

Girl: Meron ditong barbershop sa malapit.

Guy: Ay ayoko.

I never got to know how it all ended but I saw them leave but not together. Maybe they both have better things to do other than not eat in a pizza parlor.


Strange how we never seem to know what we want to do in our life.