Saturday, January 31, 2004 4:03 PM
growing old together
It's my parents' wedding anniversary today. At least, I think it is. I SMS-ed my mom and dad to greet them and my dad said thanks and that they're having dinner tonight with another couple.
But now I got into thinking... because anniversaries aren't really a big thing in this family. My sister forgets her wedding anniversaries every year and that justifies the un-big-ness of the occasion. But still it got me thinking... is their anniversary on the 31st or the 30th? --- and if it is the latter, uh-oh...
So now it's time for a bit of childhood reminiscing. You know how little girls are when they ask, "mommy, how did you and daddy meet?". My mom never really answered the question. She's conservative that way. My dad though, is a romantic, and he told me that he saw her in Mass one day and he followed her all the way home. Wow... stalker. Way to go mom! Ever since then, my mom grew a thirty-six-year-old shadow, an abnormal product of her twenty-year-old frame. Must have been the sun during that time.
I've seen the pictures when they got married. When I was in high school, I bugged my mom why she married dad. He was white as fish meat, scrawny, and bowlegged from horseback riding during the war. Plus he was sixteen years older. My mom was quite a catch... she still is. ;)
My mom would always chuckle, "I don't know..." But really, I'm happy she married him. My sis and I wouldn't grace this earth with our existence had both of them not get together. What I especially love about them being a couple is that when they walk, they still hold hands. In the cinemas, they still hold hands. Because of them, the idea of lovers holding hands holds such powerful meaning for me.
I'm sure this year my parents are celebrating. It would be the first time as far as I could remember. I hope they have a great time.
And to be fair to my dad, he's more good-looking now.
Friday, January 30, 2004 11:51 AM
what if?
Many writers rely on this question to create plots and themes. I ask it not as a writer, but as a lost soul.
What if I went to med school?
It's just a silly option, really. I remember when I was a kid, I'd scream once I hear the words "blood test" or "injection". Once I was rushed into the emergency room to get my right knee stitched up because I stumbled on a broken bottle of beer. I didn't cry when I saw myself bleed, I cried when my neighbor's mom picked me up and started yelling orders to the helpers to call my parents, and bring me to the hospital. I cried when I heard "hospital".
So this jeepney full of people (back then jeepneys were still allowed in our subdivision) stopped and brought me to my ninong's hospital just a kilometer away. It was the second time in the emergency room I think. I was crying like hell not because of the piece of glass still stuck on my knee but because of everyone running around and the doctor barking orders. My dad arrived and he covered my face with his hands. I bit his thumb because I wanted to see everything.
I still have a scar that I proudly show anyone who'd ask about it. It's not as big as it used to be. But its one of the few memories of my childhood. And really, it was something I bragged about as a five-year-old to my playmates (who were all boys by the way). Ha! Beat that!
When I was in high school, I aced biology subjects. I especially loved genetics, which made my friend tell the class that if anyone was having trouble with bio, I was considered the quickest solution. I toyed with the idea all throughout college, but buried it when I got into pol eco and decided that law was something to shoot for.
I reviewed for law entrance exams and filled up the Ateneo Law application form. As of now, a filled-up recommendation is sitting on my desk waiting to be submitted. But I can't bring myself to give it to Ateneo in Rockwell.
The past week, the question of going to med has been rekindled. Before, I knew what to do: do something to extinguish it fast. I mean, would I really dump the past five years of slaving in pol eco?
Now I'm running out of ideas on how to get rid of it.
Thursday, January 29, 2004 5:32 PM
give me a P!!!
I PASSED THESIS!
Whooooopppppeeeeee!!!!
Wednesday, January 28, 2004 10:18 PM
poor ol' Bembol
Excuse me for my sudden lack of blog-poise in my previous post. You know how it is when hormones take hold of your sanity for five days each month.
Anyway, to narrate my story, I shall start by saying that my luck in driving has been reversed. I am no longer the one hitting every car on sight, weirdly enough I am now the victim (for the third time). This time Bembol was parked peacefully on the side of my apartment building. He was nestled there, waiting for me to get my overnight bag for a sleepover. Soliloquy was inside the car (and you should probably go to her blog to find out her side of the story).
The moment I replaced my toothbrush in its cradle, the intercom rang and I had scramble out of my bedroom to pick it up. The guard just informed me that I needed to go to the lobby immediately. I was nervous. Nervous... and guilty. I was parked in a towing zone after all, so you can just imagine the thoughts in my head as I dashed out of my flat and rammed myself inside the elevator.
Confusion dashed the frightening images in my head as I happened upon these two other ladies circling my beloved Bembol. This girl suddenly approached me and started reciting apologies left and right. I gave her a confused look and then I realized that her humongous Mitsubishi Pajero was dangerously in range.
I promised myself before that I will never be mean to an erring driver. Provided, of course, that he or she would not execute a hit-and-run like that
I definitely know that feeling.
Today, she and I SMS-ed each other. She's dropping in tomorrow to submit her documents. She requested not get her insurance involved since she didn't want her parents to find out, but she assured me she'll pay in cash.
We'll see.
Monday, January 26, 2004 10:14 PM
Dear you (you know who you are),
Thanks for hurting me today.
I want you to know that you successfully made me feel left out.
The feeling was like a dull blade cutting through my heart, not that I've tried something like that before, but I'm sure, it was something as hellish as that.
Anyway, I'd like to thank you again. Thanks for hurting me today.
Love,
Me
Sunday, January 25, 2004 12:39 AM
randomness
I have realized tonight that I am 21, one month after my 21st birthday.
There are only two movies in the world that have made me feel that I will never feel the same way again after watching them: Under The Tuscan Sun and The Last Samurai. Sad to say that not even Lord of the Rings made me feel this way.
I haven't read a good book in a long time and I feel like I'm getting stupid-er (see!) every minute.
I still cannot believe my niece peed on me the other day that made me look like I have a bladder problem.
When changing car oil, one utilizes three and a half canisters of Helix Ultra. And all this time I thought Bembol was running on half a canister. How sad that I don't even know my own car.
Bembol drinks Wilkins Distilled Water.
I wanted to blog about something important but I totally forgot about it. One second of enlightenment and it slipped my mind.
Yep. Life seems normal.
Friday, January 23, 2004 10:43 PM
lucky
Somewhere out there (in Dizon Auditorium, UA&P, actually), a girl got proposed to.
The guy put up a "surprise" concert celebration (for her birthday I think).
He asked her to marry him (at the start of the concert in front of everyone no doubt).
How lucky can she get?
Sigh.
Love.
Thursday, January 22, 2004 11:29 PM
the little monster!
This day will go down in history as one of the most humiliating days in my life. This humiliation, at level better-get-out-of-town-and-change-your-name proportions, was caused by a sleeping three-year-old in one of the coziest restaurants in the Metro, Cafe Juanita (it's like Gayuma only a hundred times more beautiful).
And to think Nichole already peed on me this afternoon. Apparently, there was an immense need to mark me a second time today.
Her aim was amazingly right on target. She waited for the precise moment that she would sit on my lap and rest her head on my chest. The moment she and I were comfortable, I felt something wet and hot on my crotch.
I looked like I was the one who peed in my pants instead of her.
While she got her panties changed and all our relatives present had a good laugh out of it, I had to rush to the car, praying that no one (especially a person I know) would see me in this most mortifying moment.
Tuesday, January 20, 2004 11:03 PM
the 14-year difference
Why is it so damn hard to talk to my sister? :-(
Monday, January 19, 2004 11:52 PM
to keng
What!? How?! Why?!?
11:02 PM
do you feel it too?
Calling all people who love the Philippines!
Don't you feel sometimes that this country is getting hopeless? When I came back and saw the difference between Manila and Singapore, for the first time, I didn't want to go home. For two reasons really, the first I can shrug off lightly and say "life is crappy sometimes" because that's what's being a student (whose academic ideals have been trampled on) is. The second reason is a lot weirder: I didn't see any trees on the way to Ortigas.
Sure there's the occasional shrub, and if you're lucky enough to notice, there's a trunk sporting whatever limbs and leaves it has left; but it's really not the same. I want trees, humongous, leafy, green trees everywhere. The kind that's not rotting on the street because of the huge amounts of carbon monoxide it inhales everyday. Trees that are actually planted near to each other and do not flaunt a sign that says "Clean and Green Project by So-and-so" or "Luntiang Pilipinas". Trees that are strategically planted so as not to create a blind corner and put motorists in peril. Speaking of ill-designed infrastructure, what kind of sick person would put those signs on the highway spelling out poetry about trees instead of actually planting real ones? I don't have anything against poetry, but really, those things are undeniably distracting. This is the Filipino tax money at work?
What's this deal with trees? Let's just say they stand for something more than just an environmentally-sound State. You see, in Singapore, I didn't mind walking in the heat no matter how close the country is to the equator. I loved walking on the sidewalks under the shade. Everything looked refreshing.
It just sucks that this country denies me of that simple luxury.
Saturday, January 17, 2004 12:15 PM
back to reality
It sickens me that I am now back here and slaving over papers and the last of my requirements all over again. The only way for me to look at things is that the past four days is just a taste of life after UA&P.
Oooohhh and how I crave for more! Traveling from country to country is addictive.
Here's a bullet point summary (bullet point---what the??---damn pol eco!) of what Soliloquy and I did in Singapore:
Day 1 Tuesday
*slept at 3am, woke up at 5am for 8am flight. Arrived in Singapore at past 11. Laughed at Soliloquy's shocked face after she found out that women have to squat to pee in the Changi Airport restrooms.
*met up with Bing at Tropical Hotel in Chinatown. Ate lunch at 3 in a hawker center (mini food court).
*went to Sentosa and had chili crabs at the East Coast.
high = everything was free. The chili crabs were blissfully delicious!
low = didn't know we were going to meet Bing so we booked and canceled a tour to Sentosa and paid 20 Sing dollars for it.
Day 2 Wednesday
*Left Singapore and went to Johore Bahru, Malaysia.
*bought batik sarongs, visited a mosque, made friends with other tourists.
*arrived back to Singapore for a city tour
*got enchanted by Little India, got scolded by tourguide in Chinatown for being late (to think our hotel was there, we'd be sick by it), got a henna tattoo, checked out the botanical gardens.
*went to the Night Safari after embarassing ourselves in the use of the MRT system.
high = kissed a python at the Esplanade's snake charmers. Had a real adventure at the underground MRT system.
low = saddened that it wasnt KL we were going to. Slept in the last five minutes of the safari and missed the last part of the tour. I was so tired...
Day 3 Thursday
*left Singapore again for Batam, Indonesia.
*parasailed at the Batam Waterfront
*ate shellfish for lunch (and missed Surigao), watched a cultural show, shopped for more batik.
*made friends with some Filipinos from New York (they invited us to visit them) and we promised to take them to Rockwell when we get back to the Philippines.
*shopped and shopped at Chinatown (in Singapore again).
high = I PARASAILED IN INDONESIA!!! 100 meters in the air with full faith on a parachute! How cool is that!?
low = lost Soliloquy's sunglasses at the boat... meep!
Day 4 Friday
*had one last look at Chinatown to say goodbye. It felt so much like home.
*arrived in Manila at 4pm and went to rehearsals at 6.
high = spent time with Lai in the evening. Missed her a lot (she was supposed to come with us). Plus I realized that the whole trip took two pages of my passport!
low = well, back to the salt mines I guess.
Tuesday, January 13, 2004 1:10 AM
singapore here i come!!!
Not yet finished packing. Have a paper to submit. Too excited to sleep. In 7 hours, I shall be on Philippine Airlines flight PR503X to the city-state of Singapore.
I can NOT wait!
Too damn excited to sleep. Don't even know what to wear!!!
Sunday, January 11, 2004 11:33 PM
watched LOTR's Return of the King today
I have only one thing to say.
This is one HOT elf!!!
Saturday, January 10, 2004 6:30 AM
if today is your birthday, then it's very a special day for you
Everybody sing!
If today is your birthday, then we've got lots of special things to do! If today is your birthday, then it's a very special day for you! Happy birth-, happy birthday to you!!!
Happy Birthday to the best driver / driving instructor, most efficient COMELEC operations officer, and one of the coolest, sweetest (yes this adjective is applicable) people I know!
Keep on blogging, Bundz!!!
Thursday, January 08, 2004 10:51 PM
what to do when mr. crabby is dead
My sister and I bought this plastic-jellyish-bubble thingy that has a tiny plastic crab in it. Five hours later, Nichole comes out of the room screaming that she has to put "Mr. Crabby" back in the water or else he'll... he'll... I can't even say how horrible the dilemma is to a three-year-old.
My sister and I were amused at how destructive this 37-inched-tall human being is.
Poor Mr. Crab...
Wednesday, January 07, 2004 10:51 PM
a birthday gift for myself
I think it's one law in the universe that in order for plans to be actualized, one has to shut up about it and partially not get one's hopes up.
I didn't mention anything about it before... except when I was emailing waltzer for travel advice... but...
I'M GOING TO SINGAPORE, MALAYSIA, AND INDONESIA NEXT WEEK!!!
Monday, January 05, 2004 9:56 AM
resolution? what new year's resolution?
I broke mine. The only resolution I made, and I broke it. On the fifth day of the year too.
I swear, if I keep on cramming, I'm going to die very soon.
Sunday, January 04, 2004 9:46 AM
this is how I started the year of the monkey
Blogger seems to have this habit of contracting problems on the now-rare times that I want to blog.
I am in agony!
Partially because I want to cut my chest open and put my heart out on the table and let myself bleed to death. Yech!
But mostly because I drove an owner-type jeep the other day in Taguig and had a fantabulous New Year’s day!!!
Of course, don’t let Soliloquy exaggerate that she frightened me out of my wits. Truthfully, I thought that we were going to have a freak accident when she almost charged to an irrigation ditch that divided the road and the rice field. So yeah, she didn’t frighten me at all (especially since her guy cousin was well within grabbing range, man, I never thought the day will come when I’d hold on to a guy for dear life).
Despite that moment of total lack of Alba-poise, the rest of the ride was fine. As a promise to Soliloquy and Soliloquy’s friend, she’s to learn how to drive before she leaves for the UNCTAD in Geneva. Guess who will teach her? Certainly not my teacher. So can this be the launching of Alba’s driving school? Hmmm… I see myself writing a letter to Bundi that goes, "Dear Bundz, I can now understand why one’s toes curl up when one wants one’s student to press on the brakes… I think I almost cut off the circulation to my feet today. But I’m fine now. But I fear the need for amputation very soon."
Of course before this joy-riding in countryside happened, we had to get some gas, and since I was the only one with the license, I had to drive to civilization. Oh how I missed Bembol’s power-steering when I had to do a three-point turn in a street where tricycles and jeepneys abound. And just when I got the hang of driving a vehicle that I honestly felt it was going to fall apart any second, it ran out of gas in the middle of the street, half a block away from a gas station!
Nice.
While Soliloquy, her girl-cousin and I sat in the jeep, Soliloquy’s guy cousin went to the gas station to get some, well, gas. Minutes later when we saw him walking back, we heard a huge pop --- not a good sign --- and found the front left tire deflate into uselessness. Great.
Of course we had to change that damned tire. After getting Bembol, a jack, and a cross-bar, we went to work (or should I say Soliloquy’s guy-cousin did all the work). I christened my new set of warning triangles by laying them out on the street. For an hour, we were the center of attention, heck, a van-ful of men even slowed down and greeted us a happy new year! How’s that for an adventure-filled new year’s day?
I’m beginning to like 2004 already.
Thursday, January 01, 2004 12:53 AM
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!!!
There’s one thing that Filipinos believe: that the things one does on the first day of the year may determine one’s fate for the rest of the year.
Well, I had a new year’s eve dinner with my cousin on the fifth floor, and now I am alone in my two-bedroom flat. Does this prophesize the awaited independence I should have gotten a semester ago? Does this mean that finally I am going to start living my life the way I want to live it?
I don’t know.
It may seem sad that I am here typing away on the computer on New Year’s Day. I am alone literally. No housekeeper to take care of the plate I used for the scrumptious piece of cake I just ate and the wine glass for the red wine my dad left for me. Thirty minutes ago, I was wearing a bright red shirt, and now I’m in my worn jammies. An hour ago, I was on the penthouse watching the Manila skyline light up in various fireworks displays. And yet, no matter how much I force myself to feel sad and to reminisce on how the family usually celebrates, I’m actually quite content. Of course, I wish that I was celebrating the new year with my sis and my parents in Surigao (they called me on my cellphone), but then, I welcome this moment of solitude as an opportunity to step back and really appreciate what I took for granted sometimes.
I can’t believe how much I’ve grown.
