tanawin
noun: view
verb: to view, look at

Tanawin Bay Resort is located in the Encenada Area, not even 10 minutes from the Muelle Pier at Puerto Galera.

True, the resort does offer tranquility and privacy. They don't have air-conditioned rooms but the hut-type rooms are real charming. Of course, it can be hot during the daytime.

The pool however isn't exactly made for those who can't swim because aside from this small strip just behind the bar, it's already around 5'8" feet deep to some 6 feet. Then again, this resort isn't for kids. Think honeymooners or people taking stock of where their lives have led them.

The restaurant ambience is also very rustic and cozy. The staff are nice. But the food isn't really great, plus it's a trifle expensive. The good thing though is it's so near the bayan or pier area, where restaurants abound, so you actually have options. You can also shop for snacks from there because Tanawin's resto doesn't offer them.

But yes, the view is exquisitely pristine.

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But the beach is disappointing. Not really dirty, but not really maintained as well. Plus, you have to trek down to it... for some 5 minutes or so... So WHITE BEACH is still a better bet at Galera if you really want to enjoy the sea.

*~*

Image hosted by Photobucket.comSomething i've always been scared of...

I don't know the English translation for TUKO... but this reptile has always so scared me, enough to generate fever during my childhood days when i'd be spending time in Lipa... and nights would find me listening to them (they said that if you hear up to 9 tuko calls... or whatever you call them... you can make a wish and that would come true)... but then there'd be nights when i'd be sleepless from watching their sticky bodies just hanging on the window jalousies (?).

Sometimes too... i'd freeze for a long time before I can gather up the courage to open a door where a tuko decided to hang out... not really wanting to, but really having to pee also.

I think this irrational fear was born because house lizards kept falling off my Lola's ceiling at around 6 PM (i think that's what gave rise to this legend where they say lizards always have to kiss the ground at that appointed time, as punishment for this girl turned into the very first lizard, who didn't go home in time, which resulted in her being unable to save her sick Mother from dying). Sometimes, they even fall on you.

Ooooohhh... I hate reptiles and amphibians. And something about the pinkish feet and the way lizards stick to walls just really creep me out.

And so, Saturday night I spent worrying if this particular tuko will fall on me while I was sleeping. Which is absurd because the term kapit-tuko was coined because of this particular lizard's ability to really attach itself to something... in this case, a beam.

Sniff... sniff... this is a hopeless rant about a pointless fear... but really, am still scared.

*~*

I just added a new picture link in my sidebar. It seems some bloggers are doing what they can to give the FILIPINA a better reputation, esply where google/search engines are concerned.

Yes indeed... inasmuch as am chagrined by the fact that many out there are exchanging families and degrees and a dignified life here for a life of caregiving/domestic helping abroad just to give their families a more comfortable life... I'd also like the world to know that when they key in the word "Filipina", they shouldn't just expect to see ads for/by mail-order brides and entertainers and maids... we owe it to the world to also show that Filipinas are also mothers, expats, sisters, and professionals. We also have personalities and preferences. We have an opinion, we take stands.

We are changing the world as the world changes us.

And together with other bloggers out there... I celebrate being a Filipina, a woman becoming.

And what better way to show that I am comfortable in my own skin...

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complete with big tummy and cellulite, i know :D (and i didn't have enough time to smile because i put the timer on 2-secs lang)


*~*

Starting the week right with butong pakwan... ahehe.
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why blog?

9:48 AM Thursday, May 26, 2005

If asked why I got addicted to blogging, I only really have one serious (and deep) response:

Blogging has allowed me to be a WITNESS to other people's lives

Because of blogging, i've become a witness to how Bambit and Renee are making second marriages (and families) work. Because of what they post, I know when Maia is teething or sick... and how much her Daddy loves her. I am taken to trips with the Lorenzo family and get to know their favorite bedtime antics.

Apart from the mothers above, other blogging Moms also inspire me from all parts of the world. I witness how Jan's Mom is struggling with disciplining him, and how JP's Mom's heart hurts a little as JP learns more and more German (Deutsch?) each day. I know of worries that what's being given may not be enough and I get to bite my lip as children cross thresholds .

I am a witness to dieting achievements and babymaking challenges.

I was a witness to the loss of a child and the loss of a spouse . I was witness to how one can get over the loss of a loved one.

I have watched love get strengthened by laughter and gentleness. Batjay and Jet continue being such inspirations for staying together where people would have walked away. They are even celebrating their 14th Anniversary this month...

I have been to Galera many times, and have reached great heights ... I have seen great things and learned a lot life lessons when I blog hop. I also get to celebrate my sexuality more because my beliefs about a woman's needs and wants get validated.

I have met celebrities left and right ... finding out what made them quit, what makes them tick, what inspires them, how they inspire other people.

Because I read them i've learned to empathize with single mothers who continue to be highly-creative people. And I learn to be more passionate about health ... and i get to walk in a gay man's shoes... and I get to go to college again, and graduate all over again.

And so, my education continues as I read about different perspectives. I see more. I enjoy more.

In a way, I also hurt more because I feel more.

And I look forward to more of such. I love the privilege of being this silent witness to other people's lives... being party to their parties, celebrating and mourning with them. Watching them grow up, get love, get hurt, get married.

And because I witness their births and rebirths, I get to validate their existence when I make them my 'friend'. What an honor.

What happiness.

And those who return the favor of a blog hop or visit... many of them... some of them... at least one of them... have/has become a witness in turn to my existence, my life, my passion and obssessions . They too rejoice in every Pyro milestone, and shake their head at the joke that is my boss.

And a circle of touching lives (ala PLDT) gets completed. And reinvented. Again and again and again.

And most often that not, bloggers are left more enriched after a blog hop.

*~*

something shared by Jet to us, author unknown

let me sustain the notion that I write to express
for I shall be self-compelled to stop if I realize that I've been writing to impress

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I do not know why or how my post got deleted because it was OK when I last checked it yesterday.

Anyway, rather than let this dampen my mood... fine, i'd retype what I can...

HIGHLIGHTS in bullet form of my super looong weekend

Image hosted by Photobucket.com* Left for Bicol last Wednesday night. 11 hours and 4 stopovers later (once, when Duday had to cough up her supper in some starkly lonely Quezon winding road), we all arrived safely in Bicol. Spent most of the day just eating and sleeping.

* JRA LOVED the seafood... all freshly caught and simply cooked. We had crabs and Bangkulis (a kind of tuna) for lunch, and Liswik and another kind of tuna for dinner. We went swimming in the afternoon... and hung out by the makeshift pier (ala Boardwalk) that night. (and yeah, i keep forgetting to take pictures of the food before diving in and gorging...ahehe)

* Friday, I cooked spaghetti. It's official, the best spaghetti sauce would be a combination of Del Monte Sweet-style and Filipino-style sauces. Then some tomato paste and some sugar (yes, I like my spaghetti sweet). And lots of ground beef and sliced hotdogs. And cheese.

* Also helped in making buko pandan. 18 cups of gelatin (some make it using buko juice, most just boil pandan leaves and use the 'flavored' water) will require 2 bars of chopped Eden Cheese (the small one), 3 Nestle Cream cans, 4 Carnation condensed milk, 13-15 buko meat and my mother's secret ingredient... Nido Full Cream Powdered Milk. I swear, many LOVE my Mom's buko pandan.

* Shared Tulong Gapo with my brother and JRA. Its waters are deep and placidly misleading... part of the Pacific Ocean that yields all those fresh bounties I so love. JRA, my bro and Don (bro's friend) all encouraged (and laughed) at my attempts to make sisid.

* Yellowfin Tuna, cocido style is very easy to cook actually. But for it to taste real good, you just really need a REALLY fresh fish. Sorry but since barrio folk seldom use measuring spoons and cups, let's just play this one by ear. In a pot, put the tuna in with some water. Then add tomatoes (remove the seeds) and 2-3 chillies (the long green ones). Add some salt as seasoning. Let this cook (boil). On a bowl, squeeze calamansi and mix with some more water. Make sure you remove the calamansi seeds. Chop 2-3 onions, add half of which to the pot. Add the remaining onions to the calamansi. When the tuna is almost done, add the calamansi mixture. Boil one last time. Serve.

* Advised JRA to hang out with the guys but also told him to help out with the laundry (because I already did it the previous night and was already registering allergic reactions to detergent, plus, I seemed to have pulled a back muscle). Men talaga... selective listening... I ended up helping with the laundry again... and picking a fight.

Image hosted by Photobucket.com* Half of Saturday was spent with me seething and sulking. But still, I promised my young cousin a dip very early in the morning. Eventhough we enjoyed the sun rise, there wasn't much sun that appeared that day. And who knew jellyfishes clean the waters at this time of day? We couldn't really swim and frolick lest we end up stinged. As it was, we were already itchy.

* Refused to make up with JRA. He had to go to Sorsogon proper alone. Returned wet from rain. I was still unmoved. But fate had a way of rearranging my priorities. The broken sliding panel of the old wooden bed where I was moping fell, smack dab on my forehead, giving me this bruise on my hairline, making me cry, making me feel more WAWA and menstrual. Of course, only JRA's loving touch can soothe me. (But i haven't forgiven him pa din)

* Town fiesta found us house-hopping for free food. Love it....

* Fell in love with BUSANG, crabs that are slightly smaller than regular ones... and whose appearance looked like it had prickly heat. But it was 10 times more tastier and around 7x easier to crack than the regular crab. It took all my self-respect and control not to ask for take homes. And sadly for me (or woe to my future husband perhaps? mwehehehe), it's a very native type of crab, which can only be found in Bulan, Sorsogon (that's 3 hours away from Bacon, and nearer Masbate by ferry)Image hosted by Photobucket.com

* Left that Saturday night. God was with us and spared us from accidents. We passed by 2 vehicles which turned turtle before crashing... and one that managed to jump over a ravine.

* Sunday, 8:00 AM, was already in JRA's bed in BFRV. Slept till past 12 NN and then enjoyed his Lola's 85th birthday party

* The start of the party, however, is Alyanna... who, at 9 months, impressed me with her voracious eating habits. Ain't she cute?

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* Watched Allan Quatermaine (?) and the Lost City of Gold

* Glad to be safely home, but totally looking forward to another long weekend again. (Nov. 1-2 fall on Tues and Wed, *hint*)
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luis, the lunatic

10:10 AM Monday, May 23, 2005

Luis is the youngest brother of JRA. I'm not sure how old he is exactly...or how young. He's around 12, I think.

Anyway... he's a genius. He can be cruel with his playmates (one time... he let a friend chase him into their home, only to put this anito statue right near the door so that his friend won't miss it, and would be frightened by it... and sure enough, went home crying because of it)... but he's still a genius.

Tired of having their Dad breathing down his neck to clean up his mess and toys... he, one day, gathered several playing cards and pieces of junk (matches, papers, ribbons, etc) and pasted them all on a cardboard... arranged so that they still appeared as if they're nakakalat sa floor.

He then proudly showed it to his Mom, and told her that he'd put it on the floor and "inis" his Dad by having him scold him again to clean up his mess... and just pick all the 'mess' in one pull.

:)

*~*

I wish I had the know-how or the resources to save this video and share it with you, but I don't (ahehe...offers anyone? :P )

Anyway... Luis and her ate recorded a video of him.

He squeezed his body into this Chinese outfit and cap... powdered his face...

The video will start showing ate's legs as she was walking the length of their house... and then there will Luis be, crouched in one corner... who then will proceed to Toshio (crawl, like what he did a lot in Juon) himself towards his shrieking and screaming Ate... basta, Luis will be crawling and his face would be very white, his buck teeth showing...

And when at last he has cornered his sister... he'd say... "Gusto mo bumili, mainit na siopao?"

*~*

Pyro's Dad has made himself a 'crimina' today... my brother accidentally ran over a cat and killed it.

*~*

By the way... read about my favorite body part.

Kwento about the Bicol trip tomorrow.
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boys will be boys

3:34 PM Wednesday, May 18, 2005

Before I head off to the land where I was born...

Let me just say that Pyro is kadiri... :D

Not only does he take delight in looking at our bras and tummies... and calls us sexy when he sees us walking around wrapped in bath towels... basta, such fascination with the human body (which I didn't notice in my nieces, but also observed in my otehr nephews)...

Anyway, how is he kadiri?

He was sitting on my sister's lap last night. He only had a sando on because we make sure his nether regions get 2-3 hours of break from diapers. He started playing again with his pututoy...

As his aunt was pulling his hand away from his pututoy, his pututoy twitched. He got shocked and inadvertently made it twitch/move again.

He laughed... and amused us all by his muscle control. As in he absolutely found it funny.

Well yeah, we found it funny too... but being girls, we also found it kadiri.

*~*

See you all when I get back... and with pictures this time. Though amazingly enough, I seem to have lost a set of batteries for my cam. Am actually getting pissed about it already but I can't find it, the maid can't find... arrgghhh.
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a miracle or two more, please

12:49 PM Tuesday, May 17, 2005

Whew.

How do I go about this?

DAKKI was born last night. At 4.8 lbs., she is a premature and yet very beautiful baby.

However, there are more challenges for her to face. She was born with a hole where her belly button should have been... resulting to some part of her intestines to peek out (?) and grow bigger than what could be accommodated by her body.

Her mother is a friend, who happened to resign from her job before finding out she was pregnant. Ergo, she was unable to find another job.

Her mother is also unmarried. And because she was jobless and unmarried, she was rejected by San Juan de Dios last night...and had to deliver (normal) her baby in a hospital ill-equipped for special cases like Dakki.

She's now in PGH... and on her behalf, I would like to beg strangers for help.

First, there's the matter of money... we're now all rallying to raise money for her operation (which would cost over a hundred thousand)... and every little help would count...

Second, we really need connections/referrals so we can get discounts. The good doctor has already referred us to a pediatric surgeon in PGH... hopefully he's in the country. But there will be other doctors needed, I guess... anesthesiologists and the like. Maybe you can help. Maybe you know someone who can help...

Please just e-mail our other friends at jsp@bdo.com.ph and e_manzana2k@yahoo.com if you have anything that can help us. I'd be going away for several days so I cannot really attend to this.

We need more prayers for Dakki. As a friend put it, if possible, every hour... God isn't deaf... but maybe madadaan sya sa kulit :) And may her parents be strong.

We want to see Dakki grow up... but more than that, we want to see her feeding from her Mom soon.

Thank you guys.

(I at first didn't want to do this... fearing making a spectacle of what must be a truly terrifying experience for my friend... but I really want to help any way I can...)

*~*

Update: 6:30 PM

Due to the help of friends, Dakki's father was able to talk to the Deputy Director of PGH. God willing, they may start operating on Dakki around 7:00 PM tonight. Please readers, prayers please, please, please.

*~*

Update: May 18

At 7:00 AM today, Dakki was finished with her first of a series of operations. Half of her intestines are now inside her tummy. Here's hoping she'd respond to the treatments and be the little fighter that we know she is.

And God is good... many people are helping.

The internet community where her mother and I met, which facilitated the development of friendships and connections, is also facilitating the influx of aid for them. One even managed to convince their office to hold a fundraising party in Dakki's honor... Such kindness won't go unrepaid.

Met Dakki last night, even briefly touched her hair. Only a day old and yet, she's already touching so many lives.

And it would also be appropriate to note that her mother is such a good and giving person, that people don't even think twice anout helping her.

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TAKE ME
average-looking, prone to acne even if am already past adolescence, morena, just fairly intelligent, sensual, accident-prone, not really a stylish dresser because i only take the trouble when i want to, most of the time i don't really care about how i look, not kikay at all, especially when put side-by-side with my sister... loves taking pics and anything connected to photography... internet-addict...loves white chocolates to a fault (but i've been seriously not enjoying them ever since my last visit to a doctor about my overly sensitive sinuses and throat), love my family, love babies, love men, love women, love life, love sex, love white chocolates (i can't stress that too often), etc.

TAKE THIS PARTICULAR B!TCH
i don't know what she looks like... for all i know, she has a perfect figure with an angelic face, who goes/went to the best schools and kills time with others from elite circles, she may be a model, or an heiress, or Einstein's female counterpart... she may be the whore of Babylon, or the greatest courtesan to ever walk the land of India (except she's Pinay), so maybe, yes, she could be the one who invented the kama sutra... she may have dozens of accomplished bachelors waiting for 3 hours at her doorstep just to date her... or the mistress of some politician... she may have gotten deflowered at 13... or a virgin still... she may have visited every Continent and might be living in a gated community in Florida... she may have next season's Prada shoes and uses Manolos to self-gratify... she may have an abusive boyfriend who calls her BOBO in front of her friends... or a puppy for a BF, doesn't really matter... I really don't know...

What I do know is she's a pathetic coward... getting MY number, and texting me (anonymously, of course, because she's a coward) with abusive (but they made me laugh tho... shook my head with the overwhelming implication of her insecurity with me) text messages... telling me how ugly and malandi I am and that I should stop posting juicy, tasty, naughty pictures of myself all over the net (at MTC in particular).

Why assume the texter is a woman? Because few men would really be offended by half-naked pictures. And few men would actually resort to verbal assaults. And intelligent, mentally-stable women would not even care about what I do with the internet so long as they're not harmful.

Why give her the benfit of a post?

Only to show the world, miss coward-and-insecure-girl-who-probably-cannot-command-devotion-from-her-man-or-respect-from-fellow-women... that there are some people who just grow worse with age... one of them being YOU.

*~*

On a light note, congratulate me, ladies and gentlemen, for succesfully changing Pyro's nappy last Saturday. Yes, he destroyed my appetite for the birthday party food, and yes, changing the nappy took some 15 minutes I think (JRA keeps telling everyone that it took me 45 minutes, but he just likes doing things like that), and yes, Pyro also looked traumatized by the experience... but it was still a threshold crossed.

And Pyro was rewarded with a kiss from YUMI, the birthday girl.

And when Yumi grows up and reads the signature album from this particular birthday... she'd read this one there:

YUMI... I hope to grow up with you... PYRO
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kids...

9:11 AM Thursday, May 12, 2005

Duday (6-yr old vacationing niece, whose real name is Marjorie) found my sister's old gown (think, pangsagala-type), one my sis wore when she was crowned Miss Kindergarten.

Duday wore it over her clothes. I arrived home to be silently irritated by all the frills and ribbons and organza on her because it was just too hot to be wearing such a gown on top of your clothes in a non-aircon apartment in the middle of Manila.

But of course, I bit my lip and just tried avoiding looking her so as not to be driven to take off her gown.

I was told by my cousin that she's been wearing that all aftenoon.

*OUCH*

I kept reminding myself that kids, especially girls, like dressing up and trying clothes on. It's her right.

In the end though, it was my cousin who demanded she take the gown off.

And Duday, unfazed, went on to find a cheongsam (my other cousin's outfit in their Miss Saigon play) to wear.

Kids.

*~*

I was told that when Duday first donned the gown, Pyro found this lacy spaghetti-strapped top (my Mom's) and wore it, with the straps worn criscrossed around his neck.

And he followed Duday everywhere, singing "Allelluia" from behind.

*~*

Commercial:

I was so glad that Uchenna and Joyce went on to win The Amazing Race 7.

Not only was I totally hateful of Rob and Amber... but I really couldn't help but be bowled over by how KIND Uchenna is... always nice, always helpful, always non-vindictive.

He even made sure they paid the cab driver, when they were already at the gate to the finish line!!!

And where Joyce just kept crying, Uchenna begged strangers for money, and thanked even those who didn't give any.

And of course, the fact that they're using the money to try and have babies... sigh :)

Special mention to Meredith and Gretchen for making it so far in the race. And I swear, I want to grow old as gracefully and cool-ly as Gretchen did.

*~*

Happy weekend everyone!
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quick Pyro update

9:52 AM Wednesday, May 11, 2005

2 months shy of his 2nd birthday... we are now shrieking and shouting and yelling at him...

To get down from somewhere, to not open something, to go back home, etc.

He can now chant "Nanay, Tatay... "

And while clutching my Jack-Jack doll one day, he said:

"Jack-jack... ala tutoy"

:) Such powers of observation!!!!

*~*

By the way... I am getting my cutie ass to Bicol again, next week. And with JRA to boot. I can't wait to share with him the wonderful bounty of the Pacific Ocean...

And this time, my digicam will be ok. My batteries are all ok. I have 3 compact flash cards.

May nothing get in the way of my next great adventure!!!

*~*

Commercial... read about Pinoyblog and how it brought together Filipino bloggers.
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how sweet it is...

10:13 AM Sunday, May 08, 2005

to be loved by a mother...

to be held with such tenderness

to be worried over with such protectiveness

to be fought for and defended with vigilance

to be cared for with constancy

to have someone who worries more about yourself than you ever will... who dream dreams for you but allows you to fly in the direction you intended for yourself...

hoping you'd choose well... keeping faith that Life will take care of you for her...

doing and going about things the best way she knows how

always ready... always willing

to surrender all she possesses... her health, her pride, her dreams, her future, her life

but not her love for her children... never her love

so HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to my Mom

and all the other Moms I know who are just like her... perfect in their imperfections...

May I be someday blessed to take on this privileged role.

*~*

My boss was at Metrowalk last week with her family. Chino was holding his mother's hand and was happily taking in the scene.

He then turned to his Mom and said...

"Mommy, ang sarap mo talagang kasama... mas masarap pa sa ensaymada"

*~*

And how sad, of course, that not everyone can say he enjoyed a Mother's love... how tragic to know that some mothers are only mothers by virtue of their capacity to give birth...

Maybe we can say a silent prayer for them... people whose own mothers/parents are the first to betray and violate them...
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"in memory of two friends i lost"

4:08 PM Wednesday, May 04, 2005

how do you prevent hurting afriend
how do you tell the truth and spare pain
how do you defend this pain
how do you tell your friend
that you're getting hurt by him, by her
how do you tell them that it's
both okay and not,
at the same time
how do you go about loving a friend
and lying to him, to her
how can you trust again
after being betrayed
how can you nurture a friendship
that destroyed a part of you
and...how...do you deal with pain
until you understand?


Mec July 20, 1999
5:55 - 6:01 pm

Come with me as I revisit an old heartache

*~*

Selecta is selling these new flavors in heart-shaped canisters. I was delightedly suprised that the flavor mantecado macaroons tasted a lot like the Potato Almond Krunch cake at Becky's Kitchen (contact number: 525-1648).

Grab either the cake or the ice cream. Am sure you'd love them.

*~*

There is this new bar in Makati, not sure if it's along Leviste or at the corner of Leviste... near the Legazpi Village area.

Liquor is cheap! Cheaper than our regular haunt along Emerald Avenue, which is 90 Proof.

Check it out. Partake of the liempo.

Of course, sounds at 90 Proof is better... but this new bar will do.

*~*

I asked for one slice of cake.

JRA basically gave me 6 slices of 3 different flavors.

And there are two kids at home (Pyro and vacationing Duday)... plus a cousin who loves them too.

It was a push and a shove to the stark truth: I AM SELFISH.

I wanted to at least eat one slice per flavor... but of course, not in one sitting.

I almost cried.

In a way... i've always known that I was born selfish. And that i've only modified that personality trait by buying MORE so I can have something for myself and be able to also give some away.

But it was like being undressed in public and getting caught wearing really soiled, wrinkled, darned lola-panties.

I flushed with shame.

JRA thought twas funny... but I really felt bad.
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my 4-day weekend

11:04 AM Tuesday, May 03, 2005

BETRAYED BY BODY

I still don't know what caused me to suffer from major stomach cramps last Friday (and mild LBM to boot... arrgh, to think I am so against slimming teas because I am so anal retentive!), which resulted in me just curled up and sleeping.

Tuloy, I missed the sale at Mega Mall... and the Blogberks' eat-all-you-can EB.

I was better last Saturday... but the heat made me late for the AA basketball game (by virtue of me unable to dress quickly because I had to rest and sit down and just enjoy the slight comfort the electric fan can offer). We went to this newly-opened bar at the corner of Leviste in Makati, where drinks are cheap. Sadly, halfway through my orange-pineapple juice, I felt my throat getting irritated.

I dared not think of an ENT's comment on how some preservatives can actually trigger tonsillitis... but true enough, Sunday woke me up with my lymph nodes swollen... enough for me to actually feel them, identify them, and hurt myself repeatedly by repeatedly touching them.

And because it was a Sunday and my sinuses were giving me a bad headache, no clinics were open near where I lived.

And with yesterday being a holiday (drat the government too for announcing this one late Thursday night... most people weren't able to make plans!), I had to insist my presence at the ER instead.

And drat the doctor... giving me a prescription which am allergic to.

And now I cannot help but wonder if lymph nodes actually burst (I called before going to the ER, and was told that unless I was in fatal pain or my nodes have burst, they'd still just send me home to see a specialist the following day)... and what really triggered this infection (i don't have colds nor cough... but now, thanks to Difflam, my mouth is numb)

PYRO UPDATE

Sniff... last Friday, he managed to eat one whole donut. Tao na sya talaga!

Not that he hasn't been fed an equal amount of food up to that time ok?

He's also lately become very territorial and possessive... trying to get all the toys that aren't even his, and biting those who are getting in the way.

He's also started insisting having his own plate and spoon during mealtimes... even if we do still run after him to feed him.

Haaay... he is sooo fast growing up.

LIGHT READ

Told you I bought two books last week. Really enjoyed Bergdorf Blondes, because it was light and funny. Yes, it's a lot superficial and is some sort of romantic novel in a non-mushy way. But it's really funny.

I just took issue with the reference to a Filipino maid... especially since the lines of that maid didn't sound Filipino at all... more like other Asians who can't speak in English. I figured, if we're sending teachers as domestic helpers to Asian countries... what more to Manhattan!

Still, it's a really funny read.

INSPIRING READ

The Five People You Meet in Heaven is a GREAT read... inspiring in a light way, it makes you reflect on what you believe of your life and where you are in that life.

Basically, Eddie dies and is met by 5 people in heaven... who taught him about:
1) responsibility... how we affect everyone... and one man's loss may be another man's gain, and that is alright
2) sacrifice... how we give up or lose some in order to gain something far greater... or at least, pass on something to other people
3) forgiveness... of people who did not meet our expectations, of people who damaged us
4) love and loneliness
5) atonement... that thing that actually dictates the WHY we are where we are...

The book said that heaven is where you make sense of your yesteryears... and yes, the basic premise is... we all meet 5 people in heaven... and we all wait for at least one person in heaven...

And now I want to watch the DVD. Sniff...

But really, this is a great read.

TRUE LOVE SNAPSHOT

In Five People... it was said that we all have a True Love snapshot... one particular memory we keep coming up whenever we think of our loved one.

For all intents and purposes, JRA is my true love... and my snapshot of him will always be that afternoon (sunset) in Boracay, some 4 years ago... when he was scolding me about how he's doing everything to take care of me but am too stubborn I was hurting myself.

The tiff was about this bathing suit (and its ruched design) that was scratching at my singit... that later on produced a really bad welt there. I told him about it... and he insisted that we take a tricycle back to the resort. I insisted on walking... because I was feeling the holding hands while walking along the beach at sunset thing.

Anyway... that is my snapshot of him. Sure, he was upset and he was scolding me... but that will forever remind me of why I love him and how he must love me.

THE FIVE PEOPLE I'D MEET IN HEAVEN

From where am sitting right now... I can only think of my maternal Lola as a guaranteed welcome party. But then again, who you loved best may not necessarily be the one who will teach you your last lessons.

I also wonder... assuming the natural order of having my parents die before me... if Dad will be meeting me there... to enlighten me on whether he really had an affair before... and why.

And then I thought... i'd love for JRA to meet me too, but that would mean he'd have to die first.

And I figured, in a way, it's a fair enough deal... to lose him and then be welcomed by him, or to leave him, and then be his welcoming committee.

MY HEAVEN

What Dreams May Come (a fave movie) and Five people (now fave book) both propose the idea that you choose your heaven... in heaven.

JRA said, heaven for him be wherever he is with me and holding my hand.

My heaven is a little more complicated.

It's going to be a picnic or kiddie party... where all the kids I really found cute or cared about will be present... and my sis will be there as a kid herself... and i'd be taking pictures of them and attending to them and laughing at them...

I'd be a witness to their antics and cuteness...

And JRA will be carrying a child in his arms (most likely, Pyro), watching me...

THANK YOU

To Tatang Rome and G, for their padala

and to ate sienna for making them karay...

and to mari for taking them to me, plus all the concern because i kept getting sick

and to doc emer who cared more about my tonsils and health than i'll ever do....

it's really a privilege having such wonderful friends...
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