pen please!

i just realized that it’s not only with keeping notebooks that i have affinity with.  i’m also fond of writing down start dates of anything to take note (again?) of the period of consumption.  you think it’s bizarre?  i guess you are right! lol

all my personal stuff has dates written on it. i like to keep tab of how long it takes me to consume an entire bottle of lotion, how long a compact powder lasts or how fast i can finish off a tube of toothpaste.  lol.  my sister’s dependable permanent marker keeps me company in my pursuit of my quirkiness. 

i picked up this nasty habit from my mother who does this so diligently when i was young.  though, she preferred to mark the start dates on the calendar instead. i carried that on and voila!  my love for pen and quirkiness live on!

my love affair with notebooks.

even at this age and time, i still prefer a notebook and pen over ms word or wordperfect.  i cannot recall how this love affair started but for the longest time, i’ve maintained a good number of notebooks containing scribbles on random thoughts, to-do lists, budgets, reminders and what-have-you.

it’s not something i was consciously doing before, but it became a part of me when i started college and was sort of living on my own.  whenever i filled an entire notebook, i felt exhilarated. it is as if i’ve preserved memories in a time capsule.  though in my teens, my notebooks usually contained dear-diary entries which ended up being read so i didn’t bother keeping them anyway. looking back, it would still have been nice to have kept those.

it could be just a habit or even a quirk, but as my law professor would tell the class, contracts (or just about anything that’s written down) aids human memory.

ang bekimon.

hindi ako gaanong interesado sa mundo ng mga jejemons kaya mas nakuha ni bekimon ang aking atensyon.

parang wala naman silang pagkakahawig sa style ng pagsasalita o pagsulat. kaya di ko rin maintindihan kung bakit ang bekimon ay variation ng jejemon.

nakakalibang panoorin mga videos ni bekimon. mas natural at mas nakikita at naririnig ko araw-araw sa mga kaibigan at kakilala.
nasa iyo bekimon ang aking paghanga!

elevator busters

were you ever purposely boxed out of an elevator? did you ever get annoyed
at those people who would not hold the door open even if you're voice is 10 decibels higher in shrieking 'up!' or 'down!'? 
these creatures are the elevator busters monopolizing the lifts each time you badly needed that ride. watch out because they operate in groups. 
as they say, there's strength in numbers.

mommy mita’s 60th birthday.

this is a belated post for my dear mother’s birthday.

this year’s celebration was poignant because this was my mama’s first birthday without her better half.  i think she’s more pensive because this year marked another milestone in her life.  despite all these, this woman is still very thankful of everything that has been, there is and will be in her life.  with my papa passing on, she believes that there’s more reason for her to live well because she’s the only one left for us, her children.

i’d like to this post to be a mini-tribute to the caring and strong-willed woman, i call my mama.  a breast cancer survivor of 11 years, my mother has sworn to offer her life to God’s greatness.  many lives have been enriched and touched because of this.  she has not only survived breast cancer, but has outlived her youngest sibling who was not as fortunate as she to have conquered the big c.  she had unselfishly taken care of my tita emma, her children included.  when my tita emma passed on, i cried much for her children but more so for my mother, whose grief seemed so deep. i know that my mama’s grief not only rested with the loss of a sibling but also with the uncertainty of her existence, her purpose. for a time, she seemed lost and aimless.  i could distinctly recall her saying 11 years back, that she survived breast cancer for a reason.  it was even more to being a mother to her children. she always spoke of the Lord’s mission for her to fulfill.  has she served her purpose with my tita emma’s passing on?  this made us even pray harder to the Lord.  my siblings and i kept on  imploring for God’s grace to bless her with more years ahead with us. 

of course, my mama is as flawed as any great mother in the world.  she has her own share of shortcomings which make her more unique and distinctly my own mama.  her penchant for cleanliness is one.  i could not fathom why she would rather spend an entire day or two, slaving over our laundry than sitting in front of tv or going somewhere else fun.  “it’s because i want your clothes well taken care of,” she would say.  it’s one of her quirks, yes, it is.  but it’s one of her personal barometers of how her children should be taken care of.

i’ve taken most of the afternoon off, two days ago, to prepare for a little birthday surprise. i knew she would be extra-lonely without my papa on her special day so i knew it meant a lot to her when i kept her company.

yes, my mama’s birthday was more sad than festive.  i guess neither of our birthdays will ever be the same without my papa.  but i’m confident that she has appreciated our warm thoughts and birthday greetings.

to the woman who remains steadfast in her love for the Lord and her family, a million thanks to you and our fervent prayers to your health and well being. 

happy 60^th, ma! we love you dearly.

the soundtrack of my life.

i would say that it varies in the different stages of my life. the soundtrack is a reflection a complex me over the years.

it will always be eraserheads and rivermaya singing in my head whenever i think of my high school days and friends. definitely, it was a “troubled” time in search of my individuality and close affinity with true friends.  little did i know that these bands’ music will be the soundtrack of my youth, of the times i will always go back to and of friends who i have deep and lasting relationships with.  had i not value the precious time i was allowed for hanging out, i wouldn’t dare sneak out during lunchtime to a friend’s house just to watch eraserheads or rivermaya on ‘sang lingo nApo sila!  that was me, 17 years ago.

the years that followed seemed too rosy to be true.  the soundtrack sounded cheesier each day as i floated in air and felt the excitement of dating and courtship.  i mean, there’s no better time to be cheesy and play cheeky songs endlessly than those days.  i rest my case.

but eventually, things settle and reality sets in.  i suddenly found myself in the midst of the working force, trying to find my way up or across, like in my case.  there was suddenly no music in the background.  just a nagging buzz of unending to-do lists and sometimes unrealistic goals i chose to have. 

when i found my balance, music did play again.  this time, the sound is more me. i absolutely have no regard and sensitivity to others’ disliking of those in my playlist.  how could i when it’s only me hearing air supply, abba, englebert humperdinck, backstreet boys, lady gaga, byonce, greenday, peryodiko, among others, playing over and over.  thank God for ipod! 

i presently have a conscious effort to know and embrace pop music though sometimes i felt no substance in it.  i need to be in-the-know to be a lot cooler that i already am. well, that’s what these bagets friends of mine say.  ergo, tuning to a pop radio station is a must.  has it grown on me?  what has—the pop music or the radio station? neither!

to blog or not to blog.

my friend, karlo, will have a fit if he finds out that i am already blogging.  i was against writing a blog that i oftentimes dissuade him to have one.  i will dare say that he’s more cheesy (for the lack of a better word for it), being the artist between us two (‘yan ha!), thus his need to express his thoughts and what-nots.

but my dislike didn’t prevent me from reading good blogs. in fact, i’ve been following some.  and for the love of me, i marvel on how these blogger-idols have maintained their posts relevant, interesting and insightful without getting too personal.

there!  don’t you just find that marvelous? well, i do! thus the birth of this work-in-progress blog. 

i also aim to be insightful and interesting without getting too personal and close for comfort.  i will always abide to my dear-diary rule.  the fool-proof golden rule i’ve always adhered to.  so, those who know me well enough reading this might have a clear idea to who and which particular instance i’m referring to from here and thereon.  and i like to keep it at that.

so, let’s blog! responsibly.

then and now.

i have this idea of pulling together a series of then-and-now posts.  the thought came when my mother, my sister and i were hollering over old photos dating back as old as the 40’s!  i really find it cool looking at old photos or hearing stories back in the day and comparing those with the “present.”

i hope that the series will be fun, interesting and a little personal, mind you! 

i’ll be showing photos of my ancestral home when it still looked like a home and not some weather-beaten stack of solid wood.

i’ll try to convince myself to show snapshots of my aunts and uncles then and now.  i know it will be hilarious!

i know there’s no need to defend my ground but i’m not throwing my golden rule in the wind.  i’m still maintaining a good measure of distance not to get too personal but i promise not to hold back in writing and posting anecdotes of my roots and my own, just in case.

now, where do i start? :-)

waiting in line

after two-and-a-half hours and a litre of bottled water, i finally made it to the top of the line. going home during rush hour and on a payday-sale friday is such a feat.

a powerful pick-me-up

(source: ms. deedee siytangco's angel thoughts column, manila bulletin)

Lord, when i am tired and weary, give me rest.
when i'm weak, may You be my be strength.
when i'm disappointed, help me trust in You.
when i'm hurting, heal me.
when i lose sight of life, restore Your spirit within me
and when things seem impossible,
let Your will be done!

a re-post worth sharing.