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 |  I wonder if this'll make any sense at all. |
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** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Thanks tirong  ! Asteg ehhh :)We all need to vent once in a while. Thank you for listening. Check out the Blogging Newsletter!
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| Look at my new blog image! Isn't tirong amazing? Thanks so much Ty, I love it! If you can recall my past entries he's my friend back at the Philippines. I'm so glad to have met him; what a character, what a person! Anyway, the skin on my nose is sorta peeling so I'm feeling really icky. Mama said it's because the weather change is affecting us a lot so the skin is reacting. She told us to put some cream on it but putting some on makes me feel even ickier. Like I have oil on my face. And I don't like that. But I have bigger problems than my skin  Not that I can really call them problems. My cousin Ron works at Tim Horton's and he recommended me and E to his manager so we went there today for an interview... I figured that that is better than hanging out in the house all day with nothing to do. At first I didn't really like to come out because of the cold and all, but the weather's been better these last few days. Long story short the both of us got hired so we train the next two weeks and then we'll start at April.Public transportation here is so much more disciplined than where I came from. I marveled at how accurate and on time you have to be just to catch a bus and I hate that there's so many stops along the way that it just confuses me but I guess that's to be expected since I'm new in this place. I know anyone would be confused too if they ever went to Manila and tried public transpo. Back in the Philippines buses stopped everywhere, even in the middle of the streets just to load passengers. That causes traffic. Among other things  It's funny too how cars here stop at a STOP sign even though there's no cars or people in sight. I don't know, maybe I'm just not used to it, but it just seems so silly! Whenever our car stops on one I'm like, "Go already!"  Yeah, I'm impatient. And they have speed signs on certain roads like 40 KM only. I'm like  . The roads are wide and there's no one in sight and you have to drive that slow??? Talk about discipline!I'm not even gonna talk about seat belts. Safety is really a concern here, I can tell. I like how the roads are so wide here. Cars don't even switch lanes cause they just drive straight, straight, straight. Absolutely no traffic. Back home the roads are narrow and the streets are so congested because there's too many cars and not enough road. That's why the drivers back home are master manueverers. Yes, I'm making that a word I knew a Canadian who migrated to the Philippines and at first she was really scared to drive in our streets because drivers are adamant and buses and jeepneys always just stop suddenly in the middle of the streets and everything's so haywire But she got used to traffic and all the mayhem Man, I miss all the mayhem back home.My cousin May asked me while we were on the car, "Is the environment here better than it is in the Philippines?" and I said, "Definitely better." Then she asked, "So do you like it here now?" and I said, "No," and then we all laughed. Toronto's a nice enough city, but given the chance I would still jump a plane and fly straight home without any second thoughts. If only life is simple that way. |
| I never thought I'd be watching hockey on a Saturday night but I just did. Okay, so I didn't really watch hockey. I just pretended to look interested and then after a couple of yawns I got up and came in here We had our first snow today. Mama told us to snap a couple of pictures so my Tito Rodel and Tita Clarisse took pictures of us shoveling it. Papa enjoyed it a lot. He said that it was a lot better than shoveling sand or dirt back in the Phi. He even wanted to shovel the neighbor's driveway! My ten year old cousin May and Tita Clarisse were pros in shoveling. Maricor did a pretty good job too. Me? I just sort of scraped around and stuff.. oh, well.I also talked to R today and it was pretty nice hearing his voice. And the call wasn't rushed, he bought a call card back home. Today is our monthly anniversary so you know And we always text each other and stuff. Lots of e-mails, too. Communication is really the thing to make this work so we have to do the best we can.Tonight a couple of my dead aunt's friends came by and they were common-law partners. The girl is a Filipina and the guy is Jamaican. It was so funny cause they just came back from a vacation in the Philippines and Henry (the Jamaican dude) was very enthusiastic. He was a cheerful guy and every five minutes he declared, "I looooooove it there. I do! Nice country, nice! I'd go back in a second if only I had the money." He went on to say that out of all his travels the trip to the Philippines was the one he loved the most. He said that the people were friendly, the places beautiful, the food fantastic, and the locals entertaining. He also said that he would love to live there if only he could. Then they went on to recount the places they visited and I was laughing so much. Henry was very entertaining himself, see. Then he and my dad went on to talk about money and stuff. They both agreed on a couple of things: that money is a good thing but never let the money control you instead of you controling it. If you earn ten, spend five, then keep five. You don't spend ten if you only earn ten, that's stupid. Some people even wanna spend twenty even though they only earn ten (ahem, credit cards?) that's why we really have to be smart about money. Then the conversation heated up because the Filipina didn't agree with Henry and Papa's outlook and we all thought it's gonna go blow but thankfully it all went under control. Papa then sang "Jamaica Farewell" which really cracked us all up. Hey, that's a good song.Anyway, I may be showing the snow pictures soon. But I'm afraid I look stupid with all that jacket on me Tomorrow we'll be going to church and then eating out with my other cousins. Then tomorrow night Tito Rodel's gonna be leaving for the Philippines. He's gonna be there three weeks. Maybe I could fit in his luggage... ha, ha. Seriously speaking though, I'm much better off today than the first few days, which I think is to be expected. I'm not crying that much now (wow). Pretty soon I'll be looking for a job but right now I'm just settling in. I'm sorry for not being able to visit you guys for a while now (bad, bad Tin!) but I promise I'll make it up to all of you soon. It's gonna be hard to catch up! |
 Haha, that looks nice. Can you guess where I am now? Okay so yeah we're here, and it's cold... though we had 'perfect weather' when we arrived. The temp yesterday was at +12 so it wasn't that much cold when they picked us up at the airport. Now the weather outside is 0 degrees, and I'm wearing triple layers (thanks, In Your Dirtiest Pants  . I'm not wearing any socks, though, so I'm getting pretty cold! (spank me now dragonfly~guess who's back? . We had a LOOONG flight but everything's okay. We flew four hours from Manila to Narita, Japan, then 12 hours from there to here. My legs were sore on the last hours of the flight (they're too long for my own good, I think.) But we survived. Actually everything went smoothly and we have God to thank for that. I haven't been here 24 hours but I miss home already. Ate Grace and I sobbed all over the phone this morning, and when I heard Nate's voice saying "Opo" or "Yes" when Ate asked him, "Do you love Tita Joy? Do you miss Tita Joy?" my heart broke. I just paused while typing this and my eyes are watering again. I am forever his Tita Joy. I miss them so much. They're gonna try and come visit us here in December, I think. That's great, but another thing that makes me cry is Ramon. Of course, I miss him. Before leaving the Philippines we were both crying over the phone. I think our breakup caused us to realize how much we really love each other. He already called me last night but we were rushed cause the call was freaking expensive. We have been texting since then and last night before going to sleep I received a message from him and then I just cried and cried. But despite all that he's also the one that's keeping me strong besides the Lord. He said he misses me and that he's very lonely but time will pass and hopefully we'll be together again soon. I keep receiving "I love you" messages from him and it's bittersweet. I don't know, I just... miss him. My cousins came last night and they were nice enough but it just doesn't feel like home. And I don't know if it ever will. Equilibrium says hi. Thanks zwisis for the touching cNote. Thanks to everyone for their encouragement. I will try to blog soon and give a more detailed account of the things that had happened and will happen. tirong , punta ka dito sa December? Di nga? Kala ko girlfriend mo uwi ng Pinas sa Pasko?Man it's cold and I haven't showered for 3 DAYS!!! Yahoo! |
| I've got a headache and there's still tons to do and I feel like I cannot take all of this anymore. I want to collapse into bed and sleep for like 2 days. But I can't. We're flying within 12 hours and my bags aren't even packed yet. THERE'S JUST TOO MUCH TO DO!!! so before this headache goes full-blown, I just want to say that R and I got back together. I saw all his effort just to prove to me that he still loves me and I do still love him so there you go. He snuck out of work yesterday and followed me where I was and then we went home and he helped my dad with all the boxes and I saw how hard he tried to get back into my family's good graces and we talked all the night (even though he has to work early the next day and travel back to Pilar). And so everything fell into place again. So we're doing this long-distance. Lord helps us. The next time I make an entry I'll be in the Land of Cold. Keep me in your thoughts.  |
| "And looking back on where we've been I'd do it all again I loved you all the way." The fam and I were doing videoke a while ago and when my sister came to this song something inside me stirred. And noooo, I'm not getting into my sappy mode, it just made me think. For me being able to say those words to someone is... priceless. Knowing that you've been through lots of pain, trials, and heartaches, but loving someone so completely that you are willing to go through all that hell again just to be with him or her in the end is something really precious. It takes real love to able to say it sincerely, with all your heart and soul. And I guess... someday I want to be able to say that to someone. To mean it with all my heart and to love him with everything I've got... and him loving me back just as much. Honestly speaking a lot of people tell me I'm smart but when it comes to love and relationships I think I get really stupid. My father was right all along—I tend to focus too much on that significant someone and in turn it causes me to lose sight of other things. I want to be able to love intelligently. Cause when I fall it's like my rational thinking shuts down and all I do is listen and obey my emotions. And that's not good. But I digress. When I think of my mom and dad, my friend Chester and his wife Mhayko, and even here in WdC: David McClain and Mel aka Mrs Tor , Nada and her husband, emmyloo and bassmaster , Lauriemariepea and P, and Startiara and Daniel—these are the people that I think the above lyrics can apply to. And someday, in His time, God will make the right man come along... and then I'll have that, too. |
| was bittersweet. I ate tons of chicharong bituka or pig guts (sorry that's the best translation I could come up with) . The best are sold on our town plaza and I can still remember how Ate Grace and I used to buy them everyday all those years ago. The memory still makes me smile I walked around my favorite mall even though there was a weekend sale going on. There were a lot of people shopping and I used to be one of them every time sale season came around. But that day I felt detached. I felt alone and sad and I was all emo.  Tut tut.I visited my friends. It was so sad! I can't believe I'm not going to see them for... I don't know. I am so used to seeing and talking to them everyday. I'm really gonna miss them. I spent my last night at Pilar with Ramon. It rained that night and when we found some shelter we just held hands and talked. I think it was for about an hour. The both of us had to go; I had to go home and pack and he had to pick up his family somewhere. We stalled for as long as we can, though. He still wants to get back together. Arrgh, four days before my departure and I'm obsessing over this. Not good. Oh, and I ate other Filipino street foods as much as possible that day. Loads of isaw or chicken intestines, and Ramon's and my favorite, tenga or pig ears. Malou, Ramon and I was at Malou's room and we sat on the floor eating our exquisite dinner while it rained bucketfolds outside. It was one of the best meals of my life. It was smoky and crunchy and soft at the same time, and with the award-winning sauce... yum! Anthony Bourdain should really get his butt over here in the Phi. I just got an e-mail from my mother and anybody can tell that she's really excited. I'm still smiling... it's funny. She said that the weather there's getting warmer... thank God! |
| After much chaos, we were finally able to move in at my sister's house here in Pateros. It was fun but exhausting. The truck came at around 10 am yesterday and the Biker Boys who helped us move and carry the furniture was so much fun! They were loud, and funny, and noisy... afterwards they feasted upon the things that we wouldn't need anymore, but were still useful to them... then my dad gave them shirts and other stuff. You wouldn't believe how many clothes we have! It's... unbelievable. So the truck came two times to haul off our stuff and we laughed about the problems they had encountered. The gear would not insert into fourth, then the clutch also got burned and they had to stop in the middle of the highway But everything went well. Ramon drove us (the family) to Pateros... then my dad gave him a Lacoste T-shirt it was funny.I would love to tell you about everything but right now the situation won't permit me to produce a halfway decent blog entry. My nephew Nate wants me to play with him again so I have to oblige... hey, I didn't know how cool toys are nowadays. Thank you Nate for opening my eyes. So it's official... we're flying March 14 and staying here at my sister's until then... the boxes are ready but we haven't organized them yet. WE HAVE TOO MANY STUFF! And now I have to pick between some of mine... I would hate to leave anything but I know that I have to. Oh, and I gave away my diaries yesterday.  I was about to throw the old notebooks but gave it to street children instead. They sell old papers and that's the way they make their living. So, I've practically given away my private thoughts... I can still remember some of the things I wrote there:"Ooh, he sat next to me today! He's so cute." "Do you think he likes me? I think he likes me." "Stupid, worthless piece of BLEEP! It's not my loss, it's his!" Okay, so there's not much going on there Til next update! |
| March 1. Okay, so I only have about half a month left here in my country until God knows when. We were cleaning the aquarium this morning and the TV was tuned in to a local morning show dealing with current events and stuff. Local farmers were being interviewed because they have been on a hunger strike since February 12. FEBRUARY 12! The government official involved was being interviewed too and I was furious becuase he was so unfeeling about everything. You can tell that he was trying to sound sorry and understanding and again he promised all kinds of stuff but said that he can only attend to the farmer's needs next week. What the..? They have been on strike since Feb12, you moron! And to think that the farmers only want the land that is really theirs. Our government is seriously screwed up. Before the interview ended this one lady farmer's plea to the President Arroyo broke my heart. Her voice was shaking with anger and passion even though she was on the verge of crying. She said that on the last elections Arroyo asked for their help and votes and they helped her. Now that she's already in power, where is she when they need her? Local and Senatorial elections are coming up again this May so politics is pretty heated up again. Come to think of it, when wasn't it in heat?! (Okay, so that sounded wrong.) We're not going to be here on elections though so that's kinda disappointing. It's crazy, I hate how politics have become in our country but I still want to know how everything would turn out. Now to a lighter side... I got this from one of my favorite books and it said that even though the Philippines may not be a wealthy country we were once recognized as the most cheerful and joyful race in the whole world. The author of the book also asked, "Pero bobo nga ba ang mga Pinoy?" ("But are Filipinos really dumb?") He went on to say that he doesn't think so. He said maybe we just have a really hard time expressing what we really want to say.  A notice at a Megalink ATM machine: "OOF LINE" A billboard at a motel: "Affordable, Clean, and Convenience" At one wall in Laloma: "Huli ihi, putol titi!" Translation: "When you're caught peeing we're gonna chop off your thingy!" At one self-service restaurant in Cebu: "Please help our comfort room clean." At one highway in Pampanga: "We Make Modern and Antique Furniture." At a delivery truck: "NOT FOR HERE." At a very old wall in Libis, Quezon City: "Danger Wall is Falling!" At one wall: "Do you know how to bark? Only dogs pee here!" Sign of PLDT: "SLOW MEN AT WORK" ( And to think I worked for the company!) A huge sign: "Welcome to the Philippines—the only catholic country in Asia!" Underneath it: BEWARE OF PICKPOCKETS At one building in Cebu: "Atty. Domingo Carriedo, Notary Public. Also receives laundry on Sundays." At a grocery in Baguio: "Fresh Frozen Chicken Sold Here" A sign at Cubao: "NONE ID NOTHING ENTRY" At a construction site: "Now showing—the carpenters." At another construction site: "Erection going on." Flower shop at Rizal Avenue: "We sell artificial fresh flowers" At Luneta Boulevard: "BAWAL TUMAE SA BULEVARD" Translation: "No taking a dump at the Boulevard!" At a window at one restaurant in Baguio: "Wanted: Boy Waitress" Street in San Juan: "Bawal magtapon ng binalot na tae dito" translation: "Do not throw wrapped feces here" At Bulacan: "We repair electric fun" Vacant lot near Makati Avenue: "DON'T PARKING" At San Andres: "NO UNRINATING, on the over WALLS" At a convent: "2nd Floor Upstairs" And that's not fiction we really have those signs here! So if that didn't make you smile today then I don't know what will! |
| My friends concocted a despedida or going-away party for me last night. Almost all of us were flat broke but the night worked out like magic. Food was abundant and booze was overflowing. My very best friends were with me and some old and long-lost friends came, too. It was a good night, as usual my friends were loud and crazy. Papa even got pissed at around 1 AM because Soc was too loud. He stuck his head out the window and hollered at Soc to shut up. HAHAHA! I lined up some pictures for you guys to see. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Mike, Shiela and me... right aftet the both of them threw up. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Early into the night, that's Unyot and me, with Soc looking goofy up there ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Half of me with Ramon, Kuku and Soc. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Me and Carlo, my favorite seatmate way back in high school everytime Math exams came around. Heh heh. Hey, I'm his favorite seatmate when English exams are on, ya know. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Me and my friend Makol. It was around 4 AM, he came from his band's gig so I was touched that he still came. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Me behind Pmay, me beside Mike It was Pmay's first time meeting our crew and she texted me today saying she's emotional cause she had a great time last night but felt awful because that might be the last time she would see all of us, too. Yeah, she pretty much fell in love with us Touching moments: - Shiela and Mike's secret video messages for me. - Ramon showing up with the largest box of Yellow Cab pizza, New York's finest, which everybody had no problem devouring. - Kuku telling me he couldn't come but he only said that to surprise me. - Makol's hug and kiss on the cheek with the words, "Best of luck at Toronto. I know you'll be awesome over there." (Oh Lord I hope so) - Ramon's text message after he went home. What it said: "Babe, thank you. Tonight I felt more than ever how much I really love you. I wanted so much to touch and hold you but I can't anymore. It's hard. I miss you so much. I still love you." Funny moments: - Countless. I finally collapsed on bed at around 5 AM but wasn't able to sleep a wink. I had to get up at 7 AM to clean around, yep everything was a mess. But everything was worth it. I planned on sleeping this afternoon but Malou came to hang. She and her husband (or boyfriend, according to her), John, was here last night too but they had to leave early. I managed to catch some sleep afterwards but it's not enough. Tonight's gonna be sweet. |
So I've been back at Manila for two days now and the heat is excruciating.  Baguio's climate was so good that being back here just makes me wanna weep. Anyway our weekend getaway to the City of Pines went very nicely, and I've got the pictures to prove it.   We arrived at Baguio City at about 5:30 am Saturday morning, and woke up at around 7:30 am. You should've seen my eyes, they were red and swollen and just plain gross. I remember being so cold when I woke up that I whined to myself, "I wanna go home!" But as soon as the sun came up the weather settled nicely. We toured around the city for the whole day but came back to the Inn where we were staying every now and then for rest.I saw Kuku at the Tam Awan Village and it was so funny cause we didn't recognize each other. My dad and sister was the one who saw him and called him, and when we finally recognized each other we both burst out laughing. There's a pic of us together at the album yonder.We went to a lot of places and saw a lot of Natives. The natives were, uhm, very friendly, cause as soon as you pose for a pic they're immediately right beside you and afterwards you have to give them ten pesos for courtesy or respect. My dad was very respectful.  We slept at around 10 PM Saturday night and woke up early for strawberry picking. We travelled to La Trinidad, Benguet were the strawberries were cheap, a kilo of fresh ones only costs 150 pesos. After picking all our shoes and slippers were covered with mud but it was worth it. It was so beautiful up there; you can see the mountains and the fields were covered with strawberries. My nephew Nate was a riot—he kept picking out green strawberries and the lady in charge was sorta pissed cause it wasn't ripe yet and they were still growing it.   Afterwards we went shopping—that was great! I had no money with me cause I was flat broke (and still am) but Maricor and Ate Grace were there for support. They bought me baguio t-shirts, scarves, spadrils, and a lot of other stuff. Papa bought a lot of strawberry wine! The van was absolutely packed on the way home. There were lots of peanut brittles and other Baguio goodies. They also bought a lot of vegetables for it was really cheap over there at Benguet. I cooked the brocolli yesterday together with some corned beef and it was so good!We started the travel back home at around 11:30 am on Sunday morning. The drive on the zig-zagging roads down Marcos Highway was breathtaking—too bad I don't have any pictures of the amazing views I saw. The mountains were absolutely beautiful, and the rice fields at La Union were pretty, too. I'm a city girl so I'm not used to seeing that kind of stuff, so it was all good. We arrived at Metro Manila around 4:30 PM but the traffic at Cubao was horrible. Yep, back to the city, back to real life We finally arrived home at around 7:00 PM. I was asleep at 8. Just typing all of that kinda exhausted me again, so excuse me if I log off right away. Bye! |
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