"deeply moving"

i just finished reading "a thousand splendid suns" last night. i was asked how i found the book. i answered, "it was moving."

i looked at the cover page just now and saw the Sunday Times review: "deeply moving". i now correct myself. it IS deeply moving.

now i know what a burqa is - and what it is for. when we were in genting, we saw many women in black burqas. they were covered from head to toe and only the eyes were seen. i thought they were scary. now i know there's more to it than that shallow opinion.

i loved getting a front-row view of another culture, another country, another religion, another time. i could relate to mariam. i could relate to laila. i don't know why... i am not in their shoes and i don't think i would ever be. siguro makapagbagbag-damdamin lang talga ang storya. sniff...

chef at home

kuya and i love this show. Airs every night at 11pm over afc (of course, after watching tayong dalawa at tfc haha).


Mr. Chef doesn't only show yummy recipes, he also shares practical tips about cooking. He claims his secret recipe is cooking without a recipe :)


His baby is so adorable too! Eats everything dada cooks. I would too! Sarap siguro nya maging dada.. Hihi lagi kang busog! mama is so swerte too! hihihi. siguro maraming binibiling pampaswerte tuwing CNY!

the ring and rome

i've always wanted to have a nice ring rosary. i don't pray it everyday but i have a certain fondness for it. i remember buying one from baclaran years ago, but it faded and rusted. i also searched in silver works but they didn't sell simple ones that i thought i could fancy.

when we were in switzerland, we didn't hesitate to visit rome, italy on my last weekend there. i never thought i could see it one day, but we were there, all awed and amazed and thankful for the chance we were given... it turned out to be a sort of an unplanned pilgrimage. it was worth all the hassle we had to face with the italian consulate. hehehe.

day 1
we saw the original icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help. we also met the filipino redemptorist priest who was there for a convention. i remembered all the wednesdays mama and i spent praying in the redemptorist church in baclaran - lighting candles and praying for the fondest desires of our hearts. Our Lady of Perpetual Help has a special spot in my memories.
next stop was the colosseum. before we went in, we saw this gladiator who invited us to pose for photographs. we all posed like crazy only to find out he would ask us for 10 euros each... he was such a pain! but we didn't want to ruin our fun time with such jerks like him.
the ruins of the colosseum. marvelous!

and the night shot outside - just after we had our good dinner.

then we headed off to the trevi fountain. they say your wish will come true when you throw your coin into the clear waters... but don't all wishing fountains claim it? hehehe no harm in trying. the fountain was a feast to the eyes. so relaxing and grand and breathtaking.

day 2
day 2 was reserved for vatican. i don't know what this ball was for, there was no caption in the courtyard of the vatican museum, but it sure was fun taking pictures "with" it.
inside the vatican museum: ceilings all adorned with paintings. it's nice in pictures but more awesome when seen with the naked eye... in fairness, 'di pumalya ang malalabo kong mata. hahaha!
we also saw the famous sistine chapel, but cameras were not allowed inside. so, no souvenir photos. i heard the reason they didn't allow cameras in certain areas of the museum was: they're trying to preserve the colors of the items there. and too much light may affect the quality of what's left of the original pieces.

next was the basilica. aaah nakakaiyak sa laki at ganda! hehe yun na lang ang nasabi. we weren't even talking with each other! just marveling and feasting on what our eyes could contain. when we learned there was an anticipated mass in latin, we didn't hesitate to attend. it was just too overwhelming even if i didn't understand a word of it. hehehe.
after the mass we met the most caring and loving creature. she is a filipina who works at the library of the vatican. she invited us to meet Msgr. Kabunga, one of the kind-hearted monsignors in the vatican. he was very gentle and he blessed us before we left. can't contain all these... must yell, "thank you, Lord!"
on our way out of the compound, comedy ito. we saw swiss guards! hahaha. our friend and companion is a swiss so we "asked" aka forced him to make friends with the swiss guards so we could take photos with them hahaha! susme, namilit lang.
the basilica at night:
this is a funny pic, instead of snow, leaves fell on cars. hahaha!
that night, something bothered me. because in the souvenir shop in the basilica, i found the ring i so desperately wanted, but i didn't buy it because i thought it was a bit expensive. they all convinced me that if i wanted it terribly, then i should go get it. i told myself: what better souvenir could i get from vatican than a ring rosary - one that i've been searching for... and i found it there. they agreed to accompany me back to the vatican the next day.

day 3
i finally bought it! wee! when we got there, the place was packed with people, all cheering and shouting for something. i asked one of the guards, "what are the people waiting for?" he answered, "look up, 2nd window from the right" and we looked: my galy it was the Pope giving his blessings to the people. so that's why they were cheering! so overwhelming talaga. grabe. nakakaiyak. it was a good thing we went back to buy the ring. we wouldn't have seen the Pope if we didn't go back.

off to the spanish steps. they say this place is adorned with a bounty of flowers during summer. but since it was winter when we got there, there were no flowers in sight. the place was just as beautiful.

this is their shopping area, similar to zurich bahnhofstrasse or singapore orchard or philippines gb5? busy, busy street. all those people shopping for goodies! i was contented just looking at them. never mind the shopping! it could be done elsewhere. hahaha!
the second to the last spot we went to was the pantheon - a temple to all the gods of the ancient rome. there is a gigantic dome and an opening at the center of it. the opening lets sunlight and rain in. there are small holes at the floor that act as drainage for rain water.

inside the pantheon:last stop was piazza navona. literally, plaza sya. :) there were clowns, tiangges, and just the usual sight of families taking time off.


haaay, the ring... i love it. :) i will keep it forever.

blurry

i'm scared. parang halos ganito na ang paningin ko sa paligid ko. getting older.

deserted

my usual way going to work is deserted on chinese new year. on a regular work day, this place is buzzing with employees going to work.

red team

red team - volt in! happy chinese new year! feeling chinese?! nakishare ng holiday hehehe.

pic taken at lavender mrt station.

at the end of the day

"at the end of the day" - ang paboritong sabihin ni jake cuenca nang minsang napanood ko sya sa the buzz. siguro every other sentence nya ay may ganito. buti na lang cute sya.

chinese new year. friday pa lang, 'di na kami magkandaugaga kakahanap ng bagong red shirt na isusuot para sa swerte. nakakita naman kami. pinakamatingkad ang shirt ni kuya, sumunod ang kay april, at pinakamapusyaw naman ang sa akin. yun lang ang nakita kong kasya.

sunday. sinama kami ni april sa mistulang reunion nilang college friends. kami ang red team! hehehe. small world talaga dahil nakita ko si lord na schoolmate ko nung college. narinig ko pa lang ang pangalan nya, naisip ko nang sya yun. at sya nga!

pagkatapos ng lunch sa napakalayong kaharian ng woodlands, naisip naming dumaan sa outlet store ng esprit sa yishun. e andun na rin lang kami sa dulo ng singapore, makapag shop man lang nang kaunti. ayos na sana e. kung di lang sana closed for renovation. hahaha! walang napala.

so naisip naming tumungo na sa city para tumingin ng pampaswerteng bagong tsinelas bago magsimba sa cathedral. ayos na sana ulit, kaso lang walang size at walang napusuang design. wala na namang napala! hahaha.

after ng mass, nakalimutan naming sarado lahat ng grocery sa buong mundo ng sg kapag chinese new year. so ang witty idea namin e sumugod sa mustafa. takot kaming magutom. ayos na sana. kaya lang, galanggam ang tao sa mustafa. ganun pala dun pag linggo, parang miyerkules sa baclaran. 'di namin kinaya ang dami ng tao. nag back-out kami. handa na kaming kumain ng sardinas kung walang bukas na grocery kinabukasan. wala na namang napala! ayos.

kailangan ni kuya magpa photocopy ng passport nya. dun sa tindahang pinuntahan namin bago umuwi, may tindang yakult. bumili ako ng isa. ayaw nilang 2. ni-gulp gulp ko ang yakult na parang wala nang bukas.

at the end of the day, i realized that my day has meaning after all.
at the end of the day, we three all got to wear red and survive the stares of the others.
at the end of the day, it's lovely because i met new acquaintances.
at the end of the day, i felt fulfilled because i heard mass.
and at the end of the day, i had yakult!
at the end of the day... (hala inabuso ang favorite phrase ni jake)

loooong wait

last november, april filed an online appointment with ICA (immigration and checkpoints authority) for our permanent residency application. she specifed: 2 applicants . we completed all requirements and were so confident that we will have a convenient submission for our 12:45pm appointment last friday. it was everything but easy.


we got there early. we secured our number - A146. we were happily chatting so we didn't see our number flashing. we saw the last call and by the time we got to the counter, the officer has already pressed for the next number. she was a bit irritated and asked us to sit down first and she will flash our number again. silly us missed the second flash. sheesh how chatty could we be?!?! nakakahiya talaga. this is not an excuse, but we didn't think we'd be called again in a matter of seconds!


when we finally got our turn, we were dismayed to know that our reservation was only for one person. the "2 persons" in the online application means 2 family members and not 2 separate applications. murphy's law acting in full force! this means only april will be accommodated because it was her registration. by then, it was also too late to get a new number as a walk-in applicant. the officer, sensing our frustration and feeling it was really an honest mistake, told me she's willing to help me if only i could wait until all the numbers were processed - just to be fair, she says. this means we'll have to wait until around 5-6pm. fine. i filed for half day leave anyway. so much for an early chinese new year celebration.


we were determined to wait for almost 5 hours just to finish this ordeal. after all, the officer was kind enough to help. even if i honestly think she could just have processed our 2 applications at the same time, i figured out this is what makes singapore different - walang lagay, walang under the table, fair kung fair. but if i were the officer, i will "help" by processing the 2 applications. it doesn't take that long anyway. but i'm NOT the officer so i better shut up. :)


after the long wait (i have a book. goodie.), she called me. she was apologetic for letting me wait that long. i wasn't angry or irritated. i was grateful. i respect their process and what's important is she took my application.


now, if only they'll have it approved in 3 to 6 months... it would be perfect :) otherwise, if they deny it, then it's simply not for me. it just means i spent half a day in ICA. period. hehe. pls approve? pretty please?

staying just a little bit longer

april and i filed for permanent residency yesterday. looks like we're staying for a longer time. maybe, maybe not. it just seems the best thing to do with all the cutting down of resources lately.

i understand it doesn't necessarily mean you are still guaranteed of a job if you were axed when you are a PR. it just means you could stay longer while searching for a new work. an employment pass expires if your yearly contract is not renewed, or simply terminated. you are forced to go home when this happens. but still, the job demands remain at a hurting low level so everybody, PR or not, is just stuck on the hunt.

we were assured that "our team is on a good standing unless, of course, situations change drastically." we don't have control for these drastic things. so no one and nothing is safe and consistent and stable. something might happen today or tomorrow or next week or next month and assurance is never a guarantee.

i guess the only thing we could do right now is just the very basic live-one-day-at-a-time thing. start each day thanking God... this is another day that i am still employed, do my best to fulfill my daily tasks, and end each day by thanking Him again for the very humbling survival. oh, and still try to enjoy each moment :)

Sun peeks

This is my new path from suntec to the mrt. Salamat kay ate a and
princess natuklasan ko rin ang shortcut na ito.

Spotted: sun peeking through the trees on my way to the mrt at 6:30
pm. Sun's still so high!

Time to rebond

Hehe

What is papa?

Ang pogi ni papa derek.

Palatandaan mooo

Lahat ng maghanap sa bahay namin, ang binibigay naming palatandaan ay
ang bakang ito.

"pag may nakita kang baka, malapit na ang bahay namin."

"ha? Baka?"

"oo. Baka"

Aba, baka nga! In fairness, singlaki sya ng totoong baka at nakatali
pa sya! Baka nga naman makawala! Bongga!

Sun peeks

Spotted mr. Sun mightily peeking through some trees at kembangan
station. I like the walking paths on the grass!

View from pantry 3

Nice view of the, umm, rotonda and the tiny people and cars, and park-
like area in front of tower 5.

View from pantry 2

Nice view of the suntec sky garden and some buildings from afar.

Jan and i discovered this garden some months ago while trying to kill
time. There's a nice fountain at the heart of the garden. Maraming
labers dito. Wowowie.

View from pantry 1

Nice view of the suntec towers 3 and 4 and the fountain of wealth.

* Out of the 3 (more or less) wishes i've made in this fountain, 1
came true.

Pantry

This is our new neat pantry. Our team moved to the new office - 6th
floor. Now we don't have to be nomads and eat on our work areas.
Shushal! I lab it!

taho

I bought taho for breakfast yesterday matapos kong tanungin kay ahngel kung anong english ng taho. there's a bean curd stall at suntec.

my taho didn't have sago. I didn't know you have to say you want sago before they put some. It's ok, i don't like sago that much (uuuy, i smell sour grapes).

I miss manong's taho in pinas. Every morning, we wait for him. you'll know he's there when you hear him shout, "ta-hooooooooo!" and then he becomes visible, carrying his stuff: 2 tin pail-like containers attached to the opposite ends of a sturdy pole. and then he expertly scoops the taho, sago, and arnibal. sometimes, he would scoop out some watery substance that formed on top of the taho and throw it on the ground. "manong, padagdag ng arnibal, " and lagi kong sabi.

P5 is just right for a breakfast beverage. Later on, prices increased to P10.

It's a sad news that taho is prepared nastily in pinas, as exposed by a popular news program. It was a shock to most taho fans - kaming lumaki nang naging parte ng buhay ang taho... at si manong.

Paypay, tsaa, fashion

Thanks to ate A for the very useful pasalubong: a very girly pink
paypay. Sosyal! This is imported from the beautiful sidewalks of
baclaran, philippines!

I had tea this morning, medyo pinawisan... Tamang-tama ang paypay na
bigay ni ate A. Malakas ang buga nya. Useful!

At naalala ko ang kabataan ko noong elementary. Uso ang pamaypay noon.
Di pa erkon ang mga classroom. At halos gawing sukatan ng fashion at
pagkakaibigan ang bilang ng dedication na meron ang paypay mo.
Uunahing sulatan ang mga stick. Pag marami kang friends, yung iba sa
tela na susulat. Ayos. Pausuhin ko kaya ulit? Hehe.

a minute of thought - on kilig

i joined the twilight frenzy. yes, i'm one of them, digging every page of the book that's full of hype. all i could say is, nakakakilig sya. very light, very simple (yet complicated) love story. a few more hundred pages to go.

isis

Matagal-tagal na rin akong 'di nakakapag isis ng banyo. Medyo
naninilaw na, sumisigaw na ng "isisin mo na 'ko!"

Fine. Inisis ko na. I miss city apartment. 'di kailangan mag-isis.
Tamad...

Ayan ang puti na nya! Busilak pa sa niyebe! Yahoo!

Toinks kita ang paa ko!

mayuming smile

manhole cover in front of smailing court. isang mayuming ngiti ang sasalubong sayo hihihi!

a minute of thought - on tantrums

everybody has one.

it could range from being beast-like to just deciding to cease to exist: by having an invisible shield from all the elements of the universe.

i don't like it when people - me included - have tantrum spells.

it's not the world's fault that your day isn't as you expected.

just smile.

:)

a minute of thought - on exploring singapore

i was in bugis with tonette this afternoon.
i remembered how i always wanted to explore every little nook of singapore.
it would probably be adventurous to explore one MRT station per weekend.
kuya thinks the idea is dumb.
so do my other friends. :))
but it would be good.
come to think of it!

What is violence?

Haha! Violence = grand theft auto. Susme. At first glance the pic
seems just a peaceful night drive scene. Once you see the player in
action, you'll wish the mtrcb gave it a bad rating for kids. Hehe!

The player steals cars and kills people as part of missions. He can
kill anybody, beat the red light, get the guns and money of those he
killed, and after all the action, replenish his health by eating a
burger in a burger king look-alike restaurant. Indeed, this is a game
for adults!

singkit

bakit ba lahat na lang ng masarap kainin e masama sa katawan?!?

gusto ko ng bulalo. yung may utak.

a minute of thought - on the new ez link cards

they are issuing out new EZ link cards. EZ link cards are used for the transportation system here - bus, mrt, some cabs, and yes, even mc donald's. everybody has it, unless you want to use the one-time-use cards. would be good if we have this back home :)

a minute of thought - on worrying

i am a worrier.

sometimes, i am more of a pessimist rather than an optimist.

my mom indirectly taught me that something could ALWAYS be done about an issue.

it helps me a lot.

Dark clouds ahead

I was on my way home when i saw these dark, mighty, almost angry, but
seemingly peaceful clouds from a distance. I could see a poodle outline!

my maiden masadz

sunday = the day before the day i look forward to. i look forward to monday because it is the day i go back to work. with everybody being cut from the work army, i am excited for every working day i have.

this is partly a lie because i somehow dread going back to work. i became a holiday brat. but i think again and again that every day i wake up with work is a blessing.

so i stuffed up this holiday. i ate kilos and kilos of rice (walang ulam?) and had hours and hours of sleep. to end the patabaing-baboy drama, i went for a massage and a facial with kuya and april. i have to be as psyched as i could be for work :)

this is the waiting area of true spa. yes, nagoyo ako ng true spa. i signed up to a package i'm hoping i could consume in my lifetime. haha. i remember how elzie and i sternly said "no! a big N-O! we will not sign up after the free massage!" we ended up signing the contract after an hour of painstaking convincing from ate. haha. so much for the big no. but in all fairness to true spa, they have a nice place.

this is the dressing room prior to the massage. susme, they gave me a towel and a disposable ti-pan. labas ang pwet! susme! this is my first whole-body massage. nakakahiya. i am very aware when my butt cheeks were exposed to auntie! hahaha. pero masarap naman ang massage ni auntie. not too hard, not too soft. just right. kuya and april liked it too.
this is the facial room. i look like a mumu. si ate, minurder ang ilong ko. kung makatusok lang parang wala akong damdaming nasasaktan! susme. nilait din nya ko, "you have uneven skin tone and fine lines." haha. fine. i am aging with grace, ate!
all in all this sunday was superb. i yearned for relaxation and i had just the right amount of it. all equipped now for a whole year of work. :)

281

I've been reading this book for ages! I'm still on page 281. I'm so
distracted. There seem to be so many wonderful things to do!

This book pokes the tear glands every time i dive into it.

Books on queue: A Thousand Splendid Suns and Twilight books. Yes, i'm
joining the wagon!

I wish i could finish reading them!

Plantsadora (in action)

Hirap kunan ng pose na to! Haha!

Plantsadora (break)

Back to work on monday! I have to plantsa my gabundok na tambak na
damit. 'di na ata sanay ang mga damit ko na pinaplantsa sila. dahil
walang hanger sa swicherland, hindi na rin ako masyadong nagplantsa
dun. Bwahaha! Pero dahil sagana ang hanger dito, go plantsa all!

on resolutions

for a change, i will make my resolutions for this new year. i don't usually think about resolutions. when someone asks me about it, i simply don't answer or i make a lousy resolution - with the thought of not really keeping it. i can't remember a resolution that i formulated (and kept) for the past 28 years of my life.

will try this year. i've been thinking since last night and i could only think of 2. i won't make a long list. next year na ulit kung ok this year. :)

resolution number one - prayer time
my prayer time has been like a yoyo for the past year. i have received overwhelming blessings last year. surely, He doesn't deserve the tiny time i devote to thanking Him. let me try again.

resolution number two - zip my lips
answer if asked.
give advice when it is heeded.
no unnecessary comments.
say only the appropriate.
fact and tact.
will do.

ayan. little by little, i will try to keep these two things running in my blood. baka sakaling mag-succeed. :) baka sakaling maging better person. :)

Secret tennis court

Seemingly hidden tennis court...

Ang pangarap kong manual chopper

I've been searching for a chopper all my life. Naks. We have one in
manila but it is an electric chopper. Simple lang ang nais ko dito.
Ang gusto ko lang naman ay isang mumurahing chopper na di na kailangan ng kuryente.

Wishes do come true. I found this cheap, green wonderful chopper at
watsons bedok. Complete with demo from auntie. 'di nga lang "hi mom,
sir" ang linya nya. Hehe. @ $10, i think it's a good buy. $2 for the
extra blade. Not bad.

Sa galak ko, i chopped everything i could find in our cupboard:
onions, garlic, chilis. Adik ba? Hehe hindi po. Mababaw lang. :)

Mom, sir, finished product po makikita nyo sa picture. Sili, bawang,
sibuyas, at ang wonder chopper. Kumusta naman ang shelf life ng mga
finished chopped products? Malay! Tingnan natin!

bagong feedjit at access kita-kits at jogging

bagong feedjit - ayan, naki-copy ako ng feedjit kay che. :) nakakaaliw naman yun. che, pa-copy ha :)

access kita-kits - after growing my belly for more than a week - as in eat and sleep and sit in front of laptop doing nothing and read a book and watch tv, it's about time to get some fresh air and socialize with people hehehe. growing my belly... sounds so preggy. nope. bilbil lang :)

will meet the access worldwide friendly friends tonight for dinner... donna, jerlyn, noel (and cesz maybe), and alex. wow. we're all here. :) after almost 2 years, makikita ko na sila ulit! mababait ang mga tao sa access. nakakamiss :)

jogging - i wasn't a 100% bum after all. kuya and april and i jogged the other day and this morning. the other day wasn't that good. i may have had too much water intake so it was a bit painful on the left part of the tummy during the jog. i ended up just walking for the remaining half of the "program".

this morning was good! we jogged for 30 minutes. kuya was one strict trainer! hahaha! i thought i will faint after the jog, but it's all good. i feel so alive now! what's for breakfast? pasta... toinks.

bagong taon

it's the first day of the year. we just heard mass last night and then ate at 12 midnight. we also had a couple of beers while watching the wowowie special. in fairness, nakakiyak sya.

come 12 midnight:

there were no torotot sounds.
no smoke crept into the house.
nor into your nostrils.
there were no drunk neighbors.
and no fights followed.
and of course, no barangay tanods were around to stop fights.
no deafening firecrackers were heard.
there were no worries if your house will catch fire.
and therefore no fire truck sirens.
there was no noise coming from tin cans attached to tricycles.
there were no worries if a stray bullet will kill you.
or a stray firecracker will injure you.
there was no mess on the streets.
and no videoke singers 'til the morning.

yup, no worries of those in any kind...
but it's still sad
for
i
am
NOT
home
:(

all you need is...