In Retrospect...

I was reading my old blog post way back in 2008. I wrote somewhere that maybe before I turn 30 I will pursue what I have always dreamed of. Suddenly I begin to wonder what was I dreaming of that time. I'm now 31 and I begin to ask myself was I able to reach where I wanted? or have I become the person I have dreamed of becoming? but then again the big question now is what do I really want out of life...

Now I find myself enslaved with my work and juggling life as a corporate peon, a mother and a wife. I can't make out what is it that I have truly and deeply wanted.Was it to get married before 30? have a baby? earn $$$? travel the world? a career in project management?

Though confused, seeing what I have now where I am today and looking back I have no regrets. I realize, this is definitely where I want to be at 31.. Happy and content. What we all want in life is happiness but each of us has a different perspective on what can make us happy. I can't say I have already achieved what I want with my life but instead the journey just started.

We cannot put a time frame on our dreams or a time limit because LIFE is a never ending pursuit of happiness.

Back to Blogging...

It's been ages since the last time I posted anything on this blog. Guess I have been busy with facebook lately but who wasn't for the past 3 years or so (specially in the Philippines). I even forgot that this blog account ever existed. Believe me, it took me almost an hour to figure out my user email and password as my old email was deactivated so my only access was to remember the password.

Anyway, it's difficult to start where I have left maybe I'll begin to why I am reviving this whole blog thing.

Past few months I finally decided to get a life, a life away from facebook. I am not really that addicted to facebook as compared to my mother who play pet society to farm town and checks her name in Japanese or the day's horoscope but maybe I'm the type who never fails to check updates everyday. At times it's tempting to see what other people are up to with their life. Actually, I really miss receiving emails from close friends for updates or small chitchat. I miss using Yahoo messenger's BUZZ! including receiving text messages of funny jokes, love quotes or inspiring messages. Nowadays, we never drop short emails anymore just to see how our friends are doing but we check their recent activities recent photos and posts or just like anything on their wall. Nothing personal. Now, I find there's nothing more to it that an avenue to brag about something check and spy on other people or otherwise let other people know you hate them so much indirectly. Funny but true.

With facebook out of my daily activities. Now, I am back to my old pastime, reading. Actually just finished Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's soul which I can say definitely a must for dog lovers as myself. I really had a hard time adjusting with my new life in Abu Dhabi and my new role as a wife and a mother to Matteo. A lot of things have changed since the last time I've posted. Aside from gaining weight after giving birth but I'm so glad I have bumped into my old blog again.

This is It...

"When you find the person you want to spend the rest of your life with, you realize that you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible" -- When Harry met Sally

"This kind of certainty comes but once in a lifetime."

-- Bridges of Madison County

"I would rather have had one breath of her hair, one kiss from her mouth, one touch of her hand, than eternity without it."

-- City of Angels

"It doesn't matter if the guy is perfect or the girl is perfect, as long as they are perfect for each other."

-- Good Will Hunting




"Take love, multiply it by infinity and take it to the depths of forever.. and you still have only a glimpse of how I feel for you." - Meet Joe Black

Every step I took since the moment
I could walk was a step toward finding you.
~ Message in a Bottle

“You are what I never knew I always wanted ”
~Fools Rush In

Beer and peanuts can make you smart???

There we were one boring Monday afternoon. It was a holiday yet we didn't have anything exciting planned at all. We discovered a new hang-out place the 'Jobsite' just along Pasong Tamo Makati. It was just the right place for us not fancy, not crowded, small open space perfect from small chitchats to big arguments while OPM alternative songs playing over the background from eraserheads to bamboo to cueshe. Perfect... with a bucket of SanMig Light Peanuts and buttered chicken.

Ryan, Julie and me the usual suspects were there enjoying the music the booze and my all time favorite peanuts!! It's funny what silly things beer can make you do... But it's even funnier hearing your friends speak in English fluently something that can cause nose bleed when they are sober or better yet talking about something that they will never talk about in a million years. Like first loves, attempted suicide, embarrassing moments or just talking nonsense like this conversation...

Ryan: "akong mama ba...."
Julie: "akong mama jud..."
Adelle: "Ah mas grabe jud akong mama..."

Small chitchats may end in a very big argument and take note, heated discussions are sometimes spoken in English... Seems like the debating club is having their dry run or a meeting of the toastmaster's club international. We are constantly bickering over something but always end up laughing the next day even with a very awful hang-over. Teasing each other's quotable quotes and word for the day like "... You just have to learn how to adjust.." or "We just live around the vicinity..." or "instance.." And for once you can say you are smart enough to even let everything in your mind out for everyone to hear.

We always have a great time wherever and whenever. It really doesn't matter where, what matters is who you're with. Well, we're just looking forward to our next site inspection at the 'jobsite' and forget work even for a night. Just unwind, relax and enjoy a good laugh with friends.

RANDOM RAMBLINGS

A college friend recently transferred work here in Makati. I really got so excited having her stay with us for a week or two while house hunting in Makati. Looking for a decent bedspace or room for rent in Makati is like looking for a needle in a haystack. It was difficult but however, we finally found the perfect one just a few blocks away from where I stay not so cheap but not expensive as well just the right one No curfews, no horrible landlady and only two people in one room.

Just like college days, two weekends ago we went to watch the Movies at Walter Mart. Since it was still early for the next screening, there we were at Time Zone ME, Julie my college friend and Ryan one of my housemates. We were like a bunch of high school drop outs playing video games, air hockey and shooting hoops at Time Zone. I think it's a good way to unwind from the hustle and bustles of the big city and our super hectic work schedules. Then, We watched 'Monster Mom' which was played by Annabelle Rama, being bisaya like herself we found the movie rather entertaining and funny. I could hear Ryan laughing so hard the entire time. After the movie we started to imitate Anabelle Rama's lingo from calling each other 'bebe gerl' and 'bebe boy' to 'mga pesteng gi-atay'. And that's how our pet names began...

When I moved to Makati I felt I was one of the housemates in Pinoy Big Brother's house looking at the same faces and talking to the same people 24/7. Eversince we bought a guitar at home, feels like we shifted from Pinoy Big brother to Pinoy Dream Academy. Everybody's seems to enjoy singing... From waking up to before going to bed one can find someone playing the guitar on our comfy couch with throw pillows that seems to have undergone surgery which the doctor forgot to stitch up the insides are already showing. Then we had the Magic Sing... if we can only sing from sun up to sun down... The showdown of the INTRO-boys and the CHORUS girls... the boys seem to only sing the intro and we, on the other hand after singing the chorus we suddenly stop the song and choose another. I wonder if how soon we can receive complaints from the noise we're making and from the on and off key singing.

I think I am finally having fun with my monotonous life maybe finally adjusted... but one more thing I need to do is have the that motivation and zest at work, I seem to have left my initiative and commonsense somewhere . after almost 8 months I am still learning and trying to get the hang of my kind of work. Kinda Slow though But what the heck life is a work in progress. Anyway, I am just so ecstatic with our badminton weekend!

My so Called Friends...

"Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather is one of those things that give value to survival."

- C. S. Lewis

Life would be so lonely without having friends around... My Makati friends are not only my friends but they are also my officemates, flat mates, homies, drinking buddies, shopping partner and movie marathon pals! When we can go home early from work, nothing beats watching lobo or my girl or whatever is on tv worth watching while we are seated on each of our permanent seats on the couch and yes we don't have cable TV or else I would have so many channels to flip to during commercial breaks but unfortunately I accidentally broke the remote. ‘And Yes Ryan, It was an accident and I am not the destroyer’. We do love to eat canned goods and Korean noodles. A Home cooked meal would always mean Sinigang! Sinigang is something that can be consumed during dinner, lunch, and breakfast the next day and midnight snack day after. Even if we cook sinigang every weekend we all would not get tired of eating it. The unpleasant smell of something rotten is something that we already have gotten used to... or finding the laundry being soaked with detergent powder in the toilet for weeks... But what the heck we always have a good laugh with practically anything...

Having no parents around means we can stay up late, come home drunk, leave the dishes unwashed and keep left-over on the fridge for weeks, or just let our room be so untidy as it can get. The boys’ cabinet looks like a display from ‘ukay – ukay’ or in English ‘mix-mix’ hehehe. However, being grown-ups living together we try so hard to be a bit responsible. During Sundays, we try to clean the apartment as in wash the dishes especially the rice cooker, do the laundry, and clean the toilet. As much as we can drink and be merry most of the time, we try to avoid it. When we hang-out we try to maintain our sobriety hehehe yeah we do try but when the booze is free it would be bottoms up bai!

Our individuality and uniqueness shows in the music that we like listen to. Ariel’s ipod will definitely be all mellow and mushy pang Love radio something Ryan will definitely not agree of listening to. On the other hand Ryan often accuses me of copying his play list. And yes, he’s the one person who continually torments me with his pranks like he’ll text saying he left his wallet or he doesn’t have a key only to find out he’s already inside the apartment and it was all a joke… I am just so gullible.

Monthly grocery will always mean an argument with Weng and Ryan. Before we enter shopwise he will always remind the girls to make it fast which I think is impossible. You know how ladies are; we always take a pit stop at everything....before buying anything we tend to read what the label says... sometimes after reading we don't even put the item in the cart. Weng loves to window shop like I do or like most girls love.

We definitely love teasing each other… like Ryan and Ariel would love to tease Weng about marriage or we all love to tease Ryan about all the girls he loved before and him being a gifted child or him teasing me about my mind always being absent and sometimes staring blankly into space… My mind is always absent maybe it has gone into hibernation or how I love to tease Ariel during his call center time slot.

Each of us is an example of the complete irony of life. Ariel for example listens to mellow and love song does not like rock and alternative but on the other hand he loves to watch the movie collection of Sylvester Stallone. He has the entire sequel for Rambo, Rocky and other Stallone super action movies. While Ryan has this animated personality. One minute he’s in this lively and teasing personality and then the next thing you know he’s like a time bomb waiting to explode.

My life has become quite monotonous, waking up at 6 in the morning and spending 12 hours each day in the office which has already become a vicious cycle but a good laugh with my homies and lazy Sunday afternoon at home with my so called friends would always make my day right, completely extraordinary and insane…

Ryan and Weng
Photo Taken by Me!



Ariel
Photo Taken by Ryan's super hi-tech cam


ME!
Photo Taken by Weng

Our Abode (part of the kitchen)
Photo taken by Ryan

Live life!

I have always dreamed of being able to go to different places. Take on an adventure of a lifetime. Discover and try new things. Meet new people. Learn a new language. Backpacking on an unfamiliar territory. Friends will often describe me as "From Davao City to Any point in Mindanao", just like labels on cargo trucks. Be on the great outdoors.

But right now seems like work has been keeping me glued within the space of my cubicle figuring out how much volume should be excavated or how can I make my mind work after 12 or more hours of work. Is this what I really want to do with the rest of my life? I am not saying I hate my job. Well in fact we are all well compensated and well taken cared of but this is just a realization that I have. It's nice to be in a corporate world where you can meet people who would often discuss multi-million dollar projects or be a part of the realization of it.

Still for me working in a corporate world is equivalent to NO TIME for other things but work. I am just speaking for my case. Sometimes I feel so trapped... so restricted... On the other hand, this a good experience for career growth and stuff like that. For now, I'll just do more than what is required of me at work and save save save. In time maybe before I will turn 30 I will pursue what I have always dreamed of. Begin the adventure of a lifetime. I don't want to enslave myself on work, we only have one life to live and to think we don't get to live a hundred years. I don't want to be 60 years old, look back and wonder what if or regret that I should have enjoyed life more and spent more time with the people who matters.

Live life... Enjoy life!