weekend at the beach

i spent the weekend at a resort in quezon province. it was dodan's uncle who invited us over. the place was great. here are some pictures:

Pagtigil

Mahal,

Dumalaw ka daw kagabi. Sayang, hindi kita naabutan.

Sya nga pala, nasa atin pala ang imahe ng Mahal ng Birhen. Heto ang kanyang litrato. Kaninang umaga ko lamang yan kinunan.

Sa Kanyang sandaling pagtigil, isang hiling muli ang aking dinasal.

Lagi ka sanang mag-iingat saan ka man magpunta.

new look

finally, a new template for this bloggy.

tagaytay pictures

We're the kings of  the road!  No competition here, the road is all
ours!!!



 


The very boring and lifeless clubhouse, the good tasting pansit and the frothy
mango shake.



 



Louraine: Tatay, ibibili kita ng lupa dito sa Tagaytay, gusto mo?

Ricci: AMBISYOSA!!!"

Tatay: Louraine has a dream, who knows?  She might be able to buy me a lot
here one day.



 



The very lonely market of Talisay.






Tatay's Balinghoys

 

Tagaytay

I got home (from work) at noon and learned that Tatay was about to fetch Louraine at her dormitory. I told him I'd like to come with him. Having no sleep yet for the whole night until the following morning, I feel I still had the energy.

The sun was in all its glory when we left pacita, and interestingly, rain came pouring down when we reached Louraine's dormitory. Iba na talaga ang kamandag ng balat sa pwet ng kapatid ko... I thought. Just when I thought I'd ask Tatay to go to Tagaytay. However, we still went to Tagaytay. It was after conniving with Louraine that she'd tell Tatay it was her who wanted to go. I was to shy, or too chicken, to ask for it.

And there goes our road trip! On the way to Tagaytay, I silently prayed for the rain to stop. It was answered! It was drizzling lightly to no rain at all when we got there. Tatay asked where we particularly wanted to go. We said we just want to see the view, the taal volcano, the flowers and the lake. Okay then, so we'd just pass by so you'd see the views, he said. Louraine suggested that we go to the picnic grove.

Along the way, I said I'd like to stop first for a nice, clean and pleasant smelling restroom. We found a restaurant at the side of the road so we pulled over. As we are going in, two men approached and tried to convince us to avail for the boat ride. A round trip boat ride costs 1,500. Of course, we declined, since we have no plans of riding a boat that day.

Before going to the restroom, I ordered first. I asked for a clubhouse and a mango shake. When I joined the two of them at the table, Tatay told me he ordered for a pansit and toasted bread, while Louraine had asked for another mango shake. The clubhouse was not really satisfying, but the pansit was good. I payed for our meal, and guess what? For that merienda menu, I have to pay 400 pesos. Oh well, this is something that doesn't happen everyday, you know? So shedding of 400 bucks didn't really hurt.

While having our merienda, which was by the way lunch for Tatay, we were exchanging text messages with Nanay. Nanay, on that time, was at her office. We told here that where we're at and even joked that it was the Revo that we've brought. You know Nanay, she's too possessive over the Revo.

Citing our conversation:

Tatay: dali, I text mo ang Nanay, sabihin mo revo ang dala natin. Tignan mo, matataranta yun
Me: okee... (sending her a text message)
--- 5 minutes interval
Nanay: you're joking! Corolla and dala nyo, hindi revo! (reading from her text message)
The three of us: *laughing*

After we finished our meals, we decided to take the talisay route on going home. Actually, there are three routes to choose from, the one leading to Sta. Rosa (this is the shortest possible path), the one to cavite, and the longest path, the one going to talisay. Picnic grove was out of the picture already, since the restaurant we dined in had a great view and a good restroom. Part of what I've paid for, I guess.

By the way, before we left the restaurant, we told nanay that it was the talisay road we're taking. She forcibly objected to it, but we still did go on. Matitigas talaga ang ulo.

The road was like the one we pass on going to Quezon province, the bitukang manok. But it is,I think, more dangerous. And it was then that I understood why Nanay was protesting that we don't take that path. We have even passed by a car that had over-heated, and a jeep beside it that would like to take advantage of the situation. Unsafe as it was, it was worth the ride! The taal volcano could be seen clearly since we are more closer to it. We pulled over again beside a sign that says "lot for sale". We took pictures, enjoyed the view, felt the cold wind on our faces and then left.

In about 20 minutes, we reached the town proper of Talisay. Since nanay, in her text message earlier, told us that she wanted some talbos ng sayote, we stopped over at the town market. I found it weird that the market only had a few stalls opened, and I could count in one hand the shoppers I saw. It seemed like it was good Friday that time. Such a lonely place.

We saw no talbos, but Tatay bought two Upos. Afterwards, we went to the shoreline for another view of the taal volcano. Some men, the bankeros I presume, asked if we wanted a boat ride. The boat ride there costs 1,000 pesos. Again, we politely declined.

Since we are already in batangas, which incidentally is tatay's province, we stopped over at their ancestral house in santor, tanauan. He said he wanted to pull out some of his crops as a pasalubong for lola. It was the balinghoy I'm talking about. I haven't eaten a balinghoy yet but from the looks of it, I think it resembles a kamote, and probably taste like a kamote, too. Tatay led us to his balinghoys and even asked me to take a picture of it so that Lola will see that a balinghoy could grow as tall as our house, because Lola thinks that balinghoys only reach up to 3 feet tall only.

We got home at 5:30. Imagine, I have been in 3 provinces in less than a day! What a day it was!

-------------------

**NOTE: this had taken place on January 20.

simbahan ng Malate

Mahal,

Alam mo ba kung nasaan ako kaninang umaga?

Nagpunta ako sa simbahan sa Malate.

Isang misa ang nagaganap nang ako ay dumating. At alam mo ba? Mga bata ang mga choir na kumakanta, nakakatuwa. Pati ang lector, ang mga nag-offer ay mga bata din. Ang pinakabatang edad na nakita ko ay 4 at mukhang 12 taong gulan naman yung pinaka-matanda sa grupo.

Tinapos ko ang misa. Sa aking pagtigil, sandali akong nanalangin. Marami sana akong idudulog sa Ama, ngunit pangalan mo lamang ang nasasambit ko. Naisip ko, ano pa nga ba ang hihilingin ko? Ikaw lamang ang laman ng dasal ko kaninang umaga.

Malamig at masarap ang simoy ng hangin ng umaga. Gusto ko pa sanang magtagal, kaya lang ay may natakakdang kasal sa mga oras na iyon. Sya nga pala, kumuha ako ng litrato ng simbahan. Tignan mo, nakakatuwa ang nasasaad sa projector; Babala sa mga tao na huwag basta basta iwanan ang kanilang mga gamit.

Mahal, sana sa mga oras na ito ay maayos ang iyong kalagayan. Hinihintay ko palagi ang iyong pagbabalik.

MC encounter

There was no instance where I called my credit card hotline that I didn't get irritated. Wait, irritated is such a weak word for description. Actually, I don't just get irritated - I get furious. Fumes of anger would exude in my ears, nostrils and of course, my mouth. They really bring out the bitchiness in me, really. The hate list is getting longer as the months pass by. First offense; I have not received any mail of my statement of account on time. In fact, since my membership date, which was in October 2004, I have only received one billing statement - that goes for the 2nd in my list. Third, since my billing statement arrives delayed, I'd have to request my statement of account to be forwarded to me by email. I'd send an email of request in the morning and naturally, I'd be expecting a reply before the day ends. The day ended, the whole night had passed. The next morning when I checked my email, NO REPLY YET!!! What the !#$%^&!!!! Then, that's the time I'd do a follow up call. Feeling mad and all, I still try to keep up my composure - chanting "self control self control self control" in my mind. After giving my credit card number, name and other top secret particulars, I'd (try very hard to) calmly inquire about my request. And what reply do I get???

**NOTE: this conversation had actually taken place.

"Ma'am, we very sorry, but we don't have an internet access in our workstation. We have to forward this request to our supervisor yet."

"anobakamo???? Hindi mo ba naiintindahan na kahapon pa ako ang email???"

"We sorry ma'm for the delay. You have to understand that --- (the poor attendant giving out lame excuses such as their lack of access to address my request, that the person responsible for delivering my request does not work 24 by 7, etc)"

"you don't have to tell me what you're going through!!! The hell I care. I don't even care if you tell me that your building is burning down this very moment. I WANT MY SOA RIGHT NOW!!!!"

"we're really very sorry"

"can I have your full name?"

"kurdapya dela cruz po ma'm" --- name have been changed

After getting her/his name, I slammed the telephone receiver.

So, you would probably have this in your mind - reklamo ng reklamo, e di discard your credit card with that establishment and apply for another.

My answer is simple - SAYANG ANG POINTS.

mahal

Mahal,

Alam ko na minsan mo nang sinabi na hindi ka na muli pang iiyak, na hindi ka na muli pang dadaing sa sakit. Hindi ko alam kung nakakaramdam ka pa ng sakit, pero gusto kong malaman mo na nasasaktan ako sa nangyayari sa iyo. Kagaya mo, hindi din mababakas sa mukha ko ang nararamdaman ng loob ko.

Hindi ko alam ang laman ng isip mo, pero alam ko na ang laman ng puso mo ay galit. Hindi kita masisisi.

Marahil ay hindi mo ako pakikinggan sa mga oras na ito, dahil ang taong nagagalit ay bingi. Marahil ay puro poot lamang ang naiinitindahan mo sa ngayon.

Kung ako man ay sakaling papiliin, kung kayamanan man o ang pagliliwanag ng iyong isip, pipiliin ko ang huli. Wala na akong ibang hahangarin pa para sa iyo kung hindi ang matuwid ang landas na iyong dinadaanan.

Kasama ka sa bawat dasal na aking sinasambit, kasama ka sa mga hiling ko sa Ama. Hindi ko alam kung hanggang kailang ka magiging matigas, pero sana ay matapos na ito.

Umaasa ako sa iyong pagbabalik.

animals

My sister and I are trying to complete the 12 animals from Mcdo. So far, we've got 3 of them, 9 more to go.

The first one bought was the monkey, since I was born on that year. Second one was the dog, my sister's year, and lastly, the pig. It was our Lolo's (maternal) year.

My sister jokingly told me that she could not believe that Nanay was born under the year of the sheep. If you know my mother, you could relate with the irony of it. But if you know her very well, you'd see this makes sense.

*******"

What's cooking -

Reached pacita at 11:30am

Bought half dozen doughnuts before coming home; 2 pineapple filled (for Lola), 2 choco marble and 2 choco creme

Had embotido for lunch. Lola suggested that the embotidos be heated in the oven toaster, instead of frying them. Turned out good. Less oil, tipid pa sa gaas.

Lola discovered that the padlock of our front gate, the small one which we don't use as an entrance anymore, was defective. For some unknown reasons, it was broken. I could only imagine how long that padlock has been broken. It could be weeks or months. Really, God is so good. After learning about the padlock, I immediately changed my clothes, since I was already in my 'pambahay' outfit, and went to the nearest hardware to buy a new padlock.

After the having the front gate secured with the newly bought padlock, I brought out my laptop and started my internet rituals.

I now have a new email account at gmail, a big thanks to mommy greysi for the invite.

In between chatting and surfing, Lola calls me to write a label for the keys. She's now busy with arranging and sorting the keys of our house. Putting labels, discarding the old ones, cleaning the rusty ones, etc.

I have been awake for more than 24 hours already - nonstop, without any single nap. My body aches for sleep but my mind is still so awake. No coordination with my mind and body. The other one wants what the other one does not.


(*NOTE: this was supposed to be posted yesterday, my dial-up ran out of load..)

cris*lani

cris*lani

Santiago

I have just completed Santiago's journey. In the middle of disarray I chose to be with him, and I'm glad I did.

friendster

The wonders of internet! Being alone but not lonely. I get connected with everybody (as long as he/she's in my buddy list, that is). I go to different places, from Paris to Apari! I get updated with the latest news. Another fascinating thing on the internet is friendster. Everybody in my group age would have to agree with me. Friendster is like a social lounge - a place to see how your friend is doing lately, if he/she's still single or married, to see how many kids he/she has, if he/she has a new boy/girlfriend, if he/she gained/lost pounds lately. It's as if you have no social life if you do not have a friendster account, more like you do not exist at all.

Here's an excerpt of my discussion with a friend, we had this chat just this morning. Actually, this friend was the one who introduced friendster to me, more that a year ago.

ricci's friend (12:31:40 PM): o ayan nakita ko na wedding pix ni *boy*....mag taga *place* rin pala abay nya..
riccicutie (12:31:57 PM): onga.. sina *boy1*, *boy2* etc
riccicutie (12:32:06 PM): ganda ng wife nya noh?
ricci's friend (12:33:00 PM): yup! e nag-improve din naman kc itsura nya e...
riccicutie (12:33:19 PM): yeps, nag mature and tumaba...
riccicutie (12:33:26 PM): pero nde naman pumangit
ricci's friend (12:34:35 PM): sinabi mo pa..

~*~*~

ricci's friend (12:27:54 PM): break na ba c *girl* at bf? single na sya sa friendster e..at wala na pix bf nya..
riccicutie (12:28:05 PM): hehehe
riccicutie (12:28:42 PM): sigh
riccicutie (12:28:56 PM): mukha pa naman sooper dooper in luv sila dun sa pictures nila
ricci's friend (12:29:33 PM): sinabi mo pa.....anoba yan chismis na naman tyo! Hehehehe

*names and places have been changed to protect me and my friend.

header

beauty

While waiting for the bus to arrive, I sat at one corner in Park Square II terminal. I was trying to read a book but the giant electronic TV hanging on top wins my attention most. I set the book aside and got my eyes hooked on it. It was showing a program anchored by Jessica Soho. The topic then was about beautiful people getting the most (favors, help, job, etc) as compared with not-so-beautiful people. They ran an experiment to prove this. Two talents were brought in to pose as a damsel in distress; the first one is a pretty lass - fair skinned with long shiny black hair, a phoemela baranda look-a-like. The other talent is a not-so-pretty one; short haired, dark skinned - she was described as a diego look-a-like. The two talents went out and asked for favors/help in the streets. First act: ask someone if they could let her use their cell phone. Act two, try to hitchhike. To summarize, the pretty one got most of the favors she asked for. For the not-so-pretty one: all were hesitant to let her borrow their phone and no one even stopped for her when she put her thumb out.

This is so saddening.

So, what's the standard of beauty anyway? You call one beautiful when she's fair skinned? When you see no traces of blackheads, white heads, and pimple on her face? When her hair flows like one of those shampoo commercial models we see on TV? I don't see any beauty in it.

I see one's beauty in her genuine smile, the way her eyes light up when she's fascinated with something, her polite manner of saying thank you, the way she neatly carries her hair; straight, curly or whatever texture it maybe, her simple gestures of appreciation, the way she carries a conversation; smart but not witty and the way she carries herself confidently.

Speaking of beautiful people getting the most favors, here's one story that happened to me and my mother 3 years ago. NO, we're not the damsels in distress at this point. Here's how the story goes.

We're at the gasoline station having ice cream, our car was parked facing the high way. Nanay just didn't want to go home yet. After an hour or so, Nanay decided to go home, since it's a work day the next day. We still haven't got far enough when someone was signaling us to stop. Nanay thought the guy was just trying to point out that something is wrong with our car, the tires perhaps. But he was persistent, so we stopped.

"Ma'm, bibiyahe po ba kayo hanggang Sta. Cruz, papunta po kasi kame ng Pagsanjan, pointing to the other two girls looking at us from a distance"

"Aba! Mukha bang fx driver ang nanay ko??? And that makes me what? Barker??? The nerve ng taong ito, ha! Pero teka, cute sya ha.." I thought.

"Hindi, sa pacita lang kame." Nanay replied.

"Ahh, ganun ho ba. E pwede po bang makisabay kahit hanggang tollgate lang ng exit nyo?"

Nanay raised an eyebrow. I turned to nanay and told her to just ignore this guy.

"Ma'm, may dala po kasi kaming dugo para sa lola ko. Yung kotse po namin, nasiraan." The guy was pleading.

"Okay" Nanay replied, and the three of them got in the car.

The guy explained that they needed to bring the blood right away for his lola's operation. They are actually rushing because the blood might get spoiled, since it was only contained in a small cooler.

Nanay, instead of exiting to Halang, went all the way to Calamba. By the way, the guy's name is Ryan. We reached Calamba (bayan) and found a bus going to Sta. Cruz. After thanking Nanay, the three of them got out immediately to catch the bus.

Knowing my mother's gift of intuition, I still asked her why she let Ryan and his companions in. She said "Nararamdaman ko ng kailangan nila ng tulong. Pinagdaanan ko rin yan nung mamatay ang lolo mo. Yung feeling na helpless ka. And besides, guapo e."

This happened 3 years ago and I still remember it clearly. I always recall this everytime I pass through the high way at night.

Going back to the program I was watching, it made me think how unfortunate it is for those people that are not blessed with good looks. However, as I dwell in it more deeply, I realize that it's the other way around. It is more unfortunate for the people who judge other people by merely on physical aspect, just think how much these people (who scrutinates others based on the outside appearance) are missing. I know a lot of not-so-good-looking people who are really fascinating. You just need to look beyond the physical part and see the person from within.

keona

***thanks to mommy greysi for the pix!

welcome 2005!!!