One less footprint

I think I am one of the very few people who do not have a Facebook account/profile. There were a few times when I almost sign up but I stop when I start to realize it’s another online profile that I have to keep track of. Like I don’t have enough that I’m already not updating.

I seriously want to know if I am missing out on anything, if it all.

Still reeling

When I was young and he sings I’m Bad, I thought he was saying ‘Come back! Come back! You know it!”. 

Misheard lyrics from childhood will always remind me of him. Truly an icon, however which way. Godspeed.

Take me home!

Take Me Home!

My father’s co-worker is giving this pup away. I would love to take him, but I can’t get past the responsibility it entails. It’s like having a second baby, and I’m not sure I would be able to manage at this time. Boo.

The Time Traveler’s Wife

“Outside it’s a perfect spring night. We stand on the sidewalk in front of our apartment building, and Henry takes my hand, and I look at him, and I raise our joined hands and Henry twirls me around and soon we’re dancing down Belle Plaine Avenue, no music but the sound of cars whoosing by and our own laughter, and the smell of cherry blossoms that fall like snow on the sidewalk as we dance underneath the tress.” 
— Audrey Niffenegger (The Time Traveler’s Wife)

Oh my gosh.

Photo stills from the movie

Can I just say that Rachel McAdams is exactly how I imagined Clare Abshire to look/be? I can’t wait for August! 

I Feel Infinite

“It’s strange because sometimes, I read a book, and I think I am the people in the book.”

The Perks Of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky 

I was updating my Flickr page and noticed that someone recently “favorited” one of the photos I posted there. It turned out it was a photo of a stack of my books when we moved two years ago.

Click photo for details.

Looking at this photo is bittersweet. I haven’t been reading as much as I used to in about nine months, just about the length of time that Elijah’s been in our lives. It’s not that I don’t want to; but in between wanting to be with the kid and J and work and other things, there’s just no time to sit down and read a good book. Priorities. While my life happens, someone else’s life is being penned right this moment.

I’ve mostly been reading New York Magazine just because I have a subscription for three years now, and I guess it’s a decent way to be updated locally, for whatever the content’s worth. I’ve also been getting SELF magazine, I don’t really know why or how I got that, I don’t remember paying for it. 

But yeah, I do miss getting so engrossed in a book that I’d stay up in the wee hours of the morning just to finish it. I haven’t even re-read any of my favorites. I haven’t been folding edges of any book page lately. I miss getting into character at the mere turn of a page.

Self-Exalting

“I smile, now, thinking: we all like to think we are important enough to need psychiatrists.” 

- The Journals of Sylvia Plath

DMV has no sense of humor

“Neutral facial expressions” are required at departments of motor vehicles (DMVs) in Arkansas, Indiana, Nevada and Virginia. That means you can’t smile, or smile very much. Other states may follow.

Read more here.

Closure, finally. I no longer have to wonder why most people look so smug in their driver’s license photos. Not me though. There were several times in the past when I wanted to change my license because of the big grin in that photo. Not anymore!

Not In The Shower This Time

I just learned that my voice sounded so much better when i’m singing Betcha By Golly Wow on Vid/Karaoke.

Not that it, uh, makes any difference in real life.

*Mental note: must add this song to your Karaoke Repertoire.

Glee

I just saw my new favorite series:

Unlike My So-Called Life (another fave), I hope Glee lasts a few seasons.

something light and feathery

Letting yourself get sucked into the minutest, most trivial things can get too draining. Next time ask yourself, is this really worth picking on? Seriously.

On a different note, I am currently obsessing over those slim feathered headbands like so:

feathery headband

less noticeable

It is a little bit much and last season, but I love it. I’m always dressed in boring neutrals but I love me some headbands! I’m just thinking that this only works well with long hair, and being how short my hair is now, I am almost sure I will never wear it. But it’s that type of accessory that you need to have just in case, you know? Let’s pretend for a moment that I have two readers who will take the poll.

Hey, hey, whaddaya say?

Eto Na Nga

Sigh. So where to start?

We’ve been back for over a week now and it’s a bit of a struggle to start refreshing my memory of things that happened during the last three weeks. Aside from jet lag, the little boy had fever a couple of days after we arrived and a mild case of bronchitis due to the extreme change in weather (both here and Manila). I was a wreck for the most part – after weeks of getting used to having people help us around with the baby and everything while there, exhaustion and Eli getting sick got the best of me. Thankfully he’s doing so much better now, and us, well we’re still sleeping for most of the day but adjusting to each New York minute quite well, terrible withdrawal syndrome notwithstanding. 

But yes, the three weeks in Manila went by like a breeze! I was browsing the photos as I upload, and noticed that we didn’t really get to go to places I said we plan to go to. Those weeks however, were spent with both sides of the family, and after four years of absence, we obviously did a lot of catching up. Each day found us going from one place to another para makilala ang Elijah. It’s all about him, this trip.   

Anyway, Philippines. Grabe ang init, and I thought Miami was a scorcher! Pagbaba namin sa NAIA terminal, pakiramdam mo, Pinas na talaga! Tapos, nakakapanibago makarinig uli ng “Ma’am’ and Sir”. Most of the time I find myself saying, “Halos magka-edad lang tayo.” Tapos yung mga malls, as usual busy, at komo summer mas madaming tao. Yung harurot ng jeep, yung billboard, yung mga small kiosks and micro-biz sa kalye. Napapangiti ako – the things you take for granted back when you were used to seeing it all the time. 

Medyo nanibago uli ako sa kalye at ang driving ’skills’ (nga ba?) ng Pinoy. Minsan nagpe-pretend ako na may tapalodo ako sa mata dahil pati ako napapa-break kahit di ako nagda-drive. Nakakabilib. Yun lang, ang daming pagkakataon kong nasabing “Ay p**** kang bus/jeep//private vehicle ka! Stay within your lane!”. Although syempre, I am a weekend driver, in other words mabagal ako, so konting bilis, nagpapanic. 

At syempre, yung food. Hay. Ang sarap ng mango shake sa Fruitas saka sago’t gulaman sa… kahit saan!  The ubiquity of Sizzling Sisig wherever we dine; fresh, affordable seafood at Dampa; the availability of fresh banana leaves to eat in with bare hands, communal-style when we went to J’s side of the family in Baliuag; Banana-Q and Turon, Fishballs and Quekiam in the afternoon; Shawarma before midnight; Jollibee for posterity; the requisite Gerry’s Grille visit; Taho in the morning. Saan ka pa? Wala akong kinainan na schushal!

 We went with 5 luggages in tow. We came back with 5 luggages, yet again. I was scratching my head while we were at NAIA coming back. When I opened them I kind of understood – bottles of gourmet tuyo, 4 kilos of longganisa, a pack of Cheez It, Piattos, Mr. Chips; 2 huge cans of Picnik Ketchup Fries; packs of danggit and daing na pusit; those fried mini shrimps; pastillas, sampalocs, etc.. Grabe. Para akong magtatayo ng sari sari store. Also, I think I hoarded enough air cool sandos for Elijah and tsinelas for myself to last us three years. 

It was bittersweet, saying bye ’see you’ once again to our family. I’m no stranger to goodbyes, I’ve done it quite a number of times with J for five years. I thought it was going to be a tad easier now that he’s with me, yet somehow I can never get used to it. And so it goes. A welled-up eye, or maybe a trickle did find its way down in the midst of the crowd, isn’t that how some vacations always end? But there’s always next time and as early as now, we’re looking forward to saying hello and see you once again.

Back to Regular Programming

Three little pigs are back from Manila. More stories to tell soon.

and we're back.

WifeSpeaks Reloaded

I’m taking a quick break from my short break to announce the relaunch of WifeSpeaks.

Please join us once again for more exciting chikahan and balitaktakan, and now with new updates daily! We’ll be doing entries broken in 5 different categories everyday, via blog-carnival style so everyone’s invited to join. The site relaunch is a very exciting thing for all the missus behind WifeSpeaks, as we’re all itching to share our new (and old!) thoughts to our readers. The blog carnival will start next week, we hope to see you (and your entries) there!

Homebound

Isang tulog na lang! 

 

Miley Brings on the LOL

Miley Cyrus upset at Radiohead for not wanting to do a meet-and-greet with her so she threatens to ruin them. Radiohead puts her in her place. 

Hahaha.