Trigger-happy (with the camera)

= family members =

= strike a pose, lolo =

= i like how the colors contrast in this picture =

= nature's bounty on display =

= they're playing the local version of "twister"=

some more pics

here are some of the pictures i took using a cheap digital camera ;)

the colorful presentation of one of the tribes during the Binirayan Festival : April 2006 : Antique, Philippines

game boys (boys playing with Gameboy)

getting drunk with.... RC cola?!

more to come on my future posts!

hanep!

i got these from my e-mail...

i hope you enjoy it as much as i did

Domesticated

last Friday was payday. it was unusually warm, too, considering that it's the rainy season, it still felt like summer. after a long day's work and not having a major thing to spend on at the moment, i decided to go straight home for a well-deserved rest (catch up on my zzz's). but since it's payday, it's also traffic day. some days can really test my patience.

so there i was in the jeepney, with tousled hair and a plastic bag of atis in hand, i endured the friday-payday-traffic combo and almost flew all the way home as soon as i stepped out of the vehicle thinking: "oh my! this must be how a working mom feels like." the kind that rushes home after work with some pasalubong in a plastic bag.

somehow, i feel proud of myself whenever i come home with grocery bags and seeing how excited my dad is to check out what i brought home. additional ganda points when there's something for him that he actually liked even if he didn't ask for it.

- - - - - - - - - -

Sunday wash day. i just had to do the week's worth of laundry because my sister wasn't home since Saturday and the pile of clothes was getting high. usually we have a wash-your-own-clothes arrangement. but since my sis was out working on a project and my brother was also busy with school work, i just had to be the good elder sister and did their laundry together with mine. oh well! i finished just in time to cook for dinner. then i left the dishes to dad.

while taking a shower i was thinking about how tired i felt and how the chores seem so endless.

- - - - - - - - - -

i remembered having a chat with mom and complaining about not having a chance lately to go out on weekends because i'm either working on a Saturday or stuck in the house doing chores...or just not having enough money for a gimmick because i filled in to pay the bills.

i could be stuck in financial plateau sometimes and it can be very frustrating. i'm not getting any younger and there are things that i haven't tried or experienced yet. i can't have a "live for the moment" kind of life partying or taking up other stuff because it would require spending money. i had to save mine for a rainy day.

then again, i feel sorry for complaining and whining to mom because i realized she'd been working so hard for us. must've hurt her to hear me complain about "not having a life."

because life is what i have.

at the end of the day, i thank god because i am here...

...with a brother to look out for. must be a tough job but i was placed here to guide him through while mom is away working abroad.

...with a sister to bond with and share stories with.

...with a father to help with things around the house and to worry with whenever one of my siblings fail to come home on ETA.

i have a family that mostly deserves spending my bonus on.after all is said and done, my family has been and will always be there for me through thick and thin.
i mentioned in one of my previous posts that i wanted to hone my skills in homemaking. now would be my best time training for it. here would be the best place--my home with my family.

One good day coming up!

i have nothing to rant about.

my day started earlier than usual. i had breakfast at
home--something i don't usually do, then off to work i went. my journey to the
office was uneventful. i didn't even let the manong jeepney driver's
ultramegagroovy-drum-background-extended-medleys bother me, although usually i'd
get irritated by that.

i punched in before 8am, retouched a little, and snatched a few minutes for this post.

today just feels so different: the way
i'm taking my time and not stressing over things even if there is a lineup of
things to do. i don't want to let any irritation get in my nerves today.

i have nothing to rant about.

not today.

how i feel...

sometimes, the words of other people are enough to express what we really mean....

**For someone**

in our effort to find the love of our life, we exert all of our strength in making our relationships work.. and upon doing this we become oblivious to other things that matter.. sometimes neglecting our priorities in life, our responsibilities –with other people as well as to ourselves.. in a relationship that we put so much work we fail to recognize the inequality even though we clearly know that most of the effort comes only from one side –our own.. then in that case, we are holding on to someone whose not suppose to be ours.. telling ourselves “we are happy and our future will be perfect”.. we are insistent and foolish for we hold on to a fairy tale.. we cannot coach them to stay however convincing we may be.. for this someone is meant to leave us and fulfill their calling –away from us.. there are numerous reasons why this person is not meant for you.. he/she might be looking for a different thing –something you don’t possess or cannot offer, he/she might be attached or already committed, or perhaps you are already in the point in your life when you want to be serious and settle down while he/she wants to play some more and experience what it likes to look around.. i know, this will be unbearable.. but we must let them go or else we will be stuck with someone who is unhappy with us and someday might blame us for caging them.. and when this happens, the misery that they will feel towards us will drain the life out of the relationship and we will be left broken and helpless.. and there is no one to blame but ourselves.. the hardest part in this situation is recognizing when to let go and when to turn your back on this person who became a part of your life.. but bear in mind, in the long run we will be doing ourselves a favor for letting go early, instead of holding on until such point when we have given out all of our love and energy and accomplished nothing, and much worst received nothing in return.. this is where characters are polished, for it takes courage to recognize if that someone is not for you.. and you must have great virtue to let go of that someone whom you enjoyed loving.. but believe me, when i say this, and this is true.. after going through this ordeal you will emerge a better person and loose all the selfishness in you.. and in the future, when you see this love that you let go, happy and content, i’m sure you will be relieved for you have done the right thing.. however unclear it may be to you now.. this is how the universe unfolds.. and remember these people are merely episodes in our lives.. look on the greater side and be happy that of all the people in this planet he/she stopped on your doorstep.. the visit might be brief.. but the memories will stay even if you find another person who will finally make you happy.. and no one can take that away..

--borrowed from Sham

Confession Part II (now this ain't no dream)

“…just when I thought I said all I can say…I guess I got
to give part two of my confession…”

The lines from Usher’s song has got very little to do with what I’m about to dish out. Wala lang! Kunyari profound ang post ko ngayon.

I was with three of my guy pals laughing, joking and bitching about work and stuff. Guy 1 driving. Guy 2 at the backseat. Oops! Guy 3 just got out of the car. Anyway, so there were three of us left and the conversation shifted to the more serious side of work…

Guy 1: Is it true that you and DJ are not in good terms?

Me: Well, sort of. But we are on speaking terms already. We haven’t talked about the incident yet but I guess we’re ok now.

Here is my story regarding that incident

**Update:

Right now, I’m trying to win back DJ’s trust. Right now, it doesn’t matter whose fault it was…no more explanation or reasoning why the hell I had that backlog in the first place. I just want to make things right. I’m not a bad worker. If in the course of time, I had become bad, it could just be a reflection of what’s in the organization. Work can be a bitch sometimes. And some colleagues can be real bitches.

Oh, Guy 2 has just got out of the car.

Guy 1: Have you heard about what happened between J and me?

Me: Yeah. But I don’t know the real story.

I can’t really post what Guy 1 told me--pretty serious stuff about work and bitchy officemates. He even told me about the same people who were backstabbing me because they got mad at me for speaking my mind out, and how Guy 1 cringe at the sight whenever those people approach me as if they were angels—all nice and smiley.

“Plastic! Napaka-plastic!” he said.

I miss those moments with G1 coz we haven’t been talking like that lately. I kinda like him when he’s not the usual joker and when we exchange philosophical what-nots. I have a certain admiration for him, for the traits that most people don’t see in him. He makes me think. Hard. He makes me laugh. Harder.

I wish I could talk with him a little longer but we’ve reached my drop-off. Oh well, you can’t have all the nice things in the world.

“Konting timpi lang,” I said. After a quick thanks, I got out of the car and headed home.

Welcome back!

had a chat with a long lost friend the other night. grabe! i could think of so many words to describe how i felt talking with my friend that time. i was excited. kasi ba naman, it's been ten years since since we last talked. there's a lot of catching up to do!

i was happy because finally, we were on speaking terms again. for the most part i was giggly (my usual reaction for lack of words to say or just to mask that dyahi feeling) coz hello! just imagine ten years of silence and then meeting up again. where to start? what to ask?

we sort of fell out ten years ago. we were young and clueless. not well equipped to face the situation that presented itself to us. now we're older (and more mature i hope!) we sort of tried to pick up where we left off.

well, we can't pick up all the pieces we've left behind, that's for sure. we've grown, moved on and have different lives. a lot of things have changed. or have they?

that night, we were back to our usual selves--talking and laughing and recalling the fondest memories of our friendship up to the time before we lost contact. funny how i couldn't remember the particular situation or that thing i wrote, or the things he said just before we lost touch. selective amnesia?

that night, we resolved our issues. that night, halfway across the globe, twelve hours apart, with giggles, plenty of jokes and laughter, i had my friend back.

"...this is my confession..."

"i've come to realize that destiny can hurt a person as much as it can bless. and i find myself
wondering why of all the people in the world i'd fall for someone that can never be mine"

i haven't seen him for quite a while--a week or two perhaps. we've been too busy with our lives that we don't even have time to stop and say "hi". so when i saw him the other day, boy! was i so glad! but i tried hard to suppress it. for fear that he might see through me. i am that transparent with him.

so there he was and, well, there was i in the same room with other people. but it felt as though we were the only ones there. he looked at me and i tried to fathom what lies underneath that gaze. i missed that kind of look. i missed you. i missed you so much i could kiss you now.

he was still looking at me as he stood up and let it linger for a while before he walked out of the room. i looked around. everyone was busy doing their own thing. but something in my head says "go follow him." so i went. only to find out he was outside. waiting. for me?

he held my hand and suddenly we were in some street but surprisingly, no one else was there. he let go of my hand but he pulled me closer to him. it happened so fast and all i could remember was the softness of his lips, the hunger, and yet there was tenderness in his kisses as he was caressing my face. oh how i wish it would not end! i have waited long enough for this. we kissed for what felt like forever until he paused to look at me.

and then i woke up.

green minded

i always joke about myself having a green mind instead of a green thumb....

(pictures i took while at Fontana Leisure Parks on a rainy day. tell me what you think!)