Simple Joys

So you're wondering, if there are things that pisses Rhea off (please see past blogs), what makes her happy?

Hmmmmm...

1. Seeing my nephews and niece everyday. Every night, my niece Regeena would be in our room keeping my mom company. When I get home, when she sees me, she would run to me and hug me tight, sabay, "Tita, may pasalubong ka?"...every night.

2. Seeing and being with my family everyday. Knowing that we're happy despite minor hitches.

3. Hearing one of my favorite songs played on the radio first thing in the morning...like the other day, Westside by TQ was played (makeout song? hahaha). It made my day.

4. Watching "Love Actually" and "Notting Hill" on my birthday. Feel good movies on my favorite day of the year. I don't think I will ever tire of watching these movies.

5. Watching my nephew Nikki, when he was still in Grade 1, make his first basket in the Ateneo Basketball League. We were all proud of him when he made that.

6. Just being with friends...for lunch, coffee, dinner, badminton, drinks, smoke...

7. Driving.

8. Having my younger cousins, sister and my same age friends together in one night out. It was the first time they met and they hit it off. Lahat maingay, happy, drunk! Walang age gap.

9. When I smile and people smile back.

10. A good book. A good movie. A good eat.

Me and My So Called Green Thumb

I like plants. Lalo na yung flowering. Kaya lang, it seems that they don't like me.

When a friend of mine (an officemate) moved to the US in 2002, she left me one of her small plants as a remembrance, eith a note saying, "For dear rheapot, love, ___ =)" I'm just not sure where it is now. Sana, it's not dead yet. I just hope she doesn't get to read this. But she doesn't have to worry, I will never forget her (wag lang niyang tatanungin kung asan yung binigay niyang plant).

When our director's assistant resigned also in 2002, I was fortunate to get the position, and I also inherited her plants, mostly violets. I did not mind at first, because as I said, I like plants, lalo na pag flowering. Kaya lang, my other officemates, everytime they would pass by my workstation, they never fail to comment that I should take care of these plants because the former owner loved them so much. That I will never hear the end of it if she finds out that they died. They keep telling me that I should take care of them, talk to them, water them frequently, but not too frequently (sheeeesh! ano ba talaga?). Then, there's the constant appearance of apids. They said the only solution was to remove them from the plants. So when I was the director's assistant, I was assistant and gardener.

One time, my sister came to my office and saw the plants inside my boss' office. She told me, "Te, you should prune your boss' plants. Ang pangit." Duhhhh!!! Fine. So I pruuuuuuuned the plants as she had suggested. Now, wala na talaga ginagawa yung gardener...

Recently, I have been filling in as our DG's assistant. He was away for more than 3 weeks and yes, he has a plant inside his office. He just got back today and while I was arranging his incoming documents yesterday, the gardener pops in saying "Ma'm, buti na lang naabutan ko kayo, matagal ko nang hindi nadidiligan yang halaman nya sa loob." Oh, no hanggang dito ba naman? Not another casualty. It was our birthday gift to DG this year. Everybody liked it because it was full of leaves -- buhay na buhay! Well, now, its not actually dead dead, but just kalbo.

1, 2, 3..

10, 11, 12...

16, 17, 18...

20, 21, 22...22 leaves still hanging for dear life.
Is that still technically alive?

PS No plants or any living thing were harmed while doing this blog.

Monday Blues

Mondays! I hate Mondays! How come sh*tty things happen on Mondays?!?!?!? Sabi, if you don’t start your Mondays right…er, well, you know how it goes *big sigh*

A couple of things happened before I got to the office…

I really hate it when I have to move cars in the garage. Took me more than 15 minutes. (Texted my Kuya the night before if he could help me move cars the next day. He didn’t text back. When I tried waking him up, I knocked on their door, gave up after 5 minutes, and had no choice but to do it myself)…and I hate that——his not texting back, that I have to move cars myself…because it wastes my time, it’s stressful and it ruins my clothes. Ughhh!

Was already on my way when I noticed that the gas tank was almost empty…double Ughhhh!

Okay, okay. Finally. Geeeez! I was sooooo late! To think I still have to send out the OIC for the week, first thing in the morning. The whole morning, people kept asking me who the OIC will be and I kept telling them, in my ever sweet voice (pweh!), that I was still waiting for the prez to approve the memo. Haaaaaay! Impatient people! Hehe!

Still that morning, I found out my former boss passed away a few days ago…and that made me sad. Then I remembered last Friday while playing badminton, Liza asked me in passing if I knew him and I said yes. I had no idea. I was so busy last Friday that I wasn’t able to check all my emails. He was one of my first bosses. Good man. May he rest in peace.

Then in the afternoon, I found out that my friend’s mother is in the hospital. Nalungkot naman ako lalo…

Then before leaving the office, I received a text from my sister. She was apologizing for something she did Sunday night. No confrontation happened last night. I wanted to, but something inside me told me to just walk away (that’s just me – just-walk-away kind of person). So that’s what I did. I didn’t talk to her, she didn’t talk to me. Period. Then, yun nga, I got that text. I texted back saying that everything’s okay and that she doesn’t have to worry. That I love her kahit bitch siya. Hehe!

Thanks to my good friends who were willing yesterday to listen to my whining even when they were busy (actually, they had no choice)...who can sense me even if I’m in invisible mode. At least I was able to unload that heavy feeling inside me yesterday. Haha!

I just hope they don’t get tired of me and my grumblings *big sheepish grin*

Luv y'all!

PS to Nick Hornby's About a Boy

Got the book! haha! Still reading it though.

Let you guys know soon if it's really a good read.

Later!

The Clouds, the Sky, the Mountain and the Bay

When I was fixing my blog template, I wanted a pic to go with my header. I wanted it to be unique...original, not something taken from the net. Something that I took myself. Something I can be proud of.

I was contemplating on using this picture I took of this coconut tree while I was lazing away on my favorite hammock in Bohol (I think Bex saw that). But it didn't go well with my orange/red/yellow theme. Then I remembered two pictures I took while we were in Subic.

It was a family trip to Subic a couple of years ago. We were brought to this pier and I was so captivated by the beautiful view that I had to take pictures. I grabbed my uncle's SLR camera and clicked away.

I must admit I'm not a good photographer. Pero balato niyo na ito sa akin. Just say you like them, too.

Looking for: About a Boy by Nick Hornby

This book was suggested by a good friend of mine and I tried looking for it when I went to PowerBooks the other day (and at NBS this lunch break). I haven't seen the movie (with Hugh Grant in the lead role) but I plan to see it after I read the book (they said there's some deleted parts and has a different ending). Btw, the book was released in 1999.

Can I borrow your copy, please?

Weekend #31

Saturday, 4 August. Haaaaay. Good thing that cocktail drink we had last night walang hangover, nakapag-gym pa ako hehehe. You know, when I’m happy and I drink, I’m makulit...and I don't drink when I'm sad kasi lasing na nga ako, may hangover pa. Ang mas masaklap, malungkot pa rin ako...They say, you drink to remember not to forget.

************
[a few weeks ago]
Me: Wanna go out?
Pam: Sige, kakaresign ko lang. Wen?
Me: WAAAT??? Kaw, wen?
Pam: Hmmm…Aug 4.
Me: Cge. I’ll txt d oders.
Me texting HS barkada: Meet tayo on Sat, Aug 4, tyo tyo lng. Phi Bar Metrowalk
Donna*: Did u invite Tina*? Hir’s her # ______
Me: Ah. Ok.
Tina: Hi Rhea, herd ur organizing a gmk. Wat if gawin n lng nting mini reunion?
Me: Ok lng. I’ll txt r oder btchm8s n meron ako # nila. U also txt oders u knw.
[No reply from Tina.]

[a few days before 4 August]
Pam: So hus going?
Me: I dnt knw. U, me, Patty, BJ, the usual. Di lang pwede si Malu at si Cathy. Cynth* sed she’ll try to contact Glenda* Surprise n lng. If dey dnt come, fyn. Kung dalawa lang tyo. Mas masaya. Hahahahaha
*not their real names.

8 came. 6 batchmates, 1 husband, 1 girlfriend. (go figure!)
Ang nagsuggest na mini reunion daw, hindi sumipot. The nerve. Remind me never to include them in my next invite. Hahaha.

Metro Phi Bar. We used to frequent another bar in Eastwood but when Metrowalk opened a few years ago, it was the nearest place (as in walang aangal na kesyo malayo or what) to go since most of my HS barkada from SPCPasig just comes from the immediate vicinity. But I don't think we're ever going back to Phi Bar again.

We ordered lost of drinks and food for the group. Everything was okay but the sisig was a another story. While my friend was doing the honors of putting the kalamansi and seasoning, she found a hair (a long one) from the sisig. So we called the waiter and they offered to replace it. Fine. So back to normal, another round of drinks, kwento ulit about life, kids, work, SPCP, batchmates, sex, sexual preference, casual sex, f*ck buddies, etc. And then another round of drinks and food was ordered.

Halfway through another dish (assorted platter), my other friend, Patty, found another piece of hair which she literally pulled out from her mouth (she was eating buffalo wings). Ewwww!!! Since this was the second time, we asked for the manager, but only the supervisor came out. Well guess what, the supervisor, after conferring with whoever behind the bar, came back and told us that it was "unlikely that there is hair specimen in the food...it is the first time that it happened to us...we don't have employees with that kind of hair color." Whaaaaaat!!!!! So you're saying that we planted that hair???? WTF!!!! We couldn't believe it. It was already past 2am and we still wanted to drink and stay longer but we were so pissed off that they gave us no choice but to leave. They probably thought we were a bunch of 3o somethings looking for f*cking freebies. Ughhhhh!!! So we asked and paid for the f*cking bill and left. Since it was already late, we just stayed at Starbucks where we continued our kwentuhan. To make the long story short, we all got home past 5am.

Forgot to tell Bex that when we (me and my HS barkada) go out, 4am is still early to go home. Kahit weekday pa siya. I got worried for Bex because she has vertigo and it's bad for her to be puyat. Good thing she slept the whole afternoon of Saturday. Atta, girl! So I woke up at 4pm Sunday, ate brunch (actually hindi na siya brunch). Just stayed home, left lang to hear mass (good girl daw), and was finally able to finish Prison Break Season 2. Whew!!!

So, to sum it all up, looks like we're going back to Eastwood. See you soon, Jack!!!

Books and Food

Monday, 30 July 2007. It was my Dad's birthday. He would have been 63.

We usually have lunch or dinner at his favorite place (Kamayan on EDSA) but since it was a Monday, we just decided to have dinner at home (and also Mama didn't want to go out). Kuya texted and said he'll pass by the cemetery. I also wanted to go after office but it would already be too late, I wouldn't want to get caught there after dark (besides, it also rained). I just heard mass during lunch (I hear mass twice a week, Sundays and Mondays - my thoughts on a separate entry) and was also assigned to buy KFC for dinner (the kids' favorite).

Things I learned from my Dad:
1. Never ever think twice about spending on two things: books and food.
2. It’s okay if your clothes are ripped or torn, as long as they're clean.

Love you, Dad! Sobra!

Weekend #30

Saturday, 28 July. Dual Meet with BDO-EquitablePCI Group. PowerSmash Makati. Email said, “Be there at 8:45am.” Dang it. Sobrang aga naman. Sarap pa naman matulog. (Just had volleyball tourney on Thursday, Basketball game last night, and today Badminton naman). Hmmmm…Just grabbed something to eat at McDo and picked up good friends Haze and Bex at 8:15am from the office. Our contribution (or non-contribution) was 0-3, 3-0 and 2-1. Okay lang, that was not the highlight of the day anyway. Hehehe.

Amici. You guessed right, this was the highlight of the day. LUF, SMN and Georgia (second time to join the gang) joined our little food trip to the most appropriately named place to get to know new friends. As you should know by now, “Amici” is Italian for “friends.” Each one of us (including Bex, Haze, K, Meyri, and myself) ordered different pasta dishes (I got the Linguine al Nero di Sepia – black noodles with seafood sauce) and 2 yummy pizzas (Al Quattro Formaggi and another one I could not remember at the moment – memory gap ata). Georgia was the lucky recipient of my shrimps and mussels which she ate wholeheartedly (istorbo kasi sa pagkain ko e hahaha). For dessert: LUF and K both got Brazo de Mercedes, Georgia ordered Mango Tango, and Haze got herself a Tiramisu. Of course Meyri, had Gelato (Nocciola, right?). Although we had to rush back to PowerSmash because we were afraid we might get caught in the rain, we all had that funny busog na busog smile on our faces. Deserves another visit.

Sunday, 29 July. Tess said she’ll pick me up at 10:30am. So that would mean I have to hear mass really early, as in 8:30am, because I doubt it if we will be back home before dark. Actually, we were going to Alabang for the surprise birthday party organized by our friend Maila for her husband, Butch. Remember Butch and my pakaw? Thank goodness, there was no traffic even though we got lost after exiting Alabang. Nenette had to get us at Honda Alabang so we could follow her to get to Maila’s house. We got there just in time for Butch’s arrival. The long trip and the getting lost part were all worth it when we saw how surprised and pleased Butch was. He wasn’t expecting his relatives, including Maila’s closest friends from work, to be there. His smile was priceless! Good one, Maila! While everyone was enjoying the party, we stayed at the couple’s bedroom and watched some DVDs. Did I mention that their house was newly renovated? We were on the bed, the three of us (me, Nenette and Tess) and in comes Butch with his relatives (his titas).

(We were frozen stiff on the bed, too shocked to move)
Butch’s Tita # 1: Butch, mga pinsan ba ni Maila ang mga ito?
Butch: Ay, opo. Mga pinsan po ni Maila yan.
Nenette: Huwag niyo po kaming pansinin, mga stuffed toys po kami.
Butch’s Tita #2: Ang gaganda naman niyang mga stuffed toys nyo, Butch.
Us 3: Nyahahahaha.

By 3:00pm, we were the only guests left, all their relatives have gone and good thing Ruby and Jay arrived to complete the barkada. Shempre, we had to go down and eat again with the new comers. We left Alabang around 6:00pm. On our way back to Manila, Tess and I agreed that we should do that more often, spend a relaxing day with close friends, have good conversation, good laugh, no pretensions, no anything. To be with people you can talk to about anything under the sun without being judged…that’s friendship.

Now Playing

Lost in Space - Lighthouse Family



Sometimes, I get tired of this me-first attitude
You are the one thing, that keeps me smiling
That's why I'm always wishing hard for you
'Cos your life shines so bright
I don't feel no solitude
You are my first, star at night
I'd be lost in space without you

And I'll never lose my faith in you
How will I ever get to heaven, if I do

Feels, just so fine
When we touch the sky me and you
This is my idea of heaven
Why can't it always be so good
But it's alright, I know you're out there
Doing what you've gotta do
You are my soul satellite
I'd be lost in space without you

And I'll never lose my faith in you
How will I ever get to heaven, if I do
And I'll never lose my faith in you
How will I ever get to heaven, if I do

I'll never lose my faith in you
I'll never lose my faith in you


PS. Kung merong last song syndrome, meron bang first song syndrome?