Until today, that is. Woohoo, Sark is back! And he's shining, shimmering, splendid!!

These days is definitely a time for hellos. And then there's the goodbyes :(

I'll start with the good news. Aside from Sark, R will be back next week. I didn't realize how much I've missed him until we started to sort out our plans for the next couple of weeks. I would just like to take a leave and spend all my time with him, but we know that ain't happening. What with all the craziness at work. And then there's my (non-existent) paper that's already DUE (as in really due) on the 16th. Pakshet. Argh. This was supposed to be the good part of my entry.

Anyways, let's get back on track. Thanks to Van, I also got to say hello to Sloane, my new Christmas Havs. LOLZ! Nope, I don't normally name my flip-flops, but this one's so gorgeous, I had to name him after my favorite (Mc)Steamy TV hunk :p

On to the goodbyes. Goodbye, Christmas bonus. It was fun while it lasted. Seeing Sark though made it all worthwhile :p

Goodbye to our goofiest barkada. Lunches will never be the same again without your funny (sometimes kadiri) antics. The bike rides, and the erstwhile "mini-meal" sessions are some of the most fun memories. Don't be a stranger, ok?

Goodbye as well to my dearest friend A. It will be soooo different without you to hang out with. I'm just glad we had lots of memorable gimik in the last year, as well as our endless chika sessions. Let's definitely do Boracay, soon, ok?? I will super miss you. But then again, I'm happy for you. Remember the plan? Maybe I should make good my word on that, too. Hahaha! See you around.

Like Van said, it's all bitersweet. For every time you say hello, you eventually have to say goodbye. One thing is for certain, it's all a cycle. Sooner than later, it's time to say hello once again. And that is our silver lining right there.

Today was a crazy in quest of the (almost) elusive limited edition Christmas 2006 Havs.

But before that. My mom, brother, sister and pamangkins spent the weekend at my place. As usual, it was crazy-happy. My mom practically rearranged everything and I resisted the urge to put everything back where they used to be. I mean, I know it was messy, but everything all organized, I could no longer find some of my stuff. LOLZ!! Anyways, I really do love my mom.. (look how she gamely posed for the cam!! hehe) and my whole fam!! I'm super duper blessed to have them...


Anyways, after the kids play time at the pool, we headed out to MoA, at my prodding. Because I wanted to check out the Havaianas sale at All Flip-Flops, and I wanted to buy my new pair!!

To my disappointment, they were OUT OF STOCK. To any shopaholic, those are probably the most dreaded three words ever. Not on sale comes next :P They told me the G4 branch was also all sold out. And that I should just try Rustan's but they couldn't check for me because they're not tied up.

I practically begged the whole family to speed thru lunch (at Pho Hoa, one of my favorite places to eat at, and the Kung Pao Chicken was just super yum, I almost forgot about my frenzied search for my Havs)! We did a little shopping for the kids, then off to Rustan's we went. And no surprise, they were also out. Looks like they are getting rid of old styles, because the Havs wall was almost empty!!

In my utter sadness, I decided to go to Tower Records to buy an album for a friend who has fallen in love with the song Hawak Kamay (he's not a Filipino, and I just sent him a copy a couple of days ago). Turns out that the PDA albums are like composed of 3 or 4 songs only, and none of Yeng's newer singles are out yet. The Beatles was playing in the background, and somehow the music just really brightened my mood.. I picked up an album, then picked an OPM one and decided to call it a day. While on my way to the parking lot, the best pick-me-upper was on its way. Van called to say she found the Havs in ATC and she volunteered to pick them up for me. YAYNESS!! Super thanks, VAN.. I really owe you one.

To celebrate, I got a flip-flop pendant, and got a foot spa and pedicure. Oh yeah, those black Filipinas Havs may just have been something to make me feel less sad - but no buyer's remorse here whatsoever ;)


BTW, Sark's back, but he needs to go back to the shop tomorrow. So, technically, still carless! And in a few days... he'll be back. I mean R. :)

Things are definitely looking up! How about that...

All I want for Christmas are more pairs of Havs! (Insert Count Dracula laugh here). Ok, maybe not. But I soooooooo love this limited Christmas ed one. And then there are some from my wish list, too.

Hint. Hint ;-)

Belated Happy Thanksgiving!!!

When A and I knelt before a Buddhist monk to get a blessing, right when he was putting on this band, I wished for you. For us. To be happy. Always. And no matter that it has gotten faded and worn out, I never thought to remove it.

Because I wished for you.

Lately, I've gotten tired. Of waiting up for you. And talking through static and crappy signals. Of disrupted YM's. Of some unanswered emails.


And it's not that you don't try. God knows how thankful I am for all your efforts.

But today, I remember why I wished for you. I guess I never forgot. Distracted, yes. But forgot, no.

Still, I'm sorry. Because I almost did forget.

When someone stays up til midnight just to catch you online on your daytime, that's adorable. When he does it every day, mind you, it can be very flattering.

Then he makes you laugh, and smile, and he doesn't make you wait up just to be able to talk with each other... And, he plays the guitar... He knows Bob Marley. And he's smart. He loves numbers...

When someone tells you how you light up the place with your smile, and that you're always looking so happy its contagious, you no longer ask yourself whether he's into you. You ask yourself whether you're into him. Because it sure is starting to look like it.

(Slaps self).

Dear Joe,

Life is a highway. I wanna ride it all night long.

But only when I'm driving my car.

Argh.

This no car deal is starting to get to me. Tonight, I was on the road for about 4 hours.

Shuttle ride from office to Makati - 2hrs
Cab ride from Makati to the Fort - 1hr (Friday's just freakin' traffic day!)
FX ride from the Fort to home - 45mins (Little did I know the ride was actually a tour in my vicinity. Woohoo --> insert sarcasm all over the place here.)
Tricycle ride - 10mins

The rides did not include the waiting time in between.

When I arrived, I was dead tired.

I know. I'm learning a lot and taking more out of this whole experience than I thought I would. Still. I'm only human. I get tired. And I cry.

When I get him back, I promise to love Sark, my car, more than ever.

Love,
Commuter Girl

This day went from bad to worse.

Bad - Officemate/classmate A (for uhm, never mind)

I've been carless for quite some time now, and been having fun taking public transportation. But try doing that in the middle of the day, with scorching heat and the humidity. Not.fun.

After class today, I requested officemate/classmate A to drop me off at Guadalupe (it was so darn hot and I winced at the thought of taking the jeepney). My bro was waiting for me there. Classmate A was on his way to the Fort, and that way was well on the way. Just that, he was not familiar with the route.

Here's the thing about me and asking favors. I dislike having to ask for favors. The last thing I want is to inconvenience anyone. I usually ask if really necessary, and only from people I feel comfortable asking. Besides, I'm used to my independence and not having to ask help from outside my family members. Case in point, whenever I have car problems, the first person I call is my brother. Who lives an island away from me!

So yeah, it takes a lot before I ask. And if I do, I don't ask for anything extra mile. And I only ask people I think are my close friends.

Classmate A reluctantly agreed to drop me, but throughout the freakin' 2 minute trip, he was telling me how he didn't know the route and that next time I should bring a car.

WTF. Eh he knows nga it's in the shop, di ba?? And it's going to be there for at least a couple more weeks. WTF. I couldn't believe it, I cried sa sobrang inis.

Dude, if I had known it was such a big deal, I would rather have appreciated a jeepney ride to Guadalupe, which was only barely half a kilometer away from school anyways. I would have rather soaked in my sweat. Thank.you.very.much.

Worse - ex-whatever D (for, yes, devil)

I don't know why I kept him in my YM list. He bothers me every time I go online. He thinks he's being funny. Dude, you hurt me - physically, emotionally, financially, and in whatever other way possible. Dude, no matter how much I've forgiven you, I will never ever become friends with you. Ever. So go use and cheat on someone else. Go fool someone else. Just go.

Right click and delete.

Now that wasn't so hard to do. What the hell took me so long, anyways. Grrr.

And now it's time for happy thoughts.

Like the mid-week holiday getaway at a hotel in the heart of Makati.

Lounging around at the poolside. Listening to some soothing guitar solos played by a friend ;)

Watching the kids play in the water, their happy faces lighting up the almost deserted place.

Nothing beats Makati on a holiday. Serene and beautiful, a paradise amidst civilization. Luv it!

Perhaps, next getaway, it will involve more than lounging and listening to a friend's beautiful music :p Definitely a happy thought! ;)

One of my friends told me that to always have passion for life, we must try to do something new every day. Well, that's a tall order, but I do try.

So finally, last night, I finally crossed another off the list I made more than 2 years ago now! Hahaha. Dem.

I RODE THE MRT FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME. YAY! :)

Not having a car may have its perks, after all. Like finally crossing things off a long-time list! :P

So anyways, I needed to get to QC since it was my Ate's birthday. I decided to take the Cubao shuttle (but now that I think about it, Nagtahan might have been the better choice, but it only occured to me when new housemate T brought it up the very last minute :))... I already begged my other housemate to be my tour guide in the Cubao shuttle and he recommended that we take the MRT in anticipation of bad traffic due to the holiday. I was quite reluctant at first. I mean, when I first wrote this down in my list, I was thinking more of a leisure ride, on a Sunday perhaps, where I can just sit and relax, watch people come and go... But then, I realized that if I had to do this, I should do it the way it should be done. Ride the MRT during rush hour! lolz

So after we got off the bus, we walked to the station. 1st hurdle : climbing up the stairs, as the escalator was down... It wasn't that bad, really, but it was a very humid evening, and I was already sweating profusely. Ugh. 2nd hurdle: line to get tickets.. It was still apparently an ok wait. So now I have a baseline :) As soon as we got on the platform, I felt like I was transported to another place. Visions of our time in New York, and taking the train in Oregon flashed by. The big difference, there I could take my sweet time. Here, I may never get a ride if I took my time. 3rd hurdle: Pushing my way into the car. Haha. There were so many people I could not hold on to anything. I was tempted to hug the man in front of me for support! Good thing D was behind me, and he assured me I wouldn't fall or whatever :)

Despite the discomfort (dem, I had 3 bags too! and D was kind enough to bring one for me), I still wanted to take pictures. Hahaha! Who knows when my next time to ride the MRT will be :p I finally managed to take some after the Gateway station (I think), when I was finally able to take a seat.

I observed the people around me. And most of them probably do this every day. And yet here I am, thinking this is some kind of field trip! And I realize how blessed I still am. In spite of the many things I can complain about, there are more things I should be thankful for.

Like being able to enjoy an MRT ride on a rush hour because it's a novelty.

Like having good friends kind enough to help me get over my ignorance (in public commute) ;)

Like having a loving and supportive family, nephews and nieces whose laughter are like music to my sometimes weary soul.


Yeah, life is still good. This thing I'm having in another aspect in my life, is a very minute detail. And come March, it will be like dust in the wind.