Love Thy Neighbor

Nilibre ako sa jeep ng mama ni Billy (kalaro ng mga boys ko). We're all living on a tight budget, that's why I think it's such a thoughtful gesture. Kinalong pa n'ya bunso n'ya, siguro para malibre ako. God bless that lady.

H.S. Reunion

Class 1984 is all busy getting ready for the St. Scho homecoming set on February 8. Being the silver jubilarians, we're tasked to host the show. I just joined the rehearsals this January and we're almost done. Finale na lang. Hopefully by next week, we'll learn all the steps na for the production numbers. Cleaning up and refinements na lang.

Ngayong medyo nakukuha ko na yung blocking and steps, next problem is the costume. I just found out from a classmate yung costume for the opening number and the finale (that we're having done already) would cost somewhere between P2,000-P3,000. Muntik na akong malaglag sa silya. And that's not all. I need to buy silver shoes pa to go with it. And for the mass, it was agreed on by everyone na we should all wear silver blouses, black pants, and black shoes. The pants and shoes, meron na ako. Sana meron either si Mommy or Ate Terry na silver blouse that I can borrow. Hindi pa tapos ang costume woes ko -- meron pang production number sa gitna where we have to wear black leggings, black tank top, a wide black belt, and a short black jacket. The tank and leggings, nabili ko na. The belt I'll borrow from my sister. Ngayon, yung black jacket na lang ang problema ko. Baka pwede yung black sweater ko with the zipper in front? Sana.

Haynaku. Ako lang ba ang hindi naging successful financially in our class? They don't seem to mind the gastos. There's hair and make-up pa. They say, it'll cost around P1,500 daw. Since I have a parlor naman at hindi ako nag-contribute sa monthly dues, I offered to provide hair and make-up at a discounted price of P500 (no home service charge). Sabi ng classmate ko, I'll have to show a portfolio muna of our make-up artist. Eh, I'm not sure kung meron. Bahala na.

I guess I won't go na lang to the party for our balikbayan classmates on February 4. That's P500 per person. Anyway, my good friend Cheryll won't be coming. Okay lang to miss it.

Oh, by the way, meron nga pa palang alumnae dues, I forget how much, and there's also the dinner buffet which costs P400! Joskoday... this is one very expensive reunion.

I'm starting to feel guilty kasi my son won't go to his JS Prom kasi P1,300 per person siya. So if you have a date (well, it's a prom!) that's gonna be P2,600!

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy... My high school spirit is willing, but the pocket is weak.

The Loop

I wasn't sure which jeepney to ride pabalik from LTO. I forget kung ano yung choices. Anyway, when I saw the Makati Loop jeep, naisip ko since it makes a loop, for sure dadaan 'to sa some place where I can get a ride home. So, sumakay ako. Dum-de-dum-dum...

Going westward it went. Akala ko, it'll make a U-turn sa may racetrack and go straight. Sa alam ko, you'll end up in Buendia kung ganun. U-turn it did but it didn't go straight, it made a right turn instead. Bangenge with that side of Makati, naisip ko -- baka it'll make a left turn somewhere. I don't know.

Anyway, again, I was wrong. It made a right turn to a jeepney terminal where it stopped. All the remaining passengers got down. End of the line. Ganun?!

Walkathon na lang ako until I saw a familiar street, got a jeep, and found my way home. Haynaku.

Sorry, cut-off na kami...

Kainis talaga ng government offices natin.

Last week, I've been trying to get replacements for the cards and ID's that I lost. Since I get off at 3 PM, tumatakbo ako where ever I can to accomplish this mission. Anyway, noong Thursday, I went to one of those little notary public shops and had an Affidavit of Loss made. Tapos, I went to SSS Buendia right away. I asked one of the personnel what I should do. Tapos, kumuha na ako ng necessary forms and filled them out. Eh four copies, so it took me some time to finish. Yung lintek na papel pa nila, parang nire-resist yung ink ng ballpen ko. Parang ang hirap sulatan. Syempre, pag punta ko sa cashier to pay -- cut-off na po sila. Ngak! Nagmakaawa ako sa guard -- "Manong, sayang naman pamasahe ko, sige na..." Pero ayaw talaga. Leche! Magbabayad ka na lang, pahirapan ka pa. And it's only a little past 4 PM!

Next day, I went straight to SSS. Umabot naman ako. Next stop was LTO for the driver's license. Unsure of how to get there without a car, I asked the barker sa kanto kung anong sasakyan ko. Ang buwisit na barker, binigay ba naman sa akin yung long route. I got a jeep along Buendia, got another jeep to Kalayaan, and another jeep to J.P. Rizal. Tapos from the kanto of I don't know what street, I had to walk all the way to LTO, which was further down the road pa!

Pagdating ko, it was, like, 4:32 PM. Cut-off! Leche. Binigyan lang ako ng form and return na lang daw next week. Nagpakiusap ako, but to no avail.

Tapos, naisip ko -- government offices should be open beyond regular office hours because many of the taxpayers are office employees. We all want to optimize our productivity but how can we do it if we have to rush to where ever to get our SSS ID and stuff like that. Di ba? Sana merong tao -- kahit skeleton force lang -- to attend to the needs of the busy taxpayers.

Yun lang. Buweeee.... The ride home is another story.

Identity Crisis

I went to the bank yesterday to get new cash cards to replace the ones I lost.

Anyway, after explaining to them the situation (remember the mandurukot incident?), akala ko okay na... until they asked me for two valid IDs.

Ngak! Eh di ba nanakaw nga? Ang laki ng problema ko.

If I die on my way to work, how will they identify me? Kung magka-amnesia ako bigla, paano ako uuwi?

Well, at least matatakasan ko lahat ng utang ko. Nge...

S**t in the Morning

The hubby isn't a morning person. So I always have to bare many slings and arrows for waking him up para ihatid ako sa sakayan.

Maybe our wedding vows should have been -- "For morning or for evening... until death do us part." Hmmm...

Dalawang Bonamine Please

Kailangan ko ng gamot sa hilu-hilo. Lately, I've noticed that I have trouble organizing my thoughts (parang I have a lot of thoughts in my mind 'no?)

Baka data overload. Learning how to do media transcription, tapos, may dance steps and blocking ek pa for the H.S. homecoming program, tapos, may parlor BIR, business permit churva pa, tapos, may IDs, credit cards, and ATM cards pang kailangang i-report at i-replace because of that dukot incident -- joskoday! Wala ng space sa aking poor little brain!

Amazing Cones

Had to eat lunch in a jiffy. Tamang-tama we were driving along Dona Hemady noong maisipang kumain. I suggested Amazing Cones kasi matagal na akong curious about this thing called "Pizza-in-a-Cone".

My opinion? It's quite tasty. Yun lang, medyo expensive. At P70-75 per large pizza cone, which is quite small really, hindi siya sulit. Satisfied ang palate, pero hindi ang bulsa. Siguro kung mayaman ka, okay lang. Hindi ako ang market?

Anyway, if you don't mind spending a little, it's worth a try. There are savoury cones (the ones with pizza filling) and sweet cones (the ones with ice cream). Amazing Cones is located at Hemady St. across Nestle.

Bad Trip

Friday early morning, in the FX I was riding, one of the passengers kept passing gas. Not a one-time-big-time thing. Little utots with a faint smelly scent that comes and goes and comes back again, then goes away again. Joskoday -- what a way to start the morning.

After training, I had to rush to Lourdes to get Andy's report card. Since I was rushing, nilagay ko na backpack ko sa likod. Hindi ka naman mananakawan kung mabilis ang lakad mo, that's what I always thought.

After Lourdes, next stop was Star Mall. I had to show the Prime Water guys my September receipt kasi nagkandadoble-doble na bayad namin sa tubig. I was still in a rush (they close at 5 PM) pero hindi na speedwalking like I was a couple of minutes ago. Anyway, ang problema, when I was about to cross EDSA. Syempre I had to stop.

I felt some tugging on my back. Lumingon ako, pero wala lang. Normal.

When I got to Star Mall, pina-inspect ko lang one bag sa guard. Then went on my way. Tinawag ako ng lady guard - "Miss, yung bag n'yo nakabukas."

Kinabahan ako. Yun na nga. Nanakawan ako. Kainis!

The thief got my wallet. Not much cash inside. Pero ang hassle kasi all my IDs, credit cards, ATM cards, and cash cards are there. Hassle to report and hassle to get new ones. Magastos pati.

Ano kaya ang reaction ng magnanakaw when he realizes na walang masyadong laman ang wallet na pagkakapal-kapal dala ng mga business cards at resibo? Disappointed, I bet. Sana ibalik na lang n'ya. Baka pumunta pa siya n'yan sa heaven.

My story doesn't end there. Syempre on my way to the police station (yung malapit sa Shang) may isang girl next to me who was wearing a blouse that was exactly the same as what I was wearing. Anobeeh!

But despite all that's happened, may mga nice things din naman that happened that day. Like, finally, parang nakukuha ko na yung tinuturo nila sa amin sa training. Yung putting the subtitles where they should be. They call it spotting. Tapos, when I got my allowance for the week, thank God, nilagay ko yung money sa pocket ko. So, even if nadukutan ako, may pamasahe pa naman ako pauwi. Otherwise, makikita n'yo ako sa may Crossing, palabuy-labuy... Anita Linda, ikaw ba yan? Nope. Lenore Linda is my name. Ngak!

Anita Linda, ikaw ba 'yan?

One time, I was walking along Ayala on my way to work and I encountered this old lady who was asking for help. The typical sad story -- walang pamasahe pauwi. I'm not sure if she needs or she just wants to go home to Nueva Ecija or something. But anyway, she said her lines so well, even had tears in her eyes when she said them. I gave her some money, but not the entire amount she was asking for. Sabi ba naman, "Baka meron ka pa dyan." Aba, demanding! Kung ibigay ko pa more than I did, baka ako naman ang lalaboy sa kalye asking for pamasahe pauwi. Ngak!

A couple of days later, syempre nakita ko na naman si Anita Linda sa Makati. Don't tell me hindi pa n'ya nakukuha yung balance na kailangan n'ya to get home? Eh sa galing ba naman n'yang umarte? Best actress!

Calling friends from the networks -- you better hire this lady. Hey, she doesn't look bad ha, like some beggars. In fact, I think she must've been quite a beauty in her younger years. If you want to catch her, I usually see her in the vicinity of Makati Med around 7 in the morning. Commission ko ha, pag sumikat siya. hehehe

The Gob's Birthday

How do you celebrate a child's birthday on a budget?

We had dinner at Jollibee. That made her day. To add more color to the occasion, we also had balloons. Three little ones and a big one in her favorite color -- pink! Parang naloka si Gob sa tuwa. And to cap our little party, we ate the junior Black Forest cake her lola gave her last Sunday. Yum!

Awww

The Gob hit me with a flashlight. Now, I have a wound near the bridge of my nose.

OCA: May ouch si Mama. Sino'ng may gawa? Anong sasabihin mo...?

Gob takes a moment to think.

GOB: So-weeee.

Life begins at 41

Just turned 41 last Wednesday. Wow -- 41. Some people my age are already rich and famous, well at least in their circle. Eh ako? Wala lang. Back to square one.

I read from somewhere it's a capricornuous trait. After eating the grass from one hill, the goat would move to another hill. In my case, it's another field.

People would say I'm crazy. Imagine, a trainee's allowance compared to the fat salary I used to make as a creative director.

But then, who cares? This is so much fun. Indeed, there's light at the end of a mid-life crisis.

Lesbo Conversion

Rode the LRT one time and encountered a security guard stopping a butch from riding the female coach. Said butch replied, "Hindi brod. Babae ako." Realizing his mistake, the guard let the lesbo in.

And then I realized, she wasn't the only one of her kind in the near vicinity. There must've been at least three. What's this? Invasion of the tunggrils?

Kasi naman, ang sikip sa ibang coach. From the window, you could see the guys already packed like sardines.

So, what's the moral lesson of the story? If you want your tibo friend to have a change of heart, make her ride the LRT. Sure thing.

January 1 is Enerio First

Had an Enerio family reunion on January 1.

I wanted to order pansit from Isaw Haus -- the one with lechon chunks on top. But Isaw Haus was closed for the New Year... too bad. So we had to make do with pancit malabon from the pancitan across Isaw Haus. Not bad. Masarap ang puto nila. May free ice cream promo pa.

Other food on the menu include the ever reliable Baliwag's lechon manok and liempo and some meat dish Ate Nelly brought from Cavite. The Pateros people brought cake. Kaya kumpleto na rin, kahit papaano.

The highlight of the party was chatting with Nang Ining and family, who are in Washington, using a webcam. We've had this webcam for a long time, ngayon lang namin ginawa 'to. So now lang namin nalaman that our webcam isn't working and we had to borrow the webcam of our neighbor. Ngak!

The wonders of science, 'no? Now, we can talk to friends and relatives far and away without paying overseas phone charges. Kita mo pa sila! Galing!

Gobgob enjoyed the party kasi she found a playmate in her cousin Marco. You don't see him because Gobgob hid him in her Dora box.

Gobgob played with the camera so we have several shots from the little girl's point of view. In other words, nakatingala palagi ang camera. Double chin alert!

That evening, we had dinner at Auntie Bibbet's house where parties are always a foodie's treat. We had crabs, halibut, an assortment of desserts... yummy!

Is that the last party for the holidays? I hope so -- kasi napagkamalan na naman akong buntis. Drat.

Today I go to the rehearsals for my high school homecoming. Burn, baby, burn!

Anyway... flab or no flab, Happy New Year!