Coming home
2010. Been a long time since my last post. Felt like decades. While the party has moved on to Facebook, coming home to where it started feels just right. Oh.. actually Myspace holds my first ol’ blog but no matter.
What’s old…cut my hair shorter, took a hiatus from social networking, lost weight, gained some unwanted cells, some other unmentionable life events, finished my dream home, got broke, and took a well-deserved 3-week time with the family.
New…took a yoga class last night, started drinking wines in evenings, abandoned tv shows altogether including American Idol, formed penchant for sweets and italian, and started thinking about weddings and babies (gasp!). I fault my best friend and colleagues for the latter.
Looking forward to… brushing up on my spanish, learning a new skill, reading more books, watching less asian dramas, honing cooking skills, and getting a costume for the renaissance fair and making sure I look the part, among other mundane things.
Sometimes engaging in old hobbies or rediscovering old interests sure feels like coming home.
Of Transpo and Travel
Recession, swine flu, plane crashes… you’d think travel ought to be cheaper these days. Gas is rising again. The oppressive summer heat’s coming soon. Need to escape somewhere.
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Recently I had to change the radiator of my car. I must’ve been driving it for a while with a leak. Since I refuse to educate myself about cars, I had to rely on common sense to tell me there was something really wrong when smoke/steam was visibly emitted from under the hood. For a second I thought I was hallucinating. Well, it was an expensive oversight and lesson to learn.
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One day while driving to work, I caught myself singing an old song about Kalesas. The weather that day was mild as a typical one in Manila. I have never ridden one yet and I fancy getting on one someday in Intramuros or in Dagupan, where I hear it’s becoming popular on evenings. However, that doesn’t change the fact that I think horses need to be freed.
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My boyfriend asked me why I refuse to ride a convertible with the top down (he drives one and I always require him to put the top back when we take his car). I told him, when you come to the Philippines someday, you’ll see that we ride daily with with the top and sides down (jeeps, tricycles, and unairconditioned buses) and always end up with sticky dirty hair. It’s not something novel. I’ve just had it. We had a laugh. I guess its a girl thing.
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There’s this new article about the AIG refusing to pay insurance claims of US Airways passengers who crash landed on the Hudson river. tsk..tsk…AIG claims it wasn’t the airline’s fault so they’re not liable. Makes me think twice about getting a travel insurance from elsewhere when I fly next time.
Rule or exception?
Seeing He’s Just Not Into You this evening was a mixed bag for me. For one, it was refreshing to have a new chick flick sans the cliches of the genre. The three main male protagonists have hilariously illustrated these in a funny clip on their official site (not to be missed!). Next, it was embarrassing, at some points in the movie, to see and hear some of the things we, women, tell each other for comfort, to mask our denial and rejection, or to what mortifying lengths we go to to find romance. Third, it’s a good look at how differently men and and women send and read signals from the opposite sex - very silly yet insightful. Unfortunately, every viewer will probably watch a piece of themselves in situations that may not be willing or ready to see. Some may be asking themselves were they a rule or the exception. In a nutshell, this movie is a must-see for all men and women navigating the relationship network. That means all of us.
Cheap eats
I was craving for something different to eat. I had been eating healthy this past week and I just wanted some comfort food. There’s nothing else in the fridge because I avoided getting food I could binge on. Then I remembered I got some cans of vienna sausages from Walmart yesterday. Yes.. the little can of vienna sausage that you can get for 38 cents. There are other healtier alternatives but I try to keep these handy when I missed them (sadly…I’m one of the few who probably appreciate them). I don’t really remember when I first had these, but they remind me of my college days at our convent-like dorm when my roommates and I would scour the floor in search of anything edible to sustain midnight crammings. I rarely eat them and I could harly finish off the can but they do the job of making me forget about eating for a while.
So while enjoying my mechanically separated meats, flavorings, and preservatives, I suddenly remember another cheap eat I used to enjoy back then - sardines! Unlike the VS, sardines turn out to be healthier. A nutritionist found it good enough to include in the NY Times list of “11 Best Foods You Are Not Eating” They are high in calcium and minerals, low in mercury, etc. Another article say they curb your appetite. I should start stocking more on these in case of earthquakes or future tummy quakes.
Last but not the least, SPAM. I don’t know why I keep a can or two of these. Just once in red night sky will I crave for these salty, sinful processed whatever. This takes a little more work as they need to be heated at least. I’m glad they have the light version so you get less sodium for your indulgence.
There. I think I am pretty trained for days of survival if calamities or terrorists strike DC. Right now, lemme finish off my cheap eats.
Adoption
A good friend is going through an adoption process in Ukraine. He and his wife were asking for 2 and they got blessed with four! Check out his blog if you’re as curious as I am with the process. Prayers are welcome=)