House Party

some singing and drinking and poker games last night.

it was good fun. and kat's two pasta treats, al dente.
but the bartender slash the dealer is leaving.

anyway-- happy sea change, job. =)

34

Good morning, beautiful.

===
We had a petty clash over a kayak on our last afternoon in White Beach.

The plan was to rent one double, traverse toward the rocky coastline, and take some shots of sundown. But since there was no available double kayak, and the sun had already been setting, he insisted that we just rent two singles. Hmmm. I chickened out. He was confident I could handle it. But I wasn't. And I felt a bit low about that-- not trying and not helping him back his assurance. So I asked him if he wanted to ride alone. There was a short gap. I went back to our room; he seated outside. Pareho kaming nagpalipas ng bad mood. After a few minutes, things mellowed down, and so was the sun. We agreed that he would go solo, and I would just give him the DSLR once he reaches the other end. But you know what? The battery was empty. Tingnan mo nga naman. Nag-away pa talaga kami. But he had this idea-- me riding in the single kayak with him (just what the other two single kayaks that he had seen earlier). Scary, but he was with me-- and that was enough.

Our stubbornness collide sometimes. But the good thing is someone is always willing to give way.
===

Right after we unpacked some of our stuff from Puerto Galera, we headed to Intramuros for a church visit (and as the starting point of our itinerary). Initially, we planned to shoot around the Mall of Asia, since it has a nearby church, a Mann Hann branch, which he had been craving for (again) since the previous weekend, and a potential location. Change of mind, obviously.

From Manila City Hall, down the underpass to Intramuros.



More of Intramuros, going to Rizal Park.

Coincidentally, it was the celebration of our Independence Day in lieu of June 12. So naki-celebrate kami sa ngalan ng bayan. =)

We made an easy stroll to Roxas Boulevard, passing by the Ocean Park, then the US embassy.

Continued our promenade to Baywalk for some photos. He has this fascination with clouds and human faces, which he always tries to capture with precision, faithful to how they appear in real-time.

My trip that day was on framing landscapes, having people as ornaments.

After roughly two hours, we headed to Malate, and grabbed kopi and roti at Kopi Roti. =) Then, we decided to pass by Robinson's Place. Ikot-ikot lang. Almost an hour later, we called it a day.

Our June 9 was a loooong day. Far from perfect, but the best 34th month.

I love you more, buddy ko. *kugos*

Banana Boat

Gabi learned a few new words and phrases over the long weekend.

And she just turned two.

===

As our birthday present, we packed our things for a short trip to Puerto Galera. It would be her first beach experience, our third boat ride to White Beach, and our pahabol summer treat for Nay and Giselle. =)

We made reservation at Basilico, exactly the same place and at the same corner unit were we stayed last year with my family. The rate has been relatively cheap for a beachfront accommodation. But we noticed a slight customer service deterioration.

Gabi' first dip.

On our second night, we dined at Pizzeria Ristorante Italianno, located at the west end of White Beach going to Tamaraw Beach. At laaast! Our third attempt was a success. It has a nice location, almost at the bend. The view, if you happen to find a seat near the veranda, could be stunning at sunset.

Their giant pizza (prize range P300 - 500) tastes really good. We ordered Capriciossa. Loved it. Then, later on, we added two sets of pasta-- prize range 200-390, good for two. Buddy ko and I tried Marcianna, with fresh tomato, ham, and a few mushrooms. We both loved it, too. Giselle and Nay gave Carbonarra a shot.

After dinner, we decided to have a full-body beachside massage, except for Giselle who had changed her mind and accompanied Gabi to our unit, instead. The initial plan was to have the massage by pair. Anyway, the session was satisfactory. The charge has also increased by P50.

We got up early the next day for Gabi's last plunge.

And I got stung by a baby jellyfish. But that was another story.

Quick Budget Reference (Per Head)
Transportation: Taxi 160 (to and from bus terminal) + Bus, 344 (2-way) + Ferry, 380 (2-way) = P552

Food: ~P100 per meal (3x for 3 days) = P900

Accommodation: 1500-2000 per day for 2-5 heads (beachfront, offpeak)

* Kayak: P200-300 per hour

* Banana Boat: P200 per hour

* Snorkling: P600-800 per boat for two (usually starts at P1000 per boat for at least four persons)

* ATV: P650 per hour

* Buggy: P800 per hour

* Body massage: P200 per hour

Note: Those with * are optional and can be negotiated.

*****

Banana boat, big rock, beach (when she's swimming or wants to swim) or sea (when she's just looking at it). Those words have just been added to her quite impressive memory, which includes fahnten (fountain), mahnten (mountain), ribber (river), pancit, baby jaguar, castle, apel juice (apple juice), umbella (umbrella), oop aaag (group hug), embace (embrace), nater please (water please), book, melk (milk), pick floweh (flower), park, "1" to "14".

And my favorite-- when she says "Aaayyy (pointing to herself) love (her fingers forming a heart) yuuu (pointing at you)".

Happy 2nd Birthday, Gabi! We love you very much. Be good. *kugos*

Jubjub Bird in the Tumtum Tree

I learned a new word today-- portmanteau-- from googling information about Cavendish Banana. First time for me to encounter that word, promise. [He wonders why the banana that Kat and I buy is all yellow outside and white inside. Plus the fact that it's relatively big. I always tell him "kase Cavendish Banana yun," adding (and sometimes inventing) more convincing words to describe it.] I found out in Wikipedia that it is the name for banana cultivar, from the words cultivated and variety. And cultivar is a portmanteau word.

A "portmanteau word" is a term used to describe a word that merges two different words. According to Wikipedia, it is a "linguistic blend". You form a term by "blending sounds from two or more distinct words and combining their meanings". Below are some examples:

• brunch = breakfast + lunch
• pixel = picture + element
• mimsy = miserable + flimsy
• flop = flap + drop
• malware = malicious + software
• glitz = glamour + ritz
• WiFi = wireless + fidelity
• frumious = fuming + furious
• motel = motor + hotel
• chillaxing = chilling + relaxing

"Taglish" and "Brangelina" fit into this category, too. And even Wikipedia, from Wiki and Encyclopedia, belongs to this group.

Anyway, after jumping from one hyperlink to another, I came across this poem of nonsense verse entitled Jabberwocky, written by Lewis Carroll for his novel "Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There". I had fun reading it.

Yeah, yeah, what a nerd. Well, it's a good tongue exercise full of portmanteu words!

JABBERWOCKY
Lewis Carroll

`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"

He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought --
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! And through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

"And, has thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'
He chortled in his joy.

`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

And they say that this is the greatest nonsense poem written in the English language. =)

33

I almost spoiled another surprise. Almost.

I was thinking of spending the whole afternoon until early evening in Bonifacio High Street or Serendra with him. Ayain ko sana sya mag-try ulit ng new resto, new food, new coffee blend. I was eyeing Kape Isla. But he insisted on us meeting at the Mall of Asia, even earlier than the time that I had set. I let him win. No biggie. =)

After a short walk, we made a stopover at The Coffee Experience, where we had our first coffee (though in a different branch).

Then, the tricky part.

I really didn't know what to do next after the coffee break. What I had in mind was to see what was on Imax or to buy him anything that he might have forgotten to bring for his Boracay trip tomorrow. After that, I'd probably ask him to go home and just have movie marathon.

But he kept on walking, leading us outside the mall, fronting Manila Bay. Then, more paces toward a spacious, bare parking lot on the left side of the mall.

Halfway, he asked where the dock for the cruise ferry could possibly be. Still clueless, I said it was in Roxas Boulevard (I was thinking of the Tennessee Walker). As we crossed the street, he said "Anong time kaya nung sa tin?". I was stunned. "Aaay-- dapat surprise yon. Nasabi ko na tuloy," he recoiled. I was smiling. Surprise yun no.

So yun pala yon. The reason why he had been nudging me about this whole MOA thing since yesterday. The reason why he had been so anxious about the weather.



It wasn't a perfect cruise. The weather was a bit teasing and unpredictable. The sea was not very calm. So instead of following the usual cruise around the bay, we took a straight path.



Lam ko na-strain ka ng onte kakaisip na dapat maging romantic date yun.

But it turned out fine. For me, it really was. And the fact that you researched and planned about it was already sentimental. The one hour we spent at the top deck of that ferry was enough to take away stress from day's work. We didn't have an intense talk. And it was all right. We savored the time observing everything around us-- the father and son bonding at the stern, the group of women in their 60's probably relishing their pension benefits, the father treating his kids from Davao (we overheard, and we assumed they're well-off), two buddies who were just sitting at the corner, taking pictures of themselves (and we made a story that they would be meeting some friends in MOA later to watch a movie or maybe they just decided to meet and talk about serious matter, which we didn't know). But that made the cruise perfectly ok. =)

Since DSLR yung dala namin at wala kaming tripod at nahihiya kaming magpakuha sa iba, we just took this shot of us while sitting at the aft, in front of the deck's red woodclad French door. Pwde na yan..=)

After we bought tickets for the cruise and before the ferry embarked, we visited the Shrine of Jesus , The Way, The Truth, and The Life, which is just beside the Metrostar Ferry Terminal.

We were a bit starving after the cruise. We thought of Cafe Mediterranean. Kaya lang na-realize namin na nagtitipid pala kami, so Mann Hann na lang ulit. Suki, hehe. Sulit naman kase. But for today, we ordered asparagus wrapped in beef, taosi clam, and garlic rice. Yummers.

*****
For the little and big suprises and for all the other attempt surprises, salamat, buddy ko. Mi luv yah. *kugos*

Blue Marble

We watched An Inconvenient Truth on Earth Day.
And he wanted to buy plants.

"You look at that river gently flowing by. You notice the leaves rustling with the wind. You hear the birds; you hear the tree frogs. In the distance you hear a cow. You feel the grass. The mud gives a little bit on the river bank. It's quiet; it's peaceful. And all of a sudden, it's a gear shift inside you. And it's like taking a deep breath and going, "Oh yeah, I forgot about this"."

http://www.climatecrisis.net/

Homebuddies

We seated at the third row seats of an FX on our way back home from malling, after attending an anticipated mass last Saturday. He blurted out, smiling: "Mamalengke tayo bukas? Gusto mo ba yung plan ko na yon? Ha, kulit?" He sounded playful. The two ladies infront of us tried to control their grin. But I thought it was cute-- the way he said it. Another Sunday morning to look forward to.

He woke me up at 7AM the next day, then we headed to Paco market. After our nth plastic bag, he said straight from the shoulder: "Siguro akala nila mag-asawa tayo." He meant a young couple. I asked why. "Eh kse pag bumibili tayo sa kanila, tumitingin sila tapos ngumingiti ng may kahulugan." Some observation. I was laughing until our next stop.

I've been spending almost every weekend with him, mostly at home, watching all the movies and series that he downloaded. After our recent trip and before the next one, which I don't know when, "chill out lang" muna, as he puts it.

These undemanding weekends have always something in store for us. Little things that make me proud. =)

Screwed

Somebody tried to break in to our house this afternoon.

The nerve. It happened between 12PM to 330PM-- an assumption because Kenn had left the house past 11, and Kat and I arrived there around 4PM. That somebody left an obvious ugly scar on our main door, possibly in an attempt to unlock the doorknob, and get in. Kat and I became a little paranoid, thinking about our laptops, which are the only valuable and portable things that can be taken away from us in an instant. So, the hunt for the screen lock began.

I - I reported the incident to the management, which, at that time, had been preparing to get home. A guy wrote our unit number and my name on a piece of paper, and told me that they [the management] will send someone to look into the matter. I asked about the maintenance who could fix our lock, and they told me that we [I] need to have all the materials with us first, then come back the next day to fetch the maintenance. Ugh.

II - We started pondering about our temporary workaround. We considered shifting in manning the house, or taking a leave, or asking him or Tabz to stay and sleep there in the morning. The last option would be the sweetest, kindest, relieving thing that the three of us could get today. I asked Kenn about Tabz. She asked Tabz about it. Tabz agreed. There. One workaround solved.

III - I had been pacing back and forth, thinking how we could nail the situation, while Kat had been prodding me to eat the misua that she made. Lalamig na raw. We walked toward the door, looked at the scarred wood, walked back to the room, then waited for a text message from anybody. Some sympathy, I guess. It had been the routine for almost an hour. Then, we heard our neighbor's door being opened. Bright bulb flickered. We went outside. Kat, with her guts, asked for some "tools", which we don't have (and I think, we should've had), and relayed our sob story.

IV - Our warm neighbors, whose names until now we don't exactly know (we just heard one time that they had been calling "GG" to open the door, from 4AM to 7AM), lend us their hammer and screw driver, and offered to call a maintenance guy they personally know. Nag-feeling kami ni kat, planning to do the job by ourselves. But, it remained a plan. Buti na lang.

V - The maintenance guy arrived past 6PM. Thank God. He looked at our materials-- an aluminum lock with six screws for the six holes. I showed him the drill, which Kat had brought from Antipolo. Then, he started fixing it. Thank God, again. Our warm neighbors, one of them, I eventually learned is "GG" (and he's a guy), started taking stuff like electric fan, screws of different sizes and extension wire outside their unit. I was embarrassed but grateful. Kat wasn't there to witness it; she had left for some vanity affair just before manong arrived. I had been hearing "ribit", "rebit", or whatever. They said that we should have had those instead of screws because the former are more durable and are designed for aluminum. My buddy has been right all along. He had been telling us about it several months ago. Been advising us to get a lock for the screen. I had been agreeing but doing nothing about it.

But how could we know that anyway-- ribit, rebit, or whatever? "GG" had been helping manong figure out how to attach the screws temporarily as replacement for ribit or rebit or whatever. It took them almost one and a half hours to finish the job.

VI - I had been holding in my hand a 100 bill, which we were supposed to give to manong. Imagine, I had been deliberating how much moolah to give. [I started at P50. Then, P100. Back to P50. Then, P70. But after one and a half hours, I decided to give him P100 for the hassle.] But GG blocked that plan. Right after they cleaned the mess, he told manong to go inside their house to chow (they happened to be friends). I tried to steal a chance to talk to manong and hand him over the damage. But GG, with all his will and persistence, screened him away. And told me that his service is free, no worries. Ugh. I was more embarrassed and ever grateful. I even tried to bribe them with two glasses of iced-cold cranberry-raspberry juice, which, I know, was a risk move. I was not sure if they would even like the taste, but that was the only flavored, thirst quencher we have had. I was rejected twice. Hmmmp. But thanks. As in super thanks.

VII - I left Kenn to spend a night with Nay and write this stuff. Kenn and Tabz will guard our little mansion tonight until tomorrow. Kenn will make a follow-up on the ribit, rebit, or whatever with the management first thing in the morning. Kat and I will look for a hardcore double-lock for our main door tomorrow after our routine walk with Jay around Global City. And we will live happily ever after.

To that somebody who tried to break in-- screw you mahn.

Overpass

nonpartisan. that was how broe described me after hearing some recent incidents from job and kat. and i think here's why.

whenever there's tension between a friend and another friend, ako raw yung nonpartisan. yung uninvolved. or someone who doesn't give a crap. whatever you call it. for example, friend A often tells friend C about the conflict with friend B. realizing i'm in the scene, they would both falter at first. but realizing [again] that i'm the nonpartisan, they would resume swapping details as if I don't mind. and they are probably right-- i don't mind.

but i've been thinking about it. that label. am i, really?

rewind 12 years ago. nine years ago. a couple of years ago. several months ago. two weeks ago. yesterday. i'd like to believe that i'm not. i may appear to be one, but i also have my own biases. honestly, reacting is a piece of cake if what is at stake is my family or him or his family. no brainer. and i'd be transparent to the whole world about my stance. other than that, i really don't mind. not that i don't care about other people, but it's just that i'm not easily affected by somebody's intricacy. i can let it pass and forget about it the moment i walk out the door, as if that encounter never existed. when someone throws me some attitude, i stop taking that person seriously. i become invincible.

maybe that's why i appear to be nonpartisan. don't you think, broe?

i'm not even sure whether being labeled as "nonpartisan" is a complement. but who cares? =)

Good Friday

Recap: We visited 9 churches last year. Either 14 or 7 daw dapat yon. We chose 9 simply because it was our number. We weren't able to take pictures of the churches, though.

Last March 31, we made sure that we prepared the shots. And this year, we agreed on seven churches. We started our bisita iglesia at 8AM. The original plan was to get up at 6AM, but we were still heavy-eyed that time from a three-hour sleep. [We watched one more movie the night before.] So after boosting our stomach with a decent meal, we hit the road.

I am thirsty.
- John 19:2 -

Sto. Niño Parish in Pandacan

Saint Mary Goretti Parish in UN Avenue

San Fernando de Dilao Parish in Paco

Sta. Cruz Parish in Sta. Cruz

St. John the Baptist Church in Quiapo



Chapel of the Holy Sacrifice in UP Diliman

Saint Vincent de Paul Parish in Ermita


The visits finished off past 2PM. And we still had enough energy for the rest of the day. Good Friday, indeed.

Down Southwest: Palawan V

Day 5: March 9

Marked our 31st month.

6AM, attended mass at the Immaculate Concepcion Cathedral. Headed to the public market for cashew nuts, dried fish, and dried pusit afterward. Snatched a swift breakfast at Jollibee before going back to the hotel.

830AM, prepared for our 1030AM flight back to Manila, leaving Sol and Rosch, who went with Sha and Joel to Honday Bay.

[Our boarding was a bit distressing. Both guys were lax, thinking passengers would not board on time. But that airport was on time. We ended up rushing almost everything, from checking in to selecting our seats. As a consequence, the three of us had been designated seats far from one another. Good thing, there were vacant, and we managed to find two seats next to each other just before take-off. It was a no-no, but we did it anyway. Convenience over security. Ooops.

Medyo na-stress ako dun ha. Yoko talaga ng mga ganung hassle. Nati-threaten yung comfort zone ko. Wag na natin ulitin yun ha, kulet?]

To wrap it up, our Palawan trip was almost 4 out of 5 stars.

The inconvenience (and some others) that we swallowed were nothing as compared with the places that we visited, the company that we had, the quality time that we both shared, and the patience that you gave.

And I'm sorry for acting like a brat on our way home. Mi luv yah, buddy ko.*kugos*