home at last

ever since i got home, i have never get to spend the whole day at home. i did clinics monday to friday and been busy with my clan's reunion which happened yesterday. i also get to attend a seminar for three days. no, i am not complaining. in fact, i feel so blessed. aside from my work down south, i got another one near home.i would really wanted to spend my time at home reading while i am here but i realized it's a blessing in disguise having that day job in the clinic coz i am able to read more than i will ever get to do at home coz temptations at home are everywhere and simply hard to resist. LOL

i love attending seminars and conferences. maybe that's how my nostalgia for school manifests. i get to know a lot of great people and most especially i get more inspired being a physician. plus, the luxury of being in a hotel and getting to visit the metro in a way more than the ordinary is something too. LOL. this time, the community i serve down south picked me to attend the seminar in bayview hotel along roxas blvd. i stayed there for one night instead of three coz i didn't know all the attendees get to have accommodation for free. well there's nothing about the hotel to rave about. their interiors is not at par with the others along that street and food was so- so. but since it's free, i was glad to stay there and escape a grueling two hours in traffic and heat from commuting. heehee. im happy that the department of health put money on making their delegates at least comfortable and even went as far as bringing about ten handsome electronic microscopes with them for visuals. and that, they all did without any help from med reps. good job, DOH!


its also nice to know that a lot of physicians are practicing in the province and serving in government hospitals. they are also more approachable and kalog unlike the stereotype clinicians and government workers i have known haha. i guess it goes to show how satisfied and happy they are with their jobs. sabi nga sa sm supermarket, "happy to serve!" with matching clap pa yun hehe. i wish more doctors will be like them. on the side, i haven't been in robinson's place for a long while and i was amazed how huge the mall is now. we ate dinner there and i got tired walking along its long and endless hallways. geez, i wished i had a lot of moolahs with me to buy some pretty stuffs i have seen in some of the windows.

the last few days were the busiest. parang gusto kong hatiin ang katawan ko sa pag attend ng seminar at pag asikaso ng reunion. kami kase ang host this year. hindi biro mag organize ng isang reunion para sa isang malaking angkan, huh. pero masaya naman dahil maayos namin nairaos ang reunion. naging photographer din ako for a day. sa tingin ko din, nag enjoy silang lahat dahil hindi sila umalis agad at tinapos nila ang program. it's a very successful party indeed! congratulations to us, hehe.

today, it's a sunday and i am so glad to spend the whole day at home... at last! manonood sana ako ng movie kaso naisip ko, bukas na lang. holiday naman bukas e. sa ngayon, happy ako na manood lang ng tv, mag ayos ng mga anik- anik sa kwarto ko, mag internet ng one to sawa at syempre makipaglaro sa aking pamangkin. hay, sarap!




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mom's bathroom

yup. renovation is done. finally, pagkalipas ng maalikabok na mga linggo, heto na ang resulta.




the bathroom is smaller than the one we used to have before but for me it fits just right for the job. toilet and sink we got on sale.



shower room divider is a brown fiberglass with bamboo design.



bathroom door has an artsy plant design. those tile pattern gives one a feeling of bathing in sunshine. can you see my camera? yup, im not a dslr user. just a small point and shoot for this princess. and i hate the noise i had in my photos arrgghh.


this used to be the old bathroom now converted into an adjacent room which houses this full length mirror, the old lavatory and a cabinet for the towels and bathroom supplies. the door to the bathroom can be seen through the mirror. the tiles for the floor look like bricks which added to the 'outdoor feel'.




this lavatory is the only one that's left from the old bathroom and the marmol wall too. the wall reminds me of our native 'batalan.'

backdrop aint wood but art. the white wall was painted by our neighbor and gave it a 'woody effect'. these three vases i bought from sm department store in megamall for less than 500Php.


... while this tiny oil defuser cost me more. sigh.

see more pictures of our new bathroom in my flickr.




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hang on till tomorrow

ganda ng boses ng batang ito. mala- anghel ang dating.

this is my favorite song right now. so full of hope for the future.

our bathroom in the first floor is currently under renovation. mom and i went to ace hardware earlier to window shop tiles and ceramics. i think mom wants to have an outdoor feel for the new bathroom. gusto nya yung parang bato- bato effect na tiles for the floor. naaliw naman ako sa gusto ni mother. hehe. excited na ko na makita ang outcome. sana maganda. crossing my fingers.




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how's my week PART 2

2nd week of the love month

• sunday was the burial of my uncle anseng who died of liver cancer. mom wasn't able to attend because she was still in the hospital recuperating.
  
• monday, mom went home already. i was absent then coz i have to take care of paying the bills and all the rest. its hard when you are the eldest 'available' child. you have to learn how to stand up for your family. it was a nice learning experience.
• wednesday, i was into binge eating. it wasnt due to an emotional crisis but it was because of the yummy danggit and sweet fish skeleton from davao. i matched it with diced kamatis which i brought from philcoa after madel and i went to the photocopy-han and isaw (darn, naubusan ba naman kami!?!) at UP and itlog na pula from pateros. my roommate and i really loved it! meron pa kaming appetizer na chicharon from bulacan (the best hehe) dipped in spiced vinegar. hmmm... it was a real delight! taob ang 2 gatang na sinaing hehe.
  
• thursday was valentine's day. i woke up happy which was surprising. bogs was the first one who greeted me and it really means so much that i was given importance by my friends. he told me he planned to wake up at midnight to greet me. he wasnt able to do that for some reason but considering his thoughtfulness was enough. lunch time neil called and told me to go to gateway at 7pm. i asked why but he was evasive. the call just gave me a feeling he's going to set me up on a blind date. so there i was todo ayos and todo bihis. haha. i arrived late at kinakabahan. neil, koy and reg were all there. then i found out i wasn't set up with anybody! they just planned a dinner date for the singles in our barkada. we had dinner in seafoods island and had boodle feast which was really yummy then had starbucks afterwards. bongga talaga coz before we started our meal the boys handed me a bouquet of roses with different colors. i was really touche'd! i'm so thankful to have friends like them. da best!
• friday (today) koy fretched me in my apartment since he did some business near my place. hehe nakakatuwa naman talaga sila.
• on sunday, neil and i are going to have our badminton match hehe. sa wakas tuloy na. and hopefully, i'll still have the energy for airsoft in the afternoon.

how's my week

• sunday, i went out with my boy buds. we decided to go to the mall of asia since jom, who just went home recently (he's now based in guam) , haven't seen the place. we watched the movie clover field (which i do not recommend for those with weak stomach because of its 'dizziness' effect) and ate at an italian resto which i forgot the name, and of course picture taking to the max. john, neil, reg, koy, jerin and i stayed a couple of hours more. we decided to eat at a fancy crepe resto overlooking the bay. then we headed for the baywalk for more picture taking.

halos kumpleto...

kami na lang ang natira



• the guys fetched me at my place in q.c. while at the car, koy bursted out his 'panghihinayang.' Quoting him: 'ikaw kase hawak mo na sa leeg si dryn pinakawalan mo pa. e di sana kasal nyo yung inattendan namin' hmmm... i didn't expect one of them felt (and see our friendship) that way. akala ko si mom lang nanghinayang e. ayun tuloy, what i all throughout our journey was explain my sideto them. promise i'm going to write another entry about this ish.



• mom was confined at the national kidney and transplant institute (NKTI) last monday. she had pelvolithotomy with cholecystectomy the following day. i was able to stay in the operating room throughout the whole procedure due to my mom's request which, im telling you was not a good experience... she's ok now. she's been walking around the room already and can go to the bathroom without a companion. she's going home on monday. thanks for the prayers!



• spending the nights at the hospital all week was like going on perpetual duty minus the never ending 'lakaran' that is. i was sleeping at the chair all week (so dabs can sleep on the sofa). My back really hurts! i miss my bed...



• my uncle whom we fondly called tata anseng died yesterday. he had liver cancer. it was just sad that it was barely a month since my uncle totong died (due to lung cancer). mom won't be able to be at the wake since my uncle's burial is tomorrow already. my the good Lord grant them eternal repose. i'll miss them...

Future agenda

• i've been gaining a lot of weight already and my tummy would testify to that. hehe. ive started wearing a velcro belt which i knew from med school doesnt really work. i still use it though to remind my self that i shouldn't give in to those yummy, mouth watering, eye popping indulgences...my favorite, my comfort foods.



• my diet plan was to do exercises like doing abs crunches and brisk walking to the q.c. circle, which is just near my place, or to the grocery. i also intend to do biking in the afternoon at the circle. neil already promised to play badminton with me during our free sundays. also, im going to try airsoft with my other boy buds which is a good form of stress release too.

Friends, meet my new pamangkin. he's John Mathew

Ca's Birthday Party

im back in home base

• my rotation in national center for mental health ended last feb 14. we gave a party for our patients in zonta- shangrila. it was nice to see them having fun. i didn't have a date last valentine but those people made my valentines worthwhile. (jemay and i had an early valentines date)
  

• im still in my psychiatry rotation. i'll be serving for two weeks more but this time, it's in feu hospital. life is so benign here. as in our only everyday dilemma is where and what to eat for lunch. ang benign di ba?
  

• ill be celebrating my birthday in a couple of days and i'll be turning a quarter- of- a- century- old. two years ago i planned that if i reached that age, i will be more health conscious. i have a strong family history of hypertension so i really have to watch my health. i still wanted to see my kids grow and have their own family. and considering the career that i have chosen, starting a family will be a little bit later for me. so starting thursday, i'll be eating meat and oily foods in moderation until i learn to get it out of my system. hay. its goodbye lechong baboy and chicharon for me.

• last saturday, i had an early birthday celebration with my parents. we went to tagaytay and had a nice lunch in viewsite restaurant. originally, we planned to go to calaruega in nasugbu, batangas after we drive my sister, dabsy, and her officemates to canyon woods. but since we have to wait until 2 pm in picnic grove before we bring them there, we decided to have a joy ride instead and just enjoy the view and the cool breeze of the place. tagaytay' s picnic grove has a new spot called 'picnic village.' its a pretty nice place where you can buy a lot of novelty items, eat, or play arcades. what i really loved was the cozy lunch we had in viewsite restaurant. it's a big veranda overlooking the lake. i was very overwhelmed when i saw how close you can see the taal volcano. it's really breath taking. a trio (2 guitarists and one plays a cello) go around from table to table and sing for their customers. not so many people dine there so it wasnt really toxic for them to do it. and you can even request for songs for them to play for you. they were really good in singing spanish songs so my dad requested one for me. its really a romantic place. so friends, if you later on decide to propose to your girl, it's one of the romantic place i highly recommend. just make sure to plan it when there's sunlight coz she'll miss the view at night or if its foggy. food was good. they let you pick your fish of choice and they will cook it the way you wanted (parang "dampa" restaurant). the only drawback is, the food costs really much (its like dining in a five star hotel). but considering the ambiance and all, its worth it naman.

• future plans. ive been thinking lately a lot about my future plans. so far, i havent made a concrete plan yet but im getting there. im towards reaching a turning point in my life and i know that whatever my decision now will greatly affect my future. its sad that i cannot please everybody but then i know that if i will not make my own choice, im going to regret it for the rest of my life.

merry christmas!

updates on my life so far:

• super busy pa din. lalo na ngayon, prelims is fast approaching. i'm gonna have my exams on dec. 14 to 21. birthday pa naman ni daddy sa 14. sana kung may handaan man, simple lang para naman makapag- aral ako.
• nalulunod na ko sa dami ng handouts! hindi biro ang 17 subjects ha!
  
• yesterday was my lola's first year death anniversary. syempre may handa. sabi ni mommy konti lang daw pero nung nakita ko pag- uwi ko, mukhang pang party. hay, nako. what's new with mom?
• nakanood na ko ng harry potter!!! hahaha! yahooo!

yun lang. got to run. still have to go to surgery department. i'm going to ask what's the best management for my mom's cholelithiasis (gall stones) and how much lap chole costs.

have a nice weekend , everyone!

hay mama!

bumaba ako kanina para mag- saing. tamang- tama, andun si mami.ewan ko kung anong nangyari at all of a sudden naging issue ang pagiging unattached ko. hay, hindi ako sanay ha. you know naman, she's not the type of mom na ok lang i- open ang lovelife. kakaloka talaga. dapat daw i should entertain suitors at maganda daw kung ngayon pa lang may steady boyfriend na ko dahil baka malipasan ako ng panahon. aray ko! ano ba yan?! natawa na lang ako. akala nya siguro virginal beauty pa ako pagdating sa pakikipag- relasyon. kung alam lang nya ang nakaraan hahaha! sugurado ako, hindi sya sasang- ayon. hehehe.

maya- maya, hindi pa nakuntento. there goes the name dropping. tinatanong ako about aldryn. she said, he seems to be a good guy, wala akong iintindihin kase stable, maganda ang work, mabait naman...(naku, at nakakuha ng abogado ang loko) at dinugtungan ko ng '...binasted ko na yun.' hay nako, i had my reasons for turning him down and those are really good reasons.na- turn off na ko sa kanya. a basta. for now, ayaw. shoo. tsupi! hehehe.

ano ba ito?! siguro iniisip ni mommy na nagmumukha na kong mongha. lagi na lang kase akong nandito sa bahay. hay, kung kelan pa naman na-realize ko na mas mabuti kung wag na lang muna ako sumabak sa ganyang mga bagay.

don't worry mom, darating din ako dyan. hinay- hinay lang muna, mahina ang kalaban. hehehe

shopping with mom

saturday morning, before i left for pharma pre- finals, mom and i had a little argument. i felt so bad. i didn't help but cry. so there i was, trying to eat my breakfast and sniffing at the same time.

nakakainis naman kase. pag may exam ako the following day, iniiwan nila ko sa bahay. mag- isang gumagawa ng lahat. tapos, may reklamo pa pag uwi nila. teka lang! med student ako. wala bang kahit konting consideration for me? hay na ko.

when i got home, syempre medyo nagddrama pa ko ng konti. hehe. nakakatuwa lang coz after i had my lunch, mom asked me to go to sm with her. syempre alam ko na ibig sabihin nun. we had shopping alright.

hehe. i was really happy. syempre ang tagal ko nang hindi nag-sshopping coz i am saving pa for a new cp.

hay, what a nice stress reliever.

debut side story

i already miss my nieces and nephews. actually, mas namimiss ko yung dalawang pamangkin kong japanese. hehehe. reina was just three years old pero sobrang madaldal kaya lang hindi marunong magtagalog! hahaha! all i can tell her is 'dame' (i don't know if that's the right spelling), which means 'bawal.'her brother Yugi is the cutest. they got a lot of attention in the debut because their talking japanese. na- amaze siguro yung mga tao.

hay nako, until now parang naririnig ko pa rin sila. siguro after i finished med, i'll start learning nipponggo so that i can teach those kids to speak Filipino. hehe. the irony of it!

APPLE of my eyes

I've been to my niece debut party tonight. It's been nine years since the last time I saw her and her siblings. I can still remember the times when mom would take one of the two girls in our house and we'll take care of them for a week. those kids have gone through a lot of hard times since their mom died… Looking at them now, I cannot help but get amazed with how much the've grown. Halos hindi ko na sila makilala. Especially Raylord, the youngest and the only boy, who looks older than his age. Iba talaga nagagawa ng hangin sa states. Hehehe.

My aunt, cousins, and I can't help but get emotional starting when Apple read her Dad's letter… nakakatuwa. just wanna share the first part coz it really touched me... the day she was born, kuya and my cousin were so scared because she didn't cry at first. He held him so close to him (even if she was covered with blood) and didn't let go of her until the moment she cried. Before handling her to the nurse, he whispered to her 'welcome to this world, baby. You're the apple of my eyes.' And I guess that's how she got her nickname. (wink wink).I also remember the time of Ate Edith's funeral. On the last blessing, Kuya Marvin opened the casket and kissed her on the lips as if she was still alive. He cried and whispered to her 'I love you.' (wink wink). Even if I was still young then, I can sense so much love in him. at that momemt I wished that someday, I could find someone like him…

I almost cried when my aunt hugged Kuya Marvin. They weren't in good terms the time he and the kids left the country. I could only guess how much emotion she had let go when she hugged him… well, I guess, time has already healed the wounds of yesterday.

The three of them- Apple, Vina, and Raylord, remind me how good God is. That through the dark clouds, there's always the sun shining. That even in darkness, there's hope… there is GOD.

I realized now, I should live life to the fullest and love LOVE to the fullest. Zeng taught me to seize the day, coz anything can happen tomorrow. We do not take hold of anything. Who knows, maybe tomorrow we'll be robbed off with our future without even having the chance to do or say whatever is in our heart. My nieces and nephew taught me to hope even if it feels the world is turning its back on you. They also made me realize how beautiful life is. Even with all the hardship and sadness existence might caused us, it is still a beautiful world and it is still a wonderful life.

God is really good. He always remind me of beautiful things during my darkest days.

the boyish next door ...

i had a bonding session with dad and bro today. i helped them replace the front signal lights. dad and i joined forces in unscrewing stubborn bolts due to rust. it was fun soiling our hands and sweat profusely. after a tiring job, we feasted on mom's special rice cake and halo- halo. what a life!

a few days ago, i was thinking of texting my driving school about the schedule in trouble shooting. i realized, why wait for it when i can learn from the expert. people little know that dad, though doing ECE stuffs overseas, is actually a mecahnical engineer. i was really happy he still remember everything about engines. i guess it's because he knew it by heart.

about the title, it seeems i'm one of the boys again. :) only that i was wearing my cutesy pink dress while doing the boys stuff. haha! hindi talaga ko mapapagkamalang boy. masyado kong kikay to be one.

this is my last week of vacation. yep, back to work again next week.