sa right corner pocket

impluwensya ng mga kaibigan ko ang paglalaro ko ng bilyar. dati kasi, ni hindi ko man lang naisip sumubok. at nung una kong subukang maglaro, pahirapan pang makapasok ng bola.

si berto ang una kong partner sa bilyar. kapag sinasabihan niya akong "makapal, kat" o "nipisan mo pa", para niya akong kinakausap ng greek o latin. di ko maintindihan. ang goal ko pa nga nung umpisa e matamaan lang ng tama ang bola. kahit na di na lang pumasok, matamaan ko lang. ok lang naman kasi marami naman sa amin ang hindi marunong. dahan-dahan din kaming natuto hanggang sa halos kada friday e yun na lang ang gimik namin. nagiging bowling kung minsan kapag may pera kami dahil bagong suweldo. pero kapag kapos sa pera, bilyar na lang. mas mura kasi. kahit sa amoy-sigarilyong usok ng marbles, go pa rin kami. di man ako naging magaling, nakaka-shoot na rin ako ng bola paminsan-minsan. hanggang ngayon, goal ko pa rin ang matalo si neil (ang pinakamagaling sa amin sa bilyar) kahit isang game lang.

natutuwa ako kapag naglalaro ako ng bilyar. di man ako maging kasing galing ng mga kaibigan ko, ok lang sa akin. minsan nga, iniisip ko na ok na rin kahit na di ako maging magaling para masaya lang ang paglalaro. di ko iniisip na kailangan kong manalo at kailangan kong ipakita na magaling ako. (o baka excuse ko lang yan). ok nga at tinuruan ako ng mga kaibigan kong mag-bilyar kasi nakakapag-bonding ako sa ibang mga tao dahil dun. ngayon lang, kakauwi ko lang galing sa barbecue sa bahay ng project manager namin. pagkakain at pagka-chika sa ibang mga kasama, bumaba kami para manood sa iba pa naming officemates na naglalaro. nakalaro ko na isang beses si aaron kaya alam niya na marunong ako. pagkatapos ng game nila, pinalitan ko siya at nakilaro ako sa kanila. astig kasi ako lang ang babaeng nakikilaro (e pero tatlo lang naman kaming babae nun). ang ok pa, naka-tatlong bola akong dire-diretsong pasok. syempre, hindi sadya. swerte lang parati. pero ok kasi nagmukha akong magaling. hehehe!

nakakatuwa kasi di naman ako magaling sa small talk. madalas kasi akong nauubusan ng sasabihin. kaya nga gusto kong may mga kasamang makuwento. e since naglalaro kami ng bilyar, nag-e-enjoy ako kahit na di ako magkuwento nang magkuwento. konting chika chika lang, ok na.

ilang beses ko nang naririnig ang kasabihang "music is the universal language". ngayon ko lang naisip, ang bilyar din pala.

sa araw ng kalayaan

ipinagmamalaki kong isa akong pilipino. kahit saan ako magpunta, kapag tinatanong ako ng mga tao kung saan ako galing, parating may ngiti ang pagsagot ko na galing ako sa pilipinas. kahit sa mga oras na may mga hindi magandang nangyayari sa pinas, di ko ito ikinahiya kahit kailan. oo, may mga oras na nadi-dismaya ako sa mga pulitiko natin na wala na lang ginawa kundi mangurakot. at may mga pagkakataon na nagdududa ako kung mababago pa nga ba ang kalagayan ng pilipinas. minsan din, nag-iisip ako kung mas mabuti pa nga bang manirahan na lang sa ibang bansa. pero naniniwala pa rin ako na ang pilipinas ay isa sa pinakamagandang bansa sa buong mundo. at ang mga pilipino ay isa sa mga pinakamabubuting tao sa balat ng lupa. nalulungkot ako kapag mayroon akong kaibigan o kakilala na nagsasabing ayaw na nilang umuwi ng pilipinas. o mas gusto pa nilang mabilang sa ibang lahi. nasasaktan ako bilang isang pilipino.

ipinagmamalaki kong pinalaki akong minamahal ko ang aking lahi. sa bawat paaralang pinasukan ko, itinatak ito sa aking isip at puso.

sa araw ng kalayaan ng pilipinas, nais ko sanang tunay na maging malaya ang mga pilipino. malaya sa mababang pagtingin ng ibang tao, at lalo na sa mababang tingin ng kapwa nating pilipino. nais kong maging malaya tayo sa kahirapan, na kaya nating mabuhay ng matiwasay ng dahil lang sa sipag at tiyaga, na hindi na natin kailangang mangibang-bansa para lang matustusan ang pangangailangan natin sa araw-araw. na maaaring maging matapat ng bawat tao dahil hindi nila kailangang mandaya o mangurakot para lang kumita ng pera. gusto ko sanang respeto ang salitang maging kakabit ng pagiging pilipino.

pilipino ako. at mahal ko ang aking lahi.

true love na ito!

ok. so i've been posting entries in english most of the time in the remote possibility that someone outside of my circle suddenly goes in and reads my blog. but i have to post this entry in taglish (tagalog-english, for those that do not know) just because it's easier that way. :)

***

sa tinagal-tagal na panahon, hindi ako kinikilig. wala naman kasing dahilan. well, kapag napapanood ko si apolo sa tv o kaya nung nakita ko siya sa cover ng magazine, kinilig ako. pero ibang kilig naman yun e. obvious namang star-struck lang ako sa kanya. pero kahapon, habang nakikipag-usap ako sa isang kaibigan sa ym, halos mapasigaw ako sa kilig.

bago mag-react ang mga kapatid at mga kaibigan ko na ang tangi lang yatang panalangin para sa akin e ang magkaroon na ng boypren e hindi po para sa akin ang kilig na yun. alam nyo yung kilig na nararamdaman mo kapag yung kilala mo e inlab sa kaibigan mo? ganun.

ang galing nga ng pag-uusap namin kasi di naman talaga yun ang balak naming pag-usapan. di nga kami madalas mag-usap eh. inaantok lang siya kaya siya nag-decide na makipag-usap sa akin. e ok lang naman sa akin kasi di naman din ako masyadong busy nun. nagsimula sa pagiging mag-isa ko sa apartment ko. sabi ko kasi, masaya ring mag-isa paminsan-minsan kasi halos buong buhay ko e kasama ko ang mga kapatid ko sa kuwarto. so ang hirap kung gusto mong mag-isa. pero minsan din, nakaka-miss ang ingay. kasi kung may gusto kang kausapin, wala kang ibang makakausap kundi yung tv mo. mukha ka nga lang tanga nun. :) sabi niya, ang galing daw kasi di ko daw kelangang mag-asawa para magkaroon ng privacy. sabi ko naman, kapag mag-aasawa ka nga, halos lahat ng bagay e ise-share nyo sa isa't isa.

tapos napunta sa kung meron na daw ba akong prospect. sabi ko wala. napag-usapan pa nga namin yung mga kasama ko dito. sabi ko, di ko papatusin kasi umaamoy (gets nyo na kung saan sila galing). so tinanong niya ako ng mga gusto ko... syempre sabi naman ako. di ko na nilahat kasi baka di kami matapos. :) sabi niya, sa susunod daw naming pagkikita e sasama daw siya sa screening committee. aba, sure! basta ba merong pagpipilian eh. hehehe! :) dun ko tinanong kung kelan naman siya magpapakilala ng special someone niya at kung ano ba mga "requirements" niya. nagsabi naman din siya. so ang tanong ko e kung wala pa bang juma-jackpot sa requirements niya. meron na daw kaya lang di daw pwede. at explain pa siya na may pagka-nerdo (sori, totoo eh) kung bakit.

sa pag-e-explain niya at sa kabuuan ng usapan namin, na-gets ko na kung sino ang tinutukoy niya although wala naman siyang sinasabing pangalan. pero sa lahat ng emoticons at sa lahat ng sitwasyon na nabanggit niya, manhid na nga lang siguro ako kung di ko makuha kung sino yun. syempre, ako naman itong gagang kaibigan, halos mamatay ako sa kilig. di nga ako magkaintindihan kung paano magpigil sa pagsigaw kasi conference room ako at ma-o-obvious ng mga kasama ko na di ako nagta-trabaho. :)

yun nga lang, mas excited ako kesa sa kaibigan ko. siguro kasi di naman siya talaga na-involve sa pag-uusap kaya di siguro niya naramdaman yung naramdaman ko. at sayang nga lang kasi sa tingin ko, tinanggap na nilang dalawa na hindi sila pwede. sa akin talaga, never say never. malay mo, diba? :)

frankfort

kentucky is a state adjacent to ohio. i've never been to kentucky except when going to or coming from the airport. with the help of virtual tourist and google, i checked its capital, which is frankfort. romer was staying in lexington, a few minutes away from frankfort. surprisingly, they've never been there before. well, i've never been to columbus as well, which is the state capital of ohio but that would be rectified soon, as i am just awaiting my brochure which i requested online. but that would be a different adventure all together.



romer and i decided to meet up at the state capitol. i was with my officemates, jay and cathy and he arrived with his officemates, joyce and phoebe. it's been a while since we last saw each other, i don't even remember when that was. so it was a bit ironic that it was in the US, miles away from home, that we would see each other again.

the frankfort capitol is the first that i have seen among the states that i have been to. the grounds were beautiful especially since the flowers were now in full bloom. we were able to go inside the building, have our pictures taken with lincoln's statue (he's a kentuckian) and in different parts of the building. we realized from going through the halls that they had senators and representatives from different states. we somehow wondered how they ever get to decide on national issues when all senators and representatives were present. when there were no more pictures to be taken within the capitol walls, we then proceeded to the floral clock at the back of the capitol to have more pictures taken.



after lunch, everyone (except for me) ruled out going to the museums. so we decided to go to buffalo trace distillery instead. thanks to the gps in cathy's car, we were able to arrive in one piece (well, two... since we were in two cars). and we were just in time for the 2 pm tour. after viewing a short video of the origins of buffalo trace, we went into the warehouse to see how they were storing the bourbon in oak barrels. we had to tour the smaller warehouse as the bigger one got damaged in a hurricane a couple of days back. we also went into the bottling facility where the bourbon is hand-bottled and hand-labelled. however, the last part of the tour was the most anticipated since it was the bourbon tasting. i've never had bourbon before so i was a bit excited. teresa, our guide, first poured out vodka for us to taste... then bourbon... then bourbon balls, which are bourbon-flavored chocolate. the bourbon was more subtle than the vodka, and the chocolate was delicious... just a hint of bourbon but not overpowering the chocolate.



our frankfort trip ended with the tour. we decided to part ways then, although i was going to see them again in a couple of weeks. it was a good trip... bonding with my officemates, catching up with an old friend and meeting new ones. kentucky might be boring for some people, but i guess that depends on you.

more pictures here.

yes, he will be missed

ok, so now i am affected.

after ryan seacrest announced that the phone lines were open for voting last tuesday, i spent two hours dialing one number. i voted for elliott yamin. alas, the two hours i spent did not do him any good as elliott said goodbye to the american idol stage yesterday.

when chris daughtry left the show, i was shocked. i seriously thought that between him and kat, kat was the one to go. but now, i am disappointed. sorely and utterly disappointed.

before it was announced who had gotten the lowest number of votes, i was thinking that if ever elliott did go to the finals but did not win (as taylor is obviously the favorite), he would still be releasing an album as all runner-ups have had during the last four seasons. since it's just may, by the time it was time for me to go home, elliott would have already released an album. i would be buying one for sure. i hope that still happens even now that he's gone from the competition.

*fingers crossed*

a brief trip home

it's been a while since i last posted and a lot has happened since then. i've spent two weeks in manila, spending time with my family and some of my friends. unfortunately, i also had to work the whole time i was there. it made my trip back home seem shorter than it already was.

let's see..

1. my family and relatives were all there to welcome me back home, something that i had hoped for but didn't really expect and so very well appreciate.
   
2. i went to the office to finish up with some admin work and see my officemates.
3. we had a surprise birthday party for tita eva.
   
4. went back to the office the second time and was able to talk to my manager and more friends. i was both happy and sad when i learned that a friend will be leaving the company soon. it was a brief goodbye with the hope that we'll be seeing each other again.
   
5. we had dinner at home together with our relatives and mom's friends to celebrate her birthday.
   
6. i met up with some friends for dinner in makati, a get-together that i thought would not happen during this trip back home. a heartfelt thank you to rose, pogs, eden, mami bhing, neil and art for a memorable, albeit brief reunion.
   
7. was able to reconnect with jing and joel, two close friends from college that i haven't talked to for the longest time. this is the reason why i love friendster!
   
8. had the official celebration of mom and tita eva's birthdays in los banos.
   

all too soon i was on my way back to cincinnati. six months to go before i head back home... for good.

only a few will know

a couple of days before i was to leave for manila, i had a bit of an emotional struggle to deal with. my sister, karla, being online during my waking hours became the receiving end of my temporary drama. now that i think i have "recovered" from that, a new struggle has ensued for me. i would overcome that in a few days, of that i am certain. but in the mean time, i have to put on my brave face for all of the world to see.

"..broken up deep inside
but you won't get to see the tears i cry..
..no i don't cry on the outside anymore.."
      - kelly clarkson / behind these hazel eyes / breakaway

here i come

the long wait has ended! i am going home tomorrow! :)

zoo blooms

i was supposed to wait until my parents come to cincinnati to visit before i went to the "tourist spots" but since the blooming of the flowers could not be delayed, i decided to go this weekend as i would be back in manila for the remaining weekends of april. being alone for most of my recent adventures, i am now an expert in taking self portraits using my camera. hehehe!



you can view the rest of the pictures here.

***

on another good note, i was able to do parallel parking for the first time today! i didn't want to pay an additional fee for parking so i looked for a spot on the curb. the first spot i saw was between two cars. i decided to try parallel parking instead of looking for another space and i did it! talk about what you can accomplish when you need to. :)

a walk through sharon woods

i've been through sharon woods before with l.u. and roman. it was autumn then and the park was a mixture of yellow, red and brown. i went to another visit last sunday, walking though the hike path. the weather was perfect and although the park wasn't a lush green yet, i still enjoyed my hour-long walk.




more pictures here