Weekend Blessings

This weekend I was again reminded that the simple joys of home more than make up for all the accumulated worries and aggravations we have to face during the work week. We did not do anything earth-shatteringly unique, but the time spent with family makes Saturdays and Sundays soothing pockets of time that I always wish I could bottle up to savor during the rest of the week.

Friday night was another blessing: a welcome breeze gently ruffling our hair, a quiet neighborhood with people off to their own weekend jaunts, twinkling stars sharply etched against the velvety darkness of the sky, and the four of us walking hand in hand.

It reminded me of the previous Friday night, February 18, which was another clear evening, with a full moon glowing coolly from above. I was lucky enough to have my camera on hand to take a hauntingly beautiful photograph of the moon. With all the experimentation I had to make, fiddling dials and buttons here and there, the final result made all the mosquito bites worthwhile!

Last Friday the moon was on the wane, but there were countless stars in the night sky, so much so that our toddler kept on saying "Wow!" We even went to the nearby golf course and reveled in the wide open space that was ours, all ours, for that evening. Of course we tried to avoid the manicured greens near the holes, but no matter. We had fun running around anyway.

It was such an exquisite pocket of time that we all sat down on the grass and gazed upwards, into the limitless expanse of the sky.

Wow, indeed.

Saturday was another happy day, capped by a round of non-competitive badminton and volleyball with the hubby and little girl. I sorely miss playing these games just for the fun of it, without pressure to do well, or to appear to do well. And I'm quite proud of the fact that the little girl is catching on quite quickly, and she can now return badminton shots and volleyball hits. We will practice more, both to build up her skills, and for all of us to unwind.

Nothing earth-shattering. But moments like these make the world seem whole again.

It's a Good Life

It has been a tiring day, requiring us to stay in the office well past sundown. After arriving home, it took a bit of effort to shake off the cares of the office, and slip into Mommy-mode.

I'm glad I'm there now.

I am thankful for two daughters who never fail to make me smile: for a toddler who amuses us with her new words and funny antics ("lo-pap" for lollipop, showing off her "sour pickle face"), a little girl who's just brimming with talent (she loves to read, and write, and draw, and swim like a fish).

I am thankful for a husband who is able to rise out my mood swings, and is supportive and patient. No matter that he is at times glued to the computer playing his favorite stress-relieving games -- he is always willing to leave them behind to spend time with me and the kids.

I am thankful for family members who are with us right now, as they make the kids happy and feel loved.

It's a good life.

Lizard Tales

The ordinary house lizard (or common house gecko) is regarded as a benign, unassuming creature. Quietly scurrying along ceilings and walls, the butiki's presence is more actively felt when the staccato clicking sound is heard: "tik-tik-tik".

The butiki is quite a common fixture in Filipino homes, so much so that they are not really noticed anymore.

When I was about five years old I had a toy with little chickens and teeny-tiny little eggs which I was fond of playing with. One day I chanced upon a round white sphere in our living room, and so I picked it up with my little hands. Not very carefully, I may add, since I was quite certain this was one of my teeny-tiny little eggs.

I must have pressed a bit too vigorously though, since the next thing I knew, out jumped a teeny-tiny little baby lizard. I shrieked with surprise and not a bit of fright.

I can imagine now, with the benefit of non-lizard-egg-crushing hindsight, that I must have surprised the heck out of that poor baby lizard, and prematurely let it out of its protective shell. I wonder how it fared afterwards.

Fast-forward to the present.

Our little toddler is fascinated by anything that moves. Birds, butterflies, cats, dogs, ants. And yes, her interest also extends to lizards. A few weeks ago, she was looking at one particularly large specimen as it was moving along our bedroom ceiling. She was all wide-eyed with watching, so engrossed, that she was craning her head upwards while her rosebud of a mouth formed an "O" of wonderment.

Then the lizard decided to let go of the ceiling and let gravity take its course.

She was so startled that she screamed a little bit. It didn't help that I uttered a little shriek of surprise when this happened. The same shriek I made when I was five. I hope I didn't traumatize our toddler.

I think that the lizard may have also been confused by all the shrieking, that it in very short order it had crossed the floor trying to find a place to hide from the noisy gigantic creatures it was faced with. Unfortunately, it decided that the shortest way to safety was to cut through a path that would take it over the toddler's feet.

Luckily she was wearing socks that time. She screamed a bit more, hopped frantically to one side, and ran towards us. No harm done.

It was only a few days ago that I gleaned from her toddler lingo that she believed something more monumental had occurred than a lizard simply running over her foot.

"Mama, lizard, bite foot. Lizard, bite foot."

I reassured her that this did not in fact happen, that it only passed over her stockinged feet.

I hope that she believed me.

And I hope that one day, when her own toddler has a lizard encounter of her own, that she does not add her own shrieks of surprise to the hullabaloo.

Good Morning

I woke up while the sun was slowly peeking through the horizon. Not an exemplary feat, by any means, esp. since I normally wake up at 5:30 am anyway, pulled from sleep by the insistent beeping of my alarm. On a regular workday, that is.

Today however is Saturday. And I woke up on my own. Perhaps my body clock has been so used to being jolted awake at the same time five times every week that it now chooses to follow the same routine for the other two days. Or maybe I'm getting old, aaarrghh!

Instead of catching up on some more snooze time, I've chosen to get my laptop out and have some Internet time. Hubby is doing the same thing beside me. The two kids are still (thankfully) lost in their dreams in La-la land.

I can hear the birds chirping outside, and I've seen the morning go progressively brighter. Everything else is so still. The weekend is laid out before us, full of promise. No stress, no worries.

I am thankful for this day.

Family Blessings

Today I am thankful for having a very smart and caring daughter who does not need to be told to help her lolo go to the room, turn on the lights for him, and give him his water. I am thankful for a cheerful, dimply toddler, who likes to jump on the bed and run back and forth betwee Mama and Papa. I am thankful for a husband who chooses to read Bible stories to the kids before we all go to sleep.

Teacher's Tales

As I flipped through the pages of the book Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teacher Tales, I was reminded that I have been quite fortunate to have been under the tutelage of a lot of sterling individuals who have helped shape who I am today. Teaching does not necessarily equate to a lucrative profession, true, but I believe it takes dedication to continue on this path of molding young minds and influencing their character.

I have experienced so-so teaching, and have plodded through mediocre classes. But some stand out so brightly in my mind even after all these years. I have woken up early in the morning eager to face another day with these great teachers.

There was Mr. Rene Sison, who was my teacher in the third and fourth grades, who recognized my affinity for numbers, and encouraged me to develop it. His facility for drawing and musical inclination inspired me as well to join the Glee Club and stay with it until I graduated from elementary.  I still remember those monthly masses when we had to sing in church -- it was never a chore for us. I never did get to hone those drawing skills though!

Ms. Clarita De Leon (now Prof. Carillo, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs and Research at the UST) taught us sixth-grade English, and I think that was her first year of teaching as well. New she might have been then, but the quality of her teaching was something else. From her I appreciated the importance of being consistently good at what you do. She expected it of her students, and embodied it herself. She was not overly strict, and yet she kept us on our toes. I was never bored in her class, and I quite enjoyed the going over the reading requirements in class. And yes, even the grammar lessons as well! I'm proud to have been one of her students.

The late Mrs. Lourdes Salcedo taught us English in our junior year in high school. It could have easily been a recipe for disaster: with all the focus on medieval writings and modern short stories and poems, teens could have just nodded at the right places and simply memorized information. But she turned our lessons into engaging sessions, making both prose and poetry come alive with meaning for us. She was our group's inspiration when we staged our final English requirement of a Shakespearean play: we did our own take of A Midsummer Night's Dream, and spent countless hours perfecting the sounds and lights, the costumes and the lines. We were ecstatic when she gave us perfect marks for it, and added bonus points to boot! She was really a tough act to follow.

Geometry and Trigonometry do not usually figure into the favorite subject lists of students, even for those in Engineering. Being the math-and-science geek that I am though, I really enjoyed these classes. What made them more interesting was Engr. Butch Carbonell, who made his classes very interactive, and encouraged us to find practical ways of visualizing solid figures, to supplement the numerous formulae we had to absorb. When our group was assigned to tackle cylinders and spheres, we came to class with a hollowed-out watermelon with an empty softdrink can inside, which garnered hoots of laughter from the class. But hey, it was meant to be a visual application after all! His energy towards teaching was -- and from what I hear, still is -- very evident. His rendition of "Da Coconut Nut" still makes me smile.

In the Faculty of Engineering, my "nanay-nanayan", Engr. Philip Marcelo, introduced me to Fluid Flow and Thermodynamics, subjects which I grew to love. I know, I know, the inner geek is shining through again, haha! She was our freshman Chemistry professor, and then our third-year Thermo prof. She had a reputation for being strict -- and she was, at times -- but she also maintained standards in her class that we had to live up to. Her love for learning never stopped, and her forays into Food Tech is something I really admire her for. She was one of my thesis advisers in my fifth year, and was one of those who constantly cheered us in inter-university competitions. She has mellowed down a lot now in her classes (yes, you have, Nanay Philip!), and I do hope that her students know how lucky they are.

Statistics is a subject that is usually best served in little chunks, as some find it a bit difficult to digest in one go. Our third-year class was an exception to this: as Engr. Rudy Dimayacyac only taught on Saturdays due to his working full-time in the industry, we had to go through three hours worth of Statistics straight up. A challenging task, even in the best of times. But somehow, he managed to make things work by being able to make his explanations simple enough to grasp, and yet he would challenge us all to test our understanding in his bonus questions-ridden tests. I will always remember the way he would illustrate statistical concepts by making a box-and-whisker plot of our class scores, and point out the outliers! His better half, Engr. Dina Dimayacyac, also taught Statistics and Stoichiometry in the ChE department, and we always thought that Ninong and Ninang made an admirable pair.

The former dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Engr. Alberto Laurito, and the former Chemical Engineering department chair, Engr. Evelyn Laurito, are two other favorites of mine. Thermodynamics, Kinetics, Stoichionetry and Environmental Studies -- all very technical subjects, ridden with formulas and graphs, and exams that induced headaches and stiff necks (esp. if one was unprepared). Very challenging subjects indeed, but they have been tackled with great aplomb by this admirable pair, pillars of the ChE department both. Their emphasis on knowing the concepts and not just memorizing by rote, kept me striving to give my best. Ninong and Ninang, thank you.

I have a lot of fond memories of other teachers still, but I have not been able to write them down yet. For now, I would just like to say: Kudos to all of you. You have made my stay in the UST quite memorable.

Weekend Reading List

For the past two weeks I have been trying to finish the two books I started reading. Uhmm, yes, I do read books in parallel, sometimes even three or four at a time, from various genres. I then read whatever suits my mood. For one reason or another, I always put these two books aside and start (and eventually finish) other volumes.

Maybe these books don't really tickle my fancy that much, or they're a bit on the heavy reading side, but I'm just too proud to quit. And so I plod along page by page. These books? Negotiation Genius by Deepak Malhotra and Max Bazerman, and Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan.

Negotiation Genius is actually interesting, in that it offers very practical examples and applications of the concepts of negotiating. After my stint as a member of the management panel for the CBA talks in our company, I can relate to what Messrs. Malhotra and Bazerman wrote about. Concepts such as logrolling and packaging demands together, co-creation of value and BATNA -- they are all very useful, and presented in a very readable format. I wish we could've read this beforehand.

Somehow though, another book always manages to catch my eye, so I put this one aside, finish the other one, then come back to this once more. I will finish this in time though. That's my promise.

The other one, Say You're One of Them, is a collection of stories by Uwem Akpan, a Nigerian author. I had seen this book before in stores, but I always ignored it. Then I picked it up and read the blurb, browsed through it and decided that it looked interesting after all. The stories are about life in Africa, in countries such as Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia -- and not just about the picturesque and idealized views of living outside the big cities. It shows the harsh and sordid realities that people do live through, such as human trafficking, prostitution, and religious conflict.

It's serious reading, and much as I want to, I just can't seem to absorb it all in one go. That's why I need to take breaks in between and pick up a book with a lighter tone. But I will go back and finish this as well. It's good writing, honest and unadorned.

On the other hand, in one sitting last night I finished Twisted 9 by Jessica Zafra. Granted, it's a thin voume, but it's eminently readable, with that sardonic tone I admire so much in her writing. From movies to pets to her passion for tennis, she writes n a way that makes one think and chortle at the same time. A very talented writer, I have almost all of Ms. Zafra's books, and a lot of books by other Filipino authors such as F. Sionil Jose, Cristina Pantoja Hidalgo, and Ambeth Ocampo.

I think it's a pity that books by Filipino authors or those with a Filipinianan slant are not given as much air-time or ad-space as others, and are almost always excluded from special promos. But then again, maybe it's because they are already priced way lower than other books sourced from abroad. That's not to say they are of lesser quality though. Definitely not.

And while we're on the vein of easy reading, I started on the much-awaited sequel to Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert: Committed. It picks up from where Eat, Pray, Love left off: when Elizabeth met and fell in love with Felipe. Because they both came from first marriages that ended in divorce, they vowed to NOT get married ever, and which apparently made their relationship last. The complexities start when Felipe is banned from entering the US, except if they get married. The search for the meaning of marriage becomes the overarching theme of this book. I'm about a foruth of my way through, and I think I'll be able to finish it off this weekend.

While experimenting with the focusing mechanism on my camera, I was able to get this nicely blurred effect of the four books I've just written about, a photo of which is at the start of this post.

Quite interesting!

Tangled, With Books

The title of this post could very well describe our older daughter's state: long, wavy, tangled hair, and with at least one book in her arms. But no, it's not about her, at least not solely.

Yesterday we decided to have another family jaunt to the mall, this time to Festival Mall in Muntinlupa, which is an hour-and-a-half's drive from our place. With a bit of trepidation we loaded up the little ones, along with a number of towels for the eventuality of motion sickness setting in. My sister and her husband went along as well, so at least the adults-to-kids ratio was tipped in our favor.

When we arrived it was another time to celebrate: the toddler was spew-free once more! No mopping up, no changing of clothes, no sour smell in the confines of the vehicle, hurray! She's really growing up.

It was relatively early, just a little past 11. As we went looking for a parking slot in the covered portion, we first hesitated to go down the next level, as the 1.80-meter height marker rod appeared to be on a level with our vehicle's roof already! We backed off and tried to look for a slot at the ground level, to no avail. So again we approached the ramp downwards, and I went down to check whether the rod would scrape our roof. There was about a handspan's worth of margin still, so off we went, relieved.

Our older daughter was raring to catch Tangled, a rehashed Rapunzel tale that was not in the 2D cartoon format we were all exposed to as kids. I was actually looking forward to it as well. We had a light lunch while inside the movie-house, munching on burgers and fries, as there was no time for a sit-down lunch in one of the restos if we wanted to be in time for the 11:45 am showing. What got us a bit worried was that the toddler was with us as well, and this would be her first time inside a movie-house. We were expecting quite a fair bit of fidgeting and crying inside, so we braced ourselves for the impact.

It never came.

The toddler was very well-behaved, happily munching on popcorn and fries, and seemed to be attentively following what was going on in the big screen. At one point the seat was snapping shut because she was too small, so I just draped her over the seat as well as I could. Then she snuggled up in my lap and afterwards on my husband's. Our older daughter on the other hand was very happy to have seen the movie without interruptions, and told us that she loved it. She was rapt, entranced with the fairy tale.

We were able to watch Tangled with no hair-pulling on our part.

Afterwards we went to some toy shops where the kids browsed and window-shopped. No, they do not whine or throw tantrums when we go out of a shop without toys in our hands. That has always been a source of pride for us. Just let them roam a bit, touch and explore on their own, and they're fine.

Bookshops however are more challenging.

After the toy shop forays we went to Powerbooks, which is not only MY happy place, but our older daughter's as well. And to think that this branch is tiny compared to the other branches in Manila! I think that in time the toddler will get to see the merits of bookshops too. While hubby herded the little one up, down and around the shop (it had a mezzanine), the two of us, my older daughter and I, happily gazed at the aisles of books. Of course we soon had a tidy little pile!

After paying for my purchases, the lady behind the counter asked me what tote bag color I wanted for my book haul. Of course I chose purple! I have to take my hats off to the city of Muntinlupa for having the gumption to enact the banning of plastic bags and styrofoam containers in stores. That's walking the talk on being environmentally friendly!

I promised myself that I would always have a tote bag in my purse whenever I go to malls, whether it be in Muntinlupa or otherwise.

Hmmm... but maybe I should put one of my other recyclable totes in my bag instead of the purple one -- it's just so pretty!

Still Thankful

I am proud to have been able to continue with my Thank You chronicles, even though I do not call them that in the title anymore. I am trying to constantly find something to be thankful for. Some days are easy, others take a bit more effort. But as I look at the balance sheet, I believe the good far outweigh the bad.

Today I am thankful for dark pink calachuchi flowers, which were handed to me by my two daughters as we trudged home after a short walk. They are not what normally would come to mind when thinking of flowers, but they are nonetheless beautiful.

I am thankful for Flat Tops chocolates -- they are simple fare, inexpensive, and remind me of my childhood. I think they taste the same as Curly Tops, except that, uhhh... one has a smooth top and the other one's is.. curly.

I am grateful for being able to go home for lunch everyday (with the exception of business lunches of course), and have a brief rconnect with the family.

Eccentric or OC?

Everyone has certain eccentricities.

Like the person who cringes at the sight of different types of food touching one another on a plate (nope, not me, and no, I am not talking about Mr. Monk here). Or one who is close to pulling out her hair when one of her books gets a creased cover. What about someone who dislikes bell pepper in viands such as afritada, but would willingly eat them on pizza?

Humorous, frustrating, irritating -- we all have different reactions when faced with these idiosyncracies. The thing is, we all have them, some just more extreme than others.

Me? I like my books to have uncracked spines as much as possible. Of course this is easier said than done, but hey, I've been successful in a lot of my books! Don't they look nice standing up all fresh and uncreased?

I also prefer to squeeze toothpaste from the bottom upwards. It's a pet peeve of mine to see a tube of toothpaste with a "waistline", bent over like it's in pain.

Catsup is one of my favorite condiments. Friends have even dubbed it my "magic food". I slather it on burgers and hotdogs, dip fries and chips into it, and use it to enhance the flavors of fried porkchops, roast chicken, and yes, even inihaw na isda! I love tomato-based sauces, and pizza, and pasta. This is making me hungry.

At night I want my curtains to cover up every little inch of window glass. If there's even an inch of uncovered space, I quickly get to my feet and adjust the drapes. Is it OC of me to do that? Maybe.

As much as possible I read magazines from front to back. Same with newspapers. I do browse from time to time, but it just doesn't feel natural for me.

When I'm writing, or typing out, posts for this blog I do not like anyone looking over what I'm doing. I do appreciate people reading my blog -- AFTER the posts are finished. I just do not want anyone to be with me while I am in the process of writing. My concentration gets shot, I feel self-conscious, and my writing becomes stilted -- if I can continue at all. Guess I'm odd that way.

So there. I just thought I should write it down, while nobody's looking over my shoulder.

Ruminations

News stories abound with speculations and pronouncements surrounding the sudden passing of former Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief Angelo Reyes. Shock, surprise, anger, sadness, stoicism, ambivalence -- people will inevitably be polarized over what this means for the current investigation on alleged corruption in the AFP.

I am not here though to speculate on whether his death means an admission of guilt or a last stand for his innocence. Things are already muddled enough as it is. I write to ponder on what could have driven this man, with an illustrious career behind him, to to commit this final act of desperation (if indeed he did, which is another theory altogether again).

I cannot even begin to fathom the maelstrom of emotions that he must have been feeling the last few weeks, leading to his final moments in front of the grave of his mother. Whether he was guilty or innocent is not the question I have at this point. Sure, he was in the midst of a raging controversy, one that cut across the highest echelons of power in the country.

But in the end, he was just one man. One whose death left behind a grieving family and saddened friends. Not to mention countless questions that he alone may have had the answers to.

I find myself thinking that in the end, whatever wealth you may have amassed, or power you may have built, all these fade into the shadows when your name, your reputation and your family are put at risk.

In the last moments of one's life, does anybody express regret that he missed out on that one crucial investment, or did not become the CEO of a top-performing company?

In the end, each of us -- the most complex creations -- is stripped away to the barest essentials. In the end, each of us is just a man, who will face the Creator in his own way, and made to account for his life on earth.

I am thankful for the gift of life, and family, and love.

Of Weekends and Sine Curves

If working people around the world share the TGIF sentiment at the end of the (usual-for-most-countries) workweek, what is the equivalent expression for Mondays? WTHIM (What the heck, it's Monday)?

I've always envisioned the general mood across the working week to be like the sine curve. Yes, the math geek in me is rearing its head, I know. Back to the sine curve: after cresting on Saturday, when people let their hair down, party, relax, feast, detox, or simply vegetate, the mood slowly but surely creeps into a downward trend, reaching the trough at around Wednesday. After this the weekend comes into sight once more, bringing a lighter mood that becomes positively buoyant by Friday. And so the cycle repeats itself.

Hmm. I never knew that the sine wave could be applied to psychological observations.

I am not yet on the downward spiral even though it is Sunday night and tomorrow is another workweek. It helped that I got to satisfy my bookshop fix today -- I was finally able to visit Powerbooks after about a month and a half (yes, that IS a long time for me), and was able to lug home a substantial haul. Hurray for new books!

It was a family excursion to the mall, and I am ever so grateful to the hubby for shepherding the two little girls around the bookshop to let me have some scouring-around-the-shelves time. I was able to comb through the aisles to my heart's content.

Through the drives to and from the mall, we were so worried that the toddler would have an attack of motion sickness. Hurray, hurray! For the first time she did not spew inside the car! We were all so relieved.

It was a tiring, but eminently quite satisfying day, after all.

Thankful

I am thankful that tomorrow will be a Friday -- rest time!

I am thankful that our older daughter tried her darndest best to get her baby sister out of a funk -- and succeeded in making her chortle!

I am thankful for a patient and loving husband, who knows me enough to let me have my own quiet time.

I am thankful that even in a day full of meetings and issues, there was still time to laugh.

I am thankful for having had a life full of blessings.