Hello, friends! Thanks for dropping by. Sorry for not updating my blog lately. I'm so busy with work that I couldn't really find the time to blog even on my break... not even at home. I am just so tired from a day's work and there are still some chores to do.
I'll try to get back to the usual soon so please come back again... :)
It’s been 5 years since the gruesome attack of the then Twin Towers in New York City. Many people died. And for the ones that are left behind, it was a painful and shocking experience. Some have already moved on. But some are still mourning… finding it so hard to accept what happened. And so today, let's offer some prayers for everyone affected by the terrorists’ attack of 2001.
Related articles:
Solemn tributes mark 9/11's fifth anniversary
Special Reports - 9/11: Five Years Later
The Victims
How We Should Remember September 11
Children of 9/11 old enough to ask about Daddy
Pataki: Why we remember 9/11
Hilljohn, a friend of Irvin since childhood, arrived on the 6th with his Mom. Irvin said he might go to a school in CA. I could tell how happy and excited Irvin is. Too bad CA is not anywhere near. We could actually go there but I don't have any more vacation days left. We'll just see him and Bernard (also a friend of Irvin) next time. He'll be here for a while anyway.
I was so exhausted with all the shopping that we did. Actually, I still am. We went with Manang Fely and her family, 2 days in a row, to Woodbury Commons on Sunday and Tanger Outlet on Monday. Shopping is really fun in the US whenever there is sale. You can get a lot of good deals from brand name stores. Irvin and I, having no car yet, took this opportunity to get some of the things we need/want. I have nothing else to say… well, I’m freaking too busy with work these days.
Tito Nilo along with some friends reached NY at around 3pm last Friday, August 25th. But we didn’t get to see him till almost 9 that night. Also, we were glad to have met a lot of people from Cavinti (Irvin’s hometown)… and it’s as if they’re just around the corner being only a few blocks away from us. Tito Nilo stayed at our apartment that night.
Come Saturday morning, Tito Nilo was busy preparing for the party at the Sheraton Hotel while I was making breakfast. I cooked tinapang bangus, longganisa, fried eggs and fried rice. I also made sure Tito Nilo had his coffee (since we don’t usually drink). So we all had breakfast and soon enough, Tito Nilo’s friend came to pick him up. I was so tired that I just slept the whole afternoon. Then we went to the house of “Tita Dulce” for dinner. We brought a cake from Tai Pan as it was her birthday the day before. There were endless chatting, reminiscing of the past and laughters. We had so much fun! It was so great to have mingled with those people. Well, we didn't get home till 1AM. :)
Tita Luding’s (Tito Nilo’s wife) niece took us to the flea market on Sunday. We were just lucky to find reasonably priced coffee so we bought some (to be sent to the Philippines). Tito Nilo left that same afternoon for Canada.
A friend (Hi, Cielo!) forwarded me this email. I don't intend to make fun of Filipinos. No offense po! I just think it's cute! And I'm sure this will make you smile. Would you believe there are also 'cool signs' here in NY?! I just don't take pictures. Hehe! Anyway, here it goes...
Happy Birthday, Badoodles! Wishing you all the best as always! Mwah! Take care... :)
I learned about this website through Pat. I think it's cool and fun so I tried it. Now...
Which celebrities do I look like?
1. face fully made up (picture from the wedding)
2. regular day photo
What about Irvin? - This only proves why a lot of people mistakenly think that he is Chinese...
The phone rang at almost 10 pm last night. Irvin and I don’t usually pick up the phone. For all you know it might just be some telemarketers (I know they’re just doing their job but sometimes it’s just hard to make them understand what the word NO means). Anyway, as soon as I said hello, the caller said “Who is this?” I was like... WHO... IS... THIS (with a kind of sarcastic tone in my voice)? Then he said “This is Nilo”. In my mind I was like... Uh-oh it is Irvin’s uncle from Canada! I felt really awkward having heard that and said “Tito Nilo, si Faye po… blah blah blah”. Whew! I apologized to Irvin afterwards. I don’t know but I have this attitude that I believe I should be the one asking who the caller is and not the other way around. It’s no big deal! I just hope he didn’t take any offense on that.
And so, he called to let us know he’s coming this Friday. He’ll be attending a 90th birthday party of another relative (which Irvin doesn’t really know of personally) on Saturday. Irvin offered our apartment for them to stay so he’ll meet them up somewhere tomorrow.
I can tell that Irvin is really happy and excited so I’m giving it my best to support him. I, too, am excited. This will be the 1st time we’ll have guests in the apartment... a relative you know! We then went to bed kind of late talking about what we are going to prepare for them… where could we take them if ever… and that we also need to take them to the party. Tito Nilo used to live in NY about 30 years ago. A lot of things have changed already so it’ll be a good time for him.
Economy in the Philippines has not really been good lately… prices of commodities continue to rise, unemployment is still a problem, pay is not that pleasing to majority of people, etc. etc. Each and every individual faces different challenges everyday. And with that, most Filipinos aspire to come to America or let’s just say to go abroad. They think that coming to America is the solution to the many problems they’re dealing with. (Admit it or not, being abroad, they expect a lot from you which sometimes makes me sad. I hate to say this but I feel like I have a big dollar sign written on my face whenever they see me or talk to me.) But hey, it’s not only in the Philippines that you’re to struggle at. Life is hard everywhere. Having a better life demands a lot of sacrifices. It doesn’t just depend on money. We all have our own challenges to face... only that in different forms.
It is true that America is the Land of Opportunity. But it’s not as easy as you think it is. There are laws to comply with and there are procedures to follow. As days pass, they get stricter and stricter because of the terrorists threats. There are also a lot of people here who don’t have jobs believe it or not. Luck doesn’t always knock on your door. And unfortunately, not everyone gets it either. Yes it’s easier to save up if you’re earning dollars. Imagine an exchange rate of P50 to a dollar! But… consider the cost of living in the state you’re at. You also spend dollars for your day to day needs. Sometimes you become sick as hell worrying about your future. There are so many what ifs in your mind. There’s no one you can really count on but yourself being in a foreign place. Some people here couldn’t even get support from relatives… being said, what more can you expect from friends then? I’m just lucky I have Tita Laling and Tita Gie. Likewise, Manang Fely (then landlady and now a principal sponsor in the wedding) has treated me like a family ever since. Also, homesickness will be your greatest enemy. It’s difficult to be away from family and friends. Perhaps, you may be thinking you can overcome that but it’s hard and costly. Tendency is for you to make an overseas call often. The only benefit that I got from that is I lost a lot of weight. You also have to adjust yourself to a new culture. Back home you have helpers to do the chores for you. Here, you have to do everything yourself. Oh and let’s not forget the weather! Imagine yourself chasing the bus in a snowy and chilly weather. Do you still think life is easy abroad?! You tell me…
Many say I’m too organized… from being orderly, neat, keeping things on schedule down to planning the days ahead. Tita Laling even calls me a ‘neat freak’. My manager at work always reminds me to loosen up. Well let me tell you something… I may look like I’m fine… it may seem like everything is manageable… it may look as if our life is on a really smooth-sailing ride… it may seem like nothing is wrong… but I also have my own fears.
Back then… whenever people would ask me when I’m going to get married, my favorite tag line was “it’ll come”. I was already past the age of 25 but still I felt that it’s still not late. I was 31 when we tied the knot. We’ve waited long enough for that day. And everything seemed to be taking its place little by little. I'm one of the few lucky ones who made it to America where I feel like saving up is easier. I was able to finally get Irvin to join me here. God has been so good! I know that and I’m very thankful for that!
Now I’m already at a stage where I want to start having a family… to have a baby. But can we manage it? Irvin doesn’t even have a job yet. He couldn’t find an employer to sponsor him. Getting an odd job hasn’t been easy either. We can’t even buy a car. It’s ok though… anyway we both agreed that it’s not a priority for now. I’m currently helping my family too financially. Economy has been really bad these days in the Philippines. And in as much as I want to give more, I just couldn’t. There are bills to pay and with me being the only one working, I’m afraid my earnings won’t be enough if we’ll have a baby. Uncle Ken (Tita Laling’s husband) once said that I should have a baby now… that I don’t have to worry too much… that planning is good but sometimes it’s better off taking the risk… that I’m not getting any younger… that we’ll be able to figure it out when the situation comes. Irvin and I also think the same way. We feel that it’s better to have a baby now while he’s not yet working. Well you don’t want to be working and spending all of your earnings for a baby sitter! This is the perfect time… He can take care of his own child and maybe after all my papers are done, our kid will be 2 or 3 years old already. Then we can just take him/her to a daycare and Irvin can start working. And Irvin doesn’t have any problem with that. Whew! What a very great plan I have!
But I’m still confused... not sure on what is the best thing to do! It’s so funny how I detail all my worries and yet, I’m also the one justifying them. Am I really scared? Or I’m just being paranoid? What should I do?
As per my April 18th post, I can’t be happier that my sister finally graduated from college. It was also in that post where I’ve attached a photo taken from a personal camera… disposable I think?!
Now… here are the graduation pictures taken by a professional photographer…
I totally forgot to blog about this that even the date I can’t remember anymore…
Anyway, I think it was between July 10-12 when Irvin and I had a petty fight. Irvin has this attitude that he often gives you an indefinite answer which will make you think or guess I should say. Even his ‘no’ answer would mean a yes sometimes. And so what happened was I asked him if he was tired before dinner. He said… no, not really! Then we started talking about the deli owner and he was really upset. I can’t honestly remember what I told him that he suddenly just stopped talking and when I asked him what’s wrong… he said… ‘I’m just tired!’ I didn’t know how to react other than… ‘What? Didn’t I just ask you that earlier?’ I even asked him if I said something that he didn’t like and he kept on saying he’s just tired. We finished dinner… he watched the tv while I cleaned the bathroom… I took a shower then said my goodnight to him and went to bed… he took a shower then went to bed… AND… we were still not talking. It hasn’t been 5 minutes that passed and he was already snoring. So I told myself, he must be really tired. I couldn’t sleep that I was just watching him while he sleeps until tears starting running down my cheeks. I tried not to create any noise as much as I could but he still heard it. He asked me why? I said nothing! He said you wouldn’t cry for no reason! For a few times he’d asked me, I said I’d rather have him tell me everything…exactly how he feels…instead of me guessing what’s on his mind. He said sorry… he said he didn’t mean it…. then we went back to sleep.
When I woke up the next AM, my eyes were swollen and I had a bad headache. I still went to work. And when I reached home that night, I saw this rose taped on the light switch as I opened the door. Wow! It has been years since I last got one from him…yeah not even when he picked me up at the airport when I went home for the wedding. It was really appreciated and… apology was immediately accepted! Haha!
Irvin has already been driving in the Philippines for quite sometime now but for him to be able to drive in NY… he still needs to go through the process as if he’s applying as a new driver at the DMV. So he went there this AM. He had to go to the SSA first to get the certificate of ineligibility (form SSA-L676). This is being issued to prove that he can't have a SS Number. Anyway, he took the exam which had 20 items in all in 10 minutes. He said he got a perfect score! Wow! The next thing he’ll do is get the 5-hour class certificate so he could request for a road test schedule.
We don’t have a budget yet for a car especially that he’s not working up to now. But who know right! And at least he can legally drive in NY…
I’ve mentioned before that Irvin works part-time at a Deli. He got bored staying at home and applied for the job. He will only make sandwiches anyway and come on… it is still money. Soon enough he became like an all-around person. He has been patient all this time not to mention that he is underpaid and that the owner has an attitude. Irvin gets paid every Saturday for a week’s job until this past weekend that he only received half of his pay. He was asked to come back Sunday in which he did after the 10AM mass. To our surprise, he was told it was too early and there is no money yet. Imagine he still had to come back that night! Irvin couldn’t stand it any longer and finally quit his job.
It’s so hard to understand how some people can be so unreasonable and very inconsiderate! It’s not really about the money… it’s about what is fair!
Anyway, I told him to just look for another job. Meanwhile, he needs to finish reading the driver’s manual so he could get a NY driver’s license.
There’s so much to blog about. It was actually the pictures which caused the delay. I’ve mentioned before… a lot of times… that I rarely use the computer at home. I just want to relax once I reach the apartment. Now back to my updates…
July 8th
Well aside from my sister’s birthday which I have already blogged previously, it was the 1st company picnic for KMC. I’ve been in the company for 4 years but due to the small number of employees, we never had this kind of event before. More often than not, we would just join our sister company for such. And our families (spouse, BF/GF, kids) got to join us too. It was Irvin’s 1st time to meet my officemates. We went to Sunken Meadow State Park in Long Island. It was quite far but was worth it. That was a nice break from the busy days at work. And while I didn’t swim, it was relaxing to have seen the beach…where a lot of people were having fun. Some were sun-bathing. Some were playing games.
Gabriel along with his brother Michael and another co-worker Agnes did a very great job organizing the whole event. They have prepared Brazilian food. The barbecue was really good. I loved it! There was some salad, pickled veggies (better known as “ensalada” in the Philippines), fruits, and this soup that I don’t know the name of… it got beans, sausage, and bacon on it.
We also had games which I didn’t really join. Well Irvin did! There was this game where all the players are in circular position and using the volleyball wherein if you made the ball to fall on the ground, you’ll have to stay sitting in the middle until you catch it. Worst is you’ll be hit by the other players if you can’t catch it. Irvin also played basketball with the guys. After the 2 short games, Irvin said he felt old by playing with them. He said it was now hard for him to move and run. Well, he’s kind of overweight too. Oops sorry ‘theart!
Oh one more thing… we forgot our digicam so we had to buy a disposable one which I regretted so much. The camera itself was $19.99 + $1.72 tax. The processing was $9.99 + $0.86 tax. And… the quality of the prints is so BAD!
Moral lesson of the story: set a reminder for yourself of the things you need to bring at least the night before.
Here are some of the pictures we took…
