it is more blessed to give than to receive


my first birthday gift i received on the third day of october (my birthday is on the latter part).

my first christmas gifts (yup, plural) i received on november 28.

our first carollers came to my parents' place on november 2 (yup, all souls' day).  and then there was another set yesterday, november 29.  they were early not just in date but in time as well  ->  4:30 p.m.

it occurred to me just now the difference in my reactions to the two:

for the gifts, i squealed in delight going, 'yey!  so early!  : D'

for the carollers, i was like, 'huh?!  so early!  : }'

is it because receiving to me is more welcome than giving?  uh-oh...  baaddd...

my dad was excited to give to the carollers...  i guess i should try to be more like him...

the courage of a hero


bonifacio day...  that funny verse came to mind:

"andres bonifacio, atapang a tao
aputol a kamay, hindi atakbo
aputol a paa, hindi atakbo
apugot a ulo, hindi atakbo
aputol a <toot>, atakbo atulin."

kidding aside, in times that call for heroism, hope we all could be atapang, hindi atakbo...

God is good : )


good food (i especially liked the puto pao from biƱan...  or was it cavite?)...  : )~
good friends...  ♥
good time (♩ ♪ song ♫ ♬, pics and laughter)...  : D

life is good and i am thankful...  : )

presumptuous

passed by the supermarket on our way to a mall.  friend checked out some lindt chocs.  i pointed to the almond one saying, 'this is what i buy...'

with that he immediately picked it up.

me:  'hey, is that for me?'

friend:  'no, for me.'

ahahaha... presumptuous me!  he did share it with me though....

; p

my fave

i received a call from someone i've considered a friend for quite sometime now.

caller:  'you want leche flan?'

huh?!  with such a question the 'friendship' suddenly seemed questionable to me.  if he really were my friend, he would already know that the answer to that would be a resounding yes!

; p

where else

phone call at 3:33 p.m. from someone scheduled to come over at my parents' place at 3:30:  'where are you?'

me:  'at my parents' place...  you?  are you there?'  (i meant at the gate.)

guy:  '' am on my way...'

he was already near.

uhm...  what sort of question was that?  we're supposed to meet at my parents' place, where else would i be?  i should have told him i'm at the mall...  i wonder what his reaction would be...  ; p

something out of nothing


guy sees me walking a few blocks away from our street.  he goes, 'hi...  where's your car?'

huh?!

A.  he knows i have a car
B.  he thinks i should have a car
C.  he wants my car
D.  i'm making a mountain out of a molehill

; )

speaking their language


at the woodcraft shop...

me:  'and then this one has to be 120 mm...'

worker:  'we don't have mm...'

me:  'huh?!  of course, you do...'

i check his tape measure...  i go, 'there!  that's mm...'

worker:  ' that's centimeter!'

me:  'oh, just remove the zero from mm that would be centimeter...  120 mm is 12 centimeters...'

guy looks at me and i'm not really sure whether that's an expression of understanding on his face...  : }

uhm...  i think i have to revise my drawing and change all the 0.5's and 0.25's to 1/2 and 1/4...

stop calling me


this morning, my phone rang.  i got excited seeing the number.  i had missed calls from that number last week yet.  i was curious who the caller could be.  i was hoping 'twould be, uhm, someone i'd be happy to talk to again...  :")

well, guess what, i take the call and it was someone else.  i was actually disappointed...  : }

the caller said something.  i said 'ok' then immediately hang up.  he rang again a couple more times.  i wasn't interested.

this guy i've decided to cut out of my life.  let's just say that i found his words, uhm, unreliable.  i don't like that.  (i dunno who does.)

normally i'd refrain from talking to such people.  i don't want to waste my time listening to stuff i am not sure i can believe.  this one, however, was living by himself that time.  sympathetic me therefore could not get myself to ignore his calls.  i was thinking, what if it's an emergency?  what if he needs anything?  what if he slipped?  what if he's been hurt?  what if, what if, what if...

i therefore went on talking to him, just over the phone, declining every single request to see each other again.  several times i've been tempted to hang up on him  ->  his words, his thoughts, his plans, sometimes they make me want to puke, ugh!  anyway, i just consoled myself with the thought that the situation wasn't a permanent one.  he was scheduled to join his family in a while and then there'd be someone who will be there for him.  i thought i could put up until that time.  unfortunately, my patience ran out.

there was a time i cared so much about this guy.  has he eaten?  is he hungry?  is he safe?  there was a time i was concerned what he thought of me.  and then something snapped.  i dunno.  there came a point when he just ceased to matter.  there he was misinterpreting my statements, stringing together words i spoke in different contexts, and i wouldn't so much as try to correct him.  it really didn't matter to me anymore what he thought of me.  actually, it didn't matter to me anymore what he thought, period.

my heart's desire?

ooops...  i had agreed to and meant seeing each other 'one last time' but my Sent message shows 'one last night'...  yikes!  freudian slip?  : O

the prudent move


someone i've been trying to avoid was again asking me out today.  i ignored the invitation and the guy made a half-joke about taking a number.  hmmm...  i do say that  ->  to others.  this guy, i really am surprised, all of a sudden he has jumped the queue.  i met him just recently and there he is, on top of the heap.  i don't understand...  or maybe i do...  sort of creeps me out, actually...  : }

i used to be really confident i can handle these things  ->  quite well, thank you very much  <-  i'm a veteran...  : (

this time, however, i'm not so sure i can stand my ground.  i'm therefore keeping distance.  i don't wanna test myself.  i might fail.

you don't fight temptation.  you stay away from it.

</3

the importance of timing


last week, i received an invitation coursed through a friend.  i told her i'm begging off as i don't feel like driving to the place plus the honoree and i don't really know each other.  i even had my friend repeat to me several times my statement she's supposed to relay, careful about the wording and intonation, as i was afraid it might be taken the wrong way.

well, guess what, my friend wasn't able to relay my message right away.  instead, what she made was a request to also bring someone else along.  what happened was her request was turned down  ->  either it's just her or both of us but not the third.  she was telling me about it and i was like, uh-oh, so now instead of me declining the invitation, it now appears that we were the ones turned down.  what a difference timing makes...  : }

efficiency


there is this supplier i met just recently.  i actually almost cancelled my trip to their office because i got caught in awful traffic going there.  in fact, i already called my contact telling him i was going to turn back at the next slot.  the guy, however, persuaded me to proceed saying i was already near, traffic will ease up in a couple of blocks, they'll wait for me (it was close to end of office hours for them).

well, good thing i listened.  the vehicles did pick up speed not long after.

i arrived at their office all whiny, tired and feeling harassed and the guy oh so kindly and accommodatingly listened to and attended to my concerns.  he gave me his business card but unlike my usual wont which is to read it, that time i simply slipped the card in my bag and continued checking out what it was they were trying to show me.

after that first meeting, i'd go on texting the guy for my requests and he'd always so kindly respond to them.

well, this afternoon 'twas the supplier who texted me asking for some info.  i said i'll e-mail.  i therefore took out his card from my laptop bag and, guess what, it turns out the guy has a pretty high rank in the company!  yikes!  my concerns were so petty and i've been bothering him!

i texted him my discovery and embarrassment and he replied saying titles are just a name and he still is a salesman after all.

well, i told him the higher you are, the bigger your responsibilies so he better just assign me to someone else, someone with responsibilities more proportionate to my small-time concerns.

it's not about being snooty.  it's not about being picky.  it's about efficiency and an optimal mix.  you should apply just the right amount of resources to produce a certain outcome.  as my economics professor told our class before, you don't use a diamond bit to pry open a peanut.

hope for the best; prepare for the worst


someone made a mistake yesterday.  mistakes fine with me...  who does not commit them?  what i didn't like was that the lady tried to cover it up and even had the gall to attribute it to me.  hello!

i really hope it does not jeopardize my purchase.  if it does, i will really get mad  ->  nobody likes that...  \m/

just the opposite


there is this someone i've decided to stop seeing.  so to ease the parting a bit, i left the guy links to my pics.  i was thinking, if ever he misses me or longs to see me, the pics would just substitute for the person.

well, guess what, this morning the guy texts me following up our next meeting.  (uhm...  yup, i've earlier said no more but later i agreed to one more.  ugh!)  he said he misses me, especially when he goes over my pics.  huh?!  that wasn't my intent at all!  i told the guy i gave him the links precisely to tide him over these 'missing you / wanna see you' phases.  he tells me the pics actually have the opposite effect.  uh-oh.  had i known i wouldn't have given him the links.

sometimes the outcome of our actions run contrary to our expectations...  : (

a human would have waived it


i had three hours free parking and i exceeded it, according to the attendant, by A FEW SECONDS so i had to pay...  she was apologetic...  i said it's ok, i understand  ->  it's the downside of computer precision...  : (

had i known though, i would have stayed an hour more...  a second and an hour cost the same...  : }

that is a long time


my mom and i were at a wake this afternoon.  now this lady was talking about her 92-year old husband who is a known womanizer.  she went, 'oh, that was a long time ago.  he did change.  when he was 87, he stopped already.'

huh?!  ahahaha...

simple joys


i entered a cousin's house and greeted everyone with "hallo..."

was i surprised when my one-and-a-half year old granddaughter replied with an oh-so-sweet "hi..."

whoa!  my heart immediately melted.  i unexpectedly felt sooo much joy, haha...
(by the way, i'm not a mom but i do have a granddaughter  ->  courtesy of a niece, daughter of my cousin's)

this cute little girl is usually aloof and snobbish and snooty and i think this is the first time she ever 'talked' to me.  (well, she doesn't really talk yet.)

it just amazed me how something as simple as "hi" could oh so quickly give someone so much joy.  yup, we do not need big, elaborate, impressive stuff to be happy.

: )

Someone's watching over me


i started the day thinking i made a BIG mistake...  the consequences would have been grave  ->  REALLY grave...

i lifted everything up to God and, guess what, He did not let me down...  He oh so quickly turned everything around...  i was so happy i was on the verge of tears...

God is really so good...  i felt so loved...  i felt so favored...  i am forever grateful...

maginoo at sobrang bastos ; p


i was discussing something really bland and wholesome with a guy when the text messages turned, uhm, naughty.  now i was at a store shopping with my mom that time (ok, she, shopping; me, window-shopping, hehe) and the latter messages i didn't hear the alert tones.  ahahaha...  turns out the guy was already texting apologies because he misinterpreted my no-replies as a sign i was offended.

ei, not sure this is something i should be proud of but i can take, dish even, these things...  i spent yearS with a group where the guys are green and lewd and obscene...  : O

no matter how you start a conversation, it always ends up about sex.  even if you talk about something somber or religious, they somehow manage to steer the topic to something, uhm, far from wholesome...  : }

oh, well...  these guys are bastos pero mga maginoo naman...  \m/

withstanding the test of time


a former neighbor who has been based in canada for years now visited my parents' place this evening.  she was with her husband and daughter and she was pointing out to them certain parts of the house where her old pictures were taken.  the husband said the place looked just like how it was in the pictures.  note that the pics he was referring to were taken oh soooo many years ago.

it called to mind remarks made by a high school buddy a few months back.  last time she was at my parents' place was when we were in college.  she kept marveling about how furniture and stuff were still the same ones that were there back when we were in high school, uhm, more than 30 years ago.

hmmm...  come to think of it, they're right...  my parents' furniture and a host of other things in the house have remained the same for ages, hehe.  they're still durable though.  and they don't look dated to me.  i guess some things are really built to last...

why can't it be?

i was bubbly leaving the house this afternoon...  then while driving, i received a message from and exchanged messages with (ok, ok...  only during traffic crawl) someone i don't want to but i have to avoid...  suddenly i was kinda sad...  </3

suspicious

missed call from a number not in my contacts list...  conceited / paranoid me thought it was some guy trying to get me to answer his call...  turns out 'twas from a bakeshop who misdialed the number they were calling...  hahaha...  toinks!!!

♩ ♪ like a kid out of school ♫ ♬


awake at 3:30 a.m. and couldn't go back to sleep...  i don't really know why...  or maybe i do...

the other stanzas don't apply but this one does:

♩ ♪  heart, don't change my mind
oh, heart be strong this time and try
to help me tell him goodbye
it'll only bring pain for us to stay
oh, heart it's hard for you i know
let me let him go  ♫ ♬

</3

for him i will

leaving my parents' place, my niece notices my phone.  she goes, 'i thought you don't bring your phone here, tita...'

uhm...  i was waiting for a call...  ♥

:")

curvy no more


friend telling me a couple of guys were looking for and asking about me at an assembly i missed.  she says she told them:

"payat na si cynthia, wala na siyang puwet..."
->  cynthia is thin now, she has no  more butt...

huh?!  wahaha...  true...  :'(

i've lost so much weight (25 lbs.!!!), the curves are gone, the shape is different...  : }

oh, well, at least i have cheekbones now...  not sure though whether that's a good trade-off...

i've changed : O


on the phone with a male friend...

friend:  'you have a date tomorrow?'

me:  'i dunno yet...  depends on whether he'll ask me...  i'm at his beck and call...  <chuckles>...'

<silence>

me:  'nag-iba na ang mundo, hehe'
->  the world has changed, hehe

friend:  'sino ka?  hindi kita kilala...'
->  who are you?  i don't know you...

aaarrrggghhhh!!!

not all the time


i receive a call.  guy greets me with, 'are you busy?  am i disturbing you?  are you on a date?'

hahaha...  take-off from my lines, huh!  you see, when i call this friend of mine, i go, 'sorry...  am i disturbing you?  is someone sitting on your lap?'  and i am only half-kidding, ahahaha!

anyway, so we talk and there i was blabbing away only to realize that the line has been cut off...  ooops...  ok...  wait for him to call again...  hmmm...  'twas taking a while...  i turn on my laptop intending to blog that he is unable to call again probably because someone was indeed sitting on his lap, hahaha...

guess what, i'm about to go to blogger and my phone rings  ->  it's the guy!  i tell him he was just in time as i was about to blog about him already.  he asks what about...  i say it's about the girl on his lap, ahahaha...

he chuckles then goes on defensive mode:  he's actually outside on his way to get something he's been craving, nope, not women, food...  ok, ok, whatever you say...  ; p

we stay on the phone and i do hear road sounds and finally i hear him ordering food...  oh, ok...  convinced you're a good boy  ->  just at this hour...  ; )

small world


ei, what do you know...  my high school buddy and my childhood playmate, both doctors (OB-Gyn), now working together at the same hospital in saudi arabia...  small world...  : )

when my high school buddy was working on her papers for the KSA, i told her i have a former neighbor who works as a doctor in the middle east, i just don't remember which country.  well, now i know not just the country but the hospital as well (saad specialist hospital in al-khobar).  instead of me telling her, she's the one informing me from afar...  nicey-nice to know...

hmmm...  i wonder how i came up in their conversation...  that i have to ask...  ; )

worse


i tell a male friend that a license-type warranty card for the item he bought for me, registered under his name, will be delivered by courier to his place.

now he lives alone and is out of the house most of the time.  he goes, 'oh, i should have used your address...'

me:  'huh?!  no way!  that would create records that would seem to indicate that we're living together!'

the guy chuckles and then goes, 'we should have used your mom's address then...'

yeah, right!  so 'twill appear as if we shacked up with my parents' blessings...  ugh!

don't hold on


some things you do on the basis of certain assumptions... once an assumption is proven wrong then you adjust your actions accordingly...

</3

the tall and short of it


nephew:  'how come <toot> didn't grow tall anymore?'

me:  'combination of genetics and environment...'

nephew:  'that's her course?'

me:  'haha...  no...  if you'll notice, on grandpa's side, they're tall;  grandma's, short.  she got her height from grandma's side.  that's her genes...'

nephew:  'jeans...  pants?'

me:  'G, E, N, E, S...  genes...  the ones you get from your ancestors...'

nephew:  'gins...  like beer?'

me:  'G, E, N, E, S...  not G, I, N...  didn't you take that up in school?'

nephew:  'we'll have chemistry next year...'

uhm...  i think you take that up in biology...  : }

i'm too old for this


text exchange this morning:

guy:  "...  r u free 2 tok? ..."

me:  "Haha... m on d road n my dad's car... "

guy:  "U driving? ..."

me:  "Nope..."

guy:  "Cn i kol?"

me:  "Haha... don't... m right behind my mom..."

ugh!  as if i'm some wide-eyed teen!  yuck!  : }