happy kinda sad

i've been a little down lately. for one, i'm physically tired from all the work i have, both in the office and at home (sideline). i'm not really used to working at home because i go by my no-work-at-home rule. i was forced to bend it a little because of a plan. in short, i have to work extra to earn extra and fulfill my plan. happy kinda sad. i'm happy because i'm earning extra money, but i'm sad because i'm exhausted.

then, my friend who's working in bangkok told me in her e-mail that she's coming back to manila, i guess, for good. she has been my constant companion in my two trips there. my future bangkok trips, i'm sure, will no longer be the same. happy kinda sad. i'm happy because we'll get to see each other more often now, but i'm sad because she will no longer be there in bangkok when i visit the next time around.

wit, my very sweet thai friend, is leaving tomorrow for his military duty. he'll be stationed in a navy outpost outside of bangkok for six months, which means i won't be able to hear from him for six months. happy kinda sad. i'm happy because he's doing something for his country, but i'm sad because six months is quite long to not hear from him. o well, country first before anything and anyone else.

cheers to paradorn and natalie

thai tennis star paradorn srichaphan and 2005 miss universe natalie glebova announced their engagement yesterday at a bangkok hotel. they plan to marry november or december this year. natalie is a very pretty girl. i think i saw her at the thailand open last year. paradorn was there of course. cheers to the power couple!

(photo taken from www.bangkokpost.net)

dimitri and mimi

dimitri a.k.a. burutoy poses with his pretty mimi:)

my new laptop

after several weeks of mental torture, i finally decided to buy a laptop. last saturday, accompanied by my ever-dependable friends armel and gil, i bought a twinhead efio at asianic-park square. armel was very nice to take care of business as i am a techie ignorant. he actually did everything from installing the os to figuring out my wifi connection. hay naku, imagine how things would have been if he and gil weren't there. there are also other people to thank. thanks to my parents for their support and financial assistance; ever, our go-to IT guy; reynan from asianic who was so helpful; armel's friend who was kind enough to help even though he doesn't know me; and kuya bennie who offered to install the os but actually failed to. salamat sa inyong lahat.

i'm still learning . . . i know it will definitely take time, but one thing's for sure: i'm definitely having a blast!

out of my door

here's another poem i made years ago which i found hidden in one corner of my cabinet. it's unfortunate that i could not remember the exact date i wrote it. o well . . .

love has walked out of my door again
my heart is bleeding
he walked away
i chose to stay

love has walked out of my door again
my body is bruised
my hands, outstretched, cry
pain stares at me with no mercy
destroying my soul, yet again

love has walked out of my door again
cold smiles envelop my lips
something in me, deeper in me
aches for touches i never felt
i'm longing, i'm in despair

untitled circa 2000

i went through my old stuff last night to look for my transcript. unfortunately, i did not find it. instead, i found quite a lot of things which reminded me of the past. one of the things i found was this poem i wrote some five or six years ago (i think).

untitled (circa 2000)

kung sa tingin mo nasasaktan ka
pano pa kaya ako
ilang ulit mo bang ipinadama
na wala ng pag-asa

lumalalim na ang gabi
bukas pa ang mga mata
pinapagod ang mga paa
sa paghihintay sa 'yo

darating ka ba
tinig mo ba'y maririnig
haplos mo ba'y madarama
o dili kaya hapdi at sakit

habang sinasabayan ang pag-inog ng mundo
habang nakikita kong nag-aagaw ang buwan at araw
bumibilis ang pintig ng puso
hindi mawari kung sa pagsikat ba ng araw
ay ikaw pa rin ang masisilayan

kung sa tingin mo nasasaktan ka
pano pa kaya ako

reflection

last night, i went to my cousin ate bong's wake. ate bong died of breast cancer last monday, the day before my birthday. it's unfortunate that i didn't really get the chance to know her better when she was still alive. i only got to meet her a couple of times because i stayed with them briefly when i enrolled at up. i distinctly remember how she and her sisters were so nice to me during my stay. they made sure that i get everything i need.

i was happy to see members of her family during the wake. it has been a decade since i last saw them, except for ate devi and her husband kuya eboy, who i see and exchange text messages with regularly. i'm closest to the couple because they were among those who helped me through my first year in college.

i realized one important thing after i went home from the wake: that life is indeed to short to just waste it on foolish things. ate bong was very lucky to have lived a full life before she died. she was able to do the things that mattered to her. she made the most out of the greatest gift God has given her, her life. she made everyone close to her feel her love and affection. she wasted no time in spreading her love to people around her. i felt that love last night. the tears and the laughters were testimonies of how she touched the lives of the people who were inside the chapel.

to ate bong, i bid you temporary good-bye. i wish you a good and safe journey back to our dear Creator. thank you for everything.

jollibee mango caramel sundae

i couldn't stop. i think i'm hooked. i'm addicted to mango caramel sundae of jollibee. i know some of you would tell me, "luma na yan ah," just like one of my friends told me yesterday. that's the thing! it's such a tragedy that i only knew of this heavenly thing last week. thanks to my officemate den who told me that it's her husband's favorite. thanks to you, too, john.

i actually capped my 28th birthday with one order of mango caramel sundae. i bought one in glorietta and ate it on my way home. grabe, i can't even describe how delicious it is. why not try it yourself? i'm telling you . . .

happy birthday to me!

it's my 28th birthday today. i'm very happy that many people remembered my special day. it's nice to know that a lot of people thought about me today. their greetings warm my heart. they mean a lot.

my birthday is my favorite day of the year. i always make a conscious effort to make it a special day. i try to start it right and end it right as well. as much as possible, i make it a happy day because it should be. it's my way of thanking the Lord for giving me life and for making me experience it. not everyone is as lucky as i am, so there's no reason not to be happy and thankful.

i hope to celebrate many more birthdays. i hope to celebrate it with my loved ones and friends, and maybe soon, partner. who knows? only God knows.

davis cup 2007 update

russia is into the davis cup semifinals once again. thanks to the hero, marat safin, who overcame a very tough fifth rubber against paul henri mathieu of france.

the philippines also won against new zealand, 4-1, in the asia/oceania group II 2nd round tie. i'm so looking forward to seeing the philippine team play in the elite group 1 tie. good luck.

thailand open 2007

rafa is playing in the thailand open! this is definitely something to look forward to this september. it would be great to see him in person. andy roddick will also be there. i hope marat and novak will also play.

i've been planning my vacation since the start of the year, but there isn't any concrete plan as of now. rafa's confirmation is a very good development. i will have to start checking my schedule again. i still can't decide at the moment what route to take since i'm planning to visit my cousins in singapore. let's just see.

my birthday wish

i'll be celebrating my birthday next week, and i'm excited to be turning 28. there are so much to be thankful for.

i'm just glad to be alive and blessed. my birthday wish? i wish that i'd be able to continue to do the things i love and to discover more of life.

cheers to the new lawyers!

i would like to congratulate the following people for their courage to go through four years of law school, for successfully shaking off the nerves and finishing the bar exam, and most of all, for bearing the long wait to finally realize that they made it and can now call themselves LAWYERS. Well done, guys, and GOOD LUCK!

28. ACOYMO, Mark C.
452. CODILLA, Philip Brian B.
903. JAMERO, Cynthia Y.
992. LIM, Ma. Ludmila P.
998. LIM, II, Kirin DP.
1553. SALO, Noel A. (i'm so proud of you, bai!)

prince novak

although i only have 3 hours of sleep, it didn't stop me from celebrating novak's victory in the sony ericsson open. the match started at midnight and ended at around 3 in the morning. as expected, novak was impressive with his almost flawless dropshots, outstanding returns, and intelligent plays. i knew that he'll gonna be a big shot from the moment i saw him play french open last year. way to go, novak. if marat is my king, then you are now my prince:)