Niche Me

2008-01-19T12:32:00.000-06:00

bwahahaha...

We discovered something really yummy! Popeyes sells chicken gizzard. Gary was a little apprehensive about eating it but I forced him and he likes it. Megan was all YUCK! but she eventually tried it and liked it a lot.

Yup! We are addicted to it.

christmas tradition

2007-12-14T08:43:00.000-06:00

Day after thanksgiving, we go out to the farm and get our christmas tree. The rest of the day, we're out putting christmas lights around the house. It takes us all afternoon to do this. Right now we have:

1. 3 reindeers and Santa's sleigh
2. 2 strings of white lights laid out as a runway for the reindeers
3. 3 garland string, 2 on the basement window, 1 by the front door
4. 4 strings of red lights, 2 each on the pine tree
5. 1 multi-colored lights hung on top of the garage door
6. 2 christmas lantern on bedroom windows
7. Santa on the dining room window
8. christmas tree on the other dining room window
9. 3 strings of icicle ligths

This is how it looked like last year. We want more.

This year, we started a new tradition. We made christmas decoration! We found this kit at a hobby store.

2007-10-17T18:51:00.001-05:00

Has it really been almost 2 months since I last posted here at blogspot?

UPDATE:

Since I last posted, I have:

1. bought 2 piano books. John Thompson's Teaching Little Fingers to Play (which my piano teacher used back in PI) and First Grade Book (which I'm doing now). My progress has been slow but I'm happy. I can slowly read notes now. Megan is learning, too.

2. bought a sketchbook and sketchpad. I was doing pretty good with this but lately I haven't been doing any sketching.

3. done nothing on the cooking. I'm looking for a new recipe, something Italian, pasta... not sure.

That's it.

2007-08-21T22:22:00.000-05:00

There are a lot of things I want to do/want to be...

On top of my list are:

1. an excellent cook
2. photographer
3. play the piano
4. learn french and/or spanish
5. sketch

I'd go through this phase where I'm all out pursuing these but I'd get bored or lazy and I drop it. Months later, I pick it up again. If only I have the will to finish what I started.

2007-08-17T08:09:00.000-05:00

Imagine that.

Apparently, I live in the #6 Best Place to Live according to CNN Money magazine. Who would have thought. It doesn't feel like it. Hehehe. I really need to explore more and see what this place has to offer.

I've been complaining that I don't want to be here. I'd rather be somewhere else. I was really bummed when I came back here from Davao. It's time to stop being so negative about this place.

I bet you a thousand smiles, as soon as I start liking this place, it would be time to move for us... again.

2007-07-23T13:50:00.000-05:00

Thank you!

Two weeks ago, we drove to San Diego to see Aymone, Macky & Winter. We stayed for a week and it was fun, lots of places to see and lots of things to do, Balboa Park, Sea World, San Diego Zoo, I forgot the names of these two places, where we had fish and chips for dinner and they had a lot of great stores and the other where we had lunch (lots of great stores, too).

Megan said her favorite part of the trip was Sea World. She loved Shamu Rocks. I think Buddy enjoyed the dog beach, although, he only went in the water once on his own accord. Megan certainly loved it. Part of the appeal, I think, is she gets to carry Buddy into the water so she can see Buddy swim.

On our last day, we drove to Mexico. We had lobster at Puerto Nuevo. Megan and Aymone had margarita at Hotel Califia. We walked around Rosarito.

Once again, thanks Aymone, Macky & Winter.

2007-07-04T00:34:00.000-05:00

There are 3 things you can do in napa...
*wine-tasting
*shopping
*picture-taking

We decided to do #3 today. But what was supposed to be a relaxing drive around napa, taking photos, turned to an adventure. We headed out around 10. I decided to take 12 to Sonoma instead of 29 to Napa. First stop, Art and Nature Center (forgot the name), didn't even get to the desk, they had a sign, no pets allowed. 2nd stop, winery, no pets allowed. 3rd stop, once again, no pets allowed. I'm beginning to see a pattern here so we decided to just go home and come back another day without Buddy.

Instead of going home, I called Aymone for direction to the dog park. So, we took Old Sonoma Rd to 29, missed a turn, got to downtown Napa and found 29. Somehow, I didn't find the dog park before I knew it we were driving on a winding road at 25 mph, uphill. "Mom, we're lost", Megan would say and I'd reply, "No, we're not. We're still in CA, so we're not lost. Besides, this is fun." Finally, we started going downhill. 12% down grade... pretty steep. Then, I was at 12 again, ended up in Santa Rosa.

It was time to go home. I was pretty confident that I would get home no problem. Boy, was I wrong, missed another turn and ended up in Vallejo. It was a lot of fun and we saw a lot of great houses. Total driving time... 6 hours.

2007-06-30T23:21:00.000-05:00

Last post, I complained about nothing to do.

I've started reading this book, C'est La Vie, and found inspiration. I've always wanted to speak french and I did try and learn but got tired of it and gave up. As you might have guessed, I want to do it again. Only thing is, I left my learning materials in NE. Didn't think I'd need it. I really don't want to buy another set of books so I'm turning to the internet to help me out on this one. We'll see what happens.

2007-06-30T01:42:00.000-05:00

*big sigh*

It's like my life is on hold. I am officially doing nothing. Nada. Zero. Zelch. I'm just hanging out at dad's doing nothing. NOTHING... I need to be productive. I need inspiration. To do something. Anything. What should I do for the next 6 weeks that I'll be here???

Suggestions? Anyone? Save me from this insanity...

I'm just bored. That's what it all boils down to.

2007-06-26T02:00:00.000-05:00

ARGH!!!

I've been meaning to post new photos and videos BUT I DON'T HAVE A USB. I thought my brother would have a USB but no, he does not have any. It's making me so frustrated. So frustrated that I mustered enough strength to go in Dad's room and look for one. Yes, it takes a lot to go into Dad's room and rummage through his stuff. Just kidding. Dad's room is not that bad. I found 2. 1 for his camera which is too square and another one for his mp3 player which is too wide.

So, unless a USB miraculously falls in my lap, no photo or videos from me. OR I could just go to the nearest store and get me one.

2007-06-14T13:47:00.000-05:00

We're here in sunny CA.

Pleasantly surprised that Megan behaved, she didn't bombard me with her ceaseless chatter. She pretty much sat at the backseat and did her math book. Although, sometimes she would tease Buddy and Buddy would start barking and inside a car, Buddy's bark is just sooo loud.

At first Buddy barked like crazy when I got him inside his crate. He did not want to be in there but after a few, he settled down and resigned to his place in his crate. Funny that everytime we'd stop and I'd put him back in his crate when it's time to go, he would still go bark and whimper. You'd think he would have learnt his lesson, maybe just trying his luck. We might pity him and let him out of his crate. Nah.

Overall, the drive was OK. It took us 3 days to get here, slept at Wyoming & Utah. Our last drive day was 11 hours total. So, I'm thinking maybe I could do it in 2 days next time.

2007-06-04T00:38:00.000-05:00

need a smile?

click on the link bugging you.

it's worth a click, i promise. hey, you might even laugh.

2007-06-02T21:10:00.000-05:00

Finally decided what we'll do... we'll drive.

Hahaha. Megan, Buddy & I will drive from middle of nowhere Nebraska to California. I don't think it's a very good idea. Megan is so impatient and Buddy is so nervous inside a car but this is our best option.

It's a 22-hour drive so unless I drive 11 hours straight, we'll be on the road for 2 days. I don't think I can drive that long with 2 spoiled brats in the car, I think it's best if we do it this in 3 days.

I've always wanted to drive coast to coast so this will be like a practice run for us. Wish us luck. I'm gonna need it. A lot of it.

2007-05-29T23:01:00.000-05:00

I never thought that...

... I'd be whale-watching off a riverbank, but that I did. Two whales, believed to be a mother and a calf, was spotted in Rio Vista, 20 miles away from Dad's house. We drove down there and sure enough, there they were. It was sad though, they have been stranded on that stretch of the river for days, they have been injured and have been out of saltwater for days. As of today, they are making good progress towards the sea. Hurray!!!

... I'd watch B-52 live in concert and for free. I have a couple of their CDs and who doesn't know any of their songs, so when Gary told me that they would be performing, I'm all for it. Too bad we couldn't get close to the stage though, it was reserved for VIP guests. It's all good.

2007-05-02T11:49:00.000-05:00

It's almost 1 in the morning. The last time I posted was 17 days ago but that seems like a lifetime ago. Everything is the same yet different. Where do I start?

People ask "How are you doing?" and I automatically answer, "I'm OK." but am I really OK? I don't know. Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. I seem OK or maybe I'm just in denial. I am now running on reserved battery power might as well sign off. I don't really have anything to say.

2007-04-14T00:19:00.000-05:00

It's been awhile...

I woke up this morning disoriented. Then, a few seconds later, I realized that I'm at Chemas. I could live here. I'd like to live here. Who wouldn't? So peaceful.

We headed for the beach. At 7 in the morning, the water was warm enough to go swimming. Unfortunately, the tide was low, so we just waded and looked for bright, white shells. Then I saw a yellow fish with 1 blue stripe, then another and another. I told Gary to grab the goggles and wake Megan up.

The water was so clear that you could see the bottom clearly. We went by the seawall and found more things. An eel, a sea snake, so small, I wasn't scared. A white fish with black spots. A two-tone fish. A fish with yelllow stipes. Another one with blue neon stripes. I wish I know more about the different species of tropical fish.

Someday, I will live by the sea.

2007-03-13T07:48:00.000-05:00

My poor blog!

I've abandoned you for so long. It's just that there's nothing blog-worthy happened to me lately. I've been taking more pictures.

I like these the most.

2007-02-22T01:55:00.000-06:00

I love this. Simple life. Simple pleasures. Happy na sa sugbang isda at baboy with matching talong and, of course, coke.

2007-02-11T05:29:00.000-06:00

Megan's birthday party photos ---> click ME.

2007-02-03T22:39:00.000-06:00

It snowed but we were not there to play! =(

2007-01-20T05:57:00.000-06:00

*sigh*

I'm tired of looking at my page...

I want a new one...

I don't have time to make one...

*sigh*

2007-01-07T05:07:00.000-06:00

I'm so proud of myself!

Hahahaha! It's nothing big but still I'm proud of me. I googled myself (not my real name, just a user ID) and found a photo of mine posted in Wikipedia.

I'm just glad that somebody I don't know posted it. =)

2007-01-03T04:54:00.000-06:00

Photos from Chemas ---> click here

2006-12-23T05:21:00.000-06:00

I've decided to stay until May.

Hopefully, everything works out. One thing that is still up in the air is where would Megan go to school. Vanessa's school said they can only accept transferees until September but they will try really hard and get her in. Keep your fingers crossed please.

I need something else to occupy my time. I'll be taking piano lessons. It's been my dream to play the piano. I have other plans too, cooking lessons & sewing lessons.

We'll see. =)

2006-11-24T20:35:00.000-06:00

It has become a family tradition.

The day after thanksgiving, we went out to get our christmas tree. After searching high and low, we found it. The perfect tree for us, not too tall, not too short, not too thin and not too fat.

Even Buddy came with us. Here he is driving us home.

As soon as we got home, we started decorating the tree.

We've also put up lights outside.

It has been Gary's mission in life to create a light show. We're not there yet. Over the next years, I will be slowly building a christmas village complete with a train set.

2006-11-22T08:59:00.000-06:00

In a week, we will be taking that very long journey to Davao.

Right now, I'm dreading it so much I can't get excited. I'm realizing, I dislike flying. You're cramped & cold. It's so impossible to get comfortable. You can't stretch your legs and nowhere to put your head down. The blankets are small. Some part of you will end up exposed and cold.

0720 Omaha to Las Vegas (3 hrs)
0820 Las Vegas (1 hr 25 min)
0945 Las Vegas to Sacramento (1.5 hrs)
1115 Sacramento (13 hrs)
0015 San Francisco to Taiwan (13.5 hrs)
0606 Taiwan (1 hr 30 min)
0735 Taiwan to Manila (2 hrs)
0940 Manila (6 hrs 20 min)
1600 Manila to Davao (1.5 hrs)
1745 Davao

21.5 flying hours and 22 hours & 20 minutes lay-over. So, yeah, not looking forward to this. I wish somebody would hurry up and invent a new form of transportation. Aren't we due for something totally new? Willy Wonka's transport would be nice. The original Willy Wonka, where you can travel through the TV and go to any TV in the world or something like that.

Enough with the whine. (I know somebody who makes this comment everytime he hears somebody whine, "Do you want cheese with that whine?") Last night, Megan asked if we can have stinky fruit once we're in Davao. This is another post altogether.

2006-11-20T15:04:00.000-06:00

Argh! I'm so upset.

Yesterday, we went to see Disney On Ice. I got my camera but the battery died on me. I didn't even get to take 1 photo, not a single one. It seems to be a thing with me lately. Friday, Megan's class had a Thanksgiving presentation and I didn't have my camera with me. Two weeks ago, her dance class had an observation day and the batteries were dying on me. I'd get about 60 seconds of movie clip and it shuts off. I have to wait maybe 5 minutes before I can turn it back on again for another 60 seconds worth of movie. I got about 5 clips and I was hoping to get her class on tape so she can practice while she's in Davao.

2006-11-17T21:27:00.000-06:00

So, we went to see Happy Feet.

It was SO cute and funny. The soundtrack has such great songs, so great, we bought it right away.

so, yeah, go watch it!

2006-11-03T17:44:00.000-06:00

the genie & the dinosaur

2006-10-31T10:00:00.000-06:00

happy halloween!

and now for your viewing pleasure...

2006-10-26T21:33:00.000-05:00

"Voila!

In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished.

However, this valorous visitation of a bygone vexation stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these vernal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition.

The only verdict is vengeance, a vendetta, held as a votive not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous.

Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose."

2006-10-23T22:04:00.000-05:00

I can't park to save my life.

This is what I need.

At the touch of a button, the available Advanced Parking Guidance System [1] can parallel park the LS or back into a parking space with just a little brake work by the driver. First, position the LS in front of the parking space, then use the navigation screen to select the parallel park icon. After pressing the OK button on the screen, simply remove your hands from the steering wheel and regulate the vehicle’s speed by using the brake. [2]

Now, where to get $61,000?

2006-10-18T23:15:00.000-05:00

Aymone, this post is all about the season finale. You've been warned. =)

Alison is my favorite but when she got auf-ed, Michael became my favorite. So, I was really disappointed with his collection. I don't know, I just didn't like it. I can't even pick one single outfit that I liked. He's at the bottom of my list.

Jeffrey on the other hand came out with a great collection but since I don't like him, I rated him #3. I like his first 6 outfits, the rest were so-so. His last outfit, not too crazy about it. My favorite would be the red outfits.

Uli is my #2. I've always liked Uli's outfit. My favorite would be outfit #9. You want to be the girl wearing that.

That leaves Laura. Although, her outfits were almost all evening wear, I liked every single one of them. I would be so happy if I own every piece in that collection. (I wonder if you can buy it and how much it would cost?)

Who do I think deserves to win? Uli.

PS

Oh, wow, designs are auctioned here! And right this minute, Laura's whole collection is worth $1897, Jeffrey's: $3401, Uli's: $3610 and Michael's: $860.

2006-10-11T10:24:00.000-05:00

I have this shirt

I want these

Hahaha, this one too

2006-10-05T15:55:00.000-05:00

Having nothing better to do, I have volunteered at Meg's school library.

I go there twice a week, Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon, from 2 - 3:00 pm. One hour doesn't seem enough though, it doesn't feel like I accomplished anything. By the time I leave, there are still books to put away, books that needs bar codes, and some other small things that needs to be done.

I never thought that libraries are busy.

project #2

2006-09-26T15:04:00.000-05:00

Over the weekend, we installed hardwood floor in the dining room. It took us half of Friday, most of Saturday and a little bit of Sunday. Sunday was mainly the trim.

I think I need an area rug or a new dining set.

2006-09-21T10:35:00.000-05:00

I find humor when I take things literally.

Gary is an endless source of funny terms. Catching a plane, launching a plane and such. Whenever he talks about catching a plane, I say something like, "was it heavy?" or "you guys must be really strong".

Another source are street signs. "Slow children at play" or "Slow children crossing", whenever I see this sign, I have a vision in my head of children playing in slow motion.

In England, I see this one a lot, "Heavy plant crossing". My translation, a fat tree crossing the road. Hahaha. But the one that got me really bawling was this "Humped Zebra Crossing."

Gary doesn't think these are funny. I think it's hilarious and apparently Meg does, too. Gary was grilling ribs and corn and the ribs didn't came out great, he made a comment that he was afraid of the corn. I think he meant he was afraid "for" the corn. I made an exaggerated surprised face and said, "Were they gonna get you?" and Megan chimed in with, "We're gonna get ya, we're gonna get ya, get ya, get ya, get ya."

2006-09-18T13:50:00.000-05:00

Late last night, as I was watching TV, don't remember the show, Buddy started barking. It surprised me a little bit, he usually whimpers when he wakes up at night and he has to go, if he doesn't get any attention, he'll bark a few more times then goes back to whimpering, then bark, well, you get the drift.

His bark last night sounded off, it sounded like a bark when something alarms him. Awowowow, something like that. I listened and he goes again. I went downstairs to check on him but amazingly enough I didn't hear any jingling of his collar. When he hears somebody coming he'll start wagging his tail and his collar jingles. I turned on the light and he was just laying there on his bed, looked at me, then put his head down and went back to sleep.

I think he was dreaming. I wonder what his dream was.

2006-09-12T20:45:00.000-05:00

So... the Raiders suck!!!

I am not a big sports fan so I don't have a clue why they suck but they just do. I mean they have zero offense. I quit watching around 11. Figured I'm better off sleeping than watching them lose big time! If they keep at it, I'm just going to quit watching NFL altogether and just switch to college football.

I guess college football is big here. Last Saturday they have a game, which got cancelled due to weather, but a lot and I mean a lot of people were wearing red. GO BIG RED!!! They have a game against the USC this Saturday.

Am I going to watch it? Nah... GO RAIDERS!

hahahaha

2006-09-11T11:24:00.000-05:00

I'm ready for tonight's game.

GO RAIDERS!!!

2006-09-01T21:29:00.000-05:00

Our first effort at my on-going project "wildlife habitat".

It's not done yet. We still need to add more pebbles around the pond, maybe add pavers to hide that unsightly black, and add aquatic plants. I was just so excited, this morning we have our first visitor. I like the ornamental grass. It gives a swamp feel to it.

All Rise!

2006-08-29T14:35:00.000-05:00

Gary is doing bailiff duty.

It's pretty interesting. He can't talk about the case but he talked about what he had to do. He has to be at court earlier than everybody. The judge briefed him on what she expects from him.

She doesn't want any disturbance outside the door so if it does happen, he has to go outside and tell the culprit, court is in session. Hahaha! She's strict with what you can't have inside the courtroom, if anybody does have something, Gary has the judge's blessing to stare them down. Another hahahaha!

His bigger responsibility is to know where everybody is at during recess, the defendant, the witnesses, and the members (jurors). When court is about to start, he tells the judge the members are ready, then he tells the members the judge is ready to come out. He goes inside the courtroom, call "All rise!", everybody rises, the members comes in, then the judge comes in.

The rest of the time he just sits there, pretending to be awake.

Birthday Wish

2006-08-27T21:38:00.000-05:00

One of our favorite TV show is Animal Planet's Backyard Habitat. It's all about transforming backyards into a wildlife habitat and that is my birthday wish: to turn my backyard into a wildlife habitat.

I've done my research and this is just plain silly but you can get your backyard certified by National Wildlife Federation (hopefully, I'll get ours certified by next year, I don't care if it's silly!). I've created my habitat planner and I've talked this over with Gary and he's all for it. Megan is just so excited.

We went to Arbor Day Farm today and did more research plus we got 3 free tree sapling. We didn't get to plant it, it started raining when we got home.

Links
Backyard Habitat
National Wildlife Habitat
m3nch13's Habitat Planner
Arbor Day Farm

2006-08-22T09:32:00.000-05:00

As you walk in the front door, you see everything, except the bedrooms. I wanted to paint the walls but since it's so open, I couldn't commit to one color. One thing is for sure, I will definitely rip out the carpet, kapoy mag-vacuum!

Downstairs, our family room. The other half is still a mess, so let's not post a photo. =)

Upstairs, the living room. I don't like that vertical blinds so I'll be changing it to something softer. I just couldn't find the right fabric.

The dining room. We're thinking of extending the hardwood floor in the kitchen all the way to the dining room. I want to change the light fixture here. It has a ceiling fan. G says that getting rid of the ceiling fan will make the house too hot. My solution, put a ceiling fan in the living room instead. The sliding door leads to the backyard.

The kitchen. Things that we're thinking of doing here. Change the countertop, put a tile back splash, and better lighting.

2006-08-19T21:27:00.000-05:00

Buddy is always mistaken as a long-haired chihuahua.

He does look like one. We have to explain that he is actually a cross between a pomeranian and a toy fox terrier. Explaining it over and over again finally made me doubt myself and I decided to google it.

It does exist! His breed is called a pom terrier. Buddy looks more like a toy fox terrier (the big triangular ears and the short tail) than a pomeranian.

Click here for toy fox terrier photos.

2006-08-18T08:30:00.000-05:00

Blame it on Aymone.

She got me hooked (in a good way, I think). Project Runway. I am so inspired with what these people can do with a yard of fabric. Well, maybe more than a yard but you get my drift.

I've been sewing since maybe college but it was mostly drapes, throw pillows and lately bed skirts. They're cost effective and I get exactly what I want. I've never tried sewing clothes though it seems too daunting. All that changed when I started watching Project Runway. I started thinking maybe I should try it. I have to start simple though.

Not too long after, an opportunity presented itself. The local fabric store had a sale on patterns, 99 cents per pattern. I figured, if I mess this up I didn't waste a lot of money. I choose a very simple pattern for Megan. It was for a sundress but I intended it to be a night dress for her.

It's not much, but she likes it. I made 3. I chose fabrics that are soft. This is actually a size bigger. I'm happy with how it came out, I'll try sewing skirts next.

I made this one, too. I like the pattern and the colors (this is the inspiration for the blog's colors). I decided to sew a messenger bag for Megan. She uses it for school.

2006-08-17T08:25:00.000-05:00

What are you gonna do with your days now?

Gary asked me that question the other night now that Megan is back at school. I really don't know what I will be doing with my days. I planned on going back to work when Meg goes back to school but now that we're planning to go to Davao for Christmas, going back to work just to quit in 3 months time seems pointless.

On the other hand, I can't bear to think that I'd be idle all day! I need something to do, something productive. I have volunteered to help at the school library but I need more.

I don't know...

2006-08-15T20:22:00.000-05:00

Our first project: tiling the entry.

1. Pull out old flooring.
2. Lay-out tiles.
3. Cut tiles.
4. Grout.
5. Clean.
6. Enjoy.

We're happy with how it looks and now we don't have that strip of carpet that was catching all the dirt. It's so much easier to clean tiles.

2006-08-13T22:10:00.000-05:00

I have a change of heart.

After working however many hours on a new layout, I didn't like it. For now, while I work on a new layout, I'll just use this one.

2006-08-09T22:18:00.000-05:00

Summer is the season for thunderstorms.

We've experienced some thunderstorms here. It could be nice and sunny outside then all of a sudden these massive dark clouds come heading towards you. Thunder rolls and lightning flashes, soon a heavy downpour will follow. After a few minutes, it passes. Megan is very concerned with thunderstorms.

The other day, at around 5 in the morning, I woke up to a very loud thunder. Megan is in my bed. She said, the thunderstorm is really freaking her out. I couldn't blame her. Now, this is a thunderstorm. It was just really loud and bright. Buddy then woke up and started whimpering. We came to get him and he was trembling.

Megan will not go back to her bedroom. Buddy's too agitated. We all ended up sleeping together. Times like this, I wish I listened to Gary and bought a king size bed.

PS

Happy Birthday, Mommy! We hope we could be there to celebrate it with you!

2006-08-03T21:35:00.000-05:00

These past few weeks I've been busy with sewing projects and slowly sorting and organizing. Our bedroom is almost done just a few more things to sort. We've organized our closets and it looks really nice! Megan's bedroom is still such a mess. She just have way too many toys. I don't know what to do with them. The guest bedroom also houses my arts & crafts center. The whole closet in that bedroom has been designated as arts & crafts center and I still have to sort and organize that.

The living areas are done. Yes, we are company-ready, too bad we're not expecting anybody. The basement which is also our family room needs a lot of work. It became the dumping ground. Anything that doesn't have a place is in here. The computer, the keyboard, the dollhouse (which is still unpacked), the futon, the lounge chairs, on top of the new couch and the new chair with the ottoman, TV. This is where we do everything. Watching movies, playstation, computing, magic-singing, and this is also where Buddy sleeps. I am overwhelmed when it comes to making some sense in this room, just like I don't know what to do with Megan's room.

At the end of the day, when I've crossed something off my never-ending to-do list, I'm satisfied. After I've finished organizing then maybe we can move on to upgrades. That's another long list, it's mostly kitchen & bathrooms. Change countertops for the kitchen, while we're at it, change the sink and add back splash. For the bathrooms just tile the floor and change the light fixtures. We also want to extend the hardwood floor from the kitchen to the dining room. The entry is also hardwood floor so we want to do the same for the stair steps and the landing leading to the garage. Another thing, almost all rooms have ceiling fans which is fine, I just don't like them that much, so those will go as soon as possible.

Whew! Just blogging about them is overwhelming! Wish me luck!

2006-07-17T23:12:00.000-05:00

So, last week I was so excited.

Finally, our stuff's here. It was delivered last Friday and we've been unpacking since then. Right now, everything's unpacked, it's just a matter of putting them away and we're working double time since mom-in-law is visiting us. She's arriving on Wednesday and staying for about a week.

It's funny how everything fit in the tiny house back in England and now that we are in a bigger house, I'm having trouble finding a place for everything! How did that happen? I've always thought we don't have a lot of stuff but, I don't know, maybe I'm just a little bit overwhelmed. One thing's for sure, it's beginning to feel like home now.

Last Saturday, coming out of a store, there was a bunch of cop cars outside. A little kid was locked inside a car. It was just so scary. The mom was trying to get the kid to unlock the car but the kid was just to young to do it. The cop was trying to unlock the car, finally, a kid-rescue truck arrived and got it unlocked. The little kid came out okay, she was probably 3 or 4. They got her in an ambulance for first aid. What happened was, mom opened the car, left the key in the ignition, put the kid inside, closed the door and went to put the stuff in the back of the car but before she could open it, the kid took the key out from the ignition and that automatically locked the car. That was scary and it was so hot, too.

Yeah, it's been so hot since Thursday. It was 90 but feels like a 98 and on Sunday, they said it was 108. Today, it was a little cooler but they forecasted Wednesday to be between 110 to 115. That's HOT! It's been so hot that if you step outside and even if you just stand there, you'll be sweating.

Megan and Buddy cannot seem to play nice! Most of it is Megan's fault. She just loves to tease Buddy. She thinks it's so funny when Buddy gets agitated and when that happens Buddy fights back and starts biting, then Megan yells, "BUDDY, NO BITE!" I keep telling her that if she just stop teasing Buddy then Buddy won't bite her. (Most of the time, the bite doesn't hurt that much.) She also loves to hold Buddy, when she's watching TV, she'll pick Buddy up and just cuddle him but Buddy doesn't like to be cuddled for too long. Anyway, Buddy is going to a puppy school starting Friday. Megan will be training with him, hopefully, this will teach them both how to play nice.

2006-07-05T00:30:00.000-05:00

Happy 4th of July!

It felt like New Year in Pinas though with all the fireworks. Most of our neighbors were out in their driveway with fireworks. It was fun watching it but it was hell for Buddy. He couldn't go potty. He was very vocal about all of it, he barked at it like crazy which is funny since he's so small.

Well, Dad and Pogs came to visit us, too bad they were here for just a couple of days, no matter, it was still great to see them. Thanks for coming! We hope you'll come back and see us again and maybe next time you'll stay longer.

Buddy's doing great, he's eating a lot now. We're still have accidents but now it doesn't take him forever to go outside, just a day. He's doing good in the morning, he'll go as soon as I put him down. It's the rest of the day that we're having problem, I have to constantly watch him when he's not in his crate. (He loves his crate by the way). One thing that we're trying to break a habit of his is biting. Sometimes when he's very excited he tends to bite harder than play bite, he actually broke skin once.

Tomorrow, we're picking up the Gary's Land Rover, 6-hour drive. I don't know how Buddy will take it. Megan hates long drives. Which reminds me, I better recharge her gameboy. Most likely we'll stay the night and come back home the day after.

Home. It doesn't feel much like home yet. It's so empty. Our beds are still on the floor. The frames and other stuff haven't been delivered. We borrowed Pogs TV so it's a little bit bearable now, Megan's glued to the TV now. Our dining table is a patio set.

I have a new favorite store, Hobby Lobby. It's an arts and crafts store AND they sell home accessories. Lamplights, side tables, mirrors, garden stuff, etc. I love it. I refrained myself from getting anything. I have to wait for the rest of our stuff and see.

That's it for now.

2006-06-27T22:35:00.000-05:00

Meet Buddy!

He's a fox terrier/pomeranian cross.

Isn't he sooo cute.

2006-06-15T14:47:00.000-05:00

It's funny how it feels like we have been here longer.

It hasn't even been a month yet! OK, for the past 2 weeks we've been staying at Holiday Inn and since the room doesn't have a kitchenette, we've been eating out. I was so happy when we finally found a pinoy restaurant. Tomorrow we move back to the Base Hotel. And next week we finally move to our house. I can't wait.

Megan has been doing pretty good with her swimming lessons. She can float on her belly and on her back. She can hold her breath under water for 12 seconds. OH, Meg and Gary went fishing twice now. OK, I hate worms and she used to hate it, too but ever since she started fishing she doesn't mind it. She actually put a worm on a hook. So gross! And, yes, she did catch some and fishing is one of her favorite pasttime now.

Today, we're hanging out at the Library. Right now we just have 1 car so we took Gary to work at 1:30 and now we're just waiting for 4:30 to sign Megan up for the next swimming session. It's almost 3 so another hour and a half. I've read almost all my emails. Unfortunately, the base computer prohibits instant messaging so no chatting.

Yeah, I can't wait to move to our own house, sleep on my own bed with my pillows. I can't wait to cook and use my stuff. I miss my stuff so much.

2006-06-07T11:44:00.000-05:00

Ay na lang!

We're staying at Holiday Inn now. The base hotel was full and they only reserved our stay for 14 days even though we're allowed 30 days. I am so sick of eating out. I just might convince G to look for a pinoy resto so I can have my rice. Chinese food just does not fill the craving I have.

Megan has swimming lessons in the morning and she's not too afraid of the water. I mean, she likes the water as long as it does not go over her head. Now, she's doing good. She had 3 classes so far and I think she'd be able to swim by next week.

Holiday Inn is yuck! We made reservations for 2 adults and 1 child and what do they do, they give us a king-size bed which will not work. They cannot move us to another room, they're booked. All the hotels in the surrounding area are booked. Something to do with the NCAA world series (?), I'm not sure, I'm clueless when it comes to sports. So, back to Holiday Inn, they gave us a roll-away bed instead which made the room really tight. One good thing, they have an indoor pool. It almost makes up for everything but not really.

We're still trying to get back on base hotel. We still have 2 weeks left before we close on the house.

2006-05-30T07:34:00.000-05:00

I won't be surprised if I gain 20 pounds.

We have been eating out everyday, there's just way too many places to eat. We're slowly building our fave list.

Hamburger - Sonic drive-in. We had lunch there yesterday. Megan was worried that we shouldn't be eating there that we need to park somewhere so we had to explain to her that it was not a drive-thru but a drive-in.

Mexican - Moe's Southwestern Grill. As soon as you open the door, they go "WELCOME TO MOE'S" Food was great, I haven't had a good Mexican meal in a long time, more like Tex-Mex.

Italian- Lansky's Pizza Pasta Phillies. I had a philly, Meg and Gary had pizza and they were really good. Next time, I'll try their pasta.

It helps too that restaurants here looks really great, even McDonalds. Now, all we need to look for is a Japanese & Asian Fusion restaurant. Of course, there were a couple of restaurant that were not-going-back type, Teriyaki Grill & Maid Rite. Maid Rite was good but I'm not a big sloppy joe fan.

And that's just here in our area.

2006-05-28T20:04:00.000-05:00

So, the day of our trip, we woke up pretty early. 3 in the morning. We have to catch a bus at 5:15 that will take us to Heathrow airport. At 4, Gary called for a taxi. Unfortunately, the taxi driver said that he's booked up and he can swing by our room after 5. So, we walked towards the reception area and since it's been drizzling all evening the road was pretty wet. It took us about 15 minutes since we have a total of 6 luggages with us not including our hand-carried baggage. We checked out and walked again to the bus stop. We got there with 10 minutes to spare. Whew!

Unfortunately, the bus stops have been changed. So, we have to walk back to the reception area. One good thing, the times were changed, too. We have 25 minutes to get back to where we were in the first place.

5:30 rolled around and the bus showed up. We boarded the bus for a 2-hour ride to the airport. It was pretty uneventful until we got to M25. There was an accident and traffic was backed up. The 45-minute drive took about almost 2 hours. This one girl that was with us actually missed her flight. We were still OK, we still have an hour to check in, pass security, and get to the gate. When we got to the gate, they were about to close it.

We were on our way to Chicago. I just have one thing to say, do not, in any circumstance take American Air. O'Hare was set up in such a way that we have to collect our bags, go thru customs, re-check our bag, take the tram to domestic terminal, go thru security. They lost one of our luggage so by the time we got to customs, there was a long line. There was another long line waiting for us at security and finally, we got to our gate. And once again, they were about to close the gate on us.

Our airplane was really small, it was scary but it was only about an hour and a half flight so that was OK. The landing freaked me out a little bit though. We went to baggage claim and surprise-surprise, they lost our baggages. All five of them.

Finally, we were in Nebraska. It was a shock. We got here and it was 91 degrees outside.

2006-05-27T22:29:00.000-05:00

Yipee! I'm online.

So much has happened since I last posted. We're finally here in Nebraska and we are pleasantly surprised! It's actually really nice here. Not what I expected but before I get into that I want to write about our last days in England.

First, our last week in our house, the weather was great! It was nice and warm. After school, Megan would do her homework and then she'd head out to play with the neighbors. She had fun. Our last Friday, Cayden's dad blew up their wading pool, Keely let Megan borrow one of her swimsuits so she can join in the fun. Then, the kids started a water fight. Pretty soon Gary and Cayden's dad were doing a full water battle involving the biggest pot they could find the kitchen.

Saturday, we had planned a going-away party for Megan. We rented a bouncy castle and that was a whole bunch of fun. Sunday, Mother's Day, we just chilled. Monday, we spent the whole day preparing for our final inspection. Then, it was time to check in to billeting (the base hotel). Man, that place was really nice. It's like a one-bedroom apartment and it was huge! Our neighbor said that they stayed in billeting for almost 3 months and they wouldn't mind staying there for 3 years and when I was the new billeting, I understood. We stayed there for 4 days. Friday, we got on the bus that will take us to the airport.

On our way, I tried to keep my eyes open even though it was 5 in the morning. I wanted that last look. At one point, I looked at Megan and saw how much she had grown from when we got here.

UK was definitely a good experience for us and we are very happy that we got a chance to live there.

2006-05-13T03:01:00.000-05:00

Happy Mother's Day!

Meg's class had a spring performance a couple of days ago and here is one of the songs that they did. They're so cute! Enjoy.

2006-05-09T04:36:00.000-05:00

Our stuff got packed and picked up yesterday.

We're still at the house, we loaned furnitures, the essentials. The house is so empty right now. It echoes. When you sneeze, it sneezes back at you. We have a week left at the house, after which we'll be staying at the hotel for 4 more days and then... we fly.

Right now, our form of entertainment is the laptop, music & playing cards. I've thought Megan and Gary games that we used to play back when I was a kid, like Unggoy-unggoy, bridge & I forgot the name of the other game. I've also taught G tong-its & pusoy dos.

I'm not sure exactly how I feel. I'm excited to go back to the states but I'm dreading living in Nebraska.

2006-05-06T11:13:00.000-05:00

two more weeks!

Surprisingly, we're not stressed out. I even have a time to play a new game, Harvest Moon, A wonderful time. It's like living 2 lives.

What have we been up to? Posted new photos in flickr from Easter Egg Hunt (which wasn't much of an egg hunt. The youth center hosted the event and they had 4,000 eggs thrown around the playground. Megan had fun with the bouncy castle and the slide, though. When she got back from the egg hunt, her and the neighbor's kids, did their own egg hunt.)

Megan had her field trip at the Butterfly Park. They had some other animals, they had snakes and a tarantula. Megan was scared and me, too. I hate snakes!

Megan, American Idol Season 30!

2006-04-21T07:17:00.000-05:00

I'm so restless.

It's the anxiety that comes with moving. I've been slowly going thru our stuff (what needs to be thrown away or donated) & cleaning the house. We had our pre-inspection a couple of days ago and fortunately for us, the inspector was happy with the condition of the house. I have heard so many nightmarish story about pre- & final inspection that I expected this guy to give us such a hard time, instead, he just said we can pretty much move out now and we'd pass the final inspection.

I need some sort of a project to keep me occupied. I keep checking our calendar making sure that I am not forgetting anything. I'm trying to make this move as stress-free as possible. I can't read right now. I keep re-reading a paragraph. My mind is somewhere else.

I just want this over and done with.

2006-04-18T07:38:00.000-05:00

Finally!

I finished Monte Cristo! Grabe Mone, super-kapal. The last time I read a book that thick was probably back in high school pa. Now, I understand why you want the book's ending. And I also rented Gankotsuou, Episode 1. We'll watch it tonight.

So, aside from Monte Cristo got the 2nd quilt done. It's now in Megan's bedroom and I finally hung the canopy/net. Now, Megan has that princess bedroom that she has always wanted. Although, we just have a month left here. Exactly a month.

I've been busy, getting rid of stuff that we don't use na or stuff that we just hang on to just because. We seem to have a lot. Nah! We're still not looking forward to moving to Nebraska but we are welcoming the change. Megan borrowed a book about Nebraska and we were reading it last night. It stated that during spring, there are tornadoes and thunderstorms!

She started crying, she doesn't want to move to Nebraska anymore. She's such a scaredy cat. She doesn't want to learn how to ride her bike without training wheels cause she's afraid to fall and same with roller skating. Luckily, we've managed to ease her fears about tornadoes. She'll try and borrow a book about tornadoes, so we'll know what makes a tornado and what to do when there's one.

She's so -- I don't know the word I'm looking for -- overprotective? She insists that I watch the pot when I'm cooking cause "You're not supposed to leave your cooking, Mama.", things like that.

We were watching this movie, forgot the title, but at one point, someone caught fire and Megan was yelling at the TV, "Stop, drop and roll! Stop, drop and roll!" I just have to laugh. She's so weird.

2006-04-11T16:12:00.000-05:00

Gary & Megan have a new favorite.

Beef Caldereta. I tried chicken but they prefer the beef. It's really very simple, as long as you have the "Mama Sita caldereta mix". I know, cheater! I don't know how to make it from scratch but it's really good. I used tri-tip roast beef, it doesn't take long for the meat to get tender, then add cubed potatoes. When meat is tender enough, add cubed carrots. Gary doesn't like his carrots all mushed so after a few minutes I add the green peas, red bell pepper & the caldereta mix. Bring to a simmer. After a few more minutes, the sauce will thicken. Oh, it's so good!

2006-04-10T09:51:00.000-05:00

*sigh*

We have a flydate: May 19. May 8 & 9 will be packing of our stuff. May 15 or 16 will be our last day in the house. From that date until we find a new house, we'll be living in hotels.

2006-04-03T10:10:00.000-05:00

quilt v.2
Originally uploaded by m3nch13.

Awww!

I don't know how to properly use a thimble. I know you're supposed to put it on your finger or thumb but it's too bulky (I think that's the word I'm looking for). It makes my finger movement awkward so I don't use it. And I'm poking myself with needles & pins everywhere. I'm typing with 8 fingers. I pricked my left & right middle fingers. Last week, it was my right thumb.

quilt v.1
Originally uploaded by m3nch13.

Almost done with the second quilt. I have enough left-over fabric to make 3 throw pillows. Yes, I'm going quilt-crazy. I promised myself that after these are done, that's it for quilting. I enjoy doing it. I just don't want my house full of quilts. Maybe I can make a baby quilt for my niece or nephew. I wonder when that will be. =)

2006-03-31T16:10:00.000-06:00

Megan said no more stories but she didn't say anything about movies =)

2006-03-30T05:28:00.000-06:00

I have a new project.

Quilts. I've finished one but it came out too small. Now, I'm making a big one, the size of a blanket. It will be Megan's blanket. That's what I've been up to.

2006-03-21T02:42:00.000-06:00

verdict

The verdict is in. Finally, Gary got his orders yesterday. We have a new assignment. It's not in the east or in the west nor is it in the south or the north. Give up? It's right smack in the middle of good ole US of A. Nebraska. Yep, we're going to Nebraska. Never in a million years did I think that I will call Nebraska home but home it will be for us, at least for 2 years.

When I asked Gary how long we'll be there he said, "There's a saying, Once you get Offutt (that's the name of the base), you'll never get off it." So, yeah, we're not too excited about this move. We made a list of the pros to get us psyched about it.

1. We can afford to buy a decent house.
2. If we buy a house, we can finally have a dog.
3. It has 8 bordering states that we can explore.
4. It has an aeroclub, maybe I can learn to fly. It costs $4000.

That's all we got so far.

schedule

Mom has left a couple of offline messages, what time are you online? Sis asked where the hell I've been. I'm still here. I just a have a new schedule and I'm not in front of the computer as much.

2006-03-17T15:48:00.000-06:00

I can't contain my happiness.

Hahaha. I weighed myself today, it's been weeks since I last did, I was so worried but I lost 7 pounds. I'm so happy. I've reached one of my mini-goals. I have 2 major goals when it comes to weight loss. My shoot-for-the-moon goal is 50 pounds and my land-on-the-star goal is 30 pounds. What am I talking about? Ever heard of that saying, "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll still land on the stars"? That's what I'm talking about. 50 pounds seems so impossible, the 30-pound goal is my possible goal.

Even 30 pounds seem so daunting, so I decided to break it down to mini-goals and that is 10 pounds. I forgot to set-up the reward system so I don't know if I should get myself something or just save the money.

Anyways, I'm 2 pounds away from pre-mommy weight. Oh yeah, I've made names for my weight stages. There's post-Cali(4), pre-Cali/post-mommy(9), pre-mommy/post-Davao(7), pre-Davao/post-AF(10). I'd be so happy if I get to post-AF weight!

The thing is my post-Cali weight is what I weighed when I was pregnant, full-term! I had started lose it but it crept back over the years. Every year, I keep telling myself I need to lose weight and I would lose a couple of pounds but only to gain them back again.

I'm telling myself that this time is different. This is not just some fad diet that I'm doing. I'm actually changing my lifestyle to something healthier therefore I should be able to keep the pounds off. Look at me, worrying about keeping it off when I still have 20 pounds to go, actually, 19 (19 sounds better than 20, don't you think?)

For now, I'm so happy. You should see me right now, I'm singing,

I'm so happy that I can't stop crying...

2006-03-13T02:55:00.003-06:00

I've been fnishing up the dollhouse.

This is the left-side of the living room.

The two top shelf of the display cabinet has blue and white jars. We made those using beads. I got the idea from the vanity tray that I bought for the master's. At the bottom shelf is a silver tea set.

Not very visible is a black cat sitting on the chair.

This is the right-side of the living room.

Clearly, this side is not done. It needs a coffee table & side tables. I'm also thinking of adding a floor lamp. It is very dim. Up on the mantle are more vases/jars that we made, once again, out of beads.

The niche next to the fireplace is a built-in bookshelf. We made those books ourselves.

Here is the kitchen/dining room.

Very small. There's a chocolate cake in between the two vase on the window sill. There's a cutting board and a butcher's knife on top of the shelf (those are stickers, scrapbooker's stickers).

The kitchen dresser, the food items sitting on the shelf are oranges, potatoes, carrots and a loaf of bread, made out of clay and then painted.

The dining table is set for dinner. This room just needs something on the walls.

Bedroom 1, the master's bedroom.

The purses hanging on the washstand are scrapbooker's stickers, same as the pictures on the wall. Not seen on the picture is the wardrobe. I sewed fabric together into rectangles so they can look like linens and towels.

Bedroom 2, the nursery.

This is my favorite room. More sticker's here, the dresses and the pictures on the walls. Another cat sitting on the rocking chair. The mermaid is a real toy, from Peter Pan. Not seen here is the bookcase, it has more Peter Pan figurines, books and a couple of toys from Megan's. It still needs more toys.

This used to have a front yard but since we don't have a spot for the complete dollhouse, it's kept in a box. It has a small pond, a sitting area, & a grotto.

That's it.

2006-03-02T05:00:00.000-06:00

BRRR...

It's been so cold here lately. If it's not raining, we usually would walk to school. It's about a 10-minute walk. With this weather, I just might start driving her to school. This morning, frost everywhere! It's nice to look at, glinting under the sun, but, it's so cold.

By the time I get back from school, my thighs feels like they're freezing. My nose is all red and my ears hurt. Yesterday, my ears felt like they're about to fall off. Today, I got smart, I wore a sweater underneath my jacket and pulled up the hood. They didn't feel like they're ready to fall but they still hurt. I forgot to put chapstix and so my lips started hurting, too.

Right now, the sun is shining, the sky is blue, a slight breeze, it seems like a perfect day but it's still chilly.

2006-02-27T03:29:00.000-06:00

Yehey! I lost four pounds.

At the same time, I'm aghast to have lost so much in so little time! Who am I kidding? Yehey, I lost 4 pounds. Count that, 4... 1, 2, 3, 4! Really, though, I AM happy I lost the pounds, but still worried to have lost that much in the span of 2 weeks. It doesn't seem healthy. I just console myself with the fact that I am not doing anything UNhealthy. I still eat. Maybe, the smoothie-diet is working! OR, maybe, I'm just drinking enough water. I probably drink 10 glasses a day. I am just SOO thirsty lately!

Now, the pessimist in me is saying, I'm bound to hit my plateau soon. Why can't I just be happy? That's an achievement I should be celebrating, right? RIGHT! So, there.

In other news, the gym has a new policy. No street shoes. We're supposed to handcarry our workout shoes. Oh, well. I could buy new shoes since my shoes are more than 6 months old,(you're supposed to replace them every however miles) OR I could just clean them and get a few more months of use out of them and just use the money to buy Turbo Jam.

I really want to buy it but it costs too much. I just want 1 but they send you all these videos, I don't know why, and "if you buy in the next 30 minutes, Chalene will give you a bonus video for your abs" or whatever it was.

2006-02-26T09:10:00.000-06:00

I just finished reading The Historian and I am so upset not because it was no good, it was really good, the part that I'm not happy about is, it's a very creepy book and I didn't really want to read a creepy book since Gary is in one of his trips again. But, having started the book, I just have to finish it. I have to because, although I know that good will triumph over evil, I have to make sure that they did just that. And they did, and I sighed a big relief, now I can step outside at night and I wouldn't have to worry about evil lurking at night.

Unfortunately, it has an epilogue. ARGH!

2006-02-22T08:02:00.000-06:00

Megan's party was a whole lot of fun.

Even the adults enjoyed themselves. See, the people in-charge said that the ceramics needed 3 coats of paint for the colors to come out right after they fire it. Kids, being kids, got tired of painting after 2 coats, so the adults took over and finished the third coat.

It was so relaxing. John's mom enjoyed it so much she started asking about classes and stuff. She then convinced me that we should do it. Having nothing better to do, I agreed. She extended the invitation to Tarah's mom and she said, she'd love to. So, for the first time, I have a mommy-date!

2006-02-15T23:10:00.000-06:00

I'm sewing up a storm here.

Is there such a phrase? Sewing up a storm? What I mean is, I've been doing some sewing projects. I borrowed a book from the library (by the way, if you haven't been to your local public library in a decade, I highly recommend visiting one and while you're there, might as well get a library card) entitled "Sew Sensational Gifts" and it has some ideas that I want to do. NO, I won't start sending these out as presents, it's for me.

I did an apron for me and Gary. I'm so tired of finding grease spots in our clothes. This should put an end to it. Now, how to convince Gary to use it. Then, I lined these woven baskets that I got from a bazaar. We use these baskets as a catch-all for items that can be easily misplaced or just sit on top of the table or counters, (I hate clutter). Now, we know where our keys, wallet, lighter are. Those baskets were a good find, $10 for 5 baskets and they have a lid, only thing was it wasn't lined. Well, not anymore.

Today, I'm making a beach bag. Our beach bag is 4 years old. It's packed and ready to go. It has our flip-flops, swimsuits, towels, sarong, floaties, and sunblock. It's for those oh-so-rare sunny days and we want to head to the beach, I don't want to waste my time looking for things. If we want to go to the beach, 5 minutes and we're out the door. Might as well, it takes about an hour to get to the beach.

Other things I want to make:

1. Travel toiletry tote - to replace my emergency overnight bag in the car. I don't know where we were but we were in one of our last-minute trips and it was getting late and we didn't want to go home but we have no choice but to. The next day, I bought travel-size shampoo, soap, deodorant, toothbrush, and toothpaste, then added razors and change of underwear. That's our emergency overnight bag. I think we've used 2 or 3 times now.

2. Glove compartment organizer - who doesn't need one?

3. Portable clothing valet - maybe this one is just plain silly, but unpacking for 3 is a pain in a butt. Now, if I make 3 of these valets, I could assign a valet per person, and then when I unpack I don't have to search where is whose. All I have to do is grab the valet and Voila, I'm unpacked.

The only problem with these projects are the materials needed. I've never heard of them until now. Cloth pack and grosgrain ribbon. I did a quick research and as it turns out, they are materials used in backpacks. I could order them online but I might have tire of the idea by the time they get here.

Now, there are other projects. Girly projects. Dresser tray, drawer liner, hang-ups. Not really to crazy about them but I just might try it one of these days. It's 5:12 am. I don't know how much sleep I had last night but I got so tired of trying to go back to sleep that I gave up around 3:30. I cut out the fabric for the beach bag and then tried to figure out how to add pockets. Now, all I need is to make the fabric stiff!

2006-02-12T22:27:00.000-06:00

*sigh*

Another early morning. It's so early my brain is not functioning well. Come to think of it, I don't think my brain had functioned well in a long time. So... what happened that we missed our flight?

It's stupidity and I don't know what else. For some reason, I thought our flight was on the morning of the 8th and our arrival is on the morning of the 9th. On the 7th, Pogs asked if we could go to Vallejo so he can drop-off his car at the shop and have the tint removed. I had to take mom to the hospital that morning for some blood work, so we made plans that if we're not home by 10 to meet at CostCo by 10:30 and head on to Vallejo.

Mom and I didn't get out of the hospital till 9:45ish so I planned on driving straight to CostCo. We got there with a few minutes to spare and 10:32 rolled around, no Pogs in sight. I decided to just drive to Vallejo and hopefully find the shop but as we were driving, I saw Gary driving Pog's car.

They finally caught up with us and followed them to the car shop. The address that Pogs had was wrong so he tried calling and finally found the right address but the car shop people won't be in. Pogs decided to just go grab lunch and take his car to the Fairfield place instead.

After lunch, we drove back to Fairfield and found the car shop. He dropped off his car and we started heading home. I asked Gary if he got a hold of anybody to pick us up at the station when we get back from UK, he said he hadn't. He made a comment about how our travel time back to UK seems longer. As we were driving home, I thought about what Gary said and started getting anxious. He's right! It seems awfully long, our flight should be just 10 hours. I better check the tickets.

We got home, checked the tickets and to my dismay, our flight was not in the morning but at 16:45. Oh no! Pogs had made arrangements with his work to come in late the next day. We're going to be way early at the airport! I showed Gary the tickets but he noticed something else. Our flight was on the 7th, not the 8th as we originally thought!

Shoot me! It was 1 PM, we were not packed! I still have clothes drying! We need to be there at least 2 hours prior! We're not going to make it! So, I was frantically packing away, Gary called the airlines. I was worried that we will not get rebooked. The airline person said that she could get us in the next day flight but, of course, we had to pay the penalty. 100 freakin' pounds per person! What else can we do but pay.

Goodbye $525. I hate to see you go. You would have brought me so much joy. Oh, the thought of what I could buy with you makes me cry (by the way, I did cry!). I could have gone shopping-crazy at the outlet. Imagine how many Jamba Juice I could have bought with that. WHY... I could have bought 2 whole lechon at Goldilocks with that.

Oh, well. Lesson learned -- double-check, triple-check, quadruple-check tickets!

2006-02-09T22:22:00.000-06:00

It's 4:30 am. I've been up since 1:30. Tried to go back to sleep to no avail. Finally decided to get up at 3:30 and baked pan de sal. I'm waiting for the dough to rise right now. Megan's up. She's gonna be cranky later.

Our flight back to UK was ok. Hit a few turbulence, that's about it. The in-flight movies were no good. Watched Shop Girl. It's OK. Tried to watch March of the Penguins but couldn't concentrate. The few minutes that I've seen of it seems pretty nice. I'll just have to rent it. Then, watched Weather Man but didn't like it. Tried to sleep but couldn't find a comfortable position. Meg slept though.

Got to Heathrow at 10:45. I was worried that we won't catch the bus but we got to the bus station at 11:30. Bus showed up at 12:00. Yehey! No need to take the train. We got here at 3 pm. So hungry and so cold!

We got home and finished up Megan's birthday party invitation. Megan fell asleep at 7 pm and I went to bed at 8:30 and now here I am.

Anyways, the vacation was loads of fun! I ate and ate and ate and now I feel like I need to detoxify! So, starting next week I will go on a smoothie diet for 3 days. Thanks to Pogs, we got a Magic bullet and I can't wait to try it.

Click here for photos.

2006-01-26T09:13:00.000-06:00

Live from Suisun.

It's 7:13 AM, I haven't adjusted to the time and I hope I won't that way I won't have to adjust when we go home. What have we been up to? EATING. Aunt Girlie picked us up at the airport and we went straight to Red Ribbon for some pancit palabok. We went to her house to meet Pogs. We stayed at her house for a few before heading home. We decided to take Golden Gate instead of Bay Bridge in the hopes that we won't hit as much traffic.

The next day, we went to the outlet for some pizza pucks & shopping. I can't believe Gary got more stuff than I did! Argh. After that, we got some seafood for dinner since it's dad's birhtday! Yummy! Saturday, stayed home and waited for Aymone & Macky to show up and had Adalberto's for lunch. We were gonna eat out but stayed home instead since Dad wanted to watch PacMan's fight. Good thing he won! Go Manny!

Sunday, went to Emeryville for lunch. Gary and I were saying that we would probably go eat at a Chinese buffet somewhere but we were wrong. Aymone & Pogs suggested this chinese place and it was yum. Then, drove home to Aymone's and stayed the night. We had Jack in the Box for dinner.

Aymone & Macky's place is really nice. And we opened our Christmas present. Thanks. Monday, we ate at Chevy's. Gary was so torn that he ended up getting a little bit of everything. I had the fajita. Drove back to Suisun later that day.

Tuesday, we went to Monterey. Whale watching! That was awesome. I wish I had the gift of words so I can describe exactly how great it was but I can't. One word, WOW! We saw some dolphins, too.

Wednesday, stayed home and organized the garage. Today, we're driving back to Aymone's and tomorrow we'll be driving down to Vegas. VIVA LAS VEGAS!

2006-01-18T15:21:00.000-06:00

In 25 hours, we'll be flying to California.

SEE YA!

2006-01-12T03:30:00.000-06:00

Maybe I just need to find something else to occupy my time.

Things I'm obsessing about cali trip, future house, & euro trip. Talked to G about euro trip and he just had one question, "I thought we don't have money." Yeah, but we can just borrow it from the money we get when we sell the truck (that's counting-the-chicks-before-hatching talk right there!) He just shook his head but he did with a smile so I went ahead and researched.

This is what I have so far, Eurail - 5 bordering countries for 10 day is $568 per adult & $284 for kids. Now for the countries: France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland & BeNeLux. That's 6 countries, I have to give up 1 but which one! France & Italy are musts, BeNeLux cause I get 3 out of 1! So, I have to give up either Spain, Germany or Switzerland. Then, we only have 2 days per country, have to choose which cities carefully. I have to confer with A and see what she says. I wonder if she'll go with us? Hahahaha. Or... maybe P will go with us. He did say he'll come visit us and this will be his last chance. Last chance P, what do you say?

Good thing that M's spring break is 10 days, we'll just have to do it during that time period. I wonder if prices will differ?

2006-01-10T02:46:00.000-06:00

What is your true color?

Your color is black. The color of night (and the color of my skin). Serene and mysterious (tahimik lang...), black conjures up images of elegant evening gowns, dashing tuxedos, and gleaming limousines (hanggang sa panaginip lang). Traditionally a symbol of success, black also represents power and an uncompromising demand for perfection. Not surprisingly, you tend to set challenging goals for yourself (hindi naman) and do whatever it takes to achieve them (grabe naman, sobra naman yang whatever it takes, I do have limits!) — your strength of character is second to none. This unfaltering determination (it keeps faltering nga eh), along with your natural elegance (elegante daw???), impresses people. But keep in mind that your personality might be intimidating to some (talaga?!). Try to temper your demanding side (demanding ba ako?) with a little softness — trust us, it won't kill you. Overall, though, black is the color of professionalism and achievement, which means it's clearly the color for you. (Overall, hindi ata ako eto eh!)

2006-01-09T16:49:00.000-06:00

I should be sleeping right now.

The thing is, M still can't go to sleep on her own. I have to lay down with her and when she's asleep, I sneak out. The problem is, most of the time, I fall asleep with her and wake up after about 15 minutes. I go to my bedroom and try to go back to sleep but I can't.

I start thinking and when I start thinking I can't stop. G's working nights, I don't have anybody to talk to. And so the ideas in my head just keeps growing. Sometimes I get up and start writing, other times I go to the wonderful wide world of web (like right now).

It looks like we're going back to the States. G said that if we were going to another overseas base, we should have received our orders by now. Nothing. We have only 4 more months left here. I can't believe that we still haven't been to Scotland or Ireland. We could still go but there is that money matter and since we're going to Cali...

Our plan was, if we don't get another european base for our next assignment, we will take a month off and drive around Europe. G wants to drive, I don't care, as long as we'll see the rest of Europe. That would mean M would miss a lot of school, she's missing 3 weeks with this Cali trip but traveling around Europe is educational, right? Right.

Now, what to do about money? It's too late to look for a job. I could work for 1 month, hahaha, and hope we will have enough. Or... since we were planning to sell the truck anyways, I could borrow some of that money to go towards our euro-trip and then pay it off when we get to our next base. I really do need to go back to work. We have to start saving money for our dream house in Banganga, hahahaha.

2006-01-07T14:41:00.000-06:00

80's Essential DVD Collection (in no particular order)

1. Labyrinth
2. The Princess Bride
3. My Chauffer
4. Some Kind of Wonderful
5. Sixteen Candles
6. Secret Admirer
7. Say Anything
8. The Breakfast Club
9. Ferris Bueller's Day Off
10. Pretty in Pink
11. La Boum (Ready for Love)

That's all I have right now. NO, I don't own them, not yet. It's a wish list.

2006-01-05T02:25:00.000-06:00

Looking forward to:

1. Adalberto's - california burrito & super nachos
2. Pizza Pucks - minis
3. Chevy's - beef fajita & tomalito
4. Mongolian BBQ
5. Korean BBQ - bulgoki
6. Jack in the Box - sourdough
7. Trader Joe's - mochi balls
8. Jamba Juice
9. Lechon & durian

Yeah, that's all food. No wonder I'm getting so fat. I have to lose weight before heading out since I know I will gain weight.

2006-01-04T16:53:00.000-06:00

psst...

We got our plane tickets yesterday. We'll be in CA on 19 Jan up to 8 Feb. We're so excited!

2006-01-03T14:59:00.000-06:00

It was nice.

We spent the last hours of 2005 at a friend's house. For the first time, tayo-tayo lang was just that, a few people. 4 other couple showed up, kids in tow. M had a blast playing with the other kids, G wasn't so bored since the husbands were there, too and me, it felt like I was back in PI, even if it was just for a few hours.

We ate, drank, and sang to our hearts' content. I got 100 on 2 songs. YIPEE!!!(babaw) On one song though, Shaun, Nelly's husband was saying, "Hey, I helped you with that one." Shaun, he speaks Tagalog! It's so funny listening to him. He even sang a couple of Tagalog songs. Anak & something by Jessa Zaragoza (hahaha!!) Something that goes "parang di ko kaya yata" I forgot the rest of the lyrics. Oh, I just remembered the title "Bakit pa?" And then he was telling G about the old wive's tales back home, like saying "tabi tabi po". He knows about the ahas in Robinson's and how Alice Dixson got paid however much money because she saw the ahas. hahahaha. It's so funny hearing these stories from the perspective of foreigners.

Yeah, it was a pretty good ending to a good year.

2006-01-01T08:01:00.000-06:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I'm finding myself contemplating about what I've become versus what I wanted to be. Yeah, not quite the same. I wanted to be a lot of things, do a lot of things, and learn a lot of things. I sound like an over-achiever whatever. So, in honor of my past self I will try to accomplish some of these.

The list
1. Learn to scuba dive
2. Own a motorbike
3. Learn to ride a horse
4. Parasail
5. Hot air ballooning
6. master every weapon known to man
7. multi-lingual
8. travel the world
9. go to the great barrier
10. drive really, really fast
11. off-roading
12. mountain climbing
13. martial art expert
14. painter or photographer
15. piano
16. violin
17. sail around the world
18. learn survival skills
19. learn to read lips & hands
20. fly a plane

Back then, there were a lot of things hindering my wants in life, money, time & of course parental consent (I think my mom would have a problem with #6). But now my life is my own, well not quite. I'm pretty sure I won't be able to do all these things so I will modify.

Let's see:
1. Learn to scuba dive - not this year maybe on my next visit to Davao. I did snorkel last time with A & M and it was fun. Yeah, maybe next time.

2. Own a motorbike - another one that will not happen this year. It is not just practical.

3. Learn to ride a horse - maybe Meg will do this for me instead, I wouldn't mind just trying it out, though.

4. Parasail - some other time. (I'm beginning to see a pattern here).

5. Hot air balloning - too expensive. Maybe on our 10th year anniversary we'll do something like this.

6. Master every weapon known to man - ok, this is not happening, I'm changing it to know selfdefense.

7. Multi-lingual - I'm bi-lingual right now so if I ever learn french & spanish then I can call myself multi.

8. Travel the world - maybe not the world but I can say I've been to 3 continents, that's not bad.

9. Go to the great barrier reef - maybe on our 10th year anniversary, we can do this along with hot air balloning.

10. Drive really, really fast - I think I wanted to be a racecar driver back then, I'll be happy if I can go-karting instead.

11. Off-roading - wow! I have 1 in my list that I have actually done.

12. Mountain climbing - I have done a little back in Cali but it's not really a roughing-it-type mountain climbing.

13. Martial art express - see #6.

14. Painter or photographer - I'm doing some sketching right now. I'm improving I'm no Macky, though. I know there's a photography class offered here maybe I can do that.

15. Piano - can I still do this? Am I too old?

16. Violin - see above.

17. Sail around the world - what am I thinking! I don't see this happening in the near future.

18. Learn survival skills - oh, I still want to do this one. How do I do this, though?

19. Learn to read lips & hands - another thing that I still want to do.

20. Fly a plane - I still want to do this. Back in Cali, I found a place for this but it was too expensive.

So, for my new year's resolution - learn a new skill and do something I haven't done before.

2005-12-30T05:03:00.000-06:00

Don't you just love after-christmas sale!

All christmas decor were on sale for 75% off and so we stocked up on christmas lights. Yes, our Christmas will be very bright next year. I just love that thing at the bottom where it says "total savings" and it's a whole lot more than what I paid.

Not only that all clearance items have an additional 75% off. Too bad, there were not a whole lot of choices but I found this really cute skirt and just paid $5 for it and it was originally $40. Makes me wonder how the sale are back in the states and wondering about it is making me wish I was back in the states.

2005-12-27T17:26:00.000-06:00

so spooky...

I'm here upstairs surfing the net, M is sound asleep, & G is at work. I hear something coming from downstairs. It sounds like the DVD player is on. I thought to myself, did M wake up? No. Did G got home early? No. I went downstairs and the DVD player is on. I wonder if this house is haunted.

A few months ago, they unearthed 5 skeletons in an area not very far from where we live, about a 5-minute walk. They said it was about 4,000 years old! Shortly after that, other stories started circulating around. I know this 2 cleaning ladies who work at the high school building and they both swear that it is haunted. Strange noises would be heard in the middle of the night, like doors banging & all that other creepy stuff.

Apparently, the older houses in our area have this weird thing. The attic door would suddenly open by themselves. And they tend to do that during stormy weather when the wind is blowing outside, perfect for a night of haunting.

Why is it that in horror movies, they always feature a rickety old porch swing slowly creaking thru & fro in the middle of the night while a leafless branch taps the upstairs window.

I hope I can sleep tonight.

2005-12-25T04:58:00.000-06:00

A couple of weeks ago, we went to G's holiday party.

I don't like going to these kind of functions, mainly because I don't know anybody and the reason I don't know anybody is because I don't like going to these kind of functions. A dilemma.

We got there and I knew it was going to be a long night. It seems like all the other spouses have their own clique. We headed towards the bar and G got his first drink of the night. I looked around, there was a lady sitting by herself. She caught my eye and smiled, so I smiled back. G took forever to get his drink. The lady motioned to me to join her and have a seat and I did.

We started with the usual small talk. Another problem I have, I am no good with small talks. She asked me if I wasn't drinking and I replied that I really shouldn't I'm driving but I really need one. She said same thing with her but as soon as she walked in, she said she needed a drink. We started talking about how everybody was dressed. See the thing was, it was supposedly semi-casual but for some reason, a lot of the spouses were wearing something that I would say semi-formal. I thought she didn't looked too bad, she had some dress pants on, a red top and a black jacket. What it boils down to is... I felt under-dressed. Don't you just hate that. She asked me where I lived and she said that we're practically neighbors, her house is the first house in our area. That's when I realized who she was.

She's Chef's wife. They arrived here the same time as we did and while we were in temporary housing, they lived across from us. I admit, I have this thing, I am big on first impressions and the first impression that I have on her was not positive. I thought she and her husband were too loud and I thought her husband was obnoxious.

She then proceeded to say that I should get a drink and we'll just share a cab home. I walked over to G and talked to him about the plan and he agreed. I was amazed how this lady took the effort to include me. Maybe, she too was feeling left out, I don't know but she came with another spouse, who incidentally also got here the same time frame but they actually bounded and remained friends. All in all, the night turned out pretty good.

I see her around a lot now and when we do run into each other we try to catch up. Too bad that we only have a few more months left here. The point to all this is...
I shouldn't be judgmental. If I actually made the effort to talk to her back then who knows, we could have been very good friends by now.

2005-12-23T15:32:00.000-06:00

Dear you,

Merry Christmas!

Hope you and your family have a wonderful christmas. We wish you all the best and hope we were there with you.

Love & kisses,
MGM

2005-12-20T15:57:00.000-06:00

I have a dream.

I dream that one day, G & I will live by the sea in a nipa hut but a little bit bigger and with flushing toilet. It will have white curtains everywhere. Everything in the house, from the table to the bed is made out of native materials, bamboo maybe. We will wake up to the sound of the lapping waves and eat breakfast in the garden surrounded by exotic flowers & palm trees. At the back of the house, we will have a small orchard or a vineyard (not yet decided). We will then spend the rest of the day just lounging around, or maybe have family & friends come over. At night, we will have a bonfire by the beach, roast some hotdogs or marshmallow, or maybe grill some bariles or whatever G caught that day if he went fishing.

2005-12-18T11:48:00.000-06:00

Maloloka talaga ako sa mga kababayan natin dito.

"Are you Filipina?", "Do you speak the language?", dyan nagsisimula ang lahat at kung sasagot ka ng "Oo". Patay kang bata ka! Susunod kasi ang "Tagasan ka sa atin?" na tanong. Ang madalas na sagot sa tanong na yan ay - "Ipinanganak ako sa kung-saan-probinsya, pero lumaki ako sa kung-saan-lugar-sa-metro-manila." Karamihan dito, ewan ko ba, tinatago nila ang pinanggalingan nila. Bakit? Hindi ko alam, basta ako hindi ko ikinakahiya na taga-Davao ako. Ipagsisigiwan ko pa.

Baka kasi, nilalait ng iba ang mga taga-probinsiya kaya hayan tuloy ayaw nila malamang probinsyana sila. Ano naman ngayon kung probinsyana ka talaga. Ano bang masama doon? At sino ba sila na para laitin ang mga promdi! Meron ding iba na mga laking-manila na hindi na kunyari marunong mag-bisaya pero nakakaintindi naman daw sila. Tigilan mo ako! Ang tigas-tigas ng dila mo, baka madapa ka dyan at mapa-"agay" ka at mabisto ka tuloy.

"Punta ka sa bahay, birthday ng anak ko, may konting kainan, tayo-tayo lang." Ano ka! Halos di na magkasya ang mga bisita sa bahay nila, inimbita na yata ang buong pinoy community dito. At ang pagkain, umaapaw. Syempre, andyan ang ever-present lumpia with matching tatlong klaseng pansit at kung anu-ano pa. Hindi ka talaga magugutom. At naku siguraduhin mong bongga ang gift mo at baka ma-tsismis ka at hindi ka na ma-imbita sa iba pang birthday party.

Mag-ingat sa "Oy, atin-atin lang ito ha pero si ano..." at meron pang pahabol, "hwag mong sabihin kay ano ha." Pero kinabukasan, makikita mo silang dalawa magkasama ulit. Ano ba yan?

"Anong ginagawa mo? Punta ka dito at nagluto ako ng...", ang totoo nyan, hindi naman talaga ang pagkain ang habol nila sa'yo. Kadalasan meron silang bagong binili at gusto lang nilang ipagyabang sa'yo. Pwede ba, kung sinigang or pansit ang niluto mo, marunong din akong magluto nyan. Buti sana kung bulad or lechon yan, pupuntahan talaga kita. Ang sama ko, ako na nga ang inimbita ako pa tong nagrereklamo!

Kaya nga minsan tuloy pag may nagtatanong sa'kin na pinay ba ako, gusto ko nang sumagot ng hindi.

PS
Loko lang to, wala akong maisip na matinong topic. Wala akong kaaway dito. Mabait kasi ako eh.

monay

2005-12-17T04:39:00.000-06:00

Well, I did clean-up M's room and I did try to bake pan de sal yesterday.

And I got monay instead. So, now I know how to make monay.

Ingredients

2 packets rapid yeast
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 cups bread flour
1/2 cup warm (100 - 110 degrees) water
2 tbsp vegetable oil

1. Add 2 packets of yeast & 1 tbsp sugar into the warm. Stir until dissolved. Let stand for 10 minutes. The yeast mixture will become foamy the same consistency that of hair mousse.

2. Add remaining sugar, vegetable oil, salt & 1 cup flour. Mix. Add remaining 1 cup flour. Mix again. At this point, the dough becomes difficult to mix and somewhat flaky.

3. Knead. It took me about 30 minutes hard-core kneading to get the dough somewhat soft & supple.

4. Place dough In a lightly greased bowl, turn the dough to get the other side greased. Cover with damp towel and let stand for 1 hour in a warm place. If using oven, towel needs to be borderline damp/wet.

5. After an hour, the dough will rise but the volume is not about double of the original size. Divide into two. Roll to a log & cut into smaller pieces. The dough, at this point, feels fluffy (I don't know how else to describe it.) Ball smaller pieces of dough.

6. Bake at 325 or maybe it's 350 (my oven is weird) for 15 minutes.

2005-12-16T05:18:00.000-06:00

Goodness, not another I'm-bored-post again.

I really am, though. G took that trip, he's probably at some supermart store right now stocking up on socks & briefs. M is still at school. My schedule dictates that I should be doing something worthwhile right about now but I don't feel like it. Two things I could do right now, clean up M's room (Lisa and Jonjon are coming over - what's the point, they're going to mess it up anyway) & I could make pan de sal.

Instead, I'm sitting here, staring at the computer, thinking of posting something but nothing comes to mind. In the last hour, I've checked for updates on my frequently visited blogs, nothing. I wonder what everybody's up to. It's 11:30, I'm getting hungry. I should change my time setting. I don't know what time zone I'm at but it's wrong. It says that it 3:18 am. 8 hours behind. Hey, that's Cali time.

I think my phone just rang. I'm so lazy right now, I don't even want to get the phone. Anywho, it's probably just some telemarketers. I hate telemarketers. I know they're just doing their job but it's so annoying. I got a call from them a while back at 9 in the evening. WTF!

"Can I speak to the bill-payer?"
"It's 9 in the evening! What are you doing calling us up at this hour?" - then, hung-up.

A while back, we got a something-gram in the mail. It said something like "We've been trying to reach you. Please give us a call at this number" It was a 1-800 number. Thinking it was probably something important, G called them up, only to find out that we're eligible for some sweepstakes. G was really upset.

"I'm paying for this call so you can tell me that we might already have won something?"
"It's a toll-free number sir, you won't be charged for this call."
"If I'm in the States, yeah, but I'm not!" - the rep went on to say something and G was, "I'm hanging up now, I am not paying another cent for this call."

2005-12-15T17:35:00.000-06:00

So, remember Strawberry Switchblade?

I didn't think I have any SS but the other day, I discovered I have one song, "Since Yesterday", and then I remembered I love "You Let Her Go", so surfed and found this site and they have downloadable rare tracks. =) And rediscovered another song, "Who knows what love is".

And if you're a big 80's fan, listen here, currently playing "don't put another dime in the jukebox, I don't wanna here that song no more."

2005-12-15T05:05:00.000-06:00

Yes, I have plenty of time in my hands.

I've wanted to create my own skin for the longest time (creative daw kuno). Finally found something I could use. I changed M's, too. It used to be just a simple kiddie art but she saw this one and wanted hers just like mom's but she wants it pink cause "Pink is my favorite color." And so pink it is. I went crazy on hers (I think). Very pink indeed.

This is it for this blog but I just might add some more stuff to M's.

2005-12-13T04:22:00.000-06:00

"Hey, hun, bad news... they want me to go on a trip" G says, but I'm suspicious, I bet he wants to go.

"When does it leave?" I'm just worried, Christmas is fast approaching and although we have no plans, it would be nice to be spending Christmas together this year.

"Thursday, for 5 days, I should be back on Tuesday." They (meaning supervision) always say that but most of the time, it gets extended. Long pause. I'm getting annoyed now because G never thinks about these things.

"What do you want from me?"

"I was just wondering if we had plans that I forgot about." He wants me to think that he doesn't really want to go and maybe he can get off it if I can think of reasons why he can't go. Long pause.

"Well, you have those things on EBay."

"That's right. Maybe, I can just tell the buyer to pick it up next weekend." I knew it! He does want to go.

"On Christmas weekend???" I'm just being difficult now. He should just have came out and said it in the first place. How hard is it to say, there's this trip and I want to go. Of course, I'd get all upset but it won't last long.

"I don't know." He's just being petty now. Long pause.

"Never mind." He's sounding all annoyed. Like, it's my fault that he can't go. He such a baby sometimes.

"Never mind what?"

"I'll talk to them and see if they can stick somebody else."

"Where are you?"

"At work." I checked the time, it's 9:30, he gets off work at 7:30.

"What are you still doing at work?" I hate it when he stays at work longer than he has to. It's not like he gets paid overtime! See, if he left at 7:30 like he was supposed to, then, supervision wouldn't have found him just hanging out there. They would have called him and I would have been right there when he took the call and I would have said, hey, you got those things on EBay and he would have told them so and they would have found somebody else to go take the trip. BUT...

"They asked me to do some stuff on the aircraft, I should be home in an hour." More like 2 hours.

"Is there anything else?" Now, I'm really irritated.

"No, that's it. I'll see you in a bit."

Maybe, I'm just being such a brat.