Quarter Life Musings

Dedicated to my good fitness buddy Fara, only because she was the perpetrator of my couch potato days hahaha. Thanks for introducing me to Jason Dohring! And if YOU think this pertains to you, then maybe it does.

WE USED TO BE FRIENDS
The Dandy Warhols

A long time ago, we used to be friends
But I haven’t thought of you lately at all
If ever again, a greeting I send to you,
Short and sweet to the soul is all I intend.

A, ah-ahh-ahh-ahh
A, ah-ahh-ahh-ahh

Come on now, honey,
Bring it on, bring it on, yeah.
Just remember me when you’re good to go
Come on now, sugar,
Bring it on, bring it on, yeah.
Just remember me when.

It’s something I said, or someone I know.
Or you called me up, maybe I wasn’t home.
Now everybody needs some time,
And everybody know
The rest of it’s fine
And everybody knows that.

Come on now, sugar,
Bring it on, bring it on, yeah.
Just remember me when you’re good to go
Come on now, honey,
Bring it on, bring it on, yeah.
Just remember me when.

We used to be friends a long time ago.
We used to be friends, hey hey…

I’ve been having a recurring headache… from a Veronica Mars marathon that’s spanning 3 days already. My mom complains of the sofa being uneven already. I wake up at 10, have my morning coffee, a bite of bread or two, and swoon at Logan’s (a.k.a. Jason Dohring) boy-next-door smirks and watch Veronica worm her way through another Nancy Drew-esque case. I would’ve brought up my lunch plate to the living room if not for my mom. Thank God DVD players have the Resume function. I let my butt simmer on the living room sofa for the next 5 hours or so (still in my jammies, take note) until my mom nags me to take a shower because the water’s extra cold. I know it’s too much to bring down my toiletries to do my bathroom rituals in front of the TV so I let it rest until they turn it on again for Deal or No Deal. Once the ending credits roll on Maging Sino Ka Man, I reclaim my throne for the next 4 hours or so. Totally forgot about boxing… my bad. Though I promised myself a dead-serious weight loss regimen by 2007 with Jing.
Last week has been more eventful. Met up with Charm Thursday and spent a good 4 1/2 hours with her. She left this morning by the way. Saturday I met up with Fara and spent the next 48 hours with her, laughing and stuffing ourselves with one of the best chocolate cakes I’ve ever tasted (Polly’s? first time I heard it), really good homemade suman latik from them (and they gave me some more to bring home), and empanada, among others.
Saturday, Fara and I met college friends at Zong, at Fort Pointe. Nice to see Lissa, Sandee, Gec and Ry again. Jason and Cathy, Sid, Lery, Cathi  and Ten were always there every year naman. Too bad Buddy and Lloyd didn’t make it. I promised to create a yahoogroups for our block but still never got around to doing so. Where are the pics, Ten? I wonder how we’ll look like when we see each other again… next year?
5 girls were left at around 10:30, and we headed to Serendra to take a look. What a spanking new place-to-be-seen! Models and metrosexuals were swarming the place (okay, that’s an exaggeration) and I felt out of place with my jeans and ballet Crocs. Anyhoo we found ourselves a place to sip our milkshakes (mine was Choco Mint Chip. The best!) at Larry’s. Miko dropped by (didn’t change a bit) who turned into Dr. Love as the night wore on. Like I said before, I absolutely love reunions
Fara and I got home around 2 but managed to sleep at 4am, after trying to find answers to life’s most baffling questions. Her parents dragged us to the train station for a hearty lunch in the heart of Recto, to which Tito Panky promised really good food at rock-bottom prices with zero ambience. Had no choice, but I knew I was in good hands
It turned out to be a seedy Chinese resto with two HUGE black native pigs with tusks eating their fill from plastic containers greeting you by the door. I think they were as heavy as me! Just across was another resto with the same friendly welcomers albeit a third of their size. Have never seen restaurant floors as greasy as theirs, but it didn’t matter to a good number of patrons inside. Anyway we settled somewhere at the back of the resto, near a sign that said "Try our kare-kare! It’s the best you’ve ever tasted! … from the National Commission on Kare-Kare". Maybe the owner thought a bit of humor could make up for the bits of food I saw underneath the tables. Were they leaving it for the pet rats?
Tito Panky and Tita Baby ordered tons of food. The owners definitely didn’t care if they got zero for presentation. Sauces were filled to the brim and dripping, the pancit canton noodles were hanging out. They had a good laugh when Fara and I took our first bites. EVERYTHING WAS SO GOOD! Beef with broccoli, hakao, camaron, pancit canton, lechon macau, some kind of ham, and huge servings of rice. I think I went beyond what my dad normally consumes. Ugh. I also think they took pity on us when we told them we only had an order of hakao and iced tea between us at Zong  the night before hahaha. Funny to realize that the cost of that very hearty Sunday lunch equaled to what we spent at The Fort, where we almost didn’t eat.
What made that weekend extra extra special were the 68 videos that Fara stuffed in my Zen — the last 5 eps of the following: House MD season 3, Prison Break season 2, Grey’s Anatomy season 3, complete eps of Heroes season 1, Las Vegas season 3, CSI season 7. I had to delete most my mp3s to make room. Never thought 30gb could still be insufficient for my needs hahaha. And now my bro has taken my Zen hostage as he has yet to finish  PB and LV. Now that I’m hooked on Veronica Mars, I wished there was room for season 3.
Thank goodness for TiVo, Bit Torrent, Limewire, portable video players and really OC friends like Fara who’s hooked on the same shows as I am! How can I absolutely survive? I’ve only finished GA and House, and there are a lot more to fill my couch potato days until school resumes.

Dear Charmaine,
Has it occurred to you that I’ve already known you more than half my lifetime? We used to ride your yellow fiera with my brother, your brother and cousins (who were still madudungis and maiingay hehehe!) and then the dilapidated white and blue coaster that picks me up at 5:30am, making me the second passenger each day. I eventually took the seat next to you, because I was having trouble with Algebra or something and I needed help. And I think that’s where it all started, right? We end up chatting and joking around instead, leaving my math notebook either crumpled or full of doodles.
I got used to taking the second trip to wait for you to finish with your Math Club duties. I was spending my afternoons walking around the campus or attempting to attend some extra-curricular activities. I’ve always admired you because you were so smart and nice and very level-headed, and I was proud that I was a very close friend of yours!
Even if we see each other every single weekday and talk on the phone for hours, we managed to religiously write each other little notes to read throughout the day. They’re still with me, in a big special box stashed away for no one to read We’d see each other during breaks, I wave at you and your friends at the Unang Puno, and me, palaboy like always or hanging out at the library or Gate 1(ugh).
Sembreaks, Christmas and summer vacations wouldn’t be complete without our resto hopping that we’d save up for during the schooldays. We would commute all the way to Megamall and back, our legs buckling up with fatigue, but nevertheless our stomachs bursting with food and hearty laughs that leave us in gassy pain sometimes. It had been a tradition to do our Christmas shopping together, as well as you giving me a cake made by your tita during my birthdays.
We separated ways in college, and even if we were just a jeep away from each other, we unfortunately lost touch. I guess that needed to happen and that was part of growing up. But somehow, things were still the same everytime we meet. We’d laugh and exchange stories over latte and smokes, and the hours weren’t always enough. The letters were still there, albeit a lot fewer, but they were longer and typewritten (keeping up with technology, huh!) Phone calls still took up half a day at least, until you went to the US for a much needed break.
I felt guilty that I wasn’t able to help you as much as I could, because I myself felt I was just going through the motions of college life, not really knowing where it will lead me. But you managed to get back on your feet and proving yourself once again.  And I’m proud of you beyond words for doing so
You’ve found your rightful place in Baguio and I was really happy for you even if I missed you a lot. I distinctly remember spending Holy Thursday drinking with you and your friends til the wee hours of the morning without my then boyfriend knowing haha. I may have consumed more than half a pack of your Capris which made me lose my voice the entire weekend. It had been a blast, but we just had to make up for lost time, right?
Here we are, well beyond our mid-20s, sipping lattes at our cozy little Starbucks table, which is the sanctuary that we claimed in the last of our reunions. You’re getting married on the 8th, you’ve gotten yourself a driver’s license, and you’re leaving for the States for good on the 30th. All the things that I wanted you already got. I’m inclined to think that you’re just paving the way for me. You have your Papi and I will meet someone the likes of Michael Scofield hahaha
I was bracing myself to cry buckets last night (though I’m having the sniffles now) but I didn’t feel the need to. We might just see each other again next week, right before you leave, and maybe then the reality might dawn on me. I would like that no goodbyes be uttered, because I will see you very soon. Sooner than we all think. That’s just how I would like to control my future, by stating it as if it were fact, praying that the powers in the universe will make it such. Parting is always sad, but I know you’ll be really happy, and I only wish the best for both you and Juan.
I’ll be fine here, don’t worry. I leave our sanctuary to the other patrons who might have already claimed it as their own, but it will always be something that I’ll share only with you, together with the letters and the memories. Who knows, in the very near future, we’d share another Starbucks table in another neighborhood *wink*
Til we meet again

First time I heard this song was on Nicole’s iPod last Thursday. I thought Frou Frou was only a one-hit wonder (more of a one-album wonder with Details, though) with Breathe In. Something drew me in (the haunting vocals, probably) and I just had to download it myself right away. I can’t say it’s my song, because it’s a sad one and I’m far from feeling that pathetic hahaha. Anyhoo, had I been anywhere in that zone, this would be on repeat on my Zen and you’d see me locked up in my room, crying my eyeballs out. Now that’s the worst way to spend Christmas, people!

HEAR ME OUT
Frou Frou

I join the queue on your answer phone
And all I am is holding breath
Just pick up I know you’re there
Can’t you hear?
I’m not myself

Well, go ahead and lie to me
You could say anything
Small talk will be just fine
Your voice is everything
We owe it to love
And it all depends on you

So listen up
The sun hasn’t set
(I refuse to believe that it’s only me feeling)
Just hear me out
I’m not over you yet
(It’s love on the line, can you handle it?)

So how do I do normal?
A smile I fake
the "per-ma-nent-way"
cue-cards and fix-it kits
Can’t you tell?
I’m not myself

I’m a slow motion accident
Lost in coffee rings and fingerprints
I don’t wanna feel anything but I do
And it all comes back to you

So listen up
"This" sun hasn’t set
(I refuse to believe that it’s only me feeling)
Just hear me out
I’m not over you yet
(It’s love on the line, can you handle it?)

Hear me out
Listen up
This time you gotta listen to me, yeah
Look at me straight
Just hear me out
Don’t make me wait
I’m not myself
I can’t take this
Love’s on the line
Is that your final answer?

I join the queue on your answer phone
And all I am is holding breath
Just pick up, I know you’re there…

So listen up
"This" sun hasn’t set
(I refuse to believe that it’s only me feeling)
Just hear me out
I’m not over you yet
(It’s love on the line, can you handle it?)

Five days to go before Christmas. Nights have gotten chilly, and people are being extra nice than usual. Even for an optimist like me, it’s not as easy getting into the Christmas-y spirit of things. Maybe it’s because of the number of tragedies that befell the country the last few months, or the impending departure of my best friend Charmaine who’ll get married and settle in the US. Tomorrow will be the last day that I’ll see her. I wonder if I need to bring an extra pack of tissues?
It will be another Christmas eve where I’ll most likely be the only one not opening a present at home. I’ve gotten used to it, though. Better for everyone to get a present from me, than me feeling very very guilty afterwards hehehe I’ve had my share of gifts na rin naman from good friends and students so it’s all good.
And how could I forget the little surprises along the way?  It really warms my heart when BCG and APP would call me up to invite me to dinner and drinks on a regular basis. Who wouldn’t be thrilled to being treated to the spa after dinner? It was a much welcomed surprise because I was planning to get a massage for the last few weeks!
Here’s the more thrilling part. The next week we were treated to a really really nice massage at the Philippine Plaza! I didn’t want to go home! BCG said that was his Christmas gift to us. Who else are luckier than me, Kirs and Moi to have an ex-boss like that who loves to fatten us up? Even if he keeps telling people that we left him to pursue something else, in fairness, he didn’t see my leaving as a "betrayal" because I took on a different career.
Last night we again met up at Bazzo Blue Wave for dinner and drinks. He gave all of us 4 IMAX tickets each right after I told him I haven’t tried it yet! Hahaha ang babaw ko talaga. But it’s really the simple joys and surprises that mkae me look forward to everyday. Like tomorrow, Bianca and I are availing the diamond peel treatment from Garden Spa, care of Allison Anderson.
On Saturday we’ll have a block reunion and that would really be a blast. I absolutely love reunions. And sleepovers at Fara’s house hehehe Can’t wait!

Around 8-ish my knees were buckling from fatigue after going around the World Trade bazaar this afternoon. My palette got burned as I bit into a prawn ball and I was looking for something cold to numb it. I saw this Snow Cone booth and opted for the blueberry flavor for some reason. I was going around the other booths when I decided to wait for my parents outside. I stationed myself by the stairway when this guy handed me a flier for South Forbes Golf City. He was cute (hehehe) so I agreed to give him my address and home number so he can mail more flyers or something (silly silly me!!!). His papers fell and as he was picking them up, he asked me what was I eating. I said it was a snow cone and he went, "Ah ok, I was just wondering because it’s all blue." I even thought it was a stupid comment because there was another Snow Cone booth a few steps away. And then I walked away from him.
When my dad saw me he started laughing. "Ano yang itsura mo?" Puteeeek my whole mouth was blue pala! And he laughed harder when he saw me smile, oblivious to my stupid boo-boo. Maybe at that blush-worthy moment I turned purple already. Waaaaaah! Even my mom was laughing so hard when she saw me! *insert cartoon sequence where Earth gobbles up Tere* I dashed for the exit right away.
Ganyan ang mga nangyayari sa mga hindi nag-iisip! Lech. Nadali na naman ako ng itsura. Maybe that’s why he approached me because I looked like a freak. And giving away my home number and address? C’mon! These agents are avoided like the plague!! Sigh. I hope they never call.
On a lighter note, my shopping spree was in celebration of the last day of the second term. Only one more paper to go and I’m done! Big thanks to Sheila who volunteered to drop by Toddlers on Thursday to get my Methods paper. Anyhoo, Nike was on sale again and was able to buy gray capris at half the price! Got a pair of jeans for 300, gifts for the helpers, accessories and a DVD of the Firefly series (which is highly recommended by someone I know, as written on her Friendster profile). Something to watch during the vacation along with the latest episodes of Prison Break and Grey’s Anatomy.

It’s been a long time since I obliged to an invite from my former boss to go out with them for a drink. Traversing Coastal Road on a Wednesday night (a.k.a. Baclaran novena) made me realize why I always pass up. Figured it’s been a long time since I last saw Moira so it won’t be a lost cause and everything would be paid for hehehe. Of course it’s the company of everyone that I miss. Naks
I was late for an hour and a half and was only able to down a slice of pizza and a glass of vodka tonic while catching up with what has been happening with them. BCG then decided to treat Moira and I to a massage… which I’ve been planning for since last month! Really, talk about perfect timing!
Aaaah. Pure bliss. Slept like a baby afterwards *wide grin*
I’m not really a spa person but I think I’m going to do this regularly from now on.

Today, December 1st, is the day I got the much-coveted leather-bound Starbucks planner from the Theater Mall branch, twenty-eight days after I drank my first cup. I guess I won’t be seen in any Starbucks branch in the next 6 months or longer, now that there’s no reason for me to be. Saturated na talaga ko with coffee, pucha beer naman!!! I think I’ll come back in time for the 2008 planner.
It’s really neat huh! I’ve even started writing friends’ and family’s birthdays on it. Might write on it na lang instead of blog here
It’s 11:25 and I’ve only typed my name and Jaye’s on our paper for tomorrow. Shoot. I guess I won’t be getting any sleep tonight :S