After Christmas

One other good thing about my office – as if there weren’t enough good things about it already – is that we don’t have work after Christmas. We just don’t. The happiness never ends. Haha.

And so I have spent the past week in grand vacation mode, playing mommy and housewife for the most part. Yoshi mostly keeps busy with his iCarlys and Spongebobs and gadgets, and I just let him be. Like I blogged previously, Boots is back to the Jurassic age and obsessed once again with dinosaurs. So we read his dino books day and night. It’s a lot like tutoring Yosh for his lessons (groan) albeit a lot more fun bcoz we get to see four-year-old Bootsie transform into Our Resident Paleontologist. Haha.

I also went insane cleaning up our 60 million closets and drawers at home. It’s something I took after Mom. I put up this pretense of being cool and unaffected by stuff, but I’m actually secretly OC. As in the same level as that guy Julia Roberts married in Sleeping With The Enemy, who wanted all the canned goods and bathroom towels facing the exact same way. Yes, I’m psychotic like that. Haha. One thing I’m always teaching my boys is to clean up after themselves. Sometimes, Yoshi beats me to it and declares before I do: I know, I know – you’re allergic to mess. Hahaha.

I covered my 60 million new books. Covering my books is always in my to-do list. I love my books and am not the type to just leave them lying around. I cover them and painstakingly arrange them in our bookshelf which I regularly clean. I still feel bad over the various books I've lost bcoz of people who borrowed and never returned them. Sigh.

I went out to shop, of course. The post-Christmas sales have been disappointing compared to the previous years. But I’m actually glad coz I’m saving up for our US trip next year. Haha. I got just one dress and two tops from Mango, plus Jose Garcia Villa clothes from Freeway for me and Kaye (in honor of our favorite high school teacher Mrs. Corpuz who taught us all about Doveglion). I’m such a good girl, right? This is so not me at all. Hahaha.

I actually did what I call Revenge Shopping with accessories. Revenge Shopping is when you can't have something you like, bcoz it's out of stock or not in your size or whatever, so then you go and splurge on something else entirely. Haha. Since I couldn’t find any good buys in clothes, I let it all go on the accessories in Forever 21, Parfois, and Promod. Hahaha. I’m seriously hooked on these so funky yet oh so cheap bling. I have the good sense to sell all the gold and diamonds and pearls I’ve accumulated thru the years. I now think they’re highly overrated. Haha. That was me pretending to be rich again and buying the real deal, I guess. Haha. (Rhoel is so on to something when he calls me 'mahilig magpanggap na mayaman'. Dang.)



Ches and I also went on our last date of the year. We chose La Scala bcoz I read that the food was good and the ambience unique. ‘Unique’ does not quite do justice to the place. It was a sensory overload of memorabilia of everything from music to the arts to history to pop culture. It was an absolute blast from the past. All thruout dinner they played songs I grew up listening to from my parents’ tapes. And yes, the adobo, fish, and strawberry milkshake were good. The service was impressive, too. Definitely a fitting date to end another year of married bliss and cheesiness. Haha.






I also got to see my MWC friends, albeit at a sad event – the wake of Ate Ann’s father. It was good to see Ate Ann, tho, and hear all about her life in Canada. I also managed to catch up with Paula. I miss and love her dearly. I’m so glad she’s doing really well in EDC after the trauma that we both had to go thru in our previous company.

Phoebe and family also came over to visit, and we got to Skype with Kaye for a full two hours! We were all screaming when we saw and heard each other, even if it was only thru the computer. Hahaha. We chatted about everything from high school classmates and teachers long forgotten, to love and career dramas. We teased Kaye that she can’t be too choosy anymore at the ripe old age of 36. Hahaha! And we asked her to show us around her California home, as well as her Chanels and Manolo Blahniks and Legos. Phoebe and I were both blown away by her collection of LVs, Hermes, and 60 million Chanel bags. Omigosh, this girl is a walking Chanel catalogue! She’d introduce each bag as she pulled them out of their wrappers, with the specific name and year it came out. Amazing. I wanted Ches to see bcoz this puts my Cath Kidston obsession in an entirely new perspective. Hahaha.

Seriously, tho, Phoebe and I feel truly happy that Kaye has always made the effort to stay in touch with us even after almost two decades of being abroad. She has also remained so humble despite all that she has achieved. Our other friends have come and gone, and Phoebe and I were like, they're so not worth it. Hahaha. Kaye, on the other hand, is a keeper.




Before the new year, Ches and I also managed to squeeze in some time for a scrub and massage that we both so crave for. He bought me Moon Leaf milk tea after. Owww. Ches knows exactly how to end the year perfectly.

Jurassic

Bootsie is back to the Jurassic age. They visited Lolo the other day and according to Ches, his first words to him were: 'Lolo, I’m addicted to dinosaurs!' Hahaha.

It was so perfect that he got several dino gifts from Tita Eycee, Tito Robert, and Tita Paula for Christmas. He loves his dino shirts and PJs and always chooses them from his closet. He also has old dino toys, but this time he’s more interested in dino books. While Kuya watched his annual Shake Rattle and Roll fest with Ate Ann, Boots and I scoured the bookstores for dino books.




He knows all their nosebleed names and even their characteristics. He calls me Triceratops after Sera in Land Before Time, Kuya is Tyrannosaurus Rex, Ate Ann is Troodon (bet you didn’t know this), Daddy is Diplodocus, and he is Ultrasaurus (the biggest of the plant-eating dinos). When we wake up, he’d greet me, ‘Good morning, Triceratops!’ Thruout the day he’d call Ate, ‘Troodon!’ and sometimes it would take her a while to realize he’s referring to her, and it would frustrate him to no end. Hahaha.

I took a video of him breezily reciting stuff like Brachiosaurus, Coelophysis, Kannemeyeria, Megaraptor, Pteranodon, Pterodactyl, Riojasaurus, Tanystropheus, Velociraptor. Seriously! I didn’t even know there were that many kinds. I’ve been subsisting on T-Rex my whole life. Hahaha. The stuff I learn from my kids.




He also knows which ones have long necks or horns and how many, which ones eat plants and those that are cannibals. He knows which ones swim like fishes and those that fly like birds. He knows which kind the dinosaurs in Land Before Time fall under. It’s amazing, really.

Now if only we could cash in on this talent, Bootsie. Let's cultivate a marketable skill next time, why don't we. Hahaha.

Happy List 41

1. Lunches with Karen at JT’s and Pancake House, then drinks at Moon Leaf and Happy Lemon. We were the last two girls standing in the last week of work (all the others have gone on leave), and it became our habit to go out for lunch and drinks. Yummy. (One time we were still inTrinoma at 2pmish, and our boss texted to ask if I’m still going back to the office. I told him we were just out for lunch, and he even had the graciousness to say, take your time. Hahaha. Such a winner boss.)

2. A few hours of me time with mani-peds and the works at Spa 101. A necessity to stay lucid in the crazy season that is December.

3. Our office 80s themed Christmas party, which we spent pigging out and dissing everyone. Hahaha. We were so proud of Karen and Ardo who played Michael Jackson and Bon Jovi in the dance number, and they were, hands down, the best performers in the group. Karen also won one of the grand prizes, a travel package we were all coveting. Winner.



4. Bottomless cakes and coffee in Cravings, my birthday treat for Anji.



5. Dex’s lunch treat with Beavis in Yang Chow. We exchanged gifts, too. These boys are like little brothers to me.

6. Visit and gifts from Thom and Joy. It was great to catch up with Joy. She’s one of those girls with whom I never run out of things to talk about bcoz she’s just so open and warm. There’s also the UP Law and pharma connection. I have to behave and remember not to bully Thom when she’s around, tho. Hahaha.

7. Team Zaccheus putting its foot down and not caving in to the demands of a bully MNC. I was glad to be of help and give my fearless legal advice that we won’t get sent to jail for this. Haha. Go, Team Zaccheus.

8. An epic email from Kaye, about everything from her toxic legal career to buying the California house of her dreams to being told by a psychic that she was run over by a horse by her husband in her past life. Hahaha. I love Kaye.

9. Ang Ladlad Book 3, edited by Neil Garcia and Danton Remoto. I’m forever getting my hands on gay literature. I voted for Remoto as senator – not only bcoz he’s gay but also bcoz he’s brilliant. I will vote for him again until he wins, or even if he never wins. I was so gay in my past life, I just know it.

10. Six-Word Memoirs. Highly addictive. Ches and I have started our own lists. Will post them soon.

11. Sipping Starbucks Christmas flavors while we travel to and from Tarlac, thanks to the GCs from Robby. Noche buena and sleep-over at Tita Jaja’s house. Annual reunion on Christmas day with Ches’ clan. It was great to see all my in-laws again, especially Ches' niece Jana and nephew Julian, the newest addition to our family. Jana is so pretty and has this snooty British twang (her family lives in London). When I see her or Vada or Rain, I just wanna go home and start making baby girls with Ches. HAHAHA. Bootsie's favorite part of the trip as usual was visiting the pigs. Haha.

Thanksgiving

More than any other time of the year, Christmas is when I count my blessings.

Thank you, Lord, that all my loved ones are healthy and safe. No serious illnesses for us this year, no one close died or had any major problems. I have this morbid fear of losing the people I love, or me dying young. So I just pray.

Thank you for my boys who are perfect in every way – Ches who remains my very best friend after all these years, Yoshi who embodies everything that is good in the world, and Boots who shadows me in whatever I do and lets us baby him still. I can take on whatever the world dishes out, bcoz at the end of the day, I get to come home to my three boys who smother me with their unwavering love.

Thank you for my family and all the trips we took together this year. Thank you that, after all these years of their paying for my tuition and giving me baon, I can now afford to take my parents out and buy them stuff. Thank you for Vada and Rain who are both growing up to be so sweet and pretty. Thank you for my Ate who looks out for me even if she’s far away, and loves my boys like her own. Thank you for Lola who’s strong and independent despite her years. Thank you for my in-laws who share so much with us.

Thank you for all my good friends and their great, enduring love. With them, I don’t have to pretend to be anything I’m not – I know they accept me, horns and all. They touch me with their affection and loyalty, and inspire me with their strength and success. Thank you that I’ve managed to nurture my friendship with Kaye and Phoebe who’ve known me since high school, Randy, Nico, and Gay from UP, Jon, Rhoel, Donemark, and my QT batch, Thom, Paula, Regie, Liz, Didoy, Ate Ann, Beavis, Dex, the IT girls, and Babette from MWC, my PMS friends, my Legal girls who bring me joy everyday. Thank you for my new friends Karen and Ardo. My life is full and fantastic bcoz of all my wonderful friends.

Thank you for my fulfilling, gratifying job. I learn new things everyday, and am continuously challenged by new issues. Thank you for the trust and confidence of the people I work with. In this office, I feel truly affirmed and appreciated. Thank you for my perfect boss whom I love, respect, and admire dearly. Thank you that I work so close to home and can be with my kids whenever they need me. Thank you that this office treats family time as sacred and nobody bothers me outside of working hours.

Thank you for giving us the visas to visit Ate next year, all our travels this year, our beloved country home, Piolo our trusty car, good books, great films, yummy food, fabulous clothes, shoes, bags and bling.

Thank you, Lord, for providing all our needs, and blessing us with so much more than we could ever want.

Happy List 40

1. Folded and Hung outlet sale right behind the office. It became an almost daily habit for all of us to go and hoard after having lunch. We would tease Karen that she shouldn’t be caught dead buying in an outlet store, coming from Brent and Poveda and all. Haha. She actually often out-bought me. Haha. She's cool and game like that.

2. Being let home early on a board meeting day, and Ann and I having the yummy lunch buffet to ourselves while the board is on executive session. Double happiness.

3. A fabulously wrapped gift of several bottles of Dior perfume from my favorite diva owner. It even came with a note from her that I’m ‘deeply appreciated and valued’, written in a novena Mass card that said I will be 'remembered in a Christmas novena of masses at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC'. Unbelievable. It’s my first time to ever receive a Mass card and I joked with the Legal girls that now I knew how it felt to be a departed soul (coz all along I thought only dead people got Mass cards haha). But seriously, this was too much. I'm not worthy.

4. Custaroons from Parvati from Karen. Heaven in an exquisite box.

5. A favorite executive dishing his trademark comic relief even at a board meeting, and another favorite executive standing up for him and going against an overwhelming majority. It is always heartening to witness acts of integrity.

6. Ann’s lunch treat at Bon Chon. No occasion or reason – she’s just a good, generous girl.

7. Legal party for our internal clients. There was lechon and overflowing food and drinks. We went insane giving away all the left-overs after. The highlight of the night was my favorite diva owner joining us as we sang Dancing Queen in the videoke. So now I use it as another ticket to snootiness – before I used to say, hindi ka invited sa piano recital, now I can also say, hindi ka naka-duet ng Dancing Queen. Mwa ha ha.




8. Dinner with Ches at Agave, and lunch with the family in Mandarin Sky, bcoz Ches was craving for crabs. The crab fooyong was really good, and I loved the spinach soup, too.

9. 60 million Hello Kitty gifts from Anji and Thina, and from myself, too. Haha. Thank you, Hello Kitty. You fill my little heart with so much joy.




10. Receiving gifts and notes from people in the office whom I had good reason to believe hated me. Hahaha. They are themselves not in my gift list and I’m not in the habit of giving gifts to people just bcoz I receive something from them. (I think gift-giving should, first of all, be genuine. So if you're not in my list to begin with, you don't magically get included just bcoz you give me something. Better luck next year. Haha.) But I welcome their thoughtfulness and generosity, and I promise to try and be kinder to them next year. Haha. Ches was surprised whenever he picked me up and I’d be overloaded with gifts, and this went on until the very last day of work. I guess it’s not something he expected from The Most Maaway Girl In The Office. Hahaha.

A Barnyard Party

And so we were invited to a barnyard party by Tanya, Ches’ old friend. We were happy and excited bcoz we’re a family who loves to dress up and clown around for pictures. Or maybe it’s just Boots and me. Hahaha.

Bootsie’s Woody costume that I got him for his birthday was perfect. For Yoshi I got a plaid polo. I also asked around for some cowboy hats, and Ardo and my boss gamely lent us theirs. (My boys get to use a hat of my boss of all people for a silly kiddie party. Haha.) So cool. Bootsie got a scooter for being Best in Costume. Was there ever any doubt that our little heartthrob would win? Haha.

From her wedding to baby shower to baptism to this first birthday, Tanya sure knows how to throw a party. It’s the kind of party where you go in and know right away that Money Is No Object Here. Haha. The boys loved all the usual - inflatable slide, food carts, face paint, games, buffet, magic, puppet, and bubble shows, prizes, loot bags.



These kiddie parties are always such big riots where Ches and I hardly have time to eat or chat up with our friends bcoz we have our hands full watching over the boys. Not to mention, Yoshi expects me to pay attention to the games and be ever ready with every friggin thing that the host asks for Bring Me, or Longest Object, or some other crazy game. Groan.



But Ches and I love taking our boys to these things, anyway, bcoz they always end up having so much fun, and they can’t stop blabbering about the party for hours after, no matter what the food or prizes are. I’m telling you – our family so needs to upgrade our happiness threshold, we’re too darned easy to please. Haha.



Yoshi and Boots laughing out loud and having the time of their lives like this …






- is what makes Ches’ and my Christmas truly happy.

Chocolate Kiss

Our PMS friends and Ches and I love Chocolate Kiss. The food is good, the price reasonable, and the ambience just the right mix of loud and snooty. I guess we’re also loyal to it bcoz we’re all from UP. Haha.

So for our Christmas gimmick this year, I suggested the brunch buffet in CK. Omigosh, it was so good. What took us so long to try this? There was adobo (not the adobo flakes which is my staple order here but still yummy), danggit, bangus, the salty/spicy kind of short longganiza that I like (I can’t stand the fat, red, sweet ones), several kinds of sausages, and of course, garlic rice. There were egg, pancake and cereal stations, free-flowing brewed coffee and fresh fruit juices. (Fresh, take note. I hate it when restos serve powdered juices or Nestea iced tea. My view is, if you’re going to serve me a drink that my kids can easily make for me at home, then you have no right to be in the resto business.)

As with any true friendship, tho, the food - no matter how yummy - can never trump the conversation. We laughed and laughed over Robby’s latest stunt – coming in a white tux and hiring real security guards to act as his bodyguards and talking friends into carrying placards and screaming his name like rabid fans, all part of his grand costume for the office Hollywood-themed party. So crazy the way only Robby could ever be. Hence, he was awarded Darling of The Night. I think he spent more for the whole thing than what he won, tho. Hahaha.

Ches got busy teasing Eycee nonstop as usual. We like to torment her the way we would a younger sister. Haha. I bitched about politics with Robert. I can always count on Robert to be more worked up than I could ever be over serious (boring) matters like this. And this is a guy who actually knows what he’s talking about. Me, I just pretend to know it all as usual. Haha.

We also exchanged gifts and I’m glad they liked what I chose for them in the same way the boys and I liked what they gave us. It’s happiness when you pick gifts that are successes in terms of pleasing the recipients. Haha. Robby was especially profuse about the wooden book stand that I got him from Gourdo’s. He was thanking Ches and me for it way into the week. It’s perfect for law school, I guess. Haha. And he was actually giving me a Kindle Fire. As in seriously. Crazy, huh. I had to decline it, tho. I don’t take advantage like that. I told him to just get me a good book instead. Haha.



I’m so glad the brunch gimmick worked out, coz it was my idea. Haha. It was like when Eycee volunteered to do all the work for our Coron trip, and we happily let her so then we could blame her for anything that goes wrong. Haha. We all managed to wake up early even if we’re more used to staying up late at night, the buffet didn’t disappoint, the chatter and gifts were fun. Best of all, the friendship endures.

A Christmas Program

We were up early last weekend to attend little Bootsie’s Christmas program in UP. Ches and I teased Bootsie and asked him in the days leading up to the event: are you really going to do something worth waking up early for on a weekend? You’re sure it’s something other than the song and dance we see from you every day at home? Haha.

Bootsie is in the middle level of pre-school, and the quality of their production number was also in that range. Haha. The seniors did great in Jingle Bell Rock and Twelve Days of Christmas, while the toddlers – well, I can’t even remember what song they performed, all I can recall is that a lot of them just stood there on the stage or played around or outright bawled. Haha. Teacher Liway quipped, ‘We’ve actually been practicing for two weeks – it just looks like the first day of practice.’ HAHAHA. The little boy who was bawling would scream even louder right when they came to the ‘You better not pout, you better not cry’ part. (Oh, there. They were singing Santa Claus Is Coming To Town.) Teacher Liway said it was actually part of the presentation. HAHAHA. We’ve always liked Teacher Liway.

Bootsie’s juniors class performed The Christmas Alphabet and All I Want For Christmas. It wasn’t spectacular like the seniors’ number, but at least it also wasn’t plain hilarious like the toddlers’ one. Haha. It was cute. And Bootsie knew all the moves! Now that is news for my kids who always do their own thing onstage. (Good job, Bootsie!)

There was even an intermission number by no less than the multi-awarded UP Pep Squad. Woohoo! It turns out one of the practicum teachers in the school is a member of the group. They dazzled everyone with their flips and cartwheels and pyramids and stuff. So cool. It’s hard to imagine these kids have a life like teaching outside of practicing their moves. They do their thing so perfectly and easily you’d think it’s all they ever do.

It was also heartening to see Bootsie being so behaved in school. He’d just Indian sit there until Teacher Mae tells him otherwise. He ate his snacks when I gave it to him, and shared with his classmates without any issue. Ches and I also loved how Yoshi played such the Kuya as usual. He would hoot and applaud whenever his brother was onstage, and rush to him and give him a hug after his numbers. Owww.

Ches and I told them, you guys are so good and kind to each other in school. Let’s just stay here and not go home anymore where all you do is fight. Hahaha.

Happy List 39

1. CD sale near the office. They’re all original and going for the price of pirated ones. Haha. I hoarded all the foreign and local indies I could get my hands on. From my loot I’ve already seen Adam and The Savages. The first one was about this brilliant guy with Asperger’s syndrome (brilliantly played by Hugh Dancy) and the beautiful girl (Rose Byrne) who falls in love with him. The Savages is the story of how two siblings (Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman) deal with their father’s deteriorating health and putting him in a home. They’re exactly my kind of small, quiet films where nothing much happens but they end up being so moving, anyway, and they give you credit by not spelling everything out and neatly tying up the ends.

2. Jake Gyllenhaal. I saw him again in Proof, which was one of my CD finds. I can never spell this guy’s name without checking with IMDb, but I’m so majorly crushing on him despite the nosebleed. Swoon.

3. Finding a Zombie and Chomper in the Claret bazaar, to complete a foursome with Bootsie’s Cherry Bomb. We sleep with these scary creatures at night. Aaargh. The things I do for Bootsie. (In the end, I hope to be judged not by how much money I was able to bring into the companies I worked in, or how consistently I observed my religious obligations, but by how I always tried to do good by my children.)



4. The Height of MIB’s Cuteness: he borrowed money from me bcoz he forgot his wallet at home. Hahaha. He’s funny like that. He can be so hardworking and serious and shy, but he has a lot of bloopers, too. It’s not everyday you get a chance to lend money to someone who owns the company you work for, right? Haha.

5. Hello Kitties in Forever 21! I went insane buying for me and Ate, as usual. (Goodbye, Christmas bonus …)



6. Lunch at Shakey’s with Ardo after our meeting outside the office. He reminds me of Didoy in that they’ve both had privilege lives but they’re both so humble and hardworking and instead of acting all entitled they actually end up being tormented by the likes of me. Haha.

7. Lunch with Lala and her daughter/BFF Yana and Babette at Italianni’s. It was Lala’s treat for her Major Super Winner Job that my headhunter found for her. Haha. It was great to see The Mean Girls of MWC again. Haha. And they gave me and my boys tons of gifts, too. Oww.



8. Free bag and Christmas pin if you buy clothes at Kamiseta. (Goodbye, Christmas bonus. Oh, wait, you were all gone already in Forever 21. Groan.)



9. Popsy’s pancit, Mom’s fried chicken, double dutch ice cream, and Conti’s tiramisu for Mom’s birthday dinner at home.

10. Sincere ‘I love yous’ from family and friends. It’s easy enough to say ‘luv ya!’ or ‘lab u’ or variations of the phrase in every text or note, but to say it completely and properly with the three letters takes guts and a little more seriousness, I think. And somehow you know when someone’s just saying it, and when the person actually means it.

M and J

(This is from Babette's blog. M is her friend who ran the Singapore marathon for Jack, and who writes like a dream. To be written about by Babs is honor enough, but to be held in the same category as M is difficult to top as the year's Best Christmas Gift.

Thank you, Babs. I love you. My boys love you. You are not only one of my favorite friends - you are also one of my favorite humans. Like I said, you get by not bcoz of other people, but bcoz you're so you - so giving despite all you've lost.)

There are two people who constantly look out for me and who I know pray for me and keep me in their thoughts. They became family to me because of Jack. I see them once in a while and write emails to them on occasions.

When I’m too quiet, they know that things are not too good and respect my silence. They ask me to be brave when it gets hard. They understand that it will be awhile before things will get better. They write beautiful notes to cheer me up. Somehow, I get by because I know that they are there for me. How wonderful to know that I have them.

I can never fully explain to them my struggles. The sadness of returning to an empty home at the end of the day; the fearfulness and cynicism; the fear of growing old alone and the struggle to nurture my relationships. But I do not need to explain anything. They embrace me still.

As Christmas is a time for thanksgiving, I thank God for their presence in my life. Their friendships are a balm to my grief. I know that Jack will keep us friends for life.

Yoshisms

And so our man Yoshi was checking out the pantry again barely a few minutes after he finished a full dinner. Ate Ann asks him if he’s hungry and eating again so soon after his meal. He rolls his eyes and says, ‘Si ate naman, nagtatanong pa, e dati pa naman ako matakaw’.

Hahaha. Voracious, self-aware, and honest is our Yoshi. Kind of like me, huh.

He plays Family Feud with Tito Aaron and Bootsie, and the question is: what does a wife usually nag her husband about? His answer: shoes. Tito Aaron laughs and laughs. We all know exactly who gave Yoshi the idea.

(Shoes is a wrong answer, by the way. It’s apparently not on the top list of things wives nag their husbands about. Obviously I was not part of that survey. Haha. Yosh may have lost that point in the game, but he won a Happy Meal from me bcoz I was just so pleased with him right then. Hahaha.)

We were studying pang-abay na pamaraan, and one question in his homework was, paano maglakad ang mga matatanda? So he asked me to help bcoz I guess he couldn’t get it. I told him: mabagal. And he asks all innocently: e bakit kayo ni Daddy mabilis naman maglakad?

HAHAHA. Gee, thanks, Yosh. Last time I checked, Dad and I were just middle-aged, it was your grandparents who were old.

I wanted to blog thru the iPad, but Bootsie wouldn’t let go of it, wouldn’t stop his friggin games. So I go into my usual tirade, mumble about how I bought the friggin iPad to begin with, and it’s the first time I’m ever using it, etc etc. The boys don't mind me as usual.

Or so I think.

The next day I call from the office, and as I chat with Yosh I hear some strange tinkling sound in the background. I ask him what it is.

His answer: It’s your friggin iPad.

You're the man, Yoshi.

Vomit

As a matter of principle I don’t blog about politics bcoz it’s (1) boring, and (2) hopeless. Besides, why would I want to pollute my blog with such filth, right?

It just happened to be an exceptionally infuriating day to be reading the Inquirer, so allow me to vent.

On the front page, the President seated among allies in Congress, all of them with big, fat smiles, at what turned out to be an appreciation lunch of sorts for those responsible for summoning the numbers to complete the impeachment complaint against the Chief Justice. Something’s just so wrong with this picture. I am by no means pro-Corona, and I’m all for enforcing accountability in government, especially those in the highest levels, but an impeachment that is so clearly politically motivated and has all the signs of high-handed maneuvering – oh, please, give me more credit than that. But maybe it’s just me, bcoz the President says the move is widely supported by the people. Hmmm. Last time I checked, no one was standing up to applaud.

And then you have one of the leaders of the admin’s prosecution team (somebody who was maybe four or so years my senior in UP Law), bragging about not sleeping three whole days to rush the complaint. Wait, that is a source of pride for you? If you truly believed in the merits of the complaint, shouldn’t you have worked on it nonstop and pursued it right at the first instance it was brought to your committee eons ago, and not be rushing it now all bcoz the President gives you a friggin deadline?

The Bayan Muna rep himself admitting he, along with majority of the signatories, signed the 57-page complaint without reading it, bcoz the admin bigwigs wouldn’t even give them copies of the thing. Oh wow. And your signature is supposed to certify that you believe the complaint is sufficient in form and substance? Without reading a single word of it?

There’s the Act Teachers party-list rep, another signatory, also admitting that the strategy of the admin reps is to meet with them discreetly and give them ‘very vague’ ideas of a move for which their vote is needed, but that they ‘support the cause’, anyway. Huh? How can you support a cause that is not even clear to you?

Nice going, you guys. Your sheer brilliance is blinding me. I would have thought you would be the voice of independence if not wisdom in Congress. But I guess I should have kept my expectations low from a party-list system where the only authentic marginalized sector I could find out of the long list in my ballot – and to whom I gave my vote, naturally, and without any regret to this day – was Ang Ladlad.

There’s also the Supreme Court spokesperson so passionately defending the Chief Justice he got my addled brain all confused. You’d think he was the spokesperson of the Chief Justice himself rather than of the Supreme Court.

Even the ads offended me. There was a full-page one of this GOCC who is now headed by someone who again was a couple of years my senior in UP Law. Right in the first part of the ad, she said her thrust upon assuming office was to not do anything that will taint the family name. Smacks of P-Noy’s ‘hindi ako magnanakaw’, right? That seems to be the standard of good leadership now – as long as you promise to not steal, then you’re ok, even if you don’t do a single thing to improve people’s lives.

These government ads infuriate me, to begin with, especially if they come from agencies where part of my salary goes every pay day. Is it too much to ask that my money should go to improving your services rather than to pay for stupid ads that trumpet your achievements? If you’re so damned good in what you do like you claim to be, then I already know and you don’t have to pay for a full-page ad to tell me, with my very own hard-earned friggin money! Grrr.

All of the above makes me do The Very One Thing that Yoshi’s classmate JM did, right when the bus stopped for the first leg of the field trip:

Vomit.

Circles

One of Our Most-Awaited Events in the office is the Circles Christmas treat of our beloved boss. Circles is part of our claim to fame in Legal - all the other departments go to some resto or do videoke or something for Christmas, but we Legal peeps get to spend practically a whole day pigging out in Circles. Haha.

I was lucky enough to have been treated to Circles four or so times this year, largely courtesy of The Doomed Project. Unlike other buffets that are hit-and-miss, Circles never fails. At our Christmas lunch, we all had our favorites - sushi and sashimi, steaks and salmon, prawns and ramen, all the glorious desserts. On top of those, I also found new joys in the buffet, some of my old favorites - macadamias, anchovies, French macaroons, and baked salmon. (I would have macadamias everyday if they weren't so expensive. Macadamias always remind me of our honeymoon. We had a big can from Ches' cousin from abroad that we munched on from Sulo Hotel to Holiday Inn in Clark to Boracay. Anchovies are glamorized tuyo, and you know about My Love Affair With Tuyo. French macaroons were one of my favorite desserts in MoA - I bought them all the time from DeliFrance. And salmon - I don't even have to say any more about how much I love salmon. Haha.)

We also played Secret Santa this year, and it was loads of fun. Thina has been tormenting Karen and me for several weeks leading up to Circles, pretending to be our Santa and getting us No. 4 out of the three in our wish lists. Haha. It turned out Karen was my Santa, and I was so, so happy bcoz she got me my No. 1, Six Word Memoirs, as well as my No. 3, M&S chocolate chip cookies, plus a Kamiseta Christmas pin, too. Owww. I love Karen. I'm a lucky, lucky girl. All of us were so happy with our loot, actually.



As expected, it was Anji who was The Star of The Show, with the way she teased Ardo first with a pirated DVD of the Pacquiao fight he wanted, until she brought out the original DVD, and each one of the GCs he also wished for. Ardo's reaction when he opened the gift box and saw the pirated DVD was classic. Hahaha. Even our boss and his wife could not stop laughing.

On top of all the good things that they already are, our boss's wife and daughters also have this habit of giving away handmade Christmas gifts. They could easily buy something from the mall, but no, they make the effort to personally bake or cook something, wrap it up in a lovely container, and attach a card of their own creation. This year, they gave us a buri box with sinamay wrapping,inside of which was a mug, home-baked brownies, and Starbucks coffee sachets. The wife whispered to me that my box also contained a GC. So I looked and it was another spa package in Neo Day Spa. Oww. They're so sweet.

I emailed my boss a short note to thank him for the lunch, the gift, and the spa. He replied with what Ches called a novel bcoz it was so long, thanking me for my hard work the past year, for being a pro despite all the stress I often find myself in working in a family business, and how excited he is for me to be part of 'a legacy of principled governance and personal and professional fulfillment'. Etc, etc.

Needless to say, I cried and cried. That novel from my boss easily trumped all the food in the buffet and all the gifts I got. It was, hands down, The Best Part of My Circles Day.