Lapit na Pasko

Tomorrow will be June. Before we know it, Christmas will be here. Huh? Ang bilis....

The great beyond

I'm breaking through
I'm bending spoons
I'm keeping flowers in full bloom
I'm looking for answers from the great beyond
--- R.E.M.

Sleepin' an dreamin'

Sweet dreams are made of these
Who am I to disagree?
I travel the world and the seven seas
Everybody's looking for something...
--- Annie Lennox

Haloha?

With summer ending soon, is it goodbye, halo-halo? In the oppressive heat of our Philippine summer, only the good 'ole halo-halo has brought me relief and joy. Not ice cream, snow cones, or ice drops. It has got to be halo-halo. It doesn't matter where I buy it - Razon's , the office cafeteria, our neighbor, Ice Monster, on the beach, in the mountains, or at ChowKing. Masarap lahat! Especially when you have Carmie, Cynthia, Malou, Tess, and Tina (in alphabetical order) to share the calories with during lunch =) Wish Marlene was with us, too. I have to be honest, though. My favorite thus far is Razon's halo-halo. Enough said. Hindi po ako nagpa-plug ha. Sarap din ng palabok nila. They have stores along Ortigas Avenue and at Market!Market!

In Pagudpud, their halo-halo had macaroni and peanuts; in Boracay, cheese, gabi and fresh mangoes. I will admit I begged off from those ingredients, except mangoes. Among the traditional ingredients, I love ube, leche flan, nata de coco, sago, saba, corn, pinipig and lots of evaporated milk. Being diabetic, I don't add sugar. A lame effort on my part. Bad girl. Tsk tsk tsk.

After discovering the rather unusual ingredients of halo-halo in the provinces, I can say that truly, halo-halo has lived up to its name. Our favorite dessert does, in fact, have a lot to teach about uniqueness, unity, acceptance. So is it goodbye, halo-halo after the summer? Nevaaahhh! Mabuhay ang halo-halo!

Pretty in pink

Pink it's my new obsession
Pink it's not even a question
Pink on the lips of your lover
'Cause pink is the love you discover
--- Aerosmith

Strawberries and cream

Nakakapanghinayang kainin. Pero hindi rin. Wiped out after a few seconds! Thanks to Clint for bringing Arj, Bebert and I to Massimo in Tagaytay. Marami pang ibang masarap don. Too bad I wasn't to take more pictures. It's all about priorities. Eating or picture-taking? Aba shempre. Heed the call of the bottomless pit! =)

Experiment

I don't know the technical term for photos with moving subjects. Ang hirap pala kunan. Nagmistulang multo! Nyar! Since my digicam is rather slow (hehehe, nanisi pa!), I took a shot way before the boy was on the board. Ano nga bang tawag dyan? Di naman surf board. Quite a number of kids on the beach had it.

Spider thoughts

Ano kaya ang dating sa kanya ng "the worldwide web"? O ng "weblogging"?

Bright, sunshiny day

Like most of the pictures here, I took this in Boracay about 2 weeks ago. Each day there was glorious and beautiful. Kahit umuulan.

Love songs at the MRT

Is it just me or do love songs become more heartrending when heard within the confines of the MRT station? It’s probably just me. For the first time in many months, I took the MRT to and from work the whole week. Every afternoon at the Ortigas station, there would be these two blind men with their electric guitars, sound system, and hats for donations in the middle of the walkway. You’d be amazed by the power of their speakers. Ang lakas! Despite the blaring speakers, it would be impossible to miss their earnest, soulful voices.

Today one of the men sang, Kailangan ko’y ikaw. Dito sa piling ko. Kailangan kong madama ang pag-ibig mo. O giliw nasan ka. Bakit lumisan ka? Paano nang puso kong nag-iisa. Kailangan ko'ng yakap mo at iyong halik. Kailangan ko'y ikaw. Dito sa buhay ko. Kailangan ko'y ikaw. Sa bawat sandali. [I had to Google the lyrics to this song. Di ko memorize eh. Sorry I messed up the lyrics and deleted some].

I wasn’t lonely or emotional this afternoon so I don’t know why I was so affected. It must have been my imagination but the passersby seemed to be affected, too. Some had wistful, faraway looks. One reached out for the hand of his girlfriend. While others bowed their heads in an attempt to hide their secret smiles. Gutom lang yan Donna! Siguro nga. Or maybe I’m just a sucker for love and music. By the way, let’s not forget to support our brothers who serenade us in the streets, the malls, our homes, and train stations.

P.S. 23 May - I read this again today. Shiy_t! Ang baduy ko!

Estudyante blues

Learned that school starts on Monday, 23 May.

Naknam#$@^&*#(@!!&&$!!$????????!!!!!!!######^&(^&*(^%

Walling

Dale, Lea and Karina against this pretty red wall we found at a most unlikely place - Palengke at Paluto (Ortigas Home Depot complex) where Dad celebrated his birthday. Sarap ng food.

Puno ng aratelis

Nope, this isn't an aratelis tree. I don't even know what tree it is. It just made me remember how often Lea and I used to climb aratelis and makopa trees (or any other tree) when we were small. Kahit maraming higad, sige, akyat pa rin! I don't know if kids these days still climb trees. Though am glad to see these boys seemed to be having a ball up there.

Feast for the eye

They say hunger can compromise a person's eyesight. At 10:15 am with an empty stomach and a raging sun, I was happy to discover I wasn't all that hungry. Kase hindi pa 'ko naduduling sa hilo. Buti na lang! Still managed to see these paintings hanging outside a small shop in D'Mall. Was also glad to have found Blueberry Restaurant within the area. A nice, simple place for cheap, delicious thrills - P35 pancakes and P60 Filipino breakfast.

Dogs on the Beach

I saw these two on my first day on the beach. They were the epitomy of fun and playfulness. Their owner would throw an orange ball in all directions and they would both go after the owner, ay, the ball, like mad. Even in the water, the big dog would still manage to retrieve the ball. Here I finally caught them resting. Napagod din ang mga mokong.

Delighted by the sand

I suppose laziness has its rewards, too - this in particular. While getting our daily fix of pork barbecue from Manang in front of our cottage, and sitting with Bebert and Clint in the balcony like sloths, this little girl starts playing on the sand. She was occupying the room below ours. Hindi sha naaliw. Hindi masyado. Konti lang.