forty 'frickin' four

yep, sometimes i cuss too. but it didn't come out because of anger, exasperation or annoyance. it was more like a "disbelief cuss." :)

today is my new year - i really celebrate it on my birthday, not just january 1st. i try to take stock of things, i try to come up with grandiose, elaborate, well thought-out plans, and i try to also include a plan to follow-through.

try is the operative word.

it used to be easy. of course, 20, 25, 30 years are relatively easy to review. but when i hit my middle-age, it was like a curriculum vitae eight pages longer than it should be, and that just got exhausting. :)

so how would i review my past 44 years? i don't know.

maybe i should just look towards the future. yeah, everyone says you can't do anything about the past because the opportunity for you to do something about it has passed. the future however, is still yours for the taking. 

even for someone like me who never has a long-term plan, BELIEVING the future will be infinitely better than my past sounds like a good plan. 

but i will look back with gratitude for everything and everyone who has made the first half of my life wonderful and beautiful. 

friends who have been there when i needed a shoulder to cry on, a partner-in-crime, travel buddy, cinema buddy, and food tripping pal.

for my family who've been very patient with me, loving, caring, and supportive of what i've done, may they be successes or failures.

for a Father who unconditionally loves, protects, guides, and cares for me. it may take me longer than expected to be what you want me to be, but You have said that you'll meet me wherever i am. may i never forget to just BELIEVE.

thank you everyone for the first half. i'll see you in the second half. 

for those who have yet to play a role in the second part, i hope you'll find it interesting enough to stay and grow with me. welcome to my life, my balanced insanity.

because valentine's  ❤

"starting over again"

 

sorry, i'm not going to talk about papa p & toni 😜 this is about my first post after one of my "now you see me, now you don't" phases.

what a beautiful post after my hibernation 😊 thank you to my goF family 💓

one of life's blessings

i love this family ... this video greeting made me so happy. i miss you guys and i love you too!!! :)

emong goes emo

i walked and walked and walked last night. not because i wanted to but because i had to. tropical depression emong went 'emo' over metro manila and dumped a lot of rain. lot of rain = gridlock. and because of this gridlock, pujs are stuck somewhere and when they get stuck, passengers get stuck too.

it was a 60-minute walk that was roughly 2.5KM. yes, 2.5 KM. got home an hour later than usual but i figured if i stayed and waited for a jeepney, i would've gotten home maybe at 2 or 2:30 a.m. made a pit stop at a 7-11 halfway through my 'midnight exercise routine' and while eating a hot dog sandwich and drinking much-needed gatorade, i thought "why the hell am i walking?"

after two investment grade upgrades, numerous tourism citations, a couple of international marketing ploys during economic forums or regional meetings, and business deals in the bag, nothing really has changed.

you read the news and you feel giddy. proud even that somehow the country is being noticed. but my day-to-day routine hasn't changed at all. we experience rain for two to three hours and we spend double the time on the road just to get home.

i live a pretty much comfortable life but, i still get affected by rising world oil prices, inflation, pollution and lpa/itcz/td (all those fancy weather acronyms). i don't feel any improvement at all at my level. again, how about those who deal with more problems than i do?

how can those citations, upgrades and good numbers translate to something tangible for those at the end of the line?

anybody?

what gets left?

i've been thinking and thinking and thinking. i know, it's been quite a while and all i can say is i'm thinking. but, during my involuntary absence from my beloved blog, i've been on different platforms and tried out other places on the web. now, i'm left with one phrase:  whittle down and streamline.

so, what shall i keep?

changed my template just like the seasons have changed. get ready for the rain.

mind and body clash

all reasoning suspended

i am left with none

"oh wow..."

it has been said that we live through others and these people can show us what we are. what better "mirror" to have than another human being. it's difficult to rationalize our existence, actions, decisions, what we do. but when we know we shall leave what we've known as "life," others provide an insight to what we go through.

like millions of people, i was sad when i learned that steve jobs passed away. i don't own any apple product but i do celebrate and acknowledge his contributions to life, technology and communications.

and the most recent news i've come across related to jobs, is his sister's eulogy - what her life was like to have a brother named steve and what his life was like. a touching and wonderful read...

again...

motorola has done it again ... it has made me want to get my hands on a new phone ... i want it bad. i wonder when it'll be available here ( november in the U.S. )?

i want you ...

such a tease!