Holiday Rant

November has gone really fast.  Went back to Manila to escort a patient.  I was so happy to be home even for just 5 days.  It was swift and busy, not a moment wasted. 


Then came December, slow December.  I've always been excited during the holiday season.  Now that I'm working, I dread it. Holiday means no income.  To top it off, I think Papua New Guinea has the most lazy government.  Every little thing is celebrated and declared a non-working Holiday.  I am feeling the crunch of paying my employees' undeserved holiday pay.  Imagine, they get to have 10 days of paid non-working holiday, while I on the other hand, lose income.  It's not good from my standpoint.  I'd rather work!  Never thought of myself as a workaholic, but when you need to pay the bills, the more patients the better.

The only thing that excites me this holiday is to see the look on my kids' faces when they open up their presents.  Other than that, I wish it were January already.

!@*?":P

Feels like ranting but I couldn't release what I want to say. The past few days just pushed me off the edge.  I'm just irritated, tired, and mad as hell. I'm running out of patience. That's all I can say.  Now, I'm getting home sick.  Wish my dad and mom were here.

Adios, Mi Abuela Julia

My Apo Julia was laid to rest today.  She was 95 years old.  Apo is the best grandmother one can ever have.  She was caring, thoughtful and very loving to her kids, grand kids and great grand kids. I am her youngest grandchild, and my dad is her youngest son.  We were spoiled rotten by her.  I remember she once told me that she wouldn't go to rest until she sees me give birth.  She did not only wait for me to give birth but she was able to see my kids too.  Even though she already had senile dementia and could not really recognize people that are even close to her, she still knows and seek for my kids.  It's unfortunate that I was not there to bring her to her final destination.  I will surely miss her and all the things she has done for us.  I will always keep you in my heart, Apo.  Rest in peace +

A hard habit to break

I'm officially hooked to online shopping!
Living in Papua New Guinea, there isn't much here in terms of shopping.  In fact there's nothing here!
For the past few years, for us to get a decent piece of clothing, we had to buy our things whenever we go home to the Philippines.  From clothes, shoes, toys and the ever important underwear, we had to get from somewhere else.  So imagine my happiness when finally, I was able to order "the necessities" from the internet.  It opened a whole new world for us.  It made living in PNG more pleasant and comfortable.
Now, I'm thinking of making a business out of this compulsion.  I would love to be someone else's personal shopper.  Doing what I do best and getting paid for it?...Not bad at all.   

Down and out

I miss blogging. Things have been busy lately that I rarely find time to organize my thoughts...much more put it into writing. The stress is too much lately.  I've been down with Malaria two times in a months time.  As if I haven't had enough, Flu came in next.  What's going on?  Is my body telling me to slow down, or perhaps de-stress a little? 
Anyway, I am well now.  Thank God for that!  I miss playing with my kids and doing my daily routine.  I wouldn't want to stay sick forever.

My Bestfriend's Wedding

I have waited a long time for this moment to arrive so imagine the excitement when my best friend, Joy told me about it.  I was literally jumping and screaming with delight.  I haven't seen her in a long time and I don't really know much about her anymore.  For her to ask me to be her Matron of Honor, still is a big deal for me.  I know that she already have some new set of close friends that could probably relate to her more...but best friends will always be best friends no matter what the distance.

As the wedding day drew near, I prepared myself and flew to Manila.  I am by the way living in Papua New Guinea now.  I'll only be in Manila for one short week and really have so many things to do.  First thing I did was to call her and ask if she needs me to do something for her.  She just asked me to go to the couturier and fit my gown for repair.  She also reminded me to prepare a speech for the party.  Now, this was harder than I thought.  Come wedding day, I went straight to the church where the ceremony would be.  Everybody they hold dear were there, and I was happy to be amongst the witnesses.  This was the first time I'll be meeting the groom.  I don't really know much about him.  When I saw Eric, he greeted me as if we have known each other forever.  That was a nice feeling, and I can sense some good vibes from him.  I can tell that he really is a good man, worthy of my best friend.
 

The entourage was already inside the church and getting ready to march, I still haven't seen Joy.  Finally, her car arrived and she peeped thru the slightly open window and called me.  When I saw her, my heart pounded really hard...this is the most beautiful she has ever been.  We hugged and got teary eyed, holding back tears just so we can save our make-ups.  Standing, waiting for her to make an entrance I keep telling myself that I will not cry.  But as I saw her coming near, I just couldn't help myself.  I let go of a river of tears...of happiness of course.  This was the day we have dreamed off and it turned out really well.

While we were all waiting for the newlyweds to arrive at the reception, I took the time to make my speech.  Yes, I only did it then when I had a year to prepare for it.  Anyway, I wasn't able to eat because I was anticipating that they'd call my name anytime for the speech.  A very bored crowd, two song numbers and five speeches later, they call me.  I had my piece written so I wouldn't choke but as soon as I took my place in the podium and looked at the couple, I started trembling.  I got so emotional that I was not able to read what I have prepared.  Damn those tears!  The best part though is when I was done with my speech, almost everyone was in tears and applauding.  So, I think I did a good job, and delivered a heartfelt message to them.    After all the crying comes party time! It truly was a lovely and memorable night.