Almost Christmas

Hi, zarah!

i am hoping that you'll be able to shake off those holiday blues. i can imagine how you feel right now. but i am quite sure that this season will also bring happiness to you, in any way. who knows? maybe next year, you will be able to celebrate christmas with your family in roxas. also, may the christmas angels shower your way with lots of cheers this holiday season. from my family to yours, merry christmas and a prosperous new year!

over here, the dawn masses or aguinaldo masses have started last december 16. these dawn masses usually start at 4 in the morning, i havent had the chance to go to any of the masses because i am only able to wake up at 6 am! so much for planning, eh? a lot of carollers have been going around our subdivision. for some songs, they get to receive 2 pesos from us. some sing off-key while some are quite good, too. we have been buying some food items for the gift-giving to the less fortunate families of cabusao, cam sur. the gift-giving of some food packs will happen on december 22. this is a joint charity project of my siblings, zobel and pips. it's their simple way of sharing the holiday cheers to those who need cheering up. me and mom's share in this gesture is more on the physical side, not the monetary aspect. me and mom have been buying, marketing, packing and will do the distributing (together with other extended family members) on saturday. the said food packs contain pansit canton, sardines, some veggies, sugar, coffee, 2 kilos rice and some candies for the kids. these may not be much but at least, these will be of help to the less fortunate. on december 26, we will be having our grand family reunion in cabusao. it will be another fun day for sure. with gift-giving, foods and get-together. "ang una kong subo ay para saimo..." :)

these will be for now. i pray that your christmas will be twice as blessed, even if it will just be another ordinary day there. at least, you get to spend it with R, right? christmas will always be christmas, z! there are lots of ways to spend it, be far away from home or at home. as long as you have good health and in good spirits, its real meaning will always stay in our hearts and minds. so, i wish you all the best during the festivities. happy christmas!

Holiday blues

It's nine days before Christmas, Sam, and I am feeling mopey and homesick. Yeah, even if I'm with Rob, I still miss celebrating Christmas at home in Roxas. Nothing really beats Christmas in the Philippines. It is not officially celebrated here so it's just a regular working day. No holiday rush, no Christmas parties, and no exchanging of gifts. On one hand, it is a good thing as I do not like getting trapped into this holiday madness. But, on the other hand, when you think about Christmas as the time for families to reunite, return to their roots, and strengthen family ties, I am sad because I miss all these.

Anyways, this is the path I chose so I have to deal with it. And so, I just make myself busy. I do crafting, photography, and re-started my childhood hobby. I sometimes find myself in the kitchen, which almost always bring me back to the smell of our kitchen in Roxas City :( I have nowhere to go, gah. Lol. I am so OA, please slap me back to reality! hahaha.

I passed by the French Embassy two weeks ago and was delighted to see that the outer wall of the embassy is now filled with colourful photographs. It's because during the month of December, Phnom Penh is hosting the month-long Phnom Penh Photo Festival. Local and foreign artists proudly display their artworks in different venues across the city. Here's the one I saw at the embassy:

Photo originally uploaded to my photo-blog.

These, photo above and below, are artworks of the Frenchman Georges Rousse.

Photo originally uploaded to my photo-blog.

I was actually in a moving car when I took these photos. Only these two came out decently! I have yet to go see the other venues; probably next week na. It's too hot to go out. 

How was your weekend, by the way?

hello there, z!

hi, z! thanks again for the fun time online. it is always good to chat with you. somehow, the chats we have are enough to get me through the humdrum of my daily life. i really look forward to chatting with you each time. your perspective is often a source of inspiration for me. the way you say things without too much sugarcoating is a breath of fresh air, each time. thank you for being my dear amiga! we are able to bridge our distance and time differences without leaving our comfort zones.

as you know, the senior citizens here in naga city are given the chance to watch the first screening of a specific movie every monday and tuesday. as such, mom and i often take advantage of this free screening. she gets the freebie while i pay to watch the movie. we often have the chance to watch Pinoy movies, either romance, drama or comedies. the likes which star enchong dee, angelica panganiban, john lloyd cruz, angel locsin, derek ramsay, toni gonzaga and other Filipino actors or actresses. mom's fondness for sometimes corny Tagalog movies is such a fun experience for both of us. sometimes, the local film turns out to be great, other times it is not so great. given a chance, mom would also like to watch foreign films, too. in the era of charles bronson, that is. see? mom has aged gracefully and it shows even in her choice of movies to watch. hehe

with these points in mind, let me share with you some details about the most recent foreign movie that i was able to watch by myself. it's the movie STOLEN which stars nicolas cage and a host of other actors whose names i can't recall but have otherwise performed a good job. i would only like to share my take regarding the said movie. once again, nic collaborates with his Con Air director to star in this movie about heist and some family drama. it has a lot of car chases, with the FBI, shot in New Orleans. nic is montgomery who is also a robber. he, and his partners in crime staged a bank robbery and were able to get 10 million US dollars. but, as fate played a mean joke, nic was apprehended. fast forward to 8 years after the incident. nic was finally out of jail and had to see his daughter. the daughter says that she has adandonment issues and refuses to have anything to do with her dad, nic. nic meets up with his former partners in crime who have turned new leaves in their lives in order to catch up with what's new. one (josh lucas) kidnaps his daughter and keeps her inside the trunk of his taxi. josh wants his share of the 10 million dollars which is close to impossible because, nic threw it all in the trash where it burned to ashes before he was caught by the police 8 years ago...

i am leaving the parts as to let the excitement build. what happens next? will there be a happy ending? all ends well for everyone involved? i hope that you get the chance to watch it too, zarah. since we both like nicolas cage, i wish that you will also enjoy it the way i did.

these will be for now. have a happy weekend up ahead. take care, always.
ciao, bella

sincerely,
sam

New Look!

How do you like our new template? Let me know :) I like the diary/organiser theme here. It reminds me about how crazy we were with organisers and filofaxes long ago. I've been away for far too long, sorry. I missed our banters here. Hopefully with a new template, we could start anew. How are you, Sam? It's been a looooong while. I hope you are fine and well.

HOLLER

Dear ZJ, here's a short poem I've written just now. Must have been due to the intermittent rains and the gloomy weather we've been having over here in Naga City. Hope you like it. Just read on.

 

GONE

Away from you is what I am

Now alone is what you are

Perhaps we can be friends again?

And then, we can feel each other once more.

 

Come and seek my outpourings

Do not label me as insensitive

Because only you can read my mind

With clarity and certainty.

 

Despite of my predicament

I will always be your friend

Be there for you, whether storms arise

From this heart, my solemn vow.

 

Harbor not my strangeness

For this is pledge

My heart's desire

Albeit deceitful intent.

 

 

Happy weekend, bff!

Dear zj,

How are you doing today? I am hoping that your weekend is going just as great.

Over here, everything is relatively stable. Spending time with mom is definitely a great way to learn about things she can share to me – familial, the mundane, life stories, etc. Of course, we know that moms know best and I am not the type to disagree with that statement. Well, at least not for now. Haha, just kidding.

Well, this will be for now. I will try to post again as soon as I can. Have a happy weekend and enjoy the rest of your day! Miss you, bff!

Always, Sam ini

Dear ZJ,

How are you? It's been quite some time since I've posted anything on our blog. I hope that you will find in your heart to forgive me for not posting. I've been running to and fro, doing errands, finding ways to earn more, taking care of myself, you know? By the way, I've been able to watch some of Federer & Nadal's tennis (men's Finals) bout on Studio 23. There's one going on right now, although the signal is not that good, and I am not so sure if this match is a replay… at least I get the chance to watch, right? Both players are on the top of their game and both look good, buff all the way.

And, according to the link on your post Rafael Nadal won: 7-7-5-6 vs Roger Federer's 5-6-7-1. Yey! Congrats, ZJ! I know that you're happy of this turnout! Again, my heartfelt congratulations! Viva!

How's the weather out there? Over here, the weather's been unforgiving. The rains come and go, and then the skies remain overcast all the time.

These will be for now. I am hoping that we could chat online again…I will be at the other end of the line.

Until then, bff!