I Rule My World!

God must have a really, really, really good reason why he did not endow me with culinary skills. But I don’t want to just say I can’t cook for lack of trying. I do try. I just don’t have a handful of people who would be willing to sample my concoction. Yet i don’t lose out on hope that maybe some sweet day, I could cater to the homo sapiens’ tastes (shucks, even animals curse my cooking! This is so pathetic!).

Anyway, yesterday, I was so full of the "hope and trying" vibe that I immediately planned out asparagus soup and pesto for dinner. I wanted to pat myself on the back for having purchased the ingredients, but then you know what they say about not counting the eggs until they’re hatched, so I smiled at me instead. I came back home and my mom was frying some fish patties that smelled like heaven. Undaunted, I announced that the fish has to be eaten the next day because I am cooking dinner! (Why was I the only one excited in the room? I’m in dire need of moral support here, people!) So in desperate attempt, I proclaimed my second announcement, which is worst (for them) than the first one: You have no choice but to eat it, no matter what! (Go for it, er, Hitler-ess!) Effortlessly, I whipped out my magic pesto sauce with two-year old almonds, a year old extra virgin olive oil, regular soy sauce, some basil and fresh parsely, vegetable oil tuna, and dashes of fervent incantations. The only thing missing at the scene was that I should be wearing a ratty black dress, a pointed black hat, and a crooked broom in the other hand.

Several eons later, voila, I finally got my mom and my cousin to try the world’s most delicious pesto. The expression they bore as they were persecuted to eat the world’s most delicious pesto were priceless. The way they said "Wow, this is..uh-um..yummy.." could convince anyone that, it was, indeed, the world’s most delicious pesto!

Later that evening, my brother came over, and helped himself to the talk-of-the-town, world’s most delicious pesto. He takes a bite, stares at me, and stopped chewing (for dramatic effect, maybe) and declares, THIS is the worst stuff I have ever eaten in my entire life! He never touched his plate and left the dining table. I wished him nightmares of pesto witches!

In a country where texting is rampant, the Unlimitxt offer of Globe is a really smart move (pun intended…hahaha!) Anyhow, being subscribed to the service lets you connect with friends in a less expensive yet at the same time very annoying kind of way. Here come the text messages that I’m sure hardly anyone takes the heart to read. I might as well subscribe to the endless quotes, morning and evening greetings, and the perpetual string of jokes. While i love receiving the bulk text, i do get rid of them as soon as i possibly can, not by deleting them (oh no, that would just be too heartless), but i share them with those who have ’subscribed’ to my not-so-famous text messages. Having bought the P300 txt card, I was feeling pretty rich and miserly at the same. Not only do I have a lot of text money to spare, but I will see to it I make them last until 2010! So with the long weekend ahead of me, I proceeded to text everyone existing in my phonebook with crazy Erap and GMA jokes, and mushy quotes I couldn’t, for the life of me, even digest. Several minutes later, a mad Message Sending Failed! warning screamed on my phone screen. How in the world? I was in a full signal area! 222 later informed me that my stash was completely cleared out down to the last centavo. It was then I realized I completely forgot to subscribe to Globe Unlimitxt services. Does stupidity come in unlimited offers too?

The wonders of ukay has never ceased to amaze me. The first time I experienced going to an ukayan was in Baguio, the famous ukay kingdom. They called it wagwagan, then (the origin of the word ‘wagwagan’ or ‘ukay’ still leaves me wondering). The first question I had was, “where did they all get these clothes?” then, “why is it so cheap, given that they still look good?”. It was a too-good-to-be-true moment. It takes a really patient person to probe into the treasure house of ukay. Moreover, one should also have good eyes and shrewdness. In fact, the activity is an adventure altogether. Tagaytay is also teeming with these ukay ‘depots’, and living a shy away from the place is definitely an advantage. So together with my friend Jackie, and armed with all the patience, good eyes, shrewdness and money (of course!) we could have, we launched into another exploration of the ukay world. In the end, it rewards you with beautiful, ‘new’ stuff to augment your wardrobe. Never mind your itching body (because of trying out all those you-don’t-know-where-they got-it clothes), your tired feet, and your benumbed mind…

I am falling in love…with Bach’s compositions! I was having a little musical trip down Baroque’s road and I was sight reading some of these pieces by Purcell, Couperin, Scarlatti and Handel. They were relatively refreshing to hear, given that I had been exposed to a lot of Bach’s music. But after playing them for awhile…and then playing some of Bach’s sinfonias, suites, and preludes and fugues, I gotta admit, Bach is really the best (…just giving a second, yet very personal opinion in line with Stolba, and all those music historians out there)! Five stars for Bach, and 4 stars for Domenico Scarlatti’s sonatas.

Aside from relaxing in a hot tub, reading a good book under the shade of a big tree while a cool breeze gently tugs at my cheeks and hair, discovering a wonderful text in the Bible while hanging out in the empty PIC on a school day and hearing the birds chirping echo on its hollow walls at the same time, or playing Bach’s Organ Preludes and Fugues , I’ve discovered another relaxant that gives me life’s greatest highs: listening to John Rutter’s Christmas Albums and Faire is the Heaven by the Cambridge Singers, his Distant Land album, Voce by the Trinity College, and Palestrina’s Mass for Pentecost and Motets by the Christ Church Cathedral Choir (and the list could go on and on…). Listening to piano music gives me a different kind of high, (well music gives me the highs, actually), but listening to these voices just melts all the tensest muscles in my body. It sort of brings me to another dimension of living, into transcendence. Viva la musica! (*sighs*)

I’m dreaming of becoming a playwright. What do you think? Should I go for it? I’ve long since had the dream, but I wasn’t really serious on pursuing that career because I think music is really my passion. It still is, but I’m developing a deep love for playwriting…more on the line of religious short plays, that is. Here I am dreaming when all I’ve written is a draft of a new pantomime the Amba could do one of these Sabbath days. Well, who knows?!

Then, I have this dream of writing my own devotional book. I started writing short devotionals back in high school and during the early years of college but I kinda lost them, so now I have to come up with a complete 365 original articles…

Then there’s that dream of being an active lecturer or a resource speaker probably. I always thought I’m afraid to speak in public, but then I discovered that I get frightened only at the thought of speaking without the proper preparation. But given the right amount of time to prepare, I think I can actually do it. J In fact, I share this fantasy with Squishy—to be a speaker in PIC in one of their Vesper services or as a feature speaker for the Week of Prayer, even for just one session.

It sure was a day of dreams…but come to think of it, this is what I want to be actively doing for the Lord’s work, that is, aside from the music ministry (because I don’t want to abandon it altogether…hello?!?). The SS lesson was about the gifts of the Spirit, anyway, so I wonder what kind of gift do I have, given that I have these kinds of interests….and do they (the spiritual gift and talent) even have to be related at all?

WHAT DID YOU DO IN 2006 THAT YOU’VE NEVER DONE BEFORE?

• Graduated from college!
• Visited China for free.
• Have the house I live in undergo a MAJOR renovation.
• Threw several parties…and successful ones at that.
• Joined an international choir competition and won a world champion title.
• Toured Visayas for free!
• Shopped to death at Zhong Shan Road.
• Biked to Tagaytay just to ukay (hey, it rhymed!)
• Fell in love…and out of it.
• Ogled some cute German guys’ room across my window (hahaha!)
• Sang the Hallelujah Chorus at the top of my lungs at 1 am with a hundred singers at some deserted hallway.
• Ate really, really bad noodles.
• Bled to sleep.
• Run in front of a thousand people, like I’ve never run before.
• Cried while singing the Philippine National Anthem.
• Slept on a roof top.
• Lived in a bus for three weeks.
• Learned oboe.
• Got asked to go out on a “date” from a lesbian.
• Teach a music theory class.
• Went out on dates (but not with the lesbian!).
• Gave an F grade to 90% of my students L
• Took piano lessons in UP.
• Got lost in Manila and have the cab driver drop me in some cemetery.
• Got lost in MRT until I ended up buying the pirated DVDs parading the road.
• Pretended to be pregnant in front of strangers just so I could keep my seat.
• Used public transportation in a foreign country that does not understand English.
• Earned my first paycheck.
• Developed an addiction for headbands.
• Ate eggs and potatoes for three days in a row.
• Received a medal of honor from the governor of Cavite.
• Met someone really great.

DID YOU KEEP YOUR NEW YEARS’ RESOLUTIONS, AND WILL YOU MAKE MORE FOR NEXT YEAR?  Resolutions don’t work for me. Besides, I don’t remember them minutes after I make them. Haha.

DID ANYONE CLOSE TO YOU GIVE BIRTH? Nope, but someone close to me had a girlfriend who gave birth. Is that counted?!

DID ANYONE CLOSE TO YOU DIE? Umm…no one that I remember.

WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE IN 2007 THAT YOU LACKED IN 2006?  A palm top, a new hairdo, a scholarship, and someone to get weird with (Hehehe!)

WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT OF THE YEAR?  Graduating. That was a defining moment there. (Tears of joy, people..huhuhu..)

WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST FAILURE? When I gave my students the F grade. That reflected my failure as a teacher also.

DID YOU SUFFER ILLNESS OR INJURY?  Not even an ingrown. Anyway, would dandruff be considered an illness?

WHAT DATE FROM 2006 WILL REMEAIN ETCHED UPON YOUR MEMORY, AND WHY?  Hmm…  just pick a date between March and October, something around that.  Haaah…those were my best months!

WHAT WAS THE BEST THING YOU BOUGHT? A cellphone case. And books. Any book I buy is always a best buy. (Couldn’t get any pathetic than that). Got my money tucked in the safe. Maybe next year I get to spend it on more ludicrous pursuits.

WHOSE BEHAVIOR MERITED CELEBRATION?

• AUP Ambassadors for winning two gold medals and a silver in the recent choir games in Xiamen, China

• My graduation, of course!

WHAT DID YOU GET REALLY, REALLY, REALLY EXCITED ABOUT?  The China contest results and the phone calls from someone.

WHOSE BEHAVIOR MADE YOU APPALLED AND DEPRESSED?  Someone who was brave enough to be honest about his feelings for me, which, to my surprise, both appalled and depressed me.

WHERE DID MOST OF YOUR MONEY GO?  Travels, Shopping, Food, Gifts, and DVDs

WHAT SONG WILL ALWAYS REMIND YOU OF 2006?  “He’s Got the Whole in His Hands” arr. By Mark Hayes, and Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus”

COMPARED TO THIS TIME LAST YEAR, ARE YOU:

• Happier or Sadder?  Neither.

• Thinner or Fatter?  Somewhere in between

• Richer or Poorer?  Definitely richer.

WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU’D DONE MORE OF?  Cook!

WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU’D DONE LESS OF? Losing sleep and worrying about stuff…

DID YOU FALL IN LOVE IN 2006? I hoped to.

HOW MANY ONE-NIGHT STANDS?  Yikes. I’m not good with math eh. Wahaha!!!

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TV PROGRAM? My Girl and Smallville

DO YOU HATE ANYONE NOW THAT YOU DIDN’T HATE THIS TIME LAST YEAR?  Yup! Hehehe…

WHAT WAS THE BEST BOOK YOU READ? The Ordinary Princess and Misadventures of a Disorganized Young Woman. Tho, the One Year Bible still tops my list. On textbooks, it would have to be Mastering Music Fundamentals and Elements of Music.

WHAT WAS YOUR GREATEST MUSICAL DISCOVERY? Angele Dei’s “crescendoing” climax; that teaching and learning rhythm and meter are two very different things, yada, yada.

WHAT DID YOU WANT AND GOT? Fulfillment of signs and dreams (ang deep! Grabe!)

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE FILM OF THIS YEAR?  I watched White Chicks a lot, although I’m not sure which of the films I watched would be a favorite… I don’t play favorites. At least not with films.

WHAT DID YOU DO ON YOUR BIRTHDAY, AND HOW OLD WERE YOU?  I turned 23 on November 30. There was a storm that day so classes were out and I had nothing to do because the electricity’s out also.  I threw a party the day after, although there were still no electricity and we all stuffed ourselves with food since no one can really see how much we were eating.

WHAT ONE THING WOULD HAVE MADE YOUR YEAR IMMEASURABLY MORE SATISFYING? More travels and sight-seeing. More time with the relatives especially the ones I haven’t seen for soooo long.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONAL FASHION CONCEPT IN 2006?  The first-time-teacher-yet-don’t-want-to-be-labeled-geeky-and-more-comfy-kind-of-stuff like jeans, shirts, skirts, boleros, sequined tops, and anything I can haul out the ukay depot.

WHAT KEPT YOU SANE?  Prayers.

WHICH CELEBRITY/PUBLIC FIGURE DID YOU FANCY THE MOST?  No one in particular

WHO DID YOU MISS?  My cousin, Kleng

WHO WAS THE BEST NEW PERSON YOU MET?  Ben

TELL US A VALUABLE LIFE LESSON YOU LEARNED IN 2006:  Faith works. And that Patience is truly a virtue

QUOTE A SONG LYRIC THAT SUMS UP YOUR YEAR: “…he’s got the whole world in His hands!”

THE MOST TOUCHING EXPERIENCE YOU’VE HAD THIS YEAR?  Singing the Philippine national anthem in the choir games, and my totally alone New Year’s eve

WHAT DID YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT YOURSELF THIS YEAR?  I’m more sensitive to what others feel.

WHAT DID YOU HATE MOST ABOUT YOURSELF THIS YEAR?  My inadequacy to react properly.

WAS 2006 A GOOD YEAR FOR YOU?  You mean that wasn’t the best yet??!!

WHAT COUNTRIES DID YOU VISIT?  Just China, this time.

    I am a legacy. In fact, my legacy will never ever be replaced by anyone as bold as I am. Well, any guy can do it actually, and the "grossy guy" in me. Ahh, you can never imagine the things I can do in public. There’s farting. Haha! Am I grossing you out now? Aww, ‘cmon, I’m not the only guilty one here. How many of you have done the same thing and blamed someone for doing it? I used to blame someone else, too. But seeing that no one enjoys being blamed, and farting seemed like one of the seven deadliest sins, i have decided to own up to it, take the blame, and enjoy the air. Yeah!
    Im no fart aficionado but I can tell you some and some. For one thing, you can determine whether the fart’s going to be smelly or not–whether the smell resembles last year’s Christmas dinner, or whether it’s too clean, it actually purifies the air. Generally, the loud ones don’t really smell. But then again, it’s a case-to-case basis. We are all indeed unique, so the volume may or may not affect the aesthetic smell of human gas. It’s just that from my own experience, loud ones hardly smell.
    I love loud farts! I’m a big fan, actually. Some people would let out a modest "prooooot!" and that’s it. Others would be a little bolder and a little flatter on the side, with a bit of bulk into it, something like "praaaaaat", resembling that of a squelched big rubber ducky. Then I find the high-pitched, and the long drone of "proooooooooot" which goes a whole step higher as it runs out of air highly entertaining. Some very creative farters have mastered this art so much that they could fart in several variations. Really! My uncles can make the most creative versions that my farting sounds so amateur. Okay, so i just don’t love it and find it entertaining, but I also found out that it cleanses the soul…both literally and figuratively. I’ll spare you the details of the former, and the latter is something you can only experience if you are really in tune with the farter in you.
    Now, as much as I love loud farting, I am not that type. I am more of a discreet, silent, but very smelly farter. Yep, exactly the kind of fart you can blame on others. (By now, you should’ve  guessed my equation: loud farts = artificial air freshener while silent farts = aesthetic smells. Very scientific, huh?) But as I wrote earlier, I’m not afraid to take the blame. I love the feeling it gives me and I try to have fun with it as much as I can. On most occasions, I would let the fragrant air come out slowly and carefully. I imagine it as a thin column of air coming out of a tetra pack straw. Yes, I could let it out slow and easy. Suave, huh?!? (*winks*) Then there are those rare times when I’d put my hand exactly at the spot where the fart would come out and pretend like I can hold on to it, get as much of it with my hand, close it tight—and open it smack right at some naive person’s face. Isn’t that cool or what?
    Then there’s the kind of fart that comes with something yellowish quasi greenish, solidish quasi liquidish substance (but that really is another story).
    Anyway, I’ve had 9 farts since I started writing this entry, so rest assured that you are reading from out of a really fresh experience.
    Wow…I can’t believe you read this entry this far!

"You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm!"