Reminiscing

My mind and body were wide awake at 4am. I had walked Cabal and was filling up the kettle with filtered water from my Brita pitcher. I thought about my friend Rob who got me into the habit of using Brita earlier in the year. As I kept pouring, it made me then think of being a little girl in the Philippines.

I don't think about such a thing much these days, but we had to get potable water from the American airbase -- just outside actually. A big hard near opaque white plastic jug with a brass faucet would be filled then brought back to our house almost everyday. One of my mother's male cousins lived with us and it was his task to get the water. It was an interesting thing...I haven't thought about that in a long time.

Later in the day, I told Rob about it and he laughed. I asked him why and he said, "Just my subtle impact." I shook my head. He always enjoys these stories especially the ones he has somehow a hand in making me remember. Brat.

Lunch was lively with all the members of the Asian (Lunch) Mafia. Kim had cooked a big batch of fried rice the night before to share with us. Good thing because Bridget was about to brave the cafe downstairs since she didn't bring anything. It was flavorful with a hint of spice. The whole thing also had small dices of Spam. It's an Asian thing. Go ask anyone in Hawaii; that state is the largest consumer of Spam per capita. We were so loud that we had to close the door. Man are we funny together!

I worked an extra 40 minutes this evening. Aargh. I didn't listen to myself which would have kept me from starting a project. The week is just beginning and I am already tired...My hairdresser returned my call from Friday. We set an appointment for Saturday which got me thinking when I would have my nails done. I'd have to work it in that day somehow. Speaking of...

Two weeks ago my nail lady suggested a new nail product: acrylic mixed with different colors of micro glitter. I agreed to one on my ring finger, but got talked into both ring fingers while keeping the rest a French manicure. I chose a diamond or silver color. It was a challenge to explain to her how tacky these things were on all nails and how inappropriate they were for a corporate setting.

The following pic is of my nails on my right hand. It is difficult to get a good pic with the lighting and my double-jointed fingers making awkward poses. Notice the pumpkin soup tureen in the background? That is what I have displayed on my kitchen table for autumn at the moment. Large pillar candles on equally large candle columns flank it. Back to AGOL's nails:


Lookee...Shiny...Sparkly...


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Reminiscing

Stormy Darkness

Blurry of flurry of activity or was that flurry of blurry of activity? Huh? I don't get it either, but you know what I mean. That's how it went, but this time without weird nerve stuff.

Nemesis Vendor sales rep had to suffer through my director, my manager and me while we went up and down both floors so he could itemize things that still needed to be done. How many techs does it take to install the rest? Now we need an additional systems analyst? Good grief. My manager and director roasted him for a while. It was nice. (Evil Kitty in the house...)

Thanks to yesterday and not having my usual list, I had to go back to grocery store for something I missed and needed after work. Rushed home to walk my doggie and beat the fierce storm coming around.

Around 8pm, the thunder was getting so loud, it startled me and drove the dog nuts. I was in the middle of eating some more Flip food when the lights cut out. I cursed for a full minute (at least) then my aunt called me. She asked what was the matter with me. I said, The lights went out, the dog is going crazy, I am trying to finish my meal and you're calling me. She then told me she would make it in a hurry. You know she didn't...Aargh. This 4'10" (and shrinking) of Filipina dynamite will be the death of me, I swear.

Finally, I used my phone's bright display to navigate my way through my apartment trying to light all the tealights around my apartment and adding more around to brighten it. Cabal kept following me and I almost tripped a few times. Just what I needed, tripping over him with candles in my hand. Soon the soft glow of candlelight was everywhere. Anyone looking in would think I just had the table lamps on for ambiance.

I finished my dinner, settled on the sofa and spoke to Angie in Los Angeles for a short bit. My apartment is very cool so I knew the heat would not penetrate the coolness for a long while. Cabal and I sat quietly until I got the urge to take the pictures below. I started out using the flash. Can you imagine seeing that from outside the apartment? Switched the settings to use no flash and produced the pics below.

Candle in one corner of my bedroom.


I love this tealight holder in the bathroom. It glows a lava ring on the counter.


One of three plaques on the ledge from the entrance to the kitchen. It is also one of the characters on my back. I like the shadow play from the tealight.


It's times like these that remind me so much of life in the Philippines as a little girl where we would have brown outs as opposed to black outs because it would only last for a little bit. We always had tapered candles on hand. We would be outside talking to each other or the neighbors and maybe even play cards in the soft glow. The brown outs weren't always during rain storms like this evening. There would almost be a sigh of disappointment when the lights would go back on. It dispelled the intimacy that had been created, revealing real life once more.

I love replaying those memories. Tonight I was able to take a short nap before the lights came back on. For an hour, I was a little island girl again.

Stormy Darkness

Pretty Packages

Hearing thunder made the decision for me to skip The Saturday Four. Perhaps tomorrow or Monday, but the forecasters have predicted rain the next few days...

I've just wrapped my stepmother's birthday gifts: two blouses and one box for the special musical card and Florida-themed treat. Gathered her favorite colors of purple and gold. The tissue inside each box is different and in a tropical theme to set off the gift inside. Yes, I know I have way too much time on my hands. If I were not mailing these, the bows would be more elaborate. I like the bows to be big, complex and overflowing with the ribbon undulating around the edges of the gift.



The best part of giving the gift is more gratuitous for me and that is the wrapping. Even if I'm not necessarily fond of you, the wrapping will never let you know. The gift inside is for the recipient and the wrapping is...correct!...for me.

I didn't grow up with a lot and couldn't necessarily give a more expensive gift, but what I could do was make the wrapping beautiful. I learned (while living in the Philippines) from watching the painstaking task my mom or other live-in relative would take to make the gift presentable, more often than not the popular technique of multiple folds at the seam as seen at the top left hand box in the picture above.

Now I have an arsenal of dozens of gift wrap paper in various themes and spools and spools of mostly fabric ribbon. I try to buy them when they are on sale because I am not stingy with them when I wrap the gift. More yardage of ribbon on a gift, the better. It's the sensuality of it, too. Feeling the textures of the paper and ribbon...and feasting my eyes on the various colors heightens the experience.

This is not to say I have not thought about the gift inside. I always imagine what the recipient might think when he/she opens it. It is rare that I do the gift half-hearted. Even if I pick up something small and it would be okay to give as is, it will still have a small coordinating fabric ribbon(s) tied around it. It's just the AGOL way.

Pretty Packages

Would You...Again?

Someone asked me if I would do an overseas distance relationship again. It's only been about four days, but I know my answer...

I am here in the U.S. because my mother moved for a long distance relationship. The gentleman I call my dad met my mother in the Philippines when he was stationed there. Their relationship was based upon the exchange of letters and tour of duty visits from him. They didn't have instant messaging, e-mails, text messages or calls on cell phones or webcams, but they made it and that was in the late 70s/early 80s. My aunt and uncle went through the same thing in the 60s and they've been married for over 40 years. I have countless other female relatives who have done the same.

The true question is: If you have an opportunity for love and that opportunity takes you to the other side of the world away from your family and friends, would you go? My answer is still yes. If your family and friends truly love you, they would never begrudge you your opportunity for happiness. Internet, cheaper international calls, and flight can make staying in touch with them easier. Sometimes you just have to go for it regardless of what the outcome may be. This one I have just gone through didn't turn out well, but it wasn't horrible during.

The pursuit of love should be an adventure. It should fill your heart with the quick beat of anticipation even if it has to be miles away from your home. Denying the opportunity could keep you from something so much larger than what you have known. Why wouldn't you do everything in your power to make it happen?

The caveat is that it takes two. If your opportunity for love isn't meeting you halfway with a lifesaver, then you need to swim to another shore where hopefully Rafael is waiting for you with a pina colada under a cabana.

Would You...Again?

Tuesday Twang

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." ~Mark Twain

Wondering if Mark Twain would still feel the same if he had to sift through the 21st Century BS. I have a great feeling that none of it would phase him. It would make him that much more determined to throw off the bowlines. After all, he was born in the Show Me* State, Missouri, where they don't believe it unless they see it.

On an odd note, Twain had a link to the Philippines in which he wrote Incident in the Philippines. His words were a part of his group's campaign in the opposition of the U.S. annexation of the Philippines. How's that for six-degrees to history?

Meanwhile, Yummy received another funny video e-mail from me. Instead of an alien, he received a cheery theme that starts out with me sporting a demented British accent. Poor bloke probably cringed as I cringe when he says things with an American accent. I don't mind showing my goofy side -- actually, I thought it was a rather cute clip. He needs an example of what not to do when you get a new webcam. Ha!

Updated with original video sent to Yummy thanks to new blogger gizmo. I should be embarrassed to post this, but I don't mind because it was real and there is beauty in truth:



Truth be told, my proficiency in creating the content and working with the technology are holding promises and possibilities for Project AGOL. I must set a deadline for myself to get those mini vids recorded and up on youtube rather sooner than later...

Worked steadily throughout the day and the mood at work was much improved as well. Maybe it was my mood now that I think about it.

Tawny couldn't stay away from e-mailing work peeps via her crackberry phone while they drove down the Southern States. She and her husband should be home late tonight. I believe she mentioned that by the time they get home from two weeks of vacation on the road, they will have driven through 18 States and racked up 8,400 miles. How many oil changes did that include?

Talked to Kristey on the way home. For some reason trying to write her during work hours is challenging. I was glad I caught up with her. She might meet us gals for walking on Saturday morning, but no promises. Keeping my fingers crossed. That would make four of us braving the heat and humidity.

Brought my lunch today and didn't eat all of it so I found myself craving some Southern fried chicken for dinner. The same fried chicken I denied myself on the 4th of July. I caved in and was satisfied. Will have to drink a vat full of water to counteract the sodium. Uh, make that two vats for the other serving I will be having for lunch tomorrow. Good lawd.

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*Show Me slogan wasn't coined and popularized until the last 13 years of Mark Twain's life.

Tuesday Twang

Yankee Doodle AGOL

Happy Fourth of July!

Woke up normal time thanks to Cabal and sent Yummy his surprise. I told him he would receive it via e-mail at 10am his time. My e-mail contained a video of me I made using my new webcam. Get your mind outta the gutter. There is only room for mine.

Anyhoo, with this brand, they have avatars that you can calibrate to your face so that it can mimic your facial expressions as you speak and other cool accessories to superimpose on your face. I chose a green alien with a planet in the background and then giggled my way through the rest of the recording with other visual effects. It was quite hilarious. Yummy enjoyed it and we discussed it more during our IM chat in the afternoon. I told him my plan of using it for Project AGOL. We'll see how it goes.

Updated with the original video thanks to new blogger feature:



Received some holiday text wishes from Tawny and Kathy which always cracks me up. I used to be big on celebrating the 4th of July. Sometimes I would go to two events in one day. Now, well, now it is in the middle of the week which is awkward and I can't leave Cabal to watch fireworks. The blasts going off around the neighborhood bother him too much.

Thinking about Independence Day makes me think of my own citizenship. In April 1984, I became a US citizen. I didn't understand the whole thing when I took my oath at 12 years of age, but I have learned to respect the privilege...

Today also makes me remember celebrating the Bicentennial (1976!) in the Philippines. I remember being with my mom on the Air Force Base watching the fireworks display while sitting in the bleachers of a football field. Looking up in the black sky, pyrotechnic chrysanthemums exploded in the air one by one. I would imagine them as gifts raining down from the sky. I can even recall the commemorative white t-shirt with American emblems on it.

Spent the evening watching TV and comforting Cabal during the fireworks in the neighborhood. He really doesn't like hearing the explosions. Poor pup. Wherever I went he was a step behind me. Oh man! I just remembered I have an American flag bandanna for him. He would've been so cute with it around his neck! Sigh. Guess we'll have to settle for him being naturally cute. He's got enough cute to go around.

Yankee Doodle AGOL

Old School Sunday

Snoozed a better part of the morning after hanging up from an early skype call with Yummy. He is a very intelligent creature, but he's so darned goofy sometimes. He makes me giggle. Gotta dig a guy who does that. I just couldn't keep my eyes open after 8am especially without any caffeine intake. Meant to do some grocery shopping, but thought better of it after walking Cabal in the heat later in the afternoon. Even he couldn't wait to get in the shade!

What I did enjoy was listening to some CDs like new trashy chick Amy Winehouse, old standby Lisa Stansfield and some French compilations. I remember the hours I spent during my teenage years listening to albums on the turntable or the 45s and having to insert the plastic yellow spider thingy to make it fit the spindle.

In the Philippines, we would spend some weekend afternoons reading the "Song Hits" which contained lyrics and accompanying guitar notes. After practicing, we would then use my mother's Panasonic tape deck and record us singing a capella or with guitar to songs by Olivia Newton John, Anne Murray and Billy Joel just to name a few. I still regret not taking guitar lessons. I would have to give up my acrylic nails at first until I developed skills like Dolly Parton. Have you seen this woman's nails?! Not doing that anytime soon.

One of my most favorite things in the world is a jukebox. I'd love to have one. It doesn't have to be Wurlitzer. Do people under 35 know what one is? Okay, under 30? Let me know what the survey says...The rush I felt every time I inserted coins and heard each one fall and make a clink to the bottom of the change box is incomparable. Flipping through the music selections was great fun, too. Those were the days.

Still have some new movies to watch on my DVD player, but left those on the shelf for some old school entertainment. Something called reading. Ha! I need to find some time to brainstorm and write for Project AGOL. Need to kick that party into gear. Meanwhile, I am groovin' to some tunes.

Old School Sunday

Spirited Away

Twenty-five years ago today was my mother's Spirit Date. The picture below was taken six months before she became free of this earth. It was taken in Holy Family Catholic Church in Angeles City, Philippines after I received my First Communion. Little AGOL was 10 years old and my mother was 33 years old.



God, I miss her so much! Luckily, I can remember many things about her through child eyes. She was always teaching me how to present myself in the best light through grooming, manners and behavior. Just because you may not have the best things or afford much, didn't mean you couldn't be clean especially under your finger nails, have your hair brushed and clothes mended or ironed not to mention comporting yourself. Guess who lives that now?

My cousin Ida helps me understand her as an adult and not as my mother. Maria (yes, my aunt, her sister, was named the same) was very firm and determined, but with a tender loving heart. She always helped the ones who had a broken wing.

Ida learned a lot from her about taking care of a house and the practicalities of life. Also, how material things are not important, but people! It is the relationships you build with people that are important and being generous of yourself and with what you have are what counts. When you care about people, you need to show them, be there for them, encourage them, learn to forgive them and not to give up on them.

Maria I. Abuda (Abraham) was born the youngest of eight in a little province in the Visayas called Lawa-an located specifically in Eastern Samar. Her parents Leon and Angela were farmers. They nicknamed her Yeying.

She was the only one in her family who graduated with an English teaching degree, but she didn't formally teach through my life in the Philippines. She somehow got a little sidetracked raising little AGOL Sarah not to mention making sure that the other relatives who lived with us had a roof, clothing and food. Mela, as her friends called her, married twice. It's funny. People still talk about her and remember her well in old circles.

And the one thing my mother taught me was to always be thankful for what you have. Life on earth is not free, only the love you give others is free. Thanks, Mom.

Spirited Away

Fierce Shoes and Tarsiers

My excitement at work soon dimmed when I found out Bridget was home sick. It was my off day for buying, but an AGOL must adapt to unexpected events. I wouldn't have time for follow-ups; I would be too busy.

The group that would test my patience today was Accounts Payable. I especially loved the list of purchase orders I was requested to make code changes on throughout the day. Forwarded my boss an e-mail later asking him if these e-mails were love notes or flame mail from A/P. I realized belatedly that he had left for the day so I would not get a reply.

I heard crickets during lunch. My lunch buddies were nowhere to be found. It was a rare moment that I was able to read a magazine during lunch. Mental bubblegum. A vibrant Michelle with her equally vibrant punky hair came in towards the end. She always wears the most interesting shoes. Other than style, she wears them for added height to her petite frame.

Can you dig Michelle's shoes? Do not tick this woman off!


I forgot to note that I had received an update on my office friend Lisa who made the Thai Peanut Chicken dish two nights ago. Not only was it delicious, but her husband complimented her multiple times on how it was the best meal she has cooked in a long time! He comes from a family of chefs so my guess is his palate was awakened with the complex flavors. My tips helped and Lisa was very happy.

Yesterday, I was quizzed on the mascara I have been recommending. My friend Nikki is off to Sephora to get the same kind. And today, I was asked about another thing. I don't now how I end up as the go-to girl for things. Maybe I appear smarter and more reliable? AGOL Reports, Your Up-to-the-Minute Goddess Guide to Everyday Items. It could happen.

On PBS tonight was a show about a special primate that lives in the Philippines called the tarsier. It is a nocturnal mammal with large, round glistening eyes and the species has been around for 45 million years. The tarsiers used to be captured for pets and are now protected by the government under the Philippine Tarsier Foundation. They are peculiarly cute animals. Of course, seeing the Philippines on film always warms me.

Fierce Shoes and Tarsiers

Dancing with Dragonflies

This story was never meant to be published anywhere, but it is demanding it be told to the world since it keeps coming up...

Some of my best and worst memories come from living the first 11 years of my life in the Philippines. I was an only child to my mother until she remarried later when we moved the States. While I had a multitude of neighborhood kids and a cousin who were my playmates, I was still the only child in my house with too much time to spend satisfying rampant curiosities.

I am grateful that I did live in a tropical place where a myriad of plants and insects surrounded me. The bright colors of flowers and dark green glossy leaves from trees and bushes were painted for me most everywhere I turned. The diamondlike grains of sand played peek-a-boo in between the growing blades of grass on the ground. The tropical breezes would lift strands of my long dark brown hair near my face like little banners. The sun seemed like the pupil of God's eye while the cerulean blue sky his iris which revealed everything and shared his warmth on my skin while I made my way around the yard chasing and catching dragonflies. I must have been between the ages of 7 and 9. It was idyllic.

My dragonflies were everywhere it seemed. I used to catch them with small cello bags and sometimes small clear glass jars. I would hold them by their wings and stare for an eternity, imprinting them on my psyche. Some had avocado green bodies with black stripes and others had iridescent purplish blue bodies. Their wings were capillaries of black that actually breathed if you really looked at them - their long tails breathed, too. Watching them expand and contract held me mesmerized. Their eyes seemed too big for their bodies while their legs tickled my child size fingers when I brushed them. If I was lucky, I would catch one that had eggs on her belly. I was fascinated because she would hold onto them dearly when I tried to touch them.

Children are often times are blessed with ignorance and naivete. In this case I was grateful since I used to tear some of the dragonflies' wings and keep them in the jar while I made paper wings for them using lined school notebook paper. There would be a slit in the middle of the ribbon where I would insert what wings were left and I would gently spread them over the paper. I would then carry them in the open yard and throw them in the sky so they could fly away...but they didn't. They fell among the blades of grass. I found them only by the telltale white paper ribbons that were supposed to be their new wings.

I didn't give up. I would fling them again in the air where we would play the same game over and over. I would get disappointed and I couldn't fathom why they wouldn't fly. Somehow I did know why but I wouldn't let myself let the teasing mist of darkness invade my thoughts. I would end up slipping their new wings off and I would gently set them either on a flower or hide them in a blade of grass where they would magically have flown away when I tried to find them again the next time.

Since then my dragonflies have forgiven me and have become harbingers of good luck or a message of my beloved mother thinking of me as if to say, "Smile honey...only good things today".

On the evening of November 21st last year, a giant dragonfly was on the number plate on my door. It's wings spanning horizontally on the whole plate. I was in awe and knew that something really good was coming. I felt it in my soul. I will never forget the feeling as long as I live. My winged visitor stayed for a long time even when let myself inside my apartment and going back out later checking on it. I took a photo on my phone, but it is too dark to make out.

I did go out that evening, but when I returned it was gone only to be found on the wall across the way opposite my door before I closed it. It demanded to be recognized. I thanked it for visiting and went inside. Since then only good things keep coming around. I even found a new playmate to start chasing new species of dragonflies on his island. That will be fun!

Dancing with Dragonflies

Not So Pearly Shells from the Ocean (Sungka)

Sunka or Sungka (Filipino Shell Game)

Sunka is one of my favorite games to play. Cowrie shells (sigay) are used to play this two-person game. Some might see this as similar to Mancala game, but I've never played it. Sadly, I don't have the small shells so I've used this carved wooden game board as hanging decoration. I've asked relatives and friends who have gone back to the Philippines to bring me some, but they always forget. Well, at least the wooden barrel figurines always make it.

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UPDATE: My blog has been receiving a lot of hits on "sunka game" searches so I thought I'd help out with this:

SUNKA SHELL INFO & other Filipino Games (see #12)
by Artemio C. Barbosa
(http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about_cultarts/articles.php?artcl_Id=10)

12. Sunka or chongca, sungca, sunkaan, sunca, tsunka (board game) - This is another set of game widely distributed in the country and the rest of Southeast Asia. This game is played both outdoors and indoors and is played by both children and adults. This is played by two players with a wooden pea-pod shaped board with seven small holes in rows on each side, and a big hole on each end filled with an equal number of 'sigays' (small shells). Each player takes turns picking up from any hole on his/her side, putting one 'sigays' in the small/big hole to his/her left, then picks up all the 'sigays' from the last hole that the last sigay is put and places them in the big hole to his/her left. This is repeated until one person no longer has any 'sigays' to play with and is declared the loser. The person with the most number of sigays is declared the winner.


Sungka or Chunca Instructions

Sungka Game from WikiManQala

Buy Sungka Board & Shells Here

Count and Capture Boards



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Not So Pearly Shells from the Ocean (Sungka)

Roll Out the Barrel

Barrel Men, Book on Philippines, Filipina Doll in Traditional Dress

Barrel men are naughty novelties. If you pull off the barrel, the man's gigantic wooden 'member' springs out. It can be quite shocking to the unsuspecting person. The larger one closer to the left is a barrel woman. Yes, her 'bodacious tatas' spring out too. What? They were given to me -- not displaying them would just be too rude! (..that's my story.)

Roll Out the Barrel