It's the thought that counts.

Pictures? Pictures! I love pictures! Especially photos of me! Hehe. I do not mind getting a picture of me as anniversary gifts or for any other special occasion. Of course, other things make me happy too, like new gadgets and money (who doesn't?) and jewelry. My hubby once gave me a framed jigsaw puzzle of me...I found that so sweet. Most of the time, I do not know what to give because I focus more on what I think matters (the pricetag?). But having spent so much time with hubs, I realize that clichéic as it may seem, it's the thought that really counts.

My own room.

I never had my own room until my sister moved to Australia to study. That was after she graduated from college. So I can say that I never had my own childhood room. I never got the chance to decorate my own space. I also did not get to choose my own kids bedding(s). So when my sister left and I had the room for myself, I already outgrew kids' stuff. I no longer wish for kiddie things but someday, I would want my kids to have their own personal space. That way, they can practice individuality early on their lives. :)

Warm up!

I am thinking of a vacation while on a vacay myself, hehe. You see, when we arrived here, spring was almost over. And now, summer is very much here. Like today, the temperature is like that of Manila's (but less humid). So it doesn't feel like we are away.

I want to go somewhere else. Somewhere colder and a place where there is an outdoor fireplace. Ane and I would cuddle, drink some hot chocolate and talk about our future. That would be nice and romantic, huh?

Goody-two shoes.

We are four kids in the family. I am so glad that no one among us was ever hooked on prohibited substances. Even cigarettes and alcohol are never present in our social lives. I can consider our early years as very sheltered. My parents were really strict when it comes to going out with our friends.

Looking back, I am thankful that we were properly guided during our younger years. No one needed to go to a drug rehab. It was something we should be thankful for. We simply learned to choose who to hang out with. Our parents are already successful in that aspect alone.

It saddens me though that the drug addiction cases in the Philippines involve an even younger generation, as early as 12 years old! I particularly know of one family whose genius of an eldest son got hooked on drugs. His new peers in the Big City school, pressured him to try it and got addicted. He was sent to rehab and his family decided to migrate to another country.

The examples never end (heck, you can just drive by EDSA and see rugby-sniffing street-kids!). I hope they can still be saved.

A quick one

I consider it still early (been sleeping past 1am for three nights!) yet I am already very sleepy. I feel so tired. So this will be short but contemplative :)

I am sad. And I dunno why. I always always find myself feeling so low with no particular reason. I also feel lazy and bored...I just wanna lie on bed.

Anyway, we went to have my sister's car checked this afternoon (maintenance routine) and while waiting we strolled in Valley Fair. Bought a few stuff to be brought home (Manila-bound in 1.5 weeks!). We dropped by the Discovery Channel store and this Life is Good shirt caught my attention (Ane bought it for me and it is also 30% off!):

And there's another label that says:

I realized everything boils down to the choices I make, ain't it? Makes me wonder: Have I made all the right choices? At the moment, I would have answered: "Not at all". But since God sent me a message today (Life is good!), I will have to sleep for now and maybe all the negative vibes in me will go away when I wake up tomorrow.

But before that, I would like to share with you the conversation we had upon leaving the house earlier. Ane and I saw this outside and it sparked the exchange:

Ane: That's ampalaya! (bittergourd)

Me: No that's patola! (vegetable that makes a loofa..dunno the english word for it hehe)

And then Joaquin came out with his dad, shouting:

J: Hey that's a pickle!

And we all laughed :) Smart, this kid is! But of course it was not what we said it was, those are budding flowers :) Sigh, I miss him already and we are still here! One last thing, if my brother G is reading this, he'd probably be so happy to know that today, we got him this:

It is the latest Paramore CD "Riot" and am sure he can't wait to get hold of it :)

There. Notice I actually uploaded photos, these are from my mobile phone. Hmmmmm...gotta work on the trip pictures soon!

Tata for now.

May he rest in peace.

Last night, I received a text message from Mitch that one of the Members of the Baddicts Lucena Group died of a vehicular accident. Now we don't personally know "Apachi" (his forum handle), but Ane and I felt sad upon hearing the news. Afterall, we consider Baddicts as a second family already (the number of members has grown to thousands since 2004). Apparently, he was riding his motorcycle when he met the accident on Saturday. He was on his way to see his wife and 1-year old son. He was supposed to play at Sta. Rosa yesterday but didn't make it. Ane and I immediately thought of the other motorcycle drivers that are so reckless on the roads and called it a night.

This morning, I was browsing the forum for news and found out that his death wasn't as simple as that. He was found dead, still positioned on his bike and had a stab wound just below his left shoulder. Investigation is now underway so the cause of such wound is still unknown. The family's theory, however, is that he could have passed on a street that had a party going on and someone must have stabbed him for no reason at all...in short, napagtripan...and that he was still able to drive his bike and run-off to save what was left of him. But didn't make it to the nearest hospital.

Incidents like this make me shiver, he died a senseless death.

Please pray for his soul and his bereaved family that they may all have peace.

So true...

I read somewhere that:


The best intangible gift a father could give his children is loving their mother.

Or something to that effect. I forgot who said that but the message rings in my head every now and then that I just have to post it here.