ebony and ivory

My cute pamangkins - Clea Elexene and Clyron Elijah - while taking a bath.

Mag-iisang taon na, nami-miss ko pa din sila...

the weekend that was oct 25-26

Late na akong umuwi (ay early pala, early morning hehe) kaya inabot na ako ng 11 AM sa kama. (Oo, nakakahiya talaga ako!) Nag-lunch at umalis papuntang Naic, despedida ng pinsan kong balikbayan na si Dixon. Merienda ang hinabol namin, siyempre ngluto si Nanay ng pansit luglog. Namit! Dala ni Tatay ang tricycle kaya dumaan na lang kami kila Irvin to pick up our laundry. Sumama akong umuwi sa Salinas para dun matulog, magbasa ng libro, mag-internet at ang aking favorite - mamalantsa.

Linggo. Nagsilbing alarm clock na naman ang boses ng Tatay ko, sabay naglambing..."Ay nako, anak, soooorrrrrryyyyy..." Hehe! Okey lang naman sa 'kin, mas maaga akong nakapag-internet. Siyempre, chat with Ate. Sobrang tuwang-tuwa kami kay Lex, as in! Ipo-post ko na lang sa mga Lex Kulet moments nya. Siyempre, just in time dumating ang aking esposo...just in time for lunch. Maaga din kami umalis sa amin (how sad) dahil madami pa kami pupuntahan - SM Bacoor, Suzuki Center, Lotus Mall. Haaay.

again

It happened again. Overtimes and working weekends are blowing the sanity out of me. I am reminded of those days when I was on the auditing field. But no, I don't want it to happen again.

My company is adapting a new SAP environment and me and some of my colleagues are doing the validation of the migrated balances from the old SAP to the new SAP. Basically, what we are doing is comparing the balances per High 4 and per Hyperion in the new SAP against the reported balances in the old SAP. Any discrepancy is to be adjusted to tie the balances up. Too technical?

The validation thing I mentioned earlier is one thing and turnover is another. As I am moving to a new process, I am currently turning over my processes to a colleague and my other colleague is turning her processes over to me. And my mind is filled with to do's, reminders and post-it's. Too confusing?

It has been a long time since I have overworked. By overworked, I meant overtimes extending up to 12 MN or so, that the husband need to leave the house by 11, pick me up at 12, watch me sleep at the passenger seat and stop over at McDonald's for a midnight snack. I meant, waking up at 5:30, prepare myself fast so that I and my brother-in-law could catch the shuttle service and sleep during the trip on the way to office. I meant, not having enough time to browse the internet to check out the latest showbiz buzz or my personal mail and to run through my monthly budget to see if I have overspent. I meant, not having enough sleep to avoid the pesky migraine. I meant, less time to spend quality time with my parents on weekends and with my in-laws on weeknights. I meant, missing Irvin and the serious talks and the nonstop laughters.

And I miss myself and my books and my scrapbooking materials and my desktop.

But one day, this shall pass. And I will be me again, and a full-time working wife and daughter again.

thought for today

Thanks, Bernadette!

bake and churn

Mga friends, my sister-in-law has just opened her franchise of Bake and Churn last October 10 sa SM Bacoor, LGF, katapat po ng Smart (parang ganito din 'yung text ko ah!). Sa mga curious, ice cream and cakes po ang mabibili dito. Bakit siya unique? Dahil 'yung ice cream nya ay may cake at 'yung cake nya ay may ice cream. O nalito ka 'no? Try mo na lang kasi! Satisfaction guaranteed :)


So bakit ko 'to pino-promote? Trip ko lang, bawal ba? Blog ko kaya 'to!

the weekend that was oct 18-19

With 4 hours of sleep, I woke up at around 6 of Saturday (I left the office at around 12 MN, and as usual, Irvin picked me up). I needed to be up early so I can join Nanay in going to Naic for the final rites for Mama Jun. It was sort of a reunion for me, I met my balikbayan cousin Dixon for the first time. We had a nice lunch. It's sad, not all of my cousins were there. We were home by around 2:30 PM.

The weather has been fine lately, and today it's actually super hot. While Nanay and Tatay are taking a nap, I read my newly bought Pugad Baboy XX. I just bought it yesterday (thanks to Marie for lending me money hehe). I was actually reading it that morning, around 2 AM, but since Irvin cannot sleep with the lights on and with me laughing silently beside him so I just had to put the reading on hold (hmph! :P).

Irvin picked me up at around 5 PM, we'll be going to SM for the 2nd of their 3-day sale. What did we get? A pair of shoes from Celine and Irvin got 3 new pants (1 is for Bryann…sembreak gift…hehehe). Irvin and I had dinner at Malen's. Irvin has been bugging me with this Malen's thing for some time now, he misses the Roast Beef platter. Ate introduced Malen's to us, a restaurant serving both Pinoy and Italian cuisine with a very private ambience. It's quite pricey but we simply miss Malen's and the good ole' times we have had (I also miss Ate because I know she misses Malen's too). Too bad, I left my camera in the car. We went back to SM (for dessert…harhar). Then, Irvin dropped me off at my parents', and I enjoyed my night watching Sports Unlimited in Puerto Princesa, Palawan (I loved the dolphin-watching part), ironing clothes (therapeutic for me…) and reading Pugad Baboy.

Sunday. I woke up to the noise of who else??? When I got up, Nanay scolded Tatay haha! Luckily, and amidst the sweat, I managed to go back to sleep until… "Neng, bangon na. Mainit na!" It's 10:45 AM. I immediately logged in to YM and chatted with Ate. Irvin came just before lunch. We, together with Nanay, went to Nanay Petang's wake. I remember my Tatay, he would always commend Nanay Petang for her motherly support for them especially when Nanay gave birth to Ate and he would always say that we should never forget about her. We always find time to visit her during Christmas or New Year and it's sad that she has now passed away. My family will always owe her a debt of gratitude.

We left the wake at past 3 PM and had merienda at home. It looked like it will rain so we left at around 5 PM to go to Tanza. With Kishie, Bryann, MJ and Nana, we went to SM, ate at KR and went home at 11 PM.

Restful weekend, eh?

the weekend that was oct 11-12: overdue

Saturday is an unofficial workday for our team so nakakalungkot mang isipin, kailangang pumasok. Buti na lang libre ang breakfast (Chowking), lunch (North Park) and merienda (Yellow Cab), hindi na masyadong nakakalungkot. OO na! Pagkain lang ang katapat ko!

Sinundo ako ni Irvin at umuwi sa kanila at pumunta ng SM para mag-moral support sa bagong open na store ni Ate Sette - Bake and Churn! Friday nag-open 'yung store at dahil mahirap ang biyahe ng Friday, muntik na akong masarahan ng SM. Buti na lang, charming ako, pinapasok pa din ako ng guard (with an angelic face at paawa effect na line, "Manong, naiwan ko po 'yung cellphone ko sa isang stall sa baba!" which is not a lie dahil naiwan ko talaga). Siyempre suki na ako. At kahit 'yung tatay ko na maarte sa pagkain, sarap na sarap! So ano pah?! Text brigade sa friends for them to try it, a MUST-TRY item, really! (Wala po akong komisyon…) Inabot na kami ng closing ng SM, uwian na!

As expected, maaga kaming nagising dahil na naman sa bibig ng tatay ko (minsan gusto ko ding tinotoyo siya para sa saglit n katahimikan…ooops, be careful what you wish for). Happy naman, chat with Ate, lunch, plantsa, TV. Sinundo na din ako ni Irvin around 8. :)

Pahinga na, closing na naman e!

happy thoughts!

Haaay, ilang weeks na akong puyat at pagod dahil sa OT at working weekends. Kailangan ko ng inspiration!

1. Late night/early morning drive from Makati to Cavite with Mi Amore (after more or less 16 hours of work…whew!)
2. Manhattan meatlovers pizza and Charlie Chan pasta (Diet? Ano 'yun? LOL!)
3. Bake and Churn ice cream cake (Uy promote, promote!)
4. 3-Day Sale at SM Bacoor this coming weekend (kahit walang pera)
5. Weekend "homecoming" and chat with Ate

photo journal: one fine afternoon

more of my snapshots on: http://enelie14.multiply.com/photos/album/6/Snapshots_2008

not another farewell video

Last weekend, I was gathering various materials for a video I am doing - pictures, video clips, music files. Yes, another farewell video for a friend.

I was lucky to have a unique set of friends like them. I have other set of friends, and I love them just the same. It's just that, maybe we met at a time when each of us needs someone to lean on. And I would say, a friendship established on necessity is different. We do not have the same likes and dislikes and we do not share a lot of things in common. We have distinctive opinions and peculiar thoughts. But friendship is one thing that holds us together.

We collectively call ourselves AMASE, which we based on our initials. A very high school-ish thing. We met as auditors in a large auditing firm. AMAE are schoolmates, AMAS are batchmates, AMA are classmates. An all-girl group born on the same era with uncommon personalities. So how did we get along? Working overtime and overnight, working weekend, late night discussion about taxation, financial statements, accounting standards and cash flows. Also, movies, videoke, pig outs, lotta laughters and tears, blooming love life, break ups. And along the way, we get to know each other better and understand and respect our differences. Along the way, we establish a more solid bond that, hopefully, would not fade with time and distance.

I'm not sure when will we be complete again, when we can hug each other again. Only time can tell...only time.

lex kulet 7

Mommy: Lex, what's your favorite vegetable?
Lex: 'Yung tree.
Mommy: Hindi naman vegetable 'yung tree e.
(Lex gets brocolli from the ref.)
Lex: Eto, mommy, tree!
:: FYI po, ang brocolli ay ang newest breed of bonsai. ::

~ * ~ * ~

Mommy: Lex, itaas mo nga 'yang zipper ng pants mo!
Lex: Mommy, sabi sa computer "zippah!" Hindi zipper.
:: Mommy, check with Webster naman kasi muna, okey?! ::

~ * ~ * ~

Kaka-birthday lang ni Lex kaya may bagong lesson. Tinuturuan siya ni Mommy na four years old na siya.
Mommy: O Lex, how old are you?
Lex: I'm three years old.
Mommy: E di ba, four ka na, hindi ka na three. (Medyo naiinis na.) Ano ba ang susunod sa three? Lex: Years old!
:: Makulit na naman si Mommy e, three years old nga. Di mo ba narinig? ::

the weekend that was oct 4-5

I planned to make my weekend as meaningful as possible (could be the last non-working weekend I'll have in the coming days).

Saturday. Irvin dropped me off at our house on his way to work. And then it began…the nonstop chika with my Nanay (most of the chika is about my Tatay's tantrums) and my Tatay's moodswings. But lo and behold, Tatay's sky changed from gray cloudy to clear blue upon hearing Lex's voice. Ate and I (and Nanay and Tatay) had a chat for more or less two hours. That afternoon, we went to Nanay Areng's birthday. It's my usual Saturday night minus Sports Unlimited - ironing clothes, chatting with Nanay, net surfing, blogging, blog-hopping, updating my Multiply.

And one of the best moments of today is I get the chance to chat with my very good friend Nonoy. I miss you, Noy! Mwaaah!

Sunday. Had a chat with Ate (she really can't get enough of the chika) and my non-biological hipag who I also miss, Paula. Ate showed me their new 40" Sony Bravia LCD TV (yeah, she's bragging...sshhhh). And it came with a free home theater system. Now that's cool!

That afternoon, I prepared for another bonding time with my SGV friends, Agnes and Leng. Leng will be going abroad soon so we set this meeting up to bond with each other.

We ate at Carlo's Pizza (pizza, pasta and appetizer), had picturetaking (care of Mi Amore, salamat!), Starbucks (coffee, frappe and cake). And of course, chika every now and then! (Ooops, just revealed a very juicy item to Leng, har har!)

Well, it would take time before I upload all of the pictures in my Multiply so 'yan na lang muna. I also am contemplating on updating my Facebook account...hmmm...let me think about it.

and i love you...bestfriend

We have been calling each other "bestfriend" for years. We share secrets, problems and solutions, defeat and triumphs, ups and downs. We're sometimes mistaken as lovers because of such closeness but we don't care about such rumours. There were even times, I remember, we thought that it was you and me against the world.

That is why we call each other "bestfriend" right? We gave each other a friendship that we could treasure for the rest of our lives. We both know that our friendship knows no boundaries and no limits. We endured trials and battles that tried to ruin our friendship. No storm would come and no walls could be built between us.

I remember, one time, I was sitting alone underneath a tree, you came and told me your deepest feelings. You said you love me more than a friend. And you want me to share a life with you. You said we're going to have a relationship far more joyful than friendship. You said we'll be going to a place where no one would judge us and we'll live happily ever after.

Enough for my imagination.

I have learned to accept the fact that there's no love existing between us except that of a friend. You started to tell me about the girl you fell in love with. You can't help but smile upon mentioning her name. You tell me how beautiful and gorgeous she is, how sweet she is. You tell me, word for word, your conversation with her. You tell me everything about her.

I listened with no judgement, no criticism, no opposing remarks. Everytime you tell me about the girl, it strikes me through the heart. But there's nothing I could do. So I just gave my sweetest smile and gave you words of encouragement to at least make you happy.

But I must admit that there are times when I feel your love around me. You even said we're "secret lovers." But at my present stage of confusion, I'd rather say we are friends than lovers.

And I would like to thank you for your deep down friendship and for everything in between. I do not expect anything from you except your friendship. You have taught me what I ought to know about life. I know that someday, somewhere, people and circumstances would understand us.

And I love you, bestfriend.

:: Published, The Crosier (Official Schol/Community Publication of Saint Augustine School), January-March 1998 ::

(FYI: This is an old material which I have written when I was in high school.)

the weekend that was sep 27-28: overdue

Quite a normal weekend for me, congratulations!

I woke up at around 10:45 AM, Irvin went to the office while I dreamt of candyland and enchanted forests and fairy tales. I think we came home at about 4 AM so he let me get some rest and sleep. I was texting him when I felt my boxed up world shake. Is it an earthquake or do I need more sleep? I texted Irvin and went outside. His text confirmed that an earthquake did occur. He fetched me from their house to bring me to ours and have lunch. And then I let him go home. My mother understood how tiring my week was so she did not let me iron clothes, yehey! I slept, surfed the net, slept (again), watched TV, slept (oo nga).

Sunday mornings are one of the best times of the week. We chatted with Ate and Norly and Lex with the 2 boys. Right after lunch, we went to SM with Nanay and Tatay and ate at Lydia's before going home. :)

the weekend that was sep 20-21: overdue

Saturday. Went to the office to work. Period.

Sunday. Working from home. Period.

Does it look like I don't want to talk about my weekend? Yes, you got it. This is the most boring weekend I had for some time now. Breathe in...breathe out...happy thoughts!