September Summer

I cannot wait for the 20th to arrive! Babe and I took a three-day leave from the office to spend with his village friends in Puerto Galera. I know it’s a little odd, being in the beach this month. We can only hope it doesn’t rain on our trip. I couldn’t think of a better time to be away from the toxic hole that is our office. I found out I still have 13 vacation leaves left so I’m going to make the most out of it.

I’m not a whiner or anything but I’m amazed with how everyone in the office keeps getting sick! Like me, Meach was diagnosed with kidney stones. Only hers was worse ’cause she had to take a leave for two months as she had the kidney stones removed. So there, all of her tasks except for one, was endorsed to me. Great.

Anyway, the boyfriend and I are doing fine. Lately he’s been really funny. I mean, we don’t fight that much anymore. We do bicker still–like why I always wear slippers, why he’s always so snappy, and other pointless, silly things. This week has been fun for us though. Our officemates say that we are so much alike. Hyper, consistently smiling, and making people laugh. I guess they’re right. We’re both impulsive shoppers too. One night as we were walking to Megamall on our way home, Babe mentioned that he didn’t have anything to wear for his Hong Kong trip. So we suddenly saw ourselves scouring the mall for shirts. He ended up buying two shirts from the same store and a perfume while I bought him one shirt from another store.

October’s coming up and it’ll be a real moolah-sucker. Babe’s birthday is on the 29th–a day before my birthday. Oh dear I’m gonna be broke again.

P.S.
Please ignore how tiny I am in the picture.

Because I Feel Pretty

Some more photos from the Bicol trip. You can check out my Facebook page for more! All photos are taken by Kenneth Gaerlan.

i like my smile here :)

a little flustered

i’m so short

hunchback

i look like a hooker with the butt out

super cheesy

candid

guess why i like this pic :)

A Bicol Wedding

We’re finally back from the weekend wedding in Ligao, Bicol!

traveling with babe is the best

Babe and I initially thought that we wouldn’t make it to the 8:00 PM bus departure in Cubao. Jeck and Ken left the office early because only two of us were allowed to leave early. So Babe and I stayed behind, hoping that we could catch a cab in 5 minutes. As soon as we got out of the building, the rain poured. It was doubly hard to hail a cab but Lady Luck appeared to be on our side as I was able to sweet-talk a driver. By 7:30 PM, we were still in Ortigas and Jeck and Ken kept calling me to tell us to move faster because we were the only passengers missing. At this point, Babe was completely indifferent, preparing himself for the worst–that we would miss Mhay’s wedding. I ignored him because I was still being optimistic that we would make it.

Then suddenly, I saw a bus with a “Mandigma” name in front of our cab. I thought it was a really good sign since “Mandigma” is the last name of Mhay’s fiance. We arrived at the terminal at exactly 8:00 PM. We were the only ones the bus was waiting for. We left the terminal at 8:30 PM and arrived in Ligao at 6:30 AM. A tricycle picked us up and brought us to Mhay’s house for breakfast. The trip was exhausting! Sitting for 10 hours straight with only three stop-overs is torture. It was also super cold that even Babe (who has a high tolerance for the cold) needed to wrap himself in two towels.

babe, jeck, ken at may's house. they still had the energy to pose for the camera

After a cup of coffee and a light breakfast, Mhay brought us to the Twin Peaks Resort, where the reception will take place. We have a nice room booked there which was spacious enough for the four of us. More food arrived as we settled in our room. We dozed off for a couple of hours and woke up by noon to another meal sent to us by Mhay.

the view from our room (this is the mountain/volcano beside Mt. Mayon)

Before the wedding at 3:00 PM, Jeck and Ken bought a three Red Horse Grande for us. We had a couple of glasses before we all got ready for the wedding. It rained really hard a little after lunch. I was super worried because there were no cemented pathway to the reception area. In front of us is a wide open muddy area. I was thinking of wearing my flip-flops instead of my heels for the wedding since I didn’t want to look like I raced against a carabao before heading to the church, right? Good thing Mhay had one of her relatives pick us up from our room to the church.

still in slippers

By the time we arrived at the church, the ceremony had already begun. We sat at the back of the church. I was kind of sad that we missed Mhay walking down the aisle. Anyway, Mhay looked really pretty. My mind couldn’t help but wander what dress I’d be wearing, what I’d look like and stuff when it’s my time to walk down the aisle. I told the boys a story (I’m not sure how accurate it is) that only girls who are virgins should wear a veil on their wedding day, or something like that. Babe asked me if I’d wear a veil when it’s our time to face the altar. Hahaha. I said, “of course!”

at the church

We left the church early so I could change into my flip-flops. It was a challenge to walk around the resort with my heels on so I really had to change into my flip-flops. Anyway, the food was great. The people were simple but really nice. By the way, I caught the bouquet. I know Mhay intentionally threw the bouquet towards my position. Babe was forced to participate in the garter toss because I caught the bouquet. Haha.

guess who caught the bouquet

We had a couple of drinks after the wedding and returned to our room. We brought more beer and just talked. The newlyweds visited us in our room and shared a few laugh. Emman, May’s husband, is a nice guy. She’s in good hands. We woke up the next morning to a cloudy day. We were hoping to take a photo of Mayon volcano the day we arrived in Bicol but the clouds were in the way. May’s uncle picked us up and brought us to the town center to book our tickets. We also bought goodies for family and friends back home. When we got back in our room, we took pictures of the Mayon volcano.

Mayon volcano

Ken has the prettiest pictures from the trip. I’m still waiting for him to upload ‘em.

A Very Happy Weekend in Laguna / Ugh!

So I’m back from the office barkada’s quick getaway at JC Manzano Private Pool in Laguna. The weekend has been filled with drama and I won’t disclose the details. We all shelled out more than 3,500 pesos per person. Borrowing Sir Ron’s words, “nagtapon tayo ng pera.”

Remember how I said that we were supposed to be nine people in this trip? Well, that didn’t materialize as well. You see, Ms. Apple and her boyfriend were supposed to arrive on Friday night. But they were a no-show. All our food and alcohol were with them. So when we arrived at the resort on Friday night, we had no grub at all. We were already foreseeing that they won’t show up on time so we bought several snacks, and alcohol too.

The place was really nice. More than twenty people could have comfortably stayed in the resort but we were only six people. We immediately abused the videoke machine and downed the bottle of tequila that Ken brought with him. Sir Ron also whipped up a cocktail that was consumed in no time. We drank, sang, and had a great time until the wee hours of the morning. The sun was already up and we were still frolicking in the pool. We slept at 6:00 AM and woke up at around 11:00 AM on Saturday.

Ms. Apple and her boyfriend were still a no-show. We were all very, very hungry. I can go by a day without eating much but I tell you, it was the first time that I felt that hungry. Sir Ron and Sir Kelly eventually left the resort to buy us food and rice from a nearby Andok’s. We devoured the food in minutes.

By 2:00 PM, there were still no Ms. Apple and her boyfriend. We were already quite pissed because our 3,000 pesos worth of food were with them and we already wasted more money buying food.

By 3:00 PM, they eventually arrived. Nobody had the energy to be enthusiastic about their arrival because we were all pissed. We were just happy that more booze arrived. And then to add to the piss-filled trip, Ms. Apple told me that they won’t be staying with us until Sunday after all. They had to go home. They left at around 5:00 PM if I’m not mistaken. The sun was still up when they left.

Despite the drama, we all had a good time. I just don’t understand why a trip that Ms. Apple plans somehow always end up getting cancelled or whatever. Haha. Remember our Puerto Galera trip last March? We planned it just a couple of days after Ms. Apple backed out but everything went so smooth.

Moving on to the positive things of the trip, we all had a blast. The boys played basketball in the pool while I sang to my heart’s content and to the boys’ dismay. Haha.

Come November, we’ll be heading to Baler (Sir Kelly’s hometown)! Sir Kelly told me this: “‘Yung original na tropa na lang para walang sabit.” I told Sir Kels that he doesn’t have to worry about us backing out in the last minute. I always follow through with my words, especially if it’s a travel trip. Ken, Jeck, Babe, and have never failed anyone when it comes to gimmicks.

Check out the photos below!