Long and Quick 31 Days of July

I’ll go through the weeks quickly and go through the highlights mostly by memory. Interestingly, the month went by so quickly but it felt so long. I don’t know. I even lost the habit of updating my daily log excel.

The month started in a weekend and that Saturday night was the night of the CVP concert. It was good and I’m glad my parents and tita chato got to see it. We had roof repairs that Sunday while mhae was away for Tito Fely’s wake and funeral. I wish I had attended but I guess it would have been too tiring and i think I was productive enough where I was.

At work, busy/pressured/relaxed as it is, we got to do a couple of Dunkin Donuts Mondays before Napster’s goodbye to DCCD. And speaking of goodbyes, I quite said goodbye to my Z1compact by buying an Xperia XA1 as a temporary phone. I’ll hand it over to mhae once and if a compact Xperia will be released later this year. I did get to fix my Z1compact after a couple of weeks with the new phone and I’ve successfully transferred the very important candy crush settings to the new phone. All is well.

Mhae is back to school for her final year of college. Oh, I got to go to PWU the previous week to accompany her in paying for her tuition since the check we previously issued was not accepted. I got to request an updated checkbook soon after. By end of the week, DCCD Choir practices culminated with our sevice for the company’s 60^th Anniversary Thanksgiving Mass.

One of the most anticipated days of the month was Yaluts’ and Cata’s wedding. As far as I’m concerned, all went well despite the changes in the ceremonies and the schedule adjustments. I’m still quite in shock that Yaluts is already married. Miro’s engaged. Next year… Anyways, work’s been pretty pressurized this month partly due to my procrastination and some proposal deadlines. Nonetheless, I think I was productive enough. It’s great, too, that even though we were busy, mhae and I got to go on some carinderia / takeout / movie / home movie dates and an uling roasters chicken hunt (we got successful just last Saturday). Long and quick month indeed.

Backup, 3, 2, 1, Habol

Medyo tulad ng simula ng buwan ng Mayo, nagsimula ang unang Linggo ng Hunyo ay ipinagdiwang na nagsimba kasama sina mama at papa. Syempre, kasama si mhaelord, pero hindi kasama ngayon sina ate. Kapistahan ng Pentekostes, at gaya ng nakagawian, nagsimba kami sa Espiritu Santo sa Maynila. Dahil maaga pa para sa susunod na Misa, dumaan muna kami sa Alvarez at Felix Huertas, kung saan nagsimula ang pag-iibigan nina mama at papa. Hahaha. Natutuwa ako sa mga family bonding na kasama si mhae. Medyo nakakahinayang na wala si ate pero kahit papaano, nakapag-bonding naman kaming pamilya dati bago siya ikasal. Noong gabi naman bago iyon, bale Sabado nang gabi, nataong may street Mass dito sa area namin. Dahil hindi na aktibo ang dating taga-tugtog, napilit ko ang sarili kong mag-gitara para sabayan si mhae sa pagkanta. Nakakatuwa na nakakakaba. Noong umaga naman, nagdiwang kami ng 70th birthday ni Tita Vita. Masaya at nakakabusog. Tila paatras ang kwento ko, ah. Di bale. Ayun, nung Biyernes, nakakabadtrip ang panalo namin sa basketball. Ok na rin, hindi naman ako makikinabang pag pinairal ko ang inis. Buti na lang may minion happy meal na sinimulang kolektahin noong araw bago iyo para malibang ako. Yun at yung movie date namin ni mhae. Nanood kami ng wonder woman. panalo yung pelikula, at tuwang-tuwa talaga ako pag naeenjoy ni mhae ang mga pinapanood naming sine. Pasulong naman sa oras, pagdating ng Lunes, natalo naman kami sa chess, pero panalo pa rin kaming semp division dahil sa pagkakakuha pala namin ng 2^nd place sa chess, na-secure ng chess team ang pagiging overall champion.

Nagkaroon ng MM meeting at mukhang umuusad naman sa tamang direksyon. Medyo mabagal lang pero mas maayos naman sa nakasanayan. Ang medyo hassle noong Biyernes na yun ay ang pagsimula ng pagsakit ang tuhod ko. Buti na lang at walang pasok sa parating na Lunes at wala namang masyadong lakad noong weekend. Ang pelikula namin noong Sabadong iyon ay Rogue One…sa laptop. Ayun, natutuloy naman ang monthly Star Wars movie time. Pagdating ng Lunes, sinamantala ito ni mhae para makapag-grocery sa puregold. Tamang-tama, pagaling na ang tuhod ko noon at kailangan din atang i-exercise. Para sa lunch, nag-uling roasters kami—bagong paborito. Sinubukan namin pagkakain kung may sale sa SM pero tuwing Huwebes lang pala (hindi namin na-avail), pero marami rin kaming napala—mexicalli meryenda, national bookstore trip para sa book ends ni mhae at parker ni ate. Isang gabi naman, sa bahay, bago mag-rosary, nakakatuwa ang mga kwento nina mama at papa. Isa sa mga kwento ay yung kung paano maglagay si lolo tatay ng white flower sa ngipin ni papa gamit ang toothpick. Nagkwento rin uli si mama tungkol sa mga panahon ng pagpapasalubong ni papa ng mga tsokolate. Mahigit isang linggo na rin mula noong huling laro sa chess kaya tinuloy ko na ang pagpapa-pizza para sa chess team. Sinamantala ko ang pagkakataon para iparating sa kanila (at ipagdiinan sa sarili ko) na sobrang halaga ng pwesto ng chess team para makuha namin ang overall championship. Pagdating ng Biyernes, nag-movie night na naman kami ni mhae—Despicable Me 3. Panalo na naman sa saya ng pelikula.

Siguro ang pangalawang kalahati ng buwan ay nailaan sa (mabagal na pagtapos ko ng) trabaho. Hindi na nga ako sanay o excited man lang sa matinding trabaho. Ok na rin ang pagtawag sa akin ni Sir Felix para sa medyo madaling pag-check ng mga plano para sa bahay na pinapatayo niya. Siguro may trauma rin dahil sa alitan nina boss dan at sir git bandang simula ng buwan na medyo naipit ako. Medyo lang. silang dalawa na rin ang nagkaayos. Hindi na ako dinamay. Medyo naging sideline ko rin ang pagkuha ng retrato ng ilang choir para sa multimedia presentation. Sa opisina naman, sa medyo pag-distract ko sa sarili ko dahil nahihirapan akong pasimplehin ang kumplikadong proposal para sa isang kliyente, tinuloy ko na ang paggawa ng “partial redundant” server ng stfiles. Para rin kasi mas hindi hassle sa akin na madalas tawagan dahil hindi nila ma-access ang file server. Dahil tag-ulan na rin talaga, naisipan namin ni mhae na mag-ramen. Matapos masaktuhan ng dayoff nila noon sabadong iyon at mataunan na sumakit ang tiyan ko isang hapon, nakapag-ramen takeout kami sa aligato. Nag-Fathers’ Day din noon, medyo bitin na rin dahil wala na si Tito Feds, pero masaya pa rin naman ang lunch out at ang relaxed na Linggo. Pagdating ng Biyernes, birthday naman ni Tito Nonong (at tapos na rin ang mabilisang tampuhan nina mama at tita). Isang nakakatuwang aspeto sa araw na yun ay ang bonding ni mhae kasama sina ate at mama. Lumabas sila para ihanap si mama ng damit para sa parating na kasal nina yaluts at cata. Natatawa ako pag naaalala ko yung pagdalaw nung dalawa para iabot ang imbitasyon namin at para pormal na hingin kay mama na mag-ninang sa kanila. Para sa akin naman, sa wakas, wala na yung credit insurance sa Citibank at na-reverse ang annual fee para sa cebu pacific card.

Pagdating ng huling Linggo ng Hunyo, dumating na rin ang araw ng matagal pinaghandaan nina tita, mga pinsan ko, at kasabwat si mama at si mhae—ang surprise 70^th birthday party ni Tito Nonong. Simpleng medyo mahal na buffet kasama sina Ninang Precy at ang mga ka-close na mga kapatid ni papa at kanilang pamilya. Isa na namang holiday noong Lunes. Napaglaanan ko ng oras ang pagkuha ng retrato sa collection display ko. (mukhang sulit ang pagbalik ni melijoy sa tripod ko, ah.) Nakumpleto ko ang display sa pagbili ng chronicle megatron 2-pack noong simula ng buwan. Palagay ko, tatapusin ko na doon ang hobby ko na yun dahil wala nang space at may pinaghahandaan nga kami ni mhae para sa darating na taon. Isang dekada nga ata yun ng pangongolekta. Nabigyan ko ng oras ang pagkuha ng retrato (at pag-ayos ng mga telephone cord sa may extension) dahil may lakad sina mhae. Pumunta sila para bisitahin si Tito Felly. Ayun nga lang, kalaunan, nagpaalam din si Tito Felly. Ayaw pang maniwala ni mhae. Nalungkot din ako kasi sya yung tito ni mhae na nakainuman ko (kahit papaano) kasama ang papa niya. Sa kabila nito, tuloy ang buhay. Dito sa amin, nag-birthday si adette at medyo nakibirthday ako sa pagbaon ng pancake house pancakes. Busog ako, grabe, noong araw na yun. Sakto pa, nagbaon ako ng kanin at ulam na kinagabihan ko rin inubos. May turks shawarma rin kasi ang mineryenda dahil naisipan ni mhae. Bago matapos ang buwan, naikopya ko rin si mhae ng mga koreanobela mula sa office. May sinimulang kdrama si mhae: My Suspicious Partner. May konting downer nga lang din: Kung kailan nasimulan ko at napatupad kahit papaano ang consistent na pag-backup sa opisina, tsaka naman namroblema dahil wala akong recent backup ng phone kong nagloloko. Sakto rin, kung kailan ko tiningnan sa excel ang tech stuff ko sa nagdaang dekada. Nakakatuwa na nalibang ako sa mani sa ilang pagkakataon (isa kina mhae, isa dito sa bahay) na ayokong mabadtrip sa kalagayan ng phone ko. Kahit may downer, sa pagsasara ng buwan, nakagawa ako ng dalawang draft proposal na sana ay mapasa na sa lunes, at mukhang ok naman ang pag-review ko sa pina-check ni sir felix. At mukhang sa buhay na ito, kahit may mga naka-backup (at hindi naba-backup) na mga bagay-bagay, wala tayong magagawa kundi umusad pasulong.sa mga kailangan at gusto nating gawin at mangyari.

Rise on 5

The month started with resumption of he annual Antipolo trip (since we weren’t able to go last year), and couple of days earlier this time. We went to Antipolo for papa’s birthday on the Labor Day, instead of on the third. We had lunch after the Mass. It was fun, the family, bigger now with the Contis. We did get lunch outside (I took the day off) that Wednesday, his birthday. Before the first weekend, I got to go back to TV5 Phase 2—now complete—to give the Voyager office a look. The floors are still being fitted out by the tenants. I did some load and reinforcement checking later on and initially thought I got things screwed up. It turns out, I didn’t.I finally got the Lego Double Decker couch from the pleasant ebay seller. After Sunday mornign Mass and breakfast, I let Mhae assemble the set. It was really heart-warming on my part to see her so happy building a Lego set. I’m pretty used to it, but this is something she kinda missed as a kid. Looking back, I was really lucky, even with the smaller sets, I got to enjoy Lego, thanks to papa.

I got a notification from Abenson that the bluetooth speaker that we got free from the laptop purchase was already available. Mae and I actually inquired when we went out on Papa’s birthday and it wasn’t available yet—some customs thing. The (mis)adventure the night I got the speaker was that I walked along EDSA from Ayala to Evangelista. I should have taken the bus. Traffic was only upto Arnaiz. I’m pretty lucky, though, that I didn’t get scolded by Mhaelord. Later that week, I saw Mr. Millanes and greeted him. Quick conversation. And somehow highschool-related, Goey already got himself a Ryzen 5 pc. I almost felt bad but I just thought, I’m meant to get that Ryzen 5 CPU eventually. Before the weekend, mama and I got worried when papa wasn’t already home from his Laguna trip. He apparently had a tyre accident, but thank God, no one got hurt. We enjoyed the lomi he bought when he got home. Mothers’ day weekend came and the lunch-out celebration with the Calimon side was pretty simple at Aristocrat—with special reminder of Tito Feds in a butterfly. Later that Sunday, Ate accompanied Mhae and me to Landmark to get the gift mhae picked for mama size-changed. Another really great thing about being with mhae is that she thinks of the special things I don’t really get to give much attention to—like mothers’ day gifts for mama, tita chato, tita fe, and tita trining. The mothers’ day gift from ate was a Dunkin Donut bouquette. I think mama liked it.

Third week started (well, towards the end of that Monday) with me having to play at last for the chess team—something I successfully avoided until that supposed last eliminations game. I lost, but the team still won the game agains EnE. We ended up at a draw with CM, though, so we were set for a tie-breaker the following week. As for basketball, we’re goint to battle for third after we lost drastically to CM. Going back a little, I got to go out of town for a site inspection after seemingly more than a year. Quite relaxing with a nice vacation scenery and almost 4 hours of sleeping travel. Ate’s birthday celebration that Thursday was simple. She celebrated with Buds and mama, papa, and I, along with mhae, celebrated here in Makati. It was also the week for the MM outing and we were in panic mode until the night before. Despite all, I think my companions in the Core made it a success. It was also a nice goodbye to and from Fr. Ting. Personally, I feel so happy that my memory of Monte Vista is now more about the Music Ministry, and a day I spent with mhae—who was also very helpful to the core even more than me. It’s also heartwarming to get to be with the active members of PEMC after we officially dissolved, and seeng former companions in SMC, still active in the MM as a whole. And the choir family thing didn’t end that Saturday. It was followed-up by a meeting Kuya Jonathan, Daisy, and Marly. We had lunch at dampa and a movie at MOA. Fun bit that day—Yaluts cameo at McDo Evangelista. SMC is much more of mhae’s choir family than I got to get connected myself. But still, it’s nice to spend time with good friends.

SEMP Chess team finaly goes to the finals after tie breaker against CM. I was fortunate enough to not need to play. I was in corparate attire that day for the photoshoot/acting with the NBAQ4 team. I think that helped get me distracted from thinking about the game. Isang linggong kabado. It’s kinda sad, though, that despite that win supposedly erasing the doubt of our team’s ranking, negativity and bitterness still shows up. Oh well. On lighter stuff, G69 viber group chat got a bit computer-related (as I noticed, since that when I usually participate) with a bit of wedding (yalut’s) discussions. Moving on. Wednesday that week was great. Third time’s a charm with my call to gigahertz and learning that the laptop (that was not ready on my first call two weeks before, and long fixed but not ready by my second call the week before) was already available for pickup. I went ahead on taking the afternoon off from work and not telling mhae of my trip to megamall, passing by the house because I didn’t bring the receipt with me. It was the feast of Mary Help of Christians, and I consider that a gift from her intercession—that I see mhae so happy and even more inspired to do her schoolwork. Oh, and it’s a personal miracle, that I celebrated that day, that I finall found a seller who offered Ryzen 5 outside of a bundle. Back to the ASUS laptop, mhae planned to do some feasibility study work here at home after we sang in church for the feast day. My heart was filled with gladness at the sight of her joy in seeing our laptop fixed. I think I was happier to see her happy. And she was really really happy. We worked until dawn on formatting their paper. She even missed class the next day. There was more feasibility study stuff though the weekend, including a trip to RP for their group meeting that Sunday. As for office work for me, there was sufficient masinloc progress and the month-long billing was quite easier this time around.

The title is supposed to be a pun on ryzen 5. Oh well. Cutting it short, this past Monday’s Ryzen build was really satisfying. I got to upgrade at last, and deciding to not go for aftermarket air or aio liqiud cooling kept the cost around the nominal 69k. My PC-69 plan 6 years ago actually happened. I’ll eventually go above but it’s amazing still. I have yet to re-activate Windows but I’m ending with a happy note. And the month closes. I got to sing for the Flores de Mayo celebration before fetching Mhae at the LRT. Prayers are with her for their defense tomorrow. It’s nice to have the month bookended by Masses. Oh, and this month was really special as planning for August 2018 has started.

Normal na Paganda, Parang 4x4…?

Nagsimula ang buwan sa isang MOA trip dahil sa pinabibili ni gengen kay mhaelord (na meron pala sa waltermart). Ayos lang, nakabili naman kami ng mga chucks, 10% off, may premyo pang sm gift check. Nagsimula na rin ang pagsosolo ni mhae sa apartment dahil sa bakasyon na nina aboy at bonbon at sa boyfriend na namamalagi si kr—minsan na lang sa apartment nina mhae. Patuloy ang joint choir practices na tila nama-manage naman namin nang maayos nina pj at mike ruga habang pinamamahalaan naman ni pres froiland ang rondalla. Sa opisina, napaubaya na namin sa accounting ang pag-aayos para sa billing sa masinloc na isang buwan ko ring tinapos. Nagsimula rin ang madalas na malakas na lindol sa pilipinas. Mas isang pagkakataon na nasa amin si mhae, gumagawa ng assignment sa laptop, lumindol. Di ko alam talaga kung anong tamang reaksyon ko sa lindol, pero bilang structural engineer na medyo binasa ang asce-31 at -41, mahalaga ring isipin ang non-structural components na pwedeng mas delikado. At sa wakas nga pala, nakuha ko na ang PRC ID ko at ni king sa robinson’s place. Napaaga ang dating ko, medyo nanghinayang kasi hindi rin makakapunta kay mhae sa school. Nakakaaliw kasi ang bilis. Hindi ko alam kung dahil maaga ako, o dahil mabilis lang talaga. Nakapagpamedical pa ako nung hapon habang nasa raon sina mhae para sa feasibility study nila. Nagsara ang unang linggo ng Abril (sabado) sa isang parish ministry leaders meeting na medyo na-bore ako pero natuwa pa rin ako kasi kasama (kahit hindi katabi) ko si mama. Nakakatuwang isipin na magkatulad kaming naglilingkod sa parokya. Kinagabihan naman, natuloy din ang music ministry recollection.

Holy week. Maayos naman ang pagkanta namin ni mhaelord sa mga Misa sa Linggo ng Palaspas. Lunes, medyo naging hassle ang mga ensayo. Mas napapagod na ako kahit kaya pa. buti kinaya naman. Parang sumobra na rin—hindi na kami nakasama sa parish recollection—pero parang kulang pa rin talaga kaya ayos lang na lahat ng gabi hanggang miyerkules santo, ensayo pa rin. Sa trabaho, marami-rami namang naisarang review report at natapos na rin ang tender sa nbaq4 project—hintayan na lang ng award. Sana panalo. Bago matapos ang Miyerkules Santo, dahil halfday sa opisina, mapalad akong makapangumpisal sa Greenbelt Chapel. Pagdating ng Huwebes Santo, kahit late-late ang mga tao sa practice, natuwa naman ako sa mismong pagkanta. May ilang sablay noong Biyernes Santo, pero pagdating ng Easter Vigil, masayang-masaya ang pagkanta. Sulit na naman ang pagod sa pag-asiste sa mga ensayo. May bonus pa na mini-formation si Fr. Ting tungkol sa diwa ng Sabado de Gloria. Panalo rin sa sweet moments kasama ni mhae. May dagdag na halaga talaga sa amin ang mga mahal na araw. Pagdating ng linggo, madaling-araw, imbis na dumeretsong uwi galing sa paghatid kay mhae matapos ang “noche buena” sa amin, humabol pa ako sa easter party kina kuya alan. Inumaga sa pakiki-jamming (at konting inom) kasama nina henrick, pao, at marami pang iba, with special participation of kuya toyet. Siyempre, para hindi late magising, hindi na lang natulog. Nagpahatid ako kina mhae para gisingin siya para makapag-serve kami. panalo. Nakapag-11am naman ako kasama nina gab at aljay na mga puyat din. Dahil tapos na ang kwaresma, nakapag-softdrinks na ako. Nag-isaw na rin nung hapon, umisa si papa, at ibinili ko na rin ng laman/bbq si mama.

Bagong panahon sa kalendaryo ng simbahan, ang bilis ng pagpasok ng panibagong blessings…sana. Hindi ng lang natuloy ang napag-usapan namin ni arnel (dci) at nung isang senior niya (na taga-bangkal din ata). Di bale, bawas problema. Sa sportsfest naman, nabawi namin ang ranking sa chess dahil na-default na naman ang CW (na una nang na-default sa ENE kaya lumamang sa ranking). Sa sumunod na lunes nga lang ay mahahassle kami dahil sa ka-ewanan habang wala ako sa opisina. Ayoko nang isipin ngayon. Ang malaking pangyayari sa opisina ay ang pagbalik ni boss dan. Yehey! Bawas sa stress sa responsibilidad na iniwan niya sa amin…na kung tutuusin, kinaya naman. Kabado lang siguro talaga. Patuloy naman akong natutuwa sa kasipagan ni mhae at sa kaunti kong nitutulong sa kanya kasama na rin ng pagiging sulit nung laptop namin. Nagsimula na rin akong bumili ng parts para sa ryzen build ko. Nakipagkita ako sa chowking rufino-delarosa sa isang tpc member na naunahan ako sa pagbili ng g.skill 8GBx2 DDR4-2400. nakatipid ako ng 200 sa original posting at mga 2k sa common price. Napaayos ko na rin ang sapatos ko sa mr. quickie kahit binalikan ko kasi kailangan palang palitan din yung takong (hindi lang yung rubber, pinalitan din ng kahoy yung plastic pala na takong). Ang kwarto ko naman, nagsimula namang umayos kahit gumugulo pa rin talaga. Dahil sa wala nang mga joint choir practice, nahahabol ko na rin ang mga tv show ko sa gabi. Parang back to normal but better ang linggo, kasama na dun ang araw-araw na pagsabay kay papa papuntang opisina. sa barkada, wala masyadong pangyayari bukod sa bday ata ni goey at ni venjo at yung pagkagulat naming 3 years nang kasal sina venjo at cez. Sa choir naman, nagpaalam na ako sa mga kasamahan ko sa pemc pagkatapos ng 11am Mass. Ang pagtatapos ng linggo ngayon, ang pagkasira ng harddrive ng laptop—hindi ma-detect sa bios. Nakakatuwa si mhae, napigilan niya akong mabadtrip nang sobra kahit sobrang lungkot din niya. Gagawin ko sana yung layot nila para sa feasibility. Nagawa ko naman sa desktop (na akala ko ay makupad) bago mag-Wednesday para magamit nila. Naaliw naman ako at matagal na rin kasi akong hindi nag-cad. Nakakuha pa ako pagkatapos ng standard blocks kay fed na gagamitin ko sa pag-update ko ng layout nila.

Nag-absent ako nang lunes para madala namin ni mhae sa service center sa megamall. Inuwi pa rin namin para makapag-backup ako kahit konti lang naman ang iba-backup. Sa pagpunta namin sa megamall, sa wakas, nakapag-zark’s din kami. the greasier, the better. Panalo. Tama nga yung pananabik namin sa zark’s. at hindi lang basta sulit, kasi hindi naman talaga pala kamahalan ang presyo. At ayun na nga, nagka-ewan-ewan sa chess sa office. Maliban sa problemang yun sa opisina tuloy ang trabaho. Sinimulan ko ring gamitin pa ang mga natitirang undertime at budget sa leave, una (undertime), para makapagpadentista, at pangalawa (leave) para makapag-mrt-3-2-1 trip ako para sa techie stuff. Matagal din akong hindi nakapunta kay dra beth dahil sa ka-busy-han sa music min at sa opisina habang wala si boss dan. Ngayon na lang ata uli ako nasaktan sa paggalaw ng ngipin ilang araw matapos ang adjustment. Ang mrt-3-2-1 trip ko naman, para sa pagdala ng laptop sa megamall para sa warranty at pagpunta sa gilmore para sa ryzen build. Excited na ako nung nakuha ko yung motherboard hanggang sa namroblema ako na hindi ko pala mabibili yung ryzen 5 na cpu dahil kalangang naka-bundle sa msi o ecs na board. Sumuko na ako at pinagpasa-kung kailanman ko na lang. sinamantala ko na rin ang pagkakataon para masundo si mhae sa school. Tumambay muna ako sa robinson’s place—kumain sa mcdo, nag-ikot-ikot, bumili ng chicharong bulaklak, at nag-ikot-ikot pa lalo. Wala akong nabili. Ok din, kaso hindi ko na talaga nagagamit yung robinsons rewards card. Pagkatapos ng klase ni mhae, nagkita kami sa 7eleven (na luma, may bago pala sa kabilang side ng taft) at umuwi na. noon ko lang pala siya nasundo sa school nang gabi. Nakakatuwa. Nakakakilig. Natuwa pa siya sa binili ko para sa kanyang bulaklak. Dahil holiday nung Friday, nalipat nang Huwebes ang outing—chillax kaming mga naiwan, napa-lunchout pa kasama ni boss dan. Hindi pa nga pala natutuloy ang lunchout kasama ni bianca kasi hindi kami makumple-kumpleto. Nakwento na rin naman niya na aalis na siya sa smart at magpapatulong sana sa steel structures career niya. Napaayos ko na ang phone ni papa kahit nahassle kasi kinailangan kong balikan. Medyo naantala tuloy ang pag-aayos ko ng kwarto. Ayos pa rin, nakuha ko naman ang phone ni papa at mukhang mas ok na rin na black yung harap kaysa yung dating puti, at napa-grocery pa ako nang konti para sa nachos bilang paghahanda para sa pagbabalik ng laptop. Matagumpay ko ring nawalis ang ilalim ng kama, likod ng coputer table. Nalipat ko na rin matapos ang mahigit 10 taon ang laman nung one one na box. Natagpuan ko rin doon ang mga nawawala kong payslip nung 2012. Kanina, huling kanta ko nang regular nang 11am. Nagsolo ako. Wala namang hinanakit, pagod lang. nagdesisyon na akong ipaubaya na sa iba ang pagkanta sa Misa nang 11am mula sa darating na linggo. Masarap ang sofa-tulog ko ngayong weekend—kahapon, si papa sa kabilang sofa, kanina, si mama naman. Nakapag-dinner na rin kami ni mhae sa wakas ng uling roasters chicken. Masarap din, hindi lang basta pwede na. false advertising. Hahaha.

Kahit may mga sablay, tama nga yung naramdaman ko ngayon buwan—back to normal, but better. Edyo magulo no? magulo nga, pero maganda. Sa papasok na buwan, kahit bukas pa lang o itong papasok na linggo, maraming inaantabayanang maganda—pagkumpleto ng Lego double-decker couch transaction, pagbili ng bagong electricfan (kasi bumigay na yung electricfan ko), pagpunta bukas sa Antipolo, planong family swimming, pag-claim ng naayos nang laptop, posibleng pagbili ng ryzen 5 na wala sa bundle. Mas maganda nga, at normal, kasi normal naman talaga dapat ang pagganda ng bawat araw.

Highlights and Lows in 5-years Month

I don’t really remember if I expected the month to be easy-going or tough—it turns out to be the more of the latter. It doesn’t mean though that it wasn’t a good month, in fact, the toughness made it even more special (cliché or not). I’m quite sleepy and because of how busy days were, I actually didn’t get to update my log/excel journal for the second half.

The month started wih Ash Wednesday and I got to go to Mass in the morning and sang in the evening with a good number of choirmates. I’m not sure if more were appreciative of the old songs I chose for us to sing but I for myself feel good singing them. There were a number of cute food moments at home, and a couple of furniture updates here and in mhae’s apartment. The first week was also basically preparing for work to be left while I went on vacation with mhae in Bicol.

And there we went, to Bicol. It was indeed that relaxing experience I expected with a lot of sleep and the nice feeling of bringing a solar power kit. We met dingdong’s bestfriend who is much like an action hero sidekick;we had a non-perspiring trip to town; I had a couple of playtimes with the kids; and we celebrated mhae’s mama’s birthday with cake and balloons as a surprise mhae planned with her sisters there. The bus trip to and fro was quicker than they used to be and apparently, so was the vacation.

It’s not as heavy as it sounds. It’s that work go harder as soon as we returned. I was back in the office the morning we returned from Bicol for some NBAQ4 requirements. That was just the start of the headaches and frustrations in that bid-preparation. Fast forward to this afternoon, I think we pretty much settled everything with our client’s Dutch partner. As for the other project that kept me busy, the Masinloc Power Plant was pretty challenging for me since I had to manage it more—including the billing. Again, fast forwards to today, I think we’ve completed as much as what our client wanted. Things did get heavy for me since Boss Dan is in the States since a couple of days after I came back from the province.

Work isn’t the only thing that kept me enjoying rest even more. Officer duties in the Music Ministry cost me a couple of tampuhan moments with mhae and inefficient use of time. At the moment, it’s still quite fulfilling and I’m keeping myself hopeful. The joint choir practices are a step up from last year’s. Sadly, it doesn’t get much better than that with an uninspiring PEMC (though I’d mostly attribute it to the founder).

Outside work and singing, I finally had a haircut and some closure with the late Mang Isko’s status. Well, he’s in heaven now. Mhae and I finally got to see yaluts and cata at the triple birthday celebration after not seeng cata for a long time. I also got to use the lazada voucher although the shelves are still in the sala, unassembled, boxed and bubble-wrapped, quite because my room’s getting more disorganized again. Quite work related, we finally wond 2 games in basketball (I participated in one) and secured 2^nd place in chess (losing to admin.) I still can’t get over the fact that even though we lost that match, the team won the respect of chess nerds at the office. Also, eldrich’s game with mayor—with eldrich losing time, failing to stalemate, and mayor having less than 2 minutes left—was probably the toughest game in the tournament. I did meet some deadlines this week—prc online renewal, metrobank bill, bpi thills jollibee claim, and old-generation bill bank deposits. I also realized hat I didn’t get to keep for myself a 200-peso 69bill—it had 68. Oh well. At least It’s still crisp.

And the highlight of the month—mhae. We did have a number of petty tampuhan moments but more than those, we celebrated 5 happy years together. She’s back in school for her third term this school year. Two more to go after this before graduation. She really is an inspiration to me. We had a simple extended anniversary celebration. Since Friday would be hectic for us both—with her schoolwork and my MM duties—she gave me her gifts the night before. She gave me some pics, a picture frame, a pin/badge, and a trophy plaque. Oh, before that, a few days before, she got be a headbands. We got to see beauty and the beast earlier in the week. The weekend, it was pretty standard except for doing some feasibility study tasks and buying a new 15” laptop. I really think it was a good deal and is going o be very useful for her schoolwork. As the month ends, with me doing one of those short visits to her before dinner, I’m feeling relaxed with life, knowing everything’s worth it, because I have her and she has me, in love.