Bestfriends

Usually on weekend mornings I start reading friend's blogs and recently read my bestfriend's blog.

Eerily enough (eerily??) she wrote the same topic on Heath as I did. I often get goosebumps when something as coincidental as this happens to me. But, for some reason it was just an affirmation of what I knew all along- that all of my bestfriends' (Caris, My, Guc, Arlan, Chiq and Pearl) lives are intertwined to mine. That somehow we've always lived parallel lives.

Case in point, with Caris and My (My is now in San Fro), we were just a bunch of wide-eyed early 20s, naive young girls wanting to live our dreams. We would talk about it over a cups of Starbucks coffee (well, in my case a caramel macchiatto with cinnamon! yum) at Alabang Town Center or the one in front of Ateneo and just talk about our dreams, and how we would get there. Did I think we were nuts? Well, yes. But, I also thought that somehow and in some form our dreams would come true. The first to live their dream was Caris when she hied off to NY and then a year later, My left for San Fro. Mind you these two girls went without a clue what life would bring them. They just literally packed their stuff, took a deep breath (i would assume) and just made the jump. A year after My left and 2 years after Caris left, I left for Oxford.

(Okay, writers sue me if I'm veering completely away from my initial topic)
Let's talk about Caris. I read her recent post and checked out that blog link of a fan. Fan and Caris-- that's strange! Not that I don't think Caris should have fans (I am a fan of hers anyway!), but growing up with Caris in the streets of a middle class subdivision in what was yet the suburban place called Pilar Village, never in my wildest imaginations (and I do have a crazy one, ask her!) did I think Caris would be 'famous' and have fans! It's a bit odd to me really. This girl who wrote the fan mail said that she couldn't believe Caris would reply to emails and that she was happy she did! Caris would so reply to fan mail! She's grateful (I am sure) for the fan mail and I am happy she gets them because she definitely deserves them!

Everytime Caris and I would get to talk (and those are few and far between) we turn into these two giggling girls back and I could imagine us being those little girls from Pilar. I don't really see Caris in that way. And maybe that's a good thing, because she really hasn't changed much ever since she launched her book and became the first Filipina writer to launch in Borders. I still remember the days when Caris was telling me of her plans to write a book (we were in London and Oxford that time, she was visiting me) and I thought she was a bit nuts really (Sorry Caris!, I'm sure you thought I was nuts on several instances as well!). But when I came back to visit her in NY in the summer, she still kept talking about it and we'd chat about it on yahoo and slowly I was seeing the dream turning into reality.

I am relieved though that Caris, despite the fame, is still the same Caris I've known. Back in the days when we would colour our colouring books, talk about cute guys, go through the same hurts and pains and celebrate our little and huge victories. It is the same for all my other bestfriends. For Pearl to have triumphed single motherhood, for Chique to have lived through an awful break-up, marry and have a baby she so longed for, for Arlan to marry his college sweetheart, for Guc and My to finally have found the one for them. I live through my bestfriend's pains and victories, as I am sure they've lived through mine as well.

I may be miles apart from all of them, but my heart i constantly longing for a time to see them again and spend time with them. I miss the long chats and the debates and arguments and then the kainan.

So, thank you God for bestfriends.

Of stars and mortality

Heath Ledger died this week. Why should I care you say? Well, he was as old as me. I was really shocked by his death becauase it made me think of my own mortality.

I've been struggling for a while with whether I should visit Manila and attend a reunion and see my family. I've got 2 weeks of paid leave and need to use them up before the new financial year begins in April. The costs of going to Manila were scary, but after discussing this with Mike-we both agreed that this was good for me (It's not like I didn't have the money, I'm just kuripot in a way).
What does Heath's death have anything to do with my trip to Manila- well a lot! I realised how short life is (such a cliche, but true!) and how money in a bank doesn't always mean happiness. I am most happy when I am with friends and family- and right now I miss them to death. So, yes a little less money in our savings account, mean a little more happiness in my life- hey that's value for money anyway!

What amazed me was how Mike was so understanding. I haven't been on a real holiday since December 2006! Every overseas trip I took was for business and I never really just been on a real holiday. So this is my holiday. Sabi nga nya sa akin " Naku Jan wag ka masyado mag-alala sa pera, meron ka naman enough so gastusin mo yan. Pwede mo naman ipunin ulit yun!" Nawala tuloy yung indecision ko nung sinabi nya yun.

To friends in Pinas who I don't see this time I visit- don't fret! Will be visiting my friends in Cebu in April.

And to Heath- you're a star! Rest in peace.

I've got a student

It's so funny seeing Mike coming home from school every night. We also just received his 18+ Oyster student card (travel card you use for the Transport for London network) and he gets a 30% discount! Yipee! Which means additional savings for every month (well, until he's done with his studies).

Is this really me? My husband agrees. Do you?

You Are An INTJ

The Scientist You have a head for ideas - and you are good at improving systems. Logical and strategic, you prefer for everything in your life to be organized. You tend to be a bit skeptical. You're both critical of yourself and of others. Independent and stubborn, you tend to only befriend those who are a lot like you. In love, you are always striving to improve your relationship. You have strong ideas of what love should be like. At work, you excel in figuring out difficult tasks. People think of you as "the brain." You would make an excellent scientist, engineer, or programmer. How you see yourself: Reasonable, knowledgeable, and competent When other people don't get you, they see you as: Aloof, controlling, and insensitive

What's Your Personality Type?