Wednesday, February 25, 2009

conversations

One night, Alex was really sleepy while I was still studying..

Alex: Langga, goodnight. Dream of me tonight.
Rica: What? YOU dream of me.
Alex: That's the plan. (zzzz)

***

Last Saturday, I was torn between going to observe my choir in Palos Verdes church or meeting Alex's dad and brother. They're driving one hour from Lancaster just to see us.

Rica: Believe me, I want to hang out with your dad, but, just curious, are you open to the possibility of me going with the choir while you meet with your dad and brother to have guys' hang out?

Alex: Yeah.(pause) But I won't be happy.

So I stayed and waited for his family to arrive.=)

Friday, February 13, 2009

marriage

Marriage is hard. Now I believe my mom when she told me that.

Do not get me wrong, I do not regret marrying my husband. He's the best for me. I know I could not find anyone who's as nice, understanding, loving, and smart as him. Everybody, including those Filipina women in church, who knows him always tell me, "He's nice. You made a good choice." I know I made the right choice. No doubt about that. But we're still two different people with our own likes and dislikes. Everyday, we communicate. We re-commit. We flirt. We laugh. We hug. Sometimes we argue. We cry. We get tired and frustrated. This is marriage and I am very much ready to continue facing this big forever partnership.

Though I am an optimist, I worry too. And pessimism comes with worry. And when pessimism strikes, it's so hard for me to rise and move on. I sink more than I rise. So starting today, I am going to make changes. I am going to dwell on positive things that are happening everyday in our marriage and the efforts of my husband to keep our love alive.

After all, this is how Philippians 4:8 says. "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

I have realized something since I said, "I do" to Alex on September 12 of last year: Marriage is only for the strong people. I am glad I am married. =)



Happy Hearts day to my provider, friend, confidant, counselor, lover, listener, fan, supporter, partner, and spiritual partner Pierre-Alexander Glaze!

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

i messed up..

it's just very easy to make, but i messed up with my deviled eggs. it's supposed to look like this but mine's just, hmmm..messy and looks lousy.so frustrating.



as usual, alex was understanding about it but i didnt like it. i should have boiled the eggs a little longer, mixed the ingredients more thoroughly.sigh* next time..next time..

Monday, February 09, 2009

25 things

1. I used to have 50+ penpals in elementary and high school. i would not spend my daily allowance for snacks. instead ill use it for stamps. i’d go to the post office during recess to mail my letters. Crazy me.

2. Because I had a lot of penpals, I used to collect stamps from the letters they sent me. It was so fun! I would cut the stamps from the letter and soak them in water to separate them from the envelope. then I’d dry them under the sun. This was my sense of fun.

3. I started getting interested in geography at 10 when miss universe was held in manila in 2004. I was reallya amazed with the number of countries represented by different women with different looks, so I started looking at maps and atlases to locate those places. There I knew there are 7 continents and different cultures from different countries.

4. If I was under College of Social Sciences and Philosophy in college, I’d surely be a Sociology major. If I was into medicine, I’d want to be an OB-Gyne. Don’t know why.

5. I was not a good big sister to my younger siblings. apathetic. But now, we’ve really grown close.

6. after my graduation, I started paying the tuition fees of my younger siblings.

7. tall guys have always been my type, I just did not expect God would give me a 6’7 man. He’s the tallest man I’ve ever seen! Guys who are good in basketball are also my type but my husband doesn’t play the game. He's into soccer.

8. In college, I sold dewberry cookies.hahaha. it's either for an org's fundraising or personal needs.remember, batchmates? gosh, shameful days.hheheeh.

9. i have never liked berries - strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, either the real fruit or flavor.

10. i am a good liar. very good liar.

11. I was a broadcast communication major but ive never worked in productions since graduation EXCEPT when my boss in an ad agency where i worked part time as communication officer asked me to direct and write the script of a PhilSci AVP. it ended really good. the faculty and staff of the school liked it so much.

12. i knew i should have done more productions because i studied them for 4 years but God led me to teaching. I taught one sem in Ateneo de Davao, 3 sems in UP Mindanao, and one full school year in Palau. I taught 6th grade in Palau SDA School, a mission school.

13. I like reality shows - Homeland Security, The Bachelor, Pinoy Big Brother.

14. the best place ive ever been to is palau, a small island in micronesia.it's stress-free, very simple,full of natural resources, ocean and sunset is glorious, clean and marvelous beaches. It’s just wonderful! i had lived without cellphone and TV for a year, and I had never craved.

15. during college when everybody was talking about their plans after grad, i'd plan to go back home because 'davao needs me.' i was known for that line. hahaha.

16. i went to law school for 2months in ateneo. that was a great experience!i liked the adrenaline rush during recits.i liked staying in the library from 7am to 5pm everyday reading and studying and photocopying cases. scra was my bestfriend!!man, i miss those days!well, i stopped due to sabbath probs. sad.

17. without my parents' knowledge, i wrote their love story as an entry to chowking's greatest love story contest in february 2006. a few weeks later, my dad was surprised to have received a phone call from chowking saying they won in a love story making contest. chowking sent us lotsa gift certificates!!!

18. my favorite house chore is folding clothes. lavit!

19. i only learned to eat cereal, spinach, bell peppers, onions, celery, and hot pockets when i arrived in california last year.

20. im enjoying my studies in UP Open Univ very much!!!i didnt expect my gad studies would turn out this exciting!my major is Language and Literacy Educ.

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

another desperate attempts

so last night, i watched homeland security again. my eyes were all on TV, never did I leave even during commercial breaks. I would not want to miss any detail of the show. That's how much I like the show. I can feel thrill, challenge, fun, and seriousness at the same time.

Here are a few of the real-life situations that were shown last night:

1. Puerto Rico is already a US island territory so once you step there, you're already in US, though it's not part of the mainland. 93 Dominicans were spotted on a sinking boat by a high-tech manless plane that has high-end microscopes connected to the Customs and Border Patrol on land. They were headed towards Puerto Rico, hoping they'd get a better life. On their way, winds were strong and waves were angry. Their lives were at risk. US Coast Guard and Customs collaborated to save those 93 people. They sent a bigger boat in the middle of the night and off they headed back to Dominican Republic to return the hopeful illegal migrants. There were mothers and father, young men and women,and teenagers on that sinking boat. Already safe, a few people were interviewed and they said that looking for a better life and future is what pushed them to go to Puerto Rico. They wanted to leave Dominican Republic because there are no jobs there, no future, no improvement. I could empathize with these people.Sigh*

The US Coast Guard learned that the leader of their illegal adventure to Puerto Rico is the man whom they have been looking for since 1998 because of human smuggling, big-time smuggler he is. After arriving in Dominican Republic, ten of the 93 passengers, including that big-time smuggler, were sent back to US for federal punishment because of their criminal records. They're now detained.

2. In Miami airport, while passengers were getting their things from the luggage area, the airport alarm sounded off. All TSA people, Border agents, and other security officials were alarmed and shooed all the passengers to leave the area. A certain travel bag was suspicious. It was the cause of the alarm. They found it and all of them were anxious what's in it. They called a Drugs and Narcotics representative and another who's trained in Explosives. They would not open the bag until those who are called would arrived. Everybody was nervous. They're all serious. What could be in the bag? It could not be something light because the airport alarm went off. They found the owner of the bag and he's a crippled man. He was interrogated and compelled to open the bag. All eyes were on the bag, all mouths shut up, everybody was anxious and silent...they're all waiting for the owner to open his bag. The man's hand went down the bag and guess what he got from down there? Hmmm... A massager!!It was vibrating and so it sent signals around the area which caused the alarm to sound off. I could hear every official made a sigh of relief. The supervisor then shouted, "Everything cleared." And they all went back to their work. Whew.

3. A huge truck was passing by the border of Mexico and Texas. The driver was stopped for inspection. He was detained for a few hours for interrogation because up in his truck, a family was found - the parents and their son. The driver claimed he didnt know anything how the family got in there. Both parties were interviewed separately and the man was released and allowed to go to US after he convinced the Border agents about his innocence. The family, on the other hand, was sent back to Mexico. I cannot believe people can do that, risking a fellow's integrity for their selfish desires.

These are just a few of the stories featured last night. I cannot wait for next week's episode!