2012 Last Post

Oh boy, look at we, about to end the year again. Where did 2012 go? Truth be told, it was a very complicated year. But I'm not here to talk about that. I just want to wish everyone a Happy 2013. I hope that everybody learned and gained something worth it from the past year, whatever it was, I hope we can  use it to survive, improve and enjoy another year ahead. 

So here's something for y'all! I wanted to upload a music box video of Auld Lang Syne but I don't have one. I spent a good time searching the web for a 30-note plingplong template for my DIY music box, but I can't find one, and I don't know how to make my own arrangement YET. So I settled with the good old recorder to play this new year theme. 

I don't know why I have to explain myself like that, but anyway... HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

My Year-end Thoughts

Will you look at that? The year's about to end in less than 10 hours (Philippine time). It seems like only yesterday when I made my 2011 resolutions, now I have to make one for 2012. I looked at at the goals I set last year, now looking back, I'm glad I was able to keep some of them.

I was able to travel and appreciate the Philippines more. I faced my fear of getting my tooth extracted. I managed to give something for charity. I now eat more veggies than I used to (it's still not enough but it's still better than what I used to consume which is close to zero). I bought a bike recently for the purpose of exploring the town more and help me save from Trike fare for my trips to the supermarket, post office and bakery --that makes me physically more active without going to the gym. And, mind you, replacing Tricycle as my mode of transportation helps me save the planet, little by little hehehe.

But I still can't cook. I haven't really gone organic and I'm still have not save. Actually, I did save a little but it's not significant enough to be considered as an improvement. But that's life anyway. I still have 2012 and there's a big opportunity to make up.

I'll probably post my new years resolution next year. Right now, I want to look back on some of the important things that happened.

When I look back at the year that had been, I think of the important people I lost. I lost my uncle, my mother's younger brother, Kuya Al. And though we're not really that close, I can't dismiss the fact that we have close blood ties, thus, he's an important part of my life. When I think about my cousins who lost a father, his wife who lost a husband, my mom and aunts who lost a brother, his friends who lost a buddy-- I get really sad. A few months before he died, he went to the house and we had a little chat together with my younger sister. We were asking him if his son was gay and he said no, that he talked him about it, but his son said no. We joked that he probably scared my cousin, but he was serious when he said that it'll be fine with him if he is gay, that he felt deep sympathy for people who are forced to live a dishonest life to conform with the standards that society had dictated. I regret that I didn't tell him that I'm proud of him, for breaking the macho stereotype of refusing to accept the reality that there are people who are different. He was a great father and his children love him deeply. I know that he's in a better place now with my grandparents and will continue to watch the family he had left behind.

My mom lost a very dear friend who also happened to be my brother's mother-in-law. It was supposed to be an expected passing. Tita Ruby had been sick for a long time and knowing the sufferings that she had to go through over and over, it was best for her to go. But still, knowing that she'll go earlier than any one of us, it still makes no difference. I realized that nothing really prepares us from the pain of losing a loved one. She was a very generous friend to my mom and was very dear to us. It's too bad that she didn't get to see her 4th grandchild, Magnvs Rei, but I know that she looks after him now specially when he has a strong resemblance to her.

Kuya Al, Tita Ruby, we miss you, I will never forget you. When I hear the Auld Lang Syne tonight as we transition to the new year, I will think of you and all the good memories you've left behind.

2011 is not all about loss, while I mourned losing people I love, I also celebrated the coming of the newest members of the family. My cousin Butchoy's girlfriend gave birth to Clyde then my sister-in-law, May, gave birth to Magnvs Rei. These angels (including my other nieces and nephews) from God never fail to make me smile and repel the stressors that prowl me. They are the future carriers of the values and bond that that my family have nourished all these years. May they all grow up like a fine men and women that we became.

When I look back at the things that happened, the good and the bad, I feel blessed in anyway. But when I think of the year that's about to come, it's a mixture of anxiety and excitement. I worry about some scary stuff but I'm also excited for the adventures that await me. But in the end, here and now is all that matters, and right now, I just wanna enjoy the festivities.

Happy new year minna-san! (oh and be safe y'all)

Happy New Year

It turns out that I got lazier than I expected hahaha. I wanted to get on with the updates and here I am, slacking myself off. I don't always get a 3-days off, 2 weeks in a row, so I have to make sure I have something to share. But first...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

We spent the New Year's eve like we used to, though I can't help but notice some changes. This year Pipay was not here but Richard and his family celebrated with us at home -he was with his in-laws last year. This season is generally all about family, it's the time of the year where everyone take it as an opportunity to spend time with their family or loved ones. So I can't help wishing we were complete.

I think that this is the most subtle new year's eve we ever had. It's a lot more quiet than the ones we had in the past. Relatives stopped coming and some neighbors have gone somewhere else-some went abroad to work, while some passed away (the old ones). There was huge noise for the last 5 minutes of 2010 and the first 10 minutes of 2011, the bangs and the booms, the bright flares of fireworks and the smoke, but it was unusually low compared to past celebrations in the neighborhood. Not that it's a bad thing, I'm not a fan of the explosives anyway and I despise the smell of smoke. But I like making noise (using other means, like horn) and watching fireworks.

My mom didn't even cook food, she was tired and ever since she got hospitalized, we were careful not to exhaust her. It's a shame that nobody in the family can cook. Pipay knows how, but then she's far away. I decided that this year, one of the things I should learn is to cook! We ended up buying a Chowking family platter. My Aunt Carmen also shared macaroni soup with us and I bought a chocolate cake from Goldilocks. I made sure that there is something sweet or it wouldn't be a celebration for me.

Things to do in 2011:

#1 Get a "health" cook book.

In addition to that, during the Holidays, I watched a documentary film called "Food Inc." It's about how the food we ate are made. Mostly the truth about farm factories -the living conditions of the animals, what "farmers" feed and inject to make 'em grow in a short period of time. How crops are genetically modified to produce more than natural method can produce and accommodate the demand and needs of the mass. No wonder all kinds of diseases pops out. But to make the story short, I was appaled with how big corporations manipulate the trust of consumers. But we have our options, we can be aware and we can decide what to buy and what not to buy, and though it's gonna be real hard for me the things I need to start on are:

#2 allot a meatless day in a week

#3 look for organic foods (where to buy?)

#4 less visit to the fastfood chains

#5 read labels and ingredients

So much about food, going back to new year's eve, after the traditional firworks and noise making, we ate, my brothers and my dad had a little drink, we chat, took pictures and then dozed off.

Despite the changes i noticed, I am happy. I am incredibly grateful that we still get to celebrate like this. So many things had happened in the past year, good and bad, that taught me to back off from my stubborness. How lucky I am to realize that I was sticking to my gun that had no bullet in the first place. Together with the year 2010, I am saying goodbye to all the bad things that consumed me. I am still working on some of my issues but I know, with the baby steps I'm taking, I will get there. I will get to live with my highest potential and be a person who can contribute to the society. I am positive that 2011 is gonna be great year.

#6 be physically active without going to the gym

#7 to travel and appreciate the Philippines more

#8 to save, save, save more money

#9 to give to charity

#10 to go to the dentist (I've been having intermittent tooth ache)

#11 to save the world (LOL)

Rock on Kidd!!!