sanayan lang yan

Tama talaga yung desisyon namin na lumipat na sa QC. Ngayon pa lang e sanay na kami sa bago naming tirahan. Sanay na kami sa lugar. Di na malayo ang tingin ko sa lugar namin. Sanay na kami sa MRT. Sanay na kami sa Trinoma. Sanay na kami sa SM North. Sanay na kami na magpunta sa Makati at Pasay galing sa lugar namin (medyo mahal lang pag taxi hehe). Ang di pa namin nagagawa ay ang mag fx or jeep mula sa lugar namin hanggang Trinoma. Papaano ba naman, para makasakay e dapat tumawid sa overpass. Medyo mahihirapan kasi medyo malaki na tyan ni Jan.

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Nagulat kami kanina kung gaano kamura yung bill namin sa tubig. Doon kasi sa dati naming tinitirhan, around P400-P500 ang binabayaran namin. Yung bill namin ngayon, wala pang P100! Although syempre, di naman kami gumamit ng 1 full month kasi Dec 27 kami lumipat, pero sobrang mura ito considering we use the shower everyday at mayat'maya ang flush sa banyo hehe! Harang talaga dun sa condo! I could get used to this!

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Bukas ay darating daw yung bagong yaya namin. Sana ok sya. Two weeks muna sya sa mga in-laws ko para makita kung ok sya,at para masanay na rin at makilala sya ni Sophie. Mahirap na. Kahit na ok yung yaya pero ayaw sa kanya ni Sophie di rin namin sya maiiwan sa kanya. Sana ok para wala nang problema. Makikita ko na rin si Sophie araw-araw!

:-)

missing sophie

Haaay . . . Ang hirap talaga. Miss ko nanaman si Sophie. Dun nanaman sya sa mga lola ny this week. Talked to her today and I heard her say "lab you" na buo for the first time. The good news is, baka magkaroon na kami ng yaya by next week. The bad news is, she'll have to stay sa mga lola nya for at least two more weeks para makita kung ok yung yaya.

Sophie calls herself "ate" now. Parang alam na nya na may bago kaming baby na darating. Its good kasi at least at an early age, aware sya na magiging dalawa na sila. Excited na rin ako! I saw Jan's tummy kanina na gumagalaw. Parang inaalon. Makulit yung baby boy namin. Kinikiss din ni Sophie yung tummy ng mommy nya from time to time. Nagulat nga sya one time nung nakita nya gumalaw yugn baby sa tiyan ng mommy nya.

Parati ko sinasabi kay Sophie na "Anak, konting tiis nalang. Malapit ka na magkaroon ng bagong yaya. Dito ka na sa bahay uli matutulog." tuwing hinahatid namin sya sa in-laws ko. Sabi nang mother-in-law ko, madalas daw ako hanapin ni Sophie. "San si daddy?" ang laging tanong. Everytime na sinasabi ko na "Sophie, sleep ka muna kila lola, ha?" ang sagot nya "Ayaw koooo . . . dito lang ako sleep . . . tabi mommy . . .". Kung di ka maluha, ewan ko nalang.

Kagabi, ayaw matulog kasi alam nya na iiwan namin sya. Kaya tinabihan namin sya hanggang makatulog sya. Mahirap. Mahirap talaga.

Thankful na rin ako na may nag-aalaga sa kanya. Sana lang naiintindihan nya na kailangan namin gawin 'to pangsamantala.

Naku, magiging dalawan na babies ko. Baka pag nawalan kami uli nang yaya sa susunod e mapaiyak nalang ako araw-araw pag di ko sila kasama. Madrama? Siguro nga. Pero iba talaga pag parent ka na.

Haay . . .

:-)

a bit tired . . .

One of the most tiring thing for me these days is bringing Sophie to my in laws and picking her up during the weekend. Don't get me wrong, I always look forward to picking her up, but sometimes I get little tired after work and fetching her from Pasay to Quezon City (Tandang Sora at that!) can sometimes leave me a bit winded.

Oh how I wish we could get a new yaya as soon as possible, so I can come home everyday with and see my baby.

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I'm getting used to commuting to and from work everyday from where we live now. Luckily, I can sometimes hitch a ride with office friends who live near our place on after work. The first few days was quite different from the routine that I'm used to. You see, I'm used to taking a cab to and from work because our apartment at the time was near my office building. Now I have to take the MRT because I lived a bit far that if I took a cab to and from work everyday, I'd spend almost P500 just for taxi fare alone.

The first few days were fine. I ride the MRT at the GMA station since Jan takes a cab to work. The train wasn't too crowded. I got off at Shaw station, walk through the Shang Mall and take a cab to work (just P35!). No sweat! But after a week, things changed. The train, suddenly, was always jam packed! I've missed a few train rides either because the train was too packed with people, or because the inconsiderate people inside wouldn't move or make way so that more passengers can come in. I swear, there were times that I have to shove my way through, especially when I see people who wouldn't give way, even when there's a considerable amount of space for more passengers.

I also noticed that people who are waiting at the station immediately try to go in the train as soon as the door opens, not waiting for people inside who are getting off to exit. Whenever this happens on my stop, I shove these people away. If they look at me at a bad way, I'd stare right back at them. Shoving may be rude but they deserve it. I mean, why can't they wait for people to get off so it will be easier for them to get in?

I don't get tired because of the commute, I get tired because of the people I commute with.

Man, I'm one hot headed commuter!

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Jan and I are now thinking of buying our own car, hopefully before the year ends and hopefully, after we have paid off most of our financial commitments, particularly the house that we bought. We really couldn't afford to buy a car right now, but God willing, if everything goes well this year, we may be able to afford it by the last quarter this year.

We really need it because of our new baby on the way and its really difficult to get around, not to mention expensive whenever we take a cab.

Maybe I should cut down on smoking and coffee so I can save a little . . .

Oh . . . I need to learn how to drive before we buy a car! hehehe

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Things are just getting a bit crazy for me at work. I bet that it'll be a lot crazier in the next few weeks. Good thing I'm a bit crazy too!

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Enjoy the weekend everyone!

:-)

all aboard!

Meron nakapag tanong saakin kung meron akong balak magtrabaho abroad. Actually, matagal nang natatanong ito sakin. Madalas, tanong ito ng mga kaibigan ko na may balak o nag-tratrabaho na sa ibang bansa. Normal na tanong sa ating mga Pinoy ito. Dahil nga naman sa nagyayari sa ating bansa ngayon. Lalong lumalala.

Noong mga unang beses akong natanong nyan, ang sagot ko lagi ay "Wala. Mas gusto ko dito. Tutal, maayos naman ang trabaho ko. Tsaka naniniwala ako na gaganda rin ang lagay nang bansa natin." Idealistic pa ko nun. Ganyan siguro talaga pag bata pa. Naisip ko din na sayang lang naman kung ibang bansa pa makikinabang sakin. Baka puwede pa ko mag contribute kahit papaano. Gusto ko rin naman makarating sa ibang bansa, pero mas gusto ko na bakasyonista lang ako.

Lumipas ang mga taon at nagbago rin ang sagot ko: "Wala, ok pa naman ako dito. Di pa naman ako gutom e.". Sabagay, Maayos naman ang trabaho at nakikita ko naman na yung career path na nakikita ko sa sarili ko ay dinadaanan ko naman. Pero medyo nararamdaman ko na ang pag-lala ng situwasyon sa bansa.

Dumaan nanaman ang mga taon. At ngayon, eto na ang sagot ko: " Iniisip ko. Pero dapat kasama ko ang pamilya ko.". Sabi ko nga sa asawa ko, buti pa mga tao sa commercial ni GMA, "ramdam ang pag-asenso". Noong nagsimula ako magtrabaho, ang una kong suweldo ay P6,000 kada buwan (circa 1998). Malayo ang nararating nang suweldo ko nun. Ngayon na mas malaki na suweldo ko, parang isang kanto lang ang nararating.

Ganun na ba kalala ngayon at napapaisip ako nang ganito?

Napanood ko yung inagurasyon ni Obama kagabi at nakita ko na masaya ang mga Amerikano. Parang naniniwala sila na may pagbabagong darating sa bansa nila. Na magiging ok na lahat. At bakit naman hindi, mukha naman ok yung bagong presidente nila. Marami syang gustong patunayan kaya siguradong lahat ay gagawin nya para ununlad ang bansa nila.

Dito? Parang wala na. Napanood ko rin yung Fertilizer Scam kahapon. Umamin yung supplier na P150/bottle lang ang benta nya sa fertilizer, pero ang pinalabas ng mga tao sa gobyerno ay P600/bottle ang binayaran nila. Kakaiba talaga ang kapal ng mukha ng mga taong ito. Pakiramdam ko ako ang ninanakawan dahil tapat ako magbayad ng buwis. Pera ko ang kinikik-back nila. Pera natin.

Nakakainggit yung mga taong napanood ko sa CNN. Masaya sila. Sigurado silang may bagong pag-asa na darating. Samantalang saatin, walang mapagpilian kung sino ang puwede na iboto sa susunod na eleksyon. Wala tayong tiwala sa mga tao sa gobyerno, na kung umasta ay parang mga hari. Nakalimutan nila na taong bayan ang naglagay sa kanila sa puwesto.

Sana huwag nang mag-bago ang pananaw ko. Sana hindi maging "Meron. Kahit di ko muna kasama pamilya ko, magtratrabaho ako sa ibang bansa." ang sagot ko sa tanong na ito. Sa totoo, lang bilib ako sa mga pinoy na nag -hihirap sa ibang bansa para mapakain ang pamilya nila. Taas kamay ko sa kanila. TAAS KAMAY KO SA INYO. Bilib ako kasi hindi ko yata kayang iwan ang pamilya ko dito. Siguradong mahihirapan ako at wala pa sigurong tatlong araw ay pabalik na ko sa pinas. Ngayon pa nga lang na si Sophie ay nasa mga in-laws ko dahil walang yaya hirap na ko e, pano kaya kung nasa ibang bansa ako na di ko kasama asawa at mga anak ko?

Sana lang may epekto yung nangyari sa Amerika sa atin. Sana kahit papaano ay maambunan tayo ng pag-asa. Sana magising ang mga tao sa gobyerno at mag-karoon ng konsensya.

Sana di ko KAILANGANING umalis ng bansa.

:-)

Belated Happy Birthday to Sophia

Happy 2nd Birthday Sophia Gabrielle Jugos Garcia!

1.16.09

Mommy and Daddy loves you very much!

Medyo late na pero oks lang hehe!

:-)

changes

Its just the start of the year and already there have been lots of changes for me already. From work to family life, a lot of things have been happening lately. Not that I wasn't expecting them. I've been aware of these changes for some time now and all I can say is, change is something that I welcome. Doesn't mean I always agree, but I'm always open to it. Imagine life without change. Wouldn't it be boring?

Funny how some people react to it. Most of us have negative reactions to change. Its normal. We are all creatures of habit and its always a bummer when we do something out of our daily routine. But I think, the way people handle changes defines who they are as a person. That's why I think that people who commit suicide because of problems, whatever they may be, are weak (sorry, but I really do).

Change is inevitable. Embrace it. Enjoy it.

:-)

Model Sophie

Heto si Sophia na nagbabasa ng dyaryo sa Camp John Hay. Yung binabasa naya ay dyaryo ng pinagtratrabahuan ng brother ko sa London. Kinuhanan si Sophie ng picture kasi may pabaon na assignment sa kanya ang mga bossing nya bago sya magbakasyon sa dito sa pinas last month. Kailangan daw nya kumuha ng mga pics ng mga tao na nagbabasa ng dyaryo nila, na gagamitin nila sa kanilang advertising campaign.

Balita ko na final list yung pic ni Sophie para ilabas sa campaign nila. At bakit naman hindi? Ang cute cute ng anak ko! hehe! Tignanan nyo naman, natural na natural! Parang nagbabasa lang talaga. Mana sa tatay, mukhang nagbabasa pero natutulog pala sa classroom hehehe!

Hhmmm . . . pwede kaya gawing print ad or commercial model ang baby ko? Pag na print yung pic na 'to sa London, baka sumikat si Sophie dun! Hehe


:-)

Friday na!

I'm so excited today kasi susunduin ko si Sophie from my in-laws after work. She's been there for one week and she'll be there every week until makakuha kami ng yaya. Its so sad going home knowing that she's not there. Minsan, nakakatamad umuwi. Kaya kami ni Jan tumatambay muna sa Trinoma (our new hang-out) before going home. For those of you who do not have kids yet, yes, its true na nakakatanggal ng pagod pag umuwi ka sa bahay tapos makikita mo baby mo.

I've been calling Sophie every day since Monday. Minsan nakakaawa kasi umiiyak sya when I say that I have to go and babye muna. Ang hirap pakinggan na umiiyak ang anak mo. Parang nakakaawa na nakakalungkot na di mo maiintindihan. Kahapon sabi daw ni Sophie kay Jan habang umiiyak "Mommy uwi na ko, ayaw mo na ko, ayaw mo na ko" (translation: Mommy uwi na ko, ayaw ko na dito, ayaw ko na dito). Nakakaawa di ba?

Buti nalang susunduin ko na sya mamaya. Bonding nanaman kami for sure!

:-)

wtf??

I think you guys may have heard about the Israeli - Palestinian war currently happening in the Gaza Strip. Hamas, a group that wants nothing but the destruction of Israel, started the conflict by virtue of their rocket launches targeting Israeli occupied territories in the strip. Now I see in the news that people are condemning Israel's attack on Hamas because of the collateral damages being inflicted on the Palestinians, with death and wounded tolls rising everyday.

My take on this?

Its Israels right to defend themselves. I think its just right and fair for them to defend their people. Hamas is a terrorist organization that uses terror tactics, including suicide tactics and they must be stopped. Its sad that civilian casualties are piling up, and I really feel for those people, especially for the women and children, but Hamas should have thought of them before picking a fight with the Israelis.

I'm throwing racial issues out of the window. I don't care if these people have been going at it since biblical times. Its just not right for one country to attack another country for idiotic reasons .

If I were on Israelis shoes I'd do the same. Hell, if I had a neighbor giving me crap everyday, I'd give 'em crap and then some!

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Another issue now in the news is the release of the "Alabang Boys", 3 young men caught in a drug-bust operation because of bribery. They were released because the prosecution dismissed the case because lack of evidence. There has been talk of bribery in the DOJ which resulted to the release of the "boys". People involved in the case are, or course, denying, although I seem to have heard the people fro PDEA saying that there was bribery and I saw their animated-telenovela-style-congressional inquiry on TV.

All I can say is . . . .

Of course there's bribery! Every Tom, Dick and Harry knows that JUSTICE can be bought in this country. Its just sad to see that the image of our police and military people, especially the ones who truly serve our country well, overshadowed and tarnished by incidents like this one.

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Its the year of the OX and I hope we get less BULLSHIT and more good things.

Man, I should really stop watching the news on TV . . .

:-)

holiday chronicles

It was a very busy holiday for me and the family. Makes me wish that the holiday was extended a few days more. I woke up this morning and did the usual things I do on weekdays: coffee, a stick cigarette, warm bath and got ready for my commute to work. I would have played with Sophie before leaving but she's staying with my in-laws since we still don't have a babysitter. I hope we get one within the month. The house isn't the same without her playing and laughing all around as we get ready for work.

Sitting here in my area, planning my activities for the week brought me back to reality. I felt like someone just splashed cold water on my face. In some ways, I feel glad that I'm back. I missed work and I'm actually looking forward to this year's projects. Of course, you can't blame me if I wanted to extend the holidays. Who wouldn't?

Here's a rough chronicle of my 2 week holiday:

(inhaaale . . . )


DEC 19 - 23
My holiday started last December 19. Our whole family went to Baguio and it was the first time we were complete for a family vacation. It was cold. So cold that I had to buy a new, thicker jacket because the ones I've brought wasn't warm enough (for me anyway). 6 degrees Celsius is too cold for me, as it is for normal people who live in Manila.

It's been a long time since I've been there and I was so glad that I went back. Things are a lot different there now. I never experienced traffic jams in Session Rd before, but now, because of the re-routing (thanks to SM Mall) and one way streets, cars keep piling on the road. We only went to 3 places in our 5 day stay: Camp John Hay, Burnham Park and Mines View Park. Oh, we went to SM to buy groceries.

Sophie enjoyed the trip. She played with her cousins and I think she enjoyed the cold weather. Jan and I went to Mines View park almost daily, since it was just walking distance, but we had to take a cab or jeep going there because I was afraid the she'll have a hard time walking there since the road was uphill and may be difficult for a pregnant lady to walk. Besides, I wouldn't want to walk uphill also hehe.

We also had the chance to meet up with old friends and I'm so glad that we did. I learned how to play poker which we played every night. We had some car trouble though. We had the car towed from Marcos Highway to Baguio when we were going up. Fortunately, the city of pines was just 20 minutes away. I literally felt the saying: so close, but yet so far. We had radiator problems and we thought we fixed before going home. Unfortunately, we had to have it fixed when we had trouble again in Tarlac, and we got home at around 4am on the 24th.

DEC 24
Back to work for the day. Although I was pretty tired because of our trip going back to Manila. I was supposed to bring Sophie to the office but I was so tired that we asked my sister-in-law to pick her up instead. We'll be spending buena noche at my in-laws anyway. Fortunately, our company declared the day to be half day so I got off work early. Went to GMA to pick up Jan and her Christmas Package she won in a raffle. Went home to pick up our stuff for our over night with the in-laws and then went straight to their house.

I almost fell asleep while eating dinner because I was sooo tired. It was a miracle I lasted till 1 am of the 25th. I fell asleep as soon as I hit the bed. I didn't even bother to change my clothes.

DEC 25
I left for a mini-reunion with grandmother on my father's side during lunch time. I didn't bring along Jan and Sophie so they could rest. Me, my brothers and my cousin checked out the new apartment that we will be transferring to, as well as the property Jan and I bought (which was near the apartment).

We went back to Makati in the afternoon and I picked up Jan and Sophie for our Christmas party with my mother's side of the family. Jan opted to sleep at her parents house, which was near my grandmother's house, since she was still tired because of our trip. I went home with my brother Patrick so he could help us in packing our stuff for our house transfer on the 27th (it was supposed to be on the 26th but we were so tired that we had the sched moved). We went to Malate with my brothers and cousins before going home for a few rounds of drinks.

DEC 26
We packed and we packed 'till we couldn't pack no more! We're regular packers! I didn't know we had so much stuff! Couldn't have done it without Patrick. Thanks Pat, you PACKER! hehehe

DEC 27
Our moving day. It was a good thing the truck came early. It took some time to load our stuff in the truck, maybe because we were on the 4th floor and the building didn't have an elevator. We got to the apartment at around 6pm. Finished unloading at around 7pm.

DEC 28
Unpacked stuff. Arranged furniture. Went to Trinoma to buy groceries with Patrick. Got lost in Trinoma and went home late.Unpacked some more.

DEC 29
Unpacked again. Had lunch somewhere in Congressional Ave. Went home and unpacked some more.

DEC 30
Re-arranged furniture. Cleaned up all the mess. Discovered that the bathroom had leaks. Unpacked some more. Boy, moving to a new house is such a chore. Funny thing is, we might move out again within the year to transfer to our new house (hopefully!!). That's why we didn't unpack all our stuff. Just the ones we'll be using for the next 6 - 8 months.

DEC 31
Our first new year's eve celebration as a family. We were supposed to go to our in-laws for another sleepover, but we were so exhausted that we decided to stay home and go there the next morning. We bought some fruits, a cake and other goodies to celebrate. Jan cooked pasta and Sophie slept the night away. I told Jan that this should be our tradition from now on. It feels nice to celebrate, just the three of us. Next year, we'll be four in the family and I want us to have our own family traditions. By the way, we had an ultrasound before going to Baguio and we found out that our new baby is a BOY!!

JAN 1
Went to my in-laws for our new year family lunch. Jan and Sophie slept most of the day away. We went to my lola's house in Makati for dinner. Funny thing was, I didn't drink beer or any alcoholic drink that day. Not one drop. I think I was still tired from all our activities the past days.

JAN 2-4
Stayed at home and spent time with my family. We spent most of the day sleeping. Sophie had new friends as there were children within our apartment compound. My dad gave Sophie a new bike which she got on the 2nd. She loved it so much. She enjoyed playing with her new friend and all she can say to me was "Daddy, labas akoooo". I can actually see her face light up whenever she hears children outside.

We had to bring Sophie to my in-laws yesterday and this will be our normal weekend routine until we find a Nanny for Sophie. So sad but there's nothing else we can do.

(exhaaale . . .)

So that's how things went the past two weeks. I didn't have time to blog because of our busy sched. Now, things are back to normal and hopefully, everything goes well this year. I'm really looking forward to 2009. I have a feeling that it will be better for ALL OF US this year than last year.

Lets all have a good year boys and girls! Lets all pray that we all have a good year!

BTW: I'll insert some pics later hehehe

:-)

bagong taon

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

Its been a while since my last entry and I must say that I missed blogging. A lot of things happened this past few weeks and I'm sure I'll be telling you all about it. But now, I just want to thank all of you who've been here, taking time to read my blog. I hope you guys enjoyed!

Cheers everyone! LETS ALL HAVE A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR AHEAD OF US!!

Marami pa kong kuwento, pero kulang pa rin sa oras . . . dyan lang kayo, ha? :-)


:-)