A Long Story

Let me tell you a story of a man I can’t really claim to know so well. I have not been with him throughout the 29 years of my life and technically, I did not grow up with him around. But, I’ll be telling stuffs about him as I know him and as I see him.

As a young girl, I found him really handsome. Skinny but handsome! He dressed casually but coolly and as far as I can recall, he seemed to be smelling good and fresh all the time with his signature perfume. I used to resent having him around since I wouldn’t be able to sleep with Nanay and he always has this daunting and reprimanding look everytime I start an argument and childish squabbles with my sister. But the thought that it will just be a matter of months before he leaves again gave me comfort.

It was when I entered school that I realized the he should have been with us at home. He should have been the one bringing and fetching me and my sister from school and not just trusted drivers. He should be attending family council meetings with Nanay so she wouldn’t have run between my homeroom and my sister’s. When it comes to kiddy bragging, the only things I showed around are Christmas and Birthday cards telling them how neat and cool his handwriting was. But I have no memories to share.

Until there was an opportunity for him to stayed longer with us. Though, not really an opportunity as he was out of work and was looking around for a good employment contract that will be worth being away from his family for. It was there that I got to know him a little. How I hated it when he would make us memorize the whole multiplication table and solve Math worded problems on our free time. He made it a point that we understand mathematical concepts and not just be contented with answering homework provided by teachers. He would not let me go until I master the lesson even if I was drenched in tears already. But above all, I was able to have memories of him around that I shall keep forever – bringing me to school on the first day of the school year and stayed with me even if I was already in the queue for the flag ceremony, following me around on a sportsfest parade and untiringly took pictures of me, and attending our speech presentation that I was conscious all of a sudden because I saw him from the crowd. They were simply priceless!!!

When the time came for him to leave again, for the first time, I cried. Maybe because I was an intermediate grader already and matured a little but thinking again, it was definitely because I was able to established a relationship with him. Through technology, we were able to maintain the relationship and communication. He called long distance once in a while and talked to the whole family and never failed to write letters. I fondly looked forward to his homecoming and be sad again when it was time for him to leave again. He inspired me do well in school and gave me credit for the good grades and class standing. It continued until I was in high school and the calls became frequent with the advances of telecom. He made it a point that he was updated with our academic and extra-curricular activities. Though, he was unable to attend any of my graduation and recognition day, every medal gained was dedicated to him.

When I was about to enter college, I was lucky to have him around. He was there during my confusion on what course to take and it helped a lot. He was there during my scholarship presentation ceremony and his grinning and proud face will forever be etched in my mind. He was there when I was struggling with Engineering Math subjects in my freshman year. He saw to it that I have all the materials and tools needed for my drafting class, electronics laboratory, and computer class. I was really thankful for all his support. I would have given up Engineering if not for him. The thought of him made me to strive more.

Too bad though that when he decided to retire from work and stay home for good, I already left home to pursue a promising career. Having a job and in managing my life and finances, he has a great impact. All of us, his daughters, didn’t grow up having what we want anytime we want. There is a clear distinction between “needs” and “wants”. The “needs” are readily provided and we have to save and work for our “wants”. Even if he was working abroad, it was not customary for us to demand pasalubong. We were contented with what he has to give. No matter how he asked what we want when he goes home, we just leave it all to him.

The moments that I’ll forever cherish are the ones we spent here in England when we had the whole 4 months with each other and Nanay. I came to know him more and realized that even if he spent most of the years away from us, he was a cool FATHER and a best friend to me. I will never forget how we kid around and laugh on things and people we find funny (no wonder where I get that attitude!!!), how we enjoyed the same food, our similar opinions on things and issues, and same outlook in life and how I am very like him.

my favorite photo - taken before his flight

enjoying time with my Nanay after his early retirement

London sightseeing

Tay!!! sa likod mo...

Tatay riding the Detonator ride in Thorpe Park

happy!

I’m so proud of my Tatay!!! The first man in my life…

Happy birthday and I’m missing you a lot!

6 Weird Things About Me

This post is long overdue. I was tagged by Maping to list 6 weird things about myself and I came up with so many things. Haha! Anyway, here are 6 random weird things about me:

1. I used to have this small childhood pillow that I just cannot sleep without it. I had it with me for more than 20 years and just let go of it when I moved to Manila. My mother and sisters thought it was already ragged, thin and stinky but I thought otherwise. I would get into fights with my sisters if they tried to touch it, made fun of it or keep it from me. When I was sharing a flat with college classmates in Manila, I missed my pillow so much that it gave me sleepless nights. Then one of them had this old and extremely thin pillow that reminded me of my old one. She agreed immediately when I told her I’ll buy a new pillow and swapped it with her old one. Then I had that pillow for five years until I moved here in England. I would have brought it with me but my father firmly disagreed. Hehe! Now, there are nights that I truly missed my pillows. Good thing though, I brought a new one with which was a Christmas gift from one of our managers in Globe.

2. I am very afraid of thunders. I cower and curl down everytime I hear their loud blast and I am having the fastest palpitation ever. I feel like the earth will tear apart and swallow me whole. I slightly recover from that fear when I was living alone in Manila and I would just pull the blankets over me and hug my pillow (see how much it gave me comfort...hehe!)

3. I have a sensitive nose. I seem to smell things even before anybody else do.

4. I love okra! I know most people hate it but for me it’s my favorite vegetable. As a child, I don’t eat any veggies except okra. Even if it’s just plainly boiled or steamed, it’s a treat for me eating them dipped in vinegar and soy sauce.

5. Studying and memorizing for me is easier when I write down my thoughts. During quizzes and exams, I would remember how I wrote them down while studying. At work, even with the existence of laptops, I still keep a notebook handy and write down all things learned along the way. It’s more effective for me in remembering them.

6. Once in a while, I will have dreams that suggest events or information that is bound to happen. Or, out of nowhere, a name or some thought will popped in my mind and learn later about their relevance. One perfect example was when I was in high school. My sister’s senior class was involved in a legal issue. That night, I dreamed of opening my notebook and found out the name ‘Delfin’ written all over the pages. I brushed aside that dream but was taken aback the following night during dinner when my sister announced that they found a lawyer to handle their case: Atty. Delfin!!! Weird!

I’m tagging my friends listed in my blog list and any readers who want to do so. Go ahead, help yourself. :-)

Lost…

I lost my wedding and engagement rings last Friday. :-(

No, they were not just simply misplaced at home. It was a big-time foolishness on my part because it was only on Saturday afternoon that I realized they were missing. Hubby and I were about to leave for the mall and I ran to grab my rings that I normally keep on top of the drawers. But they were not there and it occurred to me that I went home last Friday evening without them on my finger. I really panicked and don’t know what to do. I want to go and look for them but I don’t where to start. The last I recalled was that I removed them Friday morning while washing my mug at the pantry and put them in the shallow pocket of my jeans. Then, they slipped off my mind and didn’t remember them until that Saturday afternoon.

I know I’m not really fond of jewelleries but those where among the few that I have that meant so much for me. It was the sentimental value that I was after. No other rings can replace them. I was so down no matter how much Hubby comforted me not to think about them and we’ll just order the same rings from the jewellers in the Philippines. Even attending two parties that Sunday and eating Filipino fiesta dishes did not took my mind off them. I kept on hoping I dropped them in the office so I can asked the cleaners if they noticed it and not in the supermarket where we it will be impossible to find them again.

And Found!!!

This morning, I came in the office a few minutes earlier than usual. I crawled under my table hoping I just dropped them there and I traced my usual route going in and out of the building. Then the Workplace Resources staff replied to my email telling me that found items are usually turned over to the Security Office. I didn’t waste time and dialled the Security Office’s number and inquired if, for some chance, my rings were found and turned over to their office. And the reply is, “Yeah, a couple of rings were found in the ladies toilet. Have a look if they’re yours.”

Despite the rain and cold, I ran to the other building while praying that hopefully those rings were mine. Indeed, THEY WERE MINE!

Thank God!

I was so inspired with the honesty of the people here. They would not dare get things that do not belong to them. God bless their hearts!

It's Good to Be Back!!! - Part 2

Geneva, Switzerland

After spending the weekend resting and waking up late in the morning, I packed my bags again and head back to the airport on the 11^th of June. The next destination was Geneva where the bi-annual 2-day CSI Technical Seminar was held.

Geneva is a resort city with calm lake and surrounding green hills and vineyard and with a fantastic view of the peaks of French Alps. It is known for being the base of many international organizations and headquarters to most of United Nations’ agencies.

Jet d'Eau - Symbol of Geneva

View from my hotel window

having a break

This time the trip was exciting since I was travelling with colleagues and met a lot more from other countries in the seminar. It was a venue to share work experiences especially with new colleagues coming from the other partner company (whom my parent company merged with). It was more like blending together Finnish and German work culture and learn from it.

Interestingly, I met a Filipina (who works for United Nations, Cool!) through an Indonesian colleague who has lived in the city before while working for ITU. It appears that there are a lot of Filipinos working for the United Nations in Geneva Headquarters.

Unfortunately, the seminar was held in Moevenpick Hotel which is a few meters away from Geneva International Airport and I was scheduled to fly back to London on the night after the closing of the seminar thus I was not able to explore the whole city except for the Tuesday night dinner held in the city center. Nevertheless, it was really great that I get to visit the country and hopefully I can go back soon and this time for more sightseeing around Geneva and Lausanne.

It's Good to Be Back!!! - Part 1

Finally! After weeks of going from here to there…I’m back in my base office and in a new desk location! This is sort of a fresh start for me after a very busy month.

Anyway, here’s where I’ve been and what I’ve been up and about the last few weeks:

Budapest, Hungary

I was in this beautiful city for 10 days supporting a project for one of our big customers. At first, I thought that I will just be doing remote planning support from England ( as what I have been doing the past year) but it turned out that the project manager wanted me to be in Budapest for the whole duration of the project. So after availing myself of a business visa, even before I can prime myself to the idea of travelling, I was off to Budapest on the 29^th of May.

It was not really a smooth travel for me as I was only accommodated in the late evening flight and as expected, it was delayed by another hour which meant that I will be arriving in this unfamiliar city way past midnight. While in the plane, I was worried that I might not be able to find a taxi going to the hotel and indeed I was right! There was not a single taxi in the airport and there were about 15 people ahead of me in the queue. Worse, I had no idea which part of the city my hotel was located and I had not a single clue about Hungarian language. Good thing though that I decided to try my luck getting out of the queue and wandered around the arrival entrance and found out that they have this airport minibus which brings passengers to downtown Budapest at a cheaper price. I just told the driver that I need to be dropped by my hotel and that’s the only place I knew. So off we go and I shared the ride with 5 other people all talking Hungarian and myself not having a single idea where we were heading to. I just can’t explain the relief that I felt when I saw the Ramada neon lights from afar.

The rest of days were spent at the Budapest office finishing my planning document for the said project. I was seated next to the PS Core Planner and he was very helpful in all my logistic needs and most importantly, in my technical queries regarding the project. Since it was getting dark quite late in the evening, I’ve been walking around every after office hours and trying out different restos each day. Food was great and heavy and the city ambiance was definitely striking as they have preserved pre-war structures and architecture but sometimes it’s quite frustrating to be walking around without having any idea what the people around me are talking about.

Traditionally Budapest:

Towards the weekend, I got a little homesick and missed hubby so much that I even thought of going back to England and just come back by Monday. But after his convincing me not to cause anymore hassles to our secretary who is doing all the plane and hotel bookings, I decided to stay and discover more of the city. So, when Saturday came, after a light breakfast, equipped with the city map, I decided to roam around the city. Luckily, it was a sunny and warm day despite hearing some rain forecast the previous day. Walking around, you can see that the city is both peaceful and bustling. It is a big metropolis but people are laid back and friendly and the historic structures blend with the modern ones. For me, the highlight of this city is the river Danube which flows through the city with hills on one side harmonizing with it. Towards the afternoon, I just found myself walking along Vaci Utca. It is one of the famous streets in Budapest where upscale and fancy shops, cafe and restaurants lined up with very interesting façade and stunning architecture.

The following day, a Filipino colleague based in the city, invited me over to his superb place for a barbecue. He lives on the quiet and hilly Buda side of the city. It was a fun afternoon spending time with his friendly wife and kids. It was very uplifting talking about their life and experiences in Hungary, England and Philippines. On the way back to the hotel, we decided to drop by Citadella. It is located in Gellert Hill which rises high and offers a great view of the whole city, the Buda side and some parts of the Pest side, the banks of the Danube and the majestic Royal Palace and the Parliament. From there, we went to Heroes’ Square for a few picture-taking as it is one of Hungary’s famed spots. It was only during the drive to his place and back that I discovered the other parts of the city which was simply impressive.

among the Hungarians. :)

overlooking Budapest and The Danube

Elisabeth Bridge

Szabadság Szobor (Liberty Statue) with Roselyn and Alex

Budapest at night

Heroes' Square

Museum of Fine Arts

It was indeed a beautiful city and I was thankful that I was given the chance to explore that part of Europe. At the end of my stay and the completion of my planning task, I can say that I enjoyed my short stay in the Budapest office and city as a whole and can’t wait to go back to England that has been home for me for quite a while and of course looking forward to see my dear husband whom I terribly missed.