SOULFUL

Honestly, I don’t know if cyber romance is sweet, basically because I didn’t have a chance to try it. I put up my first yahoo mail the year after I got married. So, I think I have nothing to say in the matter except those I heard from friends.

And speaking of friends, I know of two people who found each other again on Facebook. Twenty years ago, they were just acquaintances. They weren’t close. They weren’t friends. Then, last year, we put up a group and all three of us were invited as members. Incidentally, they were both using account names different from their real names, so, neither has an idea who the other was.

So, they were kind of surprised when they found out about each other’s identity. The next thing I knew was that they hit it off and they seem to be very happy together. I’m happy for them, of course, but I was never into cyber romance thus my skepticism. For me, you could only say you love someone if you know him or her well enough and how could you know someone you only see and  talk with online?

Well, that’s only for ME. I could be wrong and they may be right, right? Well… I just wish both of them happiness..

In my first year in college, I became friends with a group of people. They were actually student activists who were grouped together for a cause. Eventually, I joined them.

One of things that we had in common was our love for music. With an old guitar and the blending of our voices, we were able to create good music. Some of us, myself included, weren’t that good but could hold our own. Then, again, there were lucky few, like our friend Shirley, who was gifted with a brilliant voice.

Last I heard, she was invited to be the lead vocalist of an alternative band being put together by some of our brothers and sisters in the movement. With Shirley as their vocalist, I wished they were using an affordable universal audio apollo. With a voice like hers, Shirley deserves only the best.

Last week, I received a distressed call from a friend. This friend of mine is a smart and tough guy. So, I was kind of surprised when he sounded distressed. But then again, as he spoke over the phone, I eventually realized it wasn’t distress I heard, it was actually frustration.

It seems like, our college friend, Sarah*, who happened to be his girlfriend for a short while in the past, has been calling her every time she and her boyfriend have a fight.The calls have become constant lately which means, they constantly fight. So, one time, my friend, the caller, logged on to Facebook and sent her a private message encouraging her to just break up with her boyfriend. But Sarah simply said she couldn’t do that and she would just wait for her boyfriend to grow tired of her and dump her. (Can you believe that?) Her boyfriend happened to be married. So, that makes her other woman, right?

Then, the next time my friend, the caller, logged on to FB, he found a message from Sarah. Only, it wasn’t from Sarah but from the jerk her boyfriend, confronting my friend for encouraging Sarah to break up with him. My friend was enraged and they argued which ended up putting Sarah in the middle.

Bottom line, why does the jerk have Sarah’s password? She gave it to him. How did I know? She told it to me, herself..

*not real name

As I mentioned in my other blogs, my daughter, Mika, was chosen to be among the muses to represent the different Puroks in our small barangay. She represents Purok 5 where we used to live and where my uncle now lives.

During the Sangguniang Kabataan Night, she, together with the other muses, officially opened the dance floor where they were paired with SK chairmen from other barangays.

So, this was her first, ever, dance.

Last Sunday, I agreed to go out with a friend on Tuesday. Though it was a working day for me as I have a tutee in the afternoon, I said yes because it has been a long time since we went out together. I left after the session with my student and caught the afternoon FX which luckily had one vacant seat. It left the terminal as soon as got in. So, as I usually do, I plugged my earphones and amused myself looking out the window. I saw the roads being repaired, motorcycles on motorcycle lifts in showrooms, second-hand cars, convenient stores, fast food chains and apartments for rent.

The trip wasn’t as boring as I assumed it was because before I knew it, I was on my stop. Good thing it was just a short walk to the mall and now the real ‘boring’ part began, the waiting. Well, I went inside a bookstore so, I barely noticed that I waited almost two hours.

Well, I didn’t actually mean to sell, but lately, friends and acquaintances started to buy my sling bags and since I couldn’t use all of those bags, I let my friends buy them. Among those sold were..

Well… I think they are nice and so do five other people..

My daughters had been busy this summer. After attending a wedding celebration, they were invited to a pool party in celebration of my cousin’s daughter’s 8th birthday. Well, I guess pool parties are very popular these days, in fact, resorts are mostly fully booked if not reserved, for days. As we, ordinary people, wither under the ruthless summer heat, resort owners are surely having a great time.

Decades ago, resorts were not heard of in our town. We only had picnics by the riverside followed by a very long dip in the water which usually lasts until we’re crisp and black as soot and our clothes decorated with moss. Our floats were old tire interiors and empty oil gallons. Surely, we had as much fun fooling around in the river as children have nowadays in classy resorts with pools heated by raypak.

Yes, a lot of things have changed, but children will always be children and do what children do, that’s to have summer fun!

May* was the middle of the three daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Pacheco. May was kind of stubborn, a rebel, in fact. She loves to do what her parents said she mustn’t. Her father was an overseas contract worker and her mother was a public school teacher. Being a responsible father, Mr. Pacheco tried to impart his work values on his children while as a teacher, Mrs. Pacheco preached on various virtues including respect not just to parents but the elders in general.

May, obviously, was tired of her parents’ self-righteousness. For her, they are just that.. self righteous and hypocrites. So, she waited for every opportunity to defy them.

Then, one day, her ‘perfect’ sister made the mistake of falling in love with a bum. Their parents tried everything in their power to separate their first born from the good-for-nothing guy and they were so relieved when their eldest daughter came to her senses and broke up with him.

May saw the opportunity. A few months after her sister’s break-up with the bum, she ran away with him. At first it was fun. The guy was so cool. He just did whatever he liked. He followed no rules and answered to no one. Then, after a few weeks, May was beginning to panic. Her money was running out and the bum showed no intention of looking for work.

Then, one morning, May woke up with a severe stomach ache. She was hungry, something that never happened to her before. There was no food anywhere in the house. The bum was in his regular drinking session out on the street. May felt alone and stupid.

She packed her bags and without looking bag, left the bum, who didn’t know she left or maybe didn’t even care. She came home to her parents who took her back without questions.

*not real name

Dante* is a simple guy with simple needs. He works hard to put food on the table for his family and as long as the earphones of his MP3 are plugged into his ears, he has no complaints. He doesn’t trouble anybody so he doesn’t expect trouble from anybody as well.

So, he was understandably pissed off when the wife of one of his fellow tricycle drivers accused him of seducing her. According to the woman, Dante has been courting her and in fact has been sending her love letters. But Dante’s reaction to the accusations was a little.. too much.

He was raging mad. Then, eventually, we found out why. To one of his very few trusted friends, he ranted how he couldn’t even read nor write, so where did the love letters come from, who wrote them, or do they even exist at all?

Well, obviously, the woman has been lying to everyone. She is probably hiding something from her husband and chose Dante as the fall guy. Unfortunately, she doesn’t know that particular truth about Dante.

Do you know how it feels like to make stuffed toy for your kids and as gifts for your friends? Well, it feels absolutely great!!!

This is my first try at AMIGURUMI, that is, crocheted/knitted animals or dolls. They are supposed to be cute and cuddly.

It doesn’t look much. Does it?

Then, this is the second..

And the third..

I honestly don’t know how you find them. But for me, they are CUTE!