Dear Diary…

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I want to bring out all kinds of things that lie buried deep in my heart. Anne Frank

The aftermath of the Best Friends Forever Reunion left me in a contemplative mood for days. Friends remarked that I was quiet, conservative and feminine in the past so the revelation of “a true confession” caused jaw-dropping looks. At a high school reunion, I laughed when former teachers thought I was Lorna, my elder sister. What a forgettable student I was! I don’t blame them. It was true anyway. Looking at myself today, I don’t recognize the person I once was. Still, I thought of checking out that forgettable person and affirm the good that is happening in my life today.

best-friends-forever
Best Friends Forever Reunion 2009

I unearthed my “baul”, a box full of treasured memories like old photos, memorabilia and diaries written since I was 10 years old. During the reunion, I confessed to the ex that I still kept the diary during the years we were together. Horrified, he told me to dispose of it. I shrugged. It was the past, nothing incriminating and everything written was pure and innocent. For some reason, I should have thrown it when I got married. I dumped all the letters, gifts and photos in the trash bin but I kept the diaries. Now I know why I didn’t throw the diaries. No, it was not to reminisce the memories of first love and that of my ex-boyfriend now my husband.

I pulled my diaries out from the cobwebs of the musty “baul” and began to leaf through the pages, now yellowed after 34 years. For the next few days, I poured over the poignant memories. I’m not a very profound writer and I scribbled about things I did that day or week with my family, my boyfriend or my groupies. Both things of significance and not. My diary detailed the life of my family when we were still complete. My mom, already sick of breast cancer in 1975 suddenly came alive in the stories I wrote about her. My departed siblings, Oscar and Ruben ,the clowns of the family and my dad sprang to life as I read the “Dear Diary” entries. I felt a tugging in my heart,a deep longing for my departed loved ones as I got transported back to 1975. For one brief moment, images of their smiles and antics kept me in a cheerful mood.

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Reflections on the Best Friends Forever Reunion

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The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart. ~Elisabeth Foley

upcebu74-78
UP College Cebu , 1974

My mediocre grades in high school were not enough to qualify me to the UP Diliman Campus. I was determined to take up college in Manila to gain independence from my sheltered life in Cebu and of course, get the BS Food Technology that was only offered there. I studied in UP College Cebu (UPCC) in 1974 for one year before moving to UP DIliman campus in my sophomore year where I finally got a 1.75 grade to qualify. I look back to my freshman year with a smile and a soft spot in my heart. Indeed a memorable year for me because it was the first time I gained a little freedom to be with friends and to socialize with guys after graduating from an all-girls school since kindergarten. I felt I finally belonged to a group that truly cared and loved me and by fate (via Dicoy’s Cupid machinations), my best friend became my first boyfriend, my first love for the next 3 or so years.

Reunions are inevitable and I declined the invitation just as I did with my high school reunions. My attitude towards reunions changed in the recent years after I evolved into a better person. I then became curious of my friends. What had become of them? I felt something missing in my life and wanted to reconnect with my past. This change of heart did not augur well with my husband. He didn’t understand why I needed to see my old friends (when he himself does not attend reunions) and in the process, “meet” my ex-boyfriend. Hugging my husband, I reassured him that it is all in the past. I cannot help it if he was my classmate, part of my barkada but I am there for my other friends. For goodness sake, it’s been like 31 years? I rolled my eyes as “Batman” retreated to his cave.

upcc74
Freshman Year, UP College of Cebu 1974. Guess where I am?

I know it sounds like a cheesy Sharon Cuneta movie, but our group coined “Best Friends Forever” as the group name for the UP Cebu College 1974-1978 alumni.
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My First High School Reunion After 35 Years

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“I bet in high school, everybody made somebody’s life hell.”
Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (1997) – Michele Weinberger (Lisa Kudrow)

high-school-reunion-stc-cebu
View of St. Theresa’s College (STC) Cebu grounds

Is there life after high school? Truth is, I hated high school and because I hated it so much, I made sure that I would turn my life around and be a better and confident person in college. I exuded negativity. Oh my gosh, I was ecstatic when the high school graduation ceremony ended. I jumped up with joy. I couldn’t wait to fly and spread my wings. In high school, I was painfully shy and a mediocre student with average grades ( as in 83 to 85). I felt intimidated by the mestizas and the smart and outspoken girls. You know how it is in high school, you find the popular clique and the invisible clique. I was basically invisible. Thanks to my best friend Teresa, Patsy, Linell and a few others, I think I belonged somehow to a group. Without them, high school would have been one hell of an experience. Thanks buddies.

high-school-friends
Hugs to my bestest of friends in High School who took me in their clique: Patsy, Linell, me, Teresa

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Love Never Dies

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Wasn’t it just 10 years that I last hugged my beautiful boy on a breezy, sunny day at the beach? Though the searing pain in my heart is not as sore as it once was 10 years ago, the scab sorts of falls off on anniversary dates. Luijoe should have been 16 years old today. I created this video tribute of his life and last birthday celebration 10 years ago when he was just a cute 6 year old boy.

(Video Link)

I often wonder how he would look like today. Would he have been taller than my husband? Would he have the same gleaming smile? Would he have many girlfriends? Would he be close to his two sisters? Would he have a messy room? Will he still give me a bunch of flowers with an “I love you” note? I can’t imagine because I will always remember him as an innocent and beautiful 6 year old boy whose death changed my life in positive ways I never could imagine.

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Having the Time of My Life at 52

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Two days ago, I turned 52 years old and the first thing I received at the stroke of midnight was a wet kiss on the cheeks from my husband. Wiping the wet imprint from my face, I could only smile and hug my husband back. Turning 52 means that I need to encode 52 under age settings during a treadmill workout at the gym but other than that, I feel great. I’ve never felt so wonderfully blessed. If you know the “Dancing Queen”, I live by the motto

You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life
See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the dancing queen

I have been having the time of my life since I turned 50 and will continue to have the time of my life even beyond 52 years old.


Anyway, I could not blog the past two days because of technical issues.

My birthday started off with a brunch with my family before I headed off to Singapore for the Nokia Connection 2009 upon the invitation of Nokia Philippines. My dear husband was supposed to go along with me so we could meet up with his sister there after the Nokia event only to find out that they were coming over to the Philippines for a vacation. So it was just me who left for Singapore.

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Top 10 Influential Emerging Blogs for 2009 Writing Project

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You don`t have to be a “person of influence” to be influential. In fact, the most influential people in my life are probably not even aware of the things they’ve taught me. Scott Adams

In 2007, I drew up my top 10 list of Influential Emerging blogs. Today, 8 out of 10 continue to be influential bloggers except for two blogs that are now gone. Not a bad forecast, right? This year, I continue to support the Top 10 Emerging Influential Blogs for 2009 Writing Project. Let me just tell you that my choice of the top 10 is based on blog-hopping from fellow bloggers’ suggestion in social media, friendships and my belief that these blogs will emerge as Influential blogs not just for 2009 but in the years to come.

1. Ukay Manila

I know I am biased because the blog owner is my daughter. Disclosure now in the open, let me move on. See, in the light of the current economic situation, one should find means to diversify income and become prudent in consumer spending. Lauren hits both objectives when she launched this blog on December 2008.

I believe ukay shopping is a way of resisting the consumerist logic of today. People don’t really need a top that costs P800 or a pair of jeans that cost P3,000, but we buy them anyway. Why? Because we are all advertising targets who are led to think that filling up our wardrobes with overpriced (but mass-produced!) clothes is the only way we can feel good and go about ““expressing our individuality and style”.

2. New Media Philippines

Carlo Ople struck a nerve when he classified bloggers for PR practitioners. I believe he became influential because, his name crops up when mentioned in blog conferences or round table discussions. It spurred discussion on encouraging bloggers to create quality content. Other blog topics bore fruit that contradict Carlo’s classification of bloggers.

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Mother’s Day with Mommy Bloggers

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A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie. Tenneva Jordan

Mother’s day spent with the kids has been a long-time tradition. At first I felt bad that I’d be spending it with mommy bloggers because it meant breaking tradition. Then I realized, Mother’s Day is my day and I can choose how to spend my day. And yes, I chose to spend it at the Expo Mom 2009 from 10:00 AM till 6:00 PM. Mommy Matters Janice Villanueva gave us a free booth which we used to promote mommy blogging. How time flies when you’re with mommies.

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Celebrating Our 24th Wedding Anniversary

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“An anniversary is a time to celebrate the joys of today, the memories of yesterday, and the hopes of tomorrow. ”

If blogs were around in 1985, then I’d have a photo for every year of our wedding anniversary. Since the start of my blog in 2006, I’ve only written four times, counting this entry. Why is it so important for me to share this day with you? It is not that I want to brag that “hey, we lasted this long” but it is more of “Wow, we have reached this far. Let’s celebrate the joys and the sorrows. You may pick up a lesson or two”.

As Mignon McLaughlin would say, ” A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.” Falling in love is not easy especially when that person can get annoying. But at the same time, it is so gratifying to find that one special person I want to annoy for the rest of my life.

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Message to the Graduating UP Students of Kamia Residence Hall

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I didn’t plan to write this entry just yet as I am saddled with a backlog of other blog posts that I thought were more relevant. In fact, this event I am about to elaborate transpired a week ago. Old news, I pondered. But something happened just now as I poured over the photos I took last week and I am so touched.

See, a week ago, Kenny Tabayocyoc, a council member of Kamia Residence Hall at the UP Diliman Campus invited me to be their guest speaker for (Thank God It’s Summer), A Tropical Confluence Dinner. Part of the program is an inspirational message to be given by an alumnae of the dorm. Of course, I wanted to help them out. After all, Kamia was my first home away from home. I felt like traversing on a trip down memory lane. It wasn’t a convenient date though. I had to leave by 7:00 PM because it was Lauren’s 23rd birthday celebration. Things don’t always happen as planned. Rains delayed the program that was slated at the Kamia parking lot and the organizers were busy setting up the tables and chairs.

While waiting for the program to start, Kenny brought me inside Kamia Residence Hall for the first time in many years. The tile floors by the door looked worn from the passage of time as thousands of footwear scrubbed the tile color down to a grayish slab of cement. Wasn’t it 33 years ago since I last stepped foot at the door? I saw that a phone booth still hangs by the wall and today there are two. I clearly remember those days when a queue formed as residents tried to make a call. I remember the dagger looks aimed at this one resident who kept yakking away ignoring the queue of girls awaiting their turn to whisper sweet nothings to their steadies.

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Happy 23rd Birthday to My Dear Lauren

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My beautiful daughter, L is 23 years old today.

I used to tell my children that I built a house when I was 23 years old, thanks to the funds from my dear daddy old boy. M said she’d do the same when she turns 23. L didn’t say anything and then surprise, surprise, a month ago, she announced to us that she found her condo. She invested in a condominium (rather a shoe box) at the age of 22 years old, with her own savings, nary a single centavo from us.

This girl of mine is very frugal. She doesn’t like eating out much. Eating out in restaurants like Pepper Lunch where she thinks there is little value for the food is beyond her means. As a college student, she never complained about her allowance. Buying unnecessary gadgets seemed sinful to her. Whenever I give her money to buy brand new outfits, she turned to ukay-ukay clothing much to my chagrin. Lauren indirectly helped me pay for her college tuition. Whatever material gifts we shower upon her is all a bonus for being a frugal daughter.

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