Daily thoughts - Missing Daddy

It has been two months since my Dad passed away.  It is true that somehow time has made me and my family adjust a bit. But there are days that I forget that he is gone. Like when I have an interesting story to tell about the cats or I cooked something special, I look for him. And it is still very painful to accept that I wont be able to share that story or meal with the most important man in my life. 

There are also days I feel regret, guilt and anger.  Regret, over not having left my job sooner. I spent only 4 months with him and I didnt expect that ill spend only a few months with him. Guilt for not having been more understanding and patient when he was forgetful, stubborn and indecisive. Anger for not  getting the full cooperation and compassion from my own family.

I would still spend days crying and daydreaming he is with me, in the little store I put up for him. Chatting, laughing, playing with the cats.Him telling me another story Ive heard before but with the same joy and exuberance. With his toothy but winsome smile. And him knocking on my door to bring me and my husband goodies he got from town. Like these stuff he got for us a few weeks before he was physically incapacitated.

I miss him! If only I could have one more day with him, just one day to make him his favorite meal, watch his favorite movie with him, buy him anything he wants that I can afford.,Id be the happiest person on earth...But its a wish that will never happen. I just hope he knew that I loved him very much and it will never be the same without him..

Daily snapshots - Critters, I mean kittens in the house

Currently there are four kittens in the house namely Enchong, Dingdong, Piolo and Boomer. Our Siamese cat pepper gave birth to four kittens a few months ago. One (Coco) was adopted by our neighbor. This month Pretty has a new kitten and I named her Boomer.

From L to R : Piolo, Coco, Enchong an Dingdong

clockwise from bottom: Enchong, Dingdong, Piolo and Coco

Here is a recent photo of Boomer. I am treating her eye cause it seems to have an infection.

Boomer

These cats give me a headache everyday but I cant resist them. Here they are pretending to be on their best behavior.

Enchong and Piolo

Daily thoughts - Losing another pet

This morning my brother told me the sad news that his cat died. He sounded really sad and upset over it. I know how he feels since Ive been there many times. His cat is a 3 year old Siamese given to me by a friend in 2007.

Pepper

Pepper

Three years ago, I adopted a mommy siamese and her brood of 4 kittens.

Three of the kittens are obviously Pepper's. One looks like it got lost and found its way to my friend's house. I remember the story was that, suddenly something fell from the roof and landed on the padded bed or box where Pepper was with her kids. The story sounds funny but it is likely. I dont know if its possible for a siamese to have 3 of the same kind and one strikingly different. Anyway, the newkitten became an instant sibling of the other three siamese.

Ginger and her siblings

Pepper and kitten

Ginger passed out

four fluffies of joy

I named the kittens, ginger (the 3 colored cat), basil, marjoram and curry. Later on the names were changed when my brothers adopted them. The new names were Coleman, Elektra and Eggnog. Ginger unfortunately passed away a few months after I left the Philippines. He was sunbathing in front of our house when a dog bit him. I cried when I found out. I also felt sad no one adopted him just because he wasnt siamese like his siblings. I would have taken care of him if I was at home. He wasnt thrown out,or anything like that. He still lived with at my parents house. its just that my brothers were living elsewhere and the cats they adopted will live with them too.

cute Ginger

Ginger, Eggnog, Elektra and Coleman

Mommy Pepper and kittens

I dont know who this is. hehe

Pepper after being brushed and groomed

Pepper and her babies

Ginger

2 siamese kitties plus 1 mommy

me and ginger

My brother really loved his cat Coleman. He didnt really care too much about the other cats in the house but he showered Coleman with affection and better food too. The other cats seem more like pests to him. I dont blame him. Im living in the house right now and it is chaotic! No matter how many times i lead them out of the house after Ive fed them, they would go back in and make a damn mess. Im actually getting tired of taking care of them however I still dont have the heart to get rid of the bastards. 

Thats a lot of damn critters right? now that Coleman is gone, the number of cats is 12. Including my two baby girls. One is missing also when I checked downstairs. Piolo, she is my favorite among the new litter. She is sweet and unlike her two siblings, she knows how to wait for her turn to eat. I hope she is just went somewhere and will come back later for dinner. 

Right now my brother and his wife are digging a hole in our yard to bury Coleman. I had to go there and pay my last respects. It is really very sad to think that they really took good care of that cat and still it died young. From what the previous owner's boyfriend told me, UTI is the most probable cause. It is quite prevalent in male cats especially this kind. Coleman seem to have some problem taking a piss a few weeks ago but then he was able to pee again this week. I am unsure of the cause of his death, but I know he was really loved and cared for by his foster parents Cherry and Mar.

I will truly miss him. It is unfortunate that he died just a few weeks before Christmas. I was even planning on making some santa outfits for the cats here. 

For the short life he lived, I am sure he was happy and grateful. Rest in peace my fluffy baby Coleman. We love you!!!

Daily thoughts - Sacrifice and Family

I know someone who constantly say that she has sacrificed so much for her family. Everytime she does something sort of expected and basic, she considers it a sacrifice. She whines at every opportunity. She has been complaining about her family, her children for many many years and I am not surprised that her children dont really talk to her now that they are all adults. They dont make an effort to see her and she complains about this too. She says her kids arent close to her. Her situation is sad to think that she has achieved a lot in terms of her career and also financially.

She was able to get her dreamhouse, her doctorate degree, visit Europe and be the head of some school. She has a couple of properties she brags about. But has she really succeeded in life? What did she really sacrifice if she has not given up any of her dreams? 

What constitutes the concept of sacrifice? When can we really say whether we have deprived ourselves of what we want just to make sure the people we love are happy, comfortable and successful. 

In my opinion, seeing your kids through school, providing them their basic needs like food, clothing and a shelter are normally what a parent is expected to give their children. If you are a good parent, it is your responsibility to ensure your child grows up educated and healthy. It would be a bonus if you give him a fat allowance or a car when he enters college. 

On the other hand, if you give up your dream of getting that big house or getting an additional degree or a doctorate, in order to prioritize the needs of your child and family then that is something that could probably be considered a sacrifice. You "forgo" your dreams and give way to what is presently more important, your children or family. 

There is nothing more tragic in life than to realize when your'e old that your kids or your family dont give a shit about you. Your properties, money, accomplishments will not make you happy. 

I believe that the rewards of taking care of your children or family goes a long long way. You will only be able to reap it though if you have been a good parent. If you have selflessly prioritized your family over your career or your material aspirations. 

There is nothing wrong if somone wants to be good in his career or have many properties that may come in handy during retirement. HOwever, if you put all these things ahead of what couldve made your family happy, I think you will be in for a major disappointment later on. 

You cannot substitute good memories with your family with things like a beautiful house or an ego wall full of your plaques, certificates, trophies or other accolades.

It is true that life is short and we are taught to dream and be whatever we can be. However, if we only focus on achieving our dreams with minimal regard for the people who love us and look up to us, I don't think the outcome would be favorable. In the end, we will be alone, miserable and regretful that we did not chase the right things in life. 

A family is a blessing not a burden. When you treat your family right, you shouldnt consider it a sacrifice. Especially if you arent giving up any of your dreams to support your family. On the other hand, if you do sacrifice for them, I am certain, you will look back with pride. Your children will not forget it. They will not think twice of leaving their job or comfortable life, to be with you, to take care of you especially when the time comes that you are old and sick.  

If you can afford to give your family the black forest cake they want instead of getting them a mocha roll that costs half the price, why give them the latter? Why save that extra money if it could mean a special day for your family to enjoy their favorite cake? That moment may not happen again. Because life is also short to postpone doing special things for the most special people in your life, your family. 

 

Daily snapshots - Thumpy

Another set of cute photos of my cat

With Elmo, her sleep buddy

Thumper witha Tina Turner do

Daily snapshots - Dapdap and Donkey

I thought of posting one or two photos each day of anything that makes me smile. Here is my cat Dapper passed out on the bed with her favorite stuffed animal Donkey.

Daily thoughts - daily jog, a bday celebration and a bag of chips!

I slept in today and opened the store around lunchtime. I thought sales would be bad since normally people buy a lot of stuff in the morning like toothpaste, coffee, shampoo, soap or dishwashing liquid and food. But around mid afternoon kids flocked the store to get soda and chips. I spent the afternoon just tending the store and reading my Cats for dummies book. By 5pm I donned my running attire and went jogging up and down my street. I had to stop after Ive ran for 17 minutes because our neighbor wanted to buy some beer. He said that the youngest boy in their house Bembem is celebrating his birthday. I thought it was funny. The kid just turned 3 years old and they were having beer to celebrate it. So I gave Leland (the neighbor's name) 2 bottles of Red Horse beer and I resumed jogging. I also decided to take our dog Murgit to run with me. I noticed that she has been on a leash forever and needs some exercise. She was excited! Unfortunately, her excitement only lasted for 5 minutes. I had to run 8 minutes more to complete my drill for the day. Everytime I would pass by Bembem's house, the people there would call me and ask me to drink with them. I hollered that Id join them once Im done running. But I realized afterwards that I havent really drank beer for quite awhile. Occasionally maybe but Ive lost that interest in drinking when I lived in Singapore. My husband and I dont really care too much about beer.There was a time that I could consume 10 bottles of San Mig Light and still be conscious. Gone are those days. I dont know if its because Im older now or simply that was a phase that I went through due to boredom in Medical School.

Bembem is one of the little boys that frequent my store. Here is a photo of him with Charles and Tenten (Bembem's brother)

I found a photo of him that I took way back in 2008 on my then fiance's first visit to the Philippines

Bembem in 2008

Its amazing how time flew so quickly! In fact the boy who lives at the corner of our street was the same age as Bembem now when I went to college. Now he buys cigarette from my store and he told me he graduated from college. WTH.I feel so old! Hehehe

Maybe when I leave for the US and come back, one of these kids probably has finished college or has hooked up with a chick and settled down.

So anyway, I joined them and I brought some puttanesca I made the other night and a bottle of Coke (1Liter). They seem so grateful because they didnt really prepare any food since payday will be on the 30th. We just had some chips, cheese, some sisig, red horse, the puttanesca I brought and coke. But we really had a good time. We exchanged stories about my Dad and how life was way back when we were kids.

I also told them about blogging and how the photo of the 3kids are on the internet because I mentioned them in one of my journal entries. They seem so amused and excited about it. Blogging is not really that popular yet this part of the world. I told them also about my plan to eat 11 packs of chips and make a review about it. They thought it was funny and they want to read the review once Im done. Ive eaten two bag of chips as of today. So Ill go in on more details about that once all the chips are gone! I also asked Bembem's eldest brother Marcus to help me consume the chips and tell me what he thinks. After all, kids are my number one customers! Their opinion matter.

Marcus and baked cheezy puffs

Daily thoughts - My first Animo Run

Last Sunday I woke up at 330 am to get ready to go to Mall of Asia in Manila. A few days ago I mentioned that I have signed up for Animo run.

I had to leave the house early since i live far from the city. It takes usually 1-2 hours to get to the city during rush hour but since it was a Sunday, I took my time getting ready. I double checked my bag to make sure I didnt leave any essentials behind. Wallet, beltbag, mp3, face towel, toilet paper, phone, extra socks, watch (dilapidated and strapless), and water bottle. By the time me and my little running buddy were ready, it was 430am. I also had to brush my teeth downstairs before we finally left. We hopped on a tricycle and took a special ride. I was pretty certain noone was planning to go to town that early. We were also lucky that there were tricycles available that early and on a Sunday. 

We got to town around 5am. We rode a jeepney going to Crossing and it took forever before all the seats were occupied. Jeepneys normally dont leave if there are vacant seats. So we left around 510am. The ride was actually very fast. We were in the city by 540am, however I realized that the assembly for the run was at 530am. I kept thinking I wouldnt make it. We were at the mrt station at 550am and i was putting on my race bib just in case I do make it before the gun start.

When we got to Taft station of the mrt, we took a cab and we got to Mall of Asia around 620am. The run just started. The cab was in traffic so we got off and joined the people running. Yes, we didnt really start from the official starting line. The run had started and if we waited for the cars to move, we wouldnt have made it. So yeah we kinda cheated but it was like only a few meters away from the starting line though. 

So me and my buddy didnt have time to leave our stuff at the baggage drop area. We just ran clad with heavy pants (that I was planning to take off prior to the run) and a duffel bag. My tiny companion carried the bag because she didnt want me to leave her behind and wait for me to finish.

runners..walking ;)

my new running buddy Jemarie

Most of the runners were obviously kids or students. Majority of them were walking too. We jogged however.

We couldve run faster but since we were out of time when we arrived at the venue, we were unprepared. Also, during the entire time we couldnt wait to use the toilet. I couldnt find one so I had to look around the SEaside area. Thank God I found a Starbucks nearby. On our way there, I saw this cute kitty on one of the closed restaurants.

Thank you STarbucks for letting us use your toilet!I have to admitI cant imagine using one of the portalets provided by the organizers. 

We saw this huge tree by the seaside park.

My buddy looked relieved once we crossed the finish line.

Overall we had a good time. But the run did not really push me to try hard. It was in fact easier than the usual runs I do here just in our neighborhood. I will probably exert more effort on my next run. Also I will be ready and on time!

runners at the finish line

After the run, my good friend Jenny picked us up to have breakfast at Pancake House. She just got off from her duty at Manila Doctors Hospital. She treated us to tapsilog, tocilog, longsilog and hotcakes. That was a delicious breakfast!

And finally she gave us a lift to the train station. We passed by our university.

It was a tiring but very interesting and eventful day. I got home around 1pm. We spent so much time chatting during breakfast. I cant wait to join another running event and have a hearty meal with old friends afterwards. 

Animo La Salle! Thank you to the organizers of the 8th Animo Run!