Pedring and Quiel

The past week was wet and wild.

Pedring and Quiel wreaked havoc in Luzon.  In less than a day, streets were inundated with water.  Roofs were blown off, BMW's in hotel parking lots went  a-floating in the murky flood water.  Tempers were aflame... well, my temper mostly.

My job requires me to stay when everybody else has gone home.  I am obligated to spend some weekends and holidays in the office, sober, when everyone else is drunk.  I have to wait for that all important call that my services are needed, however long that might take, or wherever it may take me. 

My question is, does it always have to be me? Every time? As in everyday? Sure its part of my job, the implied but not stated part of the contract.  But we signed the same contract! Not unless theirs said "send her-always-not you-never you."  But after a minute, or two, or three of *&^%$#@ .... i stay.  I wait. 

And i do what Lighting McQueen does to prep himself, I close my eyes and ...."NO! I do not say speed, I am speed."  I tell myself, better be the helping hand than be the one waiting for help while clinging to a tree trunk that's being battered by the current.

Better go without food for a day than fall in line for days on end for some relief goods.

Better be cold and wet now than sit on the roof watching all your stuff being swept away except for the clothes on your back.

Better be in the safety of the office than surrounded by rising flood waters, waiting for a rescue boat to come and get you.

So I whisper a prayer for them.... from a lucky me... and wait.

Flying High

Once upon a time i was a frequent flyer of Cebu Pacific.

My job required me to be in Cebu away from my family.   I was a jet setter mother with tot and yaya in tow. A day after coming back from a vacation, i immediately log on, searching for promo fares so i could travel back home at the soonest available cheap fare.  They had promos each month, so i traveled every month. Boy was i glad of my credit card of almost 20 years (i am one loyal client, paging HSBC).  It reached its maximum potential those days.

I traveled too often that my son  recognized the fasten seatbelt sign and no smoking sign long before his ABC's.  He also looked forward to the Stewardess giving the safety instructions. while i enjoyed their in-flight games.  When you ask my son what he'd like to be when he grows up, he says, "a pilot".  Mommy says, "let's hope and see"

First Times

Yoohoo!

I am now a woman of the world!

I am empowered!

I am free!

And i owe it all to blogging...

Yeah yeah so its my first time.. No big deal. You've all had your firsts.. Let me enjoy mine. 

First times are mostly fun, its always a heady feeling to have tried and conquered  something new. Like a new badge to brag about.  There wouldnt be seconds and thirds without a first.  There is even a saying that goes, the firstborn is always borne out of love, the rest are borne out of habit. 

I think its mostly good to try things at least once. Except for drugs where once is never enough. I have a fear of heights, not so much of a phobia because i have no problems with plane rides.  But bungee jumping, hang gliding, parachuting, even the skywalk and roller coaster in a Cebu Hotel are a different matter.  There ws this time I tried to cross a hanging rope  bridge that was just tooo long, tooo high and tooo swingy.  I imagined myself falling to the raging river below.  Ok, so it wasnt raging, i don't think it was even that deep. But i'd have probably fainted from the drop alone.  And this guy friend of mine kept swinging the ropes to and fro, despite my strangled pleas for him to stop.  My lunch almost landed on his laughing face. Guess what?  We're not friends anymore!

I was as pale as i could ever get, cold sweat running in rivulets down my back. And then, along came this kid, who crossed it on a bike, "look ma, no hands" and smirking at me that its okay.   I wanted to scold him, where are your manners boy! I wanted to push him off the bridge!  Good thing i was frozen in place barely controlling my bladder, laughter and tears.    Mind over matter just didnt work that time.  And the other times after that.   And the really funny thing is i was only a few steps from the landing.  Well maybe next time.

NOT!