Friday, January 02, 2009

2009 in a whiff.

I couldn't exactly fathom the idea and feeling of relief as I witnessed 2008 draw to its close, counting the last seconds of the worst year (yet) of my life.

I've been trying to test the waters, you know feel the vibe of what 2009 has to offer me. And so far, I have...

The burden of losing weight - actually ceremoniously going to the gym to shave off the 2-month holiday calories up my arms and thighs. It wasn't really a problem when I used to play sports because I actually liked it and I wasn't really forced to do the physical activities because it was part of the routine. But this. Making time for a gym appointment is just baaad because it means my condition is already alarming. And I'm not talking about the typical teenage anoxeric tendency like... I really got bigger. Haha.

Anyway. Today was slightly cheery and warm. We went on with our usual New Year's Day reunion with the family. Adding more weight to my burden are generous helpings of my lola's ever-famous Kare-Kare and my dad's and tita's labor of love on grilled liempo, squid and fish. Top it off with green mangoes and yummy steamed veggies with bagoong, plus my mom's special holiday salad with mango salsa, our family luncheon earned its rank among the most sinful feasts I've ever been to these past two months - next to Saisaki twice, Cabalen once, I could go on...

And then my titas, titos, cousins and I watched this chick flick to pass off the time and digest our mouthfuls, which was pretty intimate. We let our lolo sleep in the bedroom and everyone else gathered in the living room to watch The Women, which was about a group of friends and a mistress and lalalala. Adding some shame to our pitless stomachs were passings of junk food, native corn and cassava cake.

Dead air times were mostly filled with my driving lessons (and yipee, I can drive as in finally, a decent highway drive) complete with merciless honking at kids, bikers and dogs who happen to be in the way of my annoyingly sluggish driving. My dad's voice is still ringing through my head screaming "Brake brake brake! Support sa clutch!" and "Oh, watch the blind corners, oh sabi sa 'yo eh kanto yan kaya wag ka muna maggas!" giving him more bouts of heart attack and my mom silently sniggering in the back seat of the car, wanting to steal plants and orchids that she saw in vacant lots.

Coffee afternoon started and the merry making continued. Older people gathered while younger people resumed talks about PSP games (my cousin and my brother) while girls went off to walk and hunt for load. Cassava cake was still available for consumption and my lola kept rattling us to bring home some of the food. TOO BAD, my dad's Paul Massoun wine was passed unnoticed by me! So I didn't remember he had the wine until we were walking in the grocery before going home.

After goodbyes and plans for lolo's birthday celebration (one of the things I'm deeply thankful for is giving him another year to live), our part of the Santillan family marched off to SM to settle for an informal dinner of warm and garlic-y gotto. YUUUMMM.

And then home, where my sheets and bed embraced me.

But work and people as well.

So there goes the first day of the year. A mixture of all sorts of feelings but with the least tinge of depression. HAHAHA. If it were like this everyday, then I'd get used to wanting to live again.

Since I have an excuse to consider my pathetic life as a thing of the past, I'm really striving to rid off negative vibes and depressing factors. I'm fine with my usual rants about general things but I wouldn't want to regress and not help myself get any way through.

SO. Here's to a continuously good life, this year I HOPE. <3

No comments: