transposable element

i got this from the july 26 issue of time europe. funny, funny… my kind of politics. on the same page is a short paragraph about angelo de la cruz, but apolitically-inclined as i am, my eyes simply skimmed over that and focused on this last tidbit:

Get Your Kit Off

Two female Green Party politicians wrote to the German Football Association demanding that players not be penalized for taking off their shirts on the pitch. The pair were shocked to see Portugal ’s Cristiano Ronaldo get yellow carded for baring his chest to celebrate scoring a goal against the Netherlands during Euro 2004, and launched a campaign on behalf of female fans keen to appreciate players’ “athletic torsos.” Purely from an aesthetic point of view, of course.

now if all football players are such hunks, i’ll have to agree. yum! (haha, and this written one day after my wedding anniv!)

pardon the mush, but today marks our fourth wedding anniversary. i’d like to share some photos taken during that fateful day. it still never fails to bring a smile to my lips and spur a bout of reminiscing whenever i browse through our photos. the online album is still under construction– i still have to scan and upload more– but i think i’ve chosen enough for a tiny glimpse.

someday, when i’ve more time on my hands, i’ll blog about weddings, marriage and the life ever after. it’s more than a white wedding dress and sparkling wine. or a piece of legal paper. or an hour’s church ceremony. oh, it’s much, much more!

as you browse our photos, let me also share the lyrics to faith hill’s breathe, the music jason magbanua aptly used to cap our wedding video.

many thanks to everyone who took time to send me greetings and well-wishes yesterday (sabay flying kiss at kaway ala-miss U ) . it has been a happy day indeed, although i think i begin to understand why old people do not like celebrating birthdays anymore. i feel each and every year on my creaking bones! either i badly need exercise or i’m really getting old. shucks!

hm, how does the maxim go? greetings are appreciated, but i (direly) need cash, hehehe…

update: hah, who says wishes don’t come true? someone just sent me my first one million as a birthday gift! one million turkish liras, but a million, just the same! thanks, c!

Borrowing from wifely steps and the balikbayan box:

10 Years Ago, I…
1. was exchanging a job in the academe for one in the industry.
2. lived away from my parents for the first time.
3. was in a relationship that was neither going forward nor backward.

5 Years Ago, I…
1. got engaged and started preparing for my wedding.
2. got lost in hanoi.
3. spent christmas in germany for the second time.

3 Years Ago, I…
1. moved to this city.
2. worked as a freelance microbiologist at the university here.
3. got pregnant.

A Year Ago, I…
1. had a holiday in the philippines with hubby and son.
2. been made godmother to one of my best friend’s son.
3. was visited by my mom here in germany.

This Year, I…
1. started blogging.
2. at last met very good pinoy friends here.
3. will be off for summer vacation in denmark for the first time.

Yesterday, I…
1. made our yearly visit to staufenberg with hubby and son.
2. had a really nasty backache.
3. reconnected with a long-lost friend from college.

Today, I…
1. still have a backache.
2. go back to the dentist.
3. am feeling cheated out of a summer (it’s raining yet again!).

Tomorrow I will…
1. be “one year older”.
2. work on our online photo albums.
3. look forward to the next day.

yesterday, we received news of the passing of the father of P, a good friend from the netherlands. he would have turned 61 this year. too young to leave us. we will always remember him as the happy, easy-going fellow we met in 2001 in tiel. he has visited the philippines in 1998 and toured the northern luzon hotspots. even went hiking to mt makulot in batangas. quite a feat for someone his age and for someone unaccustomed to the heat and humidity of the tropics. i guess that’s whom P inherited his adventurous and easy going streak from. we will always have fond memories of him…

on a happy note: had a pleasant surprise visit from friends yesterday. very short notice, but very much welcome! the apartment looked like ground zero of a bomb blast, but who cares?! we had fun, fun, fun! we have a new mural on the wall, courtesy of the kids, but thank goodness for washable pens! haaaay, ang saya!

i’ve just been to the dentist. i thought i already know all about conquering pain, having had a 16-hour labor and complicated normal delivery not even two years ago. yeah, right.

my father is a farmer. or so he claims. actually, he’s a rice geneticist and worked for IRRI for 35 years before retiring in 2000. a farmer, huh? when i was in school, my father insists i write “farmer” as his occupation, rather than the more impressive sounding “agriculturist” or even the “scientist” he was. i told him then that to claim that my father is a farmer is embarassing, and got heavily reprimanded for being silly. he couldn’t understand what my sister’s problem was when he came to pick her up from school, coming straight from his experimental plots, all grubby looking and with mud clinging to his boots. a big snob from the very start, my sister pretended not seeing him waiting for her and opted to take the jeepney home with her friends. he was outraged. i can’t recall how long the lecture lasted, but suffice it to say that from then on, when someone would ask me what my dad does, i always say he’s a farmer. lesson no. 1: keep your feet on the ground.

this is a keychain i bought initially as a pasalubong. i just decided to keep it for myself to remind me daily of my dad, and all the wonderful little lessons in life he taught us. happy birthday, dad.

it’s the start of the week, i can’t think of anything to blog, so please, humor my being the stage mother yet once more… here’s one of jan’s first output with dabbing at fingerpaints. i took the priviledge of giving this a title - proof positive of what a stage-mom i am, haha!

“Pusteblume” (a flower which easily sheds its pollens when the wind blows).
completed in january 2004, at age 16 months.
fingerpaint on paper (soon i’ll get him doing oils on canvass, promise, hahaha!).

taken two months ago, in Los Baños. trust me when i say he’s even more makulit in person!

i’ve recently finished two of sophie kinsella’s 4-part shopaholic series (thanks, jhing!). i must say that after reading her “can you keep a secret?”, these 2 books were a disappointment, considering all the hoopla i have been hearing about them. yes, they were wacky, but even for a chick lit, i would have expected a bit more substance to the main plot. it’s just getting repetitious after a while. one thing it did, though, was raise my curiosity for jimmy choo’s. shoe-aholics, check out the site and drool!