just wanted to take time out and say:

HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SISTER, LEI!! 😀

here’s wishing you all the best on your very special day.  luv ya!!

it’s now halfway through the first month of 2008 and to bring everyone up to speed as to what’s going on lately with me (since all i have been posting are my stories from my vacation), to put it nicely, let’s just say that things could be better since i couldn’t imagine it being much worse.  i guess the worst part has come and gone, but damages have been done.  damages so irrepairable–if not too difficult to mend–that it just instantly sucked the drive to go to work out of me.  how did this all happen, you may ask?  well, read on…

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this is the last installment (finally) of my series of stories about my US trip.  this may be longer than usual, since it covers three days, including my trip and arrival back home.  as always, i do hope you enjoy reading it as much as i enjoy telling it. 

november 22-24, 2007 – thursday to saturday – "mixed emotions" – these three days felt like one big, long day for me.  i woke up early since we're supposed to attend thanksgiving mass at 9AM.  one thing that was constant in my head was that i was already leaving that night.  i don't know if i was excited, apprehensive, sad, or whatever.  subconsciously, my six-day vacation changed some things in me.  i didn't know how or why, but it was the first time i felt strange in such a long, long time.  i immediately took a shower upon getting up and i can already smell the turkey from the kitchen being cooked for tonight's celebration.  we had a light breakfast before heading off to church.  it was way colder than usual, as i shivered upon getting off the car and walking towards the church entrance.  we had brought some canned goods to be offered as per instructions by the priest this past sunday during mass.  when the mass started, the church was fully packed with people.  again, it was very solemn and meaningful, and i felt moved by the event.  after the mass, everybody was greeting each other "happy thanksgiving" so i naturally got caught up in the emotion and joined in.  hugs and handshakes were all around outside the church grounds even with the very cold temperature as both friend and stranger greeted each other on their way to their separate destinations.

thanksgiving holiday in the US is compared to holy week in the philippines where virtually everything shuts down.  very, very few cars were on the road and what i was used to seeing during the last couple of days was way different from today.  good thing denny's was open so we decided to have brunch there since we'll be busy preparing for tonight and not have time for lunch.  i got the breakfast platter consisting of scrambled eggs, bacon, two kinds of sausage, and muffins.  we went over the plans for tonight since the thanksgiving celebration will be held at one of my cousins' house in vacaville.  the plan was to be there by 6pm and have dinner at 7pm, then leave at around 9:30pm for the airport for my flight scheduled at 12:15am.  we got back home just before noon and my aunt immediately continued to work on the turkey, my mom with the fruit salad, while i went over my things one last time to check if everything is in place and ready to go.  my mom would occasionally help me with my stuff, especially with the handcarry luggage i'll be bringing, carefully deciding which items would be included so as not to look bulky.  princess dropped by (much to my forbidden delight) to see her aunt and get some stuff to bring to the party.  she was still unsure if she will make it on time for dinner, but will definitely follow.  she went over to me and gave me a tight hug, pecked a kiss on my cheek (incresing forbidden delight!) and wished me a safe trip back home right there and then, just in case she won't make it in time for me to still be at the party.  i reciprocated the act and said "thank you and i still hope to see you later at the party,"  to which she replied, "yeah, i hope i make it" and then left.  at least i got to say goodbye to her and froze that hug and kiss in my head while i watched tv, with all my things done.

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november 20, 2007 – tuesday – day five – "privileged shopping" – 'twas the first time i woke up a little later than usual in days.  not much on the itenerary for the day, except for shopping some more stuff to bring back home at the mall inside travis airforce base where my uncle was a retired officer of the military, therefore having the privelege of using the facilities inside the base.  oh, and the prices at that mall are marked down from their regular retail prices on normal stores.  not much activity happened during the earlier part of the day.  i just stayed home and watched TFC, espn and other sports channels, plus made some adjustments on the items to be placed on the box.  i needed to make some more space since we'll be meeting my mom's college classmate tomorrow for dinner and she might have some items for me to bring back home as well.

we left for travis air force base after lunch.  again, 'twas a long drive, about two to two and a half hours on the freeway.  i was kinda starting to get bored with these long drives.  the trips we made everyday were equivalent to going to the province back and forth.  we reached the mall around mid-afternoon and started to wander around.  i checked out the DVDs section hoping to find titles that can be played on the dvd player back home but found out that all discs were encoded for region one only.  bummer.  i also checked out the prices for the playstation3, which, on tv were advertised to be starting at USD$299 down from USD$399.  though i didn't have enough money to buy one, i just did the math to find out how much it'll cost back home.  my mom got herself some more stuff for herself to use during her stay, while i just made the most out of my remaining pocket money and got only the important stuff which i'll be needing and using back home.

it was already dark when we went back to the car.  i had a picture taken beneath a vintage air force plane displayed at the parking lot area, but somehow when the picture came out, the plane can be hardly seen.  i fell asleep on the long drive back home.  we arrived at around 8pm, had dinner, got some of the stuff we bought and placed it on the box, then called it a day.  'twas the only day that i felt was uneventful.

november 21, 2007 – wednesday – day six – "a whole lotta chinese…. food" – after having an early breakfast, we headed out to vallejo post office to have some packages sent.  my brother had a colleague based also in california and had some stuff sent her way.  unfortunately, we weren't able to meet and give her the package due to scheduling conflicts, so after a phone conversation with her and my mom, it was decided that the package be mailed instead.  the post office was near vallejo marina, which was our next stop.  the marina has a ferry service going to and from san francisco, so there were a lot of parked cars around the area where people take advantage of the ferry instead of driving all the way to frisco.  it also had a park and a walkway for joggers, bikers and tourists.  on the other side of the river bank was mare island, an old industrial complex that was first used by the military during world war two, then it was abandoned and left unused for decades.  we strolled along the walkway, soaking up the sun and watching some of the locals setting up to go fishing along the river.  we even managed to come across a group of filipino tourists, who made initial contact by asking, "are you filipinos?"  we chatted for a bit and found out that they came all the way from new york to spend thanksgiving in the west coast.  back home, they were based in pampanga.  we then continued on the walkway and had pictures taken in front of the marina office.

quite tired from walking up and down the marina, we then headed to szechuan chinese restaurant near the area for an early lunch.  food was great, though i think we ordered too much since my mom and i forgot that the servings were far greater than back home.  we had noodles, rice, vegetable, lemon chicken, calamares and some beef.  food quality was excellent, and we had to take home what was left.  'twas one of the more "filling" meals i had during my stay there.  we went back home after lunch, and my aunt started preparing for the big thanksgiving feast tomorrow night.  she was in charge of the turkey and my mom chipped in by preparing fruit salad.  i, on the other hand, was busy organizing the box.  i had it taped, and started putting the items on their permanent places, though not yet sealing the box since there may be some more items that can be placed after tonight.

my mom's college classmate (who i also call aunt) and her husband picked us up at the house around 5pm.  they were in a sleek mercedes benz so i was quite giddy that i'll be able to set my ass on a mercedes!  the car was very, very comfy.  we then proceded to their place in hercules.  we had to drop off some things at my aunt's house before having dinner at a nearby restaurant.  it has been years since they last saw each other, and i can hardly remember the last time i saw her.  the drive to hercules was filled with conversations, mostly about me.  we then arrived at a restaurant, and when i entered, it was another chinese restaurant.  my mom and i looked at each other, knowing that we had chinese food for lunch and that we're about to have the same for dinner.  we decided to just keep silent about it, since they chose the place.  i tried to find other cuisine that was different from what we had earlier and suggested it to my aunt.  good thing we didn't have the same ones we had for lunch.  still, the restaurant was more upscale than the one we were in earlier, but the food tasted the same… obviously.  after dinner, we went back to their house and got a glimpse of how years of hardwork in a foreign country paid off.  it looked simple on the outside, but grand on the inside.  in between more conversations, they showed us photo albums of their son and daughter's weddings and had dessert.  at around 9 in the evening, we decided to call it a night, and they drove us back to vallejo.  naturally, they gave me some stuff to bring back home.

we arrived back in vallejo at around 10:30pm and realizing that there'll be less time to prepare my stuff tomorrow, i immediately went to work on the box.  we even went back out to raley's to buy some rope for the box to be easily moved around.  good thing that raley's was still open and since that it was the eve before thanksgiving, they were open until midnight.  i was able to finish and seal the box and secure my other check-in luggage just after midnight.  thanksgiving will be my last day, and it'll be quite a short celebration for me since i had to be at the airport just before midnight to check-in for my flight back home.  i was having mixed emotions already as i went to bed, convincing myself that the week's vacation is coming to an end.

on the final installment, my thanksgiving celebration and the flight back home.

before the festive mood of the holidays completely dissipate, allow me to convey my own holiday greetings–albeit a bit late i might add–to one and all.  i know there's no excuse in missing out posting even a simple christmas greeting here as i have done since i started blogging, but my reason–not excuse–for not doing so is that i just simply didn't have that urge to log in to my blog lately.  i even left the conclusion of my tell-all tale of my US trip hanging (which i'll try to close this weekend) and missed out blogging on some recent episodes both good and bad.  i guess the combination of being burned out and unhealthy office environment (read:  work atmosphere and how things are being done) took it's toll on me and adversely affected my writing senses.  to be completely honest, it even affected my celebration of christmas this year.  looking at the bright side though, spending the holidays with my immediate and extended family was enough to lift my spirits up and look forward to a new year filled with hope, promise, and a renewed sense of knowing what i want for myself and my family.

i hope everyone had a safe and joyous new year's celebration.  i know i did.  i'll resume my normal writing activities starting with concluding the story of my US trip in a couple of days.  for those who frequent the site for new entries, thank you for continuing to be patient amidst the non-updates.  again, thank you.  here's to the new year, the year of the rat (which astrologists say are lucky for those who were born on the year of the dragon, that's me), and may it bring all the things all of you wish for… and more.  BELATED MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!  😀