random thoughts

We just threw a surprise party for a friend (okay, her name’s Trixy! … hehe … I’m not into code names and initials … hehehe ) two nights ago … and it was a success! Well, judging from the relative flop we had for Teteng’s more than a month ago … this one is a hit! ;=) (hmmm … I think I had a lot to do with why the first one was not-so-successful … from the numerous lies I have to tell Teteng on why we’re wasting time in SM … ahhh, I am not a very good liar! ;=) … to parking my car in front of the house which made it impossible for him to park so he had to go around the block to park … and that’s when he saw all the other cars ‘hiding’ … yeah … all me! ;=).

Anywho, i was just reminded of my surprise despedida party in the US back in 2002! I love giving surprises but I am not too comfortable being a recipient of the surprise … I think there’s something about being caught off guard (and looking bad in the pictures!) that gets to me … I don’t like being the center of attention … (yeah, contrary to the obvious and popular belief … I am actually a very shy person! Hahaha … ) anyways, I digress … again … back to my nostalgic recollection of when I was surprised by SFC … the storyline was we will have a discussion group leaders’ training for the CLP in tito mon’s house in Dublin … which was really weird because it’s usually a whole-day activity … so having it starting at 7pm is not really very good … but I figured … maybe this is a new kind of training!!! ;=) … in a surprise party, someone has to do the “luring” … and my friend Kath was (in hindsight) tasked to do it … and she had a really good delaying strategy: she pretended to be teaching me on how to put on make up … and she used me as her model … so she can try what she learned on a make-up book that she bought … good plan, huh? She delayed me … and I get to be made up for the party! ;=) When we got to the place, as soon as we opened the front door, everyone was shouting ‘surprise’ and I was just dumbfounded … I guess since SFC is normally loud, I didn’t really notice the difference with how they were shouting. The only thing that convinced me that it was actually a surprise party for me was when I looked up and there was actually a banner with my name … yeah, I can really be dense at times!!! ;=) I remember how nice it all was … they even have a program for me … my household, tito mon/tita oma and the sisters’ unit household sang my favorite songs … then I get to have flowers! yup … those really nice bouquet of flowers … if I remember it correctly, they were yellow roses (I need to check the pictures!) … everyone was there … including this guy traveling from the Philippines which I secretly ‘worship’! (idolatry!) … hehe … it was really hero worship and idol-fan kind of relationship … he was working on GK and is a really good (and funny!) speaker … and he was there … for me! (well, not really … truth be told … he was in town and tito mon/tita oma is his foster family for the trip! ;=)

Anyways, so much good memories of my stay in CA back in 2002! And I’m really excited that I’m going back … times have changed but most of my friends in San Jose are still there … true, a lot of them are already married … have kids even … but they’re still there and I will see them! I can’t wait! ;=)

We had a super sentimental, mushy night last week … that was after a friend’s announcement that he’s getting married! There’s still something about getting married that really brings out the mushy in us … no matter how jaded and cynical we are in matters of the heart … (hmmm, did I just admit I was jaded and cynical? Actually, I’m not … again, for the nth time, I still believe in one true love, that it exists … whether mine exists is another story! ;=) …) anywho, we had a marathon of really sentimental songs that elicited a lot of awwwws and ahhhhs (with hand gestures!) … and it was fun … at the beginning! ;=) hehe … eventually, it was already depressing … ;=)

Anywho, that was not the point of my blog … ;=) … there was one specific song that was played that night that I really, really liked … it’s the “I Never Saw Blue Like That Before” song … it was included in the movie Runaway Bride soundtrack …

And I never saw blue like that before

Across the sky

Around the world

You’ve given me all you have and more

And no one else has ever shown me how

To see the world the way I see it now

Oh, I, I never saw blue like that

(Hmmm, after researching the lyrics of the whole song, it doesn’t mean exactly like I thought it meant … but anyways, indulge me to recount why I liked it … ;=) )

I liked it because it talks about seeing something for the first time, a.k.a. seeing things in a different light … or seeing people in a different light! You know those stories of how someone is with you all this time and then something happened … and you started seeing the person for how really special he/she is? It got me thinking how that happens … I remember the Skin White product tag line: “Let him see you in a different light” … like you show up one day as fair as you can ever be … thanks to the wonders of papaya soap and glutathione … and wham, the guy you like, becomes head-over-heels gungho on you! … or you show up one time … 30 lbs less … and lo and behold! … he likes you because you’re thinner … just like how he wants it! … (of course, getting a whiter skin and losing 30lbs takes some time … and I think for full impact … they shouldn’t see the transition process … they should just see the before and after … so I think for this to work, one have to be away … for the amount of time needed to get the look! … ;=) hehe) … hmmm … does it have to be that way though … i.e. change who you are just so you will be liked by the person you secretly fancy and the person you want to shock into liking you (yeah … I think that’s the apt term: shock! hehe) It’s really tempting to go this route and for some people, it actually works … but is it really necessary? Wouldn’t it be nicer and love will be truer if it happens naturally without the aid of science and modern technology? In this day and age of high tech everything … I still believe in old-fashioned romance … and I still believe in falling for someone just as who the person is … no fancy make-up, no semi-permanent whitening, no artificial fat-burning formula to shave off 30lbs … and I can just hear Karen Carpenter singing … “ … you’ve got to love me for what I am for simply being me …” yeah, that would be nice … hmmm … I don’t need to go that extreme route … but maybe I ought to change a bit … maybe I should really do something about myself … hmmm … yeah, for starters … I think I should start combing my hair everyday! ;=) hehe