Post Op

I was on birthday vacation in Baguio when my dad got hospitalized due to an ear infection. He started complaining of severe headache he couldn't sleep anymore. My parents decided to travel to Antipolo for the second opinion if it was just mere ear infection. He was confined at Marikina Valley Hospital with the help of his brother whose daughter works there as a nurse. As per the doctor's advise, dad has to undergo an operation but they lack facilities for his so he was referred to UERM Hospital. Thank God dad survived another operation, this has been his fourth operation since 2000. 


I was really frantic at work during his operation that lasted four hours according to my sister who's with him. I only get updates via text messages from her. I hurried home after my shift so I won't miss my brother who came to me fetch at the apartment to accompany me to the hospital to check on dad. I felt pity for seeing my dad looking so weak. I'd help him get up whenever he needs to go to the restroom. 


I haven't been sleeping good because I'm still worried about my dad's post-operation condition. His blood glucose is very unstable and is still being closely monitored by his doctor. He's still on medication and advised to follow a strict diet since he's diabetic so it will take a while for his wound to heal completely. I've been doing self-research on regarding his condition to educate myself. I want to completely understand his condition and possible complications that may arise. I hope and pray that my dad will get better soon.

Happy Kinda Sad Birthday

It's been raining a lot in Baguio since we arrived. My sister and I and I got here yesterday around 2AM via Victory Liner bus. Mom woke us up around 7AM she said dad is complaining of severe pain in his inner ear all night. Dad was previously diagnosed with ear infection still under medication. He woke up with a swollen face on his right and droopy looking mom thought he's having a mild stroke but hasn't complained of any heart-related ailment but to know what is really going with him we took him to Baguio Medical Center before lunchtime. Our elder brother drove us to the hospital. Mom stayed with dad at the hospital whilst my sister and I head over to Session Road. 


It's our 29th birthday today. Brother cooked for us and brought food at the hospital where we celebrated our birthday. According to the doctor that checked our dad, he's suffering from Bell's Palsy. I looked this up on the Internet and according to medical experts that it's caused by nerve trouble. Dad's discharged the same day and will have to take medications at home. We went back to town to hear mass while they head home. We had lunch at some place but weren't satisfied with what we ate so to pacify ourselves we had Banana Split at our favorite ice cream spot called Session Delights. It may be a sad day because of what happened to our dad but since it's still our birthday we pushed through with our birthday plans. We're supposedly going to Tam-Awan Village but the rain got worst we decided to cancel it. 


I hope the weather gets better tomorrow. 

Go DigiBox

Our Sky DigiBox was finally installed last night after a week of ranting. We noticed that we're losing major cable channels but was left uninformed of the digitalization of the cable service in our area. We're scheduled for DigiBox installation but waited for days for someone to come but no one did. I'm disappointed because they should've told us the truth that they cannot accommodate us so we know what to expect. We grew tired of calling customer service until someone finally came last night good thing my sister and I are already home. Skycable is a huge cable company it's a shame the way they treat their costumers is totally unacceptable. 


We love DigiBox of course. It has channel preview, a menu screen that allows you to view daily and weekly program schedules, DigiBox info., system options that include parental control that will allow parents to set up a password and lock channels. Lastly, there are games like Tetris and Gobang that you can play with once you get bored channel surfing. 

Cute Backpack

Gosh, I had a very tiring weekend.


I went to MP (Market Place Mall) and bought a medium-sized Orocan type cabinet because our semi-wooden cabinet nearly collapsed good thing I was able to fix it but we can't put too many clothes on it anymore or it'll finally give up.


I slept early I had a good one last night. I miss sleeping at night just like what normal people do. They say "early to bed, early to rise" and it's true for me because I got up at 5 in the morning. My sister and I had a little chitchat before getting up since we never really had a chance to talk or eat at home together unless it a weekend so we really have to make the most out of it. I'm happy that I'll be on morning shift starting next week. I honestly don't care about night diff. anymore.



We stroll in the mall earlier looking forward that there's a smaller size for the Kickers' sneakers my sister bought herself last week. I guess I like it so much I want what she got but just a different color, unfortunately, there's still no smaller size available. I bought a backpack instead. I love the color and I'm so into vector art lately I got excited so I'll use it tomorrow.


We also decided to buy the mini table for 2 that I saw in MP yesterday, it's cute, I'm glad my sister liked it too.

RIP Francis M

I had a very stressful week. Calls flooded our center there's a lot of frustrated customers for some reason because they waited so long just to get a hold of someone for help. I hate irate callers. I try my best to understand where they're coming from but I can't help it I get carried away sometimes, I'm only human. 


I thought I need some fresh air so I decided to spend the weekend in Antipolo. Nothing feels like home. Our house is really spacious I can be a couch potato while watching TV all day, eat real food and have an awesome view of Manila from our veranda. We don't have this much space in the apartment that's why I miss home sometimes. This is my idea of a perfect rest day. 


Change topic, according to the news that Francis Magalona also known as Francis M the master rapper, died of Leukemia complications last Saturday at age 44. It's sad that he didn't make it until E-heads' "Final Set" concert. I'm curious as to who did a rap for "Superproxy" or what happened to the concert. His hit song Cold Summer Nights from his first album Yo!, is my personal favorite. My elder brother scored a copy of this album because it was a huge success it's worth keeping though I'm not sure if he still has it. 

Absie

I wasn't able to come to work last week after my leave due to a viral infection. I was ready to go to work when I noticed in the morning that something feels rough in my throat.


I commuted from Antipolo to Shaw and ignored what that feeling thinking that it will just go away. Before going to bed I did a little research I thought I might have symptoms of viral infection. I've had this in the past it was worse actually I even thought I might undergo an operation because the doctor found two abscesses close to my throat I'm lucky it disappeared after taking antibiotics. I got worried when I started having difficulty swallowing food so I texted my sister to buy me two pieces of over the counter antibiotics. I decided to self medicate but what works for me may not for everyone so it's still recommended to see a doctor.

Not Yet

I was with my mom on our way to Antipolo when we nearly had a fatal accident. It was drizzling and the road was slippery but that didn't stop the reckless driver of the jeepney that we're in from driving fast until the break quit working we swerved and almost fell off the cliff hadn't he intentionally bumped at a stone on the side of the road. It was a scary experience I thought it's the end of me. I remember when I told my mom to ride the jeepney that went ahead but she insists for us to be on that jeep. Nevertheless, I'm still thankful for that we got home safe I guess it's not my time to go yet.


I guess mom had the fright of her life and got stressed out so she decided to cook Ginataang Saging (banana with coconut milk) to make her feel better. I thought it's too sweet maybe she still have hangover from what happened. We had Pancit topped with sardines for dinner. I thought my elder sister will not eat that anything with sardines, surprisingly she liked it. Later in the afternoon, Skycable peeps installed our cable, they actually came sooner than expected so good.


I'm back from my three days off. I feel sober I have rested well. Ever since we moved back to our other house along Sumulong Highway still in Antipolo, I'm always looking forward to spending my rest day there because I get to real food especially vegetables. Mom would always cook healthy food for us she knows that we don't have time to cook good food in the apartment, we have nothing but processed food.


Mom and dad are leaving for Baguio how I wish I can come but I have shift tonight. Argh.

Moving Out

I just got back from Antipolo a couple of hours ago. Mom helped me in moving pieces of furniture from our house in Antipolo where we stayed for twenty-two years to our other house in Sumulong Highway. It's kinda hard for me and my sister to let go of our space because it's accessible to pretty much everything but we rarely stay there and mom wants to help us pay our rent in Shaw that's why we decided we'll have the space available for others to rent. 


Letting go is hard to do. I hope things work out fine.

Happy Birthday Sissy

It's my sister's birthday today. I want to be the first to greet her a Happy Birthday so as early as five in the morning I already send her greetings through an e-Card, I'm glad she liked it. She texted me that they are on their way to Baguio Cathedral to hear mass. 


It's a Tuesday morning and my sister's first day of work she just had her rest day so I'm cooking breakfast for her before she leaves. My shift this month changed from 9:30 PM to 11:30 PM. Thank goodness there's no more traffic and my rest day is better because I have a weekend and a weekday off. Gotta love Sunday I can go to church and Monday is my time to go to the bank to pay bills and stuff. 


My sister and I can have more time together, yay!

More Oatmeal Cookie Please

Kung Hei Fat Choi! 


It's officially the year of the Ox as per the Chinese calendar. To start off, I brought home a box of oatmeal cookies for Php165 from a friend of mine which is not bad for 15 pieces you get to enjoy such yummy oatmeal cookies that's about the size of a mug coaster. My friend suggested  I should pair it up with 7 Eleven's coffee latte because most people say it tastes good so I gave it a shot. 


I'm glad 7eleven came up with good coffee. For Php45 you get to enjoy a cup of coffee that's just as good as Starbucks. I brought home 2 caramel latte for me and my sister so she can try it too. 


My sister cooked a sumptuous fried rice for breakfast then we had oatmeal cookies for dessert. We scored a DVD rip of the movie "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" that i just finished downloading last night so we watched it together. I didn't enjoy this movie, to be honest even if it had thirteen nominations from the recently concluded Oscar Academy Awards because I simply got bored.

The U.S. of A Got a New President

Newly elected President Barack Obama

Today is a historic day for American citizens as Barack Obama took the oath of office at the National Mall at noon in Washington DC. This day is about to end for Americans but will surely make another mark in the history of the USA and for the rest of the world. The presidential inauguration was attended by roughly over 13,000 people and was witnessed by millions of people around the globe according to the news. 


I fell asleep around 2pm yesterday, woke up at 7PM and waited patiently until past midnight (12 noon US time) and was glued to CNN the whole time for the inauguration of Obama and Biden. Obama's oath was delayed for like 20-30 minutes it was scheduled to be at 12:01 but nevertheless it was worth the wait. His speech was great as the New York Times puts it "it was pragmatic and hopeful," I totally agree. It was so beautiful it brought Americans to tears. One of the lady news anchors for CNN admitted that she was crying while listening to Obama's speech. 


The legendary "Queen of Soul" singer Aretha Franklin, she wore a hat with the biggest ribbon I've ever seen, sang her heart out "My Country, 'Tis of Thee." Other performances include John Williams composition whose music was heard at Obama’s victory party on election night in Grant Park his new piece was played by Perlman on violin, Yo-Yo Ma on cello, Gabriela Montero on piano and Anthony McGill on clarinet. Indeed, it was a serious moment but there were a few noticeable bluffs, I like that because it shows that they have a human side too, everyone's really serious you know. 


As a first timer in the inaugural stage it wouldn't be surprising for Obama to be nervous, like messing up the oath, he paused after saying "that I will solemnly execute..." while wife Michelle was looking at him and waiting for the rest of the words to come out of his mouth, unfortunately, she can't help him repeat the words so Chief Justice Roberts had to do it again but just like a contagious disease that Obama spread, he fumbled on the words either so instead of saying "that I will execute the office of..." he interchanged it to "the of...faithfully the pres...the office of the president of the United States." With respect to the constitution, Obama corrected Roberts and himself until it was finally over. 


Going back, Obama's 18-minute speech focused on sensitive issues like racial discrimination, the need to rebuild America with of course the help of its people and many other others but the most memorable part to me was when he stressed:


"Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. they are serious and they are many. they will not be met easily or in a short span of time. but know this, America — they will be met." 


Those words made Americans emotional and spirits soar high. I hope that  Obama will bring forth change not just to his nation but and will serve as an instrument to bridge the gap among nations. 

For a transcript of Obama's speech, read it here:

http://www.sharonherald.com/webonly/local_story_020125925.html