Loooong week...

What a super long week I've had! I'm STILL exhausted from all the activities last week.

My department went on a dinner cruise earlier last week, and we had so much fun! We drank, laughed, danced, and stuffed our faces from the buffet. We met this newlywed from Ohio and they were very friendly. They were seated next to our table and they loved our loud outgoing group. This couple wasn't a typical newlywed - they were both in their mid or late 60's! Yes, 60's! (See Judith, never too late haha) I'm not exaggerating, the lady even mentioned having a 40-year old daughter that she said would never "party" with her. She and her new husband took lots of pictures, drank a bottle and a half of wine, and danced the night away... What a great couple! We made new friends that night! ^_^

Lee and I also went to the California Academy of Science's Night Life last week. There was a mixer of some sort for tour operators. I didn't plan on going to the function, since that was Lee's thing, and I was to just walk around and wait until he was done... but nooooo, he had to drag me along and "mingle". I guess it was alright because that meant free entrance, free food, and free drinks! I didn't know drinks were free but as soon as I realized that, I said, "where's the bar at?" We didn't stay too long though, because after we mingled and talked for a bit, we quietly bounced and headed to the planetarium for the show. That was another fun night...

The following night, we went on a "field trip" with some coworkers. It was employee appreciation night (well, for 2 departments, at least) and we were treated to California's Great America. Most of us rode in the "party bus", but Lee drove down there with some friends (and I just rode home with him.) We got all kinds of snacks and goodies in the bus, given by our big boss. Each person also got a Visa Gift Card, with a considerable amount of money, so it made everyone ecstatic! It was Fright Fest, so most of the park was dark, with fog machines and "monsters" jumping at you from everywhere. We went inside several haunted houses and mazes, but I was so bummed that we didn't get to go in the best one because the line was super long and we didn't have much time. I only went on one ride, because I wanted to do the haunted houses more. That was hella fun! I think I wanna do that next year again...

Halloween night was pretty quiet for me. I decided to skip Halloween this year because I was too tired and I wanted to just rest. The next day, however, was another busy day for me.

I volunteered for Respect Our Planet (a subsidiary of Hornblower as well) "All Hands On Deck" program. The program kicked off with a Beach Cleanup day, hosted by Surfrider Foundation, SF chapter. For about 2 hours, we picked up trash at a nearby beach. There were earplugs, candy wrappers, straws, beer bottles, bottle caps, and some gross ones like a tampon applicator and several condoms... It's pretty disgusting what some people leave behind!

Afterwards, my coworker Marie, her daughter, and I had lunch. I wanted to take them to our fave sushi place, but I was bummed when I saw that they were closed on a Sunday! I took them to SPIRAL in San Bruno instead, which is my other fave sushi/japanese restaurant. Marie thanked me for taking them there because she enjoyed the food so much! She said it was so much better than the other Japanese restaurant she's been to, and it was pretty cheap. She paid for lunch, and I drove them home. I got to see her new apartment and hung out with her and her daughter before I called it a day.

Yes, what a long week it has been. I'm glad I won't be busy again until this coming weekend. Then in a couple of weeks, Judith will be here!! Yay!! I'll be on vacation, but it'll be a busy 2 weeks for me! So excited!!

Movie Night

Just like my BFF Almira, I had my own movie night with my big kid tonight.

We were just watching TV and I forgot why but I started singing, "just keep swimming, just keep swimming..." and I turned to Lee and said, "remember that? From Finding Nemo?" He said he's never seen the movie, so after I gasped, I popped the movie in and he watched it for the first time.

I knew he would love it because he loved Wall-E and The Incredibles. My next agenda is to have him watch Monsters, Inc and maybe a couple of other movies...

Godkids...

My newest godson, Daniel Glenn M. Oamil, Jr - or DJ for short. My friend Joan asked me to be a Ninang a few months ago, and I told her that it was "about time!" lol Well, this is her third kid and I wasn't Ninang to her first two.

The ceremony yesterday took a little longer than normal. Even Joan said the priest talked too much. He was also a little dirty, but I don't know if it was my dirty mind twisting his words around, or he really did imply what I thought he implied.

Anyway, at the reception, I sat with Aileen and her family, and I was glad that I got to spend some time with her kids (one of whom is also my goddaughter). They left early though since they had to go to another party, and I pretty much left soon after, but not before I took a picture with my new godson. Since I was rushing to get out of the house, I didn't have time to look for my camera, and I couldn't find my phone, so I was camera-less the entire party. An old friend offered to take a pic of me and DJ with her iphone, and she said she'll just send it over.

Tomorrow night, I get to spend time with my favorite goddaughter... Movie night with Michelle! Mie requested Aladdin, one of my favorite Disney movies, so Aladdin it is!

Facebook Addict

Wow.. I haven't blogged in over a month! Maybe it's because nothing interesting happened in the last month and a half. I don't even remember if I really did anything... I had dinner with cousins at the beginning of this month to meet one of my cousin's new boyfriend. Oh, and I also found out that night that one of my cousins is expecting! Yay! Another baby in the family. They asked not to Facebook about it because they haven't told the parents (as if the parents have Facebook, hello?!). Well, it's not like any of my aunts read my blog, so I guess I can talk about it...

The only major thing that happened this past month is that I got addicted. Damn Facebook! It all started with Farmville... Many sleepless nights followed, and being sleep deprived for about a month is taking its toll. I've been really tired lately and though I'd love to just sleep as soon as I get home, I feel like I can't because I have to "harvest" hahahaha

So Farmville first, followed by YoVille, Texas Hold'em (which I stopped playing after only a day) then Mafia Wars, Vampire Wars, Fish World, Happy Aquarium, Cafe World, Farmtown, and recently just added Know-It-All Trivia. Too many things to play! One cousin deleted his apps because he "wants his life back". LoL! I know I should do the same, but it's hard having an addictive personality.

Anyway, my high school reunion is tonight, and no, I'm not going. Everyone says I should, but I just don't see the whole point of going to see people I tried to avoid in high school. The only people I want to reminisce with are not going, so what else can I do there? I can just see it now... "So, what do you do?" "Are you married?" "How many kids do you have?"... bleck! Besides, the ones I lost touch with, I can always find on Facebook!

Reunions are invented PRE-INTERNET. There is now an easier and cheaper way to connect with old friends and old classmates. Thank you FACEBOOK!

Guitar playing Michelle

Ok, so my goddaughter doesn't actually play the guitar, but her pretend playing was cute!

I was at their house today since it was her birthday yesterday and I missed it. Here she is pretend-playing "Lucky" with her daddy:

Gambling and Games

I meant to send this as soon as I got back from Reno, but I got too lazy...

Reno was fun, though my wallet was kicking and crying the whole time. I lost a considerable amount of money, but it was all worth it.

I've always been scared of playing the tables because those are big bets. I've always stuck with my penny, nickel, dime, and quarter slot machines. The most I've won was $1,000 at a quarter machine, but that didn't really go to me. Let's just say the Lord provides.

About 4 years ago, on a Friday night, I was out with my homegurls at a bachelorette party. As we drunkenly stumbled out of the club that night, I got a text from my aunt in the Philippines that my mom needed some money. Her debit card wasn't working there because of some fraudulent thing that happened several years back, so they'd apparently put a hold on the account when they noticed the international charges. Anyway, she was asking for $1,000. I thought to myself, "Where the hell am I gonna get that money?" I decided I'd give her what little money I had in my bank and maybe some from my boyfriend (at the time). The next day, Saturday, was my cousin's bachelorette party. As the night drew to an end, my other cousins and I decided to hit up the nearby casino. We planned on only staying there about an hour or so. We pretty much went our own ways as soon as we got there, and when it was time to meet up again, we sat at some quarter machines as we waited for one of the cousins to finish her blackjack or whatever game she was playing. When I was down to my last $8.00 (I only played $20 that night), I won 4,000 coins! I thought, oh cool, that's like $100 (in my defense, it was midnight and I was tired and sleepy, my brain wasn't working OK?) but another cousin pointed out that I just won $1,000! I was like, Whaaaat? Redid the math, and then I immediately pushed the CASH OUT button.

My mom needed $1,000. I won exactly $1,000. I didn't even think about where and how I was gonna spend that money. The minute I won, I already knew that it wasn't for me. I sent her the money that following Monday. God is really amazing...

So back to Reno... Well, I wasn't too lucky. The penny, nickel, dime, and quarter machines weren't good to me. I'd win some, but lose it all again. I just figured out how fun the penny machines were! Fun, and a $20.00 bill goes a long way. You can play for hours with that $20. It's also possible to win a large amount from only playing one penny. An old man sitting next to me at one point won over $300 from the penny machine. Not bad for 1 cent bets.

Lee was at the blackjack table, and I decided to join him. I was scared because I was a n00b and wasn't aware of the unspoken "rules" of the game (such as knowing when to hit or not so the dealer can bust and the whole table wins and you don't get the dirty, murderous looks from the other players.) I kinda just observed and then I got into it. Well, whaddaya know, blackjack is fun! It was only $5 tables, but you can win hundreds. Lee gave me $40 to play, and I played a good 3 or 4 hours with that $40. I'd always win when I was down to my last chip. Most of the dealers are really nice, and patient with the n00bs like me. They'd give me advices on what to do when the dealer has a certain card. They pretty much give advices to the whole table. I also learned the "cheater" moves that they try to avoid so they want everyone to do a certain thing - play with only 1 hand since cheaters may slip another card on the other hand, stick the cards under your chip when you STAY and not lift your entire stack to place the cards since that's how cheaters drop extra chips on their stack when they have good cards, etc. It's a great game, and I got really into it. The best part of the casino? Free drinks!

When I got bored, I went to Circus Circus' Midway. I ALWAYS went to Midway everytime we go to Reno. What's not to love? Games, check. Stuffed toys, check. Competing with others so they could see how great you are, check. My favorite kinds of games are the racing games where you slide the ball into little colored holes and your little camel/tractor/horse moves a number of "strides" depending on what colored hole your ball goes into. I only played when there were a lot of people playing. The more players play, the bigger the prizes. I actually won a game with about 5 or 6 people, one of which was this little girl about 4 or 5 years old who was with her grandma. I gave her my prize instead since I already had a bagful of stuffed animals. She was adorable as she said, "Thank you!"

I would say I spent about half of my money at Midway. The other half with actual gambling. All in all, even though we lost money, it was a great birthday weekend.

Debate (edited!)

Edit: I just added the reply. I'm done with him. Read the bottom...

OMG I totally had to blog about this... so yesterday, I stumble upon an atheist video on YouTube and made a comment. This guy (not the person who posted the video, someone else...) replies to my comment, so I replied to his, and he sends me this long ass message, and I just replied back to it... Anyway, read the transcript of our ongoing debate:

************************************************
[Me - about the video]

"I feel sorry that you do not understand the ways of our Lord. God is not imaginary, and I'm really sorry that you think so. I pity those who do not will themselves to believe. God is amazing. He has blessed me and others around me in so many ways. I know you will not be convinced by my words, much as I am not convinced [by] yours..."

[Him - someone bent on crushing people's beliefs]

"laieesha

We feel sorry for all of you, I pity YOU!

I love how you say "I know you will not be convinced by words." Maybe if you had something plausible and even half intelligent to say to back up your claim god is real we could actually get into a real debate about it, but you have nothing but scripture, written by MEN, and your ridiculous faith in something you have been conditioned to believe. You're weak."

[Me]

"ApocalypticMetalHead

How does having faith make me weak? Why the need to DEBATE about faith and beliefs? It's either you have it or you don't. I believe in coincidences, I believe in science -- but that doesn't mean I cannot believe in God.

If you are trying to "disprove" the existence of God, does that mean you don't want anything to do with those who DO believe? You may hate all those who believe in a higher power, but that just makes you a lonely person, and again, I pity you..."

[Him]

"Believing that there is a god, and believing that by having faith in this god will help you in anyway shows how intellectually and emotionally weak one is. You can have faith in something without believing in god, but to have faith IN GOD is to admit there is a god in heaven and that's just silly. The need to debate is very IMPORTANT. These ridiculous beliefs affect all of us, even the many of us who do not believe in a god, and when this intrudes into our lives through politics and culture, it needs to be brought out in the open and debated. If you believe in science you cannot truly believe in god because the two contradict each other. If you really believe in both then you're a hypocrite

Being I have no need to disprove something so ridiculous and implausible I don't attempt to disprove god, I ask for proof of god, which there is none.
That is a great question! "does that mean you don't want anything to do with those who DO believe?" Being I have some family left that does believe in god this has been a conflict for me, for family I have decided to not debate them on their beliefs only out of respect that they're family, but I no longer have friends or acquaintances that believe, if I do met someone good and then find out they believe I politely engage them in debate, and if they can at least acknowledge to me that god may not be real I will accept them, but if they are so ignorant as to not even try to question their belief, I politely move on. I judge people's intelligence by if they believe, I make exceptions to those who were brought up from birth being force feed these stories, but eventually one has to think for themselves and if one can't admit to the absolute hypocrisy religion is, they're not worth my time or company. I have yet to find a religious person who has any physical(science) proof of any gods existence. Faith and scripture is not proof."

[Me]

"Believing in both God and science does not make me a hypocrite. It makes me rational. Being rational doesn't mean I don't believe in God anymore. Knowledge and blessings are given by Him, to guide us but not restrict us from what we do. Some people take what the Bible says too literally, and those are the ones who restrict their every action. I am not one of them. I don't pick and choose what I follow, I just don't do the literal meanings of what was written a long time ago.

I don't believe I am weak intellectually nor emotionally just because I believe in the divine. If anything, believing in God makes me a stronger person. Like, when I get angry, I pray instead of lashing out. A weak person will not be able to control emotions. As much as I'd love to take revenge and inflict pain, I think about the consequence and worth of my actions. Rational. Strong.

I'm not perfect, but my beliefs guide me in the right direction (and it succeeds most of the time... again, I'm not perfect.) Also, those who believe in God do good things. We're not harming anybody. I'm just generalizing now, since there are people who believe in God who still do unthinkable things, but believing in God makes us form friendships, help others, and try to make our surroundings a little better by just being there. For me, it makes me a better person.

Oh, and as I've mentioned above about restrictions, it seems you too are restricted by your non-belief as much as others are restricted by their beliefs. Why would you debate those or not include others who has beliefs in your life? You should not call them ignorant. A person who has strong faith will not question their belief just for you to "accept" them. Faith should not be a basis for other people's acceptance.

Ok, so you ask for physical proof of God. I have to ask the same about science. Since the birth of science, it has always been about proving the unknown. Doesn't it start with an idea, and so tests are done to prove this idea? Lots of ideas have unknown results, hence the testing, yet they continue to do it because of faith. Is there proof that there is cure for cancer or AIDS? If there's no physical proof yet, why continue researching? Why do astronomers go out and beyond looking for proof of life on other planets? Has there been real physical proof of aliens? Curiosity? Maybe, but it is by faith that one day, there will be cure, that we will find the answers. This faith in the unknown keeps us going. The faith in God makes us better people.

Yes, this does affect everyone since it is in politics and culture, but really, what is the harm in that? I'm talking about physical harm, not the mental effect it has on atheists. Isn't it the people who have beliefs that are persecuted, not the ones who have no faith? Are we FORCING anyone to believe?

You may not believe in God, and I am not telling you that you should believe, I'm just saying that you should understand why others do..."

************************************************

[Him]

"There is nothing rational about religion. By definition rational means being reasonable, sensible and of sound judgment, none of these can be associated with religion. "I just don't do the literal meanings of what was written a long time ago." You mean the old testament? If so, I can understand why a woman wouldn't take the old testament seriously, as much of it considered a woman to be lower than man and preached you have no place in the church other than to obey. The new testament was just a PR move, it was written, or re-written if you will, to make it look not as...horrible as the old.

A rational person would neither lash out nor pray, but I do not disagree your belief makes you FEEL stronger.

Nobody is perfect, there really is no such being that is perfect. SOME, some people of faith do very good things, some do evil things, and most just go to church every Sunday and leave it at that. Religion doesn't hurt anyone? Please. I'm both happy and sad your beliefs help you through life, happy that it helps, sad that a lie is what you base you beliefs on.

lol "Restricted by my non-beliefs" That's funny. I always love how you religious folks think us non-believers are the ones who are narrow-minded and closed-minded.

I not trying to be accepted by anyone, I'm on a mission of truth and religion sits in my crosshairs among other things. I'm not a mean person, I'm just an honest person.

Like all believers you give the same response to the proof issue, and I can't blame you being there is no rational or logical proof of any god. Your analogy is a bad one. There has been many cures for many diseases created and discovered by scientists, therefore a belief that there is a cure for everything can exist. What has god done that anyone can scientifically prove? Not one thing. Astronomy!? Astronomy is older than christianity! Astronomers have mapped our solar system and many others, they can see systems and events further off past those, therefore they have a REASON to BELIEVE. To be honest, in the last 50 years there has been more proof of ufos than any god. Other lifeforms would actually make more sense but I'm a skeptic there as well. So it's faith that will find a cure for cancer and aids, not hard work and experiments? Life itself is no mystery, we are born into this world the same way all animals and insects are, maybe not figuratively the same way, but we all are born, we live a while, and then we die. We are no more special than any other species and to think so is arrogant. What's beyond our planet, or solar system and deep space, now that's a mystery, but one thing I do know, it's not anything we know of.

Atheism is still a belief system, although theirs is much more simple and rational than yours. What is wrong with religion in politics? Only a religious person would ask this. Everyone is persecuted at one time or another. Yes, religion forces millions to believe, they are called children.

I absolutely understand why other believe, they're afraid and they're weak."

[Me]

"I always love how you religious folks think us non-believers are the ones who are narrow-minded and closed-minded."

Not saying non-believers are narrow minded or closed minded. I think YOU are such because of the way you don't even give others a chance just because they believe in something. You're pretty much shutting out most of the people in the world, which makes YOUR world that much smaller. I'm happy that you have friends and that the people you surround yourself with all share the same "belief" as you do. At least you're not completely lonely. I know people who don't believe in God, but I don't exclude them from my life. In fact, my boyfriend does not share the same faith as me (or any religion for that matter) and yet I love him and I don't force my beliefs on him.

And no, I'm not saying FAITH will cure illness. I'm saying that FAITH in finding the cure is what keeps the researchers going. If they don't BELIEVE that they will find a cure, then why bother? They hope, they wish, they BELIEVE that one day, they will have the answer. My analogy was not a bad one. We're talking about faith, are we not? By definition, it is confidence in something or someone. Astronomers, clinical researchers, hell, let's throw in stockbrokers, who all have faith in SOMETHING even before they have proof. Same with people who believe in God or other great divine. We believe in something without proof.

You say you are just an honest person. Contrary to what you said, I think you ARE mean. You are bent on crushing what makes others happy. We are ants and you are a kid with the magnifying glass on a hot, sunny day. You claim you understand, it is because we are afraid and weak. For argument's sake, let's say you're right. We are afraid and weak... but we're happy. I'm happy. Believing in God makes me stronger in the sense that I do not crawl up in a ball when something bad happens and just let the world go by. My fear prevents me from doing bad things or causing pain to others. My faith lets me get up in the morning and do good things. I bet you wake up every morning thinking where and how you can rub in someone's face that what they believe in is complete and utter bullshit and see what kind of reaction you get.

Which brings me to another point, your last message, you said, "if one can't admit to the absolute hypocrisy religion is, they're not worth my time or company."

Hypocrisy. I think you just embodied it, my friend. Not once did I deny my faith nor did I say that religion is hypocrisy, yet you've spent so much time explaining your (form of) belief to me. I'm sure that the last couple of messages didn't take just 2 and a half minutes to think of or type out.

Well, that was fun. You can reply or not, but I'm done with this conversation. Til we meet again, non-believer..."

************************************************

Whew... that was long. I'll see if he replies, but I'm not replying back to him anymore. How dare he?? Meron palang mga taong ganon... I had no idea...

They know me so well...

The balloon that my coworkers gave me for my birthday. Hannah Montana rocks!

Another Year...

Here we go! Another birthday and I'm a year older... *trying to listen* nope, no biological clock ticking here.

I thank the Lord for another blessed year... Why, in the past year, I've moved into a new, bigger apartment, I went to Hawaii AND Jamaica, got into a car accident but thankfully I was ok and got myself another car, met a whole bunch of new people, and i've had a whole year of being healthy with no major illness (oh except for the whole diabetes thing but i've probably had that for a while). Truly a blessed year.

Lee and I, along with his mom whose birthday is the day before mine, are going to Reno this weekend. Sadly, I'm working on my birthday, but afterwards it'll be all fun and games!

In about 16 hours, we'll be on our way... Oh, and thanks Chel for being the first one to greet me a happy birthday, closely followed by my dad and little sister... Love u guys!

Jamaica, parts III and IV

Yes, I'm still in Jamaica... And apparently not just me. Read on...

Part III:

So on our last full day there, after lunch with one of our friends - everyone else pulled an all nighter at the sumfest so they were all passed out in their rooms - Lee and I decided to spend time at the water park, and that was so much fun!

We went down the slide on a tube a couple of times, went swimming, and spent the rest of the afternoon at the lazy river. The lazy river was so relaxing, if not for the damn kids playing tag or whatever all around us. Still, Lee and I had fun there. We grabbed drinks at the swim up bar, and while we lounged by the pool, we decided to skip the sumfest that night. We thought, it was our last day so we would just relax...

We took a cab and grabbed dinner at Scotchie's, which, according to the locals, had the best jerk chicken around. And did they ever! That was some good ass jerk chicken and jerk pork! We had jerk chicken at the resort, and at the concert, but not like Scotchie's. Their sauce though was super spicy! And this is from someone who loves jalapeno! That was no jalapeno. It made jalapenos taste like pickles. Whatever they put on that sauce, make sure you put just a little bit, and I mean maybe like pea size, because anything more would be like volcano in your mouth! Again, good ass chicken though.

So we grabbed a few more drinks and spent our last night just chilling and relaxing.

On our way home, after the hustle and bustle of shuttles and checking in and all that airport stuff, we got to Charlotte with an hour and a half before our connecting flight leaves. However, customs and immigration took a whole hour! We were literally all running afterwards so we won't miss our flight.

The flight was so turbulent (some weather issues or something) but the plane was flying low enough that we were able to see down below. The pilot was updating us as to what city and state we were flying over, so that part was cool. When we finally landed and got our luggage, we all said our goodbyes to our old and newfound friends. We weren't sure when we would see them again though...

Part IV:

About a week and a half later, I get an email from Christine's (the bride's) sister saying that their mom was so grateful for everyone who made it to the wedding that she wanted to throw a thank you dinner at their house. They invited only those who actually went to Jamaica. Another chance to see everyone and reminisce about our vacation from a whole 3 weeks ago (hehe)...

So tonight, Lee and I got another chance to hang out with the same folks from the wedding. Christine's mom pretty much cooked everything (she's a kick ass cook and makes a mean Ginatan). Her dad was still hung up on the whole Jamaica thing. Lots of booze, just like Jamaica, reggae music in the background, and and more booze.

Afterwards, we offered to take Christine's mother-in-law home since she lived not too far from us. She and I talked about church stuff and church people because I actually know their family from church from oh-so-long ago. I had a great time tonight. Being with those same people made me feel like I was still on vacation...

Fun Filled Day

Today was a good day. Lee and I had a lot of fun today.

First, we went to Santa Clara to shop for furnitures. I had a very bad IKEA experience worthy of its own post so I won't go into it. We went to a couple of furniture places that I found online, since I've been online shopping for a new couch for a while now. We need a new couch! The one we have is only a loveseat, so we need a sofa. We finally got our sofa today, and will be delivered next Monday. Yay, new sofa!

We had lunch at the Lawrence Center's food court in Santa Clara, which by the way was Korean country. About 5 out of 6 restaurants were Korean food, and one was Japanese. I think, besides us, there were 2 other non-Koreans in that crowded place, so needless to say, we had some good ass Korean food for lunch. Some of which are still sitting in my fridge.

On our way home, we decided - in the spur of the moment - to go Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk instead. The weather was so beautiful that I didn't want to waste it just sitting at home. We were already on the road, so why not? We drove the long, winding road of Highway 17 and I thought to myself that I was definitely NOT taking that route home.

Today was the first time that Lee and I went to an amusement park together. We bought the unlimited rides wristbands and went on ride after ride. I also played some games and won a couple of little stuffed toys. The boardwalk was crowded, but they were mostly with kids who can't ride the adult rides and others were enjoying the beach. I didn't care much for the beach because we did just come back from sunny Jamaica which had a better beach and warmer, bluer water. So we rode the Giant Dipper twice (because not too many people were in line and Lee really liked that ride), the scary ass Fireball ride (Lee went on it a second time by himself... that ride gave me a headache from all the spinning), the Loggers Revenge water ride (where we got wet and so did my purse which scared me a little bit because my phone was in there), the Hurricane (another roller coaster but smaller than the Giant Dipper), the Double Shot ride (which is like a cross between Great America's Drop Zone and California Adventure's Tower of Terror), and the Skyglider back and forth.

It was getting late, and we still had to drive an hour and a half to get home. Lee has work tomorrow, so we called it a night (and boy did it get cold fast!) and took Highway 1 back home. I always take that highway to and from Santa Cruz because it's right along the coast and it's a straight shot with no winding roads. Quick late dinner at Denny's in Pacifica and headed home.
We had a nice day. Long, but nice. Lee's knocked out... Poor thing has to get up early tomorrow... Suckah!

Jamaica, part II

Day 2 was spent relaxing. Bumawi kami ng tulog because the day before was too long and we didn't get to rest from our flight yet, so we slept in and woke up to have lunch, and then drinks after. I don't know if it was the drink special of the day - appropriately named BAM BAM - or just the lack of sleep, but we all went back to our rooms and took a really long nap in the afternoon. We were knocked out! We woke up in time for dinner, and after resting for a bit, we decided to do some night swimming at the water park.

Day 3 was the wedding day. After lunch, we walked around the resort for a bit, and Lee and I found the beachside massage. We already planned on doing that but we didn't know when, so we decided to just do it right there and then! What could be more amazing than a beachside massage? With real sounds of the ocean instead of a recording? I fell asleep a couple of times but I tried to stay awake so I could feel every stroke of my masseuse's hands. Ooohh 50 minutes of heaven...

After the relaxing massage, Lee and I went down to the beach to get our tan going and to relax some more before getting ready for the wedding.

The wedding was beautiful! Very simple, very intimate, and yes, I cried a little bit. Those two waited long enough to get married! After 14 years or so together, they finally said their "I do's". The wedding didn't take too long, and while the wedding party took pictures and the other guests waited, 4 of us went to the reception area to set up the tables, with place cards and favors and such, and led the other guests to their tables as they arrived.

The reception was fun - the food was simple but delicious, they did the mother-son, father-daughter dance and the money dance, and since none of us were going anywhere, it was drink after drink after drink for us, and we danced and sweated the night away.

The next day, we all slept in again, and then we headed to the beach first thing in the morning to catch some rays. 3 hours of swimming in the ocean and sunbathing without reapplying sunscreen was a VERY bad idea! I mean, we didn't do it on purpose, we just forgot! Lee and I suffered from bad sunburns afterwards. After the beach, we had a late lunch and walked around the resort again, just taking picture after picture, then we went back to get ready for the Reggae Sumfest.

The sumfest was... interesting, for lack of a better term. We were all hyped up and ready to go, then the bus driver said the pick up - to go back to the hotel - was either 1am or at the end of the show. We didn't want to stay until the end (which apparently was 7am, yes 7 in the morning!), so we decided we would catch the 1am pick up.

We got there at around 830, and we watched the opening acts, which were pretty cool, and reggae is just great music, then Coco Tea came out and performed for about an hour. The damn show didn't really start picking up until about 11pm, with Coco Tea, so by midnight, we decided to try heading out so we could meet at the designated pick up point. That was the horrible part!

The so called VIP area, which is where we sat, was so jam packed with people that it was so hard to get out! There were no seats, it was just a lawn, so people just sat anywhere and everywhere! Basically, it took us almost 30 minutes just trying to get OUT! Afterwards, we got some food at the local food joints at the concert, and went back to the hotel.

I was so not looking forward to another night of that, so I wondered how it would be, and how I would feel, the next night...

To be continued...

Puffy

My eyes are puffy from crying.

No matter how many times I see it, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants still makes my eyes well up with tears.

I don't know why I love that movie so much.

I will buy the DVD. Then, I will buy the whole book series so I can get to know the characters more.

I just love drama.

Jamaica, part I

Wow... What can I say about Jamaica? Only that we had a lot of fun, even though we didn't do much sightseeing or excursions. Maybe next time, but this past week has been about chillaxing. A real vacation, just doing nothing...

I planned on blogging daily while I was out there, but when I realized how much it would cost, I decided I'd just do it when I got back.

The flight there was uneventful - though my level of hate for non-Jet Blue airlines increased exponentially. I hate US Airways... we really should've gone with Jet Blue. No food, not even a movie... Lee and I didn't sit together because we had a group booking. There were about 50+ people in our group, all on the same flight. 4 and a half hour flight to Charlotte, North Carolina, 2 hour layover, then another 3 hour flight to Montego Bay, Jamaica. We had a red-eye flight, but I slept a total of maybe one hour throughout the whole trip. Stupid uncomfortable seats!

When we got to Jamaica, we could already feel the heat from the outside as soon as the plane turned off the fans. We went through immigration and customs and headed towards the counter to check in for our shuttle. We were still waiting for our other friend who was on a different flight, so we went outside for a quick smoke and so I could change my clothes. I was still in my sweats, which I wore from cold ass SFO. The moment we stepped out, the heat just punched us in the face! It really was like summer weather in the Philippines. It was super hot and muggy - very tropical.

When our friend got there, we gathered our stuff, and a girl gave us a bracelet for a free margarita at Margaritaville, which was perfect because that was exactly where we went that night. After waiting around for a bit more, we finally got on the bus to take us to the hotel.

The Resort
Rose Hall Resort - what an amazing place! Just visit the website to see for yourself... The lobby itself was already very welcoming. The view of the ocean from the lobby was breathtaking! We spent quite a bit of time at the lobby because, like I said, there were lots of us checking in. When we finally checked in, they told us the room wasn't ready but they gave us our bracelet to use for the "all inclusive" part of the resort stay.

The all inclusive package is for all you can eat and drink. The only thing we paid for were tips. There were several restaurants to choose from - buffet, casual sit-down, fine dining, finger food/bar food, and of course, all the drinks to our hearts' content. I was very proud of Lee for not getting drunk at all the entire stay. I know, shocking!

Anyway, the hotel also has a pool right off the lobby, and a water park on the other side. The water park has 2 slides - one is split into 3 little slides, and one is for tubing. You grab a tube and make the trek up 4 flights of spiral steps, then go down the slide, on the tube, to the main pool. That was so much fun! They also had lazy river, so you can just chill on the tube and it takes you round and round. PLUS, it has a swim up bar. The bar stools were underwater, so you just go up and get a drink. I think the most fun Lee and I had was at that water park...

We spent a couple of days loungin at the beach. Since the resort has a private beach, only the hotel guests were there. Not too many people were at the beach though, because the majority are at the water park. What was awesome was that they serve drinks at the beach! A server came up to us while we were sunbathing and took our drink orders. Yay! That was life! Sitting on a beach chair, soaking up the sun, a drink in hand... haaaaaaaay... What was NOT awesome was the sunburn after. Lee and I got major sunburns! We didn't reapply the tanning lotion and/or sunblock after going in and out of the water, so we left looking like lobsters. I'm still in pain as of today...

The entire staff were all very friendly and polite. They always had smiles on their faces, and would go above and beyond to help guests. They were total rock stars!


Day 1
So the first thing we noticed was the heat. Second thing we noticed was that they drive on the other side of the road. The 15 or 20 minute ride from the airport to the resort was very entertaining. 4 of us were on a separate bus. Everyone else were on another shuttle. Apparently, their driver didn't say anything, while our driver was narrating about certain histories of Jamaica and pointed things out along the way. The driver was funny and very informative. He said they drive on the wrong side of the road. That was trippin me out! Then, what I also noticed (and I'm sure the others didn't) was how much squatters and tambays they seem to have there. Parang PI talaga! There were also lots of half finished houses, and the driver said it was because they get their loan to build a house and get charged sky high interests, so they just don't finish building their houses. That's so sad...

So anyway, at the hotel, after checking in and being told that the room wasn't ready yet, we checked out everything and had a (free) late lunch. We didn't have any breakfast and we had an early dinner the night before so we were super starving. We got in around 12:30pm or so, and everyone pretty much headed straight for the buffet.

The others hung out and waited at the patio outside, while I went back to the front desk to see if our room was ready yet. While standing in line, my friend (the bride-to-be) asked me where Lee was, so I said he was downstairs. She told me to call him because the guy standing right behind me was "anak ng idol nya!" I didn't know who he was, but one of the front desk agents took a picture with him. I figured, hey he must be a celebrity, so I tapped him on the shoulder and asked if I can take a pic. He was really nice, and held me really close to him - as in higpit ng yakap! Apparently, he was Ky-Mani Marley, son of the legendary Bob Marley!



I told Lee, and he thought it was someone else. He said he really only knew the other son, Damien Marley. Anyway, we finally got our room, and it was so cute! We wanted a king bed, but ended up with 2 queen beds. It was ok, we didn't want to wait any longer because we had to get ready for the welcome/rehearsal dinner.


Welcome/Rehearsal Dinner
The welcome dinner was held at Margaritaville, located at Gloucester Avenue, or the "Hip Strip", which is in downtown Montego Bay. We were on 3 shuttles, with about 20 people on each one. The ride there was a lot of fun too. We got there a little early, so we all agreed to do some shopping for pasalubongs and other souvenirs while waiting. First, it was just 5 of us walking, and when I turned around, everyone seemed to have followed us! We all ended up crammed into this one store (I'm sure the owner was very happy) and bought the majority of the stuff there. Of course, we had to do some bargainings, and I was very proud of myself for only spending about $50. Then after checking out a couple of more stores, we went back to the restaurant.

The restaurant had an amazing view. They also had a slide that lead straight into the ocean! That looked like a lot of fun, and had I known that, I would've brought a swimsuit and dove right in! Anyway, my favorite Jamaican photo was of me and Lee with the sunset as our backdrop at that restaurant.

It was basically a meet and greet for everyone. There were of course lots of family and relatives on both sides, plus all the friends and coworkers. However, after only about a couple of hours, everyone was pretty much just chillin. We were pooped! It had been a really long day, with a sleepless night, for everyone. We finally called it a night and headed back to the hotel. BUT, instead of going to sleep, we still hung out by the pool and listened to the music being played at the night club by the water. We had a few more drinks before we all headed to dream land...


Will continue part II tomorrow...

Yeah Mon...

Whew! What a long and exhausting day! We woke up really early and did so many things:

* watched Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (the movie rocked! Lee liked the movie and I -- well of course I loved it!)
* went to Samoan store so Lee can buy his shirt
* went to Old Navy to shop for more summer clothes
* went to Target for some last minute things to bring on the trip
* had an early dinner at Mi Lindo Peru
* laundry

I'm currently waiting for the clothes to dry. Then we have to pack. I'm excited about my new clothes and this entire trip. I bet Lee and I would be knocked out tonight after all the things we did today. He still has to go to work tomorrow but he gets off early. I'll be doing last minute things and clean up around the house because I wanna go home to a clean house next week.

24 hours from now, we'll be at the airport, hopefully all checked in and ready. I hope the security line isn't too long tomorrow. 24 hours... Yay!