// Quarter Life Monologues

I know, I know. I recently enumerated five reasons why I’m not buying a MacBook. But that’s actually a prequel to a list of reasons why I’m buying one.

It’s difficult for me to adapt with change, and I’m usually scared to try out new things too — must be why I’ve had the same hairdo for years, and I’ve never owned a mobile phone that is NOT Nokia.

Well, it’s about time for me. ;)

I literally had my name on it.

Unboxing your very own MacBook is the sweetest thing.
(Er, okay, next to unboxing an Island Rose package, that is. :heart:)

Even the suspense is sweetness. Yay.

Teh Mac and Teh Chucks.

MINE, MINE, MINE. :)
Get that? Over my kung-fu tight grip, raawr!

This means I’m gona have to say buhbye to Ice (my Acer Travelmate) *sniff*, time really does fly. But LOL, I’m not about to get depressed and mushy over it, okay. Besides, I know she’ll be in good hands. :)

I’m not sure if it’s good that it came the week before SEMCON 2007. I’m still getting used to the Apple key, and the CTRL non-functions (whatev), and now I have to cram for my talk and try to get myself acquainted with Mac at the same time. Gah. Oh well. I guess now is not the time to question timelines. :)

P.S. She doesn’t have a name yet. Leme think about that for now.

I was trying to identify what my blog’s niche is as part of my efforts to try to revive this site. I’ve been getting a consistent amount of site visits a day, and I hate to disappoint whoever you guys are. I mean, it’s like accepting you at my doorstep without nothing to offer you but leftovers from last night’s dinner, and old dusty photos you’ve already seen many times before. Sucks duuude.

Now to be part of someone’s top 10 blogs he can’t start his day without, and to be special-mentioned in a stranger’s blog in spite of my superb consistency at being inconsistent (whatev), I’m inspired even more to seriously strive to keep this blog alive. (Go mush!)

Anyway, going back, I figured it’s a futile effort to pre-define a niche for this blog because there really is nothing in general, unless you consider my blog categories as psuedo-niches. Let’s just say.. since my other blog is more particularly concerned with technology and gadgets and new media and internet marketing, all the other stuff that can’t be categorized there goes right here.

After all, what else can you expect from a personal blog? Stuff that the blogger is interested at, of course. Hence, as I am a woman of varying interests, you can expect my blog to be the same. This is my blog, and the niche is the 24-year old drama that Rhiza Sanchez’s life is. All ME. ME, ME, ME.

But okay. Fine. All this blahblahblah just to have an excuse to post my pictures.

My point is, ta-da! I’m still alive. And I’m back. For real. For good. Whatever. :P

Well, not really. A lot of my things are still out, and I still don’t know how to jam them all in these moving boxes.

After almost two years of staying under the same roof, we’re parting from some of our (soon-to-be-former) housemates and leaving this place we once called “home”. But it’s all good. Change is good, after all. And it’s not like I won’t be seeing Normi and Jen anymore. I’d still be staying with Aster anyway, and Ivy, a friend from way-back-diaper-days, will be joining us too. Plus we found the perfect apartment also, after a whole month of trying to look for one. It’ll be fun. And I’m excited and nostalgic and uhm, sleepy (right). But it’s all good. :)

So hey, I’m in the middle of a pile of clothes and boxes and shoes and dirty laundry right now, taking a break from all the packing, and trying my best to capture the moment and how it feels.

(Note worthy: This post is not brought to you by Tortillos or Merell.)

Now is the time to feel stressed, and to think of a nice long bath, but there’s still a lot to do. However, on top of the adrenalin rush, I can sense this teeny weeny bit of nostalgia in the air — which I think is inevitable, especially if you’re leaving a place you’ve spent some of the best months of your life in, and you’d most likely never set foot in that place again.

I mean, how can I forget all those nights I entered that door to find sanctuary in the four corners of this room after a long day at work?

Or that bulletin board that once was a collage of bills, and photos, and notes, and star-shaped pushpins?

And how can I forget that view from my favorite spot in the veranda — the same view where I last saw my Dad’s smile, (and the same place where I last felt your arms around me)?

Hay. Priceless moments in this place. I shall always remember.

I would have taken more pictures, but my mess awaits. This nagging voice inside my head keeps on reminding me that I’m no longer a little girl, and there’s no more yaya to pack my things and do the tasks that are supposed to be mine. Gah. It’s tiring to be an adult.

Tomorrow, we’ll be leaving this apartment, and will start filling a new one with new memories.

And it’s really not that big of a deal for me to be blogging about it.

Except that it once again made me think about how time flies so fast, and that life involves a lot of moving on.

Tuesday night was a success, definitely. The food, the drinks, the schwags. 150+ bloggers coming together in one place (and coming out with satisfied tummies) is no joke. And I managed to be there to witness it all. What? You didn’t see me? I have proof, look. 1. 2. 3. 4.

With me in the booth: Sasha, Sharm, Aileen, Markku, Marc, Ely and his friend.

That’s me with the “Band of Bloggers”, and I don’t even know what I was doing there, I just happened to be outside the booth and someone pulled me in. LOL. Let me just say, Cliquebooth rocks. You have to remember them next time you hold an event, seriously. Check it out. (In case you start to wonder how this picture set happened, I edited it. It’s impossible to have four shots with different people in one set, yup.)

I’m tempted to send some link love to everyone I saw there, but they’re just too many. So I’m sending this one to the organizer of all organizers, Miss Aileen Apolo, and SM Hypermarket, for that very successful Taste Asia event. Clapclap (standing).

Oh, and because I promised, here’s some link lovin’ for Ely for the pink umbrella that made my night (thank you!!). And Markku, the guy who every girl wants to have an issue with because he’s cute and single, and because you know no one will strangle you to death or send you anonymous hate comments when you post pa-cute pictures of yourself with him (ha!). And Sharmskee for the endless talk about cute Swiss hockey players and those camwhore moments. And Jayvee, for making takas for me one of those coke tumblers (oh, wait, sorry, am I not allowed to tell everyone that? hehe). And Mikey and TJ for being on bodyguard-slash-kuya mode to me the whole night. And Jomar who took us in, gatecrashers that we are. And Miss Janette, and Ganns, for expressing their concern towards my emotional state, judging from my twits (don’t worry Ma’am, Sir, those are just twits. Hehe.)

But really now. The real highlight of my night (but of course Markku’s still a close second) was finally meeting Abel’s family: Chel, who I only knew through multiply and twitter, and their adorable little princess, Tiana.

There’s something about watching Tiana twirl in her cute flowery dress in the middle of a noisy and crowded party that made me want to tear up right there and then. And I wouldn’t elaborate lest I start emo-ing again, but really, candid moments like that (of a little girl twirling, or clutching her Mom’s hand, or hugging her Daddy as he carries her, oblivious to the noise going around her) sends my world to a halt, making me wish that life is as simple as that which is seen through her eyes.

Gaah. Didn’t I just say that I won’t elaborate? :)

It was lovely finally meeting you, Abel, Chel, and Tiana. ♥

Oh, and by the way, there was not a moment in that party that I didn’t wish Liz, Mae, and Joni were there. It was a relief making up and spending quality girl bonding session with these gorgeous bloggers at Serendra last night (Wednesday), though. But yup, that one deserves a separate post.

It’s not as bad as it looks you know.

Last June 2, our church had a medical-dental mission at Mambugan, Antipolo. Just a backgrounder, I’ve always avoided assisting in the dental department because I couldn’t stand seeing all the gory action happening inside the (ugh) mouth, the bloodshed, and the tears. This last time, however, it was as if I was called to be there. They needed assistance, and I was there, and while no one really forced me to help out, I took the challenge of being the dentist’s assistant cum makeshift dental chair.

Now to defend myself from a church-full of witnesses, this picture does not (AT ALL) describe how I was the whole day. And Jasper, who arrived just a few hours short to assist with me, can attest to that (right dude?)

With our designated Dentist for the day (and my cousin in law, too), Dr. Jojo.

I can’t believe someone caught this moment in the act. (Good job, Tito Eg!)

Contrary to what this picture shows, I kindof enjoyed it, really. No, not the part where you get to witness anesthesia being injected into the gums, and teeth being extracted, and saliva and blood gushing all over the place. Mostly, I took joy in holding a scared kid’s hand while his mollars were being pulled out, or conversing with mothers about trivial things while they waited for the anesthesia to seep in, or assuring a little girl “na parang kagat lang ng langgam yan” when she’s on the verge of backing out.

There were times when I felt like shutting my eyes off because it’s like I could feel their pain, or times when I’d struggle for the right words of comfort to say. I can’t even remember how many times Jasper and I said “parang kagat lang ng langgam yan“, and then we’d look at each other and silently laugh, knowing that it’s really more painful than that. You know you just had to say it to give them a little push, or to let them know that there are far more painful experiences in the world than an extracted tooth.

“Masakit lang yan sa simula.”

“Sandali lang to, tas tapos na.”

“Anong mas gusto mo, araw-araw syang masakit, o tatanggalin na naten ngayon para tapos na yung sakit?”

It was therapeutic saying those things to kids, and hearing yourself as if you need it too. After some time you get used to the sight of blood, and to the shrieks of pain. After some time you get relieved for them because you know that they’d go back home armed with a pack of pain killers to last a whole week, and the pain would soon be gone. And then you watch them leave and you know that if only for that one moment that God allowed you to be there in their time of pain, the experience was definitely worth it all.

With Nanay Beth Miana, another one of SBC’s very own dedicated doctors.

See, I don’t look scared anymore, do I? c”,)

More pictures here and there.