Birthday Bonanza

Yeaaaaaayyyy.

Andaming may birthday! Haha.

One, two, three and....

Belated Happy Birthday OLIVER LORENZO FERRANCULLO FELISILDA! (June 3)
Miss na kita! Bumalik ka na. Haha.

Belated Happy Birthday Kuya RAYMOND ANTHONY MASAMAYOR RELOVA a.k.a. KUYA RYAN! (June 6)
I miss you so much Kuya! Hope to see you soon. :)

Happy Birthday ARVIEL VELASQUEZ DELA CRUZ! (June 7)
Miss na kita! Libre mo ako!

and of course...

Happy Birthday EMMANUEL ROBERTO VISARRA MASAMAYOR a.k.a. Dad! (June 7)
You don't know how much I want to see you right now. I really, really miss you. I love you, Dad.

I feel like making a blog tribute. Haha.

Hulaan niyo para kanino?

EMMANUEL ROBERTO VISARRA MASAMAYOR
My father. My guide. My REAL first love.

It isn't a secret to many that this great man, my biological father, died when I was five years old. By that time, I was not yet capable of grasping the fact that I lost a father. People tell me that I was even playing around, smiling for pictures. It wasn't until I grew old enough that it finally hit me: Dad's gone, and he's not coming back.

Throughout the course of my life, throughout the 12 years I've lived without him, people have been telling me a lot about him, and each time they tell me, I can't help but wish he lived long enough for me to realize how great a man I have for a father.

Dad was a priest. He said mass for one year, however learned that he really didn't find his calling in being a priest. He got out of the priesthood. Mommy even says there's a copy of a kind of permission notice by Pope John Paul II. She says it's lying somewhere around here. I haven't seen it yet, though,

Dad managed to land a job as advertising manager for WG&A Shipping Lines. This is where he met my mom. And the rest, well, let's just say I was officially introduced into the world. XD

They say I acquired my Dad's eyes, brown and round, as well as his nose, and well, his height. Haha. Mnay people comment that I'm a perfect morph of my parents.

Dad was a very quiet person from what I've gathered from my five-year experience with him. I hate to admit it but I don't really remember his voice that much. However, despite the apparent silence, he had a great many friends. The funeral was jam-packed with loving relatives and friends. A lot of people think he's prone to anger, when in truth he really isn't. He had a lot of friends because he was a really good friend himself. That's one lesson I'll be carrying for the rest of my life.

He was also a terrific boss. Many of his past officemates say that he wasn't the kind of person who would go ballistic over the simplest mistake or fire people out of nowhere. No. He was the kind who would calmly correct people without leaving them with the feeling of intense embarrassment. He was also exceptionally kind to all our household help that time. He would even give them money to watch a movie on their days off.

Dad was also a guitar-player. Sometimes I wish he would teach me how to play. He was also a very wide reader. His collection of books remains here at home. I've always planned on reading the books he read but I never quite got to doing that, but his collection is more than enough for me to believe that he really was fond of reading.

Dad was quite the writer. Many people describe his writing as spontaneous, lively and well, beautiful. I used to nod at this in amazement of how wonderful a writer he must be for people to say such good things about his style of writing. Very recently though, I was able to feast my eyes on tangible proof of his greatness. It turns out Mommy compiled all the letters that Dad sent her. Cellular phones hardly existed before and people mostly used pagers and beepers. Since the nature of Dad's work had him away from home at times, he wrote letters to Mommy. He was a very detailed writer, from what I have gathered. He wrote every single detail of his travels in pure English. He even talked about he felt bad when his favorite PBA team lost. I didn't have the time to read all the letters, but among them was the epilogue he had written for his own mother's funeral. It was a lovely account of how his mother lived. Dad really was a great writer. "Myth confirmed" Disclaimer: I am watching Mythbusters videos on Youtube as I write.

Speaking of PBA, Dad was an ultimate fan of basketball. I remember the times he used to take all of us to Cuneta Astrodome to watch the games. I remember nights when it would be just the two of us in the room. It was either we were watching Disney movies, comedy sitcoms or basketball games. When he was in the seminary, short as he was, he was the coach of theri basketball team.

As I mentioned earlier, he was an advertising manager. He was in charge of all those designs and stuff for the company, and my was he good at it. He created such lovely designs for T-shirts, mugs, logos and the like. Photoshop didn't really exist that time so he used Adobe Pagemaker and at home, his pen and paper. I used to watch him do his designs. He is incredible. His left hand just simply swoops over paper and creates drawings just like that. One reason I love dolphins is that I often recall watching Dad draw dolphins to create logos for the company. Dad was, in fact, the person who taught me how to draw, and I'm starting to regret not carrying on with this passion that we used to share.

But what most people hardly fail to say (and I don't think it's just because they're talking to me) is that Dad had one weakness: Me. A lot of people always tell me how much my father loved me. My parents almost lost me once. Mommy bled once during her pregnancy. That could have been the end of me. Ever since I came into this world, Dad did all he could to show how much he loved me. He would give me all the best. Ever since I was born, I was always included in Dad's letters to Mommy. He made sure I had great clothes, great toys, great everything. I had a full closet of clother, an Imelda-like array of shoes and a room cluttered with my toys or at least, remnants of them. His usually slow-to-anger nature would be crippled if he found out anything happened to me. He made sure everyone in the house spoke English so I would get used to the language. He would be afraid of the slightest scars and even birthmarks that I used to have because he thought I wouldn't be "Ms. Universe" anymore (something I always laugh about these days.) When he would go out of the country, he would buy me toys. Mommy recalls of the time that he carried a really big Donald Duck stuffed toy on the plane like a little kid. To this day, Donald Duck is still here.

Sad to say, I wasn't really the most appreciative daughter in the world back then. My father's constant love kind of spoiled me one way or another. Even I sometimes can't believe how bad a girl I was. There would be times that he would buy me toys I wouldn't like and I would be steaming mad, slamming doors, throwing stuff around, throwing a tantrum in short. Surprisingly, Dad revealed in one of his letters that my tantrums were one of the things he missed about me. I also would not appreciate clothes or shoes. Being a kid and all, all I cared about was toys. I'm sure I hurt my father's feelings a couple of times with these antics of mine.

Dad had a lot of health problems, too. By the time Mommy met him, he already experienced mild strokes. He had diabetes, hypertension, and all the other complications that came with it. Dad was hospitalized September of 1997. Being the kid that I was, I hardly noticed how serious that was. We played in the hospital. I would act like a Queen and Dad would be the King.

I still remember the day Dad collapsed, was brought to the ICU, and eventually died on the 4th of October, 1997. I was in a blue dress that time, the same dress I had worn for my 5th birthday. We had chicken for lunch. For some reason I was having one of my tantrums, and Mommy was scolding me. Dad said that I should not be scolded, since I was only a child.

I went to the bathroom when I suddenly heard Mommy scream and drop a tray of utensils. Next thing I knew I was staring at doctors and nurses rushing back and forth into the room.

Like I said, Dad died, and I hardly realized that.

After he died, Mommy and I would sometimes pretend we could call him in heaven using my toy telephone. We would take turns talking to him on the phone that time. That was fun, even if it was all make-believe. I'd like to try that again sometime.

It's a known fact that one of my favorite movies is The Lion King. Everyone says that every time the cartoon gets to the part when Mufasa dies, I cry. I used to think this happened after Dad's death, which would explain such action as some kind of psychological outlet. But I just found out that all this crying about Mufasa started before Dad's death, meaning ever since I started watching it on tape, I would cry whenever Simba found Mufasa dead. This struck me as some kind of foreshadowing that's often employed in literature. I never thought it could ever be true.

Today, Dad is supposed to be 61 years old. I sometimes think about what life would be like if Dad was still here. He would have played basketball with me. He would have taught me how to draw like he did. He would have taught me how to play the guitar. He could have been the one who attended my graduation. He could have helped me work on my speech and practice it with me. He would have been the first to read the draft. He would have watched all my school presentations. He would have videotaped every single one, photographed every slight movement I would make. He would watch movies with me and recommend books to me.

But I know he's just somewhere there. I know he'll never stop watching over me. He always has. It was hard when I realized I lost Dad, but everything happens for a reason we cannot comprehend at the moment. I still miss Dad, but I wouldn't have had things turn out any other way. I'm happy where I am now.

I'm happy to have a mom who braved time and distance to make ends meet.

I'm happy to have a stepfather who loves me like his own, never mistreating me in any way.

I'm happy to have a stepbrother who taught me that not all people are like me, and I have to learn how to live with that. If it wasn't for Gerald, I would never have learned to cope with different types of personalities. I'll always love him for that, no matter how many short fights we get into.

I'm happy to have a Dad who'll always watch over me even if I can't see him. He's always been there, I know that. I feel that.

And I'm happy that I have a God who constructed my life so beautifully, giving me blessings I don't even think I deserve, giving me trials and heartaches whenever I need them, never giving them to me without a specific purpose. :D

The Lord wants this for me. And I trust Him.

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Dad, thanks for always being there for me. I'm sorry if I was not the perfect daughter that you deserved when you were still alive. I'm glad I have a father like you, not just because you can do a lot of things and people say good things about you. Above all that, I'm happy because you love me so much. It feels so good knowing someone loves you that much. I want to give you a hug, a kiss and tell you how much I love you too. I hope I grow up to be the daughter you can be proud of, to fulfill the dream you always had for me - well, minus the Ms. Universe part, of course. Haha. I love you Dad. Happy birthday. :D

Jota labs. :)

Some people say "no" when the rest of the world says "yes." But there are a handful of people who say "yes" when other people say "no."

Know anyone who fits the latter part of that?

Ako meron. Beh. Haha.

Almira Joy Perez Jota
AJ, Jota, Almyra

The name "Almira" has already been familiar to me since Second Year. I've known her as one very smart student. She was Top3 of our batch during that year. However, I have to admit, I never really got the chance to talk to her personally, not until Third Year that is. From Third Year to Fourth Year, AJ and I were classmates.

That was when I really got to know AJ.

The fact that Jota is an amazingly great person is quite an understatement. She's really, really intelligent. She has this sort of in-born intelligence. She's especially talented in Mathematics and I often went to her whenever my mind got confused seeing all those numbers. It's magnificent how she manages to come up with all those solutions. Jota also has one of the best memories I can remember. In class, she hardly needs to take down notes. It's like every word the teacher says is registered automatically in her brain.

Academics aside, AJ also is one great performer. She's an outrageous dancer, often choreographing a lot of our class presentations. Pramis. Ang galing niya sumayaw. Super galing pang umarte. She even won Best Supporting Actress during our last Drama Fest. Rinape kaya siya run! She always is willing to take one for the class. In all our class presentations, she always plays such a remarkable role. Ka-group ko nga siya sa Filipino last year. Her awesome ideas and acting just make me go "ang galing ni Jota." I do believe that without her, presentations would never be the same. She is also quite the writer. Often, her outputs are often admired for her style of writing. I've read one or two of he routputs, and I must sya they were so beautifully written. She certainly goes beyond her years.

One of the best things about Jota is that she's a fighter. She knows how to speak her mind and stand up to it. Her strong spirit just makes me admire her all the more. She was part of the Parliamentary Team-Masci last year. She also attended the summer classes that the team was required to undertake. Circumstances did not allow me to attend such, but I hear a lot about Almira's performance.

She is indeed a very talented Parliamentarian. Always willing to study and undergo the intensive training. However, her health fails her at times. AJ has a heart problem and the pressure that arose from Parlia probably triggered her sickness. They tell me that she was even brought to the hospital. I've seen her like that several times before. Naalala ko pa noong Third Year, kinabahan kami lahat dahil naghihina at naninikip na naman ang dibdib ni Jota. That was my first time to actually see something like that. Except for times like these, AJ never showed any signs of her condition. She is in fact very active and perky. I often imagined people with such conditions to always be so timid and quiet. But ever since I met her, I never had that perception again.

Despite people convincing her to quit the team due to her health, AJ never gave up. She still prodded on. She could have let go of the pressure to make things easier for her, but she still chose to come out of her comfort zone, to never give up. This is one of the greates traits about her. She is not contented in limiting herself. She doesn't let boundaries like that get in the way of what she wants to do. She more than fits the line I made up at the start of this post.

Another thing about Jota is that she is one great friend. It's no wonder she has a lot of friends all over the batch. She's the kind who speaks her mind and yet still be able to listen and listen well. She's the kind who'll always be there for you no matter what happens. She may be the youngest in our class, but her mature outlook in life translates into years of wisdom. Very few people are like AJ, and I'm glad I'm lucky enough to have her as part of my life. (Andrama!)

Jota. Super salamat sa lahat. Sa lahat ng favors, tawa, ngiti, kwentuhan at pagkakaibigan. Pareho lang naman tayong mga anak ng Taft Avenue kaya't alam kong magkikita pa tayo. Goodluck sa college. Alam kong malayo mararating mo. Ingat lagi. Tandaan mo andito lang ako. Awww. Haylabyu Jota. :D

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Yeay. Haha.

Sige, matulog daw ako maaga. Paalams. :D

NEW LAYOUT

As you can plainly see, I have a brand new blogspot layout.

And I love it soooooo much

This was all made possible by:

My beloved daughter
DIANA DALISAYAGUILAR OROLFO

And what do we do to people I love? XD

I've known Naknak Isay since my first year in High School. As far as my memory tells me, I met her during the Knights of Science Club Officers elections. And somehow we just hit it off as friends. Thank God for that.

There was a phase in my First Year of High School that I started forming this sort of, err, family. Haha. I started having these "sons" and "daughters" from all over the batch. And Isay is proudly one of them. :)

So ako ang kanyang Momi Ella.

Where's the father, you ask? Let's just say we're from a broken family. Haha.

Through the years, I've loved having Isay for a daughter. As anyone would know, she's a totally amazing young lady. Her pretty baby-face just captivates everyone around her. She's an explicit writer, outstanding public speaker and parliamentarian, magnificent student, responsible officer and all other nouns and adjectives you can connect to her beautiful name.

And let's not forget how great a friend she really is.

She's been there for me so many times I don't have the time to type it all here. She was there when I went through the "broken family" phase. She was there when I first learned about it, there for me to cry on. She was there when I was down in never never land and couldn't get a hold of myself. She was there when I needed someone to talk to. She was there when I wanted to talk about things I may have said already. She was there when I got up again. She was there when I started being happy again. She was there when I lost hold of myself again. All this time, she's always been there. And I know she still is.

I ranted about my pain to her so many times I must have been like a broken record player. I just never stopped, but Isay never stopped listening, anyway. And she never stopped giving me pieces of advice. I've always felt comfortable talking to her about a lot of things because I know she understands and I know I can trust her with anything.

She contemplates a lot about life and I've learned a lot of things from her. She made me realize how you can always choose to be happy and how you don't have to look for love, to name a few. She boosted my self-esteem a lot of times and always gave me the right hug at the right moment. She gives me the right wisdom when I need it. There have been countless moments when I think she's God's instrument in enlightening me. Hyess. Guardian Angel.

I've always wanted to emulate that smile she keeps on her face all the time. It must be why she still looks so young. I hope that that smile never fades away. People like her deserve to be happy. No one should be hurting her and making her cry. Sabi ko nga, kapag may umaway sa kanya kukulamin ko. Kung may balak ka, matakot ka na. Haha.

Nak, always remember that Momi will always be here for you. If you need anything, contact me. Kahit madaling araw pa yan. I'm glad we're both in the same campus. I'll be watching over you like I promised your mom. You've done so much for me and I'll try to do the same for you. I may not be perfect but I'll always love that daughter I have in you. Keep smiling, okay? I love you, nak. :D

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Oo na, madrama kung madrama. Haha.

Osha, kakain na raw. Bye! :D

Nocturnal Stories: Tatay Jack

Waw. It's 2am and I'm still up. Haha. Gising pa ako! Oha oha oha.

Bakit nga ba ako gising? (Yeay Tagalog ako ngayon)

Kasi ayaw ko iwan si Tatay Jayvee!

Inaasikaso kasi niya ang yearbook namin... kasi na-worm ulit ang files... at mag-isa lang siya ngayon! Di ko siya kaya iwan, kailangan ko siya tulungan.

Ngayon, wala naman akong talent or what sa pag-layout. Alam ng karamihan na isa sa aking waterloo ay ang ComputerScience. Gusto ko talaga tulungan si Tatay, kaya naghanap ako ng tutulong, at iyon si Cleverlyn Mayuga *applause for Clebb*

Ang kaso, kailangan nang matulog ni Clebb dahil pinagsabihan na siya ng kanyang ama, kaya hindi totally tapos yung last page na hinihintay, kaya kailangan gawin pa ni Tatay. :(

Dahil ayaw ko nang mag-isa si Tatay, sabi ko hihintayin kong matapos niya. Kaso ayaw niya! Gusto na niya ako matulog. Ito nga o:

Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!
Jan Vincent Delos Santos: 2log k na!

Haha. Kaya nakipag-negotiate na lang ako. Sabi ko pag natapos ko yung blog post, matutulog na talaga ako. Haha.

So tungkol san ba yung post ko?

Kanino pa, eh di kay Tatay!

San ba ako pwde magsimula? :D

JAN VINCENT TAN DELOS SANTOS
a.k.a. Tatay, JV. Jayvee, Java, at Tatay Jack "ko"

Nakilala ko si Jayvee nung First Year pa kami. Ang unang encounter namin ay nung First Year Local Extemporaneous Speaking Contest. Siya ang contestant ng section niya, Benevolence, at ako naman sa section ko, Honesty. In the end, siya ang nagwagi ng Unang Karangalan. Congrats Tay!

Sunod kong nakilala si Jayvee noong napag-alaman kong siya 'yung 99/100 sa Summative Test sa ComSci. Noong mga panahong iyon, super "wow" ang sinumang mag-excel sa ComSci. Hindi ko alam kung naaalala pa niya pero minsan ko siyang tinanong kung siya ba si "Jan Vincent Delos Santos" noong nasa hallway kami. Sumagot ata siya nun. Di ko maalala. Haha.

Noong Second Year naman, lalo ko siya nakilala dahil super close sila ni Miguel nun (sige mang-asar pa kayo). As in super duper. Hindi ko masasabing naging super close din kami noon, pero kahit papaano nakita ko ang isang mabuting ugali ni Tatay: masipag, responsable, at higit sa lahat, mabuting kaibigan. (Di ko rin alam kung bakit hindi na sila gaanong close, ok?)

Sa Third Year at Fourth Year ko siya sobrang nakilala pa. Noon una nagkailangan pa kami ng kaunti dahil doon sa "Carol Fest" issue. Pero hindi naglaon ay nagkekwentuhan na kami, nagtatawanan, nagtutulungan, naging magkaibigan. (Wow that rhymes! Haha).

Ang galing ni Tatay. Magaling siya sa pag-kwento, sa Journ, sa pag-host, sa pagdrama, sa pagkanta, sa pag-arte, sa pagguhit, at kahit sa pag-joke. Grabe. All-in-one performer at entertainer si Tatay.

Pero ang pinakanagustuhan ko kay Tatay, ay ang una kong nakita sa kanya noong Second Year: tunay siyang kaibigan, walang duda 'yun. Lagi siyang nandyan para sa amin. At lagi siyang handang magpasaya sa kahit sino, lagi siyang handang mag-sakripisyo para sa amin, kahit nahihirapan na siya. Kahit mayroon din siyang sariling problema, paghihirap, suliranin, hindi mo ito mahahalata sa mga ngiti sa kanyang labi at sa masiglang bati niya sa amin araw-araw. Ang gwapo pa naman niya. Haha.

Napag-kwentuhan namin ni Tatay na pwede namin siyang ihalintulad sa isang "Jack-in-the-Box." Siya kasi yung laging nagpapasaya sa iba, laging handang lumabas para magpangiti. Pero ang sabi ko nga, "Ano kaya itsura ni Jack pag nasa loob ng box?" Sa likod ng mga ngiti ni Tatay, nagkakaroon din ng mga pagkakataong malungkot siya. Sabi nga sa "Kwento ni Mabuti" na lesson namin noong Third Year, ang taong nakararanas ng matinding kaligayahan, ay siya ring nakararanas ng matinding kalungkutan.

Ayaw na ayaw kong malunkot si Tatay. Gusto ko lagi siyang masaya. Isa siya sa mga kaibigang mahalaga sa akin. Masaya ako at pareho kami sa Nursing, makakasama ko pa siya.

Tay, Jack. Para sa'yo ang post na toh. Sana nagustuhan mo. Aylabyu Tay. Salamat sa lahat. Tandaan mo andito lang ako. Ako 'yung knob, ako 'yung panyo. :D