As the year ends, I also say good bye to the old life that has taken me four years to build. Ateneo has been my home and my school, a place that I both love and hate. In its halls I met friends and teachers who have shaped me and my perspectives in life.

My experiences in college have taught me to distinguish between whimsical dreams and practical ones, to decide what I really want to do in my life, to choose the causes that I will fight for, and to realize what I should work on improving in myself.

I cannot describe how much I’ve changed inside and out since coming to Ateneo in 2005. I thought that my public high school background would set me apart from Ateneo’s cliquish and elitist students, and it did, too—although not always in a negative manner. Because I stand to lose more in terms of opportunities for the future, I was driven to work twice as hard for the things I want, like good grades. I knew that I was a diligent student and that I can work my way through piles of academic requirements.

But of course, law school changed all that.

There were several nights when I felt miserable about working and studying at the same time, knowing that I couldn’t give up either. I was never a quitter, but these low points during the early days of the first semester drove me up the wall.

I remember one time when I crawled to bed utterly exhausted, crying after turning off the computer at 2AM in the morning and wondering whether I’ve made the right choice after all. I was able to submit my work but have not read the cases for the following day. Work was slowing my studies down, and studying keeps me from focusing on my job.

I would be lying if I said that I didn’t feel intimated by everything about law school.  The teachers, the environment, the work load...even the building itself was challenging .There were moments when I thought “I graduated with honors from college, demmit. Why am I having such a difficult time here?” But law school, like love, is the great equalizer. I soon learned that honor standing in college meant very little in law school.

Nothing ever prepares you for it. We listened, wide-eyed and disbelieving, to the upperclassmen relate their horror stories inside the classroom, but we never trusted them completely (at least I didn’t, thinking they were only exaggerating).  There’s no way to understand the world of law school but to live it. Lo and behold, we were already going through the same things that they did.

It didn’t help that we had one less skilled worker at home, what with my brother studying in UP Bagiuo. We don’t have a maid at home, so there are only three people to do the house chores—my mom, my sister and I. It was difficult enough trying to juggle school and work, but I couldn’t very well ignore the demands of our domestic tasks. I thank my family for supporting me the way they did--with a lot of love and a few petty quarrels thrown in for good measure.

This year was also exceptional because of the amount of money I earned—and spent. My part time work helped me earn my first 100,000 pesos. This is also the first time that I started buying the things I want and need: I bought a HP Mini laptop, books, clothes, shoes, readings for school, and gifts for the people I love. I even paid my tuition fee for the second semester.  Financial independence felt so good, but I enjoyed it at the cost of more study time.

My grades for this semester are probably the worst in my entire school life, regardless of how much time and effort and spent with my commentaries and cases. But even if I never got the grades I always had in the past, it was okay with me.

Before starting law school I promised myself that I will forego getting very good grades if it meant sacrificing my health. I wanted to be a lawyer, sure, but I wanted to live long enough to carry on my profession for a long time.  I also wanted to be a fun and funny lawyer, a conscious commitment that I remind myself about every time I feel like throwing something because I can’t crack a case. Block D was instrumental in this area because the people know how and when to have fun and make a mockery of our sorry social life.

NOVEMBER

WE BEGAN THE month by celebrating my mother’s birthday, which fell on All Saints’ Day. Before going to Landmark Makati for lunch and shopping, we visited Papa’s grave and lit a candle for him. This is the only time during the year that we drop by his grave.

 

JED AND I watched the first 2009 World Pyrolympics night at Serendra. It was his “surprise” date after I brought him to Cafe Juanita last month. I bought a bottle of Revlon mineral foundation powder for P975—my first expensive makeup purchased with my own money. It was a reward to myself for having passed all my subjects in the first semester.

 

WE WAITED WITH bated breath for our grades, which arrived one by one out of the College Secretary’s office. By the time that all the grades were out, two of our blockmates have submitted their letters for leave of absence with the dean, one was dropped from the rolls for getting a 5 in three subjects, and two or three more ended with a dangerous combination of two 5 grades.

I lucked out on a final GWA of 2.09 for the first sem. So much for studying hard. I was particularly thankful that I passed Crim even with just a 3.

 

YYA BROUGHT US to their new house for the blessing. It was a pact that she made with us if she passes Persons and Family Relations, which she did. The house was stunning, with dark wood furniture, abstract paintings everywhere, and lots and lots of space. We particularly loved the home theatre in the basement.

 

REMEMBER 23 NOVEMBER: the Maguindanao Massacre claimed the lives of 56 individuals, done in the name of keeping the status quo between the Ampatuan and Mangudadatu families. My block mates and I joined the solidarity night led by the UP College of Law and the College of Mass Communication held at the Malcolm Hall driveway. The event touched something in me, and I ended up crying for the innocent lives so brutally lost all because one man (or one family, depending on how you look at it) wanted all the power in Maguindanao.

 

WE WENT TO Sam’s birthday celeb right after the solidarity night.

 

JOINED JED’S FAMILY on a day trip to Tagaytay for an ocular inspection of the reception venue (Josephine’s) and church (Caleruega) for his sister’s wedding. My family and I were also in Tagaytay this same day last year.

 

 

DECEMBER

THE START OF the month was filled with so much fun and laughter. On the last day of class before we broke for the holidays, I was sitting in Consti 2 class sulking because I was supposed to be in Enchanted Kingdom with Jed and his GBF Friends.

They were all going to Fudan University in China—all thirty-something of them. They were warned at the start of the semester that the last ten with the lowest grades will not be given a chance to join the others for a five-month stint in China.

 

SIMBANG GABI 2009. Karen and mama both missed a night each, so I was the only one who actually completed all nine morning masses. It was the third time that I finished simbang gabi successfully.

 

BLOCK D MADE the day of the UP Lantern Parade our class party day as well.  I have never watched the lantern parade before, and the start of the whole event was a little disappointing. Two or three colleges featured Plants vs Zombies characters, and we even had a photo op with them.

I brought my gift for Maanne—an orange ceramic coffee jug which was on her wishlist. Bobbie gave me her gift earlier. It was a pair of gold Guess hoop earrings.



 

However, as soon as the night settled in, the whole parade came alive with lighted lanterns and colourful crazy mascots. Rizsa, Yya, Bobbie and I did not waste a moment getting our pictures taken, thanks to Jet.

 

NEXT STOP WAS at Kamay Kainan on Kalayaan Avenue, where we were supposed to have our Christmas party. We were turned away by the staff because the whole restaurant was full and they refused to take in our reservation request a few days ago. Hungry and impatient, we transferred to the first relatively empty place we saw. Trellis was right across the street and it seemed a good a choice as any.

Berna, Chel and I ordered a pitcher of Bacardi Iced Tea (Berna’s favorite) and a plate of sizzling pork sisig, Trellis’ bestseller dish. Because I was feeling rather festive, I also ordered a bottle of Gilbey’s Premium Strength.

THE LAST PARTY night in December ended with me and Jed going to two different events: our college organization’s Christmas party at Colayco Pavilion in Ateneo and Pat’s birthday party at a house in Valle Verde.  I loved the free-flowing drinks! 

 

THE FUN STOPPED when my maternal grandmother, Lola Leleng, was brought to the Philippine Heart Center. It was her third heart attack and she was in a very critical condition. The first time Mama and I visited her at the hospital ER, at least three machines monitoring her condition were hooked to her body.

Her whole body was beginning to go gray and stiff. The day before she was brought to the hospital, she had her nails done and her hair colored. It was like she knew she was going to leave soon and wanted to look her best for the last time.

After a few days her kidneys malfunctioned and she began to undergo dialysis on top of all the treatments she was getting. Ken was able to visit her when he got home from Baguio. Karen, however, was not as lucky. On the day that she was supposed to accompany mama to visit lola, we received news that lola passed away.

 

WE SPENT CHRISTMAS Eve at home, going to the Misa de Gallo and having our usual family Noche Buena. The very next day, we went to Pampanga to join the rest of our relatives who were at lola’s wake. Lola Leleng was buried on a Sunday, December 27^th.

 

I WELCOMED THE New Year feeling sick and weary. The stresses of the past few weeks as well as the whole semester fell down on me like a heap of bricks. For almost four days, all I ever did was eat and sleep, sometimes for nearly 12 hours a day. This explains why I simply never had the chance to finish my readings for the Christmas break. Thankfully, I was back on my feet just before classes resumed.

JULY

MY BROTHER CAME down from the mountains—literally—for his first visit since leaving for college. Mama was overly excited to have him back, if only for a few days. It was also Ponx’s 18^th birthday but she opted not to have a debut party. Her high school friends chipped in to throw her a surprise party at our house.
 

 

WE ATTENDED APEX, the 2009 UP College of Law Bar Ops Kickoff Party in Eastwood. At this point, we were already beginning to forge close friendships, having gone through the same extreme experiences together.

 

ONE GOOD THING—I was promoted at work, which means that I get a higher rate per page. Now that I’m working less days a week, the pay raise was a welcome change.

 

BLOCK D WON the UP College of Law Freshman competition again! Last year was the only time when Block D didn’t win in years, so it was really exhilarating to have made a comeback for all the block Ds. Apart from  the Miss Freshman contest (that involves straight men dressed up as women, btw), there was also a block presentation portion. I LOVED LOVED LOVED this part because I was able to dance again. Haha.

 

 MY BLOCKIES AND I went to Danna’s family’s country house in Tagaytay, which was tastefully decorated and just wonderful for our relaxation purposes. First time to play Wii and get drunk with my friends. Some people from D2012 dropped by for a few shots of alcohol and chika.

 

THIS WAS ALSO the month when Jed finally accepted the Gokongwei Brothers Foundation-Confucius Institute China Scholarship program. He recently promoted at work, but he gave it up and decided to work part-time in order to make way for his Chinese classes.

 

I WAS ALSO promoted at work, which meant that I now commanded a higher rate per page. It was a big help because I was now working less days per week, and the difference in salary allowed me to make up for the days when I simply couldn’t squeeze time for work. My boss was very understanding and she allowed me to incur many more absences.

 

AUGUST

KEN WENT HOME again for a second visit, this time for his birthday. Our semester was marked with his intermittent visits, which made my mother very, very happy. She prepared the most delicious foods whenever he was home because he was not standing up well to dorm life. At least we had relatives in Baguio who can look after him.
 

JED AND I went to UAAP basketball games, particularly the ADMU-DLSU rounds. We lined up for tickets (my first time in the alumni line) whenever he wasn’t able to reserve free Upper B seats for us courtesy of his PR job for one of the season’s sponsors.

We even went with some friends he met in Korea when he was a participant of the National Youth Commission’s Korea Exchange Program.

 

FIRST EVER LAW school exam: Persons and Family Relations. U was ruthless, as expected. To keep ourselves happy, my blockmates and I decided to de-stress by eating out once in a while.

 

AT THIS POINT, we were already spending P500 a week to pay for our readings, which meant that we were photocopying P2,000 worth of readings for every person every month. Of course, no one (or at least perhaps only five people) was able to read everything.

 

SEPTEMBER

ONE OF MY dogs, Pikoy, was confined in the veterinary hospital for whipworm infection. He stayed for two days.

 

AS WAS OUR tradition, Jed and I watched the UAAP Cheerdance Competition this year. For me, it’s one of the season’s most exciting events. Ateneo’s Blue Babble Battalion surprised everyone with their stunning performance, which bagged them second place. I’m already excited for their routine in 2010!

 

ONDOY SURPRISED EVERYONE.

There’s just no way to describe fully how the storm has changed the life of virtually every single resident in Manila. I had class that day and was stuck in Katipunan for four hours, eventually deciding to stay overnight at a blockmate’s boyfriend’s house. I cannot go home because all the roads going to our part of Pasig were flooded at least waist-deep.

We experienced five straight days of no electricity and no cellphone signal at home. Our days were filled with all the tasks of cleaning up after the storm—washing down the mud-streaked walls, throwing away sodden documents and whatnot, laundering the clothes made filthy by the flood. It was the first time in 18 years that we experienced a flood in our area.

 

MY TWO BELOVED dogs, Patchie and Pettina, perished in the flood. There was no one home when the flood waters rose, and they panicked and drowned. Only my male dog, Pikoy, was able to survive by swimming to and staying on top of a tall table in our garage. Mama and Karen arrived home only to find two of our dogs floating, dead, in the dirty flood. I still dream of them sometimes. I don’t think I have ever loved a dog as much as I loved Patchie, Pettina and Pikoy.

 

LIFE WENT ON, but in other places, the floodwater was still too high to allow the residents to return to their homes. Pepeng and Ramil ravaged Central and North Luzon, respectively, raising the water levels in low-lying areas too high. Pangasinan, in particular, was badly hit. SM City Rosales was mostly underwater.

 

1D WAS UP against 1C for the moot court exercise in Legal History class. It was fun pretending to be a lawyer and addressing the court as “the counsel respectfully appearing for the City of Isabela.” J I was one of the litigators for our class and I really enjoyed the whole thing, except for the headache that prepping for it brought me.

 

TWO OF MY final exams were held 15 days after Ondoy. All my law books were submerged in the thigh-deep flood inside our house, so I had to dry them for days under the sun just so I could study. It was difficult trying to get myself on study mode again.

APRIL

I STARTED WORKING a couple of days before my college graduation. Like I said, I was worried by the need to raise enough money for law school, so I polished my resume, uploaded it on both JobsDB and Jobstreet, and started searching for jobs.

I was particularly interest in being an academic researcher/writer (read: ghost writer for students abroad who cannot write well in English or are too busy to do their own papers) because it was the only job that would allow me to work and study at the same time.

My boss is a nice woman whom I’ve never seen. Everything is done online—the assignment and submission of tasks, the instructions and revisions, even the payment. The job is challenging in a nerdy kind of way, too, if you’re the type of person who likes learning weird and useless things.

FOR MY FAMILY, the Holy Week means one thing: Visita Iglesia. I have been doing his Lenten tradition since I was eight, so I’ve actually been on 11 Visita Iglesias so far. One thing I really like about this tradition is that it allows me to see my favorite churches, which are like good friends to me now.

 Binondo Church

ONE OF OUR puppies died because of a fatal canine disease called canine distemper. The tragedy left our family even more grief-stricken because we had to have her “put to sleep” in order to save the other dog from getting infected. Marbie, our girl puppy, was just three months old at that time. This picture is not my dog, but she was going from bad to worse and we had to decide.

 

EVER ON THE rebound, my sister and I asked our friends if they have puppies to give away. We were blessed with two new pretty girls, whom we named Patchie and Pettina. We were supposed to keep only one of them because having three dogs is expensive, what with the shots, vitamins, shampoo and medicine that we have to maintain. In the end, we kept all three of them anyway.

HI MY NAME IS PATCHIE:

 

AND I AM PETTINA.




HAD MY FIRST major trouble at work. It was the first time I ever experienced praying to God to not let me lose my job because I needed it badly. With all three of us in college (and I in post-college studies), my mother’s finances will be stretched too thin. I had to at least be able to support myself. It was a plagiarism charge, of all things, but it was taken care of and my boss decided to retain me.

 

MY HIGH SCHOOL classmates and I decide to get together before we start becoming part of the work force. Haha! There are those of us who took up five-year courses or are taking graduate studies (one is in med school, and two of us are in law school).

 

MAY

JED GOT BACK from the US. He gave me a scarf, a pashmina, and a solar-powered blinking keychain as pasalubong. I discovered that the keychain was a cute little thing that flashes “I <3 U” on and off when exposed to strong light. The flashing characters amused me to no end.

 

HEARD ABOUT JUDY Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo’s surprise wedding in Batangas. Boy, was it beautiful. Like the nuptials-crazy girl that I am, I waited excitedly for the airing of their wedding special on ABS. It was probably the sweetest and most romantic wedding I have ever watched in years.

I also happened to watch Mar and Korina’s engagement announcement on Wowowee, my sister’s favorite show on earth.

 

Yeah, I'm mababaw like that. LOLZ.


AFTER SUFFERING FROM mild scabies from my dogs in the past month, I was stricken with allergic cough and colds that stayed for more than a month. I was dependent on antihistamines for two weeks,which made me perpetually groggy.

Around this time, I was readying the paperwork for admission to the UP College of Law. It still amazed me that I passed the exams when I hardly reviewed for it and certainly did not wish to end up there. But still, I have made my choice and I am going to go through with it.


JUST BEFORE MY vacation ended, Jed, his GMA friends and I went off for a short but sweet trip to Puerto Galera. It was my first time there and I nearly puked while riding the ferryboat because we were seated an hour before it left. The constant rocking of the vessel literally churned my stomach but I was able to hold in my breakfast. We were lucky to have made it there safely, as a ferryboat had sunk just the week before. The banana boat ride was the best!

 

 

JUNE

JED AND I celebrated our second anniversary by picnicking at La Mesa Ecopark in Quezon City. We even bumped into an org mate and common friend while lining up for the wall climbing attraction. Saying yung zipline over the lagoon kaya lang ang mahal kasi. But at least I was able to slap my hand on the topmost part of the wall after a successful climb! :D

I gave Jed the only printed copy of my autobiography manuscript as an 2^nd anniversary gift.

 

AROUND THIS TIME, Ka Rene, one of the Sumilao farmers who marched all the way from Bukidnon, was assassinated just as Congress passed the bill on CARPER. It was a bittersweet victory for all who have fought for their right to land.

 

ON MY 21ST birthday, we had a simple family dinner at home. Jed came straight from the office bearing a tray of brazo de Mercedes, one of my favorite dessert treats.

 

MY LIFE AS a law school student started on rusty wheels. I had no idea what to expect at all; I had no upperclassmen friends or even far-flung acquaintances who can tutor me in the ways of law school life. Prior to enrolment, I was already “interviewing” Jed’s older sister, Ate Mayou, who was herself a graduating law school student at San Beda. But nothing could have prepared me for the whirlwind of the UP College of Law.

Also met my law blockies for the first time. When I acceded to entering law school, I promised myself that I would be a fun and funny lawyer. True enough, God gave me a bunch of wild people for blockmates. J

I WENT TO Baguio by bus on my own—my first solo out-of-town trip. I sat for nearly seven hours next to a cute yuppie guy who lived in Baguio, and of course I didn’t pass up on the chance to make small talk.

Our Baguio trip was also supposedly the time for us to drop off my brother who was a BS Physics major in UP Bagiuo (he wasn’t able to qualify for the Diliman campus), but due to the AH1N1 scare, classes were postponed for another week. We all went back to Manila and later went off to see him go to Baguio on his own.

 

LAW SCHOOL LIFE officially started on June 16^th and my life changed forever. I continued working because there was no way I could buy the expensive readings and books that I needed to survive the everyday load.

Perhaps one of the most incredible things about being in law school (especially UP Law) is that you get to be taught by the most brilliant lawyers in Philippine society. Our class was under the tutelage of one incredibly sharp and competent lawyer, U, who is hands down my favorite professor.

My blockmates and I decided to have themed Thursdays because it’s the most stressful day of the week. Here are some of our memorable pictures:

 

Funny headgear day


Pink day


Red day


Purple day

ONE OF MY college block mates, Nonoy, migrated to the US. He was supposed to go to law school with me, if only he had been given the opportunity to spend half the time in the States and half the time here. I hope he’s able to live his dreams in Seattle.  

               A lot has changed in only twelve months.

                This year has seen me through several important metamorphoses. In retrospect, 2009 has to be the most challenging year of my life. It certainly is the most expensive, the most spectacular and the most unpredictable twelve months I have ever lived.

                With this blog I try to capture the moments that I have loved and lost before I usher in a new year with my family and friends. I have not written a blog entry in more than four months because I spend most of my time either working or studying, so I no longer have energy to spare for leisure writing. I have resorted to posting mini-blogs through Plurk and Facebook instead, but somehow my random thoughts in these two sites are not enough to accurately reflect my real feelings.

                So I’m trying to pick up that dear old habit of writing again. I’m hoping that it would help see me through the tumble of days ahead, the endless racing against the pile of cases that are taking up more and more room in my bed, the emotional turmoil that will come with Jed’s leaving—all of these would have to be written if I want to get a grip on myself.

                But I am getting ahead of my story. This blog is for the year 2009 and for everyone who has been part of it. Prost!

 

JANUARY

JANUARY was perhaps the slowest month of the year. After the festivities, I was hardly happy to go back to school. By this time I have already made up my mind: I don’t want to start on my master’s degree. I don’t want to study law. I was thinking of either continuing my German language studies and becoming a Deutsch teacher OR working in corporate communications.

 

FEBRUARY

ON THE SECOND day of February, I texted a former Filipino co-delegate in the ASEAN Student Exchange Program 2004 when the UP Law Aptitude Exams will be released. Luigi also took the exams last November. He told me that he had no idea when, but “Marami na ngang kinakabahan sa results eh.” I was strangely calm about the results because I have already made up my mind. Whether or not I pass the exams, I wouldn’t push through with law school anyway.

THE VERY NEXT day, as if by magic, the UP LAE results were out. A classmate in Media Law called me out of the blue as I was about to go for my afternoon nap in the Rizal Library. We had this exchange:

Aiu: “Karla, ikaw ba si Karla Eunice Tolentino Mesina?”

Me: “Ha? Oo. Ako yun. Bakit?”

Aiu: “Hoy congrats! Pumasa ka sa LAE!”

It turns out that she was in UP with some friends majoring in Political Science at Ateneo because they heard about the release of the exam results. I made it to the list of 320 lucky people out of the 4,000 hopeful souls. Unfortunately, one of my org mates (with whom I was already planning to establish a law firm, ha-ha) did not make it.

BY FEBRUARY 12, my mother has finally succeeded into making me change my mind. I agreed to accept the UP College of Law’s offer and enrol for one year. I gave her a caveat, though: “If I don’t like it there in one year, I'm out.”

The LAE results can be seen here. Fate weird ways of dealing with us, because this blogger turned out to be my law school blockmate.

JED AND I hosted Matanglawin’s Rubdob: Malas on a Friday the 13^th. It wasn’t unlucky, however, as I received a beautiful bouquet of roses and a box of Ralph Lauren perfume from Jed. My Valentine’s gift was wildly inappropriate. It was a poem, one of my own ambitious and amateurish originals.

 
The very next day, I met some blockmates for Valentine's lunch before going home. There were only four of us who came, but what the heck.

 
OUR FAMILY DOG of nearly five years died of a mysterious heart attack, and we were all crushed. More than a week later, we went to Arranque market along Recto Avenue in Manila to buy two puppies, one male and the other female. Around this time, my maternal grandmother also suffered her first attack. The new puppies:

 

 
I ASKED JED to accompany me on a tour of the churches in Old Manila. This was for the memoir that I was doing for Features Workshop class entitled “Churchgoer.” This picture shows my most favorite church, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Broadway, QC. There was a wedding on the day that we visited.

 

To tell you the truth, churches fascinate me, and I love visitng them for the sake of marveling at the architecture.

JED LEFT FOR Korea and was gone for nearly three weeks. I had my finals and my autobiography manuscript to keep me busy, so the void was filled with long working hours.

 

MARCH

BY THE TIME that Jed was back, I was already done with my birthday gift for him. I rounded up every friend and relative of his whom I could contact and asked them to “sign” a scrapbook for him by sending their birthday greetings via email and/or text. I even made a Yahoo!group so everyone could send in their messages at the same time. I got his Dad (who was working in Russia) to reply with a message, which was a major victory for the project.
 

JED AND I attended the christening of our Matanglawin orgmates’ first daughter, Regina Cecilia, whom Kuya JP called Jacqueline the entire time that we were there.

  

BECAUSE I WAS now going to go to law school, I had to find a way to earn some money before the next semester starts. Truth be told, my job hunting was not turning out well, what with the recent recession still on and my utterly un-bankable degree program weighing me down. I lucked out on a job ad on JobsDB for an online academic researcher/writer and started working four days before my college graduation. I put this as my resume picture:



but I was much prettier in this photo:



:))

 

ATTENDED THE 1OTH Raul Locsin Awards for Student Journalism and the awarding ceremonies for the best thesis of the year. Mheann, Belle and I copped the second best thesis of the year. These two friends of  mine are the best thesismates EVER. Unfortunately, only Belle and I made it to the awarding ceremonies.

 

BUT BEFORE GRADUATION day, I nearly had a heart attack on the day that the final grades were released. I was gunning for cum laude, and I could not afford to slip past the 3.50 average. When I logged onto Aisis, the Ateneo website for academic information, my grade fell a couple of decimal points below my target grade.

Hands shaking, I stared at the screen again and processed what I saw. Okay, I had one more subject missing. I called up the MIS department, and then the Political Science department, to inquire about my grade. I ended up with a 3.56 final QPI, and that was that.



I ALSO GRADUATED in advance for my minor degree in German Studies. I miss speaking in another language. I miss how we'd strive to catch the pronunciation and repeat it properly. I miss writing and reading in a different alphabet. I miss the friends who made the classes more fun and interesting. I miss Frau Velasco, too!

 

GRADUATION DAY CAME and went. We had an intimate celebratory dinner at The Sicilian along Katipunan Avenue, with my family, Tita Che and Jed in attendance. Jed came all the way from his cousin’s wedding in Bataan and made it on time before I had my chance to shake Father Ben’s hand.

 The most important thing about this day? I made my Mama proud, literally. :)

JED LEFT FOR a month-long vacation in the US with his family. He had been keeping all the preparations for the trip a secret from me, but unbeknownst to him, I had my sources. >:) I already had a sneaking suspicion that he would be leaving again for a longer period of time before he even told me about it.

On the night of his flight, I was in Alaminos, Pangasinan with my Matanglawin orgmates for our yearly evaluation seminar. As two friends (who were a couple since 3^rd year high school) sang Westlife’s “Swear It Again” as a duet, I started crying. Just then, Jed texted that they were already boarding the plane and I cried even harder.

 

Their singing made me cry.

 

THE SUBSEQUENT DAYS in Pangasinan were no longer as tear-filled, however. I learned to play billiards properly and became the official cook for my org mates, who were only too happy to leave me in front of the stove. We went out to the Hundred Islands and swam and frolicked on the beach.

 

I WENT BACK to Manila two days earlier than my org mates to attend my youngest brother’s high school graduation. Tired, sleepy and drunk, I slept almost all the way to Manila.

The trip was worth it, though. Finally, we are all out of high school and on the road to our future careers.

 

last February, our five-year-old dog Mako died because of a sudden heart attack. yesterday, one of our two new puppies, Marbie, had to be put to sleep for good.

Marbie is a female bull mastiff with streaky black and brown fur and a bear-like face. she was the most beautiful--and i do mean beautiful, not just cute--dog we have ever had. unlike Pikoy, the male Labrador-Sharpei mutt, she wasn't very sweet or thoughtful. but she was so cuddly and soft and huggable.

unfortunately, Marbie tested positive for canine distemper. this is an incurable and highly communicable canine disease that is caused by a virus related to the deadly SARS virus. it causes respiratory failure and nervous breakdown in dogs.

Marbie was not able to sleep the whole of Sunday night because of a pain in her belly. her forelegs were already twitching and jerking slightly and she couldn't get into a comfortable position to sleep. she was crying and whimpering the whole night long. the very next day, we brought her to the vet to be evaluated.

the first time that she was tested for CD, she was negative and we were very happy. we thought that the worst was over. however, yesterday, she got even worse. all four of her legs were already jerking nonstop and her voice is hoarse from crying too much.

the vet advised us to give her medication for another 14 days and see if she is going to get any better. however, she will infect Pikoy, our other dog. a dog with CD is a lifetime carrier of the virus and there is no known cure for it.

so we had to make a choice. Mama signed the waiver forms for Marbie's euthanasia. i already said goodbye to Marbie even before we brought her to the vet. i was already crying.

we held Marbie's legs and body as the vet inserted the needle that will put her to sleep permanently. only 3ml of that bright blue liquid was needed to snuff out our dog's life. the plunger was not yet halfway through the cylinder when Marbie's body stiffened and her eyes drooped. i can't help but cry again as Marbie died swiftly on the examination table.

Marbie lived for only two months, but we love her so much. we still have another dog, presumably healthy because he is not showing any signs of canine distemper. the disease is not transferable to humans but since the viral cause is SARS-like, it is really advised that dogs with CD are killed immediately. they are only threats to other dogs and perhaps to humans as well.

we brought Marbie's corpse to an empty lot near our home to be buried. now there is only Pikoy to say "ararararar ararar" every time we wake up or get home. i've already contacted friends who are giving away female pups so we can get another dog to be Pikoy's companion.

-karla's quote of the day.

actually i was only referring to the Blue Eagle that graced the top of the billboard in Ateneo's Gate 3. it was not yet dark but the bird's lights were already plugged in.

hahaha.  i went home with Mhe and Belle in a tricycle around 530PM today. the three of us were all bangag, sabaw, lutang. for me, i think it has something to do with the 120 page manuscript that i have to finish by wednesday next week. i still need to write 40+ pages. i wonder how and where i would get the stamina to finish the book ON TOP of my final exams.

la la la.

at least there's Ricky Lee's "Para Kay B" to look forward to. jed and i bought this book because we both like it. i'm less than 100 pages short of the ending, and it's a really enjoyable read.

even as i am writing this entry, i can't stop the pain tugging at my heart. it's only been two days, but i already miss him so much.

my family was devastated by the death of our beloved dog Mako. he died of an unexpected heart attack Tuesday morning. we brought him to the vet last Saturday because he was developing some skin infection, which turned out to be caused by bacteria and fungus. it was a treatable condition, nothing to worry about, the vet said. he was due for a check up this Saturday.

but, he already left us. it had been five happy fluffy years with him. everyone in my family is a dog lover, from my deceased father to my youngest brother. for us, a dog is not something, he or she is someone. we love and cherish our pets like anything.

this is the first time in 10 years that our home is without a dog, a baby pet, a bantay. it is simply heartbreaking to not see Mako wagging his tail when i go out into the garage or when i arrive home from school. it hurts me not to be able to smell his doggy coat or to hug his spotted body.

when i saw mama's text about Mako's death, i immediately went to the pubroom to call her. i was crying. why? why did he die? he was getting better with the prescribed medications, so what went wrong? when my sister read mama's message, she also called mama from school. she was crying, too. my brother was at home and he saw how Mako died. he was crying when he called my mother about it. we were all crying.

Mako is by far our sweetest, most loving and most loyal pet. we cut off some of his fur to keep as remembrance. he has many pictures in our PC and in all our cellphones, and he will always be part of our family.

goodbye, Mako. we love you very, very much.