The date's set. Another wedding marked on my calendar. It's confirmed, the test's positive. Another due date to look forward to. For the first time in my life, I feel old, hahaha! But, seriously, I suddenly feel old. It seems like 2008 is the year everyone decided they want to get married and/or have babies. I know the feeling will soon pass, I'm the 2nd youngest person in my class and I'm the youngest child, so go figure.

It's just that, when all of your friends are either happily married, about to get married or in a long term relationship, and you happen to be single, and it doesn't matter if you are happily okei with being single, it feels awkward when you all go out together. Sometimes, I can't help but feel that I'm being "la terza incomoda" (can't find the english or tagalog translation, help.. anyone?), especially when you feel that everyone you're not with thinks you're kawawa. And if you're in a bad mood, you end up feeling kawawa and confused, because you're not so sure, if you feel wretched because you're single, or you simply hate those people who think they know, and have, everything, and think they can judge you just like that.


Anyway, Feb. 14 is just around the corner, slowly, streets are turning red and hearts, in different sizes and kinds, are all over the place. Not to mention the lovers (exagerately making out in public -read: parks) flooding the city. Any time soon, some smart aleck will ask me the question I always get asked, since I turned 18, when Valentine's day is nearing, "Who's your date for Valentine's Day?", mag-sawa naman kayo sa kakatanong, same question every year na lang eh, oh and by the way, Feb. 14 is NOT a holiday, so it's not like I have time to waste, hehehe. =p


Years ago, Pà and I agreed (more like he made me promise.) that I'll settle down when I'm 26 or 27,

the negotiation:
Pà: 24.
me: 30.
Pà: 21!
me: 28.
Pà: 25?
me: 27.
Pà: 26?
me: 27.
Pà: 26.
me: 27.
Pà: 26.
me: OR 27.
*shake hands.*

Promise, we really did shook hands. =)

and since I prefer an end of the year wedding, that means I need to get married in 2010 or 2011. And that's just TOO soon. The "negotiation" took place when I was 17, and I was thinking, "Hey, I have 10 years. And 10 years from now is a LONG time. I have all the time I need.", well, I guess I was wrong, eh? I know, most people say, "Promises are made to broken", but not the ones I make. Kasi if I have even the slightest feeling that I won't be able to live up to my promises, I don't make them. Now, the problem is, actually, there are more than 1 problem, but the biggest and most significant is, the fact that I am single. =)

When you are 23 and your cousins, nephews, and nieces, who are younger than you, have boyfriends and girlfriends, you will often get asked (to the point na even your niece and nephews's baby sitter thinks she should hook you up with someone and seems to forget that you're on a 2 weeks only vacation with them) to when YOU plan to tie the knot. Madalas, I just playfully ask them if they know where I can find and buy a boyfriend or husband. But, seriously, any ideas? Hehehe. I'm not really desperately looking for him, yet. But if he comes, of course, I won't shoo him away. Tsaka, I was told not to be passive about it. Chos!

Six years after that "agreement", I still haven't found the best-friend material who I wanna grow old with.

Please, do not think that Papà "forced" me into this agreement, he didn't. Okei, he probably emotionally/mentally blackmailed me into saying yes, but I can assure you he meant no harm, he was just worried. He knew (and approved) kasi that I prefer living together with my partner before signing anything, and that the ideal age for me to have my first child, if ever, is when I'm 27 or 28, and not older. Plus, there were times when he thought I was becoming too independent to marry. He thought he's one of the major reasons behind my being too independent,

• he taught and made me change tires (our ride back then was a VW - Sharan), twice in a row, on a trafficated street and it was autumn, when I was 17;
• he taught me how to change the broken light tube/bulb, also when I was 17;
• he taught me how to "repair" (not really repair-repair, just make it last long until a professional can come and take care of it) our heater and some electric cords here and there;
• I first assembled an IKEA furniture and our mini Hi Fi system by myself when I was 18;
  
• we (me and him, alone) painted our apartment house when I was 18;
• I was sent to the US to spend my summer vacation with my eldest sister and her family by myself, when I was 20. (not really a big deal, but it was for me, since as far as I could remember that was the 2nd time I was seeing her and her family.)

you know, things like that.. I think he only failed teaching me, (1) how to cook well. I know how to do the "cook to survive so I won't die starving" cooking, and I do experiment a lot in the kitchen, but that's just that.. and (2) kill bugs by myself. If you show me a picture of a cockroach, for example, I'll start having goosebumps and feel sick. Oh and yes, I'm good with maps too.

By the way, just to make things clear, while growing up in the Philippines, I attended private catholic schools with matching private car who brought and picked me and my cousins to and from school and everywhere else we needed to go until we were in junior high, dahil nakakahiya naman na graduating na kami eh, hatid-sundo pa din kami kaya hatid na lang, hahaha. (and until now, hindi pa ako nakaka-sakay ng public jeep or public bus by myself sa Pinas at wala pa akong balak) We were THAT protected. We also had people carrying those almost-heavy-but-not-really-heavy things for us, buying things sa palengke (marketplace) for us, things like that; I think it's only fair to say that we were (are) a little too pampered. And I grew up where it was my Lolo who cooked for my Lola, my titos who cook for my titas and cousins, and lived with a tito who doesn't want anybody in the kitchen when he's cooking. I grew up where most of the things are done by the "male person".


And to do things differently this year, ako naman muna ang mag-tatanong,


=p

Labels: Crazy world, Halo-Halo Special, Si Dindin, Silly Me