pounding

I woke up with a severe headache today. Probably it's from all the crying I did from Ed's funeral or staring at phone screens trying to escape from the hollow stupor of yesterday. I might be just exhausted from the late nights etched in the diary and watching World Cup football in the pub since last week. Contemplative walking is hardly sagacious. But my eyes hurt just writing this blog. Got to do less eye-straining activities. Maybe finishing my book would be a start, less painful and would allow to go to the bookstore again and buy more books.

mixer

I missed an important appointment yesterday. I admit I was so stupid to even mix up the times. I had to rebook and be at the mercy of the receptionist. Just thinking about how I dabble in time wasting is worth a second look. It's not good in these dark, trying times economically.

There has been much ado about the soaring weather. I know it's hot. My word of advice would be to stay indoors or wear sunscreen and a fabulous hat if you want to walk outdoors. Umbrellas are only utilised when it rains. I don't care about tans or whitening creams as long as I don't get burned. Now we're up to SFP70 for our sunscreens. I'm stuck with 50. Now where can I find 70?

sunday, the 27th part 2

the boys are coming home.

there would be far better analyses than mine. but this loss will pass as with any other international failures. i opined to change defenders at halftime. the four guys at the back were left exposed by the germans during the first half. it was even worse in the second half. just a minor tweak, like ledley king for matthew upson. the opposition is no longer slovenia or algeria but germany, runner up in 02 and semi finalist in 06.

it's all tabloid hype these premiere league players. the talent is there. but this is bigger than any other club triumphs, champion's league included. probably the holiday to dubai or fiji couldn't wait.

sunday, the 27th

Two hours before the football, we're already in the pub for England-Germany. If it's up to me, I'll watch this match at home. If I'm not married to a true blue Englishman, who knows where my affections would lie at this point. But that cantankerous German lady from the accommodation half a decade ago ruined Germany for me. Although my husband's Spurs travels to Germany and the World Cup in 06 paints Deutschland as a welcoming country, the curmudgeon totally ruined Merkel's homeland for me.

Schumacher is driving last at this time in the Valencia Grand Prix. Webber collided with Kovalainen for a horrifying crash. I'm not glory hunting in Formula One anymore.

So for football, the beautiful game. Go England!

Sightings of cute guys in my local --- miracles do come true.

the heath

splendid view.
the heath is such a beauty.
a place for long walks and relaxation. but i made a blunder with my outfit today. i had terribly uncoordinated footwear, thank goodness they were not visible in the photographs.

charmed summer

i have nothing against the sun and this heat. it's only for a few days anyway, then it's back to autumn wind. it drives productivity and makes the people more alert. it's great. i'm just wearing the wrong outfits. it should be dresses, dresses, dresses...slippers, sandals, pumps. i can't wear heels, used to suffer from severe joint pains including my ankles. for going on a picnic, the mini skirt is unlikely the chosen outfit. unless you would love to display your knickers to the world, wear some leggings, or at the least be conscious in keeping your legs together.

frisbee, etc.

Order of the day -- straightening textile creases. Absorbing Montgomery Clift life story on Bio. Picking up birthday cards for the parents in law. Meeting Carol. Chatting with Janette. Picnic and playing frisbee at the park. Watching Spain-Chile match at a pub in Camden.

Not as exciting as Ry's, though.

on a date at white horse

slow buzz

I’ve been watching a few clips of The Big Bang Theory this morning and found out I’m writing slower than usual. My eyes are straining. All these bright computer lights are detrimental to a healthy lifestyle. I’m getting a bit famished, time to whip up something nice in the kitchen and read a few mags.

longest tennis game

i no longer watch tennis. i had no idea who these blokes were playing in court 18. but now i do. amazing job, guys! at 59-59 in the fifth, this mahut-isner match continues tomorrow.
stay tuned.

equation laughs

the batjar conjecture. the middle earth paradigm. the dumpling paradox. the grasshopper experiment.

I totally adore The Big Bang Theory. I'm lured by the geeky lines and the hilarious awkward social situations that befall individuals of certain high to almost genius intelligent quotients. To have characters so smart yet lovable, is wonderfully entertaining.

world cup in HD

well done England.

unseeing

It was really hot yesterday. It’s eternally chilly in this part of the world, so this is a respite from all my moaning, railing and groaning. I’m happy as long as I have my sunglasses and the sunscreen, preferring to walk when possible. The papers are all about the budget cuts. As if life isn't already hard enough.

mindless staring

summer solstice is over. back to long nights and nippy undertones. but before it comes dark, we could still enjoy the splendid rays.

today is dad's birthday and a few days past his third death anniversary. the pain was inconsolable then and it still hurts. there are some grief too excruciating to overcome.

as i was experiencing physical trauma the last month and a half, i decided to take it easy this tuesday. drifting off wasn't on the cards. staring at the pc screen for hours -- stretching the functions of google, visiting lifestyle websites weren't either. hoovering can wait at this point.

16

i was really bummed when the lakers had a losing streak in april.
even more debilitated that i read a lot of celtics fan comments on facebook. the lakers is a glory-hunting powerhouse. it's understandable that a lot of people hate them --- jordan's bulls' fans, larry bird's celtics fans, lebron james' cavaliers, all other cacophonous fans of other cities and their franchises. but i'm loyal since the 80's, including the time they missed the play-offs of 1993-94. all ye houston rockets that time. i'm no kobe bryant fan but for the guy who had taken me out of the doldrums five times, thank you.

thanks to lakers.com.
hope this video will last.

the wrath and amity

Intrigued with Schopenhauer's essay On Women, where he describes that the natural feeling between men is indifference, but between women it is actual enmity. He asserts that even when they meet in the street, women look at one another like Guelphs and Ghibellines. That's only one postulate in an essay full of derogatory remarks about women. It may have been written in late 19th century when women were not the power players that they are today, but this debate on the battle of the sexes is quite stale. In my schoolyears, the girls with their grades and achievements were quite fierce. The boys couldn't subdue the multi-tasking powers of the alpha females. But as none of my classmates have yet to build an empire equal to the world's top billionaires or produce a remarkable piece of literature, our edgy youthful ribbing and bantering is still awaiting to flourish. Enmity is non-existent, friends support each other.

another year older

There are wishes and there are wishes. Mine is very simple. But it has been a bumpy ride, riddled with rocks and potholes. I just get down on my knees and pray.

classic putts

it's after one am, so it's officially my birthday. what am i doing up is watching the third round of the us open at pebble beach on the telly. i've seen tiger win this event in 2000. now he's in a different spectrum from ten years ago. he's still fist pumping and all that but no more imagery of domestic bliss. i could barely see his birdie on 16. my eyesights have been punished by too many late computer nights.

it's such a beautiful golf course, pebble beach. i'm only watching from a tv angle but what a view and my box is not even high definition.

got to rest my eyes.

wind in autumn

it certainly feels like autumn. yesterday was the rain, today is my dampened spirits. i feel ancient, it makes me tearful. do people cry when they're about to reach middle age? there's not a lot of spark and chatter in my disposition. maybe when the morning ushers along, i'll be out of the funk.

all that gushes

what do we do when we're bleeding? england is bleeding, economically and in the world cup. i'm bleeding from all the noise and the baby talk. i'll deep breath, try to be stress free even for a few days, maybe that would curtail my physical tribulations.

cleaning spillages

as one of those films that appeal to women, sunshine cleaning is no sex and the city. there's no glamour in tidying up a crime scene mess. the two sisters, rose and nora (amy adams and emily blunt respectively) are wallowing in dead end sadness. rose, a former high school cheerleader, is a single mother working as a maid. her younger sister nora, who just lost her job as a waitress, is still trying overcome the trauma of their mother's suicide when she was only a child. to make ends meet and to pay for her son's private schooling, rose solicited nora's assistance in starting a crime scene cleaning business together. it didn't quite work out in the film's dénouement but it all fell neatly into place in the ending. it's a movie after all.

there might be holes in the lead characters' development but unlike the romcom genre, this is a more blatant representation of reality. no amount of high school cheerleading popularity could catapult a person to the summit of professional and familial success. to earn our keep, sometimes we have to clean other people's crap.

the glee postulate

the back nine of glee may be over and i have to wait three months for the second season to unfold, in the interval before the dvd hit the shops or amazon, i have to content myself with the recordings. good job for the writers in relegating mr. schuester's romantic dilemma in the background. i've never been keen with the wife is poison type of plot and there are other attractive women aside from the guidance counsellor.

like sue sylvester, i imagine my enemies to choke on their food, or skip this show altogether. sometimes it becomes too sappy with all the catchy tunes and the chocolate eclairs. i hope they bring jesse st. james and shelby corcoran back. shelby is rachel's mom after all while jonathan groff lights up the screen. for some people high school is fairy land, to others it's an environment of bullying and ridicule. it's a hierarchy and a caste system, exactly like real life.

this juncture

The weather is touch and go, one minute the sun shines brightly, the next, rain envelopes the atmosphere. But that's the essence of the UK weather. Summer solstice is almost here and the days would become shorter. I like long days. My friend was talking about the predilection to perspire. I was thinking about sun dresses, nail polishes, and not shivering at any point of the day, such soothing mood enhancers.

foodie

It's summer but we cannot tell with all the waterworks pouring from the sky, undulating, unforgiving. It's my birthday week, hope it wouldn't rain Sunday. I want to throw frisbee in the park.

I'm thinking about my spread. On Saturday, Alma is throwing a party for his little boy. It would be beautifully catered as usual. Which brings me to the array of sandwiches and finger foods in English parties, a far cry from our pancit, dinuguan, adobo and rice preparations. We grew up with certain recipes. Pie for instance likes ampalaya while I try my best not to on load carbs.

draft

Almost half an hour early for an appointment on a pleasant Sunday morning, Waterloo is buzzing with travellers. Oh why is Paperchase shut? I would love to run my hands through their colorful stationeries and there would be this urge to pick up a rainbow pen yet again.

I was beaten into a pulp the last two days hence my disdain of the internet which in turn affects this page. Work and its mere thought kills my energy. Nonetheless being a wage slave is way better than staring at the ceiling and wondering where to get the next meal. I know it would be wonderful to push a pen for a living rather shower with stress running errands but do the desk habitues ever choke in ennui?

My friend is running late, missing her train and I'm stucked people watching. I hate the process. I got dizzy flipping the pages of the chosen fiction. Wait, I have a free magazine and yes Paperchase is now open.

good citizen

Citizen Kane is almost two hours long. I was sleepy the whole process but I viewed the movie during mid afternoon, siesta time. When a film is regarded as the greatest ever, written, directed and starred by a 26 year-old maverick, you have to show respect. The dark edges of black and white, the spooky musical score and soundbites of the forties are profused in this critical gem. The premise is clear in the end, wealth is no guarantee for happiness. But we don't need Citizen Kane to remind us that, those should be ingrained in the valuable lessons of our childhood.

acid

After days of gruelling paces, of running up and down stairs, of facing bitchiness in display, it's time to cool down. The lady in question, who still have friends, may just need to get laid. The personification of meanness is often mistaken for confidence. But it's still not an attractive trait. Yet some people embrace 24-hour petulance when they could do with much better, less temperamental kinship. It's appalling that niceness and kindness are equated with being meek and timid. That's the status quo however. For those abhorrent curmudgeons though, they breathe and exist amid the quiet and calm, hoping beyond hope that in the immediate future or in their old age, they will realize the folly of their bruising wrath.

pins

Once and again, I'm left with a blank page, posing a challenge to an exasperated mind. I had too much exercise yesterday, overdone the routines and there I was in agony from the delayed onset of pain. At work, I was still obsequious to perfection. I survived the walk from the job site, although I could hardly negotiate the meandering loops and hills.

Now here I am blogging, still in pain, about to hit the sack, looking for the remote.

setlist

on june 25, pearl jam would be playing to a buoyant london crowd at hyde park. it's such a disappointment that i wouldn't be there. tickets are still on sale but i have a rather annoying, killjoy reason. bummer.

i would just feast on this page and this page.

at the very nook

was browsing along the bookstore yesterday, didn't find the collection of critical essays i was looking for in paperback and got out empty handed. along the stroll from fiction to travel, the other half quipped, why don't you just order it from amazon like a normal person? i love amazon, but with public libraries now becoming archaic, book shops are the only place to savor the good in people. does it follow that those who read are more interesting than those who merely chatter incessantly? not really sometimes the former are a pain in the ass. but wait i don't even know that many bibliophiles. i might be talking about myself then. i'm grouchy and grumpy at the core of a party surrounded by a throng of people whom i consider strangers.

hello June

happy birthday babe!