one-two-three

td check: 9:23 am, feb. 19

just woke up a while ago, and the temperature is lowering again. it's a sunny day, but there are snow clouds scattered all over the sky. we'll probably have another snowfall maybe this coming week. it's below zero degrees celsius again now, and i'm so damn freezing right now.

ONE

my sister and i saw will smith's hitch the other day. take note, a ticket costs $7.50 here in new jersey. that means i won't be able to see movies that often coz i have no money yet. good thing my aunt tess' friend works there, and gave us free passes. hahaha... i'm also planning to work there. i've already filled up an app form, and all i have to do is submit it and take the interview.

and then, i'm not gonna be able to watch survivor: palau here at home coz it has the same timeslot as the oc (mae's fave show), and we only have one television here with a cable connection. well at least the oc is a good watch too. also, i was surprised that rob and amber are in the next season of the amazing race. yeah, it's interesting to see them there, but hey, they shouldn't win anymore!

i'm watching lots of tv shows now since i don't have much to do here. i'm hooked up with shows like house m.d., fear factor, and well, american idol.

TWO

some things make me worry so much now... like i have friends in the philippines who're having problems, yet i can't do anything but text and not be able to see and talk to them longer. oh well. i just hope they're okay now. and then, the news i got from my other friends really surprised me, but like them, i just have to accept it. reality bites. and it bit me.

THREE

i don't really know what's going on in this house. sometimes i'm doing fine, but most of the time i'm so pissed off. what the hell is wrong with us here people? and you, yeah, i get your reasons and i understand them, but you don't have to freak out! like i dunno, sometimes i call you a control freak. you've been watching every single move we make. geez man! i don't even know if you're backstabbing me! i hope you're not.

it just makes me wanna leave this place and go back to the philippines much sooner. yeah, it's nice here, but with the people around me... erm, let me think first.

losing it

td check: 1:04 am, feb. 19

a while ago, i was on the mood to make a long entry, but then i lost it. i have lots to write about, and i don't even know where to begin. here goes anyway.

...

nah. i've changed my mind. let me sleep first.

temperature rising

td check: 5:13pm, feb. 15

today's the sunniest day we've had since we got here. snowfall yesterday didn't last long. i guess mother nature just gave us a glimpse of it to satisfy our curiosity. rainfall followed afterwards, and washed away the remaining snow on the ground. that helped the higher temperature make the place much warmer.

and to make things more heated up,

i'm kinda pissed off right now.

it sucks to have certain rules in this so-called "home sweet home", especially if you find the rules stupid enough. and then, i know people have their own problems and frustrations, but please don't let them get into my nerves. it's cold here, yet i feel like my head's gonna explode any moment now.

haay. sorry for venting this out here. i just needed a good method of release, and i instantly thought of this one. and yeah, thanks to those who still keep in touch with me. if it weren't for you guys, i might be damn fucked up now.

waaah!

i thought winter's nearing its end but...

SNOW IS FALLING NOW!!! it started minutes ago. i dunno when it'll stop though.

waaah! good luck to my battling with the cold! negative temperature, here we go again!

anyway,

had another mall bash yesterday at oxford valley mall in pennsylvania. went there with my sis, mae and her friend jv. it's the best mall among all i've seen now. good architecture, with exposed trusses and well-designed shops.



andaming girls. jik and pat, mainggit kayo! :P

better make the malls my hang-out spots now. haha.

oh my valentine

td check: 6:57am, feb.14

valentines... the big day for couples to get-together and celebrate their undying love for each other... eek, mushy. this is when guys search for all possible ways to make their girl swoon over them more. hahaha.

but here, my cuz mae and i call it...

the singles awareness day.

well, i don't have a girlfriend. and worse, i haven't had one before. so now i don't have a special someone to go with. plus i don't even have friends here to spend the time either, coz they're all so far away from me now (you guys are all there in the philippines while i'm stuck here alone? geez man!). and oh, it sucks. bigtime.

ang pinakamalamig kong valentines day. not to mention below five degrees celsius temperature.

demmit.

mall bash

time & date check: 9:09 pm, feb. 12

we went to princeton this morning to open accounts for my parents and my sister. the place is cool, the people are great, and everything else is fine too. the funny part is, i had to pee, but i wasn't able to get to a restroom soon enough. and worse, it was a few blocks away, and i struggled all the way to get there!

oh well. at least i made it.

so, after going there, we went to quaker bridge mall and had lunch at wendy's. yes, my first fastfood encounter here. oh no, supersize! i bought my food for $6.02, which includes three pieces of chicken strips, one biggie-sized and one medium-sized french fries, and one glass of sprite. i was done eating when i realized that it's expensive if i'd convert the prices to peso. good thing i didn't.

we headed straight to jcpenney to look for some clothes. i was surprised to see my sister carry three bags full of stuff like 2 pairs of boots and mom's upper wear. can't imagine they spent around a hundred bucks in one round! but that wasn't the end of it, they went to forever 21 and took more money out of their wallets to buy those winter coats. at least they're on sale coz it's off-season now. they'll save it for next winter.

just when i thought i was going home with nothing, i saw aeropostale and saw good items on sale. and when i was about to choose my stuff, i remembered that we're still going to old navy. then i said to myself, better check out that store first. maybe i'll get cheaper stuff there.

and yes, i did! i got around ten shirts with prices ranging from $1.97-4.99, cargo pants for $9.99, long sleeve polo for $5.97, denim pants for $20.00, and jogging pants for $6.97. all of them were good buys actually, coz they're on sale. so, i took all of them. haha. i've never done this in my entire life before. i've never shopped like this even when i was still in the philippines. oh my, i really have to get a part-time job now, so i have more bucks to spend!

by the way, when we were at the mall, we met a couple of fellow filipinos. one was candy, who've lived here for around twenty years now. take note arki peeps, prof. chico was her professor during her college days! haha! imagine that... small world. her husband has an e-commerce business here, so she took my sister's contacts to help her get a job there. sounds good. and second, we met rose at the women's shoe department of jcpenney. my parents talked to her a lot, and mom asked her for help in getting a job there. that sounds good too. then dad's probably gonna move to california to continue the job he left there years ago.

and me? i'm still undecided. well, i'd really like to work part-time to have money, but i can't choose where to work. i mean, there are lots of choices here. can't make up my mind. and i guess what's stopping me more is that i still don't have enough guts to communicate with people from different races that speaks all differently. what will i say if someone asks for something i don't know? what if someone demands for something? what if i lose my words and become speechless? i know it'll feel strange at first, but, i should give it a try.

oh man. just remembered, valentines day is just around the corner...

still.

i just thought, seems like i'm not so depressed anymore compared to when i was still in the philippines. i guess i just learned to accept things now, or maybe i'm still in denial. but you know what, sometimes i still can't believe i'm here for almost a week already. there are times when i get quiet and start thinking about my current situation.

sheesh. i dunno.

but i still want to go back to the philippines. i swear.

jersey life 2

a second dose of my new life. random thoughts. here goes.

it's friday here, 4:30 in the afternoon. the sun shines brighter now, and i guess today’s the warmest day we had since we got here. well, that’s if i could call it warm… ten degrees! oh shoot. my hands are freezing, i can’t even type this entry continuously. i haven’t seen the snow fall yet, but i’m not even wishing to see it now. actually, i can’t wait for spring, just to get away from this low temperature that forces me to wear three layers of clothes and causes me chapped/cracked lips and winter itches.

so, for this day, aside from looking for all possible ways to keep myself warm, i’ve started reading the driver’s manual. we’re gonna take a written exam next week, and we need to get at least 80% to get the driver’s license. man, wish me luck! luckily, we don’t have to take that damn road test anymore coz we already have our valid license from the philippines. i’m just having a hard time reading the almost-a-hundred-page manual coz i get sleepy reading it!

last night, thursday, auntie tess brought us to market fair, a mall similar to the philippines’ rockwell. the place is good, and i liked all the stuff i saw there, especially those from zephyr gallery. i got a good sweatshirt from gap for 16 dollars and 97 cents. the people are so kind, that when your eyes meet theirs, they smile and say hello even if they don’t know you at all. one even asked me how i was doing, and it felt good. really.

after market fair, we went to shop rite, a very big supermarket. i was so amazed with all the stuff, particularly the food. now i know why many people here are obese! lots of good food here, so i’d better start being diet-conscious now. haha. anyway, when my folks were already at the counter, i went to dunkin’ donuts to look for my ever-beloved classic strawberry donut. i got three strawberry frosted donuts for a dollar and five.

and to my surprise, the guy who gave me my donuts asked me if i’m a filipino. well, he is! we then talked to each other in filipino, and asked lots of questions. he’s been here for seven years now, working six days a week, from 6 pm to 6 am. that gave me an idea. i then told him that i’m looking for a part-time job, and he referred me to another branch of dunkin’ donuts here in hamilton (i don’t know where it is though). hmm… i’ll consider that one. but i’m also looking forward to a job at the ua cinemas or gap. let’s see what happens then.

and oh, the donuts taste so good. it’s obviously better than the dunkin’ donuts we have there in the philippines. haha.

high-cost living is really it for america. some prices which caught my attention are: century tuna ($1.25), clover chips ($1.65) and oishi ($0.79), all from asian market, jeans from gap ($49.99), sweatshirt from gap ($16.97), sundae cone ($1), original CDs ($12-$20) and robitussin for my coughs and colds ($4.95). then add 6 percent tax, except for food and clothes (they’re tax-exempted here), and do the converting to peso ($1=P55.xx). now you’ll know how surprised i got! that’s why mae told me not to do the converting anymore, so that i won’t feel upset when i buy anything. i have $10.98 left in my wallet. better get a part-time job really soon!

anyway, a cute furry rabbit passed through the garden last night. i just remembered mae telling us she saw a deer in our backyard one time. what’s next? :p

jersey life

finally, my first post here in new jersey. i tried to adjust this blog's time to my current time here, but it changed all the dates of my archives, so i decided to keep the filipino time instead. with that, you guys there in the philippines would know when i posted in your time zone. hehe.

anyway, i've been here from saturday up to now, thursday. we've been experiencing difficulties in making all the necessary adjustments, from time zone, to climate, to people, everything. winter is still here, and snow may begin to fall again later. i thought seeing snow's really cool. yes it is, but when the cold negative temperature gets into your system, you'd really like to skip winter and have spring instead.

when we arrived at the airport, our relatives welcomed us, namely, auntie tess, auntie sonia, ate mae, kuya erick, uncle rolly and uncle steve. and, we had four vehicles that time, so we all decided to split up. i rode erick's mazda 3 (my dream car!) with aunt sonia. the three of us catched up with each other's lives, talking about anything under the sun.

i was so amazed with our new home. i couldn't believe that i'd live here now. two living areas, one dining room, a fire place, a kitchen full of food stocks, three bathrooms, four bedrooms, a basement, a wooden deck at the backyard... everything i've wanted for in a house is here. but still, it feels different to live in a good home, yet so far away from the environment i used to live in for 19 years. i miss all my friends, acquaintances, relatives and a lot more back in the philippines.

well, i really miss the philippines. sheesh.

as for sleeping, i think jet lag is still in my system. i tend to wake up in the early morning, then sleep during lunch time, wake up, sleep early evening, and the routine goes on and on. i just think to myself, i'll be able to fix my sleeping habits once i've been able to adjust with the time zone completely (it's around 1:30 in the morning here, btw). philippines is 13 hours advanced from here. if it's tuesday, 11pm here, then it's wednesday, 12nn in the philippines. my cellular phone is still using filipino time, so i'd know when to text my friends in the philippines (i'm using international roaming now, so you guys would just spend a peso for every text you send). anyway, gimme a text. i miss y'all now. 09155604479. :)

people here are very kind. just say hello, and they'll greet back too. we've been to the church for two times now, and honestly, i'm still overwhelmed with changes. white people around you in the church is not a usual sight i'm used to right now, but then i know, i'll soon be well-adjusted.

okay, my sister's gonna use the pc now. i'll get back to you guys pretty soon. i still have lots of thoughts to tell.

leaving...

'cause i'm leaving on a jetplane
i don't know when i'll be back again
oh babe, I hate to go...

to all my friends who've been a big part of me... thank you very much.

still in denial

finally, february's here. and in a few days, we're leaving this place. february 5, 12:50 pm, EVA Air. i've started packing up, putting my things in luggage bags and boxes. but unfortunately, i still can't believe this is happening to me right now.

i really just can't.

i have so little time left to put all my remaining plans into action. i want to meet my high school friends, visit many places here, go to school and see my arki friends, watch a movie, and the list goes on... but my tight schedule won't seem to let me do so. argh. four days left.

i'm still probably in the denial stage. ayokong maniwala.

this might be my last post for now here in the philippines. i guess i won't be able to blog again while we're still here, coz we still have lots of tasks needed to be accomplished.

i also wanna thank dino, rika, ryan and kel. you guys already know why.

till next time, see y'all whenever...

in memoriam

in memoriam
ronald albert zabala molina
30 january 1982 - 31 january 1982

kuya, wherever you are... we'll always love you.