ONAT LOPERA

Almost blazing is the perfect adjective to describe how fast the days had passed. First, you woke up one morning and realized that there would be no work for the day because of the Labor Day and then in the quickest turns of the minute hand, you’re thinking it’s so nice that you won’t have to buy school stuff for yourself for the coming school year. It was that fast.

I need to make this good; I have entries for the entire month of May so I’ll try my best to fill-up this huge chunk of unblogged month.

If you’re in the mood of reading a quite lengthy entry, just click on. If not, well it is a good read and you have to take my word for it. LOL

First is where I spend almost half of my day and that is at work. Everything is going really well on that part. Surprisingly, it gets better and better. Also, working for and with such great people just made it even better. On work-related stuff, that is, but on a different subject, like yours truly’s health, it had been a “pain”. Got sick twice on the infamous month, one was just plain sick and the other was the “spontaneous nose bleeding” which scared the crap out of me. I was off of work for several days, and spent more than half a month’s worth of paycheck on consultation fees and prescriptions alone. And with the deductions due to my absences, the situation was quite dire. Thank goodness I am good on setting aside some “bread”.

A few meds and a topical gel later, I’m back for more. Joined a small photography group on the office also, and I’m looking forward when and where would our first photog-trip would be at. I have to admit that the going-out-to-shoot did play a huge part on signing up at the group.

Also, it was that month where everyone noticed sudden changes on the weather. A few weeks back, it felt like we are on the typhoony and wet season with all the tropical storms one after the other but now, it so hot that it feels like mid-March. You just can’t ignore the fact that Al Gore did not came up with that documentary out of thin air, don’t you think?

And with the same month, I celebrated the first day of my mid-life crisis-filled days of being “23″. I decided I’ll count it backwards beginning this year. What’s up with the midlife crisis crap? Well, did you know that the life expectancy of an average Filipino male is about 52. Two years shy from that number is still close to the midrange and with the accepted fact that I might not be able to reach retirement, it is better I start with the whole crisis thing earlier. And yes, I am only kidding.

And so with the milestone of turning from 24 to 23 came the celebration. A few months back, I did said to some of my officemates that when that day comes, I’ll treat them to a dinner on one of my favorite dine spots here at Subic. But as my favorite saying goes, it was inevitable that the plan would and it did changed. Of course, and they’d been telling me numerous times months before the big day that I got to celebrate on the office. Luckily, the celebration on the office was a combined feast; three birthdays and an anniversary in one week, Monday to Thursday.

But my party is another thing. What was originally a small dinner turned into a combined post-birthday post-feed-the-office overnight beach fest for two birthdays, the Monday birthday, Anne’s, and my Thursday. A lot better than the dinner IMO.

Friday night was the perfect night. Feast on the afternoon at the office and some fun on the beach after office hours. The party was hush hush at first but with the thought that our birthdays come only once a year and there was two of us to share the bill, we figured why not invite more. We bought the goods a day early, my birthday, and stashed it for Friday night. We came prepared and did not want to disappoint.

After inviting them on the last minute, the turnout was quite good. Seven people were already there when I arrived along with three others. It was a tight night and I don’t blame them for not coming. But I do have to say this that it was not our lost. Kidding.

Yours truly, carrying the first batch for food was literally ravished by the hungry early birds. Anne, the Monday birthday girl, arrived with more food and ice and the party begun. A few shots here and there (pictures, that is) and we’re set. Of course, there was booze, which was probably the reason some came and was also the invitation on the first place, came flowing. A few did left early but most of us stayed and decided to party ’til morning. Without going through the details (no illegal or anything of that sort happened anyway), but all I could say is that it was a long yet really great night and I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did.

It ended as I watched the sky turned from black to a pink, orange and gray canvass, it was beautiful. Everyone sleep deprived, we went to McDonald for some breakfast. And everyone, away from home for more than 24 hours bid our farewells after the quick bite.

It was a first for me, celebrating my birthday like that; shared with another celebrant, on such place, with such company and that “theme”. It was definitely a great start for the last half.

I may kid about that midlife stuff but one thing is definitely sure, I would definitely not wait for our birthdays to come to have another party like that. Cheers to Year Twenty “Three”.