I have to admit, I've been a little off my game the past week, acting all distracted and distant. I'm not really sure where it's coming from, but I need to get it off my system right away. It's keeping me from working at my normal pace, and I feel like I've been sending off excess negative vibes to people in my immediate vicinity. I'm thinking of chalking it up to the sudden changes in the weather, but that isn't really a valid excuse, is it? Ah, maybe it's just another one of my mood swings, who knows. Nevertheless, I should try being more grounded and level-headed this week. Write things down as they come, Podi, I tell myself. That'll help.
OK, so last Friday, our department celebrated it's first year anniversary in the company. It might have been a fun event for our team, had it not been scheduled four and a half hours after our shift. Naturally, the Big Wigs wanted everyone to be there, so we were required to come back to the office 9:30 PM, much to our dismay. It's not as if we could have done anything about it, so we simply agreed -- albeit behind gritted teeth and bound wrists.
My teammates were a little luckier than me since they lived relatively near the office, and it would be OK for them to go home and return before the event starts. For me however, who lived cities apart, I had to find something else to do to keep me occupied. So Thursday evening, I decided to txt R if he was free the following night for dinner and company. I had to give him his copy of Talecraft anyway, and he mentioned a couple of weeks ago he'd like to borrow my DVD copy of Night Head Genesis.
R agreed, thankfully, and come Friday evening, we met up at Fully Booked in Gateway. Awkward is as awkward does, I handed him the package as soon as I saw him. "Here," I blurted, without so much as a hi or hello. He only seemed mildly surprised as he took the paper bag from me, distractedly studying my face and saying, "You're... larger. What's with the new image?" I'd forgotten the last time we saw each other was three months ago, when my hair was still long and I was still quite slim.
Shrugging the question off, I asked where he wanted to have dinner. I'd assumed he wanted to eat at the usual Mongolian place -- and I was actually already steering our walk over to where it was -- but he said he'd rather not stay at the food court, preferring to eat at a place with less people. So after walking around the mall a little bit, we decided to stay at Teriyaki Boy.
While having dinner, I told him about the cards and Night Head Genesis and Death Note, and the usual series of knots my life has managed to get itself into during the time we hadn't seen each other. He, on the other hand, talked about his struggle to reform the broken bonds of his relationship with his boyfriend, as well as the recent discovery of his desire to write music. There was a persistent prickling and nudging sensation in my chest as I listened to him talk -- and yes, it took an unimaginable amount of willpower to ignore it -- but thanking the powers that be, I managed to keep my emotions calm and in check. I suppose one can say I am moving on, and I'm glad he's making things easier for me by having such a positive attitude while we were together. I hope the love I had for him which was once both blind and violent can finally allow itself to subside and grow to something more mature and mutual for both of us -- as friends.
Anyway, after dinner, we met up with his friend at Starbucks, "the gay branch," for coffee. More conversations about Fall Out Boy and Maroon 5 and the different stages of Trance music before I finally had to go back to the office -- not before having R sing one of the songs he wrote, of course. His friend teased him of sounding very boy-band-ish, even doing some moves of his own to complement the melody, but it was all in good fun. To be fair, R sounded good, and the song has potential -- with or without the moves. Crossing fingers this endeavor of his follows through in the future.
Getting back to the office, all the other teams have already started their preparations and every body was busy. It reminded me so much of Hogwarts during the first day of classes, except everyone was wearing green. The ceremony itself was OK, with lots of talking and shouting and howling, especially during the pseudo cheering competition. I personally think ours was a hoot. Paris was the star of the night, as evidenced by the visuals below:
La Grotte. "Abandon hope, all ye who enter."
Les Filles.
Les Garçons
The festivities ended at around midnight, and I got home 1AM, tired to my bones. Let's hope the office doesn't cook up something like this in the near future again.
The following day saw Fête de la Musique -- a fitting end to a heavy week. I was supposed to go with my teammates, but because of the erratic weather, we decided it was better to stay in Makati, instead of going all the way to Malate. I was a tad disappointed, but it was understandable considering they lived far from where the festivities were being held, and to be honest, I kind of felt they might not have enjoyed the kind of scene Fête had to offer.
So at around 11PM, after having dinner at Kitchen in Greenbelt and a round of drinks in Ice with les filles of San Mig Lai, I went by myself and met up with Barny and Jade at Malate. There was a light drizzle when I got there, but I figured it was part of Fête's charm and magic. It was my first time to go, but I couldn't help tasting a hint of nostalgia in the cool, crisp, midnight air, and already I felt the rain had always been a constant companion to everyone during Fête night.
We drifted from one stage to another, moving from the World/Electronica stage, to Hip-Hop, to Rock, to Universal, then back to World/Electronica where we stayed for the rest of the night. I told Barny I was [strangely] enjoying the Hip-Hop stage better than anything, but... well... I'm not really sure why we stayed at World/Electronica. Jade took a lot of photos, all of which shall be snagged once uploaded, where I will edit my slowly-enlarging self to more normal proportions. I also got to meet an old acquaintance again, Barnard, who turned out to be Jade's friend, and new people as well who, more than likely, have forgotten all about my existence by now. All in all it was loud, it was wet, beer was flowing like mad, and it was THE BEST FUCKING END TO A HEAVY, HEAVY WEEK.
I did have to go home early because the following day was Doc Eddie Day.
Yup. I made like Frodo and adventured my way early Sunday morning to Lagro, Fairview, QC where Eddie was residing. Bob, his computer, was sick and needed the touch of my magical fingers to be fixed -- which I did, of that there was no doubt. The rest of the day was spent in cuddles and short naps and finishing off two (!!!) large-sized boxes of pizza. Eddie never wasted a moment telling me how my tummy has been threatening to grow into its own separate sentient being. Must exercise.
After dinnertime, at around 7PM, I had to force myself to get up and prepare for the trip home. I would have wanted to stay longer, but Doc had to study and I had a long journey ahead of me. I went homeward bound with a smile in my face and a song in my heart, contenting myself with memories of the day past, and promises of the week following. :-)
And last but definitely not least, today I got tickets for this Saturday's 8PM showing of Zsazsa Zaturnnah, Ze Muzikal! I get to watch it with the Bunnies, finally!
