Kendz

have you noticed the title? i guess you already have an inkling on what this blog will be about.

well, i just want to share that i finally got my first pay! and let me just say, WOW! WOW! WOW! hahaha… this is the first time that my pay really made an impact on my financial status! www.uob.com.sg I now have in my uob savings account half of my lifetime savings. LIFETIME savings!

after deducting all my expenses - grocery, rent, etc etc, i still had enough to buy a couple of shoes! www.uob.com.sg. hmmm.. still had enough. went to buy some mac products. www.uob.com.sg hmm… okay i still have money. went to ikea for things i wanted to buy. www.uob.com.sg not bad. still doing okay. went shopping for pasalubong. www.uob.com.sg okay okay i better stop.

i still had enough to really splurge on things i wanted to buy for like ages but never gotten to coz of the measly salary i got. but then, that will absolutely defeat the purpose of why i am working abroad… that is… to save enough money to buy a house and lot of my own and finally get married. ahem ahem! hehe

so that’s it. don’t want to brag too much! hehe. just wanted to have a tangible memory (is that possible?) of this day so that whenever i feel homesick i’ll be able to read this blog and remind myself of why i am here. www.uob.com.sg. just looking at that makes me feel that this is all worth it. =p

i’ve been here in singapore for less than a month and you’ve heard no complains here, for the most part because i’ve loved everything about this country so far. admittedly, there are things that i can absolutely live without! (like the smell, the extreme heat, the cleaning, etc. etc.) =) but the chaos and the current state of emergency in the philippines solidified my decision to work abroad.

but putting that aside, i have tasted the first bitter taste of discrimination! ngehehe sobrang pait pala? and to think she is an officemate of mine. good thing she is not part of the IT audit group or else i do believe i’d have a hard time working with her.

anyway, there we were working in our area, when suddenly an american came with some pasalubong from her maid. the "gurl" asked her what her maid’s nationality is. so the american replied "singaporean" silence followed. then american answered "why? is that so uncommon?" the "gurl" replied "well, i thought almost all maids are filipinos" …

duh! hello???? did she not see me and my friend in front of her??? well i guess she felt that i was shooting dagger looks her way because she seemed a little embarrassed. a little but not much!

that was the hardest blow i’ve felt thus far. i really wanted to do something… but what? it’s not like what she said isn’t true. but still, it did hurt. i may have left the country i was born in to seek for greener pasture, but i am still a Filipino. no one can change that, nothing can change that.  not even if my dad and mom are chinese. i am a FILIPINO chinese. but a FILIPINO first and foremost.

so as long as people keep putting down my country and countrymen, it will still hurt me. and no, i will NOT stop speaking tagalog.

today i made the biggest realization of all. that i spent a lot of money on makeup!

i went to ikea today (the biggest furniture store in singapore) to get some things for my room. i was expecting, and was actually preparing myself, to shell out big bucks for a couple of shelves, desk, comforter, sheets, etc etc.

not that my room is that big! it’s the smallest in the apartment i’m renting with my friends. but i wanted to make it to look comfortable yet fashionable. ;p trendy yet efficient. you getting the drift?

anyhow, so there i was looking and picking up the items i want to buy. got a laptop desk, a shelf, a comforter, two comforter covers and 8 pillow cases, one mattress protector, storage boxes and a few items here and there. all the while i was expecting to pay more than $300. but when i got my things checked out, i was surprised (and quite happy if i must say) that the total amounted to $217 only!

only?

yes only. i never ever thought that i can buy so much with that amount! i spend more than that on make up alone! on just one visit! 217 is about P7000 pesos already. but my makeup expenses could reach about 9k! argh! yes i know. i know! i can already feel some raised eyebrows… o_O hahaha

well, at least i now know how much i waste on makeup. makeup that i dont get to use at all! hahaha. i swear i’ll try to cut back on that and hopefully will save myself a couple of thousand bucks per month! then i can use them on more important stuff.

of course i still need drapes, lamp, bedsheets, accessories, etc. etc. hahaha!

I can truly say that I am now a survivor… well, not really, just want to exag a bit to make it more interesting.

but the truth is, i believe that I’m starting to grow as a person. i’m learning to do things i never thought of doing… i’m learning how to adapt to changes… i’m learning that if i dont act and start moving, no one will act and move for me.

hehe sounds serious right? all i want to say is that, i am now a domestic person! hahahaha i was considered the princess in our house. never doing anything but to holler and give orders. (well, not really, but that’s what my mom thinks of me) hehe.

but if only she could see me now! harhar! she wont even think it’s me! she’d think i’ve gone mad or something… i’m now super candy! yah right! lol! anyway to get to the point… (have you noticed that i’m trying to prolong this blog? hahaha)

i now do my own laundry, i also iron my own clothes (although i got real sick the following day! haha), i do the dishes (well, i was already doing this in manila when our maid is away) and i clean the house!

i know i’m not perfect yet nor am i the ideal domestic housewife that any husband would want to have… there are still things i need to master. some fears i need to overcome. like, i still have to learn to cook rice on the rice cooker, i need to overcome my pettiness and pick up the soiled food in the sink. (yucky yuck yuck!) and i need to learn how to clean the bathroom…

but there’ll be time for that! now, i’m more than happy to know where my things are because at the end of the day, they’re still where i left them. harharhar! (no more mom to clean up after me. =D)

I’ve been homesick these past few days… Probably getting tired of not doing anything and just bumming around in the house… I’m not complaining (well maybe a little) Most of the time, I’m alright with that but when I start thinking of home, I get real sad.

The other night was the worst! Not because I miss my mom (I talk to her almost everyday, plus i get to see her in the internet thru webcam). As pathetic as it may sound, it’s my cute, huggable and super hyper baby dog that I miss!

There I was doing my regular chatting with my family the other night when we decided to give the call feature of Yahoo Messenger a try. I knew my Gabby was there so I started calling for her and talking to her. (Yes I talk to my dog, so what?) hehe

The reaction I got tore my heart into pieces. She actually cried! Yes she cried. She started doing these moaning sounds and started barking a little and I could see her looking around and actually trying to find where my voice is coming from… Awww… I miss her so much and knowing that she misses me too makes me want to get on the next flight home… But since I can’t I did the next best thing… I cried…

I cried because I missed her last shots in the vet, I cried because I didn’t see how she looked like when she lost all her baby teeth, I cried because I can’t smell the cologne the vet gave her (which smelled so great according to my mom), I cried because I miss the way she snuggles to me when we sleep at night and I miss the 6am wakeup call full of wet kisses… Hay…

Oh well, such is life, can’t have everything! huhu But I sure wish I can…