Boys & their Toys

It’s often said that men never really grow up, their toys just become ever more expensive. From playing with toy soldiers and miniature cars as little boys, they switch to more advanced video games, extreme sports and the latest electronic gadgets.

I remember two of our top executives at the office all agog over their sound systems and speakers. They were both audiophiles and were always on the lookout to upgrade their systems, both in their homes and even in their offices. I always knew what was the latest Nokia cellphone in the market just by checking out my officemate’s new mobile device. He switched phones every few months to be the first with the hottest new model. A friend’s hubby bought himself a high-tech remote control racecar he couldn’t really afford. My own brothers are into iPhones, Mac laptops and PDAs. My brother-in-law is fanatic about Japanese anime cartoons.

Hubby has two hobbies he’s absolutely passionate about: golf and photography. A civil engineer by profession, he picked up the golfing bug when he worked in a U.S. Navy Support Facility on the island of Diego Garcia. He and his friends could play Tiger Woods' sport there practially for free. The very late sunset on the island allowed him to be able to play everyday after work. Of course when we got married and settled in Manila he could only play at the driving ranges. Once in awhile he would get invited to play on the fairway with a friend who’s a member at some country club. When he got a job at CII he was so happy to find out that his new company actually held golf tournaments and sometimes he was even able to play at one of the company-owned golf courses. He was in heaven. Whenever we visit his hometown of Victorias City in Negros Occidental he always makes it a point to play golf with his dad at the nearby course. He sometimes jokes that if he ever gets burned out from his day job he might just be a professional golfer. Unfortunately, there are no golf courses here in the Marshall Islands so this sport has taken a backseat for now.

His new preoccupation is photography. A couple of his office buddies had SLR cameras which got him interested in purchasing one. Thanks to the internet, he was able to find a really good bargain on a Canon 400D. Its selling price on the net was nearly half of the mall price. Ever since, he’s been taking pictures of everything. Almost every weekend we go to the beach and he takes photos of his favorite models; Raine and me!

I have to admit I was a bit apprehensive about the hobbies he'd picked up as an adult since they don't come cheap. But my enterprising hubby always seems to find a way to enjoy his interests without spending a lot. (Thank goodness!)

Here he is in his element on the fairways of Diego Garcia.

This shot was taken back in Marshall Islands right before sunset.

My Boss, My Friend

Can you be friends with your boss? I don’t mean just hanging-out-after-a-long-day-at-the-office kind of buddy but an honest to goodness true friend. The kind you can trust, confide in and share your thoughts and feelings to freely, without reserve.

In my previous job, I became good friends with my boss. I remember the day she interviewed me, I had an inkling we would be friends despite our different ranks. There were times in the beginning that I felt shy towards her and thus was less open with her compared to our other workmates, but we became pretty tight pretty quickly. It helped that she reached out to me and sort of broke down the invisible wall separating her, the boss, from me, her subordinate. We both knew when it was time for work and when it was “chikka time”, so to speak. When I eventually transferred to another department and we weren’t able to see each other as frequently, the friendship remained. I even ended up asking her to be one of my bridesmaids.

Someone dear to me felt she had that kind of relationship with her own boss. They had worked together a few years ago in another company but parted ways when she got married. Later, her boss sought her out and offered her a job to work together again. All seemed well, the new job was demanding and ripe with office intrigues and politics but they trudged on, optimistic for the future. They were a great team, after all. But soon, the difficulties of the job took its toll on the boss and she felt tempted to give up and accept a more lucrative job elsewhere. The boss had earlier confided about these developments to my friend and although it made her nervous she believed that she wouldn’t be left in the dark precisely because they had a good personal relationship, beyond the office.

However, a strange thing happened. The boss retreated from my friend and their regular meetings turned into pure business, they didn’t talk anymore about anything else. The invisible wall was up and it seemed to grow higher and higher. Around their office, rumors were flying that the boss would be resigning and their department looked to my friend for the truth, she was after all, the closest one to the boss. But my friend could only shrug because she didn’t know what was going on either. A few days before the boss went on a sabbatical leave she talked to my friend and told her everything. She was going on a long vacation but would be back to see the completion of the project. Meanwhile, she put my friend in charge of the team. My friend felt somewhat relieved that finally the boss had told her the truth, but somehow she felt that this episode had changed how she saw her boss. She had become less of a friend and now seemed more like a distant boss.

Looking back, I feel fortunate that I had such a cool boss who I could actually enjoy spending time with outside the confines of the office. I feel bad for my friend and what happened to her and her boss. I now realize that my experience is not something you see everyday. It was indeed rare and precious to be friends with my boss.

So do you think you can be real friends with your boss? I guess the answer is, you’re lucky if you can be.

Happy Fathers' Day!

Happy Fathers' Day to all the fathers out there, especially to my own Dad and my hubby! This entry is dedicated to both of you.

Thanks to Issa for sending me this tag. This was started by Mitchteryosa.

Rules:1) Copy from {Start Copy Here} to {End Copy Here}.

2) Blog ‘Brag’ about your husband - yes, the father of your child/ren. As I’ve said singles may also join by bragging about their own fathers, or even grandfathers. ( I decided to make one for my own Dad too - Rhea) It doesn’t matter! Of course, Daddy bloggers themselves may also join, but you have to blog about your fathers and not about yourselves, deal? Okay. Good.

3) Add your blog in the master list below linking to the post that you just made.

4) Leave your comment here and don’t forget to leave your link so you can be added on the masterlist. Yup. Here. Thanks!

5) Let’s not forget Peppermint Creative for the corner border used for the badge.

Masterlist.

1. When Silence Speaks 2. Everything About Deye 3. Etc Atbp4. Pinay Mommy Online5. Coffee Cup Princess 6. Garden of Moments 7. Aeirin’s Collection 8. Never Dainty 9. The Long Journey Of My Life 10. A Mother Of Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow 11. Everything That Has Breathe Praise The Lord 12. Can Of Thoughts 13. Anything And Everything In Between 14. No Place Like Home 15. Pinay WAHM16. Only In Silence 17. Bisdak Footprints18. Simply Me, Simple Life 19. Fun Fierce Fab 20. Confessions Of A Supermodel Wannabe 21. Embracing Health For Life 22. Jona Thinks23. Whatever Comers To Mind 24. BOTH SIDES NOW25. Why Babie?26. My Virtual Closet 27. My Views On My So Called Life 28. Sexy Momma29. Memoirs of May-san 30. A Pocketful of Happiness 31. One Hundred and Eighty Degrees

{End Copy Here}

My Daddy

1. He’s a good cook. Lately, he’s been experimenting on some really yummy dishes.

2. He doesn’t have any vices. He doesn’t smoke or drink. He loves watching movies (and DVDs) and knows all the current events; not just the main news but even about showbiz.

3. He was a board topnotcher for the CPA Board Exams during his time.

4. He was the one who waited up for us to come home from parties or late-night outs as teens.

5. He’s a very doting grandfather to my sister’s 3-yr old Annika and my 1-yr old Raine.

Raine’s Daddy

1. He can be friends with anyone; from the Vice-President of a multinational company to a simple carpenter. He is Mr. Congeniality personified.

2. He’s very optimistic and idealistic.

3. He placed 9^th on the Civil Engineers’ Board Exams the year he took it.

4. He’s a hands-on daddy to our daughter Raine. He loves to play with her and teaches her new things every chance he gets.

5. He dives into his hobbies; playing golf and photography, with a passion.

Now I’m tagging Tricia, Sheryll, Eileen, Eds.

Always Be My Baby

Everyday Raine becomes less of a baby and more of a little girl; showing her independence by trying to do things by herself.

I’m always trying to make her drink water and juice so that she’s not too dependent on milk. One time, after drinking her cough medicine, I offered her water but she refused it so I let her be. Later, we brushed her teeth using baby toothpaste (the kind you don’t need to spit out) and I offered her water again. Still, she shook her head no. During lunch she finally took some liquids.
Lesson learned: just because I think she’s thirsty doesn’t mean she really is. I kept offering her water when she didn’t want any after all. When she finally wanted some she told me herself, tiptoeing and reaching for her cup on the kitchen counter. She also likes to feed herself now, oblivious to the mess she makes as she takes in spoonfuls of oatmeal, pasta or a rice meal.

Another time, I was laying out Raine’s clothes and diaper, getting ready to give her a bath. The next thing I know she is already inside the shower stall, pouring water on herself, while still wearing her pajamas!

Raine already knows how to remove her clothes so sometimes she likes to take them off and walk around the house butt naked! I usually have to put on her clothes for her two to three times before she gets tired of this “game”.

For her afternoon nap, I lie down beside her and she usually falls asleep in a few minutes. Once, she started crying and kept pushing me away. It turns out that she wanted to sleep by herself. Wow, that was a first! Now, even at night she no longer needs to have my arm wrapped around her while she sleeps. She takes my arm for awhile but when she’s really drowsy, she removes it from around her waist and buries herself in her pillows until she’s in deep sleep.

Usually at night hubby asks for a foot massage. Lately, whenever Raine sees me putting on the lotion, she excitedly positions herself near her Daddy’s feet and swats my hands away, as if to stay, “No, I want to do it.”

I have to admit I miss the days when she was totally dependent on us; for eating, bathing, clothing and everything else in between. In a few months, Raine will be two and show even more independence. Sometimes I wish she would stay a baby a little bit longer but she seems to be rapidly changing everyday. As she leaves babyhood behind and moves on to being a full-fledged toddler, I shall be in the wings guiding her and cheering her on.

10 Random Things About Me

Thanks for this tag, Pat.

RULES:1. Each blogger starts with ten random facts/habits about themselves.2. Bloggers that are tagged need to write on their own blog about their ten things and post these rules.3. At the end of your blog, you need to choose 10 people to get tagged.4. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

1. As a child my summers were always filled with activities. I took up lessons in ballet, Hawaiian dance, voice, piano, speed reading and Speechpower. Not at the same time of course.

2. My love for reading began in grade 2 when I read all the Nancy Drew books in our school library.

3. I learned to ride a bike at the ripe “old” age of 11 years old.

4. If I were stuck on an island and could only have one kind of food it would be KFC’s original chicken.

5. I’m not a morning person and love to sleep in.

6. When I was a kid I briefly wanted to be a detective just so I could be partners with "Remington Steele", better known as Pierce Brosnan. Haha!

7. Although I’m no domestic diva, I love to watch cooking shows and home makeover shows.

8. Dog lover, I’m not.

9. I was such a clueless cook that I once burned a fish that I was trying to fry because I had put too little oil in the pan.

10. I’m such a “sigurista” that after testing positive on one pregnancy test, I bought two more tests of different brands just to be sure that I was really on-the-way.

I'd like to tag Pheng, Renz, Marie, Issa, Farah, Peachy, Morning, Mari, Jenn and Nol.

Let me know if you are done (if you haven't done this tag already) so I can know you a little bit more.