LONG PICTURE POST AHEAD

We've officially moved in!

Tita Chon and Tito Mo were amazingly generous to lend both cars to haul my and Mica's stuff and drive us to Brooklyn. Tita Chon was laughing at the fact that despite me having only been in New York for a few months, I have more stuff than Mica does. We spent the rest of the afternoon fixing our rooms and whatever we can fix in the house. We were supposed to have a small gathering with fellow roommates and just a few friends, but what was meant to be a quiet dinner with chinese take-out and wine became an all out dancing party!

We had quite a few people come over and we breezed through 4 bottles of wine (not enough!). Tom later came with a few cans of beer and we all spent the night laughing and dancing to whatever music I had on my iPod and iTunes. We also enshrined Andy, Mica, and my gohonzon so we all had a gongyo marathon. Benny has yet to purchase his butsudan and we shall enshrine his when he does. An apartment full of drunk buddhists is so much fun. Later in the night, Jordan busted out balloons and started making ballon animals and hats for everyone and began juggling for everyone's entertainment. I haven't danced like that in a house party and I was soo glad that I didn't have to take a train home after. Rann has officially called the apartment Casa Cuadro de filipino (or some sh!t like that) also considered as the filipino buddhist center. Ha!

I handed my camera over to Rann who took 90% of last night's photos. He did an excellent job! I only saw the photos today and loved them! Galeng tsong! The rest were taken by everyone else who had their hands on the camera.

It was a fun night of music, dancing and laughter. At one point, Eisa graced us with her dancing and taught me and Mica a few moves. Eisa even gave me a lap dance which was more hilarious than erotic.

Rann's very rare appearance in a photo

Benny and Andy
I love how this reminds me of an 80's movie poster
Some Kind of Wonderful?
my butsudan

Left is Mica's, right is Andy's



Eisa, moi and Mica


The rest of the chaos may be viewed here.

I can't believe I have my own apartment. I woke up this morning and was like "OOOOMMMMGGGG."

I'm so happy I can't contain it. Tom, Eisa and Jordan slept over while everyone else left for the night. I walked to the grocery 4 blocks up to get breakfast food and coffee. It's almost 1pm and as I type this, Tom and Eisa are still passed out on the couch. Good thing I don't have work till 4.

Everyone's welcome to visit ok?

Mmmmm...cheerios...

Will have to go grocery shopping for food first thing Monday morning to stock the new kitchen. I'm moving tomorrow!!!

Kari: "tangina lilipat na ko bukas. nauutot ako sa excitement."
Niki: "hahahaha! Sama ako!"

Good thing I don't own a lot of stuff and will simply have to worry about my clothes. Tita Chon has generously donated the mattress I'm currently sleeping on so that's one thing I can cross off my list of stuff to buy.

In typical Kari fashion, I lost my metrocard (yet again) this morning on my way to work. Good thing it's expiring tomorrow anyway so I didn't lose much. The bad thing was that I realized I didn't have it on me when I was already on the bus. I was searching through my bag and all my pockets trying to figure out where it was. When I realized I had lost it, I started to rummage through my purse for quarters to pay for the bus fare when a kind man handed me his metrocard to use. I graciously thanked him for the free ride. Good samaritans are all around!

I'm shamefully addicted to Facebook now. I attribute my always running late for repeatedly refreshing my browser to see new status updates and comments. Kari is a big dork.

Did I mention I scored good, cheap bed linens the other day? On my way home from chanting at the center during my one hour break, I passed by a store on 14th st that was closing out and selling all their stuff for half off. I got decent egyptian cotton sheets, mattress pad, curtain, towel for a very good deal. Score!

I have to do my last batch of laundry here before moving day. I won't have time to do laundry anymore until next week since I'll be busy sorting out my shizzle in the new place. Andy says the laundromat is just around the corner from the building so at least I won't have to carry stuff too far unlike when I used to be in SF and had to walk 7 blocks for laundry. Ugh.

Ok, bed time.

By the way, until we get our own internet connection set up in the new place, I will be incommunicado (unless I can steal free wifi from the neighbors).

I'm packing for the nth time in the last several months. This will hopefully be my last for a very long time. I keep thinking about Omar and how I haven't been able to make time for him since I started work. I feel really horrible everytime he asks me to play a game of crazy eights or on his Xbox and I respond with a weary "Not now, Omee..." I'm moving out on Sunday and I don't have enough time to make up for lost time. I planned on taking them out to dinner last Sunday but moving day took much much longer than I had anticipated. I feel like a mom who can't make time for her son. This almost makes me want to stay here a bit longer just so I can have a chance to make up for all the "maybe later(s)" I kept giving him. I've packed up all my stuff and kept only the ones I will be needing until Sunday. With my work schedule and moving, will I even be able to come visit them on my only day off? I will need to make a conscious effort to try. I do owe this family a LOT. They took me in without question and made me as comfortable as possible. I haven't even given Tita Chon her christmas present (I know! how horrible!). I wanted to give her framed photos of Omar from the ones I took the last few months but I don't have the time to sit and process photos, let alone go to a photo lab to have them printed. Ugh! This is such a mess... I will be chanting for social balance for the next few weeks. All I've had time for is work and looking for apartments then the moving happened. I need to balance my time. I don't even have time for my photos anymore. Focus, Kari, focus!

Hopefully on February 8, I will have a productive day in terms of my pursuing photography. I have been asked to volunteer my services to cover an event for Quaad (Queens Academy of Arts and Dance). They will be holding an event for Breast Cancer Awareness through a dance concert and health fair. Mica and Leo will be performing and I will be documenting the day's event. Leo asked me to do it just from looking at my photos on Facebook and Pbase. I hope my event coverage skills do not disappoint. This will be the first event I will cover and I'm both nervous and excited. Pursuing my photography as a career is one of my goals for 2009. This may be a step to building a better portfolio and client base.

Speaking of goals, I have had my SGI 2009 determination card since receiving my gohonzon but I have yet to fill it up. I haven't made the time to sit and ponder what I want out of this year yet. I will have to write on it real soon so I know exactly what to chant for. I remember hearing something from one of the meetings that went like, "Chanting without a goal is like shooting an arrow without a target." I have been so swept by the series of events that's transpired in the last few weeks that I have forgotten to remind myself why I'm doing all of this. I cannot allow myself to revert back to a purposeless existence, always going with the flow of things, waiting for things to happen to me. I have to make them happen for myself. Sensei says that "Those who wake up each morning with work to accomplish and a mission to fulfill are the happiest people of all."

I've been using my one hour breaks to go to the center and chant for 30 minutes. So far, it hasn't failed from leaving me feeling better, and ready for the rest of my work day. I've always had trouble answering with more than a smile when asked what the practice has done for me. It's quite difficult for me to describe it at the moment. I don't know if simply saying "I'm much happier" will suffice. It's a different kind of happiness. One that involves a sense of contentment and pride in your own life. Basta! Masaya ako. Yung pakiramdam na kahit anong problema at sakit ng ulo na dadating sa buhay mo, alam mong kayang-kaya mong labanan. I don't overstress about most of the stuff that I used to worry about. Life is good. And even if sh!t happens, it's usually through the climb that we find a sense of achievement. We can conquer all. WIN AGAIN TODAY!

*written last night but posted today*

I can't elaborate on today much. I have less than 5-6 hours before I have to be up AGAIN. Benny, Andy and I spent FOUR morbid hours driving from Brooklyn to Queens because none of us knew our way around. Benny is formerly from Montreal, Andy is from Chicago at ako galing bundok. We depended on Benny's iPhone's GPS but it the battery was almost dead and the GPS kept f*cking with us. Couple that with New York's horrible highway and street layouts that will get any tourist lost for sure. The highways and streets are nothing like California. I never got lost while driving there, it was so easy to find my way around with just a map. We circled the area about 5 times before we finally got the UHaul back to the warehouse. UGH. Then after dropping Andy home, Benny and I got PULLED OVER BY A COP for having busted headlights. We were using the fog lights anyway but they wanted to check. When he asked for license and registration, Benny realized that he DIDN'T HAVE HIS LICENSE. The whole time were driving around, wala pala syang license. We apologized and explained that we were lost and had just moved hence all the chaos and he just laughed, gave us directions and sent us on our way. My heart was on my throat and I wanted to cry. We got home at 2:30am and I passed out even before I could publish this post.

We did move quite a bit of stuff into the new apartment today though. Carrying the couch, cabinets, shelves, beds, mattresses, chairs and a sh!tload of boxes up to the 3rd floor was a bitch though. Specially having to maneuver it through a small narrow staircase (remember that Friends episode with Ross, Chandler and Rachel carrying a couch up a stairwell?) I measured my room and found it to be slightly roomier than what I was expecting it to be.


*written today*
So this morning contained another series of unfortunate events but I don't want to elaborate much. Benny ended up staying here then we had to be up in the morning to go back and settle the uhaul late charges. Basta! Magulong umaga nanaman. I'm just glad it's over. I will try to move the rest of my stuff little by little before saturday or may just borrow tita Chon's car again and haul everything in one go on Feb. 1. I do plan on sleeping at the new place on Saturday night after work if I'm able to borrow a futon or air mattress by then.

I have so many stories to tell but I can't seem to remember any of them right now. I have been too exhausted to write at the end of each day that I no longer can recall most of the stuff I want to share with you all. They're nothing major, just funny little things that's happened in the last few weeks. Hopefully when I've settled in my new home, I'll be more composed.

Finally finished moving apartments. Woke up at 6am and waited for the movers to come. They hauled out the boxes and we waited for them to finish unloading before I started my assignment, FIX THE KITCHEN! That was seriously the highlight of my day. I'm such a dork, I know, but I was really having fun with among the mess of pots, pans, canned goods and kitchen appliances. Now the kitchen looks good on the outside and and inside too! Drawers and cabinets are arranged by kind and some in color :) I miss being in the kitchen so much! I was in a bit if a high that even when I was tired from all the arranging, I still found the energy to make quick eggs and ginisang sardinas for dindin. We all scarfed down our food within minutes and tossed all the dishes in the dishwasher since no one wanted to wash anything.

Jose's (Kate's husband) daughter Chasi asked me to accompany her to the pool for a late afternoon dip. I sat by the lounge chairs and watched Friends episodes on my iPod while she swam.

I spoke to my mom (finally) last night and we talked for a while. She broke my news to family in New York and it looks like I'll be in the big apple soon. Will wait for Bea and Paul to arrive mid-August so I can see them then decide when I'll move to the east coast after that. I haven't been to back to NY since 1996 so this should be interesting. If my friends in NY are reading this, I'm heading in your direction soon so do holler so we can meet! I'll be familiarizing myself with the subway since I'll be staying with my aunt in Queens. I'm both apprehensive and excited. My departure will depend on when I am able to arrange to have all my stuff and place them in storage until I can decide what my action plans are.

I'll be sharing a room with Chasi until she heads back to Carson on Saturday. I will no longer be bunking in the living room yehey! There's still more unpacking to be had tomorrow and if time permits, I'll take that walk to the mall nearby to check out the Mac store and, uhm, Old Navy. :)

Moving apartments tomorrow. Been busy with packing stuff all day. Internet and cable will be disconnected tomorrow and won't be back for five days max. Hopefully we get it sooner or I'm able to hook up with an open wi-fi connection. Maybe one of the neighbors didn't set up a password. We'll see.

Will be up early tomorrow to haul stuff out back and forth. It's a bigger place and I won't have to sleep in the living room anymore hurray! I'll be having a fun day re-organizing the new kitchen and I can't wait.

Went to a remittance center today to get money. Been mistaken for a latina once again. The lady behind the counter started speaking in rapid Spanish and I stared at her blankly and went "huh?!" I need to continue my Spanish lessons. I started listening to those free Spanish podcasts a few months back and stopped because of work stuff. Oh dear, I just remembered, Grace! Your Spanish CDs are in SF, I will try to return them to you as soon as I get my stuff, I promise.