Thanksgiving is about family and tradition

Thanksgiving is fast approaching and I'm in that awkward period again of being asked where I'm going to spend my Thanksgiving. You know how it goes, you meet with people and somehow because the holiday is in the air, they inquire about your holiday plans. For me these our my clients who don't know much about me, yet they want to know how, where, and with whom I'm going to spend the holiday with. I know it's a rhetorical question, but somehow they expect you to let them in in your plans and give them a definite answer. Of course I wont be making this big deal if I have a definite answer, but I don't. I don't know how Kay and I are going to spend our Thanksgiving.

Well, we know how we want to spend it: with a large, sumptuous, baked turkey in front of us and with all the trimmings that goes with it. You really can't celebrate Thanksgiving without a turkey. It's tradition. It doesn't matter if noone in your family eat turkey, you need to have it served on your table on Thanksgiving dinner.

My coworker said that if Kay and I have no plans then we're invited to her Thankgiving dinner. So I asked her if she's going to cook the turkey herself. She said that all her guests are mostly Filipinos too and that Filipinos don't eat turkey that much. So I said, "I guess you'll be serving fried chicken, pancit and spaghetti with hotdogs." And we both laughed. (I know it really sounded crass, but she's a good friend.) Later on she said that she's thinking about making turkey after all.

Kay and I want to start our own tradition. We really want and wish that we could go to Ohio to spend this time with my Dad and my siblings. But for personal (and also financial) reasons, it's just not that easy to hop on a plane and go there. So we'll probably spend it with each other, bake our turkey, and be thankful for all the blessings we received this past year.

Of course we can also spend it with our relatives in San Diego. But we didn't get an invitation yet (Kuya Ron, I know you're reading...nudge-nudge,wiink-wink) so we just don't want to show up (Although I'm already known for doing that.) Of course it's always fun to spend the holidays in San Diego! I don't often verbally thank them for their support, but I can't imagine surviving in the US without their help. They opened their house for me and my brother when we were still fesh off the boat, ha-ha.
Except Kuya Ron has turned vegetarian on me so I might find a turkey-shaped tofu on their table Thanksgiving night. Somehow that just doesn't sound traditional. But hey, it's family.

back to standard time

it gets too dark so early. you look out the window at 5:30 pm and it's dark already. it feels like it should be 8 pm. why do we have to go back to standard time? just keep daylight savings time forever. and make that our standard time. i just don't like it getting too dark so early.

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money is tight! i hate november. the bills just keep pouring. first the property tax bill came. then the home insurance bill. and the flood insurance is now overdue. i just sent out the check today. i thought i'm already paid up until 2005. thank god for grace period. now, i just received my car registration notice. and i just paid the car insurance, too. why do they all come in the same month? money is tight!

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i am lucky. yes it gets dark early. yes i have a lot of bills to pay. but i'm still lucky. i have a lot of blessings to be thankful for. i know more people are doing worse. and i really shouldn't complain. i just need to adjust to the time change. i do have the money to pay all these bills. i shouldn't complain. i am lucky.

i'll close my eyes

it's 10:07 pm PST and the media is projecting OH to go to Bush. it looks like Bush will finally get elected, not re-elected. i'm going to sleep now. i'll close my eyes and when i wake up tomorrow morning, i hope we'll have a different result. good night, america.

Election Day

It's Election Day here in the U.S. and I urge everyone who are eligible to vote to go out and practice their civic duty. I hope this presidential election will be less controversial than the last one, and I'm hoping we'll have a clear winner so as not to bring a legitimacy question to this presidency. Go out and vote!

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Ha! October came and went and I didn't have a single post. I'm not going to say that I don't have any blogworthy news to share (because there's plenty!!!), let me just say that I don't want to burden you all with my anxiety about certain issues. I guess we're still on a need to know basis here and right now I'll just keep private stuff private. O intriga, di ba?!

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My Dad left for Cleveland today. Not to vote, mind you, but to visit my other siblings in Ohio and Virginia. He arrived from Manila last October 11 and has spent some time with me in Sacramento and Pomona. The rest of his stay was spent with our relatives in San Diego. He'll be back here in Cali in December to attend a wedding, then he might go visit Florida after that. He's scheduled to fly back to Manila after the holiday. It was great to see and spend some time with my Dad after eight years. Maybe in May the whole family will come for a visit. Kumpleto na naman kami!

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Didn't I say the San Diego Chargers are going to the playoffs? Well, halfway through the season, their record is 5-3 and it looks like the rest of their schedule is pretty light. Only the Colts and the Broncos have a winning record among their next opponents. They have a great chance of winning their division and even sweeping the remaining games. Wow, a 13-3 record would be awesome. But first, let's beat the Saints next week.