...one month in retrospect...

How time flies so fast when you're not so hang up on it. That's one thing I noticed in my first month of living here.  So anyway, it has been one month since I came to Canada, to work.

Nothing much has changed. I'm still the quiet individual who prefers to be left alone. I guess that won't change in any way, though some of my aunt's friends hinted, that in time, I will be otherwise.

Life in a foreign country is different in every way. It's one reality that I have to live with everyday. Someone told me that in two or three months I will be able to adjust, hopefully.

I miss everything that's familiar to me back home. But it's something that I don't dwell on.

So anyway, here's a rundown of stuff I have come to start "adhering" to while I'm here:

 I have to get used to the "HOT" and "COLD" side of things when it comes to the faucet and shower. Back home, taking a shower is a breeze. Here, I have to adjust the water temperature or else, I'd end scalding or freezing myself.

I started using lip balm few days after I arrived here. Not for any aesthetic reason. I guess, due to the cold, my lips started to crack and bleed, hence the lip balm.

Jackets have become a part of my life, especially if I go out. Even if the sun is out there, shining bright and all, I still need to suit up lest I freeze. :-)

Keeps me company on cold nights ahead.

Socks have become my ally. I wear them 24/7, except when I take a shower. My bare feet is no match for the ice-cold floors.

Typical lunch.

But then, I still get to eat Filipino foods on weekends. Not bad.

So far I'm doing good. I get to see my aunt and younger sister during weekends. We just hang out and before we know it, the weekend is over.

Time to go back to work, again.

...down reading lane...

Do you remember learning to read? What’s your earliest reading memory?


I remembered struggling to memorize something for a school assignment. I have no memory of learning to read. I just learn how to. But then, there are two sides to this primal activity. I mean, anyone can read except for a few who doesn't. I guess it's easy to read, what comes after reading is sometimes the difficult part.

I grew up to my Aunt's telling us stories every night. In my mind, characters and events in the story played on my mind. When time came for me to start reading, I think, it just come naturally. From the moment I started reading I never look back.


 

...welcome to Canada eh...

 (conclusion)

Growing up I've always been fascinated about life in the other time zone. I grew   up watching foreign movies and loving them. Even now, I am more  inclined to watch foreign films as compared to ours.

So anyway, to continue with my tale, the cold really took me by surprise. My flimsy khaki jacket was not able to withstand it. Good thing my sister brought along her jacket for me and she gave me a pair of red gloves from the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.

The night breeze was very cold to my skin, while we were walking downtown Vancouver. We spent the night in my cousin's place and by next morning, we headed out to Nanaimo,  where Mama lives.

The first thing I noticed while we were walking was how the streets are so wide and clean. And the cars did not seem to make any noise as they come and go. And it was very, very cold. I had  fun staring at the cloud of smoke that comes out, every time I open my mouth. Cool eh?

Way back home, I always hated to go out especially during the afternoons because of the extreme heat and I always perspire a lot. Here, it's the opposite. If I stay  long outside without a jacket, I'll probably freeze to death and they say that, British Columbia has the mildest climate in Canada.

with my sister, Lourdes, at Port Alberni

I have a lot of things to look forward to in this new country. All I can I do is to take things one day at a time. I know I have to adjust to almost everything here. It's kind of fascinating to hear everyone around you speak in English. :-) And somehow, I have to learn to do that too. Of course, I know how to speak the language and I just have to get used to it.

So far, this is all I can write about for now. I have been here for more than a week already. I'm pretty sure, I have other stuff to write in the days to come,depending on my mood to put into words every experience that I'm going to encounter here.

Happy reading, eh...:-)

...welcome to Canada eh...

 exact opposite

The prospect of going to another country has never entered my mind. Of course, I have always set my sights on going to New York City someday but that's about it. When an opportunity presented itself as my ticket to make that "dream" a reality, I was hesitant to take it. Not because I don't want to but because I feel that I was not up for the job.

To make the long story short, I took the chance and two years later, I'm here in a foreign country already. No, it's not New York yet but it will be easier for me to get there if I work hard at it.

When I received my visa to work in Canada, I was glad and I even got teary-eyed when I phoned my mother and told her about the wonderful news. At that time the thought of leaving has not yet sink in. I was just plain happy.

After all the necessary paperwork was done, I got my flight schedule. And still I was not thinking of leaving yet. A week before my flight, I got anxious and all. I failed to mention that I'm scared of flying ( that's what I get from watching too much TV). 

At the airport, my hands started to get clammy and I was nervous and at the same time sad. An hour before my flight, I bid my mother, sister, AJ and Mokang goodbye. When I saw Nanay cried, I hurried away. I hate saying goodbyes. Joy, Jingle, Fritzie and Mae Ann were there too, to see me off.

At the boarding area, while waiting for my flight to be called, I felt very alone. For the first time, I realized how it felt to be all by yourself. And that come from someone who prided herself on being a loner.

The flight to HongKong was uneventful, except that I got very cold, other than that it was okay. Good thing I heed my sister's suggestion to tell the Cathay Pacific staff at the check-in counter way back in Cebu, that it was my first time to fly. When I arrived at the HongKong International Airport, someone from Cathay Pacific was waiting for me and promptly guided me around the various twists and turns of the terminal until I reached the boarding area for my connecting flight to Vancouver. I waited for another three hours before my flight. I have to say it Cathay Pacific is always on time and has no delays.

My connecting flight to Vancouver took almost 10 hours or so, I think. We encountered a lot of turbulence along the way. Imagine my anxiety. Every time the plane shaked or moved, I just closed my eyes and think pleasant thoughts. But at the back of my mind, images of those planes torn in half or exploding in the air ( from National Geographic's Air Crash Investigation) kept creeping up. I got a terrible headache and downed two Biogesic.When I finally saw the lights of Vancouver, it then occured to me that, this is it. There's no turning back now. Philippines is already a thousand miles away and I can't just go home at any time I want to. Then I recalled Tiya's message for me. Thinking of this got me misty-eyed and all the more sad.

 with Mama and Ferdinand

After the plane landed, I wasted no time getting out, not totally excited but because I still have to passed by Immigration. Fortunately, there were not a lot of people in the Immigration. I survived the questions directed at me by the Immigration Officer. After a few minutes, he handed me my Work Permit and I was off to retrieve my luggage. Then I went to look for the exit, pushing my luggage cart.

 with Mama

My sister, my aunt ( whom we call Mama ) and her husband, Ferdinand, were there to met me. We exchanged pleasantires and laughs. For a moment there, I did not recognized my sister in her get-up which was far from what I've seen her way back home. Mama gave me a hug. When we stepped outside, I was taken aback by the cold. Grrrrr.....

( to be continued )

...sensual...

Which do you prefer? Lurid, fruity prose, awash in imagery and sensuous textures and colors? Or straight-forward, clean, simple prose?

 I prefer the straight-forward, clean simple prose. I don't want the distractions. I'm after more of how the story turned out. I can't deny it I've read some books with all the "lurid, fruity prose, awash in imagery and sensuous textures and colors" but I end up not reading it until the last pages. I just lose interest in it.

As I've said before, it all really goes down to the one reading. He or she can read anything that suits his or her fancy. We always have the last say in choosing what we want to read. :-)

...picture or no picture...

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about picture books.

Do you have a favorite picture book, either from your own childhood, or reading to you children?

I never own a book until I got a job. Sometimes, I wonder at how I came to love books and reading when growing up, I never have books. It's a blessing that I have an aunt who made time to tell us stories when we were kids. It felt also like reading.

I don't have a favorite picture book. I could say I did not pass the stage of "liking favorite books".  But I do love to peruse them from time to time. I remember buying one, Monster. Inc. I gave it to my niece, AJ.

..."draw" me in...

How do you feel about illustrations in your books? Graphs? Photos? Sketches?

When I was younger, I tend to be more inclined to read books with illustrations or photos in them. I flipped through the pages, gawking at the pictures and just skimmed over some lines.

I started reading seriously when I was in high school. By this time, I moved from just gawking at pictures to actually reading what's on print. 

Books with illustrations and photos are fine by me. When I read a book with a technical subject matter, I would prefer it to have illustrations. Then if I read a novel, I think illustrations are not that necessary. That's when your imagination comes in. :-)

...with or without...

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about dust jackets.

Do you prefer books with a dust jacket? What do you do with your dust jacket while reading? Leave it on or take it off? 

 I usually don't get books with dust jackets since they are quite expensive, though they're pretty cool to look at. And when ever I get the chance to acquire a book with one, I just leave it on.

I can't say I prefer them with dust jackets because most of my books are paperbacks. I am after  the story, actually. :-)

...so how's your Grammar?...

In honor of National Grammar Day … it IS “March Fourth” after all … do you have any grammar books? Punctuation? Writing guidelines? Style books?

More importantly, have you read them?

How do you feel about grammar in general? Important? Vital? Unnecessary? Fussy?

Way back in high school, I was not too keen on grammar. I did not look forward to every grammar lessons I had to attend. I had no way out of it so I endured. Fortunately, I was able to manage a passing mark.

I don't have any grammar books or any writing guidelines. If have to consult on punctuations or grammar, I usually just Google it. 

I'm sure that if my writings now will be scrutinized by a grammar teacher, I doubt if I can make the grade. I play it by ear when I write. If I think, it sounds right, then I'd go for it.

Grammar has its own purpose. And somehow, I'm still trying to make my way through it.:-)

...excited and anxious...

"How do you prepare for something you're both excited and anxious about at the same time?"

I posted this question on Twitter, a few days ago. I guess I was just thinking out loud at that time. How do you prepare indeed, for situations like this? For someone whom nothing much is happening in her life ( that's me), this is an overwhelming task.

I'm used to what I have been for the past 33 years of my life. I had my own shares of ups and downs as expected from a struggling individual, trying to make both ends meet. Sometimes, I complained for lack of zest in my life but then I always settled back, and just take it easy.

Two years ago, I did something out of the ordinary. I enrolled in a short-term course at my Aunt's urging. Of course, after having failed in my own field, what better way to licked those wounds? It's a far cry from what I studied in college but I breezed through it without so much of a hitch, except for those times when I had to go to hospitals. All in all, I survived it.

Then after more than a year of waiting, I received wonderful news. Wonderful in the sense that for once, I did not fail and I made my Aunt happy. :-)

So in four days time ( God willing), I will embark on a new journey. Something I have never done before. And that's got me both excited and anxious. I think it's exciting to be doing something new and way out of my comfort zone. On the other hand, I'm anxious for the reason that I have no idea what is in store for me out there. Will my laid-back attitude see me through? Will I be able to overcome my trepidation and fully embrace my new life in an entirely new place?

For now, I'm thinking about nothing in particular. My partially packed bags are the only semblance of my upcoming trip. Other than that, I'm still trying to go through my days like I always do. There's one thing though, I'm trying to eat all the food that I will miss.;-) No surprise there.

When I finally have the answer to my question, expect  to read it here. In the meantime, I guess I just have to take it all, one day at a time.

...whatever suits you...

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about a story format.

How do you feel about books written in a differing format – whether this be journals or letters (epistolary), verse novels, or any other form? Is this something you enjoy? Or do you prefer straight forward chapter prose.

I usually go for the straight forward chapter prose. I've tried reading journals but only on the sly. I have the tendency to wander off if what I'm reading sounded like my textbooks in college. 

 There are times that I do read a non-fiction book if the subject matter really interest me. 

Anyway, it all depends on the one reading, what may be enjoyable to some is pure torment to another.:-)

...will miss them like crazy...

favorite fries

my Nanay's "benignit"

I " heart" Halo-halo

bagoong rice... I like

there's "Nai Cha" like no other

Tofu Biryani

eat up!!!

More to come.....

...all for reading...

I've seen this quotation  in several places lately. It's from Sven Birkert's "The Gutenberg Elegies: The Fate of Reading in an Electronic Age':


"To read, when one does so of one's own free will, is to make a volitional statement, to cast a vote; it is to posit an elsewhere and set off toward it. And like any traveling, reading is at once a movement and a comment of sorts about the place one has left. To open a book voluntarily is at some level to remark the insufficiency either of one's life or one's orientation toward it."


To what extent does this describe you?

 I'm not really sure if the above quotation describes me. All I know is that I read for the sheer joy of reading. It gives me reprieve from all the stuff that somehow manage to creep up unexpectedly. I read to be entertained and informed. And to realize that there's still more to know and learn.

...for keeps...

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about  keeping books.

 

Do you keep all the books you ever buy? Just the ones you love? Just collectibles? What do you do with the ones you don’t want to keep?

I started collecting books when I got a job ( for obvious reasons). I keep all the books I bought and those given to me. It's hard for me to part ways with them, especially with my favorites. The ones I don't want to keep, are back home.

At present, I am faced with the fact that I will have to leave all my books behind when I moved. Probably just bring one to read on the trip.

I have yet to sort and pack them.

Tough chore.:-(

...better late than never...

Today’s MUSING MONDAYS post is about a reference material.

Do you keep reference books on your shelves at home? What’s your first port of call when you need information – the internet or a book?

Since I started joining Musing Mondays, I have look forward to it every week.:-)

The only reference book I have is a Merriam-Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus. I usually refer to it during those times when I'm reading and I'm not online. When I do some research ( which is not often), I just Google d it.

When I got hooked in photography, I bought three photography books but I don't necessarily consider them as reference books. Likewise with running. I read them again from time when I am most inclined.