Lord,
Please wake me up tomorrow at least just in time to jump out of the bed, run out of the apartment and jump on the train. If that scenario doesn't happen, please give me patience if after waiting for very precious 15 minutes my train has not shown up yet. And when the train arrives, please give the people inside a little bit of mercy to scoot over an inch and give me space to just stuff my body in before the CTA bell dings and the doors slide.
Also important, please let it be that the people surrounding me in the train don't have funky smell. Because in about 6 stops later & about a hundred people in one cart, I could die in misery for I have weakness for any sorts of stinky smell.
Please lead me to the right position and pole to hang on to, so that I can do the necessary maneuver when the train abruptly stops, on every stop, and avoid to stomp someone’s foot or, worse, get stomped by someone.
If I have to slip and fall, please let it be on someone, not on the floor, for only You knows what the floor has gone through. But, if I may choose, please don't let me fall on elderly or handicapped passengers for I will feel guilty. Better let me fall to someone in a good mood with good smell so that he/she won't be upset and, better yet, give me an understanding smile upon my apology.
Please also give me good timing so that on my transfer to the next train or then to the bus, I don't have to run, or wait for the next bus because the previous one has left without me.
Please bestow upon me, good hearing sense, for I often fall asleep on the second train and also on the bus and I need to wake up just in time after the announcement that my stop is next.
If at all possible, please also make me invisible from all the guys who want to chit-chat all along the way while you know for sure, my mood is hell before 11 and I rather take a nap than talk. Don't let them see that I'm wearing a watch, because the standard opening line for them is to ask the time.
Forgive me Lord, for I'm sure that most of them are nice, but my nap means more than talking about the weather or bus schedules or whether I am married yet.
Lastly, thank you for giving me a job, because if not then all my long prayer above won't happen and I cannot embrace my daily morning pain with joy.
Wednesday, February 23, 2005
Prayer of a Commuter
Monday, February 14, 2005
Why Feb 14th?
Valentine's day is on the 14th (this is a note to a guy friend of mine who one time asked me when Valentine's day is), which, by the way, is today,... And which I forgot this morning when I called my boyfriend to wake him up, until I got a text message from a friend saying happy Vday later during the day.
During lunch time the mailroom staff were busy distributing flowers to all the floors. I feel bad for them, today, they might not have the chance to sit down and have a decent amount of lunch time. No pun intended to all the love birds out there who make a big deal out of Valentine. I don't, just because I don't see why I should. I don't even know Valentine's full name. It's not his birthday, it's the day he got slayed. And though, my boyfriend sends me flowers anually during those times of the year, I won't be upset if he did not send me any. Well, actually on our first Valentine he missed sending me flowers (hahaha... but that's another story. He'll kill me if kiss and tell).
Don't you think that Valentine's day is a mass propaganda of the greetings card companies and all other major business (chocolate, restaurant, flowers,.... and many others that I just can't spill out on top of my head)?
But, hey, I'm not a Valentine hater. I just don't feel like I need to fully participate in it. Valentine is overrated,... and sometimes the birthdays of our parents are underrated. Or their anniversary, or your nephews first day to school. Those days are important for me. Valentine's day... .well.... as far as the western culture goes, it might be just another day when you, as a guy, have to buy your significant other some flowers, and take her to dinner, or you'll end up on the couch tonight.
As for my boyfriend and I, we tried having dinner on Valentine's day, he ordered flowers fedexed from California, and so on, and yes I had some fun, but I would say my Valentine's day is not on Feb 14th. It was on those nameless meaningless days when we had thai or mexican and when we had picnic on north beach shore with crazy fearless birds flying about my head and I kept telling my boyfriend I had this vision that they'll poop on our heads.
You know, this necklace makes me think of this totally random memory of my mother. I was a little kid, and I was crying for whatever reason. And she was cradling me, rocking me back and forth, and I can just remember the silver balls rolling around. And there was snot dripping all over my face. She offered me her sleeve and told me to blow my nose. I can remember, even as a little kid, thinking to myself, "This is love... this is love." - Garden State
During lunch time the mailroom staff were busy distributing flowers to all the floors. I feel bad for them, today, they might not have the chance to sit down and have a decent amount of lunch time. No pun intended to all the love birds out there who make a big deal out of Valentine. I don't, just because I don't see why I should. I don't even know Valentine's full name. It's not his birthday, it's the day he got slayed. And though, my boyfriend sends me flowers anually during those times of the year, I won't be upset if he did not send me any. Well, actually on our first Valentine he missed sending me flowers (hahaha... but that's another story. He'll kill me if kiss and tell).
Don't you think that Valentine's day is a mass propaganda of the greetings card companies and all other major business (chocolate, restaurant, flowers,.... and many others that I just can't spill out on top of my head)?
But, hey, I'm not a Valentine hater. I just don't feel like I need to fully participate in it. Valentine is overrated,... and sometimes the birthdays of our parents are underrated. Or their anniversary, or your nephews first day to school. Those days are important for me. Valentine's day... .well.... as far as the western culture goes, it might be just another day when you, as a guy, have to buy your significant other some flowers, and take her to dinner, or you'll end up on the couch tonight.
As for my boyfriend and I, we tried having dinner on Valentine's day, he ordered flowers fedexed from California, and so on, and yes I had some fun, but I would say my Valentine's day is not on Feb 14th. It was on those nameless meaningless days when we had thai or mexican and when we had picnic on north beach shore with crazy fearless birds flying about my head and I kept telling my boyfriend I had this vision that they'll poop on our heads.
You know, this necklace makes me think of this totally random memory of my mother. I was a little kid, and I was crying for whatever reason. And she was cradling me, rocking me back and forth, and I can just remember the silver balls rolling around. And there was snot dripping all over my face. She offered me her sleeve and told me to blow my nose. I can remember, even as a little kid, thinking to myself, "This is love... this is love." - Garden State
Wednesday, February 09, 2005
Prone to Stress; how to get rid of it?
Here I am. A momentous mark in my life.
THE ROOSTER YEAR!!! Actually the Chinese New Year merely means nothing to me but an expensive dinner (with Peking duck and steamed sea bass, which by the way were mighty delicious). Money well spent…. The portion was not huge though. And despite my body size, I eat. Not the garden salad kind of lady at all. I’m more of the all you can eat Brazilian food kind of lady.
Anyway, I got side tracked.
Going back to the momentous mark in my life:
I passed my first week of my job. And I think I did alright. I love the people and I love the job. Couldn’t ask for more.
Like the slogan of the company: I’m lovin’ it (yeah, you know what it is… ), I’m loving working there.
Now, at this ‘momentous’ mark of my life, how come I am still looking for something else? I still got -what Wilson said- warts and all, all over the place. Actually, I do feel like I under a lot of stress & that I’m very very prone to stress, and up to now, at this very second, I don’t know how to get rid of it.
My boyfriend suggested that I pick yoga back. But at $ 200 for 8 (or 10?) classes, I rather buy me an XBOX. Or like my mom’s idea that I should move to a country, closer to home, so she can drop by anytime & spend the weekend cooking me all the yummy dishes. That idea made me cringe. Not the idea of my mom dropping by, but rather about the idea to move & adapt to a whole new other culture.
Yeah, right, Uh-huh, that would surely trigger suicidal thoughts on a person (like me) who at the very moment is very prone to stess, or worse, depression.
So,... prone to stress (or depression, maybe) ... how to get rid of it?
Any idea?
Even trying to find an idea sounds stressful right now.
Help me out here, will ya?
I am worried. I'm dead serious. When I saw some clearance / sale signs last week and I was not interested, then I knew... I'm in deep poop.
THE ROOSTER YEAR!!! Actually the Chinese New Year merely means nothing to me but an expensive dinner (with Peking duck and steamed sea bass, which by the way were mighty delicious). Money well spent…. The portion was not huge though. And despite my body size, I eat. Not the garden salad kind of lady at all. I’m more of the all you can eat Brazilian food kind of lady.
Anyway, I got side tracked.
Going back to the momentous mark in my life:
I passed my first week of my job. And I think I did alright. I love the people and I love the job. Couldn’t ask for more.
Like the slogan of the company: I’m lovin’ it (yeah, you know what it is… ), I’m loving working there.
Now, at this ‘momentous’ mark of my life, how come I am still looking for something else? I still got -what Wilson said- warts and all, all over the place. Actually, I do feel like I under a lot of stress & that I’m very very prone to stress, and up to now, at this very second, I don’t know how to get rid of it.
My boyfriend suggested that I pick yoga back. But at $ 200 for 8 (or 10?) classes, I rather buy me an XBOX. Or like my mom’s idea that I should move to a country, closer to home, so she can drop by anytime & spend the weekend cooking me all the yummy dishes. That idea made me cringe. Not the idea of my mom dropping by, but rather about the idea to move & adapt to a whole new other culture.
Yeah, right, Uh-huh, that would surely trigger suicidal thoughts on a person (like me) who at the very moment is very prone to stess, or worse, depression.
So,... prone to stress (or depression, maybe) ... how to get rid of it?
Any idea?
Even trying to find an idea sounds stressful right now.
Help me out here, will ya?
I am worried. I'm dead serious. When I saw some clearance / sale signs last week and I was not interested, then I knew... I'm in deep poop.
Tuesday, February 01, 2005
From 'Garota de Ipanema' to 'Wave'
A confession: I have this fetish about Portuguese & bossanova.
You know how all Bossa songs translated in English, and as much as I love Frank (Sinatra, that is), I have got to admit, nothing beats Jobim in Bossa. Thanks to my dad & his ambition to introduce me to Bossa, I’m hooked, since as long as I can remember. I know girl from Ipanema since I don’t know when, maybe since I crawled.
And talking about pure bossa being translated in English; Bossanova in English is fine, but bossanova in Portuguese, now that is what I call music.
I have no idea what it is that they are singing, but even if they were cursing, Portuguese sounds exotic for me. I have mastered the lyric of Garota de Ipanema in the past; I can sing it in Portuguesse. But if you asked me what it means, heck, I don’t know, I just catch this fascination about a girl , as beautiful as poetry, with mocha colored skin.
And, so, today, I am making it official; my next project would be Wave – Antonio Carlos Jobim. It may take a while, but I’ll keep you posted. If I can master Garota de Ipanema, this one should be simpler, because it’s shorter. Who knows, by the end of 2005, I might master 10 songs already.
I can keep my finger crossed, can’t I?
You know how all Bossa songs translated in English, and as much as I love Frank (Sinatra, that is), I have got to admit, nothing beats Jobim in Bossa. Thanks to my dad & his ambition to introduce me to Bossa, I’m hooked, since as long as I can remember. I know girl from Ipanema since I don’t know when, maybe since I crawled.
And talking about pure bossa being translated in English; Bossanova in English is fine, but bossanova in Portuguese, now that is what I call music.
I have no idea what it is that they are singing, but even if they were cursing, Portuguese sounds exotic for me. I have mastered the lyric of Garota de Ipanema in the past; I can sing it in Portuguesse. But if you asked me what it means, heck, I don’t know, I just catch this fascination about a girl , as beautiful as poetry, with mocha colored skin.
And, so, today, I am making it official; my next project would be Wave – Antonio Carlos Jobim. It may take a while, but I’ll keep you posted. If I can master Garota de Ipanema, this one should be simpler, because it’s shorter. Who knows, by the end of 2005, I might master 10 songs already.
I can keep my finger crossed, can’t I?
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