My body is aching all over. I didn’t realize that diving and swimming with a sea turtle is a horrible full body workout. I didn’t even have to fight waves and yet it feels like I got run over by a bulldozer. My thighs and knees are sore.

I guess that’s what ageing is all about. I’ll be turning 50 in three years so yeah, my body isn’t what it used to be.

But good thing we pushed through with this quick weekend getaway because the typhoon season is about to start. Next week, to be precise.

I’ll maximize our stay in Anilao this time. I don’t know when we’ll be back. 😥

I am so down and anxiety is eating me up. Work is eating me alive. Not because I’m overworked but because news is slow. I am scrambling to get stories but I’m unsuccessful. All my requests ended up just being seen-zoned by those who initially were enthusiastic by my interview proposals.

To drive the blues away, I booked a room in Anilao yesterday, dragged my kids…so here I am, working by the beach for some vitamin sea. Serotonin boost.

I’ll go through my emails first before I beg for more interviews.

We were blessed with the company of a large critically endangered hawksbill sea turtle this afternoon. It was peacefully munching on corals and we freedived to where it was feeding.

I’m happy to say I’m able to equalize well now and I can go deeper despite not being able to dive for 2 years because life got in the way.

Of all the house reefs that we have gone to, I think this one at Planet Dive is the best. The corals reef was extensive and old (judging by their sizes) but they didn’t escape the widespread bleaching that started in 2020. Many still managed to survive but there was a large number that got bleached i.e. died because of rising sea temperatures. However, there are still colorful ones and the schools of fishes are large.

I was supposed to book Arthur’s Place because of their house reef. It’s one of the stops for scuba divers because of Arthur’s Rock. It’s also one of the best spots for swimming with hawksbill turtles. I decided to book Planet Dive instead because I thought my mom will come with us. It has a swimming pool that she might like when she got tired of the sea. Arthur’s Place is basic and it caters mostly to hardcore divers so it may not have the amenities for senior citizens. Well, my mom backed out the last minute because she said she has so many things to do so she can’t afford to be away until Sunday.

Next time, I’ll book Arthur’s just to compare house reefs.

Oh, by the way, I’m red as a lobster. 🦞

I just got out of the cinema and let me digest this for a bit.

Technically, there is no summer in the Philippines because it’s perpetually summer here. What we have are dry season and wet season. However, since we were an American colony, we adopted the term “summer” to call the dry season when school children are on a three-month break (March – May).

So here we are, my children lounging the days away. Twin I is bored out of her skull and finds ways to disturb my peace. Twin A, being a creative person and somewhat of an introvert, can find things to do on her own.

Maybe we should go back to Anilao next week.

Right now I’m sitting on my balcony, being serenaded by cicadas and morning birds. I remember the endless summers I had here in this same spot when I was my children’s age. I never thought I would be enjoying this again. It has been exactly three years this month since I moved back in my hometown, my kids in tow. It was short of a miracle that I was able to build my house without debt, how smooth everything was, from the construction down to the big move.

If it’s in God’s plan for you, He will make it happen.

I didn’t know I had that much money tucked away to make it possible. I thought home ownership was out of reach for me, considering I’m a solo parent.

I treasure these cicada-filled mornings. I never thought I would have them again in my life. We didn’t have this in the city. Whenever I had the opportunity to hear them in the city (mostly in UP Diliman), my heart ached for home.

So however small my house is, I always try to make it beautiful and cozy. I brought my kids to Ikea last week (when I attended a company briefing around the MoA complex) and let them choose a shower curtain to replace/be a substitute for the plain blue one we had the last 3 years.

I also stuck the Malang tray on my kitchen wall with the help of Command strips.

Life it short. Make every moment beautiful. Make it all count.

Yep, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, typhoons, floods…just another day in the Philippines.

Mayon Volcano just erupted today and the whole of Albay is covered with ashfall. Kanlaon is also rumbling while Taal is restless.

And they say Filipinos are always sunny and happy. You know why? Because we eat death and destruction for breakfast. We know how hard and fleeting life is so we just choose to be happy with every little thing that makes us smile instead of being morose and be perpetually cold like northern Europeans and Germans.

There is no way that I would be able to walk before 6 pm because it’s freaking hooooootttttt!

At least I was able to sweat today. I did 11,400 steps today, including this walk tonight.

I needed this to decompress because tomorrow is another anxiety-inducing Monday. 😥

Yes, everybody has been waxing lyrical about BINI’s debut at Coachella 2026 and Justin Bieber’s supposed stripped-down performance there.

But no one is talking about Jack White and his audience that made Coachella appear like a true music festival. He never fails to deliver.

His audience there may not have been born yet when this song first came out in 2003.

Jack White is always lit. At my age, I no longer have the stamina for music festivals but Jack White’s performance here makes me wanna goooooooooo.

Meanwhile, Billy Corgan is at Coachella 2026! I mean, I never thought he would even think about going there. But here we are, Billy vibing with a new generation of kids who may be hearing this 30-year-old song for the first time.

And he’s actually smiling.

However, this number could have been better. I wish he played Tonight Tonight, which is having its resurgence on TikTok.

How about Vanessa Carlton’s first performance at Coachella?

Where is my Vanessa Carlton cd??? Actually, I lost a lot of my cd collection during our move here. I can’t seem to find them.

I just checked out of our hotel at 11 because I don’t want to fight my way at the concierge at 12 noon because everybody is checking out as well.

I have lots of time to kill.

Where do I go?

The mall.

It’s the default place to wait for my kids, whom I will pick up at DLSU at 6 pm. So what do I do here for 6 hours. I cannot eat all the time just to be able to sit down. I don’t want to watch a movie because Twin A wants to watch Project Hail Mary with me. She will kill me if I watch it without her.

I’m not a shopaholic and if I were, I don’t have a place to shove them in my house. Maybe I can check out gaming rigs? I’m kinda frustrated that I can’t play WRC on my mini pc because its graphics card is mehhh so it lags. I can only play it on my laptop…

Oh wait, I have WRC 10 on our PS5. 😬

The original controller for our PS5 got fried and I don’t know why so I was forced to buy a new one. 😑 I need to find a shop that repairs PS5 controllers… But they’re in Greenhills and Quiapo. 😭

Yesterday, I received a corporate gift. They’re Malang prints (Mauro Malang Santos)! They’re actually trinket trays but I can hang them on my walls as artwork.

Oh geez, I still have 5 hrs to go…

Well, well, well, Twin I won an award again. Best position paper. Takes after mommy. 😁

After I fetched them from DLSU, we drove to SM North because that’s where my kids’ friend will be picked up by her parents plus they will be meeting with another gradeschool friend.

So now I’m stuck again in another mall. 😑

What am I to do? I can only have one massage a day. 😶