My First

"An unfinished story by my good friend Deep Submerge"



It's been a whole month since I've heard anything from you.

I miss you.

You, who wakes me up in the morning with your phone calls (You know I wake up at 12 noon, why call me 2 hours earlier?), and the last one to greet me goodnight (though we usually hang up the phone at 3 in the morning). You, who knows me more than anyone else. Who, even for a short while, have touched my heart so deeply. If the people around us did not know better, they'd say we're an item. If only we were not two guys who happened to be best friends.


It never occurred to me that we could be such good friends, best friends as a matter of fact. We don't have anything in common..... at all. First time I saw you, I thought you were an asshole. An asshole I would gladly lick. Clad in your designer conscious attire, flaunting your muscular physique with your fitted Girbaud tee and your Versace jeans, you entered the classroom of our Communications class with an air of confidence surrounding you. It was your tangible ego. I felt it when you walked past me and sat beside the window. I wondered if you noticed that I was staring at you. You have that ability to make heads turn and make people talk about you 3 hours after you've passed by. I guess I was challenged (You know how nuch I love challenges). I usually can flirt with any man I desired, but you were different. You hardly noticed me while I was intensely staring, first at your hazel eyes, to your sultry pinkish lips, then to your wonderfully scuplted body. I lingered my stares at your chest, which I vividly remember to this date, and the bulge between your legs begging for attention. I flashed my trademark smile, enough to win any man over. It has never failed me, until now. I hated you then. But that was one year ago. Things change.

My thoughts about you took a 180 degree turn when we started talking to each other. June 15, 2000 (Thanks to my trusty diary). I was flipping over the pages of Marie Claire (feasting on the vast array of blouses and skimpy skirts I could never wear, but what the heck), when I felt a slight touch over my left shoulder. I glanced toward the person who owns the hand, irritated a bit, until I saw who made the gesture.

"Excuse me", you said, "What is our section?"

Silence. I am a writer, words are my life. But some how those words eluded me, sinking me in a sea of embarassment, obvious in the scarlet flush on my face. After what seemed an eternity, my brain started functioning again. I finally managed an utterance.

"It's MHU 4".

Then you smiled. I turned away. I found myself absent mindedly gazing on my magazine, but I couldn't seem to focus my attention on the images I was worshipping a minute ago. I kept on thinking about your smile. What was that smile for? I asked myself. Did I look that foolish? Were the questions that tortured me throughout the 2 hour class. All my eighteen years, no man has ever made me nervous before, much more stutter. This isn't me.

At last the class is over. The room's walls were receding, slowly suffocating me. Time for a whiff of fresh air. I was getting ready to get out and forget my major embarassment when I heard a familiar voice.

"Hey, I forgot to say thanks."

It's you and your smile again. You're not making me stutter this time.
....... Silence.......
Shit, what am I doing? This time I think I've turned beet red. Then you laughed, breaking the silence.

"I'm Xavier", you said, extending your hand.
I managed to hold it, "I'm Jamie."

Then you asked me out for coffee. "I hate coffee, and I don't intend to drink any in this lifetime."

Time for a change of plans. You offered good 'ol Kenny (Rogers). No Prob. So we lazily set out to the parking area outside the building. What now? I knew my trusty smile wouldn't fail me. I'm simply irresistible, I said to my self, grinning all the way into your Rav 4.

I will never forget that lovely afternoon, however fickle the weather was. While the streets are drowned with the moisture of heavy rain, I, however, was drowned by images of myself and this beautiful creature steering the wheel. I'll get to know you more. As expected, the babyback ribs were superb. And the company? Let's just say it did change a few first impressions.

"Why are we here anyway?", I asked casually, "we just met."
"Well, if you didn't want to, you should've told me earlier, that way I could've saved 150 bucks", you replied.

Hmm... Smartass....

"Well first and foremost, you didn't answer my question, second, I dodn'y ask you to pay for anything", was my sharp reply.

Then you smiled. I laughed. There's a corn kernel stuck between your teeth. No way am I telling you that. I'll savor the moment. This one's going down my diary.

"Seriously Xavier, why?"

You looked dead serious trying to find an answer to my question.

"Easy", you said. "You looked hot and you were staring at me with lustful eyes."

You are so damn arrogant. So you did notice me staring at you. I had no choice but to validate your assumption.

"Well, you're right. I am really hot." I said, flashing my most seductive stare.

Laughter. We're lucky there was no one eating near our table. They would've had us arrested for disrupting the peace. I thought you were arrogant, well it turned out you are, only in a good way. The entire afternoon turned out great. It was worth missing my other 2 classes. You're great company. Not to mention gorgeous. You made me laugh. As far as I'm concerned, it was a great date. Two years of college, I've been constantly searching for the perfect companion, only now I think my search had ended.

After our "date", I was singing "I think I'm in love" by Jessica Simpson (I know, love makes people do the craziest things) at the MRT. Another first. Me, singing an unsophisticated pop song, this is insane! But I was too happy to care.

"Hmmm..... Another one huh?", said Mark, my soulmate and bestfriend, in his usual sarcastic tone, after I told him about the new man in my life. "Just like Paul, Stephen, Marcus...."

"Okay Mark, I get the message, but this one's different", was my reply.

"If I remember accurately, which I'm sure I do, that's the exact thing you said about Henry, John, and David, or was it Jeremy?" At this point, I was ready to tape Mark's mouth shut.

"This is serious! I really think he's the one. So quit it!"

Well, he had a point, but this is the present, and I learned from my past relationships, if you can call it that. I did establish a dating pattern, tall guys, good looks, fast cars. All those men Mark mentioned (and a few more) in a span of 2 years, averaging of about a guy every 2 months. I know what you're thinking, I'm a bitch in briefs. Maybe I'm just afraid of committment, or maybe I haven't found THE ONE. So untili I do, I have to settle with hot men and wild parties. Well, you can also blame men that go for guys. They think of us as flirts and only after those things between their legs, which we also happen to have. Frankly, I think I've lost all hope that a guy to guy re;ationship would work. Especially in this country. Although I have heard of a few, me experience tells me that's next to impossible. I do have my finger crossed for this one though.

So long, My Crush!

I don’t know why I’m writing this, but today, I just feel like sharing something.

It has been a week now since my crush at work resigned for a reason that he only knows. It has been a week as well since I got trained to do processing skills that will give me off-the-phone time. Everything feels like new right now. I’m somewhat off my comfort zone.

Before, when work gets a bit nasty, I just find solace from the thought that I’ll be working side by side with my hottie. I know it’s shallow, but what the heck, as long as it helps me get out of my bed everynight to work. I was never really able to reach out to him and be as “close” as I would have hoped for. But still, we were able to chat and make smart ass comments to each other during avail times. I was hoping until the last moment to be with him during out-of-office times so that I would be able to see and know what the real him is when he’s not working. I did my best to make sure that team buildings would be a merging of my team and his team. Sad to say, he never attended once.

Even though I sometimes make fun of his accent, I still love to hear him speak chavacano. I only heard him speak once but it stuck on me. I may be a bit biased here ‘coz he’s my crush, but still, nobody could argue that he really is a catch.

He got my attention while he was still “nesting” on the floor. A somewhat pre-”live” training to get familiarized with the workload. He has fair skin, boyish charms and a nice height. His height did it for me. I once arranged a basketball game between my new account where he is in, and my former account where I have lots of friends who are basketball addicts. My simple reason was to see him in action. I loved what I saw. There was a point wherein after the game, he was resting in the bench and I was eagerly anticipating the moment he changed his shirt. As Bad luck has it, a girl friend of mine chatted me a bit and when I looked back, he already changed his shirt. Darn it.

I still remember what our last conversation was all about, plane tickets. He was asking if he can pay me in cash upfront so that I can buy his plane ticket for him using my credit card. Sadly enough, I was maxed out due to others riding on my cards. I felt bad that I declined his offer.

Now, work doesn’t have that magnet anymore. I’m awaiting for a time that a “newbie” would sweep me off my feet…. again….. Naks!

there's always a first time

McDonalds' burger, french fries and iced tea. Paseo de Roxas. Are you hungry Jamie?

Nung umalis kami, naglakad at naghanap ng kakainian di ko akalain naitanong ni Jamie, saan tayo Gwennie? Ahhh... malamang McDo? Di mo to alam? Di ko lang na realize na first time nya sa McDonald Paseo de Roxas when in fact almost everyday kaming dumaan dun at umiinom sa taas ng building na yun pero yung unang pinta kung san pwedeng mag order ng fries, iced tea, extra gravy, chicken sandwich etc di pa nya napuntahan. Sa sobrang aliw naming dalawa nakuha pa namin mag pose at kita nyo naman kung pano kami kumain ni Jamie

for the record na ubos ni Jamie yan magisa lang sya. hahaha

Makati stock exchange? First time mo rin? LOL. kasi syempre hindi naman kami madalas dumadaan sa may likod ng Stock exchange pero ako oo galing sa paseo kasi mas malapit at hindi mainit, parang syang central park ng New York (kuno) isang mahabang garden sa ng Paseo. Sa sobrang excited nya hala nag pose kasama ang mga halaman. Eto ang evidence friends.

and yeah, I pose with the plants too. **laughs**

A Tribute to Girlie Ritarita and the former Chakulits Team

Ang entry na ito ay alay kay Girlie. Isang dear friend at former teammate. I just want to share yung story na "sinend" ni Girlie after the chakulit team building. Hindi ko inaasahang makita ito sa isa sa aking mga archived emails.

Here's the Story: (June 04,2007)

Wow what a day it was. I must say one for the books. Shout out to all the peeps who were involved in this adventure. Let's go back to the month of April, start p lang ng summer lahat ng WH teams ay nagpa plano ng mag team building. At syempre hindi papahuli ang chakulits factory. April pa lang mega plano na ang mga peeps. May nag file na ng PTO, naghanap ng mga ka-swap sa GY para kumpleto sa outing.
Sa hinaba-haba ng pagpaplano in short hindi natuloy dahil kinailangang magpagaling ng ating boss chief. And besides maraming balakid such as na retract ang PTO, walang nahanap na ka-swap at ang balakid sa lahat wala pang sweldo.

Not to mention na madalas kong sabihin na hindi tuloy yan. So sabi ng sambayanan, HINDI PWEDE! kailangang ituloy dahil ang team n lang natin ang hindi pa nakakapag-swim.
Madami ng nawala sa team (mazen, karl, jv, edge) at hindi pa rin natutuloy ang gimik. Ngunit may dumating na bago, una ay guest lang sya pero dahil sa tagal ng plano kasali na sya sa team. Kamusta naman ang powers ni Mau, katumbas nya ang apat na umalis. The team decided na ituloy na ng june 3. We all have our assigned tasks, every week/day may update sa OL regarding th place,budget,van etc. including the chat session of jamie and keith. Habang papalapit ang linggo wala pa ring plano kahit bagsak presyo na ang budget. Sabi ni supe sunday na lang mag meeting dahil kumpleto ang team. Feeling ko nga nun member kami ng "bahala na" gang. Then sunday came at long last, I won't elaborate here kung pano na finalized ang lahat, y'all know what happenned.
So before kami maka alis ng makati madami pa ring kamalasan ang nangyari. Ang plano alis na ng 7:30, i'm sure may mga bloopers ang grupo ng mga nag-grocery if you like share nyo din. Going back to the office, bago p man mag log-out si Mau may bwiset call sya tas tomgutz na kami. 730 na wala pa rin ang kabilang grupo, wala pa rin si tophet. kailangang silang sunduin dahil walang cab, tas balik sa office dahil sa mga gamit, nawala shades ko, walang damit ang mga dalaga na si mau and jamie, hindi pa rin maka contact si mau, may nasalubong kaming 2 bata. Haller 9pm na yata nasa makati pa kami. Sa wakas nasa van na, this is it! tuloy na talaga pero wala pa ring destinasyon. Nadiskubre namin na wala pa lang baso, yelo, ulam at ligong-ligo na ang mga peeps. Habang sinusuyod namin ang laguna kailangan ring mahanap si andok's kung hindi 2 kilo ng hotdog ang kakainin. Ewan ko ba, ang daming hotdog kala ko nga may mga batang bisita na darating, heheh..
Woohooo, continue with our roadtrip, pinasok namin lahat ng resort as in canvass talaga. Splash mountain, Makiling highlands, pero panalo sa lahat ang paghahanap sa "infamous" valley view resort. Akala namin wala na sa mapa ng laguna ang lugar. Wagi talaga ang paghahanap na yun ultimo mga tulog na guards kinabog ni tophet. woohoo, keith! rock on! wag kang magpapakita samin,heheh. joke! So balik Splash na lang, akala ng lahat yun na. Final destination,makakaligo na ang lahat. Ngunit, subalit datapwat bakit.. not meant to be talaga. Moment of the day, sinugod ni Empress ang hitad na receptionist. Mega english sya dahil walang disclaimer ang lola. heheh.. so refund ever naman ang bruha, pano bagsak sya sa IMAP. ok fine! we took the suggestion of kuya the driver. Monte Vista Pansol. Pagpasok pa lang ang daming bodyguard, kaliwa't kanan naka motor. In fairness the long wait is so worth it. Naawa din at best deal ang nakuha namin. Too bad mau had to leave. We really missed you there, panalo ang hirit mo about taong hamog..

It was a fun night > food, tequila, games > pinoy henyo and whois, chismisan. Sa mga natalo sa games alam nyo na kung saang team kayo mapupunta, hehehe. Syempre hindi mawawala ang coaching, at least yung mga activities natin connected sa pegasus guidelines. I'm so glad to be a part of this team. AM peeps rules!

Back to work. Hoooyyy! talktime alert. NO acw!

The End.

PS.

Miss you Girlie-Girlie Rita....

happy bday ardee

It's his birthday, alright!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ARDEE..

(and that's my sister over there, I can't find our picture dear. arrggghh)

read more about him here

Taho naman jan..

Eversince I was a kid, the only hospital that I could remember I was admitted to was the Manila Adventist Hospital (formerly Manila Sanitarium and Hospital). My mom told me that as a kid, I always made sure that I was confined almost monthly in the hospital for so many medical reasons (some of which were never really diagnosed), e.g fever that doesn't go down, unknown rashes that led to skin peeling throughout my body, severe colds that prevented me from breathing normally, broken bones, and so much more. Even though I hate needles due to vaccinations and pricking for blood samples, I still loved going to that hospital. Up to now, if ever I will be confined, I want to be confined at the Manila Adventist Hospital. Main and only reason I wanna go back is the food. Since it is an adventist hospital, they only serve vegetarian foods. But don't mistake their food to taste like other trying hard vegan restos, theirs are really good. I'm picky with what I eat (minimal meat, hate seafoods) so I naturally enjoyed their soy-based "Ve-G Meat" transformed into so many delectable dishes.


Fast forward to August 2008, I pitched the idea to Gwennie and Vani to try the "Ve-G Meat" dishes after shift. I know Gwen would be somewhat willing since she recently turned vegan but with Vani, still not sure whether she's into that. To my delight, Vani decided to try it out as well. We ordered dishes that we didn't bother ask what it was as long as it looks good. We ended up with 2 dishes each, 2 rice for me (takaw) and 1 and half rice for each of them. As dessert, we had the infamous Chilled Taho. Love it! So stuffed are we that we decided to pass the time, let the food settle in our tummies and be cam whores for the moment... (Gwen decided to buy some Ve-G Tapa as well)

What's with the 50 questions?

Things you shouldn't know about the fairies.

1. Who are you?
J: Jamie De Jesus
G: Jamie you're supposed to answer I'm the goddess of fire etc etc but OK I'm Gwen.

2. Why did you decide to go online and why reigningpoks?
J: The internet is the medium of the free. Reigningpoks? Simple, I reign and I'm POKS
G: I love my life and I love to celebrate my freedom so this is where I share my adventures and misadventures. When I decided to post a blog for Jamie and I, I always thought of giving it a fancy name like "dyosa ng ka pokpokan" but it sounds so weird and people might misunderstand the word so I decided to use poks which literally means "pok-pok" and reigning because I don't know we reign like queens in our own way.

3. What type of stuff do you usually post in your blog?
J: Dine outs, Faces and places during the "Gimiks
G: Poks doesn't always mean being flirt, this blog is all about celebration of whatever - from dining out, to sipping coffee or just a walk from the office to Jamie's flat.

4. So, who is your superhero aside from Volta?
J: My alter-ego Sailormoon!
G: If kerokerokeropi has powers to rule over hello kitty world then he's my superhero. (please, do not hate me hello kitty folks ^.^ )

5. Do you feature other people in your blog?
J: Of course. Depends on what they did and what actually happened. Those are some of the criteria for other people to be included in our Blog.
G: Of course, if we feel like giving you a taste of what it feels like to be in this blog or if we like you hehehe (we don't hate people actually, right Jams?). No qualification actually, if you have what it takes to be a POKS then your in!

6. Do you read each other's mind?
J:Sort of. Most of the time we think the same. No need to read each other's thoughts.
G: Not really, I can read Jamie through his face. Say if it's oil all over his forehead then it would mean a 30-minute ritual inside the men's room. I really wish I could sneak inside and pretend to be one. heheheh

7. Do you hate boys?
J: I hate not having Hot boys around... But most of the time I prefer Men than Boys.. ^_^
G: NO WAY! is this a real question? Are you serious? nyahaha

8. Describe Jamie/Gwen.
J: Jamie is Borderline weird and poks, Gwen is way Far-out weird and poks!
G: I think our parents have swapped the x and y chromosomes combination.

9. Do you drink? Smoke? Party? Laugh? Cry? Fart? Dance? Sing?
J: I drink, don't smoke (Bad for the skin), Party a lot if I can, laugh most of the time, cry sometimes, Fart everyday, dance occasionally (usually w/ a pole), sing occasionally as well.
G: Drink and get drunk yeah! I don't smoke. I party with friends. I don't go out with strangers. I laugh and I laugh harder and I love to cry and laugh at the same time, so yeah I am crazy. I fart everyday of course. I sing and croak like a frog and yeah I am a good dancer.

10.Will you cry when Jamie or Gwen die?
J: Of course, I even cried when I threw-out my old toothbrush. That's how sentimental I get. Much more if somebody special died.
G: If he dies ugly i'll laugh then i'll get him out of the coffin and put some powder and blush on, that'll give us both peace of mind but when he dies otherwise then he's giving me the reason to cry.

11.What are your favorite movies?
J: Phantom of the Opera, Harry Potter Series, and other sci-fi fantasy flicks.
G: The eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, Wicker Park, Fight Club, 23, Crazy Beautiful, My Best Friend's wedding, Crouching tiger hidden dragon.

12. Are you right handed? Left Handed?
J: Right!
G: I can do magic on both.

13.What's your favorite quote?
J: My Body belongs to everyone but My Heart belongs to only one.
G: Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and right doing there is a field. I'll meet you there. When the soul lies down in that grass, the world is too full to talk about. Ideas, language, even the phrase "each other" doesn't make any sense. - Rumi

14.What do you think is you most memorable moment with Jamie/Gwen?
J: When we pursued a chinese Hottie and asked irrelevant questions just to "make landi" to the guy.
G: I would refer you to Jamie's answer. hahaha

15.How many hours do you spend sleeping?
J: usually 5 or 6.
G: On good days 10, on bad days 5 or worst 4 hours.

16.What do you guys have in common?
J: We're both poks and we love hotties!
G: On one occasion we spend so much on other times we are thrift and we always think positive.

17.Where's you ancestral home?
J: I'm a metro-manila person. Born in Muntinlupa
G: I am a wanderer from Davao celebrating my freedom in Makati.

18.What do you hate most? Love most?
J: I hate the heat and the sun. Hate having no cash to spend. Love the most? my mom... nyahahaha
G: I don't like "maarte" - Jamie is totally exempted! I don't hate, if I don't like anything I don't talk about it or think about it, I forget about it. I love simplicity, I love freedom, I love silence, I love my friends and my family (I know they don't feel it) and I love to travel.

19.What is your idea of a real holiday?
J: Maybe having a europe-wide trip w/ my family (kahit mom ko lang)
G: To sleep 12 hours and wake up without having to go to work for a week.

20.What are the things you wish to do?
J: I wish to travel everywhere. Hoping that money and time is not an issue.
G: I wanna be a millionnaire and spend my money for my parents to go abroad. I want a trip around the globe. I want to learn and master 5 languages. I want to sew my own wedding gown, design a friend's wedding gown or be a wedding planner. I want to have my own online store. Most of all I wanna meet Tyra Banks. I love her! ^.^