Dinner and birthday gathering last night...

It was a relatively relaxed week at work. I was done with my deliverables for the month. The issues that needed resolution have been addressed. The next round of heavy work will begin in two weeks.

Still, I was happy that the weekend has arrived. Haha!

Yesterday, I needed to go to the office for a department gathering. It was good because I was really heading out to the city in the evening anyway to attend Jeff's birthday gathering.

The thing I had to think about was what to do between end of work and the time to go to Jeff's birthday gathering.

We're talking about 3 hours to kill.

First thing that came to mind was to invite Richie and Mon for dinner. Chris, Ian, MkSurf8 and RKGreg had their own plans (I think) so I just thought I'll have dinner first with Rich and Mon. Turns out Mon wasn't free for dinner. I invited PG Boy and his best friend. Both weren't free either. Hehe!

While waiting for Richie to finish his work, I went to the Starbucks across Richie's workplace, got myself a grande caramel macchiato, got myself a table and brought out some of my weekend work. Surprisingly, this particular Starbucks is rather not crowded. I was able to read in peace articles on the City Hall and FSC architecture/history and an article on museum docents.

When Richie arrived, we walked over to the next door building and had dinner at Korat Thai. It's a very simple, almost hawker stall, kind of food place but the fooood is gooooood! It's way better than any of those Thai restaus in the malls. Haha!

By the time Richie and I finished dinner, it was time to leave for Jeff's birthday party. I took the bus from Orchard to City Hall. A short wait for the guys and then we were off to the party.

I only stayed for a little over an hour because of today's training. Hehe! It was a good gathering though. Hmm, I enjoyed the company of Chris, Ian, MkSurf8, RKGreg, the birthday boy (of course!) and a few other friends I know.

Reached home past 12. Asleep by 1230. Up this morning by 530. WTF?! I'm just going to end this post and then I'll head to the city now.

It'll be a long day.

I can be a jerk if I want to be... lol...

Haha! After gym tonight, I met up for a quick drink with this guy I recently met the other day on Grindr. We've been chatting for the past two days. Tonight, we agreed to meet up after gym.

We went to the same gym. I went for a class, he went to do his own workout. Thankfully, I finished my workout way ahead of him. I showered, got dressed and left the gym. I told the guy I'll just wait for him at the nearby Starbucks.

I say thankfully because when he arrived, I wasn't sure if it was him. First off, he was wearing a cap in his photo. How am I supposed to know he has a shaved head? Next, he conversed quite good over the phone. Heck, he even spelled Philippines correctly (though I did ask if he was using predictive text... lol!)! So I was a bit surprised that he was struggling somehow with his English. And as much as I hate it, there was a point when I spoke in broken English using the most basic of words. Lol!

For awhile, I was tempted to come up with some lame excuse just to get out of the situation. I then thought I'll just be in charge of the situation: we can go grab a quick drink and then head back. That's exactly what we did.

Another "thankfully" moment that I did that because on the way to a nearby Subway. I asked him in a non-sexual, most casual way of asking if he was hungry. He replied, "Yes, I want to eat hotdog." I replied with a laugh and told him to turn on his app and look for what he wanted. He then replied something and after that, in my head I was already going, "Alrightey, that's it for tonight. Let's make this quick so we can go home separately." Haha!

We went to Subway. I ordered my wrap and a drink. He got his own drink. For the next 10 or so minutes, I was the polite guy and just conversed with him about life in Singapore. As soon as I was done with my meal and he with his drink, I quickly got up, returned my tray, thanked him for the meetup. I made sure we wouldn't spend one minute more together by saying, "I'm going to the grocery to buy something. You're going straight to the MRT, right? You're tired anyway?"

Haha! That was that.

On the train ride back home, I was Whatsapping with another guy... also met via the same app as above. He seemed like a great guy. He could carry a conversation. I was more sure that his conversation skills were a lot better. And I could sense that he could actually be someone to hang out with... until he started dropping hints about hooking up. Lol! Alright, for the record, I have no issues with fun. If one is up for it, then state it clearly at the beginning. Why start the convo under a false pretense of friends first, maybe fun later.

Once the conversation started taking a turn towards hooking up, I took hold of the situation again and told him that I'm going to sleep. He then replied, "You're a real nice guy." I decided I'd be a bit of an asshole and sent the reply in the left photo above. Haha! He sent a reply again, which I already ignored.

Sorry, James. You were at the receiving end of my angst tonight. Lol! Prior to these two guys, there was this other guy I was chatting with for a few days now. He was also a nice guy, very thoughtful and caring. We've been chatting regularly for a few days now. I even asked him out to a movie, to which he said, "We'll see." I decided to ask him, "Are you dating anyone?"

Refer to the above right photo for the reply. Lol! I then came up with the lame excuse of needing to get back to work. I wished him a good day and that was it. Later in the evening, he messaged to ask how my day was. I pulled off an HB Boy and didn't reply. Today, I didn't message as well. Harhar! This is different though from the HB Boy x UP Boy episode because this guy and I never met. I had every right to bring out the asshole in me. Lol!

So yeah, this is what's been going on recently. I think it has something to do with the app that I'm using. I'm currently reading this book entitled "Meet Grindr: How One App Changed The Way We Connect" written by a man name Jaime Woo. It's a good book because it dissects the app in an academic sort of way, though he claims he did no scientific study. Most of the theories, propositions in the books are something I could relate though at this very moment. Haha!

Maybe I should delete these apps or just retain one? I seem to be getting better conversations from that other app. Maybe I should just go back to believing that I'll meet that future partner in the real world and outside of these apps. Haha!

About Sunday...

It turned out that it was really a good idea that I went for the anticipated Mass last Saturday. Otherwise, I would have missed Sunday Mass.

Prior to heading to the museum for my back-to-back guiding duties, I dropped by the city to get some info on a new project. I was quite early. That gave me some time to have my kopi si at Lau Pa Sat. There is such a stark contrast between LPS in the morning and LPS in the evening. Haha! Hmm, I kind of liked the peaceful, quiet LPS on a beautiful morning. Anyway, I finished my kopi si and headed to my first destination. It took me about 15 minutes to take care of things.

I then took a bus to get to the museum. I can't believe the museum was just four stops away. Haha! It did pass by Fullerton Hotel and Padang, which gave a glimpse of Marina Bay, the Victoria Memorial Hall and Theatre, and the soon-to-open National Gallery. During that short bus ride, I couldn't help but exclaim in my head, "Singapore is such a (generally) clean country!" Haha!

The short bus ride gave me enough time to do another walkthrough of the exhibit before the "show" started. Come 1130, it was showtime. The tour lasted just a little over an hour. I had some time to go back to the volunteers room, sit for a while, have a glass of warm water, before my next "performance," which was 1PM.

Both groups were good museums guests/audiences, but I liked the 1PM group very much. Maybe because there were about 15-20 people in the group. Maybe because they were participative. I liked them so much that I gave small tokens to those who could answer my pop quiz. Haha!

The museum visitors were from Australia, Spain, UK, China, Hong Kong, Sweden, Korea, and of course, Singapore. The mix was very interesting and very diverse! As we moved in the galleries, some people joined our group. Thankfully, I've been blessed with a loud voice (if I wanted to speak loud). At the end of the tours, the groups applauded. Few people came up to me to shake my hand and say that I did a good job. Moments like those remind me why I love museums, why I love guiding, why I love volunteering, why I should keep on improving myself as a museum guide.

The second tour lasted for almost 90 minutes (the first one was 70 minutes). That's how engrossed I was in the tour. Hehe! Usually, for this exhibit, I am done within 40 minutes.

My first stop after leaving the museum was a food place. It was almost 3PM and I was very hungry. Haha!

It gave me enough time to relax again and wait for 4PM. Kok Kuan, Des, Justin and I met up at Plaza Singapura to catch the 410 screening of The Imitation Game. The movie was good! I'm glad I was able to watch it. I'm also glad Des and Justin were free to join us for the movie. After the movie, we just went to the food court and had a simple dinner. We walked around a bit before parting ways.

Tiring day it was, haha! But it was also a very good one! Thank you, Lordy!

Training, museums, gym, Mass, and so on...

Good morning! It's Sunday and I've been up since 6AM. Haha! What's new?

I'm not surprised because I was already in lalaland by 11PM. Yesterday was a very long day. It started at 6AM, too. I had to get up early and be in the city by 830 to attend the training for my new volunteer commitment. The training lasted until 1PM.

After that, I headed to the National Museum to meet up with fellow museum volunteer Lionel and to do a walkthrough of the ongoing exhibit. Hanging out and going around the exhibit took close to two hours.

I left Lionel since he was doing the 2PM tour, and I headed to the gym for a 330 Combat class. Prior to Combat, I was thinking about whether to eat or not. The dilemmas was I couldn't eat a proper lunch because I didn't want to do Combat on a full stomach. Add to that the feeling that it's bad and it might result in appendicitis. Lol. I can't eat a proper lunch after class either because by then, I would have to observe the one-hour fast before Mass. Yeah, one of the Catholic teachings I still follow and believe in.

So, how? Hashtag First World Problems?

In the end, I rushed taking a shower and getting dressed. That left me a good 5 minutes to rush to the 7-11 at the ground level of Cathay to get a pau. It was imperative that I eat because I was already feeling faint towards the end of Combat class. Haha!

The last activity for the day was Mass at St. Anthony's, my favourite church in Singapore along with Church of St. Mary of the Angels and also, St. Bernadette. The priests give very good homilies! The homily is always something relevant to the every day lives of people.

That was Saturday. The reason I went to Mass yesterday was Sunday is also going to be a packed day.

I have a museum guiding duty. I organised a meet up with Kok Kuan, Des and Justin. I need to go to the city to take the first few steps on a new project. Just this morning, I volunteered to take over another museum guiding shift. The assigned museum guide couldn't make it since she was down with throat infection and flu. With all these errands, I'm afraid I may not have enough time for Mass. It's ironic that Mass seems to be the last item in the to-do today list, instead of being the first.

Busy Saturday. Busy Sunday. How to find time for a relationship? Or even a date? Lol! Just kidding.

Flights to Cambodge, booked... and an IG post...

Well, today went by quite fast. Half of work was spent at home, half was spent at the office. Except for a vendor problem with one of the accounts I'm handling, today at the office was not very stressful.

The highlight I guess would be getting to booked the flights from KL to Siem Reap for me and my Mom. Woohoo! Thankfully, my team lead approved the leave dates I applied for. As soon as I saw that the leaves have been approved, I shot my team lead an email to thank her for the approval and then I proceeded to book the flights. Air Asia has an ongoing promo. What would normally cost about $300 per pax became $300 for both my Mom and me. Yay! Thank you, Lordy!

What's left to book are Mom's MNL-KL flight and my SG-KL flight. The good thing is that I found a flight where I will arrive in KL ahead of my Mom by an hour or so. That way, I can wait for her at the airport. We spend a night in KL and then fly to Siem Reap first thing the following day.

Of course, my Mom doesn't know about this whole trip yet. Maybe when I book her MNL-KL flight, I'll tell her that we'll just go to KL. And when we get to KL, I'll tell her that we're actually going to Cambodge. I wonder how she'll react. Hehe! She might have a heart attack there and then because she's been wanting to go see the magnificent Angkor temples for the longest time.

Two more things that will make this trip special. First, my Mom's birthday will fall on one of the days of the trip. Second, my best friend Tey will be joining us for the trip. She also booked the Air Asia flight. She still has to book her MNL-KL flight. Hmm, I wonder if I should ask her to just fly with Mama. Hehe!

I've been to Siem Reap in 2009. My travel buddy was one of the best friends of my first ex. Suffice to say that my first ex was so surprised when he found out that I was traveling with one of his best friends. The best friend is straight. He's one of those cool straight guys who can be best buds with guys who play for the other team. Haha! It was a week long trip, I think. Our journey started at Ho Chi Minh where we spent a night or two before taking the bus to go to Siem Reap.

If not for my Mom, I would rather use up the money for a trip to some place I've never been. But I guess it will be good to see the temples again. The first time I was there, I was just in awe of everything. I couldn't help but admire all those craftsmen and artisans who worked together to build such glorious structures. The Angkor temples are definitely a must-visit for anyone who loves history or old architecture.

Moving on, the verse above was from an Instagrammer named beau taplin. Chris is a huge fan of the said Instagrammer. This morning, he tagged me to the post above. When I read the verse, my reaction was, "Meant for me?!" Hahaha! I must admit that again, it reminded me of HB Boy. To be honest, I don't know why HB Boy is still in my system. Three short months of dating and he still lingers in my mind. Certain places, certain songs, certain dishes bring back memories of him. I think a part of me still thinks of him because I never really found closure. I know that I may never get it since he's already disappeared.

I shared the IG post above with Tipz, telling him that it reminded me of HB Boy. Tipz being my best bud in SG that he is replied,"Friend, it wasn't love, trust me. If it was, it will be too painful to part the way he did." Awww... thanks, Tipz! Haha!

Hmm, maybe I should delete all the remaining photos of HB Boy in my phone. That should help, right?

See you again soon, Cambodge...

Generally, an uneventful Wednesday.

Work was very manageable today. There were a few issues that needed immediate attention. After those issues were resolved, it was pretty much a slow day. Things picked up again at the end of the day just when I was about to end my work day. My counterparts in the UK were just starting their day and a few of them still managed to catch me before I could go offline. Hehe!

After helping them with their issues, I made my way to the gym where I met up with Chris. He planned to go to Combat, and I haven't really gone to Combat in a long time. The instructor tonight is one of my favourites. That was definitely an added motivation to make the journey to the gym. Hehe!

I guess the highlight of the day was starting to plan for the Siem Reap trip with Mom. It's somewhat of a challenge because I'm trying to work within a certain budget since I'll be paying for the trip. Lol!

There is no issue with the accommodations and the tour package. I have been to Siem Reap before so I have an idea on the local cost. What is requiring some planning and I think early booking are the flights. Should I fly Mom directly to Siem Reap? Should she fly to Singapore and then we'll fly together to Siem Reap? Should she and I just meet at KL and from there, take the flight together to Siem Reap?

This last arrangement seems to be the best one, so far. Mom and I can meet at KLIA, spend the night in KL and take the first flight to Siem Reap the following day. We spend a few days in Siem Reap and then take the flight again back to KL, where she will take a flight to Manila and I to Singapore.

As a first step into arranging this trip, I already booked our accommodations. It is one of the boutique villas near the Pub Street. The cost for 4 days/3 nights is a dirt cheap S$150. From the photos and the reviews on Booking.com and TripAdvisor, the said 3-star hotel has rave reviews. I could choose to stay in the hotel where I stayed before. But then, I think it's time to try something new.

I already filed my leaves for this trip. My team lead has yet to approve them. I hope she approves the leaves because this trip will fall on my Mom's birthday.

Also, I hope we'll be blessed with good weather during the trip. I also pray for patience. Hahaha!

Anyway, because of this trip, I have to adjust my own travel plans. I'm not sure if I can push through with my US trip. I want to go back to Europe, but we'll see. I also want to go to Japan. Lol!

So many places to visit.

Tested... negative...

Earlier this evening, I made my way to Farrer Park towards the north east instead of heading to the west to go back.

To be specific, I headed to 31 Kelantan Lane, which is where the Action for AIDS Anonymous Testing Service holds office thrice a week. (On regular work days, it is where the DSC Clinic is.)

I've been meaning to get tested. The main reason I want to know my status is because I intend to think of some long-term plans. My status will have some impact on my planning, so it is mandatory that I know my status. Also, I think it's being responsible to go for the test. I'm not active in that department, but there have been certain moments when the struggle for purity and chastity were a failure, so to speak. Haha!

It's my first time to get tested at the AFA ATS. The last time I went for the test was at Raffles Hospital, as a requirement for the application for my employment pass as a foreign worker.

The AFA ATS clinic is very good, I must say. The process was efficient and clear. The staff were very professional and cheerful. (I think a few of them are actually volunteers.) The waiting time could be more than 30 minutes but that was because it was a busy night. To a certain extent, I thought it was great that many individuals (male, female, young and old) are getting themselves tested.

The counselor who attended to me was a nice, good looking guy named Clement. The one who took my blood sample was a very cheerful lady named Nur (I think). After the test, I wondered if she was being too cheerful as a way to get the patient to relax. Whatever the reason, she (as well as Clement) is awesome!

The cost for the test was $40, depending on the window period. It could be as low as $30.

I was very hungry by the time I left the clinic. I was tempted to go for a nice meal to celebrate the negative results. Hehe. Instead, I settled for a wrap and a cookie at Subway. Lol.

Action for AIDS Singapore | ATS : Anonymous Testing Service
Operating Hours: Tuesdays & Wednesdays 6.30pm to 8.30pm; Saturday 1.30pm to 3.15pm
Address: 31 Kelantan Lane #1-16 S200031

More details here.

Sunday with MonRich...

Saturday night was spent with Richie and Mon. Sunday night was also spent with Richie and Mon. Haha!

So last night, we did go for the screening of Dior and I at Shaw Lido. I'm glad we were able to catch the docu film because it gave a glimpse of how things are at the house of Dior under Raf Simons' direction. I also like watching such documentaries because it allows me to experience a world that I may never be able to experience. Hehe.

To a point, I can say that Mon (and maybe, Richie) share the same sentiment because we were gushing about how awesome the documentary was. It was great seeing the amount of creativity, effort, talent, stress it takes to come up with an awesome collection. I have such high respect for the team. Just thinking about the skill required to create all the masterpieces makes my jaw drop. Haha!

Tonight, I met up again with them because I was in the city. Originally, the plan was to watch Into the Woods with Jon and Lara. However, the available seats were sucky so I decided to just let Jon and Lara watch the film since there were good seats available for two people, sucky seats if it's for three.

Since I was already in the city, I told Mon and Richie I would join them for dinner. Dinner extended to coffee and dessert. In fact, I just got home thirty minutes ago. Haha!

We went to a simple Thai place across Richie's office for Sunday. It's a modest food place but the food they serve is really good and I guess, authentic. It doesn't have the commercial feel one gets from the Thai restaurants in malls. After a happy dinner, I suggested we have dessert. We ended up going to next door where there was a P.S. Cafe. Richie was craving for the chocolate cake with ice cream that we had at P.S. Cafe Ann Siang Hill when I-van was in town.

Since it was a Sunday night, the place was not packed. We were able to get a nice area in the restau and just spent an hour or two talking about the usual things we talk about. Haha!

It's a good weekend. There is really nothing I can seriously complain about. There are a lot of things I am really grateful for.

Ready for the start of a brand new work week...

Friday and Saturday hohols...

Weekends have always been precious to me. I think there isn't a single working person who doesn't look forward to the weekend (except those who work on weekends. Lol!)

Now that I'm telecommuting (which is basically working from home most of the time), weekends have become even more precious because it is a time that I get to see my friends and once in a blue moon, go out on a date.

Friday and Saturday have both been really good ones as I got to hang out with people I don't see as often but I wish I saw more often.

Thanks to Chris' invite, I was able to hohol with him, MkSurf8, RKGreg, Jeff and Jin. Chris' sib and the wifey gifted Chris with a room at the Intercon to thank him for hosting them in Singapore (I think), or something along those lines. Hehe! It was a good get-together though short as I had to catch the last train to the far West. I don't see this group of friends as often as I used to. Thus, every invite to a get-together is a happy moment.

I don't know if ageing has something to do with it (haha!). Lately, we've been trading the noise and the crowd of the club to an evening of chitchat with drinks at MkSurf8's place or in this instance, at Chris' hotel room. I enjoy both but I have to say that I enjoy the hohol moments where there is just a conversation among the guys. Group conversations are always fun because we can talk about anything, from the mundane to the most serious of issues. Haha!

The following day, Saturday, was also quite a busy one. At one point, I exclaimed to Richie,"I'm exhausted!" after realising how I've been running around all around the city again! Morning started slow with just usual house chores - laundry, folding clothes, watching series, cleaning the room a bit. After that, it was time to head to the gym for Pump class. With the training for my new volunteer commitment coming up, I have to rethink my Saturday gym sched again.

Gym was over by 1PM. From Jurong East, I took the train down to the city to meet up with my fellow museum guide-turned-friend Lionel. He's one friend I don't see as much but we're in touch almost every other day. It's nice to catch up with him and just talk about travel and so on.

Saturday concluded with an evening with Richie and Mon. Lionel told me about the screening of the docu film Dior and I as part of the Singapore Design Film Festival. I knew immediately that Mon (and maybe Richie) would be interested to see the film. Luckily, Lionel told me about the film early enough that I could still buy tickets. Apparently, all tickets were sold out.

The screening was at 8PM. Kiasu that I am, I insisted that we meet up early so that we can have dinner early so that we can queue early. Lol! The aim was to get good seats since it was free seating!

It was a success. I met up with Mon and Rich around 6PM. We had a relaxed and filling dinner at Tonkichi, just one level below the cinema. By 7, we collected the tickets and headed straight to the hall where the movie will be shown. Our group was the first in line. Yay!

The movie was only 89 minutes and I'm glad that both of them enjoyed it. We had a short discussion about the film just before parting ways.

I reached home at 11PM. I was beat and just wanted to crash into bed. Haha! Definitely, Friday and Saturday have been great!

Random article on single guys...

Richie shared this article entitled “10 Things Single Gay Guys Are Sick of Hearing…”

It was an amusing read. I found myself being able to relate to a few of the lines mentioned in the list.

Hmm, to be honest, I have very good friends. I hardly hear them say any of the lines on the list.

It’s either they’re sensitive to me or they don’t care at all. Hahaha! I think it’s a little of both?

Another reason that my friends don’t use any of the lines is that they know I’m putting myself out there in one way or another. Haha! Anyway...

Here are some of the lines that I have used at one time or another on some of my single gay friends when I was still with PG Boy.

#1) “I don’t understand why you’re single. You’re such a catch.”

#4) “Just put yourself out there more…”

#7) “You deserve a good man.”

Ooooppps, I hope I didn’t offend any of my friends. I was just being my usual Tito self. Hehe!

The article is here.

Hey, you...

Hey, you. I never heard from you again. The thirty-something, somewhat emotionally mature, non-drama side of me has already accepted the fact that, poof!, just like that you were gone. That side of me has started to realise that there's no point hanging on to something that could have been but never was. That side of me has started to move on.

But hey, I must admit that I still do think about you. Once in awhile, I'll come across some place, some song, some food, something, that would bring back a memory of you and me. I find it a bit weird because you and I never really got past the more than friends, less than lovers stage. And yet, there fragments from the three months we shared come back to mind every now and then.

On Monday nights that I go to the gym in the city, I wonder if I would bump into you at the train station. When the train starts to leave your station, I find myself craning my neck to see if you were one of the passengers that got off that crowded station.

Earlier, I was queueing for registration to Pump class when this song by Echosmith started playing. That song, Cool Kids, will always be a song attached to you. I still remember why. It was a Saturday night. You just came from your rowing session. I spent the afternoon doing my own thing. We were going out for a nice dinner in a part of the city we rarely visit. You were in the shower. I was on the bed, reading the news on my phone or something. Suddenly, this song started playing on the MTV channel. You started singing. You step out of the shower, smelling of whatever shower gel it was that I brought. Your hair wet, beads of water on your shoulder, your bare chest. You're surprised that I do not know the song. I remind you that you and I have an eight year difference. I found it exceptionally cute how you weren't shy at all to sing along with the song, while you got dressed for our date.

Those were the good times. Tonight, for a brief moment, I was reminded of that.

I still don't know what happened to you, to us, to what could have been us. Maybe I'll never find out. Maybe I'm not meant to find out. Sometimes, I wonder if something bad happened to you. Touch wood, of course. Sometimes, there's a part of me wishing that your ghost would visit me in my sleep just to tell me you're alright.

I'm okay. I sometimes think I almost fell in love with you. I am glad that what happened happened before I fell for you completely. Otherwise, it would have been a lot more difficult.

I checked your Instagram account tonight. No new post. Your last post was a dessert plate from the Christmas lunch we had. I came across the words written under your name.

"We say hi, we say bye, like we have never met." Maybe I should've seen this as a sign? I dunno.

I'm moving on. It's just that once in awhile, I like to remember the good times we had.

Very busy weekend..

Sunday was almost as busy as Saturday. Haha!

In the morning, I still got up at my usual early morning wakeup time because I agreed to go with Melvin on a nature walk. We haven't met up in a long time and a nature walk was long overdue.

Aside from Melvin, I managed to convince a new friend to join us for a walk. Originally, the plan was go to Macritchie Reservoir. We decided to go to the TreeTop Walk instead. Hehe! That's because Melvin had to be back home before 12 noon since it was his Mum's birthday. I also didn't mind getting back to the hotel early as I wanted to take a nap and go to an earlier Mass service.

The walk was quite fun. There were a lot of people who woke up early that Sunday. Haha! It was nice to see a lot of fellow nature walkers.

I reached the hotel at half past twelve. After finding out that there was a 420 Mass at a nearby church, I decided to rest first.

From the church, I headed to Orchard where I met up with I-van, Richie, Mon and Jon. We headed to CPK at the Forum where we spent a good three (?) hours just chatting and chatting and chatting while enjoying two kinds of salad, a meaty pizza and one other special dish. Hehe!

Sunday was definitely a good day as well. Thankful for the wonderful weekend!

Going around the island to see friends...

Just a quick post...

It's been a long but fun day. A lot of things are happening over this weekend. First, Manila now KL-based friend I-van is in town for a business trip. Early last week, blog friend Jason from KL but now based in Germany messaged that he was going to be in town for a holiday trip. Also, during the week, former colleague/friend JoAnn messaged that today is a birthday gathering for his husband, Kym.

Busy, eh?

So, today started at 7AM. As usual, I woke up before my alarm. Haha! First order of the day was breakfast with I-van. From my place in the northwest, I took the train to the city. I reached I-van's hotel at 930AM. By 10, we headed out for breakkie. Initially, I thought of bringing him to Kith's Cafe. When we passed by Tim Ho Wan, we decided to just go for the dim sum place since I-van has yet to try the food at the place. Luckily, there was no queue yet. Woohoo!

From Plaza Sing, we took the train to Orchard for some shopping. My next appointment was at 1PM. That gave me and I-van about 2 hours of going around Orchard to check out his favourite stores. By the time I had to go, I-van was at Tang Plaza checking out the menswear section.

Jason and I agreed to meet up for lunch. Initially, I wanted to bring him to Wild Honey at Scotts Square. Since he was going to P.S. Cafe Dempsey for breakkie, I thought I'd bring him to Wild Honey so he can try another cafe and today will be some sort of cafe hopping day for him. As expected, there was a loooong waiting queue at Wild Honey.

Since he has another appointment at 230, we ditched the Wild Honey plan and went instead to LP for lunch at the ayam penyet place at the basement. Jason said he hasn't tried ayam penyet, which was good because I wanted to bring him to a place he hasn't tried out yet. It's just amusing that a Filipino guy brings his Malaysian friend to an Indonesian place. But okie lah, same same. We're both ASEAN guys! Haha!

Though it was a short get-together, I really had a great time chatting with the guy. Can't believe after 7 years(!!!), we finally met up. Yeah, that was how long since we first stumbled upon each other's blog. Over lunch, we talked about working overseas, travel, KL, Singapore. He talked about dating girls. I talked about PG Boy and dating guys. Hehe! It's not everyday one meets a straight guy as open-minded as him! Hope to catch up with him again whenever, wherever!

From Orchard, I went over to Dover to fetch Jon and Miguel at their place. We agreed that the three of us would go together to Mr. and Mrs. B's place for Mr. B's birthday. Since I was early, I had some time to take a nap. Yay!

We reached Mr. and Mrs. B's place at 5PM. It was good seeing both of them, especially the little guy Lucas. He's growing up so fast. I only stayed at their place til 730. I promised Richie and I-van I'll meet up with them again so I had to leave the party early.

Right now, I'm back here at the hotel. I-van is on the bed messaging. Richie is on the other bed also messaging. Both are too tired to go out. I, on the other hand, have some energy from somewhere and I do want to go out. Lol!

I might end up just going to sleep as well since I have an early day tomorrow. Haha! Busy, busy weekend!

Hey, Friday...

And so the first work week of 2015 is over...

How did it go for you?

Wonderful non wonderful day...

Today was quite a busy but still manageable day.

I started my work at 7AM. There were items on my Inbox I did not get to work on yesterday. Thus, the decision to go online as early as possible. I think this is one of the good things about working from home. Work files can be accessed 24/7. Some may find it a good thing, some may find it a not-so-good thing. Haha!

The January issue of one journal I handle is running late. It needs to be approved within the week. Another issue of another journal is ahead of schedule. This is a good thing because the number of corrections for some of the manuscripts included in the journal is just too much. Two papers included in the issue each have more than 300 corrections! Walau eh! Die die! Haha!

The highlights of today are lunch with Chris and the newly-married Alexie and Pump class after work.

My dear landlord told me that the Internet guy will be coming in today to do some work needed for the upgrade of our Internet connection. To be honest, I am perfectly happy with the previous speed. I thought it was very fast. Apparently, it can still go faster. Haha! Oh well, as long as my rent does not increase (or the increase is very minimal), I’m okay with this latest upgrade.

When the Internet guy arrived, I got dressed up and told my landlord that I’ll work at the office in the afternoon. The Internet guy came close to 11AM. That was perfect because I meant to leave the house around that time so I can meet Alexie and Chris at Star Vista for lunch.

I suggested we eat at Morganfield’s since I thought the food was good. Thankfully, my lunch companions were okay with the suggestion. I ordered a grilled chicken and had the fries and coleslaw replaced with the house salad. The set meal came with a soup of the day and a tall glass of iced tea. For $15, it was okay, I think.

Lunch convo dwelled mostly on the beautiful wedding of Alexie and Jasper. The now Mrs. B shared “exciting” behind-the-scenes incidents that happened days before the wedding and on the wedding day itself. It was such a beautiful wedding still. I couldn’t be happier for the couple.

The rest of the day went by with usual work stuff. I’m glad because I was able to finish a lot of things.

After work, I rushed to Metropolis to attend the 630 Pump class. I dunno if it was because of the instructor or because a lot of people are working extra hard to get rid of the weight put on during the holidays, but it was a packed class. I do enjoy Pump a lot but the class today was really challenging. In particular, I hated the back track. I felt like I was going to keel over before the track ended. Haha!

Thankfully, I survived the workout and I’m definitely happy with the class.

To end this wonderful non wonderful day, I finally bought new books to read. I found a list of recommended LGBT titles and I decided to get two out of the 10 suggested Summer 2014 readings. Hehe! I intended to buy a gift card for my Amazon account. It turns out there was no need for it as my gift card balance is still enough to get me the titles above. These books should keep me busy for the next few weeks. Yay!

It’s only 10PM and I’m already sleepy. What is happening?!?!?!

About 2014...

How was your 2014?

I have to say mine was generally a very good one. Looking back now, there were a lot of things to be grateful for in the year that just ended.

Hmm, I would have to say that one of the major things I am thankful for was being able to go on a few trips. There’s the trip to Yogyakarta with my Mom. There’s the trip to Singapore for my Mom. There’s a trip to Malacca, Kuala Lumpur and Bintan. And of course, the big trip of the year was Europe. I’ve dreamt of going to Europe and I’ve always thought that it will just remain as a dream. Well, 2014 taught me that if you want something bad enough, you will do what you can to make it happen.

I fell in love with Amsterdam and Brussels. I would definitely want to visit again. In fact, I already have an itinerary in mind. Let’s just see what travels are in store for me this 2015. Hmm, I want to do another major travel but I told my Mom I’m taking her to Cambodge this year. That has to happen. Please let there be a seat sale!

The other thing I am thankful for is work. The organisation is undergoing transformation and I’m grateful to still be blessed with work. To be honest, I intend to stay overseas for as long as I could. Going back is an option I would not like to consider... at least, for the next 30 years. Hehe! One thing that would make me consider going back is love. Seriously. If I find myself in a relationship and things are getting serious, I just might consider moving back.

Speaking of relationships, it was year of change in that department. After almost 4 years, PG Boy and I parted ways. The good thing about it is that we remain friends. We still WhatsApp. He got me a nice souvenir from Portugal. We still hang out once in a while. It was a very adult and mature breakup, I tell you. Post-PG Boy, there was NB Boy who’s a Singaporean and most recently, HB Boy who’s a Beijinger. Hmm, neither resulted in a relationship. It was just a short period of dating. I guess the good thing about both is that it allowed me to put myself out there again.

What else? Okay, I have to say that the year ended very well thanks to the trip to Manila. It’s my first time to spend Christmas again in Manila since I left in 2011. I have to thank my colleague Alexie for making me go on the trip. She invited me to her wedding last 26 December at beautiful Tagaytay Highlands. I would not miss it for the world. I am extremely happy that I made the trip. In addition to witnessing Alexie marching down the aisle, I also got to see several friends and of course, my Mom and my two younger sibs. Five days is too short a trip though. There are still so many other things that I wanted to do. However, it was already time to fly back to Singapore.

So, yeah, these are a few of the highlights of 2014. I’m sure there are a lot of other things to be grateful for. At this very moment, these are the ones that come to mind.

Hashtag breakfree or hashtag tell me... Haha...

Richie sent the above image to our group chat. My reply was along the lines of, "Wow! How appropriate! Lol!"

Over the holiday, I spoke with a friend who underwent a relationship issue not too long ago. Things have already been fixed between the couple but my friend is having a hard time understand how such a thing happened.

To my friend, I felt the thought that came to my mind was, “How could it happen to me? I’m a good person.”

I told my friend, “You just have to get past it. There is probably no reason nor good explanation why it happened to you.”

Few weeks later, I find myself telling myself the same thing.

“I just have to get past it. There is probably nor reason nor good explanation why it happened to me.”

This is about HB Boy. For some reason, he just vanished into thin air. The last exchange we had was 40 minutes after the clock struck 12 on 1 January.

I sent him a message the following day. No reply. I sent a message on the evening of that day. No reply. I sent a message a day later. Still no reply. Last night, I sent a message to his other number. The day is almost over and still, there is no reply. I’m not sure what to think of it. The messages were not received by the phones (based on the icons next to the message - a single gray arrow). His other phone says that he was last online yesterday at 8PM.

Have I tried calling? Nope, I haven’t. I think that’s already being too much of a clingy.

The other thing that I told Richie was, “Unless he got into some accident or he is afflicted with some terminal illness, I think he would have found a way to still get in touch with me. This probably just proves that the interest has waned.”

HB Boy previously disappeared for two days, but he said he was down with the flu. It was really bad that he couldn’t get out of his bed. Okay, that was understandable. This time around, it’s a bit challenging to understand the situation. It makes me feel like I’m in a really bad homo version of Gone Girl. Haha!

To be honest, I’m wondering what happened. There must have been a reason behind the sudden disappearance. This is not the first time I’ve experienced something like this. It’s probably better to just say, “That’s it. Move on,” but there’s a tiny part of me that still wonders, “What happened? Where did things go wrong?”

The good thing about all of this is that I have not yet invested a lot of emotions in it. In a certain way, I was able to notice some early signs that something was changing. That was enough to have me put my guard up.

Sayang though. HB Boy is a good guy. He’s smart. He’s funny. He’s probably just not courageous enough to admit certain things (e.g. that we want different things, for now; or that he’s had a change of heart).

Oh well...

I could go down the road of overanalyses, but I'm choosing not to do the whole "How could this happen to me?" routine. I just believe that I'm a good guy and I deserve to be treated better. I also just tell myself that things like this happen. Just have to charge it to experience, I guess. Who knows? He might resurface one of these days... a good explanation.

For now, it’s either Ariana Grande’s Break Free or Side A’s Tell Me. Hahahaha!

First weekend of 2015...

And so the first weekend of 2015 is almost over. Haha! Sheesh, time really does fly fast!

It's been a generally relaxed weekend.

Friday, I went to the office to work. That was one of the reasons why I decided to fly back early. There are a few deadlines I have to take care of. Also, going to work last Friday enabled me to prep for the official start of work year 2015 this Monday. At least, I know what pressing concerns there are (thankfully, nothing new!). I know what awaits come Monday.

After work, I messaged Richie if he was free for dinner. Mon is in the US at the moment for a family holiday. I knew that Richie doesn't get back to work til Saturday so I decided to ask if he was free for dinner. I also asked PG Boy if he was free to join us. Hmm, I knew he'd be glad to see Richie. Good thing he didn't have anything planned for the night.

We decided to go to Char, the Cantonese restau next to Richie's place. It's one of the best choices in the area. It was also strategic as PG Boy was coming from Macpherson, Richie was coming from his place, I was coming from Lavender. As expected, it was an enjoyable dinner followed by coffee/dessert. Afterwards, I headed to City Square to meet up with Bernice for coffee and chitchat. She was flying back to Timor Leste Saturday morning. We met up in Manila but we didn't have enough time to chitchat as we both had other appointments. Hence, it was nice to see her again before she flew back to her adopted home.

Saturday morning, Jon and I were supposed to go to Pump at our usual Saturday morning gym class. However, he had a slight injury so I ended up going to Pump on my own. We just met up afterwards. He prepped lunch at his place (so did his other housemates). I wouldn't say no to a home cooked meal. Haha!

In the evening, I made a journey to the East again. The dinner was with Ian and Richie. It was Ian's birthday and he asked us to dinner. Jon wasn't able to go because of his slight injury. The rest of the gang are still overseas, I think. It was an intimate birthday dinner at Long Beach Mountbatten. Hehe! For a small party of three, I think we ordered a lot of food. I'm not a big fan of crab but I'm starting to like it. Hehe! From Mountbatten, we took a short train ride to go to Richie's place for further hohol.

Today, I initially planned to go to the gym after church. However, I decided that I'll head back after church so I can do some other things. There are plans to meet up tonight with another visiting friend, but I haven't heard from them yet. So, we'll see. Otherwise, I think I'll just side at my side of the island today. Haha!

2015: Day 1...

2015 received a very awesome welcome last night!

This year, I celebrated the arrival of a new year by going clubbing with few close friends who are in town instead of watching the fireworks from the area near The Sail.

First off, I flew back to Singapore at 10AM. Some people were asking why I decided to spend NY in Singapore. A few reasons: 1.) I have work tomorrow, 2 Jan.; 2.) I wanted to avoid any hassles at the airport. For sure, the airport will be packed this weekend; 3.) It has always been a tradition in my family to welcome NY at home. Since I consider SG to be my adopted home, I decided I'd welcome it here.

I reached my home in the West side of the island a little past three. That gave me time to take a nap before heading out for the evening's celebration.

There were two parties last night and early this morning, a farewell 2014 and a welcome 2015. Haha! The farewell 2014 and a bit of welcome 2015 were done at Equinox at Swissotel. Richie's friend Mai Mai got us on the guest list to Equinox's NY party. I thought the place would be awesome for watching the fireworks. Haha! We didn't get to see the fireworks at Marina Bay because of the crowd that stood by the window. However, Richie, Jon, Ian, Mai Mai and I had an awesome time at Equinox! For once, it was nice to be in an environment outside of Neil Road. Haha!

But wait... As soon as the clock struck 12 and we had a toast to the new year, our bunch left Equinox and headed to the "real" party for the night at our usual haunt at Neil Road.

It was a smart idea to have taken a three hour nap earlier as the evening turned out to be one very long night. I got home at 6 in the morning today! Haha!

Our group danced and drank the night away. Well, they did. I had drinks but I monitored my intake. The last thing I wanted was to wake up this morning with a severe pain on my ankle. Haha! God is good and I was spared. Hehe!

Today, I made the mistake of double booking for lunch. Australia-based friend Julie and another friend, Tokyo-based Dean are both in town. Forgetful me forgot they both invited me for lunch today and I said yes to both. In the end, I told Julie that I'll just meet her on Sunday (when she meets up with Jean). Dean is flying back to Tokyo tomorrow and we only have time to catchup today.

Today was one of those days I am grateful for for my insane body clock. Though I went to bed at 630AM, I managed to wake up around 9AM and be at Marina Bay by 1130 to meet Dean for lunch. Ian, who also got home very late, also managed to join us. Yay!

We brought Dean to Din Tai Fung. It wasn't his first time to eat at the restau, but it was his first time to try the fried rice with pork chop and the dou miao. He loved both dishes. We then moved to CBTL for more chitchat. By 3, we parted ways as he had to meet his sister and his sister's family. It was a short but very good get-together. It's always a joy to see Dean as he is one very kind guy. I swear I don't think he has a mean bone in his body. Haha! I should visit him in Tokyo soon.

From MBS, I took the train back. It gave me enough time to clean my room, do my laundry, bring some stuff to the dry cleaners, and most importantly, do some prep for tomorrow's work. I can't believe it's already 2015! I'm excited though!

1 January turned out to be a very good and productive day. I am hoping that sets the tone for the rest of the year. Haha!

Happy New Year again!

Happy 2015....