Fortunate

The weekend has come and gone.

My girlfriend and I started the weekend with a trip to Vacaville for ice skating. The event was held by UC Davis’ FAHC organization, of which my girlfriend’s sister (and my very good friend) is a member of the board. FAHC is an acronym, but I can’t recall what it stands for. I am pretty sure that the F and H stand for…Filipino and health, respectively. I do feel a bit bad for not knowing what the acronym stands for, especially because we got a discount on the entrance fee for being a part of their group and this wasn’t the first FAHC sponsored event I’ve been to. However, I know that FAHC organizes wonderful events and their members are the nicest people you could ever meet.

I forgot how much fun it is to skate. Ice skating came naturally to me, probably because my sister and I use to rollerblade just as much as walking. Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating, but we use to rollerblade a whole lot. I’ve always thought of taking my girlfriend ice skating. Every year, an ice skating rink next to Downtown Plaza opens up. I’ve always thought that it would be romantic to go ice skating with someone you truly care about. That timeless sentiment is captured in so many romantic films…a couple of love birds holding hands, skating through a sea of other skaters…and become lost in eachother’s company. I got the opportunity to do that with my girlfriend. So, I guess you can say our ice skating adventure was a little more meaningful to me.

On Saturday, I had to dress up. I accompanied my good friend Sal to his cousin’s wedding. It was a traditional Indian wedding. We stayed the entire event and so, I got to experience all aspects of the ceremony. All my life, I’ve only been to Roman Catholic weddings and so, this wedding was very new to me. There were many similarities, but the traditions were unique. For example, the temple is similar to a church, in which they both have an aisle seperating the seating areas and faces an alter. However, the temple has no pews and no shoes are worn inside. There are differences, but the ideas are the same. A marriage has the same meaning within both cultures. I guess we’re not as different as we seem to be. It was a great time and I’m so glad Sal shared this with me. I thank Sal and his family for the experience.

Today, my family had a prayer for my grandmother’s death anniversary. When we were younger, my father was stationed in southern California and my mother worked the graveyard shift at NEC. When she went to work, my mother took us to our grandmother’s house for the night. I use to hate it. Not being with my grandmother, but being away from my mother. My fondest memories are of my sister and me rollerblading in her front yard. I never got to thank my grandmother for what she did for us. At times she was far from a ray of sunshine, but she always cared for us…no doubt. Every morning we woke up to the best scrambled eggs ever and saiman that just melts in your mouth. It’s love. And I’ll always be grateful.

My girlfriend and I went to Circuit City for its final day of buisness. It was dead. When I say dead, I mean there was two tables with a few items on it…and that’s what was left of the inventory. My girlfriend was very disappointed. We left as soon as we walked in. Afterwards, we took a trip to Target to buy my girlfriend’s sister a special gift. I won’t say what that particular item is until I actually buy it and prove to my girlfriend that I got it like that. We went to both Targets in the area hunting for this particular item and a sales associate told me it sold out within the store’s opening. The hunt is on.

I don’t get the opportunity to be with my girlfriend every single day. So, I cherish the moments I get to spend with her. And each time I get to see her or even talk to her on the phone, I fall in love with her over and over again. I’m truly fortunate.

Now, I wanna take this time to sing you a special song, ready…go!

WOO-HOO-HOO
WHOA-WHOA-WHOA-WHOA-WHOA

-Errol