Grace, Eye MD

hi yen!

sorry for the super-delayed email! sobrang kakainis yung internet connection dito sa apt, it dies like every 15 minutes, I can’t figure out the prob.

I told peew na darating kayo sa Bangkok, and Judah knows na pala! so I told them to plan a gimmick for us. sabi ko april 6 or 7 para nandun na rin si sam . o di ba triple date! nyehehehehe!!! ooh you’re going to enjoy Bangkok! the shopping is stupendous! where are you staying?

anyway, Happy Chinese New Year pala! Yesterday (Saturday), Mike, cecille, shruthi (oculoplastics Indian fellow) went to the house of prof’s dad for lamon. super layo, lapit na sa airport! hay kaloka, we were eating literally from the time we sat down at around 5pm up till we left just before 10pm! solid! tea muna, which meant sticky rice, yam cake, taco-like things, the lapis cake, cassava cake, bobo chacha (equivalent of our ginataan). then nilabasan pa kami ng mga 10 kinds of those new year cookies (and those yummy pineapple tarts!). they fed me butong pakwan na dyed red (but NOT salted), kasi daw I’;m getting married and it’;s a fertility symbol!hahaha!i wanted to take home the whole bag! of course through all this, prof had like 5-6 kinds of whiskey (pang-tatay drinks), which he kept pouring for mike, who came prepared and willing.  they were analyzing pa how smooth each compared to the other, etc. Duh.  I wish I could drink, but they’d prob have to rush me to the ER because of anaphylactic shock.  anyway dinner was an altogether serious thing, with stuff they prepare lang pala pag Chinese new year kasi toxic i-prepare. my favorite was the pata tim you had to stuff into pao buns! yum! there was also a dish of chicken cooked with black nuts! sarap!! also fish balls with meat stuffed inside. haaaay I’m getting hungry thinking about it lang!

anyway ang one freaky thing lang was we had to remove our shoes before entering the house, and before we left, of course, sobrang dami nang shoes near the entrance. naisip ko na useless mag-magandang shoes dahil once you’re in the house, lahat kayo naka-barefoot! funny, kasi sa atin, when you enter the house and remove your shoes, hahabulin ka pa ng house owner to put your shoes back on! e pano pala if it was a formal dinner in the house?so you leave your stilettos outside? e kung kainin ng aso?hahahaha! you’d probably pummel the dog! hahaha!

oh yeah, we had to bring 2 ponkan oranges each and give it to prof’s mom when we arrived. and then before we left, she gave us back the oranges. I have yet to understand the rationale behind that (why 2 and why ponkan), all I know is that the oranges represent prosperity and good luck (I think). Prof’s wife gave us angpao’s too J  kasi pala as long as you’re unmarried, you’re considered a child! cool! J it was a different experience J Fun, fun, fun and yum, yum, yum!!!

anyway I finished reading the Ramayana about a month back (I got it sa India)), and I finally got a copy of “The King Never Smiles” by Paul Handley. It’s the biography of the King of Thailand written by an American. it was banned when it came out late last year.  I had papa check the price sa powerbooks, and it’s Php300 cheaper here (surprise). so pikitmata, I just bought it here for S$52! hay at least my curiosity is somewhat satisfied. ang galing kasi it traces the royal family’s roots, and the history of Thailand na rin. ang galing! kakaloka lang the names because they don’t stick to my brain easily, ie. Sirindhorn, Kriengsak, Thongthong Chandrangsu…. it’s also amazing (but not surprising) that to keep the royal blood pure, they intermarried—they married their first cousins, half SISTERS, etc.  problema nga lang, the male heirs died early (in their 30’s) because of one or another genetic defect, or some didn’t even have kids! haaay kasi nag-inbreeding! it’s a good read, and well, the coups are too many to keep track of! pero amazing how they explained why the monarchy in Thailand was/is kept alive, and why it’s so revered.  their triad is religion-nation-monarchy, so the king could never really be taken out of the equation. yuck this is getting really dorky.

anyway i really have to go! hugs and kisses to nina! can’t wait to see all of you again! see you in bangkok!!!

love,

grace

Yesterday as I was getting ready for work, a thought suddenly crossed my mind after I dropped my towel and uttered a swear word. 

I sent Sam an SMS (he was doing Spine rounds na) : "Was just thinking, how come "puta" is considered a bad word, when actually it’s just an occupation.  What if when people were upset, they’d just say, "Ay, doctor!" or "Ay, fireman!" You know, instead of "Ay, puta!" It’s all so relative, di ba!". 

True to form, he called me agad.

Sam: Honey, you’re such a dork!

Grace: Whaaaat!?! It was a valid thought!

Sam:  It’s not even a profession!

Grace: It is! It’s the oldest profession on earth! Alam mo yun, yun na nga lang ang job nila, and they get demeaned even further!

Sam: Ganito lang yun, why do people say, "Shit!" instead of "Urine!"?

Grace: Urine is two syllables….it’s too long for a swear word!

Sam: E, di "Snot! Snot!"  or "Earwax! Earwax!" or  "Dandruff! dandruff!"

Nyahahahahaaaaaaaa! So goes another of the Sam-Grace early morning intellectual discussions!!!

Happy thoughts:

1. My brother’s short film made it to the finals in a competition (Endframe Project) in Amsterdam! He was the only Pinoy who made it!!!  Whooohoooooo! I’m so damned proud of my artsy-fartsy brother!!!

2.  I finally got a copy of "The King Never Smiles" by Paul Handley, a biography of King Bhumibol of Thailand (which incidentally, is banned in Thailand). I’m so fascinated by the Thai monarchy, and I’ve been looking for a book in English to satisfy my curiosity. Plus, it was Php300 cheaper than if I got it in Manila :)  Now, I have to think of a way to bring it into Bangkok when I go there in a few weeks….

4. 7 weeks to go and I’m home free!!

3.  We’ve just discovered the joys of Vietnamese coffee when we went to Chinatown last Monday night.  They serve it in this contraption, which acts like a mini-French press, with lots of condensed milk.  Very strong and sweet, just the way I like it!!! Yum!