A few weeks ago, I saw a CSI episode on TV involving a teenager from an alcohol rehab. It was one of those usual episodes where the suspect ends up committing the crime because of the influence of alcohol.

Anyway, this post is not about how much I love CSI nor how much I hate that episode. This is about my stand on drinking. You see, I’m not a great fan of alcoholic beverages. I mean it’s true that I drink, sometimes during occasions and sometimes during special gatherings. But for the better part of the year, I don’t. Not at all. In fact, if not for these special times, I wouldn’t get to drink alcohol at all.

Why? It’s just that I don’t see the point in it. I don’t fully understand why people are willing to suffer the feeling of fullness in their bladder, or the loss of clear vision, or even the puking that comes with it. I mean, alcoholic beverages don’t exactly taste like ice cream or anything like that. On the contrary, they’re usually bitter or pungent or something in between. The only good thing I see in it is that it lets people lose their inhibitions. But even that is not purely beneficial. I’ve heard of too many drunken brawling to know that it can be as detrimental as it is beneficial. Even the CSI episode I just mentioned is a testament to that.

So why do I still drink on certain occasions? I do so because I just want to show that I’m capable of blending in, that I can handle myself well, and that I do not look down on people who drink. Understand that mine is a belief, a stand, not a declaration of truth or ideal. I don’t judge people on their preference just like I don’t appreciate people judging me for mine. I just hope when mateo faces the question of whether to drink or not to drink, he too takes the same stand as me.

Last December, when I was looking for gifts to give my family, I came across Kentucky Derby Party Invitations. Now, I know it seems like a very odd gift to give someone on Christmas, but here’s the reason for that.

First of all, the one I intended to give that to was my brother. You see, he’s in to horse-racing and it’s become almost an addiction for him. Although I don’t want to promote the betting, I figured that something connected to it would be the best present to characterize him. Second, it’s not just for Christmas. Since his birthday too falls on December, I wanted to give him a unique invitation.

Unfortunately, since my budget wasn’t enough to accommodate the invitations, I just opted to give him a shirt instead. Sorry bro!

Every month, aside of course from birthdays or on any special holidays, andrea and i would always greet each other Happy! on two separate dates - on the seventh and on the seventeenth - the date when we first officially became a couple and the date on which we officially became husband and wife.

Since yesterday was the seventeenth, that’s exactly what we did the moment we woke up. Now honestly, before andrea said anything about what she’d like to do that afternoon, I thought we could celebrate somewhere, perhaps dine out or just go malling because we both were on vacation already. I admit, cleaning the house and re-arranging our bedroom was definitely the last on my list of possible things to do, but that’s unfortunately what she said.

So instead of giving each other gifts, I gave her a broom and she gave me a mop. Then as soon as we finished lunch, we started sweeping and mopping the floor. We were really busy the whole afternoon that by the time mateo was ready for his afternoon nap, we were already done with our bedroom. Pretty weird celebration, huh?!