Ever since I’ve had my first computer, I’ve always had fear of viruses. That’s why I’ve always been paranoid about using CDs, floppy disks (diskettes during those times), and even flash drives. But, unlike those people who suffer from technophobia, I went and faced my fear by knowing as much as I can about the causes of infection and the types of viruses that can infect my computer. I’ve come to the point that cleaning cookies, flagging files and shutting off autoplay functions has become a routine.

But recently, however, I’ve realized that infection comes in different forms. Especially now that the internet has allowed so much room for growth and evolution for hackers and their armaments, one can not afford to worry about just hard disk infections or viruses alone. There’s spamming, blog-hacking and, for the more daring criminals, identity theft. Scary right?! Now, there’s more than your computer to be worried about. You can actually be jailed by just being ignorant and careless.

The computer, and of course the internet, truly are two-edged swords. Never mind if I become too paranoid. I still believe it’s better to cover your tracks, log off, delete cookies, acquire some identity theft protection, and be vigilant especially with sensitive information when going online or using the computer. She may be gorgeous but no one wants to be like Sandra Bullock in that infamous movie (The Net). Right?

Lately, I’ve been constantly contemplating about upgrading (or more appropriately downgrading) to a netbook. No, it’s not that my laptop has become sluggish or obsolete. On the contrary, it’s just a little worn out but I would pit it against any 6-celled, Atom-based, ultraportable netbook anytime.

I really would. We’ve been through a lot together and it’s been nothing but reliable… that is until it’s become too big for traveling. You see, starting this summer, I would be going to work and coming home alone. Since andrea has already tendered her resignation, I’ll be the only one doing the traveling from then on. It is because of this, that I’ve come to realize a 2.5-kg laptop is just a tad too big for me. I know work is not exactly far from home but a 20 minute walk up and down the slopes of Beverly Hills (yep that’s the name of the subdivision where the school is located) is not comparable to a  walk in the park. Plus, it’s not exactly a nice idea to start the work all sweaty and sticky. Teachers are also ambassadors of good hygiene after all.

No offense intended for those who prefer to walk to school. It’s just that I know myself well and I’m a little embarrassed to say that I perspire a lot more easily than others (a curse that runs in the family). So if I intend to come to work all prim and presentable, I should either lose the extra kilos (meaning the laptop, not my flab) or find a more economical but convenient way to travel – motorcycle, tricycle, bike, etc.

So far, I’m leaning towards the former. So as soon as I get enough dough, I’m going to be running through all the netbooks.

Ever since we got married, andrea and I have always been thinking of how to have the best weekend getaways. So far, our ideas have always revolved around out-of-town excursions – beaches, hikes, diving, trekking, carnivals, hotel overnights, etc.

Now, as we become more and more involved in Mateo’s development and growth, our concept of a weekend getaway has slowly evolved. From spending time outside of the house in some remote beach or mountain, our ideal getaway has now turned into a weekend at home, with just the three of us, playing, singing and watching Disney movies – free from the worries of work and all other things.

I guess when you get to a certain point or age, you realize, the best times in life (whether it be weekends or week days) are the times you spend with the people you love. That’s the perfect getaway for me.

The end of the school year nears. The faster the days move, the closer we get to shaky grounds. You see, after going full time this year, andrea and I have decided that she should either go part time or quit teaching altogether after this school year closes.

No it’s not that she’s tired of teaching. She’s not. In fact, she still wants to teach. It’s just that a bunch of circumstances are playing out in a very unfamiliar and twisted way – forcing us to a corner between work and family.

How? First, Mateo’s nanny is leaving this March for good. This means that no one would be taking care of our baby but us starting summer. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think that this is at all a bad thing. In fact, we’re looking forward to spending more time with our son because that means we’ll have more chance to oversee his development especially now that he’s at a crucial stage of learning.

Second, Nanay Myrna, our landlady, will be visiting the Philippines this May to discuss the possibility of selling the house to us instead of leasing – another peculiar incident.

How does all of this put us on shaky grounds? Well, let me explain. You see, without a nanny, one of us has to stay home and keep an eye on both mateo and the house. Then, with the prospect of buying the house, we’d need more income to pull us through. You see the dilemma? How can we earn more if one of us will have to quit? If we both don’t quit then what would happen to our son? I don’t think I have the guts to tell other people that everything we’re doing is for Mateo’s sake when we’re not there with him in the first place. Shaky grounds indeed.

But in the first place, andrea and I both chose not to pursue careers outside of the country for ideals that we dare not compromise – ideals about patriotism, ideals about family. We’re not about to start on compromises now. Never mind not having wall fountains or swimming pools. Heck, I don’t even care if we don’t get to own a brand new car anymore. All I know is that mateo’s going to grow up knowing his dada and mama well and he’s going to grow up in a house of his own. Those are the things that matter right now. I don’t know how I’ll do it but I will manage to do so. We will…

I understand the urge to check out sales especially if the discounts reach up to 80%, but there are sales that are worth it and there are those that just aren’t.

For example, yesterday, andrea and I decided to go to Ortigas to check out this major Crocs sale. According to the adverstisements, discounts range from 50% to 80% so the pairs you see in the mall for 1,500 bucks can be bought there at 500 to 600 pesos. Very seductive right? That’s what we also thought.

Being a veteran of sales already, we expected to encounter long lines. That’s just a logical thing to anticipate during these occasions but an hour and a half worth of waiting in line was just beyond my expectations – and this is just to get inside the venue. Within the warehouse itself, the sandals, shoes, or whatever kind of Crocs merchandise type you’re looking for, were all scattered on the floor like one big ukayan. The boxes were in shambles. It was so disorganized that you actually have to go through the lot to get matching pairs. There was absolutely no order. Seems like another hellish ordeal doesn’t it? Not really. This part is actually a walk in the park compared to the payment line that you have to stay in after selecting your items.

It was a good thing andrea and I had a plan. You see, after getting inside the warehouse, we agreed that I was to get in the payment line at once (the long line rivalling that of the entrance line) and wait for andrea to finish selecting her Crocs. Afterwards, she is to exchange places with me so I can have my turn selecting mine. Seems sound? In theory yes, but waiting in line for another hour just seems to erase all traces of logic. By the time we finished with everything, I was just so angry at the whole ordeal. Yes we did get amazing discounts, but we had to spend 4 hours of our afternoon walking and standing in line (3 hours for waiting in line and an hour choosing our Crocs).

In the end, we bought a pair for Mateo, a pair for andrea and then a pair for me. Mateo and andrea loved their Crocs. I however, am having second thoughts about mine because it is several sizes larger than my size. I mean, the only available sizes for men when we got inside were 12 and 13 so what was I to do?

Is it worth all the effort? Perhaps it is. Perhaps I’m just sourgraping because I didn’t get what I wanted. I don’t know. All I’m sure of right now, is that I’m not going back there again even if it means wearing a bigger pair of sandals or selling these brand new Crocs.

Now that we’re 28, a lot of our friends have already decided to tie the knot with their long time romantic partners. In fact, in these next two years alone, andrea and I have been invited to 3 weddings, the earliest of which will be this April. That’s the good part.

The difficult part, however, is choosing wedding gifts for these friends and soon-to-be couples. You see, based on experience, generic wedding stuff usually clutters the newlyweds with unnecessary number of things. For example, even after providing a bridal registry, a newlywed may receive around 3-5 rice cookers, 2-4 coffee makers, or 2-3 oven toasters.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s nice to have an extra one working when the current one you have malfunctions, but 2-3 extras take a lot of space. For new couples who start off renting a small space for themselves, things can get from awkward to difficult to problematic really really fast. Soon enough, the couple might find themselves selling some of the gifts they’ve received.

So for andrea and me, we’re thinking of more useful, practical and less space-consuming gifts like bridal lingerie. Heck, it’s definitely small, practical, and down right useful especially during the honeymoon.

So for those who’ve invited us to their weddings, you know what you’ll be getting from us then.

Nine years ago, on this same date, andrea and I became a couple. And every year since then we do something to commemorate the date. We go to a new restaurant, watch a special movie, go to Enchanted Kingdom, or sometimes just spend a quiet time together eating popcorn and watching DVDs.

Sometimes though, when we have enough, we go browsing through resorts or hotel accommodations to see which ones we can afford and which ones we’d like enough to actually spend on.

This year however, was probably the most casual and awful one we’ve ever had. With a combination of red car casualties, unplanned for circumstances, bad temper, and just shear luck or the lack of it, the day turned from good to bad and from bad to worse as the day came to a close. In fact, we didn’t get to make up until the morning after. It was a really bad day – the lowest anniversary yet. But, if there’s one thing I’m proud about our relationship, it is the fact that ours always bounce back from any kind of down time.

We’re happy now… again. And that is something we will always work on having no matter what!

Now that I’m a full-fledged motorcycle enthusiast and rider, having been able to ride the my new 2-wheeled Kawasaki Fury for almost 2 weeks now, I’m off to accessorizing, or at least thinking about accessorizing my motorcycle. Sounds like something that an addict would say right? I know.

At first I myself had difficulty trying to sympathize with people who go out of their way just to customize their cycles. Now I find myself wanting to do the same thing. Nope, it’s not about the fancy looks. I guess it’s just the need to make the ride look my own. There’s a certain longing to personalize it. I just don’t know why.

Like a kid on his first day of school, sometimes I can’t stop thinking about what to put on the bike or what I should wear while riding it. I’ve even coxed andrea twice into accompanying me in looking at specialized apparels for motorcyclists. That is, after I’ve done some research on the accessories that most riders adorn. I mean, it’s not like these shops have a Dansko professional to explain every item to you. On the contrary, in most cycle shops, people just simply look, point and try out. Sellers don’t spend much time talking so I knew I had to go there armed with more than just butterflies in my stomach.

Now after almost two weeks of riding, I’m so glad I got the bike and have done some accessorizing already. So look out people, the newest rider is here to stay – riding safely and riding in style. Woohoo!

Before we moved here to this particular subdivision we’re currently living in, our biggest problem when we were apartment-hunting was the lack of water. Since the general area where we’ve been searching is more elevated than usual, water supply has been a common difficult experience.. that is until we found this place.

It’s actually a little funny because what we used to worry about is totally the opposite of what we’re experiencing now. No it’s not that we have very little water. On the contrary, our water supply in this subdivision is so good it’s actually breaking shower faucets. Yup, that’s right. Just when we thought it was kinda silly that one of our pipes started leaking when we’re not even using it, our neighbors inform us that such a thing is common because the water pressure can sometimes get too strong it literally breaks pipes. Talk about irony.

Now we know better. I had the main line checked and I had a regulator installed so our water remains consistent but not too strong.

The red car tales continue once again. Just when we thought we’re on our way to smooth riding after having the rear shocks replaced, last weekend it decided to break down on us yet again.

You see, on our way to buy some groceries last Sunday, we heard a disturbing sound coming from the front underside of the car. Suspecting something was wrong, I told andrea we ought to do a round or two inside the subdivision first before taking the car outside just to make sure it’s fit to ride. And just like most women with a mother’s insticnt, we were right on the money. After stalling for a few minutes, we parked and then tried looking for possible problems inside the hood and under the body. There it was – a significantly fast-growing pool of what looked like oil on the road.

I knew immediately that it was bad. With the rate that that fluid was coming out, I feared that whatever it was that was leaking out will probably run out or be completely drained even before the day ends. Unfortunately, because it was Sunday, there was no repair shop to go to. So yesterday, I had to stay home and do something about the problem. I went to the shop, brought the head mechanic to our house and had him check the engine. What we thought was a routine valve replacement turned out to be something worse – like 1,500-peso worse.

For the nth time, andrea and I seriously contemplated about putting an end to the red car’s misery. I mean no matter how much we try to take care of it, even if we predominantly replace its components with Ferrari parts, the red car’s age is just not that practical.

I mean yesterday it was the shocks. Today it’s the transmission. What about tomorrow? What else could go wrong tomorrow? It’s seriously becoming a huge liability.