magnitude 5.4

that's how strong the earthquake was this morning. they say it's a forewarning of a bigger one to come.

it was weird. i had forgotten that california is sitting on a couple of plates and faults.

ryan had just come home from work and we were getting ready to eat lunch. i had decided to hide under the blankets with baby mac, an unusual thing since i usually just let her sleep in her cot so she doesn't get used to being lugged around.

it was a subtle shaking at first. being an earthquake survivor (baguio city, july 16, 1990), i kept my head and listened a bit. true enough, it stopped and then resumed. i stood up with mac in tow and prepared to either head out or find a safe space in the apartment. it didn't last for long but the phones were down.

way back in 1990 i was a bit cavalier about the earthquake. up until i was able to listen to horror stories about people getting trapped and dying, i didn't panic. i figured i'll go home and be with my family and all would be peachy. when i saw everyone safe, i just shrugged my shoulders and said a quick prayer of thanks.

this morning it felt different. i held a 3-week old baby in my arms, i was in a foreign land, and the rest of my family was half a world away.

i was scared, and enormously thankful that we were okay. as for it being a sample of a bigger one to come, i hope and pray that they are wrong.

my first roadtrip

went on a roadtrip with jv, tina, marmee, and grace. and what do you know, we ended up in vegas and i got to see the hoover dam. :D

pardon the blurry pics.

 

birthday away, year 2

this is the second birthday i spent out of the country. last year i was in holland where the only people i knew were my sister and her husband. i had a lot of visitors, all of them i only met that day. was fun though.

and like last year, i missed everybody at home and the fried chicken and spaghetti that are mainstays in my birthdays.

i'm happy, though, that i'm here with my sister anna and her husband ryan and of course, baby mac.



a couple of days before my actual birthday, we had my formal birthday dinner. no photos, though, but they have a website. we ate at picanha, where brazilian waiters (ampopogi!) with grilled meats impaled on swords go around the tables and offer to give you a slice, or two. :)

on the day of my birthday, my sister let me sleep the day away, then she made me breakfast, and we just lazed around. :) my dream birthday. :)

for dinner, we went to big mama's and papa's pizzeria along ventura blvd. in studio city.

we ordered a 10" pizza each for me and ryan, and ate anna had spaghetti.


it was a good thing we ordered when we did because after we placed our orders, a call came in for 75 extra large pizzas. 30 mins before closing.



they left us largely to our own devices so we just ate a couple of slices, asked for take home boxes and packed the leftovers ourselves. so this was me on my birthday:



i think i did justice to my birthday parties. every year is a different celebration, but you know what? wherever i am, whatever the fare, i never forget to give thanks for another year. after all is said and done, it has still been a blessed life. thank you to the Big Guy up there for my family and friends. sometimes it feels good to just sit back, reflect, and feel loved.

again...all is right in the world

how could things not be right?