It's a job nonetheless

So today as I’ve said on my last entry, I met with Emy, the owner of the Asian Food Store in the town centre. I thought it was only going to take me a few hours as I thought we were only going to discuss job details, but I ended up starting work already. It’s only a part time job because she already has two other girls working for her but I think one of them is not going to be working there for much longer as she is looking for another job apart from the cleaning job she already has.
The work was quite interesting, and it wasn't hard. Well, the vegetable crates I had to get from the walk-in freezer in the morning are quite heavy, but nothing that bothered me.

I didn't think there were so many Asians around here because you never see any in the streets. It isn't only Asians what came in to buy stuff, surprisingly quite a number of locals also did come in, either to browse through stuff or actually buy stuff - mostly fresh herbs and curry paste. There was another girl there called Hannah, and she works 3 hours a day, 1-2 days a week since she has a more regular job and she is working in the Asian Food Store only for extra income. She was really nice, but it was a little bit hard to understand with her Bangladeshi accent even though she has been here for ten years.

I also met Beth, the Chairman of the Filipino community in Chesterfield and she was also very nice. She's about the only person who asked me if I am coping well here and she seemed like a genuine person.

Every one in the house went to work today, and I was the last to get home which felt a bit weird. Well, I was supposed get off work at 6 ( I came in at 9AM), but Emy asked me to go with her to Costco to get a birthday cake for her mate who celebrated her birthday yesterday, whose party she was not able to attend. I didn't know it was all the way in Sheffield, so I said OK. She dropped me off at 184 at about fifteen past eight. She asked me to go with her tomorrow to Manchester, and next week to Leeds and to attend festivities in London two weeks from now. She also asked me if I want to go to Meadowshall, I said I've already been there but there is really nothing there what fits me. I asked her where I can get size 2-4 UK clothes :-( She said she is a size 8-10...

Anyway, I will write more tomorrow because I am dead knackered right now xXx

"Caregiver in London"

James is working a long shift today, so I'm not cooking today at all. It's still raining here as it has been all day, but it's not cold.
I'm watching GameKNB at the moment. Yes, that's right! I am able to watch programmes from the Philippines now :-) And the best thing about it is, I watch them without the adverts! Thanks to Emy from the Asian Store. She told me about this website and I am so glad she did. I am able to watch TV Patrol every night and although it depresses me sometimes when I realise I am not watching it from my bedroom or the lounge back home, it's better than nothing.
So it is through this website that I also found "Caregiver". My sister told me about it sometime three weeks ago and I thought it is just another film like "Anak". She said it's quite big in the Philippines so I watched it on the PinoyChannelTV website.

"CAREGIVER"
The Acting: Sharon Cuneta's take on the role of Sarah was stunning in my opinion. You feel like you can relate to every joy, optimism and pain that she felt and not surprisingly, I think everybody has felt the same at least once in their lives. I like the way she engaged me to every second of the movie because her acting was simply superb. For a comeback movie, I think it couldn't be any better than this.

The Story: I was expecting it to be just like any other movies where someone goes abroad to work there and send money back home. But in this movie, her main goal was actually to get her son to the United Kingdom, which I think is really good. I know earning money here and sending it back home can really give your loved ones back in the Philippines a very comfortable life, but what good is it if everything is short-term? And what good is it if you have to spend half of your life working and never being able to go home to your loved ones? I like the way Sarah's character plays a consistent clever woman who knows what is best for her child in the long run and she is kind and funny and loving but at the same time, she is strong and a woman who knows what she wants and goes for it. Her husband, played by John Estrada, is also a remarkable character because there are a lot of husbands like him. I love the scene where Sharon and John are on their way to the airport to go back home and whilst walking toward the entrance of the airport, she realise that she shouldn't have to put up with this kind of husband. I love the line "kung ikaw hindi nagtagumpay dito, bakit kailangang pati ako hilahin mo pababa kasama mo?" and he says "dahil asawa kita". If my husband says that to me, I would have questioned if he is the same person. What kind of a person who promised to love you forever will drag you down in the dump with him? And as Sharon plays the role of Sarah, she finally said "Enough". She never did go back home with her husband to the Philippines and she made it clear that she is no longer going to be the doormat wife she had been before. The movie ends with Sarah showing her son Paulo around London, and it couldn't have sent a more positive message to everyone who are determined enough to take ten steps down only to slowly climb another hundred up.


CAREGIVER FULL TRAILER:



**** I got a phone call today from Emy and she asked me if I would like to do some part time work in the Asian Store, and I said, yeah why not since I am not working yet at the moment. She said she will ring me again tonight or tomorrow to talk about it. And here I thought she was only ringing to tell me she has Del Monte Spaghetti Sauce in stock. James refuses to have his favourite spaghetti and chicken pasta until I get Del Monte from the Asian Store *_* ****

**** I also got a phone call at 6:30PM from one of the jobs I applied for, which I thought was quite unusually late, and he scheduled an interview with me on the 2 July. The problem is, I've posted three job applications at the same time on Friday and I don't know which one this is. I should really make a note of the jobs I apply for. Silly Me... *****

England Diaries: First English Summer Night

me in a phonebox in town
pelican crossing at 10:30PM ^_^
the postbox in Lockoford Laneme and my husband in a posh Italian restaurant in the town centre (very yummy food!!)
moi!

England Diaries: Day One of Summer

Today marks the beginning of summer here. I am sat here again, in front of the computer, but I don't know why. I check my email, I go on Friendster, MySpace, Facebook but I don't know why I do it every day. I hardly get emails, the profiles of my mates don't really change every day, and Facebook is just shite. But that only takes ten minutes. I spend most of it looking out that patio door, watching the birds play in the garden, and on this particular day, watching the rain drizzle over every grass and flower in the garden. I stare so long outside that it feels as if I watched every single individual raindrop fall on the grassbed. And then it hit me: I am in England, United Kingdom. I always loved looking out the window and watching anything and every thing. Before I left, I always think the same thought for the past five years of my life: how my life is so boring that I see the same things for the past 18 years, looking out the same window. Now all I want to see is that very same every thing. The garden here is absolutely beautiful, it's so alive, but unfortunately I am not a plant or a flower in the garden, hence I don't feel so alive.
It's resting somewhere inside my heart, very silently, that I have always wanted to be here - to be the best wife I can possibly be, and to be a good daughter and sister. But here I am, in this place I always looked forward to being in, yet I don't recognise it. I was always so sure that this is what I want, I just didn't know happiness was the price to pay. It really is unfair, because every one around me is trying really hard- from my husband to my in-laws. So, I have to put on a smile every time, even if I don't really feel like smiling, because it's the least I can do to let them know everything they do for me is appreciated. I really should be happy... I am here, aren't I? I am not dying of the heat and humidity, I don't have to worry and be scared of crossing the roads and I see a better future here, but I also don't have to worry about cathair on my favourite black top, or the stench in the dirty kitchen when the litter box had not been cleaned - and I miss that. I miss having to wrinkle my nose when I go into the kitchen, and I miss waking up and seeing six furry things come up to the top of the steps to greet me good morning. This may sound stupid to most people and I know that, but you don't have to understand because at the end of the day, the only person who could really understand is yourself. Hearts don't beat at the same time, and they certainly don't beat for the same things. What makes your happy doesn't make other people even interested, but at the end of the day, it's you who really counts. I understand, and I know why I feel this way. It doesn't mean I have to feel this way, but for now, I deserve to recognise what I feel, because if I don't, I can never move on from it. So, yes, here I am, in a place where I always wanted to be, but it doesn't mean I can't miss home because I do. Missing home doesn't mean I hate it here, because I don't. In fact, I love it here, it's just that I miss life back home.
Tonight, James and I are going to Hasland , where the Filipino community party is going to be held. I am excited but the weather makes my excitement wilt. And this is the First Day of my First English Summer.


Children.. One day they're these helpless little things who depended on you for everything, and the next day they are telling you how to live your life, like you've stopped having a mind of your own.

VBlog!

A Message to my sis!

That's all the updates for now. I should really try to blog every day, but it's EURO season, and some of the footy match could get quite intense, hence I choose football over blog. i can always update stuff on here anytime - like today!

I've volunteered to make tea for all of us tonight so I need to get stuff ready. It's Shepherds Pie tonight and I probabaly will serve salad with it because in this home, they just love their veggies!

I hope I finish early so I can watch some stuff on this website that Emy, the owner of the Asian Store, told me about. I have visited the site and had a quick look on it and damn, I am so pleased to know that I can watch my favourite Pinoy gameshows! Wot can I say, I am a sucker for gameshows.

20:34PM/3:34AM
The shepherds pie with roasted vegetables was a success. Well, judging from the three out of three clean plates anyway. I think there wasn't enough though, because I had to make James spam salad sandwich afterwards ^_^ I'm glad they ate all the roasted vegetables in lemon and extra virgin olive oil and sea salt. I wasn't quite sure how that went with the chicken shepherds pie. I thought of my sister while cooking tea tonight. She really loves the dish and I remember her asking me cook that once or twice and I can't remember when the last time I actually cooked it for the family. It's actually a cheap dish to make, I should tell her how to cook it so she can make good use of her new(ish) oven. The chicken I put in it cost £3, the tin of condensed soup was £1.10p plus about £2 for the veggies. To feed my sister and her family would cost her around about PhP130-150 and it's dead easy to make as well and very very tasty. Ok, I am complimenting me own cooking haha. Right.

England Diaries: Father's Day

So let me tell you about how much fun I had on Father's Day.

I have never really celebrated Father's Day but I remember I always gave me stepdad a card for the occassion. And I thought about how Maddie has mentioned to me quite a number of times how James and his dad always clash and argue about things, so I had a brilliant idea to make them spend time together, and what better timing than the third Sunday of June! Fortunately, every one (including me! :p) is not working on that particular Sunday, so I suggested a family picnic, and I volunteered to prepare all the food and drinks we are going to take with us - that is after the original plan of a garden picnic has been scrapped. Maddie and Chris thought that if we go out and take our food with us and have it in one of the picnic grounds, it would be a lot more fun, especially since they like going out so much. So I actually had to change the original menu of chicken fajitas, grilled chicken in bbq sauce with boiled potatoes and veg, chocolate and fruit muffins and fruit punch. The latter two remained the same, but I had to replace the rest with chicken and potato salad for sides and grilled chicken in bbq sauce sandwiches. We had it in a picnic table in Chatsworth, and I shared mine with a couple of Mallards. They even sat at my feet after the meal! I'm so glad they liked what I prepared. Maddie especially liked the fruit punch. I prepared it the night before so that it was nice and chilled for the picnic. It was brill.

After Chatsworth, since it was Father's Day, it was Chris' call and he wanted to see the gardens in Birchover. I have to say I am super amazed at how they know every species of plants and vegetables and flowers! Their knowledge of gardening is absolutely astonishing. I could never figure out how they differentiate as some plants really look similar to me. But I am an idiot with plants - I've lived in a terrace for 17 years of my life, so at least I have got an excuse... I have to ask my husband what his is...

Out of all the gardens we went to, my favourite is Garden #16 where this 14-year old Lab and his 70 years old owner lives. The dog is huge and so healthy for his age. Shame I couldn't say the same for the old geezer. But he said something that really made me smile when the dog starts biting me when I stopped patting it. He said "wanting attention is one thing, demanding it is another". How's that for word of wisdom for today?^_^

Apart from me being sick at the end of the day, it was a fun-filled day out. It's really charming to see James bond with his parents. On our way home, I remember Chris saying he is glad James has broken his record in a long time for being out of the house for more than 8 hours. I know it's a joke what means he is glad to have spent it with his son. I know he wants the best for his son because he achieved so much in his life, that he wants James to be better than him, as all parents in the world wants of their children. They always want their children to do better than them, and live a better life than they did.

Slideshow of photos including my date with James to see "The Happening" in the cinema, picnic with James and his parents in celebration of Father's Day (Chatsworth, Birchover gardens, & Debyshire Dales) and some photos i took of the garden :D

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Second movie date in England: THE HAPPENING

waiting for the bus to town 14/06

So, Sex and the City was the first movie James and I saw together here in England. I know he only watched it because he knew I am a SATC fan, so when he asked me to come watch "The Happening" on Saturday, I went even if I were not so keen on the trailer. I love movies and going to the cinema with James, but tickets and food are so dear, I'd rather read the reviews and wait until they are released on DVDs!

The cinema was quite busy - a lot busier than when we first went there. Unfortunately, James had chosen a very bad spot for us to sit through the movie. So, we ended up enduring a boring movie, and deciding whether to kill the kids who were sat in front of us. We opt to let them off by the way. And we thought the film was A-15 and not 12!

The idea of the movie, in fairness to Mr Shyamalan, was actually amazing. If they had have put on more thought on the movie and it's construction, it would have been a fantastic film. But, short of it's promises, it was just another boring movie. It made "Phone Booth" a lot more interesting, to be honest. So, "The Happening" with it's crap actors, crap execution was a five-star rubbish. I don't think I have seen such bad acting in the hundreds of movies that I watched. The film was a disaster. It's one of them films where you end up waiting for something to happen - all the way through. And the movie was explained in the end as "some things just can't be explained..." Right.

The best part of that day was what we had for tea! Dominos stuffed-crust pizza with creamy garlic dip :-)

10 June

It’s five past nine in the evening and James and I just had tea together. I cooked baked trout in extra virgin olive oil with roasted veg and fried rice, and James had a slice of strawberry and cream filled sponge cake for pudding, and I had peanuts :p

I’m watching “Love Actually” which I have seen before, but it’s been long enough ago to watch it again. James is on WOW playing his paladin. He is finding it a bit of a challenge again since re-speccing to Protection. He has +2000 healing as holy paladin and things got too easy, so he decided to try Prot, as he’d always been holy from Day 1 of being a paladin because we leveled up together.

Today had been quite an exciting one – or the latter bit at least. I was feeling quite adventurous, or rather, quite bored so I decided to go out there and see if I could go to James’s work without getting lost. I was early at the bus stop, and the bus was late so I had to wait there for like twenty five minutes and I was wearing a light top and the air was so bloody chilly I froze my arse off. Five minutes before the bus came, I actually thought of turning back and walking back home but then I thought, fuck it. I must be used to freezing my arse off by this time.

The bus wasn’t a double decker one and it was packed, but luckily there was one seat left and it was right near the front. The bus driver was a little too grumpy as well. Anyway, I got there without getting lost and I actually got there with no problem at all. Not that it is hard, it’s just that I have never been on my own to Barlborough so I was quite proud of myself.

James and I were talking about going to see Liz in Norwich next week if he gets a couple of days off work and I am quite excited about it. We were thinking of going to Bristol or Bath but then we thought, why not Norwich since his sister lives there at the moment and they haven’t seen each other in quite a bit and she cant come here because she is working two jobs at the moment. I am excited to go outside Chesterfield because no offence, there is really nothing much here. It is nice, but there is nothing much to see after a while. I’m sure there isn’t much in Norwich either but still, it will be a little different there, and Liz lives in great Yarmouth so I will actually see two places at the same time. And on Friday, James and I are going to his mate’s birthday in this pub and I am also excited about that. I will probably feel out of place since I wouldn’t know a soul but well , I have never been out at that time of the night and I want to see how lively it gets in the pub. I will try to get James plastered, but shit he has work the following day… Ah well, let’s see how cheeky I feel then.

This documentary James’s dad is watching is very interesting. Of course, it’s nothing new really. It’s about the war in Iraq and how it’s all about oil.. Man that Abu Ghurayb incident was so bad, wasn’t it? That is the kind of soldier what they say are fighting for peace and freedom. Poor Bunny Greenhouse. I see that the US is now progressing into Kurdistan what have an estimated $5.6 trillion worth of oil, and that is based on today’s prices.

Summer is here!

Let's see how long for...

England Diaries: About Day 52

Yep, I've been busy...

(nutty banana loaf, chocolate cake, muffins)

England Diaries: Out and About on Day 50

Lock Keeper pub

Tapton Golf Course (zzZZzz)

better be prepared for the release of SIMS 3!



Asian Store owned by a Filipina woman married to a Brit (surprise...) conveniently situated in the town! Although, I still couldn't find my way to it on my own after being there for 100x...

The Crooked Spire in Chesterfield

See all the pigeons in the background? Some of them are quite overweight...

Yes, the vehicles gave way for us to take this pic conveniently :D

England Diaries: Day 51

Unimpressed by the winner, I have to say I was more disappointed by one of the semi-finalists who happened to be a Filipina who works as an entertainer here in Britain. I didn't see her auditions but when I saw the clip of it when they were in the process of selecting the Top 40, of which will go through to compete in the semi-finals, I immediately knew she's Filipina. There is no mistaking the accent! I was quite surprised that a non-Brit citizen is able to join the contest. Remember the fuss with that Irish contestant on American Idol? I knew Madonna Decena is not a citizen here since she said on her interview that she's only been here for 18 months, so I was quite proud to see her there. She sang Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" on the audition and made Amanda cry listening to her story about her family. I completely sympathise with her. She said she wants nothing in this world but to be with her two daughters and give them everything she possibly can, even as a single parent.



On her singing:

I wasn't impressed with her singing voice. As James has pointed out, it was probably because after hearing Charice Pempengco sing the same Whitney song, every thing fades in comparison by a long way. And if I were being honest, I'd say there were better singers in the whole competition. But nonetheless, I hoped she will get through the Finals. So, James and I made sure we didn't miss the last batch of the semi-finalist, on which two will be chosen to compete in the Finals.



On her sob story:

Every one in that contest have their own sob story to tell. Because almost all of them are passionate about what they do, and determined to follow their dreams. It was OK for Madonna to tell her sad story once in the auditions, but carrying through in the semi-finals was just downright annoying. She has the passion, the drive, the confidence and the talent, and in my unbiased opinion, she shouldn't have almost begged for sympathy votes. She said something which terribly made me cross: "Back in the Philippines, even if you have a college degree, you can't survive with only one job, it's really really hard back home". Let me, see... My sister has a college degree, and even though her husband stays home to look after the kids, they are surviving, and more. The two eldest kids are both in private schools, and the youngest is only 18 months old. My sister is only working one job. She works her ass off but she manages to give her family a life, that to her standard, they deserve, and it is quite high. She writes books on her spare time, but that isn't a 9-5 job, where you only have to come in and after the day, you get paid for your time. Writing takes a long time, and a lot of spare time, which she normally doesn't have so she writes mostly in the summer when Univ is not so busy, as she is a teacher. I'm really proud of her, by the way. My mum does not even have a college degree, and she worked one job and raised four children, raised three on her own. My brother almost got a college degree, but still, he is able to send his son to a private school, whilst his wife stays a home maker. My bestfriends Sarah and Karen are home makers as well, and their husbands only work one job and they are living a comfortable enough life. I am not saying that life in the Philippines is all that good, I am just saying that Madonna should have just kept her mouth shut except to sing. It would have been a lot better if she projected Filipinos as happy, talented and charming, like how we are usually known for. Think Reynaldo Lapuz or Jasmine Trias or Charice Pempengco. A happy spirit just proud to be blessed and proud to be Pinoys. People already know that the Philippines is a third-world country, and I just really am disappointed that Madonna chose the bad thing to tell Britain and the world. To mention is fine, but to stress it out repeatedly is not. I mean, Reynaldo Lapuz is a tricycle driver in the Philippines but you look at him, and he is just happy to be able to work abroad, and I am proud of him for bringing the Filipino fun-loving spirit to the world. Life in the Philippines may be hard, but life abroad is n't exactly an easy one, is it? The only difference is that you aren't able to book holidays in the Philippines if you are an average working class, a car is more of a luxury than a necessity back home, and even if you have a good job, you still can't afford one because the money you earn is only enough to keep you and your family. Back home, people earn just enough, and to some people just enough is not enough, so they try their luck abroad. Which I think is a really brave thing to do. It takes a lot of courage and love to leave your family behind to work in a strange land to provide them with a better life. And it is really touching when the OFWs are able to set aside the loneliness brought by missing home, and just for a moment be grateful for the chance she was given: a chance to work abroad and earn for her family, and a chance to show the world that Filipinos are damn amazing people. Madonna failed that more than she failed to be in Britain's Got Talent Finals.

Watch her Audition clip:

And her semi-finals performance:


Charice's rendition:


I think this Half-Pinoy kid has got more talent!


"This is Britain's Got Talent, not Britain's saddest story!"