i am sembreak.

DECL closes at 5 p.m. I was still “inventing” my conclusion at 3:45. It takes at least an hour to travel from home to UP. The final period for that particular paper landed at 4:15. Printer ran out of paper. From 4:20-4:30, I was already getting calls and texts from Epistaxis. I was replying with rants. At around 4:35, I was on the road. And let there be traffic. More calls, more texts. I was in FC at around 5:30. The paper, my paper? It got in. It. Got. In. How does ‘sneaky’ sound? Start evil laughing. Husshhh.

I’m still waiting for the grades, but officially, my first sem, 08-09 ends there.

And to celebrate this waited event, we went to Star City! With the special participation of our beloved Korean friend, Dana. Hooray, hooray! I think it’s just proper to say that I was “sponsored” by a good friend – Issa Sayno.

As usual I was late and fortunately Ericka had to attend rehearsals at Claret, so we were together going to CCP. It was quite an adventure, I must say. I almost got caught between the train’s doors. Masakit s’ya, to be fair.

But it was easy to forget everything that happened during the trip. All you need are warm hugs from loving friends and smiles to lift the heart. When we got inside, I was happy. I was so happy that my brain got twisted with a snap. I told the lady who puts the ride-all-you-can sticker around your wrist that her hands were dirty. She was defensive. I told her I was joking.

Star City is better now. I liked most of the rides and attractions.

Snow World let’s you experience winter that tropical countries never had. 15 degrees centigrade. It’s really cold inside (duh!). I sort of enjoyed the ice slides. But I can’t appreciate it much because the slides have the tendency to be harsh – sometimes you’ll slide too fast and end up having your arms and arse bruised and sometimes you won’t slide to the end so you’ll end up looking stupid. Never mind that it’s the longest ice slide in Asia (about 68m).

Star Flyer is the first inverted roller coaster in the country. The thought of twisting and turning without the conventional cart’s floor will excite you. I think it’s better to ride it during day time, so you’ll feel like superman while flying. Plus, I would love it more if they’ll run the ride longer. Boo for the sudden drop of momentum. I also wish that crews would be gentler when securing passengers, so that genitals won’t be crushed that often. It’s a weak, sensitive point, you know.

Zyklon/Cyclone Loop, as ever, was a rough ride. My lower legs got bruised from the sudden drops, twists, and turns. The safety lock was a bit loose, so I was a bit skeptical if it can really prevent me from falling.

Viking was a bit boring. Fun comes from exaggerated reactions whenever the ship would swing alternately. Issa and I was talking about the girl who was screaming more than she should. Apparently, she’s bungal. We also talked about the older lady who was just in front of her. We thought she was also bungal, but her teeth were just small.

The Surf Dance is a family gondola ride that is about the height of a five-storey building. The 44-seat ride swings upwards, downwards, and sideways. It is the first and only of its kind in the Philippines. I wasn’t able to ride this one because it closed before I can even fall in line. Too bad.

The dining area is also better. We bought food from Outbox, a San Miguel owned, shop. I ordered Kare-kare. They gave me boiled pork, eggplant and banana bud slices, shrimp paste, mixed with über-synthetic orange peanut sauce. Yes, that was kare-kare.

The joke for the night was from this Pinay who has an American boyfriend. Her boyfriend was seated behind us. She was from a ride and was approaching. When she was near enough her boyfriend, she said, “We /beender/.” I know it’s not really funny at this point. You should have /beender/ too.

The issue for the night: Kuya Ateneo (whose eyes I deeply envy and adore) and his substandard-looking girlfriend bitching at Kuya. To quote Joy, “[ay ‘te] kung ayaw mo sa kanya, akin nalang.” Very well said.

My dad texted me asking where I am at. I was forced to be creative.

We practically closed Star City. We were back in Philcoa by 1 a.m.. I texted my dad, “Pa galing akong despedida ng friend kong koreano. Pauwi na ako.” Half-true. Ericka dropped me off at Sandigan Bayan and I waited for a ride for what seems an hour and a half. While waiting, a lady approached from the back and asked, “may dumadaan pa bang Montalban jeep dito?” I told her that I’m not sure. She ended up telling me, “sabay na tayo.” I thought, sabay saan? Sa taxi? Sa tricycle? Sa jeep? Pauwi, I figured. We stood side by side. When it started to drizzle, I gestured to share my umbrella. Apparently, she also has one. She tends to look behind a lot, until she walked away. When I looked back, she was talking to somebody. It’s not out of fear, but of being sneaky that I felt compelled to leave her. I asked an ambulant vendor if I can get a tricycle to drop me off somewhere I know rides are abundant. She gave me directions. When I saw the tricycle, I was puzzled why we weren’t leaving. I found out that I was to wait for three more passengers. In 2:30ish in the morning, is that possible? To my surprise, it was.

I chose to explore the feeling of waking under the cold breeze of the morning. The streets of the subdivision were a bit dark. It was quiet even. Except for that dog who barked nonstop until I passed by him. Halfway through, I got afraid of potential criminals that would pop out of the bushes, so I was practically walking in the middle of the street.

Good thing Chilo was too groggy to bark. I sneaked in. I checked the time only to see it was already 3:30. Then it hit me. I am sembreak.