when the livin' is easy

For once, a hiatus that didn't involve stress, harassment, or sleepless nights. My mother and I woke up early yesterday morning, full of ambitious plans, but found ourselves foiled by the overwhelming heat. We'll go in five minutes, I promised her, sprawled out beside her on their bed.

Two minutes, she confirmed, and within the next two minutes we were both peacefully napping. We woke up an hour or so later, drenched in sweat, and decided to give up on energy conservation and switch the airconditioning on. The cat wandered in while we lazed on the bed, alternating between dozing off and lazily reading from the selection of magazines scattered on the floor.

I haven't had a vacation since July 2003, so I've felt quite justified about oversleeping and lounging about in airconditioned rooms, these past few days. My mother arrived unexpectedly from LA this past Monday, and we've had fun just going around Manila and running errands. Thursday I kidnapped everybody and took them to see a movie - we were supposed to watch The Interpreter but ended up seeing The Pacifier instead, mostly because my mother is not fond of movies that have very intricate plots. I see her point: real life involves so much stress and aggravation and puzzle-solving that it would be pointless to go to a movie just to give yourself a hernia trying to figure out a plot twist. Hence we watched Vin Diesel romance the mom from Gilmore Girls while singlehandedly counselling a family of five through their grief over the loss of their husband/father. I didn't know Navy SEALs were so handy, but hey, you learn something new everyday.

I am hereby making a resolution to watch more movies this summer, simply because I have the time. My friend and fellow FSO, S, recommended The Interpreter to me because apparently it involves diplomatic shenanigans, and since the two of us have long been making plans to rack up some diplomatic shenanigans of our own, I suppose I will have to watch the movie for research. Good mischief-making is always carefully plotted, researched, and carried out, and we intend to be the very best of mischief-makers. Be proud, Philippines. Then there's Mr. and Mrs. Smith, which aside from having both Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, also has the delectable Adam Brody ; there's Hotel Rwanda, which I will watch because there is something excruciatingly beautiful about compassion in a time of savagery; and naturally, there is Star Wars 3. I kind of know that the latter will suck, and I am dreading it, but you can't not rubberneck at such a spectacular trainwreck. Besides, Ewan McGregor is hot.

Right now I am in UP, aimlessly noodling away time while I wait for the afternoon sessions of the Philippine Blogging Summit. This sounds like intolerable arrogance on my part, but I plead innocence from that charge; I went to bed at 2AM this morning fully intending to wake up and get to UP in time for the 8AM kickoff, but found myself oozing out of bed instead at past 9AM. I actually managed to make it to UP by 10AM, but realized that, quite stupidly, I had forgotten where the exact venue of the event was. I trekked my way to the UP Shopping Center, found an internet center, and here I am now, secure in the knowledge that I now know where I have to be at 1PM.

Tomorrow I will be in Pampanga, hopefully in a cold pool. My father said beach, but as I loathe swimming in saltwater (with seaweed! and scuttly things on the sea bottom! and fish! Live fish!), most likely if there is no pool available I will slather myself in suntan lotion and lay myself out on a blanket to fry.

It's 12:45 now, so I suppose I should be off, as I will be walking to the venue. I hope it's cold in the NISMED Auditorium ...