Caroleen’s Treasures

What a day! Early morning I tried to work, like any other day I will be in and out of the tool. Since my schedule is 5 pm to 1 am, I can work only during morning until early afternoon when the queue is high. Then off again whenever queue drops. After I logged out the second time at half past 8, I discovered I could not get in other sites and was redirected to Smart Bro page. We called Smart Bro and they said our internet connection is temporarily disconnected. WHAT!??!!!! Donald has paid one month bill yesterday through LBC so I asked why. The lady said I have to wait 3 working days before my account get reactivated again. And since I have two months balance all in all and was now temporarily disconnected, I need to settle the whole amount I owed them. I almost yelled to the lady that I have not paid the whole two months bill because they still owe me a refund or rebate for having NO internet connection for A WEEK last July. Thinking I am still the one on the lossing end here (since there is no other internet provider here in the province and that I really need to have my connection back so I can work), I sent Donald over to pay the remaining balance. Then I called them again and was told I have to wait for 24 hours before I get reconnected. Maybe they are just afraid of me being from Mindanao, that I may send them over a batallion of MILF (just kidding!), they reconnected my internet at half past 4 in the afternoon. If only they did not act that quick, I will definitely blog about how bad their services. In fairness to the lady whom I got to talk (and almost yelled), she accommodates very well and is very professional in handling customers. I honestly could not do her job. Maybe I would yell too or just hang up But I also thought, maybe they always get the same call each day and they are used to raging complains that they developed this sense of peace while talking to a dissapointed customer.

Other than this event, my day went well. Ella went to school like usual. When she arrived from school, she began her oration of thanking God that we had a TV All she did was play with her babies and watch TV while we tried to take a nap. The heat is making me more nauseated. When I feel sick, I hold it as much as I can. Throwing up makes my heart palpitate and I hate the feeling like I was drowning.

We did our grocery shopping in the afternoon. Just picked some items we need and headed home. Donald put together the screen that we used before in our store and put the chicks inside. They are growing fast. We are laughing at their sizes…like DO RE MI FA. It is good they don’t have the same sizes so in time for them to get in the pan, we can butcher one at a time.

I was not in the best mood to blog tonight…but since I wasn’t able to blog much about what has transpired last Thursday night until yesterday when I was having issues with my internet, I decided to beg to my fingers and my brain to at least write one decent post tonight. Glad they agreed.

Last Thursday morning, my internet was slowing down. I thought it will get pick up speed at night. Before we had dinner, I posted one tag and was planning to post another entry after dinner. But when I sat infront of my puter to write a novel for the day, the internet is having its MOOD SWINGS. I could not open any site and I began to panick a little but feel eased somehow that I can sleep early that night as we are having some special visitors the following day. I waited for a few more hours but to no good. So at past midnight, I crawled in bed hoping that I can access to my site when I woke up.

At 7 am, Tatang and Inang were already here bringing in coffee and rice for the visitors. Uncle Dencio, the preacher from Davao City, and his wife Ate Leah arrived at 10 am with the team of other preachers and church workers for the monthly workshop here in Trento and the other neighboring town. They were about eight and they had coffee and lunch here. Inang and Tatang are very busy the past weeks and there was no exception that day and today. So they just pop up here every few hours and leave again. It was actually blessing in disguise that I do not have internet connection as I had time to fix the visitor’s meals. After lunch, the others left for the other town and Uncle Dencio and Ate Leah stayed. We had a nice time with them as they are our close friends back in Davao. At 6pm Donald had a great news when he arrived from the market. He said there is an internet connection and I knew it then when I went to check it. Yipey!!!! I can get online!!!! The couple had a body massage by an old woman from the neighborhood just before dinner. We had “dinegdeng” for dinner, an Ilocano vegetable dish cooked with fish paste. At night before bedtime, it rained and I was chilling a little. I just love hiding underneath my blanket when it gets cold like this.

This morning, I and Donald are up early to prepare breakfast. We don’t usually have breakfast, but for the visitors we will serve them their requested breakfast. Boiled eggplant, bitter gourd tops and quail eggs was set on the table and the couple are happy to have vegetables again. In Davao you seldom can get fresh vegetables. After breakfast, they had a chat with Ate Leah’s brother in Kentucky. They had a nice time talking with him, then time to get a shower and prepare for the workshop for the church members which will be conducted by the couple. I stayed inside the house while they are there in the chapel. I prepared lunch with Tatang while running back and forth on the puter. When lunch was ready, I sat infront of here with my lunch on my desk. Bihon guisado! My favorite especially when I was the one who cooked. Time flies so fast that at 2pm they left for Davao.

When they are gone, the members stayed for a while to have a meeting and to conduct a visitation and bible study on one of the neighbors. I and Ella went to pick up my earnings from blogging that was sent through Western Union by my sister. Ella was so sleepy that she was complaining almost the whole time we were there. Then we went to the market and bought vegetables, fish paste, mangoes, mongo beans and she had picked a cellhpone toy. After the market, we headed to the grocery store and picked some items.

It was such a long weekend for me as I had back pains from straining my muscles. Ella and Donald were off to dreamland, while I was hoping I can get this done and crawl to bed too….my eyes are shutting off by themselves and I needed some toothpicks to keep them open.

Wohooooh!!!! My internet is back. For 24 hours I was going crazy about not being online. Donald called Smart this morning and was told we will just observe for 24 hours as other sites are having no problems, only with our site here. I think it is God’s plan as the other brethren from Davao arrived in the morning for tomorrow’s ladies’ and men’s class. So I had time to fix them coffee, lunch and dinner. Uncle Dencio, the preacher from Davao, and his wife Ate Leah were staying with us. They are old friends of ours and we had a nice time catching up together. I fixed the other room for them. I hope they can sleep well there as it only has single bed.If only I had money, I will get a room for them at the cheap hotels or inns here in town.

Geee…I have just finished doing the laundry this morning and my back really gives me pain As usual I have an ever supportive assistant. I did the rinsing while Donald did the hanging…and Ella…Oh yes, we have a daughter! I almost forgot. She was busy on her surveys around the neighbors yard I called her for a shower when the last piece of cloth was hung, after her ’twas my turn. We went to the market together. Yes TOGETHER…the three of us. Like lion, lioness and the cub out of the jungle. We have to order Ella’s birthday cake since we do not have oven. It was real hard here, bakers are hard to understand what they are trying to say. They don’t have sample pictures and were not sure how much will it be. I must say most people here do not have cakes on birthdays which gives sense of why they seem to be surprised when I placed an order. At last we found one bakery which accepts order BUT the decorations will come from Davao. A good 3 hour drive from here. And I was like, WHAT?! They do not have stocks as what I presumed earlier that people here don’t do birthday cakes. But hey, Ella will only be 5 and she was begging for a cake. So to make the story short, I placed an order for a cake for $12 without knowing what will it look like

Then next we went to the biggest grocery store here, I told you it is the biggest. So we went in and get some things we can use for Ella’s birthday. The disposable plates, forks and spoons and glasses too, ingredients for her most requested spaghetti, some goodies, banner, party hats and we ordered balloons too. She was so excited though as we always tease her that we will only have bread and juice for her and her friends.

My antenna was transferred from the tree up to the top of the chapel. Should have done last week but funds are not available so Donald did the exercise of tree climbing each time the wind blew my antenna to the other direction. Yesterday was pretty slow…I thought I had problems with the antenna itself that is why we contacted the “antenna guy” to transfer its location today. But when I got to read on my sister Crislyn’s blog that her internet connection was down yesterday, I grinned feeling so lucky I had internet the whole day. As the old adage goes “slowly but surely”.

I woke up and showered early, Tatang will fetch me for a Business Opportunity Meeting in town. While waiting for him, I checked my mails, write a few letters and worked on a story. I am not yet done with it when he came, so I left my work undone.

The BOM went well…it was conducted by a company selling soap, coffee, food supplements, herbal sanitary napkin and the magnetic-therapheutic jewelries. This jewelry was said to magnetize all the toxins out of your body which is secreted through urine and sweat. And the fascinating thing is, you feel a lot more energized when you wear it!

It was past 1 in the afternoon when I arrived home. I sat straight on my pc to finish what I am writing…to my dismay the connection went on and off…as the wind blew, the antenna on top of the tree sways too…and that made my internet doze on and off. At one moment it says connected, then it has a lovely red X the next moment….this goes on and on for hours. And boy I wanted Donald to climb up there and hold the antenna still until I am done. He called Smart and the one who installed it, they will transfer it on top of the chapel by Monday and there would be no more dancing antenna by then.

Donald and Tatang had visited 4 households this afternoon and Ella was sooo excited that Sunday School is just a sleep away. We will make Mother’s Day Cards tomorrow and hope she won’t insist on having a lesson about Pooh