ANOTHER lonely Eid

This is gonna be another lonely eid... it's so hard spending the entire day at home wondering what to do and have no company ...I feel like a useless creature. And i miss those times when Eid used to be super fun.. when it was the time of the year we'd look most forward to.. and we had a constant barrage of guests...

Here's one of my best Eids... Winter of 1999

ok i could try and lose weight once and for all this Eid.. perhaps...

Tagaytay.. Fall of 2006... the time I had the epiphany... Need that inspiration again..

A New Beginning...

for sure.

Back to Oral Pathology

One year from home

Eid without Ammi and Abbu

It's my first Eid without either parent. And it's sad. Nothing is the same. I totally forgot to bring a set of shalwar kameez worthy of Eid... even though I have at least 6 brand new shalwar kameez hanging in my closet. I woke up late...like super late. There was no sheer khurma to gulp down before Eid prayers. There was no mehndi and no family lunch.Even chand raat was so lonely. So i de-stressed myself in the kitchen churning up some novel mattar pulao which bordered more on chicken fried rice.

Then my younger brother and I dined together reminiscing about bygone Eids and other childhood pranks. I laughed loudly and uncontrollably... the shrieks of laughter reverberated throughout the house ... By the end of the meal, the joy, the bliss and the spirit of jubilation of Eid had returned ... at least somewhat...

Here's my brother and I. I wanted to re-experience the feeling of eating with my hands... so here I am putting a chunk of rice in my mouth lol

I MISS YOU, AMMI

Billy... my cat REVISITED

Billy, my cat in Manila 2005-2006 was the bestest pet ever. Abbu picked him up from some street in Makati where he was roaming aimlessly apparently abandoned by his mommy hehe... He brought him home and he became our sweetheart. Ammi's biggest fear was how he would be toilet-trained... but he surprised us... he was INNATELY toilet-trained hahaha... It took a consultation from my ailurophile (cat-lover) teacher to establish its gender but anyway... he was such a good kitty.

Here it is with my brother, whose loving side with animals I saw for the first time with Billy the cat

And with me... I loved to give him anti-flea baths and learnt so much about cat and dog fleas in the process :)

Come on, look at the camera kitty

My Family

Jewish Museum and Synagogue

Blast from the past

I was going through some old photos and chanced upon this one. It was taken May 7, 2007 on a trip. The person who took this photo passed away 23 days later in a car accident. Unimaginable when the four of us had lunch together at this stopover on some highway on the way back to Manila... Here we are grinning for the camera, totally oblivious of the future. How fragile life is...

Saturday dinner

Saturday breakfast :)

the happiest person in the world

I gained access to my blog once again... Wow, after 4 long years... it's the sweetest moment ever. Some how, i can walk down nostalgia lane... capture those moments again and be mesmerized at how far I have come...

Eefa... you're the HAPPIEST person on this planet.

Silver Quill

Silver Quill
Originally uploaded by eefa87.

Leashing the Black Dog

Logo of the Black Dog Institute



Churchill who coined "Black dog" to refer to his depression




Franz Kafka and his mouse "Josephine, die Sängerin", in which the central character is a mouse, who sings - or squeaks

Billy: My Cat

oh and isn't my cat a cutie? It's getting really naughty

Here it's biting off its own tail

Oucchhh.. it's my finger, kitty!






Kitty love...





I should be in bed... havta wake up at 6am, work out and then it's gonna be a looong, tirin' day but heck I'm ready for the challenge :)

A Crazed Pre-Med Student...

A look at my utterly disorganized and scattered life. Here's my desk right before an important exam...



Because the 24 hours of the day and the allotted hours of study are not enough, there's an anatomy chart under the shower to maximize shower time.. after all, no moment is too brief to be wasted...




It's also important to curb the few minutes that are wasted everyday in attending to nature's call.

Thus, I cannot overemphasize the need to keep a couple of books at hand to occupy oneself while one engages in this undeniably necessary need.

That Falling Feeling...

Finally...the economics project is complete... That's significantly de-stressed me..

A sneak peak at the economics assignment:

Wow, they actually have renovation work in Manila!!! The view from the living room...

And the view from my bedroom...

Tagaytay Retreat

Last weekend, I had my LASARET retreat. Wasn't really looking forward coz of all the negative feedback but the experience turned out to be very fulfilling indeed.

After hearing the experiences of friends and acquaintances from upper batches and those already through with LASARET, I didn’t receive a very favorable response. However, after going through with the retreat myself, I can sincerely say that I was genuinely moved, touched and inspired. I also learnt that I should take other people’s advice with a grain of salt hehe...

My favorite part of the retreat was the Solidarity Meal. College life, for me, has been for the most part, an emotional roller coaster ride. During the Meal, it really hit home that my life is after all, MY life. I can’t subsititute for another person’s life. I have to accept the goodies and not -the -so –good aspects of my life and strive to be the best I can be. The fruits, the bitter herbs and the sweets all bear a poignant resemblance to life’s mixed experiences.

I am glad that I can say that even though I'm a practicing Muslim, attending a Christocentric retreat has rejuvenated my relationship with God. Now I engage in a regular, healthy dialog with Allah.

Some photos I took of the place... So scenic. I'm jealous the nuns get to stay their 24/7 :P

Typhoon Aftermath...

Milenyo wreaked havoc in Metro Manila. Many areas of Makati City are still out of power. I feel for them. We were without electricity for a whole day.

It's the strongest typhoon in Manila in 11 years. That's the photo I took from my bedroom...

After staying home 3 days due to the typhoon aftermath, I must tell you how annoyed and pissed off I am.

What did I do? I studied

Last night, I worked out after a whole darn week. It was one of THE BEST if not the best. Not just that, the best part was that I immensely enjoyed the whole workout. Because I took up running primarily for weight