Unable to sleep, I decided to work on my PowerPoint presentation while listening to some background music. Then this song started playing and for a brief second, my entire first romance came flashing through my mind. I love the way songs have a way of capturing a moment so perfectly.
It was around 5:30 p.m on a Wednesday and as usual, Mike was over at my place hanging out. We had already spent the last three months pretending to be "just friends", even though by this time, he had given me a single red rose, told me how hot he thought I was, given me countless little pecks, and we had even developed a little routine. He would come over to my house every weekday at around 4:30 after school. We would sit and watch TV or talk about nothing in particular. Then at 5:30, we would go for a very long walk which usually ended up at some hills where we would sit and watch the sunset. Then he would walk me home, say bye with a hug or a peck and turn around and leave.
On this particular day, we were sitting on the couch talking with the radio on in the background. We were getting ready to head out for our daily walk, and I had just reached for the remote to turn the stereo off when K-Ci and Jojo started singing. That song had just come out and was a new hit. Out of nowhere, Mike asked me to dance, and feeling a little shy, I agreed. The first minute or so was ok, then I started noticing things for the first time. I noticed how tall he was, my head was resting on his chest. It seemed like for the first time, I could smell his scent, which was clean and slightly perfumed. I became aware of my own heart beat, and started paying special attention to his hand wrapped around my waist. I also noticed an odd feeling that I'd never experienced before.
As soon as the song was over, I pulled back, but Mike did not let go of my waist. Instead, he stared at me intently and I had no choice but to look into those deep brown eyes before quickly looking away and blushing. Then I noticed him for the first time. Really noticed him. He was actually very good looking and had the whitest, sexiest smile I have ever seen on a guy. My body seemed to be experiencing all sorts of weird sensations and my heart was almost jumping out of my chest. I needed some fresh air. As I made the move to disentangle myself from his grip, he lowered his head and before I could digest what the hell was going on, his lips were on mine and his tongue was busy trying to pry my mouth open. Finally, I gave in and parted my lips, and a few seconds later, I heard an "ouch".
Effectively, that moment was dead. Poor guy was holding onto his mouth while I apologized profusely. Yes, I bit his tongue. It was my first kiss after all. That day, our walk seemed different. We didn't say a single word to each other and when we finally reached our spot on the hill and sat down to watch the sunset, he uttered his first words. They were words of advice on how to kiss. Somehow, I should have been embarassed, but the way he put it made me at ease and we even laughed about his bitten tongue. He went on to give me tips and we had plenty of practice after that.
Our little routine continued for another few months before I moved to boarding school to start form one. We never officially decided we were dating, and we never officially said goodbye. As quietly and suddenly as he had entered my life, he was gone. He gave me a really great first impression on relationships. I've never seen him nor heard from him since, and I do wonder whether he ever fulfilled his dream of becoming a lawyer. Maybe someday we will bump into each other. It's not an entirely strange hope. It is a small world after all. Cheers to all first innocent loves. There are days I wish I could rewind the clock.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Confession is Good for the Soul
I'm up three whole hours before my alarm goes off (why?!) and I thought it might be fun in a twisted kind of way to follow HnH's lead and confess. Yikes!
Cruelest thing I have ever done (so far)
Way back when I was in primo, I was very shy and withdrawn. Needless to say, that meant I wasn't one of the popular kids since I preferred to read and mind my own business. It came as a surprise to me (and a lot of classmates) when I became friends with one of the most popular kids in the class. Of course being popular comes with a price tag, so I took it upon myself to start bullying and teasing another shy, quiet girl. This only made me more popular. I called her names in front of the whole class, and even though I hated the feeling, I kept at it. It wasn't until I saw her in my church a month later that I was utterly mortified. Turned out she actually went to my church and my mom and her mom were friends. I never apologized, she never said anything to her mom, but I never teased or bullied her again.
One thing that I have ever done that I regret
Agreeing to go out on a date with a certain DJ after a year of being friends and flirting like crazy during his gigs at bashes. I knew it was a bad idea from the beginning, but I went ahead and stifled that little voice in my head. I have never been so sorry in my life. That was the last date I went on before I met my current boo, Steve.
One thing I have ever done that was wrong but I didn't regret
I stole Steve's phone (which was dead), went and bought a charger for it, read his text messages, then called him and told him about the stolen phone (hence my first hilarious posts on this blog titled "psycho-gal"). In retrospect, that was the best thing I ever did for our relationship...LOL..I can feel some guys flinching...
Best revenge I have ever had
When I was in college as an undergrad, I had a Kenyan roommate that was actually the best roommate I've ever had in my life (as far as co-existing in the same space goes). Over the course of the year, we became good friends, so it came as a complete shock to me when I found out she was sleeping with my boyfriend. First thing I did was kick her out (we lived in the dorms, but I didn't care). She was a member of one of those online Kenyan forums and she had a sexy-sounding name and was very fond of bashing other people's looks whenever they posted their photos. Since she ain't all that good looking, I found the worst possible photo of her and posted it on that website. That post got over a thousand hits and all the comments the photo received were negative. I was very satisfied.
Worst fantasy
You know, hate is a very strong word. I generally don't hate people (at least not for very long), rather I dislike them and if they're really bad, like roommate above, I dislike them intensely. But, there's one person in my life that I hate and abhor for forever screwing me over. For that person, I always fantasize that they die a very slow and painful death that involves beatings, torture, and eventually, fire. Yeah.
Worst lie I ever told
As an undergrad, I was one of those studious students that every teacher loves. One day, after a weekend rendezvous, I woke up to the realization that I had an exam that week that I totally forgot about. Since I would need more that the two days I had to study if I wanted to get an A, I wrote my prof an email and told him that I was out of town for a funeral (I don't even remember whose funeral I said it was). I skipped class that week and after the exam, I went to his office and started sobbing uncontrollably (out of guilt), saying I was having a hard time concentrating and I didn't think I could take the test and pass. Well, that day I learned it pays to be a teacher's pet. Let's just say I didn't have to take the exam and wrote a paper instead. I still feel guilty and I could never look the prof in the eye after that. I didn't even go to him for a recommendation letter, even though I knew his would probably be one of the strongest letters I will ever get in my life.
One person I would kill if I could get away with it
See "worst fantasy" above
Moment I wish I could reverse
One summer, my family took a road trip and I somehow met a Kenyan guy that was everything a girl could ask for. He was doing his Ph.D, was very hot, and after a few hours spent together, I knew he had a good personality. We exchanged email addresses and kept in touch for a year. The next summer, I decided to do an internship at his school, and of course this was a fling waiting to happen. Back then, I was still a commitment phobe, so I made it very clear that this was a summer fling and nothing more. On my very last day there before I left, he used the "L" word. My reaction is something I wish I could take back. I've broken plenty of hearts, but I've never hurt a guy as bad as I hurt him.
One (bad?) thing I would really really like to do before I die
Make out with another girl...
There, now I can get ready for class. Looks like I'll be making plenty of trips to Starbucks to help me get through the day :(
Cruelest thing I have ever done (so far)
Way back when I was in primo, I was very shy and withdrawn. Needless to say, that meant I wasn't one of the popular kids since I preferred to read and mind my own business. It came as a surprise to me (and a lot of classmates) when I became friends with one of the most popular kids in the class. Of course being popular comes with a price tag, so I took it upon myself to start bullying and teasing another shy, quiet girl. This only made me more popular. I called her names in front of the whole class, and even though I hated the feeling, I kept at it. It wasn't until I saw her in my church a month later that I was utterly mortified. Turned out she actually went to my church and my mom and her mom were friends. I never apologized, she never said anything to her mom, but I never teased or bullied her again.
One thing that I have ever done that I regret
Agreeing to go out on a date with a certain DJ after a year of being friends and flirting like crazy during his gigs at bashes. I knew it was a bad idea from the beginning, but I went ahead and stifled that little voice in my head. I have never been so sorry in my life. That was the last date I went on before I met my current boo, Steve.
One thing I have ever done that was wrong but I didn't regret
I stole Steve's phone (which was dead), went and bought a charger for it, read his text messages, then called him and told him about the stolen phone (hence my first hilarious posts on this blog titled "psycho-gal"). In retrospect, that was the best thing I ever did for our relationship...LOL..I can feel some guys flinching...
Best revenge I have ever had
When I was in college as an undergrad, I had a Kenyan roommate that was actually the best roommate I've ever had in my life (as far as co-existing in the same space goes). Over the course of the year, we became good friends, so it came as a complete shock to me when I found out she was sleeping with my boyfriend. First thing I did was kick her out (we lived in the dorms, but I didn't care). She was a member of one of those online Kenyan forums and she had a sexy-sounding name and was very fond of bashing other people's looks whenever they posted their photos. Since she ain't all that good looking, I found the worst possible photo of her and posted it on that website. That post got over a thousand hits and all the comments the photo received were negative. I was very satisfied.
Worst fantasy
You know, hate is a very strong word. I generally don't hate people (at least not for very long), rather I dislike them and if they're really bad, like roommate above, I dislike them intensely. But, there's one person in my life that I hate and abhor for forever screwing me over. For that person, I always fantasize that they die a very slow and painful death that involves beatings, torture, and eventually, fire. Yeah.
Worst lie I ever told
As an undergrad, I was one of those studious students that every teacher loves. One day, after a weekend rendezvous, I woke up to the realization that I had an exam that week that I totally forgot about. Since I would need more that the two days I had to study if I wanted to get an A, I wrote my prof an email and told him that I was out of town for a funeral (I don't even remember whose funeral I said it was). I skipped class that week and after the exam, I went to his office and started sobbing uncontrollably (out of guilt), saying I was having a hard time concentrating and I didn't think I could take the test and pass. Well, that day I learned it pays to be a teacher's pet. Let's just say I didn't have to take the exam and wrote a paper instead. I still feel guilty and I could never look the prof in the eye after that. I didn't even go to him for a recommendation letter, even though I knew his would probably be one of the strongest letters I will ever get in my life.
One person I would kill if I could get away with it
See "worst fantasy" above
Moment I wish I could reverse
One summer, my family took a road trip and I somehow met a Kenyan guy that was everything a girl could ask for. He was doing his Ph.D, was very hot, and after a few hours spent together, I knew he had a good personality. We exchanged email addresses and kept in touch for a year. The next summer, I decided to do an internship at his school, and of course this was a fling waiting to happen. Back then, I was still a commitment phobe, so I made it very clear that this was a summer fling and nothing more. On my very last day there before I left, he used the "L" word. My reaction is something I wish I could take back. I've broken plenty of hearts, but I've never hurt a guy as bad as I hurt him.
One (bad?) thing I would really really like to do before I die
Make out with another girl...
There, now I can get ready for class. Looks like I'll be making plenty of trips to Starbucks to help me get through the day :(
Monday, May 19, 2008
Life Sure Ain't a Bed of Roses
I just looked at my last post and it seems like that post was written a decade ago. I still can't believe it's only been five months since the year started on a sour note politically and spiralled downhill from there in my own personal life. While I was posting about blogging responsibly and trying to get together my friends and family to donate to the victims of election violence, I had no idea that my own family was about to fall victim to the sudden violence that creeped up on us. From there, it was one piece of bad news after another. I will probably get to blog about some of it in the coming weeks.
Amid all the tribulations, I can still look back and be thankful that things were not worse. I was afraid that I would somehow lose my spot in med school after my grades went south due to all the personal ish I was trying to deal with, but I do thank God that somehow, I made it through and will be matriculating in August. Another lesson learnt: never underestimate the power of love, be it from family, friends, or a lover. It makes all the difference in the world.
Special thanks to the few concerned bloggers that sent me emails wondering where I disappeared off to. I'm back now. My posts might be a little intermittent, but they'll be there nonetheless!
Amid all the tribulations, I can still look back and be thankful that things were not worse. I was afraid that I would somehow lose my spot in med school after my grades went south due to all the personal ish I was trying to deal with, but I do thank God that somehow, I made it through and will be matriculating in August. Another lesson learnt: never underestimate the power of love, be it from family, friends, or a lover. It makes all the difference in the world.
Special thanks to the few concerned bloggers that sent me emails wondering where I disappeared off to. I'm back now. My posts might be a little intermittent, but they'll be there nonetheless!
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