Books! --

Even before we left for Singapore, Johann already made it clear that he was going to spend his money on books.

We were there for four days and, each trip out, he bought something to add to his stack of books. When it was time to pack them, I was surprised by how many he actually bought.



The stack on the left is mine. And the tower on the right is his.

I told him that he should post a list of the titles he got on his blog and rate each one. (* to *****)

For the record, there are some titles in his stack that I actually got -- ^_^

Of the few books I bought, I am happiest about Nick Hornby's The Complete Polysyllabic Spree, which I have been reading for the past week. I've always enjoyed Nick Hornby's writing and I appreciate how honest he is and how unassuming. His book 31 Songs, lists the 31 songs he loves and writes about them. It wasn't a list to impress anyone but a list that showed the very human side of Hornby (one of his choices was Puff the Magic Dragon). The Complete Polysyllabic Spree chronicles his reading habits for an entire year, listing books he bought, books he actually read and books he loved. He is very cheeky about his thoughts on popular fiction and literary fiction (I feel I should capitalize the L and the F) -- and makes you feel good about being a reader.

Last Sunday, I found a copy of The Passion of Artemisia by Susan Vreeland. I bought it, thinking it would be the same as Girl with a Pearl Earring. It's an interesting fictional (?) account of Artemisia, one of the few women Renaissance painters.

Curiously, Vreeland's first novel was also about a Vermeer painting. I wonder how that compares to Chevalier's Girl with a Pearl Earring.

* * *

Wedding --

Part of the reason why we went to Manila was to attend the wedding of Johann's fellow Quill people and kabarkada. Johann was actually part of the entourage.

I've gone to Manila to attend my friends' weddings and I never liked how I looked in my other clothes. The first time was in October 2006, 5 months after I gave birth to Seth. I was so... flabby then.

I still am. But I've also learned how to accept myself as I am. (Don't worry, world -- I do exercises and am maintaining my current weight. I will try to lose some of it by next year.)



I did my own makeup and had my haircut that morning at Bench Fix-Katipunan. ^_^

Johann took this picture of me while we were waiting for the rest of the people to arrive.

This is Johann with the groom.

It was a wonderful and very heartfelt wedding. The best part was the Coffee Bar. (I didn't get to try it because we had an early flight back to Iloilo the next day and the caffeine would have kept me awake.)