Jeepneys and Childhood Games

Photo taken here.

"God gave me you" read the hanging signage on the step going inside the jeepney. I love looking at or reading the graffiti messages on public transport just because they're so arbitrary. From suggestive to religious to inspirational to commercial, it's all there. Interesting, huh?

This particular jeepney struck a chord in me. Probably because I have my sister in mind. She leaves for Spain this Saturday morning, have I said that already? Anyway, yes, she's going away and staying in Madrid for one year. My mom would be joining her for a month though, so at least she'd feel less homesick. What keeps me up though is the idea that I could be visiting her next year, in April, in time for her birthday. I got to save major buckets of cash for that! I really hope I get a bonus at the end of the year.

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Photo taken here.

Drove myself to the office again today, and the thing is, I'm really starting to enjoy it. In Quezon City Circle this morning, a jeepney was able to move from one lane to the other and then next via a kid on the passenger seat waving his arm and looking at incoming vehicles. The arm-signal seemed pretty effective, the jeepney got to avenue he needed to just in time before the proper, allowable curve of the road leading to it ended.

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Photo taken here.

In lunch today, my more senior officemates were sharing the toys and games they played when they were young: a wooden ball with a nail and a rope (aka, the "authentic top"); mercury from a thermometer; climbing aratilis trees, sitting on a branch, and eating the tiny fruits from there (I used to climb and pick them myself too but would be too nervous to eat while sitting on a branch, instead I'd keep them in my pockets and eat them when I get home); getting spiders to fight in a stick; getting beatles to fight in a stick; targetting farm animals with a slingshot; bathing in the rain.

Photo taken here.

They practically grew up in the province, they said. Come to think of it, they're country boys and girls! Though I'm a big fanboy of country music, I'm a city boy at heart. That said, my childhood wasn't as boring as they think it is. I played patintero and all the street games kids my age played then. I even used to create swords out of the wooden scrap that our carpenters threw away (context: our house was being rennovated at that time). So there, yes, I think I had a pretty awesome childhood. My sister and I used to hold picnics in our backyard! We would sneak out the banig (mat) from the householdhelp's room ever so quietly, fix ourselves orange juice and peanut butter sandwiches, and off we went to the garden. It was a grand time. And to this day, I can still taste my orange juice dipped peanut butter sandwich.