The Night Before I Celebrate 24

I am two days away from being officially 24 years old, and I am throwing away a party at my place tomorrow night to celebrate that. Almost everything is prepared! There will be suckling pig, big, fat crabs, plenty of shrimp, roast beef, native veggies and my favorite, manggang hilaw! It will be very simple and casual. Just dinner and a lot of catching up. And if I'm lucky to get people buzzed, then a lot of embarrassing karaoke is in the agenda!

Thanks to my mom who is very kind to organize everything for me. I really do hope this won't be my last birthday party in Manila. It makes me wonder, where will I be when I turn 25 next year? Or 26, or 27? I'll blog it a year from now. And two from now. And three from now.

Anyway, I only evited people who are close to me, those whom I've hung out for many years, shared my laughters and frustrations, those who understand why I am this person and those who have helped shape me to be me now. Some of them will be bringing their plus ones, some will be stags, and some, though very apologetic, will be present in spirit.

Part of those who are "spirited" if I must say, is my loving boyfriend, David. Unfortunately, he won't be here to say a toast to 24. :( And it makes me miss him more. Since we became together, we have tried our best to spend time around each other, especially on special occasions. As much as I want to be upset that he won't be here when I blow my birthday cake, I couldn't, because he's still in California. And he's still impatiently waiting for his month's notice to expire. And he's still packing up his things to be closer to me in New York than ever. And we have already planned that we'll have our own celebration in two week's time. And it will be here in Manila, away from people. And it will be under the stars. And besides, the guest room in our house still smells like paint. Fair deal. :)

I was elated when I got a Fedex package from him today! In it were 3 meaningful things: a card with Gumdrop (def'n: what we'll probably name our future baby Chihuahua, there's a story behind that) in it, our Arthur/Marilyn photo and a wonderful book called "A Place in the World called Paris". It's a collection of writings from distinguished authors from the 20th century that reveal their experiences and feelings about that cliched city. The first dozen pages were overflowing with justice, and I couldn't wait to finish it. But nothing gave more justice to Paris than what I found written inside:

Pamy,
There's indeed a place in the world called Paris, and everyday I'm thankful for the magical way it brought us together.
Happy Birthday!
Love Always,
David