Friday Night Delights

First Friday of the month yesterday, and everyone who pass by Quiapo almost daily know how slow the flow of traffic becomes every Friday -- but it's horrible when it's first Friday. Since Vichie, my usual buddy while waiting for an FX in Quiapo every night went home to Pangasinan, I suddenly thought of trying another way home -- LRT Line 1.

I decided to walk with Auie to San Sebastian Church to take a jeepney going to SM Manila - LRT. At Central Terminal, I was quite delighted when I noticed that the place isn't that crowded. SV tickets of LRT Line 1 and 2 (otherwise known as the Purple Line - the one which runs from Recto to Santolan, via Aurora Blvd.) can be used interchangeably and since I have an SV ticket from line 2, I didn't have to lineup and buy a ticket. My initial delight suddenly disappeared into the February night air when the first train stopped in front of me -- the door opened into a jam-packed flock of ladies eager to go wherever they are going. Okay, I am not in a hurry, so I just let that one pass without squeezing myself into the crowded train. And then another train arrived -- and then another -- and another one -- until I told myself that I can't stand there forever. So, when the fifth train arrived, I managed to get in. 

Sometimes, travelling alone without really having to hurry-up and run against time is quite cool. I get to notice people around, hear what they are saying and walk slow. I encountered different sorts of people in that train ride:

• there was that woman who kept on apologizing to an old lady. The story went like this: the woman lost her balance when the train door opened and afraid of falling out of the train and being stepped on like a doormat, she grabbed onto whatever it is that got hold of, which happened to be the old lady's armpit! Of course, the old lady instinctively blurted out, "aray, yun kili-kili ko, ano ba!" but the woman held on to hey armpit, as she equates it to holding on to dear life at that time. When the train door closed, the commotion subsided. The two women involved were both laughing as they recount what has just transpired, from each others point of view. The woman who lost her balance apologized again and again to the old lady, saying that she was really afraid that she will fall, so she grabbed onto anything and it happened to be the old lady's armpit. The old lady also apologized to the woman for shouting at her instinctively. She said, she reacted that way because it really hurts, and described the feeling like "parang sinipit ng talangka." But then she told the woman that she just let her hold on to her armpit, knowing that if she removed the woman's hand and anything bad happens to her, she her conscience will surely bother her so much. And they laughed as they say more I am sorry, and consoling words to each other. 

• to my left there was this woman talking with her companion about her life with her husband, and how she appreciates the care which the guy has given to her when she was pregnant. She said that even though both of them were working, and she knew that the guy was also tired, he would still take care of her and do household chores at night before they sleep. 

• at my back, there was a student busy talking with someone on her mobile phone.

• one woman told her companion that the LRT management should think of ways to have more train coaches. The other woman said, "dapat siguro parang double-decker na bus yun mga train!" -- And her comment made me think what it would look like to have a double-decked LRT. Feasible or not, I thought that was a cool idea!

• there was a group of women talking and laughing loud somewhere. The security guard later reprimanded them and asked them to keep their voices and laughter down to respect other passengers. 

A lot of other things happened until the train reached Roosevelt (Munoz) Station, my stop. I went down and took a jeep going to SM north, where there's an FX terminal going to Don Antonio. Since it's Friday and the night is quite young, I walked around the huge mall for sometime. I even met Atty. Parajas at the Department Store. Suddenly, I thought of passing by the Bearhuggs store at the basement level of the main mall, just to check if they already have a stock of the Funny Dog. Okay, I called the store on January 31 and I was informed that they don't have a stock yet, but I thought, since I am already in SM North, why not give the store a visit. And my delight came back when I saw it there, standing among the hug-gable creatures. Of course I took it home!!!

Funny Dog - up close with the round nose

Flashback: last December, Hazel, Joey and I trooped to Mel's apartment for a Christmas get together. And that was the time that I met Molar, Mel's toy dog who's super wide grin is contagious. Noticing that I was often holding Molar throughout the night, Hazel dragged me and Melody to embark on a mission: find Molar's siblings in store. And Hazel was the one who asked for the store's telephone number and gave it to me! hehehe... Now, I have my own Funny Dog (that's the store code name). It doesn't have a name yet...wanna suggest one?

Funny Dog