no more subways

so today must have been the day of transportation for crystal. ok, let's begin with the day.

first off, i woke up with my heart pounding SUPER SUPER FAST. my room was still super dark, so i was angry that i was awake. i hear the roosters, but moreso, i realized my heart was beating super fast...to the beat of the club-like, trance-like music that was blasting from the jeepney outside that was waiting to pick up passengers!! oh HECK no. that was the first thought that greeted me at 5:10am. soooo thank goodness i was able to get back to sleep!

so then i woke up around 6ish, so that i can greet my taho man...i told him to come this morning at 6:30am (his usual time). well...he didn't come. ok, so i was ok with that. but then, as i was getting ready for my shower, i hear, tahooooooo...like, 4 times. literally. so then i was like, ok, he'll just go away when he sees that i don't come...and then...after telling him NOT to do this last week...he rung the doorbell! haha i got my money, greeted him downstairs, and then, he said his usual, "good morning, ma'm!!" with his super big smile. soooo i only gave him a small filipino talkin' to. it was really nice too because i forgot my mug, and so i was gonna go back into the house, and sure enough, estella met me with a mug in hand. :) such good community! haha...she's also the one who told me, the other night she had a dream that i was so happy with my taho. hahaha, she's having dreams about me and this delicious delicacy! haha!

ok, so then...in the am, i get on two jeepneys to get to work. the 2nd jeepney to work, i hopped into it so quickly, without noticing first there was no one in it. that's like, rule #1. do not get into jeepneys without anyone in it. oops. but i really liked it, and i actually was able to observe my surroundings along the route, a little better. it was like a private vehicle, for the price of a communal vehicle. awesome! i also almost missed my stop, cause i was distracted by the vendors and the people outside already, so early in the am!

work was nice today. i think the biggest challenge today was teaching fractions...in tagalog. YUP. haha, how do you even do that? it didn't matter - i think i got through to them...a little bit. :) that is all i can do! soon i will be teaching them english and how to write essays. awesome!

2nd transportation story...on my way home from mass, i waited about 25 minutes for a jeepney (of course, they were ALL full!) cause it was pouring outside. so then, i was already like, ahhh i'm late for dinner! so i walk to the other loading zone for jeepneys after a failed attempt to get a taxi (i was desperate!)...i was literally dodging the walking traffic, i was walking like i was in new york. and filipinos here walk SLOW, like, dawdle status...i saw heads turn, i heard people like, making noises as i zipped past em, haha, but i did not care. i was hungry, and i didn't want my community to worry about me (it was already dark!), and it was raining. bad combination!

so then, i get to the loading zone, and of course, no jeeps were going to where i needed to go. i squeezed onto one, then had to get off after he said he wasn't going where i needed to go. then i hopped onto another one, caught my breath, then was told i had to get off cause he wasn't going to my place. booooo. so then, i basically had to go to EACH jeepney lined up and ask them if they would stop where i needed to go. FINALLY, i got a yes, ok. immediately, i hopped into the front seat. i did NOT care. pretty bold move, crystal! i looked back, and saw ALL men, probably except for one female, cramped in the back. and then me, having a full two seats to myself in the front. hahahaha, i laughed inside, and after realizing the fact that i jumped in the front and claimed it as my own, i saw the driver do a little smirk to himself. hahaha, and then, some guy jumped in the front next to me. there i was, sandwiched between the driver, and some kid to the right of me. as if we were all family. haha!

hahahha, jesus was sitting on the front engine. i knew it. hahaha...i was actually thinking of a quick escape plan, in CASE of an emergency. there were so many cars, it was raining, and i was not in a good space. hahaha...eventually, i got home, changed really quick, had a delicious dinner, then a beautiful holy hour with the community. even though i got home, and i was like a soggy dog (cause it was POURING), the conclusion of the story, is that i got home. :)

today told me, crystal. nice work. yessssss. jeepneys, i got you.