Saturday 24 February 2007

Instead of taking the bus to Tacloban to buy food, Ai is at a special meeting called by the mayor to work out her coming election campaign.

The headache has now cleared after two weeks. There is some lower abdominal discomfort but the sickness has calmed down. She is in good spirits, with lots of fun text messages.

We have the difficulty of obtaining a certificate of no impediment. This has to state that I have no
previous marriage or unresolved divorce. It has to meet Philippine requirements, but is issued by the Australian Embassy in Manila. Then checked by the Philippine Foreign Office. each step involves expense.

But hopefully, we can get a visitor's visa in time for Ai to travel with me to Melbourne on 17 April, so that the babe will be born here in October.

Peter keeps urging me that she will be bored here at Lara, and to move into Melbourne.
--- So I will post a few pictures of Lara to give the general idea. --- And then some pictures of melbourne.

Huh?

Chickenjoy!

Yes! You are in the Philippines and you feel like going out to a restaurant with your fiancee. And you are attracted to the happiness that goes along with Jolibee, Philippines answer to McDonalds. You walk into the bright and exciting evironment, walk up to the welcoming counter staff, and you decide to try

CHICKENJOY !

"Best made even better: Jollibee Chickenjoy with Mashed Potato and Mushroom Rice

With rice and a beverage line in the best-selling Jollibee Value Meals, Chickenjoy is an all-time meal favorite among working Filipinos. While other fastfood restaurants offer similar fare, Jollibee Chickenjoy has a firm grasp on the fried chicken taste that Pinoys love. With fried golden skin and plump juicy meat, how else can the best fried chicken get any better?

Just when you thought there’s no topping the crispylicious and juicylicious goodness, Jollibee gives the Chickenjoy Value Meals a twist with all-new sidings: Mashed Potato and Mushroom Rice.

Enhance your Chickenjoy experience with these special additions that best complement your favorite fried chicken. Try the rich and buttery goodness of Mashed Potato topped with Jollibee’s thick delicious gravy and steaming Mushroom Rice with mushroom-flavored sauce and real mushroom bits.

Enjoy Chickenjoy for a more nourishing lunch with colleagues or a filling dinner during overtime by adding P15 for Jollibee’s Mashed Potato or P9 for the Mushroom Rice. Better yet, reward yourself via Chickenjoy with both the Mashed Potato and Mushroom Rice for an extra P24.

Giving a new twist to a favorite meal can perk you up. Mix and match Jollibee’s Mashed Potato and Mushroom Rice with Chickenjoy original or spicy variant and in one- or two-piece Value Meals. Jollibee’s Value Meal options custom-fit your taste and preferences, the way you like it."

Taken from the Jolibee site: http://www.jollibee.com.ph/coucharticle.htm

Where are you going, Tacloban?

Regional center.

But not much happening here!

Sunday 18 February

In Lara, it is 40 degrees, or 10 Fahrenheit. That is hot. there is also a gusty dry wind from the dirction of the inland deserts. The small dams and water hioles have all dried up. Farmers have had to reduce the numbers of livestock. The beauty of Australia is a harsh beauty. There are no typhoons in the Southern corner of Australia. But as the Summer heat recedes, there are storms of wind and rain from the frozen South.
In between these extremes, the climate is temperate. Not tropical.

Aileen called to say hello. She is feeling better today. An empty sensation inside, but the first day when she has not been feeling constantly sick. Yesterday she arrived home with the lime green material for the bridesmaids' dresses.
Here is an example of one of her text messages in the last few days :

When I feel so empty within
like how I feel now,
I stare at your pictures
wishing ur here.
Really I miss you so much
my James.
Am feeling so sad now!
Need u!

Saturday 17 February 2007

The story so far
is that last Sunday Aileen did a test which proved positive. Pregnancy. Conceived between January 7 and 24. On January 10, we got engaged, and had arranged a wedding at Santa Rita on 8 April. the pregnancy came as a surprise.

On Tuesday Ai visited a gynaeclogist and was shown an image of the miniature embryo, and given a fortified milk, medecine to support the pregnancy and asked to take more rest. She struggled through the week overwhelmed by lassitude, day-long sickness and a constant headache. On Friday she got to work for the first time in aweek, and the staff looked anxious now that the carefree wedding is burdened with the risks of pregnacy and of a foreigner who may just disappear as so many do. - but I shall not disappear!

Saturday - a rainy, cool, Saturday in the central-southern Philippines, Aileen managed the long bus ride to the city of Tacloban. After two hours on webcam with me, in which i took these rather distorted images, she met with friends DANGIE and LEMUEL, to select lime green fabric for the bridesmaids' dresses Then they settled in Jolibee for a burger.
Aileen said her friends noticed the difference, instead of "SMART Aileen", they found this tired looking, run down, yucky Aileen, struggling not to throw up, and untidy. There is a slight filling out of the face and breasts already after a mere 5 weeks approx. The other picture shows her as in january, looking sleek.

Friday 16 February 2007

From active and fit
to
lethargic and prone to vomitting,
with a constant headache,
unable to face normal food,
drinking a strange concentrated milk ...

Ai has been suffering badly this week
and has been unable to attend her office at santa Rita most days.
She valiantly forced herself to attend today, friday,
and was met with anxious comments from the others....

Pregnancies vary from person to person,
and it is hard to tell how long this nauseous early stage will last.

The wedding day is 8 April,
and everyone will know she is some three months pregnant.

Too bad!
We made our marriage commitment in january,
before realising Ai was pregnant...

Mummy and Daddy !

Just received a text message! [Yes folks, you may expect to receive all the vital communications by text ...] It reads :

"Hi hon

congratulations !!!

u now a daddy.

Wow, I don't know how i feel!

My hands r cold knowing it's positive."