01502: Welcoming 2013


Last night was certainly interesting and a heck of a lot of fun too. I had enough fun to end up taking over 1000 photos at the various New Year's Eve festivities that we participated in. And I acknowledge that it has certainly been a while since I last took so many photos. I kinda missed it.

The evening started with the Mangahas Family, who again welcomed guests for their New Year's Eve party. And this marks the very first year that I got to celebrate New Year's Eve together with Tobie, since he normally spends this time with his family. It was a fun night with lots of food, quirky glasses, silly conversation and of course trying to catch the fireworks that were going off in the neighborhood. Why bother burning money on fireworks after all when everyone is already doing just that.

And looking at the sky is happily free.

It was a great way to mark the passing of 2012 and the coming of 2013. Nash, the Mangahas dog, got a little rattled at the peak of the fireworks but otherwise things were pretty much uneventful. And in time we parted ways to go to our respective New Year's Day celebrations - or the comfort of a bed for others.

Tobie and I made our way to O Bar Ortigas after a fairly lengthy self-imposed exile on my part. But it's a new year and it's a good time to put old ghosts to rest and focus on reclaiming my happiness once more. And O Bar remains home for many fond memories including the fabulous Oh Divas. And it was nice to feel missed by the staff and even the various performers. It just goes to show how much time and effort Tobie and I have invested in O Bar over the years, such that our absence was actually felt. They're all good people and certainly worth it all.

It was a lot of fun to be back and it was nice to have a lot of good friends present, especially the owners Mon and Rupert. I have to admit that I've missed them a lot - they clearly define the O Bar experience for me in many ways and a night at the bar just isn't the same without them. And after last night, I think I'm definitely ready to go back to "the scene" once more and reconnect with our O Bar friends.

And it was especially nice to see Nico again - our "anak", at least between me and Tobie. And while the term "family" was bandied about last year with a lot of different meanings, the way that we see Nico has always been a constant one. He's been one of our biggest supporters among our friends and he's quite the dear young man on the whole. And with this return to O Bar, I guess it helps reinforce that Pamilya Egg is still alive and strong and ready for what 2013 has in store for all of us.

I don't have to report for work just yet, so tonight will be a relatively relaxing one. I have to admit that I'm sort of tempted to head out to O Bar again for one last hurrah before we return to the reality of the working world. But then again sleep and rest may be in order for me and Tobie after the heavy partying the day before. It's still early, so we'll see how things go.

Happy New Year everyone!

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