A year ago, it was Kenneth Cole, United Colors of Benetton, Nike, and Plains and Prints spread over Powerplant, Glorietta, Eastwood and Shangri-la Plaza. This year, it was Le Sportsac, Mango, Havaianas, Zara, Kenneth Cole, The Sak and Nike hopping from Shangri-la Plaza, MOA, Trinoma, Glorietta and FB High Street.
I guess from the list, you could more or less infer how much each costs and what each year sums up to. As to the exact figure, I will never disclose only this, that this year, the limit has doubled. No, I'm not especially materialistic. I'm only as materialistic as a girl my age should be and nothing more. I can say that I have learned to master my impulses from getting the best of me but I can not deny that I enjoy a shopping spree. Who doesn't? People who say they don't are either self righteous or are in denial. Either that or they're just cheap bastards. And I'm neither any of those- self-righteous, in denial or cheap. But just because I have the means doesn't mean I'm all for the pricey ones. I'm a bargain hunter. But I do not take to the changge or the bazaars. Like any typical Negrense, I have, as my dormmates in college coined it, the 'curse of the the brands' wherein we ensure that everything we dare call our belonging is branded- a trait I never noticed I had until I came to Manila in my first year of college. We talked about it one time when it was late at night and we were apparently bored. Each of us told how we silently took notice of each other's and our classmates' things, the brands in particular. Of course, I'm not proud of that trait upon realization that I possessed it. Now, though I still prefer branded things (because I just do.. It's a hard habit to break), I do not berate people for having a preference for those that are not.
Why branded stuff? I know a good brand when I buy one and I usually stick to them: Gas, Levi's and Buffalo for pants. DKNY, Fossil, Tag and TechnoMarine for watches. And so my list of preferences goes on but I do not care to elaborate on it. Suffice to say that when Cy and I visit a mall, I usually go through my select shops first. Just as I have a staple food I order everytime I go to a particular restaurant, I have staple shops I go to for each mall we visit. Mango, Zara, Topshop and a Rustan's department store are shops I have to visit whenever we go to a mall that has them. The reason why I said that I fancy myself a bargain hunter is that I have incredible patience and persistence to things that I want. Especially if I know they aren't going to run out of stock soon. And, I'm not afraid to buy stuff when they're on sale. If anything, I'm ecstatic if I could buy something worth 7K for thousands less. The best way to do that is usually to leave your number to managers of stores that you like and have them inform you of two things: new arrivals and sales/markdowns.
But enough with brands and shops and preferences. These things, although they make me look materialistic, they do have their value. Unto themselves, they give me great joy. I know that my bag is going to last for years. I know that the color of the jeans I bought is going to hold even through numerous washes. I know that my shoe is comfortable enough to walk around in all day even if they're pumps or heels. I know that my lip and cheek stain is not going to give me rashes. The brands- I like them because they have proven themselves to me. They have proven that they are worth the money I'm paying.
On a higher note and to amend this post with its first paragraph, these shopping sprees that I'm given in one particular day of the year reminds me of the most endearing things. that a man who wants nothing more than to sit still in front of his laptop has agreed to senseless meandering, if only for this day among the other 364 because it makes his beloved happy. That a man who wants to stay in one place most of the time is out on the road, stuck in traffic because he and his beloved is going somewhere his beloved fancies without certainty of a purchase. That a man who wants to sit is walking around from shop to shop looking at things from a stall that his beloved might fancy. That a man who is so accustomed to leading, can for a day, walk beside someone so indecisive and still smile and be happy because the one he's walking with is happy. That he could smile like it was the best day of his life because of this, these moment.
To Fantasma, the mestres and select people of EBC. For the batizado where I officially became a capoeirista the saturday before my birthday. Yellow belt baby!
To all the peeps at BlueSkies we got to beat and who beat us at numerous DOTA games. I officially started my birthday and ended it with DOTA. My god.
To all the people who greeted me a happy birthday, personally, through text or through ym. Even those that greeted me days and weeks after my birthday.
To all the people in faculty room who heartily dug into the cake i brought. Singing me a happy birthday badong-style.
To my cousins, my aunt and uncle who happened to be in Manila on the week of my birthday. Thanks for taking the time to come to Yellow Cab when I invited you on such short notice.
To Borgs, Bel, Bong, Diding and my Manong Fritz. Thank you for being there especially Manong Fritz and Bong who had to come to Manila from Clark and Baguio respectively to make it to my invite.
To the Davids who have a place for chinese food in their stomaches just like I do. To baby Arianna Isabella, welcome to the world cutie!
To my family, at Bacolod you may be but I never felt the distance, nor our bonds loosen because of it. Thank you for being the first ones to greet me, waking me to find that my birthday has come.
And of course, to Cy, for your unparalleled company of which no one may match. I am glad I have you with me. If anything made my birthday especially happy, it was you.