Mid-Christmas holiday musing

It's 12.01am, 28th December 2021. We're in lavish accommodations at Wanaka in the South Island, courtesy of friends who invited us over.

I'm just reminded tonight of how life twists and turns. It just sort of happens... or does it?

A change of season

 And just like that, it's the 20th of December.

This time of the year is an emotional roller coaster for me. I have always loved this season back when I was in the Philippines. There's this feeling of anticipation... of home-cooked meals, of buying and wrapping presents... of decorating... of catching up... of downtime from work. 

But for a while now, it's bittersweet. I have lost the anticipation.

Still couldn't play the Gunther Kallman Christmas Choir, nor the Jackson 5 Christmas album. Perhaps next year...

War of the new normal

The news everyone's been dreading has arrived. The COVID-19 Omicron variant is now on New Zealand shores. Sure, it's just one case... but it starts with just one, doesn't it?

The prospect of opening the borders by April next year, and shortened quarantine stay is now in jeopardy. Like everyone else, we have plans for the summer. That's over the next couple of months. It's proving difficult to plan over a longer period of time.

But we simply must have some semblance of normalcy somehow... though the 'new normal' is taking over. So the question is... what does 'normal' exactly look like?

I'm constantly reminded of the movie 'War of the Worlds' where - spoiler alert - all the alien devastation is halted by the common cold virus which the aliens have no protection from. This movie is so relevant on this age.

Feels like home

I've had friends move to the South Island these past couple of years. Their main motivation was rising house prices here in Wellington; the South Island offers better opportunities. We were being enticed to move as well, but I don't feel like it. I didn't exactly know why, until I rode the bus to work last week. As i gazed out the winding road, I had a flashack of similar roads in my hometown of Baguio. Those uphill climbs, the twisted corners, roads straddled by houses on one side and trees on the other. I love the rambling terrain. The South Island capital and surrounds, in stark contrast, is mostly flat. I do like visiting the South Island, make no mistake, but not uproot the family and live there. It's good old Wellington for me.