The Diary of a Shrimp Allergy

Kaeiy is listening to: The Weakness In Me - Joan Armatrading

At 12 midnight, we woke up. We knew Kaeiy was awake too, tummy rumbling. We readied ourselves, knowing we were the only edible thing in the fridge as of the moment. Papatusin kami nun, yun pa! Sure enough, there she was, eyes half-closed and one hand reaching into the coldness of the fridge.

Jackpot! She grabbed us, the plate of halabos na hipon barely chilled from fifteen minutes in the subzero temperature, and proceeded to dump all ten of us big fat shrimps (about as long as her palm and twice the size of her index finger) on a clump of warm rice. With her shrimp-peeling prowess, she used a spoon and a fork to undress us in less than four minutes.

She speared Number One closest to the edge of the plate, dipped it in a vinegar-onion-garlic-chili pepper dip and stuffed One in her mouth. Swallowed.

Round two! Fight... and devoured all ten of us in three minutes flat. She cracked open a can of Coke Light, washed down our remains, brushed her teeth, washed her face and went back to bed.

So the Ten Shrimps went to heaven.

-o-o-o-o-o-

I just ate shrimps for my midnight snack. Ewan ko ba, nagutom ako eh. So I went downstairs and peeked into the fridge. No other edible stuff in there... except for a plate of shrimps. Upon closer inspection, I saw they were halabos. I can smell the Seven Up in there... How juicy! Yummy! But wait... shrimps + Kaeiy = allergic reaction. Allergic reaction = rose-like rashes all over! Whee! SO WHAT? They're shrimps and they're yummy!

ATTACK!

What does one need to devour ten huge shrimp? A spoon and a fork for peeling ( I can use my hands but not when I'm in a hurry!), a bowl of vinegar with onion slices, crushed garlic, chopped siling labuyo and cracked black pepper... and a heap of warm steamed rice.

3 minutes after... KO!

So I went to bed... and woke up with red eyes. A pair of numbed lips and numb fingertips. Not bad, I thought. Then I looked in the mirror! Wow! Mukha akong Yakuza! Pula nga lang! Rosettes on my face, a map of the Philippines on my back (in red!), red dalmatian spots on my arms and a smattering of red freckles on my thighs! Whee! I wanted to take pictures and post them kaso mukha akong monster at ayoko naman maging sanhi ng bangungot! So take my word for it, it's just like an alcohol allergy.

What did I do? Call up the school to say I'll be absent! Did I take antihistamine? Nope. Not yet anyway. I think I won't need to. As of the moment, the Philippine map has bene reduced to an EZ map of Manila, the rosettes on my face have withered and died and the dalmatian spots have become garapata spots. Hehehe...

So thanks to ten lucky shrimp, who are probably on their way to becoming poop in my large intestine, I get to spend one whole day at home... rubbing my eyes red, redder, reddest. Kidding!

I think I saw the crab vendor stop in front of the house this morning... and I saw Nanay talking to her. Whee! Steamed crabs for dinner? I can't wait!

-o-o-o-o-o-

Naiintriga na talaga ako dyan sa My Sassy Girl na yan ha! Sino ba may kopya nyan ha? Oh please, end my curiosity! Heehee...

I smell chicken soy sauce cooking downstairs. Mama's probably cooking. So I guess we won't be having crabs anyway. Aaawww... oh well, I don't want to be absent tomorrow with my full allergic regalia, though it may be fun to see how my kids will react to a puffy, bloated, red-spotted teacher with red eyes. Ang saya saya!

-o-o-o-o-o-

Missing someone so bad is a bite in the arse, ain't it? Come to think of it, I've said this before and I've said I'd write an entry for this but never did. Oh well, let's leave it at that. Missing someone is really very hard. I will do anything to be beside the one I miss but of course, I can't! It would be placing the one I miss in jeopardy... well, not really. I just don't know how to get to where I can see the one I miss. Dratness and everything in between! But it's ok. I know makikita ko pa siya ulit.

And when I do, recharged nanaman ang Happiness Factor ko! Wheeee!

Hay, miss na miss ko na siya talaga... Gusto ko na siyang makita! Argh...

Lagot saken yun pag nakita ko siya mamaya... heehee...

-o-o-o-o-o-

The schoolyear's end is approaching quickly. Parang kailan lang, ninenerbyos pa ako na magkaron ng sarili kong klase... ngayon parang chicken na lang siya. Well, it's not all rainbows and butterflies. There's plenty of paperwork (lesson plans, brainstorming, assessment reports, narratives) and since individualized programs are used, I make 27 different exercises for the kids at least 3x a week. And when the days are bad, my God, they're really bad. Think having 27 3-year olds in one house... all throwing a tantrum, fighting, crying or being simply bratty. When it rains, it pours! Minsan pa, bumabaha!

But when the days are good, they are very good. It's like heaven smiled down on me and God just sent me a package of blessings. Door to door! Hahehe...

In teaching, as it is with any other thing (especially LOVE), the joy of the good days always repays the sorrow of the bad days. May sukli pang pwede ipang-pondo ng negosyo! Hahaha. It's when the profit becomes negative that one should start thinking of leaving.

For now, the kids make me happy. Working with them fulfills me. And I will stay in education as long as the passion in me burns. It burns bright and I am not one to leave in the middle of something good. Who would want to, anyway?

So what if I am a licensed Physical Therapist? I'm not leaving the country. I don't care if I can get more money practicing my profession out of the country. It's not my passion. Please (eherm, Titas and Titos, sorry... pero hindi talaga. Ayaw. Wag muna.) stop "tempting" me. It's not working.

But...

Ayoko pang pumasok bukas! Pwede bang one long weekend na lang ako? (gahaman eh no?)