Lissy Is Coming Home

"Big wheels keep on turning

Carry me home to see my kin

Singing songs about the Southland..."

-from the song 'Sweet Home Alabama'

In four days' time I'll be moving out of my dormitory in Manila and will be living full-time in my hometown - all the way down South, Cavite. For more than a year and a half, I've had my share of how it was to live the so-called life, Manila style. I've also met quite a handful of, err, interesting people with whom I've shared a room which I call my Manila home away from home.


Dorm mate #1 (a.k.a. Ms. Nerd)

Well, there's not much to say about her, except that she's the typical nerd (books, computers and all) who prefers to lock herself in the bathroom whenever she's got to review for an exam or whatever (geez, I really thought I heard her bang her head against the bathroom wall one time), can throw very bad fits of tantrums (she could be sooo way overacting!), cries herself to oblivion (OBLIVION?!? Now where did that come from? Haha!) when her printer won't work or if she can't find the missing cap from her USB stick. Ask me if I know anything about her social life, I would have to say she's every bit of an anti-social. Really. Unbiasedly speaking. For the rest of my stay in the dorm with her, I've tolerated her and tried my very darn best to understand where she's coming from as a student (but I swear schoolwork never made me cry, not even a sniff). But one morning I just couldn't take any more of her dramas and until now, we are on we're-so-not-talking mode. I don't really mind; I'm so fine with it. Haha!


Dorm mate #2 (a.k.a. Ms. Shopaholic)

She's the typical girl who hails from a well-off family, loves to shop, has got a lot of friends of all, err, sexual orientations, and a cute smiling face to go with it. She's got good sense of humor and I pretty much liked her myself. As a matter of fact, I could see much of my self as a student in her - the last-minute assignments and presentations, constant Friendster updates and the like. She moved out last year to transfer to a bigger space in a condo nearby. I kinda miss her actually.


Dorm mate #3 (a.k.a. Dr. Couch Potato)

Dr. Couch Potato could sleep until 3 in the afternoon after having watched TV from 3 in the afternoon up to really morning the following day, straight. A true-blue Kapuso, the tv channel is never switched to anything else besides the Kapuso channel. She's also into Korean dramas like me, and her biggest crush as I remember was the Korean actor who starred the lead in Jumong. She's pretty quiet most of the time, but she's nice and has got a wicked sense of humor if she's up for it. A few weeks after Ms. Shopaholic moved out she also moved out to pursue her medical practice in the United States.


Dorm mate #4 (a.k.a. The Sexy Mama)

Now this particular room mate was rather a peculiar one, having stayed only for a few hours in the dorm. She claimed herself to be a 'health practitioner' who's into 'wellness and aesthetic healing'. Why a hot mama? Well, at her age of 40+, she prefers to sleep with only the blanket on. It would have been normal, except that she might have forgotten that she's in a dormitory. For the record, she did't really move out; she just received an 'emergency call' that same night she was supposed to move in, and we never saw nor heard from her again. Kinda weird, huh?


Dorm mate #5 (a.k.a. A Kindred Mama)

She's my kindred in most aspects - from tastes in tv shows (well, sort of; we're both Kapamilya and enjoy watching John Lloyd in Maging Sino Ka Man), movies (a big Popoy-Basia fan like me), music (we both dig artists like Vonda Shepard and some songs from the 80's), books (we're both Judith McNaught fan), and everything else. She's a proud momma to Yale (her potential-heartbreaker-of-a-guy son), and a woman who knows her worth. I'm gonna miss her and all her adventures (and misadventures) in life and love.

Well, there you have it. This girl's going back to being a full-time Southern babe. I've had quite a lot of fun and too-many-to-mention learning experiences which only the city can offer. Sure, I'm gonna miss the nights spent at the city and all the luxury of time I had to go out and party with my girls 'til the wee hours of night. But coming home to home-cooked meals, soft bed with plush pillows, and the solace of my own room makes the 'moving out' process oh so easy.