of friends and alcohols

When was the last time I had a drink with my friends? Surprisingly, it was last July 22 with Beng, Corleai, Cesar and Rey, four of the bestest friends one can have. (Surprisng na yon kasi mababa na alcohol content ng system ko lately… tsk tsk!) We only meet once in a blue moon nowadays and we are always never complete (Paging Adan!) . This is so alarming! It's not that we have coined ourselves to be a 'group'. We actually come from different groups but there were many times last year that we always sought for each other's company. Blame it on quarter-life-crisis/quarterLY life crisis. Blame it on UPLB! Damn we miss LB so much we can't get over college life! Bottoms up!

Every week was a siraan-ng-buhay trip! Rey, Cesar, Adan and Corleai would always sleep over our place. Come late Sundays or early Monday (sometimes late Mondays when some are convinced to call Monday off for another drinking session) we would have some dramahan moment as if it would take a long time to see each other. Ang OA di ba?! Bottoms up ulit!

Well, this afternoon, I received a text from Rey confirming the day he will leave us for Singapore. (Pakyu ka Rey! Inuna mo pa ang career kesa pagkakaibigan! Jukas!) Well, 2007 is really a year of change for us. Corleai is now in med school. Adan is now an MT in BPI. Beng is getting married by year-end. And, I admit that lately I hardly have any time meeting them even on weekends (masyado akong atat lagi umuwi ng Batangas lately noh? Parang ang babaw ng changes ko!).  Cesar is now maselan, as in muscle-an ang katawan. (Para 2 na kami na mababaw ang changes.. hehe)

Changes are inevitable. And of course it's not a shock that Rey and Beng will be leaving the country for good. But finally reading that text message from Rey is still different. Some sort of reality jolt that things will really never be the same again. 

I particularly like this text message: You know why they made beer taste bitter? So one would take time to drink and more time to talk. It's the time spent together, not the beer. So true! Alcohol doesn't solve problems, but then again, neither does milk. haha! I really miss our bitter-beer-better-drinkers sessions now though it also means missing those hang-over episodes. This message goes to my other drinking session and nandadaya-sa-drinking-sessions buddies. Econsoc, miss ko na talaga kayo sobra! Aylabyu (ala lasenggo sa kanto)!

I admit that I have grown to like alcohol, and  I also admit that what alcohol is to me is what my friends are to me. You guys continue to intoxicate my system and though I'm bound to have hang-overs, I really wouldn't mind. Just hand me the coffee later! Bottoms up! 

Rey, we wll dearly miss you. Of course we cannot let you miss this opportunity that could change your life. Love you!