Bethday…love you forever..july

Nine p.m. when we checked-in our room for the ingress of the 34th Philippine Business Conference & Expo on a Sunday. This is the third time we had been billeted in the hotel for the same conference yet this is the first time a room felt kinda creepy. Yep, the kind of uncanny feeling you get when something isn’t in order. But then again, I brushed off the idea of an ethereal creature in the area as we have yet to set up the booth at four a. m. of Monday. Yes, we did get our much needed doze. At exactly four a.m. we did stir up. But this time, the elevators to the ninth floor began doing their, maybe, just maybe, customary front-act for oblivious guests like ourselves.;) All three elevator ducts did stop on our floor only to descent again to do the same trick next to its kin. Well, galing-aldo, what can we do? When at last finally, a lift accommodated us. Then was that.

Still in One Rizal Park, at twelve-thirty midnight of Wednesday, the door to a connecting room began to sound as if a stranger is in desperate need to break in. It did not stop in seemingly roughly pushing-twisting the knob, not until I heard my room buddy call my name. Hence I switched on my bedside lamp. Subsequently though it ceased bugging us. I will not say it’s mere mind’s eye, but then again, two and half of us?;) I’d rather not state the obvious. Didn’t really want to make a big deal out of it but Buddy Nora was firmed in her resolve to have housekeeping check the connecting door should there be traces of interjection, which I really doubted, pero pigbigyan ku nemu ing matuang dalaga banta mipasno ne (aside from the fact that we never really get to win every single arguments with her kasi ancient bachelorette ya pin, hee hee hee). It turned out, the lock was in place.

At six a. m. we’re wide awake. I went in first to bathe. But Buddy Nora insisted that we stay close to each other thus she stayed within a wee distance while dissipating on the throne. Only, events got quirkier. Upon stepping out of the bath, I notice something written on the glass mirror to my right, and yes, it did have the inscription “Bethday”. Or, was it mistakenly spelled? When I calmly informed her about it, she hurriedly stood up to see for herself. What she read was something that I had misgivings. The captions decoded “love you forever” and “july..” Go, comprehend. Or rather, as Pato Gregorio articulates the “experience to believe, c’mon” catchphrase, you may want to try to re-live the adventure in nine o one yourself.;p

Recently, we stayed at The Lighthouse in Subic. There is no manifestation of Bethday at all.

Back at the exhibit hall we had to look normal, in the face of being sleepless. My claim to fame is, I lived through how it is to be Hollow Man.