enhancedcommunityquarantine-blog

[enhancedcommunityquarantine-blog]

I am a bit surprised to see that word as I can't remember the last time I encountered it. 

I don't like the cherry on top of ice cream. It's sour and not in a good way. There are sour and tangy foods that I like, but cherry is definitely something I can live without. I wonder who first thought of adding cherries on top of ice cream. What were they thinking? I want to give them the benefit of the doubt that maybe, cherries tasted good when they first tried it. But for some reason, people messed up a simple fruit and I've tried the messed up version. I want to know if people actually enjoy cherries on top of their ice cream. Or if people actually eat the cherries on top of their ice cream, probably after taking tons of photos of it. Maybe, it was just for decoration. There are food stylists out there who can make something disgusting look so mouth-watering. It was an actual respectable profession and may even be considered an art. It also baffles me to hear the words "cherry on top". If I remember correctly, people use this idiom to connote something that made an event perfect or better. Like, "that scarf is the cherry on top. You look fabulous!" or maybe I misunderstood this idiom. (Will it be considered cheating if I do a bit of research from the internet about said topic? Nah. Carry on.) A “cherry on top” means metaphorically that something small and special is added to something else that is also very nice to make it just that much more enriched. It comes from the idea that a bowl of ice cream is wonderful, but even more wonderful if a cherry is put on top. https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-meaning-of-the-phrase-cherry-on-top OK. I think I understood it correctly. And I am still entitled to my bafflement? Confusion? Because my point is that cherry on top of the ice cream does not make it any more wonderful. At least, on the palate. I blame the food porn people for this. If I were to give a different meaning to the cherry on top, it would be the opposite of its original metaphorical meaning. Like, "I already forgot my umbrella, but guess what, I wore my best scarf today. Eat that cherry on top of the macha ice cream" I hate green tea ice cream. And I'd probably hate it more if there is a cherry on top. But, let's be a little serious here and consider the actual meaning of this idiom. I want to talk about the cherry on top of my life. I don't believe I have a lot of wonderful things. Quite a few actually. To name one, I think my life is wonderful because of a love of reading. I can't imagine what my life would be now if I hadn't developed a love for reading at such a young age. I was a second-grade student when I started reading my older brother's fifth-grade science book and I loved the chapter about the planets. There were nine planets, then. I actually memorized the paragraphs about Mercury, describing it as the planet closest to the sun and how it doesn't rotate on its axis thus one side was perpetually hot and the other was covered in ice. But I am getting a bit carried away. I was 8 years old back then, the same age as my son now and I could talk about Mercury, word for word, all because I loved to read and was never intimidated by it. I am lucky to live in times where the internet has pretty much invaded our lives and it's so accessible, even in this third-world country, that reading materials can be easily found. Having access to thousands of reading materials online is something that a lot of people are taking for granted. But, I don't do that. Because the cherry on top for my love of reading is my patience to browse the internet. It really is easy to say that a lot of the information we need is out there, blah, blah... but somehow, people still believe fake news and misinformation are rampant in social media. Anybody who has internet access and has a social media account can easily fact-check a suspicious news article. And yet, people still give the lame excuses of not having time for it, or someone else told them it was true. It's appalling and yet, I can understand why they are like that and it was because some people lack the cherry on top of their "love-to-read" ice cream. There really is something more going on for people gullible enough to believe and spread fake news, and not having the patience for fact-checking is probably just the little stem of that cherry. Still on cherry, baby... I want to talk about the day I popped the proverbial cherry but I figured it wouldn't be PG-13 topic. So, let's talk about cherry blossoms. I have never been to anywhere outside of the country I was born and raised and messed up in. But if there was a country I would want to go to, it would be Japan. I have only seen cherry blossoms on anime and some Japanese films, and friends who have been to Japan told me how beautiful it was. One of my friends actually told me that if I ever want to travel the world, I should save Japan for last or else I would be disappointed. It was like she has put Japan on a pedestal and I secretly disagree because if I were to travel the world, I bet there are still places that are more beautiful than Japan. But, I would still choose Japan because it was only a four-hour flight. I don't think I would want to be stuck on long flights. As much as I love the feeling of taxiing and landing, seeing only clouds outside the windows while struggling with my legs doesn't sound promising. Now that I think about, the cherry blossom is probably all that I am excited to experience in Japan. I wonder how it actually looks like as the sunlight hits its petals. How about the smell? I'm not good at imagining smells as it is something I can only understand by experience. What would the sound of falling leaves be like? Or the exclamation of people as they enjoyed that time with their friends, family? What words will I first utter? I'm not sure it would be a good idea but I want all my senses engaged so I'd probably chance a taste. That's weird but if I will have to wait long to visit Japan, I will most likely go for a taste. And lastly, how will I feel? Will it be cold? Or hot? Will I be comfortable, peaceful? Maybe, feel a little sleepy? Or will I be tense from sensation overload? Oh, gosh, now I envy the people who travel. But it's OK for now since I have priorities. If someone offers me to go to Japan tomorrow but alone, I still won't take it. Certain trips are meant to be enjoyed with your loved ones. Going to Japan for the cherry blossoms is one of those.

[enhancedcommunityquarantine-blog]

First word I wanted to try writing to, and this is what I get. I hope this word won’t be the end of this pseudo-blog. 

OK, let’s talk about disaster.

This year is definitely a disaster. The year started with wild fires, a volcanic eruption and a pandemic. If I were to go back to a year ago, I would never imagine these things happening. Of course, that was the optimist in me talking. But, I would probably settle on personal disasters like unplanned pregnancy or bankruptcy, and not a freaking pandemic. 

While we’re on the topic of disaster, I remember watching a documentary about natural disasters that have claimed thousands of lives. Typhoons, earthquakes and tsunamis-- these are what usually comes to mind when we think of disasters. But, 2020 definitely changed that. 

I want to filter my thoughts but I won’t as this is pretty much a rambling but I think something that’s even worse than this pandemic is the unexpected show of stupidity. I mean I get, people are stupid. But you’d think people will at least be a little smarter because after all, our species’ survival is at stake here. Noooo.... There are people who can’t seem to handle the truth and result to denying the world’s problem. Like how the pandemic is just a propaganda by the media, or a philanthropic billionaire made this happen, or how the virus can be spread through 5G towers. 

It’s appalling. 

I believe that this pandemic is something that we can survive from, and I thank the people who made huge sacrifices to battle this. This is disastrous, in so many ways. And thinking about how people don’t seem to take this seriously, is equally a disaster.