An Open Letter from a loving husband

I just had to post this after reading it from another site...



I wish I were writing under different circumstances. I would like to inform you that my wife Leslie Cruz was part of the casualties in the Glorietta 2 Mall bombing in Makati City, Philippines. She was supposed to have a minor out patient surgery at Makati Medical Center at 230pm.

I had taken a leave from work to accompany her there. We dropped off our daughter, Amber, at my parents place in QC to babysit at around 10am. We then proceeded to Makati and was there at 1230pm. Since she had been fasting in preparation for her procedure, she wanted to move ar ound and listen to some music while I grabbed a bite to eat. We parked at the basement of Park Square 2, and headed for the Glorietta 2 entrance. We parted at the top of the escalator, she
turned right towards Filbar's while I went left towards the restaurants. That was the last time I would see her.

Around 120pm, she had called me so that we can meet at the Glorietta 2 exit just in time to make her appointment. As I made my way there from Glorietta 1 through the connecting hallways, and was about to turn the corner, I heard 2 deep thumps and the shock-wave from the blast hit me. At that moment my heart dropped as I knew that the origin of the blast came from the same place where we were supposed to meet. I tried getting to where my wife was, but the dust was too
much and it was as if I was staring at a white wall.

I still tried to convince myself that she was able to make it out, and that after ringing her mobile without a response only meant that she dropped it in the confusion. After 6 hours of searching from Makati Med. to Ospital ng Makati,
the blast site, and back again to MMC - with the help of all the people I could get hold of, that I was able to get confirmation in what the state of my wife was.

My Dad and Uncle signaled me in from the ER of MMC. My Uncle (who's a doctor) asked me to describe Leslie's appearance to another group of doctors. I saw in the eyes of one that the description made sense. Instead of confirming it to me, they huddled together, then brought me to a small examination room. It was only through a digital camera that I was able to confirm (and deny) that she was indeed gone.

I have so many regrets. I should have met her sooner. I should have ran instead of a brisk walk. I should have not chose to park where I did. I should have braved the dust and went in the blast site. I should have ...

Today's the 4th day. It is still terribly difficult to breathe, let alone wake up realizing that your source of strength, your best friend doesn't lie beside you on your bed. That my deepest worry is when Amber starts asking for her Mama.


I am glad that Amber's too young to understand the loss and pain. In time I would like to tell her the details of how her mother died, but more importantly I would like to raise her as how her mother lived - a loving person, strong willed, decisive, caring, and nurturing. She has always cared for her family and friends, and sacrfied her career for being a full time mom and home maker.


As with all couples we had our ups and downs - none of which I regret not going through. The sweet is never as sweet without the sour. For almost 4 years of marriage, we've finally hit our balance in life only to be taken away in an instant. I have no regrets about our marriage. She has loved me and Amber beyond her capacity. I will always love her.

It is my first time to write to egroup as I've lurked and watched emails being sent to and fro. All I want now is that for each of the couples here is to cherish each moment that we spend with our loved ones. Pretty simple to say, very easy to take for granted.

Thank you all for the prayers. I would still like to ask you to please include Leslie in them until her 40th day so that the path to God's kingdom is well lit and she is no longer in the dark.

Sincerely,
Carlo Cruz

Glorietta Bombing

I told myself I won’t post a blog about the Glorietta bombing but I can’t help it so here it is…

First of all, I would like to offer my condolences to the families and friends of the victims of the Glorietta bombing.

I got home from work around 10AM and decided to take a nap before getting ready for my flight to Boracay. I even remember Kris and Raven asking me if I wanna join them watch a movie in Glorietta or Greenbelt since our flight won’t be until 5:40 PM. I decided to stay in the condo and sleep for a bit since I was so tired and wanted to have enough energy for the travel. It was around 11AM when a friend texted me with only three words on it… “BOMB IN GLORIETTA” I remember replying to the text saying that the joke ain’t funny. I decided to brush it off and go back to sleep. Not until I woke up did I realize that my friend wasn’t joking.

Why is it that terrible things like this happen when there’s a big government scandal? Remember the LRT bombing? It happened during the Impeachment Trial of then President Erap.

I hope I’m wrong but I cannot help consider the possibility of the government creating such distractions to draw the attention of the people away from the existing controversies that Malacanang is facing right now. First the ZTE deal and now the bribery scandal where 190 congessmen and officials were given bags with cash ranging from Php200 to Php500 Thousand.

Why is it that there were no reports or warnings? Is our intelligence really that bad?

If so why are they so fast in issuing warnings or terror alerts or coup attempts last year?

What happened to all that training and assistance the AFP got from the US military?

I really hope I’m wrong… cause if I’m right the government should be accountable to those whose lives were lost from this tragedy.

Washington Sycip Park

A park right across my place in Makati

Style Mag @ Warehouse

Party after so long...

Ok... so I wasn't really planning of going out last Saturday but then again...

After Cafe Bola we went and watched Resident Evil and decided to party. Thanks to our new "Kabarkada" Kris who's one of the promoters of Warehouse 135 we got in as VIPs. No need to line up! Hahaha! Thank Kris!

Things are starting to get better. After a few bumps and problems in the past... things are starting to settle. I'll be going to BORACAY on the 19th after some persuation my boss said YES! Yeeepeeee!

Got the tickets today and I'm so excited. Will post more info on my next entry.

Here are some pics from the party with Scarlet of the defunct "Put3ska Band". (Don't know if I spelled that right)

Cafe Bola

Had dinner with my cuz and friends at Cafe Bola at greenbelt and it was fun to hangout with my cuz and our friends after so long. The food was great and the company greater! We watched Resident Evil III. The movie was so great I wanted to watch the first and the second and can't wait to see what's gonna happen next... i love the last scene. You'll know what I mean when you guys watch it.

Rodic's - Makati

It was my first time to eat here and I must say this is a nice alternative to the usual restaurants around Makati (Especially if you're craving for Filipino Food)

The BIG Buffet!

Patty called me yesterday morning inviting me to have lunch at Saisaki in Glorietta. I was in the gym working out when I got the call and you could just imagine how I wanted to go out and stop my workout and just eat! Hahaha!



Saisaki - Dad's - Kamayan Buffet!













Will post more pictures on my next post.

Elliott Yamin in Manila

Catch American Idol finalist Elliott Yamin in a live concert at the Ayala Malls!

TriNoma
-Activity Center
-September 21, 2007 at 7:00pm

Glorietta
-Activity Center
-September 22, 2007 at 7:00pm

Market! Market!
-Activity Center
-September 23, 2007 at 6:00pm

Ayala Center Cebu
-On Stage, Cinema 1
-September 26, 2007 at 7:00pm

Alabang Town Center
-Activity Center
-September 28, 2007 at 6:30pm

Ebun!

Ebun is a word in "Kapampangan" which means egg.

This is one my favorite restaurants because it gives life to ordinary Filipino dishes at a relatively cheap price. Located at Greenbelt 3 and situated near the man made lagoon, this restaurant provides a good alternative to the usual places to eat and relax while chatting away with your friends. The place's interior has been renovated from the old one which features fake eggs in their windows. Now the place features these nice lights decorated with "Kapis". Very Filipino.

Sorry about the sisig... was so excited we already ate part of it before having the chance to take a pic. Hehehe!

Park along Legaspi

Finally the park openned just the other day... :)

Was on our way to have dinner at Ebun when we saw that the gates were open... Nice new place to hangout. :) Probably read books or jog around in the morning. I was thinking of having a picnic day with my saturday friends Ben, Zac, Cuz Gerard, Cuz Raven, and Victor... We'll see.

Sorry about the pics... these were taken at night and my camera phone ain't that good without proper lighting.

Oodys @ Greenbelt

I was craving for something Thai tonight so I decided to meet up with Lucien and have dinner at Oodys in Greenbelt. I would definitely recommend this restaurant over another Thai - Fusion restaurant, Banana Leaf, also at Greenbelt.

Veneto! Love this place!

Definitely my fave place to eat at the moment. Something worth your money. Food tastes great and big in servings. Hehehe! Service kinda sucks a bit though.

David's Tea House - Greenbelt

Disappointing! Won't eat there again. I wished we walked a bit further and just had dinner somewhere else. The service ain't good. The food taste awful!