Don't be a stranger.

I don't have a best girl friend. There, I said it. I don't have that one specific person whose ears I can talk off just talking about the most mundane things in the world, nor hold regular sleepovers with, nor someone expected to automatically accompany me anywhere (like to go shopping, watch movies with, or have spa dates with, maybe). If someone asks me to get married today, I wouldn't know who to choose as my maid of honor. That said, I have the best sets of friends that I am forever grateful I have. They're from different parts of my life and it is so great talking to them about our various shared interests.

I met up with three sets of friends, and our catch-up dates are some of the most fun I've had since the new year started! I've always maintained that you can meet friends anywhere, and the peeps below are further proof.

The Saturday Club at Ric's house last Saturday
Third, Niel, Aiza, me, and Ric

The Saturday Club earned its moniker by the fact that our hang-out dates regularly fall on a Saturday, it being our common rest day from work. We've been friends since high school - some even earlier than that - and even though we don't see the others anymore, this core group has remained.

Lipstick game on point

Meanwhile, Niel is my oldest friend. We've known each other since we were four! We weren't classmates all the time but we attended the same school all our lives, and I know I can depend on her for whatever.

From Jenny Han's book To All the Boys I've Loved Before, lead character Lara Jean said, "It's funny how much of childhood is about proximity. Like who your best friend is is directly correlated to how close your houses are; who you sit next to in music is all about how close your names are in the alphabet. Such a game of chance." So far, I like the choices I've been given, and I'm sticking with them.

Dinner at Mad Mark's in Greenbelt with Anne, Alex, and Kira the other night

At the beginning of 2014, Anne, Alex, and I had a wager on who could watch the most number of movies. The loser pays for a steak dinner and movie. I lost track of my movie stats, but I'm sure it was nowhere near Anne's nor Alex's, who got to see more than 100 movies each! I have watching all seasons of FRIENDS and Modern Family, rewatching all seasons of How I Met Your Mother,  reading 27 books, and taking on lots of other hobbies to blame, but no, not really. I regret nothing.

Smiling despite my wallet's pain LOL

Except for the mashed potato that tasted like it was fresh from the ref (frozen mashed potato is not appetizing at all), I enjoyed the food at Mad Mark's. The service? Eh, not so much. I am 94 lbs of hair and fear of confrontation, but eating there proved to be a practice of assertiveness because they won't give you what you need unless you ask for it. Repeatedly. I was able to cajole my friends into asking the waiter to follow up, or to give us water, or to give us our correct orders, but after a while they stopped and made me ask for what I needed myself, so I did. -_-

Last night, I went for doughnuts with my friends Kym and Jessica.

The last time I saw them was during Kym's last visit to Manila almost four years ago!

They are just two of the best people I met through blogging, back when I was just starting out and my site is filled with personal anecdotes. It's amazing how quickly and how well we connected with one another, and even though most of the people in this little blogging group we created are no longer active, we still catch up through social media and manage to get together in the event one of us visits another's country/ "territory" - like when Kym went here, or when she met up with Nikolett, or when I went to Singapore and met up with Nashe.

Doughnuts are always a good idea

You wouldn't believe it was only the third time I was seeing them both in person at the rate we were gabbing last night. I guess there's really something to be said about connections and friendship's strong foundations. There was never an awkward silence! They're so awesome and I'd like to continue being friends with them until we're old and gray.

Time is always too short when I'm with these two!

Kym flies out with her family to Hong Kong today to stay there for a week before they go back to Canada. I know her time here was filled with lots of reunions and meeting up with relatives and friends, so I'm so glad she was able to squeeze us in!

So you see, even though I don't have someone I can technically call my best friend, I don't feel like I'm missing out. I have LOTS of friends, and they're the BEST. ♥