30 DAYS OF TABIJE- UNCLE ROLLY'S BIRTHDAY, DAY 30

IT’S DAY 30- WOOHOOO! Sunday, April 26th, 2020 was my Uncle Rolly’s (Rolando) 65th birthday. He’s the 2nd oldest out of the 4 siblings, with my dad as the eldest. We most likely would have gone out to eat at a restaurant for his birthday…but since everyone is still on lockdown, we ordered take-out and had Filipino food for dinner. Before I get started with that, let me catch you up with everyone else that lives in this house…

My cousin, Randy, recently purchased his first home (Congratulations!) and will be staying here for approximately 5 months while he waits for his new place to be built…He also has 2 twin girls ( Mila and Gigi) that will be staying with us as well! Uncle Rolly and Auntie Ching (Rachel) are also his parents, so he’s living back to where he grew up as a kid…Mila and Gigi sleep in his old room while Randy sleeps in the bonus room downstairs. This is a big house, so thankfully we still have our own personal space.

As for myself, I’ve been living in this house since moving down from the Bay Area in October of 2018. Auntie and Uncle have let family and close friends live in this house for as long as they’ve owned it, starting as far back as the late 1980’s. In fact, both sides of their family have moved in to this house from the Philippines, so that they can settle in to the U.S. and begin their own lives. Now, those same people are all successful with their own family, career, and home! So, when I asked to move in with them to get my life back on track, this was nothing new to Auntie and Uncle- I just had to agree to their house rules- which is to continue to work hard in my career and help around the house. They have brought me in as if I was their own son and will forever be thankful for them.

Ok, so now you’re all caught up with the backstory! Now, back to these photos….

Uncle picked up the food (hand-selected of his favorite dishes) from West Covina…That’s where most Filipinos go to get the “goods.” Once we finished setting up the dinner table, I brought my camera down to snap a few photos of the food. As soon as I finished that, he quickly snatched the first pieces of lumpia. Once the rest of my roommates arrived downstairs, the girls sang happy birthday to him! I took a few more photos of the family and started eating right away. This was the first time in a longgg time that I’ve been so full from eating for the entire day!

I also purposely posted this as my last feature because it’s the same message that I have been trying to address to you this whole time: Family is everything to me. And we are all thankful for each other and take care of one another. In this time of unforeseen issues in the world, I am happy and equally lucky to be stress-free in this home.

Thank you to everyone who have been reading about my life over the past 30 days. I appreciate you and it doesn’t go unnoticed. I also hope that you are well out there, wherever you are. Continue to still wash your hands and continue to check and take care of one another! This will all be over with soon.

With love,

Justin Andrew Tabije

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- 2006 & 2014 WORLD CUP, DAY 29

Sorry I’m late- Busy day today! I wanted to include videos today before writing this because going to the World Cup was sooo much fun and I wanted to share those fun moments with all of you. Whether you like soccer or not, It’s still the only sport that can single- handedly unite the world for 1 tournament. Might I also add that USA fans travel deep and follow the team wherever they go? Next World Cup is in Qatar in winter of 2022 but is currently on pause for qualifying because of the Coronavirus. I still would still love to go- it’s worth every penny!

On the first trip, my brothers and I backpacked through Europe for the 2006 World Cup, while also catching a few soccer games in the early stages of the tournament. The cool thing was that I was able to meet my friend Oscar and his two friends while in Germany. I swear, some of the best traveling stories with Oscar were during that trip haha! The other countries that we also went to visit was Zurich, Switzerland and Amsterdam, Netherlands. Can’t wait to go back to Europe and visit more new countries!

The next one I went to was 8 years later for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil! The first weeks of the trip were with my good friends since high school, Nassim and Mariko. Nassim had some family friends in Sao Paulo, so we were able to save money and travel more often because of that. On the last week of my trip, I met up with Jerry after Nassim and Mariko flew back home. Jerry and I really wanted to go to a game together before I had to fly back home, so we had to cough up around $2,200 for 2 tickets….That’s a ridiculous amount of money to spend but was totally worth it and would do it all over again if I had could!

I can go on and on about both trips…but I’ll just end it by saying that both of them are part of the best days of my life. My #30daysoftabije is coming to and end- Are you gonna miss me?

See you tomorrow morning,

JT

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- MARILOU G. TABIJE, DAY 28

Today’s feature goes out to Momma Bear. I’ve been trying to find the words to express my love and gratitude for her…but the words won’t seem to come out. I was only 18 years old when she passed and was in 7th or 8th grade when she was diagnosed with cancer, so there were more silent comforting moments that I remember with her. Even though we didn’t have many long conversations, I was always observing her from afar because I knew she was a hard worker but at the same time I was just a kid and very soft spoken, so I didn’t know how to express myself or ask the questions that I wanted to ask-

She was my number 1 fan during my soccer games and was always supportive with the activities that what I wanted to pursue outside of school. During car rides, we listened to KIIS FM and Coast 103.5 often, so there are certain songs that remind me of her because of that. Whenever I see her in my dreams, she’s always doing something and is never still- She’s usually walking around the house in a fast pace, trying to finish her tasks before leaving the house. Having to raise 3 boys, there was always food and snacks that needed to be prepared or clothes that needed to be washed and set for our sports activities. In some of these dreams of her walking around, I get to enter them and it feels like present day…But she’s talking to me as if it’s 20 years ago because she’s telling me to change my clothes and get ready… and to do this and do that, so we can leave the house on tim. I still have yet to have her visit me where we’re both sitting down, talking face to face- I guess only time will tell if I ever get that opportunity.

However, there’s 1 particular dream I have of her…In this dream, I was the one walking around and she was the one standing…just following me with her eyes, not doing anything. I asked her why she was staring at me, and she just says, “Nothing,” with a big smile on her face. The dream ends and I wake up. When I quickly recap the dream, it’s the same look she’d give me on the days that she was proud of me when I was a kid. That dream was earlier this year and am thankful for it.

Lastly, I wanted to talk to you about this photo that I posted. This was taken at our home in La Verne, around 2000-01- I was a sophomore in high school at the time. I don’t remember where we went on this particular day except that Mom, Dad, and myself left the house to visit someone. Mom was sick and had to stay home most of the time, so Dad decided to bring his camera out that day to take a few photos of us before leaving the house. As you can see, Spicy was a big part of our family, especially for Mom, to spread positivity and love in our home, so it was only right to include her in this post with Momma. For those who don’t know how Terrier dogs are, they are very hyper but very smart, so our family shared a lot of funny moments watching Spicy run around the house like a crazy girl…Thank you for those funny memories with the both of you.

Thank you for taking the time to read this! See you tomorrow.

Much love,

J

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, AND MALAYSIA, PART II

Good morning to you! This is part II from yesterday’s post. During this trip in 2017, I brought my laptop with me and documented it as “21 Days in the Philippines” and posted it on my website. Having a go at it a second time around has allowed me to edit more photos but more importantly, share to those who are seeing all of them for the first time. This trip gave me quality time with family and allowed me to heal mentally from having lost my dad in 2016. It also made me think about the materialistic things that I owned and they became less important to me.

When I got back home, I made some important life decisions that made me become more goal-oriented, which snowballed in to me becoming more successful with work and life in general. These are all common things that I experience after coming home from any vacation- your mind resets, decisions become more clear, and you look forward to going back to work to tackle those difficult obstacles. It is all of these things that make traveling so important- Sometimes you have to leave your regular way of living to realize what the next step will be for you.

As the days continue of me writing you, I hope that my life stories have inspired you to doing something new and challenging for your own life- For this #30daysoftabije project has been both of these for me. Have a great start of the week- See you tomorrow.

J

**For phone users: Tap on photo and grey dot on bottom right corner for each description!

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- PHILIPPINES, SINGAPORE, & MALAYSIA, PT. 1

Hello and good afternoon! This Asia vacation was 3 weeks long and was in Summer of 2017. The main reason why we went is to celebrate my Lola Emma’s 70th birthday in Manila. I’ve only been to the Philippines 3 times and that’s where we spent most of our trip- As for Malaysia and Singapore, that was my first visit and only spent a few days between the two. I’ll definitely be back to visit Singapore for photography and the food.

Traveling definitely molds you into a good human being. You gain a level of respect with all of the different and beautiful cultures. There are some ways of living that I don’t prefer, yet there are also things that I wish I had back at home. As for me, it reminds me to be lucky and thankful for what I have back in California…but there are places we’ve visited, specifically in the Philippines, where I can possibly seeing myself living at when I’m older- Or to own a second home for when I visit again would be nice. Learning how to fluently speak Tagalog is on my bucket list too!

Many people push aside the idea of vacationing in the Philippines, which is a shame because they’re definitely missing out. Not only is it very affordable, the food is delicious, there’s so many beautiful islands to visit for water activities…And I’m not only saying this because I’m Filipino myself, but the hospitality is literally the best that I have experienced in all of my travels. Everyone is nice and polite, and am very honored to say that…And to make things easier, everyone speaks English, so getting around and making small talk with them is common! Did I also mention that it’s safe? Yes, there are bad areas of this country to visit…But that’s everywhere in the world. You have to stay street smart, no matter where you travel to.

These photos include all 3 countries that we visited, and in no particular order. I’ll have all 3 countries again for my next post. Enjoy!

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- ME, MYSELF, AND I, DAY 25

Hi, Did you miss me yet? I hope your weekend is well so far. Honestly, I had a little bit of creative block today. I mean, I have plenty of photos to write about, but wasn’t in the mood to write about them today. I’m also going to keep it short and sweet today…As I was flipping through old photos from the 80’s, I went through my “Justin” collection. I couldn’t help but laugh and spend some time looking at them, especially the one of me with no front teeth. I’m also thankful for having so many photos to refer back to and will one day put these in a photo album. I look forward to documenting my kid’s lives just like Dad did with my brothers and I…if I ever have any of my own… Do you wanna go halfsies with me on one? JK. Anyways, I’ll see you tomorrow.

**I once a security teddy bear named Kris Kringle- Scroll to the very last photo to meet him**

My choice of drink today is red wine- What is yours?

J

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- THE TABIJE SIDE, DAY 24

Good Evening and Happy Friday! Today’s feature goes to the Tabije side and our extended family. This side of my family is close in a different way compared to my Mom’s side ( Gomez Side, Day 13). Mom’s side has 11 siblings, so I was already close with my 1st cousins. With Dad’s side, there are only 4 siblings…but our extended family (2nd cousins) is very close. The personalities with both sides are different. Growing up, Mom’s side would play Mahjong and on Dad’s side, they played Pusoy. Two things that they both have in common is that karaoke and eating is heavily involved, and it always takes a long time to say hello and goodbye at a family gatherings.

When Dad passed away in 2016, we had his life celebration at our childhood church, La Verne United Methodist Church. The seats were filled at max capacity, as well as people standing in the side aisles and even outside. He was loved by many people. After the service was over, we had an outdoor lunch with everyone as we caught up with each other’s lives and shared our favorite stories of Dad. At some point I started walking around with my camera, taking photos of everyone. I knew I wanted a group photo with friends and both sides of the family because photographing this day is something my dad would have wanted.

This photo is my generation of cousins. We don’t see each other too often- A lot of them I haven’t seen in many years. I don’t have much to say about them, except that I’m glad they’re in my life and it’s always good to see them. I’m not a fan of drinking Hennessy, but I always find myself wanting to take shot with them. Cheers, fam!

Before I put the camera away, I snuck back in to the empty church, talked to Dad again and took more photos of him and the church- This photo I’m sharing to you is the last one I took for the day and it put a smile on my face that day.

So, as I close this message out- Be thankful to spend this time with your parents. If they’re not in your home, send them a text, make a FaceTime call, do something. If they’re right next to you, give them an air hug or blow them a kiss (Coronavirus) and tell them that you love them. If they have passed away as well, you can always talk to them. Don’t do this for me, selflessly just do it for them, they will appreciate it- you’ll thank me later. Hope you have a wonderful weekend and be good to yourself! Peace and love to you.

JT

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- THE GUERREROS- DAY 23

Hi, it’s your favorite Tabije here for the 23rd straight day! Today’s feature goes out to my homie Alex and his wife, Jackie, and 3 daughters: Hannah, Zoey, and Khloe. These photos were taken in December of 2016. Alex, who I’ve been friends with since middle school, was at work on this day (Sorry Alex!), and I was visiting from up north at the time. Before the coronavirus, I was visiting them in Rancho Cucamonga every week. When I was in the Bay, I would see them 2-3 times a year on average. And that’s the good thing about keeping close with important people- You just pick up where you left off. I’ve been able to catch up with lost time, as I still have some catching up to do with other family and friends. One of the girls is also my goddaughter- Her name is Zoey (She’s in the last photo). It’s fun being Uncle Justin!

As for myself in the meantime, I am constantly evolving to be the best version of myself, which requires me to stay home on most days and keep my eye on the prize. So being able to digress and hang out with them on a Friday night is how I prefer to party nowadays.

One thing I admire and respect is how close they are as a family. They spend quality time together and the girls get along with each other. They say Mexicans and Filipinos have very similar cultures, in which family is important and take care of each other. From what I see with them and the rest of my Mexican friends and family, I genuinely believe that’s true.

With love,

JT

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- SF TREASURE ISLAND, DAY 22

Let’s bring it back to the BAYYY AREEEEAAAAAA! This was shot in Treasure Island, which is an old naval base and is now being reconstructed to be a nice (but still very expensive) community to live in. The Bay has one of the most unpredictable weather patterns in the country, with “microclimates” throughout the year. It can be sunny for the entire afternoon and all of a sudden becomes cloudy and foggy for the rest of the day in less than an hour. Luckily for me, it was sunny all day, and was able to get a nice sunset photo.

Shooting against the light has its challenges, especially if your intentions aren’t to capture a silhouette shot. My intentions for this shot was to capture the sun before dropping beneath the buildings in SF Financial District. I also like the outcome of how the light rays from the sun reach out to the sky while also reflecting bright onto the water. Lastly, you can spot Golden Gate Bridge to the far right- Typically there would be fog casting over the bridge at that time of the day. I even facetime’d my dad during this shot, since “golden hour” is also one his favorite times of the day.

I have a soft spot for sunrises and sunsets- Can you tell?

JT

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- VISITING MOM AND DAD- DAY 21

Hello! There’s a famous saying that it takes 21 days to form a habit- Well, I’m on my 21st day- I guess time will only tell from here! I’m currently writing at 1 a.m this Tuesday morning. Now it’s starting to feel mechanical to just write, no matter what time of the day it is- so that’s a good habit that I’m starting to feel.

I also wanted to tell you a little behind the scenes of my routine in preparing to write to you every day…Sooo, 1-2 days prior, I browse through my folder with random pieces of my work that I feel have potential in talking about. I skim through these photos and try to take myself back to that place in time…Sometimes, I seem to like the photos more than the backstory, so I don’t write about them or put them aside for the time being. One of the tasks that I’ve given myself during quarantine o’ clock is organizing and backing up all of my files. It’s boring and tedious, but I have to do it. As I am organizing, I sometimes come across misplaced files and when I see them, I know that it’s the one I want to write about next. Today’s story is about a random day of visiting Mom and Dad with Brian and Wade.

Just because Mom and Dad are not here physically doesn’t mean that they’re not still a big part of my life and decision- making. In fact, they are very well alive in that sense. The more I write about my family, the more I believe that all of us as one were a unique family. And I think that’s why I enjoy writing about them so much. For the most part, they are the happy part of my day.

Ok, so back to Brian and Wade- It was Summer of 2019 and I had recently told my brothers that it was time to sell Dad’s BMW. Uncle Rolly, my dad’s next oldest brother, has been the owner of this car since 2016 and has taken great care of it….But just like every other car, at some point, it just kept breaking down- One headache after the other. Thankfully, he sold the car to his best friend, Nestor, who is also a mechanic and knew my dad quite well. This made it easier for us to emotionally let go of the car for someone else.

I told both brothers that if they wanted to see the car for one last time, to visit me soon. So, one morning, I drove the BMW to Forest Lawn in Covina and met Brian and Wade. I took this opportunity to bring my camera and snap a few photos of our routine when we visit our parents…Typically, we rotate with who brings flowers…That day, I had brought the flowers, so I handed them over to Brian for him to trim and fill up with water, while I hung out with Wade. Brian and I caught up with life for a little bit, and then I followed Wade, while Brian sat back to catch up with Mom and Dad. Few minutes later, he finds us wandering around the green grass nearby- That’s our sign that it’s my turn to say hi to Mom and Dad. I then told Dad about the car and was told to tell him by Uncle Rolly that “it’ll be in better hands now.” Sometimes when we visit, we both stay with Mom and Dad together and exchange stories about them. Each visit is a different story.

I later gave Brian the car keys and drove away with the BMW for one last joy ride. In the meantime, I hung out with Nephew and told him about my day (not that it mattered to him at his age). Before splitting off, I took a few photos of the two of them in front of the car and inside the car while Brian makes car- racing noises for Wade, pretending like they’re really driving. After that, I told Brian that there’s spam and eggs at the house, so he followed me back to my house to have breakfast.

The End.

Justin, Brian, and Wade

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- DANICA'S GRADUATION- DAY 20

I’m back again, fam! Today’s feature is Danica-2 years ago this month, I had a graduation photoshoot with her. I first knew of her from Lucille’s BBQ in Concord. She was working for my brother and when she found out Eureka! was going to open nearby, she left shortly after, just like I left from P.F. Chang’s. I didn’t see her that often at Eureka! because we had opposite schedules but would still hang out with her from time to time when us coworkers partied together. In her last semester, she approached me for graduation photos. She would be graduating from Cal State University East Bay in June- The main campus was located in Hayward, which was about 30 miles away from us. Fortunately, there was an extended location in Concord and closer for the both of us, so we decided to shoot there instead.

I have never been to this campus- so I had to scout the area a week prior to see what I was working with. The campus was small but had enough areas to make the shoot still feel special. As a small prop, I asked her to bring a sheet of white paper and red gift wrap string to use as a diploma. It was also hot this time of the year day- so I had to stick to a time schedule to figure out my camera settings for lighting.

Danica and I drove separately and she came across a big fire on the way to the campus…I took that extra time to discover a few more spots to use for the shoot- so on my end, that extra time worked out for me (I later discovered that the fire was near my old apartments but thankfully there were no casualties and injures). Once it was time to shoot, everything fell in to place pretty easily. She was fun to work with and glad she chose me to photoshoot for her special day! When we were shooting outside, students would randomly pass her and say congratulations- that put a big smile on her face, which benefited me to capture while shooting!

If you’ve made it this far and need a photo session in the future- Please let me know! Summer is just around the corner and can’t wait to get back to photography.

Bay Area- Hope you’re doing well up there- Can’t wait to visit again!

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- TACO TABIJE, DAY 19

Today is a lazyyyyy day for me! I just woke up from an unnecessary nap…but who cares! Sometimes, you just gotta do it. I’m also going to make it a light read for today’s feature. When I think of spending my lazy days in the past, I think about my old roommate and nephew, Taco. Even after taking a long nap himself, he would still be down to take another with me right after. I have an endless amount of photos that I have taken of him…but for the art of storytelling I’m going to tell you a short story, sequenced by the photos that I took oh him! Ready? Here we go…

It was Fall season- The leaves in front of our house were falling to the ground little by little throughout the week. The gardeners clean our yards once a week (We had KB homes) so I told Taco that I wanted to snap a few photos before the gardeners arrived to clear up the sidewalks. When I looked to see where Taco was later in the day, he was in the backyard sunbathing…He was laying down awkwardly next to a chair but the sunlight was hitting him quite nicely…I quietly kneeled down to floor-level and did a loud, “PSSSSST” (If you’re Filipino, you know exactly what that sound means. As soon as he heard that, he looked right at me through the screen door…That’s when I snapped the 1st shot.

Next, all I had to do was say, “Wanna go outside?” He’d always get up right away ( on most days) as soon as I said that. With a slow and lazy walk and handful of doggy treats as his bribe to follow me outside, I told him to sit on top of the long stretch of fallen leaves. At this time, I hear the gardeners nearby so I couldn’t take too long- They saw what I was doing, smiled and laughed a little bit as they got closer and closer. After a short while, Taco became lazy and laid down shortly after- Those are the 2 photos with him on the leaves.

Next, I directed him to get the mail with me in the opposite direction. We lived on a small hill, and whenever he walked far in front, he’d look back to check on me, just to make sure I was still behind him. Knowing his mannerisms, I stopped walking and had my lens pointed at him and waited for him to check back, and then I snapped my last photo- Easy peasy!

Well that’s it for today! For those who have never met him, I apologize because he was a great dog…but this story is is also why I write…It’s to share with you fine people who have never had the privilege of meeting him and to remember the those lazy days of being with him- Anyways, enjoy the rest of your evening and wash your hands!

Miss you Taco,

Uncle JT

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- COMBAT FITNESS, DAY 18

GOOOOOD MORNING EVERYONE! Today’s feature is where it all began for me in Martial Arts- Combat Fitness in Walnut Creek! I’m sure you’ve heard me talk about this gym numerous times. But this has been an important part of my life, so it wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t include it in my #30DaysOfTabije. George Tsutsui, AKA Sir, is the owner of this gym, and warmly welcomed me in the very first day I stepped foot on the mats. I typically went to Combat Fitness in the mornings-I am a morning person, and prefer getting my workout before I start the rest of my day. The classes are also smaller in the mornings, so this allowed more individual time with Sir, which was something I always took advantage of, especially when I was new and insecure.

My motto would be: If I can make it to the gym in the morning, I can successfully conquer everything else that day. Another reason is that working out gets you tired…so if you workout hard in the morning before starting your day, you have no choice but to go to work and finish strong. Whereas with going at night, you start thinking to yourself, “I’m too tired to go-I’ll just go next time.” The amateur and pro fighters would be at the gym in the evening, so if you needed some critiquing or wanted to get a good spar session, that would be the time to go. It took me a while to gain confidence to workout at night with those fighters, but you have to spar and get hit if you want to correct yourself and improve as a fighter.

Another thing that I wanted to recognize is that Sir gave me access to photoshoot during his classes and for his website and promotion flyers. Not only did this motivate me to shoot, I was able to figure out the capabilities of my camera. Lots and lots of trial and error. With me being a gym member, fighters were already comfortable with me being around and shooting often. I would study the fighter’s technique and took notes when they were training. I was new to Martial Arts, so it took me a while to understand the photographer’s perspective and that every millisecond (literally) counted when it was time to shoot live. I was a gym member for 3 years, and was shooting for them in my last 2 years there. These photos were taken in 2017-2018

Thank you to Sir and everyone at Combat Fitness for changing my life in such a short amount of time! I have grown exceptionally since then and now have a new MMA gym 5 minutes away from my house in Chino Hills called Millennia MMA. It took me a while to find the right gym… but I can now say with confidence that I’ve finally found a great place that I can now call home.

To anyone who reads this- If you have any questions about Martial Arts, feel free to ask! I’d be more than happy to help…I’m no professional but we can figure it out together...ooor I can definitely point you in the right direction if I don’t know the answer! Have a great weekend, be safe, and continue to wash your hands!

J Tizzle, my nizzle

30 DAYS OF TABIJE- EUREKA!-DAY 17

Good morning fam, hope you’re well! This feature goes out to Eureka! in Concord. This was the second location (Berkeley was the first) opening in the Bay Area. I was on my way out from bartending at P.F. Chang’s and took this as a sign to go try something new. I was a big fan of Eureka! for years and it reminded me of home…I would go to the Claremont location often. Turns out that during my job interview, I knew a few mutual people- Small world!

For Concord’s 1 year anniversary, they had a small celebration by offering free Eureka! beer glasses and a selection of rare beers on tap. I was off that day and decided to go in and take some photos. For the staff, they brought in custom Eureka! cupcakes and cake. Once the first round of the PM staff finished their pre-shift (announcements, restaurant updates, etc.), I asked them to sit tight so I can take a photo of them.

I ended up bartending for this company for 2 years ( as well as Gotham Club in SF) and I gained a ton of beer and whiskey knowledge. I was glad I experienced working with them and met some good people along the way. Miss all of you!

JT