“Wow, you guys have so much fun!”

“You are so lucky to be partners of the same passion.”

“How I wish my boyfriend/girlfriend share the same interest as you do each other.”

We frequently hear these words whenever friends see our adventure photos in our Facebook accounts. We happily grin when we encounter fellow mountaineers and rock climbers who can’t help but admiringly remark on how we enjoy adventuring together. Believe it or not, a lot of people openly comment that we almost look alike. And yes, we beam with pride and joy, and we excitedly blurt out our love life in earnest.

But honestly, little did Sheila and I know that we have a lot of things in common. For example, would you believe that both of us have the same line of work? The same favorite dishes? The same hobbies? Maybe it’s merely a coincidence. I’m actually a rabid skeptic of the concept of soulmates. But admittedly, now that I’m enjoying a loving relationship with her, I’ve begun to change my beliefs in that spectral realm of destiny.

You see, I’ve never had a girlfriend for 4 years after my ex-wife left me for someone else (makes you think how I managed to survive without having sex, huh?). It worked really fine at first; I had absolute freedom, I experienced no headaches, and there was no bitch drinking up my finances to support her whims and partying.

But then, the longing of the heart does catch up with life, and sooner or later, you will feel the need to have a special someone AND be someone special in return. But mine was a special case: the girls I was interested in ran for their lives even at the friendship stage when I revealed to them that I’m still technically and legally married.

Well, anyway, our story actually started through a Facebook post. Out of utter desperation, I posted a “wanted” advertisement on the social networking site to let the world know that there are still good guys in the world. Hehehe!

As you can see, a lot of my pals wholeheartedly “supported” my campaign. One of them, my fellow mountaineer Faye decided to introduce me to some of her lovely officemates. Extremely excited, I lit up the green light and invited them to come over to Cantabaco to experience rock climbing, but at the same time, I got really worried. I mean, would a girl really want to meet a guy who is stinky, sweaty, and fervently asking her to climb hundreds of feet of bare rock with nothing but a flimsy rope to protect her? Would she be turned on when I explain to her that Cantabaco is one of the premier rock climbing sites in the Philippines? Would she be interested in slings, quickdraws, harnesses, and carabiners?

April 15, 2012

11:00 a.m. I’ve been climbing since 7 a.m., and the appointed time of our meet-up with Faye and her gang had come and gone. I began to think, well, who would want to date a rock climber anyway? But the rock gods heard my prayer; my phone began ringing, announcing Faye’s arrival. I quickly rappelled down, excused myself from my climbing friends, and fetched them at the Silangan chapel.

Faye then introduced me to Jody, Em-em, and . . . Sheila. Obviously, it was Sheila who caught my attention (I have my reasons privy only to me and Sheila), and to impress her, I chatted animatedly with her, with topics ranging from rock climbing to who will win the 2013 elections (a month within our relationship, she said that I talked too much to the point that she got turned off, perceiving me to be unnecessarily arrogant. Ngeks! She gave me a chance anyway).

Anyway, we reached the cliff and began our first adventure together. Everyone was quick to notice that the guide’s (me) attention was not with his clients but to a certain pretty girl wearing a sexy blue tank top.

And up Sheila went. Notice my hands? Yes, I’m spotting her, but that’s what I told the public. Hahaha!

Under my tutelage, she climbed the 5.8 Hait route. But my eyes were feasting on something else . . .

She stopped midway and asked to come down. I’m just too happy to comply. Untying her figure 8-rewoven knot took 15 minutes instead of the usual few seconds because I was concentrating on something else . . . again. Not to worry because Sheila seemed really happy about it.

They say that the way to a man’s heart is through his tummy, and Sheila does know the way. She prepared this nice cucumber-and-tomato salad and delicious pork adobo. The adobo was gone in minutes!

Well, simple, isn’t it? That’s the way we like to do things. For now, I won’t tell you the details of how we interacted with each other, but it was an undeniable fact that Sheila and I had a certain, special connection, spark, and chemistry which led to our love and adventures together.

It is suffice to say that the “ad” has been answered by a more-than-qualified applicant. Hehehe!

Photo credits to Faye Marie Arong and Jody Carretas