schellenut

new heights

2008-03-12T10:28:00.003+08:00

just dropping by....

my new interest : photography

got my new toy last December - Canon EOS 400D

still a novice though...

Current location: Singapore
Working in Rolfe & Nolan

so far so good...

25 Things I learned at 25

2007-01-10T11:21:00.000+08:00

1. Isn't it so weird that things present itself at such a time when you need it the least but go elusive when you are in dire need of it.

2. At the end of the day, it is always a comforting thought that you'll always go back to the warm bed and bury yourself under the covers while waiting for sleep to come.

3. No matter how clicheic it may sound, you never really know what you're missing unless its gone.

4. When everyone else is talking, this doesn't give you the license to engage in the gabfest. More often than not, it is better to just keep your mouth shut.

5. Forgiveness means accepting the fact that there is no way the past could have been different.

6. He gave us faith so that we could overcome the insurmountable. And that being spiritual is better than being religious.

7. Love is essential but it is not a prerequisite alone to keep a relationship going. Love and commitment cannot be used interchangeably.

8. Stress can indeed take its toll on your health. Learn to destress. There is so much to enjoy from life.

9. Friends do not only keep your sanity in check, they also allow you to be insane if the need be.

10. You need to be lost once in a while to be able to retrace your steps back home.

11. Chivalry is indeed not yet dead. Majority of my experiences in commuting validate this thought.

12. Making a living is not the same as making a life. And that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw some things back.

13. I am one restless soul. I cannot be contained. Thus, a good excuse for my traveling escapades.

14. If you can't change something, then change the way you feel about it.

15. Beauty is something that is relative.

16. Parting ways, no matter communal and consistent like the way you change clothes, is easier said than done.

17. Sometimes a steaming bowl of soup is just what I need to turn a not-so-perfect day turn somewhat right.

18. Shopping (or window shopping) is therapeutic. It has been said that it increase chemicals responsible for inducing feel-good emotions. And it is backed up by scientific findings.

19. The Spice Girls have been right all along: too much of something is bad enough.

20. Death creeps in like a thief in the night leaving you with a void that cannot be filled. We can never be too prepared for it. It forces us to come face to face with mortality.

21. Your family is your built in companion as you sail through life.You either get used to it or make up for the lost time when it is already too late.

22. People will not remember you on what you've made or accomplished but on the way you treated them.

23. You may not end up an exact replica of your mom eventhough you may not notice it at first but you'd be surprised one day that some of those things you least like about her to begin with would be the same things you'd end up doing. And in the end, you'd be more than grateful for having someone whom you look up to.

24. It is in silence that one could hear the innermost desires of the heart.

25. Isn't it great to be living in the present moment? Enough said.

UST vs Ateneo

2006-09-22T17:52:00.000+08:00

Cheer for our very own UST Tigers as they slug it out in the country's premiere collegiate league, the UAAP. Early this morning, I receive a barrage of text messages coming from fellow Thomasians.

Heroes are made, not born and this team, a young team proved that they are HEROES in the making...

a team IGNORED by many...

A team unexpected to RISE...

A team with HIDDEN CLAWS...

A team that is destined to GROWL ONCE MORE...

It's OUR TEAM..

We're on the CHAMPIONSHIP...

Pass this to fellow Thomasians...

Let's pray for the TIGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Let's pray for UST!!!!!!!!!!!

Go to Araneta and join our UST FAMILY as we cheer....GO USTE!!!!!

VIVA SANTO TOMAS!!!!!

weather you like it or not

2006-09-04T18:15:00.000+08:00

Just when I thought that the weather would be sunny with occasional rainshowers here and there, the skies suddenly turned dark and boy, I was in for a great surprise. Don't you just hate the feeling of having droplets of rain leave you soaking wet - your clothes clinging to your damp skin and your smell becomes a mixture of cologne, lotion, etc.
I've been getting up early for the past months so as to come in to the office before shift but the traffic jam on almost every intersection in Fairview was a maze unimaginable. No wonder there was no traffic aide in sight. Just merely looking at the traffic situation gives you an instant headache. Even the other lanes gets too flooded for the vehicles to get through.
As expected, I came in late. And what irks me most was that the weather in Makati was enough for someone to get a sunburn.
Harhar.

Announcement from Securities - Fixed Income

2006-09-01T21:17:00.000+08:00

From: Alvarez, Marissa (TF HR)

Sent: 01 September 2006 02:45

To: #TF-Manila ALL/Everyone Local

Subject: Announcement from Securities - Fixed Income

Please see announcement from Peter.

I am pleased to announce the following promotions in Securities – Fixed Income effective September 1, 2006.

Fixed Income and Warrants Team

Wenjie Borja – promoted from Senior Research Analyst to Team Manager. Wenjie has been with the company for 4 years. In his new role, he will manage the Fixed Income and Warrants Team and will focus on the Asia Pacific, including UK markets currently being covered in Datastream.

Frank Escabas – promoted from Research Analyst to Senior Research Analyst. In his new role, Frank will help Wenjie achieve the Team’s operational goals and objectives, including training new analysts on the workflow processes.

Bond Indices and CDS Team

Adrian Barrientos – promoted from Senior Research Analyst to Team Manager. Adrian’s 4 solid years of experience in the maintenance of Fixed Income, Warrants, and Bond Indices dataset will help him effectively manage a Team of 5 Bond Indices Research Analysts.

Anna Rachelle Ariola – promoted from Senior Research Analyst to Team Manager. Being one of the pioneers of the Bond indices Team in Manila when it started in 203, Anna will help me in managing a Team of 5 Bond Indices Research Analysts, making sure that productions goals including SLA with clients are met.

Meluz Montenegro – promoted from Research Analyst to Senior Research Analyst. Being one of the TOP awardees last year (Bronze Category), Mel will help Adrian in ensuring continuous improvement in the production processes for Bond Indices dataset.

Ratings and Entity Management Team

Charo Barrot – promoted from Research Analyst to Team Manager. Charo’s superior analytical skills and good work ethics will ensure that the Ratings Team meet all the targets under her management.

Please join me in congratulating Wenjie, Frank. Adrian, Anna, Mel and Charo in their new roles.

Regards,

Peter Yu
Senior Team Manager
Fixed Income, Warrants, Bond Indices, Ratings and Entity Management

Sanctuario de San Antonio Church

2006-08-20T21:52:00.000+08:00

Baptism of mama's officmate's son @ Sanctuario de San Antonio Church in Forbes Park, Makati City

Reception at Dad's Glorietta

updates later...

Mid-year inventory

2006-08-19T17:50:00.001+08:00

I've been doing an inventory of my things recently acquired. Most of the items are skincare products and make-up booties. I was surprised that most of them are all expensive. Something I do not have the luxury to buy when I'm still in school but then more often than not, the more expensive ones are those that do not really work for me. What an irony! Among these are the products from the Belo line. Sorry this does not mean I'm losing confidence with the brand but there are some formulations that really do not work for some while they become beauty loots to many. I'm planning to gave the make-up items on Christmas - not to my officemates beacuse most of them are aware that they came from Rustan's sale. And probably they even have these items already! While my sister is the benefactor of most things in my disposal, she consistently receives expensive goodies for from Milan without her shelling out a single centavo. The likes of which are Murano Glass watches, Mango blouses, La Coste and JLo perfumes, etc.

Oh well, where's the justice in this world?

It isn't like I'm ranting. After all, I get to partake of these gurl-must-haves as well.

why it gets lonely at the top

2006-08-18T23:46:00.000+08:00

After receiving directives (more of complaints) being hurled here and there from the higher-ups in the office, it is when the weight of the upcoming promotion really hits you like frozen-cold water on the face. It isn't that I'm not preparing myself for the bigger responsibilities I have to face come next month but it gets frustrating that sometimes the good things seem minute compared to the negative things which surfaces here and there like a bomb waiting to explain. Sometimes when I do get up in the morning, I tried to shove away thoughts that something would go wrong again lest I would not start the day right. These complaints stems out from some of my teammate's behavior which when not acted upon would be subjected to sanctions from the management.

I wouldn't want to disclose information which are best kept that way. I hope things would shape up better as we brace for the reorganizational changes effective this September. I am reminded of why people say, it really sometimes gets lonely being at the top or something to that effect.

just ranting

2006-08-15T21:44:00.000+08:00

I am so looking forward to the upcoming movie, My Super Ex-Girlfriend. Superman Returns was my recently-watched flick. I get to see it for free courtesy of my MBA classmate who is the head in security department in Rockwell Plant.

I need a break!

Still on weekend blahs

2006-08-12T23:40:00.000+08:00

This Saturday was the second of the four seminars I have to attend as a preparation for my role as lector-commentator on the liturgical celebration (mass) for September. Fr. James have been equipping us (there are five of us in the batch) on ways to become a productive member of the church.After the seminar, I headed to the mall as I haven't been there for a long time. I found out that there is a newly-opened Go Nuts Donuts near Starbucks on the lower level. Rolypoly, who had joined me that day before going to work bought me a half-dozen of doughnuts to my glee. (Earlier, I have my three pants bought on sale from Bayo altered at the hem by one of their factory workers.) Then, we checked out the newly-opened strip of restos a stone's throw away from Robinsons Nova. It was beer-drinkers-delight haven where we feasted on roasted chicken, drinks, balut, and well, doughnuts. It was the first time I saw an Andok's Manok store which caters to dine-in customers in a fully-airconditioned setting but we opted to stay outside near the lights and fountain. The next day, I attended the 9AM mass alone. And after lunch headed back to church for the PREX meeting at 2PM. Some of my batchmates from PREX 40 group did not attend. I took down minutes of the meeting and since there isn't much to discuss we only spend a few hours as we are still on the planning stage. We would be the sponsoring class for the next batch of PREX
attendees scheduled next month.After that, I dropped by the mall to get Go Nuts Donuts to personally deliver to Rolypoly's family. His dad, tita, lola and niece were there. I didn't stayed that long. Ate an early dinner of yummy sugpo and went back to the mall to join mama and Aimee on their shopping. The day was really tiring. I got myself a new pair of pants (again!). Mama got herself wardrobe-full of ensembles - shoes, pants and blouses. Talk about saving for a rainy day! On second thought, she rarely indulges on things so I'll just let her be.

Life turns to a halt

2006-08-01T21:00:00.000+08:00

These days instead of taking in stride, I took in everything as if I have all the time to spare. As much as I could, I didn't let moments litlessly pass me by but instead savored the sights and sounds as if I'm seeing these for the first time. I took notice of details I didn't know were there. I took more delight to spontaneity and made mental note of how adrenaline rush pushes me beyond the monotonous whirl of things.
Oftentimes, I caught myself just being plainly happy with no particular thing to attribute that feeling. Negative feelings just don't linger that long as it used to. Even when I think about it, I never really let it stay enough in my system because it wouldn't be too long before I find something to be amused about.
I touched base with my spirituality last month after joining the Parish Renewal seminar. Rather than plain religiosity, I would opt for spirituality instead as the latter gives more essence.
Being religious might mean being confined to doing things well, religiously while being spiritual is leaning beyond the practices and rituals for it caters to the innermost subject which is the soul. It leads one to a deeper relationship with The Creator. If one learns the distinction between the two, then it would make the doer aware of the meaning behind the acts being performed.
I'm really thankful I'm having more of what I bargained for.

Deep Scaling

2006-07-26T12:35:00.000+08:00

Deep Scaling. This procedure sounds alarming when you get to hear of it for the first time while your mind is conjuring thoughts of how would the dentist go about it and what would be the apparatus to be used.She went into details on how badly I need to undergo this procedure as I have a gum problem. My gums are too sore and sensitive. I haven't been bothered about it though.
A scaling is when the doctor or the hygienist uses special instruments by hand to remove any plaque and bacteria and to smooth the root surface. This is a procedure which is usually done every 6 months for treatment of gums, teeth and bones.Oftentimes a cleaning will consist of 1st removing the tartar with a cavitron, (a device which vibrates at ultra sonic frequencies) then they smooth the root surface with hand scaling, following with a polishing to the teeth. I've done some research and found out that an anesthesia may be required before a patient undergoes the procedure. But in my case, the dentist did not inform me beforehand. Which isn't that bad because I have high tolerance for pain. She was even surprised as the procedure is not illiciting any reactions from me unlike her previous patients.

I wouldn't want to go into details as I might scare someone who intends to have this treatment done in the future. Just to give a picture on how this procedure goes, think of yourself doing oral prophlyalaxis aka general cleaning. The cavithron goes even underneath the gums making them bleed profusely. After the process, it would be the time when your entire jaw would hurt from all that drilling.
Since the procedure is not covered by my company's health plan provider, I paid 1,200 for that using Rolypoly's credit card since they don't accept visa. I didn't intend to bring anything in the first place because I booked for an oral prophy only
but since I need to undergo deep scaling first as what was prescribed by the dentist in Medical Plaza, being the health conscious that I am, I got alarmed by her diagnosis. I was also advised to use Sensodyne replacing my regular toothpaste brand as it contains gum care properties.

Back to Blogging Mode

2006-07-24T14:33:00.000+08:00

The blogging community must have thought I've quit blogging for good. Either that or I've been living under the rock.
Due to restrictions to internet access, blogsites have not been spared as among the list of websites that are not permitted in the office. As I'm too lazy to update my blog anywhere outside the realm of the office, I'd just let my blog accumulate cobwebs on cyberspace as shown on my hits' report that is being sent on my yahoo inbox. Total visits average around 3 hits per week. Not bad since that suggest that my blog have a loyal following. That means at least 3 people per week cared to know the goings-on in my life.

Cabalen

2006-07-09T22:32:00.000+08:00

After cancelling my reservation last Sunday due to the Pacquiao-Larios boxing match which kept everyone at home from doing anything other than sitting infront of the boobtube and having the chance to leave their seats in between commercial breaks, the much anticipated Cabalen (West Avenue) treat did pull off yesterday.To our surprise, my name was posted on the reservation list even if it was long overdue.We drove all the way to Cabalen, West Avenue branch as it was the nearest in the area. The usual fare of karekare, lechon, dinuguan, laing, inihaw na hito, sinigang na baboy, ensaladas, kakanin, halo-halo etc were there as expected. But there are a few missing on the menu which I have tried in other outlets. Their dessert was not as varied compared to that of Cabalen Glorietta. I'm craving for balut which I have tried in Cabalen, Robinson's Place but that exotic fare was probably unique to that branch.After having our fill of palatable Kapampangan dishes which obviously left our tummies stuffed to the brim, we stayed for a while before driving to SM fairview to do our grocery shopping.After that I went back to Medical City which is located inside the building where I had my check-up. The blisters on my lips are getting worse even if I'm religiously applying the emollients. The doctor prescribed antibiotics and added medications for my perforated eardrum (Otitis Media) as I'm having frequent ear discharges but posing no threat to my hearing so far.The day left me a few pesos poorer but it was worth it.

Myla joined our Creator

2006-06-29T23:31:00.000+08:00

Bicol Adventure - May 26-30

2006-05-31T23:28:00.000+08:00

Updates...Coming soon...

Coron, Palawan - May 19-22

2006-05-23T15:23:00.000+08:00

Indeed, it was the country's last frontier. I could hardly contain my excitement when the view from the state room of Superferry 1 changed to the scenes which I could only admire from postcards and travel documentaries.

Pictures to be posted soon.

Puerto Galera - May 6-8

2006-05-09T17:18:00.000+08:00

After much ado, we are finally going back to Puerto Galera. Most of us, anyway. First-timers in this island adventure are Mervyn and Aimee.Francis' whole clan together with my highschool clasmmates would also be going today so doubles the excitement.We didn't make any room reservations prior to our arrival so we had difficulty securing accomodations. Add to that, business is in its peak season. We were lucky to even end up with a gulong-ng-palad room, so-called because of its sorry state but we have to make do of what we have anyway. And the room was priced cheap at only 750 php. Still a bargain. Mind you, we have fun clicking the camera away of the picturesque (or grotesque rather) scene of the place including the restroom which we wouldn't want our officemates to see when we come back to work.
After our first night stay, we all decided to look for something better since there would be more vacancies come Sunday.

After consuming more than 2GB of memory space and still in need of some more, we headed back home with summer fun memories.

The whole is experince is summed up in three words - fun, fun, fun!

Tiendesitas and a few swigs of brandy

2006-04-22T17:14:00.000+08:00

Tiendesitas
This was the first time we went out since Rolypoly arrived from Aus. I decided to bring him to this place as I was eager to check out this place as it it has been getting good reviews in forums. Armed with only a printed copy of the directions which is not so detailed, we were able to make our way through despite a few wrong turns here and there.
My only slight disappointment was the skyrocketing prices of the food in the food court area. We had a sumptuous feast for lunch. And for a slab of grilled spare ribs and a rice, the bill was a whoppping 130php. Rolypoly, on the other hand have ginataang suso and sinigang. We have a few bottles of San Mig light after lunch.
And after hanging out for a while, we strolled the place. It took hours to get everything covered. There were different sections catering to a shopper's every need like antique finery, pet's paraphernalia's, of course the clothes and accessories bazaar wouldn't be nowhere in sight. I bought home some shirts.Two Mango shirts and a Chocolate Kiss.
Afterwards, we drove off to Glorietta to buy the Fossil watch Rolypoly is eyeing on. He lost his not-so old watch of the same brand from a mishap.
Since this entry is written a few months after the event took place, I barely recall if we dropped by SM Fairview to get something.
Oh yeah, now I remember...Since we still have more time in our hands, we decided to stop by the convenience store near their place to get us a bottle of Gran Matador brandy and some chips. We invited his tito to join us. And so all three of us were in their wooden table in their garage contended with swigs of brandy and chitchat.
A few gulps of brandy after, to my horror, there was a splatter of vomit on the table. Only then did it hit me that it was me who was held accountable for what happened. Buti na lang his tito was so bait, he didn't mind at all. After sorting out the mess, we proceeded to where we left off. I thought I'll be ok since I have stopped drinking na but a few moments after, I found myself vomiting again. This time I am fully aware of it. Haaay naku twas so embarrasing talaga. Basta the rest of the story, I'll resign to memory since I wouldn't be forgetting the first time I'm so inebriated that even if my keep my eyes shut everything still seems to be spinning around in a blur.

summer heat wave

2006-04-11T16:10:00.000+08:00

My first reunion with the beach for this year was during our company outing at Montemar Beach Club in Bataan last April Fool's Day. It was also the second time that the shores of Bataan welcomingly embraced me. The first time was last 2003 wherein I'm still on the process of absorbing all things new that was Thomson being just a newly-hired employee and training under the expertise of an expat based in London. Even during that time, I've already gotten close to my officemates. So after two consecutive summer outings, here we are back in Montemar. I can't help thinking that some people I'm with during my first summer outing in Thomson are long gone, gone to different companies while there are those who got tired of these kind of activities.Our overnight stay was fun. There are a lot of bonding sessions with the gurlz. We played games on whatever which surprisingly we haven't done on dry land. Then there was the drinking sessions. Its only now that I realized that whenever we had those sessions, Di would either be next to me or close enough to grab anything I've gotten hold of away from my grasp. I'd ended up with my bottom dripping with liquor. Or worse, she'd take away whatever would be left. Much to the amazement of gurlz, I was the last one to sleep. Whoever gets to sleep first would treat the gurlz to Bizu. Di got inebriated in no time so she was the first one who retired to bed.

The whole Montemar experience the second time around was really worthwhile. We stayed under the sun most of the time but not without sunblock. I get to kayak with Drew at the helm and Boggs at the rear end. Mervyn had his own digital camera. Ahem, its a Sony Cybershot 7.2 MP camera with 1 GB Memory. So this sleek device brought out the camera whore in us.
Last week's events got me sleeping late that everytime I hit the bed, I was so bone-tired I couldn't thing of anything else but get to sleep. Last Friday's last minute OT bar escapade with the gurlz which got us into drinking a few sips of whatever while drowning the voices of other people by belting out tunes. The microphone stayed in our table most of the time much to the delight or probably disappointment of the bar goers.There are times when I get to realize that staying late has its own cons, one thing is certain though - I'm surrounded with friends. Network of friends who are there even when the going gets tough.

And just like the finest wine, it keeps on getting better with age.

short-lived

2006-04-07T15:23:00.000+08:00

'Do you model?'

This was the first question of the day thrown in my direction on my way to the office by a slightly balding middle-aged guy who looks as if he's watching 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy' too much. To give credit where it is due, he could pass as a scout.Without batting an eyelash and not even letting the sentence finish, I found myself replying in hushed tone, 'No' while sporting that weird look on my face as if I sipped gourd juice. Probably he meant if I do model for children's line. Hehehe. Instead of halting my steps, I walked as fast as I could as if the guy is from some insurance company. Did I just ruined my chance to stardom? Hehehe. Dream on.Or probably its a modus operandi to shell out thousands of hard-earned money out of victim's pockets. At least I was able to put up a not-so-usual reaction - something they don't illicit from other people. I haven't told a soul about this. We haven't had that 'anything goes' conversation yet. Or even if we did have one of them, it was pushed further back to the dustbin of my memory. I had lot of activities that day. My legs barely had the time to remain stationary. After attending the book launch of Real Magazine in Powerbooks, Greenbelt, I am still deciding whether to drop by at Gateway Mall in Cubao to join my Varsi friends since its getting late. Sheila, my batchmate would be leaving for the US to pursue a career in nursing. It was Geoff's text messages which prompted me to go. And I'm glad I did. Its been ages since most of us are gathered in one place since college. Most of them still looked pretty much the same. Save for their preppy looks now turned into more corporate get-ups. Right after seeing them all in one place, for a brief lull, an overwhelming unexplainable feeling swept all over me. I guess this is quite normal after being reunited with long lost friends. I was late for dinner so we hopped to Coffee Bean, not without taking pictures at Dencio's Grill. Minutes stretched to hours and so I find myself opening our front door at 2am. I apologized to mama right then and there before words even came to her mouth, for not informing her beforehand that I would going to be this late. I told her Paul dropped me off as his place is near ours. Grace lives in Fairview so we both went with Paul.Among our three sibs, I'm the only one who she wants to be snoring and lost in dreamland come bedtime. Like I would get sick if I wasn't able to get at least 8 hours of sleep. Like the time when we are watching this late-night coverage of this actress' wedding send-off party, she's telling me not to stay up late but when she caught a glimpse of what we're watching, she was immediately glued to the screen. Anyway, back to the story, I was surprised to find out during our get-together that ex-PBB housemate Zanjoe was Carlo's first cousin. Carlo, who arrive earlier that night was slightly flushed after I took pics of him to show to my sister. I didn't enjoyed my iced tea drink. Its too bland to cost over a hundred pesos.

The highlight of the day was really catching-up and reliving memories with my V friends.

new laptop

2006-03-20T18:53:00.000+08:00

I have a new WiFi laptop..Yey!!!

unfinished business

2006-03-15T19:11:00.000+08:00

What have happened to my very persistent spirit when it comes to doing things which I think I need to do no matter how daunting the task may be? Alas! It died a natural death.

Things happen in its own time. When we were much younger, we are so restless over something which we want to happen right away so much that we lost sleep over that something. It's as if time can't really wait for us. In our haste to get things done, things in its unripe state were forced to turned ripe, which more often than not, would be better off should we have given it more time.

But to give it justice, I never cried over a lost love, I cried over a lost friendship.

the wonders of saline solution

2006-03-07T12:09:00.000+08:00

I've been speding a few minutes preparing a saline solution (salt diluted in lukewarm water) for me to gargle before going to bed since last week. This is to provide temporary relief to my sore throat. I came to know that through the process of osmosis, the salt draws out the edema fluid, killing the bacteria, which requires a warm, wet environment.
This morning, I've been taking lozenges such as strepsils which is from my sister's loot. I've ran out of anitbiotics since it was last year that I had this kind of ailment. Although this time, it had a less impact since my immune system has been prepared to combat such virus.
Last night, I rode the bus with Tate and my coughing seems to get worse. I was trying to control it but then I have a problem breathing properly which reminded me of my brother many years ago when he got an asthma attack. When Mel boarded of, an elderly man occupied the seat she left and I could tell he's giving me sympathetic looks at such a sight I was making. A few minutes after, he left his seat and transferred to another. I understand that although he's genuinely concerned he has too look after his health. Cough and cold are highly contagious. Moreso, when you're confined in an enclosed space.

Just bought anitibiotics and some Strepsils at Mercury Drug. I didn't know you could use Citibank-Mercury Drug visa credit card on their grocery store even if your purchases are below 100. Neat.
Tomorrow, I hope I wont be waking up nursing a still sore, raw and painful throat.

chilly Monday, or is it just me thinking such a thing?!

2006-03-06T12:28:00.000+08:00

My head's feeling a little too heavy today. It seems that I'm on a pre-fever stage. I broke into fits of coughing every now and then. I just hope I could take a leave tomorrow. Watched Final Destination 3 at the SM F cinema with my sibs yesterday. Before that grabbed something form lunch at Chef D Angelo. Imagine having sequels to a movie titled Final Destination. The movie scenes keep you glued to the screen expecting how these people would die one after the other. Expect blood and gore. To say that this film is not for the faint hearted is a bit exaggerated though.

Last Wednesday, March 1st which coincides with Ash Wednesday and also my papa's birthday, it was my first time to experience an earthquake awake. It was around 7pm and I'm working in the office. I don't know if I called Mitz or vice versa but she was the person I'm taking with through this ordeal. Quite scary as we are on a high-rise building.

I need to take Cefalexin before my condition worsens. I'll be rendering overtime later as we have teleconference walkthroughs on test cases later.

Lets get this over with. Ha, you wish!

reducing the bulk of spam callers aka cc agents

2006-03-03T17:49:00.000+08:00

I'm no longer connected with Thomson Phils. Corp. That is what I've been disseminating to credit card agents who keep on calling my number to inform me that I've been qualified to avail of this credit card blah blah blah or this loan blah blah blah. Its actually doing me good as calls are becoming less frequent. Just a final word, don't refer me to these agents, ok and I would return the favor by doing the same. Here's to less spam callers or whatever you may put it.

spray-painted horse

2006-02-28T19:42:00.000+08:00

Its a so-so day so to speak. I've been keeping my mental to-do list in check and have everything in high priority covered. Things have been slowing down to a halt or perhaps I'm the only one who is thinking this way and probably come next month things would fairly be getting jittery.

Don't mind the title. I just remembered the light brown-colored horse whose mane is spray-painted pink back when I went horseback riding in Baguio early this year. I've seen Nilo's pictures during the Panagbenga festival. He visited the place again after just a brief lull, this time with his family while last two week's visit was with Thomson officemates.

While too much of the political circus has been going around lately, I've been in my tiny nook mindlessly going about my own business as if these things never happened. I guess, who could blame me? Who could blame my incurable apathetical attitude to power-hungry and bloodsucking political vampires? After a far-flung barangay has been wiped off the map due to landslides leaving hundreds buried alive, those people in power should instead exhaust all means to provide for the victims and their families and or gear solid efforts in rehabilitation.

One thing I'm looking forward this week would be watching the much anticipated movie, Memoirs of a Geisha with my sibs come Sunday. My sister and I got the two movies tickets for free, 100 SM gc and two gym bags after we got nabbed by advertising reps on our way to the mall's exit after having our facials. Although this marketing tactic required me to stay for two hours (which was supposed to last for a good 30-45 minutes only as what they promised) listening to sales talk and all that at least I get to have these freebies.

Eurostar carnival would be open until midnight today. I was hoping they'll be having an extension but that left me with the option to wait for a couple of years before they'll be coming back. How could I missed something as BIG as that!

the day after

2006-02-16T20:23:00.000+08:00

The highlight of my Valentines was the lunch date with the gurlz at Old Spaghetti House in Paseo. There was a funny little incident involving Charo, which forced us to make a mad rush, sort of, to the office with nothing but a few coins. But we hailed a cab, anyway.

On to other things, we started our commemoration of Vday by exchanging things, which have caught our fancy or something we feel like giving without taking into consideration the price.Since my code was eclair, I received an eclair and there'll be another surprise comin up next week.

Of course, Valentines wouldn't be valentines without a tangible representation. And so there were three long-stemmed roses from the guys in the office. They really are so thoughtful.I used my Starbucks coupon to take some frappucinos home.

The night before, I was with Taro at the mall. I dropped by Rolypoly's house to arrange some things that a family friend would be bringing along to Aus. Had a chitchat with his dad and aunt while having pizza for dinner. They insisted in driving me home since its running late. I had fun rummaging along the piles of his old clothes, not-so-old ones, some personal stuff which I only took notice of right at that moment. I bought a wallet as a little something for Vday. Crossing my fingers that he haven't bought a new wallet yet. His cousin from Germany is still at their place testing the pirated DVDs. I had second thoughts packing some of his cds as their authenticity is doubtful bka I'll put pa their family friend in trouble sa airport.

I was still feeling the effect of Vday since I received two presents from Karene who just had her vacation with her family in Bangkok and another one from an elementary classmate working in the US Navy, based in Japan. Karene got me a blouse and some native delicacy while Franz got me a perfume gift set from Victoria's secret.

my new camera phone

2006-02-09T18:31:00.000+08:00

And finally, I've gotten hold of Samsung X640 bought from Smart Communications for only 5690php. You've heard it right. Its because of the ongoing promo. You can't just pop-up in the store and go buy yourself one. They're always out of stock and they have their reservation list which I've come to know of just last week. Arggh! I've been calling them for weeks now inquiring about the availability of the model. And no one's mentioning that there's a reservation going on. So that put me on the end of the list tailing behind 70 people. Hahaha! Don't call me a cheapskate, I'm just being practical. After all, I'm not that cellphone savvy anyway, I could make do with other so-so units just as long as it working properly. I'm not even a texter! It requires ounce of effort from me to come up with single message. Hehehe. I passed by SMART building on the way to PBCOM and decided to inquire in the flesh. The lady rep cannot find my name on the list. Oh my! So she just typed in my name on the last field and there I'm on the bottom low. After having my business done at PBCOM, I decided to go back to SMART to add details on the list if it would be possible to put in 3 units on my reservation since I forgot to put in Mitz and Charo's name on my previous visit. There was quite a friction between the gay guy and me who's been firing me one question after another. He's insisting I shouldn't be on the list because I'm not a SMART employee. Still, I kept my composure and told him that I was informed that even a non-SMART employee could avail. Good thing, this guy butted in and to my amazement he let me bought a unit. Yes! I hurried to the cashier before he changed his mind. He added that even a non-SMART employee could avail and that its on a first-come, first-served basis. And since he emailed those on the priority list and some haven't gotten back to him yet, he allowed me to get one. He told me that Charo and Mitz should be the there to get the unit. And so I called the girls and have them come over in a jiffy. Mel claimed the unit in Mitz' behalf. Some people don't really have that genuine concern over their customers.

So there. Excuse me while I get to tinker with this stuff.
This is rather a long entry, don't you think.

missing mitz

2006-02-09T18:26:00.000+08:00

Our almost daily gurlz conferences held at the corner of the office were put on hold because Mitz took a week-long leave to spend time with her mom who just got back from HK. I miss our no-holds barred conversation on topics ranging from vulgar to not-so vulgar.

I wonder how long would it be when people would start occupying that corner where you get to have a good view of the world outside. Till then we could just talk our free hours away!

Ayan ha, Mitz! We are keeping our promise to temporarily halt our conference sessions! But you know what, Charo almost got raped by Mel and me along the opposite side of my workstation and no shriek ever escaped from her lips. Antahimik kase that morning and people are really busy hence the pin drop silence. Hahaha. We should do this more often.

lovin' Jap food

2006-02-09T18:24:00.000+08:00

Except for Japanese fastfood Tokyo-Tokyo, it has been a ages ago since the last time I've been inside a somewhat high-end Japanese restaurant - it was Teriyaki Boy in Glorietta with my officemates on a Friday night. You would know if you're in a Jap resto if there are wooden tables aside from the signature Japanese characters in bold red and black displayed on the corner. Food is served in flat wares and bowls with of course, chopsticks. Chances are, you'll be spotting a paper lamp, a framed geisha portrait on the walls and other Zen-inspired objects. As with most Jap restos, the interiors are utterly devoid of chutzpah being orderly and nature-like.
And it is on that night when the guys are accompanying me to get a ride home that we have find ourselves inside Tempura Japanese Grill where we feasted on serving of authentic mouth-watering servings of gyoza, tofu steak, ebi tempura, mix maki, yakisoba, teriyaki and teppanyaki. The resto boast of their smokeless Yakiniku tables which don't have much use, at least for us anyway.
I was stuffed to the brim. I really can't get enough of Jap food. Although I have yet to familiarize my palates with the taste of maki and sushi. And yes, that yellow-green paste which has a funny taste - wasabi! Pass me that wasabi, why don't you!
I am saddened at one point thinking that this might be the last, or next to the last, that the four of us would sit down to dinner mindlessly getting to each others nerves; embarassing ourselves to the onlookers; laughing hard as though there'll be no tomorrow and other silly stuffs you wouldn't expect from someone our age.

what is happening to us?

2006-02-07T16:15:00.000+08:00

After reeling from the victory of Manny Pacquiao, the nation was gripped this time with mourning because of the ill-fated tragedy that killed more than 70 people and left hundreds injured, among them still in critical condition. Quite a startling contrast, the afternoon show which sole intention is uplift people's livelihood through its game prizes rendered some of them in a more hopeless situation. What could have brought them closer to winning the jackpot prize led them to their untimely death instead. Imagine hordes of people pinning their hopes on Wowowee show. I couldn't agree more when people say that living conditions in nation is far from becoming better. You could feel the impact of soaring prices due to EVAT. Such a sad fate, really.

But I wouldn't dwell on the topic anymore. There are a lot of depressing news lately and I wouldn't add to that. A person could only take so much negativity.I entered the office and executed my midmorning routine as if on a clockwork. My spirits were a bit low given the chain of events which transpired during my commuting hours. The lousy service that I am getting from the MRT employees. As if I had all the time in the world!In a span of five minutes, I found a way to shift my mood. I took out my mp3 player and listened to my playlist. I thought of how excited I am to be having this lunch-out in just a few hours with gurlz. And sure enough those thoughts have drifted away from the background. I'm really good at self-help.

We had our lunch out at Avenetto where halfway through servings of pasta and pizza, we have witnessed a theft scene. The alleged woman thief went inside the resto and allegedly took the bag from one of the diners. We only took notice when we've seen people already looking out of the window. There we saw the alleged thief getting punches from the motherly woman while held by a security officer. Good thing the motherly woman got hold of her bag.

After the heavy lunch, we headed to the beauty counters at Rustan's. As usual, Mitz got her make-over from us. After playing with the shimmer powders and sticky glosses, we went back to the office.

I finally got to try that M&M's with candy shell shaped ala Hershey's courtesy of Wenjie. There's really nothing like chocolates to boost one's mood.

Face it!

2006-02-03T11:08:00.000+08:00

I know that most people go to great lengths to achieve their desired look. To consummate my curiosity I did what most people are least expecting me to do - fall prey to such things as microdermabrasion and laser peeling treatments. In my case, I have no serious skin problem but I just want to try it for maintenance purposes. Or I could roadtest it and inform everyone of the results. Im not new to facial cleaning, anyway. I've subjected my face to various pricking, sucking, massaging, scrubbing etc. as part of the cleaning procedure. Visits to the derma are usually done in the afternoon right after me and mys sister picked up mama from her office. My sister is prone to mild acne and she uses more facial products than me to keep breakouts at bay. I think Acne Aid is the best sooap there is for those with acne problems or just to control the occurence of pimples.Among us three, I have the highest treshold for pain so I could tolerate the procedure without as much a drop of tear. Hehehehe. I just came back from my first session of power peel. The almost 30-minute non-surgical experience is like having sandpaper roughed briskly on your face. This is to remove dead and flaking skin cells to stimulate the production of new skin cells and collagen.

I don't really see anything wrong in having a serious skin regimen at this age. You only have yourself to blame when you're gray and aging and you could've minimize the damage if you have done something about it early on. But a final word though, no matter how perfect your regimen is, genes play a part. Neddless to say, there are people who don't go to the trouble of maintaining their youthful beauty and yet ends up having that newborn skin and vice versa. Just a bit of trivia: Japanese skin age slowly while Indians have skin which ages faster than most Asians do. Also, the Chinese have oh so beautiful skin. One contributing factor is pearl essence and then again, they lead such healthy lifestyle.

Batangas fiesta

2006-01-27T20:14:00.000+08:00

We headed off to Batangas last Tuesday for the fiesta. Back in the car, we were worrying that the bad weather might pose a problem to the celebration but the gloomy weather did little to dampen the spirits of everyone. The band marches with all their instruments while their uniforms are soaked by the rain. I find it hard to visit nearby relatives as mud find its way to my stilettos. Add to that, the roads are slippery. As expected most of the houses we've been in have their karaoke in their full grandeur. It was really becoming a staple to every event. I lost count on how many songs I've rattled off. Never even minding the scores as they are a bit tricky. Increase your pitch or even just do the shouting not singing and it would guarantee very high scores. One thing I noticed though that the codes of some songs are similar to the one Rolypoly had during his despedida. I remembered having a problem with this JLo song because the lyrics are incorrectly being shown and this incident was replicated to the karaoke we are using in Batangas. I still have to sing this song and I even forgot the title. There were a lot of cholesterol-laden food and the same kind of sweets present in every house. We got home late.
Funny thing is, we forgot that we shouldn't have used the car and commuted instead due to the coding scheme. Allan wasn't able to come up with us because he have classes to attend.

The gurlz decided to have lunch at Racks yesterday. Much to Di's disappointment, Racks' is still closed for renovation. We tried something new - Pollo Negro resto which serves Italian and Filipino food. If you think, I'll be giving rave reviews, better not expect it.

I'll better get going as they're waiting for me home. Today's my parent's wedding anniversary.

And I'm busy tidying up my workstation as we are moving to a new location come Monday - the opposite wing of the building.

i'll be counting the days till I see you...

2006-01-20T16:23:00.000+08:00

Pictures before going to the airport:

Last food I bought for him: half gallon strawberry-flavored Selecta ice cream
Last place we dined in: Starbucks, along Ayala Avenue
Last movie watched: Narnia, SM Fairview
Last stuff he bought for me: two denim skirts
Last word/s said: sweet nothings
Last silly argument: on proper usage of collective nouns
Last drink shared: rootbeer in can

Funny thing is, he just called while I'm typing this entry. There's only a three-hour time difference (Sydney-Manila).

when sadness kills

2006-01-18T14:19:00.000+08:00

How to cope and get used to the idea that someone who has been a permanent fixture in your life would be leaving in a few hours to try his luck abroad for about two years, the least. And to think that not seeing this person in a week would kill you. Not hearing his voice within the day, even.
I've never been this emotional. A few people would find it hard to conjure a scene that would have me crying a bucket of tears. I guess the first few months would be harder. Still, I accept the fact that I'm going through this process; letting things fall into place and in the end, my sacrifices would reap rewards.

Just some things to arm myself as I brace the tough, lonely nights.

*If I keep myself busy to keep my mind off things. I know busy, is such a rather tricky term. You cannot gauge it on some metrics. However, I'll root for activities that would best address this concern.
*How about pursuing a few units on some degree?
*Start cracking on a new project on my room which I was hell-bent on doing last year but never get got round to doing it.
*Savings. I'll definitely save a lot since I wouldn't be going out on a regular basis.
* Fill out page after page everyday on a private space if I have the luxury of time, to write about how this ordeal is turning me into hopefully, a better person.
*Whenever I tend to wallow in depressing thoughts, I would let myself be but I would keep in mind that this could usher in something good.
*Always send him pictures and stuffs that would help him cope with homesickness.
*Roaming features on mobile phones, instant messaging, the works!
*This is a bit ambitious but the thought thrills me. How about starting to write a story making a long-distance affair work, loosely-based on my own character? Who knows?

Turning 24

2006-01-12T16:30:00.000+08:00

Waking up one morning and finding out that you're a year older seems less of a thrill when you're approaching your mid-twenties. Not a comforting thought when you realized you've almost lived out a quarter of your life.
My birthday falls on the time of the year when you think all the celebrations were over
and life returns to its usual, laidback state. As a kid, receiving presents never stops during the yuletide season but extends to my birthday.
I opted not to take a birthday leave this year since I took a leave the day before. I've just got back from Baguio. Its been a long time since our summer escapades in this summer capital which stopped when it was reduced to ruins due to landslides back in the 90's. And good thing I reported to the office that day. There were lots of surprises which my faint heart just couldn't take (I so love exaggerations).
Just as I was approaching the elevators that morning, I saw Charo who was so ecstatic too see me. She handed me a Sansrival cake which was my first present that day.
And just as I stepped inside our office and saw how my workstation looked like something which I've never seen before, I was literally out of breath. Red heart-shaped balloons were strewn on the edges, rose petals were everywhere and there were three bouqets of red, white and yellow roses resting on the walls.
If that isn't what you call sweetness then I don't know what is.
Thanks so much guys. You really made my day so special.
I've got the books I've been wanting to read for ages but never got round to buying it myself. And now they have an added value since they came from my teammmates.
I was not expecting Rolypoly to drop by the office that night but I'm glad he did. I kept him waiting for an hour or so because we had a teleconference meeting and a walkthrough training via phone which started in the evening. We grabbed dinner at McDonalds since I have to rush home as my family prepared something for my birthday.
This would go down in history as 'the birthday filled with lotsa surprises!!!

Lachrymal

2005-12-29T16:50:00.000+08:00

I don't know if anyone would agree with me when I say everyone needs a good cry once in while. And it is not because life is treating you so badly or most things don't really go your way. You could never really stay all happy and giddy for a long time. There are instances where you wake up one sunny morning and depression kicks in for no apparent reason. Its not bordering on extreme loneliness but just a mild case of suddenly feeling that something is wrong that you can't put your finger on. You just have to welcome that feeling. Call it a phase or hormonal effects but still its perfectly normal to have them once in a while. For how would you recognize feelings of elation if you haven't had a brush with loneliness. Or to put the other way, you wouldn't be that grateful being in a happy state if you don't have something to compare that feeling to. But still, our only consolation lies in the fact that although we might not be too happy being lonely, this shall come to pass.

Paskuhan 2005

2005-12-21T18:40:00.000+08:00

Perhaps the annual celebration of the traditional Paskuhan was the reason why I'm setting foot in the university grounds during this time of the year. It still left me enthralled to see the Benavides Park aka lover's lane festooned with all those lights.

I took a leave yesterday and went there with my sister and her friend to join the Thomsian community in their celebration. There was a fireworks display this time around. The previous year, UST opted to donate the funds for the typhoon victims in affected areas in Quezon province.I was able to meet up with Geoff and TL.

The other girls seemed to be in a far-off universe now where we can't reach them. Too bad, we've long been planning for this get-together. The Varsi office still looks the same way though only the lights were much brighter.I was able to see Faith, Eldric, Nick and JC.I'm in for a surprise last night. A friend told me something which have affirmed what I thought all along.Moving on, the university has a lot of construction projects going on lately. Its getting crowded. The Colayco Park, which my college buds has been frequenting in between classes to get a glimpse of nature has been reduced to rubbles. The tree-lined area infront of the Central Library where the statues of saints are located is nowhere in sight.

Unlike my college Economics buddies, seldom do I see my Varsi chums.

Last Saturday, I wasn't able to meet my college blockmates (1st yr-2nd yr) because it coincided with our company christmas party. I only get to see the pictures. Last week's activites were filled with lunch-out, late night dinners and shopping sprees - something to expect this season.

But really, what weighs more is the rekindling of the ties that bind, something that is truly felt specially at this time of the year.

tis the time to binge

2005-12-12T18:48:00.001+08:00

The 1st birthday party of Melissa held at Shakeys' SM Megamall broke the monotony of our last, last Sunday afternoon. Mama opted to be a homebody since she has a lot of paperworks to do. There was no traffic but we spent ages at the parking area looking for an available space. A lot of cars are lined up even if the parking area is full. I told my sibs to go ahead while papa and I are still sweating it off even if the aricondition is on. After half an hour, we finally found one. The kiddie party was customized so it would appeal to guests all ages. I wasn't able to join the game in which all the players are my cousins because I was in the bathroom at the far end corner of the mall. The staple of all kiddie parties - the mascots were there. I think they are Susie and Captain Shakeys. There were even magic shows and acrobatic presentations of the two psychedelic clowns who were better off had they not taken off their make-up. Hehehe, I gave that one-liner to my cousin as a witty comeback for the clown who made fun of her. The only problem was, Shakeys took ages to serve their food. The serving size of bunch of lunch seems to be getting smaller.It was nice seeing your whole lot of relatives all in one place enjoying themselves. Even some braved the long traffic from Batangas to Ortigas.The kids are al adorable. The birthday girl looks regal in her fairy ensemble.After that, we went our separate ways. We strolled for an hour before heading home. I got papa a pair of Fila shoes, something I haven't done before since I'm only buying him clothes. Last night though before he hit the sacks, I offered to do some facial. I even gave him the instructions for him to strictly follow his skin care regimen. The past weeks have been anything but tiring. Bingeing was something that has been there to compensate for all these. Last Tuesday, I tried out Avenetto pizza place, which really served Italian gourmet at its finest without costing you a lot. I was there with my officemates who decided to have a lunch out that day. The next day, I had a dinner with Rolypoly at Gerry's, something which was never planned. Dinner consists of ginataang kuho, amplaya in oyster sauce, baked mussels, and sisig. But still, we were able to catch the train ride home.And then, a lunch out the next day with Boggs. I was fascinated, really, that is the right word, on Beauty Bar's yummy goddies on display. I did see it in a different light only this time.Last weekend, I did some shopping at SM Megamall all by myseld. I did find an gems-studded shoes to match my outift for this Saturday's company Christmas party. I had lunch with Rolypoly and his soon-to-be officemates as they are undergoing training at IBM-Daksh at Edsa Central.Chocolates have been coming from different people. And I just had lunch with Rolypoly and his former officemate at Yellow Cab.Tis really the time to increase one's waistline. And no one would really care. After all, this season's the perfect excuse to eat like there is no tomorrow.

all I want for Christmas is....

2005-11-28T17:25:00.000+08:00

All I want for Christmas is....

A bit smitten by the yuletide bug, I've decided to make things easy for friends and loved ones and lovers. The last group being nonexistent. What better way to reduce their shopping time in half and spare them from all that thinking of what to give me for Chrismas yule is to have a wish list ready. You'll never know...

So here it is...

Books
The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Bank
The Violin by Anne Rice
Sleeping Beauty Series by Anne Rice
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
Sushi for Beginners by Marian Keyes

Bath and Beauty products; Make-up

Burt Bee's lip gloss/balm

Neutrogena Body oil

Marks and Spencers Waterlily foam bath
Refill L'Oreal Ideal Balance Ivory Foundation

Body Shop's pre-selected gift packs

Accessories

Silver hoop earrings and or silver earrings

the list is yet to be finalized...

............YOU

Saturday with the nocturnals

2005-11-26T20:22:00.000+08:00

I'm so wiped out from all that walking and shopping in the mall. Last stop was at the office to post an entry in this blog. We just finsihed off some leftovers from TGIF. The manager all gave us gold cards this time to avail of 20% discount in all Bistro establishments. Nilo has a friend working there kasi. And we've been known as regular customers already. We have hefty servings of delectable dishes, which we haven't able to finish in one sitting. We were able to eat them again for dinner after we arrived at the office. We saw Kathy and Marlon while lounging in the comfy couches in Starbucks Glorietta during the afternoon. After some chitchat while waiting for Nilo to come back from Ortigas, we are at it again -- scanning the displays on the stores. This time they're going after appliance showrooms, gizmo gadgets, and musical instruments. Seems that they don't know what to do with their bonuses.

The day would really turn up unpredictable when you're spending it with these guys. One hour would stretch to three hours, blah, blah, blah.

Who would've think that these guys are practically walking zombies since they haven't charged up for the day and yet they all have the energy of a bull.

Something completely opposite when it comes to my lifestyle. Not that I really don't like to stay up super late. I just can't manage it. That's the reason why there are only rare occasions where I'm most likely to be seen awake at the stroke of midinight. Even then, expect me to be yawning almost ever minute.

I declined Rolypoly's offer to spend the evening with him and his college buddies for a night out which is ok since they've long been out of each other lives and its proper that they get to spend some time off for themselves to catch up on things.

There are a lot of reunions come December from college batchmates and friends. I'm not sure if I could all accomodate them all in my calendar. I'd like to have all that Christmas shopping done before the mad rush settles in.

I've finally watched the J.K Rowling's latest movie adaptation. It would go down in history as one of the best Harry Potter movie to date. I watched last Thursday since I'm on vacation leave during that day doing some errands.

I feel I'll be having a good night's sleep tonight since I'm so wiped out. I wasn't able to get a proper sleep last night. Work kept me in the office for hours. Its too late to catch the MRT so I'd just hopped in the bus. At a stop near Glorietta, Dovan and his friend spotted me among the seats and they slipped right in. Good, I was able to doze off for a few minutes before Dovan got off in Kamias. His friend, which also works in Thomson had the same surname as mine only his has a double r in it. And I was surprised he quite knew me although that was the first time I met him. Just a thought, the Kamiseta lon-sleeved blouse last midnight madness sale at Glorietta had the name Arriola on its tag. I only noticed after tearing it off with a scissor. I got to know the sale from Chi. I'm with Isay, Nancy, Mitz, and EJ, who drove us there after work.

Earlier that day, we had a late lunch at the newly-opened Brother Burger. I was with Tate, Carlo and EJ. Our team had a brunch treat celebration of November celebrators- Drew and Joey; and Charo's anniversary in the company.

I think I'd better go since Mervyn's not his usual self anymore which is probably caused by lack of sleep. We'd be going home now. Ciao!

flooding along Forbes street

2005-11-22T14:24:00.000+08:00

Monday morning welcomed early birds of Forbes street in a slightly indignant mood as some of the water meters in the neighborhood were stolen. This was the first time something of this sort has happened over our almost 18 years stay in the village. We were relieved our water meter was spared. Most water meters in the neighborhood are located outside their gates, without any barricades, easily accessible to anyone.

What really irked me most was seeing how water is being wasted. Imagine the gusts of water continuously flooding the area and yet some neighborhood people are not even doing something about it pronto. Yeah, i know it isn't their problem that their water meters were stolen but since they would still pay for a replacement why not get it fixed right away?

This morning, I'm still tiptoeing my way to get out of the village's gates.

Some people would do anything for money talaga. And where would they probably sell the water meters they've stolen? I heard it costs a thousand bucks. But who would buy stolen water meters? The junk shops? There's even a code or an identifier that would link it to the residential area.

They say the pilferers struck at dawn. Our pet dog is on the loose at night prowling our not-so-spacious front area. Our pet dog probably scared the wits out of them. She barks at the slightest sound of strangers approaching our gates even if she couldn't see them but she recognizes easily if its us. I've tried this and I even change the way my footsteps sound but still she doesn't bark at me but wags her tails instead upon entering the gate. What a smart dog!

There's really a need for tighter security measures these days. Even my sister mentioned something about the rampant hold-up incidents along Lacson and Dapitan streets near the premises of UST where students are the susceptible prey.

feats of thaumaturgy

2005-11-17T16:36:00.000+08:00

Yesterday left legions of Harry Potter fans in a daze as the fourth installment premiered in local cinemas. I'm sure the movie seemed like a panacea for people who have been consumed with their own share of troubles lately.
I had a lunch-out with Mervyn that day and while we were aboard the jeep on our way to Glorietta, two people seated near us were discussing animatedly the highlights of Book 4. We were then engaged on the same topic. Mervyn has been pouring over the pdf versions of Harry Potter books lately in the office during his breaks while I have to refresh my memory as I have vague recollections scenes from the Goblet of Fire. I have to read the whole thing again before watching the latest HP offering. Just this morning, I heard from Tate that some characters have been omitted from the movie, something we all expect, don't we? But I wouldn't be able to feel Molly's motherly presence on the story. Her character has endeared me more on the quaint Burrow.
I accompanied Mervyn to search for a watch. Just recently, Mervyn is really splurging on luxurious things lately. Which I believed is doing him good, its about time he spends more on himself once in a while. He decided on a Fossil watch. And we both had our eyes on this matte, silver watch which has a sleek design and professional look to it. There's even a HER version of the watch, which the saleslady urged him to buy for me.
After that he treated me to lunch at Chef D' Angelo were we have our usual fare.
What I discovered was if you are going to go shopping with Mervyn, chances are, you would be able to do it in a jiffy unlike doing the rounds with Nilo since half a day wouldn't be enough to get even a single item off the list. Sometimes my shopping habit is more like Nilo rather than Mervyn. There are times when I would really feel that the search for something is taking me days, when everything do not seem good enough or close enough to being good. I wouldn't want to shortchange myself for ending up with something that belongs to this-will-do kind of thing.
On the other hand, when luck is on my side, I would walk in a store, look into something that caught my eye and instantly I would know that this would be it. After even trying it on, it would fit perfectly as if that item was made just for me.

the dream

2005-11-09T12:05:00.000+08:00

I woke up from a dream this morning. It did seem like a dream to me.

Three guys forced me to get down on the elevator last night. I wasn't able to recall much from what they are saying but I could hear the word, Starbucks as if it was the most used expression in the universe.

Nothing special, I thought as we made our way through throngs of people scurrying about. Perhaps these three guys would like to have their drinks on the red cups since their back for the yuletide season.
Then in a flash, I was there infront of the barista who most likely knew the three guys' names and perhaps mine, too.
What the baristas thought of me, I have the least idea as I always end up with these three guys in tow treating the place as if it were their posh playground or whatever their moods were at the moment.
For a while there, I feasted my eyes on the assorted Christmas pastries then having this special attachment to the gingerbread man adorned with colored sugar bits but alas, my stomach is not in its happy state as do my tastebuds. I decided to forego this temptation.
I was brought to my senses by the nudgings of these three grown man who kept on insisting that I get my own drink while saying twas their treat.
Back to the dream, seldom do I dream of sweet things like this. Definitely, sweet dreams are made of this. I hope I'll get to dream about this again tomorrow night by that. Or am I still dreaming? Can somebody pinch me?

Since these guys now have a reason to go to Starbucks as often as they would the toilet seat, I am most probably the next easy prey to hurl a free Starbucks drink at.

In no time, they'll be getting that new Starbucks planner and I'll be having a dose too many of that caffeine fix again. Not that I'm complaining, they have these all-new just-for-the-yuletide drinks--creme brulee, tofee nut and peppermint.

And yes, all this was not a dream.

Look at the comments section, to know more about this dream...

A homebody no more on Saturdays

2005-10-31T18:27:00.000+08:00

Last Saturday:

Completed some online mandatory courses in the office. After that, we had a halloween party at Tate's condo. What better way to celebrate your post birthday party is to turn it into a halloween party, too. Water in the pool is freezing. I didn't get to swin but I did took a dip. Sorry gurls for not joining you. Rolypoly was there after catching up with some sleep and now everyone knows how he isn't a typical male from the same cookie cutter. Which is good cause I'm really not that typical, either. I do hope that this would start as a Halloween tradition. Nilo did get his bag of treat or trick goodies. I feel sorry for that kid who left it behind. But I get a share of those sweet stuffs, anyway. Nilo and EJ have been fooling a lot the whole time which was so unexpected of those two.

Amidst the hordes of kids who were celebrating their Halloween, we did have our own version save for the ghosts which have followed Nilo and Mitz even in their snapshots. Goosebumps.

We left at half past midnight and I arrive home shortly after which wouldn't be the usal thing if Rolypoly isn't on the driver's seat.

Last, last Saturday:

Karene's post-birthday brunch treat at the newly-opened Heaven and Eggs branch at Glorietta 4. If you want some reviews, go to the site of the food blogger herself, Karene who's been doing a great work making her own version of dishes, which I heard turned out a lot better than the original.

Its your usual fare of breakfast only the eggs are twice yummier. Although I'm not really into eggs. Eggs would be something that I would eat given that there are no other food available to fill an empty stomach. But the buttermilk pancakes are superb with all the gooey jams and syrups to choose from.

The latest news is Bonna's tying the knot next year. Yikes, my friends are making the plunge to marital bliss already.

After that proceeded to the office to do a few things and then went to Andrew's condo for his moving-in party. Really nice bachelor pad, you got there, Drew! Its even near Gateway Mall and Araneta Coliseum. Good thing, Belle brought her videoke paraphernalia. What is even better is that there are only a few occupants yet in the condo so it isn't a problem if we belted out some tunes to our heart's content.

having a whiff too much

2005-10-20T18:05:00.000+08:00

I don't know if its the effect from having a whiff too much of the perfumes which we tested during the Rustan's private sales with the girls a while ago. I'm a bit dizzy from the heady scent of getting them all mixed up in one place. I remember putting on L'Occitane, Clinique, etc.

I got a few stuff from the sale which I consider as essential and not on-a-whim kind of splurges. The girls went wild on the parfum, to my surprise. Even more surprising, it took us less than an hour to do the mini-shopping. Special thanks to Tate's sister, LM for keeping us in the know on the sale season.
And yes, our teambuilding pushed through last Oct 8-9 at Hotel Dominique in Tagaytay. There are lot of pictures taken which are entries to the Hersheys Happiness photo contest. We did have the hotel as the location for the photoshoot. And in the office after the bus dropped us off. Having Mervyn as the subject for photoshoot would probably make some of the hottest models today turn a backseat.

Did I say I had a whiff too many of perfumes?

T'was such a tiring Sunday. I stayed a while at Rolypoly's and showed him how to pitch a tent as he has no idea whatsoever how to make the thing stand up. I think he was quite amused as I know how to go about the whole process and even giving tips now and then.
His uncle stepped inside the room and saw the half-finished structure eating up some space near their dining area. I poked my head out of the tent to say some greetings. The funny thing was, I coiled a single knot, make that two, in such a way that its difficult to untie and it was testing both of our patience. I did forget about some of the basic things I've learned during my girl scout training. But it was a nice feeling getting the tent up. It sure requires energy, which I don't really have much of at that time.
And I've finally been able to let go of my retainers after having it for a looong time now. I still have to get used to it. After all, separation was never an easy thing. That was my second retainer after I lost my first one, probably it was thrown in the dumps without me realizing it. I had my first retainer when I'm in sixth grade, followed by braces and back to retainers again. You must've guessed my parents spent a good amount of their fortune for my orthodontic correction measures at such a young age. I dreaded every visit to the dentist back then. There was a time when I have four teeth pulled all at the same time. Two of them are molars while the rest are wisdom tooth. Imagine my agony even after the anesthesia wore off. The good thing about that is, ice cream has become my staple food at least during that day.

fab finds over the weekend

2005-10-17T15:59:00.000+08:00

I'm not sure if books would generally fall under the fab finds category not if their chic lit (for details, see my previous entry on the subject) anyway. Books aren't near what you would call fabulous. They require a more serious description. Going back to why this post came into existence...
On a Saturday morning, I accidentally came upon racks of books (not so new but still in good condition) while inside Robinsons Novaliches department store (just across SM Fairview, don't ask me how this is so), and some friendly staff approach me if I'm looking for a certain a author. In fact, I do but what amazed me is that some of the racks of books belonged to Books for Less.
Such a shame that their outlets are always far from where I am. Sometime during my first year at work, in my desperation to find an atm machine that would accept BDO cards, I have stumbled upon their Valero outlet.
But here is it, just a ride from home. Their trademark is distinguishable. From the way they arranged genres, authors and their New York best-selling kind. I got two books at such a bargain and they are good as new sans the plastic cover - Summer Sister by Judy Blume which is a certified best seller at 98 php and 4 Blondes by Candace Bushnell at 148. Add to that, the mall is on its three-day sale so there's a 10 percent slash off on the books.
One thing's certain, there's now a reason why I should be coming back to Robinson's department store as often as I could because I'm such an SM person, if I'll put it that way. I even left my contact details just in case they were able to find the books which tops my list.

my new mp3 player

2005-10-10T14:54:00.000+08:00

Yesterday someone very dear to me gave me an mp3 player for no apparent reason.

I'm not even dropping hints for him to give me one.

Just the same, thanks! I'm not being mushy, hehehe. Thanks, Rolypoly. You really know how to spoil someone. He also gave one to his dad and the other one was for himself.

Its a small, portable player that uses embedded flash memory instead of a rotating hard drive and plays for up to 15 continuous hours on a single AAA battery. It combines crystal-clear sound with a sleek design and sport a three-button/one-joystick design and easy-to-navigate user interface. It features MP3, Windows Media® file and Windows Media-based DRM file playback, FM radio and voice recording and can double as a USB data storage device.

SanDisk Digital Audio Player: Blue, 512MB

Children's Literature

2005-10-07T17:49:00.000+08:00

Its hard to narrow my choices to a few. As a child, I read everything that I could lay my eyes on - from sugar-and-spice Sweet Valley series to the illustrated classics which would include my all-time favorite author, Charles Dickens whose masterpiece, A Tale of Two Cities left this young mind enthralled. Enid Blyton has woven stories making the countryside as a backdrop. Familiarity or should I say fascination to the sights and sounds of rural life stems from my early exposure to this kind of setting. Most of my tender years before my schooling has been spent in Pampanga as both my parents are working in the city and we were left under the care of loving grandparents and a whole lot of uncles and aunt.
It would be such an injustice not to include the other selections I've grown to love as a kid. The characters of Peter Pan, Captain Nemo, Black Beauty, Nancy Drew, and the Grimm Brother's morbid tales, which were far from happy-ever-after ending, all spring to life after pages and pages of fiction books while the midnight lamp burns on. Perhaps my fascination to things which do not merit any hard facts like the bloodsucking Dracula or supernatural elements from our local folklore would still leave me in amused like the once wide-eyed child that I am.

circle marks pencilled on the September calendar

2005-10-03T18:10:00.000+08:00

A lot may not agree but when I'm asked to do a mental count of people's birthdays, September always end up garnering the highest tally. I do not know what is in the month of September (not the song) that makes me remember birthdays of people dear to me. I could do without the reminders from the calendar hanging against our lone ecru-painted wall festooned with pencilled circle marks.

Yesterday, one of the biggest gathering of the year for the Salas clan took place. It was a celebration of the 75th birthday of my grandmother whom we all fondly call Inda. Inda is the term for mother in Kapampangan.

I consider mi abuela as the strongest character the family has ever known. A full length article wont suffice to be able to put into words how much there is to say about her. Battling life's storms, personal struggles and chemotherapy sessions, this woman emerged out of it with grace.

Perhaps I took from her the way she handles pain (physical or emotional) like it was something fleeting, like a temporal passage that would freed you from things negative.

The celebration was not that grand in execution but there were a lot of friends and grandmothers as well who turned up during the event. Judging from the tears and laughter, this event would be forever etched in the memory of Inda.

As usual, my sister and I took care of the children's games which was really the most tiring task of all. Not only would your vocal chords would be put into test but your physical endurance as well. But I would give everything just to hear their giddy voices and giggles cutting across that windy afternoon.

the Gateway mall experience

2005-09-28T20:04:00.000+08:00

I was finally able to have a rendezvous with my college buddies - Karene, Berna, Khriz, Kathy, Dean and Bonna (who was not able to make it at that time) at Gateway Mall in Cubao. Its been a long time since I was the only one who was not always present due to family matters and then some during these gatherings. It was my first time in the posh mall. I was a bit surprised that the food court area was too crowded. Most of them college kids who were having their post UAAP banters. Quite ironic since none of us managed to bring our digital gizmos along. So we ended up with no pictures at all. Had our late lunch at Burgoo's. Later in the afternoon, shopped with Rolypoly while enjoying the sights and sound in the area since it was his first time in the place, too. After that, we went home.

After being inside that mall where I only get to have a view of it from the glass windows aboard the MRT, it felt like it was a bit misplaced - like trying to squeeze itself through among other structures, some are dilapidated at its finest. Its more of sandwiched between the Araneta Center and I forgot what the other landmark was.

Upscale shopaholics could now flock along the busy strip of Cubao to this new mecca where most of the labels are unheard of, that is because I'm not an upscale shopper myself. The exhibit bazaar area has little space for people to occupy unlike Megatrade Halls which stretches from end to end.

One resto which caught my fancy was the Pizza Bistro where every tables has a wine bottle ready and their menu is not your usual fare. Its Pizza hut made even better.

A bit of trivia: you could find here the first outlet of Taco Bell in the country. I first heard of Taco Bell in graduate school wherein we were asked to do a case analysis on their company.

And the good thing about going to this mall is that you need not dress to the nines because it has this laidback attitude even if the stores are screaming thousands of pesos right out of your pocket.

someday we'll just laugh about this

2005-09-22T18:45:00.000+08:00

How could one really make the distance seem shorter? Is it by burning lines, an exchange of sweet nothings of two people separated million miles away?
Barrage of electronic mails or a sms messages even? Much as I would like to come up with the closest possible answer, I am inclined to shove the idea away. For the life of me, parting ways has never been so easy to take.
Never could I remember any physical separation without a tinge of emotion involved. Think overcast skies amid the backdrop of grays with foreboding downpour ahead. Just the perfect scene for a gloomy feeling. Its in moments like this that its really hard to imagine even a ray of sunshine to get through.
This is a test that destiny has put me into. And I know that someday we'll just laugh about this.

Batangas on a Sunday

2005-09-20T19:04:00.000+08:00

Once again, I find myself lost in a maze that was the kiddie party which was held in Batangas to celebrate the first birthday of my cousin, Erich Jeremiah Paul. This time, I'm not just a mere spectator but a soundsystem operator and a player (against my own will) on an entirely weird version of Trip to Jerusalem.
I laughed hard enough for hours on end at just about everything. The clown is too gay for his own good. Hehehe...He's better at a gay bar. I'm not sure if the kids find some of his lines funny. There's just too many kids all over the place which lead me to think that such a sleepy barrio could hold too many lads going about excitedly. You wouldn't miss the place, its right smack infront of the old church. Atop the elevated grounds are the two ancestral two-storey houses where my relatives live and their grounds are spacious enough for grand celebrations.

Back to the kiddie party...

Imagine one of the games require that the winner should climb up the coconut tree to get the three coconuts. The clown of course was joking but no sooner than he finished this line that some of the kids clambered out of their seats to do just that. Grabe tlaga buti na lang he was quick to say that its not that really the obstacle. My sister pala was the co-emcee. For what reason, I do not know. Hehehehe.
There was a series of games for people of all-ages, for kids and kids-at-heart. There was even a game for married couples. Hahaha. Obscene. Not.
Earlier that day, we attended a wedding. Papa's included in the entourage. He has a number of exposures in the wedding entourage lately. This earned our pang-aasar - same old barong tagalog. If you'll look at him in those pictures, you wouldn't know which wedding is he in.
This always happens. When papa is in his hometown (Batangas), he would be the butt of pang-aasar in the family (kami lang ha not the extended members). Some of the people we come across who would turn up to be our kin pala, would ask papa if the three girls he's with are his daughters. Papa would tell them na he only have two daughters yung pangatlo kasi si mama. Too bad, my brother wasn't able to go due to school matters. He's building miniature skycrapers for his project. That's what he gets for pursuing Architecture studies. Ooops, dapat pala I should sound encouraging.
And I can't help but include this in my entry: I am living way beyond my means. Translation: I don't have any money until the next payday! And the fact that I've splurged a payday's worth over my family member's luho (or neccesities depending on your definition) during the mall sale last weekend isn't the reason since I have paid via my credit card. I'm making the ends meet as of the moment courtesy of the generosity(?) of some friends. I'm really grateful I have friends like these people. Names witheld. Kasi di ba acts of generosity(?) should be best kept in secret?
And before clicking the publish post button, I would like to wish a good friend many happy returns on her birthday today, Charo Barrot! Ayan madadagdagan na entry results for Charo Barrot sa google page.

just a brief shoe talk, not a fetish

2005-09-07T16:50:00.000+08:00

Yesterday I was crossing the street when off went a snapping sound. One of the straps in my strappy, white sandals sprang loose right in the middle of the busy intersection. I was able to manage it the whole day but I'm not wearing those strappy heels again. I have to get it back for the nth time to the shoe repair shop. This is the first time I was able to send a pair of shoes to a repair shop. Most of the time, I just throw those shoes which wouldn't be of use anymore. Those that I held of great importance even if they are not on a running/walking condition anymore, I keep in shoe boxes.

I consider shoes as an investment although they wouldn't last that long on me. Probably the reason behind would be the long walk home and the uneven surfaces I get to trudge on. I have this propensity to get shoes on sale, which happens most of the time anyway, thereby I get to have the price reduced to a minimum. If the need be arises, sige I'll be buying shoes on its regular price.

If I were to keep those worn out shoes, I would have an imeldific collection by now, come to think of it everyone would! Just think of the money people are spending on shoes. And some local shoe retailers in the country are manufacturing shoes which are not of high quality kaya madaling masira, Marikina-made shoes are an exception ha. Oh well, what I realized in this entry is, if you want to have shoes that would last long enough to battle the extreme weather conditions ahead, you really have to spend a fortune. But this is not logical enough if you want your feet to be in good shape. Its not good kse to walk on the same heel length on a daily basis lest you develop a problem in walking. I can't remember what the exact word for it, you could consult your doctor about it or refer to the medical journal or just ask me later I'm sure it would pop in my head but now I'm back to work again.

rainy days to tempt those palates

2005-09-05T19:45:00.000+08:00

The past weeks turned me into a busybee in the kitchen. I wouldn't have known we have that egg yolk separator tucked at the farther end of the kitchen cabinet had I not been entrusted the task of making the leche flan. If you think I'm the only one in the family who has this acute tendency of spilling things here and there, then you're mistaken. Halfway through manually beating the mixture, mama has tipped over the bowl which sent it oozing down the dinner table. Had she not acted fast enough, there wouldn't be anything left but the thick yellowish residue stuck on the sides of the bowl.

And then we also made some all-meat spaghetti, which earned good reviews from the rest of the family. Then my sister thought of grilling mussels with quickmelt cheese on top. The barbecued porkchops ala Korean also turned out ok. Although there's nothing much I could do with the fatty part which got burned. We have fresh tilapia straight from Batangas and some hotdogs. Those grilled delights with cucumber salad.

Ahh, there's nothing like the rainy season to tempt the palates.

new sheets

2005-08-30T19:20:00.000+08:00

One of the things I liked during weekends is staying late in bed. I consider it such a luxury to be coming home to a nice, comfy bed.

I was surprised to have such new, crisp linen bedsheets even matching the pillowcases and blankets. As I looked into my sister's bed, I also noticed that her bed was neatly done, with pillows fluffed sporting the new regal sheets. Kaya pala mama wont let us enter the room while she was in there doing some cleaning up. Not that our room looks like a pigsty. We're always keeping it neat as a doctor's office or whatever you could compare it to.

Basta there's no feeling in the world compared to looking at your bed waiting for the sheets to be crumpled and for the pillows to be hurled about in different directions.

old malling habits die hard

2005-08-23T19:04:00.000+08:00

An errand which was supposed to take only half an hour took about more than two hours, this was what happened last Saturday morning. I picked up a few items and crossed them off mama's grocery list which I have to charge to my AMEX card. We were bound to have a sort-of family weekend thing and those grocery items are much needed. So while I was queuing to the cash/charge cashier area, papa kept on texting me inquiring what is taking me so long to arrive home since we have to hit the road anytime soon.

This brings me to an article I read which explained that in theory, women are more likely to spend longer hours in the mall even if they only have to buy a single item compared to men. Women would be distracted by rows and rows of novelties thereby spending longer hours than expected while men tend to go directly to the aisle where they can get what they need and sped off after the transaction is through.

And yes, I am guilty of this. I just can't help myself checking out on new things. There's a certain magnet to the neatly arranged merchandise on display illuminated by bright lights and the well manicured tiled floor, etc. I could go on and on. This made me a certified mall rat. I do not mind being on the mall everyday. Even if sometimes, practicality gets the better of me and I would get home without anything with me. But that rarely happens, come to think of it, I have an armload of new ensembles in the cabinet and they still smell like how the new clothes in the mall are. I have yet to plan when to wear those things. Maybe on days where I'm on a I-have-nothing-to-wear mode.

More often than not, there are no clocks on display in malls. This explains why most people, who are not fond of wearing watches lost track of the time while they are in the mall. And they'd be surprised to find out that after an hour of strolling and what-have-yous, it would feel like just half an hour has passed.

I had a spontaneous Sunday dinner date cum drinking session with Rolypoly. I had to fill in the place of his drinking buddy and I'm sure he was happy with the replacement he got. And what a nice surprise since we didn't expect that a Slapshock concert is in place at the parking area in SM Fairview where we are only a few steps away from the stage. We dined at Framer Jack's again and opted to stay outside because we planned to have an outdoorsy evening. There are a lot of rockista's in the place, that's how they call themselves and as I've expect there were a lot of slamman going on. There was even a commotion which wasn't that serious enough to call the attention of everyone. There are barrels of SMB's all over the place parang Octoberfest.

The sisig we ordered wouldn't go down to my list as a classic favorite unlike that of Congo Grille's shrimp sisig and Digicafe's and Krokodile's pork sisig but its still ok. I downed them with SanMig light, just a single bottle lang, I wouldn't go overboard since I have low alcohol tolerance.

A bite of Wonka's chocolate

2005-08-15T18:54:00.000+08:00

Johnny Depp breathes life to Roald Dahl's fictitious chocolate connoisseur character, Willy Wonka in his classic children's tale, Charlie and the Chocolate factory. I wasn't able to see the first installment in 1971 which stars Gene Wilder in the lead role.

As a child I was a sucker for illustrated children's classics. I only have a single book with Dahl as the author. Its Matilda and I presume Dahl has a way of injecting quite a brutal personality to some of his characters. I remember the headmistress in Matilda's school as someone who acts as a bully to some of the school kids so much so that the children fear for their lives at just the sight of her.

And in this film, Willy Wonka has this mischievous character. Although sometimes, he is being unsure of what to do next. I was very impressed with the imaginative sequences. Imagine having a lush greenery inside the factory set in a backdrop of raging chocolate falls where everything could be eaten to your heart's content.

I was taken aback with Wonka's line, 'Even I myself could be eaten but that is cannibalism as your society would dictate,' or something like that. It would seem that he belonged to another realm as the oompah-loompahs(?).

Wouldn't you agree that Depp is somewhat being too Michael Jackson-ish?

I wasn't expecting that much from this movie. That's the reason why after poking through the grilled ribs that Rolypoly and I were having as dinner at Farmer Jack's, I was able to blurt out that I appreciated the movie.

Something I've known all along that eating chocolates, as Wonka would say matter-of-factly induces feeling of euphoria, which leaves you in a happy state.

The movie didn't leave me in a euphoric state though but it is enough to bring out the chocolate lover in me.

New words to get used to

2005-08-15T15:55:00.000+08:00

Brace yourself for the release of the revised second edition of the Oxford Dictionary of English.

From what I have been reading from the net releases lately, the revised second edition contains a handful of British words. It mentioned in some of the reviews that it contains 350 insulting words and a mere 40 words for flattery. What does this say about today's society? Does this show that hurling words meant to degrade someone else's personality is easier than throwing a compliment that would brighten up someone's day? Guess not. Anyway, this is just a thought.

How do I love thee? Let me tell you in 350 words.....

It was also cited that there are 50 ways to describe attractive women, including eye candy, Patootie, peach or Venus and cutie but only 20 ways of describing good-looking men – ‘Greek god’ being an extremely handsome man.

Thera are almost 10 times as many ways to express negative feelings as positive ones, according to the article I've read. And while there are 30 ways to call someone mad, a mere six terms are given to explain that you are sane.

This would make it quite interesting, huh?

Perhaps the word blogging is already in the list but I have the faintest idea.

I miss my bestfriend...

2005-08-04T18:17:00.000+08:00

"Pooh, promise me you won't forget about me, ever. Not even when I am a hundred."

Pooh thought for a little.

"How old shall I be then?"

"Ninety-nine."

Pooh nodded. "I promise," he said.

-Winnie the Pooh, House at Pooh Corner

a year has passed and still blogging

2005-08-03T12:34:00.000+08:00

I haven't realized it until now that it has been a year since I created this blog account. I've started my first-ever entry last year, June 18 with nary a care in the world. I didn't even bother placing a second sentence after a mere, 'yay, my new post.' And it doesn't even count as a sentence. I have two blogs then and decided to just focus on just one. Since I've already started with my Xanga blog there was no point in turning back. From this blog account, I've learned html basics, the intricacies of blogging, etc. I even have a video playing on that blogsite.

Good thing that I have this blog (yes, the one you're reading right now) resurrected.

I've started blogging in full mode this summer and never stopped since. Not that I plan to do so. It never crossed my mind. I'm quite happy being the blog addict that I am right now. What made me start blogging was the thought of having your online journal and not bothering to be put your thoughts into any printed material anymore. I have about a dozen journals at home tucked in some places I myself forgot. I've been keeping a diary since primary school and found nothing wrong with it. So I figured, gone would be the days where keeping a diary is a so-so. I have to be abreast with change. Hats off to whoever it was who invented the word blog.

It amazes me that I have a growing number of blog denizens who finds time to check out what I'm into every now and then. Most of them are fellow bloggers. And yes, I always get the latest updates straight from their blog even if I haven't been seeing them for ages.

Here's to more years of blogging!

the incurable midnight madness sale

2005-08-02T18:25:00.000+08:00

After work last Friday, I trooped along with the guys to Glorietta for the midnight madness sale. I splurged on some stuffs.

As usual, the guys would have been better off if they were left alone in the kids playroom. But it would be such a waste of time leaving them there if they would still ran to me crying and sulking, begging to me take them with me and promising to behave.

That's how I'd imagine it to be. Hehehehe.

Anyway, Boggs, Mervyn and Nilo were too rowdy and noisy. You would think that they would at least have the decency to act modest even inside Bayo. Thanks, Mervyn for helping me sort out the blouses, ha. Boggs, too for buying me that small bag. And Nilo, for being a walking map of Glorietta.

We bumped into Kathy, Marlon, JC, who shared a table with us at Chef D Angelo. We only noticed Dianne and his boyfriend while they are preparing to leave. And they took notice of us dahil ang ingay ng mga boys. If only I could eat dinner in peace...hehehe. But that would never happen if you're stuck in the company of these people.

We would have thought that we would be the last ones to leave. Its half past midnight an dyet there are still some people queueing up in dressrooms. Mervyn and I hailed a bus while the other two went back to the office for some late tete-a-tete.

I didn't know If Only, the movie which stars Jennifer Love Hewitt and Paul Nicholls debuted two years ago and was just released here recently. I was able to watch it last Saturday, a few minutes after the mall opened with who else of course, Rolypoly, who was 2o minutes late since he'll be arriving from work. I didn't blew my top though, if you'd be guessing that happened. After that, he treated me to lunch at Congo Grille.

And then I have to rush home since we'll be having a family affair. He, on the other hand, would have to catch up on much-needed sleep.

bloody afternoon

2005-08-02T17:31:00.000+08:00

My first attempt at blood donating was thwarted. I am 10 pounds bereft of the required weight to be able to be a blood donor. I could only frown when the doctor indicated in the remarks field that one word that would blew my chances of helping someone who would need blood type O.

I'm mentally prepared pa naman to undergo various procedures. And yes, I could consider this as a civic cause. I'll be putting my name alongside others on blood banks and I'll be having a card to prove it.

Anyway, at least I tried, di ba?

Studies would show that there are health benefits of having your blood donated with specified number of times in a year. It reduces the risk of certain types of cancer and heart attacks; and generates new blood cells in the system.

Boggs, who was there to accompany me at the Pfizer office located at the 23rd floor of our building, was the one who got through the screening process. He was able to donate 45 cc of blood. While there I was, painstakingly amused throughout the process. While this was going on, Constantine, which I have watched before in the cinema is being projected on the white screen as blood passed through from the syringe to the plastic container.

too much that I could handle

2005-07-29T18:55:00.000+08:00

I think my officemates (Lekats) are being too much. I've reached my boiling point already. There isn't any problem at first but it really takes some getting used to.

I really don't think I should disclose this into this blog but they left me with no choice. I need to get out in the open.

This afternoon, Tate asked me to go visit the girls on the 20th floor. Thinking that there must be some leftover food or surprise for Tate because of her being a bronze awardee for the Thomson Outstanding Performers (TOPs) from COG Asia for the month of July. (I have known months before that she was nominated for bond indices team from our senior team manager and I have no doubt that she would end up as an awardee. And today the announcement came. Two of our teammates have made on the list - Mel and Frank.)

Little did I know that Eloi and I were also included in the surprise popcorn party for our recent promotions to senior data analysts. They also did that to me when Boggs and I finished our MBA course and the list goes on. This made me think, where's the justice in this world?

Imagine this unfair treatment, I always end up not knowing what these people are up to. Before I could figure out how all these are coming to, flashes from the camera start blinding my vision before I could even utter a word. If I've known I'll be subjected infront of the cameras, I would've took time to get myself picture-perfect ready. But no, most of the time, my hair is a mess. Come to think of it, my hair is always a mess. So, I could let you guys off the hook for now.

And with all these, how could you hate these people?

I love them to bits. I mean, where else could you find these kind of people who always took pains to do something special for you? For the life of me, I wouldn't trade places with anyone if that would mean not being able to meet them in this lifetime.

Thanks for the personalized Starbucks mug. Thanks Di, for the artistic creation. As I've said, it would give a new meaning to my entire drinking experience. I'll drink to that!

post-summer escapades

2005-07-27T14:05:00.000+08:00

With vague directions on how to get there, heavy clouds looming across the horizon and armed with happy, camper faces we set our route to rarely-explored white beaches in Laiya, San Juan, Batangas.

For someone who finds a deep attachment to water, just dipping my toes to cool, blue water with the soft sand beneath my feet is pure bliss.

Kayaking to the far-end stretch of the beach and finding postcard perfect views of big boulders of rocks against the backdrop of untended flora is one of the highlights of my stay in this local paradise.

Now and then, I lost my foothold on the slippery rocks, getting my knees black and bruised and yet I don't mind a bit. The heavy glare of sunlight and salt spray blocks my view and I know my spf 5o protection wouldn't do much after prolong exposure to UV rays. It was like I've been kept away from the sun, sea and sand for a long time but the last time I made a head count of the number of summer spots I have visited this summer, it totalled three including a private resort, Grande Island and Puerto Galera. Next stop would be Boracay, if all goes well I guess.

I've splurged more in this weekend get-away than I would've in some popular resorts, say Bora, accomodations alone cost a fortune but the heck, it was worth it. A few of the reasons why I liked this expensive resort in Laiya is that the atmosphere is so laid back. Not much people since the resort cannot accomodate a lot. You are on a first name basis with the resort personnel. All meals are in buffet style and all their food would set you on the mood to binge.

There's also a bonfire at night, and our nipa hut bulit with a balcony provides a good view of the sea as it is located beach front. I got a nice sleep with the waves lulling me to sleep.

getting a dose too many of caffeine fix

2005-07-22T16:45:00.000+08:00

For the past week or so, Mervyn's trash bin was never without a beverage item sporting the green mermaid logo of Starbucks. And the culprit would be a small coupon which could fit perfectly in a pocket. You have to place stickers on those 41 circles to get their limited edition backpack. You have to make a purchase to be able to have a sticker stamped on them. And right now, he's close to finishing this feat. Next in line would be Nilo and tailing behind would be Boggs. You see what these guys would do just to get a backpack - cajoling people around to purchase a drink or asking people to treat them to a Venti.

Last night, we had a girls night out at CPK. Hehehe my first time at this place. And I could say that everything was fairly satisfactory - from the ambience to the servings, food, service, etc. My tastebuds couldn't agree more.

apathetic becomes me

2005-07-13T11:59:00.000+08:00

Quite a startling contrast to my school days, I've grown apathetic of the current political mess this nation has again find itself into. And while I'm typing this down, hordes of rallyists are assembled along Ayala Avenue for the nth time this month.

Numbness from being fed up to political upheavals then and again would probably be the reason for this apathy. Not that I'm discounting any glimmer of hope for this nation.

It seems more likely that I have seen too much in such a short span of time.

I remember holding a UST yellow balloon way back in my college days at the height of the second envelope controversy that would overthrow the Erap administration.

And now we're at it again.

Enough of the political hocus pocus...

We were in Batangas this weekend for a relative's wedding, my parents are the principal sponsors this time. And again, I find myself lost in a crowd of unfamiliar faces yet we share the same bloodline. I should've spend more of my childhood days in Batangas. Such a pity that I only knew a few of my relatives, only those belonging to the closely-knit category. We were there Friday night and arrived home Sunday, a few hours after midnight. I was supposed to take mama again to Pampanga to attend the burial of her tita. But I'm too exhausted from all that driving I didn't even get to attend the opening of the basketball tournament in Thomson.

still sick

2005-07-01T16:49:00.000+08:00

The schizophrenic state of this week's weather is making me feel baaaaaaaaaddddddddd. My throat hurts. Its all swollen, raw and red.

Boggs seems to be a know-it-all on this subject so he bought medicines for me. Thanks, Boggs! It did made me feel better but only for a while. Yikes, I don't have to be dependent on Difflam Lozenge and Amoxcillin, am I? But I really want this irritation and pain to go away. I've been feeling this since the morning I woke up albeit mild headache.

You'll figure out why I haven't been talking lately. Thank Goodness I'll be able to rest like a queen tomorrow. There are some important things which need to be done pronto this weekend but I think they just have to wait.

i'm sick

2005-06-30T12:14:00.000+08:00

I'm sick. Not the kind that some power-hungry politicians are perenially suffering from. What I do have is far from being bedridden. In fact, here I am in the office typing this entry while getting goosebumps from the freezing tempreature. I knew this was coming. The other night, I was shivering from the cold while in bed even after burrowing myself under the covers. My throat hurts. I was strongly advised by mama not to take a bath this morning. There goes my secret. Hehehehe.

Last night, we had our second meeting for the Virlanie project. There would have been perfect attendance if not for Boggs, who was a no-show due to some disease he's having. Mark and Jane were there. Parang reunion of some sort. We conducted our meeting on the 20th floor pantry. And while the meeting was going on, I felt my body temperature shooting up. It was such a good feeling. Parang you're warm all over even the breath your taking in and out feels hot. I've never felt this way for the longest time I could remember. I'm not prone to sickness kse eh. Ibuprofen Medicol now tops my list as I have to take it every after four hours according to Eloi.

Someone here is giving me a dose too much of attention and pampering, something I am not used to. Sayang, I don't feel pa naman to be such a brat today. Right, Tate?

this is one thing I'm hooked on...

2005-06-27T18:36:00.000+08:00

Chick Lit. Based on the description from the internet, it focuses on twentysomething and thirtysomething women who are dealing with that time in life when a woman looks for the perfect guy, apartment, job or, yes, shoe.

Along the way these women question everything from the way they were raised to the the quality of their lives. The characters typically are either self-deprecating or overly analytical. At its best the writing is witty, bold and slightly irreverent.

I've been collecting some titles for my small library at home. There in its paperback glory, among stacks of other chic lit selections, are my favorites, the masterpiece of Sophie Kinsella. The main reason why they are really special is because my officemates gave them to me for my 23rd birthday. 'Can't wait for my next birthday. Hehehehe.

And you think there isn't something for the male species? There's also lad lit which is yet to gain popularity among bookstores denizens.

the path to wellness

2005-06-27T16:49:00.000+08:00

I've started to minimize intake on cholesterol-induced meals and slowly embrace a new lifestyle. Its not that complete turnaround or I'll be having the word vegetarian plastered all around my face. Its a slight change of lifestyle, the slowly-getting-there phase.

I already have some magazine subscriptions and gold card membership to a health store.

The past years, I've never had any serious health problems save for the traumatic eardrum perforation which I consider as a minor one or those allergies triggered by several factors.

One thing I'm doing by heart is to drink up enough water everday. To add, breathing exercises to get me all revved up for the day.

I should do some lectures on stress management, being too stressed up is a something that is too alien in my system.

former classmates

2005-06-24T16:59:00.000+08:00

I don't know what is it this week and the week prior to that. I'm bumping into former classmates on the way to work and going home. Yesterday morning after opening the FX door absentmindedly and settling myself on the cushioned seat, the guy seated next to me turned out to be someone I know. And hours later on the last jeepney ride that would take me at last to our village, I checked out the guy to my right and it also turned out to be a batchmate from highschool. And on my way to work again this morning, I found myself sharing a seat with my college classmate aboard the FX.

Wala lang. Its not everday that something like this happens. And its in these rare moments that we were able to catch up on the goings on in our lives.

On Closets

2005-06-23T13:51:00.000+08:00

Closets
========
There is something about a closet
that makes a skeleton restless.

hellish commuting experience

2005-06-22T18:33:00.000+08:00

For the past two days, I've been waking up before the early streak of light gapes its way into view. I'm not a morning person so you could just imagine how I've been dragging myself out of bed at the crack of dawn. Or rousing myself out of a dreamy state everytime I heard my name being called out loud by mama summoning me to have a go at my morning routines.

I hurriedly go after one task after another, this time twice as fast since I can't afford to be late. And knowing that I have to brace myself to bumper-to-bumper traffic due to rush hour. And yes, the ride to the office was dreadful. Dreadful is even an understatement. After taking such a long time to reach the MRT station, I found myself quite unprepared to the scene just unfolding before my eyes. Half of the lane on that busy highway of MRT North Avenue station was brimming with commuters. MMDA officers are acting like human ropes. People just keep on arriving and I've been stuck on that same position without even taking a huge step from where I am for the longest time that I could remember. Even getting the ATM card to the slot machines(?) took forever due to people here and there brushing their way through. I was literally swimming on mass of sweaty bodies.

Good thing I was just in time to attend a mini workshop/seminar on "Attracting Greater Abundance in One's Life."

Just a few details that I would like to share from the seminar:

Law #1: The universe is abundant. There is enough for everyone.
Law #2: I consciously receive and accept grace and blessing everyday.
Law #3: Life is a cycle. Everything comes around.
Law #4: I keep the flow. I promote the flow. I help the flow.
Law #5: There are eight areas in which I can keep the flow: family, work, faith, rest, friends, wealth, health, recreation
Law #6: I expel all negatives: In my mind, heart, body, soul; I might still carry from the past; Towards specific people
Law #7: Money I spend is a blessing to others. Money I receive is a blessing from others.

There must be something that in that wide expanse of the universe that wont allow me to do that marching thing required in certain events recently. During my college graduation, the culprit was the car I'm driving along with my family. Buti na lang di nag-overheat yung car. Muntik na. I was a few minutes short of being with the other Econ grads. I was seated at the back tuloy far from where my classmates seated.

Recently in MBA graduation, I was also a few minutes late, the procession is coming to its end. This time, natagalan kami sa parking. I was seated at the back again. Lessons learned: come in really early, as in super early.

Last Saturday, we headed to Batangas for my Ate Alice's nuptial. We arrived early. But this time, I wasn't able to do the marching down the aisle thing with the other wedding entourage because it turned out my bottom half is not where its supposed to be. My relatives failed to double check. When I opened the plastic, there were two tube tops instead of just one. And the skirt is nowhere to be seen. They have to call the rental service to have it delivered. And its a 30-minute ride. But the good thing was, I was able to do the my part on the placing of the veil above the heads of the couple. Hayyy...

And yes, I'm the girl who caught the bouquet. Suddenly, my hands found its way mid-air and the bouquet of roses firmly landed on my hands. It was the second attempt of the bride. During the first attempt, the bouquet just landed shyly onto my feet. And I didn't pick it up. Wala lang. I don't put in too much fuss on what had happened. Needless to say, I enjoyed myself, judging from the pictorials.

Pics, coming soon....

weekend blahs

2005-06-17T18:39:00.000+08:00

I can't tell if I'm still reeling over the chain of events happening recently and yet not being able to cram it all here. I'm still clueless as to what to blog first.
I wasn't able to give my long overdue movie review of Mr. and Mrs. Smith. As they say, domestic violence at its finest. Anyone would probably agree with me that having both Brad and Angelina would make a lethal combination. Remember the scene where the couple first met in the movie? Suddenly, Angelina Jolie looks like Jennifer Lopez.

To be continued...

I have to hurry and go home. I'll be hitting the road later to Batangas for my cousin's wedding early morn. I'll be one of the bridesmaids....

cyber romance...not

2005-06-15T16:37:00.000+08:00

After what seemed like an endless to-do list, which pretty much bobbed itself up over and over these days, I've got the urge to rekindle my cyber affair with my blog. Don't you sometimes feel that you have to be doing something productive in every passing hour and yet at the end of the day, you feel like you haven't done enough? Its not that I'm being harsh on myself. Moments like these become rare that suddenly every ticking of the clock counts and time seems to be closing up on you. I welcome this kind of change.

Did I mention someting about the accomplishment report I've willingly subjected myself into? Its actually doing a lot to my productiveness quotient, if there is such a thing. What with getting things organized in a timely manner. Aside from that, I recommend this technique as this would definitely do wonders to someone whose schedule is so unpredictable as climactic changes. Nothing beats mental planning but should you strain your mind over every intricate detail?

Just a drawback though, some might it frustrating should there be a task left unaccomplished in the list. Worse, it may even lead to lack of interest to the point that fishing for other things to make the list longer would be a tiring feat in itself. This would defeat the purpose of self-enhancement, which is the reason why this existed in the first place.

A friendly reminder : Relax. Savor every moment. No one told you to impose stricter deadlines upon yourself.

Excuse me for a minute, I have to go over my list and check if there is any I've missed.

2005-06-13T18:33:00.000+08:00

graduation

2005-06-13T18:32:00.000+08:00

surprise!!!

2005-06-09T20:42:00.000+08:00

My buddies here in the office gave an all-out surprise for Charo, Boggs, Ades and moi. They made my day.

As I approached my workstation, I've seen them putting up a huge banner with the word, congratulations strewn all over the place. I've caught them in the act, hehehe. But that is not to say it made the surprise any less. It adds to the thrill, actually. They made me close my eyes as they put the finishing touches.

As if that wasn't enough, they made us all go up to the 20th floor. Mel/Tate asked me to bring my utensils. There's always something to devour on the 20th floor, so I guess that was just one of those days. To my surprise, there was a chocolate cake waiting on the table and microwavable popcorn in the microwave, where else? The choco cake was adorned with marshmallows and Nips chocolate. They told me it was Drew who made it. It looks too good to eat, too good to pass up.

With friends such as these wonderful creatures, what more could you ask for! To borrow a quote from Nilo, 'love you, guys!' Thanks, guys!

the children need your help...now

2005-06-04T11:09:00.000+08:00

Our first meeting for our project for Virlanie kids pushed through last Tuesday. We did some brainstorming and you'd be surprised as to the extent of the information which was squeezed out from the members. This time, Mervyn was the acting clown. Mitz was the presiding officer. We exchanged ideas while munching on sumptuous servings of chicken and gravy, courtesy of Mitz. This endeavor was conceived out of Mitz' generous and kind heart to do something different this time in celebrating her birthday come July.

I've long been out from the charity scene, so this one I'd rather not miss.

Here's the committe members (text from Mitz):

Committee Members :
Venue : drewkins
Finance : nancykins,claudzkins, Dikins
Food : retchkins, chaKins,lolfkins,ewoikins, NILO (alang kins kasi Im hurting pa ng slight habang nisusulat ko eto ;p *HIKBI* )
Program : Janekins,Boggskins, Bayonakins, michikokins
Drayber : Marky markins

Should you wish to support us in this endeavor, you may approach any of us. Your help whether in cash, or in kind (clothes, toys, books, etc) would go a long way for them to have a bright future.

Many of these children are victims of various forms of abuse and exploitation from the street, from jail, from prostitution and syndicates, even their relatives. They are currently under the care of Virlanie Foundation, Inc., which our group would be visiting next month.

They need your help. Every peso counts.

Let us make a difference in the lives of these children.

space...clutter...cyber real estate

2005-06-03T14:02:00.000+08:00

I haven't been blogging lately. Suddenly the world seems to turn into a halt. Among other things, I've been sorting out a few things - school files, old brochures, fastfood delivery leaflets, subscription magazines, which seemed to be sitting and gathering dust in the far-end corner. I've rearranged some things which have been cluttering up too much space than necessary.

I've been neglecting my cyber real estate space lately. At times when I felt the urge to blog even the most banal thoughts running in my head, I find my fingers hitting the close button instead. Perhaps the thought of filling up the otherwise empty box while mentally sorting out random sights, sounds, smells, etc. in a hierarchical order and stringing them into words and cramming them all in a single entry is the problem.

Nothing much happened during the week. Although some of my officemate's fascination, or addiction, for that matter to Weboggle, an electronic game played via the internet, where the players are not virtual but real, seems to be growing by the minute. I think I was the one responsible for bringing it into existence in the office.

Being the official family driver that I am, I spent half of my Sunday driving around. Nag-road trip kami ni papa. That's how I would call it. T'was really tiring we've been all the way and back the long stretch of Sucat, Parañaque and yet there was no Himlayang Pilipino memorial homes in sight. We have to visit papa's cousin who passed away due to cancer before he'll be laid to rest in Batangas. Armed with just a small piece of paper with the word Himlayang Pilipino, Sucat, we left the house without any additional details. Ang galing namin noh? Yung mga taong tinanungan namin kung saan-saan na kami napadad but still to no avail, di pa rin nakita. We even went past Loyola, Manila Memorial, etc. to inquire. Haayyy. We've been calling my tita but she's not answering her mobile phone. She's the one who knows all the details. Everything else seems to conspire to make things happen that way, add to that, we have to be back at home at 5pm. I have to accompany my sister to a school event - graduation ball in Sulo Hotel. She's the alumni secretary at the moment and she has to do some hosting later on in the program. I would have to fill in the position of someone else who can't make it that day.

So after a futile search, we headed back home na lang. Hahaha. Nag-sayang lang kami ng gas, we just laughed about it na lang.

Never Argue

2005-06-02T12:17:00.000+08:00

Never Argue
============
Never argue with an idiot.
They will drag you down to their level
and beat you with experience.

facing mortality...

2005-05-25T14:29:00.000+08:00

..an entry i dug somewhere..hidden beneath the cobwebs of time...

facing mortality...

When someone passes away, I cannot help but ponder on mortality issues. Left in a daze, it seems that everything goes on a blur, like the world suddenly turns to a halt.

I was gripped by the unexpected demise of my tito. He spit out blood and seconds after that, there was no vital signs detected.

My lola was near tears while recalling what had transpired before his death.
This kind of leaving the world with your loved ones having the faintest idea that you would succumb to the eternal unknown is something that is somewhat unbearable.

Death is really like a thief who goes into the night and by the time you woke up, the person you hold dear to your heart is suddenly gone, never to return again.

And there you are, left with emptiness, which no one could ever fill.

killing time

2005-05-17T12:24:00.000+08:00

To Do List:

~~Revise slides presentation for GE-Tungsram Acquisition~~
~~Draft Project consulting paper~~
Finish Barclays historical project using macros
Revise attendance monitoring form
Industry Analysis paper for Managerial Economics
Draft Strategic Management paper (subject: Thomson)
~~Update on wedding details of Ate Alice~~
Blog, blog some more...
Food budget proposals for Pink Project (Lekats)
Follow-up Citibank credit card application
Print some digital pictures for posterity (hehehe)
~~Check whats available on Books for Less online site~~
~~Start organizaing lil trinkets at home~~

http://www.mariansolidarity.com/articles/03-01-20.html

2005-05-16T18:02:00.000+08:00

Last time I checked, this article is still available on the net pala. This was also featured in Phil. Daily Inquirer last January 20, 2003. It was also available in their archives pero since sobrang tagal na, wala na sya.

I tried searching kse my name in google and the first time I laid my eyes on the search results, I was really taken aback..Hehehe.

Check this out:

http://www.mariansolidarity.com/articles/03-01-20.html

Heaven's Kitchen The Varsitarian UST Publishing House, 2002 110 pages

The young writers of "Heaven's Kitchen" choose to reconstitute the family by a return to the traditional basics. By adhering to one's good sense, the Varsitarian seems to say, homes will never be provisional.

Brave thoughts of Pinoy youth on family and faith By Jose Wendell P. Capili Contributor Inquirer News Service

'Nurturing our soul'
AS Manila hosts the World Meeting of Families this month, it would be worthwhile to look into the thoughts of young people about the world, their condition and their aspirations. "Heaven's Kitchen," a book of prayers and reflections, should somehow provide us that peek.

The book collects the inspirational essays and prayers that first came out in the paper's Witness (religion) section under the column that now sports the book's title.
According to seminarian Eldric Peredo, the paper's associate editor, the articles were meant "to provide some relief from the hard-nosed news and feature stories" that the paper usually carried. The column became so popular that, to student circles in and out of UST, it became synonymous with articles passionately dealing with faith and reason.

Several entries in "Heaven's Kitchen" problematize "black" and "white" as signifiers of a fundamental polarization of human worth-superiority/inferiority.
'...But my teacher said if you won't go to Mass, you'll go to hell,' the boy said. The woman smiled and said, 'Better me than you, my son.'

For instance, A.R.Ariola's (my name would go here, i just don't want a lot of people to see my blog when they do a search on the net, hehehe) "Spiritual Makeover" depicts the need to reassemble an identity out of the refractions of material deprivation as it talks about an "impulsive shopper": "My friend... confided that this was her way to compensate for the things that she lacked... We so pamper ourselves with products that can enhance our appearance that we tend to neglect that part of us which deserves the much-needed nurturing-our soul."

Facing fear
It is equally brave for many writers in the anthology, young as they are, to face fear squarely-fear of exposure, the fear that one's deepest emotions would be taken as nonsense.

Law student Marlon Castor's "A Mother's Undying Love" affirms this and betrays a commitment to feminist inflections amid contemporary male politics in the anecdote of a mother who urges her son to go to Mass alone since she will have to do the laundry: "'But my teacher said if you won't go to Mass, you'll go to hell,' the boy said. The woman smiled and said, 'Better me than you, my son.'"
Castor's "Picking Up One's Cross," on the other hand, comes to terms with the masculine persona's deep recesses: "Most of my college buddies were surprised to learn that I was back in school. Before, they had to literally drag me to attend class."

Michelle Jeanne Dompor's "On and Off" moves from silence to coherent speech by cultivating the interior life: "I went to the pew, knelt down and bowed my head. There I prayed in silence..."

In "The Inner Voice," Christian Bautista shows how young people accumulate emotional baggage because of the chaos of never-ending possibilities (the hegemonic world of grown-up people): "At a low point of my life, I once blamed God for not giving me something I sorely wanted. Looking back, I cringe at the fact that I was dumb enough to think that God had it for me."

Marie Carisa Ordinario's "Letting Go" shows how young people need compassion and greater understanding as they undergo rites of passage, like a girl who has to face the prospect of separation from her sister who has married: "Suddenly I felt alone... There is no other way to go around it... my sister may no longer live with us... [but] she is happy and having the 'greatest adventure' of her life."

In discussing faith, families and human worth, some young writers tend to agree with Derrida when the latter deconstructed the opposition between private and public. His trick was to recognize that in every textual production there was the itinerary of a constantly thwarted desire to make the text explain.

Meanwhile, the young writers of "Heaven's Kitchen" choose to reconstitute the family by a return to the traditional basics. By adhering to one's good sense, the Varsitarian seems to say, homes will never be provisional.

"Heaven's Kitchen" concludes by urging readers to find rootedness in faith, family and friends.

"Heaven's Kitchen" is available at the UST Bookstore (tel. 731-3522/3101 local 8252 or 8278), Varsitarian (731-3101 local 8235) or selected bookstores.

regular blogging mode resumed

2005-05-16T11:43:00.000+08:00

Exam's over and I'm back to my usual blogging mode. After class we headed off to the mall to have some fun.

Bowling. Cinemas (The Wedding Date).

Here are some of the pics.
See them here.

debut on national tv

2005-05-09T17:00:00.000+08:00

Yep, you've read that right. I'm not sure if I that is something I should be happy about. Hehehehe. Over the weekend, I've been bombarded with messages from friends and former classmates telling me that they've spotted me on a DOLE commercial on ETC channel. The same goes with my sister, too since we both had that ambushed interview by the ETC veejay while on Dole's White Latino Nights party in Eastwood Central sometime last March. Since we don't have any cable subscriptions at home, we weren't able to see our faces yet on the said tv commercial.

Just to give you an idea on the party.

White Latino Nights
Dressed in our white ensembles, my sister and I hailed a cab at Philcoa to Eastwood Central Plaza, Libis to attend a singles' party. I won two entrance tickets to a Latino event. We downed three fruit cocktails, in different concoctions, eyed the finger foods hungrily and ate them, enjoyed the Latino beats, cheered the searchees on the dating game, watched in amusement the bartending contest, ohh-ed and ahh-ed at the mini fashion show, snapped pictures, strolled the place, played my maracas, seen G Toengi up close as she was the guest, and got interviewed by ETC veejay. We didn't get her name though. She's half-Korean and she's really nice and madaldal- really fits her job. She got us talking while watching the fashion show. There are really cool prizes up for grabs-10,000 for the winner in amateur bartending contest and trip for two to Boracay for the dating game winner. An organizer approached us if we want to go in the dating game. And my sister and I were like pushing each other around. Good thing, none of us dared. We'll probably wont live it down. Hehehehe.... We really had a blast! Its my first time to see the place. But my sister has been frequenting the place for some time now. We got home in one piece. Phew! And guess what, we saw Rolypoly on the jeep bound to Almar. He's on his way home after a drinking spree with his classmates in celebration of their last official day of classes. We got home a few minutes before midnight.

There you go....

autoreply

2005-05-04T18:02:00.000+08:00

The author of this blog is currently on study leave. As her comprehensive exam draws near, she is mustering enough control to shun away from things that might eat away whatever free time there is that she devotes to her academic pursuit.

During this period, blogging is a no-no.

She also wishes to extend her gratitude to one of her support system, the LEKATS.

Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility

2005-05-04T15:08:00.000+08:00

Funny that I found this law in economics very apt on how I would describe my blogging activity recently. To further illustrate, after blogging for sometime on a daily basis, my marginal utility after creating an entry would be quite high. Then, this would be sustained by constant blogging (creating entries). But after doing this over and over, my total utility would start to decline as blogging becomes less frequent. The only loophole in this situation is that there is no consumption of a good. But similarly, blogging could be substituted in this case.
And somehow ceteris paribus (assuming all things are constant) is somewhat nonexistent since I've been through a truckload of work lately. That would contribute to the negative sloping of the demand curve.

any gift suggestions for a wedding?

2005-04-26T15:11:00.000+08:00

Mengie, our MBA classmate and a good friend we've come to know of would be tying the knot come the 5th of May (05-05-05). As I'm not accustomed to attending this kind of affair, your help would be greatly appreciated.

comments are most welcome

2005-04-25T17:27:00.000+08:00

I just visited Mark's blog and got intrigued with the HaloScan feature for adding comment blog posts.And my curiosity got the better of me, voila! After a few minutes, I have it installed on my template. There you go! To my visitors, whose IP addresses aren't familiar with the ones we're using in Thomson office, you may feel free to drop me a note. It would be nice to know some of you who somehow got a glimpse of how's life been treating me lately. There are really much to expect in this blogger community. I have incorporated a unique identifier in my blog system, which helped me track the number of people who visited my page as well as the number of page refresh per day.

Welcome, aboard! Keep those comments coming...

all work and no play

2005-04-25T12:59:00.000+08:00

Saturday

Our project consulting session was divided into seminar and lecture series. The Toastmaster members conducted a seminar to entice some students to join their organization. Their organization is into improving one's communication skills and master the art of public speaking. Halfway during the seminar, they have this impromptu speaking session. And guess what, Boggs' name was called. And his speech topic was on who does he like best, Alwina or Darna. Much to the delight of the crowd, he chose Darna over Alwina because of the costume. I took a video of his award-winning (?) speech. All you have to do is request a copy from me. Or drop me an email you just have to add yahoo.com on my cyber name.

Most of the class left before the last period. Sumali din kami ni Boggs. We went to Glorietta. I badly needed to breathe in some fresh air from the mall. Fresh scent from new clothes, that is. I bought a pair of slip-ons. I need not be guilty of that since I really need some slip-ons. Most of the shoes I wear to work aren't open-toed. My white sandals, which I've been wearing for the longest time has to retire from all the friction it went through. The straps aren't securely in place anymore.

I've been fighting the urge to purchase a new bottle of cream bath from Marks and Spencers. I mentally did a computation of my credit card statement. And that's when I decided na uubusin ko muna yung Waterlily foam bath bottle ko na konti na lang yung contents before buying another one.

We bumped into Nilo and Mervyn at Glorietta. And then into Charo. Then, we thought of taking some pictures.

Here are some of them:

Nilo, Mervyn, Boggs, and Taro

beggars or lovers?

taro and me

Sunday

My sis went along with me to the office yesterday. Imagine my relief after being able to finish the formatting of 41 Lehman indices! She went gaga over Archie Comics online and playing the online boggle game where there are real players to beat. Mervyn, Boggs, and Andrew were also in the office. My sis and I woke up early to hear mass and by 10 am, I was starting to do my work. We got home at 9pm. I'm so wiped out!

you should be working!

2005-04-22T11:30:00.000+08:00

We're just a week away from the Lehman histories' loading deadline. I have to format 58 series with 21 datatypes and I haven't even started yet! This might sound too technical just imagine an excel file with figures reaching 5,000+ lines. I should be in alarm mode and yet here I am still blogging! This project is for our error- sensitive (simply put, they are not very pleased when the output doesn't meet their standards) client to date, Northern Trust. There was a technical issue which was overlooked during our initial project and they were really disappointed with the outcome. Flashback: It was Mark Nagas who first handled Lehman Bond Indices data back in 2003. It was turned over to Mervyn last year when Mark ventured into greener pastures sometime in July last year. From what I could remember, handling Lehman per se was such a headache to Mark and it has been the same thing to Mervyn. I did have my share of that whenever Mark is on leave and the task of doing Lehman would fall on my hands.

This morning, I experimented with the Revlon products, which Karen and I bought from MC Depot last Monday. Prices were marked-down. We took a cab to and fro since there was a transport strike for public utility jeepneys. The Colorstay electric pink lipgloss doesn't really blends in well. The result: fuller lips, bee-stung effect. I have to apply just a hint.

Last Wednesday night, Rolypoly and I emptied the contents of plum wine bottle, which I got (complimentary) from Grande Island. We had fishballs as pulutan. By the time, I gulped whatever was left from my glass, I felt quite dizzy. It has 10% alcohol content and I'm no alcohol-lover. My record in drinking is too embarassing, if I may add. Nothing close to Dianne Menes for that matter. I stayed for sometime in their house. I can't walk with my wobbly knees. Add to that, I feel like everything is swirling around in blurs. By the time he dropped me, it was 1:30 am. And I'm really in dire need of sleep these past few days.

Last night, my officemates decided to grab a snack at KFC. Slightly against my will, amid the constant pamimilit, I gave in na. Ok lang we had fun naman eh. Medyo nagtatampo na kase mama ko lagi na lang ako late. I'll try to get home early next week.

Got to get to work. Think of Lehman. Lehman. Lehman.

PICTURES...PICTURES...see them while they're hot

2005-04-21T11:42:00.000+08:00

At long last, I finally got the time to upload them.

Graduation pictures of ROLYPOLY long overdue. See them here.

Pics from company summer outing at Grande Island, Subic for the second time in a row. Click this.

Pictures are copyrighted.

the hardest things

2005-04-20T12:58:00.000+08:00

Being questioned when you yourself don't understandPretending to be innocent of what you know aboutTrying to forget something you know you never willAdmitting you were wrong after you have been so insistent that you were rightAccepting the fact that some things are not meant to beSwallowing your pride when it has become too hard and too big to even gulp it down with waterBeing the last to know about something that concerns you most of allRealizing that you have been tricked after you have given your whole trustRealizing that you have taken the most important thing for grantedParting with someone you've just learned to loveLosing someone you care deeply aboutSaying sorry when you mean itKnowing what is best and yet doing the exact oppositeBracing yourself for the worst kind of pain... & still hurting so muchBeing with someone else when the right one comes alongFinding a way to mend a broken heartLearning that you've been used by someone you truly loveSaying "I love you" when you mean it and when you don'tTrying to hide what u really feelHaving a commitment w/ someone that u know would not lastTrying to hide the tears that involuntarily fall from your eyesSharing the one you love w/ someone elseLoving a person too muchGiving up someone u never thought of giving upFalling for your best friend and knowing that things can never be the same againLearning to trust after you have been burnedAccepting that it was not meant to beSmiling when all you want to do is cryTrying not to remember how perfect everything used to be

Summer-y

2005-04-15T17:05:00.000+08:00

Here comes summer again. This time of the year when skirt hemlines become shorter and the need to bare some of that skin become such an in thing. And oh, you don’t have to come up with a good excuse to show those flabs here and there. Don’t you just love those tan lines after getting too much of UV exposure and salt spray from the beach while letting your hair down.

I don’t know about you but walking on the shore, while the expanse of the shoreline stretches out before me, which also makes you think that it would go on and on and that it would never really end, leaves me in a tranquil stance.

Nothing beats the feeling of having the midday wind brush along the side of your back or against your face. The salty hot air from the sea so close you could even taste it. Or accidentally gulping liters of saltwater from all that splashing around. And even getting your ears partly infected due to water getting in your ears.

Ahhh….I cant wait for tomorrow.

binge..binge..binge

2005-04-14T12:05:00.000+08:00

Headed off to Glorietta Activity Center yesterday at lunch time to purchase the Whirlpool refrigerator. It would be delivered anytime today. We'll be saying goodbye to our good old, reliable White Westing House modeli, which have become a family heirloom. Then , met up with Mervyn and Boggs who partly finished their shopping for summer outfits. Nilo, on the other hand was supposed to take lunch in their house but decided at the last minute to join us. We had a hearty lunch at Ched D' Angelo. Funny kse nag-tatalo pa sila kung sino magdadala nung free na industrial fan that I got from purchasing the ref. Kawawa tuloy si Nilo pati yung taxi driver natatawa sa kakulitan nilang lahat. Kse si Nilo naka-upo sa harapan tapos hindi makita ni Manong yung side view. Gusto nga din nyang lagyan ng seatbelt yung malaking box.

Then, dinner with the rest of the team at North Park followed. Noemi's here kse. She'll be back in Dubai again next week. We waited for Isay pa. Hired an fx taxi to go there. Tapos Dennis, being the gentleman that he is, took on the task of carrying the box. Hehehe. Chinese dishes. Dumplings! Wala nga lang sharksfin dumplings. Took the MRT and got home quite late. My brother was confined yesterday. Still under observation. High fever. Hope its nothing serious. Mama and my sister slept in the hospital last night.

Know YOUR RELATIONSHIP STYLE

2005-04-13T12:25:00.000+08:00

YOUR RELATIONSHIP STYLE
The first step in discovering your best match is getting a clear picture of your own relationship style. Good or bad, your experiences with your parents -- in childhood and adulthood -- play a key role in establishing your relationship style and the kind of person who you're best suited for now. Based on your experiences, you will probably fall naturally into one of three categories:
? Isolator: If you are an Isolator, you need a lot of personal space. Isolators minimize emotion, are often guarded and unconsciously push people away, keeping them at a distance.
? Fuser: If you are a Fuser, you have an insatiable appetite for closeness and don't like being alone. Fusers crave attention and are sometimes described as clingy.
? Ambivalent: If you are an Ambivalent, you are a little bit of both. Ambivalents like to pull away, yet they want to feel close at the same time. They can also be confusing and hard to read.

YOUR FREE personalized introductory results, based on your test responses:
YOU ARE AN AMBIVALENT

YOUR CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES

Your childhood experiences show that you are an Ambivalent. As a child, you probably received plenty of love and affection from your parents but were also allowed to form your own sense of independence. Your parents may have upset you and let you down at times, but your childhood needs were essentially met. Therefore, as an adult, you have traits that are common in both Isolators and Fusers, two polar opposites. This means that your relationship style includes many interesting contradictions. You've been known to both push people away and expect them to dote on you at the same time. Freedom is just as appealing to you as being showered with affection.

YOUR PERFECT PARTNER

As an Ambivalent, you're uniquely qualified to have a successful relationship with a partner from either category: Fusers or Isolators.In your case, "happily ever after" depends on which role you find yourself adopting more often. If you're usually the outgoing one in the relationship, often seeking affection and attention, you're more of a Fuser. This means that your perfect partner is actually your opposite type, an Isolator. You may have guessed just the contrary, that your best match would be someone who would shower you with all the love and affection you crave. But happiness for you means partnering with someone who will respect your privacy and support you when you want to do independent activities, much like your parents did.If you're often a private person who likes her space, you're more of an Isolator. This means that your perfect partner is actually your opposite type, a Fuser. Contrary to what you might have thought, your best match is not someone who gives you all the space and freedom you crave. Instead, your best bet for long-term happiness is partnering with someone who dotes on you, someone who shows his affection and expresses his emotions easily and often, just as your parents did.

Get your results here.

Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous (2005)

2005-04-11T10:45:00.000+08:00

The problem with sequels is that they don't measure up to the original as they always nearly fall flat -- nothing new but more or less a rework of the same formulaic concept.

Last Saturday, most people were probably enjoying the holiday break from work. Not for me. I woke up early to go to Ortigas where I had my initial interview at San Miguel. It was like a deja vu. Almost the same questions from my first interview at Thomson were thrown at me. But not with the same intensity that got me all fired up to say more than what I have been asked during my first interview. The same goes for almost all first-timers, I guess. After that, I hurried off to school where we had our group meeting for project consulting class. We had the entire lobby for ourselves as there were no classes during that day. It lasted the whole afternoon. My sister is waiting for me back home because we're going to watch Ms.Congeniality. Free passes to the movie c/o mama. Tita Levi and Sheila was there, too. Mama and tita were working on some financial statements. Ahhh, the BIR deadline, probably. I ate whatever was left from lunch since I was really starving even if I took lunch with my groupmates at Lukfoo, Chinese cuisine. And then we got to Sm Fariview at 7:15pm just in time since the film would be starting at 7:30pm. Not too many people were inside the cinema.

Back to my sort-of movie review, I don't remember watching the first installment on the big screen. The costumes (probably the only thing fabulous in the movie); flashy Vegas lights and sounds; all the glitch and glamor were not enough for the movie to rake in big bucks! Yes, Virginia, needless to say, the shallow movie plot is quite evident in this sequel. But still, I'm there to unwind and I was able to relax because you don't really have to squeeze your mental juices for this film. And yes, my sister did enjoy the film, which is a good thing because she has no idea what the first one was like.

I was sooo tired and hit the sack the moment my head touched the puffed material.

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Yesterday, we drove off to Pampanga for my cousin's Dian's debut celebration. Fun! Dami food! Yung mga kids inaagawan ako sa microphone. Puro naman novelty songs yung kinakanta...Gave my mini-swimming pool gift to Lyka, my inaanak. It was her birthday last month.