Meeting a Japanese Girl

I had the pleasure of having my first Japanese encounter last Wednesday. Okay not excatly first encounter. I've been to a lot of Japanese related events, had several Ebay transactions with Japanese sellers (my favorite Ebay seller is a Japanese by the way *shout out to Seiki-san*), my former boss once introduced her former boss to me. But all of them were more of a hi, hello, will you sign my stuff, thank you, excellent, ja mata ne and all that one liner thingie. My friend Che is a member of a wonderful Japanese NGO that provides various voluntary works here in the Philippines. I don't have a comprehensive idea of what they do, but Che told me once that they set up a portable water system in Palumbanes island. I don't exactly know where it is, but it's somewhere in the Bicol region. Since I really don't know much of the details, let's just say she has a Japanese friend named Risa that she introduced to me and my other colleague, Bryan. We ate breakfast at Chowking because she likes Kangkong (Water Spinach a.k.a Ipomoea aquatica). While it surprised me in weird way that she likes Kangkong, it amazed me to know that she knows Tagalog and had lived in

Palumbanes island for a month. To go here for travel is common, to do some charity works is admirable, but to actually immerse yourself to the life of the locals, in a remote place where electricity is supplied by a generator and runs for a limited time... is just awe inspiring. It was a pleasing experience, to talk to a Japanese and ask a lot of questions and confirm my knowledge about Japan and its culture. It ignited my desire to go to Japan. Gosh, I hope I can go there before my passport expires... I have to start saving...

demonstrating how to eat Halo-halo

kidd's breakfast

(Puto is the yellow one, Kuchinta is the brown one, and Niyog is the white stuff)

Puto is Philippine steamed rice cake prepared practically all over the country and eaten alone, with butter or butter substitute and/or grated fresh coconut or as accompaniment to a number of savory dishes for breakfast (most notably, with dinuguan). - from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puto#Variations_of_Puto

Kuchinta is another delicious steamed cake made of rice flour, sugar and water. The ingredients may sound so simple yet tastes excellent especially when topped with shredded coconut. - from http://www.filipinodesserts.net/quick-desserts/kuchinta-recipe-filipino-steamed-rice-cake

I normally have Pandesal for breakfast, but on days that I'd catch a mobile vendor of puto and kuchinta, I'd have them instead. See, these are some of the things that I like living in the province. Traditional food like these are easily accessible at the right time. There are times that I'd wake up at the sound of the vendor yelling "puto, kuchinta". For me, morning is the best time to eat them. For eight years that I stayed in Manila, I can't remember ever eating puto or kuchinta for breakfast, unless I would eat out.

They are best accompanied with niyog (grated coconut). I think for a couple of years we stopped buying from the mobile vendors because part of the cost cutting strategy of the owners was to eliminate the niyog. They're just not the same without niyog, but this morning, there's a vendor and my mom asked me if I want it for breakfast, and the first thing I asked was "may niyog ba?" (is there grated coconut?). And she said, yes. So I was in for a great breakfast! Ittadakimasu!

I did my obligatory trip to Mercury drug last Tuesday to buy toothpaste. Not that we are out of supply, but I couldn't put it off any later because that was day my Citibank charge slip discount would expire. It's a Citibank promo where I can get discount to Mercury Drug or Rustans for the amount I purchased using my card. Ever since my dental extraction, I pledged to STRICTLY follow the recommended three times a day tooth brushing. I have to be honest, I get so lazy at times that I put off brushing my teeth. I'm pretty confident that I'm not the only one hehehe. So when I shop for toothpaste, I made sure that I won't have any excuse to brush my teeth wherever I'm at. I bought 4 pieces.

One for the house, it's a back up for myself in case my sister Ivy takes the family toothpaste upstairs. The second is for my work place, the third and the fourth goes to my bag so even when I'm on the move, I have something to use. Absolutely NO EXCUSE!

The only thing is, I also bought chocolates for MYSELF, and don't forget that I still have my bonbon candies which may not be very healthy for my teeth. But give me a break, what is life without candies and chocolates?

Trip to Little Tokyo

I've been meaning to dine in Little Tokyo in Makati ever since I saw it many years ago. Back in the days when I frequent Makati Cinema Square, when there was still Feata Bookstore, it was where I get original Japanese manga. Little Tokyo is a compound of Japanese Restaurants, and I knew back then that they are pricey so I didn't get the chance to try it. 10 years after, I finally

got to try it. My friend Mike had been there and he gave me a good feedback. So last weekend, we went there with my friend Sherry and her boyfriend Lester.

The moment I entered the compound premise, I immediately felt the Japanese ambiance that I don't normally feel in other Japanese restaurants that I've been to. With Mike's suggestion, we chose to go to Kagura. It appears to be famous for okonomiyaki, every customer ordered it. They also have a tatami area, where you can sit and eat the traditional Japanese style (lotus position), but under the table is a cavity where you can extend your legs, in case you prefer to sit the normal way. While waiting for the food, I knew I was in for an authentic Japanese food because we were the only Filipino customers inside. There's a small TV that shows a Japanese sports channel. The owner must be a Hanshin Tigers (baseball team) fan, the whole place is decorated with various Tigers memorabilia. Good thing I was wearing my Onitsuka Tiger sneakers so I felt right at home hehehe. I wanted to take pictures, but I was so worried that I'd look like some kind of weirdo so I refrain and just took some shots that wasn't so attention grabbing.

The food was good, the okonomiyaki was great. I really had nothing to compare it to. Unless I go to Japan, I wouldn't know how authentic Japanese cuisine should really taste. I'm only judging it base on the demography of customers. I only had 3 things to critic, first is the payment method. I wish they accept credit cards. The food is pricey and I seldom bring cash, I have a paperless culture and always rely on my magic card every time I go out. Thank goodness for this occasion, my instinct told me to bring cash so I was saved from humiliation. The second one is I wish the place had more space, by the time we left, the place was already jam packed. And third, I wish they'd serve desserts. I always wanted to end my meal with something sweet. I mean, sure they served a complimentary orange fruit, nicely peeled and segmented, but again, I was hoping to try Japanese desserts.

Good thing there was a convenience store beside it, and boy was I happy to find that they sell Sakuma bonbon candies. The tin cans have different packaging art from the one in Graveyard of the Fireflies, but who cares about that now, I'm just happy I got me bonbon candies. I also bought a Meiji pudding, which is insanely good. See, that's what I say when I want to end my meal with sweets. Overall, my trip to Little Tokyo didn't disappoint, and I'm definitely going back! Next time, I'm gonna try the takoyaki.

I just want to share this cool animation I've come across in one of the forums I joined. Very cool.

BIG BANG BIG BOOM - the new wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.

I can't tweet!!! =(

I don't know if anybody else is experiencing this problem with Twitter, but it won't post my tweets! Nope, I'm not getting any error message, even worse, when I click the tweet button, I don't get any respond. My point is... I want to tweet. Twitter is like the SMS blogging, when I want to share something that I don't need or want to elaborate, I tweet. Even if I only have 20 followers, and who knows, there are probably 2 or 3 people who read my tweets. I still like it for recording purposes.

Anyways, if only Twitter was working properly, I'd tweet:

• I'm enjoying reading the Polish thread of ED.com forums. Don't ya just luv Google Translate hehehe...
• #bloopersnight Blooper 5: "you have to go to the homepage, where you "will saw"
• Is this how Globe treat their valued customer? I'm giving up the iphone, not worth the hype... oh which phone should I get now?
• Globe homepage sucks!

Pffft! I want to tweet!

I wasn't gonna blog about this, but because of so many times I've failed to upload this on youtube (thanks to my amazing broadband connection), I've felt that a successful upload (finally) deserves a blog post (and plug) hehehe.

Evangelion is one of the most popular anime of my time, there are tons of merchandise available and thank God music box is one of them. It comes in different variant, this one is the version 2. It is manufactured by Sega and is supposed to be an arcade prized item. The set comes with Asuka and another Rei wearing white one piece suspended in a glass tube. I sell the Asuka figure and also the version 3 (both Rei and Asuka).

Fly Me to the Moon is a popular song by Frank Sinatra. It has different versions by various artists but I have to admit though, that only Evangelion made me love this song.

For some reason, whenever I wind this up, our dog Majinbu barks along. Even when I tried playing the video, he goes barking again -sigh-

Only in the Philippines

So I have balikbayan relatives staying with us, they just got back from Boracay and I just can't let their flight delay story pass. According to my Aunt, not only was the flight delayed for 3 hours, their flight was diverted from Katiklan airport to Kalibo airport. So the passengers had to move from Katiklan to Kalibo. I mean, I have heard of flight delays but to move from one airport to another? Come on! I mean if I'm a passenger, I deserve some compensation for all the trouble, right? Hahaha!!!

23 years ago...

So I saw an old picture of me, dated February '88, that my mom sent to my dad when he was still working in Saudi:

And it read: Dear Daddy, Here's Miss Japan of Tanay, Rizal.

Take note that my mom wrote this. Hmmmm.... now it figures hehehe

Music Box

Here's something that I haven't shared. I love music box! I think it started more than a year ago when my fascination with this 18th century technology started and I don't really know why. I know that I've always loved music box version of some anime songs, but I'm really fascinated with the wind-up movement. That complex mechanism of interlocking cogs, gears and wheels got me locked. In this age of Ipod and digital music, here I am, crazy for an old technology.

I created a youtube account so I can upload some of my collection and hopefully meet other music box enthusiasts. Here's a sample from my collection. Being an anime fan, I tried to limit collecting to anime related music boxes. In Japan, music box is referred to as "orgel". This one is Laputa Castle in the Sky orgel figure that plays the movie's theme song. Please enjoy =).

-sigh-

It's unbelievably cold these days. I honestly prefer cold wheather, but not when I'm sick... and I am. I have cold -sniff- that gives me headache and I still have this recurring toothache that I need to deal with until I decide to go back to the dentist.

And then I have other things going on my head that I wish I'm strong enough to keep on moving on. Welcome to my gloomy February.

Did you know that today is the day the music died? As Don Mclean puts it:

but February made me shiver
with every paper I deliver
bad news on the doorstep
I couldn't take one more step

Dear friends, I am hopeful but I need prayers and hugs...

Birthday Wishlist

My brother is getting married in 6 days while I'm turning 28 in 7 days. Now if you care for me, you should know what to get me hehehe:

1. Music box that plays any of the following - The Entertainer, Ave Maria, The Christmas Song, Auld Lang Syne, Moon River, I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry.
2. socks
3. Books - Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto, Hear the Wind Sing and Pinball by Haruki Murakami, Black Jack vols. 10-22 by Ozamu Tezuka
4. CLAMP no Kiseki Chess Board
5. official TEDS T-shirt

Finally!

After stubbornly refusing for so long I had finally given in. I signed up for a Facebook account.

Finally!

At first, the only reason why I wouldn't sign up was because my laptop broke and I had rare access to the web and I felt like it's useless to get an account if I can't update it regularly. Then it grew into pride, everybody was going gaga over it, specially my siter Ivy, everybody was saying how addicting it is and I felt like I don't want to be like everybody else. I lost appetite. I wanted to be someone who could say "well, I didn't fall for it, sorry".

That was really silly now that I think about it hehehe...

I felt pressured to have one, the reasons to sign up was piling up, it's suffocating:

I don't wanna get sued, it's becoming a law to have a Facebook account. Even the oldies have one!

I need a mainstream medium to sell my toys (click me).

I want to be able to see my travel photos without bothering Che and asking her to email the pics.

I wanted to feel young again hehehe.

I need my fans (LOL)

I need to get updated when my gay friend Kuya Aris will get his greencard so I can marry him (LOL)

I have to prove that I'm digitally alive.

I need prove to everyone else that Facebook is not as impressive or as addictive as many claimed it to be.

It's time!

Just kidding, I'm starting to sound like an old fool hahaha.

I only wanted to get in touch with my friends that I haven't heard from for a long time and I know Facebook will greatly help me on this.

Please add me hehehe.

The Gift of Laughter

I have a confession to make.

Well, some of my friends already know this, but I feel like a need to post this...

I'm a huge Ellen DeGeneres fan. Yep, her. I'm not usually a celebrity person, now before you make any judgement, let me tell you that she's the most adorable celebrity out there.

I'm particularly hooked to her talkshow. To say that it changed me is an understatement. It healed me. I was a pessimistic person, full of problems and frustrations. I was limited to anime and anything Japanese. I refused to go out of my box until one day...

I remember, it was a gloomy week day in November. I was at a friend's place. It was boring. She was having a fight with her boyfriend while I am sad for another reason. I was flipping through channels on TV when I came across Ellen's opening monologue about Barrack Obama's election, she was explaining how the election came down to dancing. It was hilarious. Then she would come up with one funny act after another -the goofy dance, the straddling of the coffee table, showing how a hologram could make her life easier, demoing of a vaccuum cleaner at George Clooney's office, the kid inventors. It was just a super fun show that sent me into a burst of laughter until my friend had to yell to turn down my volume and remind me that she was crying. But something happened that I didn't notice. I had forgotten my own problem.

this is the monologue that got me started!

It took me a while, but once I got a hold of its schedule, I've become a regular home audience member.

My favorite part is the monologue, this is where Ellen shows off her brand of comedy, which I really love. She often talks about everyday life and points out inconveniences and silly things we're willing to put up that makes me think, yeah, why is that? I like the fact that she's willing to look goofy and silly for comedy, and it doesn't disappoint, well most of the time anyway.

It's that hour of laughter everyday that got me through and made me realize how much energy I'm wasting on negativity. And I'm not saying I'm completely healed, I still have a lot issues to work out and a lot of pessimism left in my veins, but I'm slowly getting rid of it. The thing is, I need to keep in touch with reality. Because, life can't always be all about fun. There will be hardships, but by focusing on the positive things, I have a much brighter future.

Anyway, it's Ellen's 53rd birthday today and I would've wanted to greet and thank her personally, for this gift of laughter. I know that it's hard to get a ticket on her show (yes, I'm that kind of fan now, I even bought copies of her books!). Here in Philippines, 2nd Avenue channel holds a contest every year with a ticket to her show (all expense paid!)as the prize. But then, good luck to me, one of the requirements is to have a US visa which I don't have and getting one is like passing through a needle's hole. But then again, I'm sure those people who gets a ticket are in more need than I do. So I'm happy to just watch in the comfort of our living room. I'm sure there are million lives healed by her gift of laughter, and on her birthday, I wish she gets the happiness she imparts, ten-fold. Happy Bday Ellen!

Tanay Town Fiesta

Last Sunday, my hometown celebrated the feast of our Patron saint, San Ildefonso de Toledo. Now I don't know how people celbrated way way back, but I've grown up knowing that it's mostly about food. Then there are bands, carnival, flea markets, and of course, visitors from out of town.

This year, I managed to have my own share of visitors from the Metro - Nagi, Chris and Aish came and Dindee with Dr. Fajardo dropped by. I gotta be honest, this was the first time that I brought them with me and introduce my family and I was little nervous that something might go wrong. But everything went smoothly, I was so happy that everybody felt comfortable and at home. I knew that my parents, especially my mom would be delighted to meet my friends and have a sense of relief to know the people I am with, whenever I'd have to spend the night in Manila.

Now this trio have always been bubbly, I understand that they had to tone done in front of my family in our living room, and they were like whispering while talking. But when i finally took them to my room and got some privacy, their demons unleashed! It was a riot but at the same time really fun. We took a lot of embarassing pictures that I can't even post here because we all love our future hahaha.

I was surprised that a day is not enough to have more fun like take them to some popular spots like the dyke. I was so worried that I would be a bad host and bore my guests to death, but Thank God, everything turned out to be a great day.

Mt. Pinatubo

Disclaimer: All photos are owned and taken by Cherryl Gurrobat

This post is long overdue, but I still want

to share this. Last week, I went treking to Mt. Pinatubo.

My friend, Che's photos inspired me to go out and see the country. While I often express frustration over the corrupt government and how we Filipinos lack discipline, I had forgotten to appreciate the good things we have. And we have a lot!

Together with Che, her sister Cha and her friend Janet, I decided to start off with my new goal of seeing the beauty of the Philippines, here in Mt. Pinatubo.

It wasn't an easy trail, but it was probably the right start for me. From the foot of the mountain (or whatever part it was), I had to endure a 2 hour walk! Another 2 hours to go back. And it doesn't sound so hard if you're gonna do it on an even plane. Now it's a "mount" I'm talking about so you can just expect all the tough things you could think of hehehe.

It was an overcasted Sunday so I didn't sweat as much as I expected, but the biggest threat was the rain. It's not safe to go there when raining because of the lahar and I've heard of death instance due to bad weather, so all throughout the trek, my only prayer was not to rain. It drizzled a little, but Thank God, I made it through without any scratch.

My knowledge of Mt. Pinatubo was fairly limited to its 1991 massive erruption. How can I forget getting up in the morning and seeing the outside of our house covered in ash. I was so young at that time and I thought for a moment that it snowed. I had no idea the disaster that had just happened. So when I finally made it to the top, I was just blown by the beauty. How can something so beautiful come from an ugly tragedy?

Despite the gloomy sky, the crater lake boasted a turquoise color. What can I say? The sight

reminds me of dinosaur era, I was hoping to see a big bird to hover around and give me an illusion that it's a Pteroducktyl! It didn't happen, but what the heck!

After the trek, my body was aching. I felt like an old lady, and I was longing for my bed so badly but it wasn't the body pain that gave me a heartache. It was the sight of the Aetas living in poverty. The knowledge that our trek guide is underpaid despite the hard work he did for us. Our trek guide's name is Raymond and he's a hard working fellow. The only thing we could do for him was to give a small tip and some food.

Overall, it was a learning and an inspiring experience. I hope to go back someday but next time. I hope to do something better for the people who live there.

The 13th Zodiac Sign (?)

This cracked me up. I just learned that there is a new zodiac sign, how it happened? Read on (from The Huffington Post):


Astronomer Parke Kunkle says that due to changes in the Earth's alignment the dates of many zodiac signs have changed, according to NBC. In addition, there may be a 13th Zodiac sign: Ophiuchus.

Kunkle says that as the Earth and Sun slowly move the signs gradually change, as expected. The change didn't happen over night either. The 12 signs were designated to different periods of the year almost 3,000 years ago, when astrology began, and since then the Earth's position in relation to the sun has changed.

While the sign many people were born under may now be different, it shouldn't affect horoscope readings, according to NBC.

See if your Zodiac sign has changed below:

The New Dates:
Capricorn: Jan. 20 - Feb. 16
Aquarius: Feb. 16 - March 11
Pisces: March 11- April 18
Aries: April 18 - May 13
Taurus: May 13 - June 21
Gemini: June 21 - July 20
Cancer: July 20 - Aug. 10
Leo: Aug. 10 - Sept. 16
Virgo: Sept. 16 - Oct. 30
Libra: Oct. 30 - Nov. 23
Scorpio: Nov. 23 - Nov. 29
Ophiuchus: Nov. 29 - Dec. 17
Sagittarius: Dec. 17 - Jan. 20


Hmmm.. I'm a little confused. There are overlapping dates, not my problem though since my birthday doesn't fall on any of those dates. But based on the new ZOdiac sign dates, from Aquarius, I am now a Capricorn! No way!!!

First of all, I'm not affected that much. Who is Parke Kunkle anyway?

Second, I was reading the comments, and just can't help but laugh at people's stubborness and obvious resistance to change. Then I also realize how much people love their birth sign hahaha.

Third, I'll always be Aquarius, just like anybody else, I love my original birth sign, unless, being a Capricorn would make me a millionaire hehehe.

So what's your new zodiac? Are you amendable to this?

Sam Needs Help

A couple of months ago, I received a text message from a so called "Sam". She said she's an information management major from Bacolod and wants to go to Manila (so badly) to work but can't afford the fare. So she asks for help and said that she's willing to do "anything" in exchange of my help.


So I did the most logical thing any decent person would do. Delete!


And I thought that was it. But then, weeks later I received a follow up SMS from this Sam. I found it a little odd to get a follow up spam. I deleted it again of course.
And so I thought that's the end of the story. Or so I thought... I received another follow up weeks later. Then last week, another one. This time, I thought to myself, okay, I'm not gonna delete this one. This is starting to get annoying, why do I feel like somebody's playing a prank on me?


There's no way I would respond, I kept it in my inbox so I could post it here, the exact SMS:


Gud am po, c Sam po to, ung girl na humihingi ng tulong makapunta ng maynila.. M22lungan nio po b ako? Gagawin ko po ung kapalit na hhngin nio, para lang makapunta npo ako ng maynila.. Parang awa nio napo..

Yesterday I received 2 more messages, the other is another plea for help while the other one is a short profile that says she's a DOST scholar.

First of all Sam, I'm not a dirty old man.

Second, if you're a wise girl, you know better than I do, that there are million ways to get here than randomly asking for help from someone in exchange of "anything".

Third, this is really beginning to sound like some kind of prank. Whoever you are, I'm not gonna fall for it.

There, now that I blogged about it, it's time to clean my SMS inbox. Sorry Sam, it's not gonna work. Anybody interested to help her, contact me and I'll give her your number when she send another follow up.

Today is the 33rd wedding anniversary of my parents. What can I say? If I'd sit and reflect all the things I'm thankul for, I'd start with my parents, and end with my stubborn siblings (kidding hehehe). In a world where 50% of marriages result to divorce, annulment, or any form of separation, being part of the other 50% is a big thing. Something that should never be taken for granted. Over the years I witnessed how my mom and dad stayed sweet and inlove with one another. Sure there are times when they bicker, but then my dad would always end up giving in to please my mom. For some, he'd be called "Andres", but I'd call him a true gentleman. While my mom never fail to please my dad in her own special wifey ways.

I'm just so proud to have great and loving parents.

Mommy and Fodsie, happy 33rd year! Cheers!

Happy New Year

It turns out that I got lazier than I expected hahaha. I wanted to get on with the updates and here I am, slacking myself off. I don't always get a 3-days off, 2 weeks in a row, so I have to make sure I have something to share. But first...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

We spent the New Year's eve like we used to, though I can't help but notice some changes. This year Pipay was not here but Richard and his family celebrated with us at home -he was with his in-laws last year. This season is generally all about family, it's the time of the year where everyone take it as an opportunity to spend time with their family or loved ones. So I can't help wishing we were complete.

I think that this is the most subtle new year's eve we ever had. It's a lot more quiet than the ones we had in the past. Relatives stopped coming and some neighbors have gone somewhere else-some went abroad to work, while some passed away (the old ones). There was huge noise for the last 5 minutes of 2010 and the first 10 minutes of 2011, the bangs and the booms, the bright flares of fireworks and the smoke, but it was unusually low compared to past celebrations in the neighborhood. Not that it's a bad thing, I'm not a fan of the explosives anyway and I despise the smell of smoke. But I like making noise (using other means, like horn) and watching fireworks.

My mom didn't even cook food, she was tired and ever since she got hospitalized, we were careful not to exhaust her. It's a shame that nobody in the family can cook. Pipay knows how, but then she's far away. I decided that this year, one of the things I should learn is to cook! We ended up buying a Chowking family platter. My Aunt Carmen also shared macaroni soup with us and I bought a chocolate cake from Goldilocks. I made sure that there is something sweet or it wouldn't be a celebration for me.

Things to do in 2011:

#1 Get a "health" cook book.

In addition to that, during the Holidays, I watched a documentary film called "Food Inc." It's about how the food we ate are made. Mostly the truth about farm factories -the living conditions of the animals, what "farmers" feed and inject to make 'em grow in a short period of time. How crops are genetically modified to produce more than natural method can produce and accommodate the demand and needs of the mass. No wonder all kinds of diseases pops out. But to make the story short, I was appaled with how big corporations manipulate the trust of consumers. But we have our options, we can be aware and we can decide what to buy and what not to buy, and though it's gonna be real hard for me the things I need to start on are:

#2 allot a meatless day in a week

#3 look for organic foods (where to buy?)

#4 less visit to the fastfood chains

#5 read labels and ingredients

So much about food, going back to new year's eve, after the traditional firworks and noise making, we ate, my brothers and my dad had a little drink, we chat, took pictures and then dozed off.

Despite the changes i noticed, I am happy. I am incredibly grateful that we still get to celebrate like this. So many things had happened in the past year, good and bad, that taught me to back off from my stubborness. How lucky I am to realize that I was sticking to my gun that had no bullet in the first place. Together with the year 2010, I am saying goodbye to all the bad things that consumed me. I am still working on some of my issues but I know, with the baby steps I'm taking, I will get there. I will get to live with my highest potential and be a person who can contribute to the society. I am positive that 2011 is gonna be great year.

#6 be physically active without going to the gym

#7 to travel and appreciate the Philippines more

#8 to save, save, save more money

#9 to give to charity

#10 to go to the dentist (I've been having intermittent tooth ache)

#11 to save the world (LOL)

Rock on Kidd!!!

Chritsmas 2010

I felt like this Christmas is different from the ones I had the past few years. For one thing, we’re not complete. My sister Pipay moved to Boracay with her husband, so it was a little lonely. When I got home the morning of 24th, I witnessed my mom cry, getting emotional with the fact there we’re spending the Christmas eve with my sister away. My younger sister Ivy and I had to console her by saying ”life’s like that”. I suddenly remember the Mcdonalds commercial with that watchamacalit song by Nyoy Volante? Mga panahon at pagkakataon, maibabalik ba ang kahapon…You know that commercial with a mom and a dad with their kids having meal, then as years went by, there were less people on the table, the kids went off with their life and the parents were left on their own but then they had their reunion at Mcdonalds. It’s a little sad, but that’s life. I told myself, we’re physically apart but we’ll always be together at heart. The family that prays together, stays together. And we used to pray together when we’re still kids until College had to take us away.

But the Christmas went well as if my sister’s here. It was as busy as ever. I used to stay home just wait for the kids to come, but this year I went out with the kids. I brought my nieces and nephews who live in Metro Manila to my aunts. I rarely see them so I wanted to take the time to be with them. I got particularly worked up with my twin nieces (did I say that right?). They are children of my cousin Adrian and they’re just adorable. Twins run in the family, I have aunts, cousins and now nieces who are twins.



Awww.. looking at my nephews and nieces melts my heart. On top photo, from left to right, that's Curt, Gail/Gelai (?), Mighael, Rome, Gail/Gelai (?). On bottom photo thats Curt Gail/Gelai (?), Mighael, Gail/Gelai (?), Kidd, Leanne

I also got to see my uncle who’s a priest, he just got back from Rome and is on a one month vacation. Whenever I see people look up to him, adores him, I’m kinda having second thoughts of being a nun (as much as I wanted to be a priest, I can’t hehe).

I received gifts from friends, in-laws and siblings. I felt bad that I didn't prepare anything for them. I prioritized the kids (read this, I burned money!) because even though I feel that Christmas is for everyone to enjoy, I've always thought it's "mainly" for the kids. I had a happy childhood and I've always felt a surge of excitement during Christmas season. I want to impart that happiness to the kids of today, so I want to make sure that I have something big for them. But I just want to express my gratitude to people who took the time to give something to me. Thank y'all!

Hey, it’s 2:30 AM and I run out of stuff to say (I got lazy rather), so I guess it’s the obligatory “next time again” spiel hehehe.

On to my surfing…

New Life

Hey, did y’all notice the new layout (it will improve, give me some time, I just wanted to change the color), new header and updated profile? Well it’s almost 2011 and it’s a shame if after almost 2 years of not posting, everything will stay the same. Besides, A LOT have changed since then.

I don’t know how to start, I don’t know how to go back, all I know is, I’ve changed a lot since then. I’ve grown a lot. I’ve learned how to let go of so many things and embrace what’s there for me. I’m still working on this, but I want to stop complaining about life. I want to stay positive. I want to make sure that I don’t take things for granted. I am incredibly grateful for what God has given me.

So to start with, since my last post, I got a new outlook , new goal, new job, new friends, new hobbies, new obsessions, new room, new laptop. I will go through each of these on my next posts (sorry I can’t commit to write that long in one post hehe).

And I want to try and learn new things.

Guess who's back! (or whose back?)

Yep! I'm back! And yep, that's my back! Finally the wait is over. I got myself a new laptop. It was long overdue but heck, I'm back! I'm so excited, I can't wait to install stuff in here. I need a lot of catching up to do, but that can wait a while. For now, I want to use this space to greet everyone a Merry, merry Christmas. May your hearts be filled with joy. More posts to come soon. (",x)

Random Stuff and Hiatus announcement

Alright let's start with the Hiatus thingie. What a way to start the year, I finally brought my laptop to the service center, and unfortunately, the motherboard was damaged already and we all know that its better to buy a new unit than buy a replacement for the motherboard. Not bad, my laptop had done its job. It didn't only help me, it also helped a lot of people and was used on many important occasion. I don't have the budget to get a new lappie so there...So much for my cyberlife, it's gonna be on a LOOOOONGGG hiatus.

I was a little sad though.. When I decided to let it go, it felt like I parted with a very dear friend. Someone who had always been there on my loneliest hours. Oh well, nothing lasts forever especially gadgets!

I think I have this jinx with gadgets... my very first mobile phone died on me for no reason.. no symptoms, no warning, no whatever. Everything seemed fine, until one day, it just won't turn on. Just like my laptop.

-sigh-

So this will be the last post for now and I'm just gonna throw some random stuff since I can't think straight

Yesterday I went to Japan Foundation Manila Office library to claim my membership ID. They gave one free manga if you renewed membership. I was asked to choose from a stack of manga titles that I've never heard before. It's not a bad thing, I'm not after the freebies anyway. I'm after the exclusive invitations for events. But anyway, I chose a manga called "Otanko Nurse". It's about a newbie nurse. So I have a manga about a doctor (Black Jack), now I have a nurse manga. I'm gonna build a hospital in my manga collection haha..

My one month old niece, Rome. She's lovely, but I noticed that she frowns a lot. I wonder if that's normal.. I have to be honest though, I really prefer a nephew because I don't know how to get along with young girls, but I guess boys can't go on dominating the family hehehe. The important thing (as always) is that she's a normal healthy girl. Her dad preferred a girl. He said girls are more responsible. I absolutely agree!

My 8 month old nephew Mighael, he's so white! He's like a white bun so I gave him a secret name "Shiroman" (shiro manju = white bun).

And he loves gashapon too!

I promised Ren that I'd blog about this when I had the chance. He got admitted when he sprained his foot last month.

When I visited him, his wife offered me this iced coffee drink. She said it was good, but it's not!

It's the worst iced coffee drink I've ever tasted! Where did it come from?!? I don't blame his wife, we have different taste buds hehe. But if your taste buds happened to be just like mine, then I'm warning you to stay away from this drink. yuck!

Speaking of coffee, I did get a Starbucks planner. I want to thank my friends Frances and Ryan for their contribution to the stickers hahaha.

I was finally able to find a chess board for the CLAMP chess photoshoot. It was my cousin's. Thanks Butchoy! Here are all the pics I took.

At Greenbelt yesterday... I had a bad day, so I tried to calm myself here... I just love Greenbelt.

I saw this once I went to Robinsons Galleria. I never knew that MRT had a mascot and I find it really cute.


I saw this at "Confessions of Shopaholic" promotional installation at Shangri-la and find it really funny. A giant paperbag, I wish I had myself pictured with it but I was alone, so... I want to see this film. I can relate in so many ways. I don't shop for clothes but I greatly relied on my credit card for shopping toys hahaha! I want to know how the hell did she end up being a financial adviser!

my shopaholic buddy Frances. This was taken last month, she said she was looking for a Christmas present for her boyfriend but I don't understand why we were at women's clothes and accessories section...

last Christmas, I burned a big hole in my pocket. But nothing to regret. It comes once a year anyway.

This year, I promise I'm gonna save, save, save!

life's too short for the wrong job

I received a forwarded email that really hit me... it was funny, witty. I liked the concept... but at the end of the attachment, all I could do is... SIGH...haayy...

haayyyyy talaga...

The Worst Starbucks Experience

Early Monday morning, I was on my way to a friend's place when I passed by the Starbucks Tektite branch. I stopped and thought I have 6 more stickers to go so why not make it 5. I am not in a hurry after all. I was surprised as I advanced to the entrance, there were already people, about to go to work, waiting. I thought it was weird, they usually open at 7:00 AM and it's almost 7:30 so I asked one of the man standing at the door, "what time do they open?". He gave me a sarcastic answer "7". Apparently, he's been waiting longer than it seems. I was startled, I never expected punctuality issues with Starbucks. What was annoying about it was, there were already "partners" inside. They were doing some stuff, I'm sure they are oblivious to customers waiting outside, they could've let us in and wait in the couch, after all, the store is OFFICIALLY open. The store finally opened after 10 minutes, but that's not the end of it. I know that Starbucks is one of the company affected by the global economic crisis, but they don't have to show that to their customers. It's not that hard to smile. Come on, this is Philippines, we laugh at our problems here! Now for the worst part, my short cafe mocha was obviously RUSHED. The whipped cream was missing, it was lukewarm, WTF! For once, I forgot that it's a Starbucks coffee. It was so early in the morning and I'm not a complaint freak so I let it go with a thought that I'm never going back there ever again.

The redeeming thing, though, was the lady put the sticker to the wrong category. She put it in the featured beverages section (featured drinks are more expensive than the regular ones). She was on a rush, of course... tsk tsk.. Remember, it's Tektite branch...

The Name Game

I heard that my first (thru a sibling) niece's name is

Romana Rubiosa Milagrose

I'm not sure if that's the official spelling but when I first heard of it, I thought it was expected from Richard. Romana was taken from my mom's name, while Rubiosa was from his mother-in-law.I told my mom, she should be happy, but she disapproves. She said that it can be a source of mockery in the future and I jokingly told her that there's nothing she can do, she's not the parent hehehe...

My personal opinion about it is, it's too long. I mean Romana is fine, Romana Rubiosa is acceptable, but add another one is just too much for me. Another niece of mine, Jona's daughter, is named Tessa Almira Miel (TAM for short). What's with these parents? Why give your child three names? I understand the uniqueness reasoning but have they ever thought of the burden it can cause their children for their future school years? Imagine they'll have to write the long name almost everyday for a minimum of 14 years!

well, I'm a lazy pig to the bone...that's me. But my mom is right, weird names can be a cause of mockery among children. I myself, admit that funny names never failed to catch my attention.

Last night it was the moon, now unusual number of stars are visible. What a beautiful sky. I wish I could show it here in my blog. Earlier, my sister-in-law gave birth to my niece. It was also Mike's birthday. Today my mom turns 58, she's still as beautiful as ever. I'd probably buy her a cake later... everything, everyone, moves forward... and so should I.

Have you seen the moon tonight? It's not a full one, but it's unusually BIG and bright.What can I say, it's beautiful! It made my weekend and I thank God for that.

It was a heavy day for me since I made a TOUGH! decision not to go to Glorieta Midnight Toy Fair and Rihanna concert. Realization hit me that I have no right to spend just because. I've been buying this and that, fercrissake I have no place to store them! That I've been promising myself for NNNTH TIME not to buy any toys or comic books until... -sigh- it's hard...it's very hard I swear.

And it's definitely not right wanting to see a concert just because I'm currently addicted to "Disturbia" LOL! I am not a fan of Rihanna or Chris Brown, I'd like to make that clear. Thank God I realized this...

Oh yeah, another reason why I wanted to go to the concert was to try the binoculars I borrowed from Frances. I'm having so much fun using it that I compromised to go to Tanay Dike Lighthouse every morning and convinced myself that I am a... watchamacalit? A look-out? of a pirate ship... whatever, my sister told me that it's just a gossip tool. Now that reminds me, I never thought that my neighbors are... bzzzz...LOL! No, I would never do such a thing. I'll watch out for the next worth seeing concert =)

The problem with an insomniac like me is when a time when I'm so pissed and I really feel like cursing the world, there's no one out there to turn to. Oh why is that when people need me, I'm always there yet when I'm the one in need, nobody seems to care... that is so unfair... I wish I had a car so I can drive out. I'll drive as fast as I can and I won't stop until it ran out of gas. Then I'd be stranded in a middle of a highway where no one can see or hear me. And then... I'd shout as loud as I could... OH WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO MEEEEEEE????!!!!!

yeah I wish...

The Tradition Begins

I just got my first sticker for the 2009 Starbucks Planner with a Short Classic Hot Choco, this is the cheapest that I can buy at Starbucks. This year, the planner is less glamorous but the required stickers were also reduced. Last year, the elegant leathered planner can be obtained for 24 stickers, now it's only 16! I wonder if it has something to do with the global economic crisis. I was able to get the planner last year for a record breaking 6 days! I forced my friends to buy coffee, that's why hehehe. Now, I'm all alone in this battle so it'll definitely take time. My friend Aristurtle, who's also celebtrating his ??th birthday keeps on updating me thru SMS the progress of his sticker collection. At 4:00, he told me he already had 7 stickers. By 5:00, he informed it's 6 stickers to go. At 6:00 it went down to 2. And by 7:00 he already got the planner! Hmp! so he broke my record! So what, the planner is not that MUST to get anyway... but I was really dying of envy huhuhu

As a Filipino Catholic, I've always found myself celebrating Nov. 1 in Tanay Municipal Cemetery together with my kins (maternal side) to commemorate our Grandparents, Uncle Tony, Great grandmother and other relatives who passed away. Where was great grandfather buried by the way?

Over the years, I, again, noticed how times have changed with the way we celebrate this supposedly All Saints Day. When I was younger, it was like an extension of our playtime. We held this unofficial competition of making balls out ot of melted candles. The biggest ball gets the spotlight. There was no prize but I guess it determined our competency hehe. It was also a time when we get to listen to scary stories and I remember how we looked forward to Magandang Gabi Bayan's All Saints Day special usually aired on the first Saturday of November. We had no Halloween parties, trick or treats or whatsoever. And yeah, it was always raining on November 1.

The last November 1s had become a forum of what's new or what's hot. Who got married or who got pregnant. Expressions of work grievances... plans to get the latest cell phones... etc.. etc... And yesterday, I didn't get to see most of my cousins and aunts. Plus I've noticed that the number people were significantly lesser. They must be very busy or something. Not that it's a big deal, I'm not getting emotional over something like this. But why is it that the older we grow the more it seems that all days of the year have become nothing more than regular days.