Updates, updates...

Kyaaahhh! Summer's almost over (in my part of the world), and I haven't updated in a long time! I am so sorry, I'm just the laziest person to go online, but hey y'all, if you're interested, the easiest way to catch me online is through Twitter. It's not like I actively tweet, but if you tweet me, I'd tweet back right away (yuck! did I just use the same word 3 times in one sentence) as compared to poking or PM-ing me in Facebook. I also open my email regularly, so...

There's really nothing much to talk about, really. It's always been work and home, which is not very interesting for you I'm sure :D, I do acknowledge the fact that I still owe a post from my Bicol blog series, the part 3, the final installment, I promise I'd post it before my next major trip this June *pressure* hehehe.

May was not a busy month, but it was eventful! I'm just gonna throw some random stuff I did okay.

I attended Komikon with close friends this Saturday, the last time I attended Komikon was 2007. The event was held in Unilab's Bayanihan center, I loved the venue! Very con-friendly, significantly less stressful than those being held in Megatrade hall. Come to think of it, the past conventions I've committed to attend were held outside the malls. I think that's a good progress. I hope that Komikon would also be a regular event in the checklist of hobbyists. It just feels great that Filipino comic artists are gaining a significant following. God we have overflowing talents that are begging to be appreciated. I think we're still far from the used to be mainstream status of Komiks, but in time, with enough exposure, we will get it back. The best part, as always, was seeing my friends again. Yay!

I've been planning to start this Flat Belly program CD that I got free from Nestle's cereal. Believe me, it's more for safety reason than aesthetic (it's a long explanation and I don't have the time to touch that right now) but my point is, I haven't even started it yet. I think I just continue to gain weight, which is really bad. It's  a reflection on my discipline, and it's one of the things I promised to improve on this year -sigh-

Sad news, Jim Paratore died. He's an executive of The Ellen Degeneres show. He's one of the producers that I really liked (next to Andy Lassner) because I remember when the show won its first Emmy for Best Talkshow, Ellen mentioned in her speech that he convinced station managers that people still want to see her on TV, at a time no one believed her... Thank you Jim, RIP...

Yesterday I went to the supermarket to buy some food supplies (flat belly program -- ack!). It was Savemore by the way. I know I hate SM (environmental and labor ethics reasons), but because it's the only place where I can get Kiwi here (I love Kiwi!), I can't pledge to cross it off my shopping destinations YET.  The store had been out of supply (of Kiwi) for sometime, and when finally it's available, my God the price had went up from P244/Kg to P360/Kg (US$5.5/kg to $8.2/kg). That's crazy! I went ahead and get them anyway, I love it that much :(

I've also been frequenting to Starbucks lately. It's a matter of consequence, I can't talk about it here because it's not my situation, but it reminds me a lot of my own loneliness. I just hope the complicated situation ends up in a positive and peace of mind giving manner. I just want everyone to be happy, demmit!

I missed the Hiten Mitsurugi RK night event. Just when you thought I'm a huge RK fan eh? Of course I am, but the event looks like a reunion of some anime indie bands I've seen during my fangirl hey days hehehe. I was a little curious how old fans are doing, but my curiousity wasn't enough reason to shake off my laziness hehehe. Also, there's an upcoming live action film this summer (northern parts of the world). For some reason, I'm not so excited. I've seen the trailer and a lot of my FB contacts tagged me to the video link, and, I don't know, I feel like I've seen everything I needed to see in Kenshin's life. Perhaps a spin-off series or film or whatever that's official, would get me more curious. I mean, don't get me wrong okay, I love RK from the pit of my hypothalamus. It's great that it's getting a new platform for exposure. I would love for the new generation of anime fans to get to really know it. I'm happy for Watsuki-sensei. I'm just not convinced that the film would offer anything new to me. Next month is Kenshin month by the way, so expect me to upload a Ruroken music box video very soon!

On more trivial stuff, I started going organic. Slowly. I started switching my shampoo, conditioner, lotion and soap to organic products. My sister in law is an authorized dealer of Human Heart Nature products. The company is founded by the daughters of Tony Meloto, the founder of Gawad Kalinga Foundation. What I like about the company is their mission to go Pro-environment, Pro-poor and Pro-Philippines. They use natural and harmless ingredients, they are made in the Philippines and the price is cheaper than most organic products available in the market. I easily noticed the difference of organic care products from what I used to use. The shampoo for example has a natural citrus smell (though it doesn't last very long) and the suds are waaayyyy thinner from Head and Shoulders. It's time to stop patronizing big corporations and start supporting small players. 

Part of this move is my intention to help my body and the environment. Aside from switching brands for peronal care products, I have this long time plan to eat more veggies (which I haven't really done yet, but I'm on progress okay). I recently tried Greek cuisine at Cyma, OMG the Roka Salata (salad, mixture of letuce walnut, dried plum and parmesan cheese, poured with Greek vinaigrette) is LOVE! The servings at Cyma is good for 2-3 people. It's so good, I wouldn't mind having it as a main course. I also ordered a vegan cook book online, no I'm not going vegan nor vegetarian. But I really want to work on eating more veggies than meat, I'll just start by assigning a meat-less day/s in a week. Who knows? I hope it works.

Okay, I can't think of anything else anymore, I feel sleepy, that would be all for now.

Sick! Ugh!!!

I hate to break bad news, but I’m sick! Literally. I’ve been having fever since Tuesday morning, I’ve had my medical checkup the next day, they found higher than normal count of WBC in my CBC test, so I was diagnosed with bacterial infection. Really? If you know me, you’d know that I make extra effort to avoid infection and anything viral. I hate being sick and not being able to do anything and I hate subjecting my body to antibiotics and other medications. I mean, I spray lysol around the house from time to time, I bathe my hands with sterilium everytime I get home from work, sometimes I would bring it at work when I’m extra paranoid about a bacterial outbreak, I even bought my own snorkel so I won’t have to rent one during my travels to the beach (I know those snorkels for rent are sterilized after use, but what if the keeper forgot or got lazy to sterilize it?). And yet this?!? And this is not the first time my body was subjected to viral infections, but so far this is the worst! It’s horrible! I am getting traumatized and I am an inch close to wearing face mask and gloves everytime I had to go out of the house. I like Howie Mandel but I don’t wanna be like him. I want a normal life, and this illness I’m having is NOT normal. At least my fever have subsided and now I have sufficient energy to update people on what’s going on. I expect the fever to go up later and by that time, I will be bed ridden once again. I sincerely hope I'm wrong!

I like taking a break from work once in a while but it sucks to be unproductive for so long. I am losing a lot of money because of this. When my temperature goes up to 39̊C I can’t do anything, not even watch TV, read a book or wind up my music boxes. I'm too weak to enjoy anything, I’m helpless. If anything good has come out from this unfortunate incident, well, I’m becoming more and more religious (dear Lord, please make me well very soon) and I also promised myself to be nicer to people. I plan to eat healthier foods (veggies) and probably stop [bleeping the deep dark secret] before going to sleep (I had to bleep that because it's embarrassing for my age and I don't want to be misjudged of lacking attention, I've had more attention than I need, in fact I'm being pampered like a baby right now). Oh boy, I can't wait to get well and be a better person.

Oh God, I just wanna get better! Please L

A Perfect Day to Turn 29

Yep I just turned 29, last Tuesday. Let me just say this... I love my life. For 29 years, I have nothing but gratitude for all the blessings God gave me. They don't always come as they should, but nevertheless, everything that comes, good or bad is a blessing. That's not to say that I feel complete by the way. I mean, there are still so many pieces missing, but I know that in God's time, I'll find them. I've always believe, that there's a reason and time for everything, I just have to keep on believing.

So yeah, I celebrated my birthday last week. Celebrations are no biggie to me, every year, it's always a subtle and a low key one (except for my 10th birthday) and this year is no exemption. It's not like it's a matter of circumstance. But when your birthday comes after a series of major celebrations, there's not much choice eh? I mean we have Christmas, New Year, Parent's anniversary and then the town fiesta. Really, by early February, we're too tired and broke to prepare for another fete. I'm not a big fan of parties anyway. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy attending parties as long as I'm not the celebrant or the host.

Anyway, here's a breakdown of what my 29th birthday looked like:

I woke up as early as 2 AM, I don't know why, I would have wanted to sleep longer. Maybe it's the price of sleeping at 9 PM or I'm just subconsciously excited. I tried to go back to sleep but failed, so I gave up and checked my phone to read and reply to early greetings. I then went online to check messages and updates. I am grateful, by the way, for all the greetings I received. Long or short, mushy or straight, it just feels great to be remembered.

At 6AM I went to the church to hear mass and thank God. At the end of the mass, the priest called on the birthday celebrants to come forward to receive blessing and a sprinkle of "Holy" water. The church didn't do that when I was a kid, I think it's great, but I didn't come forward. I didn't think it was necessary and I felt blessed anyway, but the main reason I didn't come forward was my shyness. Seriously, 29 years and still haven't gotten over my stage fright. I mean the church goers are mostly old people and I doubt if anybody knows me, but the timid me won't go away. Seriously, I need to get rid of that...

Back at home, I had my breakfast and went online again to download movies. I'm currently checking the movies nominated at the 84th Oscars. That way, I can have better judgement in betting and that should increase my chances of winning. LOL! No really, I just want to check great movies. I hardly get the chance to see a movie, a friend once told me that I'm missing a lot of great movies of my generation, and I agree, there's a lot of catching up to do.

By lunch time, I got a not so unexpected visitor. Dindee called me earlier and asked for a treat. I told her if she comes to my house, I'll give her a treat. She's not the woman you can bluff a dare, she'll definitely do it. Not that I'm bluffing, I'm glad she came. I took her to one of the popular restaurants in Tanay, (Halamanan) to have lunch. I urged her to visit Regina Rici, as it is the newest place of interest in Tanay. We did try to check it, but as luck may have it, the place is closed on Tuesdays. But Dindee is such a road trip junkie, she immediately thought of something to check. She said that she had always wanted to go to Hinulugang Taktak falls in Antipolo, and because I had nothing else to do, I immediately said yes.

Despite the fact that Antipolo is just 30-45 minutes away from Tanay, I've never been to Hinulugang Taktak. My knowledge of this place is just as long as the chorus of the song "Tayo Na Sa Anitpolo" goes. Dindee said that she's been there when she was a kid, but can't remember a thing about it. Even before seeing, I've read a some bad reviews about it, and you can't blame them. The moment I entered, I smelled something unpleasant. But when I finally saw it, I thought it wasn't as bad as I expected.

However, as I got near the falls, I understood where the smell was coming from and the sight made me squint.

A thick layer of soap suds! I saw worse pictures on the web where there's an overwhelming presence of garbage in the plunge pool. I guess I'm lucky not to see them on my visit, but those suds do not belong there either. It's not surprising, after all, the water is from the downriver of Antipolo city. Oh the price of progress -sigh- Anyway, if you've ever been there, and have seen it during its hey days, count yourself lucky. The place is a sad reminder of the people's irresponsible treatment of the environment. There is hope, if you are from this city, do your part to help. Be responsible earthlings!

So we checked the place for a bit and headed home afterwards. By the time we got back, it was just about time for the sunset. Dindee had to leave. I saw her off then I rushed to the dike with my bike to see the sunset.

Living close to Laguna bay has perks, like being able to see the gorgeous sunset. You don't need a high end camera to capture a picturesque scene. Unfortunately for me, working in the city prevents me from doing it on a "want to" basis.

I ended my celebration with a dinner with my family in our favorite restaurant near the lake shore. It was also a favorite venue for reunions among balikbayans (overseas Filipinos). We had sinigang soup, fried Dalag, grilled Liempo and Pancit. My mom made me my favorite fiesta delicacy, Buko salad, which was great. No cake nor ice cream. Like I said, a low key, but a great one. It could have been better if only Richard, Oliver, Rosavel and Cherie were there. But of course, they have valid reason not to be there and it's acceptable.

I'd say it was a perfect day to turn 29. There was a time in my life when I decided to celebrate my birthday alone so I can get used to it when I grow old. That was really silly when I think about it now. Thank God I changed!

Next year, my 30th year, is something to look forward. Even though I said that I prefer low key celebrations, the big "O" should be an exemption.

The Art of Letting Go

More than 12 years ago, when I was a still fledgling otaku, I started collecting anime related items. I can still remember, I started out with "text cards" of Yuyu Hakusho and Gundam Wing. Had I known ahead of time that typhoon Ondoy will submerge our town back in 2009, I could have prepared and I may have been able to show you what these "text cards" are. More commonly called as "text" or "teks", it is like the Filipino version of trading cards, only smaller and a lot cheaper (so cheap, for PHP1 you'll get 4 pcs). But so many things had happened for 12 years, so many stuff have been accumulated. My collection grew into something bigger, it has become my trademark. Not that I'm a huge collector, but collecting (anime) is my passion, in my circle, it's what I'm known for.

When we decided to renovate the first floor of the house after the Ondoy damage, I got the chance to own a room, and by room, I mean showroom. I mean, I shared bedroom with my siblings my whole life, and when I finally had my own one, I got to showcase my stuff. I had them neatly organized in shelves and have them situated parallel to my bed. I wanted them to be the first thing I see when I wake up.

It didn't disappoint, everyone who see it in person is amazed. It feels great I tell you, when something you put your heart into is appreciated by others. The thing is, it's an expensive hobby and I'm not rich. In so many ways, this hobby doesn't suit me because I had to sacrifice some of my needs just to purchase a single item. There are many useful commodities that my hard earned money could go to. This idea had never left me. In every purchase comes a tinge of guilt, I felt like that I'm being selfish. My eldest brother is my no.1 critic for this obsession. But I always justify that this simple pleasure of buying collectibles eases the loneliness I feel for being alone. ~sigh

Last year, unfortunate events in my life led me to believe that I'm being punished for forgetting God and being selfish. I am reminded many times that He does not punish but He tests, and I believe that. Still, I made it clear to myself that I would change ways so I that won't forget about Him. I prayed harder than I ever did and made a pledge that I will quit. I made a promise that I will stop buying toys. I could not give up books and comic books, I wanted to continue reading and learning but I had to stop hoarding toys...And I stop.

For 10 months now, I have not made any toy or even anime related purchase. Other than the happy meal toys that my friends gave me and the dispenser I won at M&M's online promo, I have not made any accumulation. Instead, I've come to a point that I figured I need to downsize, I need to let go of some stuff. Aside from the ones that I have in my room, I have more stuff tucked all over the house. I don't wanna end up like those hoarders I see on TV. I want to get rid (in a good way) of some items that I have less attachment. Stuff that I bought on impulse. My friends and I collaborated to put up an online shop (Fandorasbox) and I put up my own on ebay. I have already sold some toys and manga (I have my own share of "horror" stories with buyers but I'm not gonna talk about that now) and while I have items up for sale, I'm still figuring out the stuff that can stay and which ones should go. It's a tough process I tell you, I have deep emotional investment on so many things, but I figured that it's not healthy to cling on to material things. After all, we'll all end up departing from this temporary world we live in.

I'm working on this. Honestly I still check stuff on ebay, and everytime I see something interesting, it breaks my heart, because I know I can't get it. Not because I can't afford it, but because I made a promise. It's a form of discipline and to be honest, I don't know what I'm gonna get out of it. Suppressing my urges like that and quitting on what I believed to be my passion. I don't know where it's gonna take me. It's a tough battle I'm fighting, and it's too early to say I'm winning, but I know I will.

The Body Remembers - Yuuko Ichihara

I have a confession to tell. But you have to watch the video first before you read on...

When I was in highschool, I was a big fan of Donna Cruz. I followed her music, movies and her TV series (Villa Quintana) up until she got married. Her career went on hiatus and so I moved on. That's the confession hehehe. That was a long time ago. Last year, I received a Snow Globe music box (in accordance to my wishlist) when we had our gifts exchanged during our department's Christmas party. I specifically asked a Christmas snowglobe music box. I love Christmas songs, I was expecting that this item I received plays one, but to my disappointment, no. The music was originally popularized by a Japanese pop/rock band Southern All Stars, a song called "Manatsu no Kajitsu". In 1997, Donna popularized a Filipino rendition of the song called "Isang Tanong, Isang Sagot". Amazingly, I recognized the song very quickly.

I have not listened to Donna's songs for a very long time, but I knew when I first wind up the keys, the music sounded familiar. It's true when they say (or when CLAMP said) that the mind may forget but the body remembers.

Updates, updates!!!

It's time for another round of updates.


Some people decide to cut their hair for a new look, but for me, I do it for convenience. When my bangs start to irritate my eyes, it's a sign, I need a haircut! Ugh!

Yesterday I went to Manila Doctors Hospital to meet Dindee and her husband Benny. She was at the OR doing thyroidectomy, while waiting, I decided to look around at the hospital. I barely recognized anyone, it feels weird. I ran into Dr. Cuayo-Juico, she told me I haven't changed but I gained weight. I need to work out! Ugh!

On the other hand, when I met Benny, he told me I look like a Japanese. Yay!

The other night, my mom and dad went to a Jose Mari Chan concert at Thunderbird resort. I got envious because I'm a JMC fan, I wanted to go too, but I can't because I have work. They took home a signed copy of Souvenirs. Really, I am so envious!

I dropped by at Robinson's Place in Ermita yesterday to buy books. I am loving Jodi Picoult, she's very easy to read, at the same time very moving.

I also bought a copy of Songs for Japan with a hope that Japan recovers as soon as possible from one of its worst crisis. John Lennon's Imagine and Queen's Te O Tori Atte (Let Us Cling Together) makes the album worth buying. The other 35 tracks are not bad either. I highly recommend getting it, if you're in for a good cause and good music.

It's been really quiet these days...

My Lakbayan (travelling) grade

My Lakbayan grade is D!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!

Created by Eugene Villar.

soup anyone?

It has been a weekly habit. But I gotta say, I am so hooked. I am in love with the new item on Pizza Hut Bistro's menu. The Pumpkin Bacon soup. I've always loved soup and order one every time I go on a fine dining in. You don't normally see them on fast food that's why. But I love soup. Though I usually crave for it when I'm sick, I'd often go to Soup Kitchen, but now the branch in Megamall is gone, I had to settle with French Baker's soup of the day in a bread bowl. Then last February, Pizza Hut Bistro launched their latest product, and it was just love!

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?

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

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!

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.

Rain rain rain...

Yay it's raining. A lot of people hate it because of so many adversities it brings. But what would a light rain do? A surge of mixed emotions fills me specially when I'm alone when it rains dramatically. It makes me want to do a lot of things..

have a hot cup of coffee
make pancakes
listen to slow music
write my journal
write poem
lie in bed all day
day dream dream dream
reminisce... ahh why do good things in the past have to be associated with rain...

but most of all... I want to...

busy days gone by...

You'll know when a person is busy when he hardly updates his blog hehehe. I've been up to a lot of things and I have a lot of to report. I've been expecting a BREAK sometime soon so chill readers =)

Simple Things I hope to Acquire Before the Year Ends (a.k.a Wishlist 2008 XD)

Manga:
- Miyuki-chan in Wonderland
- Watashi no Suki na Hito
- Platinum and Pastel
- Sandman vol. 6-10
- Death: Time of Your Life
- Rurouni Kenshin vol. 20, 22, 25, 26 (longest running wishlist LOL)

Toys:
- Perfect Grade Wing Gundam Zero Custom
- Perfect Grade Wing Gundam Zero Custom, Pearl Mirror Coating Ver.
- Death mini bust
- 5" Shaider Die Cast
- CLAMP Chess Board and Box
- Special CLAMP Chess Kings (Kero and Spinel)
- Master Grade Gundam Seed Destiny Extreme Blast Mode
- Chrono Cross Action figures

Books:
- Tokyo Suckerpunch by Isaac Adamson
- Kinki Lullaby by Isaac Adamson
- The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami
- Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami
- What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami
- Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto
- Thousand Cranes by Yasunori Kawabata
- Bundori by Laura Joh-Rowland
- The Samurai's Wife by Laura Joh-Rowland

Videos:
- Leiji Matsumoto animes (Space Captain Harlock, Yamato, Ginga Tetsudo 999, etc.)
- XXX Holic TV series 2nd season
- Kodomo No Omocha TV series
- Classic sentai series (Maskman, Shaider, Fiveman, Turbo Ranger, Mask Rider Black)
- The Wonder Years season 2-6
- Gake No Ue No Ponyo
- Blade of the Immortal TV Series

Others:
- a new pair of Adidas sneakers (blue)
- the Happy Days' Shaider shirt
- shades, shades, shades
- a geniuneLouis Vuitton wallet (I'm serious ok hehehe)
- 2009 Starbucks Plannes
- PSP
- SE K770i
- tons of new socks!
- a Samsonite laptop backpack

-sigh- too many stuff, so little money... Life is challenging indeed!

Have a great weekend (",x)

Reunion X Eiga Sai X Takoyaki X DVD Window Shopping X Mcdo Happy Meal = Looonnng Saturday

I was surprised when I received a call from Sherry last week informing she already got back from Singapore. Apparently she quit her job due to a conflict with her superior. I was surprised because all along I thought she was having a great time with her job, plus she never informed me beforehand that she’s coming home (duh like I’d prepare something hahaha). Anyway, the first thing I did when I got in touch with her was invite her to Eiga Sai and she agreed in an instant which I find unusual, usually she’d say "I’d think about it" which more often than not means "NO". Yay I smell reunion! I smell chocolates and omiyage!

I anticipated July 13 – Saturday with excitement that I went off very early without realizing traffic is less likely during weekend mornings. I arrived at Megamall as early as 10:30 AM, our call time was 12:00 NN. Damn! I hate being early in mall rendezvous. When I start to get bored, I start to look around and I start to see things I like and I start to spend. Just to share, my favorite quotes for the last 3 months: NEVER BE A LOSER and STOP SPENDING. I immediately informed Sherry to hurry. While waiting for her, I did my best to stay away from toys and comics.

I went to St. Francis Square. I rarely go there, but this place reminds me of Greenhills’ Shoppesville cheap clothes, Cellphones, bootleg toys, Pirated DVDs. These stuffs don’t give me potential to spend. Hold it right there! Did I just say Pirated DVDs??? Oh my, it’s been a long time since I went for DVD shopping and I really missed Quiapo. I looked around to check and reminded myself, "JUST 2-3 TITLES OKAY". The good thing with Anime DVDs nowadays is that you’ll get the whole series in one disc, depending how long the series is. But nothing caught my interest. There are tons of anime titles to chose from, but I guess I’ve really grown up when choosing a title to buy. Before, anime in pirated DVD was RARE so I ended up buying every anime title I saw. And that explains why I bought titles with no subtitles and loose episodes (Houshin Engi Vol. 3, Tokimeki Memorial Vol. 2, etc). So I support pirated DVDs? So what? It’s cheap, that’s why! One thing that caught my attention is that the new DVDs are in blue and red packaging with labels "Blue Ray" and "HD DVD" and I stupidly thought to myself – WTF! So now there are pirated Blue Rays and HD DVDs??? When I asked one of the vendors he told me that they are just "blue ray" copy but the discs are still in regular DVD format. Whew! But it would be good if Blue Ray would be pirated too don’t you think hehehe.

Sherry arrived with no chocolates or omiyage, but I don’t really mind. The first thing I asked was to eat Takoyaki at the food court. There’s this Takoyaki stand in Megamall that I really love – Chito’s Takuyaki. Their takoyaki is the only food that made me eat veggies because they don’t taste like one when they’re inside the takoyaki balls, and Sherry loved it too. She was surprised to see me eat the whole takoyaki without separating the vegetables, really, it’s that damn good. Plus I get to drink my favorite buko shake. It was the best meal I had that week (mom I really miss you) –tears-

At 1:00 PM we started to move to the venue, the Shang Cineplex. We were lucky that we didn’t experience queuing for the tickets. The ticket lady informed us that the screening would start at 2:00 PM. So that gave us time to talk. She told me what happened at work. She now has friends in Singapore and she told me how much she wanted to go back. She started looking for job again through the internet. Then she showed me pictures of her stay there and the conversation went on something like this:

Kid: (looking at the pics on the phone) is this a penguin?
Sherry: Yep!
Kid: How did that happen? They don’t snow in Singapore
Sherry: It’s synthetic of course. Oh yeah, they (Ocean World) housed Polar Bears too. Look!
Kid: No way!!! (looks at the video of a swimming polar bear)… but they’re not cute when they swim, I like them when they’re dry so they’ll have this fluffy look.
Sherry: Oh really…
Kid: Yeah! (raise an eyebrow) BTW, did you see a Panda too???
Sherry: Uhm, no. Unfortunately… I wanted to see one too..
Kid: Hah! As long as you haven’t seen one, I won’t feel envious bwahahahaha! Look I’ve seen one (brags my phone)

Sherry: LOL! Panda your ass! This is not a real one
Kid: Of course it is! LOL!

-sigh- I want to see a real Panda…

The other things we did while waiting for the show to start – drop at Kid’s Station, answer some Kokology, CAMWHORE (this has been a regular activity whoever I'm with hehehe)… Then I saw Neitaro, she never changed. She always have this upbeat energy during events that would make you want to shout "hey" "woi"… Finally, when the show was about to start, I saw Chris but he doesn’t have the ticket yet. He went to get some and we followed him to check - and surprise - Aish and Duston were also there. Wow! Unfortunately, they were not able to get the tickets for the first film. So Sherry and I went ahead to watch the first film – Linda, Linda, Linda!

This film about youth is set in modern-day high school just outside of Tokyo. In the days just before the school’s culture festival, a girl’s music group is facing a dilemma. They planned on playing an original piece of music but, three days before the festival, the guitarist appears to have broken her finger (actually she doesn’t want to break her nails) and an argument breaks out between the vocalist and Kyoko. They need to find a new guitarist and a new vocalist. While the remaining three girls are pondering who to ask to be the new vocalist, they hear the song, “Linda Linda Linda” by the famous Japanese rock band Blue Hearts and decide they want to sing it instead of an original song. A Korean exchange student, Song, is sitting in the next room and they take the chance to ask her to be their vocalist. Her Japanese is not perfect, and she’s never sung in front of an audience, but she just happens to be listening to the Blue Hearts song. They practice and practice but they don’t seem to be improving. They spend a lot of time at Kei’s ex-boyfriend’s studio and at the school practicing late into the night. They are really tired, but a deep friendship develops among the four girls. The night before the festival, they practice late into the night and exhaust themselves. They suddenly wake up the next morning and realize that they are late for the festival. They arrive at the school just as the festival is finishing and perform as the last act. The audience loves them and the four girls play their hearts out.

-taken from Japan Foundation Manila Office (JFMO) Eiga Sai 2008 flyer

At the end of the film, we were both singing Rinda, rinda, rinda! I loved the film. Funny and endearing, this film made me remember my college days again. My favorite scene was when a certain Maki confessed to Son, the way he tried to speak in Korean and Son barely understand what he was saying, then she’d reply in Nihongo. A Japanese speaking Korean and a Korean speaking Japanese. A major BWAHAHAHA! I always find it funny to hear Japanese try to speak other languages particularly Filipino. Here’s a classic line I’ll never forget – tutugutogu kami – the Nitta Oyako saying "tutugtog kami" during their self introduction at the Tsugari Shamisen Play last October 2004, and they said that many times! This film made me want to check Blue Heart’s music, I liked the soundtrack!

When we got out of the movie house, there’s already a line for the next film and the tickets available are for the 3rd film already. I was planning on watching all the four films but it was impossible because by the time you finish the film, tickets for the next film were already "sold out" (admission is free, but for my lack of term hehehe). We queued for the tickets of the 3rd film that lasted an hour because they won’t release them for some reason.

After we got the tickets we decided to eat. I never told Sherry that I was feeling sick due to lack of sleep but at that time, I wanted to have some soup so badly (this is an indication that I’m sick hehehe). I was tight with my budget so I asked her if we could eat at Jollibee because I want their macaroni soup and she agreed. Now that reminds me, 8 years ago we’d go anywhere just to avoid eating at Jollibee hahaha. When we got there, the first thing that caught my attention was the happy meal toys. They featured Inuyasha! I got excited but sherry told me that Mcdo featured Conan Meitantei. I got more excited that I forgot I’m feeling sick. I inspected the Inuyasha toys and I found the details unsatisfactory so I told Sherry, "let’s eat at Mcdo instead hehehe". We both ordered happy meals and Sherry was kind enough to give me her toy. They are not action figures like the Inuyasha toy but a variety of puzzle games. Not bad, I love Conan more than Inuyasha anyway hehehe. I completely felt refreshed after eating and we were ready for the next film –We Shall Overcome Someday.

This film takes place in 1968 in Kyoto, Japan. The background of the film is the turmoil of the 1960s and the relationship between Japanese and Koreans in Japan. The story begins when members of the karate group of a Kyoto high school insult two girls from a Korean high school. A war breaks out when the Korean girls get the boys from their school, led by a boy named Lee Ang-son, to seek revenge. The Japanese boys are reprimanded by their teacher, and two boys, Kosuke and Norio, are told to go to the Korean high school and make a peace offering: to have the two schools play a friendly match of soccer. While they are at the school, Kosuke hears the sound of a beautiful song of Ang-son’s little sister, Kyung-ja, a non-violent, peaceful, 2nd year high-school student who is part of a band. He finds himself drawn to the young girl and the sound of the Korean folk song, “Imjing River.” He steps over the ethnic divide and becomes friendly with Ang-son and his rough-neck gang. Ang-son has plans to go back to Korea and has unknowingly gotten his girlfriend pregnant. Kosuke then find’s himself part of the group until an accident kills one of the Korean boys and Kosuke bears the brunt of the family’s anger. Kosuke begins to understand the anger felt by the Korean community toward the Japanese community through the music and words of the folk song. Ang-son finds out he is going to be a father and realizes he has to grow up.

-taken from JFMO Eiga Sai 2008 flyer

There were also funny and heart warming moments in this film but my general feelings were really heavy. After I watched this film I noticed something. The two films featured Japan-Korea friendship theme. So are these films part of Japan’s attempt to atone for its past mistakes with its neighboring Asian countries. "We Shall Overcome Someday" reminded me that Japan really started it all – all those hatred. I can’t blame those Korean kids for assaulting the Japanese’ high school bus since some Japanese highschool boys started picking on some Korean high school girls. If only the sense of revenge doesn’t exist… But as the title suggests, it also showed how the new generation can make up for the sins of the past. I find Kosuke and Kung-jya’s relationship as a perfect example of hope for a grudgeless truce among warring nations. World peace is still a far fetched dream, but I truly believe that we shall overcome someday. After all, the film concluded with a happy ending.

When we got out (again), I finally saw Chris, Aish and Duston queuing for the next film. We approached them and stayed for a little while. Chris said that film they saw is not really good, it was long and boring (no wonder the 3rd film started late). I informed them about the Anime Matsuri on July 26, JFMO will be showing classic anime Films like Doraemon, Chibi Maruko-chan and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, but just as I thought, they are well aware of the event. According to Aish, the Doraemon film was heartbreaking but I can’t imagine myself crying at a Doraemon movie hehe. But that’s something to look forward at the end of the month. When the line started to move, we bid goodbye. Sherry and I eventually parted our ways.

It was a long Saturday and it was really tiring but it was fun. As soon as I got home, I slumped in my bed with a happy sigh.

Happy Fodsie’s Day!

Greetings to all dads out there, good or bad, thin or fat. THIS IS YOUR DAY. Kanpai!

Today, I’ll talk about the BEST dad the earth has ever known. My dad of course. I’m pretty sure you’d think of the same thing about your dad but on THIS blog, Fodsie is the BEST FATHER ever!

Teehee I call him Fodsie, it’s my pet name for him hehehe. It started when I was a LOT younger when I realized “daddy” is plain and boring so I decided to call him “Fodi” (pronounced as Fowdee). It’s MY slang term for “father”. Then it evolved to “Fodi Dodi” (Fido Dido influence hehehe), later to “Fodsie Dodsie”, to “Fofodsie”… and I don’t know what’ll be next.

I call my mom Momonji while I call ALL my siblings PANGET hehehe.

Oh yeah, this space is all about Fodsie…

A lot of people think I look so much like my dad. When I was young, I didn’t like the idea. I’ve always thought my mom has better physical features, which will forever be the truth, and it felt unfair that I’m the only one among my siblings who has the pure “Madarang” features. I’ve always felt that the Alvarez genes should be dominant in my blood. But I started to accept the idea (and love it) when I started to understand how GREAT my dad is.

I experienced a time in my life when my dad is not around. He worked in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia before and we (family) all felt the loneliness and incompleteness. The parting at the airport always felt so heavy even for a young mind like me. SOMETIMES I felt selfishly thankful for the Gulf War or else my dad would still be working in Saudi. When he came back for good, I started to know more about my dad and started to feel proud.

He took the role of preparing our breakfast before going to work. On weekdays, he helps my mom with the laundry and cooking. When we (siblings) were still studying, he helped us in our studies on areas that we had difficulties. I remember, back in our high school days, we lined up for a tutorial/homework session every night. While my mother managed the household and took the role of a disciplinarian, he was our spoiler. He may not be able to provide luxury but he did everything to provide our needs. We managed and continue to survive. He did well. I still depend on him (and on my mom), it can’t be helped but I’m doing my best to return everything.

There are so many things I want that I don’t and may never have, but I’ll always be thankful for a GREAT father like Fodsie. HAPPY DAD’s DAY FODSIE!

on simplicity

I was looking at my blog when I noticed my archive column summarized in years. I realized that my blog is turning 4 years old by next month.

Then it hit me...

I've been a blogger for almost 4 years but I haven't made any improvements (in the blog). Although recently I changed the layout to impose a "light" ambiance, I'm still using one of the default designs which are very.... plain and simple. I used to be bothered by this premise before but I've learned to accept it.

C'mon Kid, just admit it, you're not adept at these cyber creativity things.

Yes. I accept.

Accept the shortcomings but never lose the confidence. I know I'm not a talented person. I'm just an average person. But that doesn't make me "ordinary". I have my own gift from God which I have yet to discover. Besides, I have my fans - my parents. They've always believe I excel on a lot of things. And as long as I have these people who believes, I will be proud of ME.

This blog reflects so much of me. Plain and simple (and green???). But look at the number of posts. I never realized I've written this much. Of course it's nothing compared to hardcore bloggers, but still, it's something. I may look plain and simple at first glance but I have so much inside that makes me radiant.

And yeah, I checked my older posts and I was overwhelmed by the number of typos hahaha! Everytime I'd spot an error I felt a whack on my head and made a sour face. But who cares, hey this is MY BLOG. I have the right to commit mistakes hehehe.

Have a meaningful weekend everyone (",x)

Seeing the Lighter Side of Life

Change is inevitable. Humans are versatile to change, but more often than not, we are unprepared. Because most of time, change doesn’t benefit us AT FIRST. At least for me…

I’ve been a victim of change a lot of times. I hated it. It took me some time, effort and emotional investment to get used to something, only to be taken away by something called CHANGE.

Have you ever heard the song “Constant Change” by Jose Mari Chan? I love that song. It always hits me whenever I hear it. Why oh why… couldn’t we keep time from moving on… and oftentimes when I’m about to call it home, we’d have to move along…

But all this longing for the past have to change. Little did I know that change is best enjoyed when you decide it yourself. Yes folks, I finally decide to take the turn this time. A major change for me is the healthiest decision ever made.

I don’t mean a change of style or a change in taste. It’ll be the same old me. Same old kid who LOVES anime, Japan, toys and… But this time I will THINK DIFFERENT.

A change of perspective, that is.

I’ve been staying home for the longest time ever since I went to college and it really is true when somebody says there’s no place like home. I’m learning and starting to realize day by day that there are so many things around me to be happy about. It’s not as lonely as I thought. I do have a life… here at home.

I can’t believe how such a loser I’ve been the past few years. I was always thinking of my failures and nothing but failures. I created half of my loneliness. I gave up on a lot of things. I wasted a lot of time. But this has to STOP!

It’s not like I’m dying or anything. Life is short but there are still so many things to do, to prove.

I’ll make my dreams come true. I’m gonna show everyone that I am strong. That I am a WINNER. I have to believe that I am born to win this battle.

Some people might think that I am doing nothing important right now, but I am. I have plans. For now I just want to keep this to myself. I don’t want to set any expectations. I don’t want any support this time. This will be my battle ALONE.

I don’t want to be a hypocrite and say I’m over the loneliness. It has always been there. It haunts me every now and then like a phantom shadow especially when I’m all alone. But I’ll be strong this time. I’ll get used to this again. I’ll let HIM carry it for me. It’s time to take things as light as possible. To leave behind what I don’t really have, and enjoy what I have. To enjoy life!

As I’m writing this entry, I’m listening to “Dreams” by Cranberries, and it just feels so light. From now on, I’m gonna love my life. I’m will do my best. I’ll NEVER BE A LOSER. NEVER.

I wonder if anybody noticed that I rarely update my blog nowadays. If you do, then what do you think could be the reason?

1. I’m too lazy to write something
2. I’m too busy, can’t find time for this
3. There’s really no update to write
4. It’s best keep my activities to myself
5. All of the above
6. None of the above

And the answer is… well I’ll leave it to your imagination hehehe. But one reason I have is that I rarely get “connected” to the web. Sometimes, ideas keep popping out of my mind and I feel the urge to share them but it’s either I’m not on my PC or online and by the time I am, all those thoughts have already flown away –sigh-.

As for updates (on my life), I think I owe my (very few) readers a lot… So let’s start with the Ozine Fest last April 5. I attended Day 1 and it was… just fine. Don’t blame me if over the years I’ve gotten jaded over local anime conventions held. There’s really nothing new. But of course I can still appreciate some cosplayers, and yes I still approach some to take pics. It runs on every otaku’s system and can’t be taken off by external influences hehehe. The best thing about it though was being able to see my friends which I haven’t seen for a long time. I finally got to meet Aish’ husband Duston. He’s a nice and funny guy and they really look cute together. I wonder if they’re planning to have a baby soon because I’m really rooting for a baby boy hehehe. Going back to the event, the day 1 featured the Group cosplay competition and I really don’t like staying in the event just to watch the group cosplay category. Don’t get me wrong though, I have nothing against group cosplay, how I’d love to join group cosplaying with my friends. It’s just that I find the skits too lame. Honestly, a 5-15 minute skit by a group can get me snoring. Nothing against the cosplayers, the costumes were wonderful but the “stage play” factor is way below my standards. PLUS, that big yakult replica really helped! If I only knew, I would’ve come the second day and I will never stand behind the Yakult booth ever. Still, seeing my friends made coming worth it. And yes, I managed to get a Ruroken doujinshi and a Yuyu Hakusho snap fit model kit hehehe. You can view my Ozine Fest ’08 HERE.

Speaking of toys, I’m currently addicted to gashapons. Well not really, it’s just that a certain series of gashapon caught my attention. And guess what, they are not anime, manga or game related but replica of the human anatomy. I find it really amusing that these anatomical models found their way to gashapon world. But the main reason I liked it is because I was really impressed with the details in relation to its size. Hail to the Japanese toy makers! The major disadvantage of being hooked to gashapon is the blind purchase system. We all know that you can get them at vending machines installed at various toy stores, and there’s no way you wouldn’t end up getting the same design two or more times. But then again, I have already found a sensible solution for that. Hehehe, for this year, friends can expect me to give out gasahpons as birthday presents!