1x1 ID Pictures

The other night, I was able to look at the list of laborers who were involved in the renovation of the house. It was a request to get temporary IDs so they can get inside the village without having to notify us or their employers. There was the standard information sheet and the ID cards to be filled with their signatures.

Both sheets have a space for 1x1 ID pictures. I scanned the information sheets and was troubled to see that most of the ID-sized pictures that they pasted there were cut out from pictures.
It saddened me that those people didn't even have enough money to afford having their pictures taken. I imagine their photo albums, laden with pictures of family events and what not. I imagine them in the photographs, but instead of their happy faces, blank boxes stood where their faces should have been.

I imagined college... at the start of each semester, teachers would ask for our 1x1 ID pictures for their index cards. At that time, I would just go to any photo studio to have my picture taken, wait for about 30 minutes and get them. I just dig in my jeans pocket for some change from my lunch that day to pay for it and be off my way. Sometimes, I just dismiss this expense and continue on with my life. The next semester, I have my picture taken again, without knowing that I still have extra 1x1s from the last semester.

Instead of a solid colored background, I saw a window from their [I'm guessing] house, trees, the blue sky... but what struck me the most was that there was this particular laborer who used his wedding picture!

I could not believe it. It drove me to tears.

The veil of his wife-to-be was beside him. It looked like it was taken during the ceremony and this laborer wasn't looking at the camera. There were hands on his shoulder-- I was guessing it was the cord ceremony thing. I think that something as important and as a wedding picture should not be tampered! Diba? But this poor man did not have enough money to have his picture taken for 1x1s...

My mom told me that the association just throws the information sheets after the renovation is complete. Grabe, naawa talaga ako. I then asked mom to get back the pictures so that the laborers would use them again for another project.
I felt so bad and I felt so affected about the whole thing. I regret the fact that I'm only understanding the *true* value of money now that I am working for it. Of course, my mom would tell us about the importance of saving for the rainy day but the fact that I am working created a deeper impact on me.

Between working and studying, I'd rather study. Because when I need 1x1 ID pictures, I just have to ask my parents for money and not worry how the hell I'm going to get money to pay for even my basic necessities.

Going Back...

Balik trabaho na naman. It's a beautiful Monday morning and I went to the office with a weird experience. While driving along EDSA, there was this guy on a motorcyle that was staring at me/my windshield. My first thought was, "Do I have a flat tire?" I know that my wheels are fine since I checked them before I left. Then, na-realize ko that the guy was openly and unashamedly staring at me. *3@~(!#&^%! Ano ba yun?

Then he moves on to the next car and stares at the girl driver. Ok, weird pervert with weird morning traffic habits!

Last week, Tita Nene came home from Seattle. I was so excited kasi I really haven't seen her in a long, long time. It was too bad that she will be staying with my cousins in Mandaluyong. The original plan was to have her over and stay in our guest room. Pero....syempre hindi pa tapos yung bahay. I had been planning to spend quality time with her.

Actually, it was a crusty Saturday morning that I saw her. I was in my pajamas and rubbing my eyes open. My hair was a mess and I haven't brushed my teeth. I got out and saw her. Sabi niya pumayat ako. wahoo! Suddenly, it felt like I was back in time. The nostalgia was overwhelming. Tita Nene used to be my part-time nanny when I was little. So alam niya lahat ng mga ginawa ko nung bata ako.

That Saturday evening, we had dinner at Jerry's Grill. I ate a lot that night! Mom was on the other side of the table at gusto niya ako batukan dahil sobrang dami ang nakain ko. I was also able to taste kuhol for the first time. The taste was weird. There was also this crunchy-slash-maligat texture...

That weekend, I caught up on all the TV shows I missed during the week. Always, it was either I was too tired to watch them or I was still in the office. Buti na lang they replay them on weekends! Yesterday, I started on Season 2 of One Tree Hill. Woohoo! The plot's nice naman.
Next weekend naman, Dad will go home for 2 days ata to meet up with Tita Nene in Bacolod. It's a reunion!

The Rundown

I'm too tired na to edit this post so I'm typing this quickly, update my blog and go to sleep.

Things are going ok this week at work. I'm trying very hard to keep up because I missed a lot of things already. Anyway, despite the ok salary, I still believe that the company is still getting profits because I assure you... they make you work every damn centavo!!! But it's still fun. I've made new friends and have reaffirmed friendships to people I wasn't really close to.

I'm thankful parking in Ortigas uses a flat rate scheme. If I worked in Makati, I would have commuted nalang. My salary would always end up in parking and gas (Makati has the most heavy traffic flow than any other metropolitan in the country). Yun nga lang, I walk around 800 meters [naks! measured talaga] to get to the office. Besides the cardio-vascular training, I also get weights, thanks to my laptop and accessories. It's nice work out in the mornings. Especially with high-heels!

Despite the freedom of flexitime, I would prefer to go to work early in the morning so I can leave early and go window-shopping [for the meantime, while I still haven't received my paycheck] before going home.

I'm now regretting [partially] why I haven't listened attentively to my Globelines guru and CIO I-am-thinking-not-sleeping mentor.

I'm loving the unlimited supply of coffee, though I would want to brush my teeth after every cup.

Yun lang naman. I don't wanna go into detail. Very damn sleepy!

It's When I'm Weak that I'm Strong

The feeling that I have right now is somewhat the same whenever first day of class would begin on Monday. And it's the Grade School kind! I get to smell the newly covered books [plastic is so addicting], my newly sharpened pencils, my new school bag, my pristine pad papers [in every size imaginable!]... not to mention my new school shoes, socks, even my hair clips.

Grade school for me gave me weird feelings. I would groan whenever mom wakes me up, singing a song about Suzie being woken up too... but at the back of my head, I'm starting to feel that giddy rush of going to school, meeting my classmates and friends, greeting my teachers [I adored them all], turning in perfect assignments and being prepared for surprise quizzes or seatworks.

Yes, I was a bit of a geek and nerd in grade school. It was that time in my childhood that I wanted to grasp everything. Learn a lot about everything and spare no topic! My parents didn't have any problem with me in my studies those days because they saw naman that I enjoyed going to school.

Anyway, back to my original post....

This feeling that I had in grade school is coming my way again. After all, I'm very excited about my work. I just couldn't believe it. I'm working na! I once thought that seeing myself as a laborer would be a thousand years pa. I would never have thought that a thousand years would pass by so quickly. I'm very glad that the company that I'm going to work for is in line with the career that I want to have. I made it very clear naman to my family what industry I'm tackling when I graduate.

I'm thanking my stars that I made enough of an impression to this company that they decide to adopt me. There was a time that I was a slacker in college but I guess most of the time I've been doing my best. Sabi nga ni mom, kung hindi ako nag-taekwondo, mas mataas siguro grades ko. Siguro nga. But I can't live without sports kasi...taekwondo or tennis.

This long and indefinite vacation is almost nearing its end and I can't say I'm sad to leave this routine-less routine. I'm gonna miss my quality time with my mom. Quality time with my laptop. Quality time with my DVDs. The occasional trips to the malls and even arcades! But you know, months and months of nothingness can really make you feel worthless...at least for me. It can be stressing at times, not knowing what to do with your day. So right now, I'm glad I'm going to face deadlines, bloodrush and excitement... and nothing better to top it off with than the love for my job.

Anyway, all I'm saying is that this weekend is the last weekend as a professional bum. I think I made the most of it. It's not like I'll be doing this in a while again [I hope!]. I've been listening to 80's songs lately, reminiscing my childhood, remembering snippets and writing it down in my notebook. I then realize that while some memories are vivid or vague, I get memories I've never had whenever I go to a place I've been to; touched something I've touched before; smelled something I've smelled before; listened to a song I've listened to before... in my dreams or in my childhood. It was nostalgia... it was serendipity.

At the end of this weekend, another chapter of my life closes. My childhood is finally coming to a curtain call. Two decades of memories rush back to my head and I sometimes feel tears creep at the back of my eyes. Memories I cherished, wished I'd forgotten. Memories I wanna do all over again and memories I wanna change if I have the power to go back in time.

Looking back, I think I did ok. The fun, laughter, punishments, heartaches, infatuations, pains... I accept them all because I can never be the person that I am without all of them...

I give myself a pat on my back and say, "Good job, Karen. Good job."

My life, it wasn't so bad after all!

Surprises and Quirks

Ngayong araw, huli akong nagising at nakapunta sa Makati na walang dalang lisensya. Buti nalang may spare ako sa glove compartment. Nagmamadali ako kanina papuntang RSC para ibigay ang mga requirements for employment. Malakas ang hangin at nangangamba akong na baka umulan. Kahit may dala akong payong, sa lakas ng hangin, baka mapahiya lang ako sa daan.

Sinabihan ako ng HR na kailangan kong pumunta sa Orientation ng HR sa July 17. Sabi ko naman sa kanila kaya minadali yung application ko e dahil pupunta ako sa Japan sa July 17. Humirit yung HR na kailangan kong pumunta. Inisip ko na hindi ko na dapat iyon problema. Sa huli, nag-usap kami na sa August 1 nalang ako pumunta.

Dumaan ako sa Enterprise at nagpakuha ng litrato para sa Japanese Visa ko. Pagkatapos ay nagmadali papuntang Ortigas naman. Buti nalang, wala namang nangyaring kababalaghan kaya nagsadya na ako kagad sa HP.

Andun naman yung dapat kong bibigyan ng Passport, Visa Application at SSS form. Pina-receive ko kay Arnold yung passport kasi malaki talagang problema kapag nawala iyon. Pumasok ako sa loob kasama si Gracie at tinapos ko yung mga kailangan pang dokumento. Sa mga sandaling iyon, narinig kong sinabi ni Bev na hindi siya makakasama dahil hindi pa kailangan ang kanyang papel sa proyekto. Napatigil ako kasi pareho kami ni Bev na sa Total Order Management.

Nakita kong dumaan si Cel at tinanong ko siya kung ano ang aking papel sa proyekto. Nabanggit ko rin na hindi kasama si Bev, na ka-division ko. Sabi ni Cel na malamang pareho ang aming papel ni Bev. Nalungkot ako sandali dahil may posibilidad na hindi ako makakasama. Sa ideya pa lang na bago pa lang ako sa trabaho ay maging isang katwiran na hindi ako payagan pumunta.

Sabi naman ni Gracie, habang kami ay kumain ng tanghalian na marami pang pagkakataon na makapunta pa akong Japan [shet! para akong Japayuki nito!] dahil Japan-based yung proyekto. Iniisip siguro ng mga nakatataas na mas mabuti pang dito muna ako sa Manila at simulan ang aking on-boarding, orientation at training.

Gusto ko pa rin isipin na makaka-biyahe pa rin ako.

Nagliwaliw muna ako sa Megamall. Sale na naman at kailangan ko ng damit pang-opisina. Sa katunayan, ang suot kong blusa ay sa nanay ko. Nakita ko rin sa malayo na sale ang Lacoste at gusto ko lang malaman kung ilang % yung discount ng mga mamahaling t-shirt. Sa kagustuhan kong makapunta kagad, nabigla ako nang may sumulpot sa aking gilid at sinabi:

"Hi Ganda! Gusto mo ng libreng tiket sa sinehan?"

Sa mga sandaling iyon, hindi ko alam kung yung naging magic words na nag-convince sa akin na sumama sa tiyak na kahibangan ay yung "ganda" o "libreng tiket". Oo nga, kahit wala akong kailangan bayaran o bilhan, kailangan kong mag-aksaya ng 45 na minuto para sa kanilang presentasyon. Sa huli, nag back out ako, humirit ng isang dahilan para makaalis sa lugar na iyon.

Matagal na akong hindi pumapatol sa mga nag-aalok ng lupa, bahay, condo, credit card ngunit dito talaga ako bumigay. Akala ko libre. Yun pala, oras mo ang puhunan nila. Sa huli, hindi ako nakapunta sa Lacoste at hindi ko nakita kung magkano yung mga t-shirts nila.

Shet!

Cutthroat Business

Mom told me that the jobhunting process [or lack of it] used to be simple compared to what people do nowadays. She didn't even recall going from one building to another to give our her resumes like pamphlets. There's also the fact that there is no bias against non-UP, Ateneo, La Salle.

Anyway, this week was not boring. Compared to the previous weeks and days I spent. I was such a sloth! Not to mention a bit depressed when I have a vague picture of my future. I started the week when I went to HP to sign my offer letter. That morning, Cel sent me an SMS and asked if I can make it this afternoon. Excited, I bullied my mom so she could give the car to me. After all, it was a matter of life and death!

After she gave me a primer of my benefits, etc., she told me to join the other new hires who were having an orientation. I went to Manila [the name of the conf. room] and sat with them, watching the history of HP and then introducing ourselves. We also met our bosses and managers and were taken around the offices and introduced to our now-fellow employees.

We had merienda and I met new friends, Anna, Desiree, Cha and Kristel. After the on-boarding session, we met with our managers and were introduced to our fellow teammates. Gracie and Jopaw introduced their new found friends with me... though I weakly told them I couldn't memorize their names at once.

The next day, I went to HP at Robinsons Summit Center in Makati. Before that, I surprised Kris on the underpass. She was on her way to Enterprise and I was "crossing the street" underground. I met with the HR person, Josie, and gave me a list of requirements before employment. At that time, there was confusion because my manager wanted me to start on July 10 but the HR policy is that they hire on the 1st of 17th of the month. Cel was working my start date and my worry was to finish all requirements before the end of the week.

Wednesday was the worst, I think. I woke up very early to bring my sister to school and then mom and I went to city hall to get a TIN for me. Yesterday, we found out that the TIN I have can only be used for government transactions. We then found out that they don't issue TINs in city hall. Mom and I went to Coastal Mall to get 2 measly pieces of paper. That afternoon, I went to Makati to get a medical... I swear, it was embarrassingly thorough. I felt so violated talaga....huhuhu... Thank God I didn't have to go to Ortigas!

Today, I felt like a bum again. With no car available, I decided to spend the day watching DVDs. I need to catch up on One Tree Hill and Smallville. I'll bet Inca's wondering when I'll return the DVDs to her. But then again, it was interrupted by a brownout that lasted from late morning to mid-afternoon. I spent the day testing Pagong's stamina and reading unopened TIME magazines. Mom then came home and gave me copies of her and dad's birth certificates and then fixed the requirements so I can submit them to HR tomorrow.

I'm also filling up application forms for VISA for my trip to Japan by mid-July. I need to have my picture taken and then bring them to Ortigas to have them processed immediately. Right now, everything's fast-paced. I love it! God, I missed college! Anyway, I'm glad that I'm finally on my way to Japan. The first time was depressing when I found out I didn't make the cut for the scholarship [parang reality show!]. But I guess when there's a will, there's a way! Even if it's a business trip, I look forward to it. I'm so excited already!

On to Berlin!

I could not believe what happened during the FIFA World Cup semis between Germany and Italy. Clearly, the favor was with the host country but Italy had great defense. They had to go through extra time and in the end, I thought penalty kicks would end the heart-pumping match. Well, you have to admit there were parts when everything was just boring.

Despite Lehmann's excellent skill as goalkeeper, Italy was able to sneak in 2 well-placed goals within 2+ minutes with seconds to spare during extra time. I guess Germany was so pressured to keep up with the first goal that they left a critical hole in their defense. Del Piero just appeared from nowhere and sank the ball in the upper right corner of the goal. It's Berlin for the Italians! I can't help but feel sad for the German crowd. I mean, they started holding their heads in dismay as soon as Italy scored and when they got another one, faces fell and I saw tears.

Sayang, Germany was a favorite pa naman.

Not many people know that I like soccer. I'm not an avid fan but I try to keep myself updated. In this case, I don't watch the qualifying matches as well as the early rounds. I keep tabs as early as quarterfinals, and that still depends on the teams playing.

^_^ Man, I miss sports!

We all use Math Everyday!

I am so in love with Charlie Eppes! Yep, this genius mathematician has captured my heart with his tousled locks and kick-ass math skills. Played by David Krumholtz, this is the only character with curly hair that I like. I'm usually a "straight-haired, short-length, neatly combed guy hair" type of girl. This one is an exception. Oh yeah, might I add that his FBI Consultant with NSA clearance likes rock music?


I'm so hooked with Numb3rs. Maybe because my brain activity has been less than zero these past few weeks that I'm dying to get my cells and neurons into action. I couldn't get enough of AXN's weekly schedule so I decided to just buy season2. Ha! And what a bargain it was! I don't think I'll stop watching this show just yet.

His brother Don, played by Rob Morrow looks like Mulder from X-Files. ^_^

I love them! I love them!

I love Charlie more!!!

The Day I Cried

I had a dream.

I dreamt God was with me. We were walking together. We were talking like we were friends. We were laughing, too.

Unfortunately, the path we were walking on was about to end.

God told me to keep walking as He stopped. I looked back, worried and afraid that I might never see Him again.

God smiled and said to me:

"I am with you, always."

I woke up and cried. And that was that.

I'm Not Crazy Enuf to be Honest

Some random xx thingy
[x] I am shorter than 5'4.
[x] I think I'm ugly sometimes.
[x] I have many scars.
[] I tan easily
[ ] I wish my hair was a different color.
[ ] I have friends who have never seen my natural hair color.
[ ] I have a tattoo.
[x] I am self-conscious about my appearance.
[x] I have/I've had braces.
[] I wear glasses/need them.
[ ] I would get plastic surgery if it were 100 aafe, free of cost, and scar-free.
[x] I've been told I'm attractive by a complete stranger.
[ ] I have more than 2 piercings.
[ ] I have (had) piercings in places besides my ears.
[ ] I have freckles.

Family/Home Life
[ ] I've sworn at my parents.
[x] I've run away from home.--> does missing the school bus on purpose count?
[ ] I've been kicked out of the house.
[x] My biological parents are together.
[ ] I have a sibling less than one year old.
[x] I want to have kids someday.
[ ] I've had children.
[ ] I've lost a child.

School/Work
[ ] I'm in school.
[ ] I have a job.
[x] I've fallen asleep at work/school.
[] I almost always do my homework.
[ ] I've missed a week or more of school.
[ ] I've been on the Honor Roll within the last 2 years.
[ ] I failed more than 1 class last year.
[ ] I've stolen something from my job
[ ] I've been fired.
[x] I've skipped school.

Embarrassment
[x] I've slipped out a "lol" in a spoken conversation.
[ ] Disney movies still make me cry.
[x] I've peed from laughing.
[x] I've snorted while laughing.
[ ] I've laughed so hard I've cried.
[ ] I've glued my hand to something
[ ] I've laughed till some kind of beverage came out of my nose.
[ ] I've had my pants rip in publicHealth
[ ] I was born with a disease/impairment.
[x] I've gotten stitches
[x] I've broken a bone.
[ ] I've had my tonsils removed.
[ ] I've sat in a doctor's office with a friend.
[x] I've had my wisdom teeth removed.--> all of them!
[ ] I had a serious surgery.
[x] I've had chicken pox.--> didn't even miss school

Traveling
[ ] I've driven over 200 miles in one day.
[x] I've been on a plane.
[x] I've been to Asia.
[ ] I've been to Australia.
[ ] I've been to South America.
[ ] I've been to Antartica.
[ ] I've been to Europe.
[ ] I've been to Africa.
[ ] I've been to America.

Experiences
[x] I've gotten lost in my city.
[ ] I've seen a shooting star.
[ ] I've wished on a shooting star.
[ ] I've seen a meteor shower.
[x] I've gone out in public in my pajamas.
[x] I've pushed all the buttons on an elevator
[ ] I've kicked a guy where it hurts.
[x] I've been to a casino.
[ ] I've been skydiving.
[x] I've been an abuse victim.
[ ] I've gone skinny dipping.
[x] I've played spin the bottle.
[ ] I've drank a whole gallon of milk in one hour.
[x] I've crashed a car.
[ ] I've been skiing.
[x] I've been in a play.
[ ] I've met someone in person from the internet.
[ ] I've caught a snowflake on my tongue.
[ ] I've seen the Northern Lights.
[x] I've sat on a roof top at night.
[ ] I've played chicken.
[x] I've played a prank on someone.
[x] I've ridden in a taxi.
[ ] I've seen the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
[x] I've eaten Sushi.
[ ] I've been snowboarding.

Relationships
[x] I'm single.
[ ] I'm in a relationship.
[ ] I'm engaged.
[ ] I'm married.
[ ] I've had someone cheat on me.
[ ] I've gone on a blind date.
[ ] I've been the dumpee more than the dumper.
[x] I miss someone right now.
[x] I have a fear of commitment.
[x] I have a fear of abandonment.
[ ] I've cheated in a relationship.
[ ] I've gotten divorced
[x] I've had feelings for someone who didn't have them back.
[ ] I've told someone I loved them when I didn't.
[x] I've told someone I didn't love them when I did.
[x] I've kept something from a past relationship.

Sexuality
[x] I've had a crush on a teacher.
[ ] I love to flirt.
[ ] I've been kissed in the rain.
[ ] I've hugged a stranger.
[ ] I have kissed a stranger.

Honesty/Crime
[ ] I am a terrible liar.
[x] I've done something I promised someone else I wouldn't
[x] I've done something I promised myself I wouldn't.
[x] I've snuck out of my house.
[x] I have lied to my parents about where I am.
[x] I am keeping a secret from the world.
[x] I've cheated while playing a game.
[x] I've cheated on a test.
[ ] I've run a red light.
[ ] I've been suspended from school.
[ ] I've witnessed a crime.
[ ] I've been in a fist fight.
[ ] I've been arrested.
[x] I've shoplifted.

Drugs/Alcohol
[x] I've consumed alcohol
[ ] I regularly drink.
[x] I've passed out from drinking.
[ ] I have passed out drunk at least once in the past 6 months.
[ ] I've smoked weed
[ ] I've taken painkillers when I didn't need them.
[ ] I'm a stoner.
[ ] I've snorted cocaine.
[ ] I've eaten shrooms.
[ ] I've popped E.
[ ] I've inhaled Nitrous.
[ ] I've done hard drugs.
[ ] I have cough drops when I'm not sick.
[ ] I can't swallow pills.
[x] I can swallow about 5 pills at a time no problem.
[ ] I have been diagnosed with clinical depression.
[x] I shut others out when I'm depressed.
[ ] I take anti-depressants.
[ ] I'm anorexic or bulimic/have been.
[x] I've slept an entire day when I didn't need it.
[x] I've hurt myself on purpose.
[ ] I'm addicted to self-harm.
[x] I've woken up crying.
[x] I've cried myself to sleep.
[x] I see/have seen a therapist.--->guidance counts right? ;p

Death and Suicide
[ ] I'm afraid of dying.
[x] I hate funerals.
[ ] I've seen someone dying.
[x] Someone close to me has attempted suicide.
[ ] Someone close to me has committed suicide.
[x] I've planned my own suicide.
[ ] I've attempted suicide.
[x] I've written a eulogy for myself.

Materialism
[ ] I own over 5 rap CDs.
[x] I own an iPod or MP3 player.
[x] I have an unhealthy obsession with anime/manga.
[x] I own a designer purse, costing over $100
[ ] I own something from Hot Topic.
[ ] I own something from Pac Sun.
[ ] I collect comic books
[x] I own something from The Gap.
[ ] I own something I got on e-bay.
[ ] I own something from American Eagle.

Political/Social Attitudes
[ ] In general, I don't like people.
[x] I'm a feminist.
[x] I'm outgoing.
[ ] I listen to political music.
[x] I'm Democratic.
[ ] I'm Republican.
[x] I'm liberal.
[ ] I don't like Bush because he is dumb.
[ ] I don't like Bush with my own reasons to back it up.
[ ] I am for Bush.
[x] I'm religious.
[x] I dress fairly modestly.
[x] My attitude is, "If you've got it, flaunt it."

Random
[x] I can sing well.
[ ] I've stolen a tray from a fast food restaurant.
[ ] I open up to others easily.
[x] I watch the news.
[ ] I don't kill bugs.
[x] I hate hearing songs that sacrifice meaning for the sake of being able to rhyme.
[ ] I curse regularly.
[ ] I sing in the shower.
[x] I am a morning person.
[ ] I paid for my cellphone ring tone.
[ ] I'm a snob about grammar.
[x] I am a sports fanatic.
[ ] I twirl my hair
[ ] I have "x"s in my screen name.
[x] I love being neat.
[ ] I love Spam.
[ ] I've copied more than 30 CD's in a day
[x] I bake well.
[x] My favorite color is either white, yellow, pink, red or blue.
[x] I would wear pajamas to school.
[ ] I like Martha Stewart.
[ ] I know how to shoot a gun.
[ ] I am guilty of tYpInG lIkE tHiS.
[x] I laugh at my own jokes.
[x] I believe in ghosts.
[ ] I am online 24/7, even as an away message.
[x] I've not turned anything in and still got an A in a certain class.
[ ] I can't sleep if there is a spider in the room.
[ ] I am really ticklish.
[x] I love white chocolate
[x] I bite my nails.
[x] I play video games.
[ ] I'm good at remembering faces.
[ ] I'm good at remembering names
[ ] I'm good at remembering dates.
[ ] I have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life.
[ ] My answers are totally honest

Pre-Requisites

Now that I'm almost officially part of the labor force, I need to work on some papers and important aspects of being employed.

First off, woke up very early and took a quickie shower. Mom and I dropped off my sister in DLSU then proceeded to park in McDo. We had breakfast there before taking the LRT. It's been a while since I took the LRT and most of the time, I had used LRT3. At first, mom and I were bangag coz we forgot that we had to cross the street near Benilde and then go up the station.

We then bought tickets to Carriedo, where I can get my NBI clearance. I remembered the last time my mom and I rode on the LRT. I was around 6 years old. The old LRT used coins/tokens to pass through. There was no aircon yet and there were no carts for women and the elderly. It was very hot and humid, not to mention the stench of human sweat and hard work.

Anyway, I haven't been to that part of town [Carriedo] so I was a bit excited to go there. We went along Taft and saw some schools there, Emilio Aguinaldo, Phil. Christian University, Phil. Women's, etc.

When we got off Carriedo, I'm sure we looked like fools because mom was taking her personal trip down memory lane. We just stood in the middle of the place for about 3 minutes while people passed us by. She told me that this place used to be the rowdiest, most crowded part of old Manila. The roads where jeepneys used to passed through are gone. Instead, it was like a plaza. There were a lot of vendors, street kids and homeless people loittering about [it was only 8am] or sleeping in cartons and huge plastics. The place smelled like sewers and week-old garbage.

We then went to NBI and proceeded to some guy named Ferdie. My mom's nephew used to work here in the legal department before he moved to customs so we had connections. It's very convenient to have connections here in the Philippines. As long as you know key persons and have sufficient resources, it's as good as sitting in the couch at the comfort of your own home.

Mom and I went inside Quiapo church and said a little prayer. I said a little wish because it was my first time there. The church was impressive. I was also surprised to know that this church has been in existence for 400 years already. They said that wherever the church is, most of the important buildings are near it too. Provinces are like that.

We went around for a while, bought 2 pairs of step-ins for a hundred each; blouses; clips; and then we ate lunch at Jollibee. Mom went to the store she always goes to when she was in college and I can feel that nostalgia was coming onto her fast.

It's nice to know that your parents, once upon a time had been college students. I guess it was exciting to live at that time. Life was simpler then. It was appreciated more.

As for my TIN and SSS, I already have them but we decided to go to the regional offices and request for IDs.

All in all, this day was very productive. Mom and I got to spend more time with each other. I wish I had more moments like this with my mom. But it's because of these rare moments that I truly, really get to appreciate my mom.

Probably in different circumstance, she could've been my best friend. But I think I must have been a saint in a lifetime because God gave me the best mother one could ever have.

Tease me Baby!

People have a way of making us trust them and trust ourselves.

People test them. See if they're loyal. See if they'll take the bait.

Unfortunately, I'm a quitter. Well, not at first but when things become frustrating, there are times when you'd just want to give up on that person. I don't quit on a regular basis. In fact, I highly think of myself when it comes to sticking it. I'm an optimist. Even when it hurts, I still have hope.

In this particular case, I've waited and waited and waited. I trusted that person so much that to let go would be impossible with the way we were acquainted. There had been times when I really felt like I just wanna walk away. And recently, another issue was brought up. It was painful to think about the next day. Anxiety took its toll on me. It was hard. I struggled so much.

And then, when I felt like letting go, he suddenly comes to my rescue.

I finally give a huge sigh of relief and then berates him for doing this to me.

I imagine him chuckling and saying, "What is faith and hope when you don't put it to good use?"

Jesus Christ!

Definitely not Good

I could not believe it.

4 sips of lame-ass Vodka tonic just gave me one hell of a hangover!

I just couldn't believe it. I must be losing my touch. I woke up the next morning barely able to get down from the bunk bed. My head felt like it was going to lose its screws and roll away from my shoulders. My breath stinks of vodka even though I had brushed my teeth and gargled. I slept through most of the afternoon; waking again to find a hardcore headache. I felt those veins sticking out of my forehead.

God, I hate vodka!

I sure hope to God there weren't roofies in there.

Sayang ang Miles

Seriously, I'm getting so worked up trying to fix our KrisFlyer (Singapore Airlines' Frequent Flyer Program) accounts.

My 2005 miles were not credited because of online mishap. I could not access my account, preventing me to check-in online and check my mileage. Same thing with Pat and Anne's account. Mom had miles expiring so I had to extend them and paid about 1,000 miles. I still can't access Pat's account coz the email doesn't match the database's. I tried calling SQ (this is long distance at hindi mura!) and asked them to fix the error. They said they did it already but nothing happened.

Dad was pressuring me to keep all accounts and miles accounted for. He would use our miles so he could get a free ticket and take a vacation here in Manila. I swear I'm a terrible auditor.

Today, I checked all accounts, sans Pat's and had found out the trips we were requesting to be credited were included in the statement but was still not credited in the total miles (I only have 22,700 miles). I'm getting a headache!

Basta, ok na yung kay mom. Anne's 2005 miles were credited already. Mine were supposed to have been credited but were not part of the ending balance. Pat's account remains to be unopened.

Such stress! Sayang daw kasi ang miles.

Bum

I'm such a slob. Can't even keep 'em posting right.

This is laziness in it's purest form.

Blurred Days

As I've said to Fraggy when a third of R2 met in Glorietta, "Bumming is very hard. You wake up and you really don't know how to keep yourself occupied the whole day. You're not really motivated to do anything productive."

Sitting on a couch, blinding your eyes out from watching one too many DVDs and cartoons is a tiring job. A pointless and tiring job. One thing that keeps me going is the hope of actually getting a call from employers and giving me a job so I can stop mopping around and actually put some of the things I learned to good use.

There were 12 of us who had a sort-of reunion. There was me, Jake, Rofil, Iking, Karlo, Archie, Inca, Kris, Tiff, Ritz, Gi and Joan. We had dinner and beer over talks, jokes and kamustahans.

The next day, Friday, I woke up early and met with Iking and Tiff at Makati to go job hunting. It was my first time and I had fun. We gave resumes to companies we think could use our skills and abilities [daw!]. As Tiff and I went inside The Enterprise, there was a bit of commotion in there and we found out later that it was an earthquake drill. We decided to go to Philam Building in the meantime. As usual, we gave out resumes and then met Iking, who had an interview with Mozcom.

Unfortunately, I was unable to go with them because I was meeting Kim and Paolo for lunch. I thanked them and said goodbyes and then walked back to Glorietta. I met them at Tony Roma's and ate lunch. We then watched The Lakehouse [good movie] and played some arcade.

Another week ended and another is about to start.

All About War

Recently, my brother's become interested in war movies. Not the "Life is Beautiful" type but "Platoon" and "Saving Private Ryan" types. Dad brings home DVDs of old classic war films like "Battle of Britain" and "Tora, Tora" from Jakarta.

I have never been a fan of war movies or have interested myself with military and war topics. The first time I had a glimpse of war was in a book published by TIME. It was called, Life at War. It was a photo-journalism type of book that had snapshots from the 1st world war to the Vietnam War. You can see the history unfolding in each page. The shift from grainy, black and white, sepia photographs to standard colored pictures. From massive, one-direction-only tanks to maneuverable, all-terrain humvees and assault vehicles. Rifles to machine guns. Every type of technology evolved, even clothing and protective suits.

Necessity creates ingenuity. There are now better and faster ways to transport people. Better and faster ways to annihilate people. Better and faster ways to heal people. A propaganda to faithfully pledge allegiance to one's fatherland or motherland.

Better machines
Better medicine
Better food
Better arsenal
Better tactics
Better soldiers
Better vehicles and airplanes and submarines

But what strikes me the most about the book was the snippets of each soldier, just before ambushing the enemy, just before jumping into their foxholes and trenches, just before throwing a hand grenade. Captions below would say that this was the last time a soldier was seen alive. When you turn the page, you would then see his corpse, swimming in his blood. His comrades ransacking his rations before medics pull him back, as he is an obstacle to marching troops. A more gruesome truth is that the soldier was only 18 years.

In France, there was a parade of soldiers in the city square, soldiers hailed before they are marched off to war. There was a child from the side who ran to his father, who was a soldier, crying. The toddler would not let go of his father. A picture of innocence, tainted by the harsh metallic smell of rifles, ammunition and grenades.

War teaches us to be strong. To have hope when there is nothing else to do. To finally realize one's finity and to believe in a higher being. To realize the futility of killing even for greater glory. War teaches us to live. To strive to survive and be happy with the fact that you are alive. War is a sad story. Lives are torn apart and anybody who lives through this experience is never the same.

this is yenie's 2 cents worth on war with critical thinking done in 5 minutes. other factors or insights unmentioned may not have been thought of the goddess during the 5-minute discernment.
no research was done... you get the idea

Another for Nadal

Yesterday, we ate at Le Souffle in the Fort to celebrate Mom and Dad's 22nd wedding anniversary. Mom and I ate seafood as we were allergic to beef while Dad and Anne lunged at steaks and Pat had pasta. In my opinion, dessert was the best part of the meal. The souffle was perfect!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When we got home, the French open final was ongoing. As usual, it was a battle between the 1st and 2nd seed. Nadal wanted to retain his dominance in clay court while Federer wanted to win a grand slam. In the

end, Nadal kept his title after 4 sets and won 60 consecutive matches on clay court. Yep, this 20 year old Spanish lefty is going places!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm currently importing my old cds in Pagong. I can't believe I have Hanson's 1st CD! Basta I'm putting all songs and CDs I have.

Seeing Old Faces

Dad got home last night and was disappointed about the status of our house. Renovations were supposed to be done by June17, as stated in the contract. Until now, we don't have a 2nd floor, our kitchen is in ruins and the living and dining room is stacked with kitchen appliances, books from the attic and other stuff. It's crazy here and living here is a bit straining.

He was stopped by customs but because mom has a relative there, he was released unscathed.

Dad bought us a lot of stuff from Singapore. We took advantage of the Great Singapore Sale! I got a Shu Uemura pink basic kit and Japanese learning books while mom and Leanne got the jewelry they wanted. Dad bought us all Lacoste shirts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last Friday, half of dp_bs met in Shang. The 2 last times I went to Shang, I parked at the same parking slot! Talk about luck. It was Gracie's request and we all chatted and had dinner. Abi, Ginny and I wore blue that night while Gracie and aR had matching black and red/pink outfits. Ginny got back from the States and gave us NY shirts.

Part of the plan was to watch a movie but all of us agreed that catching up on each other's stories were more important.

I had so much fun being with them. I wish there would be an opportunity for all of us to meet. Then Gracie can treat us out! hehe.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That same Friday, I was stressed about the fact that I haven't received a phone call from my potential employers. That afternoon, I left my phone to mom while I took a bath.

While in the middle of my scrubbing, the much awaited Harry Potter ringtone echoed outside in the master's bedroom. I waited a few seconds and realized mom wasn't going to answer my phone.

With soap all over my body, I quickly grabbed my towel, wrapped it around and dashed outside. Mom was on another phone and I hurriedly went to my phone. Realizing it was a landline number, my heart skipped at least 5 beats before answering it.

It was from IBM! They are offering me a permanent position! I was very happy to hear that! A surge of relief echoed throughout my brain. I was still sane enough to hear that the lady on the phone told me to keep my line open as they will call me within the next week for another interview/discussion of salary, benefits, etc.

I thanked her and ended the call. It was my first job offer, and I was wrapped in a towel with soap suds everywhere. Talk about anecdotes!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last Thursday, I met with Kim and Paolo in Galleria [what is it with Ortigas???] to watch The Omen and just hang out. I went to the gym before meeting them there. Pao got back from the States a day before.

We ate Japanese food for lunch before hitting the silverscreens. We then went around, while talking and chatting.

I then promised them a lunch by next Friday with other high school friends.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Life is good with friends by your side.

Just for the Heck of It.

Anime meme taken from magnetic_rose... which I got from Shabby

go through the list and check off the titles you have watched. for our purposes, "watching" a title means that for TV and OVA series, you have to have seen at least one episode all the way through. for one-shots, you have to have seen the whole thing. At the end of each genre/category, add up your sub-total. at the very end, add up the sub-totals to come up with your grand total. if your grand total is 80 or over, congratulations-- you are an obsessive anime watcher!

I. Action and Adventure
( ) .hack//SIGN
( ) Airmaster
( ) Battle Arena Toshinden
(x) Bleach
( ) Blood+
( ) Burst Angel
( ) City Hunter
( ) Cowboy Bebop
(x) Dragonball
(x) Flame of Recca
(x) GetBackers
( ) Inu Yasha
( ) Lupin III
( ) Mai-HiME
(x) Naruto
( ) One Piece
( ) Tenjou Tenge
( ) TRIGUN
(x) Saiyuki
(x) Yu Yu Hakusho

Total Here: 7/20

II. Comedy and Parody
( ) 2x2 = Shinobuden
( ) Adventures of the Mini Goddesses
( ) All Purpose Cultural Catgirl Nuku Nuku
( ) Azumanga Daioh
( ) Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan
( ) Di Gi Charat
( ) Dragon Half
( ) Excel Saga
(x) Fruits Basket
( ) Galaxy Angel
(x) Here is Greenwood
( ) Kodomo no Omocha
(x) Kyou Kara Maou!
(x) Midori Days
( ) Pani Poni Dash
( ) Project A-ko
(x) Ranma 1/2
( ) Tenchi Muyo
( ) Those Who Hunt Elves
( ) Urusei Yatsura

Total Here: 5/20

III. Drama and Miscellaneous
( ) Beck
( ) Full Moon wo Sagashite
( ) Gankutsuou
( ) Genshiken
( ) Glass Mask
( ) Haibane Renmei
( ) Hitsuji no Uta
( ) Honey & Clover (Hachimitsu to Clover)
( ) Kaleido Star
( ) Last Exile
( ) Le Portraite de Petite Cossette
( ) Monster
( ) Paradise Kiss
(x) Princess Mononoke
( ) Read or Die OVA
( ) Speed Grapher
( ) Twin Spica
(x) Weiss Kreuz
( ) Wings of Honneamise
( ) Yakitate!! Japan

Total Here: 2/20

IV. Ecchi/Mature
( ) Agent AIKa
( ) Cutey Honey
( ) Ebichu
( ) Golden Boy
( ) Grenadier
( ) Hand Maid May
( ) He Is My Master
( ) Iketeru Futari
( ) La Blue Girl
( ) Lingerie Senshi Papillon Rose
( ) Mahoromatic
( ) Mezzo Forte
( ) Miyuki-chan in Wonderland
( ) My Dear Marie
( ) Najica Blitz Tactics
( ) Negima
( ) Puni Puni Poemy
( ) Urotsukidoji: Legend of the Overfiend
( ) Wicked City
( ) Yumeria

Total Here: 0/20

V. Fantasy and Supernatural
(x) Angel Sanctuary
( ) Aquarian Age
( ) Berserk
( ) El Hazard
( ) Final Fantasy Unlimited
(x) Fullmetal Alchemist
(x) Howl's Moving Castle
(x) Magic Knight Rayearth
( ) Mushishi
(x) Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
( ) Record of Lodoss War
( ) Scrapped Princess
( ) Slayers
( ) Tales of Eternia
( ) Trinity Blood
( ) Tsubasa Chronicle
( ) Vampire Hunter D
( ) Violinist of Hameln
(x) Vision of Escaflowne
(x) X: TV

Total Here: 7/20

VI. Historical and Alternate History
( ) Anne of Green Gables
( ) Basilisk
( ) Barefoot Gen
( ) Chrono Crusade
(x) Grave of the Fireflies
( ) Fire Tripper
( ) Kaidomaru
( ) Legend of Condor Hero
( ) Millennium Actress
( ) Nadia - Secret of Blue Water
( ) Ninja Scroll
( ) Otogizoushi
( ) Peacemaker Kurogane
( ) Porco Rosso
( ) Rose of Versailles
(x) Rurouni Kenshin
( ) Samurai 7
(x) Samurai Champloo
( ) Steel Angel Kurumi
( ) Victorian Romance Emma

Total Here: 3/20

VII. Kids and Family
( ) Angelic Layer
( ) Astro Boy
( ) Beyblade
( ) Castle in the Sky
( ) Detective Conan
( ) Digimon
( ) Doraemon
( ) Hamtaro
( ) Kiki's Delivery Service
(x) Kimba the White Lion
( ) Monster Rancher
( ) My Neighbor Totoro
(x) Pokemon
( ) Samurai Pizza Cats
( ) Sazae-san
( ) SD Gundam Force
( ) Sonic X
( ) Speed Racer
(x) Spirited Away
( ) Yu-Gi-Oh

Total Here: 3/20

VIII. Magical Girls and Boys
(x) Cardcaptor Sakura
( ) DNAngel
( ) Earth Girl Arjuna
( ) Erementar Gerad
( ) Hime-chan no Ribbon
( ) Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne
( ) Magic Users Club
( ) Magical Girl Pretty Sammy
( ) Magical Stage Fancy La La
( ) Mahou no Star Magical Emi
( ) Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha
(x) Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok
( ) Ojamajou DoReMi
( ) Oku-sama wa Mahou Shoujo
(x) Pretear
(x) Sailor Moon
( ) Saint Tail
( ) Tokyo Mew Mew
(x) Ultra Maniac
( ) Wedding Peach

Total Here: 5/20

IX. Romance
( ) Ah! My Goddess
( ) Ai Yori Aoshi
( ) Air
( ) Ayashi no Ceres
(x) Boys Be
( ) Chobits
(x) Fushigi Yuugi
( ) Hana Yori Dango
(x) His and Her Circumstances (KareKano)
( ) Kimagure Orange Road
( ) Kimi ga Nozomu Eien
( ) Love Hina
( ) Maison Ikkoku
( ) Marmalade Boy
( ) Peach Girl
( ) Piano
( ) Onegai Sensei
( ) SaiKano
( ) To Heart
( ) Video Girl Ai

Total Here: 3/20

X. Science-Fiction
( ) Appleseed
( ) Blue Seed
( ) Bubblegum Crisis (any)
( ) Crest of the Stars
( ) Galaxy Express 999
(x) Gundam (any)
( ) Macross (any)
( ) Outlaw Star
( ) Patlabor
( ) Planetes
( ) Please Save My Earth
( ) RahXephon
( ) Saber Marionette (any)
( ) s-CRY-ed
( ) Soukyuu no Fafner
( ) Space Battleship Yamato (Star Blazers)
( ) Stellvia
(x) Transformers (any)
( ) Voices of a Distant Star
( ) Xenosaga: The Animation

Total Here: 2/20

XI. Shounen-Ai and Shoujo-Ai
(x) Ai no Kusabi
(x) Descendants of Darkness (Yami no Matsuei)
(x) Earthian
( ) FAKE
(x) Fish in the Trap
( ) Galaxy Fraulin Yuna
(x) Gravitation <3
( ) Haru wo Daiteita
( ) Kannazuki no Miko
(x) Kizuna
(x) Lesson XX
(x) Loveless
( ) Maria-sama ga Miteru
( ) Mirage of Blaze
( ) Oniisama E
( ) Seikimatsu Darling
(x) Song of the Wind in the Trees
(x) Sukisho
( ) Yami to Boushi to Hon no Tabibito
( ) Zetsuai/Bronze

Total Here: 10/20

XII. Sports
( ) Ace wo Nerae
( ) Ashita no Joe
( ) Ayane's High Kick
( ) Baki the Grappler
( ) Battle Athletes
( ) Buzzer Beater
( ) Captain Tsubasa
( ) Eyeshield 21
( ) Ginban Kaleidoscope
( ) Hajime no Ippo
(x) Hikaru no Go
( ) Initial D
( ) Major
( ) Monkey Turn
( ) One Pound Gospel
(x) Prince of Tennis
( ) Princess Nine
(x) Slam Dunk
( ) Suzuka
( ) Wild Striker

Total Here: 3/20

XIII. Surreal and Psychological
( ) Akira
( ) Betterman
( ) Boogiepop Phantom
( ) Elfen Lied
( ) FLCL
( ) Gantz
( ) Ghost in the Shell (movie or TV)
(x) Hellsing
( ) Jigoku Shoujo
( ) Karas
( ) Madlax
( ) Melody of Oblivion
(x) Neon Genesis Evangelion
( ) Noir
( ) Paranoia Agent
( ) Perfect Blue
( ) Princess Tutu
( ) Revolutionary Girl Utena
( ) Serial Experiments Lain
( ) Texhnolyze

Total Here: 2/20

GRAND TOTAL: 53/260

I guess this means I have a lot of watching to do. ^_^ There are a lot of anime I have watched but have not yet finished it... like Honey to Clover, Azumanga Daioh, RahXephon...

Other anime I have finished:
Akazuki Cha-Cha
Sarah
Romeo's Blue Skies
Zenki

Ulcers and Anxiety Attacks

I'm an impatient person... I'm a fast-paced person so being tied down and being told to wait is torture for me. The fact that there are extreme scenarios in the end and that I'm totally clueless as to what can and will happen does not make me feel any better.

I admit I have been eating less and have been a total slob with thinking nothing but what will happen at the end of this torture. My dad told me to be optimistic but cynic at the same time. It's kinda hard, though.

Last time I felt this and have been rewarded was when I was accepted into the school of my choice.

The last time I felt this and have been overwhelmingly depressed was when I knew an opportunity to start all over again never happened.

Both feelings have been different. The wait for both have been excrutiatingly painful. I guess I took both situations to full-scale attacks of anxiety and the feeling that this event will shake my future.

I guess anyone who had that at stake will reallly suffer ulcers and anxiety attacks.

As soon as forever is through...

Dedicated to the man I fell in love with... he'll never know how much I love him.

Siblinghood

The first fact of life about my siblings is that I knew them before they knew themselves.

After a few months of living our separate lives, we had an opportunity to spend time together again. We watched X-Men, attended mass at Greenbelt Church, basically went out as friends.

It was a nice feeling, going out with my brother and sister. Our attachment with each other is on a different level. Something primal, something raw, something limitless. When I'm with Pat and Anne, there are things that I do only with them and never show it to my friends. Must be the fact that we've known each other and lived with each other all our lives.

The memories we have of each other are not just memories. They are milestones in our lives, witnessed by them.

While driving home, we talked about our disgusting habits as children and toddlers, specific events that only the 3 of us know and we would end up laughing like crazy as we reminisce the past.

It was great. Maybe I'm getting older...

Tribute to 80s rock and roll

They rock and I love them to death! For all 80s fans out there.

Pinagkakaabalahan

1. Seriously, I don't know what the fuss is all about The Da Vinci Code. It's just a brilliantly twisted fiction and nothing else! I watched it with Gracie the other Wednesday in Shang and I don't understand why CBCP or other Catholic organizations are making such a big deal out of it. As far as I'm concerned, 2 and a half hours of genius bull-crap isn't going to shake my 20+ years of solid faith.

2. Our house looks like a haunted house. All our stuff are covered with either green or yellow plastic. Our abode is currently being renovated. We'll be extending our house and make a 2nd floor by the garage, make serious makeovers in the bathrooms and fix the roof. We've recently had leaks.

3. Getting a job is my number 1 priority right now. I've had 2nd interviews with IBM Business Services and HP. I seriously want to get in HP. My 2nd interview was with my future boss. She was cool! And she was amazed at the fact that I know how to read, write and speak Japanese, which she says is my advantage over other applicants. Taking another language is definitely an advantage for anybody!

4. I've become a bitch to a childhood friend of mine. I admit I've become very cold-hearted lately to my friend. I apologized naman.

5. Dad has become very helpful to me during interviews. We had a mock interview when I was in Jakarta. He also handled interviews and coached me on how to answer those tricky questions. God bless dad!

6. I would have never thought of Taylor Hicks winning American Idol. My first choice was Vin Diesel... ahem!... Chris Daughtry and then Kat McPhee. But I guess Soul Patrol is a nice change to the American music industry.

7. My best friend and I recently talked on the phone and began to reminisce about high school. Those were turbulent, fun times. A lot of people liked me, a lot also didn't like me and most of them can not understand me. My best friend had a revelation to me and I was so surprised! I just couldn't believe it! Never!

8. My sister and I attended this anime convention last Saturday. It was a blast! It's nice to meet people who have the same, wicked interests.

9. I want to go to SM Mall of Asia.

10. I wanna have money!

11. I want a boyfriend!

12. I'm currently blinding my eyes out in Playstation2. I've been playing Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires and Suikoden5. DW5 is a great stress-reliever. And I never knew creating an empire of my own could be so much work! It sure beats SIMS!

13. Met up with my teammates 2 weeks ago. I realized how much I missed them! Especially my threesome buddies, Rach and Dino. I also saw Karym, who was already graduating when I was just a freshman and his brother, He-man, who now likes to be called Chris.

14. I've been baking recently. I've done oatmeal, chocolate chip cookies... fudge brownies with Hershey's chocolate kisses... and chocolate moist cake.

Homebound

I have 2 hours at most before departure. I've gone around terminal 2, thrice and filled my eyes with the designer labels and goods. Some of them are on sale but as usual, they only put the old stock on sale. Even though the prices look cheap, I'd still find myself gasping whenever I convert them to pesos.

I couldn't find my sister's magazines [except for Teens] and bought myself a new Charles and Keith strappies [sale! sale!]. It's cheaper here than in ATC and they have new models. I also indulged myself to a book, The Templar Legacy. It seems that our religion is certainly a hot topic right now. With the movie, The Da Vinci Code [but I honestly think Angels and Demons would have been a better thriller] and Dan Brown's court case against the authors of Holy Blood, Holy Grail, Roman Catholicism is now popular worldwide~ and I'm not referring to the number of devotees. The Vatican is now on spotlight.

Lots of documentaries have appeared on TV, NatGeo shows the Gospel of Judas, a very controversial document that defies our notion of history and Christianity's most hated character. You might want to keep an open mind on that theory. After all, I learned in my class in Philosophy of Religion that the Other, the Absolute Infinite is something that is uncanny, incomprehensible and can never be fully grasped by the finite human being. But despite that limitation, we still have that ontological thirst for the unknown, for the truth [whatever the truth is for us]. Maybe it's true, maybe it's not. Who knows.

The Templar Knights are also becoming a hot item. With their appearance and sudden wealth during the crusades, they have become an icon related to the Holy Grail, another controversial item, which is seen in the latter parts of Arthurian Legends.

Jesus was married? Jesus married a prostitute? Jesus had an existing bloodline? All the while I thought the Merovingian was Neo's enemy [The Matrix: Reloaded].

All these things are making the people crave for more controversies, more conspiracies... all the while ignoring [subconsciously] things that matter most. By the end of 2010, most of Greenland's polar caps would have melted, making Polar Bears more endangered because of their diminishing habitat. Cities below sea level will be gone... the Danube River had started to overflow, submerging nearby European cities.

Our own climate's going bonkers. Summers are now filled with rainshowers and thunderstorms. I heard a typhoon is approaching the PAR [Phil. Area of Responsibility] in a few days. Mother nature is going haywire.

Oil prices are expected to rise to $100/barrel by the end of this year. Fuel-cell vehicles and hybrid cars are now entering the market.

And here I am, unemployed and exhausted from walking across the terminal. I'm smelling the espresso and chicken and Haagen Dazs... all mine for the taking. No diet for today! I'm making the best of this trip!

Transhopping

The trip to Jakarta was a bit stressful. It was the most turbulent ride I ever had [besides the Asian Spirit plane trip to Bora]. It made me remember watching Lost, Alive... those kinds of movies. After take-off, the airplane was already going bonkers. My seatmate had requested for coffee but could not get it from the stewardess without spilling a bit of it. It was the first time I got airsick. But apart from that, the food was great, the inflight entertainment was great. We were delayed a bit at Soekarno-Hatta because of the long queue of airplanes taking-off and landing. The aircraft was a 747-400 series so I got to sit at the top deck. The view was really nice.

Finally made it to Changi and went around for a bit. Changi was on sale... whoop-dee-doo! I went to Giordano and bought the shirts mom, Pat and Anne asked for. While paying, I was short of s$10 and it was embarrassing. I had to run to the nearest money changer to have my USDs converted.

Ok, I'm on my way back to terminal 2, where the action it. I can not believe Charles and Keith are on sale..... *Charles*.....

Haaay naku....

Last Week in Jakarta

I couldn't believe 3 weeks would fly by so easily. Mom, Pat and Anne would complain every time we get on the phone about the sweltering heat back in Manila. At least there are occasional rains here.

Last Thursday, I was surprised to see dad back in the apartment around 2PM. He told me he had a meeting in Sudirman which ended 20 minutes ago. Because of the traffic, going back to his office in Tanjung Priok would take him 2 hours... which means in a few minutes he'd have to head back home.

We decided to watch a movie in Senayan~ M:i:III. We were surprised because movies here are shown 1-2 weeks after they have been shown in neighboring countries ~ they had to put subtitles. I'm not a fan of subtitles because it makes me look at the words and not at the movie directly~ quite distracting.

When we arrived at the theatres, we only had to wait 30 minutes before the next screening. The movie was great! Dad said it was too impossible. I liked the part where a female agent was injected adrenaline. What she did after that reflects what I really wanted to be~ empowered, independent and focused.

After the movie, dad treated me to a semi- 'no holds barred' shopping at Esprit. Grabbing my purchases, I quipped to him that I will study really hard! We ate at Sushi Sei for dinner then bought groceries and Bread Talk before heading home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By Saturday, dad accompanied me to my tennis practice with my trainer, Yaya. We were only 20 minutes into the rally when light rain covered the courts. We still continued. It had been the first time I played tennis under the rain. It was liberating! The air was cool and I didn't feel as tired as the last time.

After tennis, I had a massage. It felt really nice and aromatherapy worked wonders.

By the end of the day, I sported 2 blisters. One was on my ring finger [blister on a blister~ yuck!] and another on the palm just below my ring finger. Anyway, they will go away after a few days. They're just telling me that I need to practice my grip more and make new callouses!

Eww

Last Leg

I'm officially home alone now.

Dad's maid left yesterday~ which was unexpected. She was supposed to leave after I leave. It turned out yesterday morning [as I was watching Sunday morning kiddie cartoons dubbed in Bahasa], she came to me, limping. She told me that as she was going home from the market, she had a hit and run encounter with a motorcyle. As she was thrown to the concrete pavement, passersby ran to grab her vegetables and other belongings instead of helping her.

She came home in bruises, scrapes and bleeding palms and legs. The wounds were gory and morbid; I couldn't hide my gasp of shock and disbelief. She was worse than my brother whenever he would go 'x-games' with the bicycle and end up of the sidewalk of our street. I gave her paracetamol for the pain.

When dad got back from his golf [where he won!], the maid had asked to leave so that she could have her wounds taken cared of. So dad gave her the remaining balance.

Crab mentality is so popular in 3rd world countries. In a dog eat dog society, you can't blame people for applying the adage, 'survival of the fittest'. They live off the misfortunes of other people and try to take advantage of it. That's probably why 3rd world countries stay 3rd world-ish. Nobody wants to help other people. They only want to help themselves.

Take the government for example... but that's another issue.

Patience and Rain

My dad is a very patient man, at least with me. For the past weekends, we have been going to different malls and shopping. As you know, shopping with girls can be very tedious and boring at the same time.

From an interview with a guy, he said there was nothing more boring than sitting in couches and waiting in vain for their girlfriends, sisters, friends, mothers to try on garments they will never buy anyway. Or try on garments of the same style with different colors.

I did just that. We went mall-hopping and then I went to every boutique with a really nice clothing selection, browse through racks and then try on stuff I know I'm not gonna buy. Dad was really patient, waiting outside the shop for about 15-20 minutes. Sometimes, I would buy just 1 piece after trying about 7 pieces.

When we got to the lingerie section, he would leave me to my devices [ie. try on lots of styles] and then just come back if I'm ready to buy. Lingerie in Jakarta is cheaper than in Manila. Wacoal here is priced around 60% of the stuff in Manila. Recently, the mall had a sale with buy 3 for 2 and I'm full of lingerie. Of course, I didn't forget to buy my mom and sister their bras [they know their sizes].

After that, we went to Starbucks to hang-out [dad can be cool if he wanted, really]. We tried their new frapp, Banana Mocha and it was really good. Dad didn't get to finish his because it was too sweet.

After that, we were supposed to head to Pondok Indah to play tennis. Unfortunately, as we got there, it started raining so we had no choice but to have it rescheduled for the next week.

We ate at this seafood restaurant that's out of the way. Despite it's location, it's still flocked by people, mostly expats. And the food is really good. They are only cooked after we order it.

When we got home, I got a pen and paper and started and inventory of the stuff I bought for the day, complete with the item description.

COMPANY PROFILES:
Company names here in Indonesia you'd think twice before engaging in...

1. Bank Jabar - 'Ja' [Jakarta] and 'Bar' [Barat meaning central]
2. Bank Mandiri
3. Optik Melawai

More to come...

Time Flies

I can't believe two weeks already passed.

Time flies so fast.

Dad and I have been bonding this past week and I've learned a lot about him. Mostly he's been telling me about professionalism, ethics and career paths. Most of all, I feel very mature whenever we talk about matters he has never told me before. Family matters, his personal life, basta ganun. We do this as we eat dinner at restaurants, usually Chinese.

I feel mature.

Not that I'm immature all the time...

The responsibility I'm about to take. The overwhelming freedom and independence I'm given since I graduated...

It's all starting to pile on my shoulders. It's not that heavy yet tho..

Anyway, I went to Jakarta to reflect on my future. I wanted to get away from pressures of getting a job and trying to secure a future. But I'm not really sure about the path I want to take. I have a future, but it's still ambiguous and hazy.

I'm glad for the days I'm on my own. Dad's usually in the office but he calls within the day to check on me [make sure I'm still alive or something]. It gives me time to reflect on what I have done, what I am doing and what I will do in the near future.

Two weeks really fly so fast... and even if I have spent those two weeks contemplating and discerning, I'm still very unsure about my life.

Taya~!

the first player of this game starts with the "6 weird things/habits about yourself" and people who get tagged need to write a blog of their 6 weird habits/things, as well as state this rule clearly..in the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names..don't forget to leave a comment that says "you are tagged" in their comments and tell them to read yours.

this is for kris, who tagged me...

1. I have an OC-ness with sunblock... this doesn't mean I want to stay fair-skinned forever. I wear sunblock because my skin is prone to freckles. And the fact that exposure to the sun increases chances of skin cancer. I DO want to have a tan once in a while, though.

2. I'm very careful with my teeth because they are very brittle. Too much flouride while I was still in mom's tummy. I bite my food using my molars. The teeth in front do nothing, except show themselves when I smile.

3. I am a very nostalgic person that's why I can't let go of my childhood things. I've had Pagong since I was 4-ish. And I've loved 80s more than any other generation.

4. Although I enjoy shopping with my friends and mom, I still prefer to shop alone. Besides the fact that I can have my own pace, it gives me time to reflect on my inner thoughts and contemplate.

5. Crying is more therapeutic than sweating it out... mababa luha ko.

6. I have this weird, almost sick fascination with pretty boys... I'm gonna end there.

Anyway, other people to tag...
1. Jem
2. Leanne
3. Paolo
4. Ericka
5. Rach
6. anyone?

The Week that Was

MONDAY:

• Dad woke me up from my beauty sleep to meet the new maid: Ella. She doesn't speak English... yeah, like I know Bahasa... we communicate using what I desperately call hand signals
• Spent the day lounging around. Since Regency is a serviced apartment, had the sheets changed and the floor sweeped and mopped.
• Watched Smallville the whole afternoon.
• Dad and I went to Plaza Indonesia to buy groceries at Sogo. Bought bread in Bread Talk (Bread Talk is such a hit here, even at 9PM, people are still queueing for their bread! The bestseller here is the floss, fire floss to be specific)

TUESDAY:

• Went to the Gym at the 9th floor.
• Pigged out with Chitato...and Cheetos... damn!
• Ate at a Chinese restaurant in Plaza Indonesia for dinner.
• YM-ed my friends the whole night... updated the blog

WEDNESDAY:

• Played tennis in the afternoon at dad's old apartment. Was glad that my trainers still knew me. They told me my stamina went down and my grip was very poor....
• Because of that, I got 2 major blisters in my left hand (poor grip makes the racket twist in your hand as you hit, creating friction, causing skin to thin; water goes to the area to cushion the skin below)... the one in my ring finger had burst during training. It had hurt so bad but I continued playing.
• After tennis, changed my clothes and went to dad's office in Tanjung Priok.

This was along the highway. There was traffic. We were going to exit at Tj. Priok.

• After picking up dad, which was around 7PM, we went to this nearby mall which had Chowking. I ordered Fan Chow rice and halo-halo (yum!) while dad ordered beef and mushroom. We also bought buchi.

SIDE NOTE--- This has been the third consecutive time I've been eating Chinese food. The first one was at Changi Airport and the 2nd one was in Plaza Indonesia. We ate there before as a family... I really can't memorize the name. It has many Chinese characters and the Roman equivalent just spelled it out, rendering it useless to memorize.

THURSDAY:

• The blisters had hurt like hell so I decided to just relax today.
• Finally got the hang of dad's coffee maker. I want to learn how to make a capuccino tho...

This machine required more than just pressing a button. Had to grind the beans using the thingy at the right, then put them on a metal cup, attache them to the underside of the coffee maker, put water then turn on the machine.



This puts my barista skills to the test.

• I bummed around again and watched Smallville. I'm having a Lex Luthor fixation right now. I'm not usually attracted to bald guys but I'm so into Lex and Chris Daughtry of American Idol right now!
• Dad and I ate dinner at a Cafe near our place. But the food and coffee was too expensive (more expensive than a nice cup of coffee at Starbucks). It wasn't special food so dad vowed never to eat there again.

FRIDAY:

• I put my Bora bikini to good use again and went swimming today. It was at the top floor and I was the only one in the pool. I sunbathed first, putting more tan on my legs before splashing in the pool.
• I remember that we were here during the 1998 crisis. On this exact floor, we saw the whole city in smoke. Riots were everywhere and you can hear sirens all around. It was chaos.

But now the city is fine. Life goes on.

• When dad got home from office today, we decided to order Pizza. We got a Personal Super Supreme Pizza, Chicken Wings and Garlic Bread. We ate while watching Monte-Carlo Open. Semi-finals na bukas. I hope Nadal wins.

Anyway, that's about it for this week. Dad and I'll go to Senayan tomorrow and eat lunch at a Japanese restaurant.

Sunkissed Goddess in Jakarta

I arrived in Jakarta last Sunday evening, around 2230, Manila time. I met dad's new driver and sat on his new car (Nissan Xtrail). The trip back to his apartment in Menteng was faster compared to the apartment in Pondok Indah (Menteng is nearer to the airport and the CBD).

As we arrived in the apartment, dad showed me my new room and my own bathroom. I started unpacking and putting my blouses and pants in hangers as well as familiarized myself with the place. His apartment is relatively smaller than his previous.



My recently opened suitcase. Notice the plastic in the middle. It's our birthday gift to dad, now safely resting behind my bed.



My cabinet, which used to be dad's supply closet. Still trying to stuff my clothes in.


My bed, which housed my laptop and pagong (left side of laptop... he was dead tired too!)



View from my window. It was kinda early when I took this pic so it was still hazy.



Typical breakfast... taken around 10AM.

Singapore Slings

I woke up for our flight after a 4-hour sleep. It was Easter Sunday. Despite the fact that I travel to Jakarta on a regular basis, I still couldn't shake off the excitement. For me, traveling would always feel surreal. The fact that you are going outside your country is a very big thing for me. Stepping out to another 'world' is what I feel everytime I get off the aircraft.

Anyway, dad and I got through immigration and check-in pretty quickly (we had a special line, hehe). We stayed for a while in the lounge and ate breakfast. Dad said not to eat too much because the stewardess would keep on asking me if I would like another roll or more coffee.

Anyway, highlights on board the Boeing 777-200:

• My compartment was nearly empty. Because of the fact that it is a holiday and it's the first flight to Singapore. Too early.
• Because of this, the ratio of passenger to stewardess was 2:1. I felt so pampered. She kept refilling my cup with cappuccino and my glass with apple spritzer. Rolls never ran out. She would come back with the basket and I was so full of bread I tasted every variety they had.
• I had belgian waffles for breakfast...yum yum yum... There goes my weight!
• I watched RENT (thank God for Wisemen... you can pause, ff or rewind your movie) and cried at certain parts... it was great. I wouldn't know if the broadway was better.
• My skin then decided to let go of the burnt layer on my upper arms[i love you, Boracay]. I had to go to the lavatory twice to apply moisturizers. sidenote: I noticed the tan/bronze look 2 days after I went home.
• I missed Pagong. I had to check him in with the luggage...
• When we disembarked, I thanked the stewardess for taking such good care of me.

I love Changi Airport! The carpet...the walkalator... the shops [duty free and GST free!]... the lounge was perfect. All the Evian, Haagen Dazs and Lindt you can gobble. Dad and I opted to get out of the airport and go downtown first.

To say that dad treated me like a princess while we were in downtown Singapore was uber understatement. These were the highlights of our 6-hour escapade in Orchard Road:::

• We took the MRT going downtown. It was fast, convenient and smooth. It's easier to travel using MRT rather than take a taxi or bus.
• Orchard road was full of Pinay DHs... since it's Easter Sunday, they all have time-off
• Dad said that most Pinays have Bangladeshi or Indian boyfriends... it's kinda complicated
• Orchard road was also full of hot chinitos...damn...I'm in heaven.
• Lyn Ching was there, doing a segment for some show. Dad and I tried to get close to her so we can be included! Haha, we have star complex!
• Dad bought me iPod video... I swear I will take care of it to the fullest of my abilities. The guy there, Mark, who helped us, is sooooo cute!
• Takashimaya is my favorite mall. They have the largest Kinokuniya in Southeast Asia...they also have designer boutiques.
• We bought Mom's wallet at Braun Buffel. I think we had a discount.
• Gucci was on sale! Haha, like I'd buy from that store and get out in one piece!
• The Bvlgari handbag that I wanted was the last piece. Hahaha
• Dad and I ate at McDo. They had more types of burgers and meals than in Manila!
• We went to Kinokuniya to collect the books that my sister ordered. I love this place so much!
• At Paragon, I bought a nice black skirt. Can't wait to wear it.
• Dad was such a gentleman. He carried everything we bought!
• In the late afternoon, it rained very hard. We were glad we were inside the building.
• We got back to the airport using MRT again.
• We ate dinner at Jade Palace. Food was good!
• I swear the 2 guys who sat beside us are gay. One Singaporean-Chinese and a Caucasian. I heard a bit of their flirting.
• Dad and I went around Changi, checking out the shops. Bought perfume for mom. Dad has a discount card and was able to purchase mom's Lanvin 10% off.
• During our way to the gate, a kid riding the pushcart fell when they exited the walkalator [the walkalator had an elevation and I guess the kid got off-balanced]. It caused a pile-up and dad and I had to walk backwards to avoid joining the pile-up. The kid was not hurt badly; I think it was just shock. Several foreigners helped them.

Dad and I took the last flight to Jakarta and it was only an hour. I spent the flight watching Scrubs, Will & Grace and a bit of the Simpsons. Dinner was shrimp and mocha pudding. I also had a first taste of champagne. I think I had 2 glasses. I was totally buzzed.

Anyway, the next entry will be my first few days in Jakarta.

Oh, yeah, wala pa pala akong Bora entry!

Later.

Isang Tulog na Lang!

One more day and I'll be off to a well-deserved vacation! I haven't started packing yet but I've made a list of clothes and stuff to bring. I packed borrowed One Tree Hill and Smallville DVDs as well as stuff this laptop later.

My dad and I will be spending a month together in Jakarta. He transferred from Pondok Indah to Menteng Regency Apartments. I haven't been there but dad told me there's a pool and a fitness center at the top floor. I feel really guilty that I don't know how to cook that well. I guess I'm not one of those women who really have an innate inclination to the kitchen.

We'll be starting the day by taking the first flight to Singapore. There, we have around 7 hours of downtown shopping. We'll just commute using SMRT to and fro the city. Dad said to minimize hand carried baggage so I'll have to put Pagong in the check-in luggage.

Sorry, Pagong... no more inflight entertainment for now.

Then we'll take the last flight to Jakarta, where dad's driver will pick us up.

Pretty busy day, huh?

Excursion

We do this annually.

During the Holy Week, we would take advantage of the fact that a lot of people are inside their homes or praying in the churches. After Visita Iglesia, we would take a tour of Metro Manila.

The whole Metro Manila.

We would fill the car with gas and then start our trek in places we don't usually go.

Like Avenida...

Bluementritt...

Binondo...

Malabon...

Caloocan...

It's mostly the northern part of Manila.

For me, it's more like a family thing. Since my brother and I learned how to drive, and the fact that my dad only comes home about 3 times a year, it's the perfect way to bond and see the metropolis. But I'm having this gut feeling that this is more for my parents.

They would usually drive up to the University Belt, where their colleges were. They would never fail to show us the street where their boarding house once stood... my dad's boarding house is now a ladies' dorm! I think it's a nice way for them to reminisce their college times. After all, I don't deny the fact that it's one of the greatest experiences of my life.

Dad would always tell us how he walks from his boarding house to his school... that the food they usually have is fried galunggong... that once, he was almost a victim of holdup...

Mom would point out the place where her boarding house once stood. Then tell us where she buys her 2nd hand books... that she would go to Divisoria all by herself, check out shops the whole afternoon and come home with having purchased just one blouse!...

It was nice, seeing the gleam in their eyes as they tell us their own college experiences.

My TOP 10 Teachers

I've decided to dedicate this entry to the teachers who have influenced me to be a
better person. They were part of the memories I had while in Ateneo. Friends are not just the ones we make memories with. It is also the day to day experience and learning with our mentors.


10. Rica Bolipata-Santos (English)
The first teacher I met in Ateneo. She was a very dedicated and passionate educator. She made me love literature even more and taught me how to competently write papers and essays. She taught us life's lessons. She was a feminist and celebrated her womanhood. She taught me that being a woman wasn't all that bad.


9. Dr. Gus Rodriguez (Philosophy of Religion)
I loved his classes because not only does he explains the lessons well, but also I loved his witty remarks and the tips on love and life in general. He gives good remarks despite the fact that he
and his wife are separated (is this true???). This is my favorite Philosophy class because it is grounded on faith and religion, one of the pillars and foundation of my moral values. It gave me a deeper understanding of the incomprehensible and the infinite other. I also loved doing our paper for this class. My paper was on the religious aspect of The Chronicles of Narnia and using Philosophy to explain it.

8. Jules Dacanay (Visual Thinking for Communication Managers)
This class was more of activities and group dynamics. It taught us how to think out of the box and generate ideas from the most informal, most unconventional ways. His activities were really practical and useful for the corporate world. This course gave me time to think about my future and how I can be a woman for others. He IS a woman for others. And Gustav is THE dog for the bitches out there. I don't know if this will offend him but he really reminds me of Jack from Will & Grace. He's casual and elegant without acting girly and a primadonna. I've learned a lot.


7. Pierre Tagle, PhD (Management of Communication Technologies)
You NEVER forget the PhD. I was really impressed, intimidated even by his achievements and
knowledge of the subject. The fact that he is a CIO (Chief Information Officer) made me "ohhhhh...." He really knows his subjects and IP addresses. Despite the toughness of the subject and our lack of technical background, he still made it a point that we got to learn the subject before class ends. I had fun with the experiments. Despite his highly rigid and what I suspect to be stressful routine, he's a down-to-earth person.


Can you guess who are my top teachers???


to be continued.....

The Week That Was-- Part 2

:::WEDNESDAY:::

After waking up late (yes, I just had to stress that!), I prepared stuff to bring to Ginny's place. I had a workout before going to Gracie's to park my car. We had Mang Renato drive us to Ginny's house then to her family's condo near St. Luke's for a night of karaoke, drinking sessions and whatnot.

The night was a blur... I had sisig, Takeshi's castle (for the nth time) rhum coke and 4 shots of tequila (one of those was a death shot). I threw up twice and I thought it was over... man...it was the worst hangover ever!

I wanted to thank my guardian angels who looked after me... Ginny, aR and Gracie. ^_^


:::THURSDAY:::

Woke up the next day with a pounding headache, sore limbs and a kidnapped Pagong (Kris, I did not see that coming!). But despite all that I was able to pose with my barkada for a photo session (what's new???) although I could not stand properly.

I went with Gracie to her home and gave me drugs for the hangover before I went home.


:::FRIDAY:::

We had a date lunch with Sir Ed in Asian Development Bank. Before that, I parked my car (again!) at Gracie's house as Mang Domeng brought us to Galleria, where my ITM 124 family was supposed to meet. I brought Tita Mirla and Tito Balty lasagna for all the trouble I caused their home...hehe...

In ADB, I saw Jem's Koyang... I call him Koyang too... at the dining area and greeted him. He's doing pretty well, I guess.

After lunch, Sir Ed toured us around the self-contained unit (with a pharmacy, gym, bank, landromat and gas station among others) and I was so amazed and impressed at the corporate culture ADB has. Really, I don't mind getting lost in the building.


:::SATUDAY & SUNDAY:::

Yes, I was actually able to spend the entire week at Gracie's place. To be able to watch Iking's band, aka Jeff and the Beanstalk (insert laugh) at Eastwood, I had to spend the night at their place because mom doesn't want me to travel during the night.

The Week That Was-- Part 1

Before anything else, I want to greet my blog a happy 1st anniversary!!! Actually, it was last March 11. Last week was the start of my unemployment mode (by choice, of course!) and one could never guess that it was as busy as school!

:::MONDAY:::
I went to Gracie's place after dropping my sister off in school so we could take the test in IBM in Eastwood. While we got to Eastwood with 5 minutes to spare, we were lost as to where the building actually was. When we got to the proper building and floor, we were already 10 minutes late and were requested to just come back the next day.


Trivia--> Donna, the HR person we talked to, told me that I looked familiar... ok, this has been the 3rd time since the year started that I looked familiar to a person (after the HR people from GE and my future boyfriend Atom Araullo).


Anyway, we decided to go to school to get our graduation pictures, submit our clearance forms and hangout with friends. Thanks to Inca, Gracie and I did not have to fall in line to get our pictures. Thanks to Iking, we did not have to have our clearance forms checked in every office. We checked our Theo oral grades at the dept. I only got a C... darn!


We ate at Manang's for what can be the last time as seniors. Of course, picture-taking is SOP. What with all the cam-whores around.


That evening, our Philo teacher posted our orals grade in the egroups and boy was I surprised to get a B+/A grade. I was the 2nd highest in all his classes and the only one to get that grade. I feel so proud of myself. I guess I have never failed Fr. Ferriols in doing Philosophy, not just studying them.


:::TUESDAY:::
This time, Gracie and I got to IBM on time. We had this time-pressured exam and we didn't know that they did not follow the right-minus-wrong policy (as stated in the questionnaire). After the test, Gracie and I were SURE we would not be able to pass the test.


We decided to burn our frustrations away by going to the gym. I missed my stairmaster!

TV Marathon-ing

I'm so hooked on LOST right now. I just finished watching the finale of season 1. AXN will be showing the premiere of season 2 tomorrow night. I can't wait! A lot of questions raised since the start of the series were not yet answered. But the last episode opened new clues.

Last week, I wasn't able to watch the last 5 episodes of season 1 so I downloaded from the internet. Thank God for broadband and Bearshare... that's why I was able to download all 5 episodes in 3 days.

Actually, I've been downloading a lot of TV series... Desperate Housewives... Sex and the City... Will & Grace... That 70s Show...

I burn them in a DVD and watch them. Now I can watch at my own pace and not be kept in the dark till next week.

First Day of Freedom

I woke up today feeling very relaxed. Since the start of the year, I have been wracked with problems, unfortunate events and godforsaken grades that have kept me on my toes, sweating like a pig (most of the time) and pressured. You can say that I have become a bit paranoid.

But now....

Now...

A heavy weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

Now, I'm worrying about my weight, my trip to Boracay and how to rid my room of the unnecessary clutter.

I started the morning with eating fruits for breakfast. For lunch, I had a meal which consisted of vegetables. Next week, I'll start going to the gym and sweat away the calories I got during March.

I'm gonna spend the day as a bum, watching DVDs, TV and cartoons. I'm trying to go on a healthy diet and avoid fatty and carbo-high foods.

Magis!

Ending With a Bang

I was really pleasantly surprised about the things that have happened this past week. Of course, the pressure was intense, not to mention the national crisis we (should not) have experienced.

But I guess it was all worth it. The sleepless nights, the tears of frustration threatening to run down my cheeks. I spent nights and wee hours of morning in our dining table, away from seducing and tempting pillows and sheets (and Pagong) studying, printing, typing, memorizing and talking to myself.

It was a great experience...college. High school can never compare to the thrill and the exitement and the stress I had in Ateneo. I made a lot of memories with a lot of people.

Our ITM 124 was ok... although I'm not really sure I can get an A in the subject. Our defense was about the medical transcription industry and how to integrate IT to our chosen company to improve business processes.

ITM 189 was really a nice one. We expected a hardcore grilling but we were able to answer our professor's questions.

CTK 41 was the bomb!!! It was a really unforgettable experience. I did not regret having Inca, Ginny, Jake and Alexis as my groupmates. It was the most expensive class ever! But it was all worth it. And yes, we've had our shares of drama, suspense, action, comedy, horror and romance (??).

The showdown between Alexis and Teri were caught on tape!!! A must see amateur video that shows the clash of titans.

My Philo orals were really unexpected. For once, I was able to get a really good thesis statement and I was able to explain every aspect of the statement. My teacher asked me questions and I think I was able to answer them as best as I can. There were no regrets there! It was the best orals I had since my final orals with Fr. Ferriols.

My LS 125 defense was ok... although the panelists really pointed some things and we were caught off guard. They said naman that our marketing strategy was topnotch.

For my Theo, I was really surprised that our teacher did not let us make full use of the 15 minutes alloted to us. Inca and I could have done much better given the fact that we use up 15 minutes. But after we were each given a turn to explain the ideas, that was it... we were done...

And there...I was done. I'm finished with college...forever!!!

It was so fast... it was incomprehensible... I could not believe it.

But there it was... what people say was the most amazing experience in your life... I have experienced it.

Now...

Oh, God
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What am I gonna do with my life???

The Last Days

Tomorrow is the last day of my finals week. I'm off with my barkada to defend our LS paper and end the day with my semester buddy, Inca (she's my Theo and CTK partner and groupmate) for our theo orals.

I'm really sad and a bit shocked that college for me officially ends in a month. I really wanted to spend more time with my friends while cramming school requirements.

Tomorrow, I'm going to the mall to do the things I wanted to do since the start of hell sem... foot spa... facial... massage...

I wanted to start working out as soon as possible so I can choose my tankini or bikini (depends on how my workouts work out) for Boracay.

I want to go to ATC to buy the needed alcohol for Boracay...and probably meet with the south gals and hang out with them.

I want to have movie and series marathons with my girlfriends.

I want to transfer the video of our defense to dvds and hand them out to my Milkwaukers to prove to CEO Steveng that his face during the Q&A was a look of semi-hatred, "piss off" and "i'm smarter than you and I won't accept defeat" at a certain panelist.

I want to fix my bedroom and get rid of school stuff and store my books and papers for reference.

There are a lot of things I wanted to do after graduation. And I can't wait to start!

Breather

I decided to take a break from studying and making papers, oral exams outlines and other shit needed for the last leg of the race.

I've been thinking to myself that I don't want this week to end because it would mean the end of something that I can't let go right now. But with all the stress accumulating, I wanted this week to end. Add the turmoil and crisis that's happening in the country.

For me, this has been nothing but a nuisance. This is just to confuse and threaten the government. And just when you think that at last, we're actually going somewhere.

The sad part is that all of a sudden, the landslide victims in Leyte were pushed aside. As if this never happened and all that is happening is the nonsense coup attempts, the rallies that have no point at all--> I mean, if they want to oust PGMA, they should produce a more capable, more credible and most fit president to lead us all.

I think this is the point that the rallies are going nowhere. The middle class, who have always been the tipping point, could not support rallies because of this point. For me, PGMA is the lesser evil. I can't think of anyone who can lead us right now.

Can't they just rally and protest next week? When we're done with our finals? The last thing we need is to delay our graduation.

Curses

I'm not sure what God had in mind when He (with the help of my parents) made me. I'm allergic to some foods that people would pity me for not being able to stand such delectable cuisine. I don't mind it at all. At least I'm motivated (unwillingly) not to eat so much.

But there's this one thing that I'm allergic to. It's not food. I experienced it recently when a friend of ours celebrated her birthday. After eating out, we went to this bar and went dancing until sunrise. Of course, I didn't notice the effects until 2 days after. I would get hardcore migraine and a tough sore throat to boot. It was getting bothersome and I couldn't concentrate on the times I would study. My eyes felt heavy, like a feeling of being drunk but you're really aware of what's going on.

There goes my night life....

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Ok, there's this another person I'd like to kill when I get better. I'd better not talk about it here. I feel the need to shop...

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It's approximately 3 weeks and 3 days until the end of college. I'm having mixed feelings of "getting things over and done with", and reminiscing and trying to slow down the time. Honestly, I'm not that keen on working, yet. I still want to enjoy my youth and get back on all the summers I missed. If only I could stay in Boracay for a month or so... well... actually I can. I'll have to beg or perform on the streets so I could get the money first.