A Year In Love

We spent our first anniversary in Hotel H2O and Manila Ocean Park <3

Twentyfourth

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Christmas Eve Photo.

Brazil and Back

Went to have my first Brazilian Wax session like an hour ago. It was liberating, sort of. The peeling off of the wax strips didn't hurt, it was applying the wax and applying the anti-inflammation cream after the procedure that hurt more. I thought I won't be able to walk, or at least walk awkwardly for at least an hour, but upon going out of the waxing salon, I was able to cross the street, withdraw money from the ATM and buy McDonald's meal as pasalubong for Mike just fine. So there. I could post a pic of the post-Brazil bermuda triangle but that would be too graphic.

Chrismukkah!!!

Gifts!!

A Diamond Peel Pic

Steamin'. Oyea!

A Manifesto in Support of Choice | Filipino Freethinkers

A Manifesto in Support of Choice | Filipino Freethinkers

Because we SHOULD HAVE A CHOICE.

New Face

First of all, I'd like to apologize for not being able to take pics on my experience. Maybe next time, I'll ask Mike to go in and take pictures for posterity.

So I've always been a fan of skin care, and NOT cosmetics, for I have uber-sensitive skinnage. Though, I don't really care much about cleansers and toners (plus the fact that my face reacts so badly with cleansers - massive breakouts; and toners I feel are a bit redundant, only used it back in college to refresh my face at school after much walking in the pollution-filled Padre Faura to remove all the oil and dirt), as much as I do for moisturizers. I've been using moisturizers since 2nd year highschool, loyal with Pond's until college - maybe because it was the only brand I knew then, I like the just powdered face effect (and I don't use powder because I noticed that I tend to develop rashes when I do; even the swear-to-gah sensitive line of Mary Kay mineral foundations gives me little break outs every now and then), it's available in sachets - affordable enough for a students living on a cutthroat allowance, and it's available even in most of your suking tindahans. Come office days, I looked for other brands because there's so much being advertised on the market, Pond's seemed not to have it's magic anymore and I have a bigger budget to work on. Tried Garnier - which caused massive breakouts. And finally tried Olay Total Effects - which really served it's purpose; so far, the best moisturizer for me. Not switching.

But moisturuzers don't remove the grime of ickyness that builds up around the T-zone. I always do nose-strips, but it is only first-aid. I scrub my face with Apricot scrub or sugar with coconut oil, but again, it's only first-aid. Then because I have even larger moolah I decided I should get facials every now and then in Let's Face It, then Clarity in Healthway. But I saw that the effects are short lived. So my sister-in-law - Ate Myra (Kuya Totoy's wife) suggested I try Diamond Peel in Skin 101, she said that I'd like the effect. She said I should go in the San Joaquin branch because it is not as in-demand as the mall branches, as such they actually spend time on your face making sure the procedure was thorough. She first cleaned the face, applied some sort of very cool cleanser, rinsed it, applied some sort of cream and steamed my face, and about this time I felt sleepy and woke up when she was pricking me already. The girl who did my face was very, very efficient, I wasn't hurt with the pricking, unlike the people in LFI who are like construction laborers. She was even able to remove the annoying milia I had in my nose, plus points for that! After the session, Mike picked me up and when he saw me, he called me "Pink Girl" because he said my face is noticeable rosier and I look so mapute, then he asked what are the 2 wounds in my nose were, I said the girl even removed the 2 milia that bothered me for about a month now - which he claimed he never noticed (aww, he still thinks I'm perfect!) nor remember. I'm not worried about the two wounds, they will heal easily, I have this cream which my dermatologist in Healthway gave me to make sure facial scarring doesn't happen after pricking or other derma procedures. The attendant said I cannot put any products on your face 24 hours after the procedure but I may wash it with water and mild soap only - which is convenient since that's what I really wash my face with anyway.

One DP session is 1k. They even have a 5+1 package - cheapness!!! The branch I went to is open everyday from 11am to 8pm. The session lasts for almost an hour, and it was amazing! It was massive cleaning! I never felt so clean after facials. And my skin felt so soft and smooth and soooo refreshed! It removes the traces of stress on your face.  I'll be going back 2 weeks from now. Maybe I'll be able to take pictures then. And I swear this will be a regular thing! I'll ask my vintage BFFs to come with me next time - my kikaymates since grade school!

Scent-i

Scent. It brings out the best and worst in me. I remember events and people through scents. There are times that I get happy  and find myself smiling by myself in public transport because I smelled something that reminded me of my childhood, like when I smell someone wearing the cologne I used to wear when I was in my "tween years".

Early today, on my way home, I was riding the trike and beside me was this guy. I do not know him, nor did I really look at him, since it was around 5-ish in the morning (and the fact that he is a stranger, I think it would be rude to stare). It was really windy and I was able to get a whiff of his cologne. All I know is he smells like someone I knew. I remembered the person. And I don't really enjoy remembering the said person because it brings back a lot of hate and revenge memories, and memories I've already forgotten or chose to forget; but they just came back because of that one stimulus.

KaBlam!

- KaBlam!

I was Googling the name Mischa which brought me to Mischa Barton, her Filmography and saw Kablam where Mischa Barton played Betty Anne Bongo. No biggie.

I used to sing the Betty Anne Bongo song a lot when I was that addicted to Nickelodeon way back gradeschool-college and I loved that song so much, I'll probably teach it to my babies. Mischa Barton was Marissa Cooper in the OC - which was one TV series I totally love (ran 2003-2007 - my college years); and the endorser of Keds back then - which is still my fave shoe brand.

* * *

Betty Anne Bongo - Betty Anne is the realistically thinking "leader" of the clique. She usually can be found playing her bongo set. She also often sang her own little theme song, the lyrics consisting of: "My name is Betty Anne Bongo, I sing this little song-O, I sing it all day long-O!" Voiced by Mischa Barton.

Even with Eyes Closed

One month or so til our first Anniversary.

My Baby Boy!

Love his eyes. <3 A month + til our Anniversary!!

Pinkish-White (with dark spots) Christmas II

Click on image to enlarge.

Pinkish-White (with dark spots) Christmas I

Auf Wiedersehen, Tante Elena.

In the picture above is Mike and me with tita Elena. The first and last time tita Elena met my husband. Tita Elena is my favorite aunt, no doubt. What's my criteria? Well, prettiness is a factor, amount of papasko (when I was a kid), the aura she evokes and lessons learned from her.

About 2 weeks ago, tita Elena was hospitalized, she fell off tripped beside the stairs. She had to undergo operation, about a week ago, relatives said that she's critical 50/50, then the next day, she seemed to have recovered. But news that she died yesterday around 2 pm came. Apparently, she wasn't able to fully recuperate from the operation. She was just resting in the hospital until she gets better and may be released. We planned to visit her in the hospital 2 weekends ago, but since they're only bringing a car, only kuya Red, addy, mama, tito Junior, tito Ben and mommy (tita) Viring II were able to go. We said we'll visit last weekend, but no one would drive - Mike doesn't know the place and my kuya's were too busy. Around late afternoon yesterday, my dad and the rest of his siblings went to tita Elena and my cousin kuya Rodney drove. I became sad. Really.

Tita Elena is my dad's eldest sister. She is roughly 85 86 already. My lola, Crisencia, first married a German (name undisclosed), and this was the height of Germany's Nazi Reich. Lola Crising had two daughters with the German, Elena and Virginia. But according to my mom's stories of lola Crising's life, the German was cruel and she decided to leave him and split the kids - tita Elena was left with lola and tita Viring I went with the German. She then married a Filipino man, she had 5 children with Gregorio. Lolo Yoyong and lola Crising had Gregorio Jr., Benjamin, twins Alberto (my dad) and Antonio and Virginia. Lola Crising named her youngest daughter Virginia again because she lost her first Virginia.

I was 4 when lola Crising died, and tita Elena was the closest thing to a lola that I had, from my father's side. Tita Elena is funny but soft-spoken, she is very beautiful - up there along the ranks of Gloria Romero; she's very classy and really nice, even to me, who was a hard-headed child. She kisses me and sniffs me when she sees me. I love going to their place in Tanay when I have the chance (not much during college) because her cooking is the best. Her sopas is my favorite - when my mom cooks sopas, I ignore; but hers, I devour - maybe because tita Elena's sopas became my standard to what sopas is good. Last time I saw her was during the fiesta. We went to Tanay to visit her. She told me that when she's watching TV and sees the artista on TV (we don't know who), she thinks of me and boasts to people "na yung pamangkin ko (pertaining to me), ganyan ang itsura", which made us laugh. Then she served a very big lunch for us around 6 dishes and 3 types of dessert; sopas was not missing, she knows how much I love it. I brought the laptop and showed her pictures of our civil wedding - she wasn't there, since we decided to make it a very nuclear affair; I promised her that she'll be invited at my church wedding next year, she was ecstatic about it.

Tita Elena, we love you and we'll miss you. At least you don't feel the pain anymore.

Dodgeball!

In Splash Island with colleagues. The first Asian Dodgeball Summit friendship games. This was wayyy back August 29, 2010. But it was just featured in SU last Saturday.


Note: Please ignore the fact that I am dancing. I was ecstatic then. Ignore my laughs and commentaries while filming as well. I was sleepy.

Memoriam: NU 107

People can call  me a poser coz I go public donning a pink dress and pink lips but when they crush my bones and my bone marrow will spill black oil because despite all of the kikay tendencies, if you'll dissect the innermost of my gut, you'll probably see a black metal studded cuff if you rummage deep enough my insides.

Fifth grade was when I started to actively watch MTV and listen to the radio. Prior to this, I listened to what my brothers listened to, that is Pearl Jam, Metallica, Nirvana, Bon Jovi, Tears for Fears,The Dawn, Yano and Eraserheads. Though pop was big back in '97 (spell boybands, girlbands and the dawn of Britneys), I found myself attracted to watching MTV Alternative Nation and indie-Lilith Fair-esque women on MTV's playlist and listening to NU 107. My first few faves within the genre were Oasis, Matchbox20, Suede, No Doubt, Sarah Mclachahn, Bjork, Shawn Colvin, Meredith Brooks, Blur, Prodigy and Silverchair.

13 years since '97, NU 107 aired it's finale. This made me sad. A lot. I UStreamed the final minutes and I feel like breaking down in tears. The final song they played at 11:59 pm, November 7, 2010 was Huling El Bimbo by the Eraserheads. Fitting. Huling Sayaw, magkahawak ang kamay.

NU has been my source of non-mainstream and most of all substantial music. NU has been home of Gang Badoy and RockEd radio - which I totally appreciate as a sensible  forum that discussed social, economic and political issues and educated the youth minus the boredom and mediocrity brought upon by primetime news, it activated learning and encouraged opinion. I learned in NU 107 what I never learned in UP and at home. The rest is trivial.

When people, or in this case broadcast media of this caliber is lost, it makes me ponder on the future of humanity. REALLY. What will happen to our kids? Will they be forever trapped in an abyss of Disney Channel and pop music, stupidity and apathy? That would be hell, at least in my perspective. That's totally been my pet peeve, apathy and the lack of balls. I vowed to breed a spawn of indie-counterculture-non-mainstream kids who'll go against the flow. Not a bunch of clones who'll take crap just because it's the only thing presented to them.

Rock music (and its sub-genres) isn't just rock music. It's a lifestyle-one that makes sense. And I'm glad I chose it over all the other genres available in the market. Listening to NU and rock music per se drew the rebel in me, and aren't I glad. Thank you, NU. You will be forever, forever missed.

Note: #NU and #NU107 in Twitter. It feels like someone died.

Gluttonous, Gratuitous.

In my effort to gain 2 lbs. I ate a Quarter Pounder with Cheese. Added Fries and ketchup. Yum. Ate it at 10:30 pm with Apple Pie and large Coke Zero, and the rest of the large Fries. ♥ ♥ Will sleep after. :)

BC

Sorry if I wasn't able to post lately, I was busy watching too many movies, sleeping and reading a book. I'll get back to you. I'll just gather my thoughts. Think of it as the calm before the storm.

Everybody's Free to Wear Sunscreen

I heard this on the radio today, while on my way home. Decided on Googling it. Worth sharing.

Ladies and gentlemen of the class of '97: Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blind side you at 4 PM on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium.

Be kind to your knees. You'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents. You never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings. They're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.

Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.

Privacy Settings

I'm making things as private as possible (click to enlarge)

Mike and Mon

I have a neighbor who is Mike's highschool batchmate. Mike's stories of Mon included playing together on the Playstation in Mike's house, girl-chasing, gala and going college-hunting together. On the other end, I grew up having him as a kuya-playmate (I am a year older than his younger sister, though I was a nasty child - I remember closing shut our gate while her hand was still in the gate and she cried like crazy), the guy I call when my desktop computer crashes back in college (he is a computer technician) and the guy who my mom wishes to be my boyfriend when I was in my early teens.

Mike and Mon were both born '83, Mike older by a few months. While his girlfriend and I were both born '87, me older by a few months. Mon and his girlfriend have been together for 8 years already. So when news came that he died last Monday - Election Day and his girlfriend's birthday, I was pretty shaken. Especially since his last Facebook activity was traced 2 hours before he was seen dead, I happened to be online the same time, sporadically seeing his posts and updates - especially the bit on greeting his girlfriend midnight.

Based on the stories circulating about his death, he was depressed. Mainly about his work, that he wasn't able to pass certain exams to be granted entry abroad and news of fights with his girlfriend. We came to his wake earlier - it was his 27th birthday supposedly. And though Mike and him weren't as close lately for we are all busy with our lives, and that I never always greeted him when I see him on the streets, it was sad knowing that someone so young died. He had the world ahead of him, people were rooting for him.

So rest in peace Mon. You turned 27 within your wake, you qualify to be part of the Forever 27 Club. In the words of Kurt Cobain, "It's better to burn out than fade away".You'll be remembered.

Moviethoning

Through  the wonders of certain torrent sites, I have been able to get my hands into a bunch of classics. Since it is Halloween, I have queued a Screamfest moviethon for me, from old to new films. I watched Monster House yesterday and it amped me into watching more halloween-y movies. Planning to watch these titles over this weekend or the next.

• Kabinett des Doktor Caligari (1920)
• Nosferatu (1922)
• Låt den Rätte Komma In (2008)
• Paranormal Activity 2 (2010)
• The Village (2004)

Apart from these, I also am planning to watch Vicky Cristina Barcelona and The Runaways (I just finished watching Rent and Get Him to the Greek)  If I can squeeze them all this weekend. I really don't have plans this weekend, anyway. I just wish Mike will volunteer to buy the pizza. I still am jonesing for pizza.

Supporting the Lola's

I am posting this to push for an advocacy, the victims of the violent Japanese Regime in the Philippines - the Filipino Comfort Women. It's literally been years since the injustice ensued but the culprits remain at large. It's about time, we stand up for the Filipino Women. Noynoy, be a vanguard of justice - the way you package your self to be - and stand up for the Filipino Women.

Sign the Petition Here and See the Lola's (c/o Ms. Gang Badoy so we may see who we are fighting for.

To: President Benigno Aquino III and the Philippine Congress

The Philippine Supreme Court has recently denied again the Filipino comfort women's petition to compel the Executive Branch to take up the cudgels against the Japanese government. 

We, the undersigned, petition to compel the Philippine President and the Philippine Legislature to demand the Japanese government to make amends by providing a just compensation for these women who were victims of Japanese military sexual slavery during World War II. 

We, the undersigned, petition our President Noynoy Aquino to be true to his "daang matuwid" slogan by taking up the cause of the Filipino comfort women with or without the decision of the Supreme Court. We urge Pangulong Noynoy to discuss the Filipino comfort women's demands with Japanese officials during his scheduled visit to Japan on 14 November 2010. We also petition the Members of the Philippine Congress to take this cause on behalf of the Filipino comfort women. 

We, the undersigned, challenge the Philippine Congress to pass a resolution demanding the Japanese government to formally acknowledge, sincerely apologize and accept historical responsibility by providing just compensation to the Filipino comfort women. This was done by the U.S. Congress, Canadian Lower House and the Dutch Parliament. Why can't the Philippine Congress do the same? 

As of December 2005, 45 of the 173 Filipino comfort women already died. Should we wait for them to all die before they get the justice they are longing for? Justice for the Lolas Now! I Support the Lolas' Quest for Justice

 Sincerely, 

The Undersigned

Erwan Heu-what?!

I saw a couple of pics of Anne Curtis and boyfriend, Erwan Heussaf (brother of Solenn Heusaff). When I saw it, I cannot help but think that the scene is totally like something Mike and I would be in. I would be gabbing non-stop while he looks at me, sits quietly and listens. I dunno this Erwan really, but he reminds me of Mike too much. Plus the fact that he's got the same facial hair, jawline and lips as Mike does is a plus.

44.5 kg

I've been getting a lot of "Pumapayat ka" comments lately. I don't know if I should be happy about it since I'm not trying to lose weight at all. I'm not in any form of diet; I eat 5-6 times a day. Even my husband will attest to it, I eat more than he does, especially when it comes to the 2 evil carbo-sources: rice and fries. Yet I manage to stay below the 100 lbs mark because all those stuff I put in, is no match with all the stress I have. Considering my relatively simple and laid-back lifestyle compared to the other people around me, I get stressed a lot - reason why I swear by clean living, spend my weekends just at home resting and never have been a fan of the party scene.

The Friday before last Friday, I woke up really, really dizzy and nauseated I had to take a night off and use my sick leave. I went to the doctor the next day and explained everything that happened, the nurse took my vital signs. Normal temperature, low blood pressure (80/60). The doctor gave me prescription for Serc, deducing the incident to have been caused by vertigo; and requested that I undergo blood test, ECG and 2D-Echo. After starvation (the blood test requires I fast for 8 hours) and much pain (the 2D-Echo hurt my breasts so bad), lab results show Sinus Bradycardia (ECG) and normal heart (atrium, ventricle, etc) with small main pulmonary artery. In other words, no major illness. The doctor said that it was purely stress-related and that I should just take multivitamins, Centrum in particular.

So maybe the 2 month Management Training I had - twice a week, 4 hours pre-shift; management mentoring, the daily deadlines and neverending urgents from the bosses, business sideline, running a household, bills, groceries, blogging and reading books took its toll finally.

There. I'm stressed. Best way to lose weight. Works for me.

WIYKK?

Joice tagged me. What's in your Kikay Kit. And so here it is :)

My Kikay Kit. Top View.

Transparent for ease ;P

Everything that's in my kit ALL THE TIME.

Mary Kay Blush (Cherry Blossom); NYX Eyebrow set (Dark Brown); Vitress Hair Cuticle Coat; Maybelline Cat Eyes Mascara; Maybelline Color Sensational (Cozy Tangerine); NYX Black Label (Summer in Hampton); NYX Round Lipstick (Snow White); Kiss My Face KIDS Lipbalm (Berry Smart).

Bench Paradise Body Spray (Hula Girl); Fanny Serrano Slim Eyelash Curler; Goodie Hairbrush; Compact Mirror with built-in lights (free from Ponds 2 years ago); NYX Lip Liner (Nectar); Eyeliner (so tagal na, I forgot the brand); Mary Kay Mineral Foundation (Ivory)

Charmee Napkin (just in case); Close Up Toothpaste; Colgate Travel Toothbrush; (in clear pouch) Mary Kay Blush Brush & San San Powder Brush.

I have 3 lipsticks to match my mood/ clothes. One in a screamin red shade, one in pink, and one in peach tone. The Kiss My Face KIDS lipbalm so far is the best lip product for me (really prevents chapping!). I like the Slim Eyelash Curler coz it reaches the innermost and outermost lashes (which is major problem for me coz my lashes are so short and thin). The Mary Kay mineral foundation sets really nicely (and I don't feel choked the way liquid foundation makes me feel), plus it doesn't make me itch a lot of products make me itch (talk about uber sensitive).

So there there.

Open Letter

Newly-Elected Barangay Officials:

Good morning! For your first day of work, your duty is clean up your mess. Make sure that all campaign paraphernalia - posters, flyers, tarps, etc - will be properly disposed, AND RECYCLED if possible.

Welcome to the team! We're looking forward for a great service. And always remember, we ARE paying you (even though we don't really want to).

Signed,

Your Boss (The People)

***

I woke up early to be at the polling precinct as early as 7 AM to cast my vote. I hope that did not just go to waste.

Lost Boy

It's a year already since we lost our baby. In my gut I had a feeling that our first baby would've been a boy. Mike's little clone... My OB said that it would be best to have a baby a year since the miscarriage. It's been a year now, and technically I should be physically ready to be pregnant again. But it takes more than being physically ready. I need We need to be ready in all aspects of my our being.

Hometown

About 7 years ago, when I started college, tell people that you are from Taguig and they give you the evil eye and ask, "Where the eff is that?". Fast forward to today and say Taguig, and it is almost as popular as Makati, Pasig, QC or Manila, and that is pretty neat.

Went to MC Home Depot at BGC with the boy, my mom and my niece (because my current project is to renovate our kitchen - a very expensive idea of a Christmas gift to my folks, I must tell you, now how did I come up with that?!)  and was able to take some pa-cham-shots. For the rest of the potodokyu of the day, they're in my FB.

Dark Clouds over MC Parking Lot

32nd and 5th

Waiting for the car.

There's our ride :)

The Real Zombie

I was able to capture a very compromising picture of the boy in zombie (slash-autistic) mode.

Real Life Zombie

The Effin "H"

People ask me why do I put an "H" at the end of my nickname. Most suspect that it is some sort of a phase that I refused to outlive - putting random Hs in your name, which might have been the forefather of jejenism. Some would doubt my grammar nazi tendencies and pet peeve for sticky keys when they find that abominable H after the first three letters of my name.

So to make things clear, my official name should've included the despicable H, but come birth certificate, the H was omitted, and left me with an A and an L right beside each other, when the H should have been between them. Blame it on the midwife, the civil servant who type-wrote it or to my parents who did not give OC-specific directions. So now, you know, it's not vanity.

My family made me aware of this typo error when I was 5, when they printed out in the dot-matrix computer printer a streamer that says "Happy Birthday ---h!". I had to ask them why there was an H, because when I write down my name in my pad paper, it doesn't have an H. And that's when they told me the story. My mom and dad were too lazy, too broke and find the idea of spelling too trivial to go to lawyer to have it corrected through some affidavit of sorts.

When I was six, I had my first slumbook/autograph book and while I was filling it out, my mom said I should put '---h' as my nickname. You see, when I was at that age, I rarely rebel and not do what the elders tell me to do.

And so there. That's where the "F" "H" came from.

To end this post, watch this vid:

Make Pepper Spray ! (homemade Teargas) - Watch the top videos of the week here

Froyo Love

One of my fave movies of all time is Clueless. I also watched it when it became a TV series (shown in ABC 5, when I was around 10 or 11). I also read the Clueless books (shallow, I know). Cher and De always eat frozen yogurt instead of ice cream in their school cafeteria. Since then, I used to think what frozen yogurt tastes like, so I would buy yogurt, freeze it, eat it and love it (especially strawberry). When I first saw BTIC, like around 7 years ago and figured that it was frozen yogurt, I tried it (strawberry of course), but it was, how you say, "Epic Fail". Then the real frozen yogurt shops start popping out of nowhere, and key food establishments now include it in their line up (Pancake House, Kenny Roger's, Teriyaki Boy). I had my first froyo-orgasm in Red Mango, but it was kinda pricey, so I tried other stores. After failed attempts, I had my froyo-orgasm-turned-multiple-O with Yoghurty, plus it was cheap! PhP65 for the regular cup (which I always get), PhP95 for the large cup and PhP15 per topping - and there's a wide variety of toppings just like RM. And they even gave me a loyalty/ VIP card - I get to have free toppings after certain number of froyos consumed. I love Yoghurty the most! Here are the froyos I love so much...

Stock Market; Strawberry Fields

Pancake House Gurts; Grape

Red Mango; Crushed Ice, Kiwi and Grape

And finally...

Yoghurty; Kiwi and Granola

The Naive Leap by Ala Paredes

Read the entire post here.

After reading the said post, there were tears involuntarily flowing from my eyes. Maybe because I chose to be naive and not jaded; and that's quite a first - I've always chose to be jaded on some of the most important aspects of life. I guess I'm a romantic, I also figured that I am sort of conservative, even judgmental on certain issues that revolve around it, I also found myself thinking of a lot of I should'ves on certain things but I still felt lucky that I get to experience the Naive Leap Ala was talking about. We didn't prepare too much, we didn't think too much, we just followed gut. News of being married at age 22 tends to elicit a deluge of mixed reactions, opinions and emotions, especially to people who doesn't know what's happening within the corners of our home, but I'd say we decided to get married for the correct reasons; even after losing the baby - which people might think was the only reason we did.

Though what really annoys the socks out of me along the lines of this topic is when people ask, "When will you have babies?". I literally want to punch people so their front teeth will fall out when I hear this. I want to come up with smart-ass retort and be as insensitive as they are but I guess I've mastered being calm somehow and I just answer "Ayaw pa namin". Why the need for such questions? To pressure? To make us experience whatever it is you're experiencing? To prove a point that the reason we really decided to get married was because of pregnancy? You don't know our timelines, let alone our mental processes.

In spite of that certain pet peeve, so far, it's been pretty successful. Perhaps because we're not as naive as expected, we're not going through the motions yet: we don't have a baby, which makes living a hundred times easier for a couple; we both have stable, decent-paying jobs that can take care of the bills and some; we're not trigger happy when it comes to our vanities; we're able to sustain and maintain Maslow's heirarchy of needs: physiological, security, belongingness, esteem and a bit of self-actualization.

We just took a naive leap. Sure, it is a "blank cheque" as Ala puts it, but we decided on this based on our need and want to be together, without the I-love-you-I-hate-you-I-leave-you-let's-get-back-together-coz-I-love-you-again-but-then-again-I'm-not-so-sure shenanigan. Sure, we might have construed timelines when we decide to do certain things and accomplish certain goals, but if things doesn't work as planned, we'll still push through. Because at the end of the day, it's about a commitment to make it work, TOGETHER.

Taho Love

I remember being a little girl on summer vacations waiting for the Taho Man to come by our house. A small plastic cup of taho was a peso them. The name of the Taho Man was Willie. I used to ask him, to put extra arnibal, no sago and pakihalo, I even carry my own mug. Willie was ok with it, even if my mug was bigger than the usual plastic cup, after all, I was his suki.

But now, I am an adult and I don't have the luxury of summer vacations anymore, I cannot wait at our house's balcony waiting for the Taho Man. And my only source of taho was at the basement level foodcourt, near Market!Market! supermarket (sounds overly redundant). But I thought their serving was too big and the arnibal or what they call syrup is not as sweet as I want in to be, plus I now have the option for additional toppings: garbanzos, red beans, mango... but that's not just how I want my taho.

But lately, despite the fact that I'm usually a street food snob unless it's in Diliman or Banchetto, I've been buying taho from this one man in C5, at around 5:30 AM, when I'm on my way home from work. He's usually by the footbridge. It's just one Taho Man, I've tried the other Taho Men there, but only this one Taho Man can really deliver how I want my taho, his arnibal is extra sweet (the others have some bitter aftertaste) - maybe because he puts 4 scoops of it, the other's only three; and he mixes it twice - first after the 2 arnibal scoops before putting the sago and the 2 other scoops of arnibal, then mixes it again.

Extra arnibal, pakihalo but with sago this time (I don't remember anymore why I don't like sago then).

Old Skool Taho

On Surveys

I'm a part of the Global Test Market Team. I love surveys. And I even love more the fact that the surveys I answer are part of research/studies. This one particular survey I'm answering right now, might be a deciding factor on the passage of the RH Bill into law. Stoked to do the survey. Join GTM if you're interested.

Townhall Make Up

Celebrating the company's 10th year, we had the annual party done at 10.10.10 over at the World Trade Center. Townhall. Too bad I can't sneak Mike in. The theme was Ivy League or better yet "US Preppy". But I am so sure that every girl in the world will think of dressing up as Blair Waldorf , so I reckoned I'll dress up as Jenny Humphrey instead. Plus Warren said his vertical are supposed to be rockers. And no one overrates herself as rocker quite like Taylor Momsen does. It was fun, I guess. Though this ain't really my scene. I missed a lot of people though. WTC was a pretty big place and I can only cover limited space in my heels... 

So anyway, I asked begged Joice to help me with smokey eyes, she texted me the instructions. But I had very little time to prep and I cannot find the blending brush, so I settled for cat eyes, or my attempt to do cat eyes. But for my first time to do such look, I'd say I'm pretty okay. No one recognized me (they all thought I was... wait for it... Anne Curtis, ohyea).

Came in with nude lips, doublethink.

Decided on RED lips

Giving myself a pat on the back for another DIY make up moment. I know to pull off Taylor Momsen, I could've donned a few more tons of black eyeliner, but I'm not a big fan of racoons.

Help?

I'm trying to un-Google my life. I need to really change my blog URL. But my brain is dry and cannot come up with a good one. Help....

Version

My version of Yoanna House's ANTM photoshoot.

It sucked, I know. But good enough for Take 1

Secret to Happiness and Success

I am one of those people who doesn't believe that caffeine and energy drinks can fuel the body for a very looong day. Neither do I believe that yosi can calm down nerves. But then again, that's just me. I used to down caffeine, energy drinks and yosi in back in college. Only to find myself almost paralyzed near The Powerplant-Rockwell one school evening, cannot move my limbs, lips and vomiting on the gutter.

So my body tends to overreact to caffeine, nicotine, among others. Caffeine makes my heart palpitate in the beat of the drums of war. Nicotine somehow causes my body to numb up. Mix that up with a serving of a toxic day's worth of work (schoolwork then), very little sleep and my moderate claustrophobia, and a re-run of the Rockwell episode might be in the making.

And so, with the graveyard shift supporting my otherwise frugal existence in the past 2 years or so, meet my friend in the past 5-6 months(?).

Melatonin.

This is Melatonin. It helps me induce sleep fast and makes me sleep deep, just like I used to when I was sleeping at night. I take the 1mg GNC capsules currently, but I had first dibs on the 3mg Lifetime capsules (I found out that the 3mg Lifetime capsules make me want to sleep for 10 hours everyday, a bit too much). Sleeping with the sun up can get really tiresome, especially since I can't sleep with the lights on, then add the tropical climate, ohmy. I realized that I can only perform at optimum level when I have at least 7 hours of sleep, any less than that and I get cranky, moody and inefficient. Plus when I sleep this long, I don't need vitamins anymore, or a shrink, cuz I seem to be incredibly balanced. Mellow, steady type of efficient, I am not fond of jumpy, crazy efficiency, that tends to be erratic.

And since smoking never really did good to me, I replaced it with McDonald's French Fries. But just like any vice, it seemed to have a downside. The doctor said my sodium intake is high and I need to hydrate much to wash out all the salt from my fries and be bouncy healthy happy. But I'd take that instead of lung cancer. I really hate being hungry, I eat every 2 -3 hours, 3 full meals and 2-3 small serving snacks per day. I think my usual daily calorie intake is around 1200 calories, except of french fries days. (And to all the people who will react and tell me that food in McDonal's is junk just becaue you watched some YouTube video or Supersize Me, oh please! You won't stop me. And I bet Krabby Patties taste just like Big Macs!) And so here's me pigging out on the evil fries *nomnom*.

Yosifries <3

Two (Large) Down!

And the lesson of this post is: People tend to rationalize their vices by saying that these things make them feel good, or fuel them. They abuse their bodies then turn to energy drinks, coffee and cigs to cope up with the stress and all. When I think we all just need to eat and sleep on time. I don't do crazy diet plans, binge eat and play with my weight as if it's yoyo anymore. I make sure I get sufficient eat and sleep everyday. EVERYDAY. And look at me, I'm a happy camper! This ends the self-help portion of my blog.

But what works for me might not work for you. Whatever floats your boat, baby! Just my opinion.

Rock Inspired 3, 4, 5...

http://saabmagalona.tumblr.com/post/1119251722

http://saabmagalona.tumblr.com/post/1007845602/dec-2009

http://saabmagalona.tumblr.com/post/961113035/a-couple-of-guys-were-going-around-taking-photos

I love Saab, that's why.

Rock Inspired 2

H&M Leather Biker Jacket, H&M T'shirt, La Redoute Derbies // "Rock'n Chic" by Chloe Marie A. // LOOKBOOK.nu

Rock Inspired 1

LOOKBOOK.nu: "Stockholm" by Marianne T.: "Alexander Wang Bag, Rock N Blue Leather Jacket, AA Tee, April 77 Jeans"

W2W?

What to wear in the upcoming Townhall - a company event/party. That's my problem now. How shallow.

And if I can't find the killer outfit, I just need to have killer make up. Joice, help me... glam-goth-look tutorial :)

Next up, I'll be posting inspirations.

The Art of Blogging

Three people are back to blogging. That's me, her* and him*.

Back in college, due to the shortage of worthwhile social networks (i.e. no Facebook yet so we were stuck with the oh-so-ancient-design-and-function of Friendster), me and my circle of friends used to blog. Even mini-posts that could count in present time as status-update-worthy only, we blogged. We blogged anything, everything. My goal was to tell stories, share opinions and be highly Googlable; more search engine hits = happier me. It was pseudo-celebrity status. O, the fame.

I guess things changed since then.

He* is now known for evading Google.

The same thing applies to me. Notice the profile name. And I've been trying to have my name removed from the Google-able search words. But somehow, I haven't done enough privacy setting to succeed. I also am still deciding if I'll keep my blog URL, I might change it, until I come up with a good codename. I stopped using clandestine usernames by the middle of college because I tend to forget them a(nd Jobstreet says that using codenames are not very professional).

So there. Blogging demi-anonymously. There's a face but no name. Back to The Big Bang Theory.

*Friends whose names will remain unmentioned

The Vatican

Me in the Vatican... not

Mike and I saw (passed by, really) the Vatican Observatory Exhibit. And I saw this massive St. Peter's Basilica cut out. Excuse my face, I didn't have anything on, even lipgloss or moisturizer, I just came from the dermatologist. I posed in front of it and thought the photo Mike took was actually decent enough to punk people into believing that I'm in Cittano del Vaticano. Molto Buona!

Zombie

Mike woke up around 3am on a weekend while I was busy designing my blog (I was busy blogging the past few days, I decided I'll do this daily if I can). He was amidst sleep cycles, peeked from the blankie and said "Zombie, zombie!". He's got some cojones to call me a zombie when he's the one holding the record for being online 24 hours straight - just playing online games.

You be the judge on my zombie-ism, he pap'd me while I was busy.

An Opinion (because there is NO Absolute Truth)

I said I don't want to blog politics anymore. But I feel like this one is inevitable. I am merely speaking as a woman, an educated woman who cares for her body and the future of her soon-to-be-family, who is aware of the dangers of giving birth and how mothers die giving birth when it could've been avoided to start with, the peril of sexually transmitted diseases spreading, the degrading economic conditions and how poverty is at all time high. Yes you might judge me for my agnosticism, or my past and current political affiliations for my biases, and that I am a rebel without a cause bratting my way into this debate.

I am not as articulate as I used to, I realized; I have not read 60-page readings on the subject at hand to back me up. However, I cannot quite create a coherent wordplay to express my disdain on the Catholic Church for spoon-feeding, if not brainwashing their followers into a state of sublime naïveté on the matter. Again, I am not an expert; I will not debate and challenge friars, fanatics and pompous asses. This is just my two cents, free-flowing.

The Bible did not fall from the heaven, inscribed by lightning, landed on earth to be our sole guide in everything. If anything, it is a history book, a literary piece, a constitution of sorts if you will; and just like any constitution, it may be subject to amendments once it's proven to be untimely. Jesus, is anything, is an icon, a revolutionary. I am not an atheist, though. I do believe in some form of Higher Power or Supreme Being. But the dogma of Catholicism is too much. Believe me, I studied in a "Catholic School" and was even dubbed Best in Christian Living. But if there's one thing that I understood well in the Old Book, it is that human beings have freewill and I am merely practicing it. That has been my principle. Freedom. Tolerance. Freewill. I am free to to know, to understand, to analyze, to challenge theories and create my own ones if I found those existing to be insufficient and incapable of satisfying all my questions. The world, the society we live in, the technology we posses exists because of people who ask, who challenge and are not satisfied with what is just being handed to them. I feel the deepest of contempt to the blind followers.

Sure, the natural family planning method worked back circa 15 AD to 1940s, when the earth still needed inhabitants. But now, people are fighting for the most basic resources to survive. I think earth doesn't need more inhabitants, I'm definite we're nearing the threshold of earth's capacity population-wise. The people are suffering because of this: low quality education, high poverty rate, rotten health care and social welfare programs, mass hunger. Awareness is the key to responsibility. If the Church continues to instill the idea of 'sex is taboo', people will never learn.

Sex is good, it is primal. The result of which is an infant (Juno, 2007). But if the parents cannot provide a good life to the kid, if the parents cannot even provide nourishment to the baby because they have seven more that they also need to feed, if the children resort to begging in the streets, if the mother will have to die giving birth because of lack of options, leaving the father raising a kid by himself, if the children will have to literally fight for a chance to quality education and health care. Wouldn't it be nicer if the couple had an option firsthand on how they'll go about with their sexual affairs and were clear with the size of the family that they want? As such all the needs will be provided to these children. I am all about family, it should provide the children the proper building blocks of life, values and principles for the next generation who will inherit our country and our world.

The RH Bill is not about legalizing abortion. It must be seen and understood in it's complexity, how it has the capacity to solve the grassroots problem that escalates into the economic crisis we're experiencing. It is about giving better options, to provide better life that will produce better people that will create a better country and a better world.

I've heard this on the news, unsure of the verbatim, but in essence: Catholics are not to be bound by the RH Bill. My reply: Filipinos are not bound by Catholicism neither. We are all only bound by our own decisions based on freewill.

A Year (Almost)

Mike and I got married last year. December 18, 2009. A week before Christmas. No fuss, civil wedding, simple, nothing was carefully planned, and I loved that about it, it was spontaneous, it was like getting married in Vegas.

It was a very sedated celebration, no room for pomp and parade. I put on conservative make up and put my hair in a bun, wore a white dress, that was it. With only the closest family members - they are the only ones who mattered after all. I did not bother to get other witnesses as well, my brother and Mike's sister did fine. Our family had lunch and that was it. We went home and lived our normal, monotonous lives again.

Here are some photos from December 19, 2009.

We were so embarrassed having to kiss in front of everyone.

And now, it's been almost a year since we got married. And I wanted to celebrate our first anniversary extra special. So I've been researching where we can spend it. I was looking first at Thunderbird Poro Point in La Union, Mike wanted to go to La Union to surf and I wanted to go there to get the Santorini vibe, but when I tried booking online, everything was taken already. Of course, second choice will be Thunderbird Rizal, but it seemed like we'll have a really hard time getting there if we brought a car, Angono is unfamiliar territory for both of us; and if we got a cab, odds are we'll be paying a lot because Mike's been there before - business purposes - and he said it was far from the main road. And so I next decided that perhaps we should stay within Metro Manila, if not, just within the outskirts, and so I was torn among Marriott Manila, One Tagaytay Place and Antel Spa Suites. For some reason, I am not quite satisfied with these top three choices, maybe because there seemed to be nothing new about them. Until  stumbled upon Hotel H2o and it's Aquarium Rooms. Take a look at this room...

I told Mike about it and he was stoked with the idea-something new (he was so-so with the first few choices as he is kinda bored with the idea of the usual hotel room, after all, we've been to a lot). And so we'll stay there and I'm booking online and I'm excited!

Restoring Our Sanity

One of what I consider as the best source of unbiased international news happened to be The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. It's funny, unlike the usual boring international newscast and opinionated, the fact that I usually share opinions with Jon Stewart created my bias. So anyway, Jon is calling to arms.

Watch the rest of the announcement HERE.

The Boy

I am on a new blog, so just to keep everyone abreast, I need to give a refresher course on what you might have missed. Either way, you can always check the Older Stories link at the header part.

First off, I'll introduce The Boy. The boy I'm spending my life with. His name is Mike, a gorgeous and cutesy-patootsey furball of a Mapuan Civil Engineer. He loves ice-scramble, kare-kare, pizza, toge, dodgeball, airsoft, beaches,  autocad, watersports, the gym and ME. He makes me happy like Skittles and froyo does. We got married December of last year. So far, we're having a blast in this married life.

Me and Mike at Kenny Roger's. *nom*