Ramblings of a Wanderer

Thailand's Got Talent : Boy or Girl? (English Subtitle)

2011-03-21T03:18:00.000-07:00

Sweet november

2010-11-01T04:14:00.000-07:00

Happy all saints day!

It's going to be a very sweet november this 2010! :).

You Get What You Pay For

2010-10-03T07:04:00.000-07:00

I've just moved into a new company. I started working there last week and I just can't get over how different it is from my previous company. I don't want to bad mouth my previous company but, boy, was I just surprised with the difference.

First of all, this new company of mine specializes in human resource services. I won't go into the nitty gritty details but basically what the company is very good at is offering solutions (advice and technology) to other companies on how to attract and retain employees. Each offer and each benefit and each rule have been well researched before giving to the employees. It might be too early to tell, but so far, I've noticed that my teammates are generally happy and well challanged. My boss has been with the company for 16 years! My team has been there for 2 years and only 5 people have resigned since its initiation.

My gosh! I was used to having people resign every month in my old company. Within this year, 10 people have left our team, and it's just October! The reason behind the monthly resignation is that our company offers such a small salary, very few benefits and poor management. I acknowledge the fact that it's just a small company and I truly believe that they're at least trying to improve the working conditions. However, you do get what you pay for. Not being able to compensate the employees properly will lead people to feel under appreciated. But this alone won't make them leave. Other factors include:

lack of communication with management
too much politics
lack or unclear company vision and goals
too much stress

Most of these factors were present with my previous company. I admit, I liked my team. But then again, just having fun with my teammates will not enable me to achieve my goals. I do miss everyone, but I'm not a person who would dwell too much (there are exceptions). All I know right now is that I'm excited to see how much I would grow in my new company. Like I said, you do get what you pay for.

Related to Perfect Timing

A New Day at Newport City

2010-10-03T06:22:00.001-07:00

My family and I decided to visit Resorts World in Newport City and find out what the hype was all about. It's basically the new mall in front of NAIA3. It also has a hotel - Marriott which is the go-to place for casino addicts.

The mall wasn't quite finished yet but the ambiance reminded me of my time in Las Vegas. They had a lot of branded shops (which were mostly soon to open) and of course the casino which was filled with people (even though it was 11 am).

It was our scheduled movie day and we decided to watch Charlie St. Cloud. I was surprised with the price of the movie (Php 500!!!) but the woman behind the counter explained that the cinema had lazyboy chairs, unlimited popcorn and drinks and butler services. The other movies ranged from 200-300 PHP. We decided to push through with it for the experience.

Turns out, we were the only ones in the cinema. No so surprising since we caught the morning movie and the price. The seats were very comfy and the attendants were very courteous. They took our orders and returned promptly with a large tub of popcorn and large cup of drinks. Each seat also had doorbells which connected to the assistant's area in case we need anything. Now that's proper service.

Well, the movie was, thankfully, a good one. However, next time, I'll only watch a movie at Newport's ultra cinemas for a movie with a minimum of 2.5 hrs. Plus I will not have lunch beforehand. After all, I get to have my money's worth of unlimited popcorn and drinks!

Amazing Wonders of our Ancestral Country

2010-08-10T18:48:00.000-07:00

This is definitely a place which I would like to check out.

http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/none/15-places-see-china-arent-great-wall-863654

Doing what you Love

2010-05-18T05:08:00.000-07:00

It has been almost a year since I last blogged. And what a year it has been!

Good bye 2009 and hello 2010. So many changes have happened and I don't even know where to begin.

I've discovered that sometimes, no matter how hard you try and no matter what success you achieve, if you're really not into your work, you really won't be happy. There are also times when your work which returns so little, would give you so much joy precisely because it is what you love to do.

I've found that... well at least for now part time. And I'm happy.

Colossians 3:23 "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not unto men;"

Please support beep beep adventure tours! Biyahe na!

Smiles and Hugs

2009-08-03T18:45:00.000-07:00

I browsed through a site called "Makes Me Think" or MMT for short. It's basically a site where people place inspirational snippets of their lives.

"Today, I was in a really bad mood when a young girl came into my office sporting the most genuine smile I’d seen in a long while. She was bound to a wheelchair because she had no legs. MMT"

A smile can really do wonders.

I've been feeling a lot of negativity here in the office for a while now. Honestly, I'm not as happy here as I was before. Either I need a change of scenery or a change of reaction. Having a change of reaction is easier said than done. Maybe a change of scenery isn't so far off...

"Today, a complete stranger outside a local coffee shop was holding a sign that said, “Free Hugs.” I hesitated at first, but then I decided to give her a hug. Truthfully, it felt great! MMT"

Even virtual hugs will do. Just knowing someone's there to comfort you.

Love Through Time

2009-07-29T08:35:00.000-07:00

I've just finished reading The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. Admittedly, I just started reading that particular book after I saw the awesome trailer. What can I say? I'm a visual person. I like books but sometimes I just need a little motivation by Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana holding hands to make me borrow the book from a friend (Thanks Berenice). Please do not read this blog if you do not want to see spoilers.

The trailer: I loved it. It was perfect and I couldn't help but have goosebumps. The background song was perfect (Broken by Lifehouse).

The broken clock is a comfort, it helps me sleep tonight
Maybe it can stop tomorrow from stealing all my time
I am here still waiting though i still have my doubts
I am damaged at best, like you've already figured out

I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing
With a broken heart that's still beating
In the pain, there is healing
In your name I find meaning
So I'm holdin' on, I'm holdin' on, I'm holdin' on
I'm barely holdin' on to you

The broken locks were a warning you got inside my head
I tried my best to be guarded, I'm an open book instead
I still see your reflection inside of my eyes
That are looking for a purpose, they're still looking for life

I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing
with a broken heart that's still beating
In the pain (in the pain), is there healing
In your name (in your name) I find meaning
So I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'), I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'), I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin')
I'm barely holdin' on to you

I'm hangin' on another day
Just to see what you throw my way
And I'm hanging on to the words you say
You said that I will be OK

The broken lights on the freeway left me here alone
I may have lost my way now, haven't forgotten my way home

I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing
with a broken heart that's still beating
In the pain(In the pain) there is healing
In your name I find meaning
So I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'), I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'), I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'),
I'm barely holdin' on to you

I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'), I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'), I'm holdin' on (I'm still holdin'),
I'm barely holdin' on to you

The Book:

It's a classic love story with a twist. I love the part in the book when Clare said she had no choice. She has already been destined to love Henry since she was 6 years old. Not time, distance nor death can erase/lessen the love she has for that man. I remember a conversation I had with a friend regarding this story. He said that with a love story like this, it seemed like a matchmaking session in the olden Chinese times, where you had no choice but to follow what fate/the parents/the matchmaker gave you. You just had to go with the flow since you know you'll be together eventually. I mean with Chinese matchmaking before, the first time you'll see each other is during the wedding and you'll have to spend the rest of your life together, getting to know each other. With Clare and Henry's love story, it had a happy ... story (Can't think of a better word).

Next point, I wonder if it was better for Clare to have not met Henry? Would it have been better for her to end up with another man (Gomez), who's also in love with her but without the burden of having to time travel? She's periodically lonely, waiting and waiting for Henry to come back. Would it have been better to experience blissful happiness for a short time rather than be satisfactorily satisfied for a long while? It was bliss for her when she was young because Henry was like a surprise from Santa Claus popping out every once in a while. But once she got married to him, he's periodically gone. Periodically, in and out of her life. My answer is that if it were me, I'd choose to be blissfully happy for a short while, because at least I'd have no regrets.

A strong theme in the book is also the exercise of free will. It takes a strong person not to change the past. A lot has happend to Henry, and as a time traveller, he has the choice to change everything once he goes back. But he chose not to. I think he could have also changed how or when he could die. But then again, changing the past or future is a tricky business. I always belive that God has a purpose for everything and even if you try to resist, you'll always be led to your destined path. Now what of free will? We still have our free will, but He can predict our moves and then provide alternatives.

Also, until the end, I was wondering about him not showing up to visit Clare in the future but he always chose to visit Alba. My guess is that it would be harder for Clare to move on if she always sees Henry. Alba, meanwhile, still needs a father's guidance. She needs Henry to show her the ropes in time travelling.

Now here's my favorite quote from the book.

Clare, I want to tell you, again, I love you. Our love has been the thread through the labyrinth, the net under the high-wire walker, the only real thing in this strange life of mine that I could ever trust. Tonight I feel that my love for you has more density in this world than I do, myself: as though it could linger on after me and surround you, keep you, hold you.

Rituals for Success

2009-07-29T08:08:00.000-07:00

It's been so long since I last blogged. Frankly, It's because I quickly lose interest in things I've started. For example, here with blogging, I would be engaged in blogging for around 2 weeks and then after that I'll move on to another hobby. That's the problem with having so many interests, you just can't stick to one. The main thing I really want to achieve is success. Success in a single thing at least. I don't want to be a jack of all trades anymore. It's tiring and I always feel like a newbie in whatever I do. I want to excel in something, something I can be proud of.

I came across this website which described what I needed to do, have rituals. Do something regularly. For example, If I want to become good with baking/cooking, I need to dedicate one day in a week (Saturday or Sunday) to bake/cook. Having a ritual would enable you to practice that skill regularly and thus improve on it. I remember reading a chapter in the book, The Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, regarding a similar theory. Practice will always make perfect. If you dedicate a certain time for a goal of yours, eventually, you will reach it.

Now, I've decided to create my own rituals. Here's a list of the things I want to start doing:

Exercise every morning (Yoga or Dance videos).
Swim every Sunday (hopefully this can be done 3x a week if I can find an indoor pool).
Spend at least an hour everyday learning a new technology.
Spend at least an hour everyday checking stock market news.
Bake/Cook a new dish once every week.
Bible study twice a month. (Currently in progress)
Research on a new business/trend.
Finish reading a new book each month.
Spend at least an hour everyday catching up with family news.
Practice Mandarin everyday.

Now what to prioritize? Well, probably the exercise ones first. Think I can keep this up for the next 30 days? Well, we'll just see....

Prayer for me from a friend

2009-06-26T19:56:00.000-07:00

Dear angel...

Please take care of raine,
kasi mabait naman po sya ...
pag tulog.

Oops!
Ayan na po
Gising na sya
paki DOBLE na lang po ang pagbabantay sa knya.

:D

Beach Buddy

2009-06-04T19:35:00.000-07:00

If I had to choose the best beach I had gone to for 2009, it would be Caramoan in Bicol. I didn't understand why Survivor France and Israel had to use Caramoan as the venue for their show before. But after visiting the remote island, I do. The place is relatively a virgin still. Not many people know about it unlike Boracay but the place is amazing. white sand, crystal clear water and thriving marine life.

The hard part is reaching Caramoan. From manila you either have to ride 10 hrs of bus trip or a 1 hr flight to Naga, then ride a 1-hr bus or van to the port and another 2 hours of boat ride. But its all worth it. Once we got there, we were the only ones roaming the islands. My only regret is not being able to go to Gota Beach Resort since it was closed to the public. The shooting for Survivor Israel was taking place there.

Now the question is, why are foreigners the ones benefiting from the beauty of Caramoan and not the Filipinos itself. For me, no other country has the best beaches other than the Philippines. And we should be proud of it.

Travel Blog: Trek the Terraces [Day 0 - 1]

2009-04-10T11:19:00.000-07:00

April 3, 2009

After weeks of excitement and anticipation, the day to leave for Sagada finally arrived. MJ and I were the ones who suggested to join the travel factor tour instead of creating our own since we were all girls. The tour did a damage of PHP 4,900 for each person. Doing a self tour would probably cost around PHP 4000 and is quite easy because of the Visit Sagada and SAGGAS website but since it's peak season, we decided that we didn't want the hassle of planning it ourselves.

Tiff and Danica joined the tour as well as Tiffany's bf, Lionel and his friends. My officemates, meanwhile, took the place of MJ's three friends who had to back out because of an emergency. Bedette was also supposed to go with us, however, due to a business emergency, she had to back out as well.

7:00 PM

Emil, Rich, Jack and I were supposed to leave the office early to beat the weekend rush and have dinner (and Emil's nail cleaning). Unfortunately, our meeting went on for sooo long that we left the office late. And as luck would have had it, we couldn't find any free taxi!

7:50 PM

The meeting time at the Cable Tour E.Rodriguez bus stop was 7:30 pm and we'll be leaving by 8 pm. Good thing we were able to catch up. We were the last ones to arrive actually. I found out that there were seating arrangements! Boo! Oh well, turns out that the who bus wasn't rented by Travel Factor so we had to follow their call. Tiff, Lionel and his friends were on the other bus so there was no time to catch up before we leave.

9:00 PM

Left the station at around this time. Finally! The trip begins. I was so excited I couldn't sleep. When I did eventually fall asleep, I had 'The Killing' dream. *Sigh* Good thing I woke up because we had our first stop somewhere in Bulacan.

April 4, 2009

6:00 AM

We had our first glimpse of the Banaue Rice Terraces. And just as I expected, it was majestic. Most of us were still sleepy but that didn't stop us from energetically posing and taking pictures of the famous terraces. I'm a mountain person which is why I was in my element there.

I remember that back in grade school, our teachers told us that this was the 8th wonder of the world. Imagine my confusion when I learned that there were only 7 wonders of the world. But I agree that this could be included as a world wonder. You can just see the work and dedication it took to make the terraces what it is today. Unfortunately, I think the younger Ifugaos do not maintain them and do not find farming appealing which is why you can see some wear and tear in the walls. I wonder who it would feel to trek up the rice terraces? You'll definitely need stamina for that!

I could have gone on and one taking pictures of the place but the bus driver gave us only around 15 minutes. So I had to settle for taking pictures through the bus window.

11:00 am

I'm not completely sure about the time but I think this is when we arrived at the Cable Car Restaurant in Batad, Banaue. I was surprised to see another friend there, Torie, who went to college with MJ and I (CCS girl).

MJ, Dan and I were hungry but the travel factor representative, Tikoy Tan, started off with an orientation and gave us our shirts and IDs. Finally after about 30 mins (or was it an hour?), we were all ushered to the kitchen for a hot plate of breakfast. The moutain coffee and a full meal finally woke me up.

1:00 pm

We finally arrived at Sagada! Unfortunately, my attention was caught by the HUGE mosquito on my very colorful bag. Grr, and I couldn't get it off at all. Good thing MJ was there to help me.

It was kinda traffic in Sagada since the road was only large enough for one vehicle. We had to walk to our inn but it was alright because the weather was so good.

We were staying at Alibama Inn and Resto Bar which was just in front of George Guest House. The place was very nice and cosy but had no hot water and only had common comfort rooms (one for the men and one of the women). Good thing most of us on that floor were friends (Thanks travel factor ).

2:00 pm - 5:30 pm

We had our lunch of yummy fresh veggies and adobo. I don't know what's with the food here in the mountains but they are sooo good!

After a few mins of unpacking and freshening up, we were called out by the guides to start our tour. First stop was the trek across the rice terraces to Banga-an Falls or more commonly called the Big Falls.

When I saw the jeep which would bring us to the drop of point, the first thing that came to my mind was that I needed to experience riding on top of it. Tyron, our guide, told us it was safe so I climbed up at once. MJ, Rich, Jack and Emil followed suit and spent mintues deciding how to position ourselves because both Emil and I were accident-prone.

It was like roller coaster ride because of the uneven pavement. I kind of had a hard time taking pictures because I was too busy holding on the railings. Most of my pictures had Emil's head in it. Boo! The five of us became the automatic horn of the jeep since we were the ones shouting whenever a car is approaching on the bend. It was the perfect time to ride the top since the breeze was just cool and the sun wasn't too hot.

Once we reached the drop-off point, Tyron, our guide, gave us an orientation and background of the terraces (which I couldn't remember).

And off we go!

The weather started out fine, but since I was there, of course, it just had to start raining! Seriously, everytime I go on a trip, it would just starting raining there. I'm sooo blessed! hehehe

The hike wasn't too bad. The scenery was beautiful which took away some of the fatigue. Tyron was also very helpful. Danica had quite a hard time but he assisted us along the way and answered all of our questions. This let to Danica telling him, "Kung magkakaanak ako, ipapangalan ko siyang Tyron". To which MJ then replied, "Si Tyron nalang dapat asawa mo."

I didn't take much pictures since I didn't want to get my precious D50 wet. My Canon Ixus was also a new one so I didn't want to bring it out. However, the shutterbug virus inside me just couldn't resist so I finally used the digicam to take snapshots of the view.

It was raining quite a bit harder when we arrived at the Big Falls, but I enjoyed it all the more. Like I mentioned before, I'm accident-prone and had my first gasgas when I slipped while going down the water.

The water was ice-cold but you wouldn't feel it being submerged in it after a while. The area's quite rocky and steep at the middle.

It would have been better if there were only a few people in the area (just like when we went to Busay Falls in Bicol) but alas! we were part of a group of 56 people. It was quite hard to take pictures of the place without someone in the background. This was the most beautiful falls I've seen so far. Definitely worth the climb, but I wish it wasn't raining. I could have taken more pictures.

There was nothing exciting on the hike back. We were all hurrying to get back to the jeep because it was getting dark and we were soooo cold! Brrrr...

6:00 pm

Nobody sat on top of the jeep on the way home. And most of our group rushed to the comfort room to take a bath but MJ and Tiff requested for hot water for us so we had to wait for it. MJ, Tiff, Lionel and I had our dinner first. As usual, fresh vegetables were part of the meal.

Tiff, MJ and I were the last ones to take a bath and it was definitely worth it to wait for the hot water. hehehe

8:00 pm

After freshening up, Emil, Jack, Rich, Tiff, Lionel, Danica, MJ and I went to look for Lemon Pie House which I heard served the best (well what else?) lemon pie.

Their specialties were the egg pie and lemon pie each for PHP 20 only. Personally, I liked the egg pie better because it wasn't so sour plus I like the creamy consistency. Most of us were quite full so we opted to share the dessert. As usual, MJ was the one who finished all the food (with my help, hehe) PG mode again. I wanted to go to the Yogurt House but Tiff said that since we still had some free time tomorrow afternoon, we'll just go then.

On the way back to our inn, the beautiful night sky caught our attention. There's just something magical about the night sky in the province, with all the stars so clearly littered across the sky. You just can't get a view like that back in the city. (It's so polluted!) Tiff, Lionel and I enjoyed taking pictures for a few mintues before heading to bed. I really should learn night photography, 'cuz the picture I took didn't do justice to the beauty of it all.

10:00 pm

Bonding moments with my roommates. MJ and Danica wouldn't stop joking that a mananangal would come and take me away since I slept beside the window. I was too tired to be scared haha.

We could still hear faint sounds of reggae music but it's off to sleep for us since we had to wake up at 4:00 am for the sunrise at Kiltepan Point!

Mcdo's First Love

2009-01-13T08:04:00.000-08:00

I rarely appreciate commercials these days because for me, most of them are really stupid. I mean they're just flashy and all but they are meaningless. Mostly, they incorporate loud 'catchy' songs which just irritate the hell out of me. Or they use the famous celebrities' testimonies to encourage viewers to buy their product. Seriously, they spend millions for a 30 second commercial and they can't even make a commercial that's worth their money.

Now I've always liked Mcdo's commercials, but the latest one, first love really caught my eye. Here's the video. I hope they make more of these.

Stumbling through the Net

2009-01-12T05:41:00.000-08:00

I had a relatively boring day at work today so I decided to visit one of my favorite sites during my thesis days... Stumble Upon. Basically, its a website which links a lot of different interesting websites with topics you didn't even think existed. I used to spend hours and hours in with this tool just browsing through different information.

So if you don't have anything to do, try this one out. But beware, this can be very very addictive!

Quick Videos with Qik

2009-01-11T18:59:00.000-08:00

My supervisor came across this cool new website where you can live stream videos from your phone.

Basically you can upload any content up to the website and share it with your friends and family abroad - realtime. This is a really cool piece of innovation!

http://qik.com

Why I Love 2008

2009-01-04T05:07:00.000-08:00

Before I officially welcome 2009 here's a list of why I love 2008.

1. A lot of firsts

First time I got assigned to lead a bible study.
First time I went to a gay bar.
First time I went to Boracay.
First time I went out of the country with friends (Singapore-Malaysia with the Formdev peeps - Jas, Jen, Jao, Paul, Walton, Calvin, Yang)
First time to Graduate college at last!
First time to learn how to play the guitar.
First time to learn how to bike.
First time to cook new year's dinner for the family.
First job at ACS

2. A year full of new friends who made a difference. These friends helped me through my best and worst times this year. They were even the ones who taught me new things.
3. Closer family ties somehow, with my immediate family and with my cousins.
4. A lot of new realizations of dreams. I guess I could say I know myself better.

Job Hunt

2008-11-03T04:39:00.001-08:00

After graduation and all the trips I've gone on, I finally wanted to settle down and find a high paying job. Well, maybe not high paying job but I job which I would really enjoy... and I thought I found it. What I didn't take into consideration is the declining economy of the Philippines.

Here's my story. I went on a series of job interviews and exams and got accepted at Logica and PLDT which I both turned down since I still had vacations planned as well as me not liking the job/place/salary they were offering me. Then, Headstrong offered me a two-week training on Natural-ADABAS which I accepted. I also refered 7 of my friends there. I didn't like coding too much but I had a blast training with my friends and some new people. We were 14 in all in that training 12 of which came from DLSU. The training isn't a guarantee that we will be accepted in Headstrong but you could consider it a two-week entrance exam. I didn't excel there but I was pretty sure I passed, the trainer said so himself.

After that, I decided to help my mom out with her business in Davao and had time to reflect on what I really wanted. It was during this time that Lawson called me for their bootcamp training which starts on the first week of November. I had my phone interview with the HR and she invited me for a panel interview with the 5 managers of Lawson. I was attracted to their bootcamp because it has a 3-month training wherein the 8 chosen participants are rotated around the 5 different departments and allowed to choose which department they want to go to. This is perfect for me because I'm not really good in IT so I'll need the training. Besides, IST jobs are really hard to come by. So the thing is, I had a wonderful time in the interview and all 5 of the panel were laughing by the time we finished with my interview.

While waiting for the result of my interview which was scheduled to happen after a day, I scheduled interviews with Information Gateway and Knowledge Channel which were both related to IST. Then I got the call from Lawson that I was one of the 8 who passed and will undergo the bootcamp starting 1st week of November. The asked me to take a medical exam courtesy of their office and after they get the results, they will show us the job offer. The HR even called me again after my medical exam to make sure that I didn't miss any requirement.

The next week, while I was waiting for Lawson's call, Headstrong called. Turns out, I was one of the top 5 in the training and was invited to see their job offer. Only 5 out of the 8 of us friends were given the job offer. Of course, it left the others kinda disappointed. My other 4 friends were seriously considering taking the offer already but I was very hesitant. After all, I already had Lawson's promise of an offer and I like it better there. Headstrong gave me less than 24 hrs to decide at which I decided the next day to decline. Less than 1 hour after I texted Headstrong, they called up one of my friends to take the spot I declined. During this time, I was already very anxious because I still havent' received any news from Lawson so I decided to text them. No reply.

The next morning, I woke up with a text message from Headstrong saying that if my plans change, I shouldn't hesitate to call them. But then, I recieved news that all 5 of my friends signed with Headstrong already. Besides, I honestly didn't like it there all that much. I mean I like the work environment, the people are awesome but the work isn't something I would like to do for the next 2 years. That afternoon, Idecided to call Lawson. When the HR answered my call, her first words were ' Lorraine, I was just about to call you.' What a lie! Then she proceded to tell me that they cancelled the bootcamp and stopped hiring. So the question in my head was why the hell didn't they call to tell us? I asked one of the 8 who was also supposed to be part of the bootcamp and she didnt know anything at all. The thing is, it is not the company's fault if they became victims of the declining economy. But couldn't they have at least the decency to call us and tell us that they're stopping their hiring process? The managers of Lawson were right, their HR sucks.

So here I am now. I've stopped job hunting for now since it's almost the end of the year and most companies wouldn't be hiring anymore. I've just made plans to earn money in a different way... maybe this new failure I experienced would lead me to a new and better plan for my life.

Life's Funny This Way

2008-09-11T09:18:00.000-07:00

Graduation of course leads me to think about my career path and honestly I don't know what I want to do. All I know is that I just love traveling.

The thing is, I never really realized my passion for traveling until I was able to travel without the restrictions of a travel agency and my parents. I want to explore the unknown.

I was talking with a friend of mine and sharing him about my job hunting problems and basically this big 'C' problem (career problem) and his answer was so simple. I should do what I love and since my current course is not about tourism or traveling why don't I take it up again as a short course?

Wow. Boom!

I finally have a direction... yeah.. so why don't I study it?

Funny thing is, we're not very close, but he was able to provide me an answer that I couldn't see was right in front of me.

20 Questions

2008-09-10T08:50:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to watch the play 20 questions since forever and at last tonight, I got the chance. Even though it was raining hard and some of my friends had a lot of things to do, we really set aside time for this.

We had an impromput adventure since we couldn't find a taxi to go to Univ of Makati. It was raining hard and the 5 of us only had 2 umbrellas. We eventually rode MRT and LRT but still couldn't find a taxi or jeep to take us from the station to the place. finally, we were able to convince a taxi to take us all in one taxi. We were already late since the show started at 7:30 and it was already almost 8pm. We were running hard and thank God there were still tickets. we were already thinking of scenarios if the tickets were already sold out.

20 questions is a play made by Juan Ekis. A few years before, it was circulated through email and became one of the top love stories online. 2 years ago, they made it into an official play and now they had their 2nd run. It's about a girl and a guy who're part of the same barkada and victims of a tradition in their barkada where they are locked into a room together for 24 hours. Basically what they talked about are about love, sexuality and morality which I think are issues of our generation today.

This play is something most men and women could relate to. I guess you can find Yumi in a lot of girls right now and Jiggs, too. Watching the play led to wonder if there still is a Jiggs out there, and I guess I could say yes. Someone who still has his morality intact is hard to find and a treasure.

Raindrops Keep Pouring

2008-09-09T04:42:00.000-07:00

It has been raining for 2 nights now. The rain often leads me to only two things, sleep or ponder on the absurdities of my life. How apt it is that tonight, it was raining again when just a while ago, in the midst of friends, I still felt that raindrops were also pouring in my heart.

Two major questions ran around my mind these two days.

Who do I admire the most?
Why is everything I do just not good enough?

First, who do I admire the most... After 2 days, I still can't answer that question. I have a list of names people usually answer like Jacqueline Kennedy, John Gokongwei, etc and I realized, that whoever I do admire will be someone who I want to be also. Someone whose career is one I want to follow. I then asked myself, then what career do I want really? I want to be a chef, baker, designer, producer, director, photographer... but I'm seriously not good at any of them. The thing is, if I really am serious about any of them, then I would have at least one idol in every field. It just seems that I'm interested in the superficial things but I don't really dig in deep. If I really think about it, I guess this is how I've been living my life for the past 23 years. All the do is skim the waters, but I never dive and get really into it.

This leads me to my 2nd question, which I believe was already answered by my first question. I guess the event that triggered this question was the videos which I slaved over for 2-3 days weren't even shown during the presentation date and they were even considering removing one video althogehter. I sacrificed my time and effort for that and it really seemed like no one even appreciated it. Fine, I shouldn't be looking for apprecition all the time, but I'm just human and its hard to take away that pride inside of me. I know that what I edited wasn't the best quality... there were still errors and the color was a bit dark but I did the best I could in a short time... the least that they could have done was show everything today which was the deadline. I understand that he had a lot of things to do and a lot of things on his mind, especially the spiritual growth of the people. The logistical stuff like these were just minor, however, I wish that he would also think of us.

Now, I made a few resolutions. Resolution of a new graduate (in present tense):

I'm not a crammer.
I schedule everything and know how to prioritize.
I know when to say 'NO'.
I put my best effort in everything I do.
I'm happy.

With God's grace, I hope I can do these things.

Something's Coming

2008-09-07T05:41:00.000-07:00

I just watched West Side Story staring Joanne Ampil and Christian Bautista yesterday Sept 5 @ the Meralco Theater. I was convincing both Barias and Jao to write both their (tragic) love stories at Our Awesome Planet so if one of them wins, the winner would get 2 free tickets to the show and of course give one ticket to me. However, as both of them were too busy with thesis and everything, I just bought last minute tickets.

West side story is a gang version of Romeo and Juliet. Everything here happens rapidly since Toni and Maria (the leading characters) fell in love in the first 10 minutes of the show and the next 2 hours was spent fighting for their love. Everything about their love story is just too fast. I guess I just can't understand what love at first sight means, without experiencing it for myself. In all honesty, I didn't really like the play all that much because of the beginning of their love story. However, I just loved how they fought for each other and understood each other in the midst of all opposition.

My favorite is the song 'Something's Coming' which is about feeling that something new and exciting is going to happen in their lives even without them knowing what it is.

Could be!
Who knows?
There's something due any day;
I will know right away,
Soon as it shows.
It may come cannonballing down through the sky,
Gleam in its eye,
Bright as a rose!

Who knows?
It's only just out of reach,
Down the block, on a beach,
Under a tree.
I got a feeling there's a miracle due,
Gonna come true,
Coming to me!

Could it be? Yes, it could.
Something's coming, something good,
If I can wait!
Something's coming, I don't know what it is,
But it is
Gonna be great!

With a click, with a shock,
Phone'll jingle, door'll knock,
Open the latch!
Something's coming, don't know when, but it's soon;
Catch the moon,
One-handed catch!

Around the corner,
Or whistling down the river,
Come on, deliver
To me!
Will it be? Yes, it will.
Maybe just by holding still,
It'll be there!

Come on, something, come on in, don't be shy,
Meet a guy,
Pull up a chair!
The air is humming,
And something great is coming!
Who knows?
It's only just out of reach,
Down the block, on a beach,
Maybe tonight . . .

This was the song Toni sang before meeting Maria at the dance that night. I guess the reaon why I like this so much is because I'm feeling the same way. That something exciting is going to happen to my life soon. Well I hope something exciting does happen. Because I'm really tired of my old boring life. I feel that I need something new, something I've never experienced before... *sigh* I want more than just computers, coding, flash, editing, thesis and DLSU. I guess I want to experience the rush of adrenaline by plunging into the unknown. This is why I crave travelling so much. I want to meet new people too. I love my friends right now, I really do, and I don't want to be disconnected from them, however, my craving for a new life is what is burning inside me right now. I just hope and pray to God that I would find a job abroad so I can get a taste of independence.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

2008-09-03T09:14:00.000-07:00

I just learned how to play this song in the guitar. How apt that it was another formdev friend who taught me this and now I dedicate this to my wonderful FORMDEV family in DLSU. I had a previous blog about them around a year ago when Gucci was about to graduate. His leaving was the first time I cried. We made a video in his formdev memory. When he left, it was probably the first time that I really felt that someone was missing in FORMDEV. He was a huge (literally and figuatively) part of the family that I had a hard time imagining life in FORMDEV without him.

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go
I'm standin' here outside your door
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye

I remember the last recollection we had during the summer of 2008. Brother Ceci was the one who took the pictures of us leaving the house a few people at a time. Walton was the one who showed this to me again.

I guess I was just reminded how fleeting time is. Every moment we don't grasp with the people we love, is a moment we'll never get back. I had so much time with them. I was with FORMDEV for 4 years or so but I never really appreciated them until this last year. People would always leave, no matter how close you are because goodbyes are part of life.

But the dawn is breakin', it's early morn
The taxi's waitin', he's blowin' his horn
Already I'm so lonesome I could die

I'm really sad about leaving college right now. I never thought I could feel this way because I thought that the last stretch of my college life was just full of school work and thesis. If the years in my college life will be given a value (1-sad; 5-happy) it would be like this.

Year 1 - 3 (Pabunging bunging lang)
Year 2 - 4 (cool IST tlga... making the most out of everything)
Year 3 - 4 (roller coaster love life)
Year 4 - 1 (pressure, pressure and pressure plus of course lots of failures)
Year 5 - 4 (moo bonding but towards the end, nawala narin kasi grad na)
Year 6 - 5 (nothing beats the extreme friendship of formdev)
Irnonically, the best years of my college life were the last years when i was actually already delayed. It's not that I didn't enjoy being with my batchmates and blockmates, but I guess in both moo and formdev, I found people who really have the same values as me. So now I'm really sad because I'm leaving just when I'm experiencing the best parts. I can't not leave, this was what I've been waiting for for a long time. This was what I worked hard for for more than a year. But I've come to love these people - Jao, Walton, Calvin, Jas, Jen, Paul, Jder, Jeri, Milton, Harry, Carlo, Waway, Chester, Em, Bari, Cecille, Eddie, Adz, JayR, Nicole, Chantal, Klindt, Rigor, Patrick, Raisa, etc. My BS group was the closest group of friends I've ever had in FORMDEV and I'm so happy that I accepted that ministry task. God blessed me with true friends and helped me grow in Him and with each other.

And this term, I just can't describe the closeness we've finally experienced with each other. The tears, and laughter we'ver shared are immeasurable. Every moment in the FORMDEV room is a moment to remember (add more if you have some more memories).

Nicole's uber corny jokes
Girl bonding and chikahan
Chika minute interview about 'issues'
VO for our thesis (Rigor's fan sound)
thesising at FORMDEV
gaming at FORMDEV
eating, and hiding from the DO
Walton and Carlo's antics
Guys' asaran, kulitan at lahat lahat na!
pakikipagtalo sa bulldog DO
BS moments - sharing and trusting

So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go

That goodbye session during the recollection was... indescribable. The last time I did something like that was during the HS retreat. Everyone was crying and hugging. This was the most emotional goodbye FORMDEV has ever had. There are 15 graduates but 20 newbies. More came in than those who will go out. We had a reason to celebrate because FORMDEV will continue to live on. But then again, those newbies never had the experience we had before. There were some people whom I hugged whom I didn't want to let go, even those newbies. The short time we had spent with each other was enough to form a bond, a bond that was created even before they came in because each faci is already connected with each other.

'Cause I'm leaving on a jet plane
I don't know when I'll be back again
Oh, babe, I hate to go

I'm definitely leaving FORMDEV for greener pastures. FORMDV helped me start my relationship with the Lord, but it doesn't mean that I'll be there forever. I can't imagine how Doc feels everytime someone leaves, everyone of us will eventually leave but he would always stay in FORMDEV which is his baby. The people before like Franco and Abro and Gucci tried all to come back, but then it's hard with work and all. Afterall, we all get other responsiblies as we grow older.

There's so many times I've let you down
So many times I've played around
I'll tell you now, they don't mean a thing

Pasaway ako sobra dati. Muntik na nag ako magquit e. Pero in the end, these people still accepted me. I just have to thank the people who convinced me to stay on and not give up. These are the oldies who truly know what it means to be a faci.Thank you so much because I was able to experience a different kind of closeness with you guys.

Every place I go, I think of you
Every song I sing, I sing for you
When I come back I'll wear your wedding ring

So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go

'Cause I'm leaving on a jet plane
I don't know when I'll be back again
Oh, babe, I hate to go

Now the time has come to leave you
One more time, oh, let me kiss you
And close your eyes and I'll be on my way

Dream about the days to come
When I won't have to leave alone
About the times that I won't have to say ...

"once a faci, always a faci."

Growing In Love

2008-09-03T07:32:00.000-07:00

August 27, 2008

I turned 23 on this day. I had so many plans. I wanted to do so much. I wanted to try out new things such as trekking, biking and fishing during my birthday, but, unfortunately, I can't. Because I had to do my thesis.

The thing is, I realized that I didn't need to plan so much to have fun. I went to school that day and saw the friends who made my day. I never realized how much love I've been given until that day. The simple texts and the simple msgs, the casual greetings and the smiles. I didn't need a gift that day. Just the gift of love, which I knew I got loads of.

I started the day with my mom. We had girl bonding over coffee and breakfast at UCC. It has been a long time since I really bonded with her, and this time, I was on equal footing with her. After all, I'm soon graduating. I guess she now regards me as a confidant rather than just a daughter.

Then I headed off to school where I met Barias who went to school early to teach me to play the guitar. The first time I held a guitar was during my first recollection workshop in Lasalle. Dane was the one who tried to teach me how to play but I just couldn't learn. It was only this time when Barias, with the help of Jao, had the patience to teach me that I finally could play my first song, "Leaving on a Jet Plane".

Afterwards, I went to mass to spend time with God because after all, without his help, I wouldn't feel so contented. Barias accompanied me there. I realized that no matter how much effort I put into something, it would mean nothing without God's blessing. I'm glad after so many years, I finally went to mass just to thank Him on my birthday.

After the whole afternoon of thesis, my family fetched me at school for a dinner at Midtown. I was so happy with them. We're not really a very close family, but that day, I guess I just felt so blessed having all of us together - laughing and talking. I guess I've learned to appreciate my family, faults and all. It came with age too I guess. I'm mature enough to accept that my parents are not perfect because they're humans too and it's my job as the eldest to help them too.

On August 27, I not just grew old, but I grew full of love, happiness and laughter. Thank you so much to everyone who had a part in my growth. I love you all so much. Some of you havestayed a lifetime, some lasted for a while, but in anycase, I just know that you've left a lasting memory.

One Lost Night

2008-08-17T21:19:00.000-07:00

I met up with an old friend last Friday in Makati. He was my blockmate but I haven't seen him for a while. Funny thing about us is that we weren't close when we were still blockmates, but got to know each other after he transferred to another course. I guess it was again, my fault since I was the one who was uberly mean to him. But let bygones be bygones and fast forward to now.

After our dinner, He accompanied me to the MRT station in Ayala. Unfortunately, the station was jam packed! I mean the line snaked around thrice and reached the front of SM's entrance. It was raining and a friday night, so what could I expect? I decided to just take a bus home. My friend was a bit apprehensive for me since he knew I'm not the commuting type of person. I assured him that I knew where I was going ... and so I rode the bus in Ayala Ave that said SM Fairview. It was 9 pm.

When the ticket man came, he told me that I should have rode another bus to my destination which was Quezon Avenue. Stupid. Stupid. He told me to just get off at Cubao and take whatever there. Since I knew that there was an FX from Cubao to Quiapo which would pass our house, I decided that it would probably be a better route.

Unfortunately, when I got there, I couldn't find the FX to Quiapo. I asked around but they were all headed in different directions. It was around 10 pm then. I decided to just take a cab home but since it was raining, it seemed that everyone else had the same idea. There were no taxi stands around. I waited first at Gateway but it was crowded. I circled the area... from Gateway to around Araneta Center, to Shopwise, SM and even saw Cubao X where I wanted to go for a long time. My friend, who was quite worried since I haven't texted him that I got home, texted me asking me where I was.

Finally, when I almost reached Gateway again, I found a nice taxi driver who knew where my street was. Well, getting isn't as scary as I first thought it was. Maybe, this incident is a preparation for me when I live on my own abroad. hmmm... well, next time, I have to find a less expensive way to get home.

My First Successful Biking Experience

2008-08-17T10:29:00.000-07:00

I was woken up by Walton at around 6 am. Given that I slept at around 3am, I was still very groggy but we decided to push through with our Sunday morning activity - biking around Quezon Memorial Circle. It was a day we looked forward to. We had planned to bike a week ago in CCP but the plan was thwarted when we learned that those rent-a-bikes where already driven out from the complex. So, on a very sunny August morning, Walton, Jao, Calvin, Paul and I headed Quezon Memorial Circle, one of the very few places in Manila where they rent bikes.

The last time I biked was last year in Canada when my cousin, Ahia Dan, taught me how to bike and drive around their area. It wasn't very successful given that my legs were aching after an hour or so of getting bruises and cuts all over. I still have the evidence on my legs, which was why I refrained from wearing skirts and shorts for a few months after that incident. Now, because of our impending trip to Singapore, and also my desire to learn something new before I turn 23 (on Aug 27), we pushed through with our biking adventure.

Since it was my first time to go to QMC, we had to circle twice before we found the entrance to the park. It was a very good thing Paul brought his car. Parking only cost PHP 15. In the car, we were joking what would happen if we found out that the people who rent bicycles there already pulled out. Since it was my idea, I said that I would treat them all to lunch for waking up early. Fortunately, I didn't have to treat them. We found the rent-a-bikes on the other side of where we parked and a lot of families where already there. The bikes cost PHP 70 per hour but we were allowed to extend for 20 mins. When I saw the bikes, I almost changed my mind and wanted to rent the sidecar instead for PHP 80 and required no balancing act. But I told myself I had to learn today. I just had to or our trip would have been in vain.

My first few minutes on the bike was me mostly pushing and peddaling for one cycle and stopping again. The guys gave me a few pointers which frustrated me at first because I really counldn't couldn't follow what they were saying but proved really helpful in the end. I knew that I had to rely on myself to actually learn. I kept on causing traffic since I had to stop every few feet. The rest of my friends except for Calvin had already gone ahead to circle the track. After a while, Jao returned and helped hold my bike to help me balance first. Paul kept on telling me to pedal and not to let go. We reached the part where it was sort of sloping down and I was able to stay on the bike for at least 10 seconds before stopping.

When I almost reached the end of my first round in the circle, I was finally able to find my balance! Calvin, who was beside me, kept on encouraging me. I was actually surprised to be able to do ride a bike at last. The manong who rented us the bikes smiled when he saw me riding the bike the right way at last. hehe

Of course, I had my share of accidents along the way. The back of my foot kept on grasing the pedal of the bike. I also had a weird way of handling the handle bars so even my thumb got scraped. There was this one incident where I suddenly stopped because I felt I was going too fast. Calvin and Paul, who were both behind me, were surprised and almost crashed into me if not for their quick reflexes. What we didn't know was that there was this kid in a sidecar who was going too fast also behind them. She crashed into me and dragged me along for a while. It was a good thing that all I got from the incident were some bruises on my left leg.

I was dirty and sweaty and icky. My butt was hurting as well as my left leg but I had a wonderful time. The sun wasn't too bright and there were a lot of trees so it was actually quite cool while we were travelling around the circle. Jao was showing off his biking skills which I wanted to try but of course would be stupid for me to do given that I just learned to bike. Next time, that would be my goal. Next time, I want to try biking a La Mesa Eco Park where they have a longer trail plus they even have boats just like in Baguio. I also want to try mountain biking or trekking. I'm normally not a nature person, but somehow, through our thesis, I gained an appreciation for the outdoors.