Project: Abbie

Top News Events of 2009

Wed, 29 Dec 2010 17:34:00 -0000

This is first part of a series of my annual year-ender post. This was inspired by the Top 10 of Everything list of Time which they also publish yearly. I neglected writing on this blog for quite some time so I will post in length by batch my TOP EVERYTHING for this year.

TOP NEWS EVENTS
I classified this as the Top News Events of the year which affected me most - political, national, current events, scandals, pop culture - whether it's positive or negative.

The Obama Inauguration
I was glued to the TV and the Internet last January 21 (Manila Time) for the oath-taking and inauguration of the first Black US President, Barrack Obama. It's a momentous event for me not because of the politics behind his victory, but because of what he represents. His winning symbolizes that anybody can dream dreams regardless of odds and tradition.

Cory's Passing
Like most Filipinos, I was deeply saddened by the death of Former President Cory Aquino last August 2009. Together with my family and Witt, we lined up ...

Things I Love at Jako & Charu's Wedding

Sat, 18 Dec 2010 19:32:00 -0000

Jako & Charu. FINALLY! What a great way to go back to blogging by posting about the very nice and super fun wedding of my dear friends, Jako and Charu. Friends and readers of my blog are sure familiar with this duo who are very often featured and pictured here at my blog.

Jako and Charu are my friends from highschool. They first met in Kindergarten (!!!) but only got together as a couple five years ago. It really made me happy that they finally sealed the deal last December 12, Saturday, at St. Jerome Emiliani in Alabang. They've always been one of my favorite couples and I am really happy that I was part of the beginning of their happily ever after.

Here are some of the things I love about the wedding:

The ~~Crying~~ Sentimental Bride
Charu cried throughout her bridal march and we find it really really heart-felt. We can't help but shed a tear or two as we watch her all beautiful and regal yet crying her heart out as she walks to the love of her life.

The ~~Crying~~ Groom
Jako's moment came w...

Vote For @SMARTCares

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 04:42:00 -0000

SMART Communications Customer Care created a cool Twitter account for efficient customer service handling on-line! It's a great service for Tweeple and on-line mavens.

So, please...nominate the account for Mashable's Best Twitter Brand Use! :)

Hope I can count on YOU!
You may use your Twitter or Facebook account to vote.

Consolidated Google Spreadsheet of drop-off points where you can send goods for Typhoon Ondoy's victims. http://ping.fm/EnhUb

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 11:48:10 -0000

Ondoy Pictures. Some are morbid. (via @AdeMagnaye) http://bit.ly/tHld3

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 10:21:56 -0000

Ondoy pictures. Some are morbid. (via @AdeMagnaye)

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 10:18:53 -0000

Long Live Cory!

Sun, 2 Aug 2009 09:19:00 -0000

The whole nation is grieving for the death of our most beloved Philippine President, Cory Aquino. Tita Cory, as she is fondly called, joined her Creator after battling with Colon Cancer for more than a year at 3:18 am, Saturday, August 1, 2009.

The Philippines was very blessed to be gifted with a very amazing and brave woman. She's always been a symbol of hope, bravery and inspiration to all of us. She showed us how to be vigilant and fight for our liberty no matter what it takes. Her heroic gift of democracy is the reason why we are enjoying our freedom today.

Tie a yellow ribbon for our nation's mother. She will be truly missed.

"I would rather die a meaningful death than to live a meaningless life."
- President Corazon C. Aquino

Photo Credit: PCIJ

Binondo Photography & Food Trip

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 06:02:29 -0000

20 June 2009 Binondo, Manila My friends and I went to Manila Chinatown last June 20 to do two of our favorite things: photography and food tripping. We had so much fun and spent the whole afternoon visiting the following historic, popular and delicious places: Minor Basilica of St. Lorenzo Ruiz, The Mezzanine Cafe, the whole stretch of Ongpin, Yuchengco & Dasmarinas Sts., jewelry stores, Dong Bei Dumplings, Ying Ying Tea House and the famous hopia Eng Bee Tin store. Binondo's truly a must for photographers and foodies alike! :)

Wasteland Wonderland

Sat, 30 May 2009 05:45:00 -0000

I love bang-for-your-buck shopping. I fulfilled my two budget shopping wishes last night and I am so happy about it! Wasteland Wonderland, indeed!

UNIVERSAL RECORDS CD SALE
Our operations in Quezon City are just floors away from the Universal Records HQ. I noticed a few months ago some Big CD Weekend Sale announcement of Universal. I got curious because it says that they sell Buy One, Take Ones and some CDs are even 90% off. What a steal!

Fortunately, I had a meeting yesterday with some of our Call Center leads and it coincided with one these famous CD Sales. I made sure that all my meetings and commitments are done by 6:30pm so I can browse and buy to my heart's desire. The sale usually starts at 9:00 am and ends at 7:00 pm.

I was able to buy two Jazz compilations, one Hale album, and an OPM love song compilation (Yeah, I am all for cheesiness) for only P200! That's basically P50 per CD. The cheapest they have there are the P2 casette tapes and the P40 Country Music CDs. They also have ...

Adam Lambert's Season 8 Performances

Wed, 27 May 2009 08:45:11 -0000

It's Adam's turn! Here are the studio versions of Adam's American Idol performances. What a good mix! My favorites: Black or White, Feeling Good, Mad World, Track of MY Tears and No Boundaries. The Track of My Tears studio version of Adam used the original Motown arrangement instead of the one he used in that unforgettable live performance.

Kris Allen's Season 8 Performances

Tue, 26 May 2009 16:03:22 -0000

Here are the studio versions of Kris Allen's performances at American Idol. I also included his first single, "No Boundaries", which was surprisingly better than the live performance at the Finale. My favorites: Falling Slowly, Apologize, To Make You Feel My Love, The Way You Look Tonight and No Boundaries

It's Boracay Not Bora!

Sat, 23 May 2009 17:10:00 -0000

I was fortunate to be in Boracay last Labor Day weekend for the Smart Buddy Hot Summer Samahan event. I was not really expecting the work trip and I only learned that I was going less than 24 hours before my actual departure. I went to the island to oversee one of the activities of Smart's premiere summer event.

It was only my third trip to the island and it was fun to learn and experience new things and visit different places which I haven't been. It was also nice to discover a different Boracay apart from the water sports and beaching that we all love. Read on!

1. I was "almost" and "mostly" solo on the trip and it was both good and bad. Good because I can do all the things I want and bad because I don'tt have anybody to share it with.

2. Labor Day weekend was the second busiest period of summer! I was early at the airport but I was still bumped off because PAL Express overbooked my flight due to four canceled Caticlan flights that day.

3. PAL Express transferred us to Seair and it wa...

Charu's 30+1 Birthday Celebration

Fri, 15 May 2009 07:22:41 -0000

8 May 2009 National Sports Grill Charu celebrated her 30+1 birthday last week at National Sports Grill at Greenbelt 3. The whole gang was in attendance; and we even scored a free pitcher of Bacardi! We also can't help but reminisce Charu's celebration last year at Vigan which was adventure-filled and very memorable! Happy Birthday, Charu! Enjoy your last months of singleness! :) P.S. I finally uploaded something! My Photoshop died a few weeks ago thus I can't upload anything. I have so many edit/upload

Spoiler: The American Idol "Save"

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 11:21:00 -0000

American Idol's Judges' Save was finally used this week...and I am NOT thrilled about it!

The favorite person to go home this week was Lil Rounds. I've never been fond of Lil and I've been waiting for her boot since last week. But there's a long-lived tradition in the American Idol World about "The Diva That Lives Forever" (case in point: Syesha Mercado) so it's not really a surprise that she is still there. Her vocals are great but she's been sucking with wrong song choices week after week thus the whole world is asking WHAT is she still doing at Idol. Her elimination became more evident last night when she persistently talked back to Simon after he gave her another bad critique for her Bette Midler cover.

And THAT, Ladies and Gentlemen, was one of the reasons why Matt Giraud was SAVED tonight from elimination!

Confused? It's actually very simple.

They said that the "save" was reserved and created for the "Three Anointed Ones" - Adam, Danny and Lil...

Viva La Vida

Thu, 9 Apr 2009 13:32:00 -0000

Viva La Vida. Live The Life.

This came from my blip.fm player.
And "Anna Vida" is my full name - in case you don't know.

I survived February & March! These past weeks were definitely some of the most hectic ones I had in the last few years thus the non-post.

Work was a blast with all our new responsibilities and stuff to do BUT it also came with a lot of pressure and stress. Days were jampacked with meetings, overtime at the office, e-mails, work at home, number crunching and business trips. Though I am loving every bit of what I am doing, I am also missing some of the ME time that I had to give up to cover more work stuff. My group's functions and targets (even our KRAs) dramatically changed this year thus we also picked the pace and worked as if there's no tomorrow.

Everything is quite cool at the moment and we seem to be more in control of things now so I hope that April will not be as busy.

Thank God for the Lenten break! Catch you all later! Updates soon!

American Idol 8 - MJ Week [Studio Versions]

Sat, 14 Mar 2009 06:42:52 -0000

The studio versions are here! It has always been my habit since last season to upload American Idol studio versions here at my Multiply (with album covers to boot!). I had a riot uploading songs last year with such great performances like David C.'s "Always Be My Baby" and Carly's "Blackbird". I hope to continue the habit this season despite my action-packed schedule. What I like on this playlist? Adam's "Black and White" Danny's "PYT" Jorge's "Never Can Say Goodbye" (it's actually good!) Kris' "Remember The Time" Allison's "Give In To Me" (my LSS lately). Want to download them? If you're really smart then you'll figure out HOW. Enjoy!

Brooke's Hold Up My Heart

Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:33:20 -0000

One of American Idol Season 7's darling, Brooke White, released her new single via iTunes a couple of weeks ago. Love it! Very nice song! Hold Up My Heart Please hold up my heart Give me a reason for this empty silence You're here but you seem so far Why did you run away from me is it because I’m not as pretty as I use to be Oh, like a picture on a wall Should have known that I was bound to fall So please hold up my heart Give me a reason for this this empty silence Please hold up my heart Darlin I am changin’ But everybody’s changin’ too When I am weak I try to always find the best of you and me Hmm .. but I will always be the one Who understands you like a picture on the wall Should have known that I was bound to fall So please hold up my heart Give me a reason for this empty silence Please hold up my heart Darlin I am changin’ But everybody’s changin’ too We shared hope, we shared life we shared kisses by the fire And I will always be the ...

Final Thirteen

Mon, 9 Mar 2009 15:46:00 -0000

If you haven’t been watching American Idol in the past two months then it’s now time to tune in. The finals of American Idol begins on Tuesday with a Michael Jackson theme which will hopefully give great performances from the 13 people that were voted and selected. With some new twist in the semi-finals we ended with thirteen finalists instead of the usual twelve. The new format with the wild card round also gave us a gender imbalance that sent 8 boys and 5 girls in the finals.

A lot of my early favorites like Stevie, Ann Marie and Felicia did make it even on the Wild Card round. But a handful of my other favorites made it straight to the Top 13 like Danny, Michael, Adam and Jorge. The hard part of assessing and choosing bets with the new format was we only heard and seen most of them with one song and performance. But, anyway, here's my attempt in giving light to these new entertainers who will grace Primetime TV starting next week until May.

Megan Joy Corkrey
Megan wi...

Thank You For The Music!

Sat, 7 Mar 2009 07:21:00 -0000

Like most people in my generation, we grew up listening and singing to the great music and raps of The Man From Manila, Francis Magalona. March 6, Friday, was indeed a lonely day for Filipinos when we all learned the demise of this great musician, rapper, and songwriter after battling with leukemia for 7 months.

I found a great line he wrote on one of his blogs that I would like to share with all of you. It's a testament of how he loved his craft and how he wanted to be remembered through his musical legacy.

"I still hear the voices of Elvis Presley, John Lennon, Tupac Shakur, Kurt Cobain, The Notorious B.I.G. and Frank Sinatra to name a few. And their voices rise from their graves.

I am lucky to have been a recording artist and one day when I leave this world, just like the names I mentioned, my voice will be heard. Always. At a touch of a button or switch, I am "alive" again."

- Francis M., Happybattle.net, November 15, 2008

You will be missed, Kiko! Thank you for the music!

American Idol Wild Card Picks [Spoilers Inside!]

Thu, 5 Mar 2009 02:09:00 -0000

Just a quick post while I take a break in between pow-wows. American Idol announced the judges' picks for the Wild Card Round tomorrow! Each judge were allowed to choose two semi-finalists to advance tomorrow.

Most of the Wild Cards came from the first and second groups. It was only Von Smith who was from the third group. The top three vote getters for tonight were Lil Rounds, Scott MacIntyre and Jorge Nunez. No surprises here! They automatically got the 7th, 8th and 9th spot in the Top 12.

Here are the Wild Cards:

Von Smith (Randy's Pick)
Jasmine Murray (Kara's Pick)
Ricky Braddy (Paula's Pick)
Megan Corkrey (Simon's Pick)
Tatiana Del Torro (Randy's Pick)
Matt Giraud (Kara's Pick)
Jesse Langseth (Paula's Pick)
Anoop Desai (Simon's Pick)

Looks like THIS was decided even before they sang their tunes last week. Looks like it was pretty much decided who will advance whether they bombed their semi-final rounds or not (Come on! Jasmine Murray? Von Smith?). At least Tatiana sang...

Cebu & Davao Delights!

Sun, 1 Mar 2009 03:56:00 -0000

I went to Cebu a week ago and to Davao last Thursday. Both are quick trips where I attended two important regional meetings. Both were good trips and I feel confident that the huddles we had will yield positive results in the next months (Go, Team!).

I requested too late for my trip to Cebu so I was very unfortunate to be booked on a Cebu Pacific flight outbound. It was terrible! The ground staff were so impolite and they ask embarrassing questions to passengers out loud! I will really try my best NOT to take any Cebu Pacific flights in the future - cheap rates or not! There's absolutely no excuse for bad customer service. They were very different from the personnel from PAL who even gave me a seat upgrade on my flight to Manila from Davao.

Cebu was a delight as usual! I stayed for less than a day but it was still a joy nonetheless. I arrived 8ish and immediately checked-in to my hotel. I was upgraded to one of their suite rooms but I soon realized that it was freaky to spend a night alo...

Bridal Fashion at the Oscar's

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 12:28:00 -0000

Slumdog Millionaire may be the slammin' winner of this year's 81st Oscar's; and Kate Winslet may be the most deserving winner of the night (it's about time after her numerous nominations beginning with Sense & Sensibility and Titanic), but it was the wedding-inspired gowns of several celebrities that almost stole the spotlight.

Whether it's ballgown, vintage or minimalist, these celebrities channeled their inner brides with fabulous made-for-altar outfits. Two were stunning stand-outs but there were also a couple of disastrous ones. This year's favorite Oscar's fashion proved that you don't have to be a bride to wear white (or off-white or beige or ecru). Bring it on!

Who's your favorite bridezilla?

Best Supporting Actress Penelope Cruz in vintage Pierre Balmain

Sarah Jessica Parker in Dior
(Carrie Bradshaw will be proud of this gown!
Except for the overly exposed bosom of SJP that's not so
obvious on this photo. Try this one.)

Marisa Tomei in Versace

Melissa George in Dolce & G...

Adam Lambert at American Idol 8!

Mon, 9 Feb 2009 19:12:43 -0000
Hollywood Week Round 2 showed more of the amazing talent of Adam Lambert. I really really like him! His audition in San Francisco (see below) where he sang "Bohemian Rhapsody" was theatrical but he was more than splendid at the Hollywood Week's Group Round (got to find a video of that, too). Can't wait to see more of him this week. He's definitely a shoo-in for Top 12! Paula even voted him as one of her favorites. What do you think? :) *Props to AI for using Coldplay's Viva La Vida as background music. Laveet! Credits to MJ's Big Blog for the video.

Twenty Five

Sat, 7 Feb 2009 15:12:00 -0000
Facebook is the new battleground for memes, surveys and quizzes. A certain meme is making the rounds among friends and I've been tagged to do it by no less than 17 people. So I finally succumbed to it tonight and answered it.

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged.

1. I have a very long name, Anna Vida Theresa, and I love it. I hate it when people do shortcuts on it or omit one of the names in documents. I want it long and complete.

2. My mom told me recently (like a month ago) that I almost died when I was 7 months old. She said that I had non-stop diarrhea and they even had my IV on my infant head!

3. I am generally a nice person. I am also very optimistic. I am the epitome of sunshine!

4. My mother is the most important person in my life. Period.

5. I have a very weird personality. I am very extrovert, loud, and can talk non-stop for hours BUT I also enjoy...

Dinner at Madison

Sat, 31 Jan 2009 23:49:00 -0000
I closed another busy week with a a fabulous dinner last Friday with friends. I was all fired-up and inspired last week to work despite having to stay late at the office for several days. Everything is actually quite cool despite the new work, targets, and responsibilities that were given to me and my group last week. But work is not what this post is all about. I digress.

I met up with Olen and Dansel, my super girlfriends from Honda, for some bonding and heart-to-heart at Greenbelt last Friday. It's been quite a while since I last saw them. I wasn't able to attend our yearly Christmas/New Year gathering so I also brought with me my gifts for their daughters, Nicole and Bela, who are both my Godchildren.

I love these two women to bits. They were with me in some of my "development years" post-college. Olen and I used to share a condo before in Salcedo Village when I was still with Honda. She's one of those unfortunate people in the planet who knows me very well. Dansel was the late add...

American Idol Top 36 Spoilers & Stevie Wright

Sat, 31 Jan 2009 06:56:00 -0000
It's American Idol season once again!

One of my favorite shows on TV will have a Top 36 and a wild card round this year instead of the usual Top 24 semis. Joe's Place Blog and MJ's Big Blog, a couple of Idol authorities, already posted a spoiler of a presumably leaked list of those who got in through Vote For The Worst. We will be seeing if they are right at the live performances and semi-finals on the 3rd week of February after a week or two of Hollywood Week broadcast

I already have a bet if the list is correct. I was fascinated by the great voice and bubbly personality of 16 year old Stevie Wright. She auditioned in Glendale, Phoenix and sang "At Last" by Etta James. All judges were impressed and even Kara and Paula said that she's exceptional.

Check out her audition video:

Can't wait to see her again! Hope she will reach the Top 12!

Here's the full list of the Top 36:

Adam Lambert, Alexander Wagner-Trugman, Alexis Grace, Allison Iraheta, ...