miss yap's uber-shack

Melancholic Start of My 2012

2012-01-18T05:57:00.000+08:00

I'm back in Manila and finally reunited with my cats that I've been constantly worrying about during my one month stay in the Netherlands. They were looked after by my youngest brother.

Mark's gonna be staying in the Netherlands for work and I'll be alone for a while. The house feels so weird without him around. Yesterday was the most depressing day I have had since 2007.

Mark's absence was bad enough, and then it got worse. The house was a big mess. It stinks everywhere. Our balcony was horrific. My plants were all dead. And the cats that I loved so much like my own were neglected. Their food bowls looked like it was never washed for a month, placed close to their litter box. I started crying. I feel worse that I have no one that would understand the frustration I was feeling at the moment. I guess I expected too much from my brother. I guess one month is too long to be gone too. I was angry, but it was also foolish of me to trust my brother to take over my responsibilities at home. Aside from the confidence he showed me that he can take charge and re-assurance that everything was fine, I thought he would care because he's my brother. In my immature side, I felt like I was tricked. I gave him my home with all the convenience and comfort that comes with it; my house that is in the heart of Makati's business district super close to his work; a kick ass computer with Internet connection; cable TV; hot and cold shower; nice and huge bed; and some monetary allowance - in exchange for just maintaining the house and treating it like his own, and taking care of my baby cats. I was in good faith and trusted his words. I could let go of the fact that my plants are dead, and the house was dirty. I could fix it. But what really hurt me was to see the signs neglect for my cats. All I ever wanted was to keep their food bowls filled and clean, fresh water to drink, and a clean litter box. He did kept the bowl filled, but filthy. He knew (and it's explicitly expressed) that I value my rescued cats as much as I value my family. And yet he neglected them.

On the other hand, in my rational mind, getting angry doesn't change shit. It will just make me feel worst. I still feel thankful that (thank God) my cats are all alive and not sick despite the bad sanitary situation. I still thank him for feeding them at least. I expected too much from him thinking he's not going to let me down and that he has matured overtime. Apparently I was mistaken. Maybe my cats were too much for him to handle. But at the very least he could have been completely honest with me rather than keeping my hopes up. I could have thought of a better plan before I left for the holidays. I'm still glad that I'm home and able to care for my cats again.

So now I'm taking things slowly. House is finally clean and back in order and cats are happy. It saddens me to see my dead herbs that I planted with my hands and took good care of. These plants consoled me when I'm stressed. These greens gave me momentary peace of mind when I need it. Now they are gone. But I'm going to rebuild it. It may take a while before I get used to being alone though. I cry every time I'm reminded of things that Mark and I used to do together. It sounds funny/crazy, but I even cry when I make coffee, because I used to make for 2, now I stir a single glass. Oh well, I hope that this passes by too.

I feel so uninspired to do anything... but I have to get my life back on track and focus on being productive. So help me God.

Something Pretty Amidst The Chaos

2011-07-06T18:40:00.000+08:00

It's been weeks of bearing with the loud noises of jack hammering across the street, as construction workers try to tear down an old building. With enormous patience and tolerance, we try to put up with it everyday.

I don't usually close our balcony doors because we always appreciate the fresh breeze coming in, but since the noise is more than annoying, we had to keep it close. There's not much nice view from the balcony since we are surrounded by buildings, and the building being torn down makes it worse.

But this sunset, I went out to see their progress and saw nice clouds lined up.

I took a photo. It's very rare nowadays to appreciate something pretty from our vantage point.

How to Stay Creative

2011-06-16T05:57:00.002+08:00

# 29 - I seriously have to work on.

29 WAYS TO STAY CREATIVE from TO-FU on Vimeo.

Creativity is at its peak when you are young and inspired. In my case, the more i get older, the more it diminishes. I was very creative during my highschool and college years. I wrote poems and essays. I drew. I easily get inspired to make something out of nothing. Now I just feel like an old fart with mediocre creativity. Still, a part of me wants to deny that I am not what I used to be anymore. Things, people, priorities, experiences - these are big contributors of the change in our personality. I guess I had become too much of a realist and cynical as I aged.

So I'll give these tips to be creative again a try. The video, althought it's just typhography and simple graphics, it's moving and cute. Job well done :).

I.T. Forces Conspiring Against Me

2011-05-04T20:26:00.000+08:00

They say when it rains, it pours.

So when it rains shit, it pours shit.

Yesterday, my computer won't read my hard drive all of a sudden. I checked disk management to find out that it's detected but neither NTFS nor FAT32. It said it's "RAW". What the hell?

Everything I need for work is in this drive, let alone 3 years worth of photos. I thought I backed up my work files, at least, in my WD Silverbook - but alas, it wasn't synched. To brighten things up, at least the drive is still detected but just can't be read, so I'm sucking up with a data recovery utility - 500 GB worth of files. I'm lucky to finish scanning the disk today :P.

As I was super miserable and desperate looking for any forms of backup everywhere i can think of - here comes another challenge. My precious VM image will not load anymore. It took me some time to organize my VM images and I don't really look forward to making another one since this looks corrupted. I super, badly, totally, need this to work so I can resume my testing. Beta is coming up and I can't fuck this up.

I'm officially stressed. God bless me and my work.

Lessons in Life via Simple Things

2011-05-04T14:34:00.000+08:00

I woke up in a beautiful sunny morning yesterday, smelling a sweet, fresh, floral scent coming from my balcony. It's for sure that it wasn't my herbs so I went out to check what's that beautiful refreshing smell. Apparently, the big tree in front of our building is blooming with beautiful small yellow flowers all over. Kinda reminded me of sakura blossoms. We found it weird to bloom in the middle of extreme summer heat, but Mark and I enjoyed the view for a moment.

I thought about taking picture of that beautiful tree. But I was lazy to grab my camera, change lense, and step out to my outter balcony and steal some shots. I said I'll do it tomorrow, for now, wash the dishes and clean the house.

Today, flowers are gone. The trees are back to its usual green color. No more fresh floral scent to wake me up.

Lesson learned, do not procrastinate. You'll never know what you'll miss. There are some things in life that happens only once in a blue moon, so when it's there, grab it.

Another Interesting Kitten Encounter

2011-04-19T20:10:00.003+08:00

What's up with me visiting a government agency and then finding a sick kitten? This happened twice now.

I found Lotto when I went to LTO to renew my car registration. Today, I went to Makati's civil registry office to get requirements for our upcoming civil marriage - and there I found another kitten in dire need of help.

It was a very hot afternoon when Mark and I decided to just walk home from Makati city hall instead of taking a jeepney (my car was coded so I couldn't drive). The traffic was pretty bad and we'd rather walk than to sit, get bored and smell diesel fumes and road dirt while we wait the jeepney to move. I honestly don't enjoy long walks under the sun specially on streets that aren't really pedestrian friendly. We passed by a pile of dried branches and leave trimmed from a tree and saw an orange kitten lying lifeless beside it. I was horrified thinking that someone must have just thrown this poor kitten's body on the pavement. I stopped to check it out and said "OMG". For a moment, I really thought it was dead because it didn't move. Then I noticed that it is still breathing. We immediately picked it up and offered dry cat food we always carry around in our bags. Apparently, the kitten was exhausted from heat that it could hardly move. It was malnourished, dehydrated, and like most stray kittens, it has a heavy eye discharge that's a symptom of a respiratory infection. The kitten is about a month old. We knew that even if we leave food and go, the kitten will eventually die. As always, we couldn't turn our backs and leave it. Call me crazy, but I just can't leave a poor helpless creature like that, knowing that I have the power to save it. So since we weren't prepared for this, all we got was a little green grocery bag. We immediately put him in it and rushed to the Animal House, a veterinary clinic about a kilometer away from where we found it. It must be traumatic for him to be put in a bag but we have no choice. I can't just carry him with my hands because I was scared that he might jump off out of panic from hearing the cars in that busy street.

He's been cleaned, and currently in medication staying in our flat but separated from our four naughty cats. He's still weak but is eating. We will put him up for adoption once he's strong and recovered. We are hoping to find him a loving home that will treat him well soon.

Some of my friends make fun of me as "a crazy cat lady". I don't really mind because I'm not that crazy :P. I just have the heart to care for these helpless creatures, as I would care for helpless starving children victimized by poverty. The only difference is that there are enough people who helps out people - but very little number of people who acts on their compassion for animals.

In my older post, I mentioned that I wasn't an animal person. Not that I don't like them, but I just wasn't raised knowing their values as human companions. But after we got Nishi, everything changed. So why do we keep on rescuing these helpless creatures? Why do we waste time on feeding the strays almost every night in the small park in our village? Why do we throw time and money spaying/neutering stray animals we find? Is it just self-gratification?

People look at me weird when they see me pick up a ran over cat that's still fighting to live, or when we feed strays out of the blue. They give us a weird look when we take time to stop and pick up a cat that's just waiting to get hit by car on a curb. I sometimes get weird looks from other patients in a vet clinic holding their pure bred dogs and cats, while I carry a dirty little stray kitten on my lap. I've been judged by the looks of pet owners a lot of times, but I couldn't care less. Oh well, they can give me their best weird looks on their faces and I won't give a shit.

The thing is, I still believe, that an act of kindness can change things - no matter how hypocritical, discriminating and judgmental the people are around you. I have this faith that if I demonstrate an act of compassion and kindness, if people can see the sincerity of my actions, it could change someone's heart and mind. It has happened to me. I want to believe that there are still plenty of good people in the world. So I won't give up, for as long as Mark and I are able to do these things.

I consider myself very blessed with a lot of good things in life. And for that, I want to pay it forward by being a blessing to others too - not just to my fellow human beings, but to other creatures living in this world we share.

Dramatic, but a good thought to think about this lenten season.

McDonald's Fillet-O-Fish Nowadays

2011-04-15T04:57:00.001+08:00

I ordered for McDonald's fillet-o-fish sandwich last Wednesday for the first time in about a year. I was in a food photography session at home and didn't have time to cook for me and my assistant so I decided to just have McDonald's delivery. I was pretty hungry and was actually looking forward for my fillet-o-fish sandwich.

Then I found this thing inside the magical Mcdonald's sandwich box.

With my jaw dropped, I was like WTF? I didn't order for a bulilit burger! I was super dismayed! It was so small I could finish it in one bite. Ok, two. What has happened to the fillet-o-fish sandwich? Has it been this way? How come my recollection of the good old fillet-o-fish sandwich is not as small as this? I don't normally complain about food size because I'm a small person and have a small tummy to fill - but damn, this wouldn't even satisfy my worms (if I have any haha).
Funny how they even bothered to put it in a box. What a waste.

Lesson learned. Burger King.

Life is Funny Like That

2011-03-16T08:15:00.002+08:00

I sometimes find it hard to dig the humor of life.

Yesterday morning, while I was watering my precious plants, I was contemplating about my recent focus issues with life and my career, distractions and stress. I felt that I could use a short break, a getaway at some place where I could rest my mind even just for a day, because everyday I feel exhausted. Everyday I pray for motivation and drive, psych myself to keep our lives moving forward and get things done. Our trip to Casa Ibiza last weekend was supposed to be that getaway I'm craving for, but it was a failure. It wasn't the place I expected it to be. The R&R I was hoping for turned out to be D&D (disappointment and dissatisfaction). I was just lucky enough that I was with a bunch of good friends who made up for everything else.

But then, after 30 minutes of talking to myself, my friend called me up and received an unexpected invitation. She asked if I can go with her in Boracay this weekend, in an expensive hotel - all expense paid.

I said to myself, who am I to say no?

I was super surprised because: a) No one has ever done that to me. b) I got my prayers answered so fast it's like digital.

It's not really about the free trip, but I was totally ecstatic that I was just thinking about a getaway, and there, my friend came to the rescue without her even knowing it. I've been to Boracay so many times, but I feel at home there so I always welcome the idea to go there once in a while. She doesn't really need to pay for me because I can do it myself, but her company means a lot. She's an old friend who knew me since I was 13, and at this moment of my life, where everything I think about is convoluted, I could really use a company of someone who have known me forever.

So why the trip was free? Because her boyfriend couldn't join.

She planned to spend their first month of being together in the romantic island of Boracay. But unfortunately, there were sudden unexpected, highly important career opportunities that her boyfriend have to take that he could no longer join. Since everything was already paid for, she felt bad to just throw away the money she already spent for this trip and decided to still pursue even without her boyfriend. And that's where I came in, taking the place of the boyfriend. In fairness to the boyfriend, he was understanding enough to let her go without him since it wasn't her fault in the first place why he can't celebrate their first month together with her after all that preparation. But of course, he wasn't very happy and he sounded disappointed and low.

Anyways, here I was, all excited and almost feeling relieved - that R&R is almost at my reach. We had a nice dinner together last night and I met the boyfriend for the first time. He was shy and quiet, but he seemed like a nice, humble guy that I have nothing bad to say about. After dinner, Mark and I went home and I started working. I was totally hyped to finish my deliverables so that in the weekend I do not have to worry about a pile of stuff to take care of when I get back in town. I was also already doing an inventory of my stuff to bring in my head. I was just so happy.

... Until I opened Facebook.

She sent me a message that she's feeling guilty to push through with the trip because the new boyfriend have just explicitly expressed that he wanted to celebrate their first "monthsary" together, and that he wanted to spend it with her so bad he's going to just pay off what she spent for the trip.

And I told myself who am I to object?

Honestly, I feel so bummed. But putting things in perspective, she doesn't exactly know about what I'm going through. She doesn't know how much I need this trip to get away and be with her as an old friend whom I knew even before I knew my period. Besides, she just went through an ugly break up and was just beginning to enjoy a new chapter of love. I am not about to give her a hard time just because my excitement was spoiled. I'm, in fact, happy that she found this new boyfriend as it helped her stop dwelling on her bitter past with the wrong guy. And maybe, when the annoyance feeling is over, I'll be happy that she spent the "monthsary" with him. Man, poeople in love....

Oh well, life's funny like that.

The Death of My D80

2011-01-25T22:40:00.000+08:00

The weather wasn't as favorable as we hoped for on our second day in Puerto Galera. The sky was gray and it was too windy. In the morning, the resort owner, Lexy, told us that she too, has underestimated the weather and left her outrigger boat docked on the sea overnight, rather than on the shore. The boat sank and was badly damaged that she has to replace major components of the boat such as the motor.

I took few video clips of the ocean, beach, the waves breaking on the shore and on the rocks, the resort view, but haven't taken enough of landscapes and interesting stuff around the area. So while Mark was taking an afternoon nap, I went out and looked for an inspiration. I brought two cameras with me, the Lumix GF1 for filming, and my Nikon D80 to take wide shots.

The resort front is elevated 4-feet high, about few meters away from the shore. The platform looks like a wall to protect the resort when it's high tide. There were also rocks right beside it. I went to a table facing the shore. I wasn't satisfied yet with the video clip I did earlier and wanted to get more shots of shore breaks so I started filming. My D80 was hanging on my neck while I film with the GF1, leaning forward behind the table. But I got uncomfortable because my D80 keeps on hitting the table so hung it on my left shoulder instead. So I continued filming, aiming downwards so I can get a good angle of the water breaking on the shore. Waiting for the shore break I want to film, my eyes were fixed on the camera's display screen and so I didn't see that there was a big wave building up from afar. When I finally noticed it in the display screen, it seemed far. Everything happened so fast, and last thing I saw was the water break reached the wall and splashed ocean water so hard, I turned clockwise protecting the GF1, and forgetting that my D80 was hanging on my left shoulder.

Luckily, the GF1 was unharmed. The splash on the D80, however, was as bad as pouring a glass of water directly on top of it. I quickly took out the batteries and dried the camera with a towel that was handed to me immediately by a very concerned resort crew.

After 24 hours of drying it, we tried to turn it on, but it wouldn't turn on anymore. Salt water's a bitch. I deserved it. I was too ambitious to carry two cameras in that kind of weather. And if I didn't hang the camera on my shoulder, it wouldn't have been splashed that bad.

In the hopes that it might get saved, we sent it for service as soon as we got back in Manila. I just got an update today, it's beyond repair.

So this trip concluded my D80 adventures. I felt like I lost a limb, I love that camera. So now I'm stuck with GF1, until I saved enough for my new DSLR - which I'm actually quite happy with. It's delivering me nice results so far.

Things You Didn't Know Existed

2011-01-24T20:55:00.001+08:00

I was walking around True Value this afternoon to get stuff for my small herb garden, when I came across this:


A tool just made for peeling apples.

Immediately, it got me thinking - do these things sell? I never thought anyone would ever need a peeler for apples. This just doesn't feel right, eh? I never thought it's too bothersome to just grab the apple and skin the shit out of it with a knife. I have no idea to what demographic this tool is designed for, but it's just so freakin' lazy!

But just when I thought it's the most ridiculous thing sold in this store, I found this:


A bacon hanger?

I stopped for a moment and tried to reason out why this existed in the first place. Maybe it's handy. Maybe it has purpose in the culinary world. Maybe it's a chef's thing. I seriously can't find a reason why I would want a hanger for my bacon. Normal people just blots it with paper towel.

Man, what's up with these ~~stupid~~ useless inventions?

A Revisit to Puerto Galera

2011-01-24T01:30:00.001+08:00

It's been about 5 years since I last went to Puerto Galera and enjoyed it's pristine waters.

We stayed far from the crowd and nightlife of White Beach. I chose to stay with a more quiet and secluded private resort which is about 1km away from the busy area. I didn't find the center of White Beach to be the place to chill and just enjoy nature. Frankly speaking, it doesn't look so attractive to me anymore. There were tons of bars, mini-restaurants, not to mention, souvenir shops every 10 meters - which just sell similar merchandise, nothing really special or distinct to Mindoro culture. Vendors were everywhere and can get annoying too; selling pearl earrings and pushing it to you even when you say no. Masseuse, contractors for water sports/activities, they were everywhere. You'll get asked every 5 meters of walking. Seriously, it felt like a market place. I might just be getting old for that kind of scene, but if you are up for just relaxing, chilling out, and being in touch with nature, stay away from the White Beach center.

We booked 3 days and 2 nights with Sunset at Aninuan. It was very different from the resorts at the center. It was quiet, peaceful, nothing but the sound of water and breeze. Vendors were also not allowed to walk in the resort premises - quite a big point that won me :). I really love to take advantage of the serenity of being with nature and so as much as possible, I don't want to be disturbed. I live in the city, far from any form of nature and I don't get to enjoy these things often because of work, so give me a break.

Everything in the resort was nice. The service crew, specially the resort owner, Lexy, they were very very accommodating. Lexy even gave us a discount for a room upgrade. Sweet! The only thing that wasn't favorable was the weather. When we came, it was windy and gray. We thought the next day would be better. Unfortunately, the sun only came out for about an hour, and then disappeared beneath the gray clouds once more. The sea was rough so we couldn't go for a swim. Scuba diving was also suspended because of the bad weather. I was kept entertained by the waves - which later claimed my D80 (it's another story of stupidity). But even though the weather sucked, Mark and I managed to kept ourselves entertained - with food and drinks :). Beach and alcohol, they go together!

I was bummed that I didn't get to take picture of the resort itself as my camera broke, but here are some photos to share; the last shots of my D80.

A small river at the back of the beach.

The weather starts to become gloomy.

And the waves started to get rough.

The first attempt of the South China Sea to splash water on my D80.
Close, but not quite :)

The Beauty of Praha

2011-01-21T15:46:00.000+08:00

A few months from now, it will be a year after I visited Prague, Czech Republic. Being swamped with different things here and there, the stress of life and work, the new interests, I totally took this blog for granted and forgot about the last stop of our mini-Euro tour - the beautiful city of Prague. There were a lot of missed opportunities in this trip, to be honest. One of which is the amazing photography opportunities. I felt bummed to not bring the appropriate lens for my D80 to take wide shots of this wonderful, amazing city. I only have my 50mm (because I was too lazy to bring heavier lens) and so I was forced to suck up with a digicam - the Canon S90. The S90 wasn't that bad at all. It's just that it's not super nice on lowlights, and couldn't achieve the effects that I could have achieved in a DSLR. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed every single minute of being there, surrounded by colorful things and magnificent architectures.

Here are some of the photos I took:

There were marrionettes for sale in every store in the city.

Jasper looking for the perfect matryoshka doll -
which I like to call the "Higglytown Heroes".

Prague's famous astrological clock.

Lowlights shot of S90. Not bad at all.

Overlooking the enticing city of Prague.

So when I get a chance, I will definitely go back and fulfill my missed opportunities :).

A little bit of these : Lausanne, Montreux, Maladiere and Ouchy

2010-09-23T00:45:00.003+08:00

Just nice to know, Switzerland has 4 different languages: French, German, Italian and Rumantsch. This kinda explains to me why they didn't have time to study English :). We visited the "French" region of Switzerland and so I was always lost in translation. I was very glad that Mark speaks French - and it was quite impressive that he still speaks it pretty well after not being able to apply his French for ages.

Lausanne is more pleasant city, in my opinion. Although I found it difficult to walk with heavy luggage because it's hilly ( we went up and down the hill looking for our hotel), it was very attractive. We stayed in a very basic room at Hotel Ibis. It's reasonably priced compared to other hotels. The only thing I hated was wifi was only available in the lobby. We had to pay 25CHF for 24-hour Internet connectivity in our room.

Chateau de Chillon

They next day, we went to Montreaux, to visit Chateau de Chillon. This is the main highlight of our trip. The castle was very interesting and full of history. I was pretty happy with the photos I took of the castle and everything in it.

A miniature of Chateau de Chillon.

Chateau de Chillon.

Mark found a way to disable a knight.

A huge empty room in the castle.

The Armory Room.

Mark in tourist mode.

The castle was enormous and took us about 3 hours to see everything in it. Everything looked photogenic in my eyes that's why I had so much photos of the castle. I'll be sharing everything as soon as I upload it to the photoshack.

Walking back to Montreux
Walking 3km back to the train station was also fun. We took the lake side walk and found people swimming in the lake. We also found a cute snack bar where we hung out for a bit to get refreshment and fed the little birds. The whole lake stretch was so pleasing and serene. We also found a nice quiet romantic park during the golden hour, so we really took advantage of the photo takings.

The nice quiet park.

The cute but rowdy Mark.

Maladiere

We originally planned to get to the Olympic meuseum in Ouchy but got lost in search of it. We eventually end up in Maladiere, and found ourselves in under passes with lots of interesting and colorful graffiti.

Ouchy

I thought it was funny to have a town named Ouchy. Apparently, it is pronounced as "Ooshy" as opposed to "ouch!". It was a nice sunny afternoon when we visited Ouchy. There were nice parks in the area. There was also a port that offers tourists a ride around Geneva Lake, to the Chillon Castle, Evian, and to an area in France. We were thinking of spending the afternoon cruising for 2 hours but I was quite hesitant as I don't really like taking pictures from a boat.

Some quiet park near the port of Ouchy. This was my idea, but Mark stole the photo opportunity from me :P

Running out of things to do, we decided to take it easy and chill out by renting a pedal boat. We bought food, wine, olives and cheese to bring with us in that pedal boat. Pedaling to the lake, Mark suddenly thought of jumping in the lake to swim. And he actually did it even though the water felt freezing (brrrr...)

This photo looked like we were in a yacht, but this we were just at the back part of a bike boat.

Also, there were drinking fountains ~~(literally)~~ everywhere. Water's cold and Evian quality (since Mt. Evian is just across the lake)- yummy!

We wrapped up our Switzerland adventures by the park laying down on the grass under the bright sun. Mark had to rest for a bit, he was tipsy from the wine. It was expensive, but the two of us had fun. Someday we'll return more prepared with stuff :).

Now on to the next adventure...

Second Stop: Geneva, Switzerland

2010-09-21T04:20:00.001+08:00

Welcome to the land where everything is expensive - Switzerland!

So I thought the Netherlands was an expensive country, not til I experienced Geneva. The lifestyle and standard of living, comparing with my observation in the Netherlands, remarkably spiked up. My stay was probably too short to make a judgment, but that's just my impression. Food is my number one basis on how expensive a place is in my travels. And damn, it has beaten our nice dinners in Amsterdam.

In Geneva airport, I was very impressed that there's a kiosk that dispenses free metro ticket for an hour, available to everyone in the airport. Transportation is quite expensive in the Netherlands (in my standards) so I thought it was really cool.

Exhausted from the trip, and at the same time still feeling upset about the Copenhagen airport incident, we reached Hotel Kipling at about 7pm. Hotel Kipling, however, had shortage of room for some reasons. Although we have reservations, I didn't completely understand why they gave us a choice to transfer to a 4 star hotel with free breakfast buffet, or stay with them. I thought we should just stay because I was dead tired, but Mark took the offer. Luckily, it was just about hundred meters away from Kipling. So there goes the upgrade.

Upon check-in, they issued both of us a card that entitles us to free metro rides all over the city, for the duration of our stay - another cool stuff in Geneva. So we went up to our nice classy room and rested for a bit. Then we decided to go out and have dinner. This was where the "expensive" notion began.

We planned to eat something simple so we picked a simple Thai restaurant a few blocks away from our hotel. The place wasn't that special, very simple with a minimal Thai ambiance in it. But when we opened the menu - boom! To cut it short, we spent about 75EUR for a not so special meal. The waiter only speaks French and Thai so he was having a hard time getting my orders correct. I ordered for jasmine rice, and he gave me a jasmine tea.

After the price-shocking dinner experience, we decided to walk around and look for the Jet d'Eau, the world's tallest fountain, which was about 15 minute walk from the hotel. Along the coast, we found the highlight of our evening, a sort of theme park stretched around the Geneva lake. There were fun rides, food stalls, souvenir shops, and area with lots of liquors and party music. We decided to take one fun ride just for the kicks. I forgot what the ride was called, but it's like a seats attached on a pole that spins and goes up and up and then drops, while it turns you upside down. I haven't done it for a while, and I thought it would feel the same when I was younger. Apparently, it's totally different. The more you get old, the more you get scared in these final destination-ish rides. The thrill I felt on riding this kind of shit when I was young feels terrible now that I'm old. I was eyes were closed the whole time, my right hand holding mark's arm so tight while screaming til I choke. Thank God I didn't puke. For a 5 minute ride, we paid 20CHF. But the kick was great, so it's worth it ;)

Walking back to the hotel, man, I felt like Swiss people just spit on Mercedez Benzes - because Ferrari and Rolls Royce were everywhere. And so were Rolex, Louis Vitton and everything you know that's branded and expensive.

The weather was pretty gloomy the next day. After breakfast, we headed out to do some touristy activities - not so fun when it's raining. We stopped by at some nearby department store to get an umbrella, however, it's quite pricey for an umbrella. So we decided to fuck it, let's get a raincoat poncho for 5EUR. So there, I was wearing a bright yellow kid's poncho, with a texture like a garbage bag, walking in the rain. I see people smiling as I passed by. They probably thought I was a weird tourist. I told myself rain will stop soon so I won't look ridiculous for long. But guess what? It was raining the whole morning :).

Our highlight for this day was our boat tour in Lake Geneva for sight seeing. I left my zoom lens at home because I was too lazy to bring it around, so bottom line, I didn't get a lot of good photos. In my entire Euro trip, I was with a 50mm and a Canon S90 :P. In any case, I was happy that some of my photos really did turn out super! I might print some of them when I get a chance.

Light house beside Jet d'Eau, the world's tallest fountain. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good photo of the fountain, thanks to my 50 mm :P.

Another photogenic light house along Geneva coast line.

A beautiful Swiss swan right at the lake. My first time to see a swan up close :). Did you know they are quite big?

After the boat tour, we walked more for a little bit to explore the city. Then we walk back in the hotel to pick up our luggage, then off to our next city - Lausanne!

Kudos, Hotel Kipling!

2010-08-08T22:04:00.002+08:00

We knew about Hotel Kipling via the tripadvisor.com. Mark took the words of the great reviews and recommendations of travelers who had stayed there and we were not sorry for our decision. Aside from it's perfectly situated close to the interesting areas in Geneva (such as the Old Town and Geneva Lake), it's also well known for good customer service and great value for money. We have a booking, but when we stepped in, the receptionist immediately proposed to us to transfer to another hotel managed by them due to overbooked rooms. It's 4 star hotel called Hotel Royal. I didn't understand exactly the reason why Kipling can't accommodate us and still gave us an option to whether stay or move. Hotel Royal, on the other, hand have better amenities and apparently more expensive than we booked for, but he offered it for the same price - so who are we to say no? To top it up, he also gave us complimentary breakfast for the next day, probably because of the hassle to walk again to the other hotel - for just about 100 meters away from them ;).

We didn't get to experience Hotel Kipling itself, but we did experience the great customer service!

Personalized greetings on the TV at Hotel Royal. Classy.

Our breakfast table.

Enjoying our breakfast. This was so far the best breakfast we've ever had in the entire trip.

First Stop : Copenhagen, Denmark

2010-08-07T07:11:00.003+08:00

Our main destination is Switzerland, but we intentionally selected a flight that has a long stop over so we can still take advantage of seeing the country even for a couple of hours.

The adventure began here.

First, we could hardly operate the machine that dispenses train tickets because it's in Danish and couldn't find the English translation. When Mark managed to figure it out, the next challenge was which train to take. We took the metro based on guts - only to back out in the last minute - when it was a minute too late. Doors were closed and train went on. So we stepped out right on the next stop.

- Only to realize, we were actually on the right train. Thank you map! We waited for the next train with hopes to get to the center of Copenhagen.

Because of limited knowledge and time to research, we thought Christianshavn was quite the center. I was surprised to see that Christianhavn looked like Amsterdam. There were canals, a square, and lots of terraces where you can dine or have a drink. It was less busy than Amsterdam though. Apparently, this neighborhood was Dutch city inspired. The canals were quite bigger than those in Amsterdam. We had lunch at some terrace close by the train station.

Our first refreshment in Copenhagen, plus complimentary bread. I didn't know Carlsberg is Danish.

This is my lunch. Fried fish.

This risotto of some sort wasn't Marks but we took photo of it anyway. It was mistakenly put in our table but since we didn't know what he ordered for would look like, it took us about a few minutes to realize it wasn't his.

After lunch, we took off to our first and only destination in this city, the last place you think Mark would ever visit - the Church of Our Savior.

This is the church from an angle on the other side of the street.

The church up close.

The Church of Our Savior is about 90 meters high and is open to public viewing. I forgot how much we paid for the entrance fee, but it's extremely worth it. There's an external winding staircase that visitors can climb up to, as long as you are not afraid of heights. It overlooks the beautiful city and the canals. The chilly wind get stronger as you climb up the top. The staircase is also a little bit narrow, so people have to take turns to go up/down. It was quite scary in the beginning specially when you lean on the staircase bar so people going on the opposite direction can pass through. In my opinion, climbing down was more difficult than going up. Aside from I'm wearing the most unfriendly shoes for walking, my thighs and legs aren't used to long walks nor climbs, so on the way down my legs and thighs kinda feel like jelly. I did a few nice shots overlooking the city.

Christianhavn canal view from the top of the church.

Copenhagen's magnificent windmills situated in the ocean.

Inside the church, you'll find an interesting altar piece that was a masterpiece of an artist named Nicodemus Tessins. You'll also find a huge organ which was built in 1698 (obviously engraved on the organ). Unfortunately, I didn't get to take photo of the entire organ to show you how huge it is because I only have my 50mm with me. The Canon S90 is not very good on low lights so pardon my close up photo.

The church's organ that was said to be built in 1698.

After visiting the church, we went towards (what we believed) the next train station and walked by the canals. We walked for about 20 minutes, only to find out that the next train station is farther. The closest was the train station were we got off to Christianshavn. Walking back would take us another 20 minutes which means we will not have enough time to walk around the next neighborhood. So we just decided to ride the train back to the airport and say goodbye to Copenhagen.

The real adventure wasn't in Christianshavn after all. It was inside the train.

We were under the impression that the ticket we bought in the airport to get to Christianshavn was 2 way. The ticket inspectors came, and told us that our ticket was only good for an hour and that it was expired. Mark explained that we thought it was 2 way and not hourly based, and that the machines were all in Danish and we couldn't find an English translation anywhere. However, the lady inspector insisted that we should have known about it. Obviously we're tourist, but too unfortunate that the tourist excuse didn't work. To make the story short, we were fined 600 Danish Kronings, which is about 80 Euros, and about 4000PHP. OUCH! I was quite embarrassed that we were approached by another inspector to issue the ticket, all eyes on us, while Mark tried his best to get away with it. They took my passport number and home address where they can send the bill since I told them I'm leaving Denmark. Mark wasn't so affected, but I was upset so bad that I cried out of frustration. I was super exhausted from all the climbing of staircases and walking 40 mins for nothing, and embarrassed that we got fined for not paying transportation. I left Denmark with a violation. It sucks.

I thought we would wrap up that day filled with frustration. But here comes the Yinyang factor. One bad thing means one good thing coming your way. We were upgraded to a 4 star hotel! The story behind it will be in my next entry.

Extremely exhausted, but happy with the hotel upgrade!

The Adventures of Unplanned Euro Trip

2010-08-07T06:29:00.001+08:00

This is the 3rd time I'm visiting the continent of Europe, and I have always stayed in one country visiting the same cities I've seen in my previous holidays here. I must say, the Netherlands have very nice cities (Amsterdam, Den Haag, Rotterdam, Utrect, Leiden) that I can't get enough of. But considering the time and money (not to mention the effort of tita Dijne to send supplemental documents)I spend when processing a Schengen visa, I should take advantage of it. It's not actually me who realized that, but my fiance who'd been wanting to show me around if schedule permits. I do like seeing new places, but I don't like stepping out of my comfort zone. I have been accustomed to Holland and I'm loving it that I feel contented to spend a month just staying in one place. Maybe it's because I am not a natural traveler, and I don't have that traveler's drive to explore.

However, Mark has a point. Countries in Europe are so close together, there's no reason to not see even just one country apart from Holland. Belgium, for example, is basically just a shit away and we still didn't take an effort to visit. So this week we decided to break the barriers of my lazy-travel sickness and went with an unplanned adventure. 4 countries, 5 cities, in 7 days. Yes, it's crazy, I know!

When Consciousness Leaves You

2010-07-23T05:34:00.001+08:00

" It was a nice warm Wednesday afternoon walking in the streets of Den Haag central, when I suddenly felt this sharp lining pain on top of my head. The pain was tolerable, yet I felt like it is gradually growing. I ignored for a bit, until my vision became cloudy. I started to feel dizzy, similar to the feeling when you first puff a smoke after 3 days of break from it. Spots of white light started to populate my sight. I held tighter on my fiance's arms and told him I need to sit down for a bit. There were no bench at sight so we continued walking, thinking that it wasn't serious. But the white spots were growing, and my hearing started to deteriorate. I started to hear like a weird buzz, and the noise around me started to sound so shallow, like I was under water. From there, I knew I was losing consciousness slowly. I could hardly breathe, my knees started to feel weak. I could harldy move my legs and my arms. My vision was completely washed out with the white light. Mark and I struggled to sit on a flower pot, he's almost dragging me because I feel like a vegetable. The pain was still there, and my hearing was completely gone - just a continuous buzz. I was very scared. It lasted for a few minutes. Then slowly, my vision and hearing came back. The buzzing faded slowly and I felt really really thirsty. Then I broke to a cold sweat...

What was it? I don't know. I wasn't completely unconscious because Mark was there talking me out of it all the way, but imagine if I was alone. I would have totally pass out. It made me wonder, this might be what people feel when consciousness leaves your body. It's not in an instant. It might be low blood pressure, or sudden lost of oxygen in my brain. I couldn't explain. I was just so scared and hope that it will never ever happen again."

Meet up with Kim in Amsterdam

2010-07-23T05:09:00.000+08:00

It's my third time visiting Holland now, spending Dutch summer with my fiance and his family. Last Saturday, we went out to Amsterdam to meet up with his ex-colleagues, who happen to be in the same city visiting, and my highlight was meeting up with Kim, his friend from Toronto. I was very glad to meet her finally! I didn't make it to Canada last year, and it was awesome that she was here too for a tour. It was a pleasant day walking around the city, eating at a nice Indonesian resto, and a boat trip to the canals. We had great conversation of different things, specially - the MAC cosmetics haha! Mind you, we just enjoy makeup but we are not just about makeup Ok heh! I still owe her a makeup session that I'd really love to do, but unfortunately, we didn't get to catch up with her again because Mark had to go to an urgent doctor's appointment. She already left the country and is on Switzerland now, bummer! Hopefully, we can go follow in Switzerland if time permits. I really hope we had more time to hang out and do more girly stuff. Anyways, she got me a present (Mark was very jealous haha)! Yes baby, it's MAC's holiday collection - suhweeet! I love it so much!

We really gotta try this! The pink powder brush is a cute brush i found from Hema btw.

Morning Light : AFS first open shoot!

2010-06-28T16:16:00.000+08:00

Finally, after all the hard works putting up this team, AFS launches its first open shoot! Click here for more information how to register.

Concept is clean and simple. We got inspired by that morning feeling, where you feel a different freshness and glow on a perfect morning, waking up from a good night sleep. Thus, we came with the title "Morning Light". We encourage participants to conceptualize what they are, or how they want to portray themselves in a morning of complete sleep and in chillax mood. Bring your most comfortable sleepwear, and stuff you can't sleep without. Bring anything that would represent your morning, and we'll do the glam styling and make up to execute the art ;).

We have limited slots, so register now! Take advantage of our promotional package!

1st 10 heads to register will get a free 8x10 print of a photo of their choice!

Successful Sunday Shoot

2010-06-23T07:02:00.003+08:00

Wow, 3 Ss :)

First off, thanks to everyone who participated in our Sunday Flavour's model hunt, we appreciate it so much and we hope that you will continue to support AFS Team. Thanks to those that sent their set cards, and those who have referred people to be our model. It would have been hard for us to get the perfect models without your help. Thanks most specially to the 6 superb models we worked with last Sunday, MJ, Fierre, EJ, Veem, Gerard and Marcky. You guys were awesome!

Kudos to AFS Team too! Everyone did a great job, from make up to styling, down to art direction and photography!

But I want to add... I wish the shoot was shorter. Finished at about 12 midnight, hello? I was so dead tired the next day. Well, we started at 10am with 1 model. The next model came around 2pm, and then 3:30, and the rest is history. Excluding the time the models came in the studio, I think that it would have been shorter if everyone was quickly happy with the shots they took - or I may just be impatient. When you get your money shot, learn to stop. Stop telling yourself "I can do a better shot" after doing a really good shot, and having repetitive shots doesn't make it any better. Besides, you'll just battle with the process of elimination after, making it even harder for you to decide which ones to pick when you take: a) repetitive poses; b) so much fucking great shots!

Anyhow, I didn't partake in taking photographs. I did the make up for the 4 models - maybe that's why I got bored after I was done :P.

Nevertheless, it was fun fun! Tiring, but rewarding. I'll keep you posted of what's been up with that shoot very very soon so stay tuned!!!

Wanted : Sunday Flavour Model

2010-06-15T13:31:00.002+08:00

AFS is currently in search of male and female models for our Project : Sunday Flavour. We need your application ASAP - sorry for the short notice. If you're interested, shoot us an email with your photo(s) at info@anythingfortheshot.ph.

SCTEX Alarming Incident

2010-06-13T00:15:00.003+08:00

I recently read a travel advisory from a blog article about a scary incident in the SCTEX (Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway). Apparently, there are unidentified people along the expressway who throw stones at your car, resulting to damage and at the same time panic - which can lead to an accident. You might end up hitting the railings and stop, or you just might end up hitting the breaks out of shock. And when you stop to check what happened, this is their queue to attack, approach your car and take everything useful to them (cash, jewelries, what have you). This "syndicate" works at night time, so he's warning everyone to not drive in that highway at night time. He was a victim of the stone throwing, and fortunately he made it safe and didn't get hurt.

This quite alarmed me. Aside from this is the newest, easiest, smoothest route up north, this is the only way I know how to get to Subic - and that I have to drive there in a few hours. Mark's participating in a sports event there, a non-stop running relay that lasts overnight. I didn't get to come with him on Friday night because of work, so we agreed that I will just drive all the way there to pick him up and celebrate whether they win or not. I planned to be there very very early so that means I should be in the SCTEX before the sunrise, by the time the sun is up, I'll be in subic. Although this news alarmed me, it wasn't a big deal 2 days ago, not until none of my friends I invited would come. 94 kilometer of nothing but road and chopped mountains, without the sun, driving alone - now I'm officially scared.

So it got me thinking, do these people also take a day off from this dirty job like normal working people? Is it a five day job, weekends off, and no work on a holiday too? Because if so, I'd be safe. Kidding aside, it is important to keep presence of mind in this kind of fucked up situation.

1. Be alert and attentive. The warning did its job making us aware, so it's our job to be vigilant for ourselves.
2. When you enter toll, ask for the SCTEX patrol hotline, it's handy.
3. When you get hit by a stone (God forbid), do not stop. Instead be calm. Keep your eyes on the road, and your left hand on the wheel, right hand grabbing your phone. Hehe - driving and calling isn't a safe combo. As much as I want to say feel free to multi-task, I don't encourage that, unless somebody is really running after you :P. Just drive up to the end. Or if you feel and sure you are in safe distance and location, stop on the shoulder and call quickly.

This incident happened last May (i have no idea why it just reached me now), and hopefully it has been reported to the police. Hopefully they are doing something to keep the motorist safe, in a toll road. Damn, it's a paid road - an expensive one. We are paying for our safety so wakey wakey SCTEX law enforcers.

Mark doesn't want me to drive there anymore, unless it's sunny. So we'll see :p.

Missing Warburton

2010-06-08T14:50:00.002+08:00

It's been 3 nights in a row that I didn't see Warburton in front of Startbucks where we usually feed him. It worries me. Before he disappeared, he was unusually mushy and sweet. A stray cat don't usually trust people, so they don't like being touched. For weeks of feeding him and George, Warburton has been fond of us, but still won't let us pet him. He backs off when we do. But the last time I saw him, he was quite different. He wasn't with George. After feeding him, he was meowing sweetly towards me, and when I touched his head, he didn't back off or run away. I rubbed his ears and belly, and cheeks. I was very surprised that he was so loving and sweet. I could literally carry him without the threat of scratching me. The next evening, he disappeared. I don't want to think that it was his way to say goodbye and to thank me for feeding him for a couple of weeks. Mark and I tried to look for him in the park, on that Leviste stretch, in the parking lot - but still, no Warburton. If only George could speak. I want to keep a positive mind that he's just roaming somewhere and he's safe. Or better, someone must have picked him up and gave him a new home. If you think about it, there's really nothing much I can do for Warburton anyways. I can't take him and George because of our housing situation. I just pray that he's fine wherever he is.

The Cats of Salcedo Village

2010-05-28T07:16:00.002+08:00

Just so you have an idea of what our feeding program beneficiaries look like.

Jane
Jane lives in Jaime Velasquez Park. She is by far, the most affectionate of all the stray cats we have been feeding. We visit her every night, and it's so amazing how she always finds us when we couldn't find her. She is very lovely, and surprisingly clean for a stray. She is also the only stray that we can pet without the threat that she might scratch or bite. She's very friendly to us. We are planning to adopt her soon, but until we find a bigger and more animal friendly condo, she will have to stay in her park and we'll take care of her from there.

Warburton and George
Warburton is the kitten, while George is his guardian. We aren't really sure what's their gender but we decided to assume they are both male. They are inseparable, always together, watching each other's back. A perfect example of friendship and loyalty. Been feeding them for 2 weeks now and they are still together. Just like majority of strays, they have serious trust issues with humans and never want to be touched. Until now, we are still earning the trust of these two, and we are slowly getting there.

Pula
We see Pula everywhere. Sedeno, Leviste, Tordesillas, and in Valero. He doesn't stay in one place like the other cats we feed. He's not used to petting and have trust issues with humans, but he's a gentle soul. This was his lucky evening, we crossed path and I have cat food in my bag. He had a wonderful dinner.

In an evening, we probably feed about 5 to 7 cats, depending on how many cats we pass by. I wish we could take photos of everyone, but there are times we don't bring a camera along, and there are times that it's just impossible to take photos of them. There are 3 little kittens that we also regularly feed who are very scared of people. But we are getting nervous as we don't see them in their usual spot anymore. I like to think that they got adopted.

Photo credits goes to my fiance, Mark Mulder.

Warburton and Buddy

2010-05-15T02:24:00.013+08:00

More cat story.

The little stray kitten is Warburton, and his buddy George. These two are always together wandering for food across the walkway stretch in Leviste St.For those people familiar with Leviste St., it is the stretch where you'll find Kang's, Joe Pepperoni and Starbucks. We often find them hanging out close to Starbucks or at the open parking area close to it. George is Warburton's protector. He violently hisses or meows on anyone who would go close to Warburton, while this little guy runs and hide behind him. George is like his guardian that keeps him safe all the time. It's our 3rd night of feeding the two, and watching them taking care of each other, watching each other's back is so touching. And for that 3 nights, we still have yet to earn these two little creature's trust. These 2 needs a home.

Although the 2 are quite scared of humans, have trust issues, and is not used to petting, we still wanted to take them in, but we just can't house more until we find a new place. Besides, our building doesn't allow animals so I wanted to be as discreet as possible. So the only way we could help is to feed them. I admire how these 2 show love, care, loyalty, protection towards each other. If somebody would decide to adopt Warburton, he/she should adopt them both. Buddy's not so cute, I understand, but we don't help out only cute ones, do we? Besides, Buddy showed genuine love and care to Warburton, so he deserves the same care and love an owner can give. My fiance and I will be out of town this weekend, so no lovely dinner for the two. I am hopeful that this message would reach someone with a golden heart, and probably pay them a visit this evening and give them something to eat. Or maybe adopt them both. I see them around 10pm, just so you know.
We gave them names because they are our regulars :).

A Cat's Call

2010-05-14T01:09:00.001+08:00

The kitty incident last Sunday was a bit traumatic, I must say. It has not left my mind at all and it still makes me sad whenever I remember or re-read my blog entry about it. It haunts me when I ride my car or whenever I pass that street where I found her. I couldn't tell anyone her story without feeling pain (I'm not overreacting) and I honestly want to get over it. I feel so involved with a kitten that I didn't own, that I didn't hit, and I have never known.

I previously wrote about compassion for animals and mentioned I have always have a heart for them but never really took action on that feeling. And so I came to conclude that this might be a calling for me, a chance to act on that compassion and make a little bit difference in this world. So Mark and I started a small project. Every time we go out, we bring our kitty cat relief kit that contains a bottle of water, food container, and Whiskas sachet so we can easily feed any strays that we come across with. I wish I could take them all in - however, it's the next best thing we can do for them at the moment. I find it a good therapy for me too whenever we feed them. It helps relieve that guilt of being a human, but not acting human towards animals. And at the same time, even if these little creatures may not understand, in our little ways we show that there are still human beings that have a heart.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

2010-05-12T05:08:00.001+08:00

can't finalize which template to use for my ubershack so stuff here's just going to be funky for a short while until I find my soulmate-template.

ciao!

A Sad Story

2010-05-10T05:33:00.007+08:00

2 months ago, we passed by a cat that was ran over by a car on a fly-over going to Quezon Ave. I was at the backseat trying to nap when Mark swerved sharply. I didn't witness what Mark and Sid, who's on the passenger seat, saw. Apparently, he was surprised and avoided this cat that had been hit earlier. He was so upset that he cried in the car because he saw the cat still alive, trying to drag itself to safety. We couldn't do anything. We can't stop to help it because it's a highway and we can just post danger to other motorists. So we knew, the little cat will just die there. The thought was depressing enough for me, but I can't imagine what Mark felt when he saw the little cat struggling for his life, knowing that he's a big animal lover. How could a little cat end up in a highway in the first place, specially, in the fly-over? My assumption was someone left the poor cat there when the highway was less busy. That's what irresponsible, heartless, cat owners do when they get crowded with kittens. They just throw them everywhere, anywhere. Instead of spaying/neutering their cats so it won't multiply anymore, they throw the kittens away.

Mark was very upset. So I told him, next time we see a cat in a busy street, we will rescue and pick it up if all possible. We will stop for them. Every time we pass by EDSA and those fly-overs there it reminds me of that cat, and I silently pray to not see another in that condition, in that road, ever again.

This evening, I was driving home from the pharmacy when I saw this little kitten laying on the street of Tordesillas. I knew she was ran over by a car. She was moving her paws, maybe trying to getup. But nobody cared to stop, or no passer-by cared enough to pick her up. So I stopped and immediately stepped out of my car just in time before another car runs over her little body. I signaled the cars to stop. It was a heart breaking sight. She was waving her little paws, catching her breath with her tongue out. I carried her immediately in the car and hurried to the 24 hour animal clinic close by. I started to cry in the car out of pity while i drove my way to the clinic, praying that she makes it and live. I had to pass 3 stop lights and 1 U-turn to get to the clinic, and at every stoplight I check on her, telling her to hang-on. But on the last stop light, she stopped moving.

When I reached the Animal clinic, I rushed in, told the personnel I have a ran over cat in my car and I need help. He came with me and carried out her lifeless body. 5 minutes later, the vet called me and said she didn't make it. The poor little kitten has died in my car. I was heart broken. I was weeping while I talked with the vet, telling them how I found her, and that I have little cats at home too.

I went home with a broken spirit and couldn't stop crying. I couldn't forget her little helpless face when I picked her up. I couldn't forget how she waved her paw and tried to catch her breath. What breaks my heart most is nobody cared. Nobody stopped for her. I don't understand how she got ran over too. She's a white kitten, easy to spot. The street is well lit. Lastly, that street is very short and at the end there's a STOP sign to give way to the main street. So it's probably another irresponsible driver who sped up in that short street where you shouldn't really speed up because you are stopping anyways. Thanks to that asshole who didn't give a shit, she's dead. May God take her little soul in heaven.

It's so sad that majority of our population don't give a damn about animals in general. I hardly know people who loves and cares about animals, not even a handful. I have seen tons of dead cats in the streets. But this one felt different. This is the very first time I've seen one dying in my sight. Yet, this is not the first time I have witness how heartless people can be with animals. Imagine if it was a human being? Imagine if it was a kid? Would you let her die? Of course not. But she wasn't human, was she? So why give a damn?

It's funny how many people supports the movement against the Reproductive Health Bill - because they say we are a Catholic country, we are PRO-LIFE. But by being pro-life should mean you preserve, value, and respect life - IN ALL FORMS. You get to be the judge of the hypocrisy there.

This evening, I remember that cat in the fly-over. But this time I had the chance to stop and help. It just saddens me that it didn't make a difference. The poor little kitten still died. Mark said, at least she died with dignity. If I didn't pick her up, she would have been ran over and over again, until there's nothing left of her body. At least now she'll get buried. And at least before she closed her eyes, she felt compassion, care, and in that short time, loved.

I pray for her little soul.

Revisiting Potipot - 2010

2010-05-06T03:25:00.003+08:00

I've noticed that the most visited blog post in my pathetic blog (at the moment) is my Potipot Zambales entry - and so I just felt responsible to give people an update what is Potipot now, compared to last year's trip. I don't want people to go visit and find themselves disappointed because they read something opposite to what they'll actually experience.

I'm sad to say that i don't find it worth the 5-hour drive from Manila anymore. First, the island's entrance fee have raised from 50PHP last year to 100PHP. They also charge you more if you are going to camp overnight (i just forgot how much).I personally wouldn't mind that fee IF the island was kept clean. It will make you wonder where this money is going. It's totally disappointing to see plastic bottles and wrappers on the beach, either buried on the sand, or on the water - not to mention those wooden sticks of that cheap ice-popsies they sell on the beach. It sucks that there are people who just don't give a shit about being responsible visitors and keeping the island clean. However, I would also assume that the people maintaining/managing the island should take actions as well and do something about it. I mean, they charge money and all, so they should have enough resources to do a clean up, for example. I saw a lot of "improvements" in the island (that i'm not really in favor of) such as tree house and more cottages. It's slowly becoming commercialized, losing it's innocence and "paradise" ambiance.

Since also a lot of people have known Potipot, expect that half of Metro Manila population will be there. Ok, I'm exaggerating here - but seriously, the people I've seen from last year, trippled this year. It's not really a big deal because there's still enough space in the island to enjoy yourselves. But you don't get that serene, calm, secluded feeling anymore.

Lastly, I so hate the noise pollution, not caused by visitors, but by ice cream vendors! This guy kept on shaking his ice cream bell non-stop, even if it was so obvious that we, and the other people around our area, weren't interested to buy. To make it worse, he stayed very close in our spot, sat there, and kept on shaking his annoying bell. He doesn't care if people are annoyed as he also locks in eye to eye contact when you look at him to show that you're annoyed by his noise. They have no respect for people who wanted some peace and quiet.

To lighten up a bit, my fiance and I walked around the small island to find a spot where we can chill out and enjoy the sun, free from noise and garbage. Fortunately, we found a nice area, free from noise and garbage. It was a relief to see that there's still one part clean.

I feel sad for people who haven't been there and had been wanting to visit. I wish it still was the old Potipot everyone's fussing about. I am not saying don't go there anymore, but just keep your expectations leveled. I don't know about you, but me and my friends were quite disappointed with this last trip. It somewhat felt like the things we did there for fun can be done in other beach resort we can find closer, such as in Batangas. The reason why you want to travel further out of town is because you want seclusion, relaxation, and looking for a unique experience... unfortunately, it doesn't give that feel anymore.

If I were rich, I'd buy the island and preserve it. Guest will have to book, so you don't over populate the island, and people will still feel that seclusion and serenity. Annoying vendors will not be allowed. Most of all, I'll make sure that people who go there will watch after their own shit - or they'll be fined :P

Blog make over

2010-05-06T01:57:00.000+08:00

My uber-shack is in dire need of a make-over. I wish I could make this blog more specific than just write about random stuff I'd like to write about. I need a focus. I need a genre. Think think thinK!

Finding Patrick

2010-03-31T11:12:00.004+08:00

Mark said he heard this little kitten crying the night before we picked him up from the streets. He didn't see him the other night, so it looks like this little buddy had been crying for 24 hours. He was situated right at the doorstep of Jews Church here in Dela Costa St., and nobody rescued him. When I came, his eyes were covered with hardened mucus and couldn't open it. All he can do was to cry non stop. He's dehydrated, and probably have not eaten for days. We immediately took him to the 24 hour pet clinic close by to give him treatment, and to check what's with his eyes.

The vet said the mucus build up was due to a respiratory infection. We can't bring him home because it's a viral infection and Nishi might get sick. So he was confined in the clinic for about 5 days for treatment. We didn't have a name for him so this explains the following photo:

photo powered by my fabulous iphone.

We visited him every night and spend about 40mins each time to comfort, play with him, and see his progress. It's a relief to see him that he can open his eyes slowly everytime we visit.

After 5 days, we got him out of the clinic, picked him up on an odd hour so we can sneak him in. The only thing I don't like about Patrick is he's a loud cry baby! Pets aren't allowed in this building. His loud crying will surely get us busted. Nishi is a quiet cat, now there's balance. Pat is as loud as a mofo haha!

Chillin' out in a cage for a few more days until he's fully recovered

A Compassion for Animals

2010-03-31T10:00:00.003+08:00

It started with Nishi.

For those who don't know, Nishi was 2-3 weeks old when we found her along the streets of Salcedo Village, close to our place. She was in a pretty bad shape, if Mark didn't pick her up, she would have been dead by now.

I never had a pet as a kid or as an adult. I'm not a cat nor a dog person. Not that I don't like them, but I wasn't raise with animals around me. I didn't grow up in a family who loves or at least knows how to value and take care of their pets. But in spite of not growing up around people with compassion to animals, I had it natural in me. I feel bad when I see stray cats and dogs feeding on garbage. I feel bad when they get ran over by careless, soulless motorists who doesn't even give a shit, just because they are just animals - valueless. But despite of the feeling of compassion and sympathy for animals, I never acted on it.

I never told Mark that I admire his big heart for animals. His action of helping this little helpless kitten made me realize that if my compassion for animals is genuine, I should make a difference and act on it too.

The original plan was to send her to a shelter when she's all better. Our building doesn't allow pets so that's our primary concern. We just sneaked her in. But we felt so attached to her and eventually, we decided to just keep her forever.

I love her now more than ever, and my compassion for animals, be it cats or dogs, have become stronger. We can't take every stray cats we find on the streets, but the most sensible approach we came up with so we can still help in our own little ways is to take in those who are really really in need - sick kitten, baby cats - those who can't mend for themselves. Stray cats are usually afraid of people so we can't really get to them if we want to. Another way is to take them to an animal shelter, and then donate to that shelter instead so they can help more animals in need.

Nishi is a bitch btw. She bites me every single day. But I still love her :).

Itching for some spending

2010-03-31T07:34:00.007+08:00

Mark and I went to Quiapo yesterday to send my D80 for service and should be ready after the holy week. The thing about Quiapo is it is not only the haven of the Nazarene devotees, but also for photographers - the ever famous Hidalgo St. So after we left the camera at Dong's, Mark immediately checked out Henry's to see if they have the evil camera. Lo and behold - he now has it - the evil micro 4/3 super cool Panasonic Lumix GF1. I'm so jealous!

So it got me thinking, what was the last gadget I bought? It was the pink HP ~~Gaybook~~ Netbook which is sooo last year. I had been itching to buy me new gadget, a new lens, a new high performance lappy, a tablet, a second camera body... but had been delaying and strongly controlling my urge to draw money from my pocket because i think that I have more important stuff to buy/save for/pay for and that gadgets are not the main priority at this moment. I usually stay out of electronic/gadgets store so as not to torture myself. Excluding my vast collection of dresses and kikay stuff, I haven't bought anything that expensive for myself yet. So i'm thinking - i might go for getting a new lens - yes baby!

The Evil Cam - photo powered by Canon S90 (not so evil cam :P)

WTF Globe Broadband!

2010-03-25T02:21:00.001+08:00

One important thing to consider before subscribing to anything - find out about the after sales performance. Read blogs, forums, and reviews from end-users.

I had been a loyal Globe Telecom customer. It has always been my mobile service provider forever and have never switched. I just wish they can improve their broadband service, specially after sales, like how they do it in the telecom part.

In the span of my subscription with their broadband service, there were only 2 tech support representative that were able to help me out with my connectivity issue. I must say, they were equipped with proper training, and they actually know what they were doing. However, before i got them i had to go through painful numerous phone calls talking to other representatives who have no idea what's going on. No offense, but if I will rate the support experience in general, its a big pile of flaming shit. I don't condemn the technical support group for not being able to address my connectivity issues, nor for not being able to come up with a sensible issue-resolution statement. It's not totally their fault. What I blame is the kind of training this company provides their employees. I would be fucked to work with a company who couldn't equip me with proper training and skills so I don't sound stupid when I talk with clients. These technical support group are educated individuals, I don't think they would qualify to be one if they aren't. But they suck because the process they follow sucks. Globe, these people are your front liners, do you have any idea how difficult this role is? Disregarding the nini clients who just want to bitch out for no sensible reason, how many valid customers yell at them everyday because they can't be helped. And if it is really out of the support's control, how come they can't say anything sensible other than sending a technician to your house (who never comes btw). That's right, if they can't say the cause of Internet connectivity fluctuation for example, they blame it to your hardware and they send off imaginary technicians - which of course are from another department - so again, it's out of the tech support's hands. After 5 days of no technician, wallah! Your Internet will just magically work again. How about that? When it breaks again, you as the customer, will have to go through the same bullshit. I mean WTF?! If I can't be helped, at least shed me some light of what's going on please? Give your employees the training they deserve. Customer service is very important. It's part of what we are paying for, no matter how cheap our package is.

Anyhow, I'm really fed up. Just a piece of advice, if ever you think of getting Globe Broadband, think again.

Oh, btw, the rebate I was asking from them due to numerous Internet outage I had in the previous months, is still in process. Thanks! That's just what I need.

I am also thinking if I should keep my phone subscription with Globe. I won't be a loss, what's PHP3,000 a month phone bill to them anyways?

I salute technical writers

2010-03-23T09:49:00.000+08:00

I'm currently busy putting up a new blog that focuses on basic computer operations, which includes instructional videos. It's target audience will be our less tech savvy friends and family members who are not familiar with computers and the Internet in general. At this point, I'm just about to finish one topic about web browsers, it looks easy to teach because you know your way around - but explaining, and keeping in mind your target audience, and making sure you also keep things simple - is a lot of work. I salute technical writers who do this on a daily basis. Their talent in making sure they cover each part of whatever they're writing concise and clear, making sure the contents will not make their readers or their target audience lost at some point, and making sure they do not go broad nor go too short. It's hard i must say. I have so much to learn about writing so hopefully this project becomes successful.

BTW, it's actually a project given to me by my boss. It's totally not related to my current role at work, but more of a side project to promote our tool.

wish me luck!

Camera Coma

2010-03-03T22:11:00.005+08:00

After neglecting my D80 for 2 weeks, I finally got inspired today to use it to document my new easy salad recipe that I plan to send out to Tita Dijne. Just as I was close to finishing, it suddenly stopped shooting. I could hear the shutter but it was rather soft than crisp. There's also a blinking ERR on the LCD which (according to a number of forums i read) is so generic. I tried a bunch of stuff to troubleshoot but nothing worked. So there, my D80 is in coma - so young, so soon, with 11k actuations only... I haven't checked with the service techs but I am very hopeful it will get fixed. It better get fixed because I have yet to plan my budget for my next cam, D300s - and I don't plan to get it anytime soon.

I feel bad that the last thing my camera shot was a sliced tomato ... bummer! So since the salad menu was the last set of photos my dear D80 have shot, I will post and share. My cam didn't get to shoot the finished product so I had to resort to the S90, and it wasn't that bad :).

A new Christmas Tradition

2009-12-29T08:06:00.009+08:00

There are a bunch of reasons why 2009 holiday season is very special to me. Here's the top 3:

#1. My first Christmas and (will be) New year with Mark. It was my wish last christmas, and santa took a year to make it real :).

#2. This is also Nishi's first Christmas ever in the world.

#3. This is the first time in about 6 years I'm spending my holidays with someone I am committed to and I'm very happy with.

And since this Christmas was special for both of us, Mark came up with a sweet idea - start a new tradition.

We bought a medium-sized indoor plant to be our Christmas tree. Mark doesn't like the idea of a plastic tree. We bought a couple of generic Christmas balls and lights to garnish the tree. But the highlight was to get each other one special ornament that would symbolize something this season. It can be about us, or can be just anything that symbolizes the moment. This is the new tradition. We agreed to give each other a special ornament each year, and hang it on the tree - until it becomes a lot. Isn't that sweet? At least I know we intend to be together more than 1 Christmas hehehe!

So here's what we got from each other:

This angel ornament was from Mark.

This is what i got for him. I chose this because this is the most "oriental/asian" ornament i could find - under time pressure. It symbolizes his first warm Christmas in Asia.

And this is what we got for Nishi. Cute little raindeer.

For most pinoy families, we were quite late in decorating our flat with Christmas stuff - for the reason that we don't wanna get tired of Christmas when it hits the actual date. Until now, we still enjoy the sight of our lovely, unique tree (which i still have to take proper pictures of), and still feeling the warmth of the holidays.

I hope everyone had a colorful, interesting, and happy Christmas like us!

Almost updated!

2009-12-05T08:20:00.006+08:00

Happy that I am almost done updating my gallery yipeee!
Aside from my main job + AFS creative team that kept me busy the past weeks - I was able to take a break with my boyfriend on a long weekend vacation in Boracay, which I find very refreshing. I feel more inspired and energized to catch up with stuff I should be sharing to my blog readers - both my uber-shack and AFS blog.

If you feel bored, let my gallery help unbore you :) I uploaded new inspiring photos I took from my last trip out of town - together with my other selections.

Halloween Killer

2009-11-14T04:49:00.003+08:00

It might be too late to post this now, but better late than never :).

We did the Halloween Killer shoot at UP Campus. The photos in this set were used for teasers for the Spook You Halloween event held on November 1, 2009. We came right before the sunset. We were very lucky to have clear, nicely lit skies - as you know, it has been rainy for months in Manila. JM Abania and Mark Mulder collaborated in setting up the lighting - 4 strobes strategically positioned to light up the subjects, just enough to blend it in with the available light from the sky, making a more natural feel. After a few test shots, it took approximately 30 mins to get that perfect lighting and do the actual shoot. The shoot requirement seemed simple enough - a good "kill" pose for the murderer, and a real scared victim screaming for her life. It seemed so simple until we were actual shooting. It is so difficult to pretend you're so scared. You can't just pose a scream - you really have to do it, psych your mind that it's for real in order to simulate that emotion you'd like to appear in the photos. JM's lucky to wear a mask so it doesn't matter if he laughs or what. It took us a number of shots before Mark finally got what he's looking for. I respect models before, but I respect them more now to know what they're doing isn't quite easy as it seems :P.

wrapping up and preparing for the group shot.

So far, we are quite pleased with the outcome. You can view Mark's set on Flickr - feel free to let us know what you think :).

So what's in it for you? We just want you to know that our team is open for creative photoshoot - your theme, your style. Your business, for example, may need creative photos for marketing campaigns or product branding - original and with personal touch. Something you will not (or hard to) find in stocks. Create your own concepts and unleash your creativity - we execute and will bring it to life ;).

Mark Mulder, Marvie Yap, Jayem and Rhecel Abania.

2009-10-26T03:51:00.000+08:00

This workshop targets women who just wants to have that everyday look for school or for a normal work day. Owen, MAC makeup artist, discussed how to get that look suited for daytime. For women who aren't that comfortable with putting on makeup, or those who are afraid of putting makeup because they didn't want to look unnatural, his application tips and color choices will probably change your mind. Unfortunately I had to shoot so I didn't get to list all the suggested makeups, so I strongly recommend to go to MAC Powerplant Mall in Rockwell, and look for Iya.

AFS is now up !

2009-10-24T09:44:00.003+08:00

AFS Creative team is now online! Please visit our awesome site, check our latest projects and gigs, and of course our list of services (its in a blog format at the moment). There's more to come!

Oh... yeah this is what's keeping me busy lately. So exciting!

AFS Hits the Runway - Philippine Fashion Week

2009-10-22T23:27:00.000+08:00

Short and Simple, yet packed with elegant and classy social butterflies + prominent celebrities - this was Puey's show this evening at the SMX Convention Center, where he showcased his spring summer collection for 2010.

Adverts from the sponsors started the show, which lasted for about - a life time - at least that's how it felt.The long, dragging commercials quite annoyed a few. Can't blame the audience, everyone's so curious and eager to see the collection. But after all, it was worth the wait. The show was so fluid. The actual fashion show lasted for about less than an hour.

The boys scoured for the best spot they can get amidst the numerous photographers all over the front row. While I, on the other hand, picked the best spot - among the audience - sitting pretty :). I decided to be an audience since they're there positioned anyways, taking photos for our team. But guess what? Can't help it... I ended up taking photos myself. So the consequence of deciding to take an "audience" perspective seat? Taking photos @ 1/25 using my 18-135mm zoom lens with no flash, zoomed in (which is notorious in shaking) on ISO 1000. I'm quite impressed some photos appeared still sharpie as I was expecting a bunch of trash when I post process. Ehem, the photo above isnt' that bad :).

Thanks to Iya, our in-house MUA, who hooked us up with the invites. Too bad she had to work late and didn't make it to the fashion show :(.

Mark Mulder's take on the fashion show is already uploaded in Flickr. Feel free to browse around!

Ciao for now!

Help needed for the victims of Ondoy

2009-09-29T01:36:00.008+08:00

Prayers to my fellow Filipinos who were affected by typhoon Ondoy.

73 dead, more than 300,000 displaced by Ondoy

I thank God that everyone I hold dear in my life were safe and unharmed. We are one of the very blessed, very fortunate people who didn't suffer from the wrath of nature. Let's repay that blessing by being a blessing to others.

Donation drop off points are:

1. All PETRON Gasoline Stations
2. Kapuso Foundation GMA7
3. Sagip Kapamilya Foundation ABS-CBN
4. Ateneo College Covered Courts, Katipunan, QC – Ateneo -SLB Task Force Noah (open 6am to 12md)
5. UP College of Mass Communication
6. DLSU Sagip Metro Relief Drive for Ondoy - Sept 29 @Sagip Metro booth in Central Plaza
7. Team Manila and Papemelroti branches
8. Tulong Bayan – White Space
(along Pasong Tamo Extension, nr Glaxo Smith Klein and Silverlens Gallery)
9. Tulong Bayan – Expo Centro, Araneta Center, Cubao
(Volunteers are welcome, 8am-9pm)
10. Poveda

Bring relief goods such as rice, canned goods or any ready to eat food, noodles, bread, water, milk. Clothing and blankets are also very much needed.

You can also donate to Philippine Red Cross via SMS:
Text RED(space)AMOUNT to 2899 (Globe) and 4483 (Smart). Ex: 'RED 50'

You may also use your paypal account to send donations via TXTPower - Paypal.

Image and donation info found on the following sites:
http://helpondoyvictims.wordpress.com/
http://ondoy.tumblr.com/page/1

Watch out .

2009-09-15T04:02:00.003+08:00

Cooking Fever

2009-09-10T02:25:00.008+08:00

One thing most of my friends don't know about me - I am very domesticated. Yes friends, I know how to sweep the floor with a broomstick properly, hand-wash clothes without ruining them, sew clothes, wash dishes and clean up kitchen accordingly. And most of all - I can cook. Yep, you read it right, I cook. I just look like I don't know anything about house keeping, but looks are deceiving. I'm not just your ordinary geek :).

It may be hard to believe for some people who knows me, but I have passion for cooking :), not just eating. So now that I have the opportunity to showcase my cooking skills to my (highly appreciative)boyfriend, I thought it would be nice to log it in my humble blog and share it to my readers (if they care).

We woke up at 5pm - which makes breakfast 5:30pm. 7:00pm is too early for dinner, and so we decided to have one at 11pm. Here's our late, but glamorous dish.

Tuna Pasta in Tomato-Onion salsa

Are you tired of your usual menu? Try this and be sorry - hehe just kidding. It's yummy. Send me a message if you need the recipe, I just don't have it on top of my head at the moment.

Settled, at last!

2009-09-09T04:22:00.011+08:00

I have spent a great portion of my time planning and stressing about a smooth transition from living single, and living together with my boyfriend. Neither of us have experienced living in with a significant other, so my idea was to make it special and stress-free, at least for him. So I thought I'd be able to take care of everything - seamlessly (i still want to believe I partially have succeeded on this. From securing the best location and reasonably priced condo unit, down to getting our first batch of grocery items, I took care of everything I thought we will ever need. The idea was when he arrives, I'd pick him up - drive back to our home sweet home - then live happily ever after. Simple and relaxed, just like that. The actual results, though, was not as simple as I pictured, though it wasn't also as stressful.

Together we worked on setting up our home office, moving furnishings here and there. He fixed small imperfections of our house such as the sliding doors in the shower that won't slide all the way, cleaning window blinds, scrubbing and sanitizing our floor area, replaced our shower head because the water's very strong and painful when it squirts out. We cleaned up metal hinge molds that we didn't notice when we moved in (highly disgusting I must say). Almost everyday we buy new stuff to improve our home. For 2 weeks we have been renovating constantly.

We are running our 3rd week now, and at last - we can finally say we are settled! I realized, I can't take care of everything by myself. I probably could if given an ample time, but it wouldn't be as fun as it have been. Besides, this is our new life and we ought to work together in every way :). We both invested hard work and sweaty armpits establishing our new home, it's the sweetest thing.

So this evening, we chill out. Settled in our humble abode, finally :).

Mark's famous snackie platter. Tummy filling.

Cheers!

Hello blog :)

2009-09-08T13:26:00.004+08:00

Welcome back, me!

Months of nothing and here I come again. And just like the times when i neglect this space, I say I don't know what to write about and where to start. My head is so cluttered with superb events for the past 2 months - from my 2nd trip to the Netherlands, to my boyfriend coming here to settle with me for half a year, to photography projects we are working out together with our creative group - so much going on!

Where to start shouldn't be an issue. Better start on something, than forever contemplating which ones to write first and eventually end up in writing nothing :).

Stay tuned!

Peeves 101 Corner

2009-06-11T23:10:00.005+08:00

Peeve of the day.

I hate people taking advantage of the ignorance of other people.
I also hate ignorant people not doing anything to resolve their ignorance.

Cheating is not acceptable!

2009-05-28T01:04:00.005+08:00

Funny how a showbiz controversy inspired me to write a blog entry. Showbiz doesn't interest me at all, but I can't deny the fact that it still brings me entertainment once in a while.

While there are more worth-while things in the world that we should worry and care about, here we are talking non-stop about Belo-Kho-Halili controversy. It's every-fucking-where! And while I don't have time to tackle the issue from the beginning to the end, I just wanna share what I appreciated in this controversy - wow, a moral lesson (if you don't know the whole story, just google it).

1) Don't fuck other people's boyfriend/girlfriend.
2) If you do not know very well who you're fucking with, keep the lights off.
3) Better, fuck in your own place where you know it is safe.
4) Don't fuck other people's boyfriend/girlfriend - period!

In this totally convoluted controversy, it boils down to one issue - infidelity. When you are committed, then you are committed. No matter how unhappy you are, or unsatisfied you are, it doesn't change the fact that you are committed. If you fall in these categories, why not end the relationship before you fuck around? Cheating is unacceptable! If you are tempted, then fight it. If the love is strong and you value your relationship, you will not fall in the trap.

Katrina, on the other hand, reminds me of a character that I hate with passion. A person who still flirts/fucks around even when they know that the other person they are flirting with is already in a relationship or is currently building a relationship. Opportunist. Someone who would go for it just because the committed party is welcoming the idea. Someone who would flirt/fuck back because it's some sort of a mutual thing - both agrees to be involved with each other, even when one is currently building a relationship or in an actual relationship.

Some might say "I am single and I have every liberty to do what I want to do!" Sure, you have every right to do what you wanna do. Fuck every guy/girl you wanna fuck, flirt with everyone. You are goddamned SINGLE. But consider the person you are getting yourself involved with. Is he/she also single? Even if you see willingness, or he/she is opening an opportunity to fool around - would you still go for it? This is where your moral values come in. Did it ever occur to you to consider the girlfriend/boyfriend of this person you are involved with? The emotional damage you can cause, the relationship you are about to ruin. Yes you can keep it a secret, but not for long. You probably don't care much because you only care about what you want and what satisfies you. But imagine this done to you - what would you feel? Would you take that momentary happiness in exchange with your moral values that has been long molded by your parents, by the teachers in your expensive schools that you have attended for years? Would you risk your value as a person?

I am perfectly aware that there are really good reasons why these things happen. He's drop dead gorgeous, he makes your panties wet. He said his relationship is going nowhere and he feels so lost. You have developed a feeling for the person long before you got really involved with each other. You and him/her have this inexplicable chemistry that you feel you are made for each other, the only wrong thing is he/she is in a relationship or she/he is currently building a relationship with someone else. It takes 2 to tango. Both parties have their share for this kind of disaster. But one must have control. If you are the single person in this story, and you are smart enough, you know what's best for you. You deserve a better person. You deserve a single guy. You deserve to have a cool, steady relationship versus the complex setup you will experience when you get yourself involved with someone taken. You are pretty, matured, smart and you have moral values. Keep your distance and know your limits. No matter how strong the feelings are, take control. If he/she's really in to you, he/she would end whatever relationship he/she's in to. If she/he cares, he/she will not lead you to this disaster. If you are just looking for fun, there are so many single men/women who are game too. But if he/she lied to you - that's a different story. You can get excused :P .

As for the cheating party, fuck you.

Cheesy Time!

2009-05-18T18:59:00.009+08:00

When the sun shines
We'll shine together
Told you I'll be here forever
Said I'll always be your friend
Took an oath
I'mma stick it out 'till the end
Now that it's raining more than ever
Told you we still have each other
You can stand under my Umbrella...

It wasn't our official love song, but it reminds me so much of Mark. Not just because it was a hit song during our happy times in 2007, but the lyrics and the melodic version of Mandy Moore kinda rekindles that crazy-beautiful experience : a mixture of restlessness and comfort, pain and love, sorrow and joy. It never fails to bring back that strong and intense loving moments. The feeling still remained tho,(minus those negative adjectives I mentioned). I am still crazy about this man. Only stronger. Happier. I want to share it to the world. Not that the world cares, but whatever! Other people do cheesy stuff like this too.

I dare to be called cheesy. Yes. C H E E S Y. Don't mind the toilet and the plunger - its an inside joke between us.

Zambales Adventures '09 - Potipot

2009-04-24T19:16:00.007+08:00

We woke up early the next day to visit Potipot island. From the Sgt. Juana resort, it's 1 tricycle ride to Dawal. It's 2 way ride for 250PHP good for 3 persons from the resort to Dawal, and back to the resort again so it wasn't a bad price. 3 of my friends took the tricycle, while I rode with Vira, John, Rowie and Sid. We had to drop by at some dry market to buy stuff and food we will eat in the island.

It was indeed a better trip than the previous day. The sea was calm. The boat ride costs 400PHP back and forth, a banca good for 4-5 persons. The boat ride took about less than 30 minutes.

Potipot, the small paradise.

Potipot is very small compared to Anawangin island, but I find it more peaceful. There are no mountains nor lake nor pine trees, but in my opinion, it feels more refreshing. There were picnic tables and benches scattered everywhere. There were also small huts, which was not what I have expected. My friend Kesh, who had been there last year, said it was a virgin island. Apparently, it wasn't like that anymore. On the other hand, it wasn't dirty at all in contrary to a blog comment that I have read from his blog. Maybe the locals have started maintaining the island, now that they have budget for its maintenance. It costs 50PHP to enter the island per head. I hope that they would continue to maintain the island, and I hope that in time it wouldn't be exploited like other islands that has been commercialized.

A photo of picnic table and bench scattered all around the island.

Rowie checks out the tree - whatever that's up there.

Oh Shit!

Rowie, Miker and I walked around to find the best spot to take photos. Rowie found a tree that's short enough to climb. We climbed up the tree, took photos and had so much fun. Gren and her boyfriend came too and I started to take their photos. We were having so much fun when I felt something sticky on my flip-flops. It was covered with sand so I didn't know what it was and it was on my ankle - and then it started to smell.... I looked backwards to find something at the back of my cargo shorts colored yellowish brown.

"Parang may dagta ka," Ghian said. The moment I saw that yellowish brown creamy stuff at the back of my cargo shorts, I knew what it was. I was like "oh shit!" - literally.

I ran immediately to the shores. My friends didn't know if they will laugh or shut up because I was turning red and grossing out like crazy. I didn't even plan to wet that cargo shorts. I rinsed it like crazy, letting the water wash off the bits and pieces of the shit, then rubbed it against the pebbles and sand. I didn't know why I salvaged the shorts when probably if it happened to someone else, they would have burned it hahaha!

I came back laughing and still grossed out. I find it extremely hilarious that Ghian said it was dagta from the tree when it was too obvious it's shit. He said he only said that to control me freaking out. It was the talk of the day - Marvie have shit on her pants. To make it worse, it wasn't even from an animal. Go figure. The shit was right at the foot of the tree. I wanted to hunt down whoever pig did that. If you really need to go, you don't just shit there and cover it with sand - to think that it is a public place, and to think that it was an exposed area, there's really a big chance someone will step on your human landmine! How long would it take to dig a little hole for your poop.

The shit was positioned at the back of my right knee. It was a myster how I got it. I didn't sit on the sand, not in that area. I was taking photos all the time. For hours I have been thinking how it got on my pants, and we couldn't come up with the most sensible theory. Until finally, I came to a theory how I got it. This is very very gross. When you walk in the rain or on a wet street on your flipflops, you know how sometimes pieces of wet dirt/mud sprinkles at the back of your legs when you walk a little bit fast? That's what happened. I stepped on the wet creamy poop, my flip-flops scooped it and it splattered at the back of my cargo shorts. Suhweet!

Rinsing my poopie shorts. Ewe!

Fun fun! We drove back to Manila in the afternoon filled with funny memories of Zambales.

Oh, I also realized that next time I go out of town, I am going to bring a journal to write down the details about the trip, so people who would happen to stumble upon my blog would get something useful from it - not just stories of my experiences.

Zambales Adventures '09 - Anawangin

2009-04-23T01:41:00.013+08:00

Let's start the adventure with the driving challenge.

I finally decided to take my car out of town in our trip to Zambales. Not that I have not driven out of town, but I have never experienced driving to as far as Zambales. I could hardly bear driving to Tagaytay which is just about 2 hours drive from Manila. Since I am so bad with directions, and I posses ignorance with map reading (damn right, it always confuses me), I convoyed with my friends. It was fairly easy because I didn't have to worry about taking wrong turns - I just followed their every move (yes, including the overtakes). It was quite difficult to catch up though because I am never comfortable driving very fast. Yes, driving on a highway requires you to be fast and I can handle that - but I just don't feel comfy going overboard. Since the driver (Tender Cares)on the car I was following drove like he's running late, or better, having a diarrhea - i had to catch up. My very first time to drive at a speed of 120-130KPH. WOAH! We took NLEX and then SCTEX to Subic. The highway's awesome and peaceful so driving that fast wasn't really that scary. It's just the thought of driving at that speed that scared me.

Miker, my only companion in the car, wanted to sleep on the way despite that he knew I needed his talking to keep me up. A few times he pestered me about sleeping, until I gave up and told him go ahead and sleep - but I can't promise that he will be waking up :P.

"Ok, matulog ka, pero di ko ma promise na may gising ka pa!"

San Antonio Chuvas

After driving for 4 hours, we finally made it to our first stop - San Antonio, Zambales - where we were suppose to go island hopping to Capones, Camara and Anawangin. This is where the shit started.

We were trying to find our way to get to Pundaquit beach where it seemed to be the only port of entry to go to the islands we planned to visit. In our surprise - it seemed like getting directions from the locals comes with a price. Ghian (gren's bf) ask a tricycle driver where's the road to Pundaquit beach and instead of just pointing the direction which was basically just one shit away from where we were, he said "How about I will just guide you?","I-guide ko na lang kayo sir (in MMDA tone)," In short, he wanted us to tag along with his tricycle up to the beach so we could pay him professional guidance fee. How difficult (expensive) is it to just point your finger to the road when its just straight ahead? I was so annoyed the way these people take advantage of the ignorance of tourists.

The Negotiator

After we parked the car, a guy approached us to ask if we are looking for boat ride. The negotiation started. They said they charge 800PHP for a ride to Anawangin back and forth, and since we are planning to visit 3 islands, we asked how much would they charge if we stop by on 3 islands. We want to hear something reasonable, and we told them that we just want to spend a few minutes in Capones and Camara, and probably 2 hours in Anawangin. The contractors have a spokeperson who surprisingly talked so pasosi for his skin (pardon my language but you will realize later why I (we) was pissed). The most reasonable price he can come up with was 1200PHP, that's trip to the 3 islands. We are just 5 ( you can consider it 4 1/2 since i weight just half of a normal human). The guy was bragging about the boat that its good for 1200PHP because the boat is comfortable, big enough for 5 people blah blah... So because they already put up an effort to estimate pricing and the spokesperson sound convincing and nice, we didn't bother to look for other options, besides, we are just staying for a few hours. And so he said they will prepare the boat.

We waited on the shore and:
#1. The boat wasn't what he described.
#2. The boat wasn't what he described.

First off, its not comfy. You sit on a piece of drift wood, not to mention it is detacheable - and detaches by itself. I feel like I can wreck the boat with my bare hands too. And lastly, they have no fucking life vest. We tried to demand for life vest and they pretended that they were looking - it ended up saying their life vests ran out, it is still being used by another boat that just send out a bunch of people in the island, and that we have to wait blah blah. Bullshit. They apparently didn't have life vests. How could you sail in that boat, without life vests, in the sea of never ending waves? But eventually, to cut the hassle short, we said OK, let's go - and just pray hard.

Sailing to the Islands

Our plan is Capones -> Camara -> Anawangin. We were approaching Capones island when the boatman said we cannot push through because of the strong current and waves. So he suggested that we just proceed to Anawangin, and from there we'll see if ever the sea will calm a little. It's not really the strong current nor the waves. Its just that our boat is too sucky to make it to Capones. We have seen stronger looking boats - faster ones than our Santa Cruzan speed. Alright, so we just agreed and proceeded to the next island.

And at last we reached the beautiful Anawangin. It somehow have compensated us for all the hassles. We said we'll be roaming around for about 2 hours.

Anawangin Beach

River and mountains behind the beach. Very peaceful sight.

The Haggard Return

The boatman came to us saying he had been looking for us because its been 2 hours. Doh! It just hit the 2nd hour and he's acting as if we have stayed for more than 2 hours. And so we sailed back to Pundaquit. It was really wavy and I could feel the small boat was really trying very hard to battle the waters. We were afraid that it might break the boat, and we didn't have life vests, I don't know about them but I can't swim.

We were about a few feet away from the shore when all of a sudden, the boat accelerated! I saw it coming and everything happened so fast! We hit the sand pretty bad. We were all thrown forward. Luckily we have managed to hold tight on the sides of the boat so the only person who got thrown out to the sand was one of the boatmen. But hey! We had injuries. I bruised my hand because I used it to support myself while I rolled inside the banca. Gren almost kissed the wooden pole in front of her and would have probably knock off her teeth. Vira fell off the self-detaching seat, rolled on the banca floor, bumped her face on Gren's back and hurt her feet. The self-detaching seat was thrown on her body (although she barely felt it because bumping her face on Gren's back and hurting her left foot is more painful). While Miker was stucked in a kneeling position. The experience is comparable to being in a car with no seatbelts and then the driver suddenly hit the break. I was shocked, and all I could say while I help myself up was "Ayy, bat naman ganun kuya?"

So my theory was the water current kept pulling us back, and so the boatman intended to accelerate and probably bury the boat on the sand (i don't know if that even make sense). But whatever the reason was, it was stupid to accelerate when you know exactly that you are just about 5 feet away from the shore, and you knew that you will hit the sand and throw people out.

Luckily, there wasn't a major injury. We managed to laugh at the incident after we have accepted the minor injuries we had (bruises, scratches, body pains). So its about time to pay for the ride. Gren's boyfriend, Ghian, asked the boatman how much are we going to pay. The boatman promptly said it's 1200PHP. WTF! The agreement was to take us to the 3 islands for 1200PHP, and they only brought us to 1. So we were expecting that we will just pay 800PHP because that's their rate for Anawangin trip. But the boatman kept arguing. Ghian continued to point out that it doesn't make sense to pay for 1200PHP when they didn't take us to the islands we were suppose to visit. And if they kept on insisting, Ghian's just hoping to meet somewhere in between. But the boatman called up some other boatmans to argue against Ghian. We were looking for the negotiator - the pasosi guy who made the deal, to prove that we settled for 1200PHP only because they will take us to Capones and Camara for a few minutes. He was also the guy who said it's 800PHP to go to Anawangin. But guess what? He's nowhere to be found. That negotiator guy was introduced to own the banca, however somebody else appeared and claimed he's the owner and he needs us to pay 1200PHP. A few minutes later, Ghian came back and we paid 1200PHP. Apparently, these people wouldn't agree and started to talk threatening.

"Ganto na lang, saktohin nyo na lang ng 1200 para di na tayo magka anuhan!"

Magkaanuhan? Ano? Aanuhin? Oh well, it wasn't our territory - we were way way far from the city and we know no locals around there to get some help just in case it ends up to something they called "Anuhan". Besides, Miker and Ghian were the only man in our group - and Miker is thin so I would think he would be able to fight hehehe.

If common sense was common to them, they would have realized that "hey, they have a point. Aside from we didn't send them to the islands we have agreed about, and they didn't have life vests because we couldn't provide one, and we have injured them, it's just reasonable to pay 800php." - or maybe they deserve lesser.

We were so pissed, but what can we do? I am not generalizing every locals in that area, but I just hate how these people take advantage of the tourists. From the tricycle guy down to the boatmans, a bunch of greedy chimps.

Road to a Hopeful Tomorrow

We drove to our hotel with hopes of a better tomorrow. It took us about 2 hours to reach it from San Antonio. We agreed to just get over the San Antonio hassles, besides, the main event for this trip was Potipot. Anawangin/Camara/Capones were just a side purpose.

Our first day in Zambales wasn't that really bad. We still had fun in spite of the hassles. Though there were things that were really shitty, we have managed to deal with it, laugh at it, and still moved forward with the vacation with smiles on our face. I'm happy to be with fun loving friends.

blog entry test

2009-04-16T11:36:00.001+08:00

hello world.

how cool is this? I can now blog straight from my phone!

**Sent from d most glamourous iphone of all time.

KM's not your ordinary pre-nup

2009-04-06T05:32:00.011+08:00

I used to wonder what's the purpose of pre-nup photos, really. For my international readers, a pre-nuptial photo shoot is comparable to an engagement photo shoot - just different terms.

So I thought its just an added glam prior to the wedding, or probably some sort of tradition that just emerged (it wasn't common back in the days, at least in my opinion). I mean it's totally sweet for the couple to have additional photos to compile together with their up coming wedding photos - a remembrance of the love. But yeah, why the fuck would a professional photographer bother to spend an extra day of work for a pre-nup shoot if there's no purpose :P ?

In my case, I found one important reason above all the reasons I came up with after doing the shoot - get acquainted with the couple and be able to establish ease and comfort with them. I find it quite handy. Imagine meeting the couple only once when they signed up a deal with you, and then meet them again during their wedding. Sure you can work your way in to directing them despite the little awkward feeling - that's your job anyways :P. But imagine if you have established ease and comfort, a personal touch? Photos would definitely look more natural! Following your direction wouldn't be too awkward for them. What do you think?

(such a long intro!) So we did it! KM and Ben's wedding is coming up on May 2, and we came up with a funny title - Your not so ordinary pre-nup. Mos pre-nup shoots here are done in a secluded with a "naturish" ambiance - which probably makes more sense because the nature flavor and seclusion are ingredients of romance. But we did it in the malls and public parks, I personally think it is interesting and convenient. We didn't have to drive to far places, get permits and still be romantic :). The pre-nup is a sort of photo-story. I have not put them all together just yet.

my all time favorite

at the park

Cute moments

We tried to portray in the photos the normal happenings in a dating scene, where couples go out for dinners, a walk in the park - pretty much the basics of getting to know stage until they decided to marry. I am kinda satisfied with the outcome, and i'll definitely share once it's all put together.

ang sabi nila...

2009-03-31T23:46:00.007+08:00

Noong university years, sabi nila pag di ka daw bumagsak - parang di ka nag college hehehe.

Parang visa rin, kapag di ka na deny once in your life - di ka pinoy :P

gallery app re-invention

2009-03-26T02:35:00.003+08:00

A little travel back in time. It was September 2008 when I last talked about the plans lined up for InternationalSuperstar gallery improvements and about the big plans and little steps for the business.

The good news is that in spite of many priorities that came up over the past months, we have not forgotten our goals to make this happen. Mark has been working actively over the past weeks - spending sleepless nights building the most awaited photo gallery! I can hardly wait to get my hands on this app and play around with the new features implemented. I can't talk much about the gallery just yet. At this point we are still in the process of streamlining everything - the design and features, usability and purpose. So yeah, it will take more time and hardwork so stay tuned :). It may not sound that exciting at this point and some might say its just another gallery, but just wait and see, i do not have the bragging rights yet until everything is streamlined :P. I believe in the gallery and in Mark's work. In fact, I feel proud of Mark's hardwork - his aim to deliver a simple, yet robust photo gallery application - for free.I admire his dedication to finish this with quality, despite the competitors that await him out there.

But like what i've said last year - we will get there, and we will kick ass :) .

a MUA's Life

2009-03-18T15:11:00.019+08:00

Getting a taste of it.

Teacher Xeng prepares her stuff

What is it like to be a make-up artist? Is it just all about knowing how to put on make up and blend them all together?

I tagged along with my teacher, Xeng, in one of her bridal make-up gig last Saturday, as my prize for winning our just for fun mini contest about doing a smokey eyes make up in school a week ago. It was an opportunity to observe and see how a professional make-up artist do her stuff. It's quite exciting to see her in action.

Our call time was 9:30am. I thought it was quite early for a wedding ceremony that will start at 3pm. Apparently, it was an ample time for everything. Mind you, the setup alone takes time. We are not talking about one make up box here - but the whole she-bang.

I have never seen a real professional make up artist in action, at least in real life, so I didn't know what stuff they bring along to do their job except for makeups. I must say I was quite overwhelmed with the tools she brought along: 4 average sized cosmetic bags with makeups on it, 1 "director" type of chair but higher, and my all-time favorite - the "Transformer" case. The case is huge and heavy, that transforms to a studio kit - it comes with an adjustable stand, mirror and light bulbs, and a desk to put all the makeups and brushes you will be using.

I came with Xeng's team to observe to get a clearer picture and feel of what a professional make-up artist's job is like. Even with no hands-on involved, I learned so much from this event. Take note, it's just not about picking the right colors and applying it to your client's face. It's more than that. I picked 3 important key points to remember:

1. Estimate and budget your time.
Meeting up as early as 9:30am for a wedding that happens at 3pm sounds a bit too early. However, it turned out to be just an ample time to take care of everything - with no pressure. Consider the following when you estimate the time you will spend to do your job:

a) The time it will take to get to the location - with traffic.
b) The time it will take to setup your stuff.
c) The number of faces you will do.
d) Consider the time of when the photo/videographers will arrive too.

This will definitely save you from cramming.

2. An efficient setup is a must.
It's not just as easy as picking a spot with a good lighting, pulling out your make-up box and getting started. It feels better to work on an organized environment, this will make you and your client feel more relaxed as you do your artwork. Pick a comfy space where you can move around, a space that would not only benefit you as the make-up artist, but a setup that would also work for photo/videographer who would cover it later. Get a table, and lay all the brushes, foundations and palettes you will be using so you don't need to dig-in to your stuff from time to time. It's a time and effort saver. Xheng, her assistant Madel, and Joel the hair stylist took about 20 minutes to set up everything.

3. Team up with a great hair stylist.
Pick an experienced hair stylist. It saves both of your time when your hair stylist knows his/her stuff very well. There will be minimal redos. Hair setting is quite critical and more time consuming than putting on make up. A great hair stylist will amplify the quality of the make-up, and vice-versa.

It was a long day. Xeng did 3 faces, the mother of the bride, Maid of Honor, and the Bride. We finished the bridal make up quite early, so when the videographer and photographer came, they were like cramming for the moment. They needed to take photo/video of the bride getting her make-up and hair done. But it didn't end there. We followed the bride all throughout the day. We did some retouch before she went out of the bridal car, retouch after the wedding ceremony for the picture moments with her family, making sure she stays fresh and beautiful. And yeah, make-up retouch for the reception. It was tiring - but full-packed with experience. Madel, Xeng's assistant, said I was lucky that the wedding was relaxed. There were a number of times they had to deal with stressful clients.

Xeng in action

Joel, the hair stylist, and the Bride - Gladys with a sweet smile.

Xeng puts on the bridal make-up.

Some can say everyone can be a make up artist. But to be called a professional - it's a different story. Having the skill/talent isn't only what it takes to be called a PRO. It's not just all about the colors you blend or the brushes you use. It takes commitment and discipline more than anything else.

If all good things must come to an end ...

2009-03-11T04:17:00.006+08:00

then so must the bad things.

Whoever tagged this proverbs with the word "good" must be more bitter than ampalaya. Did you ever wonder why the word "good" was added in this proverb, when saying "all things must come to an end" would do? I find this line yet very demotivating, a kill-joy, and full of crap.

Ever had that feeling where you do not want to give in completely to the joy you feel because at the back of your head, you have this worry that the moment will end soon? That happiness comes with a price? One day you are overwhelmed with joy, the next day you are as miserable as hell.

Associating this proverb with the word "good" is just merely making it look more dramatic. Having this idea at the back of your mind prevents you from manifesting the happiness you are feeling from deep within. It prevents you from enjoying openly and expressively whatever that is so damn good currently happening in your life. It cultivates an indirect fear of an ending, although we know very well everything in life will go in that direction. Baka ma-usog, our famous Pinoy expression. But come to think of it - we deserve these good things happening, it is fair to give ourselves a chance to enjoy it in all the ways we can. Free yourself from worries and savor the moment while it last.

On the contrary, the proverb have its purpose - after all. It is teaching us to prepare for the unexpected - a reminder to manage our expectations. It's a warning to not overdo the happiness we feel. Life is full of uncertainties, and this thought keeps us in the safe side - to be in-between. It quite contradicts the idea of letting yourself express the joy. But put it this way - enjoy the good things but at the same time keep an open mind. The end doesn't limit you to something bad, yet a possibility that something better will start.

All good things must come to an end.

Some good things never last.

Bullshit.

Nothing last forever. Everything will eventually come to an end. But while these things last, let's enjoy and just live a happy life :).

Recela is getting married!

2009-02-28T00:19:00.002+08:00

" She once knew a prince whom she loved so dearly. She entrusted her heart to him, because he seemed so sincere. She thought her future's him, and so she built these dreams. A life so ideal, a love almost surreal.

Then one day she woke up, her prince has turned into a frog."

Our favorite fairy tale of a frog turning to a prince can happen the other way around. For a moment she died, yet she struggled for her life. She cried blood while she tried to pick up the pieces of her broken heart. She was miserable, yet she remained strong. Losing what you thought was one great love is more than painful. Yet, at least once in our lifetime, we just had to go through that shitty stage.

It may have took her some time to recover, but after that disastrous relationship, the next prince she met was finally "the one". In 7 days, she's getting married. I feel that she's blessed she didn't have to go through kissing so many frogs and hope that it would turn out in to a prince, or meeting several princes that would just eventually turn in to frogs. I just want to rekindle how after the ugly heartbreak, she finally found the person to share her life with.

So on the 28th, we will celebrate! We're throwing her a party to share one more night of her remaining days of being technically "Single". Cheers to my one (of many) great friend, Rhecel! You finally have found your match - that person who'd show you the real meaning of the word happiness - to the extent you had "pure happiness" tag in friendster for like forever doh! hehehe.

Rhecel's Bridal Shower invite

Obsessing about the future

2009-02-07T06:31:00.015+08:00

Before I even get lost in the process of writing this blog entry due to so many things goin on in my head, I wanna say I am not writing about my future plans(too boring), but just to share the impact of my obsession in planning in my life and how I feel towards it.

Lately, I've been suffering from a serious focusing problem in various aspects. The events and changes in my life in the past months have contributed so much with my state of mind. My drive for work, for example, is suffering. For 2 weeks I have not been me, workwise. I just realize that I am too distracted by the future and my plans that comes with it - for my personal life.

I always plan ahead because it works for me. For most people (if not everyone), it is wise to plan ahead. It is highly important specially if this involves life-changing decisions (doh, too obvious example). Bahala na doesn't work for me - and even when I say it at times, it means I have a concrete plan and yet if shit happens, then SOL. This attitude is good - to an extent. Everything in life requires balance. I came to realize that I maybe overdoing it. I am starting to lose that sense of balance because I am too caught up with my plans - probably not just caught up but already obsessing about it. I constantly think of it like a crazy person. I am beginning to see how this affects my work and my social life, totally unhealthy.

So before I screw things up pretty bad - I want to pause and breathe. I feel like I plan so much about what's gonna happen ahead of time, and that I spend so much time worrying about my strategy to make it happen that I tend to overlook what's more important about the "future" - the "now". Both are important, of course. But the question is at this very moment, which one weights more? If I won't do very well with my present, how can I possibly expect to achieve my goals in the future?

Basically, the present will reflect on the future. Whatever you plan for will always rely on what you build now. It's a long way, and we don't know about it yet. What we know is what's now, and that's where we should start. Plan your future, but while it has not happened, pave your way towards it so it wouldn't be a struggle. So yeah, it was kind of a wake up call for me. I just wasted 2 weeks of thinking and planning. It wasn't totally useless, but since these plans I have will take time to happen, there's no use of thinking so much about it at this point. So now I will work on focusing back on other important things in my life.

These thoughts I realized were pretty basic. Everyone knows it. But there are times that I just have to constantly remind myself about that.

BBSB @ CWC

2008-12-01T20:44:00.015+08:00

If you are in to wake boarding, CWC is just the place to be!

This Watersports Complex is located in Camarines Sur, roughly an 8 hour drive from Manila. We took Isarog Bus line, a quite spacious 21-seater bus, with a very convenient seats that you can recline + a mini portalet installed if you need to do your thing during the long ride hehe. Traveling in the evening is preferable so you can snatch a nap or sleep all the way (although it's quite a struggle to get some because of some bumpy roads). The bus stops once for a break in a gasoline station at the Quezon Province, with 24 hour food joint (Mcdo).

We left Manila at 9pm and arrived there at around 5 in the morning. After getting the keys for the Cabanas, we settled in for an hour to prepare for breakfast and some watersports. The Cabana costs around 1350PHP that can accommodate 2 heads. Its pretty cheap so its not a lot. It is as simple as 2 single bed, with 1 TV, DVD Player, an AC, an open type cabinet where you can hang your stuff, hot shower and a toilet, and a sink. Nevertheless, the room is still comfy. There are some chismis on some parts of the wall and ceiling, but that wouldn't bother your stay. Besides, you would want to maximize your time outdoors anyways.

CWC offers different accommodation room types. The Cabanas, the Tiki huts, the container type, wood cabins, the Villas, and the mansion. Cabana is the most reasonable, i suppose. You can get the rates on their website. Wood cabin units were still under construction, although I didn't check the entire area (CWC is so fucking huge).

Cabanas at night

The Containers

The Wood Cabins under construction

Wake boarding starts at around 9am. The wake boarding area is a huge man-made lake with cables to pull the wake boarders around. It's populated by pros and non-pros, plus kids, of different races. There were a bunch of Australian and English men and women during our visit with very impressive wake boarding skills.

First timers don't get to stand up on the wakeboard. They start with a knee board. You need to at least do a 3 full rounds without falling (at least that's what i heard :P), and once you are comfy and have established balance, you can level up with the actual wakeboard. Take note, the knee board is not as easy as it seems. Sure its easier than standing up, but its pretty hard to balance your body, and the strain you'll get from holding on to the cable handle while it drags you around the lake, fast. My friends ended up with body pains.

Life guards are scattered around the lake area. There's also a transport if ever you fall on the other side of the lake so you can just ride on the jeep to get you back on the start point. No need to walk your way to the start point carrying your heavy wake board.

A huge swimming pool is found just across the resto, beside the lake. They also offer massage services. So if you get tired of watching the wakeboarders, or tired from wakeboarding, this is a perfect spot to relax.

The pool area

It was an awesome weekend spent in CWC. It's far, but its all worth the travel :).

My boyfriend's best friend

2008-11-23T12:12:00.019+08:00

It was perhaps my immaturity that made me think that a person cannot have a real best friend of the opposite sex. I don't know about you, but I have this notion that a special feelings may exist or have existed between 2 people in a "best friend" relationship. Something that I am not very comfortable about.

In the contrary, I do have real good male friends. JM is like a brother to me, and so as Doogie. I share the same level of openness with them like i do with my female best friends. I may have not been vocal about it, but deep inside they are my best friends. To further contradict my thinking of "best friends of the opposite sex", I never had (and I AM SURE JM AND DOOGIE) any sorts of special feelings for them (and vise-versa).

There are a lot of factors that made me think why its not possible to just have a normal "best friend" relationship with the opposite sex - with no special feelings involved. My social orientation and surroundings played a big role why I think in such way. I have seen cases like a girl/guy falls for his/her bestfriend who's already taken. Eventually, they would either wait in vain, or end up ruining their best friend's relationship. Witnessing these things happened cultivated a slight malicious thinking... not to mention it happened to me too, twice. I was told it was just a friendship, but it turned out to be not the normal friendship I have expected. Some of you would agree and some of you won't. As a woman, did you ever get this uncomfortable feeling when your significant others have a female best friend?

But isn't it unfair to dwell on that belief? I'm still not comfy about that idea, but at some point, I wanted to prove myself wrong. If I can do this friendship with my male friends, why can't I open myself in the possibility that a real friendship free from personal motives or gain can exist between 2 people of the opposite sex?

I was awakened by my boyfriend's phone call to tell me his best friend is in town, and that I should meet up with her. I have heard so many things about her from my boyfriend but never had a chance to meet her in person. And so this was our only chance. I've been hoping to meet her, I've never met any of Mark's good friends and it would be very interesting to see what his friends are like.

And so I met Alicia, my boyfriend's best friend. What can I say? She is just wonderful, such a very warm person. We hugged and it felt like we knew each other, as if its not our first meeting. I was so anxious that i might bore her so I was thinking of things to talk about on my way to the hotel... and it was funny that it never happened! We talked so much about different interesting things. I felt such a light, comfortable feeling that we easily blended. What I loved about her is that she's very sincere and real. She's very intellectual, free from pretensions. We talked about work, life and relationships. With these conversations, I kinda felt the love and care of friendship she have for Mark, similar to the way i cared for my male best friends...true friendship. A real friendship that exists between 2 people of the opposite gender. There was no odd feeling (you know what i mean). Mark was so happy that we get along pretty well, and I felt the same. I am glad that he have a friend like her. It sucked that we didn't bring camera (because we have little time and i was rushing), but thanks to iphone and blackberry, we made a few pictures of us. She said she's going to come back in December, with her boyfriend. If schedules will permit, I'd be glad to hang out with her again :).

I don't think my notion is wrong, and I don't think its right either. The "friendship" thing can be confusing, depending on the factors involved with it. But I am glad to be able to prove at one point, my notion can be wrong :).

Food Gig

2008-11-19T11:52:00.008+08:00

Yet another one of my first times.

A week ago, my friend called me up to ask if I am free to take pictures at Handle bar in Jupiter, Makati. She said they need someone to take photos of food and drinks. Food and drinks photos, u-huh. It registered in my head...unprocessed.

While my mind had been pre-occupied with major things, I had been out of focus lately with small things that matters to me. And because of that, it didn't occur to me to ask what's the purpose of the photos, and where it will be used. What was I thinking then? Its dumb to not even realize that it can be for the most obvious purpose... for the bar's menu. You are probably asking the same question I asked myself, how can I be that stupid?

I went there last night. Gabe and the co-owner greeted me and asked where I wanted to take the photos of the food. And guess what? It finally occurred. I asked "what's the photoshoot for?","Oh for our menu". I paused for a moment. At some point I hoped for food photography. I have these all sorts of concepts that I put together in my head whenever I see food photos from magazines. Last night was my opportunity... and its a shame I wasn't prepared for it. I was there with just one weapon, my D80. It felt like going to a battle without a strategy. But I was lucky. It was just a mini-shoot, I am so glad they didn't showcase all the food.

But then again, the show must go on. So I did what I am very good at (the art of cramming). The bar was dim and there's not enough light. Although I have a flash, they suggested to take the photos in the kitchen so it's well-lit. We didn't have anything but a powder blue table cloth. Well, I could have improvised if i was prepared for the setting, but there wasn't enough time to improvise on the spot because the food is already cooked, drinks are already served. Can't make the food wait!

Of course, my experience wouldn't be complete without a big hassle. So just like in my wedding shoot where my batteries died, this time my lens screwed me up. After taking a number of shots, it magically stopped to auto-focus. WTF? The room was well lit, camera settings were good, made sure it is set to auto-focus, AF-S, blah blah.. normal troubleshooting. My right eye started to hurt because I had to keep my eye on the viewfinder when it stopped to focus. Eventually I switched between left and right eye, with a strained neck. Anyways, I didn't know what the fuck happened there when it refused to focus, its a mystery (or my camera is broken). My last resort was to "reset" the camera (taking out the battery and then return it again haha).

Eventually, it turned out OK. I made pretty good shots after all. But then, you get this feeling that you could have done it even better. I still think I could have done way better if I was well prepared. I suppose this is the part where i should use the saying "Charge it to experience". Another lesson learned :P.

Haloween night @ Penguin bar

2008-11-13T09:01:00.003+08:00

If you are in the mood for some clubbing, Malate is the place to be -> this was true years back. This place has lost its title when so many new places for clubbing have emerged such as Eastwood City, Greenbelt 3, The Fort Global City, and Metrowalk. Although the night life in Malate have continued over the years, I still have this thought that it's forgotten and not the "in" place anymore. Probably because people don't talk much about it anymore, at least the people I know who loves the night life don't hang out there as much as they did before.

I had been neglecting my night life ever since I started to get serious with my career and other stuff in my life. I still love it though. I try to go out once in a while with my friends, but it's not like how it used to be. I don't party hard as I used to. Its probably because I'm getting older, and I grew tired of the usual party ambiance, party routine. Dressing up -> meeting random people -> getting drunk -> waking up with a terrible headache -> and an empty wallet. Clubbing is getting more and more less interesting to me... I can't say its just because I am getting old, but probably because I am looking for something different. I am probably not doing a good job of explaining my thoughts about clubbing at this point, but I guess I am just getting tired of the usual crowd, usual music, even if you hang out in different places.

And so I was invited by Jack Daniels peeps to take photos in Penguin bar on a haloween night, my first time in 5 years to see Malate's night life again. And hell I had a great time! Penguin bar looks just a typical bar. It is small compared to big clubs in Makati area, yet comfy. But the crowd and the music, its way different. The live band (Kalay) played an ethnic sort of music, which isn't my style, but surprisingly appreciated it. It appealed to me as it appealed to everyone else. A lot of people dancing, while a few just sit there and enjoy the music. I felt this warm versus intimidating ambiance. I am not saying this is the place to be... but if you are tired of the pretentious crowd (no offense), and up to some good music and great interesting people to have small talks with, you probably want to check out this place. The crowd is simply not jologs :P. IMHO, this is one of the places where you can socialize with people and have great conversations with them, without the thought that they just want to hit on you and get your number :P.

So I made pretty good lively photos and have submitted them to JD office. I had some uploaded in my flickr page. I am thankful that Jack Daniels yet again, gave me this photo opportunity + great party experience.

Catching up : Trick or Treat?

2008-11-13T06:32:00.009+08:00

Been missing this space! Damn, I never realized it has been weeks since my last post. Work has been crazy lately, never been this stressful. But yeah, I feel bad that I could hardly find time to write when there's so much thing to write about. So before the memories of these events get lost deep in the clusters of my brain, I am going to write it.

It's Harmony's first Trick or Treat! For some who doesn't know her, she's my roommate's adorable daughter. We planned to dress her up like Barbie... and although it didn't quite turn out like that (she turned out be an anime), she still looked cute. It didn't start quite well for the three of us. We didn't make it to the event because we came extra late (not my fault). There's not much kids in fancy costume too, plus Harmony was having her occasional tantrums.

Harmony and mommy.
I was beginning to feel stressed because aside from failed goals that day (to take pictures of kids in fancy costumes), I didn't have enough sleep and that I still have to go to another event in the evening to cover a haloween party. So Tiendesitas wasn't a good idea after all. But I felt bummed that it was the kid's first trick or treat experience, and it wasn't her fault that we came there very late. So I checked where else to go. We didn't care anymore if there's a trick or treat, we just want to see kids in costumes so Harmony can blend in. We ended up going in Megamall. And that's where the fun started.

We barely made it there, the Cartoon Network's Spooktacular program was over. But then there were so many adorable kids walking around in costumes. Stores/boutiques personnel gave out candies for every kid who walks by or comes in. So eventually, Hamony had her trick or treat. I found it extremely funny when Harmony got scared with co-kids who were in monster/scary costumes. She would run to me or her mom and hide. I had fun taking photos and watching the kids enjoy the day. It wasn't bad after all.

And hey... this is my treat:

He's seriously HOT MUAHAHAHAH!

haloween @ Penguin bar

2008-11-01T19:30:00.003+08:00

... To the awesome people i met @ Penguin bar, pictures are coming up soon. I still have to post process and upload them. I had the best time! Stay tuned or please please shoot me an email to get your photos! :)

Thankful that I am blessed.

2008-10-10T04:01:00.006+08:00

For 26 years of my existence, I have gone far than most people of my age. Its one of numerous reasons to celebrate and be happy in my special day. Yet, I spent the entire day pondering on what's missing. It's funny how you feel empty, when you exactly know you are not. The feeling is misleading. I feel ashamed at times when my mind gets clouded of this thought just because of a few spots in my life remain unoccupied. But I refuse to suck up on this thought, there's nothing to gain. No, I am not empty. I maybe incomplete, but there are tons of things going on in my life that compensate for what's missing.

Discontentment wastes our chance to enjoy our lives and to be happy. Yet, it is not entirely wrong to want more, depending on life's situation. We are human, and we definitely will want more in life than what we have now. I like describing myself as a simple person with simple needs, but I will not deny the possibility that these simple things I want in life will become complex as time goes by. But at times when we couldn't reach what will make us feel contented at a certain period in our lives, it wouldn't hurt to enjoy and appreciate the things we have at the moment. So what's the secret on getting over this occassional discontentment, longingness and loneliness? Surround yourself with people who trully loves you, at least this works for me.

This is my birthday cupcake, given by my dearest, closest friend, Iya.

I feel blessed to be surrounded with good friends. I know that they know they couldn't completely fulfill whatever that is missing in me, but at some point, it is overcomed by the importance, love and acceptance they show me. I am thankful to God that I have them in my life. I almost have everything... wonderful friends, supportive family, great career... and I have faith that soon I'll find what's been missing :)

My baby is out in the world!

2008-10-03T04:44:00.023+08:00

After months of work spending long hours in testing, it’s now out in the open. Oh... it feels like a relief after giving birth. My baby is out, and it’s gonna kick ass.

So big deal, what does it do anyway?

Articulate Video Encoder is designed to convert almost any videos in FLV format. What makes it different from other video encoders out there (e.g. Flash Video Encoder) is it’s pretty straight-forward, easy to use tool + a bunch of cool features. It offers editing features for your basic video editing needs such as adjusting brightness and contrast, adjusting the audio volume, cropping and trimming. It offers advanced customization options on publishing the FLV, but for average users who doesn’t have in-depth knowledge in video encoding, worry no more. Publishing comes with presets that already have the best settings optimize for web delivery. You can also record straight from your webcam and publish. The interface is just simply, amazingly user-friendly. No confusing buttons, no confusing options.

Video Encoder actually comes with the E-learning Suite, Articulate Studio ’09. One of the many purposes of this tool is so the e-learning authors will have a hassle-free way to convert video tutorials in FLV, and easily insert it in a Articulate Presenter slide or presenter panel, in Quizmaker projects, or in Engage interactions . But see, FLV is a popular format to deliver videos in the world wide web. Can you imagine how handy this tool can be for your home videos you wanted to share in your website? How about phone videos (hopefully not scandals) you wanted to share with friends online? My friends, THIS IS IT.

Wanna read more? Check this out:
Articulate Releases New Suite of E-Learning Authoring Tools

Eventful Weekend : Photo sharing time!!!

2008-10-02T06:19:00.012+08:00

So I just picked a couple of shots I took from this wedding and made it smaller to fit the blog. If you wish to see higher resolution, you can visit my flickr page. I learned so much from this. Visit my photography blog , I have a more detailed writtings about the wedding shoot in there.

The ring of love.

The kiss of love naman.

Chismis of love.

Products of love.

E2, fall in love :)

Eventful weekend : The Wedding

2008-09-29T18:16:00.011+08:00

... and so i thought it was that easy. I had my first wedding photo coverage last Saturday at Pulilan, Bulacan. My photographer uncle hooked me up with this gig. And damn, it was soooo tiring. There's so much to tell about the wedding but i prefer to make this short (have tons of stuff to do).

Few things i've learned from the shoot.

1. Be fast.
2. If all possible (and if the budget will permit) bring designer/director with you
3. Memorize your manual settings in different lighting condition.
4. Be fast in switching to these settings.
5. Be in control.
5. Never ever forget to bring extra batteries (e.g. Flash batteries :P ).

Picture this moment...

Everyone's clapping and cheering for the newly wed. It's the time for the traditional toast. As the server poured their wine, I positioned myself at the perfect, romantic angle, waiting for the right queue to start shooting. Finally, they start to take a sip, and I clicked...In my surprise, my flash just didn't flash. I clicked again, and again, and again... click click click... no flash. WTF is going on? I looked at my flash setting, and there it was...blinking...running out of batteries. I'm fuckd. My world stopped in silence for a moment. And at that very moment, I saw my photography career slowly crashing before me...

This was my most dreadful moment... i know, i was so stupid to forget extra batteries. But shit happens :P. And so I came back to my senses, the show must go on!

So special thanks to the lightman, without his lamp, my photos from that ceremony would have been all useless. Thanks to my built-in flash, my last resort. And thanks to Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, which saved my reddish and yellowish shot, and saved my career hahaha!

I will elaborate more about this event in my official photography blog (meaning, free from rants...ok not 100%, but just less). I have never mentioned this yet, but now you know. So to my readers, if you have spare time, please waste it on my photography blog :P. I'll be sharing photos soon once I find time to post process.

Sweet September (part 2)

2008-09-22T07:13:00.022+08:00

"... My heart started to beat like crazy the moment i received his text message that he's already in Manila. I felt a mix of excitement, love and joy, that all things that bothered me for days was overcomed by it. " You are with me, that's the only thing that matters now," I told myself. I ran to the shower, thinking what it would be like to see him for the first time after a year and a half of being apart. I started to get ready and dress up. Dried my hair, put on some make-up, and wore the dress i had specifically picked for this moment. I have prepared so much. I wanted to look my best. I wanted to look perfect for him.

I picked up my bags, my armpits started to sweat out of tension, as I walked out to the streets and hailed a cab. I can't wait any longer. I grew more nervous. My hands started to get cold.(sweaty armpits and cold hands, how's that? :P)

What's the first thing to say? Should I hug him? Should I kiss him? Or should I kiss him before I hug him? Or does that really matter? Is he as excited as I am? Is he as happy as I am? Is he feeling the same intense, inexplicable feeling?

Finally, the man I have longed for, the man i have always wanted, the other half of my heart, was there sitting on a couch at the hotel lobby. Just the sight of him brought serenity in to my soul. The weariness and restlessness have magically faded. Finally, I felt comfort."

I like remembering this moment. It never fails to bring smile on my face. I love to rekindle how strong the feelings were. The intensity of love i felt, the inexplicable joy in my heart. We may have not turned out the way i hoped for, but it was all worth it. I will never regret that I gave in to my heart's desire: to stop holding back, surrender to the feelings, and just completely fall. I took the risk and jumped to the unknown. At some point I may have gotten hurt, but I gained. Not only that I learned more of love, but I have learned more about me. Not everyone would have the courage to fall hard like i did. Not everyone would be bold enought to fight for love when all seemed hopeless. It was a great feeling that not everyone would have felt.

So cheers! Celebrate love. Cherish the feeling while its there. Don't be scared to fall. It may put you down at times and make you fall on your face. But hey, its nice to fall on your face with a smile on it :).

Sweet September (part 1)

2008-09-22T02:07:00.008+08:00

"... it was past 12mn and i still couldn't sleep. I turned on the lights, looked around. I am all packed and ready. In fact, everything was ready. The dress i will wear, the make up i'll put on, the shoes, and my nails. Can you believe it? Yes, i did put nail polish on my nails (odd huh?). I wanna look perfect for him.

But I felt so restless and weary. Two opposite things battles in my head. I was feeling a different level of excitement and love. This is the moment i have been waiting for... to see and be with the man i have ever wanted, again. I picture this moment every single day as I count down the months, and then weeks, and then days when he finally returns. I have dreamed of how I will express my love to him. I said I will take every opportunity i have to show him my love and care. We only have little time, and I will take advantage of it. I pictured everything so perfect. I pictured myself to be the happiest girl in the whole world, that finally, my love is home. And in a few hours, it will all come true.

The other side were consisted of fears, worries, and doubt that was cultivated by my "woman's instinct." Who was he with in Indonesia? What did he do there? Would he find what he's been looking for with me? Or have he found it in Indonesia? What if he falls for someone else? What is this I am feeling? What's with the funny fishy feeling? The arguments we had before he came out, how would it affect the way he feels for me? So many things that i couldn't explain...

And so i made a choice. I can't just go on crazy. I said this is it, no turning back. I will not ruin his and my vacation. My love for him was enough reason to erase everything in my head that bothers me. I said i will not care anymore whatever happened in Indonesia. What matters is he's with me. Not with anyone else. Just ME. And I will make the most of it. I choose to enjoy this moment and be happy. I choose to give in to love, and let it just flow the way i have always wanted. I choose to cherish the feeling... i could never come back at this point of time ever again. I love him, and I will show the world that i do... "

"...stirrup"

2008-09-18T19:57:00.000+08:00

I just gotta post this. This is so far, my favorite among all the shots i took from last Wednesday's goodies photoshoot for Jack Daniels. I find it cute. Little bottles on stirrers. Stay tuned for more.

my little stirrers hihi...

The Hype

2008-09-11T03:24:00.001+08:00

I should have blogged this a few days back but have been swamped with different things that once again, i have neglected my blogging duties.

Anyway, a few days back, Google launched the "CHROME", the browser that made the Internet explode. All the geeks in the world have probably installed and geeked-out already with this new browser. It's the talk of the town. Everyone i know talks about it (except mom). People from work talks about it, how it rocks, and how it runs better than other browsers out there. OK, that's cool enough. Not that my opinion matters, but damn I am sooo f*ckin tired of hearing about it. It's like Britney Spears (if i were to compare the popularity)! I don't know if these people realize that its just a browser for heaven's sake, just like Firefox, IE, Safari and Neo Planet :P. Yes it is a bit faster than the browsers we normally use, but that doesn't change the fact that IT IS STILL A BROWSER. OK I am sure our techy friends out there would react that its just not your "ordinary browser", the idea is its going to be an operating system because it is a "platform for running web apps". What the hell? It still looks like a browser to me. I admit its really awesome, but this is not something to go gaga about. I don't see it more than a browser. Probably I'm not techy enough to appreciate it and why the rest of the geeks in the world are/were so hyped about it. But anyways, I just wanted to share how I felt when i had to deal with it for days.

"Hey Marvie, you gotta check this out! (throws a chrome link)."
"I'm bummed Chrome doesn't support mac, but good thing I have a VM." - and then throws a forum link.
"If you haven't tried it, you should!." - throws the link to the download.
"This is more than awesome Marvs! Get it! Get it!" - throws a link about Chrome reviews.

My Outlook inbox was filled with Chrome too. I was getting sick of it that i wanted to slap the next person who will talk with me about it. Until a friend shared this link.

Chrome-fed Googasm bares tech pundit futility

... and i found relief. I am glad I am not the only person who felt this.

Just like the iphone 3g. It was months back, but it just came out here in Manila (Globe as its carrier). When it was announced, there was even a website that refreshes every fuckin minute to update its readers of what's going on in the iphone conference (or whatever that was). When it was launched, people run to the stores very early to line up and get their iphones tied up with AT&T. I get it, its cool to have a touchscreen phone and all that. I was excited about it too. But i hated the hype, when everyone talks about it until you can't handle it anymore. I am sure you felt that kind of feelings at some point in your life. And yeah, i found another link (which was of course, shared by a friend) that describes how i exactly felt about iphone. You gotta see this:

... and just like the rest of the world, I have Google Chrome installed, and I have the iphone 3G :P, and yet i got sick of its hype.

Coffee party, anyone?

2008-09-03T07:45:00.000+08:00

Last Saturday, I finally felt to go out and unwind after a week of just staying in, pondering on my never ending battle with love. I wanted to have dinner at some cozy resto in Serendra, the Fort so I dragged my roomate with me. It was very unusual that Serendra was full packed with people when we got there. Its unfortunate that the restos I have in mind were all full packed with people and could no longer accommodate us. We didn't want to wait either because we were so hungry. And so we roam around to find a resto with less people.

And so there... we passed by at a Thai resto. The front view was very nice, and most importantly, there were a few people dining. We went in... and that's were the idea of a coffee party came to me.

Let's stop there for a bit, and let me tell you what I meant about "coffee party".

In a pinoy burial, we are required to have people awake 24/7 until the dead is burried. I have no clue why, but we just can't let the dead alone by itself, without someone watching over. It has been part of our culture. So since people needs to be wide awake, there's always coffee for everyone. Coffee is the most common drink we serve (plus biscuits). And so this kind of scene was called "Coffee party". Its how my gay and girl friends describe it.

So anyways, i thought the place was nice. Well, it was nice, but there's something odd about it. I mean, the seats, the table, the glasses, the kubyertos etc... i should say everything were all classy. The table cloth is white, chairs are white, its pretty clean. But what i didn't like was the wall decoration, plus the lighting, to which would have been OK without the wall something something.

The moment i stepped in and noticed this, i whispered to my roomate "what is this? Coffee party?". I can't tell if i just didn't appreciate the ambiance and the decoration, but my roomate felt the same (oh well of course, she's my friend). Maybe I'm just a jologs that's why that kind of setup didn't appeal to me, i don't really know haha. But let me justify myself by showing you this photo:

It was the size of the flowers and the candle light bulbs which made the "coffee party" ambiance. Its just missing the coffin. Everything else is great. The Thai food was great, the staff were great too, i appreciated everything else except this. The resto was Thai at Silk, not Pa-Thai at Silk ("Patay" in tagalog connotes a dead person). We dined outside instead, told them we need to smoke. I hope they drop the flower with candle bulbs idea.

my first post

2008-09-03T06:09:00.000+08:00

Welcome to my new blog! I finally decided to ditch the old one (which wasn't really a whole lot) because :

#1. Nobody knows about it.
#2. Its just full of crap.

So now, I am blogging again. This time i want to talk about life and life's choices, and how these choices impact my world, and the outcome i deal with when it doesn't turn out like how i pictured it. I want to share my hobbies, what's going on in my head and stuff like that. I do not promise to update this on a regular basis, but i have a good feeling that I am going to do this more often than the old one. This is going to be the first time i will be opening up to the cyber world, and hope that people will learn from my experiences as a worker, a friend, a stranger, or just simply a person, and hope to get a share from them too.

Who is Miss Yap?

2008-09-01T19:50:00.000+08:00

Marvie Yap (is):

* 1/2 Japanese, 1/2 Filipino.
* a coffee lover.
* a guitarist.
* a singer (usually when UI).
* loves the beach scene, but can't swim.
* a full time Software QA Engineer.
* a photographer on the weekends.
* a make-up artist.
* an excellent cook (Mark's standard).
* a geek.
* officially a cat lover now.
* a keen observer.
* a passionate soul.
* posseses an infectious character.
* a sucker for vintage clothing.
* a sucker for clothes in general.
* occassionaly sarcastic
- but naturally nice person.
* loves to inspire people.
* a defensive driver.
* funny (but not in a bad way).