Two days left!

I don't know why, but the for the past few weeks I've been so busy with work and family stuff. I wasn't even able to go to the HS reunion the other week.

Such a busy bee...

Anyway, for some unknown reason, I feel really excited with Christmas!!! (Or maybe I'm excited to get Sansrival from Chokiss.. haha! Yay! Food! And the fact that I was supposed to go to work later, but it got canceled. Weee... I know these are just mundane things but it made me really happy. Finally a break! :D )

Okay so it wasn't any unknown reason at all. XD

The other day I bought Mom's present. It was in a huge box. And the store didn't have a bag for it. I didn't want the gift wrap ruined so I carried it around the mall and while going home. Phew! Did my arms hurt or what?! ;_;

Just one more day and I've completed Simbang Gabi... for the second time! :D

And another note, I haven't been able to receive text messages last night. Argh! People thought that I was being suplada and not answering but that's not the case. T____T

It's so hard to think of Christmas gifts, that's why here's my wishlist: (I know its a few days late.. okaaaayyyy weeks but you know I was busy soooooo... ;) )

1. Remember Me by Sophie Kinsella
2. Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho
3. White plastic box where I can stash books and stuff.
4. Post it
5. Coloring pencils
6. Sharpener (the one with the hand crank, oh! oh! and if its battery operated [w/o hand crank]then so much the better! I broke my sharpener/toy [because it looks like a car and has wheels and all xD] last year, so I need a replacement. :( )
7. Playstation 3 with Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion (Well... save the best for last! XD)

Alright, I'll stop spouting nonsense. This post is so random. Hehe! I'm soooooo excited for Christmas. I just know its going to be so much fun! :D

YugaTech is giving away two Modu phones, 20 Globe Tattoo and 30 prepaid load cards worth Php500 each!

Here's how to join if you have Twitter:

1) Follow @abeolandres and @talk2globe on Twitter.

2) Post a tweet “Just entered to win a Modu Phone. Quick! Go follow @abeolandres and @talk2globe and retweet: http://bit.ly/6e2q7O #thanks2yugatech”

If you don't have twitter but you've got a blog then do this:

1) Blog about the “YugaTech Great Gadget Giveaway”. Include the photo I posted here and link to this contest page.

2) Don’t forget to include in your post the mechanics for the Twitter contest above.

3) Leave a comment here with the URL of your entry.

If you don't have twitter or a blog, then do this instead:

1) Leave a comment on this contest page with the answer to this question — “If you’re stuck in an island with a phone and only have one call left, who would you call and why?“.

Have fun~! :)

Farewell to my old self...

For the first time since 2001... I wasn't able to watch UP's Lantern Parade. :(

Every year, I have religiously watched this special event. I've seen different lanterns, the happiness on people's faces, amazing choreography and much much more... but this time, this time it was different. And I know it would not be the last time that I will miss UP's Lantern Parade. *sadness*

How did I miss such a show? I was still working up to 7pm and I had a Simbang Gabi commitment with my Mom and Ninang. That and I haven't slept for two days just trying to finish different jobs in limited time. I was extremely exhausted... I even forgot it's Engg Week because of my commitments piling up before Christmas.

I feel sad because I'm no longer living a carefree life, I now have responsibilities to handle. My schedule is to work from 7am to 7am and sleep a little bit in between. I have little time to talk to friends and play with my dogs. I don't get to eat nutritious food because I'm always on the go and I just need to fill up my stomach with anything just to keep going.

I suddenly realized that I've grown up...

What am I thankful for this year?

I'm thankful for having lots of supportive and wonderful people in my life. They are the source of my strength. :)


Avalon.ph is giving away a Moleskine Colour a Month Daily Planner 2010. Want it? Check out their Avalon.ph Moleskine Contest.

How about you? What are you thankful for? ;)

Discovery...

I love trying out new things. It's fun to discover what you can do in the internet.

Yes, that's the keyword. FUN.

:D

I have spread to different dimensions. Haha! No just kidding. I've just acquired new sites (and stuff) so I'll be strolling along. Posting things. ;)

*Imagine if I really did spread to different dimensions. That means a gazillion of me. Heh. Chaotic. XD*

If you guys have accounts in these sites, add me up!

Plurk
Facebook
Twitter
Tumblr

Oh well, these should keep me busier. I already have a lot of things to do but yeah, why not add more? XD

Twitter and Tumblr accounts are new... I was trying out something and ended up on those sites. :P

By the way, I have Google wave invites. Who wants them? ;)

Time flies when you're having fun.

- Calvin


I don't know if I'm having so much fun but time went by REALLY REALLY FAST. I feel like it was just my birthday yesterday but nooooooooo~ ITS ALMOST CHRISTMAS! (And yes, its almost Chrissa's birthday. Hehe...)

So now coming up with the "Things to do before the year ends" list.

1. Update blog. (Yay, doing it now.)

2. Go shopping for stuff. (Stuff is a relative term.)

3. Think of gifts for family, relatives and friends. (Try to come up with something that won't bust my budget.)

4. Get my TIN Number. (I don't want to get lost... again. T_T)

5. Bake a super duper amazing cake. (Because the cake I made last June needs A LOT of improvement in the "Looks" Category... good thing it tasted great. XD)

6. Learn to _____. Hahahahahahahahahahaaa.... ^^;

Will come up with more later, or at least in the next few weeks. :P

Fallen...

Seems like I have fallen off the face of the blogging world. I still have to finish the draft that I made about our Cebu trip but I have lost the will to do so... anyway, how is life?

I guess it depends on how you look at it. In my POV, its great. I live my life one day at a time. I play with kids. I learn things and... so on.

One of my students told me last Monday that I was really good in teaching. I was taken aback because it is the first time that a student recognized how much effort I put in teaching them. I felt really happy. :)

And then a few weeks ago, I saw Phoebe again. This time I brought my laptop to Trinoma and she helped herself to it. She even pushed the button for the wi-fi (turning off the wi-fi) while I was in the middle of downloading something. *smacks face* I just asked her to stop fiddling with my laptop and I'll just let her play when I finish. We ended up watching a few MJ videos, playing some flash games and talking about her. She's just adorable. :D

On other news, my brother is home! He arrived last month and he brought me a box of Kitkat Crunchy (and a watch). And with that, he also asked to install the DSL ASAP. So yeah, go me! We got the DSL installed after 1.5 weeks. Hee... ;)

I watched UP last Saturday in digital 3D at Trinoma. It was wonderful. I was crying from the very start of the movie. I just can't help it... ;_; I don't want to spoil anything so you just have to watch it yourself. I played Mario Kart after the movie, I ended up getting a data card. Whee~ ^_^

Ahaha... I just noticed how random this post is. Oh well... XD

Last June 10, I went to the Mary Kay Blogger's Consultation event. I got there pretty late though so I thought I won't be able to do anything anymore. Turned out I was the one who got the most out of it. Aha! Lucky~! ;)

We started off by testing their products and then giving comments on how each product feels. Then the beauty consultant (her name was Aileen) discussed on how the skin benefits of the product. There were hand spa, cleansers, moisturizers, liquid foundation, and of course... make up! :D

I love the blush they used on me... when I saw how it looked on my face. I JUST HAD TO HAVE IT. XD

Their products are pricey, but the quality was good. :)

I also had fun with Beth, Lori and Sarah (the organizer of the event). They're my high school friends and what better way to bond with them but to talk about beauty products!

I had a great time and I learned a lot. Thanks Mary Kay!

Time warp.

Life has been pretty interesting these past few weeks. My cousin came with her kids last Mother's Day, even if the kids' summer classes would end by Friday. I was surprised but it was all good, I served up the dish I made for Mom and she loved it. We baked cookies on Monday night. The kids assisted me while mixing everything and they patiently waited for the cookies. It was a baking success! They went home by Wednesday though because the kids have exams. :)

I went on a major shopping trip last week. It was absolutely therapeutic. I still can't believe I bought 6 necklaces though, haha... that was a splurge. Loot consisted of clothes, accessories and slippers! Now my shopping money is all gone~ Oh well, at least I was able to stick to the budget. :D

Last April 29, I met the kid in the Mister Donut commercial. Her name is Phoebe and she so hyper. She kept asking me about flash games. Hehehe... What an adorable kid. :P

Phoebe

I plan to bake a cake for LA's birthday this June 3rd. I already have the ingredients but I'm wondering if I should make a strawberry - chocolate cake. Kids always love chocolate. Hehe... Or maybe I'll just make strawberry icing on top of a chocolate cake? Hmmm... Guess I just have to leave the decision to the birthday celebrant. Hehe~ :p

Mavik and LA

Your ultimate college life guide!

Seventeen's Last Issue

I have been an avid reader of Seventeen Philippines since I turned 17 years old. My very first issue back in June 2001 was the first magazine I have ever bought in my entire life. I handled it with utmost care and after reading the magazine from cover to cover, I knew I'd buy it EVERY MONTH. :)

What I love about the magazine is that it completely covers all about a college girl's life. From school booboos to serious dating issues, from hot fashion trends to making your own money 101. Even sensitive issues were brought to light. I've gotten so much information just from reading these magazines. Not to mention their contests that have lots of prizes. I managed to win a couple of these and was able to bring some friends to a vacation fit for a princess. :D

Gosh, I can ramble on and on how this magazine has changed my life for the better. It has been a part of my life and now that it is on its last issue, I feel terribly sad. Its like saying goodbye to a dear friend. For me, no other magazine compares to Seventeen. :(

I'm 24 years old now. And I'm glad that Seventeen Philippines was part of my life, because it made me feel that no matter how old I really am... I will forever be Seventeen. :)

Sometimes I want a little sister...

...that I can dress up with new fashionable clothes.
...that would like the girly games I play online.
...that can appreciate the times I play with make-up.
...that would be willing to taught with difficult words and math concepts.
...that would watch Barbie movies and all those fun fun fun kiddie movies with me.
...that can hug me whenever I'm feeling all down and tired after a long day at work.
...that would try to take care of me when I'm sick.
...that would cheer me up with just a cute smile.

But I don't have one.

So I'm spoiling my little niece so much. She's like a little sister to me. I bought her a cute little swimsuit (and of course I also bought my nephew swimming trunks) and then I inflated their little pool in the garage. We also played at timezone and treated them in different fast foods. We also finished reading the new coloring book that Tita Cel gave her. She loves reading and learning new things. She's like a sponge absorbing everything that I teach her. And she already knows how to help out at the kitchen. She's so adorable. :D

Gosh I love those kids so much... breaks my heart every time I hear that their parents are going through a difficult time, with the recession and all the internal family conflicts. :(

Well, I'm trying to do what I can. (And if I had my way, my little niece would be staying with us this summer, just like last year... but mom has tons of commitments and meetings. *sigh* )

APRIL FOOLS! :D

Ivy spoiled it though... next time I'm going to hire you for the joke! Ahahaha~!

That's it I guess... I'm sooooo tired. I just want to go to sleep but I still have stuff to review.

Really super tired.

x_x

Round and round.

I've been running around for the past weeks that I don't know how to start this. Hmm... I guess for one thing I'm no longer teaching grade school kids and high school kids because its their summer break. I felt a sad on my last day. I'll miss those kids. :(

Anyway now I'm teaching older uhh... kids? Ahaha... One is a little older than me and the other just got out of college. We are actually cramming a lot of stuff for their review. This is going to be hard... :(

I'll post more next time. Break time's over. Hehe... :P

I got this from an email. It's something that single people, and even those in relationships should think about. ;)

***

PARTNERS AND MARRIAGE
By Eduardo Jose E. Calasanz

I have never met a man who didn't want to be loved. But I have seldom met a man who didn't fear marriage. Something about the closure seems constricting, not enabling. Marriage seems easier to understand for what it cuts out of our lives than for what it makes possible within our lives.

When I was younger this fear immobilized me. I did not want to make a mistake. I saw my friends get married for reasons of social acceptability, or sexual fever, or just because they thought it was the logical thing to do. Then I watched, as they and their partners became embittered and petty in their dealings with each other. I looked at older couples and saw, at best, mutual toleration of each other. I imagined a lifetime of loveless nights and bickering and could not imagine subjecting myself or someone else to such a fate.

And yet, on rare occasions, I would see old couples who somehow seemed to glow in each other's presence. They seemed really in love, not just dependent upon each other and tolerant of each other's foibles. It was an astounding sight, and it seemed impossible.

How, I asked myself, can they have survived so many years of sameness, so much irritation at the other's habits? What keeps love alive in them, when most of us seem unable to even stay together, much less love each other?

The central secret seems to be in choosing well. There is something to the claim of fundamental compatibility. Good people can create a bad relationship, even though they both dearly want the relationship to succeed. It is important to find someone with whom you can create a good relationship from the outset. Unfortunately, it is hard to see clearly in the early stages.

Sexual hunger draws you to each other and colors the way you see yourselves together. It blinds you to the thousands of little things by which relationships eventually survive or fail. You need to find a way to see beyond this initial overwhelming sexual fascination. Some people choose to involve themselves sexually and ride out the most heated period of sexual attraction in order to see what is on the other side. This can work, but it can also leave a trail of wounded hearts. Others deny the sexual side altogether in an attempt to get to know each other apart from their sexuality. But they cannot see clearly, because the presence of unfulfilled sexual desire looms so large that it keeps them from having any normal perception of what life would be like together.

The truly lucky people are the ones who manage to become long- time friends before they realize they are attracted to each other. They get to know each other's laughs, passions, sadness, and fears. They see each other at their worst and at their best. They share time together before they get swept into the entangling intimacy of their sexuality.

This is the ideal, but not often possible. If you fall under the spell of your sexual attraction immediately, you need to look beyond it for other keys to compatibility.

One of these is laughter. Laughter tells you how much you will enjoy each other's company over the long term. If your laughter together is good and healthy, and not at the expense of others, then you have a healthy relationship to the world. Laughter is the child of surprise. If you can make each other laugh, you can always surprise each other. And if you can always surprise each other, you can always keep the world around you new. Beware of a relationship in which there is no laughter. Even the most intimate relationships based only on seriousness have a tendency to turn sour. Over time, sharing a common serious viewpoint on the world tends to turn you against those who do not share the same viewpoint, and your relationship can become based on being critical together.

After laughter, look for a partner who deals with the world in a way you respect. When two people first get together, they tend to see their relationship as existing only in the space between the two of them. They find each other endlessly fascinating, and the overwhelming power of the emotions they are sharing obscures the outside world. As the relationship ages and grows, the outside world becomes important again. If your partner treats people or circumstances in a way you can't accept, you will inevitably come to grief. Look at the way she cares for others and deals with the daily affairs of life. If that makes you love her more, your love will grow. If it does not, be careful. If you do not respect the way you each deal with the world around you, eventually the two of you will not respect each other.

Look also at how your partner confronts the mysteries of life. We live on the cusp of poetry and practicality, and the real life of the heart resides in the poetic. If one of you is deeply affected by the mystery of the unseen in life and relationships, while the other is drawn only to the literal and the practical, you must take care that the distance doesn't become an unbridgeable gap that leaves you each feeling isolated and misunderstood.

There are many other keys, but you must find them by yourself. We all have unchangeable parts of our hearts that we will not betray and private commitments to a vision of life that we will not deny. If you fall in love with someone who cannot nourish those inviolable parts of you, or if you cannot nourish them in her, you will find yourselves growing further apart until you live in separate worlds where you share the business of life, but never touch each other where the heart lives and dreams. From there it is only a small leap to the cataloging of petty hurts and daily failures that leaves so many couples bitter and unsatisfied with their mates.

So choose carefully and well. If you do, you will have chosen a partner with whom you can grow, and then the real miracle of marriage can take place in your hearts. I pick my words carefully when I speak of a miracle. But I think it is not too strong a word. There is a miracle in marriage. It is called transformation. Transformation is one of the most common events of nature. The seed becomes the flower. The cocoon becomes the butterfly. Winter becomes spring and love becomes a child. We never question these, because we see them around us every day. To us they are not miracles, though if we did not know them they would be impossible to believe. Marriage is a transformation we choose to make.

Our love is planted like a seed, and in time it begins to flower. We cannot know the flower that will blossom, but we can be sure that a bloom will come. If you have chosen carefully and wisely, the bloom will be good. If you have chosen poorly or for the wrong reason, the bloom will be flawed. We are quite willing to accept the reality of negative transformation in a marriage. It was negative transformation that always had me terrified of the bitter marriages that I feared when I was younger.

It never occurred to me to question the dark miracle that transformed love into harshness and bitterness. Yet I was unable to accept the possibility that the first heat of love could be transformed into something positive that was actually deeper and more meaningful than the heat of fresh passion. All I could believe in was the power of this passion and the fear that when it cooled I would be left with something lesser and bitter. But there is positive transformation as well. Like negative transformation, it results from a slow accretion of little things. But instead of death by a thousand blows, it is growth by a thousand touches of love. Two histories intermingle. Two separate beings, two separate presence, two separate consciousnesses come together and share a view of life that passes before them. They remain separate, but they also become one.

There is an expansion of awareness, not a closure and a constriction, as I had once feared. This is not to say that there is not tension and there are not traps. Tension and traps are part of every choice of life, from celibate to monogamous to having multiple lovers. Each choice contains within it the lingering doubt that the road not taken somehow more fruitful and exciting, and each becomes dulled to the richness that it alone contains.

But only marriage allows life to deepen and expand and be leavened by the knowledge that two have chosen, against all odds, to become one. Those who live together without marriage can know the pleasure of shared company, but there is a specific gravity in the marriage commitment that deepens that experience into something richer and more complex. So do not fear marriage, just as you should not rush into it for the wrong reasons. It is an act of faith and it contains within it the power of transformation.

If you believe in your heart that you have found someone with whom you are able to grow, if you have sufficient faith that you can resist the endless attraction of the road not taken and the partner not chosen, if you have the strength of heart to embrace the cycles and seasons that your love will experience, then you may be ready to seek the miracle that marriage offers. If not, then wait. The easy grace of a marriage well made is worth your patience. When the time comes, a thousand flowers will bloom... endlessly.

***

Anyway I've got a busy, busy week ahead. Gah! Exams everywhere... it's like I'm the one having all these exams. Stressful. @_@

I love bluetooth... :D

I've been having troubles using the USB Data Cable for my phone. Nokia PC Suite can't detect it, and the softwares that are included with the Data Cable are not working. T_T Thank goodness for bluetooth. I only needed the driver and viola! Hello cellphone files~! :P

Anyway, I feel pretty swamped for this week up to next week. Time management galore... Ahaha! XD

I still need to fix the laptop's previous HD. I just have to buy a casing so it would act as an external HD and then I'll try to fix the partition. :)

And I have installed NWN1, but most of the portraits are missing. Wah! T_T I've been looking all over for a solution but boo... no one has experienced the same thing. Suxorz. :(

No more nightmares for me.. yaaaay~! ;)

I hate nightmares.

Just thinking about them makes me cringe and they keep me awake for hours. :(

A while ago I had a nightmare, I was researching some sort of genetic disease caused by crystals. I found a couple, who looks exactly the same and has the same names as our good neighbors, that helped me out by letting me stay at their house. I was going to ask them if they knew about the blue crystals found in the rice crops. As it turns out, they were already infected with the disease and if they get near the crystals or if they touch them they'd disintegrate slowly - flesh, bones, and everything. I gave them a sample but it accidentally burst open and everything got scattered. The wife (who was glowing in blue light with an outline of a skeleton [Can this nightmare get worse? I'm dreaming of skeletons! I DON'T LIKE SKELETONS! I don't even watch horror movies because I'm scared that when I go to bed I'll dream of them. T_T] ) tried to save his husband by removing the crystal shards (the husband was also glowing in blue light with the scary skeleton outline). However, in doing so... the wife died. It felt so wrong. They were supposed to go to the US because they wanted to start over, but because of me and my research... T_T Okay, I felt so guilty by this time and then there was a change of location and all I know is that the husband turned out to be Baek and their son was Hwoarang. (I know, I know... all Tekken characters. I should be able to laugh, right?)

Anyway that was it. After 2 hours I still can't sleep. I keep thinking about the skeletons, the guilt and the reason why I had those kinds of dreams in the first place. Wasn't it enough that I found out last night that my HD partition is broken? And that my Dad is leaving tomorrow? And that I have no internet access for the next few days which is also the time that I'm going to need my computer and internet more than ever? T_T

Well gee... nightmares in real life and in dreams. I really can't escape this, can I? *prays for a solution to end these nightmares*

I've only had 3 hours of sleep! I feel terrible right now. I'm going to try to go back to sleep.

Life is truly interesting.

Just when you think you've got it all figured out, something comes out of the blue and shrivels your theories into dust. That way you just have to work back from the start.

Anyway, my life as of late has been anything but boring. Daddy came home last January 18, so I treated my Mom at Banana Leaf and we also got something for Dad. His flight came around 8pm - Singapore Airlines is amazing, they came a few minutes before the estimated time of arrival. Talk about being on time. :D Last week they changed my schedule for tutors from MWF to TWTh. Then yesterday it's been confirmed that I'll be giving tutorials for two Sundays in February and March. And at least once a week I hang-out at Timezone just to mash those buttons in Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion. So much fun. Lolz.

I was also able to watch a few movies like Bedtime Stories, Yes Man and Inkheart. I still can't get the song "Jumper" off my head. :P

American Idol Season 8 is off to a great start! I'll be rooting for the guy who sang "Kiss from a Rose". :D

Dad has some training by next week and he'll scheduled to leave on February 21. Just a month of rest and then it's just the two of us - Mom and me - again. Oh well...

And I've read Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn and Midnight Sun's partial draft. Bella and Edward are really Mary and Gary Sue. If I ever read the word "dazzle" again, I am going to cringe. And yeller? Obsessed much? -_-; Oh, but for the most part... it was an entertaining read. :)

I was chosen to proofread a book. Wow. I mean... I've never done something like that so it was a great honor. Whee~! :D

I also won something from 17 magazine, although I haven't claimed it... but yaaaay! ;)

I'd also love to learn more about taking really good pictures and utilizing Photoshop extensively. I just have to reformat my laptop before doing that. Hmm... :)

And that is about it! Valentines Day is coming soon.. I wonder what's in store for me this year? <3

Happy New Year!

It was raining on New Year's Eve but people still fired their fireworks and firecrackers. Hehe.. :P The kids loved the fireworks. They were running around screaming everytime the fireworks went off. So funny and cute. :3

It's kinda quiet without the kiddos around... I felt like crying last Sunday when I dropped them off at the bus terminal. They'll be busy with school again so I won't have playmates until vacation time. I just miss them so much... :(

What's new with me? Hmm.. maybe my addiction to Tekken 6. But I'm really trying to control it, even having a schedule and sticking to it. Or at least I try. :P Anyway, it's just a form of entertainment and not a career. -_-

I'm also getting a bit better in syncing the iPod Nano. Haha.. I do not like reading manuals... but if I ever get some spare time I'll try reading it so I could find out how to use all the features. :)

And I gained weight... pfft. I'll try to burn it off by walking a lot. Haha... :D

Lookie! I have cleaned up my desktop for 2009! Aren't you guys proud of me? *beams*

January 2009

2008