Yesterday was my job interview (more like screening actually) for IBM. If (big IF) they call me again, it might be for a language test since the job is primarily open for people with Japanese proficiency. The test covers listening / speaking (they'll call their japan office supposedly), reading, and writing. The latter two are basically japanese-english and english-japanese translation tests. I don't know if I'm that confident with my skills. Of course, I chose Japanese over French when they asked me which language i was more confident in. Now, i'm just frustrated. I really need to work to become fluent.
Watched Night of the Museum last week. I liked it =D I was planning to watch Babel or Little Children, but after the week of classes, I felt too tired for anything too emotionally-heavy so i opted for comedy. The movie wasn't bad at all, with nice effects and a good storyline.
Yesterday was my mom's birthday so we had a shabu-shabu dinner at Gloria Maris. Given the cool weather we're having, the steaming shabu-shabu was perfect ^^ We're having another dinner on Saturday, this time with my relatives.
I love how the weather these days, all cool and breezy~
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Friday, January 26, 2007
snail mail
In this technologically advanced, fast-paced world, snail mail is a rarity. Thus, when I received Keiko's postcard, Okaasan's card and newspaper article, and Emma's letter the past few days, I felt happy =) There's something about snail mail that leaves you warm and fuzzy inside.
Then today, we got three boxes of books from Fr. Fertal, a friend of my dad's who resides in Missouri. We don't hear from him too often, but he writes to us once in a while. For the past few years, he's sent us lots and lots of books and video tapes. The books are mostly about Chinese culture and history - feng shui, imperial dynasties, mystery novels - and books on wine. I was just touched by the gesture, because he must have spent time choosing the novels and packing them. He's going to have an operation next month for the severe arthritis in his leg. May our prayers be with him.
Today, two interior designers came by. They said we need to demolish the kitchen and the wardrobes and cabinets in the rooms upstairs. The model photos were really pretty. It'd be nice if we could renovate everything but it would cost a LOT.
I just finished compiling the first three sections of thesis. I can't believe it's almost done! Wow. The feeling's surreal~*
Then today, we got three boxes of books from Fr. Fertal, a friend of my dad's who resides in Missouri. We don't hear from him too often, but he writes to us once in a while. For the past few years, he's sent us lots and lots of books and video tapes. The books are mostly about Chinese culture and history - feng shui, imperial dynasties, mystery novels - and books on wine. I was just touched by the gesture, because he must have spent time choosing the novels and packing them. He's going to have an operation next month for the severe arthritis in his leg. May our prayers be with him.
Today, two interior designers came by. They said we need to demolish the kitchen and the wardrobes and cabinets in the rooms upstairs. The model photos were really pretty. It'd be nice if we could renovate everything but it would cost a LOT.
I just finished compiling the first three sections of thesis. I can't believe it's almost done! Wow. The feeling's surreal~*
Sunday, January 21, 2007
comfort food
i have a sore throat －ー； that means the usual remedy of 999 medicinal tea plus that apricot tea mom bought from korea, as well as the stronger antibiotics - amoxicillin. hopefully, the sore throat won't develop into a full-out cold.
tonight, we had dinner at silla ^0^ when you have a cold (or an almost cold), there's nothing better than spicy food. Loved the side dishes and the beancurd soup and the jap chae and kimbap. We even bought some kimchi home. It's fiery red so it should be really hot. I enjoyed dipping my spoonfuls of rice into the red-specked lightly seasoned beancurd soup. I imagined rainy days and cold winter mornings as i let the soup soothe my raspy throat.
There's something about food that makes it comforting and nostalgic. I remember the steamed tausi fish and congee, together with the warm glass of almond juice my mom would give me as a child whenever i had a fever. Today, i had vegetarian congee from bodhi - mixed with veggies, taro, and veggie ham. Perfect comfort food for colds and sore throats ^^ Memories of my childhood days in canada include feasting on kfc hot chili wings, canadian pizza from pizza hut, noodles and fried rice from chopsticks, chicken and salted fish casserole from sam woo, and the freshly-baked choco chip or banana walnut muffins from mmmuffins.
Food is a feast for the senses - with its aromas and tastes. Sometimes, it serves as little trinkets of our past, like a trip down memory lane. What kiddie birthday party doesn't conjure images of spaghetti and barbecue? Other times, food's our buddy-in-crime when we drown down sorrows and hurt. In fact, the image of a sniffling girl eating a pint of ice cream while sitting on her living room couch has become quite common. Food gathers people together. Family and friends converse, joke, and laugh while sharing good food.
Roland Barthes mentions that food is one of the more subtle ways to understanding a country's culture. Me, I'd say: Good food. Warms the heart. Feeds the senses.
-*0-*-
mandy moore has a new movie Because I Said So, together with diane keaton, lauren graham, and piper perabo. it seems interesting~
the last book in the sisterhood series came out already. i wonder when it'll be available locally.
current favorite song: Just So You Know by Jesse McCartney
tonight, we had dinner at silla ^0^ when you have a cold (or an almost cold), there's nothing better than spicy food. Loved the side dishes and the beancurd soup and the jap chae and kimbap. We even bought some kimchi home. It's fiery red so it should be really hot. I enjoyed dipping my spoonfuls of rice into the red-specked lightly seasoned beancurd soup. I imagined rainy days and cold winter mornings as i let the soup soothe my raspy throat.
There's something about food that makes it comforting and nostalgic. I remember the steamed tausi fish and congee, together with the warm glass of almond juice my mom would give me as a child whenever i had a fever. Today, i had vegetarian congee from bodhi - mixed with veggies, taro, and veggie ham. Perfect comfort food for colds and sore throats ^^ Memories of my childhood days in canada include feasting on kfc hot chili wings, canadian pizza from pizza hut, noodles and fried rice from chopsticks, chicken and salted fish casserole from sam woo, and the freshly-baked choco chip or banana walnut muffins from mmmuffins.
Food is a feast for the senses - with its aromas and tastes. Sometimes, it serves as little trinkets of our past, like a trip down memory lane. What kiddie birthday party doesn't conjure images of spaghetti and barbecue? Other times, food's our buddy-in-crime when we drown down sorrows and hurt. In fact, the image of a sniffling girl eating a pint of ice cream while sitting on her living room couch has become quite common. Food gathers people together. Family and friends converse, joke, and laugh while sharing good food.
Roland Barthes mentions that food is one of the more subtle ways to understanding a country's culture. Me, I'd say: Good food. Warms the heart. Feeds the senses.
-*0-*-
mandy moore has a new movie Because I Said So, together with diane keaton, lauren graham, and piper perabo. it seems interesting~
the last book in the sisterhood series came out already. i wonder when it'll be available locally.
current favorite song: Just So You Know by Jesse McCartney
Saturday, January 20, 2007
bits and pieces
the past few week has come and gone. caught up in schoolwork and asec room conversations, i haven't quite had the time to sit down and dissect what's happened. anyways, thoughts of the week:
french class
the one question i have after french class today is how open-minded can one really be? we're discussing PACS which is like a marriage contract. A heterosexual or homesexual couple can sign this contract and their union is legally recognized. Seems that more and more people are being "pacs-ed" because they get two sides of the coin - their union is legally recognized, which means they have the rights and benefits that accompany a real marriage, and at the same time, they're "free" in the sense that it's easy to get your union dissolved coz you don't have to go through loads of legal red tape like a divorce or an annulment. The fact that such a thing exists, what does it say about society's morals and values? I don't know. It seems that "convenience" seems to be the keyword of the century. I just wonder how openly i can accept the change in values and societal practices. And should these changes really be accepted by society?
global warming
200 million = number of people around the world who could be displaced by more intense droughts, sea level rise and flooding by 2080. No hope for the future generations? Quite likely. The ice storm and cold weather in the united states is scary. The fact that temperatures are rising worldwide should serve as a warning. There's already a petition being passed around to add the polar bear as an endangered species. Let's help save the environment.
job fair
there's a job fair next week. looking over the list of companies, i was thinking about which companies to apply to. i thought, why not just submit a resume to every single company, so that chances are at least one or two companies call me for an interview. then, i started considering working at a call center, which led me to think that working at a bank shouldn't be that bad. Thing is i've always kinda balked at the idea of working in a corporate setting. i don't like the idea of sitting behind a desk for 8 hours. i want a job that's more interactive. i was thinking of teaching or joining an environmental advocacy organization (like greenpeace maybe?) or maybe i could try unicef.
the catholic faith
thanks to ateneo and my theo teachers (and philo too i guess ^^) this year, i've come to understand the catholic faith better. i think i now understand what it's all about and what our mission on earth is. i finally get what kingdom of God means and what it means to pattern our lives after the life of Jesus Christ. so these days, i try to pay more attention to my thoughts and actions. let's just say it takes an enormous amount of effort to be patient and understanding. moreover, whenever i see street children, i feel guilty. i can't even look them in the eye. i've been thinking what i can do to really help them. when i interviewed the children in quiapo before, i realized how different their ways of thinking were. their environment has toughened them up and they have different expectations and desires, most of which revolve around materialistic stuff. is there a feasible solution to poverty?
tv shows
watched the american idol season 6 premiere the other day. seems like only a few made it to hollywood. i didn't know whether to cringe or feel sorry for the other contestants. it was still a fun watch, what with simon and his trademark sarcasm. the american idol auditions never fail to attract interesting personalities ^0^ i've also started to watch local tv shows again like sana maulit muli (kim chiu's acting isn't half bad) and maging sino ka man. Hehe~
Tomorrow will be spent studying for theology. Long coverage for the second exam.
french class
the one question i have after french class today is how open-minded can one really be? we're discussing PACS which is like a marriage contract. A heterosexual or homesexual couple can sign this contract and their union is legally recognized. Seems that more and more people are being "pacs-ed" because they get two sides of the coin - their union is legally recognized, which means they have the rights and benefits that accompany a real marriage, and at the same time, they're "free" in the sense that it's easy to get your union dissolved coz you don't have to go through loads of legal red tape like a divorce or an annulment. The fact that such a thing exists, what does it say about society's morals and values? I don't know. It seems that "convenience" seems to be the keyword of the century. I just wonder how openly i can accept the change in values and societal practices. And should these changes really be accepted by society?
global warming
200 million = number of people around the world who could be displaced by more intense droughts, sea level rise and flooding by 2080. No hope for the future generations? Quite likely. The ice storm and cold weather in the united states is scary. The fact that temperatures are rising worldwide should serve as a warning. There's already a petition being passed around to add the polar bear as an endangered species. Let's help save the environment.
job fair
there's a job fair next week. looking over the list of companies, i was thinking about which companies to apply to. i thought, why not just submit a resume to every single company, so that chances are at least one or two companies call me for an interview. then, i started considering working at a call center, which led me to think that working at a bank shouldn't be that bad. Thing is i've always kinda balked at the idea of working in a corporate setting. i don't like the idea of sitting behind a desk for 8 hours. i want a job that's more interactive. i was thinking of teaching or joining an environmental advocacy organization (like greenpeace maybe?) or maybe i could try unicef.
the catholic faith
thanks to ateneo and my theo teachers (and philo too i guess ^^) this year, i've come to understand the catholic faith better. i think i now understand what it's all about and what our mission on earth is. i finally get what kingdom of God means and what it means to pattern our lives after the life of Jesus Christ. so these days, i try to pay more attention to my thoughts and actions. let's just say it takes an enormous amount of effort to be patient and understanding. moreover, whenever i see street children, i feel guilty. i can't even look them in the eye. i've been thinking what i can do to really help them. when i interviewed the children in quiapo before, i realized how different their ways of thinking were. their environment has toughened them up and they have different expectations and desires, most of which revolve around materialistic stuff. is there a feasible solution to poverty?
tv shows
watched the american idol season 6 premiere the other day. seems like only a few made it to hollywood. i didn't know whether to cringe or feel sorry for the other contestants. it was still a fun watch, what with simon and his trademark sarcasm. the american idol auditions never fail to attract interesting personalities ^0^ i've also started to watch local tv shows again like sana maulit muli (kim chiu's acting isn't half bad) and maging sino ka man. Hehe~
Tomorrow will be spent studying for theology. Long coverage for the second exam.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
eragon
french class on saturday wasn't as bad as i thought it would be. it was nice seeing erni and tita cora again. maek wasn't able to enroll and karyn and anya both went abroad so it was just the 3 of us who belonged to the original batch. madame yoli was our teacher ^^ we spent two and a half hours discussing a photo. We talked about what the photo connoted, the photo's description, etc. it was actually interesting, fun even. the conversations were in french and despite the somewhat broken speech and stuttering, we were able to understand one another and make ourselves understood. being able to converse in another language never ceases to amaze me =)
after french class, we went to greenbelt where mom and zel watched jackie chan's rob-b-hood, and ni and i watched eragon. it was a good film, maybe partly because i haven't read the book yet. if i had, then it would probably resemble a harry potter film - something that will never quite live up to the book. i loved the dragon sapphira, especially when she was a baby dragon (adorable!). i'm in the first few chapters of the book now. From its thickness, i can assume that its much more detailed than the movie was. I love the songs by avril and jem which are included in the soundtrack.
today was spent researching, doing the thesis discussion outline, and watching tv (a drama on da-ai about a mom who borne another son to save her daughter who had leukemia, snippets of broken flowers, and asap).
movies i want to watch: music and lyrics (hugh grant and drew barrymore), little children, babel, the pursuit of happyness.
after french class, we went to greenbelt where mom and zel watched jackie chan's rob-b-hood, and ni and i watched eragon. it was a good film, maybe partly because i haven't read the book yet. if i had, then it would probably resemble a harry potter film - something that will never quite live up to the book. i loved the dragon sapphira, especially when she was a baby dragon (adorable!). i'm in the first few chapters of the book now. From its thickness, i can assume that its much more detailed than the movie was. I love the songs by avril and jem which are included in the soundtrack.
today was spent researching, doing the thesis discussion outline, and watching tv (a drama on da-ai about a mom who borne another son to save her daughter who had leukemia, snippets of broken flowers, and asap).
movies i want to watch: music and lyrics (hugh grant and drew barrymore), little children, babel, the pursuit of happyness.
Saturday, January 13, 2007
unexpected
I got myself a copy of Bo Sanchez's How To Find Your One True Love today =) As i was walking around the bookstore with the book in hand, my dad saw me and asked what i was buying. Showing him the book, i expected him to raise a questioning eyebrow and ask why i was buying some "useless", self-help book. Wonder of wonders, he actually chuckled (in his trademark way) and laughed (which i took to be a mixture of amusement and incredulousness). I was actually surprised. He actually found the fact that i was buying such a book amusing ^0^ My dad will never cease to surprise and amaze me. Haha =D
Thursday, January 11, 2007
coffee at gloria jean's
today was a good day. watched a children's cartoon show Muzzy for Spanish class and discussed servant leadership, taking the case of Richard Gordon, for Leadership class. Afterwards, i headed to Makati to enroll for French class. Yes, i'm enrolling again after a one-year (or more) hiatus. Tita Cora texted me the other day and asked if i was joining them for Module 19. I stopped French after finishing Module 11 so I'm skipping 7 levels (!!) and going to Module 19. Should that be considered a sort of suicide?? The other level they were offering was Module 11 and I took that up already. Anyways, I'll try my best - and my luck - to see if i can catch up with the class. It's mostly conversational, I think, since we've tackled most of the grammar already in the previous modules. I'm just afraid i might end up sputtering Japanese terms @@
Went to CSB afterwards to pick up Eunice and we headed to Chinatown where we bought asado and mamonluk noodles (my dad's favorite as he used to go there to eat often as a kid). then, since we still had time to kill before zel's dismissal time, we chatted over gloria jean's coffee. i had the vanilla macademia nut variety while ni had the mint chocolate one. i love sitting in coffee shops, sipping steaming hot or ice cold coffee while chatting about almost anything. today, ni talked about her thesis (she's thinking about doing a film instead of concentrating on theater) and her classes this semester ^^ i wonder what i'll be chatting about with eizel in a few years time~*
Went to CSB afterwards to pick up Eunice and we headed to Chinatown where we bought asado and mamonluk noodles (my dad's favorite as he used to go there to eat often as a kid). then, since we still had time to kill before zel's dismissal time, we chatted over gloria jean's coffee. i had the vanilla macademia nut variety while ni had the mint chocolate one. i love sitting in coffee shops, sipping steaming hot or ice cold coffee while chatting about almost anything. today, ni talked about her thesis (she's thinking about doing a film instead of concentrating on theater) and her classes this semester ^^ i wonder what i'll be chatting about with eizel in a few years time~*
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
freakonomics
mike's host family from osaka came to manila for a visit, and so for the last few days, i've been touring them around together with mike, maxine, and raffy. mike, raffy, and maxine know okaasan and akko-san because they've stayed with them before in osaka so i was the only one who didn't know the personally.
monday, we had dinner at gumbo at mall of asia. compared to the weekend, it was relatively uncrowded. what a relief ^^ tuesday, maxine and i toured them around glorietta/greenbelt and greenhills. we had a fun time at timezone where even okaasan played some games ^0^ for the past two days, i've been able to practice my rusty japanese and it was fun seeing how they reacted to the prices and the sizes. for example, a junior size cake at red ribbon would cost around 2000 yen in japan. then, they were also surprised by how big the juice glasses were at the restaurants and that the tall size was our smallest size at the coffee shops. okaasan said that in japan, the smallest size was half that of our smallest "tall" size.
-0-
currently reading Freakonomics. it was selling for half its original price at fully booked so i got myself a copy. it's actually really interesting. i like how his take or analysis on why things are the way they are. it's fun, informative reading. Right now, i'm reading about how the answer to why mankind is innately and universally corrupt may lie in bagels. Hmm...gets one thinking, doesn't it? ^-^
speaking of reading, emil was reading How To Find Your One True Love in the room awhile ago. The book contains 8 myths on love, for example how we believe in the one or how we are dependent on the signs that God supposedly gives us. It's an interesting book.
monday, we had dinner at gumbo at mall of asia. compared to the weekend, it was relatively uncrowded. what a relief ^^ tuesday, maxine and i toured them around glorietta/greenbelt and greenhills. we had a fun time at timezone where even okaasan played some games ^0^ for the past two days, i've been able to practice my rusty japanese and it was fun seeing how they reacted to the prices and the sizes. for example, a junior size cake at red ribbon would cost around 2000 yen in japan. then, they were also surprised by how big the juice glasses were at the restaurants and that the tall size was our smallest size at the coffee shops. okaasan said that in japan, the smallest size was half that of our smallest "tall" size.
-0-
currently reading Freakonomics. it was selling for half its original price at fully booked so i got myself a copy. it's actually really interesting. i like how his take or analysis on why things are the way they are. it's fun, informative reading. Right now, i'm reading about how the answer to why mankind is innately and universally corrupt may lie in bagels. Hmm...gets one thinking, doesn't it? ^-^
speaking of reading, emil was reading How To Find Your One True Love in the room awhile ago. The book contains 8 myths on love, for example how we believe in the one or how we are dependent on the signs that God supposedly gives us. It's an interesting book.
Sunday, January 07, 2007
pryo olympics
Mall of Asia was just so crowded yesterday, with swarms of people hanging around the balcony area and the parking area to get a glimpse of the fireworks displays. I was one of those people ^^
Started the day by having breakfast with my mom at starbucks. Then spent the rest of the day hanging out with ernest at rockwell, where they had a mall-wide sale. I bought two books from Fully Booked. I mean, who can resist a bookstore sale? ('0^*) We ran into Mrs. Alberto too. I seem to run into her all the time.
Was supposed to meet Mic and company at a place near Toyota Manila Bay but decided to go to MoA instead. It was jampacked. Well, the fireworks were cool ^^ I liked the USA display, with ones that shot up and became like this giant dandelion, freezing momentarily before turning into "stardust" (or should i say pollution?). Then there were the ones that seemed like star showers, parachute-like and like giant chandeliers. The sparklers that shot up from the ground were cool too. Those were like floating colored bubbles, just twirling and swirling. They looked like candies ^^ From the second presentation (which i take was by Spain), i liked the big solid blobs of fireworks, which looked like molecular structures, that just stayed suspended in the air before making their slow descent. Overall, it was a feast for the eyes (and the ears i suppose).
--edit--
went to mv doulos in the late afternoon. There were lots of people. The line to get on the ship was uber long but the staff were friendly and accomodating. Most of the books were on religion and health so they didn't really strike my fancy. It was so stuffy inside the book fair place though because of all the people so it was tiring. We climbed off board after awhile, and it was refreshing to feel the cool sea breeze.
afterwards, we went to eat at this bayside restaurant - i forgot the name of the place （'゜０゜；/. it was a seafood smorgasbord but of course i only touched the greens. i liked their hot calamansi juice though - nothing special, just soothing to the throat. And at 8pm, we saw the fireworks! Today was Germany's display and it was better than yesterday's ^^ my favorite was the ferris wheel-like swirling fireworks which were enclosed in a bigger white firework. The inner wheel seemed to continue to spin around even when the white firework had dispersed into "star showers" already.
Started the day by having breakfast with my mom at starbucks. Then spent the rest of the day hanging out with ernest at rockwell, where they had a mall-wide sale. I bought two books from Fully Booked. I mean, who can resist a bookstore sale? ('0^*) We ran into Mrs. Alberto too. I seem to run into her all the time.
Was supposed to meet Mic and company at a place near Toyota Manila Bay but decided to go to MoA instead. It was jampacked. Well, the fireworks were cool ^^ I liked the USA display, with ones that shot up and became like this giant dandelion, freezing momentarily before turning into "stardust" (or should i say pollution?). Then there were the ones that seemed like star showers, parachute-like and like giant chandeliers. The sparklers that shot up from the ground were cool too. Those were like floating colored bubbles, just twirling and swirling. They looked like candies ^^ From the second presentation (which i take was by Spain), i liked the big solid blobs of fireworks, which looked like molecular structures, that just stayed suspended in the air before making their slow descent. Overall, it was a feast for the eyes (and the ears i suppose).
--edit--
went to mv doulos in the late afternoon. There were lots of people. The line to get on the ship was uber long but the staff were friendly and accomodating. Most of the books were on religion and health so they didn't really strike my fancy. It was so stuffy inside the book fair place though because of all the people so it was tiring. We climbed off board after awhile, and it was refreshing to feel the cool sea breeze.
afterwards, we went to eat at this bayside restaurant - i forgot the name of the place （'゜０゜；/. it was a seafood smorgasbord but of course i only touched the greens. i liked their hot calamansi juice though - nothing special, just soothing to the throat. And at 8pm, we saw the fireworks! Today was Germany's display and it was better than yesterday's ^^ my favorite was the ferris wheel-like swirling fireworks which were enclosed in a bigger white firework. The inner wheel seemed to continue to spin around even when the white firework had dispersed into "star showers" already.
Friday, January 05, 2007
shoes shoes shoes
Went to The Block after school today with my mom, two sisters, and JR =)
Walked around. Had dinner at Banana Leaf ( I love their vegetable samosas ^^). Stared longingly at the Quickly stand (I miss milk tea) but didn't get any coz i was too full from dinner. Bought bibingcrepe (like the ones i ate at baguio!). Went shoe shopping.
I'm super picky when it comes to shoes and clothes and jeans. I tried so many pairs at the URS shop (I bought my first URS pair at singapore, and after that i came to love the brand) that i thought the saleslady would get irritated, which she probably would have if we hadn't bought anything. After trying on the pair i liked (they didn't have my size), a too-pointy beige high-heeled pair (my cousin said i could kill someone with the pointy toe heads. Haha), a couple of flats, and one more pair of high high felt black high heels, i decided to go with the pointy-toed black flats. I think my parents gave a sigh of relief after i finally picked a pair. Hehe =) I felt like Carrie Bradshaw, trying on shoe after shoe, except that it wasn't as dramatic. I didn't leave the place strewn with empty boxes and shoes in disarray.
Sigh. There's nothing more satisfying than buying a good, comfy pair of nice-looking shoes ^0^/
Walked around. Had dinner at Banana Leaf ( I love their vegetable samosas ^^). Stared longingly at the Quickly stand (I miss milk tea) but didn't get any coz i was too full from dinner. Bought bibingcrepe (like the ones i ate at baguio!). Went shoe shopping.
I'm super picky when it comes to shoes and clothes and jeans. I tried so many pairs at the URS shop (I bought my first URS pair at singapore, and after that i came to love the brand) that i thought the saleslady would get irritated, which she probably would have if we hadn't bought anything. After trying on the pair i liked (they didn't have my size), a too-pointy beige high-heeled pair (my cousin said i could kill someone with the pointy toe heads. Haha), a couple of flats, and one more pair of high high felt black high heels, i decided to go with the pointy-toed black flats. I think my parents gave a sigh of relief after i finally picked a pair. Hehe =) I felt like Carrie Bradshaw, trying on shoe after shoe, except that it wasn't as dramatic. I didn't leave the place strewn with empty boxes and shoes in disarray.
Sigh. There's nothing more satisfying than buying a good, comfy pair of nice-looking shoes ^0^/
Thursday, January 04, 2007
holiday break
Happy New Year! ^^ It's 2007!
Seems like i've gone on a hiatus which means i have stuff to cram into one entry. Time for bullet points again.
A few days after school let out last year, my dad drove me to makati to give goodie bags to the virlanie children. it was bonding time with my dad. we got stuck in horrendous traffic and it was fun navigating. It's rare that i get to spend whole days with my dad so it was memorable in a way.
On the 23rd, we went to stay at new world hotel (across greenbelt). it was fun living across a mall ^^ haha. anyways, i bought a couple of french workbooks (to brush up on vocab and verb conjugations) and a few novels (which i haven't gotten around to reading yet), plus cds at music one. Got my dad a pair of shoes which we had to exchange the next day coz they were a half size too big. i didn't know my dad's shoe size so i just traced one of the contours of his shoes on bond paper and asked the salesman to find the shoe size that fit the shape on the paper ^^ we also had dinner at the new italian restaurant at greenbelt 3 - the italian name eludes me although i do remember that it was italian for capricious. the food was pretty good and the servings were big too. ran into karyn whom i haven't seen in a long long time and saw lesley (my kinakapatid). after dinner, ni and i watched little miss sunshine which was quite enjoyable and funny. i loved the simple, dysfunctional storyline. Oh yeah, ni and i also got to see the fireworks. They were so colorful and loud. I would even say it was artistic~
christmas day, we had dinner at gloria maris greenhills with the clan (father side). I ran into mic and jic. What was memorable was that mother lily's husband was celebrating his birthday there as well - on the 2nd floor. So, there we were downstairs, eyes glued to the automatic sliding doors. Once in a while, my cousin would shout out, "Look! There's so and so..." It was funny =) Everyone was sharing celebrity gossip and trying to get a good luck at the stars. We saw Imelda, Imee (some were disappointed that Borgy didn't go), Ruffa and Yilmaz, Eddie and Annabelle, Tito Sotto and family, Rudy and Lorna, Susan Roces, and a few others.
From the 28th to the 30th, i was at Baguio with Mic, Jerome, and Charlene. It was the first time to Baguio for Char and I and Mic made sure we got a good tour of the Summer Capital. The weather was cool. We got to eat lots of good food. We got to play Cranium (tough game ^^). We got to shop. We got to take turns rowing a boat at Burnham Park (tiring work!). We got to talk and bond and share. Plus, we got to cook! Hehe. It was awesome~ I loved Camp John Hay with the mini golf course (I think i didn't suck too much for a beginner ^^) and the wonderful houses that were newly-built. Also, we drank hot chocolate from a shop nearby. Nothing beats hot chocolate on a cool day. On our way back to Manila, there was this thick fog so there was zero visibility. That was scary >< but kinda cool too.
After arriving home from Baguio, i went to my grandma's place to have lumpia. It's sort of tradition that my guama makes lumpia every holiday season. Haven't been able to eat it since i turned vegetarian though =( But i still go coz i have food (from Bodhi hehe) and my aunts and uncles and grandparents are a noisy, funny, sarcastic bunch ^^ conversations are never boring. Got to borrow Without a Trace Season 1 and 2 from my aunt. Haven't gotten around to watching it yet though. Have to finish Prison Break first, which i have to say is a cool show, plus Wentworth Miller is an added bonus.
Then, there was the new year's eve lunch at dikukong's (my great uncle) place and dinner at ama's place. Got to carry and play with Justin. He's starting to talk, or rather, babble. He can say Dada and tries to make out syllables. I love having nieces and nephews. They're so cute ^^
before classes started, went to rockwell to watch kasal, kasali, kasalo with nini and zel. i loved it ^^ it was hilarious and real. thinking about some scenes still makes me chuckle to myself =) Speaking of movies, i also watched love actually (which is one of my favorite movies) and little manhattan which was cute and endearing.
And so that was the holiday break ^^ I didn't really get any schoolwork done except for reading the chronicles of narnia books for philo class. of course, reading those books didn't seem like homework at all. Speaking of which, are they coming up with a Prince Caspian movie?
Right now, sorta going through a bout of self-preservation. Or maybe i shouldn't really term it as so. It's more of letting reality sink in. Chapter closed. Time to move on.
Seems like i've gone on a hiatus which means i have stuff to cram into one entry. Time for bullet points again.
A few days after school let out last year, my dad drove me to makati to give goodie bags to the virlanie children. it was bonding time with my dad. we got stuck in horrendous traffic and it was fun navigating. It's rare that i get to spend whole days with my dad so it was memorable in a way.
On the 23rd, we went to stay at new world hotel (across greenbelt). it was fun living across a mall ^^ haha. anyways, i bought a couple of french workbooks (to brush up on vocab and verb conjugations) and a few novels (which i haven't gotten around to reading yet), plus cds at music one. Got my dad a pair of shoes which we had to exchange the next day coz they were a half size too big. i didn't know my dad's shoe size so i just traced one of the contours of his shoes on bond paper and asked the salesman to find the shoe size that fit the shape on the paper ^^ we also had dinner at the new italian restaurant at greenbelt 3 - the italian name eludes me although i do remember that it was italian for capricious. the food was pretty good and the servings were big too. ran into karyn whom i haven't seen in a long long time and saw lesley (my kinakapatid). after dinner, ni and i watched little miss sunshine which was quite enjoyable and funny. i loved the simple, dysfunctional storyline. Oh yeah, ni and i also got to see the fireworks. They were so colorful and loud. I would even say it was artistic~
christmas day, we had dinner at gloria maris greenhills with the clan (father side). I ran into mic and jic. What was memorable was that mother lily's husband was celebrating his birthday there as well - on the 2nd floor. So, there we were downstairs, eyes glued to the automatic sliding doors. Once in a while, my cousin would shout out, "Look! There's so and so..." It was funny =) Everyone was sharing celebrity gossip and trying to get a good luck at the stars. We saw Imelda, Imee (some were disappointed that Borgy didn't go), Ruffa and Yilmaz, Eddie and Annabelle, Tito Sotto and family, Rudy and Lorna, Susan Roces, and a few others.
From the 28th to the 30th, i was at Baguio with Mic, Jerome, and Charlene. It was the first time to Baguio for Char and I and Mic made sure we got a good tour of the Summer Capital. The weather was cool. We got to eat lots of good food. We got to play Cranium (tough game ^^). We got to shop. We got to take turns rowing a boat at Burnham Park (tiring work!). We got to talk and bond and share. Plus, we got to cook! Hehe. It was awesome~ I loved Camp John Hay with the mini golf course (I think i didn't suck too much for a beginner ^^) and the wonderful houses that were newly-built. Also, we drank hot chocolate from a shop nearby. Nothing beats hot chocolate on a cool day. On our way back to Manila, there was this thick fog so there was zero visibility. That was scary >< but kinda cool too.
After arriving home from Baguio, i went to my grandma's place to have lumpia. It's sort of tradition that my guama makes lumpia every holiday season. Haven't been able to eat it since i turned vegetarian though =( But i still go coz i have food (from Bodhi hehe) and my aunts and uncles and grandparents are a noisy, funny, sarcastic bunch ^^ conversations are never boring. Got to borrow Without a Trace Season 1 and 2 from my aunt. Haven't gotten around to watching it yet though. Have to finish Prison Break first, which i have to say is a cool show, plus Wentworth Miller is an added bonus.
Then, there was the new year's eve lunch at dikukong's (my great uncle) place and dinner at ama's place. Got to carry and play with Justin. He's starting to talk, or rather, babble. He can say Dada and tries to make out syllables. I love having nieces and nephews. They're so cute ^^
before classes started, went to rockwell to watch kasal, kasali, kasalo with nini and zel. i loved it ^^ it was hilarious and real. thinking about some scenes still makes me chuckle to myself =) Speaking of movies, i also watched love actually (which is one of my favorite movies) and little manhattan which was cute and endearing.
And so that was the holiday break ^^ I didn't really get any schoolwork done except for reading the chronicles of narnia books for philo class. of course, reading those books didn't seem like homework at all. Speaking of which, are they coming up with a Prince Caspian movie?
Right now, sorta going through a bout of self-preservation. Or maybe i shouldn't really term it as so. It's more of letting reality sink in. Chapter closed. Time to move on.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)