a roller coaster ride on the life journey of a new wifey

Soon-To-Be Mommy

2007-02-03T20:13:00.000+08:00

it's been a long long looooooong while.....

we were busy sorting out stuff here at home. as i noticed, november was my last post. since i'm no longer sorting out stuff because i've been very lazy lately... hehehe... actually, lazy, sleepy, always hungry, headaches and sometime dizzy.... i'll be sharing our greatest gift that we got this year. we will be a mommy and daddy soon. yeah, that's right! we're expecting. currently, on our 9th week. we didn't really expected this this soon. it was a bit late when we learned of the good news. i was already on my 7th week, 6wks and a day to be exact.

so how is it being pregnant? well, i'm really having a hard time as some of the other pregnant mommies. all i have is a slight preggy sickness, no vomitting, thank you very much. but i really hate it when everything hurts and i can't do anything but stay in bed. it's a good sign though.... that our little baby is growing inside and pulling all strings to be strong and healthy.

that's it for now.

My Funny Rocko

2006-11-25T12:03:00.000+08:00

when i eat ice cream, rocko never fails to tail me.

this morning, as i was having my brunch dessert, a magnolia ice cream drumstick, rocko keeps on following. i threw a piece of the wrapper in the bathroom waste basket. rocko stayed behind as i walk in the master's bedroom. a few seconds later, i heard a rummaging sound. i hurriedly went out of the room and ran into rocko who was quickly running towards the terrace door. when i saw him, i can not help but laugh, instead of scolding him for getting the ice cream wrapper i threw. i was really laughing out loud when i found the waste basket cap inserted in his head! hahahaha...

of couse... before i removed the cap, i documented it.

mommy, can you help me with this thing on my head...

view the my friend, erin's blog, as she retells what happened.

Nothing To Blog About ...Seriously

2006-10-12T11:38:00.000+08:00

the past weeks have been really busy and boring... not really worth sharing... or maybe i was just lazy to blog...

a friend's wedding

i dunno if i have mentioned this, i have been helping out my friend, donna with her wedding preps. we're left with only 2 weeks. we still have to do the guestlist, verify some things with the suppliers, etc. she and her fiancè don't really have the time to put into the wedding preps on work days, since they are both bankers assigned in a very busy branch. plus, they don't really have the budget to actually hire an events coordinator. oh well... so, being a good friend that i am (walang kokontra, blog ko to! hehehehe...), i offered to help her out with her details and how to delegate tasks to relatives and friends. i've basically made the logistics for her preps, i'll be checking out on her on the wedding day. so, that means, i need to be up really early on her wedding. i don't mind, really. donna is a really good friend since gradeschool.

prison break

yes, that's right! i'm hooked with michael scofield. i think i'm in love with him. hahahahaha.... but of course my first love is nick stokes. heheheheheh... on the week that milenyo struck the skies of metro manila, i finally joined my hubby in watching the season 1 of prison break on dvd. i'm happy to annouce that 4 days ago, i'm done with season 1, and on tuesday of this week, was able to finish watching the first 7 episodes of season 2. now, i'm patiently waiting for the episode 8 of season 2. medyo natatagalan na... but still patient... hehehehe...

grey's anatomy

not really in love with anybody from this series. just happen to enjoy the twists and turns of the episodes. plus, you learn a few things from it, just like my all-time fave csi. done with the first 2 seasons, and the first 3 episodes of season 3. can't wait for the next episodes.

csi & csi:ny

this is an all-time fave. i rarely watch tv or any series for that matter, but csi had me craving more and more of gil grissom, catherine willows, sara (forgot the last name, pardon me...), warrick brown and of course nick stokes, there's also greg, who never fails to be the funny guy. i've seen the whole of seasons 1-6, and have downloaded episodes 1-3 of season 7. haven't watched it yet. still finding the time to do it. until then... hold muna ang kwento ah.

my rocko & dupree

sexy na si rocko. hindi na sya masyadong babsi. hehehehe... he's been exercising 5-6 times a week, walking lang naman, but you can really see the improvement. i guess he's been doing this for almost a month now.

he also has his own bed now. he no longer sleeps with us on our bed. he's now a big boy!

dupree, on the otherhand is also a big puppy now. but still looks slim, unlike rocko who looks round. heheheh...

this is all for now. have to catch up on my siesta. tata!

Tara Na Sa Beach

2006-09-29T13:13:00.000+08:00

the weather today is the exact opposite of yesterdays. it's now very sunny and haring araw is smiling brightly at me, parang gustong mag-invite sa beach. hehehehe...

yesterday on the other hand, we had the strongest typhoon that hit manila directly in 11 years. if you can just imagine how it's like, there were toppled trees and billboards everywhere. there were flash floods, landslides, shuttered offices and establishments and flying debris in the metro. we also experienced power outage that lasted for almost 24 hours. there are still some establishments that closed down their operations until today as they have not recovered yet from the damage caused by Typhoon “Milenyo” (international name: Xangsane).

you can hear the strong winds whistling. rocko was even barking at the winds and strong rains. he's probably scared and trying to cover it up with his big barks. hehehehe... arnold and i spent the whole day watching the season 1 of prisonbreak until the battery of the portable dvd player died down. *sigh* then, i went back to reading....

good thing it was not hot and humid last night, we were able to get a sound sleep despite the power outage in our area.

my hubby and i and our dogs are safe in the shelter of our home. good thing that arnold listened to me and did not report for work yesterday.

Back To Friendster

2006-09-29T12:54:00.000+08:00

whenever my friends will tell me, "hey! check your friendster!" that's the only time that i will. it's been really a long time since i really really browsed through my friendster account, most especially with my buddy list.

couple of days ago, my friend, erin, asked me to check out my friendster because she made me a testimonial, actually four testimonials since she wants to break number of testimonials i made here. hehehehehe... should you wish to read her testimonials. maricel's friendster

so there, i opened friendster and approved all her testimonials. as i was waiting for more testimonials from erin, i saw the "who's viewed me" section. hmmm... who are these people? hehehehe... so, i went click-click. saw a few new faces, and a few old ones. the new faces, some are surprising because some are my former classmates in high school and gradeschool. boy, they have matured and gained a lil weight! some are married and some are happily single and unattached. i also saw a couple of friends whom i haven't been in contact with for some time, and learned that they are now working out of the country... oh well.... kayo talaga! hindi man lang kayo nagsabi, we should have gone out before you guys left.

i once again became excited with friendster. hehehehe.... lost interest sobrang tagal na, ang bagal kasi nang server nila. hehehehe... i uploaded a few photos from my wedding, our honeymoon in palawan and japan. i also started checking out my friendster account as often as i check my emails.

so there! i'm guess i'm back in the friendster circle.

Photos in Boracay (2006)

2006-09-22T01:17:00.000+08:00

photos from our boracay trip last month

boracay 2006

Busy In The Kitchen

2006-09-21T13:33:00.000+08:00

my mom left with a lot of kitchen stuff. stuff like pans, baking pans of different sizes and shapes, cooking utensils, brownies mix, muffin mix, seasonings, frozen salmon, frozen beef, etc. question is, when will i be able to use them. well, the frozen salmon and the frozen beef, i have to cook it asap. hehehehehe...

let's start with the salmon. for 2 consecutive weekends we had baked salmon. yes, that's right, baked salmon. i was watching my grandmom bake when they were here last month. but never expected that i'll do some baking myself. hehehehe. when my mom called up, i asked her how to prepare the salmon and how to bake it, what's the temperature, and how long. i never really fond of baking. i used to totally ignore all dishes that requires baking. i dunno... it's probably the oven, takot ako sa fire. btw, speaking of takot... takot din ako sa knives. hehehehe... kaya i never took any interest in the kitchen. anyhow, i tried preparing the salmon, according to mom, all i need are butter, a dash of salt and pepper, and some calamansi. so there, i had may glass pan placed the thawed salmon put salt and pepper and butter, while oven is on preheat at 400 deg F for 20 mins. then, i placed the salmon inside the oven. counting the minutes..... it's now the 15th minute when it hit me, ayayay!!!! i forgot the calamansi!!!!! yikes!!!! so, i removed the salmon from the oven and squeezed some calamansi on it. then, placed it back in the oven and baked it for 10-15mins more. when it's done, i turned off the oven but let the salmon sit in it for a few more minutes. i then, proceeded to setting the table, then placed the baked salmon on a fish platter and served.

i tried tasting it, hmmm.... medyo salty. hehehehehe...

arnold got a piece of my baked salmon and had his first bite. hehehehehe.... salty nga daw...d=(

oh well... my mistake for forgetting about the calamansi... hehehehe..... i didn't throw the baked salmon, when i before i reheated it for the next meal, i already placed more calamansi and some butter and toss it again in the oven. this time, i think my baked salmon tasted better! *wink* and my next baked salmon, was no long salty, but a bit sour becaus of too much calamansi. hehehehehehe... but then again, i was able to resolve it quickly! hehehehehe hopefully, my baked salmon will be perfect on this weekend.

besides the salmon, i did baked my first fundge brownies. i preheat the oven and made the mixture as instructed in the recipe. but while preheating... the oven fire is dying down... bakit??? so, i called for help!!!! called up my friend who bakes brownies for a living. he told me to increase the temp., so i did. i placed the brownies mixture in an 8x8in baking pan and placed it in the oven. as instructed by my brownies friend, increase the temp and baked it for this and that amount of time. poke it with a toothpick, if the toothpick came out clean, you're done. so, i did as i was told. and viola!!!! my brownies went fine! not perfect though, but fine. *wink*

my brownies saturday afternoon was completed with my heavenly cheesecake. this time, instead of having the cheesecake in a pan, i had it on muffin cups. i did not make crusts from crushed graham crackers, i used oreo cookies as my crust. i lined my muffin pan with paper muffin cups, placed an oreo cookie on each cup, then pour my cheesecake mixture on the cups. let it stay in the freezer for an hour and in the fridge over night. it's actually better after letting it sit in the fridge for 48 hours, the cheesecake is firmer. it looks really nice after yon remove it from the muffin cups. btw, i put spinkles on top for a better food presentation. ehehehehehe...

two days ago, when i came home for work, while i was changing to my pambahay, naisip ko, gawa kaya ako nang pasta... i saw a couple of cans of spaghetti sauce in the cupboard, and i have a few cans of corned beef. so, i made spaghetti with corned beef. it's good. seriously!!! hehehhe.... my hubby loved it. my secret to it was my mrs. dash tomato basil garlic seasoning. yummy!!!

my agenda for the weekend.... caldereta and cathedral windows.

walang photos. busy busy sa kusina eh. hindi na ko nakapag-picture-picture. hehehe...

til my next kitchen adventure.

tata!

The Past Four Weeks

2006-09-15T09:13:00.000+08:00

my apologies for having no updates lately. been really busy. so, what had happened?

my youngest brother, michael came home on the 1st week of august and left after a four-week long vacation. two weeks after, daddy, mommy, nanay (my grandmom) and my cousin arrived also from ny, and a day after my brother, marc came home from dubai. they all stayed til the end of august, except for my brother, marc who only stayed for a week.

my sister's cremated remains was hand-carried by my dad all the way from ny. he said he doesn't want it out of his sight... si daddy talaga... my daddy loves my sister very much.... we all do. but he still can't really accept why it happened, he still has his what ifs...

a day after my parents' arrival, we held a wake for my sister for 2 days at our home in quezon city. then, we scheduled the entombment on august 20th. the entombment was quite difficult for us since we are all having thoughts of having my sister's remains at home instead. but... it's a no no. pamahiin daw...

couple of days after... my brothers and i with our cousin, leah headed for boracay for a 3d/2n stay. we all had fun, though, i wished arnold was with me then to enjoy the trip. as always... he has to work. oh well... i'll post photos of our trip soon. i'm still finding time to upload the photos online.

after the bora trip, my brother, marc has to packed his stuff, as he has to go back to work already. driving him to the airport was really sad.... a week of being together with the whole family. nakakalungkot... sana magkakasama na lang kami parati... d=(

then a few days after, michael and leah went back to ny. michael has to go back because school starts in a couple of days for him. and leah has a trip to vegas couple of days later.

mommy, daddy and nanay were left with me at home. a week more of bonding time with my parents. we heard mass in manaoag church, they had their tripping in tagaytay, we went shopping, mommy did her gardening, daddy and mommy saw their friends, and did more shopping before they left. mommy had a list prepared for my to-do stuff particularly concerning the house. ayayay!!! do i have a choice? i guess none... it's also my house, right? daddy and mommy reminded me to always visit my sister's crypt and bring her flowers.

they left on september 4th. daddy wanted to extend his stay but there are some limitations on their ticket. don't worry daddy, we still have may next year.

so that's one month for me. it was stressful but fun as well. kahit na nakakapagod, basta kasama mo family mo, masaya pa rin.

back on my endless to-do list... i have tons of things to do at home. it definitely needs some tidying. i only go online the past couple of weeks to download my mails and get to read only the important ones. til now, we're still doing our best to keep the place neat and liveable. our place sure sported the "jungle look" the past 4 weeks. hehehe...

btw, my friend donna is getting married in 6 weeks. so, busy-busy nanaman as i'm helping her out with her preps. wedding preps ulit. hehehe...

this is all for now. masakit na mata ko eh...

take care y'all. have a nice weekend.

Freedom of Simplicity (by Bo Sanchez)

2006-09-10T21:29:00.000+08:00

Happiness is not found outside of you. It doesn't come from cars, clothes, cash, or Caribbean cruises. Happiness is found within. But how can you find it if you don't have the simplicity of time and space to discover the most important things in your life?

How can you search the depths of your soul if you are too busy impressing others, acquiring wealth, protecting your properties, and paying your debts?

Simplicity is not about the external either: living in a doghouse, eating in Hepatitis joints, wearing rags.

Let me define what it is: Simplicity is living from the core of your being.

A TREASURE MAP OF HAPPINESS

Simplicity will point to you where and what and who the gold is in your life. Let me share with you the seven powerful lessons I've learned on simple living:

1. LIVE ON LESS, AND DELIGHT IN THEM MORE

Some take their pleasure dining in classy restaurants, trips to Europe, and owning the latest home theatre-equipment. I've chosen the simple path:

If I can simply be with my wife, or take a quiet stroll under a canopy of stars, or play with a child, or read a good book in my home, or laugh with friends over a pizza, I consider myself richly blessed.

Focus on what you have and not on what you don't have.

2. STOP RUNNING AND WALK INSTEAD

Here's the truth: The person who has covered the greatest distance does NOT win, but the one who has most enjoyed the journey does. Stop running around chasing your own tail!

Get off your hurried pace and learn to breathe. Replace doing with being. Learn to say no to invitations, appointments, and commitments, activities and events that will rob you of your focus. Learn to say "yes" to rest, to tranquility, to quietness.

3. YOU ARE MORE THAN YOUR WEALTH

I own very few things today. Because I am more than the brand of my watch, the logo of my shoes, the name of my car. I believe that if in my soul I deeply respect and value myself, people around me will sense that, and they too, will value and respect me-whether I'm wearing Armani or not.

You are more than your wealth.

4. AVOID BUYING ON CREDIT

I don't believe in borrowing from credit cards. (For convenience, I use one card but I pay the whole amount at the end of each month.) If I need something really bad, I save up for it. Sometimes, at midpoint, I realize I don't really need the darn thing and give up the whole idea. The only exception I feel we should enter into a credit is when buying a non-depreciating item, such as housing or land.

I believe we should always live within our earning capacity.

Proverbs 22:7 says, "Those who borrow are slaves of moneylenders."

5. GIVE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN

If I content myself with P250 shirt instead of P4,000 Lacoste, I can help others more.

Trust me, there is immense pleasure! You will find that the empty thrill of owning a

diamond ring on your finger pales in comparison to the joy of handing a piece of bread to an orphan child.

"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." (2 Corinthians 9:8)

The Old Testament of tithing, or giving 10% of your income is a good guideline to follow. The New Testament challenges us to give with a cheerful heart. (When you're cheerful,

you may give more than 10%!) Make it a habit.

6. SAVE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN

Saving is essential to being good stewards of the money that God "lends" to us. Saving is an important way of providing for our future-both for our needs and to be generous to others. I recommend that you save at least 10% of your income. I can almost hear you now: "Bo, that's impossible!" Oh yeah? Well, how did you live three years back when your salary was one-half its present amount?"

Sacrifice. Many of our needs are actually wants. Is cable TV a need? Will you suddenly die if you can't watch CNN or HBO? Are those new golf clubs essential to your existence? Invest in time deposits, long-term stocks and housing.

7. BUDGET, BUDGET, BUDGET

Make a list of all your monthly expenses, according to categories. Make also a list of irregular expenses-those that don't come monthly. Set up another savings account for these expenses and put in a little money each month. To differentiate this from the savings account, we call ours "freedom account" because it frees us from worrying about them when they suddenly attack. And stick to your budget!

ONE LAST WORD BEFORE WE CLOSE

Balance.

Don't take living simply to the extremes! Living simply doesn't mean living in deprivation. There are special days when my wife and I eat in a fancy restaurant. Or, when we splurge on a vacation. Very rare, yes, but my point is that you take living simply

NOT as a rigid goal-but as a happy process towards the goals of generosity, inner peace and holiness.

GODspeed!!!

7 Ways To Relieve Stress

2006-09-06T10:43:00.000+08:00

below are seven wonderful ways to bring stress relief effortlessly into your life.

1) Prepare your next work day before you leave. Take a few minutes to make a to-do list, get organized and clean up before you leave. This will help you not think about work later in the evening. When you do come back to work, you'll feel like you're in control of the situation, and you can handle it.

2) Bring snacks to ease the "Comfort Food" cravings that often go hand-in-hand with increased stress levels. Try to keep three or four snacks on hand. Different items can include peanuts if you like something salty; string cheese if you have a craving for protein; a *small* amount of chocolate for the sweets cravings.

3) Frequently wash your hands. Stress suppresses the immune system, making you more susceptible to cold viruses and other germs. Frequent hand washing is your best defense against these germs and viruses.

4) Put on some music. "Heart," a British medical journal recently published a study that showed slow or meditative music is a proven stress buster.

5) Go jump in a lake! The "International Journal of Stress Management" published a recent Swedish study that found floating in water will trigger the body's relax response. 80 percent of those studied reported improvements in depression and stress from floating in water.

6) Keep your work at the office: The "Journal of Marriage and Family" published a recent study that found increased stress when cell phones and pagers at home spilled over into people's family life. If you can't turn off your cell phone or pager when the workday is over, screen calls and limit work-related cell phone calls. Checking e-mails only during work hours also brings stress relieving benefits.

7) Make like a pretzel and twist: A simple night-time spinal twist can help you get a better nights sleep by alleviating built up tension in your lower back. To do the twist;
- Sit on your bed with legs crossed.
- Place your right hand down on the bed behind you and rest your left hand on your right knee.
- Sit up straight, inhale for four to eight counts and lengthen your spine as you breathe.
- When exhaling, gently twist toward your right hand without straining your neck. - Hold in this position for four more full breaths. With each inhale, lengthen your spine. Gently deepen your twist with each exhale.
- Repeat on the opposite side.

On Missing Someone...

2006-08-13T17:57:00.000+08:00

today is a very gloomy day for me. probably it has something to do with starting the day with tears on my eyes.

i dreamed of my sister this morning, just before i woke up. she looks so alive in my dream. i can clearly see her long wavy hair and her cheery smile. we talked. i did not ask her with the why's that the whole family asked when she passed away, but instead i asked her why did she come back. then, she said, "kasi malulungkot kayo, at saka hindi ninyo na magagawa iyon mga bagay na dati nating ginagawa."

right after she said that, i woke up. i just stayed in bed for a few minutes more and was thinking... i know that my sister is gone, and i have accepted that. what does my dream means? why dreamed of her now?

went to the other room where my friend, erin was sleeping. i opened the door and she woke up, then, we talked. the conversation started with what she did last night, who was sms-ing her, etc. then, i told her i had a weird dream, that i dreamed of minette and she was so alive in my dream. then, i started crying. erin was surprised. it has been more than two months since our dear minette passed away. she began thinking what the dream meant.

two weeks ago i always, almost everyday wake up in the middle of the night. i don't know why... i don't know if it has something to do with my dream...

i also spoke this morning with my friend, raymond. told him about my dream. he also knows about the nights that i wake up in the middle of the night. he said that i might be excited on my family's arrival (for waking up in the middle of the night), and that i only misses my sister (for the dream). he said that yes, we all have accepted the loss, individually i.e. but then, it's another episode when we all see each other and be together to lay my sister in her final resting place.

raymond is probably right, that i am missing my sister. he said that minette is now very happy in the "happy place". when he said this, i cried. maybe because it hit me again that she's really gone, that she already left us. the past couple of days, i was thinking about her, she was very young. she was only 26 years old. i'm tired of asking the why's because it all doesn't matter, she's gone, and the only thing we can do is to pray for her. it is really very difficult for all of us, until now. my dad and my mom was really hurt of what happened. up to now, they are having a hard time sleeping, and thinking maybe of the shoulda-woulda-coulda's. i don't know... we all tried to convince to her stay in ny, but she refused. if she stayed in ny and lived near my parent's place, or if she stayed here in manila, will it make a difference? i don't know... probably not. like what daddy said, "it's maybe her time to be with God. tanggapin na lang natin. nandyan na yan."

it's almost 7pm here in manila, and i still can't help but think and cry over what had happened. i keep thinking of the times that we should have talked, the times that i thought she'd be the next bride in the family, the times that we all planned to spend a holiday together. exactly on this summer season in america, she was suppose to spend a longer vacation with us here in manila, since our baby brother is also coming home on his school break. we were all, the whole family is planning a trip to some place we all haven't been to. it's probably like the times when we all went to the beach when we were kids.

in a few days, we'll be picking up my parents and my brother at the airport. daddy and mommy is bringing minette home.

Dinner with Friends

2006-08-12T21:12:00.000+08:00

the girls and i had dinner at burgoo in powerplant mall. sheggz also joined us for dinner (since she's staying at home for a couple days, i invited her d=D ). When we arrived at the restaurant, everybody was there. btw, it was a dinner with my w@wie friends, jen, jane, van and arlene.

we did a lot of catching up. more kwento of how's life being married and all. and we have a present for mommy arlene's baby.... aaaawwwwwwww...... parang baby shower.

sheggz just listened and laughed with us. being single and very much available, she doesn't feel she can pinch in anything into the conversation. i guess, she just took notes of the how to's and should be's. hehehehe.....

left to right: Sheggz, Maricel, Jane, Jen, Van, Arlene, and Arlene's companion

girls, we should do this again, before arlene gives birth. d=D

My Heavenly No Bake Cheesecake

2006-08-10T15:51:00.000+08:00

INGREDIENTS:

Crust
1½ cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons white sugar

Cheesecake Mixture
2 packages (8-ounce) cream cheese
1/3 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped

Gelatin Mixture
1 envelope unflavored gelatin (recommended: Knoxx brand)
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup boiling water

Topping
sliced fresh strawberries, blueberries, or any fruit of your choice (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

In a bowl, mix graham crackers with melted butter and the 3 tablespoons sugar.
Press into a 7 inch springform pan. Place in refrigerator or chiller until ready for use.
In another bowl, with a mixer, beat cream cheese, 1/3 cup of sugar and lemon juice.
Whip cream, and fold into cream cheese mixture.
In another bowl, mix the gelatin and ½ cup of sugar.
Pour in 1 cup of boiling water and thoroughly dissolve using a fork. Keep stirring for 5 minutes or until completely dissolved. Do not let cool and move onto the next step immediately. (It is important that the water be boiling hot and that you mix the gelatin powder in quickly so it is completely dissolved. If not, you will have gummy bear-type lumps.).
With the mixer on high and working very quickly so the gelatin does not set, blend the hot dissolved gelatin thoroughly into cheesecake mixture.
Spread into pan.
Top with sliced strawberries (optional). Freeze for 1 hour, covered with foil (or chill in the refrigerator for about 3 to 4 hours or until firm).
Place in refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.

Hint: If you have any extra cheesecake mixture left over after filling the pie pan , put it in a pastry bag or heavy-duty plastic bag and put it in your freezer for about 7 to 10 minutes, just to firm it up a bit to the thickness of whipped cream. Then take it out and decorate the top of the Cheesecake. (If it is in a plastic bag, snip the corner off.)

Stress Management

2006-08-08T09:40:00.000+08:00

the article below was sent to me this morning by a cousin-in-law. i find it a bit weird, because this is a different approach to handling stress management. though, for some the approach is attractive, but as the author said, "violence will not solve problems".

Bar in China lets stressed patrons beat waiters, staff

BEIJING: A new bar in eastern China is offering customers an unusual outlet for anger—by allowing them to use the staff as punching bags, the state media said Monday.

Besides getting a drink, customers at the “Rising Sun Anger Release Bar” in Nanjing City are able to pay money to beat up special waiters and staff, smash glasses, shout and scream, the China Daily said.

If these anger management techniques do not work, the customers can also receive psychological counseling, the paper said.

The bar employs 20 well-built men in their 20s and 30s who have agreed to be hit. Customers can specify how they want the men to appear—they can even be dressed up as women, the China Daily said.

The bar charges 50 to 300 yuan ($6.35 to $37.50) for customers to release their anger, depending on their demands.

The bar was set up in April by Wu Gong, a 29-year-old man who got his inspiration from similar bars in Japan, according to the paper.

Wu insisted the models were fully equipped with protective gear, and the bar gave them regular physical training so they were prepared for the attacks.

Also, most customers are women, particularly those working in the service and entertainment companies, such as karaoke bars or massage parlors.

The bar has stirred controversy, with some critics interviewed by the China Daily saying that although the idea of beating someone dressed as one’s boss might be attractive to some people, violence will not solve problems.

(from the The Manila Times Internet Edition)

what is stress actually?

stress is a condition or feeling experienced when a person perceives that demands exceed the personal and social resources the individual is able to mobilize. (excerpts from Mind Tools)

people feel little stress when they have the time, experience and resources to manage a situation. They feel great stress when they think they can't handle the demands put upon them. Stress is therefore a negative experience. And it is not an inevitable consequence of an event: It depends a lot on people's perceptions of a situation and their real ability to cope with it.

it is popular to us that stress causes very negative effects on our short- and long-term health, performance and career success, as well as on our personal happiness. thus, making way on the emphasis of good stress management approaches. these approaches may be (1)action oriented (reducing stress by taking action), (2)perception oriented (dealing with attitudes and emotional responses to stress), or (3)and survival oriented (living and coping with stresses that cannot be otherwise resolved). (identified in Mind Tools)

the above-mentioned approaches have tips and techniques on how to constructively manage stress. two of the techniques is to develop a healthy lifestyle, and a good work-life balance. this will help reduce background stress levels and has a long-term health benefitts for you as well. read more on the techniques at Stress Management Resources from Mind Tools.

there are still a lot of constructive means to cope up with stress and violence should never be an answer. mas madami pang negative effects if you resort to violence. it's also possible when you're so burn-out, you'll hit someone on the streets. kawawa naman ang mga taong walang kamalay-malay. hehehehe...

have a good day everyone.

Monday Sickness

2006-08-07T09:32:00.000+08:00

it's monday again, and this morning i was bitten by the monday sickness bug. hehehehe...

5 things i hate about mondays:

waking up early in the morning
traffic on a monday morning rush
working after having spending a good weekend
feeling really lazy
you don't have a choice but to report for work

la ako maisip. mamaya nalang ulit. later...

His Needs, Her Needs

2006-08-05T22:21:00.000+08:00

How can a couple prevent adultery? Dr. Willard Harley in his book His Needs, Her Needs: Building an Affair-Proof Marriage provides some answers. He has found that marriages that fail to meet a spouse's needs are more vulnerable to an extramarital affair. Often the failure of men and women to meet each other's needs is due to a lack of knowledge rather than a selfish unwillingness to be considerate. Meeting these needs is critically important because in marriages that fail to meet needs, it is striking and alarming how consistently married people seek to satisfy their unmet needs through an extramarital affair. If any of a spouse's five basic needs goes unmet, that spouse becomes vulnerable to the temptation of an affair.

First, let's look at the five needs of a wife. The first need is for affection. To most women affection symbolizes security, protection, comfort, and approval. When a husband shows his wife affection, he sends the following messages: (1) I'll take care of you and protect you; (2) I'm concerned about the problems you face, and I am with you; (3) I think you've done a good job, and I'm so proud of you.

Men need to understand how strongly women need these affirmations. For the typical wife, there can hardly be enough of them. A hug can communicate all of the affirmations of the previous paragraph. But, affection can be shown in many ways such as: kisses, cards, flowers, dinners out, opening the car door, holding hands, walks after dinner, back rubs, phone calls…there are a thousand ways to say "I love you." From a woman's point of view, affection is the essential cement of her relationship with a man.

The second need is conversation. Wives need their husbands to talk to them and to listen to them; they need lots of two-way conversation. In their dating life prior to marriage, most couples spent time showing each other affection and talking. This shouldn't be dropped after the wedding. When two people get married, each partner has a right to expect the same loving care and attention that prevailed during courtship to continue after the wedding. The man who takes time to talk to a woman will have an inside track to her heart.

The third need is honesty and openness. A wife needs to trust her husband totally. A sense of security is the common thread woven through all of a woman's five basic needs. If a husband does not keep up honest and open communication with his wife, he undermines her trust and eventually destroys her security. To feel secure, a wife must trust her husband to give her accurate information about his past, the present, and the future. If she can't trust the signals he sends, she has no foundation on which to build a solid relationship. Instead of adjusting to him, she always feels off balance; instead of growing toward him, she grows away from him.

Financial commitment is a fourth need a wife experiences. She needs enough money to live comfortably: she needs financial support. No matter how successful a career a woman might have, she usually wants her husband to earn enough money to allow her to feel supported and to feel cared for.

The fifth need is family commitment. A wife needs her husband to be a good father and have a family commitment. The vast majority of women who get married have a powerful instinct to create a home and have children. Above all, wives want their husbands to take a leadership role in the family and to commit themselves to the moral and educational development of their children.

Preventing Adultery: His Needs Now, let's look at the five needs husbands have. The first is sexual fulfillment . The typical wife doesn't understand her husband's deep need for sex anymore than the typical husband understands his wife's deep need for affection. But these two ingredients can work very closely together in a happy, fulfilled marriage. Sex can come naturally and often, if there is enough affection.

The second need for a man is recreational companionship. He needs her to be his playmate. It is not uncommon for women, when they are single, to join men in pursuing their interests. They find themselves hunting, fishing, playing football, and watching sports and movies they would never have chosen on their own.

After marriage wives often try to interest their husbands in activities more to their own liking. If their attempts fail, they may encourage their husbands to continue their recreational activities without them. But this option is very dangerous to a marriage, because men place surprising importance on having their wives as recreational companions. Among the five basic male needs, spending recreational time with his wife is second only to sex for the typical husband.

A husband's third need is an attractive spouse. A man needs a wife who looks good to him. Dr. Harley states that in sexual relationships most men find it nearly impossible to appreciate a woman for her inner qualities alone--there must be more. A man's need for physical attractiveness in a mate is profound.

The fourth need for a man is domestic support. He needs peace and quiet. So deep is a husband's need for domestic support from his wife that he often fantasizes about how she will greet him lovingly and pleasantly at the door, about well-behaved children who likewise act glad to see him and welcome him to the comfort of a well-maintained home.

The fantasy continues as his wife urges him to sit down and relax before taking part in a tasty dinner. Later the family goes out for an evening stroll, and he returns to put the children to bed with no hassle or fuss. Then he and his wife relax, talk together, and perhaps watch a little television until they retire at a reasonable hour to love each other. Wives may chuckle at this scenario, but this vision is quite common in the fantasy lives of many men. The male need for his wife to "take care of things"--especially him--is widespread, persistent, and deep.

The fifth need is admiration. He needs her to be proud of him. Wives need to learn how to express the admiration they already feel for their husbands instead of pressuring them to greater achievements. Honest admiration is a great motivator for men. When a woman tells a man she thinks he's wonderful, that inspires him to achieve more. He sees himself capable of handling new responsibilities and perfecting skills far above those of his present level.

If any of a spouse's five basic needs go unmet, that person becomes vulnerable to the temptation of an affair. Therefore, the best way to prevent adultery is to meet the needs of your spouse.

(article courtesy of Wanda)

Am I Scared?

2006-08-05T20:33:00.000+08:00

the boxes that mommy sent just arrived an hour ago. there are 3 boxes. the boxes contain my sister's stuff, everything from clothes to shoes to bags, everything that she owns that will fit a balikbayan box. she has a lot of stuff!

still waiting for mommy's call for the instructions on what do to with my sister's belongings. she mentioned before that we will be giving away some of her things. yon iba, i don't know yet. and which stuff to give away... i don't know... i don't plan to touch the box untill mommy calls. takot ba ko? hindi naman na masyado. hehehehe... but if you ask me a month ago, "hell yeah!!!" hehehehehe.... at least now i can sleep in the bedroom alone (still with rocko in the room and on the bed, of course), i can dress up with the door closed and move around the house even when i consciously know that i am alone. hehehehehe.....

after my sister passed away, i can not even go inside the bedroom alone, can't even wake up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom (still have to wake up hubby and ask to go with me. buti nalang mabait asawa ko.) and i demand that rocko stays with me wherever i go, as in 24/7. my hubby is an early riser, i'm the complete opposite, so when he gets out of bed, i wake up, because i don't want to be alone in the bedroom. hehehehe... and the lights, all lights inside the house have to be turned on when i'm home. i can't even look straight in the mirror. you may say that it's just my imagination. most likely... what can i do? my imagination makes me really crazy! hehehehe...

don't you ever ask me to watch scary movies, i'm definitely not going! heheheheh.... my sister and i are complete opposites on this, she loves scary movies and i hate those.

so now, what will i do with the boxes? dyan na muna sila sa sala ah. baka meron jack-in-box! hehehehehe.... but seriously, i'll wait for mommy's call first. madami yon gamit, san ko ilalagay yon? oh well.... if i open the box now, baka umiyak nanaman ako. d=(

More from Blogthings

2006-08-05T11:01:00.000+08:00

You Are: 70% Dog, 30% Cat

You and dogs definitely have a lot in common.
You're both goofy, happy, and content with the small things in life.
However, you're definitely not as needy as the average dog. You need your down time occasionally.

Are You More Cat or Dog?

hahaha. i'd definitely love to be a dog. i'm a 101% dog person!

You Are Likely a First Born

At your darkest moments, you feel guilty.
At work and school, you do best when you're researching.
When you love someone, you tend to agree with them often.

In friendship, you are considerate and compromising.
Your ideal careers are: business, research, counseling, promotion, and speaking.
You will leave your mark on the world with discoveries, new information, and teaching people to dream.

The Birth Order Predictor

Your World View

You are a fairly broadminded romantic and reasonably content.
You value kindness and try to live by your ideals.
You have strong need for security, which may be either emotional or material.

You respect truth and are flexible.
You like people, and they can readily make friends with you.
You are not very adventurous, but this does not bother you.

What Is Your World View?

Your Love Element Is Earth

In love, you have consistency and integrity.
For you, love is all about staying grounded and centered.

You attract others with your zest for life and experiences.
Your flirting style is defined by setting the scene, creating a unique moment in time.

Steady progress and stability are the cornerstones of your love life.
You may take things too slowly, but you never put your heart at risk.

You connect best with: Fire

Avoid: Wood

You and another Earth element: need each other too much to build a good foundation

What Element Is Your Love?

You Are Apple Red

You're never one to take life too seriously, and because of it, you're a ton of fun.
And although you have a great sense of humor, you are never superficial.
Deep and caring, you do like to get to the core of people - to understand them well.
However, any probing you do is light hearted and fun, sometimes causing people to misjudge you.

What Color Red Are You?

You Are Scary

You even scare scary people sometimes!

How Scary Are You?

totoo ba talga to?! hahahahah... i know i am sometimes scary. pero, even scaring scary people. bwahahahahaha!!!

You Are a Centaur

In general, you are a very cautious and reserved person.
However, you are also warm hearted, and you enjoy helping others in practical ways.
You are a great teacher, and you are really good at helping people get their lives in order.
You are very intuitive, and you go with your gut. You make good decisions easily.

What Mythological Creature Are You?

You Are 44% Abnormal

You are at medium risk for being a psychopath. It is somewhat likely that you have no soul.

You are at medium risk for having a borderline personality. It is somewhat likely that you are a chaotic mess.

You are at low risk for having a narcissistic personality. It is unlikely that you are in love with your own reflection.

You are at medium risk for having a social phobia. It is somewhat likely that you feel most comfortable in your mom's basement.

You are at medium risk for obsessive compulsive disorder. It is somewhat likely that you are addicted to hand sanitizer.

How Abnormal Are You?

i think the OC part and hand sanitizer are true. hahahaha...

You Are 40% Normal

While some of your behavior is quite normal...
Other things you do are downright strange
You've got a little of your freak going on
But you mostly keep your weirdness to yourself

How Normal Are You?

ay 40% lang? 44+40=84. eh ano yon 16%???

You Are 59% Vain

You're a little vain, but more than anything you have a healthy amount of confidence.
Thinking the world of yourself is great. Just don't think less of those who aren't as pretty as you!

How Vain Are You?

Pick-Up At NAIA

2006-08-04T09:19:00.000+08:00

currently at loss of topics to blog about. share ko na lang about my brother's arrival 2 nights ago.

my brother was on a northwest flight, eta at 1030pm. hubby and i planned to leave home at around 1130 because we assumed the traffic inside the airport (immigration, the luggage carousel, etc). so, more or less my brother will be able to get out of the airport at around 12mn.

at 1030, my phone rang. it was my brother:

brother: asan na kayo?
maricel: asan ka na?
brother: nandito na sa labas. asan na kayo?
maricel: huh? ang bilis mo naman.
brother: asan na nga kayo?
maricel: on the way na
brother: san nga?
maricel: papunta na nga.
brother: nasa bahay ka pa noh?
maricel: heeheehee. aalis na nga kami. tapos ka na ba talaga dyan?
brother: oo nga. nasa labas na nga ako.
maricel: o cge na. antayin mo lang kami dyan
brother: cge. bilisan nyo.
maricel: oo na.

so, we rushed to the airport. when we saw my brother, all he said was, "ang tagal nyo. ang init." hehehe...

being an "ate", i'm glad to see my little brother. we're also looking forward to seeing my parents and another brother in two weeks. the whole family will be together to put my sister's ashes in her crypt or her columbarium.

Outreach Program

2006-08-01T16:22:00.000+08:00

FRIENDS FOR LIFE (visiting/theraphy dogs and bite prevention program) will be visiting kids with cancer on September 16 (saturday).

Any kind of help from friends will be highly appreciated. We will be needing volunteers to help fascilitate on the day as well. We can all make a difference in our own little ways.

Please help us spread our good cause. SALAMAT!

For interested friends, buzz me.

ANTONETTE MANIQUIS
mobile number: 09193307697
email address: antonettemaniquis@gmail.com
ym id: pinayangel899

if you guys are not busy on september 16, baka pwede tayong mag volunteer.

thanks.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

2006-08-01T11:58:00.000+08:00

today is another day with a bad weather. been raining almost non-stop for 2 days now.

Issued at: 5:00 AM 1 August 2006
Valid beginning: 5:00 p.m. today until 5:00 p.m. tomorrow

At 2:00 a.m. today, Tropical Depression "HENRY" was estimated based on radar, satellite and surface data at 150 kms west northwest of Dagupan City (16.7°N 119.0°E) with maximum sustained winds of 55 kph. It is forecast to move west at 19 kph. Southwest monsoon affecting western sections of Southern Luzon and Visayas. (http://newsinfo.inq7.net/weather)

ang sarap matulog...

my brother will be arriving in manila tomorrow evening. he's been asking about the weather. probably he's planning to go to the beach. hehehehe...

actually, our cousin who's also coming home from ny, quit her job so she can visit the philippines and part of her itinerary is to go to boracay or palawan. whoa!!! at this time of the year in the philippines?! haven't been to any philippine island during the rainy season. nakakatakot ang boat rides, baka maalon. we'll see...

antok na ko... i'll have my siesta muna. i'll see you guys in a bit.

tata!

Home At Last

2006-07-29T16:17:00.000+08:00

it was still a raining when we checked-out of the hotel in dagupan at around 830-9am. the weather out there is still pretty bad compared to manila that was already sunny at that time. my hubby drove and i slept and watched movies in the car. hehehehe...

finally got home at around 7pm. hubby made rounds of a few more service stations on our way home. d=D glad to be home. i missed my rocko so much, we're literally together from the time we got home til the following morning when we woke up. *wink* he missed daddy too. aaawwwwww.....

i was supposed to report for work on friday. but.... i woke up late, my car plate is banned because of the number coding, and i need to have my follicle monitoring (ultrasound) at 11am. decided instead to have the morning off. i prepared to leave the house and go to the clinic and go to work. but... i got off the clinic at 106. dang!!!! so, i called up hubby and told him about the ultrasound results and that it's already late to go to work. hehehe.... he took my side and told me, go home and rest na lang... so, i did exactly as i was told. hahahaha...

the ultrasound result was very pleasant.

Examination Done: Transvaginal Ultrasound / FM 2/3

Measurements (cm):

Cervix: 3.2 x 2.5 x 2.8
Uterus: 7.6 x 4.2 x 3.4
Endometrium: hyperechoic 1.3
4.9 x 4.7 x 3.8, 4 mature follicles: F1 2.3 x 2.1 x 1.6, F2 2.1 x 2.3 x 2.0

RO: F3 1.5 x 1.8 x 1.0 with daughter cyst 1.2, F4 1.3 x 1.8 x 1.0, There are 4 smaller follicles <1.0cm in diameter

LO: 4.2 x 4.0 x 3.1 with mature follicle 3.4 x 2.6 x 2.3 and 4 smaller follicles <1.0 cm in diameter

The uterus is anteverted with smooth contour and homogeneous echopattern with no focal myometrial lesion. the endometrius is heperechoic with intact subendometrial halo. The right ovary contains 4 mature follicles and the capsule of F1, F3, F4 have crenated borders. The left ovary contains 1 intact mature follicle. There are no adnexal masses. there is low level echofluid in the cul-de-sac.

Impression:
Normal Sized Anterverted Uterus
Endometrium Consistent with Secretory Phase
Normal Stimulated Ovaries with Mature Follicles
No Adnexal Masses

Note: Sonographic findings suggestive of post-ovulatory phase.

alright then... i myself doesn't know what that means. hehehehe... in layman's term, i ovulated! i asked the ob-gyne sonologist if there is a means in the ultrasound to know exactly when the follicle/s ruptured to release an egg, she said that not exactly there is, but the amount of fluid in the cul-de-sac indicates that i ovulated somewhere between thursday and friday morning. i was on a high after hearing that. with a big smile on my face. hopefully, we hit this one. btw, the ob-gyne sonologist mentioned that there are 2 irregularly shaped follicles, and since i have a few matured and really big follicles, probably, (probably lang ah) 1-2 eggs were released. (i dunno din if i interpreted it right, hahahaha.) *fingers-crossed* and *toes-crossed* too.

now friends and elders are telling me to rest. rest na lang nang rest. i can't even play with dupree kasi daw maharot. oh well..... i'm still under observation. let's wait and see.

have a great weekend y'all!

Prayer to Saint Gerard for Motherhood

2006-07-26T11:45:00.000+08:00

the photo of the prayer is i guess a bit too small.

here's the prayer for motherhood:

Prayer for Motherhood

O good Saint Gerard, powerful intercessor before God and Wonderworker of our day, I call upon thee and seek thy aid. Thou who on earth didst always fulfill God’s designs, help me to do the holy Will of God. Beseech the Master of Life, from Whom all paternity proceedeth, to render me fruitful in offspring, that I may raise up children to God in this life and heirs to the Kingdom of His Glory in the world to come. Amen.

to all the women out there who have been trying to conceive, always remember that in His perfect time, we will be blessed with beautiful children. miracles happen through prayers.

A Lil Far Away From Home

2006-07-25T22:19:00.000+08:00

follicle monitoring

yesterday was the 2nd ultrasound schedule (follicle monitoring) for our fertility workup. the result was a little disappointing. it's day16 of my cycle and an egg hasn't been released then. there's a good news though, there is a mature follicle that is about to rupture anytime. doctor's advise... continue contact and 3rd ultrasound on wednesday to check if an egg was released. *fingers & toes crossed*

right after getting the result, i message hubby and told him, "hi babe! you need to leave a sperm because an egg is yet to be released". he is scheduled to visit his area (pangasinan) tuesday of this week. so he replied, "you need to come with me, we'll be back on thursday." there! i immediately messaged my boss and explained our situation. thank God he is pro-family. hehehehe... now, i'm off work for 3 days to consummate.

rocko, a rott and a basket of puppies

my friend with a "sixth sense" kinda saw/dreamed about me and arnold, and it involves around 8 dogs. hahahaha.. 8 dogs?! omg!!!! he saw us, with rocko and a rottweiler plus a basket of puppies, aroud 5 puppies. he saw that arnold came home with the rott in the passenger seat and the puppies in a doggie basket in the trunk. hahahahaha.... if this happens, i'm sure my mom's goin' nuts!!! hahahahaha....

the truth of the matter is, we're planning of getting a puppy in 2 years. but that will definitely be a labrador retriever, because by then, our rocko will be 8 years old and that makes him a senior citizen. *sobs* i wish rocko will reach 16 years of age. we, most especially i am so attached to him. i just wish that he'll still be around when i have my kids and my grandkids...

departure

our baby, rocko feels sad, i just know, when i was packing my stuff for the trip yesterday night. he's all touchy and clingy. he's usual self when he's being sweet. this morning, rocko was really quiet and looking sad that arnold and i have to leave him for 3 days. i talked to him and explained, "baby, mommy will be gone for only 3 days, dalawang tulog lang yon. be back on thursday. you be good boy ah. you stay with kuya mark while we're away." you might think that i am nuts. well, i probably am. hahahaha... rocko is very sensitive and i know that he understands us. he's such a sweet and lovable dog... aaaaawwwwww, miss him already... d=(

the trip

reached pangasinan around an hour or two despite the heavy rains, the road was almost zero visibility. we had a quick lunch at chowking in carmen, and then drove to the petron under construction in urdaneta. this is where arnold will hold office when he's in pangasinan. i spent the first 30 mins in the car while he speaks with the contractor and the area engineer. a few minutes later, he asked me to come with him because he'll introduce me to the area engineer and the contractor. he has a 3pm meeting with his counterpart from the marketing department (treats), franco. while he's waiting for franco, he went online to submit the data requested by the lube trade group. and as always, i get a lil bored... hehehehe... entertained my self with some photos and sent them to erin.

maricel: ayos ba electric fan nang cw dito?
erin: hahaha. napakahi-tech. hahaha

maricel: prettycel: this is the space for the petron treats urdaneta, pangasinan. ayos ba? hehehe...
erin: hahaha. marunong ka na. yahoo! hehehe

maricel: and more topics to discuss. mahilig talga sa meeting ang mga taga-petron. meeting and kain. hahaha...

maricel: eto... bored... kaya, i decided to blog hop na lang habang nag-mi-meeting ang aking esposo. hanep ang www nang weroam! World Wide Wait. $%@$#$%@$# ang slow!

maricel: got this from leslie's blog, Prayer for Motherhood. she's also been battling with pcos and facing the frustrations brought by it. she's been married for more than a year. now, she is 6wks preggy, and happy to share this prayer who gave her comfort in times of disappointments. i'll definitely pray this before and after kong gawin yon "tinuro" mo. hahahaha.
erin: natuwa ako ng mabasa ko yong prayer for motherhood ;-) sana magkaroon na nang matutina, jr. relax lang at enjoy d helicopter move. hehehe.

maricel: read the resto's name. one of the popular resto's in pangasinan. ayos sa name noh! hahaha...
erin: natawa ako. hahaha. coincidence ituh, hehe puno na fone memory ko sa ktxt mo ah hehehe.

conclusion

the dinner at matutina's made me so full! grabe! sobrang kabusugan talga! after dinner, franco drove us to petron urdaneta (arnold left his car there), then, off we went to the hotel.

i'm sleepy na. it's already past midnight. beauty rest na ko. take care.

good night y'all

These Are What I Have done

2006-07-24T09:17:00.000+08:00

What have you done?

I got this icebreaker from Liv's blog.

Those that I've done are in bold characters.

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said 'I love you' and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby's diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was shit faced
42. Had amazing friends -- and still have
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Posed nude in front of strangers
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Had a one-night stand
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship -- just a dinner cruise
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children -- more of baby dogs... puppies... hehehehe
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn't have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Petted a stingray
110. Broken someone's heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Petted a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey -- almost but not quite, we were studying greek mytholody in school
135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone's life

INTERESTING!!! I'd love to know what you guys have done!

Bed Weather

2006-07-23T22:22:00.001+08:00

No work in gov't offices in Metro on Monday
By Lira Dalangin-Fernandez
INQ7.net
Last updated 10:15pm (Mla time) 07/23/2006

(UPDATE) DUE to Typhoon "Glenda" (international name Kaemi) there will be no work in government offices in the National Capital Region on Monday except in offices delivering health and protective services, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita has announced. (INQ7 Breaking News)

is this good news or what?! being the inborn couch potato that i am, a no-work-day declaration is a very good news.

Manila Weater Forcast

Tomorrow, 24 July 2006: Windy with scattered thunderstorms. High 82F. Winds WSW at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 60%.

Tomorrow night: Scattered thunderstorms. Low 78F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 60%.

the weather today was no different from the forecast for tomorrow. we literally spent the whole day inside the house, except of course when nature calls for our doggies. this is the best weather for more bonding moments with one's bed, and as expected, rocko did the same thing. while our lab snoozes, we took the chance for camera whoring. below is a slideshow of our photos:

feeling sleepy already. more updates tomorrow, since i have the whole day for blogging. hehehehe.

goodnight y'all.

My Soul Looks Like...

2006-07-23T13:07:00.000+08:00

What Your Soul Really Looks Like

You are very passionate and quite temperamental. While you can be moody, you always crave comfort.

You are a grounded person, but you also leave room for imagination and dreams. You feet may be on the ground, but you're head is in the clouds.

You believe that people see you as larger than life and important. While this is true, they also think you're a bit full of yourself.

Your near future is calm, relaxing, and pretty much what you want. And it's something you've been anticipating for a while now.

For you, love is all about caring and comfort. You couldn't fall in love with someone you didn't trust.

Inside the Room of Your Soul

got this from van's blog. very interesting... and true... heheheheh...

Don't Lose That 90% That You Already Have

2006-07-23T09:45:00.000+08:00

Don't Lose that 90% That You Already Have
by: Bo Sanchez

Adultery happens when you start looking for what you don't have. "Wow,this girl in my office is a real looker. I'm crazy about her because she's also understanding, intelligent, tender - so many things that my spouse is not."

Somewhere along the way, you'll find a woman or a man who will be more charming or sensitive. More alluring. More thoughtful. Richer. Have greater sex appeal. And you will find a woman or man who will need you and pursue you and go loco over you more than your spouse ever did. Because no wife or husband is perfect.

Because a spouse will only have 90% of what you're looking for. So adultery takes place when a husband or wife looks for the missing 10%. Let's say your wife is melancholic by nature. You may find yourself drawn to the pretty clerk who has a cherry laughter. Or because your wife is a homebody in slippers and pyjamas, smelling of garlic and fish oil,you may fall for a fresh-smelling young sales representative that visits your office in a sharp black blazer, high heels, and a red pencil-cut skirt. Or because your husband is the quiet type, your heart may skip a beat when you meet an old college flame who has the makings of a talk show host.

But wait! That's only 10% of what you don't have. Don't throw away the 90% that you already have! Add to your spouse's 90% the 100% that represents all the years that you have been with each other. The storms you have weathered together. The unforgettable moments of sadness and joy as a couple. The many adjustments you have made to love the other. The wealth of memories that you've accumulated as lovers.

Adultery happens when you start looking for what you don't have. But faithfulness happens when you start thanking God for what you already have. But I'm not just talking about marriage.I'm talking about life! About your jobs. About your friends. About your children. About your lifestyles. Are you like the economy airline
The main message: If you start appreciating what you have right now, wherever you are is FIRST CLASS!

(article courtesy of Sheryl Ann's 18 July 2006 blog entry in Mr. Introvert weds Ms. Extrovert)

you can live without that 10%, the remaining 90% is what is most important. the 10% may just be that part of you looking for an adventure or a spice in your boring routinary life. i believe this 10% can be made present in your life with your significant other. you need to be creative and be open to try new things and activities with the love of your life. value what you have, be content and thank our Creator for the gift of life.

I'm Evil... NOT!!!

2006-07-21T21:43:00.000+08:00

You Are 22% Evil

A bit of evil lurks in your heart, but you hide it well.
In some ways, you are the most dangerous kind of evil.

How Evil Are You?

can hardly believe it?! i'm only 22% evil! and i expected to be at least 90% evil. hahahahahahha

A Day and A Half

2006-07-19T09:26:00.000+08:00

it's a wednesday and the 2nd day that i'm on leave from work. the past couple of days were rainy. gremlin ata ako... ayoko nang nababasa. hehehehehe.....

the past weekend, i felt like i need to put our home in order. i cleaned the kitchen and even prepared lunch. can you imagine that?! it's been like 3 years since i cooked a proper meal. hahaha... cooking is no longer in my voculabulary. though, i want to really learn and try to cook.

besides cooking, i even took care of our dogs' needds. i fed them, bathe them, played with them, had them run around the yard for their exercise, and practiced them with the basic commands that they learned in basic obedience training. so far, i assume that the kids are enjoying the attention and the pampering. dupree was even behaved when i was giving him a bath, very ironic because he is very playful, and literally jumping up and down.

another reason for staying home... my cousin who's staying with us for a while and been helping us with the household chores is still on "vacay". our arrangement was that he'll be back 2 days ago. apparently, he got sick. oh well... true or not true, i don't think i have a choice. if i don't move a muscle, baka magalit na hubby ko that i don't do anything around the house. and besides, it's our home too.

arnold is fond of having breakfast before he leaves for work. early today i made him breakfast. ako ba talga to?!? ako naman.... nakakagulat nga lang... anyhow, he's going to pangasinan and baguio this week, at least do something nice for him before he leaves. miss ko na agad..... i'll be seeing my hubby on friday night, the earliest.

i'll be preparing for work in an hour and a half. corporate slave naman ang drama ko mamaya.

take care y'all. enjoy the week.

tata!

RockYou.com

2006-07-16T22:38:00.000+08:00

i was browsing and hopping through blogs, and guess what i found?! a photo slideshow maker for blogs. cool! heheheheheh.....

tried it out with some photos from our prenuptial photo shoot sessions. so eto na sya... parang ang payat ko naman ata non...

Being Sad...

2006-07-13T14:15:00.000+08:00

mommy sent me via email the card that minette's coworker did for her memorial at the golf and country club that she worked for. the card has minette's pictures all over. i cried when i saw these pictures. i felt really sad seeing this pictures again. the first time i saw the photos was when minette was still alive, she used to email me her photos when we were chatting and sharing updates on her adventures and whereabouts. it made me realized that minette is no longer with us. the "what ifs" flashing through my mind. i know she is now in a better place where she will no longer feel lonely and alone. she is now happy. i also know that she wants us all to be happy. maybe minette's purpose was to keep us, her family together, to keep us together even though we are miles apart. ever since they migrated to america, there were no longer a family occassion that was celebrated with all of us together. and now... we will never be complete as a family without minette. i remember speaking with her on the phone hearing her laughter. these are all memories now, happy memories that i shared with my sister.

we have accepted the loss, but we still can't help but to feel sad whenever we remember her. this coming august, mommy and daddy will bring home minette's ashes here in manila. my brothers will also be home then. after our reunion 7 months ago (on my wedding), we never expected to see each other again on this kind of occassion. couple of months after my wedding, we were planning of seeing my brother in dubai this year, of going to the beach on an island in the philippines also this year, and of travelling and going around the world in the next years to come. i know minette still want us to continue with our plans, our plans of always being together, kahit wala na siya. minette wants us to always keep in touch with each other, to always keep us together, and be there for each other.

this is very difficult for us. we will always pray for my sister, and she will forever be lovingly remembered.

Job Dissatisfaction

2006-07-11T11:45:00.000+08:00

Your Job Dissatisfaction Level is 71%

Your job is a total bummer, and probably the worst job you've ever had.
Your co-workers stink. Your boss is a jerk. And your company is probably in trouble.
Think about finding a new job quickly, even if it's just a not-so-great transition job.
You've got to get out of there as quickly as you can!

Should You Quit Your Job?

yesterday was a hell day at work. a stressful one for me, actually. some people expect you to do stuff that you are overqualified for, but nobody else will do it, so you are the only one left to do it. alright then... but don't blame me for not doing it well. and never ever expect me to stay in this job forever or at least love this job!

your job is a total bummer, and probably the worst job you've ever had.

true.... worst talaga! baket pinagttyagaan? hmmmm.... tamad mag apply eh... hehehe...

Your co-workers stink. Your boss is a jerk. And your company is probably in trouble.

true again! they all stink, if not all, most of them stink. not to mention the social climbers, the hypocrites, the wannabes and the ass-kissers.

the boss is a jerk, well... he's also dumb and a puppet. though, this boss is not the person i directly report to, but i still take some or a few orders from him. damn organization!

company is in trouble? right now... anticipating the privatization in the next 12 months. though, in my opinion, privatization is best for my current organization.

You've got to get out of there as quickly as you can!

i'll definitely will. yesterday when my friend (my clairvoyant frient.. well i told him how bad i felt at work yesterday) saw me in a new work environment, it definitely lifted my spirits. i immediately felt excited ang began asking questions. i've been wondering if i'll be able to practice my profession in my chosen field, and sometimes can't help but be quite pessimistic about it, trying to start a family and all... makes me wonder, will i still be the person who used to have self-fulfillment in my work?

oh well... we'll see... and i think it's about time that i work on this, start scouting for a better job, a job that i've always wanted.

btw, not everything here in our company is negative. there are a few pros, like good pay -- higher salary rates compared to the average government organization, no pressure -- almost no deadlines that you may spend the whole week at the mall, a lot of bonuses (we even have cash gifts from the philippine president), a lot of parties and one-week celebration for the festivities, ample parking space, no parking fees, and it's only 10 minutes drive away from my place on light to moderate traffic.

but then again... i still need to scout for better work. wish me luck!

Famous Movie Kiss is from Spiderman?!

2006-07-10T19:11:00.000+08:00

Your Famous Movie Kiss is from Spiderman

"I have always been standing in your doorway. Isn't it about time somebody saved your life?"

What Famous Movie Kiss Are You?

was browsing through van's blog and came across this "What Famous Movie Kiss Are You?" took the quiz and that above is what i got. i don't understand..... why spiderman? why not superman? hehehehehe...

What Age Do You Act?

2006-07-07T18:30:00.000+08:00

You Are 25 Years Old

Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe.

13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world.

20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences.

30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more!

40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

tuwa naman ako... i'm 25!!! hehehehe...

what age kayo?

Charmed

2006-07-07T08:09:00.000+08:00

sheggz has been staying with us for 5 nights already. saya noh? hehehehe.... everyday is a different day. different adventures for each day with sheggoy. she shares her escapades with a flair.

during her stay with us. i discover the different faces of sheggz. i see through her her capabilities, her true self (not that's i don't know the real sheggz, she has been transparent and all ever since), i understood her better. i'm seeing sheggz as a strong person, a fighter, a maldita or as she puts it a "maruta", a witch with a golden heart, a provider, a responsible daughter, grandaughter and "ate", a very intelligent person (never bobo), someone who's street smart, very generous, inquisitive personality, very adventurous, mahiyain din, and.... nauubusan na ko nang adjectives to describe her... sowee... puyat eh... hehehehe.... bottomline, sheggz is for keeps.

jacqui and maan came over last night for the novena for my sister's 40th day, of couse, sheggz was also there. they met my friend, let's just call him "the gifted guy". my friend is given a gift not al of us possess or will wish to have. he experiences the supernatural or the paranormal or clairvoyance. anyhow, my friends were so excited. meron tumitili, meron masakit na ang panga sa kakatawa, at meron din kinikilig. hehehe... both jacqui and sheggz are single and available, not exactly looking, but stil very available. hehehe.... we talked about finances, family, career, friendships, and boys!!! these two girls are really having the time of their lives... with boys! hahaha...

last night was one helluva experience for us. *wink* *wink* *wink*

Superman Returns

2006-07-04T18:07:00.000+08:00

saw superman at the movies two days ago. and what do i have to say... hmmm... ang gwapo ni Brandon Routh!!! pwede ba kitang iuwi???

Introducing... Dupree and Sally

2006-07-02T23:53:00.000+08:00

one quick message...

here are photos of our new dobermann puppy, dupree (4.5 mos old) and our new civic, sally (4 wks old).

gtg for now. the sleep bug had just bitten me. nitey nite.

Stampede

2006-07-01T18:04:00.000+08:00

i was in the mood for playing with the boys today. we had a walk around our yard in the morning, a practice of how obedient they've become after their basic obedience training. so far, they did well and they pleased me this morning.

this afternoon, before i fed the boys, they were playing and running around the yard. tapos, naiinggit ako. i felt like playing with them. so, i decided to walk towards them. as i was walking, the boys were both running, running to my direction. before i knew it, rocko was running so fast and didn't get the chance to retreat from his pace, and kaboom! i was hit by an oversized labrador retriever (who weighs more than i do) and a 4.5-month-old dobermann puppy. there i was on the garage pavement lying face down. good thing there were no scratches on my face, only scratches and bruises on a couple of fingers and toes and arms. but that still hurt! i wasn't able to get up right away. masakit talaga! so, how are the boys? i don't think they know that they hurt me, because, when i got up, they came to me and still in the mood for playing, most especially the dobe puppy, dupree who was jumping up and down.

so there, now i know what it feels like to be ran over by two large breed dogs. masakit pala. hehehe...

Let's Party

2006-06-30T23:11:00.000+08:00

iin conclusion to our week-long celebration of the 5th year anniversary, a variety show was held in the afternoon at the company grounds in our head office. there was a dance contest themed 'retro' and our group bagged the 2nd prize. good work guys. if by next year, i'm not yet preggy, i might be able to join you again for the dance number of the year. hehehehe...

as a grand finale, a party was held where live bands performed to grace the event. transco people partied like there is no tomorrow. in the 4 years that i spent with the organization, it was only today that i actually partied with my coworkers on our anniversary party, and guess what?! i had fun! this was btw by accident. i have two dinners lined up for tonight and unfortunately neither of the 2 groups of friends confirmed. and since it's a friday and my car plate's ending digit is a 9, i stayed at work til 7pm and decided to join our group for the party.

to the people i migled with tonight, it was nice seeing you guys, i'm glad you still remember me after 3 long years of barely seeing each other.

to the people i caught staring, it's ok to approach me and have a lil chit-chat, i don't bite, and besides we were both part of the same group. i'm no snob, it's just too bad that we didn't get the chance to be formally introduced given the limitation of the circumstances.

finally, to the people i danced with tonight, wella, divine, kathy, hazel, anna, paula, luzmin, grace, gilbert, tony and ed, thank you. it was so much fun. we should be doing this often.

gotta go now. need to spend some quality time with my hubby. take care y'all!

Drivin On A Friday

2006-06-30T08:02:00.000+08:00

today is the first time that i'm driving our new baby on a friday since the plate number was released. i used to have my number coding on thursdays, and now i have to get used to having it on fridays. dang! gimmick day ang friday eh. oh well... i have no choice, i'm not confident in driving stick. hehehe...

and because i woke up late to be able to beat 7am, i wasn't able to park on my fave slot in our company parking area in the 'bantayog nang mga bayani'. left with no choice again but to park inside the npc grounds. don't want to take the risk drivin around edsa (but sure will out on the road this afternoon and the coming friday afternoons. hehehehe). ang hirap naman kasing gumising nang maaga eh. d=( imagine i woke up at 0548 this morning, that's too early for my usual 6-630 bath time.

oh i so want to take my new baby for a long drive joy ride...... *wink* and listen to the song 'life is a highway' (think of lighting mcqueen and sally)

Cute Little Boys

2006-06-29T08:36:00.000+08:00

brought my boys to the vet for their annual vaccinations. when we got in the van, marky drove and the the boys and i took the backseat. rocko was behaved, surprisingly. he's always the uneasy guy when we go for rides, probably because mommy was driving then and he has to take the front passenger seat of mommy's car. hehehe... dupree was btw, also behaved, but being the maharot and malikot na puppy that he is, he keeps licking and leaning on rocko. but when i tell him to STOP, obedient naman and he stops. so they both end up sitting up straight beside mommy. found them so cute that i want to have our photos taken to capture the moment. kayalang... we don't have a photogrpher present to do the job. maybe next time, when daddy is around.

My Bridal March Song

2006-06-28T19:56:00.000+08:00

reading my friend, shegg's blog entry about sun and moon reminded me of my wedding. why? simply because it's my bridal march song. for some the song is tragic, sad or lonely. maybe, it is.

for me, on he other hand, it's a classic. sun and moon, and some other miss saigon songs are a fave since my high school days. i recall singing sun and moon on top of my lungs. hahahaha.... and because, the song is really close to my heart, had it for my bridal march song... ewan ko... feeling ko my arnold is my sun and of course, ako yon moon. duh! meron pa bang iba?!? don't want to elaborate on my interpretation of the song at this time. quick-quick post lang for now. hehehehe...

tata!

listen to... Sun and Moon.

Gone Hippie

2006-06-28T08:39:00.000+08:00

today is our retro 70's theme getup. some showed up in their retro-printed button-down shirts that looks like they dug through their baul of old clothes. hahahaha.... as for me here, i prefer the hippie look. i'm more of a halter and flared jeans chick *wink* need to wear a jacket, though, ang lamig na eh. hahahaha......

good thing about this look, i can wear the bed hair look. heeheeheehee...

Happy Birthday Evypot!

2006-06-26T11:38:00.000+08:00

evy, happy birthday sis. let's celebrate your birthday with the girls and my rocko on fri, my place. luv u! *muah*

Week Long Anniversary Celeb at Work

2006-06-26T10:00:00.000+08:00

people at work are having fun with the themed dress code that we have for the week. everybody is trying to cooperate and dress appropriately. hehehehe.... this is first here in our organization that we're having a themed celebration. below are our themes for every day of the week:

monday: hawaiian luau theme
tues: sporty theme
wednesday: retro 70's theme
thurs: wester theme
friday: fashion trip theme

coming in this morning and seeing everybody wearing their tropical shirts and dresses, their leis around their necks, some girls even have a flower on an ear (ala jasmin trias... hehehe...), and beautiful smiles on their faces is really something. this is how the locals of the islands greet their visitors, the tourists. this is how living in a tropical country like the philippines should be. seeing everyone in this disposition reminds of you a summer getaway at a beach. very nice, huh? it made me feel grateful for having work and for having a good jumpstart of the week.

everything i see today reminds me of this song... Island In The Sun

awwwwwww......

Beauty and Madness

2006-06-24T13:17:00.000+08:00

first of all, i'd like to thank my girlfriends, evy, sheggz and jacqui for keeping me company while arnold is away. next week ulit ah. *wink* thank you for keeping me sane and giving me a week of better days.

short message for evy:

sis, i hope you're not thinking that i despise you or something. the truth of the matter is, we love you and we want the best for you, most espcially with your love affairs. i know your affairs are the least of our concerns, but we don't want to you get hurt. we're also not saying that your current boyfriend, imaginary or not, is not good for you. what is not good is how you eagerly look forward to his promises. i was kind of glad hearing you say this morning that your doors are open for opportunities in love and you want to be sure and screen first your prospects. at least now, i know that you're making a smart decision. sis, it is difficult and painful to let go of the things that we love the most, what more the people that we've loved and cared for quite some time. but even if it is hard, we need to be strong, and pray for guidance that you are making the right decision. we want you to be happy. but how can you be happy, if you keep ignoring the obvious signs? think about it, baka lang hindi pa sya. mahirap na mag-establish ulit nang panibagong relationship, alam ko rin yon, pero if the person is worth it, i'm sure, it will be an enriching experience for both of you. basta sis, i just want you to be happy, yon lang.

btw, if nasusungitan kita, my apologies. alam mo naman, you're the apple of my eye. *muah* sana wag kang matatakot na mag-stay dito sa bahay with me ah. kabisado mo naman na topak ko eh. luv u!

short message for sheggz:

as a comment posted on Four Corners of Sheggz & Pooh (22 june 2006 entry):

hey sheggz! you're always welcome sis. we are always here for you. kahit nasa kalagitnaan pa nang kasarapan ng s**... ng sleep. hehehehe.... i completely agree with you that "everything happens for a reason". there are no coincidences... lahat may purpose. sometimes, we don't understand why we are going through a lot of pain and difficulties, but this is God's way of making us stronger, this is God's way of making us realize that there is a God who will heal us of all the pain that we are feeling and who will provide for all the emptiness that we are going through. tama yon sinabi ni evy, raise all your problems to God and he will take care of everything, we just need to trust in Him. share ko syo something that a friend sent me today... "msg from God: 'If life happens to deliver a situation to you that you cannot handle, do Not attempt to resolve it yourself !! Kindly put it in the SFGTD (something for God to do) box. I will get to it in MY TIME. All situations will be resolved, but in My time, not yours.'"

i know it is really difficult, whatever it is na nararamdaman mo. we all have problems, lahat tayo dumadaan sa pagsubok, it may appear na iba ang degree, but iisa lang ang hirap na dinadanas natin. wag mong iisipin na mag-isa ka lang sa problema, magkakaramay tayo, and karamay din natin si God.

i love you sis. don't give up, kaya natin to.

take care.

see you in a few days. *muah*

...if my sister is still alive, i'll be telling her the exact same message i'm telling sheggz.

short message for jacqui:

hey jacq! i know love din ang problem mo. i think you're doing the right thing. care for the person, but move on and live your life the way you want it and not around him. ayaw din kitang, ma-hurt just because of a guy. soon, you'll be walking down the aisle with the man of your dreams. don't rush. he's just around the corner.

well... no long message for you girl. pakabait ka, and wag masyadong magpaka-workaholic. take good care of your health.

luv u!

short message for maan:

miss you na sis. we will see you soon. wag masyadong magpapagod, take care of lil kuchi... hehehe.... and wag parating mang-aaway nang asawa ah. always be patient with everything, and keep your communication lines open with your hubby.

luv u!

to my sisters, always bear with me ah, maldita talga ako at medyo may kasungitan. basta, may topak man o wala, we will always be friends, and luv ko pa rin kayo. take care. *muah*

p.s. i would also like to address a message for an old friend of mine, one of arnold and i's fave friends, my superfriend, onteng.

short message for onteng:

hey teng! how have you been? if my sister hasn't passed away, hindi pa tayo magkikita. reminder po, i think you still owe arnold and i a dinner. hahahaha.... anyhow, it's a dinner that anna and i had talked about a loooooong time ago. i think that was sometime in january pa, after our wedding. maybe we may try the one that cynch frequents, Taste of LA. curious ako eh... anyhow, magpakabait ka parati, take care of anna (wag mong aabusuhin ang kabaitan... hehehe...), take care of nanay and tatay. speaking of tatay, wag mong aawayin parati, habaan mo ang pisi mo, he's getting old and nagiging sensitive na pag ganyan. tigilan mo na rin pakikipaglandian kay tita **j, baka ma-typecast ka na nyan. hehehehe.... sympre, concern din ako syo. *wink* pakita ka naman nang madalas sa amin, miss ka na namin noh. miss ko na yon nang-ookray lang tayo sa gradschool, yon ice cream moments natin before tayo umuwi from class, yon barya-baryang pambayad natid sa pay parking hahahaha... (btw, maganda na daw ang improvement nang pay parking ngayon, may qsr's na daw like mcdo and kfc), yon get-up mong sporty (complete with the shoebag and the badminton racket) when attending class, at yon mga kwentuhan natin sa last row nang classroom habang may reporting sa class ni cabangski. hehehehe..... at sympre, miss ko rin ang mga kikay talks natin, at lantarang and to-your-face na panlalait. miss na kita dude! pag punta mo pala dito sa bahay, dala ka nang madaming food ah. parang trip ko ata kfc, yon bucket ah. heheheh... take care. *hugs*

My New Housemates

2006-06-22T20:01:00.000+08:00

since arnold is away for a week, i invited my friends, evy, sheggz and jacqui over to stay in my place for one week. only evy and sheggz are able to stay for 3-4 nights and jacqui will only be staying over of a night.

tonight is our third night together. on our first first night, only evy stayed over then. a lil misunderstanding occurred that night but we were able to resolve it the following day... hehehehe.... petty lang naman... maldita kasi ako eh. hehehehe...

sheggz arrived yesterday night, she came all the way from cavite. i told her that if she's in manila, she can always stay over my place. she's currently in manila looking for a job and busy preparing for the pbb auditions. oh well.... she's so much of a pbb fanatic. when she got here, we had dinner, and shared with us her pbb adventures. then, right after dinner, she went straight to blogging, and almost ignored us while evy and i were fooling around before we hit the sack.

jacqui will be here on friday night after work. she's very busy with work and having client calls this week at batangas, and she can't afford to have late night kulitan. hehehe...

all three of us slept on one bed with my rocko. hehehehe... nag-fit naman kami. hahahahah......

btw, besides the 3 girlfriends that i mentioned, there's also maan, though, she can not come over and sleep over my place, because she's pregnant with their first baby. we surely miss you maan. take good care of our inaanak. luv u!

these girls are like sisters to me. God has given me 4 more sisters, and i'm very thankful. we have each other as our support system, always available for one another and looking after each other. although, we are all dysfunctional, mababait at magaganda naman kme... hehehe....

so, if you excuse me... we still have more girl bonding to do.

tata!

p.s.... mark "kuya mark", arnold's cousin, is also staying over our place indefinitely to keep us company, most especially when arnold's away. he has a good incentive naman. he can use my brother's car anytime he wants or arnold's car or my car, may gas allowance pa sya from arnold. not bad, dba? *wink*

Movie Marathon

2006-06-19T18:35:00.000+08:00

it's the first time that we saw two movies, both in the same day. we saw the movies, the lake house and the fast and the furious: tokyo drift

we saw the the lake house first. i've heard that it is a remake of the korean film, il mare, but i don't exactly know what it was all about. well, the movie is about two people who met and fell in love by writing each other notes and leaves it in a mailbox by "the lake house" that they both lived in at different times. the twist of the story is... they are 2 years apart. the movie for me is very nice, really romantic... imagine having a guy wait for you for 4 years, not seeing you at all and no communication of any means, that's really something. though, the plot may seem unrealistic... but it will still make you realize how good it feels to fall in love.

second movie that we saw was the fast and the furious: tokyo drift. hmmm.... not much to tell on the movie's storyline. but this i gotta say... I WANT TO LEARN HOW TO DRIFT!!! hahahaha.... we've been to tokyo early this year, and i kept asking my hubby, "how come i did not see cars like the ones they used in the movie?", and "where in tokyo are those underground parties and races?" oh well... the next time we are in japan, i have to find where that party is, and drift on that mountain (whatever the mountain's name is). hehehe....

btw, before the 2 movies, we were at a friend's wedding for lunch, and went to jorge's portrait studio for the proof-reading of our album layout. well, kwento next time on the wedding. lemme me proceed with our wedding album layout. it's pretty neat!!!! ang galing! we're really satisfied with jorge's portrait's work. ang galing talaga! i hope i can post some of the layouts... unfortunately, we don't have a copy because we personally visited the studio and had the proof-reading there. i'll keep you guys posted on the when we're getting our album and our BIG portrait in canvass. hehehe... makes me wonder... where will i put that portrait in our home??? hmmm...

oh well...

To My Dad

2006-06-18T09:29:00.000+08:00

it's father's day today, and it's been a long time since we celebrated father's day, mother's day, birthdays, anniversaries, christmas day and new year's day together as a family. ever since my parents with 2 youngest siblings migrated to america in 2000, most family occassions are celebrated through phone calls.

to all the father's out there, Happy Father's Day! and to my dad, HAPPY FATHER'S DAY DADDY! you are the best dad in the whole wide world. i love you daddy.

Minette Calo Queyquep (15 Nov. 1979 - 27 May 2006)

2006-06-14T19:28:00.000+08:00

There is no way to replace my sister, Minette in our lives. Her kind and loving gestures, her inquisitive and independent nature, her love of poems and music and all words written and spoken, her healthy approach to being a people person, all these attributes are rare when embodied in one person. We recognize how enamored of her we felt during her life and embrace that feeling now, as we, her family, remain behind to complete our lives to the best of our abilities.

As little kids, I remember Minette as a cute chubby little girl, who grew up to be a cute bubbly lady, our "Ladybug". She always has friends over our place doing school projects, practicing for school plays, or just having sleepovers. She was a very good sister and friend, always giving support to everyone around her, and also very generous, just like our parents to family and friends. She's always there to cheer up the people around her. Her laughter is contagious. We shared the same bedroom in our home and she always shares a million stories about any topic that she could think of before we go to bed. This is one thing that i am missing about her. Her stories are like a lullaby to me. I will always miss her stories and her laughter.

Minette was a Giver. She gave of her time, so generously, and was always there for me and our brothers, when we needed a friend. She was also there for her friends, always providing an ear, making light of things with her humour, and filling you in on her latest escapades. Minette remembered what was important to the people in her life, and she would touch base with you about that with openness and a wise, quick comment here or there to keep the conversation going.

Friendship was so very important to my sister. She treasured the friends she met through school and college. Minette loved the friends she met in California, she created special bonds with them, that have had a special place in her life.

Minette's life was nurtured and touched by the strong love and profound dedication of our mom and our dad. You could not find better parents than Cecille and Jun.

Minette's death is a big loss to me, my brothers, Brian and Michael and our parents. We are here to celebrate her life, and to always remember that we will always have each other as a family and as our own support system. She is reminding us now to value our family and friendships, and to be strong for each other no matter what.

To my dear sister, Minette, you will always be loved and always be remembered through the years.

Ate Minette, here is our song... Dancing In The Moonlight

Marc Brian's Eulogy

LSS

2006-05-14T17:02:00.000+08:00

it's been 2 months now since i first heard Howie Day's song, Collide from one of jason magbanua's onsite avp. i downloaded the mp3, played it on my pc, played it in my car, and play it again when i get home... walang kasawa-sawa. hehehe...

it's a pretty nice song actually. should you want to hear it, click on the link... Howie Day - Collide

One Proud Mom... to our Rocko

2006-05-14T11:40:00.000+08:00

been sicky for the whole week, and still sick with the colds and cough virus. though, called in sick at work for a day, only a day, because of some work that needs to be done asap. oh well... so much for all the vacay that i've had...

today is mother's day, and to all the mothers out there, Happy Mother's Day to you! to my mommy, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO YOU MOM!

this mother's day thing has kept me thinking this morning.... i thought i'd compose a good message and forward to all the mothers that i know.... and i was also thinking, "ako kaya, kelan magiging mother?" oh well... we'll get there... dba nga, there's a reason for everything. so, baka, i'm not yet ready to be a mom, or baka, there are still other stuff that i need to settle before giving me the responsibility of taking care of a baby. nobody knows... and i believe that patience is a virtue. arnold and i were talking the other night, having one of our quiet, quality-time moments, i asked him if wants to have kids already, and he said yes, but he can wait; and if we can not have one soon, he's fine with having more rockos, some will be black and some will be yellow. rocko is our 5yo lab. he's been our baby eversince. and we're proud to be his humans, aka parents. hahahaha...

i don't wanna be all mushy with all these mother's day thingy... again to all the mothers out there, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Rabbit's Foot

2006-05-08T00:59:00.000+08:00

if you've seen tom cruise's latest stint, i'm sure, you'll be asking what is a rabbit's foot?

some may say that a rabbit's foot is some kind of a goodluck charm. but in this movie it is used as a MacGuffin. the rabbit's foot here is a some biohazard, though, it was not exactly mentioned in the film, but the symbol indicated it. on what kind of biohazard, that i also don't know. hehehehe...

my opinion on the film? well.... it's ok..... i guess, i like jackie chan movies better. tom cruise, by the way really and still looks good. hehehehe... truly an eye candy!

Lending a Helping Hand

2006-05-06T16:40:00.000+08:00

lately, i've been trying to help out a couple of my friends scheduled to get married within the year. one will marry on may and the other on october. i've been sharing with them some pointers and lessons that i've learned through my own wedding preparations five months ago.

these people are two of my super friends who have been there with me in good and bad times. they were also there trying to help out in my wedding preps. this time around, it is my turn to willingly offer my services to them. this is not just a "help me out thing", they actually asked me to help me out and nicely and discreetly asked if i can lookover the things that need to be done come wedding day. well... i kinda said yes... but not promises...

they've been seeking my opinion and frequently asking for suggestions on how to go about their wedding. i always tell them that whatever the bride and the groom wants will be delivered on their wedding day, but of course everything with proper planning and coordination. although, i'm a bit masungit at times, i still work with them with patience. this is not my wedding, but theirs. i already spoke with my sisters-in-law if they are willing to help out if in case my marrying friends need more than a pair of hands to work on their wedding, they openly accepted the offer. thanks armi and judy. *muah*

so, we've been planning their big day/s (days nalang kse 2 sila eh) for some time now. the activities and plans for the may wedding are now falling into place. btw, this wedding is a quick-quick preps wedding. something like, 3 or 4 mos preps. the groom has been the one doing most of the leg work, and he's been the one seeking my advice on wedding stuff. hehehe.... swerte naman nang bride... so far, the groom has been very cooperative when i tell him the stuff that needs to be done. not only him who's wishing everything will work as planned on his wedding day, i too is having the same sentiments because i've been with him from the start of his preps. good luck to you, wandypooh. wishing you all the best.

to my friends who have given their trust to me and my sisters, thank you. we really appreciate it. *muah*

Free and Available

2006-05-06T16:13:00.000+08:00

getting the hung of blogging again. i've been trying to visit the blog sites that i used to check-out. suprisingly, hindi lang pala ako ang tinatamad mag blog. hehehehe... though, i discovered there are a few blog newbies that i know. i will definitely frequent their blogs now.

arnold just got back from their business planning activity in mimosa. when he got home, his friend from college is already waiting for him to check-out my car. yes, we are selling my civic. his friend is very much interested, but a couple of days ago had second thoughts on getting a car because she has to go back to america sooner than expected. she said she'll be giving us her decision on the car by sunday, coz she really wanted to pay
for my car already when she got the call.

we've been getting some inquiries about the car since we've advised our friends about selling. most of the inquiries are from interested friends, and some are from friends who have a large network of car people who wants to help us sell (of course, we will be providing them a "finder's fee").

on what car to replace my old car with??? well.... let's just wait and see... i don't want to disclose anything yet until, the unit has been ordered. *wink*

as free and available that i feel i am this weekend, i guess my hubby will be busy entertaining friends who want to see the car.

we are also scheduled to see MI3 this weekend, not today though, most likely tomorrow evening. arnold has been excited to see this movie for quite some time now.

Homecoming

2006-05-05T11:38:00.000+08:00

what had happened in the past 6 months?

i married! on a very beautiful, though rainy day of the 10th of december 2005, arnold and i said our vows.
been lazy blogging. i want to think that i've been very busy the past 6 mos... hehehe...
got a laptop as christmas present from my hubby.
been to palawan (el nido resorts) for our honeymoon.
been to japan (tokyo and yokohama) for our 2nd honeymoon.
been to laiya with family and our rocko during the holy week.
been to bolinao with hubby and sisters-in-law -- very beautuful place.
had basic photography lessons, and have been taking better photos since. *wink*
four of my close friends finally decided to tie the knot this year.
my friend, maan got married last month, and is now on the way to motherhood. *congratulations sis!*
beginning to be smart with money decisions.
trying to be a dedicated wife.
hubby is planning on getting me a new car. although, it's quite sad that i have to say bye to "my car"

that's all for now. btw, our wedding video is ready for viewing. should you wish to watch it, drop us a line.

tata!

*** sorry for the inconvenience. the photo slide really takes a while to load. i hope you'll stay longer to be able to view the photos. i'll be updating the photo list from time to time. ***

23 Days More of Single Blessedness

2005-11-17T20:00:00.000+08:00

we're now on our final leg, and i think i'm now in PANIC MODE!!!! waaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh......

our coordinator, jeng, said that everything is already in place. we just have to schedule our final meetings with the suppliers, and buy some stuff/materials (konti nalang 'to!) that we will need for the wedding. i guess, it is safe to say that we're 92% complete!

awaiting my sister, brothers, mom and dad... and my fiancè, of course!

30 Days More of Single Blessedness

2005-11-10T20:09:00.000+08:00

we're almost done. just the details, details and details. plus, the immediate family of the bride.

still too busy to make updates. i'm now keeping a daily to-do list. wish me luck!

45 Days To Go

2005-10-26T08:43:00.000+08:00

it's been a very hectic october for arnold and i. we had to finalize the guestlise, print the invitation tags, do the sketch (thanks to our dear friend, luletteski), get the guest passes from gazebo royale, tag the invitations, see hizon's for the food tasting, and scout for a barong supplier. oh well...

tthe guest list, tagging the invitations and doing the sketch took us 2-3 loooong nights to accomplish. wwwwaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!! i miss hitting the sack at 9 or 10 pm!!! everyday was a zombie night for us. we have to stay up til 230am to finish everything. and FINALLY!!! the invitations are now ready for distribution. we have distributed a few, and we'll be making rounds on the weekend again. we also asked a friend (thanks Christian!) who frequents pangasinan to drop-off the invitations for my relatives in dagupan. this time, arnold has to do his part in distributing the invites, unlike, what he did with our save-the-date cards. gggrrrrrrrr...

our entourage had their first fitting 2 weeks ago, except for 4 girls na pasaway. hehehehe... these pasaway girls will have their fitting tomorrow evening. they better be there, or else they'll be getting a good spanking. d=p hey girls! you listening???

we also accomplished the printing of the misalletes and tying a couple. armi will help us out with the tying of the misalletes. thanks ate armi! hopefully, it'll be done by the weekend to have it distributed to the participants of our ceremony.

i'm still looking for a way to distribute the invitations to the US. a very efficient and reliable courier service, and affordable, as well. i dunno how much is arnold's budget for this, but it looks like he's not spending 1.5k for this. oh no!!!

the girls and i have been looking around the powerplant mall and the galleria for their shoes/sandals and my bridal shoes the past weekend. unfortunely, wala kaming makitang maganda! i'll be looking around the sm mall nearest my place tonight (i'll see you later juzette.), i know there are a few pieces that are worth buying, plus, they are inexpensive, and within my budget, which is 500 pesos tops! (thanks jacque for the tip) heheheheh... i don't want to spend a fortune on my bridal shoes, since, i know, i'll most likely be wearing this once.

we're scheduled to see our prospect barong supplier in mandaluying on saturday, the 29th. hopefully, siya na! we're barely 2 months away, and i'm getting worried for arnold's trousseau.

had our actual food tasting on the 23rd. arnold was happy with our choices. we also settled 50% of the total cost to hizon's.

another accomplishment over the past weeks is our repertoirè for the reception. had it email to velvet mood for evaluation. finally! i've been battling with my thoughts for the past 4 months thinking of how to sort my list.

i was pissed off with AO Sweets. i will not go into details on this. basta, hindi ako bilib sa kanila, they can not even deliver the design that i want! bottomline, i'm no longer getting them for the favors. we're reconsidering our plan A for the wedding favors, i.e. donating to a charitable institution. before the entertaining the thought of reconsidering, there was the option of giving away truffles, but turned out that is impractical, primarily because it's expensive. although, an acquintance is offering 35 for a truffle incluling the packaging and the tag. hmmm..... parang ayoko na rin...

good news! we now have our marriage license! i recall a friend telling me, that once we have a marriage license, we already half married. hehehehe.... true kaya? i'll sort my feelings pa on this one. too preoccupied with the wedding preps.

i have my wedding bann and my permission from my town's parish church. we're claiming arnold's on nov 2nd.

the honeymoon is now official! it's a 4d/3n in el nido miniloc! we'll leave on dec 13th and be back in manila on the 16th, enough time to bond with mommy before she leaves for ny. i'll be purchasing my honeymoon swimsuit and my honeymoon lingerie. ***excited*** hehehehehe.....

i'll be getting in touch with imagineer for our avp this weekend.

we're also scheduled to submit our church requirements on the 2nd week of november, plus the interview. wish us luck! d=D

it's almost the end of the month, need to update our finances again for november. well... well... well... kaya pa naman nang milyones namin... hehehe.... we wish... d=D

58 Days To Go

2005-10-13T19:18:00.000+08:00

at 8 this morning we applied for a marriage license at the quezon city hall. the release of the license is on the 20th.

more updates! arnold will have his confirmation on the 15th at san miguel church at 230 in the afternoon.

on the same saturday, our female entourage will have their fitting at 10am.

62 Days To Go

2005-10-09T21:59:00.000+08:00

i've finally uploaded the photos from our UST shoot.

click image to view more photos

it was again a long day for arnold and i. we attended arlen's son, lorenzo miguel's baptism at Manila Cathedral and reception at Skyline Restaurant.

we saw the same old faces, david, jojo and gladys. hehehehe...

then, we headed to medical city to visit christina. she gave birth to a baby boy, clarence miguel.

last stop, sm north edsa. arnold was looking through the tailors, comparing their quality of work, so, he'll be able to decide what he needs and what he wants for his barong on the wedding. we also looked around for favors for our principal sponsors. unfornately, books are so appealing to him. we saw this nice and unique framed jeepney

and this nice mini chest, as suggested by tita ime.

since christmas is just around the corner... christmas ornaments are now on sale at the mall. arnold had a couple photos with santa.

63 Days To Go

2005-10-08T14:51:00.000+08:00

to those who are asking when is the big day...

63 days more... the guest list is killing me!!! we have a loooong guest list. total number of invited guests is 397, and the number of guests likely to attend is 329. whoa!!!! can we afford over 300 guests??? uh oh...

the printing of the name tags for the invitations is almost complete. well, arnold's petron guest list are still in process. we have allotted 13 invitations for them, though. we've been calling up family and friends asking who and who won't make it on our wedding day. it's quite surprising that some of the unexpected guests are trying to confirm their attendance. unfortunately, most of my relatives from america are not attending because it's a peak season and the kids are not yet on school break. but... the good news is my youngest brother will be on my wedding day to grace my entourage.

my sister will be home on november 24th. mom is flying out of ny on november 28th, daddy on december 2nd, and my youngest brother on december 6th. our principal sponsors who are also coming from america will be home right before december 10th, except for an aunt in california who won't make it.

in a short while, arnold and i will be scouting for a tailor for his barong. yes! he's now wearing a barong. finally, daddy agreed to wear one, and gave up on insisting that he's wearing a suit/tuxedo. hehehehe... don't worry daddy, you still look good on a barong.

fitting of the entourage dresses/gowns is on october 15th. reminding the female members of our entourage, please make yourselves available on the 15th. thanks.

we have submitted our marriage banns at our respective parishes. wala naman sigurong tutul sa kasal, hindi ba? hehehe...

something i've learned the other night during our meeting with our coordinator and the florist... it's still possible at the city hall to secure a marriage license without appearance and without submitting the requirements. cool sana, pero, parang hindi fair... you have to pay php2k, though. how much will it actually cost to apply for a marriage license, yon legal ah?

our meeting with teddy manuel went well. we discussed the vip table setup, and the new colors for the bouquet of the entourage and the principal sponsors.

the meeting with the coordinator??? tons of things to do on my part. the copy of the guest list. the missalette. the songs (oh no!!! the songs pa pala. need to coordinate this with our music ensemble. paging TENG!!! i need help dude!) for the reception program. the copies of the contract.

that's it for now. watch out for more updates. i'll try to post every day. hehehe... i'll post the prenup photo shoot (part 2) photos very soon!

gtg! bath time!

take care y'all!

The UST Prenuptial Photo Shoot, The Pre-Cana Seminar, The Guestlist

2005-09-27T08:22:00.000+08:00

prenuptial photo shoot at UST

wfinally had the second part of our photo shoot. location was at the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas. it was a rainy friday afternoon. good thing that the rain stopped while we were doing the shoot. we had the shoot at the Arc of the Centuries, the football field (portion only, because of the ongoing soccer games and training), the botanical garden, the Benavides Monument, the walkway between the arc of the centuries and the benavides monument, and the fountains by the arc of the centuries (which happened to be off at the time of the shoot because of the on & off rain pour). I was convincing arnold to do a shoot at the Colayco Park, but unfortunately, ayaw niya. He's reason was there are a lot of students who hung out at the colayco park, and sobrang nakakahiya. we'll be having a large audience. hahahaha...

i'll be posting the photos once i have the time to reduce and upload to my photo album.

pre-cana seminar

on the 24th of this month, we had our pre-cana seminar at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Shrine Parish. the facilitators are really good. they have relayed well what the soon-to-web couples need to know about marriage life, resposible parenthood, and family life. the facilitators even gave their home and mobile numbers, if any of the participants need counselling or help with pregnancy and/or family planning, or help with anything at all, except financial matters lang daw. hehehehe...

missalette

while we were at the church during the seminar, we already got the corrections on our missalette. i'll have the corrections in the revised copy and have it approved again at the church. actually, i already printed the copy. i'll bring it over to new manila for approval.

guestlist

arnold and i have been battling with our list! wwwwaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!! we now have 380+ guests. the computed "likely to attend" is 320. we're now doing the tentative table assignments for the invitations. our target for distribution is the first week of october for the guests outside the philippines, and 3rd and/or 4th week of october for the guests within the philippines. fyi! we prefer cash gifts! bwahahahahahhaha!!!!! but before anything else, we'll be printing name tags for the invites. this is another work load for me. huhuhuhu.......

The Invitations

2005-09-18T00:32:00.000+08:00

after the photo shoot, we headed to printlane's office to get the 170 pieces of invitations. this is now another load of work. we have to finalize, i mean really really finalize the guest list; and prepare the invitation tags with the names of the guests. plus, we already ordered from gazebo royale 400 pieces of guest pass.

i'll start doing the layout and print the tags once i have the list of complete names of the guests. i also need to look for a string to hold the tags on the invitation ribbon. it'll be something silver, that's like as thick as a strand of hair.

the guest pass will be enclosed in the invitation. the guest pass printing is due before the end of the month.

hopefully, by the 1st week of october, the invitations are ready for distribution.

click images for a larger view

It Really Did Rain

2005-09-17T22:49:00.000+08:00

had our prenuptial photo shoot yesterday, and my trial makeup with eddie bruan.

we, arnold and i were up at 5am, and had our trial make up with eddie at 6am. aga noh?! eddie has an early call time for a wedding. so, to accomodate us, we made an early appointment. arnold and i were happy and satisfied with our trial makeup with eddie bruan, and even if it's already late in the afternoon, the makeup is still ok. and i like what he did to my hair. i had curls yesterday. d=P

the photo shoot was also yesterday. we're suppose to shoot at three locations, (a) jorge's portrait studio, (b) gazebo royale, and (c) ust. because of the non-stop rains yesterday, we only had a studio shoot and at gazebo royale. now, that's anong letter of request to shoot at ust. *sigh* sana kanina nalang umulan... d=(

jorge's portrait gave us all the photos from the shoot. ang dami!!!! that's more than 400 photos! some of the photos will be used for the photo guestbook and some for the avp. we still want to shoot at ust, though. it's a very special place for both of us. *wink* we chose only 20 photos from the 400+. the people at jorge's said that it's like a practice, because only around 10% of the actual photos from the wedding will be selected for the album.

arnold sooooooo love the photos from the shoot. he was even more excited than i am. but i've noticed that he's a bit camera shy. hehehehe...

click image to view more photos

Rainy Photo Shoot

2005-09-15T20:05:00.000+08:00

tomorrow is our schedule for the prenuptial photo shoot. and guess what?! it's raining!!! hahahaha... well, can we do anything about the rain? i don't think so... we'll just have to make the most out of it.

more updates after the shoot. can't think straight right now. i'm probably excited. hehehehe...

this our rocko sandwich

"ber" Month Wedding Update I

2005-09-08T20:36:00.000+08:00

missalette

finally we've completed the draft missalette. jeng, our coordinator, had reviewed it, and we will be submitting a copy to our lady of mount carmel shrine parish for approval.

invitation

on the 31st of august, we ordered our 170 pieces of invites. we also did a couple or three proof readings. the invitations are now ready for pick-up on the 16th.

MIL dress

met up with john abul at his shop for the measurements of my soon-to-be-mother-in-law. her dress will be in her birthstone color, aquamarine. the dress is nice and elegant.

that day we met up was a rainy afternoon, and the metro was heavy with traffic! i was a little pissed because i'm trying to beat time, because john has a 6pm appointment then, and there's nothing i can do because of the traffic jam. good thing that i got to his place just right on time.

fortunately when i got home, my arnold is already home watching tv. he drove all the way from cagayan just to see me... heheheh.... just kidding... because of work, actually.

cake

had my cake tasting with virginia cakes yesterday, we went over the details of the cake, and decided on a cake flavor. we decided on a carrot cake. this became a good choice since arnold does not like "too sweet" sweets. ms. virgie gave me bite sizes of her carrot and chocolate cake. arnold was indeed happy with the taste of virginia cakes' carrot cake. btw, we also made a 50% down payment. and the other 50% will be settled 7 days before the event.

honeymoon

i was in my mood of bugging arnold for him to make arrangements for our honeymoon. he promised to advise me after the 6th. so, on the night of the 6th, he called me up on my celly on his way home from work, and guess what?! he won the trip for our honeymoon. arnold has been working his ass 24/7 and topped their company's credit contest for 4 consecutive quarters, which made him the top ASE in the reseller group. his prize is a trip for 2 to any local destination. so, palawan it is! now, i have the perfect excuse to buy the pink-striped bikini swimsuit i've been eyeing. *wink*

the news made me more excited on the honeymoon than the wedding. it feels like it's more fun packing for the honeymoon than actually preparing for the wedding. hahahahaha...

prenuptial photo shoot

the photo shoot is officially scheduled on the 16th. finally!!!! we'll be having it on three locations, jorge's portrait studio, gazebo royale, and ust (i'll provide them our request tomorrow). i told arnold that i can no longer think and decide on a game plan for the shoot, the clothes to wear, the shoes, the shirt color, etc, etc, etc. he seems more excited than i am. hahahahahaha... so, told him, that he decide and i'll prepare the materials necessary. even told him, "feeling model ka ah!" hehehe...

Wedding Errands for the Day

2005-08-29T19:45:00.000+08:00

today is a holiday for all government employees and no school for the kids. i was given a chance to do some errands for the wedding, of course. since i am considering hiring a professional to do our avp, and decided for judy to take a rest since hindi sya dapat mapagod because of her "weight gain program". hehehe... actually, the cost is pretty much the same. well, in comparison to the rates of imagineer digital. saw their flyers, and "why not?! these are pretty good rates."

now, i'm not only thinking of getting him for the avp, but for also getting him as a second team for our photography in the wedding. hay... have to discuss this with my arnold first. baka mag freak out. hehehehe... sana mag bigay sila nang big discounts, as in like 50%. hehehehe...

i also saw print lane this afternoon for the proof reading. sana, last na to. para we can move on to the printing of the invites.

after seeing frank of imagineer, the girls (armi & judy) and i had lunch at heaven n eggs. i was really starving then since i did not have breakfast. we arrived at imagineer's place at around 1030, then left at 130. grabe! sobrang ma-kwento si frank. i didn't expect na ganon sya kadaldal, and we will stay at their office/place that long. when, i saw him at milett and jojo's wedding, he was kinda the quiet type, i thought. hindi pala. sobrang kulit pala! imagine ah, he was in his pambahay, and his shirt ata is butas pa. hehehehe... kulit talga! anyhow, ok sya kausap. the girls even like him and felt comfortable with him.

i just hope that we can still afford him... prayers can do miracles, dba? *wink*

W@W Grand EB

2005-08-28T18:37:00.000+08:00

i attended the w@w grand eb last night at oasis, and finally got to meet van, mama benz and the other brides-to-be. the event was a success despite the rains. it's nice to meet the people behind the mails that you try to read everyday, the people behind the emoticons in the daily chat conferences, and the people behind the blogs you've been reading, and some having them as inspirations for your wedding. all of them, the w@wies are really friendly. they all wore their happy faces together with their party moods.

i guess every w@wie is now looking forward to the w@w christmas party.

here are some photos of the event:

oh btw, the wedding expo at the nbc tent is on the 3rd. the w@wies might be planning for another mini eb's at the fair.

Invites Proof Reading

2005-08-24T23:28:00.000+08:00

we are now working on the invites' final wordings. print lane has already emailed the draft. so far, everything is good. we will just be requesting for a change in the time indicated at the invitation card, the date format in the reception card, and the change in name of one of our lil bearers.

that's all for now

tata!

Photos of Kahihiyan

2005-08-24T08:43:00.000+08:00

here are some photos during our presentation yesterday. sobrang nakakahiya. we definitely did not rock this time. dang!

see more photos

Another Project Management Sing & Dance Presentation

2005-08-22T21:55:00.000+08:00

tomorrow is another company activity at work. it's our company president's birthday, and like what our organization always does, kissing ass (hehehe...), there is a tribute for the president. once again, we will be dancing for the president, with the project management group managers singing.

these are the people who i will grace our presentation...

confused randy. the new PM VP

Gomez Addams & Morticia Addams

gilbert, MH ka dyan! ikaw ba si Uncle Fester???

beautiful faces of Proj Mgt

Updates... Updates... Updates...

2005-08-21T20:16:00.000+08:00

been working on my wedding preps lately. here are the updates:

missalette

finally! i have now a complete draft of the missalette for our wedding ceremony. including all the songs to be used. it took me three days. my sheggz shook me to my senses which made me realize that i need to prioritize. the wedding is only 3 and a half months away.

draft copies of the missalette should have reached the mailbox of my coordinator, jeng, for review.

invitation

arnold took a day off work friday last week. we visited print lane for our invites, browsed through the samples, and finally decided on an invitation design. we brought along our invitation and reception card wordings, and our entourage list. we were prepared. since, it was my second visit to print lane, and print lane was like the 3rd invitation supplier, i know pretty much what to ask and how to address my requirements. ms beth was very accomodating, as always. she gave us reasonable rates, i.e. 60 pesos for an invitation. since we are ordering 170 pieces, that's php10.2k, and it's definitely within budget. this made arnold a very happy groom. hehehehe...

church requirements

medyo baligtad yon kwento... heheheh... thursday last week, we visited our lady of mt carmel shrine parish to set a date for the prenuptial seminar, and the requirements. ms colette gladly helped us out on scheduling the things that we need to accomplish before the wedding. from there, we set the dates for the confirmation of my groom, the pre-nuptial seminar, the application of the marriage license, the posting of the marriage banns to our respective parishes, and the submission of the wedding requirements.

bridal gown fitting

on the same thursday, arnold accompanied me to my designer, john abul, for my initial fitting. the gown looks ok, bare, of course. hehehe... the fitting went well, they'll be doing more adjustments. it's quite loose, seems like i am one size smaller. heheheh... john mentioned that he'll be making the top fully beaded. this is a plus for me. then, he'll be adding more bones on the top for support, and since i won't be wearing a bra because i can't find one for backless dresses that will fit my petite bodice (why on earth do they sell american sizes here in the philippines?! asian women are definitely not as big as caucasians! hello?!)

2nd fitting is on the 24th. oh my... sana makita ko na yon ganda nang gown...

arnold's mom is scheduled for her measurements to be taken on the 27th. sana magustuhan nya yon design ni john...

my groom's baptismal certificate

we also visited st joseph parish in aurora blvd friday last week after print lane to request for arnold's baptismal certificate. unfortunately, there are some details in the records that needs correction. so, we'll be doing follow-ups within the week.

our schedule

2 sept 2005

cake tasting with virginia cakes and will discuss the details of the cake for the wedding

16 sept 2005

trial make up with eddie bruan
prenuptial photo shoot

23 sept 2005

arnold's confirmation

24 sept 2005

prenuptial seminar at our lady of mt carmel shrine parish @ 8am-5pm

1-2 oct 2005

submit marriage banns for posting at our respective parishes
request for a permit to marry from my parish

24-28 oct 2005

apply for marriage license

5-6 nov 2005

submit church requirements at our lady of mt carmel parish

10 dec 2005

get married! hahahaha...

other schedules

i'm seeing my graduate school girlfriends on fri, the 26th. it's been a while since we last saw each other.

let's call it a night. i'll be watching nasan ka man tonight before i hit the sack. good night y'all!

Rainy Day

2005-08-12T18:29:00.000+08:00

it's been raining non-stop the whole day today. another "bed" weather. but my luvy duvy is not coming home tonight. he has a work commitment in pangasinan with his boss. so, he'll be home tomorrow night. nobody to share the bed tonight. d=(

today is pilates day. because of the damn weather, i'll miss the class. i can't drive with the threatening rain, and there might be flooded roads on the way to greenhills, or when i drive home late tonight. i don't think i can handle that, most especially with my knight in shining armour away. i was already in east avenue when i decided to go home instead. so, here i am sharing my thoughts...

Happy Birthday Nard!

tomorrow night nard is celebrating his birthday at the redwood bar and resto in tomas morato ave. we'll most likely see the familiar petron faces with their betterhalves.

now what?! i'll most likely resort to reading for tonight. big day tomorrow.

o sya! gtg. take care y'all.

Crushin' Over Someone -- tama ba yon title ko? hehehe

2005-08-11T11:24:00.000+08:00

my dear friend, teng, messaged me yesterday with this:

teng: i just realized yon crush ko dito sa office kamukha mo pala! shyet.
maricel: hahaha. maganda, dba? *smiles*
teng: cge na nga! *smiles*
maricel: agree ka naman pala eh. mukhang ang tagal mong inisip ah. hehehe...
teng: nagulat lang ako kasi bigla ko naisip yon nung nakatingin ako kanina...
maricel: hahaha... paano ko naman nakahawig? baka naman miss mo lang ako. *smiles*
teng: long hair. pointy nose. small face. check her na lang sa friendster. her entry is anna paula.
maricel: tumataas na ang level nang taste mo ah. hehehehe...
teng: ang weird nang feeling! may halong tuwa at diri. mwehehehehehehehe...
maricel: alright. cge pag uwi ko.

i dunno if it's a compliment with what teng told me. teng and i has been friends for a long time, and we're really comfortable with each other. i can even ask him to check if my pants have been stained if i have my period. he even walks and bends over around our place without notice in his sexy shorts. hehehe.... we talk and ask about anything to each other without embarassment, and masaya kaming nag-gaga-guhan! hehehehe....

so now, lemme check friendster. hmmm...

teng, i found an anna paola from your friends' list. sya ba yon crush mo? hindi ko naman kamukha eh. feeling ko she looks like jolina. she's cute, btw. and she looks sweet, and ako, i feel, i look bitchy. hehehe...

due to insistent public demand, i decided to change the photo of teng's apple of the eye to a thumbnail size. kindly click on the photo for a larger view. ayan onteng, maliit na ah.

attractiveness is subjective, i believe. normally, attractiveness to a person is whom he/she finds ordinary. someone who is average looking. this is more appealing than the ones with the perfect facial symmetry. ever wondered why we are so attracted to people who looks like our siblings or cousins, people whom we live with or spend most of our time with? this probably explains the "average thought".

Busy, Busy, Busy

2005-08-09T09:44:00.000+08:00

this is my new schedule, if i can religiously follow it. hehhehehe....

monday @ abs cbn club:

jam @ 730
hiphop @ 830

tuesday @ greenhills club:

toning exercises @ 530

wednesday @ abs cbn club:

pilates @ 530

thursday @ abs cbn club:

jam @ 530

friday @ greenhills club:

jam @ 630
pilates @ 730

saturday @ greenhills club:

jam @ 1100
toning exercises @ 1230

btw, teacher rio is in the abs cbn club on wednesday mornings for the jam and hiphop. i want to attend his class but i have work. unless... i'll skip working on wednesday mornings. hahahaha.... hi ate judy! date with rio, huh? hmp!

i may also skip the jam classes on thursdays. baka masyado na kong mapagod non. hehehe...

i was a loner last night. i attended the dance classes alone. the girls are sicky. it was fun! finally memorized the steps! hehehehe... but for the hiphop class, it's still fun! and fast! and a bit difficult! it's ok though. i'm able to follow this time. we'll see next time, how i'll do. *wink*

wedding updates

jeng has already emailed the contract for the coordination services. we'll be wiring the 50% downpayment.

the fitting of the entourage (femme) is on october 15th. on the day of the fitting we'll be covering the 50% payment to tet.

i just realized... until arnold decides on who will be his best man, that's the time we will be able to order the invitations. oh well... we'll talk before the week ends, and try to schedule everything. i spoke with hizon's a week ago and we'll see them very soon to pay the 50% of our wedding package. wwwwwaaaaaaahhhhh..... sabay sabay na ang wedding gastos!!!

Bon Appetit

2005-08-08T09:30:00.000+08:00

arnold came home friday night. kawawa naman. sobrang pagod from driving more than 8 hours.

we had a busy weekend. saturday morning was scheduled for the measurement taking of our female entourage members. everybody was early, except for our flower girl who'll be coming from laguna. because of the rain and traffic, it took them more than 5 hours to get to our place. sheesh! baguio na yon, dba?! our entourage had enough time to talk and get to know each other. my dear friend, raymond prepared baked macaroni, baked potatoes and butterscoth cake. oh my..... this is when it all started.... oops! no pala. it all started on friday afternoon when a coworker (celebrating her birthday) brought in food at work to feed the whole town! hehehehe.....

btw, donna will be wearing the asymmetric necklined gown, angelynn the strapless and chacha the sleeveless wrap-around gown, and all the bridesmaids in strapless gowns.

after everyone left, i took a nap and woke up at 430 to prepare for a business dinner with arnold and his dealer. this dealer is also one of our principal sponsors on the wedding. the dinner was at pasto in greenhills. the meeting was light, everything is not purely business as the last one that we had couple of months ago. we talked a little about the wedding, a little about travelling, and a little about other stuff.

then yesterday, we accompanied one of the flower girls who didn't make it at our place for her measurement to be taken. we had lunch after at greenhills again. heheheh... this time at max's. gabrielle (flower girl) loves chicken.

after lunch, arnold went shopping for the things that he need. had his haircut, shopped for dvd's, and a chocolate mousse, then went home.

hay... kakapagod... good thing is, i am with arnold. so, happy yon weekend *wink*

New Class Schedule

2005-08-05T09:31:00.000+08:00

armi, judy and i attended the dance class last night at the abs cbn club. since it's thursday, it's number-coding day for me, and i can't drive after 3pm, at least i can't pass by edsa. well, the girls picked me up at exactly 5pm. ang aga! very punctual! the class starts at 530 and we were right on time. we even caught the elevator with the intructors. hehehe... and guess what?! arnel is back from his competion in malaysia! good for you ate armi! *wink*

the girls and i browsed through the class schedule, checking out if there are changes and/or updates. well... there is! teacher rio will be doing an additional class on wednesday mornings at the abs cn club, a hiphop dance class!!! great!!! *wink* this is a very good news!!! judy will definitely be attending the wednesday class next week, and i will be joining her! hahahaha.... did somebody asked about work? what work? bwehehehehehehe... i'll still be going to work then, a lil later, after the dance classes. hehehehe...

that's all for now.

The To-Do List

2005-08-04T09:01:00.000+08:00

been thinking about the wedding lately... and how come i feel like i haven't been accomplishing much these days... has the lazybug hit me again. don't feel like it did, though, i want to make a big leap on the preparations... oh well... probably, i need my co-pilot, my fiancè. huhuhu... he'll be back on the weekend, but i don't think he'll be in time to meet the femme ento.

maybe what i need is a big chunk on the preps, something major, like the prenup photo shoot. huhuhu.... kailan kaya??? i promised myself i'll one step at a time, one step at a time, and one step at a time. i think i'm experiencing panic!!!!!!!! wwwaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i've been reading wedding blogs lately, and i've seen their timetable. and makes me think more, where am i in my "timetable"? i think i am lost. help!!!!!

i am back on track on blogging. been browsing through a lot of blogs, and it looks like there are a lot of friendster bloggers these days. one comment though.... the friendster bloggers are fond of posting songs and poems, but no feedback, nothing to trigger a conversation or a discussion, nothing to share but phrases and paragraphs that rhyme. since i'm into reading books... why don't i post the contents of the book?! or since i'm a csi freak, why don't i post the season 5 finale?! hehehehe... in my honest opinion lang po. i don't mean to sound mean hehehehe.... hello to all the w@wie and n@wie chatters! *muah*

hopefully after the meeting with the femme ento and tet, and seeing my hubby, i'll be able to provide real updates. i have a lot in my to-do wedding preps list. i think it's about time that i put it on paper. hehehe...

take care y'all!

Missin Bloggin...

2005-08-03T17:58:00.000+08:00

la lang... i just miss blogging lang... hehehe...

this is ate judy with her new friends in greenhills.

To The Female Members Of My Entourage

2005-08-03T08:17:00.000+08:00

our entourage gown designer, ms. tet hagape will be coming over my place in quezon city to take the measurements of my girls. our appointment is on the 6th, saturday, at 1030 in the morning.

girls, please be there on time. thanks. and don't forget our settlement. luv nyo naman ako dba? *muah* *muah* *muah*

who are these girls?

secondary sponsors:

sheryl santiago
donna dolap
angelynn nagpala

bridesmaids:

armi joy prudencio
judy anne prudencio
juzette agcaoili

flower girls:

samantha mistica
alex, arnold's niece
arnold's goddaughter - carlo's lil girl (forgot the name po eh)

btw, the gowns of the maid of honor (my sister, minette) and the little bride (arnold's goddaughter - buboy's lil girl) will be made by my bridal gown designer, john abul. the details and schedule for their gowns will come a lil later. since, the lil bride's gown will be made similar to the bridal gown, and my sister will be home a month before the wedding.

let's talk about something else...

i have a new message board. it's there somewhere on the right side bar of my blog. somewhere down there... scroll more please... hehehe... it's the third, i think. still trying to find the effective and efficient shout box that will work for me. so... hey y'all! drop me a line!

Maybe There Is...

2005-08-01T20:42:00.000+08:00

hmmm... i think there are some... after 1 month of working out. i think my waistline is now an inch smaller. hehehehe.... plus, my tummy is and feels less flabby. hehehehe... and i notice a slight lost in weight... oh no!!!! am i shrinking?!?!?!?! my bra even feels a bit loose. a bit lang ah! wag exaggerated ang pag-iisip. and my butt!!! i think i am loosing more of it!!! wwwwaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh.....

i realized everything this morning as i am getting dressed for work. my slacks are quite loose now, and my behind is almost gone!!!! wwwwwaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh...... losing weight is not an option for me, since i only weigh a hundred pounds, having a 5-feet to 5-feet and 2-in frame.

solution would be less cardio. that would mean less days on dance classes. oh no.... i have to redo my schedule.

i now have a bridal march song. sun and moon. it's in the miss saigon broadway musical. hey! i know the play is tragic. but i don't think the song is. not during the part where kim and chris are singing sun and moon. oh well... your comments and opinions are welcome. i've been rockin my brains lately thinking of a good if not perfect bridal march song.

for the other songs to be used in the ceremony and the reception. still thinking... btw, did i mention that we'll be doing the tango for our first dance. and now... still thinking on what song to play for that. i want something modern, something upbeat to complement the tango (and a lil hiphop or street dance maybe). so, calling all the music and dance experts out there, i need help people!!! thanks!

that's all for now.

tata!

Certificates

2005-07-27T16:16:00.000+08:00

got my baptismal certificate, and i'll be requesting my confirmation certificate this afternoon after work. arnold and i's birth certificates and the cenomar, will be available on the 1st.

spoke with teng yesterday. i'll be seeing him tomorrow after dance class to discuss the program of songs for the wedding, and so with our first dance. the first dance... well, my mind have been preoccupied with thoughts and visions of this. i'm thinking of tango, and tango mix with hiphop. hehehehe.... the song to be used is something modern, something upbeat that may both be danced with tango and hiphop as well. it's like the movie, save the last dance, where julia stiles danced ballet with hiphop. cool, dba? anyhow, let's wait what will happen after thurs.

been thinking of the things that need to be done for the wedding.... hay..... pressure!!!!!!!!!!

four months to go!!!!!!!!

Updates

2005-07-23T22:50:00.000+08:00

documents

we are now preparing the documents necessary for the wedding, church and civil requirements. spent the afternoon yesterday requesting for original copies of our birth and confirmation certificates. we also requested for copies of our birth certificates and the certificate of no marriage (cenomar) from the nso.

cake

spoke with virgnia cakes again. my date is officially booked and we will be meeting again on the 1st week of september to discuss the detials of the cake.

reception venue

by the end of the month we will be done paying gazebo royale for the upcoming wedding. whew!!! that's a whooping 90k!!!

they finally lifted the corkage on the tiffany chairs. so, that's approximately 13k savings. *wink*

favors

spoke with our coordinator and discussed the favors. the supplier, ao sweets finally got the design i wanted. we will just wait for some minor revisions, and the actual printout of our chocolate wrapper. i just hope they'll deliver good quality, better than expected. heheheh... demanding ba? hahahah...

my rocko

rocko again has a lump on his left elbow, caused by the friction with the floor. poor baby.... he's still on a petroleum jelly medication.

gtg now. nite y'all!

The Knee, The Wedding Cake, At Iba Pa

2005-07-13T18:28:00.000+08:00

good news!!! the knees are better, not 100%, though. but i can now dance and jump a little. had fun attending the jam class last night. it was sooooo fun. i kinda miss it, a lot! hehehe.... thanks to the health advice of my doctor aunt and some friends. fyi, i now have three fave jam tracks: (1) s club 7 - don't stop, (2) outkast - the way you move, and (3) mariah carey - it's like that. *wink*

my luvy is in town, and busy as always. our most recent date was with the fantastic four and his cousin, marky mark. arnold had a great time watching the fantastic four. the movie is really entertaining. definitely, not boring!

been busy looking for a cake supplier. my aunt suggested checking our her cousin's cake supplier. so, i did and found out that she is benz rana's cake supplier for her parent's luau-themed wedding anniversary party and her daughter's fiesta-themed birthday party. the supplier is virginia cakes. i showed miss virgie the cake design that i want, and she quotated me half of the original price. the cake is pledged my dear aunt. thanks tita ime! *muah*

arnold's little sisters recently joined the family because of the hiphop dance classes. they've a couple of jam and pilates classes and soon we'll be attending the hiphop dance classes when my knees are better-better. hehehe... sorry girls can't do too much jumping pa.

since lately i'm so into dancing and working out, i'm learning more about a dear friend's love life. hahahaha... sorry guys, no details for now... hahaha... soon!!! bwehehehehehehehe....

finally, i was able to spoke with a st. mary's college staff handling the confirmation certificates! whew!!! i have to see them before the week ends for the certificate, plus see our parish office for my baptismal certificate. arnold and i also have to apply for birth certificates and cenomar from the nso. this is all in preparation for the wedding. they need all these legal documents. can't we just walk down the aisle and say our "i do's"? oh well...

so that's it for now.

take care y'all!

Bad Knee

2005-07-06T20:03:00.000+08:00

wasn't able to attend dance classes because of a bad knee. wwwwaaaahhhhhhh..... na-overworked ata. huhuhu.....

hopefully, tomorrow, i'll be back on the groove! *wink*

wish me luck!

Night Outs

2005-07-02T12:14:00.000+08:00

had been out really late almost everyday. one reason, because of the wourdout schedule, can't do it in the morning, so, i do it in the evening. there are some classes that ends at 930. so, my friend and i closes the club twice a week. hehehehe..... second reason, went out with some friends for a movie and some chillin. like last night, got off greenhills at a quarter past 9, met up with my friend, rose, then, we headed for eastwood for coffee.

kaya, i was too lazy to get up this morning for my 11am dance class. hehehehe... so, i'll attend the 4pm at abs cbn club. hehehehehe... same instructor, same cutey instructor *wink*

we might see monsters-in-law after the workout. we means, with my future in-laws. well, i hope not monsters-in-law. though, i have a tendency to be one. bweehehehehehehehe....

Libis and Greenhills

2005-06-27T22:45:00.000+08:00

had hiphop dance class today at libis. the dance is ok. i had a difficult time catching up. hahahahaha.... i give feedback after 3 sessions! *wink* the critique that i have in mind is the comparision of the two clubs, libis and greenhills. ang papangit lang nang mga tao sa libis. hahahahah.... ang mean ko ba? nagmamaldita nanaman... hehehehe... seriously, i like the crowd better at greenhills. i dunno, they seem more friendly, and nice to look at! bwehehehehehe.... not to mention that the greenhills club is bigger and more spacious. imho lang naman. btw, i'm talking about the fitness first clubs.

a little feedback about hiphop dance class... well, the steps are fast. the instructor is good. i'm the one who is kinda slow. hehehhe.... pero, it's fun! *wink*

No Pain, No Gain

2005-06-26T00:06:00.000+08:00

been attending the body jam classes for three consecutive days. plus, the pilates class on friday evening. now, i feel like all my body muscles are sore. i'm having difficulty climbing the stairs, bending over, and raising my arms, even my buttocks are a bit sore. hehehehehe....

i'm taking the sunday off the dance class. need some quality time with rocko. sunday is a bath day, and i'm taking him to the vet for some nail clipping. we will do some socializing. hehehe...

planning on attending the hiphop dance classes on mondays, body jam on tuesdays, thursdays and saturdays, and pilates 1-2 times a week. so, how's that for a workout schedule? *wink* but for now, need to rest my legs, at least.

good night you all!

The Week

2005-06-24T01:30:00.000+08:00

monday

lulette and i met up at the club in the afternoon, after work, supposedly at 520, unfortunately, due to some rains and traffic, i arrived at greenhillls at 6pm. i had 30 mins of body jam, and an hour of body combat. whoa!!!! that body combat is really something!!! it made my shoulder and back muscles and my legs quite sore. still fun, though. with the body jam class, the instructor was ok, but lulette and i prefer somebody else. someone more encouraging, and more energetic, i guess.

on the afternoon of the same day, got a call from our group's vp office. i'm included in the group's presentation on the 23rd. wwwwaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!! the whole transco will witness this presentation! as i was told it'll be a dance presentation. so, we had our meeting at 4 pm. wella discussed the details, and scheduled the dance practice on tuesday. huhuhu....

tuesday

had our dance presentation practice, 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the afternoon. wow!!! and we will present everything on thursday, huh?! this is enough practice!!! still familiarizing ourselves with the steps and formulating more steps.

after work, i headed for tet hagape's place in marikina to discuss the details of my entourage gowns, every detail of it. she also suggested how she will go about making the gowns, to what body shape and personality the gown will fit, and the beadworks, how and what she will do to make it a lot prettier. the measurements of my female entourage (3 secondary sponsors, 3 bridesmaids, and 3 flower girls) is scheduled on the 6th or 13th of august, whichever date is more appropriate for the members of my entourage. so, now i have to call/email each one of them to advise and confirm everything. plus, what will be our "settlement" for the cost of the gowns... hehehe.... parang, it doesn't sound right... oh well... we're on a tight budget here, and we need every help that we may get. d=p

wednesday

more and a lot more practice for the dance presentation for our company anniversary celebration. the dance steps are all complete, including the "stunts". hehehehe... there is a portion that 3 girls will be carried and spinned in the middle of the dance floor. the 1st girl is wella. she'll be running towards her partner, hop in his waist, cross her legs at the back of her partner to secure herself (the partner of course will hold her at the back, tightly!), bend backwards, stretch both her arms, and the partner spins her once. whoa!!! the 2nd girl is yours truly. i'll be carried by three guys, while i'm in a T position. the first guy will have both knees bent in such a manner that i'll be able to bend over my waist/hips on his right shoulder, then, the two other guys will hold my legs while guy number one will hold me on my waist. then, they will lift me and spin me once. they third girl is kaye, she'll only be sitting on two guys' shoudlers and hold a banner. no more standing on the shoulders, the vertical clearance is not tall enough. there, that's the hardest part of our dance.

thursday

arrived at work at 7am. haven't been that early in centuries. hehehehe.... i did this to save face. we were asked to come early because of the dance practice. we still need to polish our steps, and the continuity. we then practiced the whole morning, fixed ourselves immediately after lunch, then proceeded at our building's roofdeck for the presentation. wwaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh...... we danced and the audience screamed! i dunno if it's a cheer or a shout of disappointment. heheheh.... well, whatever it is, we saw more than a few happy faces during our performance. thank you! d=)

after work i headed to the club and had our body jam class. i kinda missed it since i didn't visit the club for 2 consecutive days (tuesday and wednesday). we like how the instructor conducted the class. we really enjoyed every moment of it. plus, i had my first time at the treadmill. hahahaha.... had my first ever 15-minute brisk walk on the machine. hehehe....

in 16 hours, i'll see lulette at the club and attend the hip hop grind class (if we get there on time), the body jam, and pilates. hahahaha.... this is a 3-hour cardio... i'm having so much fun, i'm getting addicted to these dancing classes. hehehehe.....

Saturday Activities

2005-06-19T09:20:00.000+08:00

had the whole day spent with lulette. we visited fitness first in greenhills, lunch at a resto in greenhills, had my measurements taken by my bridal gown designer at kamuning, visited fitness first in abs-cbn, and attended the cocktails at oasis.

fitness first, greenhills

picked up lulette at her place at around 830. then, headed straight to greenhills and saw their membership consultant, jhomz. jhomz answered all our inquiries and explained everything well, plus a some chitchat, off topic on the membership. hehehe... we filled up and signed all necessary documents, and had our first ever hiphop dance class from 11am-12nn. whoa!!!! ang saya! after the class, we tried to figure out if the dance instruction is a badinggerie... hmmm... 1-2 more classes, then, we'll see hehehe...

lunch

forgot the name of the resto. anyhow, they have the most delicious scrambled egg i've ever tasted!!!!

bridal gown measurements

from greenhills, we headed next to john abul's shop to have my measurements taken for my bridal gown. my appointment was at 3pm, but due to a little saturday traffic, we arrived at kamuning at 315-330. well, john was a bit busy then, so, i guess, he didn't notice that i was late. hehehe.... john seems to be in a good mood yesterday. we talked about the bridal gown, the suit for the groom (which he'll make for only 12k with a material similar to hugo boss' -- o dba, bongga?!), the reception venue, and the intrimidida girl whom he made a gown for a wedding. hehehehe.... i saw his facial impression (almost a taas-kilay look) that he was kinda pissed with the girl's suggestion of removing the chiffon material at the gown's neckline to make it look like a sleveless dress. well, that chiffon material adds elegance to the gown, plus, as john said covers her revealing stretch marks somewhere near her arms and armpit. hahaha... imbryena talga ang bading! hehehe...

john is a designer who is easy to talk to. though, he's a bit intimidating, in my opinion. plus, the fact that he's kinda cute.... well..... d talo... hahaha... anyhow, i'll have my first fitting on july 16th. waaaaahhhhh..... july 16 na!!!!! we again talked about the details of the gown, what he will do with the corset type top, the support needed for my breasts, since i have a larger pair for my small body frame. oh well... he advised to wear a bra... need to find one by the way, for a backless type of dress that gives the proper support. i think i already saw one at whacoal. he advised to have it ready for the first fitting... btw, my gown will be a bustier type that goes really low at the back. the top is separate from the skirt, so that the weight of the gown will not drag the top hala! baka malaglag! hehehe... he'll also make the top a bet stiff kahit daw makipag away at makipagsabunutan ako, the top will never fall. hehehe... war freak! hehehe... more updates on the gown after the fitting. can't believe the wedding is in 6mos!!!!

fitness first, abs-cbn

we then, checked out the facilities of the abs cbn fitness first club. checked out also the dance schedules.

oasis opening

finally, the oasis opening. this garden venue is really beautiful, i almost fell in love with it. it located along aurora boulevard, near the our lady of mount carmel shrine parish church. yeah! our wedding ceremony venue! the landscape is really beautiful. i have some negative comments, though... i can smell the creek behind it, the lighting is not enough to see the beautifully landscaped garden (though, the luminaries are very nice), the background for the bride and groom (for wedding events) is not really big enough, plus, i get a glimps of the aurora blvd and the lrt, they should have planted tall trees or placed bamboos to cover the "eye sore", as lulette calls it. the place costs 55k (accdg to a friend) for the first 150 guests, then, 150/head for the succeeding guests. hmmm.... that will cost us almost 77.5k. dunno how strict they are yet, i'll inquire on the corkages and other fees. here are some photos of the place...

click on the photo for a larger view

after the cocktails, drove lulette home.

~~~

judy and i will probably see batman begins tonight.

Beauty and the Beast

2005-06-16T18:36:00.000+08:00

my friends and i got to see Beauty and the Beast at the Meralco Theater last night (15 june 2005). KC Concepcion played the lead role of Belle.

the musical was good. the costumes and props are really colorful. i imagined arnold sleeping through the show if he came to watch the show, he's not really into musicals. hehehehe....

got to see my digitel girlfriends again. yon lang... we didn't get to talk because the musical took much of our time. the show ended late, so we all called it a night and went home right after.

Done!

2005-06-13T15:51:00.000+08:00

done reading the five people you meet in heaven. same with tuesdays with morrie, this book made me cry. which for me qualifies as a good book. five thumbs up!

spent the whole day at home thinking what else needs to be done for the wedding.

the invitations <<< we'll meet with the supplier on july first (set an appointment)

bridal gown measurements <<< we'll do this on june 11th. already arranged with the designer

designer for the entourage gown <<< spoke with tet hagape. her rates are very affordable, plus, tet is really good. have to set an appointment with her on the 17th to discuss the gowns for my entourage. this will be our initial meeting for my wedding. i hope she can still accomodate me.

favors <<< i spoke with OA Sweets at the bridal fair in megamall 2 days ago. they charge only 25 per piece for the personalized chocolate thing. referred her to my coordinator, jeng. jeng will check her out and will be the one to make arrangements.

missalette <<< still have my initial draft. no movement yet. hehehe...

repertoire for the church and reception <<< have the list of songs. will have to organize everything, decide which song to use for which part of the program.

centerpiece <<< ask our florist on this. he gave us an estimate. we'll nego with him more.

cake <<< looking for a good supplier. we're not sure if hizon's can deliver soon enough.

this is all for now. post updates soon.

Who Are My Five People?

2005-06-11T21:05:00.000+08:00

been hooked on this book, the five people you meet in heaven by mitch albom.

"In The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Mitch Albom gives us an astoundingly original story that will change everything you've ever thought about the afterlife -- and the meaning of our lives here on earth. With a timeless tale, appealing to all, this is a book that readers of fine fiction, and those who loved Tuesdays with Morrie, will treasure."

the book narrates that there are five people we will meet in heaven. Each of these five people was a reason in our lives. The reasons may not be known to us, but heaven makes us understand through our five people. "This is the greatest gift God can give you: to understand what happened in your life. To have it explained. It is the peace you have been searching for." (The Five People You Meet In Heaven, page 35)

i'm currently on the third person and third lesson of the main character in the book, and still searching for answers, thinking... who could be my five people?

Looking Forward to a Fun-Filled Weekend

2005-06-10T19:31:00.000+08:00

i had one lazy week! soooo boooooring......

had a little accident this morning. while i was driving away from the bank's parking lot, a hump hit my car under which loosened a couple of screws, causing "i dunno what it's called" it to hung under on the right side. as i drove home, i have this uneasy feeling that something is wrong. so immediately after parking the car in the garage, i bent over and check. sheesh! may natanggal nga! called up arnold and cried for help. he practically gave me instructions to secure the screws and take the car to the nearest petron gas station. i did as i was told, and ended up looking like a taong grasa. i have dirt all over my hands, my arms and some parts of my face. my white nokia 2300 (suncell unit) turned gray, as i was speaking with arnold for instructions.

the experience was scary... hehehe.... palpak nanaman ang driving ko! sheesh! and the mechanic-wannabe act part is kinda exciting... i'm into the buting-ting stuff (one reason i became an engineer... hehehe...).

i'm now sleepy.... because... we stayed out til 2am. we watched mr. & mrs. smith late last night. very entertaining movie. arnold did enjoy the movie. he was really laughing throughout the film while the coins are pouring out his pocket. hehehe...

i'll be hitting the sack now, and read a good book.

tata!

btw, i have a new toy, a sony thumb drive. 2GB, dude! hehehehe.....

nitey nite!

Photo Shoot - POSTPONED

2005-06-08T10:19:00.000+08:00

mm baby came home monday morning from hong kong, and guess what he caught a flu. it's nothing serious... i hope... though, he's still under observation. we both filed for a leave at work for 2 days, he has to because he's sick, and i have to take care of him, literally. our photo shoot was put on hold for until... no idea... arnold has to get back on his feet and reschedule the whole thing. oh well....

this morning he's feeling a lot better (still on medication). he went to work to attend a seminar at their makati office. likewise, i dragged myself to work inspite of the heavy morning rains. hehehe...

i hope arnold feels better soon... d=(

the weekend that was

went out with my digitel buddies, rose and gay (unfortunately, anne did not make it) on friday night. we had dinner at aruba in metrowalk and coffee after at the coffee bean and tea leaf in t. morato.

come saturday and sunday, judy and i, and mark saw a lot like love and house of wax. i sooo love "a lot like love". the movie is really cute! four thumbs up!!!

Pre-Nuptial Photo Shoot

2005-05-31T15:46:00.000+08:00

we're now set for the photo shoot on monday afternoon, 6th of june. arranged the activity with three of our wedding suppliers, jorge's portrait, eddie bruan and gazebo royale.

jorge's portrait will, of course cover the photo shoot. we have 3 venues for the shoot, namely jorge's portrait's studio in p. tuazon, the gazebo royale and U.P.

eddie bruan will do the hair and makeup. trial makeup will be scheduled before the photo shoot. we booked a 12nn appointment.

ms. baby of jorge's advised us to bring 3 sets of clothes, all in casual wear. quite surprising... hehehe... good thing i asked if a dress code is necessary. hehehe...

im excited!!!!

One of Those Days

2005-05-31T10:53:00.000+08:00

work these days is a bit lax. almost no one is around in the department, most are in seminars and some are on travel. it gives the feeling that i should have stayed home and bum around the whole day instead. hehehehe...

been having emptiness with work lately.. probably because i have more idle time since i won't be enrolling for my graduate studies this term. i'm getting married remember? thesis and wedding planning is not actually a good combination. whatya think?

on location photo shoot

finally, arnold's leave was granted on monday. we may now schedule our on location photo shoot. have one worry though... my hair is shorter.... wahhhh..... i hope eddie bruan will create magic for the photo shoot.

hungry na ko. have lunch first.

tata!

Dinner & Movies and A New Haircut

2005-05-30T20:42:00.000+08:00

dinner and a movie

my arnold and i went out for dinner and a movie last night. we had dinner at pasto in eastwood city in libis. yummy dessert! dunno what it's called, but it is definitely tasty.

then, saw star wars. it was arnold's choice. at first, i thought i will not enjoy watching the movie, but it turned out well. was able to relate somehow.

last night was one of the best nights that we had. it was a date indeed. we talked and we laughed. really enjoyed every moment of it. even while watching the movie, we were so close to each other, it's like we'll fit in one seat. hehehe... malamig kasi yon cinema. arnold even said that the reason we paid php300 for 2 is because mas malakas ang a/c. hehehe....

after the movie we headed home, more talk and more laughter. it's more than 11 years and we're still enjoying each other's company. makes me realize that i'm having so much fun with this guy, and i love him, probably that's the reason why i'm marrying him.... hehehe.... inspite of the weight that he has gained in his tummy, and the receding hairline that he's having, i equally find him cute as the first time i laid eyes on him. last night was like falling in love all over again. *lovestuck*

i remember my former boss telling us that when married couples grow old and the sex drive lessens, you're left with kwentuhan with your betterhalf. he's probably right, you should marry someone you can communicate with, someone that you are comfortable sharing everything with and someone you can grow old with. of course, the presence of love is equally important.

haircut

now let's talk about my new haircut. well... it's not actually new. i've been sporting this haircut for quite sometime, only now it's shorter. hehehe...

click on each image for a larger view

a coworker and i decided to have a haircut on our way home. took her to david's along congressional ave, and met my hairdresser, ernie. she was really happy with what ernie did to her hair. i'm equally happy as well with what he did to my hair, as always... hehehe... i also had some stray hair removed on my eyebrow area via threading. sheesh!!! and that hurts!!! it was the first time. my brows is a virgin. well... except for the plucking that i had when having my hair and makeup done at a friend's wedding 3 mos. ago. threading is different. masakit talaga!!!

at least now my brows look better.

that's all for now.

good night y'all!!!