to the person...
who taught me respect above everything else...
who made me appreciate the simple things in life...
who remained strong amidst the turmoil...
who never judged me and said "i told you so" whenever i commit mistakes...
who understood me without having to explain...
who loves me unconditionally...
Happy Birthday Mommy!
I love you.
no matter how times have changed, technology has improved and trends have evolved, there is still a huge chunk in my heart that's dead set on the very colorful and interesting era - the 1980's. it's the period that's unique on its own and i'm very proud to be a part of it.
street games - do kids nowadays still play patintero, tumbang preso, luksong tinik, piko, sha-to? do you even see children playing outside their homes at all? the children in our village would convene on an empty lot every four in the afternoon to play. it was a great time to socialize and have an active body as well.
peak of pinoy talent - in my opinion, the 80's is the golden age of pinoy talent, whether it be in the field of music, tv or movies. joey albert, kuh ledesma, martin nievera would come up with original songs and became instant hit after hit after hit. there wasn't any room for revivals then and it was good.
funny comics - i always get a laugh reading lilit bulilit, niknok and bing bam at bung. we used to have a whole compilation of these comics because our parents found it a good way for us to read.
entertaining ads - who can ever forget the yc bikini brief jingle or where arthur's pants and barong is located? what about the theme song of the faces disco ad? everytime i would hear enya's "watermark" it would always remind me of the encarnacion bechaves ad. what about r.a. homevision? tacky...hilarious... i love it!
cartoons - i always adored voltron lion force over voltez five. i was so amazed how these robotic lions (which i thought were just tigers because they didn't have manes) would come from various locations and converge and form the voltron force. i also thought that the little kid was a girl because he was wearing what seemed like headband. i also anticipate astro boy every saturday morning as he battles out evil giant robots out to harm his city. there's also gummy bears where these cute adorable uhm... bears get hyper as they drink this certain potion. who would even miss care bears and rainbow brite in all it's colorful (and gay) glory?
music - 80's music made it's mark and is still being heard up to now. our lips are sealed? not a hilary duff original, people. the beat that you hear in rihanna's SOS? that's tainted love by soft cell (not by pussycat dolls, please). lately, there have been a lot music now that used 80's music as reference. i wonder if somebody would remake designer music by lipps inc.?
old-fashioned - i'm not talking about the clothes (well, not just yet). people then are less lazy i suppose. people memorized phone numbers, they send hand written mails or send telegrams and people have the patience to wait.
fashion - legwarmers, chuck taylor, leather jacket, one piece glove, aqua net, miami vice look, punky brewster look. pretty interesting (and embarrassing) fashion trends.
the 80's is still very much present in today's world one way or another. it just goes to show how great the 80's was and that it is always here to stay.
last night i kept tossing and turning in my bed and this song kept playing in my head for no apparent reason. it suddenly reminded me of an episode in MEDIUM where patricia arquette kept hearing Gloria Gaynor's "I WILL SURVIVE."
i just had to blog it hoping that when the time that i look back at this, i might actually make some sense out of my strange night.
Kylie Minogue - Put Yourself In My Place
I can't take this situation
It's making me feel so blue
One moment you walked into my life
And now
You're saying that we're through
I hear that you're in love now
Baby, don't know what to say
I can't believe that I still feel this way
I hear that you're in love now
Baby, don't know what to say
Let the falling decide
You won't be mine
Put yourself in my place
You know something will come around
You're gonna put yourself
(Put yourself) in my place
When your lovers bring you down
And there no-one else around
You're gonna put yourself
(Put yourself) in my place
There's no rhyme or reason
(Rhyme or reason)
That keeps me playing along
(That keeps me playing along)
I guess, that I'll just keep on believing
Inside you love will;
Know right from wrong
You know something will come around
You're gonna put yourself
(Put yourself) in my place
When your lovers bring you down
And there no-one else around
You're gonna put yourself
(Put yourself) in my place
Let me tell you about the most important guy in my life: My dad.
I can honestly say that I never really know my Dad that well. Bits and pieces of his life would just come from conversation with with relatives. He enjoys talking but does not talk much about his life. So I would just share some things about him through my own experiences.
My dad came from a big family. During the Japanese time, it wasn't such a great idea. He had a difficult time as a kid but learned to make the most of it. He did odd jobs to help him finish school and get a decent job.
I was very attached to my dad when I was young. I would recall crying every morning when I wake up and he's already on his way out of the house. So the helper would make it a point that I wake up a little later to avoid that kind of drama.
He's very attentive to our studies. I even got used to asking him every question in my homework and writing his responses verbatim. Sometimes I would complain that he has very lengthy responses to very short and simple questions.
He is a patient man. I can only recall a few times that I got spanked or even scolded by him (hmm.. probably my mom did that most of the time). As a silent moral teacher, we siblings learned to be responsible for our own actions.
Like most fathers, he is a good provider to his family. At some point, I even misconstrued that his work was more important than his own family. But the truth is, he spends most of his time at work in order to provide us with a comfortable life.
My father experienced some rough times before retirement. Because of some problems at work, he got into a phase of depression. I got a call from a hospital near our home that our father was there, injured. When we rushed in to get him, I was surprised that he was drunk. He was holding on to me, crying and apologizing over and over. I have never seen my dad in such low spirit. I realized that he too also needs us, the way we need him.
As a retired government employee, my dad is already enjoying the fruits of his labor. He enjoys spending time at home: doing some gardening, carpentry, looking after our pets, browsing the internet. He has the tendency to be makulit at times for lack of something to do. Since all his children are already living in separate homes, he would always anticipate weekends as a time for us to be together again.
Whenever I feel sad about not having everything I want, my home would always remind me that I have everything I ever needed. My dad included.
Happy Father's Day!!!
in biology, we were taught various relationships that occur in the animal kingdom which very much apply to humans. there's the predator-prey (the one-night stand), parasite-host (the sugar daddy) and symbiosis (pure bliss). we all aim to achieve the third kind but as humans, we tend to complicate things. thanks to our peptides, we now have EMOTIONS in the way. love to be specific. it makes us feel and do crazy things. we subject ourselves to be objects of lust in order to feel loved. we allow ourselves to be sugar daddies/mommies thinking that the only way to make our lovers stay is to smother them with gifts and undying attention.
in order to achieve symbiosis, reciprocity is key. reciprocity denotes ACTIVE mutual involvement. involvement out of sincerity and not of necessity. most relationships die down because the conscious effort to be involved wears off (the thinking that you pretty got used to being with that person that nothing seems extraordinary anymore). in reality, it's not the situation that has changed, it's your involvement. you choose to detach yourself from being involved, probably because you are not in love after all, or you realize you are not yet ready to subject yourself to that kind of serious commitment. failed reciprocity also comes from incompatibility, whether physical, emotional and even sexual. another contributing factor is diversity of love language between the couple. a "tactile" lover might not appreciate praises from a "vocal" lover.
reciprocating love is something that is willingly done and should not be seen as an obligation. symbiosis is a give-and-take arrangement. as stated in my earlier post:
"don't let someone become a priority in your life, when you are just an option in their life. relationships work best when they are balanced."
nakigaya lang ako sa blog ni candy pangilinan about the many firsts in her life so that made me ponder on my own firsts. ililista ko lang and make small kwento about each item.
first song - hindi ko alam kung gaano katotoo pero kinakanta ko raw nun yung bituing walang ningning nung bata pa ako. o di ba, bata pa lang, jologs na?
first friend - i was in kindergarten at seatmate ko si archie gunay. sobrang likot at kulit na bata so nahawa ako for a brief moment. pinaghiwalay kami ng teacher ko dahil medyo bad influence daw sa akin. mas na enjoy ko siguro yung buhay estudyante kung hindi kami pinaghiwalay noon.
first movie - supergirl at sm cubao. pumasok kami sa sinehan in the middle of the movie so full house na. nung natapos yung movie, natural people would leave the theatres. ang batang shunga sumama sa madla thinking na aalis na kami. buti na lang naabutan ako ng tatay ko kung hindi, nasa studio na ako ni inday badiday na nananawagan.
first communion - i was one of those who were chosen to "perform" the Lord's Prayer. interpretative ekek na puno lang ng mechanical movements like raising your arms, left and right, swaying your torso left and right. first time ko rin magsuot ng white long sleeves with black bow tie - ala waiter ng hotel set in the 1980's.
first honor - nung grade 5 ako. natatandaan kong iyak nang iyak yung dating first honor kasi magagalit daw sa kanya yung nanay nya. that moment was sweet kasi that girl was a total biatch. although hindi na naulit yung moment na yun.
first piano recital - i did two solo pieces and one with my sister. we played "tales from the vienna woods." nakapilipit yung legs ko dun sa paanan nung upuan sa sobrang kabado ko. again, hindi na naulit yun.
first gadget - it was a motorola memo jazz na clear blue. sobrang hip pa yung pagers when i was a sophomore in college. ako lang din halos yung may mobile phone nung mga panahong yon, an ericsson model na papasa nang dumbell sa bigat nung battery.
first heartache - third year college. i was so affected that the mere sight of couples would automatically bring me to tears. took me a month to recover.
first job - accenture. excruciating yung first interview because the interviewer kept interrupting me whenever i explain. didn't expect that i would be chosen so i quickly said yes when they presented me an offer.
first paycheck - bought a copy of harry potter and the sorcerer's stone. hindi ko na maalala kung saan ko pa nagasta yung unang sweldo ko.
first travel abroad - accenture days ulit. was able to go to illinois, san francisco and new york.
first solo travel - i was assigned to participate in a conference in hongkong. nakaka windang dahil ang hirap tanungan ng mga cantonese for directions. napilitang intindihin ang mapa at mag explore on my own.
first time kong malasing - na post ko na dati yun dito. fun yung experience pero horrible yung feeling.
those are just some of the firsts that i could quickly think of and share at the moment. tulad ni candy, marami pa rin akong gustong maranasan for the first time. one thing's for sure, lahat ng first time ay memorable. pinapalago nya ang experience mo as a person, making you grow and evolve.
ikaw, naalala mo pa ba ang first time mo?
i went to pagudpud last saturday and stayed there until yesterday. the travel is a bit exhausting but it was worth it when i got there. for those planning to go there, i suggest you take the land transportation instead because there's no morning schedule for air travel. since the land travel is 12 hours in duration, allot 2 days in your vacation for travel.
we stayed at polaris resort in saud beach in pagudpud. steve and me-ann santos are the operators of the place. they were really kind enough to pick us up at the city because there were not land transportation available to take us from laoag airport to pagudpud. during the entire travel, me-ann was able to plan our pagupud tour effortlessly.
since we have a limited time, we didn't waste any more time and started the tour at 7 in the morning. our tour guide cum tricycle driver, vincent, was very patient and accommodating to show us around and give us bits of interesting information about the sites. he even willingly took our pictures.
our first stop was the kabigan falls. entrance was 10 pesos per person plus a stardard tour fee of 100 pesos. it was a 10-15 minute hike to the falls, which was pretty tolerable for someone like me who doesn't really enjoy trekking. seeing the falls took away my exhaustion from the hike and the quick dip surely woke me up.
next stop was the patapat viaduct, which, according to www.waypoints.ph, "is an elevated concrete highway constructed along winding/rocky headlands near the northernmost roadway section in ilocos norte (could be considered second northernmost roadway section in luzon) this viaduct was constructed to solve the problem of landslides in the area which have caused so many vehicular accidents in the past." it's very interesting to note that the view along the viaduct is actually the south china sea!
we then headed to aqua paradiso (entrance fee was 25 pesos), the place where fresh water from the falls and salt water from the ocean meet. the place is suitable for families and group of friends because you can stay there and cook food (the place has grills available in the cottages). a few minutes away was the place they call "paraiso ni anton" where you can actually drink fresh and natural spring water. i didn't see anton though (hekhekhek).
then, vincent took us to bantay Abot cave and took quick snapshots of the cave and its surroundings. a few minutes later, we were welcomed by the breathtaking blue waters of the famous "blue kagoon" or the maira-ira beach. this is very much comparable to bohol and boracay in terms of sand quality and the water clarity. we took a very long walk by the beach so I got pretty burned there (well mostly, my nose took the most blow from the sun's rays).
we took a quick bite at the local market in pagudpud so that we can still see the cape bojeador lighthouse. too bad, the place was not maintained but still, its rustic look made it a sight to behold. last stop was the bangui windmills, which is like nothing I've seen before. fifteen (if I counted them right) humongous windmills along the beach made me feel like I'm in a totally different place.
last stop was the local market to buy the ingredients we need for dinner and breakfast the following day. the resort owners were kind enough to cook our food at no extra cost. and even kind enough to accompany us in getting a ride back to laoag the following day.
admittedly, the travel to pagudpud drained the bejeezuz out of me, but it sure brought a lot of nice memories and great shots in my camera.
nais ko lang magbigay ng few shoutouts. kapag si Lord nga naman nagbibigay ng biyaya to people who deserve it, lubos lubos.
to menchie ona - grabe bar topnotcher!!!
to jm ni toni for passing the boards
to toni on her first day at work
to winlove on his homecoming
congratulations and good luck to them!!!
the crazy air-conditioning at work has led me to be completely fascinated with sweaters, cardigans and all things preppy.
so i'm presenting the preppy edition of my beautiful things...
i do admire these guys for really pulling off that look. well, they're models anyway. they're paid to pull off any look, kahit garbage bag pa yan.
i've been away from home for the past weeks and i miss being there terribly. i miss my mom's cooking and my dad's random rants. i miss the eerie silence when i sleep at night. i miss my soft bed in my room. my bedroom probably misses being cleaned (haha!). i miss the feeling of being at home. nothing spectacular happens at home but that's my haven. knowing that i'm there, with my parents, the dogs and away from the busy city provides enough comfort like a warm blanket on a rainy day.
on this special day of love, i think it's timely to talk about the language of love. people who love each other go through a lot of misunderstandings because they speak different languages of love. love is a universal thing but manifests in different ways.
according to dr. gary chapman, there are actually five basic language of love - each varying in style but conveying the same feeling - love.
1. receiving gifts - if you are type of person who appreciates receiving gifts and consider it as a sign of affection, then this is your love language. if you are with someone who is having a hard time with his finances or someone who is stingy, you may get the feeling that you're not being loved.
2. spending quality time - this deals not only with proximity to your partner but about focusing your energy on your partner. you may be together in one room but you don't interact with each other... it's not exactly lovespeak. quality time involves sharing day to day experiences, listening and sharing. if you understand your partner's emotions, the more that your love will grow.
3. providing service - some tend to provide physical acts of service as a manifestation of love. washing the dishes, cleaning up your room, or even doing little favors show humility and loyalty because they do those things without a sense of obligation. people who love in this manner appreciate reciprocal acts to ensure a healthy relationship.
4. saying affirmation - there are those who are vocal with their emotions. there are people who would shower you with compliments, constantly provide you encouragement, give advice and obviously thsi is their love language. maintaining open communication with these type of love speakers would guarantee a stronger bond.
5. touching/feeling - many enjoy the company of their partners when they have physical contact with each other. holding hands, hugging and kissing are very concrete examples of this type of language. usually this language would occur during the "honeymoon phase" of any relationship, but gradually lessens through time. if your partner is very responsive to your touch, it may prove better than any gift or verbal affirmation that you give in one lifetime.
some people may have just one distinct language and some may have many. but what is essential is to know what your love language is in order to make your relationship last and to make loving...well, lovelier.
i got those lines from a recent training i attended. it sounded corny at first until it became a private joke among us trainees... then eventually a personal mantra. everytime i would say it in my mind it just infects me to become this very positive person. but i did not achieve this certain optimism by the mantra alone. looking back at the past weeks, i "retraced my steps" and found out what i have been doing to keep myself, alive, well and feel great.
- give thanks: when one is thankful for the smallest of things, he tends to appreciate more that life has to offer, even the not so good ones.
- carry a song in your heart: i believe that a good song can affect your mood. whistle a tune if you're feeling down, but please don't sing "All By Myself." and if you're in a better mood, reinforce that song by dancing! follow your personal rhythm and start feeling great.
- smile/laugh: it's the most inexpensive way to improve one's looks. and it's contagious!
- compliment: spread the love by making others feel good. compliment a colleague's new haircut or give a tap on the shoulder to your seatmate who offered help. there are so many good things in the world and all you need to do is acknowledge them.
- accept: accept everything you experience in life and treat them as blessings. when you accept your shortcomings, you tend to accept the fact that you as a person has limitations, and it unburdens you from the worries that bother you.
- circulate: take some time to go out with people. not only it broadens your social circle, it also improves your social skills (communication, empathy, negotiation).
- sleep: your body needs adequate rest to recharge. a well-rested body is a fully functional one.
- spend some ME time: enjoy life's indulgences. treat yourself whenever you feel you have accomplished something. spend some time alone to reflect on your life.
do good things and good things will come to you. what the mind can conceive, the body can achieve. don't worry, be happy. hakuna matata. the cliches are all around to reinforce us that the key to living a good life does not lie on having all the material things that you want. all you need is a positive attitude.
i've done checking my christmas list so i'm now preparing my NEW ME list for 2008.
in order to achieve the new me, i will strive hard to do the following:
- make more time for family: last year i got so focused on living independently and widening my social circle that it compromised my relationship with my family.
- live healthy: resist softdrinks and eat more fruits and vegetables and drink milk (even if i really don't like the taste). regularly work out and get enough sleep.
- learn, learn, learn: make each day an experience to gain knowledge and wisdom
- stay optimistic: not let the small stuff get me down, count my blessings and spread the positive aura all around
- allot some ME time: leave some moment for reflection and relaxation.
- save up: stay liquid and probably invest on something.
i hope i make good progress this year and be able to sustain it until i get fabulously old. :-p
