When 2009 began...

... we generally have no idea how it was going to end.

2009 taught me a lot. It never really occurred to me how much this year will change how I see myself and the world around me. I started the year with a really interesting goal. I have been serious with life for the past years that by the end of 2008, it took a toll on me. I was tired and bored. I felt that I sucked life out of me. I began 2009 with a promise that I will make my life more colorful and exciting. And I did.

I've met a lot of people that helped me get to know myself better. All the encounters, all the conversations that happened this year left wonderful memories. The laughter that I shared with all of these people, who are amazing in a lot of ways, is priceless. 2009 was a process of learning and I have gained and lost friends in this experience. I am closer to some, missing some, and wishes I could be closer to some more. But I am happy with the relationships I have now and the level they are in. This will really sound cheesy but life wouldn't be as bright without them. Winnipeg won't be home without friends like them.

Yes, you read that right. I consider the Peg as home. I still love the homeland, don't get me wrong. It's just that right now, if you ask me, almost everything that is important to me is here and it does feel like home. I will always have deep affection and an invaluable connection with everything that is in the Philippines, of course. And yes, I still hope I can come back anytime soon. My professor told me before I left that I should make my country and my university proud wherever I go. I said yes and I intend to keep that promise. I will come back and do something someday. A lot have happened in the Philippines this year that almost every week there is a new headline story. From a philandering local hero, to very strong typhoons, and to a gruesome massacre, the country have gone through a lot. Lives have been lost but hey, every cloud has a silver lining. We observed how resilient Filipinos are. We realized that we can be heroes in our own little way and that we have each others' backs after all.

2009 was far from perfect but the imperfections of this year made it beautiful. Excuse me for sounding so romantic. But honestly, I really do feel that the mistakes that I did this year and all the foolishness I've engaged myself into made me feel closer to the earth and more human. I was too safe before - over analyzing, over rationalizing, and oversimplifying. I just had to destroy all the walls myself and let people in once and for all. And I am proud to say I have no regrets. There is more to life than getting As. School cannot teach us how to live a life that is composed of a thousand colorful and wonderful stories.

It is comforting to know that after all the trials that we faced this year, we are here and alive. Hopefully 2009 made us better than the previous years. It may be coming to an end but some of the things that happened will carry on to the next year. I guess it is most important that we remain hopeful that things will be better. And if ever things get worse, holding on to our faith and believing that everything is going to be all right in the end is the best weapon and shield that we have.

With this, I'm welcoming 2010 with a smile on my face and hope in my eyes. Let's rock n' roll!

Daph's Despedida

Breakfast at the Salisbury House. Yey! FUN!

Daph's leaving on the 2nd of January for Saskatoon. She's gonna go with our other friend, Jehn, to complete the co-op program. Goodluck, girls!!!

Topic of the Day: Mcnally Robinson Polo Park is closing. It's soooo sad. We went there after Salisbury and the books are getting sold pretty quickly. Prairie Ink is already closed. Sad, sad. I always go there during my break. I'll miss it talaga!

Photos from: Arianne Solis

WE FAILED!

We failed to watch Avatar yesterday kasi sold out!!! We were all disappointed. I don't know when I'm going to watch it but I will definitely see it in 3D. Hindi pwedeng hindi.

So we went back to Polo after accepting our defeat. I bought a lip conditioner from MAC. I used the gift card Lem gave me. (Thanks, Lem!)

I bought it coz I badly need one. My lips bled the other day after I applied Blistex because it was already so dry from the wind/cold. Wala kaming mapuntahan after checking out the Sony store and Athlete's World. Alvir and I were craving for ice cream so we decided to go buy some Selecta Ice Cream imported from the homeland. Charrie then called and invited everyone to go wall climbing so what we did was we bought the ice cream, Patrick drove me home, they wall climbed (or watched Charrie, Fae, and Jona wallclimb LOL),  and then they came back to my house to eat the ice cream.

We bought 2 tubs: Ube Royal and Queso Royale. BOTH AWESOME. Sobrang mahal but worth it!

Alvir, Ube, and Queso

We chatted with Sybil and Paul (who's having a vacation in the Philippines right now) while eating. Kwentuhan at lokohan over ice cream. We also talked to Marvin na nagtampo kasi he wasn't invited. Hahahaha! FUN, FUN!

Later, party uli at Marylin's house.

Oh no, no, no!

You get W-T-F feelings when things have been said before and now they are being said again for the second time but by a different person. Happened twice already with this particular guy. I am so not waiting for STRIKE 3. One, because it's weird; Second, I don't want those things coming from him. You know, there's one bad association right there when he's saying the same things as that other guy; Lastly, did already I say it's weird?

Oh I don't want to talk to this guy anymore. Let's see.

Boxing Day

Shopping never stops. I've made so many shopping trips in just a week! I've already spent... OH DON'T EVEN ASK. Well, today is the 26th which means it's BOXING DAY! It also means that more shopping has to be done. The mall opened at 8.30 but some stores like Best Buy opened at 5.30. Lots of people were in the mall despite of the fact that the snow was so bad. 5cm maybe? We had to shovel before we can leave the house.

Anyway, we were at the mall at 9am, which means I had an hour to shop since I have to start work at 10. I actually did pretty well. I bought some accessories, a cardigan, a wallet, shoes for my brother, dress for Zia, and some gifts. It's interesting that I almost got everything covered this holiday/shopping season. I have all that I need. Boots, clothes, accessories...Well, except maybe for additional pairs of jeans which I didn't get the chance to buy because I just had no time. And maybe I could use a new bag. Oh shit. Here I am thinking about more gastos.

Soooo the mall was busy. Our store not so much; the other stores, on the other hand, even have line ups. Lulu Lemon, Guess, and Club Monaco have lines. Lulu Lemon, I think, was the busiest. We were curious why everyone was lining up. Chi asked one of our customers who came from there and she said she was able to buy a jacket for only $25 from $100+. AMAAAZING! Wish I was able to go.

I'm not sure if there will still be sales tomorrow but I think I'll check some of the stores out since I'm gonna be there again for work. YAY!

Merry, merry Part II

UPDATED! :)

Anjo, Tito Api and I went to Kuya Alex' house. Met Zia finally! SHE'S ADORABLE. She's also a well-behaved baby. Tulog sya when we arrived but then she woke up after a few minutes. When she woke up, she's smiling agad. SO CUTE! 

 Me and Zia

 Cutie Zia!

We heard mass at 9.30 then went home. PLAYED BANDHERO with Itel and Anjo. Superrr fun! Feeling band talaga. I like the drums better than the guitar though. We went upstairs at 12 midnight to eat and for the gift giving.

Nanay and Tito Api and some of the gifts

I LOVE MY BROTHER!!! He gave me and Itel a new camera!!! It's purple too!We were surprised. Nilalait pa namin dati kasi maliit yung box tapos nakalagay pa sa floor. HAHAHA!

Itel unwrapping Anjo's gift

Merry, merry Christmas everyone! 

Merry, merry!

Last night was the UM-Sigaw Christmas party at Martini's. Ohmygahd. Too much singing, too much dancing, TOO MUCH FUN.

Dancing to Dancing Queen

We won the Christmas quiz game! Memorizing the 12 Days of Christmas with my sister paid off. LOL

The winners! YAY!

Near the end of the night, I was already so haggard. I feel so hot that I didn't even wear my winter coat when I was walking to the car. Holyshit. BUT IT WAS SUPER FUN. We sang all of our signature songs - Total Ecplipse of the Heart and Making Love Out of Nothing at All. DF and I sang our ultimate favorite, Here I Am. And the Brokebacks sang Careless Whisper with EJ. SUPER FUNNEEEYYY!

Group picture! A lot have gone home already!
Je suis fatigué mais heureux.

Photos from Arianne Solis and Sybil Abarientos

Work Kills

So far I haven't done anything worthwhile. Well, except maybe for sleeping. I've been making up for all the days I was only dependent on coffee for survival because of the lack of sleep. I haven't made a lot of progress with my Christmas shopping, I haven't gone back to edit my thesis introduction, and I haven't edited my library proposal. Also, I haven't bought any clothes for Christmas and I haven't had my haircut either. All I do is work. Oh shit. What is happening to my Christmas vacation??? Even on Boxing Day, I'm working.

This is bad. I'm starting to hate it.

Tomorrow, I'm going to try and finish my Christmas shopping and maybe shop for clothes then work. And then Tuesday morning, I'll get my haircut and then go to the party. And then work, work, work. It's never ending!!! I wish for the 27th so people will stop shopping already.

As for other things, maybe I should list all the things that I should do so I can schedule each appropriately. I don't know maybe it's just hormones but I feel that I'm not doing anything of much worth lately. I can't see the importance of what I've been doing. I feel so stagnant.

Wow, that's so emo.

It's just that I want to do lots of things but I can't start them now because obviously I still have to graduate. But I can't help but feel that sad, sorry feeling that I'm not doing anything now besides studying. Ay nako. I hate it.

Anyway, I really think the "nasa isip mo lang ang magic" is true. I have tried. I acted kilig but really...it's nothing. It's so sad. I feel sad for myself. LOL

Self, if it's not him then what exactly are you looking for?

RIP, Brittany

Out of the blue, I visited Perez Hilton's site this morning and was so surprised about the breaking news: Brittany having cardiac arrest and dying. She's so young and promising. Rest in peace! Boogie wonderland forever!

And Fall 09 is done!

Don't ask about my paper. Let's just call it "that repressed memory".

So yeah, Fall 09 is officially overrr. I wish I can rest but now I realized that I have a lot of shifts to cover and the days I don't work, I have to catch up on a lot of things. Kailan ba kasi ako nagbakasyon talaga?

Right now, I just want to sleep. I have no plans but to have a The Big Bang Theory marathon.

Misa de Gallo

Misa de Gallo starts today. I have never ever attended one and maybe I should. The reason why is that I was never too masipag enough to wake up very early, sit through a mass, and promise not to fall asleep. Considering that I've never lived far from a church my entire life, it's weird that I've never attended one. Be it here or back the Philippines, the church is always walkable. Well, of course, not during the winter but still IT'S VERY NEAR my house.

And of course, when talking about Pinoy traditions, FOOD can't be missing. The puto bumbong, the tsokolate, the salabat, and the bibingka. Prepare your Kleenex. Nakakaiyak sila.

I like this REALLY chocolate-y tsokolate. I like my chocolate drink bitter, rich, and somewhat thick. That's why I don't like the ones you usually find in the grocery. I don't like milk in my chocolate. (Which also explains why I don't like milk chocolate candy bars.) I think my mom bought me a dark choco drink before. I can't remember. Maybe I should raid Superstore and find out if they have rich chocolate.



WAAAAH! This is what I miss about Pinoy Christmas: THE FOOD. LOL I remember my mom's cousin makes really good bibingka and puto bumbong. My sister would request them everyday so we have them everyday after school. WAAH I miss those days!

Live and let die

I missed Neil Gaiman. :( I read that there were lots of people wanting to see him so McNally Robinson had to issue passes. So you need one to go in. They even closed the bookstore for, I think, 30 minutes to prepare. WOW. I wish they do this more often. I wish they would bring lots of distinguished writers and have talks or something here in the Peg.

Argh. Stupid virus. I really hate being sick! The world stops when you become sick. I can't do anything. I can't go anywhere especially that it's what, -30 outside?

The whole day I'm just here in my bed. I was having chills so I was bundled up. I was getting dizzy too so I just lay here. My head aches. Luckily, Lem took my shift tonight. I had all day to become better. And yes, I'm better now. The pills worked!

I probably won't be able to go the library tomorrow even if I want to. I have to write my paper here in my room even if I know that I work really slow at home. I still have to write a few more pages. I'm doing good. I just need to be better so I can finish it already.

And karma strikes back

I'm sooo sick. I wasn't able to go to work and it looks like I won't be able to go to the library tomorrow to write my paper. Talk about great timing.

My lungs feel heavy and my back aches sooo much. I don't know why. All I know is that the pain is excruciating. I slept after calling work. Right now, I'm having chills.

I hope I get better coz I can't be sick. Not now.

Source: http://caitttt.tumblr.com/post/284039323

Resurrection

Fabsugar tweeted that eLuxury is now Nowness.

If you remember, eLuxury closed down mid-2009. It's opening it's cyberdoors again only with a different name. I don't know why they decided to call it Nowness. The word is just...I don't know, weird? Fabsugar said operations will start next year. Right now the Nowness website contains very short articles about fashion and stuff. Can't really tell what the direction is. Today they are featuring Dior but they also have a feature about Alfred Nobel.



Just check the website at Nowness.com.

Lip Ball

Awww... This lip balm is cute! This cutie contains shea butter and jojoba oil. It comes in three flavors: Honeysuckle Honeydew, Summer Fruit, and Sweet Mint. The best part is it's organic. And did I mention it's really cheap? It's USD$3.29 a pop.

I'm not sure though if this is easy to store in your bag. The shape is cute but I'm guessing it will fit oddly inside a purse.

Check out this at evolutionofsmooth.com.

Webcam Moments

Mavic: Ano yang nasa ulo mo?
Me: Ha? Anong nasa ulo? Halo yan!
Mavic: Little sungays.
Me: Halo yan! May design lang!

Faucet Face

As some of you may know, I've promised about a year ago that I won't buy bottled water anymore. I've stuck to that promise and I haven't bought single bottle ever since. And I'm someone who's afraid of committing to one thing, you should be proud of me. Hahaha!

For a while I have been using my blue, stainless steel water bottle from Starbucks. It's kawawa na. Color is a bit faded and has dents on the bottom part when I accidentally dropped it in the middle of the road. Poor guy has a clumsy owner. I want to buy a new one so I've been looking lately.

I found this cute bottles online. One of them was designed by Anneka Tran. I follow her blog and she's really good. The bottles are made of glass though but they are oh-so-cute! The makers said they made the glass thick enough to prevent breakage. They are also BPA-free.

Aren't they cute? Anneka designed the Hummingbird one. Too bad they won't be available until next year. It would've been a great Christmas gift.

Check the bottles out at: http://faucetface.com/

If you don't have enough B.S. in your life..

The logic of consumption functions as the conceptual frame for the politics of the public sphere.

I don't even know if this makes sense but admit it, it sounds smart, diba? Hahahaha! This reminds me of those really hard to read Political Studies textbooks I read for my Political Science class in Diliman. Sobrang nosebleed talaga. I don't know why they do that, you write a book to spread knowledge and information not to keep people guessing about you actually mean. I mean, really who do you write these books for? Eh more likely, students naman talaga yung nagbabasa ng mga ganyang libro. And usually, undergrads don't have enough experience to decipher the meaning behind such complicated sentences.

Hold on, I'll make more.

The poetics of pop culture opens a space for the fantasy of the image.

The epistemology of praxis asks to be read as the ideology of agency.

LOL Ewan ko. Labo grabe. Hindi ko gets! Pero you can use it ha just to annoy people. Imagine yourself saying something like these to someone ala-Miriam Defensor. Mas maganda talaga kung ala-Miriam para kunwari super smart.

More likely, after you say this, they will just stare and maybe throw something at you. HAHAHAHAHA But still you can swear that you're saying the truth and that you're willing to jump off an airplane to prove it.

So if you don't have enough BS in your life, try the BS Generator. Enjoy!

The Scribbler

Yay! This is one fun online toy! Just draw whatever and then let The Scribbler do the rest.

Try it here: http://www.zefrank.com/scribbler/

Here's one more. If you're asking why I keep on drawing hearts, it's not because I'm in love or something. It's just that it's easier to draw hearts, than say STARS. LOL Circles are boring and so are squares. Stars are way to complicated. And please let's forget about octagons and pentagons.


There are other cool toys in zefrank.com. So if you're bored, you know where to go!

Christmas Frenzy Part I

Shopped for Christmas gifts with my brother earlier before going to work! Ang gastos!!! I was only able to buy gifts for 4 people and guess what, I already spent a few hundred bucks. I'll be so broke. Boxing day pa!

There were no lines. Shopping here isn't really a bad experience. Even on boxing days, it's usually not crazy. Well, at least, the stores that I go to are usually not busy. Shopping this morning is only stressful because I spent so much. Hahahahahaha! I get carried away when shopping.

When I got home (after working for 8 freakin' hours!), I wrapped the gifts. When I say "wrapping" I meant putting the gifts in paperbags and writing on the tags. HAHAHA I bought Christmas-y paperbags at the Dollar Store before we went to the mall but I also bought wrappers from Carlton Cards. I insisted on using bags but my brother wants some gifts to be actually wrapped but ask him who he expects to wrap them and he will say it's me. Hay nako talaga. Anyway, some of the gifts are from me and some are from my brother. So everyone in the family is getting two gifts from us kids. If you're going to ask about my sister... HAHAHAHAHAHA!

The gifts are at the living room now, lined-up on the bench. HAHAHA! They won't really fit under the tree for the bags are huge! I'll post a picture later.

More shopping really soon. ARGH! More gastos!!!

Hospital

I don't know but being surrounded by people in the health industry is interesting. Even med students, I just feel a certain awe for them. I always feel this way whenever I go to this part of the university. There's something with it - I mean, seeing them and observing them - that amazes me. It's not intimidating. It's more of me being curious about them.

The idea of working in a hospital seems attractive.

Just so you know

“If you are going to fall in love with me, it’s only fair that you know what you are falling in love with.

You are falling in love with my insecurities, and my obsession with trying to figure out what everyone thinks of me. You are falling love with my immaturity, my constant need to feel loved and appreciated, my overactive tear ducts, my internet obsession, my tendency to be too clingy. You fall in love with my troubled past, and my hopes and dreams, and how I’m a hopeless romantic at heart. If you fall in love with me, you fall in love with my self-hate and all my imperfections and my perception that nobody could ever love me.

But, you are also falling in love with the way my eyes will smile when I’m with you, the way I’ll text you in the mornings just telling you I hope you have a great day. You’re falling in love with the occasionally humorous and/or thought-provoking things I say, and the way I blush when people ask me about you. But to me, the most important thing will be that you are falling in love with me, despite my thinking that it is impossible.”

Quote: http://watchasifall.tumblr.com
Image: http://thelovelybones.tumblr.com/post/274477119

This is beautiful

"I do not care what car you drive. Where you live. If you know someone who knows someone who knows someone. If your clothes are this year’s cutting edge. If your trust fund is unlimited. If you are A-list B-list or never heard of you list. I only care about the words that flutter from your mind. They are the only thing you truly own. The only thing I will remember you by. I will not fall in love with your bones and skin. I will not fall in love with the places you have been. I will not fall in love with anything but the words that flutter from your extraordinary mind."

-- A Beautiful Revolution

The Stress that is Christmas

Here we go again with the commercialized Christmas we all love and hate. My brother is on a roll! Holy! He's almost done with his Christmas shopping. And if you think he's giving away blah gifts this year, well, he's not. His gifts are fab! While me...I haven't even started shopping!

Since I haven't done anything today (I was supposed to go to the library and write and paper but I got lazy. I was also supposed to go to the bank to set up a new account but again I got lazy.), I decided to look for gifts online. I'm sooo not good at it. I need to practice this online shopping thing. I managed to find a few stuff. I think I got about 7 people covered but I have to shop for a bunch more. I'm trying to find a site where I could buy ALL the gifts I need pero it seems to be impossible. What I'm doing is that, I try to buy a number from a store hindi yung isa-isa lang.

O-M-G. This Christmas thing is really stressful not to mention magastos ha.

I really should list all the people I will give gifts to and indicate what I will give them. Hay nako. STRESS. This is hard as final exams!!!

Via: The Sartorialist

I wish I could dress like her EVERY FREAKIN' DAY of my life. Well, of course, the weather here will not permit me. 6 months of winter, HELLO. But yeah, I would like to live in a place where I can dress like this FOREVER. Light weight dress, sandals, minimal accessories...AHHH LOVE!

WTF?!? I don't have a Fashion tag here, I just realized. Where am I putting my entries about it?

Watchusay?

All I know is that right now, I'm smiling. Screw rationality.

Weird things

Every time it seems you're catching my eye, I avoid you.
But then I see. I see all the beautiful things in you and then moving away does not make sense.
You move me up to the magical realms of your eyes and your magnificent smile.
Only when I come back to reality do I realize that this
This enchantment is imaginary.

Nothing is real.

This universe will not conspire for you and me.

LIKE! 1 Million times!

How come the only way to know how high you get me is to see how far I fall? - J.M.

I just know

3 down

I'm done with my Anthropology exam!!! Ohmygahd!!!

Last night I was getting frustrated already because I had to read 4 chapters in one night. I was also skipping that class because I had to write requirements for my seminars so I really had to read. It was already 9PM and I was only on the 2nd chapter. And you know me, when I get frustrated I just don't want to do anything. I'll stop and do something totally irrelevant to the thing I should do just to get away, distract myself and forget. So last night, I was just chatting away - talking to Pat, Alvir, and Marylin. Alternating between Plurk and Facebook and some Tumblr. My sister had the PBB livestream on so I was kind of listening/watching too. I told myself I'm just gonna go to school early. And so I set my phone to alarm at 5.

And so the alarm went off at 5 but I woke up at 6.40 something. HOLY SH*T. I thought I was just asleep for 5 minutes! I left the house at 8.30 so I had about 2 and a half hours to go through everything after the one hour bus ride.

But due to divine intervention, I got to answer ALL the questions. HALLELUJAH.

It feels like the world is so much lighter now. Well, of course it's not over yet. I still have to finish 2 papers but still... THIS IS BETTER!

Snow White bites

I WANT THIS!!!
Do you know where can I buy this really, really cute sticker for my really cool Pro?

Quotes that I found/liked recently

“Unless it is mad, passionate, extraordinary love, it’s a waste of time. There are too many mediocre things in life—love should not be one of them.”

“I like the kissing and the crying, i like the impatience, the stories that the mouth can’t tell fast enough, the ears that aren’t big enough, the eyes that can’t take in all of the change, i like the hugging, the bringing together, the end of missing someone.”

"We are not all teenage infatuated girls with a false sense of true love. I have loved greatly, and lost greatly. A victim of a one sided affair."

"Never feel sad about love. Rather, it should make you wonder.. that if you were once happy with a wrong one, how much more when the right one comes?"

"If you define success only by "not losing", you will be in an eternal state of mediocrity." (This one inspired by Covington. LOL)

Umasa ka pa

HEY SELF: Umasa ka namang papagbigyan ka uli ni Mother. She's a bitch, ya know.



BUT PLEASE MOTHER!!! Sige naaa!

So far...

And so...

The presentation: I screwed up the first half. That's what you get when you don't practice and when the speech is made by someone else. HAHAHA But whatevs. I'm just glad it's over.

The Soc Cog exam: I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO TOOK THE EXAM. Hahaha! I discussed it with Allison, the TA for our class. And I decided that what-the-hell JUST WRITE IT. I won't lose anything anyway besides the anxiety I will be getting with the what-if-I-took-the-exam shit.

The Thesis Proposal: I finished it last night. Printed it. Walked to Chancellor's to submit it at around noon. It looks like a thesis proposal. I hope it sounds like one too. LOL

Now it's Anthropology time. I'm not done with the paper. More likely I'll hand it in on Monday or tomorrow afternoon if I got lucky and get to finish it before 4.30. I already started reading for the exam too.

Anyway, I'll catch some sleep now. I have been sleep deprived for daysss already. Gotta have that rest.

***

A stupid thing is making me smile like crazy.
SHIT. Stupidest...well maybe not. But still stupid.
Please, Mother Nature, don't tempt me if you're not gonna give it to me talaga.