He’s just not that into you

Watched it last night with my sister! Hehe that girl on the phone in the poster is hilarious. Hehe it reminded me of the time when I was being set up in blind dates by friends (it was 80% a nightmare) and I am just glad those days are over. Hehehe.

Also it’s been a while since Mina and I hung out just us two so I had a great time catching up. I live with my sister but I didn’t realize I missed her as much as my brothers. hahaha. Haay this job is so time-consuming. But I’m not complaining. hehe

HIPP – Happy Intelligent Progressive Parenting will be out in the newsstands next week! Woohoot!

Hello there, summer

Today, the heat is simply unbearable.

We had a shoot on the penthouse of a building in Greenhills and it was unbelievably hot. Three fully-powered aircons were not enough to chase the scorching heat out of the room. It’s like a preview of what life will be like when you’re living in hell. Which isn’t really a life at all because you wouldn’t really be there in the first place if you didn’t die. So what’s the point? Nothing, really. It’s kind of a struggle to be nice and friendly when one is faced with this kind of weather.

Notice that I am in a bratty mood today. Z totally hates it  when I am in this kind of mood (sometimes he tells me he finds it cute but I can tell he’s just mostly annoyed) because instead of playing the leading man, he usually has to play the role of punching bag. And I do not usually throw light punches. At least not the literal kind because the last time I tried boxing (actually it was the only time I ever tried boxing), I could have sworn my trainer was laughing at me. Kunwari lang he was making all these weird noises while he watched me trying to hit the punching bag but seriously, the guy was laughing at me. And he’s the one who talks like Manny Pacquiao. Sama.

So.

My foul mood aside, I haven’t really been blogging. It’s not like I have been busy the past few days; I am just not yet in a writing mood. I’ve been working on writing an entry about my trip to Sagada and Carlos Celdran’s Intramuros walking tour for my travel blog but I’m stumped. Not one word. I think it’s my seasonal writer’s block-kuno. I keep telling myself to do things ahead of time but I always end up doing the exact (and sometimes, extreme) opposite. Procrastination will be the death of me. Maybe even in life and death situations, I will still procrastinate. Take my sweet time deciding whether to scream Help! or not while hanging off a cliff.

Labo.

I can’t wait to get out of the office. I’m not very efficient today. I am the opposite of efficient. I am deficient.

Leche.

—-

NOTE: It’s THAT time of the month. ><

Sleep debt

I think the last few nights of 4AM bedtimes have taken its toll on me–I am now a walking zombie. Seriously, if it weren’t for coffee (which I am allergic to, by the way) I will be found crawling within the walls of Manila Bulletin’s Hogwarts-esque office building. o_o

I am so glad I’ll have tomorrow and the whole weekend to get back into the groove. I’ll be going to Sagada (I think I mentioned this a hundred times already) and am hopeful the subzero (from what I heard) mountain air will breathe rejuvenating energy back into my currently lethargic body. Seriously it’s not funny anymore. It’s even screwing up my digestive system—it’s been 3 days since I, er, you-knowed. My metabolism’s already lazy even before and now it’s taking it’s sweet time (parang senyorita) so the toxins in my body are probably having a soiree. It’s also turning me into the girl version of Oscar the Grouch.

Anyway. I hope I’ll be able to adjust to this lifestyle soon. Em told me it’ll probably happen sometime around our 3rd issue. Haha everybody in the office is bone-tired. Oh wehehell. At least I’m not alone!

making a dent in the world

My editor-in-chief sent a bunch of us the link to her blog and it just dawned on me how my job plays a big part in the whole scheme of things. I read some of her editor’s notes during her stint in Working Mom and was amazed by how one of the notes was able to influence one 25-year-old woman to adopt right before she was getting married. G was saying something about how being brave meant doing what you’ve got to do based on your convictions. Reading G’s editor’s note inspired her to make one of the biggest decisions of her life. Talk about making a dent in the world.

Ever since my best friend Au sent me this quote through text, I’ve really made it a point to stick to what it told me (I even put it in my blog’s header as a constant reminder):

LIVE. LIVE. LIVE. Seize the day, seize the night, seize what you can and suck the marrow out of life. We may not be Indiana Jones, Mother Teresa, Don Juan, Jack Kerouac, Henry Miller or the Vampire Lestat every day of our lives but you get the idea. Just LIVE. Feel. Move. Dance. Jump. Fly. Walk. Run. Travel. Shout. Explore. Kiss someone. Risk a little. Laugh. Cry. Volunteer. GO INSANE. MAKE A DENT IN THE WORLD. WHATEVER. -Karen Kunawicz

I never really thought I would be the type to actually take the initiative to make a difference in the lives of people–especially strangers. But that is exactly what my 2008 was all about. I got into life coaching the moment I graduated the program because it really heightened my awareness of the things that I really valued. It helped me differentiate from the things that mattered and the things I thought I needed. So I made it my goal to give back to the cosmos what it had given me.

I coached and it was the most fulfilled I had felt in a long time. Seeing your students transform (for the good!) and achieve their dream is something else. The fact that you played a part in it, at one point, felt immaterial. It isn’t about you. The fact that you went out of your way, took the time out to just really give, it’s just amazing to be in that level of commitment.

It was when I realized that love is as much selfless as it is selfish. It gives you the best feeling to see a woman or a man fall inlove with him/herself again, or in most cases, for the first time. And you played a part in it. You feel fulfilled because he is fulfilled. Wonderful!

I had a rough patch early this year and it prompted me to cut ties with coaching. It felt really bad because, well, this was a program that I actually believe would really help people and I have to cut it off. But reading Gina’s letters made me realize that I can make a dent in the world in my terms. I can do it in that community, yes, but I can also do it anywhere and everywhere.

And that is why I love my job. I never really thought about how it will actually impact people’s lives until I read her blog. I thought this was just like all my other jobs. You start at one point and the goal is to reach a higher end. That’s it, the end. Now I realized that that is only one aspect of it. I mean, look at Jose Rizal. Who’d have known then that writing two books could cause a revolution?

So I guess here’s to me starting my own revolution. Haha. La lang. I’m in a philosophical mood today. I hope it’ll always be like this. It’s fun knowing your brain’s actually working for a good cause! Haha

alin ang naiba?

I hope I don’t run into them inside the ladies’ bathroom. Unless they give me one of their mini vaios.

After posting countless Facebook notes, I decided to go bloghopping. Found these at Chuvaness’ site:

Sana may pang-matanda. Wehehe. Check out other designs here.

Water girl

Taken from Chuvaness.

Pet peeves

Each of us has pet peeves. Petty supposedly. But these peeves make you tick the most. So I will list down 5 of mine. Then tag 10 of you in the hopes of decreasing the number people who are guilty of my pet peeves. How queenly, no?

1) People sending me chain mails. The ones that end with “send to 25 people and your wish will come true in 3 days!” or worse, “if you don’t send to 50 of people in 5 minutes, you will have bad luck for 48 years!” Also emails that contain really gross photos like the one with that maggot-infested boob! Seriously! Some of us are very visual here. Spread the love, not the heebie jeebies.

2) Seeing swarms of anything—rats, ants, cockroaches, even men in uniform. I once saw dozens and dozens of policemen with their batons and metal shields at the height of GMA’s impeachment trials and it gave me the creeps. I don’t like the feeling of being outnumbered by anything. It gives my goose bumps goose bumps.

3) Ear-grating noise like the screech of tires, the fridge defrosting, nails scratching on blackboards, cement mixing, drummers going crazy with the cymbals, etc. Even merely imagining these noises sends me over the edge.

4) When you’re watching a really good movie on DVD and right when it’s about to reach the best part or the really mysterious ending, it hangs. And then you stop and try to get back to that part but it hangs again. And again. AND AGAIN!!! Oh well, that’s what you get for buying pirated versions of the real thing.

5) TxtnG LyK diS. SeRiOusLy, Do U ReALLy wAnT 2 wAsTe aLL uR eFfoRts DuRiNg EnGLiSh CLaSsEs iN SkEwL bY txTng “Wer na U? D2 na ME!” Aq ndi! ACK!

Lazy valentines weekend

I had the best valentines weekend ever. No, I did not fall prey to the marketing mania of Valentines Day; rather, I spent it chilling out at my best friend Au’s condo near Araneta Center. I forgot to bring my camera with me today but the moment I do, I am posting the feast Au prepared for me and Ali. She makes the best, and I am not exaggerating, the BEST apple crumble pie EVER. And she makes a mean shiitake mushroom risotto. We also bought roast chicken from Shopwise and a side of whole kernel corn. It was deeelish.

I really miss hanging out with my college barkada and it was nice to finally be in their company for a night. We all slept over there and I even got Zeph to drop by to meet Ali (he already met Au last year) and they ended up talking for around two hours while I, er, slept in the bedroom. We’ve had overnighters in the office for two straight days so I’m sort of making up for lost sleep. Anyway, I’m glad they got along well. They even want him to come in my stead during the next reunion. Leche. Hehehe

The following day was another day for food tripping. I went to Z’s place in the morning and we just relaxed in front of the TV. Later in the afternoon, we went to Tricia’s place where she held a joint birthday party for me, Jazy and Migs. Trish made the yummiest paella (with ingredients straight from Viva Espana!) and Pao made really really good roast chicken. Zeph and Ali (a different Ali hehe) acted as line chefs for a day and were even more convinced that they ought to take up culinary arts when they have time.

Anyway, it was the loveliest birthday dinner ever. Newlyweds Pinky and Derek brought the birthday cake. Bea gave me and Jazy chocolate cakes from Conti’s. And what’s a night without a couple of glasses of my favorite drink, the amaretto orange? Just perfect.

And I have my laptop back again! Z got it reformated to remove the fake Mac OS his friend installed there. It was really nice but it was a hassle going from one OS to another so I told him to get it fixed. Hehehe I have the sweetest (and handiest) boyfriend ever. (Mush alert) I’m gearing up to go to Sagada this Thursday. It’s for an article at work and I can’t wait because Z’s coming with me. Yey!

On tying knots

Ever since my friend Pinky got hitched, I’ve been thinking about marriage.

Quite a lot actually. And, well, it’s sort of bugging me because I have always felt that marriage was something I will be doing way into the future. My parents got married when they were both 25. And I thought, back when I was in high school, that I would be marrying around that age as well. But then I got to college where I was at my most restless and I decided then that the earliest age I will be getting married will be 30. I want to do all sorts of crazy things before I make that big commitment. I even remember talking to Steffi and Alet about how we should all have affairs in every country we visit. We’d go country-hopping around the world and along the way, we will be having flings–italian flings, greek flings, australian flings, french flings– we’ll remember for life! (I guess we’ve changed since then!)

And now here I am, finally 25, and I am “bombarded” with the possibility of marriage. Last Wednesday I had dinner with my dad and he was talking to me and Mina about how it was time for us to set our own goals for the future. Like how we should have this amount saved up by the time we are a certain age. And then he looked at me and he said that we’ll also be getting married eventually and then he talked about how he and my mom got married young and that they already had enough saved up then.

And also, my best friend Cel (who I did not talk to for two freakin years hahahahaha I’ll always segue that fact every time I mention you) told me that she and her boyfriend Randy plan to get married as soon as they save a certain amount of money while working in Singapore. My friend Trish also told me that she already had an idea about how my wedding cake will look like. She baked Pinky’s peacock inspired wedding cake. She mentioned mine’s color ought to be “Tiffany Blue and silver.” And then yesterday, I got a message from my grandfather’s brother Uncle Jesse and he told me that Z and I are a *ahem* good looking couple and he suddenly surprised me by asking when will the wedding be.

I was all, ehehehe, not anytime soon! And then I said something like, I’m too young to get married!

And that was when it hit me. I am no longer ‘too young to get married.’ I am actually of marrying age. Some of my friends got married. Some are already engaged. I am of marrying age. Ack!

I told Zeph about Uncle Jesse’s message and he pretended he was freaking out about it. (Leche) And then he said that after watching Pinky and Derek get married, he’s been feeling that he wants to already as well. He said he wants a wedding like theirs and that he’s excited about it. And he said the sweetest thing. Which I feel should be for my eyes only so I won’t say it here. Heehee.

Anyway, what the heck am I trying to say? I don’t know. I thought before that I would never get married at an early age. But then all these things are happening and now I’m suddenly thinking that, hey, my views on marriage are actually changing. I’m not saying I am getting married soon. All I’m saying is that the time has actually come that I’m open about the possibility. Ehehe. Gawd, this is so not the me I was back in college. The me I was only three years ago. I’ve changed. Waaah.

And I work for a parenting magazine. And our sister company is Wedding Essentials. I think in a way it’s influencing the way I view things. Gad. GAAAD.

Speaking of children, I do want one eventually. But I don’t want them as soon as the honeymoon’s over. I’d like around two years alone with my future husband first. I still want to go jet-setting to wherever. And I don’t think that part of me is willing to make a compromise at the moment. So…my gad. I’m freaking myself out with this entry!

Back to work! Back to work!

So excited!

Printer deadline is on Monday latest. Work has been madugo but well worth it.

I can’t fully express how excited I am to finally, FINALLY see the magazine in print. I’ve had doubts because of that traumatic experience with Spice but HIPP is really happening! Yay!

Watch out for our maiden issue out first week of March!