Red Ribbon

I got out of the office, late and alone this evening hence, I decided to treat myself to a Salisbury Steak at Red Ribbon. Too bad though it's not available anymore but good thing is, the Bangus (Milkfish) meal is still up so I bought it instead.

While waiting for my meal, I listened to my IPOD and people-watched outside the glass window. And then I saw Red Ribbon's banner. Under their popular Black Forest Cake, was the phrase:
...You brighten up my day...

Made me smile. IT did remind me of someone.

Fit for me?

An aunt recommended this song; said this matches my voice. She probably mean it as a compliment (Ella Fitzgerald is a highly acclaimed singer!) but i'm not really sure if I can pull it off, as it's not my kind of genre...

But anyways, the lyrics is lovely!

The Man I Love

Someday he'll come along,
The man I love
And he'll be big and strong,
The man I loveAnd when he comes my way
I'll do my best to make him stay
He'll look at me and smile,
I'll understand
Then in a little while,
He'll take my hand
And though it seems absurd
I know we both won't say a word

Maybe I shall meet him Sunday,
Maybe Monday, maybe not
Still I'm sure to meet him one day
Maybe Tuesday will be my good news day

He'll build a little home,
That's meant for two
From which I'll never roam,
Who would, would you
And so all else above
I'm dreaming of the man I love



(credit to acceptantlove for uploading in youtube)

All I Want For Christmas Is You

Yay! It's that time of the year again when I can sing this as often as I want to. =D



(credit to snow102 for uploading)

2009 Blogger's Choice Award

My Vote for the 2009 Bloggers' Choice Award (National)
My Vote for the 2009 Bloggers' Choice Award (Mindanao)

I vote for DavaoBase
Bloggers' Choice Award
2009 Philippine Blog Awards

Bikram Yoga

Finally, I got to experience Bikram yoga today. Bikram yoga is actually a form of Hatha yoga, only, the stretches are done under a heated room where temperature is controlled at 38degC!

Now, I never am one for saunas. I couldn't really stay longer than 5 minutes in a sauna heated at 47degC, even if i'm just sitting there, trying to breath. Hence, the heat was my main problem. For the first 30min, I almost fainted five times! Almost, being, that state when there's a black cloud creeping its way in front of you. So, whenever that happens, and as advised by our instructor Tristan, I just drop whatever pose I'm in and just stand still or sit down and keep on breathing. The first time it happened, I thought I'd just remain seated for the rest of the 1 and half hour session. But seeing my 30+ classmates (yes, this by far is the largest class I've been in) magnificently stretching their muscles, I got up and worked out.

I was able to adjust with the heat later on though and when I did, it was just great! I think I must have sweated out a liter or more! Also (giggle), when I saw THIS GIRL's POSTURE HERE months ago, I thought I wouldn't be able to do it or that it would take me months of practice before I can attempt to do it. But lo, I was able to do it on my first try!! Was able to do it with my right foot on tiptoe, then later on left foot on tiptoe and then twice over as we had to repeat the poses twice. I was practically grinning to myself in front of the mirror in the classroom. =D

I just wish though they have a class here in Alabang...Makati is just so far for me who doesn't have her own car (yet hehe).

food blogging

For the longest time, I have wanted to have a new blog dedicated solely for the food trips i've been having. And for the longest time, i've long wanted to have my own *.com. =D

The site I've put up is still a free blog but hopefully soon, I can have wordpress host my domain, eliminate "wordpress" on the URL and hence have my own *.com at last. hehe.

https://goodfoodhunt.wordpress.com

It's still a work in progress though, but, do enjoy! =)

Moments

"Up a flight of almost 300 steps. Church bells tolling nearby. Flowers a-bloom on the sides, some even seemed like they're reaching out to you, as if willing you to touch them. Butterflies flitting about. Birds chirping up on the trees' branches. And the lush green of the early summer leaves forming a canopy above you. All peaceful, so peaceful it was bordering on being surreal. And you seize it. Bask on the moment. Drink it like it's some elixir, healing you of whatever is troubling you, of whatever is ailing you. Drink it till you're satiated. Drink till you know you've drank enough to bring with you to wherever you need to go to."

Wrote this on my last weekend in Japan, when my heart feels constricted with how much i'll be missing the place and things/people I love. These were my thoughts as I was scaling the stairs leading to Yamate Church.

Gotta Be Somebody

I've always thought rock songs disguise in the loud drums and electric guitars the most romantic of lyrics. Even the rock stars' rough voice adds up to the romantic effect. There's my long-time favorite, "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing " by Aerosmith. Such beautiful lyrics. And now, I've a new favorite from Nickelback.

Click here for the video.

Gotta Be Somebody
This time I wonder what it feels like
To find the one in this life
The one we all dream of
But dreams just aren't enough
So I´ll be waiting for the real thing.

I'll know it by the feeling.
The moment when we´re meeting
will play out like a scene straight off the silver screen
So I`ll be holdin’ my own breath
Right up to the end
Until that moment when
I find the one that I'll spend forever with

`Cause nobody wants to be the last one there.
'Cause everyone wants to feel like someone cares.
Someone to love with my life in their hands.
There`s gotta be somebody for me like that.
'Cause nobody wants to do it on their own
And everyone wants to know they´re not alone.
There's somebody else that feels the same somewhere.
There`s gotta be somebody for me out there.

Tonight, out on the street out in the moonlight
And dammit this feels too right
It´s just like Déjà Vu
Me standin’ here with you
So I´ll be holdin`my own breath
Could this be the end?
Is it that moment when
I find the one that I'll spend forever with?

‘Cause nobody wants to be the last one there
'Cause everyone wants to feel like someone cares.
Someone to love with my life in their hands.
There´s gotta be somebody for me like that.
`Cause nobody wants to do it on their own
And everyone wants to know they´re not alone.
There's somebody else that feels the same somewhere
There`s gotta be somebody for me out there.

You can´t give up!
Lookin´ for that diamond in the rough
You never know but when it shows up
Make sure you´re holdin` on
‘Cause it could be the one, the one you´re waiting on

‘Cause nobody wants to be the last one there.
And everyone wants to feel like someone cares.
Someone to love with my life in their hands.
There has gotta be somebody for me
Ohhhhhh.

Nobody wants to do it on their own
And everyone wants to know they´re not alone.
Is there somebody else that feels the same somewhere?
There`s gotta be somebody for me out there.

Nobody wants to be the last one there
'Cause everyone wants to feel like someone cares.
Is there somebody else that feels the same somewhere?
There has gotta be somebody for me out there.

The Time Traveller's Wife

I cried buckets on this book. I actually thought the book couldn't summon the emotional side of me since I read it in installment. Started reading it on my last month in Japan. However, what with the packing,I needed to put it aside. Then I resumed reading it when I got to my old apartment in Manila. However, what with the "robbery" excitement, my moving out and my getting sick, I have to set it aside again. Plus, I left it on my old apartment when I moved out hence I was forced to read other books (read "Eleven Minutes" which I've blogged earlier on and "A Hundred Year of Solitude" which I'm still deciphering why it was such a celebrated book).

Anyways, at first, the story-telling, the comings and goings of Henry were pretty ordinary and I found myself not involved with the book. Probably because I was preoccupied with other stuff as well. But as I read the other half, I couldn't help but be moved by their love story. And with how much Henry loved Clare. Leading you to think how many in this world and in this lifetime will you meet who loves the way Henry did Clare (and well, okay, vice versa).

Am looking forward to the movie which will premier come 3rd week of August - which means I may get to watch it in Davao since I will still be on my vacation then. I hope the movie won't be butchered like Harry Potter 6, though.

Thanks Zoey for giving me this book! =)
And such a good copy at that hehe.

You First Believed

A very beautiful song...

You First Believed

How many times did I pray
You'd find me
How many wishes on a star
Gazing off into the dark
Dreaming I'd see your face
Safe at home unafraid
Captured in your embrace

So many times
When my heart was broken
Visions of you
Would keep me strong
You were with me all along
Guiding my every step
You are all that I am
And I'll never forget

It was you who first believed
In all that I was made to be
It was you looking in my eyes
You held my hand
And showed me life
And I've never been the same
Since you first believed

There were times
When I'd thought I'd lost you
Fearing forever was a dream
But it wasn't what it seemed
Placing your hand in mine
You could see in the dark
You were guiding my heart

It was you who first believed
In all that I was made to be
It was you looking in my eyes
You held my hand
And you showed me life
And I've never been the same
Since you first believed

100lbs to 200lbs

My neighbors who live on the unit in front of mine must think i'm hermetic. On the one and only occasion that one of them talked to me, she asked me if I live alone on my unit. And I replied a curt "yes". And I can see in her face the same question that I have for them - Why? She must have been wondering why I live alone. And for the life of me, I also wonder why the five of them live on a place that I think could fit in only three people. I don't think money's the problem, judging from the talk I hear from them.

And yes I can hear EVERY inane conversation they have, what they're watching on TV and what station in the radio they're listening to. That's cause their front door is open ALL the time. Don't get me wrong. I grew up in a house where the front door is open from sun-up to sundown. And I loved how the sunlight comes streaming in through the front door and how the fresh gentle breeze is such a refreshing treat especially on hot afternoons. But here in Manila, where the probable thing that would come streaming in your door if you keep it open is dust and ROBBERS, one would have to opt to have their doors shut all the time.

This afternoon, when I opened my door momentarily to hang my newly washed laundry near my front door, I can hear the prattle of my neighbors since as usual they have their door open. One of the girls complained that she knew of a soon-to-be-bride who was so picky in her requirements with her bridesmaids that they need to have the same hairstyle. And that if they're fat, they need to loose 100 to 200lbs. And for the life of me, my self-control wasn't able to stop myself from laughing out loud. They fell silent with that. And was still silent as I hurriedly went inside my room and locked it. Gosh they must have thought I ws crazy. But I don't really care. It was hilarious, and to think she talked like an expert. I weigh about 100lbs. And if I was required to loose it, then I would cease to exist.

Eleven Minutes

It's been raining since last night. Raining hard, without letdown. If not for the good book I was reading and for my usual comfort food (tuna fried rice hehe) at home, my mood would have been as depressed as the weather is.

But anyways, to Eleven Minutes. I've heard of this probably some 5 years ago already. Although I liked Paolo Coelho's books, I was't interested with this one since I was told that it was about a very sensitive topic - about a prostitute and about sex. I felt that I wasn't ready nor was in the mood for this. The other night, while i got started in organizing files in my laptop, I saw the book and decided to give it a try. Not that I feel i'm ready now but that I remembered how friends and favorite persons really recommended this book that I decided to take a look at it.

And I was hooked. Indeed it talked about a prostitute. But an intellectual prostitute at that with thoughts that provoked you to think and rationalize as well. And surprisingly, I found myself immensely liking this book that talked about loneliness and the search for love and finding it, all set in the plot of prostitution and sex trade. I liked it so much that I finished reading the book in 24 hours, when I should have been resting because of my colds. No discipline I know. hehe.

Disclaimer though: I think this book should be read by an adult that has an open mind. =D

a happy news at last

Terrified from the events last Friday night, i know that I wouldn't be able to sleep on our apartment alone again. Our next-door neighbors, frightened of the experience they had last Friday, decided to go back to their respective hometowns. So really, it'll be foolhardy for me to stay ALONE on my apartment for the rest of the weekend.

But I know I am blessed with kind and good friends ^^. Thankfully, J and D lives nearby and they were kind enough to have me stay in their pad last night. When we woke up this morning, J told me that the owners were cleaning out the room two doors up. We checked it and voila, I fell in love with it. Tatay, the owner-parent said the place was vacant. Wonderful! So right there and then I said I'll take the place. The apartment has no room for a car's parking space though but for now, having a car is soooo far off my mind. I just need a SECURE place, a place where I can sleep soundly and peacefully. And well, a CLEAN place at that. Little did Tatay know that his son had already agreed to show the pad to two prospective tenants that very noon. So see, I am really blessed and lucky to have been able to talk to Tatay and not to the son cause then, I was able to have the place for myself. ^^

It was like everything just fell into place. Our apartment being broken into (attempted, that is). My sleeping over at J&D. And the apartment next door being vacant. And me talking to Tatay and not to the son. It all fell into place. A happy thing isn't it?

I wanted to personally discuss my moving out of the apartment with my roomies. But I need to tell them of the frightening experience I had last Friday ASAP so we just talked on the phone. I hope though that they understand....Really, I don't think I can take living in our old place alone again.

But nevertheless, I now have a new apartment and it's gonna be a busy busy week with the moving out and moving in. And oh yeah, J & D are still my hosts this evening hehe. D is actually sleeping on a hammock outside their room. And i'm even leeching on D's internet. hehe. Such a nice couple, they are. And i'm really lucky they're nearby! =D

Anyways, tomorrow's gonna be the first day at the office. First official office day in Manila after almost four years. Ganbarre to me!

break-in

I wanted to blog a more lighthearted entry, a happier topic. Like how I am reminded now of what I loved in my room years ago; which is waking up to the chirping of the birds. Or how the uber-cute phone trinket that Kayoda san gave me matches my new passionate red W705 Sony Ericsson phone.

But I had a sleepless night last night. I am all alone in our two-bedroom, two-storey apartment. I couldn't sleep because everytime I hear a footstep or a bang of the door, I would jump and my heart would be hammering in my chest that I could almost hear the palpitations. I thought of my unpacked baggage on our living room - my other suitcase containing all my electronic gadgets (thankfully my laptop is with me in my room) and my other bigger luggage containing all my clothes, and yet another suitcase containing all my shoes. If somebody breaks in, it would be easy for him to haul it since they are still intact in its respective suitcase. I still haven't unpacked since I'm still clearing and cleaning my room and cabinets.

I thought I was just being paranoid. But when I went outside, my kindly neighbor told me that he did see a robber trying to break into our house last night.

I am scared. Truly scared now.

icky slug

There's a slug in our bathroom and I don't know how to get rid of it.

Slowly, i'm making some slight progress in making our apartment more habitable. I've wiped some parts of the walls that's either been blackened or browned by dust and cobwebs. The sink is a bit better though it's still far from being A-okay. The bathroom..well..this place is the one place in a house that I am most meticulous of; it-should-be-clean. But I can't clean it because of this one TINY thing on it.

There's a slug on our bathroom.

Friends advise that I could dissolve it with rock salt and poke it with a long stick to put it on the trash bag. But...~shiver~...just the thought of even the end of my stick touching the slimy body of the slug...uggghhh!! IT gives me the chills, the goosebumps, raising the hairs on my body. I'm so totally grossed out that i'm freaking out with this slug. ~shiver~

I just might have to ask my housemates to dispose of this slug. But they went to their hometowns for the weekend. So it's just me and the slug alone on the house for the weekend. Eeeekkk!!! Really, I think i'll go mindless just thinking of the icky, yucky, goooey, slimy slug.

I-need-help.