For some obvious reasons, there is still no much trace that Christmas is approaching here. I miss the overflowing fancy decors in Philippine malls, the seemingly competing themed decors in and out of the buildings in Makati, and a lot more. I’ve been frequenting Ikea lately because it is the best place to run in if you want temporary holiday shivers. The sight of the colorful pillowcases, bedsheets, standard pine trees and other stuff may comfort you for a while.

In the Philippines, expect to hear Christmas songs as early as 1st of September. The radio stations and all sorts are playing our old favorites and new ones. I used to make Christmas playlists until I found my preferred albums. Depending on my mood (or the mood that I want to set in), I would just play any of those.

I prime on these timeless Christmas carols when I want something generic. Well-grouped medleys.

The next one is my most favorite. This never fails to amuse me, my guests, or any people around me. I remember I experimented last year when I had this played before a very young group. They exclaimed it was like being transported to a Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail phase. I absolutely like it. Versions from Paul Anka, Frank Sinatra, Andy Williams, and other brilliant voices.

And of course, the bossa nova version will surely give it a different blend. Among the bossas, I like these versions from Chappel Music Philippines. These local artists sounded better than other groups.

Through these songs and my tuning in to a daily morning show (featuring different choir singing Filipino and English carols), Christmas is now in the air. What’s in your playlist? What are your favorite Christmas songs?

Oh, great. After the long wait and speculation, my favorite cinema in UAE announced that Twilight would be shown on 4th of December. It would be released in the US this friday and in the Philippines on the 26th. I.am.jealous. Meaning I need more patienceeeee (!) in the coming days. I promise myself not to peek on any reviews and other form of spoilers until I see this for myself. Huhuhu. What a test of EQ. Sige na nga, okay lang. At least, it’s still a better playdate. Sourgraping. Haha.

If you’re following my posts, you probably have an idea how I transformed from a non-fictional reader to a teenage series addict. I’ve managed to have kept a reasonable period to have this blog free from Twilight talk. But now, I really, really want to talk about it again. What’s the trigger?

It has been reported that President Obama is reading Twilight with his daughter.

President-Elect Barack Obama truly has a full plate. Revitilize a sinking economy. Energize a nation. Rehabilitate America’s fragile standing in the world. Oh, and get through four “Twilight” books with his youngest daughter.

Yes, according to the latest issue of US Weekly, Stephenie Meyer has a couple fans who will be moving into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in a couple months. The magazine reports that the President-Elect and his ten-year-old daughter Malia often bond over addictive book series, “They read all the Harry Potter books together and have moved on to the Twilight series.”

If that’s true, I like him for reading the book. And again, only if that’s true, I don’t like him for allowing his youngest daughter to read Twilight. Too young to read it.

What’s really in it?

I’ve read Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse thrice (Breaking Dawn is my least fave), but I’ve never really discussed my take in it. (But, don’t ask me if it’s better than Harry Potter series. Never flipped any of its pages YET. I’ll try to catch up.) Admittedly (and obviously), I did like Twilight Saga. I fell in love with the first book. The main factor, maybe, is because it served as a junk food to my brain.  Just in time when I wanted to take a break from all the serious reading that I was doing.

A love story between a 17-year old gal (Bella) and dazzling vampire (Edward), set in Forks, Washington. The rest are obvious and weird, predictable and unimaginable alike. In less than two weeks, I finished the four books in between the not so obvious crazy schedule, deprived myself of sleep and proper eating schedule.

Book 1 (Twilight): Almost finished it in one sitting the first time I read it. I’ve been curious about the vampire world. I started to like Edward. I considered visiting Romania. I wanted to meet a vegetarian vampire. Silly but seriously once thought about. Well-written, right phasing.

Book 2 (New Moon): I wanted to slap Bella many times. If I’m her friend or mother, I could have told her, “Nababaliw ka na ba?” (Are you crazy?) Towards the end, I started to like Jacob. Balimbing, no? Heehee. Honestly, Book 2 was boring. Then, I realized it needs to tone that way as an installment to establish the Bella-Jacob angle. I just think that it was unnecessary to emphasize on Bella’s numerous kahibangan (foolishness) when Edward left.

Book 3 (Eclipse): This is my uber fave in the series. I’m feeling Bella here in the sense that I was torn between Edward (vampire) and Jacob (the Omega of the werewolves). It’s like the lyrics in a song, “Are you gonna stay with the one who loves you or are you going back to the one you love?” I’m so kilig with the Tent Scene. I’ve read and imagined that for the nth time. In the end, I’ve finally concluded that I’m with Team Edward. Hahaha.

(Before flipping through the fourth book, I opted to read Midnight Sun partial draft.  This is Book 1 as told in Edward’s point of view.  Ack! I’m surprised he’s that so obssessed with Bella!)

Book 4 (Breaking Dawn): It did break my heart for two major reasons (a) This meant the end of the saga; though I like the Bella-Edward ending (b) That Jacob imprinted on Bella’s daughter. That was so unfair. To Meyer’s fans, no offense meant, but I think she was definitely not in a good mood when she drafted this. She pushed it too hard to give each party a happy ending; really rushed. Minadali at hinog sa pilit. I prefer that Twilight Saga ended with Book 3 instead, wherein it opens many probabilities. But sadly, Meyer wanted to really END it in the least expected way.

After Breaking Dawn, I had a hard time getting over my Twilight addiction (I’m surprised that a number of referrers to this site come from searches for “how to get over Twilight addiction” and other Twilight related queries). How did I move on? I tried reading other books. Turned out that I can’t appreciate them yet. So, the recourse is to indulge till it doesn’t tickle anymore. After reading the books again, I finally was able to keep my heart and mind with The Chocolate Run. And of course, my email chats with Toni was a big help when I was at the peak of addiction. During my Twilight relapses, I reconnected with a good friend through Facebook and surprisingly she’s more addicted than I am. And both of us ordered Twilight shoes (see here).  Swoon.

My friend ordered Twilight bag from Dr. Catigbe, too

Surprisingly, even Sarah Jessica Parker was bitten by the Cullen virus that she had a product line for Twilight.  Tempting, ey?  I wonder how’s the scent.

During my relapses, I would sometimes blog or mention something about Twilight, or even when I do comment in other blogs. If I wasn’t able to control myself, I had probably blogged about Twilight everyday and renamed this blog to “Twilight Vampie” (goodbye, wits and nuts). Lol. For the non-Twilighters, the addiction seems unreasonable. For my Twilight sisters (and brothers?), they know the very reason why and how it feels. How to know if you’re obsessed with Twilight series?

(a) When you start relating anything (as in) anything about Twilight to everything and everyone.
(b) You say you’re thirsty when you’re actually hungry.
(c) When you buy food, you tell people you’re going hunting.
(d) When you go to Antipolo, with all the trees, mountain sides and when it rained and looked gloomy all day, you accidentally call it Forks.
(e) When you’re obsessively finalizing travel plans to Forks, Washington, with your impossibly irrevocable optimism that you’ll meet any of the Cullens and then be one of them.
(f) See other points here.

Should you read Twilight Saga? Go get the first book and you would surely feel if you want to read the rest of the books or not. But I don’t encourage people as young as Obama’s youngest child to read it. There are implicit sexual motivations, Bella’s being unreasonable in Book 2 is not a good example, etc.

If you want to appreciate the saga, you have to remember (and occasionally forget) that this is just a FICTION.

(Photo credits: Twilighters Anonymous, Twilight Coven)

Few hours later, I was already chilling and my head was aching like it was being broken into two. And the rest followed. I would say that those raindrops hit me so bad. These drops were different from those that I occasionally ran off in the streets of Makati whenever I’m caught (or I intentionally do with my pals) with no umbrella. I am blessed to be not sickly. Even if you deprive me of sleep for a week, food, and stress me, history says I would survive. Harmful raindrops, indeed. What a way to officially welcome winter. Surprised? Believe me, there is winter in UAE. Lol.

Thanks to all who have asked. The thought meant much. I am relatively well now. Take care, everyone.

A gloomy Mayon Volcano as viewed with Cagsawa Church, taken in 2004.

I had a short-term work assignment in Naga City in 2003. During the weekend, a visit to Mayon Volcano in Cagsawa, Daraga (2.5 hours drive from Naga) consumed my Saturday. However, the volcano was in its gloomy state. Though I’ve read it in history books many times, it was still interesting to see the surviving bell tower of Cagsawa Church. I even bought a souvenir shirt showing Cagsawa Ruins. Out of the 47 eruptions of Mayon Volcano, the one in 1814 was considered as the most destructive.

Lava flowed but not as much compared to the 1766 eruption. Instead, the volcano was belching dark ash and eventually bombarding the town with tephra that buried the town of Cagsawa—only the bell tower of the town’s church remained above the new surface. Trees were burned; rivers were certainly damaged. Proximate areas were also devastated by the eruption with ash accumulating to 9 m (30 ft) in depth. 2,200 Albay natives perished in what is considered as the most lethal eruption in Mayon’s history.

While I enjoyed shopping in Daraga and was able to savour the authentic laing, pinangat, bicol express, and sweets, I was disappointed that I didn’t see Mayon Volcano in a mesmerizing view as shown in the postcards. My Bicolano hosts/guides claimed that “Nahihiyang magpakita sayo. Ibig sabihin kailangang tingnan mo uli siya. Pinapabalik ka niya uli sa Bicol” (The volcano is shy to show up. That means you need to see her again. She wants you to come back to Bicol). That’s an old belief that later on proved to be seemingly correct.

Mayon Resthouse at the foot of the volcano, taken in 2005.

Then, I was assigned for a couple of weeks in Legazpi (capital of Albay) in 2004. From the city proper, the volcano was very visible. Hence, I easily took note if it was a perfect time to go to Cagsawa, which is only 15-minute drive from the city. However, the moment we would reach there it was no longer clear. The volcano is playing hard to get.

In 2005, I was back to Naga for a back-to-back assignment in Tabaco. Aside from the other sidetrips during the weekend, we paid a visit to Cagsawa again. Finally, the view was almost clear. Just almost. We didn’t settle for it and took 180 degrees turn to see the other side of Mayon Volcano. We had to drive up to Mayon Resthouse. It was so foggy then and after almost an hour of driving and walking up, we were literally at the foot of the volcano. The resthouse itself was eerie because it was already non-operational for a number of years. No washrooms, restaurants, etc. I hope they would be able to revive this.

View from Legazpi Airport, taken in 2005.

On the day of our flight from Legazpi to Manila, Mount Mayon unexpectedly showed up again.

She was very clear. Finally I had my own acceptable Mayon Volcano shot. Ibig sabihin hindi na niya ako pinapabalik (That meant she no longer asks me to be back). Just now I realized, there was a strange bird in the photo.

After 47 times of eruption and being ruined, Mayon Volcano is still beautiful. Making it 11th in the 2008 Seven Wonders of the World.

This is my entry for this week’s Photo Hunt.

I recently fancy my self-made combo, which I named Mc Sugoi Meal. I would buy tuna salad with vinaigrette dressing from Mc Donald’s and Makki from Sugoi. It cheers me up as I devour the seemingly light salad, in between the delicious hurt that strikes my nasal area as I munched the Makki dipped in huge amount of wasabe.

Aside from our old favorite food couples, mangga at bagoong, puto at dinuguan, it pays to ‘discover’ your own version of combo. We have different taste buds, hence, the different preference. I also like:

(a) V-Cut + Coke
(b) Ginisang monggo + spicy hotdog
(c) Mc Donald’s fries being dipped in Chocolate or Caramel Sundae
(d) Danggit + ginisang ampalaya
(e) Bread (preferably pandesal) with spicy pancit canton, dirty ice cream or Spanish sardines as spread
(e) Etc.

What’s yours?

Uber (synonym to Super) Amazing Blog Award is a blog award given to sites who:
~ inspires you
~ makes you smile and laugh
~ or maybe gives amazing information
~ a great read
~ has an amazing design
~ and any other reasons you can think of that makes them uber amazing!

Thanks to Kayni for passing this award to me. She wrote,

… To Jo - for her creative thoughts and ideas ( I was inspired by the 1001 Letters post)

I am passing this award to the following:

Sinta:  She’s indeed living up the tagline of her blog.  I am inspired by her neat and sophisticated artwork.

Panaderos:  He knows how to put substance in each post.

Mai Da Paypay:  An addition to my favorite food bloggers.

Caryn:  The creative swap project mastermind.

Indexed:  Her posts make me think, smile/ laugh, confused, anything.  She is brilliant.

Annie Rhiannon:  I admire her brave shares and incredible non-anonymity in some of her too personal posts.

As I wrote here, our Department held its annual get together cum team building within a Dhow Cruise. It’s one of the rare occasions that colleagues from all three offices in UAE gathered, without necessarily discussing work. Although there were little chattering about professional encounters as we catched up on each other’s lives. It was also a great time to mingle and reunite with fellow Filipinos, which we term as Filipino community/Pinoy Department.

The team building itself was not strictly held at its ideal phase. There were few but acceptable group games, good enough to make us more excited for dinner. We spent the first half of the affair at the deck, savouring the breeze. The cruise timing was good because winter already set in. The wind was literally refreshing.

We had an international buffet for dinner. This was set at the first storey. It was a simple and neat arrangement. Near the television is the stairs going to the basement where the dance floor is situated.

All of us spent most of our time at the deck. Primarily because the activities were set there, preceded by a mini-cocktail. I can’t post a photo showing the entirety of the deck to protect anonymity of my colleagues. I didn’t find time to take a snapshot while the area was still clear.

These are for sisha or hookah (water pipe smoking). I hoped I had tried it though I don’t really smoke. For curiousity’s sake. Next time, maybe.

During the cruise, we got to pass by at some establishments. The middle structure is Sheraton Hotel.

That one there is the face of Dubai Municipality.

We also passed by at a group of boat passengers as we did troll through the creek.

Here’s a view of the side of a similar ship we went in.

Here’s a glimpse of the dance floor located at the basement. The sound system situated here is a centralized one, that meant if they were playing English, Hindi or other type of songs, it’s one for all up to the deck.

This seemingly antique piece got me.

As intended, I sat at the best spot during dinner. By the window.

What a unique way to hold a team building. A little different from my previous ones because we were ‘building the team waterbased’.

As the group jumps and hugs are among the most candid photo subjects, I love taking a snapshot of the drinks as grouped. For me, it’s like chronicling the number of people that shared the moments more than the food. Incidentally, I have several random photos of group of cup of coffee and glass of frapuccino/juice/shake. And as I look at each copy, I still recall which cup/glass belongs to whom. Oh well, mine was one of those avocado shakes.

This is my entry for this week’s Photo Hunt.

Our Department is holding its annual get together cum team building today. And we’re setting in Dhow Cruise in a while.

Happy weekend, everyone!

(Photo source)

I rooted in a clan who is relatively responsible when it comes to academics. I never realized it until I was associated to my mother’s, aunts’, and elder ones’ lives as a student before my graduation in elementary. It’s like taking care a record from one generation to another. Since I am the eldest in my generation (among the cousins), I was not really obliged to excel but as I look back now, I would say that in a way, I deniably wanted to set a good example.

We were raised in a way that there was “a pretending no pressure system”. I remember my late grandfather having a reward system of giving PhP 1 for each perfect quiz/test we earned. We thought it was all for pure fun. Then occasionally, one or two of the elders would make story telling – real stories of our elders/relatives as students. We didn’t realize that the psychology was discreetly beginning. We were generally trained to learn on our own to a major extent and to live simply especially while still a student. And these worked.

I remember when I got a 70% mark in one of my Math assignments when I was in third grade. Because I didn’t study, I literally took it for granted. I cried and felt so ashamed, with no one blaming me. Maybe that’s the reason why I thought I hated numbers. To my horror, my high school started Advanced Algebra as one of the electives during my time. Surprisingly, I was consistently rewarded for Math since elementary. I began to think that fate was playing with me. That even if I hated it, it loves me. That fate brought me to my bachelor’s degree, without really wanting it.

College was challenging. Despite my dislike for numbers, I had to survive them for the love of my clan (more than the expectations; or maybe I also learned to love it I just didn’t realize). Thinking that I have to set a good example. Just like a normal student, I had my moments of wanting to shift to another course. But when I thought that I was almost at the finish line and considering the waste of time and resources, I did stick to it. During college, I became friends with a number of people who can only have marks, 100% or 100% in their quizzes. “My dad won’t be happy if it’s only 97%”. Ack, I’m still lucky. I also had the company of secretly grade conscious, happy-go-lucky-but-responsible ones. It was indeed chopsuey.

Fastforward. I burned my head preparing for the board exams (I remember I became so religious then, doing a regular novena to Saint Jude and other saints, oh, those days!). Then after board, the real life begins… and no longer goes to Saint Jude Church. Eeek.

That time, my cousin L was about to go to College. She wanted to take up my same course. However, she got a scholarship from DOST and was forced to devote her life to ECE instead. I can totally relate with her experience of giving sleepless nights of study for a field that she didn’t really (initially) want. It’s ironic though. We sometimes say we don’t really want to be in it, but we seem to be destined for it.

So the ‘taking care of the records’ continue. I love the way that the younger ones are not really feeling the pressure (or hey, might be just pretending?). We live in a way that there’s no contest. But we’re supposed to give our best shot. If one fails, no one will blame but everyone will shower hugs. Taking care of the records of course is not limited to academics. We’re just human, some are taking care of the other field.

As I grew older (and hopefully wiser), we realized that we like the way we were brought up (I must admit with some refinement though), especially about being able to live simply as we can. To being mold like a wild grass that can possibly survive everywhere. However, life is random and as we take each step, it sometimes gets crazy! It’s a cycle.

I remember how happy we were whenever we survived qualifying test while in college.
… then shaken when we realized there’s still senior year to juggle.
We felt triumphant after graduation.
… suddenly scared because there was still board exams to battle
We felt like a lotto winner after the board exams.
… slapped to realize that I am not the lone certified ek-ek in my field
… shaken that I then need to make a real living
Felt good when I had my first job
… realizing that books are classical, in actual world, it’s like a jungle
… that some of the lessons in college won’t be fully utilized in fieldwork
… but I love the “real world”
… but student life is the best!
… realized that a high paying job + harmonious environment is a hardly coveted combination
Felt better as changes transpired
… that I NEEDED another certification
… that I WANTED another certification again
… I have to keep moving
Felt DEVASTED as I fail
Felt ENLIGHTENED when I finally enjoy the beauty of debit and credits in life
Felt BEST as I grow older
…because I find my worth and meaning in life

And it goes on…

To my dear cousin, we’re proud of you. The journey has just begun. It’s not going to be a bed of roses. But just find your purpose and live meaningfully. Everything will follow. Remember to read the signs carefully. Take it easy when taking shortcuts. Some of it is directed to hell. Be human. Be humble but be assertive. Be crazy, just sometimes. When you’re old, you’ll be proud that you’ve done crazy stuff to a manageable extent. Lastly, be childlike. It’s the most enjoyable phase, isn’t it?

Welcome to real world!

P.S. I forgot to tell you, don’t forget to read Twilight Saga and you now can have a boyfriend (only if you like). Your academic obligations are done.