Bagong Taon

This is my first post for the year 2007! KJP, the Internet connection has been very slow since the Taiwan earthquake, thus, I have been unable to do my blogging.

You know, I made the most posts in my blog last year. And this year, I am still targeting to increase my posts, meaning I'll be writing more about my activities and my life in general.

The year 2007 met me with sickness. I got colds and cough. :( Hopefully, this doesn't mean I'm prone to sickness this year. I have so many things to do this year and getting sick isn't one of them.

I made a New Year's resolution list. I did that on New Year's eve. :) I'll post it some other time (coz I don't have the list with me. I'm blogging at work. Ha!)

I am looking forward to an exciting 2007 life.

Kaon! Food!

"Thou shall not weigh more than thy refrigerator." Whadda Christmas greeting! Whoever created this one, he's such a funny person! Downright witty too! During holidays, with all the parties and food, read unhealthy food (ham, spaghetti, lechon, etc.) who wouldn't gain pounds?!

Tonight, my family was just looking for something unfatty to eat. We stopped by at Chowking Redemptorist right after sending my friend Chada to the airport. I ordered Chicken Congee! Murag gihilantan noh?! hehehe... But who cares! I love it! I love "lugaw" so much! hehehe...

Gifts

Christmas can be a stressful event in our life. Imagine, you have to give everyone (your friends, relatives and associates) gifts. Imagine all the parties! Imagine all the spendings that go with them.
I have to make sure that my inaanaks (godchildren) will have gifts this Christmas and I have to do that with such limited budget. I have bought their gifts already. And I believe I wasn't really extravagant. I set a limit of Php200 per child. Well, I exceeded on some but I was also a bit skimpy on the others.
For my closest friends and neighbors, I made them something personal. I didn't realize it could be so tiresome making them. But then, this is the most beautiful gift I have given them. It's something I made, something personal, created with sweat and every ounce of morning energy!

don't expect from people (a fruitful afternoon at National Bookstore)

Yesterday, while waiting for my sister at the mall, I went to National Bookstore, one of my favorite places, and browsed over books (and yes, did a little reading). If I just had all the money in the world, I'd have bought all the books that took my fancy. Unfortunately, I can only afford to read bits and portion of them. Anyway, I saw this book about how to make friends. I forgot the title and the author of the book. I'm just sure it was a bestseller and was written by a famous and bestselling author. :)
It was surely a good read. I was hit in the head when it said, don't expect much from people but care much for them. Do good to them but don't expect anything in return so you won't be disappointed. Anyway, whatever you have done to others will surely come back to you, maybe not in ways you expected. To win friends, you should also be a friend to yourself. Like yourself. Appreciate yourself. Make yourself lovable and don't believe that someone else can make you do that. You don't need a boyfriend/girlfriend to make yourself gorgeous, or to feel good about yourself. You yourself have to do that.
Gosh! I feel like I'm just giving myself a pep talk. Honestly, I really need to appreciate myself and feel beautiful! :)
The book is undoubtedly interesting, fun, and very true. Once you start reading it, you won't be able to put it down.
Hmmm... I'm probably going to get a copy of that soon. Or maybe, this one is cheaper, visit National Bookstore once again and continue my reading... No one will probably notice I'm doing a "free reading". I'll stop every 5 minutes. Walk farther and then go back after some time. ;-) Tell me this is a good idea!

how disheartening

What do you feel when people ignore you?
I just felt so bad tonight. I was ignored by someone who I never thought could do something like that. I am just disappointed and I feel so bad about it that I can't help but write my disappointment. I am soooo disappointed in you!!!
I hate it.
I don't want to ever talk to you again!
I thought friends are suppose to act as friends. Give a little respect. Say goodbye and not just log out on you!
Hahaay! People can sometimes disappoint you. Sometimes they act in ways you don't comprehend. So it's better if you don't expect anything from them at all.
Okay... I have let it out... I think I'm okay now...
Thank you my dear blog. It's good to have you. It's good to have you listen to my shout outs and ramblings about people.

a morning with the sped people (12-09-06)

it was nice spending time with them...dancing with them, talking to them, playing with them, taking photos... and watching them dance, sing and recite poems.

it made me realize how blessed i am. and made me realized that whatever we have, we have to be grateful. it's not really with what you and i have in this life that matters but what we are able to do with it.

these guys have special gifts...although different they are, they still need as much love and care we give to "normal" people.

thanks to you guys, SPED class in Bulacao Community School. :)

Aeta teacher in ‘Manoro’ says acting was a breeze

Aeta teacher in ‘Manoro’ says acting was a breeze
Posted by: "CINEMANILA 2006" mailto:cinemanila2006@yahoo.com?Subject=cinemanila2006

Thu Nov 23, 2006 1:36 pm (PST)

Aeta teacher in ‘Manoro’ says acting was a breeze By Tonette OrejasInquirerLast updated 10:03pm (Mla time) 11/22/2006Published on Page E2 of the November 23, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer ANGELES CITY—They scrounged for money because they had little financial support, tackled an unconventional theme and worked with an all-Aeta cast in a mountain village.Call it pure luck—or faith. All the risks taken by director Brillante Mendoza and producer Ferdinand Lapuz have paid off. The film, “Manoro,” bagged the CinemAvvenire Prize at the 24th Torino International Film Festival in Turin, Italy, on Nov. 18. The award is handed out by a jury composed of 15 young people and journalists. Exactly a week before, it won Best Director and Best Picture in the Digital Lokal competition of the 8th Cinemanila International Film Festival.“Manoro” is also the country’s entry to the Festival of Three Continents in Nantes, France, set later this month, according to the co-producer, Holy Angel University Center for Kapampangan Studies.In the mountain community of Sitio Target, there is palpable thrill and pride over this harvest of awards and the film’s international exposure. The village, located in Barangay Sapang Bato here, was the setting of the film, shot just weeks before the 2004 elections.“We all feel fulfilled and happy,” 16-year-old Jonalyn Ablong, who played herself as the lead character, told the Inquirer on Monday.“Balamu mu minyambut kami rin (It’s as if we also won),” said Tess Pan, community coordinator during the film production.The Nov. 11 awards rites in Malacañang, which Pan and some cast members attended, was the subject of lively chatter in the village. Pan said they were laughing about their near-failure to enter the Palace “because most of us just wore slippers.”

Amused, seated among a group of girls and women during the interview, Ablong looked amused at the mention of the word artista, which she has been called since making the movie.She was 14, fresh out of Grade 6 at the time. She said her role, that of a “manoro”—a teacher who taught voters in her tribe how to read, write and count—did not depart from what she did in real life.“Before we started shooting, I was already doing literacy classes for relatives,” she said. “It was not new to me.”Education is highly valued in Target, southwest of the former Clark Air Base, now the Clark Special Economic Zone.

Pan said that when the elders returned to the village in 1998—after living in Nueva Ecija for seven years following Mt. Pinatubo’s 1991 eruptions—among the first structures they rebuilt was an elementary school.RewardAblong was a member of the cultural troupe that depicted, in dances and rituals, the displacement of the Aetas and their aspirations.Carol, Ablong’s mother, was a product of adult literacy classes conducted by Benedictine nuns. She said she had passed on to her daughters her love of learning.

The movie followed Jonalyn, as the manoro, at work in Target and its satellite villages Kalang, Third, Fourth and First Camps at the volcano’s foothills.She taught the elders how to write the initials of the candidates, like “GMA” and “FPJ.”No one in the cast was recognized for acting, Pan said, but it was enough reward that they were all involved in the film.

Lemon Grass

Just a pic of me feasting on good Thai/Viet food... sooo goood, sooo yummy...try Lemon Grass in Ayala. :)

To Love Again

I long to love again... can you tell me how to satisfy this longing? It's been a long while and I'm raring to love again...but the song by U-turn isn't about this...it's about how hard it is to love again after getting devastated, hurt, and all that pain and ugly feelings...Anyway, here is a song by U-turn... i just love the melody...;-)

Radio’s fine
It helps me forget for awhile
I look back and recall
Those days I had with you
Sometimes I need a friend
Just to make it through
Another day without you

You gave me all the reasons to live
Then you had to go
And I just got to let you know
Its hard to love again
Just to make it through
Another day spent without you

[chorus]
And I don’t want to go on pretending
That its going to be a happy ending
If I should love again
Once I’ve learned to love again
And, no, it will never be the same
Without you baby
This pain inside me is driving me crazy
‘Cause, its hard to love again

Friends are great
They cheer me up for sometime
When the day is done
My mind is back again with you
Oh God, I need a friend
Just to make it through
Another day spent without you

[repeat chorus ’til fade]

Our pet goat

Here are pics (using my new Canon IXUS) of our goat. I'm not sure if it's a pet. But it has been with us for months already. It was a gift from my papa's friend. It was a very thin goat when it was given and right now, it has ballooned. We do plan to sell the goat but then there are no buyers...
So goatie, kambing, mehh, behave yourself while with us. :)

Ang Pasko sa Usa ka Pala-utang

To have some savings from my bonus and 13th month, I will cut down on my Christmas expenses which means (1) gifts to my godchildren will be cheaper this year than last year, (2) I won't buy myself any expensive gift coz I already have my digicam, (3) set aside just ??,???.?? for savings (a must!!!) (2) gifts to my siblings and others shall also be in minimal amounts (Sorry, guys, I'm practicing austerity this Christmas).

I really really want to save. And I really want to get out of credit card debt. Yes I really need to...that digicam is my last credit card purchase! Promise! :)

My First Digital Camera

Hey! I now have my own digital camera. My first. My baby.
It took so long for me to get one. Well, I'm no rich gurl. I didn't even bought this one in cold cash. I bought this with the use of my Citibank credit card. I availed of the paylite 0% interest. Hey, I don't have Php19,950 cash, you know. Actually, I had wanted to buy a digicam last year. But my dearest brother asked for a videocam. He begged and rationalized. I just couldn't resist his pleas. When it comes to any of my siblings' requests, just as long as these are needed and when I know these would help them or contribute to their growth, to a fueling of their passion and interests, I'd always be willing to give in. As long as I have the means, I will grant their wishes. This makes me a genie!
My brother's videocam costs Php40,000 and I paid that in Php3k+ monthly installment. It's pretty heavy. It so affected my cashflow. But I'm almost done with it. January 2007, that's the last month that I shall be burdened by P3k+. Phew! But it's not over... I'll be paying P1.6k+ monthly starting December 2006 for the Canon IXUS digicam I bought today. But then again, this is a gift from me to myself!

The Southern Countryside

A pic I took, on November 1 afternoon, while on the car, on the way home from Dalaguete with my father driving, my mom on the front seat, my lola and I at the back. I'm not quite sure where I took this pic. Was it in Argao, Dalaguete or Sibonga? I took this using my phone's camera. It's not really nice (consider my phone's capability; it's only a N6020 phone) But the view was undoubtedly captivating. This is a ricefield where you see a lot of plastics hanging around it (the pieces of plastic are presumably used to ward off birds). The pic doesn't look like the real thing. It's more of like a painting. Ganda! :0

Ah stupid meh!

Twice already...twice ignored in MSN. I can't believe he can't say a simple hi and then tell me he's busy...
I'm not going to be fooled again... It's vengeance time.

My eyes...from clear to clouds (bad title, ey!)

It took a while for me to learn to put on and take off my contacts. There was even a time when I had to call up a friend (who was wearing a pair) in the middle of the night (I came home late, by the way) to ask for some help on how I could take them off. I did everything I possibly could do, even asked the aid of my sister to hold my eyelids and yet I just couldn't take them off. I felt they stuck too well. It was a desperate call. My friend gave me tips, and thankfully they worked!

I never gave up on my contacts easily. I practiced and encouraged myself.
The time really did come when I no longer needed someone else's help. No more desperate calls. I eventually learned to put them on and take them off without looking at the mirror and in such a short time! Yes!!!

Yes, I have conquered my little fear. Oh yes, I have. :)

My eyes...from clear to clouds...

I started wearing eyeglasses, spectacles, antyohos, antipara, and according to my friend's daughter - clear shades, at the age thirteen, 1st year high school.
I first noticed that my eyes were no longer functioning well during an exam in our Social Studies class. I was seated at the back. Second to the last seat. The questions for that quiz were written on a Manila paper posted to the blackboard. When I looked at the Manila paper from where I was seated, I realized I couldn't read a thing. I looked at my classmates, my seatmate to the right, to the left and to the back to check if they had any difficulty reading the questions. But they hadn't. They were so engrossed in answering... So I thought, there's nothing wrong w/ the Manila paper. There was something wrong with me. I raised my hand and asked my teacher if I could transfer seat, just for the exam, because I have been having problems with my vision... And you know what my teacher told me? She gave me a straight, NO!. Take your seat!
I was terrified. Oh my God. I'm going to get my first ever zero score! The last recourse, I squinted my eyes.. Lo and behold, I could now decipher the things written on that Manila paper. Not all. But good enough to give me a positive score, not zero! :) From then on, I have been wearing glasses...Not very often, at first. But as my vision worsened, I needed to wear them everyday. It's pretty cumbersome, you know. But do I have much of a choice? Not much. Then in college, when I started attending debut parties of classmates, I began to realize that glasses were a distraction to your face full of make-up. Here I am clad in semi-formal gowns but wearing glasses...Now, I didn't want to look nerdy in formal gowns...so every time I attended a party, I didn't wear glasses. But I'd bring them with me. Just in case, I needed a good view of the debutante or the attendees of the party especially "cute" boys. But throughout most of the duration of the party, I was essentially half-blind. Later in college, some friends who are also visually-impaired have started throwing their glasses and started putting on contact lenses. Those round, soft lenses you put on your eyes...so small, so tiny... They tried to convince me to try it. Oh my! no, never. I was hesitant. No way, I was going to poke my eyes with those things. And they're too expensive. If they get blown away, which I heard, does happen to a lot of contact lens users, there goes your thousand pesos blown away too. It was just impractical! I had a lot of excuses! But the hidden reason was that I was just really too afraid to try them. I thought I could never really get them to put in my eye. It was just not right to be poking something into your eye! I was overriden by the fear. Until... I started working... I realized that I needed to try contacts just once... I recognized my fear and I wanted to eradicate it. So once upon some four years ago, I decided together with a friend, to visit an optometrist. She was also a first-timer. So we went there and had our eyes checked. We were given instructions on how to put them. We tried them. Got our practice... Unfortunately, I was the last person to get my contacts into my eye... It took so long for me...My eyes were getting red already and yet I still couldn't put them on. The optometrist got frustrated. And I was already saying my little prayer,"Oh God. Make this work!" Phew, finally after so many attempts, I got the pair of contacts into my eyes. So now we had to practice how to take them off...Oh my! This maybe difficult. They're so perfectly fit, how could I take them off???!!! And it took another hour to take them off. You know, the problem with me was that, my eyes would immediately close once they see the fingers coming...I was still pretty much fearful...And after so many attempts, I finally got to take them off...

(to be continued...)

Jesus, take the wheel

Jesus, Take the Wheel
(Carrie Underwood)

She was driving last Friday on her way to Cincinnati
On a snow white Christmas Eve
Going home to see her Mama and her Daddy with the baby in the backseat
Fifty miles to go and she was running low on faith and gasoline
It been a long hard year
She had a lot on her mind and she didn't pay attention
She was going way to fast
Before she knew it she was spinning on a thin black sheet of glass
She saw both their lives flash before her eyes
She didn't even have time to cry
She was sooo scared
She threw her hands up in the air

Jesus take the wheel
Take it from my hands
Cause I can't do this all on my own I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
To save me from this road I'm on
Jesus take the wheel

It was still getting colder when she made it to the shoulder
And the car came to a stop
She cried when she saw that baby in the backseat sleeping like a rock
And for the first time in a long time
She bowed her head to pray
She said I'm sorry for the way I've been living my life
I know I've got to change
So from now on tonight

Jesus take the wheel
Take it from my hands
Cause I can't do this all my own I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
To save me from this road I'm on
Oh, Jesus take the wheel Oh, I'm letting go
So give me one more chance
Save me from this road I'm on
From this road I'm on
Jesus take the wheel
Oh, take it, take it from me Oh, why, oh

You, Me & Dupree trailer

Carl and Molly Peterson (Matt Dillon and Kate Hudson) are just starting their new life together—complete with a cute house, boring neighbors, stable jobs and the routines of newlywed existence. There’s just one unfortunate hitch in their perfectly constructed new world… And his name’s Dupree.

When God Made You by Newsong

When God Made You

(Guys)
Its always been a mystery to me,
How two hearts can come together,
And love can last forever.
But now that I have found you I believe,
That a miracle has come when God sends the perfect one.
So gone are all my questions about why,
And i've never been so sure of anything in my life

~chorus~
Oh I wonder what God was thinking,
when he created you.
I wonder if He knew everything I would need,
Because he made all my dreams come true.
When God made you,
He must have been thinking about me.

(Girls)
Ooo ooo,I promise that wherever you may go,
wherever life may lead you,
With all my heart I'll be there too.
And from this moment on I want you to know,
I'll let nothing come between us, and I will love the ones you love.
(guy):So gone are all my questions about why
(girl echoes):about why
And I've never been so sure of anything in my life

Duet:Oh I wonder what God was thinking when he created you,
I wonder if He knew everythin I would need,
Because He made all my dreams come true.
When God made you He must've been thinking about me.

Bridge
He made the sun He made the moon,
To harmonize a perfect tune,
One can't do without the other they just have to be together.
And that is how I know its true,
Your for me and i'm for you and my world
Just cant be right without you in my life

Chorus
(guy) He must have heard every prayer
I've been praying (girl echo) I've been praying (both)
He must've knew everything I would need
When God made you,
He must've been thinking about me.

Snow White and Rose Red

Long, long ago in a faraway land in a small cottage near an enchanted forest there lived a poor old woman w/ her two lovely daughters, Snow White and Rose Red. Snow White and Rose Red were very obedient and hardworking children. In the summer, Rose Red would do the housework. Every morning, she would pick a white and a red rose from her mother’s favorite rosebushes and place them on her mother’s bedside. And in the winter, Snow White would light the fire and hang a shiny brass kettle over the fireplace. Every night, the three of them, mother, Snow White and Rose Red would sit by the fireside while their mother would read them stories from a very large book and the two girls spun wool and listened.

One night, they heard huge frantic knocks on the door. When Rose Red opened the door, she jumped up and screamed in terror. A huge black bear stood by the doorstep and stuck its thick black head through the doorway. The family quickly hid themselves from this terrifying creature.
“Don’t be afraid. I won’t harm you. I only want to warm myself by the fire,” the bear called out.
Realizing that the bear was harmless, the old woman came out from her hiding place saying, Poor bear. Do come inside. You’re welcome to stay.

Before long, the girls became friends with the bear. They tugged at his fur, placed their feet on his back and rolled him over. When morning came, the girls led him out to the door and the bear trotted off to the forest. From then on, the bear came every evening to lay by the fireplace and play with the girls.

But springtime finally came. The bear sad sadly bid goodbye to the family.
“Goodbye. I must go now to the forest and guard my treasures against the wicked dwarf.” It was with sad hearts that the family bid goodbye to their new friend.

One day, as the girls were gathering firewood in the forest, they saw a strange little man with a long long beard as white as snow. His beard was caught in the tree crack. He glared at the girls with his fiery red eyes and shouted, “What are you staring at? Come over here and help me!” Snow White and Rose Red hurried up to him. They pulled him with all their might but the beard was stuck too tight. The dwarf got very impatient. Finally, Snow White got a pair of scissors and cut a piece of his beard to set him free. Instead of thanking the girls, the dwarf got very mad. “ How dare you cut my beard!” And he walked away carrying a sack of gold.

After several days, the girls saw the same old grouchy dwarf again hopping near a brook while fishing. Snow White and Rose Red discovered that his beard got entangled with his line, and a big fish was pulling him into the brook. The only way to save the dwarf was to cut another piece of his long, white beard. So Snow White got a pair of scissors and cut a piece of the beard. The dwarf angry and shouted at them, “Now you’ve cut the best part. Then he grabbed a sack of pearls and walked away w/o thanking the girls.

Days later, their mother sent them on an errand to the city. While walking down the streets, a giant eagle appeared from nowhere and scooped a tiny old man, the same old grouchy dwarf. The girls took pity on him and managed to free him the eagles claws. But instead of thanking the girls, the dwarf just stood up and left.

As Snow White and Rose Red were heading towards home, they saw a bag of jewels that the dwarf left behind. They were admiring the jewels when the dwarf came back and scolded them anew.

All of a sudden a huge black bear came out of the forest and gave the evil dwarf a single blow killing him instantly. Snow White and Rose Red saw this giant creature, fearing for their lives, they ran as fast as they could. But the bear called out, Snow White, Rose Red, It’s me!
The black bear came up to them and its bearskin fell off and a handsome prince clad in gold stood before them.
“I’ve been under that wicked dwarf’s spell for a long time. Only his death could turn me back to a prince.
In time, the prince married Snow White, while Rose Red married his brother. The old woman lived many more peaceful and happy years. And they shared all the great treasures the dwarf stole from the prince’s kingdom.


Condensed from a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm.