Liv in a Life Well-Lived

I just got my salary yesterday, all 4 digits of it and now it's gone.... like a fantasy bubble that I just thought I had. Of course, I used it to pay for gym membership and bought a week's groceries. Also a couple of magazines from Booksale and I now barely have enough for tomorrow's lunch with the girls and defintely nothing for the book club gimik on Sept. 20. And what about my transpo allowance? Nada. I wouldn't be able to afford a Siomai House pack by next week. Hay. It sucks to be on the low-paying end of the salary spectrum. I wish that loan could get paid already. My life's going nowhere this way. The DLSU stint is like a lifeline for my social life and it sucks everytime the term is over. All that's keeping my moving is the thought that the term will start on Sept. 13 and I'l have a little breathing space again. I don't know how else to save... I'm downloading books from the net for goodness sake. Am sacrificing my eyes by reading e-books ins...

Blame it on a flash of temporary insanity when I decided to download this pdf on romantic ideas. Reading through it felt silly, especially since about 90% of the ideas were as mushy as ground corn meal swimming in milk with copious amount of sugar that could calcify your veins and will make you an instant attraction to giant fire ants. But not all of them were bad. There were some which sounded interesting and ---- potentially cute. Here's a rundown of what's cute or mush out of the list: 100% MUSH Idea#1 If your partner is going away for a few days, tell her that you are worried about her so you have organized a bodyguard to look after her. Then give her a small teddy bear.(Just make sure there's not hidden cameras in the cutie) Idea#55 Photocopy your hand and fax a copy of it to your partner with a message saying, "Do ya wanna hold hands?" (Is it just me or this sounds autistic?) Idea#56 Next time you order a pizza, ask to have it cut into a heart shape before i...

“No man, proclaimed Donne, is an island, and he was wrong. If we were not islands, we would be lost, drowned in each other’s tragedies. We are insulated (a word that means, literally, remember, made into an island) from the tragedy of others, by our island nature, and by the repetitive shape and form of the stories. The shape does not change: there was a human being who was born, lived, and then, by some means or another, died. There. You may fill in the details from your own experience. As unoriginal as any other tale, as unique as any other life… Without individuals we see only numbers: a thousand dead, a hundred thousand dead, ‘casualties may rise to a million.’ With individual stories, the statistics become people–but even that is a lie, for people continue to suffer in numbers that themselves are numbing and meaningless. Look, see the child’s swollen, swollen belly, and the flies that crawl at the corners of his eyes, his skeletal limbs: will it make it easier for you to know his ...

We already know whose career will skyrocket after having been casted as Twilight's Edward Cullen and Robert Pattinson it is. . But they said there were better actors who should've played the part. These were the nominees :(and my commentaries) . GASPARD ULLIEL: french actor who I think is a little too boyish (and constipated) for the part Tom Sturridge: Except for the fact that he looks like a hotter Brad Renfro, I have to agree he would've been a nice Edward. Hayden Christiansen: Cast only if your character needs zero emotional breadth and depth. Much as I love him, Zac Efron is not beautiful. He's just cute.. and it's hard to dissociate him from the rolickin' roles he played in High School Musical and Hairspray. He will make a great Jesse for the Mediator series though (if they'll be making a movie at all).

I decided to give Twilight another chance. I read it again over the weekend, and just like before it was painful to read the book from cover to cover. I have read longer novels in a day, so length isn't the issue. It's the writing. Don't flame me for this: I still think the writing is awful. Yet I've read somewhere that some books aren't perfectly written, but if the idea hits something interesting, it's gold. So Twilight is really poorly written, the dialogues doesn't have a natural feel to it (as if everyone is put upon), not to mention that Edward and Bella's lines were overkill most of the time, but I guess it was descriptive enough to have sparked the imagination of thousands worldwide. I have to admit that for a writer, that's the point. You share a story, and people like it and the characters you made will live forever in their imaginations. If we look at it that way, Meyer has done an amazing feat. And as the trend in H-wood dictates: for eve...

I don't know if it's a weakening of will... but last Saturday, I saw this absolutely gorgeous scarf at Zara. It isn't the ethnic type thing you see nowadays... it's aubergine and beautifully woven. It was also darn expensive, but I was in love. I was lost the moment tried it on and saw how I look like Paddington Bear. Of course it would be silly if I wear it around my neck like an actual scarf seeing it's always so hot. That's why I just drape it around my shoulders like a more manageable, less manang shawl. It's lovely. I love my Zara scarf. Love it, love it.

. A couple on the bus this morning was watching a comedian’s performance, which they recorded on their cell phone. Aside from the fact that they were playing it uber-loud, I also got irritated with the kind of jokes the crackpot was making. He was just dissing people and the way they look. He was also heaping lots of insults on his partner -- some of them going as low as calling the other person a type of fecal matter. The amazing thing is, the couple were laughing hard at the jokes. What the freak was so funny about it? I have a long list of things I’m taking umbrage about, but for the sake of brevity, let me just highlight the important ones: 1} Why would I pay to enter a club where I know I’ll be dissed on or just end up watching other people be dissed? We seem to have the taste for watching people burn for being who they are. And I thought the days of slapstick comedy were already thankfully over. Other people’s humiliation serves as fodder for our heartiest laughter, and if that’s...

Mariel took this test, and I decided to give it a go. And it's FREAKY. I love Psychology. :P The test is at: www.ipersonic.com -=-=-=-=-=-= Dreamy Idealists are very cautious and therefore often appear shy and reserved to others. They share their rich emotional life and their passionate convictions with very few people. But one would be very much mistaken to judge them to be cool and reserved. They have a pronounced inner system of values and clear, honourable principles for which they are willing to sacrifice a great deal. Joan of Arc or Sir Galahad would have been good examples of this personality type. Dreamy Idealists are always at great pains to improve the world. They can be very considerate towards others and do a lot to support them and stand up for them. They are interested in their fellow beings, attentive and generous towards them. Once their enthusiasm for an issue or person is aroused, they can become tireless fighters.For Dreamy Idealists, practical things are not rea...

My sister and I share the same ride to work. We both need to rise up early: so she rises at 5 a.m. and I rise at 5:45. Regardless of starting time, we both finish by 6:10 a.m. We catch our bus to Manila and sleep with her head on my shoulder and my cheek on her head during the ride. We wake up 1 ½ hours later usually within the vicinity of Quiapo. We grab hold of our bags and finally go down at Lawton. This is where our paths diverge: I would help her call an FX because she still needs to go to Vito Cruz and where she’ll catch another jeep going to the Senate. From there, I could only imagine the types of things she needs to do to survive a day’s work inside a senator’s office. From what she says, it isn’t anything like the government offices I have had the chance to observe: city halls, or bureaus, or department offices --- where the employees give each other pedicures and sell tocino to anyone. They do the real hard work because the Senator needs information 24/7. As part of the rese...

KALIMBAHIN is the FILIPINO word for PINK . Ang aking kapatid ay mahilig sa kagamitang kalimbahin. (My sister likes pink things.) Who knew, right?

Marks & Spencer It was my first time to buy clothes from Marks & Spencer. They have always been such an expensive store with blouses never costing less than Php 1,750. I know. I checked. This had always been a bummer because some of their styles are really nice, and they have sizes up to 22. I wondered how it feels to buy something from a nice store and not have to be looked at as if I asked for size 110. Thanks to the super sale they held recently, now I know. It was breathtaking. They had dresses going as low as 350 and the cashmilon sweater I bought only cost me Php 525. That’s even cheaper than I can buy it in SM! I did something risky though. I bought clothes one size down from my actual. I needed real motivation to get fit, and the thought of the soft turquoise sweater and the cute pleated black skirt and how I’d look in it would be a good addition to the cheerleading retinue. Damn, I wanna fit in that now, now, NOW. Mark Ruffalo I know he’s 40 and married with 3 kids, b...

What I remember about X-Files is that it scared the heck out of me and I liked it. Looking back, I probably did not understand most of what was going on in the plots but it made me feel wonderment, and that was enough. The series itself primed me for my eventual taste for things fantastic. X-Files taught me to believe. :) Yeah, I was a nerd, how many times do I need to repeat this? Ella and I watched the new X-Files movie, and well, we did it for good times' sake. It made us remember our childhood to watch Dana and Fox do their investigative dance on the big screen. I realized we only understood a part of it when Ella surprisingly remarked, "Doctor pala si Scully?" Uh, yeah, hello?!? But then I totally forgot that Mulder was into the X-Files because he was trying to find his sister who he believed was abducted by aliens. How could I have forgotten that, right? I mean, really. Now, about the movie: Duchovny was quoted that the new movie is clever and complicated. I agree o...

Wait, I just remembered something: Near the end of the investigation, Dana and Fox were having LQ and Mulder was being very stubborn. Dana ended up saying: "Your stubbornness, it's what made me fall in love with you." I know a couple of very, very stubborn men, and I ... I want to kill them everytime they stand up against me. The nerve. Huh. Who knew that was attractive? But then I guess life wouldn't be half as interesting if I always get siomai and never have anyone force, let's say, pork tonkatsu down my gullet. Come to think of it, malleable men are really boring, eh? If I want malleable, I should marry Gumby, right? Stubborn men. Interesting. Thanks for the tip, Dana.

How can you be hot and successful at the same time? It's not fair. Hmp. So, okay. I'm a bit green right now because, obviously, I want her life --- but of course, not in the i'll-steal-your-soul kind of way. Meg Cabot is probably one of the, if not the, most successful teen lit writer in the US. Almost a third of her novels are being written into scripts for TV and the big screen. And the thing that really gets me is that, her story lines are fairly simple and general. So simple that they were actually my basic fantasies back when I WAS a teenager myself. The thing is, she managed to hold on to all of the nuances and was hardworking enough to write it. I mean, hello, an ugly duckling who finds out she's really a princess? (See Princess Diaries) Moving into a new home and meeting a really hot ghost? (See The Mediator). Mine, mine too. What is amazing is that, she probably isn't even Gifted... you know, a real mediator or psychic or a medium... and I freaking am!!!! ...

This Harry isn't British. Nor has he been to a real school. Actually, he never finished high school. He's American, and he's a stickler for rescuing damsels in distress. He puts his foot in ditches he could've steered the hell clear of, except that he's got an irrational desire to protect mankind from forces beyond their control. This Harry is a Messy. But he's got sprites and house elves doing the cleaning and exterminating in his basement flat currently untouched by electricity. He makes appliances go awry and he doesn't own a cellphone. He doesn't have a piece of wood with phoenix feathers as core, he lugs around a hockey stick as a staff. This Harry isn't adolescent angsty. He's just angsty, but with a brilliant sense of humor and wit. This Harry describes mortals as ostriches with our heads in the sand. He says we don't know magic even if we sense it because we believe that seeing is believing. And since vision is just one of the functio...

Why? What is this fashion trend? Who started it? I see boys nowadays with ethnic scarves around their necks. This is an okay fashion if you're not short. Otherwise, you all look like Yodas and sherpas. Ang init kaya... and it looks like overlarge bibs. So again, I ask: Why?

Argh!!! I finally found it! I found the song I've been OC-ing for the last few days. It's It Can Only Get Better by Charice Pempengco. Hay... I can sleep better now... Love the song although I don't like the girl... a little too smug for my taste. Let the sun refuse to shine It won't be long before the days are brighter If every step's an uphill climb, oohh Carry on until they feel much lighter For all the clouds up in the sky, oohh For all the teardrops in our eyes It can get only get better Be still my heart It can only get better We've come this far It can only get better I know it hurts For what it's worth It can only get better If he should ever come our way Dry the tears and look somewhere above him Might be easier to say than to do But just pretend that you no longer love him When your back's against the ropes, oohh When you miss someone the most It can get only get better Be still my heart It can only get better We've come this far It can onl...

He-Who-Shall-Design-My-Clothes Armani dresses are amazing. I only wish I could afford one, much more fit into one. But I would be trifle wary buying it from him personally. I'd be scared he'd want to Harry Potter me. You know, like, eat my soul. Here's Voldy. Thanks Elisita for the pic. Sir Ian's a Gun! He can get a hot boyfriend, and I can't? Where's the justice? Awww... sweet. Damn it.

Open a Multiply Bookstore Browsing through my Multiply contacts, I saw Jamie's Serendipity Store and I realized how cool the whole thing was. She sells fashion items... all of them for affordable prices. And she even has the whole delivery scheme figured out. :) And it hit me... I can do this for my books! The second hand ones I've been trying to sell for the longest time, but haven't figured out a good system for the whole thing yet. Jamie, I love you, mwah! For those who want to check out her site, go to serendpity store @ multiply. :) Then check out mine cooming up soon! Make a Weight Loss Bracelet This is the plan: I have to lose at least 8 pounds by October 18, just in time for Damae's wedding. It's do-able, I'm sure. I mean 8 pounds for 2 months, that's not such a tall order. Then I have to lose another 8 pounds by December 8, in time for Eman and Sem's wedding. Then another 4 pounds by Jamie's wedding cum January 2009. Then another 4 pounds by...

Damae, my close friend who used to be Senior Training Officer before me, visited us today. She’s getting married this 18th of October and she came to take the design of the gown I’m supposed to wear to her wedding. Of course I didn’t have it yet. Haha! Looking at her, she was positively beaming today. Rael was with her and I can see it wasn’t a bad match at all. A tap on the back for me as proxy for a tap on the back to Daddy too. We saw it coming. We helped set it up, believe me you. Damae reminds me so much of everything I want to have. She’s just so sure of herself, you know? She’s full of conviction, lively, witty and strong. She’s got people eating out of her hands, boys crushing after her, people simply admiring her, period. I have to admit I compare myself to her some times (can’t be helped, I took her position after all), and I feel palling compared to what she did when she held my stint. I’m sure that’s not objective, but I’m sure it can’t be totally untrue. She just projected...

I attended this training today which teaches us how to sell effectively. PBSP is hoping we could sell the foundation better than Gawad Kalinga. That's not what I'm going to talk about though. I really loved the part where we were taught what our Key Behavioral Patterns are. There are 4: the DOminant, the Influential, Steady, and Conscientious. The Ds get things done, and they have no trouble delegating work. They are the here and now people. Trust that they'll get things done as fast as they can. Motto: If Others Can, Why Should I?. The Is are the showbiz people: likes to talk, focuses on people, wants to be on the spotlight. They shapethe environment by influencing people to finish the job. In short, life coach. The Ra-rah girls. Familiar much? No need to say, I'm an I. The Ss are people who are always preparing for everything. The thing is, it takes them a looong time to get things done because they want to make sure they're ready. The Cs are systematic people who...

I saw a college friend today, one with whom I have shared a lot of my collegiate hopes and illusions. Boys were a favorite topic then, and I remember her wish list for her dream guy: Tall, dark, brown-eyed, nicely cut toenails, white teeth, Harvard graduate, loves to cook, has a nice laugh, watches the news and loves dogs. (Her thing is teeth). I learned today she got her wish (except for the dark part since her hubby’s fair-skinned, and he didn’t graduate from Harvard --- but he lives in Yale, Cubao). Inevitably, she asked about me (obviously, I’m also one to feel the pressure about being dateless). I said I’m still searching for my man whose qualifications were supposed to be (and she remembered too): Clean cut hair, smooth nape, strong arms (no weightlifter’s muscles, just clean curves and lines), loves to read and watch movies, loves to eat, knows how to clean the house and wash clothes (I can forego this if he’s rich enough to afford a maid), graduate from UP or Ateneo (oddly, La ...

A good friend and I had a long drive through the city today and we inevitably talked most of the mileage away. I noticed that every time we do get to spend time while cruising, we end up talking about stuff usually reserved for sessions with professional shrinks. Our favorite topics revolve around: 1) our current quarter-life crisis, 2) politics (mostly his since I am strangely stupid about politics), 3) our wacko friends, or 4) our faith. Today it was numbers 1, 3 and 4. It started with him complaining about how he’s starting to feel the heat about his current state of datelessness. His friends, as it turns out, are almost all dating somebody and he’s quickly losing people to call for instant gimmicks (ah, the fate of the last single kabarkada). I told him I don’t get dating --- all that testing the waters thing. He said he agrees, but for the Chinese, he said it’s an almost science (my internal data bank reminded me of the Disney movie Mulan and her parents matchmaking shenanigans an...

It’s CSI with a twist, it’s Ghost Whisperer with a hoax. Naturally, I can’t keep myself away. I have just watched an 8-episode marathon of the TV series Psych. Honestly, it was easy. All I had to was pop the DVD in, lean back, and press play before I realized I wouldn’t be sitting still before long. Soon I was holding my sides while laughing. I find the show really funny. It does get over-acting, but it’s part of its charm. Shawn Spencer plays a guy who’s got more than just a photographic memory. He’s also got enough processing units to make sense of all the data he receives. So in short, he’s a freakin’genius. So of course, I can relate. Haha! The thing is, an incident in his life forced him to pretend he’s a psychic because it’s so much easier to explain this than his particular genius. When people bought it, he (and his friend Gus) realized that it’s not a bad way to earn their moolah. So they set up a psychic detective agency which they named PSYCH, and they work on retainer for th...

Truth is, once you love someone, you cannot unlove them. You’d have to be exhausted to give up. Unfortunately, the best kind of love does not get tired. It cannot just give up. Even when it hurts too much already, even if it has become painfully clear your love cannot be returned, you cannot stop. You’d sooner forget how to breathe than how to not love him. I wish it were a case of being smart or being stupid. Most of the world’s smartest people have fallen in love and gotten hurt. Some of the world’s stupidest people have never been in love, and they have rendered themselves beyond inane. No, it isn’t intelligence that saves you from it. It has got to be the heart, specifically the heart that has enough strength to do the whole dance, falter, miss a step, stumble, crack a toe, break toenails and yet, bruises and blood aside, keep on dancing.