CAI-STA Christmas Party Prom 2011

I was wow-ed by how CAI-STA transformed its Christmas parties. Or maybe I just had the luck this year -- this year's theme was Prom, giving everyone the excuse to dress up, and vie for something that's so high school - to be the prom king and queen! LOL. =)



I was the emcee! I volunteered to host the entire program, a bargain actually to skip the usual dance of newbies. Boy I was wrong! Being an emcee is really tedious. Plus, in the end, it didn't really cut the usual dance rehearsal stuff, because the newbie presentation was a FLASH MOB which required me (and my co-emcee) to participate at the last part, at least. errr. I wished I danced full-time instead!



Several times since that party, I bumped into someone who congratulated me (and my co-emcee) for doing "great" the whole time, for having that talent to host a program lively and spontaneously. Really? REALLY? I dunno, ugh, the hangs and impromptu announcements! I know I had a lot of booboos!!! Anyway, it was a good experience but that's probably my (first and) last, no more hosting jobs!

As for the flash mob, it was AWESOME! I'm happy to be a part of it somehow (can't be 100% proud, as I didn't participate the whole time! hehe). Among the newbie presentations I did, I can say this is the most unique, the coolest, the best! I heard from some non newbies that it was indeed surprising, pressuring, amazing all at the same time when all of a sudden 1-3 people from each table started dancing Moves Like Jagger with the same choreo! haha! (yes it was so sudden, no one was able take a video. tsk!)

The night ended with a lucky iPad winner. Of course, being ALWAYS unlucky in raffles, I went home with nothing but a Sodexo GC worth P300 ...and awesome 2nd prom memories. =) (thanks and sorry wewoy for the photos I grabbed from the server. hehe!)
 

goodbye and hello [again]!

After my despedida videoke, last minute OTs and all, I found myself teary-eyed, still hardly able to say goodbye to everyone during the last shout [company meeting]. But I did it, I just had to, I can't leave without telling everyone that it's been a good stay, that the 1.5 years stay was the shortest, yet the happiest.

The meeting ended with a send-off pizza merienda from our GM ...but the most bittersweet part was when my team then gave me a framed collage of pictures, with dedications from everyone in the company -- aaaaw!



With all the huge bags I had to bring back to Muntinlupa (and some to my new cube in CAI-STA), I still managed to have 2 bottles with a colleague -- ironically also the very first person I knew in Synchronica. I was telling him how funny it was that everyone left the middle part of the collage for his dedication, where he wrote just a one liner "God speed!". haha! He then told me, there's no point in writing long dramatic stuff, when the friendship doesn't end in my last day -- again, aaaaw! haha!

It's funny I'm sounding so melancholic about the whole resignation thing, when I don't really mingle with these people a lot beyond office hours. I guess I really am naturally sentimental about anything, and it is not a good combination with people who can easily build friendships within the workplace ...Oh well.

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Anyway, I'm now in my [old] new job for 2 weeks now - no ym and facebook. Thank God I still have gmail and BLOGGER, I have a little window to stay connected. haha!

I can't deny, I miss Synchronica so much. Maybe it's these tall divisions between cubes (that I don't see much people walking around), and the absence of a window with the nice view of the sunset. Ironically (I know I said this a lot of times already), I'm not regretting the decision knowing I moved to improve myself, and my future. So, the bad aura of my cube shouldn't be an issue. This is plainly homesickness for sure.

Well, okay, twice I asked myself -- What have I done!?

One - I got out of my place at exactly 8am to catch the 8:30 company shuttle that brings employees from Makati [Adelantado St.] to Mckinley, on a 30-minute interval. It didn't occur to me that my 20-minute travel time to Adelantado could be 30+ minutes, if you go out on a rush hour. I arrived at the terminal at exactly 8:31. The shuttle was gone. For a few seconds, before figuring out if I should take a cab or wait for the next shuttle, I cursed and ranted and cursed and ranted, thinking only of one thing -- why have I chosen a job in Mckinley!? After another minute, a shuttle came! Oh, my watch was just 2 minutes in advance! What a happy day! haha!

Two - I was a block away from Adelantado, early by 15 minutes, ready to catch the 7:30 shuttle, when suddenly... my sandals' sole was split up. I thought I could tolerate it till the end of the day, when just after a few more steps, the straps went off too. Oh, why have a worn something I haven't worn for ages?! (been wearing flats/casual shoes in Synch!) I couldn't walk further, so I had no choice but to call Lou and ask if he can drop by my house to get me another pair of shoes. geeee. good it was okay with him.

OT: After 30 minutes (I missed the 7:30 shuttle!), he came with my shoes saying, "I'm here because I love you. I am your ideal boyfriend!" -- imitating Night of Zettai Kareshi, a jap series featuring a robot boyfriend who acts as the girl's knight, all the time. hahaha!

These are just minor booboos of course. By now I have adjusted to this Mckinley lifestyle. I think I have fully adapted to the ways here. One - Live without ym and facebook, we're in the office to work anyway, not to socialize! Two - Bring your own meal unless you're willing to splurge. Three - your decisions, your life, your world shall revolve around just one thing: the shuttle schedule.

...and more, as I go along! Once again, my cheese is gone ...so I should start moving. :)
 

Season of beeseeness!

I've never been this busy! Or, more of preoccupied ... can't really say I'm too busy if I can still blog, right? haha!

On top of my work, I have these tedious pre-employment errands: NBI Clearance, Transfer of BIR RDO (why am I doing this manually!?), pre-employment medical checkup and stuff. Good I was able to take 2 whole days off from work, to do these stuff ...and -- I'm not really proud of this, but I can't NOT share this -- good I was able to get a fixer to skip the really long line in NBI, I was able to spare half of a day for resting. haha!

(just FYI - NBI clearance renewal process has changed, just this year. Gone are the kiosks in malls! read here.)

And because of the upcoming bora trip, I'm left with exactly 5 working days to finish other personal errands ...in between work hours:

- Finish bank errands due while I'm in bora
- Buy a new sim and discontinue the use of my corporate line
- Backup personal files, grab Synchronica photos from all over!
- Clear my pedestal/cube -- hatest part! waaa!

And on the remaining non-working (and non-bora) days I should:

- sort out all the junk I'll be bringing home from my cube
- shop for more business attire clothes -- the best part!
- have ID pics taken

...etc. etc.

If you hear me say that my ultimate wish is to find that company where I'll retire... actually, it's just that - Being a crammer, I can't handle resignation slash pre-employment stress very well.
 

I'm in the office and...

...I know right?! there's certainly something wrong in this picture! haha!
It's a beer day! Cheers to Synchronica!
 

Fazoli's, and Fazoli

Last friday was one of the best fridates: Lou and I had dinner at Fazoli's - an italian resto in Eastwood he's been telling me. Food is good, ambiance is classy, and price is affordable. Imagine eating in Italiannis at the price of Sbarro. haha!

But what I loved in this fridate isn't Fazoli's per se, but EASTWOOD CITY, everything in Eastwood City. (and I meant saying that like it's my first time! I'm a south person here okay, so the [first and] last time I saw the place was around 2 years ago, during a lunch treat from a training somewhere in Libis - a lot of stores/restos were still closed and we never got around to stroll around!)

I just loved its awesome shops, restaurants, and gardens where a lot walk their toy dogs. I love its mood at night - It is very romantic, I must say - giving Lou the right to be braggy, saying "so, is there something like this in the south huh?". haha!

I do remember saying that he should take me there again after Easter because I vowed that I won't drink any non-water for the entire Lent, hence I wasn't able to enjoy Fazoli's bottomless drinks, nor any drink somewhere after that dinner. I'm really hoping to see the place again, for coffee or beer. haha!

Ahh it was love at first sight!

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Another new love: a netbook! an red HP Mini, which Lou and I had to pick up somewhere in Libis (which explains why we had a fridate in the area!). Finally I have one item crossed out in my 2011 goals.


I'm actually not into red gadgets btw,
but I think this is more chic than the black one. hehe.

And I'm happy to share too that I did not splurge for this one. This is somewhat Lou's payment in exchange for the Medical Record System which I'm doing for their family clinic. :) Its name? Fazoli. haha!
 

new workstation geeky stuff...

This is one of the very few times I'm feeling giddy coz of geeky reasons. Our work PCs were replaced with powerful laptops so now it feels like my usual dev processes are faster. And since I'm using Ubuntu (10.10), I also feel like I'm protecting this *huge* disk space from viruses. haha!

AND since we have to complete the PC shift by next week, I am forced to cleanup/dispose my dirty files in my old PC, and start installing everything from scratch. Normally I'd HATE that, but somehow it makes me feel wiser, knowing I used to be SO stupid when it comes to Linux. hehe.

Anyway, just wanna share some shortcuts I recently learned:

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Ubuntu: (I'm using 10.10. I'm not sure with the other versions. hehe)
f3 on an open directory - shows/hides a right pane displaying another file explorer
(f6 to switch the focus to the other pane)
f9 on an open directory - shows/hides the "Places" portion at the left side

Firefox:
ctrl + shift + t = open recently closed tab
(do this again to open the 2nd to the last tab closed, and so on)

Netbeans:
alt + shift + f = fix code indentions

Note: I think it's better to download and run the netbeans installer from their site, rather than to install it from the Synaptic Package Manager. When I did the latter, my netbeans lacked the plugins I needed (maven, subversion, etc) so I had to install one by one. Though both are in v6.9! Then later on a bug came up for some reasons - netbeans opens up itself again whenever I exit the application. "kill" command didn't help, it was being launched over and over and over. then I realized too that in the editor, my files in ascii (codes in /uXXXX) are not automatically converted to native (russian characters for example) not like in my old PC. It drove me crazy!

So I removed everything and reinstalled using the installer from their site (here). now my netbeans is bug free and complete, without the need to install "my basic" plugins!

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Right now, generally, I FEEL NEAT. I feel like I'm starting my year RIGHT ...work-wise at least. hehe! I am so happy. :)
 

Interview, noon at ngayon.

I just got another proof that kids these days want to be spoon fed. Or at least the students who interviewed me earlier - There was this group of students that came in our office to interview some Java developers. I was picked by "inimaynimo" by my team, thus I gave 20 mins of my time.

Basically the [comp sci] students wanted to know what kind of systems I'm working with, when or where or why I would recommend Java, etc. I have no idea what this is for, but I assume it's the school's way to prepare them for the industry or maybe just to let them appreciate Java in a different way. I really dunno. ANYWAY.

The main interviewer wasn't prepared, she didn't have a script of questions. good if she memorized, but no, she was stuttering, changing words time to time to correct her grammar, stopping the video taker too sometimes when she feels like she asked the wrong questions, etc. her groupmates on the other hand, weren't so helpful as they also can't remember the questions they needed. Then after the interviewer's "last" question (If I remember correctly, that was, what PL would I recommend, and what advice can I give to comp sci students like them) ...she then jumped back to which part of Java I like least and what IDE I'm using. gaaah. Before leaving they discussed too, IN FRONT OF ME, if they overlooked something, if the questions are "pwede na", if that interview would be enough for their project, etc.

They were obviously not prepared. The whole thing was really messy, they were putting themselves (and their school) in shame. tsk tsk kids. That was really far from the interviews I (or we) did back in college! otherwise I could've gotten a 0.0 in FILIPI (oh, how fun and fulfilling those days were... hehe)

At least I got a box of krispy kreme - token of appreciation. :)
Sorry, I'm such a bitch for posting this, but you kids should learn!

First Outing, First Laiya

Last Friday (to Saturday) was our Team Building at La Luz resort, Laiya. Finally I got to see that famous Laiya. The verdict? well, not that it's as spectacular as visayas/ mindanao beaches, but I can say it's the best beach I've seen in Batangas, thus far. It's clean, no plastic trash around, and the sand's good enough - not fine but not too rocky either. I think I'll stop saying "magbbeach tayo sa batangas? edi sobrang mabato yun!? ayoko." HAHA!

The whole thing was fun. I can't remember the last time when I didn't have to check what time it is. 24 hours straight. or even more! I also didn't have to (or didn't have the urge to) check my phone. Everyone was just into frisbee, or swimming, or strolling, or sunbathing, or volleyball, or snorkeling, or pigging out or [insert beach activity here] without minding that world we left back in Manila. Wow right, this is life!!! Can all weekends be like this???

Anyway, I really am overwhelmed with this trip. Do you know that this is my first (and perhaps the last) beach trip for the year? I never thought I could have fun like this again, after — you know — the start of this hell year. Plus, it's my first outing with the company. Do you know that my last outing (that was company-paid. haha) was 2006??? Yeah, the one smashed by a signal #3 typhoon! See I've been so deprived!


Anyways, here's our pic — my first Colibria/Synchronica pic EVER! :)
Looking forward to more fond memories ahead!

THIS IS IT! Goodbye AC Corporation!

I've said a lot of goodbyes since the year started — goodbye to friends leaving the country, to balikbayan friends who'll leave the country again, to a lot of stuff which I had to dispose, to this to that to this to that... BUT it's only today when I'll start saying bigger, and more serious goodbyes. (Hence, expect a lot of goodbye posts after this one. Yes there will be more!)

Yeah, this time, goodbye AC Corporation! As what I told my colleague once: this won't be like that time I left my first job, when I held back tears as I bid goodbye to my colleagues-slash-new-friends. Now, it's totally different: I just want to end things, fervently. The stay was more than 2 years, but there's no social life to leave — No attachments, no girlfriends, just a very few fond memories (is that good or bad? hehe), which I won't cry over, but yeah, okay... I'll miss somehow. hehe.


my most memorable task: one-week J2EE Training in BIR,
my first real teaching experience!


my most memorable non-work trip: calatagan outing!

As I say "goodbye AC", I also mean goodbye Alabang. Not that I won't step on this place again, ever. Of course I'll still be an Alabang girl every weekend! It's just that I'm leaving a lifestyle which I loved 100x than that in Makati. I had a not-so-urban-life here — not so tall buildings, trees, grassy empty lots, less pollution, less people and windy afternoons. you know what I mean?

A friend joked once that I was "probinsicated" here — I can't forget that time when I stayed here for 2 or 3 weeks straight, then I passed by SLEX again for the first time, realizing that it's been a loooong time since I last saw the latest, coolest billboards in SLEX. gee! I looked up with awe, almost the whole travel time. no kidding! HAHAHA!

Before leaving, I went to the roof deck to take some pix, from 5:30 pm to sunset. There I realized, I should have visited the spot on late afternoons, in those times I wanted to clear my mind. It was so windy, the place was just so... serene. Too bad it was my last day! Oh well. I'll definitely miss these:


ATC, Madrigal Ave. and Gold's Gym Alabang!!!


Northgate and Westgate: no, there's nothing much to miss,
but I'll miss this view (minus the dirty laguna bay)!!!


roofdeck: the bench where we used to hangout
for 20-30 mins after a quick lunch (when boss is around)!


roofdeck: the yosi spot for the boys


the sunset. the pretty pretty sunset!


...and South Center Tower (taken from outside, CCF area)

Oh, btw, I'll never forget the most important thing I had in AC — one thing I wasn't able to let go until the last minute. I loved it so much that I had to take a pic (hehe):


hehe. yes, my white vaio, and my pink mouse!

ANYWAY, I don't want to be so dramatic now. So I'm going to end this: To everyone I worked with, Thank you!

I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank the clients I worked with (you know who you are), who never heard up till now that I'm leaving. Sorry I wasn't allowed to say goodbye the way I wanted to, sooooo I'll say it here even if it may seem improper (better informal than never!): Thank you, and goodbye!

THIS IS IT! - not the end, but a wonderful start. So... see you around, au revoir!
 

tick tock tick tock...

As my move out date draws nearer, and as I'm left with just 4 items in my turnover checklist... the whole thing's slowly sinking in, making me more and more stressed, rather than excited...

I have yet to request for several alterations in my new place (added locks, curtain rods, etc), purchase a lot of things (huge and expensive things I mean, which will make me poor next month, if not in debt), then gather the usual pre-employment requirements like medical check-up, NBI clearance etc...

I'm a bit worried too, wondering how things would be once I'm settled — when I've had all things, organized everything, and adjusted to the new routine. I might look for things back home — less chores... more people to talk to... free & unlimited internet access... TV + cable (I'm not planning to buy one for the next few months, btw)... kitchie... niece and nephews... and FOOD on the table when I wake up. haha!

Things have been overwhelming lately, but in a happy way, most of the time. I always think I've been so blessed to have these major, life-changing things all at the same time. SO... no further rants, I'm just hoping and praying that I could survive my own decisions. hehe.
 

New year, new job, new house, new life, WHAT ELSE?

Oh, new template. hehe! since today's the feast of the Epiphany, which marks the last day of the Christmas season, I decided to change my template. I thought I'd use a new year or 3 kings template but I thought too that I might not touch the settings of this blog for a long time, as I'll be very very very busy till God knows when. So, here's a generic template, green of course (hope you like it!).

Anyway...... yeah you read it right! I FOUND A NEW JOB! Days before the year ended, a company called up (after 1 technical exam and 2 panel interviews) to give the very great news — they're giving me an offer! The company was my 2nd choice actually because the 1st one was larger and more known. BUT when I saw the offer of this 2nd option, I saw no reason NOT to accept it — the location's perfect, work sched's flexi, AND they're giving me my expected salary, plus awesome benefits. details later, for now I have to end all things well in my current job, till January 29 (turnover, turnover, turnover! hehe! I'm excited this time!).

Hence...... I'm moving! FOR REAL! Since I want to settle things as soon as possible, I called up the numbers I gathered since last last month (condos and agents), then viewed model units JUST YESTERDAY. yeah, everything's happening SOOO FAST! I now have a good prospect, that's spacious enough for me, near my workplace, and relatively cheap. I still need a 2nd opinion though, as we're talking about a place for comfortable living here, something I should be really really really sure of, right?

So..... I'll be "very very very busy", as I only have a month by now, to seriously dispose, to pack-up, to purchase house necessities, on top of turning over, gathering important documents for the new job AND (the most important of all) burning Christmas food. haha!

THIS is the start of my year. WHOA, right??? haha!
 

The Wedding Usher

I was a wedding usher!

It's not related to my small invitations biz btw. It just happened that my friend Pia, a wedding coordinator, desperately needed ushers as her usual part-time ushers can't take a leave from their full-time work on the big day (which was Dec. 29 2PM, a tuesday, definitely a work day).

She asked me if I could take a leave, as she can't do everything alone. I said yes to her offer thinking that 1) our office's closed anyway till january, so I don't have to file any vacation leave 2) I never experienced that job before, so this could be a new learning experience AND 3) it meant added income, which sounded better than just sleeping the entire day right? hehe.

We met up 2 weeks ago to discuss the details and assignments. I was stunned, USHERING was an understatement. It turns out that I had to do a lot of things other than looking up names in the guest list!

Specifically, I had to make sure that particular girls on the bride's list have their hair and make up done by the official stylist/artist orderly (and on time of course), run through a checklist of items that should be brought from the hotel to the church (veil, cord, candle, bible, etc), familiarize myself with the bouquet types so each girl in the entourage gets the right one, match guest names with their table numbers (this one's usual), prepare materials for the games, and distribute souvenirs.

And so yesterday, they all happened, ON TOP OF taking spur-of-the-moment errands and questions from the bride: "asan na si ganyan?", "pakitawagan si ganito, pakisabi ganyan", "punta ka sa kabilang room, pakikuha yung pera from ganito, tapos ibayad mo kay ganyan", "paorder pala Jollibee para kay ganito!", etcetera etcetera.

Whew! After everything, I can say that the whole wedding started and ended perfectly. Would you believe the bride marched at exactly 2pm? rare right? haha! there were last minute booboos but we have always managed to put things back on track (pia, me and 2 other ushers. kudos to us!). We also had to deal with an arrogant supplier (Can I drop company names? hehe), impatient guests, naughty kids, all those stuff ...but we were able to handle them well, as far as I know. haha.

To sum up, it was REALLY EXHAUSTING, BUT it was fun and fulfilling!!!! I was right, it was a whole new experience, a test of physical endurance, hunger, patience, service and professionalism. I'm really grateful I had this experience. Thanks to Pia!

Oh, and congratulations to the newlyweds Paolo and Ledi, thanks for making me a part of your big day! (Don't you think their names sound TOO familiar? haha!)
 

Job hunting's easy ...5 years ago.

So... after I resigned, disposed a lot of stuff, and pondered on how my life will be next year, there's still one tiny thing to think of, before I move on to a totally new lifestyle: A JOB!

So how's the hunting? I'll end my work officially at the end of January, but since 3 weeks ago, I've been sending out resumes, being less and less picky each day (that's how it is, you become more and more desperate as you realize that job hunting's not easy? LOL). By now, I have 2 pending applications - 2 interviews, and 1 follow up interview all in all, then none again this week, till God knows when. See, gone are the days when you upload JUST ONE CV in Jobstreet, to get 5 calls in return, and around 3 great job offers within 2 weeks!

Now I'm worried, what if I'm hunting with hundreds or maybe thousands of competent IT job hunters? What if I've lost all skills? what if my credentials are not enough for the position and salary that I want? WHAT IF I'M ACTUALLY HUNTING AT THE WORST TIME OF THE INDUSTRY? what if... what if....? I've been asking these questions forever!

A friend working in an HR department said that I'm unreasonably worried, as interviews are rarely given this month due to christmas events, that "next month will be a better month, for sure". I really hope so! she said my pace is actually better compared to other IT job hunters --nice, encouraging actually, but stillll...

...OKAY, maybe I'm worrying too much, when in fact, I prayed for a long rest and a fun short-bumhood. (and bumhood hasn't even started! it's more than a month away from now!)

NOW I realize how much security we get from a stable job. I've never been so paranoid — in my entire work life!
 

I Resigned!

As my big boss browsed through my letter, I remembered ANTON EGO of Ratatouille, as always -the look, the voice, the perfectionism, but not the cruelty. Anton is a heart-less critic! Don't get me wrong though, Anton Ego is one of my most loved disney characters!



This time it was like hearing Anton's final speech: "...there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new". Yes, I'm that employee who traded AC for independence. For the first time I didn't see that aura I've dreaded — "YOU CAN'T DO THIS", "FINE, JUST DON'T TRANSFER TO A COMPETITOR OR YOU'RE DEAD MEAT!" I was wrong, he's a good boss, not as harsh as I thought!

Instead, he gave me a confused, supportive, fatherly smile and ended everything with the line "you're different. I've never heard of such resignation reason before. well... ganon talaga ang buhay. we always make decisions" ("that's life", "c'est la vie!")

I guess I gave acceptable reasons, with no lies, at the right time ...or maybe I had the "puss in boots" kitty eyes. HAHA. I'd like to think too that my performance's not fit enough for their definition of disappointment. OR simply, it was because of my prayers last night, and the prayers of those who cared. Prayers move mountains! ...and bosses too! whatever the reason is, thank you Lord. I'm soooo done with all the work drama! I'm done with ranting, I'm done with grudges. I'm proud to say that after all the fears and possibilities, I'm ending my work in AC peacefully.

Now I could eat, sleep and enjoy the upcoming holidays, without thinking of what my bosses' reactions, anger, moves, whatsoever. I am so happy! ...maybe until I realize that my "bumhood money" can no longer sustain me. Now that's a different matter to think and pray about. haha! For now, PARTY TIME! =)
 

[Noise] Polluted no more!

Finally, after days of postponing, I bought myself a pair of... EARPLUGS. Now all I could hear is my own breathing and swallowing, the loud music's beat at a reeeally low volume (someone's music here is REALLY loud without the plugs, I tell you. hence I bought these), AND the servers' sound, which is waaaay softer this time! Then I can't hear keyboards, mouseclicks nor ring tones!

Oh, and there seem to be no one around! well, almost. some are like whispering, while some from afar are like lip sync-ing! LOL! hahaha!

I can't believe I just freed myself from the (obscure) noise pollution here! This is a very very very good stress reliever! Try it!!! Only for P13!!! Thanks Abby for the idea btw. This is fun fun fun. hehe!

My most awaited VL (Virthday Leave)

I fervently wait for my birthday as early as the first Ber day. Not really because I'm excited to be a year older, nor I have special ways to celebrate it. but because it's the only time of the year when I (feel that I) have all the right not to work. Yeah, since 2005, my birthday meant no work day!

Anyway, I nearly didn't get that tradition this year, when we had to prep up for something really big at work. Good that it was TOO BIG, thus it made me accumulate OT hours, good enough to take that traditional leave. este, offset. hehe. too bad though that I had to go home at 3am. well, it's better than having work the entire day!

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I was about to fall into deep sleep WHEN suddenly I remembered I have gifts to open!!! so I got up again then started opening the gifts I kept under my bed since that McDo birthday! haha! enough of high EQ! It is my birthday, I have all the right to act like a kid again right?! haha! Anyway, thanks ST peeps, I love them!

I woke up at 11 am. It's a bit late so I immediately got up, then started making dark chocolate ice cream (improved version!!!), so it would be frozen by dinner time! Yeah, I skipped the usual solo pigout and shopping, they could wait. I knew I needed more rest. THEN GUESS WHAT. just a few hours after putting the mix in the freezer... ELECTRICITY WENT OFF! BOOOOOO!

my mom's masseuse came, SO I HAD A FULL BODY MASSAGE INSTEAD, zen na zen ang feeling, punong puno ng kandila yung kwarto e. aroma and petals nalang ang kulang. LOL. hahaha! Then I psyched myself that I should no longer worry about my ice cream, it could wait till Saturday. Besides, mama made mango float, and my sister bought cake. hehe.

Mama cooked yummy penne ala something something (Salmon + Bacon + Bechamel sauce. She also didn't know how it's called. haha.) Ate Minnie came with her cake, then Papa as usual, led the birthday prayer. I'm so blessed to have my loved ones around! that, and the fantastic dinner, covered all the hassles brought by the brownout! haha! Btw, we were about to enjoy the candlelit dinner, when the electricity got back! haha!

then that's it, I had to sleep early because of work. the pause is over! I texted a close friend actually, "lahat ng plano ko di natuloy, di ako naka shopping, di ako nakapag pa pedicure. paggawa lang ng ice cream ang natuloy pero nag brownout pa!". haha!

Honestly though, I found the whole thing funny. I felt like I deserve all cancelled plans and unwanted surprises, after getting so much attention from a party I never had in my entire life. hahaha!

I know too that at the end of the day, what really matters is not the celebration, nor the food, nor the greetings, or what. what matters is that I had another birth day -a mark that He has blessed me again with another year full of challenges, laughters, and LOVE. Thank You Lord!
 

guilty as charged.

I came in so early (and the office's still closed) so I decided to get something from Starbucks. On my way back to our building, I saw manong magtataho waiting for his suki buyers as usual. He saw me, but before he could say anything, I immediately looked away...

because I knew I traded his P20 big cup of taho for a P100+ cup of coffee =(
 

WOW. pang FML.

most illogical line I heard today: "I assumed na thursday and friday inasikaso mo na!" HELLO I received the instructions JUST YESTERDAY. WOW. pang FML ito! oh, and now I remember why I hate the corporate world.
 

bisikleta to work -feasible?

I have yet another crazy idea: I want to go to work by bike, as in bisikleta/de pajak! haha! that would be a good exercise (while I'd be able to save P65 per day!). It's not practical for now though coz my gym payment is good until summer next year. if I buy a bike now, I'm sure I won't need further workout other than cycling, sayang naman gym!

Though really, it's not THAT crazy -my office's relatively near, less than 10km from house I guess (30 minutes by 1 trike and 2 jeeps). If I go to work by bike then that would mean cycling for an hour or even less. same as in cycling class, right!? and generally, muntinlupa's not chaotic as roads, sidewalks and street lights have been improved by mayor ASP. in fact I see a lot now who go to and from work by bike. specifically, Madrigal-Alabang is not that urban, not so polluted and less dense unlike other business districts in Metro Manila. also, I don't have to worry about the parking as there are slots here for motorcycles and bicycles, for free!

I wish it's summer already so I could think about this option again :) haha!
 

when it rains, it pours

for the past 2.5 days I've been answering questions from trainees who had to do their hand-on exercises for this system we did. really, it's been so stressful. it's really different when you are introducing a new system rather than merely teaching a subject! with the former, you have to answer questions AND to troubleshoot at the same time!

But that was only until lunchtime today. Now I've been sitting in this empty, cold, computer lab for 3 hours, wondering what I should do next. The training's over but we can't leave yet as our transpo's not available until 5 pm.

see, when it rains, it pours! (and yeah, it literally rained hard too this day. hehe) good that we have internet connection, at least I can surf!