still here...

it's been a while...

human billboard

i was on my way home when i saw these guys:


[click image to enlarge]

here's a closer look:

[click image to enlarge]

makes me think... are they:
1. the new mascots
2. proving that the pain med in their ad is really effective (imagine standing there for God knows how long)
3. in a reality tv show (the pot money must really be high... too much hazard, i.e. pollution, noise, back pain, etc!)
4. mga taong-grasa na dinamitan at dapat ipakita kung sinu ang sponsors...

blag!

'm back...

LSS

joining the ranks of macarena, and kapag tumibok of puso...

bye weight

uniform. how embarassing it is to admit, but my wardrobe has become a set of uniform. it's not that i don't like to dress up nor i don't have the money to buy some clothing. it is simply because my current size is XL, and i've been working hoping to keep my size down. sayang naman ang damit kung luluwag din agad. yet its been days weeks months years that i've been keeping that in my mind and here i am, stuck at XL.

so yesterday, as i went and decided to move back home (i'll discuss about it later) i spent my "rent-money" shopping. this time, i swear and i do solemnly swear that this will be the last set of my ridiculously large jeans and shirts.

now, like the bigger loser, i say... bye weight!

time for evolution?

the heat is really unbearable these days. i wake up at 4.30am, and i am already sweating. we didn't have airconditioning at home and when my mom noticed we are getting sick (well, because we tend to have our fans fixed at us) she decided to get one. oh well, there goes another grand or two for electricity. but at least we won't be irritated much by the heat.

i remember when i was just a child, my parents wouldn't let us out at night 'coz we might get colds. if we really needed to go out, we would be covered with at least 2 clothings from head to toe. fastforward to today, i could take my nephew out at night with just a sando and shorts on.

it is raining. but the rain does not help cool the air. the environment is really acting up.

the world really is changing. it might be too late to act on this. we could all help save the environment from global warming. but as we try, i think we should also brace ourselves to whatever worse might be coming. it'll be survival of the fittest. hopefully we won't evolve to have shells, it won't be light to carry along. plus think about the color it would have - might not even match a blue denim.

the burning question (ang matinding tanong)

working in a 24x7 environment is a real pain. in tagalog, mahirap talagang kumita. aside from changes in bio rhythm which can cause sleep disorders and confused digestive system (you know what i mean), IQ could also be affected.

so now, help us decide what's the best answer for my colleague's question:

coming from the graveyard shift, which belo essential cream should i use -
the day cream or the night cream?

sipon, ubo, atbp.

hay! heto na naman ako, sinisipon at inuubo... ewan ko ba kung ba't lagi akong nagkakasakit. twice na ko nagkaganito simula nung pumasok 'tong taon na ito. ang masama, ngayon bingi ang pareho kong tenga dahil sa sipon. ang hirap magtrabaho - asa support role pa man din ako. mukhang 'di na ko tinatablahan ng vit. c a! buhay!

still here

can't believe that i haven't posted for more than a month... so now where do i start?

here i am, killing time. my shift for the week starts at 11.30am. i don't like this shift much as it doesn't give me enough time to go to the gym. (yes, i'm back in the gym!) so to compensate for the time for not being in the gym for this week, i'm doing laps in the pool. (yup, may pool po dito sa may tinitirhan ko ngayon, shala di ba?)

all these things to keep me fit (again) is really burning me out. i hate aching muscles - muscles that really haven't made their presence shown in me (dahil labas pa rin ang katabaan ko!). but i'm hoping i won't get tired of this. you know what they say - no pain no gain -, and - beauty is pain.

- - -

work - would you believe - is good (would you believe?). as in, hindi ako makapaniwala na naaaliw ako na nagwowork ako ng todo - i think nasabi ko na 'to nung last post ko. hindi ako naiinip matapos ang araw ko. well, let's see if i still could remain positive at work 'til i start working in 12-hour shifts. (well the plan was for us to work on 12-hour shifts with 4 days of work and 4 days of rest - panalo di ba? haba ng bakasyon - pero parang araw-araw overtime. hmmm... so may oras maghanap ng ibang work? no, no, no! dean - be good!)

- - -

my mom will be celebrating her 50th birthday on saturday (birthday is actually on friday). don't know if she already had finalized her plan for her big day. 2 weeks ago ko pa nabigay yung gift ko for her - and she's really happy with it. haha! anyway, i can't believe that she's that old. it feels like she's the same when we were young.

- - -

i can't think of anything right now... anu 'to - writer's block? haha! feeling writer! now, i'm off to the pool. 'til next time!

busy me

lately, parang napaka-detached ng pakiramdam ko sa mundo. 'di ko na halos maramdaman ang takbo ng oras. kung dati nasa akin lahat ng oras para magawa ang gusto ko, ngayon e talagang kumakayod ako magtrabaho.

it's not that i'm complaining. sa mahigit na 2 years, ngayon lang talaga naging applicable sa akin ang salitang busy. kahit hindi pa gaano ako sumasabak sa bago kong trabaho, parang ang dami ko nang ginagawa. ang nakakapagtaka, hindi ako nagrereklamo. as in so not me talaga. ni hindi ko nga maisip na mag-snacks or kahit coffee break e. kakaiba.

so enjoy ba ako sa ginagawa ko? siguro... pero wish ko lang talaga magtuloy tuloy ito at hindi ako mapagod. sana lang this time magtagal na ako sa work.

new year

january 9 na pala. 'di ko man lang napansin ang bilis dumaan ng mga araw. p'anu ba naman kasi, dami ko pinagkakaabalahan. una, new job. syempre since iba na workplace ko, iba na rin tinitirhan ko.

sa haba ng bakasyon parang ang dami kong nagawa, pwera magdiet. hehe! ultimo pasko, habang ang mga kapatid ko ay umalis papunta sa kani-kanilang lakad, at ang aking mom ay bumisita sa kapatid, pinili kong magstay sa bahay. naisip ko, aba malapit na new year at ang kalat kalat ng kwarto ko kaya ayun, naglinis na lang ako. naglinis = nagwalis ng sahig, floorwax, rearrange ng kama at mga lamesa at mag-ayos ng movie collection ko (movies ha, hindi porn dahil wala ako nun!).

nung dec. 27, lumuwas naman ako ng makati para maghanap ng lilipatan. bigo ako. sayang ang pagod at pamasahe. totoong mas mahirap maghanap ng bahay kaysa ng trabaho. hay! pagkatapos ng new year, lumuwas uli ako para hanap ng bahay. sumama mom ko para makita kung san ako titira at para makapagshopping na rin sya habang asa kamaynilaan. since ayaw ko na mapagod kumuha na lang ako ng bedspace sa isang condo. wala kasi solo room for now kaya dun muna ako hanggang may mabakanteng solo na room. jan4 nung lumipat ako. tiempo, natuloy ang lagnat ko. buti natulungan ako ng bunso kong kapatid na magbuhat ng mga gamit sa dati kong apartment (na sya na ang nakatira ngayon). gabi bago ang unang araw ko sa work, ang taas ng lagnat ko.

kinabukasan, medyo ok na pakiramdam ko kaya nakapasok ako. nakita ko mga makakasama ko sa work at lahat sila mababait. kabiruan na nga kami agad lahat e. syempre kami kami magkakaclose kasi kami mga unang tao sa team. yung company, kahit bangko ay hindi naman mukhang naghihirap global financial crisis. p'anu ba naman kasi, daming libreng food. bukod sa libreng kape at iced tea at milo na common sa mga opisina, may libreng canned softdrinks bottled juices pa (tipong C2, fit n right, delmonte pineapple juice, etc). sosyalin di ba? at di lang yun ang libre, daming cereals like koko krunch, kellog's, saka yung 2 pa na klase na hindi ko alam tatak kasi nakalagay na sa bote e (sorry ha, tapsilog lang kasi alam ko breakfast). syempre may kasamang milk. may oatmeal din. but wait, there's more! bukod sa cereals ay may tinapay pa. take note, gardenia... may white bread, wheat bread at yung may raisins pa. kumpleto spreads, mula sa cheesewiz, mayo lite, yeast spread (mga expats na bumbay lang ata kumakain nito), jams, peanut butter, cream cheese at marami pang iba. tapos may tuna, pickles, cheese slices pa. minsan may german franks pa or salami or ham. tapos may fruits pa! tapos may iba't ibang cup noodles pa. 'di kami magugutom sa office kaya goodluck na lang talaga sa diet. libre lahat yun. sa dami ng food kahit tinapay at cereals e solved na ko at 'di ko na kelangan maglunch out. at heto, tuwing friday e may libreng lunch pa kami, bukod sa usual food sa pantry. pagkain pa lang, neto na. the best part, every friday may free drinks. drinks = alcohol. so may beer sa ref every friday.

sad nga lang kasi medyo hindi na ako kunektado sa mundo pag asa work ako. ala instant messaging e at limited ang internet access (dahil ayaw kong mapasama sa honor roll ng mga heavy internet users lalo na kung non-business related). buti na lang may nasasagap akong wifi sa kwarto pag umuuwi ako. swerte nga naman.

so, 'musta naman ang new year ko? well, kahit nagkasakit ako (dahil sa lamig ng panahon na gusto ko naman) e masasabi kong maganda ang 2009 ko. anyway, syempre depende pa rin sa akin kung anu mangyayari sa buhay ko. hope lang ako for the best.

connected

after almost a month since my siblings and mom applied for broadband, we're finally online. we have a globe wireless broadband - yeah, i wish we have other options. anyway, the connection is fine (so far). we had to put the external antenna of the modem uber high, even higher than our TV antenna, just to have a line-of-sight to the nearest cell site. as of this morning, we have this speed:

we're supposed to have up to 512Kbps bandwidth but when i used speedtest.net yesterday, i got 536Kbps.

now i feel we're not living in the dark ages anymore. now that we're connected, i won't be using this much as i don't have to work at home anymore. talk about timing! so to keep our modem busy, i'm downloading torrents! how i wish i have lots of free space in my hard drive.

last few days

konting clarifications muna para sa mga huling posts ko. una, hindi mo kalakihan ang sweldo ko. nagkamali lang po ng tax computation kaya nagkaganun. wish ko lang talaga normal yung ganun kalaking tax para malaki rin talaga yung take home ko, pero hindi talaga. tapos, hindi po ako titigil sa pagba-blog. bahagi na 'to ng buhay ko. ang gusto ko lang sabihin ay nagresign na po ako sa huling trabaho ko. yun lang. next time talaga maglalagay na ako ng details para hindi ako misunderstood. hehe!

ilang araw na lang pasko na. susunod, matatapos na rin ang taon. pagkatapos, makakaalis na ako ng tuluyan sa kumpanya na pinagtiisan ko ng dalawang taon... at dapat talagang 'pagtiisan' ang sinabi ko! haha!

nandito lang ako sa bahay ngayon. although may trabaho pa e dito ko na lang sa bahay minabuti magwork (kahit sa totoong buhay wala na akong ginagawa dahil paalis na ako). online lang ako para sa mga ad hoc na trabaho. 'di na rin ako pumasok kasi wala na rin naman ako aabutan sa office dahil lahat ng tao naka-work-from-home mode na. hay, sa lilipatan ko wala na ang convenience na hindi umalis sa bahay tuwing lunes at makipagsabayan sa mga papasok sa opisina.

bukas, bisperas na ng pasko. noche buena na. medyo kakaiba ang noche buena namin ngayon kasi kami na lang muna ng immediate family ko ang magsasama-sama. dati, kumpleto kami sa side ng mom ko nagsecelebrate ng pasko. pero ganun talaga siguro, nagbabago ang tradisyon. marami akong nami-miss. miss ko nung mga bata pa kami ng mga pinsan ko, daming regalong natatanggap, after magsimba, tutulog muna para paggising may mga chocolates at candies sa mga medyas na sinampay sa may pinto. miss ko na ang maghapong nagluluto ng mga ihahanda. higit sa lahat, miss ko na ang lolo. sa totoo lang, si lolo dahilan para mabuo kami ng pamilya sa side ng mom ko. tuwing birthday nya, nag-uuwian mga uncle at auntie ko. at ngayong wala na sya, hindi na definite kung kelan kami nabubuo.

tama na muna ang emote. dapat masaya kasi pasko na. mamaya, susunduin na ang paborito kong pamangkin. mag-offline muna ako sa work ng maaga para ipagshopping naman sya. hay. speaking of christmas shopping, hindi pa ako tapos. mga pinsang babae ko pa lang ang may regalo sa akin. habol na lang ako siguro. tutal, may isang araw pa naman.

graceful exit

the hardest part in leaving, is saying goodbye.

thanksgiving

27 on the 27th.

thanks for all the blessings.

amen

define: opportunity cost

too many reasons...
so many thoughts...
i hope everything would be settled once i ask myself,
what's keeping me here?

do the math

for nov 1-15 pay period i have:
a meager salary
tax almost Php 19k
plus other deductions

equals... personal financial crisis!

when will this stop?!??




magbibirthday pa man din ako tapos magpapasko pa.... :((

bingo

sa letra ng O, kalbo! bingo!

ayan, nabartolina na naman ako! kung ba't naman kasi hindi ko sinagot ang phone kagabi, nag-promise pa man din akong magpa-phone patch sa meeting. (phone patch? showbiz mode? pang da buzz??)

mga hinayupak naman kasi. alam na asa pinas karamihan nung a-attend ng call, pagpasyahan bang alas diyes ng gabi magmeeting!

tama na nga angal! hay dean! tumino ka nga! hindi ka pa nagpapasa ng mahiwagang papel kaya magtrabaho ka muna!

watch together, stay together

remember that catchy tv ad that says 'a family that prays together, stays together'? hmmm... i really can't remember the last time we prayed as a family? did we? well, maybe in my toddler years. but hey! this post isn't about prayers nor God-related things.

yesterday as i was waiting for my day to end, i got a message from my bro. 'dean, sira na tv. wala na magamit. bili ka na bago' (translated as how my nephew would say: uncle dean... tv broken! no watch cartoons. buy tv!). yup, 'kuya' is not a word in my siblings vocab. anyhow, i replied, 'sige basta hati tayo pandown' (i need your contribution for our downpayment). well, i didn't (and still don't) have cash to pay for a brand new tv set so we're getting an installment. then my bro closed the deal by saying 'sige magdown ako pero kaw na bahala maghulog' (ok, i'll pay the downpayment but you take care of the installments).

you see, growing up i was never really close with my siblings. we had the same interests but had different inclinations: we like music, i prefer to play the piano while my brothers mastered the guitar; we play computer games, i concentrate on mind games, they battle online; we love food, i cook, they eat. 'nuff said. but there is one thing that we all like, yep, the television.

these days we haven't got a lot of time bonding (yeah right! as if we really bonded!). my family (i.e. me, my mom and my brothers - dad, is out there somewhere and rarely goes home) only gets to see each other on weekends - lazy weekends that are spent on laundry, eating real food and tv.

tomorrow, it'll be a weekend. there'll be no tv. sad. no more bring it on, ice castle, grey's anatomy, the practice, supernatural, sabrina, house, prisonbreak marathons. really sad. i hope the new tv will be delivered soon. i wonder how we will survive this weekend without one.

UPCAT

Showing: Dec. 3-18, 2008
Only at Robinson's Galleria.


hay! namiss ko tuloy ang elbi...
potek, higit kalahati ng buhay ko andun ako