A Break From My Sedentary Lifestyle

Fine Saturday morning to go out and sweat.

I did a pretty good job at pretending that I also have a long weekend. Why not? My shift ended at two in the afternoon on Novembers 1 and 2 so I had the rest of the day to catch up with the holidays. Instead of going home to my dorm, I went home to Taguig every afternoon. After the “Halloween party” on October 31, we spent the afternoon of November 1 shopping for Christmas decors. And although there was not much action on November 2, I was well-rested for another day full of firsts.

My Parents’ 31st: Family, Food, Fun

Tatay and Mama’s wedding has become a running joke in the family after relatives from my mother’s side got no invites. That’s because they eloped and got wed secretly by Ninong Ben (Msgr. Ben Sabillo) in my father's hometown following the elders’ disapproval of their marriage.

During their 25th wedding anniversary, my father jokingly said in his speech that they decided to have another church wedding for the benefit of the uninvited relatives to witness what they have missed 25 years ago. And six years after their 25th, my parents still obligingly do the cake and wine ceremony done during wedding receptions.

Here’s why we celebrated their 31st wedding anniversary here. J

Keepsakes and the MIBF

Books fall open, you fall in
Delighted where you’ve never been
Hear voices not once heard before
Reach world on world through door on door
Find unexpected keys to things
Locked up beyond imaginings

-David McCord

Why I Will Never Forget 'The Phantom of the Opera'

The timeless story of the Phantom, the jealous lover who goes mad and wreaks havoc when his Christine falls for her childhood friend, Raoul; the music that haunts forever; and the set, costumes, and effects nobody will ever forget— these are the reasons why I fell in love with the 2004 movie adaptation of the Phantom of the Opera. I thought it was delusional to say that the play was as beautiful, or even more beautiful. “How can they pull off the scenes requiring grandiose sets without having cuts?” I thought to myself. I wondered how it captured theater-goers all over the world for 26 years.

Luck of all lucks, I got free Orchestra tickets to the Phantom of the Opera’s Manila leg at the Cultural Center of the Philippines courtesy of Maryowni, my ex-lunch buddy-turned-fairy. [wink] Tell me, is there a better way to end a very tiring and tragic August? I bet none!

Something To Look Forward To

It is here again, my roller coaster of emotions. I have no idea how anxiety and sadness were able to creep back to my system again. Or maybe I know the real reason but I do not want to acknowledge it.

Right before anxiety and sadness consumed me last night, my room mate, who just came from a Bohol trip, arrived. We had a small, yet really encouraging, talk about her trip and the vacation to Ilocos she had about a week before. I got to tell my own travel stories to her too, which also allowed me to be thankful that I have had travels from the time I was little and, not that I am comparing, at least had traveled more. After she left, I just sat in my bed thankful for the blessings and prayed that my night shift will go well. I also had a funny convo with my sister and boyfriend and everything became okay. Especially that I had Big N' Tasty and Twister Fries before my shift.

Instead of sulking in despair, I thought of something to look forward to and came up with these:

London 2012-Inspired

As the games end, let me share with you a few things I bought to serve as memorabilia of London 2012. They may not be officially from London, but four years later, these will remind me how fascinated I have been with Great Britain’s flag.

Thoughts on Fashion

No one else knows myself better than I do. So when I say that I have no affection whatsoever for fashion, believe me, I am lying. Deep inside, I have always admired girls who go out of the house fixed, those who still appear fashionable even in their most casual and rugged outfit, or those who appear effortlessly pretty.

I have always been comfortable in shirt and jeans, flats or flip flops, undone hair, without make up and accessories. There were a number of phases in my college days when I put on light make up but, eventually, laziness would get the better of me and my kikay attempts would again be relegated back to the farthest part of my thoughts.

Table For Two, Please*

*This post was originally written for The Athena, Cheenee's previous blog.


Back in college, couples often received a glare from me not because I did not have a boyfriend, but because I was envious that they were with each other doing three of my favorites– eating, shopping, and strolling.

If I did not have my dorm mates, college barkada (TSUBA), or the R’s (Tito and Tita R, and Raiza) along with me, my cellphone served as my trusty companion and I bet you know why. It was crazy texting “Ui, I saw nice shoes….” and went on describing down to the tiniest detail but end up frustrated because he had no idea what wedges (or whatever it was I tried to describe) were.

Year-Round Wish List

The problem with having a wish list is that I seem to want and need everything! But last September 1, the beginning of the "ber" months, I managed to shorten my first ever wish list (Kris Kringle aside). I almost forgot about these lists until I felt the Amihan kissing my skin these past few nights.

I made a separate list for the material and non-material wishes and I'm sharing with you the "material" wish list. There are a few items on this list that you may find weird but who cares? Walang basagan ng trip! I find it weird too why they're there.

Since most of these "wishes" are not easy on the pocket, I decided that this will be good until August 31, 2012, 11:59 PM. I won't pressure myself though. Not all wishes come true so whatever it is I'll be able to afford or whatever it is other people can give me would be more than enough.

Don't Send Them the "Yes, Rob Me, Please" Message*

*This post was originally written for The Athena, Cheenee's previous blog.

MRT (photo from tourism.gov.ph)

While residents near Manila Bay and Sofitel's guests were being evacuated as big waves hit the bay's seawall due to a storm surge, and while situation in Marikina and other flood-prone areas were being closely monitored by authorities, my primary concern during Typhoon Pedring's battering was the power outage that halted MRT operations.

MRT, with all the pushing and shoving, is a convenience most commuters fail to notice, much less appreciate. And if you have an extreme harpaxophobia (fear of robbers or being robbed) and scelerophobia (fear of burglars or being harmed by wicked humans) just like me, no MRT equals more chances of being robbed or harmed. I can handle the wild ladies on the train because I am pretty good at forcing my way through a crowded door to the middle of the coach where there are fewer people. But robbers? Who can handle them?

The 32nd MIBF: The Written World and Beyond*

*This post was originally written for The Athena, Cheenee's previous blog.

Trucks of bookstores and publishing houses were parked on the side of World Trade Center one Sunday night in September 2006. I did not know what the event was but it was a good sight. Pardon the ignorance but it was 2006 and I was a new girl in the Metro so I knew little about events like this, save those that my sister dragged me to. The next day, the great "F" friends were abuzz with great books they bought at a good price. It was all about the Manila International Book Fair (MIBF).

The Nativity, techie version*

 *This post was originally written for The Athena, Cheenee's previous blog.

It's almost the end of the first "ber" month. Have you felt Christmas yet? Yes or no, I scoured youtube for this video that "Señora" was watching about a week ago. I hope this makes all of us remember the "real" story of the Nativity and the reason why we celebrate Christmas. Enjoy!

video courtesy of ExcentricPT , http://www.excentric.pt posted on youtube on Dec. 13, 2010

Shams and Miss U

*This post was originally written for The Athena, Cheenee's previous blog.

After all the glitz and glam the ladies from all over the world showed in the Miss Universe pageant, it is the impersonators' time to shine! The lady with character and the one who made an impact will definitely find herself hilariously copied.

The Becky Miss Philippines

Miss Universe 2011 Shamcey Supsup Q&A (Becky Version) with socialite and becky Divine Lee.

Hello, World!*

*This welcome post was written for The Athena, Cheenee's previous blog. Read her new welcome message here.

Finally, a blog!

I have always been a little girl with great ideas. They remain stagnant until they get bored and voluntarily leave. It was a different scenario when I was in grade school and high school, when I was still able to contain my fears and write and speak confidently. That was more than a decade ago. I have already fallen under the thin line (or rather imaginary) between the reluctant and confident me.

College gave me reasons not to be confident but it was fair enough to give me MORE reasons to be and these are reasons I'm trying to live by. Not! [HAHA] As usual, it took me days (weeks and months) before deciding to start this blog because I doubted if I would be coherent and comprehensible. The idea sent me to deep thoughts. My mind debated with itself, unnecessarily weighing the pros and cons. Fact is, this is not my first attempt. A blog site was already on the works months ago until it lost its appeal. Then it kept popping out my mind until I finally did something about it on September 10 and was able to come up with this blog in one day (for the record).