Yup. Still Alive.

I have been remiss in updating this place. But I haven't been really away, because if you looked hard enough, you'd notice that I have two new static pages above! *points*

• Seen/Written is my humble, short collective of written work, posted in some shape or form online - Seen for photography, Written for prose. 
• Books is my growing list of books that I'm open to lend out (to close friends, initially). I was supposed to put up a book club with this person here (AND I HAVE BEEN REMISS ON THAT AS WELL, I AM SO SORRY) but stuff happened that made us unable to do it. Anyway, in an effort to get something started, I've put up my own list of books for loan. This list is still a work in progress; I'm sure I haven't included everything that I have at home.

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So, what has been happening the past few weeks?

• I've been meeting a lot of new people (if I've met you the past two weeks or so and you're reading this, hi!)
• I'm getting required book readings again, and I'm so delayed with finishing them. Required book readings, by the way, aren't the same with wala lang book readings (Read: stuff I want to read)
• I co-composed and arranged a song (emphasis on co- because there's no way I can do it from the ground up). We have this ongoing workshop-slash-book report thing for Music that required us to make a song. I got the recordings of all the songs through email this week, and yeah...hearing my own voice is sooooo awkward *goosebumps* 
• I got paid to do graphic design work in exchange for books (best payment I ever received aside from cash [duh]).
• I ventured once more into snail mail! I called this Operation Liham. The details of the letter can be found on that link. I can't even remember the last time I sent snail mail. It was probably even before 2000. YEGADS

In class, I'm starting to see my most favorite line of Yu-Gi-Oh! Abridged in an entirely new light. (Read: SCREW THE RULES.) I'm also seeing a very significant shift in my responsibilities at work, and once again, I find myself hardly prepared.

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This Wednesday, when I went to midweek, I was told by two people that they really like the way I sing this particular song. I am really floored when people say nice things about what I do, whether it's with singing or with work, because more often than not, I am harder on myself than most people are.

But, what I find really funny is that there were other people who told me the same thing for the same song. At first, I was thinking, "Teka, nag-usap ba kayo?" Hahahahaha! But, it seemed highly unlikely because the interval between this Wednesday and the last time I got a similar compliment was more than a year. So...yeah, I don't think nag-usap sila. XD

I guess it's because [1] I love the song; [2] I absolutely LOVE Brooke Fraser (read: girl crush); and [3] there are many ways to sing a song, but very few ways to sing it right. I consider #3 to be the most important, because you can have less of #1 and absolutely none of #2, and still do justice to a song - as long as you sing it right.

Truth be told, I remember messing up Hosanna so many times to the point of not wanting to sing that song in public again, so to hear these things out of the blue is so uplifting.

I must be doing something right. It may not be as bad as I think it is. (Applying the temperaments, the melancholic in me has to seriously chill. XD)

And on this note, gusto ko na uli magkaroon ng raket! Nakakapagod din ang work-school-church lagi! Wala bang mga ikakasal diyan? (Bwahahaha tama ba ito? XDDD)

Holy Week

Hello people of the Interwebz. Belated Happy Easter. =)

Holy Week is usually busy for me, but this past one was more relaxing than the previous ones.

On Easter Sunday, we sang (once again) the Hallelujah Chorus, and Because He Lives. Did I mention that we did these songs for all four services? Yes we did. /sigh 

I must admit that singing in choir is one of my weaknesses. I can sing in unison, but I don't have the ear that can tell if I'm blending with everyone else. I'm usually too loud or...too loud. /hehehe

The next day, the entire ministry went to Subic! Wooohoooo!!! I can't even remember the last time I went there. Thanks to this outing, I got to experience the following:

1. Sleep inside the church building. We had to be in the bus along Pasong Tamo before 5AM, so rather than I go out of the streets of Manila at 4AM and be exposed to a lot of risk, I opted to sleep in church instead. I got to leech off of the church's wi-fi (hahaha) and played one round of DrawSomething with a classmate before I went to bed. 
2. Ride a banana boat. I initially wanted to ride a jetski, but P3,500 for one hour was just waaaay too much, plus there's the stress of learning how to operate a jetski (and the sheer fear of getting stranded out at sea XD). The next best thing was a banana boat ride, which was basically an inflated banana-shaped boat being pulled by a jetski.
3. The dreaded beach. I'm not a beach person - I would rather be in a swimming pool. I think the last beach I went to was Bohol, which was...2007/2008(?). I dislike being in the saltwater (although come to think of it, drinking saltwater is more au naturel compared to drinking water laced with chlorine XD), so I just made the most out of the day.

Here's a photo of us on the boat prior to jet-off (LOL I wonder if that's the proper term). The banana boat was worth P250 for 15 minutes, which is kind of steep, but worth it. We circled the bay three times, and got close enough to a South Korean ship. I screamed "Annyong hase yo!" but it looked like no one was there. (I'm sociable that way.)

At the end of the ride, the jetski driver took a very sharp turn that made the boat turn upside down, which made all of us fall into the water. That was probably the best part of the entire ride (and the funniest), though I drank some of the saltwater by accident (ugggghhh beaches).

Overall, I'm happy with how Holy Week was spent. I also got to write some chapters for my book (OH YES!).

Just another dying ★

Bagyo Berde was, needless to say, very memorable. Why it was isn't because of euphoria of singing in open air at the Alma Mater (it was very stressful, IMO). The journey to getting there is a better story to tell. A Chinese proverb says, the journey is the reward.

In a nutshell, I'm very grateful for being a finalist. I was expecting that we would at least place (keeping positive vibes, of course), but the songs that we did were risky, given the genre of the other 10 bands that played (we called our genre jazz + funk = junk). Deviating from rock was our idea of a "winning" strategy, but alas. 

Anyway, People's Choice isn't a bad spot to be in. In fact, just two days ago, we performed again at the Alma Mater for The Art of Cosplay.  Now this thing right here was quite interesting. We were told that we're getting a televised performance as our prize for winning People's Choice, and we had to be in school by 5:30 PM. Then, I was told that on the  day that we were performing in a competition, which made me panic because we didn't have any practice. When I arrived at the venue, I found myself in a COSPLAY event. And, should I say it? NHK WAS THERE. 

If you're ID 102 and lower/higher (until probably ID 104/105), you'll understand how shocking this is - COSPLAY. IN DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY. WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE OBEY-OR-BE-DAMNED DRESS CODE? Gosh, back in the day, we couldn't even come up with a cosplay event, we only stuck with the usual Miyazaki film showings, Minna Utao! and of course the cultural activities like sadou, but a cosplay is an event that NKK could only dream of producing during my time. This event, from what I've gathered, had the support of the CLA Graduate Student Council (solid backing, if I may say so myself), with NKK and I think another org...so a combined force can definitely stage an event like this.

Anyway, I digress. Had I known that we would be performing in a COSPLAY event, I would have brought out my Rinoa costume (sans long hair, of course), or prepare a J-pop song that's bandworthy. Alas, alas...

What was common about yesterday's performance and last Wednesday's was the sheer difficulty of setting up the instruments. Tuesday was understandable, but last Wednesday was just beyond me. We  had a sound check prior to the event, but we still had setup/audio problems. 

The delay was shorter last Wednesday compared to Tuesday, though. In fact, it got so long that I couldn't think of anything witty to say to the audience. So, I flipped through my head (a la iPod) some of the recent J-pop/anime themes that I knew by heart, and said, "Okay lang ba na kumanta ng J-pop na acapella?" I wasn't entirely sure what response I got (yes/heck no/whatever), but I went with my gut and blurted out, "This is LET IT OUT by Miko Fukuhara." Boom. I sang the verse, then the chorus. It was nearly mechanical, the way I did it. I've only sung the song in Wako (HAHAHAHA). If you're reading this and you were there, I give my humblest of floorbows or my widest of smiles to you, whichever is appropriate. =D

Anyway, after that, we got to play our two songs. Both were pretty smooth-sailing. The Wednesday performance was obviously more stressful than Tuesday's. On the basis of my performance alone, I think Tuesday was better; I mostly blame myself being so stressed about the performance last Wednesday, and partly on the stage monitor (I had to walk to the house just to hear myself).

I think a shout-out to Noey is in order for cheering me on two days ago (sorry talaga, I didn't realize it was you until I saw you up close /fail), and had I known that she was performing I would have attempted leaving the office earlier. =) And, on the subject of shout-outs, if you cheered on for us last Wednesday either by going to DLSU, or voted for us through text/coin bank, plugged us on the radio, or lifted us up in prayer, THANK YOU. This win is yours just as much as it is ours.

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This song was on repeat the weekend before Bagyo Berde. I was happy to have this on repeat, in spite of it bringing tears to my eyes everytime I listened to it. Basically, it puts the whole experience into the right perspective. :-)

[static] Support Cherry Cherry Boom Boom at Bagyo Berde - the DLSU Centennial Battle of the Bands

Cherry Cherry Boom Boom (a 100% Lasallian band!) will be performing next Wednesday at Bagyo Berde - the Centennial Battle of the Bands of De La Salle University.

There are many ways you can support the band! We will appreciate it if you can come and watch us at 6PM next Wednesday at the Amphitheater. Tickets are being sold at Php150 along Miguel and Velasco Halls of the Alma Mater, as well as in the SDA Building of DLS-CSB.

If you cannot come on Wednesday night, you can still support us by doing any or all of the following:

1. Vote for us. If you have a Smart number, text BAGYOBERDE <space> POLL <space> 3 and send to 700DLSU (7003578). That's "BAGYOBERDE POLL 3" and send to 7003578. If you don't have a Smart number, you can go to the Bagyo Berde booth along Miguel and get a Smart SIM for free. You can also pasa load to my Smart Bro number 09396652946 so I can use whatever load you send to me to vote for CCBB. If you will pasa load to my Smart Bro, please text me on my Globe number (wahahahahaha!).
2. If you are in DLSU until 5:00 PM, visit the Bagyo Berde booth (either along Velasco or Miguel) and drop a few bills in the Cherry Cherry Boom Boom coin bank/can. 
3. Donate to Youth Church (YC) of Church of God-Makati. Our entry is fully supported by the youth ministry of our church. Your money will go a long way towards building up leaders out of our youth in Makati, and in other places of the metro and beyond. 

Thank you!

Because I'm usually the one who takes the shot (a.k.a. The Cherry Cherry Boom Boom Photoshoot)

For my utter lack of coherence in the previous post, I regret nothing. (HAHA!)

But to save face, here's a more coherent version.

I am obligated to provide a link to the portfolio of the uber-demanding photographer (sobrang demanding niya, you have no idea).

Being the person who's (unofficially) the official photographer for events - whether they are family reunions, work or church related events, I RARELY get really good photos (as in VAVAVOOM GOOD). The people I take pictures of end up with the good photos (and eventually, DPs), while I end up with the usual substandard selca or a picture of myself that wasn't taken well because of poor lighting, composition, and/or laziness. I get even more pissed if a person who has zero knowledge about the use of DSLRs handles Oberon, but that's another story.

So, you could just imagine how happy I was when this photoshoot was scheduled, and how much I was freaking out when I saw what came out of the shoot. YE GADS - I finally have a decent photo!

It was a night of too much eyeliner (not only for me, but also for the guys!), too much black eyeshadow, and questionable fashion sense (blazer + shorts + rubber shoes = say what now?). The photos were taken in fire escapes and hallways. This particular picture was taken at the hallway, with no light except from the flash. We found the sofa stashed at the corner leading to the CR.

It's actually fun being photographed when you don't have to be "pretty", cause I pretty much suck at that no matter how hard I try. =P

Can I say that I was trying to channel Coco Rocha fierceness during this shoot? In my head I was telling myself, "think Coco Rocha fierce, be Coco Rocha fierce..." Now that I think about it, I don't understand why I would I think of a high-fashion model during a band photoshoot, and not someone like Gwen Stefani or Amy Lee.

Anyway, some of the friends who saw this said that I look like the female vocalist of Taken By Cars. That wasn't my intention at all, but I do see the similarity. XP

Oh - in other band-related news, we have decided on a cover song. =)

This is so epic I can't even find the words to describe it

On music and writing

These two have got me pretty much occupied during the week.

Let's start with the music:

Bagyo Berde, the centennial battle of the bands of DLSU, will be held on February 8 at Amphi starting 6:00 PM (request for leave has been GRANTED!). Cherry Cherry Boom Boom is the last among the 10  finalists who will be performing. Buti na lang - that gives our fans/adoring public/relentless supporters friends and family ample time to come to DLSU to cheer for us.

We're still in the planning stages of our setlist (I have no idea how many songs we have to sing XD), and said plans will have to remain secret until Feb 8. (I mean, you can never tell if someone from the enemy is stalking this blog, right?! LOL!)

The videos of the audition will be posted by the organizers soon. Once that's up, I'll be sharing it here.

I've also resumed keyboard lessons last Saturday. I'm actually enjoying it a lot, but I'm having trouble finding time to practice at home with Angela. /lesigh

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Next up: writing. The second session was really interesting - we had to brainstorm through post-its (a very unconventional method, mind you) in order to come up with our book title and cover. I think I have a firm title for the book that I'm co-authoring (again -  I still cannot believe I'm doing this. /slapface) and a book cover as well. POST-ITS. WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT. 

Oh, and here's our first class pic:

Booyaaah

Yup, I have to post it again. Our "band" got in the battle of the bands of DLSU, which will be held on February 8. A little research was done some of the competition we're facing, and we learned that some of the bands hold regular gigs (and have FB pages!). I thought to myself, if one would consider our Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday assignments as gigs, then we hold at least two each week! We just don't have a Facebook page. /heehee

One of the songs we did during the audition was Oo by Up Dharma Down. Learning it was such a challenge - I couldn’t nail the vocal by just listening to it a hundred times, and listening to it a hundred times wasn’t possible, since I was given the song less than two days before the audition date. Oh, and to aggravate things further, my fellow band members did a bossa arrangement for the song. Bossa is a genre I am NOT comfortable singing with.

So, on the eve of audition day, I wrote the lyrics down and “drew” the melody (see left). Then, I practiced it. By the time we did the audition, I nearly forgot some of the words, but at least I nailed the melody. =D

Now that we’re in, we're so excited! They chose only 10 out of 46 bands that auditioned! For sure, wala na akong kodigo by February 8 (hahaha!!!). We'll be getting t-shirts to wear for the finals - I found two sponsors and I've drafted various shirt designs already. We have no setlist yet, or a solid original song, but we have time to prepare. =)

I'M SO LOOKING FORWARD TO FEB 8

WE GOT IN. THIS MAKES ME SOOOO RIDICULOUSLY HAPPY.

(salamat kay Lady Gaga for the name of our band XD)

Been kind of busy in this part of the woods

I live.

And I've got a pretty lame good excuse for the lack of posts:

• Work. Um, yeah, pretty obvious, but will elaborate
• Class has begun, and we have to do some taste testing and rate attributes of the food, etc. etc. 
• Church stuff

... and these three commitments are basically what have been keeping me busy since last year, which leads me to think that these excuses are indeed lame. *facepalm* I'll just have to find more time to blog.

I'm contemplating on buying a .me domain, by the way. I'll probably do this when I have decided on a domain name. I don't want it under my name, and inasmuch as I want it to be wonderingwhattodowithdaylight.me, it's too long. 

Anyway, moooooving on.

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Church stuff - I'm getting a lesser load of assignments for the first three months of the year, which I really appreciate. That means I can devote more time to the other church commitments (hahahaha).

Most immediate among these commitments is actually not church-related, but will involve the youth ministry. We're auditioning for this thing here:

By the way, may band room pala sa STRC?! SINCE WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN? All I did in STRC was run around and exercise during ROTC days!

Saka ko na ikukuwento yung experience ng pag-audition when the results are out. All I can say for now is that I am soooo relieved that I was able to sing bossa. I thought I didn't have it in me. Salamat sa mga bandmates ko, OSUM kayo. XD

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Ahhh. Work. I remember a verse in Ecclesiastes that says enjoying the fruits of your labor is a gift from God. This is especially true this month, since I was asked to participate in one of the projects I am managing - the author mentoring program I was talking about in the previous blog post. 

One of the assignments is to send invites to friends that you are launching a book. I don't really know the emails of my friends (plus they check their Facebook more often than email anyway), so I decided to post the "invite" there:

Mga friends, by faith I will be signing copies of my first book at the Manila International Book Fair this year, and I'd like to invite all of you when that happens! I don't know the book title yet, but it will be about how you can fulfill your dream of becoming an author. Heart is seriously pounding triple time as I type this. #thisisanassignmentfortheauthorclass #ihavetocomply #youhavenoideahowscarediam #idontshowmyworktopeople #gettingpublishedisbothexcitingandscary

The hashtags speak the truth. #youhavenoidea

A lot of people liked and commented that they were excited for me - some were even congratulating me already, which got me even more scared!

While most of the people I was growing up with wanted to be a doctor, I wanted to be an astronomer, a surgeon, or an author. But out of all of these three dream ambitions, the one I worked on the most as a kid was becoming an author (Second to that is becoming an astronomer - I learned how to spot constellations and near stars as a kid, and I can still remember how to do this now. I never really worked on becoming a surgeon - when it came to dissecting frogs I decided to strike that out of my list XD).

If my memory serves me right, I finished my first fiction story when I was 7 or 8 years old, and it was written in pencil on scratch paper that was the kind used for dot matrix printers. I think the only reason why I did that was because [1] there were no notebooks available, and [2] nobody in the house would suspect that I would write something important on scratch paper, cause as early as that, I had an unexplainable fear of people reading my stories.

Oh, by the way, my first story was - you wouldn't guess it - FANFICTION! (of what series it was about I will carry to my grave - I think only one person knows what series it is, and I pray said person doesn't remember anymore XD) 

At about that age too, I started keeping a diary. It was the "Dear [name of diary] (yes, I did that!), Today was really fun because I spent the day in school...", and here I would chronicle a day in my geek-outsider grade school life.

I also remember a time during Grade 5 when I was so mad (at what or who I don't want to say =D) that I decided to throw away everything that I have written thus far - and that included the first story that I wrote on dot matrix paper, and the first diary that I kept. I regret doing that now - I mean, how nostalgic would it be if I saw what I wrote twenty years ago, diba?

During high school, I wrote for the school paper (news, features, the usual lot), and I also wrote an original fiction piece - the first one that got published (with much fear on my part!). It was was supposedly a four-part story (with the assumption that we publish an issue every quarter), but we were only able to release one issue that schoolyear (haha fail). Buti na lang that happened, cause the story was kind of dark for a Christian school - dark in the sense na a character was killed, there's mention of blood, and this will be read by grade school and high school students alike. If all four parts were published, there's a good chance that I'd be sent to the principal's office or a guidance counselor. XDD

And, there was also NaNoWriMo, which I joined twice and won both (with extreme consequences for my physical health, though). I don't think I'll be joining again, not unless I find a way to eliminate the back pain, which is highly unlikely. Some of my chapters for NaNo were published online as part of a local compilation of excerpts written by those who joined during that year, but I kept it a secret from everyone (haha!).

So basically, what I'm trying to say is that I am sooo afraid of seeing my work published under my name, for  various reasons said and unsaid. Hence, the mere exercise of me posting that status message was nerve-wrecking. It's like ... coming out. HAHAHA!

Even if the book doesn't come out this year (or during the MIBF), it will likely come out at some other time. I'm sure there will be much prodding from the boss to do it. Also, writing a nonfiction piece is something I've never tried before, and thought I'd never do.

So, this endeavor of writing and being published is by faith, simply put. =D

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I am so gung-ho with third term - gung-ho in the sense that I want to get a much, much higher grade than last term. I have no qualms with last term cause I gave it everything I could, but the situation now is very different from last term. I think I can make a comeback. *positive vibes*

More than the dress and the voice

If you know FFVIII well enough, you know what song this is. It's Eyes on Me, the song Julia Heartilly sings to Laguna Loire, and it is also the main theme of FFVIII.

Julia was in love with Laguna, but she was too nervous to tell him anything. Laguna, on the other hand, felt the same way, but was too clumsy to even make a move every time she visited the lounge where Julia plays. 

I've always liked this song, but since it's only known by geeks a few people, not everyone was crazy about it. It also didn't help that during the time it was released, listening to Chinese/Japanese/Korean singers was considered extremely weird (right now it's just weird-ish I think, hahaha!). 

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I could finally strike out my wish to sing this song in public (without discrimination - excluding karaoke gimiks of course!). I was asked by a good great friend of mine in high school to sing this for his wedding. It was to be sung during the wedding march of his dashing bride - a schoolmate during high school. 

Now, singing a wedding march for me is no walk in the park. It's actually in my top 5 hard-to-sing-in-these-situations-list (first are funerals) because you absolutely CANNOT mess up a perfect, once-in-a-lifetime moment. When I'm really nervous, my throat dries up, and so I drink a lot of warm water, which then leads me to puke (all cause-and-effect, really). XD

The song went pretty well (my employers, este, groom and bride loved it). On my part, I wish I  rehearsed the Faye Wong version, because that's what was played and I only knew at the moment I was supposed to sing that's how it will go down. I was in love with the Angela Aki version that I didn't even consider the original. /facepalm /headdesk 

How I wish I had a video of it cause I was being accompanied by an accordion, violin, and flute - apart from piano and guitar! How epic was that?! I don't think I have any pictures of that part too...I guess I was too nervous that I didn't even think of using my camera. /le sigh

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Yesterday was the first day of class. I hope to get a better grade this time around, so I have the guts to take the plunge and take two subjects next term. I don't want to be delayed anymore.

The classroom this time is in Yuchengco, which means colder temps and smaller desks. LS is old and finding your room there is a bit of a challenge, but their big desks make up for all that. 

Did I mention that Yuchengco Hall was my building crush before (when it was new)? Now you know.

On not being awesome

Here's a good come back to earth quote for today.

While I was walking yesterday, I stole a few glances up at the sky, wondering briefly if there was still smog. The usual white-washed buildings had an undeniable splash of brown and beige - not on it, but over it. The sky wasn't at its bluest. The thick clouds were mostly off-white and grey.

I had a lovely Japanese bento lunch, which ended with coffee jelly. Throughout that time I stared out the tinted window, wondering if it would rain. I learned, when I was in Canlubang, that storms usually drive the pollution out, which is why the sky is usually clear after a storm passes. I silently hoped for rain - not the disastrous kind, of course - but normal, uneventful rain. The kind of rain that would make me wish I was home eating champorado.

The days following the New Year are usually uneventful - kind of boring actually. Mine thus far are hardly that: on New Year's Day, I was told that I was a failure. On Thursday, I have a planning session for church. On Saturday, I have a wedding to sing for. It's the first week of the year, and I'm already learning:

• The people who hurt you the most are the people whom you expect the opposite from
• People think I'm prepared, but the reality is I am hardly ever prepared 
• Being prepared is actually a process
• What people think I can do is far from what I think I can do; nevertheless, these people are expecting me to mold myself into the "me" that they are expecting

When work was done, I decided to walk again. I remembered how comfortable I was being alone, and for a while I regretted coming back to Manila, because the days I spent living alone in the boondocks (I miss that term) were actually the most fulfilling I've had thus far. The smell of freshly-cut grass, the cool, clean air, the random insect that I needed to exterminate - all of these I found wanting at one point.

I walked around the mall, looking at things I wished I had, and noting price markdowns on shoes that I need to revisit over the weekend. My four-year-old rubber shoes had been to Hong Kong, graced Corregidor and four burials, plus most of my leather ones are old hand-me-downs. I made mental notes of stuff that might be useful to me over the course of the year, such as special pens, felt-tip markers, and notebooks, statement tees...

The thick holiday crowd was gone. Not one shoulder brushing on mine. Vast, open mall space. Only the decor remained. Still the season to be jolly.

When I arrived at the train station, the long lines began.

Christmas/New Year

In bullets:

• Candlelight service. I don't think I can handle another one. Don't ask, I just can't.  =,=
• Reunion with the family on Christmas day went really well, in spite of the major family losses this year.
• Working on the last week of the year for the first time is...well...uneventful. XD
• Manila Ocean Park with the cousin/nephew/brother was lots of fun, but extremely painful for the pocket.
• Rizal Day will be spent at Malolos Memorial Park.

I think I'll be posting something that doesn't involve bullets tomorrow/Friday.

Two weeks of survival

This thing right here? IT IS FINISHED.

December 3

• School: I have a reporting on product placement, specifically in movies and games. While I was reading the material, my top-of-mind examples were [1] the Panasonic phone that Cloud used in Advent Children and [2] the futuristic Nokia smartphone that was installed in the car that young!Kirk was driving. This isn't really hard, but there's pressure involved because there's ...
• Work: I have to manage an afternoon-to-night event for aspiring authors, which is happening in Makati. I'm really excited about this event since I get to meet authors who have won the Palanca...plus a person that I have idolized before I took up marketing in college (rubbing elbows kind of interaction, oh the perks of this job). I have to take off early from class to go to the venue. Hay, the wonders a working student can do. #bibidibabidiboo

December 9

• Work: I've got a golf event to manage. I know NADA ZILCH NIL about golf, and this event has not made me a convert. I'd rather play jackstones than golf. Or read Twilight than golf---OH SNAP! (LOL) The event will begin during the wee hours of the morning towards very late in the evening. This is a very big problem because on ...

December 10 

• School: IT'S FINALS DAY. HOLY MOLEY GUACAMOLE. Seriously. I don't know how I'll survive. I have to make up a strategic plan for some make-believe company with make-believe market conditions within two hours. And as if that's not enough I've got a ...
• Raket: I have to sing for a wedding in the afternoon, and it's a Lea song. And I haven't practiced for it.

I survived, and I know I couldn't have done it without God's help (it's amazing what prayers can do...nearing these days I had none of those sleepless nights, plus I was completely confident that I had done everything I could to make all of these things happen in the smoothest, uneventful way possible) plus the people around me who have been so understanding (thank you =D) and yes I really had to copy the entire thing for emphasis XD

It's amazing that in spite of the hullabaloo, I was able to keep up with my reading: I think I've been driven to read out of sheer desire to get away from the chaos and find a means of escape. For the past weeks, I finished three Murakami books in a row.


A Wild Sheep Chase is probably my third favorite Murakami book - the first one being after dark, next Kafka on the Shore. I'm still figuring out if I like this one better or The Elephant Vanishes. 


And on this note, I think I'm more partial to Murakami's style of fantasy than his love stories. I liked Norwegian Wood and South of the Border, West of the Sun but you just don't get sucked in to the story the way his fantasy work does.

Next on my stash - which is still part of my MIBF loot, is Norwegian Wood. It's probably (so far) the Murakami book that I least appreciate. Having said that, I still could relate to what Watanabe is going through, especially when it came to depression due to a suicide-related death. Some of his thoughts were so real to me, it's like my innermost thoughts that I couldn't express myself put into a page. This book has got quite a number of dog-ear marks of quotes that I loved. (I know dog-eared folds on a book is a pet peeve of some, but I think this is better than highlighting books, right? I don't have a notebook handy always...)

I'm also not a sucker for the errr...love scenes. XD That's not really not my cup of tea when reading a book.

South of the Border, West of the Sun was better than Norwegian Wood, in my opinion. Though both of them were open-ended, this book was more profound that the other. My takeaway for this story is that we don't really appreciate what we have until it is taken away from us (or in this case, nearly taken away).

While I was reading this book, I was thinking, "how many times have I wanted for something else and yet not have the slightest feeling of being grateful for what I do have?" Norwegian Wood, though a book that's very relatable to my current circumstances, only seemed to sympathize with me rather than stimulate.


Next book in the list: 1Q84. =D =D =D

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On to the work stuff.

My December 3 event went really well. It was an aspiring authors' event, and since writing and reading will be two of my forever passions, this wasn't really a pain in the butt to organize and run.

I personally assisted author Grace D. Chong, who was kind enough to autograph my copy of Solo Flight. Oh, and if you check this entry in her blog, you'll see me. =D 

I also finally got my first marketing book autographed by the guru himself (oh be still my fangirl heart), Dr. Ned. I told him, "Dr. Ned, bago pa po ako nag-Kotler, ito muna ang binasa ko," sabay pakita ng book niya. He gladly signed it with my Sharpie (buti na lang nakabili ako ng Sharpie, hahahaha XD)

The golf marathon, which was last Friday, was quite something. It rained almost the entire day, but the participants were still game with finishing their assigned rounds of golf. They seemed to be pretty happy with their accomplishment (I mean, 72 holes in one day - with rain?! Who wouldn't be?).

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Oh, and the wedding song went pretty well. For me it was kind of pitchy at first, but then again I didn't really expect the song to be super perfect because [1] it's a Lea song and [2] I barely practiced it - the wedding day was the first time I sang it with a mic. Everyone else thought it was good (parang CD lang daw - which surprised me, as usual). I simply tried to do the song justice (and not shame myself). 

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And that's it, pansit! I'm looking forward to a happy Christmas and new year (more of a choice, really =D). I've got two days off from work to rest and recuperate, so all will be well. I intend to watch The Adventures of Tintin in 3D tomorrow, and probably *squeal* The Lion King in 3D sometime this week. It must NOT be missed. 

Also, new layout. =D

a time to work, a time to blog

Inasmuch as I'd like to post something here, nothing extraordinary has been happening that's worth a post...everything that I'm occupied with has basically consumed me - so much so that I can't differentiate Tamahome from Tasuki anymore (if you follow my Tumblr you'll understand).

Just to give you (and myself) an idea...

December 3

• School: I have a reporting on product placement, specifically in movies and games. While I was reading the material, my top-of-mind examples were [1] the Panasonic phone that Cloud used in Advent Children and [2] the futuristic Nokia smartphone that was installed in the car that young!Kirk was driving. This isn't really hard, but there's pressure involved because there's ...
• Work: I have to manage an afternoon-to-night event for aspiring authors, which is happening in Makati. I'm really excited about this event since I get to meet authors who have won the Palanca...plus a person that I have idolized before I took up marketing in college (rubbing elbows kind of interaction, oh the perks of this job). I have to take off early from class to go to the venue. Hay, the wonders a working student can do. #bibidibabidiboo

December 9

• Work: I've got a golf event to manage. I know NADA ZILCH NIL about golf, and this event has not made me a convert. I'd rather play jackstones than golf. Or read Twilight than golf---OH SNAP! (LOL) The event will begin during the wee hours of the morning towards very late in the evening. This is a very big problem because on ...

December 10 

• School: IT'S FINALS DAY. HOLY MOLEY GUACAMOLE. Seriously. I don't know how I'll survive. I have to make up a strategic plan for some make-believe company with make-believe market conditions within two hours. And as if that's not enough I've got a ...
• Raket: I have to sing for a wedding in the afternoon, and it's a Lea song. And I haven't practiced for it.

After all of this, I seriously need some time off. /le sigh

Once all of this over, I'll be back posting again. =)

Dreams do come true

No, I'm not talking about the type of dream where you meet your showbiz/boyband crush for x number of years in person, or you get married with your first love from high school. I'm talking about dreams that you have at night.

There have been many times when I've dreamt about stuff that actually happens in real life. Like, I dream about being in a certain situation in a specific place in a specific time of day. Then, weeks/months later, I have this undeniable feeling of deja vu, and I realize that the same happening appeared in my dream.

It gets creepier. I dream about death, like I dream that people will die soon. And my "batting average", if you will, is nearly spot on. I won't go there, cause I rather find it very confounding. XD If you're an X fangirl, you could say that I'm sort of the likes of Hinoto - a yumemi.

Anyway, this whole "dreamseeing" business is basically the foundation for the main purpose of this post - the long-awaited update on the audition that I went to last June 18.

Last week, I dreamt that I didn't pass. It was the kind of dream that had the same theme, thickness and certainty as with the other dreams I've had of the imminent future. If you follow my tweets, I've been lamenting on the lack of updates (I've been told that the results would be released by month-end). But when the dream came, I knew that I had to accept the inevitable.

Then tonight, I finally got an email from the organizers of the audition. I won't deny that I had a tiny sliver of hope left that I snagged a role. So, with bated breath, I opened the email. Text follows below:

So yesterday was Easter

CAN I GET A DOUBLE STRIKETHROUGH?

EASTER CANTATA
I Knew He Was Love
+ almost all songs, in backup

If I may quote Jesus Christ: "It is finished." *keyboard smash of happiness*

I finished uploading the play pictures and the behind-the-scene photos on FB, (the latter, to no surprise, exceed the number of pictures taken during the play). Didn't do much editing on them cause I'm feeling lazy. XD

It's my second time playing Mary Magdalene. However last year's attempt (during Good Friday) wasn't anywhere near the difficulty of yesterday's. During the first, the acting was separate from the singing. This year, I had to act while singing. Uhh. Yeah.

I'm aching on my left side now cause I forced myself to land hard on a wooden stage on all four runs of the play (no pain, no drama). My voice, surprisingly, isn't broke - and to think that I was a bad, bad girl yesterday for drinking copious amounts of iced Coke and Pepsi and stuffing myself with puto, pizza, barbecue and other goodies (I was honestly not expecting to be fed generously yesterday, so thank you to those who gave food =D Had to do some exercising before bedtime since I still felt full from the pizza I ate at 3PM).

Oh yeah, lest I forget: Pei Pa Koa, I'm a believer. XD


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To be honest, I was totally not expecting the reaction we got from the play/musical. The first time we ran through the whole play was during our last practice, which was Wednesday (or was it Thursday? Wow I can't even remember...). Usually the first run-through of a production would happen way before the play date, so it should be near perfect during the last practice (as in production level na ito).

But one thing I learned about doing stuff for church is this: everything will come together in ways that are simply unexplainable. Even the 10AM service, which was the worst of the four, was enjoyed by many! A bunch of people came to me and said that they loved my part; most of them went as far as saying that they cried during my scene, and I'm like "Wow, really?" and then I'll say "Sorry!" for making them cry and rebound with "Thank you po!" after.

But now that I think about it, this kind of unexplainable awesomeness has happened before; last time was during the Thanksgiving Concert. During that time, for my part especially, it only came together on the day of the concert itself, and yet the reaction of the crowd was the same as yesterday's - awesomeness.

I would be lying if I said that I never have any doubts when I get myself into these kind of presentations. I'm a firm believer of preparation, and I knew that we could have used a lot more of it. But when all was said and done, I've got to put these doubts aside and be assured that there is a God greater than my doubts and is the source of all awesomeness. And, with a simple act of faith comes mind-blowing surprises that blogging about it still won't do the event any justice.


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Tomorrow I go back to the bundoks. The Holy Week vacation is officially over. Le sigh.

Well, this was expected

“Hang in there~!!"

 To all the victims,

This is truly awful, but please don’t give up,
and hang in there no matter what!

- Toriyama Akira

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So obviously, that thing for Saturday isn't going to happen.

[SPANKING NEW] TOUR GUIDE EXTRAORDINAIRE
Undecided JAPANESE song

THANKSGIVING MASS (aka the last mass of the academic year), March 23
Saving Grace

EASTER CANTATA
I Knew He Was Love
+ almost all songs, in backup

...which is well and good; that means I get to have a decent weekend.

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This isn't really surprising; I get texts like these once in a while. What pisses me off though is how people post it on FB like it's legit and set in stone, without an inkling of a doubt.

Some people had the decency to tweet "Is this true? Radiation blah blah yadda yadda Philippines etc etc?", which allows you to process the information at hand and confirm if it's true.

But going back to what I was saying...how hard is it to confirm information like this in the Internet? If you can tweet your status through text, how hard is it to turn your TV on to look at CNN or BBC if it's true? And if you've really been watching the news, you know that due to wind direction, radiation from those nuclear power plants is moving eastward.

It took all self-control for me not to comment "please go and be ignorant someplace else" on said person's status message.

Haaaaaaaay.

--- --- ---

Need to cut down on my eating. We had Saisaki during Sunday and Tian-Tian yesterday. No more, no more.

Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?

OMG RAKET UPDATE.

ASH WEDNESDAY, March 9
At The Cross

[SPANKING NEW] TOUR GUIDE EXTRAORDINAIRE
Undecided JAPANESE song

THANKSGIVING MASS (aka the last mass of the academic year), March 23
Saving Grace

EASTER CANTATA
I Knew He Was Love
+ almost all songs, in backup

The Ash Wednesday song went well, thank/praise God that people thought so/were blessed/became emotional, etc. No one reacted negatively to the song choice - it was very well received, if I may say so myself. When I saw the video I kinda-sorta thought differently about it. XD It's true what Genji says, Once you begin studying an art, no matter which one, there turns out to be no limit to what there is to learn, and you hardly ever master it well enough really to please yourself.

I was thinking of changing the song for the last mass this schoolyear since I couldn't find any sheet music for that song. But as sifted through other possible song choices, I still felt strongly about Saving Grace. If worse comes to worst I'll settle for chords na lang.

Since I'm in the bundoks till Saturday, I will not be able to attend tomorrow night's practice for Easter. Ye gads. I think I'll be playing Mary Magdalene again. Apparently, I play the part of a reformed prostitute well. *facepalmheaddesk*

But enough of these things. I have to talk about that interesting new item that's happening next Saturday.





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えええええ~~~!!!

I was told about this yesterday afternoon but I wasn't taking it seriously. Fast forward to this afternoon when this letter from which above photo came from arrived, I realized (and accepted) it was serious business. So here I am, trying to figure out what's the best J-pop song I could sing good enough within a week's time. *le sigh*

Facts: there's this delegation of Japanese high school students coming next week, and they will be here for a few days. The culminating activity will be next Saturday, which will consist of a tour of DLSU, then Intramuros, then Ayala Museum, and finally a despedida here (which is where I'll be singing in Japa-freaking-nese). Come to think of it, this reminds me of my NKK days back in college.......

The last time I sang a Japanese song for a crowd of Japanese people was in 2005. It was in Minna Utao for Japan Week. We always had Japanese judges from the IS Department for the singing contest. A year prior to 2005, I won first place in that contest (I sang Distance by Utada Hikaru), and I wasn't supposed to join that year because I wasn't in desperate need of the prize money like the last time (hahaha!), but I was asked to join because, well, I won last year. *shrug*  Long story short, I won that year again - which was (I won't deny it) great, cause that meant more money for me! I sang Hikari, by Utada Hikaru again.

Six years later, I find myself in a similar situation - a fangirl who isn't even close to 4-kyuu in JLPT singing Japanese songs for Japanese people. I am against singing an Utada song...feeling ko kasi "Utada nanaman?!" and I'm not sure if high school kids will be all OMG for an Utada song (plus her new releases don't have karaoke versions). My safest bet is to go for anime OP/ED song.

I have narrowed it down to the following (Sa mga taong nag-SOS ako, salamat po sa inyong mga suggestions!):

Miho Fukuhara - LET IT OUT
Shimokawa Mikuni - Sore Ga, Ai Deshou
Ikimonogakari - Bluebird

I'm kind of partial to LET IT OUT since it came from FMA Brotherhood, which ended fairly recently. The single came out in 2009 though...but it peaked at #10 at Oricon in 2009 (plus if they're high school kids and given the hit Hagaren was they'll surely remember it). However, it's a hard song to sing in the sense na hindi ata bagay boses ko doon...I will have to wrestle with the song and make it my own.

Sore Ga, Ai Deshou on the other hand was released in 2003, which is kind of too long ago already. But vocally, I'm more comfortable singing this song than the former. So...yeah...I'm torn. XD

I'm also considering Bluebird by Ikimonogakari. This song peaked at #3 at Oricon in 2008, but I'm not sure if I can learn the song well enough in time for Saturday, which is why it's at the bottom...plus I'm kind of annoyed with the number of times "aoi aoi ano sora" was repeated in this song. Also, I find LET IT OUT more superior lyrically. But that's just me. XD

I'm thinking I make either LET IT OUT or Sore Ga, Ai Deshou the primary song I'll sing for the despedida, and reserve one in case the worst happens and I'm asked to do another one (which I hope will NOT happen).

The parental units have suggested that I do Tegami by Angela Aki, which I have sung twice already during my soirees. However, singing it without piano is impossible.

Haaaaaay...this would have been more fun if I were a student pa and doing it just for the love of singing J-pop. This, however, is serious business. Haaaaaaaaay. But at least I'll get to see the Ayala Museum and Intramuros. Now I'm wondering if I should bring Oberon along...but maybe not, cause I don't even know how the heck I'll get my butt back to Manila should the party finish at 9PM...

This ship is ready to sail

NEW BLOG!!!!!!! *keyboard smash of happiness*

I've transferred most of the entries made this year from the old place to this new place. The layout ain't half bad too - I wanted to make my own (since my first blog was from Blogger and I did make my own Blogger layouts back then), but when I saw the developer FAQs I chickened out. So I tinkered with the Template thingamajig and got this.

That header you see there that looks like it was drawn by a kid? I did that. *is proud* I'm good with stick figures and basic stuff like that. Tee hee.

And, regarding the new blog, that's all I have to say.





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It's been a while since I posted pictures. So, I will.

Had Nutella for breakfast. Oh yes bagets. I don't care if I get allergies or what, Nutella is Nutella, and my stomach deserves it.

I saw Giada de Laurentiis make something out of Nutella in Everyday Italian but I completely forgot what it was. I was entranced by the sight of Nutella, that I didn't even thought of remembering the recipe.  Having said that, Nutella on bread is one of the best simple joys of this world.






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I cut my hair last Saturday; that I failed to mention in the last entry. I still cannot comprehend my recent fixation for short hair. I still like having long hair, but since my hair is less than shoulder length, it will be a long time before it grows back.

So until then, I have to rock this look. XD




--- --- ---

It's time to bring out the dreaded raket pipeline (yes, it is still alive and kicking!)

ASH WEDNESDAY, March 9
At The Cross

THANKSGIVING MASS (aka the last mass of the academic year), March 23
Saving Grace

EASTER CANTATA
I Knew He Was Love
+ almost all songs, in backup

I removed the soiree first, because there is no definite date yet.

If I can turn your attention to the first two dates - yes, you read those songs right! In a Catholic mass! I'm actually excited for those two dates, because for the first time I don't have to learn the song, which in itself is already pressure-ridden cause I usually get the song days before the mass. But more importantly, I got to choose the songs. *snickerfit* When I was asked to sing for Ash Wednesday, I said yes and asked if I can do a song that's more contemporary. I presented a list of songs, including At The Cross, and it was chosen. =P And from the list of songs I gave, Saving Grace was also chosen, since I said it was more of a youth song, and since most of the attendees were kids, it was an "accessible" song (if you may). I was asked to sing that on the last mass of the schoolyear.

I'm so excited for this. I don't really mind if it's a Catholic mass that I'm singing at; just as long as the song is for God and is sung to bring people closer to God in worship, then that's all that matters! And if people will complain about the song choice (OMG I hope walang umalma, ang ganda-ganda kaya ng mga kanta!) I can just say it was pre-approved!

Practice for Easter has begun, and since it falls on a Wednesday, I have not attended a single practice yet. But I know my solo, I've sung that on Good Friday last year. It's the backup parts that I have to take into memory.



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I go home tomorrow! =D =D =D Thank God for EDSA and schools not having classes on EDSA.

Toodles.