Mamma Mia!!!

I can’t wait for this one!!! 

Psychoanalyzing myself

Psychoanalyze Yourself: Don’t read ahead, just copy and paste the following into a NEW bulletin BEFORE you read my answers.Then answer the following questions one at a time WITHOUT LOOKING AHEAD with the first thought that comes to mind. Then read what each answer means at the end.

1.You are walking in the woods. You are not alone. Who’s with you? - :)

2. You are walking in the woods. You see an animal. What kind of animal? - A pony.

3. What interaction takes place between you and the animal? - I go up to it coz it’s so beautiful.

4. You walk deeper in the woods. You enter a clearing, and before you is your house. Describe your dream house. - It’s a big brown ranch-type house with a nice nice garden in front. The house looks very homey, old-fashioned and cozy inside, with almost neutral interior & furniture, and with fresh flowers around.

5. Is your dream house surrounded by a fence? - A low one similar to horse stables, about waist-deep, made of heavy duty round logs.

6. You enter the house. You walk into the dining room and see the dining table is covered with: - A lot of food for a feast, and all on a traditional set-up tablecloth.

7. You exit the house and a cup is on the ground, what kind is it? - A mug.

8. What do you do with the cup? - Pick it up and put it back in the kitchen where it belongs.

9. You walk to the edge of the property where you find yourself standing at a body of water. What kind is it? - A clean river, almost where I can swim.

10. How do you cross that body of water? - It goes far far out!

(Dont look at this section until you answer the questions on top)

The ANSWERS

1. The person who you are walking in the woods with is the most important to you. - For now, yeah I guess!

2. The size of the animal is representative of your perception of the size of your problems in your life. – Whoa. A pony?!

3. The severity of the interaction you have with the animal is representative of how you deal with your problems. – At least I come up to it!

4. The size of your dream home is representative of the size of your ambition. – Fitting.

5. A lack of a fence is indicative of an open personality. People are welcome at all times. The presence of a fence indicates a closed personality. You’d prefer people not drop by unannounced. – True, true, I’m very open & accommodating.

6. If your answer did NOT include food, or people, then you are generally unhappy. – Good that it did include food!

7. The durability of the material with the cup is representative of the perceived durability of your relationship with the person in number one. – True!

8. What you did with the cup is representative of your attitude. – Put it back?

9. The size of the body of water is representative of the size of your relationships. – Whoa.

10. The way you cross the water is representative to how easy or hard you expect your life to be. – Hmmm…

 

Live like there’s no tomorrow

I’ve been watching this new TV series lately called New Amsterdam. It’s about this immortal Dutch (!!!) police detective called John Amsterdam, who will retain his immortality until he finds “the one”, and until their souls wed. He then dies on a subway station and meets a doctor, whom he thinks is the one– and the story unfolds from there. It’s not too much of a “leave you at the edge of your seat” kinda TV show, but it’s okay anyway and it’s not too cheesy… on the other hand it’s not that action packed either. But it’s just steady and good to watch, of course not really comparable to the other TV shows I watch.

Anyway some nice sayings are splashing in my face lately– to take for example the tagline of New Amsterdam: Live like there’s no tomorrow. Then in one of the episodes I heard “strike while the iron is hot”, and from Step Up 2 (watched it last week) I picked up “life’s too short to be someone you’re not”. Gaaaah! Of course the head/heart only hears what it wants to but I’ve been picking up some enlightenment from this stuff that’s hitting me lately. 

Regardless of all this, I haven’t actually gotten around to doing what I wanna do, and yes I have been telling myself that life is too short. Today for example I planned to visit Beatlab DJ Club for a demo of DJ lessons but I didn’t out of laziness to prepare to go out of the house! Last weekend I didn’t do what I planned (and wanted to), for the sole reason of timing, but well time and distance are not on my side right now so I better find a good time to do so. And I know, I know, I keep repeating myself that life is definitely too short! Better do it right now (strike while the iron is hot) instead of waiting for the time that it’s too late. Hayyy!!! In any case, I can only get hurt so much right?

Because I’m home on a Friday night

Things I wanna say but can’t… in no particular order and not mutually exclusive:

1. Time spent with you is an opportunity cost!

2. I feel like our distance is a loss to me. 

3. I like the way things are now– cleaner & unadulterated.

So I’m home on a Friday night, which is really not typical of me for the past months here in Davao! I’m just tired today, been up since 3:30 AM for our trip to Gen San (us Davao Sales + National Sales Manager + Country Top) to visit one of our biggest clients. My first time in Gen San, and later on to South Cotabato too, where we went to our client’s office and had lunch at their exclusive clubhouse. We then took a 3.5 hour drive back to Davao and had dinner with another major client at Claude’s. Good food but we were super duper full!!! I was basically a “saling kit-kit” and didn’t talk much since I didn’t know that much too, and they were already introducing me as the official replacement for my colleague who’s resigning soon… Aaaakh, me and boss actually never talked about it! It’s actually not bad but it wasn’t the initial plan until I was introduced that way to the clients we met today. 

Anyway, I’m so happy by the way, the flight I will be taking to Module 4 in Copenhagen will be via Amsterdam, on KLM! The company has been cost-cutting lately so they always choose the cheapest flights, but I tried to explain why I wanted to take KLM even if it was more expensive by 400 USD– due to the short stopover in Amsterdam, the more reliable schedule… but also more importantly because Amsterdam is a European hub for my 1 week post-module trip, and sayang ang miles! I’m already a Silver KLM member, mind you ha! Haha. I haven’t finalized the flight skeds to and from Athens though… 

Another thing. The Aussie & Kiwi boys are inviting us to a Croatian cruise after module, from Dubrovnik to Split, Croatia. And hell I do wanna go as it will feel like module over again, BUT the friggin’ Croatian visa is a problem! I have to go to Manila to apply for it personally. I decided then not to go, but hopefully there are cruises in Greece (as it is the same Schengen visa) for us to go to instead! If worse comes to worse, there’s always Rome, Prague, and Belgium (and maybe Germany/ Austria/ Spain too!) 

Movie marathon

I finally have a DVD player! I haven’t had one since I got here two months ago, so I haven’t opened any of the DVD series I brought from Manila– One Tree Hill Season 3, Grey’s Anatomy Season 3, Hip Hop Abs, and the ABBA Videography. When I went to Ruins last weekend I then bought 7 DVDs– Across The Universe, Love In The Time of Cholera, Dan In Real Life, Mad Money, 27 Dresses, Juno, and Step Up 2 The Streets. I’m finding it exciting to go home to watch movies every night… after busy months of doing the last MISE assignments! Anyway, these are the 3 movies I’ve watched so far…

  

Monday night: 27 Dresses and Juno 

Rex joined me in my apartment to watch these two movies… we used up almost all my food supply and had an impromptu slumber party!

27 Dresses wasn’t bad at all! In fact, I loved it! I loved Katherine Heigl’s “pathetic” character as a bridesmaid who finds herself planning her sister’s wedding to none other but her crush– her boss! She meets this guy Kevin, a wedding writer, who chances upon her filofax at one of the weddings… and the story unfolds from there, don’t wanna spoil it! Lots of things are happening in the movie and it was a bit unpredictable… which is good. Perfect chick flick!

One of my friends was against me “wasting my time” on Juno, but it was actually not bad too. The story is about a 16-year old girl who gets pregnant and puts her baby up for adoption. The main character Juno seemed arrogant at first but you’d actually like her as you go through the movie– her character delivers witty, practical remarks.

Tuesday night: Step Up 2 The Streets 

So, as if my friend Cy hasn’t pushed me enough to watch this one… it’s an okay movie. The dance sequences are really good, but it’s very predictable. Anyway just appreciate the dances but don’t expect a story with much substance. Hehe. I like the soundtrack– with the songs Is It You, Low, and Can’t Help But Wait among the songs. Cool!

So what’s up for the next nights? Gotta get the popcorn ready I guess…

    

I can’t actually wait to see Love in the Time of Cholera– I haven’t read the book though! Oh, and these are movies I’m definitely waiting for this year… 

   

Mamma Mia, most especially! Can’t wait for July! :)

The one that got away…

The One That Got Away

Source: The Manila Times

By: Mark J. Macapagal

In your life, you’ll make note of a lot of people. Ones with whom you shared something special, ones who will always mean something. There’s the one you first kissed, the one you first loved, the one you lost your virginity to, the one you put on a pedestal, the one you’re with…and the one that got away.

Who is the one that got away? I guess it’s that person with who everything was great, everything was perfect, but the timing was just wrong. There was no fault in the person, there was no flaw in the chemistry, but the cards just didn’t fall the right way, I suppose.

I believe in the fact that ending up with someone, finding a longtime partner that is, does not lie merely in the other person. I can actually argue that an equal part, or maybe even the greater part, has to do with the matter of timing. It has to do with you being ready to settle down and commit to someone in a way that goes beyond the little niceties of giddy romance.

How often have you gone through it without even realizing it? When you’re not ready to commit in that mature manner, it doesn’t matter who you’re with, it just doesn’t work. Small problems become big; inconsequentials become dealbreakers simply because you’re not ready and it shows. It’s not that you and the person you’re with are no good; it’s just that it’s not yet right, and little things become the flashpoint of that fact.

Then one day you’re ready. You really are. And when this happens you’ll be ready to settle down with someone. He or she may not be the most perfect, they might not be the brightest star of romance to ever have burned in your life, but it’ll work because you’re ready. It’ll work because it’s the right time and you’ll make it work. And it’ll make sense, it really will.

So that day comes when you’re finally making sense of things, and you find yourself to be a different person. Things are different, your approach is different, you finally understand who you are and what you want, and you’ve become ready because the time has truly arrived. And mind you, there’s no telling when this day will come. Hopefully you’re single but you could be in a long-term relationship, you could be married with three kids, it doesn’t matter. All you know is that you’ve changed, and for some reason, the one that got away, is the first person you think about.

You’ll think about them because you’ll wonder, “What if they were here today?” You’ll wonder, “What if we were together now, with me as I am and not as I was?” That’s what the one that got away is. The biggest “What if?” you’ll have in your life.

If you’re married, you’ll just have to accept the fact that the one that got away, got away. Believe me, no matter how fairy tale you think your marriage is, this can happen to the best of us. But hopefully you’re mature enough to realize that you’re already with the one you’re with and this is just another test of your commitment, one which will just strengthen your marriage when you get past it. Sure, you’ll think about him/her every so often, but it’s alright. It’s never nice to live with a “might have been,” but it happens.

Maybe the one that got away is the one who’s already married. In which case it’s the same thing. You just have to accept and know that your memories of that person will probably bring a nice little smile to your lips in the future when you’re old and gray and reminiscing.

But if neither of that is the case, then it’s different. What do you do if it’s not yet too late? Simple…find him, find her. Because the very existence of a “one that got away” means that you’ll always wonder, what if you got that one?

Ask him out to coffee, ask her out to a movie, it doesn’t matter if you’ve dropped in from out of nowhere. You’d be surprised, you just might be “the one that got away” as well for the person who is your “the one that got away.”

You might drop in from out of nowhere and it won’t make a difference. If the timing is finally right, it’ll all just fall into place somehow and you know, I’m thinking, it would be a great feeling, in the end, to be able to say to someone, “Hey you, you’re the one that almost got away.”

Sooooo…?

I didn’t get to do what I planned to this weekend, but hey, it was all good.

I did what I expected to do, but not what I planned. :)

When it’s time, I will… basta, not now muna. 

Quotable Song Quotes, Part 1

“Have no fear for giving in, have no fear for giving over. You better know that in the end, it’s better to say too much than never to say what you need to say again. Even if your hands are shaking and your faith is broken, even as the eyes are closing, do it with a heart wide open. Why? Say what you need to say… – Say, John Mayer  

 

 

“Take time to realize that your warmth is crashing down on in. Take time to realize that I am on your side, didn’t I tell you? But I can’t spell it out for you, no it’s never gonna be that simple. If you just realize what I just realize then we’d be perfect for each other and will never find another. Just realize what I just realized, we’d never have to wonder if we missed out on each other now.” – Realize, Colbie Caillat  

A belated Christmas gift

… all the way from Toronto! Thanks, Alex!

When I got back home tonight I found on my table a card from Alexis, containing a Starbucks Christmas card (belated!) with a Starbucks Card inside!!!

 

It’s soooo cool, I can actually use the card anywhere in the world as a debit card in any Starbucks store or to buy merchandise online, hopefully it’s also accepted here in the Philippines! Thanks, dearie!!! Mwah!!! Thing is, THERE ARE NO STARBUCKS IN DAVAO!!! Haha! Nah, but of course I’m always in Manila anyway, and I can use it when I travel too. Hehe. So cool! :)

Awww, memories of senior year! I remember Alexis was one of my closest friends towards the end of senior year in college. We were in the same thesis group and we’ve been close ever since. He migrated to Canada to study Environmental Science after graduating college here, and we’ve still been keeping in touch. I can tell this guy absolutely anything under the sun, about all my adventures and craaaazy ideas! Here’s a pic of our *ahem, winning* thesis group (Jake, Kars, Ginny, Me, Alexis):

I miss you, one of my best friends, my clubbing buddy, my thesis mate, my sparring partner!!! (The pic below was from Hed Kandi back in March 2006)

Manila, Take 2

This is my second unexpected trip back home to Manila since I got here in Davao. I haven’t really expected to go home until May, before I fly to Copenhagen for my MISE Module 4 (+ Greece sidetrip!!!), but this time Dad paid for my ticket back home! (The first time was a sudden trip to Manila for Sales training two weeks ago.) I was actually planning to spend the Holy Week holidays here alone in my apartment since I’ve my assignment in Business Development due on Sunday, but Dad called me and told me to go home… good call! I can’t imagine being alone here in my apartment for 4 days…

Just too bad that my family isn’t going on any vacation like before… my Dad thinks that we should just stay home and reflect and all since it’s Holy Week after all. Aaaah, but anyway I’m excited to be flying home again! I didn’t realize I missed my family so much until I came home two weeks ago. And of course, maybe I’ll see some of my friends again?!

I’ve just finished packing and I’m not bringing too much stuff home anyway except for 75 pieces of Kuilan’s siopao (for my family, Cy, and EJ) and 2 boxes of pomelos (for my family, and EJ). Besides, I don’t really expect to go out, granting that my Dad wouldn’t want me to since he wants me to spend time at home… it’s just one gimmick I’m sort of expecting. Hehe. Things didn’t work out the last time I was in Manila so it was total disappointment, hope this time will be better. I actually think God is trying to tell me something, since this is my second time to Manila ever since, but every time I’m here there always is a “challenge”. Last time was a family affair, now it’s Holy Week. I need a sign.

In the meantime, I’m excited to see my family again… and watch Jesus Christ Superstar/ The Passion of the Christ for the nth time at home! :P