fridays

yesterday, it took me forever to prepare for work. when i woke up, i turned on the tv. while i was surfing the channels, i stumbled upon PBO and Annie B. was playing. (you know, the one with Jolina Magdangal and Dingdong Dantes?) since there was nothing else to watch, i checked the movie out. it was a typical "poor gal in love with rich guy" story. anyway, what struck me was Jordan Herrera's role. he was so in love with his friend Annie (Magdangal) that he even offered to marry her even if he knows that she is inlove with Fernando (Dantes). whatever.

anyway, last night, my sister picked me up from the office then we went to Tapas Bar at Greenbelt to meet her officemates. during dinner, some Phillip Morris girls approached us and asked if we wanted to buy flip-top packs of the cigarette. they were selling the packs for P40 each, but it comes with a cool lighter. my sister and i bought the cigarettes for our aunt and our other sister so that we could have the lighter. ;) the girls then gave us invites to an open bar at V Bar. since we didn't know where to head off after dinner, we decided to go to the said place. when we got there, we tried the promoted drink Vodka Twistee. it somehow tasted like Bailey's except it had a different flavor (i had melon). anyway, after a couple of beers in addition to the promotional drink, we were picked up by my sister's husband then we went home.

all in all, it was a typical friday night for me. i had fun with the company, though there were times when i was bored because they were talking about people i don't know. still, i enjoyed our little night-out. ;p

stalker

somebody called me last night. since i was playing badminton, i wasn't able to answer the phone. when i checked the number, it was unfamiliar (meaning, the number wasn't saved in my phone book). i tried calling the number, but there was no answer. a few minutes afterwards, the person texted "Hi!". i replied, "who are you?" then there was no immediate reply.

after a few minutes, the person called. i asked him who he was again. he said that he was my friend. i told him, "how can you be my friend if i don't know you?". he just said that that's the way it was. he again said that he's a friend of mine, then he hang up. after a few more minutes, he again texted, saying that he has a crush on me, that i'm beautiful and that i'm probably good in bed. at this point, i'm really boiling. i did not answer his text. his last text last night was he knows i'm home already and that i should sleep already. this really freaked me out. i don't know how he got my number in the first place, and i certainly don't know how he knew i was home already.

anyway, here's his no: (0918)348-1550. for those of you who read my blogs (if there are any), please inform me (through the tag board or by commenting on this entry) if you know whose number this is. thanks!

new project

yes, you read it right. i have a new project. i know, my current project is still not finished yet but our department manager already gave me a "mini project" to handle. will tell all about it later. have to meet with the team first. :p

---o0o---

so what is this "mini project" all about? well, we basically need to send emails to our customers to renew the product they bought or to try the other products that we've developed. my role would be to coordinate and supervise (?) the development of the applications needed. anyway, i just met with the development team and i still have to clear some issues before they could provide the timeline for the project. the estimated duration of the project is only 2-3 days, and i hope we could commit that schedule. since the marketing manager hasn't arrived yet, i cannot give them answers on the issues as of now. oh, well. i guess all i have to do is wait for the marketing manager to arrive. ;p

sing a song

"i feel good...i knew that i would...so good...so good..."

yeah, that's how i felt. really good! it was good to sing again. it was exhausting, but really really fun. :D i attended our choir practice last night and when i got there, our musical director asked me to sing the alto part of "Luwalhati Sa Diyos" (Hindi Kita Malilimutan version). she wanted me to record the part for another member. so i was like, "ok, i'll do that". afterwards, the soprano part was next (i didn't have to do this part anymore, can't reach the notes. :p). anyway, after finishing the "recording", we officioally started our practice. of course, we started with vocalization. there were new techniques that i learned for the expansion of the diaphragm, and they worked. but there was this one exercise that did modulate my voice but left me feeling tired. i was even panting after doing the exercise. however, i didn't have a hard time singing afterwards, so i was really grateful for that. ;)

after the practice, we "jammed" some more love songs (like sana'y wala nang wakas, ikaw lamang, etc.) and christmas carols (like jingle bells calypso, carol of the bells, and payapang daigdig). we actually didn't want to go home yet because we wanted to sing some more! well, we eventually went our separate ways, but i know that our next practice will be even better. and i'm already looking forward to it. :D

bum, bum, bum!

i've been bumming around since yesterday, and it feels good. Ü however, my brain is not functioning well. i mean, i just finished writing a proposal letter for my cousin and it took me like an hour and a half to finish it. and that's not normal. but i'm not complaining. :D

anyway, i spent the night at my friend's house the other day. we had what you could call a "girls' night out". it was fun. we had a couple of beers, smoked a lot and swapped stories a lot! they updated me on what happened to the choir while i was in davao. and whoa! i was surprised to hear that a couple of our friends were planning to move out of their houses because of some reason or another. i also found out that they wanted me to talk to a choirmate regarding her personality and fashion sense (haha. :p). i, of course told them most of what i've experienced in davao. the people i met, the places i went to and the things i've done there. and somehow, i do miss davao. it's such a nice city, full of warmth. (oh no, not this drama again!) but seriously, if i'd be asked to relocate outside manila, davao would be on the top of my list. ;)

anyway, our choir would practice tomorrow for our upcoming engagements, and i'm getting excited. i really really want to sing again. (remember me getting excited over this a few weeks ago?) well, i am excited now more than ever because i am just counting the hours till practice. ;p i just hope that my vocal chords wouldn't complain for not being able to sing for a very long time. :D

???

WTF! thought this data reconciliation was over, but NO! the data simply cannot be reconciled. whatever!

anyway, i don't have anything to write about, actually. i'm just so excited about my rest days. woohoo! :D

rest at last

i'll be able to rest at last! our department manager and our project manager already approved my vacation leave for thursday and friday. i'm so happy! :D it's gonna be a very long weekend, and i'm excited! i'll be able to rest, spend lots of time with my loved ones and bum around! of course, i'll be expecting the office to call me if there were any immediate issues that needs to be resolved. but i am confident that they wouldn't make me report for work if that happens. (i hope!) ;p

anyway, i'm just so happy i could cry! cheers! Ü

back to reality

it has always been good to be home. no doubt about that. even if i didn't get enough sleep the other night because of my "last gimik" in davao, i really went out of my way to see almost everybody yesterday. it really, really felt good to be home at last.

unfortunately, i had to report for work today so it's back to reality. i woke up at around 7:30 am today to prepare for work. after an hour, i left the house then rode a shuttle service to makati. true enough, i experienced manila monday traffic at its finest! cool, actually. i know traffic sucks, but i missed that. :p

anyway, when i got to the office people were surprised to see me. they kept asking how i was, how davao was, or what the project status was. it was interesting, actually. i felt "missed". ;) after so-and-so chika, it was back to work.

now, i'm working on my status report and i'm not sure yet what to report about. i haven't done this for almost 3 months! whatever. ;p

goodbyes

i had a freaky(?) experience a while ago. the production planning manager of the client company chatted with us for a few minutes, then said his goodbye (since we are leaving for manila tomorrow). his version of goodbye was beso-beso on both cheeks, which was fine. however, he asked if he could kiss me on the lips afterwards. i was really shocked! i wasn't able to react for a few seconds. i know it was all in good fun, but wtf! anyway, he ended up smelling the top of my head. thanks to palmolive aroma therapy, my hair smelled good! ;p

anyway, i guess this will be my last blog from davao. it's kind'a sad to think that i'll soon leave the place i've called "home" for the past 3 months. but i know i'll be back. and i know i would never forget the memories, even if i never get to go back. (",)

oh well, enough of this drama! i still have to pack my office pc (which i had to bring from manila for development purposes). afterwards, it's shopping time!!! then its party time! i'm just wondering how my last night here would be. hope it'll be fun, fun, fun! :D

autoshop

i had a blast last night. we went to Autoshop (a disco bar here in davao). when we got there, there was already a "chubby" (for lack of a better word for a person having a beer belly) girl dancing on the ledge. she wore this sleeveless shirt on top of a red-striped bra. the shirt was zipped just enough for the bra to be seen. while i watched her dance, i kept on remembering the chant "take it off!" which was shouted by an officemate of mine during our summer stint at puerto galera. anyway, some other "kids" joined her on the ledge. after a while, we learned that there was an on-going contest -- a sexy ledge-dancing competition. after sometime, the "chubby" girl did take her shirt off. that girl had guts! (* evil! *) anyway, i really had fun. aside from the "free entertainment" we witnessed, i enjoyed the company. ;)

is this finally goodbye?

since our shift changed today, our project manager and i went out last night. wasn't really gimik, as one might call it because we just had coffee (or tea for me) at blu gré (davao's version of starbucks) after dropping by the bank. i was feeling hyper at that time so i convinced him to buy a couple of bottles of beer to relax us and help us sleep. it worked, by the way. after i drank the couple of bottles of mule (hehe..pa-sosyal), i didn't have a hard time sleeping. (",)

anyway, we talked a lot about some "stuff" and our project. remembering our conversation last night, i now realize that there are a lot of things that i'll miss here in davao. first off, i'll miss the cheap but very delicious food (especially the ihaw-ihaws you'll find everywhere here). i'll also be missing the air-conditioned room at the house we stayed in for the past 3 months. and of course i won't ever forget the friends i made here. friends who almost always accompany us during night outs, badminton days, and tours in and around the city. i would really miss their jokes, free bisaya lessons, and of course their company.

so now you're all wondering, is this finally goodbye? i hope not. i'm positive that i'll be back for the project. hopefully, i could also visit sometime with a friend. i guess i only have to wait and see.

so little time

we're almost done! almost. but still, it makes me feel great that we'll be leaving soon. (manila, here i come! ;p) however, i still have a lot to do and i'm feeling kind of pressured. kind of. Ü tomorrow, we'll be reconciling data for the reports. i'm just hoping that there wouldn't be any major comments and changes. whatever.

anyway, i'm so happy we'll be doing a regular shift tomorrow. we could finally go out at night. it's party time!!!! i've been wanting to go out and experience (at least) the oktoberfest since october started (duh!), but wasn't able to do so because of this damned schedule of ours. i was even thinking of not reporting for work on saturday just to have time for my "last night" in davao. fortunately, i don't have to do that ungodly thing anymore. (i'm kind'a worried that our project manager would be mad at me if i did that. :p)

oh well, i still need to prepare a list of things to bring home (like pomelo, mangosteen, etc, etc) as pasalubong. i also have to include in my list the bilins of my niece, cousin, and sisters. i just hope i could find time to buy everything. wait, am i excited or what? (i am! i am!) :D

cheers! :)

finally!

* sigh *

just finished the modifications and requests. i hope that there won't be changes anymore afterwards.

anyway, i don't know what's happening to me. i thought i was already ok last night. unfortunately, i'm still not feeling well when i woke up earlier. i guess my body needs complete rest. it doesn't respond as well with medicine anymore. i think i also need enough nourishment. i haven't been eating properly for almost a month now. this is not good.

* sigh *

i just wish i could rest. wish i could take a vacation. a real vacation.

waaaah!!!!!

i'm still at the office! :( i wanna go home! :(( * sniff, sniff *

some news

* sigh *

thought this project would be over. i mean, i thought there wouldn't be much coding anymore. but NO! there were additional pages and reports requested. unfortunately, i wasn't able to refuse the requests because they came directly from the head of the department. what's a girl to do, huh?

* sigh *

i'm already sleepy and tired, but i still have to work, work, work! at least i'm not sick anymore. i was able to take my medicine earlier.

anyway, our project manager and i were talking earlier and he told me that our ultimate boss said that our department was becoming stronger because of the team leads (that includes me) our department had. it was really flattering news, since i never really thought of myself as one of the "team leads" of our department. i thought my being a "team lead" was only for this project. but it seems that our ultimate boss thinks of me as "up there" (if you know what i mean). i just hope that i really would be able to lead other projects after this. it would really boost my morale and hopefully my salary as well (hopefully!). ;p

cheers! Ü

over and over

i'm sick again. :( i don't know what's happening to me. is this over fatigue? probably. i was only able to sleep for a little more than an hour yesterday after our shift. i tried sleeping again after a phone call i received, but my mind didn't want to rest. i even tried reading a book so that my eyes would get tired, but to no avail. around 3pm, we went out to go malling. when we got home, i took centrum. after feeling the effects of the vitamins, i slept for 11 hours. that's a lot of hours, i know. but somehow, my body feels that 11 hours still wasn't enough.

* sigh *

at least i know it will not be long before i go home. as in marikina "home". :)

put down your burdens

A professor was giving a lecture to his students on stress management. He raised a glass of water and asked the audience, "How heavy do you think this glass of water is?"

The students' answers ranged from 20g to 500gm.

"It does not matter on the absolute weight. It depends on how long you hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it is OK. If I hold it for an hour, I will have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you will have to call an ambulance. It is the exact same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes."

If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, we will not be able to carry on, the burden becoming increasingly heavier.

What you have to do is to put the glass down, rest for a while before holding it up again.

We have to put down the burden periodically, so that we can be refreshed and are able to carry on.

So before you return home from work tonight, put the burden of work down. Don't carry it back home. You can pick it up tomorrow.

Whatever burdens you are having now on your shoulders, let it down for a moment if you can.

Pick it up again later when you have rested... Rest and relax.

Life is short, enjoy it!

here i go again...

I found the first page of A Thousand Miles's sheet music while browsing. I really love this song, so I transcribed it at NoteWorthy Composer. I then "composed" the song on my phone. It's now my ringtone. Just got excited by the song's beauty. ;)

Anyway, here's the lyrics...

----------------------------
A THOUSAND MILES
Vanessa Carlton

Making my way downtown
Walking fast, Faces passed
And I'm home bound

Staring blankly ahead
Just making my way, Making my way
Through the crowd

And I need you, And I miss you
And now I wonder...

Chorus:
If I could fall Into the sky
Do you think time Would pass me by
'Cause you know I'd walk A thousand miles
If I could Just see you Tonight

It's always times like these
When I think of you, And I wonder
If you ever, Think of me

'Cause everything's so wrong
And I don't belong, Living in your
Precious memories

'Cause I need you
And I miss you
And now I wonder...

Repeat Chorus

And I, I Don't want to let you know
I, I Drown in your memory
I, I Don't want to let this go
I, I Don't...

Repeat I

And I still need you
And I still miss you
And now I wonder...

If I could fall
Into the sky
Do you think time
Would pass us by
'Cause you know I'd walk
A thousand miles
If I could just see you...

If I could fall
Into the sky
Do you think time
Would pass me by
'Cause you know I'd walk
A thousand miles
If I could just see you
If I could just hold you
Tonight
----------------------------

what's wrong?

our schedule has been finalized! we're flying back to manila sunday
next week. yipee! Ü after 6 weeks of working mondays to saturdays,
we'll all be able to finally rest. or would we? not! i'm positive that we'd be working our asses immediately after arriving. oh well, that's life. have to live with it.

anyway, i don't know why but i'm feeling kind of sentimental today. it's like a part of me is missing. like there's a void that needs to be filled. i mean, i'm usually a jolly person. i always see the bright side of things. i usually have a positive outlook on life. but it seems that today is very different. am i just homesick? probably. am i still making sense? probably not.

* sigh *

random thoughts

have you ever wondered what the future holds for you? have you ever wondered what you'd be doing 3, 5 or 10 years from now? i have, and i don't know the answers. i could only wish that my life would be what i dreamt it to be.

tired

i'm not feeling well again. the left side of my tonsils is sore. i have a slight fever. my nose is clogged so i'm having a hard time to breathe. i have a bitter taste in my mouth. my head is spinning, i want to sleep. but i can't. i have to work. i still have a lot to do. :(

* sigh *

a lot of things have been bothering me again, but i can't sort them out yet. i don't know how or where to start.

* sigh *

don't know what to do.

horsey horsey

yes, this is my first horseback-riding experience. it was fun, i tell you. most would've thought that i would be able to try horseback-riding in baguio or tagaytay. but NO! whenever i go to those places, i never had a chance. so when i learned that i could try it at GAP Farming Resort, i grabbed the opportunity. cool, huh?

relishing the pain

my whole body aches. yesterday, we went to davao's famous crocodile park and gap farming resort. it was not my first time to visit both places, but we walked and trekked more than the last time i went there. afterwards, i played 6 sets of badminton doubles. i usually "hurt" myself by diving, splitting, stumbling, etc. but during one of the games, i had an accident. one of the players (my partner at that time) accidentally smashed his racquet at the side of my face while we were trying to hit the shuttlecock at the same time. now i have a bruise beside my chin. oh well, that was part of the game but i would be very careful next time. :p also, i wasn't able to cool down after the 6 gruelling and exhausting games. therefore, the excruciating (not!) pain i'm feeling right now.

* sigh *

anyway, i just remembered that i promised to treat myself to a full-body massage for my birthday. i haven't been able to do that yet, and i think i'm going to need it soon. since our allowance has already been debited (is this term right?) to our account and our salary will be in by tomorrow (yipee!!), i think i'll visit the masseuse this week. i'll pamper myself for one day, hoping that the pain i feel will be gone.

cheers! Ü

just a few hours more...

it's already sunday, and i'm still at the office. actually, our whole team is still at the office. we don't have much to do, but we just need to be here just in case a problem arises in the parallel run (the 2nd-to-the-last phase of our project). the good news is, we might be able to (or rather, we want to) go home earlier than our regular shift. we'll be going to Davao's Crocodile Park and GAP Farming Resort after lunch, which means that we need to rest a bit so that we'll have the energy to tour the places mentioned. of course, we still have to check if it really is possible to leave early. we have to make sure that everything is flowing smoothly when we do leave. oh well, so much for that. ;p

is it me?

this project is becoming impossible! i swear! i'm not sure if it's me or my team, but my brain feels like it's being squeezed of all it's contents.

* sigh *

thank god this project is nearing it's very end.

getting excited

i just realized that our choir (voice symphony) has engagements this coming december. the realization made me happy because i'm anticipating the bonding and the fun that we'll share during the coming weeks. although most of our practices are spent for the actual practice, that doesn't mean it's not fun for me. it's been months since i've sang with the group, and i'm really excited to sing with them again. i know i'd have to work on my voice quality again, but that does not stop me from feeling exhilarated by the mere idea of singing again. Ü

anyway, one of our coming engagements is the wedding of my sister. her fiance picked the following songs from our repertoire:
- ikaw lamang
- ngayon at kailanman
- you
- i'll never say goodbye
- when i fall in love
- someone to watch over me
- sana'y wala ng wakas

i may still have to learn two of the songs, but i'm very confident that we will be able to sing superbly during the wedding. (",)

cheers! ;)

squirrel in the city

It's been a while since I've seen this little fellow. This picture was taken by an ex-officemate of mine at our former office in McKinley.

I remember the days when I go out to smoke and look for this squrrel. It's just amazing to think that this fellow lives in the "forest" in the heart of the city. ;)

choices...

saw this posted on friendster's bulletin board. just wondering what my answers would be. here it is...

------------ o0o ------------

sino ba ang mas mahalaga...ang taong mahal mo o ang taong gusto mong mahalin?

ang taong kasama mo buong araw o ang taong iniisip mo bago matapos ang araw?

siya bang kasakasama mo sa lahat ng ginagawa mo o siyang dahilan ng lahat ng galaw at ginagawa mo?

sino ba ang mas mahalaga...yung taong nais mong makasama habang buhay o ung taong hindi mo makita ang habang buhay kapag wala sya?

sino ang mas matimbang...yung taong pag kasama mo'y parang kay bilis ng oras o yung taong tuwing iniisip mo'y parang kay bagal ng oras?

ano ang susundin mo...ang dinidikta mo sa puso mo o ang dinidikta ng puso mo sa yo?

sya ba yung laging pumapasok sa isip mo o sya yung laging laman ng panaginip mo?

sino nga ba...ang taong nagpaluha sa yo, o ang taong nagpunas sa minsang pagluha mo?

sino sa kanila...ang taong nagpapatawa sayo o ang taong dahilan ng lahat ng iyong emosyon?

sino nga ba'ng pipiliin mo???

ANG TAONG MULING NAGBUKAS NG PUSO MO...O ANG TAONG MATAGAL NG NANDOON?



------------ o0o ------------

interesting...

my pooh bear

My Pooh Bear
Originally uploaded by Vanie.

Just testing how I could post a photo. :D