Sunday, October 31, 2004

Rush hour?

It was a miracle.

I was able to drive from Cainta to Makati in 25 minutes. Yep. You read that right. 25 MINUTES.

Not bad, considering that Saturdays are supposed traffic days in the metro (believe me, after traversing from my house to Makati everyday, Saturdays are a walk in the park compared to Monday and Friday traffic).

Apparently, it's never traffic going to Makati on Saturdays (and most probably, Sundays) during the daytime.

Either that or I have this knack of weaving expertly through traffic at 80 kph, just because I'm late for OT. :D

* * * *

My Outlook Express is screwy. It hangs whenever I open it. It just teases me with an Inbox (10) tag in the side scroll menu, but it won't actually show the Inbox window. After a few minutes, the Windows Task Manager says that the application is Not Responding. And I am stuck with a feeling of longing for the 10+ messages waiting for me in my Inbox.

How am I supposed to fix this?!? ARGH! I know I've encountered this problem before...but I've done every imaginable fixer-upper (System Restore, Virus Check, Disk Defragmenter, whatever!), and it won't work!

*help me*

Thursday, October 28, 2004

FINALLY!!! :)

I am finally a REGULAR employee at RMJM Philippines, Inc.

After 3 months and 3 weeks of being a Technical Trainee, I have been "promoted" to Graduate Architect status (just some fancy schmancy name for "regular-employee-who-hasn't-taken-the-board-exam-yet").

Just wanted to share my good news. :)
*yessss*

Wednesday, October 27, 2004

Beware of the Desperate

*Due credit goes to Risha, who has such interesting topics to write about in her blog, thus inspiring me to write this entry. ;)

I have always believed that all women have a natural bitchiness that is brought out by certain things. There are those who choose to flaunt this side of themselves to the world; some who are pros without trying too hard; and some, like me, who tend to keep this trait recessive...who choose to bring out the bitch only when they have to, and most importantly, when they need to.

I bring out the bitch in me as a defense mechanism: when people block my way (walking or driving, it doesn't make a difference); when it's that time of the month and I don't feel like being cheerful; and most especially when there are stalkers-slash-psychos-slash-losers hovering around me (figuratively and literally).

I know most girls have experienced being ogled in public, especially while passing a construction site, or even while walking around a mall. Some guys have no shame whatsoever. Most girls I know react in almost the same way: they raise their eyebrows and glare at the culprit(s), cursing under their breath. That's already a mild form of bitchiness. What more if guys take one step further from ogling? Is stalking enough reason to bring out Cruella de Vil?

* * * *
For a stalker-free life...Do not promise friendship to someone who is clearly obsessed with attaining something more than that. The term friends may as well be synonymous to the terms puwede pa! in the mind of the desperate. And do not be so quick to reply "Who's this?" to random texters.
* * * *

My friends say that I attract weirdos because I'm too *nice*. People take advantage of the fact that I can never say no to little favors, or that I want to be friends with everyone. I have this twisted theory that everyone can be friends after anything: "You lied to me, but we can still be friends!"; "You hurt me so badly...but we can still be friends!"; "I don't like you in THAT way, but we can still be friends!"

But when delusional people mistake "friendship" as a bridgeway for something more...well that's not my fault anymore, is it? If they'd only take a minute to look up the word "friend" in the dictionary...Yeesh.

In situations like these, people shouldn't be surprised that there are a lot of bitches in the world. Women need to protect themselves, somehow. If not with the hard punch, then with the sharp tongue and with looks that could kill.

Tuesday, October 26, 2004


A get together with college friends at Di Mark's, Greenbelt 4. (the exact same picture is also posted on Mumty's and Joyce's blogs). From L to R: Janrey, Mikey, Anna, Joyce, Mumty, ME, and Mia. :) In the middle: Yummy pizza, pasta, and a basket of chicken croquetas. ;) Posted by Hello

Monday, October 25, 2004

A few more minutes till Stress

This weekend has been the most relaxing weekend I've ever had.

/me closes her eyes and tries to bring back all the happy thoughts before starting another stressful week at work.

Last Friday, I met up with my college friends at Greenbelt 4. I wasn't expecting too many people...just Mikey and Mumty and myself since we're the ones who work around Makati. But surprises of all surprises, we were 7 all-in-all.

So what's new with everyone?

Mikey is still in the insurance business...he's on a diet, and he has inspired me to start a diet as well. Hahaha. Nothing as masochistic as the SouthBeach diet, though (God-forbid!).

Mumty is now a regular at the firm she's in...Congratulations! Inggit ako!

Joyce and Mia sound like they're having a blast at R.R. Payumo. Mia was greeted a Happy Birthday by Ethan of Survivor. I'm betting that 2004 is Mia's best birthyear ever.

Anna says she's still not a regular...But we all point out that her salary is more than the regular employees at our firms. Hehe.

Janrey is still the robot-that-could, snapping up sidelines here and there. :D

* * * *
I woke up early the next day (Saturday) to go jogging with my Mee. But after eating yummy Chicken Croquetas, pizza and pasta (at Di Mark's), and having a [free] Figaro Cappucino Frost the night before, I didn't really think that an hour of walking could do the trick. So we just gave up, ate rice, sisig and spaghetti for breakfast, and dropped dead for around 4 hours.

I had a relaxing Sunday with my siblings Laurence and Larissa (Levs was, as usual, on his own). I went shopping for diet food (tuna and fruit), then I enjoyed my carbo-loading hour while watching Shark Tale.

That evening, Michelle came by the house to pick up her reimbursements and her paycheck from Ma'am. You should see her. She's darker (golden!), she's THINNER (I swear, she looked almost petite! She actually looked smaller...as if the weight loss also caused her to shrink a few inches in height. Hehe), and she has BANGS. Hehehe. :) It was so good to see her again. Next time she's back from Palawan, she promises to plan the Makati dinner. :) *yay*

* * * *
In around 25 minutes, the work day will officially start. My group's OT will officially start today, and will end sometime in the middle of December. That means that my days of fun, relaxation and sanity are officially OVER. No more Friday-night gimiks. No more free Saturdays...

Not unless I play hooky every once in a while. ;) Ha!

Monday, October 18, 2004

Uninspired

I don't feel particularly inspired as I write this entry. I feel listless, grumpy, lazy and annoyed all at the same time: not exactly a foundation for my usual *random whimsy.*

Nothing particularly interesting has happened to me in the past few days...Hmmm. Except maybe for the Oktober fest I attended at the German Club in Makati, along with a few AF people and Sir Mata. Yep. Interesting, maybe...Inspiring? Not really.

So what exactly inspires me? What makes me feel energetic, happy, dilligent and content?



  • The beach. Uh...Let's see...Vinyl flooring underneath me, not sand; fluorescent lights above me, not the sun; air-conditioner, not balmy sea breezes. Nope. Definitely not inspiring.

  • A good book. Aside from P.S. I Love You by Cecilia Ahern (READ IT! It's charming.), I haven't done much good reading lately (blogs don't really count as books, do they?).

  • Good food. Temporary inspiration. After pigging out on my favorite food, I feel the fat settling on my hips and I'm just left feeling digusted about my lack of self-restraint.

Taking the list into consideration, it's no wonder why it's impossible for me to be inspired in the office. Tuh. It inspires me to go home, that's what it does.

* * * *

The trip home is an experience that presents different inspirations. Of course, there's the *happy thought* that I'm only a few hours away from home (yes, it's takes me at LEAST an hour and a half just to get home). Then there's this nightmare called *rush hour* that I have learned to tolerate by taking in the *excitement* of what's happening around me. That goes to show you how pathetic I am: I think driving along EDSA is exciting.

Thoughts while driving along EDSA (North-bound):

  • #1 Thought: GRABE, ang traffic. (no duh!)
  • Sana nagMRT nalang ako.
  • Hmmm...That girl in the Pancake House billboard (the one near Estrella) looks a lot like Mumty...
  • Buti nalang hindi ako nagMRT (after catching a glimpse of the sardine can they call the train). Otherwise, I'll be stuck staring at a sweaty man's armpit all the way from Buendia to Shaw.
  • Wow, ang ganda ni Claudine Barretto dun sa bagong billboard ng Folded and Hung (BIG improvement from her *I'm-a-sun-goddess* pic from before)
  • I want to watch the BOND CONCERT!!! (insert feeling of self-pity here)
  • GRABE, ang traffic (second realization as I reach the crest of the Guadalupe bridge, and see the red lights stretching up to Boni)
  • I wonder whose kids are those? They're so pretty! (upon glimpsing the Gingersnaps billboard on Guadalupe Bridge.)
  • What a waste of space. (in passing the Robinsons Apartelle building near Boni)
  • The traffic will probably let up when I pass Crossing.
  • Crossing. The traffic will hopefully let up when I pass MegaMall.
  • MegaMall. Oh, screw it. (At this point, I give up on EDSA and turn into the road leading to ADB Avenue)

After many more swear words later...

HOME. FINALLY.

Home. There's no place like it.
If only I can stay home and veg out whenever I feel like it...Just like the old days. *sigh*
College has spoiled me.


Monday, October 04, 2004

Short hair versus Long hair

If there's one thing I'm vain about, it's my HAIR.

I'm not the type of person who would spend money on hair treatments. Neither am I someone who would spent hours blow-drying or curling my hair before work or before a date. I'm actually the most tamad person when it comes to hair-care.
I simply like my hair. That's how far I go with regards to vanity.

~I like it when people act all surprised when I tell them that No, I did not have my hair colored. EVER.
~I like it when it feels so silky smooth (and when it smells so nice!) after I use Vaseline Shampoo.
~I like it when my younger sister acts all jealous when she brushes my hair and says "Ang daya, bakit ang kapal ng buhok mo?" Hehehe.
~I like it when I put it up in a ponytail and it swishes neatly behind me.
~I like the fact that I don't need to get my hair rebonded or relaxed. Shampoo lang yan. (hahaha, sorry, I couldn't resist)

But I didn't always like my hair.

Back in gradeschool, I only had one hairstyle: a short bobcut. Whenever I went to the parlor, I would always tell the stylist to trim it to just below the ear. THAT was how predictable I was. I let my hair grow beyond my shoulders back in 4th grade...but my hair was so thick that not only did it grow longer...it grew wider as well. Can you say buhaghag? :D

In highschool, I remember getting my first not-a-bobcut haircut in 2nd year...I remember the stylist giving me those layered cuts. That was the in-thing back then. I remember liking my hair even while it was being cut. Have you ever had one of those haircuts wherein it just looked and felt right from the beginning? Well, needless to say, that was one of the best haircuts I ever had. I think that that was when I really bloomed: From nerdy grade-schooler to highschooler with a cool haircut. Haha.

A year after, I felt rebellious. Up till now I still can't remember what compelled me to do it...but the major turning point of my junior year wasn't the prom...it was the day I decided to get a boy's cut. Yup. It was a weird year. Everytime I entered a Jollibee or a Mcdonalds, the crew would greet me with a "Good day, sir!" "Thank you, sir!" That was the year I learned to wear sleeveless blouses and dangling earrings just to make it clear that Hey, I'm a GIRL. That was also the year that I was an aspiring CAT officer. They called me G.I. Jane because of my hair. And because I look like Demi Moore. Ahahaha. Asa pa ako.

Cropped hair has been my general hairstyle for my first four years in college. I remember now that it could get really annoying. The "sirs" I could get used to. But once I try to let it grow longer, it gets into this alanganin stage and it looks really icky. Maybe that's the reason why I kept having it cut off every month. Short hair has its advantages, though:

1. It keeps me cool in the summer time
2. It's wash-and-wear. I don't have to worry about tangles or blow-drying...sometimes I don't even have to comb it. :D
3. I look different from every other long-haired Filipina out there. It's an edge. Is it?
4. It's literally a great weight off your shoulders.

Some people get haircuts when they're depressed or when they're heartbroken, just because it makes them feel light and fresh. I used to get haircuts for the same reason. Once, I was so depressed that I had it cut in a shorter style than usual. Thank God it looked good. :) I only grew my hair long in 5th year college because of the graduation pictures. Hahaha. :) THAT, and because of the fact that I was rarely depressed, and I was NOT heartbroken that year (that's a record, so cheer for me!).

My hair is now well below my shoulders. It's all long and girly...and I'm contemplating on getting it cropped again. I kind of miss having low-maintenance hair. And I guess I'm feeling heavy because of all the stress at work...I feel like I need a change.

Should I go for it?