In the 5 months that I've been working in the office, I've always been the early bird. I would come to work at 7 a.m. (very much against my will), and I'd surf the net or take a nap until 8:30 when the official work day starts.
However, the Internet access of all the Juniors was removed (I cannot begin to explain my bitterness over that issue. But that's another story. *grin*), so I've resorted to early morning napping, doing the daily crossword (a newly ressurrected habit), or reading a good book.
This morning, I arrived at 7 a.m., as usual. But I felt too relaxed (but not at all sleepy) to just sit around waiting for 8:30 to roll around. So I went and did something I don't normally do (crazy, in my standards)...I went over to Starbucks to treat myself.
Walking around Makati (the nearest Starbucks to our office is quite a walk away), early in the morning is quite relaxing. No traffic. No crowds. The early morning sunshine mingled with the crisp, pre-Christmas air...there's only one word for it: invigorating.
Walking around a bustling city, strutting around in really nice clothes, and hearing your heels make this sharp click click sound, really gives you this adrenaline rush. It makes me realize that, hey...life is pretty good. It makes me want to splurge on a tall White Chocolate Mocha and a chocolate Belgian waffle. *yum* Full of calories and fat...but still *yum*. And I'm only a few sips away from the really pretty Starbucks Planner (I want it I want it I want it).
I'll think about the big dent it makes on my daily income later...For now, I am still trying to bask in the glow of my early morning happiness. Only 2 more minutes to go till the stress begins...I better make the most of it...
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
Infiltrated
How do I get rid of this SEARCHMIRACLE crap? Aaaagh! It is totally ANNOYING me. I can't get my Ad-Aware or SpyDoctor programs to get rid of it!!! It compromises my Explorer links (whenever I click on links it redirects me to their searchmiracle page!); an annoying searchbar pops up everytime I open an new Explorer window...it's totally freaky! I hate it.
*HELP ME!!!*
*HELP ME!!!*
Friday, November 19, 2004
Love Songs for Everyone
Love is always an easy topic to write about. As Mia said in her blog, love (unrequited or not), is one of the "baduy forces" that drive people to write (to sing...to cry...to do any crazy stunt possible). If you listen to the radio, chances are that most of the top ten hits are love songs. Why? Because for every hopeless romantic song writer in the world, there are about 10,000 other people who can relate to their songs.
I'm sure that every person, at one time, has experienced the "Killing Me Softly" syndrome. That feeling of unexpected hopelessness when you hear a random song over the radio, and you say, "Ouch. I've felt that...I'm feeling that." Sometimes, some people experience the "You're So Vain" syndrome, wherein you proclaim (out of bitterness, usually), "Hah. Yan siguro kanta nya for me...." Well and good if the song that's playing is "I Wish You Were Here." Too bad for pathetic you if it's "I Never Really Loved You Anyway."
I have always been a hopeless romantic. Even I will own up to compiling songs that seem so real at that time, but are so baduy when I listen to them, say, now? (Note to Leni: I am currently listening to my Break-Up CD compilation. It reeks of Vonda Shepard, Boyz II Men and - gasp - Fralippolippi! Let me ask you..."What was I thinking?") But maybe that's the trick...maybe considering love songs as baduy means that you've moved on because you can't relate to them anymore. :)
I came across this article in Young Star, and every word I read gave a small little tug somewhere inside (my stomach? Oh wait...my heart? Harhar!). I'm sure that most of you can relate to some of the words here, too (sige na, wag na mag-deny...). Enjoy.
* * * *
Love Songs For Us Rejects
by Regina Belmonte
Coldplay said it well in just two lines. “So I look in your direction / But you pay me no attention, do you?” They said it even better in another three. “I’ll always be waiting for you / So you know how much I need you / But you never even see me, do you?” I never mistook Shiver for a happy, upbeat song, as deceptive as it may have been. No, Shiver was always on of my many songs of unrequited love, of infatuation and the imminent rejection, and of the desolation in the aftermath.
I find a strange kind of joy in songs about desperate crushes and failed romances. They remind me that I'm not alone in this singular solitude, in this lack of so-called significant other. It's no longer of major consequence to me, but at some point in my juvenile past, I supposed I was hooked by stories of fairytale romances and reams come true. [...]
…For your perusal, a list of some of my favorite songs to listen to when I’m feeling unfortunately single, unfortunately unloved and unwanted, and / or unfortunately invisible – in no particular order.
1) Moving – Kjwan
Why am I always the one moving on?
Slow and bittersweet, plaintive and pleading, that one line speaks volumes. Why am I always left distraught? Why are you so unaffected?
2) Burnout – Sugarfree
O kay tagal kitang minahal. Tinatawag kita. Sinusuyo kita. Di mo man marinig, di mo man madama. O kay tagal din kitang mamahalin.
Love songs always seemed so much more eloquent in Filipino; so pure and sincere. Unrequited love at its finest.
3) Una – Sponge Cola
Maiiwasan ba ang bawat sandaling ika’y laman ng isip ko? Nararapat bang pigilan ang damdamin na lalong mahulog sa iyo? Sa pagkaakit at ‘di paglapit, nananalangin at umaasa.
The desperation in this song has made it one of my favorites from this new band. Thinking about the oblivious object of your obsession seems almost unavoidable sometimes. I know, deep down, that these fantasies will never come true, but I can’t stop myself from thinking them up, either, and in the end, I’m the one who ends up hurt.
4) Hara Kiri – Plane Divides the Sky
It’s time for things to go, but I’m feeling, but I’m bleeding. You will never come, but I’m waiting here. It’s time for you to go, but I’m needing, so I’m fighting. It’s now, I have to live, but I’m dying here.
More desperation. This song is a bit louder than the others that will be found on the list but is nevertheless, equally passionate.
5) Tea and Sympathy – Jars of Clay
It’s not the way that it has to be. Don’t trade our love for tea and sympathy. We can work it out.
And even more desperation. Pleading seems to be the trend with sons like these, but Tea and Sympathy has always been particularly beautiful to me; a song about one’s need to find closure, and another’s apathy.
6) Haligh, Haligh, A Lie – Haligh, Bright Eyes
But now we speak with ruined tongues and the words we say aren’t meant for anyone, it’s just a mumbled sentence to a passing acquaintance but there was once you. You said you hate my suffering and you understood and you’d take care of me. You’d always be there, well, where are you now?
The song is bitter to its very core; from the tone in which it is sung to the very words it uses. (How many songs incorporate a sarcastic “Ha ha ha,” anyway to full effect?)
7) Himala – Rivermaya
Himala. Kasalanan bang humingi ako sa langit ng isang himala?
We who want cannot help making futile wishes, and the melancholy of this song mirrors that longing exactly. Is it wrong to want? Is it wrong to dream? Even when it hurts?
8) That I Would Be Good – Alanis Morissette
That I would be good, even if I lost sanity. That I would be good, whether with or without you.
This entire song should be listened to over and over and over again, if only because its lyrics are exactly how anyone feels. Who doesn’t want to be loved, despite his or her flaws? I can only be certain that love is real when it accepts me for everything that I am, the good and the bad.
9) Forget Her – Jeff Buckley
Tell yourself over and over you won’t ever need her again. But don’t fool yourself; she was heartache from the moment that you met her. My heart is frozen still as I try to find the will to forget her, somehow.
10) 3 Libras – A Perfect Circle
Because I threw you the obvious. You don’t see me. You don’t see me at all.
As I listen to some of these songs, I can’t help wondering why love is such a common topic in music. I can’t understand how a concept so abstract and difficult to grasp; indeed, nearly impossible to define, could have inspired countless arias of complete, absolute emotional abandon. I supposed I’ll find out someday.
For now, I have my youth and my own life to live. Love can (and will) come at the right time. Until it decides to rear its ugly head, however, I shall sit in front of my computer and enjoy all the beautiful music spawned by the sheer honesty of raw emotion and the poignancy of heartbreak. Sometimes, I’ll catch myself smirking sardonically about how silly love can be. And other times, I’ll feel my chest burn. “I’ve felt that,” I’ll say, experiencing an oddly nice kind of depression. “I know how you feel,” says the music in reply. “You feel alive.”
- Taken from Young Star, The Philippine Star. Friday, November 19, 2004.
Monday, November 15, 2004
Survivor: Divisoria
Going to Divisoria on a holiday before Christmas is like going willingly to hell on earth. It's like hell (as I can imagine it to be), because it presents you with all sorts of tempting goodies (everything is sold at half the price they're selling it for in Greenhills!), it's HOT, and you are surrounded by demons (snatchers, smugglers).
Let me put it this way...going to Divisoria on a holiday before Christmas is like going to Binondo during Chinese New Year's; like going to Dangwa during Valentine's Day; like riding the MRT during rush hour. It's THAT crowded. Sometimes I imagine that it's even worse.
For the inexperienced, do not dare venture into Divisoria (even with the lure of good bargains), unless you are well-informed and well-prepared. Here are a few tips to help ease the culture shock:
1. Wear your most comfortable shoes. Favorably not open-toed shoes; much better if you wear rubber shoes. This will prevent your toes from being stomped on (it can happen at least once every minute). And you need to make your feet as happy as possible so you can get better mileage inside the Divisoria Mall.
2. Wear bright clothing. If you're going with a group, it's best to wear something that is easily distinguishable in a crowd. That way, your companions can easily spot you when you get separated (recommended for the vertically-challenged, most especially). If you're tall, it's ok to wear dull-colored clothes (especially if you hate getting attention...like me). You can be the one who spots the person in the bright-colored shirt.
3. Do not bring a purse / handbag. If you really need something to put your stuff in, bring a beltbag (if you don't mind looking like a Divi saleslady), or bring a body bag that hangs close to your body, and make sure that you always place it in front of you.
4. Bring lots of cash. But place it inside your jeans pocket...or someplace that's hard to snatch. There are ATMs around the area, but the lines are long. You don't want to cut on precious shopping time, do you?
5. Do not drive your own car. Get the driver to drive it. Finding a parking space is close to impossible. And it helps to have someone bring your first round of shopping bags to the car so you can have your hands free for the next round. :D Do not attempt to commute. Going home in a jeep with all of the stuff you're bound to buy is sure to be an unpleasant experience.
6. Establish a shopping route. If you're going to shop at the Divisoria Mall, be prepared to get lost in a labyrinth of alleys that look exactly alike. It's better to be systematic about it (and to make sure that everybody else you're with knows how the system works) so you can make the most of your trip (and so noone gets lost).
7. Don't be too picky. It's OK to canvass for the best price. But in Divisoria, the prices only differ from one another in fives or tens. That shouldn't matter much, especially if you think that it's still cheaper than the Greenhills version by about 50. Besides, if you think you can still find the stall that sells it at the cheapest price, best of luck to you. Better buy it while you've still got the chance.
8. Be prepared to die. The Divisoria Mall is an Ozone waiting to happen. There are no fire exits (none I can see, anyway), and some of the merchants actually have the nerve to smoke inside the building, what with all their wares being flammable. And with the tons of people inside, it will be no surprise to me if one will die, not from the fire itself, but from the stampede it will inevitably cause.
9. Do not curse or scowl each time you get trod on or pushed. Chances are, you will have used every swear word there is in only an hour's time, and that scowl will be a permanent feature on your face. There is NEVER a time when there will be no pushing, or no toe-stepping, so get used to it. And don't complain. Try to do some of your own pushing and stepping-on-toes, maybe that will make you feel a teensy bit better. Hehehe. ;)
10. Think happy thoughts. You're going to need every single one of them, especially if you plan on keeping your temper in check.
Do not let these tips scare you. Shopping at Divisoria may be a hellish experience...but it's definitely worth it. I spent around PhP2000 today...and with that amount of money, I got a lot of really nice stuff (shoes, a jacket, jogging pants, accessories...etc). I remember my very FIRST journal entry (please see my Blurty for reference), about one of my shopping binges, wherein I spent around PhP2600 on just TWO tops and ONE sweater. Yep. My Divisoria shopping day was definitely worth it. :)
It's too bad that I have yet to finish my Christmas shopping...It's hard to shop for other people when you see a lot of stuff that YOU like for yourself. *sigh*
Let me put it this way...going to Divisoria on a holiday before Christmas is like going to Binondo during Chinese New Year's; like going to Dangwa during Valentine's Day; like riding the MRT during rush hour. It's THAT crowded. Sometimes I imagine that it's even worse.
For the inexperienced, do not dare venture into Divisoria (even with the lure of good bargains), unless you are well-informed and well-prepared. Here are a few tips to help ease the culture shock:
1. Wear your most comfortable shoes. Favorably not open-toed shoes; much better if you wear rubber shoes. This will prevent your toes from being stomped on (it can happen at least once every minute). And you need to make your feet as happy as possible so you can get better mileage inside the Divisoria Mall.
2. Wear bright clothing. If you're going with a group, it's best to wear something that is easily distinguishable in a crowd. That way, your companions can easily spot you when you get separated (recommended for the vertically-challenged, most especially). If you're tall, it's ok to wear dull-colored clothes (especially if you hate getting attention...like me). You can be the one who spots the person in the bright-colored shirt.
3. Do not bring a purse / handbag. If you really need something to put your stuff in, bring a beltbag (if you don't mind looking like a Divi saleslady), or bring a body bag that hangs close to your body, and make sure that you always place it in front of you.
4. Bring lots of cash. But place it inside your jeans pocket...or someplace that's hard to snatch. There are ATMs around the area, but the lines are long. You don't want to cut on precious shopping time, do you?
5. Do not drive your own car. Get the driver to drive it. Finding a parking space is close to impossible. And it helps to have someone bring your first round of shopping bags to the car so you can have your hands free for the next round. :D Do not attempt to commute. Going home in a jeep with all of the stuff you're bound to buy is sure to be an unpleasant experience.
6. Establish a shopping route. If you're going to shop at the Divisoria Mall, be prepared to get lost in a labyrinth of alleys that look exactly alike. It's better to be systematic about it (and to make sure that everybody else you're with knows how the system works) so you can make the most of your trip (and so noone gets lost).
7. Don't be too picky. It's OK to canvass for the best price. But in Divisoria, the prices only differ from one another in fives or tens. That shouldn't matter much, especially if you think that it's still cheaper than the Greenhills version by about 50. Besides, if you think you can still find the stall that sells it at the cheapest price, best of luck to you. Better buy it while you've still got the chance.
8. Be prepared to die. The Divisoria Mall is an Ozone waiting to happen. There are no fire exits (none I can see, anyway), and some of the merchants actually have the nerve to smoke inside the building, what with all their wares being flammable. And with the tons of people inside, it will be no surprise to me if one will die, not from the fire itself, but from the stampede it will inevitably cause.
9. Do not curse or scowl each time you get trod on or pushed. Chances are, you will have used every swear word there is in only an hour's time, and that scowl will be a permanent feature on your face. There is NEVER a time when there will be no pushing, or no toe-stepping, so get used to it. And don't complain. Try to do some of your own pushing and stepping-on-toes, maybe that will make you feel a teensy bit better. Hehehe. ;)
10. Think happy thoughts. You're going to need every single one of them, especially if you plan on keeping your temper in check.
* * * *
Do not let these tips scare you. Shopping at Divisoria may be a hellish experience...but it's definitely worth it. I spent around PhP2000 today...and with that amount of money, I got a lot of really nice stuff (shoes, a jacket, jogging pants, accessories...etc). I remember my very FIRST journal entry (please see my Blurty for reference), about one of my shopping binges, wherein I spent around PhP2600 on just TWO tops and ONE sweater. Yep. My Divisoria shopping day was definitely worth it. :)
It's too bad that I have yet to finish my Christmas shopping...It's hard to shop for other people when you see a lot of stuff that YOU like for yourself. *sigh*
Sunday, November 14, 2004
Active Lifestyle
I've been going on and on about how I want to lose weight...I've listed all of the things I should do...and all of the things I should stay away from.
Unfortunately, I've been violating all the food rules...it's hard to keep away from good food for long. :( One day last week, I was so depressed at work that I ate up most of the chocolate mallows in my food supply. That same day, Mark took me out to a Tempura dinner to cheer me up...and he bought me decadent chocolate cream pie at Brewing Point, because he knows that I'm totally inlove with that stuff. All of my hard work went down the drain (and all the fat came in its place) just in one day of stuffing myself with good, good food. *sigh*
The good news is, I've been religiously fulfilling my activity rules. :) I've been doing crunches everyday...and I'm slowly starting up an active lifestyle to keep me fit. :D
BADMINTON: Last Friday, Diane and I went to Club Badminton to try out the sport that's been the rage for the past year. It's true what they say: you'll really sweat buckets even after 30 minutes of playing badminton. In my case, though, I was sweating (and my face was all red! woohoo, tisay. harhar) because I was embarrased beyond belief. I suck at badminton. Well, considering that it was my first time to play, I guess it should be excusable. However, having the shuttle cock fall harmlessly to the ground everytime I try to serve the damn thing...it's humiliating. I was ready to surrender right then and there.
But...after an hour of playing, I am proud to say that I have improved. Sure, I may have gotten more exercise in stooping down to get the shuttle cock...but at least I've learned to serve properly...without missing, mind you. I'm definitely looking forward to the next game...as soon as my arm stops aching...
BASKETBALL: I've been thinking of playing basketball again. I truly enjoyed my summer when I took up Women's Basketball for my 5th P.E. subject. However, there isn't much opportunity for me to play basketball with anyone, anywhere. (anyone up for a game? Open to females only, please. Hehe)
Just a few hours ago, after stuffing myself (again) with a dinner of garlic rice and cheesy SPAM (yummm), I picked up a basketball and asked my sister to shoot some hoops with me outside our house. A while later, my cousin from across the street challenged us to a two-on-two game. It was the girls against the boys...my little sister and I on one team...my little brother and my cousin on the other. In the end, the Assumptionistas won 10 to 9 against the Ateneans. HAH! And the fact that the other team was composed of 10 year old boys didn't matter...;p Haha. We may have been taller...but they were better shooters...and man, are they heavy. ;p
BOWLING: Ok...so it's not exactly a very strenuous sport. But I love bowling. It's fun. :) It doesn't make me sweat, but at least my arm is getting toned from carrying around an 11-pound ball. :D
Unfortunately, I've been violating all the food rules...it's hard to keep away from good food for long. :( One day last week, I was so depressed at work that I ate up most of the chocolate mallows in my food supply. That same day, Mark took me out to a Tempura dinner to cheer me up...and he bought me decadent chocolate cream pie at Brewing Point, because he knows that I'm totally inlove with that stuff. All of my hard work went down the drain (and all the fat came in its place) just in one day of stuffing myself with good, good food. *sigh*
The good news is, I've been religiously fulfilling my activity rules. :) I've been doing crunches everyday...and I'm slowly starting up an active lifestyle to keep me fit. :D
BADMINTON: Last Friday, Diane and I went to Club Badminton to try out the sport that's been the rage for the past year. It's true what they say: you'll really sweat buckets even after 30 minutes of playing badminton. In my case, though, I was sweating (and my face was all red! woohoo, tisay. harhar) because I was embarrased beyond belief. I suck at badminton. Well, considering that it was my first time to play, I guess it should be excusable. However, having the shuttle cock fall harmlessly to the ground everytime I try to serve the damn thing...it's humiliating. I was ready to surrender right then and there.
But...after an hour of playing, I am proud to say that I have improved. Sure, I may have gotten more exercise in stooping down to get the shuttle cock...but at least I've learned to serve properly...without missing, mind you. I'm definitely looking forward to the next game...as soon as my arm stops aching...
BASKETBALL: I've been thinking of playing basketball again. I truly enjoyed my summer when I took up Women's Basketball for my 5th P.E. subject. However, there isn't much opportunity for me to play basketball with anyone, anywhere. (anyone up for a game? Open to females only, please. Hehe)
Just a few hours ago, after stuffing myself (again) with a dinner of garlic rice and cheesy SPAM (yummm), I picked up a basketball and asked my sister to shoot some hoops with me outside our house. A while later, my cousin from across the street challenged us to a two-on-two game. It was the girls against the boys...my little sister and I on one team...my little brother and my cousin on the other. In the end, the Assumptionistas won 10 to 9 against the Ateneans. HAH! And the fact that the other team was composed of 10 year old boys didn't matter...;p Haha. We may have been taller...but they were better shooters...and man, are they heavy. ;p
BOWLING: Ok...so it's not exactly a very strenuous sport. But I love bowling. It's fun. :) It doesn't make me sweat, but at least my arm is getting toned from carrying around an 11-pound ball. :D
* * * *
I guess I'm just happy that I'm getting to be all sporty. It's nice. You should try it. As Elle from Legally Blonde says..."Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy! And happy people just don't kill their husbands, they just don't." Riiight. :D
This happy business isn't bad at all. :)
This happy business isn't bad at all. :)
Monday, November 08, 2004
Driving for Fitness
For the next 7 weeks before Christmas, I am aiming to lose 5 lbs or more...for the purpose of creating enough allowance to gain more weight during the holidays. (Haha. Just kidding) I want to lose weight because most of the clothes I own hardly fit me anymore. From an RTW size-Medium, I am now a Large...and I'm hating it.
Looking at me at first glance, one may not notice the weight gain. Everytime I complain out loud that I am too fat, or everytime I proclaim that I'm on a diet, the people around me give me this weird look as if to say "Are you crazy? If you think you're fat, what am I? An elephant?" A few years back (around 3rd year college), I gained some weight, too...but it was so obvious then: my arms were fat, my thighs were fat, my FACE was fat. That was why everybody seemed to notice it.
Now, all I do is sit around for 8 hours a day. I eat my lunch without leaving my workstation. I only get up to go to the comfort room, or to go get something from the common printer. That way, my face and my arms remain small and thin...my tummy and my hips have become super sized. Because of these recent...uhh..developments, I have drafted a to-do list to help me lose the flab:
1. Go jogging every Saturday and Sunday morning
2. Do crunches once a day (twice every weekend)
3. Play golf / go to the driving range
4. Play badminton every Friday
5. No carbs after 6 p.m.!!!
6. No junkfood
So far, I've already violated rule #1 (I wasn't able to wake up on time). I semi-fulfilled rule #2 (I do crunches everday, but I failed to do them twice a day this past weekend). I have SERIOUSLY violated rule #5 (I was hungry!)...as well as rule #6 (who can resist a bar of Twix?). Gaaaah! I'm hopeless.
However, I was able to go to the driving range this weekend. I decided to add golf to my list of sports because it's the most convenient sport to have if you belong to my family. Boring as it may sound, golf is the Espiritu family's passion. My dad took up golf back when I was in highschool. Soon after that, my mom (who got tired of getting left behind everytime my dad went on out-of-town golf trips), took up the sport. Heck, the whole Espiritu CLAN, organizes its own golf tournament every December. Even my relatives from the States come home just to join the darn thing.
Anyway, back in 3rd year HS, I decided to see what all the fuss was about. I took golf lessons. All I remember from that time was that I got a pretty good workout just from standing for an hour trying to hit golf balls. That was what compelled me to try driving for fitness...the promise of sweating profusely (and losing some weight in the process).
Yesterday, I remembered all the things I hate about golf. I remember how I can't move my fingers after gripping the club for a few minutes, and how my dad always tells me not to hold the club too tightly. I remember how my golf club makes this clumsy swish-thunk sound upon hitting the ball (and the ground), instead of the swish-thwack sound that my dad always produces when he plays. I remember how my ball never quite reaches the 100-yard mark, and I remember the disappointment (and the utter embarrassment) of not hitting the ball at all.
And now, on the day after, I am reminded of all the pain that comes with attempting to play golf with the wrong form: I can't raise my arms, my hands are beginning to cramp, and my mid-section is sore.
But that's the price I have to pay for being vain.
Hopefully all of this fitness craziness will pay off. I will not buy any new clothes until I can fit into all of my old ones. :p
Looking at me at first glance, one may not notice the weight gain. Everytime I complain out loud that I am too fat, or everytime I proclaim that I'm on a diet, the people around me give me this weird look as if to say "Are you crazy? If you think you're fat, what am I? An elephant?" A few years back (around 3rd year college), I gained some weight, too...but it was so obvious then: my arms were fat, my thighs were fat, my FACE was fat. That was why everybody seemed to notice it.
Now, all I do is sit around for 8 hours a day. I eat my lunch without leaving my workstation. I only get up to go to the comfort room, or to go get something from the common printer. That way, my face and my arms remain small and thin...my tummy and my hips have become super sized. Because of these recent...uhh..developments, I have drafted a to-do list to help me lose the flab:
1. Go jogging every Saturday and Sunday morning
2. Do crunches once a day (twice every weekend)
3. Play golf / go to the driving range
4. Play badminton every Friday
5. No carbs after 6 p.m.!!!
6. No junkfood
So far, I've already violated rule #1 (I wasn't able to wake up on time). I semi-fulfilled rule #2 (I do crunches everday, but I failed to do them twice a day this past weekend). I have SERIOUSLY violated rule #5 (I was hungry!)...as well as rule #6 (who can resist a bar of Twix?). Gaaaah! I'm hopeless.
However, I was able to go to the driving range this weekend. I decided to add golf to my list of sports because it's the most convenient sport to have if you belong to my family. Boring as it may sound, golf is the Espiritu family's passion. My dad took up golf back when I was in highschool. Soon after that, my mom (who got tired of getting left behind everytime my dad went on out-of-town golf trips), took up the sport. Heck, the whole Espiritu CLAN, organizes its own golf tournament every December. Even my relatives from the States come home just to join the darn thing.
Anyway, back in 3rd year HS, I decided to see what all the fuss was about. I took golf lessons. All I remember from that time was that I got a pretty good workout just from standing for an hour trying to hit golf balls. That was what compelled me to try driving for fitness...the promise of sweating profusely (and losing some weight in the process).
Yesterday, I remembered all the things I hate about golf. I remember how I can't move my fingers after gripping the club for a few minutes, and how my dad always tells me not to hold the club too tightly. I remember how my golf club makes this clumsy swish-thunk sound upon hitting the ball (and the ground), instead of the swish-thwack sound that my dad always produces when he plays. I remember how my ball never quite reaches the 100-yard mark, and I remember the disappointment (and the utter embarrassment) of not hitting the ball at all.
And now, on the day after, I am reminded of all the pain that comes with attempting to play golf with the wrong form: I can't raise my arms, my hands are beginning to cramp, and my mid-section is sore.
But that's the price I have to pay for being vain.
Hopefully all of this fitness craziness will pay off. I will not buy any new clothes until I can fit into all of my old ones. :p
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