Bills, Bills, Bills

No Java Training today so I was at work around 10:30. Immediately had my morning coffee and started updating my Training Schedule. It ain't easy.

After lunch on the second floor, I went to SM to pay for my bills. While waiting in line, I was getting worried because I couldn't remember if I left my phone on my desk. So after paying my bills, I went back to the office. Thank God it's there. I forgot to check if Tower Records has Reg's latest single: "Shine".

Tried to pay for my Destiny bill but according to the guard in BPI, payments are from Tuesdays to Thursdays only. Bummer!

My planning is giving me a headache. I need my coffee. Am waiting for the rest of my barkada to finish their meeting so we could all go downstairs.

Dreads Repair + KnottyBoy Dread Wax

Woke up at 8. Had brewed coffee. We had hotdogs, eggs, fried tilapia, and breaded chops for brekky. I tried the famous suman with hot chocolate.

Took my bath and prepared my stuff. We planned to hear mass in Tagaytay.

Gabo offered a prayer before we left Batangas.

We reached Tagaytay after more than an hour. We decided to hear mass in Caleruega. It's my second time here. The first was when we had our extended management meeting a few years ago.

Unfortunately, we were late for mass so we just did a worship. We sang our new song too! And another favorite of mine, "Who is that Man?".

Then it was time to leave =o( I still went with Dennis and Caloy. But this time, we were joined by Reden and Ramil.

We decided not to have lunch anymore because we might get stuck in traffic en route to Makati. We just had some chippy and nuts along the way.

Reached Makati around 4 pm. I unpacked and cleaned up my kitchen. Heard mass in Don Bosco. Dennis, Joel, and Danny were there too.

Proceeded to Glorietta to have my dreads repair. I instructed Romy to use my KnottyBoy wax. He didn't like the smell.

After 2 hours, I had dinner at Evergreen then went home.

First Brotherhood in Batangas

I met my fellow brothers at Don Bosco a few minoots before 1 pm. When I got there I thought I was the last one again. Good thing, it wasn't the case. Since we had to wait for the others, I prayed at the Blessed Sacrament first.

As a group, we offered a prayer before leaving Manila around 2 pm. I went with Dennis, Caloy, and Joel.

First stop was at the Petron station. After relieving myself, I joined my brothers at Jollibee. I wasn't hungry because I had brunch at home. I bought some water though.

The ride to Algi's house in Batangas was fun. We enjoyed some chips and even prayed the rosary. I don't know when I prayed my rosary last. We also bought some uncooked rice, some green mangoes, and junk food (Boy Bawang was a crowd favorite) at a market near Algi's house.

When we reached our destination, we dropped our stuff and immediately prepared our dinner. Dennis brought some tilapia. I thought it was a good idea to help removing the scales and the nasty stuff inside a fish's belly. It wasn't. After finishing one, I looked for a better task to do. I let Joel, Caloy, and Dennis cook the fish.

Ramil had so much fun directing his staff on the food that they're preparing. I saw Reden working his way on the flour. I found out later that they're gonna cook some breaded porkchops. Randy worked on his ensalada.

Danny was preparing for the Lord's Day celebration.

After seeing that everyone had their own tasks, I gave up. I offered to wash the dishes instead.

Before savoring our dinner, we celebrated "Lord's Day". It's like having mass. It's a celebration that brings back an age-old practice where people offer their Saturday nights (after 6 pm is like Sunday for them) to our Christ. It's a day of rest and worship. And that's what we intended to do this weekend.

We sang a few songs, including one of my favorites, "Power of Your Love".

Part of the ceremony was to eat unleavened bread. We had focacia, cheese, and some red wine. Perfect!

Then it's dinner time!!! Our food, composed of breaded porkchops, fried tilapia, some soup with spareribs and corn, and ensalada, was prepared on the traditional banana leaves. I even put our rice on the leaves. It was a "majestic" dinner, according to Ramil. Of course, there was picture taking involved. Isco brought his digicam.

After dinner, it was time for me to work. I washed the dishes with Joel's assistance. Later on, we joined our brothers in the living room. They began drinking beers and eating Boy Bawang. I really controlled myself not to drink even one SanMig Light. I waited till Randy uncorked the white wine. I had that with focacia and cheese.

We sang some hits like "Ako'y Sa Yo at Ika'y Akin Lamang", "Huwag Na Lang Kaya", "Banal na Aso", "Wonderful Tonight", "Kailangan Ko'y Ikaw", etc. Joel introduced the song, "Bendato", and it goes like, "Beeeen da to of us need look no moreeee". That was hilarious!

Ramil noticed that Ed wasn't singing nor participating in the story telling so he danced the strut, hoping that Ed would participate in the dance. There was a loud "awwwwwwwww" after his non-participation. Then we tried again. This time, we all screamed!!! That brought the house down.

Later on, we learned a new song, "You are my All in All", and here's the lyrics:

You are my strength when I am weak
You are the treasure that I seek
You are my all in all

Seeking you as a precious jewel
Lord to give up I'd be a fool
You are my all in all

Taking my sin, my cross, my shame
Rising again, I bless your name
You are my all in all

When I fall down you pick me up
When I am dry you fill my cup
You are my all in all

Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your Name
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your Name

According to Ramil, am Alto. He told me to join him. During practice, Ramil made fun of Gabo. There were times when we don't get it right but I truly enjoyed doing second voice.

We finished the practice around 2 am. I immediately went to bed It wasn't a cold night so I turned on the fan. I brought my own blanket too. The next day, I found out that it was Dennis who shared my bed.

Delayed Salary Withdrawal

Before leaving my pad at 10:30 am, I checked if I already have moolah. I left disappointed.

When I reached the office, I was informed that we won't be getting our money till 1:30. So we just had our lunch on the second floor.

Around 1, we proceeded to UCPB and withdrew our salary. Butch, Ning, and Raquel requested me to withdraw their money too.

It took us awhile to get our money. Raz and I went to Sanry's and checked the exchange rate: 55.15. Then we rushed to Czarina's and checked theirs. We were advised to wait for 10 minoots. Afterwards, we found out that they offer 55.08 to our dollar. Yuck! We had our dollars exchanged at Sanry's.

Before going back to the office, I bought some flavored fries while Raz got herself some biscuits.

Literally bumped into Dodjie at Starbucks. I was buying some cinnamon mints and then all of a sudden, Dodjie was beside me. For awhile I thought it wasn't him 'cause I heard that he's in Singapore. We chatted for awhile. 'twas nice to see him again.

Just when I thought my Friday won't be super, got to chat with Arlyn again. She invited me to watch "Elektra" with her friend, Joy. How can I resist?!?!?! So I rushed to GB3. The movie was fun! =o)

Afterwards, we're about to hail a cab when we thought of having dinner first. I let them suggest a place to eat. Kitchen was the choice.

When we got there, we had to wait for a few minoots before our table was set. 'twas a bit uncomfortable because we were squeezed into this tiny spot. Anyhoo, Arlyn got herself some salmon in misu soup, Joy ordered for salmon belly too, and I had sirloin.

When our dinner arrived, we made fun of how big the plates and the servings were. My beef was tender & yummy. I finished all of it (even shared a few bites). Arlyn just ate the meaty part of her fish. 'twas good dinner. We were so full!

After dinner, we called it a night. The ladies dropped me off at Standard Chartered.

Prayed and updated my blog.

Libre: A Freakin' Nightmare

Just waiting for my training to start. Twenty minoots to go.

The minoot I stepped inside the office this afternoon, people asked me if I've seen my picture on tabloid. This could not be good at all. I thought, "My barkada had something to do with this!".

After lunch, Ogz showed me the page where my picture was posted as one of the finalists of Libre's weather model search. F*******k!!!! This is extremely embarassing!

Ogz and I had our coffee break at Starbucks. Got myself a choco croissant and macchiato.

Finished my Java training of the first batch. We discussed constructors, inheritance and abstract classes. Am now waiting for the next one.

Lala won't stop teasing me about Libre. I really want it to stop.

After my second batch of Java training, I went home. Re-heat my adobo and had some fried rice. Yummy!

Watched the latest episodes of "Amazing Race", "Alias", and "Smallville".

Mom and Dad's Wedding Anniversary

Yep. It's my parents' wedding anniversary. I intend to greet them later on the phone. Couldn't visit them in Bulacan later nor this weekend because I have SOLV brotherhood in Batangas. =o(

At lunchtime, Ogz, La, Jowee, and I went to Landmark to buy a lamp. We didn't see one so we checked out SM for their lamps. If there's one shop where we could get anything, it would be SM. We thought of their slogan, "We've got it all for you". La sang desafinado (off-key).

En route to SM, we went inside a surf shop. La tried on a boardshort but it wasn't a good fit. Jowee wanted to buy a beanie (aka bonnet).

At SM, we got lost for a minoot while looking for TrueValue. Apparently, they don't have TrueValue. They have Ace Hardware. I bought a bulb for my lamp and Jowee bought a starter plug.

Before going back to the office, we had cheesecake and mud pie at McCafe.

A Night of Prayer

My moneyclip is getting lonely with only 200 bucks to safeguard. So after having lunch on the second floor, I went to UCPB and withdrew money.

Instead of going to Sanry's, I went to Czarina's. According to my sources, they offer a higher dollar exchange rate. They were right. 55.6 pesos to a dollar. I checked out Sanry's. 55.45. Good decision, eh?

Before heading back to the office, I checked for a possible replacement of my iPod earphones. Got disappointed because the shop I visited at Digital Exchange only sells flimsy ones. Bummer! I also tested some of the speakers that they offer. They have the JBL speakers priced at 12,500. But the best one is a Bose speaker at 17K. Hmm.... Controlled myself.

Checked Bibliarch for Coelho and King novels.

I had a meeting with my fellow extended "managers". We discussed APAS, Policy Revision, Summer Outing, and some photo contest on our Shared Values.

Break at Delifrance. I had roast beef sandwich with chips. OJ to complete my meal.

Continued my Java training material development. I'm on the subject of downcasting. Need to think of a good example tomorrow.

Attended our SOLV prayer meeting. It's the first of a series of talks about "Prayer". Tita Malou talked about how "God speaks to His people". She said that communication is the lifeblood and heartbeat of every relationship and our relationship with God is no exemption.

She told the story about Habakkuk wherein the impatient prophet kept on complaining about not getting answers to his prayers. The Lord's answer was for him to wait but still pray.

There are hindrances to our listening to God: Sin - disorients us to Him, makes us self-centered (guilty), causes prayers to go unheard; and Worldly Things - dull our senses.

God's words are never for our own entertainment or merely information, but rather for obedience. Simply, we must learn how to obey his words.

God uses many ways to speak to us. It's not how the words are said but what is said. You will also know if it's really God that is speaking. You will know how to respond or obey. After hearing, we must be willing to do whatever He asks us to do. And lastly, we must never prove it's really God that spoke to us. Let the words testify.

When praying, we must connect with God. It doesn't matter where we are. We can even pray with our eyes open! And most importantly, we must be real. He knows everything so we must not be pretentious.

Lastly, Tita Malou made us memorize John 15:5: "I am the vine, you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit. Apart from me, you can do nothing." She told us to reflect on those words.

After our prayer meeting, Eric (the bro who also lives in Cityland) walked home with me. We found out that he knows Doths, Tabel, and Joy. Small world, eh?

Danish Cookies: Bring Back Memories

Lunch was uneventful. Just ate some diniguan. Listened to some stories being shared. Juliana Palermo and Imbestigador were just some of the topics.

Java training came. We reviewed on Overloading methods with a Payroll System exercise.

Ruthie brought some danish cookies. She got it from Dax. I had 6 cookies!!! Sweet! These cookies, I remember, I used to enjoy when I was a kiddo.

Breaktime came. My friends and I went to DeliFrance. I got myself some canapes and OJ. We talked about fruits, Reema, and a few beauty tips. Weird! I found out that many fruits come from flower state first (like bananas).

Second batch of Java students came. Finished past 9 already. Tired.

Had adobo for dinner. Slept at 1 am.

Waltermart Moviehouse: A First

Woke up at 6:30. Went downstairs to have some coffee and pandesal. Continued my reading afterwards. Took a nap and woke up at 10. Just in time for mass.

This Sunday's sermon was about apostles being just regular people. And that we shouldn't feel unworthy because Jesus loves us no matter who we are or what we do.

Lunch was adobo (yummy), paksiw (yummy) and mangga't bagoong. I ate a lot!!!

After SOP, I headed back to Makati.

I sent my dirty clothes to the laundry downstairs. Also bought a ticket to "Meet the Fockers". Went back home to kill time by watching "Alias" and "Lost".

At 8, I had dinner at ChowKing. Then checked out the new Waltermart moviehouse. It's a small theatre. It still smells like new. We were like less than 20 in it. Nice hangout place.

Reunited with my Old Artworks

Woke up around 10 in the morning. Prepared the stuff that I'll bring to Bulacan with me. I plan to finish "The Alchemist" this weekend so I brought it. My next book is Stephen King's epic, "The Dark Tower". I read the first book before but will read it again.

Cooked brekky and watched some tv.

Left Makati around 4. I couldn't find my MRT card so I checked first how bad the line is for the tickets. It was really bad! So I hailed a cab. Traffic was good though.

When I reached Quezon Avenue, there was a short line for the FX. Not bad either. After two hours of traveling, I reached Bulacan.

Dad wasn't around. I ate first some junk food while waiting for him.

Around 8, he arrived. He cooked me some luncheon meat and eggs for dinner.

Finished "The Alchemist". What a great story! I highly recommend this book to everyone. Really loved it.

Watched tv and started my latest book, "The Gunslinger: The Dark Tower 1". Put down my book and decided to look for my missing artworks again.

After checking out every binder in the house, I finally saw them! I'm finally reunited with my old drawings. Was very ecstatic. Some of these artworks were created more than 10 years ago. Couldn't help but reminisce when I was drawing my pets and some characters from comicbooks I used to collect. Thank God I found them again.

Slept early.

A Visitation

4:00 am
With less than 4 hours of sleep, i awoke with a strange experience. Y'know that state between dream world and consciousness? I was having a dream that mom was beside me in bed and she called my name, "Dondon!". When I opened my eyes, I thought I saw a mysterious figure near me. I thought he was a thief. I inspected the figure closely by leaning forward and saw it moved, then it vanished.... This is not the first time I encountered such a thing. I remember when I was younger, I sensed a white figure near my bed in Bulacan. I also remember praying "The Lord's Prayer" to make it go away and it did.

6:04 am
Tried sleeping again but couldn't anymore. So I cooked brekky, watched the telly, washed the dishes afterwards, and took a bath. Afterwards, I tried my Knottyboy dreadwax for the first time. I wasn't sure how to apply it properly but I put on my dreads and roll them. Used my hairdryer to keep the locks in place. It smells good!

Lunch was just otay. The paksiw na pata wasn't smashin'.

3:33 pm
Either I need to catch some shuteye or an espresso will help me battle my sleepiness. Miget informed us that we're gonna have a short meeting at 4 pm. Hopefully, I'd still be awake at that time. I yawn every 23 seconds. And I couldn't focus on my presentation material.

Coffee's effect on me is very unpredictable. Sometimes when I get my caffeine intake, the more I get sleepy. This time though, it has done its purpose in life.

4:00 pm
Had a meeting with the HR group on Career Development Program. Am really interested to enroll in this.

Around 5:30, we're done. Got left behind by my group. They had their break at LKG. Bummer!

7:00 pm
Bought some danish downstairs and a corn on the cob.

8:00ish
We were planning to watch a movie but since Joey requested for a night of drinking, we went to Cable Car instead. Ogz and Boyette went with Mikks to fetch Claris and I went with Joey.
We were first to arrive at Cable Car. We parked at Renaissance Hotel. Mikks' car was just behind us. For a moment, we had difficulty finding the lift that would take us to the ground floor.

When we got inside the bar, Joey and I played billiards first. We got a nice spot, right beside the billiard table we're using. We ordered for pizza, onion rings, fries, buffalo wings, etc.

The goal of the night was to beat Joey. Boyette and Mikks tried too. Mikks won thrice. Even Lala (with her friend, Jao) who joined us later, won a game.

Ogz and I, as usual, made fun of the people who were singing at a nearby videoke session. They ought to hear us sing!!!

Around midnight, we called it a night. Mikks dropped me off at my place first. Bid goodbye to the gang.

The Don Balan is Mightier than the Sword!!!

Nothing major has happened yet. Had a not-so-good lunch. Ate some tempura that made my tummy ache =o( Bummer!

Our topics for today in our Java training were about passing of objects & primitive data types and overloading methods. Had some exercises too.

If you're wondering about my title, I got this cool link wherein a program would create a slogan out of your name. If you want, try it yourself:

http://thesurrealist.co.uk/slogan

It's fun!

After our all-hands meeting, Ogz, Mikks, and I had our coffee break at Starbucks. Since my tummy is actin up, I got myself some English Breakfast and apple cinnamon danish to go with it. Boyette joined us a few minoots later. We talked about our upcoming Bora trip. We also convinced Boyette to go with us. Later on, Netski joined us too. We requested for Cheetos and she bought two (out of our own money!).

Watched the latest episode of "The Amazing Race" before going home. My head was achin too.

At home, I didn't do any painting. Just watched "American Idol" season 4. Funny!

My Blog has Undergone a Makeover

Went to work on my Java training materials. Am still stuck in the topic of File I/O. Hopefully, I can make some progress by Friday.

Lunch came and we ate at the second floor. The couple who manage our favorite stall suggested I try out their diniguan. 'twas good. I bought some chocolates for dessert.

Miget and the whole HR group had a meeting on our functional objectives for 2005, plus we talked about the recent survey conducted on EPhil's performance. We talked about ways to improve work quality and stuff.

After our meeting, I went down to Starbucks and joined Mikks, Ogz, Eric, and Boyette. I brought my mug with me so I got a 5-buck discount on my hot choco. Ate my fave apple cinnamon again. The boys talked about movies and Jennifer Garner.

Left around 8 pm to join my brothers at Don Bosco. When I got there, I found Dennis (cell group leader) and the rest of my brothers waiting for me. I felt bad a bit because I thought I was the last one and they've been waiting for me for more than an hour. They told me that they're still waiting for some more members. Tee hee... A few minutes later, Randy arrived.

We started the fellowship with Algi and Dennis teaching us 3 songs that we're gonna sing for tonight: "Worship the Lord", "You are my Delight", and "O Send Fourth Your Light and Your Truth". Most of the songs were on a low key so I had to adjust.

Then we offer some prayers and thanksgiving.

After 30 minutes or so of prayer, we went to have dinner at ChowKing. There we shared our expectations and plans. Speaking of which, we're gonna meet again on Sunday morning for some catholicism at AFP camp. The time is at 7:30. Wish me luck!

On my way home, I approached one of the guards of Waltermart and inquired about the movie screening schedules. He told me that the last full show is at 8:55 pm. When I asked him about the ticket prices, he used his walkie-talkie (am so old school!) and asked his partner inside the building. After his brief chat, he answered, "100 bucks only". Sweet! Now, I've got another place for chillin'.

How do you like my new blogsite look? It took me hours to overhaul this. Tee hee... Got some inspirations from other blogsites.

When I got home, I continued my painting project. It's my first time to use the acrylic paint that I bought at National Bookstore. It's not the exact color as the one on the calendar sheet though. Oh well.... Here's what I worked on for tonight.

Finally Got Tickets

This morning, I submitted my training functional objectives to Miget. No feedback yet.

Finally got our tickets for the Valentine concert of Reg and Pops. After lunch, Ogz and I went to TicketWorld near our office. The tickets cost 1107 each and we got good seats. Aileen, the girl who assisted us, was accomodating.

Boyette got back from Cebu (?). He gave us some mango strips, which I ate with Noel this afternoon.

Am now updating my Java materials. Printed some handouts for tomorrow. Work! Work! Work!

At 8, I left the office and attended our SOLV prayer meeting in Don Bosco. When I got there, people were introducing the ministries which we could be involved in. After attending the crossroads retreat last August, I was determined to join the music ministry. In fact, I even attended one practice session ;o)

Afterwards, my brothers and I went to McDonald's to have dinner. Got myself some cheeseburger and fries. We discussed about the brotherhood which will happen on the 29th at Algi's house in Batangas. That would be fun!

Around 10, we called it a night. I went home and watched the latest episode of "24" and "Desperate Housewives". The former got me excited to watch the next while the latter never ceases to make me laugh!

Then I went back to my painting project. I focused on the lower left portion of the rug this time. And here is my work in progress...

Just Another Manic Monday

My day started with a bad tummy. Could be my too much peanut eating last night. Gross!

Had shower, dressed up, and went to work.

When I went to buy my brunch on the second floor, I found my barkada already done with their lunch. Bummer! Just bought tortang talong to satisfy my hunger.

On the way up to the second floor, I accidentally dropped my iPod. Good thing that it has a crystal case. But now, there's a crack near the top portion though. Bummer!

In our Java training, we discussed Arrays and started with Classes.

For my afternoon break, I tried the choco croissant and choco twirl @ Starbucks.

Updated my blog. This time, it contained links to my friend's blogs!

The second batch had their exam. Good thing, everyone passed ;o)

At 9:30, I joined Mikks and Ogz at Cable Car. Three slices of pizza were waiting for me. I ordered for pineapple juice. Around 11 pm, we decided to call it a night.

Back home, I continued my painting with my new brushes. I'd like to share with you what I've done so far. Tonight, I concentrated on the lower right portion of the rug. Wasn't easy at all!

Lazy Sunday Afternoon Vol. 1

It's Sunday once again. Woke up at 12:30. Missed SOP's opening number. When I checked it, Malik was singing already. It's time to cook my brunch. Since I had meat the day before, I cooked some boneless bangus. Unfortunately, there wasn't anyone to eat the belly so I just scrapped it.

After watching SOP, Reg had only one number (with Kyla), I continued my painting. To be precise, it's a paint-by-number calendar I bought at PowerBooks. I hope I wouldn't hear any more comments about my this. =oP This time, I concentrated on the rug portion. Y'see, it's supposed to be a painting of 2 cats lying on a rug by the window. I hope I can finish this by the end of the first quarter. Had difficulty with the rug portion because the design was intricate and I didn't have the proper brush. Bummer!

At 5:45, I heard mass at Don Bosco. The gospel was about Sto. Nino. The priest told us about the 3 virtues of a child: Simplicity, Obedience, and Trust in God, that we can apply in our lives.

Afterwards, I checked out National Bookstore--according to Tony I could get cheaper supplies there. Found out that they didn't have much acrylic colors but I could get 5 colors (the primary ones) for 500++ bucks. Not bad, eh? I also got myself 2 small brushes and an olive-colored acrylic paint. Each color costs 250 bucks. Searched around for more stuff and found out that they have canvasses for 130 bucks. Hmm... I got excited to start my "actual" painting!!! Maybe after my cat painting (yes, it's only a paint-by-number artwork), I'll start with a real project. Wish me luck!

Next and last stop was at PowerBooks. I looked for books to read after "The Alchemist". The urge to buy Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" series was sooooo high that I bought the first four novels. This is King's tribute to the LOTR series. Can't wait to start the saga of the gunslinger.

Had dinner at Evergreen. Had veggie meat wearing an adobo mask and some tofu. Before I couldn't eat mushrooms. But now, I love 'em. ;o)

Then it was time to head back home.

Around 11 pm, I got a surprise message from Chel. I was glad that she's online. She told me that they're planning to visit the outlet mall later today. No snow in Virginia though. She's also planning to visit her friend in Maryland. I joked about "Blair Witch Project". She wanted to say hi to the barkada too.

Not Going Anywhere

On the way home last night, I heard this song from Joey's car radio. I fell in love with it just like that. So I decided to use it as the title of my blog for today. In fact, am listening to it right now. Keren Ann's voice is lovely.

Woke up around noon today. First, I cleaned up my pad. Then I cooked brunch--bacon and eggs. I ordered for water.

Watched the latest episode of "Lost". For awhile I thought Shannen is really dead. Good thing, they finally showed what's behind the characters of Boone and his sister.

Around 3, I went to the penthouse and did my painting there. I concentrated on the background this time. After 2 and a half hours, I'm done with it. It was getting darker so I came back down to my pad.

Ate some noodles while watching "Pinoy Pop Superstar". Reg's dress in the opening was see through. Sweet!

At 10, I had dinner at Sinangag Express. I missed eating Longganisa Lucban so I had that. Yummy!

When I got back, I was full of energy that I decided to clean up my bathroom. Finished before midnight.

First Pay Period for 2005

Immediately after I setup my laptop, Ogz, Raz, Beng and I went to UCPB for our salary withdrawal. It took awhile to claim our dollars because the tellers were preoccupied. We almost expressed our boredom to our Tita (who collects a lot of trolls) at the bank.

Anyhoo, we proceeded to Sanry's. The exchange rate was 55.90. Bummer! After collecting our peso bills, Beng and I met Mikks for lunch. Ogz and Raz had to meet with Alistair for their post-Christmas lunch party.

At Goldilocks, I ordered Bangus Belly Sinigang. Mikks tried it too, plus laing. Beng had some diniguan. While chatting over lunch, we were surprised by Jeff. He later joined us for lunch. He revealed a very interesting news to us but I won't share it here ;oP

When I got back to the office, I went to Allied Bank to pay for my condo rent.

I've updated my 2005 training plan. Talked to Eric and Vee about their training requirements. I still need to chat with Mimi, Alistair, and Dennis next week.

Ning also gave me an application form for HSBC credit card. Here I am again applying for another credit card. Wish me luck!

Breaktime came and the barkada went to Country Style. Finding no appetite for bagels, we decided to check out Hen Lin instead. Mysteriously, Netski disappeared. Hmmm....

Chel is leaving for the US tomorrow so we needed to celebrate it. We considered going to Bistro 110, along Carlos Palanca. When we got there, Chel suggested to have her party at Greenbelt 1 instead.

We had chicken and pizza at Shakey's. Lala, Ogz, and Joey had some beer but I resisted the urge to have some alcohol. Instead, I drank some soda. Food was otay except for the pale-looking Manager's Choice. It looked like something from 3M's.

While finishing our meal, we had some surprise guests: Cathy appeared with some guy from work and Arlyn!!! I was really happy to see her there. Offered her some catsup even. Teehee. Unfortunately, she cannot stay any longer.

Then it's time to say bye-bye to Chel. Before her cab left, I planted a kiss on her right cheek! ;oP

Went back to the office and updated this blog with a big smile on ma face ;oD

It's "Forever In My Heart"'s last episode. When I checked my recording, I found out that I didn't record everything. After watching what I just recorded, Angeline's soulmate is really Michael. And Michael died in the soap but was reincarnated as Angeline's son.

Blogspot Craze

I have a training today so I woke up around 11:30 am. I tried my latest knottyboy shampoo bar. It smelled really nice. So far, my scalp isn't itching yet so that's a good sign. ;o)

I met Jojo, our new EPhil tech lead, and presented him our software. He seems nice and barkada-ish. He knows Calen from his previous company.

After finding out about blogspot, the whole gang jumped immediately on the bandwagon. Lala wrote her latest mountain hike, Joey shared something from last December's dinner with Trixie, and Ogz talked about out escapade yesterday--a lunch at Josephine's with the gang in Tagaytay.

The technical support was given an exam and we discussed their answers afterwards. After the first batch of support, we had our break. Most of the people were busy so only Lala and I had one. She bought some banana-que and I had spaghetti. Later on, Joey and Mommy Butch joined us for some interesting chat which left us all feeling bumbed out.

The second batch of support couldn't make it to our Java training. We had it rescheduled on Monday next week.

Am now officially bitten by the blog bug!

Reunion with Trixie at Josephine's

After more than a year, our barkada was reunited when Trixie spent her holidays with us. She paid us a visit today at the office. To make it more special, we decided to have lunch in Tagaytay. Before leaving, Trix handed my Knotty Boy products. Sweet! I finally got my knotty stuff. Am so excited to use it!!!

We're 10 in the group. The group of Joey (with Lala, Chel, and Beng) left in his car. The rest went with Mikks in his pickup. We were supposed to leave at 10:30 but we left past 11 am already--all because of Lala. And to think the night before, she joked that she won't be the cause of delay this time. Her migraine was her excuse *rolling my eyes now*

En route to Josephine's, Joey wasn't being a good convoy lead (don't tell him I said that ;oP ). He kept on driving away. That challenged Mikks to drive faster. Everytime he overtakes another vehicle, all of us in the pickup truck screams like kids on a rollercoaster.

Finally we arrived at Josephine's before 1. We looked for a nice outdoor spot to eat. While waiting for our food--with Ogz in charge of ordering--we started taking pictures. Our plan was to have Ogz as our human tripod, as his punishment for forgetting his tripod and cam'ra. But it was Raz and Netski who took our pictures mostly.

Food came and boy, it was good! Ogz ordered bulalo and sinigang na hipon for our soup, his ever favorite oysters (only one for each hungry soul), pakbet, rellenong bangus (Trix had this dish for about a year so she didn't even touch it), tawilis (crunchy and yummy), and Mikks' request--crispy pata. My barkada won't let me have any of the last dish. Bummer!

After our sumptuous lunch, we couldn't leave Tagaytay without taking our pictures with the volcano. The group had so much fun with Raz's new digital camera. The pictures that you see here all came from her. Standby for the pictures from Mikks'

On our way home, we grabbed some coffee at Starbucks. Ogz finally claimed his free planner.

And then we got lost! We noticed that the route we're taking wasn't familiar anymore so we went back. That's when I saw the Good Shepherd store--where the infamous Angel Cookies can be bought. I told my barkada that the cookies are made of hosts leftover. We didn't get one though =o(

The ride back to the office would have been quicker if not for a piece of road being constructed somewhere near Alabang. After passing the construction site, it was otay. We even had a short race with another vehicle.

We got back to Enterworks around 4 pm. I kissed Trixie goodbye. My meeting with Miget and Ning didn't push through. And later in the evening, I got some goodies from Trixie--beef jerky, toblerone, a cute moose keychain, and a magnet with Canada's famous leaf.