Here Comes Tagalog Audibles

When Beng told me about the Tagalog audibles in yahoo messenger last night, I quickly became interested. I inspected my version but found no Tagalog audibles. So I did my research. I had to install the international version so I could play audibles like, "Korek Ka Dyan" (sooo gay), "Hello... ok ka lang?", and "Ang cute-cute mo talaga". It looks like the team behind this messenger doesn't know how a typical Filipino looks like. The icons are generic. The voice sounds bad too.

Always Click on Save

Bills payment day today. I paid 5K on my credit card. Paid Kendz my Friday gimmick debt. I also went to SM to pay for my electric and cellphone bills. And finally I know now how to pay Meralco bills using my EON UnionBank account. I don't need to go to SM next time... er, except when I need to pay for my cellphone. Ugh! UnionBank seriously needs to enhance their online banking facilities. It's not that informative compared to BPI. Speaking of which, I might open one soon (otay, I ate my word) for I haven't seen any online banking as complete as BPI's. That's my assignment next payday.

I'm now backing up my stuff. I need to reformat my laptop for I'm getting these weird errors and viruses. Plus, there are so many leftovers from all the games and applications I've installed and gotten rid of.

Lost and All Alone

"Lost" has got to be the best teevee show when it comes to character development and story telling.

For the season finale, they introduced new characters again. We got to see Desmond and his life. His girlfriend would play a big role in the next season, I think. So good to be rich & powerful, eh?

What about the Others? We now know that Henry Gale acts like the leader of the group, not the Moses look-alike.

Question for the Others: Why pick the main characters: Jack, Kate, and Sawyer? What's the common denominator? I have no idea.

Finally, we found out that it's not pointless to punch those numbers (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, & 42)either. Some electromagnetic mumjo-jumbo. I hope everything's otay with Locke, Eko, and Desmond.

As for the father-son team, I don't think they would leave the island without Vincent (in reality is a female dog named Madison).

Money Ain't an Issue...

When you've got plastic! It's still days before payday and it sucks! We wanted to enjoy our Friday night but we have no moulah. Kendz saved the day. She offered us her credit card. We're more than happy to oblige ;oP

First stop was dinner at Max's, Greenbelt 1. We (Nikks, Kendz, Ning, Mike, and I) ordered kare-kare and one whole chicken. Filling indeed. Ning was super kulit. She still wanted to order Crispy Pata but the food was already enuff for us. She also wanted to order 5 pitchers of water instead of just glasses.

Second stop was Cena. There's a band that night and they entertained us with songs like "All I Wanna Do", "I'm Like a Bird", and my favorite, "Buses & Trains". The lead singer has a husky voice. According to Kendz, "maputi ang kili-kili nya". We ordered our favorites, frozen gin pomelo, frozen zombie, and frozen dalandan margarita.

Third and final stop was at Vodka Ice Bar. The guy at the door knows me already. He guided us to a table.

It's fun to be dancing again. Nikks, Ning, and Kendz are great dancers. Lots of women in da club but somehow we're the only ones having a great time dancing ;oP

My First Visit to the Mall of Asia

After lunch today, I checked out the Mall of Asia. Since I'd be doing a lot of walking, I made sure that I put on my comfy Adidas shoes.

I took the MRT to the nearest station (Taft). There's a jeepney barker right at the base of the MRT shouting "Mall of Asia". How convenient! Paid the 7.50 peso fare and enjoyed the short ride. After a few minoots, I saw a big globe and a huge mall. Got excited!

First reaction? F*%#! Filipinos really love malls, especially SM malls. The place is packed! Remind me not to come here with a headache.

There's a band entertaining the people outside. I entered the right wing and was greeted right away with the mall directory. Found out that there are only two floors. That is great for my feet. My goal today is to try the IMAX so I quickly searched for it in the directory. It's on the second floor near the cinemas so I went upstairs.

Found the movie ticket booth, MovieTime, and waited in line (having second thoughts now because of the long lines). After some time, a guy approached the person in front of me and asked what he wanted to watch. I guess with the throng of people, management decided to hire some helpers. I asked him if I could buy my IMAX ticket here. He told me that they have an exclusive ticket booth downstairs. Kill me now!

While looking for the IMAX ticket booth, I saw Chris, Jhie's boyfriend. Asked him where I could find IMAX. Following his advice, I finally found it. I asked the counterlady what's being shown. She gave me two choices: "Everest" and "NASCAR". Already saw "Everest" years ago so I bought a 200-peso ticket to the car racing movie. It's freaking 3D too! Screening time is at 6:30 and the last is at 9:30. Chose the earlier schedule. Upcoming movies are "T-Rex", "Deep Sea 3D", and "Superman Returns". TTOW!

Otay, it's time to check out the mall. In Minneapolis' "Mall of America", I wasn't able to check out the entire mall. This looks easy to me. Some shops like Kenneth Cole and CK Jeans will be open by next month. I saw the ever familiar fastfood chains, Jollibee, Wendys, KFC, ChowKing, Greenwich, and Pizza Hut on the ground floor. I haven't tried the Bistro menu of Pizza Hut yet so I made a mental note to have dinner there later. I found the Food Court on the second floor and when I looked down below, there's an ice skating rink.

For the bookworms out there, this is the only place where you can find all three book shops: National Bookstore, Fully Booked, and Powerbooks.

In MegaMall, if nature is calling, y'have to go to either end to relieve yourself. It ain't a problem here anymore, restrooms are available in just about every corner.

There's also a section where they didn't install airconditioning system. Instead, you'll get fresh sea breeze from the nearby bay.

Around 5, I decided to have my din-dins. There's a lot of people waiting so I put myself in the reservation list. When they found out that I'm eating alone, they offered a special section... at the bar. I told 'em I need a table.

After 15 minoots of waiting, I noticed that tables of 2 were being given out. Hmmm... I couldn't let this happen in front of me so I talked to the guy at the door and complained. Obviously, they didn't want irked customers so one lady helped and found me a table. She also got my orders. If the food here ain't great, I would walk out.

And so my food arrived. The verdict: Yummy. I ordered Sausage Rigatoni and BBQ Ribs. Highly recommended. I also got a free coupon for a minimum food purchase of 350++ ;oP

At 6, I paid my bill. I first used plastic to pay but they only accept cash. Bummer! I only have 500 bucks left. Good thing, I already bought my movie ticket.

Let's talk about the IMAX experience. Since the movie is shown in 3D, we were given glasses. I was expecting the old school red-and-blue-lens type but they handed out a better looking one. When I went inside the theatre, I was guided to my almost-center seat (24H). A lot of activities happened right away: people trying out the glasses and taking souvenir pictures.

Before the movie started, they showed a teaser of the animated film, "Happy Feet". The dancing penguin was adorable. "T-Rex" and "Deep Sea 3D" teasers were shown too. The in-your-face T-Rex was enuff to make you go see it. I could hear the oohs and aahs. The old guy to my right showed his amazement by his multiple "Wows". The guy to my left was trying to reach out and touch the image. Creepies.

The reason why I enjoyed this movie is that I learned a lotta new things. The engineering involved in designing the race cars. The cockpit view was amazing. Roaring engines. The fans! The blood, sweat and tears involved in every race. As a bonus, a familiar voice narrated the film: Kiefer Sutherland. My friend, Sherwin, will love this film.

After almost an hour, the movie ended. I wanna scream, "mooooore!" but typically IMAX movies are short. I would have continued my mall investigation but the sky was flashing. Didn't bring any jacket with me.

There's a jeepney line taking people to MRT. I took it again. At the MRT, management decided not to let people in because of technical difficulties. I pay the government and this is what I get. Crap!

Mission: Mall of Asia

Tomorrow, I plan to check out this latest & biggest mall in the Philippines. Kendz already told me about the directions on how to get there. I hope I won't get lost ;oP

I also plan to watch the featured presentation in their IMAX theatre. A few years ago, I saw my first ("Everest") at Navy Pier in Chicago. Loved the experience. Hopefully, it's just the same. Can't wait to see "Superman Returns" here!!!

The Culprit

This bastard gave me 2 sleepless nights.

Two guys from Condura (airconditioning company) arrived today to clean my unit and replace the capacitor. Paid them 900, all in all (check-up fee, labor, and the replacement).

I was advised to have it cleaned quarterly. They told me about the 1500 annual fee that would entitle me to 4 cleaning services. Not bad, eh?

I also asked the representative yesterday how to use the timer. I've had this airconditioner for 3 years now and it's about time that I use the timer feature. It lets me turn the aircon on and off automatically. TTOW!!!

You'll Be Missed, Syd!

* Spoiler Warning *

In the last few episodes of "Alias" (another J.J. Abrams creation), many old characters reappeared:

Francie - the room mate of Sydney from season one.

Will Tippin - I love seeing Will and Sydney together. I miss his character in the show.

Julian Sark - this guy reminds me of Jeremy from the "Amazing Race" season 9.

Michael Vaughn - When I watched the first few minoots of the finale, I was like, "WTF! Why is this guy alive?!" Turned out that I missed a few more episodes so I backtracked. I think the ratings of the show suffered when they killed Vaughn's character so they brought him back ;oP

Now, for the not-so-good parts:

Anna Espinosa looking and sounding like Sydney. C'mon!!!

Nadia, with her death scar intact, coming back as a ghost that haunts Sloane and always accompanied by a freaking windy sound effect.

I like that they showed how Syd started from SD6. The fight scenes between Syd & Anna and Syd & her mom, Irina Derevko, were great. When Anna (looking like Syd) and Vaughn were fighting, "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" came to mind.

Sydney was B-E-A-utiful in the last scene.

I will miss Sydney's costumes, role playings, and bawling. Oh, and Marshall too. Now that it's all over, is there any chance that Marshall could crossover to CTU and be introduced to Chloe? =oP

Soul Patrol

I'm so freakin' happy that Taylor Hicks won. But I guess it's already expected. Those damn Simon Cowell predictions!

Some stuff I noticed:

Kelly Pickler gained a few pounds and is now sporting a shorter hair. Watching her "eating" her first snail was priceless. Thought I was watching "Fear Factor".

What's freakin' wrong with Meatloaf? Thought he's having a seizure. Good thing McPhee was such a beauty! I almost turned off my telly.

I'm so proud of my boy, Yamin. In his number, he was very good singing solo but he was eaten alive when Mary J. Blige entered the scene though.

I salute AI for bringing back Burt Bacharach. I think that's their best episode ever. Lisa Tucker was as classy as ever in her "Alfie" number. Elliott really shone in his.

What about Prince's performance? Hmmm... I've never seen him perform before but Bo Bice would have made more impact ;oP Maybe next year.

Did you, guys, catch Katharine trying to peek inside the envelope when the new AI was about to be announced? =oP

I like "Do I Make You Proud?" single of Hicks. Fantasia's "I Believe" is still my favorite.

It's fun to see the auditions again. Will the Philippine Idol auditions be as krezy as their US counterpart?

X-Men: The Last Stand (Lacks Punch)

Since there wasn't AI last night*, I thought of watching "X-Men" instead. Plus, not having a 100%-working airconditioner sucks!

If you haven't seen the movie yet, don't read further anymore.

Of course, it's fun to see the characters we all came to love: Wolverine, Jean Grey/Phoenix, Storm (with a new stylish haircut), Cyclops (albeit cut short), Prof. X, and Magneto.

The introduction of Beast in the movie triggered my vertigo.

I like the new character, Angel (Ben Foster), but they didn't use him much. He's so good at HBO's "Six Feet Under" as Claire's gay boyfriend.

I like that they showed the friendship between Magneto and Professor X. There's a surprise ending on Magneto during the last frame so never leave the theatre until the fat lady sings. Actually, some people already left last night even before the movie ended. After reading some reviews, I found out that there's still something I missed. It was shown after the credits. Crap!

The highlights for me: Jean Grey's house makeover scene (too intense!) and seeing Mystique turning into a human being =oP

I think the problem is, I expected so much from this third (& final?) installment.

* found out later from Nikks that there was AI and it's Performance Night. Bummer! I missed it.

A New Balan Baby

I just got a text message from Kuya. I'm gonna have a third pamangkin ;oP

Till We Meet Again

Just saw season finales of two of my favorite tv series: "24" and "Desperate Housewives".

Am glad that President Logan finally got what he deserved. The bug idea was kinda predictable though. It would've been great if Jack shot the Prez in his pie hole ;oP

There's a new character too, the ex- of Chloe who talks too much.

Looks like Phil Buchanan has found a new love in Karen.

The photo of Edgar & Chloe got me a bit teary-eyed.

As for the desperate housewives, it was great that they finally presented Mary Alice. Old cast members made some surprise comeback appearances: Rex (complete with a bad wig), the kid version of Andrew looks just like him, psycho George, and the girls' favorite, John (Jesse Metcalfe).

Whenever I see Bree (Marcia Cross), she becomes more beautiful than ever. She's very pleasing to me eyes!

Uhm, Matthew, leaving that jacket on a dead girl was plain stupidity. Duh!

I miss the twins so it's great to see 'em again.

Next season, we'll be seeing more of Kyle Maclachlan's character and they'll probably explain why he hates Mike so much (could be linked to the woman Kyle visits at the hospital).

Is it just me or is Zach Young (Cody Kasch) a deadringer of Mark Aragona?

Another Training

Started a new one today with only one participant named Hung, Philip Hung ;oP Am glad that Support took over the training of the OJT peeps. I didn't have to wake up early anymore. Actually, waking up early ain't my problem. It's sleeping that's an issue right now. Ever since I started medication, I've been having problems with sleep. Crap!

Let's Twist Again

Am fond of movies where the hero finds himself in a tight situation, because of mistaken identity or simply being at the wrong place at the wrong time. And with the help of friends or some strange forces, he gets to come out of it unscathed and happy and/or rich. Whoopeee!

"Lucky Number Slevin" stars Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsley (SIR Ben Kingsley, I should say), Stanley Tucci, Bruce Willis, Lucy Liu, and Josh Hartnett.

I love Lucy's perkiness. As for Josh, I seldom watch his movies but I like his performance here. With his handsome face, he seems to be out of place but it worked to his advantage though. I trust fully Bruce Willis' judgment when it comes to movies. He definitely knows what a good script is.

Watch out for the chess scene. That's my favorite.

There should be a counter as to how many times Josh received a blow to his stomach.

Cinematography was good. Camera shots through glass coffee table, eyeglasses of a dying man, and plastic bags. Sweet!

A must-see movie.

The Hi & Lo of Televi-shun

Let's start with the bad news. My boy, Yamin, is out of "American Idol". With his lousy performance last week, I had no doubt that he's leaving the show. According to his phone interview with Ryan Seacrest, "there's no bitterness". Oh well, I'm now rooting for my second favorite: Taylor Hicks. Soul Patrol!

On to the best news ever. My favorite team, the Hippies (BJ & Tyler), won the "Amazing Race" grand prize. Imagine they almost got eliminated twice! I just love their humor. I was worried because there were times when these two fun-loving creatures acted like they were not in a race. They still found time to entertain the people they met and helped some too. I was extremely happy when they ran to the finish line. I must have shouted, "Oh my god!" a gazillion times. TTOW!!! Wiped my tears too... Teehee...

I really thought that Eric & Jeremy would be the winner. Well, they've dominated the race most of the time so they're not really losers after all. And if it's any consolation, they've hit it off too with the Double Ds. I will miss Jeremy's "We just want you to go rapiddoooooo!"

It's good to know that after the race, these guys became friends. Check out this funny photo (you can tell that the guys are hammered):

Play It Again, Sam

Yesterday, I watched "The Da Vinci Code" once more. Many thanks to Beng. She got these free tickets from one of our headhunters.

When we got to Greenbelt 3 (with Gentley & OJ in tow), we were greeted by the organizers. The two guys went to their 8:50 screening of the same movie. They also got their free tickets, courtesy of Randy. Otay, back to us. After signing up, we went inside this room where a few people were already eating and mingling around. Beng met her friend and we were guided to a corner table. Beng and I quickly ordered our drinks--shangria. I then checked out the buffet table. I grabbed some sandwiches and finger foods. Had two helpings before we were called to enter the viewing room.

We're the first one to enter the room. I wasn't expecting a theatre of 50-people capacity. Felt really special. I was telling Beng that if I were to show my own movie, I will have it viewed in a place like this.

Before the movie started, the owner of the company gave a small talk and awarded some people (early bird, raffle winner, and the contest winner). About the contest, we were given a questionnaire about the movie. The competitive in me was hoping to win since I called some friends (thanks to Tabel and Joy) to verify my answers. Unfortunately, cheating doesn't always guarantee a prize. Crap.

What's a movie without popcorn and soda, eh? The organizers completed our movie watching experience ;oP The only unforeseen event was the cold temperature inside the theatre. Man, my balls froze in there!

The audience this time wasn't as responsive as the previous day. I caught Beng reacting to the shocking parts of the movie ;oP

I'm really, really glad I came to this special event. Thanks, Beng!

Getting That Good Discount

After having lunch at Yoshinoya, I checked out an Italian store in Park Square. There's this shirt that I've been eyeing for the longest time. Today, I got lucky. From its almost 7K price (told ya I can't afford it then), it was given a 70% discount. Me eyes lit up! This shirt is meant for me ;oP Patience is really a virtue. The lady at the shop told me it's the last piece even. Whooopeee!

The Da Vinci Code

It's been awhile since I last read the book. I forgot all the details already. So watching the movie today was like watching it with fresh set of eyes (& mind).

Am quite impressed with the cast. I like watching the character of Paul Bettany, Silas, on the big screen. He's got this magnetic presence. Everytime I see Alfred Molina, his Dr. Octopus character comes to mind though. Ian McKellen was great, as expected.

Ron Howard used a lot of ghostly flashbacks. There's one scene that showed Silas dipping his fingers on the holy water. I really like that shot. Also, there were a lot of funny side comments from the main characters.

They added a scene in the movie that would sorta balance it out. And never forget, it's just a freakin' movie. Faith shouldn't get affected by watching a FICTIONAL film. I really don't understand the uproar.

After the movie, 4 people from the audience (from different sections) clapped. It was funny because nobody followed after them. I feel sorry for them ;oP

Another Visit to Makati Med

Last night, it started to hurt when I pee. So after lunch today, I went to Makati Med emergency room. Dr. Ryan Perez took care of me. He gave me some medicines (Ofloxacin & Mefenamic Acid) and advised me to call him at 3 for the results of my urinalysis. I hope that everything's ok.

I noticed in the receipt that I paid 392 to a certain Dr. Ananias Cornejo--eventhough this doctor didn't attend to my sickness. Interesting.

Oh, I'm also sporting a red bracelet from ER.

Caregiver for a Day

One of the things that I like to do when I visit my mom at her work place is I feed them kids. In return, they massage & tickle my feet and pull out my gray hair.

Last Sunday, I spent some time with the kids. I distributed their food. They had pork sinigang for lunch. It's nice that they say grace before meals. I kept telling them to finish everything. Some kids didn't like the chunky pork fat. I asked around who wanted it and gave them the unwanted portion. There was a small kid named Jopet whom I spoonfed.

Since I brought my laptop with me, some of the older kids watched "Scary Movie 4" with me.

Before I left, I taught them how to dance the Igorot way. I've done some Igorot dancing in the ole days so that helped ;oP

These kids, by the way, are either: (a) abandoned, (b) neglected, (c) orphaned, or (d) pulled out from the streets. It's nice that a government facility gives them education, food, clothing, and a chance to have a normal decent life. A lot of foreigners have already taken care of these kids. In some cases, the original parents take them back.

Earl's the Best

Am not sure if the latest episode of "My Name is Earl" is the season finale but it was a good episode. They showed how Earl got the winning ticket. Eventhough sumpthin happened that made him give the money away, he still didn't stop from doin good.

I think most of the tv shows will end their season in the next two weeks. Too bad =o(

Good thing that it's the movie blockbuster season! I haven't seen "M:I:3" yet. I heard it ain't doin' good at the box office. "Poseidon" was good. Next in line are "Da Vinci Code" and "X-Men: The Last Stand". Ta-taoooo!!!

Back at One

After a week of testing our product, I am back now to training. I only have one participant though. This will last for a week.

I hope I get better soon. The week-long rest did my voice good but I still don't have my singing voice back. I feel sorry for Nikks 'cause she could sometimes hear me vocalizing when I pass through the lobby. But it ain't just there yet. I sometimes sound like the old lady from the 80's sitcom, Chicks to Chicks.

Grandma's Boy

I enjoy every Adam Sandler film. I especially love "Big Daddy" and "50 First Dates". I also try to see movies from his production company, Happy Madison. This weekend, I saw "Grandma's Boy".

Alex (played by Allen Covert, who happens to be one of the producers & writers as well) works at this company that designs computer games. How cool is that! I love their office. Their breaks are normally spent challenging one another to different video games.

If you're familiar with Sandler's films, you'd notice some of his friends doing cameos or acting side-by-side with the leads, like Peter Dante (Associate Producer, who also showed more than his acting skills), David Spade, and Rob Schneider.

The beginning credits are really cool. The three golden girls are so adorable. I haven't seen any episode of "Everybody Loves Raymond" but Doris Roberts would really be a cool grandma to have.

One interesting character in the movie is JP (Joel David Moore).

I love the party scene. Thing to watch out for is Linda Cardellini's version of Salt N Pepa's "Push It".

Kane's wheels are the bomb!

Noticed that in one scene, the monkey is dressed in orange tank top. In the next scene, Dante's wearing the same top.

Friday Gimmick

Tabel, Bulilit, Nikks and I watched the latest Hollywood version of "Poseidon" last Friday. It's been awhile since my friends and I went out for a Friday gimmick. So good to be out getting fresh night cold air.

We bought our tickets first before we had our dinner at Food Choices. I even saw my cousin, Dennis, having a discussion with his friends.

When we went inside the theatre a few minoots before the movie started, it was 97% full. Nikks had to rush to get our seats. Good thing she was quick. She sat down right away and the girl, who was also rushing to get the same seat, just stood there shocked. She was a second too late. Boohoo.

Otay, let's talk about the movie. Josh Lucas played the hero. Quite good at it. I was looking for a fat lady but sadly, they didn't reprise her role. A lot of familiar faces in the cast: Freddie Rodriguez (Rico from "Six Feet Under"), Mia Maestro (Nadia from "Alias"), and Kevin Dillon (Drama from "Entourage").

When the in-house performer was called in, I didn't expect Fergie from Black Eyed Peas to appear. I was hoping her other group mates would come out any second and perform "Pump It". Teehee. Thought she would sing, "Morning After".

Some changes in the movie. There's a younger couple played by the girl from "Phantom of the Opera", Emmy Rossum, and some unknown guy. This unknown guy is the "swimmer" in the group. The role that used to be Shelly Winters'.

The youngest cast member didn't have an older sister. Instead, he has a hot mama (Lucas' love interest).

Richard Dreyfuss played the bachelor, this time. Instead of falling in love with the performer (who decided to stick it out with the captain), he fell for Elena (@@@@). Why do I get the feeling it's forced? Didn't see the connection at all.

I'm not convinced of Mia's performance as a damsel in distress. Too much Alias, I guess.

I think my favorite scene is the vent scene. Not for the claustrophic fans out there. Who would've thought that a simple cross pendant could do the trick?

It's a fast paced movie. One action scene after another. Not much time for character development. I like how they showed the boat's wicked amenities during the first few minoots of the film. I'm also happy that I was able to see the original so I could compare both.

After the movie, we (minus Bulilit, as always) joined our friends, Beng & Paul, at Cena. While walking towards Cena, Tabel and Nikks were role playing. It was hilarious. Can't reveal what the storyline was about.

We ordered frozen zombie and GinPo. The latter was too sweet but good. We had two of those. A must try.

We spotted Carlo's (Joy's ex, ladies & gentlemen) group in the crowd. He's with Eric, an ex-Enterworks.

Around 1 am, we decided to dance a bit at Vodka Bar. The guy at the door and the lady by the restrooms still recognize me. It's funny that the place was deserted. That didn't stop us from shaking our booties though. I love dancing with Beng and Nikks. They really move to the groove.


Later on, Carlo's group was just a table away. One of their friends danced with Nikks.
Around 2 am, the waitress asked what my order is. I told her, "Light". Instead of just one bottle, she gave me two. Turned out that at 2 in the morning, it's buy-one-take-one beer. Sweet!

Before 3, we left the place. The ladies and I grabbed a bite first at Goodah. I was craving for noodles but instead I had a combo meal (longanisa, tapa, shanghai, and an egg). Beng gobbled her goto. Boy, she was hungry too.

Cravin for Ice Cream Cake

Years back, my evil twin sister, Joy, and I bought an ice cream cake for my birthday. I haven't eaten one since that day. Now, I'm cravin for a goooood ice cream cake. Any ideas?

Daughtry is Out

Not too happy with the outcome of tonight's "American Idol". When I saw Table's yahoo message, I got scared. I thought my boy, Yamin, is leavin the show. Obviously, Katharine was uneasy throughout the show. Maybe she thought she's a goner. That's what I thought too. She didn't give a good performance. Quite pitchy. I sure wish it's Taylor and Yamin at the Finals. I want a male Idol, this time.

The Poseidon Adventure

Told me-self that I won't watch the latest Hollywood version of "Poseidon" until I watch again the 1972 version. As far as I can remember, there's this fat lady who swam and rescued her fellow passengers. Oh, and there's the Oscar-winning theme song, "Morning After", playing in my head now.

Special thanks to Kendz, I was able to watch the original version tonight. While I was looking at the credits, I was surprised to see Leslie Nielsen ("Naked Gun 33 1/3") there. He played El Capitan.

Screaming came at the 28-minoot mark.

Let's play a game. If I were to direct Enterworks version of the movie, here is my cast: Reverend Scott (Gene Hackman) would be played by Sherwin. Since he's still fresh from his leadership stint at Puerto Galera outing, he'll be perfect for the role. The grumpy policeman, Rogo (Ernest Borgnine), will be played by Ogz. His "pambabara" would come in handy. Linda, the ex-prostitute, will be played by Beng. No questions asked. The singer will be played by Tabel. Performance level, all the time. I'm the understudy (I still don't have my singing voice). The bachelor will be played by Earl. Acres, the sidekick, will be played by either Candy or Olive. The kids will be played by Nikks and Rey. Instead of fighting, they'll deliver the punchlines. Of course, the Rosen couple would be played by Joy and Franco, who else?

Now, I need a casting call for the rest ;oP

Nestle Commercial

My friend, Alwyn, has way too much time on his hands ;oP

I am a Tester

When my boss talked to me about being a tester for a week, I thought, "Hmmm, here we go again." I remember starting the EPX testing way back in 2000-2001. Life was simpler then. After testing, we'd go to Nike sale just around the corner. Teehee. I also remember working with Glenn. He's very good at finding bugs. I love finding bugs myself. But this time, it's different. There are lotsa new features that I haven't seen yet. This would be an interesting week for me.

It's also a blessing in disguise. I get to rest my voice. Talking for a whole day ain't an easy task. I miss my voice *sob*

Enterworks Summer Outing '06 (Day Two)

Ogz woke me up at 7:30 for our brekky. This time, I enjoyed our food. Longganisa and scrambled eggs. What strange is there's nobody serving the food! They give such small servings that it's freakin ridiculous. The admin must have heard our complaints.

Afterwards, we headed to the beach. Too bad, Alistair wasn't around to take our photos. Am excited to see his shots from yesterday!

Around 10, we went back to the pool for a rematch. We had to get Nikki & Rudy to join our team. They were a good addition, I must say. We won the game. Yay! I tried being a goalie this time. But Rey was kicking my ass with his hook shots. Oh, man!


We didn't finish the championship game though but the other team was ahead by 2 points. We were advised to checkout already. Left our rooms around noon. When we're about to leave, we were told that the boat was delayed. A lotta time to kill so some people decided to take pictures while others tried to take a nap.


While I was trying to sleep, I got a message from Ogz. They're playing poker upstairs. I was still sleepy so I joined Nikks and Beng in bed. SOP was on and I got to see Regine singing. Talk about right timing!

We had our group pictures taken before leaving Marco Vincent. Had to squeeze in so that everyone could be seen in the picture.


While waiting for the boat to get near the shore, I talked to some guys giving tattoo service. We talked about dreads. One guy even confessed that he regretted having it cut.

When I saw Alistair taking some pictures again, I gave him a sign so that he could take one last photo of me with Nikks. Beng wanted in so Nikks grabbed her too.

We reached Batangas around 5. Sherwin divided us into 2 groups: those getting dropped off at certain places should go with him while the rest will have an express ride to Makati. I chose the latter.

En route to Makati, we stopped over at some store to get pasalubong. I bought mom and dad some delicacies. We also watched the concert of the King of Pop but the bus company representative had to stop it 'cause of poor quality. The movie just quit playing. Teehee.

Around 8, we reached Makati. Ogz, Tabel, Earl, Candy, and I had dinner at Max's. I delivered my pasalubong to my mom in Quezon City. I miss her so much. Thanks to Candy for dropping me off at SM ;oP

Enterworks Summer Outing '06 (Day One)

This is the first time that I will go to an outing with reservations. For the past few days, I have been feeling sick. In fact, I lost my voice already. I actually thought of not going because I need to rest. But anyhoo, since this is an all-expense paid summer event and I get to have fun with my co-workers, I forced myself to wake up with only 2 hours of sleep.

One of the buses, courtesy of Marco Vincent (the resort in Puerto Galera), that took us to Batangas Pier was pretty cool. There's an area at the back where passengers are seated in a U-shape formation with a table at the center. Some people decided to play poker but it ended early because of the jerky movements.

I wasn't sleepy yet so I tried watching the Live 8 concert performances being shown. When Madonna performed, we all took a-watchin'. She sang "Ray of Light", "Music", and "Like a Prayer". Table got inspired with Maddy's performances that she planned to sing her songs later tonight.

After more than 2 hours, we reached Batangas Pier. My gawd, the people at the pier gave me headache! The boat was quite small for all the people they put in there. I was uncomfortable the whole boat ride to Puerto Galera. There was a good 10 minutes when rains poured too. I thought, "Oh no! Is this a good sign or what?!"

We reached White Beach around 9. There were so many people swimming. So Quiapo-ish. Eek! I made a joke to Earl, "Is this Bora?" It sure looks NOT! I was telling Dennis M. when we were walking towards our resort that it felt like I lost in a contest challenge. Last week only, I was in Boracay with my friends--peaceful, white sand, lovely people. Now, I'm in Puerto Galera. Oh well, this is free. I'll make the most out of it.


Marco Vincent Resort is quite good (you were right, Franco). We were given welcome drinks, minus the ice. The lobby is airconditioned. They have a good-sized pool. We were to stay at Room 304 but it won't be available till after lunch. We placed our stuff in a temporary room.


We quickly changed into our bathing suits, put some tanning lotion (in my case), and headed to the beach.


The place was full of people getting their tan and/or massage and checking out the opposite or same sex ;oP Some boats & jet skis were also stationed near the shore so we had to find some vacant spaces to swim in. Oftentimes we were shouted at because a boat would be arriving to dump passengers on the shore. Crap!


Around 11, we went back to the resort to try the pool. Paul even gave us some lessons ;oP

Lunchtime came and we lined up for 2 small chicken fillet pieces with veggies. For dessert, we had banana. The serving was quite small though. We were given iced tea but only 60% of the glass was filled. Hmmm... Earl requested for seasoning that didn't come. Some people even had to request for a water change since they didn't get cold water. What's up with the service?

After lunch, we finally got our rooms. Ours wasn't cleaned up yet so we had to wait for awhile.


We went to the beach for our team building sessions and did 2 activities. The first one involved flour passing. I watched Team 3 and even rooted for 'em. They won the first game. Whoopeee! After this activity, many people grew older ;oP

We had Fireman's Pail for the second activity. This was more physically demanding. People were running like crazy. The marshalls kept on shouting for them to be careful. Team 5 won.

Before we gave the third activity, we informed them to change their clothes and proceed to the function room in a little while.

The team of Nicko prepared an interesting obstacle setup. The third activity is called Jungle Gym. The whole participants were tied up and had to go through some obstacles as one group. As if being tied ain't challenging enuff, they weren't allowed to speak. The group informed us that they could finish the task in 20 minoots. Earl was the first person to go through, followed by Beng, etc. Pao was the last guy. At one point, somebody violated a rule: they can touch the rope but not the balls. Instead of just touching the rope, somebody moved it to avoid the ball itself. That caused some awkward moments. After a short while, they returned to the starting point.

On the second try, they finished the third activity through cooperation and some flexibility ;oP I was tasked to do the processing but found it hard to speak. A megaphone helped me out. A lot of people shared their experiences ;oP

Breaktime came and we had pasta. Again, the serving was quite small. Earl & I had second helpings because Raz and Jojo left already.

Swimming time again until sunset.


Before we had our dinner, we played water polo at the pool. I teamed up with Earl, Rene, Jayjay, and Ken. Our opponents were Sherwin, Ogz, Rey, Candy, and Olive. 'twas a fun game. We lost though. I didn't quite like the "finger pointing" though. Took my shower before dinner.


Dinner was composed of beef and the veggies again. The dessert was cassava. Turned out that it's flan. I didn't quite enjoy dinner but I had to eat sumpthin.

We planned to sing inside our room after dinner (brought my MagicSing, of course) but I suggested that we sing downstairs instead. Y'see, there's a lady providing the live entertainment by the pool. She's accompanied by an electric organ. Tabel, Nikki, Ogz, and I approached her and asked if we could sing for awhile. I tried to sing but no voice was coming out. My friends sang "I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You", "My Immortal", "Almost Over You" (with Beng doing most of the vocals), and "Fame". Tabel sang the "Remember, remember" part alone and it was freakin' hilarious!

We continued the fun inside our room. We started with a bottle of Vodka Cruiser. Paul, Rene, Ken, Mark & Alex, Beng and some more friends joined us later. Earl mixed our drinks. Tabel provided entertainment with her interpretative dancing skills. I felt really sad because I couldn't sing. Tried a few times but nuthin comes out of my mouth =o( Nikks gave me a hug. I really, really, really needed that.


I fell asleep.

Tabel did a wonderful version of "Papa, Don't Preach". Told ya, she got the Madonna bug. Heard later that they sang "Ice, Ice Baby", "Achy, Breaky Heart", "Star", and "Kiss Me".

Cinco De Mayo

At last, I received an e-mail from the customer service of UnionBank. I guess they really value their clients. I should've done this sooner though. My EON Cyber Account is working now. I could pay my Meralco bills here. I was shocked not to find PLDT nor HSBC in their list =o( Oh well, I might consider opening another BPI account soon. One nice thing about this EON though is that I could transfer money to my Allied Bank account. That means, I don't need to walk to Amorsolo to pay for my condo rent. Whoooopeee!

Next week, I'll open a BPI savings account again.

Still Sick

I still have sore throat and colds. Thanks to Nikks for the Neozep. While I'm having my dreads repair at Black Strawberry, I popped one into my mouth. After dinner, I took one again. Felt a tad better.

I'm glad I was able to find my singing voice again. I'm practicing my songs for this Saturday. No contest pieces though tonight. Just took it easy. I hope I recover soon. Otherwise, I would feel crappy the whole summer outing.

Up to now, my EON Cyber Account is not yet working. I couldn't pay bills online. I called UnionBank again and expressed how disappointed I am. I even filed a complaint. I hope they really do sumpthin about my case. It's been more than a month already since I applied. WTF!

Sadly, Paris has been voted out in "American Idol". But I don't wanna Yamin to go either. I'm rooting for this guy!

I Am But a Small Voice

Lost voice today. The problem is, I've got a month-long training to deliver. Bummer!

Where Can I Get My iPod Earphones Fixed?

So far, I've had 3 iPod earphones ruined accidentally or by carelessness. When Kuya gave back my iPod a coupla days ago, I noticed that the left ear piece ain't workin' no mo. Crap!

I wonder if there's any local store out there that can fix earphones. The last iPod earphone I got was the one with the remote and it costed me 25 hundred bucks. I don't wanna buy another one anymore. I might get a cheaper earphone but if I could have the old ones repaired, why not eh? There's sumpthin about white earphones...

Boracay, May 2006 (Day Five)

Dreaded this day. Kuya woke me up to have an early breakfast with him and Angela. The kids were still sleeping. We had eggs and sardines. I had no appetite.

Went back to bed and tried to sleep. Around 9 am, Kuya left for work. Before I took my bath, I played frisbee again with Lance and Fiona. I will miss these kids =o(

At 10, I left their house with a heavy heart. Gave the kids some money before I rode on a motorcycle. I wasn't able to buy Lance barbecue so I told him to buy some ;oP

This time, we didn't leave Bora from Station 3. There's a new port in Cagban where boats are on standby mode for passengers going to Caticlan. Since I arrived early, Ogz requested me to buy their tickets too. 20 for the boat ticket and another 20 for the terminal fee.

At Caticlan, I quickly looked for the guy that brought us here a few days ago. I pointed to a guy 'cause he looked like our driver. Turned out that he ain't. Teehee... Earl sent a text message to our van driver. After a few minoots, he arrived. I, again, rode shotgun.

En route to Kalibo airport, our driver told us some stories involving celebrities. According to him, everytime Jackie Foster visits Bora, she's with a new man. Hmmm... That when Vina Morales was kissing her man in one of the boats, the kissing was heard a few meters away. That's how loud they could get. When LJ Moreno went for snorkling, her top accidentally got untied revealing her assets. Iza Calsado was beautiful, according to him. I agreed. I remember the personal photo that Jowee showed me.

After 1.5 hours, we reached Kalibo. We paid 200 bucks for the van ride.

We checked in our stuff, I told the airport personnel that they need to handle my bag with care. I brought Lance's framed certificate with me (mom's request).

We had our lunch at a nearby resto. We ordered sinigang na sugpo (I specifically asked the waiter if the shrimps are enuff for all five of us), lechon kawali (Earl's request), and fried bangus daing. Good choice of viands. Earl prepared his wicked sauce. Wasn't able to taste it though. Instead I prepared me own. Mixed chili pepper, calamansi, soy sauce, and sinamak vinegar. When my friends were eating at Andok's a few days ago, they were told that they didn't have vinegar. They were offered Mang Tomas instead. But putting Mang Tomas on tapsilog ain't a pretty thing. That's why my friends were craving for vinegar.

At half past 1, we boarded the Cebu Pacific plane. I brought my new sarong with me 'cause I was only wearing tank top. It gets cold inside a plane.

I think I must've gotten sumpthin from my therapist yesterday. Before your mind goes into the gutter, lemme explain. She got the sniffles and was coughing a bit. Now, I'm sniffing a bit too. Also, I slept last night with no shirt on 'cause it was brownout. That made it worse.

The ride was uneventful except when we were about to land. There was a moment where I thought I was riding a ferris wheel or a rollercoaster. Y'know, the stomach-turning weightlessness. There was nervous laughter afterwards but I got scared there a bit. But nuthin's worse than my HK trip (again with Cebu Pacific) a few years ago, where the turbulence that we hit was pretty strong. When I saw the worried look on the faces of the steward peeps, I prayed silently.

Ogz and Earl hitched a ride with me on my way to Makati. Back to reality.

I miss Lance and Fiona =o(

Boracay, May 2006 (Day Four)

How time flies when you're on vacation! It's my second to the last day here in Boracay. What better way to spend it than to have my massage at Mandala Spa. Kuya advised me to take Shodhana Karma massage. Whaaat? I trust him so I took it.

Around 1, I walked to Mandala Spa. Couldn't get a ride with all the downpour. Been freakin' raining since this morning. Also, the power kept on failing. Crappy day indeed.

My friends were already waiting at the lobby. After my registration, we were given keys to the locker room. I took a shower. The liquid soap was quite cold to the guys down there, if you know what I mean =oP Earl didn't know how to put a sarong so I helped him out. He too felt the cold sensation. When Jojo appeared, he mentioned sumpthin about it too. That's really funny!

We were directed to a Yin Yan Pavilion where we had our massage. The other guys got the signature massage of Mandala Spa--sumpthin to try out for a first-timer. Instead of the usual oil, I was given sumpthin-sumpthin with sesame seed oil. 'twas a nice feeling. To compliment the mood, we could hear the rain & spa music in the background.

Afterwards, the therapists led the guys to the reception area once again where they would be sipping ginger tea (my favorite!). As for me, I was led to a lower level for my sauna.

I was offered two drinks by my therapist, Aya: ginger tea and cold water. I drank the tea first then I went inside the sauna. I could only stand up to 5 minoots inside the room. I left, drank some more tea, and had my warm shower.

Another scrub was next. This time, I got really scrubbed. My sunburn hurt but I didn't complain. I thought, "this is gooood for me". And then magic happened. Rain poured. Yep, while I was on the massage table, I felt pouring rain cleansing me body. If I were to utter a word, it would be, "WOW!"

I was advised to take another warm shower afterwards.

Then Aya asked me if I wanted to go for another sauna session. I stayed again for 5 minoots and took my warm shower for the last time. I drank the rest of my ginger tea and some agua.

Joined my friends later and paid for my treatment. Through Kuya, I was able to get 50% discount. Am so happy. Since my friends were with me, they were given a good discount too. Whoooopeee!

I left a feedback regarding the free sarong. For a frequent client like me, it would be really cool if I could choose a color. Y'see when you open your locker, it has a sarong inside and a pair of slippers. They don't tell you that you can actually pick a sarong color. Now I know it IS possible. Yay! So far, I've got orange, dark blue, light blue, and yellow (latest). Will get a black one next time.

We couldn't leave Mandala Spa yet because of heavy rain. Earl and Ogz flirted with Michelle for awhile ;oP

Went back home and rested some more. I shared my wonderful massage story with Kuya and he told me that the Shodhana Karma won the best massage treatment in Asia. No wonder! I really, really advise you, guys, to try it once you visit Bora. I don't mind having round 2 ;oP

Angela was feeling better after being given some medicine. She was in dextrose last night =o( She got dehydrated. Andrew, Kuya's boss, was very generous to bring the doctor to the house for her checkup. He also brought some food, a bestselling Phad Thai from Mandala Spa restaurant.

Normally I'd take Kuya and family for dinner especially on my last night in Bora. But since Angela was still recovering, Kuya and I just decided to buy her some food. Kuya's been telling me about this Bamboo place so we tried it.

When we got there, there was a group of people having dinner and that's it. We've got the place to ourselves. The place was decorated with bamboo, of course. But what made it more cool is the red finish. Red bamboo is hot!



We ordered yang chow fried rice, crispy fried noodles, some chicken soup, and sweet & sour fish fillet. While waiting for our food, a Labrador named Apo appeared. I couldn't resist, of course, so I played with the dog even though he kept on scratching.

The food was good. I would've enjoyed it more if not for my aching tooth. I dunno where that came from. It just hurt all of a sudden.

We brought the leftover food to Angela and them kids. I got a message from Ogz that they're at Pier One. The problem at Kuya's place is that it's not that accessible. If you say "Tulubhan" to a tricycle driver, he would just ignore you as if you have uttered gibberish. Sometimes I take a motorcycle ride but it costs 100 bucks. I declined the invitation and just played with the kids.

I taught Lance how to use an ole Nido lid as a frisbee. Need to remind myself to bring him a better frisbee next time. Fiona participates in the game too. Nuthin beats a kid's laughter. It just melts your heart. I also enjoy when they put powder on my back ;oP We also sing ABCs and I help them count. Fiona skips the number 12 everytime.

I also started watching the teen edition of "Pinoy Big Brother". The local cable in Aklan provides a 24-hour viewing of this show. One thing I noticed is that the crew sucks! They don't capture who's talking fast enuff. They focused on a character even though that person ain't doin a thing. It bores a viewer like me. And the cameras are not positioned properly to capture some good moments. Crap!