Reverie

This is Hymne a l'Amour, a beautiful song I first heard from the Italian movie, Cinema Paradiso. The song has been playing on loop for a while now and yet, this sentence is the nearest thing to progress I have ever accomplished in trying to put into writing all my feelings for the said film. I cheat by finding motivation through the music. I was expecting an overflow of things to say but I only got a surge of wordless emotions. Listening to instrumental music similar to this takes me back to a particular scene when I was twelve.

The dark had already begun consuming the light outside, the lamppost near our house was already lit. The sky is more parts gray than reddish or blue, the first stars had started to twinkle. I was alone in our house, which was gradually being enveloped by darkness and shadows, waiting for my parents' return from a day's work. I could still remember the school uniform I wore. Instead of turning on the lights, I plugged in our CD player and placed my Josh Groban album inside. You Raise Me Up. To Where You Are. Mi Mancherai. These songs lulled me while I lie on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. I could not recall what I was thinking; I most probably had no thoughts in mind that time. I simply stared off in space, imbibing the melody and the lyrics of Groban's heavenly voice. I did not understand how I was feeling, but I knew that I was moved. Have you ever had moments in your life like that? Standing in the presence of something so emotionally affecting, something so beautiful, it sends tremors and spasms to your body? Beholding a thing, grasping it, whether abstract or concrete, and you close your eyes to see it more clearly and absorb every last detail of it? It was fleeting--it is that very thing that makes it magical--and yet is not entirely lost on me. Then, suddenly, the light is switched on, disturbing my reverie. My parents are home and I had to make excuses as to why I have kept myself in the dark.

Nonverbal Magic

"You don't speak, but I hear you."

These words were uttered by Sofya Andreyevna to Leo Tolstoy on his deathbed, as portrayed in the biopic film "The Last Station" starring Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer. Needless to say, it moved me to tears.

Scene from The Last Station

I am writing not to comment on how beautifully made the film was, or how it has been the ultimate factor to persuade me into reading Anna Karenina and War and Peace. I am writing because that particular scene between the dying Tolstoy and his muse had created a turmoil inside me that must be let out.

Isn't it such a beautiful thing to not speak and yet still be understood? To just look into each other's eyes, not uttering a syllable, and yet a great many feelings have already been evoked? That is the language of love. It doesn't require words because it communicates directly to the heart. Oh, what joy it is to have that person whom you can enjoy comfortable silence with! True, what's said matters, but the things that are expressed through a simple squeeze of the hand or a meaningful gaze are also equally important. In fact, sometimes, they say a lot more than words can ever do.

Cheers to a Freakin' Weekend

Three days ago, Bennard left for the States where he will be staying up until June. I know it will be just like our usual summer for the past years where I am staying in Virac and he's in either Nabua or Manila--we won't be seeing each other for the same period of time. But the thought that he is halfway across the globe gives more gravity to our present situation. I cannot text him because it's damn too expensive. I have to be lucky enough to be online while he is online so we could chat (did I mention Dilnet is fauly so I get disconnected every now and then?). We live in different timezones. And most of all, he isn't just a taxicab away. I was so used to spending my time with him that I panicked just thinking what to do with all the time I will have, alone, now that he's going to be away. Really, at first I thought it will be difficult. But on my first three days, I think I'm doing a pretty good job!

I spent Friday afternoon after class sleeping, surfing the net, watching a movie, and writing in my diary.

Saturday was dedicated to accomplishing my application form and doing the skills tests for Inhenyero. At the same time, it was also the deadline. Not being able to send it before 12 midnight was another story--net was unexpectedly down and so I had to send it first thing the next day (through compshop since net didn't return til 2PM of Sunday) and asked for the Inhenyero editors' reconsideration. Luckily, they still accepted it! (In fact, my interview is scheduled tomorrow, Tuesday.) This Saturday, I thank Ate Joyce and Ashley for visiting me in my room even if their purpose was to copy movies from me. You don't know how much it means to me having visitors who come without me even asking. :"> Also thanks to Gicka for accompanying me to dinner at Kenny's.

On Sunday, I attended the 11AM mass, my first time again to attend mass in the morning in the UP Parish since second year. Luckily, I spotted Tiny and so we sat together. After the mass, we saw Jen too, so we had all lunch together at Rodic's. I went back to the dorm at 1PM and started reading my PI100 articles until I fell asleep. From 2-4PM, I finished one article. Yay! This is all thanks to my determination in resisting temptations to open my laptop and check if there's net connection. By 4:30PM, I prepared my stuff for leaving. I was off to Rhomuell's birthday dinner and sleepover party!

With me were Jen, Ashley, Grace, San, Kevin, Christia, Dyan, Miriam, and Marienne when we arrived at Rhomuell's home in Pateros. Beforehand, we have already bought a dedication cake for him, and we hope it somehow surprised him. HAHA. Look, look, look!

Same Red Ribbon cake as Jen's

When we went inside, Rhomuell had other visitors too--friends from high school, I suppose, and of course, family. It's always a good sight seeing family members coming together for a special occasion. This was my first time to see one in the city. And so it made me happy, and nostalgic at the same time. His niece and nephews were there too, but we particularly took interest in Eion because he was interested in us too. Talk about reciprocity. :))

Eion aka City Hunter

Rhomuell's mom prepared food which was so yummy! I really like pasta in oil, and the side meals such as pork adobo and chicken with pineapple. While eating we watched Scott Pilgrim vs The World. It was a funny thing because Christia so enjoyed the movie that she cried when it ended.

Christia wiping a tear

Later during the night, KEM 07 friends Kuyas Chix and Emman arrived. Even later, Riuji, our 09B batch head, came too. We watched Just Like Heaven next to Scott Pilgrim. Before the second movie ended, Grace, Christia, Dyan, and Miriam decided not to stay for overnight and went home. Some of their pictures:

Jen, Miriam, and Eion

Christia, Dyan, and Marienne

Kevin, the prettiest girl you'd ever meet, and Grace

Dyan and Eion

What we did next was choose the third movie, but since every person wanted a movie different from the rest, Rhomuell played Gumiho Ep 11. The only people happy where Rhomuell and I. So okay, we decided that Sherlock it is! We agreed on watching one episode, but you know what happens next, as is always the case for other overnight Sherlock fans. Teeheehee.

Watson welcomes you to the fandom!

Sleep is for the weak!

Without any sleep (except for Kuya Emman, Kevin, Ashley, and Marienne) and even before the household was awake, we already said goodbye to our host at 6:30 AM. Of course, group picture first.

Cuuuuute niyo, guys!

Super fun overnight! Thank you friends! >:D<

That has been my weekend. I wonder how I will fare this week. Wish me luck!

PS. This is my reward for being a good girl--a super adorable picture with a squirrel. <3 :-* :> >:D<

Extra Fun on Extra Day of the Year

It's 12:14 in the morning and I am still up even if I got no acad work to do (I do have, actually, but they are not yet due tomorrow hihi), even if I have a 7AM class later. First few minutes of March and I am spending it writing this entry even if I should be sleeping now. Blame it on the blueberry yogurt I have eaten for dessert, I am still up and running until this ungodly hour. And I don't think I will be sleeping anytime soon.

So to make my time worthwhile, I'll just post a recap of how my day went. Or at least the parts I think are eventful for me.

1. Thankful to God because my acad day wasn't that burdensome. It went smoothly, with no major hiccups. Another example for ChE 131 and some wake-up call from Sir Bok. Another classroom moment with Mae.
Lesson on Free Masonry and the deviant history for PI 100. Complicated first lesson on reactor design (application of all past ChE courses) for ChE 126 which I hopefully will still understand (from my notes) when I review it for future use. Also thankful for not succumbing to sleep even if lesson was dealing with lots of differentiation and integration, and for a professor, like Sir Patrick, who teaches real well.

2. I went to the gym with Bennard and I enjoyed the bath, as usual. Whenever I take a bath in the gym, I forget the time. HAHA. I didn't get to go to sauna though. Another good feature of the gym was its overhead fan in the ladies'. Instant blower for me! Hence, my love for my hair until this very moment.

3. While on treadmill and watching news (with no audio), I have seen KEMer friends on TV Patrol. The news was about the impending tuition fee hike (again? >_<) for SUCs this coming June, and of course it showed some shots of students around UP. There I saw Grace Ti, my buddy Torio, and Sam. :)

4. The unexpected leap-year dinner with Bennard, Gicka, Grace, Ven, Niezl, Kayer, and Timmy. Timmy was the organizer this time. Yay, it was a success (unfortunately though, I didn't have my camera with me)! We had it at Shakey's and I was really stuffed! And yes, it was their blueberry froyo which still keeps me awake. We had lots of fun! We were just there, talking about the most random things, a little high school reminiscing. It's a great thing to know that in our lives, we will always have these kinds of people who we will never get tired of spending time with.

5. Talking to Ate Joyce (she visited me in my room to check out the shirt merchandise my org is selling) regarding who we will vote later for the University Student Council elections. I am not really the discerning voter who reads all fliers they hand to me, or the one who attends all dorm tours and miting de avances, but I am sure one who will vote and will vote for who I think is most fit for the position (although the word "fit" is vague; is my idea of "fit" the right kind of "fit" the USC/ESC needs?).

6. Spending time on social media sites. I know this tends to consume so much of my time, but tonight, it feels like I have no regrets about it. HAHA. I went spazzing over Ariel Lin and Joe Cheng of It Started With A Kiss (oh wait, I think I want a separate blog post devoted for this!), and more spazzing again with my online friends who relate with me. I replied to Ate Nia's tweets about her feelings towards Before Sunrise and Before Sunset, films which I sooooo love! Of course, I recommended Julie Delpy's 2 Days in Paris as well. I liked and commented on all friends' status regarding our spur-of-the-moment dinner. I planned another dinner event, but this time, with my elementary classmates. I heard there will be no classes on March 8. Hihi, the things I hear.

There you go! What about you, how did your February 29 go? :)

Girls' Night-out

Yesterday, I organized a girls' night-out just because I'd love to watch the movie "Unofficially Yours" with some girlfriends. I had five attendees (haha)--Gicka, Grace, Jeneath, Brige, and Niezl. We agreed to meet up at 6PM, but Gicka and I arrived at 7PM. In my defense, I accompanied Gicka for her collection of data since four in the afternoon. We conducted surveys in CHK (where she had a crush on one of her respondents, which obliged her to ask all of her respondents' names so no one one will get suspicious that she only want his) and found an obstacle course in the college grounds. The lighting that afternoon was great so we shamelessly took photos of ourselves. Hahaha. I edited these pics so they would look Instagram-ish. #poser

Thanks to my camera's self-timer!

What izz feel na feel, Rhena?

What izz feel na feel, Gicka?

Next stop, we went to Moonleaf Maginhawa hoping to find Clothing Tech respondents. Although I didn't want to order some milk tea, I ended up buying Peppermint (my staple flavor) anyway to have something to do while waiting for Gicka. But she was too shy to ask sooo yuh, failed attempt. Okay lang, at least I saw one cute detail written on our milk teas.

It means "thank you."

It was almost six so we decided to go back, but she said she still has to send the data to her groupmate. Thus, our tardiness. Jen and Grace were in a bad mood because of that (actually, I think it's only Grace who's mad; Jen was just acting to teach us a lesson. I guess she was late herself, judging from her wet hair hahaha). Gicka was silent in our entire trip to TriNoma, which bothered me most since I was the organizer and I want everybody to enjoy the night. Upon reaching the mall, we hurried to buy our tickets, only to find out that the 8:10 PM showing is already packed. Also, the ticket was, surprisingly, priced at 200 pesos! I don't know why a Filipino romcom movie must be shown on THX cinema in the first place. But because we're too lazy--and they were too hungry--to mall-hop and check for cheaper rates and earlier showing at SM North Edsa, we agreed to go for the Last Full Show. Gicka still barely said a word.

Our next first-world problem: where to eat? After long discussions, I finally convinced them to try out my newest Chinese restaurant find--North Park (which I actually first thought as TriNoma's parking space, stupid)! Luckily, they liked it there (I'm assuming lol). 

Happiness at North Park

Also, while we're dining, I thought of a brilliant way on how to make Gicka speak: I asked the girls what happened in Kamia the night before. Knowing full well that she is the only one from Kamia among us, she's the only one who can tell the story right. So there, I did succeed! She did talk! Before she said anything about the incident, she confessed first why she had been silent the whole night and apologized to Grace (and all of us, I suppose?) for coming late. And there, back to our festive mood!!! *so proud of myself*

At our booth

Gicka, Jen, and Brige

Moi, Grace, and Niz

After dinner, we went to Gelatissimo for dessert, just as I have planned. Fortunately, they still have the Buy 1 Take 1 promo when you purchase a movie ticket for that same day. Thus, we got six gelatos while only paying for three! :) I had Roasted Almonds, Jen got Veronese Chocolate, Brige bought Chocolate Truffle, Gicka went for Chocolate Almonds, Grace chose Tiramisu, and Niezl liked the Lemon Cheesecake. By the time we were done with our ice cream, it's already 10PM--just in time to go the restroom first and arrive five minutes early to catch some trailers.

Noticed just now the "Giacomo Casanova" detail!

The movie (no, oh no, I swear I'm not a reliable movie critic! Although i watch a great deal of films, I only have a concept of whether I enjoyed it or not) was feel-good with all the John Lloyd's twinkling eyes, benta pickup lines, and crying scenes which make the crowd go "awww," Angel's beauty and hotness (not to mention, her wardrobe!), plus the funny side characters. The fact that Grace commented a lot during the entire course of the movie even made the movie-watching experience fun.

Shamelessly taken from the web. Oh, look at that JLC smile! I just died.

I know some people can relate to it (same as they could have related with Friends with Benefits, and the MTV series Awkward? Or maybe not, since these ones are too promiscuous?) but I sure can't. It's okay, still had fun. I just wished they already deleted the scene where Ces and Mackie shouts from the apartment window how they love each other. Awkward ending is awkward. Hahaha. It was already past twelve when we rode our taxi. Violation it is, all for the love of my first major-major event! :)

One Month Down

January had been good to me: First, I started going to the gym (with a total of 10 sessions for this month--my goal!) and had my first ever sauna experience with my sister. Second, being a CAPES member, I experienced helping out during the Eng'g Jobfair and dressed up in corporate attire for a week! My design for the lamp posts (thanks to Jona and Karmina for their big help on this) was turned into actual publicity tarps which was posted not only around the academic oval but also along the university avenue. Plus, I also got the opportunity to design the Resume Book CD cover! Third, I got to reunite with my Kalay roommate and neighbor Hazel and Twinkle. It was a sudden yayaan, but still it pushed through despite our lack of common free time. Fourth, my attempt to reach bibliophile status is underway. Yey! :) For month of January, I finished Jessica Zafra's Twisted 8 (I know this is an anthology and may not count but, hey, I'm new on this so be considerate. Haha. Besides, I did pick up a lot of interesting ideas and loads of movie and book recommendations!) and have already started reading To Kill A Mockingbird. Just this Tuesday, which is the last day of the month, I bought two new books--Bridget Jones's Diary: Edge of Reason and Flipped. And so I got more reasons to read. Fifth, I got to watch new shows including Arrested Development, and new episodes of anticipated shows like Sherlock. I also consider January as my French film appreciation month because of the number of French movies I have just watched (Jeux d'enfants, La vie en rose, Paris Je t'aime). Sixth, I am beginning to like vegetables! And finally, for my seventh reason, I successfully saved money, and that still excludes the one I reserved for my gym payment.

For the downside, I had more clingy moments during this time of the year (although I felt less depressed). Still had not overcome my bad habit of staying too long on social media sites, reading other people's updates and filling my head with unnecessary information. Failed to post more entries on this blog (although I have written quite extensively on my diary) due to my lack of inspiration to hit Adobe LightRoom button and photo process documentations of recent happenings in my life. Unsuccessful in my goal to keep self abreast about news and current events. Following ANC Alerts, Inquirerdotnet, Rapplerdotcom, Maria Ressa, and Karen Davila on Twitter is helpful though. Finally, I'm still on the habit of preparing homework the night before it is due. Not good.

Overall, I consider January as a great way to kick off the year because the positive outweighs the negative; new experiences and new milestones over the same problems. I just hope February will be more promising!

The 2011 Year-End Report

Last, last year, I made a similar report out of too much excitement on the new year ahead. Originally, I attempted making a list of the top stories which made it to the news in the year 2010. But since I haven't really watched news then (is staying in the dorm enough of an excuse?), I got nothing to write about. Hence, this list. Turns out it was something good. A summary of my year's highlights. And knowing myself all too well, I just love 1) lists and 2) looking back at the fond, and even the not-so-fond, memories of the past. Here goes my year-end report for 2011.

1. This year can probably be dubbed as the start of my social networking activity. And when I say activity, I mean "super active." I have been in Facebook since 2008 or 2009, I think, but this year, this website just became one of the default sites I visit whenever I get hold of the internet. Then there's Tumblr, which I joined in 2010 but really became a part of my life this 2011. In fact, I was so often visiting here--liking, reblogging, and posting stuffs--that I gained followers I never thought I would've gained! Plus over the hundreds of notes I received from posting photos, etc. I was so absorbed in Tumblr that during summer, I barely left the computer, doing nothing else but scrolling the day away. Also this year, just recently actually, I signed in at Twitter. Tbh, I fought so hard so not to join another social networking site because it's already eating up so much of my time. But the temptations are too strong, I finally gave in. It was at first boring. I did nothing but read updates from celebrities I follow: friends Georgina Wilson, Isabelle Daza, Solenn Heussaff, Liz Uy, and Anne Curtis, among others. Then I went to a phase where I used this site as my news source: I followed ANC, Inquirer, and Maria Ressa. And finally, I entered the phase where I actually followed and been followed of friends and people I know. There are other sites I visit too, such as Google+, Gmail and Ymail (of course), Youtube, 9gag, Inquirer.net, and some fancy blogs I follow--all bookmarked in my laptop. Had I been super OC again, I would've accounted all the hours spent surfing the net, whether it's on social networking, reading, or artsy-fartsy sites. (Hmm, nice idea there!) Approx one-sixth of every day, perhaps? GOOD GOD.

Got this from Tumblr!

2. I may have spent too much time in the worldwide Web, but I just made a breakthrough in the aspect of books, as well. This year, I read a total of six books!!! Yes, I am not big on books, then all of a sudden, this?! To think that's four of them are even included in the BBC list of books to read! What is this sorcery??! I read The Count of Montecristo and The Three Musketeers, both classics from Alexandre Dumas; Smaller and Smaller Circles, a great detective story from Filipino author F.H. Batacan; The Hobbit, prequel of the infamous Lord of the Rings Trilogy adventure, all written by J.R.R. Tolkien; The Undomesticated Goddess by Sophie Kinsella, first tween-y (but surprisingly about adults) and girly book I've read; and Bridget Jones's Diary which is soooo funny and kilig by Helen Fielding. I counted all the books I've read in my entire lifetime (school text books excluded) and I counted just a total of fifteen! (I told you I was serious about not being fond of reading!) And this year's total comprised nearly one-third of the grand total. How great this year is for being intellectual. Haha.

3. Next on the list are the series which provided me much of the entertainment I need to balance out my stressful academic life. There are the ones I already watched in the previous years: How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, and Modern Family. Then there are the ones which have just been introduced to me and others which I watched just recently: Nikita, Downton Abbey, Hot in Cleveland, Awkward, and Once Upon A Time. There were mini-series too like Sherlock (its second series coming up this month! *can't breathe*), and Any Human Heart. I tried watching New Girl but I guess it didn't click to me that much. I have also seen the first two episodes of Suburgatory and 2 Broke Girls but wasn't able to download the succeeding episodes anymore. And oh, I almost forgot the All-Star Cycle of America's Next Top Model where I was rooting for Laura or Allison. Too bad they didn't win, but at least they made it to Greece! 2011 had also been the year where I developed a love for period dramas (Downton Abbey is one proof, and maybe Any Human Heart?) particularly to the Austen Classics. I finished Pride and Prejudice (Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle), Emma (Romola Garai), and Sense and Sensibility (whose Edward Ferrars is Dan Stevens), all BBC mini-series, in no time! I also loved Lost in Austen, spin-off of Pride and Prejudice, which I heard is going to have a film version. *excited, hope it won't disappoint*

Maybe I watched a little too much? :p

4. Aside from knowing a whole lot of new faces (to me) in the entertainment industry because of all the new shows I've been seeing, I also got to know more people in the UP College of Engineering as well this year after I became part of a new family, the UP Career Assistance Program for Engineering Students or UP CAPES, under the Publicity and Publications Committee. My friend Jona urged me to join so that we'd still get to spend time together now that we won't be classmates in most major subjects anymore. So I did apply, and imagine my surprise when I got accepted! Joining UP CAPES was timely, too. After UP Catandungan failed to be recognized as a university organization due to its lack of members, UP CAPES became my new avenue for challenges and work experiences, alongside my other org, UP KEM. The twist with this new org is that it taught (and is teaching) me a whole new lesson foreign to me: design. It has somewhat made me realize that I also have a thing for the arts and design. Also, I have learned how crucial practice and inspirations are in gaining the skill. I know I still have lots of work to do to come up with greater ideas and better output, but I can say I have done quite of an achievement this year.

Visit UP CAPES here.

5. Another new experience: I lived in a boarding house for the entire first semester. All these time since high school, I have stayed in dormitories, so the feeling of living in a boarding house or apartment outside school never failed to make me curious. I bet freedom's great--no curfews or general assemblies to mind, I used to say. Then, this happened. I did not get accepted in any dorm for AY 2011-2012. Luckily, my sister Elvy is staying in a boarding house in KNL while she's still hunting for jobs back then. I was very glad, at last I will finally have to live with my Ate. The first month of freedom was truly great! But it only lasted until my sister decided to transfer to an apartment in Shaw, nearer her workplace. I was left in the room. I had housemates, but we were never close. Just imagine, the solitude almost drove me mad. Although there is internet connection to keep me busy, it was the fact that I cannot talk to anybody whenever I got home which made me succumb to depressions. I really started to feel sad all the time, I don't know why. Plus I became so clingy! Yuck. Thankfully, I got accepted in Ilang-ilang Dorm when I reapplied for the second sem. Now, I'm happier. (Bonus: Ilang-ilang Dorm already has good wi-fi connections now relative to that of last year's! Even comparable to our internet speed in the boarding house!)

6. My sporty nature--I know I have (somewhat of) it in me but I never thought 2011 will troll on me like that. I played Ultimate Frisbee for Batch 08 during the ChE department inter-batch sports competition, and I was the only girl. It was my first time to hold a disc used in frisbee and I did not even know the rules. I joined anyway because, well, if you're already on the venue for the game and the opposing team has the chance of winning by default just because your team doesn't have any other girl player present, I don't think you can say No to playing, right? You ask me why I was there? Because of friendship. Lol. Riuji, our batch coordinator who persistently called me and asked me to join, telling me "basta 'wag lang ma-default,"  is to be blamed for all of this! Haha. But you know what, that experience was really fun, I even consider it a milestone. In case you're wondering, I served as cheerer on field, but was able to become a real player when I caught the disc and gave us one point by the end of the game. We did won. Against the freshies. Hihi. Another sporty moment was when I accepted to be a substitute player, this time in swimming. (I join the difficult games because I'm great like that. ) Same person who got me into this: the almighty Riuji Sato. My friend, still. >:D Well, I thought it was a non-serious game of swimming, where participants' favorite stroke is the survivor stroke or 'yung basta makatawid lang sa pool. I even considered wearing white shirt and shorts since there was no prescribed swimwear. Imagine my surprise when I saw that the girls wore one-piece, complete with goggles and headcap! One of them even competes for national triathlon events. Golly! I was the only person who only knows survival stroke. I swear I can see all their faces while I was swimming in the pool, too concerned I might drown halfway. But hell yeah, our ChE team (this time, the sportsfest was inter-department instead of inter-batch) composed of Kuya Chix, Karmina, Van, and I, still got the third place. Not that we're fast, but because only three departments were able to send participants. Haha, what luck! Finally, to complete my sporty streak for 2011 is my first ever 5K marathon! My first marathon, in fact. It was held in Naga, and I ran with Kuya Win and Ate Yeth. Great bonding moment!

Finish line!

7. Just like any other year, 2011 has its share of both happiness and tears. But in 2011, I experienced something I never thought would happen in my college life--a death of a dear friend. Bryan Diano. Friend, classmate, batchmate, and orgmate. His life was claimed by a jeepney accident on the dawn of Sept. 11. It was so sudden it took me a long time before the truth sank in. Someone so awesome can't die too soon, I kept convincing myself it was a different Bryan Diano I heard on the news. But when I saw my other batchmates and orgmates crying, I just knew it wasn't a joke he loved pulling on us. It was real. He was gone. For some days, I had moments when I just laid on my bed, staring at nothingness, and tears just flowed out from my eyes without me knowing it. 

Sad, sad news :(

Although there was too much grief, time heals. Now, all bitterness is lost, only the good memories remain. We love and miss you, Bry. Until we meet again.

8. Since I became a resident member of UP KEM in 2010, I was given responsibilities and tasks to hone my skills. This year, it's been an honor to be part of KEM's major events both for first and second semester. National Chemical Engineering Congress or NCEC (Inter-U part) and Awitan. Held last August, NCEC (composed of two parts namely National Chemical Engineering Symposium or NaChES and the Inter-University Competition or Inter-U) was a big success (and I mean, BIG!) I worked for the Technicals Committee of Inter-U, under Ate Kat, and we were in charge of making the rules and the questions, consulting it with our judges, making the necessary revisions, as well as scoring and entertaining questions raised during the contest proper. To be honest, it was a committee I never dreamed of joining. The Inter-U technicals for me must be composed of the brightest people. And there I was, outlier of the group (not being emo here). It was hard for me to adjust especially it was my first time working with all the other members (Ate Kat, Kuya Karl, Ate Maricar, Jake and Jay) who were really topnotch in their respective batches. I was only a substitute for Riuji (not again!) who won't be able to perform his tasks then because he was busy with ESC work. Turned out, that committee was my most loved group of people I have ever worked with in KEM. 

Inter-U Tech team but without Jay

Just this December, Awitan was my next big project. Dyan invited me to be part of her Logistics Committee which I gladly accepted. I had my share of experiences for this event too. I got lost in Camp Aguinaldo trying to find their Aguinaldo Theater. I frequented Divi and learned how to use a map to find the things I was looking for i.e. gummy bears. I asked for every trophy maker's calling card in Recto. I became active in fundraising projects (FRPs) but only the simple ones like taho sale, jelly milk sale, Sonny's Donuts sale, and every other sale of goods imaginable. I can say I am a different person now after having done all that. And I am proud to be part of Eng'g Week 2011's best night event!

Aside from these two major responsibilities, there were still other jobs I have done for KEM especially as part of the Socio committee such as becoming LMK mommy (our contestant won the title), joining the Project Balay Aklatan of UP Prime, among others.

9. On February 8, 2011, Bennard and I celebrated our third anniversary. It still comes as a surprise for others that we were able to endure three years together, when all the panliligaw moments feel just like yesterday to me. And the better part is, as years go by, we get to know each other well and we become more than just the couple. We became best friends.

Cheers to three years and counting!

This year had been greater than ever since I got to spend time with Bennard's family as well! Last summer, I joined their Holy Wednesday (Lent) procession, a family tradition. It was the second time I went to their place. Also this year, Bennard and I joined Tita Becky, his aunt, once in jogging around Bonifacio High Street and had dinner afterwards. I was really nervous of seeing Tita Becky, let alone converse with her, because I thought she's a snob. She wasn't. She was very approachable and I haven't had difficulty in talking to  her. It was a lovely evening, after all. Lastly, my another encounter with Bennard's family was on Dec 27. Tita Dandan, his mom, and Tita Becky went to Naga to rummage "Zara." Bennard, Leo, and Shenina tagged along. Since I was still in Naga, Bennard asked me to join them. Most afternoon, while the two titas spent hours and hours looking for the best bargains, the kids went to SM. We tried the Speed Coaster 4D in exchange of a movie. We ate and looked through shops and boutiques then ate again. By dinner time, Tito Jojo, Bennard's dad, joined us in the SM Foodcourt. They dropped me off at home after that.

Although he did not get to spend much time with my family, he got to see Mama and Papa in Manila before we went home for the break. He also saw Ate Glad and family, first time, when he dropped me off at home after a pre-Christmas date. Also, he accompanied Joy in her first Lantern parade and Midnight Mercato. He always get to see Ate Elvy often.

10. Last but not the least in this list (tongue twister!) is our December celebration this year. The first part of the happenings which started when Papa, Mama and Joy went to Manila was already mentioned in my previous post. The second part which I will just tell you about is Raph's christening and our noche buena together. John Raphael or Raph, my second nephew, was christened on December 21 and I was a proxy ninang for my sister Ate Elvy. It's my first time to be one, and my second time to ever attend a baptism (first one's Gwen's). So yeah, you can expect my excitement. Plus Raph is sooooo cute in his barong tagalog!!! At reception, I did more videoke singing than eating. Haha. But of course, only at the hearing range of very few people, namely Joy, Ate Let, Ate Yeth, Ate Glad, Ate Ling, Gwen, Maine, Zye and Lianne. During Christmas eve, our family was almost complete in our noche buena salo-salo. The Pillogo siblings, my cousins from Mama's side, were there too after we've invited them when we bumped into each other at midnight mass. Just almost because Ate Glad, Kuya Nel, Lianne and Justin left for Legazpi on Dec 24 to attend Kuya Nel's family reunion. On Christmas Day, the kids opened their gifts. So many gifts for them which I can't recall I have ever experienced in my entire childhood. I felt slightly cheated. Hahaha, joke. I totally understand that time's different now, 'nubers. We're richer now, perhaps? Lol. But seriously, this I think is my most commercialized Christmas, whether you see that in a good or bad light. As long as we are together and everybody's happy, it’s still Christmas to me.

October 8th

I really love it whenever the 8th of the month comes around. This October, Bennard and I had our 44th monthsary! Yayyyy! I know there's really not much sense in counting the months if you have already been together for so long. But for us, it's a good thing to have a little celebration every now and then. Besides, the thought of dolling up a bit more than the usual days excites me. So, after my ES 12 exam, I hurried back to the boarding house to change. By 8:00 PM, he's already come to pick me up.

We do not have an itinerary to follow. Most of the time, we just wing it. Necessity: dinner. This usually is based on our palate for the evening (or maybe just mine). On this occasion, I craved for kare-kareng bagnet (too specific for a craving, don't you think? HAHA) and so I convinced Bennard to eat at Pino Resto Bar. Pino is somewhere in UP Village, Quezon City (not sure though whether it's along Maginhawa Street, a hub for foodies) and it will be just our second time there. As expected, there were a lot of customers so we waited for quite a time before we were entertained. It's okay, it was worth it. I definitely had a fill that evening.

Red Wine Adobong Tadyang

Kare-Kareng Bagnet

Next stop: TriNoma mall for a movie. What's Your Number vs. Dolphin Tale? What's Your Number wins. The next showing (last full show), however, was still in two hours. So we went to Gelatissimo first for dessert.

Mint Choc Chip and Macadamia Caramel

And then to Powerbooks which is really a haven. Bennard bought the fourth volume of the Trese comics, I went looking for Amanda Grange's Mr. Darcy's Diary. Unfortunately, the bookstore still has to preorder it which will take 3-5 more weeks. We just went on looking at books, and of course, Jane Austen novels kept on screaming at me, asking me to buy them. (I particularly loved Emma's book cover.) And I want the Wide Sargasso Sea too. And, and.. The Alice in Wonderland book with golden pages was so very tempting as well. And there were also a lot of other collection-worthy items and gift ideas. Gift prospects for Bennard--a note to self: (1) the big DC Comics book. Price = 2 grand. (2) director collection--David Lynch, Martin Scorsese, etc. Price = probably 3 grand all in all. Those were the only things I remembered so far, even after all the "hint-droppings" he's thrown at me. What a girlfriend.

After Powerbooks, we still had an hour to spare, so we just went checking out from shops to shops. Yes, bored much. We almost hit Netopia out of nothing else amusing to do. Just to buy us some more time, we went queuing for NYFD. It's really funny because we were still full, but we did it just for the sake of looking forward to something. And at looooooooooong last, the guard finally allowed movie-goers to enter the cinema.

That movie we watched starring Chris Evans and Anna Faris was fun and sexy. 

What's Your Number?

Favorite scene: Ally (Anna Faris) faking a British accent. It's hilarious. Plus, the guy she's with is Martin Freeman.

So there, that's a tummy-filling, dress-bursting, book-lusting, movie-going Saturday night for me. Thank you Bennard! :-*

My Weekend Before Classes End

I have been so very much looking forward to this weekend because I knew that I will be too busy during the next weekends to come. I earlier planned to spend the Saturday having lunch with Bennard after my ChE 198 class, a bonding date with my cousin, Kuya JR, and my sister, Ate Elvy, in the afternoon, and stay overnight at my Ate's apartment in Shaw. Unfortunately, it hadn't started out well and I had to stay at my boarding house up until 3pm. I tried calling Kuya JR but since he wasn't picking up his phone, I assumed we won't push through with our earlier plans. And so I decided to go directly to my sister's apartment.

I rode the bus on my way there for the first time and I did not expect that there will be so many passengers loading the bus at the Araneta Center area. There were people standing along the aisle and I somewhat panicked on how I will be able to get to my way out, considering that I'm seated quite far from the door. I knew my stop was in Starmall, but my sister told me the distance will be shorter from her place if I go down at the Mercury Drug store past the mall. And so I waited for that landmark. Seeing that the bus ran so fast with no one else stopping in that point, and fearing that it's not a designated bus stop, I did not tell the driver to stop. I told him instead to unload me at the nearest possible stop and lied that I did not notice we already passed by my stop. And the stupid thing I have done: I said sorry for the inconvenience! Oh well, I got down at Boni Ave. To be honest, I planned of walking through that long distance back but then I was wearing my heels and it's drizzling. Good thing I was already near the MRT station and so I rode back to Shaw Blvd. with few coins left to take me to my destination. I was already teary-eyed because things are not turning out how I expected them to be and I started to become very disappointed. I only hope the other passengers did not notice. After walking a few blocks more, I arrived at my sister's place and told her what happened. I have to admit I did cry a little. I'm quite the crybaby, you know. Aside from that, I realized how I need to grow up more for me to survive the streets of the metro. And the terrible things that might happen to me if I didn't. I grew up pampered and I hardly went out alone when I stepped into college. UP is also like an isolated place which is nothing like the harsh streets experienced daily by the working class. I may be "in" the metro, but I still do not truly know the realities it poses since, God forbid, I barely had first-hand experiences of them.

After long talks and lectures to be more street-smart and alert, Ate and I decided to watch a movie and have dinner outside so to lighten up the mood. We watched "No Other Woman" starring Cristine Reyes, Derek Ramsay, and Anne Curtis. 

It's a local film--mature film, my sister would call it--on marriage and adultery. I did enjoy viewing it especially because the audience we were with is a very lively one, reacting to Carmi Martin's lines or Anne and Cristine's catfight. Besides, Derek was definitely hot (my sister commenting nonstop on how manly Derek's hands are while holding Anne's or Cristine's face)! And the lines were good (exchanges of bitchy dialogues were my favourites!) Surprisingly, Anne Curtis' acting improved in this movie. But come to think of it, this is the first movie of Anne's I have ever watched. Haha.

We reached home at 10 and we were not yet sleepy so we watched Episode 2 of ANTM All-Star. 

Allison always take good photos!

After that, we watched the latest movie adaptation of Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. I can say Hayley Atwell as Mary Crawford is very lovely. And the actor playing Edmund (who is also Mr Elton in the BBC mini-series Emma) is just the best actor when it comes to staring. If I were the lady, I will really get awkward with his stares.

The next day after lunch, we went to Let's Face It Salon, SM Megamall branch, to experience our first eyelash perming. My sister had been wanting to try it since August and she promised to treat me to one after her payday, so there we were. Surprisingly, there were a lot of other clients in there too (there were even waiting lines), perhaps having their regular facial or a planned wart removal session. I did not expect so many people actually spend money for these services. The derma business is booming in the Philippines, after all. So, about the eyelash perming, I have to keep my eyes shut for an hour and a half. Good for my sister, she brought some music to amuse her while she lies there, while I was bored to death. But it was all worth it because the eyelash perm turned out well. It looked like we just applied mascara on. The attendant said it's gonna last for two months. By the way, if ever you plan on going to that branch of Let's Face It for an eyelash perm, I recommend my attendant, Au. She is really good at it. (I know you might not see much of the curled lashes in photo. And yes, I know too I must have my brows done at once!)

Our next stop was window-shopping at Forever 21 (yes, we were broke that time) and it's just a Tumblr-turned-reality world. It's simply a wonderland of clothes, accessories and shoes. There are lot of super cute clothes for our nieces Gwen, Maine, Zye and Lianne we plan to buy for them on Christmas (I just hope we can save up a good amount before Christmas shopping comes by)! We also went to Payless, another Tumblr wonderland of shoes. FYI, I so fancy shoes, just as most girls do.

Before heading home, we had dinner at Kenny's first. I slept at 11:30 on that Sunday night, my earliest so far since the start of September.

Ate Elvy (right) and I (left) after one fun weekend date