Wednesday, March 25, 2009
commencement exercises
When you realize that you barely have two weeks to spend in a company where you have done a lot of growing up, the feeling can be overwhelming. You think a lot about loose ends to tie up. About the relationships you want to hold on to. About how this can be the last time you can find anything as awesome as this. It feels a lot like graduating, to tell you the truth.
Sunday, March 01, 2009
Bootcamp for the Culinarily-Challenged: Round Two!
Challenge #2 was to cook a cream-based pasta dish. What originally started as pesto sauce came out to be what I'll call Pasta with Turkey and Cream Cheese Sauce. =P I have a feeling that the best (or at least, most enjoyable) recipes are the ones that aren't planned. I had a lot of mishaps this time (i.e. the bowl falling into the pan, me pouring A LOT of basil instead of just a dash), but those things just made round 2 a lot of fun. =P And oh, I also made a blueberry pie for my sweet tooth (again, instant, but hey, I'm baking!)
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Bootcamp for the Culinarily-Challenged: One Down!
There have been some instances when I was able to whip up something miraculous out of the blue -- none of those feats involve the kitchen, however. During team offsites, I'd rather be in charge of drinks instead of food, lest I want my friends to die from starvation (or worse, from food poisoning! Eep!). This year, I resolved to take matters into my own hands, and I'll be forcing myself to cook at least one decent dish per month (except for Feb, I have to cook 2 since I skipped January =P). And you know what? It was actually possible! I was able to come up with fusilli topped with some random ingredients (tomatoes, tuna, mushroom and cheese) without screwing anything up. I also wanted to try out a friend's tip about baking (our oven's busted but he told me that a turbo broiler does more or less the same thing), so I put a box of instant brownie mix to the test and, booyah, yummy dessert. =) The folks at home finished off their meals without collapsing, so I think it's fair enough to say that round one has been officially conquered.
Yep, I know it's still a longshot from warranting the respect of anyone culinarily-able, but at least I'm making baby steps.I am just so psyched right now. Whoopee! =)
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
My 25 Random Things
I finally got this done! Am tagging everyone who wants to make their own list. Hehe. =P
1. I'm a true-blue kaladkarin. It takes all of my will to say no to an interesting trip, event or experience. A great year would be getting to visit 12 islands in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao within 12 months. An awesome year would be wherein every trip is paid for by someone else. Haha!
2. Each time before I take a bath, I dip my hand into the water and make the sign of the cross. It was an odd habit I picked up way back when our housekeeper made me do it every time she would give me a bath.
3. I could Youtube all day. I look up dance vids, commercials, series episodes, viral vids, almost everything online. Yep, that also goes to say that I barely watch TV. I blame Youtube for multiple counts of tardiness.
4. I used to write like crazy. I almost took Journalism instead of Computer Science. No regrets here.
5. I like geek talk, so sue me.
6. If you ask my closest friends, almost all my crushes have NOTHING in common.
7. As a child, I was a church rat. My kababatas are composed of members of the kids' choir and the Knights of the Altar. We still hang out. One of us just got hitched last month; I think he was the first of the bunch.
8. I have a 15-year old niece, Ikay -- her presence dots my Multiply albums. Ikay, my elder sister Ate Teng and I compose the Tres Marias of my family. We hang out a lot and goof out more often. Our favorite gimiks are going out to see flicks (especially cartoons!), wasting time at the arcade, window-shopping at toy stores and of course, gorging on comfort food. Ikay eats the most out of us three.
9. I'm that movie freak that laughs out loud and even claps (!) in the middle of movies. Back in HS, my favorite game with my movie buddies was Guess-That-Movie-Trailer. Sometimes the games turned to shouting matches wherein the winner was the one who blurted out the movie title first. Trust me, you would have hated to be seated next to us. I've also watched movies solo several times, and regretted none of those instances.
10. I think I'll always be an outdoors girl, even if I'm actually terrified of swimming in anything that's beyond the reach of my toes.
11. The farthest and most challenging mountain I've ever climbed was Mt. Apo, and that by far was the most humbling experience I've ever had in my life.
12. I've found a new vice in dancing. I'd scrimp on money for food, but not money for weekend dance classes. I dance while I walk. I dance while I work. I dance while I type. I sincerely hope I could do this forever.
13. I get sad when I commute without listening to music from my mp3 player (either I left it at home or it ran out of battery). Truly sad. I get so irritable that sometimes I throw tantrums, and God forbid that you should find yourself in the middle of an Ish-tantrum.
14. It doesn't suit me, but I'm such a crier. I cry when I laugh. I cry when I get mad. I cry at sad movies. I cried upon hearing the first riffs of 'Alapaap' during the EHeads concert.
15. I've lost more than 10 cellphones in less than 10 years. The one I had longest with me was for less than a year; the shortest lifespan was 2 weeks. But if you're a close friend, you probably already knew that.
16. I'm the youngest of five girls. Even if out of the five, I have the least chance of getting anything new, I have the comfort of knowing that I'm the cute one. Haha! =P I often think of how it could have been like if all of us could have grown up at least in the same country (two of them are in Canada, while one's in Singapore). Riot!
17. Ikay and I borrow each other's clothes and shoes. Good thing we have the same taste.
18. I still have a vivid recollection of the first time I cheated on a test. It was during Grade 3 -- I had some trouble memorizing the multiplication table. In the middle of a quiz, I felt someone kick me and I saw my seatmate gesture to a copy of the multiplication table underneath our chairs. You know who you are! =P
19. When Neil Gaiman came to Manila, I got to hug him! Thanks Quel for hooking me up.
20. One sure-fire way to make me sleepy -- scratch my head.
21. One sure way to tick me off is to let me catch you littering. Argh! Ang laki naman ng basurahan mo.
22. I got my first INC and my first DRP in UP when I took up masters. Humabol pa...
23. 2008 was a good year for me. It was the first time I stepped out of Philippine territory -- and my first destination was India. Definitely an experience.
24. I dream of doing a lot of things, but the one thing I really want to do is to bungee jump. My parents are going to kill me, but I'm going to die anyway. =P
25. I want to finish writing a book as well someday. Maybe something on being single forever. =P
1. I'm a true-blue kaladkarin. It takes all of my will to say no to an interesting trip, event or experience. A great year would be getting to visit 12 islands in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao within 12 months. An awesome year would be wherein every trip is paid for by someone else. Haha!
2. Each time before I take a bath, I dip my hand into the water and make the sign of the cross. It was an odd habit I picked up way back when our housekeeper made me do it every time she would give me a bath.
3. I could Youtube all day. I look up dance vids, commercials, series episodes, viral vids, almost everything online. Yep, that also goes to say that I barely watch TV. I blame Youtube for multiple counts of tardiness.
4. I used to write like crazy. I almost took Journalism instead of Computer Science. No regrets here.
5. I like geek talk, so sue me.
6. If you ask my closest friends, almost all my crushes have NOTHING in common.
7. As a child, I was a church rat. My kababatas are composed of members of the kids' choir and the Knights of the Altar. We still hang out. One of us just got hitched last month; I think he was the first of the bunch.
8. I have a 15-year old niece, Ikay -- her presence dots my Multiply albums. Ikay, my elder sister Ate Teng and I compose the Tres Marias of my family. We hang out a lot and goof out more often. Our favorite gimiks are going out to see flicks (especially cartoons!), wasting time at the arcade, window-shopping at toy stores and of course, gorging on comfort food. Ikay eats the most out of us three.
9. I'm that movie freak that laughs out loud and even claps (!) in the middle of movies. Back in HS, my favorite game with my movie buddies was Guess-That-Movie-Trailer. Sometimes the games turned to shouting matches wherein the winner was the one who blurted out the movie title first. Trust me, you would have hated to be seated next to us. I've also watched movies solo several times, and regretted none of those instances.
10. I think I'll always be an outdoors girl, even if I'm actually terrified of swimming in anything that's beyond the reach of my toes.
11. The farthest and most challenging mountain I've ever climbed was Mt. Apo, and that by far was the most humbling experience I've ever had in my life.
12. I've found a new vice in dancing. I'd scrimp on money for food, but not money for weekend dance classes. I dance while I walk. I dance while I work. I dance while I type. I sincerely hope I could do this forever.
13. I get sad when I commute without listening to music from my mp3 player (either I left it at home or it ran out of battery). Truly sad. I get so irritable that sometimes I throw tantrums, and God forbid that you should find yourself in the middle of an Ish-tantrum.
14. It doesn't suit me, but I'm such a crier. I cry when I laugh. I cry when I get mad. I cry at sad movies. I cried upon hearing the first riffs of 'Alapaap' during the EHeads concert.
15. I've lost more than 10 cellphones in less than 10 years. The one I had longest with me was for less than a year; the shortest lifespan was 2 weeks. But if you're a close friend, you probably already knew that.
16. I'm the youngest of five girls. Even if out of the five, I have the least chance of getting anything new, I have the comfort of knowing that I'm the cute one. Haha! =P I often think of how it could have been like if all of us could have grown up at least in the same country (two of them are in Canada, while one's in Singapore). Riot!
17. Ikay and I borrow each other's clothes and shoes. Good thing we have the same taste.
18. I still have a vivid recollection of the first time I cheated on a test. It was during Grade 3 -- I had some trouble memorizing the multiplication table. In the middle of a quiz, I felt someone kick me and I saw my seatmate gesture to a copy of the multiplication table underneath our chairs. You know who you are! =P
19. When Neil Gaiman came to Manila, I got to hug him! Thanks Quel for hooking me up.
20. One sure-fire way to make me sleepy -- scratch my head.
21. One sure way to tick me off is to let me catch you littering. Argh! Ang laki naman ng basurahan mo.
22. I got my first INC and my first DRP in UP when I took up masters. Humabol pa...
23. 2008 was a good year for me. It was the first time I stepped out of Philippine territory -- and my first destination was India. Definitely an experience.
24. I dream of doing a lot of things, but the one thing I really want to do is to bungee jump. My parents are going to kill me, but I'm going to die anyway. =P
25. I want to finish writing a book as well someday. Maybe something on being single forever. =P
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
i heart.
a 'hearts' post THIS near to february? coming from me? the world must be coming to an end.
the topic's usually too sappy for my own taste (oh spare me the accusing looks), but this was too astonishing to just brush off. i came across a post of heart-shaped natural features found in the planet -- islands, lakes, forests, you name it. awesome, right?
the first one's an island called Galesnjak in Croatia, the second one's a heart-shaped mangrove in New Caledonia, while the last one's a real forest in Cantabria, Spain. amazing. maybe we can have heart-shaped rice terraces. anyway, if you want more, just click over here to get bowled over.
the topic's usually too sappy for my own taste (oh spare me the accusing looks), but this was too astonishing to just brush off. i came across a post of heart-shaped natural features found in the planet -- islands, lakes, forests, you name it. awesome, right?
the first one's an island called Galesnjak in Croatia, the second one's a heart-shaped mangrove in New Caledonia, while the last one's a real forest in Cantabria, Spain. amazing. maybe we can have heart-shaped rice terraces. anyway, if you want more, just click over here to get bowled over.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Kaladkarin Invades Cebu Once Again!
Proof that if things don't go as planned, then your plan was wrong. =P We originally wanted to idle away in Boracay for January, but after some discussions, hotel-scouting, and some shifts in the constellations, plans changed and we opted to meet up with Mike in Cebu instead.
And thank God we did. It was already my 3rd time in Cebu in less than 3 years, yet I still got to experience a lot of new things. Sky Adventure, Plantation Bay, table tennis marathons, badminton matches, Sutukil+Pod5 Videoke, Cawasan Falls, Moalboal Beach, clubbing, and of course, our lamon-til-you-drop binging sessions -- yep, all those in 5 days. And for a change, we only checked out the mall during our last day! Ralph already did a great job documenting every step we took during those 5 days; check out his photos. One thing's for sure -- it wouldn't have been as fun if the Sepulvedas did not take us under their wing and put up with our merry band of pasaway bakasyonistas. Daghang salamat! (Mike, uwi ka na ulit! =P)
Okay, enough babbling. More photos over at Ralph and Philip's multiply sites, and of course, mine as well:
http://ishg.multiply.com/photos/album/35/Kaladkarin_Flies_High_Sky_Walk#
http://rarefied.multiply.com/photos
http://peejay6459.multiply.com/photos/album/14/Plantation_Bay_-_Kawasan_-_Moalboal#
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Tres Marias Set Loose in Manila Ocean Park
It's been a while since our last kids' day out, so Ate Ting, Ikay (my niece) and I set off for Manila for a fishy escapade at Manila Ocean Park. Apparently, a lot of other kiddies also had the same idea. The place was so packed, you had to get a number, just to BUY the ticket. To give you an idea, the number I got was 890; they were still serving number 357. The three of us let the time pass by gorging on munchies and looking for good photo-op spots.
Finally, we got our tickets and entered the oceanarium. As you may have already predicted, we saw fish after fish after fish after fish. I had fun, though, as I've never been in another oceanarium before. The shark tank was a bit of a downer, though; I was hoping to see big ones. However, all in all, since I had Ate Ting and Ikay for company, there was never a dull moment. :)
Pics over at http://ishg.multiply.com/photos/album/34/Tres_Marias_Set_Loose_At_Ocean_Park.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Let's Do The Year-end Thing
owe it to this year's unexpected Christmas house arrest due to the flu-- i already weeded out my old clothes, bags & notes, and got to do my year-end thing way earlier than expected. =P i usually make a calendar/wallpaper as an ode to year that has passed, but for this year, i made animotos instead (sinong tamad?). rummaging through my PC and online albums for pics made me see that this year was more eventful than i realized. the fact that i can't squeeze all the pics i want into the vids tells me i have a lot of thanking to do. =) i'm thankful that The Man Up Above granted me the chances, as well as the challenges, I've encountered this year. admittedly, i've grown, even just for a teeny bit. thanks for everyone who's been part of my 2008, who's made it something worth making all of these vids. =P
here are some of the year's highlights:
.: Sinulog + Bohol Adventures (Jan)
.: SWAT's Putipot Offsite (Feb)
.: Ben's homecoming @ Palawan (Apr)
.: SWAT's life-changing Anilao offsite (Apr)
.: Anawangin getaway with Cla, Patch & Xtin (May)
.: Bugsy encounters Baboon-Shark, among other things, @ Boracay (May)
.: Kaladkarin Loose in Bangalore, India (May)
.: SWAT Resignation Dramas (June)
.: The Legendary SEA Backpacking Escape: Kuala Lumpur - Siam Reap - Ho Chi Minh City (July)
.: SG F1 Grand Prix + A Peek at my Sister's Life in SG (Sept-Oct)
.: My 1st dance compet @ Dolce (Oct)
.: Cliff-diving @ Tali (Oct)
.: Bugsy's day-out @ Tagaytay (Dec)
[Jan-Feb-Mar]
[Apr-May-June]
[July-Aug-Sept]
[Oct-Nov-Dec]
here are some of the year's highlights:
.: Sinulog + Bohol Adventures (Jan)
.: SWAT's Putipot Offsite (Feb)
.: Ben's homecoming @ Palawan (Apr)
.: SWAT's life-changing Anilao offsite (Apr)
.: Anawangin getaway with Cla, Patch & Xtin (May)
.: Bugsy encounters Baboon-Shark, among other things, @ Boracay (May)
.: Kaladkarin Loose in Bangalore, India (May)
.: SWAT Resignation Dramas (June)
.: The Legendary SEA Backpacking Escape: Kuala Lumpur - Siam Reap - Ho Chi Minh City (July)
.: SG F1 Grand Prix + A Peek at my Sister's Life in SG (Sept-Oct)
.: My 1st dance compet @ Dolce (Oct)
.: Cliff-diving @ Tali (Oct)
.: Bugsy's day-out @ Tagaytay (Dec)
[Jan-Feb-Mar]
[Apr-May-June]
[July-Aug-Sept]
[Oct-Nov-Dec]
Sunday, December 21, 2008
note to self
Dear Self,
Nobody was ever born perfect,so get used to making mistakes.
Get used to doing things that you wish you haven't done. Get used to NOT doing things you should have done, if only you had the wits (or guts) that a meaningful life calls for.
Bottom line - get used to making mistakes. Lots of them. In fact, start enjoying the experience.
Nobody was ever born perfect,so get used to making mistakes.
Get used to doing things that you wish you haven't done. Get used to NOT doing things you should have done, if only you had the wits (or guts) that a meaningful life calls for.
Bottom line - get used to making mistakes. Lots of them. In fact, start enjoying the experience.
Monday, December 08, 2008
shout-out for 1984 kiddos
the thing that i love about hanging out with Team Bugsy are the zany theories we throw at each other, ranging from the hands-down-insane to the this-might-be-worth-taking-a-look-at. during one of our bouts during the long weekend, a friend piped up with this conclusion -- there are no good-looking guys born during our year, 1984.
okay, okay, before the hostile reactions, i admit that this might be quite a rash generalization --- that's why we're asking people to prove us wrong. do you guys beg to differ? send us pics, and we'll eat our words. =P otherwise, who knows, ridiculous as it sounds, this might just have a hint of truth that we never really thought about. [i have a feeling i might have a lot of hate mail after this. haha!]
okay, okay, before the hostile reactions, i admit that this might be quite a rash generalization --- that's why we're asking people to prove us wrong. do you guys beg to differ? send us pics, and we'll eat our words. =P otherwise, who knows, ridiculous as it sounds, this might just have a hint of truth that we never really thought about. [i have a feeling i might have a lot of hate mail after this. haha!]
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