nov 29 & 30 events

Dec. 29

> last day of work - i was supposed to work for half the day only to be able to attend to our church socializing activity but work load didn't seem to cooperate with me. i was able to leave the office around 3:30pm and rushing to the venue of our year-end gathering made me restless.

> Year-End Shebang - all labor and effort paid off. thanks to Ichay for 'directing' the program:

Kadiwa-Binhi swing performance to the tune of "Isasayaw Ko"

PNK MT band with vocalist, Enchong

a shot of the audience before the socializing started

After the gathering, i asked bro. arnel to say a prayer for the Kadiwa officers and afterwich, some of us treated ourselves at Tropical Hut. with me were Lyn, Riza, Joy, Lawrence, Joce & Ben. And we called it a day!

December 30

> auntie joy's bday - i was excited to take Ayah to my aunt's place in Fairview as our annual tradition continues. Auntie Joy's bday has become our annual family reunion on my mom's side but this year, it wasn't so much of the regular "reunion". we just had a small 'gathering' and more people were absent in the occasion. So we just enjoyed the day by singing all out with the wow magic sing that was hooked on TV. then i was waiting for my best bud-cousin Bernie as he was to introduce to us his new gurL. small world. his new gurL is a sister of my former colleague, Abbie Quizon.

We left my aunt's place a bit late in the afternoon, Ayah and i proceeded with a few buy in the supermarket then headed to---

> Hana's debut - people were waiting on their respective tables. i was simply too eager to call it a day since i was already tired and sleepy form the previous days i haven't got proper rest. So, after the ceremony that was participated in, Ayah & i slipped out of the place and headed home as we still have to get ourselves ready for our early church service the following day, which is today, sunday, december 31.

Last day of the year. i have so many things to thank God for. The best thing that ever happened to myself this year was when Ayah walked into my life...
looking forward to a much better year ahead.

28th December, 2006 - - -

22nd December, 2006 happy birthday, mamsi! :)

we all left the office a little past 6 in the evening. we were all gearing up for our office dinner/night out. everybody's in a light mood while we still needed to catch up with our year target. we first went to The Podium and dined in at Florabel. dinner was great, i enjoyed the appetizer and the main course, but most especially, the mouth-watering dessert, Mango Cream Torte & Chocolate Decadence.

After dinner, next stop for all of us was this international-inspired restaurant-bar, Club Mwah where people perform musical numbers ala broadway. we have chanced upon seeing their Bedazzled 6 show, and getting the audience alive and kicking, rounding the tables was none other than its executive producer, Pocholo Malillin. The guy was nice. He even sat with us on our table for many minutes before the show started. He was telling stories about the club, and people, about the shows and what people love. I got the chance of taking a couple of photos of the performance, but later on found out that taking pictures while the performance is on-going is prohibited. oh well, they don't confiscate cameras anyway:





We all enjoyed the night, all first-timers at Club Mwah (entrance costs more than 500 pesos per head), and right after the show, the dance floor was open. After the big night, i, together with Czah & Mang Nest rode a cab going home. I immediately went to Teletech-Cainta where Ayah was on duty with their promotional booth. Jayson fetched me at the call center building entrance and then Ayah was telling me they still have zero sales. Good thing i saw Glen and convinced him to purchase a gift card, their only sales for the night. we packed up Dec 23 earlier than the supposed shift time since no one is buying the gift cards anyway, and worse, we felt that the booth leveled down to the place it was located. so we packed-up, went home to each owns houses, and slept.

Later in the afternoon, Ayah & i went strolling @ Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall where Judy Ann Santos was supposed to come for a mall tour promoting their MMFF movie entry Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo. Although hesitant, i was eager to have Ayah see Ms. Judy Ann Santos in person as she longs to see her idol-actress in flesh. For some reasons, we weren't able to take a glimpse of Judy Ann at the center stage. oh well, there will always be a next time. sorry, beh. :c

24th December, 2006, church day! After all church obligations, I fetched Ayah and we went to St. Francis Square to get her cousin the Hello Kitty bag and at the same time try to visit the over-rated Krispy Kreme Doughnuts store in SM Megamall. As expected, the line queu was long but manageable and fast-moving. no FREE DONUTS in the waiting line, though. I bought just a dozen original glazed and have Ayah take it home. I don't really need to taste it since that time i was already very full and was just craving for a bottle of water. here are some pics:







25th December, 2006 family day with the Lucido clan. we went to Ayah's relatives, father side, in Sta. Cruz(?) Manila and afterwards treaded to Gateway to watch Enteng Kabisote. Movie houses were all jampacked except for some MMFF movie entries. The only available seats left were for the last full show and it was like 4 hours waiting so we just decided to go home instead. Ayah's brother was acting up and was really in a bad mood that afternoon after he wasn't allowed to join his friends in going to Star City so we all called it a day.

26th December, 2006 family day with Ayah's, this time minus mamsi. We went early to Robinsons Metro East to catch the first screening of Enteng Kabisote, which her dad longs to see even as the MMFF began. moviehouse already full 15 minutes before the main show but we're lucky enough to have some seats even in front of the wide screen. then afterwards, we had lunch at Kenny Rogers, and next stop could have been some refreshing hours at The SPA - The Podium but all rooms were occupied. That led us to watch Ayah's MMFF pick, Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo starring Ms. Judy Ann Santos & her real-life partner Ryan Agoncillo.

27th December, 2006 WORK DAY, BUSY DAY.

28th December, 2006 still busy @ work as we were catching up on our year target. i also was coordinating things for our church year-end socializing as i was tasked to attend to the tarpaulin that'll be used on stage and as a photo panel. Thanks to Ayah for helping me out with her contacts. she got a good deal for the tarp pricing, even lower than what ABS-CBN offers.

TODAY is the 28th. before this day ends, i would just like to mark this day and begin to look forward to a new year ahead.

the season

This (office) day (and week) is almost ending, people are feeling the "spirit" of the season. i, for one, can joyfully hum a line of a well-known xmas song, it's the most wonderful time of the year...

shopping rush, gift-giving all over, parties being talked about and many more spendings. sad but true, xmas has become more materialistic each year. one may say it depends on how you view it but if you ask the kids or even the teenagers what xmas is all about, it would be far different from what our Catholic ancestors knew.

when i was in high school, it always excites me to wake up every 16th of December. for what? it's the start of simbang gabi. 9 mornings as it is now commonly known, i used to attend the first & the last mass, and trying very hard to attend also the 2nd up to the 8th morning mass, being raised by my parents in acknowledging the importance of serving the Lord thru mass/worship attendance. it was when i was living with my grandparents in the Catholic-dominant barrio where people, especially the old folks give so much importance on the Catholic rituals. i used to love being awaken by a couple or more drummer boys walking along the roads of the town as early as 3am, waking up every neighborhood with the beat of their drum, in reminder of the early mass. my grandpa used to take care of the chapel and if i could stretch myself up in bed early, i would help him in the chapel and even ask if i could ring the kampana minutes before the mass starts. then after the mass, we would all be cheerful in buying ang eating those puto-bumbong that are being sold right outside the chapels compound, while socializing with fellow teenagers/friends/schoolmates.

well.. those were the days.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

in PEx, there is this thread that discusses about atheists celebrating Christmas. it readily caught my attention. as far as i know, the December 25 Christmas being celebrated by the world today was made/started by Catholics after agreement that this be the supposed birthdate of the Lord Jesus Christ. Granting without accepting that it is a fact, atheists shouldn't be associating themselves with the celebration made by theists. atheist PExers reason out that they do celebrate the date without acknowledging the primary reason why it was made such. a bit confusing but i did realize that only a few PExer atheists joined in the discussion. whatever their reason of just lurking in there and not participating in maybe an indirect admittance that a little of themselves still believe in a 'god'.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

The season. I do not believe in December 25 as being the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, hence, where "Christmas" was derived, i can't really validate the word per se. if there is one good thing that this season has brought to mankind, it's the peoples spirit--- love, giving, forgiving, joy, and giving importance to family togetherness. i say: "If we can make the atmosphere feel good during this season, why not try making it feel the same way everyday?"

- - - - - - - - - - - -

On another note, look who's on my office PC monitor:



thanks, beh. Kilala mo talaga kung sino ang love na love ko, ang may piiiiinakamaputi at matambok na pwet sa balat ng lupa. hehe..

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Happy birthday, mamsi! labshu!

the long wait

...has finally come:







(Citibank Tower in Eastwood City, Libis, QC [top photo]; MMDA Footbridge proposal marks [above photos] across Citibank Tower)

early notes

> i'm early in the office today (courtesy of Ayah). it feels good to be early again after months of logging in at pass 9am. i used to be the "early bird" when we were still located in Medical Plaza Ortigas, hence i used to hold the office key. but now, it's a different story.

> our GM called me into his office a while ago, handing me an envelope marked "private & confidential". that means only one thing: PAR-TEEH!!!

> i will be fetching Ayah after office tonight at Greenbelt 1. they have another promotion there today for their gift cards. anyone might want to drop by there, find their booth, play the promotional game and get a chance to win a The SPA Gift Card in denominations of 1,000, 1,500, and 2,000. :)

> need to work on my office files...

finally!

i was able to deposit some moolah in my EPCI savings account, after more than three months of having a below 100 balance in it. it feels good knowing that you have some savings that you can use up when needs arise. only thing is, you'll never know how long your savings will last, depending on the expenses you're going to build up in the coming days. *sigh* i wish money grows on trees.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Ayah's in Makati right now, their company is having an event somewhere in one of the BPI buildings in Paseo de Roxas. it's one of her first times to travel/commute alone so she's a bit nervous. since childhood, she has a service going to and from school, and never did she commute alone. that explains how she's feeling with this activity that she has to attend to. anyway, i was, since yesterday, ensuring her that its ok, its going to be fine, and she (and i) will be proud of herself after fulfilling everything on her own. "there should always be a first time and it will be a great achievement on your part if you learn new things," was what i keep on telling her to give her the confidence to go on. now, she texted me and told me she's already on her place of destination, adding that she's familiar with everything there, except in riding the jeepney. well, not bad for her first time. way to go, gurl! :)

earlier, we had a breakfast date at McDonalds in Eastwood, one of the very few times that we visit Eastwood City. Eastwood seems so pleasant a place during mornings. not a lot of people, but not a deserted place anyway. you see tired people ready to go home from the night shift, most of them sipping coffee or having their breakfast on the dining places in the area. morning breeze of air complemented by the young rays of the sun contribute to the beauty of the place. it's a different story on the other part of the day though. Eastwood is more alive during evenings because it's more of a gimmick place anyway. by then, i long to go home and rest, instead of taking another hours of my day for spending and staying late. yes. i'm more of a day person.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

[edit... afternoon posting 5:49pm]

roughly ten minutes before COB today, i still have a handful of papers in my desk, most of which are for filing. did i say it already: filing is not my cup of tea :p

Ayah did well on her Official Business, with the help of a good friend, Mario Jr. They found each other in the main building of BPI. more stories prolly next time.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

good news: bonus is coming... yey!

OMG!

If you happen to see the new tropical storm Seniang on the left part of this page (satellite image from PAG-ASA), you will notice that it is treading almost the same path which typhoon Reming passed. That couldn't be! Bicol region is still recovering from the previous calamity and here is another one coming... Oh God, please spare Your people... :(


[this post is good up to date]

day off

i took a day off yesterday coz of my running nose. i can't look straight at daylight, i sneeze every now and then, and slowly losing my normal speaking voice. so i decided to just rest the whole day until my condition gets back to at least 85% normal. i felt better at night and fetched ayah from work. we then proceeded to the department store to get a gray slack pants for me that will match the coat i'm gonna use for Saturday CWS Thanksgiving. then we attended the devotional prayer at our respective locales and afterwich, called it a day.

- - - - - - - - - - -

work today. i found a P.O. of Seven Eleven in my folder early today and looking at its supposed date of delivery, it's scheduled December 6. yes, it was supposed to be delivered yesterday. i missed it but after coordinating things to concerned parties, i just ended up processing it today anyway and wait if they (Phil Seven) will impose a delayed-delivery-penalty. oh well, you can't be perfect at all times.

good news for me! my filed leave of absences is approved by my immediate superior. and they are scheduled at the last week of the month. wow... i should be having a long non-working holiday! I'm waiting for our give-aways this year. last year, we had this thermo-mug which had our (first) company logo. the make wasn't really good but anyway, they are give-aways so who would complain? for this year, i'm hoping that we have jackets to complement the umbrellas that we're giving away. and if ever we'll have jackets, i'm guessing that it's color will be nice--- navy blue & white combination.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

i'm still not in my tip-top shape but hoping to be better by tomorrow until thanksgiving days. need to offer my strength in the service to the Lord. Happy Thanksgiving dear brethren in Christ!

New Year's List

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

...

andami ano? :p