5 more instances that made me realize, I've become an adult

6) I have started to appreciate old music. When I was a child, my young ears would always be in revolting mode whenever Papa was in control of the stereo. Alan Jackson. Engelbert Humperdinck. Tom Jones. The Carpenters. Yahaaak! Haha! Of course, you wouldn’t expect me to like these artists back in the time when I thought New Kids On The Block were coolest singers on Earth! Papa’s musical taste is mainly folk or country music – genres that a pop fanatic like me thought I could never ever appreciate. But now, I have seriously re-considered.
Of course, I still cannot bear to listen to the likes of Alan Jackson, Engelbert Humperdinck and company, hehe, but have learned to appreciate modern country music. Carrie Underwood’s winning stint on American Idol Season 4 sparked my interest on country music. And the rest is history.
Another illustration of this happened just last month. I had just woken up and my Ate had a playlist of old songs on her computer. Normally, I would comment, “Yuck ate, ambaduy ng pinapatugtog mo!” Guess what I blurted out? “’Te, sino kumanta nyan? Pahingi ng mp3..” Haha! The theme weeks on American Idol further bolsters my appreciation of music that became popular before I really knew what good music is.

7) Many of my friends have gone abroad or are going abroad.
Now this is a sad fact. I have 2 very close friends who are already abroad. And 2 more close friends are leaving this month. And all four of them will be together in Singapore! Waaaa!
Obviously and admittedly, I feel left out. But I am not going to be dramatic about it for I have accepted my situation a long time ago. But if I won’t be with a friend for quite a long time doing something I should also be doing myself already, it still feels melancholic.
I have part-time job of being a tutor though. So in its own little way, it helps ease the frustration of not being able to earn my own money yet, hehe. At least I get to receive a helpful amount of salary each month already.

8) My mom has asked me to buy her a bag.
And speaking of salaries – my Mama recently made a request that sent shivers to my being. She wants me to buy her a bag! Haha! “Duh, Ma, hindi naman kalakihan ang sweldo ko sa pag-tu-tutor no..”
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have reached the age, apparently, when it’s my turn to buy my parents some materialistic stuff, haha!
She says I have one year to save a little portion of my salary to buy her a bag. I know it’s just a bag. It probably wouldn’t even cost more than a thousand. (Are ladies’ bags even that cheap? Oh, I don’t know!). But to me, doing so is really some sort of milestone of coming of age as a child! I dread the day she's gonna ask me to buy her a sofa set, haha! I hope it won't be soon, for I definitely cannot afford it. Yet.

9) I have become a little more conscious of my health.
Now if only I had enough extra money to go to the gym. It’s not that I want to build a “body to die for” to get “the ladies” (Seriously, most of the time, I think this is the reason why most guys build sexy bodies). I just want to shed off some excess inches on my waistline. My main motivation and reason? So that I can wear some of my favorite pants again! Grabe, yung iba talaga, di ko na kasya!
And of course, I also want to be healthy. I don’t have dangerous vices like smoking or drinking. But I need to start watching what I eat if want to stay healthy, strong, fit and all those traits that adult health products emphasize on.
I buy Men’s Health every now and then. My roommate once complained, “Kuya, bakit di na lang FHM ang bilhin mo. Mas maraming sexy girls dun..” Clearly, my roommate is misguided! Haha! Did he actually think I buy MH because of the sexy models? I reasoned out, “Hindi lang naman sex ang habol ko sa magazine na to no. There’s lot more to being a man than knowing how to please a girl..” I explained further that I was mainly after the health articles than the sex tips.

10) I am no longer the student but the teacher.
Well, to my younger friends, that is – which for the sake of discussion I will call ‘kids’, hehe.
I have blogged many times before that I myself am amazed at the advices I am able to give out to a wide array of problems so I am not going to dwell on that anymore.
Once, a young orgmate texted me just after midnight – “Kuya, teach me how to grow up..” I was stumped, haha! Then I really pondered about it – how did I “grow up” myself?
I ended up telling him to surround himself with mature people, haha! I think one of the main reasons why I matured faster than kids my age was because I hung out with older friends quite a lot in college. I literally and figuratively had “ate” and “kuya” figures who helped me ‘discover’ (more like ‘taught’ most of the time) stuff that “I don’t know”. And now that it’s my turn to be the “kuya”, I always think of them as my role models.
Actually, I think I take the “kuya” role too seriously, for I feel like I “epal” too much sometimes, haha! But what can I say, I just want them to realize what they are doing and to know the consequences if they want to be stubborn about things.

_____________
So there. Again, I am not saying that I am that matured already. I recognize the fact that I still yet have a lot to learn in life. I am just taking it one year and one experience at a time. Besides, no real mature person would boldly declare “I am matured”, hehe!
Plus, in life, the ‘real world’ seems to be ALWAYS the next stage in one’s life. You know, back in high school, teachers would warn us about college and tell us they are preparing us for the real world “out there”. But come college, our professors would start telling us, once we’re working, that’s when “the real world” happens. And then when we’re already working, they’d say “the real life starts when we settle down..” Yada, yada, yada. So clearly, it’s a never-ending cycle until the day we die, haha!

5 instances that made me realize, I've become an adult*

*But it doesn't necessarily follow that I am a mature adult at that, haha! This is really supposed to be a Top 10 list, but as I haven't finished expounding on the other five, enjoy these first five entries and tell me if you agree or disagree.

1) I became more and more interested in cooking. For someone who loves to eat and consider it as one of the better forms of therapy on any kind of problem, I sure prefer to eat something delicious or special all the time. I know I am a Kapampangan and I am supposed to be a good cook. So I hate to admit that I am no good cook – at least not yet. Of course I can cook hotdogs, boil noodles and cook rice without burning it 90% of the time, but when it comes to staple Filipino and Kapampangan dishes like adobo, nilaga or sinigang, I am an ignoramus.
I love experimenting with the simplest ingredients I could scavenge on our refrigerator and easily cook with the microwave or the stove. For as long as I have garlic powder, some eggs and butter – I can whip up an ordinary hotsilog into something extra special and something you wouldn’t find in any carinderia around. There was even a time when I experimented with canned tuna, eggs, cheese and potatoes which led my 3 nephew to boldly exclaim that between me, my sister and brother-in-law, I am the best cook of them all, haha!
And now that I am one of the oldest at our apartment in UP, I am always in-charge of the ‘cooking’ during those times of the week where we’ve almost maxed out our weekly allowances that we’d have to resort to ‘tipid’ meals at home. I wrote cooking in quotation marks for what I do is not really cooking – what we only have is a mini-oven-toaster. But thanks to my experimentation skills, I manage to put something extra to our de-lata meals. None of my younger housemates dare to take over the ‘cooking chores’ (they don’t know how to cook potatoes with our minimal facilities). They’d rather sit and wait for to serve the food at the dining table. Of course, they contribute afterwards by washing the dishes.

2) When my friends tell me I’d be a ninong to their kids! Phew, I thank God for my seriously attached friends that it hasn’t happen yet, haha! But it’s a constant inside joke among my friends.
Just this week, my sister tells me that a younger cousin of mine got pregnant and is going to get married soon. I wasn’t really shocked, given the previous transgression of that young cousin of mine. But it dawned on me – a cousin way younger is gonna get married! My gard! The same girl who used to cry a lot whenever we play when we were little just did the unprotected fandango with her older boyfriend and got herself knocked up! Yikes! I, on the other hand, am slowly but unintentionally following the footsteps of Evan Baxter, haha!
On a serious note, whenever I hear of relatives or friends my age (or even younger) who get married already, I can’t help but realize – although I am far from being ready, I am already on the marrying age! And I don’t even have a serious girlfriend.. (Weeeh, as if naman non-serious gf, meron.. haha!)

3) I have started imagining my own place already. Like I mentioned before, I am only the 2^nd oldest housemates in my UP apartment, but I am the overall manager. I compute the bills, arrange the different household chores and remind each one of their chore designation for the week – all the time. I also make sure they pay up on time lest we be evicted from the apartment we’ve had for almost a decade already! (There were earlier batches of UP Aguman housemates before us, they were orgmates as well. When one housemates moves out, we recruit another orgmate to move in, and so the cycle goes).
Weirdly enough, caring about cleanliness is something I don’t practice at my Pampanga home (sorry Mom!). But when it comes to our apartment, it’s a different kind of story. I have no choice, if I don’t worry about our apartment’s state, no one among my younger housemates will. It’s a natural consequence of being old (relative to my peers) – I am forced to think about these adult responsibilities.
Since I am the pseudo leader of our apartment, I pretty much yield more power than the rest of them, haha! And sometimes, I find myself thinking about how I will be when I get my own solo apartment when I am working already. And how much fun it would be!
Being big brother to my housemates entails another necessary role – I lend them money when the ‘kids’ use up all their weekly allowance already. Well, I don’t really have a bigger allowance (it’s the opposite actually). Let’s just say I am better in managing my expenses. Plus, being the manager of the apartment, I built up a savings fund for all of us for emergency purposes. I did this by collecting P30 on top of our individual monthly bills. So I don’t really use my own money all the time.

4) I have toned down my shopping habits. My mom always told me, save up for the rainy day.. always! (ala KC Concepcion, haha!). I never really paid much attention to her reminder, for I’ve always thought my spending habit was quite normal. I mean, I don’t really spend more than what I can afford. But eventually, I have realized, I shouldn’t be spending on stuff that I don’t really need, even if I can afford them.
So now, gone are the days when Christmas shopping galore is a must. I only managed to wear something new last Christmas because the money I used to buy the new apparel was more like a pasalubong from my parents instead of a Christmas shopping fund.
I actually envy my younger orgmates, allowance-wise. I am obliged to live on a P1000 weekly budget, while most of them have P1500 to spend. Apparently, my parents have no concept of inflation rate – P1000 has always been my weekly allowance, since I was a freshman 7 years ago! Haha! That why I kind of cringe deep inside when I hear complaints of not being able to save. I’m like, “Grow up kid! You have a more flexible allowance than most students these days. Better start learning how to send your money wisely.”
I know someone who is able to save a considerate amount from his weekly allowance. Good for him, right? The catch though is that he spends all of his year-round savings in blitzkrieg fashion during Christmas – buying new clothes, pants, shoes and all other material things that he probably already have. Well, he is young after all. Just like me before, sooner or later, he will realize buying stuff to give others (or just saving it if you’re not that thoughtful, hehe!) is more fulfilling than buying stuff purely for oneself.

5) I've taken elections more seriously. Well, it’s not like there are elections every month, eh? Haha! Since I reached the voting-eligible age, I’ve experienced 3 national elections: the 2004 presidential and 2007 midterm and barangay polls. I took the 2007 elections more seriously than the other two. The barangay elections are a joke for me, I don’t even know the candidates. I only voted for 2 people because they were recommended by my brother-in-law. I didn’t completely fill up my ballot because I couldn’t bear to accidentally vote for the wrong people.
Meanwhile, back in 2004, I think I was too naïve to have voted wisely. Having said that, I still think that my choice for President then remains to be the best President we never had – Raul Roco.
As for the 2007 Midterm elections, I made sure I was as informed as possible on the platforms and personalities. Thanks to modern technology like blogging and podcasting, I was able to listen to the interviews of the candidates even if I was never around to attend any of their political rallies. Besides, I’d rather listen to these legitimate interviews than attend rallies that would feature more entertainment numbers (that aren’t really entertaining) than sensible discussions of platforms.
And now, in UP, the University Student Council elections is coming up. I now linger by the Campus Issues threads at www.peyups.com again to know who the student leaders I should be voting for - or shouldn't be voting for. Sadly enough, the political bickering on our campus elections is no different from the circus we witness come election time in our country.

TO BE CONTINUED

Top 10 most jologs songs that we used to like back in high school

For the first half of this 'hitlist', kindly click here first. Then go back here. Hehe!

5. MANDY MOORE - Candy
Rex: I actually like Mandy Moore the most compared to her teenage bubblegum pop colleagues like Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera & Jessica Simpson. I do watch her silly and corny movies up to these days! Haha! She was like 14 when she released this song. What’s with the trying-hard-to-be-sexy pouting?! Haha!
Jigs: Mandy Moore here is like the Paris Hilton of the 90's.
Rex: At least she doesn’t have any sex video with Wilder Valderama or Andy Roddick, haha!
Jigs: Just look at those lips, and her non-existent breast! Plus, seeing her dance was weird. Over acting much?!
Rex: Haha! I second the opinion! She looks like a stick man! Trying to project her flat chest (which isn't so flat these days, at least). Do you know that she abhors her first 2 albums? She said she'd refund anyone who'd come up to her and tell her they bought her CDs.
Jigs: I would believe that actually. Ipa-refund mo na ang albums mo! Hahaha!
Rex: Oo nga eh. Sana lang makabangga ko siya one of these days. Anyway, she's releasing a new one soon. This is her last chance to redeem herself as a musical artist. Sayang, I love her pipes pa naman.
Jigs: Back to her song, the chorus has a gawky line, "Swear it to me, like sugar to my heart". Can sugar swear to your heart?!
Rex: Haha! Tell me about it. Tapos the car was painted apple green pa talaga. Candy-ng candy! I guess it just goes to show how a wholesome girl who defied the dumb blond stereotype can still be considered jologs, just because she was too young to stand up to the bubblegum pop machine operators!

4. THE MOFFATS - Miss You Like Crazy
Jigs: Ugh, this was one of the most painful to watch. There's nothing worse than puppy love that went wrong. Ang drama ng kantang ito!!!
Rex: Oo nga, ewan ko ba sa iyo bat nagustuhan mo to! I'm thinking the current TV disaster that is Abt Ur Luv (And Ur Lyf 2! Bwiset!) was based from this video, haha!
Jigs: Don't judge me Mr. boyband fanatic! Another thing about this song, as if a teenager will write in a letter the line "can't you see how I feel, can't you see that my pain's so real" (shivers).
Rex: And don't get me started with the stupid highlights!
Jigs: Well, those highlights actually became famous because of them. The video's actually about how sad they are despite all the fame they're getting. You can't honestly tell me that a bunch of teenagers will be, "so down when your love's not around" even if their wildest dreams are coming true. I just don't buy it!
Rex: Weeeh? Pero you bought the album?
Jigs: Sadly, yes...
Rex: Hahaha! Yahaaak!
Jigs: Shut it
Rex: I never actually liked The Moffats, out of all the boy bands. At least their playing of the instruments is a minus in their jologsness? Haha!

3. WESTLIFE - Bop Bop Baby
Rex: Oooh, my favorite pop act of all time.. I'm hurt that they're #3..
Jigs: Ugh, they deserve this position, this boyband is the worst of all.
Rex: Dahil dapat #1 sila! Haha!
Jigs: They can't dance, they wear similar outfits and they're gay! Most of them anyway.
Rex: Hoy ansama mo! Only 1 of them is gay! And they can dance, I watched their concerts twice... haha! Halata bang addict?!
Jigs: What you witnessed was barely a concert. I bet they lip synched. That's one problem I have when watching a Westlife video, it’s so obvious na naglilip-synch sila, especially the lead singer.
Rex: Heh! Tumigil ka! Anyway, speaking of video. What's with the video of this song!?! "When I call you at home and he answers the phone or I get your machine" sings the lead Musketeer, but the setting of the damn video is the Medieval Ages! Stupid title! Stupid video! Pero in fairness, catchy beat. But what the hell does 'bop bop' mean? To think this one was written by the boys themselves... haha!
Jigs: Yeah, the video was sooo wrong and didn’t make any sense at all. Masyado kasing ambitious ang video. I also think that the bop bop part was filler lyrics for the song. Wala na silang maisip na lyrics... How sad.
Rex: And knowing now that one of them is gay, re-watching this makes it more hilarious as the gay one pretends to be knight in shining armor, haha!
Jigs: 5 guys for 1 girl is just a weird ending. I wonder who gets the girl and who gets the rest of the guys. Hahaha!
Rex: Oh I know.. The gay one gets the rest of the guys, haha!
Jigs: Jeez, we can keep at this till next year, let's just agree that Westlife is jologs and that is that. Hahaha!
Rex: (sings) "Ooh da bop bop jologs, please! Don't let me go…"

2. A1 - Like A Rose
Rex: I really used to like this love song way back in high school. But these days talaga, di ko na masikmura, haha! This boyband video is just so wrong on many levels! The video is so girly for a boyband. It's full of roses… and it's shining shimmering splendid!
Jigs: This has got to be one of the cheesiest videos I have ever seen. The overlapping images and projecting videos on to their bodies is just plain stupid! The lead singer looks sooo gay. And as for the way he sings and acts, he might as well be wearing a Miss Universe gown!
Rex: Grrabe ka naman! Haha! Malamya kasi ang pagkagwapo ng lead vocalist...
Jigs: Tapos parang Christian song pa siya if you listen to it carefully. And this song would seem better if a girl sung it. Well, apparently a girly girl is already singing it!
Rex: Well, a boy singing a girly song in a girly video with a girly title is absolutely jologs!

1. BACKSTREET BOYS - Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)
Rex: Taddaaaa! I must say, this is Jigs' pick... so he's more jologs than me, haha!
Jigs: Syempre the mackdaddy of all boy bands HAS to be the most jologs ever! And I can't believe I really enjoyed listening to this song!
Rex: Yeah, me too!
Jigs: Now, this video basically sums up what boy bands do. Look cute, sing together anywhere (on the street, on the beach while walking, in a forest, etc.), exaggerated hand movements, at least two members who rarely sing, close ups with the other members at the background, and sing reeeeeaaaallly cheesy love songs with rhymes at every line – in the rain no less!
Rex: With matching glorified synthesized drum beats pa. Para akong nanonood ng macho dancer movie!
Jigs: Hahaha! That's what they basically are without the fame.
Rex: I think it's interesting that only Nick Carter doesn't go completely topless here.. Dito yata nagsimula yung chismis na bading daw siya, haha! Pretty much like the rumor that the Spice Girls were transsexuals.
Jigs: I also don't like how boy bands sing about unconditional or martyr love. They're the alter egos of today's Emo.
Rex: Yeah.. Kasalanan nilang lahat ito.. the undying profession of love or eternal broken-heartedness.. Eh paano sila hindi paglalaruan ng babae, eh mukha lang sila boy toys, haha! And how's the 'maglupasay sa ulan' dance routine? Kailangan talaga umulan habang naka-pajama sila? Way way worst than their chair routine in As Long As You Love Me, hehe!
Jigs: Hahaha! I would like to think we all learn from our "jologity" but it seems, boy bands, especially the Backstreet Boys wish to proliferate their jologsness.

Ladies and Gentlemen, you just suffered through ten of the cheesiest, nastiest and catchiest songs we ever had the displeasure of liking during our high school days. Thank you for bearing with us despite our irritating rants and criticisms. Nostalgia got the best of us, and that is never a good thing. On the other hand, this collaboration was truly a pleasure. Tell us what you think is the “jologiest” song you’ve ever liked and why. Who knows, you could be just as jologs as we are. 'Til our next joint post!

Just harshly typing poetic chaos out loud (ano daw?!),
Rex & Jigs

*To download the songs (nako para namang napaka-cool nila diba? Haha!) click here.

10 kinds of sadness

Look up 'saddened' in your favorite thesaurus and you will find up to 20 synonyms. They all mean the same negative feeling, albeit in varying degrees and in varying situations. More so, sadness is also relative, which is something I learned when I read a blog post of complaints a few days ago. Add the factor that some of us are 'stronger' such that what may be distressing for us may not be so for them.

So out of the many synonyms of 'saddened', here's my personal perspective of 10 of them.

PEEVED is when you get upset after you argue with a person who just won't listen because of all his close-minded bull.

AFFLICTED is when you can't sleep even if you badly want to, especially when you start becoming ill. That's why usually, there's actual physical pain.

DISTURBED is when you know you only wanted to do the right thing but you know that in the process, you'll most probably incur a friend's wrath.

PAINED is when you remember the good ol'times with the people you once considered very good friends. But somewhere along the way, acts of selfishness or betrayal severed your deep ties with them. Nagging questions like 'what happened?' will always bring a tinge of pain. You are also pained when you realize that the person you once greatly looked up to has become a big time jerk. You feel betrayed though technically, hindi naman ikaw ang tinarantado niya. You don't know whether your 'idol' was just fooled into the dark side or worse, he was just pretending to be on the good side all along. Yun! Ganun na ganun ang 'pained'. Okay, I will stop now. Hehe!

DEPRESSED is when you just feel sad and alone, despite your gazillion friends. You feel like nobody cares, that no one listens to your 'cries' of help.

DISCOMBOBULATED is the word I use in a conversation when I want to be sarcastic or when I want to show off my vocabulary skills, haha! Ang hindi nila alam, memoryado ko lang talaga yung word, haha!

DISPIRITED is what comes to mind when I hear Carrie Underwood's Jesus Take The Wheel, especially the part where you're 'running low on faith and gasoline..' I usually feel this after make-or-break exams wherein I try to convince myself that I will still pass despite not having been able to answer 2 out of 3 problems.

DISTRAUGHT is when you've already done your best and your fate is not anymore in your hands but other people's. You're worried because you don't feel secure that things will go your way.

DEVASTATED is when something extremely tragic has happened. Like for example, if you get permanently expelled from school because you've already been previously dismissed 4 times already. Of course, a death of a beloved falls under the category of devastation.

WRETCHED is for me the aftermath of being devastated. When the dust due to the devastation settles, it is usually then when you start assessing your life. That's when you realize that everything is a mess. You don't know what to do. You are completely lost in your own life.

Of course, I don't really use these words in everyday life, haha! I had to use the dictionary to actually differentiate them. As you can see, all of them sound so negatively alike.

I realized that when we are in a low moment, we tend to have a biased view of what sadness is. We lose perspective and forget that at any given low point in our life, there exists at least one good thing to be happy about and thankful for. In moments when we feel so alone, we never actually are. More often than not, this 'I-am-so-alone' drama we have is primarily our fault anyway. Sometimes, we are just too shy, or worse, too proud to ask or accept well-meaning help from other people -- especially the more loyal and more dependable of our so-called friends.

Top 10 things I didn't like about Spider-man 3

Before any of the Spidey loyalists out there would crucify me, know that while I know the very basic facts about Peter Parker and Spider-man, I am no comic book fan. I also watched a few epsiodes of the cartoon version on ABS-CBN a decade ago. But that's it. I watched Spider-man 1 & 2 and immensle enjoyed both. My expectations on Spider-man 3 were pretty high, so I was disappointed when I watched it. It wasn't a complete mess though. It's just that the annoying things outweighed the enjoyable ones.

Here's a list of the Top 10 things about the movie that annoyed me the most:
(In no particular order)

1. Harry having amnesia after the fight? For a while there I thought I was watching a local teleserye, hehe! Worse, it didn’t last long, to think that he supposedly lost 3 years worth of memory. Even Mike Delfino of Desperate Housewives who lost 2 years worth of memory to amnesia had to wait way way longer than Harry to bring back just a few scenes of his lost past. Sorry, it was a little ridiculous.

2. What’s up with the nosy butler? It took two movies after Green Goblin’s death for the loyal family butler to actually tell Harry that his father’s death is not Spidey’s fault. Geesh, if only he told Harry earlier, it would’ve saved his ward a lot of trouble. And he’d probably be still alive for Spider-man 4.

3. There were too many villains for me. It felt like 3 episodes of Smallville in one movie the only difference being that they all ganged up on him in the end. (Or not, ‘cause Harry switched sides eventually). I just feel that the villains weren’t given enough exposure for me to actually hate them. Which brings us to…

4. … insufficient character development. Like I said, new villains were introduced too quickly for me to actually feel their ‘evil’, to understand where they're coming from. Sure it was mentioned, but to the (un)wise words of Randy Jackson, "I wasn't feeling that, dawg!".

5. I’ve heard Kirsten Dunst’s voice on Dream Of Me (and she can carry a decent tune), that’s why I was surprised that they used a ghost singer in Mary Jane’s theatre and resto gig scenes. It was obviously not her voice so it was awkwardly creepy to hear her sing. (EDIT: A friend says it was actually Kirsten who sang in the movie. If it's true, I stand corrected. But it still sounds odd.)

6. I don’t really know how funny Spider-man is supposed to be in the comics, but one thing I liked about Tobey Maguire’s portrayal of Spider-man is his random comic moments (remember his 'aw, my back!' in Spidey 2?). But in this movie, it didn’t work for me. His dance number to spite Mary Jane was dragging (okay, we get the point, he's not himself, can we get on with the hard action, now?), and so was his goofy dancing in the streets. He reminded me of Taylor Hicks for a few seconds.

7. Does Mary Jane have to screech painstakingly and fall off from extremely high places all the freaking time? I mean come on! Even Lana Lang does not do a repeat performance of her mishaps. (Although, Lana Lang does ALWAYS have to be kidnapped by the meteor freaks. But oh well, that's another story, haha!). To the writers, there are other ways in order to torture the leading ladies!

8. And what’s with the stupid onlookers in the crime scenes throughout the movie who had to bring their children in with them? I mean come on! If something violent is going on, would you bring your child along to satisfy your curiosity and know what’s going on?

9. And again, what’s with Venom’s ‘ransom note’ that was like printed out of a web printer?

10. Speaking of Venom, I actually liked him more in this movie than Spider-man himself because I think he showed more personality. Topher Grace was a delight, but I think he was not right for the role of an antagonist. I didn't want him to die. I actually enjoyed it when he was being an ass to Spidey!

So there, feel free to berate me, but these are just my observations and opinions. Yeah I admit, much of these things shouldn't be a big deal. But the thing is, the movie wasn't as enjoyable as it should be, because if I was enjoying the story, I wouldn't have resorted to criticizing minor details. I would've been lost in the story of a wouldv'e-been great movie that actually deserves the hype.

Top 10 things about the #7

SEVEN is..

1. ..the number of spots on a common ladybug
2. ..the number of bones on all mammal's necks (with very few exceptions)
3. ..the neutral pH - the pH level of pure water
4. ..the number of layers in the OSI model of computer networks
5. .. the number of Deadly sins. Pride, Anger, Lust, Envy, Gluttony, Avarice, Sloth. But, there are 7 Virtues: Chastity, Moderation, Liberality, Charity, Meekness, Zeal, and Humility. (Hindi ko natutunan 'to sa Catholic school ko ah! Siguro mahirap gawan ng acronym, unlike PALEGAS!)
6. ..the 'most magical number' in the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
7. ..the number of the super secret agent, James Bond.
8. ..a lucky, safe and happy number.
9. ..day when God rested after 6 days of creating stuff.
10. ..is the number of years I would have to spend in undergraduate college, instead of 5. Or even 6. (I actually thought it would be 6 at the maximum. Apparently not). *A big, exasperated sigh*

Please don't say 'Okay lang yan'. It's such a nincompoop cliche right now. Na-tribute na ako sa org, nag-pa-gradpic, nag-apply sa mga companies at lahat -- all for nothing. I've known for weeks actually, pero para wala nang nagtatanong, eto, ina-announce ko na.

Top 10 Love Songs

In time for the Valentine holidays, I'm gonna share my Top 10 love songs of all time (well, as of February 14, 2007). It was hard for me to choose just 10 because there are many good songs from different genres out there. In the end, I had to choose based on the melody, lyrics and of course, personal attachment to the song -- after all, this is MY top 10, hehe! Therefore, a little respect please, if you don't agree with my choices. =p

In alphabetical order:

1. Rascall Flatts - Bless The Broken Road
I first heard this song when Carrie Underwood performed this on American Idol and I instantly fell in love with its melody and lyrics.

"Every long lost dream led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart
They were like northern stars
Helping me on my way into your loving arms
This much I know it's true
That God bless the broken road
And led me straight to you.."

2. Mandy Moore - It's Gonna Be Love
(OST - A Walk To Remember)
I think that A Walk To Remember was such a hit here is party because of its wonderful soundtrack that features romantic tunes from Mandy Moore, Switchfoot, Rachael Lampa and many more.

"The sooner you let two hearts beat together
The sooner you'll know this love is forever
(It's gonna be love)
Love needs time now or never
(It's gonna be love)
It's gonna be tough
You gotta believe
It's gonna be strong enough.."

3. Jennifer Love Hewitt - Love Will Show You Everything
(OST - If Only)
It's that touching song from the one-helluva-tearjerker-of-a-movie that is If Only. Many agree (including me) that ABS-CBN's Sana Maulit Muli is greatly based from this movie.

"I love you, you love me
Take this gift and don't ask why
Cause if you will let me
I'll take what scares you hold it deep inside
And if you ask me why
I'm with you and why I'll never leave
My love will show you everything.."

4. Westlife - Puzzle Of My Heart
Actually, now that I am older, I've realized that is lyrics is so, erm, elementary, haha! Notice the lame attempt at rhyming. But still, the melody is just soo soothing. Well at least for a boy band afficionado like me, hehe!

"Every time we meet
The picture is complete
Every time we touch
The feeling is too much
She's all I ever need
To fall in love again
I knew it from the very start
She's the puzzle of my heart.."

5. Karla Bonoff - Standing Right Next To Me
I first encountered this song when Lindsey Cardinale performed this on America Idol (Idol really exposes me to a lot of good songs beyond my generation), although it actually took time before I fully appreciated it.

"Beneath the moon tonight
I see it in your eyes
No more false starts
No more broken hearts
I used to have a wish
One day I'd feel like this
Now I know love exists
Cause it's standing right next to me.."

6. Emma Bunton - Take My Breath Away
This one's a 100% pop tune from a former Spice Girl no less -- the title itself screams that it's a lovey-dovey love song. BUT, as always, the melody will win you over, so give it a chance, hehe!

"I never thought I'd feel the way I'm feeling lately
When everything you seem to do just drives me crazy
Every waking day you take my breath away
With every word you say you take my breath away
You look at me that way, baby come what may
I hope that you'll always know how to take my breath away
How to take my breath away.."

7. Ronan Keating - The Way You Make Me Feel
This is not one of Ronan Keating's more popular love songs. I think you would agree that he is best known for his version of When You Say Nothing At All for Notting Hill's soundtrack (which by the way, is one of the best romantic movies of all time, hehe). BUT, I like this song better because of its simple premise of appreciating the little everyday things that a person does to you that makes you fall for that person.

"I couldn't feel much better
Than when I'm here with you
You make everything seem so easy
I'm telling you the truth
You never try to please me
But somehow, you always do.."

8. Ryan Cabrera - True
The acoustic feel to its says it all for me. Never mind that some lines of the song up until now are an enigma to me, hehe.

"I've waited all my life
To cross this line
To the only thing thats true
So I will not hide
Its time to try
Anything to be with you
All my life I've waited
This is true.."


9. Shawn Colvin - When You Know
(OST - Serendipity)
By now, you can safely conclude that I am a sucker for romantic movie soundtracks, hehe! Serendipity is ALSO one of my most favorite romantic movies of all time and it's a no brainer that one song from the flick would make it to this Top 10. I think this one was played during the part where Jonathan and Sara finally found each other on a New York skating rink after what seemed to be a futile chase for their 'destined' partner in life.

"When you know that you know who you love, you can't deny it.
Or go back, or give up, or pretend that you don't buy it.
When it's clear this time you've found the one, you'll never let him go
Cos you know and you know that you know.."

10. Mariah Carey & Brian McKnight - Whenever You Call
Also called the 'martyr song', hehe! Kidding! I prefer this live recorded version with Brian McKnight than the solo studio version of Mariah Carey.

"I won't ever be too far away to feel you
And I won't hesitate at all
Whenever you call
And I'll always remember
The part of you so tender
I'll be the one to catch your fall
Whenever you call.."


Highly recommended: Christian Bautista - The Way You Look At Me, D Sound - Do I Need A Reason, Edwin McCain - Couldn't Ask For More, Erik Santos - Kung Akin Ang Mundo, Leigh Nash - Need To Be Next To You, Lifehouse - You And Me, Michelle Branch - Breathe, Pussycat Dolls - Stick Wit You, Stephen Speaks - Passenger Seat, Texas - In Demand, The Corrs - Runaway.

Next time, I will post my Top 10 saddest love songs, hehe! I hope that today, you were able to celebrate the beauty of love - not just the romantic kind. For we should be thankful not only for the happiness we feel with out special someone (if any, hehe) but also for the genuine love we share with our family and true friends. For the attached, good for you. For the unattached, don't fret, wait in hope and not in despair. Happy Heart's Day everyone! =p

Top 10 Lessons Learned for 2006

2006 is the best and worst year of my life. Worst -- because really, the worst things happened to me in all aspects of my life. Betrayals, failures, failures and more failures. But, having said that, best -- because indeed, there's the calm after each storm.

Each year in our lives is rich in all kinds of experiences that will always teach us a lesson or two. For the year that is about to end, here's what I feel are the most valuable lessons I have learned. Some lessons I learned from what people around me went through. Some I had to learn myself for the first time. While some, I guess I had to re-learn them time and time again. =p

*The list is in alphabetical order. Half are positively-worded, half are not. The phrasing isn't entirely mine -- some I derived from websites, some I received from forwarded text messages.

1. On betrayal..
Even best friends are capable of duplicity (Smallville). Sadly, it's human nature they say. And as a corollary, not everyone on your set of so-called friends are true. Believe me, some people are that good at feigning, pretending and lying -- until you see their true colors.

2. On chances..
Everyone deserves a second chance. (And in my case, even a third, hehe!) But it will always be a case-to-case basis. Some things just won't never, ever change for the better.

3. On faith..
Pray and pray until you die. Literally. Why? Well, don't you feel in times of extreme desperation that you just want to die, to just disappear off the face of the earth because you feel you can't handle it all anymore? Well, just pray. In times of extreme desperations, in times when you don't know what to do anymore, all you can do is have faith -- pray. Pray for strength, for hope, for answers, for wisdom, for patience, for His grace.

4. On forgiveness..
Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong, for the weak can never forgive (Mahatma Gandhi). To do so takes a lot, especially for wrongs that cause pain that's deeply ingrained. The whole lot harder it is when you didn't deserve the wrong that has been done to you, right? But again, it takes a strong sense of what is right. To forgive is what is right. To make it a little easier, forgive others for the sake of yourself. You don't need to carry the heavy burden of anger and resentment for the rest of your life.

5. On losing..
We always knew what we had, we just never thought we would lose it. It's "we don't know what we have until we lose it" in a different and better light. Cherish the things that truly matter.

6. On love..
Love is supposed to make you happy, not stupid. Jennifer Love Hewitt knew better when she sang that 'love will show you everything'. But Dr. Cristina Yang hit the home run when she retorted to a disillusioned patient that 'love has its limits'.

7. On resentment..
Resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die (Cindy Clabough). The quote says it all. =)

8. On revenge..
The only people to get even with are those who have helped you. The world would be a much much better place if this kind of revenge is what happens all the time. It's comforting to know that while SOME of your so-called friends aren't true, the rest of them are. For the the support system they provide, I am deeply grateful.

9. On time..
Time is all that anyone needs (Grey's Anatomy). Time flies. Time waits for no man. Time heals all wounds. All any of us wants is more time. Time to stand up. Time to grow up. Time to let go. And lastly, the time to do what must be done.

10. On truth..
The worst about being lied to is knowing you weren’t worth the truth. Sometimes the straightforward truth can save you the pain brought about by a coward lie.

Make the most of the rest of your 2006, everyone! ^-^

And all the things that break you
All the things that make you strong
You can't change the past because it's gone
And you just gotta move on
Because it's all lessons learned.
From every tear that had to fall from my eyes
From everyday I wondered how I'd get through the night
From every change life has thrown me
I'm thankful, for every break in my heart
I'm grateful, for every scar
Some pages turned, some bridges burned
But there were lessons learned.
-- Carrie Underwood - Lessons Learned

Top 10 Thingies for 2006

I am sure that you're initial reaction to my title is, "Huh? Ano daw?" Haha! So to help you out:

thingy (plural thingies) (synonym thingamajig) noun: a word used when the proper word for something is not known

For this post, the thingies I will be referring to are all hobbies, events or trends (not necessarily new) that if encountered years from now, will automatically remind me of 2006.

10. Watching movies -- alone. I really don't mind. It can be an advantage really, I can watch movies that I am ashamed to invite my friends to because I don't want to be branded jologs, haha! Kidding! But seriously, I usually do this when I am bored, and often it is a spur of the moment. The movies I watched alone in 2006 are: Close To You, Hostel (so not worth it!), Ice Aga 2 (so worth it!), American Dreamz (not worth it), The Devil Wears Prada, You're The One, The Guardian and Inang Yaya (the best one!).

9. An upsurged interest in cooking. I am a Kapampangan, and yet at 22, I still don't know how to cook that many dishes. Although, I tried and succeeded in cooking spaghetti for my org, remember? Hehe! I haven't duplicated that success so far though, but I really want to try the creamy mushroom rice recipe on the December spread of our Kusina-bilidad Calendar, hehe! When I have enough time already, maybe after I graduate, I will learn how to cook one basic dish at a time!

8. US TV Series marathons! (For a related previous post, read here). Grey's Anatomy. Desperate Housewives. Heroes. House, MD. Prison Break. Lost. Smallville. I actually feel I am close friends with these people, hehe!

7. Trends in forwarded jokes. 2006 saw at least 3 different waves of breeds of forwarded jokes, all made possible by Globe Unlimitxt. First, there was the knock-knock-sort-of jokes where everyday words or phrases morph into people's names or lyrics of songs. Second, there was the quotes from inanimate objects or weird characters. Lastly, months before February, pick-up lines or romantic punchlines seem to be the latest trend in SMS forwarding.

6. American Idol / Philippine Idol / Pinoy Dream Academy. These are the reality TV singing competitions that I religiously followed. I even refused to attend social gathering all for the sake of major episodes of these shows, hehe! Only my American Idol bet Katharine McPhee didn't win it all. =p

5. Jogging! (For a related previous post, read here). Since November, I've been jogging around the UP Diliman oval at least once a week to jog and try to shave off my tummy! Hehe!

4. Rifts with people. This was the worst year of my life, when it comes to relationships with my friends. Wait! Correction -- with my so-called friends. But, gladly, it's over now. It was definitely painful, but nevertheless, now I am armed with lots of lessons learned. And I'll stop at that, hehe.

3. Renewed faith. Personal and academic supertyphoons lead me back to my Creator. In terms of numerous miracles, I guess 2006 is the best year of my life. =p

2. Starbucks. I am officially addicted. I just had one before dinner, hehe! Haay, damn attractive planners! Hehe! (For a related previous post, read here).

1. Blogging! Bloghopping! Because of my blog and my blogging, I am Times' Person of the Year! I have met quite a number of decent online buddies (I am even textmate with some!). I received a $30 check. I was forced to informally learn HTML and CSS (who knows, someday this may be professionally useful to me). And most important of all, I was able to express myself freely, through a free and hassle-free medium at that (well, not counting the electricity and internet bills, hehe), something we should all do, don't you think?

Top 10 Songs of 2006

Five days to go, before we welcome 2007. And it's that time of the year again wherein we reminisce the best (and sometimes even the worst) of all sorts of things. So from now until the end of the year, I will be making a list of things. For my first year-end countdown, here's my Top 10 songs from 2006. Please note that this is based on my personal taste. Whenever I hear these songs, I will almost always stop what I'm doing and sing along with them, hehe!

10. Carrie Underwood - Jesus Take The Wheel
It's Season 4 American Idol Carrie Underwood's first single which gained popularity here in the Philippines around March 2006. I have a personal attachment to this song as it surfaced on the airwaves at a time when I was going through a rough time myself. At first, I thought a Christian country song which screams 'Jesus' with its title alone won't gain enough acceptance in the Philippine market, but I was glad that it decently charted on the music channels like MYX.


9. Natalie ft Justin Roman - Where Are You
Having discovered the song back in Valentine month of this year, this song couldn't be any more fitting! Powered with a soothing romantic melody and easy-to-sing-along-with lyrics, I think it's the singledom's perfect national anthem, hehe!







8. Katharine McPhee - Think
On the last season of American Idol, I was absolutely inflicted with the McPheever! I rarely place bets with my friends. But when it was between Katharine McPhee and Taylor Hicks for the Finale, I had one with a very good friend who was on the Soul Patrol. The prize? A large bar of a Cadbury chocolate of any variant upon the discretion of the winner. Kamusta naman na hindi ko pa nabibigay yung chocolate, hehe! Anhirap kasi hanapin nung gusto niya -- White chocolate with almonds. =p














7. Sam Milby - Close To You
6. Rocksteddy - Smile At me
These two songs might as well be fused into a single entry and be called the Close-Up songs, hehe! These songs and their commercials are so catchy, right? (Well at least for me!) They actually made me choose Close-Up over the #1 world's dentists-approved Colgate, just because of the romantic angle attached to the toothpaste. Only a true-blue love grinch won't say 'Awww' to the "I love the rain" scene, right?


5. Kelly Clarkson - Because Of You
Seems like all songs entitled Because Of You turn out to be hits. When I first chanced upon the title more than a year ago, I actually thought Kelly Clarkson revived the staple Keith Martin song. But no, it was an entirely and much much better emo-song. I really love the 'I never strayed too far from the sidewalk' part because it's so, uhm, weird but nevertheless meaningful? Hehe!




4. Stacie Orrico - I'm Not Missing You
I also award this song the Most Difficult Song To-Sing-Along-To Award, hehe! I just looove the rhythm. It took me more than two weeks to be able to decently sing along with the song, hehe!







3. Nina - Someday
Now this is a sorry love song that I could totally relate to, but it's not to say I remain bitter after too (read: two) many heartaches, hehe! I think this song is friends with 'I Will Survive'. =p







2. Jojo - Too Little Too Late
In terms of melody alone, this is my #1, but it lost on the personal attachment criteria. I am a huge fan of Jojo, who for me is one of the most under-rated but extremely talented singers today. But alas, it's a song I can't relate to, hehe. But dang! She's so pretty in this video. Woh!





1. Kelly Clarkson - Walk Away
The artist, the beat, the music video, the lyrics, the attitude -- this song is the overall best for me this year. I will never get tired to listening and singing along to it -- very much like the fans as shown on its video. I really love part where she shouts 'Hey! Hey! Hey!' then softly whispers, 'just walk away'. Hehe!





Runner-ups: Kamikazee - Narda, Bamboo - Truth, Itchyworms - Seasons Of Smiles, Yeng Constantino - Hawak Kamay, Rascal Flatts - What Hurts The Most

Ngayon ko lang napansin, sans for Rocksteddy and Sam Milby, puro divas and divettes ang Top 10 ko, hehe!

Top 10 signs that my folks are home indeed

FYI, it's just me and my sister's family here in the Philippines for most of the year. Papa works in Bahrain and Mama lives there with him. And it's been like this for the past 8 years. There are advantages and disadvantages, of course, but I'll save that for another post.

Anyway, so last December 13, my folks finally arrived home for the Christmas holidays, the 3rd consecutive time in 20 years that our whole family is complete! Yipee, right? Well yes. But the thing is, I have grown used to them being not around so during their vacation, the changes that their existence around the house can be quite amusing and sometimes, annoying, hehe! Home is very different when they're around. Here's 10 reasons why:

(In order, based on my own criteria, hehe!)

10 Our Mazda 323 becomes too small for us. We have 2 vehicles -- the said Mazda car and an old (and I mean 1.5-decade-old, but well-maintained) owner jeep. But of course, in times of travel, who would want to use the owner, right? It's like we're participants in a car-stuffing contest! We're 5 adults and 3 kids all in all. Kamusta naman kung sasama pa ang kasambahay namin diba? Haha!

9 I can't just leave the house. Without parents that constantly monitors my whereabouts, I am almost completely independent. All I have to do is just inform my sister whether I will go hoome or not. The time is never an issue, hehe! But not when my folks are here. Not that they're strict. But now, I have to at least, by default, 'ask for permission'. Unless they have planned for us to go somewhere, I am always given the go signal.

8 We visit my grandma more often. Apung Mila (father's side) is my only surviving grandparent. Apung Berang, Ingkung Val and Ingkung Pinong have all beaten her to St Peter's gates. Understably, Papa visits her quite often at Sta Rita, his hometown, given that he's not 100% sure that on their next vacation, our lola would still be around. My visiting rate for Sta Rita of less than 2/year accelerates to 1/week when Papa's around.

7 We get to have seafood for ulam more often. Apparently, heart complications runs in my father's bloodline. And he was no exception. That's why he's been on a healthy less-meaty diet for years now. And since he's the boss, hehe, he gets to dictate what food we eat. And so I am re-acquainted to Mr Hito, Mr Bulig and Mr Insert-Native-Fish-Name-Here in mind you, a lot of ways, not just the prito-style.

6 I don't have complete control of the TV remote and the newspapers. Like I said, Papa is the boss of all of us, hehe. His turn on anything always come first. On the newspaper, I don't mind, he wakes up way earlier than my anyway. But the TV, aaargh, at times it can be frustrating. Take for example last December 16. It was the Grand Dream Night of Pinoy Dream Academy, an event that me and my nephews (and our maid) have been waiting for all week. But alas, Papa chanced upon the live coverage of the local Ligligan Parol (Giant Lantern Festival) at a local cable channel. So he took control of the larger TV. So the rest of us had to settle for the smaller screen at the master's bedroom. It turned out, only Papa watched the lantern festival screening at the large sala, while the rest of us cramped on the master's bed to watch Yeng become the Grand Star Dreamer, hehe!

5 I am being nagged. Aah, the bittersweet voice of Mama, haha! "Linisin mo ang kwarto." "Ayusin mo yang kama mo." "Baluktot na naman ang mga balikat mo." "Kumakain ka na naman ng chocolates, kaya hindi na naubos mga pimples mo." "Anong oras ka na naman matutulog niyan?!" "Iligpit mo nga nang maayos yang mga gamit mo!" "Oh Reeeeex! (insert trivial pag-uutos here) " And the list goes on. Need I explain? Haha!

4 Over the table discussions are way way louder. And often I would hear the phrase, "Ang mga Pilipino talaga, (insert a hasty generalization here)..." I think I got my being opinionated from Papa. Gawd, sometimes, he knows more arguments on local politics and local news more than me, when he is thousand miles away! Haha! But you know how fathers are, sometimes they can be close-minded. If you have a different say than then, yous is usually is the wrong one, hehe. Often, Papa can be downright unfair, with his fierce bashing of the Filipino race. Well, unfortunately, he is not without a valid point, hehe.

3 There is abundance of food! -- from the stuff and goodies that they brought from Bahrain to the stuff that they buy here. Our ref is never bare when they're around, hehe! There is always fresh milk, there is always bread, there are always snack items! And of course, there's the seemingly never ending supply of chocolates. So yes, Mama's "Kumakain ka na naman ng chocolates, kaya hindi na naubos mga pimples mo" line is not completely unreasonable, hehe!

2 My nephews are in bilmoko mode. It's that time of the year that my nephews are spoiled to max. I think my folks have heard of the joke that grandchildren are a parent's best revenge to their children. Haha! Toys here, there and everywhere! Samantalang ako, *sob sob*, ako na anak nila, *sob sob*, kung anu-ano lang ang ibinili nila.. Joke lang! Haha! N90 lang naman at isang bagong Swatch watch, hehe! =p

1 I sleep on the floor. Yes, poor me, hehe! You see, our house only has 3 rooms - the master's bedroom and 2 smaller bedrooms for me and my sister. But since both my parents are away, I occupied the master's bedroom while my bedroom was assigned the maid's quarters, hehe. But when the real masters of the house are around, I cannot simply re-occupy my own room. So I am forced to contend with a matress on the floor for almost a month, hehe. This I don't mind. What I do mind is that sometimes, I can't have a personal space in the house anymore, you know, for the times when you want some quiet time.

So there! I sure hope you won't think that I hate that my folks are around, hehe, because I don't. Life is way better when they're around, figuratively and literally, hehe. Besides, during the times that I am annoyed (come on, it's normal right?), I just think of the fact that in a few weeks time, I am the boss of the house again, hehe!

Top 10 stupid things that Friendster users do

First time I heard of Friendster, I thought it was a porn site because a male friend of mine was raving about the abundance of picture of 'girls' in the website. Ang sabi ko pa nga noon, "I am not into things like Friendster." Yeah right! Now, my account is 3 years old, hehe!

So now, I have listed the 10 things that for me, are the stupidest things that people do on Friendster. This is inspired by a friends' bulletin post once, titled "10 things idiots do on Friendster."

1. Using testimonials as greeting cards
Last time I checked the dictionary, a testimonial is a favorable report on the qualities and virtues of someone. In Friendster, it has even served as a medium of tribute and gratitude. Therefore, send your greetings for all occasions using the ‘Send a Friendster Message’ feature, okay? It makes better sense, doesn’t it? No offense for whoever will remember to greet me, but I don’t accept that kind of testimonial. Thank God, nobody has dared to write me a testimonial that is actually a greeting. Hehe! =p

2. Embed large picture, graphics or thingamajigs on their profiles
Okay fine, it’s nice and cute, it reflects your personality, yada yada. But do you know how much hassle your profile brings about to your friends who only use dial-up? It takes forever to load! Not to mention that some users even embed images that aren’t suitable background images for text. Really now, it’s more of an eye sore than a visual treat.

3. tYpE iN tXt LiNgO.,,
I really wonder why people still intentionally resort to typing in AlTeRnAtE caps or in tXt LiNg0 when they have all the letters at their disposal. We do resort to improperly capitalized letter in order to type faster, right? But when all the keys are easily within your fingers reach, why bother? It’s so irritating to read texts like these! Ano yun, added design?

4. Uploading ‘ugly’ photos
Ever since they introduced the photo captions, Friendster photos have become more interesting and amusing. But again, it can be downright irksome when you read captions like, “Hay naku, I hate this picture, I’m so ugly here!” It actually screams conceitedness, hehe! Come on, you wouldn’t upload that picture of yours if you looked ugly in it, right? Get real.

5. Answering stupid surveys with uninspired answers
When surveys were the hot thing, it was fun for quite a while. But then again, the idiots had to destroy the fad by introducing boring and stupid survey questions like, “Ano ginagawa mo ngayon?” (Duh! Surfing the net!) or “Are you thinking right now?” (Isa pang duh with a capital H! Haha!) These days, funny and witty survey posts are rare as virgin butt-holes in prison.

6. Secretly and regularly viewing your ex’s or your ex’s current beau
You know, just in case, they change their status to ‘single’ again, right? Haha! Congratulations, you have the makings of a stalker. Wait, you already are! Haha! Our ex-lovers aren’t just on the receiving end of our masochistic tendencies. I bet many are those who also view the profiles of their ultimate loves who unfortunately, cannot or would not reciprocate the feeling. Awwww. =p

7. Add strangers as a ‘friend’ and not even bother introducing yourself
Or in another light, ‘paramihan ng friends’. Last time I checked, Friendster in far from being a contest. That’s why it’s foolish to think that the more friends on your list, the friendlier you are or the better you are as a person. Sometimes, strangers simply add people up for the sake of having more people on their lists. While it is true that some people do meet new friends through Friendster, others do not even have the courtesy of introducing themselves first with a simple message. You’re left wondering your butt off where you met that person when in fact he’s a complete stranger after all.

8. Picking fights through bulletin posts or shout-outs
It’s an oxymoron really when we ‘make parinig’ or release taunting statements because we know that only the so-called ‘friends’ on our list will get to read it. This is so high school, don’t you agree? It betrays our lack of courage and maturity. If you have issues with certain people, deal with them privately.

9. Reposting cursed bulletin posts / forwarding evil Friendster messages
Here’s a clarification. There. Is. No. Friendster. Tracker. As if forwarding cursed emails isn’t enough, people had to bring that not-so-sensible practice at Friendster. Believe me, your Mom will not die if you know better and ignore the damn pseudo curses. Not a single ghost, monster or soul visited or scared me in my own bedroom.

10. Posting multiple copies of the same thing on the bulletin board
In relation to the previous entry, aargh! Flooding is so annoying especially when the posted things are trivial ones. On a serious note, sometimes, the more important announcements are buried because of these insignificant rants. Twice posted broadcasts are manageable. But 5 copies? 10 copies? I believe there is an acronym for that. It has the letters P, S and K, hehe!

So there, naka-ilan kayo? Hehe! No offense to anyone who was hit head on with my entries, hehe! Batu-bato sa langit, ang tamaan, sapul! Haha!

I am not going to be high and mighty by saying I am not guilty of some of these stupid practices. I used to be guilty of # 6 and #8. Like you, I am also human. But for some of us, we’re just smarter than the rest, for we’ve learned our lessons already, hehe!

Top 10 material things I would love to receive for Christmas!

Yes, I really had to specify the 'material' qualifier. Because come on, who wouldn't want to receive a fabulous gift, right? Haha! Even if it really isn't our birthday, come Christmas, it's like all of a sudden, whether we've been naughty or nice, we earned the right to a wonderful gift. =p

And since it's 23 days til Christmas (and 12 days til my 22nd birthday, hehe!), here's my material wishlist, just in case one of my friends would snoop around for an idea on what to give me, hehe!

In no particular order (and mind you, this is on-the-spot):

1 Starbucks Christmas coffee cannister (P385) - Well, yes, I already have one which I received on my last birthday. But, it brings back a lot of ugly memories, so I don't want to use it anymore. I literally get upset everytime I drink from it. Anyways, I want the red one with the white characters that line the bottom! Haha! Para astig, all year round, it's Christmas whenever I drink my coffee. I still can't decide between the venti size (P450) and the grande size (P385). Because usually when I drink coffee, maramihan talaga. Hindi uso sa akin yung pa-tasa-tasa.

2 Starbucks 2007 Planner (21 stickers) - Well, 5 down, 16 to go! Haha! Each sticker is equivalent to one Starbucks drink, regardless of size. The only reason I can afford this is because sinasabay ko siya kapag nanlilibre ako for my birthday. Nakapag-libre na ako, may planner pa ako! =p

3 Nokia N93 (approx P35,000) - Of course, who wouldn't want such a high-end phone, if only everyone can afford it, right? Haha! Hihingin ko na lang yun N90 ng tatay ko! Hindi naman niya naappreciate yung functions nito eh! Hehe! He doesn't even know how to type a text message! =p

4 Friends DVDs, All seasons (P???) - I've been wanting to buy these for ages. Problem is, I don't know where I can buy one! Kahit pirated, pwede na, hehe, basta clear copy. =p

5 Clothes (P400/top) - Bench or Penshoppe -- they're the only decent clothesline that I can afford. Again, it's been ages since I last window-shopped. Because I am afraid that if I see a really good top, I would be able to convince myself that it's okay to buy one, even if I already have loads of shirts. Honestly, luho na lang talaga kung bibili pa ako.

6 A box of Ritter Sport Praline chocolate (P63/bar ) - Or any other brand, basta praline! The new Kit Kat Temptations Hazelnut Praline would do, at P32/bar. Oh god! I'm so salivating right now. Buti na lang kabinili ko lang nung Kit Kat kanina! Haha! I wanted to taste one, so I bought one for a midnight snack.

7 Ice Cream - Brazo de Mercedes or Caramel Banana flavor (P300) - EDIT: Ayoko na ng scented candles, haha! Comfort food alert! Haha! Wala lang, gusto ko lang matikman ang umubos ng 1 gallon in one sitting.

8 Jogging pants (P200?) - it doesn't have to be branded, for as long as it's comfortable. I'm into jogging these days, and it helps to have the right and cool gear.

9 Sony DVD-Rs (P20/piece) - Sony, kasi namimili tong DVD-writer ko eh, kainis! Anyway, I need these to burn the TV series on my laptop - Grey's Anatomy Season 3, Desperate Housewives Season 3, Ghost Whisperer Season 1 and Smallville Season 6. And I want to have a copies of House Seasons 2 & 3, Heroes Season 1, Prison Break Season 2 and Lost Seasons 2 & 3. Phew! It's as if I have no thesis project for this semester! Haha!

10 Lots of money (PPPPPPP!) - So that I can buy gifts for my family and friends. Naks! Honestly, I get the blues these days because I wasn't able to save enough money for some Christmas shopping (partly because I know I don't really need to). But more so because I have no budget for gifts for people dear to me. I really want to give them even just a little something (eg, a chocolate or candy bar). Problema pa naman, kung mag-reregalo ako, andami nila! Haha! Tuwing Pasko talaga, sometimes I wish I didn't have too many friends, haha! Anhirap i-trim down ng mga taong bibigyan ng regalo eh!

Finally, natapos din! So how about you guys, what do you want for Christmas? Huwag masyado demanding ha. Remember, it isn't your birthday. Think first what gift you can give Him, before you ask anything from Him. It's His day, nakiki-epal lang tayo sa saya! =p

EDIT: Oo nga naman, I told you guys to not be too demanding. Look who came up with an expensive list, ahaha! Actually, I don't really crave for these things. Just so you know, if I don't get them, my Christmas wouldn't exactly feel less happier. Dahil kung totoong Christmas wish lang ang apg-uusapan, hindi mga ito ang talagang gusto ko. =p

Top 10 things I haven't done so far in my 6 years in UP Diliman

O ha! Sing-haba ng pila sa pagbabayad sa AS lobby noong Thursday afternoon ang title ko, hahaha! =p So this is the inital goodbye-UP post I was talking about just 2 posts ago. Well, it isn't as dramatic or mushy as I said it would be but I figured I'd save that for a March post, hehe! For now, I'll start with something light and amusing. Presenting:

Top 10 things I haven't done so far in my 6 years in UP Diliman -- which I may or may not do before I graduate anyway. Haha! You see, this list consist of staple things that an iskolar ng bayan would NORMALLY do during his stay at the university. Alas, in the true spirit of diversity in UP, I am not able to do all that is in this list. Heck, I don't even want to do some of the things in this list at all.

10 Join a rally.
While sympathize and agree with some of their causes, I don't like tibaks at all, hehe. I just don't like their style -- complain just about everything without offering any realistic solutions, skip classes. Lastly, I have yet to encounter an open-minded hard-core tibak. And when I say open-minded, I don't just necessarily mean someone who shares my opinion. Basta, throwing eggs is just not my cup of tea. =p

9 Make out in the Sunken Garden, Lagoon or an empty AS classroom.
Haha! Asa pa ko! For those who have no idea, the Sunken Garden and the lagoon are UP's own version of a quickie motel, haha! Go figure. So far, I haven't caugh anyone doing it -- whether on the classroom (well, hindi naman kasi ako parang guardiya na nag-roronda diba?), the lagoon or the Sunken Garden. The 'worst' I have seen is just extremely intimate hugging -- the one where you're not sure anymore where the faces of the couples are, all you see are their backs, haha!

8 Finish my enrollment in ONE DAY.
Since I have finished my last enrollment already, this is something I will never experience. Heck, I doubt if any UP student would experience this in their UP lifetime, haha! Well, except maybe during my 1st ever enrollment when I was a freshie. Back then, we didn't have to bother with the enlistment, because our schedules were pre-determined, unlike the poor freshies these days. Early on their UP life, despite the high priority in the CRS, they are already forced to face the tortured that is the UP enrollment week. (Read: with emphasis on 'week').

7 Get published in the Philippine Collegian.
Nyaks! Kahit extra lang sa picture, wala pa! Haha! Well, not that I have passed any artiks or even comments. So I guess this is simply wishful thinking

6 Be a US** or CS*.
My highest Sem GWA was 1.80, back in the 1st sem of my 1st year. From then on, it's been a rolling-down-the-hill ride, haha! =p
*CS stands for 'College Scholar', an academic award given to students who scored a Sem GWA of 1.75-1.45.
**US stands for 'University Scholar', for those with an Sem GWA of 1.44 or higher.

5 Watch a UAAP basketball game live.
As if UP wins most of the time. I am not a big fan of collegiate basketball anyway. I don't even watch the games on Studio 23. But of course, I still celebrate during the rare times that the Maroons win. Especially with the seasons were UP climbed from a 0-6 to a 6-6 record. That's when I start following the games -- when UP has the momentum and is on a sudden-death situation. But alas, whenever I try to catch their game on TV, UP ALWAYS loses.

4 Buy a UP shirt.
So far, I have 5 EEE shirts, 5 Eng'g shirts (including the now notorious Angas shirts, haha!) and 5 org shirts. I used to have a UP jacket, but I lost it at SM North. Good thing the UP Shopping Center will always be open, even for a (future) alumnus like me. =p

3 Eat isaw in front of Kalay or Ilang.
Now this is one of the really famous gimik spots in UP Diliman -- even students from far-flung campuses trek to the isaw stands in front of Kalay and Ilang-Ilang dorms. Even yuppies go there to chill out -- one would see the line of cars leading to these grilling joints, especially in the late afternoon. Anyway, I don't eat isaw. Yuck Rex, ang arte mo! Haha! It's not because it's kadiri, I just have this personal thing about eating isaw. For a clue, read this.

2 Get inside ALL the major buildings in UP.
Now this is something that borders on stupidity and amusement, haha! I mean, come to think of it, in your entire stay in the university, wouldn't be ironic to not be able to enter all the buildings at least once? I mean, it's not the case in elementary or high school where some places are off-limits. Wouldn't be fun to nonchalantly enter all the buildings you haven't been to? In my case, I have yet to enter AIT, Romulo Hall, CFA, Villadolid Hall, MBB, MSI, CSWCD, and Stat (the new building, which was formerly CSWCD). As for the dorms, I haven't been to the open houses of Narra, Sanggumay and Ipil, hehe! =p

1 Wear a sablay in a ceremony.
This entry was supposedly simply 'Wear a sablay'. But then I remembered, I have already worn one -- during my grad pic pictorial. Hehe! So I edited this entry and added 'in a ceremony'. Haay, I can't wait for the time when I would finally and officially wear a sablay and march down the aisle. Woohoo! Malapit na! But before that, I need to finish my last 20 units. Haay! Snap back to reality! Haha! =p

So there! I am through with my list. Hmm, I think I will check this piece again come March 2007, and do a post Top-10 analysis, haha! =p