Agatha

I heard about the Agatha moves today.

Very good.

I will do my own Agatha moves if you don't take care of me.

So I hope you will.

To each his own cross to bear

Dear Friend,

In the past, we may have not seen eye to eye on certain things. In fact, it's quite surprising that we became friends to begin with.

We don't have anything in common. We were raised differently, we have different values and beliefs. We both knew our paradigms won't shift for each other --- and neither one of us expected to change for the other.

Despite our silence and our separate lives, I care for your deeply. I am saddened by the news that reached me. I worry about you and how you will be in the coming days.

You will be in my prayers every night. Although we all carry our own crosses, you are not alone in carrying yours. My thoughts will be with you.

Be strong and get well soon.

TGIF! : 20 Random Thoughts on an early Friday evening

1. Israel, you totally rocked my world! I love Israel!

2. Next trip in my head: Vatican, Rome.

3. I'm soooo looking forward to the weekend with my Mom and Tita Rose. Saan ko na namang parte ng Jakarta sila dadalahin ngayon?

4. Patience is a virtue that I should really try to practice.

5. I'm crossing fingers, keeping the faith, trusting in God on that next big thing!

6. Shoulda, woulda, coulda: it was nice having this lunch time conversation with Ryan Bulan. Ryan, despite the what-could-have-beens, we ended up getting the things we wanted, anyway. In their own versions, so to speak.

7. I miss my high school friends. Must-do: pencil in get-together when I go home in May.

8. Strangely and despite Bali being nearby, I miss Boracay.

9. Ning, hindi ka ganon kaganda. Believe me. You are not THAT hot.

10. When there are limited options, what's pwede na can be premium. Talk about settling!

11. Hong Kong in July sounds like a fantabulous idea!

12. Eh kelan na ang Siem Reap, Cambodia?

13. I'm so glad Evelyn is my friend.

14. I know a play when I sense one. I know a game when I see one. No, I'm not playing it.

15. Tired. This whole week was just sooooo tiring. But it was also fulfilling.

16. Lucky star: I have undiscovered gems in my team. Woohoo!!!

17. From Before Sunrise: "So am I just a dumb American who momentarily decorates your blank canvas?" I loooove it! But whoever speaks like that now?

18. One of my fab gay friends is getting married. To a girl. Baskeeeeet? Why oh why kalamay?

19. Dubai Duty Free is so cheap. Thinking of saving up and getting a Rolex there. 400 USD is a BIG diff!

20. I'm so blessed. God, sorry for the bitching. Thanks for the bounty.

Happy weekend!

(im)Patient

Dear Universe,

Sorry for the lack of patience.

I am trying. I'm learning the balance between the right time and the right opportunity.

And thanks...for being patient because admittedly, I've got a loooooooooong way to go.

(un)Friend

Naiinis na ko sa 'yo.

Malapit ka ng bumingo.

A few more steps and you're already there.

Faith

Dear Bu,

Thank you for believing in me.

You put enormous confidence and trust in me --- that I can do it and that I will.

With this, I can't fail you. I won't fail you. It's not even an option.

I promise that I will be acknowledged for what I have done, and not only for what I have planned for.

And then there was 5...

'Can't help it. I just gotta have 'em.

Five Kokeshis and counting...

Dear God,

Sana 5pm na.

So tired. Majorly drained. Feeling tired at 3:00pm in the office means I've really had it--- I need to unwind.

Please make time fly ---

and make the Decanter dinner tonight really awesome.

Love,
Your Energizer Bunny who needs recharging

13 hours...and counting

I've been in the office for 13 hours now. 'Got here at quarter before 7 this morning, armed with my decaffeinated Starbucks cafe' mocha, non-fat, no whipped cream.

'Had this mega early meeting on portal strategies.

I gotta say --- this day rocked, though. It flew by so fast and I barely noticed the time.

I guess that really happens when you love what you're doing. Time doesn't matter. It stands still.

My work does have pain points --- semi-bosses that can be a pain in the ***, the long hours, the ever-dynamic industry.

But there are a lot of things I love about it as well.

I love what I'm doing. I'm glad I was given a choice to do what I want --- usability engineering and UI design.

I love my boss. She totally rocks! She delivers. I love her success story. When I grow up, I want to be like her. Really!

I'm glad I won personal friends at work.

I can feel the pang of migraine about to hit me --- but at the end of the day, I know I did my job and I friggin' did it oh-so-well.

Work pride. Lovely work pride. Hahaha.

Kokeshi, kokeshi, kokeshi

Prior to the Kimmidoll craze, Kokeshi dolls have been around for over 150 years already.

Originally from Northern Honshu, Kokeshi dolls are hand-made from wood, with an enlarged head, a simple trunk and no hands. The bottom portion of the dolls is signed by the artist.


This evening, I had dinner with Tim and Mads at Taman Anggrek. While walking towards the Chinese restaurant, I bumped into these lovely Kokeshi dolls.

And I want them ALL!!!



Unlike the Kimmidolls, the dolls I saw were of different shapes and sizes. Damn, I wanted to hoard but what's the fun in collecting if I buy everything in one sweep? 'Didn't help that I only had 200 rups in my wallet and the rest were USD. Whatta timing that I couldn't find a money changer!

So I contented myself with buying a set - the cutest of the lot.


Brace yourself Taman Anggrek - I'm definitely coming back next weekend for a few more Kokeshis. Not to mention there's a lot of great stores there for quality Batiks, socks and tights, a gigantic GNC outlet and Hello Kitty!!!

Paging Gemma and friends --- help in building the Kokeshi collection! Gemma --- you're first when you go to Hello Kitty country!

Da Funk: Ovah and Out

(Random musings on a Friday afternoon when I need to SPACE OUT)

‘Didn’t realize when I blogged last time that it was actually V-Day. Vlack Day, in Gemma’s world. Hahaha.

I’m not a fan of V-Day – not that I’m love-allergic. It’s quite the contrary, actually. It’s just that it’s too commercialized and it puts too much pressure on the single peeps.

Love should be an everyday thing. Mush, mush, I knooooow. So what do you need V-day for?

On da funk, I’m over it. It was probably hormonal or the lack of sugar because of me diet. I’m back to my usual chirpy self.

Happiness is a choice. This weekend, I choose the happy, chirpy path.

TGIF, peeps!

The spice of life…or a lack thereof

I’ve been having persistent discomfort on my upper left abdomen so I went to the doctor today. It’s not really painful – like I said, there’s just a discomfort and it’s been there for more than a week now.

Normally, I’d feel the pang of discomfort every now and then. I just shrugged it off and ignored it. This year, though, Feng Shui wisdom reminds me to take care of my health. So off I went to SOS for another check-up.

Doctor’s orders:

No more coffee – which just happens to be my fuel in the morning. Don’t expect me to think without my daily dose of caffeine.

No more spicy food – at all. My tolerance for spice is extremely high that I can drink Tabasco sauce straight up. Yes – no spice. Not even a tinge. Kill me now.

No more stress. I was advised by Dr. Joyce to avoid stress at all costs. Sige --- please explain how this is even possible with my kind of work and lifestyle. Should I seriously think of becoming a full-fledged tai-tai now? I mean…seriously?

Wow. Heavy.

These are a few of my favorite things. My brain doesn’t start working without my café latte. Spice is the way to go for me, thus, my natural love for Thailand and its food. And stress…I was born to be a miracle worker, so to speak.

This is a major lifestyle change --- but it’s probably the Universe’s way of telling me to hit the brakes and slow down.

Again, there is always a silver lining. In this case, it’s always better to change lifestyle for better health than suffer a debilitating disease.

So, okay, foyn – Madame Universe, I may sound begrudging, but thank you for the nudge.

Hope you won’t take the spice of my life completely, though. I love my wasabi and Tabasco waaaay too much.

Slam dunk the funk

TGIF --- finally!

This entire week was THE works when it came to stress build-up. Javana Spa beckons in the afternoon.

Whilst I suffered from da funk this week, being mopey and weepy for no particular reason, I heard from the besties.

Gemma YM'd to ask why. I fumbled for an excuse because I really can't think of any - except for the lack of sugar in my body because of my diet and missing Manila.

Her comment: "Sira ka pala, eh. Anong ida-diet mo - pilikmata?"

That totally cracked me up.

La Roura SMS'd the following day to update me with the latest chizms and that she was feeling the funk, too! On the same day, Thads YM'd that he already resigned. WTF!

My thought bubble: what da H??? Why's everyone in a funk? Kailangan na bang maligo ng asin ulit? In this case, do I need to be salt-marinated?

Whatever it is, the Universe this week conspired to test my patience.

Madame Universe: we both know patience is not one of my virtues, but I'm pretty sure you've got a grand masterplan for me to proceed with my World Domination quest.

Until then...I shall enjoy the margs this weekend with the Jakarta Bitches.

Thank you, Gemma, Arlene, Thads: for messaging within 24 hours. That made me feel that the Universe somehow connects people in the strangest of ways.

I love you, guys. And I miss you a lot.

Sad

...immensely sad that it ate me up today.

I remain stoic, though I am weeping and crushed deep inside.

Bahasa Indonesia resurrection

7:03pm: still in the office and just concluded Bahasa Indonesia lessons. Mads and I got a new teacher because the first one fired us for missing a lot of classes. And I mean A LOT. We were terrible students, not by choice, but by circumstance.

Revenues and product launches first, over and above anything.

As part of my effort to reclaim my personal time, I need to be hell-bent on attending the classes twice a week.

Let's see how far we can go.

Todo-effort na 'to!

Musings on a Sunday morning – version 2011

Dreams…

are manifestations of a hidden fear or a subconscious desire. You may be in denial during your waking moments but dreams have a way of filling you in on what’s in the recesses of your mind.

Denial is a river in Egypt. But a dream can actually be the hardest reality that you dare not face when you’re awake.

Personal space

I have a lot of it. I need a lot of it. I cry foul when I feel it’s inadvertently penetrated. I like my quiet moments when I get lost in contemplation. These days, a period of silence is hard to come by. If I am elusive, it only means I want to retreat into my own corner. I am elusive because I choose to be.

All I’m asking for is a little bit of space – a few hours or so can already recharge my batteries. That’s not asking for too much, isn’t it?

Reclaiming what’s mine

Before I officially hit Loserville, ‘thought I needed to make the effort to get my Me Time back. Last year, I wrote less, I read less. I visited blogs less. It may well be attributable to the World Citizenship transition, but still, it’s not an excuse. The move should not have been too daunting – enough to stall me from writing.

And I realized… all my blog entries are about work! I lost my mojo.

I intend to get it back!

I miss keyboard-pounding. Not for presos but just for me – no matter how trite and trivial.

I should do this more often.

Really.

To Cairo or not to Cairo: that is the question

'Supposed to fly out to Cairo, Egypt after the trip to Jerusalem (no, it's not the game, it's the real pilgrimage, dummy!). With the coup against their prexy though, common sense dictates that this is no longer a good idea.

Aaaw, man. I so wanted to see the pyramids badly.

Also send Jo (Avendano) a private FB message since she's working there now. Glad to know she's safe and lives near the Philly embassy.

There's a reason and season for everything --- so fine, no Sphinx for now.

How'z about Istanbul, Turkey? Hmmm...not a bad idea!

Note to self: email HR the optional trips to replace Cairo!

Bitch is soooo back!!!

Due to popular demand and constructive critique (aka the tandem of Jovan and Gemma), Bitch, please just got a face lift! The besties thought the old template was blah.

It's long overdue. The feedback was given around Christmas time but I never got around doing it, until now. I figured, might as well do it --- my writing has been stalled. Damn you, Facebook!

Moving on...

Shall we open the New Year with the latest addition to ze bag collection?

Ta-daaaaah!!!


I got me-self a new Louis Vuitton Trouville. I've been salivating over this for several weeks already! It's a very sensible bag - gazillions of pockets and gargantuan space - enough to fit my iPad!

I am officially declaring a self-imposed ban on visiting the LV flagship store in Plaza Indonesia.

Happy new year to Moi, indeed.

*wide, wide grin*

Life is good, God is fair

2010 – you treated me very well. You paved the way to my world citizenship.

As if having a relationship that takes me to Hong Kong and back is not enough, my career finally took me to a wonderful, albeit unexpected city – Jakarta, Indonesia.

Disclaimer: I’m not a Jesus freak. I can’t help but be grateful, though. God is amazing for giving me all the opportunity, for giving me a happy, blessed life.

Let 2011 be opened with a multitude of grace and gratitude.

Let this be another year when I am closest to where I want to be, and who I want to be.

Cheers to being a world-class citizen! Cheers to conquering Thailand.

Hong Kong --- you remain to be my final destination. You better brace yourself for me!

Happy Chinese New Year, everyone! Great life, great everything!

And the winner is...

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg is names Time's Person of the Year.

Hats off to the guy who revolutionized social networking.

2 words: awesome and inspiring!