Stuff Accumulated this Christmas

Not belonging to an office got its downs and perks, for one, you both get to not receive nor feel obliged to buy gifts for officemates. This year, the gifts I got were mostly from kabarkadas and relatives, my favorites of which are or course the Herschel bag, the 2016 CBTL planner, and the cheque that I have not yet gotten from my parents...now I have something to survive on for the upcoming cash-drought season.

I've been more practical in buying Christmas gifts for others and myself. What I gave out were custom-made pouches by Teacup Ideas (the perks of having your own product,) while I bought myself only what I REALLY needed for 2016...like new pieces of underwear, cotton shirts, jogging pants, earphones and lotsa shorts. Help me, I'm poor. (-insert Kristen Wiig expression here-)

Let's go clockwise starting from the big bag:
1. Herchel Supply Hemp Collection: Little America Backpack
2. Forever 21 top (blue and white)
3. CBTL's The Giving Journal 2016
4. 70-200mm Lens Tumbler
5. Fake Nike Digicam Sling
6. Trader Joe's Coffee Spice Dry Rub
7. Soo Beaute Oriental Herbal Essence Mask (Ganoderma and Scutellaria-Ginseng)
8. Adidas Jogging Shorts (black and teal)
9. Designed by Zqfan Notebook
10. Le Petit Prince Notebook
11. Fullybooked Gift Card
12. Passport Case
13. Good Morning towel
14. Dove White Beauty Bar
15. Exped Charcoal Socks

Other gifts that are not on the pic are the foods because they're either frozen or half-way gone:
1. Victorias American Ham
2. A box of chocolate cake
3. Five Mini Frozen Pizzas
4. A bottle of Jarvi's Pesto Sauce
5. Three loaves of frozen garlic bread
6. A box of red velvet cake
7. A box of pound cake

--and oh yeah, the Mt. Pinatubo trek was also a Christmas gift. Yey for rich friends!! <3

Thank you...you! ;)

Snippets: Christmas in Boracay

Taken December 29, 2012...this was the time when the family decided to celebrate and greet the New Year 2013 in Boracay. I still remember how we convinced our mom to go with us, quite mean and firm actually since she wanted to do the usual yearly tradition of just staying at home and wait for midnight to strike, I plotted with my brother that we've already decided to celebrate on our own in Boracay with or without the rest of the family for a change...and that we could just celebrate the new year of 2014 together if they decide to stay. So yeah...she felt sad and pressured by that move that we ended up going with the whole family plus two other aunts for the new year. 

In rained real hard a few minutes before the clock struck midnight of the new year that we had to run to our hotel and celebrate our media noche over a can of sardines and a good laugh. When the rain subsided, we went out on the beach for the countdown and the fireworks display. The fireworks were meh but the experience was gold.

The Christmas tree was made out of seaweeds that had been piling up on the shores of Boracay for the past few years now...which is quite gross and sad. The snowman is of course made out of the fine white sand of Bora, while the rest are made out of random stuff at arms-reach from the spot.

Merry Christmas everyone! :3

Christmas Gift Wrapping Suggestion

When you're at point of friendship wherein you are so comfortable with each other that it doesn't bother you to wrap your present with something fancy, this is what you get. I used a crumpled piece of old newspaper found somewhere stuck in my brother's cabinet, and will be using the sando bag I got after buying can of sardines to protect the gift in case it rains. At least I'm concerned enough to wrap it in plastic, because we'll be hiking all the way to the lake at Mt. Pinatubo for our exchange gift...because we like to hassle ourselves for a different kind of Christmas party experience just because we can. 

Just like our friendship, no pretensions, what you see is what you get...but we know beneath that torn off page is a gift more valuable than the piece of canned sardines I bought it with. No, it's not tinapa! It's not edible either...but in all fairness to her, I made the effort to buy it off her wishlist. Of course, I got the easiest pick of the bunch.

Anyway...

Try it. It's recycled. It's economical. It's unique...and quite frankly, will be a fun memory the moment you'll see her reaction the moment you hand it to her.

QLC Moment #16

Ever since Facebook started featuring throwback photos in your timeline, stating the number of years it's been since you posted it made me realize that I can now count in decades. Statements like, "OMG that was five-eight-ten years ago...and that other thing was twenty years ago!"can now be stated as facts and not over exaggeration of years!!!!!!!!!!! Crap...certain memories can now be realistically labelled as "that-was-decades-ago". Oh yes, that bittersweet feeling of unconsciously aging will surprise you to no bounds when you one day realize that it's been THAT long. Does that make it a good thing?

Snippets: Don Salvador Benedicto

Taken November 11, 2009...this is undoubtedly one of my favorite views of Negros. I remember driving all the way here last October 11, almost exactly six years after this photo was take, just to sit and stare at the view. I had to drive for over two hours (because I got lost along the way since I was alone and refused to ask for directions) before I managed to park the car at the side of the road and breathe in the moment. Despite my feet hurting from the non-stop drive, just to sit still and listen to my roadtrip playlist made it all worth it. 

To get lost in the moment and find myself staring into the world in silent mediation are times that's a little hard to come by these days. Especially with a landscape like this. A contemplative moment of appreciation for the world is always a good thing to do, every now and then. To get away from it all and live for the moment, a different perspective of the term YOLO...no adrenaline rush, rather a subtle way of realizing that it's good to be alive, even for just one lifetime. That was how I felt that day.

I've passed by here a couple of times, mostly with friends or family for a trip to a resort or Dumaguete. Ever since the first time I passed by the area and looked out the window, I promised myself then that one day I'll be returning to this very spot on my own just so I won't be in a hurry; to no longer just see this place as a stretch of road but a temporary stop where I created a memory. That moment finally happened, and it was bliss...a stark contrast of what I felt like arriving back home after five long hours of driving in total that day.

The road sits at the foot of Mt. Talisay, just a few kilometers from the start of the zigzag incline going to San Carlos city. Considering that the car I brought then was a Grand Livina...I was not willing to regret the decision if I fall off the cliff because the engine cannot sustain the steep incline if I went on further the pass. What you're seeing is a horizon full of sugarcane plantations, subdivided into haciendas. It's usually around the last quarter of the year when farmers begin to cut down the crop for the milling season, hence tall lush green hues emit in the scene, the sign of a mature cane.

Snippets: Armi Millare

Taken April 26, 2014 in BGC for the first Satchmi Vinyl Day...it was one of the most awesome night of free music under the stars. The event composed of eleven bands which started from 4pm down to midnight. It was indeed a good night of great music. 

I went with a couple of friends who willingly came when I showed them the lineup of bands that would be playing in the event. It came as a shock when Up Dharma Down came up on stage as the front act–no one saw it coming, especially my friends who decided to arrive late that day. Bwahaha! Some arrived only to hear the last two songs, while there were those who completely missed it. Good for them! It was also a pleasant surprise to hear the band play an entire set and not just two or three songs. That moment was surreal, especially when I was standing so close to the stage that the rest of the world felt like a blur; just the music and Armi as she sang through the lines of their songs felt present that day. Yep, Tadhana is one of my favorite local songs EVERRRRRRRrrrr!! And of course, I consider UDD as one of the coolest bands around, up to par with other bands I like internationally.

Lately...like the past several days, I've also been amused by their feature song on Oreo's Sing With Me together with Zee Avi of Malaysia and GAC of Indonesia. I have been intently looping the video several times now because it's just not long enough to satisfy my ears. I love Oreo's new advertising campaign by the way.

Optimist vs a Realist

Here is a random conversation I had with my mom years ago:

Me: My best friend is planning the wedding of her aunt, she said the guy she'll be married to is foreign. 

Mom: Where are they getting married?

Me: Well, the guy and his family will be flying over to Bacolod for the wedding. Ain’t it sweet?

Mom: Smart girl, she knows there’s no divorce in the Philippines. 

At first reaction in my mind then went something like, "What are you talking about!? Why are you thinking like that? Can't you just be happy for them!? You're being too negative." 

Now, looking back...girl's got a point. A valid one at that. 

Am I becoming my mother!?!?!? 

For now, I'll just say that I'm still an optimist; maturity just happen to have taught me to try and look at the other side of the coin as part of becoming a logical adult.