..:: tzialing ::..

We love Bugis!

2010-06-02T22:13:00.011+08:00

This is me being weird in Liang Seah street...

What used to be renowned for nightly gathering of transgendered women, is now a tourist haven. Vesak day was spent traipsing around Bugis area where there are lots of places to keep busy. I had a Friday off so Michael got himself a 4 day vacation to visit me. It was less than a week when he decided to do so, that left me immediately hunting for a good hotel to stay at. Not too cheap, not too expensive, and should be right in the city. Bugis was the first that google suggested to me and it sounded promising, so I immediately went off to the city to check the place out. I immediately feel in love with the place. It had the same vibe as Mongkok, reminiscent of our HK trip late last year. Lots of places to shop, things to look at, food to eat... there was a big mall (Bugis Junction), a night market (New Bugis street), and a street chok full of quaint little restaurants (Liang Seah).

Photobooth!

2010-04-25T15:33:00.002+08:00

Uso pa pala ang photobooth?

I found a new hobby... shopping!

2010-04-10T14:29:00.010+08:00

Err ok thats not really a new hobby. More like a long-time addiction of mine. How about I rephrase it as scavenger-hunt-bargain to copy celebrity looks?

Its pretty boring here in Singapore so I find myself strolling around malls often. I've improved now such that I'm able to stay away from buying from actual shops inside the mall, but every so often I come across tiangge stalls. Stuff there are dirt cheap, it's like I'll just have to skip 2 meals and I can already buy an outfit.

Here's one for example. Isla Fisher's shopaholic poster look. Replicated with a SGD10 shirt/dress from Tampines Mall. To tone down the severity of the look such that I can go out of the house without looking too costume-y, I ditched the knee high socks and replaced the red shoes and black belt with white ones. I also put on a miniskirt underneath (I hate the i-think-you-forgot-your-pants-look)

Red shirt - Tampines Mall SGD 10

Black pleated mini skirt - H&M HK$ 30

White pumps - Matthews Php1900

White belt - Market Market Php100

Boracay!

2010-03-16T13:33:00.011+08:00

One last hurrah before I leave... 4 days of r&r with Michael! This was his anniv gift / time-alone-before-send-off for me.

LESSONS LEARNED:
1) Book your flight going to/from CATICLAN instead of KALIBO. We got them mixed up so we ended up sitting through the 2 hour bus ride from Kalibo to Caticlan. This ate up some of our precious beach time.

2) Food sold inside the domestic airport terminal is not only terribly expensive, its terribly yucky! If your plane leaves on a weird time such during breakfast, lunch, or dinner, and like me you can not and will not miss meals, grabe some takeout from Jollibee. It's just right across the domestic airport. Canteen-style food (think turo turo meals) are sold at roughly 170 pesos inside the terminal... no drinks yet!

3) IMO Station 1 is the best place to stay. Its much quieter than other stations, less number of annoying peddlers. A wide beach area where you can play volleyball, frisbee, or sunbathe. No boats parked on the shoreline. Sand is whiter and cleaner. The only downside is the looong walk if you want to visit the other stations.

4) Get good shades. Don't buy the cheap ones that do not reflect the light back out. 2 main reasons - first is the UV protection. Second is that if you don't get good shades, when you do people-watching (hey its bora) they can see you looking at them.

5) Bring credit card. We ordered lobsters, mistaking the price of 2500 per kilo as 250 per kilo. When the bill came we were like WHOOOA!!! It was yummy though. Michael asked me if I thoroughly enjoyed it. I nodded (not being able to talk with my mouth full). He smiled and then said that I was worth it after all.

Does God have a plan?

2010-02-11T19:35:00.004+08:00

Have you ever wondered what God really wants from you? I do. Right now.

What's God's plan for me?
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11).

So God knows his plan for me, how do I know about it?

"When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth...and he will tell you what is yet to come" (John 16:13). So the key to knowing God's will is to be obedient to the guidance of the Holy Spirit of truth. If you are willing to trust and obey God and live a holy life, God will reveal Himself to you and direct your steps as a way of life.

What if you do something against God's plans, will everything go haywire? Can once screw up God's plans?
The prophet Micah (also in the Bible) stated that the reason people go astray is that they do not understand God’s thoughts and plans (Micah 4:12). Job recognized that God did have a plan for him and acknowledged that God’s plans cannot be thwarted (Job 42:2).

Manila, Manila

2009-12-07T16:52:00.002+08:00

Annie is loving manila weather right now. Every morning I wake up from the soft light streaming from my window. Its chilly-breezy with a hint of warmth. It's a sign for me to get my ass off my bed and have breakfast. The sun would shine brightly late in the morning to early afternoon. I'd usually take a nap around this time (yes, buhay baboy). After a few hours around 4-ish, winds will steadily blow. By this time I'd open the windows, wrap myself in a light blanket, and snuggle in my bed with a good book. It would start to get chilly around 7pm when sun has set. By 9pm winds would be blowing really hard that I'd have to to close some of my windows (to keep my stuff near them from being knocked over). Past 12 it would be super chilly.

How I love december manila weather! Dreading going back to the chilly winter weather when I'd rather starve myself inside the house than brave the stinging cold outdoors to get some food.

Impromptu Trip!

2009-11-03T14:41:00.038+08:00

The funny thing was, we was supposed to go to China during the long weekend. October 31, we woke up to a very very gloomy day. No, let me rephrase that... we only half-slept because of the howling winds. That morning Santi decided to make its landfall. PAL then decided to cancel all its outbound flights. Still very hopeful we could catch an afternoon flight to Xiamen, we went to the airport anyway. PAL ticketing office was jampacked with distraught people who were anxious to get their rebookings/refunds. I got in line for rebooking, but when I finally got to the counter the guy says that my ticket was not valid for rebooking, but valid for a refund (wah???). A new booking to anywhere in Asia costs around 50k per person (a bigger wahh???). I huffed and puffed complaining that it was unfair, other airplanes took off in spite of the storm (storm had very well ended come our supposed flight schedule, PAL was just a scaredly cat).

I went over to JM and suggested we go home and call it a loss. His sulky face made me think twice. I suddenly remember how we were talking about taking an impromptu trip, the kind where we just go to the airport and let fate take us to anywhere. Not much convincing was needed, elbowed our way to the ticketing booth and cooly said "When's the next flight to... well, anywhere?". In a couple of hours we were sitting on plane, off to see the the asian Mickey Mouse!

Fast-forward a few more hours. It's 10.30pm we are roaming the streets of Mongkok, looking for a place to stay. Armed only with the HK-guide Dharil sent to me few months ago... we were viewing it in softcopy with JM's N97. All we had was the name of the place "Dragon Hostel", a vague address with no directions, and my broken mandarin. Heaven knows what would have happened to us if we arrived in there and then realized there are no rooms available -- but luckily that did not happen. After checking in, we started scouring the streets of Mongkok for a very late dinner.

The next day we got to know the Mongkok street life by eating, shopping, taking pictures!

Mongkok Streetlife

OMG the food!!!

One of the to-do's in my checklist is to actually stay in HK Disneyland. Well... CHECK! =) Very expensive, but after couple of days we were walking around Mongkok it was worth the relaxation. The room was large, cozy, and filled with hidden-mickeys. The exterior was just as amazing.

Chef Mickey was on a promotion, we loved it so much we ate there for dinner and for breakfast. Eat-all-you-can salmon, steak, shrimp, shaolongpao... yum!!!

Because it was impromptu, we ended up spending probably twice the amount but it was well worth the experience... never to be repeated again, however!

2009-09-01T07:46:00.012+08:00

Another long weekend entry. Spent it watching movies.

UP -
District 9 -
Obsessed -

Funny how I never watched movies much before, now it's like a regular weekly thing (well, funny how I never go to concerts before and now I'll be head-banging with scary people... trash metal... err I mean thrash metal of all kinds of music!)

I also spent some time preparing for my high-school-musical kiddie party event. Went to 168 to buy some gift bag goodies and I was astounded... it was like a HSM haven!!! They've got everything there - loot bags, stickers, tattoos, bags, colored hair spray, tumblers... I even bought a blonde wig ala-Sharpay.

Oh and I didn't know about the paper I was supposed to be making for my macro-eco class. I went cut my classes last week. Good thing Simon the foreign student texted me about it.

On a different note... I woke up today with the sounds of CHRISTMAS SONGS!!! Oh happiness! I love Christmas! I don't know why, my mother is deeply puzzled about it seeing that I'm already 25 years old. She had hoped that I would have grown out of it since a decade ago. But I have not (I don't think I will).

116 days before Christmas! =)

It runs in the family

2009-06-26T09:42:00.006+08:00

I went to my sister's office yesterday. She's a professor at UA&P, where's I'll be taking my graduate studies soon.

Now who's the messier sister? =P

2009-06-15T10:21:00.006+08:00

Been sick the whole long weekend. Woke up today feeling sick and sneezy and just plain icky... and who came a-knocking on my door to see me?

Now, I have never been the publicly-cheesy kinda girl. My friends would think I'm a complete sell-out, from cynicism to mushiness. But what the hell, I have the best boyfriend in the world!

I hate mondays

2009-06-01T14:13:00.003+08:00

I seriously want to take my laptop and bang it against the table. I hate windows vista, I hate eclipse, I hate SVN, I hate mondays.

What the hell am I doing in IT???

Happy 3 Months!

2009-05-21T07:35:00.033+08:00

Posting some long-overdue pictures from the famous 5-state date...

WASHINGTON, DC

The weather... was coat-weather, but very very very chilly in the evening.
The highlight has got to be... 17-hr train ride (oh butt-ache!)
I think I'd like to forget... my "T" incident.
Next time I go back I will... NOT bring such a huge luggage... sorry honey! =P

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

The weather... was mightly cold! First REAL snow for me.
The highlight has got to be... the great company! (Crix, Cindy, and John Q)
I think I'd like to forget... our first fight (which happened at the end of the road trip)
Next time I go back I will... have my own DSLR.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

The weather... very very windy.
The highlight has got to be... watching Wicked very very upclose. We were like 3 rows away from the stage!

I think I'd like to forget... the fact that I had my very first hard drink (appletini) and then got woozy and insisted on going back to the hotel to take a nap... and then missing the SNL show... and we had stand-by tickets! Oh shame!
Next time I go back I will... go to MoMA, the time that we were there they were celebrating something and thus, free entrace for all. You'd think that would have been great, but the line was insanely long. We just went inside the MoMA store.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

The weather... sunny! Finally, warm weather at last!
The highlight has got to be... having breakfast together at the hotel... waffles every morning!
I think I'd like to forget... that I tortured Michael by making him do weird poses for pictures/videos. Never knew he was bashful like that...
Next time I go back I will... visit the IKEA store. Just out of curiosity.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

The weather... t'was sunny in the desert!
The highlight has got to be... spending time with Michael's family.
I think I'd like to forget... that I maxed out my credit limit.
Next time I go back I will... gamble!!!

2009-05-10T11:36:00.002+08:00

I'm changing my blog heading... no more "i am a master evil genius"... i concede and give the title to him

This girl loves her shoes

2009-04-13T05:31:00.002+08:00

I'm seeing red...

2009-02-15T12:59:00.001+08:00

... the red building of Cincinnati Public Library!

Cincinnati has a really big library. The first day I arrived here I caught a glimpse of it from my taxi and made plans to visit it as soon as possible... and today was the day!

I figured out I could take a few snaps of the place but it was too damn cold to stand in the streets to take pictures. So off to the public library I went. I found this cool novel and plopped down in a corner where I have a good view of the garden outside.

No such luck, though. This library had screaming kids and bang-bang-bang of books being stacked carelessly. Also the man across me was trying to learn French, I think. To top everything off, the book was actually written all in broken English (the storyline was about a girl from China who goes to Europe to study English). Got a library card and checked the book out instead. (One sad thing, they won't let me borrow some movies because I'm not a local.. boohoo!)

So now I have it for 21 days. Whee! If only the libraries in the Philippines was as good as the one here. I actually had a library card from the public library in Manila. But really, the books were sooo dated, they weren't good even for academic research, let alone leisure reading. (Parang baligtad ata dapat...?)

Here's my library card.... (pwede kaya to sa AMEX application ko? haha...)

2009-02-09T12:56:00.000+08:00

To joykie, my avid fan... as promised =P

Chilly does not agree with me. Not on an empty stomach. Not with rootbeer.

It started yesterday. Having arrived at my hotel, I immediately went out to look for McDonalds – cheap and dependable. Much to my dismay I couldn't find any. I almost went in to a convenience store but couple of gangsta-looking guys went in before me. My overactive imagination flashed me some caught-on-tape robbery images… like the ones shown on TV. I walked passed by the convenience store, back to my hotel room, munched on a small bag of peanuts (I’m saving up all my instant noodles and I’m also scared of gaining weight as many have predicted about my stay here in the land of mind and honey), and went to sleep.

Come next morning, I was super hungry. Ate one pack of my precious noodles… had my 3-hr meeting… and then yey lunch! Folks here recommended the 4-way chilli, I gladly obliged. I never particularly liked chilli but when they said that it's a must-try here in Cincinnati, my expectations rose. So how was the chilli? It tasted a lot like spaghetti, only less meaty, less tastly, and quite muddy. I was warned (midway through my plate, thank you very much) that chillis have a reputation of going “right-through” you, if you know what I mean. By golly were they right. With 2 trips to the bathroom, acid-stomach from drinking a tall glass of rootbeer, and having been awake for 18 hours as of this point (hey old habits die hard)… now I feel woozy.

Mr Ongpin: You and your gushy, mildly-off sentiments about love/lust/life have kept me awake, so thank you. The people at the cubicle beside me must have thought me weird that I was sometimes laughing so hard I was banging the table… sometimes covering my face and blushing very red…

XXX: You told me do cyber-stalk you. To my surprise, I ended up cyber-stalking myself. My life published… ugh!

I suddenly missed the beach ='(

2008-08-09T05:04:00.001+08:00

Stories About My Hair

2008-08-09T04:14:00.003+08:00

I'm vain. That's normal. I'm also cheap. Not a good combination. Some stories worth sharing.

Worst things I have done to myself to my hair:

Had Aaron Cheung cut it. Quick background, Aaron is not some guy from some salon. He's a straight guy who at that particular moment of my insanity, happen to be sitting right next to me. I was like "hey A, wanna cut my hair?", he was like "you sure?", I went "yeah, why not..." out came the scissors and down my hair fell to the ground. I had long wavy hair that reached to my shoulder blades that time. He cut it right up to my chin level. The left side was signifcantly shorter than the right. 3 weeks later I went to the nearest salon that I could find (gandang ricky reyes of megamall)... the stylist there made me swear never to do that insane act ever again.
Around my first year of college, I noticed a small streak of white hair that sprouted on where my bangs were. You know Rouge from x-men? Kinda like that, but a lot less glamorous. So I decided that I wanted a change of color. I went to the drugstore and found a reasonably-priced box of permanent color (and by reasonably-priced I mean cheapest that I could find), I went home to do my little project. I didn't realize that I was not spreading the solution evenly, I just kept pouring it on my head. That evening I had orange top and black tips.
So I learned the lesson of evenly spreading the solution to from root to tips now. Just to be safe, I stuck to colors that were really close to my natural hair color... black. For a while I thought that I was getting quick a hang of it already and decided that I was ready for a change. Red would work well on my skin tone. So off to the drugstore I went again. I didn't know that if you colored your hair in a really dark color.. like black... any other coloring products won't work on top of it, you'd have to bleach it first. I had hair re-growth so I had "virgin" roots. The end result? Well, you all can guess it. This time, I had red roots and black tips.
Back when I was in highschool, I liked cutting my hair (yeah I still do now). So I cut me some wispy bangs, nothing unusual about that. However several weeks after, I got tired of my bangs and decided to shave some of it off. Not a very bright girl, I was. Several weeks after, my hair grew. It was too short to pin down and too long to be left unnoticed. Since it was really short, it was standing straight up. Imagine a highschool girl with half-an-inch hair sticking up from her forehead. The horror. Good thing I had lots of friends.

Quite entertaining, eh?

Just because I have nothing better to do at this unholy hour

2008-08-09T03:29:00.003+08:00

Is it just me, or is it innate that we mortals like to lambast and pity ourselves? I wanna know if I am particularly paranoid.

Here are some things that I "pity" myself on.
- I have huge thighs. Rommel tells me that it's just from the point of view from where I was looking from, top-view looking down. He actually took a measuring tape and held me up against Cindy and Kristel. More-or-less, we have the same thigh size. Still, I remain yet to be convinced. Hey, mine still look huge to me. They have longer legs you know.
- I am unlucky in the sense that I never win RAFFLES or any random contests. I now wonder about the randomness of randomity. And yes, I like making up words.
- I am not as well-traveled as I hoped to be.
- I am always working more than 8 hours a day. Always. (This is self-inflicted, I like torturing myself.)
- I have a new toy -- a lomo camera. I think I suck at photography. I'll post some of my crappy pictures next time.

Sigh... buti na lang maganda ako.

Random story: CL brought me coke in a paper cup a while ago. As I peered down at my cup, i noticed something green bobbing up and down. A lost M&M? Nope, it was a push pin. Gosh, he must really hate me. =P

Can you really un-love someone?

2008-08-09T00:31:00.001+08:00

Well, can you? If so, then how?

taking a trip down my memory lane

2008-06-09T12:53:00.008+08:00

Ok now. It's holiday here in Manila yet I am in the office. The India team I am working with has asked me to come to office today due to some urgent issues, yet I am just on stand-by. So what is a girl to do? Blog. Yes, that's one. Organize pictures from way back. Yes, that's another.

I set-up my workstation here in cebu/tacloban and take whiff. The smell. Ahhh, the smell. Nostalgia. I remember the restless overnights we had back then. When everything was uncomplicated. 70% of what we did was work. 30% was dawdling (playing piano, violin, drawing caricatures, tristan cafe, eating noodles... SLEEPING, etc)

. . . . .

The other day I was chatting over coffee and burgers with some girlfriends of mine. We were the three singles of the group that was to attend Michael Tsai's wedding. Singles -- now a minority. We were contemplating about singlehood and well, that's about it. No bitterness. Just restlessness. The verdict was it was better to be single than to be married to the wrong man.

This was actually the first wedding of anyone from my highschool-buddies trademark registered. My college gals are selling like hotcakes. So anyway, back to the wedding. It was quite a reunion shebang. Saw my friends from grade school/high school. I realize.. most of us actually stayed the same. Same faces, same mannerisms. Same personalities.

. . . . .

I feel old. Old yet foolish and naive.
And I don't make any sense.

*sigh*

oh take me back to the start...

AnnieSheep

2008-06-06T14:47:00.003+08:00

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness, for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Ann is inspired by Ptr Tanchi's message last week.

melancholy

2008-05-18T10:36:00.004+08:00

sweet browness
long and limber
eyes like a child
i touch your hair
you breathe in
breathe out
how terribly i've fallen

morning rays creep in
i wait for you to wake
regret and sorrow
i still wait
you breathe in
breathe out
how terribly i've fallen

outside the window
the world continues
oblivious of us
in the stillness of the room
you breathe in
breathe out
how terribly i've fallen

2008-05-16T15:37:00.002+08:00

it started out with a kiss
how did it end up like this
it was only a kiss
it was only a kiss

Thank you Cebu Pacific!

2008-05-15T15:41:00.001+08:00

I say amen to cheap flights!

HK/Macau on July
Singpore on September
Taiwan on August
China on October

By end of this year, I would have re-visited all Chinese-speaking countries.

2008-05-05T16:22:00.000+08:00

Yes that's me. And I look fab!
Thank you photoshop!!!

Who can relate?

2008-04-21T17:49:00.006+08:00

Rommels, you made me laugh today!!!

holiday mode

2008-03-21T16:21:00.006+08:00

At first we were 9...

2008-03-20T20:05:00.005+08:00

and then there were 5...

Fill in the blanks

2008-03-11T21:36:00.000+08:00

Today, I am depressed. I just found out that my ______ is actually ______. My initial reaction was "whoaaa... I cannot belieeeevvveee it". I felt unappreciated and cheated. Then I got mad. I calmed myself first by beating down my laptop keyboard, furiously typing my frustrations away to A, then by laudibly ranting to D. Then I felt a little better, but afterwards, I just feld sad. Really sad.

I am determined to channel my frustrations into to a more productive aftershock. I will not dawdle. I will not sulk. I will focus and move on.

My goal is to ________ so that I can ________. I will make this happen by _______ to _______, ________, and _______ this year. It's now or never. Dreams should have a deadline (just like it says in a financial institution advertisement). True, true, true.

This is Anniebear

2008-02-14T13:16:00.003+08:00

This is Anniebear. I am a bear.

Happy Valentines day to all!!!

This is Anniebee

2008-02-09T08:06:00.000+08:00

This is anniebee. I am a bee.

Fight fire with fire!!!

2008-02-05T20:51:00.000+08:00

Much ado i have been causing, moping around since the start of the year.

I need a change of perspective.

I, TZIALING, hereby solemnly promise myself to stop nitpicking myself and all other things i have no control of (the "self" and the "other things" are seperate entities, i do acknowledge that i am able to control my own actions).

I will stop wallowing in self-pity. I will stop doing things I know I should not be doing. I will concentrate on what I need to do and not mind all other things that are not within my power. I will stop bearing the whole world on my shoulders. I will stop working on weekends.

Really, it doesn't suck to be me. I almost the luckiest girl alive. And I'll start having fun again. Thanks A, M, B, J, another A, and yet and another A for pointing that out.

Ann... chillax.

desolate, destitue, and disconsolate this evening

2008-01-19T22:32:00.000+08:00

It's 10:33 in the evening and I'm in the office and I suddenly feel sorry for myself. Couple of places where I could have been tonight:

1. At LaLuz, Batangas with Joy & Co. for Cabe's despedida
2. Dinner with HS friends at Mall of Asia
3. Bonding time with family
4. At home sleeping

So why did I come voluntarily to work? Because I spent most of my last week deranged with fever, cough, and sniffles. Now I'm 90% recovered. And I'm pulling an all-nighter again. I feel miserable. The loserish type of misery.

In other words, burn-out.

Parokya ni Edgar keeping me company from my laptop speakers as gorge down a big bottle of gatorade and type away each of the pending test-case deliverable on my list.

*sigh*

All I want for Christmas

2007-12-08T17:40:00.000+08:00

In line with the yuletide shades of Christmas, and since red is my favorite color (according to Drei)... let me just drool over these RED things...

This Christmas I dream of a fabulous, fabulous, fabulous Mango coat! Normally, I'd outrightly buy clothes that I like (shopaholic that I am). For this instance, my conscience made me hesitant... for 3 reasons. First, there is no way in that I'll ever need a coat for Philippine weather. However cold christmas may get, it's never enough to not look weird in a trench coat. Secondly... its P7,500. Nuff said. But out of my severe want for this coat, I made a survey. 5 out of 6 girls said "yeah, go for it" and 4 out of 5 guys said "hell no!". I'm teetering between to buy-or-not-to-buy. Final decision will be the day before I fly to HK on the 24th. Abangan ang susunod na kabanata...

A good dependable camera... need to be able to capture *special moments*... my humble camera phone used to do the job. Now that I am amidst photographers... I'm almost shy to whip out my camera phone. Now I'm aspiring for either an SLR (libre naman mangarap dba?) or an underwater camera. Yes, may life na ako ngayon, and I need a camera to document it. And I want it in red.

I want a new red ipod! It's fashion with a cause! Sale proceeds include a donation to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Now if i had this, I can look at my 1G iPod nano and laugh at him pointing out how old he is now, and how tall he looks with not enough “umpfh” power!

Ok, now let me just buy a lotto ticket... wish me luck...

On fire!!!

2007-12-03T23:37:00.003+08:00

Recharged...

Revived...

Annie living in a box

2007-11-17T09:59:00.000+08:00

Ok now, so my body has finally adjusted to EMEA bordering NA timelines. Been waking up noontime and sleeping around 3am everyday now. And I'm liking it. There's less stress at night, less meetings, less distractions... I'm a little more productive that way.

Got my weRoam! It's so cool! I can now work lying on my bed! You see, I do most anything while lying on bed. I eat brunch and even dinner in bed. I read in bed. I watch movies in bed. I study in bed. I brush my teeth in bed. I do my quite time in bed. Hey, I even cook my meals in bed, don't ask how...

Add multi-tasking to my list of talents. I recently learned how to do design documents while watching marathon episodes of how-i-met-your-mother. I must say, it's a very very effective way to stay awake for overtime.

Speaking of how-i-met-your-mother... love the show!!! Its funny... yet educational. Couple of truths i got from the show:

nothing good happens after 2 A.M... when 2 A.M. rolls around, just go home and go to sleep
long-distance relationship sucks
if a cockroach and a mouse can find love it this crazy city then so can I!
turn off you brain for the night, and all you're left with the next day is a bad hangover and a sprained ankle
when you don't connect on that many fundamental levels, its only a matter of time before you realize that you're not meant to be together

(BTW: Note that I do NOT like Robin, and I'm NOT like Robin.)

Anyhow, a numbers roll for me, for the past 2 weeks...

Times I've been to the gym - 5 (impressive... for me!)
New shirts/pants I've indulged on - 3 pants, 2 blouses, 1 dress
Ant bites I had for eating in bed - 16 massive ones
Number of instant noodles I've gobbled up - too many to mention
Bonding sessions with kindred spirtis - priceless (^_^)

So that's a wrap of the updates of my life since I got my own place. Funny thing is that my mom reprimanded me for not coming home on weekends. So I did this weekend... and guess what... nobody else is home! haha!

Independence rocks!!!

2007-11-11T09:15:00.000+08:00

bummed out about all sorts of things... need peace of mind... going crazy... ow heartache!

Cine Europa Marathon

2007-10-29T03:01:00.001+08:00

7 movies all in all! Not bad at all…

LA MOME (FRANCE)
Very touching story of the life of Edith Piaf, France's most beloved and well-known singer. I loved the fact that the movie did not portray her as as a usual heroine. She was no beauty. In fact, she was buck-toothed, slouchy, and had a bad temperament. The beauty of the story is how she, from being raised by prostitutes and growing up in the streets, arrived at the glitz and glamour of Hollywood. Very good acting from Marion Cotillard...

I know you know this song: La Vie En Rose

SUMMER IN BERLIN (GERMANY)
Now, this is a really bad movie. It's plainly about 2 girls who are so desperate for a man in their lives, they fight over a fugly good-for-nothing truck driver. I really don't get why this movie actually was considered critically acclaimed. Ok sorry, maybe it's really riveting and deep... so deep that I did not get it at all.

JUST SEX AND NOTHING ELSE (HUNGARY)
Cute romantic-comedy film about a woman nearing her thirties who finds out her lover is already married, swears off men, and decides to look for a sperm donor instead. That's about it. Very commercial. Again, I do not know why this film is considered critically-acclaimed. But I enjoyed it anyway.

SHOOTING DOGS (UNITED KINGDOM)
This movie is THE MOVIE to watch. Riveting and poignant, it tells of an english teacher and a catholic priest finding themselves amidst the Rwandan Genocide. Very raw and emotional. Jessie was sitting beside me and was crying her heart out (right Jessie???).

UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG (FRANCE)
Story of 2 lovers separated when the guy (aptly named as Guy) goes to war. Amazingly, the entire of dialogue of this movie was sung! Very simple story. I liked the fact that the 2 characters did not end up together (sorry, spoiler!). There is no proper way to end the story, in my humble opinion. Music is really good.

I know you know this song: I will wait for you

TAMING OF THE SHREW (UNITED KINGDOM)
Gosh, this movie is awfully awfully long! I'd choose the contemporary adaptation, 10 things I hate about you anytime. I could just be biased though, had very little sleep the previous day... halfway thru the movie, we left to grab a bite instead, haha!

FACING WINDOWS (ITALY)

Stuck in a greying marriage, Giovanna takes to caring for the Jewish Holocaust survivor, Davide that her husband brings home. As she begins to reflect on her life, she turns to the man who lives across from her. Intriguing. I liked the side story better, the one about Davide and Simone. The message? Follow your passion, follow your heart and you will have no regrets Something that really made me think was the line Davide said to Giovanna- " You have turned your passion into a hobby. You should never do that with a talent". Promptly after this movie, I went around Shang prowling for pastries. Watch the movie, you’d know why. Movie was actually good. Doesn’t hurt that the man who lives across Giovanna is an eye candy, hmmm... he actually looks a lot like… (^_^)

James Lipton interviews Ann

2007-10-28T15:44:00.000+08:00

Who doesn't love INSIDE THE ACTORS STUDIO?

What is your favorite word?
- breathe, with an E
What is your least favorite word?
- suspicion
What turns you on?
- good sense of humor
What turns you off?
- show-off-iness
What sound or noise do you love?
- sound of waves crashing
What sound or noise do you hate?
- sound of construction early in the morning... i have that in my apartment!
What is your favorite curse word?
- ow crap! -- does that count? I have a really tame tongue...
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
- fiction writer
What profession would you not like to do?
- secretary
If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?
- Well done, good and fathful servant... welcome home.

A girl can dream, can't she?

I'm...

2007-10-17T08:25:00.000+08:00

Waiting... waiting... waiting...

for something.

I'm just not really sure what.

Bye bye...

2007-10-06T12:44:00.000+08:00

Dear B,

Good things never last for long, eh? That’s what you told me last night. I got really really sad. Those were happy times. And now you’re about to leave and he’s long gone already… I guess I’ll sit by the window… and wait for the rain… senti mode! (^_^)

Retail therapy doesn’t seem to be doing much good for me these days. Let’s see… for 2 weeks now, I have gone out buying something new for myself every other day. I just need to buy one last thing… the blue laptop bag… this’ll be the last one… and I’ll stop buying ice cream soon… promise… (unless its carrot flavored!)

But hey, I’m a lot better now. Stronger. More reassured that what I did was right. You were right, I was just prolonging the inevitable. I’m glad to know that even if I would have done it the other way, you’d be there to talk me out of it. Thanks, B!

You asked me what I plan to do with my life. Offhand, I told you I wanna do coding-work again and I wanted to teach street children how to sing. Apart from that I was quite unsure what to do with the rest of my life. I know what to answer now… I wanna have a jewel in my crown when I get to heaven. You see, when I was still a wee little kid, my sunday school teacher would always say that if you are able to bring another person to Christ, you will get a jewel in your crown. I imagined how sad it will be to not have a jewel in my crown, I wouldn’t wanna live in regret for all eternity! But oh, as life passes me by, this aspiration of mine got lost amidst heavy schoolwork, bad relationships, aimless wondering, selfish ambitions, and mindless office overtime. Yes, I think I got side-tracked.

I’m reading Nehimiah now. Too bad I wasn’t able to attend last week’s sermon (bridal shower and the you-know-what were distracting… LOL!). I’m aligning my goals with God. So far, I’m a clean just-recently-wiped slate. Anything goes for me. Who knows what I could be, with Him empowering me?! Maybe tomorrow, I could be off to China doing missions work, or maybe I could be married (@#$%...not!!!!), or a techie (like our idol MASTER), or to be the first man... err, woman on the moon… err wait scrap that. Anyway, I’m a lot more confident now. The best is there I know, we just have to seek, and listen, and learn how to wait. This goes for both of us. I pray that you have the strength to do what you know you gotta do.

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

B, I’m off to seek far-off places, daring sword fights, magic spells, and a prince in disguise! Pray of me. I will be praying for you always. We’ll see each other again, I know. I haven’t returned your book and your piano pieces yet… (^_^)

In Christ,
A

To Kindred Spirits found

2007-09-19T15:41:00.000+08:00

Switchfoot live in Manila!

2007-09-11T01:00:00.001+08:00

2007-09-09T20:32:00.000+08:00

...but who's counting?

Escape the gorilla!

2007-09-08T09:57:00.000+08:00

Hurry now, hurry now
Gorilla's comming at ya ann-girl!
It's got a big hammer-like-thingy,
gonna pound you to a fine-powder,
gonna mix you with boiling water,
and make an ann-soup,
and feed its little ones.

Run now, faster, faster!
Can't let the gorilla catch you!

DON'T ASK

2007-08-20T22:12:00.000+08:00

I wish to be like Kafka Tamura. I wish to go where nobody knows me. I wish to be alienated. I wish to be somebody else for a while.

I wish I could run far far away to an unknown place and work a menial routinary job like a night-time convinience store cashier and meet people whom I probably wont see ever again. I wish to come home to nobody, with only a starless sky to greet me everynight. I wish to spend my days at the library and read and read and read and not have anybody bother me. I wish to only have what I need. I wish to be awake at all times.

I wish to eat alone and sleep alone and not have to talk to anyone but myself. I wish to be meaningless. I wish to drift far far away from here.

=====================

Yes, I am avoiding you. I don't need to be sarcastic, I'm sure you must have realized that by now. Please try to take a moment to internalize that fact. Me avoiding you probably means that I do not want to hear you, talk to you, see you, or have anything to do with you at all. So don't come home. Don't call me. Don't send me freakish emails everyday. Don't call my mother for pete's sake. And don't make up emergency stories to make me talk to you. I do not buy it. I know you too well.

It's not that I'm mad at you. Hard to believe, huh? But its true. Now, I'm not saying that I'm not mad. Yes I am, because you piss me off. But the reason for my actions is that I really do not want to have anything to do with you anymore. I'm well past getting all fired up about the things you do. I'm well over it. There is nothing left to talk about. It doesn't matter anymore.

You said you don't want me to hate you. So stop doing the things that make me hate you. Stop stalking me.

It's over.

=====================

How not to fall in love...
1. Falling in love is for fools.
2. My happiness should not be based on other people.
3. We will all die anyway. It's just a matter of when. When we go to our afterlife, who we married wont matter as much...
4. They say all good men are either married or gay. I won't settle for a bastard. I'm not into married men. Gays won't have me.
5. Chivalry is dead.

=====================

Thats it... I'm going to bed now.

6-month Anniversary

2007-08-15T22:54:00.001+08:00

On the day that typhoon Egay decided to skim the streets of Manila -- Pat, CL & I celebrated our 6-month anniversary. No, we’re not a threesome couple, I meant our HP anniversary.

“So how would you describe your first six months?”
CL - “Six months of bliss.”
Ann - “Six months of confusion.”
Pat - “Six months of same old shit.”

On the pictures: Pat, Drei, CL, Anson, Jan, me, Mike, and John Lloyd Cruz… err I mean Aldo… eating sinabawang-gulay and halo-halo.

Grateful

2007-08-13T08:43:00.000+08:00

Over the past months, I have realized how my life has come full circle. And I'm glad. I missed the old me terribly. I almost forgot who I was. But now I'm grateful.

I came to this epiphany of mine while heading home yesterday afternoon. I had just finished scouring Powerbooks (on sale btw) with a friend of mine. Earlier on we attended the CCF service and had a hearty lunch. I was walking to the train station with a parcel of books in tow, when I realized what a carefree happy life I'm living. Gone were the days of confusion, rebellion, and misery.

How have I come to this turning point? I dunno. I think I just had the realization all of the sudden. Maybe it was the final buildup of my patience. Maybe somebody must have been praying for me really hard. In any case, I woke up one day and said to myself: "Hey I do not deserve this crap!". I promptly did a mini-spring-cleaning cleaning of my life. "Mini" in the sense that I only had to undo ONE bad decision and my life went back on track just like that. It's amazing how sometimes we stubborn people refuse to listen to advise that we know is the right thing to do at the very first place.

Sure my life still has its ups and downs. But none of those formidable "downs" for me no more! I had once forgotten where to draw my real strength. I hope never to forget again. I still have some fixing-up to do. It's still a long way to go. But I'm getting there. I'm seeing a light at the end of the tunnel.

"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." - Romans 8:28

I dedicate this entry to my confidant CL who knows my what I'm talking about... teehee...

Rainy days and Mondays always get me down...

2007-08-09T10:56:00.000+08:00

I need a vacation...
I need to catch up on my reading...
I need sum kinda distraction...
I need sum one to hold...
On second thought, no I don't...
I need a new pair of boots...
I need something to look forward to...
I need to call my bank/globe to redeem the undue charges the paid so long ago...
I need to destress.... maybe a trip to the spa will do...
I need to catch up on my quiet time...
I need to take advantage of the sale in samuel & kevin...
Let me stress that I really really need a VACATION...

Dear Mike Cua

2007-08-05T21:04:00.001+08:00

Goodluck searching for me!!! :)

PS: You owe me a starbucks thermos.

I'm serious.

How to kill the green-eyed monster

2007-07-17T08:24:00.000+08:00

Jealousy is said to be synonymous with envy. It is defined to be a sorrow which one entertains at another's well-being because of a view that one's own excellence is in consequence lessened. Its distinctive malice comes from the opposition it implies to the supreme virtue of charity. The law of love constrains us to rejoice rather than to be distressed at the good fortune of our neighbor. The envious man tortures himself without cause, morbidly holding as he does, the success of another to constitute an evil for himself. Jealousy is most evil when one repines at another's spiritual good. Regret at another's success is not always jealousy. The motive has to be scrutinized. If, for instance, I feel sorrow at the news of another's promotion or rise to wealth, either because I know that he does not deserve his accession of good fortune, or because I have founded reason to fear he will use it to injure me or others, my attitude, provided that there is no excess in my sentiment, is entirely rational. Then, too, it may happen that I do not, properly speaking, begrudge my neighbour his happier condition, but simply am grieved that I have not imitated him. Thus if the subject-matter be praiseworthy, I shall be not jealous but rather laudably emulous.

My jealousy is unfounded.

I therefore have to fight, fight, fight harder!

*sigh*

Oh when will it be my turn? =(

My Valediction

2007-07-08T22:47:00.000+08:00

Tonight I cried rivers of tears.

Yes indeed, I bleed when pricked.

Farewell.

2007-06-25T13:58:00.000+08:00

..:: Annie's blog is made public ::..

Blanco Resigns from Rivermaya

2007-06-22T08:35:00.000+08:00

Thursday, June 21, 2007
OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM RIVERMAYA MANAGEMENT
In response to the thousands of texts, calls, and email messages, allow us to make this statement to clear up all the questions, speculations and rumors.

We confirm that Mr. Rico Blanco has written us a letter of resignation from Rivermaya. We are unable to give an explanation for this action since Mr. Blanco's statements are inconsistent with the facts. For the record, Mr. Blanco did not make any announcement of his leaving Rivermaya 'as early as 2005', or in 2004 or 2006, for that matter. On the contrary, he actively participated in and benefited from our plans and activities, not to mention the record-breaking number of awards, local and foreign concerts and endorsements during those years.

While our artist-management contract was automatically and validly renewed, the same letter contains a bewildering and inaccurate declaration that neither Mr. Chito S. Rono nor I have been his managers since 2003. 'Inexistent and of no force and effect' were his words to describe a relationship that has spanned 14 years since the start of his career in the music business.

That notwithstanding, we have done our best to deal with the situation with professionalism and to dissuade Mr. Blanco from pursuing a rash course of action, that would delay if not cost all of us our successful entry into the international market.

Unfortunately, and despite our best efforts, Mr. Blanco has decided that he no longer shares our vision of a Rivermaya that can spread its wings into Asia. Mr. Blanco has not made it plain as to what he plans to do next and we have not been able to correctly assess our options or courses of action to take, given his leaving the band.

Be that as it may, Rivermaya is not ready to turn its back on its fans and the many relationships we have built in the Philippines and in the rest of the region. We are committed, more than ever, to follow our dream of bringing Original Pilipino Music to our neighboring countries, and to finish what we have started, in the name of all Filipino musicians. We have seen for ourselves how the power of OPM can transform the image of the Filipino abroad and how, in our own small way, we have given our fellow Filipinos working abroad newfound pride in their country.

The road ahead will not be easy, in fact it will be a monumentally difficult one -- and already the naysayers and doomsday experts abound -- but we are ready to pray hard and work even harder to take on the task ahead. We take heart in the thousands of text messages, phone calls, and email we have received from friends in and out of the country, asking us not to give up the fight. Thanks to you, our hopes and courage are intact.

We salute all our comrades, past and present, but we continue to believe that no one member of Rivermaya is greater than the whole.

In the next few weeks, we will finalize our plans on how we intend to face these new challenges -- and we will share them with you every step of the way. Only with your support and God's help can we even begin the incredible journey ahead of us.

http://www.rivermaya.net/

alam mo mayron akong pangarap sa buhay... sana matupad na...

2007-06-21T22:22:00.000+08:00

magda-DIVE ako hanggang Baguio
magda-DIVE ako hanggang Bicol
magda-DIVE ako hanggang Batangas
tapos magswi-swimming d'on sa beach

isasama ko mga friends ko
isasama ko kahit sinong may gusto
kahit may kasama siyang aso
basta't meron siyang dalang sariling buto

magdadala ako ng pagkain
burger fries tapsilog at siopao

magda-DIVE ako hanggang Visayas
magda-DIVE ako hanggang sa Mindanao

magda-DIVE ako buong taon
magda-DIVE ako habang buhay
magda-DIVE ako hanggang buwan
please please lang turuan nyo
akong magDIVE

gusto kong matutong magDIVE
(kahit na d ako marunong mag swim)

gusto kong matutong magDIVE
(kahit na walang lisensya)

magDIVE....DIVE… DIVE
magDIVE...magDIVE
DIVE...DIVE...DIVE...DIVE

2007-06-20T20:44:00.000+08:00

My dear Annie-pie

Remember, you get what you wish for. Be happy. Learn to live with the facts of life.

- your conscience

2007-05-30T21:01:00.001+08:00

Why do you have to come and turn my world upside down?

Winning Performance

2007-05-24T23:23:00.000+08:00

Another One Ties the Knot

2007-05-21T22:15:00.001+08:00

Lyn was the first to announce that she was geting married. Come her wedding day, Dice announced that she was getting married. Come Dice's engagement, Eunice announced that she too was getting married!!!

WSNT Offsite

2007-04-28T21:02:00.000+08:00

sigh

2007-04-03T23:09:00.000+08:00

The sovereign one has his own way of saying "I told you so!". But we mortals almost never learn.

So what do we do? Meekly admit defeat and yearn for what might have been? Or brave up and face the music of reality? Can we still reach for his promises or shall we have to face the consequences of our choices?

Oh when will our restless hearts be still and wait patiently for the treasures that await us?

Everybody's changing and I dont feel the same...

2007-03-30T21:49:00.000+08:00

At the end of the day, I realize that I'm not ready for the the liberal world my environment has become.

Of course somebody owns you now...

2006-11-29T08:27:00.000+08:00

Remeber the song 214? The one that goes "Am I real.."

It has gained massive mystery to what the it means. Different meanings were suggested such as 1) 214 – February 14, 2) 214 – Am I Real (first lyrics of the song), and 3) 214 – “to won for”. Blanco stated during their Radio Romance performance that he would reveal the meaning 10 years after, instead a song called 241 AKA "My Favorite Song" was released.

Check out this video. Song is great, but music video is crappy. Stare intently at Rico Blanco. Realize how music can make his hideously wide mouth not hideous, why... he's almost dashing (swoon...)

Here is 214 as performed by Bamboo. Apparently, it was released while Bamboo was still with Rivermaya.

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

2006-11-24T23:01:00.000+08:00

THANK YOU!!! This is my first and only surprise birthday party!!! Ur the best!!! =)

Sotelo-Tiu Nuptials

2006-10-21T22:05:00.000+08:00

First one in my barkada to tie the knot. Aww.... sniff sniff!

Funny!!!

2006-06-20T21:41:00.000+08:00

http://www.illwillpress.com/tech.html

My Coffee Experience

2006-05-20T21:28:00.000+08:00

Little do we know it, coffee has actually evolved from a mere drink to an intense form of art. Gone were the days of instant powdered coffee mixes. Today, you just got to have that daunting high-tech coffee maker that actually talks to you. If you don’t, you’re probably always shuffling down the street to the nearest Starbucks, Gloria Jean’s, or Coffee Bean whatever franchise.

Tall, grande, or venti? Caf, half-caf, decaf? Non-fat? Soy? Whole or skim milk? Sugar or splenda? Frap? Add whip? Power? Syrup? Gosh. It takes me 15 minutes to decide whether I’ll have the regular burger or the one with cheese from McDonalds. How in the world am I supposed to choose the right coffee for me? Besides, they all taste the same. Cold and bitter. Just like me. Haha!

I’m no coffee drinker. According to old wives tale, coffee stunts one’s growth… and yeah I still wanna grow taller. But then again, coffee keeps me more awake than a bad conscience at night.

Let’s zero-in on posh coffee houses. Has anybody else seen the ridiculous price-size match up? You see, they changed the names of the coffee cup sizes. Small is now called tall, medium is now grade, and large is venti. Forgive my ignorance, but isn’t tall the opposite of small? And as far as I know, venti is a network storage system for data. Besides, when was the last time you ordered something else “grande” and got a medium instead?

Psychological marketing strategy. That’s what is it. They changed the names so that consumers won’t feel so bad when they buy urine-sample size cup of coffee for a hundred bucks…. But then again, maybe it’s not the coffee. Sure, you can buy coffee for a third of the price, you can even get it for free (folks check your office pantry)… but then you don’t get the trendy star-schmuk coffee cup that you carry around as a status symbol.

Christina's Wedding

2005-10-10T20:29:00.000+08:00

Tired of skimming the shopping streets of Hong Kong, I eagerly agreed to be my cousin, Christina's maid of honor in her wedding. Now, I'm not new to the whole wedding thing. This was my fifth time as a bride's maid (or maid of honor, I can never really tell the difference… and yes I know, 3 times a brides maid… never a bride… its not 3 times, its more than that, so I'm still hoping to walk down the aisle myself someday). Now, what so special about that? The thing is, I have never been to a genuine Chinese wedding. All the weddings I had been a part of here in the Philippines were of Chinese couples, but the culture here is already very Philippine-ized. While ang-paos (bags of money) and lauriat spreads are present, I've heard it's still a far cry from the traditional Chinese weddings. I knew this was going to be a whole lot of experience for me.

Here's how it went. Early morning of the wedding day, everyone woke up early. Christina changed into a traditional Chinese cheongsam. It was bright red and embroidered with gold dragons all over it. Not the garish kind, though. This marked the first dress my cousin gracefully toted that day as well as our first of many photo moments.

The "sisters" (bride's girlfriends) arrived early to witness and facilitate the festivities. Clement and his groomsmen arrive shortly. However, the door of the house was promptly blocked by the sisters inside. In order to "enter the gate", the groom and his procession had to go through a series of quizzes. First of which was guessing the combination of the lock in the gate. Secondly, singing and doing push-ups. And finally, bargaining and buying his way in by presenting an ang-pao. We finally ended up with HK$999, this was split among us "sisters". Shopping money for me, yey!

Here's what I learned about Chinese weddings, we drink lots of tea, and by lots I mean LOTS of tea. After the groom passed all the challenges the tea ceremony begins. A friend poured tea and the bride and groom knelt down and offered cups to parents and relatives in sequence of seniority. (Traditionally it should have been me, the Maid of Honor who pours the tea, but needless to say I was totally useless.) Whenever they did that, elder relatives and friends would then offer huge clunks of jewelry and red envelopes of angpao. Nice, huh?

Next we headed off to the groom's parents house, and again the whole tea serving and angpao giving ceremony was repeated. (My, my! My cousin was getting richer by the minute!) Off to the car the bride, groom and I go with me holding a bright red parasol over my cousin's head. Red umbrella? Oh yeah, it protects the bride from evil spirits.

Next stop, back to the house where we were actually greeted by a whole fat roasted pig. As my auntie explained afterwards, this was supposed to be chopped up and distributed to the relatives. After eating a quick lunch, Christina changed to a white traditional wedding gown.

Next stop, to the Marriage Registry. In Hong Kong, it's not always so that couples need to go to the church to get married. In the Philippines, couples who do not get married in churches do not feel like they got married at all. In Hong Kong, it's perfectly fine. My cousin chose to be married at a Marriage Registry. With the whole preparation hullabaloo, you'd think the wedding itself would last for the whole day, but no sire, it took her less than 15 minutes to officially get married.

We arrived 20 minutes before the appointment and stayed at a room called aptly bridal room. In that room my eyes beheld a sight I have never seen before in my life, more than 15 brides all in white gowns cramped in a really small room. While the make-up artist was doing touch-ups for Christina, I peered outside, even more brides! I felt like I was in the scene from the bachelor where hundreds of brides were chasing Chris O' Donnell.

Finally came the end of the ritual and the newly-weds went to the banquet venue. Before the party, most of the time the new couple again served tea and received (what else?) angpaos and jewelry in exchange. What I thought would be a somber affair turned out to be very interactive and ended with a photo shoot with the altar as backdrop. I was beckoned over at one stage to pose for photos with the couple. After a quick costume change for Christina... more photo taking.

Already feeling awkward after the impromptu photo shoot, the feeling intensified as we casually sauntered into the brightly lit restaurant. As if the enormous crystal chandeliers weren't enough we were also subjected to the less than kind glare of fluorescent lighting above our table. Under this light even the smallest spill of red wine on a shirt could create the illusion of a life-threatening wound in desperate need of stitches.

By that time, I was downing copious quantities of tea in the hope of pacifying my roaring hunger. It was already past nine at night and besides chopsticks on the table I haven't seen any signs of food. The past few hours passed in a flurry of cameras flashing, the sound of mahjong being played and gasps of appreciation as Christina re-entered the restaurant from her adjacent dressing room in yet another gown. At this stage I lost track as I stopped counting frocks after I've seen her in five different ones up to that point. All of them exquisite I must add.

The guests were getting restless and then all the of a sudden the blazing lights dimmed slightly as the doors from the kitchen swung open to reveal it's aromatic treasure. Food at last! Exotic mushrooms, delicate slivers of Abalone, al dante prawns; steamed fish and even fluffy bunny shaped marshmallows tempted and tantalized my taste buds. It was bliss.

In between courses our Bridal couple was still graciously working the floor. At some point while I was just about to take a bite into my piece of roasted chicken, Christina grabbed me and made me tag along with them. At that stage I was suffering from severe "smile" fatigue. Not only have I never posed for as many photos in my life but it were also a case of looking friendly and jovial all the time while I was cold cold cold, and that my feet hurt from the 3 inch heels I was wearing.

As the day came to an end, I felt great appreciation for being able to say that I've attended a Chinese wedding and thoroughly enjoyed it. As I stood in the elevator catching a last glimpse of the newlyweds bidding the guests farewell, I could've sworn the Bride was wearing yet another dress.

Either that or I was experiencing a Green tea buzz.

How do you read the G in bologna?

2005-05-03T10:44:00.000+08:00

With flair.