October 31, 2005

When I grow up, I want to be a fairy

I originally wanted to spend Halloween Eve pretending to be Little Red Riding Hood. But since I am not little and the idea of making/finding/buying a red cape and going around carrying a basket became less and less appealing with every thought, I said, screw Red Riding Hood, I'm going to be a fairy.



A fairy.



Not just any fairy, A Fairy With Really Nice Shoes.



Yes, Really Nice Shoes.



There were other fairies too.



And a beautiful... clown?



Together, we invaded Red Box where Giles skillfully painted our faces, where J worked on his best Pilita Corales impersonation and made love to the TV, just like Madonna did in her Take A Bow video.



We also saw the worst karaoke video in the history of mankind.



It had us laughing our asses off.

I also made it clear why I should never be left alone with paint. Ever.

We ate a lot, danced a lot and then went to a twenty-four hour cafe where we stayed until 3 a.m., talking about stupid showbiz gossip.

It was a magical night.

If I had it my way, I'd dress like a fairy every day.



Seriously.
 
October 27, 2005 again

This is what I mean when I say I don't have typical days

I woke up in panic with the realization that despite the fact that I am twenty-five years old and regularly invited to these events, I don't have a decent cocktail dress.

I have dresses, sure, mostly low-cut ones I wear to resorts or to the beach. But my beach dresses just wouldn't cut it.

I had a cocktails slash fashion show to attend and I had nothing to wear. I looked through my closets (they're pretty much all over the house) and knew I couldn't get away with just jeans and a nice top. So I did the unthinkable. I decided to wear my high school dress.

High school dress and adult cocktails normally don't mix. But I felt I had no choice.

Dress, check. My bigger problem was I didn't have shoes that matched. I needed nice sexy black shoes for my dress. All my old nice sexy black shoes had all been given away/sold at a garage sale/thrown out. That's what you get for living in Havaianas for over a year.

I was also dying to wear my purple mary janes from Schu so I decided to just bring them too, even if my grandma said they totally clashed with my dress.

"Bahala na," I said.

I packed the dress and the shoes, changed into jeans and a shirt and went to Makati for my lunch meeting.

Apparently, this week is all about Japanese lunches.

My lunch meeting with Tina turned into a three-hour chat session over really good food. I am now in love with Zen's Sakura Roll and I'm not even a sushi fan. Try it, I swear, I'm now addicted.

We covered work but we covered other things too. She is now officially my makeup guru. I had great fun.

I was planning to go to the office but since the event was just an hour away, I figured it was stupid to go, stay for fifteen minutes and then leave again. So I went inside Glorietta and concentrated on gathering numbers from stores I wanted to feature.

Soon, it was time to start worrying again about what I was going to wear.

I called the organizer. "How formal is it gonna be?"

She assured me that it wasn't too formal.

"Can I wear jeans?" I asked and I sensed the hesitation in her voice.

Okay, no jeans.

Then she told me the fashion show was going to be delayed, giving me another hour to worry about my clothes.

Then I thought about another dress. Right. That solves all my problems. So I spent the next frenzied thirty minutes, trying to locate a dress that would match my purple shoes.

Zilch. Nada.

I came close once, with a pretty pink number but I turned around and saw that my striped undies showed through the fabric. No, thank you.

I figured I needed to attack my problem from another angle. I can buy a new dress or I can just buy black shoes to match my high school dress.

I decided to try finding nice black shoes because I thought it would be easier and faster.

And it was.



I found these babies at So! Fab. Because they were on sale, we only had to shell out P499 for them.

I now love So! Fab. Even the shoes that weren't on sale were super affordable. The most expensive pair I saw went for P799. I'm definitely going back.

Schu seriously broke my flip flop spell. Now I'm falling in love with shoes again left and right.

I ducked into the ladies room to change at the Manila Pen.

The dress wasn't so bad after all, it was just shorter than I recalled. It's a spaghetti-strapped plain black dress with another sheer dress worn over it. And it looked really good with the shoes. I should have taken a picture but there were other people in the room.

I emerged five minutes later.

I made my way up to the conservatory. I saw our photographer and checked if we had enough photos. I did a quick interview. I chit-chatted and exchanged numbers and shook hands with some people. I saw Schu's owner Ms. Ruby (I gushed about the shoes, as usual) and finally met Irene, who designs the killer accessories sold at Schu.

I also ran into an old college classmate who now works for the company that organized the event. She witnessed the dark ages of my college life, when my ex-boyfriend used to spread rumors about me and basically scared the hell out of me after I broke up with him (long freaking story). It was her first time to talk to me about it and I think it was a revelation for her. She asked me why I never did anything to dispell the rumors or to defend myself, I said I just couldn't be bothered, that people like that always get what's coming to them anyway. That was five years ago and I'm totally - and couldn't be more - over it.

It was good to catch up with someone from my original batch in college. I cut almost all my ties when I left school a week before finals in my junior year.

So all in an all, it was an interesting and fun evening. The shoes didn't make my feet hurt and I didn't trip. The night was painless. Almost.

If only I didn't burn myself on the spotlight. I was talking to someone and I accidentally backed into it, burning my right calf.

I swear, it hurt so much I was surprised I didn't scream. That's when I thought, "If I had only worn jeans.."

When I got home, I checked and saw that there were two red stripes on my calf.



Like tuna, I've been seared.
 
October 27, 2005

It still feels like my birthday

Someone wise once said that it takes a village to raise a child. I say the same thing about making birthdays happy.

And it seems like the people in my village of sorts have all conspired to bring cheer this special month.

It's been almost two weeks but the greetings and the presents are still trickling in.

You spoil me too much, it's crazy.

Thank you, Ria, for Brucey's new girlfriend*.



"So Brucey will stop making out with Dick," you said. You're right. I think Brucey will forget that darn duck's name when he sees this super adorable and super sexy pink bunny. It was great to finally meet you. Lunch, merienda or dinner next time, okay?



*Please help me give her a name. I am about to start calling her Cinderella.

Thank you, Arvin, for deciding it was time to get another pair of Havaianas. I consider myself beyond lucky for having a boyfriend who, on top of his countless qualities, also understands and actually supports my obsession. You are an angel not just to me but to so many others.



Thank you, Kat, for the pretty gold scarf. I woke up the other day and saw it lying next to me. It was a lovely way to start the day.



Thank you, Anne, for my pairs of animal print Havaianas and for the super cool notepads.



Now I wish I was back in school so I can start passing notes in class. Thanks for bringing Havaianas to the land of Spartan, thanks for not doubting my sanity despite my crazy obsession, thanks for promoting the spirit of eternal vacation.





Thanks, Ms. Laine, for the Amina Aranaz bag. It matches my new Havaianas.



The ironic thing is, you sent it on the day I missed her bag launch because I had to attend another event. I think that's cool.

Again, a million thank yous.

Presents or no presents, you people rock my world.
 
October 26, 2005

One hot museum

Te Papa is a Wellington landmark, a source of pride for the Kiwi.

To me, it was the coolest museum ever.



1. Te Papa's huge sign. It's pretty close to our hotel (a comfortable walk, really) but because we're spoiled, a bus fetched us and brought us there.

2. I loved the motion simulation games. It was their way of letting people experience New Zealand life and their passion for extreme sports.

3. There was even a machine that allowed you to test your shearing skills. Super cool.

4. This is an ancient Maori carving, one that had been preserved for hundreds of years.

5. This isn't part of the museum. It's a mirror at Logan Brown, where we had lunch. I just thought it was really pretty.

6. I wasn't allowed to take a picture of this carving. This was inside an ancient Maori home which had been preserved and moved to the museum. I stepped out of the house and when one of the guides saw the camera in my hand, he said that we were only allowed to take pictures outside the Maori home. At that point, I had already taken this picture. I think the carving's a little eerie.



7. Time Warp is a motion simulation ride that shows the history and culture of New Zealand in a creative way. It's pretty much like Enchanted Kingdom's Rialto and Shangri-La's Quantum X, which has been closed for ages now.

8. That's our guide touching a huge stone that was a gift to the museum from one of the Maori tribes. We were asked to rub little stones on it, to help polish it (something that rivers facilitate naturally). He also said touching the stone would bring positive things and good energy into our lives. I'm waiting for the good energy to kick in so I can get rid of this jetlag. I still feel like sleeping the whole day.

9. This is the closest thing I came to seeing sheep, not counting the countless sheepskin rugs, boots and hand warmers.

10. At Awesome Forces, there's a furnished house that you can walk into to watch interviews with people who have survived earthquakes. All of a sudden, the TV would blink and the whole room would start shaking and swaying. Earthquakes are another part of New Zealand life because it lies directly on two moving tectonic plates. (I cannot believe I just typed tectonic plates.) There was an earthquake on the first night I was there, according to the papers. I didn't feel it at all.
 
October 24, 2005

The bitch is back

Last weekend, I surrendered to jetlag, letting it take over my life and my world, just crawling out of bed to engage in something I think should be an Olympic event - the Who Can Eat More Takoyaki Balls Contest.

Let it be known that I almost missed my flight to Manila because I am a huge bloghead. I was so busy blogging at the Chinese resto near Gate 65 that I failed to calculate just how far I was from Gate 2. Very far, I realized, after zooming my way through about two hundred walkalators. I came close to just collapsing and giving up. I'm glad I didn't. Because when I reached the gate, other people were still boarding the plane.

I noticed something about my Hong Kong to Manila flight that didn't happen in the other five flights I took on this trip. People were bringing so much hand-carried luggage that we actually ran out of space. The overhead compartments were full and overflowing. And I wasn't surprised. People had boxes, trolleys and even human-sized stuffed animals with them. What the hell? Naturally, I fought for prime space for my bag of Tim Tams. Oh yes, I brought two bags on the plane - my pink backpack which was loaded with my computer, my books, my MP3 player, my phone and Snuggle Puff and my neon pink mesh bag which was just full of Tim Tams.

If you received a pack of Tim Tams from me, I want you to know that I lovingly hand-carried that through four cities for you. Julian offered to carry the bag of Tim Tams for me but lasted only fifteen steps. I took it back from him and he said, "It's heavy." Yes, it was heavy.

Yes, that's how much I love you.

I'd like to apologize to the people who were expecting me to return with a ton of photos of New Zealand hotties. There was no shortage of them but I realized that I lose my balls when I'm traveling alone. I couldn't figure out how I'd approach people to ask, "Hey, can I take your picture?" without looking like a psycho freak.

New Zealand men are beautiful. And unlike in Germany where the men were hotter than the women, in New Zealand, the girls were as attractive - or maybe even more - than the men. Most of the hotel employees and all our waiters looked like models. My favorite was the one at Matterhorn who looked like a less scruffy version of Ashton Kutcher. He was nice and at one point even sat with us.

I am now back in Manila where, we have to admit, most people don't look like models. And that's okay too.

Today I returned to normal life - if normal life means having an excellent excellent Japanese lunch.

I am not a fan of Japanese food - I like my food cooked, thankyouverymuch - but I really enjoyed myself.

Back to the grind, back to work, I'm still adjusting but I think I'll be fine in a few days.

I have a few other New Zealand stories to post with photos - they will follow later, when I am home and have access to the pictures in my computer.

***

The scary thing is, these people are supposedly leaders of this country

This is not a joke.

Last week, ten senators went to a very good restaurant which shall remain a secret because I promised anonymity.

Two of them were action stars.

Action star #1: "Waiter, ano to?"
Waiter: "Sir, foie gras po."
Action star #1: "Ano, cobra?"
Waiter: "Foie gras po. Goose liver."
Action star #1: "Ahh. Ganyan pala itsura nyan?"

I kid you not.

Action star #2: "Waiter, ano to?"
Waiter: "Sir, seabass po."
Action star #1: "Seabass? Ano sa Tagalog yun?"

And then one of them asked for Knorr Seasoning.

Knorr Seasoning.

Holy crap.

You would think that by now they'd be used to fine dining.

I think I'm craving a little cobra.


***

Ooh, wait, I promised more Ali G

I tried looking for transcripts online so I can be more accurate but I couldn't find them. You'd have to settle for what I remember.

Inside one room at the UN:

UN Guy: "This is where the representatives from different countries meet. These are their assigned seats."
Ali G: "Jordan. Why do you have a seat for Michael Jordan? Do you think he's as powerful as a country?"
UN Guy: "This isn't for Michael Jordan. The seat is for the country Jordan."
Ali G: "Whoa, they named a country after Michael Jordan?"
UN Guy: "No, sir."
Ali G: "What's this?"
UN Guy: "Guinea? It's a country in Africa."
Ali G: "So you say. Why do you give good seats to crap countries?"

He had a panel of religion experts - a rabbi, an atheist, a priest and a Buddhist:

Ali G (to the priest): "There is this guy you like so much..."
The priest: "You mean Jesus Christ?"
Ali G: "Yeah, when is his birthday?"
The priest: "Well, we celebrate his birthday on December 25."
Ali G: "Don't you find it weird that he was born on Christmas day?"
The priest: "Christmas day was named after him."
Ali G: "Is that why he goes around with all those reindeers?"
The priest: "I think you're mistaking Jesus Christ for Santa Claus."

Seriously, watch it. His accent's hilarious.

Wait, I found a transcripts page. Read it if you want to laugh.
 
October 21, 2005

Deja Vu

I'm back at the Chinese resto at the godforsaken side of the Hong Kong airport.

And again, after buying a Coke, I realized I didn't have enough time to eat up my free thirty minutes of internet. Boarding time is in fifteen minutes but you know what, I don't care. I'm not going to waste another can of Coke.

I am so happy that I didn't have to be alone for my first two flights home. Julian, the journalist from Hong Kong, had the same flights from New Zealand as me.

He's cool. His eyeglasses rock, he didn't think it was weird that I bought gazillion mini kiwi keychains for my friends (They're adorable, believe me. I'll post pictures to prove it.) and he didn't even flinch when I brought Snuggle Puff out of my backpack so I could sleep better on the almost twelve-hour flight to Hong Kong.

It was a good flying experience, I basically slept my way through it, only waking up to eat really bad pasta and really bad noodles.

I was also able to read my book and watch The Ali G Show.

That guy is hilarious. I was actually laughing out loud.

In one part of the show, he was interviewing an ex-UN Secretary General.

Ali G: "So how many members does the UN have."
Un Sec Gen: "More than one hundred eighty countries."
Ali G: "Is Disneyland a member?"
Un Sec Gen: "No, because it's not an independent state."
Ali G: "Do you think Disney World will soon be a member?"
Un Sec Gen: "No..It's not a country, it's for kids.."

Then he interviewed the head of US National Security.

Ali G: "When you were fighting in the Vietnam war, did you consider switching sides?"
Head of National Security: "No."
Ali G: "What if they paid you an extra $1000 a week, would you have switched sides?"
Head of National Security: "No."
Ali G: "What if they gave you a huge necklace with your name on it and a lot of bling, would you have switched sides?"
Head of National Security: "No, I wouldn't be me anymore."
Ali G: "Did you ever catch who was sending Tampax in the mail?"
Head of National Security: "You mean Anthrax."
Ali G: "No, Tampax.. maybe we're talking about a different brand... Why don't we nuke Canada?"
Head of National Security: "Because we don't have significant problems with them."
Ali G: "But wouldn't that work better? It would be totally unexpected."

Okay, I better run now. I don't want to miss my flight.

One last flight to go and I'll be back home again.

Wellington was beautiful but I can't wait to go back the land of Arivn, J, Giles, Giff and Greenbelt.

More Ali G quotes when I get back.
 
October 21, 2005 again

Oh yes, I didn't shop

I think I'm finally growing up. I've finally learned that the success of a trip is not directly proportional to the amount of shopping I did.

I just bought my Lauren Weisberger book, Pink Ribbon notebooks for the benefit of the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation and a ton of Tim Tams for our families and friends.



So I covered the basics. Something for me, something for our families and friends and something for others. I'm quite satisfied.

***

There are other things to blog about

Like our trip to the best museum ever and the wildlife sanctuary.

But that will have to wait.

I'm dead tired.

***

And the plane-hopping starts again

I'm leaving the hotel in less than four hours.

I haven't packed yet and I'm sleepy as hell.

At least I wouldn't be traveling alone this time, some of the journalists have similar flights schedules.

It would be good to have a familiar face or two on my flights.

Manila, I'll see you soon.
 
October 21, 2005

You know the TV's crap when you end up watching Jerry Springer

The other night, I watched a transvestite confess to his lover that he was a guy.

These were his words:

"I just wanted you to know that I still have my baseball and my balls."

The poor lover, idiot that he was, had no idea.

He was enraged but before he could react, the audience just pounced on him.

"Are you blind?" they repeatedly said.

A few hours ago, I watched people talk about their fetishes.

One girl with unbelievably huge boobs liked getting rice krispie treats licked off her chest. One man liked making love to an ice carving in the shape of a swan. Its beak broke off when the man started sucking on it. There was the guy who, sadly, was good-looking, but liked making out with dead fish. He was actually frenching the dead animal. Sick.

Then there was the loser who liked humping his big stuffed chick more than his girlfriend.

The girlfriend, who was naturally furious, came out and started screaming at him. She just went berserk. I thought she was going to have a heart attack.

I'm not going to be selfish. You must see it too.



At one point, the woman started ripping the stuffed chick apart. Which was sad because it was pretty cute.



Watching the guy on the floor trying to put the stuffing back into the dead chick is the most pathetic thing I've seen in my life.



Where do they get these people? I don't care if it's staged or not - I think it's just insane.

So yeah, when we answered the Customer Service Survey of the hotel, we said only one thing needed improvement - their TV channels.

Because aside from that, everything was excellent.

Wellington Intercontinental provides great service.

Check in was quick and easy, it didn't even take five minutes.

I asked for an adaptor and it was immediately brought to my room by a beautiful girl.

I asked for directions to a certain street, I was handed a map and was given complete information.

One of the other journalists asked the concierge what time the Club Lounge closes. Ten p.m., they said, and it was already 11 at night then. They asked him, "Would you like us to open it for you?"

I ordered room service again and requested for my tray to be left outside my door because I was going to be in the shower. They did just that.

They leave apples in a huge bowl in our floor's lobby for everyone's consumption.

When I ask for a wakeup call, they say, "Would you like to have complimentary coffee or tea with your wakeup call?"

Every night, they put a square of chocolate mint on my pillow, along with the next day's weather forecast.

They even tuck Snuggle Puff into bed.

The hotel staff is always always always pleasant, always smiling. And they actually seem to be happy with what they're doing.

Last night was even more excellent.

First, I approached Kiran, who was at the front desk, asking if he can change my dollars. He did.

Then I asked him to book an airport car to take me to the airport the next day. He did.

He was really nice and friendly. So an hour later, when KB (the journalist from Singapore) and I were trying to organize dinner with the other journalists, I told him we can probably ask Kiran for help.

We approached the front desk again. "Hi, we're traveling with a number of other people and we want to have dinner with them. Unfortunately, we can't remember their last names. Could you help us find their room numbers?"

First we tried calling Julian, the journalist from Hong Kong, but we had a hard time because we didn't know his Chinese name. Kiran found Camila (the journalist from Brazil) but because he wasn't allowed to give us her room number, he just dialed for us and handed us the phone.

KB just decided to go up to his room to find Julian's name card so we can call him. Kiran remained patient the entire time. While we were waiting for KB to come back, he handed me a piece of paper.



"Oh, thank you, that's so nice," I said.

"Enjoy," he said.

Soon we were able to talk to Julian. He said he'd try to follow but he still had a couple of articles to finish. Camila was on her way down.

We had a lovely lovely dinner at Chameleon Restaurant.



Because lunch was quite filling, I decided not to order a main course. I had the baguette smothered with butter (New Zealand butter is heaven) and cheese and the Caesar salad which was great.



Camila and KB both had steak.

When it was time for dessert, we ordered three different kinds - french crepe, lemon meringue and sorbets and fruits.



The piece of paper was lying on our table. Although we hadn't decided on using it, Rachelle, our waitress, saw it and said, "I'll just take this."

We ended up getting our dessert for free. We were surprised that we could actually choose our free dessert - we thought they'd just give us a scoop of ice cream or maybe even jello.

After dinner we passed by the front desk again. "Hey, thanks for dressert," we said to Kiran, giving him a thumbs-up sign.

"Did you enjoy it?"
"Absolutely."

He even stopped by the Lobby Lounge as he was getting off work to say goodbye to us.

So yeah, all in all, great service.

Wellington Intercon totally deserves the honor of being the only five-star hotel in this city.

***

I'm so glad I got over my initial shyness

Oh yes, I do get shy at times.

Most of the time, when I seem bitchy or stand-offish, I'm really just being shy.

I used to be completely shy ten million years ago. During those days, my idea of hell was being forced to make conversation with my mom's friends' kids.

I did make small talk with tons of people during the entire trip but it was only last night that I really loosened up.

Too bad the girl from Taiwan had left by then.

Dinner with Camila and KB was so much fun. I learned so much about Brazil and Singapore.

KB started freaking out about the similarities Camila and I have. We're almost the same age, she's turning 25 next month, we both have engineer dads and engineer boyfriends, we both have brothers who are almost five years younger than us, we were both Catholic schoolgirls. We also say a lot of the same things at the same time. It was freaky, actually. We started joking that we could be sisters.

KB was really funny. He was telling us how this guy he interviewed was trying to set him up with a Filipina. We talked about the girl on the trip he had a crush on. We talked about school, about relationships, about Brazilian men, about work, about the union, about so many things. The conversation just flowed and we were really comfortable.

After dinner, we walked to the supermarket, contemplated the possibilities of bringing home pavlova and I shocked them at the amount of Tim Tams I bought. Then we hung out at the Lobby Lounge.



Julian soon joined us. We kept our eyes open for the other people we had been with so we could say goodbye. Strange how they seem to have gone off in pairs. It's like watching a reality TV show live.

They drank beer, I had a very very light screwdriver. I couldn't even taste the vodka, which was good.



We talked for another couple of hours before calling it a night, not forgetting to exchange cards. We said our goodbyes and I got a big hug from Camila.

It was a lovely way to spend my last night in New Zealand.

I should remember to be friendly more often.
 
October 20, 2005 again

Like a postcard, only better

They say New Zealand is the first country in the world to see each new day.

That may be true but not in my case.

Because I fell asleep as the sun was starting to come up.

Hours later, I woke up to this beautiful sight.



I had to tear myself away from the window to get ready for work.



I met up with the other journalists at noon.



That sounds late to most people but not to me because it was only 7 a.m. in Manila.

We were herded onto a bus and after half an hour of fighting dizziness, I found myself in Weta Studios.



It was there that we met Richard Taylor, Oscar winner and co-owner of Weta Companies.



Our first stop was the conference room. I found it hilarious that the water they gave out was called Pump, a nickname Gino has been using for me after my conversation with the Chinese resto girl.



After watching a brief film that showcased the company's works, he gave us a tour of the place - from the collectibles room and the design department



to the sculpting room



and the weapons room.



It was cool.

I saw some scary faces.





I saw some familiar faces.



That's Doby from Harry Potter.

And I'm pretty sure this is Harry Potter. What happened to him here? My memory fails me.



Then there's Gollum.



I was dying to have my picture taken with him but I had to remain "professional." Feh. Giles, the queen of photo ops, would be so disappointed in me.

I had to settle for sneaking a few mirror project shots.



We saw a lot of the work they did on The Chronicles of Narnia. I'm not going to talk about it, I'm saving the details for my article. But here are a few photos.







We were led to Weta's secret cinema where we were asked not to take photos. Let me just say that the theater was fantastic, the seats were plush, stars twinkled from the ceiling and sculptures, engravings and murals gave the place extra character. The curtains were the most dramatic I've ever seen.

The question and answer session took a while and it was interesting. I have absolute respect for the passion the Weta people have for what they are doing.

Soon, we found ourselves on the bus, on our way back to the hotel.



The clouds were a sight to behold.



When we arrived at the hotel, we had a couple of hours to spare before dinner so I decided to explore downtown Wellington.

I had been obsessing over the map the previous night, wondering how I can go to all the places and stores I wanted to see without taking a cab.

So many websites and travel guides say that you can walk anywhere because Wellington is so compact but I had my doubts. How many guides have said, "Oh sure, you can walk to that mall..." only to find out that they mean "crawl" because that's what you feel like doing after ten thousand blocks?

But I found out that in Wellington's case, they weren't lying.

Check out the map the guy at the hotel's front desk gave me. He used a pink marker to show me which route I should take. I was able to go to all those streets and more in just a couple of hours.



That was fun.

I visited so many shops, including Carly Harris, whose clothes are even more beautiful in person.



I had been drooling over her website before I left Manila and sadly, because of the prices, I could do nothing but drool in her store too.

When I walked in, the salesgirl was helping a woman try on a sari. The woman said, "I think I'm too fat for this." The girl said, convincingly, "Of course not."

I just stood there watching them. I don't think I freaked them out though.

The strange thing is, I went to so many stores but I didn't buy anything.



Nothing. Except a pack of Tim Tams.

You know me and you know that me not buying anything after going around maybe fifty stores is impossible.

Sure there were things I liked - pink boots, a knit shrug, a few earrings, mostly on sale - but I kept telling myself I'd come back for them. The funny thing is, I knew I wouldn't come back but I somehow made myself believe.

The prices were pulling me back. Sure, they were nice things, sure, they were on sale, but I figured, I might find better deals.

The most difficult part was going to Dymocks.

All the new books I wanted were there - Mike Gayle, Sophie Kinsella and Marian Keyes' new stuff. I had them in my hands and having to put them down broke my heart.

I might just buy Lauren Weisberger's Everyone Worth Knowing. I'll just wait for the rest of the books in Manila.

Say hello to Pammy the Practical.

Despite not buying anything, I had fun.

I stocked up on free magazines and flyers about the jazz festival (maybe I can squeeze in a show or two tomorrow). Libre rocks, I love everyone there and it's doing pretty well but I totally totally envy the status of free publications in other countries. They're all over, they're glossy, they're edgy, they're fun and there are a lot of them.

I wonder how they survive.

I even picked up one that's called "Incredibly Hot Sex with Hideous People."

That was funny.

I was surprised at how open the people here are about drugs.

Or maybe it's just one store.

There's this store called Cosmic Corner that sells party pills 24 hours a day.



They even have a catalogue of sorts, complete with testimonials.



Crazy.

In case you're wondering, no, I didn't buy any.

You know I get high on shoes, shopping and pedicures, not pills.

Speaking of high moments, I saw the fountain that Elijah Wood supposedly peed in when he was in Wellington.



Erase "supposedly". My source is solid.

Apparently, he and his friends thought it was lame and so they peed on it.

I wonder what he does when he watches a lame TV show. Does he pee on his TV too?

I made it back to the hotel with a little extra time to change clothes.

We had dinner at Matterhorn, which is said to be a favorite dining destination of the cast and crew of Lord of the Rings and King Kong.

The food was good although I will admit to being distracted by two people who seem to have fallen in love.

I made friends with a writer from Brazil who will be moving to London to be with her English boyfriend. Moving across the world for love? I find that incredibly brave. Naturally, we started talking because of Havaianas. She told me to tell her if there were styles that I wanted but couldn't get in Manila. A tempting offer but despite my addiction, I still know my limits. I did find Havaianas in one surf shop here but all the styles they have are styles we also have in the Philippines.

At dinner and all day long, I smiled and talked to people from all over - Germany, Holland, Brazil, Norway, Sweden, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, New Zealand, France, Malaysia - it's like a freaking United Nations summit. Except all we talked about were population, love, lust, chocolates, movies, extreme sports, food and photography.

Hey, maybe they do that at the UN too.

The dessert menu at Matterhorn made me laugh.



The expensive chocolate dish? Naturally, I had to find out what it was.



And it was incredible.

Dinner took all of four hours. And when it was over, we left the lovebirds alone and walked back to the hotel.

Wearing Havaianas was a mistake - I almost froze my toes off.

Now I'm back in my room, ready for bed.

I've got an early day tomorrow. One full day of tours and adventures before I start the tedious process of plane-hopping again.
 
October 20, 2005

Room service

Last night, for dinner, I ordered a toasted sandwich with mild cheddar, mozzarella and smoked bacon and potato wedges.

This is what arrived.



That doesn't look like my sandwich, I thought to myself. But I was so hungry that I didn't care anymore.

Just as I was getting ready to eat, someone knocked on my door.

It was another hotel employee with another tray. She looked flustered.

"My colleague delivered the wrong sandwich," she said, as I let her into my room.

"I know," I said.

She set the tray down on my bed.



"It's okay, I haven't touched the other one. You can take it," I said, pointing to the clubhouse sandwiches and the mountain of fries.

"No, no, it's yours," she said. I kept insisting for her to take it but she refused. I gave her a tip and she made a quick exit.

And that is how I ended up with way too much food.
 
October 18, 2005 for the third time

Hello, Wellington

I hailed a cab outside the airport and asked to be brought to the hotel. I was trying to enjoy the sights when I was distracted by how fast the cab meter was moving.

It was insanely fast. Ten cents every five seconds. Really, I counted.

And so when we pulled up at the hotel driveway, I felt like fainting.

I paid the cabbie almost 1600 pesos.

Starting today, I shall walk everywhere.

I shall comfort myself with the thought that I made the right decision of not buying the travel guide I was eyeing. Because at the airport, you can get travel books for free. Yes, books, not pamphlets. That was P1700 saved. (P1600 of which ended up with the cabbie -- I know, I know, I couldn't get over it.)

I am now in my room at the Wellington Intercontinental.

After checking in, I headed straight for the media registration where I was given my pass, my schedule for the next few days and a kit from the New Zealand Tourism board.

The kit is pretty cool - it contains guides and a DVD set that contains songs, short films and music videos from New Zealand.

I thought, hey, we should do this at home too.

It's 6:20 p.m. now and I have the entire night free.

I might take a walk in a bit but I'm starting to feel like I'm floating.

I might just stay in. The hotel's nice and cozy and Snuggle Puff is waiting for me in my bed.

And I've got another reason to stay inside. Because my room is on a club floor, I get 24 hours of high-speed internet access for free (as long as I don't exceed 100 MB).

Great. I can keep bombarding this blog with photos.

Like this:

My view from the plane.



The clouds were incredible.



My view from the room. I can see ships as I'm typing this.



And of course, me taking mirror project shots in my room.



I think it's fantastic that I can blog from here.

That way, when I get back to Manila, I only have to worry about writing my articles.
 
October 18, 2005 again

And the bitch is back

Just because we're the only Pinoys on a flight does not mean we're going to be friends.

Last flight went okay, except there was this Pinoy guy who just wouldn't stop talking to me.

I was standing behind him inside the plane, waiting to get to my seat when he turned around.

Him: "Taga saan ka?"
Me: "Manila."
Him: "Pilipina ka?"
Me: "Oo."

I was looking forward to sleeping or finishing my book so I started praying that his seat wasn't beside mine. I was in luck, he was seated in front of me.

That didn't stop him from being chatty though. He craned his neck and kept asking me questions.

Him: "Bisita ka lang dito o magwo-work?"
Me: "Bisita lang."
Him: "Gano katagal ka?"
Me: "Four days lang."
Him: "Bakit?"
Me: "May ico-cover lang para sa dyaryo."
Him: "Saan ka magse-stay?"
Me: "Intercon."

I wasn't asking him any questions, clearly I was not interested in pursuing the conversation. But he didn't get the hint.

"Ako two weeks lang," he said. I merely nodded and started reading my book.

Snacks were served on the plane - it was a choice between crackers and cheese or a giant chocolate chip cookie. Naturally, I went for the cookie.

I was happily eating my giant cookie when I noticed that he was still looking at me.

Wasn't the guy getting a stiff neck?

He said something I didn't understand. I didn't reply. I thought he finally got the hint.

But when the plane landed and I stood in line waiting to get out of it, he started talking again.

Him: "Ano yung ico-cover mo?"
Me: "Weta Studios."
Him: "Kelan yun lalabas?"
Me: "Matagal pa."

When I finally got out of the plane, I noticed that he was still walking beside me. I made it a point to go all the way around the baggage carousel, away from everyone else.

He still approached me.

Him: "Alam mo ba kung magkano ang dapat i-tip dito?"
Me: "Hindi."

I'm sorry. I was tired, I was sleepy, I just wanted to get out of there.

Yes, I know, I can be so unfriendly at times.
 
October 18, 2005

Another freakishly fast post

I'm here at the Auckland Airport, waiting for my flight to Wellington.

My eleven-hour flight went by without a hitch. I was seated beside a pretty blonde girl who, judging from the magazines she bought and the rock on her finger, will be married soon.

She seemed nice and we smiled at each other a lot but I didn't start talking to her. I was too focused on finishing the first Narnia book, which I did. I started on the second one but was soon distracted by the movies and TV shows waiting to be watched.

I watched CSI, Will and Grace, The Simpsons, Without a Trace, flipped through movies and even sat through a couple of stupid gag shows.

The food was okay - I had beef stew with paprika cream sauce for dinner and omelette with hash browns for brunch.

I slept a lot too. I had a crazy dream that I missed my flight to Auckland. I kept screaming and screaming in my dream and I'm not too sure if I woke up screaming too.

Probably not, because no one looked at me as if I was crazy.

When I woke up, I realized that I did make my flight and that I was on the plane. I was comforted by the sight of pink sunlight streaming in through the windows of the plane.

Pink sunlight! Pink!

In a few minutes I will be off to jump into another plane. It's a quick ride - just an hour or so.

It hasn't been that stressful but I can't wait for all this plane and airport-jumping to be over.

Right now, all I want to do is crash in my hotel room and take a long warm shower.
 
October 17, 2005 for the nth time

What a rip-off

I'm here at a godforsaken corner of the Hong Kong airport. I found a Chinese resto that gives you 30 minutes of internet if you buy something.

So yeah, I bought a coke.

After I bought a coke and was led to the station, I found out that my plane leaves - and does not board - at 8:30 p.m.

In other words, I have to leave now and go to my boarding gate if I don't want to get left behind.

In other words, I wouldn't get to use my free 30 minutes.

In other words, I wasted a can of coke. I'm not even thirsty.

P.S.

My flight from Manila went fine. I read 60 pages of the first Narnia book, watched Frasier and Everybody Loves Raymond and freaked out the businessman beside me by pulling out the big pink Snuggle Puff from my backpack. He must have thought I was nuts.

P.P.S.

I'm off to be strapped down to a plane seat for eleven hours or so.

Auckland, here I come.
 
October 17, 2005 again

457,998,786 thank yous for...

...my dad, for bringing Joshy over and for bringing Joshy into our lives.

...my grandparents. For their unconditional love and their understanding.

...Lala, I know there was a reason we were born on the same day. Thanks for the fun time you showed me in LA. I just wish we had more hours together. I still wonder when we can celebrate our birthday together again.

...Chri, for the excellent gift and for coming over even if you were exhausted. It was great to see you again.

...Fi, for the excellent gift. I still wish you were here. I made sure your presence was felt by making tacos. Really good tacos.

...Kat, for cooking all those chips.

...Giff, for coming over after work and for finding Snuggle Puff. I'm calling her Kimberly, Kimba for short. I'm planning to bring her with me, I think she'd make my many hours on the plane more bearable.

...Gilesy, for coming over after work and staying up late even if you had work the next day, for the homemade pesto which I selfishly kept to myself, for the sweet sweet tribute slash brownie advertisement.

...J, for sending me the most beautiful message at midnight:
"Your 24th was the year you learned to smile for the cameras; my 19th, the year I learned what a beautiful person you are, smiling or not. Happy birthday! Mwah!"

For writing the most beautiful message in your card:

"Pajammy, My earliest memory of you was when we started texting, and you were so open about having to tell me about your love problems. Eventually, I warmed up to you that i eventually told you who I really am. It was a beautiful start of our friendship. Now, we may not text each other every day, and there may be no problems for you to talk about. But just the same, the assurance and security that I have, knowing that you - a trusted and beloved friend - are my hot chocolate to the cold weather. For that, my sincerest thanks. While I was buying your gift, I realized I can't buy you clothes because I don't know your size. I should work on that, knowing your size. Happy Birthday!"

For allowing yourself to be groped on the LRT just so you can make it to my house, for being the early bird, for staying late and for Nevra, my new sexy friend, for the friendship, for the love, for making my world a more beautiful place.

...James, for coming over, for being such a fun and precious addition to the Super! family, for eating brownies with gravy and for the chop-chop lady video. I can't wait to see it.

...Melda and Melinda for allowing the kitchen to transform into chaos, for going with me to the supermarket, for cooking, for making sure everyone had a drink, had the right utensils, had enough food, for staying up later than usual, for being angels, like you always are.

...Patwee, Lada and Gabby, for coming over and spending time with me. I hope the parentals weren't too mad.

...Powie, for being the perfect brother, for spending that fun day with me at Megamall, for my new shoes, for acting like you're older than me sometimes. Everyone's right, mas mabait ka talaga. You are wise beyond your years.

...Ria, for the beautiful beautiful post. That touched me deeply. I still owe you a surprise and an afternoon (or lunch?) date.

...Ruthie, for still going to my party despite the three-year curse. I'm so sorry that Brucey chewed your charger into two. He's sorry too.

...Walter, for your presence (it was good to see you again!), for my new journal, for being your usual hilarious self.

...Yasmine, for taking the LRT in heels and for carrying my yummy Belgian chocolate cake. Please thank Chef Mac for me too.

...Alli, Irene, Cathy G., Oliver, Cely, Mark, Wency, Daniel, Tammy, Shyne, Sheanne (happy birthday too!), Anne, Adelle, Che, Alex, Alvin, Arlene, Ayeza, Bebang, Belle, Bianca, Carla, Cathy A., Cathy Y., Cely, Chabs, Chris, Christian, Claire, Daphne, Desa, Dexter, Erwina, G, Gary, Gino, Happy, Hazel, Issa, Jenny, Ms. Joy, the other Ms. Joy, Jugs, Kathy, Keith, Kris, Kristine, Leidy, Lola Nena, Ma'am Chel, Manuel, Mark, Marlone, Melissa, Michaella, Mickie, Miggy, Miguel, Miyet, Mymy, Nelia, Nina, Odessa, Paolo, Pem, Pepe, Raquel, Rem, Sir Ricky, Ms. Ruby, Sheree, Steph, Tals, Tim, Tingky, Tita Tessie, Tiepee, Tonyo, Vangie, Vera, Weng, Yeyet, for different reasons: for going to my house, for sending surprises, for singing for me, for calling, for sending SMS greetings, for creating e-cards, for e-mailing and for leaving messages on Friendster.

If I forgot to mention you here, I'm sorry. Please holler at me and I promise to make it up to you.

***

Uh oh

My first flight leaves at 5:30 p.m. and I still have a ton of things to do.

I have a full list waiting to be crossed out.

I will be taking three flights - Manila to Hong Kong, Hong Kong to Auckland and Auckland to Wellington - and I'll be all alone. I'll be spending my first day there alone too.

It's a bit sad and a bit scary but I guess I can use the time to finish reading the Narnia books I'll be bringing with me.

I will probably get the chance to blog from New Zealand.

Alright, I better start packing.

I'm off.
 
October 17, 2005

Part two of a very long birthday post

Saturday

It was back to the grind for me.

They needed an emergency article for a special project and I was the one chosen to churn it out.

I woke up before noon, grabbed my computer and started writing before consciousness had fully set in.

A nice surprise arrived mid-sentence.

A pot of beautiful flowers. They were so pretty they almost didn't look real.



And the flowers came with a card that touched me.



"You're one of my favorite young editors because you're sweet, unspoiled and a terrific and creative writer. I do wish you'll have a fabulous birthday."

I took my eyes off the flowers long enough to finish my article.

And as it flew off into cyberspace, I started getting ready for my pre-departure meeting.

The venue of choice was Megamall, which was probably a mistake because of the chaos that they call a three-day sale.

I knew that just enduring the traffic would be tough and I didn't want to go alone. So I asked my brother to join me.

To my surprise, he agreed immediately.

Soon, we were in a cab, on our way to the land of discounts and unruly people (guards actually had to force people to fall in line in front of the escalators - that's how mad the crowd was).

My meeting took all of ten minutes and soon, I was dragging my brother off to my favorite shoe store.

(Fine, one of my two favorite shoe stores. But does All Flip Flops count as a shoe store?)

Because of their Grand Sale, Schu was invaded by Schu-holics. Blue boxes lined the walls and the floors as women of all ages tried on pair after pair after pair. And why shouldn't they? Two pairs of shoes were being sold for the price of one - who wouldn't be tempted by that deal?

But I wasn't just there for the sale, although I will admit to trying on a few of the pairs too. I had a big reason to go to the store: I was finally going to buy the shoes I had been salivating over - as a birthday present for myself.

Ms. Ruby, one of Schu's owners and someone I will forever worship for her great taste in footwear, knew I was going.

Since she wasn't going to be there and the shoes were new and weren't on sale, she asked me to look for Rosiel so she can get the shoes for me.

The shoes came in purple and orange and although I had spent a couple of weeks trying to decide which to get, I still couldn't.

Brilliant Rosiel said, "Try both on..."

And so I did.

Both pairs looked really good. I fell in love even more.

I sat down, still struggling with my decision, holding one orange shoe in my right hand and one purple shoe in my left.

I was jolted out of my footwear reverie when this evil shopper grabbed the other orange shoe from the box that was in front of me.

Let me stress that the box was in front of me and I was holding the other shoe. Clearly I was thinking of getting it, clearly the woman had no manners.

Oh yes, sales do bring out the animals in women. I swear, I was ready to bring my claws out.

I gave her the evil eye but she took no notice. She even tried the orange shoe on.

Then, seeing that I wasn't going to let go of the other shoe, she called a salesgirl over.

"Miss, may size pa ba nito?"

The salesgirl looked surprised to see the shoe she was holding because that shoe wasn't supposed to be on display that day.

Soon Rosiel came over and explained to the woman, "Ma'am, sorry, hindi po naka-out yang shoes today. Kausap po kasi ni ma'am yung owner. Pero may sizes pa po nyan. If you want, pa-reserve po kayo and pwede niyo siya balikan after the sale."

At that point, I had reached my decision.

I was going to get both pairs.

I only had enough cash for one in my wallet so I told Rosiel to hold on to the shoes for me while my brother and I dashed off to the nearest ATM machine.

When I returned, both pairs of shoes were already at the counter. And Ms. Ruby's partner was waiting for me there.

She introduced herself and shook my hand.

Then, touching one of the boxes, she said, "This is actually our birthday gift for you."

I swear, my knees went weak.

Then my brother claimed the other pair as his birthday gift for me.

In case you wanted to see what the fuss was about:













My biggest dilemma now is figuring out which I should wear first.

After getting the shoes, Powie and I went off to tour the bookstores in Megamall.

Tals, who is rocking Fully Booked's world, has provided me with a lot of Narnia materials that would help me in my coverage in New Zealand. (Thanks, Tals!)



But I also need to read the first couple of books in the series.

After three bookstores, we finally found them. And we found the Companion to Narnia book too. It claims that it was used as a reference by the cast and crew of the movie so I allowed myself to be gullible. I got all three.



I shall invoke the powers of speed reading. I have plenty of time to kill in three different airports and airplanes anyway.

My brother walked me to the MRT station (he was going the other way) and told me to SMS him when I got to my office.

I swear, a lot of times, he does feel older than me, even if he's younger by four and a half years.

I went to work and left another OC lineup chart for layout on Monday.

Sunday

Watched Lord of War with J, Giff and Giles.

Oh and I already have a costume for halloween.
 
October 16, 2005

A very long birthday post

Thursday

Since it was the day before my birthday, I let myself eat a whole pint of Ben & Jerry's Chunky Monkey. I wasn't able too, though.

I guess the purpose of the shopping trip was evident because as the guy was bagging our purchases, he started singing "Happy Birthday," which made me laugh.

Sandwiched between my mail was a nice surprise - a birthday card Cathy sent from faraway New York.





Friday

When the clock struck twelve on friday the fourteenth, I was still in the office, sitting in front of my computer.

I didn't notice that some people had formed a line behind me. They started singing the birthday song and I laughed my way through it. It kinda reminded me of birthdays spent in grade school class, with all your classmates forced to sing "Happy Birthday." At least I didn't have to jump twenty-five times after.

A couple of hours after, I finally made it home.

I woke up when Nelia, my favorite manicurist arrived.

She had gifts for me too. Three pairs of underwear.



I found that really sweet.

I had asked my dad to go to the party so my friends could finally meet Joshy.

But babies aren't allowed to stay up late so they went for lunch instead.

I spent a chunk of my birthday playing with my baby brother.





In the middle of the day, as Powie and I were watching my birthday movies again, a gift from Sheree arrived.

This pretty bag.



Around 4 p.m., Melda and I went to SM to buy a few last-minute things.

Now I'm understanding the benefits of having an SM so close to the house.

When we got back, I whipped up a few batches of brownies and started playing Arkanoid with Powie.

I guess we played too long because when the early birds arrived (read: J and Walter), I was still smeared with brownie batter.



Soon, more people started arriving.

It was so strange. I was worried that we wouldn't have enough food but magic happens at parties and this was no different. It was as if the food had multiplied.

We had pancit, morcon, buttered chicken, lemon chicken, sweet and sour meatballs, barbecue, potato salad, tacos, chips and dip, brownies and cake.

We ate, talked, and laughed.

Jollibee sent me his cake.



And I freaked everyone out by poking his eyes out.



The party turned into a reunion of sorts. With college friends, with high school friends.



Someone, who clearly didn't know it was my birthday, called me on the phone with a major problem. I listened and did my best to pacify her. While I was on the phone, Leidy and Patwee draped purple beads around my neck.



Giles and Giff arrived. Giles had his killer homemade pesto in tow. Love it.

Then, people started playing games on the fake family computer.

Soon, we had an Ice Climber tournament. It was a cruel version of Ice Climber - you had to leave the person you were playing with. The first person to lose all his/her lives would have to eat brownies smothered with gravy.

I lost, Giff lost, J lost, Giles lost, James lost. We all had to eat gravy-soaked brownies.

I have one thing to say about that: YUCK.

They urged me to open my other birthday presents and I did.

Chri and Fi got me Stewie's Guide to World Domination which I didn't even know was already available here.



I looooove this book.

Walter got me a journal.



And journals always always rock my world (and my paper fetish).

Giffy got me this adorable Snuggle Puff. He didn't know I've been eyeing it for a while now.



It's like people have been reading my mind.

J gave me my first ultra-fab, ultra-sexy Bratz doll.



She's so fine she was almost immediately ravaged by different people.



She even got naked.

I can't wait to buy her new clothes.

Soon, only J, Giles, Giff and I were left.

We moved to my room where it was much much cooler.

We crashed on my bed and watched trashy comedy shows while some of us tried to fight off sleep.

They left the house at around 4 a.m.

I will write about Saturday in my next post.

A million and two hundred ten thank yous will follow in the next post.
 
October 13, 2005 again

I have the nicest brother in the whole wide world

Me: "Powie, sa Friday ha."
Powie: "Baket, ano meron?"
Me: "Gagu. Birthday ko."
Powie: "Ay oo nga pala. Ano gusto mong regalo?"
Me: "Havaianas!"
Powie: "Sige, bawas mo na lang sa utang mo sa'ken."

Salamat ha.

***

In other news

I got my visa.

***

Tagged

Super shopper Cathy tagged me. Here goes:

Three names you go by:
1. Pam
2. Pammy
3. Pamela

Three screen names you have had:
1. pajammy
2. cookiedoughjunkie
3. nocturnalangel

Three physical things you like about yourself:
1. eyes
2. hair, when it behaves
3. feet

Three physical things you don't like about yourself:
1. tummy (although I actually like it on some days)
2. nose
3. teeth

Three parts of your heritage:
1. Filipino
2. Spanish. Lahat naman tayo eh.
3. Wala na.

Three things that scare you:
1. Death.
2. Failure.
3. The thought of going blind.

Three of your everyday essentials:
1. Mobile phone
2. Internet
3. Cash, obviously

Three of your favorite musical artists:
1. Alanis
2. No Doubt
3. Norah Jones

Three of your favorite songs:
1. Insensitive by Jann Arden
2. Not the Doctor by Alanis Morissette
3. Stone in my Shoe by Alisha's Attic

Three things you want in a relationship:
1. Love
2. Loyalty
3. Passion

Three truths in no particular order:
1. I sleep with my mouth open.
2. Growing up is overrated.
3. We pay for the mistakes of those who came before us.

Three lies in no particular order:
1. If you eat yor vegetables, you'll grow taller.
2. Your teachers are always right.
3. "We're doing this because we love you."


Three physical things of the opposite sex that appeals you:
1. Eyes.
2. Smile.
3. Hands.

Three of your favorite hobbies:
1. Writing.
2. Reading.
3. Shopping.

Three things you want to do really badly now:
1. See the world.
2. Leave a mark.
3. Lose weight and get my hair colored.

Three careers you're considering/you've considered:
1. Writing/journalism.
2. Forensic pathology/law.
3. Food. I want to think of new ice cream flavors and names for Ben & Jerry's.

Three places you want to go on vacation:
1. Brazil so I can stock up on Havaianas.
2. Jamaica.
3. India. I miss it.

Three kids' names you like:
1. Nicolai.
2. Beatrix.
3. Pickle.

Three things you want to do before you die:
1. Go to Africa.
2. Write something that would bowl people over.
3. Make sure I'm not forgotten.

Three ways that you're stereotypically a boy:
1. I can be completely devoid of emotion.
2. I have crushes on girls.
3. I have way too much testosterone.

Three ways that you're stereotypically a girl:
1. I love manicures and pedicures.
2. I enjoy shopping and I like the color pink.
3. I PMS like crazy.

Three celeb crushes:
1. Mark Ruffalo.
2. Matt Le Blanc.
3. Adam Sandler. And Conan O'Brien.

Three Five people I'm tagging:
1, 2. J. Giles. Giff.
3. Ruthie and Fifi.
 
October 12, 2005 again

Exposure killed the bank account

I believe this bag was made for me.



Look, it even has my birthday on it.

I met the designer and she said she just plucked the date out of thin air.

I still believe it was made for me.

And these shoes.

I love these shoes.



They are perfect for wearing to traditional Japanese restaurants that ask you to take your shoes off.


 
October 12, 2005

Thank you...

Some are early birthday gifts, some are not, but I love them all just the same.



...Arvin, for the pseudo-family computer and the bajillion in one game cartridges. Pooyan, Adventure Island, Mappy, Ice Climber, Pipeline, Super Mario, Tetris - welcome to my world again.



...again Arvin (and Time Zone) for the most girly version of lego. Giles and I sat on Time Zone's floor, making these strange but fab creatures and watching the guards try to decide if they should shoo us away or not out of the corner of our eyes.



...Ruthie, for this chunky necklace. I loooooove it.



...Tita Tess, for this white see-through top, which she sent all the way from Chicago. I've worn it twice since it arrived. I will always worship Tita Tessie's taste and her knack for knowing my exact size. She knows my sizes better than me, I am not kidding. And she opens my eyes by showing me that I can wear things I didn't realize I could. That woman has magic, I tell you. Which is why I adore her.



...Bianca, for this super sexy dress. Now I wish I had smaller boobs. It fit perfectly except around the chest area, making me look like I was getting ready to pose for Playboy or an even sleazier publication. I am such a freak. Hello, grandma's dressmaker, you have an adjustment to make.

A special thank you goes out to Aileene, who reads this blog and painstakingly e-mailed me all the songs from my favorite Alisha's Attic album.

Thank you thank you so much.
 
October 9, 2005

I'm not supposed to blog

because I have a crapload of things to do but everyone knows how stubborn I am so here I am.

I know if I keep walking around with my head weighed down by the things I want to blog, I will not get any work done at all.

And boy, there are a lot of things to blog about.

Here they are, on fast forward.

#1: My third and most successful trip to the New Zealand Embassy

Arvin refused to let me stay in the office overnight so he fetched me from work and took me home, promising he'd make sure I make it to the embassy on time. He did. He watched TV while I slept, woke me up at 5 a.m., watched TV while I got ready and drove through McDonald's to buy us breakfast which I wolfed down in the car. By 6:30, I was sitting outside the embassy building, waiting for the guard to come in so I can write my name in his logbook.

I was applicant number one.

Big whoopee.

But I had to wait for the embassy to open at 9. That meant I sat outside that building for two and a half hours. I made small talk with another guard and a couple of applicants. I was also able to write an article and reach unheard of levels in LinkIt, one of the few mobile games installed in my phone. During that time, my ass managed to fall asleep twice, which is remarkable, in my crazy little world.

A few minutes after 9, we were finally allowed into the embassy.

My session with the embassy official was short and almost sweet.

Her: "Have you ever applied for a visa at this embassy before?"
Me: "No."
Her (pointing to one part which I left black): "Eh di isulat mo dyan, none."
Me: "Can I get a pen?"
Her: "Sure."

I grabbed a pen and returned to the window.

Her: "How long will you be staying there?"
Me: "Just a couple of days. The itinerary is there but there's a second one, I think they added an extra day for a tour."
Her: "Will they be sending anyone else from the Philippines?"
Me: "No, just me."
Her: "Okay. Isulat mo yung "None.""

And I did. Although I think I should have written "No," I'm not going to argue with her.

She handed me a piece of paper, telling me to go back on Thursday.

I think things went well. I guess we'll find out in a few days.

#2: The Beach Boys concert

And to think Arvin had to convince me to go.

Although I felt like crying when they first stepped onto the stage because they looked really old, they blew me away with their energy.

They played what - forty songs?

I loved it.

And it was the first time I've seen a concert crowd that happy, that pleasant. Everyone was so nice. They were appreciative, even of the front act. Even the guards and the bouncers didn't seem too uptight. People ran up to the front of the stage and started dancing and no one stopped them. Audience members rushed up, asking for autographs and waiting for the Beach Boys to shake their hands.

It was a beautiful beautiful thing to witness.

I also loved how they poked fun at themselves, saying, "Okay, it's now time for us to take a break and maybe a little nap. Let's see each other again tomorrow at 4:30?"

And, "For all the young people here tonight, people under 70, 80, 90..."

ANd, "Back in ancient times, when people actually bought music..."

They also impersonated Justin Timberlake and his old group, calling them "Justin Timberwolf and N'Stink" and doing this hip-hoppy bit which everyone found hilarious.

And yeah, I'm now in love with the song "Don't Worry Baby."

#3: Joshy's christening



Although I didn't see the actual ceremony because I was at home sleeping, I was told that he slept all throughout the event, only opening his eyes briefly to glance at the priest when holy water was poured on his head. Then he went back to sleep again.

When Arvin, Powie and I made it to their house, Joshy had already been changed out of his barong.

He was lying in the middle of our dad and his mom's bed, smiling at everyone.

He's such a happy baby.

In fact, aside from rolling over, his new hobby is laughing.

He laughed and laughed and that made me laugh until tears started streaming down my face.

I know I'm biased and I don't care: He's the cutest baby ever.

Even Arvin is already in love with him.

#4: The road trip with J, Giles and Giff

We hit two birds with one stone, celebrating J's birthday while I worked. Actually I made Giff work too. (---> cue evil laugh <---- Giffy, you're a genius!) We had fun, it's clear to see.









Here are excerpts from our crazy couple of days:

Conversation inside the car, ten minutes from Lipa, Batanagas:

Me: "He said he'll meet us at the Flying V."
Arvin: "Okay."

Minutes later.

Me: "Bakit ba Flying V? Flying Vilma?"
All of them: "Gaga, gasolinahan yun."
Me: "Eh malay ko ba. Eh mayor siya dito noh. Akala ko naman statue yun or poster or something."



That was a Paris Hilton moment. Ang pangit.

But I swear, I had a vision of our friend waiting for us under a huge billboard showing Vilma in her Darna outfit.

Conversation while someone was looking at an interior design magazine. Identities shall remain a secret in fear of embarrassment:

Person 1 (pointing to a photo of a shower head in the magazine): "Hulaan mo magkano to."
Person 2: "$10,000!"
Person 1: "OA! $300 naman."
Person 3: "Patingin nga. Ah.. may massager naman pala kasi. Pwede na. Ginagamit kasi yan pang-masturbate."
Person 1: "Ha? Anong sabi mo? Rinig ko masturbate."
Person 3: "Oo nga, masturbate."
Person 1: "Ahh yung showerhead. Akala ko yung maagazine. Ang sagwa. This floor panel makes me hot.. ooh.."
Person 4: "Bakit? Dikit-dikit ba yung pages?"
Person 1,2 and 3: "Kadiri!"

That made us laugh so hard.

But the quote of the week is from the executive chef who whipped up our special lunch:

"Oo, pwede tayong maglagay ng table di---Ay, [insert ugly name for female genitalia here] ng kalabaw!"

Cow pussy.

I laughed so hard I almost rolled over.

Now the laughing's over. I have to go back to work.

Additional photos and text will come soon.
 
October 6, 2005 again

I guess he wanted a Gator-ade

Yeah yeah yeah Katie's pregnant.

Yeah yeah Jessica and Nick have split up.

But the most interesting news I received all day was the one about the stupid python that swallowed an alligator and burst open.

I mean, how stupid can you get?

Naturally, reporters from all over had a field day, trying to come up with the most original headlines.

Python bites off too much gator in the Everglades

Python Bursts After Trying to Eat Gator

Gator-guzzling python comes to messy end

Gator vs. python ends in gory draw

Python bites off a little too much of this Everglades gator... explodes

The strange case of the exploding python

Greedy python explodes, trying to gulp gator

Battle of the giants: python bursts eating gator

And my favorite, So full it could burst, no kidding

Hahaha.


***

I have a new favorite writer

Josh Wolk.

I loved his articles on The Amazing Race Family Edition's first two episodes.

But I loved the article on the second episode more.

He's so funny.

It's hilarious how die-hard fans of the show are trying to predict where they'll go next based on sightings from different people.

But please please please tell me The Amazing Race Family Edition wouldn't just take place in the United States. Please.

Because yesterday's episode was a snoozefest.

Borrring.

I still love the Gaghan family although they made me nervous for a while.

Here's a link to Josh Wolk's other articles. I'm going to read all of them.

***

Dear Book Gods,

We've had a good relationship haven't we?

I've been passionate about you from the time my chubby little fingers can touch your many offerings.

You know I can't get enough of you but today I ask you for three things.

Stewie's Guide to World Domination, Everyone Worth Knowing by Lauren Weisberger and Sophie Kinsella's The Undomestic Goddess.

Oh, make it four. I also want Lisa Jewell's Vince and Joy.

Thank you. I promise to stay loyal to you forever, Internet, television and DVDs notwithstanding.

Love,

Pammy
 
October 6, 2005

Anger management

A couple of hours ago, I wrote a very long, very angry post about wasting two mornings at an embassy that seems to hate people.

I have decided against publishing said post as one, anger is ugly and two, the embassy gods might read my post and lock me in their torture chambers and forget to give me a visa.

But, allow me to say that:

1. I do not see the point of them telling people to come in anytime from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. with their visa application when these people will be refused entry at 9:30 a.m. because "cut-off na po."
2. I still can't get over the fact that they only process 30 passports a day.
3. Waiting outside their building for two hours was not fun at all.
4. That was the first time I felt the urge to cry at an embassy. I didn't though. They're not worth the tears.

Tonight, I intend to stay at the office overnight so I can easily go to that blasted embassy at 6 in the morning.

Melda is on her way here now to bring me clothes, towels, toiletries, a mug and four slices of pizza [don't ask].

Mmm. Pizza.

I shall drown my rage and sorrow in pizza, peach C2 and Hollywood gossip.
 
October 3, 2005

Some e-mails just jump out and grab you by the throat

Last week, I received an e-mail from a retired judge.

He runs several soup kitchens in Quezon City. At 71 years old, his dream is to feed 5,000 children in Payatas every single day.

A retired judge. At 71. He could spend his hours playing golf or exploring the world or hooking up with younger women who get drunk on men with (or who had) power but he's not.

He just wants to feed the hungry.

It's a simple dream, it's a big dream.

I respect people who dream big.

And so I will help him.

Pull all strings, exhaust all means, do what I can, help him.

***

Let's chalk it up to fate

I normally fall asleep with Star World, AXN, Nickelodeon or the Disney Channel running, but for some reason, I drifted off while my TV was tuned in to the Discovery Channel.

I woke up in the middle of the day (or night, it doesn't matter anymore) to Phil Keoghan's voice. He was in New Zealand for a documentary called New Zealand: Movie Paradise.

I was jolted awake because my supposed New Zealand trip would bring me to the set of the Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.

I was able to stay awake long enough to watch Phil visit the sets of The Lord of the Rings and Whale Rider.

And that was long enough to get my heart pounding.

I guess that was the sign I was waiting for.

I drifted off to sleep again with only two thoughts in my head.

"This is fate, this is fate.." and "Get a visa, get a visa.."

Oh and one more.

"They have Tim Tams in New Zealand."

Which led to beautiful dreams.

***

There's a ghost in my Launchcast

I only started listening to Launchcast on my YM last week.

I have discovered that the Lite Office Music station really does play songs that are conducive to working, except when they play annoyingly cheesy music that makes me click the skip button faster than you can say Phil Collins.

Oh and except when ghosts invade my earphones.

Last Thursday, while listening to Launchcast, I heard a woman crying. Then screaming. Then crying.

At first I thought it was part of the song. But no, that was impossible. Because the song was slow and soothing and the woman just kept screaming her head off.

I handed James the earphones so I could prove that I wasn't just going crazy and he heard the woman too.

I told my friends about it and they said it was probably just part of the song.

No way.

I don't think they'd ever play a song with a woman screaming "Oh my god oh my god oh my god!" in the Lite Office Station.

Her voice was desperate and the terror seemed real.

That was beyond weird.

***

In other news

My oversized rabbit is gay.

I have discovered that Brucey's favorite late afternoon activity is to make out with my brother's duck.



They took to the activity with so much zeal that I had to ask our angels, "Do they even realize they're different animals?"

It sure didn't look like it.

They necked away like there was no tomorrow.

If those two could have hickeys, they'd be walking bruises now.

Goodbye Brucey, hello Bruisey.

I take total responsibility for this.

After all, I was the one who introduced that darned duck to the wonders of drag.


 
October 1, 2005

Blame it on Lancome



That's where I got the Juicy.

Swiped this from J:

YOUR PORN STAR NAME:
(Name of first pet + Street you live in)
Sugar Antipolo. Ang sagwa.

YOUR MOVIE STAR NAME:
(Name of your favorite snack food + Grandfather's first name)
Pizza Rosendo. Again, ang sagwa. Hindi sisikat.

YOUR FASHION DESIGNER NAME:
(First word you see on your left + Favorite restaurant)
Juicy Lolo. Hahahahahahahahaha. That seriously cracked me up. But I swear, no resto beats Lolo Dad's.

EXOTIC FOREIGNER ALIAS:
(Favorite Spice + Last Vacation Spot Visited)
Basil Berlin. Panget.

SOCIALITE ALIAS:
(Silliest Childhood Nickname + Town Where You First Partied)
Pemplinx Makati. Ayoko.

"FLY GIRL" ALIAS (a la J. Lo):
(First Initial + First Two or Three Letters of your Last Name)
P. Pa. Again, panget.

ICON ALIAS:
(Something Sweet Within Sight + Any Liquid in Kitchen)
Jelly Maple. I love.

DETECTIVE ALIAS:
(Favorite Baby Animal + Where You Went to High School)
Bunny St. Theresa. I couldn't say any other animal, Brucey might trample me to death.

BARFLY ALIAS:
(Last Snack Food You Ate + Your Favorite Alcoholic Drink)
Peaches Vodka. Love it!

SOAP OPERA ALIAS:
(Middle Name + First Word you see on your Right)
Salomon Dove. Pwede na.

ROCK STAR ALIAS:
(Favorite Candy/Dessert + Last Name Of Favorite Musician)
Ice Cream Morissette. Hindi bebenta. Manufactured. Haha.

Walang tatalo kay Juicy Lolo!

Haha.

***

On a more serious note

Please vote for Manny Manny Manny for Time's Asian Hero 2005.

I refuse to let a Korean pop star win over him.

I cannot believe Gloria is even on that poll. Mahiya nga siya.

***

Conversation of the week

While walking in the rain from Starbucks 6750:

J: "Ang ganda nung likod ng paa mo. Anong tawag dyan?"
Me: "Huh?"
J: "Yung likod. Ang ganda."
Me: "Panong maganda?"
J: "Walang paltos."

Haha.

Yan ang napapala ng ayaw mag-sapatos.

Although I did wear shoes yesterday.

***

Nine other things

1. Some people have been asking me to post step-by-step directions with photos of how I curled my hair in my now overused photo. I will soon. But I am now considering getting my hair permed.
2. Birthday is two weeks away and I am dreading it. No plans to celebrate.
3. Friendster has this new feature that allows you to see who has been viewing your profile. It was insightful. I saw people who I know wouldn't be pleased that I found out they viewed my profile. Hahahahaha. Too bad you can only see the last 100 users.
4. I might go to New Zealand for a couple of days this month. The operative word here is might.
5. I still have a ton of articles to write.
6. We spent yet another perfectly good weekend night at Cost U Less. Not that I'm complaining.
7. Then we spent the rest of the night at Giles' place watching Nip/Tuck, eating pizza and peaches and sleeping.
8. It's been ages since I last curled up with a book and read for hours. Television and the internet offers too much distraction.
9. Yesterday, I waited two hours at a dirty corner for a cab that never came. I felt like screaming and crying but actually did nothing. I hate that feeling.