of sparks and fireworks

something new, and im not blue!

2009-07-07T14:08:00.002-04:00

i was just thinking, lately a lot of my posts have been about the regrets i have.. well something has come to cheer me up.. and well. that's all i'm sharing now.

feeling a little bit more like me day by day.. getting the sparks in me back.. now if i can just get this ugly tummy off then i'd be just fine and dandy and will be on my way...

keeping my mouth shut

2009-06-23T21:44:00.003-04:00

there were decisions that i made that i thought were the best. nobody tried to influence me. nobody helped. well, nobody could. or at least the one who actually could, kept his mouth shut for fear of influencing and holding back.

when should we give advice and when should we not? do we have to wait until we are asked? or do we just give it, and hope that he/ she would get something out of it?

it scares me to think. i left my home awhile back for a job that offered basically more money, chance to travel, broaden experience and all that. nobody said anything to make me hesitate. not my parents. not my fiance then. i thought i was making the right decision. seriously, i didn't need the money. my career was doing great. i just thought well why not. im coming back. but nobody said anything about how things might change. they were afraid to hold me back. at the same time, they never let me feel that well.. that they dont really want me to go, that they want me with them. i wish they said something. maybe i was old enough to take my own risks, make my own decisions. but they never presented additional considerations that i should have thought about. maybe they trusted me, that i know what i was doing. i should have known. but i didn't. they didn't voice out their fears. i didn't feel that those fears were real.

i seriously don't know if they said anything, if it would have change anything. if i would have stayed. if i would have thought about it more thoroughly. if i had been more conscious of what i was actually doing.

i didn't want to change anything. i loved my life. right now, if there was a period where i could go back, that would have been it. the best time of my life was before i left.

now, i make my feelings known. unwanted or not. irrelevant or not. i will put it out there. i will not let a day pass that the people who matter to me do not know how i feel about them. for all we know i could be dead the next second.

its freezing

2009-03-26T11:21:00.002-04:00

you know when they say when it rains, it pours? seem to be happening to my family lately.

my cousin cherry, got pregnant right after graduation. the guy was not even finished with his degree. they got married. now my cousin lives in malaysia. her husband in the philippines. they have 2 daughters. they are at her mother's, being taken care of by her mom and sister. i don't know how they are faring.

then there is me. well i was happily engaged. an opportunity for adventure knocked and led me right here in bermuda. i had every intention of going back. but guess what.. i went too far and fell off the adventure boat.. i got knocked up, had twins and got married. right. in that same order.

and then my father. well. that is another thing. i am still in bermuda. there raised an issue about his fidelity. before that was resolved, he was diagnosed with angio sarcoma, a rare cancer. he passed away in november.

i just heard this the other day. my other cousin christine and her boyfriend was planning to have a civil wedding early this year. her father opposed the idea. (really, i do not understand why they have to go the civil route when they can go straight to the church.) anyway, a week before the supposed civil wedding date, the guy had a heart attack and had to undergo angioplasty. now what do you do in that situation?

also my brother apparently had a lump in his throat. so did my mom. i don't know what happened if they even went to get a post checkup to see if there is something to be worried about or not. gaah.

and then there's me. and my issues, drama and concerns.

the state of the economy is not making any of these any better either.

movies and music

2009-01-12T08:37:00.002-04:00

i seriously cannot recall the last time i enjoyed watching movie. the last time i watched a movie was on a plane. i actually watch more movies on a plane than off one. haha. i used to enjoy watching movies a lot. i go every week. now, i don't think i've seen the inside of a movie theatre in a year.

same with music. i don't listen to any. i don't even watch MTV, which used to be my favorite channel here, and even MYXX (similar to MTV) when i was still in the Philippines.

i've been actually quite mean, and super critical of others, including my friends. nothing seems to be good enough anymore.

hooked

2009-01-10T21:30:00.002-04:00

i feel like i've lost my spirit, my zest for life, living and dreaming for more. all i wanna do is get by. as much as they say, if you don't like what you have, do something about it, its tough. the action plans that i want seems too drastic, and for others, even downright crazy.

its saturday. back then, any day, nobody would catch me at home. i was always doing something, or going somewhere. now. today. i was at home the whole day. i could've gone to town to window shop. i didn't. i could've hang out at my girls' place. i didn't. i didn't feel like doing anything. feels like there's is no escaping what is.

hmm. this blog is getting more personal than it used to be. i suppose i could share about the joys and trials of motherhood as well.

for my depression, i got hooked on purchasing designer purses. no rationale. i admit its crazy to spend that much for purses, especially when you convert the $$ to PHP and you realize what better use you can do with that money. but what the hell.

i like manila. i love visiting. and i hate visiting. love - oh that's all too easy. ask every OFW... hate. HAHA. i'm not referring to the heat, traffic and pollution, mind you. Manila reminds me of everything that was. And i don't want to be reminded or think about that. That might send me for sure to Alcoholics Anonymous (i've taken to drinking - finished a glass of Merlot. now on a glass of Pinot Noir) and a phsychiatrist or suicide. None of which are positive options for everyone.

So, back to positive thoughts. HAHA. I'm eyeing the newly launched Stephen Sprouse Neverfull Roses in MM. Eyeing. Because at the end of the day, I seem to still prefer the Damier NF in MM. And then they're releasing the Graffiti next month. $$$$. Oh well. its my money. if i can't get anything else that i want, might as well have the next best thing, i say. I should really get something Roses though.

2009 na..

2009-01-10T00:12:00.000-04:00

its been a long time since i've posted. a really long time.

i suppose i find it easier to share my thoughts and dreams when everything seems to be what i want them to be, harder when i am in a place and i'm not even sure i want. how i got here, i suppose i took a turn somewhere, made that life-changing decision and didn't realize it.

as a quick update, i am still an OFW. Have been for the past 3.5 years. Married, and with twin boys.

turning 30 in less than a month. wow. a milestone. i have hoped for so much by the time i was 30. i accomplished stuff that wasn't on my list, and stuff on my list are still on the list...

i have a lot of whys. why do people blog. why do some people like everything designer. why am i here. why do certain things happen. i was listening to the radio early this morning and a caller was telling the radio host to stop overanalyzing stop, open his heart, view whatever his situation is from a 3rd person perspective and have a positive outlook. can people really just do that? i admit that for certain situations where i feel frustrated and can't really do anything about, i would try to do that just to get away from it. but it always haunts me back, because i don't agree with it in principle in first place.

admittedly, this post is disorganized. i have a lot going on, and like its been said, its been awhile and this blog seems to need some catching up.

lets just deal with my day today. i am in a country, where you already sign up your unborn or newly born child to a pediatrician, a nursery/daycare, kindergarten and primary school so that you can be put on a waitlist. i've heard most people, particularly the locals saying that the public school is crap, except for 1 or 2. and that they wouldn't send their child, if they have one, there. and then i asked about the cost of a private primary school (grade 1). its $16,000++ not including the after school program (schools finish at 230 and we have to work until at least 5. kids have to be somewhere, right?). this does not include any summer camp, easter break camp, or december holiday camp. i mean seriously. working as an expat with no family, it is a constant challenge to make sure your kid is elsewhere whenever you have work and their nursery is closed. and can you imagine paying twice the amount for having twins??????

it all went downhill after that. i couldn't even bring myself to order dessert, buy a chocolate bar or a cup of coffee.

another nagging thought in my mind, should i consider a divorce?

oh its 2009. my 1st resolution was to be POSITIVE and LESS CRITICAL of OTHERS. 2nd would be to activate this blog.. now how am i being positive when i occasionally think about divorce???

perhaps

2007-01-27T16:50:00.000-04:00

perhaps i was never meant to wear that long white dress, or walk down the aisle...

---

a couple of my friends here in Bermuda are planning their wedding in the Philippines this year. it seems to me that i am more so into the wedpreps than they are. but then, i wouldn't know if they actually stopped sleeping at night and instead stay online browsing at all of those so pretty wedding whathaveyous.

i wonder if i'll ever get married. right now, it seems that i'm into the wedding and not into the guy i am supposed to marry. there is obviously something wrong in this picture.

hmmm... i wonder if i can really commit to this. a long and hard haul for sure.

last night

2007-01-25T14:30:00.000-04:00

in some ways, it seems like it was just yesterday that i was olie's bride to be.

it may be that i was already not his for the longest time, but it was only last night that i've come to realize that maybe i will never be his. ever.

----
maybe i didn't know what true love meant, until i lost it.
---
there are things that i just can't take back. or turn back. or fix. or make up for.
---
there are things that i want that i can never have. (is this where they say it wasn't mine in the first place?)
----
there are consequences and then there are life-long consequences.
---
what i want and what i have are worlds apart.
---
there are things that are worth fighting for.
---
the best things in life are worth the wait.

Bermuda Aquarium and Zoo

2005-11-22T14:38:00.000-04:00

thoughts away from olie

2005-11-03T15:45:00.000-04:00

hey.

wassup. hmm. dunno what to say really. i wonder if we'll ever be together again.
i feel like if i do want to be with you, then i should go back and settle down in the Philippines for good.

what if i don't?

what if your papers to bermuda get approved. then my contract is up and i want to see another country... then you'll always be like my shadow.. following me.

what will happen to us? it scares me.

i feel like my life is on hold coz i left a part of me. i dont know whether to hold on or let go.
honestly, i dont feel like moving back to the philippines anytime soon. i can really save a lot here, i know. i also want to travel (which i can ill-afford if i have peso-wages).

should i give it all up to be with you?

white party

2005-10-17T14:57:00.000-04:00

promoters of the RED & PINK Parties presents...

*Pure elegance, a seductive party of glamour & sophistication at Bermuda's most illustrious resort, the Fairmont Southampton Princess *

the WHITE lounge (8pm-10pm)
The Moet Champagne lounge * Tempting white chocolate fondue & succulent strawberries * Lively Latin house vibes accompanied by Sr. Rankin on violin*

the WHITE party (10pm till late)
A world class haven of classic minimalism, chic bed lounges & stunning ice pieces, served up with decadent WHITEinis
20,000 SQ FEET OF WORLD CLASS CLUBBING AWAITS
***
Guest DJ's accompanied by drums & live percussion * plus, the return of the Lemon Tree's DJ CHOICE * Featuring: Hamilton Princess's Happy Hour King: DJ Double S
Special Guest DJ's: FRISKY

WHITE NITE VIP package
*Fairmont-to-Fairmont cruise aboard The Lady Tamara yacht * Ultra Exclusive
Bungalow Sanctuaries with bottle service for your party of 2 - 10 * Complimentary Gift bags & Complimentary Hors D'oeuvres *

Friday, October 14th, 2005
Fairmont Southampton Princess
Poncianna Ballrooms & Foyer Lounge

10% of all WHITE party ticket profits will be donated to the Bermuda Red Cross in aid of Hurricane Katrina victims.

all white attire requested, white tops mandatory

Friday, Sep 30th: WHITE Pre Party Launch & Dennie O'Connor's 30th Birthday Bash @ Splash
Saturday, Oct 15th: WHITE After Party & Belcario Thomas's 30th Birthday Bash @ SquareONE

coyote ugly at docksider's

2005-10-17T14:36:00.000-04:00

st george's

2005-10-12T12:55:00.000-04:00

last sunday, steve, jae and i went to st. george's for brunch...

me and the girls

2005-10-07T10:34:00.000-04:00

this was 2 sundays ago...

Lunch at Paraquet

and another pic of me with Elton and Rachel/ Etel at Ozone last September 2..

one of our few good pics - memories

2005-10-03T13:59:00.000-04:00

here's one of the nicest pics i have with olie..

and a drunk pic of me last fri night..

our initial wed date was 17sept2005

2005-09-19T16:06:00.000-04:00

haha. just wanted to take note of that.. henceforth it is recorded..

anyway, here are pics from the weekend..

HORSESHOE BAY

at Elbow Beach

2005-09-16T08:57:00.000-04:00

we spent last saturday (sept 10) afternoon at the beach... here are some photos...

pix from last saturday

2005-09-09T08:46:00.000-04:00

we had dinner at my apartment last saturday.. a sort of welcome dinner for jay, lorie's fiance.. a reason to cook.

i cooked embutido and chopsuey (had great review, too)
jag cooked the spring rolls, beef steak tagalog, brazo de mercedes and baked cookies from scratch.
laila cooked the rice..

here is a picture of all of us... from the back (left to right) are sonny, jag, me, jae, martin, laila and jae. on the front sitting on the floor (left to right) are lorie, eric, jack and steve..

and more group pictures....

after eating, we sang a bit.. using the brand new Magic sing brought by Jay from Pinas... had fun.

i was actually waiting for my neighbor to knock on my door and tell us to keep the noise down.. hahaha.

so yeah.. chat a bit about my friends: jag is from Deloitte and Touche, currently seconded at Bank of Bermuda (HSBC). He is British by heart, Filipino by birth, and Thailander in looks.. hahaha..

jae is from Bank of New York, a Korean born and raised in Toronto, loves Toronto so much.. and easy to get along with.. just that he always laughs at me and finds me weird. goes to the gym regularly too.

martin is laila's irish boyfriend who loves the Filipino dishes. he is really a nice guy.. works at Marsh, is into sports, fishing, diving...etc..

laila is pinay, really a hit among the the other nationalities, used to be an ambassadress of sorts and works at Deloitte. she is really sweet and cool. a really good girl.

lorie is our very own ms. friendship... sings very well.. used to be a part of the UP Singing Ambassadors from what i heard.. has a very cheerful disposition... is like sunshine. works at E&Y.

jay is also from E&Y. haven't had that much of a chance to get to know him but i know he sings quite well too and he can rap..

sonny is from Deloitte.. i met him at church. he said that i looked familiar coz we both used to work at SGV. he sings quite well, too. and has a really nice bike.. well-travelled as well.

eric is chinese, also from Toronto, works at the Bank of Bermuda.. always working.. he is leaving today for vacation in Europe with some of his friends.. loves sports, he tells me he is into volleyball (haven't seen him play though) but he smashes really hard and has really nice biceps.. hahaha.

steve is korean from Toronto as well. he is in IT.. his email addy is Bank of Bermuda although im not quite sure coz he has clients.. hmmm.. he is sweet.. loves to dance even when alone.. easy.

i didn't like jack so much when i first met him.. but now he seems quite nice.. always joking with steve.. he is vietnamese from Toronto too.. i guess they know each other for almost a decade now.

well, i hang out with these guys most of the time - for dinner, beach, movie, badminton, night outs... its cool actually. great to have new friends here..

the interior of my lovely apartment

2005-09-08T14:07:00.000-04:00

i just want to share some pictures of my lovely apartment..

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T3

2005-09-08T10:28:00.000-04:00

i asked a friend (Gerson) who works at the Seven Seas Navigator cruise ship to get me a digital camera when they travel to New York.. this is what he brought back..

Key Specs:

Power Source: InfoLithium Battery (rechargeable)

General features: Flash cancel (on/off), Photo date, time stamping, Red eye reduction, Slow speed sync

Interface type: USB, Video out

Max horizontal image resolution: 2592 pixels

Max vertical image resolution: 1944 pixels

Max zoom: 12x

Memory type: Memory stick duo

Digital zoom: 6x

Optical zoom: 3x

LCD Screen size: 2.5 in

Removable Flash memory: 32mb

Exposure settings: Aperture priority, Auto exposure, Exposure bracketing, Shutter priority

Flash characteristics: Built in flash, Forced flash

Focus characteristics: Auto focus, Multiple point focusing

Height: 2.4 in

Width: 3.9 in

Depth: 0.8 in

Weight 5.64 oz

Sex on the Beach Party

2005-09-02T07:34:00.000-04:00

More of the previous weekend... Saturday night:

we've got lots of options that weekend:
1 Sex on the Beach party at Chaplin Bay
2 House party at Spanish point
3 Meet Gerson and Aris in town after their midnight basketball game
4 Birthday party at Shelley Bay

we only ended up going to numbers 1 & 4...

anyway, here's a shot of us at that party with a bunch of guys from Aon, Bank of Bermuda, etc..

lots of drinking there was.. wasn't the slightest bit drank.. probably getting used to drinking so much.. hahaha...

-------------

and this wednesday.. just when i am so loaded with work i didn't go to the movies with laila, jag and jay, nor did i go to dinner with jae, jack and steve.. i refused manny's invite to go out with a bunch of his friends.. but i had to go to a birthday party. arnel called me and said that it was his birthday. oh. and there were just the 2 of them celebrating so i ended up going to that with manny and rachel and met more pinoys. we partied at Flannagan's and Ozone.. i worked still when i got home...

-------------

a long weekend is coming up.. Monday is a holiday here. im looking forward to that.. friday of course is night out. saturday, a bunch of us is having dinner at my place -me and jag are cooking. (so stressful that what i cook will end in disaster)..

a great weekend

2005-08-30T07:29:00.000-04:00

i had loads of fun lots weekend.. although it rained quite a bit.

we went out as usual on Friday night - Hog Penny's and Square One. met some Asian/Canadian guys - Steve, Jack, Eric and Jae.. Lorie was the star of the night.. actually she seems to be the star of all our night outs.. Aside from the Asian/ Canadian guys (Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese who grew up in Canada), there was also a Bermudian who "loved" Lorie too much and didn't want to leave her, even when we wanted to leave Hog Penny's. He wanted to come with us but Lorie was able to tell him off. There was also a Portuguese older guy and a sort of Indian/ Pakistani looking fellow who wanted to dance with us..

Quite a night huh! Seems, our beauty is on the international scale now..

Anyway, here's a picture of me and lorie at Square One after dancing at Hog Penny. (Laila just watched DVD at home that night)

Hog Penny Bar

2005-08-18T08:01:00.000-04:00

We've tried the Hamilton Princess Hotel Happy Hour, Pickled Onion, Square One, Splash but we love going to Hog Penny every Friday night.

We like the music and the fact that it is so small and crowded that its not really for standing, drinking and chatting but more of standing, drinking and dancing.

Here are some shots of us:

me and laila after the Hawkin's Island last July 27.

me, laila and lorie just last Friday.

i am looking forward to Fridays of each week just to go out.. right now, we are planning what clothes we'll be wearing...

bermuda photos - with pinoy friends

2005-08-09T08:47:00.000-04:00

slackers

2005-08-05T15:50:00.000-04:00

when i started working, our group was branded as slackers. we are not! but we've maintained the tag.. just for fun.

new friends, new life...

2005-07-27T16:30:00.000-04:00

the wedpreps seems like ages ago...

i'm here on the island and i'm starting to enjoy myself. i found people i get along with and have been going out with them to the beach and even to bars.

I’m adjusting alright. Except I still don’t have an apartment yet. I’m temporarily staying with a Filipina who just got here, also works at EY and is on my floor. Her name is Lorie.

I also made friends with Laila, another Filipina. I was at church 2 Sundays ago for the 1130am mass at St. Theresa’s. An ex-SGVean recognized me by face, and sat with me. His name is Sonny. And he was friends with Laila and Jug who followed him into our seats.

We had lunch that day and went our separate ways. Lai and i kept in touch. And last Friday, we went to Hawkins' Island for the Carnival Party which was fun. I met Lai and her Irish boyfriend who was really really nice and sweet. I also met some other people there. We also went to the Hogpenny afterwards.

My first picture in Bermuda with Martin and Laila:

a really long weekend is coming up.. no work on Thurs and Fri due to the Cup Match for the Cricket games here. we'll probably head to the beach, as usual. just like we did on both afternoons and early evenings of the previous weekend.

eleven

2005-07-18T10:21:00.000-04:00

i wrote this a couple of days back.

Blog 15 July 2005

This is my 11th day in the Island. And in 11 days, here are my accomplishments, discoveries, realizations.

Rent for a month here for a typical 1 bedroom or studio apartment is at $1,500 to $2,300 – depending on the location (dodgy neighborhood??), furnishings (washer, dryer, fridge, a/c, stove) and amenities (usually pool, garden), size, and accessibility (to the bus stop, groceries, to the city). With Forex at USD 1 = PhP 53, its PhP 79,500 to PhP 121,900 PER MONTH.
FYI: Bermudian (BDA) $ is at par with USD $. (exclusive of fees to the money changer, of course)
No electricity means no work, no phone, no open shops, restos, etc. They don’t have generators. - we didn't have work for 2 days.
A bank certification from the Philippines or your old bank will facilitate easier opening of bank accounts elsewhere. I got my ATM/ Debit card within 3 minutes after completing the application while some of the people I know got theirs after 10 days.
The only thing cheap here are the perfumes and cosmetics. People usually shop at New York during weekends. I prefer to shop in the Philippines – much much cheaper!
Example: I bought a black office bag (unknown brand) in a department store here for $32 = PhP1,696. Jeez…. I wasn’t picky bout the brand. I just needed something presentable for everyday use. I wasn’t able to bring my bags with me. Good thing I brought loads of shoes, though. And the cellphone I got in Pinas for about $189 or PhP 10,000 is selling here for $449!! (can I sell mine in the black market??? Hehe. Just kidding y’all.)
Gaah.. would you believe, they don’t have MMS?????
People here are really nice, friendly and pleasant. Walking down the street, about 95% of the people you meet with greet you a good morning, how are you doing, good day, with a nod or a smile depending on the time of the day. And you are expected to greet them back.
My officemates have been really warm to me, supportive and helpful.
A department store here is just about the size of most Bench boutiques in the Philippines. And stores open at about 10am and close at 5pm Mondays to Saturdays. Stores are closed on Sundays.
I am anti social. I’d rather be alone, at the apartment, with my body aching from lying on the bed the whole day than try to be pleasant to company that though I don’t know that well, I feel I’d just end up offending in the end. (Tactless comments...)
There are a lot lot lot of Filipinos here – nannies, waiters, caregivers, accountants, auditors. You’d see them everywhere.
I love the Philippines – traffic, crazy drivers, rallies, etc. Words aren’t enough… I miss the malls, especially. Hehehe.
I need Olie. I’ve no enthusiasm to see Bermuda as a tourist would, to see the beaches and all the wonders the place has to offer, to taste and enjoy food and not just eat out of necessity, to be pretty and not just look presentable. I tried to go out with other people, but I find that I do not really have that much fun although they are really nice, hospitable, welcoming to me. Even with company, fellow Filipinos or other expatriates, I am still alone.
He is my life. I’m lost without him.

Things I miss aside from Olie:

Wedpreps – scheduling meetings, oculars, payments
Chatting with the w@wies
Having access to the internet anywhere
Malls – glorietta, greenbelt, greenhills
Watching movies, popcorns
Iced Tea – Lipton and Nestea
Jollibee and Wendy’s

The wedpreps seems to be a distant past now.

a day late

2005-07-12T16:49:00.000-04:00

hey glo.. you made me smile.. thank you for calling me. :-) miss you and data, marj and everyone. seems like i left you all back home when in fact i'm physically nearer to you now. haha.

haay. i was supposed to post some kwento yesterday but there was and error and what i typed disappeared. so to summarize:

fri night: Princess Hotel - drank gin and tonic (just 1 plastic glass) and met some of the other people. had dinner at Bistro J, part of Jenny's hen night. left soon after and didn't join the girls for partying and drinking at Pickled Onion.

sat: got my bike / scooter. yipee.. i won't have to walk anymore. now i'm just scared i'll hit a car, a person, a wall. went shopping a bit - bought two bags, a perfume and sunglasses for the rain. the thing is, since i bought the sunglass, it has been cloudy... haven't used it yet.

sun: a bit of rain here. effect of hurricane dennis, maybe. just went for a takeout and stayed the whole day in bed.

now, yesterday, i was able to send the Immigration form to Olie for him to fill out. YIPEE. another step closer to being with him again.

thank God, really, for gloria, and earlier today verna's call...

HELP NEEDED: STUDIO/ 1 BEDROOM APARTMENT HERE IN BERMUDA!!!!

its so hard to find one.. and i really really need one already.

maybe i need to settle with a house share. i don't really want that. olie will come soon. :-(

my 1st attempt to fit in

2005-07-08T16:41:00.000-04:00

hey!! i'll be meeting some of the office people at Hamilton Princess Hotel later for a bit of drinking and socializing.

i do have to make new friends.

hope all goes well, cheers!!

to be together

2005-07-07T17:17:00.000-04:00

right now, i just want to be with olie. simple. whatever it takes or requires of us.

i refuse to even think of the reasons why i ever left the Philippines in the first place. i can't find any reason that would outweigh the fact that in the Philippines, I was with olie. sometimes, this decision seems pretty stupid.

well, i'm here now. i've emailed our HR on how i can have olie here on the island as well and they have given me some options and requirements which i've emailed to olie for him to comply with asap.

i wonder too, if he is ready to leave the Philippines just to be with me. he has been in the same company since he started working (which is literally more than a decade ago), has close relations with his family.

it is gonna be a much bigger change for him than it was for me.

if he is not ready... i don't really know how we'd go about this. i'd probably be just out here to complete my contract. then back to the Philippines for me. No long term career for me here if that happens. oh well.

now, it seems i have the opportunity to make it big out here. i'm handling the 2 big clients of the company which is good, i get a chance to shine. and bad because i can fail big time..

hoping for the best always. FAITH.

getting here

2005-07-06T17:18:00.000-04:00

ok.. so now i got time to blog a bit.

it was 8 hours from Manila to Dubai, 7 hours Dubai to London and another 7 hours London to Bermuda. plus i had a 2 hour gap between flights in Dubai and 8 hours in London.

both airports were great, offering Duty Free goods. i didn't buy anything. just walked around. rested.

by the time I got here I was wasted. I was met at the Airport by Jet (Filipino) and Yvonne (Malaysian) who are also working for EY. we got on a cab and delivered my stuff to the apartment.

which was really lovely. Rosemont Apartment.

then we took a walk to a resto Portofino Pizza Restaurant. i ordered ravioli. the sauce was rather good.

Jet walked me back to the apartment while Yvonne left to attend the Pink Party that night. Jet hanged around a bit. we talked about SGV and how things are in Bermuda, etc. He left later to meet Yvonne.

On Sunday, I went to hear mass with Jet, Gigi and Weenie. Gigi was working as a caregiver while Weenie was a nanny. Both of them are Filipinos. Mass is at 1130-1230 noon.

Weenie went ahead while Jet, Gigi and I had lunch at Pickled Onion where I ate burger and fries. We made plans to go to the Dockyard. but I fell asleep at the Apartment so I wasn't able to go. I woke up late in the evening already.

I took Alaxan, ate a sandwich and fell asleep again. I woke up at 3am, ate some cereals, took a nap again. By the time I woke up, it was time for me to go to my FIRST DAY at WORK.

Monday was orientation day - voice mail, phone, meeting my new officemates, office security, etc. I also spent quite a bit of my time exploring the web, particularly e-moo for possible apartments I can move into.

---------------------------
Apartment thoughts

i'm not quite sure whether i want to join jet and yvonne in one big house or just find a place just for me.

---------------------------

oh and Oleander cycles (a rental bike-scooter store) didn't let me get the scooter assigned to me. i needed a bit more practice. i'm to go back on Sunday. hopefully by then i get it.

i'm getting quite desperate getting the bike. its quite a walk to the apartment i'm staying in now. and i'm not used to walking AT ALL. i drive in manila. the only time i walked was when i'm inside the mall. here, walking takes me uphill and downhill. which can really be tiring.

by the time i get home, i'm wasted and dead. can't do anything but sleep at half past 7.

also the sun here is still up at 9pm. imagine that.

---------------------------

looked at an apartment yesterday with Jet, Gigi and Yvonne. 2 bedroom but only 1 bathroom just off Harbour Road. costs $2950.

earlier today, i road with Barry to see a 1 bedroom apartment. it was quite nice actually. fully furnished. on top of the hill at Devonshire. for only $1300.

Barry wants me to look at other options. Imee wants me to get it already. I don't quite know what to do. It seems there's a bit more to consider here when renting an apartment - like water supply (water comes from the rain that is kept in a water tank). if the water tank gets empty, i have to buy water. but i think the price is cheap. i'm a bit worried about the location though. which Barry says is ok and i have nothing to worry about. i asked him about street lamps and he was saying that its ok since i'll be on my bike and my bike has lights.

it is rather hard to find a place to stay here. and i only have about 2 weeks at Rosemont. although i can extend (half of which will be shouldered by the company and half by me), Rosemont costs about $150 per day and that is way expensive.

------------------------------------------

GMA as in Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is really big news. I mean news about her and the impeachment filed against her is also featured in the local newspaper here in Bermuda.

what is happening in the Philippines??

:-(

welcome to grace in bermuda!

2005-07-04T10:19:00.000-04:00

hey hey hey!!!

am back! and i missed blogging, chatting, checking out the numerous mails i receive.

i left the Philippines 8pm Friday night. i got here at 530am Sunday morning Philippine time.. my body was aching from the really tiring flight.

its about -11hours from the Philippines here.

one thing i learned though. don't use the Emirates! coz they only allow 20kgs of check-in luggage to London!!

i have loads of story to tell but not enough time to do that. i'm hungry and waiting for lunch. hehehe.

anyhow, i have great news... i lost a lot of weight during my flight (talk about airline food!).. how do i know? well, i had suits made before i left and they fit me perfectly.. but when i tried one on this morning, it was really loose.. about a couple of inches loose on the waist.. uh-oh... wardrobe problem..

all C L E A R !!! LOUD and C L E A R!

2005-06-28T04:15:00.000-04:00

kwentong DUGO!!!

dahil dyan sa anemic choovaaa na yan, i was prescribed to take 2 tablets 3 times a day.. o di ba medyo lunudin ako sa iron???

last night.. todo hanap kami ni olie ng food - dapat may ATAY, AMPALAYA.. we asked the foodstores in glorietta, hanggang food court.

damn ang hirap maghanap.. the closes we got was Sisig (with grounded atay) and Pakbet. yun na. haay...

desperate measures!!!!

----------------------------------------------

bwahahahaha!!! HINDI AKO ANEMIC!! (i was at Makati Med the whole day again.)

kala ko OK na.. aba may kasunod pa.. PREG TEST.. syempre sure ako dyan na alang problema...

so i'm going back to Makati Med to get the written medical report! YIPPEEEE!!!!

tapos, Marcia emailed me that they'll be getting the Work Permit tomorrow. yahoo....

ngayon, kung tatanggapin na lang ng POEA ang faxed Work Permit, wala na ako problema..

GO! Go! Go!!!!!!!

------------------------------------------------------

weeeehheee... panay despedida

may despedida last Sunday night. yun ulit family. this time, sa Shakey's sa Pacita. c/o Ron, our youngest..

masaya naman. at madaming food..

dami tips nila tita & tito re: travel. madalas kasi sila. will post a pic some other time.

-------------------------------------------------------

at despedida ulit tonight.. SGV Friendships... uuy tataba ako..

-------------------------------------------------------

ako, anemic??? hindeeee!!!! sana hindi.

2005-06-27T05:26:00.000-04:00

grr!!!

i've just been to Makati Med and it seems there is a problem with the result on my Physical exam (clearance needed for POEA). ANEMIC daw po ako!!! grr.. the ewan. whatever it is they call it is only 11.3 and its supposed to be 12!!! ouch!! di daw nila ako i-clear.. i need to take in ferrous sulfate.. initially they said it was for a month, then it was reduced to a week.

but i'm supposed to leave on friday na..waaaaaaaahhhh!!!!!!!

only redeeming thing is, maybe the low whatever was because i have my monthly period then. or actually it started thursday of the previous week. and i had my blood sample taken monday following it. hmmm.... sana yun nga lang... or i don't what i'd do..

so i took the ferrous sulfate na. and i will try to get tested again tomorrow. baka nga yun lang.

i'm keeping my fingers crossed...

leave tuloy ako whole day instead of half day.

techie stuff

2005-06-25T10:54:00.000-04:00

i just bought a webcam and headset.... hehehe.

and i got prettified! - cellophane, waxing. i just had a trim eh. baka last na parlor ko na.

may sort of despedida din kina olie kanina. happy eating lang naman.

SCHEDULE for MY LAST WEEK IN PINAS

sunday - buy CP, shoes, dinner with family
monday - makati med
tues - despedida c/o sgv friends
wed - night out with che (tentative)
thurs - 1st gown fitting
fri - fly out

hectic

2005-06-23T06:37:00.000-04:00

i'm sooo tired from running around.

monday - coding. had to commute!

before 8am: POEA for the Pre Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS). in fairness, helpful sya. yun nga lang, i didn't know na pag lunes may flag ceremony. so we all had to endure waiting for the employees to gather in the lobby. the ceremony had the usual requisites of the one done in school - prayer, national anthem and 2 panunumpas.

at 12nn : Glorietta to have my picture taken for the Medical Referral letter. then lunch with olie.

1pm: Makati Medical.. eto talga winner. from the Lobby, the Health Clinic pala was in a separate building near the Parking Lot outside. when i got there, the Nurse took one look at the Referral i brought and asked me to pay for the fee at the ER Cashier. so i went back to the lobby, via a flight of stairs. Tirik pa namn ang araw. tapos pala the one i approached was the In Patient Cashier. sabi nya sa Out Patient Cashier. when I got there, sa Emergency Room Cashier pala talga dapat. so I went to the basement to pay. pagkabayad, i went out ulit via the parking lot to the Health Center. then fill out forms, had my BP and pulse taken. wait for the Doctor to be free (by this time, dumadami na ang tao..) dum-dee-dum... so the Doctor asked me to take off my clothes and wore a robe. She used the stethoscope to listen to my lungs (front and back) then she checked my breasts for lumps. so ok na, i'm done. i asked her if i have to do another xray since i just had one the previous month. she just told me to ask the Nurse. when i asked the Nurse, she said that i should have asked the Doctor, which I did naman. by this time, the Doctor was attending to another patient. i had to wait AGAIN. hmm.. naawa naman yun Nurse after a while (mga 20 minutes na ako'ng nakatayo). she told me to go muna to the Main Building for the psych and laboratory exams. so i went back to the Main Building, this time via the side building route. the guy scheduled me to take the exam Tuesday Morning. I went up to the Lobby for the Laboratory tests. I was given specimen bottles and was asked to wait for my blood sample to be taken. Naku pagdating dyan sa blood samples, hirap parati ang nurses. I have thin veins and they cannot easily be felt. after about 30 minutes, we were done. i headed back to the Health Clinic just to be told that I don't have to undergo the Xray again. ok. fine. that's it. i'm done!!!

5pm este, hindi pa pala.. hehehe. i went back to Glorietta to meet olie. we are meeting joseph and joy naman to start and finish the ISACA Newsletter. we met joseph at Starbucks 6750 and discussed a bit. we then realized that we need stuff from the website to place in the paper. we walked to SGV where olie and i waited in the lobby, while joseph went up to download stuff.. tapos, we went to Burger King Greenbelt to begin on the Newsletter proper while having dinner. when the Laptop's battery was almost empty, we had to return to SGV to work on it.

we finished at around 10pm. super wasted na ako.

tuesday - psych exam 8am to 930am.. then i had to go to work pa. tapos toiletry shopping at festival mall.

wednesday - work ulit. kunwari. they had a sort of despedida for me and Zeny (an officemate who was retiring naman). went home early. may NBA game kasi. game 6. hahabulin namin ang replay.

thursday - TODAY

gaaahh!!! we were in HELL kaninang umaga! as in super duper over mega sa INIT! we attended the Marriage Counselling Seminar at Pasig City Hall. grr... ako, na babaeng di pinagpapawisan kahit magtatakbo or mag badminton, etc.. eh tagaktak ang pawis ever. it was so hot and humid! as in. we were in a Hall, seated on monoblock chairs. there were lots of ceiling fans naman. kaya lang mainit talga. malaki sana potential nung seminar. kaya lang sa init, i couldn't pay attention. and i guess most of the couples are from the C or D class so medyo iba yung level ng discussion. hehe. di naman sa nangmamata ako. and they could have gotten better speakers or had smaller groups per sessions and use microphones.

buti na lang in the afternoon ok na kami. the afternoon session was in the Health Center (a different building). aircon na. kaya lang, kulang naman ang monoblock. ang daming participants. i know most of the stuff discussed so for me alang kwenta yun afternoon session talga. i attended a family planning seminar na kasi at GPL this year. hehehe.

haay. at di pa dyan nagtatapos ang araw. 8am-5pm City Hall.

ngayon, heto Netopia Gbelt1. im waiting for Raul (Jeff is here na eh) to "turnover" the ISACA Publication committee responsibilities to Raul. haay.. never ending.

PENDING

work permit from Bermuda Immigration (wait na lang ako)
completion of Medical Exam requirements
request for Bank Reference Letter
visit Ninang/ Ninongs
first gown fitting with Cecil

ano pa ba?? gaah! kaka loka!!!! buti ok na basta yun sa wedding.. ngayon pray na lang ako na payagan ako ng future boss na mag LEAVE...

Sonia's Garden

2005-06-19T06:18:00.000-04:00

We went to Sonia's garden for a sort of despedida for me.

My cousin and his parents...

Hey, just want to share.. His mom is a sister of my Dad and his dad is a brother of my Mom. Cool di ba?

My brother

with Papa and Mama

Me and Olie

just me

James & Angel's Wedding

2005-06-19T04:33:00.000-04:00

shopping!!

2005-06-18T06:50:00.000-04:00

i've been busy collecting stuff that i'd be bringing to Bermuda - suits, long sleeve blouses, swimwear, summer wear, casual clothes..etc, etc.

just find out that my temporary work permit has been approved. YEY!

and i'm really leaving friday night, july 1. i'm booking a flight MNL-Dubai-London Gatwick via Emirates and London Gatwick-Bermuda via British Airways. :-)

wow. its that soon. am i really ready????

--------------

i attended a wedding earlier at Makati Parks and Garden. sometime during the ceremony, i found myself thinking of my departure. tears came to my eyes... that was the first time i really thought about leaving olie.. i quickly wiped my eyes and switched my thoughts to the wedding going on.

i don't really want to leave him. but i will. its somewhat for us. mostly for me. i want to see what i can do outside the country. i want to grow professionally, i want the financial security that the new opportunity will bring me, i want the new experience.

-------------------

i was reading Cynch's post on answers to the question "how do you know he/ she is the one?" and i find myself thinking, reflecting, agreeing.

i'm trying to say all the things i love about him.. why i love him.. but oh. ang hirap pala. hindi mahirap na wala ako masabi. more of sa dami di ko na alam kung ano or paano isusulat. this calls for a whole blogpost.

-------------------

we'll be going to Sonia's garden tomorrow with my Family. a sort of despedida daw. hmm... sana libre.. hahaha.

i'm draining my resources shopping for things to bring.. gaah!!

Doc Preps - Wedding and Bermuda

2005-06-16T20:34:00.000-04:00

it was a busy Thursday yesterday.

POEA

at about 8 in the morning, i was at the Name-Hire section, talking to a lady who asked me to add my name to the list and wait to be called. i was number 16.

i took my seat with the other people, waiting to be called as well. it took a while.. got bored and started texting people. olie wasn't allowed to stay with me. he had to wait at the waiting area downstairs. :-( oh well. manong was right. after all, there are a lot of people.

at past 9, i got called. hmm. i only have my passport, work contract and passport-sized picture. i told the guy in the window that i'm to get my work permit this week. he proceded to check my documents and prepared the referral letters i'd need. first, i scheduled my PDOS for monday next week.. then i have to fax a letter to my employer regarding some items missing from the contract. hmm.. i think they just need to sign it and fax it back. then, i'm to schedule for medical examination to one of the accredited hospitals/ clinic of POEA. after completion of requirements, i submit all the documents... then maybe pay the fee of PhP7,675.00.

wheww..

after POEA, olie and i had breakfast at Galleria.. we bought some groceries.. then had snack at Wetzel's Pretzel (i still like Auntie Anne!!).

Marriage License at Pasig City Hall

hehehe. this is what i wanted to post about.

they allowed us to file our application for marriage license on december even if i'm not present.. just so long as we comply with the requirements. we got the form and left.

we proceeded to the DSWD section to schedule our family planning and marriage counselling seminar. we got a form from the photocopy area and proceeded to fill it up..

we had laughs over the questions... for those planning on getting their Marriage License, check this out: (there were 2 forms.. one for each)

Form starts here-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Wife _______________________
Husband ____________________

INAASAHAN KO SA PAG-AASAWA

Ang mga katanungan na inaasahan sa pag-aasawa ay makakatulong sa bawat isa upang lalong maunawaan sang mga mahahalagang bagay tungkol sa pagsasama ng mag-asawa. Paki bilugan ang mga sagot (magkahiwalay ang inyong sagot isulat ang pangalan).

I. INAASAHAN SA PAGMAMAHAL:

1. Pagkatapos ng kasal ang inaasahan ko sa aming pagsasama ay:
a. ibigay ang tamang panahon at atensyon tulad noong kami ay magkasintahan p
b. medyo mabawasan ang oras dahil sa trabaho, gawain sa bahay at pag-alaga ng mga anak
c. dapat sila ay laging magkasama

2. Kahulugan ng pagmamahal ay:
a. baguhin ang asawa ayon sa aking paniniwala
b. maluwag kong tatanggapin ang kabiyak ko kahit sino man siya
c. babaguhin ko ang pagkatao ko upang siya ay masiyahan

3. Ang pagmamahal ay
a. dumadaan sa maraming pagsubok (ups and downs)
b. laging masaya (bed of roses)
c. puno ng hirap at pasakit

4. Pagkatapos ng away:
a. ang lalaki ang dapat unang gumawa ng hakbang upang makipagbati.
b. ang babae ang dapat mauna
c. kung sino ang may kasalanan ang mauunang bumati
d. parehong humingi ng tawad

5. Ang pagmamahal ng mag asawa ay maaring maipahayag sa pamamagitan ng
a. patuloy na pagsabi ng "I LOVE YOU" at ito ay ipadama at ipakita
b. paghalik at pagyakap
c. maalalahanin sa kaarawan, anibersaryo
d. maging maunawain

6. Kung ang asawa ay umuwi ng "late":
a. tanggapin ang kanyang rason
b. tanungin kung bakit
c. awayin

7. Ang pagseselos ay tanda ng:
a. pagmamahal
b. walang tiwala
c. batang isip (bata pa ako)
d. may kinatatakutan baka may ____

8. Ang inaasahan ko sa asawa ko bilang lalaki/ babae:
a. ituring ako bilang asawa na kasama nya sa hirap at ginhawa
b. mahalin, irespeto kahit sino man ako
c. isama nya ako sa kanyang mga plano sa buhay
d. tanggapin nya ang kahinaan ko

That's enough for now.. more to come.. That's just the first section. Here's a preview of the next sections:

II. Pera at Pagbudget
III. Inaasahan sa Biyenan
IV. Inaasahan sa Pagpapalaki ng Anak
V. Inaasahan sa Relihiyon/ Pananampalataya
VI. Inaasahan sa Sex
VII. Ang kasal ba ay...

I tell you nkaka aliw mag sagot! :-)

bermuda preps naman

2005-06-15T02:59:00.000-04:00

Araw ng Kagitingan

i spent the long weekend shopping for things to bring to Bermuda. was lucky enough to meet MEG! Meg is a local brand of blouses which i hounded on Saturday and Sunday. long sleeve tops are 3 for P 1,000 only! really a good deal, especially since i needed a lot.

oh well. suffice it to say that Saturday and Sunday mornings were spent at Greenhills and afternoons in Megamall. oh, we had additional itinerary last Sunday, with verna, tata and ken in tow, we also went to Robinson's Galleria.. whew!

now, i'm sooo poor!!!

Guts

i tendered my resignation yesterday, even without my Work Permit. huhuuu.. i hope i won't have any problems with the Immigration and the POEA.

Spreading the Word

all my relatives know i'm leaving soon... actually, they know more than that.

i wish a certain person would respect my privacy. i wish she gave consideration to what i would feel, to what is proper, what is confidential. i wish she would think before shooting her mouth off. why is she making my life difficult. sometimes i really really hate her, i wish her gone. or that i was gone.

there are a lot of things i'm mad about right now and not just her.

i wish people would be considerate enough to see that i'm leaving to work for my future, not for their needs. i wish they gave thought to what they'd need before entering something, that they stop expecting help from others and stand on their own feet. not that i'm being selfish. i just hate it that they "depend" and "expect"...

oh, and i hate people suddenly wanting to meet up just because i'm leaving when they couldn't care less ordinarily.. when they couldn't find time before.

i wish they didn't know. i wish i just went my way.

flying soon

2005-06-09T20:38:00.000-04:00

i've been regularly communicating with Marcia regarding my new Job in Bermuda. just this morning, she replied to one of my queries saying that they, or rather we are expecting to hear from Immigration in a week for the temporary work permit. she also said that i should start making other arrangements (POEA, etc) so that i can begin work as scheduled (July 4).

it seems i have 3 weeks here.

3 weeks to do the following:

- buy luggage
- & luggage contents (suits, dress shirts, office shoes, casual shoes, bags, TOILETRIES)
- seek advice at City Hall on how to proceed about our wedding plans & meet church requirements
- meet up potential suppliers (florist, invites, souvenirs) for easier decision making
- gown fitting with cecil
- decide with olie who to get for entourage gowns

- hahaha. nahuli pa. tender resignation here at the office

- oh and pay a visit to desired principal sponsors
- & say my goodbyes.

- hehehe. attend pa nga pla the livechat later... and a bday party after it.

----------------------------------

just want to thank those who have supported & helped me in this endeavor :
- imee, who opened the door
- joseph, ellen, che, maleen, elisa, ms. yang and ms. vima for their patience and well wishes
- glo, data, nette, aggie & marj for their "words of wisdom" & entertaining company
- marie & mia for answering all my queries..
- leslie, pia, cata, monet, angie, layah, cynch, faye, anne, mhay, alma & all the w@wies & n@wies who have wished me the best in this adventure

andrama noh, di pa nga nakakaalis!

hehe. i just remembered. di pa alam ng mga SGV friends na i'm leaving this soon. next week ko na lang sabihan. pag may work permit na.

pati ISACA Board pala.. kasi i'll be resigning na. patay.

hehe. muntik ko na malimot: si olie. thank you din syempre. for being you. hehehe. (di pa naalis nakakalimutan na si olie! anu ba yan???)

5Qs

2005-06-07T23:08:00.000-04:00

Pia's questions, my answers..

1. what is your definition of commitment?

regardless of the situation, i will stand by my word.

2. how do you drink your coffee/tea?

hot coffee - with creamer and a bit of sugar... best taken with a slice of chocolate cake.
hot tea - i have yet to appreciate its taste

3. what cosmetic procedure do you secretly want done?

none. i'm such a sissy girl :-P

4. what's the gutsiest and scariest thing you've ever done?

haven't done yet, but soon will. to move out to Bermuda.

5. would you rather be a smart girl with poor fashion sense, or a fashionista/party icon with an IQ of an ostrich -- and why?

be the smart girl.. and get a fashion adviser! :-)

-------------------------------------------
Here are The Official Interview Game Rules:

1. If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying “interview me.”
2. I will respond by asking you five questions - each person’s will be different.
3. You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.If you don’t have a blog, I will still ask you 5 unique questions and you can post your answers here.

a place to look forward to

2005-06-06T04:11:00.000-04:00

seeing that i'm moving to Bermuda soon, i'm doing a lot of research on the place - accomodations, transportation, banking, basic commodities, standard of living....

and i came across loads of pic of the place where i will soon be based.

the wonderful beaches.. clear water.. fine sand... everything on photo seems heavenly.. it would have been paradise for me, if only olie was coming with with me.

and more peaceful streets..

the worrier that i am

2005-06-05T21:57:00.000-04:00

just when i thought all is going well..

i hate not knowing.

right now, there are only 2 things on my mind: my reference letters and our wedding.

i am really and truly accepted already by the company in Bermuda. (they tentatively booked me in a hotel there for july 1 and my calling cards were already ordered ) now, the problem is the Work Permit. i just need to submit the reference letters and it will be processed.

haay. the thing is, i can't really hurry the people i requested to make the letters.. so i have to be patient... and i'm really not.

now, with regards to the wedding..

wedding date: 18 feb 2006

marriage license should be submitted before: 29 Jan 2006
Wedding banns : (3 sundays before the wedding day - 29 Jan, 5 Feb, 12 Feb)

marriage license should be on hand by: 27 Jan 2006
processing of marriage license is 10 days

marriage license application be done on: 15 Jan 2006 AT THE LATEST.

how are we going to comply with the physical presence requirement when i'm in Bermuda???

matutuloy pa kaya wedding namin on february???

:-(

it was Exactly ONE YEAR ago Today....

2005-05-31T04:40:00.000-04:00

Our First Date. Monday. We watched All My Life (Kristine Hermosa and Aga Muhlach).

kwento muna..

Friday was the opening of the Bowling tournament in the company. Since his division and ours have fewer members than those of the other divisions, we were grouped together under the Mixed Team.

Monday, syempre kwentuhan about the opening. He was one of the best players in the company. Nagka chikahan sa phone.. then we ended up going out.

Ako pa nga ata ang nag invite! oh well. the invite was made purely in the spirit of fun.

well, after that, Monday became our movie day.. we just kept on going out.. and here we are now. on our way to the rest of our lives... :-)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

i will be going to Bermuda as soon as my Work Permit comes through, sometime this june/ july.

i will be leaving Olie here in the Philippines.

i don't know if our wedding plans will push through as planned. (but that's my first agenda when i get to my employer.. to ask if i can take a leave, even for just the week of the wedding..)

but i will marry Olie.. it may not happen on the 18th of February 2006.. but someday... as God has planned it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

to olie, a hallmark card that says:

A small wedding
in the wild meadow
will be enough
if you are there with me.

but i am still leaving. hahaha..

coz Olie will joining me on the Pink Beach as soon as he can!!!

and you know, it may be enough for me.. but we still have to think of our future kids' future.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

bebe, i love you.

To the isle of Pink Beaches

2005-05-30T21:40:00.000-04:00

What's keeping me busy lately was my application to Bermuda and I was accepted!! I will be working in Bermuda soon.. as soon as my Work Permit is issued. :-)

Q - Where is Bermuda?
A - Bermuda is about 600 miles east of North Carolina.

Q - How big is Bermuda?
A - Bermuda is approximately 22 square miles in area.

Q - What is the highest point in Bermuda?
A - Town Hill is approximately 250 feet above sea level.

Q - Is Bermuda one Island?
A - Bermuda consists of about 138 coral islands and islets.

Q - What is the capital of Bermuda?
A - The City of Hamilton is the capital of Bermuda.

Q - What are the names of Bermuda's Parishes?
A - Devonshire, Hamilton, Paget, Pembroke, Saint George's, Sandys (pronounced Sands), Smith's, Southampton and Warwick.

Getting to Bermuda

Although this fish-hook-shaped island is a mere dot on the map, it is accessible via direct flights from London (seven hours flying time), Boston (under two hours), New York (under two hours), Toronto (just over two hours), Chicago (three hours), Philadelphia (two hours) and Baltimore, Washington, Charlotte, Atlanta, Orlando and Fort Lauderdale in just over two hours. (from http://www.bermuda.com/aboutbermuda/geography/)

And very beautiful SUNSETS...

Munting Buhangin

2005-05-25T04:46:00.000-04:00

finally, we were able to get away from the City last sunday.. here i am typing, with my nose peeling off, my shoulders and back stinging from the sun burn we got as souvenirs of our beach trip.

look at the view.. it was really nice.

and here we are...

dinner was at leslie's tagaytay

tet hagape and write impression

2005-05-25T04:37:00.000-04:00

tet hagape

we met with tet hagape last saturday. ok naman. mura talga ang rates nya. on designs naman, i picked some designs from the magazines i have before going there so not much consultation on that regard. i chose simple designs with mostly ribbons or sashes as embellishments.

i'd like to consult first with cecilio abad before finalizing anything with tet. maybe tonight.

write impression

they have a lot of designs to choose from and can even customize designs. i found them a tad expensive but i dont have any other printers to compare their rate yet. i'll be checking out the others - Amis, Unifair and Printed Matter to get a better idea.

someone else's wedding

2005-05-13T23:50:00.000-04:00

we attended the wedding of Joy and Ivy, Olie's friend last Sunday.

Here's a shot of the altar of Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Kawit Cavite..

It had an open garden feel to the Church. a closer look..

now the Bride..

walking down the aisle..

the flower girls..

and the Newlyweds kissing..

a shot of the bride during the reception at Park Place Clubhouse, Imus Cavite

and the groom taking a BIG bite..

the couple enjoying the reception

more than a bride

2005-05-11T01:00:00.000-04:00

havent posted in a while.

got no wedprep update.

stopped being a bride. at least for a while. busy with other stuff. tamad with wedding stuff.. hahaha.

---------------------

i was having lunch with olie kanina. sumunod lang sya from the office. i was early coz i came from an exam. it was a wonderful feeling talga.. na nka set na yun food and yun drinks nya. tapos pag upo nya ok na. parang iba lang. :-)

---------------------

health update: got no stones in the gall bladder pala.

---------------------

been busy flunking exams.. im still crossing my fingers. definitely hindi syento yun. goal ko pa naman but i was too busy and tamad to study over the weekend. hmmm..

---------------------

more than a bride. i am also an employee. but here i am acting like a child. i haven't been performing. i'm always absent.

when will i grow up? :-(

am sure my boss is waiting...

unwanted :-(

2005-05-06T03:28:00.000-04:00

i've been feelin depressed and sad lately, sulking from the way olie has been treating me. IMO, things should be different.

but now, we have other concerns.

i consulted with our company physician.. i have to have an ultrasound of the liver, gall bladder area.. i do hope its nothing serious. i wish the pain would go away with just the help of pain relievers.

there are times i wish i were dead. or just gone. be not in a certain situation.

i've never thought i'd have a health problem.

i know that there are a lot of things i want to do and sometimes i feel hopeless.. that i will never get to do them in this lifetime.

i'm so glad i visited aggie's site.. i came across a website which can help me define and even achieve the things i want to do.. i do thank the person behind the 43 things site..

i hope i get to do each on my list.. something to look forward to each day.

~ wanting ~

2005-05-04T01:37:00.000-04:00

desirable
1 : having pleasing qualities or properties

desire
1 : to long or hope for : exhibit or feel desire for

want
1 : to be needy or destitute
2 : to have or feel need
3 : to be necessary or needed

crave
1 : to ask for earnestly
2 : to want greatly
3 : to yearn for

passion
1 : EMOTION the emotions as distinguished from reason
2 : intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction
3 : ardent affection :
4 : a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept
5 : sexual desire
6 : an object of desire or deep interest

fervor
1 : intensity of feeling or expression
2 : intense heat

ardor
1 : an often restless or transitory warmth of feeling
2 : extreme vigor or energy
3 : sexual excitement

enthusiasm
1 : strong excitement of feeling
2 : something inspiring zeal or fervor

a looooong break ending with a splash :-)

2005-05-03T03:28:00.000-04:00

i'm back after a 5 day break ( i was on leave thurs and fri.. and monday was declared a holiday). met up with some w@wies last thursday (wella, toni and yna) and booked kix tavora as our backup photographer.

highlight of the weekend, na sing haba ng ordinary work week... we went to splash island on monday.. check out these pics --->

i wish i captured h2b's face when he saw me in my "costume". it wasn't really mahalay but i guess he was shocked just the same. hahaha. he kept asking me where my sando was to cover up my top. :-) nkakatawa pa, sya yun ayaw mag tanggal ng sando nya.. hehehe. demure or just plain shy???

reflections made: none. hehehe. relax lang. :-)

HOT SEAT

2005-04-26T21:09:00.000-04:00

had to go to a wake last night with some officemates. the son of one of our workmates drowned. the wake was at the church in the next village from our place...

however, that is not the highlight of the night. at least not for me. call me insensitive or whatever but we (olie and i) were "interrogated" by our big boss.

.. we were talking in 3 small groups when suddenly it turned to be 1 big group composed of the big boss, our evp, 2 vps, 1 avp and 4 managers.. the interrogation started like:

boss: may asawa ka na?
me: no. wala pa po.
manager1: bf ho meron, si olie (sabay turo kay olie who was in the other small group)

boss: mabait ba?
me: huh? (im not used to being asked this question coz most of the people i met in the company knows olie is really mabait. i thought the question weird and that maybe ako yun tinatanong kung mabait ako..)
boss: mabait?
me: opo.

boss: ilan taon ka na?
me: 26...po.
boss: eh si olie?
me: 33.
boss: kung ako nga ok pa kahit 20 yrs ang agwat... hmm.. 7 yrs.. pwede na.

about this time, olie transferred to the seat beside me.. topic was changed but...bumalik pa din.

boss: so anu? may balak na kayo?
me: (pointed to olie)
it now turned into 1 big group with my immediate boss eagerly awaiting our response. (refer to 2 posts earlier so that you'd understand why we are reacting this way)
olie: (wipes his face.. profusing with sweat..) (thinking: uh-oh! HOTSEAT!!) na ano ho?
boss: pakasal. kelan ba?
avp: (butts in..) grace is asking nga kung pwede na itong church na ito eh..
boss: (persistent!) to olie pa din: kelan ba? this year ba?
olie: hindi po.
boss: naku yun anak ko, the one in abroad.. prepared for the wedding a year and a half in advance.
avp: eh pag sa manila cathedral dito ganyan din.
boss: (kay olie ulet!) so may plano na kayo? kelan ba?

i couldn't look at anyone to their face. i let olie answer the questions. the other officers are awaiting his response.

boss: 2006?
olie: (finally answers...) SECRET!.... malalaman nyo na lang ho. sasabihan ko kayo.

soon enough it was time to leave. buti na lang. i felt hot in the face all this time. grabe. super duper HOT SEAT. olie was trying to wipe of his sweat.

isip pa nga namin, since magkakasama sila pauwi, baka topic pa din kami. hahahaay.. we wouldn't be there to make a stand.

--------

syempre early this morning, kantyawan dito sa office. ninang na daw namin si bossing.. shucks.

--------

olie said its not as if we planned on inviting them. (we might end up inviting them, after all. )

solo flight

2005-04-26T01:18:00.000-04:00

i feel like being alone. just for a while.

there are a lot of things in my mind.. a lot that irritate me, worry me.

--- we still haven't finalized our contract with the photographer

--- i was looking forward to some quiet, quality time with h2b this weekend at a beach. any beach. tapos ngayon, mukhang nasira na plans.

--- with much regret, i've decided to discontinue my mba at la salle. financial reasons.

--- after the wedding, then what?

sometimes pati sa kasal napapaisip ako. kung handa na ba talga ako. i better be.

maybe i should get a time out. spend a day alone. but where will i go to do that? haay. gusto ko na naman mag leave.

i feel pressured by my responsibilities. i have lots of work to do yet i do not want to attend to any of it at all. not right now.

sometimes i just want to shout and give it all up... i feel so tired. i want to be carefree again. even if just for a while.

hiding

2005-04-25T05:19:00.000-04:00

why is it that we aren't telling anyone that we are getting married? anyone in our office, that is.

i wonder what are we afraid of.

sometimes i just want to shout it out, that yes, we are getting married. yes! we are lucky to have found each other! yes, i truly love him! yes, i'm spending the rest of my life with him...

why do i have to hide my excitement? why do i hide my wedding paraphernalia even during lunch breaks or after office hours?

its soo hard. sometimes, i feel like bursting with a good news, a milestone in our preps and i have to keep it to myself, share it to fellow w@wies or just blog it.

i'm truly grateful to be a part of w@w.

sometimes i really hate it here. most of the time it just sucks. sometimes, the times when i hate it, it feels like hell. am soo looking forward to God's plans for me. :-)

a while back, my boss jokingly said that if we have any plans of getting married, we better start counting 2 years from that day.. so my officemates were kidding me that it was part of my contract when i was hired. actually, its been a constant topic, joke, hirit, whatever.

its just a joke, a half meant one.

i wonder how the news of me getting married will change my career path here. :-(

the thing is, i really resent the fact that they feel i have to tell them 2 yrs in advance. it really makes me mad! i know i shouldn't let myself be affected, but i see these people everyday. and remembering the things said is so easy. during my happiest moments when i accomplish something for our wedding, a part of me remembers and resents them for those things.

sometimes, i just feel so tired that i want to tell them to their face, "oh, didn't you know? we got married already. i just didn't invite you. why? obviously, i didn't want you there". truly, i don't want them there. hahaha (that's actually 14 off the list!)

i agree with what i read somewhere. forgive me coz i forgot where exactly. that if the meal is at 500 pesos per head, would i really be willing to spend 14 x 500 = 7,000 pesos to feed these people, like a treat/ libre? eew! just thinking about it makes me feel like hitting myself for even considering it. hahaha. now that settles it. am sure olie will be happy to know, we just reduced the guests by 14.

just a concern though. i might have to resign coz they might not be talking to me after the wedding, and even before it, as soon as they find out i didn't invite them.

oh well, its my wedding. i'll just look for other employment. hehehe

------------

i wonder how olie feels. :-( maybe he doesn't want to tell people yet. that leaves me.. i dunno. i guess i have to respect his feelings as well.

outing kuno

2005-04-25T00:40:00.000-04:00

after a really boring weekend... it was so boring i can't even remember where we were last saturday. sunday we were at powerplant window shopping.. where i saw really cute table napkins!!! here are some designs from their website, some of which i saw at the mall:

oooh.. and they also have toilet paper..i plan to purchase some.. in line with my theme.

olie wanted to watch a movie but it was soo cold.. so we didn't.

ookeeyy.. olie just reminded me that we were at Glorietta last saturday. dunno why. hahaha. oh well.

anyway, i'm really lookin forward to this coming saturday.. yep, finally we are heading to a beach.. albeit a nearby one.. cheap kasi namin. Munting Buhangin in Nasugbu lang. well, what the hell. in this heat, anywhere with clean water is ok.. anywhere outside of the metro is great.

so for this week, im on a strict diet.. asus. chika! hahahaha.

checklist for our beach day:

---- sunblock
---- banig/ sarong
---- beach/ golf umbrella (hahaha)
---- camera AND tripod (note to self: charge the battery on Friday)
---- swimwear!!! (uhmm bootylicious!)

share ko lang

2005-04-22T03:38:00.000-04:00

tears

2005-04-21T05:21:00.000-04:00

and the tears fell. i don't know why. i was reading an email from a person i met just once...

i'm glad that things got sorted out between us. i feel that despite our misunderstanding, we understood each other better now. and respect each other's ways and preferences.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

my laptop keeps getting the NIMDA virus.. its been like this for weeks!!! Grr...

i can't focus on my work.. or my chat.. or my blog coz the Trend Micro Scan keeps popping up the screen identifying thousands of supposedly virus-infected files..

well, i don't really expect much from our IT people.. i mean, come on! they've been sending OJTs to run programs that should cure my laptop but i've been to these trainee doctors X number of times.. i've run their anti-NIMDA program XX number of times! and every morning when i open my computer, the number of virus-infected files keeps getting bigger.

i've learned to ignore the disturbing screen this week.. reducing my time for work, or chatting, or blogging to half.

uhh.. and more on OJTs.. each time the OJT visits me, they always ask me how long i've been here or which department was i assigned to before. then they ask me where did i work before. and how long. at this rate, i get irritated. and a bit flattered siguro?!? feeling kasi ako. feeling ko they see me as new employee, na tipong rank and file. maybe i look young for my age. and i am pretty sure i am too young for this position, but what the heck. my ego is hurt!(it is that mababaw. eh panu naman istorbo sa work, chat at blog noh. and they can't seem to fix whatever it is that's wrong.)

hehehe. nonsense stuff. just blabbing.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

i'm thinking of going into business. sometime. 8 to 5 work is boring. hehehe. maybe an opportunity to do so just opened today.

we'll see.

checkpoint (i'm smiling!)

2005-04-20T01:17:00.000-04:00

great news:

i was able to book Cecilio Abad yesterday for my bridal gown! (another item off the list!!!) hahaha. si h2b tuwa sa mga comment ni Cecil.. true! kahit ako naaliw. everytime we leave his shop (its our 3rd visit, btw) we end up saying "chuva", "yezz", etc. i like him. i was a bit of a confused bride when i first met him, a weird and undecided one the second time and now this. finally we understood each other. :-) we came up with a new design which we both loved. i was measured. and we have a schedule for the first fitting already.

a +++ of our visit: i saw someone fitting her gown. it was really really nice. :-)

i guess i better start shedding those inches. ugh! ok na sana when he said maintain na lang ako.. i couldn't imagine the measurement he got from my waist = 25.5!!! heller??? im i really??? binobola ata ako ni cecil.. hehehe. :-) napaisip tuloy ako. bka naman pag suot ko di na ako mkahinga. and MAKAKAIN. and he further added na better if i can make it into a 24!!! 24??? i was still in Grade 6 when i last had a 24-inch waistline. hehehe. oh well. even without him telling me, i would love to be sexiER (kasi sexy na ngayon!) for my h2b. if there's an exercise that would help me grow my booblets into full-blown boobies, i'd do it. vain ko talga.

maybe some would be offended by such a comment but i wasn't. After all, it is my choice to lose or gain weight. and Cecil's job is to make a gown that fits me and not somebody else. additional advices such as getting rid of an inch is very much appreciated, knowing he gives it to help me look my best, plus it was delivered/ worded nicely.

i don't mind his comments because i know no matter what my waistline is, i'll be pretty in my Cecil Abad gown on my wedding!!! hehehe. ganyan ang bride! go! go! go!

with exactly 9 months, 4 weeks and 1 day to go, here's the list of our accomplishments..

church - paid dp
reception venue - paid dp
caterer - booked
flowers - paid dp

rings - ok
arrhae - ok

photo - paid dp
video - paid dp

bridal gown - paid booking fee
hmua - paid dp

otd - paid dp

(andami na noh! hehe. excited ako eh.
no actually, im the type of person who can't relax until something is finalized..
and then i look for the next thing to finalize..
a relentless cycle.

i wanted to buy the embosser for the envelope na nga yesterday after booking cecil eh.
mauna pa yun embosser sa invite! hahaha.
buti pinigilan ako ni h2b)

other major stuff to take care off are as follows (ordered chronologically):

souvenirs
church and legal requirements
entourage gowns
barongs
invites
honeymoon

misallete - ready for printing
bible

we'll probably buy the necessary items for our souvenir around the 3rd week of may (after our exams and before the rainy season, hopefully).

then finalize menu and other details with the reception/ caterer.

meet and formally inform our principal sponsors.

arrange for a couturier to do my entourage gowns.

pick, order, calligraph and deliver invites.

make arrangements for the honeymoon and our lovenest.

and voila! relax and get prettified!!! o, di ba so easy....

looking up

2005-04-19T02:48:00.000-04:00

i soo love the color of this gumamela flower.. it is of the exact shades that i want for my entourage gowns.. :-)

yesterday i found out that something that i wanted and i was sure that i have was not meant to be mine. had a bit of a cry, sigh, sniff and silence.

oh well.

today i move on. no sense delaying it, after all.

in our search for a souvenir idea, we came across some great finds:

<--- ups and downs --->

2005-04-18T04:29:00.000-04:00

i am so happy to get our wedding ring. we weren't expecting it until mid-May but we got it last Saturday from Alain and Mye of Matus. i love our rings so much i want to wear it already.. hehehe. oh well, here's a pic of our W-Ring..

we want to wear similar rings. since i already have my dream ring (eternity).. i'd have to place any other stones elsewhere.. hehehe.

aside from that, the rings with stones that look nice on me doesn't look good on him and vice versa.

only this design fits us both. :-)
---------------

just as i was hyper and giddy-happy over the weekend, todya i'm a bit disappointed. i miss having someone to talk to. aside from olie. i miss having a girl friend, especially during the times when i know only a fellow girl would understand.

kung anu ano

2005-04-12T03:40:00.000-04:00

proposals

i posted my thoughts on proposal before but somehow it got lost in the upload process. well, just to react to a w@wie topic, i must say that a well prepared proposal is always appreciated but somehow taken forgranted. we've come to expect the movie-way of doing it. each guy has his own way of expressing himself. :-) what is essential is the sincerity of the person. sometimes a proposal that comes as a burst of emotion.. like on that instant he felt that he loves you so much he wanted to marry you and he can't help himself but tell you so is just as sweet (IMO).

great great news!

my college buddy/ friend Ellen Grace Lamanilao passed the Bar Exam!! cheers and congratulations!

and more great news: she is part of my entourage... and she is also getting married!!!!

katampuhan

got nothin nice to say. better not blog it. coz i might remember it always. :-P

sad news :-(

chie's dad died last thursday. we were able to pay our respects last sunday.

too many deaths it seems. just the week before, tito mon's father died as well. it was then that i found out my relation to ron miras... he would be an uncle-in-law of mine. hahahaha.

and just last night, mom is asking me to drive her to another wake this week.

wed prep update

we were able to look around at Divisoria for some samples of handpainted gowns. it was then that i realized that i don't really want a handpainted one. nor do i want a gown filled with beads and embellishment. i just want elegance and a certain style - my style... whatever that is.

crazy moments

been a bit more crazy than usual this weekend. was cranky to friends. sullen. dull. sad. depressed. impatient. hot tempered.

work, friends, family, wedpreps.. i found something wanting in everything. time for me to chill out and count my blessings.

smile! smile! smile!

thank you for olie - who always manages to make me smile.

compromise

2005-04-06T22:21:00.000-04:00

haven't blogged in a while. couldn't find the time to gather my thoughts. im always chatting with new found chikamates, friends, teachers, advisers at kung anu ano pa, reading w@w emails, searching for gown designs, nice bouquet setups on the web.

i'm kind of settled na with some aspects of the design of my gown. it seems that this week, yan ang bukang bibig ko - gown design and designer. i even dream of my wedding march, focusing particularly on how my gown flows like a cloud or mist about me. :-)

the value of a gown - i have thought a lot about this (in fact, its the only thing on my mind whatever it is that im doing). cguro nga if i was asked to speak on any topic, i'd blurt out stuff/ thoughts that revolve on my gown. call it obsession or paranoia.. whatever. just like most brides, i want to be at my best on my wedding day - the prettiest i can be, the most beautiful look i will have my whole life. the wedding gown would most probably be the most beautiful piece of clothing that i'll ever own (and probably the most expensive, too!) i guess since this is the only opportunity i'll have to wear a bonggaceous gown and be 'THE' star of the show (di kasi nakapag debut eh..) gusto ko sana BUHOS. but i have to face it - i have to be practical as well. just as kahit in my memory lang i want to be "THE" star, there is life after it.

sabi ni h2b, wag ko daw tipidin sarili ko for gown. (hanggang magkano kaya yun hindi tipidin???)

i guess compromise is the word. that is what wedpreps has taught me. for some, cguro there are things that they really really want for their wedding (after all, once in a lifetime lang nga sya..) kumbaga, make your DREAM WEDDING into a REALITY... but when i think of what REALLY matters.. compromise comes easy na.

---------------------------------------------

the basketball tournament in our company has been ongoing for the past few weeks. our team, who have the impression (and the track record) of being the weakest just won last night. they are not the tallest, in fact maliliit pa most of them. they can't jump high. they are not as maliksi as the players of the other team. and some of them are 40+ yrs old na. but they won. i guess passion and desire and of course, teamwork prevailed. its their first win in the 6 or 7 games they played. and i'm very proud and happy for them. :-)

my busy bz boy

2005-03-31T21:02:00.000-04:00

since jojie's resignation (his boss), olie's workload increased steadily. if before i can call him just to blurt out a random thought, now i can't. he is contantly in meetings, preparing reports, talking to people.

yesterday, he was so busy that he came for me for lunch at past 12 already (our lunch break is 12 to 1). he spent most of the morning at the office of our EVP finalizing stuff. he didn't even have time for snack. i only get to see him when he meets with the accounting and budget people who are on the same floor as i am. even then, i don't even know that he is in the area until after his meeting and he passes by my cube.

he said we are to go out last night. but he worked tirelessly till half past 6. tapos inaway ko pa. coz i thought he forgot :-P.

anyway, we still got to watch Ms. Congeniality 2, although i offered to let him off. i asked him not to see me home seeing how tired he was and he has reporting the following day to the owner of the company but he persisted.

one really admirable trait of his - he daily sees me home.. we work in makati, his trip home is to Pasig via San Pedro Laguna. i love him for that. a really rare treasure, that's what he is.

--------------------------------------

this week, olie's basketball schedule was MWF. we'll be going home late tonight, again. kasi naman 2nd game pa sila.

i am looking forward to this weekend's activities:
Saturday: company outing to Los Banos (we'll probably die of boredom and spend the whole day playing billiards)
Sunday: meet Matus, Cecil and Veluz. :-) sana dito na mag end yun couturier hunt ko.

wedding in my mind

2005-03-30T03:49:00.000-04:00

Reminiscin..

when i started the wedpreps, everytime olie asks me about the wedding, i shut up. i don't know what to say. getting married wasn't really in my plans.. don't ask me why. i really don't know.

some people know what they want for their dream wedding, they have visions of how it would be like. i didn't. which made it harder and easier in different ways.

it was harder to pick when you are given loads of choices. it was easier to limit your choices to those which are within budget.

this early though, i'd say we didn't stick to our budget. i had a certain total in mind but the breakdown doesn't add up to it. haha!

first thing we bought for the wedding was the Unity Coins for fear of not getting one if we defer buying it later.

wedding fairs, xmas tiangge and the w@wie xmas party raffles..

we started attending bridal fairs about september last year.. and we keept winning in the raffle in all the fairs:

to summarize our winnings: 2 (not 1 but two) 2D1N accomodations at Pearl of the Pacific in Boracay, 50% the rate for succeeding nights, 4D3N accomodation at Palawan (i forgot na where), accomodation at Subic Days Hotel, a gift set of trays, discount coupon, prenup with Eddie Boy Escudero, Sara Lee gift set, prenup with Decisive Moments..

church: SOJ

olie wanted Caleruega.. but i liked Chapel on the Hill. and then the issue of convenience to us, our guests and suppliers came to mind. for sure i didn't want to get wed in Pampanga (my family's province) nor at the church near our place in Chrysanthemum.
initially, we set it at Manila Cathedral. but when we went to see the Cathedral, San Agustin and Shrine of Jesus.. we picked Shrine of Jesus. Manila Cathedral's aisle is sooo long, i would most probably feel tamad to continue walking in the midst of my procession and go back to the car. San Agustin has tombstone as its flooring. i couldn't imagine myself stepping on them. i'd freeze at the door. hence Shrine of Jesus. another thing we liked about SOJ is that its new.. (we are not really into the old world sort of thing)

we started asking about the availability of schedule of 17 September 2005 (our original wedding date) about late last year. of course it is available since the date is in the off-peak season.

we asked again in january, really intending to move it from September to November. we felt that 9 months is too short, seeing that we haven't really made any progress or informed anyone. we wanted a Saturday 330 pm slot. all slots for November, December and January were booked. hence, we have 18 February 2006 for a wed date. a plus thing is that it is a saturday with the number 8 (infinity symbol? lucky?)

reception venue: Villa Imaculada

i soo wanted to get Coconut Palace but after adding all the charges for the venue to be workable, it wasn't acceptable. after all, i would have to get an event stylist pa after all the charges to arrange the place.

we looked at Westin, Manila Hotel, Diamond Hotel. my second choice was Heritage Hotel's grand ballroom. but the only request my parents' made was not to have it in a Hotel since most hotel food are bland and leaves the guest still hungry after all the courses.

so we looked for venues near SOJ:
Pope John Paul 2 Youth Center (under SOJ) - ayaw ko ng underground
Heritage, Diamond - ayaw ng parents ko ng Hotel
Ramon Magsaysay - nku akala talga namin eto na.. shucks.. naalala ko excited na excited kami to see the venue on a saturday morning. we even brought a camera to take a picture.. when we got there... tawa kami ng tawa.. parang.. eto na ba yun???? shocks. sa sobrang ka ewanan.. tumawa na lang kami ng tumawa.. the place was even half setup already for an affair that afternoon. i didn't want to take a picture as evidence that we even considered the place. what we didn't like, specifically, was the brown wooden walls and brown ceiling.. it reminded us both of old libraries.. the lighting fixture wasn't so pretty as well. (ngayon regret ko, i didn't take a picture of "what could have been". hahaha)

no choice. we have to go to either the Intramuros area or Makati area.
Makati - we heard of the Filipinas Heritage Library and Kasalikasan.
Intramuros talaga naman maraming venues dito.
Teatrillo is really out of the question - another underground venue. (side kwento: after booking Villa Imaculada, i showed the place to olie who hasn't been there before. we haven't been inside the actual venue, just at the doorway for about 2 minutes and i felt his clammy hands and cold sweat! haha. na suffocate!)
we also went to Father Blanco's garden, Patio Victoria, Ilustrado..
as time passes by, we both realized we are not really an OC couple who are into details (at least not yet then). i wanted an indoor venue so that i wouldn't have to worry about the rain, lighting, decor so much. hence Villa Imaculada. :-)

video: Threelogy

our first supplier booked. after seeing their w@w xmas party video, olie contacted them and pencilbooked them for our 17 September 2005 wedding (which was moved to 18 February 2006). sidekwento: bakit 18feb2006? special ba? anniv or something? we answered: no. yun kasi un available na date eh.. hahaha.. walang kasweetan!

Right now, our standing is as follows:

Church - SOJ (inclusions: carpet, soloist, pianist, priest)
Venue - Villa Imaculada
Caterer - Tamayo's (inclusions: centerpiece, cake, car, signature frame)
Photo - Ritchie Pingol
Video - Threelogy (includes AVP)
Arrhae - Unity Coins
Rings - Matus
Coord - You're Invited
HMUA - Eddie Bruan
Ento Flowers - Mang Boy Mahusay

and im looking for a couturier.

i had a hard time picturing my wedding.. but slowly, things are becoming clearer. i know what i don't want.. i look hard to find what i want.

now, i know, i want pink roses everywhere. i'd love to have a violinist or string quartet or instrumentalist in my reception, playing the theme from the An Affair to Remember for our first dance.. i imagine pledging my life, my love to him.

when i read the wedding kwentos, i somewhat feel what they feel. i feel happy for them. and excited for me.

now i can imagine myself, walking towards the man i love.

i can't wait until its my turn.

Holy Week entry

2005-03-30T01:33:00.000-04:00

it was abstinence from blogging, checking w@wie mails that i did this in this year's Holy Week.

thursday was spent at home. resting. olie was at our house. we had our own visita iglesia that night with mama.. just around the nearby villages.

fri we went to pampanga - mama, olie and me. i drove. we went to san matias, san fernando, mabalacat, angeles, bacolor.. etc.

highlight: olie met my relatives. i was able to inform them, informally of our wedding plans.

here are some pics from my 2005 Holy Week

some gowns i like

2005-03-24T01:55:00.000-04:00

i can't help but post the gowns i like here.. bka when i see them next to each other i'd know which one ba talaga.

description: 2-piece organza, a-line, features multicolored emboridery on bodice and train

description: Deluxe satin gown w/Strapless, ‘V’ notched neckline. Dress is overlaid with bead encrusted lace. Satin is pleated to criss-cross at the waist front and back. Box-pleated, detachable, satin train is split at hem w/matching lace appliqués.

material: Ivory silk satin

material: Silk organza

i wonder which will fit me and my budget....

on my gown

2005-03-22T23:00:00.000-04:00

i've been deliberating on this most days... on what is a reasonable budget for my wedding gown.

once in a lifetime event - dapat buhos lahat ng kagandahan sa mundo
once lang isusuot - dapat di kamahalan
beads, embroidery, swarovski, rhinestones, lace, or really nice cut, cloth and no embellishment (less is more???)

the possible gown makers/ couturiers i've met are as follows:

Mrs. Leony Bautista, H14 cluster Divisoria
Cecilio Abad, Vito Cruz
Merlene Marcelo, Kamagong St.

i'll be meeting with a couple more before deciding:

Veluz Reyes, Las Pinas
April and Karen Yu

i've been searching the web for the perfect look i want, more diligently, paying more attention to the details, ever since i received the design from Merlene last monday. using the yahoo search engine, i was able to go through the following sites:

as you can see, a really thorough search was made. at night, also browsed through my magazines hoping to find the one true gown...

right now, i found 2 gowns i really like. but i have to show them first to the potential designers before posting here... baka kasi hindi bagay. :P

lani's wedding

2005-03-21T01:22:00.000-04:00

last sunday was lani's wedding. olie and i headed to Baliwag Bulacan.. here is one of the pic that olie got from the wedding..

i received Merlene's proposal and designs this morning.. i liked her designs.. we'll try to go over them this holy week.. maybe we'll get enlightened..

Cecil, Merlene & Data

2005-03-18T03:29:00.000-04:00

hindi po sila same category ha...

COUTURIERS: Cecilio Abad & Merlene Marcelo

last night, we went to check out these two couturiers. we didn't have a hard time looking for Cecil's shop thanks to Toni's help. i texted Cecil that we were coming but he wasn't there yet. while waiting, we browsed through pics of the gowns he made, and some almost finished entourage gowns on the rack. magaganda sila.. the ones on the rack are in fuschia pink and have beads. they are really pretty and were neatly done.

so we talked to him, he gave us the range of rates, asked me to stand and then he recommended a tube neckline for me, with about a foot for a train (since im just a little over 5 feet, so that i won't be lost in yards and yards of cloth). he then sketched the dress. the dress would be of duchess satin, with beads crawling from the left waist spreading upwards & downwards. i was not that impressed with the gown. but i guess that was because i didn't give him any idea of the type i want. oh well. but he really seemed to know what he is talking about. and pulido nga ang gawa nya..

after Cecil, we decided to drop by Merlene's shop na din since it is on our way to Makati. she was entertaining other clients when we got there so we had to wait pa din. when we were able to talk to her, she seemed nice although she seemed puyat (had eyebugs, no makeup - am not sure if this is her normal look). ok naman. i liked the fact that she offers not just beadwork but also embroidery. her sample artworks were really nice as well. i emailed some scanned pics of gowns i liked and she will be coming up with a proposed design and package for me.

am not sure who to pick. i like Merlene's better due to the embroidery. but well. there are costs to consider. we'll see.

a fellow w@wie.. a fellow 18 feb 2006 bride... another lover of Chapel on the Hill

i met data this morning. finally. hehehe. (took a half-fy day off from work) we were at McDo gbelt just to browse through mags, share ideas, etc. she has it all figured out - what she wants.. katuwa.. it really revolved around her concept/theme. saw some pics of her reception venue and ii got some ideas from her magazines and will try to look for a copy at the booksale shop at MCS later or maybe next week.

B2, D2, C2

2005-03-13T10:01:00.000-04:00

B& B : talk about sports! Basketball and Billiards... last Friday was the opening of the GPL basketball tournament for 2005..

after the game last friday (wherein we lost, but with pending protests), we played pool. lately that's what we've been doing. a sport that doesn't require changing of clothes, short nails and no sweat.

D & D : divisoria and dangwa.. saturday morning was spent at divisoria, looking for the popular Mrs. Bautista. Divisoria is not so bad. it was just like Greenhills. no street vendors. not so much crowd. but really cheap finds. we were able to see other bridal stores like mr. cesar orosco's and MVK before finally finding stall H-14 of Mrs. Bautista. she gave me an estimate of prices for some of the wedding gowns i liked in the magazines. i even met a fellow w@wie at her shop, rowena. i got to fit one of her ready-made gowns (the bust was too large, although it was in size Small). she was really nice and very accomodating. oh well, its still too early to finalize stuff with her..

in dangwa, we went to find mang boy mahusay. he gave us a good price for our entourage flowers. we were worried about parking along the main road but he sent someone to watch over the car while we talked to him. another item off our list. :-)

Going Overboard! as we were headed towards Festival Mall in Alabang (near home, but with aircon), i started teasing olie about his ex.. blah blah blah.. to make the long story short, i manage to irritate him enough for him to: (1) change the topic; (2) pretend to sleep; and finally (3) raise his voice in telling me to stop it. actually i had fun teasing him. (really, a no no.) im a bad girl. hehe.. so now we have a new acronym: SB. i know i really shouldn't.

C & C: Enlightenment on Sunday. we went to Tagaytay with the Actuarial people - Nancy, Melo, Erwin and Nelson. we went to Chapel on the Hill and Caleruega church, took lots of picture, heard mass, prayed. we met Lyndon, their former boss in the division at Caleruega.

we had lunch at Josephine's. after which we were very sleepy and tired from the heat so we decided to take up Lyndon's offer to play pool at the clubhouse of Tagaytay Royal Estates.

we had fun singing to sentimental songs.. "We've got tonight.. who needs tomorrow.. we've got tonight, baby.. why don't you stay"

quiz results

2005-03-10T03:46:00.000-04:00

am too tired to blog. no thoughts.. just plain sleepy. brain dead. i was reading Leslie's blog and i came across a site of quizzes.. so here are the results of my work for today :-P

What soul am I?

You Are a Visionary Soul

You are a curious person, always in a state of awareness.Connected to all things spiritual, you are very connect to your soul.You are wise and bright: able to reason and be reasonable.Occasionally, you get quite depressed and have dark feelings.
You have great vision and can be very insightful.In fact, you are often profound in a way that surprises yourself.Visionary souls like you can be the best type of friend.You are intuitive, understanding, sympathetic, and a good healer.
Souls you are most compatible with: Old Soul and Peacemaker Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

Am I left or right-brained?

You Are 60% Left Brained, 40% Right Brained

The left side of your brain controls verbal ability, attention to detail, and reasoning.
Left brained people are good at communication and persuading others.
If you're left brained, you are likely good at math and logic.
Your left brain prefers dogs, reading, and quiet.

The right side of your brain is all about creativity and flexibility.
Daring and intuitive, right brained people see the world in their unique way.
If you're right brained, you likely have a talent for creative writing and art.
Your right brain prefers day dreaming, philosophy, and sports.

Are You Right or Left Brained?

just thoughts on migration, etc

2005-03-09T02:49:00.000-04:00

i feel like im stuck in a dead end job, while everyone is leaving. ken for UK, elisa for the land down under - Australia. and while there are other people who are still here in the country, most of them have plans of migrating as well. somehow, i get pressured to also make my move.

just because i'm getting married doesn't mean that i'm putting my career and personal travel plans on hold. no no no. i wish they wouldn't think of it that way. maybe that's how they see marriage is.

my friends keep asking me if i'm really getting married.. if i'm getting married to him.. if i'm sure i want to get married to him.. if i love him. hahaha.. i always end up laughing in reply. do i look like i'm not sure? are they seeing things i'm not?

finally, a sis!

2005-03-06T22:54:00.000-04:00

i have the privilege of being a part of olie's family. last sunday, hinatid namin si ineh (olie's sister, eldest) sa airport. her papers are approved. she is moving to canada. Finally, she can be with her husband. but she will be badly missed (a definite UNDERSTATEMENT)

i cannot describe the feeling of seeing their family cry as she bade them each goodbye. i cannot describe what i felt when we told her to come home on january as she originally scheduled, for our wedding. i cannot erase the surprised look on her face when we told her our wedding date, that we have already booked the church. i will not forget how she welcomed me in her arms, in their family, and how she asked me to take care of her younger brother olie, make him happy and not make him cry.. she called me "sis". i've never had one.

Bookings during the Expo

2005-03-05T11:51:00.000-04:00

march 5, the Wed Expo

im kinda excited to begin the expo. we volunteered for the opening ceremony of the expo. that is somethin new to look forward to.

we got to have our pictures taken along with fellow w@wie inch & brian, dona & david and mr. & mrs (buddy) vs&f (since they own it!). dodjie was very nice to us, giving us tokens, and a brief tour of the tent.

btw, dada was also at the fair, with her brother and sis-in-law.

actually, i wasn't really into the whole fair-thingy anymore. i had my share of it. it was such a familiar place. so i planted myself at the w@w booth with john and benz helping by giving out the wedding primers. i was able to meet abie co, clarisse, toni and angie there.

Accomplishments:

Rings: we picked out a ring at Matus c/o Alain and paid our reservation. good thing we are w@wies - bigger discounts!

Coordinators: we met and signed contract with our coordinators - van, johana and nina - You're Invited over lunch at the old Dencio's place. ++ for my coords : we can use Nina's place at Ayala Alabang for prenup, she volunteered their Benz for our wedding car for free with a driver in uniform (just tip the driver!), they personally know Rhoda from Ysabelle (gown maker) which can mean great discounts!

Photography: and we finalized our package with Ritchie Pingol for photography.

Gown: i found the cloth i want to use for my wedding gown at one of the displays at the RTW booth. it was silk and organza in pearl color (i think!).

Raffle: we won a prenuptial portrait at Decisive moments (yahoo!)

yipee! all in all, it was really a productive day.

Olie's photography: we did try to get pics of the sunset and our church by heading towards the bay area but it was so cloudy. olie was able to take some really nice pics of a newlywed couple.

Movie: we watched Hitch at Festival cinemas in Alabang. it was a really light movie that made us laugh. (andami naming nagawa di ba!)

on photography

2005-03-03T21:13:00.000-04:00

olie's new toy.. olie was sooo lookin forward to this week. its the week he gets the digital camera that he bought in the US through a friend.

and so yesterday, he was really excited to get off from work, But he got called to a meeting.. i had to leave the office alone coz i have a board meeting to attend to as well. i'll be really late if i wait for him.

the camera was great. it was fuji finepix s5100.

i enjoyed watching olie as he carefully opened the bag that has his camera, how delicate the camera seemed. he was so gentle as he went about studying its features, and trying it out. he was so child-like.

as we were walking towards home, he asked if it would be ok to leave some of his stuff at our place - his basketball shoes, uniform and ASP stuff.. i remember teasing him about leaving his camera and asking me how come he is not leaving that as well. i said, "Someone might snatch it on your way home..". hahaha.

of course, he didn't leave his camera with me.. and i was talking to him this morning, the excitement hasn't left his voice.. he even texted me if i was ready for our photoshoot tonight. haha.. naku, he was trying to hide his "giddyness" over his new "toy" by deflecting it to me.. that i was the one happy coz i get to have loads of pictures.. (who does he think he is fooling??! di ba?)

on our wedding photographer... well, olie's been talking to some photographers. we've pencil-booked na but we still have to meet and really see their works.

treasured moments

2005-03-01T22:35:00.000-04:00

i love going home with olie.. whether we commute or bring a car.. it doesn't matter.

when we are in the car, it feels like it doesn't matter where we go. we can go anywhere, yes. but we'd still be right beside each other.. that's how i'd always want it to be.

commuting last night, i felt hunee was really tired.. i was really sorry for dragging him through the shoe stores of ayala (i needed new work shoes!). olie fell asleep as soon as we got on the shuttle. his body felt sore and he said he needed a massage. (note to self: learn how to massage. cut my nails) i couldn't help him out coz we were cramped in the shuttle.. so i just held his hand and watched him sleep (the shuttle had tv so i was also able to watch Save the Last Dance and Full House..hehehe). i thought to myself, God has really blessed me with so much. i am so thankful for having Olie in my life. in such moments, i feel at peace. i can be in tune with my real thoughts and feelings away from the busy life we lead and the distractions and confusion around us. what i have right there and then was what matters - olie.

on coordinators part 2 (ok na!)

2005-02-28T22:21:00.000-04:00

Our Monday Yesterday..

i was still in search for a coordinator, olie was looking for a photographer.

we were initially scheduled to meet with Queen Gutierrez of Just Like Ours yesterday after office but she texted me that she had to attend to a wedding rehearsal that was suddenly scheduled. i started going through Nette's email of other possible coordinators (thank you so much, Nette!). i called them all and even performed the pre-screening interview over the phone.

i had met with these 2 last week.. i was supposed to book Wini already but... refer to my previous entry..

Witty Jobs (Wini, 12k, includes emcee, 7 in the team -3 boys, 3 girls and Wini- for 200-250 guests, Terms: 3k DP, 9k Wedding Day, resides in Marikina, commutes) --- i met her
Impromptu (Gladys 09209504640, 4 in the team - all girls, 7k for bookings made before April 2005, Terms: 50%DP, 50% Wedding Day) --- i met all 3 partners

i didn't consider this one because olie knows some of the members of the team. i'd rather not deal with money matters with friends...

Out Of the Box (Christine "Kitte", former w@wie, 10k w@wie rate, Terms: 20% DP, 80% Wedding Day) --- i was introduced to her at Westin Bridal Fair

Nette already booked her so i didn't meet her na lang.. same date kami ni Nette eh.

An Event to Remember (Clarice, former w@wie, 8k w@wie rate for weddings before July 2005, 6 in the team for 150 guests, includes RSVP, Terms: 50% DP, 50% a month before the wedding, office is in QC)

Over na sa budget ito.. Max ko na po un 12k (with emcee ni Wini ha!)

Grand Banquets (Connie, 15k, includes RSVP) --- i was introduced to her at Westin Bridal Fair
Demoiselle (Paulette, 18k, 5 coords for 200 guests, Terms: 50% DP, 50% a week before the wedding)
Events Experts (Jody, 15k, Terms: 50%DP, 50% on wedding day if cash)

This one i didn't like, based on text messages pa lang.. maybe i'm just too impatient. again, refer to my former coord posting.

Getting Married (Kutchie, 12k for 150 guests)

i was scheduled to meet with this one Monday afternoon but she rescheduled to Tuesday

Just Like Ours (Queen, former w@wie, 12k w@wie rate for 2005 weddings booked before July 2005, includes emceeing, 4 in the team includingt 2 hosts, Makati-based)

Yesterday, these were the people i contacted

Mementos (Juliet, 8k, based in Muntinlupa, 3 clients pa lang, 4 in the team - 1 boy)
Bridester (Raquel, former w@wie, 8k promo for Q1 2005 bookings, lives and works in Sta. Rosa Laguna, Terms: 50% DP, 50% Wedding day if cash, 9 members but only 4 in the team who will be in the actual wedding, part time, no w@wie client yet)
You're Invited (Nina, 9k discounted rate, Las Pinas people, 4 in the team for 200 guests, Terms: 30%DP, 70% 2 weeks before)

i lined them all up for meetings this week.. Monday its You're Invited, coz Queen postponed our meeting for tuesday. Wednesday, Olie has bowling so i didn't schedule any meeting. and Thursday its Raquel of Bridester.

Meeting You're Invited - Van, Johanna and Nina

WE ARE GETTING THEM! hahaha.. i'm so happy. i really feel comfortable with them. they have a lot of suggestions, they are enthusiastic and basta. marami silang ideas. they were prepared and they really enjoy what they do. we talked about business, rackets, etc. even if we weren't sure to book them, they gave advices and ideas and excel files (soft and hard copy) to facilitate our preps. basta, gusto namin sila. so we are for contract-signing this weekend. YIPEE! (obvious ba, happy talga ako!)

and this morning, i already have their excel comparison for photo/video suppliers to help us with our decision-making (we are booking our photo supplier on Sat!)

i cancelled the other meetings i set so as not to waste the time and effort of the other coordinators as well.

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to nette, thanks for referring these people. to bea, thanks for the feedback! i look forward to working with them as well.

Westin Bridal Fair

2005-02-27T10:27:00.000-04:00

i just got home from the Weddings at Westin bridal fair. haay.. soo kapagod.. i've somewhat lost the enthusiasm, energy and excitement to prepare for my own wedding.. i've noticed this in the past few bridal fairs we attended. its like i cannot muster the enthusiasm to go through the flyers handed out, to pay attention to the people explaining the inclusions of their respective services.. i don't know why. parang minsan i just want to get over it, be done with it.. pero bigla ko maiisip syempre, i still don't have a gown (among other things!) kaya di pa rin pwede matapos ng ganun na lang ang wedding.. hehehe.

anyway, the wedexpo was nice. olie and i came with mama. they had a raffle wherein the mechanics stated that we have to have the card countersigned from all the exhibitors to join the minor raffle and book during the fair to join the major raffle. the major prize was a trip to bangkok. but heller! one look at the card and i knew we won't be able to accomplish having everything stamped/countersigned. syempre naman, we've been to a lot of fairs already. we've met some of these people, so i doubt if we'd still go to the booths of those we already know we are not getting.. oh well. but olie decided to go ahead with the signature campaign. grabe talga patience nya! di ko kaya un! honestly. although he didn't get to finish everything (napagod na din kasi, and i didn't help! - bad girl ako!), he was able to do a lot (about 90% i would think). haay. i really feel guilty.

tapos in the end pala, even if you don't complete the signature, you can join the minor raffle. hmm.. these organizers...

highlights:

Lee Llamas - i found him snobbish. we were lookin at his works and andami nya freebies for bookings during the fair (prenup, album, video). basta, one of his comments was that prati na daw nya kami nakikita sa fair.. well, yeah, that's true. and when i said we have video na, pwede ba iba na lang free.. he replied e kaya nga free eh! so masungit. really!

Coordinators - a coord who approached me asked me when my wedding was. when i said that it was still next year, she said, wow excited na si ma'am. to which i replied, actually hindi nga eh. gosh! is that a proper reply of a bride????

Another coordinator appealed to me. She seems simple and ok, personality wise. But she was also from Antipolo. The concern that i had with wini arose. but i my fears were easily set to rest. Olie was right though. When she pointed a pix of church aisle flowers (28 pieces) that she said that she made overnight, she might be short staffed. Or, i would think, really, flowers should be prepared the night before. Else, they'll wither before the wedding.

W@wies - i met fellow w@wies - Angie, Toni, Kitte, Marj, Cristina.. (i hope i didn't leave anyone out)

Others - i was able to talk to Connie Enriquez (coord) and Merlene Marcelo (gown). I was hoping to meet Veluz but she won't be arriving til 6 that afternoon.. Olie was able to look into other possible photographers..

Looking for the perfect photographer - fits your taste and your budget - is such a task. i do feel guilty leaving it all up to olie to decide.. i mean, there are so many choices that i grew tired just going through them.. some works stand out but they are so expensive. there are those works whose layout we don't like. ETC. i feel guilty again that i'm leaving it all up to him. mahirap na nga, di ko pa sya tulungan. di ba ang bad. haay. i resolve to help him with the photographer decision-making.

Photographers met - Wally Gonzales (seems like a really nice and simple man), Rey Mondez (award-winning but somewhat snobbish according to Olie) and this other guy that olie seem to like but he's new to my hearing (meaning we haven't met him in the previous fairs). There was also a freelance guy who works as an IT person in Inquirer and does photography on the side.

Wedding photoshoot - there were exactly 4 wedded couples having pictorials that afternoon. ganda ng sunset!

Fashion Shows and Talks - we were able to listen to the beauty talk from a PDI columnist and her guests (one of which is Jessie Mendez). there was also a talk on Fueng Shue and Wedding Do's and Don'ts by Rita Neri and a Fueng Shue master. There were also fashion shows of lingerie and sleepwear, evening gowns and bridal gowns.

Food - we had snacks at their cafe. yummy! ang sarap ng kanilang chocolate chip cookie. we also had tiramisu and strawberry frosted donut. they are also good.
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i really should get back on the wedprep excitement mode.
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we'll be booking our photographer this coming saturday. whoever he is.
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gown and coordinator na lang. haay.

i seem to have an idea na of the gown i want. yun nga lang, just ideas. nothin organized and finalized. im not even sure it is bagay sa akin.

EDSA holiday

2005-02-25T21:19:00.000-04:00

i was UP last thursday! why? coz we had a long weekend ahead of us.. Thursday evening we tried looking for Merlene Marcelo's dress shop.. we somewhat got lost but we saw the shop (we think!) yun nga lang they were closed na... we were thinking of going to Greenbelt but traffic was really jammed so we just headed home, via C5. we dropped by Starbucks at Petron along SLEX to chat and relax before heading home.. would u know, even at that Starbucks i was looking at their mags, hopin to see a bridal mag there.. :-)

come Friday, a Holiday.. i had to wake up at 5am (ooh so early!!!) in time for a photoshoot for ISACA. call time was 630am at the Greenbelt Park.. after the photoshoot, i had takeout food from McDo and headed to Olie's residence.. where i continued my sleep. hehehe.. ;-)

in the afternoon, we went to Megamall to buy ink for his printer (which we are taking to my place as well) and some paper to do some test prints for the misallete.. yehey! i did forget to post but i made a softcopy of the misallete already.. it was kinda fun going through the different types of paper.. its just that the place was so cramped (at National Bookstore) and there were a lot of people looking for specialty papers as well. it was somewhat difficult coz we didn't know what color we were actually looking for. we haven't finalized the theme/ motif and i want to have everything match it as much as possible.. anyway, we got some neutral colored papers (which can work with any of the shades we were considering) to work with first. we also checked my email at an internet kiosk at the 5th level.. syempre pa, ma-miss ko ata w@w emails ko i don't check them. we had dinner at Jollibee (o di ba tipid!) before leaving.

when we got home, hmm. we couldn't make the printer work! hmpf!

but i learned how to use the Adobe Illustrator for digital layout.. hahaha.. i can make our album na lang.. more practice first.. hehehe..

today, i asked Olie to come to our place early.. we are to go to Ms. Alice's father's internment at Sucat, have the printer fixed and maybe, if there is time, watch a movie, go to Tagaytay, etc. A lot of activities lined up! hahaha..

come Sunday, we are to go to Westin for the fair.. i hope to meet other w@wies there..
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this blog is turning to be a log of my activities.. shoot!
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on my gown

haven't decided who to get as a gown-maker/ designer.. i don't even know what design i like.. haay, i've been browsing the magazines i have.. but i haven't found anything i really like.. i like the train of one, the neckline of another, the shimmer of another.. o di ba.. halo halo.. but i haven't really found a bodice that i like!!! huhuhu.. pa-girl pa naman ako.. tapos ngayon heto, i don't know what i want.. pang RTW lang ata talga beauty ko.

search for coordinators part 1

2005-02-23T02:26:00.000-04:00

for sure there will be a part 2, kasi ala pa din kami coordinator eh.

i emailed/ texted the following companies/ persons to send their OTD packages for our initial screening: Out of the Box (Christine "Kitte" Daria), Impromptu (Gladys), Events Experts (Jody Liwanag), Demoiselle (Paulette Tan-Dimaano), Witty Jobs (Wini Sanchez), Getting Married (Kutchie), Eventscape Planners (Chinkie), An Event to Remember (Clarice) and Just Like Ours (Queen Gutierrez).

Impromptu was cheapest at 7k if booking is made before May 2005. There are 4 in the team, all girls. We met them last Sunday. They are new in the business.

A couple of members of the Out of the Box team are Olie's friends/ acquaintances. I didn't want to deal with possible conflicts in the duty that would ruin frienships so we decided not to consider them anymore.

We also met Wini, who was also Leslie and Jayson's coordinator. She seemed ok.

I was also able to talk to Queen over the phone. Queen was also married at SOJ in 2003. She also considered Villa Imaculada, although she didn't push through due to inconsistent feedbacks on the food served by the Tamayo's then. She was very friendly over the phone. I asked to meet her in person but she said that she won't be able to accomodate me until the first week of March. She has 2 weddings to attend too plus her grandma was hospitalized.

Kutchie naman. We saw her at the Megamall bridal fair but we weren't able to talk to her since she was busy with other clients and we had other priorities then. So i texted her, asking her to email me the details of her OTD package. After lunch of the following day, i still didn't get her email so i texted again, reminding her/ reconfirming whether she had already sent it and if so, can she please resend it. So she replied that she is just sending it then. I was already browsing through their website during this time. But when i received her email, boy! was i disappointed! she FORWARDED her own email (with the fwd.. heading pa ha!) to me.. it was their generic email asking pa which package am i interested in and when is the wedding to be. naku, my standard introductory text always (and i mean ALWAYS!) includes the package we want, our wed date and our names. hmm..and aside from that, it didn't include an attachment. it just said to view their website as their package is there. if she was just gonna refer me to a website, she could have texted the address yesterday. when i asked if she can meet as last saturday, she replied by asking me who i am. i take it she doesn't save the names and numbers of people who inquired with her. so i didn't reply anymore. but she is persistent in calling/ communicating. kaya lang she informed me that she usually meets her clients at valle verde. so medyo di rin convenient for us. kasi we prefer to meet at the Makati Area. so we didn't pursue her anymore.

So as of yesterday, we were ready to book Wini. I was supposed to meet her at 4pm Glorietta but when I texted her where I was she replied with "Ok. Traffic lang", which was really ok with me... After about 10 minutes she called. She was asking if it was ok to cancel the meeting since traffic was really jammed at c5 and she doesn't want me to wait. She said that there was some sort of activity at EDSA which caused the traffic. So i said fine. She said she'll drop by our office at around lunchtime but she didn't come. She didn't even send a text message.

at sometime before 2pm, she txted me asking where can we meet. syempre, i somewhat feel dismayado na. i understand that my wedding is in 2006 but im still a client. so i replied with, "i thought u said you were dropping by our office at around lunchtime. olie has bowling later. what time are you available?" to which she answered that she is at north edsa leaving for makati. somehow, it seemed to me that i have to be the one to estimate what time she'll get to makati. hehehe. it would have been better though if she committed a specific time and not leave it up to me to estimate her arrival. so i talked to olie and we both had second thoughts in getting her. we worry that due to the distance from her residence (Marikina) and our preferred meeting location (Makati), meetings might be delayed, cancelled, postponed. so i just replied that maybe we should meet some other time.

we weren't sure anymore. so we'd rather talk about it more thoroughly first, and consider other options na din siguro.
---------------------
i was able to have lunch with some friends - Joy, Maru and Joseph.. i just found out that i didn't greet verna on her birthday last monday.. oh no! am so sorry. Maru was almost back to her normal size. :-)

i was encouraging joy to attend bridal fairs.. well, what the hell. why force people if they're not yet ready.
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and im glad the internet connection is back to its normal speed.
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olie's workload is getting heavier since jojie (his boss) is leaving soon. haay. so now i can't bother him every so often coz he is always in a meeting.. well, good that he is productive.
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now i have to look again for a coordinator.. haay.

an off day

2005-02-22T02:11:00.000-04:00

i took a day off today. why? i dunno. just plain bored.. so i'm here at an internet cafe checking my mails, instant messaging, blogging, etc.

i'm meeting wini cia-sanchez in a while. we are booking her na.. nkakatawa pa nga coz angie informed me that they are no longer booking Impromptu.. impromptu with the cheapest coordination package. haay.. as i was saying to olie, maybe God wants us to make a conscious choice.. that regardless of the price, we are choosing wini.

finally, even olie agreed that its really wini.

in a while i'll be posting my coordinator stories sa w@w.. after booking wini.. until then.

common wed suppliers

2005-02-20T22:36:00.000-04:00

on angie's coordinator and nette' photographers

we met with impromptu saturday morning at shangri-la mall. they were late (all three of them were present) but i was really really late. well, no prob for us kasi olie was there on time. impressions: they are young.. too young for my taste. well, at least they are cheap. only, angie already pencil-booked them. i was more interested din naman dun sa coordinator we met last thursday so i really don't mind.. cguro God's will. hahaha.. mapapagastos lang additional.

in the afternoon, we met with mimi and karl. we are getting them for our prenups. it was tentatively scheduled for march 12 at Caliraya. but we might ask to reschedule if we want to watch Norah Jones' concert on the same day. we'll see...

sunday - another drama day!

a dissatisfied girl has the drama fits!

monday

had a meeting scheduled at 830 am so i couldn' t go on leave, even though i felt like it.

angie's keen on getting impromptu.. (yipee?) at least i can tell olie that we're getting a more expensive coordinator due to their unavailability.. hehehe

i tried to setup a meeting with queen kaya lang medyo busy sya this week and her grandma is in the hospital. the earliest she can meet with me is March.

Negative ONE

2005-02-17T20:52:00.000-04:00

365 DAYS TO GO!!!

greetings! hahaha. soo formal. i can only imagine how this day will be a year from now.. cguro, nagpapanic na ako.. cguro kinakabahan? excited? hmm.

last night, i was talking to olie over the phone.. it was around 1130. sabi nya, cguro daw, this time next year di na daw sya mkakatulog sa sobrang excited...

its exactly 365 days till i acquire the title/ prefix to my name MRS... a year to live out my single life, a year to prepare for the next stage of my life.

i wonder what's in store for today.. <>
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last night we were able to meet with a potential coordinator. we liked her. she was simple and she seemed to know what she is talking about. both olie and i are not OC, unlike most couples, (particularly the bride) so we both know we'd need help with the preps.

we'll be meeting with other potentials in the coming week. :-)

Our first real prenup

2005-02-17T02:59:00.000-04:00

Here are my favorite pics from our prenup with EBE:

a love for eternity

2005-02-16T22:00:00.000-04:00

a love for eternity, originally uploaded by oliegra.

finally! i got a picture of my ring to post here at blog. :-)

i was just melodramatic... when olie and i got together after office last night, all is well again. we continued talking about our wed preps and lakad this coming weekend.. continue the countdown!

u know, my trial makeup with eddie bruan wasn't really bad. i got the pics taken by olie in UPD and when we got home, the eye makeup wasn't as dark as i thought. anyway, i'm posting a link for the w@wies to refer to..

i am really looking forward to celebrating our negative 1 anniversary tomorrow.. after all, we didn't have any special date/ anniversary/ monthsary to celebrate our couplehood..

cheers to my fellow 18 feb 2006 brides in w@w - nette, angie and data!

dates..

2005-02-15T23:22:00.000-04:00

there are now 3 w@wies with the same wedding date as we do. aside from data and benc, angie and max, nette and mike also moved their wedding to this date. hmm.. ayan, if we want the same suppliers, di pede.

i have decided to do another TMU with Eddie Bruan. para di naman masayang. naka book na kasi eh.
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i have made it a habit to post my thoughts here. kaya lang parang lately, i have nothing to say. my life's losing its excitement. i feel so blah!! i'm bored with work.. and a week constitutes 5 work days! so its only on weekends that i feel ALIVE! but nothing's in store for me this weekend.... just a meeting with Mimi (for prenups only, if ever). nette got her already for our wed date. no big loss. we were really just considering her for that eh. :-)

haay. on coordinators naman. Clarice and I were texting yesterday and i was planning on scheduling a meeting with her within the week. fortunately, i found out that nette already got her as a coordinator. both of our times will no longer be wasted since she is no longer available on our wed date... hence, the hunt for the coordinator continues...
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reflections of past supposed to be celebrated events like my birthday and our first valentine's day

pre-bday: pampering at the salon & a new outfit
my usual celebration of bdays: lunchout with friends, no work done, fashion-arte porma, family dinner

on my 26th yr: it was like an ordinary day. yeah, there was the salon. just that. no excitement, spark, thrill.

similar to this year's vday. i thought it would be better, special. now that i have olie to spend it with. not just any bf but olie who i'll be spending the rest of my life with.

i love looking forward to celebrations. but knowing olie, i didn't put my hopes up. flowers? maybe. don't care so much. i feel it is mostly done for compliance with the tradition. i'd rather get flowers on a regular day, not expecting it. flowers just because. well, about noon of vday, i asked him of our plans, and even before we left the office... i was expecting a dinner at least. nothing fancy and prepared (because nga of his nature.. but how i'd love that!) oh, and you know, he said, bahala na. (hmpf!) so i had to take things in my hands and said we'd have dinner at CPK nga... haay.

so now i'm thinking.. this is for the rest of my life.. i'm a person who loves surprises, celebration, parties.. and i love the anticipation and excitement beforehand.. and i will be with a person who "goes with the flow" so to speak... will it really work out? wouldn't it drive me mad??? i love the highs and lows, anticipations and excitement, even if it ends up in disappointment.. i'd rather have that than a so-so experience... and i'd be with a guy who is constant naman. hahaha.. well, nobody's perfect. compromise i guess. whatever. bahala na! (so filipino!)

our first v-day

2005-02-14T21:58:00.000-04:00

my first v-day with GPL.. i was welcomed with 3 chocnuts and a single white rose (thanks to chris! lahat kami binigyan nya..)

olie gave me a dozen long-stemmed and really red roses (melt..melt..melt) .. and 3 toblerons! yummy! --- sweetness ---

we had dinner at our favorite salad resto - CPK.. syempre we had "The" salad - original barbecue chopped salad and peperoni pizza. need i mention we also had their raspberry iced tea? well, for some reason, it wasn't as delicious as we remembered it. matabang. there were a lot of people celebrating the hearts day. we even had to line up to get in the resto. the cab that took us from GPL (here in Paseo, Buendia) to Glorietta (Ayala) cost P70. it was that traffic!

little did we know that aside from the bombing in mindanao, 2 bombs exploded under the Ayala MRT station. the whole area was closed to the public. buti na lang we had dinner first. else, we would have been there during the explosion.

due to the incident, which we discovered when we got there to ride the shuttle parked under the same station, we had to walk back to Landmark to get a ride home. buti na lang din di pa ganun kahaba ang pila and we were able to get on the first Pacita bus that arrived soon after. i guess most people were still out. kasi naman ang bilis namin kumain. hehehe..

speaking of toblerons, might as well have one.. hungry eh.

btw, i posted some of our prenup pix with EBE at UPDiliman at our community webshots.

and i booked our reservation for Corregidor for february 25 yesterday...

pre-valentine's day days

2005-02-13T22:09:00.000-04:00

friday night....

we watched Mr. Dreamboy (starring Piolo Pascual and Bea Alonzo). Truly, kakaiba nga ang ending. and dinner at Powerbooks, walkway.

saturday...

we went to Tamayo's in Intramuros to meet with Tintin for contract signing. (sarap ng pastries!)

had to drop by at GPL afterwards. we can't find the slip of paper that says we won the prenup session... naku naku naku...

thank God, olie found it.

we were suppose to meet data at the bridal fair in megamall, but she already left. ok ang fair! very productive! we were able to talk to Ariel Javelosa! also, we tasted the yummy yummy choco fountain! hehehe..

QT! QT! QT!

found out that my license expired last friday.. had to drive carefully to home..

sunday

i had my doubts in bringing the car due to my expired license. i cancelled the meeting with mimi abesamis because of this. oh and in the end, i still brought the car. kasi naman medyo malayo at mahirap na taxi-han ang guadalupe then around UP.

proceeded with my trial makeup session with Eddie Bruan. got lost along the way.. well, ganda naman ng output. i'm more comfortable with my simple, plain self eh.. he took pictures of before and after the session.. "jasmine trias" look nga daw eh.. tuwa naman ako sa kanya kasi natuwa sya na makeup-an ako. i booked him afterwards.

we had lunch at pazzo in powerplant (sarap! yummy! takaw takaw ko.. we ordered baked mussels, pomodoro pasta, calzone and we even had ice cream). maaga pa kasi. 4pm pa un prenup session namin with Eddie Boy Escudero a.k.a EBE. and we bought a box of bread pastries from Breadtalk to give to him.

for our prenups, whew! mahirap pala mag model.. people were looking at us.. so i just waved and pretended to be a star. i have to hand it to EBE. grabe, he really has the "eye" and artistic talent! naki higa higa pa sya sa damuhan. haay.

after a really tiring photo shoot (the sun hid from us! hmpf!), we went to shangri-la mall to have the pictures develop and to quench our thirst! naku, here i go again.. after my makeup session with Eddie Bruan, i got inspired to purchase more makeup kit items - applicators, curlers.. gastos. we got the pix and proceeded home.

this morning

i have to work na.. well, at least we were able to book HMUA and a photographer.

btw, happy valentine's day to all!

another friday. whoop-dee-doo

2005-02-10T23:32:00.000-04:00

its another friday (thank God!)

haven't accomplished anything this week. just browsed the NET, read w@w emails, blogged, attended meetings.. blah! blah!

oooh! and i cancelled the cruise thingy for saturday (that's tomorrow!) its lovapalooza at roxas.. i want to go to that area. well, that's zero Vday date for me then.. whatever.

right now, im so bored. work is bluh! bluh! preps is going smoothly.. im not really into the convention preps thingy..

but today, i prepared a detailed wedding checklist for us.. (see My Links)

and 25th of feb is a holiday. we've made plans to go to Corregidor... hope it pushes through.

signs and trends at work

2005-02-09T21:45:00.000-04:00

sabi nga ni verna, ayaw ko na naman dito sa work ko.. the signs are here - late gumising, tamad pumasok, bored.. etc. etc. haay, so true..

ang excitement lang ng buhay ko, at this rate is my weekends - wedpreps and out-of-town plans.

we are planning on going to corregidor in the coming long weekend... i hope it pushes through. vigan sana kaya lang katamad bumiyahe. bka di ko na feel sa haba ng bus ride.. minsan nga feeling ko kung umalis ako dito bka di na ako bumalik.. how i look forward to a weekend escape! even magazines and chocolates don't quench my thirst for whatever it is that is missing.

most of the wedplanning is done now (the oculars, and field trips). what lies ahead are the decision-making, contract-signing.

it is but february and i've already missed out on a boracay-bohol-cebu travel opportunity with Tito Ricky and Tita Amy this week. and i'm bound to miss out on the HK-Shenzen whatever travel with Tita Angie early this March. i wish i could go and travel just like that! but i can't. not because of work (hehe! can you just see my priority) but because i have to save up for our wedding. ayoko din naman na wala akon'ng contribution. shucks... and i had a lot of plans for my self pa. panu na kaya yun??? i really don't know. for now, lam ko i do want to travel pala this year and continue my MBA and take the exams. but the wedding is looming ahead. i have to prepare for it financially as well. i wonder why. kahit anung taas ng income, always and always, i think of expenses or investments?! di ko na din alam nga kung talga ba mahulo ako. i think not naman. paminsan lang. di na rin naman masyado sa food. shopping bihira. haay. i really don't know. sabi ko pa naman lalabas ako this year... and boracay! those were my travel goals for the year. would they be set aside for our wedplans???

leaves and lives

2005-02-09T02:12:00.000-04:00

leaves -- not the green ones but those that can be scheduled, emergency, sick, unscheduled, vacation ones.. (oh, how i long for those of the last kind...~sigh~)

i was on leave again yesterday. woke up late.. felt good though.. sleeping in.. haay...

although i did meet olie in the evening... not much to tell.

my life's turning into a day in day out routine with only the wedpreps to look forward to with excitement..

oohhhh! i almost forgot! made reservation for a sunset cruise on saturday.. an advance valentine's celebration of sort..

bz bz wkend!

2005-02-07T01:58:00.000-04:00

over the weekend here was my set of activities...

saturday

supposedly from 830-500pm, Meralco Management and Leadership Development Center in Antipolo for the ISACA-Manila Planning.

actually, i woke up at 7am. had to rush to meet Bhuboy (secretariat) who's gonna ride with me from Robinson's Galleria to MMLDC. We got lost and had to ask4 people in order to find the place.

the place was great for pictorials. lots of scenic greeneries. good food was served as well.

after which, i met olie at Padi's Point (in Antipolo pa rin) and headed back to Makati.

we met 2 of the Threelogy (Jon and CJ) 730pm at Starbucks, Jupiter. we were able to book them (YIPEE!! paid our DP and signed the contract already)

oh. btw, it was my papa's bday to day.. so we headed straight home. we joined my parents, my youngest brother Ron, Tita Angie and Tito Rene for dinner.

sunday

we have scheduled Food Tasting with Tintin (our AE for Tamayo's/ Villa Imaculada) for 3 - my mom, olie and me. we got there, a little past 11, showed mama around, took some pictures, and syempre ate.. masarap ang food nila. though, i didn't like the pork barbecued spareribs. but the rest, especially the soup, masarap. pasado din kay mama. we were able to discuss the details with tintin, and pay our DP to block the date. so now we have a venue (another Hurray!!!)

after Intramuros, we proceeded to Forbes for their Bridal Fair. I got tired from the heat and wasn't in my better self when we got there. again there are the usual suppliers.. i wanted to go but mama was still enjoying the music provided by Velvet mood. we went home early enough.

we heard mass at 7pm.

whew! andami noh? we made progress!

this morning

this morning, i was able to chat with fellow feb 2006 brides, 2 of which were also slated for the same date as i am..

in addition, i texted barbi chan, ross regala and eddie bruan for a scheduled trial makeup. barbi is not available on sunday where i am scheduled to have a prenup pictorial session with Eddie Boy Escudero. So is Ross Regala. But Eddi Bruan even called me on the phone. so i pencil-booked with him. I hope all goes well during our TMU on Sunday.

side comments and thoughts...

mama is into the wedpreps as well, she was browsing through my magazines last night even when i went to sleep already.

i miss being alone with olie, and having those relaxing activities.. although wed preps is exciting, sometimes i wish we could have just each other and our thoughts and no pressing appointments and schedules to go to... minsan lang naman.

a birthday and welcome dinner

2005-02-04T01:24:00.000-04:00

last night, we had dinner with some friends - (in order of appearance :-)) verna, bajoy, maleen, joseph and chie.. venue: Gerry's Grill and Starbucks Glorietta. i had fun.. tawa nga kami ng tawa eh. missed their company. too bad, benj, ken, odin, ij and maru weren't able to make it.

got home at half past midnyt. (kawawee naman olie, had to go home to pasig pa) still manage to read verna's book gift. finally slept at 330am.

thanks to joy for coffee and cosmetics.
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wed talk

was able to schedule mama to come with us sa food tasting on sunday. also discussed the guestlist (somewhat)

26 yrs and 1 day..

2005-02-02T21:10:00.000-04:00

my 26th bday felt weird. i celebrated it with those that were not close to me. i wish i set my dinner with friends last nyt instead. :-(

had to treat people in the dept. tradition eh. hmm.. im not as rebellious as i usually am.. cguro nga, ive learned how to work with people.

i did have olie with me. prati namn. he sent me balloons and white roses nga pala.(thank you!)

ewan ko. basta it felt different. no spark or anything this year. unlike in the previous years.. i was really excited pa naman. i didn't know what i was expecting but i ended up disappointed. demanding lang ba talga ako'ng sadya? dapat ba makuntento na ako? i mean i have olie. i have a steady income. no prob naman sa family... health, ok din..

i guess im always looking for magic. kaya din siguro di ako tumatagal sa relationships.. kasi once na nag settle down na after the initial high, i get bored. actually, yan nga n prati ko na concern now that im planning to tie the knot (aside from my insecurities na sya un magsawa!)

haay. ang labo ko. cguro nga its about "paninindigan" (kakanood yan ng teleserye!"Till death do us part" and "Hiram")

now, im just waiting for 5pm for my life to begin again.
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wed talk!!

we are now pencil-booked at Villa Imaculada for our reception venue! olie was able to talk to tintin (AE of fellow w@wie Elaine and Aris) and we are scheduled to do our food tasting and pay our DP on Sunday!

we are also scheduled to meet Threelogy on Saturday night. :-)

photo supplier na lang kulang... to book on March WedExpo for discounts and freebies.
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i'm to have dinner with SGV friends tonight at Gerry's Grille Glorietta 2, 630pm.

turning 26

2005-02-02T01:39:00.000-04:00

its my birthday today.. 26. hmm. age of maturity i should think. when one is 25, ok pa. pwede pa ang fun. pero now that im 26, parang feeling ko dapat isep isep na about the future.

lots of sms greetings... thank you for remembering to Joseph, maru, maleen, reward, odin, wa, mama, Jun E, ali, ernie, cris, portia, jean, ellen, nancy, tita lulu, mon e, zeny and ken. thank you to tita fe and verna too.

syempre, si kitty cat.. thank you for everything. :-)

a friend called kanina to greet me (ayan ha, no names!)she was asking me if i was really just 26.. hmm.. napa calculator me tuloy. pati ako nalito. e talgang 26.. there are times when i wish im still 24..

bday wish(es? why not di ba if i can have more than one...)
1 good health for me, my family, my kitty and my friends
2 true love
3 successful career
4 lasting friendships
5 realization of dreams..

im really thankful to God for everything that i have - my family, olie, my friends, my health, my work.. hmm. andami. blessed talga! sana more blessings!

to olie, u have been my source of comfort and strength.. for the more than eight months we've been together you have never failed me.. you were always with me, constant, sweet and loving.

kitty, i look forward to waking up next to you each morning for the rest of my life. i love you. mwah!

places and venues..

2005-02-01T02:14:00.000-04:00

fri nyt..

mama came with us when we went to Market! Market! at the Fort. i wanted to see the Ready to Wed shoppe of gowns... la lang. just curious.. ang ganda nung displayed skirt... hmm.. exciting pala ang mag gown looking...

sat side kwento

we were supposed to attend the baptism of Nina, Maru and Aybeam's baby girl .. fullname Lou Aywin Wrestly Amor. but we didn't make it to the ceremony... nope, we didn't get lost or anything.. no accident whatsoever.. late lang talga kami kasi antagal ni maleen dumating! hahaha. there, i said it. we were supposed to meet at McDo greenbelt at 1015 am.. baptism at 11 (ang baptism pa naman such a short ceremony.. in 5 minutes tapos na!) come 1045, nun pa lang kami paalis ng Makati to go to QC. odin was there already.. and right we were late.. ang naabutan namin wedding!?! yun pala nasa small chapel sa side un baptism. haha. so in short, kaming 3 di naka attend nung binyag!!!anu ba yun??? 3 reps for the batch of 11... si verns may sideline teaching at BIR ng ACL, si IJ at Subic for work, Chie may compre for school, Ken still sleeping, joy at Bicol, benj cannot be found, joseph hmm.. bka nagkalakad. dunno what happened.

so, di kami umabot.. tapos medyo eat and run pa kami.. konting chika then alis na din.

venue hunting

excited kami.. dire-diretso sa Ramon Magsaysay... kala namin eto na un para sa amin.. at pagdating dun, isang malaking katatawanan ang gumulantang sa amin.. ang arte din pala ni olie... kala ko ako lang.. kasi naiintindihan ko na may budget constraint.. so kung hanggang dun lang kaya namin eh di pasensya ako.. pero tawa kami ng tawa.. di namin maintindihan why we even considered the place.. (hahaha. ang arte namin pareho! kala mo naman may budget for the high-end pretty places) sayang un camera na dala namin.. ni di namin magawa na pictur-an.

so off-we go.. no choice. mapalayo man sa venue eh di namin afford ang Coconut Palace.. abutin ng 50k venue lang.. and more stuff to worry about kasi nga outdoor reception sya.. we're looking for and indoor reception venue na hindi underground at hindi hotel. so un na nga, punta na kami sa Villa Imaculada sa Intramuros.. ok na talga sa amin ito.. simple, malinis, maayos... now, kung ok din ang feedback sa food, service and kung pasok sa budget, ok na kami.

be fockerized!

so we finished early. we headed back to greenbelt. i was planning to go to the parlor pero andaming tao.. nagpa schedule na lang me for monday 630pm.

we ended up watching meet the fockers... hmm.. and along the way, na bad trip ako kay olie.. ah basta. panu naman ang mga mata.. naglalakwatsa! hmpf! (the away lasted until monday, btw.)

gloomy sunday

olie went sa bahay. naku ang bruho, nag read lang ng newspaper at nanuod ng the buzz! hmpf.. tapos sumabay na siya kina papa since luwas si papa pa manila. ah hmpf! syempre puro drama that night..

and monday came...

no olie and gra came to work! aba nakisabay pa sa akin mag leave! hmpf! maka pag date na nga lang.. finally naka pag parlor and naka pag usap na kami.. ok na ulet.. sweet na ulet.. tuloy na ulet. kami na ulet... happy na ulet.

a small world

2005-01-27T21:00:00.000-04:00

we've been in touch with threelogy (video) through sms, mostly by done by olie.. and yesterday, we found out through fellow w@wies that their website is up... in their gallery is the wedding of vien and chris which i attended last year..

and then on our way home, we chanced upon pen, my roomie in college. she knows naman mimi and karl abesamis (photo) whom we are considering for wedding photo coverage. but we are definitely getting these two for our prenups... hahaha.

we've got connections pala (duh!) hahaha.. but can we get discounts based on these??? i wish...

and oh. lyra and manuel, fellow w@wies who got married in december 2004 were marla, my other roomie in college's best friend.. definitely a small world.
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i've decided to send a link to this blog to my 2 best buds - ken and odin. hmm.. i wonder how will they react...
(hi to you both in case you do get to read this!)
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things on my mind.. sometimes

am i really ready for this??? scary but exciting though.
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wed preps..

i think we should finalize the following and pencil-book them ASAP..
reception venue
photo
MUA