A Song for the Perks...

eunice.abby.sam.japhet.atoy.bonandpaul.george.

On The Side of Me
Corinne May

I'm not the easiest person to love
I'm often the one who lets things go unresolved

Yet you choose to be
On the side of me
On the side of me
Yet you choose to be on the side of me
On the side of me

I'm not too proud of some things
I've done in my life
The skeletons in my closet
Are too big for me to hide

Yet you choose to be
On the side of me
On the side of me
Blessed Charity
You're on the side of me
On the side of me

Everyone needs a friend to hold
When it's cold outside
And there's no place to go
Everyone needs a friend to hold
All alone I cried
There was no place to go
I remember when nobody cared
But you

I'm not the easiest person to love
But you, you've opened your heart to show me what I'm worth

'Cause you choose to be
On the side of me
On the side of me
What a mystery
You're on the side of me
On the side of me

Everyone needs a friend to hold
When it's cold outside
And there's no place to go
Everyone needs a friend to hold
All alone I cried
There was no place to go

I remember when nobody cared
Nobody cared
But you...

Yeah you choose to be
On the side of me
On the side of me

Chronicles of a First Time Turista Part 3

Where was I?

Day 2: leaving Singapore (land)

After having breakfast, we immediately packed our bags and prepared to leave the hotel to board the ship. It was hard for me to leave the marshmallow like bed and pillows and the luxurious bathtub, but the thought of being 'home alone' in Singapore for the next four days is not my idea of having fun.


We had to do some last minute shopping before we boarded the ship .Laurice and Abby were immediately drawn to the Singapore souvenir shops selling items at a really really low price. I, being the pathological crammer, insisted that there will be better buys when we get back from the cruise. Ha-ha, guess what? I'm wrong, as usual.

With our baggage at hand, we left the land of singapore to taste and feel the waters of South East Asia.

(Still) Day 2: All Aboard!

Being heavily dependent on what the media is feeding me, I had this notion that cruise ships are filled only with gorgeous and fabulous people clad in long gowns and tuxedo (not that I actually brought a long gown, nor am I uber gorgeous/ fabulous). All I could say is that the group of people was, er, colorful, to say the least.

Although we were the only Pinoy group in the cruise, it was a relief to know that more than half of the cruise staff were Filipinos and being around them felt like we were back home.

Since not all rooms were ready for lodging, we decided to eat our late lunch at the ocean deck of the ship. If you are on a strict diet, a vegan, anorexic or hypertensive/ diabetic, I advise you NOT to take this cruise. SERIOUSLY. Just looking at the buffet table made my BP skyrocket and my neck to hurt.

We then headed back to our room after eating to take a short rest before the captain's welcome cocktail which is around 6pm. Since Laurice and I didn't have enough sleep the night before, and because the ship's movement made us feel like babies in a cradle, we instantly fell asleep.

It was the knock on the door that woke us up. That's when we realized it was a quarter before 6 and we had little time to fix ourselves, gala style. So after a quick preparation, we hauled our asses to the lounge where the Captains ball was being held.

and we were misled...

I remember specifically being told that the captain's welcome cocktail was a formal event. When we got to the venue, it surprised us that the other passengers were short of wearing pajamas/ beach shorts inside the lounge. To say that we were overdressed is an understatement. We were better dressed than the captain himself (a little short of exaggeration, as the captain is required to wear the captain's uniform but you get my drift). So just to make the most out of our attires, we decided to be the life of the party. After the welcome, we left the lounge and ate at the fancier part of the cruise and had dozens of picture taken. We also rocked the videoke area with Gerry's rendition of Careless Whisper and Sir Mike/ MJ's duet of Higher. After that, we celebrated Sexy Patsie's bday by dancing the night away. So what if everybody's looking at us? We're Pinoy and we're loving it.

Chronicles of a First Time Turista Part 2

In Fairness,naka part two na ako.usually, the toxicity of work, plus my congenital laziness, would grip me and prevent me from finishing my posts. Lets hope for the best na matapos ko tong series na to. hehe.

Singapore, First Day

thanks to my officemates who take pictures of everything we see, I got the name of the restaurant where we had our lunch. Its Rekyo Inn. After a scrumptious meal of Tom Yum soup, two green leafy vegetable dishes, fish fillet, chicken, shrimp, chili crabs and fruity milk dessert, we headed our way to our oh-so fabulous five star hotel, right smack in the middle of Orchard Road. Can I salivate now? My BFF Laurice and I were designated to a room on the 18th floor. Too bad that the only view we had is a wall of a building and a back alley. And the best thing about staying there is... STAR MANDARIN Channel!!! Whooohooo! Non stop Hongkong blockbuster movies starring my favorites, andy Lau, Louis Khoo, Daniel Wu and I could go on and on and you still wouldnt know who they are. harhar.

Our idea of a perfect first day in Singapore is to hang out in the hotel room and sleep. Unfortunately, Laurice and I both have appetites the size of Russia, thus, we had to haul our fat asses to the streets of Singapore and find our way to Snacking Nirvana. riiiiight. A couple minutes walk outside of our hotel room and we're lost. We would have enjoyed that feeling of being 'lost in the big city' but unfortunately, that would be too tasking on our budget and we're both misers to the highest degree. We then had to retrace our steps before we found ourselves back at Orchard Road where we got to join some of our office friends eating the wafer ice cream being sold in the streets. Can I just say that this ice cream (chopped from a big block of ice cream) is pure heaven. and the best thing about it is that its only 1 SD! yehey!

Thanks to our accidental tour guides, JM (former officemate) and his girlfriend, we got a first hand experience of the Singapore life, i.e Walk,walk,walk. We also took the MRT to go to Suntec City, but 90% of our journey was on foot.

We had our first taste of Sing's landmarks at the Esplanade. I would have appreciated its grandeur more had I not been bathed in the glaring and burning 3pm sun. And when you only had 2 hours of sleep, it wont be easy faking your enjoyment.

While sightseeing at the Esplanade/Merlion/River place, we came across hundreds of children clad in red shirt. These children, according to our very reliable and informative tour guide JM, were practicing for the National Day Parade (NDP) of Singapore. this is what I truly admire about this country. Not only are the people helluva clean, they are also nationalistic and cooperative in their country's events. I have to admit, I would never stand a minute roasting myself under the sun for a June 12 celebration. but these kids are there, hundreds of them, practicing and perfecting their performances for this occasion. Amazing.

After a couple of miles and bunions later, we headed back to our hotel to take the 'nestea' plunge in our very soft and luxurious bed.

to be continued...

Chronicles of a First Time Turista Part 1

I just got back from a one-week vacation and it was awesooooome! First, everything is for free and second, no work! Actually, that is almost true except for the fact that my phone started to buzz with text and calls from client on my last three days of the tour.

So for people with a short attention span, I do not recommend reading this portion of my blog because I promise that this will be long and detailed. I, thank you.


July 11, Friday- The night before

I had to really wait till the night before my trip to pack all my stuff. Thank God for our ever reliable Ate Yen, I just had to take out all the things I need to bring and she did her magic. My mom who is known for her 'nakalunok ka ba ng mic?" voice kept on nagging me on why I forgot to buy dizzitab (anti-dizziness) for the cruise. I told her that I forgot and she need not worry because I am not byahilo by nature but she just went on talking about the possibility of me vomiting my guts out. Every fifteen minutes while packing, she would go inside my room and scrutinize the position of my clothes, shoes, toiletries etc., i just had to ask my dad if my mom downed a gallon of coffee. This went on until about 1:30am in the morning. This gave me no time to sleep because we had to be at the airport at around 4am.

July 12, Saturday First Day

Part two of my Mom's Monologue show is when I woke them up at around 3:30am. She said that we do not need to be at the airport by 4am, it was way too early, i was too excited etc. I had to remind her that I was with our president, 2 AVPs and 19 other people and I do not want to be pasaway and a COD (cause of delay). nonetheless, we were able to arrive the airport by 4:10, still late, but earlier than what my mom recommended.

First day and I already had an Ang TV moment of Nyeeee! Apparently, the camera I brought only had a 16MB memory card inserted in it. ha-ha. In short, I was able to take around 8 pictures tops, and all these were taken inside the airport. Another ha-ha. Anyway, I didnt bother taking pictures given that my friend and roommate laurice brought her new camera. Ta-daa! no more stress.


We arrived Singapore at around 11:15 and we were welcomed by Jackie, our tour guide. We converted our money from USD to Singapore dollars and went to our bus. Since checkin time in our hotel is 12 noon, our tour guide arranged for a lunch at this restaurant far from the new buildings and upon entering, I was assailed by aromas both pleasant and not so pleasant.


...to be continued

Cruise Snooze

In fairness, na eexcite na ako. Its less than a week before I sail ship, literally, and though my mind's ready, my body isn't. Kasi naman... kung kelan may scheduled suman festival, este, swimsuit display, saka naisipan naming mag todo pig out nina laurice at jenny. BAKIT ANG HIRAP MAGPAPAYAT?!?

there are still a lot of things I have to do, as i have yet to pack my stuff. I havent even drafted a list of things to bring. Bahala na si Batman, or more appropriate, bahala na si Captain Hook.

I'll try to upload some pictures but given my normal im-too-tired-to-do-anything mode, dont expect much.

Part of the Family

My boyfriend's family is really so sweet. Tita Vicky and Tita Fines (erik's titas from the US) always give me pasalubong whenever a family member visits the Philippines. And to think, I've met them only twice! So far, here are the items that I got:

Ferrero chocolates
Body Butter in black currant from Bath and Body Works
Creamy Body Wash in Sun Ripened Raspberry from Bath and Body Works
Body Spray in Cherry Blossom from Bath and Body Works
Body Spray in Gardenia from Bath and Body Works

Aba! pwede na pala akong magfranchise ng B&BW sa dami ng gifts sa akin. Hehe.

Feeling Basha naman ako. Hehe.

Retired at 23

Kamusta naman ang lola?

After two straight Girls Night Out with the BFFs, I realized that I am no longer equipped to stay awake until past midnight.

Yes, GJ and friends were this close to slapping me with a hot tea bag to keep me awake and talking. Not even the smell of freshly brewed coffee can shoo away the lamb jumping over the fence inside my head.

Thursday

GJ, three months after she resigned, decided to (finally) start her clearance signing. This is, by the way, due to the peer pressure brought about by my other resigned friend, Mads. Since the Oldies gang was almost complete (minus Jen who was in Dumaguete for a client call), we ate lunch together at Pancake House. Laurice and I wanted to be health conscious so we ordered hot tea instead of iced tea. Then we ordered dessert. Harhar.

Since GJ has some serious guy problem, we decided to cheer her up by accompanying her in watching SATC. I've already seen the movie last Sunday with my cousins (joy and ruth), my sister and my brother, Randy who was more excited to see the movie.. hmmmmm.

Since I found the movie highly entertaining, I didn't mind spending another Php 150 for the movie and another 150 for coffee at Starbucks High Street after the movie. Besides, this is one of the rare occasions that the BFF plans were realized. No, wait. This was not planned. Which made it even better. Many thanks to the ever reliable GJ who drove the gang home. That's Makati to Taguig to QC to Mandaluyong to Manila and finally home to Paranaque. Whew! Great thing she doesn't have to wake up early for work.

Friday

For some strange reason which I did not dare ask, Kathy invited the BFFs to a dinner at Yellowcab. All Expense paid. Whooohoo. Shempre, who am I not to come? Pizza till you drop dead and Pasta till you sneeze it out of your noses. So who would blame me if I was staggering out of the car as we went to High Street to have coffee? I know, I know. Its totally SB (Sakit Baboy) of me. But what can I do? The stress of work and age are taking their toll on me.

I've yet to see if I've exchanged souls with a granny next week when the Perks have their semi-annual (haha!) get together next Saturday!

Abangan!

Happy 24!

To atoy,my pseudo ex boyfriend, happy birthday! the perfect gift the world could give you is SATCs great timing. Harhar.. love you to death.

Its Crunch time.

In my desire to save money from buying a new wardrobe to suit my bigger frame and look decent in a swimsuit in time for our asian cruise, I am on a strict diet. since yesterday lunch time (not including bfast since i ate two KK doughnuts), i have cut down my munching, eating only fruits and baby carrots. This is really hard considering that I watch food network all the time.

will.die.from.starvation.before.july.

I Cant Tell You why

This is a highly addictive song. Been singing it for the last three days.

there's something really catchy about this classic Eagles song. I saw this from a recent movie i watched (in DVD, of course), Winter Passing. It stars Will Ferrell, Zooey Deschanel and the great Ed Harris. unlike other Ferrell movies, this is not a comedy where he plays the big dumb guy. He plays this musician crashing with a brilliant writer (Ed Harris).

In one of the scenes, Ferrell overcomes his stage fright by singing this Eagles song in an open mic bar. He sang this without a band, and it was really interesting.

I'm posting the lyrics and hoping someone else catches my LSS.

Look at us baby, up all night
Tearing our love apart
Aren't we the same two people who live
through years in the dark?
Ahh...
Every time I try to walk away
Something makes me turn around and stay
And I can't tell you why

When we get crazy,
it just ain't to right,
(try to keep you head, little girl)
Girl, I get lonely, too
You don't have to worry
Just hold on tight
(don't get caught in your little world)
'Cause I love you
Nothing's wrong as far as I can see
We make it harder than it has to be
and I can't tell you why
no, baby, I can't tell you why
I can't tell you why
No, no, baby, I can't tell you why
I can't tell you why
I can't tell you why