Digital Face Lift

Yes! A new look for my blog. High five!

Sportacular

Remember how I said it was gonna be swift? Well, as it turns out, days have been draggy and uneventful and weeks pass without news from Drake or from anyone.

So anyway, I hear the World Cup is on. And the NBA Season is coming to a close. Suddenly, people are so into sports! This puts my own athleticism and interest in athletics into perspective.

See, to be honest, I've never been genuinely caught up in all the sporty hoopla. I mean, it's not like I don't try. I do, and I always end up rooting for the underdogs. It's almost an illness. Underdogs are expected to lose, and most of the time they do. And losing blows. No one likes to lose. And in any game, someone always has to. It is this very idea that turns me off somewhat.

I guess I am just not into sports, not even sports men with perfectly chiseled athletic bodies. Thank you very much.

Blackpool

I'm going to the UK!

I feel so lucky and blessed to be among the 27 out of 60 candidate nurses who have been chosen to work in Blackpool Victoria Hospital. The selection process, as we were told, had been more thorough with BVH. Though really, I think, they just have more non-negotiables.

Anyway, I'm so psyched. If things go as planned, we'll be shipped (yes, like human cargo) to the UK in 5 months.

For that to happen, a shitload of paperwork must be in order. Drake International, my recruitment agency, is taking care of everything and I can't be more thankful.

This will be a swift 5 months.

Focus

This week, I will saturate my mind with one goal and one goal alone. Here's to the future!

Operculumectomy

In other news, I have noticed the eruption of my fourth wisdom tooth over the past couple of months. It has become increasingly uncomfortable and painful these past few days, so I decided to see the dentist and have it checked.

He told me that there was nothing to worry about. The tooth wasn't impacted as I feared, and that there's just some minor discomfort as it is pressing on the surrounding gum. So I said, "So, what are we going to do about that?".

"Well, we could cut away some of the gum to lessen the discomfort and give the tooth more room."

I flinched. Cut away the gum? You can't be f*cking serious?! "Are you going to do that now?"

He checked his watch. "It's only 4:30, I could squeeze it in."

Squeeze it in?! Seriously?! "Will it painful?"

"Just a bit. I'll be giving you a local anesthetic." Then he tells the dental assistant to prepare a "#12"--surgeons' code for blade.

I was frantic and in an alternate universe, I fainted.

He applied a topical anesthetic. My mouth starts feeling better, then a bit heavy. He scrambled for another dental implement. I opened my mouth and shut my eyes. Then, the worst pain as he stabbed my gum with a syringe-full of god-knows-what. Then, nothing.

The procedure took about less than 15 minutes. The dentist made me gargle in between and there were blood clots coming out, which kind of gave away what was going on because I decided to keep my eyes closed the whole time. Although I'm used to seeing all these instruments, I still wouldn't want to see them used on me.

A bite of cotton ball, and it was over. But once the anesthesia wears off, the pain sets right back in. I was prescribed pain killers and an antibiotic, to ease the swelling. Sure it helps but I still can't chew well.

I think it's good though, as I have to be on a diet to fit into that summer bikini :D

In the interim

Efforts to revive this blog have been well, futile. But here I am, having a go at it once again. Shake off the rust and oil the old thinking machine, shall we?

So what have I been up to in the interim?

Nothing much, actually. Mostly work. I know, it kills just about every part of a person but it's uglier when you work shifts, like I do. Everything has to work around a particular schedule and time-offs are pretty much spent sleeping. But I'd like to think I'm doing a pretty good job of at least trying to have some semblance of a social life. I do go out with the boyfriend a lot and occasionally, spend time with some friends, a trip to the beach or coffee, that sort of thing.

And that's about it.

Everybody's Free

I woke up at 5AM the other day and heard Baz Luhrmann's Everybody Should Wear Sunscreen (which I have never heard of until then). I believe in serious soul-searching and this, resonated something heavy.

Lyrics to "Everybody is free to wear sunscreen"
by Baz Luhrman - vocals by Lee Perry

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '97,

Wear sunscreen. If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term
benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis or
reliable then my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice....now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, nevermind, you won't understand the power and
beauty of your youth until they've faded, but trust me in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of
yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous
you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future, or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra
equation by chewing bubblegum.

The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind: the kind that blindsides
you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts; don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is
long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive; forget the insults. (if you succeed in doing this, tell me how).

Keep your old love letters; throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people
I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives; some of the most interesting 40 year
olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of Calcium. Be kind to your knees -- you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll
divorce at 40; maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary.

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself, either. Your choices are half
chance, so are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body: use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or what other people think of it; it's the
greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance...even if you have no where to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions (even if you don't follow them).

Do not read beauty magazines; they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents; you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings: they're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in
the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but what a precious few should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps
and geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you
were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.

Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old; and when you
do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children
respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse,
but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you are 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia;
dispensing it is a way of wishing the past from the disposal--wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and
recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me, on the sunscreen.

BIG Spender!

The past few weeks have been pretty taxing physically and wallet-wise. I worked hard and shopped even harder (and partied a little bit on the side). I compensate for my sucky work schedule and inhumane workload by spending hard-earned cash, which is fair enough, if you ask me. This makes me happy, as long as I forget that I have a ghost for a savings account. Heh!

How NOT to make a Mongolian rice bowl

I was tired, as I usually am, after work the other day and decided to take a nap at the dorm. Woke up just in time for dinner and panicked as I found out, I don't have anything to eat yet (not having eaten lunch earlier in the day, you'd understand my reaction). I hurriedly got up and changed to go out to scavenge food for the night at nearby Rob.

Found out that the new Supermarket just opened and they have amazing kiosks there selling food for less than 70 pesos. Perfect for a girl on budget. Since the line for mongolian rice bowls was pretty long, I figured it must be good so I got in line as well. I made my rice bowl as I normally would, placed it next to the line of bowls waiting to be cooked and found out that people have a curious way of making rice bowls here.

How NOT to make a Mongolian rice bowl

Basically, they put the veggies first then top them with ginormous cups of rice then pack the rice to give more space to more rice and maybe a little bit more vegetables. Gotta love rice on this side of the planet!

Taft After Dark

I had a Tolstoy moment... or something like it.

I was walking along the College of Pharmacy Gate along Taft Ave around 9pm on a Thursday night. While waiting for an FX bound for Buendia, somewhere between the CP Gate and where the PGH incinerator had been a couple of years ago, a stranger, a stocky man in his early thirties called me. He looked like he could benefit much from a shower. His shirt, red and fraying, hung loosely to his muscular frame. His jeans were worn and faded, not as a fashion statement but something reminiscent of the power of laundry detergent. Darkness makes one judge too easily, and to me then, he pretty much looked like someone who would mug me and then run away with my money. Fine, call me judgmental.

I was standing in the curb waiting for my ride. He was coming towards me.

"Miss, Miss. Pwede bang makahingi ng limang pi...?".

I looked up and instantly, almost instinctively, I started to flee, even before he could finish what he was going to say. Never mind that I was fleeing to the middle of Taft where the probability of getting hit by an approaching vehicle albeit a slowly moving one (cars never get past 10kph on this side of the world) is close to a hundred. Fear must have taken over my face. As I was putting a foot out of the curb to make my escape, he walked past me, looked at me with a sneer and muttered almost apologetically

"Huwag ka nang tumakbo, kailangan ko lang kasi...".

I looked back at him. In my head I was trying to reason why someone would need 5 pesos, definite at that instant that he was going to hypnotize me then take my money. It's quite amazing how a lot of things could go through your head in a moment. I managed to let out an inappropriate "Hindi po..." but I was already reaching over my pockets for change. It was like my brain and body have completely gone auto-pilot. I was walking away, going for my pockets yet at the same time thinking that this might be a potential hold-up. At that point I was already doing a walk-a-thon in the opposite direction, relieved to have at last found my FX.

Then it hit me.I was overcome with guilt and the realization that I may have judged the man too easily, that whatever he needed five pesos for could be a matter of life and death. That he was desperate and merely asking for help. I was guilty for thinking, plainly put, that he was a hold-upper. He couldn't blame me for walking away. Anyone in that situation would have opted to run. We are socialized to believe and media leads us to think, that people who come up to you at night, in darkness or semi-darkness, is not a good thing. It was the wrong place and the wrong time.

I'm still bothered by the what-ifs though. So, sorry man, whoever you are, I was merely acting on impulse and if it offended you that I thought you'd rob me, I'm terribly sorry for judging. I wish in the end, you found your five peso.

There's something to be learned here, like a moral of the story... or something.

The saddest Krispy Kreme in the world

It's flat and lonely...

Eating out

I am on a binging streak and I eat out almost on a daily basis. This has done nothing but create a huge burn hole in my wallet and cellulite around the most unfortunate places, especially if you happen to plan on getting on a skimpy swimsuit this summer.

Exhibit A: California Pizza Kitchen

Strawberry milkshake topped with lethal amounts of whipped cream


Kung Pao spaghetti made mildly spicy for me

Roasted garlic chicken pizza perfection

Exhibit B: MoMo

Lasagna topped with heart-stopping amounts of cheese


Lard on a plate: Ham and cheese omelet

WWJW?

The question everyone has but is too afraid to ask- What Would Jesus Wear?
I had a kick out of these. Loved the disclaimer at the end. Note: These are actual pictures for a feature in New York Times, I think. And yeah, the Prince of Peace is digging the Tartan trend. Go click!

True Love is...

a Periodic Table of Elements duvet cover.

One craftsy woman made this clever duvet cover for her Chemistry Major boyfriend and posted the how-to's on the internet. Totally epic. Click here

In the mail today.

I got this from the mail today. Dad saw it after dinner neatly tucked between the grilles of our rusty gate. It was white, spotless almost glowing in contrast to the dark surroundings. I took it and felt it's thickness- one-paged. And at that moment, I felt the Universe smiling upon me.

This is it. My fate is sealed :D

If you can't beat it...

Take pictures and draw funny faces on the little bastard.

I hate alopecia.

mushrooms with culture

These are the cultured mushrooms we found on display at Mushroom Burger Tagaytay. I can't resist taking some shots. Anyone can see that these fungi are happy :D

curbside

Tired of all the running and walking she did for the day, she sat on the curb and watched time pass on her gigantic wrist watch.

mobile blogging evades me

Ok... So I was finally able to buy me a new phone from Sony Ericsson with Mobile Blogging features but I can't seem to make it work and it has been a source of frustration for the past couple of days. I have downloaded all sorts of mobile internet settings from Globe (my service provider) and Sony Ericsson but still nothing. :c I'm itching to get it done and finally, rule the universe!

Help!

My 3-year-old E398, which you'll probably recognize as Motorola's first from the ROKR series, broke after several times of me pounding it on the wall out of desperately trying to fix the broken keypad. Talk about going total cave man on it. JK was kind enough to lend me his spare phone (thanks!), that I jokingly declare defective to convince him to sell it to me for a very cheap price, hehe.

Now, I'm looking for a new phone. Aside from value for money, it has to have these three four features:
1) MP3 player
2) Megapixel camera
3) Radio
4) Expandable memory

Any suggestions?