day 2 - Sto. Niño novena

Day 2
SINULOG 2010
officially open!

My sister and I attended the 2:30pm novena mass yesterday and we were greeted by the colorful costumes of the dancers along with the number of politicos in attendance. Little did we know, that after the mass was the official opening of SINULOG 2010.

We were so excited that we squeezed in between bodies just to get a better spot and tiptoed to the highest just to get a better view. Only to find out that the dancers were immediately shooed to the streets as the Basilica was just the starting point of the street dancing parade. tsk tsk. After all the stiff neck we got!

We would have wanted to go to the City Sports Complex to see the grand performances but aside from having to worry about the entrance, when we could even hardly pay for the parking!, our little camera's battery died on us, so my sister concluded that it would just beat our purpose of going there. It sucked! Much more when our little camera started blinking battery empty, people with BIG cameras and telescopic lenses stood beside us shooting all their time away. Ugh! I'm not bitter just stating an experience. hahaha.

Anyway seeing all the festive colors of the dancers yesterday made me giddy with excitement . I love Sinulog. It's the greatest event to kick off the year! :)

day 1 - Sto. Niño novena

For a not so religious person like me, it's weird to consider myself a devotee of Sto.Niño. Maybe it's the Cebuano in me or the past memory of wearing a necklace in his image when I was still a child, either way it doesn't change the fact that I have this unwavering faith in him. Though unlike others, I just don't have that showy streak. Like what my sister reasoned to our Mom when she called her attention for not singing out loud in the mass, "what happens between God and me is just between us, I don't need to justify myself to others." Oh diba?! bongga si sister! and mind you were still highschool back then, but she always has that quite wisdom in her, unbelievably!

So this year, I decided to be a bit more showy of my devotion. From this year onwards I'll make sure to complete all 9 novena masses. I'm writing it here as a public reminder to myself.

Also in commemoration of my new found tradition, I challenged myself to post one significant picture on each day of the novena mass. Yesterday was the beginning, excuse the lateness, but what's important is that I still get to do my self imposed challenge.

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Day 1
tradition begins

***

I know was only supposed to post 1 picture, but this is an exemption. I just have to mention this lady in red who was nice enough to share her umbrella with us strangers (my sister and I), so we'd be sheltered from the pouring rain. God bless this woman.

into my world...

"If it ain't broke, break it and then fix it," --> me.

So I woke up one day last month seeing the all the destruction of my so-called "art" in my room. A portion of the wall's paint were peeling off because of my genius attempt at making a mural out of homemade paint - flour and food coloring. But it turned out nice - at first. I know my mom wasn't happy about it so it's no wonder she easily granted my christmas wish for '09, a bucket of paint.

2010. The year of reinvention. Redoing my room is just part of it, or maybe the whole. Anyway, planning the project was the most fun part, especially when visualizing the end result with this website for a reference: http://www.sherwin-williams.com/do_it_yourself/paint_colors/visualizer/ It's probably one of the coolest sites I've discovered. All you gotta do is take a picture of your room, upload it in the site and then try on different colors that suits your room. Very cool. But that was only the in the beginning, coz I realized that in the middle of it all my head was just bloated with expectations. I had to do the dirty hard work for more than week! I had to evacuate to my sister's room along with my things and then rub all sides of the wall with sandpaper. Who knew that that was how repainting was done. Nonetheless, with all my capitalized EFFORT, I have to say that the end part was very satisfactory.

****
My precious wall.

Aside from the repainting stuffs, I was also excited with the shelves. It's just a wood attached to a bracket that I've seen a lot in design magazines, and I figured that they're really useful in organizing stuffs. It also saves a lot of space. I've done this in our altar/library earlier this year and I just fell inlove with it. It's addicting. I'm even thinking of putting one more in my room and a lot in the house. But it's my Mother's house so I have my limitations.

Speaking of Mom, that net aquarium was my joint project with her. I saw this movie Man of the House when I was a kid and all I could remember was this net on the wall where they hang the driftwoods and stuffs that they found on the shore. I told my Mom about it years ago so we made this together. She knew what a beach bum I am and the stones and shells I collect from every island in the country I go to, so it's a cool way of putting my up my memorabilias.

That's one of the things my mom and I bond on. We like to create stuffs. In fact the man candle holder and the vase wire on the top shelf was her design when she was still in the design business. I think it's one of her few remaining rejects that I just polished and wrapped in tiny abaca ropes. They say creativity is in our genes, but I say it's boredom. We just get bored easily that crazy ideas just pop in our heads out of the blue and often times we tend to leave things undone. Yes, it's a miracle I finished painting my room. haha.

I looooove my bed.

The first thing that I miss when I'm away from home is my bed. NO KIDDING. There's no comfort greater in the world than my bed, no matter how uncomfortable others may think it is. It used to be the bed in the service quarters in the family's old house, but when we transferred, it served as a temporary bed in my room till it became permanent coz I wouldn't let go of it. The bed's foam used to be so thin from old use and I was even pissed when my Mom changed it with the thicker one (that I have now) without my permission. Still it wouldn't change the fact that I heart this cheap bamboo bed.

The paintings. A childhood dream of mine was to really be an artist. I think I was frustrated in that department that there was a phase in my young life when all I did was paint. I started with the used Camel watercolors from my older sisters, and moved on from there. Our parents were really keen in honing our so-called talents. I remember when we were kids, every summer my Mom would request her friends or a relative to teach us how to do charcoal or paint. It was just passing then my dad enrolled me in the summer painting program at UP where I was introduced to oil painting. Again I was hooked - for a while. And those 2 paintings in my room were among the very few products that phase in my life. But I love painting still, and anything that involves paint. No wonder why I painted my room. :)

Books and Organizing.

For a clutz like me, I can be very obsessive about organizing MY stuffs. Weird, but again that's just in the beginning. But I usually reorganize my stuffs every now and then coz I kinda get bored seeing the same arrangement over a period of time. I really have a problem with stability. haha.

I used to hate books, to its very core! I used to have difficulty reading, I was a slow learner and words were just not my BFF. The turning point was when I was in highschool. My sisters have this very thick Judith Mcnaught novels that I always criticized, but one time when I got sooooo bored I attempted reading it and the rest is history. Sometimes I always make sure to have an extra book on hand because by the time I end with a really good book I would immediately want to have another one. It's like a thirst that just can't be quenched. But when the book is really bad that's the time I would have hiatus from reading and pick up another book for after a few weeks or pick up the same book after a year/s. An example of which is Sophie's world. I've had it since 2006 and I've probably had 5 attempts at it, and every attempt would mean starting to read from the very beginning coz I always forget where I left off. That's why I took that book as my ultimate challenge for this year, I really really have to finish it. All in all books are nice. Not only do they feed the brain they also make nice accents to the room :)

***
They say you can tell so much about a person just by looking at his belongings. But I say you can tell so much about me because I blogged so. haha!

Anyway my room got fixed, but I don't know for how long till I break it again. another 2010 challenge.

2009.

2009.
Too many happenings, only one adjective to describe it.

2009 has been a good year for me and the family. At the start of the year we were immediately blessed with our very first lady bug. Aeva Danielle or as i fondly call "Abing," just to have a filipino touch to that very western name. She's a doll. She feeds on books, figuratively and literally. I think she's gonna be a smart a**, but before that happens she still has to grow that tooth. say cheeze baby! :D

Last year, I was so frustrated of the fact that I hadn't been to some place new. So I told myself that this year, 2009, should be my TRAVEL YEAR either by hook or by crook!. True enough, my itchy feet was able to leave footprints in all these places.

It's WOW Philippines.

April we exchanged smiles with the people at the city of smiles (Bacolod). Then September was a treat. From white water rafting in the river region (Cagayan de Oro) to frolicking in the island of fire (Camiguin) and the sight seeing at the land of waterfalls (Iligan), you gotta supah heart Pinas!

2009 has also been my first taste at International travel.

My sister and I were barely able to afford this trip, but thanks to the call center industry I was able to save 2 months worth of salary, before I went AWOL. specialty! But honestly, we owe it to our ever generous father. And no we are not taking advantage. We are simply just considering it as his investment on us, coz by the time we will be earning real money I know that he wouldn't hesitate to collect his ROI with a European travel. Good luck to us!

Before the year ends, I can truly brag that I have conquered the sky, land and sea.

My best birthday ever was spent on the road round south, and the best present was that ride in the sky. As if that wasn't enough, we climbed (or more on drove) our way to the mountains of Cebu. Then dove into the waters of Mactan and chased the waves with the big boy's toy - the wave runner. And as for the finale of the adrenaline rush year! my sister and I paid to be hanged on a zip line that goes half a kilometer from cliff to cliff that was only separated by the river that was hundreds and hundreds of feet below at Danao, Bohol.

Contrary to the what it may seem like, 2009 for me wasn't just all about thrill seeking adventure. On the brighter side, to appease my mother, I was able to accomplish quite a few feat. It may not be as notable but it's still something worth celebrating.

Finished my diploma in Professional Education. Check!
Passed the Teacher's Board. Check!
Took another test. Check!
Passed that test. Question Mark? I still have to wait till 2010.

2009.
Too many happenings, only one adjective to describe it.

BLAST!!!!

Summary:
Film of year: 500 days of Summer
Soundtrack of the year: Viva la Vida by Coldplay
Book of the year: Embraced by the light
Website of the year: Mangored.com
Event of the year: Sinulog
Night of the year: Pulse night
Day of the year: September 17
Buddy of the year: Ray.... Ray Ban-nd!
he's been everywhere with me :)
*****
2010 is gonna be my career year.
I'll ROAR in my year of the Tiger!


HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! :D

Lil' V....

I think i just discovered another Regine Velasquez in the making. hmmmm?....

Like some proud talent hunter, I discovered this kid a few months back when my father and I went to Bohol for a family affair. On the way back to Cebu, by some management reasons at the port of Tubigon, all passengers were forced to stay inside the passengers' lounge, to keep us from hopping on the boat ahead of others. I don't know if that made sense but Bohol's very own "Von Trappe" family certainly did.

The father, mother, daughter and daughter tandem were all belting it out for the waiting passengers. The father, though blind, is the jack of all trades, he does the talking, singing and strumming of the guitar. And the rest... well, they just sing. They pretty have good voices, typical Filipino belting out/ shouting (to make up for the absence of mic) style. But who I found so adorable is the youngest kid named V.... errrrr... na?da?... anyway I suck with names, so let's just call her V.

V, despite the size, packed alot of air in those diaphrams. And as the frustrated singer that I am, this is probably the only instance when I'm finally not bitter over someone else's musical talent. Instead, I just resigned to the fact that the world is indeed not equal. And that though God has given others the talent I, on the other hand, just got the confidence.

Anyway going back, this kid is A-MAZING! seeing and hearing her perform could only make you wish that the future be kind to this tiny kid and lead her to great heights.

On the second thought, didn't Regine Velasquez started out this way? hmmm... should I put myself to good use be a talent manager instead?.. watchatink?... do i have the eye for a real talent? or is it just my confidence getting in the way again?... hehe... anyway just check out Lil' V.

love defined.

A bit of wisdom from the kids. makes you :)

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other"
- Karl, 5

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday"
-Noelle, 7

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day"
-Mary Ann, 4

"I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and she goes out to buy new ones"
-Lauren, 4

"When you love somebody your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you"
-Karen, 7

"Love is when mommy gives daddy the best piece of the chicken"
-Elain, 5

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French Fries without making them give you any of theirs"
Chrissy, 6

"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well"
-Tommy, 6

The winner was the 4 year old boy whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climb on his lap and just sat there.
When his mother asked what he has said to the neighbor, the little boy said,
"Nothing, I just helped him cry"

****
Sometime in our lives we were are wise as these kids. Unfortunately, most of us lost our wisdom along the way to adulthood. Gotta love kids! :)

3 spots in 3 days

Long overdue. I know. Who cares am the only one reading this blog anyway. Since this is for my own personal consumption I think I am more than entitled to set my own pace. HA! excuses!

Seriously, I've been meaning to put my thoughts on this trip into writing however, since I was so "emotionally involved" with what happened in the Metro during the typhoon Oondoy, I decided to postpone and postpone then postponed some more my blow by blow account of this CDO trip. Now, I think my time is up and am ready to share.

Day 1
RAFTING THE FAMOUS WHITE WATERS

Did you know that Cagayan was derived from the word Cagay which means river? Yes my dear self that's true. And since Cagayan is known for its rivers they naturally named their province after it. As it is a a very logical Filipino thing to do, name your place after what is found abudant.
I love how Filipinos comes up with names like brgy. Baboyan kai daghan man ug baboy! duh?! Kailangan ba imemorize yan?! anyway.....


For a first timer in the river rafting, I found that idea of rapids very exciting and the thought of falling off the rubber boat quite scary. But the truth is, it was only scary in the first few rapids. After that sisiw! HA! It was definitely fun though, most especially watching your friend fall off the boat while you and the rest of her "so-called" friends are just merely laughing their hearts out. I have to admit that was a highlight and a picture perfect moment. On the brighter side, at least she got a rapid named after her - Loura's DROP.

While the ignorant first timers blissfully basked in the adrenaline rush, two of my friends bragged about how BORING the rapids were, coz apparently they tried something more insane than what we had. It's true. Once you get the hang of it it can be pretty much a dull. But the scenery! it was AMAZING! It's like being enclosed by the amazing towering cliff formations as an endangered bird hovers. It was definitely a feast for the eyes, and places like that could never make you any prouder of your motherland. While my heart was swelling with sentimentality my mind was singing the WOW PHILIPPINES jingle.

I wouldn't mind rafting for a second time. Hopefully next time the rapids would be more exciting so I could be like my two friends who could make a comparison between a boring and a not boring rapid.

Day 2
Isla del Fuego - CAMIGUIN

If I haven't mentioned it yet, we embarked on this trip during one of the worst typhoons in the history of the country, Ondoy. Understandably, the weather wasn't as good as we hoped for, in fact we were even just lucky to cross the island of Mantigue, because after that the waves were just so huge that bankas could no longer properly dock on the shore. But island of Mantigue was just plain worth it!.

I don't know why every time there's a nice sandy white island, everyone else likes to christen it as the little Boracay. I just can't see why they have to compare everything to Boracay when their natural wonders could pretty much stand on their own. Oh well, another cultural faux pas.

Nonetheless, Mantigue Nature Park is this little island that could be toured on foot in just an hour or so . What I love most about this island is its natural diversity. Walking within their small forest is a pretty awesome thing to do. It can be quite a "twilight-y" experience, except that there's no Edward Cullen around coz you're definitely no Bella. duh?!

But what really makes this trip memorable was our close encounter with their Mayor. Si Mayor Alex. He struck me as one of those politicians who aren't really politicians. I like that he was really down to earth and passionate about the preservation and rehabilitation of the environment, especially Mantigue. Right now he is working on relocating the residents of Mantigue so the island can be fully rehabilitated for eco-tourism use. I think that it's a very smart move considering that it's a win-win for both the people and the environment. And just so you know, no one is allowed to stay overnight in the Nature Park so as to lessen carbon footprint. Swell!

Katigbawasan Falls was a brrrrr......... It was like dipping into a pool of ice on a rainy day! Our tropical bodies couldn't last that long and tita myra's strict military sched was more than useful on this occasion. ya know what i mean! haha.


16th Century Catarman Ruins, was caused by a nearby volcanic eruption during that period, and so was the Sunken Cemetary. After all that small island has a total of 7 volcanoes. Another FYI! ;)

Partay at night!

Cagayan has probably one of the most bizzare party place I've been to. I don't wanna delve into details but Pulse certainly made a mark on our trip!. It was just shockingly unreal, and so was the fact that we had clean good fun that night.

By the way I envy the empty bridges at CDO. It's definitely the hangout place to be. It's a perfect place to chill, and have a good drink at the back of the pick up while listening to some great music. The last night was definitely a shout of HURRAH!

Day 3

CHICKEN AND FALLS - ILIGAN

I have to admit that the reason why I really really wanted to go Iligan was the Sunburst. I wanted to try what the Orginal Sunburst tastes like and guess what? I can't taste the difference coz my tastebuds weren't trained for that kind of thing. To me it simply just tasted like how a chicken should taste, same way as how turtles and snakes and everything exotic tastes - chicken.

We then headed off to Maria Christina Falls which was quite a sight to behold. Seeing the Maria Christina Falls is just so surreal, coz normally I just see and color it in our gradeschool textbooks. I never expected that the tiny picture from my Araling Panlipunan book can be very grand and majestic in flesh! Just imagine the height and the impact of water as it falls. Unbelievable. And those river rapids?! well, they sure are far from boring!

Our last stop by the way was the old mansion of Pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's family. It was okay, typical house of the 40's old rich, but the GMA's playhouse was cute! Now you could just imagine our cute President playing tea parties in her cute house.... kyooooot.... :)

I like Iligan. I find it clean and green. There are certain areas of the roads where you can say "parang wala sa Pinas." The abudance of trees on the side roads just makes all the difference. It's about time we learn that trees makes fine ornaments.

*****

WOW PINAS! more to go...