Start of Day 1. Waking up to the cool crisp air of Baguio refreshes the most weary of souls. Plus, you gotta love the view from our hotel window.
First order of business, visit the TV5 float. Construction is well underway when we got there.
Nice that even CSD's TV5 tcard design was incorporated into the float. :)
Next, we visit the the blimp set-up at the Athletic Bowl. Giant branding is always impressive.
Then we had the afternoon to ourselves. So what do a bunch of artsy-fartsy media folks do as an afternoon off? ... Drive out to this little paradiso nook, of course! Bencab's Museum was a gem to visit.
Benguet Houses by Bencab.
Reunion by Bencab.
Bencab's backyard.
Here's an interesting tidbit: Bencab purchased this land in order to preserve the greenery in and around it. Stewardship at its finest.
Of course, flora-obsessed me couldn't help but notice the gorgeous flowers of Baguio.
This little pond here houses talapia. Not sure if they're being farmed for food in Cafe Sabel though...
Bencab's all about sustainable development. Wonder what these are?
And who is his landscaper? His gardens are beautiful!
And work starts anew the next day. We're off! Panagbenga Flower Parade to start in a few.
And our float's a hit with the crowd! Yey!
Galeng what these designers can do with a bunch of flowers.
STORMTROOPERS AT THE PARADE! They were with one of the "hall of famer" floats.
The Starwars fan in me just had to have a picture with one of them.
SM Baguio's float in honor of the year of the dragon. At one point, smoke was literally coming out of it's nostrils!
Lookie who I caught checking out our float: GMA News! Hahaha!
And let's the parade begin! Walking with the float was an amazing experience, but equally tiring as well.
But apparently not tiring enough for a jumpshot at the end of it. This was after the parade, after lunch at CJH.
Baguio was good to us, and we can only hope to be equally good back through amazing programming and signal service. Panagbenga 2012 rocked! Araw ng Dabaw, you're next!
It was some project for some subject... Reading, I think. Under Ms. De Luna (+).
We were to write and bring to life a fictional story, and being a trio who could not, for the life of us, act... we thought why not make it a "radio drama?"
So me and my groupmates wrote our script, about a girl who gets into an accident that paralyzes her waist down and changes her entire outlook in life. I think we pegged her as the popular sports star, who suddenly, at the loss of her leg use, lost her identity at the same time. But her friends and family help her discover another love a talent... for playing the piano and singing.
The new talents of our lead girl was chosen because 1) Becca Villegas was an amazing pianist, and 2) I could sing. We recorded our little project in Becca's house somewhere near West Ave. She had a piece of "The Greatest Love Of All" by Whitney Houston in the little baul 'neath her piano seat, and we thought, why not? It's a fairly easy song, (Huwahhht?!?!) and we don't have time to scout around for other pieces. It would eat up too much of our precious weekend...
Of course I was familiar with the song already... who isn't. It's Whitney, for cryin' out loud. Everyone had her album then. Along with the Album of Madonna that had La Isla Bonita and Like A Virgin. They were quintessential 80s/90s stuff!
But I never really listened to it until that recording session. By listened... I mean really took in and understood the lyrics. It teaches hope. How, inasmuch as we do what we do in our here and now, what will matter more is what we pass on to our children, because when we're gone, they will move what we've founded further. It's why we have to teach them well, yet let them lead the way. It's how you, as who you are now, serve as a role model for the next generation. How you must decide to be your own person, to not walk in anyone's shadow. And how failure and success are relative, so long as you do what you believe in.
Beautiful, really.
With the loss of yet another voice from our childhood (they're dropping like flies!), I am reminded of the song that taught me the basics of hope and love. I was 11 then, but I believe its message still rings true now. Maybe as we mourn the demise of another great artist, we also remember the best of her qualities and how she served as a role model to so many others.
The first time I watched... and I mean really watched... a sunset was back in '06. I was on a work trip in Boracay. Yeah, yeah, I've heard the "damn you lucky girl" statement one too many times so spare the thought. It's so not the point now.
It was, I think, the end of day 3 of my four-day trip. My "guide" and I were walking along white beach from Anggol to Station 2; We had just peddled our wares to the beachfront shops the entire day. We were both tired and spent 'cause as it turns out, working near seawater wasn't as fun as its cracked up to be. Apparently when you're trying to sell a sunblock by day and a personal lubricant by night, there was no such thing as end-of-the-workday.
So there we were, sluggishly walking back to our cheap-o hotel when suddenly I realized I was walking alone. My guide had stopped, stepped aside, and was starring calmly out to sea. I was about to ask him what's up when I saw it.
The sun, in his almighty red-orange glory, was being swallowed up, slowly but surely by the crisp blue water. Not a cloud in sight. The heavenly body's rays were bright yet dying just enough to not blind anyone who looks too intently. And the saltwater, absolutely still, was just reflecting back the magnificence of the moment. It was beautiful sight to behold. We weren't the only ones who took notice.
To see haring araw, move as if inch by tiny inch, into non- existence, was amazing. The end of the day suddenly meant more. In a matter of ten minutes or so, the work day had turned into my last night in my first ever trip to Boracay. My last night before I flew back to Manila, leaving the working paradiso to return to the hellhole called the city. Suddenly, something had to be done to make remaining hours of my stay magical and meaningful.
That's what sunsets do, I guess... They remind of the beauty behind the ending. Sure, everyone's accepted the fact that everything has an end but not everyone sees the beauty in it. Sunsets, beautiful as they are, mean only the start of the evening... which eventually leads to the start of a brand new day. That takes it beyond beauty. It turns the sunset into a lesson.
I was lucky to have had my very first real sunset in the near pristine beach of Boracay. One of the best spent 10 minutes of my life, thus far.
I'm not a big life updater (except here) but I do like to know what's happening with other people...
#classicchismosa, I know.
But seriously, now I think it'll actually be easier for me to stay in the loop of things with twitter. I'm exploring my recently created twitter account, and have thus far added 40 pax or so to the people/entities I'm following.
Wonder what kind of *tambling* I'll do if Chris G., Seth G. or Brandon S. follow me back? #ayikie!
We're not the most touchy-feely lovey dovey family in the world. Far from it. Our household tends to segment into the different lives of its members; and since none of us are like to pop out anecdotes of the day during dinner, we often don't know what's going on in each others' lives.
However, we do have those rare moments when we do show each other a tinge of paglalambing... it's when Achi and I bond over an Incubus song on the Magic Mic; or when Marty gears into action to help my mom carry her bags; or when I'm stuck with work and my dad's concerned. That's when he calls me by my favorite term of endearment.
"Anak, late na. Anong oras ka uuwi?"
"Malapit ako sa office mo, Anak. Gusto mong daanan na kita dyan?"
"Tulog na, Anak. Bukas mo na gawin yan."
I guess that's the upside of having a job that takes over your life. You get to hear your dad call you anak more often. When he calls me that, a happy warmth just crawls all over that I just want to share the love and hug someone. It's the kind of feeling that makes you go, "Awww."
And the one that makes you realize you need to sometimes blatantly tell them that you love them.
My dear friend, Billy Jane, inspired me to start this a new book collection. She recently wrote about adding a few pre-loved Eloise's to her growing treasure trove, and it got me wanting to build my own: made up of Dr. Seuss children's books!
I've long been a fan of Dr. Seuss.Back in grade school, I used to "steal" the giant Seuss books from the library. "Stealing" meant borrowing them in the first quarter and returning them in the fourth, when my parents were finally notified of my overdue books. Yes... that was me breaking the law. Life was full of excitement back then, wasn't it? :|
Going back to Seuss... recent trips to the bookstores have led my feet to the kids' sections, idly browsing the on-so-many wonderous works of Sir Theodor Seuss Geisel. They've appreciated so much though; now a 40-pager pretty would pop you back 500 bucks from NBS. So like Billy Jane, my hunt shall strictly be for those pre-loved. And I plan to start my collection with these 3 titles:
It's pretty easy to get why I chose these to begin with, with a bit of google search. But okay, here we go...
Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? (c.1973) teaches how we can always choose to see life as half full. Without being an irritating optimist, Seuss is able to concisely illustrate how life serves us ups and downs with every turn of the page, and how, if you take all things into consideration, really just how lucky you are.
I Had Trouble In Getting To Solla Sollew (c. 1965) tells the story of a journey, how it's riddled with bumps and tonks and all sorts of wonks (ah yes, the rhyming has begun) and just how important these humps along the way actually are. It's the kid's version of the Aerosmith's "Life's a journey, not a destination."
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish (c.1960) ... is a counting book. A counting book with fish. This was how I learned the basics of math. I'm drawn to it for obvious reasons.
So there. Seuss' got plenty more books with so many more golden nuggets in 'em, and I honestly cannot wait to start loading them up in my library. Kind of in obsession mode right now. I hear there's an entire area in Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure themepark that's dedicated to the Seussical world. Kinda makes me wanna hop on a plane and go States-side...
They bring a smile to anyone's face. So varied and colorful and amazingly symmetric, even though the Fibonacci in it can't be seen by the naked eye. They light up the gloomiest of days and brighten the darkest of rooms.
Their beauty is mean to be shared. It's why I've always made it a point to give them to friends and family on special occasions. It's become my new poem, actually.
I used to write poems in lieu of gifts back in high school. It was my thing, dedicating phrases that rhymed to my dearest friends in the world. Now, the mots qui vot tres bien ensemble have turned into bouquets of flowers. Semi-automatic, true that, but it still doesn't diminish the thought behind the giving. I hope.
I give flowers to those I love dearly because I believe they're the something everyone dreams of receiving but hardly ever do. No one really thinks of getting flowers for gifts because they wilt and wither eventually. No sense of permanence. But I think its that fleeting moment of having them with you that matters the most. Kind of reminds you nothing on this life is permanent, so best live it to the fullest by taking in every single gorgeous moment given.
Imagine my giddy when my best girls gave me a bunch of colorful happies for my very own on the big 3-0! It was the perfect combination of mums, carnations, and lilies, with a pretty pink rose and a bright yellow gerbera. Have I ever mentioned before that my favorite flowers are Gerberas?
And yes, they're still blooming, kids. I can smell the lilies from where I type. :)
The day started with a 7 AM surprise by the best girls (sans one who couldn't be there due to work, and sans a few more who are not in the country) in the world. Party hats, Choco Lava cupcake and a pink candle, well wishes and a bouquet of bright flowers came with the awesome threesome. They made my 3-0 start the way any 3-0 (or any birthday, or any day for that matter) should start. Surrounded by love and happiness.
Adventure.
I was reminded of a bucketlist addition today. It came with the realization that I need to do something new in my life. It has something to do with saving the Earth. Pursuit starts now.
Loved.
To my rock, my moral support and my reality check: I hear you. I hear your worry, your warnings, and your woes. I love you every bit for them. I have never felt more protected... more a priority... than in today's KoCCo session.
Foolish.
Here we go again, I know. I'm not disillusioning myself to thinking this will get to somewhere good this time around. But despite it... I can't give this up. I have to see where it goes.
After last night's weigh in, it has been confirmed, yet again.
I am fat.
Damn.
I've been on the unhealthy road for far too long. Giving in to sweets too easily. Zagu and Bubble Tea break increasing in frequency all too fast for my taste. Indulging in chips then suddenly consuming the entire bag. Unfortunately, food has now become the escape!
It used to be shopping. Kinda still wish it was, but anyway...
Due to the shocking turn of weighing scale dial, it has been resolved. February is NO RICE month. I am giving up that sweet, sticky, yummy thing that go oh-so-well with just about any viand. Rice will be drastically replaced by veggies. Green leafy, salad-y veggies that will be good for the heart and the ass crack. And it's started with today's lunch hour!
I am stuffing myself with an all-vegetable salad from Seattle's Best, and tocino royale & ginisang kangkong from the house. Rice-in-baon is vehemently ignored. NO TO RICE! (Obviously, this entry is also pep talk to self, so pardon the chants to rah-rah-RAH every now and then.)
So, now that we've got that covered and written down... :-|
FAQs:
1) Wouldn't it be just easier to give up Zagu, Bubble Tea and the chips?
Yes. Yes it would.
2) So...
Maybe I'm not ready to give them up yet.
3) Okay. Dropping the topic in 3... 2...
NO TO RICE!
