Lumo-lomo

My heart broke into a million pieces when I realized that my first Holga photos were nowhere to be found. For a while I thought there was hope because I kept the roll of developed film and my mother said she asked our helper to keep it in my yellow box of thesis junk (it used to be my "thesis treasure grove" with thesis materials in it) while they were general cleaning the whole house with two other helpers who are possible suspects too. But the helper didn't put it there where my mother specifically asked her to so it must have been thrown into the trash. I locked myself inside the bathroom, sat on the floor, and cried there for a good thirty minutes. It felt like my childhood all over again when I used to cry over the most trivial things. Others may not understand why I made a huge fuss about the loss but it had sentimental value to me and my heart is broken by it. After my chest felt a little lighter but my head was heavy, I came out of the bathroom and accepted the fate of the poor photos.

I don't think I'll ever be able to get over the loss even if I have soft copies.

On the lighter note, I do not have to rely on Alej to scan photos for me anymore because my parents bought me an HP Deskjet F380 All-in-One. I love the scanning resolution because scanned images have the same colors from the originals. How cool is that? It's also white so it's pretty but the body is just a consolation because the scanning is great!

Here are some photos from my second roll of medium format film:

Where have all my creative juices gone? Maybe it was all but a figment of my imagination-- having creative juices. I can't even write a decent entry on this blog and I can't make a new layout because everytime I open Photoshop, I stare at the blank canvas on the screen-- stumped and clueless about where to start. So I'm waiting for "the moment" to hit me so that I can create another layout.

I missed Jane's birthday celebration last night because of the prior commitment I had with Alej. It was his high school's barkada dinner thing. So while all my high school friends were at Gumbo in Mall of Asia merrymaking and feasting on Janey's birthday dinner, I was at Burgoo in Promenade, Greenhills. That's so so far away. :'( They even went to Jaipur to party right after dinner. Huhu. I can't believe I missed one of the get-togethers. It's always always fun with these guys. But the dinner at Greenhills wasn't too bad at all. The girls in the group planned a beach trip at Laiya, Batangas in a few weeks. I want to go but I have to negotiate with my parents first. They're kind of strict about these overnight/out-of-town things. And then there's Revtech's summer outing in a beach in Zambales. That's two consective weekends of beach trips! I can't believe it. I've always complained of not stepping foot on the beach this summer yet, not even once. When finally opportunities presented themselves, there is that danger that I won't be able to go. How sad is that? I must go!! :'(


I'm going to run out of medium format film. Huhu! I need more! :'( My Holga is sad. It hasn't seen the sun for a long time.

Yey! I've finished downloading Grey's Anatomy S02E20! :D

Happy Bug Bites Once Again

You won't believe my luck:





Kuya John gave this to me this afternoon! Grad gift niya! WOWWWW! Old school, pare! :D:D:D It's a Minolta XG-1! It came with a camera bag and inside it is a strobe flash! I'm going to bring it to Quiapo one of these days to have it cleaned and restored. I have no idea how to use it. I need a SLR For Dummies book but thanks to the internet, online manuals are available for download--even this model! So yey! :)

Look at this old school XG-1 advertisement!


The Holga was Alej's grad gift for me. Well, half ot it because we shared. I insisted we shared since I don't like to except pricey gifts. But wow. I must've been good lately for blessings to come my way.

* * *

I got another roll of 120 film processed and printed today but I forgot to give them to Alej so he can scan them for me. Phooey. Now I have to wait 'til Saturday. But Saturday seems so far away!

Going to bed now, folks. Good night!

Pagtatapos

My headache is killing me. Argh. A three day headache is annoying. Today is the worst because it didn't go with the medication I took. Maybe it's because of my eyes. Ahh well. Nothing can stop me from logging off. HAHA!

I've gone WIRELESS! Tito Lynn and Tito Jon gave me a wireless broadband router for their grad gift, something that I have been meaning to purchase since forever. Thank you, soooo much! Best graduation gift ever. I am now mobile! At least around the house. Hehe!

Anyway, I graduated yesterday. It was such a tiring day especially for my feet. I loved my pointy heeled shoes but they killed me. *pats feet*. I am now nursing my blistered feet and still in "just graduated" high. I did my own make up. Wanna see?

TIP: click on photos for original size.


super big deal for me! haha!



Photos are here: http://gailaloo.multiply.com.


College graduation at the CAS Roofdeck, 23 April 2007.




sa bahay before leaving for PICC.


UP Manila Commencement Excercises, 24 April 2007 at the Plenary Hall, Philippine International Convention Center.

Singing U.P. Naming Mahal and the entire graduation ceremony, in general, was sad because there was a certain finality to everything-- that everything is about to end. But as one of the speakers said during the ceremony, "commencement" doesn't have to mean "an ending" but "a beginning" (of something new) instead. I am beyond grateful for my U.P. education. It taught me not to be afraid to fail because there is a right time for everything. It taught me to become fearless, to become independent, outspoken, and it also reminded me of my right to voice out whatever opinion I had. It taught me social awareness and nationalism. It taught me how to embrace culture-- mine and the rest of the world's. The best teachers I met in my entire life, I met in U.P. Manila and for that I feel so blessed.







my college best friend Apple! :)


my family. forgive the messy hair. it was the toga's cap fault. :P



My only wish is that 10 years from now when I return to U.P. Manila, I will do my alma mater proud. I must've been something to be proud of by then. :)

I will miss my home of many years. I will miss Padre Faura and the smokey Taft Avenue. I will miss Robinson's Place. I will miss the Philippine General Hospital. I will miss everything about the vicinity where U.P. Manila stands. I will miss everyone from the Department of Social Sciences faculty who grew up with me during

I wanted to cry at the end of the graduation ceremony when we sang U.P. Naming Mahal (Our Beloved U.P.).

U.P. Naming Mahal


U.P. naming mahal
Pamanatsang hirang
Ang tinig namin
Sana’y inyong dinggin.

Malayong lupain
Amin mang marating
Di rin magbabago ang damdamin
Di rin magbabago ang damdamin.

Luntian at pula
Sagisag magpakailan man
Ating ipagdiwang
Bulwagan ng dangal.

Humayo’t itanghal
Giting at tapang
Mabuhay ang pag-asa ng bayan
Mabuhay ang pag-asa ng bayan.


A chapter has ended and another one is about to begin.

Hello, folks. Didn't feel like my normal blogging self lately because I was busy for the past few days. Busy doing what? College clearance, university clearance, applying for needed school documents and fixing graduation requirements in general. I never had time to blog or just write about random things. When I come home I'm already usually tired or there's something more important to do.

I'm really tired right now. Something imporant has occupied my Saturdays and this will go on until June. Please do not ask me what it's about. I might jinx it. Just be assured that I will spill details when the fruits of my efforts have materialized into something worth being proud of. Please do entitle me bragging rights too. It's tiring, this sort of mental torture. I think I like being physically tired more because you can just sleep it off and wake up feeling better or pop an Alaxan pill and the bodyaches go away. Being mentally tired, on the otherhand, is not just mentally draining but it's also physically tiring. At the end of the day you just want to shut your brain off and hibernate until everything's over and you've made it to the end of the line.

I surprised myself by going to the mall with my parents to shop. I was very tired in the sense that I felt like I was going to drop asleep on the mall floor anytime. But it was fun. I might as well make the most out of the few months' time that I have with my folks before they fly off to Brasilia, Brazil for Papa's new assignment. And boohoo it had to be on my birthday month.

Good news: I start work full-time on May 1. :)

Oh, and maroon layout to pay tribute to my leaving school for good (officially, on Tuesday) but being a UPM alumni will always be with me from this day on. U.P. has taught me so much that it's a pity to leave without being proud of anything that I have accomplished or have gained from my education. I don't think any alumni forgets her alma mater anyway. It's sort of implanted inside of you that it actually flows in your blood and believe me, it's a great feeling. I'll write a different post for this when I'm less tired and more inspired with Pomp and Circumstance playing in the background.

I'm off to bed. I need to rest. Good night, folks!

The Check List

[x] clearance
[x] toga
[x] U.P. sablay (according to Sir Ponsaran, it should be "alampay")
[ ] submit alumni information sheet and photos
[ ] recopy grad pic. resized to 1x1.
[ ] tickets for PICC
[ ] dress
[ ] skirt for Recog Day
[ ] shoes

Of Freak Accidentes and Freaks Themselves

Mama is currently on a plane back home to Manila with Manny Pacquiao!!! Forget Vicky Belo. MANNY PACQUIAO! My father is sure that Mama didn't go up to him to ask for an autograph which would probably be worth a lot of pesos years from now if he continues to reap his fame into a legendary one.

I hate the weather. It's so HOT like seriously, seriously so.

And one of the windows on the second floor got hit by a stray bullet on Saturday night. My sister and I weren't home at the time it happened but my father said he heard a loud bang/crash sound. This is a freak accident because a few years back the same room got hit by a stray bullet which entered from the ceiling. It so happened that my sister and I were in the room with Mama sleeping on the bed. I heard the loud banging sound as if a humongous bed was dropped from the sky. It was that loud. I found my mother cringing in pain. She said her leg hurt but there was no blood. We didn't know what it was. My sister noticed the flakes of paint and ceiling material so when we looked up to the ceiling, true enough there was a hole on it! My sister and I were so frightened that we called our father who was watching tv downstairs at the living room. He found the casing beside the bed. It must have hit my mother's leg and then bounced off to the floor. The emergency room doctor thought it was a miracle because a bullet cannot bounce off a thin blanket. A few minutes earlier my head was on the same location where the bullet hit my mother's leg and everything would have turned out tragically.

We even kept the casing to report it to the police but the gun was unregistered. Nothing happened to the case. The creep was never caught and taught a lesson. Imagine if one of us were in the room and we died of a stray bullet, where is the justice in chasing after an unregistered gun? Sheesh.

And who lives nearby with an unregistered gun and likes to fire it? He ought to be taught a lesson!

updates

I finally got a haircut.

I met up with college friends. Again, finally, after several absences from dinner dates with the same group.

Tomorrow is the first day. First day funk gives me the jitters.

People tell me that I lost weight. Even my Lit professor from way back sophomore year. I rejoice because dieting or eating healthy never worked for me. Lo and behold! Getting sick twice in a span of two months and being hospitalized for 5 days did the trick. Only, I don't know if I can keep this up with all the Lindt Truffles and Ferrero chocolates I've been consuming.

I think "the visitor" is coming soon. Yesterday, my meals consisted of:
Lunch-- leftover chicken noodle soup and siopao.
Merienda-- another siopao (it's small, mind you hehe)& shawarma a few hours later when Alej and I passed by Banawe Ave. Food Channel!! (I love it!)
Dinner-- a huge slab of yummy T-bone steak and two scoops of mashed potatoes from Everything At Steak
Dessert-- Chocolate Cream, grande from Starbucks.

Ewwwwwwwwwww. My boyfriend is amazed by my appetite. I am too. o(0_o)o!!

I'm sleepy.

Good bye!

Just a Thought

When I feel uninspired, I turn back to old photos and I am inspired again.

Som's Thai Restaurant

On Palm Sunday I brought my father and my sister to Som's. I knew they'd love it! I'm crazy for Thai food or any Asian food, that is. Asian cuisine is just yummy!

We had red chicken curry, pad thai, cat fish and green mango salad, beef with oyster sauce, and shrimp fried rice.

My mouth is watering now.

You have to (re)watch The Godfather trilogy

The last time I watched The Godfather was when I was a little girl who had a short attention span when it came to movies that do not involve cartoons, animals, or a kiddy storyline. I rewatched the movie today and OHMYGOD! The Godfather rocked my socks off. I am so hooked that I watched The Godfather 2 right after the other. I'm like a zombie now but hands down to Mario Puzo for the brilliant writing and to Francis Ford Copolla for directing/producing the trilogy. I'm not yet done with the second part because I am but human whose tummy growls come dinner time. I will continue my The Godfather trilogy marathon later. This movie is so good that it shot off to my TOP 1 Best Movies of All Time. Er, it's not like I do have a list but theoretically speaking... if I did have one it would've been number one!

Oh, this is absolutely in no relation with the above mentioned whatsoever: I love polka dots. I have an insane knack for polka dots these days. What gives?

What's wrong with my dsl connection? Parang ang bagal.

I've been out and about the past few days spending hours at the mall with Alej and his family; eating out; watching movies (on dvd and at the cinema-- TMNT!); hanging out with Dar and Cara-- watching Lethal Weapon, eating ice cream, and having dim sum at Causeway; playing Literati or Checkers on Yahoo Messenger (having my ass kicked while at it) with Winston; and just tonight I met up with the rest of the Cogmotion people for Sam's post birthday dinner at Crocodile Grill in Greenbelt.

And...*drum roll* my phone has resurrected from the dead! I can't believe I waited so long to go to the Motorola Service Center when all they did was reformat the phone and replace my micro SD card (I had to buy a new one). I also got hit on by the guy who was in-charge of customer service/technical support. Imagine my surprise when he didn't charge the reformat of software and troubleshooting (which is about 320php or more for non-warranty holders). All he charged was the Transcend micro memory card that I bought. Yellow must be my lucky color (the shirt I wore today hehe).

It's already APRIL 1. April was is--

>>the day Alej and I turn one year and seven months!
>>Daivy's birthday!!! (Happy Birthday, dearest! I miss you so much!)
>>April Fool's Day! (beware of pranks!)
>>Palm Sunday! (have to wake up early tomorrow for morning mass and then lunch at MOA, I think)

I'm dizzy. And I have migraine. I think it's a little bit of both, I don't know. So I'm waiting for Tylenol PM to kick in and for my sister to come home so that I can head off to bed because I'm groggy.

Hope you had a great weekend!