my splurging days are over now, but that doesn’t mean i can’t keep a list of places i want to visit! here’s a small list of prospects, not in order:

1) pagudpud, ilocos norte
2) malapascua, cebu
3) honda bay & el nido, palawan
4) camiguin
5) apo island, negros occ.
6) cagayan valley (pe�ablanca, anyone?)
7) pearl farm, davao (generous donations are welcome! hehe)

i would think of travelling abroad next time, when i’m really earning big bucks hehe. for now, the philippines is grand enough for me :)

and of course, any multimedia person would want a smokin’ sidekick.yeah, pc is great, but the g5 mac is so… divine! *kisses its tiger paws, drools and dies happily* a bonus canon eos 5d would be nice, too. *siiiiigh*

blah, must stop daydreaming and start slaving away.

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each year, the family goes to the cemetery for our usual holiday visit. through the years, we do the same routine and i never enjoyed any of it because i think it’s stupid. i can visit my deceased love ones any time of the year, so why hassle myself with all soul’s traffic and parking hullabaloo? the day itself has turned the cemetery grounds into a huge picnic area dotted with tong-its tables and overnight campers. it’s senseless, really. but then again, i would sound like an all-soul’s scrooge if i try to tell them that, no?

we went to that longest buffet event in eastwood city last night, the place was crowded with hungry people all waiting in a long line just to have their plates filled. i never knew there was a continental section or desert until i really circled the large and crowded buffet area.

there wasn’t much food left after only an hour has passed; the organizers sold tickets twice as much as the available seating capacity, our companions had to “guard” our table so that nobody else might try to hog it.

it was horrible having to wait for a chance to squeeze in just to get food, if there’s still anything left on the tray anyway. they won’t refill the food even if it’s all gone, the next refill batch will come in two hours. so we go, “WTF?! you call this a buffet?” i mean, if you’re intending a buffet for 6,000 people, you should’ve prepared for the worst. the way they organized the line also sucked; nobody was there to guide the people which and where to go, so what happened, most of the people were worming their way in and out of the line.

the weather felt terribly humid, partly because there were lots of people in the vicinity. and as we all know, people tend to smell like moist used rags when put in this kind of condition. YUCKINESS.

there were media people interviewing some of us. somebody interviewed j for a kiddie show, and even told him not to say anything negative about the event.

kid host: “so what do you think about this event?”
j: “i’m so excited to be part of this event!”

haha.

this is horrible. i barely resisted the urge to buy useless stuffs AGAIN. right after i submitted the project, i decided to head straight home and try not to buy anything stupid.

passed through greenbelt 1, ok. it’s not on sale.

passed through greenbelt, ok. nothing good.

passed landmark, ok. there’s a sale, but nothing new.

while in glorietta, almost near the exit, is a tiangge i used to frequent. there are a lot of bohemian trinkets; cheap and cute slippers, skirts, bags and tops; cute what-nots; and yummy sweet-spicy thai tamarind.

arrg! i’ve just exchanged a couple of benjamins into peso, so you can imagine how horrible it was for me to resist. my sister used to put a leash on me whenever we go shopping, so that i won’t run amok.

ah well, i did my best (but i guess my best wasn’t friggin’ good enuf). here are some of the useless loots..

i’m munching this yummy treat alone since my mom can’t stomach eating something that looks like dried cat poop.

a jelly wrist rest. it was so cheap that i was really tempted to buy one. it’s got glow in the dark stars inside it too.

this innocent looking whale may look pretty useless but…

it’s actually smoke vaporizer. i don’t smoke, but some of my friends do and i hate it when my house smells like yucky yosi. SO, i bought this little guy to keep the air clean. it’s battery operated, so each time you put your stick in its mouth, it’ll prevent smoke from polluting a confined place.

what i like about this clock is that it’s transparent. it’s red. and it’s egg-shaped. hehe. yun lang.

by the way, pix were taken from a cellphone cam. j took his fuji finepix with him already so i’m left with rotting photos. Y_Y

after having enjoyed a quite and relaxing time in bohol, i’m starting to consider travelling solo somewhere else. perhaps a cheap escape to puerto galera, enjoy a quiet week at sagada or bum around bora. just someplace where i can contemplate; away from work, the city, the pollution, the noise and the people. i don’t know, maybe i’m just the person who enjoys a lot of solitude. (it’s just that some people find it weird and snobby if i tell them that.)

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it’s good i didn’t gave in to the temptation of buying the early releases of ipod. it’s even better that i didn’t demand for an ipod nano– because here comes the new ipod!! available in 30GB and 60GB, as slim as a nano and it plays 320×240 videos!

but the big question is, should i still wait some more? or settle for a first generation video-capable ipod?

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my mom is driving me nuts! whenever i’m working on a project, i usually play my sounds in fullblast, otherwise i won’t be able to work properly. but for some reason, nagging moms are a different kind of noise, it always breaks my working momentum.

that’s it. i’m going to look for that game controller containing all those old nintendo games, plug it into the tv and let her play bomberman and battle city all day. it always works hehe.

yesterday j and i went to a kumon franchising seminar. he has always wanted to be a teacher, while i thought of being the eternal student. i was impressed by the kumon mission and vision; it’s a business with a twist where profit is not the primary goal. the system was made in such a way that they cater to the educational needs of the child, makes sure that those who franchise are competent instructors as well, and they are also concerned with the overall development of a child’s skills.

i was touched with what this guy said during the seminar, “i am not bad with math, i don’t think i’m a genius at it either. i don’t know if i’ll pass your screening examination, but i just want to let you know that i have the heart to give our children the chance to experience this kind of education.”

i firmly believe that without passion, our work would be pointless no matter how much you earn. you can earn a lot and still feel empty. you can grab the bull by its horns and still feel unsatified. your search for a greater purpose would be insatiable.

honestly, i am glad that there are still people who wanted to be teachers even though the wage is not as high as that of a bank manager, an accountant or a programmer. it is, for me, one of the noblest profession. teaching is a gift; not everybody who gets a degree in education can cause a ripple in one’s life. anybody can teach something, but not everybody can be an influence.