Guilty Pleasures: RX Morning Rush Top Ten

As I said in a previous post, one of the things I look forward to every morning is listening to the Morning Rush with Chico and Delamar. Yesterday, however, I felt kinda iffy with the topic. Before I begin, however, let me offer this disclaimer: I am not pretending I did not laugh, nor do I think many of the entries were not funny. I do recognize that some may think I'm being two-faced or hypocritical with this post, but this is just my two-cents. Yesterdays topic was top ten signs your yaya is a major loser. I found myself as usual laughing like an idiot alone in my car. However, after the segment, I kinda felt slightly guilty for laughing at our yayas. Yes, their bloopers can be downright hilarious and almost moronic, but at the back of my head, a small voice was tsk-tsking at me for laughing.

When I stopped and tried to think of where this was coming from, it dawned no me that the feeling was coming from a lesson I learned a long,long time ago when I made a snide comment about jeepney drivers without realizing I was talking to someone whose father drove a jeepney. That taught me not to criticize people who are not at the same standards as myself or my peers as well as made me become more aware about laughing at others mistakes. I must give credit to the hosts, however, because despite the laughter, they gave repeated reminders that a lot of the mistakes these yaya's make are not due to them being major losers, but because they simply just didn't know better. I agree completely...after all, if they knew better, they probably wouldn't be yayas.

...click to continue reading...

The Long Way Up.

I know I said I wanna lose weight this year but I didn't expect to start it this way! Against my better judgement, I agreed to come along on a mountain trek with my colleagues from DLSU. I figured, how bad can it be. Checked websites and it rated it a 3 out of a possible 10 in terms of difficulty. Plus my friend told me it's an easy enough trek and it wasn't that steep. Yeah right. It took over five hours to reach the summit of Mount Arayat, where I'm writing this post right now. The long trek was mainly because of me. I kept on stopping and whining from the physical exhaustion. Lots of lessons learned from this trek...will post when I get home.

...click to continue reading...

Project 3 Things.

A few posts ago, I mentioned my new project, which I entitled Project 3 Things. What is this, you ask? Well simple. It is a list of 3's...things to do, places to go, dreams, ambitions, goals, aspirations, basically whatever! This comes at the heels of my new resolution, which is to keep a gratitude journal as well as the reminder from The Secret about the laws of attraction. And so here it goes!

To debut Project 3 things, here are three goals I WILL achieve by the end of the year.

1. Get in better shape. Operationally defined, to fit back in to the clothes that I bought when I lost 80 pounds back in 2002/3. Yes, since then I have gained back a fair share of that weight lost (as can be observed if you look at my header!) but for this year, I'd like to go back down to a decent 120-130.

2. Get published outside of the blogosphere. Not that the blogosphere is not a good place to be published at, but I'd like one more article printed in a newspaper, magazine or what not with my name on it. Hopefully a last hurrah at Youngblood before I turn 30.

3. Clean up my room. Such a daunting task...I think I need to do a Clean House on my room. I am a horder and a pack-rat who seems to have trouble discarding things. In 2009, that will change. But keeping the room clean...that's another story hehehe!!!

What about you...what are 3 Things you wanna do this year?

...click to continue reading...

Off to the Zoo.

Spent the morning at Ark Avilon Zoo with my kiddies for their animal field trip. Although I loved the set-up of the zoo and believe that places like these are great learning experiences for young children, I have to admit the inner animal activist in me gave me a light tap on the shoulder. For example, while I still sat for a photo-op with Colin the chimp, it made me think about whether or not it is "right". I also felt for the white tiger who seemed so agitated as hordes of people came to see him. Nonetheless the teacher in me took greater hold and It warmed my heart to see how the kids laughed, ooh-d and aah-d in amazement, and occasionally cringed at the creepy crawlies. At the end of the day I realized that there's really not one point to take in the discussion of whether animals should be housed in a zoo or similar enclosures.

...click to continue reading...

15 day FREE trial.

Day 1: Free 3 hour access...even though internet connection was established at 9 PM, day 1 of free trial began February 15.

Day 2: so far so good.

Day 3: getting happier with the speed.

Day 4: loving it.

Day 5: Server down from 2:55- roughly 9 pm. Still counts as full day.

tsk tsk.

...click to continue reading...

Random Acts of Kindness.

A few years ago, I came across the phrase "simple random acts of kindess". I don't remember if it was in a book or on the Oprah show, but whatever it was, it inspired me...for a while. Not too long ago, I also saw a foreign news feature where people were encouraged to pass on the random act of kindness when they drove up to a Starbucks drive-through and were surprised to hear that the customer before them paid for their coffee already. After getting their free coffee, they did the same for the person next to them. It was a simple random act of kindness.

While I have always been a strong believer in the Golden Rule, or perhaps karma, doing simple random acts of kindness was not as easy as I thought it would be. Sure there was the occassional I'll-pick-it-up-since-you-dropped-it or whatnot, when I stop to think about it, I'm not so good at doing random acts of kindness. Maybe because I don't want to get involved in things I'm not involved in anyway, or perhaps I don't want to bother because I'm too busy. Sometimes I still shy away from being kind because I'm nahihiya.. Why should I put myself out there for people I don't know, right?

However, about two weeks ago, I surprised myself by doing something I don't often do. Indeed, it was a simple random act of kindness and it has been rewarded tenfold thus far.


It started so unceremoniously. Such a benign act, with nothing expected in return. I was just having a really great day, and I wanted to spread the positive energy around. While enjoying cocktails during a movie premiere, I spotted a couple of ladies trying to figure out how to take a photo of themselves. So, putting aside hiya, I approached an offered to take their photo. That was it, or so I thought.

Before the night ended, that random act of kindness began to be rewarded. To make a long story short, from there new friendships were born, new opportunities unfolded, and great things are beginning to happen. All because I opened myself up to a random act of kindness.

...click to continue reading...

Getting Connected.

Lately I've been working hard at not making my blog simply a place for me to rant. After all, who likes reading complaints all the time right? Today however, I can't help but be frustrated with service provider policies. You see, after months of deliberations I finally decided to subscribe to Sky Broadband. I got my appointment for the 15th any time between 9am to 6pm. Okay, initial reaction: can't you give me a more specific time so I can schedule my day? Answer: sorry ma'am no set time. Just wait please. So do I have a choice? Since I was getting broadband and have to consider my personal finances given this time of economic difficulties, I decided might as well downgrade my Sky Cable Gold subscription to Silver. After all, I'll just lose 5 channels. Not a big loss considering what I get in return. Of course since I'd be waiting for the broadband guys anyway, I said please schedule on the 15th too. The downgrade team came at about 940 this morning. Impressive, i thought. But as of this writing, the broadband guys aren't here yet. What's getting me irritated is not just the delay but the idea that my first day of billing will start on the 15th but I don't actually get to use it! Sure my subscription starts with a free 15 day trial but day 1 is technically gone. Now I don't know about the lower cable subscription whether it starts today or not, but whatever the case, I can't help but feel cheated by yet another corporate giant.

I just hope in the end this is worth it.

...click to continue reading...

Tequila Rose.

If you read my previous blog post about things not many know about me, you'd know i'm a tequila girl. I love that hot rush that slides down my throat after a shot of it. Love the way it makes me feel too. However, more than regular tequila I absolutely love tequila rose. So when my friend told me that there was a Tequila Rose flavored ice cream, I had to go check it out. So after a long day at the hospital getting a bunch of tests done, I decided to reward myself with a cup of this curious concoction. Verdict: quite interesting. I can't really say if I like it or not because one, it was kinda a little cup so I couldn't really savor it. Second, for a cute photo effect I asked the ice cream man to put the heart shaped sprinkles. While it was very cute, especially today being Valentines day, it wasn't very tasty. I did like the very strawberry-ish flavor that was not too sweet and the bitter hint of tequila in it. It was a bit of splurge thouh for 60 pesos. A yummy splurge nontheless :) Tequila Rose ice cream available at Elfav ice creamery, 2nd floor Pergola mall BF Homes Paranaque.

...click to continue reading...

Rediscovering Old Loves.

Although I promised myself 2009 will be my year of change, I have to admit that I still keep going back to old loves. I suppose embracing change does not have to mean letting go of all the old stuff that makes you feel good and happy. Hmmm...kinda getting sappy here...must be the valentines rush mwahahaha. Incidentally, this post comes upon the heels of catching Mara, Clara the Movie on Cinema One. While I had a good laugh remembering how much I used to follow the show and many other telenovelas back then, it made me realize how much things have changed around me. Today, telenovelas no longer last forever. Characters die and storylines are not as uber predictable as they used to be. Familiar tastes of food have also changed, to some degree, and technology in cinematography has definitely grown leaps and bounds.

However, the essential elements, whether in television, film, music or whatnot still remains the same. In the spirit of my new project, which I will entitle 3 Things, let me list three old loves that still remain the same to me, no matter how much times have changed.

1. An icy bottle of Coke. Even though there are so many variations, sizes and types of bottles of coke now, I still love that bottle. I put it in the freezer and wait till it forms those little icy chunks on top. Aaahhhh....
2. Chocnut. I prefer the king sized ones, because it still tastes like the way I remember it. The smaller ones seem a bit sweeter and grainier than I recall.
3. The Morning Rush on RX 93.1. I remember this was my constant companion on my way to UP Diliman every morning. But when I started working, I stopped travelling so far everyday and the habit stopped. Sometime two Christmases ago, my colleague mentioned something about her brother Chico, and that got me started tuning in again. My mornings definitely would not be complete without the jump start I get from the program.

What about you, what are your three old loves? :-)

...click to continue reading...

Teacher is a Pet

As a preschool teacher I used to say everything I learned I learned in kindergarten. I realize now, however, one of the best life teachers I've had is my dog.

Through Bubba, I've learned what it means to really love and be loved. I've also come to realize what compassion really as. I now understand that sacrifice is not as painful as I thought it would be and that joy is so much more than I ever imagined it would be. Bubba has also taught me what companionship is, and how forgiveness really works. There's so much more I can say I learned from him, but perhaps the one that encapsulates it all is that he has helped me see what it really means to be authentic and pure. For that alone I will always be grateful for the events that lead to him becoming mine.

*mobile blogging*

...click to continue reading...

I See the Moon.

Evey once in a while, I am reminded of God's greatness. How can one look at this and say God does not exist?

...click to continue reading...

I see the moon

Every once in a while, God reminds me of his greatness.

(mobile blogging!!!)

...click to continue reading...

to be thankful

in life, it is often hard to be thankful. yes, it is easy to be thankful for the big things...the bonus in the paycheck, the presents we receive, the stroke of luck that suddenly hits us...but to be truly thankful and grateful for the mundane and the everyday is often difficult, especially nowadays when things are so difficult.

in view of this, starting february i am starting a new project 365...365 things to be grateful for in each day. inspired by oprah's gratitude journal, this is my take on embracing the simple abundance in my life. while her version entails listing 5 things to be grateful for for each day, i will settle for a photo essay of things i am grateful for everyday. come drop by and maybe you too will find something to be grateful for...even if your day isn't going great.

thegratitudejournal.tumblr.com

...click to continue reading...

Playing With Food.

Today I caught an episode of Pinoy Fear Factor. It was the first time I really sat down and watched it. I got a bit flustered by the show because of the stunt that was being done. It entailed the contestants catching strawberries with their mouths as it came down from a conveyor belt. No problems with that right? However, as part of the stunt, one of the other players had to put other food items in the belt in order to distract the contestant from effectively catching the strawberries. These items were stuff like raw chicken and scrambled eggs.

What got me flustered by it is given the harsh realities of life, where millions of people are struggling to put food in the table, here we are, playing with our food. I imagine for that stunt alone about 10 Filipino families could have been fed...This sentiment rings true for me even when I plan out activities in my preschool classes. Hence, vegetable printing and similar activities are not things I do with my kids. For me, it's like a tacit agreement to playing with food.

Nevertheless, going back to the show, I have to admit it's an interesting adaptation of the franchise. I just wish the food went to good use after being played with...

...click to continue reading...

Not Just Another Ride in a Gran Torino.

Every once in a while a movie comes that wows me, not for it's star power nor for it's amazing special effects or even acting prowess. Rather, it wows me for the simple reason that it is a great story. This is what Gran Torino is....not just another great movie because it stars and was directed by Clint Eastwood but because it weaves a deeply moving story.

From the first time I caught the trailer of Gran Torino during the Benjamin Button screening, and again during Yes Man, I knew this was one movie I had to catch...and that was just with the trailer. I have to admit, however, that the trailer did not really completely capture the essence of the Gran Torino experience. I did not expect it to be as thought-provoking as it really is.

The movie tells the story of an elderly man whose family all but has abandoned him because of his stubborn old ways. Walt Kawalski is an embittered old man who tells things as they are, without a care on how people would feel about him. Satisfied with his beef jerky, beers and the company of his dog Daisy, he couldn't care less about his neighbors, the parish priest or even his own children. Until one night when a gang initiation entered his world.
From an attempted robbery blossomed a beautiful friendship between Walt and two neighborhood teens from the Hmong people. Being a bigoted man, Walt did not really take these foreigners in with much pleasure, but after getting to know Su and Thao, he began to soften up and begin to care about others again. When gang troubles continued to hound his neighbors, and violence erupted, Walt made sure to find a way to solve the problem.

The story is not just another gang-banger story, hence the title of this post. While this may be the general tone of the tale, the underlying reminders of tolerance, understanding, acceptance and rejecting discrimination are deeply ingrained. I've seen a lot of movies that dealt with the same story line, but this one is not just another one of those. It made me question a lot of my personal biases and opened my eyes to the little disciminatory behaviors I have every now and then. A word of warning, however: it is a tear-jerker. Well, not a complete sob-fest, but you will definitely feel a tug on your heartstrings. Given that it is a Clint Eastwood film, I did not expect that, not one bit! One thing I truly enjoyed about the film, however, is how despite the tears welling in my eyes and the chunks rising in my throat, a lot of laughs, light moments and catchy quotes are interspersed in the dialogue, which kept me quite engrossed in the movie.

If there is one movie to see for February, this is it. Gran Torino will screen in the Philippines on February 18, 2009. I do not often recommend films in the cinemas as options for class requirements but this one may just change my mind. It's that good.

...click to continue reading...

Blogging, Research and Me.

Research is the one thing that has been holding me back from obtaining my degree in Clinical Psychology for the past, say, 6 years. I just can't seem to get myself motivated enough to do it, nor do I find myself tapping into any of my cognitive resources to get there. To be fair, I have submitted a proposal for it, and I have actually successfully defended it. All I need to do now is revise it and gather data. But today, as I was working on my talk for a case conference tomorrow (yes, cramming!!!) I came across a lot of interesting research on blogging. Hmmmm....this got me to thinking...why do we blog?!? Scarily, creepily, and so unintentionally...the researcher in me is curious...

Wonder what my thesis adviser has to say about this...

OH....and since you're reading this anyway...let me ask you: Why do you blog?

...click to continue reading...

Nagmamahal, OFW.

In anticipation of Love Month, I was asked to write an article for a blogsite my company does work with. Me, write about love?!? Hmmm. Daunting task. Even more daunting was having to write it in Filipino!!! Hahahaha. Then again, if I survived four years of college life at the University of the Philippines (despite being called coño), I could do it.

So, what do I have to say about love and the OFW? Check out the OFW Para Sa Pamilya Website. To all OFW's this is a great resource for you as you go forth your journey as an Overseas Filipino Worker.

...click to continue reading...