2009

2009

Musing on the year that's about to end.

On School.

Entered PSID and experienced depression for the first time. Halfway through the basic course/majors (2 terms) I felt like I wasn't at the right place, and complained a lot. Painstakingly planned and thought a lot about moving to New York and dropping my scholarship to get a "better education abroad". Thankfully I had my dad, mom, friends and their moms to turn to. I'm thankful for having such insightful people in my life who take time to help me out.

I'm very thankful that God has never let me down when it comes to school and grades. I'm quite lucky that whenever I feel like I'm going sideways with a certain subject, I can always turn to Him to help me get through it (that and studying/working hard of course). I'm not the most ideal student. I procrastinate, I don't study ahead and sometimes I'm lazy. But despite all the bad habits I've developed through the years, He has made me strong enough to endure days of sleep deprivation, being focused even when I'm running on caffeine and power naps in the car (5 to 20-minute shut-eyes). God gives me the strength to keep my cool while working with others under pressure. He reminds me to patient with people, like how my parents are with me :)

Thankful for all the friends I've gained during my first few months in PSID. For being patient enough to teach me the things I've missed and have forgotten to study up on cos of late night rehearsals and performances in the other school (CSB) for choir, and cos of editing loads of photos for clients.

Friends

I owe a lot to my father for making me realize that you can't just trust anyone. It's hard to find real friends who stick with you even through shitty times. Life isn’t always a party. Most people befriend you and then take part of the gaiety but when you’re caught up in a serious predicament, they’re never around.

This year I realized that although it’s good to always try to see the good in people, nobody is perfect and some people will be immature and will forever try to bring others down. No matter how much you try to be good to people, you should never expect them to do the same thing to you. You can’t force people to always be positive, their attitudes & outlook in life are influenced by their upbringing. You’re in no position to judge them cos of that.

I know I'm blessed to have tons of friends, but I'm even more blessed to have a handful that I can count on.

Bezties

For laughing at my jokes, for not being too quick to judge, for being patient, for listening to me, helping me strengthen my faith in God + myself, and for simply being there.THANK YOU. True friends are one in a million. I can't wait til we all get together so we can look back and laugh about everything we've been through!

Coro San Benildo choir mates

Gotta admit, sometimes I question why I have to endure the super late nights and weekend performances. I mean, I wasn't forced to join Coro. I could move to another org just to get that 1 extra-curricular activity per term requirement for my scholarship. Choir sure does rob me off my free time for school work/family but every time I get this feeling, all I have to do is to remind myself that with the hard work we pour into each performance and to making our group sound better, we share a passion that not a lot of people can understand. The bond that we all share is just so special. In Coro, I can let my hair down and not worry about my mistakes when it comes to performing, or even the mistakes I commit as a person. I appreciate the care and understanding you guys have given me. I know I'm always missing out on stuff and I'm thankful that you guys know and understand what I have to deal with outside of choir. Coro has made me grow so much as a performer. You guys are just so down-to-earth and real. Even if I've we've only known each other for about 3 years, I feel like I've built meaningful friendships with most of you... Free vocal training every week, good company, good memories. What more can I ask for? :)

Parents
Best parents in the world. Strict, but your rules make sense. You guys set good examples. We're scared to fail because you both raised me, Riz and Joey so well. Thank you for reminding me that money isn't everything. We should never aim for fame but for success, but success shouldn't be measured by money nor awards but by the sense of fulfillment you have in you, as well as your contributions to the people around you or society.

I'm sorry for being stubborn at times. Oftentimes my pride stops me from saying sorry but I want you guys to know that whenever I'm throwing a fit, I'm well aware that you guys will always be right and that only time will make me realize that you are only doing what's best for me.

Thank you for reminding me to value everything that we have and to make the most out of what God has given me. Yes, you've named me Ms.Complain (LOL) but really, I thank the Lord everyday for a lot of things. Without you guys, I wouldn't have had the strength to keep pushing myself (especially in school).

Now I'm nervous- how can I ever endure what you guys have been through? I'm scared to have a daughter now! HAHA!

Dad- I have you to thank for my analytical skills, especially in Math, business, dealing with people and for not letting my emotions take over my mind. I appreciate your effort to talk to me every morning over breakfast.

Mom- thank you for sharing with me your love for music. Thank you for teaching me to be compassionate, patient and loving.

I love you guys for sharing with me your thoughts on life and for being SO COOL about everything. I know not everyone can get that from their parents on a daily basis. Because of you guys, I've kept a positive outlook on life and I've learned to ward off all forms of negativity that can possibly harm my sanity! I love you guys for working so hard, and for reaching out to us when we need you. Thank you for teaching us to not only strive to be book smart, but street smart as well.

Siblings

Thank you for being patient with me and for understanding that my level of maturity will always be lower than yours! HAHA! Geeks unite!!!

Rizza- can't wait to partake in this musical journey with you! It's always been a dream of mine to share my love for singing and music to others, but I've always been too terrified to do it alone. I can't imagine working with other people, so I'm really really happy that I get to experience it with you! It will be a test for sure, but know that I'm always here for you, my baby sister! You are so talented, and I'm so glad that you're willing to make me sing your songs with you. ILY!

Joey- thank you for being such a good baby brother! Stay the same, please. I admire you for always trying to be kind to others. Even if the girls bully you! I find it cute, but pity you at the same time. :)) Study hard like your sisters! LOL.

Friends in NY/Maryland/San Francisco

Inez family- Thank you for having me and mum in your home!!! We had a blast. Thank you so much for the hospitality! You guys will always be our neighbors. :))

Tita Yvette, Tito Cromwell, Cianna and Carlos- our quick trip to Maryland was so memorable! Can't wait to see you guys this 2011!

Angelie- Only got to spend a couple of minutes catching up with you but it was fun! Can't wait til you visit Cebu. Here's to us being successful Interior Designers in the future! :)

Holly- Best SF tour guide ever! Thanks for the hospitality!!! San Francisco's one of my fave destinations now. Hopefully I can visit again and spend more time there. I know I didn't get to try out a lotta things yet!

Philip- BROTHER!!!! Thank you for driving to SF to see me! Miss you so much, dude! And yay, I feel special for being the first batchmate you've met up with outside the Philippines. :D

HERE'S TO 2010!!!

**To those who've subscribed to my blog /sites, thank you for taking time to comment and for sending me your e-mails. This blog site's less than a year old but I've gained so many friends through this. Thank you for letting me share to you my love for art, the world, photography and life :) Hope you have a wonderful year ahead of you. God bless you all!

My Same by Adele

Rico was late for recording a while ago so Riz and I decided to randomly cover My Same by Adele inside the studio (Tracks) since the lighting was cool and the acoustics were good. Didn't bother editing since it was, well... a spur-of-the-moment, "One Take Session" thing. LOL.
Oops- it's our second song from Adele. Oh well, we love her anyways :)
We've been idle and can't post originals as of now. More stuff coming up next year!
And yes, I was chewing gum and I messed up some of the lyrics. Don't kill me!
:))
We're all sorta addicted to Tumblr! My TumbelogRizza'sRico Blanco's

Finally

Yayy got to party again! I missed dancing.

Went out with some of my classmates since my bezties are in Cebu for the holidays.

Posted somethin new on LOOKBOOK and CHICTOPIA

Happy Christmas!

colored version here

So this was my Christmas day outfit. A grey, breezy and sequined oversized sweatshirt + grey acid-washed shorts from Zara. Yeap, we all wore comfy clothes and munched the night away. My cousins pointed out that I never wear anything festive for Christmas (usually black and this year, grey) but hey, sequins are festive, right? LOL

I'm as guilty as everyone else for being a total glutton, but I keep reminding myself that it's just once a year that we get together as a family and have a legitimate excuse to eat a lot even past 6 PM (my dinner "cut-off"). My mom made the best vegetarian carbonara and fruit salad for me but the rest of the family had tons of seafood. Over at our cousins' place we had tons of baked potatoes, potato salad, cassava, queso de bola + pan de sal and more goodies! Gosh, listing down everything we ate makes me even more driven to jump-start my fitness regime next year. That's at the top of my New Year's resolutions list! Thankfully my parents got me a couple of Pilates DVDs for Christmas. I didn't ask for anything else.

Today was the first time I've tried a home service nail spa treatment, and it was good! I've always been scared to call up any type of home service treatments because of all the horror stories of getting robbed, but after hearing some positive reviews, mum and I decided to give it a try. We first called VIP Nails but they were booked for the day. We ended up calling Celebrity Nails and they had 3 girls sent over for me and my mum. They carried 2 big luggage-full of equipment (lights, mats, foot spa bath, polishes, etc.). I've been addicted to platinum white polish for quite some time now (replacing my blacks and dark blues) and good thing they had my fave shade, Orly's 'White Tips', which is what they use for the typical french tips. Mum and I are satisfied with their work. They only require a consumable rate of 450 Php, and that includes a mani-pedi + foot spa already! I wanna try their full body massage next. The ones at the Spa's costing me too much. But then again, I have some trust issues with these types of services. Gotta keep my room clear of any valuables!

No plans for New Year's yet. Just hope we can enjoy a buffet or an overnight stay at Sofitel. It's been a long time since we've last checked in a hotel as a family. Riz and I can't visit our house at Baguio cos of work, but the parents and my little bro are headin over there to check on our house.

Glad I'm able to rest and catch up on my editing backlog now. Life is sweet. :)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU GUYS!

Thanks for making my first year in blogging great. I'm addicted! Keep those questions coming!

Beginnings

For the entire Christmas break:





(Riz and I hate this pic but whatevs. Posting it anyways. My failed attempt to make a Christmas-y sisterly pic)

sleep and merriment

PSID Christmas Party

and that is why we'd rather sit while performing. LOL (height difffff)

the bag and jacket-- I covet. (vint beaded blazer from her grandmother)

My coffee shop buddies (missing Jen- you ditched after my performance! Lol)

More batchmates

grabbed some of the photos from: Pia, Jeje, Za & Juenese

Tagaytay with la familia

(Such a small group! Lacking 1 more Cabrera family, mum and my brother)

Oh yes I was the only one who wasn't "out of it" yet I'm the eldest among my cousins :))

Oh yes, I finally figured out how to create trippy, slow-sync shots with my Lumix :))

AND I survived 2 Christmas parties without pigging out. HA! Good luck to me for the other upcoming parties.

My supposedly party-hungry buddies and I were surprisingly prim and proper during our school's Christmas party. Hmm... I think they're harder to please when it comes to the crowd and music. Oh and I forgot to mention that "well-behaved" was the best way to describe me that night- we practically sat on the couch the whole night and still managed to sweat! Man that's my pet peeve when it comes to clubs- bad AC.

My schoolmates and I were rejoicing that we'd finally be able to sleep during our break! Yes, sleep deprivation or NOT SLEEPING AT ALL is quite normal in our course. I actually had a hard time sleeping normally after 10 hours of sleep the other night. I stayed up til 5:30 AM the following night/day cos I felt like I slept too much the night before. At least I can get hours of shut-eye now! I was amazed at how much difference that can make to your whole aura. I've been living with the zombie look for months now. Hopefully I haven't given anyone a scare. :))

My holidays will be filled with WORK. Thankfully my loved ones will be coming over.

:)

AND OH!

CONGRATULATIONS TO CORO SAN BENILDO FOR MAKIN IT TO THE MBC CHORAL COMPETITION FINALS!

So sad I wasn't able to join them during the semis and finals... GRRRR couldn't practice and compete with them cos of my final exams and projects! Still, I'm sooo proud of them for making it to the top 10, battling against 80+ awesome choirs from all over the Philippines! So proud :) It's amazing how we've grown as a choir. I can still remember those times when I was still starting out with Coro and we had trouble finding a conductor. Went through so many hardships and it's so cool how we're starting to be called a good choir. Imagine being able to compete with the country's most matured and recognized chorales! Anyone can sing but it takes real talent and perseverance to entertain! I'm not all about recognition, it's just that it's nice being able to see and feel that the hard work my choir mates and conductor has poured into this is paying off. Choir is not easy. It is not merely a matter of getting spoon fed the right harmonies/notes. Add that to the work and schoolwork each one of us has to put up with everyday. I'm amazed at our ability to stay energized. Thank God for coffee and power naps? No. Thank GOD! :)

That's all... Happy Holidays, everyone!

INCA's new website is up!

INCA Plastics Philippines just revealed their new website! And my chair is on the front page... Hehehe...

Designed by Czari Flores, it's so much better compared to the old site. Makes it sooooo much easier to view and read about their products now.

And oh, INCA has a Facebook page, Twitter and YouTube account as well. Coolnesss :))