another item off the bucket list

funny thing is, this wasn't even on my list this year. it was on last year's list, only i got bronchitis and didn't get to do it at the last minute. this jan, a BIG GROUP of Proctoids decided to conquer Pinatubo. i didn't really feel like going, but couldn't say no to my friends. good thing i did!

2 hours from MLA-SITE

1 hour BUMPY jeep ride
3 hours of...

walking and jumping over rocks
wading through shallow pools

packed lunch pinatubo styleswimming in sulfuric water
precarious boat ride to the "hot" area
40 minute trek back, 5 minute almost vertical climb up, 1 hour bumpy jeep ride again (felt like FOREVER), 1 hour car ride going the opposite direction- further north (go figure), 2 hours back.
Still TONS of fun! Laughtrip!!! :)

THe Facebook Thing That's Been Going Around

25 Random Things
Cos everyone else is doing it, and cos I got the 25th mention tonight.

1. i love sinigang. my dream wedding would serve sinigang during the reception.
2. my childhood dream was to be a supermarket owner. then later tiff and i plotted on how to become queen mother. now i just want to be one of those "ladies-who-lunch" ( in louboutins of course).
3. i am the biggest crybaby - i cry when i'm sad, i'm mad, i'm happy, i'm sleepy, i'm drunk. i cry over books, movies, poems, and even gov't sponsored tv ads! and i don't cry prettily - i am the most unattractive weeper ever.
4. a fortuneteller once told me i would have an affair with a married man in 2008. go figure.
5. i am not too keen on being fashion forward myself, but i love dressing other people! i would love to be a personal shopper - am doing it now pro bono for my friends and am loving every minute of it.
6. i can grab zzzzzzzzz's at any place at any time. i crave sleep and pre-P&G, used to have 10 hrs of shut-eye each night.
7. i had my first alcoholic drink (Red HorsE) at age 12, and I was with my mom when this happened.
8. since 2006, i've resolved and gone to visit 3 NEW countries and 3 NEW provinces each year. Hoping to continue this until i've had my passport stamped in all UN countries (Iraq can wait).
9. i devour books as if they were candy. seriously. i spend more on books than on clothes. i am not picky either, my collection ranges from historical biographies to trashy romances.
10. i have not yet seen commercial porn (apparently since dlsu scandal does not count), and my officemates have failed to deliver on their promise to share theirs with me (you know who you are, hahahaha!).
11. i HATE lizards. with a passion. given a choice between kissing a lizard or jumping in a shithole (slumdog millionnaire), i'd probably pick the latter.
12. i used to eat 1 whole pack of Keebler's Double Choco Chip each night.
13. i swear by OLAY REGENERIST serum. after many miserable years battling my overactive sebum glands, only OLAy managed to clear it up. my skin super improved after i started using the serum. Now I'm using Olay DEfinity tinted moisturizer and i don't have to use foundation anymore!!!
14. i just spent 15K today on tiangge shopping. ouch! :(
15. in high school, i would pretend to be faint to get out of CAT drills in the afternoon.
16. i am the best cyberstalker - i can profile and dig up dirt on just about anyone. caught one guy redhanded too!
17. i dance like a white girl (i.e. horribly) yet i still love dancing. if only there could be girls-only-clubs (yet another scheme tiff and i cooked up), that would be perfection.
18. i have impeccable spelling but atrocious pronunciation. seriously.
19. i have the worst case of stage fright. i still get clammy hands before i speak up in a meeting.
20. in grade school, i used to pull guys' hairs out and kick them in the groin whenever they pissed me off.
21. i have memorized the multiplication table in both chinese and english, up til 25.
22. i want to decorate my bedroom with a Thai bordello theme. silk and tassels galore!
23. i have this neurotic urge to play hostess in any social activity. i cannot enjoy myself unless i'm sure everyone else is having a good time.
24. i think how i met your mother is the greatest show in the world.
25. i was soooooo in love with Vic Sotto when i was a kid.

imelda shoe collection

i was in 2nd grade when i read a biography on imelda marcos. her sad childhood, her social climbing tendencies, delusions of grandeur, and diva-esque habits were equal parts fascinating and mortifying. but what struck me most was the chapter on her suite in malacanang, and more importantly, her SHOE COLLECTION. 3000 pairs of shoes! customized manolos and ferragamos, chanel and givenchy. drool. what i would give to have been the first on the scene post-Marcos evacuation of malacanang.

well apparently a "portion" of her abandoned shoes have been mounted on display at - whereelse-the shoe capital of the Philippines (canijustsay it's so weird to see PINK everywhere in marikina, but that's a separate blogpost)! the collection was only 800+ pairs of shoes. wonder where the rest were? probably looted and stolen by lucky politician wives. hmpf.

and we capped the day off with the standard touisty photo-op with the "World's Biggest Shoe" (honestly we have the weirdest Guinness records) and some shoe shopping.

my shoes for january (remember, only 2 pairs a month..)

me likey.

lurv.drool.

my new "doll"

here's the new and improved tin tang. :) she's so cute!!!

(anama, i made her get this dress at bysi, 30% off!)

her bling

casual saturday outfit. take note of the ubernice bracelet.

below expectations

so i am in the lion city. supposedly to spend 3 productive days doing hush-hush stuff. no far nothing productive has happened. i am so annoyed. why can't people be timely and prepared? they're wasting my undercompensated time.

seriously. i am so displeased by the quality of service i'm getting. i'm going to indulge in a hissy fit if only to get the ball rolling. there are far better uses of my time - like actually being in the country where much of my unfinished work is being done. hindi joke mag-lead ng consumer work sa probinsya kung nasa ibang bansa ka. GRRRR.

me wants it...

i would love to have this closet!!! (although oprah's is still my closet dream)