My 2008

2008 had been a different year for me. i guess if i can describe it in one word, it will be work. hehe. but summarizing my year would be:

1. meeting long-time blogsy friends. i've been blogging for four years with blogspot. and besides those that i have known before i started, i've only met two bloggers. but for this year, i've met four. and the funny thing is, these are the bloggers that keep themselves anonymous. Abaniko, Wil and Ate Toe. they had been in my blogroll for the longest time. abaniko and ate toe, being one of my first blogsy friends.

2. the angels. i've met most of them last year, but it's just this year that abet's angels had been a reality. it's also great meeting Meyms in person. also meeting Abet, Sally, Jassy and Nona for the first time.



3. meeting new people. i've met a lot of new people this year. most of them from Multiply, starting with Yen. these are great people, funny people. i would not enumerate anymore, okay?

4. going to new places. compared to last year, i've travelled less this year. first time to go to hot air balloon festival/tacsiyapo, visit anawangin, seeing taal volcano upclose, surf in la union. and of course visit singapore and malaysia.



5. being healthy. as i've told my friends, i've never been sick this year. only got hit by a truck. hahaha. i guess i have superpowers. getting hit by a truck and yet, only got a bodyache for a few days? whoa!

6. sseayp. we became host family for two sseayp delegates. this gave me an idea on their life and got to be inside the ship! fyi, i had applied for sseayp on 2004 and didn't pass. sad but that had been like my funniest application/interview/audition

7. getting thin. this is one achievement for me this year. to shed some pounds. something unbelievable happened. hehe. but really a big thanks to ate rezza.

8. weddings. i've attended a lot of weddings this year. and got a chance to be a coordinator (for the day) and be the host.

hmm.. as i am writing this, it dawned on me that still a lot of good things happened to me this year. what i've mentioned above are just a few. for all those who had been part of my 2008, thank you. and hope i'll still encounter you in 2009. and i hope to meet more blogsy friends in 2009. have a fabulous year everyone :)

Sadly Mad

the other day, i saw my econsoc sis and she told me: "Why do you look sad? it's the holidays." and i was like, "i'm not sad." then after a few hours, she texted me not to look sad. i was really surprised. later that night, i met with two friends, and i told them about it. they were like, "we know why she told you that, coz you're so irritable now." i told them, "sad is different from mad"

the next day, i met my highschool friends and they're like, "why do you look mad?"

i don't know what happened to my face or to my smile. does it have something to do with my hair? i'm always having a bad hair day. haaay...

My Lifeline

if i would describe my 2008 in an activity, it would be bungee jumping. but i was left hanging, still dangling. that if i let go i would really fall. but there are people who helped me keep hanging. if not for them, i'll surely have fallen. they're literally my lifesavers. there also others who have helped me such as tita gene and babylynne, kirby, pol, therine, thinz, family ko, etc. but i'm just going to focus to these two groups because they are the ones i text/email everyday. they kept me sane. and my mom knows already that if i'm going out with of these friends, i'll surely go home early in the morning already. hehe.

thank you my dear friends. i survived 2008 because of you. i love you all :)

the angels. talagang sulit unlitxt sa kanila. really patient in listening/reading my everyday rants. and can see behind my sunny disposition.
tin-tin, jamie (the stateside angel), abet (bossley), tin (our connector), joyce (you can depend on), sally (the buenja updater), jas (seriously sweet), nona (newest angel), meyms (so far yet so near angel), mei (ate), cher (mahal), sarah (thoughtful artist)


the wakieboardies/harpers. if the angels fill my cellphone inbox, these guys fill my email inbox. they can give me an award for best in drama this year. hehe.
son (miss pepsi), emcee (miss spontaneity), gabe (famous), dino (yosibreak friend), tristan (drunken moments caregiver), tin-tin

and to you my blogsy friends, thank you for still reading my posts all these years. Merry Christmas! and i hope i will meet more of you next year. a great 2009 for all of us. Happy New Year!

Balut! Balut!

as some of you knw, my family hosted two participating youths (PYs) of the Ship for Southeast Asia Youth Program (SSEAYP) 2008, Lilian from Singapore and Kaew from Thailand.

for them to be able to experience the philippine culture, we let them taste filipino food such as adobo, sinigang, chicken inasal, isaw, tenga ng baboy (pig's ear), mangoes, dried mangoes, etc etc. and of course balut!

on the first night, a mangbabalut (balut vendor) passed by our house. our maid got excited and called me to buy some for our guests. so we bought three.

then when the balut are in the table already, no one dared to try it. the guests won't try unless we do. and as a good host, i did.


it tasted like hard boiled egg, only the white is much tougher to chew. will i try it again? can i not? i just hope net time we have our foreign guests eric would still be awake so he'll be the one to show the visitors.

20 Years Ago...

this was supposed to be my birthday post but i did not have any time to post and i kinda lost the pictures. hehe.

these are my pictures 20 years ago. do i look the same? do i look cute? bwahahaha. but am sure they can't be used for blackmail :)
3 months?


1 year old?

kinder graduation

7th birthday

nearly 3 years old

Reunion

they say that reunions happen during two occasions, weddings and funeral. i believe this is true. even with the limited guests in weddings due to budget, this is still a venue to see old friends. and this had been proven for my highschool barkada. every year, we try to get together and yet, we never get to be complete or even close to completion. good thing there are three weddings this year, and i got a chance to see those i've last seen during college (like ton and gian). hopefully in december for richie's wedding, those who are in another country could also attend.

though it had been years already, and we've lived our own lives, i've noticed that we have not changed. we're still the same people as before. of course, change is inevitable but still as a whole the same old person is the same only better.

i've met the girls second year highschool, we had been classmates. and the guys, we've met in bld youth. it is during the times that there are just few members who are from north. since we are included in the few, we would go home together from prayer meetings until we all became friends.

since it's only again now that we've seen each other, we can't help but reminisce. it is funny to remember them crying because of heartaches from each other. funny, walang nagkatuluyan sa kanila. but as jay said, it is better that way since we get to attend more weddings and see each other more. hehe. highschool...

*pic from batts

Music Beat

i love music, though music hates me, i still love it. a long-time wish is to have a duet with this good singer, and we'll sing Better Days. but of course, my family and friends don't want to jeopardize my well-being that is why until now they have not granted it. of course, everyone's dream is to have a recording or an album of their own. and i also would like that. but that would really be impossible. that would be a joke.

but if ever i had been a good musician, that would not be a joke. i would like to have been given an opportunity. and there is this site that makes it a reality. their love for the music led them to establish have their own production. for the Beats they make, they share it to others. but of course, it comes with a fee. if you're into music and you hiphop, this site is for you. honestly, though it comes with a fee, it is okay. why? because they get a chance to help others also, especially aspiring musicians.

Blogger

i've been using blogspot or blogger.com for four years already. and after 230 posts, have i gained anything from it? actually, i do. i never expected that until now i'd still blog. i started to blog coz i don't have anything to do and i was so confused, but then now i'm blogging almost every week. what started as an online journal of some sort turned out to be a little money-earning thing, an informational tool, a realization venue and most importantly a way to meet a lot of wonderful people.

yes, i've met a lot of wonderful people through blogging. some i've talked to only online, and some i've met in real life. and they're really great.

i would just like to say thank you to my blogsy friends who had been with me all these years. i hope i would meet in person more blogsy friends and for those i've already met, i hope to see you guys again.

this post, is just to say thank you to all of you. thank you! thank you! thank you! :)

Ouchy Back

i'm still suffering from back pains and this week had been the worst. can't have bentosa coz i'm going to attend a wedding on saturday. so i'll just have it hopefully this sunday. i don't know what's causing it. most probably bad posture. i admit i have a bad posture. there are also some who had been saying osteoporosis. i know i just turned 28 the other week, but hello?!?! isn't 28 still young?

but one thing they can't tell me is i lack calcium. if one day a doctor would diagnose me of lack of calcium, i'll really laugh or get mad. if there's one kind of vitamin that my body is full of, it would be calcium. unless, what they say about milk being a source of calcium is false. i love milk. everyday, i drink milk. i don't eat breakfast but i have to drink milk in the morning. that's my breakfast. it can substitute water for me. i guess, my skin is like this also because of milk. so it would really be funny if i'll have low calcium. i may get emphysema or lung cancer even if i never smoke, because of second-hand smoking. but lack of calcium, that then would be funny.

actually, this is a nonsense post. i just have to update my blog and my back is still really ouch-ouch.

Bentosa/Ventosa

the other week, i had a very bad backache for two consecutive afternoons. it was really painful, i can't work well. coz of the pain, i was deciding if i'll have a bentosa. i'm not a massage person. i hate massages. it makes me have more body aches afterwards, that is why bentosa if perfect for me.

what is bentosa/ventosa?

bentosa is using a cup/glass to suck the "lamig" from your back. lamig is a tagalog term for the one that they say causes the back pains. im not sure if it's really cold in english.

it's just easy to use. an officemate even did it to me for free. you just need a glass/cup, gas, cloth, coin and rubber band. wrap the coin with the cloth and tie it with the rubber band. place on your back/pressure points and cover it with the glass. light the inside of the glass with the gas and fire. okay.. i dont know how youll light it coz i haven't seen how it was done since i was facing backwards. and i don't think kim still has a copy of the pictures and video of my bentosa adventure.

then the your back will like rise. hehe. waah! i need pictures. i'll have a bentosa again just to have pictures. the more lamig you have in your back, the higher or redder it will become. it's not a good sight actually. i remember my dad panicking after seeing my marks.

why do i like bentosa? because it is effective. i won't have backache afterwards. and i don't feel any pain during the process.

i've heard bentosa from the news before when gwyneth paltrow wore a backless dress with her bentosa marks. it caused some commotion in the entertainment industry.

have i explained bentosa clearly? i don't know. a lot had been visiting my site when they search for bentosa. so now, i'm writing on what bentosa is.

in the philippines, the spa that i know that offers this is the sanctuario spa. but bentosa is a popular thing in the province that ordinary people can just do it.

paging ate france, can you do a bentosa on me again? hehehe ;p

It's My Birthday?!

for the first time in the history of mankind, i'm not excited for my birthday. before, i would always look forward to my birthday. my birthday is my favorite holiday. (yes, i consider it a holiday. hehe). but now, i am not excited. i really am not looking forward to november __. why? because:

1. i won't have any celebrations - to make this birthday unique from all my other birthdays, i plan not have any celebrations. i even volunteered my bday to be the day for tristan's bday celeb or the day we'll give his gift. as long as it's not about me.

2. i have lots of things in my mind right now and my bday is the least of it.

3. i'll again grow old but not grow up - when people ask me about my age, i easily answer it. i'm not shy about it. but as i think about it now, that i'll be 28 soon, it's like i'm embarrassed to say that i'm 28. it's not because i'm old. it's just that, it feels like i have not grown up. it's like i am more matured before. i am better before. it's like as i grown old, i grow down (okay, i don't know the opposite of growing up, hehe). i hope you get what i mean. it's like i have not matured. it's like i was better when i was in college than right now. hard to explain.

so there. and now it's already the last week of october. i can't believe it is november on saturday already. october just went as a blur.

Getting Big

a lot of people when they see me now tell me that i'm getting thinner or narrower or whatever. but honestly, it's the opposite. and it's not because i'm getting anorexic or what. promise, i'm really getting bigger. my pants are getting tight again. sad... hehe.

and what made me decide to lose weight again? i was supposed to wear this black dress in a party. but when i tried it on, it won't close!! ugh!!! that means i'm really bigger now. until now, i still can't accept that it doesn't fit me. the pic was taken three years ago. it's just three years, right?


i really need to lose weight. and i don't know how i'll do it especially if your friends influence you to pig-out (ate mei and jassy, hmph!). next month (sorry, i won't follow sam milby's movie to start right now), that would be what i'm doing. i'll exercise and have balanced diet.

but that means, i'm still big on birthday. waaah!

classic children's books

i found this in my list of draft posts. wrote it way back July 19, 2006. got nothing to post, so i decided to post this now. but still unfinished. hahaha.

my brother is in college now. and good thing my sister teaches english, so it's now from her that i get to read good books.

i love to read. i really do. i read anything and everything. books would be a good gift for me, coz i'll really appreciate it. right now, the books that i would to read are Little Prince (again.. i'm looking for our copy), and Catcher in the Rye. how about you? what would you like to read now?

and now for my unfinished blog...

finally! i've finished of mice and men. have started it when my brother got his schoolbooks for this schoolyear and i just finished it last night. really slow reading. hehehe. it's a nice book. i've cried in the ending.

another good thing about my brother's school is that every year they have a required reading. and the book is a classic one. because of this, i've got a chance to read these books.

examples are charlie and the chocolate factory (if not for my brother, won't be able to read this before there was a movie. hehe),charlie and the glass elevator, the twelfth angel (my favorite book. read it when i was still in highschool), the lost boys, the old man and the sea.

My Name Is...

was supposed to post this before, but instead posted Forgotten.

i have several names.. some call me tin-tin, kristine, rocha, pretty tin...

and i like it that way, because i know how i met them, thru the name they call me.

most of those who knew me as rocha would always be unsure on how to introduce me to other people, if they'll use rocha or tin-tin or kristine.

anyway, i am okay with having plenty of names, since i get to have an idea who is calling me.

if it's rocha, it would be from highschool or bld. that is why, i still am not used to bld people calling me tin.

kristine is for work. in my work now, only those from our office calls me tin. the consultants call me kristine.

tin-tin is for family, college and after college friends.

and pretty tin, mostly for econsoc. it started there, so i guess that's the reason why most of those who call me pretty tin are from econsoc.

well, you can call me however you like. as long as it's not bad words, okay? :)

Your Name Is...

i have a crush in church. i don't know him personally. we just see him in church. and since we do not know him, nor anything about him, we just guess.guessing his age, and now guessing his name. my sister's guess is james or jonathan. for my brother, it's chris.

someone suggested enrico or diego. but with how looks, my sister and i don't think it's either.

it got me thinking. does a name fit a face? or can certain names really describe/represent a face?

do i really look like a kristine?

Birthday Wish

to be honest, i told myself way back that i'll not post another bday wishlist. but i can't help myself. am posting one again. hehehe. before making your christmas list, consider my bday list first, okay? my bday comes before xmas anyway. hehehe.

1. an all expense paid out of the country trip
2. an all expense paid out of manila trip
3. free roundtrip out of the country airfare ticket
4. free roundtrip out of luzon airfare ticket
5. free businessclass roundtrip ticket
   
6. a free spa treatment
7. a free make-over (tristan!!!! happy birthday to you)
8. a boyfriend! hahaha

yes i know it's mostly about free travel. but what i really like is that my day would be special in a good way :)

Forgotten

sometimes i would go into hibernate mode from text messaging and the likes, i guess it's my time for myself or for other matters. but as a friend tells me, you should be careful when you go into a hibernate mode, because your friends or people might get used to of your absence.

i don't know why, but recently, this is what i am thinking. people would not really notice if i become gone. or become quiet, unless i do not send the morning prayers or the forwarded text messages. but my stories (as if i love telling stories) or other personal experiences, people would not miss.

i'm not afraid of death. honestly, i do not fear dying. what i fear is that i'll totally be forgotten.
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this is what not i was really supposed to blog about. i don't know i just want to write it. that's all. end of drama mode

Malaysia? Why Not?

before anything else, i would like to say thank you first to kyels for answering all our queries about malaysia. and apologies also. but kyels had been one of the nice malaysians that i've encountered. thanks kyels!

we only had a daytour of kuala lumpur. with our 12-hour stay in malaysia (we chose to cut the stay short), there had been only three highlights for me and my sister.


1. the ritz-carlton hotel experience. if ever i'll return to malaysia, i would really prefer to stay there. the staff especially the concierge were really friendly and helpful. and i like the amenities. life-saver. hehehe.

2. chinese temple (sorry forgot the name of the temple). i really wanted to go here to witness live what you see on tv. what makes it more wonderful for me is that we got to experience how they worship and did the fortune thing. what was my fortune? "you will tie the knot." i know this is about matrimony and not tying the knot of a gift wrap. hehehe


3. meeting this chinese guy who helped us in finding the pavilion. he doesn't really know the way but he still led us there and even called up his friend to ask for the directions.

wait! there could a fourth highlight. the immigration when we entered malaysia. the immigration guy was really friendly even if we did not have any embarkation pass. and he's the first friendly malaysian we've met, which had been a major relief especially since our bus driver was rude.

if you will notice, 3 out of the four highlights that we had has something to do with people helping us and being friendly. it's because our malaysia trip was really an adventure. and since it was just the two of us who have no idea of the place, these people had really been blessings for us. we really felt lost in malaysia. when we ask for directions from different people, we'll also receive three different directions. and even if the place we're asking is just on the next street, they do not know it. and we're talking about major places.

i'm sure our friends in singapore find us amusing when they asked us about our trip in malaysia. it's because when we answer it's like we're traumatized with our trip. hehehe. i don't think my sister and i would return there soon, or if at our own expense.

but if you're into designer stores, you'll love it there. coz you'll see designer stores almost everywhere. and we're talking about really high-end stores.

oh well.. at least i got to see the place. i just hope the next time i'll be able to visit it, i'll have a more pleasant stay.

Singapore, Again?

why would i return to singapore? several reasons:

1. i'd like to explore it more
2. experience luge
3. and night safari. the one thing i'd like to experience and yet never got a chance to
4. go back to sentosa when it's not raining
   
5. to have lunch/dinner with ann and julie
6. to see cesar and rey. wakeboarding? hahaha
7. buy ballpens so mark10 kids will lead the prayers again. hehe
8. to buy an umbrella! - this is our main purpose in going to singapore the last time, but i was not able to buy one. yup, the umbrella should be bought in singapore. hehe.

there are lots of other reasons, but for now this will be it.

*forgot to mention.. another reason.. so that bld people in singapore would have a reunion again. hehe ;p

Friends are Gifts from God

in every trip that i have, i always have a realization afterwards. and for the recently concluded singapore trip, it's realizing that i'm really blessed with the best friends God can bestow to someone.

i'm really thankful for my friends who are now based in singapore for having the time to see, accompany and help me and my sister when we were there. most of them really had to travel far (yes, i know it's just an mrt away..but still it's a 30-minute ride), the tiring walking around. and also spending lots of cellphone load to call and text us. hehe. and also for the treat.. food trip galore. hehe. because of this i slightly fell in love sa singapore.

for beng who offered their house to us. accompanied us even if it's raining (malay ba natin na uulan) and even if it means luluwas siya out of tampines. hehe
for tatee and mike who accompanied us to sentosa even if it's their nth time there. tatee, for watching song of the sea and touring us around town; and mike for the lovely photos
i'll back so that the bld people can have a reunion again, hopefully in less than a year's time. hehe

for ljieu and linc who accompanied us all throughout. foodtrip galore

for julie who went all the way just to get my gift for my inaanak. hehe.
for ann, the birthday girl, who would supposedly meet me on her special day. i'm really sorry ann.

i'm also thankful for the angels to whom (that are here) i have first announced where i'm going and when i asked them what they would like for me to bring home for them, they have the same reply : that i'll enjoy my vacation and that would be enough. i'm really touched with that. thank you. i did enjoy the vacation.
for kyels who helped with our malaysia questions.
for those who prayed that i'll have this vacation: kirby, wakieboardies, chian, jewel.. thank you.

and of course to my sister, who had been patient. hehehe.

yup, this is just a thank you post. coz that weekend just really showed me how much blessed i am with my friends. it truly is an incredible weekend and that is thanks to my friends

*bld pictures (first two) are from mike