wooooaaahhhhh! 2007

this year has been so fast, it's nearly done and i still haven't settled with the dust of 2006, and processed the repercussions of 2007..

its like falling off macau tower, 80? storeys high.. you get scared, then you still have time to see your life flash, then you get scared again..

here's the flashback coming..

BMP events
media mogul dreams
new idols
idols becoming friends
going out at night (after night after night)
beer, beer, beer

riding an ambulance
important person in the hospital
scare of my life (what if he's gone?)
caregiver mode (i never knew i have this "nurture" side)

work woes
drowning
politics
silent goodbyes

amazing world
amazing person
enjoying the ride when i am in his "car"

letting go
familiar is not always safe

decide on change
working on decisions

let 2007 be a blurr, i have to focus on 2008 and its promises...

Private space part 5

I spend a lot of time doing hard labor for my office. I go on sleepless nights just to catch deadlines, etc. etc.

but i also maintain some extra activities not work related, and i really try to keep this as hectic and fruitful even if it kills me.

and so weekend and evening based projects like Banned Movies, etc. etc. ( note the title, private space!) happen to be part of my lifestyle. work hard, play hard.

This month was really hard. I was helping out Khavn do his boxset project (see plug below) and leadtimes and schedules were just sooo crazy.

so i had some sizeable deliveries of materials to my home 2 weeks ago, cases, prints, media that came in boxes. So when i go home, the guards will tell me of the stuff and would have to assist me in bringing it to my unit. For all these times i have my deliveries, i will be going home together with my boss who lives 7 floors below me..

day 1
Guard : ihahatid ko na lang kayo sa elevator.
Boss : Oh, let me help you with that! Is this the eeepc from HQ? (referring to a new product we will be launching.)
BB : Nope, it's a package left for me, dvd cases.
Boss : Oh, ok.


day 2
Guard : Ma'am! meron po iniwan si Edgar
BB : Oh, ok.
Boss : Let me help you.
BB : No, this is not heavy at all.
Boss : Those are CDs?
BB : err yup.
Boss : are you selling in Quiapo?

day 3
BB (inunahan na yung guard, since my Boss doesn't understand tagalog) : Mamaya na! Bababa ako!
Boss : What?
BB : oh i was talking to the guards.
Boss : Ok.
we both took the elevator, off his floor for Boss, then i just placed my stuff in my unit and then went down again. I got my package and when i was going back up, my boss would come out the same elevator going out for dinner.
Boss : ahahaha! Quiapo!

Baka may opening sa Quiapo ng Marketing Manager. :P

This is not a boxset by KHAVN

for inquiries, message me :)

This is not a boxset by KHAVN...a shameless plug

for inquiries, just message me
yes, Bien the dog :)

special thanks kay kints and the cubao x mode last saturday

eto siya sa datelines! :)

Private space part 4

Private space? what private space?

He finally got a unit 7 floors away.. oh well.

It's like having parents again :P

3 of 10 lives

What do i want to do today?

What if i will be a super fan of EY, adopt all for a get together
What if I layout a poster for a film
What if I TQM a baby company to its growth
What if I plan for a major product launch
What if I be a good daughter and follow all mama's bilins
What if I art direct DVD covers
What if i project plan for a multimedia publication
What if i be my usual geek self working for an international IT company
What if i stalk a client for a video testimonial shoot for a taipei press conference
What if i want to sleep because i haven't had a good one for days..

I want to sleep tonight :)

Perpetuity clause

sign in or sign off..

it's always ur choice.. u just allow it to happen, over and over

need to do major decisions.

Private space part 3

I woke up this morning with my phone ringing..

"hello, Nina patulong naman anong room ba si ****"
"wait.. i'll get my notebook.. pag nakita ko yung bag ko" ( i don't know why but yesterday's alcohol was more potent than usual.. siguro natapat ako ng smiling horse?!!?)
"wala daw **** na nakabook dito"
"ay yung chinese name nila nakalagay kasi passport name ang kinukuha sa baba. Try ******** ** di ko din alam kung tama pronunciation ko."
"wala daw e."
"sige baba ako papatulong ako sa guard namin, weird naman di pala sila nagpapainquire ng guests sa hotel, labo!"

So i had to go down with my unkept look, like i've said, I was a bit drunk getting home this morning that i slept with my yesterday's clothes on .. goodluck na lang sa hitsura.

When i came down, I had 2 clients downstairs the whole world at the lobby then my boss came (he was the "missing person") with his parents and wife flown in for the weekend. I had to be introduced to his family this way!

WAAAAAAAHHH.. after the ruckus, i went back to my hole, on my way, the elevator had full length mirrors where i waited for my floor staring .. hangover, no combs, no hilamos!!, no whatever.

funny, I still look the same. :)

Private space part 2

I was going out of my unit and i saw that my adjacent door neighbor is doing a lipat bahay mode. Elevator opened and I went in and a rushing househelp. She smiled.

"ma'am san po ba yun Santi's"
"sa first floor tapos ikot ka sa kabilang entrance"
"thank you po."

Then my usi self kicked in..

"paalis ba kayo or palipat?"
"ay sa may ari po ako, umalis na kasi yung umuupa at may titingin inaayos lang namin."
"ah"

Then suddenly a panic attack!

"Uh, ano yung sumisilip? Taiwanese ba?!!!!!"
"Ay hindi po ako marunong tumingin kung ano ang pagkakaiba ng chinese sa taiwanese, pare-pareho po na (does the eye squint with matching pointer fingers pulling eyes apart).. chinese po"
OHHHHHH NOOOOOOOO!!!!



*****

BTW, isang PSA. My Taiwanese boss needs to find a furnished condo unit because he'll be staying longer here in PH and it's cooler for him to have a rental than arranging for hotels everytime he is here. He actually wants a unit in Astoria.

So let the quest for a Katipunan place begin!

Waaaahhh.. Private space!

Skype "knocked".. this is our office' cost cutting way for international calls. My Taiwanese boss is here, and he is billeted 12 floors upstairs. WHat?! Now I can't enjoy my wee hours going to the mini stop for my ice cream cravings, most of the time looking like a zombie.

Then he says he has something to give me, "you want me to go up?" no, i'll go down. his last message in skype.. "make sure you keep your man hidden, i won't walk in."



Funny is i didn't make an effort to impress, though i told him my house "is a mess," when he rang the doorbell, i was in my usual jeans and shirt costume, and just one slipper (ay nag-effort pala ako, i usually answer barefoot.)

He told me my house isn't a mess. I opened the door wider so he'll see my boxes (they call my house the official warehouse -- so the new office would really be a relief.) "Oh yeah!"

Nyahh! So there goes my private space.

The Eddie Gil Experiment

Tried on a wig.. the last time i cut my hair this short was in college. Edwina Gil. Whadjathink? Since I am in the business of change nowadays.. will transfer from Ortigas to QC again (or Laguna if THAT other change happens.).. New office - finally would leave the house for work!.. New office.. (not a typo.. ha ha) and sometime soon.. a sex change.. ha ha.

Telecommuting : Regional meeting

My marketing team just had our usual review. Teleconference, APAC regional Singapore, HQ worldwide Taiwan and "team" Philippines for the monthly KPI.

their world in coats and ties, high rise building, conference room, panel of my regional heads, coffee, projector, powerpoints..
this is how my voice looks like in costume..

(scarf mode ako pag nasa headquarters, my lurve affair with hermes.)

but actually..

shorts, barefoot, laptop on sofa, tea on a mickey mouse glass and a half eaten banana..

Sometimes i think i am just acting in a play.

****

And to think nagpakaladkad pa ako kakalatkalat sa ortigas kahapon hanggang alas onse yung una, meron pang humabol na makipagkwentuhan hanggang alas 2 yung pangalawa. Good thing my output speaks for itself.. my figures are great.

Don't think i am not taking my job seriously, i actually just don't sleep to finish stuff. I also believe in dressing up, especially if you don't have anything great to say, be pretty na lang.. ha ha (i am a practicing self chauvinist)

But i really miss having workmates in the same boxed room.

"Good Neighbors"

Busy day today.. I almost missed the chance to get my camera from the corner SONY service center because I had to detour to a meeting at shangri-la.. When I came back the sign at the door said "closed."

But the guard let me in anyway.. Just because he always see me when I catch a cab from my building (stalker!)

----
From Sony, I went to a neighborhood fishball stand. I didn't know that the amount I gave was worth dalawang basong fishball. I actually just got 1 plastic cup and left the stand. But the lady pala remembered me (yes, the uninformed fishball addict) and asked the guards to give me my 2nd cup.. Sweet! So here I am eating my second fishball yumfest.

Fine dining! Ha ha ha!

11am pa lang quota na ako sa happiness :)

Conversation with a publisher :
V : Hi, please help me push your ad agency, we need to get the layouts today, naipit yung printing sched ko.
N : Ok will do, just make sure you'll pick it up as soon as I give a go, I plan to massacre them later. :P


Seen in online banking site :
Peso account -- sept 4 credit memo - Php XX,XXX!
Dollar account -- sept 4 credit memo USD X,XXX
(yihee!)


YM conversation :
N : may pumasok na pera sa bank ko.. kanino galing? may papa na ba talaga akong congressman?
J : Office?
N : Peso account e, hindi naman nila alam yun.
***
N : scary
J : malaki ba? isip mo lang sino may access sa number mo... or else call the bank to inquire kung kanino galing yung most recent deposit mo .... pwede ba yun?
N : malaki laki e
J : mukha bang buong country-wide development fund ng isang province e nasa iyo na?
N : hindi naman
J : baka naman isinama ka na ni dolphy sa testamento nya!
N : pero he he (amount) **k
J : maliit para manggaling kay dolphy…


Conversation with Bank
N : So what happened?
B : Baka nga ho may benefactor kayo, kung ayaw ninyo sa akin nyo na lang i-pakilala
N : Pero kailangan kong malaman kung kanino galing, paki check para punta na tayo sa Batasan, mag "thank you."


Conversation with a billboard supplier
M : You have a YM?
N : Yup acedandan
M : Nice nickname mo ACE.
N : No it stands for my telenovela name.. Ana Carina Espejo Dandan :)

Haunted Hardware

He he.

I had to stop, end of my slaving time to capture, edit, render, author, upload my Banned movies videos of last July.

Being with BMP lets me encounter a lot of eccentric peeps, eccentric sometimes is an understatement. Case in point this little lady vocalist that screams the hades out of purple haze, her voice apparently also scares the heads of my video cam, awes my adobe and haywires my firewire.

I've edited non-stop my first 2 tapes and uploaded the videos with no fuzz.. but suddenly i get drop frames, halted ieee 1394 connections and no remote controls with this band's footage.. whaddah@##!!

I believe in rest, in stopping and doing other stuff.. break for me, break for my pc, break kung break...

This reminds me of one of my funny client encounters before when i was editing for a supplier for GMA 7, they also assign me to do freelance projects:

Timeline : week before holy week circa 2000
Client : B. N.
Product : Holy week TV shows (some of them still running BTW mga channel 9, 13, 4.)

Planning isn't one her her best traits, everything left to prayer, she goes to edit a 2 hour program with 30++ tapes in tow (with an entourage of 4 househelps she calls PAs, with 3 to 4 luggages full of tapes, baon and paraphernalia) multi-format footage(Betacam, U matic, S-VHS, VHS, DVD,) no shotlists.. we would go through her footage like getting coins from a plate of flour, that game u use your nose to pluck the coin with, that hard, that painful, that humiliating.

She wouldn't worry about her hourly rate because she gets a super discount in the guise of religious work.
She would let her "PA" massage her feet with whiteflower oil while you're inside an enclosed airconditioned room. (New sign should read. No Eating. No Drinking. No Smoking. No Whiteflower!)
And with all her useless footage captured, cache memory, virtual memory and actual memory all spent, what do you expect from poor old targa (mind you, we were using broadcast quality multi million systems then.. not your backyard pc-firewire-adobe setup huh) but to rest and hang.

Sometimes a welcome respite for the editor who'd be bored of her ramblings about devotions, conversions and miracles. (complete with pamphlets, photos, rosaries etc.) Hang. Hang. Hang.

One time, the system really went berserk on her.. (with ample warnings about choosing footages, deleting unwanteds, compressing and pre-planning.) it didn't want to proceed. Tech check, reset, control-alt-delete, she was praying over me and my unit. Desperate, she finally pulled out her last 2 arsenals.

2. Rose petals from Lipa. How can you stare at the petals' figures if you have to rewire the system that you want to work to get things done and over with?

"Carina, there's a message in every hardship. We should just look at the signs. Just like this rose, its not just a petal.. look, look! "(The sign said memory full! memory full!)

To self : "Hilo na ang loka tumingin ng 24 hours of footage, talagang meron akong makikita kahit sa maiwang mantsa ng kape. KAPE!!!"

1. Then finally, came the unexpected.. Like a saber sword she swooshed and swashbuckled. She wielded a bottle of holy water!!!

"No! Huwag po!!!! "

(water, out composite cables, plugged system, Nina)

Nyahhhhgggggzzzzzttt zzzzttttttt zzzztttt!

Yep, face all white, hair semi curled.

Heavens!

I can't be sick

Just by being sick I had to cancel life..

Which includes
Maxim Party in Pasig (I wanted to proclaim myself as the queen of men's magazine junkets this year)
Howie Severino's (my idol) docu showing at mag:net
2 days in paris
Autoshow invite at World Trade

Tons of work
My first climb (this I really, really regret)
2 days in paris
***
Will try to keep up with life and watch autohystoria
Will try to watch my friend's sister's gig
Will try to go to another gig and try to scout for bands for banned

Bawal magkasakit!

Glad there's email

Since hindi na masyadong mabili ang post office dahil sa e-mail, nagiisip na lang sila ng bagong larangan na papasukan.. Comedy.

hindi na ako sanay sa snail mail, buti na lang at limited ang encounters :

I was helping out a friend to mail tons of overseas docs, I have the directive to use the safest, cheapest and fastest way via post office. Day 1 mailing was a breeze, I was told that from his experience, he usually gets charged less than a hundred.. Mine was 111.00 Php. Inflation I suppose, I proceeded.

I missed to mail 2 other documents because I left, (he left) out the country detail, I didn't want to guess, oh well there's batch 2 anyway.

So batch 2 day came, suddenly the 111.00 php became 276.00 php. What? Why? E and I in txt conversation :

E : Ma'am 276 daw yung dalawang package kasi based on weight daw sila.
N : Bakit kahapon based on ano sila?
E : Ma'am ganun daw palagi.
N : E yan din yung kahapon, nagdagdag lang ako ng word na "FRANCE" na pinentel pen nag doble na ang weight?
*****
N : Dalawa lang kasya ninyan, yung isang maliit at isang malaki na lang i-send mo
E : Opo
N : Tapos dalhin mo yung naiwan sa ibang post office, tanungin mo kung ano "hula" nila sa weight, pag mura imbento nila, isend mo agad.

Post script : after 1 day, pinagdiet ko yung package ko, balik sa 111.00 php :)

FYI

I decided to end my official volunteer status when I saw him push a fellow volunteer out of a room. Minus personality weights, a person pushing another person. Not on my watch.

I am not friends with the pushee anymore, but i still stand by his dignity.

PS.
This was a year ago, and i don't know why this still cropped up.

All i did was help.

Don't worry, am still in the business of helping.

Anti magnetic

i have been in situations where my atms, credit cards and id cards would just not work.. the plastic is pristine, the strip not at all scratched but often than not the diagnosis would be demagnetized.

Last March to May, i was witness to the slow demise of my beloved ipod bringing her to hospitals (Apple Center, Ynzal) clinics (Villman and NT) quack doctors (greenhills) and home care (yup i opened up a nano.. ha ha) but all else failed, it is now the newest museum piece in my can't-throw-this-gadget-even-if-its-broken-,-its-too-dear-just-to-throw-away-hopefully-i-can-still-save-some-parts-for-frankenstein-operations-in-the-future and the culprit, the harddisk (the ynzal guy said that it will cost me 9k to replace, better to buy a new one!) this is after i spent for software, a new cable, a new battery, and repair diagnosis fees.. grrr..

then June my hard disk crashed!

Today, my new (replaced it with an ipod video 30 gig) ipod with its 15gig music and video (all the bmp videos were there) compilation just went poof! Digital amnesia.

in all situations its just data that gets lost, all the rest of the hardware in the pink of health... what am i doing so anti magnetic???

can i also ask the same q regarding my lovelife? Bwa ha ha ha

Technology fails me :(

Sige isipin niyo whatever, surreal day naman ito kung matuturing..

Kung ikaw si H***** Severino, hello.. may isang page ka sa notebook ko na nagsasaad ng "hello papa H****!" so meaning you don't have to introduce yourself like you are a nobody.. ako yun.. nobody! ikaw.. somebody! ( referring sa kanyang extro sa akin na..

h: thanks a lot, what's ur name?
n : nina
h : hi, i am h*****

n : (yes u are! head talking.. papa h*****, no need for intros..hina-hum ko pa nga ang i-witness theme when u walk on my ground!)

kung ikaw si C**** na nasaad ko na ang aking undying love and devotion, sana nakapag research naman ako tungkol sa hate affair ninyo ni K****. Feeling ko misunderstanding lang. Mabait siya, inapproach ka niya, may pagpapakumbababa. Ok yan makisama, nanlilibre ng cake (aalamin niya kung cake ang gusto mo) mapagpatawa lang, yun lang yata kayo nagkatampuhan. Promise, I can vouch for this guy's true nature ng human kindness. ( refering to the extro sa akin na ..

c : ano name mo? n : ay btw, (kiss) sorry ha starstruck lang! nina
c : hi, nakakatuwa ka naman..
kakilala mo pala siya.

c : paki sabi dyan kay K**** na may attitude problem siya (sorry, this is not quotable, 5 beers na po)

n : ah talaga, what happened, sige i will tell him

kung ikaw si T***** happy T-day talaga. isang wasak na performance na pinigil ko ng 90 minutes ang pagpalakpak sa inyo... ipagpatuloy, hanggang ngayon ay wasak pa rin ako.

Happy that ur birthday was filled with nice people, goes to show what kind of person u are. Have a wonderful life ahead. You know naman (stalker man ang dating) that i am watching you... (succeed/ make a fool of ur self (ha ha, hindi a) with anticipation.

kung ikaw si R*** Drilon, salamat sa 15 minutes na sinamahan mo ako, nung mga panahon i was starting to get my bearings.. ganun talaga ako, cold start sa social skills, sobrang sweet.. extra value sa pagdalo sa bawat mag:net gig. I heart you.

kung ikaw si J*** Torres, yihee.

kung ikaw si K**** oo nga, i can vouch for balls sa mga ganun situasyon, akala mo di ako tumitingin, pero i know how you deal with small and big people. kampi ako sa 'yo sa attitude mong ito.. kung nalaman ko lang agad ang back story mo/ nyo, i could have... napagtanggol kita agad-agad. sayang... i was looking for C**** after our talk umalis na yata agad.

kung ikaw si B***** ng pinikpikan.. oo indirectly napahamak mo talaga ako, mga customers mo yun, at ikaw naman ang pakay ko sa araw na yun na nadaan ako sa penguin. pero sige release and closure din siguro ang pagsusumbong sa iyo about it. Quits na nga tayo..

kung ikaw si E**** at J*** na super seatmates, enjoyed the geektalk, bannedmovies pimping and talking about my 3rd life (J*** hala 6 na lang hindi mo alam.. he he)

kung ikaw yung isa sa 9 + 1 T** Ermitanyo. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, its hard to hold back 90 minutes of appreciation, wasak na wasak na wasak!

haaayy parang super surreal, magoogle mo ang mga pangalan na ito for sure.. isang araw naging connectado sila sa akin. hindi exacto ako, kundi yung anonymous na nina na gumagala gala sa metro..

Eto ang teoriya ng isang nobody na kagaya ko.. after my encounter with Dolphy, naniniwala na ako sa 6 degrees. Next project ko actually si Bill Gates. lakastama! Yeba!

Kung hindi kayo makarelate cool lang.. may mga espasyo pa rin ang mga mere mortals like us sa mundo. Mga nobodies, not connected. Mga taong walang pangalan at walang hits kahit na igoogle mo ang ngalan sa internet. Bokya. :)

The King and I (parallel universe)

I am just speechless.. This is the KING!
Stories.. later.. Let me just breathe and savor the moment.

Hypothetical questions

paano mo mababawi ang number mo

paano mo ma-undo ang pagsabi ng totoo mong pangalan

paano mo matanggal and 1s and 0s ng mga imahe mo sa kanyang camera

paano ka tumakas sa mga text at calls niya

hinarass ka niya, hindi mo naman inamin, akala niya magkaibigan pa rin kayo
magaling ka kasing magpanggap na brave ka, na all good ang mundo..

kailangan bang may screen name ka pag lumalabas (ngayon ko lang naisip na dalawa ang etymology ng screen name, screen na telon at screen na matino ka bang tao para ibigay ko sa 'yo ang totoo kong 'ngalan?)

para kay...

Kung in lab ka, lahat may meaning.. kung jaded ka na lahat wala.

bring me back my innocence and naivete. But am too old for it. Sige na lang, bring me back my magic. This post should be in the secret blog, don't u think?

***

I can't decide if i should rain on your parade or just let you be.. in lab.

BB means BoB*

Hmmmm haven't recovered yet. What was I thinking?

Don't worry, am ok. Kept safe by prayers.

Just feel stupid and unlucky.

But i am ok.

Anonymous BB

Saturday was a weird, weird day..

Whole day was really just about sleeping and bumming..
4 straight night outs.. Official event, groupie duties, BMP research and album launch of a friend.. Woke up late, really late.
Big problem, I haven't started any work and I have a lot of super backlogs. Oh well.
But I have to go to penguin (tempting.. work and pleasure... he he) Penguin won as an initial event of my day. This is a 1030 meeting, 1030 PM.
I went there and I realized that that infamous and always quoted Fete de la Musique (spell check.. what the hell, am not french.) was happening that day. That day!
Almost got lost because my usual route, the remedios circle was closed..
And so the adventure started,
got a text from Ren*** of A*** A***** about his new number, invited him to join our BMP gig and he said yes.. napaka BMP mode, first conversation, done deal. I was so sure i will wing this negotiation with Penguin.
Then the person who I was supposed to meet -- the manager, Butch was so busy, saw him easily, I said hello but didn’t want to impose..I said, I'll just hang around and talk to him later. I decided to stay a while and check out the festivities..

Saw a major poet and a prominent literary journalist just hanging around.. Hmmm, good company.
And and a minor poet flirting around malate (hmmm she's building quite a rep, just heard about her doing body shots in katips last week.)
Bought some beers..
Listened to the music, lahi (mental note, get in touch with them,) pinikpikan and next in line was the dawn..
I was near the toilet area, saw an acquaintance and "his new body"
he has totally transformed himself into a semi-hunk, bwe-he-he (mental note, ask his diet regimen.) Txted him, "saw u, u looked good either am wrong, u changed or there's a better version of u alive.." short but witty txt reparte (spell check.. darn french words) followed.
And then I saw jett pangan..
And I saw another guy who suddenly stopped and planned to smack him (Smack Jett Pangan?? What the.. ) There were tugs, pushings and stares, semi smacks maybe some F*^&*.. words. I got a bit of the action since I was directly at the back side of Jett..
A minute of ruckus..
And a rose vendor came.. I bought flowers.. For Jett Pangan.
"Peace Pare."
Pinikpikan. Air thins and I had to go out, also alcohol was a bit affecting me.
Jett was also out for air, or yosi, or..
Small talk with Jett, anonymous Nina talks to Jett.
Went back to Pinikpikan, my beer needs refill.
And then a "courteous" guy paved the way towards the bar for me.. One red horse..
One fish, two fish...
"you drink like a fish… you always drink red horse?"
"not really, I had 2 lights and this is just my second horse"
Small talk pala ha..
You have been watching too many sesame street..
A stranger is a friend you haven't met.. (Need to bonk head…)
A stranger maybe a predator waiting for a victim..

Early on it was cool, I needed some conversation while waiting for Butch, some conversation to settle my nervous thoughts about the almost rumble that happened. They were there also, they saw.. they called the anti-Jett as Peque Gallaga (but the real PG is sweet, he would never do that, especially to Jett Pangan) because the guy sported a beard salt and pepper hair..
I went to talk with guy 1, 2 3 and 4.. Same group.. What was I thinking??
Then Jett's band was on..
At first I was just in a corner, with 2 ang TV girls, dancing sans ledge.
After a song, guy number 4 went near me and said I danced wild
??
And he pulled me towards the stage..
Gago guy number 4 was teasing me to hold Jett's hand.. When I realized and got shy I pulled my hand away..
And in the middle of his song, jett pangan held my hand sang me his song!
Wooooaaahhh groupie to the highest level..

I just want to end my story at this point, timeline 1 am..

Please, Please.

Yun na lang para happy.

And hindi matatapos ang isang trip without

a BB disaster..

am used to winging it. Life and plans are just a throw of a dice. I am but a player, I just rely on prayers and grace to get by..

Unlucky and clumsy.. my usual combination .. he he

Day 2, i fell on a chair, with a girl on it.
Nakakahiya, suddenly my balance just went *poof*
this happens to me, sometimes i do not have muscle control, am holding something and then like a clamp unfastened gravity grabs what i usually own.. hmmm, and this is what's funny.. I fell 2 times as in Nina falls down, stands up says sorry to girl and falls down again.. Ha ha ha
Leon my colleague who tried to catch me on his third try grabbed me by the arm and asked.. Now, ARE YOU OK?

Yup, i actually was, but during those 5 seconds, i wasn't. I had to call a friend immediately that instant. Kinailangan kong ilabas ang kahihiyan ko in tagalog. Lampa't kalahati.

BTW, etong tinawagan ko imbis na makiramay ang hirit pa sa akin.. huu siguro guwapo yung guy.. he he.. babae nga e, buti na lang hindi ko nadaganan kung lalaki yun e di hindi na ako tumayo..

:P

Welcome to Taiwan!

First time akong bumiyahe ng naka costume, lagare kasi ng 2 pang event, isa sa manila, isa sa taipei. I usually go in and out of the country in jeans and shirt, typical na sa akin na ibinababa ng taxi sa domestic terminal at kinakailangan ko pang sabihing abante po manong, international po. (lagi kasi akong Philippine Airlines dahil.. Sayang ang miles.. He he) Paminsan naka sandals pa nga ako na binili ko sa boracay bago pa masunog ang dating talipapa sa halagang 100 php (na akala ng iba ay nike na dalawang libo! Ano ako hilo!) Kasi I travel in comfort, magbabalibag ka ba naman ng bag na kasya ang dalawang pamangkin mo mag papaka fashionista pa ba ako. Gusto ko mabilis, komportable at hindi ako didipende sa kagandahang loob ng iba para lang tulungan ako (but in fairness sa maraming cultura, ang lalaking pinoy nga ang pinaka chivalrous -- palagi na lang akong nakakasalubong ng babae sa elevator ng asus na may dalang CRT monitor at PC na hinahatak niya sa ilang palapag na walang tutulong man lang sa kanyang lalaki.. Maaring inculcated na sa kanila ang mga disciplinang at rules na gaya ng give way to elders or disabled passengers, pag pila ng maayos etc. etc. pero yung mga unwrittens, mas lamang na lamang naman ang pinoy.) Mabilis akong makakila ng luggage at ng designated sundo (surreal nung una akong pinapunta sa taiwan ng opisina noon.. Pag dating ko sa airport, nakita ko ang driver na susundo sa akin na may hawak na karatula with my name.. Feeling ko para akong diplomat o kung sinong big time executive ng isang multinational, o kaya Japanese papa ng isang yuki girl mail order bride "Nina - san! Mabuhay!".. Yun nga lang nakat-shirt at maong lang ako.. Pebrero noon, malamig, hindi talaga swak sa executive fantasies ko ang moment in time na yun.. Tumawag ako sa dad ko to tell them I've touched down.. Pero nginiiiig ako sa lamig.) gusto ko na lang makarating sa hotel, at dun na ako magtra-transform into Executive BB.
Sa Taiwan pa naman lahat nakaamerikana.. So costume kung costume! I've invested some sets of costumes already in all colors and sizes (ilang beses na rin naman akong pumayat - tumaba sa asus) sa pinas hindi ko nagagamit ang mga ito, pwera lang kung may official events and functions na kasama ko ang mga HQ guys, dressing the part kung baga.
So ayun, first time to really look like my demographics upward mobile global pinoy. He he kanina may isa pang nuance, hindi ko pala nakita ang karatula ko.. still in fairness, costumes give u access to an extra mile.. perception and appearance talaga.. while the tourist center paged my driver, another guy entertained me, and if you say u are from asus, they will think you are from the upper floor ngayon, dati sa factory ang picture sa head nila, sa basement (not that that is an insult -- am so proud of my fellow pinays in asus.) .. "u are from mr. Aguilar's place?" akala ko naman kung sinong aguilar.. Hinanting ba ako ni nene aguilar dahil di ako nakaboto? Matapos niya akong bigyan ng bday card every year walang humpay. this is where our taxes go. Ay ano ba layo na nilakbay ko. Aguilar pala as in Freddie, anak, this guy who talked to me is a Burmese based in Taiwan and he is so proud of my ka Freddie.. I now have major major respect to the Freddie Aguilar.

anyway, i don't know what's in store for me here in Taiwan. just a few days, i don't want to stay so long anymore, wish me luck and Welcome to Taiwan.

The art of saying NO

I finally said NO to something this season. Grabe, am looking at my PDA and surely a proof of my kaladkarin ways.

Today my colleague called me up asking for my slot in Boracay. I gladly gave up my slot. I DO NOT want to work in Boracay, if i'd go there, i want to relax.

and besides I have a Banned gig that weekend. I don't want to miss a banned gig 2 in a row.

so now, am off to Taiwan, but this trip is not as toxic as my usual trips, I can do shopping and minggling and tiangge shopping.. he he WTC (world trade, where computex is) is in the shopping district, my hotel Zi Mei is also in a shopping district.. spending problem, here I come.

He he, this is where the art of saying NO should be important.

Sick again

Walang paltos, everytime i have trips i get sick, either before, after or during a trip. Unang nakapansin nyan ay yung ad agency AE ko, binati niya ako one time kasi nga regular ang meetings namin and nagkakataon na may lagnat ako ako or not feeling well.

Ngayon, it is before. Days before. kaya heto while slaving in front of the PC I doze off in and out of consciousness kasi i am also taking cough medicine (ang bilis kong ma-high.) But for some people they can comfortably lambing to their mom to prepare them hot soups in bowls, supped in jammies in their bedrooms.. ako I just have to contend with the weird sick feeling (hot in the head and sore throat) with a wet towel on my head and a chowking halo-halo.

Ganun na rin yun. :P

Babaw

Kaya ako tumagal working almost alone for 2 years, kasi mababaw ako. I am not a fuzzy anything, not a fuzzy eater (basta walang onions,) not a fuzzy employee, wasn't a fuzzy girlfriend, not a fuzzy anak, not a fuzzy bunso. i thrive living a simple life.

all i need is a drop of encouragement once in a while, even after a long while.. parang si popeye being handed over his spinach at his last drop of energy, basta kahit last, last morsel of muscle power, spinach lang, he is super again.

Sa akin, somebody telling me I am doing a good job (lagi ko din kasing nakakalimutan, praning ako about my work, I always think I fail.) yun yata ang spinach ko. Dulo na ako ng sanity ko e, pero Joanne (my Headquarter marketing coordinator for Asia Pacific) called from Taiwan kanina, talked about some projects i am doing here in PH, still they are amazed how do I keep up with the rest of the world with my one woman operation. Na very good ang Nina. nakakain ng spinach.

Super woman na naman ang gaga :P

Not a sad ending, after all

After my googling.. i surfed through some sites bearing his name.. and I got to "track" (sorry.. i'm really a stalker) his steps, got to get to know more about him, the one we never went into details. And saw and met his girl (online.) And we are now friends. Friendship by affiliation. (Sounds redundant)

:)

In memoriam

Apologies for such a sad note.

I have a friend who died, a year ago, I was never notified, no one ever knew we were constant friends, no one ever knew how our friendship was, we had no pictures together, we never met regularly. I can't show anything to prove our friendship..

I got the news about his death from an old friend of his, and a new industry contact of mine.. He couldn't give me details then, I just couldn't confirm anything.. I don't know any of his numbers, his girlfriend's number, his girlfriend's name.. I don't actually don't remember how to spell his name right.

I met him because he did the mural backdrop for one of our college plays, he was a constant visitor in my theater rehearsals then sa school and when I went pro at the Metropolitan Theater or Intramuros..

I graduated from college and he stayed on, pero our friendship never stopped.

He went the way of street activism, my first job was in an advertising agency..

He has always been patient in showing me his world and his "isms", one of our sessions, he explained to me the troubles of one picket line near my workplace, he managed to convince me to go to the line, from there we stayed with the strikers together for the whole day.. until evening had to go because i still had a prescribed curfew. He had confidence in me to get the issue and somehow be involved.

We tried to change each other's ways, siguro maturity na rin he went from radical to subtle, I went from dispassionate to semi-advocate.

And then he showed me his other passions, his art… I never knew how good an artist he was, never went to his gigs, never read his poetry except for some letters he gave me. For a time he also brought me to his poetry readings, where I never got anyway, just because my artistry never became ripe, the only work i saw was his mural…

We did our constant reporting, mine was usually about career and love and he always had something to say about changing names in SO, company information in my updates (oo nga, he survived 6 boyfriends and 7 company changes) Siya, stories about his music, filmmaking passions.. His trip to europe and its churches.. Basta maraming kwentuhan, matagal..we just knew we had good conversation, somebody out of our world who we can share life with. Kuwento, kuwento…

And then the calls just stopped. Siya naman yung usually tumatawag. Ako naman laging merong landline, or a constant cellphone number. My parents even gave him my number when I went QC and then Pasig (strict yung mga yun, he he hindi nagbibigay ng number ko sa guys -- ha ha.) His calls were regularly irregular, di naman kami scheduled, isa siya sa constant and welcome surprises ng buhay ko kaya nung matagal na wala akong tawag..i wasn't worried.. then the news came… shock!

Shock pero still I had no details, our friendship is actually not about knowing details, about our lives and goings on. Hanggang death I didn’t know, ngayon lang.. Kasi I thought about googling him. And there he was, confirmed.

We always had a fun way of greeting each other pag birthday, makakalimutin din yan e.. August, and October -- he goes malapit na birthday mo, I go: maaga pa, then will miss it and will call October -- malapit na birthday mo… lagi niyang namimiss.. Ako din.. Hindi ako swak sa date. So it's January XX, 1970 - April 4, 2006.

Arlie Gideon Nava. You will surely be missed.

Cellophane

I have been chatting with a new close friend about living life as cellophane men.. This started when he told me a story with me in it and I was surprised he knew it, I didn't realize he was there when that happened, I know that was a blooper on my part to have ignored his presence but this cool guy didn't take offense at all, he said he had been practicing just to be part of the milieu.. Kaya nga siguro kami nag swak nitong guy na ito..

On my part not standing out is a refuge.. Keeping invisible is a way of doing things on your own, taking your sweet time, and then if your ready to face your world, then and only then you show.. But the security of obscurity is so comforting, also I gave up competition at an early age. (You wake up in this earth with a siblings who are mensa members, cocc commanders, student council presidents and star athletes… laban ka pa ba?) I actually just enjoyed mediocrity (read: tamad he he,) like everybody's just been praying for first place, the pigeon hole for second place is all open.. Kaya siguro I get lucky most of the time.. My odds are higher :P

During that same conversation with him I told him another incident, and this time karma was as fast as the speed of light, he was weirded out, I was telling him of an incident of him and me in a taxi alone and he never even remembered.. So I asked him, if was just upholstery? Laughter. No egos hurt. And now I realize I really am perfecting this art of cellophaning.. I just read a friend's blog and read about almost everything happening that day included in detail, except that I was there deleted.

********

Sensitive to see, numb to feel.


********

Isa munang patalastas..

Sunny orange I love you
Lemon, Grapes and Strawberry
Sunny Orange tasty(?) drink
Sunny Orange super quality

****

My last encounter with the Sunny oranges were during the time I was still "churching" he he. until early 2000. I was a sunday school teacher and snack provider for about 70 kids, part of my friday grocery list is buying Sunny orange (pag may budget ako sunquick) and biscuits..

Makes XX glasses. I forget how many really, but that little bottle really was a budget saver. I remember one time nagulat yung isang mom nung nakita niya na Sunny nga yung brand ko (pinipili ng mapiling yaya... ha ha) e she saw her kid kuntento naman with her yummy snack treat. Sa bahay daw, hindi daw uubra kung hindi sosyal na brand, masarap daw siguro ang timpla ko kaya parang equal na sa leading brand ang lasa (naks!). Siguro if the miracle of feeding 5000 men were contemporary times, Sunny will be the official drink provider :)

Next stop.. Computex

I must change my attitude towards trips like these... i should stick it on my forehead! ENJOY the FREERIDE!

'Nuff said.. am preparing for another joyride..

Dinners with editors and writers
Finally go up the 101 building
Buy another batch of showdogs (suyurin ang area just to find Bien siblings-- kasi R has been pestering me to get him one, J deserves to have one, E lost hers)
Eat my favorite omelet in vinegar and sauce amidst continous bird-flu scare.. hwe-he-he
Eat my favorite big quarter chicken snack (bird flu! bird flu!)
Eat Mos burger (super like their potato salad)

See my favorite Taiwanese guy Randy
See my uber boss Benson (will never not like to see him)
Possibly see my Australian pal Jim
Reunited with the non-HK attendees Linda (JP,) Edward (TW,) Jinny (KR,) Allen (TW,)
see my TW support gals Genny, Linda, Serene, Michelle
Reunited with the HK attendees

Another trip to the Hermes store (there's this 15 minute window where I am transformed into a non-jologs.. all my taste and inarte levels just reaches its peak! The practical me.. suddenly just is non-existent.. 15 mins, buy 1 item and leave.)

Great!

*****

So there back to work muna.. apak muna sa pH life (in slavery.. he he.)

In Memoriam : Yoyoy

I remember dancing.. interpretative dancing to his songs. One of my first self expression is dancing to his music and lyrics.. (we had about 2 or 3 albums.. I cannot just blame my dad to be in that 70's jologs mode ... i think he enjoys seeing us act like weirdos everytime he plays it in the quadrophonic (just because stereo is just "left-and-right-phonic" still remember Pilita Coralles talking about this "technology." -- "buhay na buhay") turntable with that big box cabinets.

"Mag exercise" is a given..
"Tarzan and Barok" is a cool costume song (use your mom's rollers for "Barok bones", use tattered rags for a barok style toga.. tiger prints a must!)
and my favorite.. I think the title is "bungalow or kandila"

The lyrics escape me..

i remember using the piano seat as my haunted house, where i scare myself of Yoyoy's multo song..


kaya't ako ay umasenso sa
kandilang pinupulot ko na
ibinenta ko sa binundo, sa halagang sampung piso ang kilo..
aray, aray, aray.. (and at this point I will be melting like a candle.. hwe- he he.. kulit!)

hwaaaahhhh my memory is failing me..

basta there's was this haunted mansion where he stays alone
pinamana
he gets scared at night so he buys candles in binondo to keep him awake..
the candles are the cheap kind kasi this is recycled balls of used wax sold per kilo.. so it doesn't help to keep his lights on..
so the ghosts bother him still everyday, so in frustration he just decides to go back to the provincial peace and quiet

When i go back to my parents' place, I will get my Yoyoy albums and really, really remember the song and my dance..

I AM A YOYOY VILLAME FAN!

Heard about this in the news, he passed away yesterday. Yoyoy Villame. The end of an era.

*****

This senti thought was brought to you by :

Pioneer epoxy, pioneer epoxy.
Pandikit ng kristal, tanso at bakal
reprigirator radiator...
mas matibay pa sa orig, sa mas mahabang panahon
Pioneer epoxy! :P

Pa, Ma, I am home!

I should remind myself to call home everytime i go in and out of the country. I have the habit of not bothering people, walang nang maghahatid and magsusundo, no more waking up family to tell them I'm boarding, i've touchdown, (i'm lost and lonely :( but i've been 2 days at home, my parents didn't know i am back if only my sister had not called. (Finally, hindi na answering machine, she said!) Just because I've forgotten to call and then i got carried away na with normal life. Huh. Bad habit. bad. bad.

OK. HK is OK after all. Not!

I came to HK with a withered spirit, trips should refresh me, but if with my local situation where all should still run like clockwork on remote one should only rely on superwoman mode.

I came in with all my data, when other countries prepare, rehearse in teams prior to trips (trivia : india has 100 employees -- 3 to scan, 5 to research, 10 to staple...,) i scamper to scan and encode, study and research and then only have time to assemble when people are sleeping in the hotel, worse if they are partying, or just leisurely enjoying the PEP in HK. I've been promised an office, I've been promised colleagues.. huh.. promises, promises.

Fortunately I have come up with a presentation powerpoint, (with my angel of a boss Darwin who helped me out doing the ppt effects.) and if all else is lacking, rely on theatrics. There goes my 7 years of (college and professional) theater come in handy. Yup, can say I did a kickass presentation given my content (nipis...) so that part, which is most important is cool

****

HK is OK!

Went to the peak..

rode the cable car..

Replaced my broken ipod nano with a 30 gig ipod, bought it at the same price..

had a good chat with my brother boss while he was fidgeting with my presentation, and was assured i am doing well, doing great! even if i have some doubts about me..

reunited with my APAC gal pals..

reunited with my APAC brothers..

had dinner with mates from Indonesia, Korea, Turkey, Bangladesh, India, saudi Arabia, HK, Taiwan, South Africa and Egypt.. i know which culture can and cannot each fish, chicken, pork, beef, veggies..

i have a picture of a (fake?) piranha with teeth who could cut through flesh but can't cut through plastic to escape (hwe-he-he) ..

i have seen a funny vision of a pregnant NEMO fish..

i went to a temple.. and was taught how to do chinese "enchantations" for luck, i did this shaking of sticks thingie to get answers to life questions. Just for culture and with my traditions intact i was doing it with this OST in my head: Joey de Leon's itak-tak mo!

my "lucky stick" was 7, and a guy gave me a chinese poem where my future is written :
first 2 lines go : autumn and winter is near, birds flock towards the north.. (he said i'll get want i want, because i deserve it! YEHEY!)

smiles from strangers when i bring out Bien and BearLyn from my bag to get their pics taken..

went to the train going to disney land for free.. just because i studied the train interchanges and worked out a plan to detour to the disneyland train and back to my regular route without leaving the MTR system..

great room with a view! a discount for the extra day i paid for it myself because i decided to stay..

free drinks, guy pals buying me drinks when its no longer free (kapal! he he)..

I get to see my uber boss Benson..

I finished my presentation .. that morning when I went back from gimmick..

****

then i got the craziest surprise of the season!...

My PC crashed! I do not have a back-up, all my office files gone..

all my recent pictures, lots of pictures gone to oblivion!..

Personal and password files! Oh my! me and my memory... GONE!

*****

Ok I am trying to be happy. I am, still counting my blessings. But really naloloka na rin ako, haven't started to pick up the pieces.

Still sore from carrying luggage.. from lots of walking that last day in HK trying to fit in the holiday portion in one afternoon...

******

one tip.

BACK-UP!

*****

for related pix, visit my multiply site.

The disaster that is Hong Kong

Am sure hindi pa tapos, kasi nandito pa ako hanggang ngayon.

My hard disk crashed! and I don't have a back-up, while all things are in a just-to-be-finalized-after-trip-to-HK mode.

This will again delay my life with 3 months of retracing data and reworking the my e-state para maging up to date sa May 13 2007.

Sad thing is I have some photos gone to oblivion.

Malas. This plus a list of some minor yet irritating series of unlucky streaks.

now i am in the lobby of the hotel using a public PC. Huh, should be in the comfort of my room with my LCD TV and a room with the harbor view.. ironic site nga kanina while i was miserably crying in my hotel room with the view.

Oh, well.

:(

HSBC TVC

Not about materialism, I just like the girl power theme and that it was pinoy creatives. Friend ko pa yata yung isa. This TVC was aired about 2 years ago. Still my favorite.

Finally!

I cannot vote :(

It is official. My business trip will keep me away from exercising my right to vote. Sad. I don't know if I would have the most educated list, I don't know if i will choose well, I don't know if my bets will win. But i really wanted to exercise my right. I want to vote!

Funny that people get how sad i get about this issue. Maybe this is one of my vanities, i want people to notice my love for country. Not into politics, not into candidates, not into parties.

Lucky that you could. Go please.

My own voice

It took me 6 months to have my own blog, no longer a squatter to my dog's blog space i realize i should follow Bien's advice and have my own space. So here goes, kind of makes me jittery, am afraid my dog's life is more interesting than mine.. I might not have much to say, he he.. am like a baby just taken out of its andador.. ANYWAY Welcome to my blog.. hope you enjoy ur stay :)