Crazy Commercial

Yesterday, the Good Times crew was talking about crazy commercials, and one commercial stood out in the conversation. It was the Goya Twists commercial with Kim Chiu. In here, she wears a skinny, flesh-colored pants, her legs are wrapped around her neck, and her face is so close to her private part.

I was so shocked when I first saw this commercial. I find it sensual in a very very ugly way. I can't understand why other people find it cute, some even say it's a "talent". In fact, a friend of mine told me (with pride), "Alam mo 'yung commercial ni Kim Chiu? Kaya 'ko 'ring gawin 'yun!" And she nearly do the deed in front of us, just to prove that she really can do it. Does she wittingly thinks that it's a thing to be proud of? Come on... Grow the F up!

Meet the foxes of FM Radio (Top 10 Prettiest Female DJs)

Spot.ph had revealed their list of the Top 10 Prettiest Female DJs. The jocks that they put on their list are all gorgeous without a doubt, but in my opinion there are other DJs out there that are more deserving to be on the list. That's why I decided to make my own list of the Top 10 Prettiest female DJs. I hope that you'll agree with my preferences. Anyway, to each his own.

Top 1: Angelika "Angelicopter" Schmeing-Cruz (Magic 89.9)

Top 2: Andi "Andi 9" Manzano (Magic 89.9)

Top 3: Jessica Mendoza (Magic 89.9)

Top 4: Alex Purugganan (Mellow 94.7)

Top 5: Kat Alano (Wave 89.1)

Top 6: Sarah Meier (U 92)

Top 7: Tracy Abad (Mellow 94.7)

Top 8: Grace Lee (Magic 89.9)

Top 9: Vicky Herrera (U 92)

Top 10: Monica Francesca "Fran" Tobias (RX 93.1)

The Other Side of Loneliness

It's my Tita's 70th birthday and my cousins have a surprise birthday celebration for her. My dad asked me if I want to go. I didn't accept the invitation because I'm not really into parties. I'm the type who, in a free day, will just stay at home and read a book, watch TV, listen to music, or whatnot. Meanwhile, he also asked my brother if he wants to go and I really encouraged him to go to the party because I want to be alone at home, and gladly, he accepted the invitation. Whooopppyyy!!! Moments like this are the best! I want to be with myself!

But I bet, a great number of the population doesn't share the same sentiments that I have. Not to exaggerate, but 99.9% of the people that I know always find the need to be with somebody. For instance, a lot of girls can't go to the wash room alone, they always have to be accompanied by a friend. And there's a question that runs in my head: Bakit hindi mo ba kayang umihi ng mag-isa? I have a friend who once asked me, "Samahan mo naman akong kumuha ng tubig" and I refused because I find it so irrational, it will only take 10 steps more or less before she can reach the water jag and with that fact, she still thinks that she needs to be with somebody? What the F!

I can go to the cafeteria alone. I can eat alone. I can go to the wash room alone. I can watch a movie alone. I can shop alone. I can go home alone. I can be home alone... I can go on forever. But don't take me wrong, I have friends and I honestly love to be around them, and of course, I also have a family that I dearly love. But there are instances that I really like to do on my own. For instance, I'm fond of watching movies alone. When I told my seeing a movie alone to a friend of mine, she was surprised because she can't imagine herself doing the exact same thing. Another one is, I like to commute alone. Really, I feel uncomfortable if a classmate/someone I know accompany me on my way to school, or on my way back home, or whatever place that might be, especially if we're not really that close. Oh, how much I hate the assuming topics and the awkward silence that comes after it. I want solitude during the ride, listening to music, and not giving a care in the world. And most of all, I like being alone at home. It's so peaceful, so serene, no distractions, no noise. In truth, I have a plan that when I'm already earning my own money, I'll first buy a pad for myself and I'll be away from everybody else.

It's so nice to be alone. When you're alone, you get to know yourself better, you get to think more freely, you're imagination gets wild. You get to meditate, to study your thoughts, the things you've done, your plans for the future, and the like. Truth be told, that aside from the morning (around 6-9, because I get to listen to Good Times with Mo: my ever favorite radio show) my favorite time of the day is midnight. The time when the lights are already off, my dad and brother are already asleep, and I'm already lying in my bed, completely on my own, daydreaming before dreaming... I love that.

The Secret Dreamworld of a Frustrated Blogger

I was flipping the pages of my diary trying to examine the thoughts that I had these past few days. And these 2 journal entries caught my attention. In here, I was having this desire of becoming a blogger. The dates are January 17 and 18, 2011. I find it so amusing because I started blogging on February 17, 2011, exactly a month after I wrote the said journal entries.

January 17, 2011

Monday

Dear Friend,

I want to be a blogger. Yeah, you read that right. This passion of mine for blogging was ignited by Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho's "Food Blogger" episode. Don't take me wrong, I don't want to be a "food" blogger. I want to be a kind of blogger that writes random stuff. I want to write about people, places, books, bags, clothes, aspirations, frustrations, poverty and other realities of our society, family, beliefs, God, and the list goes on and on. I want to write about interesting things that will pop in my head. To sum it up, I'll just go with the flow. You can never go wrong with variety.

January 18, 2011

Tuesday

Dear Friend,

I'm now tune in to Day Break Sounds. Honest to goodness, I didn't really plan to wake up as early as 3 o' clock in the morning just to listen to DJ Pat. I'm having a runny nose that's why I had sleep disturbance. Anyway, while I was half asleep and half awake, I remember dreaming about the virtual reality which is the social network. I remember myself continuously updating my status and keep on commenting and liking my friends' status. According to the article that I read in Candy Mag, one should jot down the dreams that s/he will have because it could be a contributor to the realization or achievement of one's dream/goal in life, which I believe, because dreams are products of our subconscious mind, which by the way, doesn't lie.

So aside from being exposed to Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, Google, and Blogger (or Blogspot, whichever you prefer), not to mention that I'd been encoding my plantilla for 2 and a half hours before the day ends, and also thinking about the blogs of other people and planning about making my own, I think, I dreamt about the social network because I bloody have this desire to get activated and stay connected via Internet. I have this likeness to express my thoughts, ideas, feelings in a modern and creative way for the world to know. I'm actually thinking about the photos that I'm going to upload in the near future for my Facebook, Twitter, and "blog" accounts. For my future blog, I'm also thinking about what site to use, what title should I come up with, and of course what to post.


"I am Nothing In Particular. This makes me free to be Whatever. And there are many of us, we just don't want to be labelled and forced to categories. Take a good look at this aberration. This is what the 21st century looks like."

- Jessica Zafra, author of the Twisted series.

18 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I Was 18

I was listening to the radio one time and the DJs were talking about this certain topic that they found in the Internet, it's entitled 18 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I Was 18. I find this article very interesting and informative, plus the fact that I can totally relate to this because I'm 18. I searched this article in the Net so I could share it to you, so read on and be informed. 

18 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I Was 18

June 21st, 2010 @ 1:44 AM BY: MARC

1. Commit yourself to making lots of mistakes. – Mistakes teach you important lessons.  The biggest mistake you can make is doing nothing because you’re too scared to make a mistake.  So don’t hesitate – don’t doubt yourself.  In life, it’s rarely about getting a chance; it’s about taking a chance.  You’ll never be 100% sure it will work, but you can always be 100% sure doing nothing won’t work.  Most of the time you just have to go for it!  And no matter how it turns out, it always ends up just the way it should be.  Either you succeed or you learn something.  Win-Win.  Remember, if you never act, you will never know for sure, and you will be left standing in the same spot forever.
2. Find hard work you love doing. – If I could offer my 18-year-old self some real career advice, I’d tell myself not to base my career choice on other people’s ideas, goals and recommendations.  I’d tell myself not to pick a major because it’s popular, or statistically creates graduates who make the most money.  I’d tell myself that the right career choice is based on one key point: Finding hard work you love doing.  As long as you remain true to yourself, and follow your own interests and values, you can find success through passion.  Perhaps more importantly, you won’t wake up several years later working in a career field you despise, wondering “How the heck am I going to do this for the next 30 years?”  So if you catch yourself working hard and loving every minute of it, don’t stop.  You’re on to something big.  Because hard work ain’t hard when you concentrate on your passions.
3. Invest time, energy and money in yourself every day. – When you invest in yourself, you can never lose, and over time you will change the trajectory of your life.  You are simply the product of what you know.  The more time, energy and money you spend acquiring pertinent knowledge, the more control you have over your life.
4. Explore new ideas and opportunities often. – Your natural human fears of failure and embarrassment will sometimes stop you from trying new things.  But you must rise above these fears, for your life’s story is simply the culmination many small, unique experiences.  And the more unique experiences you have, the more interesting your story gets.  So seek as many new life experiences as possible and be sure to share them with the people you care about.  Not doing so is not living.
5. When sharpening your career skills, focus more on less. – Think in terms of Karate: A black belt seems far more impressive than a brown belt.  But does a brown belt really seem any more impressive than a red belt?  Probably not to most people.  Remember that society elevates experts high onto a pedestal.  Hard work matters, but not if it’s scattered in diverse directions.  So narrow your focus on learning fewer career related skills and master them all.
6. People are not mind readers.  Tell them what you’re thinking.– People will never know how you feel unless you tell them.  Your boss?  Yeah, he doesn’t know you’re hoping for a promotion because you haven’t told him yet.  That cute girl you haven’t talked to because you’re too shy?  Yeah, you guessed it; she hasn’t given you the time of day simply because you haven’t given her the time of day either.   In life, you have to communicate with others.  And often, you have to open your vocal cords and speak the first words.  You have to tell people what you’re thinking.  It’s as simple as that.
7. Make swift decisions and take immediate action. – Either you’re going to take action and seize new opportunities, or someone else will first.  You can’t change anything or make any sort of progress by sitting back and thinking about it.  Remember, there’s a huge difference between knowing how to do something and actually doing it.  Knowledge is basically useless without action.
8. Accept and embrace change. – However good or bad a situation is now, it will change.  That’s the one thing you can count on.  So embrace change, and realize that change happens for a reason.  It won’t always be easy or obvious at first, but in the end it will be worth it.
9. Don’t worry too much about what other people think about you. – For the most part, what other people think and say about you doesn’t matter.  When I was 18, I let the opinions of my high school and early college peers influence my decisions.  And, at times, they steered me away from ideas and goals I strongly believed in.  I realize now, ten years later, that this was a foolish way to live, especially when I consider that nearly all of these people whose opinions I cared so much about are no longer a part of my life.  Unless you’re trying to make a great first impression (job interview, first date, etc.), don’t let the opinions of others stand in your way.  What they think and say about you isn’t important.  What is important is how you feel about yourself.
10. Always be honest with yourself and others. – Living a life of honesty creates peace of mind, and peace of mind is priceless.  Period.
11. Talk to lots of people in college and early on in your career. – Bosses.  Colleagues.  Professors.  Classmates.  Social club members.  Other students outside of your major or social circle. Teaching assistants.  Career advisors.  College deans.  Friends of friends.  Everyone!  Why?  Professional networking.  I have worked for three employers since I graduated from college (I left my first two employers by choice on good terms), but I only interviewed with the first employer.  The other two employers offered me a job before I even had a formal interview, based strictly on the recommendation of a hiring manager (someone I had networked with over the years).  When employers look to fill a position, the first thing they do is ask the people they know and trust if they know someone who would do well in the position.  If you start building your professional network early, you’ll be set.  Over time, you’ll continue talking to new people you meet through your current network and your network’s reach and the associated opportunities will continue to snowball for the duration of your career.
12. Sit alone in silence for at least ten minutes every day. – Use this time to think, plan, reflect, and dream.  Creative and productive thinking flourish in solitude and silence.  With quiet, you can hear your thoughts, you can reach deep within yourself, and you can focus on mapping out the next logical, productive step in your life.
13. Ask lots of questions. – The greatest ‘adventure’ is the ability to inquire, to ask questions.  Sometimes in the process of inquiry, the search is more significant than the answers.  Answers come from other people, from the universe of knowledge and history, and from the intuition and deep wisdom inside yourself.  These answers will never surface if you never ask the right questions.  Thus, the simple act of asking the right questions is the answer.
14. Exploit the resources you do have access to. – The average person is usually astonished when they see a physically handicap person show intense signs of emotional happiness.  How could someone in such a restricted physical state be so happy?  The answer rests in how they use the resources they do have.  Stevie Wonder couldn’t see, so he exploited his sense of hearing into a passion for music, and he now has 25 Grammy Awards to prove it.
15. Live below your means. – Live a comfortable life, not a wasteful one.  Do not spend to impress others.  Do not live life trying to fool yourself into thinking wealth is measured in material objects.  Manage your money wisely so your money does not manage you.  Always live well below your means.
16. Be respectful of others and make them feel good. – In life and business, it’s not so much what you say that counts, it’ how you make people feel.  So respect your elders, minors, and everyone in between.  There are no boundaries or classes that define a group of people that deserve to be respected.  Treat everyone with the same level of respect you would give to your grandfather and the same level of patience you would have with your baby brother.  Supporting, guiding, and making contributions to other people is one of life’s greatest rewards.  In order to get, you have to give.
17. Excel at what you do. – There’s no point in doing something if you aren’t going to do it right.  Excel at your work and excel at your hobbies.  Develop a reputation for yourself, a reputation for consistent excellence.
18. Be who you were born to be. – You must follow your heart, and be who you were born to be.  Some of us were born to be musicians – to communicate intricate thoughts and rousing feelings with the strings of a guitar.  Some of us were born to be poets – to touch people’s hearts with exquisite prose.  Some of us were born to be entrepreneurs – to create growth and opportunity where others saw rubbish.  And still, some of us were born to be or do whatever it is, specifically, that moves you.  Regardless of what you decide to do in your lifetime, you better feel it in every fiber of your being.  You better be born to do it!  Don’t waste your life fulfilling someone else’s dreams and desires.

But above all, laugh when you can, apologize when you should, and let go of what you can’t change.  Life is short, yet amazing.  Enjoy the ride.

Also, if you liked this article and you’re looking for similar advice on life, love and personal growth I highly recommend that you read The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck.  It’s an easy, enjoyable read that literally changed my life.

Photo by: Taylor McBride

Writing: My Newfound Love

I never thought I'll get into writing or blogging in particular. I used to think that writing is such an arduous task. Believe it or not, I used to tell myself and the people around me that I suck in writing. I used to tell myself that writing is hard, that it requires a lot of wit, and it's too bad because I don't have enough knowledge about stuff, that I'm more of a speaker than a writer, and so on and so forth. In fact, it was one of the reasons why I almost change my majorship (I'm majoring in English). I was indeed scared of writing.

But just recently, I had an epiphany that all the negative things/limitations that I put in my head are all wrong. I just found out that there's actually a writer inside of me, and that's the very reason why the page that you're reading right now exists. But I really never thought that I actually could write. If the past me could talk to the present me, I bet millions of dollars that she'll say, "I never thought you'll be that smart!" or "You do have a blog?!" or "How come you're speaking English?". When I was younger, I was passionate about other areas like dancing, acting, beauty and fashion, and even law and politics, but definitely not writing. I swear, it never once crossed my mind before. I'm not the typical writer who's been in love with the deed since childhood. I just discovered my passion in this field earlier this year, like a month ago.

Thank God I discovered the wonders of writing. I found out that writing is genuinely an effective tool to speak your mind, express yourself, and share your views and opinions. It brings out the creativity, authenticity, and transparency of a person. Writing has the power to inspire, influence, and educate other people. There's a sense of pride and capability that goes with it. Writing is truly a wonderful thing, and I'm loving every millisecond of it.

As an end note, I want you to instill in mind that you shouldn't set limitations on your capabilities. Because the things that you think you're not good at, may turn out to be your field of endeavor. You just have to discover it yourself. And once you discovered it, you must start to nourish, use, and enjoy it. :>