squeaky-clean hair once more

After 48 years, I was finally able to find a bottle of clarifying shampoo. And it was totally what I needed. My hair is not greasy anymore. You can't imagine my happiness when I finally got my hair squeaky-clean again. Whee! My hair could finally breathe after all this time, thank the good Lord.

And another bout of gratitude that Robert, Grace and I were able to get out of the office before 8:00 PM unscathed. Haha. Although tomorrow is promising to be another long, loooooooong day. But no matter. At least we have each other to commiserate with when things get too tight.

shampoo and Sex and the City, part 2

So. I was able to make it to the premiere of Sex and the City at Mega Mall after all. And what can I say? Just read my über-short review here.

Oh, and I still hadn't the chance to buy the motherfuckin' shampoo as I barely made it in time for the movie. Damn.

shampoo and Sex and the City

Just how the fuck could that be? ShopWise carried all sorts of shampoos--moisturizing, volumizing, organic, anti-dandruff, even lice-annihilating shampoo for crying out loud--but they don't friggin' have any clarifying shampoo of any kind!

So I resigned myself to another wash with my regular shampoo--for the second time today--when I got home. Tsk. Yeah, I'm that desperate/paranoid about my hair.

Hopefully, tomorrow it won't rain too hard so I could go meet up with In at Mega Mall and finally get ahold of a bottle of the stuff. Speaking of which, she's got tickets to the premiere of Sex and the City and was über-nice to invite me to go with her. Oughtta be fun. =]

bad hair day

A clarifying shampoo is on top of my grocery list for tomorrow night. Tonight rather, seeing as it's already way past midnight. Err. Whatever.

Thing is my hair is greasy beyond recognition right now and I'm desperate--as in really desperate!--to get rid of whatever gunk has accumulated in there. Argh! As if I even use a lot of hair care products aside from the usual shampoo and occasional anti-frizz serum. I guess not styling or combing past waist-length hair just does that. Or I'm just having a really REALLY bad hair day. Geez.

PROJECT proud FILIPINO

From http://gfolio.multiply.com/photos/album/117#74

Actually, I'm more a proud Batanguena than a proud Filipino. Oh well.

damn stubborn, hard-headed chick

Just spent the last hour arguing with Franco about my other part-time job. Well, not exactly arguing. More like he's trying like hell to talk me out of it and I'm resisting, stubborn as the proverbial mule. I know he's just concerned and doesn't want me to get myself in a mess and I appreciate that, but this is something I really want.

I want to make this work. I really do. And I fully intend to do everything in my power to make it work--and prove him wrong. The guy is just too damn sure of himself--well, concerning me at least--and I think it's high time I do something to shake that, even just a little bit. Haha.

Don't get me wrong. I love him, there's no question about that. Absolutely. But it really wouldn't be healthy for both of us for me to keep stroking his ego when what I really want is to give him a good shake on the shoulders, don't you think? Besides, a little argument every now and then breaks routine and keeps things interesting. And believe me, keeping things interesting takes a lot of effort when there's half a world's distance between the two of you.

But before I go into a rambling spree about the finer points of having and keeping a long-distance relationship, let me just point out that I actually acknowledge that he may be right. I am not so blind as to overlook that possibility. I told him as much--it's just that I want to give this a shot and see the results for myself before making any conclusion, whether good or bad. That's just the way I am--I seem to have this masochistic streak and want to learn always the hard way. Tsk.

feelin' so damn good =]

Right now I'm happy.

Tonight is the first time I went home really late--for me anyway--at past 11:00 PM. Why so late? I went into the meeting for my team in my other part-time job and ended up hanging out and having great conversation with my teammates. What's really great is the solid support from the whole group. Each one is evaluated, affirmed and advised. All without it all feeling like a real job although it most surely is.

I know it doesn't make a lot of sense the way I'm writing about it, but then I don't really need everyone's completely understanding of what I'm saying everytime. Suffice it to say that I just am really happy about all of it right now--I meet great people and I get to learn a lot. The financial rewards would come in time, but right now I want to learn everything and anything there is to know about the whole thing first. Steady does it.

Anywho, even though I got just a little more than two hours of sleep last night--this morning rather--I had a lot of energy throughout the whole day. Quite a change from my usual early-morning stupor and generally sluggish disposition. Just ask my officemates and housemates. And no, it's not that I'm hyper due to caffeine or something. Wanna know why?

My best [and actually only] guess is this I'm already feeling the effects of LifePak--even though I just started taking them yesterday. And no, LifePak is not an upper or stimulant, contrary to what you might think. It's just a dietary supplement a friend recommended to make up for my not eating vegetables and generally living an unhealthy life. And I must admit that it does its job effectively--and rather quickly too I must say.

This early, I already am an advocate, cynic that I am. Haha.

i think i need help

It's almost 5:00 AM and I still cannot sleep. Shit.

obsessed

I want to lose weight. Even if my roommates and co-workers all raise their eyebrows when I tell them that. They're okay with my figure. I'm not. That's all there is to it.

Besides, I know for fact that I've gained weight. I was a couple kilos heavier when I measured my weight last week. Tsk. All those late-night pizzas are catching up with me. And let's not forget the tightening of my clothes. As it is, I do not exactly have the luxury of providing a complete new wardrobe to accommodate the added bulk.

Life. Tsk.

But I promise to get rid of the extra baggage, one way or another. ASAP.

i believe

“When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”

--Paolo Coelho

a brief summary of Sir Lito's birthday party

Seafood--lots and LOTS of it.

Cakes--seven of Red Ribbon's best.

Wines--both red and white.

Beer--San Mig Light, Pale Pilsen, Pale Pilsen Light.

Videoke--complete with drunken dancing.

Kwentuhan--secrets, advices, gossip.

Revelations--what you see, what you hear, when you leave, leave it here.

Fun--a Bacchanalian feast is what it was.

Birthday Calculator

10 November 1985

Your date of conception was on or about 17 February 1985 which was a Sunday.

You were born on a Sunday
under the astrological sign Scorpio.
Your Life path number is 8.

Your fortune cookie reads:
Your life will be happy and peaceful.

Life Path Compatibility:
You are most compatible with those with the Life Path numbers 2, 4, 8, 11 & 22.
You should get along well with those with the Life Path number 6.
You may or may not get along well with those with the Life Path numbers 1 & 5.
You are least compatible with those with the Life Path numbers 3, 7 & 9.

The Julian calendar date of your birth is 2446379.5.
The golden number for 1985 is 10.
The epact number for 1985 is 8.
The year 1985 was not a leap year.

Your birthday falls into the Chinese year beginning 2/20/1985 and ending 2/8/1986.
You were born in the Chinese year of the Ox.

Your Native American Zodiac sign is Snake; your plant is Thistle.

You were born in the Egyptian month of Tyby, the first month of the season of Poret (Emergence - Fertile soil).

Your date of birth on the Hebrew calendar is 26 Heshvan 5746.
Or if you were born after sundown then the date is 27 Heshvan 5746.

The Mayan Calendar long count date of your birthday is 12.18.12.8.15 which is
12 baktun 18 katun 12 tun 8 uinal 15 kin

The Hijra (Islamic Calendar) date of your birth is Sunday, 26 Safar 1406 (1406-2-26).

The date of Easter on your birth year was Sunday, 7 April 1985.
The date of Orthodox Easter on your birth year was Sunday, 14 April 1985.
The date of Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent) on your birth year was Wednesday 20 February 1985.
The date of Whitsun (Pentecost Sunday) in the year of your birth was Sunday 26 May 1985.
The date of Whisuntide in the year of your birth was Sunday 2 June 1985.
The date of Rosh Hashanah in the year of your birth was Monday, 16 September 1985.
The date of Passover in the year of your birth was Saturday, 6 April 1985.
The date of Mardi Gras on your birth year was Tuesday 19 February 1985.

As of 5/16/2008 2:52:41 AM EDT
You are 22 years old.
You are 270 months old.
You are 1,174 weeks old.
You are 8,223 days old.
You are 197,354 hours old.
You are 11,841,292 minutes old.
You are 710,477,561 seconds old.

Celebrities who share your birthday:

Chris Joannou (1979)	MacKenzie Phillips (1959)	Sinbad (1956)
Donna Fargo (1949)	Tim Rice (1944)	Roy Scheider (1935)
Richard Burton (1925)	Claude Rains (1889)	Martin Luther (1483)

Top songs of 1985

Say You, Say Me by Lionel Richie	We Are The World by USA for Africa
Careless Whisper by Wham!	Can't Fight This Feeling by REO Speedwagon
Money for Nothing by Dire Straits	Shout by Tears for Fears
Broken Wings by Mr. Mister	I Want to Know What Love Is by Foreigner
The Power of Love by Huey Lewis & the News	Everybody Wants to Rule the World by Tears for Fears

Your age is the equivalent of a dog that is 3.21839530332681 years old. (Life's just a big chewy bone for you!)

Your lucky day is Tuesday.
Your lucky number is 9 & 11.
Your ruling planet(s) is Mars & Pluto.
Your lucky dates are 1st, 10th, 19th, 28th.
Your opposition sign is Taurus.
Your opposition number(s) is 6.

Today is not one of your lucky days!

There are 178 days till your next birthday
on which your cake will have 23 candles.

Those 23 candles produce 23 BTUs,
or 5,796 calories of heat (that's only 5.7960 food Calories!) .
You can boil 2.63 US ounces of water with that many candles.

In 1985 there were approximately 3.7 million births in the US.
In 1985 the US population was approximately 226,545,805 people, 64.0 persons per square mile.
In 1985 in the US there were 2,425,000 marriages (10.2%) and 1,187,000 divorces (5%)
In 1985 in the US there were approximately 1,990,000 deaths (8.8 per 1000)
In the US a new person is born approximately every 8 seconds.
In the US one person dies approximately every 12 seconds.

In 1985 the population of Australia was approximately 15,900,566.
In 1985 there were approximately 247,348 births in Australia.
In 1985 in Australia there were approximately 115,493 marriages and 39,830 divorces.
In 1985 in Australia there were approximately 118,808 deaths.


Your birthstone is Citrine

The Mystical properties of Citrine

Citrine is said to help one connect with Spirit.

Some lists consider these stones to be your birthstone. (Birthstone lists come from Jewelers, Tibet, Ayurvedic Indian medicine, and other sources)

Yellow Topaz, Pearl, Diamond

Your birth tree is

Walnut Tree, the Passion

Unrelenting, strange and full of contrasts, often egoistic, aggressive, noble, broad horizon, unexpected reactions, spontaneous, unlimited ambition, no flexibility, difficult and uncommon partner, not always liked but often admired, ingenious strategist, very jealous and passionate, no compromises.

There are 223 days till Christmas 2008!
There are 236 days till Orthodox Christmas!

The moon's phase on the day you were
born was waning crescent.

loooooong hair

As promised.

For the life of me, I could not see any likeness to Marian. Go figure.

By the who, judging by the first pic, I could probably go topless without revealing anything. Just a thought. Haha.

do i really look like dyesebel?

I don't if it's mass hallucination or what, but my co-workers all agree that I resemble Marian Rivera. Yes, Dyesebel herself--except for the tail part, obviously.


And no, I won't be a hypocrite and deny that I am flattered because indeed I am. Hell, it's not everyday you get likened to a pretty girl. Might as well enjoy their delusions while they last. Harhar.

Although the only thing I could readily admit to resembling her would be the length of my hair. Watcha think?

I'll post pics of me with my long hair later when I get home. For comparison purposes. *smirk*

vampiress wannabe

I just noticed that my gray contact lenses served to make my already pale face look even paler. Couple that with my messy, past waist-length hair and you've got yourself a contender for the part of a vampiress or some other otherworldly creature in a B-movie--all that's missing is the flowing Victorian lace gown and a couple of deadly-sharp incisors. Haha.

erase, erase

Out of the numb/depressed stage now, I decided I won't leave just like that. Not if I can help it. I owe it to Mr. L since he's the one who hired me and not her. I won't let him down.

close to the end?

Looks like my days at 911 Alarm is coming to an end. Before leaving for good this morning, a co-worker tipped me off that I'm gonna get terminated. She's just looking for the opportunity to do so. And yeah, it was still because of that Labor Day episode. So before I get fired, I'm gonna resign. Although of course I'll make sure I have another job before I leave.

How sad.

I accepted this job full of ideals and good intention. And for what? I'm getting fired because of a whim. It's shattering, disillusioning, hurtful.

I guess I'm still numb. Even though the other new Sales was fired just yesterday--when I wasn't here at the office by the way. Even though I could see for myself that the employee turnover here is indeed alarmingly high. Even though several others are already planning to resign too.

So much for my first job.

Right now I'm grieving for my impending resignation. Because the truth is I like this company, I like this job. I tried my best. But she just had to butt in and ruin everything.

I know I promised I wouldn't let her ruin this for me. But I know I've got to bail out of this before things get worse. Self-preservation comes before pride, I guess.

Shit. I hate this.

going home =]

I'm going home for the weekend. My cousin's in the hospital. She was rushed there last night because she got spooked by what she was watching--MMK, I think--and her chest tightened so she had difficulty breathing. Poor girl. Although she's just being held there for observation and might be coming home this afternoon.

Anywho, it's Mothers' Day tomorrow and I have no idea what to give my mother. And it's not like I have the extra money either--seems I'm perennially broke these days. Pathetic. But never mind. I'll scrounge off the last of my savings for something for her. =]

This... Is... SPARTA!!!

Could somebody please explain to me why I am sooo lusting after a pair of gladiator sandals like this?
















I want! I want! I want!

Seriously. Although I have to have a pedicure just for this. And of course, the money to buy the damned things. But I still want them. Damn.

promise, I'm not suicidal

Right now I am so loving the piano version of Gloomy Sunday, otherwise known as the Hungarian suicide song.

Not that I'm suicidal. Okay, so maybe at one time past in my life I nearly was, but not this time. But let's not get sidetracked.

It was Patrisha who introduced the song to me. I got intrigued because of the story and controversy behind it. Although I admit I was apprehensive about actually listening to the song. I've got a history of depression although I've been in remission for several years now and I have no intention of dying just yet--intentional or otherwise.

They say curiosity killed the cat, but thankfully it did not kill me even after I listened to the supposed suicide song. And just as Patrisha said, it was beautiful in its own haunting way. Call me morbid, but I really do find the melody beautiful.

all-day stomach ache

Kamusta naman at maghapong masakit ang tiyan ko?

So much that I had to go home before the work day is over. It didn't really help that the only source of nourishment I had were those cookies I bought for lunch sometime way after lunchtime. I just slept the pain off when I got home a little past four.

I feel marginally better now after that nap and a decent dinner of mushroom soup, rice and chicken. Personally, I think it was the soup that calmed my stomach. But then that's just me making an attempt at self-diagnosis despite my lack of medical knowledge. Harhar.

By the who, I've submitted a written work to my part-time employer. So far, he liked my work. Now, if I could just pull off that other piece I'm supposed to write..

my part-time job--I hope it works out

Finally. Something productive to do with my spare time.

Ever since I started working, I've also been looking for a part-time gig to earn some extra dough. One problem is of course, my semi-unpredictable schedule. I work regular day shift hours, but things tend to come up and consume even some of the hours after that. Even if I do find a part-time job, I could easily get myself fired for punctuality, or the lack thereof rather, because of that.

So the perfect solution is a home-based online writing or editing job. I could work at my own pace and hours. Or so I thought. Practically all the online job postings I saw when I was looking had some sort of deadline or required number of articles per day or something. And of course, given my schedule and current state of mind, I just knew I could not keep up so trying out would be pointless.

Out of sheer desperation, I posted my own listing looking for such job in an online marketplace. I got two replies from wannabe applicants before I realized the listing was phrased the wrong way. So much for wanting to be a writer--I couldn't even get my message across. Geez. Needless to say, I had to modify the listing to explain that I was the one looking for that job and not vice versa.

This time I think I hit paydirt. This guy replied and asked if I was interested in joining his team in website development. Basically, he would give me topics for pieces to write, or articles to edit [copyread or paraphrase], things like that. And the best thing is I get to work on my own pace. As in NO deadlines and NO required output rate, so long as I finish those tasks given to me.

Okay, so it sounds too good to be true. I won't deny that. Whichever way you look at it, this whole thing is a risk. I have no way of knowing if he'll pay or if he's legit until I pass my trial period and actually have the money on hand. Or in this case, in my PayPal account. It's a leap of faith on my part and I can only hope that this pushes through.

Lord help me.

always one of the boys

I. Cannot. Fucking. Believe. This.

Today I worked for thirteen hours straight. And that's without any overtime pay whatsoever. Right now I cannot honestly say if I feel amazed or disgusted at myself.

Although the reason I ended up working so much hours is because I couldn't leave the members of the technical team hanging while out in the field. I just had to pick them all up from their respective assigned sites. I drive to and from sites so often that it has become a running joke among us that my job is actually a company driver and not an account manager. Haha.

Truth is I'm more at ease with the technical team than with my office mates. I guess it just goes without saying that wherever I may be, I always will be one of the boys.

I just realized this afternoon that my delusions about changing my image and all into something more feminine or so are never gonna happen. I simply enjoy being the rough-talking, pants-wearing chick too much to ever give up my comfortably rogue ways. Maria Clara never was and never will be my personal icon--it is simply so not me.

of incoming battles and shopping sprees

Hmmm... Why do I get the feeling that tomorrow is going to be another battle?

Whatever. Lots and lots of caffeine and a healthy dose of sheer will not to let my temper get the best of me should get me through it. And if all else fails, a delicious meal and nice, cold shower should revive me at the end of the day.

Although it looks like I might be pulling an all-nighter this time to finish--okay, so that would be really pushing it--rather, get a head start on that pesky as-built plan I was supposed to finish last week. Geez. As if I, a mere beginner in AutoCAD, could complete an as-built plan for a building several floors up given only a crappy photocopy of the original plan. Like, hello? Tsk.

That's the problem if your superior actually has no idea of what s/he is actually supervising. For chrissakes, how can you expect him/her to understand that doing a complete as-built plan in AutoCAD from scratch is a bloody thing to do when s/he doesn't even know how to view a simple AutoCAD layout? Absurd. Ironic. Pathetic.

Anywho, enough of the bad stuff. It was a weekend of shopping for me and the family. Haha. As if we really have the money for a serious shopping spree. Although as it is, I did manage to score myself a pair of jeans and a top yesterday, and a big tote bag today. Whee!

sitting pretty in the hotseat

So. After two months of having it easy at work, I now find myself in the hotseat. Seems my brazen act of disobedience--that Labor Day episode--sparked a chain reaction in her. So that now, she's keeping an eye on me to look for opportunities to chastise me, or worse.

Not that I'm giving her the satisfaction of seeing me intimidated. Given, it seems I do make a lot of mistakes these days. Maybe it's just not my time or so. But contrary to what she's probably expecting, I own up to my mistakes and don't grovel for forgiveness like some sniveling loser. I look her in the eye while admitting my mistake, just to show she can't scare me just like that. And I think it frustrates her that she can't get under my skin.

I've been hearing some things too from the grapevine about the things she says about me. Of course, none of them good. One is even personal. I'm not surprised. Others have been warning me about her since the beginning, but I tried to keep an open mind since I think it unfair to judge her based on hearsay. But now I know the truth. That's really her nature.

But no, I won't let her ruin this job for me. Inexperience is my weakness, but by now I've learned some things. They are not enough, but I can still learn. And I am now more careful. I won't give her any more reason to see faults in my work. Damn, I'm gonna work hard to be good at this. She just wait and see.

down and lazy on Labor Day

So here I am spending Labor Day at home just plain lazing around.

I'm thinking maybe I should have gone to the mall today instead of yesterday, but then that would have defeated the purpose of this day for me: to do nothing productive in the course of resting my battered mind and fatigued body. Okay, so going to the mall is not exactly what you'd call productive, but that would mean inevitably spending the last of my meager hoard of cash--financial, and therefore mental, torture. So against relaxation. Haha.

Anywho. So I woke up at lunchtime. Man, does that feel good especially on a weekday. Ate a late lunch of rice and corned beef. And now I'm chatting with Franco while eating chocolate. Later when he goes to sleep, I'll take a long, leisurely bath and then continue reading Season of Mists, the fourth volume of Neil Gaiman's Sandman series which I bought last night.

Damn, could I ask for anything more at the moment?