20 Questions (Plus 20 More)....

Yeah, I finally give in to these types of questionaires. This is the first time i answered one, so I thought to make it a milestone. heheheheh... if you could call it that.

1.WHAT IS YOUR FULL NAME? Pauline _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ (kept the other parts for security. I have lots of stalkers already, don't have the time and the energy for more.

2. WHAT COLOR PANTS ARE YOU WEARING? BLUE, yan lang talaga.

3. WHAT ARE YOU DOING RIGHT NOW? answering this questionaire, chatting with kcat and quresh, blog hopping, working (hehehhee), talking to Steve (all the way from the US)

4. WHAT'S THE LAST THING YOU ATE? cheese dog and banana. i don't like that look on your face. it's not what you think. yun talaga kinain ko eh.

5. DO YOU WISH ON STARS? hmmm... no. i lost the magic of wishing on stars already. i love stargazing though.

6. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? BLUE. bakit ba?

8. LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? my mom. i normally call home when i get to the office. more like letting her know that i arrived safely.

9. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT YOU THIS? uhmmm... next question please. hehehhe... but of course, i wouldnt be answering this.

10. HOW OLD ARE YOU TODAY? i'm an old soul not because i'm 30. i'm just an old soul.

11. FAVORITE DRINK? water!!!

12. FAVORITE SPORT? wala eh. hmmm... cge badminton. yun lang ang medyo okay ako. pero i used to play basketball but i'm no good.

13. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? nope. but i wear my contacts out, i'm sure. hehehhee...

14. SIBLINGS? 5 beautiful souls

15. FAVORITE MONTH? september...

16. FAVORITE FOOD? anything with tomato sauce basta hindi lamang-loob (i.e., liver, gizzard, and the like). i also don't eat beef. after taste issue... hehehehhe...

17. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? ROBOTS! I'm a child eh. I'll always be a little girl. Bakit ba?

18. FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR? Good Friday. Why? hmmmm... figure it out.

19. WHAT DO YOU DO TO VENT ANGER? silently cry. if possible, alone.

20. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD? hmmm... marbles. di kasi ako nakapaglaro nun sa labas ng bahay. pero i have lots of them. pwede lang ipambato yun eh.

21. SUMMER OR WINTER? winter... i love to snuggle. walang opportunity eh. please GOD send us some snow kahit one week lang. hehehehe...

22. HUGS OR KISSES? depends. hehehehhe... cguro hugs ako. snuggle nga di ba?

23. CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA? VANILLA.

24. DO YOU WANT YOUR FRIENDS TO WRITE/ E-MAIL BACK? hmmm... kahit ano? pero i love it when they call.

25. WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? kahit cno. cguro people who like me.

26. WHO IS LEAST LIKELY? people like me, no time for things like this. i just like the person who sent me this. besides, i'm not that busy at the moment.

27. LIVING ARRANGEMENTS: i live with my mom. but all that's gonna change soon. i'm moving to another city. BAGUIO CITY, here I come.

28. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? last sunday reading Judith McNaught's Perfect.

29. WHAT IS UNDER YOUR BED? no idea. di ko pa na-check kung ano meron dun. alikabok?

30 WHO IS THE FRIEND YOU HAVE HAD LONGEST? Kuya Jesse. even before I was born.

31. WHAT INSPIRES YOU? uhmmm....

32. WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF? uhmmm...

33. PLAIN, BUTTERED OR SALTED POPCORN? don't like popcorn that much.

34. FAVORITE CAR? kahit ano basta safe.

35. FAVORITE FLOWER? any.

36. NUMBER OF KEYS ON YOUR KEY RING? wala eh. don't have a key ring.

37. CAN YOU JUGGLE? do i have to?

38. FAVORITE DAY OF THE WEEK? friday

39. WHAT DID YOU DO ON YOUR LAST BIRTHDAY? went out with jacq and zette, simple dinner and tea afterwards. had another celebration with kcat and jacq.

40. WHEN'S THE LAST TIME YOU HAD SAND BETWEEN YOUR TOES? January 22, Puerto Galera

Why is there no number 7 here? Title should be 39 questions... Let's see who notices. Tell me if you did. ;-)

Photos - Puerto Galera - January 21-22, 2005

Yey!

I can post pictures now. Thanks to some friends who have been so kind as to be patient on me while I learn Hello's and Picasa2's ropes.

Anyways, I was planning to post the Baguio pics but I had a different idea all together o posting them. So here are the photos from the two-day holiday in Puerto Galera last January instead.




It was a happy-kinda-sad holiday. It was rainy then and we are headed to the beach. Actually, we are bringing a friend's friend to the beach. Yup, a guy friend. More like a friend's suitor. Why? He flew all the way from Australia. So we decided to bring him to the some places here in the Philippines.

Anyways, the two-days were filled with fun. We drank light drinks by the shores and stargazed while at it. The sun did honor our days at the beach and we managed to get ourselves tan.

The Baguio pics have to wait. I'm playing with Picasa still....

AJ, Your Time's Running Out

Yup! I am giving myself until end of the month to pin for AJ. I mean, I have been hanging on everything and anything about him for a number of months now. I want to give up this insane habit!

AJ, you'll be out of my mind come April 1st. No more looking forward to seeing you... no more hanging on your every action and word... no more you in my life....

Two more days, and you're out!!!

I'm moving on.

View From Our Inn's Balcony

This is what we see from the balcony of the inn we checked in.




Quite a sight huh?

Baguio Pauses for Our Poses

Yeah... We took Baguio by thurder and lightning.

Thurder? We were two noisy tourists to be exact. A place such as Baguio is for meditation. Well, I had my fill of the serene atmosphere. I almost finished a book.

Lightning? Well, you should see how bright our camera's flash is. You'll understand. hehehhehe... No offense Jack, just trying to be something here. :-D


If you need copies of any photo, do not hesitate to let me know.

Pictures are in no particular order, though. Just my mind's sick sense of arrangement.

Have fun browsing!!!

#$*!?... Can't Post Pictures Here

I'm losing my patience with Picasa and Hello. After the nth time, I just can't post pictures here.

Can anyone help me? Maybe give me a step-by-step instructions on how to do it? Please....

Flowers of Baguio

Finally, here are the photos from our Baguio trip during this year's Holy Week.




Just a sample of the flora you'll see in Baguio's Botanical Garden. You can see now why I love Baguio so much.

Why include our faces? Well, there were 2 more rare blooms when we went there. Guess who (take note not what) they are....

Sorry I have to ante-date, though.

I'm Back But Not For Long...

Yup, I'm here in our house in Marikina again. Back from my 3-day vacation.

Want to know what happened? Well, we never get to see the shores of Pangasinan. My friend decided that we should go straight to Baguio and not to stop by Hundred Islands in Pangasinan. Actually, I was disappointed. I was looking forward to seeing the beach and to laze under the sun. Anyways, the decision to go straight to Baguio instead is a good decision. My guess is Pangasinan may be too humid for even a short stay. It's cold in Baguio, even during summer.

I promise to post some pics as soon as they are uploaded from the camera. You'll see what Baguio is like in the next few days.

While we were staying in Baguio, I had this not-so-crazy idea that I want to live and work in Baguio. I was toying with the idea even on the trip back to Manila. It makes perfect sense...

I always wanted to live independently. Yup, I still live with my mom at 30. And yes I'm one pampered gal. My mom takes care of everything from clothes to food. I will just wake up to eat and get ready for work. As Baguio is only 5-8 hours away from Manila, I decided is the best place live independently. The atmosphere is less humid, I can easily pack my bags up and go back to my mom's house if things don't work out. :D

Anyways, arriving at the decision is one thing. I figure I have to find a paying job there and a place to stay. I'm starting on finding the job now. Finding a place to stay will be easier, I guess. Actually, my heart is saying that I quit my current job and set myself up in Baguio but I know that wouldn't be practical. Let's see, if the desire to live in Baguio will rule out all my sensibilities.

For now, please pray for me that I may find a job opening in Baguio. Better yet if you know someone in Baguio that would be able to help me land a job, I appreciate it very much.

Now, let me go back to my job hunting....

The Plan...

Given that everyone in the Philippines will be heading out of town for a vacation, my friend and I decided to do the same. But unlike other people who have long booked their seats and their hotels, we are heading out of town without any reservations in any form of transportation and accomodations. I know, it's crazy. Isn't it exciting? It's actually the first we are doing this. And we are dying of anticipation. We ready ourselves for the hassles and the stresses this plan would make us face... Yeah, because we are a couple of adventure-hungry persona....

So equipped with a Lonely Planet book about the Philippines, this is how we planned our 4-day holiday:

• Meet Jacq in the gym by 8pm. She probably had taken care of the provisions (i.e., water and light snacks for the long travel).
• Head to the terminal to catch whatever trip is available. We are choosing between Pangasinan-Baguio and Baguio-Antipolo. It all depends on what bus trip can accomodate us on a busy season.
• If we get the Pangasinan-Baguio trip: sightseeing (Hundred Islands!!!) and swimming is the thing! We plan to spend Friday in the beach and head to Baguio night time.
• If we get the Baguio trip: we will be in Baguio re-acquainting ourselves with the place until Friday evening enroute to Antipolo for a swim with our other friends by Saturday morning.

I am hoping that we get the Pangasinan-Baguio trip, though. I would want to spend some of my time in the beach. Baguio would be like Manila, only it's a lot less humid up in Baguio.

I'm excited!!!

Let's see how our plan will turn out. ;-)

Queer??

I've been in the face of the earth 30 years, I haven't really notice anything strange about me and my habits until of late. So I'm writing these strange things about myself down to see if there are other people who have them or maybe someone will be able to uncover te true me.

Here goes...

Do you know that I...?

• can sleep 15 hours straight. I could be hailed from the slitherin family. wahahahahe...
• can only get to sleep after I had the palms of my hands massaged. I swear! Is there a scientific explanation for this?
• lay out all my bathroom essentials (in this order: body scrub, soap, shampoo, conditioner, 2 towels - 1 for my body and another for my hair, toothpaste, toothbrush, dental floss, facial cream, lipstick, lotion, deostick, socks, undergarments, hair accessories) on my bed before actually taking a bath. They have to be lined up in that order.... Vain? I don't think so. I just want to make sure I won't miss out on a ritual. OC? Could be...
• am squeamish when it comes to a bare torso. Just discovered this recently. Guys in the gym have this habit of taking their clothes off in front of me, I hate that. I feel violated when they do that. I am not even sure why they do that and why it has to be in front of me!?! I'm not lesbian or anything. I just feel that taking off a shirt in front of a woman is a major no, no. Victorian?... not really. I wouldn't mind if they take it off behind my back, coz then I wouldn't be tempted to stare. ;-) hahahahha...

I'm sure that there's more. But these four are the ones that I have been noting lately. How about you? What strange habits do you have?

Holiday Plans

I know it's 6am and it's really too early for making an entry. But I just want to write this down, I might not be able to with the things running on my mind.

Holy Week is coming up. Yup! That means I will have 4 days holiday.

Thinking about that 4 days makes me sad. I am so sure to spend them at home, reading and watching DVDs.

I met with a friend this weekend and we kinda agreed to make this year different. We shall not be spending all 4 days couped up at home. We are going out!!! So, in a kinda roundabout way, we started planning our holiday.

I always wanted to go on a backpacking trip. Guess what? My friend humoured me and agreed to come with me. Although, I'm not sure how are we gonna do that given the number of commuters at this time of the year. You know how it is here in the Philippines during holy week holidays. Everyone just wants to get away from the city, so i guess it will be one hell of an adventure trying to get transport to and from the places we want to go to.

But I will not be deterred. I happen to like spending a day or two in a beach. Read, sunbathe, swim, laze under the sun really. The places that we will visit? Bolinao and Baguio. I know! It's crazy to plan a backpacking when everyone else are probably headed to the beach or somewhere cold like Baguio. But my friend is so insistent... and I am excited. This is actually the first time that I will be doing it. I'm more nervous than excited really. But I don't want to pass up the chance. I mean, how many ladies can actually say that they went on a backpacking trip. I bet, I'll be one of the 10 or so people.

I have to work until Thursday morning. My friend doesn't know this yet, we plan to leave the city on Wednesday morning. I'm so sure someone's gonna have a BF (bitch fit)!!! Anyways, we're doing this for adventure. And an adventure we will surely have. Getting transport going to and fro the places we plan to visit will be a main feat.

I'm excited. I'll post pictures here, I hope we can really do it.

You'll be hearing more about this escapade here.

Been Down With Asthma Again

Yup! I had to take a leave of absence for a couple of days due to a mild asthma attack.

What brought the asthma attack? Well, it's more like negligence on my part. I've been very busy for two weeks before the attack. I have to find time for working out in the gym and running after a lot of internal fone meetings. I remember leaving the gym wearing my wet shirt a day or two last week. That could have brought the attack. Dust, pollution and my carelessness. I know, I should have changed for a dry shirt.

Anyways, the two days I was away from work made me realized that I have not done anything but rant on my journal. hehehhehe.... Well, these last few months are a mixture of blessings and disappointments. And I chose to highlight the hurts and the disillusionments.

The last straw was me having an asthma attack again (the last attack was only this January which is forgivable as the more than usual pollution brought about by firecrackers on New Year's Eve). It kinda shook me in a way that made me think of things that I want to do this year. I mean, what if my life is to end this year.... what have I to show? I hope I'm not being melodramatic. It's just that I went through all my entries and I kinda felt depressed reading it. So I decided to take action. My happiness is my responsibility.

Expect fun and happy entries in the coming days. Well, there may be some not-so-happy entries but I'll try to keep it on the minimal. :-P

On Love and Responsibilities....

After 30 years of my life, I look back at the years that were. What have I got to show? Nothing. Absolutely, nothing. I found myself staring at a blank walk.

I know now that I loved people so much but I didn't left any love for myself. I cared so much about them that I forgot to live my own life. I was just surviving all the waking moments. Everyone depended on me and I got myself so high with the power that someone depended on me that I died a thousand deaths without realizing I haven't lived even one single moment.

I was there for my family, my friends, officemates. But I was never there for myself. I took no notice of myself and my needs up until now.

Don't get me wrong. I love the way I know how to love but somewhere along the way I lost myself because of that love.

Now, I want to break free. I want to be my own person. No responbilities to anyone but myself. Can I start living my life now?

In The Meantime Finding Yourself and the Love You Want

a book by Iyanla Vanzant.

A good friend gave me a copy of this book for Christmas. I was genuinely happy. How could I not!?! I love to read. Besides, my friend went to all troubles just to get me a copy.

I started flipping on the pages weeks ago but I haven't really read it. Actually, I am on Chapter 6 already. The voracious reader in me just can't wait to read the whole book. But I never understood a thing. It's not you, Iyanla. It's just me....

It's like the words held no meaning at all. I had to stop and check if I am in denial.

Maybe, the basement is my dwelling place....

Finding Love On The Internet

I don't know why I am so against this. I have no unspeakable experience on this score... but I just don't get it.

Would it be possible to make an instant connection with a person just talking to him online? Can love be really wires away?

Why can some find it online? Why can't I?

Here I am trying to make a connection with one single guy for almost half my life and I just can't do it.

Maybe I was raised the wrong way... where love and marriage is a sacred thing and making it a joking matter is simply a no-no.

Maybe I am just way too serious....