said i do to my bestfriend!

After more than a year of preparation, we finally walked down the aisle last week. It was the happiest day of my life...almost all our family and friends were there, but more than anything I had my bestfriend, Chito to celebrate it with.

It rained the whole day but it didn't spoil the bliss that i felt. Should anything go wrong...i just knew i'd still have that smile on my face. It was a day that we both looked forward to. We exchanged letters during the wedding preps in the hotel. I composed mine in the morning while he did his before he slept the day before the wedding. It was heartwarming, and I cried like a baby hahah!

In his letter he said, "...honestly, I never thought I'd be as happy as I am now. I can't find enough words to describe how I feel this very moment. All I know is this, - I'm so excited to see you later, walking down that aisle and standing right next to me..." Isn't that so sweet? and further he goes - "...we've been together a little less than three years, but it's like Ive known you all my life...I just hope that during the time when we were a couple I was true to my word - that I'd make you the happiest girl in the world..." super heartmelting huh? "...know this baby - I will be with you every step of the way. I'll help you up every time you stumble, be there when you need me. Through all the good and bad times that may come, you're always going to have me to share them with - this is my promise to you which I'll keep you forever..."

Walking down the aisle was a mix of emotions. I said to myself i'll try not to cry a bit but the moment I was composing myself to walk, I was misty eyed. I saw that the church was almost full..saw my friends from college, my relatives, chito's friends and relatives. at the end of it I saw Chito smiling from ear to ear. I can feel his excitement from where I was standing. then halfway I saw my parents...it was bittersweet. I know they knew I was happy but deep inside I know Im leaving a part of me, physically that is...My family who I love dearly. Im close to both my mom and dad and I know they'll miss me.

As we walked, to Chito, his parents, and mich...the feeling was overwhelming. I saw Papa (chito's dad) teary eyed...and Chito giving me a smile that I will never forget. It was a smile that calmed me and made my happiness complete.

The whole ceremony seem so fast and we both cant help but smile and say our iloveyous every chance we could. When the priest finally announced we were husband and wife, we turned around and we were in awe. We didnt expect a church full of friends and family despite the bad weather...all we can say was "wow.."

When we got to wack-wack for the reception, there were some glitches...major that is. Stories on that on my next post na lang, pati our reviews on our suppliers. But i didnt let it spoil our day. I saw everybody enjoying, it was an icing on the cake. I saw some pics from our friends' multiply sites and we felt that everyone was happy...and that they had a fun time.

some friends say that their favorite part was when we hugged after we kissed in the church and during our first dance where "the way you look tonight" was sang really well by our acoustic quartet, and we hugged and danced like it was just the two of us in the room.

I'd say I'll marry Chito as many times I wish I could...I cant imagine having someone else beside me before everyone who means so much to me. He's my perfect match..and Im happy I said "i do" to my bestfriend

53 days til I walk down the aisle...

I can't believe that we're getting married in less than 2 months! I anticipated lesser load by this time since I had one year lead time for the wedding preps but good thing I got a wedding coordinator..at least to just keep me sane, hehe!

These are the things ive done so far...

Church: Nuestra Senora de Gracia
booked since Oct 2005, pending completion of requirements

Reception venue: Wack-Wack Golf & Country Club BanquetA&B
booked and fully paid since Oct 2005


Caterer: VS&F Catering
booked since Nov 2005. 50% paid, flowers and cake for upgrade
-we'll try to achieve a similar look and feel with the pic above
-to finalize wedding guest list...and yes, the closer the wedding date, the longer the guest list becomes...

Hair & Make-up: Faces by Erika Saenz
to book within the month; trial make up done last tuesday















Photo & Video Coverage:Chito Vecina Photography
booked since Nov 2005; 50% paid; prenup pictorial done last tuesday. Pics above our some of our shots...





Couturier:Taal, Batangas supplier
50% paid; 2nd fitting of entourage and bridal gown turnover by Nov25. Share ko lang some of our pics above



Wedding rings: R&B Jewellery, Ongpin
Fully paid...arent they pretty?


Wedding coordinator:Posh Parties
booked abt 2 mos ago...finalizing our concept and working on the reception program and other details

Documents:
Got the marriage license last month! Yey!

Invitation: NONE YET!!!

Entourage flowers: NONE YET!!

I can more or less visualize our wedding na...and I'm super excited. I just know that it'll be beautiful!
Posh parties and I are working on it...I just know I'm in good hands...

and the countdown continues...

Chito mentioned that he updated his blog...and yes, i almost forgot I had one. Ive been so preoccupied these past months and will still be until december.

I just switched to globe and got a new phone!


I've been a nokia user for gazillion years (haha! i meant, eversince)...but i find it easy to navigate. there are of course other nokia features that i prefer. but hey, with such a slim size (i sometimes put it in my wallet) and with the features that i need, who could ask for more. doesnt have 3g technology though but so far it's not been picking up here in manila (or the whole country for that matter), so why fuss?


Chito and I just got from the Makati city hall to apply for a marriage license. We got to see the mayor's office and their really nice conference roomcs...courtesy of Junjun Binay. Naaks! He's actually chito's classmate/friend from high school, who's been really kind and helped us get through the "perils" of dealing with govt offices for requirements. I was surprised that our city hall is really nice. It's like being in one of the good Makati CBD buildings...and even has some floors that can be a four-star hotel.

We've also attended the seminar required by the church (pre-cana seminar). and met some interesting couples. One were once just textmates, another, met through the internet...a couple in their 30s just knew each other 5months ago while the other have been together for 11 loooong years! But we were all in the same boat, taking the next step and putting our faith to our respective partners. Im happy that im going through this with chito. He's been really loving, supportive, caring, and being the bear that he is...super cuddly. hahah! I can't say i like his lovehandles but i really like pinching them and find it cute! (sometimes lang ah, but hey I dont mind some abs here and there!)

I'm a self-confessed Texas Hold'em Poker addict. I have equally addicted friends who bought a poker table and hosts our tournaments once a week (emil and roe-who by the way have a site where they'll post updates from our tournament... www.emilandroe.com/poker), i have my ever "pasaway" boss who doesn't mind if we play until the early hours of the morning on a weekday..and excuse ourselves from the office for just a few hours the next day, and of course Chito, who has been "bombarding" me with WPT videos on his Ipod and never fails to give a tip or two for me to improve my game. Haay, even my parents don't mind me playing. But of course they hate my early morning uwi everytime i play.

I recently joined a ladies poker tournament in QC. I placed 4th with 24 players. Not bad huh, for a 2nd-time tourney player. I'll post another blog i guess for some really interesting hands that i played and some where i've been outplayed...I just hope I'll get better pa...and earn us some moolah! hahaha!

Just finished my first term in grad school and so far so good. I'll be taking one subject this coming term (which starts on monday) since I'll be crammed with wedding stuff na til dec.

Chito and I have checked some stuff for our house..super mahal na appliances these days. We didn't know that a 6-burner stove costs 40K! sheesh, sana ok lang forever take out! We're also starting to plan our honeymoon. Third, (chito's bestfriend) offered us to stay at their place in australia (he and itin recently got a place of their own there). we just have to worry about our plane fare and pocket money na lang daw. Good thing Papa (chito's dad) works for Etihad, and we get plane tickets to any of their destinations. Downside though would be we'd have to stop over at Abu Dhabi before heading to Australia. Well, works for me...who wouldn't want free airfare? Im super excited na. We're still weighing our options. Would really love though to spend time with third and itin as well. Thanks Third for your offer, hope we can easily get our tourist visas (if ever). We'll keep you posted.


Til my next blog in 2007...hahah!

one bed weather coming up!

i hate mondays, most especially if its such a gloomy day like today. Not to mention the rains to match it which makes it such an ideal day to lay in my bed and snooze til its time for dinner, haha!

its been raining like hell, good thing we have quite a light load this past week.

i miss summer...i miss the scorching sun...i miss the beach...

ice cream!!

Your Icecream Flavour is... Cookies 'n Cream!

Smooth and creamy with a few rough bits mixed in, you are a real treat! You are probably very popular amongst your friends. Remember too much of a good thing is not always good! Don't lay it on too thick!

What is your Icecream Flavour?

Find out at Go Quiz

wish i had more than one body...

i recently started my mba classes in LaSalle, rcbc campus. I enroled in two classes and im enjoying it so far. It's a bit different now. Back in college, i remember i understood our lessons and all but i cant seem to fit it in the "real" world. But in gsb, you get to appreciate what you're learning because it helps you understand things that you deal with every day. (aside from the fact that i paid (half kay papa chito) for my tuition fee,..heheh)

Haay...i tend to push myself too much. Stress at work, mba, wedding plans, other "rakets," and this new business my boss and i are trying to put up. Then im on a diet pa. Goodluck na lang on my health.

college reunion

had a long day last saturday! chito and i attended Carlo's wedding and then i met up with my college friends for dinner. I was expecting our usual group and some few others perhaps but i was soooo surprised to find about 10 more people i havent seen in yeeeeears!!

dinner was at thai ginger gbelt 3 and then we transferred to masas for some drinks. One thing u know, about 5 more of my blockmates was just at temple. Instant reunion talaga, we were about 20 there and we all had a blast. It was just nice catching up with what's been keeping us busy,..


sheesh, i almost forgot Leo blanco's first name, i just remembered that his surname was Blanco. they tortured me for quite a while before berl finally gave me a clue! super embarassing

ofcourse, everyone was quite surprised to see april and chey preggy! mommy april is due anytime while chey naman is next month. exciting sobra! saw april's 4d ultrasound image of her baby boy. he looks really gwapo!

Whew! Updates!

Sheesh its been ages since i last wrote. Anyways, some quick updates. Hopefully i can keep it short.

Wedding preparations:
Our approved menu (its reaaaally good..i swear)
Cocktails : nachos,cheesesticks, peanuts, vegetable sticks & iced tea
Appetizer : Spinach cracklets
Salad : Ceasar's Salad
Soup : Clam chowder soup
Entrees : Steamed riceye w/ parsl
Baked macaroni (really creamy)
Lengua with mushroom butter sauce
Chicken teriyaki
Fillet of Lapu-lapu w/ tartar sauce (cooked on the spot)
Mixed vegetables w/ young corn and quail eggs
Dessert : Assorted cakes/pastries
Fresh fruits
Motiff: Maroon & Champagne(chito likes it too, so this should be final)
Theme: Calla lily (i like it simple & elegant)


Wedding dress: I've somehow made up my mind on how I'd like it to look like.
It's something like this:
Make up : c/o Ricci Chan (one of the Magandang Umaga Pilipinas hosts)
How do i look?

Church : upgrades finalized!
Venue : firmed up upgrades
**We dont have emcee yet though..Other details are quite minor and should be easy to handle.

Personal stuff:
1. 1 year na ko in LBC! and it didnt feel like it. time flies coz i really enjoy my work
2. i passed DLSU-GSB MBA exams. Hopefully i can manage my time well for this. Classes start this May
3. celebrated our 2nd yr anniv ni chito last feb.
4. I spent my bday in Bohol! it was really reaally nice and met some new friends too.


a couple from pque that we met there and this really nice Austrian who shared a lot about all the places that she has gone to. Of course we shared some really nice trivia about Filipinos


of course...we gotta go visit them:


and the choc hills,.it was...WOW!


5.I'll be going to bora...for free!! one of our corporate partners sponsored our trip. Pati si chito..free din. We'll be staying at the elizalde's beachhouse..im really excited!!

outreach at PGH cancer institute

In lieu of our christmas party, LBC Development went to PGH Cancer Institute and gave donations, gifts, and some groceries. It was very moving since the children in the pedia ward were still all smiles despite their condition. They were very happy that there are other people who still care and are willing to share their time and blessings.

I guess most of us forget the spirit of chrismas. Its about sharing and sacrificing. I feel ashamed that I felt sad we won't have a company christmas party...but seeing these people who'll be spending their christmases in the hospital and the pain (emotionally and monetary) and fear that they have to go through everyday, makes me take one step back.

Most of us are fortunate enough to have "excess" time and money to go shopping for ourselves, family and friends. and yes, it would'nt hurt to give back to the society..

christmas and the new year

Sheesh…days pass oh so fast. One thing you know Christmas season is over, hello 2006!! I’ve never been as excited as I am know looking forward to the new year. Chito and I will tie the knot next year…Dec 10 at Nuestra Senora in Guadalupe, Makati and reception at Wack-wack country club. We had to move to December so the Ines clan can go home for a 2 week Christmas vacation. We’re scheduling their “pamamanhikan” within the month just to formalize everything following an old Filipino tradition. It’s a bit nerve wracking knowing our families will finally meet for the first time…I mean what do we say when the “awkward” silent moment comes? Haaay…we’ll see.

******
Parties, parties, parties!!
In lieu of our Christmas party, LBC will have a one day outreach to PGH Cancer patients on Dec 15 (its also the birthday of my nephew who passed away 3 yrs ago).

On the 16th will be HSBC’s Christmas party at CCP…and yes…I am inviting myself, haha. Chito will try to sneak me in…I miss my HSBC friends big time. Can’t wait to party with them again. Chito will perform ulit (kina-career na nya to!). This time he’ll be one of the bar girls (from a scene in Miss Saigon) and as Ms. Hannigan (whoever that is) from the play Annie.

Our department will have a Christmas party on the 20th. Dinner, exchange gift lang, and endless chikahan. Then on the 30th, with my high school friends…at macky’s place.

I saw Mig Ayesa of Rockstar INXS about 2 weeks ago at GMA 7’s Christmas party for their advertisers. I almost screamed (if not for my boss who was with me,heheh). Mig’s cute and I so wanted to take a picture of him with me! Kainis, I missed my chance…I just snuck a pic of him with a girl in the venue’s bulletin board...hehe!

******

Xmas gift shopping
I finished shopping for all my nieces, nephews, and godchildren. But haven’t finished yet for my friends, officemates, babies for xchange gifts, etc. With all the frenzy in malls, goodluck na lang sa kin if I can finish em all in the next 2 weeks.

kids at heart

I had one helluva weekend this week. Chito and I, with Glad and Alvin had a blast. Coming from his last day in graveyard shift last friday, Chito picked us up and headed to Something Fishy, Eastwood, for their now famous P80 buffet breakfast. Man it was good I should say…I was stuffed. Well we need to have fuel in our tank that’s for sure…we knew we’ll be walking for 2 hours in Avilon. Yeah Avilon zoo, this is at Montalban Rizal. This was far..but worth it. We almost got lost when we lost a turn…and we were already headed for the mountains. Geesh, good thing Chito asked around.





The extent of wildlife here is just...wow! It was my first time to see a Capybara (spelled something like that). It’s like a gargantuan rat…I had to use the word gargantuan coz “large” may sound small for it. Hahaha. They even had squirrels, skunks, raccoons, numerous birds (check out my pic with a reaaaly cute owl), snakes (even an anaconda), a jaguar (which by the way growled coz Glad and I were joking around, growling and all), sun bears, Malaysian tapirs (if I remembered correctly, we only have 2 in the country and its both in Avilon). If you guys have time you might want to visit this zoo. Now, I know how a tuko (gecko) looks like, hehehe…it’s nice.


It was so funny looking at this tortoise who turned over and took him decades trying to flip over..




We had to rest afterwards coz Chito needed some sleep, he was up for 24 hours straight! Afterwards, we had dinner at Chokoy’s. The best sisig in town. It’s near QC circle, I think. Alvin jammed with the acoustic performer and we all had a good time. Good food + good company + good music = good time! Glad meanwhile had too much alcohol intake and ended up “basag” but still wanted to play extreme jenga and taboo…that’s my girl!




The next day we headed to Caleruega in Tagaytay. The church was just breathtaking…and the view…just spectacular! Had light lunch at Hen Lin overlooking Taal, and coffee after at Starbucks, the cool breeze made us wanna stay there na lang…but we had another place to go to…Enchanted Kingdom! (everyday, everyday the magic is here…hehhe).



We rode Anchor’s Away twice, Space Shuttle (it was Glad’s second time to ride this after 8 yrs), Wheel of Fate, Rio Grande and even had some neoprints taken (with jologs behind us singing some Aegis or April boy songs,hhehe). I have lotsa stories of screaming paygots (faggots), ok lang kayo mga prens?, and stop “basa”-ing me stuff!



It was exhausting…but it was sooo fun…It really pays to have a break from work. It feels good to feel like a kid again..going to the zoo and a theme park.

one humiliating night...

I’ll be sharing a recent “embarrassing” moment for me. Mabs, my college barkada celebrated his birthday last Friday in a greenhills restaurant (secret na lang muna where that is). I only knew about a handful, most of which are my blockmates. I’ve seen some of them La Salle and the others are his friends from work, bora, etc. So as we were drinking and making small talks with his colleagues in Colgate Palmolive, Mabs gave us a big bottle of vodka…I actually like Vodka sprite coz its sweet. Anyways, I mixed my own drink, and I was oh-so-generous with my every pour of vodka. By my third glass (btw, it’s a quite big drinking glass), I got a bit tipsy so I told chito, that’ll be my last. One thing you know I was having another glass and a tequila shot after. My tummy started to feel a bit funny so I decided we should go. But I went to the ladies room first, and I blew…bad! I knew I had to get out so we could go home na kagad and what do you know, as I left the washroom I knocked down a divider and found myself lying down on the floor.

I passed out, and then I heard some mumblings something like let’s help her out..etc. So I got up and they let me sit. I felt soooo bad…then chito got to me and took care of me…as well as about 4 more people, 1 staff was massaging my arm coz it hurts so bad, the guard was fanning me, another one was giving me water, another was helping me puke. Super eksena talaga…soo embarrassing. I was lying for more than an hour in 4 chairs.

The morning after, I had to have my arm checked coz it was swollen..and had to re-tell my humiliating story around 4 times as 2 doctors and 2 nurses asked me separately. I should’ve lied na lang coz my xrays and the prof fee were not covered by my health card. I had to tell my parents that I slipped, mama said we should sue the restaurant or file a complaint, etc. I just said that my sandals were a bit slippery na…and the resto had no fault with the incident.

Chito told me I should stay away from mixed drinks na since I tend to overdrink…I guess it’ll be tequila shots for me then, hahaha. Just kidding. About 2 or 3 bottles of sanmig light will do na the next time.

Pinoy Big Brother (PBB)

Yeah, yeah condemn me for this entry,haha. I’m a self confessed reality TV sucker…but with this one, I’d say I am “forced” to watch this. We currently doing roll-outs for our campaign for our new product and we have creative intrusions in PBB. We got in after they had a one-day ban. We rode on its popularity, hopefully gain enough benefits from this.

I’d have to admit, when I first heard about this show, I got curious. I mean how can people stand watching this seemingly “uninteresting” common people? Well.. since as I said I was “forced” to watch this (yeah, yeah ethel keep telling that to yourself), I’d say it’s not boring at all. You get to make fun of them, how they sometimes talk about trivial things “intellectually,” you should hear their opinions, hahah. This gay guy Uma even broke down when he was prohibited from smoking for a day, and had to do with second hand smoke that his housemates are “willingly” puffing him with.

As clients, we got to tour the Big brother house. There’s this camera ring walkway surrounding the whole house. Everyone was sleeping except for 3 people. Sorry me, sam was sleeping as well (he’s such a cutie or maybe bec sha lang ang may itsura, pakshet). It was so funny going around coz it felt like going around a zoo or watching “lab rats.” Hats off to them, geesh I don’t think I can stand staying in one place for almost 2 months now and being with the same people whom you might not even like. But it’ll be hard for the staff as well since they’d have to monitor everything…I mean watch them even if they’re sleeping. Trivia pala:A staff told us it cost them around P120M for everything (including camera set-ups, interiors,etc) for the whole house.

It was so funny too standing outside the house for yb. We’d see cars passing by, actually slowing down just to take a glimpse of the house or take a picture of it. Some would actually go down and take pics (lots of em) and sometimes insist on going beyond the gate.

I gotta stop blabbing about this…I’m sure you think of me differently now..hahaa! Last na, met Marielle (the uplate version host) she is soo cute...very pretty girl.

Mares bonding

My girls and I went out for dinner and videoke last Friday. We had a blast…and ate a lot at T bar, sponsored by Miray. She got promoted at work, and we’re all proud of her. And ate even more at Music 21 while we sang our hearts out and screamed like there’s no tomorrow.

There was videoke showdown between Alvin (Glad’s boylet) and Rommel (Kim’s fiancée). One sounds like Piolo Pascual and the other, Martin Nievera…and just when competition heats up…kami ang pangpasira!! Don’t get me wrong but we sing like diva’s **wink ** Afterwards we went to Starbucks Magallanes, our “heart to heart talk” tambayan.

We are all very opinionated and we love each other like sisters…and so, when one sister goes maniac in the love life highway…we’re each other’s highway patrol. But we can only do as much. Sorry I can’t get into detail coz we’ve said so much to our troubled friend. Too much things said and done.

We’ve all grown together..from our nene days in grade school up to now that we’re all successful in our chosen careers. We remain to be little girls once in a while…and reminisce the good ‘ol days.

Just to let you guys know my bestest girl friends…here’s how I see them:


Berl, the woman trapped in a cute baby girl’s body. I’m proud of her because she finished law school and will know in a few months time if she’ll be Atty. Santiago. I know she’ll make it, though. A smart, loving, cute girl…and will be married soon to Paolo. They complement each other and I’m really happy for them. Berl has been my confidant…she lets me see the bigger picture…that I’m strong and I can make it, no matter what.

Glad and I have been through a lot of ups and downs with a lot of boylets in between! Haha! Lots of heartaches, tampuhans, etc. She’s a very sweet girl…and loves her family more than anything in the world. A go-getter, almost always gets what she wants coz she knows what she wants. Would never settle for anything less coz she deserves it. A beautiful person inside and out.

Miray is our mommy. She doesn’t seem to tire taking care of everyone…that’s why I think Julia is soo lucky. Her mommy’s there…di sha iiwan like her father. Miray is such a sucker for romance…after what she’s been through I admire her for being strong and for never losing faith in love. What-a-trooper!!


Za has an genuine soul. She speaks her mind and never pretends to be someone she’s not…uber honest that some people may get offended but that’s the way she is. And I love her for that. She laughs her heart out whenever we all hang out. Hats off to this very responsible girl…she knows how to balance love, career, family, God…(not in that particular order)

Charl…the best!!! Lupet!!! Our stand up comedienne who never runs out of clever hirits. Very independent, one thing you know she’s in a land far, far away…without even saying goodbye. She changes her mind as often she changes her underwear. But as she said, it all leads to one goal. Whatever that goal may be. She can definitely light up any occasion and doesn’t mind laughing at herself. Our bunso but the most independent and bravest of all…


Zory on the other hand is our resident manang…hehe, just kidding. NBSB, but when guys get to know her deeper I’m sure guys will drool over her. She’s a very lovable person, she picks a lesson or two from what everybody has been through…so hopefully she won’t commit the same mistakes that some us did. She maintained her weight from highschool, Dang! I wish I can do that!

And of course, moi, Ethel. I’m our gimik / outing organizer. I make sure everyone would come…or else… hehehe! They know that I don’t take NO for an answer. It’s because I want us to have time to bond despite our hectic schedules. One thing you know, someone might be living abroad for good…or have their own families soon and will make it harder for us to hang out, all seven of us. So I take this opportunity that we’re all single and mid-20’s coz afterwards life will be more chaotic and complicated.

Rockstar: INXS

I never liked rock n roll its like music with screaming people with zilch words to decipher. Only to learn from Chito that there’s like a number of genres of rock: death metal, glam rock, etc. (I forgot the others). Creep is the only rock song I know and I liked (probably because I never really wanted to hear the others)

But then I came across Rockstar: INXS. And yeah I’m a reality TV sucker…big time! That’s why I suddenly had “time” to listen to rock. I had the chance to watch it from the start…and probably about 2 weeks after, I learned from Third that Mig Ayesa was Filipino. After that, I was just so hooked! Even coming to office late just to watch the live telecast every Wednesday and Thursday. Yeah, yeah pathetic…addict…reality TV sucker. Call me names…hahaha!

I had my favorites. Of course there’s MiG as always…which I like only coz he’s Filipino. He a bit gay-ish for me. But I love him in his tight leather pants and open jacket. I love the way he puts himself together (or the show’s stylist for that matter). Marty’s voice is just…wow! And I love his rendition of Creep and the vibe I get from his original song: Trees. And there’s Ty. Great performer. I’m now listening to Creedence Clearwater’s Proud Mary and I think Ty’s version is way better… he manages to put soul in his songs. Just a thought…why does Creedence Clearwater pronounce burnin’ as boynin’?! what’s up with that?

JD…who we all know now is the new frontman for INXS…well, is just okay. He managed to give great performances but his working style is just odd…unprofessional. Maybe what’s important is the final outcome…but in the long run, his bandmates may have a hard time. Instead of doing rehearsals… JD might prefer dozing off…Maybe INXS liked his edginess…hopefully it works for them…

one rainy evening that blew me away…

We celebrated our 19th monthsary yesterday. Chito has forgotten our monthsaries for the past 2 or 3 months. He said he’ll make up for it this time. He picked me up from my meeting and headed to somewhere I don’t know. He won’t say where we’d go but I had a place at the back of my mind…had an inkling he’d take me to Westin.

There was grueling traffic…and it was raining really hard. So to keep ourselves preoccupied and to let us still enjoy the evening (despite the weather)…I played the Acoustic Night live CD, and we sang…and I sang my heart out too.. Our fave song was there as well…Spend my life by U-turn. I feel so light whenever I hear that song.

Then we got to Westin. For starters, he knew that the first time I went there, I immediately fell in love with the place. (By the way, Westin was one of my accounts when I was still with an ad agency). He took me there when were still dating and we had a great time. When we got there, Café Plaza was under renovation but they set up the back end for those who’d like to dine.

The food…was really goooood.. there goes my diet…I ate a lot! Afterwards, we took a walk at the poolside / garden overlooking the bay. The grounds were wet but we felt we had to walk around coz we were so damn full! We talked about the first time we were there and how much we enjoyed each other’s company, etc.

Then we stopped and he asked if I wanted some mints…I looked and saw he was holding a diamond ring! I was speechless and kinda confused of what’s happening. He knelt (and the ground was still wet here) and asked “Will you marry me?” All I said the whole time he was kneeling was “seryoso ka?” I think I said a million of “seryoso ka?” he was just looking at me put it in my finger and hugged me. That’s the time I said “YES!”

I was soo surprised..it was really unexpected. The ring was soo pretty. It’s just an icing in the cake…I knew all along he was the one for me…he’s God’s blessing that I’d forever be thankful for.

I’m still kinikilig sobra…and I can’t keep but look at the ring and remember how God has blessed me with such a beautiful person coming into my life….

top 3

three names you go by:
1. Ethel
2. Thel
3. hunny (by chito lang)

three screen names you have had:
1. prettyveda (I got a lot of msgs from Indians through this,badtrip)
2. ethel (corny ba?)
3. no more na

three physical things you like about yourself:
1. brown eyes
2. smile
3. butt (yeah baby,hehe)

three physical things you don't like about yourself:
1. fat legs
2. fat arms
3. fat tummy

three parts of your heritage:
1. honesty
2. fear of God
3. integrity
(parang pang mission-vision sa school, haha)

three things that scare you:
1. froooooogs (and I hate it that they make frog wallets, as if youre cool when you have those, eeewww talaga)
2. Big orange moon – this gives me the creeps (so it’s the orange moon, then the howling wolf, and the “thriller” sequence, hahah)
3. bad karma

three of your everyday essentials:
1. cellphone
2. kikay kit
3. palm pilot

three of your favorite musical artists:
1. Faith Evans
2. Ashanti
3. Barry white

three of your favorite songs:
1. Spend mylife with you by U-turn
2. Love like this by Faith Evans
3. Knocks me off my feet by Stevie Wonder

three things you want in a relationship:
1. Security
2. Love & friendship
3. good conversations

three lies and truths in no particular order:

lies:
1. im o.c.
2. im mature in all aspects (haha)
3. “its okay”

truth:
1. im in love (mushy, mushy)
2. God is just
3. im moody

three physical things about the opposite sex that appeals to you:
1. cute Eyes
2. nice arms
3. nice butt

three of your favorite hobbies:
1. dancing
2. Body jam/combat at fitness first
3. updating my scrapbook

three things you want to do really badly now:
1. watch tv all day till my eyes hurt
2. shop, and shop, and shop
3. Play with my niece and nephew

three careers you're considering/you've considered:
1. entrepreneur
2. be a professional singer (ha, I wish)
3. OFW (to get lotsa moolah)

three places you want to go on vacation:
1. Bangkok (to shop)
2. France (to unwind)
3. Bora or bohol (to relax)

three kid's names you like:
1. Kirby
2. Kirsten / Christine
3. Ashley

three things you want to do before you die:
1. hav a PDI feature as a success story in my chosen field
2. marry the love of my life (naks!)
3. enjoy my grandchildren

three ways that you are stereotypically a boy:
1. I pig out
2. I don’t know how to clean my toe nails (that’s why I always get pedicures)
3. I have a “jungle” bag (my phone would ring and I cant seem to find it in my small bag..hmmm…)

three ways that you are stereotypically a girl:
1. I love dressing up
2. I love kids
3. I’m very loving

three celeb crushes:
1. Paul Walker (too fast, too furious star)
2. Outback Jack (girls just love him)
3. uhm, wala na.

three people that i would like to see take this quiz:
1. zaza
2. hunny
3. miray

a million of firsts

Yes, I’m already 25 and I just had my first trip out of the country. Pathetic ba? Travel is not a priority in our family that’s why I guess I’m bad with directions (may connection ba?) Perhaps I’m just defending my so called “ignorance” with directions. Well you know I could always ask so I shouldn’t worry getting lost. Anyways….enough of that. I'm digging my own hole.

Our sales and delivery team winners and the marketing department left for Singapore last Friday. We were the 2nd batch who went there and we were quite a big group, about 29. It was quite rainy here when we left here but when we got there, the sun was scorching hot!!

Singapore is a beautiful city I have to say. Philippines is about 30 years behind. All Singaporeans have their own flats (which are by the way 80% govt subsidized), which allowed the government to eradicate squatting. It was clean, no traffic congestion, no pollution, not much littering in the city (some areas near little India’s quite a mess). We reminded the winners on how strict Singapore is when it comes to law implementation. And they abided consciously. Maybe we can learn a thing or two from their country. We can still make the Phils a lot better if we will only make conscious efforts to change the system (as well as the government). A matter of mind setting I guess, but well we have more than a 100 years of changing this crab / colonial mentality we have. Perhaps there’s still light at the end of the tunnel…

Enough of the political shit…it ruins my mood…



Anyways, a million of firsts nga di ba? I had my first ever cable car ride. It was a different experience and the usual me, im all excited! It was a smooth ride and we got a better view of the city. I also had my first underwater aquarium experience. We were in a travellator which made the viewing easier. It was my first time to see an actual dugong (not just the stuffed toys I had), piranhas, and even over a meter long of aruana. I saw dory again (that fish in finding nemo). My first time to eat sri-lankan chili crab, man it was huge! And it was gooood! It was also my first time to feel like a foreigner…you know I sometimes make fun of Japanese, Korean tourists who come here…I bet they were making fun of us as well. My first MRT ride (in Singapore) too. Hi-tech, nakakaaliw we were looking where we will be inserting the card, but we just have to tap it sa sensor…aliw! And their cig flip tops, had photos of what looks like a rotten mouth! The government highly discourages smoking and puts a premium on the price. It was also my first time to walk at 11pm at quite a distance, with Donna (my officemate), to go shopping. We went to Mustafa center, and walked about 30 mins on what smells like a long stretch of stinky armpits! There were a lot of Indian stores, and Indians of course, and their stores would be playing this Indian music, it was soo funny.

It was my first to be an official photographer. It sucks, I usually want to be the subject…not the photographer. But it was okay…it was a job that came with me going to Singapore for free…well… Donna and I snuck a few photos of us two…(well it was around 58 shots, hahaha!) I was able to take a total of around a 100 shots… (minus photos of me and donna).

Overall, it was a good experience…learned a lot…about people…about diff cultures…about me, hahaha! I didn’t know I had such a capacity to go all night long walking just to shop!

I haven't mentioned, I bought a 5.1 megapixel digicam it was sooo nice. I gave in to temptation...I didn't had any plans of buying one coz i already have my ever reliable casio exilim (which i love by the way). It has optical and digital zoom, has a 2.5 inch screen, and is very handy like my exilim. Well, its the first conjugal property of me and my bear. There you go...one more first..