Law of Conservation

It’s just how mean the world can sometimes get — someone with an above-average IQ and all the medals to show for it can still be utterly stupid. Pitiful.

I’m actually ashamed of how shallow I can get, but as my usual arrogant self back in high school, I used to think that I was so much better than almost everyone else. This was the first time I genuinely envied the other girls who fooled around, made mistakes and gambled with their hearts early, instead of drowning themselves in books. They knew FAR more about the stuff that actually mattered.

I resolve to make more mistakes from now on.

note to self

Dear Self,

Nobody was ever born perfect,so get used to making mistakes.

Get used to doing things that you wish you haven’t done. Get used to NOT doing things you should have done, if only you had the wits (or guts) that a meaningful life calls for.

Bottom line – get used to making mistakes. Lots of them. In fact, start enjoying the experience.

shout-out for 1984 kiddos

the thing that i love about hanging out with Team Bugsy are the zany theories we throw at each other, ranging from the hands-down-insane to the this-might-be-worth-taking-a-look-at. during one of our bouts during the long weekend, a friend piped up with this conclusion — there are no good-looking guys born during our year, 1984.

okay, okay, before the hostile reactions, i admit that this might be quite a rash generalization — that’s why we’re asking people to prove us wrong. do you guys beg to differ? send us pics, and we’ll eat our words. =P otherwise, who knows, ridiculous as it sounds, this might just have a hint of truth that we never really thought about. [i have a feeling i might have a lot of hate mail after this. haha!]

i hate motorcycles.

nah, hate isn’t the word. i LOATHE motorcycles. got hit by one earlier while i was crossing the street with Ikay. joey was right — it’ll literally send you spinning. the driver didn’t even have the decency to stop and go back to apologize; i absolutely hated myself when i stood there, stunned, and then shouted after him, ‘Sorry!’. tanga. grrr.

i wish that was the worst part. in all the flurry, i didn’t realize that he sent my earphones flying off to oblivion. kakabili ko lang nun! grrr talaga. buti na lang mabilis ang karma. Dear Lord, kung okay lang naman, please make this one extra fast. Amen.

Bugsy chills @ tagaytay

Another long weekend well-spent. =) After watching Live Aids just the night before, we whisked ourselves away to Tidoy’s pad in Tagaytay to bum together (couldn’t imagine a better way to spend the time =P).

For girls with no plans, we certainly got to do a lot together:
.: crashing 2 weddings @ Sonya’s Garden (even bumped into Joy!)
.: braving the cold with only coffee from Starbucks
.: stuffed ourselves with greek dishes at a random Greek resto by the road
.: got wowed by Tidoy’s awesome driving through the fog and the Highland’s winding roads with a visibility of only 3 feet (holy cow, how does she do that?!)
.: had dancing lessons courtesy of Tidoy’s floor-to-ceiling mirror panels
.: went loony during an emo pictorial with Joey & Tetel (and found a new respect for kids putting eyeliner, btw)
.: saw plants, plants and more plants, and got treated to a healthy breakfast at the Highland’s Bistro Saratoga
.: capped off an idyllic weekend getting pampered at the T House Spa

Unwinding with these guys was exactly the type of rescuing I needed, and I’m utterly euphoric that I wasn’t able to miss this one. It was a thrill to see how much we’ve grown, and how much we haven’t really. =P Here’s to Bugsy, and can’t wait til our next escape. Mace, Kmed and Crisel, you absolutely HAVE to be there next time! =)

Pics over at https://picasaweb.google.com/108800249052978959532/200811BugsyChillsAtTagaytay.

ditto, elizabeth bishop.

at the risk of putting up another emo post [yet again! eeep, i’m on a streak], i’m sharing this poem i came across while reading a melissa bank novel. i may as well have had written this poem myself. if it’s possible for your spirits to rise & fall at the same time, then i believe mine just went through that exact (non)rise/(non)fall a moment ago.

One Art by Elizabeth Bishop

The art of losing isn’t hard to master;
so many things seem filled with the intent
to be lost that their loss is no disaster.

Lose something every day. Accept the fluster
of lost door keys, the hour badly spent.
The art of losing isn’t hard to master.

Then practice losing farther, losing faster:
places, and names, and where it was you meant
to travel. None of these will bring disaster.

I lost my mother’s watch. And look! my last, or
next-to-last, of three loved houses went.
The art of losing isn’t hard to master.

I lost two cities, lovely ones. And vaster,
some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent.
I miss them, but it wasn’t a disaster.

— Even losing you (the joking voice, a gesture
I love) I shan’t have lied. It’s evident
the art of losing’s not too hard to master
though it may look like (Write it!) like disaster.

it’s that time of year…

october — we love it for the beerbash, but dread it for the annual performance review. over at our end, our ratings (& more importantly, our increase) depend on this laborious document called PPR that we have to draft, detailing every itty-bitty achievement you’ve got that screams you deserve a ‘K’ (a.k.a. masokistang-istariray) rating.

i was thinking, if one were to take the work-life balance adage literally, then shouldn’t we make a PPR for life as well? for instance, instead of the ‘Employee’ section, you’ll have one for ‘Peer’ or ‘Person’. or instead of ‘Operational Excellence’, you’ll have one for ‘Existential Feats’, and so on. yeah, yeah, i know i’m being so geeky about it, but i can’t help it — my head’s now spinning with the million analogies dying to make it to this post.

i mean, why not? if you were going to make a PPR for life, how would it look like?

Day 4: Kaladkarin Goes F1-Crazy in Singapore

P-O-S-E-R!

Finally, the day of the race! KE, Ate Tina and I hauled ass over to Suntec for the F1 Motorshow. The two cool things I got to do: (1) don a Maclaren jumpsuit and own up to being a poser, (2) watch the car stunts show by world-record holders Russ & Paul Swift (apt names, huh?) and actually get to ride in the car with the stunt drivers! Woot-woo, six bucks well spent! Spent the rest of the time snapping away with the cam and ogling over the race cars. Continue reading Day 4: Kaladkarin Goes F1-Crazy in Singapore

Day 3: Kaladkarin’s Adventures in Singapore

Chilling at Forest Adventure in Bedok Reservoir with Mike, Ben, Rhea and KE

After a barrage of malls, we had an outdoorsy agenda for this Saturday. Rhea, Mike, Ben, KE and I trooped to the outskirts of Bedok for a ‘Forest Adventure’. You know you’re in for an exciting day when (1), you have no idea of what the ‘Forest Adventure’ actually is (hiking, I presumed), and (2), you have no idea of how to go there. So out went the handy-dandy maps again as we navigated our way to the Bedok Reservoir. Continue reading Day 3: Kaladkarin’s Adventures in Singapore

Day 2: Kaladkarin (aka the F1-Poser) Invades Singapore

Awesome seats! Score!

Among other things, KE was dead set on scoring some Charles & Keith shoes, so after a quick breakfast, Ate Ting, KE and I whisked ourselves off to Orchard Road. Not too many stores later, I confirmed that I really was a compulsive shopper, as I bought myself a new blouse even before KE got to pick out shoes. =P We’ve raided Takashimaya Mall, Isetan and Suntec, before KE had her heart set upon the perfect black C&K heels. Continue reading Day 2: Kaladkarin (aka the F1-Poser) Invades Singapore