Thursday, August 30, 2007

Jamie Sullivan

Jamie Sullivan: "Without suffering, there would be no compassion."
Landon Carter: "Yeah, well tell that to those who suffer. [Ouch!]"

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Can I just be apathetic even just for a day?
I can't, 'cause that wouldn't be me.

And I just realized, I can't leave behind someone I treasure in this life...

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Lung Killers

I got this video from an officemate's Yahoo! Messenger status link. This is for all cigarette smokers.

Love the body you're in!

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Oatmeal Cookies

Last Saturday, my Tita-Ninang (auntie and godmother) asked me to bake some of her favorite oatmeal cookies (To tell you honestly, these are the only cookies I know and dared to bake). I've been in long suspension from baking then so I was so eager to do her a favor.


These oatmeal cookies I am talking about are just simple butterscotch cookies from a recipe found in my maternal grandfather's cookery book. I just tweaked the recipe to cater the tastebuds of my Tita-Ninang and grandparents as they are the ones who often request for these sweet cakes.


Below is the modified recipe I use to make these Simple Oatmeal Cookies.

The Ingredients:
1 cup soft butter
1 1/2 cups bro
wn sugar
2 whole eggs
1 tsp vanilla

1 cup all-purpose flour sifted
1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
1 cup cut dates/nuts/chocolate bits (optional)


Directions:
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1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Add butter, eggs, sugar and vanilla in a bowl. Mix Well.


3. Then add all the remaining dry ingredients. Mix with hands to blend well.
4. When no dry ingredient is visible, stop mixing.

5. With a tablespoon, scoop a mixture to prepared cookie sheet. Drop each cookie mixture at least 2 inches away from each other.

6. Bake in 350 F for 10-15 minutes or until set but not dry.

(Freshly baked from the oven - chewy cookies)

I often bake them with no additional nuts or chocolates, but I have tried using sweet dates before - the result was good!

My siblings and cousins just love these cookies despite their simpleness. The butterscotch sweet taste each cookie possess does not overwhelm the tastebuds because of the abundance of oats. On the contrary, the original recipe actually calls for a doubled amount of brown sugar and a one-to-one proportion of oats and flour. Imagine how sweet would that come out, having 3 cups of brown sugar in the bowl.

Using muscovado sugar instead of brown sugar will also yield satisfactory results as I have tried using it before - the difference in taste is very subtle. For the calorie and fat conscious people, you may opt to use muscovado and low-fat butter in place of the usual grocery butter. Of course, the taste would be less pleasing but still quite delectable.

The recipe yields around 36-40 cookies.

Friday, August 24, 2007

Music Meme

I find this meme from Ruff's blog amusing, and so I am voluntarily tagging myself to make one for myself.

The RULES couldn’t be any simpler:
1. Put Your iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc on SHUFFLE Mode,
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer, and
3. YOU MUST WRITE DOWN THAT SONG NAME NO MATTER HOW GAY IT SOUNDS.

IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY?
iTunes: Talking In My Sleep (Christopher Cross)
Me: Always (Atlantic Stars)

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF?
iTunes: Starlight Express (El DeBarge)
Me: I am (Shades Of Life) (Billy Gilman)

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
iTunes: Of All The Things (Dennis Lambert)
Me: Dare You To Move (Switchfoot)

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
iTunes: Hurts To Be In Love (Gino Vanelli)
Me: A Little Love Goes A Long Way (The CompanY)

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
iTunes: A Whole New World (Aladdin Movie Soundtrack)
Me: I'll Be Alright (Sarah Geronimo)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF OFTEN?
iTunes: Sailing (Christopher Cross)
Me: Breaking Free (Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens) -> I adore HSM!

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR ENEMY?
iTunes: Tikman (Eraserheads) [English: Taste]
Me: Affirmation (Savage Garden) -> "... I believe in karma, what you give is what you get in return"

WHAT IS 2 + 2?
iTunes: Hand In My Pocket (Alanis Morissette)
Me: Forevermore (Jed Madela)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BESTIE?
iTunes: Mother, We Just Can't Get Enough! (New Radicals)
Me: Friends For Life (Chico and Delamar)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE ONE YOU LOVE?
iTunes: She (The Sundays)
Me: You Changed My Life (The CompanY)

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
iTunes: Baby Can I Hold You (Boyzone)
Me: Buses and Trains (Bachelor Girl)

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO WHEN YOU GROW UP?
iTunes: You'll Be Here In My Heart (Phil Collins)
Me: Breakaway (Kelly Clarkson)

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
iTunes: Baby Come To Me (U Turn) -> With Richard Poon doing part of the vocals (weehee)
Me: Every Now and Then (Jed Madela)

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
iTunes: I Want To Give It All (Jed Madela)
Me: Ngayon at Kailanman (Basil Valdez) [English: Now and Forever]

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL
iTunes: Deep Inside Of You (Third Eye Blind)
Me: Handog (Florante) [English: Offering]

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST??
iTunes: Then You Look At Me (Celine Dion)
Me: Real Thing (Kalapana)

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR?
iTunes: There's No Easy Way (Jed Madela)
Me: Solo Otra Vez (Il Divo) [English: All By Myself]

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
iTunes: The Loneliness (Babyface)
Me: Lover All Alone (Clay Aiken)

Thursday, August 23, 2007

8 Harebrained Drake Facts

I guess I am way behind here, nevertheless I am answering this meme. By the way, I was tagged by ladyMacho (^_^).

1. I have the ability to lock and unlock my jaw voluntarily. This is medically unsafe as "clicking" and locking the jaw is tantamount to creating friction on the joints that join the upper jaw and the mandible. Alas, I still click my jaw especially when I yawn, as I have been used to opening my maw to its limits since birth. My dentist joshingly says I've got talent. Hehe. She admonished to avoid doing it as it may severe the jaw joints. Well, it seems I need to practice yawning in a demure manner.

2. I'm a calorie freak. Labels on cereal boxes and fruit juices, junk food foil packs and dairy tetra packs... matter. I've developed this OC behavior on the food that I eat since the day I started shedding my baby fats worth 70 lbs. I think there's nothing wrong with monitoring Nutrition Facts of my food - it's a way of being a responsible food consumer. But too much concern is quite bothersome. It's a good thing I've learned to loosen up on the calorie counting (well, just a bit :p).

3. I did not attend my Accounting II class and consequently missed a test just to prove to one of my classmates (who pissed me off) that I was not a perfect student as he deemed me annoyingly. Gosh, this was childish and ridiculous. At hindsight, I would not have done such. But I did, 'cause I was totally pissed off. This was just plain insane. What's just funny was that I still managed to get a 1 on my report card.

4. I tutored my classmates for free. During college I was so dedicated in tutoring my classmates in most of our Mathematics subjects. I just felt happy that I was able to help them in their struggles.

5. I lost 2 inches off my waist in just a month without exercise. Oh yeah, I was apparently happy (Who wouldn't be happy to be size 32 from being size 34?) with the results but at hindsight it was insanely unhealthy. Weight-loss should be done with proper diet and proper physical exercise.

6. I shaved the hair on my limbs for nothing. This was when I was in first year high school. I just got curious on how my extremities would look and feel without hair. Haha! Which reminds me... there was an instance then when I accidentally shaved half of my left eyebrow. It freaked me out 'cause my face was not anymore symmetrical.

7. I have a fondness of watching tear-jerking films. A Walk to Remember made me appreciate such flicks. And so the list continued... A Moment to Remember, Bicentennial Man, The Notebook, ING..., A Sad Movie...

8. I think I am anal-retentive. Associated to my occasional obsessive-compulsive behavior, being anal-retentive predisposes me to being meticulous in such things like: In eating pancit, I eat the veggies first, then the noodles, then the meat/shrimps; I eat the skin and breading of hotdogs and chicken nuggets first; I want my CD covers folded the same way they are folded when they were bought; and #2 in this list.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Self-portrait: Swimming Spectacles


After almost a month of hiatus, I finally drenched myself in the pool again.
(And now I have goggle eyes, haha!)

Friday, August 17, 2007

Quote of the day

I observed that the basic motive for success is the driving force of envy and jealousy.

- Ecclesiastes 4:4

Israel Trip Putoff

I just had a whirlwind of on-off decisions in the past 24 hours....

Yesterday was my supposed departure to Israel but it was called off because of a technical problem of the airline carrier that would take me from Hong Kong to Tel Aviv. I was already at the Centennial Airport when I got the official directive from my office's Admin Assistant that the flight's delayed until August 18. Ergo, I left NAIA 2 with a frustrated mood (for wasting all the effort of bringing my heavy luggage and paying a hefty taxi fare, all for nothing) and went back home.

Then on the following sunrise...

Heads-up... a high-priority e-mail topping my Outlook inbox. 'Twas from my Senior Manager informing me and my other officemate that our arrival in Israel would be postponed indefinitely due to changes in the project schedule.

It makes me happy that I need not leave the country soon. It's just frustrating that I've already set myself yesterday on my departure. In the coming days, I need to set myself again once a new flight schedule's finally achieved.

For now, I am just happy to not leave the country (To tell you the truth, I was already missing the country and my loved-ones just while on my way to the airport). And if the trip would be scrubbed totally, the one thing I'd regret is missing the chance to wander in new land gratis.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Self-portrait: A Green Peanut M&M


(I felt the need to unwind and do something not work-related... I guess my abatement's not yet set for today)

Monday, August 13, 2007

Ready for momentary abatement

I only have three nights left before leaving for Israel. It'll be approximately 17 hours of flight and slack period, Manila being connected to Tel Aviv via Hong Kong.

My preparations aren't halfway through; My luggage's not yet filled with my necessities; My brain's not yet trained for technicalities... Instead of being excited about this trip, I am more of anxious on what work environment I will have to deal with. This will be my first business trip... another "first" for me after some previous firsts I just encountered in the past couple of fortnights.

I've just received my bon voyages from my loved-ones... Gosh, those gave me the bad feelings of goodbyes. And I certainly didn't like it. I could actually empathize now to the emotions drenching our OFWs when leaving the country.

I am now in hiatus with sporadic attention to Drake's Ragbag....

¡Hasta la vez próxima!

Friday, August 10, 2007

Kiwi!

An apparently funny, objectively stupid, and ultimately touching short graphic animation that evokes a seemingly superficial side of me. Presenting, Kiwi.... (Thanks to Roxie for reminding me about this)


Kiwi can't fly, he can never fly.... Yet he wants to feel, to experience, the greatest leap any bird can ever achieve. Even if he already knows it isn't possible, he takes the risk, the chance. Even if everything he wants is an end in itself... a sad end at that....

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There's a time when a man needs to fight and a time when he needs to accept that his destiny's lost, the ship has sailed and that only a fool will continue. The truth is I've always been a fool.

- Ed Bloom from the film Big Fish


Video courtesy of YouTube.

Thursday, August 9, 2007

The Merman in Me


Since I was a kid, I have always had a fascination for sea creatures, especially mermaids and mermen (then, they were all mermaids to me, I didn't know merman existed in the dictionary). I was a Walter Mitty woolgathering about myself swimming aimlessly in the deep underwater seascape, with colorful corals and gracefully undulating schools of fish welcoming me to their humble abode. The feeling of it was surreal, it always rendered me futile with a big sigh, wishfully thinking my fantasy would had gone real.

to be continued somewhere else...


Photo courtesy of Worth1000

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Rainy days always get me down


Rainy weather always connotes the feeling of sadness and solitude to my emotional dimension. The cold wind it brings, together with the seemingly ominous cumulonimbus formations, kindles melancholic mood. Capricious to the rational mind, such sensation I often feel is just a mere manifestation of my trivial self. Nothing significant at that. Though sometimes, it calls forth the elusive pains inside to introspection. Odd, but at hindsight, I like experiencing such plaintive occurrence.

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It's been 4/5 days since you left, still I don't have the answers. It's fine; I am still waiting...

Photo courtesy of Philip Spence's Ninja-Bunny

Monday, August 6, 2007

Life Goes On

Oh life goes on
And it's only gonna make me strong
It's a fact, once you get on board
Say good-bye 'cause you can't go back
Oh it's a fight, and I really wanna get it right
Where I'm at, is my life before me
Got this feelin' that I can't go back

Nostalgia has crept me this afternoon with this song from Leann Rimes. I've been into this might-have-been phase in the past days. Hope has been there; Jeopardy awaited; Tears have fallen... I tell you, I am not good dealing with such situations, most especially open-ended ones. A _____ ending is what I need. Life should move on.

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My recent had been a 5-year unrequited longing. I tell you, moving on then wasn't in my vocabulary as I was very persistent; Hopeful. But then, I had to cut it hurtfully.

The roots of the resilient tree were pulled gradually from the barren soil.

With severely wounded roots from deracination, the tree is now planted to new soil.
The tree's life goes on.


Friday, August 3, 2007

Love's paragon

"Love is always patient and kind; It is never jealous. Love is never boastful or conceited. It is never rude or selfish. It does not take offense and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people's sins but delights in the truth; It is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes."

- 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

I have always been stunned by this biblical passage since the day I was totally introduced to it, when I watched the film adaptation of Nicholas Sparks' A Walk to Remember. Since then, it has been one of the few biblical verses I love.

Thursday, August 2, 2007

Swimming, I miss

It's been almost two weeks and I haven't touched the pool for another swim. Maybe that's why I've been ill lately. LOL. I just miss swimming...

Anyway, for all you people out there who want to learn swimming the e-FISH-ient way, you are fortunate 'cause I'm informing you now that swimming classes for kids and adults are conducted at Colegio de San Agustin swimming pool area in Dasmarinas Village, Makati. The swimming classes are headed by a group of swimming professionals and enthusiasts who have undergone training the Total Immersion way (Click the link to learn more about this swimming program). The course is typically a learn to swim program that utilizes the basic stroke, the front crawl, which is popularly known as freestyle.

Swimming freestyle efficiently is very advantageous for those who are into triathlon or for those who plan to venture into such activity. I tell you, if you learn freestyle the Total Immersion way, you'll surely swim it with ease and grace (I can attest to that, as I have employed the program's principles to my swimming routine).

If you want to know more about the swimming classes, you may click here.

It....

IS WEIRD
... when you suddenly transcend to the 4th position from being the 31st in a class
... when you enjoy integration and differentiation in calculus, together with analytic geometry while your classmates are freaking nervous whenever an 8-page fully-graphed exam paper is given by your weird teacher
... when you memorize all the currencies of all the countries in the world and be called a walking encyclopedia
... when you get the highest grades from all the highest-weighted subjects but you're not even the Valedictorian or the Salutatorian
... when you make the school team win in a knowledge quiz bee competition despite you being just a one-day replacement for an absent member
... when you get a perfect score in your final exam in Numerical Analysis and half of your classmates are dying to pull their scores up to the passing mark
... when you become the class president, when you tutor your other classmates in Calculus, Statistics, Discrete Mathematics and Accounting... despite you being the youngest


SUCKS
... when you live-up a year unknowingly wavering your relationship with your one best friend
... when you do not realize enough how your best friend cares and appreciates you
... when you can't bring back the same relationship you've had with your best friend simply because now is not yesterday
... when you cry in the presence of your teacher and classmates because of a line from the Secret of the Fox
... when you're foolishly in love
... when you love and not be loved in return
... when people think just because you're queer you're all loquacious and promiscuous
... when you get exposed to premature sexual encounters that taint your innocence
... when people think you're all perfect when you're not
... when you're misunderstood
... when you're too kind
... when you unintentionally hurt someone's feelings