The Journey. It’s Mine. [My personal take on love, life, parenting and blogging.]

We left Bohol early morning yesterday. Too early in fact. I got up at 4:30 am and soon after I woke Raine up. 5:15 am, we left BBC.

We arrived at the Tagbilaran airport at barely 6 am. Raine was in his pajamas. He he.

We were already here (LB friend’s house) by lunch time yesterday. This morning I am still wasted. I even didn’t wake up when the alarm went of. My legs are still painful. The muscles I mean and not my knees as I was expecting.

This afternoon is just the first of the many visits I planned to do.

By this time, I am already crossed eyed after saving blog posts scheduled to publish the whole of next week.

My head hurts a lot too. Maybe because I am wearing a 2 week-old pair of eyeglass (new frame, new lens) that still hurts behind my left ear.

But then, with 8+7+8=23 blog posts, anybody will be cross-eyed!

One of the many that freelancers have to deal with when going on a real vacation: no internet access, no updating blogs, no checking emails, etc. — I certainly hope so!

This night, the whole day tomorrow (but with all my last-minute errands will only be 2 to 4 hours left) and tomorrow night are the only time I have left to make blog entries for future publishing.

3D/2N in Bohol and the rest of next week in LB, Raine and I leave for Manila on Saturday afternoon.

As of this entry, I only have 1 blog covered. I have 4 problogs remember? At this rate I’m going, I may make a mistake of saving entries into the wrong blog.

That almost happened today.

Well…there’s the first week of February to correct such errors. He he.

Before, they just copy your blog contents with just a link to your original entry.

Now…they even take a screen shot of your blog on top of the contents copied from you.

*term not mine but somebody from b5media’s Science and Health Channel

I woke up this morning and found this everywhere: Heath Ledger Found Dead in NYC.

From the Washington Post:

Heath Ledger, the talented 28-year-old actor who gravitated toward dark, brooding roles that defied his leading-man looks, was found dead Tuesday in a Manhattan apartment, face-down and naked at the foot of his bed with prescription sleeping pills nearby, police said.

There was no obvious indication that the Australian-born Ledger had committed suicide, NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said.

Ledger had an appointment for a massage at the SoHo apartment that is believed to be the home of the “Brokeback Mountain” actor, Browne said. The massage therapist and a housekeeper found his naked body in the bed at about 3:30 p.m. They tried to revive him, but he was already dead.

So sad and tragic!

Remember movies like The Patriot, A Knight’s Tale and the most talked about Brokeback Mountain? He was fabulous in all those.

Sayang.

[Update: Starked NY has some first hand photos from outside Heath Ledger’s death scene.]

No 13th month pay nor performance bonus. But this blogger basks in the no-money-can-buy (naks!) recognitions across this vast blogosphere.

(I should be forgiven for not finding out and writing about these sooner.)

1. There was 2006 Top Pinoy Probloggers and there was 2007 Top Pinoy Probloggers. Though I dropped too many notches from the first one, I am still included. Thankfully.
2. Clem of Archer Rantings recently awarded me with The Lions Roar Award. I still have to think about it bit to whom I will forward the awards to.

Well, these definitely are a great tap on my shoulders, additional inspiration to make the top bloggers lists this year.

Is tinkering with your cellphone the last thing you do before going to sleep? I am worse because I most often sleep with my cellphone under my pillow (under the pillow’s edge).

That’s actually a bad habit, as reported by The Mobile Technology Weblog.

If the last thing you do before going to sleep is play with your mobile phone, you might need to change that habit.

According to a study sponsored by Mobile Manufacturers Forum, radiation emitted by mobile phones can cause headaches and damage sleep.

Even before my pre-mobile phone days, I always have a headache at the end of the anyway. That headache will actually put me to sleep early. He he.

Two years ago was the last time I stood godmother to a child being baptized. Don’t ask me when were the ones before that (and how many godchildren I already have) because I really do not remember now and have lost count already.

Giving baptism gift is really tricky. Sometimes it is so easy to just give money as baptism gift. Although a nicely picked gift would really be nice and personal. Sometimes giving money as gift can be too impersonal, right?

BUT. Whenever I push myself to really shop and pick a gift, most of the time I ended up wishing I could have bought something better and with the wide array of selections I often cannot decide what to pick.

(more…)

I’ve been meaning to mention this last week but totally forgot. The photos I saw from The Hunky Blog reminded me.

Last week (January 17), Sylvester Stallone guested at the Late Show with David Letterman to promote the new movie Rambo 4, while his buddy Bruce Willis accompanied him but joined the show’s band on vocals and harmonica. Bruce Willis joined the band and stole the whole show. David Letterman even said that Bruce should join his band every night.

(more…)

Last month, I crammed because I took a break at the beginning of the month.

Now I am almost cramming, because I’m off to Manila on Saturday to catch the plane to Bohol on Sunday.

My biggest problem is that I don’t have a decent traveling bag.

I have always thought of getting a smaller, local (read: cheaper) version of this fabulous Helen Rae Carry-on Luggage that’s perfect for weekend getaways.

I really wish my backpack days aren’t over (my back will kill me if I try to put an adult backpack on it!), because backpacks are way cheaper.

Besides, backpacks are cool!

BUT, I may have to get one small, cheap one of this before we leave.

This is not a paid post, by the way!

I can attest to the power of the internet. But we all should it well. If used well, the internet can actually make our lives better.

Aside from blogging, earning money online, i love the internet because (most of all) I can do online banking. You wouldn’t want to go personally to the bank (to deposit funds to somebody or pay your bills) in my part of the world where queues are toxic.

That been said, online banking to me is heaven.

(more…)

It is Monday and we are off to a sleepy start — because I stayed late last night watching Piolo Pascual’s TEN concert telecast on ABS-CBN. He he.

Ten years in show business and Piolo is hotter than ever. As to his singing…he has improved a lot. Well, if Louie Ocampo is that convinced to be Piolo’s album producer and concert musical director…we should be convinced!

It was just too bad that on that concert night (November 30, 2007) Juday was nowhere to be found. Considering that Piolo has had more soaps and movies with Juday than any other of his leading ladies. Thank God Claudine and Angel saved the night!

The concert’s theme was reminiscent of Piolo’s ten years and would look really off if none of his showbiz partners will show up, much less go up the stage while Piolo sings their movie/soap themesong. Di ba?

Well, Juday and Piolo must really had a bad falling out, it’s just so “showbiz” when the three (Juday-Ryan-Piolo) said they all patched things up and everything’s now okay.

I would gush more, but I gotta go! Raine is going to school soon.

Bye muna, fafa Piolo! He he he.

Actually the whole weekend was. It just sucks.

It really sucks,  especially if you have a five-year old who always wants to play outdoors on weekends.

The result? Grumpy boy and grumpier mommy!

You know, every pregnant mom wishes the best for the fetus inside her. Even before you give birth you already have future dreams for your child.

Though I have always been saying to myself that I will support Raine in whatever course, career, etc. that he decides to pursue in the future, I cannot help but look into my immediat goals in my life and for his life.

Immediate goals will kind-a pave way to the realization of the future goals and dreams.

First of all, I want Raine to behave well, not only at home but most especially in public, in other places.

Second of all, I want to provide him with the best foundation of education, the proper study habits, the appreciation of knowledge and the attitude of wanting to learn for more.

However, these will not happen if I don’t seek for the immediate and most important of goals: health and safety.

I guess any parent will agree with me. As long as we can keep our children healthy and safe, our future dreams for them will become a reality in God’s good time.

Noticed that I removed the words “daragang” “magayon” in the title of this blog? Because the words are triggering some bad-adult words in the Google Adsense link ads appearing in a green strip on top of the first 3 or so blog entries.

After renaming the blog title several times, same thing happens still. Then I realized that it must be my domain name.

BUT, I don’t want to change domain names and all. I had the Google Adsense links ads removed.  I haven’t earned a cent from Google Adsense anyway (if you can call the 20$ in 4 years an earning!), at least not enough for me to get paid.

Although, I you click the permalink of each blog entry, you’ll still see some related Google Adsense related ads on the right side bar.

Yet again, another special mention about me by Manay Reyz at Banco de Reyna. Visit his her blogs!

Manay Reynz is teaching his her readers the tricks of “social climbing” and earning money online. He he. In a funny but good way.

I am not a sickly person, even in my college days. In fact, I have just been confined in the hospital 3 times my whole life:

• In college, I was confined in the infirmary once when after a lambanog drinking spree in a creek in Sta. Monica, San Pablo City behind one brod’s house…I was burning in fever. My friend G panicked and sent me to the infirmary. I guess she felt guilty because she’s the one who woke me up in my dorm bunk one Saturday morning to tell me the guys were waiting outside in a car. So I took a quick shower, got ready and all, and off we went. Because of that, I stayed two nights in the infirmary due to tonsilo-pharyngitis.
• The second time of hospital confinement was when Raine was born in 2002. This was the first time IV was hooked on me (and I guess catheter too, yikes!) and Raine was delivered by C-section.
• Third time was due again to tonsilo-pharyngitis (again!) when Raine was 6 months old. I was alone in LB because then, Raine was here in bicol with my parents.

So, there was never anything in my medicine cabinet. Heck, I never even had a medicine cabinet. But let me just use the word - medicine cabinet - as a symbol, okey? It could be your fridge or something, where you keep all of the medicines anyway.

(more…)

I know that there are only a few people regularly reading this blog. Even if they don’t comment like Ruth does, I sort of know who they are. Because sometimes they tell me, through email or when I meet them personally. Mostly old friends really and also some new ones that I’ve met through blogging. Besides, I check my statcounter account from time to time.

That’s why I get excited everytime I open the dashboard and see comments for moderation. Wow, new readers commenting or finally somebody got out of lurking, are always my thoughts.

However, most often than not (99 in 100), they’re spam emails bursting my bubble!

Please, get out of lurking. I’m not gonna bite! He he.

Yehey!! Naki-ride kami ni Raine with Ruth’s family.

Ruth booked everything too! Buti na lang andiyan siya. He he.

We’re staying at the Bohol Beach Club. I’ll tell you all about the experience. Let’s see if Bohol Beach Club lives up to its reputation.

Here in the Philippines, the culture sort of dictates that we take care of our old parents or grandparents in our homes. Mostly, people shake their heads to the western way of putting the oldies in nursing homes. It’s like sacrilege, if you do.

Even if you can afford it here (since homes for the aged are already available in some areas), it is like if you put your old parent into one, others will think that you don’t love your parents enough to take care of them yourself in their old age.

(more…)

Last night, I watched the season premiere of American Idol 2008 (via Star World). I was laughing in stitches! Not only with the hilarious-lacking-with- singing-prowess people brave enough to audition, but also with Simon Cowell’s facial expressions.

I only watched last year’s towards the end. This will be the first time where I can watch from beginning to end.

Hopefully without missing a single show. I am outnumbered by ABS-CBN shows fans here. Around here, they can watch that same channel 24/7.

That’s why I can only watch the shows I like very late at night, not before 11 pm.

These arrived this afternoon…at last!

Now, I can stop whining about the delay. Raine loved it all.

I can’t remember how many times I decide on one thing, do the preliminaries and then later, when my excitement and interest have waned a bit, I don’t follow up anymore.

Like when how many times I completed an EOI form at the NZ Immigration website. I always submit but never paid it. If I don’t pay the process, my EOI (expression of interest) will never get to the pool and be considered to be invited to migrate in kiwi land.

Just one of the many plans I started to pursue but never gotten round to finishing the task.

(more…)

Raine talks in his sleep. Maybe while he was dreaming of something. I think I did too when I was a child, especially when I was excited over something. I just don’t know if I still do now, Raine is too young to tell me if I do.

Anyway, last night was the funniest, I really thought that Raine was awake and talking to me. As I was putting on a light blanket over him at around midnight last night, he sat up opened his his eyes, turned to me and shouted “Hey you!”.

As in hey you (in english!). The first I heard him say something in his sleep that I understood. He does that a lot - talk in his sleep - but often just mumbles and grumbles I don’t recognize a word of.

After shouting “hey you!” last night, Raine sort of passed out back to sleep. Then I was like, what?! And laughed out loud. He he.

Except for the people (and the place!) the only other thing I miss about the day job that I gave up is the payday. Yeah, those many paydays.

To me, those weren’t just the pays and the paydays, but the whole lot of stuff, including the memories and the lifestyle associated with the paydays.

For instance, every payday:

• (the day after, especially if falling on a Saturday) we hit the movie theaters and the malls
• is the time to send money to Bicol
• is the time to pay the bills (house rent, credit card bills, electric and water bills)
• is the time too, to go shopping!
• (and who can forget?!) is the time to pay that payday loan

C’mon! You must have suffered the consequences of a payday loan (or loans) at one point in your life.

(more…)