Love it! :)
Monday, May 31, 2010
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Project Home checkpoint
So far, here's what's been accomplished in Project Home:
1. All old tiling and fixtures have been taken out. New tiles are currently being put in as we speak, and the new bathroom fixtures have already been delivered.
2. Paint has been approved (by me) as of today. They made special mixes for me, to get the tones that I want. The paint in the guest room turned out lighter than I thought, but I figured it's better to have something lighter (or weaker in color) than the opposite where you almost get heart failure for walking into a room too bright for your tastes.
Good progress for the past 6 days they've worked on the condo. Up next are finalizing the shower enclosure and shampoo caddy in the bathrooms, starting the waterproofing and starting the electrical work. Also, we have to buy new pinlights, door handles and blinds.
I'm bleeding money, but my heart is giddy with excitement and fulfillment. They're right. Buying your own place is bittersweet. While your wallet aches to no end and your budgeting skills are challenged almost on a daily basis, the feeling of achievement definitely cannot be overestimated. :)
1. All old tiling and fixtures have been taken out. New tiles are currently being put in as we speak, and the new bathroom fixtures have already been delivered.
2. Paint has been approved (by me) as of today. They made special mixes for me, to get the tones that I want. The paint in the guest room turned out lighter than I thought, but I figured it's better to have something lighter (or weaker in color) than the opposite where you almost get heart failure for walking into a room too bright for your tastes.
Good progress for the past 6 days they've worked on the condo. Up next are finalizing the shower enclosure and shampoo caddy in the bathrooms, starting the waterproofing and starting the electrical work. Also, we have to buy new pinlights, door handles and blinds.
I'm bleeding money, but my heart is giddy with excitement and fulfillment. They're right. Buying your own place is bittersweet. While your wallet aches to no end and your budgeting skills are challenged almost on a daily basis, the feeling of achievement definitely cannot be overestimated. :)
Monday, May 24, 2010
118!
My friend Anna got hitched last Saturday, and up until then, her impending wedding has overshadowed the fact that mine is just around the corner as well. But now that her wedding is over, I have just realized that it's my turn next! 118 days until my wedding!!!! Aaaaak!!!!
Monday, May 17, 2010
leave of absence
So, I won't be posting any MBA updates for a while because I'm taking a leave of absence from my schoolwork. Reasons are:
(1) For this upcoming school year, my wedding date falls in the middle of the 1st and 2nd terms. Which means that when the finals week of 1st term rolls in, I'll be in the home stretch of my wedding planning. Then when 2nd term comes in, I'll be out for 2 weeks on my honeymoon. So I figure, might as well take a break from school and focus on my wedding, my honeymoon and getting ready for married life.
(2) Work is getting heavier, and I admit I am still adjusting to this new work scope. I know that the respite from MBA will do me some good too in this area. Also, my new work entails some going-out-of-town on provincial tours and events, so it would be good not to have school to worry about for a while.
Also, I figure when I live so near to RCBC, I can resume school w/o any difficulty. My mom is worried I may not go back after the wedding and honeymoon, because a lot of people lose that crucial sense of momentum and inertia when they take a break from school. Most don't go back. Esp when pregnancy rolls in.
I told her that, first off, given my personality, I think I would be the first to give myself a hard tiime to leave unfinished something as big and as important to me as this. Also, I am just 4 terms away from finishing my MBA. Which means a pregnancy will not likely affect my finishing. And lastly, Dennis promised her (my mom) that he will make sure I finish school, even if it means carrying me physically into class (haha!) So yes, I hope there are enough measures in place to prevent me from permanently slacking off from schoolwork.
There you go. No books, exams, readings or class presentations for 7 months. Hope I miss it so I'll be in 100% "ganado" to resume school in Jan :)
Til then, books! :)
(1) For this upcoming school year, my wedding date falls in the middle of the 1st and 2nd terms. Which means that when the finals week of 1st term rolls in, I'll be in the home stretch of my wedding planning. Then when 2nd term comes in, I'll be out for 2 weeks on my honeymoon. So I figure, might as well take a break from school and focus on my wedding, my honeymoon and getting ready for married life.
(2) Work is getting heavier, and I admit I am still adjusting to this new work scope. I know that the respite from MBA will do me some good too in this area. Also, my new work entails some going-out-of-town on provincial tours and events, so it would be good not to have school to worry about for a while.
Also, I figure when I live so near to RCBC, I can resume school w/o any difficulty. My mom is worried I may not go back after the wedding and honeymoon, because a lot of people lose that crucial sense of momentum and inertia when they take a break from school. Most don't go back. Esp when pregnancy rolls in.
I told her that, first off, given my personality, I think I would be the first to give myself a hard tiime to leave unfinished something as big and as important to me as this. Also, I am just 4 terms away from finishing my MBA. Which means a pregnancy will not likely affect my finishing. And lastly, Dennis promised her (my mom) that he will make sure I finish school, even if it means carrying me physically into class (haha!) So yes, I hope there are enough measures in place to prevent me from permanently slacking off from schoolwork.
There you go. No books, exams, readings or class presentations for 7 months. Hope I miss it so I'll be in 100% "ganado" to resume school in Jan :)
Til then, books! :)
Friday, May 14, 2010
Project Home underway!
By next Tuesday, the condo renovation crew will move in and start the work on the tiling and bathroom fixtures. Then after that, they'll move on to the kitchen and parquet floors. The aircon will then be installed, then the sanding and relamination work will follow. The electrical work will then ensue, followed by the waterproofing and painting. Hopefully, by end-June, the place will be ready for furniture and appliances to be moved in. I can't wait!!!!! :)
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
a not-so-new tomorrow
I must admit I am saddened by the results of the 2010 elections. While it's good that the automated process worked, despite the many glitches and problems, and that the results seem to be clean and uncontestible, I am saddened by the confirmation that the Filipino electorate is still mostly very immature. It's politically immature thinking that led the majority of the populace to believe that a good father sires a good son, and if someone pledges to be incorruptible, that alone makes him a good President. I'm also sad that Filipinos opted for Erap as a second choice. Again, very politically immature. I honestly don't know how we can progress from this point. This has *got* to be a new low. Even for the Philippines. The change we all want is still an elusive dream.
But then, if I really believe in Gibo and have faith on the ideals he was pushing, I need to set these "nega vibes" aside and still wish the new administration the best. Perhaps we will be given a miracle; after all, no matter what we get into, we as a nation always survive. We may not always emerge better or wiser, but we always live to see another day (or another administration). Knock on wood, hopefully, Homer's parents will indeed bless him from up above and guide him throughout his 6 years in power. And hopefully, his youngest sister does shut up for good, pack up her things and move away just as she promised she would.
And maybe, just maybe, we'll see the day when our nation will finally elect officials based on merit, on qualifications and on track record. If not, we may one day elect Baby James because of his grandparents. If that happens, I may just push Atty to run for mayor. Or President. Haha!
There's still hope, people. Let's all pray for a better tomorrow for all of us. Even if it has to be achieved in spite of our newly elected leader.
Mabuhay ang Pilipino!
But then, if I really believe in Gibo and have faith on the ideals he was pushing, I need to set these "nega vibes" aside and still wish the new administration the best. Perhaps we will be given a miracle; after all, no matter what we get into, we as a nation always survive. We may not always emerge better or wiser, but we always live to see another day (or another administration). Knock on wood, hopefully, Homer's parents will indeed bless him from up above and guide him throughout his 6 years in power. And hopefully, his youngest sister does shut up for good, pack up her things and move away just as she promised she would.
And maybe, just maybe, we'll see the day when our nation will finally elect officials based on merit, on qualifications and on track record. If not, we may one day elect Baby James because of his grandparents. If that happens, I may just push Atty to run for mayor. Or President. Haha!
There's still hope, people. Let's all pray for a better tomorrow for all of us. Even if it has to be achieved in spite of our newly elected leader.
Mabuhay ang Pilipino!
Monday, May 10, 2010
May 10, 2010
Made my vote count today, despite almost 3 hours of waiting and falling in line, after a failed attempt earlier this morning at 7am. Thank God I was able to successfully feed my ballot into the machine. Now all we gotta do is wait.
Win or lose, GT, you should be president.
Win or lose, GT, you should be president.
Sunday, May 02, 2010
Brand Camp
I got sent to the first PANA Brand Camp, along with another colleague from SMART last Thursday-Saturday (yesterday, actually). Just want to jot down some thoughts I had during the 3-day competition, which incidentally ended with us bagging 2nd place, despite us not even putting in 100% effort (as in, cruising lang talaga and eating the free food) and sleeping early the night before the actual competition. Anyway, some thoughts:
1. Ran into a former classmate, who was also a delegate to the Brand Camp. Funny because some things don't change (he's still a pompous, irritating ass, just like before) yet some things can still change, believe it or not (he's actually a worse ass than before, because he has upped the ante on ass-ness).
2. Some people are so intense. They're so competitive (even at this age ah!) to the point of not talking to other delegates, not sleeping (or only sleeping 2 hours) before the competition, and (horror of horrors!) not eating due to "nervousness". C'mon, guys, this is NOT a matter of life and death, and it is DEFINITELY not a reflection of how far you've gone in your career or how far you can possibly go in the future. True, it would be GREAT to get to go to Cannes to compete and represent the Phils (which was the top prize), but you guys have got to learn how to CHILL. Otherwise, you'll get wrinkles at an early age or, worse, develop some awful heart disease. Plus, you have to learn that there is a healthy way to compete, and the way you're doing it is totally wrong.
3. Strange how FMCG guys can "look down" on telco marketing guys, thinking that telco guys don't do "real marketing". Funny, because the 1st and 2nd placers in the competition are both from telco teams. Only the 3rd team came from FMCG, and the 8 non-placers are all from FMCGs. Hehe. One word: Karma.
4. It's nice to get away, even for a few days, and even just to Tagaytay. Mental note to do this with Dennis when we're married already. A small, short getaway can do wonders to your mental well-being.
That's pretty much it. Am I sad we didn't place 1st? Really, no. Again, it would be nice to get to go to Cannes, just for the experience. But in any case, we can't go even if we did win 1st place, because my partner is currently 5 months preggers and will not be able to travel in June. I'm perfectly happy too with 2nd place, because I seriously did not put in that much effort. We even watched the evening teleseryes and took our time with the shower-and-get-ready-for-bed routines. We had relaxed meals, took our leisurely pace and didn't even really listen to the speakers who were "training" us. I just really took it as a small vacation. When it came to the presentation, we did have to cram our thoughts into 8 slides (to be presented in 5 minutes) and kinda struggled with Keynote (the only "accredited" presentation software in Cannes) but that was pretty much it. I also do not take it as any sort of validation of my "marketing cred", because I don't think any one convention or competition can do that. It's reality that tells you how well you've performed or how much farther you can still go. This competition is just really a recruitment process for a team that will compete in France. That's all. Some people need to learn to relax.
I was also thinking back at my college days and when we first learned how to live with "competition". I'm glad to be looking back at those days and see how I've grown with regard to how I treat competition and how I've learned when to draw the line and distance myself from my work. Don't get me wrong, I'm still as driven as when I was 18 years old and learning how to write ad briefs and make marketing presentations. I'm still as ambitious, in that I still want to push forth with my career and work towards being an even better marketing professional. But I guess I've learned (and still learning) to strike a balance between work and life. And see work for what it truly is- work. Not "just work" because I don't mean to trivialize work. It serves a purpose in life and deserves its proper attention, dedication and energy. But it's not what consumes us or represents what we are. It's just what we do. :)
BTW, in unrelated news, today marks the 1-year anniversary of when Dennis asked me to marry him. :) I'm not sure if it's even a valid or real occasion to celebrate, but it's nice nonetheless. Not everyone has a year (and more) to go from engagement to wedding, and I think it's nice that we get to have that. Even just for one year. (God knows I have NO desires of stretching it out further. I'm happy to have had the time.)
:)
1. Ran into a former classmate, who was also a delegate to the Brand Camp. Funny because some things don't change (he's still a pompous, irritating ass, just like before) yet some things can still change, believe it or not (he's actually a worse ass than before, because he has upped the ante on ass-ness).
2. Some people are so intense. They're so competitive (even at this age ah!) to the point of not talking to other delegates, not sleeping (or only sleeping 2 hours) before the competition, and (horror of horrors!) not eating due to "nervousness". C'mon, guys, this is NOT a matter of life and death, and it is DEFINITELY not a reflection of how far you've gone in your career or how far you can possibly go in the future. True, it would be GREAT to get to go to Cannes to compete and represent the Phils (which was the top prize), but you guys have got to learn how to CHILL. Otherwise, you'll get wrinkles at an early age or, worse, develop some awful heart disease. Plus, you have to learn that there is a healthy way to compete, and the way you're doing it is totally wrong.
3. Strange how FMCG guys can "look down" on telco marketing guys, thinking that telco guys don't do "real marketing". Funny, because the 1st and 2nd placers in the competition are both from telco teams. Only the 3rd team came from FMCG, and the 8 non-placers are all from FMCGs. Hehe. One word: Karma.
4. It's nice to get away, even for a few days, and even just to Tagaytay. Mental note to do this with Dennis when we're married already. A small, short getaway can do wonders to your mental well-being.
That's pretty much it. Am I sad we didn't place 1st? Really, no. Again, it would be nice to get to go to Cannes, just for the experience. But in any case, we can't go even if we did win 1st place, because my partner is currently 5 months preggers and will not be able to travel in June. I'm perfectly happy too with 2nd place, because I seriously did not put in that much effort. We even watched the evening teleseryes and took our time with the shower-and-get-ready-for-bed routines. We had relaxed meals, took our leisurely pace and didn't even really listen to the speakers who were "training" us. I just really took it as a small vacation. When it came to the presentation, we did have to cram our thoughts into 8 slides (to be presented in 5 minutes) and kinda struggled with Keynote (the only "accredited" presentation software in Cannes) but that was pretty much it. I also do not take it as any sort of validation of my "marketing cred", because I don't think any one convention or competition can do that. It's reality that tells you how well you've performed or how much farther you can still go. This competition is just really a recruitment process for a team that will compete in France. That's all. Some people need to learn to relax.
I was also thinking back at my college days and when we first learned how to live with "competition". I'm glad to be looking back at those days and see how I've grown with regard to how I treat competition and how I've learned when to draw the line and distance myself from my work. Don't get me wrong, I'm still as driven as when I was 18 years old and learning how to write ad briefs and make marketing presentations. I'm still as ambitious, in that I still want to push forth with my career and work towards being an even better marketing professional. But I guess I've learned (and still learning) to strike a balance between work and life. And see work for what it truly is- work. Not "just work" because I don't mean to trivialize work. It serves a purpose in life and deserves its proper attention, dedication and energy. But it's not what consumes us or represents what we are. It's just what we do. :)
BTW, in unrelated news, today marks the 1-year anniversary of when Dennis asked me to marry him. :) I'm not sure if it's even a valid or real occasion to celebrate, but it's nice nonetheless. Not everyone has a year (and more) to go from engagement to wedding, and I think it's nice that we get to have that. Even just for one year. (God knows I have NO desires of stretching it out further. I'm happy to have had the time.)
:)
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