Chefars Christmas Party 2008

Here are some pictures from our Christmas Party last Dec. 6, 2008 at Galileo Enoteca Makati and Ascend.

Khaye, Ayee & Marz

Gracie, Lulay, Jai (& Tabong)

Donn & Jeff

Madz & Keiko

Ash, Jai, Ayee, Lulay, Marz, Gracie, Nick & Aris

Gracie, Rowie & Aris

Nick & Lulay

Donn, Zha & Jai

Donn, Jeff, Ayee, Aris & Ash

Keiko, Ayee, Madz & Donn

Madz & Donn

Donn & Jeff

c/o PhotoFunia.com

When lightning and thunder strike

I officially hate lightning and thunder!!!

I just bought a lot of new DVDs last week in preparation for a hiatus from everything and everyone for the weekend. Since most of the US TV Series have started their new season the past few weeks, I made a plan of starting off from their respective ‘last seasons’. As a matter of fact, I was enjoying “Dirty, Sexy, Money” and “Dexter” when I decided to also spend time watching on a Monday.

I switched on the TV and plugged my almost 4-year old Philips DVD player to set the mood. Just when I thought the weather was just perfect – it was raining and cozy, and then came this series of lightning and thunder! And then there was this super loud combo… the TV suddenly turned off by itself and the stand-by power (i.e. the red light) of the dvd player was gone! I pressed the remote control of the TV and it went back on. However, it wasn’t the case for the DVD player. Of course I did the basic troubleshooting stuff and it wasn’t working. I wanted to do some sort of a CPR for my dvd player but I don’t know anything about electronics. Ugh.

To my dismay, the authorized service center of Philips can no longer be traced! So I’m now left with those repair shops on the side streets. I know that dvd players nowadays are just like buying 10 fraps from Starbucks but I guess it’s the sentimental value of my first-ever dvd player. Besides, I got it for more than 3 or 4 times the value of a normal player now! Hmp!

I can’t believe this, even in my gadgets I have ‘moving on’ issues?! Damn.

A letter for you

Hal,



For almost five weeks, yesterday was the first time we were in the same room, not to mention we bumped into each other more than twice. I admit, I froze and as a matter of fact I was still in awe until I left the office. I do have a confession to make. The thought of seeing you again has been hanging over my head, ugh. I’ve been trying to picture what would be the best scenario that can happen if we see each other. Of course none of my ideas came to reality yesterday.

I now realize that it wouldn’t be you to wave at me first or to nod or even say hi. No judgment but I just thought that’s not your kind of thing. It was really more of my thing. And yes, I should have acted maturely and at least said hi to you. I wanted to know how you were doing. I wanted to hear you are doing great and having a fabulous time. I was somehow hoping to get that feel of exuding happiness from you.

Okay, I’ll let all my guards down right here, right now. I mean after all, what’s the point of still keeping something from you anyway? You know from the very start I’ve been very open of what I think and feel towards you, us, and our situation. I guess it really wouldn’t make much of a difference now. So there goes my disclaimer. Jeez, my thoughts are all over the place! I’ll just go with the flow here.

There have been so many times that I looked up your name on my cellphone soooooo tempted to call you or just send you an sms. Buy hey, I’ve been able to keep a good job in my self-restrictions you know hehehe. I feel that there’s just so many things that I want to tell you. Surprisingly, I am not expecting that there’s still something left out from your letter that you have to tell me. When I read your letter, I never shed a single tear. I thought I was brave. I thought it was a good sign that I’d be able to move on rather quickly and forget about you… until yesterday. I was wrong. It all dawned at me that the feelings have not in any way been gone at all. It may have just been my ego that said “you were just someone I used to love”. When I got home, I didn’t want to reach the point that I had to sleep or be alone but I had to. That moment, I cried. I cried not really knowing the reasons why. It just felt like there was a huge pile of block on my chest. There were questions that I’m not sure I want answered. There were thoughts and hopes that things will get better. But who the hell knows what’s gonna happen?

I want to ask you if we can at least be friends, though we were really never friends before so… I’m not even sure if that is a good idea, at least for now. If we become friends, for sure I’d have to deal with the fact that I cannot hold on to any possibility of us getting back together again. Of course this is my problem, not yours. Question is, can I handle that? I think I could answer my own question now. Part of me is still hoping that there could still be a chance for us this time around. I’m torn between my promise of not easily giving you up and what should be the ideal decision – letting go completely. It took a great deal of courage for you to come to terms with what you really feel towards me and our situation when you wrote that letter. Doing it in person might have been too much for you to handle. But really, I appreciate your honesty. I don’t want to argue with you and what you wrote because those are your thoughts. You actually made your point pretty clear on that letter and I’m not sure if you would have been able to do just the same if you were telling me everything in person (that is, while witnessing how my heart breaks while I cry buckets of tears maybe).

A good friend of mine once told me how come I still have feelings for you. He was telling me it might help to think of the not-so-good things you’ve done to me or the things about you that tick me off. Thing is, all those were part of the reason why I loved you, why I still do. It wasn’t just all about the good stuff about our relationship or your good side that I have accepted and loved. It also included what you were not able to do or say, it didn’t matter how many times I had to say okay if we can’t see each other, or the things about you that made me angry. After all, these defined you… the ‘you’ that I’ve learned to love. Tell me, should I just let go of my promise to you? You never really asked me to stop loving you. You never asked me to undo everything. And even if you did, I’d probably still go the other way.

Anlabo mo namang kausap

This is so funny but true! Come on, everyone is I bet guilty of at least a couple of these shady replies.

Example ng mga hindi tamang sagot sa maayos na tanong:

1. Kumain ka na?
-Busog pa ako.

2. Anjan ba nanay mo?
-Bakit po?

3. Anong oras klase mo?
-Mamaya.

4. San kayo galing?
-Diyan lang... dun!

5. Paano mo ginawa yan?
-Madali lang.

6. Bakit ka wala kahapon?
-Absent ako

7. Anong oras na?
-Maaga pa!

8. Saan ka na?
-Andyan na ko, wait lang!
-Malapit na.

***Lifted from one of those spam emails... hehehe***

How to deal with “moving on” issues

Let’s first set some perimeters around here. If you’ve been dumped, stood up (on dates even) or cheated on, then I guess you better read on. Maybe we can include those suckers for romance who somehow get wound up with people who can’t commit, those poor souls that experience unrequited love, those in long-distance love affairs that can’t seem to work, in other words all that other people would normally give their sympathy to. Perhaps one should automatically come to his senses when any of the above happens to him. Perhaps there really would come a time when we should ask ourselves, “is it time to move on?” Here’s what I have:

1) Have a solid support group of friends whom you can vent out to. These people most likely are the ones who know the ins and outs of your life and the love department too. Once you get to pour out your emotions verbally, try to not have the same conversations over and over again. And let them swear that no reports about “the one who must not be named” should be shared to you even if you twist their arms.

2) Don’t hesitate to cry or even do the über melodramatic and Oscar-winning moment but please do it privately and sparingly if not once.

3) Avoid “forbidden” places and people. You don’t want to get yourself caught off-guard with that “WTF! What am I gonna do?” look on your face.

4) Get rid of anything that will remind you of your sweet memories – pictures, gifts, etc. Even the mp3 files on your cellphone! But don’t overdo it though, there’s no need to return the gifts given to you, just keep them in a storage room or something.

5) Don’t watch movies that have love story themes. The funny or scary ones usually come in handy.

6) No looking out the window while it’s raining outside (and love song playing in the background). Oh please, this is just so pathetic!

7) If there’s an obvious pattern on the relationships and dates you’ve had, try to indulge yourself with some change the next time around.

8) Keep yourself busy and productive. Take on new and exciting projects at work. Engage yourself in a new hobby. Read books. Go on out of town trips.

9) Don’t let yourself be left alone. Always tag along your best pal with you! This is not just to keep you company but to immediately safeguard you from any untoward events of bumping into someone you’re not ready to see. Of course, proper orientation and briefing applies to the helpful friend.

10) Avoid people who talk negatively about love, relationships and their ex’s. Bitterness is so 12 years ago! The last thing you want to feel is this after being heartbroken you know.

I’m sure there’s a whole lot of ways to deal with moving on issues and yes, they may vary from person to person. What may work for some may not necessarily work for others. One thing will surely remain common though, once someone DECIDES to move on (and be successful at it), it damn feels so good to fall in love again!

My Nephews

Gabriel and Miguel already gave their Tito Jai one helluva time when they were playing -- Jai's jeans got ripped! Don't ask which part! Lol.

The kids with Tito Donn.

Jeff & the city

The first thing I noticed the moment I walked out of the JFK Airport was the weather – it was so friggin’ humid! Ugh! I guess it was some sort of a transition for me before I head home to Manila since it was pretty much the same feel. My cuzin (Kuya Lito) was kind enough to pick me up from the airport and his family hosted a buffet dinner in a Chinese restaurant near their home in Queens. It was late dinner actually since the clock was 3 hours ahead from my departure city in the west coast. I was looking forward to going to the city before I went to bed.

Chinatown and Little Italy
My other cuzin (Ate Cora with husband and youngest kid Gillian) took me for a little sneak peek of Manhattan. We initially went to Battery Park hoping we could go to Staten Island but jeez, the queue of tourist was just crazy and besides, we had a kid with us so we decided to head to Chinatown for late lunch and some shopping.

Times Square
One’s night-out in New York City will not be complete if you’ll not stroll along the bright lights of Times Square. The midnight still looked as busy as ever! After all, it’s the city that never sleeps!

Empire State Building
Some $19, about an hour of falling in line, multiple security checks (i.e. the one similar to the airports) and only a couple of bites of my roasted turkey sandwich for lunch, I finally sat foot on the setting of the very romantic scene in Sleepless in Seattle. The view of the entire New York City and some parts of New Jersey was indescribable! Of course the Chrysler Building was one of the more familiar spots from the top of the Empire State. After watching three times the entire seasons one through seven of Sex & the City, the building’s image (next to Cynthia Nixon’s name on the opening credits) left some kind of permanent mark on my head.

Staten and Ellis Islands
There were hundreds of people lining up in the cruise trips in Battery Park. My cousin Lorena and I figured we could save time and effort by lining up simultaneously in the ticket and queue lines – of course she took care of the ticket while I waited for her. It was just brilliant! Hint hint for future travelers. A two-hour lining up and cruising didn’t include setting foot on the islands per se but you’ll get a close look of Lady Liberty.

Café Lalo
Francis and I woke up on a rainy Saturday summer. It was about time for brunch and this didn’t give us a good signal at first. I thought, hey this cannot happen! It was my last Saturday in NYC and I had so much to do. I can’t remember if I did a sundance but my prayer kinda worked. The rain stopped as we headed to Café Lalo (www.cafelalo.com) at 201 West 83rd St. – the eyeball place of Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) and Joe Fox (Tom Hanks) in You’ve got mail. The place was a little crowded by noon time. We had to wait for about 10 minutes to get seated.

Broadway
Watching the 19th century setting musical Spring Awakening is definitely one of the highlights of my NYC trip. What’s going to Broadway without that kind of experience? Winning 8 Tony Awards including best musical for 2007 would say more than enough reason for me to spend almost a hundred bucks for the balcony ticket! The music (by Duncan Sheik), the cast and the story twists made it all contemporary in so many ways. I never had a single dull moment watching it, seriously. As a matter of fact, I was almost close to getting teary-eyed in some of the scenes. Somebody else was crying while watching… hush hush (Hi Francis!).

The Met
The famous “steps” of The Met… the other side was under construction though.

The New York Palace Hotel
You know you love me… Do I hear “X.O.X.O.”? You got it! This luxury hotel in Madison Avenue suddenly became an instant tourist spot, especially to the young ones. Thanks to Serena, Blair, Dan, Nate, Chuck, Jenny and the rest of the Gossip Girl folks who are making waves in worldwide television.
Central Park
I think I only got to stroll in the West and East side of Central Park because obviously it was too huge! Francis was telling me how splendid the entire park looks like during winter. Sighs… On the west end is The Plaza Hotel (Home Alone 2 – one of my favorites!). There’s a whole of activities anyone can do in the park – including making out in public!!! Oh yes, we passed by a couple doing just that!

I left my heart in San Francisco

Arriving at LAX 50 minutes before my flight to SFO proved to be a not so good idea. While self check-in is the newest thing in airports, getting your boarding pass is another. Of course you still have to go through the same procedures for checking in your luggage. And speaking of… I got to SFO 45 minutes ahead of my suitcase! It was on the next plane from LA to San Francisco since I checked in too close to the departure time. Sorry naman!

Stanford
A good friend of mine, Djen picked me up from the airport and we headed to Stanford for super late lunch. We visited the University afterwards.

Santana Row (San Jose, CA)
Northern California’s Rodeo Drive, this upscale shopping center in SJ was the next stop for me. Take note, my suitcases were just in Djen’s car! Here I met a few more friends – Paolo (former officemate in PS), Paul (co-editor in DLSU school paper) and Jun-Jun (housemate in college). I thought I’d have a hard time getting them together in one place but everything went smoothly, thank God! New faces were there too - Pete (Paul’s boyfriend) and Mark (Jun’s housemate). We had a few drinks in downtown San Jose then went to a Korean videoke bar.

It was a great Monday to wake up to for me and Paolo. He took the day off from work to be my tour guide. We woke up at about 11AM but I didn’t worry a bit since it’s summer and 8PM means the sun will still be up. I craved for some Pinoy food so we went to downtown Milpitas a few miles away from his place in San Jose. Barrio Fiesta was closed on Mondays for kitchen cleaning so we went to this Filipino restaurant called Kalesa (http://www.mykalesa.com/ ). How can you resist crispy pata and gulay na pinakbet? You just can’t!!! It was just me and Paolo but the food really was good for four starving guys. Reasonably-priced meal at under $30, it was just the carbo-loading we needed for a long day of touring Frisco.
Bay Bridge
Passing through the Bay Bridge in Paolo’s car (with sun-roof open) was just amazing. The weather was so perfect and you could feel the breeze on your face while seeing the skyline of the entire city.
Golden Gate Park
One funny part when Paolo was navigating was when we passed by the Golden Gate Park and he uttered how nice it was to have some photos right there. I was like, yeah it would be and then took a snap shot while the car was moving. We parked about a hundred meters away from the park and I decided to stroll along yet another gorgeous garden. We were planning to leave the car and walk to the bridge but when we checked the map, boy it was too far! Of course the wisest thing to do was to go back and drive.
Golden Gate Bridge
It was quite foggy and breezy when we reached the end of the bridge, I think it was the north end. Anyho, our spot had quite a clear view of the Alcatraz too. I thought I’ve seen Sean Connery’s movie anyway so why bother going there? After all, I’m not really a huge fan of prisons hehe.

Palace of Fine Arts
It was under construction when we were in the area but the ambiance was still captivating.

Victorian Houses
A trip to San Francisco would not be complete if you don’t pay attention to the beautiful Victorian houses. They’re just everywhere!
Lombard Street
Considered to be the “most crooked” one-way street in the world, Lombard is still passable by small to medium-sized vehicles. I’d say the flowers of summer add to the elegance of the said tourist spot. I bet the houses and apartment here are uber expensive.
Pier 39, Fisherman’s Wharf
Here’s another of SFO’s signature spot! There’s a whole bunch of restaurants and shops here for everyone’s delight!
Union Square
If you want to take a good tour of this part of the city, I’ve only got two suggestions – either by foot or by tram but you may find the latter’s route quite limited though. Some tour packages actually include the tram ride to and from the Wharf passing by Lombard then going to Union Square.

Spell L-A-X !!!

In LA, most people would say "Oh, that place is just near! It's only a 10-minute drive." Guess what, those 10-minute travels felt like hopping from Alabang to QC!!! But hey, thanks to the freeways for making things a little convenient. Yes, I know that traffic in LA can get really bad but nothing compares to Manila road jams! Ugh!

Arriving in LAX on a Wednesday afternoon, I was trying to hide both my excitement and fear (that I might get lost or something). Thank God I googled some "how-to's" like getting to my first destination (Brea, CA) via the Super Shuttle service van. After 45 minutes and $40, along with other passengers who the driver dropped off at different locations, I got to my hotel -- The Embassy Suites Brea. It was just beside JC Penny and Macy's. I figured, I could use my idle time "malling" instead. To my dismay, I had to pinch myself and get reminded that I was still on a business trip at least until Friday lunch time.

The fun begins here...

OUTLET Stores (Citadel, Los Angeles)

I did some nice shopping with Teta (my editor in the college school paper). Boy, you really could get a lot of good stuff at very reasonable prices! Only problem was... most stores didn't have my size! I got a couple of shirts from the teens section would you believe?

Universal Studios
This was definitely on top of my list! Geez, you need like two days to go through what Universal City has to offer. The Simpson's ride was the most recent addition this year and it was really fun. Kids stuff? Yeah... but for grown-ups too! Thanks to college friend Polee for showing me around.

This is the closest I could get to the Scavo house in Wisteria Lane!!!! Woohoo!!!

West Hollywood

... need I say more?

Hollywood Hills