:: driver ng bayan ::: 12.2003

:: Why I Love the New Year ::
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I love smoke. I love having the sweet smell of smoke stuck on my clothes and my hair. I love having to clean my nose and ears three times just to get rid of all the soot they've accumulated. I love getting into gunpowder induced sneezing fits every few minutes.

I love noise. I love not being able to carry on conversations in a normal voice. I love not being able to listen to music in peace. I love going deaf for a few days at the start of the year.

Of course, new year isn't that great either. I hate the food. I don't particularly enjoy stuffing myself silly with plate after plate of food. I'd rather not drink the sparkly stuff my family pops open at the table.

And the drudgery goes on well after midnight. It's no fun meeting up with friends and ingesting more food and alcohol. It's a bore to see people you rarely see anymore and discuss what's happened since you'd last seen each other. It's a pain to see the sky get lighter and know that you're still out.

We shouldn't be celebrating the new year. No... we should be mourning.

:: MERRY CHRISTMAS! ::
00:01

To all those who made this year just what it is... thank you! Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. You know who you are... but in case you don't, read on. Thanks go out to all the people who have touched me, in large or small ways, this year: abbie, abie, aidz, aimee, aisa, aissa, alessa, alexie, alex, al, al h., angel a., angel p., anj, anna, anna foz, anna m., anna r., anne rose, anya, apol, arbie, arjay, armi, arnold, arvie, athena, ava, balsy, becca, bellie, beng, bogey, bon, bran, bry, bundi, butz, caloy, carl, carmie, carmela, carmen, cats, catz, cat, cay, cb, charles, charo, checko, cheng, chewey, che, che g., chicoy, chris c., chris m., chris s., chuck, chuh, chum, ciara, cia, cj, clarie, cookie, cristina, cris, cyd, daianne, da, dad, denise, des, didi, duday, edgar, edsel, eggy, ej a., ej f., ekai, eks, elaine, ele, elisa, eliza, erick, evans, falx, felix, ferdie, ferds, francesca, fran, frances, franny, francis, franco, franco s., frankie, gege, gian, ginny, gladys, gopz, guia, gutsy, gutzee, hannah, hans, happy, heintz, helen, honey, ian, ida a., ida g., iggy, ikey, iris, itoy, ivanna, ivan, jackie, jack, jacques, jacqui, jamila, jam, janet, jan, jeli, jemma, jen, jenny, jerome, jill, jin, jip, jj, jm, joaq, joel f., joel p., joey, joe, john, jonas, jon, jorge, jose, joy, jp e., jp v., jr, julette, justa, jv, kai, kan, karen, karl, katz, kaye, kc, kendrick, kenny, kikay, kitchie, knox, krissy, kristel, kris, kv, laila, laurie, laur, lei, leon, lesan, lian, lisa, liza, lj, lorenzo, louie, luigi, maan, maite, maite c., maki, mambo, manel, manny, marco a., marco s., marga, maria, mariciris, marie, mark o., mark y., martin, matet, maya, me-ann, mei, mel, mias, mia f., mia s., michelle, mico, miggy, mike, mikki, miko, milo, minelli, mischa, mom, monica, myla, naz, neil, nicky, nicola, nico, nic, nikka, nikko, niña, noel e., noel g., ogs, oliver, pam, pancho, paolo s., pao s., patrick b., patrick j., patrick v., pat, paulino, paul c., paul r., paul s., paul y., peewee, peter, philip, pia, ping, pippo, ponch, pope, ramon, ranza, regolas, rey, rhenz, ria, rica, risa, rita, ritesh, rj, robi, ronald, roni, rox, sabeth, salvo, sam, sandra, sherie, sherrie, shirley, sly, star, stef, terin, tess, therese b., therese e., tina, tintin, tish, third, tonchi, trici, tsirol, tuks, twink, victor, vince, wilmer, winchie, winch, yammie, yard, x

:: Long Week Before Christmas ::
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Last night was fun. Actually, scrap that... the past few nights have been fun. Pretty much the whole week leading up to Christmas, in fact, has been pretty good.

Tuesday
I just got home from pigging out on japanese food with one of my two favorite girls. The other one, unfortunately, is busy tonight. For those wondering why they are my favorite girls, don't worry... I'm wondering too. One of them coined the term a few days ago, and it sorta stuck. In any case, we had 1 order of tuna maki, 1 of mixed sushi, and 2 orders of california maki, plus a mango shake each. We could probably have eaten more, but the strain on our wallets was adding up, and so we had to end our pig out session. From here, we move back...

I woke up with a smile on my face. I woke up at the end of a very nice dream and knew that this was one of the few dreams I would remember. I won't share the details here, but let me address those who have lurid thoughts in their heads: GET YOUR MIND OUT OF THE GUTTER!

Monday
Before I had this dream, I got home from a night of partying. The night started at Makati Shangri-La, where a Pocahontas lookalike's sister had her debut. It moved on to Teak in Rockwell where I met up with an eye model, a hand model, and somebody who could be a nose model. After that was a friend's house along Shaw Boulevard, where my two favorite girls were, as well as others.

Sunday
This was uneventful, but the night preceding that... well...

Saturday
Saturday started with basketball, which started some time after lunch and extended to the late afternoon, much later than I had expected. That evening, like the game earlier, refused to end, but was much more enjoyable.

Saturday evening kicked off with my niece's debut. While I had to shoot video that night, the dinner we had at Nappa's in Eastwood was pretty decent. Since I didn't pay for it, it became even better. From Eastwood I moved to the heart of Pasig for a friend's birthday party. I was pretty full, and I didn't feel like drinking, but the conversation was enough to keep the night interesting. When slumming in Pasig ended, slumming in Makati started soon enough.

Saturday night's first discovery for me was that Racks Valero is actually a party place at night. Apparently, ribs aren't the place's only specialty. The place was a bit too loud, however, so a trip elsewhere was planned.

That night's second discovery came as we pulled up outside Old Swiss Inn along Makati Ave. I discovered that the 2 friends I had with me considered themselves to be my favorite girls. I doubt any amount of arguing could convince them otherwise... and I doubt I'd find a good reason to argue with them about it.

Friday
While Friday did not start well for me, I spent most of it staying cool on ice, or just hanging around... and this made the day, overall, pretty good. A vanishing girl kept me company in the morning as we shot video of her sister ice skating. I spent that afternoon scaling the walls of PowerUp in Pasig with my other favorite girl, who later ended up being bullied by an 8-year old kid from Poveda.

Thursday
Went to TBWA for class. Went to Enterprise for lunch. Went to Rizal Medical Center for a Christmas party for the patients. Went to the tent. Went to Mocha Blends. During the course of the day, I bugged the people I was with, saw some good ads, ate a good lunch, bugged people some more, took some pictures, carried a really cute baby in my arms, took more pictures, bugged people yet again, had an assortment of sidings (mashed potatoes, corn and carrots, garlic mushrooms), had chocolate cake, bugged people even more, and basically bummed. The day was long. The day was packed. The day was busy. It was fun.

:: Good Day... Really! ::
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Today did not start out well. Earlier today I wished that I hadn't woken up. Now I am thankful I did. Today, despite the rocky start, has been a good day.

My brother is home now. He has a neck brace on and his body is sore. He has abrasions on his neck and chest from the seatbelt. Otherwise, he's ok. That's what matters.

Unfortunately, I can't say the same about what he was driving. The Trooper is a total wreck. No amount of repair will save it.

My brother's accident, however, is just part of this day. The rest of my day has more than made up for the day's slow start.

Two of my friends saved me today. They put me on ice, stuck me behind a camera, drove me around, and hung me from some ropes... and I love them for this.

Today has been a weird day... and suprisingly, it has been a good day.

:: Wish List ::
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My previous entry is the shortest entry I've ever had. It probably will remain the shortest. Heck... even the title was longer than the actual entry. Oh well...

This will be a bit longer. Why? This is a list of things I want... I think that's enough reason. Anyway, here we go...

I want...

... a nice jacket. I've actually found one in U2, but I'm still hoping I can find something cheaper.

... a new car. However, repairs on my Lancer will do... overhaul suspension, replace the front bumper, repair the right headlight, get new rims and tires, have it detailed...

... an MP3 head unit. I don't want just any radio for my car... I need to put my MP3 collection to good use.

... new shoes, new jeans, new shirts, new belts...

... a new car... again. I want the VW GTI. It's 3 door hatchback powered by a 2.8 liter V6 delivering 200 horses mated to a 6 speed manual transmission. Of course, the 1.8L version, which packs 180 horses, isn't too shabby either

... Lego!

... a trip out of town.

... a digital SLR. I want either the Canon EOS300D or the Sony Cybershot F828.

... other gadgets, as usual. Among them: Canon XL1, Apple Powerbook G4, 40GB Apple iPod, Sony Ericsson Bluetooth Car, and others.

... an assortment of beanies, bonnets, ski caps, whatever you call them.

... nice caps.

... a membership at a gym.

... a nice pocketwatch.

... shades with amber, blue, ruby, or some other light colored lens that i can wear while driving at night.

... FPJ to announce that he is no longer running.

... more stuff than I can think of now...

:: Pseudo-Philosophical Thoughts ::
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"Success is getting what you want. Happiness is liking what you get." That's what H. Jackson Brown, author of Life's Little Instruction Book and Live And Learn And Pass It On, says. My question is, what if you want happiness?

Yes, I feel like being smart now... or as others would prefer to describe this mood, I feel like being a smart-ass. Yup, I'm in one of my good moods now... except I don't feel like being nice. I feel like being mischievous.

Since I have my computer in front of me instead of some of my friends, I can't really diss anybody now. Instead, I'm channeling my energy into other stuff... thinking of useless trivia, and posing stupid questions. Fun, huh?

Trivia: The word "ain't" is actually a contraction of the words "am" and "not," and as such, is proper, albeit not formal, english. I ain't kidding.

Question: Why are watches generally worn on the left wrist? On a related topic, are pocket watches more often kept in the right pocket, or left?

More trivia: The best way to differentiate a monkey from an ape is by its tail. A monkey has a tail; an ape doesn't. In a related bit of trivia, all humans still have tailbones.

Even more trivia: The little Lego people are called minifigs.

Related trivia: The name Lego is a combination of the Danish words "leg" and "godt," which mean "play well."

Question: Where did the term "anal-retentive" come from? Wondering about that.

Another question: How did the word "faggot," which means a bundle of sticks, end up referring to homosexuals?

Absolutely stupid question: If you try to fail and succeed, what did you just do?

Trivia again: The dot over the letter "i" is called a tittle.

Question: Why is it that (it seems) more women subscribe to astrology than men?

Trivia: The words "month," "orange," and "purple" do not rhyme with any other words in the English language.

Yet more trivia: Delilah did not actually cut Samson's hair. Instead, she called somebody else, most likely a barber, to do so. (see Judges 16:19)

Question: Are you tired of reading this yet?

Trivia: I'm getting sleepy. I'm ending this now.

:: Disturbing Trends ::
11:09

It just doesn't feel like a Merry Christmas, does it? It hardly feels like Christmas is just around the corner... and worse still, it hardly feels like a merry, even happy time. What makes all of this even scarier, it seems like a number of other people share my sentiments, or at least are also feeling down.....

Dunno... I guess I'm out of the rut I was in a few weeks ago, but something still isn't right. Christmas is 10 days away and I've only gone shopping once... and I didn't buy anything. It might be I wasn't really looking for stuff to buy, but that makes it even worse - I don't even feel like shopping anymore. I know, I really don't enjoy Christmas shopping that much, but I usually do find things that I want to buy. Oh well...

Hoping that the Christmas spirit arrives before the 25th. Happy Christmas to us all.

:: Talking With Your Hands ::
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We've all joked about this happening before... now it's in the news. Check out this URL: http://www.infosyncworld.com/news/n/4414.html or just read the text below.

Go go gadget finger-phone!
By: Anthony Newman, Friday 12th December 2003, 12:04 GMT

NTT DoCoMo continue research into sticking fingers in ears at the cutting edge of telecoms.

Japanese cellular provider NTT DoCoMo, pioneers of advanced phone features, have managed to create a handset - if one can call it that - to redefine the whole telephonic paradigm.

The FingerWhisper comes close to replicating the instinctive gesture for 'call me': little finger at the lips, thumb up to the ear. With the DoCoMo design, the user wears a wristwatch which contains the phone and its microphone.

The really interesting bit is that the voice of the caller is transmitted through bone induction by the wristband, and carried to the bones of the ear by the wearer's finger. Stick finger in ear, hear voice in head.

This is a big step in reducing the size of the handset while not compromising voice quality. It also claims to solve issues of hearing callers in noisy environments by completely bypassing the ambient environment, and also removes the need for buttons, replacing them with a morse code-like system of tapping for the execution of phone functions.

The only issue, of course, is how to pass a call over to a friend.

:: Random Thoughts ::
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Right now, my ears are full of sand, my skin is aching for more Sooth-A-Caine, and my liver is still processing the Corona, Kahlúa, and Baileys that I ingested over the weekend. I just got back home after a trip to the beach this morning... and I have to say that despite what my body tells me, I feel good.

I'm not too keen on giving a blow-by-blow account of the trip, but here are some random thoughts:

Use sunblock. It works.

If you don't use sunblock, don't stay out in the sun too long.

Try Sooth-A-Caine after sun gel, especially if you failed to use sunblock. To quote the back of the bottle:

Sooth-A-Caine Aloe Vera Gel is fortified with Lidocaine and Menthol. This unique combination of ingredients acts in synergy to help provide fast-acting, long-lasting sunburn pain relief. This greaseless, pleasent smelling moisturizer helps "cool down" the pain as it helps soothe and relieve skin overexposed to the elements... sun, wind, cold and water. It helps minimize peeling, too.

On a related note, I love Banana Boat products.

Doing a handstand on a sprite bottle is not easy.

Soak up the sun by Sheryl Crow is simply a great beach song.

I should compile a beach soundtrack... for everything from the drive going there, the days in the sun, the nights drinking, to the drive back. I'm gonna need some help coming up with around 10 hours worth of tracks to put in one CD.

I want small portable speakers (that still pack a punch) to take with me anywhere I go.

I need shades.

I have too many random thoughts to put in right now. I need to end this.