There’s really not much to tell, I mean, there’s not much to blog about except that we saw each other, ate delicious food, had our feet massaged, our nails painted and our hands dipped in some hot wax (IKR!) while we talked about silly things and laughed a lot, which all sounds very normal and not worth noting perhaps, but I think some people take it forgranted.

I mean sure, you’ll probably be more useful to the world if you’re watching the news or thinking about how to save the economy, but I think that there is some merit to arguing about the best brand of lip gloss and saying things like, “Wala nang mas-gwa-gwapo pang basketball player kesa sa kanya ever.”

This was just one of those days when nothing monumental really happened, except for J1′s birthday, but it makes you feel happy to be alive anyway. Am I thinking too deeply just to describe a day of eating out and some manipedi fun? Probably. But like I said, I think there’s some merit to it.

And of course, pictures!

j2 and j3 wearing matching "cat with glasses" shirt

beef salpicao, "best speller" paella and salmon w/ hollandaise sauce from amalia's!

j3 getting her hand paraffin waxed. it was painful!

Afterwards, we went to a store to look for a gift for my mom’s friend’s kids. That was our intention, but of course, we ended up trying on clothes for ourselves and I spent Php350 on a ring. And that’s already with the 50% discount! Oh, but look! It’s so preeetttyyy…

my elaborate ring

Afterwards, we went to Frutti Froyo for some frozen yogurt. It was delicious. I love dessert. I wish we had more time, but all days come to an end. At least we ended with dessert. I think the best way to end any day is with dessert. Or coffee. Or both.

And if you’re wondering where the picture of J1 is, I know, I’m so stupid. It’s her birthday, and I totally forgot to take her picture. Sorry na! I only had my cellphone’s camera and wasn’t paying enough attention. Anyway, Happy Birthday J1! Thanks so much for planning this happy day!

It’s the 10th day of 2012 now and I think this year has been pretty good to me so far. Of course, it’s only been 10 days, but I’m glad that I’m off to a great start. And of course, now that I’ve said this, things will probably go downhill. But let me enjoy this moment first.

I now have a Kindle! I’m really happy about it. I bought one from my friend. Her sister gave it to her, but she doesn’t want it so she sold it to me. And now I have a Kindle. I didn’t think I’d ever buy one, what with my bias for old world things like actual books. But… it was too hard to resist. I haven’t really explored it yet. I just got it today. A few hours ago in fact, and I am quite irritated with how my officemate asked me to turn it on because he wanted to look at it. I was just too polite to say that no, I don’t want to turn it on yet because I’m too busy at the moment to explore it and I don’t like others handling my stuff, especially before I do. But why did this suddenly turn into a rant?

Let’s move on.

Last Night on Earth is a board game I played when I went to Robinson’s Galleria last November. There was some sort of board game event and we just chanced upon it. But we enjoyed ourselves pretending to be heroes and zombies that a month later, I bought it for myself. From Amazon. It helped that my aunt who lives in New York was coming to the Philippines for the Christmas holidays and she didn’t mind bringing the game here after I have it delivered to her New York address.

Last Saturday, after coming from Balai Isabel with my family and previously mentioned aunt, my brother, E and I played the game. My brother won and he used the zombies. E and I won but I think it’s because when we were playing, we weren’t sure about all the rules yet. Anyway, I hope it’s not the last time we play the game, and hopefully next time, E and I can play it better.

On Sunday, my friend M went over to our house and she brought with her Vietnamese Coffee, which her “best friend” gave her for Christmas. I like coffee, so my opinion may be too pro-coffee, but I think that it was really good. And it does taste way awesomer if you mix condensed milk with it. It was really delicious with the tapsilog I ordered from Jollibee.

What else? Work is so far OK. I passed the first evaluation for this year, but I don’t think that really means anything since there will be tons more in the future. And also, I still lack some requirements, like my NBI Clearance. I gotta find my receipt to claim it. Grr. Where did I put it?

Right. It’s 2012 and I’m still losing important documents like that. I guess not that much has changed, really.

WTH.

What the hell happened this year? I didn’t feel it at all go by. Then again, it always feels this way when the year’s about to end. I always feel like I wasn’t productive enough. Instead of thinking of things that I accomplished for the year, I think of all the things I haven’t done yet, but was supposed to. For instance, cleaning my closet. As in, getting rid of the clothes that no longer fit and maybe buying new ones that do. Of course, that’s a minor thing compared to all the other things I wasn’t able to do. Like, taking the JLPT. Or, you know, fixing my life. Haha. Although, I’d say this year was still pretty eventful, as far as changes go.

My sister got married this year. So that is of course, the hugest change. I mean, sure it was a pretty huge change already when she started going out with her now-husband a few years ago, but back then it wasn’t so huge because future events were still up in the air, you know? Now that they’re married, it’s absolutely official that I have to be independent. Which is not a bad thing, but as with all kinds of changes in life, I will have difficulty getting used to it.

I spent almost half the year in New Zealand this year. To help with my sister’s wedding, mostly. But also I guess, to see if that life would fit me. And I think, because I’m here in the Philippines now, I’ve pretty much decided that it’s not. Everybody else’s (AKA my parents’) opinions be damned, I’m staying here. In this polluted, crime-ridden, poverty-stricken, dirty-politician-infested 3rd world misdeveloping country. Maybe that makes me mentally ill, but what use will I have for a competent salary and an orderly lifestyle if I’m so lonely I want to kill myself?

I got a new job this year, too. After over one year of being unemployed, I finally have a job again. And it’s pretty okay so far. I get paid for correcting people’s grammar, which is a great thing for know-it-alls like me. Of course, this means that I will really have to have perfect grammar now. But I’m interested in grammar anyway so studying it isn’t too much trouble for me. (But if you see any grammatical errors in this post, I’m afraid I have to resort to the classic “This is my blog and if you don’t like it, you can stop reading anytime.”)

And of course I have to mention the developments with E. And how we’re apparently really only best friends now. After so many years of being undefined, I do think that we’ve finally found our footing. Of course, now that I’ve said this, the world will probably find a way to rock the boat and confuse me and make me crazy again, because the world can’t stand it when people are happy and satisfied and at peace. But for now, yeah, I’m saying it. We’re best friends. And really, this time… I think.

And that’s pretty much it. That is my 2011 roundup. Disappointing? Maybe. But these are just “highlights” after all. Of course, in between all these things, other crazy/boring stuff happened, but I don’t think anybody will be interested to read about those. Heck, you’re probably not even interested to read about these.

On the evening of 29th November, E had a sore throat. And by morning the next day, he had a fever. He had a hard time getting out of bed, let alone out of the house. So, plans were cancelled.

And of course, I had to be my difficult self and I complained to no end about how he always gets sick when we’re supposed to meet each other. I wasn’t blaming him. I was just disappointed at the world again, for making me all excited about my plans, and then changing the circumstances.

Midnight on Friday, after an annoying unnecessary fight that included dramatic hanging ups of the telephone in mid-sentence, I received an IM from E saying this:

Meet you tomorrow at ATC about 3pm sharp.

True story. He really said “about 3pm sharp”. Not that that’s what’s important about the message.

The next day, I got a phone call at 12nn. And the first thing E said was, “Change of plans.”

Again? I thought, and thought that there was no way I was going through with Plan C. I was still sleepy! And the change in the plan was not a small one, it was one that required me to take a jeep, a bus, and the MRT.  I almost wasn’t going to, but I figured I had to make an effort, too.

Instead, I found E at the MRT station, carrying the biggest teddy bear I’d ever seen. We rode a bus, a jeep, and a tricycle, with said biggest teddy bear ever. We watched an episode of Firefly on TV (it was Ariel, and I made E watch it because he’s never watched Firefly before. IKR.), and then after a quick late lunch at KFC, we saw The Adventures of Tin-Tin at the IMAX theater in SM Southmall, which in my opinion has so much better 3d facilities than the Greenbelt 3 3d cinema.

So. OK. Planning is great, but sometimes, it’s all right when things don’t go according to plan. Sometimes you get breakfast at Ayala Triangle, and sometimes you get teddy bears that are larger than yourself. Such is life. And you know, it’s not too bad.

But first! Kwento about my friends!

I haven’t seen A since I got back from NZ so it was great that when K asked if we were all free for dinner on Saturday, we all said yes. Tired of the usual restaurants and the unusual but too expensive ones, I suggested we eat at Dusit Thani in Glorietta 3. I’ve only eaten there once before, and have no idea why I never came back when, as I recall, I had a good time the first time I went there with my mom. I think I took it forgranted because it’s one of those things that have always been there so you hardly notice it any more. But that’s why it’s got extra points for longevity!

Anyway, for our appetizer, we ordered the Spring Roll with Thai Sauce.

Spring Roll with Thai Sauce Php90.00

It was delicious. It’s not that extraordinary, honestly. I guess you can only do so much with spring rolls, but it definitely whet our appetites, so it did its purpose.

For our main courses, we ordered Chicken Breast in Pandan Leaves and  Shrimps in Red Curry.

Chicken Breast in Pandan Leaves Php200.00

Shrimps in Red Curry Php250.00

Again, they were both really delicious. The chicken in pandan went really well with the soy sauce and sesame seeds and the curry wasn’t too spicy. And we made the right choice in ordering plain rice so we wouldn’t be overwhelmed with too many flavors.

For drinks, we ordered Thai iced tea, which is nearly just like regular tea except that it’s got a coconut flavor. It’s something I really loved when I first encountered it many years ago, so I’m so happy that it did not disappoint, despite my high expectations.

So, it was a happy event today because 1) my friends and I saw each other and told happy stories; and 2) we were able eat at a non-mainstream restaurant (because let’s face it, one can only eat at TGIFriday’s and such so many times), which I think food bloggers take forgranted.

—

On an unrelated note: HAPPY BIRTHDAY ATE ELS! Happy Birthday Marella!

Last weekend, my friends and I went to Chateau Royale in Nasugbu, Batangas. And it wasn’t really a bad experience. But I say this only because I love my friends and I always have fun with them, no matter where we are and what we’re doing. As for Chateau Royale, well, I don’t think I’m ever going back there again. And here’s the reason why:

On their website, and even on their brochures, they will tell you that there are two places to eat: Veranda Cafe, and the Floating Restaurant. Here’s the link to their list of facilities: Facilities

So I thought, okay, we’ll have lunch at the Floating Restaurant and then have dinner at the Veranda Cafe. But apparently that’s not possible because, what they don’t tell you in the brochures (because I assume it’s illegal) is that only Koreans are allowed to eat in the Floating Restaurant.

No, seriously. When we got there, we were asked to leave the premises because we weren’t allowed in it. They said we could only eat at the Veranda Cafe. Now, I don’ t know about you, but I think this is clearly a case of racism. I mean, they told us to leave the place because we were Filipino. What the hell? What makes it worse is that it happened in our very own country! It’s so wrong to be discriminated against in your own place.

I didn’t want the entire weekend with my friends to be ruined (and we were really very hungry) so we just went to Veranda Cafe and ate there. Luckily, the food was really delicious. I mean, it was really delicious, which picked up our spirits and made the day better. But… at the back of my mind, I was still pretty mad.

Later we took the 4PM tour of the resort and asked the tour guide why Filipinos weren’t allowed to eat at the Floating Restaurant. Her answer? “Because Koreans aren’t allowed at Veranda Cafe.”

Right. OK. Maybe on paper, that’ll look like it’s fair. Except, it’s really not. Why are there places exclusive to a particular race??

I can understand if a place was “Members Only”. Because members pay extra for exclusivity. But this is clearly a race issue, because we were specifically told, “This restaurant is for Korean guests only.” Not members, but Korean guests. And what happens if you’re neither Korean nor Filipino in this resort? Are you allowed to eat at either restaurant? Or at neither restaurant? I wasn’t able to ask because I didn’t want to be bothered by the issue again while we were there. I mean, my friends and I were there for a relaxing weekend, so I didn’t want to turn it into a protest rally. But knowing the racist/mis-educated Filipinos, it’s likely that it’ll depend on who looks like they have money, i.e. People who look rich will be allowed to eat at either restaurant, and people who don’t look rich will only be allowed at Veranda Cafe (you know, the restaurant that’s “exclusive” for Filipinos).

So yeah, I’m never going back there again. And until they change their racist ways, I wouldn’t recommend anybody to go there. As if it’s such a great place. There are a hundred more resorts that are way better. And if only the food wasn’t so great, I’d probably be ranting about more things.

“Nagtitipid siguro ang Square Enix kaya instead of ‘yung Japanese singer, si Charice na lang kinuha nila.”

Hindi ba nila alam kung gaano ka-big time si Charice? She has concerts with Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli! Nagpeperform siya sa Madison Square Garden! Nag-guest siya sa Glee! Halos ninang na niya si Oprah. Akala ba nila ‘eh mura ang talent fee ni Charice tulad nung mga kumakanta sa barangay?

It’s a case of colonial mentality, I guess. Anything local is cheap. Charice is Filipino, therefore her talent fee must be cheap. Therefore, companies only hire her when they’re looking for a cheaper alternative. Hay, mga tao talaga.