I Blog, Therefore I Am.

It's American Idol season once again!

One of my favorite shows on TV will have a Top 36 and a wild card round this year instead of the usual Top 24 semis. Joe's Place Blog and MJ's Big Blog, a couple of Idol authorities, already posted a spoiler of a presumably leaked list of those who got in through Vote For The Worst. We will be seeing if they are right at the live performances and semi-finals on the 3rd week of February after a week or two of Hollywood Week broadcast.

I already have a bet if the list is correct. I am very fascinated by the great voice and bubbly personality of 16 year old Stevie Wright. She auditioned in Glendale, Arizona and sang "At Last" by Etta James. All judges were impressed and Kara and Paula even said that she's exceptional.

Check out her audition video:

Stevie at last
Uploaded by mjsbigblogvideos

Can't wait to see her again! Hope she will reach the Top 12!

Here's the full list of the Top 36:

Adam Lambert, Alexander Wagner-Trugman, Alexis Grace, Allison Iraheta, Ann Marie Boskovich, Anoop Desai, Arianna Ayesha Afsar, Brent Keith, Casey Carlson, Danny Gokey, Jackie Tohn, Jasmine Murray, Jeanie Vailes, Jessica Langseth, Joanna Pacitti, Jorge Nunez, Junoy Joyner, Kai Kalama, Kendall Beard, Kristen McNamara, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Breitzke, Matt Giraud, Megan Courkrey, Michael Sarver, Mishavonna Henson, Nate McGee, Nick Western Mitchell (aka Normound Gentle), Ricky Braddy, Scott MacIntyre, Stephen Fowler, Stevie Wright, Taylor Vaifanua, Tatiana Del Toro, Von Smith

Notable ones from the list are Casey Carlson, dubbed as one of the prettiest AI contestant ever with a bikini calendar to boot; washed-out recording artist Joanna Pacitti; and Steve MacIntyre, the almost-blind singer from Arizona.

I also like Adam Lambert of California. He's a a theatrical singer from Hollywood and he is kinda cute. I just don't know what is his preference. Click this link for his audition video and tell me what you think.

I've waited for January 23 for four days - that's from January 19 to 22. Aside from the fact that it's payday, I've longed for the day simply because it's TGIF! Work was demanding and whirlwind in the last week and it was such a joy to finally reach Friday. January is always a loaded month because of all the proposals and plans we have to turn in for the new year. We've already submitted two proposals in the last week and negotiated a lot of "deals" so I think we are on the right track. I'm pretty inspired and excited for the new things and projects that we are doing and I cannot wait to launch and implement them all.

Nothing beats celebrating a Friday after a long and hardworking week. So here are some tales on how I celebrated last Friday with my colleagues; and the upcoming Chinese New Year with my friends.

FRIDAY IS ALWAYS PICTURE DAY
My officemates love posing for pictures. So here are some samples on how we usually spend Fridays: in front of the camera.







KUNG HEI FAT CHOI!
My friends and I are not Chinese but our dinner pick for Friday was at Superbowl in Glorietta 4 to somehow celebrate the Lunar New Year. We ordered a LOT since we were used to having dinners for five people. Unfortunately, Charo and Jako were not able to join us so it was only me, Tin, and Aileen who consumed all the fattening Chinese munch you can see below.


Chinese Food Fest Face-off! Hehe!


Starters: All The Free Kropek You Can Eat


Dimsum Combination Platter
(Siopao, Hakao, Pork Siomai, Deep-fried Wanton, Vegetarian Spring Roll)


Yang Chow Fried Rice


Hunan Tofu


Lechon Macau


Crispy Mandarin Chicken

We watched Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway's Bride Wars after our hearty meal. It was such a fun movie about weddings and friendship. The ending was a bit unexpected but not really surprising. I've always been a fan of Kate and Anne (more of Kate) but this movie definitely belongs to Anne. It's a lovely chick flick that helped us de-stress after a long work week.

TGIF! Until January 30!

It’s a good feeling to be an American today.

I’m a true-blue nationalistic Filipino (who would never dare to be "un-proud" of it) but this is one of those moments when being an American is actually cool. Aside from the pomp and pageantry, today’s inauguration of President Barrack Obama symbolizes a new hope and optimism for all - not only for the people of the land where he will lead but for the whole world as well.

Long live, Barry! Goodluck and God Bless! Knock 'em dead!

Cartoon Credit: Jeff Koterba, Omaha World Herald and Daryl Cagle's Cartoon Index.

Today, January 5, 2009, is probably the most unpopular day of the year so far. Everyone was too hung-over to work or too tired from vacation to even pretend to work. The last holiday vacation was probably the longest I can remember since I started working. I took a leave on the 24th of December so I had 12 days of non-work including those holidays declared by the government. It's common for me to have January blues so I usually extend my vacation until the 3rd working day of the year. But the vacation was too long already so it's too much to even consider on extending for that long.

The first four days of the year were uneventful ones for me. I spent most of the day sleeping, surfing random blogs and websites, resizing pictures, reading The American Wife, and watching old episodes of Project Runway and Lipstick Jungle. I was too tired from all the holiday celebrations and was preparing for the work stress thus I spent 10 to 14 hours a day just sleeping after the New Year celebrations.

Now that we covered the mundane things I did during the long vacation, let’s now take a look at the few exciting events and get-togethers I’ve been in the last weeks of 2008.

YEARLY CLAN REUNION
We spent Christmas Eve at home with the usual Noche Buena and opening of gifts. My niece, Gabbie, had the biggest loot as expected. Christmas day was spent at home resting and lounging in preparation for our annual clan reunion with my mom's sisters and their families in the evening.


One of the gifts I received! This is truly a favorite.


My nieces Nica, Gabbie, Casey and Jana on our Christmas party.


My niece Icee counting her Christmas cash

BAGUIO ONCE MORE
My good friend Tin asked us to join her in celebrating her 30th birthday at the City of Pines. It was my second time in Baguio for the year but I still had fun. We went around Session, Burnham & Wright, had Strawberry Taho, coffee at John Hay, dinner at Volante and celebration drinks at Northgate.


Tin and her birthday cake of 12 years ago


At the El Cielito lobby


Ylette at Burnham. One of my favorite shots.

POST-CHRISTMAS DINNER WITH FRIENDS
My forces girlfriends Tin, Aileen, Charo & Jako had our holiday dinner at Italianni's before the end of the year. We haven't seen each other for a while so we spent the night catching up on things and exchanging gifts.


Me, Tin, Charu, Aileen


What's with the knife?


The Mac Keeper

WELCOMING THE NEW YEAR
We spent New Year's eve at home quietly despite the loud bangs outside. We gave thanks to the Lord for all the blessings He gave us for the year. We also prayed for good health, prosperity and joys for the coming year.


Gabbie and her three trumpets


Fireworks on a school zone? How weird is our neighborhood?


More holiday photos at my Multiply photo site.

It's more than twenty three hours since the New Year and I am still stuck on 2008 (but not because I want to). It's just that I was too tired in the last few days to make a serious and emotional "looking back post" and it's only now that I become inspired to actually write one.

I usually describe my years according to the major milestones I felt or experienced in that year. Like 2004 was The Year I Fell In Love, alternately 2005 and 2006 were the The Year I Messed Up and The Year My Heart Got Broken In So Many Ways (I still can't decide which is which) and 2007 was The Year I Became Smart - literally and figuratively.

2008 was a year of great blessings for me. Yeah, I still have the occasional trials and hardships in various aspects of my life but it was nothing compared to the tumultuous years I had in the past (Hello, 2005 & 2006!). 2008 was very generous to me even if I don't deserve all the things that were given to me.

The Year I Turned Thirty was probably the best description I can give to 2008. Turning thirty years old (and single at that) can be a dread. I used to fear it when I was still on my twenties. But being on this year actually opened doors for me. Come with the age is the respect and a certain reverence. I am still funny, clumsy and carefree but I already sense a certain maturity within me which I've been hoping to achieve for years. My views and convictions are now on the serious path compared to the ideals I had a few years back. Oh, and thirty is "happiness". I'm now happier and more contented with my life compared before.

The most-asked-and-I-often-despise question of the year was of course the boyfriend question. "Do you have one?" "When are you going to have one?" "Mag-diet ka kaya so you can have one?" I am tired of answering these questions so I often answer in jest or sarcastically. My usual answers were "I am not interested!" or "I've long given up on love!". Then there will be another batch of questions and opinions ranging from "But why? You're still young! Don't give up!" to "Why? Are you now interested in women?". Oh well! The truth is I feel so indifferent about it. Yeah, there are guys out there who asks; and friends keep on fixing me up with people BUT I just don't feel it. The past, though very painful and a bit traumatic, is no longer an issue for me. I have longed forgiven myself and moved on from it. I just want to be happy all by myself for the meantime. I want to be single and discover things for the meantime. I want peace and serenity for now. I'll be ready when I'll be ready. :)

It was a less emotional year for me except for the fact that one of my good friends unexpectedly died last February. Binchy definitely struck a cord in all of us but we believe that he's now in a happier and better place. Aside from that, everything was smooth-sailing and drama-free. My relationship with my family and friends became stronger than ever and I was also given a chance to bond more with my bestest friends through several trips, vacations and travels last year.

Work is great and I learned a lot last year. There was the usual pressure and competition but it helped us more than it broke us. Heading a team was really a challenge especially if you were out to prove something. There were a lot of guts, second guessing and prayers involved as we launch one project after another. I am definitely happier and more contented with my current career compared to all the other past jobs I held. It allowed me to have independent ideas, kick-ass diskartes, and most importantly it gave me the opportunity to have a work and personal life balance. The pay-out at the end of the year were just icings on the cake.

I sailed through in 2008. It's a neutral year for me (boring at times actually) and I will definitely miss it. I am sure that 2009 will be a bit different since I know it will involve a lot of challenges and risk - not only for me but for everyone (Hello, Economy!). I also know that I will be fighting a lot of internal battles this year with the choices I will make...so help me God. Stay tuned!

Let's rock 2009! Happy New Year!