Some weekends are fun. Some are downright great. Then there was yesterday, and it was packed but very, very fun :D
The boss' chief of staff (he calls himself, humbly, as nothing more than a "special assistant") let me have Saturday off (I work half-days on Saturdays), so I took this opportunity to sleep in since sleep is something that I have been greatly lacking for the past month or so. Woke up at 1100 hrs or so, then just got ready to go to Greenbelt 3 to meet PJ. Pretty awesome date :)
Started the day off with lunch at Sentro, where we go to when we need our Filipino food fix. We ate here before, at the Global City branch, and we never seem to learn anything when it came to Sentro's huge servings. We are both on healthy lifestyles commitment, so we ordered healthier options. It's nice to have a support/partner when trying to lose pounds!
Grilled chicken barbecue. Pot of green tea :) Pumpkin soup. Salad with anchovies, mozzarella cheese balls, and tofu. Sizzling tofu. Then we watched Love and Other Drugs which, can I just say, provided so much laughter to PJ and myself because we could totally relate with about 93% of the movie's contents. ROFL. Will definitely blog this when I have the time.
Then we walked around the malls a bit, looking at sneakers and clothes (I'm sure we were both planning to get something :P) then we decided to have a light dinner before she had to go home. Enter Krazy Garlik. It was my first time, and apparently, her brother-in-law partially owns the place. Virtually all of their menu items contain garlic in varying proportions.
Beer and candlelight. Baba ghanoush. Gambas al ajillo. Then I went home, and it was off to Global City to attend my crew's third performance of 2011 so far, at the Topshelf club in High Street. Thanks to DLSU's POLISCY student organization for the invite to this gig.
Daddy gave 'em swagger. There you go. A pretty solid Saturday :)
If you are not fond of little, furry creatures, kindly skip this post.
A couple of days ago, I was in the office kitchen making some tea (that just sounded so right) when I noticed a little piece of paper sticking out from under the refrigerator. It was bright yellow and looked awfully familiar. It was familiar because over three years ago, this exact same thing happened already.
A poor little mouse, traipsing along, did not see it was already heading towards a flat piece of sticky-death. It's the Attack of the Paper, Vol. 2.
Sucks to be you, Mickey Gave it to the janitor a few minutes later and told him to dispose of the little fella as humanely as possible. No flushing, stomping, or burning. I don't know how he did it.
My quest for a fit and healthy lifestyle is going really good. I've just recently added 3-4 mugs of green tea in my daily diet, and it is working wonders! I should have done this earlier (I'm a java junkie by nature). Anyway, my latest fitness progress picture has pretty much shown I can win the battle against holiday weight gain. Hard work plus discipline equates to results. Very nice visual results. Don't get me wrong, I feel very healthy as well, plus I've gotten stronger :)
Fitness Progress, January 2011
The 5th and 6th don't seem to want to show. Not sure if I can cut beer totally (I drink with friends twice a week) but of course, that is yet another challenge to my routine and my discipline.
I'm also really happy that my strength levels are (all for three standard sets of ten repetitions each, unless stated otherwise): Shoulder press at 100 lbs. Dead lift at 220 lbs. Triceps push-down at 80 lbs. Leg Press at 500 lbs (1 year consistent weight).
To all my friends who are trying to live a healthier lifestyle, ADD GREEN TEA to your daily intake! It works wonders, but remember to drink plenty of water throughout the day to avoid dehydration. Good luck!
Automated Teller Machines (ATM) Self-checkout Counters Touch Screens Mobile Phones Remote Controls Shopping Carts Reusable Shopping Bags Read the linked article for further elaboration on each one, though some (like the ATM and remote controls) are rather obvious.
For picture sources, click and check the link for the name of the picture.
My crew's first gig of the year. Even if I'm not with them on this gig due to work commitments, I am very proud of them. It was a pretty good show as well. Here's the video:
My alma mater, De La Salle University Manila, has traditionally been the venue of the Bar Exams, with lawyers-to-be gathering inside the campus to take the exams that would make or break their legal future. However, a grenade attack last during last year's exams, as well as the construction of our new Centennial Hall have made the Supreme Court of the Philippines reconsider the venue of the exams. That honor now goes to the Unibersidad ng Santo Tomas (or University of Saint Thomas, but no one in their right mind would call it that here in the Philippines).
Popularly known as "Uste" (oos-teh), UST is the oldest university in Asia at over four-hundred years. Founded in 1611, it is also the largest Catholic university in the world in terms of student population in a single campus. Uste is definitely one of the best universities in the country, and is famous for the medical disciplines that it offers.
I also cannot help but think that as much as I love the neoclassical design of La Salle structures, Uste's New World feel is also pretty breath-taking: UST's crest. UST's varsity crest.
Well then. I suppose the Bar Exams have found a fitting home :)
I know many people personally who have lost gadgets such as mobile phones and laptops in public places, and it is simply amazing to see a heist in action. In this article from Yahoo! News Philippines, a thieving-ring is caught on the in-store camera executing a quick and flawless job. This happened in Oyster Boy, an eatery at Metrowalk, off Meralco Avenue, Ortigas City.
The video:
So please, be wary of placing your bags with valuables out of sight. Remember, "out of sight, out of mind" sometimes applies in cases such as this one. Personally, I like placing my wallet and mobile phone in a place where it is either on me (a tight pocket, like a shirt pocket) or an inch away from me on the table. As for bags, I always loop a strap around my ankle - which would have prevented this one immediately.
This has been a public service post from me, courtesy of Yahoo! News and YouTube user Teddypork.
De La Salle University's Men's Football Team crushed Ateneo de Manila's Men's Football Team in the opening football match of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) football season.
5 - 1
All our goal-scorers were rookies; two bagged a brace each, and another a single goal, while AdMU scored just before halftime. In any case, it could not stop the inevitable La Salle demolition of the Ateneo team at the final whistle.
Yesterday, Atty. Lizada took us boys out again for a treat: this time, at Sakai Sushi in Mall of Asia. As if the Red Crab night wasn't deadly enough, for my attempted diet, at least. LOL.
We didn't eat as much as the night before, but I have to say, Sakai has some really heaping servings when it comes to the tempura sets. Here's what I devoured:
Japanese tofu. Blue marlin sashimi. Fish eggs or something sushi. :P Vegetable tempura set. Good place, I really liked it. The tea they served was piping hot as well, and went down well with the food. Service was quick, and very efficient. Pretty much what one would expect at a decent Japanese restaurant.
Atty. Lizada, Julian's mum, came over to Manila from Davao to attend a board meeting (those two words are destined to be a regular feature in this blog, it seems) and last night, she took Julian and I out for dinner. Supposed to go to Rockwell, but there are (I think) more restaurants in Greenbelt 3, so we decided to hit that instead. Ended up having a buffet dinner at Red Crab.
Steak on Mango Salsa & Pineapple-glazed Ham Paella Rice & Ribs with Barbecue Sauce Crab Fat Pasta & Crab-stuffed Squid Steamed Shrimps Red Crabs Grilled Shrimps Red Crab has pretty interesting choices, and the food was very filling. However, I think they could afford to have more choices - there wasn't much fish, for instance - and the food needs to be kept warm better. Also, they have to serve their tea hot! Mine was lukewarm, so I had to change it. Service was acceptable; the waiters could have been more attentive. The only downer for the night I suppose was the terrible singer in their employ. It really did not work.
Thanks again to Atty. Lizada for the dinner. Hours of good conversation regarding politics and administrative concerns was highly enjoyable as well. See you soon!
This was something that I knew about a couple of days before it was released. A tad bit disappointing in terms of potential consequences, but in my opinion, the noble thing to do, looking at the big picture.
One of my mentors and father-figures, Sir Edwin Reyes, spoke with me regarding this issue, and we were both in the same mind that coming clean and admitting the mistake first - an honest mistake at that - of our university would do all parties well. In the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), there is no space to make errors such as the one my university did. I'm very proud that not only did we own up to this error, but we are willing to face the consequences as well.
