Thanks to everyone who reached out to me after reading my previous entry - to everyone who commented and gave their own “oks lang yan dude!” pat on the back. For me, posting that feels like one big monkey off my back as finally I can laugh this off.
Comedy equals Tragedy plus Time
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Thursday, February 07, 2008
my so called music career
We had this party over at 1000 N La Salle and we were playing Rockband. Someone was already holding the lead guitar, the bass guitar and the drums. The mic was just laying on the floor.
Someone picked up the mic and gave it to me since I was the person nearest to the mic who wasn’t eating.
I had the strangest feeling of Déjà vu and my mind went blank for a minute.
Let’s flashback to 2001, when Arn was still Arnold, when he sported a bald look and when he was still of great physique.
It was our friend’s party and we decided to form a temporary band and play her favorite songs. One played the guitar since he had guitar lessons back in grade school. One played the drums since his brother had a set and one played bass since he thought it was really cool. I had no idea how to play any of the instruments and so guess who got the mic.
It was my childhood dream to play for a band especially since I grew up loving alternative and grunge music, mostly Nirvana and Guns N Roses
We practiced for weeks, memorizing chords, beats and we played well during the party. We had so much fun that we decided to play on. We held bi-monthly practices, took individual trainings and played in our other friends’ parties. We released an “album” which sold 8 copies. The band was named “The Arnold Band” which started as a joke until it stuck.
Life was happy. Despite all the usual college challenges, band life for me was extremely happy and satisfying. For me, I started out my site and named it ArnoldRocks to chronicle my band life, our gigs and any bit of news.
After a few years, we decided to take it to the next step and play semi-professionally (semi since it was still an on a side thing and we played more for experience than for money). We changed the name of the band. We played in small unknown places near Paranaque for free as opening acts. It was great, but something was off. Something was wrong and yet no one in the band minded, except for me. One day we had an audition and some talent manager pointed out our problem. That same problem we all knew but refused to talk about. Our lead guitarist was already great since day one. Our drummer received lessons from his older brother and was fast developing. Our bassist has shown steady improvement throughout those months. The spotlight was on the lead singer.
He sucked.
He was fat.
He didn’t have any stage presence.
He wasn’t talented and wasn’t even good looking.
The band was held back by this guy. I stood there quietly as I heard more and more criticisms but I wasn’t listening anymore. I just remember nodding and giving out fake smiles and laughs. See, I knew about this after our first few practices. While they all grew into great musicians, I was showing no improvements. I had little practice. I couldn’t afford voice lessons. By the time I did, it didn’t matter anymore.
It wasn’t my personal failure that really hurt. It was the thought that I let my friends down that felt excruciating.
After that audition, we went to our old practice room but no one sang anymore. I was outside, smoking near a drainage ditch. They were my band mates, but as agreed since we first formed, we were friends first, band mates second, businessmen third. They defended me and told me the band will only have me as the front man. I was too hurt and ashamed to go on. I left the band against their wishes.
To quote a phrase from my journal entry at that time: “No one must walk away from their childhood dream. No one.”
Years passed and the band eventually got their new singer but eventually disbanded once they graduated from college.
Head back to 2008 when “Arnold” evolved into “Arn”, grew even fatter and now sports a menacing long hair and goatee. Imagine the feeling of holding a mic again, with your drummer behind you, lead guitarist to your right and bassist on the left. I know Rockband was just a game but it sure opened old wounds.
It took a minute before that blank stare on my face turned into a big smile
Things change. Time heals all wounds. I’ve already accepted what happened to my so called music career. It didn’t matter to me anymore that people used to boo me for having a singing voice like a drowning cat. I still have my greatest fan. I sing for her and my songs make her smile. She told me she listens to the songs I recorded for her and how it made her happy.
So maybe Jaye has an unusual interest for the sound of drowning cats. Who knows?
But for me, she was all that mattered.
Someone picked up the mic and gave it to me since I was the person nearest to the mic who wasn’t eating.
I had the strangest feeling of Déjà vu and my mind went blank for a minute.
Let’s flashback to 2001, when Arn was still Arnold, when he sported a bald look and when he was still of great physique.
It was our friend’s party and we decided to form a temporary band and play her favorite songs. One played the guitar since he had guitar lessons back in grade school. One played the drums since his brother had a set and one played bass since he thought it was really cool. I had no idea how to play any of the instruments and so guess who got the mic.
It was my childhood dream to play for a band especially since I grew up loving alternative and grunge music, mostly Nirvana and Guns N Roses
We practiced for weeks, memorizing chords, beats and we played well during the party. We had so much fun that we decided to play on. We held bi-monthly practices, took individual trainings and played in our other friends’ parties. We released an “album” which sold 8 copies. The band was named “The Arnold Band” which started as a joke until it stuck.
Life was happy. Despite all the usual college challenges, band life for me was extremely happy and satisfying. For me, I started out my site and named it ArnoldRocks to chronicle my band life, our gigs and any bit of news.
After a few years, we decided to take it to the next step and play semi-professionally (semi since it was still an on a side thing and we played more for experience than for money). We changed the name of the band. We played in small unknown places near Paranaque for free as opening acts. It was great, but something was off. Something was wrong and yet no one in the band minded, except for me. One day we had an audition and some talent manager pointed out our problem. That same problem we all knew but refused to talk about. Our lead guitarist was already great since day one. Our drummer received lessons from his older brother and was fast developing. Our bassist has shown steady improvement throughout those months. The spotlight was on the lead singer.
He sucked.
He was fat.
He didn’t have any stage presence.
He wasn’t talented and wasn’t even good looking.
The band was held back by this guy. I stood there quietly as I heard more and more criticisms but I wasn’t listening anymore. I just remember nodding and giving out fake smiles and laughs. See, I knew about this after our first few practices. While they all grew into great musicians, I was showing no improvements. I had little practice. I couldn’t afford voice lessons. By the time I did, it didn’t matter anymore.
It wasn’t my personal failure that really hurt. It was the thought that I let my friends down that felt excruciating.
After that audition, we went to our old practice room but no one sang anymore. I was outside, smoking near a drainage ditch. They were my band mates, but as agreed since we first formed, we were friends first, band mates second, businessmen third. They defended me and told me the band will only have me as the front man. I was too hurt and ashamed to go on. I left the band against their wishes.
To quote a phrase from my journal entry at that time: “No one must walk away from their childhood dream. No one.”
Years passed and the band eventually got their new singer but eventually disbanded once they graduated from college.
Head back to 2008 when “Arnold” evolved into “Arn”, grew even fatter and now sports a menacing long hair and goatee. Imagine the feeling of holding a mic again, with your drummer behind you, lead guitarist to your right and bassist on the left. I know Rockband was just a game but it sure opened old wounds.
It took a minute before that blank stare on my face turned into a big smile
Things change. Time heals all wounds. I’ve already accepted what happened to my so called music career. It didn’t matter to me anymore that people used to boo me for having a singing voice like a drowning cat. I still have my greatest fan. I sing for her and my songs make her smile. She told me she listens to the songs I recorded for her and how it made her happy.
So maybe Jaye has an unusual interest for the sound of drowning cats. Who knows?
But for me, she was all that mattered.
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
It Just Shows How Athletic I am
I was on my way home from the office and it was snowing real hard. I was a few minutes away from home but I was starting to freeze fast because of the strong winds.
I was approaching the pedestrian walk when the walk sign started to blink red. Since I didn’t want to stand there for an extra minute or so, I decided to run for it. Full speed.
Halfway, the blinking red light stopped blinking and stayed red.
The motor from the stopped vehicles started to roar.
Fat guy had to run faster.
I reached the other side of the street with full momentum only to be met by a huge patch of snow and ice. I decided to skid my shoes so I can slide and stop ... you know, like ice skating.
Turns out, ice alone is slippery. Snow AND ice isn’t.
My shoe didn’t slide, it planted itself on a pile of snow and I did a half cartwheel – half somersault then landed on my back. I couldn’t get back up right away since I was still exhausted from running.
I sat up and found myself at the feet of this one family with the kid laughing hard and the dad telling the kid to stop since it’s rude. The mom wanted to laugh but was trying hard not to. The dad looked away. I just laughed and told them I was fine and I was just trying to impress them.
Once a clown, always a clown.
I was approaching the pedestrian walk when the walk sign started to blink red. Since I didn’t want to stand there for an extra minute or so, I decided to run for it. Full speed.
Halfway, the blinking red light stopped blinking and stayed red.
The motor from the stopped vehicles started to roar.
Fat guy had to run faster.
I reached the other side of the street with full momentum only to be met by a huge patch of snow and ice. I decided to skid my shoes so I can slide and stop ... you know, like ice skating.
Turns out, ice alone is slippery. Snow AND ice isn’t.
My shoe didn’t slide, it planted itself on a pile of snow and I did a half cartwheel – half somersault then landed on my back. I couldn’t get back up right away since I was still exhausted from running.
I sat up and found myself at the feet of this one family with the kid laughing hard and the dad telling the kid to stop since it’s rude. The mom wanted to laugh but was trying hard not to. The dad looked away. I just laughed and told them I was fine and I was just trying to impress them.
Once a clown, always a clown.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
The Onshore Pictorial
I was at the memorial shrine along Wacker drive one Friday morning. I had my tripod with me and my 2 cameras – one with the wide angle and the other with the zoom lens. I wasn’t sure I’d even touch the zoom lens since it wasn’t the right one for this photo shoot but I brought it along just ib case.
A few days ago, John, the Chicago site lead contacted me and asked me to hold a photo shoot for all onshore people. Since the picture will be used in a postcard memo which will be sent to all Manila personnel, he wanted this to look good and so he contacted me. With that I think he meant he wanted this to look good but they probably can’t afford a professional photographer and so they used the cheapest alternative. :P
I was at the location early to scope and frame the place. John arrived and we discussed the shots they needed and what I had in mind while waiting for our “models” to arrive. The weather was great in terms of lighting as it was a bright and sunny day (Thanks to my honey who prayed for a beautiful day :D). In terms of temperature, well, it was freezing and so everyone was bundled up and given that the location was directly beside the Chicago River, the winds didn’t help at all. No wonder out of the 150+ people invited, only 15 showed up (mainly because they lived nearby and they didn’t have much work to do).
Like what I do with studio shoots, I took some pretty basic classroom type photos first just to warm everyone up. After the first two poses, my hand was starting to freeze since I couldn’t operate the camera with my thick gloves on. We took the usual classroom shot, a happy shot, a serious shot, a jumping shot and a wacky shot while moving the group here and there to get different angles and different backgrounds.
This one’s my favorite: 
I love holding pictorials like these. Hey, they get their pictures, I gain experience and believe me, I learn a lot more through hour long shoots like these than by reading books all day.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
It started with a can of New England Clam Chowder
I was in the grocery where I picked up a can of soup - there’s nothing like a bowl of hot New England clam chowder with croutons on a cold day while watching TV.
I passed by the rack with all the croutons which weren’t on sale and so I decided to just make them myself to avoid unnecessary purchases (Never buy what you can make right?).
Back home, I prepared the croutons, preheated the oven but then I remembered I don’t have a baking sheet so again I had to improvise. I took a big sheet of aluminum foil and placed the croutons on top.
Next challenge: how to place the flimsy foil and all the croutons on it into the oven. I took the cover of our rice bin and used it as a tray so I can slide the foil into the oven. It worked at first but then half the foil was not properly centered on the oven grills. While holding one side of it with the tongs in my right hand, I had to move the foil with my free left hand. Since I didn’t have any oven mitts, I had to stick my left hand inside the oven, push the foil further inside then take my hand out IN ONE FLUID MOTION.
After doing some practice strokes, I stuck my left hand in, pushed the foil and took my hand out. While taking my hand out though, my right hand (the one holding the tongs) went up a little and my pinkie was pressed against one of the hot grills.
The tong fell to the ground.
Croutons went flying around.
There was a very loud shout that could be heard all throughout the 23rd floor but only Filipinos could have understood.
Li’l pinkie was burned. =(
I scrambled to my laptop to search for quick burn remedies. I dipped my hand on some ice water while scrambling to find my wallet, my keys and my jacket so I can run downstairs and pick up some burn cream. Minutes later, the pain started to become unbearable. Jaye told me to put toothpaste on it to soothe the pain so I did. I was wondering why it wasn’t working until I realized I didn’t have toothpaste… I had one of those gel toothpaste so I ran to Mags’ place and covered my pinkie with white Colgate.
You know what’s funny?
Colgate was a lot more effective than the burn cream.
I opened my drawer and found oven mitts.
While removing the charred croutons from the oven, I discovered that the oven had a hidden drawer and contained 4 different baking sheets.
Croutons went on sale the next day.
I passed by the rack with all the croutons which weren’t on sale and so I decided to just make them myself to avoid unnecessary purchases (Never buy what you can make right?).
Back home, I prepared the croutons, preheated the oven but then I remembered I don’t have a baking sheet so again I had to improvise. I took a big sheet of aluminum foil and placed the croutons on top.
Next challenge: how to place the flimsy foil and all the croutons on it into the oven. I took the cover of our rice bin and used it as a tray so I can slide the foil into the oven. It worked at first but then half the foil was not properly centered on the oven grills. While holding one side of it with the tongs in my right hand, I had to move the foil with my free left hand. Since I didn’t have any oven mitts, I had to stick my left hand inside the oven, push the foil further inside then take my hand out IN ONE FLUID MOTION.
After doing some practice strokes, I stuck my left hand in, pushed the foil and took my hand out. While taking my hand out though, my right hand (the one holding the tongs) went up a little and my pinkie was pressed against one of the hot grills.
The tong fell to the ground.
Croutons went flying around.
There was a very loud shout that could be heard all throughout the 23rd floor but only Filipinos could have understood.
Li’l pinkie was burned. =(
I scrambled to my laptop to search for quick burn remedies. I dipped my hand on some ice water while scrambling to find my wallet, my keys and my jacket so I can run downstairs and pick up some burn cream. Minutes later, the pain started to become unbearable. Jaye told me to put toothpaste on it to soothe the pain so I did. I was wondering why it wasn’t working until I realized I didn’t have toothpaste… I had one of those gel toothpaste so I ran to Mags’ place and covered my pinkie with white Colgate.
You know what’s funny?
Colgate was a lot more effective than the burn cream.
I opened my drawer and found oven mitts.
While removing the charred croutons from the oven, I discovered that the oven had a hidden drawer and contained 4 different baking sheets.
Croutons went on sale the next day.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Jeremy
RULES:
1. Put your music player on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. You must write that song name down no matter how silly it sounds!
1. If someone says "Is this okay?" you say?
“Losing my Religion” - REM
2. What would best describe your personality?
“Spolarium” - Eraserheads
3. What do you like in a girl?
“Bubbly” – Colbie Caillat; Makes sense…
4. How do you feel today?
“With a Smile” – Eraserheads; Somewhat true :)
5. What is your life's purpose?
“One Step Closer” – Linkin Park; Again, somewhat true…
6. What is your motto?
“Torete” – Moonstar 88
7. What do your friends think of you?
"Kahit Kailan" – South Border; Wha?
8. What do you think of your parents?
“You and I” – Jason Mraz
9. What do you think about very often?
“Pare Ko” – Eraserheads
10. What do you think of your bestfriend?
“Without You” – Rent OST
11. What do you think of the person you like?
“Do my Baby” – Prince; Wha?!? (by the way, that’s the song Chris Tucker was singing in the opening sequence in Rush Hour 3)
12. What is your life story?
“She will be loved” – Maroon 5
13. What do you want to be when you grow up?
“Coffee Shop” – Landon Pigg; To be a barista?
14. What do you think when you see the person you like?
“Rockstar” - Nickelback
15. What do your parents think of you?
“You’ll be safe here” – Rivermaya
16. What will you dance to at your wedding?
“How Did You know” – U Turn; Awww… galing!
17. What is your favorite hobby/interest?
“The Day You Said Goodnight” – Hale; My hobby is saying good night?
18. What is your biggest fear?
“Maybe” – King; Hmmm, was… but di na… turns out love na love pala niya ako :D
19. What is your biggest secret?
“Awit ng Barkada” – Itchyworms
20. What song will be the title when you repost this?
“Jeremy” – Pearl Jam
Saturday, January 12, 2008
The Chicago Skyline
One of the weirdest days in Chicago (in terms of weather) turned out to be the day I shoot my first landscape photo for the year.
It was 66F outside and so I decided to head out to the Adler Planetarium to take a picture of the Chicago Skyline. I was already there some time ago with Gea and Pat but it was too cold for me and basically I chickened out. I brought my trust tripod with me and set it up just beside a busted up lamp post. No lamp post light = better skyline picture.
Somehow I ended up with this. Not bad right? There's a bigger version of the picture here
Of course, the Filipino that I am, I decided to shoot one with me in it :P It was blurry though since I was basically focusing this blindly. :P Arrrgghhh! My haaaaiiirrrrr!!!
It was 66F outside and so I decided to head out to the Adler Planetarium to take a picture of the Chicago Skyline. I was already there some time ago with Gea and Pat but it was too cold for me and basically I chickened out. I brought my trust tripod with me and set it up just beside a busted up lamp post. No lamp post light = better skyline picture.
Somehow I ended up with this. Not bad right? There's a bigger version of the picture here
Of course, the Filipino that I am, I decided to shoot one with me in it :P It was blurry though since I was basically focusing this blindly. :P Arrrgghhh! My haaaaiiirrrrr!!!
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
The Year 2007
Probably one of the best years I’ve had hands down as it was full of accomplishments, excitement, love, and most importantly, progress. I’ll admit there were bloopers and blunders along the way but overall it was truly a great year for me.
My 2007 Summary:
In one word, why 2007 was a happy year. “Jaye”
Still my excuse why I didn’t lose weight this year. “Lose weight” was NOT one of my resolutions for 2007.
2007 Resolution that had no chance since day 1. Learn to play the guitar.
Just proves how geeky I am. I received 2 certifications this year – one for database design and another for database administration using Microsoft SQL Server.
Proves that geekiness is contagious. Jaye received her certification for design with me.
Where most of my money went from January to June. Expensive car repairs.
Like a pawn promoted to queen. I got promoted to team lead. Anything would have been better compared to last year when they “increased” my salary just enough to put me into the next tax bracket (which means I actually lost more money).
At least I didn’t hurt my knee. I badly sprained my right foot and developed a defect on my right eye. My foot still hurts but my eye problem is permanent (the problem helps a lot though in photography)
Most lopsided loss. Jaye beat me 137 – 82 in bowling.
Not that it matters. I beat her in our next game 108 – 102.
Enjoying long hair. 2007 was the year of my monthly haircuts (it used to be every 2-3 weeks) until June 13, when I had my last haircut.
I wouldn’t feed this to my enemy. I cooked chicken adobo with Coke.
Why I’m such an evil roommate. I let my roommate taste it without telling him about its dark little secret.
Best Conversation of the Year. With Mike, my American friend:
Mike: “Hey Arn! How’s it going?”
Arn: “It’s…going… on...”
Mike: “Huh? What’s going on?”
Arn: “You know… life…”
(Weeks later I learned that the response should "I'm doing well, how about you?")
Why my friends from Ateneo didn’t talk to me for a month. De La Salle University won the UAAP crown in men’s basketball.
Why my friends who were die hard New York Yankees fans didn’t talk to me for a month. The Boston Red Sox won the World Series.
Most important technology I learned. Torrent
Most expensive Purchase. My Nikon 70-200mm lens.
Most expensive thing I sold. My Nikon 70-200mm lens.
Happiest Day. December 12, 2007.
Movie of the year. Shrek 3
Based on my iTunes play count stat, my song of the year. Alapaap by 6CycleMind by a hair over Rivermaya’s Balisong and You’ll Be Safe Here.
Stupidest Thing Done. I woke up one day and saw my water jug in the medicine cabinet.
Which means…? I opened my fridge and saw my GNC multivitamins inside.
My trump recipe card and the only thing I’ll bring during potluck, my best dish. Arn’s famous wet beef tapa.
The whole year I tried using this as an explanation as to why these things happen and for some reason it always make sense. “Kung gusto maraming paraan, kung ayaw maraming dahilan.”
Split in half down the middle. I spent the first half of the year in Manila and the second half in Chicago. I left Manila on June 15.
He doesn’t look like he belonged to this store. When I bought my Wii from Toys R Us, the guy who punched in my order was a big muscular man.
That’s not even the funny part. His name was “Jaye”.
I should have been an action star. While taking pictures of the flags during one windy night (the picture is entitled “Wind” in my Chicago at Night gallery), the wind blew my camera and my tripod. I dived and caught the camera before it fell into the ground. I scratched my elbows but the camera was fine.
Most important lesson learned. There are people who are just plain jerks. Learn to see through them or else you'll only know about this when they stab you in the back.
Chicago’s onshore next top model - most viewed model from my gallery. Leah Rebosa
Most viewed landscape picture from my gallery. Chicago at Night.
My 2007 Summary:
In one word, why 2007 was a happy year. “Jaye”
Still my excuse why I didn’t lose weight this year. “Lose weight” was NOT one of my resolutions for 2007.
2007 Resolution that had no chance since day 1. Learn to play the guitar.
Just proves how geeky I am. I received 2 certifications this year – one for database design and another for database administration using Microsoft SQL Server.
Proves that geekiness is contagious. Jaye received her certification for design with me.
Where most of my money went from January to June. Expensive car repairs.
Like a pawn promoted to queen. I got promoted to team lead. Anything would have been better compared to last year when they “increased” my salary just enough to put me into the next tax bracket (which means I actually lost more money).
At least I didn’t hurt my knee. I badly sprained my right foot and developed a defect on my right eye. My foot still hurts but my eye problem is permanent (the problem helps a lot though in photography)
Most lopsided loss. Jaye beat me 137 – 82 in bowling.
Not that it matters. I beat her in our next game 108 – 102.
Enjoying long hair. 2007 was the year of my monthly haircuts (it used to be every 2-3 weeks) until June 13, when I had my last haircut.
I wouldn’t feed this to my enemy. I cooked chicken adobo with Coke.
Why I’m such an evil roommate. I let my roommate taste it without telling him about its dark little secret.
Best Conversation of the Year. With Mike, my American friend:
Mike: “Hey Arn! How’s it going?”
Arn: “It’s…going… on...”
Mike: “Huh? What’s going on?”
Arn: “You know… life…”
(Weeks later I learned that the response should "I'm doing well, how about you?")
Why my friends from Ateneo didn’t talk to me for a month. De La Salle University won the UAAP crown in men’s basketball.
Why my friends who were die hard New York Yankees fans didn’t talk to me for a month. The Boston Red Sox won the World Series.
Most important technology I learned. Torrent
Most expensive Purchase. My Nikon 70-200mm lens.
Most expensive thing I sold. My Nikon 70-200mm lens.
Happiest Day. December 12, 2007.
Movie of the year. Shrek 3
Based on my iTunes play count stat, my song of the year. Alapaap by 6CycleMind by a hair over Rivermaya’s Balisong and You’ll Be Safe Here.
Stupidest Thing Done. I woke up one day and saw my water jug in the medicine cabinet.
Which means…? I opened my fridge and saw my GNC multivitamins inside.
My trump recipe card and the only thing I’ll bring during potluck, my best dish. Arn’s famous wet beef tapa.
The whole year I tried using this as an explanation as to why these things happen and for some reason it always make sense. “Kung gusto maraming paraan, kung ayaw maraming dahilan.”
Split in half down the middle. I spent the first half of the year in Manila and the second half in Chicago. I left Manila on June 15.
He doesn’t look like he belonged to this store. When I bought my Wii from Toys R Us, the guy who punched in my order was a big muscular man.
That’s not even the funny part. His name was “Jaye”.
I should have been an action star. While taking pictures of the flags during one windy night (the picture is entitled “Wind” in my Chicago at Night gallery), the wind blew my camera and my tripod. I dived and caught the camera before it fell into the ground. I scratched my elbows but the camera was fine.
Most important lesson learned. There are people who are just plain jerks. Learn to see through them or else you'll only know about this when they stab you in the back.
Chicago’s onshore next top model - most viewed model from my gallery. Leah Rebosa
Most viewed landscape picture from my gallery. Chicago at Night.
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Cooking with Arnold
Fish and Veggies
Start the year right with a healthy meal as I cooked my first fish dish in Chicago. The curse of being a better cook – no more bloopers or kitchen disasters. 
Nothing much to this dish though as it's just catfish fried in butter then placed on top of stir-fried vegetables. I didn't even think if the two went well together but they sure looked good picture-wise. I guess I'm a photographer first, chef second.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
The Gym People
Believe it or now, I DO visit the gym sometimes. No, I’m not building muscles or even doing cardio stuff. I just need to rehab my balky knee and foot. It’s funny who you run into the gym though. Below is a summary of who I’ve run into the pros of having them around and of course, the cons. Since I don’t know them by name, I gave them my own nicknames.
(you can sing "Who are the people in your neighborhood?" if you want...)
Musky McMuscle
You can see the veins in his arms. His shirts are all tightly fitted and you can see his abs right through his shirt. Heck, even his muscles have muscles. He lifts those 50 pound dumbbells with ease and he can do a hundred plus pushups without breaking a sweat.
Pros: You know this guy is a pro. If you watch him everyday and study his regimen, you’re almost sure that those exercises work. You can see the technique he uses – how he lifts weights with his legs, not just his arms, how to do proper push ups and how to use the machines. It’s like watching one of those gym videos.
Being a tough guy means you have to maintain your reputation as well. One time, I entered the gym and caught him watching Desperate Housewives. When he saw me he immediately changed the channel to ESPN. I wanted to ask him what happened in DH but I was afraid he’d put me through the wall or something.
Cons: You can’t help but compare yourself to him. When he’s done, he drops the weights, flexes before the mirror and his muscles bulge as if to say “good night everyone!”. When he leaves, you try to lift the things he lifted and use the machines in his settings and you realize how wimpy you are. You flex before the mirror, your muscles let out a big “zzzzzz” and the rest of your body just jiggles.
Mr. Grunt
He’s fit, not muscular. He lifts those heavy weights that I think are too heavy for his size. Everytime he lifts something or uses the machine he gives out a big “AARRRGGGHH!!”.
Pros: You can see his intensity, which transfers on to you like a war cry. He roars and you suddenly realize you need to pump your guns as well.
Cons: Distracting. Even with my earphones on, it sounds like someone’s slaughtering a pig.
Skin and Bones
She comes in and checks herself out in the mirror. She’s thin. Her arms are thin. She has no belly. She’s wearing something from the kids department. She frowns, shrugs her head then gets on the treadmill.
Pros: You start to check what’s wrong with her. Are her legs not proportional to her arms? Is she just doing this for maintenance? Is she just showing off her new gym outfit? You analyze and analyze and you don’t realize that you’ve already finished your routine for the day. Maybe she wants to know how many ribs she’s got.
Cons: If she thinks she’s fat, I wonder what she would think of me. Maybe I should do those jiggle flexes in the mirror the same time she’s checking herself out.
The Skunk
He comes in and no one notices. He works on the treadmill then a few minutes later, everyone knows he’s there.
Pros: Once he enters, others leave. Since Filipinos have high tolerance to bad smells, most of the time it’s just the two of us left in the gym. Also, you don’t need to keep track of the time you’re using the treadmill. After 5 minutes, he smells like fish. After 15 minutes, he smells like rotten bananas. After 30 minutes, he smells like rotten fish with decaying bananas. After 45 minutes, if a dead fish and a homeless person had a baby and the baby puked and a dog ate the puke, he smells like the rear end of that dog (which means it’s time to leave now).
Cons: After your workout, you go up and rest on the couch. You suddenly smell something and you check if you stepped on anything. You check your hands if you touched something. You check your shirt and immediately you take it off and throw it to the washing machine for emergency laundry. Wow, the smell just sticks to anything!
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Of Photography Plans and Dreams
The only major complaint that my friends have with me and my photography is that I only managed to post 6-7 measly entries in my blog the past month. Sorry everyone, especially to my frequent visitors. I havent been able to update this site because:
- I’ve been reading through my photography books.
- I’ve been processing photoshoot pictures. I also covered our Christmas party and was the official photographer. Pics are in Mags’ and Kath’s multiply site.
- I’ve been updating my online gallery… more on that later.
- I’ve been planning on the photo gear I need to setup.
Excuses… excuses… I know.
I guess I’ve evolved from the casual shutterbug to a serious amateur. Planning to go pro? Why not? I’m concentrating now on portrait photography and so I turned my apartment unit into a studio and I have all my friends as my models. I also upgraded my gear.
If you’ve ever shopped for camera equipment, you know that gear upgrade = $$$. I use a beat up second hand Nikon D80 by the way. My favorite lens is my Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 lens (my wide pro lens). I plan to buy only the basic gear. Perfect example of this is the lamp I use in my studio which is just a fluorescent lamp inside a Quaker Oats container lined with foil attached to a translucent umbrella. Buy low end equipment then buy one good high end lens… that was the plan. I had my eyes on the holy grail of photographers…
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR lens.
It’s an extremely high end lens. It’s expensive. It can shoot in low light even in zoom. It’s expensive. It has vibration reduction which means less blurry pictures. It’s expensive. It’s extremely sharp and I think it costs a lot. I think.
All these months of saving and settling for low end stuff, I was able to save up for it. I ordered it just in time for Christmas. It’s my combined birthday/Christmas gift to myself. Me to this lens was like Luke to his light saber, Frodo to the ring, Harry Potter to his wand. My greatest and most powerful weapon.
So why did I return it?
Plans change.
Dreams evolve.
Am I giving everything up? Not really. Immediately when I got my money back, I picked up another 70-200mm lens. It’s not a Nikon. It doesn’t have VR. It cost a LOT less though. Imagine Luke Skywalker trading his light saber and facing Darth Vader with a fork.
“Consuelo de bobo”.
It doesn’t make sense now but someday it will.
Another unusual move… why invest on an online gallery? Why put the carriage in front of the horse? Galleries are for pros.
I guess it’s my chosen approach. Who says I have to be linear in everything? Besides, though I haven’t released it, my gallery has already a few fans (and plenty of review points :P)
- I’ve been reading through my photography books.
- I’ve been processing photoshoot pictures. I also covered our Christmas party and was the official photographer. Pics are in Mags’ and Kath’s multiply site.
- I’ve been updating my online gallery… more on that later.
- I’ve been planning on the photo gear I need to setup.
Excuses… excuses… I know.
I guess I’ve evolved from the casual shutterbug to a serious amateur. Planning to go pro? Why not? I’m concentrating now on portrait photography and so I turned my apartment unit into a studio and I have all my friends as my models. I also upgraded my gear.
If you’ve ever shopped for camera equipment, you know that gear upgrade = $$$. I use a beat up second hand Nikon D80 by the way. My favorite lens is my Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 lens (my wide pro lens). I plan to buy only the basic gear. Perfect example of this is the lamp I use in my studio which is just a fluorescent lamp inside a Quaker Oats container lined with foil attached to a translucent umbrella. Buy low end equipment then buy one good high end lens… that was the plan. I had my eyes on the holy grail of photographers…
Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR lens.
It’s an extremely high end lens. It’s expensive. It can shoot in low light even in zoom. It’s expensive. It has vibration reduction which means less blurry pictures. It’s expensive. It’s extremely sharp and I think it costs a lot. I think.
All these months of saving and settling for low end stuff, I was able to save up for it. I ordered it just in time for Christmas. It’s my combined birthday/Christmas gift to myself. Me to this lens was like Luke to his light saber, Frodo to the ring, Harry Potter to his wand. My greatest and most powerful weapon.
So why did I return it?
Plans change.
Dreams evolve.
Am I giving everything up? Not really. Immediately when I got my money back, I picked up another 70-200mm lens. It’s not a Nikon. It doesn’t have VR. It cost a LOT less though. Imagine Luke Skywalker trading his light saber and facing Darth Vader with a fork.
“Consuelo de bobo”.
It doesn’t make sense now but someday it will.
Another unusual move… why invest on an online gallery? Why put the carriage in front of the horse? Galleries are for pros.
I guess it’s my chosen approach. Who says I have to be linear in everything? Besides, though I haven’t released it, my gallery has already a few fans (and plenty of review points :P)
Saturday, December 15, 2007
16 months and still trying to understand...
I’ve always wondered why. As I couldn’t understand. I couldn’t see.
How someone as beautiful as you can love just someone like me.
I’m not exactly a magnificent physical specimen.
There are no bulging muscles behind all these flab.
I don’t follow my recommended regimen.
And I have just one mighty big ab.
Yet “You’re one good looking guy” you always tell me.
Maybe you need to have your pretty eyes checked out.
Or maybe I just need to understand what you’re talking about.
As I’m not a model of male beauty.
I don’t have straight teeth or gorgeous hair.
I’ve never been even called a cutie.
And I dress like I just got mauled by a bear
Yet you show me I’m beautiful, and you never ever ever doubt.
At Landmark, I danced along aisle three with a shampoo bottle in front of a crowd
In the elevators, people hide behind me like the sun behind a cloud
One time at KFC, I ate chicken with seven cups of rice.
One day, I accidentally wore brown shoes and black pants to work.
I sleep at the movies we wanted to watch together… twice
I dance, I make fun, I sing, everything that makes me look like a dork
But you still look at your goofy boyfriend with a smile so big, so proud
I'm truly blessed and I'm thankful every minute, every hour, every day
that someone as special as you is making me feel this way
Happy 16 months honey =)
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Thanksgiving 2007
The US holiday to give thanks for the things one has at the end of the harvest season. My family celebrates this back home mostly as a reason to cook stuffed chicken (it used to be turkey but well… budget cuts…)
Today will be the second time I’ll celebrate Thanksgiving in the US and the first away from my Jaye. For this year, my friends and I decided to prepare the food. It’s one thing to have a thanksgiving dinner, it’s another to prepare for one. I was amazed by the level of trust they gave me to prepare the spread. I volunteered to help out in the turkey as well as make my mom’s famous stuffing. They obviously haven’t browsed through my “Cooking with Arn” series. We had…
Bread crumbs stuffing. Prepared by TA. The second fastest dish we were able to whip up.
Macaroni and cheese. Prepared by Lui and Gea. Rich and creamy! Nothing else we would have wanted for the Thanksgiving pasta dish.
Cranberry Sauce. Prepared by TA. It was better than that gravy in a jar we bought. The fastest dish we were able to whip up. TA opened the can and I threw it into the garbage can. See? Team effort.
Meat stuffing. Classic Filipino – stuff meat with more meat. This one was mom’s special recipe and I feared I’d screw this up. I was already 4/5 along the recipe and it was nothing like the stuffing mom made which was supposed to be color red, sweet, tasty and tender. I was staring down a big bowl of white pork meat with no flavor and no color. I wanted to abort the whole thing and just settle with probably torta or something.
Trust mom. They know best. So I did.
I placed a can of tomato sauce and cranked up the heat. Nothing else I can do but hope for the best. A few minutes later, the tomato sauce evaporated and colored up the dish. It also sweetened the dish and it now tasted so good.
Thanks mom! Never doubted.
Turkey. It took a team effort to nail this dish. I cleaned the turkey and Lui, Lei and Gea prepared the marinade. Gea and I prepared the foil tent. TA and I came up with the ingenious way of lowering the turkey into the oven without burning ourselves (a series of inclined planes to slide the tray). Lui basted and determined the cooking time. TA took care of the turkey’s presentation.
This is the first time I handled turkey and I’m not familiar with its structure. While cleaning the turkey, there was a paper bag inside labeled “giblets” which I had no idea what to do with. Inside the belly of the turkey I pulled out something long. I had a confused look and just thought that this was probably a male turkey, a very male turkey. Lei tapped me on my shoulder…
“That’s the neck.”
The turkey cooked for 5 hours under its foil tent and Lui’s marinade recipe. The end product was just awesome. The turkey was so moist and flavorful. Everyone agreed and it really was delicious. No gravy needed. They made me carve the turkey since I “cooked” the turkey.
No I didn’t. We all did. Eating dinner and enjoying with friends were as happy as preparing everything and spending time with them. Isn’t that the thing that makes Thanksgiving so special?
Today will be the second time I’ll celebrate Thanksgiving in the US and the first away from my Jaye. For this year, my friends and I decided to prepare the food. It’s one thing to have a thanksgiving dinner, it’s another to prepare for one. I was amazed by the level of trust they gave me to prepare the spread. I volunteered to help out in the turkey as well as make my mom’s famous stuffing. They obviously haven’t browsed through my “Cooking with Arn” series. We had…
Bread crumbs stuffing. Prepared by TA. The second fastest dish we were able to whip up.
Macaroni and cheese. Prepared by Lui and Gea. Rich and creamy! Nothing else we would have wanted for the Thanksgiving pasta dish.
Cranberry Sauce. Prepared by TA. It was better than that gravy in a jar we bought. The fastest dish we were able to whip up. TA opened the can and I threw it into the garbage can. See? Team effort.
Meat stuffing. Classic Filipino – stuff meat with more meat. This one was mom’s special recipe and I feared I’d screw this up. I was already 4/5 along the recipe and it was nothing like the stuffing mom made which was supposed to be color red, sweet, tasty and tender. I was staring down a big bowl of white pork meat with no flavor and no color. I wanted to abort the whole thing and just settle with probably torta or something.
Trust mom. They know best. So I did.
I placed a can of tomato sauce and cranked up the heat. Nothing else I can do but hope for the best. A few minutes later, the tomato sauce evaporated and colored up the dish. It also sweetened the dish and it now tasted so good.
Thanks mom! Never doubted.
Turkey. It took a team effort to nail this dish. I cleaned the turkey and Lui, Lei and Gea prepared the marinade. Gea and I prepared the foil tent. TA and I came up with the ingenious way of lowering the turkey into the oven without burning ourselves (a series of inclined planes to slide the tray). Lui basted and determined the cooking time. TA took care of the turkey’s presentation.
This is the first time I handled turkey and I’m not familiar with its structure. While cleaning the turkey, there was a paper bag inside labeled “giblets” which I had no idea what to do with. Inside the belly of the turkey I pulled out something long. I had a confused look and just thought that this was probably a male turkey, a very male turkey. Lei tapped me on my shoulder…
“That’s the neck.”
The turkey cooked for 5 hours under its foil tent and Lui’s marinade recipe. The end product was just awesome. The turkey was so moist and flavorful. Everyone agreed and it really was delicious. No gravy needed. They made me carve the turkey since I “cooked” the turkey.
No I didn’t. We all did. Eating dinner and enjoying with friends were as happy as preparing everything and spending time with them. Isn’t that the thing that makes Thanksgiving so special?
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Shopping for Shoes
Can be oh so complicated.
Thanksgiving sale (aka Black Friday). I was at the Gurnee Mills mall at Gurnee, IL shopping for casual shoes. I was at Famous Footwear who had a buy one – get the second at half off sale and immediately, I knew I might be buying two pairs that day. I took a good long look at this Skechers shoe which was exactly what I was looking for. I called it the country club shoe. It was right down the middle – not too sporty, not too formal and it had plenty of class. I checked the price tag and immediately my credit card ran away from the front flap of my wallet and into the inner flaps between my driver’s license and my library card.
80 bucks? Poor credit card was like a dog in a doghouse hiding from its weekly bath.
Flashback to a week ago, I was at Nordstrom Rack with TA. I saw these so-so Steve Madden shoes priced at 40 bucks. I walked away from it since it was too expensive and it haunted me for the rest of the week. Shoulda… woulda… coulda… oh well.
80 bucks? Quick convert it and that’s 3500 pesos. I checked out the shelves and couldn’t see any other shoe (that would go half off). I’ll put it in the maybe list. I took the shoe, placed it in the box and placed it upside down in a different shelf with ugly shoes. I can’t reserve it so might as well hide it.
I went to this other store and checked out their merchandise. I saw this great brown shoe and it’s… 100 bucks for a shoe?!? I picked up a similar design and what?!? 200 dollars? Hell no and I stormed out of the shop and back to Famous Footwear.
I picked up the Skechers shoe and tried it on. Felt great though it didn’t go well with the shirt I was wearing. I think I’ll buy this IF I can find a good second shoe to maximize the sale. I looked and looked then finally I was back to my chair with two more pairs of shoes. Great. Now I have three pairs to choose from.
The country club shoe was candidate number 1. I was now choosing between a rugged brown shoe or this beige shoe that looked like a golf shoe. The debate took a few hours as I was pitting them against each other – color coordination, fit, size, what I already have back home, cost, material (and how it will hold up against the acidic snow). Eventually, the golf shoe lookalike won because
- It was cheaper by 20 dollars
- I already have a brown shoe back home
- I don’t have any beige shoes.
- While deciding, 3 people approached me and asked if I was purchasing the beige shoe. When I told them yes, they asked where I found it. For some reason, the shoe started to look better as I stare at it. One guy tried it on and it looked good. The other shoe started to look so plain.
So there I was, walking away from the store with my Credit Card taking a $110.00 hit for two shoes and a shoe cleaner. My conscience started to nag me now about the 40 dollar shoe I walked away from because it was too expensive, how this will skew the budget I planned for the next few weeks, how this will mess up the lens I was saving up for and the countless budget cuts I made just to be offset by making a purchase like this.
The devil and the angel appeared on my shoulder. The angel took the devil’s pitchfork and speared my conscience then gave each other a high five.
I love these guys.
Thanksgiving sale (aka Black Friday). I was at the Gurnee Mills mall at Gurnee, IL shopping for casual shoes. I was at Famous Footwear who had a buy one – get the second at half off sale and immediately, I knew I might be buying two pairs that day. I took a good long look at this Skechers shoe which was exactly what I was looking for. I called it the country club shoe. It was right down the middle – not too sporty, not too formal and it had plenty of class. I checked the price tag and immediately my credit card ran away from the front flap of my wallet and into the inner flaps between my driver’s license and my library card.
80 bucks? Poor credit card was like a dog in a doghouse hiding from its weekly bath.
Flashback to a week ago, I was at Nordstrom Rack with TA. I saw these so-so Steve Madden shoes priced at 40 bucks. I walked away from it since it was too expensive and it haunted me for the rest of the week. Shoulda… woulda… coulda… oh well.
80 bucks? Quick convert it and that’s 3500 pesos. I checked out the shelves and couldn’t see any other shoe (that would go half off). I’ll put it in the maybe list. I took the shoe, placed it in the box and placed it upside down in a different shelf with ugly shoes. I can’t reserve it so might as well hide it.
I went to this other store and checked out their merchandise. I saw this great brown shoe and it’s… 100 bucks for a shoe?!? I picked up a similar design and what?!? 200 dollars? Hell no and I stormed out of the shop and back to Famous Footwear.
I picked up the Skechers shoe and tried it on. Felt great though it didn’t go well with the shirt I was wearing. I think I’ll buy this IF I can find a good second shoe to maximize the sale. I looked and looked then finally I was back to my chair with two more pairs of shoes. Great. Now I have three pairs to choose from.
The country club shoe was candidate number 1. I was now choosing between a rugged brown shoe or this beige shoe that looked like a golf shoe. The debate took a few hours as I was pitting them against each other – color coordination, fit, size, what I already have back home, cost, material (and how it will hold up against the acidic snow). Eventually, the golf shoe lookalike won because
- It was cheaper by 20 dollars
- I already have a brown shoe back home
- I don’t have any beige shoes.
- While deciding, 3 people approached me and asked if I was purchasing the beige shoe. When I told them yes, they asked where I found it. For some reason, the shoe started to look better as I stare at it. One guy tried it on and it looked good. The other shoe started to look so plain.
So there I was, walking away from the store with my Credit Card taking a $110.00 hit for two shoes and a shoe cleaner. My conscience started to nag me now about the 40 dollar shoe I walked away from because it was too expensive, how this will skew the budget I planned for the next few weeks, how this will mess up the lens I was saving up for and the countless budget cuts I made just to be offset by making a purchase like this.
The devil and the angel appeared on my shoulder. The angel took the devil’s pitchfork and speared my conscience then gave each other a high five.
I love these guys.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Studio De Arn Arn
I opened my photo studio!
Sorta…
I guess when people say photo studio, they think about a big room with a set, big lights, big umbrellas, reflectors and a computer system for post processing. I set up mine but it’s nowhere close to that.
I was able to save up and purchase some basic items – a reflector, 2 shoot through umbrellas, a silver umbrella, 2 white lamps and stands. I also bought a tripod a few months ago to replace my infamous monopod (made out of a plastic broom stick). I have a reflector that’s made out of a Quaker Oats container lined with foil. Never buy what you can make.
I’m still in the process of learning photography and all its aspects especially lighting and composition. I use a beat up second hand D80 but I invested in some good lenses to compensate.
One day I invited my friends for a photoshoot. I posted the pics here -->
http://arnoldrocks.multiply.com/photos/album/10/My_First_Photoshoot_ACN_Portals_Team_
I say there’s plenty of room for improvement but it’s not bad for a first shoot.
Sorta…
I guess when people say photo studio, they think about a big room with a set, big lights, big umbrellas, reflectors and a computer system for post processing. I set up mine but it’s nowhere close to that.
I was able to save up and purchase some basic items – a reflector, 2 shoot through umbrellas, a silver umbrella, 2 white lamps and stands. I also bought a tripod a few months ago to replace my infamous monopod (made out of a plastic broom stick). I have a reflector that’s made out of a Quaker Oats container lined with foil. Never buy what you can make.
I’m still in the process of learning photography and all its aspects especially lighting and composition. I use a beat up second hand D80 but I invested in some good lenses to compensate.
One day I invited my friends for a photoshoot. I posted the pics here -->
http://arnoldrocks.multiply.com/photos/album/10/My_First_Photoshoot_ACN_Portals_Team_
I say there’s plenty of room for improvement but it’s not bad for a first shoot.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
My Birthday
I didn’t have anything planned and I approached this day the same way I do regular days. Maybe it was because I never realized it was going to be my birthday until the weekend when Jaye greeted me. Maybe it was because I had another day in mind – December 27, Jaye’s birthday. Maybe I’m getting too old.
I wasn’t expecting much on this day other than the clinic telling me to go have my annual checkup (they send those memos on your birthday). If life gave me lemons the past few weeks, this day it threw me curveball after curveball after curveball (in a nice way). Here are the highlights for the day:
My “Noah’s Ark” meal. Gea, Lui, Lei, TA, Nats and I ate out at Delmonico’s for lunch which is a few blocks away from the office. It’s set up like a buffet but you have to pay based on the weight of your food. I walked around and wanted to try everything getting two of each (ergo, Noah's Ark). My favorites were the crispy shrimp and the catfish.
Uncanny. When they greeted me and asked me how old I was, I told them to guess. No one got it wrong. Wow. Imagine if I didn’t shave my 3 week old moustache that I started to grow when the Red Sox were down 1-3 in the semifinals (I stopped shaving and they never lost again. They won the World Series. Welcome to the world of Boston Red Sox fans and weird superstitions.)
Celebrating with the project. My project mates visited me in my cube with a cake and a balloon. They tied the balloon around my wrist and they cut up the Mint Chocolate Ice cream roll cake from Baskin Robbins. The ice cream was rock hard and we ended up “sculpting” the cake. Delicious!
“Hoppy Binthdy Arnold!”
“Something’s Waiting For U”. I received an email with this subject from Lei (Hufana), Ate Jen and Rache. The body of the email just tells me to check it out in the 5th floor pantry fridge. There it was, a Baskin Robbins Chocolate Chip ice cream cake. I was full but Arn passing up a chocolate chip ice cream cake is like Arn passing up a free burger (don't you hate it when you use the same thing in an analogy and it still makes sense?). The three of them with John, Arvin and RJ dropped by and ate the cake from my cube. 2nd cake of the day. Diet Schmiet.
“Huppy Birthdyy Arnold!’” (that guy over at Baskin Robbins must be drunk...)
Party at my cube!
Fogo De ArnArn. I can’t think of a place where I can have my birthday dinner out with friends (without me having to wash dishes for a week) so I decided to just fry up whatever was in my fridge. I had enough to marinate 1.5 pounds of beef and invited whoever was available over. I cooked the one thing I can make consistently delicious – my (now famous) beef tapa.
They said my tapa was very good. I’ll pat myself on the back for that one. After all the failed tapa marinade blends I made, finally I nailed one on my birthday. If you've been reading my "Cooking with Arnold" series in this blog, I'll pat myself on the back for you.
Classic Arn. What’s dinner without a kitchen blooper by Arn. I decided to fry the first batch in a little butter to give it a little flavor. I heated the pan and tossed in the butter. I didn’t have my spoon thingie yet so I just picked up the pan, shook it and the butter was gone. Where’d it go?
It went UNDER the sink?!?.
The Brown Basket-like thing. Rico brought it out of the shopping bag encased in clear plastic. What the…? Is that a…? Why that’s a…
One WHOLE Portillo’s chocolate cake?!?
I’d crawl all the way to Portillo’s for a slice of their chocolate cake. For one whole, I’d do it in just my hearts boxers in the freezing gusts of Chicago.
“Galing ke Jaye.” he said and I just smiled. Wow! My favorite cake from my favorite girl.
Most loved thing. My gossip magazines (I bought them for my mom ok?) and Wii Tennis. Lianne was convinced to get one for herself. Lui, Gea and Leah were glued to the magazines.
Most hated thing. I brought out my digital weighing scale. Almost everyone weighed in and it received loud gasps and screams. Anonymous person 1 gained 5 pounds. Anonymous person 2 pushed me before I could see his/her weight while screaming. Anonymous person 3 declared my scale defective. Funniest moment of the night.
Class picture before eating the cake
With Li and Gea (while waiting for the others)
With ‘Ta Lei
Gea, Me and Lui
Gifts. I’m too old for material gifts. I didn’t get showered with boxes and shiny things but there are so many things I extremely appreciated on this day:
- Everyone had calls and yet they still came over for dinner.
- Gea had a major production issue but took her meetings in the hallway.
- Rico carrying the heavy cake in the cold.
- Louvre taking his call from his room (instead of in the living room where he usually takes it) and he cooked the garlic rice.
- Lianne cooking better eggs – the one thing I couldn’t master.
- Jude covering for me during the meeting that night (I requested permission to skip it for this night).
- Jaye, the cake, the greetings, the messages, the love and the warmth. She reminded me the meaning of this day and what it meant to us.
- Everyone for coming and taking time to greet me.
I’ll take all those over any wrapped box anytime, anyday. ‘twas indeed a very happy birthday. Thanks guys! =)
They say the older you get the less festive and less special this day becomes.
Less festive? Maybe.
Less special? Not one bit.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Poplar Grove, IL
Home of Edward’s Apple Orchard… where we went apple picking! :D
It’s the last day for apple picking this year as temperatures begin to dip down and we couldn’t have picked a better day for this event.
Here's how it works: you’re given a basket and you fill it with apples. A tractor drives your around the different apple orchards – red delicious, granny smith and golden delicious. At the end you weigh your basket and pay at the cashier. The funny thing is that you really don’t get to save a lot since apples will cost around a buck each. So why bother? Well, it’s the experience of picking apples straight from the tree and being close to nature. Also, you can eat apples there and since it’s not in the basket, you don’t have to pay for it! :P
I enjoyed fresh apples. It feels odd though since I haven’t tried apples this fresh before. It’s not as pretty compared to the ones in the grocery since it’s not waxed and it’s not washed so it’s dusty but it’s very juicy. I just enjoyed walking around, looking at the trees, looking at the apples on the ground while eating. It’s nice to get away from the city once in a while.
Wow, polar bears CAN climb trees!
It’s the last day for apple picking this year as temperatures begin to dip down and we couldn’t have picked a better day for this event.
Here's how it works: you’re given a basket and you fill it with apples. A tractor drives your around the different apple orchards – red delicious, granny smith and golden delicious. At the end you weigh your basket and pay at the cashier. The funny thing is that you really don’t get to save a lot since apples will cost around a buck each. So why bother? Well, it’s the experience of picking apples straight from the tree and being close to nature. Also, you can eat apples there and since it’s not in the basket, you don’t have to pay for it! :P
I enjoyed fresh apples. It feels odd though since I haven’t tried apples this fresh before. It’s not as pretty compared to the ones in the grocery since it’s not waxed and it’s not washed so it’s dusty but it’s very juicy. I just enjoyed walking around, looking at the trees, looking at the apples on the ground while eating. It’s nice to get away from the city once in a while.
Wow, polar bears CAN climb trees!
Friday, October 26, 2007
Why I Smile
Why I Smile
by Arn
I smile as I sit on my office chair
As I wait for my SQL query to end
I compile my notes for later to share
The big boss meeting I’ll later attend
I smile as I sit on my office chair
As I read and type while doing my tasks
Stress makes me scream and pull out my hair
“When will this end?” to myself I ask
I smile as I sit on my office chair
As I yawn, stretch my legs and rest my eyes
Thinking how much lack of rest I can bear
And that weighing scale I so much despise
I smile as I sit on my office chair
As I glance at my ring as bright as day
It says "Chin up, keep strong, I love you, take care"
And why I’m lucky to have someone like Jaye
“I love you too, I’ll be fine” I’d tell her
As I look straight towards this ring I wear
And so people pass by, look at me and wonder
Why I always smile as I sit on my chair
by Arn
I smile as I sit on my office chair
As I wait for my SQL query to end
I compile my notes for later to share
The big boss meeting I’ll later attend
I smile as I sit on my office chair
As I read and type while doing my tasks
Stress makes me scream and pull out my hair
“When will this end?” to myself I ask
I smile as I sit on my office chair
As I yawn, stretch my legs and rest my eyes
Thinking how much lack of rest I can bear
And that weighing scale I so much despise
I smile as I sit on my office chair
As I glance at my ring as bright as day
It says "Chin up, keep strong, I love you, take care"
And why I’m lucky to have someone like Jaye
“I love you too, I’ll be fine” I’d tell her
As I look straight towards this ring I wear
And so people pass by, look at me and wonder
Why I always smile as I sit on my chair
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
When Life Gives You Lemons
Yeah yeah, I know… make lemonade.
then flowers will bloom, birds will chirp and the sun will sing with you. If only life was THAT simple.
Last Saturday, I was up for overdue leisure time after getting sick the past 2 days. We had plans to go to the Chicago Botanic Garden and take tons and tons of pictures – landscapes, portraits, HDR’s, the works. The same morning, my new zoom lens was delivered and what other way to test it out but in the gardens.
Then fate played the game we all know and love…
Phone goes “ring ring”, Server goes “A runtime error was encountered”, Arn goes “D’oh!” and all hopes of going to the Gardens were flushed down the drain as I ended up having to do work. I went to 7-11 to pick up my camera lenses but they lost my package AGAIN.
Lemons… a basket full of lemons.
I still ended up having a great day. I was able to fix the problem on record time. I spent the afternoon with friends, shopping around State street. I took lots of nice downtown pics (even finally taking a picture of Lake St under the “El”). For dinner...
Portillo’s Ribs and Chocolate Cake!
When life gives you lemons? Tell life you don’t want it and give it back. Life is too short for worrying what to do with lemons.
then flowers will bloom, birds will chirp and the sun will sing with you. If only life was THAT simple.
Last Saturday, I was up for overdue leisure time after getting sick the past 2 days. We had plans to go to the Chicago Botanic Garden and take tons and tons of pictures – landscapes, portraits, HDR’s, the works. The same morning, my new zoom lens was delivered and what other way to test it out but in the gardens.
Then fate played the game we all know and love…
Phone goes “ring ring”, Server goes “A runtime error was encountered”, Arn goes “D’oh!” and all hopes of going to the Gardens were flushed down the drain as I ended up having to do work. I went to 7-11 to pick up my camera lenses but they lost my package AGAIN.
Lemons… a basket full of lemons.
I still ended up having a great day. I was able to fix the problem on record time. I spent the afternoon with friends, shopping around State street. I took lots of nice downtown pics (even finally taking a picture of Lake St under the “El”). For dinner...
Portillo’s Ribs and Chocolate Cake!
When life gives you lemons? Tell life you don’t want it and give it back. Life is too short for worrying what to do with lemons.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
My Culture Stories
1
I was sitting at my desk, working with my earphones on when suddenly someone stopped by to say hi. He’s an old friend from here who I haven’t seen again since I left last year. With a loud voice he goes “HEY!!! You’re back!! Look at YOU! Oh wow! You look great! You have the long hair and the goatee going on! The glasses! Oh MAN! The chicks must be CHASING you!!!”
And I was just sitting there terrified with a “wag po koya” look.
2
I was at this bar with these people from another nation. I was introduced by my friend, “Hey everyone, this is Arnold, the specialist from Manila.”. Upon hearing my name they repeated it “Arnold?”, “Arnold!” “ARNOLD!!!” then all of them flexed their biceps.
I did my Schwarzenegger voice and told them “Yess Ah’m Ahhnoold. I tohd yu Ay’d bi bak.” and they all laughed really really hard. Wow, that joke never worked in Manila.
3
I had this guy over at my cube and we were going to discuss some designs. He would say something really really fast and I end up smiling. He repeats what he just said and I just smile more. I didn’t want to be rude but really, I had no idea what he just said. He repeated it once more and I just told him to send me an email since I had a meeting in 2 minutes.
I was sitting at my desk, working with my earphones on when suddenly someone stopped by to say hi. He’s an old friend from here who I haven’t seen again since I left last year. With a loud voice he goes “HEY!!! You’re back!! Look at YOU! Oh wow! You look great! You have the long hair and the goatee going on! The glasses! Oh MAN! The chicks must be CHASING you!!!”
And I was just sitting there terrified with a “wag po koya” look.
2
I was at this bar with these people from another nation. I was introduced by my friend, “Hey everyone, this is Arnold, the specialist from Manila.”. Upon hearing my name they repeated it “Arnold?”, “Arnold!” “ARNOLD!!!” then all of them flexed their biceps.
I did my Schwarzenegger voice and told them “Yess Ah’m Ahhnoold. I tohd yu Ay’d bi bak.” and they all laughed really really hard. Wow, that joke never worked in Manila.
3
I had this guy over at my cube and we were going to discuss some designs. He would say something really really fast and I end up smiling. He repeats what he just said and I just smile more. I didn’t want to be rude but really, I had no idea what he just said. He repeated it once more and I just told him to send me an email since I had a meeting in 2 minutes.
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