My little bit of snobbery

Last night, I finally caved in and did what Eric had long been wanting me to do with him ever since we got together....




Eat at the food court of a mall.



I will admit that I am a food court snob. As much as possible, I try not to eat there at all. Like in the mall where I work--even if I can't think of any other restaurant to go to for lunch, I would rather eat siopao at Hen Lin than buy from the food court. There's something about how tiny the kitchens are and how the air in the area just seems to stay trapped there that just turns me off. I always have this feeling that the foods are leftovers from three days before or, if not, were cooked in only one batch of oil. (Admit it, you know that's what they do!!)

Eric constantly makes me feel guilty (i.e. "Taga-UP ka pero elitista ka rin pala!") and while I always brush them off as teasing, I know they're half-meant.

Well, last night, I gave in. We were at SM Makati around dinnertime and I couldn't think of a single restaurant in the Glorietta area that appealed to me. Eric goes, "Ano, food court nalang?" and I was really too tired to protest, so I said okay.

Fortunately, the food court there looked new (i.e. clean!) and well-ventilated(i.e. I don't have to worry about the smell sticking ony my clothes). In addition, my eyes lit up when I saw they had a Goto Kong outlet there, so I spent the evening happily slurping on my arroz caldo. I think I also made Eric's night, hahaha.

Next stop: the food court of.... Isetann?

Lessons learned from millionaires

I've been spending a lot of time outside the office this past week, meeting and interviewing young millionaires to feature in an upcoming issue.

When I say young millionaires, I'm talking about men and women about my age (some even younger!!) who, for example, can already claim that:

-- he owns a sprawling resort in Batangas
-- he owns a chain (as in, more than one branch) of restaurants
-- he expects his business to gross more than, oh, a billion pesos lang naman this year

I love my job, but in cases like this, it can also get pretty depressing, hehehe.

Three things I've learned from this experience:

1. Age is not a hindrance to suceess
2. Nothing beats hard work
3. Yes, rich, smart, single, straight men still exist.

What women want

This is a scene from an early episode Desperate Housewives that I can never forget.

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Carlos: "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Gabrielle: "Let go of me."

Carlos: "You've been acting like a nightmare for a month."

Gabrielle: "Stop!"

Carlos: "What's wrong?"

She keeps struggling and he holds on to her. "I can't fix it unless you tell me."

She breaks his hold and sits down. "It's not exciting anymore, Carlos."

Carlos: "So what am I supposed to do?"

Gabrielle: "I dunno. Be the way you used to be. Surprise me. take my breath away."


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Yep. That and the occasional foot rubs. Because really, is it too much to ask?

How to get into FHM without taking your clothes off

Contrary to popular belief, you don't need to have big boobs to get into FHM Philippines. Thanks to one of Eric's friends, there's a pretty good chance I'll be coming out in one of their pages soon.

The mag has a section called "Who The Hell Are You?" where readers submit kodak moments ruined by the presence of an intruder. In this case, we know the guy...but don't you agree the picture will look so much better without his head peeking out from the corner? Hahaha.

Finger-lickin' good

Forget Holy Kettle Corn popcorn, Razon's Halo-Halo, and even Pringles.

When it comes to snack food, nothing beats Cow Label.



For those who don't know, this is a CLASSIC. It's beef jerky that's swimming in super yummy sweet-spicy sauce. It's hard to describe, you really have to taste it. I haven't had one in years, and when Eric brought home an entire box, I practically salivated.

After you finish eating the beef jerky, it's customary to use your fingers to swipe off the remaining sauce and lick off them. Others who can't wait, like Eric, just lick the foil straight on. Disgusting, but more effective.

I feel a midnight snack craving coming on...

Simon says

What do you do when you're tired, drained and overall feeling down (like I was last night)?

Watch American Idol!

Or more specifically, watch Simon Cowell on American Idol.

The 5th season premiered last night and I never knew how much I missed Simon's acerbic wit until yesterday. Call me mean, but when Simon makes the contestants feel bad, I end up feeling good! Hahaha.

Some of my favorite Simon-isms through the years:

"Did you really believe you could become the American Idol? Well, then, you're deaf."

"You take singing lessons? Do you have a lawyer? Get a lawyer and sue her."

"You sing like Mickey Mouse on helium."

"If you would be singing like this two thousand years ago, people would have stoned you."

Brain drain

I'm pooped. And sad that I am.

Because Eric and I were supposed to watch Narnia after work today, but I just feel so tired, all I want to do is go home, take a bath, and out my feet up for the rest of the evening.

Funny thing is technically, I didn't even do anything physically taxing today.

I spent the whole day cooped up in a conference room, listening to the speakers at the 2nd Philippine Biotechnology Venture Summit.

So now that I think about it... I think I was mentally taxed.

Because a girl can only take in so much scientific facts and figures in a day. Not to mention the effort involved in trying to look interested (and intelligent) when a scientist starts making small talk with me.

So nothing intellectual for the next 12 hours. When I go home, it's Jack TV for me.

I saw the signs!

I know anything and everything can be a sign if you want it to be, but THIS one is just too much of a coincidence not to be one.

In one of the scenes from last night's episode of Mga Anghel na Walang Langit, Ana Capri wore a t-shirt that had Amazing Thailand emblazoned in front! What are the odds? Hahaha.

Ang babaw ko 'no?

Friday is almost over...

Tomorrow afternoon, I'm getting a foot spa with friends and having hotpot dinner with my parents at Greenhills.

On Sunday, I'm waking up late, attending a children's party at Jollibee, and then a wedding reception at night.

And then it's back to work.

*Sigh*

I wish everyday were Friday.

A lesson in male vocabulary

As much as I loathe to admit this... everytime Eric browses the latest issue of Entrepreneur, it's not because he's interested or excited to read my articles.

Instead, he scans the pages to see if we featured any hot-looking women.

So when I brought home our Jan/Feb 2006 issue last night, I pointed out a girl that, in my opinion, was pretty cute.

Eric took one look and made a face. "She's not cute, she's fat!"

"Of course not!" I protested indignantly. "She's just chubby!"

"She's fat," Eric insisted and proceeded to flip to the other pages. But I wasn't giving up.

"If she's fat, then what's your definition of 'chubby'?" I asked. "Name me a girl whom you think is 'chubby' so I'll have a better understanding."

Eric pats me on the hand. "Honey, sa vocabulary ng guy, walang 'chubby' na babae. They are either 'fat' or they're thin. Only kids can be described as 'chubby.'"

I didn't know whether to be even more indignant or amused. And he was dead serious! Guys really are from a different planet!

So let me know if you agree or disagree with Eric.

Life's little ironies #12, #13, #14, and #15

12. People who order "just a salad" in restaurants because "they're on a diet"... and then order bottomless iced tea as their drinks.

13. People who religiously go to the gym everyday...but smoke.

14. Girls who wear tops with plunging necklines... but put their hands over their chest when they bend over so that their cleavage won't show.

15. Girls who wear micro-miniskirts...but keep tugging them down when they walk.

You guys have anything to add to the list?

New soap on the block

Watched the premiere episode of ABS-CBN's remake of Gulong ng Palad last night, and so far, it's pretty good. The kids who played the young version of the leads weren't too pa-cute, and they held their own in scenes with veterans like Joel Torre (who's getting a bit more paunchy now), Juan Rodrigo (still good-looking as always), Rio Locsin, and the incomparable Cherie Gil.

I liked how the story moved quickly—usually, in local soaps, they drag the childhood years for a week or two before fast-fowarding to the "present." Last night, the episode ended with a shot of the grown-up Luisa (played by Kristine Hermosa), so I'm looking forward to an equally fast-paced plot for the rest of the season.

My only beef so far is how Cherie Gil's clothes, glamorous as she may look in all of them, seem a little too trendy to the point that it gets distracting. I mean, a backless dress and knee-high boots for her husband's funeral? Not really apt, don't you think?

I confess that part of GNP's appeal for me lies in the male lead, TJ Trinidad, who's cute as hell; and also I can't resist the urge to poke criticism at Kristine Hermosa's acting—ever notice that her voice gets all shrill when she cries? Hopefully she's a better actress now. In the meantime, at least now I'll have something to keep me occupied until the new season of American Idol airs.

Reverse snobbery

Eric and I spent the day at Alabang Town Center yesterday, where we kept making fun of the surroundings' supposed chi-chi crowd.

For example, we got there around noon, and when I saw that the open air parking slots near the mall entrance were already filled, I worried the all the other parking slots elsewhere were also equally full.

"Ok lang yan," Eric assured me, confidently positive that the parking spaces further away would still have slots. "Malamang puno pag malapit sa mall kasi yung mga mayayaman, ayaw maglakad nang malayo."

Yes, but it was already lunchtime. In other malls, if you come around this time, expect to have a hard time finding a parking space.

"Wala yan, sosi mga tao dito, di sila gumigising nang maaga."

True enough, we easily found parking at the covered parking area.

Inside, we ate at Tony Roma's (famous for its baby-back ribs), primarily because it was the only restaurant in the row that wasn't filled to the brim. The reason? "Palibhasa mga mayayaman, ayaw madumihan ang kamay pag kakain," we snickered.

The restrooms were also not crowded, there was no line at all in the one I went to. Because, yes, rich people will mostly likely rather use the pay restroom than line up in the "common" bathrooms.

When we left around 2:30pm, there was a long line leading into the parking lot. "Told you," Eric said. "Kagigising lang ng mga tao."

Yes, we were mean. But it sure was a lot of fun.

Diplomacy sucks

I used to be a staunch advocate of compromising, but lately I feel that the concept of "give and take" has just become way too...overrated.

Is it really so bad if all I want to do is just take and take?

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In other news: Forget Tagaytay, I might be going to Thailand at the end of this month!!! Yay! I usually try not to post good news of this magnitude until I am absolutely, positively, 100% sure (baka kasi maudlot), but I'm just too excited to keep it in. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

All I want for Christmas is...?

Well, I had no idea last December, and I still don't know what to ask for now that it's January.

See, since a few years back, Eric and I have stopped giving each other "surprise" presents because frankly, we both suck at predicting what the other wants, and end up feeling disappointed that the gift did not elicit the "Oh my God! Just what I wanted!" reaction we both wanted to hear.

So what we do instead is to just ask for that one thing that we want and we buy it for each other.

This year's holidays being particularly more hectic than the rest (what with juggling schedules to spend time with 2 sets of family and friends, horrible traffic, and a killer workload), we didn't really have time to sit down and think about what to ask for.

Last week, Eric finally declared that what he wanted was a subwoofer (which I think is some sort of speaker????). Okay, one down.

Me? I still have no idea.

I have too many books that I have yet to read, am not a bag, shoe, food or gadgets person, so I'm not craving for that Sony Ericsson whatever that he suggested for me.

The last week of December, I bought an, umm, pretty expensive expensive pair of jeans (which cost around P4,000 but well worth it!! hehehe) and I asked Eric if he would be willing to "pay" for it. "Yan nalang Christmas gift mo sa akin," I told him, thinking that if he would be willing to buy me a new five-figure cellphone, P4,000 would be a deal. Apparently, he doesn't find the two items in the same league, as he balked at the price of the jeans. "Ano yan, gawa sa ginto??" was his reaction.

So now I'm back to zero and it's getting close to my brithday, which means I have to think of yet another gift for myself.

I think I'll just press him into taking me back to Tagaytay one weekend. I miss Sonya's Garden.

Things I think about in the middle of the workday #4

After a pool party, poker party, and two Christmas parties...

I'm now thinking of organizing a Valentine's Day-themed party.

Hmm...

All I wanna do is have some fun

And 26 other things I want/hope/should accomplish this 2006:

1. Go to a beach, any beach.
2. Learn to scuba dive
3. Go to Palawan.
4. Go to Bohol.
5. Basta, get out of Luzon.

6. Master cooking adobo.
7. And sinigang.
8. Finish reading all the Paulo Coelho books on my shelf
9. And not buy any new books until I do so
10. Interview a bonafide taipan

11. Make a baby
12. Do volunteer work (even for just one day)
13. Watch more plays
14. Compliment people more
15. Pray more

16. Buy more clothes in green, pink, and other bright colors
17. Organize more get-togethers with friends
18. Attend a walking tour
19. Exercise more
20. Get a PDA

21. Get a hair spa more often
22. Watch more Discovery Channel and National Geographic, less HBO and Star Movies
23. Fill the house with plants
24. Have a real, honest-to-goodness (but justified) bitch fit
25. Reconnect with an old friend (preferably someone from college)
26. Learn how to do my own makeup