Archive for December, 2008

I wish I were a beauty queen

I was on my way to the Osaka train station when I passed by the activity hall in a department store. H.I.S., one of the largest travel agencies here in Japan, had some sort of promotions. I really had no idea what it was exactly. But the people on stage caught my attention:


At first I thought they were Filipinas, but they were from Guam. Yes, H.I.S. invited these beauty queens from Guam to promote their products.  You can’t read it from the picture but these lovely ladies are all wearing “Miss Guam Universe …”  sashes. The gown wearing the peach gown was wearing a “Miss Guam Universe Finalist” sash.  Anyway, I do envy their height! But the physical attributes are not the reason why I dream of becoming a beauty queen (a dream which is has always been impossible).  Rather,  I want one of the perks that comes with it –  travel opportunities!

If only I wasn’t in a hurry, it would have been me posing between these ladies instead of that Japanese lady. :D
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Acne Control and Weight Loss?

For years, I have had this problem with acne. I have tried out dozens of ways to make them disappear for good. Then my flatmate recommended taking birth control pills! She told me that she also had the same problem so she went to a dermatologist. The prescription did not include any acne soap, acne bar, or virtamin for the skin, but only birth control pills! Surprisingly, it proved to be very effective.

Recently, I read something about Decaslim. It is actually a supplement for quick weight loss, but at the same time, it gets rid of acne! I would have thought this is unbelievable before hearing about the acne-removing birth control pill.

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Fenphedra

I have always believed that athletes just loose weight the “natural way”. I had thought that all of them are just too disciplined to stop themselves from indulging in food like my favorite cheese cake, and that they are too dedicated to their exercise regime, thus avoiding weight gain. I was once again very naive. Despite all those sacrifices, of course, they could still gain weight. I was actually surprised when I’ve read an article saying that bodybuilders sometimes take fat burners such as Fenphedra.

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Photohunt: Wide

I think everyone loves Christmas decors. There’s this one department store in Osaka that has wide display spaces to put up Christmas decors such as this one:

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Hotels and Casinos

I have been to a casino only once. It was when a close friend took me with her to the Waterfront Hotel in Cebu. I didn’t have money to burn, so all I did was act like I was her chaperon. At that time, I was amazed at the tension and excitement that reverberated throughout the place. How much more excitement can one feel when you’re in the Entertainment Capital of the World, las vegas nevada?  If I have the financial abundance, I’m pretty sure I would not do much gambling.  Staying in a luxury hotel such as The Mirage or Ceasar’s Palace is already enough for me.   Las Vegas, along with Orlando, Florida and New York, is one of the places in the U.S. that I dream of visiting some day…

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Friday Quote #4

“What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future. It is a fervent wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal, and that every path may lead to peace.”

-Agnes M. Pharo

Just like what Agnes M. Pharo said, Christmas is a fervent wish for peace. In my hometown, this Christmas is different.  Just yesterday, two separate bombing incidents occurred in Iligan City.  Many people got injured and three people died.  Right now, residents of Iligan City and the rest of Lanao del Norte are still facing bomb threats.  Silence and fear replaced the usual fire crackers.  Curfew has been implemented.  This is not the Christmas we had been used to.  I couldn’t get enough sleep worrying about my family there.  I hope and pray that this act of terrorism would stop. I hope and pray for peace in my hometown and in all corners of the world not only this Christmas…

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Wordless Wednesday #26: Just another parlor game

One of the parlor games we had at the Christmas party.

Check out the Wordless Wednesday HQ
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Future Plans

Most of my friends and I have worked here in Japan for more than a couple of years.  Just like almost every Filipino working abroad, we don’t intend on growing old outside our native homeland.  We sometimes talk over some things and daydream about what we want to do when that time comes.  Some of us even made an agreement of becoming business partners.  Many came up with putting up  vacation rentals. Taking advantage of our contacts here and of our IT experiences, this kind of business is definitely not farfetched.

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Paskong JaPinoy 2008

Many things kept me from blogging constantly these days. I do have many drafts but somehow, I just can’t finish writing them.

Anyway, it’s almost Christmas and many Filipino friends are going home on Saturday so we had our Christmas party last December 13th.  14 Filipinos and 5 Japanese joined the party so basically it was a “Paskong JaPinoy”. Yes, about 20 people were present and despite the cramped venue, we managed to have some parlor games. All prizes cost 100-yen and yet everyone was very competitive to get hold of one of those mugs. It felt like a real Noche Buena because food and drinks were overflowing.  We can’t let this Christmas pass without exchanging gifts, so we had a Kris Kringle.   To liven up the party more, some of us even tried to do the cup beat!

As one of the organizers and the host, I’m glad everyone had fun at the party.  To those who joined the party and to my fellow organizers, thank you!

The JaPinoys:

Those who tried to do the cup beat:

The most interesting gift:

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Kris Kringle Online

I’ve always loved Kris Kringle and for Christmas parties where people don’t often meet, it is very hard to organize one. Gone were the days where we have to write down our names on a sheet of paper, place them on a box, gather everyone, and draw names. The web has completely eradicated this inconvenience and made it possible to draw names online!

At the Christmas Party we recently had, we used Elfster. It is very easy to sign up, send invites and draw names! You can even put up your wish list or ask the person you’re giving a gift to anonymously!  As one of the organizers, Elfster made it easy for me to send messages to everyone.

We even thought of writing our own program for drawing names. It could have taken some hours of my anime marathon! I’m just glad I came across Elfster.

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Almost a week late

I know I’m almost a week late on my post about the Pacquaio vs. De La Hoya match, but I just can’t let it pass without writing anything about it.

Just like many boxing lovers out there, I was very excited about the match.  In fact, I’ve also took a kind of preparation which proved to be very useful while I was watching the match.  De La Hoya has more experiences and is taller than Pacquaio, so I thought that the Filipino boxer will have a hard time.Pacquaio already ruled the first round but I was expecting for De La Hoya to show off his prowess on the next round.  There were a few times when I thought that Pacquiao was already done for but as the fight progressed, De La Hoya was becoming slower, his attacks lacking power.  Or was it because Pacquiao was much faster and has more powerful punches than De La Hoya?  Or was the age difference already that apparent? Or was it because Pacquio uses south paw and De La Hoya just didn’t prepare enough for the fight? All in all, I’d have to say I was a little bit disappointed at the match but at the same time I’m overjoyed because Pacquiao has won again by TKO.
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Ideal Christmas Vacation

As long as I spend Christmas vacation with my family, then it’s the best vacation that I could I ever have.  Not just with my direct family, but it would be much better to be around many relatives this season.  When I was still in the Philippines, I usually hold a children’s Christmas party, with lots of food and parlor games.  Prizes could only be a bag of candies, but hearing the children’s laughter is the best Christmas gift I could give myself.   Too bad I’m gonna miss that kind of warmth this Christmas again.

I’m getting homesick again.  I’d better try to picture out  spending my vacation in a place I’ve never been to.  Many people love to stay in the beach, but I often prefer to stay in hotels in the midst of a big city.  Maybe because I’ve spent my life near the beach. If money’s not a problem, perhaps a week in Westgate Planet Hollywood Towers would be a blast!

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