More weddings

As it always is, Christmas season also doubles as wedding season, with most people deciding to get married anywhere from November to January. It's kinda crazy when you think about it - traffic is at its worst during this time of the year. But a lot of people decide to get married around Christmas because most of their relatives and friends who live outside the country travel back to Manila for the holidays.

I attended the wedding of Eloi and Edward a couple of weeks ago. They got married in Paco Park and since I'm not very familiar with that area, I ended up in Paco Church which apparently is a completely different place. The traffic in Manila that day was intense, which really sucked because I was supposed to sing "Ikaw" as Eloi walked down the aisle. So someone from the choir was supposed to back me up in case I didn't make it in time. I stepped into Paco Park 20 minutes late and completely deflated, but as I entered, I saw Eloi getting ready for the bridal march. So I ran around the side of the park and into the chapel. A minute or so later, and still slightly out of breath, Eloi entered the chapel and I started singing. Talk about your photo finishes!

I was definitely calmer the day after during Jayson and Lorraine's wedding. I had to pick Joyce up coz she had no ride, and since she was part of the entourage, we got there at 2:15pm, 45 minutes before the wedding was supposed to start (well, 15 minutes before it was supposed to start *according* to the invitation but apparently they put in a half hour buffer because they figured people would be late). The reception, at the Sofitel, wouldn't start until a couple of hours later so Joyce and I took some photos and had coffee and dessert at the lobby (the coffee was so frickin' expensive, more than P200 a cup!). It was great though because we were assigned in table 1 and as such were the first table to hit the buffet. And the food was incredible!! Made me wish I had a bigger stomach so I could eat more. Joyce and I stayed and danced like crazy until the band finished their set.


There are a few more weddings coming up - Stelz and Norman, Mai and Nick, and Kuki and MJ. Tricia and CJ got married recently but their wedding reception won't be until January. Which reminds me, I need a new barong.

A signed Liverpool shirt and a strong season so far

After Liverpool beat PSV Eindhoven 3-1 in last week's champions league, I visited the Liverpool website and saw that a Limited edition Liverpool shirt signed by the team was available for purchase. Wow! A signed Liverpool shirt!! I decided to check it out immediately, find out how much it cost, and get it for myself. Unfortunately, when I checked it out, it said that the product was not available.

How quickly excitement can turn into disappointment LOL. I should've known that a limited edition Liverpool signed by the players would sell like hotcakes. Makes me wish I checked the website sooner. Then again, considering that I'm strapped for cash right now, it's probably better that stocks ran out. Otherwise, I'd get in even deeper debt than I already am right now.

It's great though that Liverpool are doing incredibly well this season. They've beaten both Chelsea and Man United - away, at that! - and are currently top of the league. They have a game in hand though and are just one point clear of Chelsea so chelsea can go top of the league again. Kinda sucks that Liverpool just drew last night against Hull City, but I'll take it considering that Pool were done 0-2. If it weren't for Steven Gerrard and his two goals, we could have been in slightly worse shape.

Makes me think, I actually prefer to get the current Liverpool kit with Gerrard's name and number (8) at the back. Costs quite a few quid though, so I'll have to save up for it first.

"Oh, had I a golden thread" by Eva Cassidy

This is Eva Cassidy singing "Oh, had I a golden thread." Hearing her version made me an instant fan. Her vocal ability is brilliantly showcased in this song and everyone who has listened to it has more or less agreed that it is traffic-stopping in its brilliance.


video uploaded in youtube by user superstarsingerfreak

I first learned about Eva Cassidy when Michelle Kwan skated to her version of Sting's "Fields of Gold." My friend Diane let me listen to a couple of her cover of "Autumn Leaves". From her renditions of these two songs, I felt that she had an incredibly soulful voice and an amazing ability to cover other people's music.

Then I was on a plane once, several years ago, where one of the music channels featured her music. The description in the in-flight magazine of her voice was that she had the amazing ability of going from soft to loud very effortlessly. Since I knew her as someone with a soulful and soothing voice, that comment made me wonder. So I decided to listen.

And for the first half of this song, I was still thinking, okay, great soft voice. Then mid-way she goes all gospel-y and unleashes one of the best high notes I have ever heard. Ever. (It comes at around 2:52 in the song.) I was lucky enough to find her "Live at Blues Alley CD" in the hard-to-find section in a music store in Podium a few years ago. I've scratched that CD listening to it over and over again. Definitely worth a buy if you can find it. Even for just this song. :)

My new phone

I just got myself a new mobile handset.

Since the Rihanna concert, I have been having problems with the LCD of my old phone, which was a Sony Ericsson K750i. About 70% of the time, the screen would be washed out and I'd have to turn it off then on again, or I'd open the camera lens and shut it, for the screen to reappear. So for a couple of weeks I have been thinking of getting a new phone. But since I could still get by with my old phone, which was a phone that I actually really liked it, I kept putting off my new phone purchase.

That is, until Friday, when I accidentally dropped my phone into a urinal. I know, disgusting (and probably too much information). So it was definitely time for me to get a new phone.

I had been thinking of getting the Sony Ericsson K770i. Mainly coz I was happy with my previous Sony Ericsson phone. And also because the K770i had a torchlight or flashlight, similar to the K750i. Weird really that the presence of a powerful light would be a deciding factor in which phone I'd get. But I did use the light of my K750i a lot - it was probably one of the most used features of that phone - so as silly as it sounds, it kinda made sense for me LOL. I was looking for a slightly cheaper phone (which was in the P10,000 price range and not one of those fancy phones that cost P20,000 and up).


So I ended up getting the Sony Ericsson K770i. The extra bonus I get with this phone is that since I didn't get it from my mobile provider, it isn't network-locked. Which means I can use it with any SIM card, making it so much better for me when I travel to another country - say Singapore - where I can just get a pre-paid SIM and save a lot of money on texts and calls.

And in the two days I've been using it, I am quite happy with my choice. The only thing is that it is quite a thin and sleek phone, and it doesn't look as sturdy as the K750. I'm worried that one day, my phone will slip from my hands and break when it hits the floor. I guess I wouldn't mind if that happens, as long as I get a couple of years worth of mileage from it first.

Go Manny!

Manny Pacquiao wins his historic boxing match against Golden Boy Oscar Dela Hoya! Woo-hoo!!

photo courtesy of sportsillustrated.cnn.com

I had my doubts leading to that match. Dela Hoya towered four inches over Pacquiao and his reach exceeded Manny's by about 6 inches. Odds-makers were putting Pacquiao as the underdog so he had a lot of work to do if he wanted to win.

I would've watched the match had I gotten up early enough to catch it but I didn't. I had an incredibly long week leading up to an exhausting day yesterday (one that ended at 4am after a massive amount of drinks) so I woke up mid-afternoon. I only remembered the match coz I was in an elevator with some people who were talking about how Manny beat Oscar into submission. I did get to see a bit of the fight again at night and it was great to see just how well Pacquiao fought. It was also great to hear the crowd chanting "Manny! Manny!"

So Pacquiao solidifies his unofficial title as the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world. It was a great win for Manny and a great win for the Philippines! :)

Meeting up with Suzanne and Nenen

My friends Suzanne and Nenen recently flew back to the Philippines for a couple of weeks so naturally we met up with them while they were here.

We decided to have dinner in Je Suis Gourmand in Fort Bonifacio with the gang, or at least those of us still in town - Nenen, Suzanne, Joh, Raffa, Pia, Peegee, Randee, Me-ann and myself. It was also Me-ann's birthday so it was a double celebration. Obviously there was a lot of catching up, with Nenen and Suzanne talking about their new house and the trips they've taken. I got French Apple Pie from Sugarhouse for Me-ann's birthday so we decided to have dessert in Peegee and Randee's place. For most of us, it was our first time there and they had a really cool place. After dessert, Suzanne and Nenen handed us all our Christmas presents which was really cool. Since I have low EQ, I took a look at my present. They got me a Humdinger. I seriously can't wait to play it. I'll certainly be bringing it during our Christmas party and I trust we will be having loads of fun playing it. :)

Nenen then headed to Bacolod to spend time with her family. Since Suzanne was staying in Manila, we decided to meet up with her again. Last Thursday, we - Suzanne, Me-ann, Joh, Pia, and I - had dinner in Red Crab in Greenbelt 3. We decided to have dessert some place else afterwards. Suzanne was looking for a new place and since she had never been to Greenbelt 5, we head over there. Most places were closed by that time but Chateau 1771 was still open so we had coffee and dessert there. Can't remember what I had but it was this dark chocolate tart that was awesome! Actually, all the desserts were pretty good.

Then on Tuesday, we met up with Suzanne once again, this time in Edsa Shang Mall. Me-ann had gone to the US on a business trip so it was just me, Suzanne, Pia, Joh, and Raffa. Apparently, Suzanne had never been to that mall ever so it was apparently the right move for us to have dinner there. As always, the food in Cyma was great. I tried the Wagyu beef burger for the first time (really good!). We capped off the night with coffee in Starbucks.

It was great hanging out with the gang (or a subset of it LOL) again. Our Christmas get-together will be in a couple of weeks, when a lot of other folks who are out of town head back home. Nenen and Suzanne won't be here by then but it was great that we got to hang out with them while they were here.