A light when all other lights go out!

i don't know why i've never been very good with greetings. but here i am anyway, remembering to say, merry christmas to all. :)

"It had a dark presence, like a temptation one didn't want to entertain." - alec wilkinson

spending christmas eve at work.

i had a dream last night and i don't recall most of it except that there were dogs and my bestfriend was taylor swift. hahahaha!

Long after the killing of bin Laden was accomplished, I read a full, blow-by-blow account of the entire SEAL siege on the Abbottabad complex that housed bin Laden written in The New Yorker. It was a thrilling, multi-page narrative and I read it with my mouth hanging open, gripped by the unfolding of the story (it was well-written). Subsequently, I learned some interesting trivia surrounding it. Like, the day the siege took place, President Obama had been playing nine holes of golf at an American air force base. After that, he returned to the White House for a live viewing of the entire operation. Typed on this blog, that doesn't seem like trivia that bears any weight or importance but it's just interesting for me to learn about how all the cast of characters of the thriller-drama that was the killing of bin Laden were that day and where they all were and how they handled it. And I hope this isn't taken the wrong way. The info about Obama playing golf the day of the gr...

first of all, some congratulations are in order. congratulations to ms janine t. for winning first runner-up in the miss universe competition. that was marvelous and we are very proud of you. here is a re-print of her beautiful answer in the question and answer portion: Q: As an international ambassador, do you believe that speaking English should be a prerequisite to being Miss Universe? Why or why not? Her answer: For me, being Miss Universe is not just about knowing how to speak a specific language. It's being able to influence and inspire other people. As long as your heart wants to serve and you have a strong mind to show people, then you can be Miss Universe. bravo! and, more congratulations are in order! president barack obama was named by Time magazine as Person of the Year 2012! wee! congratulations! very happy for obama. interestingly, readers might have been disappointed because, according to news reports, in the poll held by Time, readers had actually voted ...

this day, dec. 14, 2012, at 4:43 pm (according to my watch, which is a little advanced in minutes), i opened the plastic from my very first very own starbucks planner (i got the white one). :) :) :) *dancing* *very happy* hello 2013! i wanna love you from the very first day! :)

i can't believe it: manny made the new yorker! ohmaygad! there's a piece on him written by a k. sanneh and it implicitly comments that manny's loss might not really be as definitive to his career as it would seem. wow, he made the new yorker. hahaha, i'm laughing at my own incredulous reaction. the new yorker is notoriously highbrow kc and known for its rarefied, top-tier position in its industry. not that i'm saying that manny or boxing is lowbrow. but i'm often continually pleasantly surprised whenever i come upon reminders of the heights that manny had risen to and his impact in many spheres in the world. mitt romney even sought a small dialogue with him. mitt romney. wow. manny's really quite a phenomenon. sorry, i sound like i'd been living under a rock. i just don't really keep up with manny's life or career and anyway, i'm an easily surprised person. check out the article in the new yorker. ;)

last weekend was christmas shopping weekend. my brother, sister-in-law, and cheeky nephew who doesn't know how to speak tagalog were over here in manila for a weekend vacation. it was a one peso-fare affair. the first day, we went to the mall right away where my brother decided that he was going to get me a swatch watch as a christmas gift. hence, my sister-in-law and i visited the swatch shop to pick out a watch that was going to be mine. it was there that i promptly fell in love, torn among so many attractive wristwatches! i never realized before then how swatch had so many seriously appealing watches in their store! it was a revelation, kind of like looking for something and never knowing it was just there all along! i marveled that i never looked in their direction; i had been always in love with something else. at some excited point, the competition over my Next Top Watch dwindled down to this sweet multiple-chain-y little thing with pink hearts and a few other choices. ...

lacking sleep. :)

hihihi, and being late strikes again! happy happy week after anniversary to lala and allison! may you always be the most happiest and perfectest couple around! labs you both!!!! :):):)

for today i'd like to share some gems we can pilfer from my friend mimi, writer for online philstar, with whom i'm very proud: 99U: Uncertainty is an uncomfortable position. But certainty is an absurd one. - Voltaire Mimi: @99U Relativism! That's what has made our world terrible. And: Haha, nakaaway ko si M. Ressa nung isang araw dito lang sa twitter. :p Dahil sa pag-sensationalize nila sa...(something) astig. fighter investigative reporter. go mimi! :) (i hope, hope, hope, hope she doesn't mind that i've shared some of her statements without running it by her. open account naman twitter ni mims eh...will let her know i ran her quotes elsewhere next time we meet!) ^_^

you were my best four years.

argh! i cannot live without my ballpen and paper/notebook! what am i supposed to write on, a leftover starbucks paper bag?! ok, it will do. :)

determination is in our nature. - statoil i have no idea what this company is and i don't care, but they have a great slogan. so quietly sly and clever, understatedly strong and aggressive and final and proud. love it!