Room With A View

Compared to my tiny cubicle in Binondo where there isn't a window in sight, my office here in Paragon Plaza gives me a 180 degree view of the surrounding metro. 

Makati is on the left while Quezon City is on the right. Below is the ever busy EDSA loaded with cars and billboards. On the far left, I can see Manila Bay which sparkles during sunset, while amazingly, I can still see the silhouette of the mountains beyond the sea.

Actually, I share this room with my mom as she's the one handling the operations and finances of their health and wellness company. I'm the guy who edits the marketing proposals and suggests advertising campaigns. I like how they value my opinion. Right now, as I'm typing this, she's very busy... trying to fix her broken correction tape. Very busy indeed!

I remember the facebook status message of my seatmate in Binondo, "wouldn't it be nice just once to be under worked and overpaid?" Their family owns an automobile parts supply business so she used to have a secretary who cries because of her, and she can wake up anytime that she wants. Now that she's working in a bank, she has to be disciplined. There's no place for spoiled kids in a bank.

So this was my work outfit today. I was absent from the bank because my mom asked me to go with her on some meetings today, and I guess I needed a break after getting a really good grade from my revalida. Oh yeah! I'm looking forward to more vacation this Friday because we'll be going to Canyon Cove with other bank people to relax.

By the way, I had a deal with Gillian, Nichelle and Katrina. I think they are too irritated by my "playfullness." If I anger or irritate them this week, I have to give them my one month worth of salary. Ok, fine. But if I win on this wager, they have to wait for the sunrise with me on the beach this weekend! Haha! 

Can't wait for Friday!

In Black and White

My bitterness can be explained by the black and white photos which Mikey took when we went to Baguio several months ago. Bitter because our maid was able to watch the flower studded floats in Session Road while I just stayed in Manila during the weekend.

Baguio has to be my number one favorite city in the country. Not only because I'm a mountain person (more than a beach type). Even though the facade of Baguio looks very old (without the monolithic SM) it was able to maintain its quintessential shops and culture - from art to food. It is a city bursting with culture, if you know where to look! And the weather there is one of the few places in the Philippines where you can wear fur anytime of the year!

Although the photos below were taken randomly, I arranged them so that they'd tell a story...

Hope my friends and I can visit Baguio once again this summer!

For Good

My routine for the past weeks has been the cause of increasing hair loss. After 9 hours of banking work in Binondo, I travel to Paragon Plaza in Mandaluyong to help my mom and her friends stabilize their health and beauty company where I go home around 10pm to even 12 midnight. During weekends, I meet constantly with James and Mike for our campus merchandise business, and meet the team of Manila Kid for our book and the online magazine. That online magazine and the book we're writing can actually consume my week's worth of energy on their own. Of course, time for friends and family is allotted from time to time.

That hectic schedule has been the source of why I wanted to RESIGN. Yikes, that word scares the hell out of  employers, especially if it comes from a valued EMPLOYEE (yuck, I hate that word). My college friend actually told me that I'm just wasting my time in a bank. But after our revalida and the events that took place after Valentine's day, I reconsidered my stand.

Well, I realized that the reason why I wanted to work in a formal company (by formal, I mean that I have to be under certain rules like coming to work at 8:30am) is that I needed some discipline which the bank can provide. Uhm, but seriously, it has gotten more interesting in the bank right now, if you know what I mean.

It has gotten so interesting because of the people, like a suspense novel in real life. I won't give so much detail but if you've been following my posts for the past days, you know what's this about. So yeah, I'll be staying in the bank for good, or until the real life novel has prematurely ended. I even added on facebook some of my office friends.

Anyway, these are the mandatory outfit shots with my brother yesterday in Power Plant. The last three photos were taken in my mom's office in Paragon, and yes they are still renovating the place. Will show you the completed work place once it's done.

On me: Fendi cuff, Marc Jacobs bag, Sebago loafers

On my brother: Zara blazer, Topman pants, Commes des Gacon sneakers

Soleil Day

I'll be going to the beach next weekend for a company outing and since most of my clothes are for the cold season (all my summer outfits are already expired), I opted to check out the hottest pre-summer bazaar in the metro - Soleil, as organized by one of the leading organizations in La Salle, BMS. 

As in all bazaars that I've been to, I wasn't able to buy anything for myself since I have this shopping rule that I'd only buy stuff that kinda communicates to me. Like, you know that thing when you see someone cute and she smiles and your heart kind of goes like warm butter sliding down hot toast? Well that's what it's like when I see really good clothes. Only it's better. And of course, I'd immediately buy the clothes!

Below are some of the pictures that we took during the bazaar. By the way, my friend, James, was one of the heads who organized this event!

Seriously, one can't get enough accessories. Too bad most of the stuff on display were for girls.

Animo Nation is one of DLSU's promising campus merchandise. It hasn't reached that level of Get Blued yet as in Ateneo, but the team behind it is really driven to bring back the school spirit, not that it has weaken or anything. What I like most about Animo Nation? Their designs are very classy! It's sure to stand the test of time.

My brother is dying to have one of these notebooks. Each page contains a template body where you can sketch different clothes on. I think it's one of those essentials when you're a fashion student. Unfortunately, when we arrived at their booth, the owner wasn't there and the girl guarding the booth didn't know the price:(

After having lunch, we went Power Plant to do some serious shopping because I wasn't satisfied with what they have in the bazaar. I don't know why but I'm starting to like Muji more than Zara and Topman. I guess my taste is either shifting or starting to mature. I then went straight to my mom's office in Paragon Plaza and waited for her meeting to end. We then watched Hugo which is one heck of a beautiful film, then finally called it a day.

Hugo

After seeing the Oscar nominated film Hugo by Martin Scorsese, I remembered what my meditation teacher said in one of our weekly meetings before. Regardless of how old or how accomplished you are, your dreams will always chase you and put you where you really belong. She has said it with so much conviction that one can only tell that she learned it from experience, the hard way probably.

Simply put, Hugo revolves around the story of this abandoned kid who was able to spark back the passion in the life of an aging film director. The film is very personal and moving. I especially liked the mostly orange and blue cinematography, and the way they used the images of mechanical objects like the clocks and the robot to bring out the humane.

So far, I've only seen two out of the ten nominated film in the Oscars this year! It will be this coming Monday already and I'm crossing my fingers that Hugo will bag lots of awards!

Post-Adolescent Phase

Haven't blogged since Valentine's Day. After the incident which was mentioned in the last post, everything became so complicated. Sometimes I feel so apologetic then I become obsessed with hatred the next. It's like I wanna punch someone! I think these frequent mood swings happens to adolescent boys, but for christ's sake I'm already 21! Anyway...

Last night, I finished reading Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. It lacked the suspense or drama that I was expecting since it is considered one of the most challenged book of the 20th century, but I was able to relate with the struggles of the 16y/o character very much. Well, maybe because of the phase that I'm currently undergoing.

Here's an excerpt of the book and a bit of an analysis I found online:

"What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff— I mean if they’re running and they don’t look where they’re going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That’s all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all.": Holden in chapter 22. Here Holden tells Phoebe the basic theme of the novel. Holden sees himself as a martyr and protector of innocent children. He wants to keep them from falling over the cliff into adulthood.
Another quote that really stuck into my head: "The mark of an immature man, is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, the mark of a mature man, is that he wants to live humbly for one"

Maybe that's one of the reason's why I don't want to grow up. It takes too much responsibility.

I asked Mikey awhile ago if he can recommend me a book to read. Now I have Perks of a Wallflower in my bedside table to keep me company. It's in the same genre as the Catcher in the Rye so expect a more emotionally unstable Neil.

Unless You Read My Blog

You'll never know that I was the one who snuck up at 7am in the office...

that I never felt this happy when I saw you excitedly smiling when I returned at 8:35am...

that I had to act like I didn't have any idea on who placed that special surprise on your desk, and I had to deny that it was me... 

and that I had to keep my face blank when suddenly, 3 DOZENS of pink Tulips arrived at around 10am, from HIM...

and that I had to keep smiling and agreeing when you told me you loved his bouquet more because it's more expensive, the "first one" looks like fake Tulips and as if it was just bought in Dangwa. 

If you only knew.

We Won't Fade Into Darkness

This is Zone Magazine's last issue under Adrian Gonzales. Words won't do justice to what they did to this issue, so i'll let the pages speak for itself.

The one page that had me staring for more than 3 minutes is below. I'm currently having a severe obsession to this work by Ariel Magyawe. It's freedom at the expense of others. Very powerful work! I wish I can have my own copy so I can hang it on my wall:)) It's like the artist crafted my feelings or something!

For me, art has always been an escape - from the bitter reality and from the delusion that everything is alright. It serves as a refuge, but more effectively, it disturbs us. We won't fade into darkness thanks to art, thanks to Zone Magazine.

You can check out the full issue HERE.