Two days of no work, four shopping bags, and an imaginary 28 candle lit Birthday Cake!

Last Wednesday, July 9, 2008 to be exact, I called in sick. But the truth is, I was never really sick, I just took the day off. Although I am already on vacation leave on Thursday. I just wanted to be alone for a while. You know, like those moments you’re dying to long for when you feel suffocated of life w/ all those noise going around. I just wanted to take a moment to enjoy the beauty of life w/ out anybody else. ‘Coz sometimes, you’d only appreciate the beauty of everything if you spend time to look and observe things w/ solitude.


Here’s how I spent those 2 days off:

Wednesday:

Well, Tuesday night, I had to go to work and my out was the next day which is Wednesday, 5 in the morning. So, after my Tuesday night shift, I went straight home. I slept at around 9AM and woke up at around 2PM. Got off my bed, and prepared myself for gym. At around 5PM, I texted my supervisor telling him that I will be unable to go to work because I have diarrhea. I know, I know, what a used alibi. Ha-ha! But never fails me. I mean after all, I seldom go on absent at work. So, anyway, I spent around 3 hours at the gym, got out by 8PM and dined myself out to a nice Korean Restaurant where I always bring most of my closest friends to. (By the way, the name of the Korean Restaurant is Chosun, which could be found at the back of Mall of Asia, at the Music Hall, you guys have to try their Salmon Barbecue! Delectable!) Yup, I ate alone and hey, it really isn’t that bad. It’s nice to have some quiet time to enjoy a nice dinner. After that, I roamed around the mall to do some window shopping then by 9:30PM, watched myself a nice movie, “Get Smart” by Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway. (A very nice movie if I may say so, a kind of film that Hollywood had forgotten to make for quite some time now, if you’re looking for a light comedy/action/romance film? This would definitely be a treat for you.) After the movies, smoke myself a cigar and went straight home. I got home at around a quarter to 1AM.

(And this were some of the appetizers given to you for free at Chosun while waiting for your order. You could also request for another bowl of kim-chi after you've finished your first.)

Thursday:

Thursday was a big day for me. Well, not really such of a big day, but for me, it was a day of celebration. Anyway, I will be going to more detail about that later on.

It was almost the same routine as what I did last Wednesday. But before I went to the gym, I visited this store that had just recently opened at the back of Mall of Asia. Sanuk is the name of the store where you can buy very nice flip-flops and slip ons. I wanted to buy this nice pair of slip ons, but it was at an unbelievable price of 3,999 Pesos! I could buy myself a lot of things w/ that money. So, I said, what the hey, I’ll probably just wait till someone gives me one. Ha-ha! I went at the gym by 5PM. Didn’t had to text my supervisor ‘coz it was my official vacation leave. Then got out of gym by 8PM. After that, I attacked my 4 favorite stores to shop at Mall of Asia. First stop is at Diego. I had to get myself a nice polo to wear for the christening of my Godson this coming Sunday. I have a lot of polo’s but all of them are too big for me now. Luckily, Diego was on sale, so I got myself a very nice striped short-sleeved polo for only 550 Pesos! It was 1000 Pesos before! Cool! (Yup, Diego is on sale, and they still have a lot of very nice items, so I suggest, go there ASAP!) My next stop was at F&H, I had to buy myself a nice pair of jeans that looks like khaki but isn’t khaki to match my top that I purchased at Diego. I got myself a very nice straight cut jeans that looks like khaki but the material is somewhat like that of the maong, it fit perfectly and only cost me 999 Pesos. After F&H, I went straight to People are People. My pants size for this store used to be 32, but to my surprise, I tried on a 30 and it fit me perfectly, so, w/out further delay, I bought myself a pair of semi faded light bluish brownish jeans w/ nice printings at the back pocket. It cost me 1,500 Pesos. Then I bought a nice light faded blue shirt for 599 pesos. It was kind of expensive, but hey, the quality of their clothes will really last you a long time. Then I had to buy a belt. Sadly, People are People ran out of Men’s accessories so, I had to look somewhere else. Just across was TopMan, I know, clothes and accessories in this store are very expensive, but, I found this very nice black garrison belt for only 350 Pesos.

(This was the kind of slip ons i wanted to buy at Sanuk.)

So, there you have it. I shopped and plopped. But all of these items were for only 3,998 Pesos. Not bad huh? I mean, I know a lot of people could probably do more w/ this amount, but if you’re aiming for nice quality clothes, then this sum of money is money well spent. Well, that is at least what I think. (And please, don’t use any credit cards for shopping if you have the cash for it. I had my own share of credit card night mares and thank God I’m of it. Save enough cash and don’t over splurge on things you really wouldn’t need.)

And of course, after all that shopping, at around 9PM, I watched another movie. Title is “Journey to the Center of the Earth” by Brendan Fraser, Josh Hutcherson and Anita Briem. (If you’re looking for an adventure movie, this visual delight would be very much to your liking. Best seen though on an IMAX Theater.)

Conclusion:

Why did I do all these things? Well, mainly because July 10, is my birthday. I have become emotional a few days before my birthday. I thought that I haven’t done anything great and that I’m turning 28 and still haven’t achieved anything in life yet. But then I said, wait a minute, what if I spend time alone w/ myself, maybe I’ll be seeing things differently. So, I spent time alone on the eve of my birthday and on the day of my birthday itself. Why? Well, it’s probably because this is the type of person I am. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a very sociable person, it’s just that sometimes, there comes to one persons life, especially if your age is nearing out of the calendar, that you would want to look on things differently, as life is not all party and celebration, it’s also a realization of things as to what you have achieved so far and what your goals would be in the future. I also wanted to give myself some kudos for the great job that I’ve done in my life so far.

Just right before the last minute of July 10 was about to pass me by, I talked to myself and said, “Brian, you did a great job. You may have not achieved a lot yet but what you’ve done in the past 28 years have been exceptional. I’ll be looking forward to doing more w/ you in the years to come. More to share, more to inspire, more to give and more to take out of life.”.

And this concludes my 28th birthday celebration. No big parties and no friends were taken out for a blowout. There may have been no cake, but each and every candle on my imaginary 28 candle lit birthday cake is sure worth to be lit up. I am happy to have celebrated my birthday this way. To have 2 days of no work, four shopping bags and an imaginary 28 candle lit birthday cake is for me a one sure way of having a birthday blast.

Special Thanks:

I want to say thank you to all those people who called me up, sent me text messages and emailed me. A Heartfelt thanks to all of you.

Thanks to my Mom & Dad who has always been there for the past 28 years of my life. With out you guys, I would be nothing. Thanks for the pancit as well, it was so delish.

And lastly, I want to thank our God Almighty. Thank you.

X - Marks The Spot

Thunder in paradise and you can't see the sun.
All you can feel is hatred from everyone.
Burning sensation which makes you want to rot.
You're a victim in this world, x-marks the spot.

Haunting feeling at the break of dawn.
Wherever you go, you are the pawn.
Eerie feeling of deep soul festering,
The devil you'll see and hell you'll be entering.

No where to run, No where to hide.
Don't you just wish for worlds to collide.
Your reflection appears to have no hue,
On the cross you're crucified and nailed with out clue.

Never fealt anger full of anguish and pain.
You're wanting to fight, revenge is insane.
you may curse everyone w/ all the powers you've got
but remember this always, x-marks the spot..

I Kissed A Girl

I Kissed A Girl is, i believe, a new song by Kate Perry. I heard this song on my way home from the radio via rx 93.1. The song immediately caught my attention. While i was driving my way to work, i heard it again. The song is so interesting that made me decide to post it here in my blog.

Here's the lyrics.

I Kissed A Girl - Kate Perry

This was never the way I planned,
not my intention.
I got so brave drink in hand,
lost my discretion.
It's not what I'm used to,
just wanna try you on.
I'm curious for you,
caught my attention.

I kissed a girl and I liked it.
The taste of her cherry chapstick.
I kissed a girl just to try it.
I hope my boyfriend don't mind it.
It felt so wrong, it felt so right.
Don't mean I'm in love tonight.
I kissed a girl and I liked it.
I liked it.

No I don't even know your name,
it doesn't matter.
You're my experimental game,
just hu-woman nature.
It's not what good girls do,
not how they should behave.
My head gets so confused,
hard to obey.

I kissed a girl and I liked it.
The taste of her cherry chapstick.
I kissed a girl just to try it.
I hope my boyfriend don't mind it.
It felt so wrong, it felt so right.
Don't mean I'm in love tonight.
I kissed a girl and I liked it.
I liked it.

Us girls we are so magical,
soft skin, red lips, so kissable.
Hard to resist so touchable.
Too good to deny it.
Ain't no big deal, it's innocent.

I kissed a girl and I liked it.
The taste of her cherry chapstick.
I kissed a girl just to try it.
I hope my boyfriend don't mind it.
It felt so wrong, it felt so right.
Don't mean I'm in love tonight.
I kissed a girl and I liked it.
I liked it.

here's the youtube video..

I like the song so much because... go figure.. haha..! :D

A Hundred Pounds Lighter

Ever since I was a child, I have always been a chubby cheese cake. As a kid, I would recall people calling me names and comical descriptions such as pugad baboy, biik, tabachoy and tabachingching. But being chubby as a toddler of course also has its loopholes. I would always be the star of each occasion/family reunion I would attend to. Being a chubby kid was cute. They would always refer me to as the Nino Mulach of the family. I would always be a kiddy Santa during family reunions every holiday season.

But as I grew older, my weight didn’t change. Painful pasts would haunt me till this day, especially during my high school years. Bullies would always have me as their subject of ridicule and would constantly joke about my size. I have never fully recovered since then.

All throughout college, I became even bigger up until I landed a job last 2005. When I started to work in a call center, I’ve thought that because of the grave yard shift I would start loosing weight, but the opposite happened. I grew even bigger. To fight off the lack of sleep, I would constantly have food at my station. Pasta, pastries, chips and cookies were always at my side. My heaviest was at 270lbs.

For me, 2007 was a life changing year. That was the time that I had experienced a lot of different kinds of feelings. Last quarter of ’07, I fell in love w/ someone but got my heart broken. I thought after that, I would never find reasons why I should live. I got scared, I got emotional, heck, I almost had a nervous breakdown. But something struck me. Probably what hit me was the bus of maturity. I got hit so bad that it made me realize that I should change all those ill feelings that I’ve felt into something positive, into something that would change the way that I live. I’ve realized that life is short and that I should make the most out of it instead of wallowing myself in pity.

Coincidently, but I’d rather think of it as divine intervention, a fitness club opened just beside SM Mall of Asia, near where my office is. With out hesitation, I enrolled myself to the gym together w/ my friend AirWind. Right after my Mom and Dad’s wedding anniversary celebration party held last Oct. 14, 2007, the very next day, Oct. 15, 2007, I totally changed my way of eating (but of course, at my mom and dad’s party I gorged at the buffet). From 1 whole 18inch yellow cab pizza to no pizza at all. From 1 dozen krispy crème donuts to no donuts at all. No pasta, no pastries, no junk foods, in other words good bye to what I was used to eating.

I started boiling, steaming and broiling vegetables. I would always have grilled/broiled/boiled tuna/chicken breast and/or fried tofu. I would sometimes even follow the “ibon diet” which I read from some blog (I think that was from chuvaness’ blog). I became conscious and started to count calories I would take. I would always go to the gym everyday attending group exercises. I did dancing, martial arts, yoga and a whole lot of things just so I would loose weight. Eight months later, I was a hundred pounds lighter.

Yesterday, after our yoga class, a fitness consultant approached me and AirWind. He asked how we were doing and gave us advises on how we could maintain our weight. Then after all that talk, here comes the weighing scale. The fitness consultant weighed AirWind first then I was next. Although I have a weighing scale at home, I was still nervous at that time coz I was thinking that what if my weighing scale was broken. I took off my shoes, took off my socks, stepped on the weighing scale and to my surprise, my weight is the same as how I weighed at home. I weighed only 169lbs. which is ideal for my 5’9.5” height. I was so happy! Although I kind of knew how much I would weigh after, but having to be weighed by a fitness consultant somehow made my whole weight loss mission confirmed to be successful. I was so happy that I treated AirWind to lunch at El Pollo Loco.

Now, I get to buy clothes straight from the mall rather than having my brothers and sisters send me extra large clothes from the U.S. ‘Coz when I was still big, it was close to being impossible to buying clothes that would fit me here in the Philippines. Now, from a size 44 waist line to a size 33. From a triple XL shirt/polo, to medium size. For the very first time in my life, I was able to buy clothes that I want and clothes that I know would fit me. I am no longer afraid to go inside a store or to go to any place for that matter worrying about people who’d stare at me and might say that “That man is huge!”. From asking a larger size from a sales lady to asking for a much smaller size really feels overwhelming. Having to be seen by my relatives and friends and seeing them react in a way that as if they saw a celebrity felt so amazing that if being complemented could make me float; I’d probably be in outer space.

My goal weight is actually at 160lbs. But I take it slowly now. I don’t go to the gym everyday anymore but would always make it a point that I’d be at the gym 3 to 4 times a week. I’m still on a diet but would occasionally treat myself to a slice of pizza and a donut. Now that I feel that I’ve somehow accomplished the once thought mission impossible, I’m sharing this to all of you. Everything is possible; the impossible only takes long to be accomplished. A hundred pounds lighter doesn’t mean that I get to wear cool and trendy clothes, it doesn’t mean that I would look great and would score more w/ people in bars and clubs, but for me, a hundred pounds lighter means a deeper understanding of what life is and how it really works. It just proves to show that everything in life, with faith in God, patience and will power, what once was at a very far distance would soon be in front of you.

Before & After

more photos @ http://friendster.com/brine4u

Scary Story..Urban Legend..

I heard this story last night from the radio while driving my way home from Mall of Asia. I just want to share this to ya'all.

It goes a little something like this...

A young girl went to a home coming party. After the party, she and her friends had separated as each one of them has their own cars. The girl went on to her car alone, opened it, got in and started the engine. Consequently, on the other side of the parking lot, there was another guy riding his car as well. As the girl started to drive, the other guy started following her, but the girl didn't pay any attention to it as she thought that the guy is on the same route as she is. But as the young girl made a turn to the street that she lives in, she noticed that the guy is still following her and every so often would blink of his lights. The girl tried to turn and drive around the streets to see if the guy is really following her. Indeed, the guy would still be at her back and would still blink his lights every now and then. The girl started to panic, so she stepped on the gas and rushed her way home. The guy that was following her did the same thing and would still constantly blink his lights at times. As the girls arrives her house, got off the car and as she enters the front door of her house started to shout "Dad! Dad! Call the police! A man is following me!". Her father hurried down the stairs and called the police. When the police arrived, the guy that was following her surprisingly didn't escape, instead, she approached the girl, the police and the father. After all of that confrontation w/ the police, the girl asked, why were you following me, the man answered, "at the parking lot, before you rode your car, i saw another man sneaked behind your car. I was following you because i wanted to warn you, but all of a sudden you drove so fast. I was blinking my lights everytime i would see him from behind w/ his knife as if he was trying to stab you so that he would stop.". The police checked the back of the car and found the knife that was left behind. The girl and the father had chills rolling up their spines as they thanked the man who followed her.

Kinda scary to listen to over the radio when you're driving alone. After listening to that story, I would check the back of my car to see if someone was there. Ha-ha!

Going to Bed?

Last night was my first time going to Bed in Malate. Bed is, as far as I know, a place were P.L.U's (people like us) go to meet and greet, and of course, there's always something else (if you know what I mean).

I'm really not a party person, but I’ve heard a lot of exciting things about that place from my friend which enticed my "queeriosity". So, I said, what the hey, let me go try it. So me and 2 of my friends (John and Ers) went there.

John is very well experienced in these kind of things. He knows which bar to hang out, what to do and when to "DO" it. Ers also hangs out in malate, but mostly hangs out at straight bars. I think it was also his first to hang out at Bed. So, we arrived at the place at around 11:00PM, paid an entrance fee which includes free drinks and a couple of chiseled men on the ledge dancing for hours w/ their shirts off for your viewing pleasure.

The place was all that I had expected. There were a lot of cute/sexy guys and a couple of foreigners and gals too. I thought I’d like the place, but actually, to my surprise, I really didn't. No, no, no! Don't get me wrong guys. It's not about the place why I didn't like it. Maybe, it's just me. Coz, probably, I really never liked hanging out in bars. Other than that, I don't drink. Well, I used to drink, but I quit (that's another story which will be posted later on). I love dancing to the beat of the music, but there was something last night that just didn't make me in the mood of dancing and partying. I guess my idea of a party/gimmick is a cozy place w/ good food, drinks and a nice conversation w/ friends were you could actually hear each other. Coz, last night, because of the loud sound system which is of course necessary for that kind of place, you can hardly hear each other not unless you shout straight to the person’s ear in order for you to be heard.

We left the place at around 2:00AM. Walked around the streets of Malate for a while then took myself a cab to Mall Of Asia where my car is parked, went straight home to my room and lay down at my BED, thought and contemplated on how things went on in Malate and had myself a good nights sleep.

Will I ever go back to Bed? Maybe. After all, last night was just my first going there. Hopefully, next time, the party animal inside me would be unleashed. Ha-ha!

My First Blog Ever!

YAY!! My first blog ever! Well, actually my first blog was at friendster but I rarely use/open that. Na-enganyo ako ng friend kong si AirWind na matagal ng nag bla-blog. I'm such a newby to this, OMG! Kaya please mga people, pag-pasensyahan niyo ko kung meron man kayong 'di maintindihan sa mga ipagsususulat ko dito. Ok?Enjoy reading. Feel free to leave a comment.