Random: I've been on vacation mode since last week

Vacation Mode
I cannot for the respect of everything corporate continue like this...
Sure I have completed some tasks...
Sure I replied to some emails...
Sure I have not wasted my manhours on nothing...
Sure I'm still net positive on output vs input (haha, whatever)...

But damn, dude, my brain is already at the beach, receiving a relaxing massage by the shore, listening to the waves and soaking up the sun. My brain has been, since last week, off to Boracay or Puerto Galera or Palawan, begging my body to go and book a flight already! Please please please...

So I went and finalized a trip to Puerto Galera Beach in Mindoro this coming Labor Day long weekend! ...Excited much? I'll bring back photos. Haha.
Don't know yet where we will be staying, but I'm looking forward to relaxing and partying, maybe play with some fishies, go snorkeling, go dancing, swimming, whopee!

Vulcanized
I accompanied a friend of mine to a vulcanizing shop to take a nail out of his tire. Turns out he had 2 tires that had nails in 'em, for a grand total of 4 holes. lol. He's been driving around with 4 freakin' holes in his tires. :p

While we're on the topic, I think vulcanizing shop mechanics are terribly underpaid.

10,000 blog hits!
I do believe I am semi-obsessive.
How many times do you check your blog daily just to see if someone left a comment? :p
Do you keep an excel spreadsheet of your daily blog hits? (By the way, I'm approaching 10,000 hits on this blog, and expecting it to reach 10k within the week! 10,000 hits, and MORE THAN HALF of that was just in the last 4 months!)

I just restarted blogging in January of this year, and from an average of 3 hits per day last year, I'm now up to 80+ hits per day. I know that's not a lot yet, but hey! Thanks to all the visitors.

OK, all for now. Off to dinner.

Directory of Philippine Choirs and Websites

This page has been moved to :   
Philippine Choirs

The new (last) Harry Potter and the HBP trailer

The final Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince trailer is out! It's below after the "jump". Are you excited? The trailer looks awesome. Really dark and mysterious. Need to review the book though, it's been more than a year since I read it, haha.

And read this: "The release of the new Harry Potter film in the US has been brought forward by two days. It'll now open on Wednesday 15 July - the same day as it opens in the UK."
I had reported on this blogpost last month that Harry Potter and the HBP will come out in the Philippines on July 16. Are you going to watch it?

'Ere's the trailer:

Theme Thursday: Earth!

This is a blast from the past for me, from my childhood (which, come to think of it, is now quite distant...) watching cartoons on television. One particular cartoons series I enjoyed was Captain Planet and the Planeteers. This week's theme reminded me of it because it's always the first element they shout. I actually know this next one by heart...

Kwame: ...Then let our powers combine! EARTH!
Wheeler: FIRE!
Linka: WIND!
Gi: WATER!
Mati: HEART!
Captain Planet: By your powers combined, I am Captain Planet!
All: Go Planet!
*Song - Captain Planet, he's our hero! Gonna take pollution down to zero...

- then I don't know anymore. Haha!
This video, I conveniently found on YouTube, the intro to Captain Planet's first episode:



I really enjoyed this series because aside from the entertaining action sequences (hehe) they also have tips on how to save the earth at the end. I think this is really helpful in making children aware of how pollution affects the world.

This is one of my favorite cartoons from the 80's. But just to reminisce, my other favorite cartoons then were Transformers, Voltes V, Daimos, Thundercats, He-man and the Masters of the Universe, Care Bears (stare!), Visionaries (this one is my favorite!), King Arthur and the Knights of the Round table, Thundercats, and so many others! Haha...

What was YOUR favorite cartoon series?

I live on a golf course but cannot play to save my life

Next week will mark the 4th anniversary of the first time I came to live on a golf course. And in those 4 years, I have never been able to hit a golf ball properly. Not once. Nope.

Let me qualify though, that in those 4 years, I have only held a golf club a maximum of maybe 10 times... Haha! But truthfully, I am all praise and respect for anyone great at golf because it is one mind boggling game. I have never been able to get my mind around how to actually play it. That oddly shaped stick and the tiny hole where you have to putt it in is just too much of a mismatch to comprehend.

I mean, basketball, even though I suck at that too, is fairly easy to understand HOW you get to be good at it. The same goes with football, volleyball, even tennis or badminton. Chess, the game of strategy, is also a concept not that difficult to understand: you anticipate your opponents moves and make your own strategic plans...

But golf, dear Holy God, whoever made this sport was crazy...

Some more photos of the golf course...







Okay, some of those are not really part of the golf course, but who's keeping track anyway? :p

The white thing in the foreground is a mushroom!







With the swimming pool and some flowers along the driveway too.
And lastly, here's a funny blogsite with jokes about golf.

Photographs: Good Friday Procession

For the first time in a long time, I joined a procession in my home baranggay of Santolan, Pasig. The procession went around the whole baranggay and then back to our local church the Santo Tomas de Villanueva Parish Church where I used to sing with the choir and was commentator for the "children's mass" on Saturdays. Liz and I walked with the huge throng of people (must've been more than 500 people there...) but only for a little bit coz we had to leave for the province.



More photos below...

Armed with candles and fans, we joined the throng of mourners, remembering Jesus Christ's death on this Good Friday.

Happy Easter (tomorrow)!

My Visita Iglesia

In the spirit of the traditional Visita Iglesia, here are some photos I took of Manila Cathedral in October last year (2008) while waiting for some papers to clear at the Bureau of Immigration.

Although my camera was only a point and shoot Canon Ixus 90IS, I was trying to learn how to play with light at different settings. When I have enough experience and money, or when the recession is over, maybe I'll get a better camera! Here are some of my favorite shots:


I was sitting in front of the church, then I looked up to see the noontime sun. It was really hot that day so I went under an Ipil tree for shade and got the above shot...


I loved how the light from the stained glass was reflected on the newly polished floor. :D


And it being really bright outside, I got good even lighting on the stained glass window.


This sculpture was on the door of the cathedral. I actually never noticed it before. I liked the way the side lighting gave it more depth.



See some more of my Manila Cathedral photos HERE.

How to eat Balut

Really, there's only one thing that came to my mind when I found out Thursday's Theme was "egg", and that is...

BALUT

For the weak hearted, DO NOT PROCEED! :p ...

Balut is a Filipino delicacy (yes it's food!), a soft boiled duck egg with a semi-formed duck embryo. It is also widely regarded as an aphrodisiac.
Enjoy the rich taste of balut, the yellow part is soft and the darker part is crunchy! Why crunchy? Because it's the little unhatched baby duckling!

How to Eat Balut

Here's how to properly enjoy a balut:

1. Well, first you have to buy one from a street vendor who usually comes at night yelling, "Baluuuut!!! Baluuut!!!". He will give you one egg wrapped in old newspaper shaped liked an upturned sailor's hat, and a small plastic packet of salt.

2. The egg is kept warm in the vendor's cart, so it will be a bit warm to the touch. Hold it firmly at the smaller end of the egg and crack open the other side by lightly tapping it on a hard surface (you head will do!)

3. When you've created a small hole by removing some shell bits, you suck out the juice of the balut (complete with all the duckling's amniotic fluid!). Slurp! Very good!



4. Take off the rest of the shell to get to the "meat" of the balut. Chow down with conviction (and don't stop to think!) eating the yellow part with a bit of salt, and the crunchy baby duckling too.



5. Enjoy your balut! "Pampalakas ng tuhod!" (To make your knees strong!)


All photos are from a friend's recent birthday party, with san miguel beer and balut among other things!

Related article on Balut!
NBC's Fear Factor

Filipino Blog of the Week: Going for 3rd week in the top 3!

Hello everyone! I just wanted to quickly say a BIG Thank you to everyone who voted to make this blog the Filipino Blog of the Week:

Filipino Blog of the Week Winner for Week 153! (March 21 to 28)
and
Filipino Blog of the Week 3rd place for Week 154! (March 28 to April 4) - akalain mo yun?

Born on a Syzygy~ is again (yes again!) in the roster of nominees for Filipino Blog of the Week for Week 155 (April 4 to 11). If you want to show your support, please visit THIS SITE to tick the box next to reyjr on the sidebar, and then VOTE! You can vote EVERYDAY so please do!

Hello Baguio!

Liz and I, with Belle (Liz' twin sister) and her 3yo daughter Keisha went up to Baguio last March to spend a few days relaxing in the cool weather.

Baguio is a Road Trip

It was kind of a spur of the moment decision: Liz and I wanted to go out of town for our 6th anniversary as a couple and we also wanted to celebrate my birthday. And since there was an available staff house in Baguio (only P1000 per night!), we decided to drive up and stay for 3 days at the Summer Capital of the Philippines.

The 2008 Philippine Bar Exam Results are out!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

To all those who passed the Philippine Bar Exams!!!

with special Congratulations to my friend,
Ramirez, Shaina Anella B

Here is the link to the exam results c/o GMA News
~2008 Philippine Bar Exam Results~

The Top 1o are as follows:

1. Judy Lardizabal, San Sebastian College, 85.70%
2. Mylene Amerol-Macumbal, Mindanao State University, 85.65%
3. Oliver Baclay Jr., Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU), 85.6%
4. Majesty Eve Jala, Ateneo de Manila, 85.50%
5. Ma. Elizabeth Liceralde, University of the Philippines (UP), 85.40%
6. Michael Macapagal, UP, 84.15%
7. Denise Dy and April Love Regis, ADMU, (tied at seventh place), 84.00%
8. Christine Joy Tan, ADMU, 83.80%
9. Shirley Velasquez, UP and Gian Jacob, San Beda (tied at ninth place), 83.75%
10. Vanessa Raymundo, San Beda Collage, 83.70%

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

The banners for the new Harry Potter movie are now available online. Haha. I just saw on Click the City. Go get -em if ya want -em bloody banners!



I remember the first Harry Potter movie that came out, I had no clue what it was about. My girlfriend was explaining to me while we were watching. lol. You can probably say I'm one of those converts. I have since then read and enjoyed all the Harry Potter books and have all the movies so far on DVD. lol!

So 'ere's the 1 and a half (almost!) minute trailer for Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, coming out on July 16 in the Philippines...

Directions for Driving from Manila to Baguio City

Baguio City, Philippines is a well loved vacation destination for Filipinos and foreigners alike, with numerous touristy places to visit and a weather that's perfect for those who seek to get away from the heat and humidity of the city.

Here are directions for how to get to Baguio City from Manila...

Baguio via NLEX-SCTEx

 1. Take EDSA and go NORTHBOUND. You will pass by SM North EDSA on your right (now one of the biggest malls in the world!) and just go straight until you see the entrance to NLEX (National Luzon Expressway) on your right...