Dogs and Chains

I'm a big PETA supporter. But this certain Sean Kingston ad about not chaining your dog is, I don't know, far out? He says chaining your dog is the cruelest thing. But it really depends.


For instance, I really have to chain my Princess during walks. Hello. If not, I'd lost her.

But yeah, I agree with him with the fact that chained dogs can harm themselves as what happened to my sister's labrador (the collar got caught up in her gate's grill, choking him to death). Yeah, morbid, and I agree that we should chain our dogs with caution.

Also, no chains are necessary if they're inside our homes/backyards. The fact is, I only chains my dogs when walking.

But to not chain the dogs at all? Ridiculous. I know I'd be so cruel if I don't chain Princess when we go out. As friendly as shih-tzus are, I'm sure someone would just snatch her away. Or she'd get hit by a passing car.

Ack! Too much of this talk. I hate thinking about losing her.

Santas

A little late...


But it's still Christmas...


Juansen even borrowed the costume for a pic.

Year in Status

If you're much of a "status person" in Facebook, you might like this app called "Year in Status" that will get random status from your account and put them in a nice template that you can share with your friends.

Here's mine:

A bunch of nothings. LoL!

Click here to get yours, and remember the good times, the stress, the heartaches that you have let the world know through your Facebook status.

Marc Jacobs Luxurious Dog Carrier

How lucky the dog that would be put inside this Marc Jacobs limited edition luxurious dog carrier!

But as much as I'd like to pamper my Princess, I just won't buy anything like this. Okay, I don't have the money for it, but I don't think I'd buy one even if I could. Imagine its cost - somewhere between 41,800 to 58,500 USD!

This dog carrier was displayed at the ‘L’ Excellence du Savoir-Faire exhibition at Sotheby’s auction house in London. It was exhibited alongside Louis Vuitton limited-edition, special order pieces by Damien Hirst, Chef Ferran Adria, photographer Annie Leibovitz and musician Gustavo Santaolalla.

via buy-online-accessories.com

Giant LV Suitcase

This giant Louis Vuitton suitcase surely will not fail to draw attention. It's in front of the Ngee Ann City building on Orchard Road where the LV boutique is.

photo: thebachelorgirl.com

Havaianas Zip G – iWant!

First saw this at The Fash Pack blog. I told myself I'd get one as soon as I see one (you know how hard-to-find these Havaianas are). And then I came across the Havaianas website and saw this:

It would be a sin to not put Princess inside one of these. Besides, I'm already sick of her carrier.

I really wish there's an All Flip-Flops store somewhere near me. As of now, the nearest branch is in MOA. And near means a little over 200 pesos in taxi fare.

But I think I would be going to SMX this Saturday with the kids. I guess I'll pay All Flip-Flops a visit.

Another wish: an official Havianas online store. I really don't like buying in Multiply.

photos: thefashpack.blogspot.com havaianasphilippines.com

Efren Peñaflorida is CNN Hero of the Year

Efren Peñaflorida has been named CNN Hero of the Year at the conclusion of the third "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute" held at the Kodak Theater Saturday night.

Efren, who started a "pushcart classroom" to bring education closer to the street children of the Philippines, was announced the winner by CNN's Anderson Cooper. He will receive $100,000 to help him continue the noble deed he has started.

The ten heroes was selected after seven weeks of online voting at the CNN website. Each selected hero was given a documentary tribute and was introduced by a celebrity presenter. Above photo shows Efren with Eva Mendes. Aside from that each of them receives $25,000.

The Top 10 CNN Heroes are Brad Blauser, Roy Foster, Doc Hendley, Andrea Ivory, Betty Makoni, Jorge Munoz, Efren Peñaflorida, Budi Soehardi, Derrick Tabb, and Jordan Thomas.

Congratulations Efren! Continue being an angel many and I'm sure more good things will come.

photo: cnn.com

When Naruto Takes Over Sesame Street

Sesame Street is perhaps the most famous children's television show on earth. Most countries have their local versions of it but English-speaking nations just adapt its US version.

But since we're so bilingual here in the PH, we (me and my peers at least) grew up watching two versions - the Tagalog (Batibot) and the original Sesame Street. Batibot had been taken down when the bigger networks put up their own (short-lived) children's shows. But however original they claim it to be, they're all just patterned after Sesame Sreet.

Puppets in the local Sesame Streeet versions actually vary. In our country, we're so lucky Pong Pagong was lent to us by the Sesame Street US. At one point even, everyone was saddened when talks about getting Pong Pagong back to the US version spread around. Luckily, they let the turtle stay in our shores.

I guess the puppet that is originally ours is Kiko Matsing. They perhaps came up with the monkey puppet because of the famous children's story that involves a turtle and a monkey.

Since we grew up knowing the "pagong and matsing" story, seeing Pong and Kiko in Batibot was nothing new anymore. The puppets gave us a sort of connection to the well-loved fable and the values it taught us.

Pong Pagong and Kiko Matsing's tandem became a hit. These puppets taught the Filipino kids good values and the importance of friendship and working together. Along with Ate Siena and Kuya Bodjie (spell?), watching Batibot became a part of our weekdays.

In my time, it was aired twice in a day. One in the morning and one in the afternoon. Perhaps it was aired that way so the school kids in the morning classes could watch it in the afternoon, and those who went to school in the afternoon could watch it in the morning.

Currently, we only have animation/cartoon series as kid shows in the morning. Mothers have no choice but to turn on the tv to Pokemon or Mr. Bean or Naruto to entertain their kids while they do their morning duties. The better offs have options, though, if they have cable tv. Nickelodeon and Disney Channel are of course better alternatives. But what if they don't have cable tv?

Okay, so Pokemon has little moral lessons in its episodes. But unlike Batibot or Sesame Street, Pokemon doesn't teach the ABC's and 123's. And Mr. Bean and Naruto? I like watching Mr. Bean cuz it makes me laugh. But I'm very thankful that we didn't have Mr. Bean on tv when we were growing up. As with regards to Naruto, violence has really no space even in my tv viewing.

In South Africa, Sesame Street (or Takalani Sesame as they call it) is still a big thing. They even came up with a new puppet named Kami (short for the Setswana word “Kamogelo” which means “acceptance”). And why the name? Because Kami is an HIV-positive 5-year-old girl. And she needs acceptance. I guess you already know what happened when this puppet reached Sesame - her neighbors embraced her, and loved her with no prejudice. They listened to Kami as she talked about the challenges she's going through as an HIV-positive individual.

So you see, these children shows can bring hope and awareness to the kids, no matter how young or old they are. Africa is known to have a lot of HIV-positive children and they decided to use Kami to give these kids hope, to at least cheer them up to the thought that hey, there's a puppet who's going through the same ordeal as I am, and I don't have to lose hope.

We can actually use that right now. We may not have as much AIDS cases here but think about a flood-striken-puppet who was left homeless and have nothing to live by, walking aimlessly and reaching Batibot Street. I'm sure Ate Siena or Ate Isay would be very willing to take care of him and be instant family. Wouldn't it give such inspiration not only to the victims of Ondoy but to all of us?

On the other hand, imagine a Naruto-loving-kid hit by the flood in Marikina. What hope could he get from his favorite television show? Aspire to learn the art of water vending?

photo: thefrisky.com

"What's Bing?"

Microsoft sponsored New Moon's movie premier. Ryan Seacrest, in a booth just outside the theater broadcasting live on the radio, was giving out Bing bags to the guests as token. It's just bad that Robert Pattinson didn't even know what Bing was. "What's Bing?" he queried when he received the small package. I hope someone told him beforehand that Bing was Microsoft's search engine.

But of course the real issue in the video is how Robert's rep cut the interview as soon as Ryan Seacrest began asking the Twilight star about his co-star, Kristen Stewart. The rep said they're talking about the movie (and not Kristen). Uhh... isn't Kristen part of it, too?

I'm so showbiz. Let's cut it here.

xoxo

2012

I watched 2012 yesterday with JP, my movie buddy for years now. Good thing it's his day-off cuz I was really dying to watch and I'm not used to going alone to the movies anymore. I must admit going to the movies alone is quite an adventure but I'm so past that stage already.

I was actually wondering why he wasn't texting me about watching 2012 when I have read good reviews about it. You see, we only see good movies and/or blockbusters together. I eventually learned that his brother who watched 2012 on it's 2nd day gave a bad feedback, so he thought against watching it.

But his brother was proven wrong. The movie was so fast-paced and kept us on the edge almost all throughout. JP specifically loved Lilly (Morgan Lily) cuz she reminded him of the young Dakota. The scene where Jackson (John Cusack) was driving the limo with his family towards the airport to escape the  chaos that seemed to be following them was a blast. It was GTA-on-doomsday.

Another thing to love in this movie is the Japanese Chin (?) named Caesar. I'm not actually sure if he's a Jap Chin or a Pekingese but he looked more like the former. As a pet lover, I'm so relieved that they didn't kill him in the story. But his human did. Actually, those with "unclear conscience" actually died. Well, not all. But the Russian Yuri and his girlfriend Tamara (Caesar's human), plus Sasha the pilot whom Tamara had indecent affair with all died.

When all thought it was a spaceship they were building to save humanity, I thought wow, was this inspired by Wall-E? LOL! But the minute I saw a giraffe and an elephant suspended in helicopters towards the "spaceships," I knew it was a modern version of the Bible's great flood. And it was confirmed when the spaceships turned out to be just ships. But a very high-tech one at that.

One more thing: Osric Chau, the actor who played the Chinese named Nima, is very Jay R (the singer) and a little like Paolo Abrera. LOL! Can't help but notice.

It's almost 2009. What can I possibly do to come up with a 1 billion euro before 2012? LOL! I guess people like me should just embrace what's to come. After all, no one really knows when the end of world will be.

Or is it ending now?

Tony and October Gonzalez for PETA

Tony Gonzalez and wife October Gonzalez pose naked for the PETA ad campaign.

Tony says what goes on in the industry is just ridiculous and that the animals' lives are miserable from the second they were born - being pumped up with hormones and fed with corn, which is not their natural diet.

I am a self confessed dog lover, and reading about the cruelties happening to animals make me sad. I hope everyone gets involved in fighting for animal rights. Animals have life. They breathe. And they are here to be taken care of. They have a purpose in this world, and that's not to be on our plates to be consumed.

Pray For Us

Metro Manila flood – via boston.com. Read the news here.

Metro Manila is still immersed in flood water. Somewhere nearby our house, the flood was so deep only roofs of the houses can be seen. The born-again church has been turned into an evacuation center. And the saddest part, a two-year-old died.

My family is still lucky the flood isn’t anywhere near the house. But part of the roof leaked, and water dripped on a computer table. It’s a small one and only happened at the height of the storm. But still, it turned my mood around throughout the rest of the day. Sometimes I’d like to think I’m not just OC, but already having bipolar disorder.

(Last night I freaked out just because I couldn’t use the television to watch Survivor. I hated myself after the madness. But during the time, I couldn’t control the anger.)

And I’m not kidding.

The Greatest Shot Ever Made

I must admit I'm more of a Rafa fan. But look at the shot Federer just made! Goosebumps, really.

He later described it as "the greatest shot I ever hit in my life."

Watch it!

I Love Taylor Swift

Your name is called as the winner of an award. Your heart is beating fast as you walk up the stage to get your trophy. You prepared for your acceptance speech last night, just in case you won. And this is it. All you care about is not forgetting the words you so carefully chose to put in that speech.

You are currently mixing emotion to your speech and are in the middle of it when suddenly, your microphone is snatched away from you. You look at the snatcher and see it's the famous Kanye West! You're expecting him to say something good about you, praises and all that, but he disses you by saying that Beyonce is the rightful owner of the award.

He gave you back the mic. You don't know what to say. Should you cry? Should you say something witty? Should you go to Beyonce's seat and give her the trophy? Should you sing "You Belong With Me" and prove them that you don't use pitch corrector?

You half hear the crowd cheering. You don't exactly know if they're cheering for you or because they think Beyonce really deserves the award more than you.

You are ushered towards the backstage. Your moment is finished.

I love you Taylor Swift. I love you even more.

Journalism Content Isn't Free

Since the dawn of internet, those who have access to it need not buy newspaper anymore. News is free - online. Blogs even make the news bigger.

But some newspaper publishers aren't happy with it. Next thing we know, we might already be required to pay for news articles we read on Google.

New call for Google to pay for content as it hints at payment aid for publishers in the Guardian, 11 September 2009.

Natural Hair

Tyra Banks' natural hair.



Isnt' this her natural one?

iPod Nano Shoots Video

So iPod now shoots videos!

Video recording with effects
The new video camera in iPod nano lets you shoot video—even with video effects—wherever you are. Yet the new iPod nano is still the same ultraportable size. Learn more

Genius Mixes
Genius acts as your personal DJ, searching your iTunes library to find songs that go great together, then organizing them into mixes you'll love. All automatically. Learn more

FM radio with Live Pause
The new built-in FM tuner has two amazing features—Live Pause and iTunes Tagging*—that make listening to the radio nothing like listening to the radio. Learn more

Pedometer and Nike + iPod
Count every step you take with the new built-in Pedometer feature. Or add a Nike + iPod Sport Kit so your iPod can track your fitness progress. Learn more

The Youngest Security Guard

After visiting the ortho yesterday, I went to Jollibee in Lower Bicutan to have a quick bite before heading to the mall. I decided to just eat there cuz I was kinda sure the mall fast foods were busy, being a public holiday and all.

Surprisingly, there was no guard at Jollibee’s entrance. No one there except for this kid:


And he opens the door for Jollibee’s client, too. Very much like how a real security guard would do. Except that the kid would spread his hand in front of you asking for a few coins.


The kid naman was harmless, I even gave him some coins.

But still…

Net Problem Part 2

I didn’t know PLDT technicians work on weekends and holidays. I filed another ticket on the technical hotline last Saturday due to a very high latency and very low upload speed. Imagine getting a ping of 353 ms in their very own server and 20 kbps upload rate! My download rate was at a normal speed of 2.2 mbps, but with a high ping and low upload speed, a fast download speed is useless.



Since it’s a public holiday today, I wasn’t expecting a tech to visit me. But come 10:30-ish, the kindest of technicians, Mr. Mandy Moore, arrived. He told me he wanted to change all the phone cables from the box outside the house, up to the dsl splitter. He said the problem might have been due to the wires which was installed some 17 years ago. I agreed to the suggestion and he started to work immediately. It took him no more than thirty minutes to finish the job. He’s really so kind he was even telling jokes while working. He didn’t even utter a word of complaint on the hot weather despite his evident sweating.

My connection’s better now. Although my normally below 20 latency has become 39-40-ish. Okay lang. Bearable naman. At least my life’s now back to normal. Thanks Mandy.

Walk

I woke up last Monday to no internet connection. I just knew something was wrong and it’s not just a case of a simple disconnection cuz the DSL indicator of the modem had no light. I immediately called technical assistance. It was 8 in the morning.

I called again 12 noon when I still had no connection. It quite irritated me when I was informed that Chloe, the customer assistant I talked to earlier, didn’t file a report of my case. Quite irritating when that happens but I knew better than to get mad.

I called Danilo – an old friend and a neighbor – to ask if he had connection since he’s also subscribed to PLDT MyDSL. He said he had none. I easily gave a sigh of relief thinking that the problem was on PLDT’s side. (I really hate it when I am the only one suffering because of an isolated problem). I’d eventually find out, though, that it’s really just an isolated case.

After the call, Danilo dropped by. It was Monday and he takes Sundays and Mondays off. And since I had nothing to do on a no-internet day, I told him I wanted to go out. He responded by asking “anong oras?” Haha.



We went to MOA’s sunset strip. It was Danilo’s first time there. It was my second. LOL! But it was someone else’s first:

LOL! She really knows how to look at the cam. It was her longest walk ever. She even had kennel cough after. How mean of me to tire her so much.

Anyway, internet connection was only restored this morning. A tech, who wants to be called Mandy Moore, paid a visit 8:30 a.m. He actually called first and told me I was third in line. I pleaded with him to visit me first. And he did. Thanks Mandy!

Dentist’s Pets

Doc Erich brought his two exotic pets to his clinic today.

The sugar glider is the cutest, although it moves a lot it was so hard to take pictures.


I love this shot haha. It’s as if he posed for the pic.


The  sugarglider is so cute and low maintenance (daw), it sleeps in a small, zipped pouch. Basically, they eat Cerelac and fruits until five months. Then just fruits six months onward.

The hedgehog, on the other hand, was so afraid it won’t come out of its “shell” or whatever you call those thorny shield.


Look at that, he’s peeking out!


Finally. LOL!

Ding ang Bato!

I don’t normally watch primetime tv aside from “Tayong Dalawa” cuz mom is a fan. But tonight, with all the media hype, I turned on the tv while having dinner. It’s the premiere of Marian Rivera’s version of “Darna.”



I actually wanted to see Marian in the costume. But duh! I forgot all superhero stories begin with their childhood stories and how they got the power. So okay, I still continued to watch cuz the “pre-Marian Rivera” cast is quite good – Janice de Belen, Rita Avila, Vangie Labalan… The support is good. And yeah Angel Aquino is also included as the fairy who bestowed Rita Avila the gift to bear a child (the child would later on be Darna). It’s so nice to see Angel Aquino doing tv again. I mean something else aside from a glamour show.

But anyway I think I’m gonna watch Darna whenever I can. She’s so sexy in the Darna promo pics. And also, I’ve always liked how Marian Rivera deliver her lines.

I wonder who plays Ding… the carrier of the stone.

May Pasok Ba?

Back to the time when I was still in school, I always turn on the radio to DZRH everytime I’d wake up to rainy mornings. Mom and I would patiently wait for the announcement from the Department of Education and PAGASA while having breakfast.

When I entered college, we started becoming a fan of Mornings @ GMA. Mon Isberto’s lively aura filled our living room every morning, rainy day or not. The news flashed at the bottom of the screen would tell us if classes were suspended. (Now this post makes me miss Mon Isberto and Cher Calvin on the local tv… and yea Tish Silang was also on this show.)

But now, with the dawn of blogs, those who prefer internet over television need not even use Google anymore. Just type www.maypasokba.com and you’ll get the information, fast (because the layout is so simple) and direct to the point.

I almost choked with the sudden burst of laughter when I first saw the site. Humor in its simplest form. But hey, even if it’s funny, the information on the site is correct.

Not a Dog Chew

Princess chewed on my Philips earphones this afternoon. Darn…

I actually forgot to put it in my bag yesterday before heading out. It was on the sofa together with my iPod, phone, and digicam. And it remained on the sofa cuz I didn’t use my iPod last night.

Normally, I really don’t hide my stuff just because I have a dog roaming around the house. Princess doesn’t chew on my stuff. Well, not until this afternoon.

Grabe. I only bought it last June 4th. It’s still working, though. And I’m sure it can be fixed with the glue gun. But still…

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Since I also forgot to bring my phone yesterday, I kinda found it hard haggling at SM. You see, I always use it as calculator. LOL! So I could say I was actually calculator-less and not phone-less yesterday. A little phone-less pala cuz I couldn’t call Doc Erich to tell him I’d be a little late. Aside from waiting for the rig to be assembled, I also got delayed cuz I bumped into an old friend at the mall. The bump actually ended to almost an hour of talking and catching up.

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After forgetting three times to bring his hedgehog on the day of my weekly visit, Doc Erich finally brought his 2-month old hog to his clinic yesterday. The cutest. It’s just really sad I wasn’t able to take any pic.

I’ll make sure not to forget my digicam next Monday. I just wish he’d bring his hedgehog with him again.

I Don’t Care… E-e-e-e-eyr

No we don’t collect Sandara Park merchandise. LOL! Many years ago, this plate was a freebie when you buy a bag of FRES candies. Needless to say, Sandara endorsed the product when she was still here.

I found this plate on the stack of my mother’s old Tupperwares while looking for a small container for Princess’s a/d.

I don’t know if it’s just me, but watching Sandara Park on YouTube singing and dancing – not to mention I first read about 2NE1 on PerezHilton.com – gives me goosebumps. No, not that kind of goosebumps. More of like the kind I get when I see a video of Charice performing in the US. It’s as if Sandara is our own. I’m proud of her and I’m so happy of where she is now.

There’s really something very Filipino in her.

I promise to watch their concert if ever they hold one here.

A Not-So-Pleasant Taxi Experience

Going to Bonifacio Global City from the south is no easy thing, especially when you have to commute at noontime, enduring 32 – 33 degrees of hot weather.

On the way to Global City, I had to do some errands in SM Bicutan. I thought dropping by the mall would be great because it’s easier to hire a cab in malls. I also texted my friends who went with me to the Level Up! event to just meet me at  the mall’s taxi bay.

Little did I know that I would have a little problem hiring a cab that day.

 
I thought this sign is big and clear enough, not to mention written in Tagalog, to be understood by anyone who knows how to read.

But then again, no.

 
Because this guard doesn’t know how to follow instructions written in big letters in front of him.

We waited in line for about 45 minutes to get a cab. When our turn finally came, the cab driver refused to convey by shaking his head when he learned of our destination (Market Market). In normal situations, the guard would make the taxi leave upon refusal to convey. But this guard instead let the one next in line to ride the said cab upon knowing that the driver didn’t wanna go to our destination.

This guard
 
prolly didn’t understand the meaning of the 3rd reminder written in big letters on that board in front of him.

 

A big difference, though, when we took a cab at the Market Market taxi bay to go home. The line was so organized and taxi drivers wouldn’t demand to know your destination before they open the door. The guards also give out leaflets where you can write your complaints about your taxi experience.

No wonder Market Market is always so busy with shoppers and mall goers. Judging by our taxi experience, I’m kinda sure Market Market is more concerned  with their customers than the other malls around.

I don’t know about other SM malls but I think SM Bicutan mall admin can learn a thing or two with how Market Market takes care of their mall goers.

Purple Up!

I was at the Bonifacio Global City Open Field this afternoon with some friends. It was actually the Level Up! event that made me go, and not the Yahoo! Purple Hunt Finale. I’m really not a fan of contests.

The Open Field was so big the five tents in color purple occupied not even 1/4 of the area LOL!

This is the Level Up! booth called Purple Up.
 

The Purple Lounge where there were laptops for free use.

It was so hot in the “open field” that only the participants of The Purple Hunt Finale were at the stage area.


Then Taguig Mayor Freddie Tinga with his daughter arrived.


The daughter flagged off the start of the race.
  

It (the Honda Jazz) was eventually won by Calvin Galgana from Caloocan.


It was really scorching hot especially when we decided to line-up for the freebies at the Level Up! booth.
 

By the time we got the freebies, a Calvin Galgana was announced the winner.

We wanted to watch the Level Up! events which was just about to start after we received the freebies. But it was really so hot, Ryan was feeling chest pains I was afraid he’d suffer heat stroke. We went to Market Market instead.