Lookback: 2008

Today marks the beginning of another year of uncertainties.  It is both exciting and scary.  I can't find a phrase more fitting to describe what I'm feeling today than Forrest Gump's line: Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get.  

I'd like to make a list of things that stood out the past year and I'm curious as to what this list would look like next year: 

1. Both my brother and I have been confined. (I hate to be sick.) 

2. Em-J, Willie and Rhommel, all members of the QM Emerson leadership team resigned leaving Clarice and I all alone. 

3. If 2007 was filled with many theater events, 2008 was the exact opposite for me.  I've been swamped that I can only keep on promising to watch a show to no avail. 

4. Rhommel and I started and ended our business this year.

5. 706-PINK

6. Addicted to Frozen Yogurts! (For 2007, McDonald's shakes remained to be my addiction)

7. Chili Peppers!

8. Attended service at VCF. 

9. Visited Baguio and loved it!

10. Had the chance to travel again, something that I promised to do the previous year.

11. Weekends at Malabon. 

12. New laptops for Rhommel and me. 

13. First time addiction to a teleserye.  (what's happened to me?)

14. Solving the Rubik's cube for the first time.

15. Lost a friend, gained new ones and lastly, found old ones.  

Journal: Christmas Break

December 23, 2008

Orchard was bustling with people.  Almost all the check out counters in every store have a very very long queue.  I decided not to purchase the moleskine journal which I liked at Kinokuniya because I figured it would take a good 30 minutes for me to reach the counter.  Royce was the same, they even had to set-up another Royce store to accommodate all their customers.  

I met up with Em-J and Will for dinner at Thai Express in Bishan.  I loved their food especially the dark tofu which Em recommended.  

Here we are discussing whether to go see Cinderella which will open right after the new year.  

December 24, 2008

Instead of eating out since all the hotels jacked up their prices to up to as much as P6,580 per person, we decided to prepare our Christmas dinner ourselves.  We went to the grocery and bought a lot of food!  

The complete group posing for a picture right after dinner.

Em-J's gift to his housemates, a couple bottles of champagne and chocolates!

December 25, 2008

In true pinoy fashion, we headed to the cinemas Christmas day but we couldn't agree on what film to watch since "The Spirit" is not playing at the cinema that we went to. 

December 26, 2008

Since I've been out almost every day, I decided to just stay home and rest.  Did a little bit of cleaning and spent the rest of my time in bed. 

December 27, 2008

We initially planned to go see a movie but upon checking all the theaters, we still can't find where "The Spirit" is playing.  (I later found out that it's being screened exclusively at a lesser known cinema chain.)  We decided to go to Novena Square to check out the new mall.  We then went to Raffles City, City Link mall then to Marina Square.  This is because we have been in search of the very elusive Cranberry body bath and lotion from The Body Shop.  (I was later told that it's no longer available, island-wide.)

Before going home, we stopped by AMK Hub and I got this Break Talk goodies for half the price!

December 28, 2008

Em-J and I have both been craving for the Swedish meatballs at Ikea so we trooped there despite the long travel time.  We didn't get to do much since most of them were feeling a bit under the weather.

Clarice, these are the cute chairs that I called about.

Pepper Lunch

After spending my first two days here mostly sleeping, we decided to spend the day out.

We ate out at Pepper Lunch which was a bit of a disappointment.  Since it always has a long queue, I kind of expected a lot from it.  I initially wanted to order the Salmon Pepper Rice but I had the notion that it is marketed as a beef place more than anything else so I ordered the Cut Steak.  I found it bland and a bit tough.  The dish relied heavily on the sauce which wasn't as tasty either.  Also, their gigantic bean sprouts probably added to my overall impression of the place.  As some of my friends know, I don't like them.  

I did love Em-J's Salmon Pepper Rice and their soft-serve ice creams, both the caramel and black sesame flavors.

We then headed to Expo to check out the Courts Megatex Sale.  Afterwhich, we went to Junction 8 to checkout a couple of toy stores.  We still wanted to have snacks at Ya Kun but Joy was already complaining that her feet were already sore so we decided to head back home but not before ordering KFC's bucket feast!  

On Vacation

Today marks the first day of my really really long vacation. I'm glad to be able to take a breather from the unending activities for both the office and at Pink. I have been sleep deprived for such a long time that I'm really looking forward to just sleeping the day away which I intend to do once I hit the sack later.

This is weird. I have been up since 2pm of Wednesday with only about 2 hours of sleep till today but I really don't feel sleepy. I took the straight shift from Wednesday to Thursday in time to catch my scheduled appointment late afternoon Thursday. After work, I headed straight to Pink to drop the document that we need for SEC and Oliver accompanied me while waiting to catch my ride.

Portia, Clarice and Selle, I'll make it up to you guys once I get back. :)

Pink

Our new project, 706-PINK is already on its soft opening. On top of my work load, this has been taking up much of my time. Our weekend bookings exceeded our expectations and I am truly grateful to our friends who helped us and tried out our services. Your comments are most welcome and we have been continually improving based on your feedback.