for one, i’ve dealt with all the technicalities of it, blog engine update, bandwidth, bandwidth stealing, security, openid, etc. well that’s what i do for a living so this blog must be a shinning beacon of enterprise driven architecture. never mind that this engine is written in php. now that i’ve taken care of all the techy stuff, it’s content. i promise, like my previous ‘new year resolutions’, to blog at least once a week.

so i leave you with this for the mean time…

it’s a shot taken by marius at the legaspi market in makati. he’s one of the couch surfers i hosted during the summer months.

download hi-res image here.

spring cleaning my 3 backup drives and found this. i like my hair this way. though i really, really love my hair color now, thanks to my hair stylist who successfully coerced me to dye my hair again.  good thing i’m scheduled to be out of the country for 3 months; no instant styling visits. i need to grow my hair long. i’m planning something really drastic but you just need to wait till you see it. well i guess about a year, if i can still manage to wait that long.

this was my hair my first year at my current company. i think we were having a meeting. notice our “whiteboard?” it’s glass over a white panel. chic and environmental friendly. hair is quite short with my signature left part. most of the time i like my hair. i only have 1 hair stylist that i visit and she has been doing my hair for the last 6 years. the very first stylist i have is andrew at franc provost along jupiter st, i was then living down south (read as alabang-south) and have to travel all the way to makati every month to have my hair done. that’s how attached i am to my stylist. when my current stylist left basement salon at shangrila and transferred to rockwell, i transferred salon too. like those whitening ad, only 1 stylist touches my hair.

rarely, twice so far, do i don’t like my hair. and when it happens…

i shave it all off. no questions asked. hair. gone. decisions doesn’t come difficult to me. if i don’t like it, i wouldn’t give it a second thought. some of my hair evolution.

listening to:
Quiet Songs – Aisha Duo : Despertar

and then this project pulled me back to reality that all that shines is not gold. i have put myself to a year and a half worth of pain and suffering. missed birthdays. missed weddings. and no holidays. i love my job. i love my job. i love my job…

stacked in the corner of my room, along with my many unread books, they were begging me to attend to them. i finally picked it up, scatter everything on my bed and quickly sort it. it took a while; i was conflicted on how to sort it. is it per city? per country?  the year i travelled? subjects? since i only have 5 albums, i’m limited to a select few. i settled with us, architecture, flora and fauna, euro and down under and a separate album for portraits, mine and that i took.

i have another album, made from oak  (yes, the wood) and brown leaves/pages. that one i bought at istanbul. i still have to fill up the pages. i need to sit down and do all these things. then again, work tends to creep up.

exactly.

so i say forgive yourselves. that’s the only forgiveness that counts.

listening to:  
Anthology – Eraserheads: Kamasupra

i find this series of portraits to be weird, very much beat, a little off putting yet interesting. very candid and unassuming (or is it just me?). it’s my first photo of puffing a ciggy, and looking dirty. not dirty-dirty; simply, it’s not put together, un-posed, not a care in the world. raw. thanks to wuji for capturing this moment, i now have a memory of me that i never knew i could ever be.

listening to:  
American Idol 8 – Megan Joy: Walkin’ After Midnight

these are my favorites:

i honestly love ashley’s style, specifically this one. call it a mumu dress, but only few can pull this silhouette and she does an amazing job. it’s backless, and plays with the shape of dress. she’s wearing her own label, the row. rihanna and her bold statement of androgyny. her puffed up shoulder/tuxedo and cropped pants is of course by the sexy duo dolce and gabanna. young star emma roberts is making a fashion statement that i believe will make her appealing to the eyes of designers and magazine editors. this number by atelier versace might seemed appropriate on the runway, but she pulled it off. thanks to her youth and panache. there are occasional mishaps but overall the costume institute opening at the met is celebrated with glamour rivaled only by the oscars.

pictures courtesy of jezebel.com.

if someone can tell me what is this for, i’ll treat you at starbucks.

the city is undergoing an overhaul even in the onset of winter chills; though technically there’s no winter in miami but it’s getting cold like tagaytay-december-cold. federal us is not yet a member of the kyoto protocol but cities/state have made the effort to join and the state of florida, city of miami is re-energizing its commitment to limit its carbon emission in accordance to the annex I and II of the protocol.  they are planting more trees , as if there aren’t enough palm trees in palm beach (redundant). sections of the downtown area is under construction, and the once paved road will be redone to include a tree in the midst of. i wanna hug it before i go.

i hope obama takes a look at the membership of the us in the protocol, it’s high time to federalize efforts in saving mother earth.

to be honest, i was more impressed with veejay’s work. at the start (of the show), i really don’t think much of veejay; his style dramatic take on clothes and flair to show off was boring bordering to showoff. however his finale collection was very much different. he showed restraint and maturity for such a young age, a sense of elegance only one can have from years of experience and eye for beauty. clothes were well made and well thought of, very sensible and modern. though his twist challenge wasn’t received well by the judges; it’s very commercial, stylish and i can see myself wearing it. but i have to agree that it was unimaginative. i think what attracted me to his collection is that it’s an homage to minimalism. monochromatic palette and clean lines, makes good clothes.

overdone, that’s what everyone is saying about philipp’s collection. i agree but since when details been a problem? i think it was done tastefully  and was complimenting the clothes as a whole garment. supposedly the runway is to showcase your creativity. look at john galliano for dior  s/s 2007 origami inspired clothes; did anyone said it was overdone and over the top? there are few misses in the collection, but you got to appreciate his take on crochet cloth. who else can make a tacky table runner into high fashion? his pieces are opulent, even vulgarly rich and regal. as he described it, it’s a cruise collection, for the filthy rich i might add. his design and silhouette is all about the celebration and love of a woman and it shows.

the three finalist have showed what they are made of. their collections are very much different from each other but showcases the brilliance and eye for design. it’s done, finish. aries won, wonderful clothes made, friends forged, enemies harbored. good television. i’m looking forward to philipp’s career, though i can’t say that i’ll be having him tailor my suits.

photos courtesy of clickthecity.com.

listening to:
White Lilies Island – Natalie Imbruglia: Beauty On The Fire

from the lot i like this the best. the tailoring is still immaculate, undeniably gucci; though most fashion houses like lanvin and hermes have this voluminous/pajama look for spring, the gucci man is still stylish, lean and cut throat fierce. he is not shy with the play of colors for this season with colored and printed jeans, jackets and suits. the lush of tropical flora and fauna all over the gucci man. at first it may seem tacky and uninspiring but as we all know, it’s all about the execution. even the bags and shoes have a splash of color and a playful detail print of hibiscus (that’s gumamela for you pinoys), parrots and other exotic birds and flower. and speaking of accessories, for me, this collection’s strength is on the accessory. the aquamarine crocodile tote is perfection so is the electric blue bag satchel.

here are my top picks:

the complete spring/summer 2009 collection:

images by men.stye.com

listening to:
Waiting For My Rocket To Come – Jason Mraz : No Stopping Us

if there’s one thing that i like to take pictures of, it’s flowers. i love the vibrant colors of spring flowers, the may bloom. although most of them are not aromatic flowers, their beauty is more than enough for me. and of course, you can’t smell them through pictures .

my favorite is the 4th and the 6th one. the 6th being that i love the combination of assorted colorful flowers against the black granite marble epitaph of gaylord. hehehe

listening to:
Whale Songs (AGP) – Whales : Three Humpbacks

i thought i’d never miss japan, but i do…

i sooo love this jacket. it looked so tailored (i know for a fact that they shop retail and have limited time to do couture), totally frames his built and cute face. reminds me of galliano’s earlier collection for dior inspired by the dr. pepper album. the make is impeccable and the button details finishes the jacket nicely and needs no more embellishments and accessory. he looks so much a rock star without trying hard. his confidence and sense of self really shines here as not everybody can wear a jacket like this one. kudos to the stylist of american idol.

this military inspired jacket, that i really, really like and will search the internet hi and lo to own one, for me is the is the height of his becoming a star. the details, cleverly positioned pockets, slightly large collar with straps, carefully chosen muted color so as not to distract from the details. this is not an accident, looking good maybe, but styling is a patient and tedious craft that only a few will be able to do really do good at. of course they have tons of help in finding the right clothes but it’s up to the artist if he’ll wear it. just look at archuleta, it’s the finals and he decided to wear tees under his sports coat.

for me, david cook is the most fashionable american idol to date. though i love, love, LOVE carrie underwood, but what she wore in the results show was a mess. what’s with the sleeves?

images courtesy of www.americanidol.com

faces of friends as they embark on a trip with no confirmed reservations, no knowledge where to go, or how to get there. just machupichu (white honda jazz) and the will to have the greatest adventure yet.

all we know is that we are heading north to zambales, either potipot or anawangin. we had a reservation at pundaquit in a bed and breakfast (wannabe) residence of a local there. failing to locate a pnb branch and pay the accommodation, the owners decided to give our room to another group, a day before our supposed trip. the only room available is a 2 bed bedroom at a staggering php4,500.00. i don’t know if it was a gimmick of the owners to force us to get the pricey room but i am completely turned off. it’s a makeshift bed and breakfast, i can get an executive room at the shangrila makati for php3,999.00++ (thanks to mom’s membership) with complimentary breakfast. we decided to try search for other accommodation to no avail. no rooms available for us.

being the adventurer we are, we headed north of manila with no clear place to stay. we have set our hearts to anawangin and that’s where we will be. on our way, we were planning contingencies if ever we really can’t find somewhere to stay. it’s either 1.) sleep along the long stretch of trees in pundaquit, 2.) sleep in the car 3.) go back to subic and stay at a hotel or 4.) go to mt. pinatubo instead. good thing we headed early and was able to make good time to scout the local area for accommodation. turning right somewhere in pundaquit, we were able to see a house with a makeshift lighthouse. named wild rose inn, dahon felt a vibe that this is the place that will save us from our misfortune, so she figured having a first name rosemarie. she went to the inn and talked to the owner whom we will address here as tita lover. tita lover is a character, you’ll love her to bits. she is a balikbayan from canada who spoke to us in english and speaks to her husband and house helps in tagalog. we don’t know why, she just does. she offered us an airconditioned room with a queen size bed and a double bed, t&b for only php1,800.00! we settled at tita lover’s inn and asked one of the help if he can look for a boat to take us to anawangin and capones.

after settling to our room, we packed our lunch, change to our swimming gear and headed to the islands. a small boat, just enough for the 5 of us and 2 boatmen ferried us to anawangin. it was a rather turbulent 40 minutes ride since it was a small boat. we were able to get to the island, safely, before the high noon. we ate lunch under the tall pine trees to shade us. irish’s mom packed adobong manok and embutido for lunch. it was a nice lunch together with friends. we were sharing food, eating food with bare hands (yes i know how to), sharing stories and chismis. after lunch we hit the sea, for me, some serious 1 on 1 with the sun.

… to be continued

it was freezing at 31 farenheit. we went to hooters by the ohio river and after a couple of beers and chili wings, everyone went trigger happy with their camera. it was the alcohol that made me lie there, promise. the story is, everyone brought their own camera, except me. that same afternoon, we watched america’s next top model cycle 6 marathon at mtv. canon d40 at hand, bottles of beer, everybody was ready to pose. click, click, click.

when i was still bald in cincinnati, everything was beautiful.

listening to:
The Devil Wears Prada [SOUNDTRACK] – Madonna : Vouge

my new lego watch!

just like your classic lego, it’s detachable and sorta build your own watch. the links (watch strap) is fully detachable that you can actually style it the way you want. it’s so cute and child like that i fell in love as soon as i saw it. the action figure is of course detachable and the watch is waterproof. but who cares, it’s so cute and that’s all matters.

i love my new nike cross country shoes!