Current Events Is My Favorite Subject in Grade Five

That's when I used to read Time, Asiaweek and the newspaper because I don't want my dad's subscription go to waste. Now, here's the scoop:

1. I bought a laptop for $200. -Tada- amazing, right? It's Celeron M, though, with a 40G HD and a GB of RAM. It's 2 years old and has wireless. But then, how can you go wrong? Its just for emailing and chatting and blogging plus all the dumbass shit I've been doing to pass time. It will do till I have the power to purchase a Mac.

2. I swear, I'm going to lose those extra pounds. Yoga is getting my attention right now. I havent started jogging yet. It's stupid but I'm kinda waiting for my iPod armband I ordered in amazon for 5 bucks. My toes are crossed; hoping it's not a piece of junk.

3. I'd better start reading. I wont reach 300 books by forty if I'm this slow. Actually, I would love to start a library but I'll be going around a lot, so its not the brightest of all ideas.

4. I need a new phone case. I was crossing the street to the apartment and was talking over the phone. Suddenly, the face plate came loose and dropped in the middle of the intersection! I have to pick it up and in the process, I was almost run down by those crazy NYC cab drivers! I need to go to chinatown soon.

5. Learn Spanish...pronto. It's a MUST skill for physicians in the US. The more you learn spanish, the more chances of winning. I'm not leaving the race...uh-huh...its definitely ON.

There's no room for laziness and complacency when you're thirty.

Friends, Gifts and A New Haircut For My Birthday...I Couldn'd Ask For More

Being unemployed and broke in the city did not stop my friends in celebrating my third decade of life. I was planning to celebrate it in low-key, totally proverbial kind of partying but it was nothing like that. It was a week-long celebration...I was partying with a different set of friends all the time and it was just a bliss to have these amazing friends around me. They all know what I went through and they were keeping me extremely happy. I could've done these things for them, I swear, if everything worked out the first time I set foot in NYC and I think they know that. That's why they're going all out for me. That's how I felt, though. It might be right or wrong, but I don't really care.

MON: Karaoke with Jeff and SLR friends
TUES: (my bday night) dinner with Cindy and Alex (thanks), Therapy and B bar with Beej. (I was drunk, but not Boracay drunk.)
WED: rest day (hangover...)
THURS: Pot luck with SLR pinoy mafia and Harold (he's from SUNY) and Beej(CUNY/NYU)
FRI: night out at The Web with Omar, Joseph and Beej
Saturday: Spring Awakening with Jong, Cindy and Jeng. (Thanks for the tickets, Jongster!)
SUN: Manhattan tour for Jeng, afternoon picnic at Central Park (we won for most food brought amongst the picnic people...it was a knockoff! Godiva chocolates in the park?? Who can beat that/)

This part, I would want to thank my sponsors: Beej for the kare-kare (I love, so love, absolutely love it), Chari (for the pasta), Cinds (for...schucks, I forgot what she brought), Alex (for the stroganoff), Aggie (for the cupcakes), Cla (for the cake, Harold (for the seal liver pate-an inside joke) and Debbie (for shit, I forgot too). Thanks people! Love you to bits. Of course, I can never thank Jeff enough for having me in his apartment.

Thanks, Jeng for this. I know its pricey, man, you shouldn't have bothered but thanks, really. I actually asked her to buy this for me in Dubai since fragrances like this one is much cheaper there. She just gave it to me and kissed me happy birthday. Aww, so sweet. She's an angel.

My boo was happy too. He sports a new coat now courtesy of Joseph and Jeff Price. But I am keeping my puke green skin for the iPod which everyone think is hedious. One friend even lied to me and quipped Well, I said it was cute that you have it. Liar! You told me it was cute. But then, your kare-kare made me forgive you. *wink*

And I got a new haircut--which whipped 10 years from my current age. I'm not really into this prepubertal kid look but I guess saying goodbye to my locks for the summer is a good idea. Its becoming unruly and mufasa-ish sometimes and I had terrible pictures during my birthday. So, I wont be posting any of those pics here. I hate blackmail.

This has been another unforgettable birthday, just like the bdays I spent in Manila where everybody in ICON and close friends would troop to our suburban home in the middle of summer. When everyone would say: "Man, I saw cows on the road on my way here and thats when I know I'm on the right track. Happy birthday!"

Actually, I'm not sure of the I couldn't ask for more part. Materialism is one of my favorite virtues, along with vanity and pretention. A MacBook and a job will be oh so fine.

Memorial Day Was Spent Visiting My Childhood Memories...Not Veterans

Memorial day was sunny and everything nice. Carlos phoned me the night before and ask me if I would like to come and have a barbeque with his family in this upstate park in NY. I said yes cause Jeff will probably sleep the whole day after a night float. Anyway, we're supposed to go to Bear Mountain but one of our companions has a dog. Unfortunately, wild life is already threatened in that park, I assume, so we ended up spending the afternoon in FDR park, which is 40 miles north of their place in the Bronx.

Generally, it was a slow day. But slow is nice, after all the partying I did during my BIRTHWEEK. (No, my mother didn't bear down that long but celebration for the big 3-Oh lasted for a week. And...I was delivered via C-section. My mom didn't have Shakira hips.)We ate, slept, played Nintendo DS and had an hour stroll which really fired up a tan. I wasn't planning to get burnt and I didn't have the faintest idea that it would be fun playing dumb computer games again.

It was also Carlos' birthday! I remember when we were kids, he goes to my house for my birthday and after five days, I would go to his house for his birthday. We were young then. Once upon a time, our problem was mainly keeping ourselves busy while waiting for the high school freaks to fill up the school bus. We once bought a box of firecrackers and almost set the bus tires on fire. We got caught, but he was casted into the fire 'cause back then, he was the rowdy one and I am the goody-two-shoes, overachiever kid who would never do such a thing (so they thought). God, that was fun. Now he has a cute kid (Allyson) and a Subaru on turbo engine. Things stayed the same after two and a half decades from prep school: I have the world on my shoulders and he always had one thrill of a ride.

And now I wish it was the other way around.

No, They Didn't Attend My Birthday Party But I Wish They Did

They're Jonathan and Lea from the first (take note) broadway musical I've seen since I got here. I've heard of Spring Awakening from my friends and it's been my wish to see this new musical from Duncan Sheik (my, he's so old now). Actually, my goal in going to the US is to look for a job and if all fails, watch this show. I never told my mom that, though. She might have fainted and cursed me to hell.

I'm happy that I got my wish three days after my birthday. It was a nice diversion after welcoming my big 3-Oh and realizing that I still live with my parent's subsidy. Gosh, that sucks. Getting student rush tickets didn't help that much, either. Getting a partial view of the stage really makes you suck your breath and sigh for all the things you can afford for now. (Operative word here is for now.)

So there, it was my birthday a week ago and I did celebrate for a week. I finished my exam before that that's why I had a lapse of inactivity in this site. The exam was so freaking hard. I literally want to strangle my friends who told me it was easy. Right now, I'm doing all those novenas and pray that my educated guesses really went to school. I need a deus ex machina and I hope its all in the works right now.

Okay, Spring Awakening: I had expectations...some were met, yes, but I think I wasn't ready for this kind of musical when I entered the Sullivan theater. Well, I just thought that it would be another musical like Wicked or Avenue Q in which the songs were made to tell the story. In Spring Awakening, its more like a Duncan Sheik album that was sang onstage and made a story fit for it. It was the other way around. I guess for me it wasn't a musical, but rather more like a concert play. I find Sheik's lyrics too flowery and too detached for a musical. There is generally a lot of abstraction in his lyrics which is, for me, hard to come from a play that supposed to tell a story or resolve a conflict. Neither it was conversational nor narrative. Also, the conflict was presented vaguely that I didn't have the urge to see Act two. Coming of age is not really a conflict, cause everyone goes through it, so I didn't really see the point. But that's just me and I sat through Act Two.

Put some sense on this, will you, and educate me:
O, I'm gonna be wounded.
O, I'm gonna be your wound.
O, I'm gonna bruise you.
O, you're gonna be my bruise.

This is supposed to be a romantic song but I can't...just can't get it. Is it because I read wound and bruise in a medical point of view? Or Duncan is too lame for a more sensible metaphor? That is where all the unmet expectations came from. All objections are overruled at this point, thank you, cause basically, this is my fucking blog. I doubt any major record label would like to release the song.

Anyway, it was filled with eye candy and butt exposure that is worth my dough. So I don't care about the content at all. (shrugs jokingly) The play has 11 tony nominations and I would like the guy who played Moritz to win. He sings The Bitch of Living and he's the most stable (vocally) among the cast.

It was a nice birthday and I have to tell the past week's events soon.

MedChoir Past, Present and Future

It's a nice spring day in the city, thus, we all trooped to Brooklyn and went to the Sias' Flatbush apartment. I like the Flatbush neighborhood: the Jews, ghetto and decent-looking flats in one area. It's like having a patch of communities in a single area and its a Q train away from the city.

My caloric intake for this day was fulfilled in a single sitting, so to speak. We had liver pate for appetizers, pasta bolognese, a ref cake with nice chilled wine and a helping of Junior's cheesecake (the best in the planet...although Rico's baked cheesecake came a close second). Its fun because it's been a while since the last time I saw Pia and Harold. Jong even came...all the way from Rhode Island. Too bad, Leng was the only Y.O. (young ones) present. It was still fun to hang out with them. We were a bunch of altos and basses, so we didn't even tried a chord. But still, its nice to hang out with old and new friends.

We watched our old choir tour cds all day--that's how we missed each other. We whined most of the time for the aesthenic habitus we will never achieve again and the sound we have made back then. It was a rather nostalgic and restful afternoon. Perfect timing before I hit the books again tomorrow.

I Feel Guilty...I Am Watching Films And TV Too Much

I watched this last night and it was quite a scare. Its a cross between Dawn of the Dead and hmm...The Sixth Sense. The actors are Russian and I guess that fact added to the macabre. I highly recommend it.

Finally, my tagline for this blog is finally making sense. If you are watching heroes, it is making sense indeed. The final 4 episodes are on the run every monday and its making me pee in anticipation. The storyline is so good and I've never been hooked to TV before but this one is definitely making history.

Fabulous Places To Study In New York

I got fed up with studying at apartment and with watching the construction of the condo in front of the window so, it's time to explore New York City WHILE I study. Sounds like a really NERDY thing to do. There are advantages in studying outside: 1) people watching (which I give 1,000 points), 2) I can explore New York and 3) makes me lose weight (I don't want to spend money on food that much) So, yesterday, I went to the Bryant Park branch of the NY Public Library with Chari. I had good 6 hours of reading and took some pictures.


Right now, I am here in a friend's apartment in Long Island, a subway stop away from Grand Central. I did a good 150 questions on the internet review site and then took a stroll out to check out their local park. Gosh, it is such a nice park and the day is totally perfect today. I caught these snapshots:


Undeniably, it was a good view of Manhattan. The UN building was directly in front of the pier and I BET it is more fantastic during the evening. My friend really had a good deal with his apartment. This is just a study break so I have to go back to the books.

Hasta manana.

A Hard-To-Put Down Movie Especially When You're Watching From Your iPod

I have this habit of watching a movie, or a part of it, on my iPod. With the state of my review right now and the dwindling amount of Step 3 information I have inside my head, I tend to restrict personal activities into: 1) watching American Idol, 2) doing yoga or any kind of exercise and 3)cleaning up the apartment. Last night, though, I tried to sleep while watching this movie. I ended up having some eye-shut at 3 in the morning.

Inspite of the not-so-inspiring review by the podcast Filmspotting, I still watched the movie, while I scratch my vertex and figuring out why the hell his supposedly-B-movie lasted three weeks in the box office. I must admit that Shia LaBeouf was one convincing 16-year-old. I can feel the agitation, the anxiety and the raging-hormones-portrayal of a neighborhood voyeur. And the yes, the B-movie plot moved on and revolved upon a serial killer neighbor. Big whoop. It's been sold, rented and remade in the movie industry but I guess the actors had to contribute in this one's success.

Now, I am really into Shia. Probably, I'll move on to watch his other indie films like Bobby and A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints...and I have to mention this: he is also in Transformers and the next Indiana Jones bound to be released next year. He's the "in" thing right now and you know how conformist I can get. *wink*

Taking An Exam Is Like Going To War, But I Need To Go To Sleep Now

I had a productive day. I did a little of this and a dash of that. I have to finish Crush the Boards tomorrow. Come to think of it, I haven't finished any review book. What the hell!! 18 days to go! Gosh, I really have to take this seriously from now on.

I have a new fascination right now: YOGA. Due to the lack of funds and the unbearable chill of the morning, I have no motivation/resources to go to the gym. Nor run in Central Park. So, I am doing yoga. Back in PI, I tend to shy away from isometric exercises like pilates and yoga. It's pure torture for me. I like active gym classes. Well, poverty is a real bummer. Yoga is a poor man's exercise anyway.

But, yeah...now I'm beginning to like yoga. Will I be a vegetarian too? Nah, adobong sitao is never a match for adobong manok...so, I never entertained the idea.

Before I sleep, I just want to share this picture from Jeff's apartment rooftop:


That's something. And that's me trying to break the wind with my face. God, I look awful. That not a good final thought for the day. Hmm...it will do. Wait! Its a sunny day tomorrow. I can jog in the morning. For an hour. Before I start studying. (Why am I writing like Anne Proulx?)

That's fine. It'll be sunny tomorrow: something to look forward to.

Good night, minions.

I Want To Be A Success Story

I am currently studying 6 hours a day, exercising for 2, doing less TV and eating less.

I need to find a job and pass this test.
I need to learn how to cook.
I need to lose weight and be fit.
That is why I haven't updated this blog.

I have no social life
No time to tumble and play
I'm going crazy for the lack of it
No booze nights to kill the stress

My life is my iPod, my books and my cigs
The cable and the net too
Basically, I learned I can live my life with those things
But I have to figure out where to get dough.

I swear, I'm getting crazy because I never wrote poems
Especially in this blog of nonsense rants;
Cause I don't like to be called a showoff
And poems are such a valley girl thing to do

SHIT. I AM crazy.
I have a shit of a life to tell.
But I am working out of it
Working out of living hell.

...and now, m thinking in rhymes...I think I am crazy. Yeah, I really do. (Waaah!)