tag, you’re it.

Ant insisted that I do this, so here goes…

Ten Years Ago: I was finishing up on my OAC classes (Ontario Academic Courses), this was my last semester in high school. My parents and I were also getting ready to pack up and move to Los Angeles so we could be with family. I was dreading leaving Toronto. I had just gotten involved romantically with a boy and I didn’t want to end things with him as we had only been “talking” for about 6 months. I had a very painful, emotional first-half of the year, because I had to say my goodbyes to everyone - my friends, my church-family. I was leaving my life behind. It was a major leap of faith for my family, but most of all, for me. I had no choice but to completely put my trust in God. It was difficult. I was still immature in my faith, even though I had been a Christian for 12 years at that point in my life, in many ways, I was still a baby Christian.

Five years ago: I had to quit school due to my financial situation. I also had to leave my job at the school library so I found myself unemployed. But that was short-lived and my aunt got me a part-time job at the law firm where she works at. I started out as a “gopher”, driving around, picking up and dropping off files between all five offices, and then eventually, I was hired on a full-time basis as a legal assistant at the firm. The money was pouring in, and it seemed like everything in life was great, but I was miserable. I went on vacations, I splurged, thinking that the money will last, but God had other plans for me. I was becoming irresponsible, and was just downright selfish. I was putting up this façade, everything seemed to be alright on the outside, but on the inside I was just a complete and utter mess. God had had enough, I suppose, so He started teaching me a lesson. But I was stubborn, and continued on my downward spiral.

One year ago: I started feeling more comfortable in my own skin. God has given me a second lease in life, and He had blessed me with a job which came in the most opportune time. I was singing again, regularly, with my cousins and Papuri. I had finally faced up to the fact that I’m an adult, I have no more excuses. I have grown closer to God, and to my family. We had started our Young Adults Bible study at Olive which was truly a blessing in itself. My mom and I finally moved to a place of our own, yet another big leap of faith for us.

Yesterday: I woke up fairly late, watched Closer, and then headed off to Cerritos Towne Centre to read and study my Bible. Then, I headed over to work for a staff meeting, went home for a bit after that and then went to my cousins house for Bible study.

Five Snacks I Enjoy: (1) Flaming Hot Cheetos (2) Sour Cream and Onion Pringles (3) the edamame snacks that my co-worker gets from Trader Joe’s (4) black seed (sweet) snacks from Marukhai (5) TGIF’s Mozarella Sticks snacks

Five Songs I Know All the Words To: (1) “How Great Thou Art” (all verses - hehe) (2) “Something About You” - Level 42 (3) “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?” - Rockapella (nothing short of a tongue-twister, this one - haha) (4) “Beautiful Surprise” - india.arie (5) “Drop It Like It’s Hot” - Snoop (haha), there’s more but you only asked for 5 songs. LOL

Five Things I Would Do with 100 Million Dollars: Anthony stole my answer LOL (1) 10% goes back to the Lord (2) pay off my debts and my family’s (3) buy my mom a house (4) support missionaries and mission work, especially in the Philippines (5) donate to charities and such (e.g. Amnesty International, World Vision, etc.) and save PBS stations all over the country (gotta love PBS).

Five Places I Would Run Away To: (1) my room (2) Starbucks (3) a park (4) New York City (5) the beach

Five Things I Would Never Wear: (1) gaucho pants (2) spandex (3) clogs (4) a Mohawk (5) anything neon

Five Favorite TV Shows: (1) Friends (2) Will & Grace (3) Coupling (4) The Office (5) Oprah

Five bad habits: (1) gossiping – trying to stop and is actually becoming quite successful at it (2) procrastinating (3) laziness (4) binging on coffee (is that considered a habit?) (5) snacking when I’m bored

Five biggest joys: (1) God/Jesus Christ (2) being saved (3) my family and friends (4) music (5) music

Five favorite toys: (1) my computer (2) my Barbies when I was growing up (3) my stuffed pink pig named Fred (4) Nevaeh’s Nemo (5) DDR game LOL

Five Fictional Characters I Would Date: Duuuudddeeee….LOL (1) Horatio Hornblower (men - ya’ll need to take notes from him - hee hee) (2) Aragorn Elessar (3) Legolas Greenleaf (4) Mr. Darcy from Pride & Prejudice (5) Hugh Grant’s character, the Prime Minister, in Love Actually

Now, I tag jeremywu, cleptochewy, jpmartinez, leopintums, audrey, jax, and ganns.

*****

Let’s keep the people of New Orleans, LA and Gulfort, MS in our prayers, and anyone else who’s been affected by this tragedy, directly or indirectly. Let’s pray for peace of mind, and for patience and confidence that there’s help on the way. May the God of comfort make His presence felt throughout those 2 cities.

long time, no update.

How's this for a concert: Jason Mraz and Dave Matthews in one night?

Yup. Went to go see JM and the DMB at the Home Depot Centre in Carson, CA last night. It was quite an excellent show, although Jason's set was really, REALLY short, and he didn't do some of his old songs as I had hoped, but overall a good night. And to top it off, we got to go for FREE! hehe Last night was my first time seeing Dave Matthews live in concert, and I have to tell you, these guys are amazing musicians. Oh, and Robert Randolph came out and jammed with the band towards the end of the show. Did I mention that we got to go to the concert for FREE?

Got to hang out with most of the old Ordinary People crew last Friday for Kurtz's surprise 31st birthday party. I had no idea how much I've missed singing and hanging out with those people until that night! Just bustin' out "The Reason We Sing" a cappella and Boyz II Men's "Thank You" just brought back a flood of memories - late night rehearsals and randomly singing in public. I'm looking forward to the "Reunion Tour". haha I doubt we'll be able to pull off the dance routines like we used to when were were "younger" (bop!), we may have to resort to sitting on stools this time around. Ordinary People - Unplugged. Quite a concept.

Movie recommendation: "A Very Long Engagement" - have a tissue box handy.

sad news

My Uncle Arsenio (my dad’s oldest brother), passed away yesterday, in Manila, from health complications after suffering from a stroke a couple of years ago. Please keep my Aunt Nelia, my cousins, and the rest of the family in your prayers. He is a believer.

yay!

Masterpiece Theatre has a new movie coming out in the Fall! It’s Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Silk Stocking and it stars Rupert Everett. Gotta love PBS!

Well, I’m turning in. Good night.

the inevitable

…well, I am sick, yet again. I have lost count on how many times I’ve fallen ill this year. I ask for your prayers, thanks.

“Selfishness seeks its own private happiness at the expense of others. Love seeks its happiness in the happiness of the beloved.” - John Piper, Desiring God

The best part of waking up...

...is hearing Rockapella on your local morning news. I woke up to Here Comes The Sun and Scott Leonard singing "Little darlin..." to me this morning on the WB KTLA Morning News. Nothing like a good serenade from The Blonde One to wake you up in the morning. Can't wait 'til December. I'm willing to bet anything that he and/or Kevin will ask me again how the singing thing is going for me. I'm tellin' yah, Scott fell in love with me when I sang to him...hehe ;)

staring at the clock, watching the time go by.

Well, I’m just sitting here at work, waiting for the clock to hit 8pm then I’m outta here. It’s been a long day, but I’m not quite done. After work, I’m heading over to Papuri rehearsals. Longest day of my life? Perhaps. *sigh* I’m trying to pass the time blogging, and playing with my co-worker’s daughter. She’s 3 years old, and such a precocious little thing. She loves watching Disney princess movies. I’m learning Spanish from her, she barely speaks a word of English (they had just moved here from Costa Rica), so she and I have a fun time trying to figure out what we’re saying to each other.

Jason just finished serenading me with his “la-la-la-di-dahs” and “ba-ba-da-bahs“. Clever play on words, his songs are fun to listen to. Now, Justin is singing “Like I Love You“. The next on the playlist is, m-pact with “Ain’t Nobody“. hahaha Can you tell I’m completely bored?! Actually, the caffeine is starting to kick in, not exactly a good idea. I can spew off on random stuff, and you’ll be sitting in front of your computer thinking, “what in the world?“

Oooh, ooh! I went to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus this past Saturday with my cousins, and the younglings, Nevaeh, her best friend (and Babie and Cat’s niece) Nathalie, and Tristen. I’ve never been to the circus, so that was quite interesting and surprisingly fun. The kids certainly enjoyed themselves, except for Tristen who’d much rather flirt with the girl sitting behind us. He won’t give the circus a second-look. haha! That kid cracks me up. I love him. I guess I could cross “going to the circus” off of my list of things I’d like to do before I die. haha

Okay, it’s almost 8pm. I’m going to get ready to get out of here. Thanks for putting up with my randomness.

Mid-afternoon tales.

I'm sitting in front of the computer, completely bored out of my mind. Argh! Somebody get me out of this funk! I had intended to bring reading paraphernalia to work, but had changed my mind, thinking that it was going to be incredibly busy today. Well, I thought wrong! There is nothing to do here, except occasionally answering the phones (which is surprisingly sparse today) and I am without reading material. Ugh.

I turned in considerably early last night, fell asleep listening to Raul Midon on Jay Leno. People, you must check this man out. I've heard great things about him from Jeremy and April as they have seen him live at one of Jason Mraz's concerts, and I got to see him do his thing last night. Incredible style of guitar playing, and incredible voice to boot. I may just stop by Best Buy tonight after work and purchase his CD.

Speaking of CDs, Jason Mraz's sophomore CD is out. I've mixed feelings about the CD. I'm incredibly excited to have another JM CD in my collection, as this man is brilliant, but this new CD is more power-pop and less jazzy than the his debut CD, Waiting for My Rocket to Come. The jury's still out on this new CD. I'll probably love it, eventually. I'm just going to have to give it a few more listens. I do have an early favourite however, and that is Geek In The Pink. Can't get enough of the song.

I woke up this morning to the cast of the movie RENT, singing Seasons of Love on The Today Show. Ha! I can't wait to see the movie. It's coming out in November. Adam Pascal (Roger) cut his hair and he looks really, REALLY good. He and Anthony Rapp (Mark) sang What You Own. That's it! I was done! Rosario Dawson (Mimi) and the rest of the females in the cast had me in stitches as they were acting like complete fans, squee-ing like little teenaged girls on the side of the stage while Adam and Anthony sang. It was too cute.

I had mentioned in my previous post that my dream wedding would take place in Wales, preferably by Cardiff Castle. But I think I've found a few alternative locations, two in Pembrokeshire (St. Anne's Head, and Dale – perfect little castle, straight out of an Austen novel) and the other one in Powys (Powys Castle). I know, I know. I'm talking about it like it's ever going to happen in this lifetime. It will take for me to win the lottery to be able to afford to have a wedding in Wales, but like I said, I can dream, can't I? – haha If you'd like to help towards Achau's Dream Wedding in Wales, please send your donations to… hahahahaha I'm completely off my rocker!

Apparently, there's a new Rockapella CD-ROM out and I didn't know about it until this week. Supposedly, it features the "new" incarnation of Rockapella, new footage, and a couple of new songs! Contemplating on buying it, but it is only available online as it were. I may just have to wait until their next concert here in California to purchase it, that is, if they would actually sell it at their concerts. I'll just have to wait and see, I suppose.

C'mon, phone, start ringing! I need something to do! Ahhh!!!

Bible study last night went pretty smoothly, I think. We're going through John Piper's book, Life as a Vapor, and I have to say that at first reading, I don't quite get what he is trying to say in his meditations, but last night, I realized that there's a method to his madness. LOL It's great though because, instead of Piper spoon-feeding us what he wants us to get from the meditations he's written, we actually have to wrestle with it and come up with the answers ourselves. Honestly, I get a bit frustrated whenever he starts expounding on the thought that he presents in his meditation for the week, because he usually goes off in complete tangents, but somehow, he manages to bring us all back to the thought presented at the beginning of the chapter. Like I said, a method to the madness! But the greatest blessing is that I'm really learning a lot about God through that book. God is God and we can never understand His ways, nor will we ever understand them. Otherwise, He ceases to be God, and our hope will be lost. He has a purpose for everything, whether our journey to the fulfillment of our purpose is good or bad, in the end, all those things work together for good. God knows what He's doing, and that's a blessed assurance that we can hold on to.

I'm running out of fuel (a.k.a. coffee), and this chocolate cake from SavOns that I'm eating is a bit dodgy. Is it 8 p.m. yet? The day's been going by really slow. Pray that I get out of this funk, and fast! 'Ta.

Changing my skin…again.

I had to change my Blog skin again. The other one, however appropriate it may have been, was a little too busy. So, I’m opting for this simple black one for now until I find another one that suits my liking.

feelin’ the need to update.

I am feeling the need to update my blog. However, I don’t really have much to say. I don’t even quite know where to begin. I’m afraid that the novelty of blogging/online journaling has started to wear itself off. I started an online journal for the sole purpose of writing down whatever random thoughts I have at the time and to keep an account on what I do everyday. But these days, I would rather just read other people’s blogs. Anyway, I’m rambling. Hmm…I’m trying to think of things to post. Let’s see… Ahhh yes! Last weekend, I went to go watch Wicked the Musical with my cousins and some friends for my cousin Joyce’s birthday. One of the best musicals I’ve ever seen! I think it’s becoming one of my favourites especially as I listen to the soundtrack more and more. It has great songs, and it has quite a fun and interesting storyline. Of course, if you’re a fan of The Wizard of Oz, this musical is definitely a must-see. I found myself fighting back tears at the end of the musical! I’ve never really cried watching a musical before. Well, I may have had shed a tear or two when I saw Les Miserables. Great songs for female soloists! It would’ve been incredible however, if I had seen the musical with the original Elphaba (Idina Menzel) and Glinda (Kristin Chenoweth), but the alternatives weren’t bad at all! I would definitely see it again when it comes back to Southern California next summer.

I’ve never hidden the fact that I’m fascinated with the United Kingdom and I found this site that actually shows a bird’s eye-view of Wales. It’s truly a wonderful place and I hope to get to visit it some time in the future. My dream wedding would actually be in Wales, maybe right outside Cardiff Castle. Actually, any castle in the U.K. would do, preferably by a bluff overlooking a body of water. That would be the most fantastic wedding locale. Oh well, I can dream, can’t I? Allow me to dream a little longer (mind starts to drift off…).

Can I just say I love PBS?! I really do. They have great programming - educational and diverse. And they actually show my British shows that I used to watch back when I was in Toronto! My most favourite would have to be Masterpiece Theatre. They bring classic literature to life. Last week, they showed The Forsyte Saga. What a treat! If I am not out and about on a Saturday night/Sunday afternoon-evening, you’ll most likely find me at home, watching my PBS shows.

Friendster can prove to be useful in searching for lost-long relatives. This past couple of weeks, I’ve found 3 of my cousins on my dad’s side that I have not seen nor talked to in years! One lives in London, the other lives in Saudi Arabia, and the other one lives in Toronto. And I found out that I have 2 adorable little nephews who I didn’t know existed, who live on the other side of the world! I hope I get to meet them someday.

Wow, it turns out that I had a lot of things to post about after all.