trigger happy

Psst!

nakikita nyo ang litratong to?



pagmasdan nyo nang mabuti.

oo, ako yan.

at nakikita nyo ang hawak ko dito?

oo, camera sya.

digital camera.

hulaan nyo kung kaninong digital camera yan...

:)

Aw, shoot!

yes, you thought right.

i have a new digital camera.
the Canon Powershot A520.

i am blessed because i have a very good friend in Singapore. and i am doubly blessed because of the three greatest words in electronics: Great Singapore Sale!

fortunately, my friend agreed to buy the camera that i wanted while it was still on sale. and when i say sale, i mean sale! the cameras are not only cheaper, but they also come with lots of freebies!! i couldn't believe all the stuff i got for free!

aside from the discounted price for my camera, i also received...drumroll please...

2 pcs. of 128Kb memory cards
battery charger w/ 4 rechargeable batteries
backpack
camera case (worth PhP1,000++!)



panalo, diba??

oh wait. that's not the end of it.

because she's a friend, i can pay her within the year. installment basis. no interest. no down payment.

now i can take as many pictures as i want without worrying about the cost!! (i feel like a product endorser. hahaha!)

aaah...this is the life...

so, expect more photos in my gallery. can't wait! ^_^

digitally remastered

i was able to have a few old rolls of films scanned at Photoline for a very cheap price (PhP 195 pesos for 80 shots!).

the result? "digitally remastered" shots!! (woopee!)

aside from adding new albums, i also replaced some of the old pictures in my gallery.

my first trip to Avilon Zoo

you can read all about this trip in my previous post, it's a jungle out there! i was able to revisit the zoo (w/ rica) and meet that pesky tiger again...this time, i actually caught him yawning. am i really that boring??? (haha)

Mico, the Wonder Dog

mico...my favorite dog. come to think of it, he's our only dog! he's part Doberman - er - Mini Pin, part askal (acts like one, that is), and part performer. he's tiny but don't tell him that. he actually thinks he's a big, ferocious guard dog. too bad his constant yapping at the passers-by doesn't scare them one bit. some of the boys in our street even make it a habit to pass by in front of our house just to annoy mico...and once in a while i let our dog loose just to let them have it. (hahaha!) not to worry, people. his bark is definitely worse than his bite.

just this summer, gelli & i decided to take mico on a road trip to a nearby subdivision. his first time to ride a car! sayang nga, wala akong videocam. the minute we hoisted him up to the passenger's side, his legs started to shake. poor mico was scared to death. he didn't even move the whole time (the ride took about 2-3 minutes so that wasn't so bad).

once we got down the car, his nervousness was replaced with excitement. mico began running wildly around the village and marking his territory (kawawang puno at poste!). there were moments when we tried to keep up with him as we held on to his leash. wow, i didn't even know he was that strong. i guess all the bouncing and yelling at our neighbors eventually paid off.

when it was time to go home, we didn't have any problems with mico. in fact, he was so at home in the vehicle. humiga pa sya at tumapat sa aircon! hahaha!

we haven't taken him out on another road trip, though. well, maybe next time we could go to a farther place...i'll just make sure to bring a doggie bag. ^_^

Tagaytay Lenten retreat

rica and i went on a retreat last holy week. it was an amazing experience. just what we needed. :)

well, i still have about 3 more rolls of film to go. in the meantime, happy browsing! (and feel free to leave a comment or two...)

swoosh!

the last time i checked, i installed HaloScan and lost all my comments...has it been a week already since my last post?? whew.

i've been a busy, busy bee. a lot of stuff going on w/ the start of classes (both preschool and masters), my comeback to the community, and other stuff on the side. i shall try my best to give a recap of the recent events. this is a long read so get ready with your popcorn!

Back To School!

our classes officially started last june 14. as of now, i have one Toddler class in the morning (8:45-11:00). i'm hoping that more toddlers will enroll in the afternoon class so i could be full-time buuuut...that could take a while.

anyways, it's been an emotional roller coaster ride since the beginning of school. remmber Ice? weeelll, now i can see him everyday! woopee! he's sooo adorable. i'm so tempted to wrap him in a towel and carry him home with me. actually, ALL our kids are adorable! most of them aren't that verbal yet so it's a challenge to strike up a conversation with them (well, it's more of a monologue...w/ me doing all the talking. hahaha!). i can't wait to see how they'll develop this schoolyear!

i did mention it's been an emotional roller coaster ride right? the downside to our class now is that we have a child who has a bit of a problem...not that she has a disability or something...it's more of a behavior problem. during our first week, we had the usual cases of fighting over a toy (which is a common toddler incident) and all. but this week, she started pulling the hair of her friends (yes...more than one child), grabbing their shirts, pinching them, and just this morning, she pushed one of her friends who happened to be standing on a 2-step platform by the sink to wash his hands. i saw that particular incident but it was too late. aarrgghh!! i wish i could fly to the other side of the room to save him buut...that didn't happen. it's a good thing he's a bit hefty...it cushioned the blow (hehe). of course, that didn't make it better for me. there's still the situation of facing his (very particular and meticulous) mom. *sigh* the perks of being a Toddler teacher. hurrah.

my co-teachers and i discussed the problem and decided that one of us would shadow the girl to prevent any pushing, pulling, grabbing, and pinching incidents from happening again. of course, that's easier said than done. so...wish me luck! (i think i'm going to need an extra dose of vitamins after this...)

S.H.A.C.K.L.E.S...Break Free!!

last sunday, i was able to attend the Singles Conference of the Light of Jesus community (they're also the people from Shepherd's Voice Publications). actually, i'm already a regular at The Feast (a different event that they hold every first Sunday of the month @ Camp Aguinaldo) but this is the first time i attended a conference for the Singles.

i actually found out about the conference through their online forum (where i'm a member). i haven't met any of them before the conference so i was really looking forward to the event. i was supposed to go with two friends but they couldn't make it so i was on my own. yikes!

for the first time (ever) in my life, i was going to a major event by myself...and without knowing anyone from the group. i was a bit nervous when i arrived. initially, i was feeling left out since most of the guests had their own groups already. the conference was held in an auditorium so it was kinda hard to look for a familiar face. after an encouraging text message from ricababes (tnx, by the way ^_^), i mustered up some courage and marched to the registration area to look for my "forum friends."

after talking to several bewildered ushers (they didn't know what an online forum was), i spotted a couple of people talking by the gallery area. i approached them and asked if they're part of the forum. and they are!! what a relief!! i discovered it was Herald and Mari, two of the regular members of the message board. and guess what. Mari was not only a fellow La Sallian, but she also attended our meetings in my community (Servants of the Lord's Vineyard) while we were still in college. it's a small world after all!

the conference was a very enlightening, encouraging, and enriching experience for me. i was able to listen to two powerhouse speakers (Arun Gogna and Rissa Singson) - too bad i missed Adrian Panganiban's talk (i had to leave because i had dinner w/ my family). the personal sharings were heart-warming and the hosts were hilarious! to top it all off, i was able to make new friends. :) we're actually organizing an official EB so we could meet the other members who didn't get to attend the conference. can't wait! :)

The Return of the Comeback

for more than a month, i didn't attend any meeting from my Catholic community (SOLV) for the simple reason that I DIDN'T HAVE ANY MONEY. (waaaah!) see, that's one of the drawbacks of having summer vacation.

anyways, now that school started, i have a regular salary again and i was able to attend our meetings. it's great to be back. :)

The Answer to the Ultimate Question is...42

ok, you have to watch The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy to understand the title. fortunately, one of the sisters in my community was able to get free tickets to the premiere last Monday.

i'm not going to give a blow-by-blow analysis of the movie anymore because...i don't know how to even begin! super babaw ng story pero nakakatawa! ewan ko kung mababaw lang talaga kami pero tawang-tawa talaga kami dun sa ibang eksena. my favorite character is Marvin, the manic-depressive robot ("What's the use?"). inaabangan ko lagi yung mga side comments nya e. what a riot!

well, if you want to relax and watch a no-brainer movie, then this is the flick for you!

Tag, You're It!

o, tintoots, eto na sagot ko dun sa mga tanong mo:

instructions:

* things you enjoy, even when no one around you wants to go out and play.
* what lowers your stress/blood pressure/anxiety level?
* make a list, post it to your journal...
* and then tag 5 friends and ask them to post it to theirs.

my answers:

* i enjoy:
o [window] shopping
o being on the look out for a good "Kodak moment"
o people-watching (hehe)
o making my kids laugh ^_^

* my therapy:
o playing with my kids
o an amazing full body massage
o 8 full hours of sleep (which is a luxury these days...sigh)
o laughing my brain out
o CHOCOLATE!! [particularly dark chocolate...yum]

* tag, you're it!
o star
o tipen
o mai
o lorms
o abbie

Picture Perfect

an angel in disguise informed me that there's an even cheaper developing center that can scan films and save the shots in a CD. Photoline actually charges PhP 195 for every 80 shots. and that includes the CD already! what a great deal!

i had my old films scanned but i still have to post them in my gallery.

abangan nyo nalang! :p

oops!

i wanted to try out something new on my blog. so i subscribed to HaloScan just to see what all the fuss is about.

after installing and customizing it to my liking, i viewed my site and...lo and behold...the tweaking worked but all the comments to my posts are gone! waaah!!! :`(

sheesh. and i thought upgrading my blog was a piece of cake. i'm not even planning to change my layout...yet. actually, i've been trying to design my own webpage two years ago (after i resigned). but my fickle, fickle mind wouldn't allow me because i always ended up changing the design after about two months into my "final" layout. pag sinipag nalang siguro ako.

but in the meantime, i'm quite satisfied with my current layout, thank you very much.

p.s.
to star, in case you haven't read my reply to your comment on my last post, here's the summary [can't recall the exact words e]:

thanks...heeeey. i thought i was only going to answer 5 questions???

well, in case we can't change surnames, i'll still agree. hahaha! am i so desparate?? anyways, ipapasok ko nalang mga anak namin sa martial arts class para alam nila kung pano "sumagot" sa mga alaskador. hehe.

interview me!

here are my answers to star's thought-provoking questions. [star, sorry ngayon lang ako naka-online. anyways, napaisip ako dito ha! :p]

1. If you were Chico's Baby Whale, would you ever be jealous of Delamar?

i wouldn't be jealous...i would be EXTREMELY jealous! Chico and Delamar are soulmates. i really envy their relationship. they have this chemistry that cannot be matched by other DJ pairs (sorry to fans of other DJ's...). they're the epitome of a classic couple: finishing each other's sentences, sharing interests, bickering over trivial things...sayang lang talaga hindi sila (is it obvious that i'm a fan???). now if i were in a relationship with Chico, i would be totally threatened by Delamar. how can i compete with her and what they have? (if only Chico would admit who Baby Whale is...)

of course, i can always be my charming self and knock his pants off. haha!

2. What's your favorite mistake?

i usually make it a point to forget my mistakes (gives me less wrinkles...). but right now, my favorite mistake would be the time i missed out on applying for a masters degree scholarship last year. i was late & got so frustrated because i missed the deadline by a few days only. one of the requirements is the latest copy of my ITR and at that time, all i had was my last ITR from my former company.

this year i remembered to submit the requirements on time. i already have the latest income tax return from my current work (preschool) and a very dramatic letter of request (haha). it was approved! and the best part is, i got a 50% DISCOUNT! (woopee!)

if i applied last year, i definitely will be rejected because of my old salary stated on the form. but now that i have a much (MUCH) lower amount, i got the scholarship! of course, now that i think about it...i realized my current salary was that low considering they gave me half the price...hhhmmm...

3. Your boyfriend is the best guy in the world, and you love each other without a doubt. He is almost perfect, but his surname is Pangit. He wants you to carry his family name. Would you still marry him?

this has to be my favorite question.

well, considering it's hard for me as it is to even have a boyfriend, i'd definitely agree (hahaha!). pero kawawa naman yung kids namin diba? i can just imagine the name-calling they'd receive in school (not to mention from my own biological family. that's actually much worse). so before we get married, we'll just request for a change of surname... preferably any of the following: Ayala, Ortigas, Rufino, Cojuanco, Tantoco...well you get the picture. now i can have the perfect husband AND the perfect name to boot! :p

4. Would you rather be an unmarried single parent, or be married with no kids?

good question! hm. this is a tough question for me. being a Libran, i always weigh (pun intended) things before making a decision, especially major ones. and after a day, i still don't have an answer (yikes!). but i really don't want to ponder on this for a long time (as if a day wasn't long enough!) so i'll do my best to answer the question...

if i were an unmarried single parent, i would have my own child, but my child will have to grow up without his/her father around. of course, this is if the father and i had a bad breakup or something. but if he and i remain friends, i guess that means he will still be around. oh wait. see, i'm complicating things again...erase, erase. ok. let's just say we had a bad breakup and i'm left to raise our child on my own.

if i were to be married with no kids, i'd be happy but will still feel lacking because we don't have any children.

given these choices, i would have to say that i'd rather be married w/o children.

as a teacher, i know how important it is for a child to grow up with both parents around. this is not to say that i am being prejudiced towards single parents. i respect their choice. but if i had to make a decision, i would rather have a complete, loving family. a father's role is different from his wife's and it will be a challenge for me to fill in the gaps if i were to be a single parent. i don't want to get into the details or i end up quoting authors from education books (we wouldn't want that!:p).

anyway, my husband and i can always adopt a child. this way, not only will we have a son/daughter, but it'll also be for a good cause. so in the end, everybody wins! :D

5. You found a thousand peso bill tucked somewhere in your wallet. How would you spend it?

i wish i can say that i'd give it to charity or some other good cause but i'd rather be honest ^_^. if i found a thousand pesos in my wallet, i would defintely buy myself something nice and useful, such as a pair (or two, if possible) of pants or sneakers. frankly, shopping for myself is such a luxury now that i'm a teacher. [*sigh*] my recent purchase was a blouse (worth less than 300) that i actually got for half the price. that has been, more or less, the kind of lifestyle that i have for over a year now. it's challenging considering my previous shopping habits (Bayo, Maldita, Kamiseta, and Celine, here i come!) but...no regrets pa rin Ü. as they say, it's not in the clothes. it's how you WEAR the clothes. ^_~

* * *

Here are The Official Interview Game Rules:
1. If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying “interview me.”
2. I will respond by asking you five questions - each person’s will be different.
3. You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

If you don’t have a blog, I will still ask you 5 unique questions and you can post your answers here.

Catherine ZetARABIT

oh.my.God.

for some insane reason, i suddenly had the urge to Google my name. la lang. and what did i see? a link to an ancient webpage of my old project in my former company.

aaaaarrrgggghhh! this is hilarious! i can't even remember Gilbert making this site. and can you believe that picture?? i look 6 years old...at least. and that was about 6 years ago. so that makes me 12 years old now. hahaha!

i was reading my answers to the survey.

IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY JOB YOU WANTED, WHAT WOULD IT BE: madami, eh. siguro......anything to do with movies (behind the scenes ha!)

hm. this was written months before i decided i wanted to be a teacher. sabi ko na nga ba my heart was in showbiz...

check out our Tabing Ilog picture. don't you just love my hair??

the scrapbook was our going away present to Didith, our team lead. aren't we the sweetest members ever?? :p (i think sipsip is a better term) i remember spending the entire night shift huddled in the corner segment, trying desparately to be quiet while making the scrapbook. like we weren't obvious! Didith could smell us a mile away. we actually had our own jobs. i was in charge of the lettering, the yosi boys were in charge of making the burnt effect on our paper (to make it look ancient), the girls were in charge of fixing the layout of our pictures, while the rest of the bunch went out to buy our party food (i.e. Andok's chicken and liempo). oh, and Gerald was the commander-in-chief. my favorite part was when the yosi boys complained of yosi overdose (was that even possible for them??) because not only did they smoke more than 3 sticks, but they had to do that in record time. can you imagine rex getting dizzy from smoking?!? unbelievable!

another favorite picture is The Graffiti.

i believe i have the right to say that it was my idea (hah! :p). well actually, it started when i used Doins' computer for a few minutes and decided to post an "aby was here" wallpaper as my way of thanking her. when the others saw this, they started adding their own crazy entries.

aaahh, memories. this is definitely a great (and amusing) way to reminisce.

to gilbert, cheers to you! :p

[note: check out the site for a larger view of the pictures]

ta-da!

i love surprises! well, the good kind anyway.

this afternoon, i went to Megamall to get a haircut and to have my two rolls of film from my recent Avilon trip developed. for some reason, i suddenly recalled what my friend told me before - that Fuji developing centers can actually scan a roll of film and save the photos in a cd. initially, i had a feeling they didn't accept Advantix films. but today i was feeling optimistic.

so before getting my long overdue haircut, i headed for Fuji developing center and asked them if they accepted Advantix films. i held my breath as i waited for the lady's reply. she said...yes! woopee! i wanted to scream at the top of my lungs. instead, i reached for the two rolls and calmly told her, "Miss, pa-scan." [hehe]

and the best surprise was, they charge 145 pesos per roll. it doesn't matter if my film has 12 shots or 40 shots. it's the same price. what a great deal! too bad i didn't know that before i bought the films or i would've gotten the 40 shots instead of 2 rolls of 25 shots. but, that's ok. at least now i know.

i am so giddy just thinking about how much i could save by having my negatives scanned instead of having them developed. ahh, i really love surprises.

you can look at the scanned photos here. too bad some of the photos are blurred. i'm still getting the hang of my camera's close-up function. anways, if you see pictures with a hazy animal, you can always appreciate the background. hehe. ^_~

tinatuna, ma-inggit ka na sa min ni ricababes! :p

Ice, Ice Baby!

I'M DYING!!!! HEEEEELLLLPPP MEEEEEEEHHHH!

before you're wondering why i'm on the verge of death, let me explain...

this afternoon, i called up the parents of one of my students for our regular house calls before our class starts. the bad news was, the parents were not home. but...there's good news. my student, Ice, was home....Ü (woopee!)

he was my student in our summer playgroup class. soooo adorable! grabeeee!! if kidnapping wasn't against the law, i would've snatched him and brought him home in a heartbeat. argh!

anyways, i was talking to his yaya when i heard him in the background. shempre, si yaya tinawag kagad ang alaga.

Yaya: Ice! It's Teacher Aby! Come here!
Ice: Teacher? (take note. this guy turned two just last May... :D)

she hands him the phone...

Me: Hi Ice!!
Ice: Hiii! (awwww...)
Me: [was about to ask him something...]
Ice: [interrupted] asdfhoiasdf play..baskeball!

[note: the unintelligible words are just my way of saying that i couldn't understand what he was saying. hehe.]

Me: Really? You're playing basketball?
Ice: asodiurljoeut!
Me: Oh, ok! [trying to keep up w/ the conversation]
Ice: adfo asdliu!
Me: Where are Mommy and Daddy?
Ice: Wher Mommy, Daddy? [pauses for a few seconds]...in office!
Me: Really? [actually, they were in a prayer meeting]
Ice: Wher Mommy? Wher Daddy? In office!
[pause]
Ice: Wher Mommy? Wher Daddy? In office!
[pause]
Ice: Wher Mommy? Wher Daddy? In office!
[pause...ok, is this a recording???]
Ice: Wher ldurosuet cousin Rau?
[note: his cousin, Rau, was also my student and will be his classmate this schoolyear]
Me: Where's Rau?
Ice: sdiurtotnd Rau?
Me: Did you have dinner already?
Ice: adoir aduout?

i could hear his yaya in the background...

Yaya: Ice! Teacher is still working! Say bye-bye na!
Ice: Babay!
Me: Bye Ice! [*sniff*]

i thought he was going to give the phone back to her...

Ice: adlutlsdug butterfly!!!! [giggles]
Me: There's a butterfly in your house?
Ice: aduout butterfly outside!!! [more giggles]
Me: Wow! [mind you, he couldn't hear a word i was saying because he was having an intense giggle fit]
Ice: diuas goudsoug sie!!! [crazy laughter]

Yaya [in the background]: Ice! That's enough! Say goodbye na!
Me: [laughing so hard]
Ice: sdoug osoudgh!! ahihihi!! [crazy laughter]
Me: [dying!! he's sooo cute!!!]

after a few seconds of non-stop laughter, he finally stopped...

Me: Bye Ice. I'll see you in school!
Ice: Bye Teacher!
Me: Bye! [ok, i did NOT want to let go of the phone...]
Ice: I miss you!
Me: Miss you, too!
Ice: Take ker! Lob you! Babay! Ga bess! ["God bless!"]

he finally gave the phone back to his yaya.

Yaya: Nako, Teacher, pasensya na. Mahilig talaga magtelepono si Ice e.
Me: Ok lang yun! [translation: Akin nalang alaga mo!]

aaarrrggghhh!!! i wanted to die!!

come June 14, i'll surely be dead. that's our first day and i'll see Ice again. arrrggghh! death by extreme cuteness!!

*sigh*

i seriously need help.