You Are Viewing hodgepodge

So. I’m with my family at a resort in the middle of the mountains–in the unfortunately-named town of Los Baños in Laguna (translated: “the bathrooms in the lagoon”). It’s basically a house with two private pools, the only distinction being that you have hot spring water to swim in. My family seems rather fond of this place; I’m not too crazy about it. There’s nothing to see and there’s little else to do but swim and use the outdated karaoke machine. I’d much rather be at the beach. (But this family is a democracy, so here we are. HERP DERP)

It doesn’t help that I’ve always had the feeling that this place is haunted, although admittedly I feel that way about most resorts because I am a scaredy-cat. I always get spooked when taking showers in unfamiliar bathrooms. *__* I shower twice as quickly as I normally would.

The beautiful thing is that the resort sits right at the foot of a telecoms tower so the signal is great. :D Which is why I’m here tippy-typing away instead of swimming (it’s still too hot out anyway).

x x x

My attention span for games has been incredibly short lately. Either that or I just haven’t found another game that really does it for me, the way I was totally crazy for Company of Heroes. Over the past week or so I’ve started a couple of games only to drop them after playing once or twice. The only exception is Rome: Total War, but I’m not even too heavily into that anymore.

(I have a copy of Pro Evolution Soccer ‘08, though, and I do like being able to play using the Spanish National Team. I think I would love that game more if I didn’t fail at it so spectacularly. :/ )

I’m tempted to give in to the hype and get into the StarCraft franchise (since RTS is my favorite genre after all) but it could be hit or miss since I’m really not into sci-fi stuff. The consensus in most circles is that StarCraft is the Best. RTS. Ever., which kind of gets my hopes up, but I don’t want that to happen. The last time I got my hopes up for a game was for Red Alert 3, and I thought that was rubbish.

I miss the feeling of being hooked on a game. :’D

My sister arrived from Japan last Sunday with her son Ricky. They’ll be here until the 20th. It’s nice to have the family all together considering everything that we’ve been through this year. And she’s been through a lot with her own family too, so she could definitely use the break.

She got me shoes! :D I am in love with these:

The heels aren’t crazy high, and I love the fact that my feet are totally strapped in so I don’t have to worry about stepping the wrong way and hurting my ankles. The back part kind of digs into my heel a little bit :’( but I’m guessing that’ll go away once it’s broken in. I’m not usually one to suffer for the sake of fashion, but I’ll make an exception for this, lol.

Aaaaand then we have these:

–which I have yet to figure out what to wear with (ideas plskthx). They look ok with jeans I guess, but I haven’t really put together an outfit that it works with. XD

By the way, my sister and I went to my usual coffee place yesterday and she pointed out that someone *cough* was checking me out. Hee. :’D I’ve got to get a move on about this crush, dammit. It’s just that I have this thing — I’m often unable to make eye contact with a guy that I like, let alone start flirting. *facepalm* (Uh. I guess I need ideas for this too, plskthx. Haha)

x x x

My addiction du jour is a strategy game called Rome: Total War. It’s not new (it came out in 2004) but it’s brilliant, and the learning curve is nice and steep. It’s basically a mix of turn-based and real-time, with the turn-based part involving the governance of your empire, and the real-time part comprising the battles that you fight in order to gain and keep territory. It’s wonderfully complex, and I’ve found it entertaining even though I’ve never been a fan of TBS games. (I recently started a game of Civilization IV but I’ve left it alone. I like the idea of that game and I can totally see why it has so many fans, but I guess I just don’t have the attention span for it.)

I might install Rome on Fernando Torres (yes, that’s still the name of my netbook), because the internet says it should be playable enough on a netbook. And check this out: a strategy guide that’s written in semi-archaic English for the lulz.  (“Have thy rodent chew upon these runes” = “click here”. OHOHOHO)

Today one of the girl baristas at my usual Starbucks surprised me by  bringing the coffee to my table instead of calling me to the counter (special treatment! lololol). It was way nice, but then she commented that I don’t go there often anymore.

And I thought–

–because I had already been there three times this week. They expect to see me there every day now? :’D LOL. Granted, I will probably end up spending more time there (maybe not go there more often, but just stay there longer) when I finally get my netbook.

Oh right–I NEED A NETBOOK. I suppose I’ve needed one for months now but I’ve put off buying it (for good reasons, really), but now I’m starting to feel like only having one place to write–my desktop, in my room–is starting to take its toll on my work. So now I’ve decided to buy one, and hopefully the fact that I’ll be more productive will mean that the thing will pay for itself in the long run. :D  I think I may have been subconsciously using that same excuse for my long-term caffeine dependence.

As an added bonus, when I finally buy a netbook, people may finally stop wondering whether or not I have a job and why I have the luxury of being at the mall on many a Tuesday afternoon. You see, I am no good at explaining these things. Some of the baristas already know that I work freelance, but I don’t usually get into detail about exactly what I do, so I could be a freelance drug dealer for all they  know. :D

I can’t decide which one to get though– the Asus Eee 1000HE or the 1005HA. They’re very similar inside, with mostly aesthetic differences. I’ve read that the 1005HA is sleeker and better-looking, although I’m a bit partial to the matte screen and chicklet-type keyboard of the 1000HE. The keyboard is a big deal, considering I’ll probably be typing the hell out of that thing.

Does anyone have an opinion on whether a 3-cell battery would suffice or if I should spend on the 6-cell?

x x x

Plugging! IF YOU LIKE FOOTBALL AT ALL, or at least find it remotely bemusing, do check out http://larojaaaaa.tumblr.com. It’s the humor tumblelog that I’ve made, dedicated to the Spanish National Football Team (because that team, I swear, is comedy gold).

Yes, this is precisely the sort of shit with which I amuse myself.

It’s doing pretty well in terms of ‘likes’ and reblogs considering I only made it last night, LOL. I’ll definitely be adding more material regularly.

I ordered these babies earlier today, from a Multiply shop.

I’ll make the bank deposit tomorrow, then try to stay distracted for the next two weeks so the wait doesn’t kill me. This is my first time buying footwear online so I hope they’re comfortable (but since they’re flats I’m not too worried). At around P1100 they’re cheap for boots, much better than mall prices (and the stuff at the mall really isn’t even that great anyway). So yay! :D (more…)

For my “day job” writing ESL textbook material, I’ve had to frequent a website called ScienceDaily, which churns out plenty of the topics that I need. Now while most of the time the articles there are insightful and relevant (I stay up-to-date on their articles on caffeine), some of these headlines are full of lulz–some because they look like they were written by Captain Obvious, and others because they make you wonder how and why they discovered these things. I mean, check these out:

Americans Want Self-Respect, More Than Ever

Scottish People ‘Living Dangerously’ (It’s the kilts, isn’t it.)

Squirrels Show Softer Side by Adopting Orphans, Study Finds

Those Less Motivated to Achieve Will Excel on Tasks Seen as Fun (Unrelated note, I am great at hanging out at the mall.)

The Joy Is in the Social Hunt: Facebook Users More Engaged Emotionally When Conducting Specific Searches (This is true; I remember not being very emotional the last time I did a broad search.)

Dark Pulse Laser produces bursts of almost nothing

Dog Owners More Likely To Share Germs With Pets By Not Washing Hands Than By Sleeping With Dog

And lastly, my favorite:

Compulsive Behavior in Mice Cured by Bone Marrow Transplant

x x x

Guess who went to the spa today.

My dogs.

They were whisked off in a van, and were gone for half the day. When they came back, one was cleaner and looked several months younger, the other was shorn bald and looked like a different breed altogether, and both smelled like aromatherapy votive candles.

It's ok, fur grows back. Hopefully.

My family isn’t the type to afford our pets such luxuries on a regular basis (we can’t afford it), but their condition (read: flea-bitten and mangy) had worsened to the point that we couldn’t handle it anymore and needed the help of professionals. Actually, had they not come today we wouldn’t have found out that Shasha is preggers again. PUPPIES! :D

x x x

I didn’t get to post yesterday, but Happy Independence Day! We have a ton of problems as a country, but being a Filipino is still pretty kickass, if you ask me.

x x x

Remember the bridal entourage from this post? I swear, it’s following me. I went into Landmark yesterday and there they were, pretty much blocking off the whole footwear department. And then five minutes later, while I was at the lingerie section, they came marching in again. I could have taken a picture but I was too engaged in adding to my ever-growing collection of laughably cute knickers.

Ribbons! Because I'm bad-ass that way.

x x x

For the past two days my Blur fandom has flared up again and I’ve been obsessing over Damon Albarn. I didn’t realize it before but he looks kind of like James Dean–a scruffier, sillier version of. I might do a screencap picspam for my next post.

I have a HUGE crush on this guy.

His name is Brent but he’s BrentalFloss over on YouTube, and he’s a genius. He makes parody songs based on (mostly) old Nintendo video game music, and he does everything–writing the lyrics, singing, putting together the bgm. He’s extremely witty, and funny, and I’ve been spending so much time playing his videos over and over again that it borders on stalking, and he’s cute, and he’s an Aries born in April.  I seem to have a thing for Aries boys born in April, idk, I think I find the confidence sexy.

My entry title is from his song on DuckTales, but also see the one he made on MacGyver, Megaman, and “The Truth About Toad“. But don’t go getting a crush on him because he’s mine  I SAW HIM FIRST.  :P

By the way, the “quite” on that one photo?  He used it to censor out the adverb “fuckin’” in a song. LOL

x x x

A few acquisitions over the past month: (1) Cargo pants + tank tops from Terranova. I’ve been going to this store a lot since late last year. A little pricier than what I’d like, but it’s well worth the money because everything is well made and fits great. Their tank tops are A+. A few weeks ago I found the cargo pants–I wasn’t sure about getting them, but then I tried them on, and didn’t want to ever take them off. They’re ridiculously comfortable. I actually got them in brown first then came back two weeks later for the ones in army green, because what self-respecting WW2 geek doesn’t have cargo pants in army green. (2). Waist coat (Erm… vest? I do not know the difference–) from 101 New York. I don’t like vests a whole lot but I like how this one makes me look like I should be bussing tables or stealing loaves of bread or going on my paper route. I obviously have no future in the fashion industry. LOL

HEADPHONE EARRINGS! Only P80 at Pop Cult. The ironic thing is they’re so small, when I’m wearing my headphones, you don’t actually see them. But STILL. :D

x x x

Today I claimed a parcel at the PhilPost office and made Customs P1,057 richer, and I’m trying my best not to gripe about it because I don’t like getting emotional about money. Still, the fact that the PhilPost office is a miserable stinking rat hole is a glaring indication that such tax money never goes where it’s supposed to; it makes it a little harder to think of those sniggering Customs hags as people–just like you and me, fellow travelers to the grave and all that sort of shit–and easier to instead fervently wish that universal justice would waste no time and bite them in the ass.

x x x

To end this on a positive note: back on the subject of crushes, I may try to take a photo of the cute barista tomorrow, if I’m not feeling too shy.  :D