I attended a Pond's event last night, but before the actual launch of the Plains & Prints line, there was a blogger meet and greet with the Pond's people so I went straight from work in my Manila finery.

The meet and greet went well but the launch turned out to be a really sosi event where the Gucci gang and their ilk roamed the room with their itty-bitty canapes and flutes of champagne. (FYI the sosyal remain as skinny as they are because they do NOT eat)

Here's a group picture with the other beauty bloggers that night from Lace Llanora. Now I wonder why they even let me in the room with my obviously under dressed get-up:p



Oh well, next time I'll take the dress code seriously. Promise.

What is it about the rain that brings all the creepy crawlies out?

First, we had the suicidal flying thingies which left their wings everywhere. Now, we have an ant infestation!

I was happily telling G something when I suddenly spied these ant clusters on the ceiling! Eeeeewww!!!



And they were also under the sink!



Why aren't the lizards feasting on the ants?! Did I save that baby lizard from the sink in vain?! How's that for utang na loob? :(

Anyway, since the lizards didn't want to have anything to do with our ant problem, G resorted to some chemical means, of the Baygon variety, and he says that he never saw anything disperse as quickly as the ants did.

I really wouldn't know because I have locked myself in our room, but only after I got G to kill the spider on the wall.

What's up creepy crawlies?! You are NOT welcome here.

Is it wrong that I still get teary-eyed whenever I watch the New Directions regionals performance?

They were definitely robbed of the second place they deserved, although I'm not sure why I'm saying that because we didn't see the performance of the "not-stupidly named" Oral (Aural?) Intensity. I'm just taking Mr. Schu's word for it:p

Anyway, the object was to place at regionals so that the glee club could continue existing, and it still happened even without a win (thanks to Sue's timely blackmail) so the glee kids are still together, yay!

Now that Sue grudgingly respects Mr. Schu's work with the kids, I wonder how this will affect their bickering in the second season? Will it be toned down? Or will there be a new villain to spice things up?

And Charice is part of the cast (is she really part of the cast-cast, or just a recurring role like that of Idina Menzel's?), so expect a LOT of racist or stereotype jokes. Frankly it's to be expected because that's what Glee does, it slaps you with all sorts of bigotry so that you can see how demented it is and realize that you too are guilty of such from time to time.

I sure hope the onion-skinned pinoys will not go on a moral rampage again, as what usually happens when Filipinos are skewered and ridiculed in foreign media.

Oh well, so many things to look forward to this coming September :)

I just recently found out that some bloggers get paid to ATTEND events. What boggles the mind is that these aren't even the super bloggers (i.e. chuvaness, bryanboy) with thousands of unique hits and who can push a product like you wouldn't believe. These are just ordinary people who have regular personal blogs. Are PR companies really that desperate for warm bodies in their events?

And what prompts a blogger to ask for an appearance fee for attending an event in the first place? What sort of ego is at play here?

Really disturbing.

I'm quickly settling in my new office, thanks to my very friendly and warm office mates.

Atmosphere-wise, it's just so different in my new work place than in my old company (which rhymes with Rebu Kacific). For one thing, we can continue talking even if the boss is inside the office, which is a virtual no-no in the old office. And that's all I have to say about that.

Anyway, the biggest challenge was the commute to work. For the first few days, G would drive me to the Balibago bus terminal and it would take a good 45 minutes or so to travel 5 kilometers. This was because we would leave at 7am, and so would have to contend with dozens of shuttle buses picking up employees of Laguna technopark, school buses and mommies/daddies dropping of their kids to school and other forms of humanity also rushing to work.

The bus ride itself to Manila from Sta. Rosa would take about an hour, only a few minutes less than the trip to the bus station. But by then, the train would be packed and I would have to wiggle myself among the other ladies on their way to work. I would get off at my stop a good 2.5 hours after I left the house.

But this Friday, after Ge told G about a Buendia bus that waits in Paseo, we left the house insanely early to catch the 6am bus. The bus left Paseo at around 6:15 and by 7am I was waiting for a train. And for the first time in 2 weeks, I was actually able to sit inside the car! In fact, the train that stopped at the Buendia/ Gil Puyat station was EMPTY. Woohoo!

I was in the office by 7:30am and promptly left at 4pm. I love government service :)

The hours are great and the work is non-toxic, but it's really dismaying how new employees can only receive their salaries 1.5 months after their appointments. I turned in my requirements last Friday and will get my appointment after 3 business days, so that's Wednesday or Friday (Thursday is a holiday in Manila). That means, I'll be working pro-bono until I get my appointment. And even after I get my appointment, there's still the long wait before I receive my payslip.

But while the government takes its sweet time, the bills and other expenses will still come like clockwork, so July will be a very challenging month for G and I. SIGH.

So to all those who owe us money *cough*Ogilvy*cough*, MAGBAYAD NA KAYO FOR THE LOVE OF GOD.

That's all. Good night.

I hate to admit it but after watching Fiddler on the Roof last night (courtesy of Gary's newest project to "educate" me), I realized that I knew nothing about Tsarist Russia, the Jews in Russia, the World Wars etc, except for what I read in the Danielle Steele novel Zoya years and years back, and that doesn't even include Jewish history, just the after effects of the Russian revolution on select members of Russian royalty.

I'm sure there are a lot of historical fiction based on these events so I'll be researching on those very soon because fiction is my poison of choice when it comes to learning about history or country etc. There's just nothing like learning about something new through the eyes of an insider.

Anyway, back to Fiddler on the Roof, the whole father-daughter dynamics really caused me to tear up, while the lack or resistance from Tevye and the other Jews befuddled me. How can they just give in so easily? Is fatalism part of the Jewish tradition?



At any rate, we're watching Cabaret next. And no, apparently it's not the one where Lola is a showgirl (Gary: How can you utter Liza Minelli and Barry Manilow in one sentence?!)

All of that pleading with the universe worked and I was accepted by the CA justice I sent my application to! Yahoo!

So I'm back to toting a list and document gathering once again, but this time, it's not wedding related. Part of the list is a urinalysis and fecalysis, so I had to catch poop one more time. I so hate these diagnostic tests.

I officially start when my appointment is signed by the Chief Justice, and that could take 3-5 days upon submission of the complete requirements. But even before the appointment comes in, I'm already expected to show up in the office, so that's about a week's worth of pro-bono work right there. Oh well, them's the breaks.

But a mile-long list and icky tests aside, it's really back to work for me and I couldn't be happier (and my bank account says Amen! to that)

And before I end this post, Happy Independence Day everyone!!

I still can't get over how lucky I am to have Kikay Exchange. There are the freebies and invitations to events, but more than that, it saved me from a potential wedding disaster.

Apparently, Didang Alvarez still hasn't reimbursed nor gotten in touch with her other distressed clients. But I was able to get my downpayment after getting in touch with her mom, of course Didang Alvarez only returned my text message days after I first started to contact her and only after I told her I no longer wanted her to cover the wedding.

I guess I was lucky that she was still in a "giving" mood when I got in touch with her. Beware of this girl everyone. Very talented, but also very flaky.

My view while washing the dishes:



I'll be cleaning the bathroom later today and sadly, there's no similar view there:p

I bought Good Housekeeping's "Clean, Organize and Decorate" mini book and though I've only just browsed through it during last night's event, it seems like a great book! I can't wait to apply the tips there to our little blue house.

On the employment front, I applied as a court attorney for the Court of Appeals and I took my written exam this week. There are three others (as of the last time I checked) who also took their writing exams and so I'm keeping my fingers tightly crossed. And I think everyone should do the same too.

I wonder what it is about the rain that makes insects suicidal? Our floor and the terrace are now littered with dead insects and insect wings!



What's up little guys?



The dead dragonfly on our staircase. RIP.