#Thanks2014

This year has been one of the best years I've had so far and no words can explain how thankful I am for this amazing year! I know that it has been 2 years since I last wrote an entry in this blog, but that will not stop me by ending the year with a new one. :)

I will shy away from my usual blog entries and instead focused on being thankful with everything this year.

I am thankful that my sister graduated from high school and with an academic award (naks!) to go with that. Our parents are very very much proud of your achievements and we are excited to see more in the future!



In this same year, JC also turned 18 which makes me 20+ years old. haha but, as we always tell her, being legal has a lot of implications and responsibilities that should be taken seriously. 

As with every year,  travel will always be my source of balance, and this year has also been a great travel year for me, I had a chance to see the pristine and paradise-like beaches and towns of Siquijor (opposite to the island's image of supernatural and occult beliefs), the warmest welcomes and smiles of the people of Dumaguete, their natural wonders  and of course their to-die-for sylvannas.

As a continuation from the previous paragraph, I also had a chance of visiting two wonderful countries this year, Vietnam and Cambodia. Vietnam always made me curious of the real taste of their authentic Pho, the mix of asian and french culture as well as their cu-chi tunnels. On the other hand, Cambodia always interests me of the Khmer rouge and the Angkor Wat temples and its cultural impact to southeast asia.

This year is indeed full of blessings and when I mean blessings, it also came in a form of an AUV, this year has been a milestone year for me as I had a chance to purchase my first ever vehicle. Indeed a dream come true, and part of my "before 30" bucket list.

In terms of my career, I am thankful for the opportunities that have been given to me at work as well as the corresponding rewards that was a fruit of my sincere labor and an award to cap it off. Indeed a good year for me at work. :)

Neverending thanks to my friends, who will always be there in times of fun and importantly in times when true friendships are tested. Love this bunch of crazy animals!! :)

Lastly, but definitely not the least, this year marks our 5th anniversary as a couple. As I always tell Cat, our relationship is so far my longest commitment/employer/attachment. :) Kidding aside, I am so proud of how we both matured into such forward thinking, practical and intellectual (naks!) or nerd maybe individuals. I don't know where time will bring us in the next few years, but I hope i am still with you! :) Looking forward to travels, dates, fullybooked tambays, and even the heated intellectual arguments that we always have!

As a whole, its #Thanks2014 and see you 2015! for those who had a time and patience to read this blog entry, I give you a simple treat below a good mashup of the pop hits of 2014 by Daniel Kim! Enjoy and Happy New year everyone!!!!

Shine Brighter 2013

DJ Earworm does this yearly mash-up of all the hits of 2012 and with this year, he titled this track as "shine brighter". As this year comes into a conclusion I would like to take this same inspiration in welcoming 2013. My goal now for 2013 is to shine brighter hopefully in all aspects of my life which is love, career, school, life in general and my spiritual life.

The year of the water snake will be in a few hours and instead of making my yearly resolutions list which i ended up not accomplishing, I would like to try a new approach this year, by saying thank you. 2012 has been such a wonderful roller coaster ride full of surprises and adventure. Words were said, paths were traveled  relationships were built and absolutely and most importantly many lessons were learned.  First of all I would like to thank the following for making me shine brighter during this past year and making 2012 indeed an amazing journey :)

To God, for always putting me where I grow best (not only physically) but holistically :)

To Dad, for being my adviser in love, career and life in general.

To Mommy, for being my number 1 fan kahit alam kong dehado na ako. for being a mother also to my pets at home most especially in times of dire need.

To JC, for being the president of my fans club, haha (alam ko naiinis ka na habang binabasa mo 'to!) pero, thanks for listening to all my stories and cesnya sa mga pangaral ko (you'll realize its importance in a few years) :)

To Catrina, my girlfriend for 3 years already and still counting, thanks for taking care of my errands, for the patience, concern, and for just being there for me all of the time. I love you! :)

To my direct relatives (Gomez'), for being a bright spot in our compound, considering what's happening right now.

To my JC friends (you know who you are!) for being my constant travel/gimik/food/kalokohan mates. I'll treasure these moments.

To my PSE friends (you also know who you are!) for always welcoming me every time I visit Ayala triangle, and making such visits indeed wonderful.

To my grad school friends for being my soft spot in rigorous academic exercises na ginagawa natin!

To my beswan for making me smile when i stumble upon your posts in fb :))

To my mentors in all aspects of my life (love, career, school, life in general, spiritual life) for believing in my potential, for giving me some of the best advices I've ever heard so far.

To my newly found friends in my new work thanks for welcoming me and letting me swim with confidence and with a life vest :) my work wouldn't be as enjoyable without you guys.

Now i'm off to some last minute preps for new year's eve celebration! see you 2013! :)

2012: Resolutions, Goals and Purpose

2011 will be over in a few hours so as I always do, let me run down on my resolutions and goals for the coming year of the water dragon (as they say in Feng Shui). Creating lists are not required for everyone, but a lot of people still do it to guide them throughout the year or just for fun :) . A new year's resolution list is similar to that of a child's Santa Clause wishlist, a Santa Clause wishlist maybe a kiddie version of a New Year's wishlist as aspirations, goals and wants change over time.

To start off, here's my new year's resolutions:

1. To attain financial wellness - i need to cut down on my unnecessary expenses, WHATEVER it is.
2. To live a healthier lifestyle - minimize or ultimately quit smoking this year as i am not getting any younger anymore.
3. Minimize tardiness - not only in work, but in other commitments, in meeting deadlines, in school work, and in the on-the-side work that i do.
4. Read more books - though this is not a problem for me, i think i should be more open to other genres as well as not only look but MAKE time for it.
5. Fix my desk at the office and room at home - studies show that a more organized and cleaner workplace can be more beneficial for the person.

On top of my new year's resolutions, I also have a separate list of goals for 2012:

1. Hopefully finish my degree :) - excited about having an M.S. after my surname in due time, but diligence and patience on passing through Comprehensive Examinations and Master's Thesis within the year is the key.
2. Learn a new language - a multilingual individual can go a long way, so as this has been always on my list each and every year, I need to do this asap so as to not lose the momentum.
3. Travel and discover the world - Malaysia and Indonesia is within reach in the next few months. More to come for the next few years.
4. Learn a new skill - would love to enroll in a writing or painting workshop or might go back to violin classes or learn something else. The possibilities are endless.
5. Meet new people - to establish great friendships and network which in due time will really pay off.

However long our lists are, the very essence of it is that we have aspirations and dreams that make us live life in its fullest. It is with these dreams and aspirations where we get the ultimate source of that flame that lights a fire under our asses, the very purpose of how we want to live. Speaking of purpose, let me share with you a very good song from the 2004 Tony Awards' Best Musical Avenue Q, titled Purpose.

2 years and all the cheesy pick-up lines

Just want to share my facebook wall post for Cat & I's 2nd Anniversary:

It has been two years and we are still standing strong, happy and very much in love. We may not agree in a few things, but that's part of it. There are so many words i want to utter in my mouth right now but let me put it down into three simple words "I LOVE YOU". Let me get back to that day when i delivered my classic pickup line that swept you off your feet and started my intense appreciation for the what they say, kabaduyan ng mga pick-up lines. :))

Setting: Meeting Room while preparing some Christmas decors

Characters: Myself, johnlloydwannabe & Cat, johnlloydwannabewith

Me: Mayroon isang lugar na gusto ko talagang puntahan...
Cat: Saan? Sa Aman Pulo? (and some other places)
Me: Malapit lang yun, soobrang lapit lang! as in!
Cat: Saan nga?! Nasa Makati?
Me: Hinde
Cat: Saan!?
Me: SA PUSO MO! :)

The rest was history ika nga.

Happy Happy 2nd anniversary!! I LOVE YOU

Wishing that this wall post doesn't destruct you on your exam later today rather will give you INSPIRATION. :)

HAIRvironment

As a working professional in my mid-20s there have been a multitude of dillemas that I have experienced through the years. Besides the so called unofficial quarter life crisis I am supposed to be experiencing, there comes the multiple adaptations that I go through from everyday life shifting from being single to being in a relationship, from being a full-time student to being a working one, from transferring from one workplace to another, from meeting new people or just meeting people from my past, this world is such a whirlwind of whichever is under the sun.

Much from my very kathartic and long introduction, my point being is to introduce a truly amazing product that i started using just a few months ago to sort of address my unhealthy, hair-thinning/balding problem.

Presenting JĀSÖN, a 100% all-natural personal care brand from the US which is being locally distributed by Healthy Options, one of my favorite shops around. I am using their thin-to-thick hair care system. The product in all fairness has been addressing my hair problems. One, my white hairs suddenly disappeared after just a few months after using, second as weeks pass by, I see that my hair has been going back to that thickness it has been before (though gradually, more moths to come), there were time a few months back that I was really desperate in getting all my hair shaved so i could not see or feel that I am already losing hair at such a young age. Third, my hair became softer and more healthy looking as before. It looks like that I am doing a very manufactured-prime time TV-major multinational company-advertisement but the bottom line is that this particular product works.

Scanning through products out in the market, I can say that JĀSÖN's thin-to-thick hair care system is such a wonder. Not only this, but what truly made me admire the brand itself is that it doesn't need to have multimillion dollar advertising campaigns to sell its products, second it is very close to my heart since we have the same goal of being environmentally conscious of not using harmful chemicals in its ingredients thus protecting the environment in the long run.

At the end of the day its good to know that there are still companies/brands that are very conscious in meeting halfway in terms of satisfying both the customers, as well as the environment at the same time. Corporate greed is not in their line of thought. Just quality, life-changing, and lastly and importantly environmentally-conscious products.

Indeed, going back to the shower is more responsibly done :)

"I want to serve other people"

As i was fixing my things in my room i was surprised to stumble upon this old piece of paper from high school, i think an output from an activity during career counseling for those in senior year.

Looking at it further, it's both a realization and a reflection of my aspirations. I am so proud of myself that even at the age of 15 i was already having the very essence of my existence embedded in the tapestry of my neurons in making this world a better place to live in by putting into number 1 "I want to serve other people".My chosen fields of study it seems that i haven't indicated psychology or behavioral science on it but still, i am a son of the social sciences and will forever be forever grateful about it :)

On power dreams, I am quite surprised that i wanted to be a political leader because as of now and maybe in a long time I wouldn't want to be one, seeing how our political system works on our country, but why not if the likes of Nelson Mandela, Cory Aquino or even Mahatma Gandhi who were all icons of making this world a better place to live in and in my opinion reached the top of Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs by being SELF-ACTUALIZED with what they have done for our world.

Looking at the list made me realize that there's still tons of work, patience and powerdeaming (as i may say) to do to reach the top of my own hierarchy of needs :)

Confirmation and 15 years

(JC with Tita Chari, JC's Confirmation Godmother)

Yesterday, JC had her confirmation in school. In all fairness to St. Paul-Pasig, they are organized in conducting such school events given the limited space in their venue and more than 300+ confirmants. Bishop Vergara of the Archdiocese of Pasig was the celebrant of the event, needless to say, I also had my confirmation when I was 12 years old here in our parish, but compared to my sister's, it was a little unorganized and uncomfortable since it was the yearly "kumpilang bayan" you expect almost all of the parishioners' children to participate, add the humid sunday midday church temperature, the long homily and the VERY unorganized picture-taking part of the program. Anyways, I would like to congratulate JC for being confirmed (pwede na siya ikasal), kidding aside you can see below a school project i did way back in grade school which contains a poem I composed for my sister. Obvious ba na I am truly proud of her? :)

Again, congratulations to my sister JC for being confirmed, may you continue being a responsible Catholic and spread the word of God, and YES, after mong mag-debut and ang Japan trip natin pwede ka na ikasal in... 15 years :)

Beginnings and Conclusions

The end of the year is fast approaching and we could already feel the cool air surrounding us, the longest Christmas season in the world has begun about a month ago and i bet you could already hear the Christmas songs being played on the radio, how about the Christmas decorations that your LGUs are putting on display ALMOST everywhere?

I intended to start this blog by talking about the early Christmas atmosphere that we feel even months before the actual Christmas month, December. It's so ironic to think that December means two totally different things, it's both a beginning and an end. A beginning because Christ was born, also it's that time of the year when new lives are transformed, enemies became friends, friends become lovers (*coughs*), electric bills shoot up compared to other months of the year, or it;s just that everything turns to positive for the sake of Christmas, everyone seems to be as nice as they could ever be. On the other hand, December is an end as well, an end of a fruitful year (at least for me).

Talking about beginnings and conclusions, I've was invited to attend a wedding of one of our dearest friends and former office mate, Jayme and her husband, Mao and needless to say a very pleasant wedding with a twist of rock and alcoholic drinks which basically reflects the personality and interests of the couple. Just like December, a wedding is as well both a beginning and and end, a beginning in the sense that its a union of two hearts, a beginning of a new chapter for two single individuals who were joined together by God, a beginning of a journey of a lifetime. It's also an end for being single, an end for the what we say kalokohans of youth. New responsibilities, new commitments, and definitely new priorities.

Cyber Life Reengineering

Yes, you read the title right, reengineering. Such a powerful word, but really applies to my cyber life. After having lunch today, I managed to check on how my blog is and to a coincidence the last time i had an entry was the same month last year. Blogspot life was ZERO. I also checked on the blog of those I always follow and to my surprise, they have either cancelled, refurbished, transferred to another account or just like me, have not updated for ages.

I haven't blogged for quite some time and come to think of it, the last time i wrote something out of my cyber pen "nawalan ata ng tinta for some time" :)) was September of last year, what a coincidence really :) Then I was blogging about my 9th monthsary with girlfriend and the previous entry was about the UAAP cheerdance and this coming weekend I will also be in Araneta (hopeful about getting tickets) to watch the cheerdance with my girlfriend and our friends. A lot of things have happened to me in the past months I was not blogging, and to give you a rundown here are some of them:

I was able to complete my academic subjects for my master's degree, now i'm off to my practicum, comprehensive examinations, and my master's thesis, i'm giving myself up to October 2012 to finish my degree.

I also haven't featured my travels in and out of the country in the last few months and even those I had years ago. I may be so swamped with work that I totally forgot about injecting ink to my cyber pen or i am just plain busy juggling, work, school, business and personal life.

The emergence of the other popular social networking outlets like facebook and twitter also snatched my time away from blogspot. Gone were the days that friendster, myspace and multiply were the ultimate attention rivals of blogspot.

We also moved in our new yet unfinished house still in Taguig,

I am with my employer for more than a year now, and so far, no plans to resign.

Why Reengineering?

In the last few years and months that I was not blogging, Lots of ideas and things went into my mind which gave me this concepts in reengineering this blog

Whatever I blog must at least contribute to the ultimate goal of making this world a better place to live in? Sounds ambitious I know, but as they said everything starts small, like how plants came from seeds, chickens from eggs (still debatable though lol), the complex human beings from the primodial soup. etc. I can do it one step at a time.

lucky 9

it has been 9 cycles of love-hate-smile-cry that the both of us have. this blog entry is dedicated to my sunshine in the night, to my breathe of fresh air to my pollution, spark of hope to my neverending journey to life. I love you and promise to take care of you. happy monthsary once again to my love!

2010 UAAP Cheerdance Competition

will feu retain it's crown or will up and ateneo steal it away or will ust reclaim it's glory? watch now on studio 23 live

new blog, new app

I hope that this app would be a way to constantly update my cyber diary with cyber ink... :)

Superhuman?

A certain realization that caught me off guard with what I have been experiencing for a few days is that, there comes a time in your life when for you it seems that everything is properly aligned, na kahit ganun, kahit papaano mayroon at mayroon pa ring pagkukulang. None is perfect in this world both living and non-living. But, since this is the present and this is what is available and generously served you have to deal with it. Beggars can't be choosers.

Masyado lang talaga akong ambisyoso kaya ganito. One should learn to prioritize. One should learn self- management, because there's no such thing as time management, because time is naturally unmanageable and slips very fast. We can't do multitude of things all at the same time or else quality would be sacrificed.

and oops I almost forgot I am not superman because I don't have the supernatural wonders that would make me more than who I really am. I am just simple, true and human.

22 YOUs in my first job =)

A similar entry with this format was done by a good friend of mine when we graduated from college. Now, I would like to take this opportunity to write in that exact and simple format. For those who would take time to read this one, kayo na ang bahalang manghula kung sino kayo diyan.

1. You are a simple embodiment of a strong woman by being a responsible breadwinner. You inspire me.
2. You are my ultimate JC idol and yosi buddy and will always be, hands down. You drive me to excel.
3. I've just met you but we clicked with similar interests. You must leave a mark.
4. You are a simple person yet with so much more to give. You will always be our "taray queen".
5. There's so much I like to say to you but let me put it down into three words. I Love You
6. You are a person with rather out-of-this world taste of things. But I still apreciate you.
7. You are my mentor, coach and most importantly a dear friend. You will always be one
8. You called me a "stubborn boyfriend" and i still appreciate your kindness. You are a selfless friend.
9. You are my buddy and my partner in crime. You are my accomplice
10. You are everyone's Kuya. I'll miss one.
11. You are our dear nicole and wyclef jean. You make us laugh hard.
12. You will always be our CEO. You are driven to succeed
13. You are my first boss and reference. I've learned a lot from you.
14. You were my forever seatmate in our cubicle. I'll miss our small talks.
15. I can say that I will still miss you even though you're mean to me. Your annoyance is my character building.
16. You are the epitome of excellence in the field. You drive me to perform.
17. You are my sort of my ka-banda even for one time. It felt good performing with you.
18. You are my sort of ate in the office. I've enjoyed exchanging stories.
19. We are die hard fans of great music and rock and roll. You are what you are.
20. You are my adviser and listener in a lot of things. Thanks for casual talks and yosi breaks.
21. You are the newest member of the team. From here I pass on a commitment of excellence.
22. You are our group's new friend even though your not full-time. You are unbelievably kind.

Until

Dear Anonymous,

First of all I want to say sorry If I am already making you uncomfortable with my actions, I promise to stay discreet with my actions and your identity as well. I really hope the good times would be back where we could talk to each other out of the blue without you thinking that there's a motive or something. I asked you one time if you know me? I got a reply. I'll reply sana and come with you during the ride and talk about things I haven't told you pa.

I hope we could spend more time with each other, and will let you know of how everything is at this point in time. I know it would already be close to impossible to bring back the companionship and friendship we have before this...

I was always thinking of the time when we could go out and "hang-out" and that would such be a delight. I was also thinking of the time were we could sit down relax talk casually, and maybe stare at you all day, looking through your eyes, asking how you see mine. I also remember a time when we were talking about our preferences. You told me that I was looking for a greek goddess, and I told you that you were looking for a greek god that doesn' even exist, as for my part I would like to say that a greek goddess doesn't exist as well UNTIL I MET YOU. Each time we don't talk would both be pleasure and pain for me, pleasure in the sense that I still have time to construct and organize my thoughts, so if we talk I don't get lost I don't confuse you with words I say.

Corny man ako, pero damn! gugustuhin ko nang maging corny habambuhay kung totoo naman lahat ng sinasabi ko! As I always say, if you need someone to kick, to punch, to curse , tell your frustrations o ano pa man, dito lang ako always open to talk, I'm willing to open up my ears, my mind and most especially my heart to you.

take care and love you much!

Sherwin

broken sonnet

Dear Anonymous,

By now, I know you would already be reading some of my simple letters to you. I would just like you to know that I am still alive and kicking, yes, they say that love is cheesy in some ways but that makes it more interesting. Everytime i don't see you around it seems like that i am no longer comfortable. There's something missing, medyo corny pero totoo pala. I wouldn't mind if you're now looking on a different perspective, the more you don't realize my presence the more i can still see your other side. Sabi ko nga in my earlier shoutouts in facebook "Mabuti nang ganito tayo.... dahil mas napagmamsadan kita mula sa malayuan" yeah, I know it would sound stalkerish already, pero wala lang. you wouldn't mind naman? dahil di mo naman pansin talaga.

Just want to share something, I was in an fx the other day and a very special song played on the radio, wala lang. the plucking of the guitar and the way champ sings it. It seems na sobrang mahal lang niya yung tao. Well, I'm into too much hale and mymp songs since we talked. sabi ko nga sa'yo don't mind me. I'm just like this everytime...

By the way here's the lyrics of the song:

Broken Sonnet by Hale (Isa lang masasabi ko, the best pa rin ang first album ng hale!)

And now I concede on the night
of this fifteenth song
Of melancholy, of melancholy
And now I will admit in this fourth line
That I love you, that i love you

I don't care what they say
I don't care what they do

Cause tonight I leave my fears behind
Cause tonight I'll be right at your side

The clock on the TV says 8:39 p.m.
It's the same, it's the same
And in this next line I'll say it all over again
That I love you, that i love you

I don't care what they say
I don't care what they do

Cause tonight I leave my fears behind
Cause tonight I'll be right at your side
Lie down right next to me
Lie down right next to me
And I will never let go, will never let go

I leave my fears behind
Cause tonight I'll be right at your side
Lie down right next to me
Lie down right next to me
And i will never let go, never let go

But still I see the tears from your eyes
Maybe I'm just not the one for you

With high regards,
Sherwin

Love Letter

Dear Anonymous,

Thanks for appearing in my real world today. For sure it would be such a long one but just seeing you doing your own stuff would make such a big difference. I know maiinis ka na naman, pero okay lang at least alam mo nag-exist pala ako at the first place. There's so much stories I would like to tell you, unfortunately a lot of things happened in the past weeks kaya di kita masisisi. honga pala, i would be changing my number really soon from smart to globe so me and my friends could text regularly as well as you. I hope you don't forget to smile kahit at least once a day lang. I know it would help you release your tension. Remember that i'm just around the corner and you as well in the corner of my heart. Will write to you again tomorrow.

take care and God bless!
Sherwin

White Marble Flooring

Here's the aftermath of ondoy's very fierce rainfall last saturday:

This is suppose to be our living room's white marble flooring, now it's underwater and those white boxes in the upper right part of the pic are kitchen cabinets removed to be used as sort of "scaffoldings" for our more precious stuff, and yes, we now use a hose to get potable water for laundry, washing dishes etc. Thanks God I'm still way LUCKIER compared to others who experienced WORST harshness from Ondoy! Let us all pray as a nation that we will survive this catastrophe, pero bilang pinoy yakang-yaka natin 'to we're already tested in these types of situations. I still hope that everyone would still be optimistic cause as we always say, there will ALWAYS be sunshine after the rain, literally. =) Good night everyone!

Revolve Around the World Item # 3

There are a few people who thinks that the world revolves around them. Say for instance, Kanye West, he's been an awards show-crasher for a few times, and he thinks that it wouldn't affect his popularity which includes his album sales, contract deals etc. but we'll see in a few months. But whatever he does still doesn't affect my delight over his songs, they are somehow of substance over other rappers. Another perfect example would be Megan Fox, for having a rude exchange of words between her and Michael Bay (director of Transformers). But that doesn't still remove the fact she's HOT!

Moving on a more localized and very personal note let me start with friends. Friends are there to understand you. Friends are there to listen to you. I don't care really how i project things, but that's genuinely me. I hate being misinterpreted and misunderstood. I really don't understand how people think of themselves too much. People who thinks that the world revolves around them. Take for instance, I had a situation where some of my friends would ask me if i really have feelings over this classmate of ours which they (unbelievably!) thought for a long time. Me as honest that I can be really denied it because there's nothing to admit. I really don't get the point of admitting something that you didn't really do or in this case something that you don't have (feelings). I look upon her as a friend who turned to someone whom I already do not know already. Time may be the suspect. I get the point that maybe I have fault over this. But i do think the whole blame shouldn't be accounted to me alone. AND JUST IN CASE, this is just a part of a game to embarass me to everyone, that I play the part of someone hoping for something to that person and she just laughs at me saying that I don't have any chance on her. WELL, screw whatever happens! I'M MAD, i know but this foolishness has to end. Anyways we don't like each other. She has her preference and honestly di ko talaga siya type (forgive me for being rude) x(

Really Hard Item #2

It's really hard when you get to that situation where people accuse you of something that you really are not or something you didn't do. It's really hard that people do misinterpret you in countless ways. It's really hard for you to understand because all odds are against you and every action you do will be perceived improperly. Why do people still push forth things that are way too impossible to achieve or in a better view, difficult to fathom...




...Sometimes, just like some things in life there's no need for an explanation.