Madz et.al. Concert

November 23, 2012 - Philam Life Theater, United Nations Avenue, City of Manila.

Madz et.al is a concert of all the choirs, vocal ensembles, chorales of members of the Philippine Madrigal Singers (or the Madz as they are fondly called), whether past or present. They can be church choirs, corporate singing groups, high school chorales which are headed by Madz peeps.

New blog created

Hi guys,

I have a new blog:

http://earlpatricktherunningyogi.blogspot.com

This is dedicated solely to my three passions: happiness, yoga and running.

This site will still be active for personal reasons. I realized I haven't been actively posting here, and I need to change that. I intend to make my presence felt in social media. This way, I would be able to fulfill my goal of making a difference through teaching and training.

Wish me luck!

Wednesday prayer

Lord, today I am preparing to go to work. Please let me do a good job today. I pray for patience and energy. I want to be a blessing to others, so always help me to remember that.

Thank You for all the blessings you have given me. I am grateful for my yoga practice. I am grateful for my health. I am grateful for my family. Thank You for letting me see what it is that I truly want. I want to teach. I want to train people. I want to make a difference.

Keep my family under Your care. Bless and protect my nephew and my niece. I look forward to spending time with them later.
Honestly, it isn't easy, but I know that with Your help, I can do this. Thank You for giving me this job, I am truly grateful

Amen.



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Still need to will myself...

I am at a point in my life where I have decided what it is I want to do. I guess it has always been here inside me, this desire, or calling if you want to call it that. I think I have always known it - it's just that either I was ignoring it or I was distracted by the pursuit of other things.

Looking at what I wrote in my 7 Habits workbook, it's so aligned. Teaching. Training. That's what I want to do. And I need to start planning towards achieving that.

The thing is...my current job situation. Biggest challenge is I cannot bring myself to enjoy it. Like what I told my friend, there is no joy there. I have to constantly remind myself that learning for learning's sake is its own reward. It's not easy. Just need to breathe. Pray. Be grateful. Repeat as many times as needed throughout the day.

JC, I really need you for the next several months. Please help me. Amen.
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Boracay escape

I am writing this inside a coaster on my way to Kalibo International Airport. My beach trip was cut short by a day as I need to fly out to Australia today (Monday, Sept 17). More on that later.

This Boracay trip was proposed by a good college friend of mine a couple of months ago. Since her husband was going to Australia in September, and she needed a vacation, she asked if I wanted to join her to Boracay. I jumped on the opportunity right away - I badly needed a break myself, what with all that I've endured with my previous company. Besides, I haven't been to the beach yet this year. Well, there was this Laiya day trip way back in January. But, it was only for one day, and if my good friend from HK didn't come over here to the Philippines I wouldn't be going. Anyway, I'm digressing.

So, she booked the flight, and we got a pretty sweet deal for it too. Only PHP1700 each for a round trip ticket. Not too shabby, eh? Now we just have to find a hotel. Fortunately, a sweet deal came up in one of them discount websites. This was for a known resort, and the rates are fantastic! Granted, September is an off-peak/lean season in Boracay, so naturally the rates will be lower. But this is a real hotel, plus it comes with free breakfast, dinner and massage. For four nights. All in all, it just boils down to PHP2300 a night. That is a good deal if you ask me. Anyway, the place is called Pearl of the Pacific, which is Station 1.



To be continued...
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Update on business travel

Still don't have a confirmed flight ticket to Australia. Fingers crossed!!!

I am so looking forward to this trip. Sure, it's only for four days. But considering the fact that 1.) I have never been to Australia; .) I have never traveled for business (after over six years of working there, and to think there were chances I could've flown); and 3.) I am very new to this company - less than two months!

So, here's hoping everything falls into place. It's all in your hands now, JC.

26 Random Things About Me

Let's begin...

1. I just LOVE chocolates. All my family and really close friends know this.
2. Whilst I love chocolates, I don't care too much for chocolates with peanuts (yellow M&M's, for instance), plus chocolates and mint combinations.
3. I miss playing the violin. I used to play it well when I was young. My professor even offered to come to our house once a week for private lessons just so I won't stop playing.
4. As cliche as it sounds, I know I am meant for something good.
5. I have been involved in publications since high school, and I even have this blog, but sometimes I am scared of writing. I feel my thoughts run too far ahead of my typing skills at times, and I end up rambling.
6. I haven't been in a relationship in over five years.
7. I drink copious amounts of water everyday - I haven't really measure it, but I would think maybe at least 3-4 litres daily? And that's on a workout-free day.
8. I love sports, but not all sports. Swimming, tennis, badminton, volleyball are among my favorites.
9. I have a strong feeling being a yoga instructor will be in my CV within the next five years.
10. I love my nose, I hate my tummy.
11. Patience has never been one of my strongest suits. I am working on improving it, though.
12. I hate it when people do things a certain way just because it's always been done that way (without knowing why).
13. I am left-handed when it comes to playing racket sports - I discovered this in sixth grade.
14. I am fascinated with languages, and I want to learn maybe 4-5 more!
15. When walking down the street (especially in our village), I used to have this obsessive-compulsive habit of making sure I have six steps in each concrete block.
16. Music has always been a source of happiness in my life.
17. I really want to try bungee jumping at least once.
18. Traveling opened my eyes to a much bigger, beautiful world.
19. I have been nicotine-free since Christmas 2008.
20. I will be starting a business with a couple of friends. We're still in the discovery stage.
21. I have at least 30 books at home, waiting to be read. *gasp*
22. I absolutely love the TV show F.R.I.E.N.D.S.
23. I have not read any Harry Potter book by choice. Same goes for not buying an iPhone.
24. I am a foodie - good food with good friends = bliss.
25. I really should get going as I have a consultation with a trainer in ten minutes.
26. I thought of 26 because it's supposed to be random, right?  25/30/50 seemed too obvious.

Quasi-spontaneous meet-ups are great!

Just got home after having a nice evening with my good friend Claire. We were supposed to watch a movie, as a friend of mine gave me two (2) free passes. I had my eyes set on watching Katy Perry:Part Of Me. And yes, I was being serious. Anyway, as it turns out, the tickets are only good for cinema 6, in which Total Recall was playing. That would've been a good choice, except that I have already seen it the previous week (also with Claire). So we ended up just walking around the mall, talking and updating each other with what's been going on. We had Happy Lemon, and I introduced her to the rock salt and cheese drinks. She had the green tea version while I had cocoa (of course!). She managed to squeeze in a bit of shopping, too.

So, for dinner we both decided we wanted something light and not too expensive. I suggested that we find a place that sells good wine and tapas. We went to Barcino, but we found it to be a bit pricey. We went around and checked a couple more restos. No such luck. And then I said, we should try this deli called Santi's since they have cheeses, cold cuts, and of course, wine. So off we went. And what a good decision that was! We were so happy just looking at the cheeses. God if they weren't so expensive, I'd buy them all!!!

We ended up having four different kinds of cheese, ham, salami, salted sticks, white wine, and most importantly, a great time! We talked about a lot of things, from the wonderful things we learned in our previous company, to relationship with friends, and even traveling. It is so comforting to have a great friend like her. I just wish so many good things for her, she really deserves them! Best part is, we didn't spend a lot, plus she managed to take home the cheeses and the cold cuts!

So off to bed I go with a good feeling. JC, thank you so much for the blessings You gave me. I am really grateful.
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Updates

Wow, I haven't blogged for the longest time! #fail Hopefully that will change. And I think it will,along with other changes coming along real soon.

For starters, I got a new job! Come Monday, August 6, I will be working for a new company. It's a multinational company providing travel and expense management solutions. I don't want to divulge more details right now - for some reason, I feel that it isn't "official" until after I actually start reporting to work. Weird, I know. After all, I did sign the contract on Monday (July 30). Anyway, one of the best things about my new job is that I work during the day! That's right - I'm "normal" again! Wow, it has been years since I had a dayshift job. Hello rush hour traffic! LOL

Been watching a lot of movies lately - from Cinemalaya (watched only two movies, bummer!!) to Hollywood summer blockbusters. The last one was kinda different - it was a local film by Chito Roño, one of the country's good directors. The film is called The Healing. Apparently it had two versions - the standard R-13 version, and the R-18 version. I wanted to watch the latter as apparently it is a lot more gruesome, with guts and blood spilling and stuff. Macabre!!! However, Alabang Town Center only has the R-13 version during that time. The film was good - it gives you a "healthy" dose of scares. However, they could've used better effects, especially when the former patients start going into a murderous streak. I don't want to go into much details for fear of a spoiler. I suggest you watch it and take a break from all the Hollywood flicks, at least for this instance. Let's show our support to the local movie industry! #makabayan

This crazy weather we've been having these past couple of weeks is causing a lot of people to get sick - myself included! Friday last week I got really sick, whilst stuck in Makati early evening traffic! Then by Monday I felt better. That was when I had the contract signing. After a couple of days I lost my voice! I have a cough too, but it's the kind where the phlegm does not want to come out! Dry cough, I think is what the commercials call it. Sigh. I have been taking an expectorant these last two days. For the most part I think it's working. But I haven't exactly been a very good patient either - still drinking sweets at times and/or cold beverages. #fail I hope I recover ASAP - I don't want to come to work on Monday with no voice!
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For some reason...

... I ended up buying a bottle of Hayden perfume!!! I'm totally serious, it isn't funny. LOL. I ended up seeing their booth at the lower ground floor of Festival Supermall in Alabang. Being the fragrance junkie that I am, I decided to sample their scents. Surprisingly, they were good. The top notes were refreshing, and each fragrance has its own personality. I have yet to know how it smells once it settles. Will keep you posted.

I ended up buying the Black Leather & Orris. The price? PhP520 for a 100ml bottle. Not too bad, right? I just hope they didn't get cheap on the scent, and that we (as in the Philippines) finally have a fragrance line that not only smells good, but lasts long too!! I heard that the Inno Sotto fragrance line is good, but I have not tried it yet.

So, I will update this entry once I have made my mind up on this new scent that I bought. If the scandals were any indication, I shouldn't be too impressed. Hahahaha!



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