Remembering Cory Monteith aka Finn Hudson

Last July 15, I was lightly browsing my Flipboard magazine when suddenly an article in BBC News UK informed me that Cory Monteith is found dead in his hotel room in Vancouver.

Dead.
Finn. Hudson. is. dead.

At first I cannot believe it, having watched few of the last episodes of Glee Season 4 the night before. I remember, in the story, Finn is away to study teaching in order to cool down the tension between him and Mr. Schue. His story with Rachel is unfinished, too. So there is really a lot to look forward to in the fifth season of the show.

But now Finn is dead. His voice will no longer be able to speak lines of script nor sing another wonderful song again.

I will miss him. I'm thankful that he left us a good compilation of his renditions to remember him by.

Rest in peace, Cory.

Rest in peace, Finn. Your gleek fans will always remember you as a true friend to Santana, Puck, Quinn, Brittany, and the rest of the group; a true brother to Kurt; and a true love to Rachel.

Remembering Finn Hudson in my workstation the day he died.

A Weekend Full of Binge Eating

Last June 29 to July 1, my family and I hosted a 3-day back-to-back-to-back Fiesta, House blessing, and my birthday celebration in our house. The whole family and some of my relatives were there to help in cooking all the dishes and entertaining the guests. So much food! I bet I gained around three pounds... Hahahaha.

DAY 1: Sts. Peter and Paul Fiesta and House Blessing

For this wonderful celebration, I am thankful to:

• My uncle Tiyo Juaning for cooking the viands served during the Fiesta proper (June 29). His Menudo and Chicken Kaldereta are so delicious that they bring back my childhood memories;
• My aunt and Tiyo Juaning's wife Tiya Apron for cooking the Grilled Boneless Bangus;
• My another aunt Darling for cooking the Chopseuy;
• My another aunt and godmother Ninang Honey for helping in the preparation of the ingredients. Happy birthday to you, too!
• My father Bolet and mother Lynda for making this celebration possible;
• My sister Sheryl and her husband Jette for cooking the Lumpiang Shanghai and Dynamite and helping me do the Corn Gelatin;
• My roommate and friend Hearty for helping me finish the Corn Gelatin; and
• My neighbors for sharing their food--Ate Edith for the Biko and Hot Tablea, Aling Clara for the Biko, Mommy Imelda for the Chopseuy with quail eggs, and Ate Agnes for the Lumpiang Sariwa.

We are also thankful to our parish priest Rev. Joseph Landero for doing the house blessing and celebrating with us. Thanks also to his companions from East Timor and Indonesia. :)

Right: Fr. Jolan, Left: Rev. from Indonesia

Rev. from East Timor

Here are some pictures!

that's me very happy. :D

DAY 2: My supposed-to-be birthday celebration but we were too tired to move

We were supposed to celebrate my birthday by cooking another set of dishes to be shared to our neighbors. But we were so tired to do anything so we just rested and ate all the foods left from yesterday's event.

We still have guests--Kuya Tone, Tiya Tata and Jen, and Lola Juanita--who came and celebrated the blessings with us. :)

DAY 3: My 25th Birthday Celebration

Well it's Monday, and I'm expected to come to work but my body is aching so badly when I woke up. So I texted our company clinic that I can't report to work. (And it's my birthday!)

So after sleeping for another three or so hours, I finally woke up and had a long chat with my sister. I think we missed each other so much and haven't really talked in a while. We just finished our conversation when our mother called us up asking for help in cooking that day's dishes.

Thank you to my family for sharing with me my 25 years of fruitful life! :)

Thank you to Tayni Mark for the shoes and Hearty for the power bank. Love the gifts! :)

And yey, I'm 25! :)

Time to think maturely. Time to open a savings account and save up money for later. Time to invest in my future because, I now admit, I'm not getting any younger.

And it's also the time to do the things listed in The 20 Things You Need to Accomplish in your 20s because I'm already halfway through the decade.

I'm officially away from my beloved for 3 to 6 months

Mark is assigned to San Jose, CA to immerse and train with our company's design team there for six months. He was informed about it last June 14, and since then everything has changed. We'll be away from each other, 11500kms or 7100mi to be exact, after 9 years of being together.

After sending him off at the airport and while taking the shuttle bus to work, I can't help but cry and recall how our relationship developed through these 9 years...

We've known each other since June 10, 2004 during our first day in the university. We were blocmates and attended the same set of classes except for Math (I had to take Math 14, while he is scheduled for Math 17). I can still remember our first class--ES 1 or Engineering Drawing--in our then old Melchor Hall (Engineering building). We were both Computer Engineering students that time, by the way.

He is the soft spoken one among the group, barely talking and just laughing at Ian's jokes. It never occurred to me that time that he will be my soul mate later in my life. I had an interest on another person that time, so I wasn't really paying attention to him. But he was nice, and we instantly became friends.

He didn't have the opportunity to have a girl non-family member friend (emphasis: a woman friend), with him being raised up in an all-male Catholic school (full of naughty boys). So it came to me as a surprise when he told me that I was his first girl friend (note the space bar). I can still remember him giving me birthday presents--a male parakeet and a stuffed toy--last July 2004. We met on June, and he immediately gave me something on July. This made me smile and freaked out because I really don't know if he has something more-than-a-friend feeling for me or whatever. But, being a pessimist that I am, I thought that I am only a friend. :)

Early in the sem, we spent time together during our breaks all the time. We walk around the campus or eat somewhere together with our other blocmates. This blog entry will be very lengthy if I share everything that happened. I can tell you one thing though--it has been a roller coaster ride just like everyone else's relationship story.

[picture: Boso-boso trip or any pre-relationship pic]

I can still remember how I severely hit a tree while driving his car...how we got estranged after that incident...how he confessed his feelings for me in my duck pin bowling class...how I accepted his love three months after at a coffee house while sipping my cold drink...how I became so happy after that...how happy we became despite all the ups and downs that come into our relationship.

So now, I must face this longing with a brave heart. I know that 6 months will just be a breeze, that he'll be back so soon I won't remember he was gone. But I guess I am just lonely because I won't be able to hug him whenever I feel like hugging him (I'm a total "hugger", I'm telling you). I won't be able to tell him stupid things immediately after thinking about it, and him answering with his weird humor right after I tell him something. I won't have him by my side, stroking my hair as we go up to eat and trying to trip me using his foot and tell me that it was just a rock that somebody forgot to remove.

But I will be okay. We'll be okay. He'll have his experience there as much as he can, and I'll be right here waiting for him to come back and hug me once again. :)

------

Last June 22 we went out on our last Saturdate and ate at Cafe Mary Grace. So yummy!! :) A bit pricey, but it was delicious and worth it. We ordered grilled cheese roll for appetizer, beef tapa with kesong puti for sandwich, cream with mushroom for pasta, hot tsoknut and peachy lemon iced tea, and lemoni santi for dessert. Yummy! I looove the cheese roll. :)

Last Saturdate before he left. I'm looking forward to another Saturdate with you. :)

We had a goodbye coffee hangout with our dear friend Mark in SM Dasma. These two are really close, having been roomates for almost a year, and will surely miss the company of each other.

Me, Mark, and Mark.

Here's him getting a haircut the afternoon before his flight. I feel like a paparazzi. :D

Then, the night before he leaves, we went out for his last dinner here with his family. It was a happy occasion, and I'm really happy for him to have this tremendous opportunity. Here are some pictures with his family.

Top: His sister Kay, Mark
Bottom: His father Tito Medy, his mother Tita Kit, and his brother Michael

We ate at Yakimix SM Masinag.

With me in the picture! :)

Then after having our stomachs bloated, we went home to his house to pack up all his things. This is when it really dawned on me that he's leaving. I personally took care of packing his things up, feeling like his wife and all that. (so cheesy!)

------

Then I'm again here in the bus, feeling a bit empty, ready to face the new phase of my life.

Oh, he texted that he's about to board the plane and I must call now. Another round of tears! T__T

Welcome back from Riyadh, Duday! :)

Duday is a Pediatric (if I remember it correctly) nurse in King Khalid University Hospital in Riyadh, KSA. She has been there for almost three years, since this is her third time to come home for a break. I'm really happy whenever she comes home, because that's the only reason we get together (given all our busy scheds and really, there is nothing to celebrate aside from that).

Yiyen, Duday, Tutang, and Mumay. Shopping at Trinoma.

This time we went to QC area--shopping at TriNoma then dinner at SM North EDSA. We indulged ourselves to the eat-all-you-can buffet of Vikings. A bit expensive, yes, but it's all worth the fun and unlimited food (and dessert!). Plus, it's my first time to dine at Vikings.

There are looooooooots of foods to try--from Filipino to Japanese to Chinese to Thai to Italian to American cuisine; from salads to hotpots to yakitori to seafoods; and the desserts! Oooh la la! Heaven. The taste is not really that breathtaking; it's more of the quantity of choices available in front of you.

There are also plenty of drinks available, though we only tried the juices (Twining's strawberry something, mango juice, four seasons, wintermelon, etc). There are beers and wines available at the bar, but we really didn't have the chance to inquire about the wines. Tsk tsk.

So from these wide array of choices, I only managed to stuff five plates down to my then very empty stomach--Japanese, seafood, American & salad, and two dessert plates. The taho was great! I didn't expect that a posh place like that offers one, but it was good to eat one that time. :)

So all in all, the dining was great. Seeing my friends was great. That day was great.

I'm so happy. :)

Happy Birthday, Nanay!

Happy 55th birthday, Nanay! :)

I wish you good health, happiness, and many lurve.

Edit:

Typhoon Emong hits Parañaque, Las Piñas, and Pasay, soaking me wet on my home yesterday. Power was also out in the village when I got there. Piles of dishes are waiting for me in the kitchen sink.

So to make this edit short, I wasn't able to take some pictures. :(

Happy birthday, Nanay! I love you! :)

The longest commute travel I've done in my life

happened last June 13, 2013. That's a Thursday.

I really love to travel to look at the sights around the metro, to relax and feel the wind that blows in my face, and to free up my mind from the stress of studies and work. Usually, I don't really mind the long travel, but this one is an exception. I was dead tired at the end of the day. I literally slumped to the first couch when I arrived home.

I want to document this because, as I've said, this is unusual for me. :) So here it is:

My travel revolved around three sites: Quezon City, Parañaque, and Cavite. Here's the hour-per-hour breakdown of that day.

0600H - 0638H : Travel from Marikina to UP Shopping Center
0638H - 0700H : Find a shop that offers book binding services to bind our thesis documents
0700H - 0730H : Travel from UP Shopping Center to MRT QAve
0730H - 0800H : Travel from MRT QAve to MRT Magallanes
0800H - 0830H : Travel from MRT Magallanes to Pque
0830H - 0900H : Take a bath, freshen up
0900H - 0920H : Travel from Pque to Alabang
0920H - 0930H : Wait for the public van to be filled up
0930H - 1030H : Travel from Alabang to Dasma
1030H - 1045H : Travel from Dasma to Manggahan
1045H - 1100H : Travel from Manggahan to Gateway
1100H - 1115H : Travel (Walk) from Gateway to company
1645H - 1930H : Travel from Gateway to Shaw
1930H - 2030H : Travel from Shaw to Pque

That's a total of 157kms for one day. Whew!

My tiring route.

NOW I'M A MASTER (or technically, a MISTRESS)

Thesis documentation is now in. :)

My four-year old thesis in life form.

Going back to my previous post, let's recall the things I need to do to really finish everything.

Now I'm finished. I'm almost there. Drafts of all chapters and appendices finished. All I need to do is:

1. Revise remaining chapters.
2. Send them to Sir Escoto.
3. Defend my thesis.
4. Revise docu according to defense results.
5. Print final docu.
6. Submit to grad office for approval.
7. Photocopy it.
8. Hard bind it.
9. Submit to grad office by May 31.

Yehey, everything's done! :)

Thank you to everything that helped me make this happen.

Graduation rites on April 2014. Can't wait!

Yipee ALL CHAPTER DRAFTS DONE

and I'm so happy.

Thank you, Lord, for helping me get through 1/3 of the docu battle. Without you, this miracle will never happen.

I can still vividly remember that day when I was about to give up. That day I was looking for an escape from this hellhole. I thought about shifting to ME EE (because no thesis is required in that degree) or paying up my debt or even "accidentally" ending my own life just to really escape from this tight bondage.

But now, it really is a miracle.

Now I'm finished. I'm almost there. Drafts of all chapters and appendices finished. All I need to do is:

1. Revise remaining chapters.
2. Send them to Sir Escoto.
3. Defend my thesis.
4. Revise docu according to defense results.
5. Print final docu.
6. Submit to grad office for approval.
7. Photocopy it.
8. Hard bind it.
9. Submit to grad office by May 31.

These look like a lot, but the bulk of the work is really in items 1, 3, and 4 only. :)

So Hope, please do not abandon me. :)

Our 90nm chip. :)

Adrenaline Rush

I can't believe I finished my documentation. Well, almost. Only the last chapter (summary and conclusions) left. Just a little bit of stretch and I'm almost there. One-third of the documentation battle won. If you're curious what the remaining parts are for, one third is revising it based on the adviser's comments, and the remaining part is majorly revising it based on the panel members' comments which can be really huge.

So I took a break and relax a bit. I feel nauseous whenever I try to write again, the letters are spinning out of the screen and making my eyes hurt. This is probably the effect of sleeping at 2AM and waking up at 5AM three days in a row. Even blogging about this makes my head ache.

So what keeps me going? Physically I'm tired. And mentally, of course. I don't even bother to check if I have my grammar and spelling right. My contact lenses are starting to blur due to the lack of hydration (due to the lack of sleep). I really want to go home, hug my dog, and sleep until my body had too much rest.

But I need to finish this. I know I'm almost there, and giving up is really an imbecile idea. So now I depend on my adrenal glands to keep pumping out that magical substance called adrenaline. I cannot and will not drink any energy drink because that will FOR SURE leave me in a limp-like state. I tried that before during my undergrad years; I do not want to do it again.

So my dear adrenal glands, hang in there. Do not fail me, and I promise I will always eat for you.

our twin adrenal glands.

P.S.
I feel energetic again. Thank you, adrenal glands, for your prompt response! On to Chapter 6! :)

Heartbreak

I am sad and sad and sad.

I am disappointed in Globe for making me wait this long. For making me envy the person beside me. For giving me hope but then take it away immediately.

:(

My ultimate vice: Gadget shopping -- Galaxy S4 (3/3)

And a ray of Hope has come... And it's true that Patience is a Virtue.

Because Juvy (from Globe) just called me for my S4 application interview! :)

So I give her and this day this smile:

Plus, Mark (my superboyfriend) got called again to our boss's office about his possible overseas training! He will go to ADI San Jose, California if this gets approved. And--this is the best thing!--he'll have the chance to be mentored by no other than Sir Paul Brokaw! Of course, at the other side of the coin, this will be a very huge task, and tremendous pressure will be on him because he's carrying the Philippines site's name on his back. So we're still keeping our fingers (and toes!) crossed!

Another reason to give this day this smile:

Now let's start working for this day will be huge and full of surprises!

My ultimate vice: Gadget shopping -- Galaxy S4 (2/3)

I think my S4 application is not approved. Globe hasn't talked to me since Wednesday when they asked me to send over my payslips.

Oh well, I must accept that it's okay. :) Goodbye, S4!

On to other things!

-----

Just submitted my Chapter 4 draft. Only one main chapter to go, then it's time for Les Conclusions!!

:-)

-----

I accidentally found Larissa Carrick's blog and am inspired by her positivism.  I'm still not finished reading her entire blog, but so far I can feel that she's a great girl with full of love for her husband Jason. :)

My ultimate vice: Gadget shopping -- Galaxy S4 (1/3)

I want that S4!!! :)

I'm so excited I'm blushing.

So Globe, please contact me and tell me I got a slot. :)

2 chapters done!

I just submitted my first and second chapters to my thesis adviser and reader. I hope they won't ask me to change them entirely.

I still have another 3 more to go. 5 appendices.

Whew. Time to work.

Good morning, Philippines!

One chapter down, 4 more to go

Yipeee!

After three weeks of battling against procrastination, depression, and anxiety, I managed to pull everything together and finish my Chapter 3 -- the second I've finished out of 6 chapters -- with satisfaction that I did my best, that it was not a half-baked thesis chapter.

BUT my scheduled thesis defense is on May 11.

I'm only two weeks away from my target final docu submission.

I also have my triple buck work to do.

I don't know how to start Chapter 4.

Why did my happiness suddenly went away?

T__T

The Manifesto

Life's been a hell so far.

Time is running out. I need to finish these things. I don't even know how.

Please Hope, do not abandon me.

----

By the way, my boyfriend stumbled upon this image, and I think this should be my philosophy in life. :)

<from http://www.lifeofbam.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Holstee_Manifesto_8_5x11.jpeg>

The Chronicles of Holy Week 2013

The past week has been a meaningful one for me. I have attended to various activities that require little amount of expenses but lots of bonding moments with the people who are very dear to me.

Holy Monday (March 25)

It is my boyfriend's 26th birthday but we were not able to see each other because he needed to attend to some social security obligations. But that's okay because it's the start of my week-long vacation! :)

So what I did was to do some thesis-related stuffs like creating an outline for my Chapter 3 documentation and setting up some simulations for my diode linearizer. I stayed up until 2am feeling satisfied with what I've accomplished that day, though I started to feel sick after taking a bath at 10pm that night.

Holy Tuesday (March 26)

Still the same, doing some thesis stuffs, but I was not that productive. :( Maybe it's because I'm starting to feel unwell. I went to Tayni's house to spend the night since I am starting to feel trapped inside our lab's walls. I planned to do some documentation writing there, but there was no electricity so I tried to sleep first. After an hour or so, the power was back on so I tried to put up a conclusion draft for Chapter 3.

Holy Wednesday (March 27)

We arrived at the university at around 11:30am, really feeling sick and with clogged nose. This was my last day in the lab for this week so I tried to cram and do everything that I can. I gathered some data and do additional sims which I thought I need as part of my docu. Unfortunately, time is really ticking fast when you're cramming. At 5:30pm, we ate at a nearby Japanese diner, packed my bags, and went home.

Maundy Thursday (March 28)

It's my sister's birthday! Hahah. Her birthday usually falls within the Holy Week so celebrations are discouraged. Yet we prepared some dishes--tuna spaghetti, pancit bihon, nilagang manok, banana milkshake, chocobanana shake--to celebrate her 29th birthday. :) We all had big tummies after.

Good Friday (March 29)

It has been a tradition in my family not to do anything exhaustive every Good Friday (they say it's because Jesus is dead which is definitely not true because He has risen). So we closed our store, loaded the DVDs, and sat/laid down in the sofas to watch three movies: Ten Commandments, Passion of the Christ, and Life of Jesus according to the Gospel of Luke. There were still lots of food left from the previous day's celebration, and we still had big tummies.

Black Saturday (March 30)

Normal duties resumed, and that include cleaning the house, doing the laundry, and washing the dishes. This day was pretty tiring.

Easter Sunday (March 31)

I honestly lost track of time and thought that this day was Saturday. And that is the reason why I missed the Easter Sunday mass. :( Tatay went to Pampanga to attend his family's annual reunion, and Nanay and I cleaned his store. My cough and cold turned to dizziness and slight fever that night, may be because of fatigue, so I slept earlier than usual.

This is my Holy Week 2013. Not really exciting as compared to how my friends spent theirs--did Visitia Iglesia, went to the beaches and provinces, etc--but I can say that it was well spent. I was again reminded of how Jesus Christ sacrificed His life just to save us, the sinners of the world. I also spent some time with my family and did things with them that foster family bonding. :)

Thank You, Jesus, for everything You did for us. Thank You, Great Grandpa, for all the provisions and blessings You have given us. Please do not let me be separated from You, my Father. Forgive my sins against You and those around me. I lift my life to You, please guide me as always. Thank you for everything.

Places I have been

It is my childhood dream to travel to different places here abroad, so here's a list of those I have been to. Hopefully I can make this list very, very, very long!!! :)

1. Malolos, Bulacan (Barasoain Church, Grade 6 field trip). This is actually my first field trip.
2. Tagaytay (MAR 2003--Mushroom place, Picnic Grove among others, Third Year HS field trip). And this is the second.
3. Corregidor (OCT 2004--1st year college, Geography field trip)
4. Puerto Galera (OCT 2007--My first IML sem-ender, 4th year college)
5. Tanauan-Taal-Agoncillo, Batangas (MAY 2008--Mostly historical sites like Mabini Shrine, 4th year college, 100 field trip)
6. Dubai Airport-Istanbul Airport-Antalya, Turkey (AUG 2009--1st year MS, ECCTD 2009)
7. Naga City-Caramoan, Camarines Sur (MAY 2010--HapEEEness Outing)
8. Baguio (JUL 2010--Familia Anniversary)
9. Fukuoka, Japan (NOV 2010--2nd year MS, TENCON 2010)
10. Cebu City (APRIL 2012--IML Sem Planning)
11. Singapore (APR 26-MAY 3, 2012--7-day vacation c/o Tito Larry)
12. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (AUG 14-AUG 18, 2013--Out of the country with Mark T, Lendl and Nina)
13. Ozamiz City (AUG 27-AUG 28, 2013--Hearty and Tone's wedding)
14. Dakak, Dapitan (APR 29-AUG 30, 2013--Post-wedding out of town)
15. Scotland (SEP 21-DEC 21, 2013--3-month business visit)
16. England (OCT 26-OCT 28, 2013--3-day leisure visit)
1. London - Oct 26
2. Southampton - Oct 26
3. Salisbury - Oct 27
4. Bath - Oct 27
5. Windsor - Oct 28
6. Watford - Nov 22
7. Oxford - Nov 23
17. Taal, the volcano itself (JAN 31, 2013--first solo out of town with Tayni)

The first post

I don't know what to say.

I love reading blogs especially if they are about topics that I enjoy reading, such as travel, current affairs, or just ordinary life, or if the writer has a talent is expressing his/her thoughts through words. I enjoy imagining what they describe or feeling what they share. I love reading their pieces, yet I don't know how to start my own.

I can think of several reasons why I feel this way:

1. I am not good in English. Yes, I definitely admit this. I've always loved Mathematics. You know what they say, those who love Math and excel in it fails in English as if they are really opposites. I was just a kid when this thought was engraved in my brain. I dreaded English classes, recitations, activities, and essay examinations. With that same intensity of dread, I loved solving word problems (e.g. if train A leaves the station at X kph and train B leaves the same station at the same time at Y kph in the opposite direction, then how many kms are they apart after Z hours?), algebraic equations (e.g. find the value of x in 3x + 4 = 12), and calculus (e.g. what is the limit of y as x approaches 2?).
2. I just loved reading, not writing. I cannot think of anything else to say, that's really what I am.
3. I forget easily which, I think, will definitely be a problem should I start having my own blog. When something happens to me during the day that I want to write in here, and given that I can only write during the night after work, I bet I will forget about it by the time I face Zenchi (my laptop). That will be the top reason why in the future will I sit here, wait, and get clueless on what to write.

I guess those are the first things I want to share here.

Welcome to the blog world, Yiyen! Cheers to the bright future!

--------------

On the side note, I just passed my thesis v2 draft to my adviser. I really hope I can defend my thesis on May 3rd.

To God be the Glory!