[Project FeeTrail March 2013]: For once, Tagaytay for work

This was taken during the 3rd day that I am in Tagaytay. I was officially covering for Public Relations.

Funny story, few days ago, I was having a series of internal fit and mental tantrums that I really want to have a breather, a break, to be literally out of town. But I can't afford it, work comes first, plus I do have other commitments at home.

A day before  the 3-day conference, I was assigned to be the representative from our office. I would be spending the next three days in Tagaytay, this time for work. I was supposed to go with my boss, but she had an emergency so I was sent alone.

I've been meaning to spend some time alone, in a new location, without the guilt. And here I am in Tagaytay, first night I had the room all to myself.

The nice part, on my first night, I was with new people and we went out for a drink. We went to a bar, though there's really nothing special happened during that night, I just really appreciated the night out. I can't even remember the last time I enjoyed having a a cold beer and just listening to the band.

We went home at 2:30 in the morning and though I had to get up before 7am the next day, I felt recharged.

Funny, when you keep asking the universe, the universe listens and gives you what you want.

Women on Wednesdays: Dr. Regina Hechanova of Ateneo CORD

"Having it all is possible but we need to re-define what 'all' means."  - Dr. Regina Hechanova, March 20, 2013 at Operations Room, AG Samonte Hall, UPLB.

Since March is still women's month, and before the hiatus starts for holy week, I'm thinking of coming up with Women Wednesdays section where I will write about remarkable women that I've encountered.

I'm so glad my boss sent me to cover this talk last week officially. I've been on the look out for realistic women pegs. If I were to write what I've been learning, I guess I will have to come up with a new blog for that under a new, pseudo name, because, well, there's just too much to tell and so, kind of embarrassing,  little time.

Meet Dr. Regina Hechanova of Ateneo CORD.

She spoke about Filipinas' Journey to Equality Work life Balance, she also shared her own journey. She was raised in an a female household for she doesn't have any brother and lost her dad at a young age. Her family tend to hold traditional gender roles. She pursued a career and further studies even if she had four children and she had kept her maiden name professionally, because she had started writing books before she got married.

She believes that behind a successful man is a supportive woman  and behind a successful woman is a supportive man. Before she married her husband, she already informed him of what he is getting himself into.

She continued to struggle to balance work and family and discovered that she doesn't really have to choose one over the other, just make trade offs after having entered a masculine organization and got promoted quickly. She then, shifted careers that gave her greater balance.  I remember she admittedly said that when a man is a aggressive in a workplace, he is considered a good boss, and if women does it, she's called a bitch.

She shared what she learned in her own journey such as having a clear vision and values. She said success depends on who is defining it (that it all boils down to what makes you happy) and that managing time is really about managing oneself. She mentioned other tips and to find role models that inspires you.

And most of all, she knows "The Secret", because she shared something she did years ago, written it down and discovered years later that it all came true.

I am so glad I have her talk saved in mp3 because I love learning from people.

Review: BYS Make up eye shadow palette

My favorite part when putting on make up is the putting eye shadow on the lids. I love and want to learn more tricks in blending and just by looking at color palettes, it relaxes me. If I have the freedom to just gawk on a make up counter without the salesladies hovering over me, I would hang out by the eye shadow palette section for as long as I want, testing the colors, blending it on the back of my hand and comparing the pigmentation.

For someone who just loves make up and does not do make up for a living yet, I have three requirements when buying an eye shadow palette:

1. The colors in the palette must be wearable for everyday make up. - To be practical. 
2. It must be easy to blend and long wearing. - So there's no need for frequent retouch or potential to smear on the face.
3. It must be affordable. - The most important of all! 

The Grad School Diaries: Episode 17 - When all you want is a PUSH, you get a SHOVE instead

Honestly, I wouldn't recommend graduate school to those who just wants a breather out of whatever world they are in. While others take it from compliance, I took it out of a whim.

Grad school takes a lot of discipline. I have found a whole new respect for those who are working and are parents while trying to get the degree. It's no joke. It's confusing also because you have all the time, but you can't find the time. You have the freedom but then you're still chained.

Now I'm on my third year, and I have lost my mojo for a couple of months. It was a big deal because I couldn't write, I have the data but I couldn't write. It wasn't even mental block. I prayed really hard for a PUSH, for me to start and get my groove on.

But Papa Jesus knows better, he gave me a SHOVE.

It has always been on top of my prayers (after all the that truly mattered) and I really want it because I feel I owe a lot to this degree. It picked up me up when I was broken. Amazing, how you think you can't start and you have no idea how to start. If you pray for it, God will put you in circumstance to get you back on track.

And now I'm back on track.
With pressure.
And time is running fast.

You know that feeling when you think that you wanted your schedule to be just spread out and  plan everything carefully?  It's not really happening in real-graduate school life. Sometimes, I'd like to think I wasted time putting my writing on hold, because some thing always comes up (wedding planning for others, parties, holidays, personal matters, and I could really go on).  But if I forced  it, I don't think I would be able to write because my realizations weren't developed yet. It's like I'm pregnant with an idea and I really want to pop out but I can't because it hasn't reached a full 9 months. I don't know how I managed the time to write this little piece when my mind is cramming like crazy.


And I'll be very busy. I'll be cramming when I really hate to cram.



So now I've been SHOVED.

He's either Dead or Drunk

What would you do if you found an unconscious man lying in front of your residential gate?

Last Saturday night, as we were nearing our house around 9 in the evening, I turned on the bright lights of the car  for I think I saw a man, lying life less right in front of our house.

Mom's first order is for me to go on reverse and tell the Brgy. Tanod/Patrol of what we saw on our front gate. I did.

But my first instinct is to get my camera and take a photo. Forgive my bad photos, I used my camera phone to take photos behind the windshield.

Four roommates you wouldn't want to have all at the same time

Yesterday, I find my self witnessing tenant issues. Someone's mom went to my mom to escalate boarding house concerns. In a nutshell, she's fighting for her daughter since she can't handle her roommate who let's her boyfriend sleep in (without our permission/knowledge of course) and they've gotten into a confrontation then this girl went to mommy so, mommy is here, venting all her glory, to my mom, the owner.

I've lived away from my parents when I was 16. I was sent in a dormitory to be roommates with all kinds of other girls. I've lived with spoiled brats, b*tches, low key, nerd, goody two shoes and the cool ones, of course, and I must say I never had to drag my mom to fix my roommates issues, even when I lived in a condo with all these other girls when I started working at 20 years old.

I'm not saying I am the best roommate ever. I can sleep with the lights on, even when there's music playing, I respect and understand personal space, I don't borrow stuff without permission from my roommate unless it's an umbrella on a rainy day (but I will text her first) and some stuff related to states of emergency. I am not even a neat freak, but I am an organized mess. I keep my shit where it's not going to get in the way of anyone.

But I must say, hearing the stories brought back funny memories and reminded me why, I enjoyed living alone and having my very own apartment when I was 24. Here are the four roommates you wouldn't want your daughter to have, for I wouldn't want it for my self either!

Herbal Essences Totally Twisted Curl Boosting Mousse new packaging

I don't know if it's only me, but summer's really here and I'm not even over the coolness of  January and February yet.

It has officially been more than a year since our camping trip, which means it's been a year since I scored Herbal Essence's Curl Boosting Mousse that I blogged about last year.

I remember how great it worked with my hair, so imagine my delight when I found out that my sister and her friends are passing by Subic last month. I asked her to get two for me specifically even if I just opened the new Suave Captivating Curls mousse that I recently tried out.

So happy to get my goodies that I Instagrammed it with delight!

Last year, it looks like this:

Performance is still how I remembered it! But I don't think I'll be wearing as much mousse as I used to, on a regular basis, because I keep my hair up because the heat dries the hair and its really upsetting on the skin.

As I've been mentioning in this blog that I get asked a lot about the best hair mousse to use, I'll let you in on another digi-permed hair secret: Don't be loyal to a brand. Do not be afraid to experiment, but be loyal to your hair conditioner. 

I asked my sister to get me two bottles because of this mousse because it's been over a year since I used it and I've missed it so much. But I saw another affordable curl defining mousse of a totally new brand (that I am not even familiar with) when I was strolling around Rustan's last weekend.

Maybe I'll get one of my best guy buddies again to get it for me. *wink* 

What if I saw an ex-boyfriend?

Of course, my cray cray friends would ask, "Which one?"

I think, its safe to say that I've had my share of ex-boyrfriends. I do not mean to write about ex-boyfriends today but Cecile Van Straten of Chuvaness, wrote something that triggered me to have something to write about today. While she wrote about never being friends with an ex boyfriend, I somehow managed to keep two.

I have imagined how it would be like running into some of them.

My Favorite Girls

I'm a huge, huge Sex And The City (SATC) fan. I have all the original VCDs (yes, VCDs and I still like to watch them from time to time) and my cousin, the pseudo alpha male Kuya Stew, again thinks I'm silly for watching. Kuya, I know you're reading this blog and you might be rolling your eyes as you read this, but roll all you want but this is my blog so I'll write whatever I want. It just so happen to be Women's Day, TODAY, and today I would like to give thanks to my favorite girls.

I've been blessed to have friends 90% like Carrie Bradshaw's friends in Sex and the City. Though, we don't belong in the same group, I'm very fortunate to have found friends which resembles the characters individuality. And funny, I so wanted to write about them, and I so would like to share the wisdom that I've been getting from them but they're all big on privacy so I will just use the Sex and the City Characters that they resemble.

What to get if there's no curl defining mousse?

I've been asked time and again about mousse. One thing I've noticed, majority of the beauty stores, groceries, etc. have few curl-defining mousse, sometimes, none at all. You will always find hair spray or plain mousse, or a hair serum (that I don't know how it works for I can't even tell!).

I remember walking at SM department store and this lady asked if she can straighten my hair using the flat iron she's selling.Of course, since she doesn't know me and how much I'm loving my loose waves and permed hair, she must be thinking that I, like majority of all Filipinas, wanted to have long, straight hair. Who could blame her? The society, well majority of the society, thinks that the pretty ones have white skin and long, straight, mala-Pocahontas hair!

Q: So what to do if you can't get a curl defining mousse?

A: Get a Volumizing Mousse with Maximum Hold.

Exhibit A: Suave's Max Hold 8 vs. Suave Captivating Curls Whipped Cream Mousse.