profound bliss

I went to Mercury Drug last Tuesday night to buy Princess's antibiotics (her WBC has gone up from 17.8 to 20 despite taking Vibravet for 2 weeks). I got the prescription at Animal House in SM and I could have easily purchased from Watsons but I chose to walk to the other side of Bicutan for Mercury Drug because I have a Suki Card. The line was so long. I was customer number 42 when I arrived and they were still just serving the 8th. Then a male customer gave up waiting and gave me his number (34) instead. But it was still a long wait that I totally forgot about my Suki Card when it was my turn. And the pharmacist didn't even ask me for it. I only remembered about the card when I was already on the jeepney going home. So the long walk and the long wait went to waste.

Last Saturday, on our way to Pico de Loro, I randomly picked a traveller toothbrush set from a rack in Mini Stop and paid for it. When I opened the case after the climb, I laughed when I saw its color. And then last Sunday, after bringing Princess to the vet for a CBC, I dropped by the Torque kiosk at the connecting bridge of SM Bicutan to buy myself their cheapest phone. There were three available colors: pink, black, and yellow. I immediately asked to look at the black model. Not good. Everything’s so shiny black in contrast with the rubbery black of the keypad. I asked for the yellow model. Not good even. The yellow keypads against the black of the cellphone itself looked dirty. I had no choice but to get the pink model with pink keypads against the white cellphone. Cool.

Click here to read Dayhiking Pico de Loro (Part 1) . After a quick lunch at the waterfall campsite, we headed for the summit at exactly 1:00 PM. Had it been under normal circumstances, it would be a very hot climb. So I don’t know if we would thank the bad weather for that. Trees shield most part of the trail from the sun but just the same, if it was not as cloudy, we would be drenched in sweat by the time we reached the summit. After a few minutes of walking, the trail became steeper. As usual, I was behind the group, not that I wanted to be a sweeper but I always want to take my steps slowly but surely. (And I won’t admit I run out of breath.) Besides, the three teens I was with were all Energizer bunnies who won’t even stop for a break. But, of course, they take a mandatory rest whenever I tell them to stop. LoL! After an hour and twenty, we reached the campsite. We actually wasted time in deciding whether to turn right and take the downward trail, or left and take the upwa...

Before laziness take away my urge to blog about my recent hike (just like what happened with my Lucban, Majayjay, and Mt. Maculot posts which are still non-existent until now), imma blog about it now. Two weeks ago, before I even got the allergies and stuff that doomed the first two weeks of my October , I already planned going up Pico de Loro. For one, I wanted to introduce two of my friends to mountain climbing (cuz if they liked it, I’d have more climbing buddies in my future hikes). Secondly, it already felt like eons since I last climbed a mountain (Sept. 20, 2010/Mt. Maculot). Thursday, after my successful visit to the doctor, I already told Gerald (who’s always too willing to tag along) about the climb on Saturday. I normally go out-of-town Sundays but Princess had a vet follow-up Sunday, plus the fact that I don’t wanna miss the Sunday mass anymore. Dan, another friend of ours, wanted to go but was hesitant because he partied Thursday night which emptied his wallet. Kenne...

At least now I can breathe easier. After having allergies and being rushed to the emergency room Monday (Oct 11) at one in the morning, Wednesday night was worse as something happened to my system that I rushed to a gastroenterologist the following day. The week seemed like doomsday to me.  The gastroenterologist I went to wanted to do a colonoscopy without even checking me physically. Huwatt?! I asked if there’s an option aside from spending 14k for a colonoscopy, so he gave me a prescription to buy some meds (for something I am ashamed to say) and take them for a week. I went home feeling so sad. Then my eldest niece, upon knowing what happened, told me her boyfriend has experienced something similar and even laughed at me when I told her the doc wanted to do a colonoscopy. I also asked around a little, and found out I wasn’t alone. The first gastro asked me to come back to him after a week. I didn’t come back. I looked for another gastro instead, this time at Parañaque D...

Do you remember Chris Pine in Princess Diaries 2 ? He still looks handsome, though on a different level, on the cover of Details magazine November 2010. The rest of the pics here . Read the cover story here .

The LGBT employees of Google supports Anti-Gay Bullying by saying “It Gets Better.” “There's nowhere to go but up this is temporary and all of the stuff that you are experiencing at school, all the stuff you're going through, tons of people go through that, but it's definitely not worth it to not persevere through it. It'll be really bad for you to wanna end your life at that point. It's so early on and there's so much more to life.” “So if you're thinking as a teenager that maybe hurting yourself is gonna be a good way of getting out of the pain, don't do it. Just think of yourself being a little older, maybe not 40, maybe 25. But think of yourself coming back and telling you that it's gonna be okay. Because it is. “ “If you don't hang on for just a year more, or a couple months more, whatever it may be, you might not get to meet your best friend, you might not get to meet the person that you'd spend the rest of your life with. So ...

Billionaire has been a favorite tune of mine for quite a few weeks now. And I guess it would stay that way for quite some time now. This is so funny. Watch.

Despite the videos showing her getting injected by Dra. Belo, Charice denies getting botox in an interview with Fox5 News Las Vegas before the David Foster and Friends Mandalay Bay concert. Hmm…

Who's excited for the upcoming World of Warcraft: Cataclysm ? Deathwing returns from the Elemental Plane to shatter the world! Experience Cataclysm December 7, 2010.

“No means yes. Yes means anal!” That’s the chant the members and pledges of Delta Kappa Epsilon were yelling as they walk through Yale’s campus. Now, how disgusting/intimidating is that? Especially that the pledges were made to make the chant as they were being led blindfolded through the Old Campus where most of the residents are freshman women. In an apology, the president of the fraternity said that it was a “serious lapse in judgment by the fraternity” and “in very poor taste.” Not good enough. As one Yale student said in an interview with Yale Daily News, the Delta Kappa Epsilon perhaps only apologized because they were criticized for their actions. As for someone who personally doesn’t approve of fraternities and an uncle to four nieces, I cannot help but feel infuriated. Should there really be fraternities at all?

Cosmopolitan US "went on a major manhunt to bring you the most datable guys from every state." But the magazine boasts that not only do their bachelors posses great physique, they also have great personalities. Here are two of my favorites: Tommy Edmunds, 26 Luan Nguyen, 32 (who can be mistaken for a Filipino, doncha think?) See more of Cosmo’s Bachelors 2010 here. Can’t help but compare them to our local Cosmo’s bachelors.

Ian Batherson was eliminated from the Nagar tribe. Too bad he didn’t make it to the merge. Sayang lang ang ginawa nyang pagkain ng scorpions. It’s also wise of Aira Bermudez to use her immunity bracelet. Had she not, she would be the one going home. Kinda addicted to Survivor Philippines again. I missed I think a week of episodes when I got sick and paranoid (which I haven’t blogged about yet). But now that I’m well and have peace of mind, I’m back to being a Survivor fan. And speaking of Survivor, it’s nice that the show paved the way to Ahron Villena’ s career revamp. He’s now more famous than when he was in ABS-CBN, and he’s now also showing more skin. Come to think of it, I walk a lot especially when I backpack. Are Walker stuff especially made for walkers?

Have I blogged about how cute my grade four nephew was? And how pogi my 1st year 5’8” nephew was, too? It had been almost a month since I last saw the Dizons. Miss these two terribly.

Since my Nokia 2220 was lost, I thought I could live without a phone. But when you're used to having a phone and then you get retained in the emergency room for hours, then you wait in line for almost half a day at the PLDT business office, and finally you pay your gastro a visit because you thought there's something so wrong with you and you don't have a phone you can't text or call anyone for emotional support, your world tumbles upside down. So I bought another Cherry Mobile P1 at Wellcom . The one I dropped at Mt. Romelo was blue. So I thought I wouldn’t be getting blue anymore. I was eyeing the lavender on display but it had scratches and that’s the last lavender they had. They also had one remaining orange but it wouldn’t turn on. So that left me with no choice but to get the yellow one, and I wonder why they had lots of yellows in stock. Either it’s in demand they overstocked, or no one wants it they still had lots in stock. But my real purpose in going to...

Westgate wants me to have “FUN with MY BFF” but my Best Furry Friend has bacterial infection we won’t be able to make it. FUN WALK WITH MY BFF & BLESSING OF PETS Inviting all dog lovers and their families. Spend quality time with your BFF as you walk them around Filinvest Corporate City with other dog lovers. Join the walk and win fun awards for your BFF. Registration forms are available at Bona Coffee, Sujivana Salon at Westgate Center and All Animal House Branches within Metro Manila or you can download at www.ineedalifeline.org . Blessing of Pets in celebration of the Feast of St. Francis shall follow after the Fun Walk. All proceeds will go to Lifeline Foundation – Animal Welfare for the caring and safety of stray animals. October 17, 2010, 5:30 AM. Back of Serenity Place I ♥ MY PET FUN DAY A series of events dedicated to our BFF and their families. Events include Pet Care Bazaar, Cutie Cat Photo Contest, I ♥ my Pet Photo Booth, I ...

After the Nokia I lost at the Pulp Summer Slam last April , and the Cherry Mobile I lost at Mt. Romelo last August … This post is a tribute to my Nokia 2220, bought April 18, 2010, lost last Sunday either at Mini Stop or at the taxi on our way home from the vet . Thing was, the SIM card inserted was the PLDT LandLine +. So for the 2nd time around, I lost the PLDT SIM ( here’s the first time ). I had to report it immediately cuz I might be charged with calls I didn’t make. I noticed the phone gone when I needed to call someone for my allergies . So instead of getting help for my allergies, I called the Landline + hotline to report the lost SIM. Monday, after sleeping four hours (since we got home from the hospital around 3 in the morning), Angel and I left the house at 8 AM. It’s my third rabies vaccine and Angel’s second pre-exposure rabies vaccine at RITM. But before heading to RITM, we first went to my sister’s house to get the authorization le...

Went home around 3 PM last Sunday. Around 5:30 PM, I had dinner – chicken adobo and rice. Around 6 PM, I fed Princess her Science Diet Gourmet Beef Entree at the dining table. After the feeding, I noticed what I thought were three, itchy mosquito bites on my upper left arm near my elbow. I thought the house was being invaded by mosquitoes so I made a mental note to buy another Baygon mosquito repeller just for the dining area. After about 2 hours, I noticed the same “mosquito bites” on my upper right arm. When I checked my left arm where I first noticed the bites, I got scared. There were more bites, and they have become bigger! Seeing these on my arm made it even more itchy. After about another hour, they became even bigger and seemed to join one another. I decided to bring myself to the doctor. Just waited for Angel, who went home around 12:30 AM, cuz I didn’t wanna go to the hospital alone. Parañaque Medical Center is where we always go. But my sister to...

Sunday, October 10, 2010 (10-10-10), I brought Princess to the vet cuz her left eye turned red all of a sudden. Paranoid as I was, I thought she’s having blood clots again, a sign of her ever frustrating ehrlichiosis. Animal House Alabang was almost empty that Sunday, a very strange thing on a Sunday. I asked for Doc Rose, but she wasn’t in. The secretary said they only have 2 vets on duty – Doc Djoanne and another male vet. I had to ask again. “Doc Djoanne?” And the secretary said, “Yes, sir. Doc Djoanne Quinto.” Imagine my delight! Princess’s first ever vet (at least when I adopted her) is now back in Animal House! There’s no ehrlichiosis found in her CBC, thanks God! But there’s a slight bacterial infection which we had to cure. And at the mention that bacterial infection is the first sign of leptospirosis, I immediately had her liver and kidney checked. And Doc Djoanne just messaged me a while ago – Princess’s tests are normal!

I love the new posters. Here’s Harry’s: Click here for the complete set. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will hit theaters November 19th.

Nasaan na ba ang Side A? Nakaka-miss! Not a lot of male singers can pull off a Queen song, not to mention Bohemian Rhapsody.

Went to SM South Mall yesterday after my day 3 vaccine (for dog bite) at RITM. It’s funny how the stores are dressed up both in Halloween and Christmas decorations. But, of course, I prefer Christmas more. And I love this Christmas tree better than the bigger green ones. I know, though, that Nanay would insist on using our old Christmas tree from 20 years ago and won’t let me buy a new one. And besides, I think this tree would be very hard to store after Christmas. Imagine not wanting to deform the branches. But I love this tree just the same. Anyway, the follow-up vaccine was so itchy I always find myself scratching that part of my upper arm. Good, though, that it didn’t leave a red mark afterwards. Angel went with me, perhaps because she knew I’d be roaming around Festivall Mall and SM South Mall afterwards. Those two malls were part of my younger years, actually. Lotsa good and bad memories. But it’s not the memories that I wanted to go ba...

Maya, our two-month-old pup, died yesterday. It was sad. But we had to let her go, instead of making her suffer more. Before she died, though, I tried giving her meds. But she was strong I struggled to keep her mouth open. In the process of giving her medicine, her teeth wounded my index finger. Not really a wound but a scratch I didn’t even feel until after I fed her and saw a line of blood about an inch long. And that means a trip to the doctor. I first went to a nearby private animal bite clinic, was given Verorub (or was it Verorab) and was told I had to be given ERIG for they gave me a Category III for that scratch. They told me it could have been Category II (which doesn’t require ERIG) had the pup who caused it been healthy. The problem was they didn’t have ERIG (which was to be had at RITM), and not even anti-tetanus (they told me to get it at the barangay health center). So I decided to just go to Alabang. It was past 11 PM when we arrived ...