I ran last year and it felt good. I decided, heck, I’ll run some more.

Posted by pat on Feb 11, 2010 in Events, Life and Stuff, Nuffnang | 6 comments

I think there is a new epidemic spreading among Metro Manila denizens… Running Fever.

I’ve got more and more friends and family getting into their running shoes and working those strides for all sorts of reasons : to lose weight, to maintain their weight, to build endurance, to start a healthy lifestyle etc. The bottom line is, they’re runnin’. Its gotten me running too.

I remember my first – the Ateneo Fun Run July last year. I got up at 5am to make sure I’m at starting line before 6am. When I arrived at Ateneo, I was pleasantly surprised to see a lot of people there – hardcore runners doing the 10km, the regular runners doing the 5-km, and fun-runners like me.  The energy in the air perked me up.

For that run, I did 2.5 km with a combination of walking and running in between because I was simply out of shape. I ran with no prior training. No jogging..not even walking. I finished the 2.5 km with my legs aching and me gasping for breath. (My hardcore runner friends will probably be snickering at this). Despite that,  I felt darn great. Was it the endorphins? Was it the morning air? What it the excitement coming from other runners? Whatever it was, I felt awesome.

I thought, maybe I SHOULD start doing this more seriously.

Fast-forward a couple of months later..

January. My colleagues Maki and Carlos have been excitedly talking about using GPS on their Blackberrys to monitor their runs. At that time, I sorely needed exercise. All the talk about marathons and GPS systems reminded me about that Ateneo run. I decided, “Ok, you know what? Let’s do this. At least one run.. even if i pick the shortest distance. Let’s get it started.  The Century Tuna Superbods Run is coming up. Maybe I’ll join that. I’ll do 5km. And oh yah.. Derek Ramsy’s going to be running too. Ok, I gotta be there. Muhahaha”.

Since July, I’ve been jogging on and off. I didn’t really monitor my time nor did I care about my distance. I was after the exercise and feeling great after. But sometime around mid-January when my colleague Carlos began to seriously run and when Maki, a serious runner, joined our team in the office, I got inspired and decided to take it up another notch.

So began “Operation train myself”…

1)  Run every weekend

2) Run at least once a week

3) Start sleeping early

4) Drink lots of water and eat a balanced diet (fresh fruits and veggies first!)

4) Monitor running time

5) Monitor distance.

The results so far? Pretty good I must say for someone who just started. In my last run did 2.5 km in 13 mins non-stop with energy to spare after. I think I can do 3km in 15 mins.

Its a simple start for my first real run… 3km. As mentioned, I originally wanted to do 5km. Unfortunately, I got sick earlier this week and wasn’t able to train. I know its nothing compared to the 21km run which I know some friends are planning to do. But hey, its a start. I’ve been following my simple program consistently since January..except for this week as I was sick. I’m fine now. Tomorrow morning, I run.

I feel great. I’ve lost weight and toned up a bit. On days that I run, my energy level is pretty good from morning to evening. The best part is, it really helps with work-related stress.

The Century Tuna Superbods is next weekend -

21 Feb 2010 at Bonifacio Globa City. Must I add, Derek Ramsy is running.

One week remains and I think thats more than enough. After this 3km run, I go the next level… I hear that it gets quite addicting.

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Musicfest 2010. An hour with Boyce Avenue, Jabbawokeez, and Kris Allen

Posted by pat on Feb 5, 2010 in Events, Nuffnang | 4 comments

Yes. An hour hanging out with these dudes would’ve been totally awesome. Too bad my one hour with them was spent as a random blogger in the audience of press people. Oh a girl can dream. (Wait, I think i was more than an hour)

Yesterday, I, along with fellow bloggers Judd, Carlos, Mika, and Maki attened the pre- Musicfest 2010 prescon by Fearless Productions Inc. Musicfest 2010 features Boyce Avenue, Kris Allen, and the Jabbawokeez. Yes, to you fans in the Philippines, they are here on Pinoy soil and you can catch then in Cebu Feb 5, 2010 and Manila on Feb 6, 2010.

This being my first prescon organized to interview international artists, I was kinda expecting an eruption of ruckus and chaos with cameras flashing left and right, and raving fans screaming. The “chaos” was actually very mild and the whole event was… well.. tame.

The emcees for the afternoon were Mo Twister and Georgina Wilson.  Georgina was looking gorgeous.

Georgina Wilson and Mo Twister

Boyce Avenue

First up was Boyce Avenue. I’ll have to admit, I didn’t really know much about Boyce Avenue until yesterday. After the interview, I looked them up on YouTube and realized “Oooh, so these are the guys that my sister has been bugging me to listen to.” At that time, I chose not to listen to them because I automatically labelled them “mainstream pop”. Sorry. I have tendencies of mild music snobbery which emerges from time to time.

Anyway, so what if these guys rose to fame because of covers. I really liked their covers. My favorite (and the favorite of many others for sure) is Apologize. Alejandrrro, your voice… *melt*. These boys from Florida accumulated 90 million hits on YouTube and subsequently made waves on the radio as well. Now, they are touring the world. 90 million hits man. Well, when you combine 3 hot guys with that “sensitive-guy” appeal, melt-worthy singing, a good catchy sound and the internet.. That’s what you get.

After Boyce Avenue came Jabbawokeez. Woot!  I was hoping they’d bust some slick, square, suave moves for us. That would’ve been totally awesome. Every time I watch a video of these guys, it’s always mind blowing. Never mind the fact that they are creative, how they execute those the moves is just..wow.

During the interview, these guys were, well.. your regular cocky,  goofy, cool American b-boys. (Is it just me or is it a typical California thing to be all “like yeah. so like. you know“. Anyway, just an observation). They told some stories of how life was for them before their rise to fame. They were pretty regular dudes who had a passion for dance and who had to take different jobs to pay the bills. Two of the Pinoys in their group did some telemarketing stints. (I found this funny. So does this mean that our “innate call center skills” transcend geographical borders? Apparently so. hehe.)

There was a lot of Pinoy pride coming from the Jabbawokeez but then they were quick to point out that some of them were also Black and Vietnamese. That’s why they wear masks while they perform. Its not about who is who but its about the dance and the Jabbawokeez a group.

Seems like the Jabbowakeez have a thing for shades

Lastly, Kris Allen. Krrriiiiis Allen. The American Idol 2009 winner. Now I don’t what was up was this guy. Was he suffering from a bad case of jet lag? Did he pop too many sleeping pills. Maybe both? Whatever it was, he had this laaazzzyy slurrr yesterday. “Ohhh, I leanrrrned some FFilipinooo today. Maaabuuuhaaayyy…!”  It was weird. Even the band members seemed to be in a different plane that afternoon.

Want some trivia about Kris Allen? Someone in the audience asked the band to share something the world didn’t know about Kris Allen. (I guess he/she was hoping for something juicy.. perhaps for a gossip worthy story). Kris hates set lists. He’s the type who would prefer to just go with the flow on stage. Unfortunately, they always need a set list. So there! What else can I give you. hmm..

Ah yes. Kris Allen’s music career began in 2007 when wrote and self-produced an album entitled Brand New Shoes. He made around 600 copies and gave it to friends and family. Unfortunately, it didn’t really fly. Then came American Idol and the rest is history. This multi-talented guy (he plays the guitar, piano, and ukulele) and his band are now touring the world.

Of all three performers, it was only from Kris Allen whom we were able to milk out a brief performance. Someone from the press asked him to sing us a song and he obliged. I forget what song it was. I was concentrating on his slurrrr and my food (I was at the food table at this point). What I do remember thinking is,”If someone proposed to me singing like that, it would be an instant YES”. Unfortunately, it was, as said, a brief performance. No worries, if like me, you want to see what these guys, do check them out live while there are here!

For all the Cebuanos, catch them on Feb 5, Friday,at SM City Cebu North Opening Park at 8pm.

For you Manila peeps, hurry over to McKinley Hill Open Grounds on Feb 6, Saturday, at 8pm as well.

Of course, you’ll need tickets to get in. Yes, don’t you wish it were for free?

For Cebu Tickets, contact Ticketworld (2254041). For Manila tickets, contact Ticketworld (8919999). OR, you can contact this mobile number  0915-7457131.

Before I end this, let me leave you with another little trivia about these three groups. Notice, they all have performances using the song “Apologize”.

20+ mind-blowing social media statistics

Posted by pat on Feb 2, 2010 in Websphere | 4 comments

I can’t help but blog about these really interesting statics that I found while doing some research on the current state of online media. Its quite mind blowing as to what the internet is becoming, particularly social media. Not only has the online worl changed the way information is shared, even the dynamics of relationships have evolved. It continues to evolve.

There is a lot of opportunity out there for everyone if you can study and learn how to use the available tools online for your benefit.

Before you get blown away by the statistics, please do take these with a grain of salt. I got this from an Econsultancy website. It may not be very accurate but its reflective of the reality online.

Below are the online statistics.

• Facebook claims that 50% of active users log into the site each day. This would mean at least 175m users every 24 hours… A considerable increase from the previous 120m.
• Twitter now has 75m user accounts, but only around 15m are active users on a regular basis. It’s still a fair increase from the estimated 6-10m global users from a few months ago.
• LinkedIn has over 50m members worldwide. This means an increase of around 1m members month-on-month since July/August last year.
• Facebook currently has in excess of 350 million active users on global basis.Six months ago, this was 250m… meaning around a 40% increase of users in less than half a year.
• Flickr now hosts more than 4bn images. A massive jump from the previous 3.6bn I wrote about.
• More than 35m Facebook users update their status each day. This is 5m more than towards the end of July, 2009.
• Wikipedia currently has in excess of 14m articles, meaning that it’s 85,000 contributors have written nearly a million new posts in six months.
• Photo uploads to Facebook have increased by more than 100%. Currently, there are around 2.5bn uploads to the site each month – this was around a billion last time I covered this.
• There are more than 70 translations available on Facebook. Last time around, this was only 50.
• Back in 2009, the average user had 120 friends within Facebook. This is now around 130.
• Mobile is even bigger than before for Facebook, with more than 65m users accessing the site through mobile-based devices. In six months, this is over 100% increase. (Previously 30m). As before, it’s no secret that users who access Facebook through mobile devices are almost 50% more active than those who don’t.

Statistics taken from : http://econsultancy.com/blog/5324-20+-mind-blowing-social-media-statistics-revisited

The Killers Concert…Cancelled? Yes, cancelled.

Posted by pat on Jan 22, 2010 in Art Music Culture | 0 comments

And Carlos says, “Kawawa naman yung mga bumili ng tickets sa Killer’s concert. Na-cancel.” (Too bad for those who bought tickets to The Killer’s concert. Its cancelled.”

WHAT? I haven’t bought my ticket but I’ve been looking forward to watching their concert. The rumored reason? The Killers disbanded. Now that.. I’m not quite sure of.

Saw this picture on Live Nation Asia’s facebook fanpage.

Those that got tickets are going to be pissed for sure. Those that haven’t are definitely going to be disappointed (like me)… if this is indeed true.

I shall wait for more info…

(Update)

Well, I guess it is so.

From the press release of Live Nation Asia posted on MTV Asia’s blog..

“It is with great regret that The Killers have been forced to cancel their upcoming appearances in Singapore, Beijing, Hong Kong, Manila, Tokyo and Seoul due to unforeseen circumstances.”

for All These Things That I’ve Done, just Smile like You Mean It.. Mr. Brightside. Oh well.

Refunding will be a headache.

Doggie clothes shopping turns into hinting about babies…

Posted by pat on Jan 21, 2010 in Around Town, Life and Stuff | 5 comments

“I’ll buy baby clothes for the first one who’ll have a baby.” Then she looks at me sternly, “But you have to married!”

I looked at my mom and I wasn’t quite sure what to make out of that statement.

Last Sunday, I was with my Mom and my little sister, Sammy. We were at the mall to buy leggings and a pair of “bakya’s” for my little sister. For some reason, we ended up in the baby clothes section. Being the girls that we are, we got amused and started browsing. We thought of buying some of these for our little crazy dogs – Wolfie the poogle and Ginger the Dacshound – as custom made clothes for dogs are just.. insanely expensive. (Makes you wonder why something that uses such little cloth cost so much. Then again, the same can be said about Victoria’s Secret underwear. Anyway, I digress…)

I didn’t realize how much fun it was to actually go baby clothes shopping. The stuff you find are insanely cute. I regret not being able to take more pictures. Yes, me, looking at baby clothes.

Some funny statement tees…

Insanely darlingly cute tiny shoes..

And some pretty dresses. Here’s Sam. She said, “If I get a little sister, I want to buy her this”. Poor thing. The youngest of seven kids…

The chance of her getting a little baby sister is quite..nil. I guess she’ll have to wait for her first niece.  When I told her she’ll have to wait, she gives me THIS QUESTIONING LOOK. Right.

Hahaha.

Then here comes mi mama all giddy, “I want to have a baby again…”.

“I’ll buy baby clothes for the first one who’ll have a baby.” Then she looks at me sternly, “But you have to married!”

And the hinting…begins.  Oh boy.

……………..

It was a Good One

Posted by pat on Jan 20, 2010 in Life and Stuff | 0 comments

Its not everyday that I feel awesome despite the eight hours plus that I’ve been working. Today was one of those few great days where things just feel like they are falling into place little by little… like random puzzle pieces forming the picture that I envision – my goals, dreams and aspirations. There are days when I wonder if I’ll ever get there. There are days like today that make me feel, yes, it can happen and that, yes, I can make it happen.

There was nothing extra spectacular about todays events. They were basically the same things that I do – work tasks, the little things we need to do to live, a little enjoyment here and there… except that today, I do realize how much I enjoy pitching, especially to big bosses who are said to be challenging. I had a meeting with the big boss of a big local company and it went pretty well. This is not the first time I ended the day feeling awesome because of a good pitch which I strongly feel will lead to some good business. Its just that I realize today how much I actually like it.. and its only lately that I’ve been feeling this again. The last time was…. well, 2007.

Aside from this, I just feel little by little lot of things in this life becoming clearer… and it makes me feel great. Life is good.

Goodbye 2009 and My Thank You’s

Posted by pat on Jan 4, 2010 in Life and Stuff | 4 comments

Its 2:00 am 4^th Jan 2010. In a few hours, the world will start beating its busy pulse. Its back to work and back to school. Yes, the festivities of Christmas and New Year are now over. It’s been a good two weeks. But before the wheels of 2010 start to turn and accelerate, I want to make my own personal adieu to 2009.

Goodbye 2009.  It’s definitely been a crazy ride. I still can’t believe how much happened within the 12 months that have passed and also the changes and surprises that happened along the way. The odd events around me, travels, the changes in career, the new people whom I met along the way, the old dear friends outside the Philippines whom I got to see again, the farewells I had to make to people who decided to leave the country, the new things I’ve learned, getting the courage to little by little step out of my comfort zone, the humbling experiences, the realizations and shedding of old baggage.

There’s a lot to be thankful for and I truly am grateful.

Inspired by my colleague Carlos, I want to send out some love to all those who were part of my crazy 2009.

To my Malaysian friends (and Pinoy friends in Malaysia). Thanks for the warm welcome I always receive from you guys whenever I go there. It’s partly what makes Malaysia feel like my home away from my home. You guys are an awesome bunch. I hope to see more you of in the future. Congratulations to the those who wed last year and are now mommies/daddies and mommies/daddies-to be! Time flies doesn’t it. I still remembered how we partied back in 2006/2007.

To my three closest friends – Alex, Joan, April – there’s just so much to say. Even if we don’t see each other every day since Alex, you are in KL; April, you are in Vancouver; Joan, you are back studying and busy taking care of your juniors… it doesn’t change anything. We always seem to pick up we’re we left off. Its a rare thing.

To Ayka. Thanks for the nerd attacks, the random whatevers, and the rocking at out gigs while you were here. You finally got your SG dream which may not as dreamy you would’ve imaginel. But hey, the good things will roll in. Trust me.  If you believe it will come, it will. I do miss hanging out but that’s all part of having to move away. Don’t worry woman, we’ll still see each there

To Nikki. Damn it girl. Why do you have to leave too? Who will be my clubbing buddy? Who will be my random chika session buddy? Your flight to Australia is around the corner. It’ll be a couple of years before our threesome (you, me, April) will be complete again. Those were good times. Nevertheless, I’m happy you were still able to come back here to the PH, albeit briefly.

To Katie. My cool, hot cousin who returned to NYC after a not so brief visit to the Philippines. Too bad we didn’t get to hang out that much while you were here. Blame it on work. At least we got to hang out a bit. Good luck in Polesque! (Did I spell that right?) Show ‘em your pole dancing prowess. I promise, when you come visit again, I won’t be so darn swamped with work. At least we got to hang out for a while.

To the friends from the college Polsci days. So we’re drinking wine together now? What happened to cheap alcohol and beer? I can’t help but be amused at this. I guess we’re all “growing up” now and getting more serious (really?) therefore our “preferences” are evolving. Haha! Right. Good luck to the graduating lawyers and politicians to be and congratulations to those who are doing well now! You guys are awesome.

To family. Oh wow. What to say to a big crazy bunch of people whom I call family? I love you guys.

To the Nuffies, my colleagues. So guys, it has been an interesting 2009 hasn’t it. It was far from perfect but it was great. Thanks guys. I’ve been learning a lot from each of you. My hope is that things get better for the whole team. Let’s kick ass this 2010!

To my former colleagues from Marcus Evans Philippines and Malaysia whom I got to see this year. I’ll never forget my Marcus Evans days.. ever. It was you guys that made the experience worthwhile. One can go insane working for Marcus Evans – the stress, the crazy demands from the big boss… Thankfully, I stayed sane because I had to you guys to make me laugh until cried. I hope we can manage to in touch.

To my other great great friends. Thanks for helping me out when I need help. Thanks for enduring the drama. The clubbing, the gigs, the hangouts, the travels and all the random whatever’s. Thanks for the stories, the laughs and teaching to become better every time.

(Special mention) To airports. I’ve stepped into you a lot this year. Every trip has been a milestone in my 2009. My Bali trip with the family last March, my trip to Malaysia to attend Zak’s wedding, going to Vigan when April visited the Philippines, going to Singapore for the Nuffnang Asia Pacific Blog Awards, and then going to back to Malaysia for some training (and seeing friends in Malaysia). What can I say, I’ve got a mole on my sole. There has been a lot of drama because of you. Its been good.

Oh.. and I just have to say, its not every year you have cars exploding a few meters away from you office!

So many more people to thank… if only I wasn’t sleepy…

2009 has passed for what its worth, it was a good year. I want to welcome 2010 with open arms, an eager mind, and an open heart.

On the eve of 2010, we had full Blue Moon which was right above us when the clock stroke 12mn. It’s a good sign and a good omen. 2010 is going to be awesome.