my hero!

my hero!
Originally uploaded by jolen

aquim aka astroboy aka wolverine (hehehe) sorry na, yan lang ang kaya ni mommy :)

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happiness!!!

this ...

and this...
and this...


panalo!

now i hate being late

this is one of those days that i hate myself for being late (again, always, what else is new)

wah! for this week, it seems like i am always the last person to be out of the office. almost everybody is out by 4pm, cause they were already in by 7am. wahhh.....

i am trying really. to be in by like, 8 or even 9am. huhu... i'll get another chance tomorrow (or the next day, or next week :))

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tunggak

hahaha... natawa ako sa translation. dahil pa rin ito sa silly hat theme namin, di ako alam, pinindot ko yung pagsalin sa google.

http://translate.google.com.ph/translate_t?hl=tl&source=hp&q=silly%20hat&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wT#

makulot, 2000

november 2000, mt. makulot, batangas

tried mountain climbing once. never tried it again since. hahahha.. fun climb lang 'to. nagkayayaan lang over bottles of beer. o, diba, i was thin then. grabe, yung hita ko dito sa picture, braso ko na ngayon! wah! :(

click here to view the entire makulot album.

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my parents wedding

23 november 1975, cainta, rizal

one of the film-based photos that i salvaged from ondoy and scanned. hehehe ... ang payat pa ng nanay ko noh?! :) for more of this please go to my parents' wedding page on our shutterfly site .

uy 34 years na sila :)
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snakes!

just wanted to share our close encounters with snakes. as i get older, mas natatakot na ko sa mga ganitong challenges. sign of old age na ba yun? hehhehe

avilon zoo, 2001. medyo malaki pa ang snake na kaya ko

avilon zoo, 2008. after 7 years, lumiit na!

aquim at avilon zoo, 2008

daddy at avilon zoo, 2008

bohol,2009. malaki nga, di ko naman na kayang hawakan :)

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silly me

hayyy... officemates are really preparing for our christmas party. kinacareer daw talaga ang pagdress up sa party. it's so un-me mwehehehe

theme is silly hat, and i don't think i am that artistic to think of something out of the box or yung may gulat factor, so i'll just comply with the hat-thing, and not so much with the silly hat theme. so far, i'm left with 3 choices:

sosyalan with pearls (http://www.polyvore.com/)












lenggings-type of girl (http://www.polyvore.com/)










or bonggang-bonggang pang miss earth! (http://www.missearth.tv/)











just have to make myself clear that above pictures do not have a hint of silliness in them. but since i always look silly wearing a hat, it wont matter whatever hat i'll wear cause i'll still look silly, anyway :) i might as well put this feathered friend on my head (alive and unscathed, not dead, of course :)). (last picture is mine :) http://jolen.shutterfly.com/)

kuwentong kalye

nope, she's not at a park. she's kind of living in a spare lot by an intersection. cute noh, looks like she's having a picnic everyday :) she saw me taking this shot that's why she looked away

this is just one of those walking billboard ads. hehe saw them a couple of weeks ago, kaya lang i was inside a cab so i wasn't able to take a shot. naaliw ako when i saw them. they usually go in tandem and nakatalikod sa street so that passers-by and commuters can see their ads. sabi ni jason at night, may ilaw pa talaga ang ads nila. this was in ortigas, i don't know if me ganito na rin sa makati.

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i feel good

The only time you really live fully is from thirty to sixty. The young are slaves to dreams; the old servants of regrets. Only the middle-aged have all their five senses in the keeping of their wits.
~ Hervey Allen

woo hoo! i'm at the prime of my life heheheh

on another note, i think i have successfully changed my blogger's skin? what do you think?

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change skin

i'd like to change my template... hope i'll not scratch off my blog by doing so hehehe

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bohol - day 4

nov 11. our flight is 1030am. medyo inagahan pa rin namin ang gising, para naman makapag swim and play pa si aquim.

while we were having breakfast, aquim was busy playing on the sand by himself. tapos me lumapit sa kanyang sexy girl na naka two-piece! whoa! nagpapicture pa sa kanya. sayang nga di ko sila napicture-an eh. as usual, mas gusto ko kumain kesa magpicture. hehehe .

habang nag re-ready na ang mga lolo at lola, kami ni aquim at todo swim pa rin. sinulit talaga. ayaw pa nga ni aquim umahon sa sea. sabi ko na lang sa swimming pool naman kami. si daddy naman, nagpicture-picture ng resort. nung nasa swimming pool na kami, paiyakan din para umahon si aquim. hahaha

kakaswim namin, yung sundo namin 3 beses na kami tinatawag, kami di pa rin ready para umalis. haha anyways, di naman kami nalate sa flight. as usual tulog uli si aquim pabalik.

sa house na kami naglunch. after which, nagligpit ng gamit, no time to rest kasi wala kaming yaya! tomorrow, back to reality na. back to office work at ipon uli para sa susunod na adventure :)

visit our family site and click the bohol 2009 page for more pictures

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bohol - day 3

nov 10. we woke up a bit earlier nonetheless super excited this day. we are going to see dolphins today, that's why.

just as the sun is rising, we were already at the shore waiting for our bankero. we had asked the resort to packed our breakfast so that we can eat them at the island.

kinakabahan kaya ako habang nagbabyahe. silently i was praying na sana, okay ang panahon at di magbago at okay ang dagat. okay ang banka. bonus na lang na makakita ng dolphin.

first time kaya ng aking anak na makasakay ng banka, at malalim ang dagat ha. when we sailed, i immediately asked aquim to put on his vest. hahaha kaya lang nairita at parang nasasakal siya kaya pinatanggal din. kaya naman todo-todo ang dasal ko. isang oras ding byahe yun noh!

pinagbigyan naman kami ni papa jesus. okay ang panahon at nakakita kami ng dolphin. medyo marami rami na ring banka ang nag aabang ng dolphins pero we are so lucky kasi sa pwesto namin sila unang lumabas. we had a headstart against the other groups. nung nagkakumpulan na yung ibang banca, nahiya na ang mga dolphins. hayyy.. happy. wish pwedeng magswim with them.

we had the dolphin watching near the balicasag island. but according to the locals there, mas marami and mas friendly ang dolphins sa pamilacan. oh well, next time.

after which, we decided to go to the fish sanctuary sa balicasag island nga. although hinde ganon kalalim, plenty talaga ang fishes! walang binatbat yung fishes sa batangas (san juan) nun nagsnorkle kami dun. dito, the fishes really swim with us.

since hinde pa marunong si aquim magsnorkle, nagpakain na lang siya ng fishes. hinde naman siya natatakot na makagat ng fish. ako nga nagugulat pa rin pag biglang kinukuha ng fishes yung sky flakes, siya carry lang. at mas matapang pa siya sa lola nya na hinde talaga nagsnorkle. ang lolo nya ay enjoy na enjoy talaga sa mga dagat. kami ni daddy ay salitan sa pag aalaga ka aquim. although yung guide namin offered us na sila na magtingin ke aquim while we enjoy the sea and the fishes.

nakakatuwa nga naman kasi. nakita ko si nemo at si dory. at pati ang mga anemone. na nagtatago pag hinahawakan mo sila. si manong guide, gustong gusto akong dalhin dun sa cliff na biglang magiging 100ft deep kasi mas magaganda raw ang fishes dun at mas malalaki. sabi ko ayaw ko nga. dito na lang, kahit maliet lang, enjoy na ko. hahah katakot eh noh. sabi kaya sa akin ni aquim, mommy, water lang yan. wah!

before 12 noon we headed back to the resort at dun na kami nananghalian at nagtulog. haha kami lang pala ni jason ang nagtulog. aquim contented himself playing at the sand. hukay ng hukay. si lolo at lola nya, binabantayan siya. ang salbahe kong anak, magigising na lang ako kasi binabato ako ng sand! kahit sawayin mo babatuhin ka parin. hehehe

nakakahiya nga kasi ang mga katabi namin na nakahiga ay mga foreigner at nagbabasa ng books or natutulog talaga. trying to find quiet and peace ba. tapos maririnig nila ang sigaw ko "AQUIM!" wahahaha

we also did try the swimming pool. parang today lang kasi talaga namin maeenjoy ang resort. anyway, it was a tiring but enjoyable day. kaya as usual, we had our early dinner and off we go to bed. we also watched our pictures and videos of the dolphin before dinner.

visit our family site and click the bohol page for more pictures.

bohol - day 2

Nov 9. kahit na medyo pagod kami kahapon, we still woke up early (6am) dahil today is our country side tour.

we had breakfast at around 7am. bread with butter and marmalade, scrambled eggs, longganisa, water melon, pineapple, garlic rice, daing na bangus, sotanghon, coffee and iced tea. after that, we briefly strolled along the shoreline.

by 8am, we got ready cause we will be fetched by our tour guide by 9am. at exactly 9am, andiyan na nga si gwen at kuya p. nakalabas kami ng room namin ng mga 920.

first stop was the blood compact shrine. bronze statues of conquistador legaspi and sikatuna. the other one is the priest and the 2 others are soldiers. si aquim natakot naman sa mga statue. pag naman namamasyal kami panay hanap sa statues. ayan pilit kinukuha ang sword ni sikatuna, ang dialog: di makuha ang sword. ang tigas.

next on the list: chocolate hills. according to gwen, dati raw, carmen hills ang tawag dito. because, they were mainly located on the town of carmen. mainly, kasi there are 2 other towns na me choco hills, madami lang talaga sa carmen. but when an american tourist first saw the hills, he called them chocolate hills because they resemble the kisses, and it stuck since then.

since rainy season, hinde sila kulay chocolate, mint covered sila, kasi maraming grass. nagiging chocolate colored sila tuwing summer kasi tuyo ang mga grass or walang grass at all. ang choco hills ay di talaga soil or lupa. they were a mixture of limestones and sea bed. apparently, submerged daw dati ang buong isla ng panglaw as in seabed sila. kaso since may mga earthquakes na nangyari, ayan umusbong sila. siguro ganon nga kasi i noticed na halos buong land area puro parang mga corals ang bato.

here are some of the folk stories about the chocolate hills:
- teardrops of a giant who were not loved back by his beloved mortal.
- pupu of giant carabaos.
- stones thrown by a giant from cebu to a giant from bohol.

next stop: butterfly sanctuary. we revisit our 5th grade lessons. ipinakita ang life cycle ng butterfly. inexplain ang difference ng mariposa (which is actually a moth) at butterfly. pati na rin difference ng caterpillars nila. ayan ang caterpillar ng butterfly. hinde sila makati, di mabalahibo, parang rubber pero nakakakiliti pa rin sa kamay. obviously, ako ang pinakatakot na hawakan sila.

and then, the actual butterfly. this butterfly only lasts 21 days. the other colorful ones , around 3 months, if i remember it right. kuya let us smell this male butterfly's pheromones. at ang bango, amoy vanilla! btw, inulan din kami dito.

magaling ang tour guide namin, pleasant. magalang. hinde masiyadong madaldal, hinde rin tahimik. informative rin ang mga sinasabi at may sense. sayang we didnt have a picture with her.

next: man made forest. these are mahogany trees planted more than 50 years ago. ang dami noh? they didnt grow wide because magkakatabi sila masiyado, instead they grew tall. ito daw ang ginagamit sa poste ng meralco. pero not the trees from here kasi bawal magputol.

we had our buffet lunch at the loboc river, a top the banca. there were grilled tuna, pork bbq, hilabos na hipon, langkang gulay, sea grass (?), pansit, rice, fried chicken, pinakbet, watermelon, pineapple, puto, suman. si aquim buti na lang nagustuhan ang suman. of course, umulan rin dito.

ang sarap mag cruise. malamig. and anglinis ng tubig nila. we even saw a couple of blue birds. flying freely. sa cage lang ako nakakita ng mga colorful birds. dito naglilipad talaga.

highlight was this singing and dancing group. we stopped by at them and puwede daw bumaba para magpapicture and to sing and dance with them. hahah, ang anak ko (at ang stagedad), ayan. galing kaya ni aquim parang marunong talaga mag guitar. we ended up buying the ukelele (php350). sinulit ang guitar, sumama pa sa 2-man band. hehehe

these are 5-10 yr. old tarsiers. oo matanda na sila, muka lang bata. ang baby tarsiers, newborn, is about the size of the thumb lang daw. and may-july ang birth season. cute nila kaya. gustong gustong hawakan ni aquim at ni lolo. buti na lang pag medyo hahawakan na ni aquim nakikita namin at napipigilan hahaha

biggest philippine python in captivity,si prony. grabe, ang laki nya talaga. 32in ang biggest circumference ng body? 26 ft long. 60kgs pig ang meal once a month. or 2 goats. taba. takot na takot ako ng magpapicture. sa taba nito, jusko, pag nilingkis ako, patay talaga ako agad.

baclayon church, oldest church in the region. 2nd oldest in the philippines. marami pa silang old church kaso di namin napicture kasi di kami nakababa ng car :(

we bought pasalubongs along the way na rin.

namiss namin ang beach so pagdating namin, naglakad kami agad sa shoreline. hehehe... me nakita pa kami seacucumber. since padilim na, hinde na napicture.

had dinner at 630 again. chopsuey again, fried lapulapu, adobong pusit, halohalo, iced tea, mango shke, pineapple shake, spag bolognese with garlic bread. tiring but fun, awesome, exciting day.

tomorrow, island hopping, dolphin watching and snorkleing. hopes the weather (and the dolphin) cooperate with us. if not, panglao tour na lang kami.

for more of our pics, please go to our shutterfly account and view the bohol 2009 page.

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bohol - day 1

Nov 8. woke up at 430am, we got ready and off we go to terminal 3 to catch our 830 flight. we immediately checked our bags in and ate breakfast at the 2nd floor.

30 minutes before our flight, we went to our boarding gate. but apparently, our flight was delayed. we just whiled our time: sleeping, watching the airplanes or just fooling around. nangingibabaw kaya ang boses ni aquim kakatawa while we were playing.

i thought, sa ground kami dadaan at magstairs papanik ng airplane. hinde pala, meron din palang pasukan na parang tunnel. as soon as aquim stepped inside the aquim, he kept on asking us:

asan ang driver ng airplane? asan? he even asked the stewardess: asan ang driver ng airplane? hehehe

tuwang tuwa ng makakita ng mga clouds. kaso, i dont know kung nahilo or what, because ang kasama nyang first timer sa airplane, ang lola nya, ay nahilo sa pag take off at pag andar ng plane, ayan nakatulog 15 minutes before landing.

nahilo man ang parehong first timer, nag enjoy naman sa mga clouds. kahit si lola nya, parang mga mountains daw ang clouds.

this is us boarding off the plane. this time, sa ground na kami dumaan. obviously, bitin sa tulog si aquim. our car service fetched us. malamig na crosswind ba yun? or revo. magalang ang driver at pahinante. makuwento rin.

when we reach the resort, dumaluan beach resort (2), ayan super enjoy sa sand. nagplay na sa sand kahit na hinde pa nakakapagpalit ng damit. we came in the hotel just after lunch time. so we had our lunch first of chopsuey, calamares, fried chicken, crab and corn soup. all of which, hinde gusto ni aquim. kumain lang siya ng konting chicken. ang hirap talaga pakainin. anyway, we caught this hermit crab before kami kumain and he was playing with it all throughout our lunch.

after lunch, we changed into our swimming attire, thinking we can swim right away. but ang inet ng araw so we decided to just play with the sand.

i wonder what are these pupu like sand formation on the beach. ang dami kaya.

here's us enjoying the sand, especially aquim. hinde mo talaga maistorbo. play ng play sa sand. busyng busy.

finally, we decided kaya na namin ang sun rays, we decided to take the plunge! aquim enjoying the sea for the first time. natuwa naman siya, in fairness. kaya lang, medyo maraming waves at sunod sunod at medyo malalakas. isang hampas ng alon, na nakaupo siya, hahaha salpok sa face nya ang sea water.

nakalulon ng tubig, masuka suka sa alat. hahaha pero sige enjoy pa rin siya. play uli. kaya lang medyo natatakot na siya sa waves. pag nararamdaman nya na parang tinatangay siya ng wave, nagpapakarga sa lolo nya. tapos siya rin ang nag sasabi na , "water lang yan diba?", so magpapababa uli. hehehe

2 beses kaya siyang natangay ng wave at padapang napasubsob sa water. hahaha. as in plakda. nakaka awa pero part of growing up. part of growing up ha, pero nainis ako sa daddy nya kasi feeling ko malulunod naman ang anak ko noh!

sandali lang kami sa water, kasi feeling ko magiginaw na si aquim. hapon naman na kasi, mga 4 na siguro yun. umahon na kami at nagbanlaw lang konti sa swimming pool. tanggal ang sipon ni aquim sa sea water. tulo talaga lahat. hehehe.

around 630-7, after we have bathed and changed our clothes, we had our dinner: no picture this time kasi while aquim is eating his dinner, nakatulog na! hahaha so salitan na lang kami sa pagkain. anyways, our dinner was chop suey again (request ni tatay), inihaw na liempo at fried beef. while aquim had carbonara with garlic bread.

for more of our pics, please go to our shutterfly account and view the bohol 2009 page.

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dell

i'm missing my old non-branded pc. kasi naman, enabled ang usb port nun. branded nga ang pc ko ngayon, di naman ako makapag upload ng pics ko.. wah!

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back from bohol

yey!
at last, our bohol trip finally pushed thru. yup and we're back, kahapon pa.
will post pics soon...
ang saya-saya! :)
pagod but ang saya. bitin pa nga! :)

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yaya ana

we no longer have a yaya.

she was our first yaya, our first household staff, and she's gone.

kahit na she's at fault, she still broke my heart. somehow. of course, i know we can't have her forever, but i was not expecting that we will part our ways the way it did.

she had her day off last sunday, nov1. promised to be back on the same day. instead went back last wednesday night. without texting/calling us on those days she went AWOL.

and that was the fourth time that she did it.

we, actually, she and jason, no longer had a lengthy conversation. cause they already had that on her 3rd offense. jason just asked her if she still wants to be with us, she said that she was planning to tell us she wanted to leave. so be it.

god. it was stressful. lahat na lang kinakastress-an ko hehehe. well it must have been much harder on my part than on her. because it was just my first time to let go. siya, she has done that several times ago, part of her job.

it's really that hard not to be attached to your household staff. kahit na sabihing helper lang yun, that we're not related. still, we used to live in the same roof, used to care (i believe) to the same child, my child. o diba, how can i be not attached somehow?

buti na lang, aquim is not that attached to her. i read some na naistress din ang kids pag nagpapaalam ang yaya. buti na lang.

hay. anyways. bukas wala na 'to. heheh ngayon, wanted yaya na kami uli :)
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