Fixed: Gatekeeper

Gatekeeper by Liz and Marco

Gatekeeper

Here’s a song I’m currently working on with Marco. It’s just a first draft since I wanted to test-drive the mic he lent me. Cover of Gatekeeper, by Feist.

Gatekeeper by Liz and Marco

Come true

It was a lazy, humid afternoon. The asphalt was as good as melted and our sweat clung to our clothes, refusing to evaporate. It was a month or so before our last day at the university. We were sitting in an empty classroom, talking about our plans.

“My top one career choice is to write for a magazine! It’s such a glamorous job! My top two is in advertising or PR. Top three is…I don’t know. Marketing probably, since I’ve already done it,” I said. A couple of months later I was in marketing. Eight months after that (February) I was editor of an online news magazine. A month after that, I was doing freelance work for PR companies. 

Funny how things turn out. Or maybe not. It’s really all up to us to make everything we want come true. That’s never easy.

The thrifting competition

Okay, I’m going to rant a little here. I hate ranting online but it’s therapeutic.

Anyway. I visited a business competitor’s store today. I checked out the clothes they have on sale - mind you, in person, not online. Guess what I see? The clothes are in bad condition - the color is not right anymore, I saw broken threads and tattered linings. In other words, the clothes look ratty.

To be fair, not all the clothes were like this. It’s just that there’s enough of them on the racks to irritate me.

This isn’t even about how the business is our direct competitor. This also isn’t about the fact that I don’t dig their style. I’m taken aback by the quality of the clothes, which, for the price (P500-1000+) should be a lot, lot better. I know these are just secondhand clothes but guess what? I sell secondhand clothes that are in mint condition for half the price, P500 being the highest we price.

I know that thrifting, while fun, can be really tiring and time-consuming. I just wish that stores will not do the clients a disservice by selling ratty clothes. I can live with an open seam or a missing button, but not fabric that has gone bad because of time. And IF you really MUST sell ratty clothes because the design is good anyway, have the decency to price it fairly.

Today Is Going To Be A Good Day

Rebirth

Singing again. With Marco Dela Torre. 

 Rebirth marco and liz

My Ideal Cab

The cab should be clean and nice-smelling. Not trying to suffocate me with heat, but not too cold as to make me wish that I just rode a jeep instead. Cab doesn’t have to be new, but it should be at least well-maintained.

Cab driver should be quiet, because I like to think or listen to my iPod inside cabs. If he really must talk he should be polite and concise. He should know where to go, especially if we need to take major routes anyway. I’ve been in a lot of cabs where drivers don’t know major roads or streets.

Hello Hello

Hello hello, how are you today? I am in a good mood, for a Monday. I’m wearing a great pair of Levi’s, a polo from Uniqlo, and some 3.5 inch heels. I also have some new makeup on. Speaking of makeup, I haven’t been wearing foundation lately. I finally have nice skin, I guess.

This day would have been perfect if only I wasn’t so hungry right now. I just had green tea this morning. This routine (among other things) has helped me lose a lot of weight but, sigh, it’s hard to have self-control, you know? I’ll be having a sandwich from Earle’s later. I’ve been binging on chocolates, candies, and rice last weekend. The more people tell me how much weight I lost, the more inclined I am to gain it back. How annoying.

Anyway. I hope that this would be my last regular day at work. I just quit my day job recently, you see. I like the place where I work but I don’t like what I’m doing - marketing. If you know me, then you know that’s not me. So I figured, I should just focus on my writing and my business. These are things that I enjoy, things I want to make a career out of. I’m happy - no, ecstatic - that I now have time to pursue them.

In any case, I appreciate that my bosses offered me a part-time position. I basically just need to go to work once a week, doing ads and blog posts. I don’t mind because I love advertisements! I love looking at them, deconstructing them, twisting my head in loops making them. You can call it a hobby for me. It’s one of the little things I enjoy doing.

Aside from this, I’ll be taking on an editorial position for an online magazine, to be launched this March (it’s up now but the content hasn’t been completed). I don’t want to jinx this as I haven’t signed the contract yet, but I’m really super duper excited! I’ll be writing about fashion and beauty, my favorite topics.

There are a couple more projects down the pipeline which I am also excited about.

So yeah, I’m in a good mood today.

Disclaimer: I am usually in a good mood, actually. I’m the sort of person who doesn’t like sweating the small stuff. Even the major stuff, come to think of it.

The year that was and will be

Last year was nice. Not awesome, or terrible, or even remotely surprising - just nice. It was a walk in the park. As walks in the park go though, my 2009 has been straightforward and uneventful. The decisions I had to make and the things I had to do were neatly littered in a meticulously paved path in a park where hardly anything goes wrong. 

So what happened this year? I got my Political Science degree. I got a marketing job. I moved out of my parents’ house. I have my own online store which earns pretty decently. I write freelance, which earns decently as well. I’ve developed my other blog into something that people value, something I can be proud of.

All in all, it was a year of small triumphs, a year of stepping out of my comfort zone and trying - completely on my own - to make something of myself. I don’t honestly think that I’ve succeeded; I’m not delusional. It’s too early for things like that. I do think, however, that I’ve moved an inch closer to where I want to be and what I want to do. For that I’m glad.

With that said, I feel that the new year will not be a walk in the park. I know that I will have to make tough, unpredictable decisions regarding my career and personal life. This year will make or brake me, and you know what?

I’m looking forward to being made.

10 Journalists To Follow On Twitter

Following your favorite journalists on a regular basis has never been easier.  With the help of Twitter, you can always be updated on the current thoughts and circumstances of almost any journalist you can think of.  If you don’t know who to choose then take a look at this list of 10 journalists to follow on Twitter.

Amy Simons

Amy Simons (amysimons) is the online producer of ChicagoTribune.com.  She is a journalist to follow given her serious involvement in current events.  Her Tweets, however, are infused with a welcome dose of intelligent humor.

Andrew Cohen

Andrew Cohen (cbsandrewcohen) is the CBS News Chief Legal Analyst and Legal Editor.  His no-holds-barred legal perspective gives you the inside legal scoop on pressing issues that are garnering media attention.

Alex SheBar

Alex SheBar (Alexshebar) is a breaking news and trend reporter.  Turn to Alex Shebar’s Twitter updates for comedic interpretations as well as real commentary on popular topics and trends.

Brian Caulfield

Brian Caulfield (bcaulfield) is a technology reporter for Forbes.  Follow Brian Caulfield for mentions of technological news and, oddly enough, a plethora of nods to various animals.

James Rainey

James Rainey (LATimesrainey) is an L.A. Times media columnist who turns the focus onto journalism itself and the topics being covered.  This commentary on commentary makes for interesting Tweets.  Of course, other media outlets are included as well.

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Current Favorite Songs

There are two songs that I really really like right now. One is “Maddening Shroud” by Frou Frou. It goes something like:

Frou Frou - Details - 09 - Maddening Shroud (Frou Frou)

Sometimes I like to get away from this maddening shroud

Sometimes I laugh, you know, it’s all insane

Maybe it’s time for me to pack it in

Maybe it’s time for me to track it in

Maybe it’s time for me to throw…

I’ve got a good mind to throw it all away, throw it all away, throw it all away

After all, what is it worth?

 

I like it because it’s light and carefree. Here is a woman thinking of turning her back against everything she knows and built but she is singing about it as if she were happy. The song makes me want to stowaway to China or Switzerland without telling anyone.

The second song I like is “Don’t Be Afraid, You Have Just Got Your Eyes Closed” by Mum. If I were a fantasy RPG character exploring the world this is the song that should be playing in the background. It sounds optimistic about finding the next town or treasure chest and eventually, beating the Big Bad Evil of the land.

04 Don’t Be Afraid, You Have Just Got Your Eyes Closed

I’m all about happiness and optimism so I love happy, optimistic songs. This attitude - it keeps me sane.

I am not fully here and I don’t know where the rest of me is

These days, it feels like half of myself is not with me. I talk to someone and I understand what he is saying but only at a bare minimum. I write down stuff but the grammar and spelling are haywire and words are near to the intended ones, but that’s it - just near. I am writing this blog post and my mind is already wandering somewhere else. 

I wonder what’s wrong? It’s like I don’t care anymore. I don’t think I’m unhappy, really. This is something nearer to apathy.

I really have to get back in shape. I have this idea that the new year will make everything right.

Cows

Filipinos walk like cows. This epiphany dawned on me one morning as I observed a man walking. His shoulders were straight, the swing of his arms was precise and his pace was brisk. He was wearing a hat and I only saw his back, but I knew that he was not a local. He knew where he was going and he obviously wanted to get there in the shortest amount of time as humanly possible. He walked with purpose.

I looked around to see how everyone was walking. It was around 9am and I was in one of the country’s major business disricts so I lazily expected everyone to be rushing to work. They weren’t. Most of the people looked slack, in their droopy jeans and loose shirts. They were dragging their feet to wherever they needed to go, stubbornly, even though they have nothing better to do.

Look, I can’t tell you how to change the world. I can’t tell you how to make this country a better place to live in. You know what though, it wouldn’t hurt if you started walking faster, started shaking yourself out of the lethargy centuries of culture have instilled in you. It should do you good.

Gibo?

I understand that Gilbert Teodoro is a good, capable man fit to run our country. He is a well-educated person who looks honest and honorable.

I won’t vote for him. Let me spell out why.

Gloria is going to run and win as congresswoman of her hometown. There is no question about that. Consequently, she and her henchmen has expressed several times that one of her main objectives is Charter Change and that she will continue gunning for it when she gets her seat in the legislative. If an administration candidate wins - Gibo - little is left to the imagination as to what will happen next. He will not stand in the way of Gloria resuming her seat of power because he values utang na loob so much.

I’m sure that as a Filipino who had to live through Gloria’s illegal and inefficient administration this scenario is the last thing you ever want to happen. I don’t care if Gibo is sincere in his intention to serve us. I don’t trust his backer so I don’t trust him. Call it a fallacy - this is just me trying to make sure that my family’s future is as prosperous and secure as possible. Call this instinct.

I know that our the presidential roster leaves much to be desired (as usual) but if you were to vote for anyone, try not to vote for someone who has close ties to the administration. I will not ask you this if Gloria is not running for Congress, but since she is, try to use a little brain power when you shade that name in the ballot next May.

Such Injustice

I read Fairy Tales from the Arabian Nights by Galland (edited by E.Dixon, 1893) in my spare time.

I would like to express my anger and distaste.

The women in the stories are usually depicted as headstrong and powerful. They are  beautiful, intelligent, strong, and endowed with fantastic powers. The decisions they make are important enough to determine the fate of a kingdom or a human being. However, they almost always die a horrible, bloody death while trying to save a prince’s life.

Let me illustrate. A prince who is down on his luck finds a hidden subterranean castle in which a beautiful, kidnapped princess lives. He is given a rich bath, luxurious robes, feasts, and I assume, sex by the infatuated princess. The prince gets drunk and destroys a talisman which summons the genie who kidnapped the princess, saying that he is ready to kill all genies so that he and the princess can live happily every after.

The genie comes, asking why the princess called, and the prince runs away. As he is leaving, he hears the screams of the princess as the genie beats her up senseless and bloody. The genie knows that someone has been there but the princess will not say who even under torture. The prince still leaves, cowardly.

The genie finds the prince and brings him to the underground castle. He interrogates the princess and the prince, but they both deny his allegations. The genies cuts the princess’s hands off. The prince denies some more. The genie eventually kills the princess. Guess what the dumb dick did to the prince?

He turned him into an ape. Oh, such injustice.

Anyway, take a no fax payday loan to take your mind off things.

The other side

Being so close to the world I want to belong to hurts me. It’s like I’m watching a beautiful summer from a window but can’t go out to actually experience it because I’m sick. It’s like being in an airconditioned bus and someone sitting beside me starts eating a cheeseburger while I’m hungry and on a diet. It’s like…well, I feel a dull pain just thinking about it. So close, yet so far away.

Why don’t I go for it then? It’s mostly fear of the unknown. I don’t know if I can make it. I don’t know if I can deal with it. I don’t even know how I’ll be if I get rejected. 

Man, I hate this.

Weird Car

Saw an interesting car the other day. I was in a cab and it was raining heavily outside. The wind is insane, too. Nothing like an interesting object to lift the mood, eh?

Liz’s Stress Levels Revealed According To Food Intake

Like everyone else, my stress levels shoot up during midday. It could be a presentation I’m rushing, lines I have to fall into, forms I have to fill up, or deadlines I have to meet. This is why lunch is very crucial to me - I’ve observed that what I eat during lunch is indicative of how stressed I really am, even if I don’t know it. Lunch for me is like a psychological compensation for things that don’t go right. So let’s see, shall we?

Very little to no stress: Fit n’ Right

Slightly stressed: Sandwich from Earle’s or downstairs. A sandwich with very few calories.

Stressed: Pasta dish

Really stressed: Rice meal. The meatier the better.

Super stressed: Cheeseburger meal from McDonald’s, large fries

Insanely stressed: Two revel bars, candies, chocolates, sundaes.

Yeah.

Haunted and Drowned

Last night, my dreams were haunted by my high school class, an insane priest, and the ghosts of dead Catholic school girls.

The setting was a hotel in Batangas. It’s old and, as these things go, haunted. Very haunted in fact. Doors decide where you should go, elevators have a mind of their own, and ghosts of little girls in uniform (the hotel was a school before) wander the hollow halls like nobody’s business. Surprisingly enough this hotel has become a popular vacation destination. There were throngs of people when me and my family visited.

After we settled in our room, I explored the place. What followed was a weird but still logical series of events that I don’t remember in detail. All I know is that I was walking around and there were so many ghosts and people who simply ignored me. When we were about to leave the hotel in a bus, I saw my classmates out in the sea, sitting on some rocks and smiling at me. I was pleasantly surprised of course but I was sorry I didn’t get to hang out with them before I left. I waved.

As the bus was moving, a priest got up to give a sermon. I tuned out of course, but I noticed something was up when the bus wasn’t leaving - instead, it was driving towards the sea! Me and the passengers plunged into the cold depths. I wasn’t worried because I knew how to swim. I was just so pissed because I had my Macbook with me in my bag and I didn’t want it to get ruined because of some crazy priest who wanted to prove that faith is of utmost importance when you are faced with immediate death.

I was so mad. The first thing I did when I got out of the water was check my Mac. Only the edges were wet, but it was in good condition. It was fortunate that the laptop was in my Hedgren bag since this bag is reliably waterproof. Whew, disaster avoided.

I wanted to hit that priest so much. The stupidity of faith in God and religion in general was running through my head and I was dumbfounded by how much men can take everything so literally.

Where are you? Here and there

I want to post something crazy here. Like how you should never stop believing and just hold on to that feeling.

My unbearable optimism is unbelievable. I live the canned life of your average 21st century yuppie and yet I’m happy - in a way. There’s no way to speak of one way.

I was reading Poul Anderson’s novella the other day. It’s called “Brain Wave”. Overnight, animals and humans all over the world got exponentially smarter because the planet moved out of a magnetic field. Apparently we’ve evolved under this intelligence-inhibiting field for thousands of years. Predictably, chaos rained the first few months. People who have never had an original thought in their lives and spent most of it doing menial labor started leaving their jobs to look for a higher purpose. Wars were fought with even more ferocity as the underdogs learned advanced warfare within only a few days. Others spiraled down into a funnel of depression and then eventually, madness. 

One image which stuck to me was a man who was found by one of the main characters on the street. The man discovered existentialism and then, nihilism. He was babbling and obviously insane. I found that disturbing. 

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