I used to like Regine Velasquez a lot! In fact, I used to wait for her in the old SOP variety show on Sundays. Her voice used to sound really great but for some reason known only to her, she resorted to screaming her songs out. She screams a lot when singing! According to her, she is unaware that she screams in the middle of her songs. It’s her ‘powerful’ voice coming out automatically.

Well, the screaming got to her fans. I think she’s lost her touch already. I used to love all the covers that she does but the screaming will just annoy me so no more of Regine for me.

Whenever I feel irritated, annoyed or really darn mad, I close my eyes and find my happy place. I go there and let peace and quiet and calm take over. I go to my happy place to escape the negative emotions about to overtake me.

I am in my happy place now. With Kelly Clarkson’s My Life Would Suck Without You playing in the background.

Happy!

Every one is hanging on updates about the 6/55 PCSO lotto draw last night. Guess what? Still no winner! The jackpot prize last night was 633.9 million pesos according to the PCSO (via ABS-CBN Breaking News on Twitter).

It was that big already! And last night’s draw was the 83rd draw without a winner.

I pray it’ll be me! The money will go to good use, I swear.

I remember hearing this song and liking it right away. I think that time I first heard this song I’ll Be by Edwin McCain, very few people knew about it. Until, well, it caught on. After a few weeks of enjoying it, I suddenly found myself hearing the song in every crook and cranny of the city! I couldn’t get away from it fast!

Have you experienced disliking a song as soon as it gets popular? I experience that all the time! I’ll Be, Bubbly by Colbie Caillat, and so many other songs. The songs remain as great as the first day I heard it. But there’s just something off with hearing every person you see sing the song you like a lot. I kind of don’t like that at all.

The definition of happiness is different for every person. Your happiness can be defined by material things. My happiness can be specifically pinpointed to my family. Another person’s might be dependent on his/her career. The list goes on.

But the inner happiness of each person, the one that can make us smile involuntarily, is actually not something that money can buy. It’s so much more than that.

Have you ever cried over a story you’ve read? I did. I did it a lot of times in the past. I just actually did a few minutes ago! When I am touched by a story I’m reading, I cry. And to tell the truth, the story will linger in my mind and the burden in my heart for a couple of days. I don’t easily get distracted.

I remember reading this book about three generations of men and women in a family. There was so many struggles within. I didn’t cry over the story but the burden of it, the powerful story, left me thinking about it for a month! I am not kidding! I would recall the story again and again and the pain that I felt while reading it would start once more.

But the stories that evoked so much emotion in me are the real good ones. I hope you get to read one.

Worrying is already a big part of my life. I guess when you grow up with almost nothing, you tend to go back to that time when you are at your worst. And if you have a big responsibility on your shoulder, you automatically think of what will happen tomorrow.

That’s me. I am worried most of the time. I can’t help it. What can I say?

My middle name is worried.

Losing a job is hard. There’s the uncertainty of finding a new one. You worry about the fact that you might be overage already and that your qualifications and experience are not enough. There is a fear of what’s in store for your future.

Of course, it’s easy to say that there might be a blessing in disguise in losing a job. It’s easier to say this when you are not the person who lost his job. Words are empty if you are in a bleak situation.

Prayers help. Prayers not only from the person himself but also from those around him. And just your presence. I’ve been in the same situation in the past. One time too many, in fact. During those times, friends were nowhere in sight. That hurt a lot! Maybe they thought I would just lend money from them or bug them to help me find work. But you know what? All I wanted from friends that time was their presence. It’s comforting to know that there are persons who would stand by you during a tough period in your life.

So if you know someone who recently lost his job, pray for the person and just be there for him. You may not be able to help him find a new job or lend him money until he gets his next paycheck but your presence is more than enough assurance for him that there’s someone who still cares even in the darkest hour.

If you could go back in time and change something in your life, what would you change?

I’d change the path I took with my profession. I mucked it up and let go of so many good opportunities. I held on to the failing ones and blamed so many others for what happened when I know that every little mistake was mine to begin with.

It’s a complicated thing that I wish I can totally elaborate without incriminating myself in the process. Let’s just say that I made really stupid decisions and I paid for it big time.

I’d also choose whom to trust, who to be friends with. I was too trusting that many times I didn’t know that the person smiling in front of me was actually the person who helped put me down.

You are never too old to start dreaming.

I read this somewhere and I totally agree! I saw this feature in a magazine show about an old woman, in her 60′s, studying in high school. She was proud of the fact that she is studying and she really wants to learn and graduate. When she was younger, she couldn’t study because she had to help out her family. Families stricken with poverty here in the country are asking their kids not to go to school anymore so they can work to earn money for food. That’s what happened to the old woman.

But you know, she’s always dreamed of graduating. Even high school. And age never stopped her from taking steps to achieve that dream.

I don’t like Toni Gonzaga. I think she’s so jologs. But when I heard about the rift that she has with Mariel Rodriguez now, I immediately sided with her. I’ve been reading in entertainment sites that Toni is a good daughter and sister. She is also a good friend. On the other hand, I’ve been reading how big a flirt Mariel is. Since I like persons who are close to their families and who prioritize them over others, I thought of Toni and kinda liked her because of it.

I watched the episode of The Buzz where the rift between Toni and Mariel was discussed by the hosts. Toni is one of the show’s hosts and she was asked about it. She was fine at first but had to stop because she was choking with emotions. Did you know that I was crying with her? Ah, goodness! I felt for her! I felt like I was the one betrayed by a friend.

If I were Toni, I’d say good riddance! She doesn’t need a friend who would bash her when she’s not listening, who would laugh at her with other people, who would smile at her but was insulting her in her mind.

Good riddance!

There are days when I wake up feeling gloomy. I feel too burdened by the things I want to do and those that I know would be impossible for me to do in a day.

There are days when I wake up feeling hyper and can tackle any task at hand.

This is one of those days that I woke up ready to take on the world!

Good morning everyone and have a great day! Happy blogging!

Are you a coffee drinker like me? If you are, I know you will understand why I feel like my day’s not complete without drinking coffee.

Like what I said, there seems to be something lacking if I did not start my day with a cup of coffee. I’ve been like that for the past four years. It’s my sustenance in the morning because I am not much of a breakfast person. And if I drink something cold by lunch without a cup of hot coffee first in the morning, chances are I’d get stomach ache after.

I don’t do anything when I don’t feel motivated. I would sit in front of my computer staring at it for hours if I try to work. Instead, I will use the time to find motivation through reading.

I read other blogs. That’s the reason why I opted out of Entrecard. I had no more time to drop because whenever I did it, I ended up reading the blogs and taking notes on what I could get from it to use to improve my blog. No, definitely not copy but some things that will serve as an inspiration. And there’s a lot!

Today, I am motivated to write and write. I wish I can accomplish a lot today.

Do you know what to say to a man who’s so bitter in life that whenever he opens his mouth all he has to say are rants about his work, colleagues and life in general?

I’m friends with one of my high school teachers on Facebook. Most of the time his status would say something negative that’s happening to him. A rant about how unappreciated he was. A rant about his colleagues whom he feels are betraying him, stabbing him from behind. A rant about his life and his work. There was even one time when he wrote that he wanted to end it all.

The truth is, I pity the man. He is bitter. He’s grown old single and he admitted to me and my friends that teaching is his whole life. He gets so depressed when he already has to say goodbye to his graduating students. He would often drop me a line asking for prayers. And it makes me pity him more.

He told us about how he used to have a group of friends and one by one they left for abroad or have become busy with married life. He’s also bitter about that. He also said that he’s not really close to his siblings and they often quarrel when he’s at his parents’ house. He supports his parents and sends some nieces and nephews to school.

I pray that someday he may find a companion with whom he can spend the rest of his life with. That will make him happy. That will stop him from being bitter about life. I pray it does.

What are your final words for August?

Goodbye and I hope next year I will be prepared for you!

That’s what I want to say about my August this year. And the years of the past. August is a hard month. I know it may just be coincidence but almost every August of my past were months filled with hardships. And I am talking financially here.

Anyway, next year, I swear I will be prepared for this month. In fact, as early as October of this year, preparations will be under way.

What nauseates you?

Truth is, I am not much into the smell of perfumes. Cologne is fine with me. But the strong smell of most perfumes nauseates me. I always ask my dad and my brother to spray their perfume outside the house. Men have really strong smelling perfumes. The two men in the house are typical ones.

And it takes a while for me to get the smell off my nose and mind.

Do you think little girls are growing up much too quickly?

Yes, I do think so. I remember when I was growing up, I wasn’t too much aware of my sexuality. I used to dress up based on what’s comfortable. I used to go out of the house wearing whatever shirt and pants I had on and would go to my friends to play. These days, you can see even as young as 4-year-old kids worrying about what’s fashionable or what to wear. There’s make-up, branded clothes, and too much peer pressure not only on those kids already going to school but even those kids just playing in the neighborhood park.

I just say that media is playing a big role in the fast growth of kids.

How can I stand here with You and not be moved by You?
Would You tell me how could it be any better than this?

Everything by Lifehouse is one of my fave songs of all time. It can be interpreted in two ways. One is love for a woman. The other interpretation is love for the Lord. I actually like to think of the song more as a praise song more than a love song.

There’s actually a skit being acted out in front of Christian services based on the song. You can search for it in Youtube. That’s why I know that this song is more of praising the Lord more than loving a person.

I am a fan of young girls who act as role model to their equally young fans. There’s Dakota Fanning, Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato and Emma Watson. Locally, there’s KC Concepcion, Sarah Geronimo, Charice, Kim Chiu and many others. I like the fact that their fame doesn’t go to their heads. They remain humble and close to their families. Some prioritize(d) their education before show business. Think of Dakota Fanning, Emma Watson, KC Concepcion and Sarah Geronimo. These girls are good enough to remind their fans that education comes first because when all the fame and fortune fade, a degree is all they’ll have left with them.

Plus, you don’t hear any scandal attached to their names. Good set of young actresses whom the little kids and teens can emulate.