If you just believe

I am still trying to get myself back into blogging again. And I thought one of the best ways would be to plug a friend of mine who attend the Youth Engagement Summit in Kuala Lumpur.

I need to admit that I didn’t knew at all that she had a little baby boy prior our personal meet up at the NAIA, and I was rather surprised by it.. Prior to that, we used to text and call now and then to communicate and talk about the summit which was ahead of us.

I know a handful of people who have problems finding jobs, or who fail with their chosen path. I’m on the road of failure too with this blog, but we can’t really compare it to a business, can we?

Some people might think odd about solely selling Coke for a living, but some, like the fact that people do so and are even proud of it. It amazes them and serves as a great inspiration to them. I’m one of the people feeling touched by the fact that there indeed some who are proud of what they do, even though others would criticize them negatively.

I really wish that all of us would be like Joanne, doing the most out of an unlikely way of earning. All of us should take the chances that we have at hand and make the best from it. Who knows, those chances of creating a living might not come again. Taking risks is part of the game, and she managed to deal with it.

If you want to read more articles about my single-mom friend, please visit her blog to do so.
ps: Her baby boy looks really cute

Videoke: An All-Time Irresistible Filipino Pleasure

Filipinos are so madly and deeply in love with singing!  This can be manifested by the endless existence of amateur singing contests and singing contests in TV popping out all over the place like mushrooms.  In the much more common life, we’ll see videoke machines in canteens, in tricycle terminals, and in all kinds of parties.  Recently, I came across this funeral service establishment which has this big sign in front which read:

Funeral with libing and VIDEOKE package promo!

That signage made me give it a second look–as I don’t really like looking at funeral parlors, of all places!  That was my first time to see such offer and it really made my mind have a flashback of all the funerals and wakes that I have attended in the past (I don’t have a lot really and I’m thankful for that) and thought if I have ever seen a funeral with the relatives of the departed singing through the videoke machine–and I have attended none so far.  Not that I want to.  I think it’s totally ridiculous to sing your hearts out when the family is mourning the loss.

This just proves the preponderance of the singing prowess in the Filipino society’s activities.  If we be happy because we passed the BAR examinations or the boards, we would always hit the videoke bars or rooms and celebrate over drinks or food.  If one of our friends got his heart broken by a girl, one person in the barkada will always say ikanta mo na lang ‘yan dude (project that to singing, dude).

We Filipinos do not really give a damn if we have the most horrible voice amongst the crowd.  If we are asked by our friends to sing, we WILL look for our mastered song and end up singing just for the heck of it!  My paternal side of the family developed this certain tradition during our Christmas parties ever since the scoring in videokes became popular.  In our parties, we’d list down names of the willing participants and would sing whatever song in the Magic Sing every time his/her name is called.  The singer’s score will be noted and at the end of the game, the scores will be added and the total will be the amount of cash the person will get.  So if you sing your practised songs and get scores not lower than 100 all the time, you’d probably go home with a big smile on your face.  I would say that I have cousins whose voices truly sound like aluminum plates being torn but for the sake of money, they didn’t really give a damn.  After all, Filipinos always appreciate the performance of singing.  I believe that we do not really look at the quality of the person’s voice but at the willingness and dedication to entertain our family and friends.

I am sure that each and everyone of us has tried singing in parties and gatherings through the Magic Sing.  For this, we have mastered at least one song so that we’d always be prepared when we are asked to belt out.  I have a cousin who is working in the media industry and whenever they’d be partying with clients, they would always bring them to places like RedBox or Centerstage.  Of course, everyone in their company would be required to sing–as a manifestation that they’re willing to cross the boundaries just to please and entertain their clients.  She’s not really one who’s gifted with a nice singing voice but through the years, she has been using Police’s Every Breath You Take as a piece.  It’s convenient for her because it’s low-pitched and does not require birits.  :P

Videoke singing is definitely my number one guilty Filipino pleasure and my videoke mastered “pieces” are Burn, Dancing Queen, Torn, Alone, It Must Have Been Love, 2 Become 1 and Time After Time.

What is yours? Or what is your most guilty Filipino pleasure?

Kris Aquino has my back now, what do you think?

Kris Aquino is in the showbiz headlines once again.  Albeit this may be a late article about this current fiasco since you probably have heard everything from The Buzz and from other showbiz news sources already, I’m still going to say something about this since I’m also driven when it comes to such topics.

It’s very sad that Krissey’s marriage with popular basketball player James Yap is on the rocks once more.  We all know how James Yap faced public humiliation when Hope, an ex-employee of Belo Medical Group admitted in national television that she had an affair with James Yap and had sexual relations with him inside the Belo clinic’s cubicles.  This revelation resulted to Kris, pulling out her affiliation with the clinic and even her friendship with the company’s key player Dr. Vicki Belo.

This time, Kris Aquino-Yap is being accused of a Valle Verde 5 resident Mayen Austria of being completely rude and inconsiderate when Kris confronted her about the fact that she keeps on calling and sending James Yap messages about her recent heartbreak.  This has infuriated Kris because it has already become a huge disturbance to their daily activities.  In an interview in The Buzz, Kris narrated that her string was pulled when Mayen called James on the phone in the middle of their meal. This made Kris decide that she will already confront Mayen and tell her that she is not happy with her frequent calls for James.

The main issue of Kris here is how unhappy she is with Mayen’s persistence and the recurrence of her calls and SMS messages for James.  The point of Kris is that James is a married man and another girl bugging him (even as a friend) about her heartache is not a good thing to see. This is especially that said calls and messages are already interrupting the couple’s daily activities.  So before a taping, Kris decided to drop by Mayen’s residence which was only a street away from theirs to inform her that she is aware of her frequent calls and that she is not happy anymore with what Mayen’s doing.  Kris informed James about this and as a result, James told Mayen that Kris will be coming and that the best thing for her to do is to just say sorry for what she has done (what a wuss = James Yap).

Mayen’s mother welcomed Kris in their home informing her that various figures like a bishop and an old head of Poveda were there.  Despite the presence of said figures, Kris was not halted from doing her real intention in going there which was to confront Mayen.  At the end of the day, said confrontation took place and Kris headed to an overdue taping afterwards.

Days after, rumors about the aforementioned incident spread with some accusations against Kris stating that she cussed and yelled at Mayen during the confrontation and even neighbors heard it.

Kris Aquino has a sosyalerang-taklesang image so this could have really happened.  However, I find it extremely peculiar that after leaking this issue to the public and bragging about the witnesses present during the event, Mayen’s camp suddenly chose to keep mum about the issue. What was their point in bringing this issue to the public, really? I am pretty sure that it was to seek revenge after Kris “cussed” and “yelled” at them during the confrontation.  Said decision to just keep mum about it after bringing it out makes me skeptic about their real intentions in leaking the details of the incident. Was it to earn the sympathy of the public after such humiliating incident? Was it to merely scrutinize the rude behavior of Kris and fight for their crushed egos because they were “cussed” and “yelled at”? Or like how many people perceive it, was the leakage made to affect Noynoy Aquino’s candidacy? I mean I really do not get it! In one way or another, Mayen really is at fault here because she’s the one who kept on bugging James Yap even though she knows that James is married! If I were her, I won’t even disclose said confrontation to people who couldn’t be trusted for it is really due to a shameless act.  

Whatever the reason for th leakage is, I still find the cussing and yelling claims together with Mayen’s decision to keep mum about it dubious. First of all, I believe that residents of Valle Verde are mostly composed of the educated and rich ones. If you have a bishop and the former head of one of the most prestigious exclusive schools in the country chit-chatting in your home while sipping tea, you are UNDENIABLY oozing with wealth, influence and up there in the social classes. These people are the types who won’t let someone else step on their morale especially if they know that they on the right side.  Unlike the average people, these kinds won’t be ever threatened if ever the one their going up against is a really huge figure like Kris Aquino–and I think it’s a general belief that yelling at you and CUSSING you is something which can really crush someone’s ego, isn’t it?  Especially if you’re talking about these so-rich-I-live-in-Valle kind of people, they won’t be happy with their egos and shattered stepped on.

So IF EVER there is truth to the cussing and yelling thing, WHY KEEP MUM?  WHY NOT DEFEND YOUR STAND?  That is just so weird!

Well why does Kris Aquino have my back now? Some people have been actually saying that Kris is such a hypocrite because she was once a woman who had affairs with married men like Philip Salvador and Joey Marquez. For this, people have been saying that she does not have the right to confront Mayen for what she has been doing with James. Folks, this I believe, is NOT a question about her past anymore!  I actually applaud her for not tolerating James’ mischief for this shows us that Kris is AWARE that what she has done with those men is WRONG and must not be tolerated.  Ergo, you see a culture of learning in this idea–that Kris Aquino has changed significantly and she wants to protect her marriage.  Secondly, I must say that I am truly impressed by Kris’ efforts to make her marriage work and expunge disturbing factors such as Mayen. This just proves that contrary to popular belief, the Kris-James tandem is more than the I-have-fame-and-money-give-me-company kind of set-up. Come on guys, I am sure that during the hype of their relationship everyone was thinking of that! It’s inevitable because Kris is older than James and he had really humble steps towards his basketball career which makes James really susceptible to monetary prizes even that means he has to marry a truly “one-of-a-kind” woman.

I hate to do this but I would have to give Jinkee Pacquiao as a parallel example.  Okay fine, I supported Jinkee during the hype of the Krista Ranillo issue.  However, I always wished that Jinkee did better than giving subtle hints of her wrath for Krista.  She’s Jinkee Pacquiao, the wife of a gazillionaire world-famous boxer.  I believe Jinkee could have done more than just interviews and crying in public when matters about her marriage were brought up, etc.  You know, she could have confronted Krista herself and reminded that girl of her status and position so she could have stopped acting like a very important person in Manny’s life.  I would see that as a huge manifestation of empowerment–that she is not threatened by Manny’s gloves (figuratively, okay) or lured by the riches her husband continues to shower her–I mean like she only sees
those riches as a bonus but still prioritizes her sole possession of Manny.  If you’re a woman, you surely know how EXCRUCIATING it is if you know that your man is sticking his dick in someone else’s hole.  Just SMSing another girl and denying it even if you know it is already infuriating enough, okay?  I’m not being idealistic here… But I believe that NEVER should the man’s wealth be an enough patch for those heart wounds those affairs are leaving.  Why? Because by doing that, you cultivate a culture of being an underdog.  And women, don’t be underdogs in your relationship especially if you are in a marriage–that is like digging your own emotional grave.  Depression sucks, I’m telling you. It affects you, your view of your children and your children as well in the long run.

Well if you will say ay si Kris naman ang mas malaking kita kay James kaya okay lang sa kanya ‘yun ‘no!  Hindi nya habol ang pera ni James! Exactly!  Kris has all the wealth and the fame that every woman envies once in a while. She could have just shrugged this problem off and let James have all the good times he wants but in real life, this is not the case. Universally, when a woman’s relationship is threatened by an outside factor, it gives a stabbing and a stinging pain REGARDLESS if you live in Payatas or in Valle Verde. Folks, this is why I’m giving my back to Kris in this issue–for she has proven that there’s more worth in her identity than we have ever thought of. A prominent figure like her who has been always seen by women as the ideal example for wealth, career and intelligence stepping down from the pedestals of an ideal life is something to really admire…and in many ways, teaches us a lot of lessons too.

To girls, confiding with a MARRIED man about your heartache is wrong.  It gives a lot of wrong impressions and a lot of false instincts. When we confide with a man, the tendency of a man is to be comforting and kind–two characteristics that women WILL ALWAYS, ALWAYS FALL FOR even if it’s just for the sake of creating a positive image! That is what your girlfriends are for!  You might not sometimes intend it but that is already subtle flirting.  To add, how would you feel if you were put into the shoes of the girlfriends of the men you confide with? Will you end up sleeping with peace of mind and security? I’m betting my money for otherwise.

This Is Mostly Word Vomit

I am a very vocal person.  This means that when I’m feeling something that needs to be let out, I do it in whatever way possible.  I have to admit that there are times wherein I would rather stay silent because I’ve so many things to say that only silence will do–and this happens whenever I’m mad, frustrated, sad, disappointed or raging in anger.

Last night, a good friend of mine talked over the phone.  She has been experiencing problems with her significant other and with two mutual friends whom I’ve recently discovered, have been backbiting us for the longest time.  I wanted to confront the two but knowing me, I’d rather not stoop down their level and I know that they will just deny everything we have discovered.

The usual Clarissa will always find venues for outlet.  I am not the kind of person who keeps it all in her heart until she just bursts one day in a completely wrong setting.  And all my friends know this, I vented out through my Plurk account. I plurked something very specific and very hitting (for an average reasonable person that is) and to my surprise, people kept on asking me through YM and SMS if they’re the one whom I’m pertaining to.  I even have a friend who never followed-up on me anymore when I ignored her deliberately today because I was finding it very painful to talk (because of my cough).

Now this had me thinking, why are these people guilty?  If they are not guilty, why do they seem  guilty?  Is there something that I have to know?  Have they also been doing the same things those two girls have been doing to me if not to my friend and I?  Why?

I shared this story to a very good friend of mine and funnily, he experienced the same instance often.  We can easily shrug this off since we’re not the guilty parties.  But after we come to think of it, it’s a very sad sad sad situation.  Why?  Because it makes us think that these people we treat as best friends might be really doing something awful behind our banks.  The reactions are just epic.  Please don’t call me an overanalyzer.  If you’re a rational person, you would understand that there is deep sense within Shakespeare’s thought–that suspicions always haunt the guilty mind.

Forgive me for this.  I just had to vent it out.

Hell Week

And all hell totally broke loose this week.

It’s the intro of my suckish life and my first night here on the site. *clap,clap* Well, to tell you honestly, I only write either to say something really nice or something really bad. The really nice category includes movie reviews of awesome new movies, good websites, funny comic strips and the sort. The really bad category includes a bad math experience, a bad day, a bad person and a bad week which includes this entry.

I always start of with my name. I’m Jap and my real name is Janine. People thought it was too girl so *poof!* it became Jap. I’m 17 turning 18 on September and i have no idea of what to do on my début. I’m taking Ab major in Consular and Diplomatic Affairs at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde and life isn’t so fun there. I hate cockroaches and Jollibee mascots scare the shit out of me.

Well, it’s finals for us green people so we had to tighten up and shove our faces into books. Lucky for the others, it’s a no-sweat week. For me, it was the sweatiest and smelliest week up to date. I just had my math exam and the mere thought of it makes my knees wobble. I failed the midterms and looks like my future isn’t looking so great.

So what’s the fuss about failing? It’s college, no biggie to fail right? WRONG. I am a full academic scholar and for some reason, I really am not blessed with any great skill other than eating 5 medium cookies in under 5 minutes. I cannot afford to fail it or else, goodbye scholarship and hello 64 thousand per sem!

And yeah, it’s a series of unfortunate events as I broke my glasses, lost a book worth a thousand, and ate at Noriter where they serve 100 peso tuna sandwiches.  I am broke, I am fat and my self-esteem is slowly going down the effin’ drain.

I was thinking of getting a job but the idea of working doesn’t really appeal to me. I must admit, I’m not the working type. *funny eh?* Maybe in the future, yeah I’ll work. but now, idk. It’s just not me. Or, maybe I just lack the proper encouragement. Whatever. this is way too long for a first blog. Thanks for taking me in new website. *hugs!*

check me out at tumblr! japangeles@tumblr.com

xoxo,

jap

Easy Food To Make #1: Homemade S’mores

Okay, so if you belong to a group of friends who like sleep-overs or if you’re a parent who has already run out of ideas about what to serve their kids for baon, this will be really helpful to you.

Basically, the term S’mores is an abbreviated term for “give me some more” or “some more”.  S’mores started as a camping treat in the United States for boys and girl scouts.  The traditional S’mores has been done by putting marshmallows on a skewer and grilling the those on fire.  When the marshmallows have already been toasted enough, those are put on sheets of graham crackers and sandwiched with another cracker.

The recipe that you will see in a few has a twist into it.  Well, it’s no special twist as I have already seen many Moms do it for their kids’ baon or snacks but since it’s easy and I know that kids hate snacks that are very predictable, I’m gonna put in a new ingredient into it.

What you will need:

1. A bag of marshmallows (white round ones are recommendable)
2. Classic graham crackers
3. Thin chocolate bars (milk, white, dark, whatever suits your taste)*
4. Thinly-sliced bananas or fruits (strawberries, kiwis, apples, whatever)–> OPTIONAL
5. Sprinklers –> OPTIONAL

Directions:

1. Break the graham crackers into your desired size.  Lay the crackers on a clean and dry surface.  Open the bag of marshmallows with clean and dry hands.  Put marshmallows on the “back side” of the crackers.  Put the marshmallows properly so that they won’t fall down afterwards.  Set aside.  If chocolate bars aren’t present, you can use chocolate spreads like Nutella.  Some people have used peanut butter for this too like Skippy.  Don’t put too much chocolate spread if you are preparing this for kids who’d bring it to school to avoid mess.

2. Get another set of graham crackers and lay those in a cool, clean and dry place.  Open the chocolate bars and cut them into the right sizes.  Right sizing is important to avoid mess.  The chocolate bars in each graham cracker should be just fit enough–not too big and not too small. Set aside.

3. Put the grahams with marshmallows in an oven toaster.  Do not cramp up the toaster and leave gaps between the crackers.  If the toaster’s pan has stains on it, it would be best to use an aluminum foil for sheathing against the stains of the pan.  1.5 minutes heating time should be enough for a toasted fix.  2 minutes heating time if you want the mallows to be completely melted.  Heating beyond 2 minutes can totally burn the mallows and give you a bitter fix.

4. Take the mallowed crackers out of the oven toaster immediately after the set time has passed.  Toasters still are hot after minutes of heating hence the mallows can be burnt if left inside the toaster.  Lay the mallowed crackers on top of the crackers with chocolate bars creating a sandwich.  Do not wait for the mallows to cool down as it will not make the chocolates to stick onto the mallows when sandwiched.

OPTIONALS:

You can also put in thin slices of bananas and fruits over the marshmallows before you sandwich it with the chocolates. If you have sprinklers, you can sprinkle ‘em on the marshmallows right after those were put out of the oven for added design.  Remember that food becomes prettier with added design in it.

This is very ideal for slumber parties and for kids who like bringing baon to school.  These can be individually wrapped with aluminum foil and put into clean and dry containers.  Even college and high school students can still bring these to school e.g. my brother and I. It’s actually a good replacement to unhealthy chips that we usually buy for snacks when we go to parties and to school.  Just remember to drink lots of water and brush your teeth after eating these sweet treats!

Girls are getting more insane

And that trend doesn’t tends to end anytime soon. It was just like yesterday when I thought that I was the craziest, weirdest and most insane girl in the whole universe when I entered a field I should enter at my early age of seventeen. But how much more, insane, crazy and weird are the girls of the not-so-distant generations that are just a couple of ages behind of me and the fellow Pinoy Teens Staff?

It wasn’t too long ago when crazy admin Kevin fell in love with a young women which resides at Philippines current most active volcano’s footsteps in Legaspi.

It wasn’t too long either when that crazy girl committed an immortal sin that changed her life forever.

And look, what we’ve got here again, a pretty much the same like the one about 11 months back. A situation that could easily be avoided if we’d open our eyes to the reality and apply a bit common sense to our actions before we actually do them.

I am very sure that isn’t the lone case that is about to happen – or has happened – since the young friend of mine changed her destiny. And I’m also very sure that this trend will go on and go on…

Every time I hear girls having problems like the ones I’m discussing here makes me wonder how they’ve ended up in deep holes like that. I mean, don’t they have any respect for themselves? Don’t they love themselves? ARE THEY EVEN THINKING?

I know, some are truly ignorant, but I can cite you cases in which girls act as they know-everything, but end up with absolutely nothing, hence, the case of Kevin’s dear friend was indeed not like that. That’s why we became friends after all.

It saddens me when females of ages 15 and below ask me the question if they should offer their everything to their boyfriends. It infuriates me every time I hear boys talk about these poor kids, taking advantage of their ignorance and then just trashing them aside.

IS THIS HOW WE FILIPINO TEENAGERS REALLY ARE?

I don’t know, if asking a bit self respect and respect for the girls is too much to ask from all of you. All I know is that we shouldn’t commit such moral crimes at young, innocent ages like that. We shouldn’t even talk about them, think about them, and even DO them.

Your Boyfriend Ain’t Love You

I tell you, it’s true. No sincere boyfriend would ever BEG you (even ask you) to engage into PMS (pre-marital sex). BIRTHDAY GIFT? CHRISTMAS GIFT? ANNIVERSARY? MONTHSARY? To hell with all their reasons, I know, you know, many know that those are mere excuses to reach your juice. We won’t let that happen, we don’t want it to happen to any of you reading this website or anyone in the Philippines (and even the world at large).

Please, wake up, (bitches). Those boys are not good enough for you, and don’t deserve you. If someone really loves you, they can and will wait for the right time, and you know that they do. Unless you’re that kind of whore who feels the same temptation and wants to get away with a few minutes of good time, and (maybe) a disaster good of a life time.

Why Should We All Be Excited For 2010

Personally, the year 2009 has been a very bad year for me.  I even think that “bad” is such an understatement.  It is definitely the WORST year that I’ve ever had in my whole lifetime.  The gravity of the bad things that happened to me this year is purely unbearable and there are so many regrettable things that I did this year.  So if you would ask how I’m feeling right now, I feel nothing but excitement for the end of 2009 (given that my year is becoming worse with all the deaths of people I know personally occurring now) and hope that 2010 will be a totally different year and would be conducive for a new vibe.

Biases aside, I think we all Filipinos should look forward to 2010.  Not only because it’s gonna start with a total bang with Ne-Yo, Paramore and The Killers having concerts during the first quarter of the year.  But seriously, I think this year has been entirely depressing not only for me but for all Filipinos as well.

Who would easily forget the nightmares brought to us by the night of September 26, 2009?  This is the night that Ondoy, the worst tropical depression the Philippines had to date started to drown possessions, investments, dreams and even lives of thousands of Luzon dwellers.  A few days after Ondoy, another typhoon accelerated in the form of Pepeng–which devastated thousands of people from the North of Luzon.

On November 23, 2009, 57 civilians were mercilessly murdered in the Maguindanao Massacre that happened on the fateful place of Amapatuan, Maguindanao.  This horrible event is still being mourned for by millions of Filipinos around the globe aided by the fact that there has been a very slow investigation of the said crime. A myriad of concerned bodies all around the globe also scrutinized the Philippine state for the seemingly flawed methods of investigation it has imposed with regards to the Massacre.  Eventually, cases against the suspects like Andal Ampatuan Jr. (a candidate for the mayoralty position in the said area) have been filed–which gives all of us a fighting chance that this hideous crime will be given the highly sought-for justice at the end of the day.  Here’s me hoping that this case really be treated accordingly or else many people will get mad.  This is really such a horrible crime. And the government should stop treating its constituents like morons who would take knee scrapes in exchange of innocent lives and shattered dreams.

On the same year, the Philippines has lost its number one fan in the form of King of Rap Francis Magalona [44 y.o.] and its democracy icon President Corazon Aquino [76 y.o.].  Our country also lost a remarkable film-maker and actor in the form of Mr. Johnny Delgado [61 y.o.].

On the worldwide scenario, it has also been a remarkable year for the deaths of numerous celebrities.  The world has lost its King of Pop Michael Jackson [50 y.o.] which is most probably the hugest shocker of 2009.  Some of the other people who have left us this year are Brittany Murphy [32 y.o.] (Clueless & Just Married), Stephen Gately [33 y.o.] (Boyzone), Patrick Swayze [57 y.o.] (Ghost & Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights), Daul Kim [20 y.o.] (South Korean Supermodel), Lucy Gordon [28 y.o.] (Spiderman 3 & Serendipity) and Chris Henry [26 y.o.] an American football wide receiver.   For a list of celebrities who passed away at 2009, click HERE.

At the moment of writing, the Philippines’ most active volcano, Mt. Mayon is at Alert Level 4 already and is claimed to be ready to blast hazardous lava and ashes in days.  The predicted eruption date is on New Year’s Day or a day after New Year’s Day.  Albeit the residents around the volcano have already evacuated days ago, the activity of the volcano is still strong enough to reach beyond the estimated boundaries of lava.  I guess the best thing we can do for our fellow countrymen living around the volcano is to offer them prayers that Divine Intervention makes the volcanic activities relatively weaker for damages in life and properties be minimal.  It can be truly easy to be apathetic when it comes to this matter especially if you are residing outside the affected area.  However, I believe that it is already the least thing we can do for our brothers and sisters residing there.  Of course I know that we can always say that we serve as safeguards for them by being able to donate relief goods and clothes to them after the disaster.  But if you come to think of it, saying a prayer will just take moments of our time and all our prayers combined with really mean a lot.  This is so much better than relying on the presence of future relief goods for we give these people a fighting chance that their lives and investments will be less harmed.

I am pretty sure that the difficulties and pains of 2009 aren’t exclusive to me and to the people who have been affected by the disasters and crimes of this year.  Let me not forget to mention that the economy of this year hasn’t been really favorable–given that many people are still unemployed or underemployed.  If you’re a regular visitor of supermarkets, you probably noticed that the carts of people nowadays have significantly decreased in contents.  People tend to buy more basic commodities now unlike before where people could still afford to buy extra stuff.  It just proves that everyone is currently experiencing financial crisis.

Well aside from the Pacquaio-Mayweather fight and the concerts that I mentioned earlier, there are a lot of exciting things to look forward to in 2010.  One of these things is the FIFA World Cup to be held in South Africa.  On June, we would be experiencing a partial lunar eclipse which will become a total lunar eclipse on July.  For a complete list of events to set on 2010, click this LINK.

And of course for Filipinos, we would be all experiencing the chance to elect new leaders of our state on May 10, 2010.  It is also going to be the first elections that will use the automation machines so I guess every registered voter is excited and very hopeful for a clean and peaceful election.  I hope we won’t be disappointed.

The year 2010 in essence is the materialization of the new beginning that we have been all waiting for.  It is the new chance for us to omit the mistakes we’ve done in 2009 for us to have easier and better lives.  It will bring a big heap of hope that life, despite so much trials and bumps is still worth living for.  It’s a new avenue for us to prove our skills, our strengths and show the people around us what we’ve got!

So that makes up for it.  In behalf of the whole Pinoy Teens Online team, I wish you a very happy Christmas and a safe and prosperous New Year!  We hope you’d support Kevin’s newest venture which is Teens.com.ph and Pinoy Teens too.

Note: sorry for the misalignments of photos. Hindi ako marunong, evidently. No matter what I do, ganito pa rin ang labas eh!

How To Prevent Pimples

Simbang Gabi – Day 2

Forgive me for not providing any details about the first mass that I’ve attended yesterday, but I was just a bit too busy with  a lot of other things in order to get a noteworthy post out.

We write the 17th of December, 2009. It is 2 in the morning as I called up my girlfriend to come over and join me in attending the Simbang Gabi Mass for the second time around. I know it sounds a bit too early for most of you, but if you could have only seen what we saw the other day, you’d cometo understand wy we needed to make it to Saint Francis this early.

No mistake this time around, the Church looked half empty, half full the moment we took our seat at the left flank of the Saint Francis in Maa (Davao City). But just about ten minutes later, the whole church was filled from the front to the back and from left to right.

I had the chance to sneak a few pictures prior the mass started from outside and the beautiful Christmas lightings that they had to display. I’ve attached them to this post, although I have to admit that they pretty much suck (I’m referring to my pictures with the ugly camera that I used.

I can’t deny the fact that I barely understood the gospel from yesterdays mass, but this time, there’s been no chance that I could miss a thing about what was told to us by the Priest.

The Gospel was notably boring, even the Priest said so and cracked a joke in that way. But that was exactly what it made it so special. A gospel to make us realize that even the boring things, or let’s say the  unimportant things are vital to know about. Aside from this observation that I made, the gospel also tried to let us understand three other points of which the following I look upon as the most vital.

• Bro is just as human as we all are. His family tree showed dozen of criminals, unrighteous people, etc.

It’s very interesting to note that this is my first article in relation to my experience with Church/Religious activities. Rest assure that this won’t be the last as there are going to be seven more masses to be offered in succession during the coming days. So please don’t bash me for this bad one! :p

P.S: I will try to get in touch with the local church of my barangay here to have them know about Teens.Com.Ph and find ways how we can contribute to our local community with it. We always need to start with something small don’t we?

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