Cole Vintage love

I've always loved going around The Ramp and checking out new and trendy items. There's Pink Manila, Pill, Anthology and there's Cole Vintage. Earlier this year, I instantly fell in love with the Palau heels and bought it right away. I would wear it with a plain v-neck shirt, skinny jeans and lots of accessories. I've fallen in love with Cole Vintage ever since and I would check it out regularly. I would usually buy flats which are perfect for school. I'm glad that Cole Vintage and Kookie Buhain of Deathbyplatforms (I've been following her on Lookbook since late last year) are giving away P2,500 worth of gift certificate and a pair of taupe rose flats! :)

Check out this page for more details! :)

Jaded

Changes.
Expectations.
Accusations and denials.
Twists and turns.
Look at us.
What have we become?
Broken.
Bruised.

Wanderlust

Kianne, Francis, Ben, Asher, Jose, Jay, Hanah, me

You know those few minutes before you go to sleep? That moment where random thoughts run through your mind? The room is silent but your mind is loud. It's either the good kind wherein you think about things you've successfully done. What you have. Your dreams and your goals. More often than not, you'll end up with a smile on your face then off you go to dreamland. On the other hand, there's also the not-so-good kind wherein troubles, mistakes, regrets and failures enter your mind. Next thing you know, tears are streaming down your face and then you cry yourself to sleep.

Last night, I had that moment (I usually do) and thank God it was the good kind. After spending almost the whole day with friends whom I missed the most, there was nothing I can do but be grateful. Quick little scenes of wandering around toy stores, eating good food, catching up and having a good laugh flashed through my mind and instantly etched a smile on my face. It made me think that I might have done something really good to deserve friends like them. And when I clicked my iPod's next button, Jack Johnson's Better Together played. Yes, it's always better when we, guys, are together.

Drift away

When the 2nd semester ended, I promised myself that summer 2010 would be awesome and legendary. I had a list of things to do for summer but sadly, summer classes have been eating up a lot of my time. For the past two weeks, I've been waking up earlier than usual, attend class, meet up with my co-applicants, go home, do more school shit and rest. For the past two weeks, I've been doing this routine every single day. Well, except for Saturday and Sunday since there are no classes on weekends. Honestly, there came a point when I got tired of doing the same old thing over and over again. I wanted to do something new. Take a break and breath fresh air.

I'm thankful that I got my wish granted yesterday. Together with my co-applicants and our buddies, we went around the acad oval and had afternoon snack at UP Technohub. The heat was killing us so we decided to have halo-halo at Razon's. It's great to get to know new people, share them your personal experiences and laugh at everyone's randomness. After that, I went home just to take a bath and then went straight at Tomas Morato for a dinner date with my brother and my high school friends. Pizza, pasta, laughters and catching up definitely made our nights. We reached home at midnight and I didn't bother opening my book.

Sometimes, same old things tend to be exhausting and satiation.

Once in a while, it's good to try new things and go out of the box.

Here's To a Brighter Future

“Marunong ba kayong magbasa?”, Loreen asked the children as we were in one big circle. “Hindi po!”, they all said out loud and in that moment, my heart broke into pieces.

My CWTS group mates and I had a storytelling for children in UP two weeks ago. We prepared food for them and brought them to an empty lot near the Church of the Holy Sacrifice. We formed a big circle, held hands and sat down. They were all thin, their skins were burnt by the sun, they had a lot of wounds and scars of poverty, they could not read but they were all wearing smiles of playfulness and ignorance. We read 3 stories for them and fed them after. When the sun was about to set, we called it a day.

As I was walking toward the jeepney stop, I got to talk to some of the children and got to know them better. I was struck by the story of Kim, the little girl who looked like a boy. Her hair was very short but she was wearing a tank top with Snow White's face printed on it, floral shorts and nothing on her feet. Her feet were already black because of the grease and filth of the streets. She was holding a small green plastic bag with biscuits, crackers and duhat in it. I asked her what’s inside the plastic bag and she replied, “Ibibigay ko ito kay Papa e.” When I asked her if she bought it, she said no and told me that various people gave it to her. As we were nearing the jeepney stop, I asked them if they could still remember my name. Hearing them say “Ate Mela!” out loud instantly touched my heart. As I was on my way home, I couldn’t help but smile because of a very fulfilling and priceless afternoon.

When I reached home, I turned the TV on and watched the news. Crimes. Accidents. Corruption. Deaths. Violence. Poverty. This is the Philippines. This is reality.

Presidential candidates take center stage and stab each other as they race up to the top. There is advertising king Manny Villar, who says that he has tried swimming in trash and experienced spending Christmas in the streets. He’s allegedly been buying votes as he was caught giving each child an orange peso bill. There’s former MMDA chairperson Bayani Fernando’s running mate, Dick Gordon who says he’s awake 24/7 to respond to the needs of the people. They call their duo The Transformers since they claim to transform the society for the better. There’s the green-coated lady Jamby Madrigal who gives away bead bracelets with her a photo of her face in it. “The use of actors—you had to pay P30 million to endorse you—is an insult to the Filipino intelligence,” she says yet she was endorsed by actress Judy Ann Santos when she was running for Senate. There’s former President Joseph Estrada who insists that PGMA isn’t eligible to run for Congress and says that Villar’s a copycat for using the color orange. In his campaign ad, he says with great confidence that the Philippines progressed outstandingly during his term. There’s Gibo Teodoro who gets the votes of people because of his exceptional intelligence and loses the votes at the same time because he is under the administration. Lastly, there’s Ninoy Aquino, the hero and former President’s son and the sister of the Queen of All Media. His campaign ad where Regine Velasquez was singing and big stars were all wearing yellow received a lot of comments. In his latest ad, he promises and says, “Hindi ako mangungurakot.”

We’re left with barely 2 months to think about on who to choose and elect as president. The challenge is on us to vote wisely and let our voices be heard. Let us not be blind with the things around us. We should stand up and be involved since this is our country after all. If we would open our eyes and be aware, we would fully understand our duties as Filipinos. We see the dead keep dying, the poor remain poor and advertisements, radios and loudspeakers are bombarded with countless of promises. Promises of change and progress. Promises of loyalty and honesty. Sadly, when they are already in power, they forget their promises. Promises just come and go.

As I write this, there’s still hope in my heart that our country could still stand up and step forward. One day, I know that things will be better and the next time I’ll see these children, they’re already in their uniforms, they already know how to read and they’re still smiling. I know that day would come and I pray that it would be soon because these children deserve a brighter future.