Rooting for the underdog

No, Axl Rose isn't the focal point in this picture; neither is the distracting cursor which I literally just saw now, thanks to my awzum cropping skillz. Meet AJ Celi, one of the most underrated people I look up to in fashion. She is best known for her 6-episode stint in the reality TV series Married to Rock as the on-again-off-again girlfriend of The Cult's Billy 'I-am-not-the-marrying-type' Duffy. I mean, RIGHT?! Show's called 'Married to Rock' and ironically 1/4 of the starring couples ain't officially hitched. The 6th episode wrapped up with AJ pulling a Rob Pattinson on Billy, and that was the last I saw of her. 

RoyalTea

I'd name this post Penny Royal Tea but that son of a biscuit Cobain named one of MTV Unplugged/In Utero 's most definitive track after an abortive drink. And I'm only finding about this now when I'm 23. 19 years too late. 

Tea and crumpets cupcakes to kickstart the first long weekend of the month. 

All Killer No Filler

You know where you are? You in the jungle baby! You're gonna diiiiiiiiiiiie!! This is probably the single most terrifying song line that has rocked my eardrum since One by Metallica. Today marks the 26th year since 'Appetite' was released for mass destruction consumption. I was a mere glisten in my mother's eye, heck my parents were probably total strangers then! Point is, 26 years since Appetite for Destruction exploded into the music charts, the music stays in its pure, relevant, and raw heavy metal-form. Who wouldda thunk I'd have a spot for heavy metal in this too pink of a life I'm living?

I have always defined my taste in music as "artist-particular", instead of the usual genre-specific. I could listen to the most classic of musical scores then listen to Korn's Twisted Transistor at the end of the day. Ever had that experience of forcing the music unto you because you like the artist behind that music? Well that was never the case between me, my Axl and my Appetite!

For a typical twenty-something like me, say 'Guns N' Roses' and SCOM automatically registers. But the truth is, boys and girls, Sweet Child is just one of thirteen game-changing tracks Guns gave birth to in '87! This is one All-Killer-No-Filler, a rare breed of records. Thanks for Welcoming us into the Jungle! Happy 26th AFD!!

Cure for the itch

I find myself struggling to control my blog itch early in the morning, only to tide it over for the night when I'm too zonked out to compose my thoughts. So far, my 8-week stay in IRRI has been great I'm typing this lame-o smiley right about now :) I cannot express how grateful I am to have landed a job which has given me a leverage to apply the learnings I'm picking up in graduate school. It's an almost seamless integration; a privilege I never think I would be entitled to.

Time management is like the book-balancing-act-for-models, for struggling young professionals like me. I have learned how to effectively stretch my time to accommodate the essentials. As part of a new lifestyle, I have vowed to quasi-disengage in social media for the duration of my tenure. I know what you're thinking, can my life get any lame-r now?! Actually, yes it can.

22

On this day, Rocket Queen was launched to infamy. See for yourself.

What COULD have gone down as the best GN'R concert from the UYI (see! I speak GN'R) archives did nothing but generate bad publicity for the Ax man. I have seen enough Guns concert from a plethora of Youtube uploads (whether shot pro or amateur, I could not care less) and this particular one ironically stood out for me. Putting the imminent violence and crappy egress aside, it was the volatility of the performance that blew me away. Plus they opened with Perfect Crime and prematurely ended the set with Rocket Queen. Talk about all killer no filler honey!

July 2, 2012

I feel like a ticking time bomb about to blow any second now. 

You cannot do that honey, that’s Social Suicide

Says the girl who landed a stint in an upcoming project at THE International Rice Research Institute, while trying to maintain a really good scholastic record in graduate school. Life happened. As summer school drew to a close, I received a familiar call for an interview, got hired on the spot and started in a week’s time! I didn’t really have much time to breathe and relax during the interval as I went back and forth to/from Manila everyday for a week just to secure subjects for my daddy dearest, as he is about to brave his FOURTH YEAR in law school. Law FREAKING school. I still don’t know how he does it; the Man is blessed with a genius of a brain and mad time-management skills!

If he can do it, so can I! Attagirl! Despite the heavy protests I received from classmates out of my willingness to look for a job while pursuing my studies, I actually like the sense of urgency that arises from having my plate full. No pun intended. Kind of like those months when I killed myself to cement a spot for boxing 6 times a week in hopes of attaining those bitchin supermodel abs. Having a full schedule suppresses any room for complacency, hence the natural sense of urgency.

And by FULL schedule I mean 7-7pm twice, standard 8-6pm office hours and a Saturday class all in a week’s work! At least I’ll have a library of classic films to lull me to sleep every night, works like a pill!

To keep myself from sounding like a broken record whenever people ask, my job involves writing/putting together training manuals pertinent to THIS project, organizing and facilitating trainings and seminars in preparation for the project launch, Donor-related reports etc etc. I do not want to divulge too much information to save myself from breaching a possible intellectual contract.

And this, boys and girls, is how I committed Social Suicide.