Top 10 for 2009 (part 1)

Instead of blogging about the top 10 experiences of 2009 (number one, of course, would be the day I became a missus!), I've decided to honor 10 people who made an impact on my year and helped make it memorable.

I originally intended for this to be just one post, but I've had to divide it into two. I figured that these people deserve more than one line each!

10. D&G

Me and the brothers with Xtian and his scary-ass stare

Lolo and my lil bro. These boys actually watched me dance on stage...and made fun of me afterwards (but also asked me to teach them the steps to "Single Ladies")--surprise of my life when the stage lights went on and I heard a familiar voice from the audience yell, "Go, tanda!" They joined my team for whatever reason (most probably alcohol). They took me out for drinks when I needed it most (i.e., the peak of all the wedding stress). They were there on my wedding day, and D supposedly got out of work just to be able to do so.

T: Kumain ka nang marami.
D: I can't, I have a shoot next week.
T: O sige, uminom ka na lang. Open bar.
D: Hindi rin pwede.
T: Hindi ka kakain, hindi ka iinom. Ano ba yan!
D: ANG DAMI MONG HINIHINGI! NANDITO NA NGA AKO!

9. Blue

Photo by Ogee

My favorite Blue quote of the year: "Sayaw nang sayaw, akala naman niya kagalingan! Gusto pa sa gitna!"

I once told him, "For someone who says a lot, you sure don't reveal much!" I can tell him anything, and I completely trust that he won't yap about it to anyone else--even when he threatens to. He was my bud in Dumags, and for some reason, I feel like I could chat or talk to him forever. He's a great listener and gives really sensible advice. Oo, ako rin nagulat. Hahaha. Peace, dude.

8. Mia Fau
I've looked up to this very smart, kind-hearted woman ever since I was in grade school. Mia was there for me when I was so conflicted over something, and she helped me sort through my muddle of thoughts and feelings. When I felt like I was being judged by people who mattered to me, she gave me tremendous support and guidance. I feel like we have somewhat similar values and even somewhat similar lives, and so she understood me in a way that others couldn't. Hearing her words of comfort and her counsel really gave me a bit of clarity, and helped put my mind and my heart at ease.

7. Mike

I just realized Cheng's in this photo too! Just look for the girl in the wedding gown!

Our future neighbor. Haha. Mike and I have this grand plan of building our future houses on adjacent lots, and leaving the kids with H as he, Cheng, and I play disc! (H, in turn, would take off on basketball days.) In 2009, I got nothing but all-out support from Mike, one of my closest friends on the team. Through leagues, weddings (both mine and his), relationships, I felt like he was there for me, and I was more than willing to be there for him (and Cheng!).

6. Addie
(Alas my wedding-day pic with her is in another computer!)

Oh, Addie, how I love her so. Because of her, I was utterly relaxed on our wedding day. After going to sooo many weddings and seeing how pushy (veiled as "professional") some coordinators could be, I told her that I totally appreciated how nice and charming and pleasant she was at my wedding, even when craziness was happening all around her (no safety pins for corsages, a guest --who sent regrets!--who came asking for a table for 10, etc.). I loved that she made it a point to go to my despedida de soltera with Milo and Paolo in tow, so she could meet some of the key people at the wedding. I was glad she came, not for coordination reasons, but because I wanted my family and close friends to meet one of the most special people in my life.

The second half of my top 10 for 2009 to follow!

Jane Austen in Beverly Hills

So, I didn't know that this movie (a modern classic)...

...was actually based on:

So who's clueless now?

Forgive me, I wasn't a big reader of the classics when I was younger, but now I try to alternate between classic and contemporary works. After I saw and read Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen's works quickly made it onto my reading list. I thought it would be better to see the movie (if there was one) before reading any of her books because I found that it gave me a better appreciation and understanding of the prose. But seeing as there was no Emma DVD on hand, I just decided to plunge into it and hoped I wouldn't get lost in the language.

The deeper I got into the book, the more I realized that it was a lot like one of my 90s favorites. And true enough, I only recently learned that Clueless really was loosely based on Emma—so I have seen it after all!

And that is what you call huli sa balita! Nearly 15 years too late!

The night that I was John, Paul, George, and Ringo

...and Anthony Kiedis, Alanis, and Deborah Harry!

I was also Offspring's drummer because I insisted on playing "Come Out and Play" even if no one else knew the song! Haha.

As you can see, I have finally discovered the wonders of Rock Band. I'm a little late to the Rock Band party, I know. But last Friday, I was lucky enough to be invited by OK! Mag to join their Rock Band Night at Frances's place. Woohoo! It was just the kind of night I wanted--prior to the invite, I was either a) going to stay home and feel all alone and loser-y because the husband had a Christmas party, or b) heading to Encore with some friends--a gimmick I really wasn't up for, but which I thought kind of beat staying home feeling all loser-y. So, thank you OK! and Coni!

It was my first time to see Frances and Vince's fabulous place, er, live. I had previously only seen it in pictures (in my mag! But I wasn't at the shoot), so it kind of felt like I was seeing a celebrity in person. Haha. A few photos:

(Top) Vince, super husband that he is, gave Frances a hot pink Christmas tree. It stands near the window which offers an awesome view from their unit. (Above) Their dining room. Note the dreamy Louis Ghost mixed in with the other dining chairs.

I tried my hand at the guitar (I sucked), vocals (super fun, kind of tiring, especially if you're doing "Give It Away" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers!), and the drums (my specialty. I used to kind of play the drums. Kind of). While my vocals weren't bad, my bandmates inexplicably failed whenever I had the mic in my hand! Oh well.

Cosmo's Red looked uber cute rockin' out.

After a pizza dinner and some songs on Rock Band 2, we switched to Beatles Rock Band. Nice! I never realized that there were so many Beatles songs that I didn't even know! I kept singing "Here Comes the Sun" the following day!

(Clockwise from left) Lana, Frances, Red, Coni, and Elaine

'Til the next Rock Band Night! Can it be soon? Please?

I've got a crush on you

Today's look was inspired by...

My girl crush, Emmanuelle Chiriqui, aka Sloan on Entourage. I've always found her so gorgeous, but she was especially so in season 6. And I loooved her clothes that season--classic and chic, never weirdly edgy.

In the season finale, pictured above, she wore a men's gray sweater over a coral tank and distressed boyfriend jeans (not shown), which she wore in a number of other eps. I could never pull off boyfriend jeans, at least not REAL boyfriend (or, in my case, husband) jeans. I'm just so small that I would look like a little boy in his dad's clothes. And I'm convinced that the look works best on skinny frames--something I have never had!

I do, however, have a pair of distressed jeans that weren't even intentionally distressed. They've got a few rips here and there because I played disc in them one time. (Couldn't help myself.) I also have a favorite gray off-shoulder top from Bangkok. First option was to wear it over a white tank, but I dug through my closet and found my almost-forgotten hot pink Topshop tank. Too bad my silver hoop earrings were no longer usable.

It feels weird doing this because I don't really put pics of myself in a post about clothes. (I'm far more interested in interiors than in fashion.) Plus there's the possible comparison with the incomparable Emmanuelle (a five-foot-three goddess, that one). But whatevs. I was just slightly giddy to find Sloan-esque stuff in my closet!

Now if anyone can tell me what shades she wore in that episode, I would owe you big time!

Oh, Christmas tree!

I haven't been able to blog about November, The Month I Got Some Awesome Free Stuff. One of the things I got was a free Christmas tree! I fully intended to make a 2-D tree using foam board, but I wasn't about to say no to a real fake tree!

Thanks to my sister-in-law's sister, Ann! The back story: She wanted to change her tree's decorations, but the ones she wanted didn't suit her existing tree, so her husband surprised her with a new one. Hence, extra tree!

Hamil walked in one night and chuckled as he saw my little surprise. It was bare for about two weeks, but today, I finally dressed it up. Doing research for work, I checked out this wholesale store called Unique (as recommended by Ann), which supposedly had cheap decorations--I'm not sure how the prices compare to regular department store prices, but my one grand does look like it went a long way. Yeah, so I got some shopping done while working.

I asked my husband if he preferred traditional Christmas balls, but he entrusted our tree's look to me. I opted for baby blue poinsettias--I thought they would look quite purty against the dark green tree, which in turn stands against our apple green accent wall. I was thinking of going for a silver garland made up of beads, but got an idea from one warehouse-like room at Unique. I saw wide, stiff ribbons running down the length of a tree-for-sale, and thought it would look cute with the flowers. I tried it out on one of the trees before making my purchase.

When we got home after our run, I set to work on the tree. I peppered the tree with the flowers, created bows out of the ribbon, and draped the ends across the leaves. And my husband approves! Yay! All we need now are a star to top it and some lights.

P.S.
Doesn't the hot pink gift offset the baby blue nicely? The thin blue ribbon kind of ties it all together. Love.

Lucky 9

Nine years ago, I got the surprise of my life when H removed my blindfold and I found myself at ASSOC, surrounded by candles and the ASSOC boys. They serenaded me with "The Promise," and H gave me a bunch of flowers and sang "I love you."

Three months and one day ago, I walked down the aisle as the choir sang "The Promise."

Today, I woke up beside the love of my life. As anniversaries go, this day might have been unremarkable: We stayed home as our furniture guy made us a TV console and a coffee table, cooked and ate a simple but absolutely delish pork steak lunch, went to mass, and went on a run with the cool December air in our faces. It seemed mundane--except for the fact that we are now husband and wife.

Today, I am thankful for my husband who, for nine years, has been proof that God loves me and wants me to be happy!