Latest Finds

So this blog site has been dormant for almost a year now. Haha! I should work on writing more and more. Sometimes I am just too lazy to write something or I just feel like I have nothing interesting to write about. So now, I am writing about some things that really caught my attention. There is no category as to what these things are. They are just the things, mostly songs, that I like very much lately. Here we go…

 

1. Cherry Trees by The Weepies – I love The Weepies!! I still cannot get over their “Living in Twilight” and “Riga Girls”, from the album “Say I Am You, even if I have listened to them a hundred times!! But lately I haven’t heard anything new from them. Doesn’t have to be a latest release (they already released their latest album “Sirens” and it’s good too!) but something else than those two songs. Then I stumbled upon their 2004 concert in Ohio and heard them sing “Cherry Trees”. Deb Talan claimed that she borrowed Pablo Neruda’s words form one of his poems and wrote a song about that. The words were “I want to do with you what Spring does with the cherry trees.” Now how can you go wrong with that? I love Pablo Neruda and a Weepies song from Neruda is just perfect!! You can listen to the whole concert at Archive.org here. I also posted a video below courtesy of Youtube. Sorry I can’t find anything else in the internet so just close your eyes and listen to the song if you are not into all those dancing (which is not bad actually).

 

2. The Greatest Bastard by Damien Rice – Another artist that I love is Damien Rice. Damien Rice is one of the artists who I prefer to sing live than the album versions. There’s just pure emotion when he sings and you can feel that he means every word. The Greatest Bastard is one track from his latest album “My Favourite Faded Fantasy” which was released last October 2014. As always, this song is well written and packed with emotions and it will even break your heart watching him sing it. “So please don’t let on that you don’t love me. Cause I know you do, I know…”. Below is the video from Youtube. Look at him at 3:55 and you will see what I mean.

 

3. The Lord is My Light by Joel Case – This one I have heard quite a few months ago and only now did I realize how beautiful it is. It is a simple and raw declaration of who God is in your life. The simple lyrics and the moving melody makes you just want to raise your hands in worship and just declare every word. “Oh glorious freedom of the children of God. I am one of them.” That’s just something. Lately, I want to move away from heavy electric guitar-y (if there’s such a term) songs and just get lost in these acoustic, free worship, songs. “Songs of deliverance. Songs of freedom coming down, freedom raining down.” And then he just bursts into that shout as if wallowing, embracing that freedom. Very powerful! Below is the Youtube video by Cageless Birds.

 

4. Shure SE215 – I know, I know. What is this doing in this post? Haha! Well this post is about the things that I love and Shure SE215 is what helped me appreciate these songs even more. One of the best IEMs out there at a very affordable price. I was able to buy mine at P2,500.00 from a re-seller in olx.ph. Hehe. But I am loving every moment that I am wearing it. It has noise cancellation feature that lessens the outside noise and makes you hear the sound clearly. The best thing about it that I really love is how it fits in your ear. It is very comfortable that you can sleep while still wearing them earphones in your ear. The base is good for my liking and the clarity of the sound is perfect for the type of music that I listen to. I love it so much!

 

There you go! I will try to post some more about these things if it is what it will take for me to write more. Next time maybe I will post about movies, tv shows, or maybe something else. We’ll see…

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New Year

I didn’t intend to create a New Year post. All I know is that a post in this blog is so overdue and I’m in the mood to do one right now. At least it made a lot more sense when I was thinking about it earlier. I can’t seem to find the words now that I am actually doing this blog post.

2014 has been a safe year for me. If I will look back, all I would see are my out of town/country trips, and then those “routine” that I usually do on a weekly basis. Work (of course), volleyball, movies (which is surprisingly low this year), church, family gatherings, etc. There are a few highlights here and there but I can’t pinpoint a moment that can be the highlight of the year. Lazy waltz, that’s how I would describe my 2014.

In 2015, I will try to stir things up a bit. I will try to bolder and active this year. There are so many plans that I have been postponing in terms of my career, personal growth, spiritual concerns, opportunities, love (?), travel, and a lot of other things. I will try to accomplish them, or most of them, this year. After all, I am not getting any younger.

One of my high school teachers gave me a gift during our graduation. It was a brown leather wallet that I really liked. I am not sure why he gave me that but I think it was his way of telling me that I have graduated from high school and that I am a grown up already, that things will be getting serious and I need to face them like a grown up. Of course the wallet has already worn out but I will never forget the note in the letter that came with that gift. I can’t really remember the exact words but it goes something like, do not let the current dictate where you are going, you’ll enjoy it more if you paddle.

That’s exactly what I intend to do this year.

Frustrated Bookworm (Huh?)

After exactly 11 months, I have finally finished reading William Golding’s “The Lord of the Flies”. My initial reaction?

“What were you thinking William Golding?!?! What the hell??”

I’m not kidding. That was my reaction when I got to the final two chapters. I can’t believe I let this book sit for almost a year.

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Well, that’s what always happen when I read a book… they sit for a very looong time! Don’t get me wrong, I like to read. Maybe it’s better to say that I like to read what other people are reading. Haha! I like to grab the next book that I heard good reviews about. But after buying them, they just add up to my number of books sitting, waiting to be read.

My problem is I easily lose interest of the book, especially when I got lost somewhere in the story. This usually happens when I am halfway through the book. I stop, for a very long time, then I get back to it and, hopefully, finish the book. There are some that I finished as fast as I can (mind you I am a very slow reader. Haha!) The ones that I enjoyed so much are Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird”, William Young’s “The Shack” and Stieg Larsson’s The Girl Trilogy (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest). I am still working on it and hopefully it will eventually be a part of my system.

So, after “The Lord of the Flies”, these are the books that I am planning to read next. I still can’t decide which one to read first so your suggestions are very much welcome!

1. The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

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I’ve been hearing a lot about this book and hopefully this is going to be an easier read than The Lord of the Flies.

2. The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

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This is one of the hardest books I’ve read. Yes I’ve started reading this but I somehow got lost in at the last part of Book 1. And to think that there are 12 books on it excluding the Epilogue. Haha! But I’ve been wanting to read this book for the longest time so I won’t give up until I’ve finally read and finished it. Good luck to me!

3. 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

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I’ve never ready any of Murakami’s books and I think I have to start now. I chose 1Q84 since this is one of his latest and hopefully it wouldn’t be that hard to read. Hopefully.

On Health

I’ve been overweight ever since I left college (I can’t believe it’s almost a decade ago) and I’ve been very busy (read: lazy) to do something about losing weight. But when I reached 30 years a couple of months ago, that’s when it dawned on me that I am not getting any younger. Soon I will feel my age and I won’t be able to do a lot of the things that I can do now. When that time comes, the dream of becoming the best person that I can be will be just that, a dream.

Like a lot of young guys, I dreamed of having a lean, sexy, muscled body. Lol! But when you’re young, you think you have all the time in the world to do them later on and pursue other things, until we realize that it’s already too late. In my case, it’s not that late, but I think it will be if I don’t start soon.

I am always reminded about my health, on a daily basis. I would always feel pain on my lower back after our Saturday volleyball games. I always find it hard to bend over and pick up something. What to wear for the day is always a challenge because nothing fits me anymore, and I don’t want to look that big with what I am wearing. My brother wouldn’t call me “tabatchoy” for no reason. Lol!

Last January, during my annual physical exam, the doctor specifically mentioned her concern about my weight. I stand 5’10 and I weigh 86 kgs. I usually shrug this concern off because I don’t believe I look that bad when fat because it is compensated by my height. But when I she said that the ideal weight for my height is 74 kgs, that’s when it hit me.

I am 30 years old, balding, and overweight by 12 kilos. That’s not good at all!

That’s when I started reading about dieting and working out. One of my concerns is I didn’t want to start by building muscles without working on my diet because the muscle would just add up to my body weight without changes on my body fat and cholesterol levels. I started researching about dieting and I came across intermittent fasting from Kevin’s blog. In there, he reviewed the e-book “Eat-Stop-Eat” by Brad Pilon. In there he discussed the positive effects of intermittent fasting on the physical, hormonal, and energy levels of a person, among other things. I was so convinced by it that I started following this diet right after I finished the e-book.

I started dieting last February and would fast for 24 hours, two times a week. I will eat nothing and will only drink water or coffee. Unfortunately, I didn’t record my progress through pictures or journals. I didn’t even monitor my weight. I was afraid that if I didn’t see that much progress at the beginning I might lose interest and stop. I get a feel of my progress with how I feel about myself. I know that they are not the best way of tracking my progress, but I started feeling a little lighter when playing volleyball. I wouldn’t feel the usual pain on my lower back after every game. the best part of all, my shirts and pants started to fit on me again. I am able to wear the shirts that I was not able to wear for the longest time. Even a 36-inch pants feels lose already.

After 5 months, I already weigh 76 kgs (168 lbs). I am still doing intermittent fasting for 24 hours twice a week until I reach my target of 160 lbs (72 kgs). But right now I feel like I hit a plateau and I’m stuck at 168 lbs for a couple of weeks now. I am planning to hit the gym one of these days if nothing changes for another couple of weeks. I will probably document it again through this blog. Or maybe not. Hehe.

Still the battle continues. Forward to the better, still balding, but better, me!

Initiating a Bucket List

I’ve been thinking of creating a bucket list for a couple of weeks now. I know it’s quite late to start it at 28 (rhyme!) but it’s never too late to start doing what you have to  do (I think I heard that from Oprah). So, I’m trying to create a list for myself to accomplish before I die.

One thing, though, that I realized during this [thinking] exercise is that it’s hard to create a bucket list if you don’t know what you want and what you want to achieve. I can write one goal after another but are they what I really want to get out of this life? They might just be something that I heard from a friend or something that I read somewhere and I found them cool and interesting that I want to make it a goal too. For once I want to create something that I can really say as mine. Something that I will do for myself and from my self.

This is going to be really difficult. This is just the first step, listing them down. Most of the hard work will happen in accomplishing them one at a time. All I know is that in the end, it’s all worth it.

My Favorite Worship Songs

As my effort to participate in Kuya Ganns‘ Citipointe Contest, I am listing down three of my most favorite worship songs. This is really hard because I only need to name three songs and I really have a lot of songs that I really want to go on that list. That’s why I have some runner-ups. Hehe. (Kuya Ganns, please don’t disqualify me for this. Haha!)

I have never joined any contest like this before but I want to win the “Commissioned” album by Citipointe and want to share to you my list. Here they are:

  • How Great Is Our God by Chris Tomlin – The bridge of this song has always been an anthem for me that I want to sing at the top of my lungs. “You’re the name above all names. You are worthy of all praise. My heart will sing, ‘How geat is our God'”
  • Breathe by Ross Parsley – I love this song because it articulates how desperate we are of God. Not to mention the moving rendition by Ross Parsley.
  • Did You Feel The Mountains Tremble by Hillsong Australia – I am always reminded of this song everytime I go to worship concerts. To see how all worshippers jump like ocean waves and shout the name of Jesus. I believe that’s how it will look like, that’s how the world will tremble, when Christ comes back.

Runner-ups:

  • Came to the Rescue by Hillsong Australia
  • Let the River Flow by Michael W. Smith
  • Here in Your Presence by Ross Parsley
  • There is None Like You by Lenny LeBlanc
  • Unto You and Worthy to be Praised by Planetshakers

Ae Fond Poem

Four years ago, I subscribed to daily poems sent by Poemhunter.com. I will admit that I don’t read every poem that I get in my email and from the handful that I read, most of them I don’t really understand. Hahahaha! But one day I read this poem by Robert Burns and I fell in love with it immediately. The second stanza just blew me away and I can really feel the sadness in the words. Enough with the introduction that can never give justice to the poem. I just want you to read it and feel it. Enjoy! 🙂

Ae Fond Kiss, and then We Sever
by Robert Burns
(1759-1796)

Ae fond kiss, and then we sever;
Ae fareweel, and then for ever!
Deep in heart-wrung tears I’ll pledge thee,
Warring sighs and groans I’ll wage thee.
Who shall say that Fortune grieves him
While the star of hope she leaves him?
Me, nae cheerful twinkle lights me,
Dark despair around benights me.


I’ll ne’er blame my partial fancy;
Naething could resist my Nancy;
But to see her was to love her,
Love but her, and love for ever.
Had we never loved sae kindly,
Had we never loved sae blindly,
Never met -or never parted,
We had ne’er been broken-hearted.


Fare thee weel, thou first and fairest!
Fare thee weel, thou best and dearest!
Thine be ilka joy and treasure,
Peace, enjoyment, love, and pleasure!
Ae fond kiss, and then we sever;
Ae fareweel, alas, for ever!
Deep in heart-wrung tears I’ll pledge thee,
Warring sighs and groans I’ll wage thee.

Source: About.com

Hands On Manila – Servathon 2008

In coordination with Hands on Manila, Accenture Caring for Tomorrow participated in Servathon 2008 last October 11. We went to White Cross Children’s Home to paint the playroom and do some gardening. This was my first time to participate in this company initiative and I really enjoyed it. At first I wasn’t sure how to do it but in the long run, I got the hang of it and just enjoyed what I’m doing. I will definitely do it again next year. 😀

Click on the image for bigger picture.