It seems that work's grueling January schedule has taken a toll on myself and (some) coworkers that I know. That meant not having any days off - until now. Today is relief for me and others who aren't on assignment. Shar just finished hers and is now rewarding herself with all the sleep/rest time she needs. The same with Dave (Mr. Barclay). But not for Rizz. She has to work tonight. She will get that much needed rest once its all over for her workday. We're staying in Peru, IL tonight as I booked a hotel. No long drive home until later mid-morning.

I almost fell deep asleep on the drive home from work. I veered towards the left lane and didn't know it until I regained my focus again. I have to remind myself to allow a few minutes of resting when needed. It's better to be awake.

Its reeeeeeally winter now here in Chicagoland. Temps are falling and going below zero. Snow seems to be prevalent now appearing off-and-on. However, nothing major to report. I do hope its my last as I soon look forward to warmer climate in Florida..Mother Nature, please don't make this a long, depressing winter. I hate it enough already.

During the last few days of being sick, I have given myself isolation in the confines of my humble abode listening to a whole lot of Bee Gees CD's, two of which are movie soundtracks that starred John Travolta. I really had my listening ears full just like my Dad enjoyed this group's music back in the late 1960s and the 1970s. Carrying on my his passion for music, I decided to pursue two of the albums he already has on vinyl. These were 'Children of the Night' and 'Spirits Flown Away.' The other one my Dad had was 'The Best of Bee Gees' which was on a reel - as in 'reel-to-reel tape deck'. The overall Bee Gees experience is truly amazing. The Gibbs brothers started off as the humble, talented young lads appearing on shows. Then as they grew older, they went with a more mature sound singing a lot of ballads filled with deep thoughts and even odd song titles capturing the hearts of teen audiences. Barry Gibb's vibrant falsetto voice started to become prevalent. In the 1970s, they decided to revamp their style and take on a new direction with their sound entering the funk and disco genre (especially after their mainstream success appearing on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack thanks to music producer Robert Stigwood). But their beloved love ballads like 'How Deep is Your Love' and 'Too Much Heaven' continued to flourish as well. However, with the death of disco also came their declining popularity generating little interest in the later years to come and they never went as high as that. But they have kept their bond closer as brothers, through the best times and worst - and have continued making music right to the very end. Sadly, brothers Maurice Gibb passed away in 2004 and most recently, Robin Gibb just last December of 2012.The oldest and only surviving brother, Barry Gibb, is still active going on music tours with his son Stephen and Maurice's daughter Samantha to promote the Bee Gees mythology album. Overall, the Bee Gees listening experience is a great journey. They've went through different genres and bravely experimented furthermore with their music material trying to grow as serious music artists. As their music is heard in my ears, it's as pure and refreshing as ever. These guys were/are original. I don't think there'll ever be artists in my lifetime that can replicate their type of success (and more importantly, keeping their family bond strong). You will definitely know a Bee Gees song when you hear it. That's not just music. But it's good music. Soothes the soul. Cleanses the mind. Warms your heart. Makes you wanna try and sing it, too :)

What good is a friend on Facebook as well as in real-life (from the past) that makes insults or disparaging remarks about me or the stuff I post....today I had to initiate the delete sequence on this dude named Brandon (whom I knew since high school). I don't deal with things like that. There's no room in my life to keep friends who act this way towards me. I respect him and I hope he learns from what he did. The door of friendship remains open.

I am sick. Its not the best feeling in the world at all. Nasal congestion, teary eyes, persistent coughing and phlegm stuck in the throat - those are wicked symptoms!!!! Worst of all is that I lost my voice as I can't speak right especially when it is required at my job. It sounds so coarse and rusty unlike the good looking pinoy that I am...So, I decided to rest up and stay home as a means for me to better improve my chances of beating this latest bout of the common cold. I look forward to making a quick recovery as I return to work on Sunday morning.

Its painful and upsetting how my coworker/friend Shar and her immediate family are dealing with another day. Her niece has gone missing since yesterday without any word or clue. They thought she was in school the whole time until officials noted to them on her absence. Prayers of hope for the entire family in Aurora, IL. May she be in good care as she heads home at some point in time. We can only think positive right now. Its tough but I'm believing in miracles.

NOTE: Just a few hours after posting this, she was found :)

Last night was a good one despite the rapid drop in temperatures as well as having sleet as the form of precipitation. That alone didn't deter me and Rizz's plan in hanging out with our friend Mr. Barclay and his wife Vicki at Rookie's Sports Bar here in St. Charles,  Illinois. We were all treated with the dollar burgers among other foods and drinks we had on our table.

With good food also came great conversations which later ended up at the Barclays' home within a mile or so. There, Mr. Barclay showed me around the home and even sharing his scrapbook which contained vintage photos and documents from decades ago. It felt like being caught in a timewarp of his past. One thing that was really overwhelming is something in one of the rooms. Does anyone remember 'The Christmas Story' and Ralphie's Red Ryder BB rifle? It turns out that Mr. Barclay had one, too which is well over 60 years old now. And get this - the original BBs are still there, too. I've come to have a newfound appreciation for Mr. Barclay - my good friend and co-worker whom me and Rizz refer to as either 'John' or 'Dave' since he was named as John David by his mother, who is still living in her 90s...In the end, we all gathered in the living room and watched the conclusion of the 49ers and Packers game. It sure was a good night and we were happy to be in each others company warming everyone's hearts. And that is something the weather itself cannot take away.

Time management has been crazy for me this week. And I admit, it's already putting a damper on my feat/accomplishment of blogging for 365 straight days. It's quite a bummer, huh. It's okay though. I will do my best to make up for lost time by posting a few blogs on some days just as you (the loyal browser) would already notice as it's routinely a habit I constantly do here. I definitely won't let you guys down. Good things are coming ahead and I'm gonna put in time to record these wonderful moments that'll happen in the future. So stay tuned, world.

Guest Blog from Rizz

"Our HD Plus Triple Bundle 12 month for $125.06/month is over ! Comcast don't value their customer for 3 yrs and never been late for payment. I was told they don't have any promotional to offer that cheaper than $197.46/month for existing customer. Goodbye Comcast and Hello AT&T!!!!!!!!! Exactly the same bundle for $85/month and I managed to charmed the representative to waive all installation fees (: Now, I am good or what??????? hahaha"

I'm on a quest to try and change things. Nothing new. Same goals like last year. I want to take myself to the next level. I can't let it slip away again. I must allow some time and effort to get things going. January is still too early. I can.

I've been sleeping in cycles lately because of the schedule my job runs...its difficult to back to sleep sometimes and there are moments I'm so tired. Either way, I'm just glad there is a period of resting than not having any.

The key to making things better financially in my life right now is either working a job that is 40 hours a week or 2 part-time jobs that is 40+ hours a week. At the same time, cutting my spending would help and saving instead (especially when the FL move idea is now in its early stages)....Through struggles of my own which included 2 weeks of no work at the job, it just motivates me more. Good news too that I just aced tests for a staffing agency nearby.

Feels good being in the bedroom on a cold evening as me and Rizz are listening to soft, mellow Barry Manilow tunes on the iPod deck and eating Russell Stover chocolates. We're also spending time surfing the net - her on the work laptop and myself on the S3 handset. I'm about to do laundry in the next few hours.

I find it distasteful for (some) new generation music lovers to insult and trash (via You Tube comments) the music that was once a part of my childhood, teenage years and later in my college years. If only they realized how innocent music was as well as the artist themselves that had more imagination in their songwriting skills (in which most of today's musicians lack and go with the same cliche filled with sexual innuendos just to spark young people's minds to like the songs). I see their comments using the words 'lame', 'awkward', 'corny' and the offensive remark 'sooo gay' (which is downright brutal and disrespectful)...However, I did see other new gens giving the utmost respect and passion for the classics from the 70s, 80s, and 90s (even the 00's, for that matter). They even said they'd wish living that era....When it all comes down to it, there is still some fascination and interest in the music of years past, whether people like it or hate it.

I am so geeked out right now on having Adobe Illustrator 8 installed to my Windows7 computer. It took some answers to find out how to properly do it since this Illustrator version is incompatible with Windows7. I'm gonna sound techy but I had to find the .dll files within the Windows XP folder and copy those on top of the Illustrator 8 files contained in the Programs folder - all directly from the old laptop. And then, I had to transfer all of those to the x86 folder in the Windows7 computer. It took some hard work reading people's posts and such on how about to go forth with this. It's been a long hibernation but I think it's finally time to launch my artistic side off the ground once again. Prior to that, as mentioned earlier, I just got a sketchpad and colored pencils for Christmas. All in all, the New Year is going on full blast.

My head is feeling woozy today with no thanks to the pressure coming from last night's flight heading home. I didn't even feel like coming to work this early in the morning having this condition. Thank goodness the Advil and Mountain Dew Code Red alleviated me somewhat. Glad to be home for a bit and then head off for another round of work. So relieved to know I'm off tomorrow.

Highlights from the last-minute R.O.C.K.S. Karaoke Event - 1/1/2013

Me and Rizz had a great time with everyone who attended the R.O.C.K.S. (Rockin' Organization of Compulsive   Karaoke Singers) event held at Uptown Buffet in Norfolk, VA .... All for the sake of fun, we danced crazy and screamed our lungs out with the singing. This one definitely capped the highlights of our vacation to an awesome finale! I look forward for another go around in the future....And so our holiday vacation ends. It's back to Chicago and the life there.

NOTE: All video clips shown here were recorded and trimmed via Samsung Galaxy S3. The editing and compiling were done on Windows Live Movie Maker)

Its the first day of 2013. Things are better left unsaid than said when it comes to making my New Year's resolutions. Part of it came true last year such as being in fit and trimming my body frame. However, there had been dismal failures that never got off the ground. I can only hope in fulfilling real promises this time around rather than saying things that'll never come to fruition....Aside from real-world issues, I will also try to make the concerted effort in blogging daily for a year, too. That's a swell challenge but I'd rather go for it than not putting up a fight against myself....so here's to making improvements and going where I left off in life. No resolutions. Just a green light. GO!!!

(Note: written minutes before midnight on the next day)