Camille covering a Taylor Swift song (2nd attempt)

The phone rings again right after she just finished singing. Aack! LOL.

Camille covering a Taylor Swift song (first attempt)

Everything was going okay until after 40 seconds....phone call got in the way. LOL.

Slow traffic at the HRBT (Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel)

It's always slow at the HRBT. Give yourself extra amount of time if you're willing to travel to or from Hampton, Virginia

What a wonderful 4 days it was in Hampton Roads, Virginia. Had a lot of fun! And with fun, time went by so fast. My only regret is not spending time with everyone, especially the rest of my relatives (because they had to work their job most of the day). However, I was able to take my cousin Camille everywhere especially at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront where there was a boardwalk art show going on. I almost did had a chance to meet music producer and the Neptunes'/N.E.R.D. own - Chad Hugo through a friend. Maybe next time though. I was able to succeed in making a return to my old church meeting the wonderful people there as well as being there for my friend's wedding in which I was one of his groomsmen. And I also had the opportunity to meet Karol at the temp/staffing agency I worked at, too. Overall, it was a blast!

Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel

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It's 3:32PM CT/ 4:32PM ET. I'm inside a Southwest Airlines jet at about 30000+ feet right now looking at the spectacular land and puffy clouds below. It's really cool using the jet's Wi-Fi connection and being able to do the usual internet activities consisting of Facebooking as well as blogging. I am also able to see the status of this flight in real-time. According to the status, there is 23 minutes left before it touches down in Norfolk, Virginia. I look forward to seeing my friend Ray and his fiancee Marilyn finally get married this weekend as well as meeting my relatives who just came from the Philippines a few months ago. This is gonna be some interesting weekend for sure!

I won't elaborate anymore than what I have to say here...Manny 'Pac-Man' Pacquiao clearly won the fight...The general public and the press knew it, except for the judges at ringside who flopped w/ their shocking, controversial decision. The boxing world takes a hit w/ the result. Manny was robbed and it just gained him a new following as well as the fire inside him that needs to come out. Come November, the events of June 9th will be forgotten. Pacquiao vs Bradley 2...its on!
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Today and yesterday is a bummer for the Facebook addict in myself. The new 'Timeline' feature on my Facebook profile isn't working properly (with only just a few successful refreshes done on the web browser). Latest posts aren't showing up, but it is indeed a miracle that I have received a lot of comments and feedback at the same time the problem is happening. My Blackberry Curve 9330 seems to be a big help, too, showing all posts through its Facebook app. I have faith in Facebook's techs as they work around the clock to help resolve the issue. I must say that doing body exercises and workouts distract me from Facebook for a good reason, or let alone using the computer for hours.

It feels good to be lean and trimmed again. I've been exercising lately, especially relying on basic exercises, kettlebell weights, jogging and basketball. In over a month's time, my body was able to undergo a big change and I'm very happy of the results. I plan to be consistent with working out and being proactive on a daily basis.

Picture Moment - 5/30/2012

A picture of myself (in the red Blackhawks t-shirt), Rizz, and her relatives at Cloud Gate in Millennium Park. [Taken on 5/30/2012]

Chicago Outing 5/30/2012

It felt so great coming back to the big city (Chicago) especially on a relatively cool afternoon. I decided to get a plan going with Rizz. The idea was to bring her relatives along with us. And through everyone's availability, it worked! They've been in the states since September of last year and that they haven't seen much of Chicago visiting only Grant Park and Lakeshore Drive that time (in which it was before winter). This time around, they saw a little more: the Willis Tower (previously, the Sears Tower), Cloud Gate (the reflecting mirror structure known as 'The Bean' in Millennium Park) and the Navy Pier. We took advantage of public transportation, too with the Metra commuter train as well as the CTA bus that got us going to our destinations in downtown Chicago. I was able to provide a video highlight reel on You Tube for all of you to check out. We had a great time.

On a sidenote, Rizz's uncle wasn't able to make this time as he is in the Philippines. He is due to return in a few months. Perhaps he too will get an amazing opportunity to check out Chicago and its signature landmarks.

Guest blog

"I have no interest in holding "loyalty" to a high standard anymore...the meaning of the word seems to be lost in the wind, or written in a language that people just don't comprehend..and in the end, you really can't control what one will do or not do for you..no life is more important than the other.. I have found that having people's Respect holds more weight.. Respect sets invisible boundaries that just comes naturally.. Loyalty just seems to cause way more problems than Respect for some reason..lol" - D.C., Orlando, FL

So far, springtime has seen better days here in the Chicago suburbs. Its lovely so far with temps going up-and-down almost every week. That means it gets hot and cold, on occassions. There hasn't been the threat of imminent tornadic, severe weather that entered the entire state of Illinois (as well as other states) earlier at the beginning of the season. We've been blessed with beautiful conditions and its even really comfy underneath this one of many big trees near my place in which I feel the cool breeze ushering its way through. This is where I'm blogging from right now with my Blackberry. Maybe this'll be the best summer yet than the last 2 I've encountered already. I hope winter will treat me good, too with hardly any snow activity because that'll be the last experience I'm gonna have as a resident of Illinois. Next year, me and Rizz are Florida-bound. Its gonna be an exciting chapter. But no rush, really. I can wait here as long as the weather is just right.


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Looks like there has been a long period of inactivity lately. Sorry for not posting much. But coming in a day or two will be blogs that I meant to post because of recent things happening in my life. Lots to talk about...Thanks for your patience :)



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Donna Summer (1948-2012)

The music world lost its disco queen today. Donna Summer, 63, lost her battle to lung cancer. She is known for her hits "Bad Girls", "On The Radio", "Hot Stuff", "Love To Love You Baby", "Last Dance" and "She Works Hard for the Money." Her influence to generations in the music business remains as strong as ever ... I enjoyed listening to the 'Bad Girls' album in 1979 when I was just 5 years old living in South Korea (when my father was stationed there). I will have to look for the 'Crayons' album in which she released a few years ago. I listened to it before and I was amazed how well she sounded vocally with today's music style. That is most certainly going to be in my iPod as a playlist ... Rest In Peace, Donna Summer.

My Music Pick of the Day: Flo Rida - Wild Ones ft. Sia [Official Video]

Flo Rida's jams always sound great. I like this! Sia's infectious vocals heard often in this track definitely shows potential for her to have a solo album one day. That happened to Ke$ha who worked with Rida on the 'Right Round' track back in 2008. I got this on my iPod Nano.

THE LUCKY ONE Trailer 2012 Movie - Official [HD]

Me and Rizz just saw this romantic drama today at the Cinemark Tinseltown USA movie theater in North Aurora. Big budget movies are put aside for this weekend and I opted for Rizz's pick: THE LUCKY ONE. It was that good! Brilliant storytelling delivered once again by author/ screenwriter Nicholas Sparks who brought us THE NOTEBOOK, THE LAST SONG, and DEAR JOHN. Zac Efron portrays his on-screen character well and is in stark contrast to the many roles he had in movie career. Seems to show he's coming of age and possibly heading into the direction like Leonardo DiCaprio had. Taylor Schilling is also impressive and both her and Efron have great on-screen chemistry together. I don't wanna give away most of the plot here so I'll let this movie trailer do the rest. The movie is wonderfully written and I highly recommend it to anyone, including couples. It'll definitely make you fall in love more with your significant other. And for the singles out there, someone will come around and make a huge difference in your life. It's just a matter of time. Everyone deserves someone special and fate will draw two together :)

A photo that I wanted to share with all of you. The snapshot was taken by her cousin Ren-Ren on her iPhone. I decided to tweak it out a bit with some effects on the computer - and came out with this! I think it's a brilliant work of art. By the way, the pet bird's name is Francisca and she's valued in the pet store at $400+. Rizz loved the way Francisca handled her eyebrows with care.

A T-shirt I bought..One of many products/items that promoted 'The Avengers' movie hype.
The hype is over! It had finally come to this day - Friday, May 4th, 2012. My workplace seemed to get the day off right for me, Rizz and co-worker Kevin to see this anticipated high-octane superhero action flick helmed by director Joss Whedon. It was time for us to see the heroes - Captain America, Thor, Hulk, and Iron Man (along with Black Widow, Nick Fury and Hawkeye) - assemble in 'The Avengers.' And we decided to take advantage of the 'real 3D' viewing, as well which may have put a little bit of $$$ on the price of admission, but it didn't matter much here at the Cinemark Tinseltown USA theater located in North Aurora, IL. Their admission price seems to be convenient to the ticket buyer at about $2-$3 less than what most theaters charge these days. Add a purchase of popcorn, Twizzlers and soda - we were ready to get entertained! And we did! From the very first minute to the very conclusion (including those 2 bonus scenes during and after the movie credits), it was worth it. To see the superheroes together seem so surreal especially in the movie industry because it's never been done on a big-budget scale. Marvel Studios (now owned by Disney) launched the perfect vehicle for the summer. This was their baby. Unlike Sony and 20th Century Fox studios that still retain the movie rights to Spider-Man, Fantastic Four and the X-Men franchise, Marvel Studios had total creative control to make the film they wish it to become. I hope they'll come forth with a sequel in about 2 years from now. They gotta challenge the next bad guy: Thanos. Here's also hoping that Marvel can get back the movie rights to Spider-Man, X-Men and the Fantastic Four. Who knows? Maybe one day there could be one great big movie that'll put all the heroes on the frontline to save the world as well as the universe. Things are looking great for Marvel as they remain at the top of the superhero box office. For their comic book rivals DC Comics, they've struggled lately with Green Lantern but held strong with the Nolan-directed Batman movies. On their line-up next is 'The Dark Knight Rises' to be released this summer and 'The Man of Steel' (Superman) in 2013. I don't really have a preference on what to choose as long as the story is translated well from comic book to big screen.

I came home from a long work day that had short sleeping hours. As I felt light-headed for the most part. But I was in for a shock seeing what was on TV - Former NFL player Junior Seau (known to many as Chargers #55) died from what is reported as a suicide. I feel sorry for what his family's going through right now, especially his mother who was emotional speaking to the media on the loss of her son. Seau was a force to be reckon with on-the-field but was a great community figure, role model and philanthropist off-the-field as well as during his retirement. Seau did play for the Chargers but later went to the Miami Dolphins and the New England Patriots before calling it quits in 2008. His presence will be sorely missed but his induction to the Hall of Fame will eminate in Canton sometime soon joining legends and greats possibly in 2014 or 2015.



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