I feel constipated :(

28 April 2006     •     17 Comments
Daily Dose

I know most of you will agree with me when I say this: being constipated is one of the worst feelings in the world.

Wikipedia says:

Constipation or Irregularity, is a condition of the digestive system where a person (or animal) experiences hard feces that are difficult to eliminate; it may be extremely painful, and in severe cases (fecal impaction) lead to symptoms of bowel obstruction. Obstipation refers to severe constipation. Causes of constipation may be dietary, hormonal, a side effect of medications, and anatomical. Treatment is with a change in dietary habits, laxatives, fiber therapy, enemas, and rarely surgery.

I haven’t taken a shit in about three days already. Man, I so hope that the only treatment I’ll need is “change in dietary habits,” or even better, “laxatives.” Anyway, I’m pretty sure everyone has experienced feeling constipated at least once in their lives—if you haven’t, that’s kinda weird, or you just have an insanely healthy diet. Well, if you really haven’t, I’ll tell you.

You get this terrible feeling in your stomach (“blended” wastes wanting to go out), you sit on the toilet bowl, but then… Nothing comes out!!! Your friggin’ shit just won’t get out. I’ve been having that feeling for the past three days now, and it’s been a torture. I’ve been drinking gallons of water a day (ok, maybe I’m exaggerating, BUT STILL), but I still can’t shit properly. As much as possible, I try not to take laxatives, or anything that will force me to shit. Shitting way too often isn’t a happy feeling too, you know (I feel like I’m being drained when that happens). Well, if I STILL can’t shit properly by tomorrow, I’m taking laxatives.

Maybe it’s because of the coffee? Yeah, maybe that’s it.

Anyway, physical constipation isn’t the only thing that’s been bugging me. I think I’m also having a design and writing constipation too (commonly called Designer’s Block and Writer’s Block :D). The thoughts are there, but they just won’t come out in words. I’ve been working on a document for the WordPress Codex, and all I’ve come up with for the past week is just three measly lines—and they’re not even complete sentences! I’m far from done with my article for PixelBureau, and even my designing “speed” has decreased unreasonably. I can’t come up with new designs for the business my sister and I are putting up as well. I guess it’s lucky that I’ve been doing web/graphics design for almost 9 years now—I can’t afford having a constipation of that too! If that happens, I’m not only dead, but BROKE too 😛

I don’t know. Maybe I’m just really stressed out. And MAYBE I just need a movie fix to de-stress. Marc honey, are you reading this? 😀

Happy Birthday SHEERO!!!!

25 April 2006     •     7 Comments
Family Stuff

Happy birthday, Sheero! Happy birthday, Sheero! Happy birthday, happy birthday…. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHEERO!!!!

Happy Birthday SHEEWEE!!!

It’s my dog’s birthday today! 🙂 I don’t know yet what I’ll give her, probably some munchies. Dogs are easier to please, you know. Unlike people, they don’t care what you give them, as long as you give them something to munch on. Heck, they don’t even care if it’s their birthday! 😀 Anyway, even if Sheero doesn’t know she just turned three today, we’ll give her something.

I got myself segregated

23 April 2006     •     3 Comments
Daily Dose

Marc and I haven’t ridden the MRT for over a year now. We usually just take the car when going to Makati—it’s more convenient since we don’t go there during rush hour anyway. Yesterday, I had to go to Greenbelt to meet a non-web/graphic design client (ah, feels good to finally say that!) for the startup my sister and I are putting up. Marc didn’t want to bring a car, so we took the MRT instead.

I didn’t notice the segregation until we were on our way home already. There was a booth there with a guard and a sign that says something like “For women, children, elderly, and disabled only”. Marc and I felt like we were going to board the Titanic (“Women and children only! Women and children!”). I was really tempted to ride on the women’s passenger car. No, I thought, I would accompany Marc. But as it seemed like more and more people were waiting to board the train, Marc and I became apprehensive about me boarding the men’s passenger car. When the train came, Marc and I made the final decision that I would ride the women’s car (the men’s cars were already SO FULL, and I do mean FULL).

So anyway, there I went to the other car as a last minute decision. Lo and behold, a MAN made that last-minute decision as well. He pushed me aside to get to the train. In the middle of me saying, “you sonafa…!!!” (believe me, it sounded better in Filipino), the security guard shouted, “huy! Ikaw! Babae ka ba?!!! (Hey! You! Are you a woman?!!!)”. Obviously, he’s not. Duh. This rude guy looked like he had “PERVERT” stamped across his forehead.

Well, anyway, pervert aside… I was in the last compartment of the women’s car. I looked over where Marc was, and theirs was jam-packed. Poor guy. He was reeling how much it stank in there after the ride.

There were still men inside the car, actually. Old men, men accompanying old women, men accompanying old men, men with pregnant wives, men with children, young men (as in, KIDS), and men pretending to be women (nah, just kidding, I invented that one hehe). Simply put, there was a very few number of scrotums inside the car. 😀

It was still a tight squeeze (it was rush hour, after all), but at least it didn’t reek. This is another testament that men sweat more than women, and majority of women don’t stink when they’re sweating. My nose only got irritated with the mixed scent of different flowery and fruity perfumes. But hey, you can’t have everything.

Marc was in complete disarray when I met him at the Cubao station. He was squashed, and it totally reeked in the car he rode. Collective sweat, he said. Eww. :p

Anyway, I really hope they’ll keep this up. Because honestly, we Filipinos seem to have a bit a problem when it comes to discipline. You got to put fences on roads to prevent pedestrians from jay-walking… But even then, I got to witness a guy trying with all his might to climb over the fence (he looked like a monkey dangling over the fence from afar, to tell you the truth). Put a sign on a wall that says “Bawal umihi dito (Peeing here is not allowed),” and then guess what? In a couple of days, you get to see a man peeing EXACTLY where you put the sign on the wall. Worse, you might even be lucky enough to see a woman squatting and peeing under your message. And now, they had to segregate the men from the women. Another “method” to force in discipline.

Some would find this amusing, some even alarming. Some will just shake their heads, but others will go shouting their heads off at the President to resign in graduation cermonies. But one thing we can agree on: we are one COLORFUL culture 😀

Lesson learned: Pee in the toilet, not on the wall.

Cane no more

20 April 2006     •     5 Comments
Family Stuff

I know people would be expecting me to talk about blogging since iBlog is kind of a hot topic right now, but this news merits an entry. Well, in my family’s opinion at least. This is the type of news that I’m pretty sure even our relatives abroad will be glad to hear.

My mom can now walk without her cane 🙂

I was working on something when she told me. We were really surprised to see it, but very glad to. She still walks slowly, but the absence of the cane is a big improvement. She is no longer dependent on it. Ever since she had the stroke that almost paralized half her body, she became dependent on the cane for support while walking. Although sometimes we still need to remind her that she no longer needs her cane, it’s more of a habit thing now than dependency.

The “motto” I have always lived by holds true once again 🙂

As long as you put your mind into it, anything’s possible.

Half an iBlog

19 April 2006     •     8 Comments
Tech Things

I went to the iBlog 2 Summit yesterday, or at least half of it. I was only able to attend the morning session 🙁

Anyway, met a lot of bloggers at the Summit. I saw Abe again, as well as other bloggers I haven’t seen in a year. Last I saw JJ was at the first iBlog (geez, JJ, do you really have to put a picture of me on the newsletter with my DOUBLE CHIN? Hehehe), and together with Abe, we were bombarded with questions by Mike Abundo (ah, revenge in sweet. :D). I also met Manuel for the first time, nice guy. Rissa saved me a seat at the front row (as predicted, we got LOST going there). Next thing I realized I was sitting between Rebecca MacKinnon and the UP Dean.

Anyway, pictures!

Rebecca McKinnon
Rebecca McKinnon
Ronald
Joel Yuvienco
Anton De Leon
Emil Avancena
Mike Abundo
Mike Abundo
Mike Abundo
Mike Abundo

I really wish I could have stayed for the afternoon session. The speakers were great, the food was great (there was even free-flowing coffee! :)), but I honestly liked the venue last year better. The auditorium was more spacious. I don’t feel comfortable within enclosed places with a lot of people (it doesn’t drive me into a psychotic break, mind you). Anyhow, other than that, I’d say iBlog this year was better than the previous. And that’s considering the fact that I was only able to attend “half an iBlog.”

The iBlog 2 summit, FilmCrowd

17 April 2006     •     5 Comments
Tech Things

I hope you guys had a great Easter. I sure did! My dad and I struck a deal… Instead of me paying half of this month’s electricity bill, I just bought the family Peking Duck for our Easter dinner 🙂 So there. We had yummy duck for Easter! I’m still so stuffed that I didn’t eat much today. I think the duck is trying to get itself digested in my intestines.

Anyway, tomorrow’s the second iBlog Summit. I’ve been actually looking forward to this one, to be honest. For once, I’ll be able to experience being a participant, and get to know the faces behind the blogs. Last year, I was a speaker. And it so happened I had a deadline that week. I went to the Summit with a sleepy head (I spent the entire night preparing my lecture), and only had enough energy to grab a bite after my presentation. I wasn’t able to enjoy it much because of that 🙁

This year, I’ll be a participant! I’ll finally be able to enjoy it. I really seemed fun. Marc and I will be going there with Anne, our Marketing Director. I just hope Marc won’t be late. His shift ends at 8:00AM. It takes less than 5 minutes to go here at my house from his office, “technically” 10 minutes from my house to the Summit venue, but we’ll be needing at least 30 minutes to find the place. Hehehe. My honey is really bad with directions. 😆 we ALWAYS need to allot time for getting lost everytime we go to a place we haven’t been to before. Ah, well. I just hope we don’t miss the snacks 😀

Looks like Marc and I will be seeing Boom and Aaron again tomorrow. Abe‘s going too (duh, he’s a speaker again :P), though we probably won’t be able to talk much about our upcoming projects. Marc will be going to the Summit without any sleep, so we’ll probably just go straight home after it. Anybody else attending iBlog? Look me up. I’ll be in black. Hehehe.

MAJOR PLUG: A very happy birthday to Luis! To celebrate his day, he launched this new cool community: FilmCrowd. This site allows people to review movies. Marc and I love watching movies, new and old. If only I didn’t have a lot to do, I’d probably be one of the frequent reviewers on that site. Ah well. Anyway, do check it out!

A new theme on Easter!

16 April 2006     •     6 Comments
Tech Things

Yeah, it’s a new theme. It’s not yet done, but I uploaded it anyway since today’s Easter, the day Jesus has risen. Weird analogy, I know. I just thought today would be the best time to at least “launch” it. 🙂

As I said, this theme is still under construction. So if you find broken links or anything out of the ordinary, don’t mind it. I’m making my site powered solely by WordPress, using it as some kind of a CMS. It’s a bit of a headache, but well worth it. The CSS of this site is a headache too, but who cares? Everything can be a headache anyway.

I’m not making any sense, am I? Sorry, my brain’s dead. Been up all night.

Happy Easter, everyone!

My first ever LRT ride!

13 April 2006     •     5 Comments
Daily Dose

I had my first Light Rail Transit (LRT) ride today. 🙂 Marc and I had to go to C.M. Recto for the small business my sister and I are putting up, and the train is faster and more economical than going by car.

I won’t exactly call this my first train ride though. I’ve ridden the Metro Railway Transit (MRT) going from Santolan to Makati and back during my 6-month stint as a call center girl. I just never had any reason to ride the LRT until today.

I was like a little girl during the ride going to Recto. Marc even got annoyed with me, saying that I looked silly and I’m embarrassing myself to the other passengers. Well, to hell with them 😀 I actually like the LRT better than the MRT. It’s wider, has more space for people to move around. Good thing too because hopefully, I’ll be needing to ride the LRT at least once or twice a month (that would mean my sister and I are doing well in our business! :D).

Anyway, here’s a little photo for the Holy Week:

Prayer

I took this photo months ago, but never had an opportunity to post it. I think this Holy Week is the best time to do that.

It’s a small world after all

12 April 2006     •     1 Comment
Tech Things

I’ve always like that song as a kid. But that’s not the point 😛

The Internet is such a small world, oddly enough. I never thought I’d be one to say that, but “meeting” a fellow alumnus made me think otherwise.

I used to be part of The Guidon, the school paper, back in college at the Ateneo de Manila. Web design has always been my “first love” (sorry, honey, but Web design knew me first :lol:), and it was only when I was part of the school paper that I got interested in print graphic design. I became the Graphic Design (GD) Editor on my second year, and I was stuck with a mess of a staff. My predecessor (I dare not mention his name haha) was such a pain in the ass and the most I learned from him was “never to unplug anything in a room full of computers while people are working.” He was the reason I developed this paranoid habit of pressing CTRL+S every five to 10 seconds. My magazine layout went into oblivion because he unplugged the wrong friggin’ cord!!!

As I said, I learned nothing from this guy. I think my dogs can design better than he does! Haha, I’m evil 😀 But you know what I mean. He’s what you’d call, “aesthically challenged.” Anyway, the only reason he got stuck in the editorial position was because nobody wanted to take the job, and the only other person better qualified than he was was already the Editor in Chief. It was our Editor in Chief, Mark Chua, who mentored me. So you can just imagine the mess my predecessor left when I succeeded him as the Graphic Design Editor after a year of hell with him.

Anyway, Mark suggested I organize a graphic design talk for my staff. I’ve chosen the most artistic people in the candidates roster (with some help from my mom and dad, artists extraordinaire), but most them has not once used Adobe PageMaker (the software we were using for laying out the paper) in their lives. Luckily, Mark was able to get me in touch with Paulo Ordoveza, a former Graphic Design and Photo Editor.

Pau was kind enough to give a talk to my team. I remember learning a lot about print layout from him and I can also recall two of my female artists telling me that they have a crush on him (fat chance, Pau, I’m no tattletale :lol:). Anyway, I haven’t seen him since then.

I started Kutitots two years ago when I decided to go full-time in freelancing. I’ve been blogging since then, and encountered different bloggers and saw different sites. BrownPau is one of those sites I’ve seen around. I had no idea Brownpau and Paulo Ordoveza was one and the same person, until I saw Abe’s feature on him as a Filipino problogger.

See? The internet CAN really make the world a smaller place 🙂

Plagiarist tracker tool

11 April 2006     •     1 Comment
Tech Things

Before I get back to work, I thought I’d blog about this first.

Copyscape

I found out about Copyscape from the Philweavers mailing list. Most of the emails I usually get from that list are ardent nonsense, but thanks to Naz’s patient policing, it has really improved. Anyway, Jose Olarte posted this link as “your new bestfriend.” And I must say I agree… Not for me, but probably for other people it COULD be.

I’m really not “sensitive” about my writings or designs or whatever (well, as long as it’s not paid for hehehe). My personal projects is open for everybody to use (well, maybe except for my Kutitots character. I’m kinda sensitive about that hehehe). Besides, if somebody plagiarizes my content… WHAT A LOSER 😆 I won’t get mad, but I will laugh at you. Why would anybody plagiarize a personal site? Kutitots is like a pseudo-journal. There must be SOMETHING about your life worth blogging about right? Hehe. Anyway, I don’t think anybody’s stupid enough to do that to my text.

I think Copyscape might be more useful for blogs like Abe’s Yugatech. Abe’s the one who writes his own content based on his personal experiences that people find useful (yes, Abe, I’m hinting you give this thing a spin and see if it’s really worth becoming “a new bestfriend” hehehe). Anyway, if this Copyscape thing really DOES work, even non-probloggers with “sensitive” content can still find this useful. I don’t particularly enjoy reading poetry blogs (it’s a personal preferrence, no offense), but these authors worried about other people copying their content might benefit more from this tool than I ever will.

Anyway, if you have “plagiarizable” content, give this thing a spin and do drop me a line if it works for you or not. I have to admit that I am curious 🙂

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Have some shame. Don't copy my flea, my layout and my design.