The world of royalty-free.

Call it generous. Or restless. Or simply wanting to take my craft to the next level.

Whatever the case, I recently decided to offer some of my better works to a free stock phototography website.



I was a little apprehensive at first, considering,
1) You never really know where your hard work will end up;
2) You possibly may not get the credit rightly due you, and;
3) Who am I kidding, it's gratis--when you could be making money for it.

After much debate, and spending huge amounts of time admiring the site's photos and studying the art, I figured, what the hey, how else am I going to get my work outside of this Filipino network? My world now is way too small to be contented with the little that I've done. Besides, other stock photo sites charge fees just to be a member. I have to do this if I wanna get anywhere with my camera.

Sure enough I signed up and submitted--Oh, I don't know--a good thirty photos, maybe? Fortunately, nine of my work have now been approved, while the other twenty-somethings are still pending. You see, a group of administrators reviews your work and chooses which ones get to go on the site. This process takes a while since Lord knows how many hundreds of images they check everyday. Once it's online though, fellow photographers then rate your photos and leave comments based on your techinique, composition or whatnot. You'll also be able to track how many people download your photos, while being able to dictate your usage restrictions.

I tell you, it's exhilirating to find a Photo Permission Request on my inbox. Gone are the days when all you looked forward to were Friendster requests. hahaha. It just warms the heart to know that your work has caught the fancy of some bloke on the other side of the world.

Like the request I got this morning for this picture:
"please, image is for my desktop!thak you"

Aww, he's putting it on his desktop... Now this flattery I like :)

Reward to a long day of chores.

After such a fun-filled Friday night at the city, Saturday found us devoting much of the day to the unglamorous tasks of general cleaning and laundry. You can imagine what a stark contrast that must have been to the other night's activities. Needless to say, it was well worth getting (literally) down and dirty for. The pad is now spotless, dust-free and enveloped with the fresh aroma of cinnamon cider. Ah, I just love fragrance oils. :)

Ofcourse, when you've worked hard indoors the entire day, it's but natural to get out and unwind. Good thing Mr. Master Party Planner himself (JJ to you) called for a little hanging out at 850 Montgomery.

...You didn't think I was going to leave the camera at home now, did you?


My boys.


Shaggy and bald, in this case, is a great combination. :)


Star sighting! Julio Capatilio, Redford White, Vic Sotto and Paquito Diaz (or Chito Loyzaga?). Hahaha.


With Mike Lolololojo!


Salsa with lovebirds JJ and Carol.


Well, we're not much of a dancer, so picture na lang. hehe.


Poster boys and girls. (Truth is, the lighting was bad so color adjustment was necessary ;)

PartEY, SF style.

PartEY is right!

Had a blast last night at Butter with the guys. I hardly really go clubbing, so it was a welcome change.

We had a few occasions to celebrate:
1) Em's birthday two days ago
2) Owen's visit from the Philippines
3) And well, my belated birthday (...Or probably just a self-imposed celebration ;)

Regardless, we had a fun time. The place was bursting with beautiful people. Naturally, we did a bit of sight-seeing, plus spent an inordinate amount of time pressuring Owen to pick up some girls. Hehe. No action there, but the teasing was well worth it.

Incidentally, my husband got picked up on! Lol. While I was seated beside him, too. Too bad I missed it (Was in the middle of texting my mom when the whole thing happened). Would have definitely wanted to witness that...

Oh my god, babe, a girl just picked me up!
[Notices that my face is sunk deep into my cellphone]
Baaaabe, I just got picked up!
[Continually taps me on the knee like a madman]
I can't believe you missed the whole thing!
Hahaha. You should've heard the excitement in his voice.

Apparently, the woman came by and danced on Bebo's knee, then walked past and motioned him to leave with her. The poor Bebster simply waved in reply. Lol. By the time I looked up she had already disappeared into the crowd. Shucks, I would've wanted to see what the white chick looked like.

Well, no pictures there, but I do have tons of the group:


The two boitday gels.


The boys.


The girls this time.


Look at the camera, momay! With party man Owen, and Bebs & Joan (in back).


The birthday girl Em with Owen.


The Bebster (all washed out) with the ladies.


Resting muna. JJ, on the other hand, seems to be feeling the groove. hahah.


JJ and Joan.


Hmm.. Someone sure is gigil. Moi with Joan and boylet Michael.


Ah yes, with my partner-in-crime.


Group shot.


Another group shot.

Dozens more photos HERE! Enjoy :)

Work and some perks.

Well, whaddaya know... There are actually greener pastures outside of the Nokia camp.

Yes, I have a new work phone ;)

A smart phone, mind you. The Big Boss issued me a Blackberry 7280 so as to "have access to email while on the road". Hey now, I'm definitely all for that. Besides, do I look like I'd turn down unlimited wireless internet (GPRS, WAP or other)? After this, I'll never miss another Ebay auction again! Hahaha. (My husband must be having a coronary right now. hehehe). Just kidding, hon. It only means my work will be haunting me wherever I go. But who's complaining, right? I think at this point the benefits outweigh everything else. ;)

Speaking of work, the company had a booth at the Fiesta Filipina last weekend. Talk about crowded! The Civic Center was packed with excited fans of Wowowee (Don't ask me, I didn't create the name. But for the oblivious--in this case, like me--it's one of them ABS-CBN game shows). Some pinoy celebrities were present, but the event "worthy of note" (and I say this quite loosely) was the Pinoy Idol competition the Fiesta hosted late Saturday afternoon.

OH.
MY.
GAWD.

And I mean, oh my gawd. Now I don't mean to bash. Maybe (just maybe) there was a problem with the monitor, and the singers couldn't hear themselves at all... Maybe, I don't know. But, MAN. That was tough to sit through, to say the least. I'm thinking more along the lines of TORTURE, really... But well, best to end now before I get any hate mail from the contestants. Hehe. But yeah, it really was something.

Ironically, I was three tents away from my previous employer (can anyone say Regal Films?). Twas good to see old faces again (bosses and all), although they looked just as how I left them a year ago. I wonder what that means...

Twas quite the long weekend. Got home dead tired from Day 2 of Fiesta at 630pm Sunday, found my way to the bed (read: plakda), and was out faster than you can count to ten. I actually woke up at 930am the following day.

Hmm... Note to self: Might need to revisit that last statement about benefits outweighing the work...



Catching the early morning crowd. Trust me, it gets crazy after this.


The beautiful City Hall as backdrop.


Regal babies! With former officemates Steph, Mitch and Tiff.


Holding the fort with laptop (and Pringles) as company.


Hey, hey! Bumped into Louie just when we were packing up.

Post-Birthday entry.

Yo ho ho,

The Nikker is back! And a bright and feisty 27-year-old at that. Yeehaw! :)

Sorry for the absence, friends; It's been a supremely crazy work schedule. And my birthday wasn't bad either. ;) My darling hubby took me out for some eat-all-you-can ribs (my fave) for lunch at a Mom&Pop resto he discovered on the net. Then he hosted an intimate Strawberry&Nutella crepe party for me at J's pad that evening, where Bebs and I cooked atleast ten sinfully glorious crepes for our closest of friends. Somewhere in between, we got to enjoy the perfect afternoon weather by the pool, hung out at Bebo's favorite music store (where he drooled over a few of his dream basses), and watched Batman Begins (which was AWESOME, btw. Christian Bale rocks! And quite the hottie too. hehe). Absolutely a birthday well spent. :)

Naturally, I've got pictures to immortalize my special event:


Ze boitday gel and her man (whistling like nobody's business. hehe) on ze way to get some ribs.


My reaction when Bebs told me he forgot the directions to the Ribs place at home. hwehwehwe. (No worries, we found the resto after a trusty call to 411).


The Bebster at Gelb. Check out the look of drool in his eyes (if there is such a thing).


That's a Rob Allen, baby! Acoustic fretless at its best (or one of them, atleast).


We almost missed Batman Begins for this...


Swimming! An afternoon to ourselves by the pool at home.


A photo op before we look like one of them wet ducks. hehe.


I had a bit of time on my hands after swimming, so I took the opportunity to capture the beauty of Woodlake, our home for about ten months now.


How the greens look at 6pm. Don't you just love summer? :)


One of the little cement islands by the lake.


Ah yes, this is the life. I seriously love this place.


A duckie (or mallard, rather) in its element.


The little island on the left is what we have dubbed Bebs' new office. He comes here on some afternoons with powerbook and cellphone in tow, and simply does the rest of his work from here.


Erm... This is what's left of the Strawberry&Nutella crepe. Obviously our friends loved it. hehe.

I had such a blast! Big thanks to all those who greeted me via Friendster, emails and text. Truly appreciate the greets, guys. :)

Lastly, let me leave you with a strip I have entitled, Color me happy. Thanks to my Bebs for such an awesome birthday.

I can't tell you all enough how good I have it :)

Forget Mr. Hawaiian Tropic; You can aim higher!

Good grief, what has this world come to?!



Thanks to Pow for the link (That's boxer-writer-handsome BACHELOR Pow for you; He who, one day, aspires to win the prize himself. hehe) .

CSS trouble.

Hmm... Is it just me, or is my blog layout a bit messed? Strange how lately the tables don't seem to be aligned properly, when I never changed the code.

Does anyone out there know what I'm talking about? Are the tables on my blog layout a little askew? Do let me know, I wanna find out if it's just my browser settings, or if other people actually see the problem.

Thanks guys, appreciate the help. :)

A hectic 1st week of June.

It's been a busy week. We've never had so many guests file in and out of the studio, which consequently also means that we served our Strawberry & Nutella crepe the entire week to all the visitors (Such uncanny timing too; I just knew there was a reason to having perfected the dessert a few days prior).

Anyway, it's hitting such an unholy hour and I still have to wake up at 6am tomorrow. So let me leave you with a few photos for now, and I promise to post something more decent next entry.

'Night, folks!


From left: That's Butch (Bebo's brother-in-law), Jai, Bebs, moi, Manj (Bebo's sis) and Nissie.


Aww, whatta cutie! Bebs with his nephew Babu (whose real name is Haniel; He acquired the unique nickname because he was extremely hairy at birth... Apparently, the parents connected the hairy-ness to a baboon. Awww.).


Uncle Bebs proudly sings as Babu air drums. Man, this boy's seriously got good rhythm.


Bebs with his sister Manj, and family.


Nica, Mommy Eunice and Naia (my godchild).


The Montecillos with the Bharwanis.