Tuesday, May 31, 2005

After much tweaking and hair-pulling...

The new template is finally up!

I'm so happy I could jump for joy... Except that my brain is all spent from all this work. heheh. Not to worry, though. I'll post new pics from our weekend gimmick.

Be right back, promise :)

Tuesday, May 24, 2005

Weekend recap.

Saturday was an extremely great day; so good in fact that it couldn't have turned out any better.

Here's how my weekend went from ordinary to super:

900am: After weeks and weeks of dreary rain and fog, God showed his mercy and blessed the Bay Area with ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS WEATHER. Wooohooo! Spring is finally here!

1130am: Had a meeting with a client in Japan Town. Incidentally, it was my first time there, so I soaked in the scenery and enjoyed my saba shioyaki.

130pm: Concluded the meeting with a closed deal and a good japanese lunch. Yeba!

230pm: Spent a relaxing afternoon with Bebs in Union Street at our all-time favorite cafe, Crepes A-Go Go. Not only is the food awesome, the service is well worth the tip. Where else are you received by such gracious French folks with hearty handshakes, warm smiles and a genuine Oh, it's so goooooood to see you again! (Read with French accent for full effect).

Sure made us feel like a million bucks. :)




I digress, but make sure to get the Strawberry & Nutella crepe when you visit. I've been on a mission to find a restaurant that can actually top this version, but it's still the best I've tasted so far.


Bebs in his pogi pose... or probably just checking out the chicks. hehehe.


Happy and content from the Strawberry&Nutella crepe.

400pm: As if dessert wasn't enough of a fix, we went bargain shopping. Yeehaw!

530pm: Spent the rest of the afternoon with Hawk (and fam), who had stories to tell of his and Raf's adventures at the geek conference... erm, E3 conference, I mean. heheh.

11:00pm: Capped off the day with Joe and Bic's joint birthday gig at Voda. Had a lot of fun seeing old friends and meeting new ones.


From left: Bebs, moi, birthday boy Joe, JJ and Hawk.


Clockwise from back: Raffy L, JJ, Bebs, moi, and Hawkins.


With my Bebs. Don't freak out; I just really get obscenely red without having to be drunk.


Apparently someone doesn't know how to make a bad boy pose... hehehe.
(Hey now, he's a lover, not a fighter ;)


I think this was also a first in a long time that the boys were complete. Which definitely deserved a picture.


Westlife unite!


That has got to be three different shades of brown right there.


Me in my unusual color, and the half-asleep Raf.


With the birthday couple (Joe: back row, third; and Bic: front row, last)


With the other Raf, Joey, and Bino.

2:30am: Fun party! Gorged on Mr. Pizzaman with J, Raf L, Raf E, Carol and Tala before calling it a night. Anything you end with a slice of pizza has got to be a good day. ;)

Sunday
Enjoyed my El Paso (homemade corned beef, two eggs, sourdough toast and house potatoes) for lunch at Crepevine with JJ, Raf E, Carol and Bebs. Afterwhich headed to the theater for tan tan ta nan tan ta nan tan ta nan... EPISODE 3, baby! Finally watched it. and fortunately, it was better than I expected. How they finally worked on the storyline first is worth noting. Characters were well developed, Anakin was HOT (hehe) and Obi Wan simply exuded inner strength. Now that's my Jedi.

I have to agree with Pazu though: in previous episodes we've witnessed Padme as such a strong woman. Queen at one point, headstrong senator in another. Why the sudden show of weakness in Episode 3? She did nothing but worry, cry and express fear throughout the film. Although for all it's worth, she did cry very well (geez). So well that I totally felt her pain (You are breaking my heart, Annie...). That was pretty moving.

All in all, it's the best among the Prequels. Definitely worth the big screen and the ten bucks. And a good way to cap off the weekend.

Now if we can just speed up the week and get on to Memorial Holiday. Woohoo!




Wednesday, May 18, 2005

Of sprained fingers and phantoms.

While shopping for sheets for my new queen bed over the weekend, I got a call from the poor Bebster with news that he had sprained his middle finger from four games of Basketball. The timing couldn't be any more ironic, since he has a gig at Stanford this week (tomorrow to be exact). Apparently, the digit out of commission is his holding finger and is therefore crucial to his bass playing. Tsk, tsk.

Well, we'll see what becomes of the gig tomorrow, but so far his finger doesn't look as purple as it originally was. Funny thing is, he's been going around the past few days with a metal splint on the injured digit, which I must say quite resembles an obscene gesture, if you get my drift. LOL. The poor guy did TKB yesterday and he looked like he was giving everyone the finger. Hahaha. Poor Bebster.

In other news, I finally watched the Phantom of the Opera. I swear, I used to despise All I ask of You all because it was majorly overplayed in the Philippines. But hearing the song in context has made me appreciate it now. It is a beautiful song, no doubt. And the Phantom.. man, whatta a hottie! Such a wonderful performance, I totally loved and hated him. That's how effective he was.

The only downside to the musical for me was the dubbing. Somehow in some scenes, Christine's lips (and Minnie Driver's character, for that matter) weren't in sync with the singing, which was such a disappointment. It's a singing film, hello. That's one technicality they should have made sure to get down pat. Regardless, it was a good film. I'd love to watch it in the theater though and see how they pull everything off live. No edits, no camera effects. Just the stage and how they work its every dimension. That should be really awesome.

Anyway, here are some shots of the night we hung out to watch said musical. Unfortunately, JJ and Carol refused to be in the photos as they were "dressed down," so Bebs, Raf and I hogged the cam as always.







Tuesday, May 17, 2005

more of Houston

Here are more shots of the beautiful two-year-old Magnolia Hotel in downtown Houston. Man, I totally enjoyed those six pillows. And drooling over the classy TV station. I'd get me one of those in black--if I only had a bigger place, that is.

Last three photos are of the church across the hotel.











Anyway, that's all of the roadshow, people! As much as I enjoyed the trip, I couldn't be happier to be back home. Bebs and I just bought a new plush queen pillowtop bed over the weekend as well, so I've quite easily transitioned over from the enjoyment of 4-star hotel luxury to the good ole' comfort of the Bharwani home.

Nothing quite like the latter, if you ask me :) Awww, shucks (insert cheeky smile here. hehehe).

Saturday, May 14, 2005

Last hurrah in Houston.

I'm still alive!

Or atleast I think I am. These past few weeks have been extremely stressful, exhausting and crazy for me! I'm glad the roadshow is over, although you can bet the stress is only just beginning, folks.

Incidentally, my last event (atleast for this leg) just ended a couple of hours ago; and though it was quite a success, I'm unfortunately a little too brain dead to type in the sordid details, or even edit this post for that matter :(

To make amends, I am posting some shots from our tour's final stop: Houston, TX. Yeehaw!

More pics to follow. Meanwhile, enjoy!


We stayed three days at the Magnolia Hotel in downtown Houston. Veeeeeery nice. How can you not love a place that offers breakfast on the house, complimentary cocktails from 5-7pm, and free milk & cookies from 9pm onwards? Not to mention the nightly jazz gigs (below). Definitely the place to be.


A glimpse of the lobby (above) and hotel fireplace (below).


Quickie pose inside the elevator... I don't understand why my hair looks so short here, though.

Despite the busy sched, we always seemed to find time for shopping. The photo above happens to be the Galleria, the biggest mall in Houston. And it really was huge.

These are shots of the old church right across the hotel. There wasn't much to see downtown (especially during the day), so we ended up exploring this place one afternoon. Sorry, second pic is simply my appeal to vanity. hehehe. (Cut me some slack, kids, I don't have decent solo pics in this entire trip ;)

Okay, I'm officially done for the day. Have a great weekend everyone!

Friday, May 06, 2005

Four cities and counting...

MORE TRAVEL PHOTOS! :)

Our short stint in Florida comprised of two days in Orlando, and less than a day in Miami. Unfortunately, the Sunny State didn't prove faithful to its name, as the weather in Miami was a bismal. Consequently, we didn't catch the nightlife like last year, and I pretty much spent my one night in Miami watching The Cosby Show. Enjoyed it nonetheless ;)

The truth is though, as much as I love travelling and seeing new places, I find myself counting the days till I get home. The discovery isn't as breathtaking when you have no one special to share the travel with. Just not the same without my Bebster, I guess :(

Drama aside, here are photos of the City Walk in Universal Studios and the magnificent Portofino Bay Hotel in Orlando. And as requested by my sis, I'm posting more shots of me this time (disclaimer: just keep in mind someone else took my solo pics. hehe).