Roadtesting the new toy.

Photos as promised!

I didn't take as much as I usually would have (seven--or eight, apparently--games of volleyball will do that to you). Nevertheless, it was my first time alone with the D70 and I loved every minute of it :)

Gelo, Lala and Hawkins getting the party started!

A glimpse of the SC beach activity.

Lifeguard on duty
(this guy was cute, by the way).

What's left of the Natural Bridges.

The boys:
Jorjan, Hawk, Bebs, Gelo & J.

And the girls:
Moi, Tala, Carol & Pebs. Where's Lala?

Jj sets up his end of the net.

Heave ho, Gels!

Pebs checks on the height.
I love this shot.

Guilty pleasure. Heehee.

Jorjan plays Tomtom for the Aycees.

Cutiepie Gabbie.

The rest of the pics are HERE. Also, here are a few more photos via Lala's cam:

Lunching on seafood and chicken inasal. Yum.


Beach volleyball time!


Hahaha. Check out the birthday girl go.

Happy birthday indeed.

Just got home from the Natural Bridges State Beach in Santa Cruz, where I celebrated my 28th birthday. Apart from baking in the sun from having played seven games of SERIOUS beach volleyball, I can really only sum up the highlight of my special day in one photo:

I am one happy camper.

Many thanks to my extremely wonderful husband for insisting on gifting it . Thanks for everything, hon :) You absolutely made my 28th superb. The beach trip, the seafood extravaganza, all the crazy planning. You and me :) I'm sure all this has no relation to your hints on wanting a Rob Allen on your bday, but I'll buy you a little happy in August just the same. Promise ;)

Have a great weekend, folks! I'll post the beach pics tomorrow.

And happy Fathers Day to all the dads in the world! Please make them feel special tomorrow.

Dark Season amidst Spring.

June's supposed to be one of my favorite months.

For one, it's my birth month (Can't get any better than that, really). It's also perfect swim weather: the sun is out, weekends are rain-free, thus, the pool season. And, it marks the passing of the year's first half and the start of an intensely zealous countdown to Thanksgiving, Christmas and other long (read: non-working) holidays.

This year, though... Sigh. It's been a dark season for us. I can't say it won't be memorable, because no doubt this period of stretching is truly one for the books.

I just don't know how this month will turn out. I'm holding my breath for an outcome I don't know and my insides are constantly turning--from stress, anxiety, fear of the unknown... you name it.

I've a thousand and one questions, but the Answer chooses to remain silent. I have no choice but to surrender. It's all I've got so I can only hope against hope that things will come together somehow.

Don't worry, you will find the answer if you let it go
Give yourself some time to falter, but don't forego
Knowing that you're loved no matter what
And everything will come around in time

The new nikkerbockers site.

Currently working on my new site. It should be live soon, so keep watch.

Have a great weekend everyone :) And don't forget to catch X3!

May in pictures.

Warning: photo overload.

My almost month-long in absencia has gotten me in quite a predicament. I now find myself with the dilemma of having to squeeze in three weeks worth of photos into one blog entry.

Nevertheless, here they are. It's been action-packed, so I'm sure you'll be entertained :)


Richard & Tala's combined birthday bash:

Tala and Richard celebrating their big day together in Coyote Point...

Where we picnicked...

Enjoyed a bit of muni-muni...

And some reading...

Not to mention american dodge ball
(apparently we've been playing it wrong in the Philippines).

And capping off the day with a little crazy at Rich's pad.
(Joe being the crazy one, and Abs sporting the magnum)

Then there were our Saturday hangouts at Crepes A Go Go:

If I'm not mistaken, we've spent three Saturdays here with the Quilas to date.

And that one Saturday where this car fell prey to a chemical sabotage
by some anonymous schmuck.

BUT, there's justice in the world. A camera across evidently caught the culprit doing the deed (literally). Check out the note posted on the car by the owner.

We also watched four concerts in two weeks:

The Bebster and I with Caedmon's Call at An Evening of Compassion.
Other artists in the show include Geoff Moore, Bebo
Norman and Hyper Static Union.
Great uplifting concert. We went home having sponsored our second son, Edin:

Aww, how can you not sponsor this boy?? He's such a cutie :)
Edin is 5 years old and lives in Guatemala.

While we're at it, here's our first boy:

Bryan, also 5, from the Philippines.
I believe he hails from Davao.

Check out Compassion International for more information on giving kids from all over the world a shot at Life.

..Now, back to concerts:

We caught Mute Math at Slim's the day after. Man, these guys are phenomenal.
Think punk rock with a mix of electronica, and a strong hint of Police. Hayop, man.

Vocalist Paul Meany and his backside, with his keytar.

South Border was also in town that week for their SF gig. We took them to see Mute Math with us and watched their concert the day after. I misplaced their pics somehow, I'll post them as well when they're found.

This is the last of the gigs we watched: Bass Solo Night at Freight & Salvage in Berkeley. Artists featured were Michael Manring, Jean Baudin, Jeff Schmidt and Dave Grossman.

Jean Baudin's 12-string bass. What a monster.

Mr. Manring himself and his No.1 fan.

Other weekend gimmicks:

Frolicking at the Foster City Park.
Naks, pang Prudential Life ad! Lol.

This is when Richard decides high-waist jersey shorts are in.
Unfortunately, Tracy doesn't agree. Neither do we, dude.

Our most recent weekend gimmick with the Quilas:
Enjoying the spring season by the pool at home.

The pics above should lead you to their corresponding photo galleries. Hopefully it should buy me another month or so of absence ;)

The church kids go to town. hehe.

Hello peeps!

It feels like a lot has happened the past few weeks. Short of it is , I made new friends (Hello Maggie and Trish!), closed some doors, opened new ones (read: got a new job (that was the good news by the way ;), jumped back on the fitness wagon (TKB, I've missed you, and Badminton, here I come! haha), and scores of other things. Life's been good, everything's smooth sailing. I could get used to this. ;)

My posts are never complete without photos, so here are shots from Nikki G's birthday bash at Blush. My battery died early that night, so most of these are taken by Ria.

Birthday girl Nikki G with the Bebster.


Clockwise from left: Jackie, Maria, Jopet, Ria and moi.
Yay, I'm not the oldest here. hehe.


Kooky girls, and it's all Hana's fault. Ha!


The result of Hana's kookiness. heehee. Crazy night.

Check the rest of the pics HERE.

Who says we church folk don't have fun eh? ;)

Eeking with glee.

I'm very happy today.

Just peachy; and you could tell if you saw the huge grin on my face. Unfortunately for you though, I ain't telling. Not yet, atleast. So you'll have to wait till, say, month end.

In the meantime,
YAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

--

By the way, if you don't have plans for Easter, do join us at Bridgepoint. We're rocking it out this Sunday ;)

Another one bites the dust.

It's the Hawkins' turn!

Just when I thought the madness was over, in comes Hawk's blackout partEY. Haha. Good times, I tell you :)

Best wishes go out to the man who is to me the epitome of maginoo pero medyo bastos. Lol. The bastos part really needs no explanation (hehe), but you can't get any more maginoo than saving a little girl from catching fire (at our wedding, no less) , and at the cost of a burned welted hand. Major points indeed.

Happy birthday, Hawkiepoo! Thanks for looking after the Bebster way before I even knew him. :) We love you bro.

Kisses for the birthday boy as he says goodbye to his twenties
(Looks like JJ also wanted in on the action. Haha ;)

Peninsula crew represent.

That low angle with the Bebster.

Full coverage of Hawk's Blackout party HERE.

So who's next? ;)

Semi Veg... and a rather strange night.

Soooo lovin' the new Outback TV Ad:

Click photo to view commercial

Hahaha. I'm semi Veg alright.

--

Ever been awakened at such an ungodly hour (say, 3:40am) by the shrill, piercing monotony of the fire alarm? I would have been really pissed, except that Bebs stepped out the door and actually did see smoke escaping the opposite wing. And boy, did it reek. I couldn't put my finger to it, but if you can imagine a mixture of burnt rubber, oatmeal, and some gaseous poison, that's as close at it would get. A whiff of it was enough to get me out of bed... admittedly after a countless Babe, get up naaaaa! hehe (not cute, by the way. If you hear the fire alarm, seriously get up and GO).

So there I am, half-asleep and ready to curse someone out, yet mustering all efforts to get to that place of lucidity. Meanwhile, Bebs, fully alert and with all mental faculties in check, prepares our coats and enumerates a list of what to save. I only remember grabbing my bag and our passports, while my husband closes the door behind me, lugging two attaché cases of important documents, bills and other papers. Heehee. Thank God for husbands.

We get to the ground floor and the lobby is teeming with residents in their nightwear. Strangely enough, none of them packed as much as we did, in fact only two others carried a small bag with them. That's cause they're citizens, Bebs whispers. Hahaha.

The firemen arrive within minutes, and after investigation determine that someone on the third floor (our floor) left their stove on. All third floor residents, please come up so we can inspect your units. Bebs heads back up with the rest while I'm sitting at a corner eavesdropping on the older women discussing the unpleasant sonance of the fire alarm and our doorbells for that matter. Right on, ladies. Have them change those wimpy bells, please.

Bebs and the rest of the 3rd floor are now back, although the firemen can't seem to figure out who the culprit is. Meanwhile, we're informed that our floor seems to be safe and that we can now head back to our units. Uh, so we DON'T get to give dirty looks to the smarty who left his stove on and kept us from our much needed zzz's? I knew this story was going to be anti-climactic.

We're back in bed at about 5:00am--right where we all started--and now the whole hullabaloo is all a blur. I still don't get why it all happened, but I wasn't about to waste another minute of my sleeptime wondering about the meaning of it all. Needless to say, I'm glad we're all safe and burn-free.

Sigh. Chalk it up to one of them weird days, I guess.

Happy THREE OH, Raf!

And yet another cause for festivities, not that I'm complaining. ;)

I tell you, everyone seems to be having their birthday, and/or turning 30. Haha. This time it was Raffy's turn to hit the triple X. My coverage of the merrymaking isn't complete though, but it should help save our birthday boy some dignity. Wink, wink.

With my two baldies: the Bebster and birthday boy Raffioli Gorgonzoli,

aka Raffiki, Gorgi, Ply Li boy, TKB baby, or simply, Raf.

The entire group at some bar in Union Street (I forget the name).
Very BH 90210, don't you think?

Check out the rest of the party photos HERE.

Happy 30th Raf! We love you like a brother, and look forward to more adventures in the years to come (Hopefully geography won't be an issue eh? ;)

--
Addendum: Interestingly enough, I was checking archives and realized I had posted a similar greet for Raf last year. Only goes to show we mean the brother part. Naks.

A weekend in the city... and other ramblings.

Yay! Met some new friends over the weekend...

This is Boo, the chunk o burnin' love Bull Mastiff I fell in love with at first sight.
Man, this guy is HUGE.

And then there's Getty, the adorable Golden Retriever.
Unfortunately the clicks kept him from keeping his eyes open.

Boo with his master. Didn't get his name but he was nice; somewhat reminded me of Jim Carrey because he was so animated. Plus ofcourse he was cool with our stalking his dog so that's plus points in my book.

Here we are enjoying the (lately elusive) sun in Crissy Field.
Rain, rain GO AWAY. Please :)

Strangers yet friends in Crissy Field. Check out the Golden Gate Bridge at back.

Boats taking advantage of the beautiful weather.

After having met new friends, we hung out with old ones...

The Quilas and Bharwanis at the Roastery in Union Street.
(Now I know what my bad angle is...)

Meet Bebo's godchild, Gabbie and her pet Tamagochi (spell check?).

More pics of our weekend HERE.

I may have bumped into Vanessa Carlton while stalking the dogs (Note to self: move to a pet-friendly apartment on next lease!). I tell you the resemblance was uncanny, except she had those oversized superstar shades on, which MEANS a third of her face was was partly tinted, which REALLY means it probably wasn't her. But then I researched her on the net after and apparently, she resides in both New York AND San Francisco.

So yes, I may have actually met her. Kewl.

--

Notes worth mentioning:

* MUST WATCH: V for Vendetta by the Wachowski Brothers.

Remember remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder, treason
Should ever be forgot...

I was blown away by this film. Absolutely brilliant! Go watch NOW, you will not be disappointed.


* MUST LISTEN: Speak for Yourself by Imogen Heap
(Primary vocalist of the defunct group Frou Frou).

Enjoying a growing fascination for Electronica, and recently acquired Imogen Heap's latest album. The instrumentation is interesting and her voice is something else. Different. I like it. Get a copy, all songs are good. Also look out for Zero 7, and their popular single When it Falls. Great chillout music.

--

I'm realizing that I'm starting to prefer European music over American. Seems like a sweeping statement, but think about it: Sting, U2, Annie Lennox, Coldplay, Jamie Cullum, Dave Matthews, Peter Gabriel (And did I mention Imogen and Zero 7 are both from the UK?)... Versus what, formulaic Hollywood pop? Can't help but think their music is less cookie cutter (to borrow my husband's favorite term).

Ofcourse there are exceptions to the rule. I've my own list of homegrown faves who are far from the formula. Sarah Mac is an absolute original (although she's not exactly American. hehe). Then there's Shelby Lynne, Tori Amos, Nichole Nordeman, John Mayer...

I just wish mainstream didn't have to be so pop, y'know?

Ode to Juancho.

Okay, these pictures are WAY overdue.

Let me just say that the beginnings of March seemed to me like one seamless party after party (after crazy party!), all in celebration of JJ's big THREE-OH.

And rightly so; the guy is everybody's leading man. I can't think of anyone who deserves three birthday bashes. We're talking about the man who looks after everyone else, and will go so far as to make sure his friends have their futures in order.

So, to our then disconsolate Bestman (hehe), our brother and dear friend, we're glad you had the 30th birthday you hoped for, and then some. We love you bro. And we Juan Cho! Hahaha.

Click on each photo to view entire album.

JJ's surprise party (complete with tears!).

Party bus, baby!

In Absencia.

There's a reason for my absence. Turn up the volume and find out...





Btw, I've got tons of photos ready for sharing. Will post them soon, promise. ;)