December 1st, I'm in a foreign state

I've reposted this photo countless times already but I never seem to get tired of it. I took this a few years ago with my digicam from the backseat of the car as we drove home from a family reunion. I absolutely love this time of the year because of the music, the places I go to, and the people I spend my time with. Since December started off on the right foot for me, I'm ho-ho-hoping that the rest of the month is just as great. (Also, please check out my holiday mixtape!)

And nope, the Ortigas area is not a foreign state and will never be one. The weekend began with my adventure in Pearl Drive with my friends, then we walked all the way to Shang to get gelato. More walking ensued and by the time I got to Mega, I was practically exhausted. But no regrets! I was welcomed by big shopping bags held by my family.

As a form of bonding, my sister and I hoarded stuff from Forever 21's massive sale. We often go into an agreement that if I get something, my sister has to get one as well. I ended up being the sore loser because they all had complete outfits while I walked out with a pair of shorts, a pair of socks, and a headband.

This year's wishlist. I couldn't ask for anything more because I practically have what I need in terms of family, friends, gadgets, clothing, and whatnot. But the materialistic girl that I am, of course, I still have my demands.

• Batch Bora - tops the list. My parents have agreed to let me go but terms and conditions apply. The plans are all set but I just need back-up cash for the trip. This is the main reason why I couldn't buy most (if not all) of the stuff on my wishlist!!!!!! #annoying (I use the 20-Peso rule when it comes to my funds. If I spend on something and a 20 peso bill returns as change, it goes straight to the Bora Fund.)
• A 2014 Planner - I didn't want to spend that much on coffee this year so I'm skipping the Starbucks planner after getting it consistently for 3 years. The search for the perfect planner is still ongoing because I'm highly particular with the type of paper the planners have. The Moleskine one's too thin for me, but heck, it's still a Moleskine.
• 0.38 Gel Pens from Muji - Lately, most of my pens have been going missing/running out of ink so it would be HIGHLY appreciated if someone got me this.
• Havaianas Slim in Lime Green - I just want new flip flops for Bora...
• Mcdonald's Apple Pie - I just can't get enough of these, I swear.
• Fisheye Lomography Camera/Fisheye Extender Lens - I could've bought this a long time ago but I decided to splurge my money on something else. I have too much stuff to save up for and...
• To pass my CETs - The results will be out by January and I can't even describe how nerve-wracking the wait has been. I just want my future to be as bright as a diamond (jk. La Salle, pls accept me :----------( )

VIVA LA SENOR1T4!

After winning last year's title of Overall Champs, we're vying for a back-to-back victory! It dawned to me that this being my last intrams, I've been in the pep squad for 4 straight years. But hey, at least I got to make tarps and banners for the batch!

You make me

My new baby after weeks of waiting: Urban Decay's Naked 2 Palette. I guess I can say that I've graduated from my lip balm stage and upgraded on my makeup collection. I've been eyeing on this palette for quite some time and after a very long wait, I finally got it! I preferred this over Naked because of the matte shades and Blackout although I'm not a huge fan of the brush that came with it since the bristles were too hard for me. I was considering getting Naked first because of the free eye primer but the lip gloss that came with Naked 2 seemed just as promising. I'm actually looking forward to using this to more nights out in the future! (A big thank you to my aunt and uncle from Canada! I'm absolutely in love with this one! Advanced Merry Christmas woohoo) 

Naked 2 sells originally sells for about 50$ but because of tax, my aunt had to pay 80 CAD for the palette. This isn't commercially available here in the Philippines but if you look hard enough, you can find a whole bunch of knock-offs online. I don't recommend getting it though since it would be like buying an allergic reaction instead of an actual beauty product. I'm not much of a beauty junkie so here's an in-depth review of the palette I got. 

Putting my chances of becoming a beauty blogger aside, my sister took her fangirling to a whole new level by ordering One Direction's Our Moment perfume. Some of my friends were apprehensive about getting this because they were afraid it wouldn't smell nice but the scent's actually pretty good. Still, I don't think anyone would catch its scent and know it's the 1D perfume.

Change in Pressure

I kept telling my self that I need to post on my blog more often. So, I made a promise to constantly update this despite school and everything happening. The lack of updates should be blamed on my laziness because school's such a hassle and wears me out 100% of the time. Basically, I'm just too lazy to lug my camera around wherever I go. It's a good thing my phone takes quality photos, so most of my "adventures" end up on my Instagram account. Here's a few photos I took the past few months that didn't make it to this blog (until now).

And the adventure began last summer, when I flew ALONE to my province, Bacolod. (Bucket List #119: Fly alone on an airplane) I had too much fun with my cousins and I ended up putting my CET reviewers away. The summer was well spent because of the taho I had everyday and all the things I couldn't do back here in Manila.

So, after a kick-ass summer, I was welcomed by a package from Canada containing my favorite things: Pistachios, Bikini tops, and Licorice. From a swimming trip in Laguna, my dad drove me straight to Makati so I can watch Mayday Parade live for the 4th time. (#clutch)

Conquer the Dance Floor

Conversation of the day

A Xaverian's mom beside me: Do you dance too?

Me: ...um, I'm in the school paper po.

My first time to watch the Skechers Street Dance Battle. This made me realize how much I missed during high school. These competitions have been ongoing for a few years yet I never managed to attend one until now. If only I knew how fun these were, I would've totally pushed to go! I'm really glad to know that this wouldn't be the last time seeing my school's team compete since WE MADE IT TO THE FINALS C'MON NOW.

Long live the fast times

Bazooka Rocks 2 was the ultimate bomb! This year, they feature All Time Low, Anberlin, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, We Came As Romans, Radio Drive By, and one last night with A Rocket To The Moon. I couldn't resist shooting a good show so I decided to bring my camera along even if I'd risk dropping my lens again.  This time was just as fun as the last time, except we didn't force ourselves to be in the very front. Instead, we enjoyed being in the middle of the crowd and just jumped along to whatever was playing and singing Your Guardian Angel at the top of our lungs. 

My fangirl phase is on its deathbed.

Too early to say good night

I crossed a few things off my bucket list last week. I went to prom with a super close family friend and I got to see my closest friends at our best. I'm still bitter over not dancing to Stolen but the rest of the night was chill (even if I was in 5-inch heels)!

The Anchor That Keeps My Feet On The Ground

Right after my trip to Bacolod, we headed over to the Queen City of the South to kick 2013 off! The trip tested my patience since we had to wait in the San Carlos port for 8 hours. Because of the delay, we only had one full day in the city. We had to rush out as soon as we dropped our luggage off and make the most out of our day in Cebu.

The Wings That Keep My Head In the Clouds

My family and I headed to Bacolod to spend the holidays with our relatives. From the city, it would usually take a 3-hour drive to reach San Carlos where my mom's ancestral home is. Honestly, leaving was such a pain but I longed for the city life more than anything! I went back to Manila with a ridiculous amount of Piaya, Bacolod's #1 specialty!

I'm not giving up, I'm just starting over

2012 was full of ups and downs. Read on to know how my crazy year went!

January was getting a planner on the first day of the year and wanting to become a Victoria's Secret Angel, January was making sugar skulls and a magazine for Pauliworld. January was skipping Simple Plan and Katy Perry. January was filled with school related shit. January was getting a physical copy of Everything's Fine and spending time with my relatives from Canada. January was the school fair and short hair. January was holding my camera the wrong way.

February was a catastrophe. February started a very bad habit. February would make my summer-2010 self proud. February was making a video with Nigel and Sharina. February was Facebook likes. February was dinner with Nigel, Rian, and Ate J and meeting Kyle Burns. February was kissing Kyle Burns. February was a drum stick and picks and meet and greets. February was post concert depression. February was meeting The Summer Set and getting my albums signed. February was crying in the car because I was headed to the beach while my friends had breakfast with the Liv5 bands. February was expired film and my dad giving me his old camera. February was bonding with Sabsy. February was spending nights in a hospital and waiting. February was commuting alone from a funeral home to school. February was finding out something before everyone else knew. February took away one of my favorite uncles. February took away my grandmother. February was me being selfish. February was bittersweet. February was crashing and beginning again.

March was getting prints. March was staying at Starbucks from dinner until 2am with my sister because my parents were out. March was crying with Sharina and Nigel because we missed Smash Project (Hence, no The Cab). March was planning to stalk Cobra Starship and The Cab at the hotel but I woke up at 3am and saw tweets from The Cab bidding goodbye to the Philippines. March was SUPER stressful. March was leaving my second year of high school behind. March was seeing my childhood friends after three years. March was summer and me watching The Hunger Games to kick things off. March was more film. March was The Maine and meeting them at RX. March was The Maine The Maine The Maine The Maine THE MAINE.

April was The Maine's post concert depression and ATTEMPTING to paint. April was a sick photo wall. April started things with Built By Sonic and working on the We The Kings show. April was wanting to play musical chairs. April was hating on Falyn, baking cupcakes, and reading fan fiction until 3am with my cousins. April was countless trips to Mercato and endless orders of milk tea. April was listening to Austin Gibbs and sleeping at 5am. April was a believable photo of Garrett lying down on me.

May was getting the School of Visual Arts catalog and making up my mind about my course for college. May was putting on nail polish perfectly for the first time. May was fueled by bottles of AriZona iced tea at Binhi's house. May was baking more cupcakes. May was taking more trips to Greenhills and Boni High and buying markers from Muji. May was thinking that I lost a ticket to the WATIC show and feeling the relief as soon as I found it. May was seeing Joe Jonas with a huge pimple on my cheek and making my sixth grade self happy. May was putting glitter on a pair of black shoes then wearing those shoes to the We The Kings show and making my fan girl self even happier. May was the We The Kings show which sort of kind of paved my way to my future.

June was complaining about how I couldn't get my SLR to the SYG/WATIC/TC show but ending up enjoying the show 100x more because I just jammed with my friends instead of shooting. June was just jamming and dancing to We Are The In Crowd and holding up 'PROM?' signs. June was crying on Ate Julienne again because Mayday Parade and Bazooka Rocks. June was a new cork board. June was school and more time with the family. June was sticking letters to my empty Muji notebooks again. June was finding out about Lightroom and the wonders it could do to my concert photos. June was bonding with my dad to this thing at MOA and signing up as "freelance." June was buying vegetable juice and HATING IT TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT BECAUSE I NEVER EVER EAT VEGETABLES. June was giving up on French Fries and actually studying.

July was wanting to get a tattoo. July was me turning 16 and getting my dream pair of shorts. July was me trying to paint again. July was my best friend surprising me while I was watching Awkward (thus, the pizza. Thanks, Ysa!). July was Tita Lui treating me dessert and Nigel getting me an overpriced comb for my birthday. July was Greenhills and Boni High Street again. July was expensive as hell.

August was painting more, shooting more, listening to more music and dressing up a little bit better. August was my creativity paying off and winning the best shot among Sir Kenchi's classes. August was cutting a shirt and getting a reply from Nick Automatic and Chicosci. August was creative.

September was  learning how to post-process. September was ACTUALLY learning. September was immersing in Zambales and meeting my people (kidding). September was not missing The Cab for the third time. September was being a good street team for Mayday Parade. September was hitting my head to get meet and greets for Mayday Parade. September was meeting Forever The Sickest Kids this time and getting my planner signed. September was me going to more shows because Bazooka Rocks. September was Sabsy fainting on me during Forever The Sickest Kids and fighting our way to the front during The Maine. September closed with my self esteem going negative because of Taylor Momsen. September proved that #dedekexists.

October was  having lunch with Miggy Chavez and Vernon Go telling you that "you have potential."  October was my OPM side emerging and watching Chicosci perform live. October was the start of the jologs in me. October was my very first photo pit. October was me taking one of the best photos I ever took. October was a VERY different display picture on Facebook. October was me taking photography sort-of seriously.

November was me getting new lens after constant begging. November was other people thinking I took photography seriously. November was a winner BECAUSE OVERALL CHAMPIONZ HOLLA. November was wanting to go to Cebu because... of dried mangoes. November gave closure to my Twilight phase and sobbed inside the movie house with Nigel and Sharina. November was being badass. November was spending 8 hours in front of a computer screen to finish a project. November was a misunderstanding because of a sugar skull. November was chill.

December was taking a test for Algebra and slept the entire day after. December was my self esteem depleting again because of the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. December was having my first wax. December was me skipping This Century so I can study. December was actually finding a date to prom HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. December was going to my last concert for the year after a facial and looking like I was smothered with glue. December was going full-blast jologs and watching Rock Loqal with my co-jologs. December was becoming Raspberry: Girl (joke lang). December was me flying to Bacolod with dread because I was about to have a social life but ending up not wanting to leave. December was my first party and dancing with an absolute stranger IN THE F-ING PROVINCE and not being able to take We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together seriously (like, ever). December was going back and forth from the province to the city through a 2-hour road trip. December was me ending up in Starbucks and having my last coffee ofthe year with my cousins because we weren't allowed to go to another party. December was alcohol and other things I couldn't do back home.

2013 better kick some ass.