Severus Snape, for the Last Time

I don't... I wanna cry. I'm still in the office and I wanna cry after having read this a second time. 

There are very few things in this world that elicit this strong a feeling from me (because let's face it - I'm pretty apathetic and oblivious to a lot of things). One of those handful of things is the Harry Potter series. Jo Rowling built a world with her marvelous wit and imagination - the world where, upon reading the first book, I undoubtedly belonged to. I found home buried in those pages, devouring chapter per chapter as fast as my eyes could read, as swift as my brain could process. I grew with the characters. I laughed, cried, learned, loved, got frightened, and triumphed with them. 

I read those books over and over, discovering new things with each rereading. Those are the only books that I guarantee I will never get tired of reading. Going back to those pages feels like enveloping myself in the arms of friends and family. The wonder and awe that every sentence gives me brings me back to my childhood.

Ten years. Ten years of my life I spent with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. They aren't just characters anymore. They're friends, all of them. I couldn't look back at my life without mentioning Harry Potter.

The movies, on the other hand, brought my world to life and made many people here appreciate the magic. It truly is amazing. Now, with only 2 months to go, the last movie is coming out. Harry Potter will not really go away, what with the theme park and the unwavering love of us fans. The sadness is brought on by the thought that there's not gonna be anything new with Harry anymore. Us fans will just have to content ourselves with revisiting the books and holding Potter-thons. 

Alan Rickman summarized this overwhelming feelings in his short blurb. He encapsulated my experience in a few short sentences. He captured it beautifully. He was perfect as Severus Snape, and for the last time, I'm sure he will exceed all our expectations. I wish the journey could go on forever, but, as they say, all good things come to an end. That's what makes them special.

The Dream Prom

"I just wanted to be Cinderella, just for one night. One night when a guy would look at me under those corny crepe paper streamers and say, 'You look so beautiful." And then he'd grab my hand and ask me to dance." ~Mercedes, Glee 2x20

I know that Glee is supposed to be a teen drama/musical show. I know that story-wise, it's all over the place. But it has those little moments that speak to me and keep me watching.

I know I haven't been a teen in a long time, but I still want Mercedes' dream prom. And she got it. I'm still waiting for mine.

A short background: 


In my high school, you're not allowed to bring your own date during your Junior-Senior prom. Teachers are gonna make each section line up, and you will be paired according to height with your counterpart in the higher/lower batch. (Ex. If you're the tallest girl in 3rd year Section A, your partner will be the tallest boy in 4th year Section A) 


Some people ("special" students a.k.a. favorites or those who are really really smart) can request for their partners. Sadly, I'm not one of those. So when I was a junior, I got stuck with an asshole for a date. Luckily I shared him with another girl (there was a shortage of guys in our school) so that made it better a little. Then when I was a senior, I ended up being partnered with a guy who's half a foot shorter than me. Seriously, there are a LOT of tall guys in their batch. I don't know which one of us were getting punished. I wouldn't want to think that being paired with me was some sort of punishment. I also wouldn't want to think I was getting punished for something by being paired with him because I was a good student back then.

That was my prom experience. It pretty much sucked. It would have been abysmal if it weren't for my friends being there.

Now, six long years later, I'm still waiting for that dream prom. I guess that's why I'm so attached to movies or shows with dance scenes. I want my sweet slow dance with someone who actually wants to dance with me and not just someone following protocol.

It's Time to Challenge the Streak Again!

I haven't been following WWE regularly for a number of months now. I do, however, watch all the pay-per-views. And of course, as all WWE fans know, this is the season for the most important PPV of all: Wrestlemania.

I don't know all the matches yet but the two that I know of will surely make WM27 EPIC.

First, The Rock is back! And he's challenged John Cena to a 'Mania match. I mean, it's The Rock! His and Austin's era was by far the best, even if I've only experienced small parts of it. It's been 7 years since he stepped into a ring. I'm hoping that by being back, he'd bring back even just a little bit of the Attitude Era, like when DX regrouped the last 2 times.

Sigh. I miss DX.

Then there's the Undertaker vs. Triple H match. It's not the first time they'll be facing each other but... I don't know. I'm really nervous about this match. I'm sure it's gonna be mind-blowing. Both of them are already legends. The thing that's bothering me is that they're both in the "retirement-ready" age. I mean, Shawn Michaels retired last year. Ric Flair the year before last. All during 'Mania. It's like they have this formula of retiring legends by putting them in a match with another legend. I just don't wanna lose either Triple H or The Undertaker. Frankly, they're the only reason I watch WWE now, plus Edge, Randy Orton, and John Cena. The new guys are fine - some are quite good, but I still haven't found anybody really worth following.

One of the things I seriously, indisputably want to do in my life is watch The Undertaker LIVE in a 'Mania match, preferably ringside. That would cost me my lifesaving. The roundtrip plane ticket alone costs a fortune. Then there's accommodation and food. And the 'Mania ticket itself.

I've only been working for a year and my pay isn't high. I need another year to save up. I'm determined to make this particular dream come true. I just need one more year. Pls. Undertaker, hold on for another Wrestlemania. I just need a year. I'm doing my best to earn extra besides my day job pay. I'm sure I'll get there next year.

"Like a Virgin" - Supernatural S6EP12

*spoiler alert*

Sam gets his soul back!

Yeah, did I just spoil it for you? I did warn you though.

Anyway, this is maybe the funniest episode this season so far. The past eps were thrilling, but I missed the softness in Sam that is his soul. Yeah, he is again Mr. Righteous and whiny but the brothers' lovable dynamic is back. It's been so long!

I actually think Dean is funnier with the normal Sam than the soulless one.

So here, the boys are hunting down dragons because the creatures have been kidnapping virgins and taking gold. Dean goes to a professor that specializes in medieval history to consult about killing dragons. A blade forged in dragon blood was needed to do so, and lo' and behold, the professor has one right in the office! And guess what - it was stuck inside a stone. No, it wasn't the Excalibur. 

How Dean got it out of the stone is something to be seen. Seriously, go see it now!

And then there's Sam - crafty crafty Sam. He knew that Dean and Bobby were hiding something from him. And since both wouldn't tell him anything - he fished it out of Castiel! 

So then afterwards, our heroes charged into sewers wielding the magic blade and rescuing virgins. Lol.

In the end was revealed the Mother of All. 

I don't know what will happen - I'm excited to see!

Dinner for Shmucks

Kinda expected real laughs from this movie, but then again, I'm not really into Steve Carell's humor. I did like Evan Almighty though.

Dinner for Shmucks... It's was fine. I get the character exaggerations for comedic purposes but some are just ridiculous and ineffective. The story was simple. Paul Rudd did alright. There was maybe one laugh out loud moment, when Zach Galifianakis and Steve Carell were battling it out during "brain control", but that's about it.

I did like the part during the dinner when one of the guests who's supposed to be able to talk to dead animals was served lobster, and she started channeling it, acting out the moment it was getting boiled. :)

I know this movie review sucks but I only write as much as the movie inspires me. 

However, here's a snapshot of a scene that's supposed to be "epiphanic":

It's interesting to look at, no?

Coin Dozer: the Hundredth Level

So this is level 100. I've been wondering what would happen when I reach this level. Now that I have... Well, the only thing to do is keep playing!

Although, about five levels ago, the challenge of the game became different. Basically, the aim is to get coins in order to get the prizes to have the perks of the collection like getting a prize even if it falls off the sides. At around level 95, my coin counter isn't reaching 0 anymore. And because special coins appear often, the number just kept on going higher! So now the new aim is to get that counter to 0 again.

I challenged my brother and he did it! Too bad I didn't get to take a picture of that. But here's one to celebrate level 100!



Still, I think this app is such an effective time-waster. But it's just so addicting! I have all the versions!!!

System Restore

System Restore: Restore your computer's settings to a time when everything was working properly. Some recently installed programs might be erased. -Sana pwedeng i-system restore ang buhay paminsan noh? Thing is, will you be willing to erase the "recently installed" people sa buhay mo and the memories that come with them just so you could go back to a time when everything seemed fine? (sorry, ayaw mag-boot ng comp ko kakainis!)

Posted this on Twitter and FB. Wala lang, I was actually OK that time. I was rebooting my brother's desktop one night and it was displaying some error message. It then showed the "system restore" option, informing me that by doing this, I could go back to a time when the system was working properly. It also warned me that when I click OK, recently installed programs will be erased.

I did not click OK. I got it to work fine though after another reboot.

Anyway, that whole "system restore" thing got me thinking: what if I can do that in real life? When everything feels wrong, I just hit that button and go back to a time when I was completely happy? Or to a specific fork in the road of my life and choose the other path?

Sounds wonderful, doesn't it?

But there's a catch.

All of the people (and here, people are the programs installed into one's life) that you knew after that fork in the road will be erased from your life, including the memories that you made with them.

Admit it; there are indeed people you've recently met that you wish you never have. They may have hurt you severely, made your life a living hell, or just annoyed your day - there's that someone you want erased from your history.

On the other hand, there can also be people whom you've known for only a few months but then... You already cannot even bear to imagine life without them. The question is, would you be willing to let go of these people just to go back to that longed for moment in time?

And how are you supposed to know which point to go back to? It is highly tempting to give in to weakness and pick a point where there's still that "someone" and everything's a little bit better, but it's a point that's past that crucial fork in the road, which makes the whole system restore thing useless.

Ah, such a dilemma, isn't it?

Hello 2011!!!

The first month of the year is about to end and I just realized that I haven't blogged in 4 months! What have I been doing?!

Oh yeah, work.

Ah, work, which is what I'm supposedly doing right now. Again, I'm at Starwood Hotel in Baguio. I actually have no idea why we're here again. We're supposed to be finalizing stuff for next month but.. Oh well. I don't wanna talk about work.

So, January. It's the time when everybody's being positive and setting goals and getting hyped up about achieving those goals. I'm not gonna deny it; I'm one of those people. I actually downloaded a checklist app! I wanna know exactly what I'm gonna do. As they say, having goals isn't enough. One must know exactly which steps to take in order to get to those goals. Hence, the checklist.

So what are my goals for this year? Hmm. Well, that's for me and my checklist app to know. :) All I can say is that I don't wanna have the same goals again like I did the past few years and never get around to achieving them. This time, I wanna be sure. I wanna see results. It's time for some change.

What I Want to Know

I want to know him.

I wanna know his quirks. I wanna know what's under that tough exterior. I wanna know that side he doesn't show just anybody. I wanna know what he goes through everyday - the mundane and the extraordinary. I don't care if he complains about the most boring thing like the difference between software upgrades or announce a success like closing a big account - I'd listen and sympathize with it all. I just want to know how his day went.

I also want to know about his hobbies and habits - what he does on weeknights and weekends, random things he does when he has minutes to spare and also, if he has them, little de-stressing rituals done in-between hectic schedules.

I want to know what makes him happy, what makes him sad, what brings out the best and worst in him. I wanna see him at his worst because in my eyes, he's always at his best. I want the whole picture.

I wanna know what comforts him and what agitates him. I also want to know what makes him smile - and at the same time, wish that I were one of those things. I wanna know what makes him feel all tingly inside so I could do them because he makes me feel all tingly inside by just being there, even if he's in a whole other room.

I wanna know everything about his past - the happy memories, the heartaches, the embarrassments, the triumphs - everything. I wanna know how he became him. With that, I also want to know his imperfections, fears, and insecurities so that we could overcome them together.

I wanna know his opinion about things: books, music, movies, current events, people, etc. We could discuss/argue about them. I also want to know about his feelings, what he feels about certain things, at certain times, and how he deals with those feelings.

Of course, I'd like to know his favorites and pray that one day I'd be one of those.

What does he like? What doesn't he like? What's he on-the-fence for? What are his plans? What motivates and inspires him? Even a general idea would do.

I wanna know about his family and friends. I wanna know about his childhood dreams and which ones came true. I wanna hear funny stories about silly escapades and I'd tell him mine 'cause I've got lots of those. What did he want to be when he grew up? Who was his best friend and are they still talking? I wanna know about his childhood.

There are so many things that I'm eager to know about him. But simply put, I just want to know him. I want him to share himself with me because I'm eager to share myself with him.

Sunday Afternoon

I'm so happy that I do not need to see the office today. Not that I hate it, but I've been there every single day for the past two weeks. True, we went to Baguio for a few days but it still felt like being in that office.

So today, I'm cherishing every moment that I'm away from there. Even if I still can't escape text messages regarding work, at least I can think about solutions in a different environment. Feels refreshing. :)

On the other hand, I only have maybe a couple of weeks to spend in that blue room. We're moving to another location early September, according to my boss. I'd really like to be excited about it. I mean, that new place would give our agency a little bit more credibility. We'd actually feel like a real agency. But leaving the old place means leaving six months of memories behind. It's leaving half a year of friendship. As much as I hate to admit it, I will surely miss some people. Some more than others.

But oh well, I guess this means I'm moving forward in my career. The past week and a half have been surreal. I am overworked and underpaid and hopefully it's worth the sacrifice.

I remember the time when I was seriously considering quitting this job. I really wanted to be self-employed. I still do. But the past week has ignited in me some sort of purpose. I was made to do things out of my job description. It was difficult but I knew that it was for the greater good of the company. That this would be our big break - the opportunity to prove to everybody that we're capable of more than they'll ever know.

Recently, I've been re-evaluating plans I've already made before I got this job. I was gonna experience life abroad. I was gonna expand my horizons. I still really wanna do that, but it's not that easy anymore. I've become attached. It sucks, but I have. Hell, when I first came in, I was only gonna give it 3 months and then I'm gone. But maybe God gave me crazy (in a good way) officemates for a purpose. There were times of self doubt and insecurities but now I'm just chillin'. I can't imagine working with anyone else but them.

And then there's... Well, yeah. That's another matter.

So right now, as I sit here in my brother's business thinking of ways on how to improve it, I try to also think about the future. Where will I be 5 years from now? Will I have done things that I've always wanted to do like handle my own business and study abroad? (my dad was suggesting that I pick apples in Austalia for a living. Sounds nice and peaceful.$ Or would I have succumed to the comfort of a steady employment? I really am not sure right now. I hate breaking my plans but if better things could be had, then why not?