iba ang pinoy, mas may puso!

I was in a bit of a nostalgic mood today. I was looking at some of the Superbowl commercials when I suddenly remembered the excellent Coca-Cola commercial a few years ago that featured Nikki Gil. So I immediately searched for it on YouTube and thank goodness I immediately found it (yehey!). and here it is:



But I also saw a couple of other videos of this ad that was done in other countries... Here is the original English (UK) version:



And here is the Spanish version:



After viewing these three versions, I would have to say that our local version is the best! As one of the commenters said, "Iba ang pinoy, mas may puso!" I really love the ending in our version... Nikki giving a bottle of coke to the little girl and the girl giving a flower as thanks never fails to bring tears to my eyes.

Vocally, I liked the Spanish girl the best. But I like our arrangement better. I believe this was done during a time when a capella groups were popular. I wonder who did the backing vocals.

I also love how "localized" our version is. Even with the sound turned off you'd immediately know that this ad is set in the Philippines... The jeepney, construction workers, students and vendors all walking about really contributes to the magnificent local color. In the UK and Spanish versions, there wasn't any local color at all. Or maybe their countries are really drab with nothing unique to show...

But really, all three ads were great (if only I could understand Spain's version)... Kudos to the person who thought of this idea first and kudos to Coke for putting out this very heart warming series of ads.

...

Last year, merong palaging ipinagpipilitan sa akin ang isa kong kaibigan. Kung ano man yung pinagpipilitan niya, sa akin na lang yun. Basta palagi akong nagdedeny tuwing nabbring up ang topic. I always try to change the topic or dinadaan ko sa mga jokes, matigil lang ang usapan. Denial King eh... Pero kahapon, di ko na kinaya. Hindi naman niya brining up yung topic, ako na lang yung biglaang umamin na totoo nga ang iniisip niya. Sobrang biglaan kong sinabi sa kanya. Kumakain kami nun tapos bigla kong binuksan ang aking bibig at sinabi ang katotohanan. Tapos dumating ang iba naming kasama at sarado na bigla ang usapan na yun. Sampung segundo lang na mapapagod ang aking dila pero ngayon lang ako nagkaroon ng lakas ng loob na iconfirm ang hinala niya. Bakit ko naman biglang sinabi yun kung kelan hindi nga brining up ang isyu? Ewan ko lang... Siguro kinelangan ko lang ilabas dahil matagal na panahon ko na yun kinikimkim. O kaya siguro medyo hopeless na kasi ang sitwasyon ko, kelangan ko na siguro ng tulong... Ahh ewan...

Sherman Pore - Audition

I was not able to watch American Idol last night, there was something wrong with our cable connection. I was very disappointed because I promised to myself that I was gonna watch every single episode of this season. So today I started looking for videos of last night's auditions... There weren't that many, I wasn't very impressed by those who got through to Hollywood. Then I saw this video. At first I thought it was one of those deluded old people trying to get their 15 minutes of fame. Boy was I wrong... His story is so sad. And what he did for his "lady" is so sweet... I applaud this man.

Thoughts of an old fogey... Cheering edition!

After six long years, I was able to watch the the High School Cheering Competition in San Beda again. I have always been a big fan of cheerdancing. Back when I was in high school, the competition was always one of the highlights of the year. It was always fun anticipating the big day, practicing the batch cheers, watching the amazing cheerdancers doing their stuff. The rivalries between batches were pretty fun too!

Watching this year's competition was fun but disappointing. The freshmen, sophomore and junior teams were average. The seniors were pretty good although not as good as I thought they were gonna be (some said that their routine was better last year). The cheerdancers themselves were pretty great, I don't think the dancers from my batch could have competed with these groups. What I didn't like were the routines themselves. I had my expectations raised since I was expecting UAAP-caliber routines so I guess it's my fault, they are still in high school after all. I also didn't like the entrances and exits of the cheerdancers... I guess I wanted something a bit more organic.

I also didn't like the music used. There were so many cuts from song to song but apparently, that is the in thing with cheering these days. I'm such an old fogey, I'm used to long stretches of songs being played and danced to hahaha!! I watched the video of our batch's cheering competition afterwards, it was weird that we used half a Ricky Martin song when this year you can barely get ten seconds of a song hahaha.

I did not like the cheerdancers' outfits at all. The freshmen's outfits had nothing special going, the sophies' were pretty fugly (the black stripe on the sides made them look wide!), the juniors' kinda looked like costumes for gymnastics, and the seniors' outfits looked like chocnut wrappers as one friend of mine accurately observed. Hahaha!

It was pretty obvious that the senior were going to win but they were not very ecstatic leading to the announcement of the awards. There was some snafu with the announcement of winners, whoich kinda explains their lack of enthusiasm. And maybe it's also because their win is already expected that's why they were not that noisy. But then again, previous batches were always so happy and noisy even if their win was a sure thing. Weird, weird, weird...

But I guess the main reason why I was disappointed with the competition this year was because I am not a student anymore. I'm not part of the mass of students sitting in the bleachers cheering their respective batches. There's a big difference between being a casual observer/visitor and actually being part of the different batches and having a part in the competition. I missed participating in shouting the cheers and I really missed having batch spirit. Sigh... Ugh, I really am an old fogey...

Thoughts of an Old Fogey

Dang... I haven't blogged in such a long time. I miss it but at the same time, I always have no idea what to write.

The past week was a good one. I was on leave the entire week and I got to do the things I wanted to do and also to rest my mind and body. I went to the dentist, watched the Golden Globes telecast, visited DLSU, endless videoke singing, watched the Cheering Compeition, gone on various gimiks and most importantly SLEEP, SLEEP, SLEEP!!!

The Golden Globes was not that good this year. Sure, some of my favorites won (Congrats to Jennifer Hudson, America Ferrera and the Ugly Betty cast!) but the telecast itself was not that fun. The speeches weren't that great (Helen Mirren disappointed me but Meryl Streep was a blast once again). And there were these annoying interviews conducted by some Entertainment Tonight reporters. Bleeh!

Videoke was fun. Two hours in one day with Mikki, another two hours in a day with Mikki and Aena... I thought I was gonna run out of songs to sing but surprisingly, I was always able to find new tunes. Never got hoarse while singing, which is a first for me. I must be getting pretty good at this. Now if only I can carry a tune...

Going back to DLSU was a blast. I was going round and round the campus, looking at some of the familiar and unfamiliar sights. SJ Walk now has a proper roof, Aristo still has the delicious and cheap mojos, there are new P.E. uniforms, the museum at the Yuchengco building was pretty cool, and there's a new building in front of the Gym. But I did not enter that new building (I think it was named after Bro. Andrew), I was too shy! Only freshmen use that building and it's kinda hard to blend in with the younglings ahahaha... Biggest disappointment of my visit: no more Kaibigan! I wanted to eat some of their famous sisig but it's gone... Or maybe I just can't find them anymore. Baaahhh!

All the rest afforded by my leave apparently had a good effect on me. Some of my officemates said I looked relax, even a bit younger looking. Ahahaha! That's pretty cool... But I am tired at work today, very sleepy... I was tossing and turning in bed all night last night so I need to catch some serious zzz's tonight.

my Christmas gift to you: a blogging survey!

1. When did you start blogging?

2003 i think... but i've stopped blogging for a period noon, as in consciously shut down the blog... then i took it up again when i became bored hahaha

2. Average, how often do you blog?

siguro mga once a week kapag sinisipag. pero may times na a month or more ang lumilipas before i update

3. How do you host your blog?

wala, di naka-host ito

4. What blogging application/service do you use?

i use blogger.com... i also have an identical blog on multiply.com, hindi kasi allowed ang blogger sa office

5. Do you use an application to blog directly from your desktop, rather than from your blogs administration?

nope. hindi ako high-tech

6. Do you use a free theme for your blog?

i use one of blogger's default themes

7. What type of blogging do you do?

minsan storya ng buhay ko, minan mga reviews, minsan lyrics, kahit ano!

8. What is your primary blogging motivation?

an outlet for my energy, happiness, frustrations

9. Do you care much about the amount of visitors?

not really. syempre nakakatuwa kapag may nagbabasa but i don't keep track of the number of visitors

10. Does the total account of visitors on your blog count more to you, than the amount of visitors who comment on your blog posts?

mas gusto ko pa ang nagccomment para alam ko na binasa talaga hehe

11. Do you use some sort of anti spam solution for your blog comments? (Such as Akismet)

nope!

12. If you run advertisements on your blog, do you sell the ads yourself?

nope... wala na ngang bumibisita dito, mage-effort pa ako na mag advertise?!?!

13. If you earn money on advertising on your blog, how much do you approximately earn per month?

this is not a money making venture!!

14. If you are running a business blog - have it helped your business to start blogging?

n/a

15. Are you a member of a blogging network such as random shapes or 9rules?

i used to be a member of a blog ring

16. If you are member of a blogging network - has it helped you noticeable in any way?

maybe

17. How many daily unique visitors do your blog have?

aba malay

18. Do you keep statistics of feed subscribers?

nope

19. Do you put work into search engine optimisation for your blog?

nope

20. Have you ever bought advertisement on other websites for your blog?

nope... ahaha bitin naman ng survey na ito :-P

donde esta santa claus?

Out of nowhere, I suddenly remembered that old Christmas carol "Donde Esta Santa Claus?" I already forgot the lyrics so I searched the internet for it and I was laughing my head off while reading/singing the lyrics.

I hope he won't forget to clack his castinet,
And to his reindeer, say,
"Oh Pancho, Oh! Vixen, Oh! Pedro, Oh! Blitzen,"
Ole! Ole! Ole! cha cha cha.

How silly are those lyrics?!?!

Anyways, I'm beginning to feel the spirit of the holidays. I've been receiving tons of text messages greeting me a Merry Christmas. A friend also texted me that she has some gossip so I'm anticipating that (gossip is my oxygen!). And in an hour's time, we'll be eating our Noche Buena! WOOT!!! And I'm feeling less lonelier as well since I am talking with someone! May nag online na din sa wakas!!! Hahaha!

Random Thoughts on a Lonely Evening (Christmas Edition)

"Sana ngayong Pasko dinggin mo ang hinihiling ko,
Buksan mo Panginoon ko puso ng bawat tao"

- I cannot remember where I've heard of the above song lyrics. I think it was a song our junior class composed for a project but it may also be some random holiday jingle. But these two particular lines have been stuck in my head and I cannot get it out. Maybe it's because I want something this Christmas and it's definitely not my two front teeth...

- Since I was out all night last night and I went to hear dawn mass this morning and went to the grocery to buy mayonnaise that my mom needs for her salad, I was pretty much pooped out come 10 AM. I was already sound asleep by 11 and didn't wake up until 7 this evening. So I've screwed up my body clock once again and falling asleep is gonna be hard after the Noche Buena later. Thank goodness for Melatonin!

- It's a quarter after 8 already and I can hear the bells announcing the first Misa de Aguinaldo. But our family's gonna hear mass tomorrow instead. Hopefully, my sister will be here when it's time to go to Church so we can be all together even for just one hour. Maybe even more as Christmas masses tend to be longer than the usual mass.

- I'm bored. Definitely bored out of my wits. Christmas eve is always like this every year. Eat dinner at 7 then wait for five hours for Noche Buena. Christmas eve this year falls on a Sunday so watching tv is not an option, Sunday programs are boring! It's a good thing my sister left her laptop so now I'm blogging and reading some stuff online... But this is gonna get old after a while...

- Tomorrow is gonna be a hellish day. I'll see our "asungot" relatives once again, those who only remember us during Christmas time and only comes to our house for money. Of course we have to be cordial towards them but deep in our hearts, we really hate them. But we have to act out this charade every year as it has become a custom. Bah humbug!

- Someone in our neighborhood is playing Christmas carols over their sound system. Surprisingly, I've only heard one group of real carollers tonight. I guess a lot of people are tired of going from one house to the next singing their hearts out and getting only a few measly pesos. But I do miss hearing carollers and giving them money especially if they are quite good.

- I'm really getting lonely this evening. Not having someone to talk to does not only numb the brain but it also numbs the heart. I've been online for an hour already and I haven't seen anyone log on to their IM accounts so I can chat with them. Talking to family is not an option as we have nothing to talk about. So instead, I'm just pouring my heart out in this blog... Le sigh...

- I just suddenly remembered that Christmas is supposed to be the birth of Jesus. Silly me, I thought it was about gift giving, parties and crass commercialization. I guess the true essence of Christmas is really gone and unless the retailers stop selling gifts, the advertisers stop using the holiday as a tool for selling products and the government bans partying, we'll never regain that true essence.

- I'm browsing CNNMoney.com right now. I'm beginning to think of where I can put the money I got and will be getting this Christmas. Of course a chunk of that money will be spent shopping but I'm looking for alternatives for the left over cash. I' thinking of the stock market hmmm... But of course, this is all assuming that I'll get moolah tomorrow.

- Goodness, my sister's laptop is acting up. I guess I can't write random thoughts until Noche Buena time as this computer might crash and all that I've written will be lost. So I'm publishing this already and I'll accompany my mom while she is working. Yes she is working. Looking at her bookkeeping. On Christmas eve. It doesn't get any more Christmas-y than that!!!

Bisperas ng Pasko

Yesterday,
All my troubles seemed so far away,
Now it looks as though they're here to stay,
Oh, I believe in yesterday.

Nyak, isa na namang moody posting. Wala naman talaga akong problems, namumoody nga lang talaga. Meron nga lang bumabother sa utak ko ngayon pero di na ako magkkwento, mahirap na at baka kung sino pa ang makabasa.

Ilang oras na, araw na ng Pasko. Ito ang pinaka unang Noche Buena ng buhay ko na wala ang ate ko so I'm a bit bummed about that. On the upside, madaming mga kamag-anak na taga probinsiya ang andito so they'll liven things up. And also, I have a lot of gifts under the Christmas tree just waiting to be opened.

Speaking of gifts, I just gave a gift to a fried despite what I have been saying that I will not be handing out Christmas presents this year unless it's part of a Secret Santa thig. I gave him two DVDs, one for his birthday that was 10 million years ago and one for Christmas.

Gift giving is such a chore for me as I don't know what the perfect gift is going to be! That's why in instances wherein I find a perfect match, like this instance when I saw the DVDs of some favorite movies of my friend in the mall, I always grab the opportunity and snap the gifts right up. I really do not have time nor the patience to go to Divisoria and go around the whole place looking for something that's merely "suitable" to a person. Unfortunately, this DVD thing was the only serendipitous instance in this year's gift giving charade. All other friends and relatives are still going to receive nada!

Now all Christmas season long, I was acting like a veritable Scrooge. "Bah humbug!" my YM status would say during particular times of grumpiness. I kept on telling people that I have no money, that I will not give out gifts, that I will recycle all gifts that I'll be receiving. All of these are true... But last week, while browsing the decorations that are on sale, I suddenly got the holiday fever. I just wanted to buy all of the Christmas decorations they have for sale, that I will find gifts for everyone, that I am going to keep all the cool stuff I got. Fortunately, this was a temporary thing. I still have the holiday bug right now but I still don't have money so I'm curbing my spending.

Aaahh 13 and a half hours to go! Lamon na naman I was just at the pakain sa San Beda this morning and I ate two plates of buffet food. Busog kung busog. Tapos lamon sa Noche Buena tonight tapos lamon ulit sa Christmas party bukas hehehe. Pataba nang pataba talaga! Hehehe

I hope that it will become chilly tonight to make the weather more Christmas like. Ang init eh! And I'm off to sleep na, still have to make up for millions of hours of sleep debt! An advanced Merry Christmas to everyone!!!

just got back from palawan...

...and i miss the damned place already. my goodness! four days of nothing but bliss. nakakabwisit na nandito na ulit ako sa maynila, walang magawa, di ko kasama ang mga kaibigan ko. boring sobra! at nakakairita ang polusyon hmph! hahaha...

i'll write about my palawan experiences soon...