MAC for Student

So I have been thinking about getting myself a MAC on my birthday, which is the 16th of next month.  But I guess my birthday gift came a month early.

I was getting all tired at work again.  Working 10 hours a day for 6 days straight does have its moments that gets to you.  So on the last day before I am free for my one and only day off, I decided to go visit the Apple store when I get off.  The more I sat on the idea, the more I looked forward to it and the lighter my chest felt.

You see, I have also been feeling down since Thursday night.  I took a placement exam at college, and I did quite well actually considering it has been two years since I took exams, studied, and did all those student stuff.  I aced the reading and comprehension.  I did fair on math, which was quite depressing because I honestly expected better from myself.  It also did not help that I was holding in my pee because I did not know if we were allowed restroom breaks.  I later found out at the end of the exam that we were allowed breaks!  I also had a headache prior to taking the exam because I just got off a busy day at work.  The guy told me I can take the essay writing test thing I was qualified for so that I can "challenge" a few of the courses and up my placement in English.  As for the math, he said I can study and retake it if I want to place higher than the placement I got.  I honestly did not get any studying done; did I mention I work 10 hours a day?  So after getting the results, I was ready to register for class, but I see how my parents were not in full support of me taking on studying again.  I understand where they are coming from.  Practically speaking it is better I work and save, but it honestly is not all about money for me.  I guess I am just not practical as dad wants me to be, but I do want to achieve something for myself.

I honestly felt my last graduation was rushed since we had to migrate to the states, and I did have a handful of help from my boyfriend and my friend Marchele in getting that diploma.  Also a great deal of understanding from our dean and my college professors who allowed me to take the course online.  Special case, special consideration.  I was quite a head turner when I flew home for graduation; imagine people not seeing me the whole semester and having me graduate with them.  Anyhow, back to the MAC.  My old laptop was still working but it could not get through the high level security of the WiFi here at our place since it is old.  I also got tired of browsing using my cellphone or ipad, because a laptop or PC is just different.  I also got tired of borrowing from my sister.  I gave her the laptop I recently bought from my first black friday here in the US last 2011.

So worst case scenario is I save up and enroll for winter quarter.  If I find an online course I am interested in, I can sign up for the for the fall quarter.  I wanted to enroll CS115 but the schedule will need adjustment form my work schedule and could cut my hours at work, considering if my employers agree to the adjustment.

After getting the MAC I also felt a bit guilty.  I told myself I would not want to spend on anything big until my boyfriend gets here.  But it is just hard for me without a laptop. Just because I am a netizen (haha!).

So basically my last two weeks in bullet form:

• work 
• thought about accepting a position as a cook for free training
• did not push through the cook plan
• applied to two colleges
• got accepted to both colleges
• took placement test for the college I want to go to
• registered for a class
• unregistered for a class
• got a MBPR
• went to Snoqualmie Falls with Family (today)  

Also, it is a good thing I got the MAC yesterday because until September 6 they have this back to school promo.  Students get like $50 or so off the MAC and a gift card for iTunes/ App Store worth $100. :)  Thank you Lord I now have a laptop!

That is basically it.  This is basically a rant of my frustration in getting back to student life and my getting a new laptop haha.

Oh well, my blog my rant. 

Over and out,

Allie

PS:  I am praying for the family of my good, good friend Choods.  Wish I were there for you my friend. 

Period

I was one who thought that all these "hormones" and "period" excuse was all rubbish. I never really did "crave" anything before during my period, not crave anything out of the usual anyways. But I have lately come to realize that such irrational emotions tend to surface during my time of the month. 

I first noticed it during third year college I believe, or maybe second? I drove to Jollibee from school because I HAD TO have peach mango pie! I ended up eating about 5 zert pies all by myself. 

I love to eat sweets (even more) on my days of the month.

I had lunch earlier with my friend Alynah, and we talked about everything and anything in our lives. She mentioned there was scientific basis for the hormones acting all crazy or whatever during our time of the month. She said we tend to feel hot and easily irritated. She's a nurse by the way.

Since I just recently acknowledged such phenomenon, looking back, I salute my boyfriend for putting up with me during my time of the month. Just last Saturday I made a huge deal of him not showing up at the house, even if he did say he'd be there AFTER the event he went to. And because I could not wait I drove around Cebu city, not knowing exactly where the event was. I wanted to go out, go somewhere, but I really had nowhere to go to. I was all hot and furious on the phone, but boyfriend was calm and understanding. When we finally met up, I was all b*tchy (I admit *eye roll*) and irrational, not thinking straight at all, but he was calm and he did not stoop down to my mood. He even got me a shirt! Just like sweet boyfriends would do when attending an event or concert to remind you that they were thinking of you! We went to my house and walked to the Chowking near my place and ate. Despite my being all bad mood and bad vibes, he stayed with me and fed me. He managed to calm me down and eventually made me smile. 

I might have overlooked this part of our relationship before, me being all hot-headed and him being all calm and bringing me to my place of inner peace. My boyfriend, my zen. Now I fully acknowledge it and dedicate this blog post to it, to remind me of how lucky I am to have you- my Elwin. :) 

Side note: Thanks for accompanying me to my salon sessions (mani, pedi, haircut, and etc.).

2013

And sometimes I myself wonder how I am so crazy in love with you, this is only one of the many million reasons why. :)

To my ever-dearest loving boyfriend who puts up with me when I'm hell to be with,

  I LOVE YOU

to the moon and back times infinity and beyond.

The Simple Things

I am not sure if I already have a post up with that title, but it is a common title and very relevant to me. I am a simple person really, who appreciates simple things.

So a couple of days ago I was sick and I whined to my boyfriend about it. He of course kept apologizing about how he was so busy with work that he could hardly find the time to reply to my messages. I understood him of course, since at the end of the week was the release of their project. Upset as I was, not really at him but at the situation, I went to sleep. I woke up to no message and I text messaged him, letting him know I was awake. He replied with a short and to the point message: "OT". Great, now he's on overtime with work, yet again. I messaged him telling him I hope I'd catch him. I planned on coming to work early so I could maybe catch him for a quick chat or a bite to eat. It really sucks having opposite work schedules with him. He messaged me back not to go out of the house and that he was on his way to see me. I asked him why and he replied a short, sweet, and honest answer: "Mis u man." My boyfriend  :"> So I was all giddy and I tried to cook for him this new corned beef we have not tried yet, and it was actually part of my errand list. If I had to buy 2 dozens of it to bring to the US, it must be that good. Boyfriend arrived with a box full of KFC chicken. My sweet boy. Although my aunt and I burned the onions we sauteed for the corned beef, I am happy to report that my boyfriend still loved it. And I love him.

Earlier today also before my shift at work, boyfriend and I were watching a movie at his place. When I was about to leave for work, he handed me a plastic with 2 containers. Apparently, his mother, on her own, decided to cook me my lunch for work. A really sweet gesture I will look back to even years from now and still appreciate just as much. It is a very nice feeling when your boyfriend's family accepts you and loves you, and you loving them back in return. I just am blessed that my boyfriend and his family both love me, and I love them too.

In a week I'll be seeing my family, finally after 6 months. I cannot wait to give them my hugs. And I cannot wait to snuggle up on our babies Miggy and Phoebe. It will be hard though when I'll have to leave again, because you can't reason or explain to dogs. I wish I could make them understand.

Today is a Sunday and the sun is shining down on my face right now. It will be church in 4 hours but I'm not sure I'll be able to attend. I pulled through the whole shift alone and could not catch a nap like I usually do before church. It will be such a shame if I went and be all sleepy. I just kept watching 2 Broke Girls to pull me through and keep me awake. I'm really sleepy now and cannot wait to go snuggle up in my bed. I have a long and busy week ahead full of errands, Jesus please see me through.

                                                                               

                                                                                                                                                                                         

The Sun is Up.

Today was exquisite. Simple day filled with genuine happiness. :) My heart smiles and is full of warmth. :D Thank you Jesus!

Dinner with Me

hard na to imagine life without you babs. at KFC

he eats dinner with me. <3 @kolootski (Taken with Instagram)

So since I’m working a swing shift now, 3PM-12AM, I hardly get to eat lunch with my boyfriend. Plus we only have Sunday as a common day off, so that would mean we won’t see much of each other. But thankfully, he gets off at 7, just in time for my meal break. Even if it means going home later than he supposedly could, and mean spending extra for dinner (plus spending on lunch for the earlier part of the day), the sweet one accompanies me for dinner. :D I love you boyfriend!

CHRISTMAS EVE 2010

My mother woke me up for the occasion, I fell asleep because I was tired from the 23rd's tradition with friends. So we went down, and there was something more homey to this Christmas eve's feel and something sad as well. This will most likely be our last Christmas here in our home, in a long while.

Things I got from group exchanging gifts:

• FORLAN Class: from Paul - native sun/moon necklace
• PSITS Christmas Party at Mang Inasal: from Marnie - a cow stuff toy bat

Presents from other people:

• Tita Dinah - hanky
• Chipstar - a thoughtful Christmas card and a very cute cow memo pad holder :)
• Elwin, the boyfriend - a 4GB flash drive so cute, "crystalized with Swarovski Elements" and it says its waterproof

And after the opening of gifts, we took lots of photos. Dad and mom wanted photos of our living room and dining area in different angles so that when we fly off to America, we remember how home looks like. We ate desserts and enjoyed the evening with our two maids and two aunts. :)

Even though the gifts were fewer (although there are still other gifts on the way from other relatives), Christmas eve was still heartfelt for me. And just a few days ago did a fact hit me; it hit me, I pondered, and later grew grateful for the fact that:

I've never spent a Christmas or New Year 

away from the family or away from home.

Thank you Jesus for that. :) I didn't really think about how common it was for others to spend Christmas away from family and away from home, not because they want to but they have to. My friend Princess is at work now since she has to work, I'm chatting with her a bit to keep her company.

Christmas is a time to bond with family and friends, think and ponder about all our relationships, especially our relationship with our God.

Happy Birthday Jesus Christ! :)

Very thankful,

-allie

//photos to follow

The Little Things

Today was the official first day of school for the 2nd semester of school year 2010-2011. But as expected- NO CLASS yet. So I went out with my boyfriend today. We had late lunch at the mall.

Lunch at the food court turned out to be more expensive then dining in a restaurant, but I wanted to eat lechon. YUM. 

12php rice. 3-5 spoonful. 

Aside from the lechon, we also had humba meal (1 pc. humba meeat, 1 egg, 1 rice, 8 oz. ice-tea drink), Leylam's shawarma rice, large mango shake from thirsty, 2 extra rice (from a different store, it cost 15php).

In the end we placed too much on our plates, more than we could finish so we had to doggy pack and bring home leftovers. 

After stuffing ourselves we went over to CD-R KING, "you one-stop media provider". It's one place to get computer accesories and what-nots at a very cheap price, quality however is compromised most of the time. Anyways, Elwin mentioned he'd buy a mouse pad and he offered to buy me one too. But I told him that I already had one and I didn't need to get one. He said the my mouse pad was "luoy" (pitiful) already and that he could just get me one since it didn't cost that much. True- it didn't cost a lot but I was touched at how he noticed and remembered that my mouse pad was dying a slow and painful death. I love the thoughtfulness! I SUPER LOVED IT! :)

 My old mouse pad. Thank you for the times you served me.

 My new mouse pad from boyfriend's thoughtfulness.

So after that I dropped him off at his OJT place and I was heading home. I was already at the capitol (near our place) when my friend Harrison called, attendance for our DB2 class. So I went back to school and got there almost 4pm, had my attendance taken and I was out of school again. I wanted to head home but it was already 4pm and mom would be out by 5:30pm. So to save my dad the trouble of fetching my mom, I went to her office. I got to make and print out our (Elwin and mine) schedules for this semester. Hooray for productivity!

It really are the little things 

that you take notice on, the little thoughts, 

that sweeps me off my feet.

happy and loved girlfriend, 

-allie

Who is there for me?

There are days where in I ponder too much on things, vague things in life. I hop from one thought to another. It maybe because of too much stress from school work or current situation, or maybe just because I'm bored and I have nothing else to keep me occupied. Okay, that's a lie, there are tons of things I've been putting on hold for years, in example: clean my closet, dump old clothes, dump old bags and shoes, basically clean up in general.  But there's nothing else better I need to do, that will be a more honest sentence. 

So last night, I thought: what deep, sort of mind boggling status can I put out there, one that will get people thinking and have people to say "this girl's got something in mind". And so I posted:

"And in the days I'm alone, who is there for me?"

And now I thought that my friends would be commenting away, making fun of me, of how dramatic I am or whatever- but no. To my surprise (not complete surprise) my mom made the first comment. She gave the answer I already knew, that God would be there for me always and forever, with the additional "me" in her comment. 

Just when I thought my mother's comment was comforting, I read my father's comment. He comments: "ako, no.1, always n forever wil be der 4 u." (translation: Me, number 1, always and forever will be there for you.)  Now here, I almost cried. I know he only stated the obvious, but for a guy, a father to put out and clarify his feelings or emotions right there in public- it was something really sweet. I will cherish that comment, hence the blog entry for it and the print screen shot.

So you think you've had it good with friends, well you just don't acknowledge that you've had it greater with the family, and best with our Lord Jesus Christ. In times of trouble and hardships, it's family and God who will be with you through out the pain, it's them who will endure with you those aching moments.

I am thankful for my family. Thankful for my parents. I have failed them many times, I haven't graduated yet even though I was supposed to last March 2010, I've wasted one whole semester (that's tens and thousands of money), and I was at the brink of failing again this semester. But my mother and father were truly supportive "if you pass, then good; if not, you can try again next semester." WOW! I just feel I am truly blessed. It's overwhelming that I must share this blessing to others.

thankful and blessed,
-allie

iPhone Story

So I haven't been using my laptop lately since I've been to occupied with my new iPhone. I Twitter, Facebook, and check my mail through my iPhone. I also go on Y!M and Skype on it. It's new so it has all my attention. 

September 7, 2010 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHIPPY! My uncle Boyet and auntie Iris arrived. They checked in at Hilton Hotel, but they dropped by our place after they checked-in. They came to deliver my iPhone given to me by my other uncle and aunt. This iPhone's a hand-me-down from my aunt, but I don't care- not even a bit. In fact, it's more beautiful that way. It was a generous gift. :)

My sister got her iPhone a few months ago; it was my parents' graduation gift to her. I wanted one too, but it was just too expensive to buy another one. And not only is it impractical, let's face it- I don't NEED it. But yes, I want it. 

Now that I have one, I'm looking forward to customizing it and buying it a screen guard and accessorizing it; of course that would require spending money that I don't have. So I'll have to save for what's necessary- a screen guard. And all the rest I'll have to do without for the time being. I do have a case for my iPhone, it came with the iPhone already. Elwin liked it since he said it looked like a grenade. 

September 11, my parents went with me at Robinsons Cybergate to meet up with a guy I found through iStorya.net. I wanted to jailbreak my iPhone, but as my uncle warned me, this iPhone's version is updated and as of the moment, it will be hard to jailbreak. I'll contact him again next week to check if he can do the job by then.

I love how iPhone is a mobile phone, how I can store and play my music, how I can download free applications to occupy me in my free time, and how it is WiFi capable. :)

So here's the iPhone I've been so occupied with:

front

back; the casing that came with it

smudged up front; the casing I borrowed from my sister

borrowed casing - back; this casing I call BARNEY

my handsome lock screen wallpaper

pages and pages of free apps

So right now I'm using it like an iTouch with camera since I can't use my SIM on it yet. I'm excited to jailbreak it. I'm also happy Elwin gets to play with the iPhone with the apps he chose to download. :) 


My iPhone is nameless, I wasn't sure if I should name it. Sometimes it just seems tacky to me- naming gadgets, but if I find the right name, I just might name it. Any suggestions? Elwin thinks I should give it a name. My laptop, I only call lappy, and it really isn't a name. The camera my uncle (the same uncle who gave me this iPhone) gave me, I call monkey since I placed a Frank monkey sticker on it. I think its the only gadget I've ever named, and it doesn't strike me as tacky. 


Thankful.
-allie