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Febru-Worry

26 Feb 2010 | By Iris

I've decided that I don't like February very much. It's much too short for my taste - so much so that I'm in a constant state of panic and worry these days. When you've got a month-and-half's worth of articles to write, edit, spin, post, and bookmark (not to mention videos to syndicate, RSS mashups to aggregate, and directory submissions aplenty), you'll definitely understand where I'm coming from.

Yes, I'm very grumpy indeed. I haven't had time to blog, get my nails done, and most of all, take pictures, which really, really, REALLY pisses me off because I received my spanking new 35mm f1.8 prime lens in the mail 3 days ago and I'm DYING to take it for a spin.

Sigh.

On the bright side, I did get to spend a long Valentine weekend with The Husband in Bantayan - our first holiday since - goodness! - July. And though I haven't had time to post-process and upload the pictures from that weekend, I did manage to squeeze in my first ever attempt at HDR.

And just like that, February doesn't seem so dreary now after all.

Category: Heartstrings, Married Woman, Me Likey!, Perspectives, Shutterbug, Wander Girl, Worker Bee 2 Comments

Relic

18 Jan 2010 | By Iris

No matter how far you've gone,

it's always a comfort to know

that some things will always remind you where you came from.

Note: I've always loved the look of lomo. I had a rare free day, so I thought I'd give it a try. It was a lot easier than I thought, thanks to a Gimp lomo script that I found. (Yes, I use Gimp.)

I'm now trying to teach myself Photoshop (it's about time, I know), so I can go beyond my little lomo script. One of my new goals is to finish this list.

Category: Heartstrings, Perspectives, Shutterbug, Worker Bee Leave a Comment

One Night At The Bazaar…

17 Jan 2010 | By Iris

When we joined the IT Park Christmas Nights bazaar a month ago, the experience was nothing short of stellar. Everyone was so nice, from the customers to the organizers to the exhibitors. We got along well with our neighbors, helped each other out regularly, and even gave each other discounts. We had fun and found the whole bazaar thing such a great experience that we didn't think twice about joining this month's Sinulog bazaar.

The second time, however, is definitely not a charm. Sales are a bit low because people are too engrossed with the Sinulog revelry to think about shopping. We've had really bad weather practically all week, so the exhibition area has been constantly wet and muddy, and we even had to close 3 hours early on Friday night because the rain pummeled the tents quite badly. Worst of all, we somehow ended up with the next-door neighbors from hell (or at least, from China).

Since day one, they've done nothing but complain. First, it was our flooring; they claimed it went through our side of the wall to theirs (it didn't). Days later, it was the life-sized tarp of my best friend, Aileen, who happens to be Innuendo's image model. They claimed that it was blocking their display when it was definitely within our boundaries (even the organizers agreed with us).

They kept at it for days, attacking my poor cousin who was manning the booth incessantly and even kicking the tarp stand! The way they were carrying on, you'd think they were selling awesome stuff like ipods or eggcups, but no, they were hawking cheap silver jewelry.

But I digress. It all came to a head last night when The Husband confronted them about it. When he asked them what their problem was, they started yelling and gesticulating madly in broken English. Then one of them started pulling on our tarp, and almost tore it off! I then told him off, and he advanced towards me like he was going to hit me. So The Husband yelled at him and told him that if he does that again, he (The Husband) was going to tread on his head. I pulled him away, told him to calm down, and he turned his back on them because I told him to just walk away.

Next thing I knew, said Chinaman grabbed one of those plastic Monobloc stools and hit The Husband on the head. The Husband grabbed him in a headlock while the other Chinaman joined the fray. By this time, the whole force of the brawl propelled all 3 men, like, 50 feet away from where it started - all within 10 seconds or less.

Now, these Chinamen are both rather short and scrawny, so The Husband handled them fairly easily. I was half-expecting them start going all Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon on The Husband, but really, the whole brawl just looked a bit like a couple of tiny hyenas trying to fight a tiger.

It was over as quickly as it started. Guys from the other stalls and some customers broke up the fight. The organizers came over and tried to sort things out. Naturally, two rather different versions of the story were heard from our side and from theirs (and their 2 skanky girlfriends/wives). They were going to be moved to another stall, but unfortunately, none of the other exhibitors were keen on moving, so we're going to have to live with them for another week.

The Husband ended up with a couple of bumps on his head that are now thankfully gone and a banged up knuckle where he hit one of 'em Chinamen's teeth (said Chinaman was seen inspecting a loose tooth later). We called the cops, but they wouldn't come after the fact, believe it or not. We were going to go in and file a complaint with the police, anyway, but the organizers begged us not to, saying it was going to give the bazaar bad publicity, blah blah blah. By this time, we were all exhausted, so we decided to just settle for an apology.

If one good thing came out of this whole mess, it's that the organizer has told them that we can display the tarp all we want, as long as it's not beyond 20 inches of our wall, so I daresay that we won't be hearing any more crap from them within the next few days. Funnily enough, we haven't even used those 20 inches because we were actually being considerate about their display, but because of this incident, we're definitely going to use all our 20 inches now. Ahhh, the stupidity of the human race.

Still, I wish none of these ever happened. I hate it when The Husband fights. Why can't men just talk? The excess of manliness is way too much for my sensibilities.

Category: Familial Reports, Married Woman, Worker Bee Tags: Aileen, China, Chinaman, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 4 Comments

Bring it On, 2010!

02 Jan 2010 | By Iris

I don't do New Year's resolutions. I do, however, make it a point to figure out my goals for the year. What's the difference? I find resolutions more fleeting - insincere, even. Goals, on the other hand, are more concrete, serious, and often realistic, so I find myself more driven, more inspired, and more determined to achieve them. But that's just me.

All in all, 2009 was quite a great year for me. No, I did not manage to achieve ALL my goals, but I did accomplish a great deal - some of which were totally unplanned and therefore, pleasantly unexpected! It only makes perfect sense that this year's goals should be just a tad loftier. In fact, it seems like an insult to the year that passed to regress!

So enough babble. Here are some of the things that I'm hoping to accomplish this year, in no particular order:

1. Get my government paperwork FINALLY sorted out, so I can start processing the PAG-IBIG loan, which, in turn, will . . .

2. Start the house construction, and hopefully, let us . . .

3. Buy a car - nothing fancy, but something that works. I want a Suzuki Swift. The Husband wants a Honda Jazz, or a secondhand two-door Pajero. Whatever it's going to be, it'll most likely be secondhand for the rest of the list to come into fruition. (Read on, do!)

4. Have about a million (pesos) squirreled away. How we're going to do that is beyond me, but it'll happen, I tell you! And no, robbing a bank isn't part of the plan.

This year, I hope to do away with unnecessary purchases - meaning, no more gadgets (unless necessary), weekly online shopping sprees for clothes, expensive dinners (do you hear me, T.G.I.Friday's?), and two-way cab rides (one-way will do).

5. Build Innuendo, especially now that I own 50% of it (yey!). The company was fairly successful in 2009, and it gave us an idea exactly how huge its potential really is. We're hoping to hit the ground running this year, what with Chris & Berns at Ayala Center's The Maze now carrying our swimsuits and another bazaar in I.T. Park coming up on January 11 to 24 (I'll see you there, yes?).

Progress is a bit slow on the Innuendo website, however. I've got so much work to do that I haven't had a chance to sort out the ecommerce fulfillment and even the site design. Plus, we haven't had a chance to shoot the new collection, so I don't have photos to post. BUT all these will be sorted out before January ends, AND I'll be doing a little giveaway on this site, so I hope you'll watch out for the launch.

6. Travel, travel, travel. The fact that we traveled very little in 2009 was probably the year's biggest disappointment, but we are determined to remedy that this year. We're off to Donsol, Sorsogon for my birthday to swim with the migrating butandings (whale sharks), so hopefully the inevitable Mt. Mayon eruption won't be too serious, considering that we have to fly to Legaspi City to get to Donsol. We're also off to a 6-day Hongkong trip come June, yey!

7. Still on the subject of travel, another reason why I have to sort out my government and financial papers is that I'll need them to apply for a Schengen visa this year, if we are to tour Rome (!!!) and the rest of Europe in 2011. I'm hoping the process won't be too painful, considering that I am married to a British citizen, after all!

8. Invest. The thing about working online is that you never know when it's going to end. You could be working on a project that you've been on for years, yet find yourself unemployed the next day. That's reality. So though I know that my bosses intend to stick around for a long, long, LONG time (fingers crossed!), I still want to invest in something tangible. Presently, I'm considering a laundry franchise. (Just imagine: Iris, Goddess of Laundry.)

9. Get in better shape. Last year saw my weight going up and down like a freakin' yoyo - literally. I was 102 lbs. at my thinnest, but I have now ballooned to 112 lbs. after the holidays. I intend to stay within the 100 to 105 lbs. bracket throughout the year. And. This. Starts. NOW.

10. Lastly, I intend to be more productive and better organized this year. Although I've worked extremely hard and gotten more things done in 2009 than I initially expected, I still have a tendency to slack, sometimes for days on end. I intend to do away with slacking for good. This means I will sleep earlier and wake up earlier to get more things done during the day. I will also learn to delegate more effectively, so I don't end up climbing the walls in panic whenever I've got deadlines coming up.

So am I likely to achieve all my goals for 2010? The year is young, so we shall see. But if 2009 was anything to go by, I daresay, it'll be a cinch!

Category: Married Woman, Me Likey!, Perspectives, Worker Bee Tags: Ayala Center, bank, Donsol, ecommerce fulfillment, Europe, Honda, Honda Jazz, Hongkong, I.T. Park, Legaspi City, Mt. Mayon, New Year's Day, online shopping sprees, Pajero, Rome, Sorsogon, Suzuki, Suzuki Swift One Comment

Give Thanks, Win a Moleskine

07 Dec 2009 | By Iris

I didn't think I should own a planner for next year because the Starbucks ones I got in years past always ended up gathering dust. But when I saw the 2010 Moleskine Colour-a-Month Daily Planner, I changed my mind faster than you can say "fickle!" And when I saw that Avalon.ph is giving away the last one in existence (okay, I'm exaggerating - it's actually the last one they have on stock), I just HAD to join. It would be remiss of me not to! Seriously, look how cute it is!

So what am I thankful for for the year that's almost ending?

Golly, where do I start? It was - and still is! - a fantastic and very eventful year that saw me marry the man of my dreams, get to know my adorable nephew, bond with the family again after being gone for some time, land the job that any freelancer will kill for, buy a house that we will be moving into in two years or less, reconnect with friends, finally able to afford a Macbook Pro and bid goodbye to the computer woes that have plagued me for the past 10 years or so (Windows, duh!), learn photography, discover Ancient Rome, help my sister launch a business that I completely believe in, and finally grow up.

Yes, the list of things I'm thankful for this year could go on and on, but I think what it all boils down to is the thing that I'm most thankful for this year, the years that have passed, and the years that are yet to come: L-O-V-E.

Love made it possible for my relationship with The Husband to transition from the almost constant turmoil and drama to the joyful, blissful, and peaceful companionship we enjoy now.

Love makes it possible for me to enjoy every minute I spend with my nephew, even when I have a serious aversion to most children and can only handle them in small quantities.

Love gives me the energy to work from sunup to the next day's sunrise practically every day, just so I can make time for The Husband, make time for the family, and meet my scary deadlines.

Love makes me indulge The Husband's expensive Blu-ray habit, even if does make me want to weep sometimes. And I suppose it's love that makes him look the other way, too, whenever I get a new gadget, or buy too many clothes and shoes and books.

Love keeps me supportive of Mum's goals, even when most of them will eventually take her far away from us.

Love had me voluntarily buy the domain and the hosting for my sister's clothing line. Not only that, it'll be love that will make me finish and launch said site, hopefully before the year ends. It's also love that's made me spend the last couple of weeks in a stuffy little booth, hawking swimwear to all and sundry.

Love has me bending over backwards for my bosses, not because I have to, but because I genuinely want to. They're great people, and I love my job even more because of them. The fact that they love me enough to pay me extremely well is a welcome bonus. And it's awesome that I don't have to do a job search after every project ends - a freelancer's nightmare.

Love (or something very close to it) keeps what few friends I have still speaking to me, even when I'm a horrible correspondent.

Love for my Mac has me taking care of him like he's my first born and a real person, and I daresay that Octavian loves me, too, because he has never let me down!

Love of life and memories got me to buy Caesar, my camera, and it's my newfound love of the craft that has me reading photography books aplenty and taking countless pictures.

Again, I could go on and on about why I'm thankful to and for love - but then, it's probably going to take me another year! If this doesn't win me a Moleskine planner, I don't know what will, tee hee.

What about you? What are you thankful for this year? Who knows? It might win you a Moleskine. (Though nasty little me hopes not!)

UPDATE: I didn't win the planner. I hope I can find one for sale!