Bravo Maestro. Bravo.

When I was still in my early teens, I had no appreciation for any other type of music except for N*Sync, Britney and the Backstreet Boys. Then, one brisk November weekend I was tasked with accompanying my Grandma Ella to the Opera. She had season tickets and the NY Metropolitan Opera House was her favorite place. I never understood why she loved opera so much.

Photo acquired through google.

Then I heard him sing this aria.

Live.

On stage.



By the time he sang the last notes, I was in tears and I was utterly amazed at how much the music just moved me. To this day, I still cry when they sing Nessun Dorma when I watch Turandot.

But no one can do it better than Luciano.

My *wish* list

As you folks might know, yours truly will be celebrating a dreaded bday this week. In fact, it's on September the 8th. Since this will be my *ehem* 21st +++ birthday.
I have compiled a wish list.
Here goes...

1.the Louis Vuitton Bastille

Photo Courtesy of the Purseblog

2.the Louis Vuitton Taiga Dersou


Photo Courtesy of the Purseblog

3. the Louis Vuitton Kasbek PM

Photo Courtesy of the Purseblog

4. Dior Homme Large Shopper

Courtesy of eluxury.com

5. Marc by Marc Jacobs Cape Sweater 'cuz I love love love big collars!


Courtesy of eluxury.com

6. McQ Alexander Mc Queen Moleskin Blazer

Courtesy of eluxury.com

7. 3.1 Phillip Lim Inspector Coat

Courtesy of eluxury.com

8. Dolce and Gabbana Black Messenger Bag

Courtesy of Neiman Marcus

9. Marc Jacobs Pan Am Flight Bag

Photo Courtesy of Chuvaness

10. An illustration of me by Pepper Roxas

11. A painting by Josh

12. Shopping with Chuvaness.

13. An Internship with Lola Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel

14. Lunch with Thakoon

15. A date with a crush...I won't tell who he is. My lips are sealed.

Hey! It's FREE to DREAM. :)

If any of you have noticed, I didn't include shoes.

That's on a list of its own.

I have more wishes, but that's for another list. Maybe tomorrow. It's 3AM already.

Ciao!

September

Where did summer go?

Then again, it never really leaves Florida. The temperature outside is well above 90 degrees and will continue to be so until November.

Now that the "ber" months are here, Christmas comes closer and closer. That means that the shopping season will start. I promised myself that I will finish my Christmas shopping very very early this year. My deadline: before Thanksgiving.

I am slowly inching towards graduation and to tell you folks the truth:

I am terrified.

Once I graduate, I'll have to go out on my own and I've even flirted with the idea of moving to a new city. My parents support my idea. They really have no choice.

I think September is my favorite month. It's the beginning and the end. The end of summer fun and the beginning of school. Out with sandals and shorts, In with long coats and furs. Lest we forget, New York Fashion Week starts September 5th.

Anyway I leave you now with my September song.

the City

This post is way overdue. I snapped some pics of St. Petersburg. It's very pretty to look at. Very Quaint. Very Old. The city's mostly for old people. Old people with loads of cash.

Grayl's Hotel is one of the Oldest in the city. I imagine small-ish rooms and quaint antique furniture.


Parkshore's one of the condo buildings that have sprung up around the city. A unit will set you back around 400-500 thou. But the current housing bust is affecting sales. I imagine the prices will drop soon.








This is the very fink Vinoy Hotel. It's a landmark in the city. The suites are very luxurious and the restaurant is very Old Florida. I imagine F. Scott Fitzgerald characters sunning themselves on the porch long ago. Al Capone used to vacation in St. Petersburg during the winter. There's a restaurant inside. The food's not bad. The ambiance is fantastic, especially if you want to treat yourself to some luxury.




~~~
That's all for now. I'm quite pooped from all the coursework this semester. Derivatives, AICPA, FASB, Capitalization, Etc. Etc. Accounting's not for everyone. I'm having doubts myself. But I do love it. And no, I'm not some geeky, accountant with a pocket protector and calculators attached to me.

the Campus

Today I decided to finish up loose ends regarding registrations, changing classes, buying books, and parking fees. Did I mention that it was almost 100 degrees outside? I finished my errands earlier than I thought so I decided to take pictures.

I chose this campus because it was way more picturesque than the one in Tampa. Also, the class sizes were much smaller and it has better professors. The campus itself is spread out on the shores of Bayboro Harbor which offers really great views.













I pass the Dali Museum every time I walk to the College of Business. At times I get to play photographer for the Japanese tourists.



Surrealism anyone?




Next post will be pictures of St. Petersburg. But only the nice part.

Tears dry on their own

One last Amy W. video. Sorry. I had to. I just love love love this song.


Sad song. Happy beat.

Plus I just can't get over her Marge Simpson Beehive.



Here's the lyrics:

Tears Dry On Their Own

All I can ever be to you is a darkness that we knew
And this regret I got accustomed to
Once it was so right
When we were at our high
Waiting for you in the hotel at night
I knew I hadn't met my match
But every moment we could snatch
I don’t know why I got so attached
It’s my responsibility
You don’t owe nothing to me
But to walk away I have no capacity

He walks away the sun goes down
He takes the day but I’m grown
And your way,
In this blue shade
My tears dry on their own

I don’t understand
Why do I stress a man?
When there’s so many better things at hand
We could've never had it all
We had to hit a wall
So this is inevitable withdrawal
Even if I stop wanting you
and perspective pushes through
I’ll be some next man’s other woman soon
I shouldn't play myself again
i Should just be my own best friend.
Not f**k myself in the head with stupid men

He walks away the sun goes down
He takes the day but I’m grown
And in your way,
In this blue shade
My tears dry on their own

So we are history,
Your shadow covers me
The sky above
A blaze

He walks away the sun goes down
He takes the day but I’m grown
And in your way
In this blue shade
My tears dry on their own


I wish I could say no regrets
And no emotional debts
Cause as we kiss goodbye the sun sets
So we are history
Your shadow covers me
The sky above a blaze
That only lovers see

He walks away the sun goes down
He takes the day but I’m grown
And in your way
My blue shade
My tears dry on their own

He walks away the sun goes down
He takes the day but I am grown
And in your way
My deep shade
My tears dry on their own

He walks away the sun goes down
He takes the day but I'm grown
And in your way
My deep shade
My tears dry

F*** Me Pumps! You Know that I'm No Good!

I just fell in love with Amy Winehouse's voice.
It's so soulful. Take that Joss Stone!
Amy Winehouse Video Overload!






I just love love her voice in Love is a Losing Game...

The old me

Aunt Aida left this afternoon to go back to New Jersey. All week she regaled us with the latest tsismis from the town where I grew up. There are so many changes and I was just amazed at how things could be different and the same at the same time. Most of my friends have graduated college and are now on graduate schools or have jobs. Most, as you might guess, have become nurses. A few have gone to med school.
I miss them all. I haven't returned to my hometown since moving here in Florida.

I began to wonder about the past.
About who I was then and who I am now.
Then, I was straight or rather denying the fact that I was even gay. I used to have a girlfriend whom I loved. But it just wasn't for me. She knew about me and played along.

Although I don't like my current location now, it really enabled me to find myself. I moved here and had no friends, no relatives except for my parents. I had nothing going for me. That's when I came out to myself. I know who I am.

Perhaps the next time I move others will know the real me. And I won't feel the need to hide anymore.

There's a time for everything.

The Aunts Are Marching

I haven't posted anything in a while. I know. I know. My Mom's best friend whom I consider as my Aunt is visiting. When Aunt Aida visits, everything stops. I've been to the beach almost everyday and use SPF 50 sunblock.
I will definitely be scolded by my facialist tomorrow.
I am exhausted.
This old man needs to take his ass to bed.

Lower Expectations?

I’m completely oblivious when people start to flirt with me.

Last Sunday while searching for the perfect birthday gift for Mommie Dearest, I saw the perfect Diane Von Furstenberg tote bag. Granted, Mommie Dearest isn’t really fond of tote bags, but I did feel sorry for her when I saw her balancing her papers in one arm and her LV speedy in another. I think she needs something to just hold all her papers together.

As I perused the selection, I was completely unaware that someone was perusing me. Well, not completely. I did see him peeking at me but paid no notice. I was still mired in what to choose. When I’m shopping, the whole world just kinda goes away and yours truly is oblivious of anything happening around me. I looked over at the Calvin Klein shirts and saw the “50% off” sign. I walked over to the rack and started to quickly review the shirts; picking out the ones I liked. I leafed through it like the pages through a book. Then Asian guy said, “Hey. Be more careful. These are expensive clothes you know…”
I smiled and laughed it off.
Obviously this guy has never heard of what expensive really is. When I hear the word expensive I think Christian Dior Couture or Chanel.
I immediately went back to looking at the shirts.
He was trying to make eye and I wasn’t making it easy.
I picked out the shirts I wanted: a black cotton polo and a long-sleeved striped.
Asian boy once again sidled up next to me to the counter to pay.
“Nice Shirts.” He said.
I smiled.
“These are the ones I picked” He raised the two DKNY t-shirts.
I smiled.
I swiped my Amex.
“Nice card.” He said.
I smiled.
Then I left.
Just like that.
As I sat in the Starbucks, I thought to myself “Why do I just shut people out?” “Is it because I’m not “fully out” I had to wonder.
Had I began my downward slide into becoming one of those old maids that just go shopping?
Come to think of it. I kinda regret not giving him a chance.
Are my standards for a boyfriend too strict and high that it’s virtually unattainable?
Is there a time when everyone must lower their expectations?

Teach Me

I just love love love this song...

It's a classic.

Here's Amy Winehouse's rendition:



Watch Tita Vernie Varga sing it...

It finally happened.

Just as I was going to bed, I checked Empress Maruja's latest entry.

I won one. I finally won his Bunny Man Hunt!!!!

Many many thanks to the Empress for having such a fun game which gives me headaches at times. Try it out! Everyone! It's not as hard as it seems. Plus his entries are wonderfully entertaining.

Back to bed for me. Must look fresh and smiling for my first meeting with the new boss tomorrow.

You thought I was joking

This is what my old bathroom looked like:




Now here it is with some tweaking and the Tiffany Blue:






The knick knacks and prints on the walls came from bed bath and beyond, homegoods, and kirkland home. HomeGoods is actually a secret of mine. They have really nice sheets and I mean NICE. Like 600 thread count nice for half the price. It all depends on timing though.

I think it looks way better than the old bathroom. Can't believe I waited this long to do this. Next to go is the vanity and the mirror. I'll do those when my budget allows. I shouldn't have bought Mom the Cavalli dress. I'm getting a new shower curtain also. That rose pink white thingy is just not cutting it. Hopefully, my Tita likes it. She's coming for a visit the first week of August.
So...should I drop out of college and enroll at Parsons??? LOL.

Thanks to all of you who come to read this "blog" and merci tres tres beaucoup to those who actually leave a comment.

I'll leave y'all with a quote inscribed on one of those ceramic plaques that people hang on their walls. I didn't buy one. It said:
"Life is measured not by the number of breaths, but the number of moments that take our breath away" or something like that. Thought it was interesting. Anywho, time for a shower. Ciao!

You know, I'd give you all of me...

I had this song on repeat while I was ripping wallpaper off and painting...



I just love her. She's so fantastic.

Transform!

For the longest time, I have been plotting to redo my bathroom from it's fugly state. The previous owners put up pink seashell wallpaper which had started to turn yellow. Furthermore, the wall paper edges started to peel. It felt like I was in that short story "The Yellow Wallpaper". On Saturday night, out of frustration due to work and my non-existent love life, I started ripping the wallpaper off the walls like a stripper on crack. I became a madman. Before I knew it, the walls were bare and with the help of solvents it was clear.

Then came the hard part.
What color to choose...

At first I wanted to stencil in interlocking C's sort of like an homage to Chanel or do an LV on the walls. But I thought that it would be a bit much. Suddenly an idea hit me. I rummaged through my closet and found an Hermes paperbag and a Tiffany&co. bag. I decided to go with the same color that Tiffany's uses on their bags and boxes. I had the people at Home Depot match the color. Sooo now my bathroom walls are Tiffany Blue.

Now that's an homage.

Hopelessly Romantic

Yes. I'm guilty like *most* filipinos out there. We're all hopeless romantics and we just love love love romantic comedies.


I finally got to watch My Sassy Girl which my friend R had been raving about for so long. Thanks to crunchyroll, you can watch most of your favorite Koreanovelas and Asian movies. They even have Pinoy movies too!

Watch My Sassy Girl. Now!

I've now moved on to Lovers in Paris...Man! I think these Koreans are Filipinos except whiter...and they don't feel the need to have a song and dance number in all of their movies.

My Girlfriend(s)

I would like to pay homage to the women in my life who first taught me about the importance of fasyon...of Manolos...of Jimmy Choo. They introduced me to Dolce and Gabbana and to Valentino,and Chanel. They opened my eyes to the legendary Birkin and it was because of them that I discovered the cosmopolitan. More than that, they encouraged me to find my true self. I couldn't have survived high school without them. Because I loved and still love them...

Please say Hello! to Cary, Charlotte, Samantha, and Miranda my eternal idols.



Sex and the City will hit the silver screen very very soon.

I just love the final scene of the series...


"...but the most exciting, challenging, and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself..."

Can't wait 'til the movie comes out!

Do Me Wrong. Do Me Right.

The Fabulousness of Rap Music

Perhaps one of the MOST masculine things about me is my penchant for rap music. I would choose it over rock, dance, techno, etc. I think it's all about the beat. A Great beat can make anyone move. Plus, they also love designer clothes, and lots and lots of expensive things.
I just love how they have another language and how words can have different meanings...
These are just a few of my favorites...

"Believe me Sweetie I got enough to feed the needy." LOL. How great is that!

The videos are awesome. It's just all about Money, Clothes, and hos...

"I put hoes in ny onto dkny /Miami, d.c. prefer versace /
All philly hoes, dough and moschino /Every cutie wit a booty bought a coogi" haha. It's a classic.

This video was the one playing when I went down on J , my first ever BJ...

Ah. Memories. Sex is definitely better with music.

Happy 4th.

So it's another Fourth of July. It's a day when we as Americans celebrate the founding of our country. The mightiest, greatest, most powerful nation to date. Well,... someone had to replace Rome. They don't call us a Superpower for nothin'. Eh?

I think we as Americans are misjudged by other countries. My old Civics Professor, Dr. Preston, had us write an essay entitled "What is an American?" That just stumped me. Is an American the typical stereotype of the White Anglo-Saxon Protestant? Well, not anymore. There are no distinct physical features of what constitutes an American. Simply go to New York, Chicago, LA, San Francisco and even the farthest reaches of the country and you will find Asian Americans, African Americans, Hispanic Americans etc.--by definition ALL are Americans.

In the end I wrote about the ideals of being an American which are espoused in our Declaration of Independence:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

I don't think any other country in the world guarantees the pursuit of happiness. They even mention it twice in the same paragraph. Since it is guaranteed, I encourage everyone to actively pursue his own happiness...well, What are you waiting for? Men died so you can pursue it! GO!

I'll leave y'all with an anecdote from a very old,wise Black man. (I think it was Richard Pryor...It could have been Uncle Ben...)

He once said, "There's No other country in the World where a poor Black Boy can grow up and become a Rich, White Man...

and that boy was Michael Jackson."

God Bless America.