My Week of Awesomeness

When school started again, I thought having a great week is impossible, but last week proved otherwise!

Go Nuts Donuts 10th Anniversary Press Launch

Thanks to Candy Mag, I had an extreme sugar rush at the 10th anniversary celebration of the local doughnut chain GoNuts Donuts, which was held last Monday at Fully Booked Top Shelf, Bonifacio High Street. 

I attended the event with Ian, a fellow student writer and Candy Girl, but I wouldn't tell you much about this just yet, cos you'll find out more about us and what we do soon enough, so hang in there :D

Meet Ian :)

Seeing all the food around us was simply overwhelming. Would I pick the s'mores doughnut or have that peaches n' cream cro-nut instead? Should I dip this sugar twist in choco cookie butter or just in plain cookie butter? Why not in both? How much food can my stomach take for this afternoon? Blah... Blah... Blah... Blah...

With all those questions hanging in my head, I ended up eating very little at the event. But hey, I got to take this huge red bag of GoNuts goodies home, which my cousin, Zeus (a BIG doughnut fan), enjoyed very much.

I had nothing to do for the rest of the night, so I took some time to admire Herakut's paintings in the new section of Fully Booked (The Bridgeway) as well as the towering book sculpture-painting by Mike Stilkey - I just couldn't get enough of them. Whenever I visit the shop, I couldn't help but admire their works of art. How I wish I were as good as them :D

By Herakut

By Herakut

By Herakut

By Mike Stilkey

I then met Zeus, and we took a stroll around Bonifacio High Street and Market! Market! before finally heading home, and bought our grandmum flowers (red carnations and lilies) as our pasalubong for her.

She loves flowers so much, I think I got my fondness for blooms from her :D

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You've Got Mail!

A snail mail fan like me would always get an ultimate high whenever she gets something from the post. The time of waiting sure is grueling, but the moment you tear that envelope open is pure bliss. 

Monday and Tuesday this week, I received letters from friends in the Czech Republic - fall greetings from Martin, Mirek, and Ivo, and birthday wishes from Eva. 

Their messages, the time they took and the effort they exerted to express what they wanted to say (in ENGLISH - no less, even if they're having a difficulty communicating through it), just remind me why sending actual letters (and a card and collage in this case) still is better than e-mails, Facebook messages, and tweets. 

Indeed, the sentiments that go with real post are simply priceless.

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National Bookstore Warehouse Sale

My slight case of bibliomania was fed again at the National Bookstore Warehouse Sale last Thursday.

Kai and I came pretty early, but there were already hundreds and hundreds of bookworms, students, and sale-hunters at the warehouse.

I was expecting to buy more that what I actually got, but with all those people going gaga over pretty much anything and everything they saw at the sale (you wouldn't believe the mountains of books piled in their carts), my usual routine of peacefully running through the spines and blurbs of books was ruined and that put me off.

And not to mention, it's also difficult to pick books when you're not looking for anything in particular and if you're faced with this warehouse full of - well - books.

I also started Christmas shopping after the going to the sale. 

Christmas shopping could be VERY stressful, but it's the kind of stress that I like. I just love visiting shops, taking a good look at their items, while asking myself whether so-and-so will like this or not, as Christmas songs play in the background.

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Saturday

Halfway through the week, I knew my Saturday was going to be good. I would be skipping my afternoon class for a coverage for The Flame, meet UN Goodwill Ambassador and investigative journalist-photographer Alessandro Scotti, and catch up with Justine in the afternoon. And that's how it exactly turned out, maybe, even better :)

It all started at lunch with my Streamline News team (for IT in the Newsroom). 

I'm not going to lie. We were a pretty disappointed, when we found out that our news website wasn't named the best of the semester, because FRANKLY, we've done enough to claim and deserve the top spot. But then again, every team has done their part, and I guess, the rest of us just weren't blessed enough to be the "best" in the eyes of the judges. 

So what we did was have eat our frustration away at Mang Tootz Food House - the go-to carinderia of every Thomasian, who's hungry and wants to save; or Thomasians who are in the mood for celebration or sulking (in our case); or the other usual reasons: look for a girlfriend/boyfriend, snack on some banana rum-a, and have some barkada bonding moments.

All smiles even after our "defeat" - that's the spirit, lovelies!

After lunch, I was really planning on attending my Social Problems class and just leave early for the coverage. But I found out that the professor's keen on her students' attendance and HATES those who leave before dismissal, so I decided not to go instead. After all, I was covering it with Angel, a classmate of mine who'd take photos of the event for The Flame.

Alessandro Scotti

The event was a lecture by award-winning investigative journalist and United Nations Goodwill Ambassador Alessandro Scotti on the development of cities as told through photographs. 

Lanz, Justine, and I with Mr. Scotti

When papa introduced me to Mr. Scotti, it was really intimidating, because, duh, he's already way up there and I'm just starting as a journalist. Y'know, it's one of those moments  when you have nothing else to say but "wow".

Justine, Lanz, Mr. Scotti, Angel, and Me

It was also nice ofJustine to attend the lecture with her friend, Lanz, when I invited her a few days ago. She had been telling me a lot about Lanz even back in Brno, so it was great to finally meet her, and I gotta say she's pretty cool! (We had fun bullying Justine around. Haha!)

Lanz and I dared Justine to pose with these tiny lampshades with tiny...

Look what the Poker Queen found!

Just remembering two of her dearest students :")

We had a long walk around Makati and just chilled around the Greenbelt area, telling stories, watching people, and visiting shops.

♥Andy

Three To Read

I have yet to finish reading Neil Gaiman’s “The Ocean at the End of the Lane”, with school (and THESIS) starting before I even got to its fourth chapter, but I already have these three page-turners in mind that I’d like to get my hands on ASAP.

Warm Bodies, Isaac Marion

I must have underestimated Warm Bodies and limited it as some crappy-if-not-cheesy zombie thriller of a story that drops hints of necrophilia before actually seeing the film or reading the book, because when I got to watch it on a bus ride to school last week, I surprisingly enjoyed it to the point that I (my mum and cousin – who have seen it on the bus as well – included) just had to grab its DVD (on the same day – no less) and was very much compelled to read the novel it was based on.

Eleanor & Park, Rainbow Rowell

A sweet take on teen love and music, this young adult novel named as one of the best books of 2013 by Amazon is definitely in my to-read list. I first encountered this book a few weeks ago while doing my weekly ritual of running through book spines, and couldn’t stop thinking about it ever since. In fact, I have no idea why I haven’t grabbed a copy of it yet.  

The Virgin Suicides, Jeffrey Eugenides

If the title isn’t enough to intrigue you, well, I don’t know what is.

♥Andz

Nail Art: Winged Tips

The gloomy weather compelled me to experiment with nail art techniques and give the greyness of the day a colour boost.

With a handful of temporary butterfly tattoos at home (I've always been a fan of temporary tattoos. I'm still waiting for the day to pick up the nerve to really get inked, though. Why? Needles terrify me.), I managed to use them as nail decals.

I wouldn't say that this is an easy technique, cos it could be easy for some, while it could also be tricky for others. But it could be worth your while if you want to try something different, and not to mention, cheaper than those nail art salon services and pricey nail stickers sold in shops.

Winged Tips

What you need:

-Top and Base Coat Nail Polish
-White Nail Polish
-Nail Polish Remover
-Temporary Butterfly Tattoos
-Scissors
-Some Water
-Cotton Swab
-Tissue

*Note: Clean your hands and nails thoroughly, before applying the base coat. Also get rid of
old nail polish stains on your nails.

*Note: Make sure to brush a smooth surface to work on, so you won't have any problems
once you get to the tattoo transferring part.

*Note: Keep the other half, so in case something goes wrong with the transfer, you have some
kind of a "backup".

*Note: DO NOT cut the tattoos with the exact same size as your nails. You don't want any
white spaces. 

*Note: Don't soak the tattoo for too long.

*Note: The tattoo could slip off and ruin the transfer, so make sure you hold it in place with
a firm grip.

*Note: Apply the top coat carefully, so you won't scrape the design off your nail.

♥Andz