Of Beginnings and Endings

Whew! Those months flew right past me and boy did things happen! 

I turned 30

Major milestone! Went berserk a couple of days before and after the birthday, the birthday when I turn 30. My friends know how big of a deadline 30 is for me, post crossing the marker I decided to take on a more pragmatic view of things and be relative. Pauso ni Ariana Huffington, the third metric ek ek. Although I did manage to check from the list a couple of goals I set for myself, which brings me to me second point.

I got a condo

Finally, I took the plunge and just took on a major financial obligation. Right after graduation I succinctly remember setting this goal for myself and it is one of the few that remained and weathered the growing up and maturing process.

It's certainly not much but this is now what I call home, of course aside from the home where I grew up in.

I finally reached European Soil

Call it whatever you want but I'm certainly putting this in my list of achievements, not because of the gastos implications but because of all the work I put into it. Planning the trip for the whole family by myself without any professional help from a travel agent, navigating the streets, airports, canals, train stations of major cities and dealing with snooty embassy people is certainly a laurel on my head that I'd wear proudly.

Things picked up...

Gone Green

Ever since a colleague of mine signed up as a a dealer of Human Nature I've been easing on the green lifestyle switching my products from synthetic to those naturally derived. I started out with just shampoo, conditioner, lotion and deodorant but recently I've expanded my patronage to hand and bath soap to common household products.

Bath Soap - A La Maison Bath Soaps

I had a horrible experience using Human Nature's bath soap, it was simply too soft and ever so quickly disappeared into nothingness when doused with water turned to goo and left residues all over and so I stopped using it altogether. I used Giga soaps before but I didn't know where to get more as they where just gifted by a friend. On a restocking trip to Healthy Options (aka the health store aka my favorite store) I came by the aisle where the soaps were and saw the a la Maison soaps, it stuck to me because I saw a value pack of 4 unscented soaps that were the cheapest in the bunch and so I put in my basket. Bringing it home I was turned into an instant fan because the soaps where sturdy and didn't turned to goo easily so I got to use one bar for a long time. The packaging was also nice and very informative, stated there that their  recipe dates back to 1828 in France when Marseille soap masters developed the famous French milled process which was a method of slow cooking and purifying process which transforms 100% natural vegetable oils into glycerin rich, smooth soaps.

image from amazon.com

I went back to get more when I used up all the soaps from the 4 pack I previously bought and decided to be adventurous this time and try other variants. They had these humongous soaps that had different scents to it, I bought the rosemary mint and white tea scented variants. The size was an issue because I have fairly small hands and it was difficult at first to use but that was my only issue, the soaps were still as sturdy as ever and the scents were heavenly! I'm still using the white tea scented one and I love it, I'm really looking forward to using the rosemary and mint bar once I get through with the white tea but it seems like matagal pa yun I've been using the same bar forever!

image from amazon.com

Check their website at http://www.alamaisonsoaps.com/

Messy Bessy (the whole lot)

Messy Bessy is another pinoy product that I love, their products are also all natural and have no harmful chemicals. They tag themselves as a line of worry free household cleaning products. All their products are made with safe, non-toxic, all natural, biodegradable ingredients. They've been around since forever but I only recently shopped their products. My former boss gave me the insect repellent spray which I adore! She also gave me the little warrior spray which is a multi-tasking product that can be used as a hand sanitizer, disinfectant, room spray and surface cleaner (whew!). I'm in-love with the insect repellent spray because for one it's a spray it's so easy to apply, I just spritz it all over my arms and legs as needed and also because it doesn't stink and uses all natural andiroba oil derived from the Carapa tree. Human nature's bug oil reeks of citronella which doesn't smell bad altogether but the scent is quite strong and overpowering.

Fabric Freshener

I think everyone I know has had that dilemma, you went out for lunch with friends then the smell of the restaurant haunts you back at the office only to find out that the stench of the food (blame it on sizzling plates) stuck to your clothes. You shower with cologne but the scent ends up with a Mortal Kombat kinda fight and gives birth to a different monster, you get on the shuttle going home then everyone looks hungrily at you. The Messy Bessy fabric freshener has been a life saver, I couldn't imagine what my life was before this. I got my first bottle at the Hobbes and Landes store and never looked back. The spray smells like fresh laundry aka detergent so parang bagong laba yung damit mo kahit buong araw ka na nasa arawan. What I do is i douse myself with the spray first then use my cologne to freshen up, fresh na fresh!

Sports Spritzer

This smells really nice like if it was edible I'd probably drink it, the variant for men smells like sugarcane and smells really sweet. I used to use this on my sweaty clothes, shoes and socks after volleyball before putting it inside my bag, now that I don't play volleyball anymore (somebody adopt me I need to play the sport again!) I bring it to the yoga studio to spray on the studio's mats.

Hand and Body Soap

I upgraded to these baddies from my usual SM supermarket loot. I've tried the Aloe and Green Tea variant and the Vanilla Orange one which is my favorite. They're not thick in consistency but they really lather well I was surprised I thought they wouldn't because it's all natural.

Dish Cleaner

I initially just wanted to use this on my mouth guard, the dentist after fitting me with a mouth guard told me that a dish cleaner would be the perfect cleaning agent for it so I've been using Joy ever since. Recently it dawned on my that maybe I've been ingesting Joy into my system so I decided to switch to a naturally sourced cleaner. I first considered Human Nature but it turned out that their's was more expensive so this is what I bought. I've been also using this on regular dish cleaning as well even on the greasy plates and it holds its own against the synthetic one's more popular in the market.

Disinfectant Spray

I've been on the look out for the perfect naturally derived disinfectant for the house, the usual sprays on the supermarket had CFC's which is bad for the environment. This doesn't smell as nice as I wanted it to be also the constant need to shake the bottle because the ingredients don't mix well is a drag. The ingredients are a mix of certain oils and other liquids, you literally could see the ingredients separate when you shake the bottle.

Tea Tree Mold and Mildew Spray

This one I'm really impressed with, although the complaint about the constant need to shake the bottle is still there, this was overall effective. Don't you just hate molds? Those dark creatures you find in between tiles na ang hirap tanggalin they always grow on hard to reach areas. Also molds on the shower curtain is a major pet peeve of mine. T

What's good is that messy bessy sells refills at a much cheaper price, they also give a rebate when you return the bottle after use.

 All images from MessyBessy's website http://www.messybessy.com/index.html

Theodore

With the exception of a classmate in Kas 1, I've never known anyone named Theodore. I only read it from history books with mentions of Theodore Roosevelt, the former president. Recently, the name Theodore has sprung up and I now take delight in the name. Here are two tales about two Theodore's:

1. Theodore Decker

Theodore or Theo Decker is the main protagonist in Donna Tartt's new book "The Goldfinch", people have nothing but raved about this book and no less than Stephen King himself reviewed it for the New York Times. I personally loved this book, I can see it as being a classic along the lines of J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye". The book is quite thick, it's a bit of a hack in the beginning, not until he met Boris did the pace picked up. There are too many characters in this novel and Ms. Tartt's characterization was sublime. Justified yung comparison with Dickens, most reviewers have hallowed the adjective "Dickensian" to describe this book and I can see why. I loved Mrs. Barbour, Boris and of course Hobie. I'm torn if I want to see the book made into a movie but here are my casting choices, oh yeah you know I love playing the casting director's bit.

Jamie Dornan as Theo Decker

Must be all the 50 Shades I've been getting online, that's why I thought of Jamie Dornan who's a bit older than the character but I think he can pull it off. Here are the other reasons why I think fist the role:

Looks good in a suit ..check. (Although the suit must be either Thom Browne or Turnbull & Asser)

Can rock horn rimmed glasses...check

A close second would be Alden Ehrenreich

Billy Cruddup as Theo's Father

The alcoholic ex-actor, must be charming and handsome with tints of tragedy:

Grace Gummer as Kitsey Barbour (the ice queen)

Holy mother her mother is Meryl Streep?!?!?!?!? How do I know this just now? Somebody give this girl a major role, I loved her in The Newsroom.

Chris Pratt as Platt Barbour

Cate Blanchett as Mrs Barbour

Just finished watching Blue Jasmine! She's a fantastic actress, and it wouldn't be far from her role as Jasmine - Park avenue wife who lost all her money.

Rooney Mara as Theo's Mother

I love her, I just do.

Boris - ???

Wala pa din ako maisip pero I kept picturing Dmitriy Sholokhov when I was reading the book.

Dmitriy Sholokhov, Project Runway Season 10 winner

Have not yet made up my mind who I want for Hobie, which is a central character. I want someone who exudes warmth yung napaka-buting lolo effect. For Lucius Reeve I want Donald Sutherland because effective syang bad guy sa Hunger Games.

Also, more than anything this book has introduced me to the old Dutch masters of painting, Rembrandt, Vermeer and specially Fabritius so much so that I added The Hague in my places to go just to visit Mauritshuis and come face to face with the Goldfinch, the titular painting of the book. Wish!!!!

Mauritshuis in The Hague

2. Theodore Twombly

Theodore Twombly is the main character of "Her", Spike Jonze's latest movie, played by one of the strangest people to commit to a role but earned my respect doing it - Joaquin Phoenix. In the movie set in the future, Artificial Intelligence is used as personal assistants to do everything for people prompted by voice commands. Parang super advanced version of Apple's Siri. The Operating System (OS) is voiced by Scarlett Johansson, she doesn't appear in the movie it's only her voice but there has been a campaign to get her an Oscar nod for her role.

Here's what I liked about the movie:

1. The story:
It's easy to make a caricature of a person falling for an OS but the story and Joaquin Phoenix's depiction of Theodore elevated this. ScarJo's voice must also be given credit for this.

2. The supporting actress
Where do you get to see movies with Amy Adams playing a supporting role? Not anymore eyh but in this movie she plays one and she does this so well. Her limited screen time is not wasted and she makes the most out of every scene.

3. Soundtrack by Arcade Fire
Apparently the soundtrack is by Arcade Fire but this caught me as a surprise. I only started listening to Arcade Fire recently with their new Album Refloktor which sounds totally different from their work for this movie. For that mahal ko na sila, before watching this I couldn't get what all the buzz was for the band but now I love them.

4. Production Design, Cinematography, COstume
The shots colored, it's like an old picture na madilaw na which creates warmth. Nung una i was disoriented because the costumes were old, the shots seeming old but the place where they were shooting (couldn't decide if it was Shanghai or Macau) and the society they lived in were very futuristic. Hoyt Van Hoytema did the cinematography and he is brilliant.

I'm no master of cinematography so may I direct you to these sites that talks about it with authority:

http://nofilmschool.com/2014/01/how-cinematographer-hoyte-van-hoytema-made-her-beautiful/

http://www.hitfix.com/in-contention/cinematographer-hoyte-van-hoytema-on-capturing-spike-jonzes-her-through-a-non-dystopian-lens

The costumes are also unique parang hipster meets the 70's, they're calling it retro-futuristic which is an oxymoron if I ever saw one. I loved the clothes that Theodore wore even the high wasted pants look great except when the shots were from behind wherein mukha syang naka-diapers.

Here's another article where they're talking about the high-waisted pants:

http://www.vulture.com/2013/12/her-movie-high-waisted-pants-spike-jonze.html

恭喜发财， Happy Chinese New Year!

Got no money to pay for the fee, thus the watermark! Haha!

Anyway, I've been out of it too busy to blog so this is my first post for the year.

Although I don't have a drop of Chinese blood in my veins, I've been studying Mandarin for quite some time now and here are some of my favorite greetings for the new year.

Happy new year (congratulations) and wish you wealth
恭喜发财

May all your wishes come true
万事如意

Wishing you good health
身体健康

Get wealthy quick
马上有钱

Wish you luck for the year of the Horse
马年大吉

Success is on its way
马到成功

So everyone I wish you a good year of the Horse!

大家， 恭喜发财， 万事如意，身体健康， 马上有钱， 马年大吉， 马到成功！