Travel 2009

With the big (material) purchase of the year behind me, I'm now ready to plan my international trip of the year. Two options: March 3-17 or March 31-April 15. The latter might be more appropriate if I want to catch the blooming cherry trees.

But the date is only second in my list of details to worry about. More importantly, I'm trying to figure out my itinerary. I know I want to stay in Tokyo for 5-7 days. That's a given. My dilemma is what to do with the other week: Do I take the train to Kyoto and spend a week checking out Kyoto/Nara/Osaka or do I spend a week in Seoul?

The Japan Rail Pass for two weeks is a whopping $500. Yes, $500! Plus, I'm scared to go to Kyoto/Nara/Osaka alone. Yes, I, who traveled alone around SE Asia for three weeks, am scared of all the katakana and hiragana that I'd be encountering in Japan. Go figure! But really, the $500 rail pass is what's killing me softly. However, my plane ticket to Japan is free (free miles, woot!) and my accommodations in Tokyo will be somewhat taken cared of. And since I'm already in Japan, shouldn't I go all out visiting the country that I have always, always, ALWAYS wanted to visit?

On the other hand, there's Seoul. I promised Cathy that I'd be back to see it all since my 10 hours in Seoul in May 2007 didn't do me or Seoul any justice. With more Kdramas under my belt, there are more "tourist spots" to see. Plus, my goal of finding a hot oppa in that city is still unfulfilled. So if I fly from Tokyo to Seoul, it would be cheaper than my flying from Seattle to Seoul on a future date. And this is cheaper than that darn JR Pass!

The final option is to go all out and do all three. I have the vacation days, I don't have a mortgage yet, I'm getting a tax refund, and life is so funky these days that any distraction from my day-to-day life would be a good thing. I just have to sell a kidney or an arm after all is said and done. ;P

It's so true that the hardest part of a trip is deciding to go. Ugh! But I'm thankful that I'm single and all the expenses is only times one. Imagine if I were married with two kids: that's $2,000 for just the rail pass! See? It's good to be single. Say it louder, Mina. IT'S GOOD TO BE SINGLE! ;P

State of the Blogging Nation

I've been bloghopping the last few days which I haven't done in years. It's amazing to see the current state of blogs these days compared to when I started blogging in 1998.

For one, I'm not the lone sawi blogger anymore. There are far more people these days who are blogging about their lovelife, or shall I say the lack there of. Personally, I've said everything that I could ever say about my situation so it's definitely a breath of fresh air to read other people's words instead. Parang nakaharap lang ako sa salamin kapag binabasa ko ang mga posts nila. HaHa!

It's also amazing the quality of pictures that people put on their pages. Amateur photography at its finest! Technology nga naman! Gone are the days that bloggers have to scan their pictures because of film cameras! Okay, I just aged myself right there.

But there seems to be this fad currently (just like blog rings, moving icons, MIDIs, and flickR badges through the years): bloggers avoiding posting pictures of themselves on their blogs. That's unheard of in my realm especially with Pen and Raissa since you can practically trace their family tree by using all the pictures they have on their site. HeHe! In this age of Faceb00k, hindi ko naiintindihan kung bakit may mga tao pang hindi makakapal ang mga mukha at hindi naglalantad ng mga pictures nila. ;P

So how have I changed as a blogger through the years? Hmmm... I don't really know. The experiences have changed, hence the topics have been different as well. There are more distractions these days so there's less time to sit and write about more thought-provoking entries (naks!) than I used to. But I'm definitely thankful that I know a small group of people who I've managed to hang out with not only on their website, but in real life too (in Pinas even!)...and have gotten to know their families...and their single, male relatives. HaHa!

I wonder what the next ten years will bring. Note to self: si Piolo sana...kahit his likeness lang, puwede na. ;P

Marketing Me

If you ever want to feel useless with a marketing degree, then just go to a career fair:

"Sorry, we're not hiring marketing people right now."
"We're looking for engineering and IT people."

Dammit. It's like 2003 all over again (the year when I graduated) and finding a marketing position was next to impossible. This career fair is actually at my alma mater; I decided to go because I had to try everything and exhaust all opportunities to find a new job. But really, my going tonight was just a simple revelation of what I already knew: the bad economy isn't kind to marketing folks...even pretty ones like me.

Change as a Verb

I took the day off today to watch the live coverage of the presidential inauguration. More than simply witnessing history in the making, I wanted to be inspired, to be moved, to be changed, but I realized one thing: that change as a noun requires change as a verb. In order for change to happen, one must take action.

I remembered 2005 and how I bought a plane ticket, packed my bags, and went to the Philippines. No excuses, no dillydallying, no second guessing, no fear. Nike would've been proud of me for living its mantra of "Just do it."

When finding a job there took longer than usual, I didn't give up. Determined by God knows what, I just kept trying and trying until I finally succeeded. Maybe I was out to prove everyone wrong or maybe it was my being stubborn, but in the end, I was a better person because of all of it. And personally, I proved to myself that taking the road less traveled definitely made all the difference.

So fast forward to 2009: I hate my job and getting out of it is proving harder than usual. I can blame it on the economy, but I'm blaming myself. Where is that determined, no-fear-but-fear-itself-thinking girl from 2005? I know that I'm currently not her because whenever I read job postings, I can hear myself thinking, "No, you can't do that." Or I'm simply *thinking* about better things and not going after them with gusto as I had done before. My gosh, I am soooo better than this.

Dear self, may you be inspired, may you find that person you once were, and may you take the necessary actions to find the change you wish to see in the world.

HD Headache

While millions of children are starving in Africa, I'm sitting here, freaking out about which LCD HDTV to buy:

Option #1: Samsung 46", LN46A550
Cons: Sound isn't so stellar daw

Option #2: Sony Bravia 42", KDL-42V4100
Cons: Smaller than 46" obviously...if I go for the Sony 46" mas mahal sa Samsung 46"

My gawd, ganito bang kahirap bumili ng boyfriend?!