Sundays with the Promil Kid

Guess who’s back! I’m finding it hard to blog about my nephew, the Promil Kid, lately because I rarely see him. He’s staying at my parents’ house in Batangas and I only go there once a month. Anyway, enjoy.

image courtesy of www.cartoonfaces.net

AGNOSTIC KID

The Promil Kid is in a difficult identity situation right now. And years from now, it will require a big decision. You see, his mother (my sister) is a Roman Catholic while his dad is INC (Iglesia ni Cristo). So he goes to church twice a week. I’m agnostic so I couldn’t care less. One time, I was preparing breakfast when he walked in to the kitchen and had a small chat with me.

Yoshke: Where are you going?
Promil Kid: I’m going to church.
Yoshke: But I thought you already went yesterday.
Promil Kid: That was Mommy’s church. Now it’s time for Dad’s church.
Yoshke: Aah, I see.
Promil Kid: Tito, what’s your church?
Yoshke: I don’t have one.
Promil Kid: Huh? Why not?
Yoshke: I’m agnostic. I don’t go to church.
Promil Kid: You’re what?
Yoshke: AG-NOS-TIC
Promil Kid: So in your church, you don’t have to go to church?
Yoshke: Yes.

The Promil Kid then walked away, proceeded to the living area and sat down on the couch. He just stayed there. Minutes later, her mom came down from her room and found him there.

His Mommy: Oh, why are you still here? Your Dad’s waiting for you outside!
Promil Kid: I don’t want to go anymore!
His Mommy: Why not?
Promil Kid: I’m agnostic.

I was already eating my pancakes when my sister threw me a what-the-fuck-did-you-just-tell-him look.  “Well, he asked,” I said as-a-matter-of-fact-ly.

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Top 10 Cheap Ways to Travel

I was looking at my travel pictures and I was surprised by what I just realized. Aside from how much weight I gained the past year, I realized I have traveled a lot and I didn’t spend much. Since July last year, I have visited Palawan, Iloilo, Guimaras, Cebu, Pangasinan, Ilocos, Tagaytay, Batangas, Tarlac, Cebu again, and Sagada. In fact, the soles of my feet had been itching the past four weekends that I traveled to Lucban, Quezon (Pahiyas Festival); Mahayhay, Laguna; Anawangin Cove in Zambales; Subic Bay; and Bohol. Add to that, I flew to and spent three days in Singapore last October. I spent 33 days traveling in 16 different tourist destinations in a year.

Believe it or not, all I spent for traveling the entire year was less than PhP15,000 (US$ 330) all in all. Recap: 33 days, 16 destinations, for only 15 thousand pesos. How did I do that?

Yoshke at Anawangin Cove in Zambales, Chocolate Hills in Bohol, Magellan’s Cross in Cebu, and the beautiful Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte

I am shocked by the number of awesome places I have visited and the amount of cash I have shelled out. I’m not saying I’m an authority on budget traveling (far from it) but allow me to share with you how I pulled it off. So here, Yoshke’s top 10 tips on traveling cheap aka the Poor Man’s Guide to Traveling.

10. Travel in a group. Big group.

The more the merrier. And cheaper, too. When I traveled to Anawangin, I was with 11 of my college friends. And we were 20+ in Coron, Palawan.

Yoshke and officemates at Mt. Tapyas in Coron, Palawan and Kiltepan Viewpoint in Sagada, Mountain Province

Traveling in big groups has its disadvantages, of course. (Imagine the  chaos, the time spent waiting for the group to be complete, the constant asking where a certain person is, the taking of group pictures every part of the tour, and the frequency of stopping over because someone needs to pee.) But hey, look at the bright side. Being in a big group means more people dividing the expenses (transportation, accommodation, food). More people chipping in means there’s more that you can do and less cash to spend.

9. Find a good budget travel agency.

You have no idea how many there are. They’re just around the corner waiting for your call. If you’re not aware of any, head to this awesome website www.philippinesbudgettravel.com and choose the destination and the agency you want. Their rates and contact details are displayed there.

You can spend three days and two nights in Coron, Palawan for less than PhP3500; or in Caramoan, CamSur for around PhP3000; or in Sagada for as low as PhP3700.

Why so cheap, you ask? It’s simple really. Most of these travel agencies work on a “big group” mechanism. This means that even if you’re traveling alone or with only a few friends, you’ll be traveling as part of a bigger group. This way, you can still travel with a low-budget because the entire group will divide the total cost of the trip. Most of these packages already include transportation, food and lodging so you don’t have to worry about anything.

Also, these are budget travel agencies. Don’t expect five star hotels and limousines.

8. Avail of flight promos and discounts.

You have no idea how much you will be saving if you grab the chance. Remember that more often than not, the bulk of the expenses goes to airfare. It’s usually the biggest roadblock when traveling and these promos remove just that so you might want to take advantage.

For example, last week I booked a flight to Cagayan de Oro and Tacloban City for P100 (US$ 2). Yes, one hundred freakin’ pesos only. How? Twice a year, Cebu Pacific comes up with “Piso Fare” promos. Yep, you only pay one peso per flight. (Of course, add taxes and all that other shit, it’ll fall around P50-P100.) NOT BAD AT ALL!

Piso Fare promo isn’t the only one. There are almost ALWAYS flight promos out there, you just need to be updated all the time. Follow your favorite airlines on Twitter and like them on Facebook. When the time comes, be quick in booking flights as they sell out as fast as your favorite rock band.

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Crazy Over the Cup Again | 2010 FIFA World Cup – South Africa

Only three things make me cry — love, death and World Cup.

image courtesy of germany-info.com

Haha, seriously.  I remember myself crying like a baby on the way home from Ateneo when Germany lost to Italy in the semi-final match of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. I also almost fell into depression when they almost became the European champions in 2008, being beaten only by Spain at the finals.

The problem is that I am sooo emotionally attached to my favorite teams (Germany and Spain, but more for Germany). I invest emotions. I spend so much time following them. It’s more obsession than love, really. I feel like I’m part of the team. So when they lose, I crumble. It doesn’t help that they almost always are so close to championshop only to be defeated in the last few minutes.

I haven’t had a decent sleep for almost a week now, trying to be updated with all the World Cup happenings. Last weekend, I spent most of my time watching matches and their repeats. I just can’t get enough. Most of my tweets recently are also about World Cup. Here are some of them:

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Hypnotic Jericho Rosales on MINT Billboards

It’s been over a year since Jericho Rosales signed a deal to endorse MINT, a local fashion brand, but it’s only now that it dawns on me just how sexy Echo really is on Mint billboards.

A few months ago, while on board the MRT, I spotted this billboard along EDSA (near MRT Guadalupe station). I know this billboard looks so generic but there was something about it that was so wildly attractive. Maybe it’s the shirt. Maybe it’s Jericho’s drop-my-briefs stare. Maybe it’s that little cut on his left eyebrow. I dunno. There’s something about it that’s refreshing and hypnotic and sexy and yummy and God-I-wanna-take-him-home and keeps me talking.

And then, some weeks back, they replaced it with this:

I just died. Haha. I don’t own any Mint shirt or anything but I can look at these billboards for, like, forever.

It amazes me how I find Echo extremely sexy in these billboards even though he still has a shirt on. LOL. I mean, that he didn’t have to go nude or half-naked to appear hot. There’s something about him that is just AAAAH.

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Yoshke’s Weekend in Bohol in 4 Minutes

Hi guys, just sharing how my weekend went told in images in less than 4 minutes to the tune of Christina Aguilera’s MONDAY MORNING from the deluxe edition of her fourth studio album Bionic. (Haha. Sorry for plugging.)

I’ll be narrating what happened on my Bohol trip in detail soon. I just need to find time as I’ve been awfully busy. And oh by the way, I did not drop any of my four trips the past month. So now I’m tired, broke, and my skin is freakin’ flakin’. Sunog na sunog. LOL.

Album Review: Christina Aguilera – Bionic (2010)

“…The thing about Aguilera is that she’s used to zig when everyone else was zagging. And now, it seems like she decided to zag along with everyone else.” -EW.com

EW.com closed its review of Not Myself Tonight with these sentences. I wouldn’t blame them for thinking like this but I guess they were deceived by Not Myself Tonight. I love the single, don’t get me wrong, but this just didn’t represent the album in any way. Not Myself Tonight is like everything we have heard from today’s recording artists, except Christina can sing. I understand why they picked this track to be the first single — of all the tracks in Bionic, Not Myself Tonight is easily the most familiar and it is on this track that her voice is most recognizable.

But Bionic is more than that. Listen to Bionic and you’ll find Xtina going against the grain yet again, pushing the envelope harder, and yes, zigging while everyone else is zagging.

When Christina Aguilera said in an interview that she was experimenting more with her voice and exploring new ways to make music with it, she was not kidding. The album is unlike anything she has done before. It’s not even like anything other female performers and divas today have done before. Bionic is a big risk for an artist of her stature. It is not conventional. Yet, Aguilera was able to mesh her five-star voice with the different instruments that contributed to the genius that is Bionic.

To be honest, Bionic isn’t as futuristic as she sells it but it is indeed superhuman. And as you listen to it, subconsciously you are taken on a journey of a superhuman — opening with a big bang that is Bionic (track), taking you on a wild ride with Woohoo and Elastic Love, going deeper to the heart and soul of the album that is the four ballads at its core, and ending with a fun, wild, not-to-be-taken-seriously track that is Vanity.

I especially loved its row of ballads co-penned by Xtina’s long-time collaborator Linda Perry and new found ally Sia. It is the core of the record. It is as if Aguilera sheds of her metal armor, getting naked and revealing her heart and soul.It is Christina at her most vulnerable.

Most of all, Bionic successfully cements Christina’s status as probably this generation’s most versatile vocalist. She does urban, club-bangers, ballads and soul and does them well.

Here are what I think of each track:

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