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for October 2007.
Back when I was young, I remember that one of our past times was to play checkers. I seriously sucked at that game. The checkerboard we owned back then was those two-in-one game, where the other side of the board was for backgammon. Since it is not a popular game here, I had no idea how to play it…so I skipped and decided to look for another game instead. :P
Moving on, since everyone’s into internet games right now, backgammon totally follows suit. Interestingly, BackgammonMasters.com not only developed an online backgammon game, but created it in different languages so more people around the world can play. Backgammon Masters is the largest online community for backgammon players, where the players could not only play but participate in a real-time online chat. Players and wannabe players can also learn how to play, get tips and strategies in the website in their own language.
So if you’re a backgammon afficionado, or you want to learn how to play, drop by this website to get your gaming fix. Then maybe you can teach me how to play? :D
The month of October reminds me of three things: lots of horror stories and Halloween specials on TV, my dad’s birthday and the month of the Holy Rosary. I remember back in high school, everytime it was October, we’d be asked to decorate our bulletin board for October and put up a small altar at one corner of the classroom and pray all five mysteries for the day of the rosary. I end up leading the rosary on most days, which I don’t really mind, and which is also why I memorized all the prayers and the mysteries.
But…I’d have to admit. I’m not the biggest fan of the Holy Rosary. :-s I liked that I can do it, but I don’t really like doing it. I’m not proud of this, and I’m trying my best to learn to love this form of prayer. I don’t doubt how powerful praying the rosary can be (and it really helped me calm down and be still in God during the time I was waiting for my exam results in my current employer); it’s just that sometimes it can get so repetitive that I get too antsy and I feel like my prayers aren’t getting through.
But I’m trying harder now. I’m trying harder to appreciate the rosary for all it is worth, because I know that it’s a beautiful prayer as a whole. Plus there are also these things, which Mr. Matt Smith from Lifeteen.com pointed out:
- The rosary isn’t all about me. (True!)
- A lot can happen when I pray for 20 minutes (approximately how long praying the entire rosary will take)
- It’s an interactive Biblical experience (gives me time to reflect at the important parts of Jesus’ life — yes, the rosary is still about Jesus, despite the number of Hail Mary’s prayed)
- It can make ordinary situations extraordinary (because I spent it in prayer)
.
Like I said, I’m trying harder. Which is why I’d like to thank Jun and Fr. Stephen for starting the Filipino Holy Rosary (or Santo Rosaryo) podcast. For everyone who wants to pray the rosary but is not quite familiar with it, here’s a guide for you. You may download these podcasts, put them in your mp3 player and just pray with it while you walk, commute, drive or work or while going through your favorite hobby shop. You can use this to teach kids or students how to pray the rosary in Filipino, or have a group of friends say the prayer together. You can send these to your Filipino friends abroad too. :)
If you’d prefer the English version, you may download podcasts at RosaryArmy.com. I will be putting these up for download by tomorrow at my Multiply too, so you can also download it from there in case you can’t access the two sites. :)
Rating: 
Click here to buy Love, Stargirl from Amazon.com
Dear Leo,
I love beginnings. What better way to elaborate than to begin writing a letter to my once (and future?) boyfriend.
Stargirl has moved and left everything behind: Arizona, Mica High, enchanted desert places - and Leo.
He’s all she can think abbout, and her life begins to feel like a parade of unhappy anniversaries. Then Stargirl meets her wonderfully bizarre new neighbors: Dootsie, the curly-headed five-year-old “human bean”; Betty Lou, who hasn’t stepped outside her house for nine years; Charlie, who sits among the tombsones; hot-tempered Alvina with that one glittery nail; and Perry Dellophane, the blue-eyed thief who soon lays his own claim to Stargirl’s heart.
In letters to Leo in a course of a year, Stargirl comes to find hope in new places: mockingbirds, donut angels, moon flowers and the Winter Solstice — that turning-point day when dark tips to light. But what’s life without Leo? Will he — can he — answer that one crucial question she asks every morning to the rising sun? - Book blurb
It was around three years ago when I first bought Stargirl
. I’ve been curious about the book ever since I saw it but I only got to buy it after a bad day at the photo lab at school. I loved the book — it was magical and bittersweet and reading it always left me a sad feeling over my heart, wondering if Leo and Stargirl will every meet again.
In this sequel, Mr. Spinelli brings us into Stargirl’s world, making us see through her eyes, and making us realize that amidst all the “magic” she held in the previous book, she is still a human being, and more importantly, a girl who fell in love, was “dumped” and is trying to move on with her life without her love.
This book kind of reminds me of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, written in the same way, only in a girl’s point of view and with less “serious” topics. Stargirl was introduced as a very unique individual in the first book, and Mr. Spinelli wrote it in a way that we can never know what makes her tick. We just know that she does what she does, and that’s it, like if she was explained, all magic would be lost. I admit that as I read the book, I also looked at Stargirl in wonder, also wondering how she could act that way in an environment that calls for conformity. The ending of the prequel left me wanting answers to who she really is.
Love, Stargirl doesn’t really answer this question, but it takes you into an adventure into Stargirl’s world without Leo. It’s interesting to see that even if she seemed “magical” at first, she is just very ordinary…just brought up very differently. It was interesting to read about her trying her best not to fall for Perry, or for launching into her different adventures with Dootsie or being a sister to Alvina…it’s amazing to see that even if she seemed so sure of herself in the prequel, she’s can be as awkward and unsure as the next person. She reminds me of Anne Shirley from Anne of Green Gables, only a bit less “head in the clouds”. :)
Stargirl is to someone to be loved. She’s a sweet person who “sheds light when she cries”. :) She’s one of the characters that will stay with you for a long time after reading the book.
I definitely recommend that one must read the prequel first before reading this one, just so you really get to feel and know Stargirl. :)
The holiday weekend is almost ending, and let me just say: this is probably the weekend I really went out a lot. Interesting. I’m really more of a homebody even if I’m trying hard to be a social butterfly. But I figured that it’s payday weekend and after this, I’d be saving up for the new laptop which I plan to buy at the end of the year (or sooner, God-willing), I’d better make the most out of this weekend.
The first order of the weekend started Thursday night, where my teammates and I trooped over to Marikina to eat dinner at this Dampa-like place at Riverbanks. None of us took pictures of the amount of food we all took in, but trust me, we were stuffed. The dinner consisted of sisig, liempo, stuffed grilled tilapia, stuffed squid, sinigang na maya maya, ensaladang mangga, talong and bagoong, baked clams with cheese, sizzling tuna and lots of rice. Yes siree, I broke whatever diet I’m trying to follow that night. :P But that doesn’t really matter, because the food was so good. And as a treat to our team leader who has been treating us countless times whenever we all eat out at Eastwood (we’re spoiled that way), we all chipped in so he won’t have to pay for his food. After all that stuffing, we headed to Figaro to hang out for a while over cold drinks and hot chocolate and spent the next hour laughing and talking about our first three months together. :) As Grace told me the next day, we spent more than three hours eating and laughing. Good times. Thank You Lord for these people. :)
(More…)
Technorati Tags: Marikina, food, work, Godchicks, Bonifacio High Street, Macbook, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Seattles Best, Starbucks, Thesismates, Flash, A Venetto, weekend, life
I haven’t done this for the longest time, but since today is a Holiday Friday and a good one at that, it’s just right to do some “feasting”. So here we go, my seventh Friday’s Feast. :)
Appetizer
When was the last time you were surprised?
Um, this is tricky. I honestly can’t remember. Watching Resident Evil: Extinction was more of shocking than surprising, and I’m pretty sure the surprise here does not mean the “Boo!” kind. As for the birthday kind of surprise…um, two years ago, on my 19th birthday at the YFC tambayan. Simple surprise only. I was supposed to have a thesis defense but it didn’t push through, so I went to the tambayan and was about to go home but my friends kept on asking me to stay…then they started singing Happy Birthday. Sweet. :)
I am still waiting for the I-can’t-believe-you-went-through-all-this-surprise. *hint*
Soup
Fill in the blanks: My eyes are ________, but I wish they were __________.
My eyes are near-sighted, but I wish they were not. I used to think wearing glasses is really cool when I got them, but now I don’t. I wish I took care of my eyesight way back. I didn’t destroy my eyesight because of the computer; I destroyed it because of all the reading I did in poor lighting. Yep, I’d read beside a candle, read lying down, even read in the car in the dark. Ooops. Lesson learned: have proper lighting (seagull lighting looks nice…but is it bright enough?) when reading.
Oh well. I have really nice frames though. ;)
Salad
If you were a Beanie Baby, what would you look like and what would your name be?
I have only one Beanie Baby at home given to me during my 18th birthday. It’s a duck named Quackers. Why? Um…let’s not talk about it. Anyway, interestingly, I only found out about that it’s a Beanie Baby now. Hehe. So if I were a Beanie Baby…can I be a tiger? Or a cat? But I’d rather be a tiger. :) And I’d name myself Rawr. :P
Main Course
Name two things you consistently do that you consider to be healthy habits.
Ahh, the times I try to be healthy. Haha. First off, I drink water immediately after I wake up. I hear it’s healthy, and it’s supposed to reset my metabolism for the day so I get hungry and digest food properly. Another thing I’m trying my best to adopt is not to eat pork. My dad has swown off pork and beef already, but sometimes I still end up eating some (sisig! liempo!), but I try as much not to eat them anymore.
Dessert
What brand of toothpaste are you using these days? Do you like it? Why or why not?
Right now we’re using that Colgate Apple Mint flavor. It’s okay, but it’s too Close Up like for me. I used to like Close Up, but I started liking Colgate more because my mouth feels cleaner afterwards. What I really like is the classic Colgate and the three-stripes one. Gotta love that plain minty-fresh breath! :)
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