MAN, HAIL YEAH!

HAPPY FATHERS' DAY, POPSICLE!

2011-06-19T21:19:00.007-05:00

"THE GREATEST GIFT I EVER HAD
CAME FROM GOD, AND I CALL HIM DAD."

JUST WANTED TO GREET ALL THE FATHERS OUT THERE A "HAPPY FATHERS' DAY", ESPECIALLY TO THE GREATEST FATHER IN THIS WHOLE WIDE WORLD, MY DAD.
HE'S BEEN THROUGH A LOT, AND SACRIFICED A LOT IN THIS FAMILY. HE'S THE NUMBER 1 JOKER IN THE HOUSE, AND HOPEFULLY HE DOESN'T AND WILL NEVER CHANGE. HE'S AN INSPIRATION, AND MY ROLE MODEL. AND I'M SURE A LOT OF THE KIDS OUT THERE FEEL THE SAME ABOUT THEIR FATHER. IF OUR MOTHERS ARE THE GUIDING LIGHT AT HOME, THEY ARE THE PILLARS/POST OF OUR HOUSE. HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, DAD!

AND THE LOVE KICK STARTS AGAIN.

2011-06-01T14:32:00.128-05:00

MY SINCERE APOLOGIES, READERS. I've been crazy busy lately this past month of May that I never really got the time to make A FEW BLOG posts. I wouldn't want to bore you with a quick post, instead of a long blog post that contains good stuff, so I waited until I finally got a free time. THIS SUMMER, I'M CURRENTLY ATTENDING ONE SUMMER SCHOOL COURSE WHICH IS INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY AS A CONTINUATION FROM THE PREVIOUS SEMESTER. AND I PLAN ON TAKING A COUPLE MORE COURSES AROUND JULY, HOPEFULLY. OTHER THAN THAT, THERE'S ALSO EIGHT RAYS STUDIO THAT KEEPS ME BUSY EVERY WEEK SINCE THE FIRST WEEK OF MAY WITH PHOTOSHOOTS, VIDEO SHOOTS, AND MORE. THIS WHOLE PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEOGRAPHY THING IS REALLY MAKING ME BECOME AN ACTIVE PERSON! IMAGINE, I HAVE TO PROMOTE EACH OF OUR VIDEOS, MAKE BLOG POSTS ABOUT IT, ETC. BUT I'M NOT COMPLAINING. THIS IS STILL A HOBBY GROWING INTO A PASSION, BUT HOPEFULLY SOON IT WILL TURN INTO SOMETHING BIG.

ON THE LAST WEEK OF APRIL, WE DID A VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH OUR FRIEND PETER TAKIS AND ALSO TO PROMOTE HIS NEW LINE THAT DROPPED ON THAT VERY SAME WEEK (PEEK A COUPLE OF PREVIOUS POST BELOW. WATCH THE INTERVIEW HERE).

ON MAY 4TH, THE WEEK AFTER WE DID THE INTERVIEW, WE DID A PHOTOSHOOT FOR PST (PINOY STREET TEAM) GEAR. A CLOTHING LINE BASED IN SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA WHICH NOW GREW BIGGER HERE IN WINNIPEG WITH THE EXPANDING SIZE OF FILIPINO IMMIGRANTS COMING HERE IN OUR CITY. WE ALSO POSTED A SHORT BEHIND THE SCENES AND TRAILER FROM THIS PHOTOSHOOT ON OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL AS A SNEAK PEEK TO SOME OF THE PICTURES WE JUST RELEASED ON OUR FACEBOOK FAN PAGE HERE. RIGHT NOW I POSTED THREE PHOTOS ON MY FLICKR PAGE SO MAKE SURE YOU CHECK IT OUT HERE AS WELL. I'LL BE RELEASING MORE PHOTOS IN THE NEAR FUTURE VERY SOON. PLEASE BARE WITH ME THOUGH, THERE ARE AT LEAST 200 PICTURES TO POST-PROCESS AND I JUST CAN'T EDIT THEM ALL AT ONCE. =)

ON MAY 16TH, PETER TAKIS ASKED US TO DO A VIDEO OF HIM AGAIN TO PROMOTE HIS EBOOK CALLED "AMBITIOUS YOUTH: 4 KEYS TO DOING BIG THINGS AT A YOUNG AGE". IF YOU WANT TO READ THE EBOOK, YOU CAN MAKE YOUR ORDER HERE. IT'S ONLY FOR $1.99! YOU CAN GET IT ON YOUR IPAD, IPHONE, IPOD TOUCH, AND MANY MORE. OR YOU CAN ALSO BUY IT AND PUT IT ON YOUR DESKTOP OR MACBOOK. I WANT YOU ALL TO SUPPORT HIM! CHECK OUT THE VIDEO BELOW.

A COUPLE OF DAYS AFTER WE DID THE VIDEO WITH PETER TAKIS, WE FILMED A DANCE MUSIC VIDEO OF EIGHT RAYS STUDIO'S OWN KEVIN DEL ROSARIO. WE FILMED THE MUSIC VIDEO ON TOP OF THE BAY AT PORTAGE AVENUE. IT WASN'T EASY GETTING THAT GIG, WE HAD TO COME BACK TO THAT SAME PLACE TO ASK FOR PERMISSION AGAIN. WE TRIED ALMOST EVERY TALL BUILDINGS IN DOWNTOWN TO ASK FOR PERMISSION THE WEEK BEFORE WE SHOT THIS MUSIC VIDEO. WE GOT LUCKY ON THE SAME DAY OF THE SHOOT WHEN WE CAME A LOT EARLIER AND THE MAIN STAFF AT THE BAY ACTUALLY GAVE US THE THUMBS UP TO DO THE VIDEO SHOOT ON TOP OF THEIR BUILDING. THE TITLE OF THE SONG IS KICKSTARTS BY EXAMPLE. AND OF COURSE, A VIDEO SHOOT IS MEANINGLESS WITHOUT SOME BEHIND THE SCENES AND BLOOPERS SO WE COMBINED OUR FOOTAGE IN ONE VIDEO AND PUT ON OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL. WATCH THE MUSIC VIDEO AND THE BEHIND THE SCENES AND BLOOPERS BELOW.

THANKS FOR YOUR TIME READING THIS AND WATCHING THE VIDEOS! SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL AND DON'T FORGET TO SHARE IT TO YOUR FRIENDS! AND STAY TUNED FOR MORE PROJECTS IN THE FUTURE!

NEVER STOP THINKING.

2011-05-09T21:37:00.002-05:00

In order for your dreams and visions to become a reality, you must continue to think that you’re going to become successful, that you’re going to surpass all of your expectations in life, and that nothing is going to come in your path to prevent you from achieving your goals. Without the right amount of positive thinking, you may never attain success.

You have to imagine where you want to be in life. Think of your imagination as the mental canvas where you can dream, wonder, think of possibilities, and just let your mind wonder and wonder into new worlds. HAVING AN IMAGINATION IS THE KEY TO CREATIVITY.

You need to be thinking about your plan and if you don’t have a plan you better make one right now. The thing about a plan is that it keeps you focused on your goals. Having a weak plan is better than not having a plan at all. So get some paper and a pen, and write down your plans. I’m not talking about a formal business plan, I am talking about sentences, words, ideas, drawings, shapes, images, anything on a piece of paper — something to post on your wall to observer, think about, and revise.

Your desire to succeed must be strong. Students have been taught to go to school, get good grades, find a job, work for someone for 40 years then retire living off of social security checks for the rest of your life. Well you know what I say to that? MAN, HAIL NAWW!

The student entrepreneur doesn’t settle for that — He or she builds, creates, expands, and changes the world. In order not to end up just like every other dude, you need to persist above all the bullsh*t that is going to try to stop you (i.e. friends, family, bosses, teachers, and acquaintances that tell you to “play it safe”). I’m sure you’ve heard that before, right?

Never stop thinking about the future. We are living in a world where things are constantly changing from day to day. Ideas that you once had may need to be revised or adjusted for future changes in the world. The way you think about your business should never be concrete, it should be fluid: ready to change at any given moment. We don’t live in a static world, so your business shouldn’t be static. Be flexible and ready for anything. There’s only one thing that is perfect in this world and it’s definitely not going to be your business.

There are going to be setbacks on your road to success, there will be days filled with headaches and stress, days that you’ll just want to give up and never look back — this is all part of starting a business and the strong-minded always prevail.

NEVER STOP THINKING.

ALWAYS ADVANCE, NEVER DIGRESS.

2011-05-01T20:10:00.004-05:00

HEY GUYS, I COME TO YOU AGAIN WITH A BLOG POST ABOUT A CLOTHING LINE HERE IN WINNIPEG, CREATED BY A 16-YEAR OLD HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT NAMED PETER TAKIS. YOU GUYS MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW THIS, BUT ME AND 3 OTHER FRIENDS RECENTLY MADE A GROUP THAT'S THE MAIN FOCUS IS PHOTOGRAPHY AND A VIDEOGRAPHY. AND FOR OUR FIRST MOVE, WE DID AN INTERVIEW WITH PETER TAKIS LAST THURSDAY TO PROMOTE HIS NEW LINE THAT JUST DROPPED LAST SATURDAY IN HIS WEBSITE (CHECK OUT LOCAL ADVANCERS). ALSO CHECK OUT HIS BLOG AMBITIOUS YOUTH FOR UPDATES, AND ADVICES ABOUT LIFE IN GENERAL. OTHER THAN THAT, YOU CAN ALSO CONTACT HIM BY FOLLOWING HIM IN TWITTER (@LOCALADVANCERS).

ALL I'M ASKING YOU IS TO CHECK OUT THESE SITES I POSTED. IF YOU LIKE THE VIDEO WE MADE, GIVE IT A THUMBS UP, FAVORITE IT, AND GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK. SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL AS WELL FOR FUTURE PROJECTS. WE PLAN TO RELEASE A BUNCH OF VIDEO PROJECTS THAT WE'LL BE DOING EVERY WEEK, SO STAY IN TOUCH. WE ALSO ACCEPT IDEAS FOR SHORT VIDEOS IN THE FUTURE, SO IF YOU HAVE WRITTEN A SHORT SCRIPT AND YOU THINK IT IS GOOD, SEND IT TO US AND WHO KNOWS, MAYBE ONE DAY WE CAN TURN IT INTO A SHORT VIDEO. IF YOU LIVE IN WINNIPEG AND YOU'RE LOOKING FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS AND/OR VIDEOGRAPHERS TO COVER AN EVENT, SEND US AN EMAIL AT EIGHTRAYSSTUDIO@GMAIL.COM. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME READING THIS. PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT LOCAL ADVANCERS AND OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL. TAKE IT EASY, WORLD. :)

HAPPY 12TH BIRTHDAY, TUB!

2011-04-20T10:04:00.093-05:00

I DON'T SMOKE WEED AND/OR CIGARETTE, AND I MOST DEFINITELY DON'T TAKE OR CONSUME ILLEGAL DRUGS. BUT HERE'S A REASON WHY I CELEBRATE FOUR TWENTY (420).

APRIL 20TH IS THE 12TH BIRTHDAY OF MY FAVORITE STREETWEAR STORE IN WINNIPEG, THE URBAN BAKERY. IT'S BEEN YEARS THAT I'VE KNOW THIS STORE, THE OWNER, AND THE ENTIRE STAFF. THIS IS DEFINITELY ONE OF THE PLACES THAT I LIKE TO HANG OUT AFTER SCHOOL, DURING SUMMER BREAK, ETC. THE STAFFS ARE OBVIOUSLY FRIENDLY, WE'VE ALL KNOW EACH OTHER IN A REALLY LONG TIME NOW. IT'S NO SURPRISE WHY THIS PLACE IS GETTING RECOGNIZED MORE AND MORE AS THE YEAR GOES BY. IT WAS THE FIRST STORE TO EVER INTRODUCE ME TO THE STREETWEAR CLOTHING BRANDS SUCH AS CROOKS AND CASTLES, STUSSY, OBEY CLOTHING, ALIFE, LIFTED RESEARCH GROUP (LRG), 10 DEEP, BOBBY HUNDRED'S "THE HUNDREDS", AND MORE. BECAUSE OF THEM, I PRETTY MUCH CHANGED MY ENTIRE CLOSET, AND MOST OF MY CLOTHING CAME FROM THE BAKERY. BUT NOT ONLY THAT, WHEN IT COMES TO SNEAKERS THEY ARE DEFINITELY ONE OF THE BEST SNEAKER SPOTS IN TOWN TO EVER GET QUICK-STRIKE RELEASES OF AIR JORDAN SNEAKERS. OTHER THAN THAT, THE URBAN BAKERY ALSO BRINGS OUT THE BEST TALENTS TO THE CITY. RAPPERS/GROUPS SUCH AS LMFAO, CLIPSE, BUN B, YELAWOLF AND RICK ROSS ARE ONLY A FEW WHO MADE IT HERE. LET'S HOPE THAT THEY COME BACK AGAIN SOON.

I MADE THIS POST TO REMIND THE LOCAL FOLLOWERS OF WINNIPEG OR ANYONE CLOSE THAT THE URBAN BAKERY IS HAVING A SALE STARTING TODAY UNTIL TOMORROW (THIS GOES ON EVERY YEAR, AND SALES OCCUR THROUGHOUT THE YEAR), SO HEAD DOWN TO THE BAKERY AND GRAB SOME GOODIES. ARE YOU TIRED OF SEEING THE SAME CLOTHES ON YOUR CLOSET EVERYTIME YOU CHANGE? OR WHENEVER YOU SEE SOMEONE ROCKIN' THE SAME SHIRT AS YOU? TUB OFFERS A VARIETY OF CLOTHING BRANDS TO CHOOSE FROM. I CAN GUARANTEE YOU THAT ROCKIN' THEIR STUFF CAN GET YOU NOTICED. WHETHER IS ANY TYPE OF CLOTHING, PANTS, WATCH, ANYTHING, THE URBAN BAKERY IS THE PLACE TO GO. THE BEST WAY TO KEEP TRACK OF NEW RELEASES OR EVENTS IS TO SUBSCRIBE TO THEIR WEBSITE - TUB204. EVEN IF YOU'RE NOT GETTING ANYTHING, IT'S ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA TO GO THERE, SAY HI TO THE STAFF, TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT. PEACE!

JAPAN, OUR PRAYERS GOES TO YOU.

2011-03-14T16:34:00.070-05:00

WHAT SUCKS EVEN MORE THAN WAKING UP AND HEARING BAD NEWS ABOUT THE 8.9 MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE HITTING JAPAN AND A TSUNAMI WARNING? I WAS HOPING YOU WOULD TELL ME. THE WORLD JUST ENTERED A NEW LEVEL OF CRAZYNESS WHEN WE ALL FOUND OUT ABOUT THE DISASTER THAT HAPPENED IN JAPAN RECENTLY. AND TO TOP IT ALL OFF, THERE'S ALSO THE LEAKING RADIATION IN JAPAN. I FEEL SORRY FOR THEIR COUNTRY, ALL THAT DISASTER IN ONE MONTH! I CAN'T EVEN STAND TALKING ABOUT IT HERE. ALL THOSE THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WHO DIED DURING THESE INCIDENTS. NOW, THAILAND IS AFFECTED BY THE TSUNAMI TOO. I JUST HOPE THAT MY HOMELAND PHILIPPINES DOESN'T GET AFFECTED. OUR PRAYER GOES TO THOSE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES DURING THESE UNEXPECTED EVENTS. AND MOST OF ALL, I PRAY TO THE COUNTRIES THAT WERE AND COULD BE AFFECTED BY THE TSUNAMI. DID YOU GUYS MAKE YOUR DONATIONS YET? REMEMBER, IT'S NOT TOO LATE. AS FOR ME, I'M TRYING EVERYTHING I CAN TO HELP OUT. AND THANKS TO THIS "PRAY FOR JAPAN" QR T-SHIRT MADE HERE IN WINNIPEG, DONATIONS HAVE BEEN MADE EASIER! GET ONE NOW WHILE THEY'RE STILL AROUND! I REMEMBER THESE BEING SOLD OUT ON THE FIRST DAY THEY CAME OUT. THIS WOULD BE THE FIRST ONE IN HISTORY WHERE A QR CODE WAS PUT ON A T-SHIRT. I COULDN'T HAVE SAID IT BETTER WHEN ACE SAID "IF YOU'RE WEARING THE T-SHIRT, YOU'RE A WALKING DONATION OUTLET". AND THE GOOD NEWS IS, THEY'RE ONLY $20. PLEASE GO HERE FOR MORE INFO -- #PRAYFORJAPAN.

HELLO EVERYONE, SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING THIS BLOG. IT'S BEEN A WHIRLWIND LATELY, AND I CAN SEE THAT THE SAME THING IS HAPPENING UP HERE IN MY BLOG (I'VE BEEN GETTING HIGH AMOUNT OF VIEWS LATELY AND IT'S PRETTY SHOCKING!). I'VE BEEN VERY BUSY WITH SCHOOL NOW THAT IT'S ALMOST OVER, DEALING WITH FINAL EXAMS, RESEARCH PAPERS, AND ALL THAT. I WAS GOING TO POST THIS A MONTH AGO BUT YOU KNOW IT SUCKS WHEN WRITER'S BLOCK STRIKES. I WANTED TO MAKE THIS QUICK SO I DON'T BORE YOU TO MUCH. I WILL TRY TO GIVE YOU GUYS AN UPDATE EACH WEEK. BUT EXPECT THEM TO COME AROUND LATE APRIL. IT'S EXAM MONTH, AND YOU GUYS KNOW HOW ITS GOES DOWN AT TIMES LIKE THESE. AS FOR THE MONTH OF MAY, WE JUST MADE A PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEOGRAPHY GROUP RECENTLY. SO I'M EXPECTING AND PLANNING A BUNCH OF PHOTOSHOOTS, MUSIC VIDEOS, AND SHORT FILM PROJECTS COMING OUT EACH WEEK. WATCH OUT FOR US ON YOUTUBE! WE CALL THE GROUP "EIGHT RAYS STUDIO". ANYWAYS, THANK YOU GUYS FOR STICKING UP THERE WITH ME. I DON'T MEAN TO LEAVE THIS BLOG HANGIN' BUT DO EXPECT A LOT OF UPDATES ONCE SUMMER OFFICIALLY STARTS!

- PEACE.

FIGHT PROCRASTINATION.

2011-03-08T17:50:00.014-06:00

HERE'S A STORY THAT SERVES A PURPOSE TO BE IN THIS BLOG. YOU ALL KNOW THIS BLOG ISN'T FOR ENTERTAINMENT ONLY, BUT IT'S FOR LEARNING AS WELL. SO I'M GOING TO TELL YOU WHY PROCRASTINATION IS BAD IN GENERAL, AND GIVE YOU SEVERAL TIPS AND WAYS ON HOW YOU CAN STOP IT. WE ALL KNOW THAT WE CAN LEARN FROM OUR MISTAKES FROM A BAD EXPERIENCE. SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, HERE'S MY SIDE OF THE STORY, AND I'M GOING TO TELL YOU WHY YOU SHOULDN'T DO IT.

AS WE GO THROUGH LIFE, THERE ARE MANY THINGS WE ARE GOING TO LEARN ON THE WAY. ONE OF THOSE BIGGEST THINGS IS PROCRASTINATION, AND WHY IT NEVER WORKS OUT. YEARS AFTER YEARS, I'VE BEEN TELLING MYSELF THAT WAITING UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE TO FINISH UP AN ASSIGNMENT, AN ESSAY, OR JUST STUDYING FOR AN EXAM IS WRONG.

BEFORE READING WEEK STARTED, A 2500 WORDS ESSAY ON MY FILM STUDIES (EXPERIMENTAL CINEMA) WAS DUE THURSDAY MORNING. OUR PROFESSOR ONLY GAVE US THE DETAILS ON WHAT WE SHOULD WORK ON OUR PAPER A WEEK BEFORE THE DUE DATE. SINCE THEN, I'VE BEEN SPENDING MY EXTRA TIME LOOKING FOR A FILM TO WORK WITH AND GET HIS PERMISSION, BUT IT WAS ONLY UNTIL TUESDAY AT THE SAME WEEK I HAD TO SUBMIT THE PAPER THAT HE REPLIED TO GIVE ME THE THUMBS UP. I DECIDED TO DO MY PAPER ON GUY MADDIN'S "MY WINNIPEG". SO I WATCHED THE FILM ON THAT SAME NIGHT, PULLED OUT A LOOSE LEAF AND STARTED JOTTING DOWN SOME MEMORABLE SCENES FROM THE FILM, SOME DETAILS, AND WORKED ON THE REFERENCES. AT THIS STAGE I THOUGHT I WAS ON THE RIGHT TRACK. IT WAS ON THE WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON THAT I WAS UNDER A LOT OF PRESSURE AND I HAD TO WRITE THE ENTIRE ESSAY WITH NO TIME TO GET IT PROOFREAD. SO I SPENT THE ENTIRE NIGHT ONLY TO COME UP WITH A LITTLE OVER 1000 WORDS AROUND 2AM. GOOD? MAN, HAIL NAWW! I COULDN'T THINK OF ANYTHING TO PUT IN THERE, SO I DID WHAT EVERYONE ELSE DO WHEN THEY'RE RUNNING OUT OF WORDS: LOOKING FOR QUOTATIONS FROM A BOOK OR A JOURNAL ARTICLE FROM A DATABASE ABOUT THE SUBJECT AND PASTE IT ON THEIR PAPER SO IT ADDS UP. I STILL CAME UP A LITTLE SHORT, SO I DECIDED TO SLEEP ON IT AND WOKE UP FOUR HOURS LATER TO FINISH IT UP BEFORE HANDING IT IN. AT LEAST THAT'S HOW I IMAGINED IT. AND LET'S NOT FORGET THE DISTRACTIONS -- FACEBOOK, TWITTER, TEXT MESSAGES, PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING THAT'S DISTRACTING. WHEN I CAN'T THINK OF SOMETHING MY MIND GOES SOME PLACE ELSE WHERE I CAN THINK OF WORDS TO PUT ON MY ESSAY, AND SOMEHOW IT WORKS, BUT NOT A BIG FAN. HALF OF THE TIME I KEEP REMINDING MYSELF WHAT I'M WRITING ABOUT SO I'M ALWAYS ON TRACK.

WITH OVER 1000 MORE WORDS TO GO, I DECIDED NOT TO GO ON MY EARLY MORNING CLASS TO FINISH IT. AS IT TURNS OUT, I NEEDED MORE THAN AN HOUR. I COULDN'T EVEN MAKE IT TO MY 10 AM CLASS WHICH IS THE FILM STUDIES. AT 2000 WORDS, I COULDN'T THINK OF ANYTHING ELSE TO SAY. SO I TRIED HARDER TO PROOFREAD IT MYSELF AND ENDED UP WITH A LITTLE OVER 2400 WORDS. AT THIS PHASE, I TOLD MYSELF "I'M DONE". I'M NOT EVEN GOING TO TRY AND GET 2500 WORDS. I'VE ALREADY SQUEEZED MY BRAIN FOR THE PAST 24 HOURS, IT'S BAD ENOUGH THAT I HAVE TO DO IT AGAIN. I FIND IT FUNNY WHEN MY ESSAY WORD COUNT GOES UP BY AT LEAST A HUNDRED EACH HOUR, WHICH IS PROGRESS -- A SLOW PROGRESS, BUT IT STILL COUNTS. WITH MY PAPER DONE AT 2:30 PM, AND THE CLASS BEING DONE BEFORE 1PM, I LOOKED UP MY PROFESSOR'S OFFICE HOURS SO I CAN HAND IN MY PAPER THERE. SO I GOT TO HIS OFFICE, ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT HE LEFT EARLY TO ATTEND A PRESENTATION. AFTER I GOT HOME, I TRIED TO EMAIL IT TO HIM THROUGH JUMP WEBMAIL, BUT THE SITE WAS MESSED UP THE WHOLE NIGHT. I CHECKED BACK IF THE SITE WORKS EVERY AFTER 30 MINUTES UNTIL THE CLOCK STRIKES MIDNIGHT AND I TOLD MYSELF I'D TRY AGAIN TOMORROW. BUT IT WAS NOT UNTIL SATURDAY MORNING WHEN I WAS ABLE TO EMAIL HIM MY PAPER WITH MY EXPLANATIONS, AND THAT'S WHEN HE TOLD ME THAT HE HAD TO CUT HIS OFFICE HOURS INTO HALF TO ATTEND A PRESENTATION. I NEVER KNEW JUMP WEBMAIL WAS UNDER A MAINTENANCE THAT TIME, NO WONDER THE SYSTEM WAS FAILING.

RIGHT NOW, WE'RE STILL WAITING FOR THE PROFESSOR TO GIVE US BACK OUR PAPERS. FOR SOMETHING THAT I WROTE FOR ONLY LESS THAN 24 HOURS, I MUST SAY THAT'S A PRETTY SOLID ESSAY. LESSONS LEARNED: LOOKING UP PICTURES OF THE FILM YOU'RE WRITING ON IN THE INTERNET DOES NOT COUNT AS RESEARCH. RESEARCH INVOLVES READING THE MATERIAL WITH AN OPEN MIND, NOT ONLY FOR PLEASURE. IMDB IS A NOT BAD SOURCE FOR A FILM BUT NOT GREAT FOR REFERENCES, SAME WITH WIKIPEDIA. IF I WERE YOU, I'D STAY AWAY FROM THOSE WEBSITES WHEN YOU'RE WRITING AN ESSAY AND LOOKING FOR VALID QUOTATIONS OR REFERENCES. I'D SAY DATABASES SUCH AS EBSOHOST AND WILEY STILL HAVE THE BEST RESOURCES. ANOTHER LESSON LEARNED: COZINESS IS THE FORBIDDEN FRUIT TO WRITING AN ESSAY, BUT IN THIS CASE, IT'S FOR EVERYTHING ELSE (STUDYING, ETC.). ANYTHING THAT LOOKS COMFORTABLE IN SIGHT IS A NOT GOOD. DON'T STAY IN YOUR BEDROOM WHEN YOU'RE WRITING AN ESSAY OR STUDYING FOR AN EXAM -- YOU'LL ONLY FALL ASLEEP. AND THIS NEXT ONE, I KIND OF ALREADY MENTIONED EARLIER: WHEN YOU FEEL LIKE YOU'RE GETTING NOWHERE ON YOUR PAPER, WRITE DOWN THE QUOTES FROM THE SUBJECT THAT YOU WANT TO USE AND CAREFULLY EXPLAIN IT. THEN TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR WORD COUNT, IT WENT UP, RIGHT? THIS ENCOURAGEMENT MAY GET YOU TO KEEP GOING FOR A FEW MORE HOURS UNTIL YOU'RE DONE. AND LAST BUT NOT THE LEAST, MAKE SURE YOU BREW A POT OF COFFEE TO KEEP COMPANY AND TO KEEP YOU AWAKE FOR THE ENTIRE NIGHT. YOUR BODY WILL HATE THE COFFEE AS YOU'LL FEEL EXHAUSTED IN THE MORNING, BUT YOU'LL THANK IT FOR STAYING AWAKE WHILE DOING YOUR PAPER.

BY READING THIS BLOG POST, YOU'RE PROBABLY SAYING TO YOURSELF THAT PROCRASTINATION, ALTHOUGH TEMPTING, IS NOT WORTH IT, AND YOU'RE RIGHT. SO HERE'S SOME SOLUTIONS I CAME UP WITH TO HELP YOU ALL STOP THE NEVER ENDING CYCLE OF PROCRASTINATION.

* GOT YOUR OWN CALENDAR ON YOUR ROOM? WELL THEN, WRITE DOWN IN YOUR CALENDAR THAT YOUR ESSAY IS DUE A FEW DAYS BEFORE IT ACTUALLY IS. IT'S MUCH BETTER IF YOU MARK IT A WEEK BEFORE. WHEN YOU REALIZE THAT YOU'RE FINISHED EARLY AND NO ONE ELSE IS HANDING IT IN, THAT WILL GIVE YOU A LOT OF TIME TO EDIT AND GET IT PROOFREAD.

* REWARD YOURSELF WHEN YOU'RE DONE YOUR ESSAY OR WHEN YOU FINISHED AN EXAM. DO WHATEVER YOU WANT TO DO THAT YOU CAN'T DO WHEN YOU'RE STUDYING -- PLAY SOME VIDEO GAMES, STALK SOME PEOPLE ON FACEBOOK, TALK TO CELEBRITIES ON TWITTER, WHATEVER FLOATS YOUR BOAT.

* FOR EACH PARAGRAPH YOU FINISH, REWARD YOURSELF AS YOU WRITE. MAYBE A 10-15 MINUTES STUDY BREAK, GET SOME FRESH AIR. YOU MIGHT PICK UP SOME WORDS THAT MAY HELP YOU INCREASE YOUR PAPER'S POTENTIAL.

* THINK OF IT AS A ONE TIME QUEST/ADVENTURE AND HAVE SOME FUN! I MEAN, WHAT DOES EVERY STUDENTS DO ON SPRING BREAK WHEN EXAMS ARE DONE? PARTYING. BECAUSE THEY FINISHED THEIR EXAMS, ETC.

WHETHER YOU'RE A HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT, A COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY STUDENT, OR ALREADY PURSUING YOUR CAREER, ANYTHING: DON'T PROCRASTINATE, IT WILL ONLY MAKE THINGS WORSE. THINK OF THE WORST CASE SCENARIOS THAT COULD HAPPEN IF YOU DO. YEAH, IT'S NOT A PRETTY THOUGHT, ISN'T IT? I HOPE THESE TIPS WILL HELP YOU TO BE ON THE RIGHT TRACK. AND ONE LAST THING KIDS, DO YOURSELVES A FAVOUR AND STAY IN SCHOOL UNTIL YOU GRADUATE WITH A BACHELOR'S DEGREE. IT SUCKS NOW, WE ALL KNOW THAT, BUT IT'S GOING TO BE WORTH IT IN THE END, I PROMISE. IF NOT, THEN YOU CAN HUNT ME DOWN IF YOU WANT AND PROVE ME WRONG, HAHA! LIKE D-PRYDE (CHECK OUT HIS MUSIC ON HIS YOUTUBE PAGE) SAID ON HIS VERSE ON NICKI MINAJ'S SONG MOMENT 4 LIFE, "YOU GOTTA FIND A JOB THAT YOU ABSOLUTELY LOVE, AND WHEN YOU FIND IT YOU'LL NEVER WORK A DAY IN YOUR LIFE". LET THIS BE AN INSPIRATION TO KEEP YOU ALL INTO GETTING UP EACH DAY AND GOING TO SCHOOL OR TO YOUR EVERYDAY JOB.

- PEACE.

DON'T BE A DRAG, JUST BE A QUEEN.

2011-03-04T15:18:00.006-06:00

MOTHER MONSTER AND LADY MARIA AT THE CONCERT.

LOOKING AT THE PICTURE ON THE RIGHT, IT LOOKED A LOT LIKE LADY GAGA AND MARIA ARAGON HAD A GREAT TIME PERFORMING TOGETHER LAST NIGHT IN TORONTO AT LADY GAGA'S MONSTER BALL CONCERT TOUR. IT'S ONLY BEEN TWO WEEKS OF WHIRLWIND, AND MARIA IS ALREADY LIVING HER DREAM AT SUCH A VERY YOUNG AGE. SHE'S BEEN VERY BLESSED WITH SUCH GREAT FAMILY AND SUPPORTERS. SHE DEFINITELY MADE THE ENTIRE CITY OF WINNIPEG AND THE WHOLE WORLD PROUD. SHE'S ALSO ONE OF THE REASONS WHY I'M PROUD TO BE A FILIPINO #NORACIAL. TALENTED INDIVIDUALS LIKE HER DESERVES TO BE RECOGNIZED. WATCHING THE YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THEM PERFORMING DEFINITELY GAVE ME GOOSEBUMPS. THEY WERE GREAT! THERE IS NO DENYING THAT. I CAN WAIT WHAT ELSE THE WORLD HAS IN STORE FOR HER. SHE WILL ALWAYS HAVE MY SUPPORT, AND I TRY MY BEST TO GET AS MUCH SUPPORT TO HER AND THE ENTIRE ARAGON FAMILY. AND I JUST HEARD FROM LINGER, MARIA'S SISTER, THAT THEY ALREADY LANDED HERE IN WINNIPEG OVER HALF AN HOUR AGO. I WISH I WOULD HAVE BEEN THERE AT THE AIRPORT TO SEE THEM.

PLAY THE VIDEO OF THEM PERFORMING A DUET ON LADY GAGA'S SONG "BORN THIS WAY" RIGHT HERE ON MY BLOG!

NEWEST INTERNET SENSATION PUTS WINNIPEG ON THE MAP.

2011-03-03T16:14:00.007-06:00

PICTURE COURTESY OF MARIA'S SISTER, ROJUANE.

JUST A REMINDER PEOPLE, TODAY IS MARCH 3RD. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS? THAT MEANS TONIGHT IS LADY GAGA'S CONCERT IN TORONTO. IF YOU HAPPEN TO BE IN TORONTO OR SOMEWHERE ON THE WAY, CHECK OUT THE SOLD OUT CONCERT. MARIA ARAGON WAS INVITED BY LADY GAGA HERSELF TO PERFORM ON STAGE FOR A DUET ON HER NEWEST SINGLE "BORN THIS WAY" TONIGHT. I'D HITCH A PLANE RIDE THERE RIGHT NOW, BUT THERE'S JUST TOO MUCH GOING ON IN SCHOOL LATELY, I GOT TO KEEP UP SOMEHOW. I'VE GOT NOTHING LEFT TO SAY, OTHER THAN "GOOD LUCK" TO MARIA TONIGHT". I'M PRETTY SURE SHE IS GOING TO HAVE FUN, AND DO A GREAT JOB ON HER PERFORMANCE! AND MAYBE ONE DAY, MARIA HERSELF WILL HAVE HER OWN CONCERT HERE IN HER HOMETOWN. WAY TO PUT WINNIPEG ON THE MAP, MARIA! WINNIPEG GOT YOUR BACK, MARIA ARAGON AND FAMILY! #TEAMMARIA

RIHANNA IS COMING TO WINNIPEG ON SUMMER 2011.

2011-02-23T11:38:00.012-06:00

ONE OF THE BEST R&B SUPERSTARS, RIHANNA, IS COMING TO WINNIPEG FOR HER "LOUD" TOUR THIS COMING SUMMER OF 2011. IT LOOKS LIKE WINNIPEG IS FULL OF CONCERT TOURS THIS YEAR. THERE'S RIHANNA, ALSO KATY PERRY, TALIB KWELI, AND MORE SINGERS AND BANDS. LAST YEAR WAS OBVIOUSLY NOT ENOUGH, ARTISTS LIKE DRAKE AND JUSTIN BIEBER, BANDS LIKE AC/DC AND BON JOVI WERE ONLY FEW WHO HAD CONCERTS HERE. RIHANNA IS DEFINITELY MY NUMBER ONE FAVORITE. A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T KNOW THAT. SHE GOT THE LOOKS, SHE GOT THE BODY, AND LAST BUT NOT THE LEAST, SHE GOT THE TALENT. I STARTED TO RECOGNIZE HER ON THE "SHUT UP AND DRIVE" MUSIC VIDEO WHEN SHE CUT HER HAIR SHORT. I'M NOT GOING TO LIE, THAT WAS JUST CUTE AND SEXY. I THOUGHT IT WAS A DIFFERENT SIDE OF RIHANNA, AND I LIKE IT! HER IMAGE ON THE "LOUD" ALBUM IS EVEN BETTER. I THOUGHT HER LAST ALBUM BEFORE "LOUD" WHICH IS "RATED-R" WAS NOT BAD. IT SHOWED A DIFFERENT IMAGE OF HER THAT I'M NOT USED TO SEEING. DON'T GET ME WRONG, CHRIS BROWN IS STILL ONE OF THE BEST MALE ARTISTS OUT THERE. EVEN THOUGH THEIR ISSUES MAY HAVE RUINED BOTH OR EITHER OF THEIR IMAGE, THEY'RE STILL CLIMBING THEIR WAY UP IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY. AND THAT'S ALL THAT COUNTS. BECAUSE "IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW MANY TIMES YOU FALL DOWN, IT MATTERS HOW MANY TIMES YOU GET BACK UP."

THIS IS GOING TO BE RIHANNA'S SECOND TIME IN WINNIPEG. HER FIRST APPEARANCE WAS LAST 2008, ON KANYE WEST'S "GLOW IN THE DARK TOUR". WHAT MAKES THIS CONCERT BETTER? THE ARTIST WHO SANG "FUCK YOU/FORGET YOU", OR SIMPLY "THE LADY KILLER", CEE LO GREEN, WILL BE THE OPENING ACT ON RIHANNA'S CONCERT. SO DON'T FORGET, IT'S ON JUNE 18TH, ON A SATURDAY, AT MTS CENTRE. LIKE I ALWAYS SAY, GET YOUR TICKETS EARLY, AS IN NOW! THEY'RE ALREADY ON SALE. SEATS ARE VERY LIMITED. SO BE THERE! YOU WOULDN'T WANT TO PASS UP AN OPPORTUNITY LIKE THIS. I WASN'T ABLE TO COME TO THE "GLOW IN THE DARK CONCERT TOUR" BECAUSE I WAS STUCK AT WORK. THE GUY WHO I SWITCHED SHIFTS WITH DIDN'T SHOW UP. BUT THIS TIME, I'LL BE MAKING SURE THAT I'M THERE. YOU SHOULD COME TOO! I PLAN TO MEET HER THIS TIME. I REALLY MEAN IT. DON'T MISS OUT! I'LL BE SERENADING HER BACKSTAGE AND ON THE AFTER PARTY. THAT'S RIGHT, YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. I ALSO WANT TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY ON GREETING HER A "HAPPY BIRTHDAY". HER BIRTHDAY WAS LAST FEBRUARY 20TH. EVEN THOUGH IT'S KIND OF LATE, IT'S THE THOUGHT THAT COUNTS, AM I RIGHT?

MARIA ARAGON GOES TO THE ELLEN SHOW.

2011-02-22T15:22:00.003-06:00

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED TO EVERYONE WHO'S BEEN THERE SUPPORTING HER FOR THE ENTIRE WEEK. WE'VE DONE IT! AFTER ALL THOSE MILLION VIEWS ON YOUTUBE AND THOUSANDS OF TWEETS, SHE'S FINALLY LIVING HER DREAM OF GOING TO THE ELLEN SHOW! SHE FLEW TO LOS ANGELES ALONG WITH THE ENTIRE ARAGON FAMILY TO MEET ELLEN DEGENERES. AS A MATTER OF FACT, MARIA CALLED WINNIPEG'S #1 RADIO STATION HOT 103 TO TELL THEM THE GOOD NEWS. THEY TAPED THE SHOW YESTERDAY AND IT'S AIRED TODAY. I WAS WATCHING THE ELLEN SHOW THIS MORNING, AND SHE WAS JUST AMAZING. SHE EVEN GOT A STANDING OVATION ON THAT PERFORMANCE ON THE SHOW. IF YOU MISSED THE SHOW, ANOTHER ONE WILL BE AIRED THIS AFTERNOON AT 5PM CENTRAL TIME ON CTV CHANNEL 5. YOU CAN WATCH THE EPISODE HERE ON MY BLOG. SHE IS TRULY A PROFESSIONAL, SHE HANDLED IT VERY WELL, BEING ON THE SHOW AND EVERYTHING ELSE. I CAN SEE BIG THINGS IN HER FUTURE. THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING. SHE MADE IT THIS FAR, LET'S NOT STOP, BUT ONLY KEEP SUPPORTING HER IN HER SINGING CAREER. IF YOU'RE ASKING WHAT'S MARIA'S THE NEXT MOVE? SHE'LL BE ON THE SHOW GOOD MORNING AMERICA THIS WEEK ON THURSDAY MORNING. WE ALL KNOW THAT SHE'S FAR FROM GOING TO OPRAH WINFREY'S SHOW, BUT SHE'S WORKING ON IT, AND WE ARE BEHIND HER 100%. THANKS TO ACE BURPEE OF HOT 103 LIVE FOR MAKING HER DREAMS COME TRUE. WATCH OUT, WORLD! MAKE SOME SPACE FOR MARIA ARAGON!

WINNIPEG'S OWN MARIA ARAGON GOES VIRAL!

2011-02-18T15:32:00.027-06:00

WHAT'S UP WORLD, HERE'S ANOTHER AMAZING TALENT TO SHARE WITH YOU. SHE'S MY FRIEND'S LITTLE SISTER, HER NAME IS MARIA ARAGON. AND SHE'S ONLY TEN YEARS OLD. SHE IS FROM WINNIPEG, MANITOBA. SHE'S BEEN SINGING FOR A REALLY LONG TIME, SHE'S BEEN POSTING HER VIDEOS ON YOUTUBE FOR THREE YEARS NOW. HOW THE WHIRLWIND STARTED WAS WHEN SHE POSTED THE VIDEO OF HER DOING A COVER OF ONE OF HER IDOLS, LADY GAGA'S NEW SINGLE "BORN THIS WAY" LESS THAN 48 HOURS AGO. PEREZ HILTON SOMEHOW STUMBLED UPON THE VIDEO, SHOWED IT TO LADY GAGA, AND SHE RESPONDED WITH A TWEET THAT SAYS "CAN'T STOP CRYING WATCHING THIS. THIS IS WHY I MAKE MUSIC. SHE IS THE FUTURE" ALONG WITH THE LINK TO MARIA'S COVER ON YOUTUBE. MARIA SAID HER CURRENT GOAL IS TO GO ON THE ELLEN DEGENERES SHOW. SO LADY GAGA TWEETED ELLEN THE SAME VIDEO, AND IT ACTUALLY SHOWS ON ELLEN'S YOUTUBE CHANNEL THAT SHE LIKED THE VIDEO. HER VIDEO WAS ONLY OVER A THOUSAND YESTERDAY MORNING, AND IT HIT 700,000 IN THE AFTERNOON. AS THE EVENING CAME, IT GOT OVER A MILLION HITS! NOW HITTING OVER TWO MILLIONS! (DON'T FORGET TO WATCH HER VIDEO SINGING BELOW, AND ALSO HER INTERVIEW WITH LADY GAGA ON THE PHONE.) SHE'S GOING VIRAL ALREADY AND THAT'S ONLY WITHIN 24 HOURS. SHE'S ALREADY ALL OVER THE NEWS, EVEN IN THE PHILIPPINES, PROBABLY SOME OTHER COUNTRIES AS WELL. NOW WHO SAYS NOTHING GOOD COMES OUT FROM WINNIPEG? IT IS GREAT SEEING LOCAL HOMETOWN TALENT BEING RECOGNIZED. SHE'S ADORABLE TO WATCH, AND SHE'S A GREAT PERFORMER. IT'S JUST A MATTER OF TIME AND MARIA WILL BE ON THAT SHOW VERY SOON. JUSTIN BIEBER, YOU BETTER WATCH OUT! SOMEBODY'S ABOUT TO TAKE YOUR SPOTLIGHT.

I WAS RECENTLY LISTENING TO HOT 103 LIVE WHERE ACEE BURPEE AND MARIA WERE, CHECKING UP ON HER AFTER 24 HOURS OF WHIRLWIND, AND WAITING FOR A SURPRISE. LAST NIGHT MARIA WAS SUPPOSED TO FLY TO TORONTO TO BE INTERVIEWED BY 99.9 VIRGIN RADIO STATION THIS AFTERNOON. AS IT TURNS OUT, WINNIPEG'S AIRPORT CLOSED DOWN DUE TO THE WEATHER, SO SHE'S STUCK HERE FOR NOW. INSTEAD, THEY CALLED HER WHILE SHE WAS ON THE HOT 103 RADIO STATION AND GUESS WHO THEY CALLED TO TALK TO MARIA? YOU'VE GUESSED IT RIGHT, LADY GAGA! MARIA WAS TOUCHED ON WHAT LADY GAGA HAD TO SAY ABOUT HER. FIRST, MARIA WAS INVITED TO COME TO LADY GAGA'S CONCERT COMING UP ON MARCH IN TORONTO, AND THEN GAGA INSISTED THAT MARIA JOINS HER ON STAGE FOR A DUET.

WITH SUCCESS, THERE COMES THE HATERS. BUT WHAT REALLY SURPRISES ME ABOUT THIS AMAZING INDIVIDUAL IS HOW SHE DEALS WITH ALL OF THIS CRAZINESS, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, HER ATTITUDE TOWARDS LIFE. I'M SURE SHE'LL GO FAR IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY IF SHE KEEPS THIS ATTITUDE, AND I'M SURE SHE WILL. SHE DEFINITELY DESERVE THIS! I CAN'T WAIT WHAT THE WORLD HAS IN STORE FOR HER. BUT RIGHT NOW, WE'RE TRYING TO GET HER ON THE ELLEN SHOW. SO IF YOU'RE READING THIS, AND YOU WANT TO HELP OUT GO ON TWITTER AND TYPE #GETMARIAONELLEN. WE CAN MAKE IT ALL HAPPEN FOR HER! I WISH HER LUCK IN THE FUTURE. SHE GOT MY FULL SUPPORT, AND SO DOES WINNIPEG.

GOD BLESS MY LITTLE ANGEL.

2011-02-16T08:32:00.012-06:00

REMEMBER HANNAH, MY LITTLE NIECE? I MADE A BLOG POST ABOUT HER AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS YEAR. HER CHECK-UPS AND EXAMINATIONS EVERY WEEK HAS BEEN VERY HELPFUL TOWARDS HER HEALING FROM THE RARE CANCER. A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO ON HER CHECK-UP, WE FOUND OUT THAT A SMALL AMOUNT OF THE RARE CANCER/DISEASE WAS STILL THERE AT HER FOOT, WHERE THE BUMP WAS REMOVED. THE ONLY WAY TO GET IT OUT WAS TO CUT HER RIGHT PINKY TOE. IT DEFINITELY MADE ME SAD SEEING HER SUFFER DURING THE OPERATION. SEEING THAT SHE COULDN'T STAND UP ON HER OWN, AND THE ONLY WAY SHE COULD MOVE AROUND WOULD BE BY CRAWLING, AND MOSTLY, DRAGGING HER BUTT ON THE FLOOR. THIS WEEK THURSDAY, THE CASTE ON HER FOOT WILL BE REMOVED, AND ANOTHER DEEP EXAMINATION NEEDS TO BE DONE IN ORDER TO FINALIZE AND HOPE THAT THE DISEASE DIDN'T SPREAD BEFORE THE OPERATION HAD BEGAN. LET'S HOPE IT DOESN'T SPREAD, AND THAT IT'S DONE. OTHERWISE, THEY'LL HAVE TO CUT HER ENTIRE FEET. I JUST COULDN'T STAND IT ANY LONGER WHEN I SEE HER SUFFER.

I'M JUST GLAD THAT WE LIVE IN CANADA RIGHT NOW! NO NEED TO WORRY ABOUT THE MEDICAL EXPENSES, ETC. TAKE THAT, AMERICA! HANNAH'S DAD AND I WAS ACTUALLY HAVING A DISCUSSION LAST WEEKEND ON OUR HOUSE PARTY, "WHAT IF WE'RE LIVING SOMEWHERE ELSE RIGHT NOW AND HANNAH NEEDS A SURGERY? WHERE WOULD WE GET HALF MILLION DOLLARS?" POINT TAKEN, THANK GOD THAT WE'RE IN CANADA. AND NOT ONLY THAT, THE DOCTORS WERE ALSO CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR PATIENTS. SINCE DAY ONE OF HER CHECK-UP LAST YEAR, I'VE NEVER MISSED A SINGLE ONE #FEELSGOODMAN. I KNOW SHE COULD USE AN EXTRA STRENGTH SO I'M DOING ALL THAT I CAN TO STAY BY HER SIDE. WHILE YOU'RE READING THIS, I'D LIKE TO ASK YOU FOR A SMALL FAVOUR, PLEASE INCLUDE HER IN YOUR PRAYERS. IT'S JUST ONE LAST STEP. GOD BLESS YOU ALL, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, GOD BLESS YOU, HANNAH! I'LL BE THERE ON THURSDAY FOR SURE! YOU CAN COUNT ON THAT. ♥

HAPPY VALENTINE'S AND HAPPY SINGLE AWARENESS DAY!

2011-02-15T15:53:00.005-06:00

WALKING DOWN AT THE FORKS ON VALENTINE'S DAY.

GOOD AFTERNOON, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. I'M A DAY LATE TO POST THIS, BUT THAT'S ONLY BECAUSE I WANTED TO SEE HOW THE WHOLE DAY TURNS OUT FOR ME. I WAS ASKING A SMALL FAVOUR FROM A FRIEND FROM ORANGE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA WHO'S COMING DOWN HERE IN WINNIPEG IN A WEEK TO COME SOONER SO WE COULD CELEBRATE VALENTINE'S DAY. BUT AS IT TURNS OUT, SHE COULDN'T. SHE EVEN TOLD ME TO FIND MYSELF A DATE FOR YESTERDAY, AND I TURNED HER DOWN. I TOLD HER I WOULD HAVE BOUGHT A BOUQUET OF FLOWERS TO SEND TO HER, BUT THAT WILL TAKE AT LEAST TWO WEEKS TO GET THERE. SO INSTEAD OF ARGUING ABOUT IT, I ASK MY HOME-GIRL FROM SAN FRANCISCO, THE ONE WHO INTRODUCED ME TO HER IN THE FIRST PLACE, FOR A SMALL FAVOUR YESTERDAY. NOW, I DON'T NEED TO TELL THE REST OF THE STORY FROM THIS SO I'LL JUST MOVE ON THEN.

IN THE AFTERNOON, I WENT TO THE FORKS TO HELP OUT A FRIEND WHO'S TAKING SHOTS OF COUPLES AND SINGLES CELEBRATING V-DAY. BUT EVERYONE ELSE CAME OUT AROUND 8PM ONLY TO ICE-SKATE. I COULD SAY THAT THIS VALENTINE'S DAY WILL NEVER BE THE SAME. AND FOR THAT, SHE OWES ME A VALENTINE'S DINNER ONCE SHE DOES MAKE IT HERE. I CAN'T WAIT FOR THAT MONTREAL TRIP NEXT MONTH AFTER READING WEEK! IT'S GOING TO BE A BLAST! TO ALL OF YOU COUPLES, HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! AND TO ALL THE SINGLES OUT THERE, (LIKE ME, TEMPORARILY) HAPPY SINGLES' AWARENESS DAY!

BEAUTY IS USELESS, CHARACTER IS THE BEST.

2011-02-10T14:18:00.003-06:00

SO THIS WOULD BE AND ALWAYS HAVE BEEN MY MOTTO EVER SINCE I WAS A KID, GROWING UP IN THE PHILIPPINES. I THINK IT SUITS ME WELL. SIMPLY BECAUSE ABOVE ALL THINGS, I THINK SOMEHOW OUR EARTH IS FULL OF PLASTICS, AND I DON'T MEAN THAT LITERALLY. SO EXCUSE ME AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, I'M SORRY, TO THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE READING THIS BUT DEFINITELY KEEPIN' IT REAL, ESPECIALLY TO ALL MY FRIENDS, Y'ALL KNOW YOU WHO ARE. I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT THE MESSAGE IS NOT FOR YOU EVEN IF YOU'RE FEELING GUILTY. IT'S FOR THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE AFRAID TO SHOW THE REAL PEOPLE AND THE REAL PERSONALITIES INSIDE THEM. EXCUSE MY LANGUAGE, BUT IT BUGS THE SHIT OUT OF ME THAT THEY GET AWAY WITH EVERYTHING AFTER TELLING BIG LIES ABOUT THEMSELVES. FOR ME, I DON'T LOOK FOR THE COOLNESS, OR WHETHER YOU HAVE THE DOUGH, OR YOU'RE JUST ANOTHER BROKE-ASS FELLA LIKE ME. I DON'T EVEN EVEN CARE IF WE HAVE NOTHING ALIKE. BUT KEEPIN' IT REAL IS DEFINITELY A GOLDEN RULE FOR ME. IT'S THE MAIN REASON WHY ME AND MY CIRCLE OF FRIENDS ARE STILL TIGHT RIGHT NOW, EVEN THOUGH WE HAVEN'T SEEN EACH OTHER FOR MONTHS, EVEN YEARS TO SOME. A FEW PEOPLE WHO KNOWS ME BUT DOESN'T REALLY TALK TO ME OFTEN THINKS THAT I'M ALL QUIET AND SHY. BUT ONCE YOU GET TO KNOW ME, YOU'LL FIND OUT THAT I CAN BE VERY OPEN AND FRIENDLY TO ANYONE I KNOW. NOW I'VE BEEN THINKING, IT LOOKS LIKE WHEN I'M WITH MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY, I'M ME. AND WHEN I'M NOT, I FEEL LIKE I'M A TOTALLY DIFFERENT PERSON. AND I THOUGHT MAYBE THAT IS HOW PEOPLE JUDGE ME WHEN THEY SEE ME. BUT WHO AM I TO JUDGE THEM? YOU JUST CAN'T PLEASE EVERYBODY NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO.

KATY PERRY IS COMING TO WINNIPEG.

2011-02-02T15:06:00.024-06:00

IT'S MY LUCKY DAY WHEN I FOUND OUT A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO THAT KATY PERRY IS COMING TO WINNIPEG THIS SUMMER FOR HER TOUR "CALIFORNIA DREAMS WORLD TOUR 2011". IT MAY NOT BE CLEAR TO EVERYONE HERE, BUT I'M A HUGE KATY PERRY FAN, AND IT'S NOT A SECRET THAT SHE'S ONE OF MY FAVORITES! THIS IS DEFINITELY A CONCERT A LOT OF YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS! SO HERE'S THE INFO: THE CONCERT WILL BE ON JULY 14TH. 2011 ON A THURSDAY, AT MTS CENTRE. GET YOUR TICKETS EARLY BECAUSE THIS CONCERT IS GOING TO BE SOLD OUT FOR SURE. JUST LIKE LAST YEAR WHEN THEY STARTED SELLING TICKETS TO DRAKE'S CONCERT HERE IN WINNIPEG AND IT WAS SOLD OUT AFTER FIVE MINUTES (PEEK BACK A FEW OLD POSTS). DON'T LOOK FOR THE TICKETS A FEW WEEKS BEFORE THE CONCERT OR YOU'LL BE KICKIN' YOURSELF IN THE HEAD FOR NOT BUYING THEM WHEN THEY CAME OUT.

A WARM "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" GREETING TO YOU, MOTHER DEAR.

2011-01-26T07:12:00.021-06:00

GOOD MORNING TO ALL! I JUST WANT TO TAKE THIS CHANCE TO GREET THE BEST MOTHER IN THE WORLD A HAPPY BIRTHDAY! HERE'S A VERY SHORT POEM I JUST WROTE FOR MY MOM ON HER SPECIAL DAY. I'M NOT REALLY INTO THIS POETRY KIND OF THING, AS I'VE LEFT THAT BEHIND RIGHT AFTER I GRADUATED IN HIGH SCHOOL. BUT WORDS STARTED FLOWING THROUGH MY HEAD UNTIL I CAME UP WITH THIS. NOW THAT'S THE BEAUTY OF FREE-VERSE POETRY. :)

"The guidance you give me always pulls me through

Nobody taught me everything I needed to know more than you

May your Birthday be the best on your very special day
And many of life's finest things always come your way

For giving me my self esteem you made me who I am today
So I hope that I make you really proud when I walk on that stage someday."

Happy Birthday, Mother Dear!

Here's to many, many more Birthdays to come!

SORRY THE LAST PART DIDN'T RHYME, IT'S BECAUSE I CAN'T THINK OF ANY RHYMES ANYMORE, HAHA! THIS WOULD BE THE FIRST TIME I'LL BE FEATURING MY MOTHER ON THIS BLOG, AND HOPEFULLY IT WON'T BE THE LAST. I'M GOING TO MAKE THIS SHORT FOR NO OTHER GOOD REASON, BUT I JUST DIDN'T WANT TO MAKE IT TOO CHEESY AS EVERYONE WOULD SAY. SHE'S BEEN THROUGH A LOT BUT SHE HAS ALWAYS BEEN STRONG INSIDE AND OUT, WHICH IS WHY SHE'S ONE OF MY INSPIRATIONS. SHE TAUGHT ME EVERYTHING THAT I NEEDED TO KNOW, SHE'LL ALWAYS BE A PART OF ME. I COULD GO ON AND TELL EVERYTHING THAT A PROUD CHILD WOULD SAY TO THEIR MOTHER ON THEIR BIRTHDAY, BUT I WON'T SO I WROTE THE SHORT POEM TO SUM IT ALL UP. HERE'S A WARM GREETING OF HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, MOTHER DEAR! HOPEFULLY YOU HEARD THAT BIRTHDAY GREETING I MADE FOR YOU ON THE CJKS 810 AM RADIO STATION THIS EARLY MORNING. I HOPE SOMEHOW I MADE IT SPECIAL FOR YOU!

GOD IS GREAT, BUT PEOPLE ARE CRAZY.

2011-01-09T13:28:00.176-06:00

BEFORE I START THIS BLOG POST, I'D LIKE TO GREET YOU ALL A HAPPY NEW YEAR! I KNOW I PROMISED I'D MAKE A QUICK BLOG POST ON DECEMBER 31ST BUT TIME GOT WAY AHEAD OF ME SO NOW I'M DOING IT, THIS BEING MY FIRST BLOG POST OF THE YEAR. 2010 WAS DEFINITELY A MEMORABLE AND AN UNFORGETTABLE YEAR. WITH THE HELP OF MY SAVINGS OF OVER TWO YEARS, I WAS ABLE TO TRAVEL OUTSIDE THE COUNTRY FOR A TOTAL OF THREE MONTHS AND NOW COMPLETELY ALL OUT OF CASH! 2011 IS GOING TO BE A GREAT YEAR, AND NOBODY'S NOT GOING TO SPOIL THAT FOR ME.

ANYWAYS, LAST DECEMBER 30TH, MY LIL' NIECE HANNAH HAD AN OPERATION TO REMOVE A STRANGE BUMP ON HER FEET. DURING THE MORNING OF JANUARY 1ST, HER DAD CALLED ME, TOLD ME TO COME OVER TO SEVEN OAKS HOSPITAL ASAP FOR HANNAH'S CHECKUP. WHEN I HEARD HIS VOICE HE SOUNDED LIKE HE WAS WORRIED OF SOMETHING. WHEN I GOT THERE, I WAS JUST IN TIME TO WAIT FOR THE RESULTS. AS IT TURNS OUT, WHAT'S INSIDE OF THE BUMP ON HANNAH'S FEET WAS A RARE CANCER. HEARING THOSE WORDS COME OUT OF THE DOCTOR'S MOUTH WAS THE MOST CRUSHING, HEART-BREAKING MOMENT OF MY LIFE, AND PROBABLY EVERYONE ELSE WHO WAS THERE AT THAT TIME. SHE'S ONLY TURNING THREE YEARS THIS YEAR, AND SHE'S ALREADY SUFFERING BIG TIME. I WAS SPEECHLESS FOR AT LEAST AN HOUR, I WAS ALREADY JUMPING INTO CONCLUSIONS AND THEY WERE NOT HAPPY THOUGHTS. 2011 WAS NOT OFF TO A GOOD START THERE. BUT WHAT KEPT ME GOING AND TOLD MYSELF TO KEEP MOVING FORWARD IS WHEN I SAW THIS LOOK ON MY LITTLE ANGEL'S FACE. DESPITE THE DISEASES SHE'S FACING YOU CAN NEVER WIPE THE SMILE ON HER FACE. WHICH IS WHY I TOLD MYSELF THAT NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, I HAVE TO BE STRONG FOR HER AND HOPE FOR THE BEST. WHAT ELSE IS MORE CRUSHING THAN THAT? SEEING HER PARENTS STRESS AND WORRYING, AND SEE HER OLDER SISTER WHO'S ONLY A FEW YEARS OLDER THAN HER SAD. HER DAD WAS GOING CRAZY, HE KEPT ON SAYING "WHY US GOD? WHY US?". WE WERE TRYING TO CALM HIM DOWN AND HE DID, FOR AT LEAST AFTER HALF AN HOUR. ALL I COULD THINK OF THAT TIME WAS FOR GOD TO BE WITH HANNAH, TO HELP HER OUT IN THIS TIMES OF NEED. IF I WAS HANNAH'S DAD, I'D PROBABLY DO THE SAME, PROBABLY CRAZIER, BUT WHO AM I TO JUDGE? SHIT HAPPENS, SO THE BEST THING TO DO IS MOVE ON AND AND PRAY. I KNOW HANNAH IS ONLY MY NIECE, BUT SHE'S MORE THAN THAT. NOT LIKE A LITTLE SISTER, BUT MORE LIKE A DAUGHTER, A VERY SPECIAL DAUGHTER. WHEN THERE'S A FAMILY GATHERING, SHE'D ALWAYS LOOK FOR ME, AND WHEN SHE SEES ME SHE'LL SAY "HELLO!" WITH A BIG SMILE ON HER FACE. AND THEN SHE RUNS TO ME, GIVES ME A BIG HUG, AND A KISS. SHE'S VERY SPECIAL TO ME. SHE'S SO ADORABLE, AND SHE ALWAYS MAKES ME HAPPY, INSPIRED, AND FOCUSED ON MY GOALS. WITHOUT HER, I DON'T KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO ME IN THE FUTURE.

NOW HOW DOES THIS RELATE TO THE TITLE "GOD IS GREAT"? WELL, YESTERDAY MORNING, EXACTLY ONE WEEK AFTER HER LAST CHECKUP, I WAS ASKED TO COME AGAIN. THE DOCTOR DID A THOROUGH CHECKUP ON HER, AND GAVE US THE GOOD NEWS. "THE CANCER IS GONE, BUT THERE'S A SMALL CHANCE OF THE CANCER COMING BACK AFTER 10 TO 15 YEARS IF IT'S NOT MONITORED. PARENTS, YOU GUYS HAVE A WONDERFUL AND A VERY STRONG DAUGHTER". I WAS JUMPING WITH JOY WHEN I FOUND OUT THAT SHE'LL BE FINE. THAT'S ALL I WANTED TO HEAR. I WANT THE BEST IN THE FUTURE FOR HER, BECAUSE SHE DEFINITELY DESERVES IT. NOW BECAUSE OF THAT, I CAN STOP WORRYING AND I CAN SAY THAT SHE'LL HAVE A GREAT FUTURE AHEAD OF HER DESPITE ANY PROBLEMS SHE ENCOUNTERS. I ASKED FOR VERY SMALL FAVORS FROM MY CLOSEST FRIENDS AND RELATIVES TO PRAY FOR HER. THE ENTIRE WEEK, I WENT TO CHURCH, WITH HER, TO KEEP HER COMPANY AND TO CHEER HER UP. THANKS TO GOD, MY PRAYERS AND EVERYONE ELSE' WAS ANSWERED. LAST NIGHT WAS HER MOM'S BIRTHDAY. IT WAS A PERFECT TIME TO GIVE THANKS TO GOD FOR HER SAFETY AND FOR BEING HEALTHY. I WAS CUDDLIN' AND PLAYIN' WITH HER ON HER BED, TRYING TO PUT HER TO SLEEP BEFORE I GO BUT SHE WOULDN'T, SO SHE ENDED UP SAYING GOODBYE TO ME, SHE BLEW ME A KISS, AND RAN TO ME AGAIN FOR A HUG AND A KISS ON THE CHEEK. MAN, I LOVE HER, AND I CAN SEE THAT GOD LOVES HER TOO. TO EVERY NON-BELIEVERS OUT THERE, I HOPE THIS MESSAGE SPEAKS TO YOU. DESPITE THE CRAZINESS OUT THERE IN THE WORLD, ANY SMALL FAVORS CAN BE ASKED AND WITH THE HELP OF A PRAYER, IT WILL BE ANSWERED. DON'T BE A NON-BELIEVER. TO ALL OF YOU OUT THERE, LET'S ALL HOPE FOR THE BEST FOR THE YEAR 2011 AND THE FUTURE. MUCH LOVE, PEACE.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

2010-12-25T19:10:00.090-06:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE! SORRY IF THE GREETING WAS A LITTLE LATE, BUT IT'S STILL DECEMBER 25TH SO IT STILL COUNTS, HAHA! IT'S BEEN A BUSY DAY SO I ONLY HAD THE TIME RIGHT NOW FOR A QUICK BLOG POST. SO HOW DID EVERYONE SPENT THEIR CHRISTMAS THIS YEAR! AS FOR ME, IT WAS AND IT'S ALWAYS BEEN A TRADITIONAL FILIPINO CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION. LAST NIGHT'S "NOCHE BUENA" (CHRISTMAS EVE), WE SPENT THE NIGHT AT OUR HOUSE AND FOUR OF OUR CLOSEST FAMILIES CAME TO CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS WITH US! IT WAS NOTHING SPECIAL, BUT THERE'S ONE THING I CAN TELL YOU FROM THAT. IT WAS DEFINITELY WORTH IT BEING WITH THOSE PEOPLE VERY CLOSE TO YOU. I WOULDN'T HAVE IT ANY OTHER WAY. PLUS I FINALLY GOT TO MEET THE FATHER OF MY SOON TO BE GODDAUGHTER CASSIDY, WHO'S COMING OUT IN THE MONTH OF JANUARY NEXT YEAR. HE JUST ARRIVED HERE IN WINNIPEG ON THE FIRST WEEK OF DECEMBER, PERFECT DATE FOR THE HOLIDAYS.

WE HAD A MOVIE MARATHON GOING ON LAST NIGHT, AND WE ALSO HAD SANTA CLAUSE (MY BROTHER) GAVE GIFTS TO EVERYONE, IT WAS PRICELESS. EVERYONE WAS JUST LAUGHING FROM HIS ACCENT AND HIS BIG TUMMY (A PILLOW). TODAY, WE SPENT THE WHOLE DAY AT AVIATION MUSEUM FOR OUR CHURCH'S CHRISTMAS PARTY. WE'VE BEEN DOING THAT IN THAT EXACT SAME PLACE FOR THE PAST SEVEN YEARS SINCE WE'VE BEEN HERE IN CANADA. AND WE'RE HOPING THERE WILL BE MORE IN THE FUTURE. IT WAS GREAT SEEING OLD FACES AND NEW ONES, ESPECIALLY THE BABIES, I JUST ADORE THEM. SEEING THE LITTLE KIDS AND THE YOUTH PERFORM, SINGING CHRISTMAS CAROLS, WATCHING THE GAMES, AND EVEN JUST WALK AROUND THE BUILDING, GREETING PEOPLE "MERRY CHRISTMAS" AND SEEING THEIR HAPPY FACES JUST WARMS MY HEART.

AFTER THAT, WE WENT STRAIGHT TO MY GRANDFATHER'S HOUSE, GREETED THEM DID OUR RITUALS CALLED "MANO" WHICH IS BASICALLY A PHYSICAL GESTURE OF TAKING THE HAND OF AN ELDER AND BRINGING IT TOWARDS YOUR FOREHEAD AND SAY "MANO PO" AS A SIGN OF RESPECT. YOU CAN SAY THAT IT'S A DAILY BASIS FOR US FILIPINOS, WHEN WE SEE SOMEONE WE KNOW ANYWHERE, THIS IS WHAT WE DO. FAILURE TO PERFORM "MANO PO" WOULD BE CONSIDERED AS DISRESPECTFUL. SO WE ENDED UP STAYING THERE FOR TWO MORE HOURS. I WASN'T EXPECTING ANY GIFTS AT ALL BUT I STILL GOT SOME CASH AND I'M VERY PLEASED WITH THAT. WATCHING MIAMI HEAT KICKED LOS ANGELES LAKERS BUTT ON THEIR OWN HOME COURT WAS AWESOME! I WAS ALSO ABLE TO CHILL WITH THE COUSINS, PLAY WITH THEIR CAT, AND WAS ABLE TO CHECK OUT THEIR PHOTOGRAPHY STUDIO RIGHT ON MY COUSIN'S OLD BEDROOM. BY THE WAY, IF YOU'RE IN TOWN AND LOOKING FOR A PHOTOGRAPHER, YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY CHECK OUT TRUE CHARISMA PHOTOGRAPHY. I'M SURE YOU'LL LOVE LOVE THE RESULTS OF YOUR PHOTOS, BECAUSE SHE PRODUCE AMAZING QUALITY IMAGES.

TOMORROW IS BOXING DAY, YES ON A SUNDAY. FINGERS CROSSED THAT THE STORES WILL BE OPENING AT 9AM. I'M ON A HUNT FOR A KINECT FOR MY XBOX 360 ELITE. HOPEFULLY I'LL GET LUCKY AND GRAB ONE FOR MYSELF, DESPITE THE CRAZINESS AND THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT WILL BE IN THE STORES AND MALLS TOMORROW. IN THE EVENING, THERE WILL BE ANOTHER CHRISTMAS PARTY, THIS ONE CONSISTS OF FAMILY FRIENDS AND RELATIVES. WE DO THIS EVERY YEAR, IT'S A VERY LONG PROCESS DURING A HOLIDAY :). IT'S TOO BAD THAT I QUIT ON MY P90X A MONTH EARLIER. I'M ALREADY GETTING THE SAME FIGURE I'VE BEEN TRYING TO GET RID OF FOR TWO TO THREE MONTHS SINCE SEPTEMBER. AH WELL, AFTER NEW YEAR, HOPEFULLY I'LL GET ON IT AGAIN, WHO CARES IF I'M GONNA HAVE SIX CLASSES NEXT SEMESTER. TIME TO GET SERIOUS! ANYWAYS, I'M OUT FOR THE DAY. I DON'T KNOW WHEN WILL BE THE NEXT BLOG POST, BUT HOPEFULLY BEFORE NEW YEAR. PEACE!

YOU COULD BE THE KING BUT WATCH THIS KID CONQUER.

2010-12-10T16:09:00.011-06:00

CHRISTMAS IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER EVERYONE! SO WHAT'S ON YOUR LIST FOR THIS YEAR? ANYONE GRABBING SNEAKERS THIS MONTH? NOT TO MENTION RETROS SUCH AS AIR JORDAN XI COOL GRAY, AIR JORDAN XIII PLAYOFF, ETC. ARE RELEASING THIS MONTH JUST BEFORE CHRISTMAS. I JUST NOTICED THAT I HAD THE MOST BLOG POST LAST MONTH OF NOVEMBER. LET'S SEE IF I CAN BEAT THAT IN THE FUTURE.

ANYWAYS, HERE'S ANOTHER TALENTED FELLA TRYIN' TO MAKE A NAME FOR HIMSELF, MATTY B. HE MAY NOT BE IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY BUT HE DEFINITELY LOVES WHAT HE'S DOING. MATTY B IS ONLY SEVEN YEARS OLD. WHEN HE MET KATY PERRY HE SAID HE WOULD MAKE A REMIX OF HER SONG "FIREWORK" WITH HIM RAPPING, AND HE KEPT HIS WORD. NOT ONLY THAT HE'S TALENTED, THIS KID IS ADORABLE TO WATCH! YOU'LL SEE IN THE VIDEO THAT HE MET A BUNCH OF FAMOUS CELEBRITIES AND MUSICIANS SUCH AS FAR EAST MOVEMENT, NELLY, B.O.B., HAYLEY WILLIAMS, AND OF COURSE, KATY PERRY, JUST TO NAME A FEW. I'M TELLING YOU, THIS KID IS GOING TO BE THE NEXT BIG THING! JUST WAIT UNTIL SOMEONE SIGNS HIM A RECORD DEAL. TO JB AND THE FANS OUT THERE, BETTER WATCH OUT BECAUSE THIS KID WILL BE COMING OUT BLAZIN'. WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, HERE'S THE VIDEO. ENJOY!

EMMALYN ESTRADA x DON'T MAKE ME LET YOU GO MUSIC VIDEO.

2010-11-30T14:00:00.020-06:00

ONE OF THE REASONS WHY I STARTED THIS BLOG IS TO SHOW PEOPLE THE KINDS OF MUSIC I LISTEN TO AND SINGERS THAT I SUPPORT. THIS POST IS ONE OF THOSE.

MY GOOD FRIEND, EMMALYN ESTRADA, IS ELISE'S ESTRADA'S LITTLE SISTER (PEEK A FEW POSTS BACK). LIKE HER SISTER, SHE COMPETED IN THE BEAT MUSIC AWARDS IN VANCOUVER BACK IN 2008 AND WON. SHE ALSO EARNED A CHANCE TO RECORD A SONG WITH VANCOUVER'S OWN ROCKSTAR MUSIC CORPORATION, WHICH IS ELISE ESTRADA'S CURRENT RECORD AND MANAGEMENT DEAL. HER FIRST SINGLE "GET DOWN" HIT THE CHARTS LAST YEAR ON MOST CANADIAN RADIO STATIONS. THIS YEAR, ON NOVEMBER 29TH TO BE EXACT, SHE RELEASED A NEW SINGLE WITH THE MUSIC VIDEO AND IT'S CALLED "DON'T MAKE ME LET YOU GO", STARRING HER BOYFRIEND, THE GUY WHO PLAYS AS JOSH TRAGER IN THE TV SHOW KYLE XY, JEAN-LUC BILODEAU.

AS USUAL, I'LL LEAVE THE MUSIC VIDEO IN THE END. YOU GUYS BETTER CHECK IT OUT! SHE'S A VERY TALENTED INDIVIDUAL WITH A GREAT PERSONALITY. SHE'S JUST GROWING AND GROWING IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY ERR'DAY! SOME ARE ALREADY SAYING THAT SHE'S THE NEXT KERI HILSON, BUT I SAY SHE'S WAY BEYOND THAT. SO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT AND GRAB HER SONGS IN ITUNES WHEN IT'S AVAILABLE. SHE'LL BE RELEASING HER DEBUT ALBUM NEXT YEAR SO WATCH OUT FOR HER. SHE'LL BE COMING OUT WITH AN IMPACT IN THE MUSIC BIZ. YOU CAN START FOLLOWING HER ON TWITTER (THEREALEMMALYN), LIKE HER FACEBOOK FAN PAGE, AND SUBSCRIBE ON HER YOUTUBE PAGE!

WATCH EMMALYN ESTRADA'S MUSIC VIDEO OF HER NEW SINGLE "DON'T MAKE ME LET YOU GO" RIGHT HERE ON MY BLOG!

AN EARLY CHRISTMAS PRESENT FROM PST GEAR AND FAMILY.

2010-11-23T16:52:00.025-06:00

GOT A MEMO THAT MY JABBAWOCKEEZ MASK TEE FINALLY MADE IT HERE IN WINNIPEG. SO I MET UP WITH ONE OF PST GEAR'S APPRENTICE IN THE CITY LAST NIGHT TO PICK IT UP. I ALSO BORROWED MY FRIEND'S LUMOPRO FLASH YESTERDAY TO PRACTICE FOR TWO UPCOMING PHOTO-SHOOTS I'M DOING NEXT MONTH, SO I PUT ON THE SHIRT AND STARTED CAPTURING UNTIL I WAS TIRED AND CALLED IT A DAY.

IN OTHER WORDS, LET ME JUST PUT IT THIS WAY. CHECK OUT PST GEAR'S WEBSITE AND IF YOU SEE SOMETHING YOU LIKE THEN JUST HOLLA. THERE ARE PLENTY OF DESIGNS TO CHOOSE FROM, AND THEY CREATE NEW DESIGNS AT LEAST MAYBE TWICE OR MORE IN A BUSY MONTH. IF YOU'RE LOOKING TO BUY A CHRISTMAS PRESENT FOR SOMEONE THEN PST GEAR WOULD BE YOUR BEST OPTION, BECAUSE YOU'LL BE GIVING THEM NOT ONLY THE BEST QUALITY BUT ALSO A ONE OF A KIND APPAREL. THE PRICES ARE ALSO VERY AFFORDABLE SO YOU WOULDN'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT CHARGING EXTRAS. IF YOU LIVE CLOSER THEN LOOK UP PST GEAR'S APPRENTICE HERE IN WINNIPEG SO YOU'LL ONLY HAVE TO PAY FOR YOUR ORDER'S PRICE, BECAUSE THE SHIPPING IS ABSOLUTELY FREE!

THEIR CLOTHING LINE IS DEFINITELY MAKING AN IMPACT EVERYWHERE! WE SEE NON-FILIPINOS EVERYWHERE ROCKIN' PST GEAR CLOTHING JUST TO REPRESENT, AND WE SEE EVERYONE BUYING THEM BECAUSE OF THE QUALITY OF THEIR CREATIONS. I WON'T BE SURPRISED IF ONE DAY, WE ALL WAKE UP AND SEE EVERYONE WEARING PST GEAR CLOTHING IN OUR CITY. WITH THE NUMBER OF FILIPINOS HERE IN WINNIPEG AND OTHER PLACES, IT WILL DEFINITELY HAPPEN!

MACHINE GONE FUNK x STUSSY.

2010-11-16T14:25:00.003-06:00

IF YOU APPRECIATE REAL TALENT AND IS A FAN OF THE BRAND STUSSY, THEN I RECOMMEND YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS CLIP THAT I'M ABOUT TO SHOW YOU. THAT'S J-SMOOOTH OF THE GROUP CALLED MACHINE GONE FUNK. IN CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW, HE WAS GUY TUTTING DURING THE CREDITS OF STEP UP 3D. THIS POPPER DEFINITELY EARNED HIS SEAT AMONGST THE LEGENDS OF POPPING AND DANCING IN GENERAL AND HE'S RECOGNIZED AROUND THE GLOBE AS ONE OF THE GREATEST POPPERS EVER!

ANYWAYS, I'M ALSO A FAN OF STUSSY. THEY MAKE SUCH GREAT QUALITY OF CLOTHING. IF YOU LIVE IN WINNIPEG OR ANYWHERE NEAR THE CITY, I SUGGEST YOU CHECK OUT THE URBAN BAKERY. THEY CARRY STUSSY CLOTHING AND IT'S DEFINITELY ONE OF THE BEST STORES IN THIS COUNTRY! THEY ALSO HAVE THE BEST STAFFS! I'VE KNOWN ALL OF THEM AND THEY KNOW ME TOO. I'M OUT, PEACE!

DAYS OF OUR LIVES, YOU WINK IT GOES BY.

2010-11-09T13:17:00.126-06:00

TODAY IS A PRETTY INTERESTING AND VERY BUSY DAY. BESIDES MY BIRTHDAY, THERE ARE ALSO TWO MORE THINGS HAPPENING TODAY. THE RELEASE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED GAME OF THE YEAR CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS, AND MY GOOD FRIEND ELISE ESTRADA'S ALBUM CALLED HERE KITTY KITTEE. I WAS THINKING OF THROWING OUT A PARTY THIS YEAR AT REPUBLIC NIGHTCLUB BUT SOMETHING CAME UP SO I HAD TO CANCEL AGAIN, JUST LIKE LAST YEAR. I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO IT TOO, I HAD THE PLANS AND EVERYTHING. WELL I GUESS I'LL SAVE IT ALL FOR NEXT YEAR. I'M HITTING 21st SO IT'S GOT TO BE SPECIAL! BUT RIGHT NOW, I'M SPENDING MY BIRTHDAY AT BRODIE, STUDYING AND WORKING ON A TERM PAPER.

AS WE ALL KNOW, ELISE ESTRADA'S ALBUM WAS POSTPONED FROM SEPTEMBER TO NOVEMBER 9th. I THINK IT WAS A PERFECT DATE, SO THIS MORNING, BEFORE I WENT TO SCHOOL I GRABBED A COPY FOR MYSELF, AS A BIRTHDAY GIFT I GUESS, LOL. SO TO ANY OF YOU WHO DOESN'T KNOW HER OR HAVEN'T LISTENED TO HER MUSIC, I'D DEFINITELY RECOMMEND CHECKING OUT HER ALBUM! PLEASE SUPPORT HER, SHE'S A GREAT PERSON WITH A GREAT PERSONALITY, AND HER MUSIC DEFINITELY ROCKS! IF YOU HAVE HER DEBUT ALBUM AND COMPARE IT TO THIS ONE, YOU'LL DEFINITELY KNOW THAT SHE IMPROVED A LOT AND THIS ONE HAS A DIFFERENT KIND OF THEME IN IT. SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? DON'T WAIT UNTIL IT'S THE LAST MINUTE TO BUY A GIFT FOR SOMEONE SPECIAL, THIS CD WOULD MAKE A PERFECT CHRISTMAS PRESENT! AND SPEAKING OF CHRISTMAS, YOU SHOULD ALSO CHECK OUT HER SINGLE ABOUT CHRISTMAS. THE TITLE IS CALLED "A CHRISTMAS WISH". ALSO, CHECK OUT HER RECENT MUSIC VIDEO FOR HER SINGLE CALLED "YOU'RE SO HOLLYWOOD" WHICH IS ALSO INCLUDED IN HER NEW ALBUM. AND DON'T FORGET TO REQUEST HER SONGS ON ANY RADIO STATIONS NEAR YOU!

GIRLFRIENDS, SAY GOODBYE TO YOUR BOYFRIENDS FOR NOW, 'COZ YOU PROBABLY WON'T BE SEEING THEM FOR A WHILE. BECAUSE COD: BLACK OPS IS HERE, AHA! CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS IS THE SEVENTH INSTALLMENT FOR THE CALL OF DUTY SERIES, DEVEOPED BY TREYARCH. IT'S ALSO THE SEQUEL TO A PREVIOUS TITLE IN THE SERIES, CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR. THIS IS THE FIRST CALL OF DUTY TITLE THAT WAS SET DURING THE COLD WAR ERA. I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS GAME SINCE THEY FIRST ANNOUNCED IT SOMETIME IN APRIL 2010. WHEN I HEARD THEY WERE GOING TO START THE CAMPAIGN FROM WHERE THE WORLD AT WAR LEFT OFF, I THOUGHT THE GAME IS GOING TO SUCK JUST LIKE THE PREVIOUS TITLE, BUT THEY DEFINITELY PROVED ME WRONG. THIS GAME IS LIKE THE MIX OF ALL THE PREVIOUS CALL OF DUTY TITLES. I'VE BEEN WATCHING GAMEPLAYS AND REVIEWS ON YOUTUBE SINCE THE BEGINNING AND I CAN TELL THEN THAT THIS GAME SURE IS GOING TO BE SOLD OUT EVERYWHERE LIKE THE QUICK RELEASE AIR JORDAN XI "SPACE JAMS" LAST DECEMBER 23RD, 2009. WHETHER YOU PLAY ON XBOX 360 OR PS3 (BUT I PREFER XBOX 360) THEN I SUGGEST YOU PICK THIS UP ON ANY STORE THAT SELLS THEM NOW! I PICKED UP MY PRE-ORDERED HARDENED EDITION TODAY ON THE RELEASE DATE AND DUDE WERE DEFINITELY HOUNDIN'. IT FELT LIKE IT WAS FESTIVAL IN EB GAMES WHEN I WAS THERE PICKING UP MY COPY, THE DEALS WERE AMAZINGLY LOW, YOU JUST CAN'T REFUSE, HAHA! I WAS SUPPOSED TO GET IT LAST NIGHT FOR THE MIDNIGHT RELEASE BUT I FIGURED IT'S NOT WORTH IT SINCE I WON'T BE PLAYING IT UNTIL I GET HOME LATER AT NIGHT ANYWAYS, SO THAT SAVED ME A FEW HOURS OF SLEEP TIME HAHA! I CAN'T WAIT TO GO HOME TONIGHT AND TRY THIS OUT. WELL I'M BACK TO WORKING ON MY PAPER, PEACE!

I GOT 99 PROBLEMS BUT THIS BLOG AIN'T ONE.

2010-11-04T15:17:00.044-05:00

Hey everyone, so I decided to quickly jot down some thoughts on top of my head right now. I'M RIGHT HERE IN BRODIE CENTRE, SUPPOSED TO BE STUDYING AND STARTING MY RESEARCH ON MY SECOND PAPER BUT I'M TAKING A BREAK RIGHT NOW, DOING A QUICK BLOG POST. ANYWAYS, I'm assuming you all know where this lyrics came from: "I got 99 problems but a b*tch ain't one". Yes, you're right, it's a song by Jay-Z called 99 Problems from "The Black Album" which was released back in 2004. Well, a lot of my friends think that this exact same line fits me thinking that I have this so called "reputation" that I'm running. So whenever they see with me someone else they don't know anywhere they always assume she's my girlfriend or we're dating, etc. All I'm trying to say is that I'm not a player, which is what probably most of them are saying right now. Between you and me, I'm not running any sort of reputation around here. I'm just a regular guy trying to finish my education so I can start my own family in the future. I've been in so many issues that you can count, and not a word from those issues are real. Well, yes I had girlfriends before but that was a long time ago and we're all great friends right now. And I must tell you that all of those past relationships lasted for at least a year, but never less than that. You probably heard this line that i'm about to say a million times, but I'll say it for the sake of everyone out there who's going through the same thing as me: "Don't judge a book by its cover". I'm enjoying my life right now being single and all that, so don't go off by saying I'm a player and a heartbreaker just because you saw me with someone else wheTher it's in the bus or at the mall, anYwhere! Let this be a lesson to anyone who keeps hearing rumors that they shouldn't believe. It takes more than just a stupid facebook status update to GET TO know someone. This is not the way how I want to live my life and be known as.

SOLE 2 SOLE.

2010-09-06T17:11:00.075-05:00

I AM NOW A HAPPY OWNER OF AIR JORDAN TRUE BLUE III.

SO I CAN'T BELIEVE SCHOOL STARTS THIS WEEK. I HAVEN'T BEEN TO SCHOOL SINCE LAST DECEMBER! REMEMBER I WAS ON VACATION SINCE JANUARY? I CAN'T BELIEVE I'VE BEEN EVERYWHERE THIS YEAR: PHILIPPINES, VANCOUVER, UNITED STATES, MEXICO! THAT EXPLAINS THE ZERO BALANCE ON MY BANK ACCOUNT WHEN I GOT BACK FROM VANCOUVER LAST JULY, LOL! WELL, LIKE MY FRIEND KEO NECRA (CHECK OUT HER BLOG HER NAME IS KEO) SAID, HARD WORK PAYS OFF, AND THIS IS MY REWARD! WELL, HERE GOES A WHOLE YEAR FULL OF STRESS AND TOUGHER CHALLENGES. IT'S A GOOD THING THAT IT'S ONLY FOR EIGHT MONTHS. I'M OUT, PEACE!

BIG MISTAKE TO CORRECT A BIG WRONG DECISION.

2010-08-26T14:54:00.030-05:00

Last Monday, we found out on the news from Philippines that a Filipino Ex-Police Officer WHO WAS IDENTIFIED AS ROLANDO MENDOZA hijacked a bus consists of Hong Kong Tourists. So this is how it went down. He was dressed in his former uniform and armed with a M-16 assault rifle. he hitched a lift from the Philippine capital's historic walled city of Intramuros. Once he was on board, he told the busload of tourists, mainly from Hong Kong, that he was taking the coach hostage. The vehicle was parked right in front of the Quirino grandstand, where current President Benigno Aquino III took his oath of office in June. The 55-year-old hijacker posted in the windows demands that he be given his old job back. A large piece of paper taped to the front windshield was headed "RELEASE FINAL DECISION" and listed what appeared to be details of his case. Also stuck to the bus door was a piece of paper with the handwritten message: "BIG MISTAKE TO CORRECT A BIG WRONG DECISION". From then on I just knew that this guy means business!

FEW YEARS AGO, ROLANDO MENDOZA, WAS named as ONE OF THE TOP POLICE OFFICERS IN THE COUNTRY. BUT recently, HE WAS charged OF DRUG REFERENCE WHICH WHAT HAVE CAUSED HIM HIS JOB. POLICE OFFICERS WENT DOWN TO THE SCENE AND ONE OF THE NEGOTIATORS WAS HIS YOUNGER BROTHER WHO'S A SENIOR POLICEMAN. the disaster was played out live on international television. After five hours of talking it out, Mendoza released eight of the hostages - two children, three women and three men. although He did allow food and water on to the bus for the hostages, as well as fuel to keep the air-conditioner running. Police negotiators talking to Mendoza said he was being "responsible" and "reasonable" even as the hours passed, with the hostages hidden behind the drawn curtains. But as darkness fell, Mendoza seemed to grow agitated as he spotted snipers moving into position. He called a local radio station on his cellphone, threatening to kill the hostages, saying he would probably die, too. Shortly afterwards, his brother ran up to the front of the bus and fell on the ground urging the gunman to take him hostage and release those on the bus instead. Minutes later, police arrested Gregorio Mendoza in the belief he was hindering the operation, pushing him into a police car. They encircled the bus, smashed its windows and fired at it, but Mendoza held them off by shooting back. The commotion was followed by more gunshots from inside the bus, which then rolled forward about five yards before the marksman shot out the tires, bringing to a halt. The hijacker called the radio station again and said "I shot two Chinese. I will finish them all if they do not stop," Mendoza told a local radio station as the police assault was about to get under way. Negotiations broke down after nightfall when the gunman, former senior police inspector Rolando Mendoza, began shooting and commandos were forced to storm the bus, firing dozens of bullets of their own into the vehicle. Six of the 15 captives survived, and four were seen on live television crawling out the back door of the coach when police stormed it. The fate of the remaining person was not known. The crisis eventually ended when police threw tear gas inside the bus, and fired again. The gunman was killed with a sniper shot to the head after he used his captives as human shields in the final moments of the 12-hour standoff.

Now I'd like to talk about what was wrong in this whole scene, which is what everyone's been talking for the past few days. Everyone's just storming the Philippines, saying that the police assault was badly prepared and risky, and everyone keeps saying that the Republic Of The Philippines and Hong Kong's relations are at stakes. I even heard something about China DECLARING a war against the Philippines. You want to know what I think? I definitely agree! But I'm not going to take a side here. I saw how the scene went when someone else took a video of the crime. The situation was VERY badly handled, THAT'S WHAT KEEPS BUGGING ME THE MOST. I SAW POLICE OFFICERS TAKING PICTURES DURING THE CRIME, IT ANNOYS ME THAT THEY CAN DO THAT WHILE A MAJOR CRIME IS HAPPENING RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEM. Now for all those rumors, I'd say that they're overacting! I even saw Jackie Chan's post on the web that HK PEOPLE DON'T HATE. MAN, GOD BLESS YOU PHILIPPINES! AS FOR YOU MR. PRESIDENT, THIS IS JUST A CHALLENGE, THERE WILL BE A LOT MORE TOUGHER CHALLENGES IN THE FUTURE, SO DON'T FUCK THIS UP!

ANYWAYS, SORRY FOR THE LONG GAP ON UPDATING. BUT I THOUGHT THIS WAS THE BEST TIME TO DO THIS AND I DIDN'T WANT TO WAIT LONGER, SO YEAH. SCHOOL'S COMING PRETTY SOON AND I THOUGHT I NEEDED A FEW KICKS TO START THE SCHOOL YEAR. JUST WAITING FOR THEM TO ARRIVE AND I'LL UPDATE YOU GUYS AS SOON AS IT COMES IN THE MAIL. PEACE!

BORN FROM A BOOM-BOX.

2010-08-07T09:07:00.158-05:00

today I'm going to make a movie review of the recent film I've watched last night. But before I start, I gotta ask, have you guys seen the premiere of the movie Step Up 3D yesterday? Because if you haven't, then you just missed a very inspiring story and a lot of mind-blowin' dance moves. And if you have, well good for you! "BORN FROM A BOOM-BOX" or "bfabb" IS THE PHRASE I KEPT HEARING FROM THE MOVIE which means you HAVE A SERIOUS TALENT AS A DANCER AND I THOUGHT IT WOULD MAKE A GREAT TITLE FOR THIS BLOG, SO HERE IT IS.

As we all know, Step Up 3D is the third installment of the series, directed by Jon Chu, who also worked on the previous film Step Up 2: The Streets. The film was released as a 2-dimensional film and of course, 3-dimensional. So I chose to watch the movie in 3d since I wanted to feel like I'M WATCHING IT LIVE AND IT'S in my face!

THE MOVIE follows moose (played by Adam sevani, the geeky character from step up 2: the streets) in his freshman year at new york university. on his first day in the campus, HE SAW A PAIR OF LIMITED EDITION SNEAKERS, AND HIS CLUMSINESS LANDS HIM A BATTLE AGAINST KID DARKNESS from THE house of SAMURAI CREW, who is played by b-boy cloud (Daniel Campos). moose's chance of winning is highly unlikely, but the very first thing you will notice about moose is that his dancing has improved immensely. soon, he was spotted by Luke (played by rick malambri) and his roving video camera. there was a ruckus after moose defeated kid darkness (there's a shocker!) so he gets rescued by LUKE, a filmmaker and a dancer, INVITED HIM TO HIS APARTMENT WHICH IS KNOWN AS THE VAULT (HALF APARTMENT/HALF NIGHTCLUB) AND INTRODUCED HIM TO THE PIRATES CREW. DESPITE MOOSE ALREADY GIVING HIS WORD TO HIS PARENTS THAT HE HAD GIVEN UP ON DANCING IN TURN FOR ENGINEERING, and he DIDN'T WANT TO TELL HIS BEST FRIEND CAMILLE (PLAYED BY ALYSON STONER), HE'S CONSTANTLY LEAVING HER BEHIND TO DANCE.

in the movie, we later learn that the house is five months late in payment and is up for auction and unless they come up with the money, they will be kicked out. it just so happens that there's a big dance competition coming up and the only way to pay their rent is by winning the world jam. but there is one thing standing on their way, THE LEADER OF THE HOUSE OF SAMURAI AND ALSO LUKE'S ARCH RIVAL AND EX-FRIEND, JULIEN (PLAYED BY JOE SLAUGHTER). PLUS, LUKE GOT CLOSED TO NATALIE (PLAYED BY SHARNI VINSON). THERE'S A TWIST HERE AND I WON'T GIVE THAT AWAY 'COZ IT'S AN UNEXPECTED ONE.

THE NEXT SCENE IN THE MOVIE WHERE THE STORY GOT MORE INTERESTING WAS THE RED HOOK BATTLE, WHICH IS THE FIRST STAGE OF THE WORLD JAM COMPETITION. there's not that much to say on the scene and location of the red hook. TO DESCRIBE IT, I WOULD SAY THAT IT WOULD BE A COMBINATION OF RESIDENTIAL AND INDUSTRIAL. THIS IS BECAUSE THE INSIDE OF THE BUILDING HAD A VERY INDUSTRIOUS FEEL. THROUGHOUT AND ON BOTH SIDES OF THE DANCE BATTLE WAS AN INTENSIVE USE OF FLOUR/POWDER, SOMETHING THAT YOU COULD BEAT YOUR CHEST WITH AND IT WOULD BLOW UP IN A PUFF OF SMOKE OR BLOW OUT OF YOUR HANDS.

I'D SAY THAT THE BEST PART IN THE RED HOOK scene WAS WHEN Marie "Pandora" Medina from the house of red hook came out and started tutting really fast right in front of the camera. that was crazy because it felt like she was doing it right in front of your face (thank you 3d!). i will never forget that scene.

SO THE SECOND ROUND TOOK PLACE IN GWAI, (AS SEEN ON TRAILER, IT'S THE RED FLOOR WITH A CHINESE SYMBOL) WHICH IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE SCENES IN THE MOVIE. MOOSE WAS LATE IN THIS MOVIE BECAUSE HE HAD AN ENGINEERING EXAM. NEXT THING WE KNOW, MOOSE COMES OUT OF NOWHERE WITH A BIKE AND OF COURSE HIS CLUMSINESS GOT AHEAD OF HIM. HIS BIKE CRASHED INTO ONE OF THE PIPES AND WATER FLOODED THE ENTIRE DANCE FLOOR. THE SCENE GETS BETTER BECAUSE MOOSE STARTED THIS RAIN DANCE SEQUENCE JUST LIKE IN THE STEP UP 2 BUT THIS ONE IS A LOT BETTER! MOOSE PUTS IT DOWN REAL HARD AND I THINK THE WATER ACTED AS A PROP TO THEIR ROUTINE. BUT APPARENTLY, THE WATER BECAME A DISTRACTION TO THE OTHER CREW WHICH CONSISTS OF B-BOYS.

THE PIRATES ARE FINALLY GETTING TO THE BIG BAD BREAKDOWN AT THE WORLD JAM FINALE AGAINST THE HOUSE OF SAMURAI CREW. I KIND OF GOT BORED AT THE FIRST SCENE DURING THE WORLD JAM BECAUSE THE SCENE WAS A LITTLE PREDICTABLE. (ISN'T THAT HOW MOST DANCE FILMS END UP WITH ANYWAYS?) BUT WHAT KEPT ME GOING WAS MOOSE'S NEO FLIES ROUTINE, WHERE THEIR COSTUMES HAD LIGHTS THAT CHANGES COLOR FOR EVERY ROUTINE THEY DO. IT WAS A PURE GENIUS COMBINED BY MOOSE AND JASON (PLAYED BY STEPHEN "TWITCH" BOSS FROM SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE).

in general, this movie is 5 out of 5! i think, wait, i know dancers will appreciate this film! everyone who likes to dance or just groove on to the music, young or old, should see this movie. I'm sure it won't disappoint you. from the room full of boom boxes made into one speaker, from the great CHOREOGRAPHY and well placed VIDEOGRAPHY IN THE FILM. the main focus of this movie is dancing and 3d, so if you're planning to bit-torrent this, don't do it! it's not worth watching it on 2d. the entire soundtrack just gotten better and better each film! GREAT MUSIC AND most definitely WORTH THE PURCHASE. AS FOR THE CASTS, i felt like the good dancers were a little weak on some spots when they're acting, while the good actors/actresses were kind of weak on some of their routines. SOME OF THE DANCERS YOU GOTTA WATCH FOR IS MADD CHADD, MARIE "PANDORA" MEDINA, MORE OF ADAM G. SEVANI (MOOSE), AND KEITH STALLWORTH WHO PLAYS "JACOB" IN THE MOVIE. THEIR DANCE STYLES ARE AMAZING AND DEFINITELY OUT OF THIS WORLD! OH, AND SHARNI VINSON IS amazing and SIZZLIN' HOT! I JUST WANTED TO ADD THAT, LOL. THIS MOVIE IS WAY BETTER THAN STEP UP 1 AND STEP UP 2 COMBINED. and as usual, I'll save the best for last. during the credits, try to stay for at least 15 minutes. THE FIRST HALF OF THE CREDITS SHOWS SOME OF THE BEHIND THE SCENES FOOTAGE. BUT there's a surprise video clip during the second half of the credits. A MALE DANCER (NON-CAST MEMBER) COMES OUT TO THE MIDDLE OF THE WORLD JAM STAGE, SITS DOWN ON A CHAIR, AND STARTS TUTTING. his tutting routine was so clean. i wish i was that good! i can count how many of us stayed behind just to watch his routine, like less than 10 people, it was so neat. well, that's all there is to it. if this is your first time seeing it, then i hope you're pretty excited 'coz you won't know what will hit you. And as a thank you for reading my blog post, here's the trailer. WATCH IT ON HIGH DEFINITION! peace out!

DRAKE'S "THANK ME LATER" ALBUM IN STORES TODAY.

2010-06-15T10:45:00.026-05:00

THE YOUNG MONEY STAR DRAKE, CANADA'S VERY OWN, DROPPED HIS DEBUT ALBUM "THANK ME LATER" IN STORES TODAY. MAKE SURE TO GRAB YOURSELF A COPY VERY SOON AS THIS WILL BE GONE LIKE A QUICKSTRIKE AIR JORDAN SNEAKER.

A FEW WEEK AGO, DRAKE'S "THANK ME LATER" ALBUM HAS BEEN LEAKED. MOST OF YOU PROBABLY ALREADY HEARD OF IT. BUT IT DIDN'T AFFECT HIM AT ALL. HE EVEN TWITTED HIS OPINION ABOUT IT. CHECK OUT WHAT HE HAD TO SAY ABOUT IT BELOW.

YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW THIS BUT DRAKE IS ALSO COMING TO WINNIPEG. HIS CONCERT WILL BE ON JULY 21ST AT CENTENNIAL CONCERT HALL. THE TICKETS WERE SOLD OUT FIVE MINUTES RIGHT AFTER THEY STARTED SELLING THEM. DON'T LOSE YOUR HOPE YET THAT YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO WATCH HIM PERFORM. I HEARD MYSTIQUE NIGHTCLUB HAS SOME CONCERT TICKETS TO BE DRAWN. SO GO OUT THERE AND WHO KNOWS, YOUR NAME MIGHT GET CALLED. YOU'LL HAVE THE CHANCE TO WIN DRAKE CONCERT TICKETS EACH AND EVERY TUESDAY. BUT MAKE SURE YOU ARRIVE THERE BEFORE MIDNIGHT TO BE ENTERED INTO THE DRAW.

THE "KING OF THE ROAD" ARRIVES IN WINNIPEG.

2010-06-08T09:34:00.013-05:00

A VERY FAMILIAR-LOOKING JEEPNEY WILL SOON BE A MAJOR ATTRACTION IN WINNIPEG. THIS IS BECAUSE THE OWNER OF "VICKAR COMMUNITY OF AUTO DEALERSHIP", LARRY AND TOVA VICKAR, PARTICIPATED IN A PROVINCIAL TRADE MISSION IN THE YEAR OF 2008 IN THE PHILIPPINES. SOON HE GOT INSPIRED HOW FILIPINOS HONOR OF HAVING THE JEEPNEY NOT ONLY AS A MEAN OF TRANSPORTATION BUT ALSO A PIECE OF HISTORY TO BE LEARNED. THE JEEPNEY IS A GREAT CONNECTION OF HISTORY AND CULTURAL IDENTITY.

THE STORY OF JEEPNEY GOES WAY BACK AFTER THE SECOND PACIFIC WAR WHEN THE AMERICANS LEFT SURPLUS JEEPNEYS IN THE PHILIPPINES. THE FILIPINOS THOUGHT OF DOING SOMETHING AND MAKE USE OF THE JEEPNEY AS A MEANS OF NECESSITY. EVERYONE KNEW BACK THEN THAT A MASS TRANSPORTATION IS NEEDED IN MANILA. SINCE CALESA OR BUGGY PULLED BY HORSES COULD NOT SUPPLY THE DEMAND OF THE GROWING POPULATION. SO SARAO BODY SHOW IN CAVITE AND FRANCISCO MOTORS IN LAS PIÑAS FOUND THE SURPLUS VEHICLE TO BE THE ANSWER TO EVERYONE'S NEEDS. AND THAT'S WHEN CREATIVITY TOOK OVER. THE SURPLUS JEEPNEY WAS FORMERLY OPEN AND WAS ONLY ACCOMODATED WITH AT LEAST SIX PASSENGERS. SO METAL ROOFS WERE NOW ADDED. THE BODY BUILDERS EXTENDED THE LENGTH OF THE PASSENGERS SECTIONS. THE FOLKARTS DESIGNS WERE ADDED TO REFLECT THE FILIPINO SENSIBILITIES. THUS, THE JEEPNEY BECAME THE RUNNING IMAGE OF THE FILIPINO INGENUITY. THE JEEPNEY HAS BECAME THE PART AND PARCEL OF THE FILIPINOS DAILY LIVES IN THE HUSTLE-BUSTLE OF THE CITY OF MANILA AND IT'S NEIGHBORING CITIES AND TOWNS. HOWEVER, JEEPNEY HAD BECOME THE TARGET OF TOTAL RECALL BY THE GOVERNMENT FOR IT CONTRIBUTES TO THE POLLUTION OF THE AIR, THE TRAFFIC CONGESTION OF THE STREETS AND AVENUES, THE SAFETY OF THE PASSENGERS AND THE RELIABILITY DURING HEAVY RAINS AND FLOODS. IN SPITE OF THE CAMPAIGN TO REMOVE THE JEEPNEYS FROM THE STREETS, THE PEOPLE RALLIED FOR ITS SURVIVAL. THE ICONIC TREASURE SURVIVES! NOWADAYS, SOME JEEPNEYS IN MAKATI CITY AREA ARE FILLED WITH AIR CONDITIONING UNITS. AND TOURISTS AND PROFESSIONALS LOVE TO HOP FROM ONE OFFICE TO ANOTHER.

WHEN I FOUND OUT THAT THE VERY FIRST JEEPNEY IN MANITOBA, PROBABLY CANADA TOO, HAS MADE IT IN WINNIPEG, I WENT TO VICKAR MYSELF TO CHECK IT OUT LAST MONTH. IT WAS NEWLY PAINTED AND RESTORED FOR THE COMING CELEBRATION OF PHILIPPINE INDEPENDENCE DAY ON JUNE 12TH. A LOT OF PEOPLE THERE INCLUDING MYSELF HAS BEEN ASKING THE OWNERS HOW MUCH DID IT COST THEM TO SHIP THE JEEPNEY IN WINNIPEG. BUT NOBODY WANTED TO REVEAL THE EXACT COST. ALTHOUGH THE VICKAR MANAGEMENT PERSON DID SAY THAT "THE SHIPPING AND CUSTOMS DUTIES EXCEEDED THE VEHICLE PURCHASE PRICE MANY TIMES OVER". LARRY ALSO ADDED THAT "THE COST IS IMMATERIAL SO LONG AS THE JEEPNEY WILL BRING FOND AND GOOD MEMORIES TO FILIPINOS IN WINNIPEG". IT SURE DID BRING A SMILE ON MY FACE WHEN I SAW IT. I REMEMBER BACK THEN WHEN I USED TO RIDE IN THE JEEPNEY TO GO TO SCHOOL. SOON ENOUGH ONCE IT'S COMPLETED, IT WILL BECOME THE CENTERPIECE OF VICKAR DEALERSHIP WHERE PEOPLE CAN RIDE IN IT OR TAKE PICTURES WITH IT ACCORDING TO THE OWNER, THERE WILL BE PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR FILIPINOS AND NON-FILIPINOS IN WINNIPEG TO GET "UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL" WITH THE JEEPNEY. THE MERE THOUGH OF SEEING A JEEPNEY IN WINNIPEG WILL SURELY BRING EXCITEMENT TO MANY FILIPINOS IN THIS CITY, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO HAVE NOT GONE HOME IN MANY YEARS.

THANK YOU, LARRY AND TOVA VICKAR, FOR RECONNECTING FILIPINOS WITH THE EFFERVESCENT JEEPNEY!

SOURCE: FILIPINOJOURNAL.COM

MAN, HAIL YEAH!

2010-05-01T12:13:00.007-05:00

HEY EVERYONE! WELCOME TO MY BLOG. THIS WILL BE MY VERY FIRST BLOG POST. NOW THAT EVERYONE HAVE THEIR OWN BLOG, I THOUGHT I SHOULD MAKE MY OWN AND UPGRADE FROM MY SO-CALLED BLOG ON MULTIPLY. I`LL BE USING THIS BLOG TO JOT DOWN THINGS I WANT TO SHARE, TO DISCUSS MY PASSION ABOUT MUSIC, AND EVERYTHING ELSE THAT SURROUNDS ME.

AS FOR MY BLOG TITLE "MAN, HAIL YEAH!", I GOT IT FROM THIS FAMOUS DANCE CREW CALLED "SO REAL CRU" FROM HOUSTON, TEXAS. IN CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW, THEY WERE A FINALIST OF THE MTV SHOW CALLED "AMERICA'S BEST DANCE CREW". THEY CAME TO OUR CITY TO PERFORM AND TEACH THEIR CHOREOGRAPHS TO THEIR FELLOW DANCERS HERE. BEFORE THAT, THE WORD "MAN, HAIL YEAH!" STARTED AS A JOKE BETWEEN THE MEMBERS OF THE CREW AND THEN BECAME AN EVERYDAY SAYING WHICH NOW IS SPREADING LIKE A WILDFIRE.

BUT BEFORE WE GET ON IT, WHY DON'T I START BY INTRODUCING MYSELF FOR A BIT. I'M A 2ND YEAR STUDENT OF UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA. I'M CURRENTLY IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN PROGRAM, HOPING TO GET IN THE FACULTY OF ARCHITECTURE THIS YEAR.

BESIDES ARCHITECTURE, I ALSO HAVE THIS PASSION FOR MUSIC. IT'S JUST THAT MUSIC HAS BEEN PASSED ALONG OUR GENERATION THESE DAYS THAT'S WHY MUSIC HAS AFFECTED EACH AND EVERYONE OF US TODAY. WHENEVER I'M DOWN, MUSIC KEEPS ME COMPANY. IT'S WHAT I LIVE UP TO EVERYDAY. I GREW UP LISTENING TO MUSIC AND THAT'S GOING TO LAST FOREVER.

COLLECTING SNEAKERS HAS ALSO BEEN A PASSION OF MINE SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE IN CANADA. BACK IN MY HOMETOWN IN THE PHILIPPINES, I COULD NEVER AFFORD ANY KIND OF SNEAKERS. THE ONLY WAY I COULD GET SOME IS WHEN MY COUSINS FROM CANADA SENDS ME SOME WHEN I WAS IN THE PHILIPPINES. BUT EVER SINCE WE'VE BEEN HERE IN CANADA, IT'S ALWAYS BEEN A HOBBY OF MINE TO COLLECT SNEAKERS, MOSTLY FROM JORDAN BRAND AND NIKE. AND BECAUSE OF THAT, I'LL BE INCLUDING SNEAKER OF THE DAY POSTS IN THIS BLOG. IT SHOULD CONTAIN MY FEW FAVORITE SNEAKERS THAT I OWN OR PLANNING TO OWN, RECENT PICK-UPS, AND SOON TO RELEASE IN THE FUTURE.

JUST LIKE THE SNEAKERS, I ALSO HAVE INTEREST IN CARS, MOSTLY IMPORTS AND EUROPEAN. IT STARTED WITH TOY CARS TO REAL CARS. DIDN'T YOU ALL HAVE THAT DREAM THAT ONE DAY YOU'D WISH YOU'D OWN A LAMBORGHINI? WELL I'M ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE. SO THIS BLOG SHOULD FEATURE A FEW FAVORITES AS WELL, AND DREAM CARS MAYBE? AND MY CURRENT RIDE, MAYBE SOME PAST OR FUTURE RIDES TO OWN?

WELL, THAT'S ALL I WANTED TO SAY FOR NOW. I WON'T BE UPDATING THIS AS MUCH BUT I'LL TRY. ANYWAYS, I HOPE YOU'LL ALL WELCOME ME HERE.

THANKS FOR YOUR TIME READING THIS!