Another quarter, scratch that – another year has gone by! In my last “Life Lately” post, I was struggling with the number of things I needed to finish, but I’m happy to report that I have accomplished and completed a lot of things this past quarter.
I finally completed my TEFL course. I finally have that certificate! I also completed the Travefy courses. I also signed up for a free 7-day trial for Coursera and completed a few courses. I think I will sign up for the monthly subscription in January or February of next year. I did the LinkedIn Learning free trial, too, but ultimately, I like Coursera better.
I also finally am a Lay Bare person, and I have definitely seen the difference between getting waxed vs shaving. I have also become a lot more active in doing jump rope. Yes to keeping fit and having less body hair. LOL.
On to my extra-curricular activities this past quarter:
Japan F1 at Crossroads Makati with Celine and Irick (Oct 9)
An afternoon race that got delayed because of the rain. Verstappen won the championship during this race.
Mr. Korea and Karaoke with Mine (Oct 15)
Mall-hopping in Marikina! We started at SM Marikina, then had dinner at Mr. Korea in Ayala Feliz, then karaoke at Bamboo Marikina! Dumayo ng Marikina for samgyup and videoke!
We Will Rock You with Mine (Oct 30)
First musical in 3 years! I think my last musical was Adarna in late 2019. I thought I won’t be able to watch this because I didn’t expect I’d still be here by then. I hope the cast knows that we were all singing under our face masks! I know I was and I was bobbing my head, doing a shoulder dance, and participating in all the clapping and feet-stomping.
I need a full version of Don’t Stop Me Now though! It’s my ultimate favorite Queen song! My favorite number though, would have to be Fat Bottomed Girls because the women were freaking hot in their black leather heels!
I was cracking up because Mine and I went to have dinner after the show and we saw a lot of the cast members just walking around Circuit. Some members of the ensemble were also in the same restaurant as us.
F1 Finale at Crossroads Makati with Celine and Irick (Nov 20)
Last F1 race for the 2022 season so we went to Crossroads to watch it. It was packed since it is the finale and we don’t know what happened to our reservation. We ended up at the bar. Since it was the last race, I decided to have a cocktail and then a beer. Good times! Until I realized I needed to be at work by 5am on Monday. Didn’t stop me from finishing my drink though. LOL.
Christmas Card-making Session with Celine and Irick (Nov 27)
According to my boyfriend, this is my little grandma program, and it’s so true! We made cards all afternoon while watching Hallmark Christmas movies. We have totally leveled up because from stamping, we also tried stenciling, die cutting, and bedazzling (LOL!) during this session. I truly enjoy cardmaking, and I wish I could do another session at Irick’s before she sends them off to the nursing home.
Be You 2 Concert with UMKTG (Dec 9)
This is truly a dream come true! The concert was announced just a little before the actual concert date, so I’m lucky that I was able to get some time off work for this! I decided to just go because while I haven’t been a KPOP fan for so long, I don’t know when I will get this chance again. I truly enjoyed the concert and I’m glad that Yunho and Changmin sang songs that I actually know. Them singing Mirotic was truly epic! I really wish Boa did the dance version of Only One with Yunho!
Christmas Lunch with UMKTG (Dec 10)
The day after the concert, Christmas lunch at Italianni’s plus drinks and tambay at Starbucks with almost the same set of people. Sponsored by CitiBank LOL
Sunday Date with Maine (Dec 11)
Maine and I were supposed to go to Gram Pancakes, but there was a private event and won’t open to the public until 7pm. We met at 3pm so it would be a long wait. We ended up having lunch at Buca di Beppo, which had really good pasta and pizza! Then, really good cake and coffee at Nono’s (also unplanned LOL). Always enjoy Sunday dates with Maine!
Buffet and Wine with Celine and Irick (Dec 27)
A few days before New Year’s, Celine, Irick, and I met up at Seda Hotel in Makati for lunch. We didn’t really plan on it, but we ended up getting a lunch buffet. LOL. I wish we had more time though, we were just getting started when they prompted us that the buffet will be ending soon. We hurriedly took as much food as we could finish. After lunch, we ordered a bottle of wine, and finished the rest of our food in the outdoor dining. We then took some photos in the vicinity of the hotel for more #ChristmasContent.
Merry Christmas and Happy 2023!
The holidays this year was quiet per usual and I didn’t go anywhere at all. (Sometimes, I would leave and spend New Year’s elsewhere.) On Christmas Eve, we ended up ordering food via GrabFood because I had a night shift the night before and I woke up late that day. I am very happy about the ube cake I bought from Goldilocks though! It was so pretty and yummy!
The next few days were spent watching the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies. LOL. I had more time to go to the grocery and plan our media noche because I didn’t have to work the day before. I asked my mother to copy the pancit kawali from Pancit Center and I think she did an amazing job. I laughed so hard at the cake I bought though – I didn’t have a lot of options so I bought a dedication cake instead and just killed it with the message. Hahaha!
Sharing some behind-the-scenes photos from our year-end party performance preparations and practice.
And this is still a pending task. I really need to finish this book! I think I have been reading it for half a year. I’m almost done though!
I will start 2023 with a trip to Bali with my boyfriend, Kevin, and I’m really excited because I have not seen him since September. After this trip, I don’t think I will be seeing him for a while. However, I am planning to finish my Australian visa application so I can go visit him next time.
Until the next quarter,
