Friday, December 30, 2005

Happy Birthday to Me! (Part II)

While trying to re-organize my messy room today, I chanced upon a small book entitled The Birth Date Book that somebody gave me for my birthday. It reveals a lot about a person based on his or her date of birth. As I was reading it, I found myself relating to it a lot. Here are some of the things the book says about people born on December 21 (i.e. ME!!!).

(Text taken from The Birth Date Book: December 21 by Joan Schweightghardt. Andrews McMeel Publishing, Kansas City, 1998. Italicized comments are mine.)

Your Astrological Sun Sign: Sagittarius
The powerful archer pulls back the taut string of his bow, sending his arrow speeding toward a specific target. Persons born under the fiery sign of Sagittarius often share this powerful directness. You have the strong will, the optimism, and the vitality to set a goal and go for it with gusto. You must achieve great things... and if it takes a little chutzpah to get there, you can usually supply that too!

As a Sagittarian, you can entertain a roomful of people with your stories, but your whimsical, restless nature rarely allows you to stay put for long… You need new terrains to conquer, and you have the intellect, the zeal, and, often, the luck to do it. (So true!)

Alphabet Soup: E, I, and P
December 21s often find that names and places beginning with the following letters become especially significant during the course of their lives: E, I, and P. For a happy wanderer like you, energy, impulsiveness, and pride will take you to exotic places: Incan ruins in Peru, rattletrap train rides through India, or Celtic stone carvings in the heart of England!

Your Magical Food: Oranges
What is the essence of an orange? Sunlight! And that’s the essence of most December 21s too. An hour spent with you can dissipate any lingering clouds of depression. Your effervescence and zest for life are as contagious as laughter. Oranges are full of Vitamin C; you are full of good cheer. Both are equally essential to good health. Perhaps this is why you are always surrounded by friends.

Flower Power: Columbine
Graceful as the columbine, tender and tenderhearted, December 21s can nearly always soothe an aching head or comfort a breaking heart. Empathetic by nature, you know by instinct when to offer assistance and, equally important, when to back off. But let’s not get too serious! You can be a healer, yes, but first things first: Where’s the party? (Haha! This sounds so like me!)

Your Secret Wish
While a desire for health and happiness for yourself and your loved ones is at the core of your being, you also yearn for flight. Some December 21s satisfy this wish by hang-gliding—or by boarding jets for exotic destinations (Does mountain climbing count?). Others prefer little excursions of the imagination in which they can envision themselves elsewhere—from Singapore to Alaska to the local beach resort!

Personality Profile
December 21s can be some of the most charming personalities in the cosmos (Thank you, thank you!) Typically, you live by the philosophy that if nothing is wrong, then everything must be right! And although you’ve had enough experience to know that things may go wrong sooner or later, you are generally willing to try to make the best of even the worst situations… Your optimism in the face of adversity gives you the gleam that makes you so attractive to others, especially those whose own inner light might be a little dimmer. (Aww, that’s why I’m the Goddess of Light!)

December 21s are generally not very good at hiding their feelings. Although you may have learned to keep your lips zipped, your facial expressions and even the smallest gestures will sometimes let the cat out of the bag. While this natural expressiveness will not get you very far at the poker table, it makes you all the more captivating in the eyes of others. (Haha! I sure hope so! More than one person has told me that when I like someone, it’s so obvious! :p)

In other words, people tend to look up to December 21s—which can sometimes feel like an awesome responsibility. But face it: You are one of the few people who truly believes that for every problem there is at least one solution—sometimes two!—even though you may not always care enough about a particular problem to probe that far. As a matter of fact, you can often be downright stubborn when you are confronted with something you absolutely don’t want to do. And getting December 21s to change their minds can be the equivalent of moving a brick wall! (Guilty as charged!)

At Play
December 21s are often too restless to participate in the kinds of activities that draw less energetic types. A couch potato you’re not—if you do let down your guard and opt for the easy chair, you probably spend half your time sitting there thinking about what you could be doing instead. (But I so love DVD marathons!)

Your busy mind strives, successfully, to be in two places at once. You can be charging full speed ahead on the treadmill at the gym and still be completely aware of the conversation going on in the corner by the water cooler. And if the conversation gets interesting, December 21s may even decide to abandon their exercising and join in on the fun! (Especially if it involves food!)

How Do You Love?
While your time is much too valuable to be spent fostering lifelong relationships with everyone you meet, when you do fall in love, your greatest desire is for lasting, honest intimacy. And December 21s hope that their mates feel the same way.

In other words, what December 21s want in a partnership is nothing less than a soul mate—and soul mates, as you probably learned early on, are not that easy to come by. Anything less will only agitate your restless nature. “Don’t look back” could be your motto; there are plenty of fish in the sea, and one of them is bound to be a keeper! (Right on!)

Courtship is the true test of any relationship. December 21s don’t necessarily require vacations to a villa on the Italian seacoast or front-row seats at the next Rolling Stones concert, but you are very alert to the little things that mean so much. (If only the guys who liked me knew this! Hehehe!)

December 21s seek out people who are: imaginative, adventurous, self-confident, freedom-loving, ebullient, and idealistic.

December 21s avoid people who are: possessive, moody, jealous, brooding, restrictive, or intolerant.

Flashback: Your Past Lives
In any past life, December 21s would have been in close connection to fire or its symbolic equivalent, creativity. It is not unlikely that your past lives included the following occupations: Poet, fire chief, fortune-teller, candle maker, speech writer, or chili picker.

So, what do you think? Let me know! Winky

Saturday, December 24, 2005

All I Want for Christmas

Angel and Bow Wow

Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Happy Birthday to Me! (Part I)

Another year has come and gone. Indeed, each year has brought its own share of new experiences and wild adventures, joy and sorrow, laughter and tears. And throughout all these, I have been blessed with great friends and family who have always been there for me. But before I get all sentimental, here is a list of my most memorable birthdays:

December 21, 1994 (12 years old). My parents gave me a thick hard bound journal where I wrote my first diary entry. I have been writing consistently in my journal since then and I am now up to 11 volumes!

December 21, 1996 (14 years old). My crush, M, greeted me a happy birthday. It was the first time he spoke more than a few words to me. He eventually became my friend and has greeted me every year since then. :-)

December 21, 1998 (16 years old).
Dinner and dancing with Ate Cha and my high school friends at Hard Rock Cafe. I was made to stand on a chair and had whipped cream splattered on my face!

December 21, 2000 (18 years old). I've always dreamt of being serenaded. I got my wish on my 18th birthday party when my good friend, Nicky, sang "She" by Elvis Castello (She may be the face I can't forget... A trace of pleasure or regret... May be my treasure or the price I have to pay...) It was his first time to sing in front of a crowd but his voice could rival that of Josh Groban. Now, he sings, plays the piano, arranges, and composes music for our church choir, Hangad, and the Ateneo Chamber Singers.


December 21, 2002 (20 years old). I attended Simbang Gabi that morning and when I stepped out of the church at the end of the mass, my unitmates were there to surprise me! I was so touched because we had gone caroling the night before and ended at almost 1 am already. Plim even woke up extra early to fetch Crystal in Makati and Ann in Pasig. Some of them don't get to attend prayer session regularly and yet they were there during my birthday. Some had other engagements to attend to, but still they were there despite having only a few hours of sleep!

December 21, 2004 (22 years old). I spent my birthday going around the cool and romantic province of Dalat, Vietnam with SIF-ASEAN fellows Neuy, Tat, Plim, Richard, Nats, and Cuong. It was the annual flower festival and the place was bursting with lights and colorful flowers.




December 21, 2005 (23 years old). I had a simple celebration at home with my ACLC friends whom I haven't been able to spend a lot of time with while I was busy working for Candy and climbing mountains. These are the people I spent four years in college praying, going to Payatas, studying, and partying with. The current members of the org graced us with their angelic voices and heavenly carols—something which I really miss doing!

Time to sing!

Me and Gameng, my birthday-mate.

My Angel-Soul Family.

With two of my favorite people, Tris and Macyl.

Group shot!

Me and the boys of Unit Merrily: Lao, Plim, Galv, and Kekek.

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Dare to Explore

Last Friday, December 9, AMCI had its Christmas party-slash-graduation party for the newly inducted B2K5 members. Having received the certificate of completion for the Basic Mountaineering Course, or even upon receiving my shiny silver dog tag at the peak of Mt. Apo, I felt no overwhelming sense of elation or excitement. Instead, there was a quiet sense of pride for having accomplished a course that many individuals would not even dare to try.

Indeed, the past five months have been a test of faith, courage, and skill. Many of my friends and relatives wonder why I decided to take up the sport of mountaineering. Somewhere in between the beginning of training and the heart-wrenching trail of Sky on our second training climb, I found my answer—I climb because it makes me feel truly alive. I can say it over and over again, but somehow, one will not understand until one experiences it for himself.

However, this slideshow by my fellow batchmate, Borj, somehow captures the essence of why we climb. (Really great job, Borj!) I share it here in the hopes of inspiring you to get into mountaineering as well. After all, no climb is complete without the company of friends. In the words of this year's BMC theme, "DARE TO EXPLORE!"


If you can't view the video, click here. It might take a while to load, but I promise, it's worth it!