I think next time, you'll be mine.

LOTTO JACKPOT!

I think it's a bold statement, considering the fact that I've never joined lotto before on my own will (I was forced to join lotto because my father cannot line up in time before it closes haha! ).



From GMANEWS.TV

 Even though I was not able to join the lotto, I am happy it already ended. Because I think the jackpot is already hitting to a ridiculous large amount of money. Imagine, it would be life-threatening already to just walk into the gates of PCSO because everyone might think you are the grand winner.

Anyway, even if I joined the lotto; only one number would appear from my list -16. I guess its fate that I was not able to spend even 20 bucks for attempting my luck in this game of chance.

How about you guys?
Did you tried your luck?

'Til next post

Ciao,

Maddie

To Caleruega we go!

How long has it been already? Days turned into weeks. Weeks turned into years.

It has been four years already since I went to a retreat. I never thought that I would go to another once especially when I got into college. For some reason, when we did not have any retreat during sophomore, I just concluded that we will never have it. Then again, I was wrong.

I am enrolled in a Catholic University, there is simply no way that such important spiritual event would be on hold or put aside by the administrators.

Retreats have been long part of since elementary years. And I have learned the essence of having yourself secluded from the world. But enough about retreats, I think that is something which should not be included in this blog (It is too personal for me). What I will be talking about is the venue where we had our retreat.

Caleruega.

It was my first time going here and I regretted not knowing this place earlier! It has the most breath-taking sunsets and sunrise I have ever seen (Well, for now that is). I think their tag line suits the place well, because it  says: Closer to Nature. When we first arrived at the venue, my classmates gushed that the scenery is just perfect for a Korean telenovela. I could not agree less.

I really, really, really loved the place! Now isn't it not an exaggeration. But no words can really describe how i feel. I wish I can pass to you guys what I was feeling during my stay there, if there is such a thing like that. LOL!

So, let me do by list, my comments about Caleruega.

• Transpo: We got our own service bus when we went in there, but I found out that the place is really near considering it is just near Tagaytay :) If you own a private car, it would be simpler. I'm not really good at giving directions so I guess I have to research on how to commute to Caleruega.
• Fees: The place is open to the public as along as you pay a certain amount of money. I heard you need to pay not more than 500PHp. But again, I am not sure. What I am sure is you can park your car for 30PHp. The payment for overnight stays and retreats should me made through contacting them :)
• Bedroom: I stayed in a large room full of bunk beds. And the people from Caleruega calls them as dorms. I think it is only practical since we were around 300 when we went there. The beddings are already prepared together with a pillow and quilt. So far, the beds are tolerable.There are also other rooms to choose from like the family room which can accommodate 8 persons. These rooms are located in another area which is somewhat isolated from our dorms and from the main entrance.
• Washrooms: I can only base this from the bathrooms I have used. But sad to say that I do not like their bathrooms. Sorry for being too OC, but I really do not like the cleanliness of the bathroom. And I have to note that in almost all retreat houses I have been to, there is no option for hot water. Sadly, I need to muster my weakness in taking a bath in cold water :(.
• Food: One of the best things in here! In my 3 days and 2 nights stay in Caleruega, I have tasted foods that are acceptable for my taste buds. I also like their specialty - tarts. YUM! I even ordered one as my pasalubong to my family.
• Security: If you plan to stay overnight, better secure your things. We were warned by the priest that since Caleruega is open to the public, anyone can freely roam around the place. But do not fret too much, because each room has its own key which would be given to you for safekeeping. There are also guards that roam around every now and then.

Here are the pictures from my classmates camera (Sorry, I got lazy in bringing my own camera because of my already heavy luggage haha!):

Spot me! This shot is taken by the hanging bridge :)

Note: All photos are grabbed from my classmate Alex :)

*Edited Version :)

A guy named R.T. makes me swoon.

He is someone I have met two years ago, while I was comfortably seated in one of those unfortunate FX. I was going home or rather going to school. The other details seem blurred already, but what I can ultimately remember is what struck me about him.

So, what did struck me about this guy?

His voice. Literally his voice and nothing else. When I first heard it, I thought, "Gosh such an alluring voice. It's smooth, feminine in a way but oh so alluring *Starry-eyed*. And my, to think he is a guy." 


And when I checked more about this guy, I was more impressed with how much he can do with his voice. He sings the sexiest tune of all.

His voice together with his songs are the sexiest music of all for me. Well, as of now I guess it is the most sexiest.

For me he is another person with a creative talent for making ladies swoon. Kidding aside, he is a talented artist for me because he can convey sensual feelings in a sophisticated manner.The songs he makes is not that low-type of sexy song nor is it flashy (I hope you get what I am meaning to say). It blended well together with class, the right touch of sex appeal and mood. I think, the effect of his music makes the right atmosphere to relax and unwind.

Who is this guy? Well its him.

Source

Robin Thicke, nonetheless. <3

I really love his songs, a great pick-me up song after a stressful day in front of the computer. It relaxes me so well that I get to finish my work smoothly, minus the stress LOL!. What else do I love about him? He makes us realize that black women are really very beautiful and well-proportioned. Talk about natural beauties. His video which features lovely black ladies makes me proud of my own skin color. I am truly blessed to be endowed with a brown colored skin.

Currently, I am having a LSS with his song, It's in the Morning.

Bliss <3

How about you guys? Have you listened to his songs?

'Til my next post!

Ciao,

Maddie

Comparisons between my two Belle de Jour planners.

Hello there!

How was your day? Well, mine was fairly okay. It was not that hectic since classes just started. Still, my brain got somehow exhausted from all the thinking I have been doing lately. Thesis, thesis and more thesis. But it was fulfilling, knowing that we are doing it as a team.

Anyway, as promised *drum roll please* I will be writing about my comparison between the spiral type BDJ and their newest type of BDJ - the book bind.

This will be just a short comparison since many are already aware with the basic look, contents and structure of the spiral type. But I see people asking more about the book bind in Facebook or in other sites. Luckily, I was able to acquire the book bind. At first I really did not want to have my planner in book bind style, but since I only won it I should not demand that much LOL.

So here are the pictures of my new BDJ 2011 (the book bind style):

Side by side comparison of my BDJ 2011 and BDJ 2010 - top view

Side by side comparison for the width 

So now, let us take a peek at the differences you can find inside the planner. Once you open the planner, you will immediately see this:

There is a small pocket already :)

I just wanted to add this one also! I looove the pink writing on this black paper. I also love the quotation.

When I first heard that Belle de Jour had two designs for their 2011 planner, I said to myself that I am still going to get the spiral version. Back then, I was still thinking that the pages in the book bind version might not be that secured unlike in the spiral version. But I guess I was wrong.

Well- sewn and glued for securing the pages :) Can you see the stitch in there?

Another thing with the book bind version is about the coupons. I was thinking before on how will they place the coupons in a way that tearing it off is a breeze. Well, Viviamo made it possible with this:

I hope you can see it. With these, you can easily tear off coupons without ugly edges.

Well, I can finally say that I truly love my Belle de Jour 2011 planner. Not only because I got it for free but because I got to try out the book bind version. It will make help achieve my wish of being good at time management for next year :) Cheers!

See, I told you this post is short. If ever you have any questions regarding the planner. Don't be shy and comment below :D

PS. I think you have noticed that it is only now that I have properly labeled the photos I post. Well, I had this love-hate relationship with my photoshop last week. I think its beginning to conk out on me. Oh well, at least I can now post photos with watermarks in it. I don't like to tolerate people who just acquire the pictures as if it were their own, and do not even acknowledge where they got it. Anyways, I'll be editing my previous posts and add watermarks to my pictures. I do not want to fall prey to these type of people.

'Til my next post guys. Thank you so much for dropping by my page :)

Ciao,

Maddie

Something for 2011 - Belle de Jour 2011

Last Saturday, after arriving at home. A little blue package was lying at the table.

Yey!

I was already expecting that this package would arrive anytime this month after receiving the shipping information in my mail. Actually, I was really anxious in getting it, and I was praying hard that it arrives before the school started (I wanted to be the one who receives the package; signs the paper and happily go inside the house.) I don't know why, but I like the feeling of it, knowing a package was delivered for me. Odd right?

Anyway, so what was inside the package?

Lo and behold! My very own Belle de Jour Power Planner 2011 :)

Eeeekkk! I cannot control my happiness :D

And guess what, I got it for free! Yes for FREE! Thanks to the very generous Bellas from Viviamo who sponsored this contest in Facebook. Luckily, my name was one of those lucky winners who get their hands on the much-coveted and much-awaited planner. Again, thanks to Belle de Jour for this lovely prize.

What else came with the planner? BDJ Lifestyle Card :)

The BDJ Lifestyle card is one of the new treats Viviamo came up for us bellas who love to stay fab and chic with their planner. More info about the card here.

Closer look at the card. Sorry I had to cut this image :( There was a code in here that I think should be kept personally.

But, I don't know what the number was for. I guess it was for the coding of the prizes to be given away. Or maybe it has something to do with activating the card. I guess I have to clarify it with Belle de Jour though.

Now, why did I say that I have to wait for a month for my planner. Before this package came, I was worried that it will take longer than a week for me to receive my prize, because of some error on my tracking number.i received my mail with this tracking number:

I wasted no time and contacted Xend about this matter. Surprisingly, they immediately replied to me the following day (I emailed them during the night because I received the shipping notification at 7:00 pm). I appreciated the fact that they responded to my email and assisted me in my problem. And that their support system actually works! Not that I have experienced courier service whose support does not function, its just that I often read and hear about the existing-but-not-actually-working support system of some websites.

When the package arrived, I noticed that the one indicated in the mail is wrong.

The real tracking number.

Oh well, maybe this is just a slight confusion on the tracking numbers. On the lighter side, I am just grateful that I got my package :) Hooray! For that one.

 But then, as I was taking photos of my newly opened planner, I saw this:

An unsightly deformity of my planner.

It looks like a dent. Sob :(

I don't know how I would deal with this one, but I decided to just let it go. I think of it as a small flaw of my planner which makes it more unique (Although it does not look good, LOL). Besides, I can't let that small dent hinder me from enjoying my very own BDJ 2011. Right :)

Thanks for reading guys!

Maddie <3

Soon: Comparison between an BDJ 2010 and BDJ 2011 :)

A first step into the world of blogging.

Finally!

Since June, I was really thinking about setting up my virtual place. Somewhere I can share my experiences and blog about things that I find interesting. But because of schoolwork and various matters I have to attend to, I only managed to create one today. Yehey! For that.

So, until I familiarize myself with the blogging world, let this be my first greeting to all of you;

Hi! Till my next post.