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Author: Noelle De Guzman
FollowVoters Education at SaGuijo
Last week was pretty crazy, what with the corporate seven-day fast at my church, practice sessions for BODYJAM at the gym, and a taping for ShopTV Live. There was one unexpected racket that I received during that week: to host the Voters Education gig at SaGuijo organized by Soniclogo.tv. It featured indie bands such as Drip, Techy Romantics, Wagyu, and Beatbox Philippines as well as a demonstration of the PCOS machine by Gaye Cabalo of Smartmatic.
(PCOS stands for Precinct Count Optical Scan. It can also mean Poly-Cystic Ovarian Syndrome, but you can’t use that to vote with, right?)
The event was sponsored by BagongBotante.ph, IbaNaNgayon.ph, Smartmatic, and COMELEC. It was basically a way to bring awareness of the new way to vote. Check out the websites to find out more.
Azrael was there to cover the event, and he took these great photos of me while hosting:
with Ms. Gaye showing the new ballot design
Paul hired me
I was brought in nearly at the last minute because the original host had to rush someone to the hospital. So I braved the maze-like streets of Makati, ignored the SaGuijo mosquitoes, and pretty much had a great time listening to the bands play from 9:30pm to 3:30am.
Hopefully I get to host more events. Loved loved loved it!
Tags: Voters Education, Event Host
Voters Education at SaGuijo
I hosted the Voters Education gig at SaGuijo organized by Soniclogo.tv. It featured indie bands such as Drip, Techy Romantics, Wagyu, and Beatbox Philippines as well as a demonstration of the Precinct Count Optical Scan machine by Gaye Cabalo of Smartmatic.
The event was sponsored by BagongBotante.ph, IbaNaNgayon.ph, Smartmatic, and COMELEC. It was a way to bring awareness of the new way to vote. Check out the websites to find out more.
with Ms. Gaye showing the new ballot design
With Paul Pajo of Soniclogo.tv
Headshot Clinic Project OneYouth
Last November 14, I joined the Headshot Clinic Project OneYouth shoot sponsored by Globe Tattoo at Cava! in Somerset Hotel, Makati. So I trooped there, was handed a number and a release form (pretty much signing away my rights to use of my face from that shoot), and waited for Niccolo Cosme of Project Headshot Clinic to finish setting up.
We had to decide what advocacy to support: poverty eradication, improvement of education, gender equality and women’s rights, maternal and child welfare, combating communicable diseases, and environmental sustainability. Our advocacies would appear in our headshots. I chose Education because I believe a lot of problems in society are caused by ignorance, lack of ability for independent and analytical thought, and improper civic socialization — all of which can be remedied by proper education.
It was a very simple shoot, with a painted backdrop, one or two light sources, and a bounce board. From what I understand, Niccolo post-processes Headshot Clinic photos a certain way to give them a hyper-real look. He’s already done many other ones, like the One World series which featured my friend Luke, and most recently and prominently UNAIDS MOVE for AIDS awareness, which our very own YogaJane was part of.
We were told that we would be emailed a download link to our photos during the December 2009 launch of the Youth Vote online forums. We were asked to upload our headshots immediately to our social media accounts so that people would be pointed toward the forums. The forums would facilitate discussion leading to the creation of the OneYouth Manifesto, containing the advocacies supported by the youth to be presented to future leaders. It was a very noble cause indeed.
photo by Niccolo Cosme
The photos turned out great, and the shoot was a success. Niccolo was very easy to please and I was done in less than two minutes. I met the lovely Hannah (of Flaircandy.com) there, and she has one of the most beautiful photos from the set, which you can view at the Globe Tattoo website.
The only failing? Lack of follow-through and coordination among the agencies involved. When December rolled around, the Youth Vote forums still hadn’t been launched, our photos hadn’t been uploaded, and Headshot Clinic was busy promoting MOVE. I was finally able to download a low-res version of my photo when the Tattoo website finally updated with our photos on December 15.
Last week, the Globe OneYouth team sent me an email:
Dear OneYouth Ambassador,
Good day!
We have just uploaded your OneYouth Headshot photo online. Your photo contains the advocacy that you support, along with other information about you. Your photo is now free for you to download at the Globe Tattoo site.
To grab your photo from the OneYouth gallery, follow these steps:
- Log in to the Globe Tattoo site with your username and password
- Visit the OneYouth gallery
- Click on “View All” button on the right-hand side of the site.
- Type your name on the search box.
- Grab your widget at the Flash pop-up.
Thank you for your support of OneYouth, and we hope you enjoy your photos. See you guys soon!
Even here I encountered a road block. The website requires a valid email address to release my widget, but won’t accept the email address I supplied them with (which was the email address they sent that message to). I can’t even email the OneYouth team to ask for help, because they sent their email from a noreply address. I’m not even sure if there really is any effective discussion taking place on the Youth Philippines online forum, because the website is so darned hard to navigate.
I hate to come down on Globe like this, but this was a FAIL from my viewpoint. I’m writing this post now because I’m frustrated and I have no idea to whom to address my concerns. I mean, seriously, I signed away rights to my likeness from that shoot, only to have it misused this way? Hay nako…
Tags: Globe Tattoo, Headshot Clinic, OneYouth, Fail
All’s Well That Ends Well
After the brouhaha at the Big Blue Run where my bag was stolen (and later recovered, minus some items), someone from Ateneo contacted me and offered to replace the Havaianas flipflops that had been taken. I took her up on that offer, but since Ateneo closes for the Christmas and New Year holidays, I had to wait.
Yesterday, I picked up my replacement pair from the Blue Eagle Gym. They’re not the model I lost… They’re so much better! These Havaianas are from the current season line-up, so I’m glad they didn’t buy something from the bargain bin. I also received another BBR finisher shirt, even if I didn’t ask for one.
above and beyond a replacement
In a few weeks’ time I’ll also receive a new singlet to replace the one that was taken from my bag. Thank you to the Ateneo University Athletics Office. Now if you guys can release the results of the Big Blue Run, it’d be perfect!
When I lost my bag, I knew that in one way or another God would give me everything back, or something much better. Ü
UPDATE (01/18/2010): I was rummaging through my empty paper bags today and found a Silverworks Big Blue Run pendant in the bag that had contained the Havaianas. I hadn’t been able to grab one of these limited-edition pendants after the Big Blue Run because I thought they’d run out of them. It was really a nice surprise after I thought it had all come to a close. Ü
Big Blue Surprise
UPDATE (01/20/2010): Isn’t this race the gift that keeps on giving? The results were released, and even though the women’s field was small, here’s how I fared:
Top 10, baby!
Tags: Big Blue Run
To Go: My Travel Make-up Kit
I only started wearing make-up regularly last year. While I’ve now built up a good collection of make-up essentials, only a few things wind up traveling with me. The rest stay at home on top of my dresser.
my make-up kit, with a ballpen for size comparison
This kit is small and light enough for me to pack into my gym bag, but contains enough make-up options if I want to change my look.
foundation, concealer, mascara, lip, eyeshadow, blush
The only reason there are so many eyeshadows in there is I can’t bring myself to edit and only bring the ones I use for my everyday look. What if I need a smoky eye? What if I need to contour my nose and cheeks? In fact, the only reason this kit is this small is I hate carrying heavy bags. Otherwise, my packrat instincts come alive.
my brushes
I only have one set of brushes (made of the brushes from two smaller sets), so these slide into a separate compartment in my kit. I bought the majority of them from Landmark Department Store Trinoma (near the generic false eyelashes) and got them for less than P500 pesos. The brushes are soft but pick up product well — I really love them!
So if you see me walking down the street with a made-up face, this kit is the source of it all. What’s in your travel make-up kit?
Tags: Make-up Kit, Kikay
Project 365
Well, it’s a new year and in order to keep growing one must keep challenging herself, right? After watching Helga successfully complete her Project 365 in 2009, I was inspired to do the same — and of course the new camera came just in time for it.
A Project 365 requires you to take one photo a day for the next 365 days. It’s up to you to decide what the subject of your photos will be. Some of my online friends chose to start their 365s on January 1, which is what I did:
(1/365) Morning
I’ve chosen to take either self-portraits or photos of things that are important to me on that particular day. You can follow on Tumblr and suggest themes, provide advice on how to take better photos, comment on how weird I look, etc. In other words, HELP! I’ve got 361 days left!
Tags: Project 365, Flickr, Self-Portrait
Pico de Loro
Just before 2009 ended, I took my last beach trip. Ths time, it wasn’t to Boracay. Instead, my family and I headed to Nasugbu, Batangas. My aunt had acquired a condo unit at Hamilo Coast, a leisure estate being developed by SM Land.
By this summer a ferry will take passengers from the Mall of Asia complex to Hamilo Coast in 45 minutes. For this trip, we had to pack ourselves into our cars and drive four long hours on the SLEX, through the traffic caused by market day in Tagaytay, and over long winding stretches of single-lane road before we finally arrived.
 Pico de Loro Beach Club
Since my aunt’s condo isn’t completed yet, she took us to the Pico de Loro Beach Club instead for a buffet lunch and some activities in the water. The beach was developed by layering lighter brown sand over the natural dark brown sand on that coastline, and any rough rock had either been carted out or smoothed away. There was also a shallow pool and kiddie pool at the beach club, which was our refuge from the many small fish at the beach. For some reason, those fish were overly curious about swimmers, and either nibbled at our skin or swam up our mens’ board shorts. (Gay fish?)
My only scheduled activity when we got there was to soak up the rays, and hopefully get rid of my pallor from being indoors all day. And so that’s what I did right after lunch.
sunbathing near the roofdeck bar
 When I got crispy enough, I amused myself by taking photos of the facilities. There’s even a lifeguard station!
Baywatch?
When the ferry service becomes fully operational, I think I’ll be there more often to get my beach fix. 🙂
525,600 Minutes
The minutes count down and the clock strikes 11:59 on this last day of 2009. It’s hard to believe only twelve months ago I was re-starting this blog. Twelve months ago I hadn’t yet made the decisions that took me through this year — and it has been a rollercoaster of a year, even if I didn’t get it all down in twelve months’ worth of blog entries.
Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you measure, measure a year?
In daylights, in sunsets
In midnights, in cups of coffee
In inches, in miles
In laughter, in strife
I wrote around some personal drama earlier in the year, so some months in the Archived Posts seem less action-packed in terms of content. In reality, those were the months something was going on that I didn’t want to record for myself or others. But I still have so much to thank God for.
It’s time now to sing out
Though the story never ends
Let’s celebrate
Remember a year in the life of friends
Before I take a step into the new year, I’ll take one last glance back. Here are my five favorite posts from 2009.
- Midnight DJ Demon Cellphone Number OBB: A guest role on the TV5 show Midnight DJ landed in my lap. Naturally, I was proud of my work.
- Up and Running for Home: I competed in my first foot race ever. I chose a 10K because I’m macho.
- Slice ‘n’ Scrape: I survived my first (and hopefully last) stye-draining procedure. I will never be a Peeping Tom again.
- The October Fashion Mega-Post: I modeled on a runway and attended Philippine Fashion Week all in the same month, and my sartorial sense is all the better for it.
- A-Okay at the Ukay-Ukay: Thrifted in Manila for the first time. It had me asking, “Why only now?”
Looking at these posts now, I realize I didn’t write about the happiest moments I’ve had this year. I saw my sister fall in love and get engaged to a wonderful man. I’ve never felt more loved by my parents and friends. I have not been deprived of anything I want or need, whether materially, emotionally, or spiritually, because God loves me. Now I understand, it has been a great year.
For next year, my blog entries will reflect more of the love I receive and give.
Oh you got to, you got to remember the love
You know that love is a gift from up above
Share love, give love, spread love
Measure, measure your life in love
(All lyrics from the song “Seasons of Love” from the musical Rent)
Tags: New Year, Retrospective
Cam On!
My camera was stolen a few weeks ago, and while my old Casio Exilim EX-S1 was adequate when I needed simple snaps, it just wasn’t excellent. I was confident we’d be able to buy another camera; I just didn’t know how soon.
The other day, my parents and I were supposed to watch Avatar in IMAX at SM North EDSA. Unfortunately, when we got there all the tickets had been sold out, except for the last show which was far too late for us to attend. So, we went to the Annex building to have dinner instead and bum around. The Annex is home to computer and electronics shops, so we found ourselves browsing for new cameras.
I’ve been looking at product reviews online for waterproof shock-proof cameras, and people have been recommending the Canon PowerShot D10 as the best in its class of point-and-shoot cameras. I didn’t want to get another Olympus (like my previous camera) because of its annoyingly slow capture time and noisy photos at high ISOs (meaning anything above 200). Unfortunately, the PS-D10 is also the most expensive in its class, and all of the stores we went into had priced it at almost p27,000.
I was resigned to getting an IXUS instead because of good reviews and sub-P20,000 price tag. Never mind if it wasn’t waterproof and shock-proof; I’d simply have to be more careful, and we’d just find a waterproof case.
Then we wandered into a store with a sign in the window that announced a Citibank promo. If my mom used her credit card, we could buy a PS-D10 at P18,900 in a Paylite scheme (0% interest for 14 months). Of course, we walked out of there with this baby:
I was able to take the camera during our family trip to Hamilo Coast yesterday, and it performed beautifully above and in the water. Here’s my favorite shot:
If we hadn’t planned on watching IMAX at North EDSA… If we hadn’t been unable to watch… If we hadn’t gone to Annex for dinner… If we hadn’t gone window-shopping… So many factors had to be in place for us to have gotten wind of the Citibank promo on the camera, too many factors to be coincidence. I am just so grateful that everything I’d lost was replaced with better things, all within a month! God is good. Ü
Tag: Camera, Canon Powershot D10