When I returned to Singapore last Sunday, I was so anxious with my bills to pay. At the table near my room I only saw one envelope and it wasn't a credit memo but a debit memo! Wohoo! It was a notice from NTUC FairPrice that I have received dividend and rebates based from last year's spending with FairPrice and affiliate stores.

Anyway, I received a total of S$35.29 based on my 20 shares and S$755.02 purchases. I thought the rebate was just a joke since it is already September.

By the way, rebates from NTUC FairPrice is only applicable if you're a member of NTUC and a shareholder of at least 20 shares.

Thank you FairPrice! I should do more shopping with Fair Price then!
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I want to start this post with my sincerest gratitude to my relatives and friends especially those who were present during the wake and the funeral. Thank you very much in behalf of my family for all of your prayers and support.

After the funeral last Tuesday, my family had a gathering in Dampa where we had our late lunch. When we returned home, it felt very different. Starting Tuesday night until I left Sunday dawn, we all slept in one room.

Anyway my flight back to Singapore was so early, 4 AM. I left home 2 AM and I only slept 1.5 hours. I was in the airport in a jiff. I went to queue in the check-in counter and was standing there for an hour. When the queue was finally moving, I noticed in the TV screen that my flight was actually 1 hour delayed, nice right?

One good point in the NAIA Terminal 1 is that they have free WIFI. Moving on, I was surprised to see Teresa Loyzaga on the same flight. She was all smile though. I heard that she was going to Perth, Australia. Anyway, the ride to Singapore was great. There were no loud passengers (special mention to loud Indays) and the plane was only half full. I was able to transfer on the row behind my assigned seat. We landed in Singapore exactly 8.10 AM and was feeling sick until now. I hope to get better so I can run and go to the gym. Continue reading this article...

Top 20 Hollywood Movies as of September 26, 2010

1. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
2. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole
3. The Town
4. Easy A
5. You Again
6. Devil
7. Resident Evil: Afterlife
8. Alpha and Omega
9. Takers
10. Inception
11. The Other Guys
12. The American
13. Eat Pray Love
14. Machete
15. The Expendables
Continue reading this article...

Top 20 Hollywood Movies as of September 19, 2010

1. The Town
2. Easy A
3. Devil
4. Resident Evil: Afterlife
5. Alpha and Omega
6. Takers
7. The American
8. The Other Guys
9. Inception
10. Machete
11. Eat Pray Love
12. The Expendables
13. Going the Distance
14. The Last Exorcism
15. Nanny McPhee Returns
Continue reading this article...

I received a text message from my eldest sister this morning. I was able to read it after I went back from my lunch break. In her message, she told me that our father passed away this morning and she was asking for prayers. I was shocked with the news. A month ago my father had a heart attack and he underwent angioplasty. After two days, he already went home to recuperate. My siblings told me that he was weak but recovering well.

Anyway, I had informed my supervisor after a few minutes and I was checking for flight schedules. I bought the tickets for Saturday and I'll be back on Singapore on the 26th. Before 4 P.M., I rushed to the Philippine Embassy to get an OEC (The embassy is closed every Friday and Saturday). I made it in the embassy by 4 P.M. and received the OEC 10 minutes after. After my quick visit to the embassy, I went to Novena Church and prayed for my father. Afterwards, I went to Burger King for a snack.

The remains of my father is situated at Holy Trinity Memorial Chapel, Paranaque City. He will be laid to rest probably on September 21 at the Manila Memorial Park.

Thank you to all of your prayers. To my friends here in Singapore especially my Pinoy officemates thank you very much! Continue reading this article...

After using my Asics running shoes, I have noticed that my right knee was aching badly. I actually don't know if I'm just wearing a wrong running shoes or my right knee can't just take the impact it is receiving when I run. Anyway after the Prison Run, I have decided to rest my knees for a week. The pain went away so I resumed with my running again with my Asics running shoes. Sadly, the pain returned.

This week, I have started using my Nike running shoes with my Nike+ Sensor and Sportband. I felt like a Nike brand ambassador. Har har. Anyway, I noticed that it wasn't as painful when I used Asics. When I got home, I was so excited to upload my running data to my Nike+ account. I have also tried calibrating my sensor.

So far I have two runs for the week with a total of 7.58 kilometers. Tomorrow morning, I will run again at the Yishun Park. My friend told me that one round of Yishun Park is more than 2 kilometers. I hope I can finish again two rounds. Tomorrow will be my last run for the week since I have a 7.5 kilometers run this Saturday.

Tomorrow, I'll be premiering my Cho Pat knee strap. I bought it yesterday after I had my haircut. Hopefully, it will be pain free afterwards! Continue reading this article...

Hey ladies, Haute Avenue returns with the Coach bag 70% Sale. Aside from coach bags, the following brands are also slashed 70% off: Kate Spade, Jack Spade, Juicy and Couture and Marc by Marc Jacobs.

The sale will be on September 18, 2010 from 9 AM - 6 PM at the Safra Jurong, Evergreen Room 3 & 4. Make sure to be early to get the nicest bags.


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Top 20 Hollywood Movies as of September 12, 2010

1. Resident Evil: Afterlife
2. Takers
3. The American
4. Machete
5. Going the Distance
6. The Other Guys
7. The Last Exorcism
8. The Expendables
9. Inception
10. Eat Pray Love
11. The Switch
12. Nanny McPhee Returns
13. Vampires Suck
14. Despicable Me
15. Get Low
Continue reading this article...

Yesterday, I have finally collected the goodie bag for the Nicorette's The Quitters Run at the City Link Mall.  The goodie bag consists of the running shirt, bib number, Johnson's baby milk lotion, Listerine, Neutrogena mask, a gift certificate for a free eye check-up and contact lenses and the race route.  The registration is only S$10 and it was more than what I have received.

Anyway, the Nicorette's Quitters Run is the world's first run that promotes quitting of smoking.  It will be held this Saturday, September 18, 2010, 7 AM at the East Coast Park.  The run is for 7.5 kilometers.  It is open for everyone not only for those who wants to quit.

The registration fee will be donated to the Singapore Cancer Society.

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Yesterday, I had finally registered myself to the Nike City 10K Singapore Race. The race will be on October 24, 2010, 7 AM and the venue is still unconfirmed. They are expecting a total of 12,000 participants and I am very excited to run for the third time. By the way, I am scheduled to run next Saturday for the 7.5K race. Hopefully, my knees will cooperate.

Anyway, when you sign up for the Nike City 10K Singapore Race, you will have the chance to buy the Nike+ Sportband 50% less the price (this promo is only valid for the first 100 participants per designated branches). I have been wanting to buy a watch since last year and this was a great opportunity for me. The Nike+ Sportband not only has a watch but also has a tracking device that records your pace, distance, time and calories burned during a run. The Nike+ Sportband comes with a sensor that you can place inside your Nike Running shoes.

After work yesterday, I went straight to Jurong Point to purchase my newest running gadget. I chose the red color and paid only S$49 something. I already wore it today and I am a bit sad that there are some scratches in the screen. Grrr. I still have to calibrate though the sensor. Hopefully next week since I am still resting my knees.

Happy running everyone! Continue reading this article...

The PsalmiDeo Chorale will have their concert this coming October 10, 2010, 7:30 PM at the Singapore Conference Hall. PsalmiDeo Chorale is an all-Filipino professionals based in Singapore.

They will perform various Filipino songs including Freddie Aguilar’s acclaimed song, “Anak”. Aside from OPM songs, PsalmiDeo Chorale will also perform international pop songs with their distinct Filipino flavour. Expect songs ranging from movie anthems to chart-topping hits.

The concert will run for 105 minutes with a 15 minutes interval. Tickets are sold at $23.00 for assigned seating and $19.00 for free seating. Book your tickets at http://tdc.sg/. Ticket prices are exclusive of booking fee.

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I'm not done yet with my Yellow Ribbon Prison Run experience and to finish it is to share what is inside the finisher goodie bag. By the way, I never expected another goodie bag from the Yellow Ribbon Prison Run.

Back to the goodie bag. It has the following items (if I can recall):

1. bottled water
2. Isotonic drink
3. hand towel
4. banana
5. muffin
6. orange
7. Yellow ribbon sash
8. Yellow Ribbon Prison Run 2010 Finisher memento

The hand towel did its magic since we're all wet. I really like the Finisher memento. It is made of metal and I can definitely keep it forever. Now, my friends and I are thinking of joining the Nike SG vs KL 10KM race, which is on October 24. If I join I will get 50% off the Nike Sportsband and redeem myself with a faster time. Continue reading this article...

Top 20 Hollywood Movies as of September 5, 2010

1. The American
2. Takers
3. Machete
4. The Last Exorcism
5. Going the Distance
6. The Expendables
7. The Other Guys
8. Eat Pray Love
9. Inception
10. Nanny McPhee Returns
11. The Switch
12. Vampires Suck
13. Despicable Me
14. Piranha 3D
15. Avatar: Special Edition
Continue reading this article...

Finally it was judgment day for me for my first ever fun run. I woke up early today, 5:30 if I am not mistaken. The start of the fun run was 8:15 A.M. My friends and I met at Expo MRT and we were in the shuttle bus before 7:45 A.M. The ride to the starting line took us forever. We arrived at the drop off point past 8:15 A.M. and what's so annoying was that freaky rain. We went to leave our baggages first then scouted for the free raincoat. I never expected rain on the day of the run. whatha!

After that, my friend and I looked for the toilet then we lost my other two friends. We did not find any toilets so we headed to the starting point. Before reaching the starting point, we finally found the portalets. After running a few meters, we did our stretching and were back on the race. The first race mark that we saw was the 3 kilometers mark. I was pleased to see some kids cheering with their drums. After a few meters, we saw the drinking station and the cheering teens. The last race mark that I saw was the 4 kilometers mark, which was stationed near the K-9 station of the prison. I can even hear some of the howling K-9s. I think they were cheering for us.

When we reached the entrance of the final destination, I felt so relieved. We reached the finish line in 37  minutes (I think) with the official time of 1:30+. At the right view of the Finish line was the Stage Area. While walking towards the Stage Area, I received a call from my two friends. Apparently, they finished the race minutes earlier than us. When we arrived there, we headed to get our goodie bags and baggages. It's just annoying that they don't have a system in the collection of bags. The queue for the green tags was literally long and it was still raining.

Anyway, I was over-all happy with my run and my knee did not disappoint me this time. I just have to work on with my endurance and resistance.

When I reached home, I hanged my wet clothes, cleaned my wet running shoes, took a shower, took my pain killer then went to sleep.

What's next? 10 km run? Continue reading this article...

Yey, our Bangkok trip this November is finally confirmed. We have been trimmed to two though since my other friend (ehem) had cancelled because of some personal matters. Anyway, our initial plan was to go to Hong Kong but since we're on a budget, Bangkok is now our destination.

We have booked to Tiger Airways, thanks for the air fare sale! We just need to book for the hotel but before that we need to know which tourist spots to go to. I am always inclined in choosing a hotel in Chinatown so the last minute shopping problem wouldn't be a problem. I don't know though is my 300 SGD planned pocket money would be sufficient.

Anyway, last night I did my research on which places to go in Bangkok. Here are some of it:

1. Grand Palace & Wat Prakeaw, 200 baht
Opens daily from 8:30-3:50 PM
Location: Na Phra Lan Road, Old City (Rattanakosin), 9-10 mins from Chinatown
Notes: No slippers, shorts and sleeveless attire

2. Damnoen Saduak Floating Market
Opens daily from 7:00-11:00 AM
Location: Samut Sangkhram Ratchaburi province, 9 mins from Chinatown

3. Wat Pho (Reclining Buddha)
Opens daily from 8:00-5:00 PM
Location: Maharat Road, Old City, 8 mins from Chinatown
Notes: Thai massage for 200 baht per hour until 6 PM

4. Wat Traimit (The Temple of the Golden Buddha)
Opens daily from 9:00-5:00 PM, 9 mins from Chinatown
Location: Traimit Rd., Chinatown

5. Wat Mangkon Kamalawat (Buddhist Temple)
Opens daily from 9:00-5:00 PM, 7 mins from Chinatown
Location: Charoenkrung Road, Chinatown

More to come!

Photo of the Reclining Buddha courtesy of planetware.com Continue reading this article...

There have been numerous sale in Singapore lately and the most awaited IT show has returned. COMEX 2010 Singapore boasts that it is the biggest of its kind with over 820 exhibitors in five entire show floors. COMEX 2010 Singapore will run starting today, 12 P.M. until Sunday, 9 P.M. at Suntec.

You can expect a variety of the latest and hottest gadgets like televisions, mobile phones, computers, laptops, accessories, cameras, storage devices and a lot more.

Get a chance to win $20,000 cash in the raffle draw if you spend at least S$100.

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I have been living healthy lately and I have started eating yogurt two weeks ago if I may recall. I was hesitant to try it here in Singapore since I find it very sour long time ago. My first try was in The Yogurt Place in Ang Mo Kio where I had it with chocolate crumbs.

Anyway for those who doesn't know, Yogurt is produced from the culture of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus salivarius subsp. thermophilus bacteria. It is rich in protein, calcium, riboflavin, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12. And according to my research, yogurt helps in preventing diarrhea. Cool, right? It also promotes healthy gums because of its lactic acid component.

So far, I have tried the following variants from Marigold: Peach Mango, Blueberry, Mixed Berries and Fruit Salad. My favorite so far is Blueberry :)

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