Journal – Shainne Hostalero

Demure Gaming

Like a good book, video games can take you to different adventures where you are in control but with concrete challenges, too. Try and try, because just like in real life, there are villains there, as well. 😉

My first introduction to video games was, of course, the family computer—a classic thing in a somehow privileged household —and growing up with uncles and aunts who were professionals and a parent who was abroad. And then there was PlayStation (PS), the PS1, Game Boy (Classic) the Dreamcast, Nintendo SNES, Wii, PS2, and the PC. My late uncle owned that many—always into something new on the gaming front, but my first-ever owned game console was a Game Boy Color Pikachu edition—exactly like this photo below.

I couldn’t remember if I was 9 or 10 years old when my dad gave us our own Game Boy Color (my kuya got the purple Game Boy Color—he was so kind and understanding as a kid, and more so an adult if I may say, he let me have the Pikachu edition). We used to watch Pokemon every night (there was a time it was shown every night at 7:00 PM, I think on GMA 7, Cyborg Kuro-chan, and Crayon Shin-chan on ABC 5, if my memory serves me correctly).

Usual Game Boy has many games you can choose from—I played Hercules, Smurfs, Mega Man Xtreme, Bomberman Quest, and of course, Pokemon. I have managed to finish Pokemon Gold and Silver, the Crystal Version, the Blue Version, and the Red Version (the Yellow version I am not so sure if I was able to finish). Going back to PS1, since this was one of the consoles we played as kids (and we quarrel the most about with my cousins), we usually played Bust-A-Move, Sonic, Metal Slug, Crash Bandicoot, Pepsiman, Spyro the Dragon, Gran Turismo, Tekken, Need for Speed, and Street Fighter. Looking back, it was fun—of course, unlike most kids today, all these video games are by schedule; most of the time, I read and play with my cousins outdoors (P.S. I had no other playmates growing up except my cousins as I was painfully shy as a kid—and an adult, too, but due to college training and an extroverted career path, I was able to overcome shyness, most of it).

In High School, all the way to college, I became aware of the furthering tech in gaming—PC-based games like Audition, O2Jam, StarCraft, Dota, Counter Strike, and Left 4 Dead, to name a few ones I have tried. Graphics became better, game plays were more precise, innovative controls, and well-thought-out game plots. If we were schoolmates or batchmates in college, I think you’d be able to resonate with how Morayta has changed from having so many computer shops around to random inuman establishments, and now coffee shops. I make it a point to pass by at least once a week to—wala lang, feel the air maybe, and take you back to that nostalgia of when life was so much simpler. Hehe.

Fast forward to the present, one thing that made adulting fun for me is now I can buy games I want with 30% less overthinking. I am used to living alone and, often, since I don’t like going out or traveling much (I have traveled enough to various places in and out of the country to know that I don’t like traveling and that I’d rather stay home hehe), my days were filled with three things: 1) books, 2) video games, and 3) TV series/film. I didn’t own another game console after my Game Boy Color until the pandemic came, I usually play via mobile—simulation games mostly and not so much RPG. Nintendo Switch elevates the experience for me (I like it more than the PS4, as I reflect on it most of the time, probably because of its portability). For a while, like a looooong while, I only played Animal Crossing—there was a good enough reason why it was so hyped, okay?! I usually play the same simulation/farming, and demure games, because they decompress and de-stress me (hindi yata talaga ako pang Final Fantasy kinakabahan ako kapag it’s go time hahaha). PC is also a trusted source of entertainment, I can live without television but not a computer (but I remember I owned an LCD LG TV where I saved movies in a USB flash drive plug it on that TV, and binge-watch TV series and movies).

From Animal Crossing, I also entertained the thought of Asphalt 9 and got hooked. I was quarantined a couple of times during the pandemic (although I didn’t experience being positive for the virus) and Asphalt was a source of joy hehe aside from the other novels I read in isolation. I am not a big gamer myself—big here means the streamer-kind with streamer-rich games like Valorant, Mobile Legends, and the like, but if you just want to be entertained and have an outlet after a stressful day, here are some (mostly demure and cozy) games I currently play that you may want to try too:

Animal Crossing. There is something to the hype of this game that you may try. It is very cozy and cute! Though it is only available on Switch.
Asphalt. Any Asphalt version is okay. I played (and still play from time to time) Asphalt 9 for quite a long time lalo nung pandemic. Maganda na ‘yung Chevrolet Camaro ko diyan, upgraded na. Hehe. Available on Steam and Switch (I guess pati sa PS).
Story of Seasons: Olive Town. I bought this quite recently because I was able to exhaust all things to be upgraded and be done in Animal Crossing. It is a very relaxing game and you’d know more about farming. Hehe. I play this via Switch, I am not just sure if available sa PS4 like Harvest Moon (which is now available via mobile—Android and iOS, it is not free though, around PHP1,000).
Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu. I bought this one too quite recently, natapos ko na, pero hindi siya madali haha, typical Pokemon game where you battle and collect Pokemons, the graphics are so good and the animations are way better than previous versions. There are so many versions of Pokemon already, ito ‘yung kinuha ko na version kasi I know most, if not all Pokemon here. Doon sa mga bago hindi ko na kabisado, hindi ko na kilala. Parang nung nagpunta rin ako sa Japan this year, most displays bagong Pokemons na. Si Pikachu, Eevee, Squirtle nalang yata ‘yung familiar ako doon sa showcased.
NBA2K. Available on PS, Switch, and PC. My main advice is if you are to play via your PC or laptop, download Steam as there are many FREE games that you may try or you may get affordable ones that you may enjoy. Challenging ‘yung mga new control combinations nito sa PS, but of course, it’ll take some time to get used to. Practice practice lang. Pili ka nalang muna ng malakas na team with best roster of players hehe parang GSW ganyan.
Stardew Valley. If you like Animal Crossing, ito yung medyo nauna doon. Available via mobile, PC, and Switch. I’m not sure if this is available on PS. But for me, this is better played via mobile or Switch. It is just slightly harder to navigate via PC, but this is just for me lang naman. So you’ll get rich faster, you may want to concentrate on mining here.
Metal Slug. Nostalgic. Hehe. Meron nito sa mobile, try mo. The 2D version is much better for me.
Super Mario Bros. Anything Mario is good. This is a classic. I bought the Super Mario Bros. Wonder and played it via TV—awesome graphics, splendid effects, easy to navigate and control, too! Worth it! Mapupuyat ka lang. Bawi ka nalang sleep after.
PUBG. Mas okay laruin sa PC hehe ang hirap sa mobile.
Call of Duty. Mas okay laruin sa PS. If you like to download this via Steam on your PC, make sure that you have enough memory space because there are other assets that it will install to ensure that the game functions rather smoothly.
Crash Bandicoot 4. Hindi ko pala ito ni-re-recommend, why do I even write it here. Ang hirap nito! Haha. Go for the Crash Bandicoot 3 nalang or the Classic Warped, not this one. Instead na ma-de-stress ka ma-stress ka pa lalo. Kung may PS1 ka pa, this will bring a lot of good childhood memories.

Some other games that I will try or I’m looking forward to:

Skyrim. I’ve tried this sa PC, okay siya. I think better controls if sa Switch.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus. I have this but I haven’t started it yet.
Mario Kart. Because, again, anything Mario is good!
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. Coming this September 2024
Pokemon Legends: Z-A. Coming next year, 2025.

These are just some demure games (mostly) you can play at your own pace. Like a good book, video games can take you to different adventures where you are in control but with concrete challenges, too. Try and try, because just like in real life, there are villains there, as well. 😉

HBD, Kuya Denz.

It is sad to admit that invites from you will never come again but knowing that you are in a better place now is my consolation.

It’s a riot whenever I think that I have not lost only one Luis in my life, but two. Aside from sharing the same first name, and surname that, both share the same sting. They also share the same cemetery. I, on the other hand, hold a shared pain.

I often wonder what conversations would be like now that I have gained more exposure to the world. I always like to tell my side of stories and haggle about what burgers taste good and in what restaurant or burger joint holds the best. I wonder what we will be doing now and what day in February you’d tell me that I needed to visit because you would have a celebration. I always wait every time, wish it could come sooner, but now I know it would not. It is sad to admit that invites from you will never come again but knowing that you are in a better place now is my consolation.

Maybe people would notice that I am always writing about grief. There is some truth to that. I cannot tell this side of the story verbally and face-to-face with someone because it will tear me up, so I resort to writing thinking that perhaps, it will ease some of my heavy load from that loss. It does.

How’s everything there in heaven, Kuya Denz? Do they have lechon there for your birthday? I have not seen you much in my dreams lately. Are you having fun where you are? You know, whenever I meet someone new, especially someone known or famous, I grab my phone and start to text you, but I remember I can’t, because no one will receive my texts anymore.

This should be a celebratory because it is, by far, your birthday; albeit not here on Earth, but somewhere better, I suppose. I have new jokes now, I have innovated them; I wanted to tell you, but maybe in dreams, or through the wind, or whispers hoping you could hear them.

In the past, I always wished you good health and a long life, so we could eat more burgers. To tell you honestly, I no longer know what to wish for you. I have more favors I need from you or wishes for myself that maybe you can grant (e.g., guide me, give me a funny thing to remember so I’d not be anxious, Lotto number combinations, etc.).

I always think of you whenever I witness beautiful things, new places, and new people. I wish you were here to see all of them or even just hear about them. Life’s boring without you in it. That’s the truth.

Is Papa there with you? Maybe you guys are having fun. I really do not have any idea, but thinking about that could be comforting. I wish I could see you in my dreams again with your oversized blue shirt. Happy birthday, Kuya Denz! I hope you are having a great time up there.

From Roaming Services to Dedication Pages with Papa

Our favorite hobbies to do together were watching news and documentaries and talking about the economy and politics na kung mag-usap kami eh akala mo parte kami ng gabinete.

I was checking roaming subscriptions while having coffee because I was informed that I need to be abroad for several days by the end of the month. It was always pointed out by you that, that’s just how I am–reading everything I can first and getting answers through some help tips on the internet even when I know calling my service provider that I need roaming services from this date to that date is far much easier. And then you’d say, “Don’t be so shy talking to people.”

Papa, I’m happy to report that I’m not that shy anymore.

I always remember your voice asking me questions. I don’t want to forget how it sounds either. But sometimes I wish I could hear you again; even from a stranger who sounds a bit like you just to remind me more. Because there were times it fleets, and I don’t want those memories to slip away. Then I can hear you in my head again, you’d say, “You always remember things,” or sometimes when things get to be too difficult and hurtful for me, you’d say “Forget about them.”

Yes, Pa, I always remember things, and I can’t forget about them.

During a discussion in our technical working group for a project, I was able to share some certifications or professional certifications I had gained and experienced before. It led me to memory in 2015 when I got my Media Literacy certification from an international educational institution and how I told you about it. Funny it was, I told you about what I have learned to become media literate, and you, with a grin, told me that “maybe you should teach me how to use Facebook now.”

Papa, I wish there was Facebook in heaven.

Writing the above paragraphs, I had to pause every ten minutes or so because I kept weeping. I was convincing myself that maybe I was crying because I was just tired, and I knew how the next week and the week after would be more arduous and demanding for me. But I resigned that fact, I was weeping not because I was exhausted, but because this loss, seven months after, felt like a loss just a day past.

I whimpered when I finished my dissertation because finally my doctorate was done, and dog days were over. I wailed when I was to submit my final manuscript and had to write the dedication page. In my master’s thesis, I told you I dedicate it to you, and you said, “Thank you.” I guess, that’s where you always belong—on my dedication page—because it seems always achievable whenever I dedicate what I do to you.

You taught me the value of hard work and to not give up. While there is some sense in always fighting and fighting fair, you also taught me how to “forget about them” and how in the face of adversity, to tell myself initially that “okay lang ‘yan,” and later sob and be reminded that I have emotions too no matter how strong I can be because “I always remember things.”

A lot of people think that losing someone you love can make a special occasion so difficult. It is true. But not all would dare say that the every day and the most mundane things could be harder and bring you back to yesterday’s pain. Maybe it was just roaming services for them, but for me, it meant a lot more than just subscribing to it whenever I was away. Aside from I could be reachable by people in the office or in my enterprise, or my friends, that roaming service was the reason why I could text or call you whenever I was abroad.

Facebook was a lost cause for you, as we did not power through learning to use the platform when you were still alive. Because you said so yourself, “It’s too complicated, text nalang kita.” And sure, of course, I always waited for your texts, and even more so, your replies.

Even if there is Facebook in heaven, it’s sad that I still won’t be able to reach out to you. I wish my roaming services could text and call you then. But more importantly, I wish my prayers could lead you to the most beautiful places, just like how your prayers did for me. I miss you every time, Papa. To you, I dedicate every page.

P.S.

Luis A. Lim, my grandfather or Papa to me, died last July 8, 2023. He funded my schooling from kindergarten to college, honed me, and disciplined me to be the person I am today. Our favorite hobbies to do together were watching news and documentaries and talking about the economy and politics na kung mag-usap kami eh akala mo parte kami ng gabinete.

After he died, I did not watch the news anymore, I just read them. The news on TV (or any digital streaming outlet) reminds me so much of his demise. Seven months after his passing, a lot has changed but never the pain I felt when I lost him. Maybe I wrote this because that said pain demands to be felt and I like to feel it, because as painful as it may be, it reminds me so much of the good times we spent together.

Papa is the first person who made me feel I’m likable as a human being even as a painfully shy and always misunderstood kid. He taught me the necessary principles to have to get on this life. Looking back, I’m glad I have listened, because life turns out better for me (I guess). Albeit it’s imperfect and difficult at times, I’m blessed to have witnessed good things and become a good force of nature even in my own little way. That’s how Papa was for me.

Tambiz Ideazpark 2022

Better late than never. Thank you, TamBiz!

I am probably a year too late for this post. Still, looking back through the years of hard work and opportunities, I can never forget the first time in many years I was back in my college Alma Mater, Far Eastern University-Manila, Institute of Accounts, Business, and Finance (IABF)–this time as a resource speaker.

Albeit more than a decade into my college graduation, I was happy to serve and give back in any way I can to the institute that has been part of my journey not just as an entrepreneur, but as a human being. I was happy to be in touch with my former professors whom I looked up to and still look up to until now, who disciplined me and taught me all essential things they knew, for me and for all of us to be able to make it in different fields we wanted to pursue after college.

Tambiz, an event handled by the Department of Business Administration, FEU-IABF, is an exhibition showcasing innovative products by business students.

Ideazpark is one of the highlights of the event, inviting different speakers from different facets of entrepreneurship to share insights, stories, and experiences to business students hoping to create new breed of different entrepreneurs.

Alongside other Entrepreneur Champions (I still feel an impostor to this day being called either an entrepreneur or a social entrepreneur even), I was able to share my humble beginnings as a social entrepreneur and founder of Happy Shift PH. I was once a student attending and even organizing this kind of event by the institute and now realizing that I am already one of the speakers is a humbling experience for me.

My VelociTalk

Happy Shift has gone through many transformations, setbacks, and successes through the years. For almost ten years, it has survived the pandemic and various hurdles common businesses often endure and how social enterprises survive in the midst of challenges and other trials. Having your own business, a social enterprise at that, is not an escape to any corporate or academic work, but an addition to it–even harder if I may say so. Hours are longer, difficulties are double, but rewards are limitless. Did I follow my passion? Yes. Did it make me happier? Yes, no doubt. Was it easy? NO.

I know many business owners can resonate that there is always that time in your entrepreneurial journey when you wanted to quit. Quitting could be a possible solution, but it does not fill the void, though there is nothing wrong with that as well. For almost a decade, I strive to be a better version of me through my social enterprise, doing everything for a purpose and campaigning for a social cause. Blessed are the few who inherit a business or have a huge capital to begin with, but the lack of it would not be a sole excuse why you cannot commence whatever it is you dream of. Is money important? YES, no doubt, but willingness and the heart to pursue are what more essential for you to get where you want to be.

I always say whenever I was invited to speak that:

Nothing is ever easy, even with the things you love doing.

Do not lose heart in the face of challenges no matter how difficult it is. Sometimes, you have to take one step backward for you to be able to move two steps forward. You may want to ignite it within your core and see what you want to do things differently.

You can always begin with something small. It does not have to be big on the onset. Gradual growth is better so you’d know how to calculate various risks and strategize in every difficulty.

Make sure that you surround yourself with people who are happy for your endeavors and who are there for you in your lowest. It is easier to be friends with people when you are successful and when you already have something to offer, or to provide; but the people who see you in your poorest and in your most challenging times deserve to be on your side during your happiest or most successful episode. What if no one is there? Then so be it. Whilst no man is an island, you can best rely on yourself with things you are able to survive. This is the reason why you have to also prioritize yourself, too.

Do not be threatened with people doing better than you. Instead, get inspiration from them because they, too, had hurdled through the difficulties to get where they are now. You cannot compare the success of someone to your very own; for everyone has their own timeline to begin with. While you are foreseeing the future, you should also enjoy your journey so you have something to look back from whether you have made it or not. Failure is part of every process. Not everything will work out fine. This very lesson will give you access and an opportunity to be more creative, innovative, and resourceful for new ways on how you can be better.

I know these are all easier said than done because there will be days when you feel like you are not yourself anymore. But always remember that it is worth the fortitude.

I know I have paid my respect and gratitude to the people behind Tambiz 2022, but it still worth mentioning them again here:

Thank you, Dr. Joey Tem, my ever-supportive and excellent professor in my many courses during college. I appreciate all the discipline and the lessons that you have imparted to me through the years and I am one of those lucky ones that could say are blessed to have you as their professor. IABF is lucky to have a dedicated professor like you who always showcased excellence and uprightness in everything you do.

I’m grateful also to Prof. Madonna Tejada, my then Microeconomics professors, who is also very successful with her craft now. Your dedication to the art and science of teaching and ensuring that your students learn are commendable.

To the student leaders and committees of Tambiz and FEU-IABF, kudos to taking the first step of being excellent. Being a student leader is not an easy feat to do simultaneous with the rigor of studying and serving your fellow students. The fruit of such labor will be sowed in time when you are already working or starting your own business. Being intelligent or smart is one, but being a leader is another. The latter is more rewarding as it leads you to different places, to different people, and to various learnings textbooks could not even fully verbalize. The opportunity to influence and to inspire people are the most powerful and empowering to do in this lifetime.

Welcome to my little space!

This debut vlog is just short to scratch an itch of creating a vlog and gaining another skill in video editing. Hoping I can do more and have more confidence to upload more then.

In an attempt to save all memories (no matter how ordinary they may be), I will upload snippets of my regular days and/or experiences to my YouTube channel and, of course, share them on this blog as well–as there are things better written, just like our favorite book.

This debut vlog is just short to scratch an itch of creating a vlog and gaining another skill in video editing. Hoping I can do more and have more confidence to upload more then.

COMMOOS: A Collection of Hard Thoughts and Perspectives

Commoos is a collection of hard thoughts and perspectives that appear during daily encounters and rather pondered based on the strength of communication as its core. Its objective is to reflect, compile, and share contexts that are sometimes muted in the sea of one’s leaning.

Birthing this project through often encounters of what’s next for me after my doctorate. Many people would just want to finish. To tell you the truth, I was once one of those people. However, there is a certain joy in finishing and all the more enjoyment in going through the process. I have read somewhere that when you are passionate about something the journey is more important than its endpoint; and in a way, I can totally agree.

I always say that I tell my stories because I don’t want to forget them and all the more, I don’t want my stories to forget me. Devoid of concrete direction though rich in reflection, I walk towards scaling up myself and taking on a challenge. Through Commoos, I know that it will be a perfect repository of my hard thoughts and perspectives that may or may not keep me up at night, as well as the interactions I have in days I power through as an introvert with an extroverted career.

May this latter part of 2023 be the beginning of something new as we don’t let the new year be the only sparkle for us to pursue something we were so scared to do before—but then braving it through now because we want to share and tell a part of the world that we, too, are experiencing the same.

Communication has played a vital role in spearheading where my life and career are headed. It was a determinant factor of my weaknesses that I turned into strengths. It flipped me through the battles I could have won but didn’t because I was so afraid to pivot. It elevated me like the growing mediums or platforms that opened me and broke me at the same time.

We communicate every day—in everything we do. Communication is not only through words but also through actions, happiness, pain, and tears. Every aspect of our lives requires us to communicate whether proper or not—one’s thoughts are necessary to build something that cores on the inside and proceed to shell to know where the action is necessary or not.

Some may wonder why communication is even a major and why it is necessary in the most crucial of times. Communication is not just a supporting aspect of degrees and fields, but rather an essential part of them that we should also focus on.

In a commitment to hold forth the stories and learnings in my current and past encounters, Commoos will be a regular mainstay in ww.shainnehostalero.com as part of my work as a communication scholar. In the bundle of life and its chaos, I will try my best to commit to at least one 500 to 800-word article per week starting December 2023 or bi-monthly at the very least. Questions and feedback will be welcomed, too, as part of the communication process.

Apart from such commitment, I am also more committed to furthering my research work through the forms of synthesis papers, journal articles, case studies, review articles and interpretative/interpretive research. In this new chapter, I aim to practice and improve my knowledge and understanding in the field of communication and my other substantive areas like business/entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing, and development.

About Commoos

Commoos is a column that centers on communication editorials on leadership, business, marketing, and development. The column aims to share insights from the communication standpoint as transparent as possible that students and professionals can resonate or identify with.

Goodbye, Bing-a-ling.

Goodbye, Bing-a-ling. Hope you’re better there than you were here.

^{Featured image from CNN / NBC/GettyImages}

I was a month post-partum when I first binge-watch Friends, though not my first time watching it then. I usually see some of its episodes on cable TV, but not on the sequence as it usually airs depending on the network.

Since that month after I gave birth, I am not sure anymore how many times I have seen that TV series that saved me in more ways possible. It did save me from myself, too, no matter how others might see Friends — for a time, it was all I could do, and I would not have done it any other way, anyway.

It shattered me to pieces to know that Matthew Perry has passed. Like what he has said in his memoir (which I pre-ordered when the word first got out) when he dies everyone will be shocked but no one will be surprised. His life, I imagined, while full of fame and money, has not been easy. In a way, I can resonate, and in a way, I am with him, even in spirit.

Matthew Perry, famously known as Chandler Bing in Friends, brought me so much laughter and reflection. Like him in the series, I was awkward, too; and like in real life, I have some sort of insecurities as well. He gave me so much to lean on as a human being and as a mother. He then, was part of my daily life, as I binge-watch the series and ensure I finish episodes no matter how much I memorize or am familiar with their next lines. It was a rest for me, it was a recreation, too.

You see, we have lost so many people in our lives, and we might wonder to whom we feel sad. Maybe it was a sadness and grief that has always been quietly staying there and coming out whenever something like this happens. But, while it was a discourse in my head, I know that part of me has dented with Matthew Perry. There was a memory given to me about the things I felt then and how I survived them that also died and went with him as he took on the next leg of his journey. I cannot put a word to it, really, but it was something sad and hollow, but evolved into something vibrant and happy, knowing that there will be no more pain — only relief that this is all over for him.

Goodbye, Bing-a-ling. Hope you’re better there than you were here.

What advice would you give to your teenage self?

There is more to life than what it is, tomorrow is always another day. At least for me.

What advice would you give to your teenage self?

Move on and do it quick.

As a teenager, I usually overthink stuff, and get so attached to every feeling and emotion, most especially to the ones that pain me–without even realizing then that emotions are fleeting and challenges are always at bay no matter how much you aren’t in favor of it.

Whether it is about a relationship problem, a failed examination, or a family matter, I always think it through assessing what went wrong and put rather huge blame on myself–taking accountability for whatever had happened. When I entered my early 20s, I may have gotten it all wrong, still; but I slowly rebuilt everything that I felt needed to change, it wasn’t perfect and it still isn’t, and it will never be, I’m sure of that, but whenever there’s a break point, I know what I can do and cannot do now–I move on and I do it quick. There is more to life than what it is, tomorrow is always another day. At least for me.

Nostalgia

It was between 2004 and 2008, Jango Radio was on; was it Paramore that was playing or Keane’s new single? I remember Grey’s Anatomy on Studio 23 and the smell of Starbucks along SLEX and my unsureness of a college degree program to take because I’m painfully shy of some sort.

I cannot describe the feeling as it can also be felt. I wish it is transferable, then maybe we can further understand each other better. Today brought me back to how it was when I came across a post by Barbie Almalbis still rocking the tunes that made me learn how to play the guitar and for once, made me want to be in a band. At her 45th, she still has it, it was like nothing has changed when everything has, really.

I remember that dial-up connection in a Windows 95 then later on upgraded to Windows XP. That 5mbps internet wireless connection I raved about because of how efficient it was during that time in my old Lenovo laptop that I used to tape because its ribbons were already loose and even destroyed. Those days when I felt lucky I have a 2GB flash drive for my college papers, diskettes, and CDs for other files and installers. That Php50 CD burning service I used to save money on.

As I recall, at 16, I have high hopes for myself albeit clueless of what was going to happen to me. I am still quite clueless now, I don’t have it all figured out, at least not yet, I hope. But, sometimes, I wish I could dream and revive the journals I kept before. What was it like in 2004? How about in 2007? or those days in 2002? Was 2008 a life-changing year for me? Or was it 2005? What about when I was blasting my earphones on Blue (Da Ba Dee) by Eifeel 65 in 1999? We cannot go back, that is for sure, but sometimes it is just good to remember that things that have forgotten.

Something New this 2023!

Me and my lifestyle blogging career like a true sociable person that I’m not really am (but trying!)

Hello, you!

Just to share, like many of you, I’m thankful for another year. I’m grateful for life even if it is hard on us, sometimes. What we go through each day is not even a joke and must not be taken lightly, as we have our own battles — whether known and sometimes, more importantly, when in silence.

In my previous post, I said that I wanted to renew blogging. It’s therapeutic even though it seems it is so 2thousand-and-late. It wasn’t the early 2000s anymore; in fact, as you think about it, it was over two decades ago, and there, life and time flew by so fast.

With this predicament, I’d like to not overshare, but to document my experiences and how I live my life albeit boring hehe, my homecooked meals and recipes (so I have something to look back to because I always lost the papers I wrote the recipes in). I’d like to document it now because 1. I already have the time (quite! hopefully), and 2. and my main reason: ultimately help (in any way) one or two people through the things I post.

I am very excited to begin like it was in 2010! Hehe. See you around!