for your advice

for seven long years, i have admired him, dreamt of him, loved him - unrequitedly.

when opportunity knocked, with a work at ortigas, at the same building where he's working, i grabbed it. it does not matter whether our offices are located at different towers. for as long as there remains, even a thin probabality of, a chance to see him.

the first time i saw him, i shivered. he was at the east tower canteen with his officemates, i suppose. and i think he did not see me.

the second time, my batchmate eric and i paid his officemate a visit, who happens to be eric's crushie. he saw me, but i don't think that he found out that i was working at the same building as he is.

the third time, was two mondays back. after the practice group meeting, tria, jen and i hurried home. it was past 7pm. i saw him, like one dream, as if he was floating right before my eyes. he walked past me as he turned left. he was walking so fast that i have to drag tria and jen. finally, at the intersection, he stopped, and apparently at a loss as to where he would go. i did not say hi to him. i was afraid, so nervous, my heart kept pounding (even til i reached home). he saw me.

the fourth time was monday last week. 7pm again. saw him smoke at the steps. he saw me, i guess. his mere throwing me of a glance was enough to keep me sane last week.

then last friday, as i was heading back to the office from my friday detail at the client, i saw a red jeep which i associated with "dags" (niq pretty knows a lot about him). i saw the vehicle enter pearl drive and when i alighted from the fx, and was about to cross --- it was as if it's a scene from those movies, i saw him! he was the one driving the red jeep. luckily, i was still sane enough to get his plate number (stalker ba?) and was able to cross the street safely. i waited for him at the lobby to confirm whether it was really him. it's him indeed.

you see, i was more than infatuated with this guy. he epitomizes the "one", that one with whom i was willing to take the risk.

the caveat though, is that he has a gf.

i would really, really want to talk to him about all what i feel for him. just that. no expectations. but i am not so sure whether i'd make a go.

what do you think?

firm gimmicks

how's the firm?

• this march 3, the firm will be heading off to manaoag to formalize its pilgrimage to be an annual tradition. this year will be the second. aside from giving thanks for the blessings (read: profits) given last year, we will also join ren and celline, our underbar associates from ateneo, to pray for a successful outcome of their bar exams. afterwhich, we will be billeting at the fontana leisure parks for some rest and fun... i was tasked to head the organization of the event and was a bit apprehensive about accepting the task. why not? it means responsibility for everyone's enjoyment. hehehe. i was busy finalizing the reservations last week, calling up the transpo for the coaster, making projected expense reports and planning the itinerary. i just hope that everything turns okay.

• last february 16, we had our monthly fellowship night. a vote was cast this time as to what the activity will be. the choices are: (1) cinema, (2) bowling, (3) concert, and (4) comedy bar. votes were taken and the first choice got an overwhelming number of votes. the third choice was a bit costly din kasi. afterwhich, we had a vote as to what movie to watch at shangrila. i forgot what the options were. but since we do not want the boys to be bored and that the only movie shown at the "premiere" is ghostrider, we went for that one then. the movie is a no-brainer. if i was the one who paid for my ticket, i would definitely have gone amuck. sure, nicolas cage is still a hottie (but that scene wherehe showed his bod, totoo ba yun?) and eva mendes' curves still enviable; kaso the story really sucks. jen and i just had ourselves amused by me throwin Qs whether johnny's arrest was lawful, or whether he can be held criminally liable or what was the crime committed. hehehe. to which jen naman would entertain, hehehe. since we had a heavy merienda at the office prior to watching, the girls went off to starbucks-shang, the boys at croc grill, and the lone partner who was able to join us that night went home. twas fun. siyempre libre e.

• i was handling this case for a boss, pro bono. bp22. didnt file a counter-affidavit! dang! but then, i had to stop worrying. as long as may remedy, di ba niq? hehehe. true enough, what you stuffed your head with during law school is a meager 1/4 of what you need for practice. 3/4 comes from experience.

• lit(litigation) work starting to increase. can't be happier. oh i miss lit! it's like PAV; the more it shows its non-affection towards me, the more i get close to it. pagpilitan ang sarili. and i don't care! =)

• free lunch starting tomorrow.

• and oh, petition for tax shield seemed to be denied.

nth hiatus

i was swamped with work last week that i wasn't able to post an entry.

a week prior to that, i was feigning to be busy doing something. came monday, when i was called left and right to do this and that. i complained to both tria, my roommate, and jen, a fellow associate and also a batchmate from beda, that i wasn't doing anything then, that i was bored...until monday.

i was now wondering whether there are spycams around. hehehe. :)

the wannabe's

Here goes the senatorial aspirants for the 2007 elections:

(i think the order in which the names were encoded in this site is according to the order when they filed their respective certificates of candidacy)

1. LOZANO, Oliver O. - KBL - Lawyer - 66
2. CHAVEZ, Melchor G. - KBL - Journalist - 55
3. PINERA, Rummel M. - Independent - Businessman - 35
4. RONQUILLO, Daniel M. - Imee Marcos/Boy Abunda - Automotive Electronic, Pinoy Rock Singer, Composer - 46
5. AQUINO, Theodore M. - Independent - Civil Engineer - 58
6. ATIENZA, Arturo - Independent - Businessman - 61
7. ESMERALDA, Julieto Jr., O. - Independent - Pastor/Businessman - 53
8. TIQUI, Camilo V. - Independent - Retired Military Pilot, Farmer - 71
9. BRIGGS, Buenafe A. - Independent - Semi-Retired - 56
10. VILLANUEVA, Vicente - Independent - Businessman - 42
11. COMBATE, Amado C. - Independent - Discoverer/Inventor - 65
12. FORTES, Alfredo A. - Independent - Caretaker (Backyard Piggery) - 49
13. ANCHETA, Juanito Jr., B. - Independent - Mason, Carpenter - 39
14. ORPILLA, Eduardo F. - KBL - Retired PNP Officer/Businessman - 59
15. HASHIM, Mujahab A. - KBL - Self Employed - 63
16. BULANON, Silverio - Independent - Security Services - 50
17. ESCUDERO, Francis Joseph G. - Nationalist People's Coalition - Lawyer/Representative, 1st District, Sorsogon Province - 37
18. GUILLERGAN, Gherry - Pro-Preamble (Pabukas) - Perpetual Versatile Scientist - 44
19. ROCA, Cesar - Independent - Seaman, Tricycle Operator - 47
20. ROQUE, Benjamin - Independent - Jobless - 54
21. RAMIRO, Vincent M. - Independent -Bachelor Degree in Agriculture/Secondary Educ.-30
22. PIMENTEL, Aquilino Dela Llana - PDP Laban - Lawyer - 43
23. CLAUDIO, Felix D. - Independent - Self Employed - 65
24. PONCEE-DEE, Remedios B. - Independent - Developer,Writer - 63
25. ENCISO, Ruben C. - KBL - Journalist - 59
26. TRILLANES, Antonio IV., F. - Independent - AFP Officer - 35
27. SANTOS, Victor L. - Independent - Self Employed - 55
28. HONASAN, Gregorio B. - Independent - Former Senator - 58
29. TUAZON, Elpidio G. - Independent - Teacher III, Consultant Gamesman - 61
30. MALUENDA, Severo Jr., L. - Independent - Agriculturist - 71
31. ESTRELLA, Antonio L. - KBL - International Lawyer - 56
32. ZUBIRI, Juan Miguel F. - Lakas Christian-Muslim Democrats- Legislator/Businessman -37
33. COSETENG, Anna Dominique - Independent - Businessman - 54
34. PASTORAL, Genaro R. - Independent - Seaman - 41
35. LEGARDA, Loren - Nationalist People's Coalition - Journalist - 47
36. AQUINO, Benigno Simeon III C. - Liberal Party - Congressman, 2nd District Tarlac - 47
37. OSMENA, John Henry C. - United Opposition - Real Estate Investor - 72
38. SENINING, Loreto Y. - Independent - NONE - 33
39. OROZCO, Wilhelmina S. - Independent - Writer-Media Practitioner - 56
40. BAUTISTA, Martin D. - Ang Kapatiran - Physician - 44
41. SISON, Adrian O. - Ang Kapatiran - Lawyer, Broadcaster - 50
42. PAREDES, Zosimo Jesus II - Ang Kapatiran - Lawyer/Government Official - 58
43. REMOTO, Danton R. - Ladlad - Associate Professor in English, Ateneo University, Xavierville - 43
44. PICHAY, Prospero Jr., A. - Lakas-CMD - Congressman - 56
45. ABITONA, Orlando C. - Independent - Farmer, Public School Teacher - 69
46. ROCO, Sonia M. - Aksyon Demokratico - Educator - 62
47. SOTTO, Vicente Castelo III - Nationalist People's Coalition - Businessman/TV Host - 58
48. ORETA, Teresa Tao Aquino - Nationalist People's Coalition - Legislator - 62
49. CAYETANO, Joselito P. - KBL - Marine Engineer - 41
50. ARROYO, Joker Paz - Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino - Lawyer - 80
51. CANTAL, Felix C. - PGRP - Economist/Businessman - 57
52. LAGATA, Merlito - Independent - Retired AFP - 63
53. PANGILINAN, Francis N. - Liberal Party - Lawyer, Incumbent Senator - 43
54. RECTO, Ralph Gonzalez - Lakas - Senator - 43
55. PETILLA, Carlos Jericho L. - Lakas CMD - Provincial Governor - 43
56. ANGARA, Edgardo Javier - LDP - Senator/Lawyer - 72
57. DEFENSOR, Michael Tan - Lakas CMD - Businessman/Former Public Official - 37
58. MAGSAYSAY, Vicente P. - Lakas - NONE - 67
59. SINGSON, Luis Crisologo - Lakas CMD - Provincial Governor, Province of Ilocos Sur - 65
60. LACSON, Panfilo Morena - United Opposition - Senator - 58
61. GOMEZ, Richard Icasiano - Nationalist People's Coalition - Businessman - 40
62. CAYETANO, Alan Peter S. - Nationalista Party - Lawyer/Congressman - 36
63. VILLAR, Manuel Bamba Jr. - Nationalista Party - Senator - 57
64. KIRAM, Jamalul D III - PDSP - Businessman - 68
65. CABRERA, Rafael - Independent - Businessman - 62
66. DEL MUNDO, Gerardo - Independent - Lawyer - 65
67. BER ADO, Bonifacio B. - Independent - Auto Mechanic - 63
68. TAYCO, Marcelo R. - Independent - Barangay Chairman, Pasay City - 57
69. WOOD, Victor - KBL - Actor/Singer - 60
70. JOSON, Dante - Independent - Civil/Geodetic Engineer - 47
71. ONGKIKO, Mario E. - Ang Kapatiran - Lawyer - 75
72. PASTOR, Macariola A. - Independent - Insurance Salesman - 84
73. RODRIGUEZ, Romeo - Independent - Engineer - 48
74. BOQUIA, Jocelyn R. - Independent - Insurance Underwriter, Office Secretary - 38
75. ROBES, Jose - Independent - Businessman -72
76. FLAMINIANO, Eduardo - People's Reform Party - Lawyer - 73
77. TAJANAN, Francisco - Independent - Ph.D. in Economics, Consultant, Professor - 74
78. CAPULAN, Elizabeth - Independent - Bachelor of Science in Nursing - 52
79. MENDEZ, Agapito Jr. - Independent - License Broker - 62
80. PO, Manuel A. - Independent - Businessman - 70

credit goes to www.bagongbotante.com (an interesting and informative site especially for this year's elections) :)

o take your pick na! a variety to choose from, literally and otherwise.

valentine's day = a heart-less day

valentine's day is...

"...overrated, just like the law profession!" - jen, my officemate

and i couldn't agree more.

alternative means of campaigning

two weeks ago, i was faced with a what-if query which i could not answer.

"can a candidate for election use friendster and text messages (a.k.a. sms)

as means of campaigining for the 2007 elections?"

neither roomie tria nor i was able to answer this query. no comelec resolution can be found which addresses this issue (or did i miss it lang?).

anyway, as i was devouring my lunch while surfing the net (hehe, net-ganid), i saw this site which confirmed my what-if query. it happened talaga. a few candidates have friendster accounts and uses this as a means of campaigining. sobrang innovative ah. and why would they not avail of it? one, it is for free, no costs at all. second, it is very convenient since the presence of the candidate himself is not required. he can even have one of his asssitants monitor it. and third, the variety and number of people friendster can reach is, i must say, limitless.

with that, i jumped off my friendster account and hit the search key.

number one, chiz escudero, voila!!!

http://www.friendster.com/chizescudero

number two, kiko pangilinan... and, tadaaa!!!

http://www.friendster.com/senkiko

in fairness, mabilis na-approve ni chiz yung invitation ko! =p (yeah, i sent them an invite!)

i will let you know if there will be other candidates who'll use this alternative scheme to get people's, rather, "co-friendsters' votes".

happy!!!

hahaha!!! i am deliriously happy caused by "events" in my life for the past two days and both happening at around 7:00 pm.

go figure! :)

back to "school"

for two saturdays now, i am back to being a "student".

as mandated by the supreme court, all lawyers have to comply with 12, 24 or 36 units as part of the mandatory continuing legal education. not one is spared from it; lest, he or she will be subjected to sanctions.

right now, i have 6 units left for my 12-unit requirement. i had 4 units borne out of kabibahan which jen, tria and i thought of availing since they might be beneficial to us and our practice. the first two units was respecting legal writing by court of appeals presiding justice ruben reyes. the other two units was about oral advocacy by court of appeals justice magdangal de leon.

i must say i was impressed with justice de leon's talk. not only was he able to open my eyes to what lies ahead of me insofar as litigation practice is concerned, he also subjected my fellow associates and i to embarassment. we just happened to be seated on the first row since we came in after the first lecture since we do not need it anyway. we were asked from our age (which he guessed to be 26 ah, hehe) to whether we are bagong-pasa or not and whether we are married already. haaayyy...

at the end of the talk (and even while he was on it), i was thinking whether i am indeed fit as a barrister or as a solicitor... after an analysis of the "traits" required, and in the absence or lack of mental acuity on my part, i feel as if i'm not cut to become a litigation lawyer after all.

sad, but it's a reality.

pissed

oh, yeah, i got pissed this day din pala.

the first one, i do not even have an iota of right to feel irked, annoyed, pissed whatsoever. but i felt it e. a friend told me something about a former flame told her, which surprised me. and what surprised me even more is that, i felt annoyed and pissed. sometimes talaga i feel that he shouldn't have pursued me then. tuloy di nya na-pursue that person. sometimes i feel that he was just coerced, influenced and forced into pursuing me. to make it simpler, napilitan ata. haay. :(

then there's this other person whom he feels i am at his beck and call. yeah, i truly appreciate your being candid BUT there is always a proper venue for that. i am a career-oriented person BUT i can commit given that a person possesses the characteristics that would make me lay my hands off work to spend time with someone. sadly, i can sense that you are not that one. why demand in the first place? why aren't you patient as you are supposed to be? two things i've proven. one, if you and another person do not share a common ground, that'll be a difficult situation to be at. and second, most men suck. they are superficial beings with no regard for substance and chivalry, even in phone conversations hardly exist nowadays (let's be more specific. alex told me before that a guy must be the last to put the phone down, even if it was he who was called.). hay.

i am off to my duty at our client tomorrow morning. a mediation conference in the afternoon (with the lolo mediator). hay, no more pop quiz sana tomorrow at the client's office (which by the way, is a hospital). and may tomorrow be not so stressful kasi it's another mcle-day this saturday from 10 til 4.

hay, sana nag-artista na lang ako.

UPS dinner

oh, yeah, lest i forget, let me tell you about how the dinner with my UP friends-slash-orgmates went.

last night, me, twinks, blue, anna and her bf richard met at greenbelt and devoured the lovely meals served us at the kitchen. the food was served in a gigantic plate and mala-pala spoons, as in; and the meals were named creatively, mine was "undercover". (there was "i say tomato, you say tomato" for a red-sauced pasta; "barbie's cue" for the meal with three sticks of meat in it.) my "undercover" was chicken wrapped in mala-palaspas something, with chili sauce and pandan rice. their version of iced tea rocks, imagine it tasted like sago and gulaman, minus the sago and gulaman. hehe. tap water from the resto looked fancy as well. it was served in champagne bottles with mint leaves in it. we laughed to our hearts's content, more specially about anna and her mom's dog, a meek doberman,beat that.

as we finished our meals, and after hitting off with the restroom (which, by the way, didn't suit my taste, masikip e), we fed our curiousity as to the parang salt served in a mini-platter on our table. we thought it could be (a) salt talaga; (b) shabu, hehe; or, (c) tawas. the waiter said that salt daw yun, placed there as condiment.

i promise to go back there. nice place, yummy meals, creative ideas. try it at greenbelt or at galleria.

then we had coffee. i changed my name to "angel" hahaha!!! ask my friends why. it took the best actress in me not to laugh as the barista called me. hehehe. then a good talk ensued.

a friend was having problems with the status of her child. the family code is indeed one code of loopholes. you see, this friend conceived and gave birth to her child before reaching the legal age. she got married to the father of the child later on (they wanted to spend their own money for their wedding, galing no!). yet you know what, she has to file a petition in court to rectify the status of her child. a petition to adopt!!! w-e-i-r-d!!! this is due to the requirement in the family code daw that for a child to be legitimated by subsequent marriage of his/her parent, dapat no impediment, including the age impediment. haay.. imagine you have to adopt your own child!!! absurd!

then the talk shifted to petitions for change of name. hay sobra we are so bad with how we howled monstrous laughters at other people's names. for the protection of the surnames concerned, leave me a message, kwento ko na lang personally, hehe.

miss going to UP tuloy. minus the tuition fee hike ah.

unlawyerly

a friend confided about some breach of promise yesterday afternoon. napaka-unethical what has been done to her, swear. yet, we advised her to see through the event as a message from God that probably her decision will not work so He made the move Himself. painful but, it's better than taking the leap and jumping off the deadly cliff.

friend, we are just here for you. let us just think about this in a constructive manner.
God is wise, He will not lead you through this if He knows that it will not be for your good.
you don't deserve them.
they are unworthy to partake of the brilliance that you have.

we are here for you. tara, ice cream?

an eventful day (and more)

it was a busy day for me. i wasn't even able to post an entry at the office so, after saying bye to ethel, i rushed to posting this one.

upon arriving at the office, i scampered and immediately wiggled through revising my legal opinion for our client. nakakainis talaga. it was sooo difficult na nga inserting favorable stipulations in favor of our client who's not a party to the contract, it was made even more difficult by the decision i was previously ranting about. waaahhh!!! with all due respect to the Supreme Court, but it is my humble opinion that basing the decision on both the existence of a principal-agenct and employer-employee relationship is irreconcilable.

fifteen minutes before 11am, all of us associates, and the staff even, were agitated as to what the 11am meeting was about. why it can't wait till monday when our practice group meetings are scheduled, what's the rush anyway. the drama of it all was for nothing.

yep, not disgusted. was appeased. one of the bosses started with thanking the people comprising the firm for the remarkable performance which brought moolah to the firm's account. pretty nerve-whacking ah. we were thinking whether there is a need for us to look for employment somewhere, hehe. then, he announced that there will be non-monetary incentives for all of us. dig this:
1. free lunch from monday til thursday. as soon as a caterer is chosen, lunch shall be on the firm.
2. medical insurance/healthcard. hahaha, basta it's something to that effect.
3. availment of leaves. this i pretty much like. hehe. o sige na nga next to number one. :)
then there will be performance moolahs to be given next week. no matter what the amount may be, still, i am thankful. as most old people would say, di napupulot yun.

free lunch courtesy of goldilocks was then served. sarap pala ng kaldereta nila. and oh, by the way, when boss asked whether there are questions, being the biba that i am, i raised my right hand and asked, "sir, ilan rice po sa lunch namin?" sensible naman di ba. hehehe. boss said, i'll be given a rice cooker for that. hahaha!!!

para ako palang bibitayin ano? i sumptuously ate lunch, with matching choco cake as dessert courtesy of a fellow associate, celline. afterwhich, it was as if there's no tomorrow. the work went on.

at thirty minutes past 2pm, tita thelma, alex' mom sent an SMS that it was a favorable decision for alex' case. talk about justice finally served. i am just as happy as they are.

sick, swamped and disgusted

just this morning, i was sneezing to no end, to the extent that the man seated next to me in the bus was looking at me with pandidiri. hehe. probably, the virus hit me as i was sleep-deprived yesterday and someone is sick at the office.

as opposed to monday's work sched, my hands are full with "to do's" today, which is usual here. i am swamped with things to accomplish, but, fortunately, as i was writing this, i have finished doing some. much to my dismay though, a contract review was resurrected. not that boss wanted it undone but because of a seven-day old decision by the Supreme Court.

the dismay was not brought by the fact that i have to overhaul the entire thing. no biggie for me as it is a part of my job. what ticked me is that, surprisingly, the decision rendered did not mention the very recent case from which i based my legal opinion. i was at a loss.

the problem is, the case relied upon was superseded by a resolution on the motion for reconsideration. the decision was as far back as 1999 and the resolution was last 2002. what the Supreme Court held are two poles apart. now, what am i left to do? :(

anyway, i will be meeting with my UP friends-slash-orgmates at greenbelt for dinner. twinx will be leaving for singapore so despite my not-so-ok condition, i have to be at the kitchen by 730pm; saka ayoko din naman na matagalan pa bago kami magkita ulit.

one of our bosses said that the managing partner has some pre-valentine announcement to make tomorrow at 11am (oo, may oras pa talaga!). i'm keeping my fingers crossed, hoping that the title above won't be the same for tomorrow's entry.

i'm back

it has been...what? almost four months after i have posted an entry. the same period of time when i left makati for ortigas.

suffice it to say, a lot has changed. it was a total "u-turn" which i took, from delving into mostly litigation works to dipping my fingers into corporate practice. there were times i find enjoyment from it, especially when i doze off at night without worrying about pleadings to be filed, or deadlines to be met. however, whenever i attend a hearing of the few cases i was assigned to, i miss litigation. if you ask though, whether i am happy, i can say that i am - change that to, i chose to be happy.

here's a list of what i owe everyone (what transpired during my four-month hiatus):
1. First Shot as a Coordinator at Portia and Stephen's December wedding
2. Had fun with the Firm Christmas Party at Los Banos (anlayo di ba :p)
3. Co-arranged a Highschool Reunion with my batchmates and made it possible 30 December 2006
4. Shower Party con Christmas Party with my girl Fwens early January
5. Milen's Wedding to Jes last 20 January 2007
will post some pics soon! :)

have forgotten about the other stuffies. i promise to post an entry everyday or it's a five-peso per day fine to my friends who keep track of this bloggy. :)