Underwhelmed

The past half year, I was underwhelmed by the following:

Juno - easily one of the most raved about movie last year. It got a lot of press. So I probably expected a lot from this movie. I did enjoy it, but yes, I expected more.

Cloverfield - ditto.

Gossip Girl - WTF was that finale? After that explosive "All About My Brother" episode comes a disappointing season finale. Where was the drama? And Georgina's "punishment" was so lame. I also don't like a Serena-Nate team-up. Good thing Rufus and Lily saved the episode.

The Hills - That's it? Totally expected. You've done it before, MTV. Lauren chose Jason over Paris. And now, Heidi chose Spencer over Las Vegas. Lame.

American Idol - Boring. Safe performances. Cookie-cutter contestants. The only saving grace is Fantasia's over-the-top performance.

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A fresh start

It's the start of the new school year. We haven't even noticed, as I spent most days in school anyway. Prices at Agno Street, where meals are usually cheaper than proper restaurants, have gone up. By at least 10 pesos. Now that's a lot.

I guess it's sayonara to my usual afternoon snack - Jamaican patties.

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And the winner is...

David Cook!

So The Chosen One wasn't chosen after all.

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The crowd

Starbucks in SM Southmall is already open since the weekend, I've heard. Last night, I passed by the place. I was planning to have a cup of hot chocolate or tea, but 10 meters away from the store, I can hear this group of 30-something moms laughing uncontrollably.

Ugh.

Why must every Starbucks crowd be annoyingly noisy? Different branches, same crowd. This reminded me why I have stopped going to Starbucks when I'm alone. Any other coffee shop than Starbucks. But then when I'm with my friends, they'd much prefer Starbucks. So I can't argue can I?

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Rain rain go away

It rained for the nth straight day. Summer came and went too fast. Definitely the shortest summer ever.

Rain rain go away.

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Blogging from...

Conlin's Lifestyle Cafe in SM Southmall.

It's pouring again! And I don't want to get myself nor my laptop to get wet.

I am not a fan of their coffees and fruit smoothies, but their vanila chai latte is fantastic! Their pastries are good as well, although their cinnamon roll is too sweet for me.

Oh, did I mention the connection was great awesome?

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World Pyro Olympics 2008

Not the best of photos. Had reservations with the best seats in Lamesa Grill - until it rained poured. So we were stuck inside the restaurant. All shots were handheld.

We should've went with our prior reservations at Gumbo instead.

Canada

France

World Pyro Olympics 2008 from Philip Villaseran on Vimeo.

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Joey Pepperoni

To sum up in one word: Disaster.

Joey Pepperoni opened recently in SM Southmall. So my parents and I decided to check out the place last Friday.

We ordered a 12-incher Joey Pepperoni, spaghetti with meatballs (I forgot the fancy Italian name they call it), and aglio oglio to go. The spaghetti and aglio oglio came fast. We devoured the spaghetti with meatballs, which frankly was forgettable.

So we waited for more than half an hour for our pizza, while seeing others who came in later than us get their pizzas first. This petite lady in white came to us and asked us if we're still waiting for anything. Well yes, our pizza!

Moments later, our waiter informed us that there was an error on their part, and apparently, they forgot our Joey Pepperoni! They're offering free drinks, but we're having none of it. We asked for our bill, with my parent's voice now in a heightened volume. In the end, they asked us not to pay our meal anymore, but for us to come back and give them a chance.

'Twas a nice gesture, but that was really very bad service. We're giving them another chance, but just one last.

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Scratch that

Scratch that. The Starbucks in SM Southmall is a bit big. And the construction's pace is blazing! This photo was taken on May 9.

Scratch that. Our Boracay trip in August will not push through. Their Hong Kong trip, however, still has the go signal. Oh well, it's probably La Luz for me anyway.

And I can't wait for my Cebu trip with friends. It's gonna be hella fun. I'll be wasted. For sure.

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Propeller falls... not

I was just going to blog that a propeller fell off Asian Spirit's De Havilland Dash-7 aircraft and how it scared the shit out of my dad. Once and for all, he only flies Philippine Airlines. But recently, after relentless reasoning from me on how much cheaper these budget airlines are, I think I've made some inroads. I think he was considering flying those turbo props. Until he read this screaming news in today's paper...

But good thing though, I made my research. According to this report by the Inquirer, it was just a "false alarm". The propeller fell off before the flight and that engineers had detected trouble with the engine before take-off. Is this the truth, or is this damage control done by Asian Spirit?

Anyway, I've also read news that there's a planned merger between Asian Spirit and SEAIR, to take on Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines Express, especially since both are now flying straight to Caticlan. But instead of keeping the name of SEAIR - which if memory serves me right, haven't had any crashes or majore plane trouble yet - they're retaining the name of Asian Spirit. Bad move. Everyone knows that Asian Spirit has had a couple of plane crashes.

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Done!

I was reviewing my blog and I saw my widget called Must Do's. It's pathetic how in a span of a year I've only finished one entry on that list!

Well once university's over I could focus my attention on this list, and hopefully accomplish all of them. Including the get married and have kids part.

But first, lemme find myself a girlfriend...

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Jealous

Our family has been on a recent travel frenzy, following our trip to Boracay. It was actually our first complete holiday. My dad and I once went to Hong Kong and China, my sister and mom once went to Singapore, and my brother went twice to Thailand. We went to Pearl Farm three years ago, minus our mom. Of course, we were complete last year, when we went to Eagle Point, but that was just in Batangas.

Anyway, we've been planning on taking more trips this year, and even planning our trips for next year. My parents and my sister just booked their flights to Hong Kong today, and I'm jealous. I also wanted to go, but I can't. You see the last time we went there, Disneyland was not open yet. And due to bad weather, we weren't able to go to Ocean Park as well.

I'll just have to content myself with the upcoming trip back to Boracay. Oh Lord please let that push through. It's highly unlikely though, but I'm still hoping! I like bumming around the beach than entering some childish theme parks anyway. No, I am not bitter.

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Still charmed by you

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Blogging from...

Mandarin Wok in Mall of Asia. You get free WiFi for a minimum of Php 30, powered by e-yellowpages.

Argh. I find myself spending just so I can avail of free WiFi. Should've went home instead - no food expenses, probably faster Internet.

I. Should. Break. This. Habit.

Well, I'd just convince myself that since it was already 8pm and I was already very very hungry, the hundred bucks worth of dinner and free WiFi was worth it.

How I wish I was that foolish...

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Starbucks

What's this I see? A Starbucks branch opening soon in SM Southmall? It's about time!!! Althogh I still much preffer The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, this is a welcome addition to the mall which is a 3-minute drive from home. The branch looks small but beggars can't be choosers. I hope they'll have free WiFi.

Wow. SM Southmall is on a roll this past year. Fitness First, Elorde, Chef d' Angelo, Tempura, Conlin's, Happy Cream Puff, and now Starbucks (and also Reyes Barbecue and Joey Pepperoni). I'm excited for SM Southmall. I'm sorry, but I grew up in this lowly humble mall, that's why I'm so attached. Now if only Burgoo, Topman, Krispy Kreme, and Chocolat would open soon... But I digress.

I can now imagine poseurs and trying-hards filling up this branch. Please don't eat a sandwich or a donut for lunch just so you can save up for Starbucks. That is so pathetic. I know, I've been there.

Oh, and RIP to Conlin's, True Brew, and our neighborhood coffee shop. It was nice knowing ya.

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