where the moon shines

I was browsing through the Entrecard and Adgitize networks this morning when I got a link to the free independent online movie, The Hunt for Gollum.  I just watched it tonight, and I’m sure LOTR fans (books and movies) would enjoy seeing it too. Here’s a trailer (which can also be viewed in HD):

If you have 40 minutes to spare though, you might want to watch the full movie. It is not made for profit so sharing it here is perfectly legal. According to the Hunt for Gollum website, the movie was made by enthusiast film makers who are all LOTR fans, and they made no profit by filming this project. I think it turned out well, and though you can’t help but think of Viggo Mortensen the whole time, the actor in this one didn’t do a bad job naman.

I have so many stories to share, starting with completing my Parks & Wildlife series and then moving on to our Baler vacation.  I’m lazy to do either.  In fact, I was too lazy to go malling today. Alfred’s out with his former team from NCO, having a blast at a resort somewhere in Montalban. As for me? I slept through the afternoon (though I didn’t intend to).

Anyhoo, you can watch the full HD movie, The Hunt for Gollum right after the jump (the screen’s too big for my blog layout, so pardon the misalignment:)

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I just got back from a trip to Baler, Aurora.

I had planned to set up scheduled posting for the past two days but didn’t have time to make them. We didn’t bring any laptop with us to Baler, and we didn’t make any efforts to find an Internet cafe. So I apologize for a few days of silence, and for not returning your visits. Thanks for coming back

Maxine’s battery ran out this afternoon, right after I took a group photo of everyon with us on the trip. I got a scare just awhile ago because when I checked the new folder I created for our Baler trip, it was empty! WHen I transfer photos, I always tick off the option to delete original from the disk, so I rushed to check if the SD card was already empty. Thank God it was not! I’ll leave transferring the photos for tomorrow. Maybe I’m just super sleepy.

I forgot to call the dermatologist’s clinic to setup an appointment for Monday afternoon. Argghh!!! No, I won’t be going in for a facial, much less an acne treatment.  I consulted the doc for a dewarting session and I was so suprised that the quote given to me was approved (in part) by the HMO!  De-warting c/o Medicard (okay, just 75% of the cost, but that’s good enough for me).

Anyhoo, regular posting will be back Saturday.

Yes, true to my promise, I have registered and will take part in next year’s presidential elections.  I will make my vote count

If you’re a first time voter, check this article on voter’s registration, although I can tell you now that all you really need is a photocopy of a valid ID.  The COMELEC website has a downloadable form for first time voters but when I got to my district’s election office, I was asked to fill out their pre-stamped forms.  Filling it out is easy, there are sample forms all over the place (at least there were in QC) but you can use the online copy to familiarize yourself with the information required.

If you’re from Quezon City and you’re planning on registering, here are my tips:

• Enter the City Hall compound from the East Avenue gate. The COMELEC offices are located past the construction site, SSDD and the Public Library. Be on the lookout because the signage is very small:

• Registration is per Congressional district. Yesterday, Distric IV looked busiest.
• The COMELEC team apparently goes mobile.  They setup sattelite registration centers in the different barangays. Each district has it’s own schedule.   It would be better to call COMELEC before your planned trip to City Hall so you’re sure that they will be there on that day. District II, for example, was closed at the City Hall for the day but only because they were busy at a specifc barangay (North Fairview if I remember correctly).  They will be in our barangay on June 18 and 19 so if you’re from Barangay Kalusugan and you need to register, clear those dates and troop to our Barangay Hall with a photocopy of your valid ID. 
• When you get there, give the personnel the papers required (if registrant is not yet 18, the birth certificate is needed).  They will run your name on the COMELEC database and then give you the appropriate form.  They should be able to determine if you’re a first time voter, or a transferee.  First time voters need to fill out the white form.
• After filling out the form in triplicate, submit it to the personnel and wait. And wait.  Apparently someone checks the form and will reject it if the wrong barangay is entered, or if the address doesn’t exist in their list. For example, I was called in because they said I may have made a mistake.  According to their list, there is no 19th Street in Kalusugan. Er, duh?  I had to tell them that we’ve lived in the area all my life, and that Papa (my grandfather) was the first chairman of our barangay so I couldn’t be wrong.  I said that there’s 16th, 17th, 18th, and then 19th Street.  They only had upto 18th Street. I described the map of the area for them. They took my word for it and approved my registration.  I asked the personnel, “what about the others in our street?” All he could say was “siguro okay na rin” Ugh. My cousins are all registered in this address, they voted last time. 
• I overheard that they don’t accept Barangay Clearance as a valid ID.  The best ID would be a government issued one that shows your address too (like my TIN ID).  Oh, that’s one loophole I noticed in the process – they don’t actually ask for the original ID, not even to just look at it. They were quite content with the photocopy I submitted.
• They have the Biometrics thingy there so be ready for your picture to be taken (don’t expect to see it though).  There’s a finger print scanner too (thumb and index fingers only) and you give them a sample of your signature through a pen and a very small tablet.  You don’t see your signature though because you do this behind the monitor, so you have no idea if it was captured correctly.  You have no choice but to rely on your writing hand and trust that is having a good day and is signing your name properly.
• After the biometrics scan, you take your form to another table, fill out what looks like an acknowledgement form (that has your name, barangay, and precinct number). Then you have to place your thumbmarks on all three copies of the application form. You have to do this in the presence of COMELEC personnel. Then they give you a small slip of paper that serves as acknowledgment that you have successfully registered to vote. 

I hope someone finds this post useful

Go out and register to vote!

Credits for my layout: June Schutrups/Cen’s Stuff for the paper (altered), Misty Cato Spotty Dotty Alpha (freebie), and FeiFei’s designs for the brush used for the photo.

Can you guess what this is? You’d probably know what it is if you’ve already been to the Sizzling Pepper Steak at Trinoma.  If you don’t know what it is, well…

Last night was the first time we had dinner at this place and both Alfred and I agree that it was a good experience.  You don’t have to be worried on your first time there, they have a TV that plays demos of how to eat their bestselling dishes served on hot plates.  No, I am not kidding

The food is served on hot plates, with paper walls shielding the customer from the smoke that’s coming off sizzling meat:

The waitress told me to flip the beef cutlets (I ordered Gyu Saikoro) so that it can be cooked evenly, but I had to take photos and forgot to flip them at the right moment. I thought for sure the meat won’t be well done just the way I like ‘em, but surprisingly, they were cooked just right. And I cannot believe how tender the meat was.  As in, like it could melt in your mouth. Haha

It is served with mongo sprouts, a few slices of carrots and baguio beans on the side.  There’s also a sauce to glaze the meat. It kinda tastes like Tokyo Tokyo’s Beef Mizono, but not really.  Basta, I liked it  If you want rice to go with your meal though, you’d have to order it separately. I didn’t. What I got instead, was this yummy Chicken Salad. 

We ordered the salad as an after thought, but we were so glad that we did. It is both sweet and salty; the chicken was very tasty.  It’s chicken salad with nuts on top of lettuce, ripe mango slices, grapes, and tomatoes – with yummy sauce. Ugh. LOVE.

Tiramisu was up for dessert, and it was the single disappointing part of the meal.  I don’t think Tiramisu is meant to be frozen delight is it? In my mind Tiramisu is meant to be soft, and even wet. I’m guessing they stored the pan in a freezer, but it didn’t thaw enough before serving. So when you try to get a spoonful you get stuck at one layer… Oh well…

So Alfred and I discussed our eating habits, and how we could actually just order food to share the next time we dine there. We’d definitely get the chicken salad again.  On a more serious note though we should really change our eating habits because even the best diet supplements won’t be able to help us lose weight! Wahaha

Oh before I forget, so what’s on the first photo? Exhaust vents! They have a lot of those over the tables all around the restaurant. While we were being seated, the waitress warned us not to bump our heads on the exhausts. Alfred and I both reacted – that’s what it is!  Unluckily for the guy who sat on the table next to us, he hit one of these babies real hard. As in. 

It was a fun day, but I would have been a happier trooper had it not been soooo hot! Even with the dense trees protecting us from the direct heat of the sun, I was still sweating like a pig!  I was frustrated by many of my photos too, I just couldn’t make it work.  Alfred says it’s because I lacked sleep (I came straight from work, and with only two hours of sleep from the night before because that was the day after the BDP class) and was already irritable.  I think he was just trying not to make me feel bad.

We started later than we had planned so we decided to have Liempo Boy for lunch first, before finally heading to our final destination for the afternoon.

Waiting for lunch to be served@Liempo Boy

Upon entering the park grounds, we were welcomed by this rubber tree.  We told Esban what it was, and encouraged him to go ahead and pose in front of it.  Little did I know that this tree’s brothers and sisters were going to have an even bigger role for the day!

Can you see him? Right there in the middle… Here’s a closer look at his wacky face:

Still can't see his face? Click on the image for a larger view

Okay, I’m testing the WP-SV Gallery Plugin that I just installed. The previews are smaller than what I want them to be, but please go ahead and click on the link at the bottom of the box to see a larger view of the pictures in each gallery. 

[svgallery name="Rubber tree very pretty"]

I’ve always been fascinated by root systems, so these did not escape me:

Now, Alfred told E that Lastikman got his powers from a rubber tree .  Now, I preferred the alien version myself, but Esban’s imagination was definitely stirred by what he was hearing.  Here he was looking for a cozy nook to simulate how Lastikman must have been trapped inside a rubber tree!

[svgallery name="Esbantree"]

Fine, he doesn’t look trapped, he’s really just enjoying himself.  But you know what he really wanted to try?  Swing from tree to tree a la Tarzan!  We were laughing so hard the whole time. We were sweating, not because it was hot, but because we were having so much fun already!

[svgallery name="Like Tarzan"]

He enjoyed swinging so much that he refused to go home without stopping by another tree and have another go at it. Problem was, we couldn’t find the one that had vines that would suit his purpose!  In the end, he agreed to leave because he was tired, and he had somewhere else that he needed to be at. 

We took photos of the birds and monkeys too. I’ll share those at a later post, this took way loooonger than I had anticipated. Thanks for sticking it out till the end

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It’s day 1 of our 15 day trial with Sky Broadband. It’s hi-speed Internet cable. I was subscribed to this maybe two years ago but we decided to switch to PLDT DSL because of the savings we’d get for it (since it’s bundled with the phone service).  But their service has been so disappointing, so in two weeks or less we’ll make a decision to finally get rid of it or else just endure the inconsistent service we’ve received.

So far – I love it! My downloads are done in two or three minutes at a time. Sweet!

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I thought I’d be at the mall today, shopping for slippers and some supplies for our Baler trip.  I guess it’s a blessing too that we didn’t go, or else I would have had to practice a lot of self restraint while passing through the section for women’s shoes.  I certainly do not need a new pair, but when I see beautiful comfy footwear, I just can’t help it sometimes