It was the usual evening when my hubby and I decided to settle in for the night. It was usual although a bit cooler as it had been raining slightly the whole day. I had heard that signal number 2 had been declared in Metro Manila but I could not feel why. The sky was just a bit gloomy that’s all.

A few minutes after 3 am, I was woken up by a loud crashing sound. I looked around and it was dark and quiet. I must have been dreaming, I thought. I had barely closed my eyes to go back to sleep when there was another crash, like our bedroom window had just shattered. I squinted but did not see anything (of course I could not see very well as I was not wearing my contacts).

Then I heard a low whistle. It grew louder as I pulled the sheets tighter around me. I could hear the wind picking up and saw the curtains blown by the wind. I nudged my hubby who was sound asleep (snoring…) and moved closer to him. The walls were creaking like the house was being pulled in different directions. The roof was being hit by all sorts of stuff I could just imagine were debris picked up from all over and dropped everywhere the storm happened to pass.

I could not sleep. My eyes were closed but I was wide awake. I could not help but check the time once in a while, wishing the storm would end. I could remember how bad it was when Typhoon Milenyo hit. I was afraid it was happening again. But this time I was not prepared. I was not expecting a storm. Then the electricity went out. Pfffmmmt!!! Sigh. I hate storms.

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Breaking up is always hard to do. Millions of books have been published and many songs have been written about how hard it really is to break up with someone.

Me, I have dated many men in my lifetime and I must admit that some were harder to let go than most. In fact there were even a few that took me years to get over while some were a breeze to say goodbye to.

But have you heard that if it was hard for you then it becomes worse for your friends and family? And I am not talking about the situation where your friends or your family get too close to your ex(s) that they become more depressed than you are.

I am talking of those friends or family members who love your team-up so much that they just cannot get over your separation. Like die hard fans of Judy Ann Santos and Piolo Pascual. They seem to believe that even after you have married someone else and already have about ten kids that you and your ex are still destined to be together.

I have some of those friends actually. They are still tickled pink when they hear stories of my ex and my past escapades. Then comes a lot of teasing and screeching. The past now comes out of its shell and transforms your life into a telenovela. My life becomes a long season of telenovelas.

It is still quite amusing how my friends remember one day out of many days that happened more than 5 years ago. Its their fault the memories are kept alive. Their unending support of your couple-ship brings the 5 year old stories to recent times and practically renders them timeless. Teehee.

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I was fortunate to be sent by our company as a delegate to John Maxwell’s Building REAL Leaders leadership summit at the Edsa Shangri-La hotel. The  best-selling author and motivational speaker once again comes to Manila to give practical leadership tips and ideas to hundreds of the Philippine’s leaders from various companies.

I was wowed with John Maxwell’s presence and energy. No wonder his work has swept leaders across the globe off their feet. Every minute of the seminar was enlightening and energizing and I wanted to share some of the tips I learned from this leadership guru.

• People without passion are already dead… they just haven’t made it official yet.
• Myth: If you believe it, you can achieve it. Attitude cannot overcome incompetence.
• Successful people pay a price to be successful.
• Successful people make good decisions early in life and manage those decision for the rest of their lives.
• It is a choice to get along with people, to build and sustain relationships. Successful people are highly relational.
• If its lonely at the top then you are doing something wrong. Loneliness is not a positional issue, it is a personality issue.
• If you get kicked in the rear, it is because you are out front.
• Lead people from where they are not from where you are.
• Those who are closest to you determine your success.
• There is no such thing as time management. You need to manage your life and your priorities correctly to make the most out of time.
• We teach what we know and we produce what we are.
• Your ability to lead determines your potential to succeed. The law of the lid.
• When things start to go well, momentum kicks in. Momentum is the greatest exaggerator. When things are not going right, that is the time to take a vacation.

Check out his new book:  The 360 Degree Leader: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the Organization.

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Pardon my readers, but I am a fan of my sister (of course!) and I try to showcase and promote her work as much as I can. For those who are into independent short films, you will surely love what Katorse Writer’s Group (a group my sister belongs to) has come up with.

** press release from Katorse Shorts

For too long, short films have remained the forgotten art form; a consistently underrated medium that has never been given the exposure it demands. Even with the emerging popularity of independent films in the Philippines, short films are still seen as “front acts” for full-length features or “sidebars” at local film festivals.

The Katorse Writers’ Group, a group of young writer-filmmakers who were part of Ricky Lee’s 14th Scriptwriting Workshop, addresses this problem by coming up with a full program of short films to be screened at Robinson’s Galleria Indie Sine.

On June 11-17, KATORSE SHORTS will showcase 7 short films with themes ranging from the romantic to the absurd to the tragic - a program that is meant to bring to the consciousness of Filipino audiences the short film as a form that can hold its own.

Katorseshorts line-up:

Ang Kapalaran ni Virgin Mario by Ogi Sugatan
Ambulancia by Richard Legaspi
Manyika by John Wong
Puwang by Anna Isabelle Matutina
Dead Letter by Grace Orbon
Lababo by Seymour Barros-Sanchez
Walong Linggo by Anna Isabelle Matutina

For more info: email a_isabelle78 at yahoo dot com

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I have always been obsessive compulsive. One of the quirks I have as a result of that is my inability to write effectively if I happen to be writing on coarse paper using a Panda ballpen. You must now be shaking your head in disbelief but I swear I have two other friends who are like me (in an expression of feigned ignorance).

So when I was in school, I always begged my mom to buy me Corona notebooks. I would smell the crisp and smooth pages and I would be in heaven. I am also quite addicted to fine point pens and the PILOT brand is my best friend.

For months I have been thinking about buying myself a moleskin for my everyday notebook at the office. However, I could not justify the price of just using it for jotting down my clients requirements. I will save that purchase for when my thoughts are craving to be written on paper. I tried to scour National Bookstore, Powerbooks, and Fully Booked for any paper products that would offer me the kind of quality I was looking for at an affordable price. Sadly, I found nothing. I recall that even the Corona notebooks I used to love were now made of thinner leaves and coarser material. Tsk tsk.

This is their stall in Glorietta 3 in front of Girbaud.

While strolling in SM Megamall one day, a bright soda pop looking store beckoned to me. A shelf filled with notebooks caught my eye. Hmm… it looked like moleskin. It wasn’t moleskin. It was the next best thing (for me at least). The notebook I held in my hand was a red stylish leather-like covered notebook. I opened it hoping that the paper quality was at the same level as the outside appearance and it did not disappoint. The paper was thick and smooth. You could write on it using a 0.4 PILOT and not put holes in it. I felt this was it. I looked around and replaced the red notebook I had with a black one.

The black notebook costs Php250. The small one costs Php 39.

As the cashier was processing my payment, I asked the girl at the store some questions. Apparently, it was a newly-opened store and their products were imported from China and Japan.

So that’s why!

Japan is famous for Sanrio and that is what the store reminded me of. The blues, the pinks, the reds were all grouped together in the store like how Sanrio does it. Interesting.

I bet all kikays will love this store!

FUNctional
SM Mall of Asia, G/F Entertainment Center
SM Megamall A, G/F Beside Toy Kingdom
Trinoma, G/F Beside Cinderella
Glorietta 3 Kiosk, G/F Landmark Exit
Tel. no: 8798592

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