Gabriela's Crib

LOMOMARKET MANILA

Neo Chinatown
Macapagal Ave., Pasay City (near Mall of Asia)

Saturday, March 29, 2008 5PM

Deadline for next batch of orders is tom, Sunday 8am. All other orders will be for the January batch.

We expect to have the cameras by Dec. 15.

Holga 110 Camera:
Micro 110 (spy camera) P 500.00

Holga 120 Camera:
120N - P1800.00
120GN - P2300.00
120FN - P3500.00
120CFN - P3400.00
120GCFN - P4000.00
***available colors white, gold, green, yellow, violet, blue, black
120PC (pinhole) - P2800.00

Holga 135 Camera:
135BC - P3000.00
K200 (standard 135) - P1000.00
***with option for panoramic adaptor - P 250.00
K301 (big viewfinder with flash) - P1000.00

Holga Accessories:
Flash 120 - P 700.00
Flash 150M - P1250.00
Shutter Cable 135BC - P 550.00
Shutter Release Set - P1400.00
135mm Mask Adapter - P 750.00
Filter set (holder, color filters, soft surround filters, split image lens set)P2700.00

Contact either: 
0917 620 2578 (Ortigas/QC area)
0918 930 6698 (Makati/Alabang)

HOLGA CAMERAS FOR SALE!!!




I'm accepting orders for different models and accessories of Holga cameras.





Click here for more on the Holga


Click here for more on toy cameras




I'm also accepting orders for Toy Watches.







Check them out here.

HOLGA CAMERAS FOR SALE!!!




3 pcs. Holga 120N

(P1,800)




3 pcs. Holga 135 BC

(P3,000)




Click here for more on the Holga


Click here for more on toy cameras




I'm also accepting orders for Toy Watches.







Check them out here.

Whee!

First my Holga baby (will post about this when I have the proper visual aids) and now this.

How I will get any work done with this is beyond me.

I've never used PayPal before.  Is it okay?  Pros and cons from your personal experiences?

I finally have the toy I asked for years ago. 

I met up with Jennie, Honeygirl and Chito early this evening at Cafe Adriatico.  

I couldn't wait to get home so I opened up my HSK as soon as Jennie handed it over.  

I was idiot enough to have wasted four frames.  Two when I was setting it up and another two by forgetting to remove the cap.  (hits head against the wall - yes, Ces, I know!)

Tomorrow is another day, as Scarlett O'Hara is wont to say.

OMG! I've just discovered Masaki Sumitani, aka Razor Ramon Hard Gay.

Crazy!!!

I'm so excited.  I just got this in the email today:

 

RE:  Nominees for IAEA Training Course on PET

I will be nominating Dr. L of (Hospital A) and (ME!!!) of (Hospital B and C). 
I'm still keeping in mind the others who asked to be considered in case 
Drs. L or (ME!!!) for whatever reason becomes unavailable. Thanks.

 

Bangkok here I come!  This will prove very educational and I can't wait to share what I learn with everyone else.

Asela is currently in the USA for additional MRI training but she just sent an email saying that she will try to train for PET in USC while she is there.

Michelle will likewise be in Bangkok this November for PET Training.

How ironic.  By the end of the year, DLSUMC will have 3 PET trained physicians and no PET scanner.

 

My Lakbayan grade is C+!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!

Created by Eugene Villar.

A college friend who was in pre-law decided to forego law school and work in the field of banking instead.  His goal was to make his first million one year before the rest of us earned our law and medicine degrees.  He succeeded and left the rest of us wondering if we had made the right decision.

Throughout medical school, internship and residency I rarely attended reunions.  The main reason was lack of time.  Another was not wanting to hear about how successful all my other HS classmates were.  It wasn't because of envy, resentment or feelings of inferiority.  These were the years when I was buried in books, when I was going on 24-hr duties, when I was doing scut work, when I was being deprived of quality family time, when my firstborn was spending more time with her yaya than with me, when I could not even enjoy my time off because I'd be sleeping like the dead in an involuntary effort to counter sleep deprivation.  I didn't want to hear about how successful they were because I was afraid that it would weaken my resolve to follow through with what I had started. 

 

All throughout internship, my end goal was to pass the boards and practice medicine.  While the main purpose of treating patients and doing good for the rest of humanity was always there, likewise ever present at the back of my mind was a longing for a time when I would get paid enough to compensate for what I had gone through. 

 

After the boards, I quickly went to work as a GP moonlighting in different small hospitals and in clinics.  I affiliated with different insurance companies and this afforded me my daily "reasonably priced" P300 lunches.  College friend was by then rich banker friend and he was thinking of buying out one of the bigger multispecialty clinics and wanted me to help run it.  My income would have further improved but by then I was bored and unchallenged by my work. 

 

I refused.  Training over money.

 

Instead, I went into residency for further training and was forced to spend on "expensive" P60 lunches.  My specialty of choice was not as demanding of my time so it was then that I married and started a family.  However, my entire training allowance was not even enough to cover for my meals and my gasoline expenses.  My husband had to take on extra work to allow our family a decent lifestyle.  Towards the end of my residency, I was once again tempted to go straight into practice to help out with finances.  But the lure of the academe was stronger.  I decided that it would be best to go directly into subspecialty training. 

 

And I even did it twice.  Training over money.

 

Soon after I finished training, a colleague and I were involved in setting up two new facilities.  Money became my focus.  I was working extra hard on these projects because of the potential income I would receive once these were set up.  

Then I was sent a wake-up call.  And I slowed down.  Family over money.

Two years ago, I was asked how P300k/month sounded.  It sounded like heaven.  Then I found out that I had to work 11 hour days and be on-call the rest of the time, even weekends.  Very tempting but I was enjoying my personal and family time too much and I eventually withdrew my application.  Family over money.

 

Then things started to build up again and I started wondering "where did my lifestyle go?".  I endeavored to achieve a balance in my life.  Become a real super wife/mom.  Strive for family over money.

 

By the middle of last year, I found myself affiliated with 3 big hospitals, 2 small hospitals and 4 clinics.  Too much work once again and still I found myself taking on the biggest project of my professional career to date.  It eventually proved too much and come Christmas time, I had resigned from 1 big hospital, the small hospitals and 1 clinic.  At the start of this year I went on an extended leave of absence from 2 more small clinics.  Not so that I would have more time with my family but rather to allow me time to work on my big project.  

 

I was supposed to have gone back to work in the clinics this March but I've decided to give up one clinic completely and to cut my time in the other clinic in half.  You see, I was really happy with the way everything was going . . .

 

 

 

. . . until my daughter uttered the words, "I like it better when I'm sick because Mommy spends more time with me."

 

 

Hearing that was the worst thing ever.  It was as if my heart just stopped beating and yet there was a pounding in my ears.  Then I got this flashback to a time when I was explaining my choices of specialty and subspecialties.  I remember saying it was a lifestyle choice, primarily because it wasn't as demanding of time as the other medical specialties.  These were specialties that would allow me to spend quality time with my husband and kids, that would allow me "me-time".

 

Inspite of this I find myself in a situation where I only get to really talk to my husband when we take just one car to work.  A situation where my daughter is vocal about how I don't care enough and don't spend enough time with her.  A situation where my son would rather be with his yaya than with me.

 

My husband's cousin, who happens to be in the same profession, and whom I suspect my daughter may have talked to, also recently scolded me.  Quality time is not enough.  Quantity counts just as much.  She claims she only realized this when she was diagnosed with breast cancer.  She regrets not being there for her first two children and appreciates that her cancer made her realize how much she wanted to be there for the younger kids and how much she wanted to make up time with the others.

 

This time, I'm making sure I take heed.  I've sworn not to take on new hospitals or clinics unless they are replacements for existing ones.  No more additional work hours.  The Lord must be very patient with me to have given me several heads-up's.

 

Family over money.  Always.  I mean it.  This time, it's for keeps. 

 

For the clueless, Cebu Pacific is celebrating the completion of its refleeting and its 11th anniversary with a P1 price to any destination for the flying period of June to December 2007.

 

Asela and I were excited about this because the International Atomic Energy Agency is holding a conference in Bangkok this coming November and we were planning to attend.  The IAEA usually has funds to sponsor participants from "developing countries with low economic resources" and that means the Philippines has one (and only one!) grant alotted to it.  Instead of fighting over the single grant, Asela and I decided to take advantage of the P1 fare and just pay our way for the conference which will be about Clinical PET and Molecular Medicine.

 

Alas, all the P1 fares for flying dates before and after the conference have been taken.  (Bom says November is the start of the peak season.)   My only option now is to use on my FOC's and pray to heaven that I don't get bumped off.  I don't particularly relish the idea of getting bumped off again although I should start getting used to it.  The first quarter is almost over and I haven't even made a dent in my travel budget.

Originally posted on nucleardreams.vox.com

The project drained us of our resources so other than the speeches from key persona, we had nothing on the program except this short video.  Asela came up with the idea and we shot and edited in between seeing patients.

It was hard to get people to wave at the camera, except for the medical clerks who didn't even bother to ask what it was for or where and when it was going to be shown.  :-D  They just waved away.

After the video was shown, I went table-hopping for pictures and everyone wanted me to take videos of them waving at the camera.  CYY now wants a copy of the video to play in the lobby?!?!?!  He should just ask Mang Jess to reshoot the whole damn thing to get something of much better quality.  Otherwise, Asela and I plan to edit it in such a way as to make our segments longer.  Hahaha! 

Which reminds me, noone even noticed that our shots weren't in the hospital.  They were shot at Mocha Blends, where we spent countless late nights and early mornings working on the project.  Where we drowned our sorrows and celebrated triumphs with caffeine and not alcohol.  

The shots of us are in our favorite chairs, too.  The exact same tables and chairs where we learned how to do feasibility studies, how to use Excel, how to prepare income statements, how the bidding process went.  We were also in these chairs when we finally learned how to spell "Bill of Lading".

Even Milette wants a copy -- heaven only knows what for.

I got this email with a picture of Mary saying I had to send it to 20 people otherwise I would experience great tragedy, etc. You can check it out below and decide if you want to forward it or not.

Now, I'm p.o.'ed because I've received this particular letter at least 5 times already. To which 20 people shall I inflict the burden of sending this on to 20 other unsuspecting individuals?

Does anyone honestly believe that the Blessed Virgin will kill off people who don't forward her image? And this question isn't being asked because I lack faith or I don't believe or whatever it is some people would like to think.

The image below is of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Many believe that the original image is miraculous. It may well be so since it has survived the last 500 years all the while maintaining its structural integrity. This is stated in the writings of Giulio Guerra, "La Madonna di Guadalupe. 'Inculturazione' Miracolosa". It has also survived ammonia spillage in 1791 and a bomb blast in 1921. The Mexicans should be protesting this email because it implies that their beloved Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, their most popular religious, cultural and nationalistic symbol, is a vengeful mother who punishes those who disobey instructions to forward emails. Filipinos should protest this implication as well because Pope Pius XI proclaimed her a patron of the Philippines.

You know, I would much rather forward (if I do forward at all) the emails telling me to help or pray for someone in need than to forward the emails telling me I will either:
1) die,
2) lose my family,
3) go bankrupt,
4) receive bad luck,

if I don't continue the chain -- even if there is an added bonus of:
a) my wish coming true
b) receiving a surprise
c) Microsoft (or whoever) paying for someone's medical bill or better yet Apple sending me a free iPod

So, anyway, back to this email that I got. It got me to wondering where this stuff was coming from (yes, just now, after years of receiving them) and if there was any truth to the stories of the ill-fated people who failed to forward and the lucky ones who did.

I quote "The President of Argentina received this letter and called it "junk mail", 8 days later his son died." Using Google and Wikipedia, I have come across Carlos Menem, president of Argentina from 1989 to 1999 whose son, Carlos Jr, died during his presidency. While the death of Carlos was sudden (helicopter crash), there is no evidence to prove that former President Menem did indeed receive the email and that if he had received it, he did so 8 days before Carlos died.

"A man received this letter and immediately sent out copies...his surprise was winning the lottery." Which man is this? Which lottery? Visa Lottery? Green Card Lottery? Spiel? El Loto 6/41?

"Alberto Martinez received this letter, gave it to his secretary to make copies but they forgot to distribute: she lost her job and he lost his family." This particular line really piqued my interest. Why does Alberto Martinez get named while lottery guy is just "a man"? Which Alberto Martinez is this? The Spanish cyclist? The writer? Or is it the Alberto Martinez who said, ""I even like Taco Bell. I love the beef burrito supreme. I don't like their tacos, but I'll go there every once in a while, sure." and "To us it's not important where the other guy is. It's important where we are and what our internal goals are. ... We're very happy."? Nope, doesn't sound like someone who might have lost his family. Did they mean General Alberto Martinez who was a former Secretaria de Inteligencia de Estado (Secretary of Intelligence) of Argentina. Unfortunately, records show that he served until 1973 leading me to doubt that he lived long enough to receive this email (or any email for that matter) at all. Still, "making copies" might mean that this letter was originally in hand/type written form.

This did make me think of Argentina, however. Perhaps the email originated from there. The country is after all ranked third in Latin America in terms of Internet usage. AND, should the Alberto Martinez in the email also be from Argentina, then maybe his woes and his secretary's job loss (poor secretary, she didn't even receive the email herself) were more due to Argentina's problems of inflation, external debt and capital flight than the Telecommunications Liberalization Plan of 1998 (coinciding with when Carlos Menem was president) and poor internet correspondence. Or it could just all be a coincidence.

To end this lengthy post (which may have some of you thinking that you would rather have received the chain mail instead), let me make it clear that I am not making fun of the Blessed Virgin nor am I being un-Catholic. The second of the 10 commandments states, "You shall have no other Gods before me." It condemns superstition among other things. How better to describe a belief in fortune or misfortune happening based on whether or not I click the forward button? Oh, and I was quoting the Vatican.

So there, I refuse to force the chain email onto all 20 of you. However, know that if you don't reply to this post in 60 seconds, your computer will shut down automatically and you will never be able to turn it on again!

The President of Argentina received this letter and called it "junk mail", 8 days later his son died. A man received this letter and immediately sent out copies...his surprise was winning the lottery.

Alberto Martinez received this letter, gave it to his secretary to make copies but they forgot to distribute: she lost her job and he lost his family.

This letter is miraculous and sacred, don't forget to forward this within 13 days to at least 20 people. Do Not Forget to forward and you will receive a huge surprise!!

I can't believe I haven't posted in months. Guess I'm truly free of my LJ addiction. I still have to find something to help me relax at the end of the day though. Going to the spa or salon more frequently is messing up my budget  but if I give those visits up; I'll miss all those blow-jobs that make my hair look pretty. "Business" meetings with Asela and Jun over coffee or with Matti and Joy over dinner are also bad for my budget, not to mention my weight, as well.

I've resorted to Amazing Race (both editions) lately but that just covers my Monday and Thursday nights. Can't decide who I want to win. I'm pretty apathetic to the Models and Rob&Kimberly. I can't really say how I feel about the Bama girls because they make you want to alternately pity and strangle them. The Beauty Queens liven up the show so I'm also not sure if I want them Philiminated.

ARA isn't as fun without a Philippine team but still a good watch. The only thing that is getting tiring is watching either Sahran or Howard tear up every episode. I miss Ernie and Jeena even if they were around for only two episodes. Jaq and Aubrey were refreshing but they would have lasted longer if they were as cut throat as the Beauty Queens. Without Filipinos to root for, I can't decide who I want to win. Sharon and Melody? You have to give it to them for seeing that whole sufboard in the sand Roadblock through to the end. Mardy and Marsio? They won't do well if the final leg (should they reach it) will be mostly physical. A&S? F&S? L&A? They're a bit too bland although L&A started showing some spunk when they went aroung the airport hiding all the maps of Sydney. The Models in this edition are much the same as the Models in the US edition --M1 and M2! Hah!

Oh but those ads of Bintan Resorts are starting to interest me. I have one more ticket that I haven't used this year. Maybe I should have it booked for Singapore (again) or Jakarta. Hmm. Maybe I can get Bom to take me to Banyan Tree Bintan for a late anniverasary celebration. Damn! Time to call Pilipinas Teleserv to have my passport renewed.

Non-TV nights, I'm busy with the computer. I thought getting a new PC would re-fuel my need to blog but it's a surprise that it hasn't. So far I've been installing software and copying my CD's to iTunes all over again. I followed Tito Rick's example and started de-cluttering my computer drawer by transferring all my CD's (drivers, software, pictures, back-up's, etc) to an organizer. That helped clear up my drawer but now I have a whole garbage bag of cases/boxes tucked away under the stairway. Hahahaha!

One of my bosses did the same thing for his music cd/vcd/dvd collection. He claimed everything was taking up too much space so took everything out of their cases and sold the cases to the vendors at Ruins. Made himself P2,000.00+ by doing so. I'd like to do a similar thing, save the environment while making money, but I'd be accused of aiding the piracy movement.

An option would be the Waste Market. I got an email about it and it sounds interesting enough. It will be on December 8, Friday, from 8am to 3pm at the Goldcrest Parking Lot, Ayala Center. You just have to haul all the stuff you have in storage that you don't need anymore and either sell/trade/dispose of them. ( Click here for Waste Market details. )
What else? I thought about playing catch-up but I'm not too sure I want to get into it. Too many things that happened and are going on. Also, with the length of time I've been away, relatives have probably tired of checking on this LJ and finding no updates. Oh there you go, I will update my LJ's look. Need to streamline things. Maybe even delete inconsequential posts. And I do plan on de-friending. Not because of any personal aggrievance with anyone but simply because of time constraints. Hope you guys understand.

I've finally broken my LJ addiction through no significant effort on my part.

"Real" life has gotten in the way of life as I know it. My practice has picked up substantially. Obviously, when a roughly 12-hour work week evolves into almost 60 hours per week exclusive of take home work, not much time is left for anything else.

I only see friends whom I work with or at work-related seminars / conventions. I haven't been to the parlor in ages so my roots are showing and my nails need a decent m/p. No more gym or boxing. No more cafes unless the study group is meeting there. My cellphone breaking down twice meant losing all my contact numbers (except the ones I have in common with my husband) and thusly contact with almost everyone in my world.

Throw in a computer which threatens to crash every so often and that means the near death of my online life. I think that fact is pretty obvious to anyone who checks out my archives. The number of my posts has been dwindling since the second half of 2005 and I only have 9 posts since December. An average of a post and a half per month.

Anyway, I've been giving LJ some thought. The reason I started it was because it gave me a reason to procrastinate doing my research paper and studying for the boards. Then it became a means of informing family and friends about the goings-on in my life. I've met a lot of new friends and I'm grateful for this. However, now that my addiction has broken and now that my voyeuristic tendencies have abated (temporary?) I've decided to clean up this blog and filter the friends I check on.

How long this will last, I can't say for sure. It may just be a phase. Let's wait and see.

After days/weeks of absentia, I was pleasantly surprised to see someone new in LJ-Land.

Welcome to midbrain!!!!

Having worked extra hard since the start of the year, and conveniently forgetting that I asked Bom to buy me several pairs of shoes and that I just bought myself a new set of jewelry, I decided to treat myself to a love that I've long deprived myself of.

I had just invited my sister for coffee and she was taking her time to show up. No, she is not the aforementioned love even if we never got along when we were younger and have only recently taken sisterly bonding to previously unreached (not even wildly imagined) heights. The love I am talking about is what I gave up during my less financially stable times. The love I am talking about is books.

Yes, I decided to drop by Powerbooks.

By way of explaning why this is relatively momentous, I have to mention that I used to spend most of my allowance on books (fiction and non-fiction). I would even forego lunch and merienda to be able to buy books every weekend. This was all during the days when I kicked ass in Jeopardy and Trivial Pursuit. This was also the time when my weight problem was putting on enough poundage to even hit 100 lbs let alone my ideal weight.

I mentioned this to my sister when we were finally having our caffeine fix. I told her that I missed reading books so much but that I had to prioritize the pittance I was making during my years in training. Milk formula, tuition and household bills obviously take precedence over my favorite authors. Inspite of the existence of dear friends who would lend me books, I could feel my once sharp (IMHO) mind deteriorating. I have to confess that I watched Jeopardy last week and sucked -- big time. That was a harsh blow, believe me.

My sister found the whole thing amusing then she looked at my body and asked, quite pointedly, if that was the trade off. That's when it hit me. She was absolutely right. My weight gain roughly coincided with the time when I stopped spending so much on books.

Now, over a decade later, I weigh over my previously targeted 100 lbs (way, way, way over it). Plus, I do believe I already mentioned that I didn't answer more than a handful of questions thrown by Alex Trebeck.



So, to answer my subject heading. It's effing 3 a.m. 3:30 a.m.! Why am I still on the PC?


I'm being kept awake by the mind-boggling hypothesis that the solution to my ignorance, and more importantly my obesity, is to start buying books again.






.

Dropping in after weeks/months in absentia from both the sms/mms (my cellphone broke and I've been having an extremely difficult time building up my phone book using only the remaining third of my contacts that I have on my sim) and internet (feb and march it was because of working almost 24/7 then this month it's because I was too busy to notice that my server payment was due last march and I got cut off and I only recently got enough time off to try to log on and notice what happened) worlds to post that I was able to get a month's supply and that I hope it works and is as all-natural and side-effect free as promised.