blogging frustration

i haven't blogged in so long and i get frustrated because i really want to preserve all these memories.

and then i come to realize that i'm actually living and absorbing them, and then everything's okay.

i just want to really really put them all here so that i never forget and so that i have something to look at for inspiration when i need it.

#thinkingaloud

jacques shu

the past few days, my friend Von and i have been obsessing about our love for the Mini Cooper. he's test driving one soon and has plans of getting one if all goes well. this obsession has made me revisit my penchant for retro automobiles, including the Vespa.

 

 i always imagined how cool it would be to drive one of these around the village, or to a park or on out of town trips. but because of Manila weather and pollution, of course i never got to actually buying one. but i have inquired (grin). my one concern is how i'm going to ride it with the helmet. if you know me well enough, you'd know how i hate messing up my hair. to a fault. so anyway, i figured i'd just find a great helmet if ever i do decide to get a vespa.

my googling led me to these photos

more than the gorgeous helmets (i especially like the teal and gold ones), i got hooked to the nonchalant, but definitely stylish way the guy on the photo carried himself. helmet in tow.

plus he's asian. in paris. how could one go wrong.

i googled and found out that he's Jacques Shu, a PR based in Paris. after modelling and working at Dior Homme press office between 2002 and 2006, he decided to become freelance PR and launched his own Public Relation/Communication Agency a few years ago.

this is effortless chic i'd like to emulate.

funnily, this is the most normal ensemble anyone can wear. except that not everyone could look this good in them.

an otherwise grandaddy-looking jacket looks very current on him

haven't bought horizontal-striped shirts in a long time. this is one reason to reconsider getting one again.

too cool for anything

details, details, details

this is very close to the european dandy style of coffee prince that has influenced my choices since 2007.

neutrals with white shoes. so up my alley.

the problem, really, is that we don't get to wear jackets all the time in Manila.

 

puffy jackets don't usually flatter, but this is an exception.

he has designed 5  limited edition puffy jackets for Chevignon, by the way.

layering without the bulk!!

denim-on-denim done well.

a big plus for the great hair!

and it doesn't hurt that he owns a purple couch, too!

i get really glad when i come across stylish asian men that inspire me. i could relate more. 

#thatsall

photo: the sartotialist, google.com

thank you:

for fresh laundry (yay!)

for more gym clothes

for work

for a fresh start

for delightfully unexpected calls 

for an extra day

for reliving what has happened through photos i posted very late

for planned trips

for opportunities

for sweet tapa. seriously.

for new friends with the same humor

for old movies. as in really old.

for family holiday time.

for old friends that i hardly see but have seen over the holidays

for all my gifts!

for being able to give

for realizing that i have so much. more than i know i have, even.

for food on the table.

for new beddings that make sleeping a totally different experience

for dinner with friends 

for priceless conversations

for life lessons

for realizations that peg advancements in maturity

for waking up today

:)

my 2011 in a nutshell

2011 was the year when:

i sang at ccp again with some of the most awesome asian folks one will ever meet

 

i started hitting the gym and got hooked!

 

i celebrated 30 wonderful years of being alive

i zoomed to baguio for a refreshing and energizing break masked in a beautiful union of souls. also got to know some friends better during this trip.

i bonded with workmates in laiya, tagaytay and calatagan. the start and end of my many beach and out-of-town trips this year.

 

i had (almost) monthly dinners with harkadah and enjoyed every minute of it. i know it took a lot of effort from all of us, but that effort was what made each one so special!

i went to ilo-ilo, bacolod, guimaras and aklan, and bonded with some of my tightest friends (now known as the wandersluts) over roadtrips, foodtrips and visita iglesia for the holy week. a lifetime first!(fortunately, they all were also good photographers so our photos were fantastic!)

  

i experienced boracay for the first time with some of the most awesome people. (it surely won't be the last.) wouldn't have had it any other way:)

 

i was exposed to cinemalaya. and fell in love with it. it's a parallel universe, totally.

i gained a new sister :)

 

i trotted to europe with friends (aka bagneux brigade) to attend one of my best buddies' wedding. it was a grand excuse to escape and be an excited vagabond once again!

 

 

i flew to cebu and sailed with some of my oldest and newest friends and their little families

i reconnected and renewed bonds with friends of old (and new!)

i became instrumental in making history and singing with a thousand voices in THE araneta colloseum for THE ryan cayabyab

 

i became part of some stage productions that required other things apart from singing sacred music

 

i had a most intimate christmas with the people who most mattered

 

... aaaand i could go on and on.

all in all, 2011 was pretty gorgeous. i'm grateful especially for the chance to travel, which affirms that indeed, i am not limited to just one place/culture/group, etc. i like that feeling of being a person of the world.

ages ago, i stuck a note on my cubby door, which is the first thing i see when i wake up, to remind me to look back on the day that passed and just be grateful for at least 3 things.

and everyday, i'd never stop at 3.

here's to hoping your year was as blessed as mine! i'm ready and excited for the next one!

cheers!