Tsunami Disaster

I was in the midst of watching a movie when news about the Tsunami disaster broke out. Since then, it has been the talk of town - the hottest topic in most conversations. I've been hearing a lot, reading some, and watching none of it. It was only yesterday that I got to borrow my neighbor's TV, switched to BBC (and CNN) and saw how serious the statement "80,000 death toll" meant. The figure is still rising as of writing, I just checked CNN's website and the figure just reached 118,000!

The number covers a wide span of people - from locals to foreigners, from the rich and famous down to the homeless and the poor. Many children have become orphans, many parents have had to bury their own children. Most are left homeless and are in dire need of any sort of aid.

Amidst the terrible tragedy, small miracles have abound, miracles that make us believe or want to believe that God is still watching. The 20-day old baby who floated in the "magic carpet" miraculously staying out of harm's way even days after the tsunami hit could not have been anything other than God's plan. There was also another 2-year old boy who managed on his own and was safely reunited with his dad save for some mosquito bites. There would be countless more stories on people who could have been among those who perished if not for some unforseen, even lame circumstances to prove that we still have something to be thankful for.

It's been 5 days already since the tsunami hit. Many are still missing while many are still crying for their dear ones. It would be a long while before the nightmare is over. Let us offer to them our prayers, that their loved ones may return to them safely, that they may have enough despite the scarce resources, that they may evenutally rebuild what they have lost, and that they may continue to find strength and comfort in God.

HapPy HoLidaYs! 

Cosmic Catastrophes and then Some

So what happened last Friday at the party? Well, the fact that there was no sign of a dark cloud anywhere must have been a good sign right? Unfortunately, no. Our performance ("The Frustrated Songbirds") couldn't have been any worse. Good thing though, our stint was among the last few ones after dinner. Whew! I guess the people were just too full to throw things at us although some were pretty worked up at mock-cheering us. Hehehehe. Yes, I can still laugh about the whole experience because we ourselves found the attempt rather hilarious, and oh yes, without a doubt, embarrassing. Well, that's life huh? Some people are meant to be the stars of the night while some just had to be the - errrr.... cosmic catastrophes?

Cosmic catastrophes aside, the party was a blast. Unlike us, the other groups came in prepared, complete with costumes, make-ups, and props. Wow! And we thought it'd be hard to convince them to take our party seriously. The party kicked off with a fashion parade of the 60's, 70's, 80's, and 90's musical era. A few raffle prizes later, the party was in full swing as the groups stut their stuffs onstage. They danced, they sang, they wowed the crowd. The first half of the show ended with the last group - 90's, doing their own version of Spice Girls' "Stop", Britney Spears' "Hit Me Baby One More Time" and Cristina Aguillera's "Genie in a Bottle" - all with guys dressing up as girls. Truly comical, if I may add. Dinner came and went. Finally, it's the New-Hires' turn. By this time, we ("The Frustrated Songbirds") were already having second thoughts of performing. Seeing how good the previous performaces have been, we knew we would pale in comparison. The dance troupe went first. We were too busy practising to watch them but I'm sure they did well. When our turn came, everyone had their hands on their ears. Can't blame them, they just had to, with our singing prowess, who can stand it? Hehehe And so the night ended with a few more raffle prizes given away - the big ones being a personal refrigerator and a brand new Nokia celphone. Pretty cool huh?

There was not much life after the party. Though a band played on, no one dared to go up the stage to start the free-for-all dancing. That is, until the VP caught me making my way out. He grabbed my hand, dragged me towards the stage while I helplessly wriggle out of his grasp half crying "No! No!" and half laughing my heart out. The VP of course had his way as another officemate helped him drag me up the stage. Uh-oh! What do I do here? Well, there were some who were "dragged up" too and we started moving our feet, swaying our bodies. Well, wadya know? I was actually d-a-n-c-i-n-g. Another first for this 2-left-feet girl who never fails to step on someone else's foot during PE. Thanks to Sir Kev (the VP who started it all) though, I actually had fun! He taught me a few steps ("Step-one-two-three", he keeps saying) and we managed to dance together, with matching turns and swings. Yipeee!

The dance floor was still filled with swaying bodies when I left. I've had enough for the night though, enough fun, enough memories, and enough stuffs to blog about. One thing I don't have enough are pictures. I'm still trying to befriend my new digicam and it sure is giving me a tough time hehehe. I'll try to get share some of the pics that I took.

In the meantime, step-one-two-three...step-one-two-three...step-one-two-three...

Here are some of the pics

Guess who Tuesday's Blog Addict at INQ7 is

Me!!!!
Check it out!
http://you.inq7.net/gear/12072004/tec1-1.htm

Thanks to Joey Alarilla for this early Christmas gift.

P.S. I haven't posted for quite a while. Been really busy these days...practicing mostly for the big concert on Friday (for Christmas Party presentation at the office). I suggest you all brace yourself for another "Yoyong" coz' the heavens will surely cry out loud ("Stop! Stop! Oh Please..Stoppp..") when we strut our stuff on that day hehehe. Wish us luck!