dear december's first ten days--

--man, you've been swell. I mean, two company parties AND 25 successful simultaneous Read-Along sessions? Man, you've got to be kidding me.

(cut for timeline and massive picspam yo)


December 1: Grand Party at Makati Shangri-La

With the read-along still upon us, I really couldn't focus on this day but we had to -- we were performing in the department vs department talent contest, and we wanted to make the night a memorable one. And it was, in a lot of ways -- President Aquino graced the night, so did Jon Santos and Willie Nepomuceno who did impersonations of all the other presidents (hehe) and Lea Salonga and Arnel Pineda sang and the Inchoirer sang and it was in all an awesome night. I got a glass trophy for marking five years in the company. (yessss) And yeah, we won that departmental competition, of course. Thanks to my awesome teammates!

The winning Editorial team with SPR, MRP, LJM.
See what Armin's holding -- why yes, a trophy!
This photo by PDI photographer Arnold Almacen. Thank you!

DJ Yap wrote a story on the whole event -- yep, ours was that "Showtime" spoof with Lady Gaga. San ka pa. We split 30k among us and ended up with P800 each. Sweeeeeet. On Wednesday, we ate this huge pizza and pancit to celebrate and had beer while watching the Azkal game vs Myanmar. It was awesome.

Anyway, still on the December 1 thing -- it is important to note that there was a PHOTO BOOTH. YAY.

In this photo: (From left, clockwise) Princess, Sir Chito, Julie, Eliza, Lawrence, Me, Almi, Schatzi.
Also: Yes, we know "25th year anniversary" is redundant,
but whatever, I'm too lazy to Photoshop this.
This photo nicked off Princess Ominga's Facebook. Thank you!

And then there was that "after-party" with Juan Pablo Dream - nice dance tunes, dudes! We saw them again last night during the second party -- but that's getting ahead of ourselves. Here be the batch photo after the after-party:

This photo by Francis Ochoa, as nicked off Almi's Facebook. Thank you!

December 4: Simultaneous Read-Along sessions

Wrote about this in a previous entry, so I'mma just leave this here.

Took a photo of the PDI Makati venue before we let the kids in.
This was one of 25 that day. Wooohoooo.

December 9: PDI Party at the Office

Because milestones like this deserve not one but TWO parties altogether. This one's on the birth date itself. We finally found a way to honor the Read-Along volunteers last Dec. 4 -- this was what I meant when I talked about all the hands that have carried the Read-Along through everything:

Group shot at the stage with the volunteers. That boy hugging my knee is precious.
This photo by PDI photographer Arnold Almacen. Thank you!

Didn't win at any of the raffle draws -- unlike Lawrence, who won a trip for two to Boracay. (LOL idk if he's still accepting ~applicants for the post of "companion") But that's okay, the night had its highlights.

Like, uh, Barbie Almalbis was there. (Kunyari pa ako na hindi nalaglag ang puso ko. LOL. Ang tunay na lesbyana, may crush kay Barbie Almalbis at one point or another. Ngl, "Belinda Bye Bye" still makes me cry. LOL.)

Barbie Almalbis at the PDI party. She sang Money for Food and Torpe.
This photo is from Ruth Navarra's Facebook. Thank you!

Aside from Barbie, Kitchie Nadal and Cooky Chua (also HAWT) also graced the event. We had the most fun during comedian Trizsa's modified Hephephooray segment. Here be a photo of Jun during the championship round, LOL.

LOL kabado si Jun. Nanalo ng Breakfast Showcase yan HAHA.

Juan Pablo Dream also came back with their good ol' dance tunes. Time to troop to the dance floor and sweat the alcohol away!

This photo by Ruth Navarra. Thank you!

AND THEN the best thing about the night was the nightcap -- three shots of tequila with my research brethren before heading home. Ah, tequila, we're no good for each other, no? It was like an ill-advised get-together with an ex -- I knew there was no way it was going to end right BUT it seemed like a good idea at the time, and then I got drunk, and though it felt good while it was there, it felt horrible right after. LOL. Obviously, I am sober now because I can already string together all these inappropriate comparisons.

Best photo of the night, obviously:

"Uy may truck! Picture!"

You know you've had a bit too much when you start taking pictures with random fixtures, like trucks parked in the neighborhood. Haha. As usual, I never really realized just how much I've ingested until I got home, headed into the bathroom and started getting sick. LOL suffice it to say that's the most shattered I've been in recent memory. I should be ashamed of myself really -- and I kind of am. Hehe.

Proof: This morning when I woke, my girlfriend -- who had dutifully poured me water after each trip to the bathroom -- left this note by the keyboard:

Yep, she had to repeat "drunk" thrice. Must have been horrible. :(

Anyway, in conclusion: No matter how old I get, I'll never be that girl who drinks hard liquor and gets away with it. Note to self: You've known this all along. Stick to what you know next time.

Just the first two parties this December -- still looking at tomorrow night's Block Reunion (YEAH), and of course, the much anticipated Editorial Christmas Party (dundunduuuuun).

I should get a proper camera, y/y? Suggestions?