Manila Office Life

28 February 2007

Musings...

Work has just shifted into high gear.

A project previously thought to be on-track has now been changed to be both high-priority and, at this point in time, late. Time to play catch-up, again. Meanwhile 3 other projects are chugging along, every so often a need arises for firefighting but that's par for the course, so to speak.

Continuing to play badminton every week. I made a new year's resolution to get back into badminton for the exercise and it seems to be working. At least, I hope it's working.

My social life, on the other hand, is now on a downward spiral. Less nights out, less bar hopping sprees, less drinking, less carousing, less, less, less. Soon, the litany will be gone, gone, gone. Not happening without a fight, though. I feel the thirst coming on.

Maybe a beer (or two) after work tonight would be a good idea. God knows I deserve it.

Cheers!

19 February 2007

Post-Valentines Updates

Well, it's been quite a while, hasn't it?

As per my last blog entry, I've been pretty occupied with both work and TV. That has now changed. I'm no longer occupied with TV episodes simply because work has consumed almost all my available time. With 2 major projects, 1 minor project, and regular day-to-day tasks to perform, there just isn't enough time for everything anymore. This is partially the reason why this blog remains fairly outdated.

Where to begin? Let's run down the list.
  • TV: Well, I've toned down my episode-watching to just Heroes, Grey's Anatomy, NCIS, The Dresden Files, House M.D., Friday Night Lights, and How I Met Your Mother. I've let go of CSI, Veronica Mars, The O.C., and Numb3rs. Still a sizable menu of shows to watch although nowadays I take them in bite-size chunks instead of gorging on several episodes a sitting.
  • Anime: I continue to watch Bleach and Naruto only. The great part is that the filler episodes for both series have ended and the main story arcs have begun. For Bleach, that means we now return to the aftereffects of Captain Aizen's betrayal of Soul Society. For Naruto, that means a return to the quest for Sasuke's soul and a revelation concerning the secret society known as Akatsuki.
  • Movies: Haven't been able to watch movies as much as I used to. I've managed to squeeze in Gridiron Gang, Hellboy: Sword of Storms, Music & Lyrics, The Departed and The Prestige. I'm still trying to watch The Holiday and Ghost Rider. Anyone wanna watch with me?
  • Parties: With the departure of a good friend whose place we frequently used for house parties, the frequency of these activities has severely tapered off. We no longer have parties, we have... dinners. Which was what happened on Valentines Day. A bunch of us single people went out that night and had dinner at Grappa's, an excellent Italian place within walking distance of the office. Drinks followed at Nuvo.
  • Music: Albums currently loaded in my iPod are the Dixie Chicks' multiple Grammy-winning Taking the Long Way and Norah Jones' recently released album Not Too Late. Oldies but goodies include The Very Best of Sting & The Police.
  • Sports: Just got back into badminton again. After a 10-month hiatus, reflexes were slow and the body felt ponderous and heavy. A few more sessions should get me back into my old form again. Hopefully.
  • Books: Continuing to read the Star Wars New Jedi Order series, currently on book 21 (Force Heretic III - Reunion). Also restarted Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series but only in book 1 (Eye of the World). Also started on Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files series as an accompaniment to the TV episodes. Continuing with Piers Anthony's Adept series and currently on book 4 (Out of Phaze).
  • Comics: Stopped reading these things for the moment. Got too much on my plate and keeping up-to-date on comic book events is taking its toll. I still keep abreast of major events like Marvel's Civil War and DC's Infinite Crisis but nothing detailed right now.
Well, fairly lengthy update, wouldn't you say? Just so happens that the entire Chinese world is celebrating the Lunar New Year so kung hei fat choi to everyone out there!

Cheers!