Was 2006 a good year for you?
Yes. Am still in the same state, but it was good.

Where were you when 2006 began?
Holed up in a Quezon City hotel with my kids. I was the only one awake to watch the fireworks from the street below.

Where will you be when 2006 ends?
In a five-star hotel. Again. With my kids. But this time I’ll make sure we watch the fireworks from the rooftop.

Did you keep your New Year’s resolutions for 2006?
Looking at this list I hardly did. But because am indefatigable, I’ll try to make one again for the coming year.
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me clowning around

And so it can be told… after all the traffic, the parties, the mad Christmas rush and at this ripe old age of mine, am still a sucker for presents. It’s such a shame that I got more gifts than my children this year and each time I couldn’t wait to tear open the package even though (gulp) it’s just a dreaded mug lying inside. Only proves that Christmas is not just for children but for the child in adults like us who think that presents are there to bring out the precious smile in our faces, validate our egos and make us feel loved and remembered even for this one big commercial circus in a year.

Here are the simple and zany things that comprised my stash:

A few pieces of clothing like blouses, a jacket and leggings;

Moolah for shopping which I used to shop for other peeps (tsk!tsk!)

Schizo-Gear Multi-function Headwear (one can use this as a scarf, scrunchie, bandanna, blindfold, neckwarmer etc) The label said it has many personalities to suit changing moods and needs, which made me think the giver must really know crazy me so well, haha
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Christmas snapshots

Christmas brings out the most wondrous anticipation in children… those fun kiddie parties, the colorfully-wrapped presents, the mad scramble for toys. This year I skipped all the planning and wrapping and brought them to the department store themselves to choose and ogle over their new possessions – on Christmas Eve.
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The ‘Proust Questionnaire’ is one of my favorite sections in Vanity Fair. Here’s how I would answer if they asked me.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Travelling to a new place.

What is your greatest fear?
Not being able to find my Santa Claus

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
My impulsiveness

What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Greediness.

What is your greatest extravagance?
Food.

What is your favorite journey?
Life itself with its never-ending ups and downs

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Virginity

On what occasion do you lie?
In the face of extreme danger, I would

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Sorry, I deem them not fit to print.
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article

What could be more attuned to the selfless and generous spirit of Christmas than an interview with myself which is on in today’s (Dec. 25) street edition of MB? Short on being narcissistic, I’ve always wanted to do a feature on myself as a blogger and answer the very questions I’ve been asking my subjects the whole year. It was a last-minute decision and am not so happy with the replies but this will do for now. Take a look:

Because her prospects are on vacation, this columnist – who authors the “semi-famous” site “Ajay’s Writings on the Wall” sits down with G.I. – the Ghost Interviewer – on the one subject she deals with the whole year. B-l-o-g-s.

GHOST INTERVIEWER (GI) : What do you find amazing about blogging, enough for your newspaper to allot a whole column about it?

AJ: I love the fact that blogging has democratized the hierarchy of power in the Internet, and beyond. You don’t have to be a celebrity of sorts or a person of importance or influence, you just have to be creative and post worthy content. As Time Magazine said in choosing their Person of the Year, the star is You. We must have realized early on that this was going to be a massive thing when my publisher and editor approved Blog-O-Rama in 2005. We still hope it will inspire and discover a new breed of dedicated Filipino bloggers.

Some people have complained about how the new generation’s no longer attuned to the basic rules of grammar, literature, poetry and the like. Blogging changes all that as we’ve certainly seen the creativity and individuality of people who are out to express themselves the best way they can on the Net. Also, blogging, no matter how sedentary, is a great tool for social networking. It’s the greatest time-waster ever.
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merryxmas

Merry Christmas to all my friends and readers. Thank you for being a part of my year. May 2007 bring peace, joy and prosperity to all of us.

Allow me to share this Christmas story which the great Brazilian author Paulo Coelho sent to this blogger and his fans from all over the world:

” A long time ago, so many years ago that we can
no longer remember the exact date, there lived in a
village in the south of Brazil a little seven-year-old boy
called José. He had lost his parents when he was very,
very young and had been adopted by a miserly aunt
who, even though she had lots of money, spent almost
nothing on her nephew. José, having never known the
meaning of love, assumed that this was simply the way
life was and so it didn’t bother him at all.
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Party shots

I don’t party the whole year, I only do so in the run-up to Christmas and only because there’s some promise of overflowing food, drinks and freebies (yeah, am a freeloader like the rest of ‘em, lol) Once again, I binged on red wine, San Miguel Strong Ice and lechon..every shindig seemed to have ‘em. Always the motto was “have fun now, worry about the poundage tomorrow,” as these photos would show:

From top left:

1. A rare photo with Manila Bulletin’s Technews writers at the Lenovo party in Gweilo’s: Paul Ranon, Teh Jerry Liao and Carlo Felipe.

2. Horsing around at the party of my former department (with my former boss in the background) at the rooftop of this condo with a magnificent view of Manila’s skyline.

3. With my friend Rose at Canon’s Retro Party in Konig’s Bar

4. With my boss at our casino party. I wore red which was perfect for blending with the curtains…hahaha
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Time, precious time. In this past year, I’ve totally flopped at replying to emails, remembering my friends’ birthdays and also failed in the following: returning comments, bloghopping, updating my links list, showing up in meet-ups and carrying a decent conversation with faraway friends on YM. Am still perenially late. So go ahead, crucify me. I need time… the time to (perhaps) find myself.

A new blog design. This baby is ripe for a new look and am itching for one. Will probably have to channel some of the $$$ that blogging bought to a much-needed make-over. Hmm, maybe next year (!!)

A ticket to somewhere. My wanderlust is far from waning, especially now that I’ve discovered the joys of budget travel. I want to visit Toe in Cambodia, go to Luang Prabang, eat pho in Vietnam and heck, even play with the monkeys in Bohol. I got tired of travelling in 2006 but hopefully will regain strength in 2007. Bring it on!
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14 things i hate about Christmas:

1. Going over the budget with all the shopping and gift-giving
2. When nothing seems to be enough, with bonuses and all
2. the traffic. the monstrous traffic.
3. merchants and taxi drivers almost always charge you extra
4. the calorific food and drinks in parties
5. going to all the parties & not winning in the raffles (talk about luck. bad luck.)
6. elbow-to-elbow bargain hunting in Divisoria (hello, where art thou 168 Mall? yeah, they do have a website)
7. Stress. Unwanted stress.
8. Pressure. The pressure to attend gatherings and reunions when it makes more sense to organize them on Dec. 26 instead?
9. No someone special on Christmas Eve.
10. Sad Christmas songs (in the league of ‘Pasko Na Sinta Ko’)
11. Mugs, cheapo bags and other idratherhavenotsbecausemycabinetisfullofthem stuff
12. Malls are full but gyms are …. ghost towns
13. The maid goes on vacation
14. Everyone’s busy and everything’s busy that’s why bloggers like me write less. Apologies for the downtime.

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