alain adeva the great

i'm not much of a make-up person. i hate perfectly manicured and drawn eyebrows, layers of foundation, too rosy cheeks and heavy eyeliners. and by principle i dislike men (okay, gays) doing my make-up, preferring female artists because i feel confident they understand my desire for a light, non-plastered look. that is, until i met my sister's make-up artist for her wedding.

meet the beautiful and gay, alain adeva the GREAT!

on a scale from one to ten, i give him a 10 at par with jean, the chinay make-up artist from cebu who did ate's face during her pre-nup photoshoot. the 10 includes artistry and personality :D

the first time he did my face was in cagayan de oro during ate's pre-nup video shoot and i was supposed to be her coffee date in a segment. alain took 1.5 hours doing my face (30 minutes of which perfecting my eyebrows) for a 4 second scene which showed only the lower half of my face hahahahaha. poor alain. but it shows how proud he is of his art and he doesn't take small things for granted, and i respect him for that. anyway, i went on a wedding accessory hunt after the shoot (depends how you define "date" ♪, bwahahahahahaha) and i HAD to take most of the paint off especially on the eyes and cheeks, but i left the eyebrows alone. i LOVED it!

today, alain was contracted to do my sister's make-up. ate only.
an assistant did mine.
which was okay.
but made alain belch.
so he redid my eyebrows (because they were too dark).
then worried about the eyeliner.
then retouched my eye shadow because he hated them.
finally he wiped off my makeup and redid my whole face because he loves me! hahaha.
gotta love OC people.

oh i love you alain. i trust him enough not to check my face in the mirror every now and then to see how my make-up is doing. i ran and perspired (men sweat, women perspire *wink*) myself off during the whole pre-ceremony preps and during the ceremony but i haven't checked my face, not even once. complete surrender it is. he even retouched my makeup after the wedding ceremony because, again, he loves me, hihi. i feel so special :D ← feeler :P

if i should describe my experience with him and his work in words, it would be: alain, perfect, horoscope, "depends how you define <insert noun here>", eyebrows!, lovely complexion, funny. and the tagline "just me, only better".

kirei deshou? :D

i know, i missed having a picture with alain, and he's certainly no longer a stranger, but i know for sure he's number one on my list in case i need a perfect make-up artist in the future.

ikaw na teh! your gay lingo is so contagious haha.
for promotion and reference, Alain Adeva :)
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sort of

Soundcloud: Sort Of

D                      Em                    F#m        G
Baby, you've got the sort of hands to rip me apart
         D                    Em                     F#m      G
And baby, you've got the sort of face to start this old heart
D                             Em                F#m          G
But your eyes are warning me this early morning
D                               Em                     F#m           G
That my love's too big for you my love

D                    Em                     F#m           G
Baby, you've got the sort of laugh that waters me
         D                         Em                              F#m           G
And makes me grow tall and strong and proud and flattens me
D                Em                F#m         G
I find you stunning, but you are running me down
D                      Em                     F#m           G
My love's too big for you my love
D                      Em                     F#m           G
My love's too big for you my love


Chorus:
        Em         F#m                 G            A
And if I was stronger then I would tell you no
        Em         D/F#                G        A
And if I was stronger then I will leave this show
        Em         F#m                 G            A
And if I was stronger then I would up and go
Em            D/F#
But here I am 
G                    A
and here we go again


D                    Em                     F#m          G
Baby, you've got the sort of eyes that tell me tales
          D                  Em                             F#m       G
That your sort of mouth just will not say, the truth impales
D                        Em         F#m                    G
That you don't need me, but you won't leave me
D                      Em                     F#m           G
My love's too big for you my love
D                      Em                     F#m           G
My love's too big for you my love


        Em         F#m                 G            A
And if I was stronger then I would tell you no
        Em         D/F#                G        A
And if I was stronger then I will leave this show
        Em         F#m                 G            A
And if I was stronger then I would up and go
Em            D/F#
But here I am 
G                    A
and here we go again


Em     F#m                    G          A                      Em
          Tell me what to do, to take away the you
F#m                   G      A
Take away the you, take away the you


        Em         F#m                 G            A
And if I was stronger then I would tell you no
        Em         D/F#                G        A
And if I was stronger then I will leave this show
        Em         F#m                 G            A
And if I was stronger then I would up and go
Em            D/F#
But here I am 
G
and here we go again

nat and cowie

surprise! surprise! meet the latest addition to the family - cowie and little baby nat :D

nat and cowie, belly rub pose :))

mama got these little japanese spitz from a family friend last week while we were out of town. cowie is male and already four months old. he's usually quiet and reserved and doesn't wander around as much as nat does. he barks at nat and the cats during meal times, though.

cowie

nat is our little baby girl. she's only about a month old, born last august 2. papa bought a big pack of cerelac especially for her. she can eat by herself but she particularly likes licking food from your fingers. hehe. she's a jolly little fur ball, always bounding up and about.

nat

i don't usually like toy dogs, i generally prefer the big ones. but for nat and cowie i'd make an exception hahaha. cuteness overload!

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steamed fish with garlic and ginger

i couldn't take a photograph because we had to eat right after i cooked. we had brownout scheduled right about dinner time, but, yeah! it was delicious :P recipe lifted here.

Ingredients 

For the sauce:

• 1 1/4 teaspoons sugar

• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce

• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce

• 2 1/2 tablespoons canola oil

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely shredded

• 3 scallions, green part only, chopped

For the steamed salmon

• 1 scallion, white part only, cut lengthwise into strips

• 1 1/4 pounds salmon fillet, cut crosswise into two pieces

• 4 sprigs cilantro

Cooking Instructions

• For the sauce: In a small bowl, combine the sugar, pepper, oyster sauce, and soy sauce. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Pour the oil into a small saucepan, and turn the heat to medium. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add the ginger and cook until it is also fragrant, about one minute. Pour in the sauce, stir well, and wait for it to come to a boil. Then add the scallions, turn off the heat, and stir to combine. Set aside.

• For the steamed salmon: Fill a large pot with a steamer tray halfway up with water, and bring to a boil.

• Meanwhile, Find a heatproof plate or nonreactive cake or pie pan that will hold the salmon fillets and will also fit in the steamer tray with about one-inch left around the edges. Toss half of the white scallion strips into the pan, and then place the salmon fillets on top. Pour the sauce on top of the salmon.

• Transfer the pan to the steamer tray. Cover the pot, and cook until fish is cooked, eight to ten minutes. A knife should be able to be inserted into the thicket part of the flesh easily. When done, turn off the heat, and carefully remove the pan with the fish.

• Transfer the fish to a platter and pour the sauce and juices on top. Garnish with the remaining scallion strips and the cilantro.

ishi the idealist

one of the classes i enjoyed going to the most when i was in college was the course on philippine government and constitution. on one occasion we were made to write a "blueprint for change", our idea of what actions the government must take to effect change in the country. here was mine:

"Blueprint for Change"

The following will have a higher percentage of efficiency and effectiveness if the leaders of this government are themselves competent for the leadership positions they hold. 

• Effect a shift from unitary to federal form of government. This way it will be easier for the government to recognize regions which needs assistance the most.
• Implement a moral recovery program. This could be done through giving importance to subjects such as GMRC, History, and Filipino in all academic levels and by recognizing the efforts done by NGO's like CFC's GK777 and others.
• De-privatization of some companies and building government-owned companies. This is to provide job opportunities to Filipinos who have not earned college degrees, hence, they cannot find jobs in private corporations. These companies shall train employees for administrative positions also and implement programs that would sustain local economy. This shall hold until such time that it would seem fit for the government to sell these companies to private corporations provided they are not foreign investors.
• Prioritize agrarian reform programs. Host conferences and training workshops for farmers.
• Send rockets to the moon! But, seriously, focus first on applying science and technology in finding ways to reuse the country's abundant natural resources.

..then send rockets to the moon :P

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