TOPAZ HORIZON

Part of my job is to attend events, product launches and give interviews. Also, to appear on TV or pop up on radio shows to impart my wisdom on celebrity matters (hahaha!). Anyway, the stuff here are a few weeks old so that hopefully, you didn't see me on TV making a fool of myself. I'm not the type to promote my appearances. I did that once and then all I got from friends and family were, "Who did your makeup? You looked like a tranny!", "You look really fat.", "Why can't you speak in straight English?" (this was on a Tagalog morning show), and my favorite: "On TV, you look drunk." So strange! I don't even drink alcohol (I'm allergic)!

But Mary Kay sent me this YouTube link and it's so embarrassing but in a I-can-laugh-at-me sorta way. I'm the talkative girl being made up. I'm sure the Mary Kay artist was silently wishing me to shut up hehehe. You have to watch until the end of the clip where I'm smiling and then I thought the photographer was done and then he asked me for another shot. I'm so FAKE!



Below is a behind-the-scenes look of me and Nikki, associate fashion and beauty editor, on a guest stint on "The Sweet Life." We were talking about how to look good in anything, courtesy of tips from Hollywood stars. I'm wearing my silk Jill Stuart dress and beige Nine West pumps. Just sayin'! Look at hosts Lucy Torres and Wilma Doesnt. They are soooo thin! And pretty. Sigh!

Seriously though, guesting on TV is no joke. Aside from the absolute certainty that I am going to make a big blunder (I curse like a sailor and I have a tendency to spill secrets), there's the more distressing problem of waiting and waiting and waiting...

We were asked to arrive at 9 PM but the taping didn't start till 12 midnight. Then we were on that set for about 5 minutes. With editing, the clip on TV will run for a mere 2 or 3 minutes. But you waited a few hours just to have that done! It's not their fault. That's how TV really is. That's why I like live TV more. Sure, you have this HUGE opportunity to make a terrible mistake but at least the whole ordeal is over and done with in 15 minutes!

I love this Discovery Channel commercial. As regular readers of Topaz Horizon know, I'm a huge fan of this beautiful planet. So when Discovery Channel played this and I saw it, I got all misty-eyed. I always shout to the hubby when it's playing, "Baby, the boom-de-yaya ad is on!" And then I just sit in front of the TV and bask in the love of my fellow men for Planet Earth.



Nope, it never gets old.

At OK!, we have a running joke that Shiloh Jolie-Pitt is the twin of Tweety Bird. Whenever we have a feature on stars with striking resemblances, we always want to put Shiloh and Tweety in but of course we can't because that would be, uh, mean hehe. So you can just imagine my delight when I found this on YouTube:

OMG. You've got to watch this video of Michael Jackson and Britney Spears singing "The Way You Make Me Feel"!!! Two superstars on stage, singing live, feeding off each other's energy--it's electrifying.

Really makes you long for the good ol' days when real singing sensations entertained us. Not the crap we get these days. Well, at least Britney's back in the studio recording an album again. I really liked Blackout, and the critics hailed it, too, as one of her best. Sad that she wasn't able to promote it because her life was in such turmoil last year. But she's much better now, healthier, hitting the gym trying to get back her old shape. And she'll also be part of Madonna's big tour next month. And her video for "Piece of Me" just got nominated for the MTV VMAs. People really still believe in Britney!

Now if only Michael will also come back...

Anyway, here's another video that I love. At least Madonna, Christina Aguilera and Missy Eliot's still in the scene. That's quite a comforting thought really!

Aside from the occasional wedding and funeral and christening, of course. If you know me or if you've read this blog for a while, you'd know I have this huge faith in God. I'm a Born-Again Christian, grew up in a Baptist church, and I completely believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is my Savior and that my life is meaningless without Him.

So why did I stop attending church? Oh, there are tons of reasons. Here's a good list I found from The Accidental Missionary:
10. I was only going to church to please others.
9 I want to spend more time with my friends.
8. I disagreed with the church’s stance on political or social issues.
7. I didn’t feel connected with the people in my church.
6. I became too busy.
5. I moved too far away.
4. My work responsibilities prevented me from attending.
3. I started college and stopped church.
2. Church members seemed too judgmental or hypocritical.
1. I simply wanted a break from church.

And then the blog's author surmises, "Why do they want a break? I think maybe #2 causes #1."

And that's why I ultimately left. Left the family I loved, the friends I grew up with, the church that formed my beliefs and my morals. Well, I didn't become un-Christian, mind you, I just left the church physically because it just got too confusing for me. It's like what Gandhi supposedly said, "I would become a Christian if it were not for Christians." I felt back then that I was surrounded by judgmental hypocrites and I wanted to scream my head off because I was so lost in a place where I should feel found.

So I wandered off. Shopped around for different churches and checked out a few "life-changing" seminars. Studied a bit of Buddhism and even found that very attractive. Except that I just couldn't shake off my one true love: Jesus Christ. I fell in love with Christ before and I asked Him into my heart and there is no way I'm asking Him to ever leave. Never!

Anyway, now that I've had time away and apart to live how I want, explore the world I was protected from, meet many kinds of people I never would've known had I stayed in my cloistered existence... well, I can't say I regret these past 6 years. Nope, not at all. I loved every minute of it! I've had tons of fun. I've grown a deeper understanding of myself, my fellow men, and of God.

And I guess I understand now that what I thought was judgmental and hypocritical behavior before was perhaps also growing pains, the same thing I had to go through. I guess if there's anything I love about getting older, it's getting more compassionate and understanding. Wisdom only comes with age. So yes, I will welcome the years.

Ah, but it's been 6 years, my friends. And I'm starving.

*song is I'm Going Home by Chris Daughtry; video features clips from Spirit, created by horselover1166

I saw this video on YouTube today.



It's about the Free Hugs Campaign by Juan Mann. He turned something so simple - hugging - into a most marvelous magical thing.

I read somewhere before that hugging is good for the heart. Literally. Hugs slow down the heart rate and decrease blood pressure. So it's the best free heart and blood pressure medicine there is! Plus, it's such a joy to give and receive.

Go hug somebody today. It's my New Year's resolution, to hug at least one person every single day. Oh, and one fat rabbit, too!

Happy New Year everybody! I wish you love, joy, peace and all of God's wonderful blessings! Hugs to you!

Oh, what a laugh I had with these adorable bunnies!




Rabbit and dogs at play. You have to watch it especially at 01:14! That's a very trusting rabbit when it lies down readily like that.


Now these are specially trained rabbits, but notice how the third rabbit has her own way of doing things at 02:11. Kinda reminds me of me!

Ah, this is why I have rabbits for pets! If I only had the patience to actually follow my bunnies with a videocam!

Awwww...

Long distance relationship na, unrequited love pa!

It's such a sweet, sad and hopeful song nevertheless. And I love the story behind it. Delilah DiCrescenzo is a real girl (the kilig story in next week's People magazine) who inspired Plain White T's Tom Higgenson to write this song. They met and he was so smitten, he blurted out that he'd write her a song. Thing is, he's never done anything like that. So every time they'd chat online (they didn't go out since she was already with someone else), she'd tease him about the so-called song. So finally, Tom just sat down and wrote the damn thing. Now, the song is #3 in Billboard's Hot 100 and #1 on iTunes. Not bad, not bad at all!

Woody Allen once said 90% of success is showing up. Just show up with the song, dammit, and you'll be a roaring success!

But did the song work the way it was supposed to? Nah! Delilah says the song was "the most romantic gesture" but hey, "we'll just remain friends."

Ouch!

This song just makes me cry every time I listen to it. Strange, as I've never been in a long-distance relationship. But it speaks volumes of loneliness and faith, and the cheerful determination not to succumb to the desperation and the sadness of being far away from the one you love--it just really breaks my heart!

Okay, in case you want to sing along, here are the sad and lovely lyrics that are just full of longing and hope:

Hey there, Delilah, what's it like in New York City?
I'm a thousand miles away but, girl, tonight you look so pretty
Yes, you do. Times Square can't shine as bright as you
I swear it's true

Hey there, Delilah, don't you worry about the distance
I'm right there if you get lonely, give this song another listen,
Close your eyes, listen to my voice--it's my disguise
I'm by your side

Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me
What you do to me

Hey there, Delilah, I know times are getting hard
But just believe me, girl, someday I'll pay the bills with this guitar
We'll have it good, we'll have the life we knew we would
My word is good

Hey there, Delilah, I've got so much left to say
If every simple song I wrote to you would take your breath away
I'd write it all, even more in love with me you'd fall
We'd have it all.

Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me

A thousand miles seems pretty far
But they've got planes and trains and cars
I'd walk to you if I had no other way
Our friends will all make fun of us
And we'll just laugh along because
We know that none of them have felt this way
Delilah, I can promise you
That by the time we get through
The world will never ever be the same
And you're to blame

Hey there, Delilah, you be good and don't you miss me
Two more years and you'll be done with school
And I'll be making history like I do
You'll know it's all because of you
We can do whatever we want to
Hey there, Delilah, here's to you
This one's for you

Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me
Oh, it's what you do to me
What you do to me

This song is for Mariel and Alvin. Be strong, be strong.

I'm a pop music fan and for me, after Madonna, Britney Spears rules. I really love Britney Spears. She exploded into the international scene in 1999, just when my love story with Vince was beginning. So her superstar career is as old as my love affair, and whenever I hear a Britney song, I can pinpoint a Vince memory. This makes rock-fan Vince cringe, of course, haha.

Man, I know all the biggest songs from all her albums: "One More Time," "Sometimes," "Oops... I Did It Again," "Lucky," "Stronger," "Girl in the Mirror," "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman," "Toxic," "Everytime," "My Prerogative," and "Do Somethin'." So now that's she's getting back into shape again and going to the recording studio, I really hope Britney's back!

In this video, don't you just miss her? She was so cute and innocent back then. Anyway, this song, "Sometimes," was my song for Vince when we were still dating. Did you know he asked me to marry him a month after we met? The guy scared me witless but in my heart I was singing,

"Hope that you will wait for me
You'll see that you're the only one for me!
I want to believe in everything that you say
'Coz it sounds sooooo good
But if you really wanted me, move slow
There's things about me you just have to know..."

Vince, I'm glad you waited eight long years for me to finally make up my mind. And everything you said not only sounded good, it is all good. And I am with you now day and night. Your silly rabbit has finally stopped running away.