My good friends in the world at this point, may be wondering how I am these days, as I have been silent for a couple of months and my blogs doesn’t seem to give much detail . Well, not to worry, this blog is going to give enough info on how this Promdi is doing right now. Okay, for starters, I am back to my old habit of sleeping a good Friday night away because of yet another stressful-mind-twisting-but-rewarding week at work. Rewarding because one of my ruthless critics have become a fan (Read: boss of boss had given recognition); stressful because I am doing more stuff right now than what my regular work calls for; and mind-twisting because for some reason all cool problems came to my cube all in the same week. I am not really complaining. What's to complain about doing cool stuff at work, and being awake (to have breakfast and do laundry) on a Saturday morning? At this point one of my favorite 80's song is playing… ("It's my life, don't you forget!...) I am sitting in the living room of my company-paid kick-ass abode (as Tina would say), writing this update, and thinking about hitting the gym later today. I haven't been in the gym since I got here (April). I am wasting good opportunity. Hmm… maybe I will go down there… we'll see.. Rick Springfield is on… cool… Anyway, besides work, I also have gone back to my old hobbies… drawing with oil pastels (or rather, messing with oil pastels) and playing the guitar. On week-ends, I would give a call to my folks in Bukidnon to see how they're doing, how Pinas is doing, and tell them I'm okay. Sometimes I would go shop -- books (I already got a discount card from the Scholar bookstore), a few clothes, food, music CDs… beads… whatever… But most of the time, I would just sleep the week-end away. So it's pretty much the same way I lived back home. It was easy for me to integrate into the Shanghai lifestyle, as there are a lot of similarities sa Pinas… I mean, the traffic (It's becoming heavier each day), some of the food, videoke, the cellphones (everybody's got one), the bands that play in the bars (99% of them are Filipinos), and the crazy driving in the streets (I believe I can drive here, with ease). There are only a few different stuff that I see. For one, soccer is big here, so you would see Beckham's face in a lot of computer screens, posters in the cubes, billboards, magazines… name it. It could be because he's cute. I mean, I don't see any Brazilian's face around although I would say one would be a lot sexier than Mr. Beckham. Homes here are mostly high-rise apartments -- you would see blocks and blocks of apartments. You can just imagine how many people can live in one building. Rent would be around RMB 5000 per month for a 2-bedroom place (1RMB=7 pesos). Yeah, it's a lot of money for Promdi's. People here also love to hang-out in the parks. They just go there and sit around. Nothing wrong with that really. Maybe I'm just not a park person. People at work are also very international. In my department, in addition to the local Chinese, there are also folks from Korea, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the US, and of course good old Pinas. So total of 7 nationalities in one department. Very Interesting. I have made new friends… in fact, I have made a lot -- and very international. Shanghai has become quite a good host to a huge expatriate community. Most of the young ones troop to the bars -- a favorite one is Zapatas. Yes, a Mexican bar that plays cool music and tolerates bar-top dancing. I went there a couple of times. Very interesting. You almost can forget you're in China… But generally speaking, I am as at home here as I was in Cavite.The only thing that I miss are my old friends, and of course, my Family.

Girly Stuff. -- First time I had a facial in my entire life. It was good! The black-heads are all gone, and I feel that my face is a lot smoother and nicer... I think I actually look better -- and the good part is, I feel better! A year ago, I would call this vanity; and would be guilty all over. But you see, I am going through a phase... the "I am going to act like a girl" - phase. It began with a facial, then a leg wax, then a haircut, and a shopping spree of skirts and blouses. My Mom would be proud of me. It's all Doc Joey's fault really. He gave me this -- "You couldn't give what you haven't got; and therefore you should take care of yourself" lecture. It hit me like a bomb. I haven't really pampered myself in the "girly" kind of way since I started working. Come to think of it, I pampered myself more in High School than in most recent years. My Mom isn't really a good role model when it comes to this (she lives in shirts and shorts and rubber shoes) ... but I wouldn't expect her to. She's of a different generation -- and I have to acknowledge that what was truth then is outdated. I have to live in today's world, and the rules (defined by MTV and Fashion Magazines) have changed. So bottomline is, I can't be like Mom. And besides, what's not to like about pampering oneself?