We're off!

Yey! We're leaving tonight! Can't wait to be on holiday. Should be good.

Argh!!

Excessive caffeine consumption is the second leading cause of heart disease behind smoking.

Book Reviews

I've been reading lots lately, thanks to our local library. I so love it.

Having grown up in a 3rd world country wherein public libraries do not exist (AT ALL), having one accessible to me is amazing. Everything's free!

Decided to review some noteworthy books:

Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt ("rogue" economist) and Stephen J. Dubner (journalist)

My sister asked me to reserve this book for her while she came over to visit but it arrived after she left. I'm grateful to her for introducing me to this book as I was "dazzled."

Hard to explain what the book's all about but basically it's Steven Levitt's extraordinary take on everyday stuff.

Really cool. Highly recommend it. *****

Griffin & Sabine Trilogy by Nick Bantock

I've been meaning to read this trilogy but wasn't quite willing to spend over $50 for them. So glad I could get them through the library.

What's it about? Here's excerpts from the official griffin and sabine website:

Griffin & Sabine This is the book that started the Nick Bantock obsession. The story is told through the strange and intriguing correspondence of Griffin and Sabine. Since each letter must be pulled from its own envelope, the reader has the delightful, forbidden sensation of reading someone else's mail. Griffin & Sabine is like no other illustrated novel, appealing to the poet and artist in everyone.

Sabine's Notebook For the thousands who finished Griffin & Sabine and asked, "What happened next?," came this second volume. Told in the same format as its predessor, Sabine's Notebook is filled with her delicately macabre drawings and notations, the notebook adds a darker element of visual intrigue to their complex and mysterious world.

The Golden Mean In this final volume of the best-selling trilogy the mystery of the two artists deepens and their questions grow more urgent. New obstacles (including a sinister intruder) test the tenacity of their passion, and in each letter or postcard, painting and prose are even more richly intertwined.

I loved the series. Interesting and very original. ****1/2*

I tried reading other Nick Bantock books, The Museum of Purgatory and The Egyptian Jukebox, but they didn't hold my fancy.

_____

Have to blog about the other books in another post as this one's getting too long...

Holiday!

2 more sleeps and we'll be flying to Manila!! 3 weeks off! Woohoo!

It's our delayed honeymoon and we're spending as much time on the beach as possible.

Our destinations:

• Bohol - Panglao Island (5 days!)
• Cebu - Mactan Island (1 day, as we're only passing through)
• Boracay (5 days!)
• Batangas - Laiya (2 days)
• Puerto Galera - White Beach (2 - 3 days)
• Palawan (3 days)

I can't wait.

Yey for frowns!

I came across this from my Gullible Info section on my Google page.

While it takes 67 muscles to frown and only 17 to smile, the 17 smiling muscles must exert 6 times more force to maintain the configuration.

Funny, eh?

Gifts

D got me this for my birthday. It is SO COOL.

(he got me the speakers. he already got me my ipod a few months back.)

He also gave me flowers, a card and a poem he wrote for me. Ok, I take it back. He isn't clueless. He's still cute though...

He also took me out to dinner. I'll blog about it in my food trip blog.

Happy Birthday to Me!

It's my birthday today. Hmm, I don't feel my age. I hope I don't look like it too. =)

If I were back in Manila, I'd throw a party. But, as it is, I'm here in Melbourne with scarcely any friends and no family. Boo hoo.

D's here though. He's been stressing himself as he doesn't have a surprise for me (i LOVE surprises). He's so cute but completely clueless too. Oh well. Boys will be boys.

Anyway, just wanted to greet myself Happy Birthday!

I need to travel more!

I found this site (showing visited countries), which I found cool.

One, for showing me how little of the world I've seen (only 7%! although I could've said I've visited China, as Hong Kong is apparently part of it).



And two, for the comments! They're so interesting and very revealing. Some people are sooo ignorant.

create your own visited countries map or vertaling Duits Nederlands

Spring Fever

We went to the city last Saturday to go on this chocoholic tour. It was okay. Not fantastic but still yummy. Got kinda sick of chocolates after the tour though. Hehe.

What was interesting when we went to the city were all these people dressed up (really dressed up) for the Horse Races. Apparently, the Melbourne Cup is a really big thing here in Melbourne. All I know about it is we get Tuesday off (yey!) and that it's funny to see people dressed up to the nines, running to catch the tram (drink & drive rule). =) Click for more info on this bizarre Melburnian tradition.

Yup, they were dressed like that catching public transpo. Go figure.

I got some practice driving done over the weekend. D says I'm getting better but I still feel antsy. Oh well.

Yey, one day of work then a day off!