For the love of the track

Typhoon Ondoy wrecked our previous plans back in September, but tomorrow seems to be as good a day as ever to proceed with the Team Flat Out trackday. Since my first crack at Subic International Raceway in April, I've been itching to join another trackday, practice my skills and perhaps cut a few tenths (if not whole seconds) off my personal best time of 1:04.4.

Instead of upgrading anything mechanical on Aibo, the hip-hugging Recaro SRD seats were my answer to improvement. I wanted to increase my skill to their limits first, before becoming reliant on lowered suspension, power adders or trick tires --- or even higher-friction brake pads.

I took today off to take care of what I considered essential preparations for the trackday. Last September, Aibo already got a transfusion of Royal Purple oil, so today was dedicated to a flush and refill of coolant and brake fluid, the latter upgraded from DOT3 to DOT4. Afterward I decided to become independent with respect to headgear, so I got myself an HJC CL-14 full-face helmet in solid silver.

After spending the better portion of a day in shops and in bad Metro Manila traffic Aibo and I are probably as ready as we'll ever be. I'm just a little sad Mav won't be there with me because she has class.

Now for the not-so-little matter of waking up at 4:30 and getting to Subic at 7 am...

Of grunt work, singing and a kid on a mega-tantrum

Mother's Day 2009 was a pretty busy one.

Firstly, we sang at four different masses today, singing the a capella "We are an Offering" and an accompanied "Inay" for all the mothers in the parish. When you're up and singing from 7am to 6:30pm, that's a pretty big ask.

Second, I finally got to install the Recaro SRD seats I bought three months ago. This project couldn't be completed because the Bride RO-type seat rails I ordered took their sweet time getting here, only arriving two days ago. Removing the stock seats was an easy task, but fitting the SRDs to the car and mating them to the Bride seat rails, and transferring the seat belt buckles to them was a much larger and more demanding task than I thought. Quite a bit of grunt work was involved as well, moving the parts around with muscle power. Unfortunately exhaustion and general clumsiness set in and led to a few scratches on Aibo's interior and my bedroom floor.

Last but not least was the ultimate irony to this Mother's Day. While I was removing the stock driver's seat from inside Aibo, Bianx, Mama and I all heard frenzied shrieking that sounded as if someone had finally snapped. It might as well have been because across the street from our house, at the church parking lot, was a little kid no older than 10 years old, the source of the huge racket that lasted almost 20 minutes. He was throwing a massive tantrum toward his mom, who was seated inside the family car. He shrieked, called his mom names, and was punching and kicking the little Toyota - even a car owned by another family wasn't spared the beating.

Equally shocking was that no one, most of all his parents, seemed to be stopping this out-of-control brat!

Mmmmmmm

Lunch: Fredo pizza and frozen cappuccino mud pie at Joey Pepperoni.

Afternoon snack: A 500 mL bottle of Pocari Sweat.

Dinner: Tandoori chicken and bagoong rice at Penang Hill.

Driving conditions: Horrible traffic, rude drivers and even ruder motorcyclists.

They all equal one memorable date. I love you beyb!

Good things are worth repeating

Mav was feeling a little down last week, so I asked her out in an effort to get her mind off things. We ditched the usual movie. We ate at Jipan, one of my favorite Japanese restaurants; made absolute fools of ourselves at Timezone; window-shopped for shoes, books and sportswear before committing to a purchase of Havaianas flip-flops; and ate Jamaican patties and Quickly ice shakes.

That Saturday felt much, much better. On previous occasions, it felt as if we were trying to rush through the time we had together. Now, though, I felt at ease and more relaxed, and the day went by better overall.

I realized how much I missed her company. Now that we were used to each other's quirks, the old hang-ups we used to have just faded away, replaced by good, clean fun.

We'll do this again, Mav.

Spelunking on a Saturday afternoon

Mav and I spent last Saturday in Greenbelt 3, watching "The Dark Knight," eating Slammers Burgers and basically just spelunking and having a good time.

"The Dark Knight" was seriously scary, the knick-knacks on Greenbelt 5 were genuinely interesting, and those little Slammers were a caloric food trip.

Let's do that again.

Seat-hunting at the cinema for Mother's Day

This afternoon I drove to Evangelista St. in Makati to try looking for sport seats. The stock seats on my Jazz are fine, but lack lumbar support and sufficient length on the seat squab. Both are important on longer drives. A longer seat squab will help thigh and knee support. Ever since I sat on a Bride Ergo II seat installed in Francis' GD6 City, I began ogling Bride's excellent sport seats on the Internet...only to weep after looking at the exorbitant price tags on even the cheapest of these babies.

Jobs of Jazz-City United directed me to a shop where he found a used Bride seat selling for a ridiculously cheap PhP10,000. I found the seat, but unfortunately it was used and needed reupholstering. The store owners directed me to a few other shops down the block that also sold cheaper Recaro and Sparco seats, but I will have to buy them as a pair and have seat rails fabricated to fit the Jazz. Still, PhP40,000 for two good seats might make me empty my wallet if I had that kind of cash.

Seat hunting done, I wheeled over to Glorietta to meet up with my friend Mav and watch "Iron Man." We were amazed at how the suave Robert Downey Jr. absolutely owned the role of Tony Stark. Aside from the predictability of the general plot, and the surprising lack of action for a superhero movie, I have absolutely no complaints. Marvel Studios have a gem on their hands here. As long as they don't repeat the major disappointment that was "Spider-Man 3," I will look forward to Downey's next turn as Stark.

After the movie, Mav and I looked for Mother's Day presents. She got a cake, while I bought a baker's serving knife for cakes and pies. We navigated through the darkness and torrential rain of C5 to get home.

All in all, a nice day. Until next time Mav!

Night of the bloggers

The meet-up with Joy went ahead tonight at Brooklyn Pizza in Alabang Town Center, along with her husband Tom, her friend Chingkai and her other WordPress-blogging friends Mervin, Laverne, Agnes and Malen.

Not even the decidedly subpar food and the insufficiency of the air-conditioning dampened the generally bubbly atmosphere of the meet. It was great making new acquaintances and friends. Tom and Laverne in particular were quite helpful with advice about the basics of professional blogging. Chingkai shared her colorful stories of being a writer in a country that doesn't appreciate them one bit. Mervin lamented the pitfalls of Smart broadband, while Agnes and Malen missed the Alabang exit on their way to the meet. As for Joy, she had a lot of fascinating stories to tell also.

I gave Joy my old "blue pill" USB flash drive, loaded with song rips of Sugar Free's first and third albums. She was looking for Filipino songs and those are pretty hard to find in Norwich.

I had fun, guys. Thanks.

Blowing my bonus

My left headlight bulb gave out on Tuesday night. The only way I could have both headlights functioning was by driving the whole time on high beam...which would have made me a lot of enemies. I considered it one more "configurable item" on my Jazz...which this weekend was dedicated to.

First thing in the morning, I drove to Autoline Makati and got myself a black-and-gray Momo Fighter steering wheel. This was to replace my stock one with the sticking horn pad. Originally I wanted an all-black Tuner model as it was much cheaper, but proprietor Alex Ong told me he had the Fighter on his Jazz before and it matched the dashboard plastics better. He did have a point; when it comes to cars I'm not into loud and gaudy things. It cost a pretty penny at PhP8,500 including the requisite steering wheel adapter, but I'm satisfied. The slightly increased steering effort and smaller diameter take getting used to, though.

Next came my search for headlight bulbs. Originally I had the much-vaunted OSRAM Silver Stars in sight, but due to the difficulty of finding them, I settled for OSRAM Bilux All-Weather bulbs which are just as highly praised. Plugged in, the OSRAM All-Weather bulbs give off a yellow light with a faint but distinct violet tint---cool. I can't wait to try it out tomorrow night.

Compared to other cars, changing headlights on a Jazz is not child's play. Due to the tight engine bay, the right method is to pop open the front fender liners and pick the deep-seated assembly apart by feel. There's no escaping the dust and dirt buildup ending up on your fingers and arms, and you're bound to get snags working your way through to the socket. On my first attempt it took me almost an hour, most of it spent trying to figure out how to pop open the hold-down wire. Once I got the process down pat, though, I could replace bulbs in five minutes.

Finally, I went to our local Goodyear Servitek to have my punctured tire vulcanized, get a wheel-alignment check and a wheel balancing job. Short of a full oil change, my silver Jazz has been really pampered today.

Tired...

On a whim I left Pam a message on Friendster. Then I visited her blog. She hasn't updated it in a while due to the whims of Multiply, but what I see is enough to tell me she's got a whole lot going on in her life---most of which is stuff she enjoys.

And I'm glad for her.

It is a balmy Saturday afternoon. I just got my 13th-month pay. Technically speaking, I'm more loaded than ever before.

So why am I wasting the day cooped up at home in front of my computer and writing on my blog?

I'm tired of battling the traffic and the weekend drivers and the indecisive morons that populate Manila's streets. I'm tired of spending my hard-earned money on the silliest, most frivolous, even downright hazardous things and experiences. I'm tired of the temptation to think with body organs other than my head.

I am bored, I want to get out and enjoy, I want to finish my almost-done Christmas shopping, I want to drive to the ends of the earth, but I am tired.

Maybe next week...

Four years in the making

I haven't seen my friend Kathy in the longest time, so I was glad when we finally got the chance to go out last night.

After her party and my weekend work session, we met up at Shangri-la Plaza. The place is unfamiliar to both our peepers, so we ended up consulting the directory on where to go. After buying movie tickets, we ambled our way to California Pizza Kitchen for dinner, conversation and jokes.

We had an hour to burn before the movie began, so we simply walked around and window-shopped while laughing our guts out and making fools of ourselves.

Then "Hairspray" began. We marveled at newcomer and headliner Nikki Blonsky's perky sweetness, an in-drag John Travolta showing what he could have been before Saturday Night Fever, laughed at Christopher Walken's kooky gags and gasped at Michelle Pfeiffer's mean bitchy streak.

When big girl Tracy Turnblad's (Blonsky) dream to star on "The Corny Collins Show" comes true, she becomes a catalyst for social change as she fights for integration of African-Americans and plus-size women on TV in Baltimore, circa 1962. The movie is simply wonderful, both in message and execution, and within the first five minutes I decided I was going to buy this soundtrack.

In short, we had a rollicking good time.

Thanks Kathy! We should do this more often. I hope it doesn't take another four years.

Bumming out is healthy

My ten-day vacation comes to an end tonight. Tomorrow it's back to the same old Tuesday grind, waking up at 6 am to haul my ass to the office by 7 and avoid the MMDA.

What did I do the whole time I was out?

I had my "live" facial mole removed, for one. I'm now living with the post-operation idiosyncrasies: not wetting the wound for three days, applying antibiotic ointment, and contending with the Tegaderm bandage that refuses to stay still because of the location of my mole. It's so conveniently located on the corner of my mouth. After two weeks I'll see if this was all worth it.

A visit to the HMO clinic was also in my itinerary. I had a blood test done, but the doctor was quick to rule out anything wrong with my endocrine system. The proof's going to come tomorrow with the result of the blood test.

Yes, I went to Trinoma again...and you already know my impressions of the place. You also know what happened during the party last Saturday. Watching the Turkish Grand Prix was also on the menu but that doesn't need a vacation to do.

One of the things I said I missed was playing involving video games for hours on end. It turns out I didn't have to look very far. I already had a few pretty good games here I just didn't get to play anymore, most notably "Super Robot Wars: Original Generation" on the Game Boy Advance. That turn-based strategy game is so demanding of micro-management it turned me off the first time I played it, but now I finally understand how it all works. It takes me hours to get through individual missions, though.

It was a good vacation, and the break from work was much appreciated despite the lack of money for a trip or some other event of the sort. Unfortunately all things must come to an end, and too much of a tension-free time like this will make me dull.

I think I'll do this again in a few months.

Oh, and did I mention I managed a surprise 13.521 km/L?

Visiting the mall with the weird name

Everyone seems to be talking about that new mall in Quezon City called Trinoma. With this, Ayala is giving SM North Edsa some serious competition. Since I had the whole week off I decided to finally give it a visit.

Twice.

I don't know about you, but compared to Greenbelt, Alabang Town Center and Glorietta, Trinoma's parking complex is a huge mess. The whole place is too dark, and the roads snake around with no discernable pattern to them. There aren't enough signs to lead you to where you want to go, either. Most irritating is the way the levels have been set up---you can't go back down a level without having to pay for your parking ticket, and when you do go down, it's in one fell swoop.

When I finally got out of my Jazz and explored the area on foot, I found a decent mall with socking big halls. Around 40% of the stores are still closed, but the open shops are a good mix. A shame there aren't any ATMs apart from BPI's. I was expecting a mind-blowing mall layout, but Trinoma is just big and wide---a few stops short of plain-looking. Despite the Zen garden in the topmost level, it's definitely not a patch on Greenbelt.

One brownie point for Trinoma is its food court, though. I had Singapore-style black pepper chicken cutlet at Cavana for dinner and came away thoroughly pleased with the slow-burning spiciness. Other than that, my melon remains untwisted.

Makati is still my weekend haunt of choice.

Denying nectar

I stroll through shop upon shop, wishing I had the money. I flitter between them, the hummingbird that I am, looking at all the gadgets I desire but not committing to any, knowing that they will be the cause of my financial failure.

I must cut on my expenses.

Yesterday I had my racket re-strung at Toby's, bought the "Music and Lyrics" OST CD, Case Logic's CD visor/organizer and some Armor All glass cleaner.

I feel like I spent too much already. Sigh. This vicious conflict of envy vs. finances will never end.

This is a start though. At least I am thinking about something else, no longer as mired in my heartbreak.

Something to be happy about

Despite all the moping, depression and heartache I endure, today certainly gave me a little something to smile about.

As usual, after singing at the mass I zipped to Power Play for badminton with Paolo, Randolph and Karlo. Before going there, though, I picked up Gracey along the way. Little did I know I would be acting out the same part as that British tour driver we met from Orange County back from our 2005 California vacation. Since Gracey told me about her knack for getting lost in Manila, I began spouting off street names and landmarks just in case she had to commute to somewhere.

My right ankle and left knee were in some pain and fouling up my game, but I managed to enjoy myself at the courts, despite not moving around as well as I wanted to. It was fun losing myself in the game, with friends to laugh our asses off with.

With Randolph and his girlfriend splitting early, the rest of us decided to head on to Robinsons Place Manila to have dinner and watch "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer." To my peepers at least, this is a lot better than the first Fantastic Four movie because it's very well-balanced. The Silver Surfer a.k.a. Norrin Radd kicks major ass, too.

Paolo and Karlo split from us when the movie ended. I brought Gracey back to Guadalupe, where I served as tour guide once again because I drove back via a different route.

I certainly had fun. This seemingly negated all of the loneliness and depression I was feeling the whole week. It's only a pity it had to end, but man, what a day.

Someone told me I could never be friends with people from work. Today was proof to the contrary. Thanks, guys.

Too many wrong turns!

Too many wrong turns!

The other day I missed my turn going to the Power Plant Mall. I ended up going to the unfamiliar side of the Makati-Mandaluyong Bridge, and had to take a U-turn at a narrow side street to get myself back to familiar territory.

Today, while searching for Paolo Cruz's badminton place, I wandered even farther off. I misread the map and motored toward Lerma St. and Quiapo Church before realizing I was at the wrong side of Espana Avenue. Attempts to get back on line had me lost again in Manila's side streets.

I have a knack for getting lost, it seems. Unfortunately it's an expensive affliction...not one I can afford to do now that I have to get back to saving money.

When I did get to Power Plant, though, I played four games each of Battle Gear 3 and Dance Maniax 2nd Mix. I've gotten a lot better with BG3; I can finally perform drifts and not crash too often in the tight Akina mountain pass now that I know where to brake, turn and control my slides with the throttle. As for DM2M, it's been ages since I played it, or gotten any decent exercise at all, but I'm still the flamboyant player using both my arms and legs.

That "workout" was a preparation for today's badminton game. I met Ran and Carlo, Paolo's friends from college, and had a good time playing them. Unfortunately I ran out of steam so early, due to the heat and fatigue from the other day, and so I lost to Carlo on both our singles games. Better to peter out now and build it up later than do it any closer to our coming all-men's badminton tournament in June.

Even so I'm planning to do this as a weekly thing. It'd be miles better and cheaper compared to wandering aimlessly around malls like I've been doing the past few weeks.

I might even make 500 km on my current tank after all, too.

We've come...and gone.

We've come...and gone.

We never got lost while traveling the 175 kilometers going to Subic, Zambales. It's all thanks to Jerry and Donald who proved themselves to be very good navigators. Thanks guys.

If anything, were it not for the distance, the drive was actually pretty relaxing. Off the NLEX and all the way to Subic, the roads were generally smooth and well-maintained. Driving was an easier affair than it is in Manila, despite the challenge of the winding mountain roads we took instead of the Tipo Expressway through Subic Bay. We ran into crawling traffic at Lubao, Pampanga, but nothing else troubled us on the four-and-a-half-hour trip to the venue.

On the three-hour return trip, I had a blast driving with a full load of people and cargo through uphill stretches and overtaking slower traffic at 120 km/h. The whole trip had us returning 16.8 km/L---nowhere close to 28 km/L, but impressive considering the effort my little Jazz had to endure.

Enough about the drive. How was Club Morocco?

Personally I didn't quite enjoy this year's summer outing as much as last year's. Sure, Club Morocco has vastly improved facilities, but the activities and beach were both a little disappointing. There was no battle of the bands this year, and we were unlucky enough to arrive when it was low tide. Ergo, all attempts at trying to swim in the beach were spent wading in thigh-deep seawater and sinking in muddy sand. The ridiculously warm pool water didn't help things much either.

Still, it wasn't all that bad. Food was a little nondescript, but you could never say it was lacking. The outdoor games went a lot more smoothly this time around, and we had a live band performing onstage at beachfront dinner. There was even an open-mic session where a few brave souls sang their hearts out (Gracey, Paolo C. and I not included). PJ and the others drank to their hearts' content, but I called it quits after three bottles of San Mig Light at 11 p.m.

The big attraction though was waking up at 6 a.m. and walking along the beach. It was pretty damn beautiful. I'm going to shut up now and let the pictures speak for themselves.

Check out my Multiply site for more photos. Enjoy!

Nervousness before the road trip.

Nervousness before the road trip.

Tomorrow's the big day.

It's the company summer outing and I'm one of the idiots who decided not to join the bus and bring my own transportation going there instead. It's my first time driving to Subic and I am feeling pretty damn nervous.

After buying a couple of road maps and asking friends for directions going to Club Morocco I am still quite unsure of myself. No doubt I have the stamina to stay in the saddle that long, and I've made sure my Jazz will get us there and back (to the tune of a new battery worth PhP2900---there goes my budget for the new head unit). But I'm still pretty scared of losing my way. Even more than having a steady supply of music on the journey, getting lost is my foremost worry.

At any rate it's going to be a real adventure either way. Donald's riding shotgun with me and he's my navigator, and I'm supposed to pick up Jerry at Dinalupihan, Bataan, somewhere along the way to Subic. I'm also dying to know if I can get that phenomenal fuel economy once again, especially after my last fillup today returned a frustrating 10.056 km/L.

Watch this space for photos. Until then, pray for me, my friends, my colleagues, and our safety.

Let's ride!

Let's ride!

Paolo rode shotgun with me today to seek out the Pioneer DEH-P7950UB head unit as he was more knowledgeable with car audio than I was. We were out on a limb going out on Black Saturday, as it's a neither-here-nor-there kind of day: some shops will be open and some won't be.

9:30 a.m. We rolled out of Paolo's house and into the highway. The Holy Week emptiness of Metro Manila's streets beckoned at my Jazz, and proved once and for all that it really is just a small city we're living in.

Our first stop was Makati, where we tried visiting a row of shops Paolo was familiar with. Unfortunately most of them were closed. I did get a PhP12,000 quote and a calling card from one of them, who agreed to send me a text message when they'd have one in stock. Afterward we proceeded to literally get lost while looking for two of the more popular shops we had in mind. When we finally did find the first one, it was closed, and we decided to just call up the other one in Pasig to determine if it was closed also (which it was).

We decided to go to Glorietta, buy my present for my dad, have lunch and look for a pair of retro Jordan sneakers Paolo wanted. It was surreal seeing Glorietta at 10:45 a.m. with 1/8 its normal load of people. We tried another car audio shop at the Fort, but it was also closed and we figured it was pointless going to its sister shop in Alabang, so we retreated to Paolo's house at 1 p.m.

It was then that Paolo's dad Tito Alex chimed in with a suggestion: why not go to Banawe? I had my reservations going to this mecca of surplus car parts. I've heard horror stories of people parking their cars there, only to return to them missing their side mirrors. I figure it would be worth the trip, though, seeing how free-flowing the roads were.

To prep for the trip we swung by the gas station for a fillup, where I garnered a disappointing 11.18 km/L. No matter. We were going to Quezon City this time, and the normally traffic-stricken roads of Sta. Mesa were cooperating very well!

We were amazed when we finally got to Banawe at around 2:30 p.m. None of the shops were closed! People were waving at us with pieces of car window tint. We didn't know which shops to stop at so we ended up making several U-turns along the length of Banawe St. Finally we decided to pull up at a nice place with a security guard watching over the parked cars. I was wary about the less-than-scrupulous hawkers Banawe was fabled for, but the shop we went to had friendly staff. I got a quote for PhP11,500 with free installation, but unfortunately the Pioneer HU wasn't in stock until next week either. I feel I'll be coming back here with Paolo next week though.

After that little adventure we drove serenely along E. Rodriguez Ave., Aurora Blvd., Katipunan Ave. and C5---all normally clogged arteries on weekends---to go back to the Fort by 3:30 p.m. and check out the Nike store there for Paolo's Jordans. He ended up buying them at a cool PhP7,500. It was nice seeing Bonifacio High Street being modeled after the open-air malls of Santa Monica in the US. Weakened by the heat and drowsiness, we were back home by 5 p.m.

Today I drove the most relaxing 98.5 km I've ever driven in city streets. If only everyday traffic was this free-flowing...but that may be asking for too much.

I'm getting excited about the 7950 finally making a home in my dashboard, but when we do make the return trip next week we'll have to contend with the crawl going to Makati or Quezon City once more. Oh well.

At the Manila International Auto Show 2007

At the Manila International Auto Show 2007

Bored at home, I was online with Tita Vik and chatting about yesterday's visit to the World Trade Center for the car show there, among other things. On impulse I asked her if she'd mind going there again, as long as I do the driving.

By 2:30 p.m. I was at her front door, and about half an hour later we were at the WTC after slicing through the brunt of EDSA's Sunday traffic.

Tita Vik told me it was a good thing I visited today instead of yesterday because some of the cars, such as this very sexy black Jaguar XK coupe, weren't on display the other day. Apparently it was a clever ploy to keep people coming back.

Curiously there wasn't much aftermarket support in this show. Emperor Motorsports and Rota Wheels had displays of their own, but I was a little disappointed not seeing anyone specializing in audio/ICE setup or even aftermarket suspension systems.

There were a few surprises, though. Hyundai had its high-end Veracruz SUV (its rival to the Lexus RX330/350) displayed close to the entrance, and I was surprised to learn they're actually launching it here. Mercedes-Benz had its boxy Viano van on display, too. As expected, Honda's recently launched CR-V had its own space, but raising eyebrows were Mitsubishi's new Outlander and Endeavor SUVs. Mazda even had the new MX-5 displayed, with the newer power folding hardtop, and there were a LOT of Subaru Imprezas on the floor and out.

As spiffy as the cars were, however, they don't compare to Russ Swift's stunt driving session. Using a team of Subaru Impreza WRXes (GDB type-III), he was first performing 180-degree turns and side spins, parking perfectly into a head-on or parallel slot with inches to spare. Then he showed off his uncanny ability to drive the WRX on two wheels for a short time, with two, three and even four occupants in the car. He was even driving doughnuts and rings around a stationary Forester, with braking and acceleration inputs perfectly judged time and time again.

Before we left we had test-drives of our own at the Ford display outside the exhibition hall. I waited in line to drive the Ranger 3.0 XLT pickup around the simulated off-road course, while Tita Vik picked the Everest 3.0 as she drove the Ranger the day before.

This was my first off-road driving exercise ever so I was a little nervous as I boarded the Ranger. As it turns out, however, fording through water and clambering up loose hills was easier than I thought, thanks to the Ranger's mammoth 380Nm of solid low-down torque and tight locking differentials. All I needed was a light, steady press on the accelerator, and I even found the whole trip comfortable due to good suspension. Tita Vik was quick with the Everest, even managing to catch up to another Ranger driver.

Afterward we had dinner at Grappa's before I drove her home. Overall, definitely not a bad way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon. Thanks Hedwig!

Preparing for April

Preparing for April

I made the 32.5-kilometer drive to Frisco once again this morning. My Kenwood head unit is back, after a week and PhP1,100 of repairs, and its CD player finally works like a charm. I was rocking along to The Darkness, Feeder, David Bowie and Garbage along the horrendous traffic of EDSA southbound.

Tita Vik invited me to lunch at their place, as my dad, Tito Kiko and my grandma were going to Baliwag on their usual weekend jaunt. Around the time I got her text message I was crawling just a few minutes away from White Plains, so that was a nifty bit of perfect timing. Grandma's kare-kare is deelish.

Off I went braving the traffic yet again, this time on C5 southbound. My next stop was Glorietta to buy gifts for my folks. While I scouted for and bought them, I eventually ended up buying myself a little gift for myself: a pair of white and red Puma Fluxion sneakers. They're similar to the Speed Cats I have from a couple years ago, in that they're motorsport-inspired. This time I made sure I'd fit these babies properly before buying, and accordingly I got them in the 9.5 size to fit my larger left foot.

By the way, did I mention the Jazz returned 13 km/L on its last fillup? Despite the traffic and the aggravations of slow drivers I'm slowly recouping my fuel economy.