Oh shoot

Ok I actually found this sitting in my drafts and thought why the heck have I not finished telling this story? So here you go, the story of how I got into a digital ad with Condura last year!

So around first week of December someone reached out to me to shoot content for Condura. They must've found my Unboxing and first impressions video of Condura CNF-201i and thought I'd be a good cast for one of their campaigns. It could be a scam I thought, but the inquiry looked legit. I mean what could they possibly get from me? They even asked for my rate. So I replied with interest and sent in my rate. Two days later I'm on a Zoom meeting with the prod team where I was given pointers on what to say. I also gave a little virtual tour of our house so the director, Ms. Janina Manipol, could figure out how to shoot. It's getting real.

I didn't know what to expect, actually. It was the first time I received an inquiry as an ~influencer~. Sorry I don't really have much regard for the term haha. So yeah they gave out key questions and pointers, and also asked for wardrobe options. We scheduled the shoot morning of December 9. I remember not getting enough sleep.

And it shows pala no? My eyes, my hair, my entire face looks tired lol. Ang hirap pala itago nun no kahit mag-makeup ka. And speaking of make-up I didn't have any camera ready makeup with me, I remember decluttering them all cos it's no use this pandemic haha. I only have tinted sunscreen and pang kilay hehe. Sana may concealer ako huhu!

The technical crew came lugging in a lot of stuff, mostly shooting equipment and also a lot of food to supplement what's in our ref. The best thing? They left all the food they put in! Which is a lot. We had frozen meat, eggs, and vegetables the whole week. They also gave breakfast and lunch cos the shoot took so long, like 6 hours long. And my husband slept through all of it lol.

You can watch snippets of the shoot from my vlog here, it starts at 2:02 (I already marked it!)

It was so tiring, the whole thing. I thought it was going to be easy cos I already had the questions and answers in mind, but we had to repeat a lot of things, for safety, for clarity, and so on. During the shoot I realized I was focused more on the product than my own experience of it, and that's what they're looking for. It was a challenge having to redo my whole thinking because I wasn't prepared to be super open and spontaneous. I wasn't doing an infomercial, I was doing a testimonial video and a freaking ref tour haha.

But yeah, thank God we powered through and here comes the output.

No one told me it was for a digital ad, I just know it was gonna get featured on Condura's page, until one of my friends saw me on a Youtube ad! Hihi

I guess that's all! I just want to share the experience lol. It was my first time to appear on a digital ad and it was surreal! I'm not really comfortable being identified as a vlogger, let alone The Blahger but what the heck right? I only had 600 something subscribers that time so I definitely don't qualify as an "influencer" but I guess they're looking for real life customers and just happened to stumbled upon me who identifies as a vlogger hehe.

It's also my first time working with a production team. The coordination of it all is very impressive. I was being directed on Zoom by Ms. Janina who was super kind and encouraging, and the technical crew with me were both very helpful and supportive. Really professional, I love it!

Aaand that's it! :)

Another week in recovery!

Another week on the vlog... now seven days full. Because nothing ever really happens during the weekends that merits a separate video haha.

As for my knee...

• Day 15 (Jan 27 | Mon) - Jeckie can't stay in midshift for so long so I decided to just commute by taxi for the whole week. Ang gastos but yeah. I realized that GrabTaxi rates on the app are overestimated when it's really just the metered fare + 35p (or whatever's the booking fee that time). That made me feel better. My knee is starting to heal better. I can now walk properly, but slowly. If I speed up even a tiny bit I'd start to limp lol. Still being cautious. I noticed that I also stopped feeling discomfort when sleeping so I don't lift my knee anymore on the pillows. Set up an appointment with an ortho at TMC.
• Day 16 (Jan 28 | Tue) - I'm not sure how I got it but suddenly my ankle is hurting. And it's more painful than my knee lol. I can probably walk better now but because of my ankle I'm not pushing it hehe. I can now (cautiously) cross my legs, and it's feels less tired now. Halfway through Educated.
• Day 17 (Jan 29 | Wed) - Booked Grab Taxi to work this afternoon. Still can't find the courage to commute by bus. I can probably conquer the foot bridge because I can walk at my own pace, but the thought of boarding the bus scares me. What if it jolts before I could take a seat? What if I get pushed while alighting? I could die you know. On another note, 2019-nCov (Corona virus) is becoming a bigger threat. I've started wearing a facial mask to protect myself.
• Day 18 (Jan 30 | Thu) - First confirmed case of nCov in the Philippines. 38-year-old Chinese woman who traveled from Wuhan via Hong Kong (link). I'm watching the numbers here. My knee is getting better, my ankle doesn't hurt so much anymore so I could now feel how my knee has improved. Yey!
• Day 19 (Jan 31 | Fri) - I can walk properly now with minimal knee pain but I could feel a stiffness in my knee cap. Can't walk and stand for too long. Can cross my legs but not fully. Still can't indian sit.
• Day 20 (Feb 1 | Sat) - Went to the hospital to consult with an orthopedist. He checked my knee and advised me to get more rest, see how one month of recovery fares before he could suggest more diagnostic measures (like MRI or therapy). I was relieved when he said my major knee parts look intact. So yeah, just gonna rest and let me knee recover fully. After all, it's getting better each day.
• Day 21 (Feb 2 | Sun) - Drove to Fairview to see my family whom I sorely miss. My mom is sick with cough and sore throat and needs to recover, and with the nCov scare an all, she's kind of panicked. She can't even hug and kiss me because she's afraid I'll catch her symptoms huhu. In (an)other (sad) news, I accidentally wet the corner of Educated, the book that I borrowed from my officemate, and it felt devastating. I put it on a desk and didn't notice someone put a cold glass of water beside it, next thing I know the moist from the glass crept its way on the upper corner of the book, creating a wave the size of a coin. :'(

Ever since I started vlogging I kindof lost interest in posting on Instagram and ranting on Twitter. I can summarize my week in 5-minute videos, upload it on Youtube and not care about it. Then I can just put supplemental anecdotes here, just to overshare a bit further, then let it be haha. Just like the old days.

I think it has something to do with the fact that no one's really watching or even reading. I stopped promoting my Youtube channel too because I realized I didn't really want an audience. I just want an outlet. 

A Week in Recovery

• Day 0 (Sunday): Day of the accident. Got checked at the ER. No fracture. Just a knee contusion. Need rest.
• Day 1 (Monday): Can't bloody move my leg. Can't walk. Can't cook for myself. Had to shower on the floor. Borrowed crutches from a neighbor.
• Day 2 (Tuesday): Getting used to using crutches. Knee still super painful and feels tired all day.
• Day 3 (Wednesday): Feeling better. Can now put a bit of pressure on my left foot. Can now shower standing up, but can't turn my knee. Can't stand too long but was able to cook for myself!
• Day 4 (Thursday): Improving! Practicing walking around the house without crutches. My in-laws visited me to bring food! Love 'em!
• Day 5 (Friday): More improvement. Can now walk around without crutches. Can now make coffee for myself. Ate mostly leftovers today.
• Day 6 (Saturday): Went out to eat lunch with the family. Can walk, but not properly. Still can't stand for too long. My other leg feels tired from supporting my injured leg hehe. Can't do stairs. Knee feels painful when turned.
• Day 7 (Sunday): Feeling a lot better but still worried about coming to work tomorrow.

//Work
This week was so boring yeah. I tried working from home but the internet keeps on dropping when I'm connecting remotely, so just decided to take 4 days off. My god. Can't imagine what's gonna be left of my sick leaves argh.

//The Circle
I wanted to finish a book but Netflix got the better of me. Finished watching The Circle: A Social Media Competition and was surprised to like it! Thought it was gonna be one of those stupid reality shows that's only good for background noise (like Selling Sunset) but hey I got sucked in! Left me thinking how utterly superficial most friendships are.

//Can you keep a secret
I don't think I'm ever gonna finish Sophie Kinsella's Can You Keep a Secret. I can't handle the fakeness of Emma, Lissie, and Jemima's friendship. They're flatmates. Emma and Lissie are supposed to be BFFs but I can't help thinking how they're both just faking it. The dishonesty between the two is appalling. And the author tries too hard to paint them as really good friends. I shouldn't have started this book after finishing I've Got Your Number, then I wouldn't have discovered the template of every damn chick lit book out there. Uuuurgh. And also, Emma's secrets aren't even that interesting. So it's kindof a stretch for someone to fall for her on account of the way she panics. I just find this book too unbelievable. I mean, chick lits usually are but this book's just trying too hard.

//Work again
I really want to get back to work tomorrow but I'm afraid I'll accidentally trip over something and suffer some more. I want to make sure I've recovered to the point where I can walk properly at least. But damn I have so much work to do and I can't wait to get over them. Plus, my convertible leaves are thinning out.

//An oopsie
I discovered something on one of my vlogs just a few moments ago. I frkn caught myself naked, making coffee. Jusko. I was watching and wondering about one of my reflections, thinking what was I wearing then panicking after discovering there's none! It's gone and edited now, so thank God whew. Lesson learned: I should make coffee before taking a shower. Haha

Okay back to my coffee.

Life lately and starting a vlog

I started the year with a new found hobby which is uhm taking clips of my day to day and compiling them into a montage. Also known as vlogging lol, I've been on it since the penultimate day of the previous year, hence it's my second week of doing it!

So far so good? I'm surprised at how quick and easy it is to do. No wonder so many people has jumped to it. Unlike blogging which requires a lot of thinking and writing, vlogging needs less brainwork (no offense). Just take clips of what you feel could highlight the moment. It's so simple. And by the end of the day, it only takes me less than an hour to edit and upload. Everything is done through my mobile phone so no more setting up the laptop to write lengthy accounts of how boring my day went haha. 

Yeah, so my days are still mostly boring and monotonous, but it isn't so bad. I've set up a channel at Youtube, namely *guess what* The Blahger and I invite you guys to view my vlogs if you can! Like and subscribe if you want, not forcing anyone here hahahaha, though I need a hundred subs to get a custom URL at least... so please... help this ghorl out? :D

Here's my latest by the way:

Not saying I'll quit blogging. In fact, I think it'll be easier for me to blog with the aid of my vlogs?! 

So what's up?

First work week of the year was boring. Nothing much. I guess the highlight for me, which I couldn't film because it's work related, was getting my performance rating and knowing how much bonus I'll receive on the next payday. I got a very cute increase haha and a bonus amount I didn't expect so yayyyyy. 

Our weekends are pretty much the same. On Saturdays we go to the grocery, sometimes we head to my parents, then on Sundays we meet up with my in-laws then play badminton after.

Which is where I got my knee injury. Last Sunday while playing, I accidentally twisted my knee chasing a long shot. I fell on my butt and couldn't move my right leg. It was darn painful. I dragged myself out of the court, put some ice and waited for it to feel better. I could barely walk but it isn't so intense in a way that I was still able to eat dinner with the family and lounge a bit lol.

Before heading home we went to the ER to have it checked. It was my first time at The Medical City Ortigas and wow it's the best hospital experience I've had so far. ER trips usually take me 3-4 hours, but at TMC I didn't have to wait 30 minutes after triage. I was sent to the doctor immediately, had an X-ray, was prescribed NSAIDS, and was discharged in under 2 hours. Amazing.

Now I know where to go for emergencies. Thank God my condition wasn't so bad. No fracture, just some contusion that will heal over time. I've taken some time off at work to rest at home. Hopefully my knee heals soonest so that I can walk properly na! Sobrang hassle nito huhu

Hope you're having a fine day. :)