The Sunday Currently (vol. 14)

My sizzling Bibimbap from Chef's Noodle

Currently

Reading
Nothing!!!

Writing
This

Listening
to some Christian music my dad is playing

Thinking
About my expiring passport haynako!!!

Smelling
Human Nature's All Natural Spray Sanitizer in Citrus Burst! I bought it because I thought it was an air freshener but it's a hand sanitizer pala so lol. IT SMELLS SO GOOD! Like lemon, oranges, and lemongrass. Lakas maka-relax.

Wishing
I had some 20k to spend right now so I can buy the Samsung Galaxy Tab A w/ S Pen HAHA

Wearing
Shirt shorts

Loving
1) My repainted laptop!

I WANT MOAR RED THINGS K

Yeyy redddd! I really wanted a red accent on this thing but two years ago all I had was a red pentel pen and it was ugly asf on top of a gray coating. Thank goodness I discovered PAINT MARKERS!! They're extremely opaque, smells good (rugby good, yan tayo eh), and are oil based so I didn't have to worry about accidentally smudging the color whenever I clean my laptop with alcohol (which is rarely lol). By the way, paint markers are relatively pricey. I bought a UNI Paint Marker at National Bookstore at Php 123 something. Office Warehouse also carries paint markers in Schneider, halos same price. But you know what else they're good for? DRAWING ON CERAMIC MUGS. OMGEHHH <3

2) This coffee dripper from Japan Home Center

I'm saying goodbye to my Starbucks pour-over brewer. This thing is way way cheaper at Php 88 and works just the same! Can't wait to try it. XD Sana hindi matunaw?! HAHA

Wanting
Some really good news this week.

Needing
To work on my reading list and this logo I was commissioned to do a month ago! Shocks.

Feeling
Stupid that I accidentally cancelled my passport renewal application in an attempt to book another date which is later but is less hassle. Yan tuloy. Praying to have my passport validity extended because my dreams are at stake LOL Joke lang. But really. I hate having to deal with any government agency cos 9/10 times they suck. I have never had a banging good experience transacting with any government office. There's always a lot of hassle and corruption involved. Haynako when is change.

Apart from that I'm feeling generally happy (and fat) so there's that! :D

Hope you have a great week ahead!

Yellow Cab's Man vs. Pizza Challenge: a different kind of date

Last Friday (August 21) I accompanied Jeckie to a pizza eating contest hosted by Yellow Cab at SM City San Lazaro. He was one of those selected to participate after filling out an online form at facebook. We were both excited for it because heyyyy you don't always get free 18" pizza just by joining, and if he actually wins that's FREE MONTHLY SUPPLY OF PIZZA FOR 6 MONTHS okay?! Ohaaaaa!

When we came to the event we weren't expecting to see a stage set up specifically for it at the mall activity center. I thought they were just gonna have them eat inside the restaurant or something haha. Syaliiiiin!

When the event started (around 15 minutes late), we were disappointed to hear that we have to wait 20 minutes pa for they're starting with the female division first. When they called the girls up, they were lacking 2 participants so they opened the stage to anyone (or two) who wants to join from the audience. My boyfriend pushed me to join, I was reluctant shempre, but it didn't take long for me to decide. I have nothing to lose, in fact it's a win-win thing. What's devouring a New Yorker pizza on stage in front of an audience in exchange for that box and a possibility of winning?! I totally overcame stage fright! LOL

Para sa ekonomiya ng Pilipinas!

So I shot a hand up and made my way to the stage. Oraaaayt. This is eat! All I have to do is enjoy the box! Who cares if I just came from a buffet breakfast?! Free pizza is free. :D

Female division - 20 mins. time limit. That's me on the MAN ;)

Male division - 15 mins. time limit! Jeckie taking my spot para sweet daw sabi nung host LOL

In the end, we both lost with a few bites, but that's totally okay. I finished 4.something slices within the 20 minutes time limit and Jeckie ate 5.something slices in 15 minutes.

We took home a lot of pizza, umbrellas, super cute Yellow Cab notebooks with stickers and coupons inside, and painful jaws! Oh yeah! Super worth it!

Watch out for the next Man vs. Pizza Challenge! I heard they're opening another contest this September at Paseo Center, Makati City! I hope there'll be one at UP TechnoHub too! Woooh! :D

Aaaaand since it turned out to be quite a date, here's a pic of us! <3 Naisip ko nga, why don't we join eating contests often?! It's cheap and we get to eat a lot. haha

2nd placers waddup!

Before I end, let me share a few tips I gathered on the spot while munching on the ginormous slices. I mean, just in case you want to join. These are just based on my experience okay, may or may not work for you. haha

1. Start with the smallest slices first. My strategy was to fold two slices together like a sandwich and eat. They count by most slices eaten anyway so you want to leave the big slices behind haha. I only started this on my 3rd and 4th slices because I wasn't thinking haha
2. Use small amounts of water to soften the mass of food in your mouth so you can swallow easier. You can also use water to push the food. Up to you!
3. Bite big, chew less, and try to swallow it whole. LOL. Do this if you're super competitive and is really after the time. Don't do this if you want to enjoy your food haha. I didn't do this cos I only thought about it after the contest. I noticed some of the boys doing this but even if I thought about it sooner, I wouldn't dare, ma-choke pa ko haha. 
4. ENJOY THE FOOD. Of course! In times like this where there's nothing at stake, there's no stopping you from having fun while being in the spirit of competition! :D

BONUS: Ridiculous tips cos there are no rules against them anyway haha

1. Bring a blender with you, blend the hell out of that box, and drink to your mouth's protest
2. Pretend to eat the pizza but really do a magic trick to make it disappear
3. Sabotage your opponents by secretly putting your slices in their box while they're busy 

Lol hope this helps :P

Congratulations to the winners and of course, to Yellow Cab!

The Sunday Currently (vol. 13)

After so long! Oh, I just realized I lacked 3 items from the previous TSC hehe

Yummy cupcakes from Theo Brew (Robinsons Nova). Made with love by ate @syiellagurl <3

Currently

Reading
No progress on The Graveyard Book haha But I just finished reading this article from Matt Slick of CARM

Are we saved by faith alone, or do we need works, too? http://t.co/JAzV1GYKMD

— Matt Slick (@MattSlick) August 16, 2015

Writing
I just finished a couple of blog posts a while back. Yeyy!

Listening
To the radio at 106.7. Tune in for Christian songs! <3

Thinking
ABOUT TOMORROW OMG. I don't want to overthink, I haven't even practiced. I keep on telling myself I have nothing to lose but it doesn't help pacify my worrymones. I don't want to spill anything yet. LOL

Also, about what photo to use for this post haha.

Smelling
The faint smell of Avalon Organics' Rosemary Hand and Body Lotion! Finally, something from Healthy Options has reached Watsons! haha Smells like the spaaaa <3

Wishing
For good sleep tonight though I doubt cos I'm too nervous. AAAARGH

Wearing
Sando and short leggings

Loving
My latest online purchases! A bag from CCP and a bluetooth speaker from Lazada!

Wanting
Samsung Galaxy Tab A w/ S Pen (LTE) - I'm usually decided on saving up for Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact but this recent installment from Samsung, albeit being mid-range, is pretty artist friendly! And reading about it from an artist had me decided on saving for this instead! Oh you wait!

Needing
To sleep already!

Feeling
Too nervous. Argh. Loooooord! XS

[Review + Unboxing] RoyQueen H3500 Bluetooth Speaker

Ah, remember how I griped so much that the Sony BSP10 went out of stock at Lazada and that they couldn't even get me in touch with the merchant so that I could inquire if it's ever going to be available again?

Looks like I was meant for something better.

I chanced upon the RoyQueen H3500 Bluetooth Speaker on CCP and (as usual) checked it out on other sites to see who sells the cheapest and voila, Lazada wins with a 50 pesos difference haha

TIP: Usually if it's on CCP, it's also on MetroDeal and other group buying sites, and if it's an actual item (not a voucher) it's most likely in Lazada too

So I ordered last Sunday (August 9), got the item this afternoon (August 14), and played a while with it before heading to work.

I WAS IMPRESSED

With such an affordable price of Php 1,720, it's surprisingly feature-packed!

Features

1. Bluetooth and hands-free
2. NFC (Near Fields Communications)
3. SD card playback
4. FM radio (semi-auto scanning: 87.5MHz - 108MHz)
5. Voice guide
6. LED digital display
7. USB soundcard and card reader
8. AUX In

Unboxing

Here's the box:

Apparently I got the 'Upgrade' edition. Well, a box featuring this boy band called 'Upgrade' daw. haynakonamano

Here are the contents:

Just the bare essentials: unit, USB charging cable, and a pretty useless Chinese user manual. I was hoping for an audio cable but it has none but it's okay! :D

Parts and ports

top

The top part contains six buttons with pretty obvious functions.
- Upper: Volume -, Mode, Volume +
- Lower: Previous Track, Pause-Play / On-Off, Next Track

back

The back part has the following:
- AUX In
- MicroSD card slot
- USB charging port
- Light indicator - it blinks blue when it's charging
- Battery slot

bottom

The bottom part has nothing much. Just the "feet" and... ano ba to, vent? XD Nothing going on on the sides as well, so I'll spare ya the pics (as if meron). lol

Experience

Pull the plastic strip before using

Before turning it on, remember to pull out the plastic strip at the battery slot that's tucked between the battery and the flat tab, it says PULL haha. It's gonna keep you from charging the battery. Might I say, I was surprised to see a dry cell batt instead of a Li-Ion block, but no biggie, as long as it's rechargeable! :D

Note that you can also use the speakers without batteries as long as it's hooked to a power source via the USB cable. But this is very limited, I noticed it shuts down when I turn up the volume too much.

Press and hold on the on/off button to power it up. You will be greeted by an audio notification of your current mode, by default: you're on bluetooth mode (the LED screen will read 'bL'). Thank God the audio guide is in english!

Device Pairing

1) Bluetooth

Easy peasy. Just turn on your bluetooth, search for 'H3500' and wait for it to be connected. Audio notif will say, 'Device paired'. :D

2) NFC

Much easier, just turn on your NFC, tap it on the device, specifically near the volume+ button and wait for your device to be paired. I'm such a dummy for thinking NFC is actually capable of delivering audio like bluetooth but it's not. What it does when you tap your phone is call the bluetooth function on. It's not essentially an audio hardware. it just gives you the convenience of not having to fiddle through your bluetooth settings to manually pair your device -- in real life, you only have to do this once (unless you clear your bluetooth cache), so there's not much difference in terms of effort between bluetooth and NFC pairing. Still, NFC rocks okay? :D

When your device is already paired via NFC, you can turn it off already and keep your phone away.

Modes

The M button lets you toggle between different modes. It goes from bluetooth, FM, and Line (Audio In).

1) Bluetooth/Hands free

You can go hands-free from the bluetooth mode. Go call someone and hear their voice loud and clear on your speaker! I was impressed by the quality. One letdown would be the mic, I don't think it has a mic. You'd have to rely on your phone for that, but the audio is a big plus! :D

2) FM

I thoroughly enjoyed this one as I get to easily skim through the channels! It's a great feature, Sony BSP10 doesn't have this and it's a whopping Php 3,500! I feel like such a winner.

3) Line

I tested out a couple of cheap audio cables from CD-R king and true enough, it works. Unfortunately the sound is a bit lower compared to when you pair via bluetooth. If this isn't an issue for you, then good! Otherwise, you're probably better off with wired speakers. I came to the mall earlier to get a cable and sadly every one of those I've tried produced lower volume. Even the branded ones. Even those with three lines on the jack. :(

Battery

I was able to use the gadget for a good 6-8 hours under normal volume before it started crying for juice (sound is becoming grainy). The problem is, I wouldn't know if it's already lowbatt haha. I think the light turns solid blue (not blinking) when it's fully charged. OKAY I WILL CONFIRM haha. Also, I tried searching for the same battery at a hardware store but they have none! This is bigger than AA, which is bigger that AAA, so meron bang A? Batts me. Chos.

That's a rechargeable 2000mAH 3.7V dry cell battery for you. I don't know where to buy spares for this aside from ordering from RoyQueen itself, so if you know a place, ping me!

Verdict

For a cheap bluetooth speaker, it surprisingly delivers well! haha. The design looks elegant, albeit generic for BT speakers. Anyway, I wouldn't care if this was a knockoff of something else, I like how it looks. It also comes in red and blue, but really, black is good. Sound quality is nice, volume is great, it's packed with a lot of features that could ramp up the price but it stayed grounded and affordable! Even the regular price of Php 2,150 doesn't seem much!

Wait, hindi ako masyado maarte sa sound quality. I just want it to be loud enough pero hindi grainy cos mejo bingi na tita nyo. And in that regard, havey sakin to. :)

The RoyQueen H3500 bluetooth speaker is definitely a bang for the buck and is perfect for your regular music needs! It sells at Php 1,720 at Lazada, some 50 pesos cheaper than MetroDeal and CashCashPinoy haha.

Oh, I only noticed now that RoyQueen pretty much has kiosks at most SM Cyberzones. I was surprised to find one at SM Fairview earlier, they said they also have outlets at SM North Edsa and SM Megamall. Yeyy. They sell it at regular price there, Php 2,150. :D Pwede na rin!

Get yours from Lazada to get more discounts :)

[Tutorial] How to rotate photos in Blogger

Let me tell you, there is no easy way to do this. I was hoping it will come as an update from Blogger but I got tired of waiting. It should be a basic feature when uploading photos, but oh well.

Anyway, here you go:

After uploading a photo and finding that it's rotated at the wrong angle...

1. Open Picasa web albums
You should know that all your photo uploads at blogger are deposited here.

2. Open your blog directory
It should contain all the photos you've uploaded. By default, your folder is named after your blog. If you can't find it, maybe you can "View All". It should be there hehe

3. Find the photo you want to rotate
Since it's a recent photo, it could be all the way down. To make it easier, sort the album by date. How? Click on "Organize", then on the "Sort photos by..." dropdown list, select "date (newest first)". Then click Done.

4. Open the photo and "Edit in Google+"
When you open the photo at Picasa you may find that the rotate left/right icons are disabled. God knows why! What you have to do is click on "Action" and select "Edit in Google+". It will load a new window where, THANK GOD, the rotate buttons are finally enabled!

5. Rotate and go back to blogger :D
It will be saved automatically. Now you can go back to your blog post, select "Insert Image" and look for the photo you've just rotated under the "From this blog" tab. It's probably all the way down, bummer, I don't think there's a sort by feature for this! XD

That should be all! Hope this helps! :D

Roll your way to P1M worth of prizes, play Just Roll It now!

Conquer the world with Just Roll It and play for Php1M worth of prizes!

There's a new and exciting PC game that's making rounds all over the interwebs! If you love playing Monopoly but is too lazy to lay open the board and drag players with you, then get over your frustration and download Just Roll It -- an online monopoly board game that lets you conquer the world (literally), and gives you a chance to win REAL cash by winning!

Getting started:

Step 1: Download and install

Get the game by going to www.justrollit.ph and clicking on the Download button.
Note that there are system requirements and that the game installer is around 200MB big!

Step 2: Register and start playing

After downloading, install the game and start playing for free! If you aren't a member yet, you will be prompted to register (totally FREE!) but after that, everything will be a breeze! Key in your nominated username and password and you'll be led to the game's user interface where you can view the game guide and finally start playing.

I was overwhelmed when I first saw the dashboard, for a first time player it sure needs some getting used to. XD

How to play:

If you're familiar with Monopoly, you wouldn't have a hard time figuring out the rules. But basically, your goal is to emerge the richest by the end of the game, by buying real estate and charging players when they land on your property, forcing them to go bankrupt! As a newbie, I had to go through 7 bankruptcies before I earned my first win! YAS! Experience is a great teacher haha

1. Select a character

You can select a character by opening My Info on your profile panel - upper right of the window, then click on My Character. You can check out the characters' profile and ranking by viewing their cards. You can also equip them with accessories or enhance their stats :)

2. Join a game room

A maximum of 4 players are allowed per game. You can join a room or you can create your own room and invite players in. When you create a room, a list of online players will be available for you to invite. Then it's just a matter of waiting for their acceptance! You can play solo or by team (2 on 2). For starters, there's a Quick Start panel at the upper part of the game window that lets you join game rooms automatically. :D

Once another player is ready, you can start the game at once. Or you can wait for all 4 slots to be filled before starting. :D

3. Select a map

Choose whether you'd like to play on a World Map or a Space Map. Pretty much like a theme. The World Map has blocks filled with countries and landmarks and the Space Map is filled with planets, constellations, and other heavenly bodies. Up to you where you want to build your empire! :D

Here's how the Space Map looks like:

And here's how the World Map is:

Find Boracay!

Their take on themes really brings the game experience to the next level, it seriously isn't your usual Monopoly game. It's equipped with all sorts of entertaining elements that will surely have you glued to your screen ;) I, for one love the fact that you can manipulate dice rolls (TIP: When it's your turn, press and hold on the 'Roll' button to control the dice) to increase your chances of winning! :D

4. Let the game begin! 

The game starts by each of the players selecting a fortunecard which will determine the order of your turn, after which you'll take turns rolling 2 dice. Your character will advance across the board depending on the number of blocks shown on the dice. Getting the same number on each dice allows you to roll again! :D

You have an option to buy real estate when you land on a property. As you earn, you can build other establishments on it like a villa, a building, a hotel, or a landmark (on the Space Map, you can add a probe, a laboratory, a colony, etc).. whatever you can afford. You earn when you collect rent from other players when they land on one of your properties. Likewise, you lose money when you land on your opponents' properties. Very much like in real life isn't it? :D No wonder this game is perfect for learning business strategy.

But of course, the goal is to monopolize the game so if you're rich enough, after paying rent you can take over the entire city or planet by acquiring it at double the cost! It's true what they say that a game of monopoly provides an effective Business 101 course, or in this case.. a game of JustRollIt!

Winning the game means emerging the richest after exhausting your turns in rolling the dice, or after successfully making your opponents declare bankruptcy.

Oraaaayt! My first win!

Aside from those, there are also what we call special winning conditions:

• Line Victory - is when a player acquires all properties on one side of the board. That's like owning a fourth of the world okay (or the universe)!
• Tourism Victory - is when a player owns 6 tourist spots (4 islands, 2 beaches)!
• Triple Victory - is when a player owns 3 monopolies of different colors! :D

Oraaaayt! But that's not all, every time you win you're entitled a lucky ticket to their raffle promos! You can win P1,000 daily from the monthly pool prize, and you can also qualify to join their weekly and monthly raffle to win part of the total pool prize of P1,000,000 pesos! Oh great, not only are you going offline with bragging rights, you could also sign out with real cash!

Watch this video to learn more about how you can Be Rich! Just Roll It!

There you go, head over to www.justrollit.ph, click that download link and see you in the game room! Spot me, I'm YanB! :D

halu

// Project Pie for the third time
And this time, we bought our parents along and they loved it! My parents are usually very choosy about what they eat so we made sure to put as much green stuff on our pizzas to please them. HAHA we didn't mind anyway cos they're mostly herbs and not actual veggies hehe. Ang mahalaga, green! HAHA Anyway, we all loooove herbs. <3

Next time, I'll make sure to drizzle in a gay amount of feta and blue cheese! I was cautious not to put those cos they might stink and taste weird but holy moley they're super tasty! Brings the pizza to the next level! Kamown!

This could probably become one of my go-to restaurants... next to Chili's of course! HAHAHA I may actually be passing over the Chili's phase so yeyy (or not).

// Shingeki no Kyojin
I downloaded some 18GB worth of HD, dual-audio version of the series so my boyfriend could watch it BUT STILL NO. huhu No one to flail about the series.

// Work it like Miley
Err...my tasks are becoming more interesting! I'm learning a lot and there are days I get excited to go to the office to continue scripting. Oh, if you know me, that's freakin RARE! If only my mind could learn faster! Ay I shouldn't have said this no? Baka mabati ung excitement ko. lol

//Bye Sony BSP10 T___T
The bluetooth speaker that's on top of my Lazada to-buy list got out of stock this week. It was devastating cos I didn't want anything else, that's like the only bluetooth speaker I want to buy. Huhu. Makes me want to question why I'm holding off on seemingly impulsive buys (I could've borrowed money from my emergency funds and paid later). Now it's gone! May mga bagay talaga no? Wala lang.

//Eyeayay
Wearing glasses sucks. I don't think I'll ever get used to it. It makes my head hurt. It's a load of trouble when it gets smudged, I can't seem to wipe it squeaky clean with the cleaning cloth that came with it. I don't even know which side to use lol.

//Missing out on Sunday Currentlies
I'm not being too diligent with it. I don't know why. Maybe because my Sundays are becoming busier too! I wanted to blog about a lot of things already but realizing the amount of effort I had to exert kindof makes me lazy. Grabe, super bad work management skills no. haha

//Zumbattendance
Haha waleyyy. For the past month my attendance at Aero Sport was pretty impressive! Like it's actually becoming a regular thing! This morning's sessions was extra hard though, there was a new instructor, a 16 year old twerker who danced pabebe-ly to Twerk it Like Miley and gaaaahd knows what other popular songs those were. It was hell challenging and extremely funny too, you know our crowd.. we're all titas and lolas and mommies who couldn't twerk sensually even if our lives depended on it. stress! But tbh, I enjoyed it! Graduate na kami sa left right left right single single double double, we're doing lots of kembot na! HAHA

Join us maybe? I'm attending Aero Sport :D

Related: Group exercises you can join at Quezon City Memorial Circle

//Uhm..
Yeah! that's all! There are 3 holidays this month (19,21,31)! Oraaaayt! Rock 'n roll to the world!