The Proposal (lowres video version)

How it happened beyond the photos... much better than stills indeed...

If you can't view the video, click on this The Lowres Proposal Vid

Girl Crushes...

I'm fortunate that my fiancee allows me to have girl crushes except for one local female actress. All the rest are fine...

Over the years, my girl crushes have changed. And for the sake of this blog and to be on the safe side, I'll just talk about the international crushes that I can remember from way back haha Bernice has a thing with local celebrities...

When I was younger, I liked Phoebe Cates (of course). I had a huge crush on Mary Stuart Masterson. I also had a HUGE crush on Robin Wright when she appeared on Forrest Gump. 

In HS and early college, I remember having a crush on Cameron Diaz... that's why I named my car Cameron before. I also liked Drew Barrymore... well, until now actually. Unfortunately, my crush on Cameron Diaz faded early...

Then there were also those who weren't the usual names to come up at that time but I had a HUGE crush on Kelly Preston and Ashley Judd. And Ashley was on my top list for a long time. I just really like her look. 

Then in my 20's there's Kate Beckinsale... Wow! Enough said! I went crazy for her on Click... 

Angelina Jolie's a given but not as much. 

And since Zohan came out, I think Emmanuelle Chriqui takes the cake for me. Seriously... come to think of it, Adam Sandler indeed chooses perfect leading ladies for his movies...

And so that's my little list of the beautiful actresses who make me watch movies haha

Cy

Electronic Weakness

I'd say that I'm pretty happy with my music output when it comes to electronc music. There are styles that I can say I do cover and there are styles that I admit, i need work on, or worse, I really can't do. I can't do IDM. I also have a hard time doing Prodigy type times or The Chemical brothers tunes. But I guess that's what makes them unique. Thy really have a sound of their own.

Composition-wise, I'm bad at pads. I have a hard time using or Integrating it into my compositions and it's one thing I personally would want to develop. I need time...

Lots of it.

Cy

Flying with Colds!

Flying...

I love flying. I wish I could say that coz I'm superman but I'm not. I'd have to make do with the next best thing, which is riding planes.

I like the experience. I did say I love flying right? I didn't say though I love the long line to check in and waiting for delayed flights... Oh my, delayed flights... don't get me started. My delayed flight story is one blog entry long so I'll skip that. 

I'd like to focus on flying with colds.

Have you tried that? 

DON'T.

I've experienced it twice and it's not the best feeling. I won't wish that to anyone. I could just imagine the pain of babies with colds and it's not something I'd like to imagine. 

Flying with colds is the worst feeling while flying. For those with phobias of flying, your exempted from this because I'm sure that's the worst but for the rest of us, I'd say flying with colds is. 

It's like your ears are trying to pop from the inside. I'm sure you'll say but isn't that how it is in planes? Imagine not being able to hear anything while someone's forcing cotton buds to your ears but it's coming from the inside and you can't do anything to ease the pain. Was I able to describe it correctly?

Anyway, they say it helps to have a candy, gum, or something to help you chew and swallow but I'm afraid it's not as easy as that. When you have colds, apparently, it doesn't work. They say ear plugs might help. I haven't tried that. It's not like I didn't bother to. I was just in so much pain to even remember that. 

So there... After I landed, it took my ears I believe 3 days to hear again...

It really is that bad.

My advice? Don't get sick before a planned trip. Please.

Cy

New Year In Davao

To open this entry, I'd like to say, "YES I AM AWARE THIS IS A FREAKIN LATE ENTRY!" phew! ok that's done...

One word. 

Boring.

No, really. It is. 

It's that or I'm just a boring person but I'd like to think I'm not so it's the first. 

I'm all for no firecrackers for safety but man, there's not even any fireworks show anywhere where people can gather and celebrate together! It's that boring!

It's so boring, my dad was asleep before 12 and my mom was half asleep. 

And when the clock strikes 12, we're left to what? greet each other and then listen to people honk their car horns... oh joy.

My cousin and I literally had to find ways to entertain ourselves but it really wasn't as good as anything we have in Manila. Oh well...

So I guess I'm saving you money... if you plan a trip to Davao for New year, save your money and go somewhere else... make sure it's still in the Philippines.

Explore the Philippines!

Cy

Don't Forget To Remember!

Preaching To Myself

More often than not, I need to make time to preach to myself so I can be reminded of things I already know and understand...

Case in point:

I tell people to be prepared for live shows. I even wrote a tutorial on it and a guideline but one day, I found myself in panic. 

I had a corporate event. I had my suit, my lineup, songs, everything... but when I got to the hotel for the show, I realized that I left...

THE POWER SUPPLY OF MY LAPTOP.

And this is where the gladness of switching to a Mac comes in play. I was in panic but after making calls, my friend near the hotel was gracious enough to lend me his power supply. The show was a success and I went home happy. 

Now, had it been a PC, I would've just cried because of all the incompatibilities of power adaptors from brand to brand. 

Knowing myself to always triple checks, I still find it weird I missed that power supply and left it on top of my desk. I had all my cables and gear but no power for the source. Great right?

Now I know better.

And to you reading this, be happy you're not as forgetful as me! 

Take care and don't forget to remember! hahaha

Cy

Reunions

Reunions

Don't you just love reunions? I do... because of good food hahaha Kidding aside, as I mature in life, last reunion, I tried to make it a point to actually know the names of the people and actually know which part of the family they belonged to and stuff. 

Usually, as seen and experienced in reunions, the kids won't even bother to know especially if it's a big family reunion thing but this time, I had to make a change. 

Try it :)

Cy

My Helicopter

We weren't well off when we were younger. Until now, my "Nanay" would tell me stories of her trying to catch roaches just to put in a plastic because I liked watching it move inside... Praise God we weren't that down and out that I had to play with roaches... that was just part of my weirdness as a kid hahaha

I remember going to BF Paranaque to watch those RC races and that's what I did... watch! I didn't have the money to buy one and my folks really couldn't get me one as well.

I remember the happiness I felt when the junior RC was created. It was like, "wow! a cheaper version! Hooray for me!!!" But as mentioned, we couldn't afford the nicer ones so even a Tamiya was out of the question. It was indeed trying times but I'm glad that my parents were able to support our family. I wasn't able to get a Tamiya but they got me a Junior RC that their money could afford. 

When I got to school, I had to build up stories about my car and how fast it was because it had to rely on its "first impact" to even be remembered haha and true enough, everyone was behind my car and I lost hahaha funny times. 

Anyway, fast forward to today when things are cheaper and affordable...

Imagine, a working RC car wasn't in my scopes before because I knew it was too much. How much more for helicopters right? But now I'm older... I could buy one and I did! haha

It's cheaper now and even if it's still not those expensive non-asian made ones, it's still worth it. The joy of seeing it fly was something and I was taken to my childhood years of wanting and it was so good to "play" with it. And I don't feel bad that it's not one of those gas powered ones or whatever since I haven't taken it out of the box since the Christmas vacation! hahaha So I guess that's where my adult self came in and left the "child on vacation" back in Davao. 

But still... I'll take it out next week. I hope. Oh please... I hope I do.

Cy

A While? Not Really...

I've been so busy the past days and I haven't been able to log on long enough to blog so I wrote my entries offline so here it is...

It's Been Quite a Productive Week So Far

It's nice having your own time and actually owning it. But the downside is you can find yourself procrastinating or worse, not doing anything at all!

I'm just thankful to God that I'm not like that. I'm in the middle I must admit.

I have this thing though that I feel crappy when I'm not productive at all. I feel I wasted my time and that I feel worse about myself. It's bad but good in its way that I'm always in check making it a point to be productive and do something. 

I guess as part of 2010, it's been my goal to be even more productive.

On a side note, I read that having resolutions doesn't work at all but having goals does. Wala lang :) haha

Going back, I'm making it a point to always be doing something and making sure that it's something worth doing and will be in the same vein as my goals. 

I've been finishing my new album this January so that's good right?

The past week and in the coming days, I was able to do 4 new ads, a song for an event, 4 study music for a client, and was able to earn a few bucks in the process. It's really been a blessing. 

Next week we finalize drum tracks then vocals the week after then finalize the whole album for Lovecore. I can't wait.

I really can't wait for that Lovecore album.

Cy

I Need Help

If you consider yourself a fan, shoot me a msg to volunteer. I need a street team to help me promote, promote, and promote :) I need all the help I can get.

Thanks in advance, peeps!

God bless!!

Cy

will start putting photos? yes...

To make my blog a little bit um... more graphic, I'm going to put a photo in every blog entry and use whatever photo (trippy is good) that relates to my entry. It may be contrasting at times... it might be fun! It's just a google search away so I guess I'll go with interesting, funny, or totally unrelated! haha I guess I can just use anything since I'm not blogging to make money anyway and I'm not using the photo for commercial purposes? Or I'll just try a link back I guess...

Cy

photo: http://bit.ly/4j6LGn

Sunday...

Had a great start of Sunday with a powerful Word received in church. God really is mixing things up this year for something big! It really got me excited!

I left right after service to rush to Festival for the car show they had. It actually took me 20 minutes from Alabang New Life to the gate of alabang hills. That usually took a minute!

Anyway, the car show was a big disappointment. Seriously. I guess I just had such high expectations for it that when I saw the cars on display, I felt cheated by being so excited for weeks only to be let down by it. My friend even said he's seen much better cars simply parked in ATC!!!

So we had dinner in Giligans in Festival Mall. They had a GREAT group meal promo there and I mean GREAT!!! Php500 for sinigang, chicken, sinugba, 4 iced teas, and a plate of rice. Really worth it!

We watched Old Dogs after which was quite funny and worth it. It was a fun movie. Perfect to close the night... almost.

We headed to Starbucks Madrigal after to hang out as the night came to a close... BUT we spent too long there we got hungry and got some Jollibee before heading home.

What a night!

Once I got home, it was back to work where I did some edits and I had to send over music to a client for approval. 

Long but fun night :)

Fun...

Cy

I Like This...

Here's one nice song... 

Even if it's not a Christian song, its meaning is something we can all hold on to. I love the line, "and the one poor child that saved the world" Perfect...

Goo Goo Dolls 

Better Days

And you ask me what I want this year
And I try to make this kind and clear
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days
Cuz I don't need boxes wrapped in strings
And desire and love and empty things
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days

So take these words
And sing out loud
Cuz everyone is forgiven now
Cuz tonight's the night the world begins again

And it's someplace simple where we could live
And something only you can give
And thats faith and trust and peace while we're alive
And the one poor child that saved this world
And there's 10 million more who probably could
If we all just stopped and said a prayer for them

So take these words
And sing out loud
Cuz everyone is forgiven now
Cuz tonight's the night the world begins again

I wish everyone was loved tonight
And somehow stop this endless fight
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days

So take these words
And sing out loud
Cuz everyone is forgiven now
Cuz tonight's the night the world begins again
Cuz tonight's the night the world begins again

Here's a Nice Video Shot Before Regarding The Vision of My Album, Devotion

You guys must have a Facebook account...

:)

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1224666981554&subj=752089354

Kick It!

My friend just showed me something neat...

I'm sure you have your own video downloader on your computer. I also had my personal preference which was youtubeloader.com and I also found a way to download something within Safari and not using any 3rd party site but this new one does it for me.

Once you have your video loaded. On the address bar where the address of your youtube video is, simply put the word "kick" before youtube.com/23498blahbah... it will then open a window which presents you with download options for the format you want. 

Neat little site. It makes things easier if I may say :)

Cy

Sharing Some Good News...

I'm so psyched to share with you guys that I'm in the Manila Times Online 10 best OPM albums of 2009!! Check it out!!! This made my day :) http://shar.es/aT7MQ Do feel free to visit http://www.silverfilter.com/free for some new free tune downloads and more. God bless! Cy

Sometimes, Avoiding is The Next Best Thing...

I admit. I'm a philmusic classifieds addict...

I "used" to visit it countless times a day just looking. Looking for all those nice guitars for sale, waiting for new owners. I always say, in complete honesty, that I just like looking at them. I really do. I guess I find guitars really beautiful like maybe how I see cars in the same light. Thing is, when I find something REALLY beautiful, I tend to want it and that's the bad thing.

I keep on returning to the thread/post just to keep looking at it. I also go and check if some lucky guy was able to get the guitar and feel a little bad if someone does. 

Partly, it's the same with the keyboards section and proaudio... and the list goes on. 

As part of my so-called cleansing, I've been avoiding the forum and it's helped me immensely. I guess sometimes, that's the only way to get you out of it. I won't say I was deep down that hole or something but it was taking up time and somehow, was giving me unnecessary stress (coz I wanted to buy). 

So far it's helping. Thank God :)

Cy

Do you think God punishes you with sickness, defeat, accidents, and others as judgments?

Taken from Joseph Prince's Daily Grace Inspirations...

God Is Not On A Sin Hunt

1 Thessalonians 5:9 9For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

When you think of Sodom and Gomorrah, what comes to your mind? God's wrath and fiery judgment? The truth is that God was not all out to judge the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. He was not on a sin hunt. He was, in fact, on a righteousness hunt! This is evident because if God was on a sin hunt, He would not have allowed anyone to stop Him. But we know that He let Abraham in on what He was about to do and even allowed Abraham to entreat Him. Abraham asked God if He would destroy Sodom if He could find 50 righteous people there. God's reply was, "If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes." (Genesis 18:26) Abraham then asked God if He would destroy the city if there were only 45… 40… 30… or 10 righteous. And each time, God's reply was that He would spare the place for the sake of the righteous. Abraham stopped at 10. If he had gone down to just one righteous man, I believe God's reply would have been the same because He was on a righteousness hunt. Now, if God was not all out to destroy then, how much more today, when God has already judged our sins in the body of His Son? At the cross, Jesus exhausted all of God's fiery judgments until there was no more fire of God's wrath left for us! Today, God is not judging us for our sins because He has found the righteousness of the one Man — Christ Jesus. So do not let anyone tell you that God judges you for your sins and punishes you with cancer, car accidents, business failures or brokenness. God would be unjust if He punished the same sins twice — in Jesus' body and then in yours. Beloved, God is not out to judge you but bless you today, not because you deserve it, but because Jesus was judged and punished in your place!

A Bit Better...

I was down and out that I forgot to write anything yesterday. I guess that's forgivable. 

I've been having major tummy trouble, stomach ache and fever. We're guessing food poisoning but I don't know really. 

Last time I suffered this was after I ate in Mcdonalds Alabang late last year... Lo and behold, I ate at the same branch the morning before all of this happened. Coincidence? I don't know. I've heard horror stories about that branch and how people get sick after. Not many but there are stories.

Anyway, the intense pain has rendered me incapable of properly working on the album the past two days and it's just now that I have slowly regained a bit of my strength. Getting there slowly. 

Thanks for your prayers and I am still hoping to finish everything before Saturday fingers crossed.

God bless!

Cy

None for today

Fever and a terrible tummy ache. Pray for me.

Cy

This Is The Week That The Lord Has Made!

Looking forward to this week as I finalize everything for Manila Electronica. It's been a long time coming but I'm just happy I have this week to work on it and have the final master CD in my hands by Friday. 

Will keep you guys posted!

God bless

Cy

Realize...

My dad forwarded this to me via email. It's a gentle reminder for us to make the most of our time.

________

To realize
The value of a sister/brother
Ask someone
Who doesn't have one. 

To realize
The value of ten years:
Ask a newly
Divorced couple.

To realize
The value of four years:
Ask a graduate.

To realize
The value of one year:
Ask a student who
Has failed a final exam. 

To realize The value of nine months:
Ask a mother who gave birth to a stillborn. 

To realize
The value of one month:
Ask a mother
Who has given birth to
A premature baby..... 

To realize
The value of one week:
Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize
The value of one minute:
Ask a person
Who has missed the train, bus or plane. 

To realize
The value of one-second:
Ask a person
Who has survived an accident. 

Time waits for no one. 

Treasure every moment you have. 

You will treasure it even more when
You can share it with someone special. 

To realize the value of a friend or family member: 

LOSE ONE. 

Ethanol... Learn About What You're Putting In Your Car...

I believe there has been an unjust decision for oil companies to leave out all the other motorists in their recent shift to E10 for their unleaded and premium brand gasoline. 

Even if you check out a list of cars that "can" run with E10, it still leaves out a vast majority of motorists who own older cars and even those who collect old cars! Here is the list of brands and models http://www.vacc.com.au/ConsumerInfo/Alternativefuels/EthanolUseListofVehicles/tabid/2041/Default.aspx

Please Please Please read this link and the discussions that follow. We really need to make noise about this...

http://musclecarsph.1.forumer.com/index.php?showtopic=1585

We are led to believe we are indeed helping the Earth but are we?

Here's one link http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-ethanol-gasoline.htm

Now take note of this...

"The use of ethanol as an alternative to petroleum-based fuels is not without controversy. There are many who argue that the disadvantages of using ethanol outweigh the benefits. Ethanol has lower energy per content than a comparable amount of gasoline. This means that a vehicle powered by ethanol has lower fuel efficiency than a comparable gasoline powered vehicle. Vehicles using ethanol would therefore need more quantity of fuel to travel the same distance that agasoline vehicle could travel.

Many opponents of wide scale ethanol gasoline use also cite the fact that growing the corn needed for ethanol production takes away available agricultural land and resources that could be used to provide food for people, possibly resulting in less food production and higher food prices. It is estimated by some that using all of the potential corn that is produced in the United States for ethanol would still only provide a little over 10 percent of the nation's overall fuel usage. In addition, many critics claim that it takes more energy to create ethanol gasoline, than the energy that is saved through its use."

Now it makes us think that since now gasoline with ethanol makes our car less fuel efficient, it then makes us buy gas more often coz it burns it a lot more to run the same distance pure gasoline once delivered... added to the fact that as mentioned in the previous paragraph, it is a deceptive "green" effort since it really doesn't save energy at all even from the beginning of the process in making Ethanol. 

Now given the fact that E10, "may" be alright for cars INCLUDED in the list, what about that half of the population who can't afford to get the newer cars? We'll just let them enjoy the last of their gasoline left in their tanks just before the shift?

And this is a REALLY interesting read... short but it gives a lot to think about http://pinoybusiness.org/2009/09/12/ethanol-blended-gasoline-is-safe/

It really seems unfair and unjust to leave us car owners in the air just like that. It's like they didn't think about what they were doing. I'll leave all the "greed" issues for you to judge but my concern is the motoring public who still have old cars.

I am calling people and friends in the media to take a look at this issue and maybe you can help be that voice in taking this fight to the people who can make changes and to let the people be aware of what's happening. 

Personally, I really wonder what about those relying on their old vehicles to bring in money for their family? Are they at the mercy of the decisions made by those who decided to make E10 the base component of all gasoline products? Not only can they not use the gasoline right for their cars, they now are at the risk of ruining their vehicles just because of this act. It looks like it will disable a huge part of the driving public. 

Please help us. 

"Quite" Unproductive and yet...

It started out smoothly when I went over the CD cover design. I would say it was fruitful since I was able to work on it but I'd say not finishing it because I got distracted turned out to be an unproductive night. 

I was locked on the television coz there were shows about cars and even had a special feature show on muscle cars, which I'm a fan of. Once it was on, I lost focus...

After the show, I went back to my computer but it wasn't to get back on the cover. I surfed for muscle cars... name it. Looked for pictures, videos, forums, etc. I was literally hooked. 

I'm actually enjoying this as I'm seeing the distraction as a welcome thing for me to get my mind balanced having music AND my fascination for cars to even things out. As mentioned before, too much "music" for me makes the magic lose its touch for me and I'm glad that this revived passion for cars is back.

Ever since I was a kid, I've always been into cars. I've always loved cars. When I was younger, my dad promised me a red sports car, which I hung on to my whole childhood years but when it didn't happen, I guess I fell into that "settling" trap. I learned to just settle and keep quiet. I guess it's a lesson for all of us not to let frustrations burry our dreams and passions. Mine never really died but it took a back seat. This 2010, I aim to make a change. 

Cy

A New Album Is Upon Us...

Just started mastering the new album entitled, Manila Electronica. The concept behind it is it's a journey into the electronic music styles available over the years and the changes that happened with the sounds in the past decade.

The album cover is already finished. I'll just need to double check everything. I'll also need to check if the replication company can accommodate almost 80 minutes of music so I won't have to remove a track from the lineup.

The album will have 13 tracks. And before anyone comments, I don't believe in bad luck coz God's behind this project. It'll span house, DnB, techno, electro, to some jazz funk and dub. It's a mixed bunch which aims to tap into the tastes of everyone. I'm hoping that each song will get its own fan so to speak.

Anyway, ill have everything done by next week and we're off!!

Teaser will be out last week of January :)

Cy

Excited...

Finally brought my car to have it repaired but that's not the focus of this entry... hehe

My goal for the night was to finally prepare all the tunes for mastering for my new album, Manila Electronica. I'm more than halfway through and I'm pretty sure and committed to finish everything by tonight. After this, we just have mastering to worry about and it's off to the replication company. Cover's been finished last year so it's like I can almost taste the album at this point!!!

Stay tuned! Let's hope for a birthday release, yes?

Cy

Simple Rewards....

I forgot to mention.

During our set, there was this cute cute little tabachingching girl in front and she was moving during our set. She was dancing a bit and smiling and grooving to our songs...

After our set, I was packing up my guitar and in a cute, mature manner, she approached me smiling and said, "You did a great job!" Man, I was so stoked to hear that especially coming from a kid. It was like it was enough if she was the only one who dug our sound. 

It really made my night. 

Cy

First Gig Of The Year... Lookin Good... sandwich, pedicab, rivermaya, imago...

Just finished a birthday gig of a friend and had an awesome lineup and was thrilled to once again be in the same lineup with Imago, Rivermaya, Sandwich, Pedicab, Juan Pablo Dream, and Razorback (who unfortunately wasn't able to play). Good thing Pepe Smith jammed with Rivermaya for Beep Beep. Swabe!

Being a fan of Pinoy musicians, it seemed like it was also my birthday haha in the sense that in one night, I was able to enjoy the music of these great bands and not just any band. I kept calling it the "free concert" to my friends.

We opened the night, which I'm pretty sure was because we're the most "unfamous" among the list but it's not the point hehe. WE enjoyed ourselves, played a rocking set, all for the birthday boy!

One perk of being a musician myself is being friends with all these talented people. I still am a little fanboy inside and it's nice to have that privilege to be able to approach them without hesitation and the fact that they remember or know me really brings a smile to my face. At the very least they don't have that air of "rockstardom" which I'm glad I haven't experienced with other artists yet. It's nice even just to say hi to them and do some catching up. 

I remember the first time I met Kevin Roy, I was in ultimate fanboy mode... years later, I ended up doing some shows with him and he's a great guy and even after the shows, he remembers and even greets me first. O diba? hehe

But tonight, I guess the nice thing that happened was when Diego Mapa approached me after his set coz he was doing effects with his voice during their set with Pedicab and told me he got it from ME! hehehe I was thrilled to find out and was equally glad that he even bothered to tell me that. He even followed it up with "I'm glad you were here to see it!" Who would've thought that little ol' me would be able to add to the live show of one of the famous acts in the country? Aliw!

The night was rockin, the people were all happy, and the birthday party was a success.

I do hope Lovecore was able to make a mark and hopefully make the name ring for people who liked our set. Let's see...

Happy birthday again to the Junacles family hehe

Cy

Movies...

I love movies.

If you haven't noticed that, then you haven't read my blogs or haven't even talked to me in person coz I'm always in the theaters.

It's great that this week, I was able to see 5 movies. Yes. 5. 

sequenced with short comments...

I love You, Goodbye - pretty nice. At least it had a proper flow unlike the chopped jumps in some Pinoy movies

Shake Rattle and Roll XI - was very disappointed coz I was expecting at least one funny-scary story but there was none.

Zombieland - hilarious. Metallica song in the intro... Perfect.

The Rebound - pretty ok. If they didn't market it much like a cougar movie, it may have passed as a "cute" love story

Alvin and The Chipmunks 2 - had low expectations thinking it was a kiddie movie but was thoroughly entertained by it :)

So that's my movie week for you guys!

Cy

A Sleeping Partner

A Sleeping Partner Who Benefits

Genesis 15:12  12Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram…

In business, sleeping or silent partners don't work but still take home huge profits. They are like the wife of the boxing champion. He gets badly beaten up to win the prize money. But when he gets home, his wife takes it from him and says, "Thank you very much, darling!" Do you know that in your covenant with God, you are like the boxer's wife or the sleeping partner? When Abraham asked God how he would know for sure that he would inherit the land that God had promised him, God made a covenant with him. (Genesis 15:8–21) But instead of cutting the covenant with Abraham by walking in between the animal pieces with him, God put Abraham into a deep sleep and cut the covenant with Jesus instead. Jesus, the light of the world, appeared as the pillar of fire and cut the covenant with God the Fatherwho appeared as the pillar of cloud. In other words, Jesus took Abraham's place. He was perfect Man representing Abraham when He cut the covenant with His Father. By substituting Abraham with Jesus, God was being gracious because if Abraham had done it, he would also have been responsible for keeping the covenant. And Abraham, being a mere man, would fail. But God the Son can never fail! Abraham's blessings were therefore guaranteed because they did not depend on his performance but Jesus' performance. Abraham was literally a sleeping partner, a beneficiary of the covenant. Today, God has also made a covenant with you, called the new covenant. And like Abraham, you are a sleeping partner because the new covenant was also cut between God the Father and God the Son atCalvary. You are simply a beneficiary of the new covenant. You enjoy all its benefits without having to work at keeping it. Jesus, your representative, has already fulfilled all the conditions on your behalf. And because His obedience is perfect and His work is perfectly finished, the covenant blessings for you are guaranteed! My friend, there is nothing left for you to do, but everything for you to believe. Don't try to work for your covenant blessings. Rest in the Son's finished work and receive them by faith! _____________ This was taken from the daily grace inspirations by Joseph Prince :)

Just a run through of my day...

Spent the afternoon in ayala greenfields looking at a potential wedding venue. Better be ahead of the game hehe

After the quick road trip, movie marathon was the order of the night with Zombieland and then The Rebound right after. Zombieland was hilarious!

Highlights for me is checking out something without worry about cost because somebody decided to bless us with a venue.

Negative highlight is my hotdog sandwich condiments spilling onto my shorts, legs, and shoes right before we go watch movies.

O yah. Finally got my Ayala card! Can finally use the customer lounge free of charge haha all it requires are receipts worth 10k, 300 pesos and for you to fill up the form. All done while you wait at the concierge area.

That's all folks! nothing much for a Saturday blog. Haha

God bless!

Cy

For A Change

I've always loved cars since I was a kid. Seriously addicted to it. But then I found music. I also had unfortunate events/frustrations in my life back then that turned me away from ever wanting a nicer car or whatever. I guess it's also coz of the fact that we couldn't afford the nicer cars... Not even a low end brand new one. And so I gave it all into music. It became not just a hobby but also my work. Eventually, music somehow lost a bit of it's magic. Now I'm thinking of getting back to my love of automobiles and direct my attention to it and stop looking at what guitar to buy next or check out. For a change, I feel it'll be a refreshing shift to revive that passion for cars and rides. It might be helpful. I just fear that i'm shifting to something more expensive than what I was initially into. What can I do to get into it? Learn racing? Repairs? restore?

What passion of yours do you need to revisit?

Cy

Wrong Introductions Are Embarrassing

I did a gig in Metro Lounge in Davao over the holidays. It was an unplanned but fun gig attended by my cousins since they were there for the Christmas season as well. 

I went on and played a few minutes and then the introduction was made and all of a sudden, the guy with the mic said something like, "all the way from Embassy Superclub in Manila!" You guys should've seen my face! Not because it's embarrassing to be affiliated with Embassy/Encore but I just didn't like the idea that someone there who's familiar with Embassy might think I'm trying to sell myself as an Embassy DJ or something, which I'm not. Name dropping that way isn't my style at all. 

I'm very conscious about that and yes it may just be some mistake by the announcer but the fact that it was announced really made me embarrassed about the whole thing. I wanted to hide under the DJ table.

I've worked so hard to get where I am now and it's not "me" to pretend just because I'm out of town and people won't find out. The world is so small and that's exactly why I felt bad about what happened. 

So to whoever reads this from Davao, who was there that night, I'm not from Embassy. It's great to say that I've played there a few times already but that's different from the understanding that I'm one of their residents or am endorsed by the club. Magagalit si Martin Pulgar hehe (Hi Marts).

Cy

Some Important Info For Car Owners

Car A/C (Air Conditioning) MUST READ!!! 
Please do NOT turn on A/C as soon as you enter the car. 



Open the  windows after you enter your car and turn ON the AC after a couple of minutes.

Here's why: 

According to a research, the car dashboard, sofa, air freshener emit Benzene, a Cancer causing toxin

(carcinogen - take time to observe the smell of heated plastic in your car).

In addition to causing cancer, Benzene poisons your bones, causes anemia and reduces white blood cells..

Prolonged exposure will cause Leukemia, increasing the risk of cancer.

Can also cause miscarriage.

Acceptable Benzene level indoors is 50mg per sq.ft. A car parked indoors with windows closed will contain 400-800 mg of Benzene.

If parked outdoors under the sun at a temperature above 60 degrees F, the Benzene level goes up to 2000-4000 mg, 40 times the acceptable level.

People who get into the car, keeping windows closed will inevitably inhale, in quick succession, excessive amounts of the toxin.

Benzene is a toxin that affects your kidney and liver.. What's worse, it is extremely difficult for your body to expel this toxic stuff.

So friends, please open the windows and door of your car - give time for interior to air out -dispel the deadly stuff - before you enter.

Upgrading My Car Head Unit... aka radio/stereo/player...

My car is an old cat. '97 to be exact. So it's expected that its head unit will be as old as it is and may show signs of wear and tear. It manifested itself to its full extent in 2009 when the volume knob gave out. 

Being practical about having to replace it, I went and looked for a replacement knob but the shop everyone suggested didn't have it so I had no choice anymore. I decided to just use an ipod with it using the tape converter thinking at least I can use the ipods volume control to still make the unit useable. I was happy with my solution. Ever since I was a kid, I learned to make do with what we had especially since times were tough on our family then. I enjoyed my solution until...

Dad flew in and borrowed the car. I forgot to tell him about the proper way to turn off the headlights because as I mentioned, the car's old, and it has its ways in its own way... ok there's a busted switch that I haven't replaced yet hehe

With that, he parked and didn't know that he left the headlights on. Long story short, it drained. When the batt's drained, power comes to zero. Now why is this important?

Alpine head units tend to pull its volume down to 0 once there's a power loss since it "forgot" it's last setting due to the loss of power delivered to the unit. Now remember my solution? No more. With volume in 0, the unit's rendered useless already. 

FAST FORWARD...

So I've been looking at a replacement and wanted it to be Alpine as well. It's soooo hard to look for alpine locally these days. I even asked for help from my auto buddies to let me know and that they did. 

My friend Ariane told me that he saw the unit he was recommending last year in a shop near my place so I took it. 

Brought it this afternoon and didn't think installation would be that long. It's all good though. It's no big deal. 

I was just a bit disappointed that despite having USB, an audio in, and bluetooth, I couldn't connect my ipod on the fly. I had to buy a cable (which I didn't), just to connect my ipod. I figured that the USB would do. I'm too digital anyway that I have other means to play music. So I'm going with a thumb drive into USB instead, or use the audio in and plug my ipod, or even just burn preselected mp3s onto CD since it can also read CD/MP3s. I realized when I got home that bluetooth was only for handsfree phonecalls, which is not a bad thing really. I was just expecting more like connecting ipod via bluetooth and controlling everything via the front panel but I guess that was asking too much and had it been the case, maybe it might've ended up being more expensive than it is. 

At the end of the day, I'm a happy man. Finally have my music back to rock the car during southern traffic...

All smiles for silverfilter :)

Cy

Blackie

Last few pics before sending it over to Manila. Took me more than a year before I could get it to where it belongs. Hope I could squeeze in whatever with all the expenses this year. Nakupow!

I present... Blackie... named after Eric Clapton's strat :)

Live A Now Life...

I admit, I sometimes tend to procrastinate on things. 

Over the holidays, I saw this shirt from my cousin which read, "I'll procrastinate later." I loved that shirt cuz it was witty and I've never seen one before. 

I've made that quality decision this year to be a "now" person and do what I can and not set it for later. It's funny how I decided to do all the things I have and listed it down in a to do list. It's been too overwhelming that my body suddenly showed its stress blisters once my mind recorded all my to do's. 

Blisters aside, I suggest that we all could make a little change in doing things now and not wait if you can do it sooner. I'm preaching to myself as well so we're all in this. No need for drastic changes. Small steps can go a long way. 

I never imagined I'll end up consistently blogging!

Cy

edrums!!! First Impressions...

Once I opened the box, it was so overwhelming to imagine the setup needed for the stand and the rest of the kit. It took me a full hour just to set it up whereas I can setup a typical acoustic kit in less than 10... maybe even 5!

There were tons of parts, joints, screws, etc but it's been a while since I put something together so it was a fun experience. 

Unfortunately, the whole kit was missing one screw so I'll have to go back to Perfect Pitch tomorrow to report it. 

I tried out the set a month back which was the main reason I got convinced in getting it... plus the research I did when I got home coz I really wanted it already but the price was no joke so I had to let days pass to think about it and decide wisely. I figured it would be very useful for work, recording, the band, and myself as I want to get back into drumming and loosen up my drumming joints since it's been a while since I played the drums seriously.

Goin back, after setup, I immediately got my headphones out to jam a bit then later got my ipod so I can jam with some tunes... 2 hours later, I still found myself drumming away. haha

I'm now back in front of the computer to report to you guys how it went. It was fun. 

I really hope drumming can be counted as good exercise with the sweating and the movement.

It's fun to be playing once again without thinking of any gig, project, or whatever behind the playing...  all for fun. All for the music.

Cy

09 Recap... I hope I can still remember...

In the interest of making at least 365 blog entries this 2010, here's what my 2009 was like as far as I can remember...

Lovecore - We had a BIG push this year with everything. We had our radio interviews and gigs. We also began shooting our music video and we released our first single, Walis Tambo. It's the year we received airplay for mainly 2 songs, Walis and Tikman. I believe we've created a little buzz this time around and it's just the beginning. We also had great progress with the album and we're just left with finishing the vocals early this yr. Don't worry, our 2nd album won't take as long.

silverfilter - Nothing as big as releasing my latest full length entitled Devotion. It was a great year for my silverfilter project in the release, promotions online and on the radio, as well as with shows and a mighty launch which was attended by friends. I also found myself on itunes and a couple more online retailers this year which was a big thing! I also started mixing down the upcoming album and I'm happy to announce that it will be out just in time for summer!

Work - as usual, I finished quite a number of ads this year which was fun. I also did the biggest project I've done in my professional career for Sonoton Germany. It was really a productive year now that I backtrack and remember. 

I also did the first ever Propellerhead sponsored music production workshop which was a success! It really was a big thing personally since I'm a Reason/Record user and being able to be the speaker for something that big really makes it one of the milestones not just in my music career but in my life in general. 

God's been truly truly faithful and He has poured in His blessings left and right and He keeps on telling me there's more.

Good thing is, it's only the beginning. Seriously. I'm gonna be exceeding all expectations this 2010! I PROMISE!!! God is in control!!!

Thank God for blogs... I get to remember stuff while writing it down haha

Cy

MMFF

Catching up on a day lacking a blog entry for the year hehe

I usually go out and watch as many movies as I can during the Metro Manila Film Festival. This year isn't any different. 

I was aiming initially to watch around 4-5 movies from the entries but so far, I only got around to watching 2. 

I'm no movie critic and I think I've mentioned that before since I like most movies but surprisingly, I didn't like Nobody But Juan at all. I had high hopes for it since it stars the king of comedy but even the king of comedy wasn't enough to make it worth the money. The movie didn't have any flow at all. It felt too choppy at times. There were some nice parts but not enough to carry the movie. At some point I actually felt all my relatives were bored by it. I don't even remember it anymore! It's sad since I'm a Dolphy fan and I used to watch his black and white movies when I was younger. Times have changed indeed...

I also saw Panday, which was at the other end of the spectrum. I liked it a lot. And for Philippine standards, the CG FX were good. Remember I said for Philippine standards :) Story had at least a proper flow. I remember even having those Panday tex cards when I was younger when it was still FPJ haha Anyway, the movie, as other people have also noticed had scenes which reminded them of famous epic movies like 300, Lord of The Rings, and others... Unfortunately, they didn't mean it positively. It was more like they copied some of the camera angles, scenes, etc... I don't know the proper term for it... cinematography I guess? Anyway, to be fair, it was still ok even if it may have had somehow copied some movies. The CG FX speaks for itself at least compared to those lousy green screen use of other movies I've watched over the years every xmas season. 

Tom I'll be heading out to watch at least 2 more and have myself entertained enough. All I want is to come out of the movie theater and say it was at least worth the time and money. Unfortunately, some of the Pinoy movies don't stand up to it yet. I'm not bashing Filipino movies coz if you even ask my friends, I actually support and go out and watch. I just hope we could improve more... 

and bring back the comedy movies of the 80s and 90s. I miss those pinoy comedies!

Cy

Still Catching Up On Delayed Blog Entries... Cars for now!

I still lack a lot of entries especially for the holidays but this particular entry is not to make up for it... YET. 

Since I am short of time at the time of writing, I'd like to talk about car names...

I'm not really the type who names everything. I don't even name my guitars, but it's funny how some of the cars I've driven over the years seem to get names from me. 

My first car was a '67 Mustang. It's with my dad now. It didn't have a name since I figured "Mustang" would DEFINITELY stand on its own hehe

I also then used to drive our family car which was a Lancer box type model. It didn't have a name... but if I were to give it a name today, it'd be "fleshy" since it was one of those weird "flesh" colored Lancers had back then. 

I then used another Lancer which was a '91 model. I grew up with that car and so far, it's the one who "witnessed" my growth. It also grew old with me that it eventually showed its age that's why I ended up calling him "Tuklap" coz of the chipping off of the paint. During college, we had its color changed so it was kinda distinct and even if it was a Lancer, which was pretty common, everybody knew that car and aside from being Tuklap, he was famously known as "CKG" from its plate number. I had a funny meaning for it using CKG as an acronym but I won't divulge it here coz it might come off weird if you don't know me personally hehehe

Currently, my car today, which is a Toyota Camry '97, is called "Chamy." I know it has the lamest name of all for a car but the night I was deciding which car to get, I made a joke (which most parts of it I already forgot) about getting the H from the Honda logo to join it to the Camry name since I was choosing between an Accord and a Camry. At the time of the joke, it was indeed funny. But now that I forgot why I ended up with "Chamy," I'm aware it's not funny at all hehe

I got a project car recently, which I got for a minor restoration project and I don't know what to call it honestly. I'm thinking of calling it "Blackie" since it's black and for it to have the same name as Eric Clapton's black stratocaster. Yeah I think I'll call him Blackie then... Good thing I blogged about this. I only remembered Blackie while typing! haha

Will post pics if I do find some :)

Cy

Happy new year again to everyone!

I'm keeping this short as to just maintain consistency on my daily blogs for the year. I'll discuss more in detail in the coming days. What I can say now is that i'm a new man and 2010 is gonna be the biggest year of my life so far in terms of career and direction. God's in control.

Cy