And the Winners Are...

Happy anniversary, Here, Tishie Tishie! Happy birthday, BFF! And happy announcement day to all those who joined my blog anniversary giveaway, sponsored by Cocomo!

Let's get right down to it!

Winner #1 gets the Love Story reversible bikini.

The winner, according to my online random number generator is...

Number 94 said that she wants to win a Cocomo swimsuit because, "I haven't been to the beach in 7 years! I will now have a good excuse to hit the beach because of course I have to show off the swimsuit. ;)" SEVEN YEARS! Sweetie, it's time for you to hit the gorgeous beaches of our tropical country, and now you have the perfect excuse!:)

On to the next one! Winner #2 gets the Vienna tankini.

Who could it be? This winner said, "I want to win a Cocomo swimsuit because these are really gorgeous, perfect for my graduation celebration! :))" Winner #2, consider this a graduation gift!:)

(Che, sorry, you just missed it!!! At least you know this isn't rigged. Haha.)

And finally, Winner #3 gets the Black Savannah.

Number 35 said, "I want to win a Cocomo swimsuit because I can definitely rock these swimsuits! LOL! Kidding aside, I think the swimsuits above look great and will be definitely great for summer! :D" Well, this winner can now rock the oh-so-sexy one-piece pictured above...

Congratualtions to Nina, Snow0016, and Sugar Sugar! Please get in touch with me through heretishietishie@gmail.com. You have until 12:00 noon of Thursday, the 31st of March 2011. If I don't hear from you by then, I shall be holding another draw! (I sense a collective crossing of fingers among the others who joined.)

Thank you to Cocomo and to all those who joined! Again, I was so overwhelmed by the response. I was up til two in the morning just collating everything and cross-checking with the Followers list and the blog posts for additional entries. Haha. (Well, not so haha considering my zombie-esque state.) A special thanks to those who've been following this blog since the beginning, even before I started giving stuff away. Sniff.

Have a great week, everyone!:)

Giveaway Now Closed

My blog anniversary giveaway is officially closed! Thanks to all those who joined! So overwhelmed by the response. Check back tomorrow (28th of March) at noon to find out if you won a Cocomo swimsuit!

Last Call for Giveaway Entries!

Hi, everyone! You have until 11:59 p.m. to join my blog anniversary giveaway. You have a chance to win one of three Cocomo swimsuits! Good luck!:)

I'm on StyleBible!

It was Fire Drill Day, and while most people from our floor snuck out for coffee to avoid having to go down seven flights of stairs, I stayed behind. We were ferried to a vacant lot by what was supposedly the burning building. While waiting, the Real Living girls and I were making jokes about how StyleBible was going around snapping pics of Fire Drill Chic. The next thing I knew, they were asking me to pose!

Fire Drill Fashion: Sheer top by Essenxa, shorts from Jellybean, belt from Bangkok, sandals from Celine, hobo bag from Landmark

So it's just a regular getup, but I guess the Preview girls didn't participate in the drill, so there wasn't anything more thrilling to shoot. Har.

Thank goodness I wore flats that day. The stairs would've been killer in heels!

Buy or Rent?

Do you want to own a house one day? At what cost?

My husband and I always thought that "investing" in a house was the smart thing to do. Until a few months ago when I talked to M, who had been thinking about the merits of renting vs. buying. M's a smart guy. He's done the math. Paying for rent doesn't quite add up to the hefty amount it takes to pay for a mortgage. "Unless I could pay off, like, 50 percent up front, I don't think it makes sense for me to buy," he said. And apparently, this guy agrees with him.

It seems to make sense. I know homeowners (or, more accurately, would-be owners) who pay about six times what we're paying on rent every month, and just the thought of all that money makes me dizzy. (And I've also seen the amount of stress it puts on them, on top of earning money to send kids to school, put food on the table, etc. etc.) I know a couple who pays about four hundred grand a month for their brand-spankin' new home. I can't even imagine all the hustlin' I would have to do to come up with that much moolah month after month.

What I can imagine is what I could do with the money that goes into hypothetical amortization payments: I could invest. I could travel with my husband (at P400,000 a month, we could go to Europe all the frickin' time!). I could buy stuff I would normally have second thoughts about buying because I've got over a hundred Gs to pay each month. I could be liquid. And then I won't have to worry about fire or earthquakes or whataver 2012-esque disasters damaging my house because, well, it's not really my house.

Some will argue that having a home gives you very important stuff like peace of mind and a sense of ownership. I get it, I totally get it. I do want to buy a house,* but only when I'm good and ready, financially. For now, I'd rather have the peace of mind that comes with being liquid. I'd rather have the freedom to travel because my money's not tied down to a house. I won't get land with the relatively small amount I'm funneling towards rent each month, but I still get a very decent roof over my head. So, until the day when we can comfortably afford to buy a house--meaning we can pay off a significant amount upfront and not have to stress over the monthly payments and still have a good life all around--we'll willingly, happily rent.

I may be totally misguided, of course. Do you think buying is so much better than renting? Share your thoughts!:)


*As opposed to a condo.

Have You Joined My Giveaway Yet?

In case you haven't heard, I'm giving away three swimsuits courtesy of Cocomo! You have until 11:59 p.m. of March 27 to join! To borrow lyrics from my song-of-the-moment, hurry, hurry, hurry now quick, quick, quick!

My, See How We've Grown

Pretty amazing that, at the recently concluded New Year League, there were over 30 teams!

Video posted by Ian

I've been playing competitive disc for over three years now, and it amazes me how things have changed since I began. Our team itself has had its share of changes...

Warriors then... (I think this was our first league)


...and now

It's weird that only six people (including myself) remain from that first photo. People have moved away, gotten married, had kids, moved onto other things. We've experienced everything from being in Pool C and being happy just scoring a single point, to becoming Pool B champions. I've said goodbye to people, welcomed new--not necessarily young (hullo to those above 30!:D)--teammates, tasted the sweetest of victories and the most bitter of defeats. I have played and partied with the Warriors, both in and out of Manila. And while during the odd league or provincial tourney, I may play for the Roaches or the Lolas, I keep going back to the Warriors, again and again. It's my family; it's home. It's where I was born as a disc player, and it's where I'll retire.

But not just yet. As long as my knees, my clumsy ankle, and freckled skin allow, I'll be out on that field. If my body permits, I'll be playing until I'm a true Lola!