Red Days, Not Always Bad Days

Girls often refer the menstrual cycles of the month as their "red days". This has been a literal name-calling to such because of  the red color of the fluid that comes out of the body (and you already know what I mean). And with the red days coming, we often experience difference feelings. We tend to have mood swings, hassle now-and-then changing of pads, and to top it off, the phenomenal abdominal cramps. This is the reason why girls' red days are bad days.

But for the Chinese families, like us, red is a lucky color. It signifies happiness, good luck, and prosperity. We may not be the typical Fil-Chi family who speaks Mandarin Chinese at home and has Buddha images all over their place, but we still pay tribute to the tradition my father's family had.

T-ice and T-bday celeb

At home, I am called "Di-chi". In Chinese, it's the name used for the second daughters. However, we still use the "Ate" and "Kuya" for my elder sis and bro. It has also been a tradition in my father's side that during birthdays and special occasions, we would be using RED as the color of the day. So, last October 5 (for my 21st birthday), I asked my guests to wear red.

Some of those whom I invited asked me, why red? And so I told them the reason... that red signifies happiness. We often greet celebrants a happy birthday, so red should be the color! Haha!

A group photo. Most of the guests followed the dress code. Haha!

The epic cupcake toast! (me ganun?! lol)

This baby is trying to color her cutesy lips with the gumpaste cake decors! So cute and funny :)

He and She.
We were about to eat the cake decors. He actually designed the cake himself. Wow! :)

Lucky though, that my Mama and I went to Cebu the other week. We got the chance to shop for some clothes and I was able to pick some dresses for myself. I had this red dress bought, too. My birthday celeb was just the right time to wear it! Yea. \m/

Well, it was just a simple dinner... with family and friends. It was a formula of:

 beautiful people + lechon + dinuguan + some other Mama putahis + cake + buko pandan + T-ice + band playing on the background + laughter + smiles + red = happy birthday to me! :)

Us girlaloos.

Pardon the photo watermarks which say "sosweetsuzette". This blog entry was intended to be published at sosweetsuzette.blogspot.com but I changed my mind and had this published here instead. Will find time to change those, soon. However, I still claim ownership of the photos, since I am the owner of both blogs (Exotic Expressions and So Sweet Suzette).

Almost 21

Hey friends! It's been weeks since I last posted a blog entry here. Sorry, I got a little busy with my other blog, So Sweet Suzette. Anyway, today is the third of October .. and do you know what that means? It means I'm 2 days away from getting a year older! Waaaaaah!

I will be sharing to you my thoughts on being "almost 21".

Girls often celebrate their transition to being a lady at the age of 18. And for me, girls start to enter the stage of womanhood at the age of 21. But of course, it would be kinda difficult to tell at what exact age does a girl really mature and become a "woman". It really varies from person to person.

As for me, I think I still can't say that I am that independent woman which is expected from a 21-year-old girl, aw, woman, I mean. :)

First of all, I do not have a job. I graduated Bachelor of Science in Nursing last April. It has been about 6 months now and still I am here.. 100% tambay. I am not really degrading myself just because I am unemployed and still living with my Mama and Papa. But I know sooner or later, I would need to stand on my own feet.

Second, I still love to sleep. Who doesn't love sleeping? Haha. My Mama often shouts every morning that I am lazy. So, there, I need to work on my super-sleep habit! And maybe, to spend more time trying bto learn new things.

Third, I can't drive. Ok, my Papa has been forcing me to have my driving lessons but I don't run out of excuses! Hehe. I really am a bit scared of driving. However, I know that the skills would be very helpful to me in the very near future.

And lastly, I am still immature. I whine over the littlest sad things and jump for joy over the tiniest piece of prize!

But besides all this, I am happy. I am happy with the family and friends I have. I am happy because the Lord never failed to surprise me with great great blessings. I am happy because I'm still given the chance to celebrate my 21st birthday in good and gorgeous shape! :)

photo taken by Rodel Ryan Yana

I am almost 21, but not almost happy, because I am happy, have been, and will always be. :) :) :)

Never an Easy Job

The other night, August 30, was the pageant and coronation night of Miss Bohol Island State University (BISU) - Calape Campus.

I was invited more than a week ago to be one of the judges of the said beauty pageant. I readily said "yes" since I do not have anywhere else to go to on that night. So, the next thing I thought about was what I should be wearing and how I should look like. Ate Jill, the pageant organizer and committee chair, told me that I need to look good and presentable; to wear a dress with matching make-up (char!).

Since it was an outdoor evening event and because I didn't want to get 'conscious' about dress stains and dirts, I opted to wear black (which is also by the way, following my Papa's suggestion). It isn't really a new piece. It's actually a gift from my sister in the US.

So here's what I wore:

All-black :)

Well, I'm not really that into fashion. But at least I pulled off some effort for this. lol

The night went well. The pageant officially started at 8pm. The board of judges were composed of three people: Mr. Rodel Ryan Yana, Hon. Leonora "Inday" Rulona, and myself. I was somehow amazed with the electronic tabulation of scores for the pageant. Well, Ate Jill already told me beforehand that it's going to be electronic, but wow, not all beauty pageants can do that -- to mention, very efficiently and with no hassle at all, thanks to the Computer Science Dept of BISU-Calape. The judges' role is just to enter the scores on the score boxes and submit them. Actually, it was not my first time to judge, but my first time of using the electronic sheets (for scoring).

The first part of the pageant was of course, the production number which was a cosplay inspired one. It was followed by the swimwear competition where they wore sexy leopard bikinis, then the talents competition followed. The beauties did well during that time, and I was amazed at how unique their talent performances were. It was actually hard to tell who really was "winning". Then it begun to rain. And remember we were on an outdoor event! Well, the stage had a roof. But we, the judges, and the audience were all under the sky. What concerned the organizers most was actually not us getting wet, but oh the laptops! And I completely understand them (haha!). But anyways, they provided us right away with umbrellas and umbrella holders (people holding our umbrellas). ^_^
 
After the talents, the evening gown competition followed. Then, my favorite part did come - the Interview or Q & A portion. This has been and will always be my favorite part of every beauty pageant. This is actually the perfect time for the ladies to prove that they are not just good at flaunting their wonderful bodies and pretty faces. It is the time to show the wit and intelligence they have.

Regarding beauty pageant interviews, I really do not believe that the most intelligent ladies always get to have the best answers. But of course if you are smart, it is an edge and an advantage. However, being overly clever can be your disadvantage too. I've seen this myself (I'll be posting another blog entry for this, so you should watch out for it *winks).

So there, the rain actually didn't last that long. Series of awards were given to the candidates and certificates were also given to us and to the organizers, who really deserved applauses and recognitions.

Then, the announcement of winners commenced the activity. I knew very well that being a judge doesn't end there, and I was absolutely right. As I arrived  home and later opened my FB, someone actually asked me about the scores of the candidates because (I guess) they were not happy with the results. I could only give her my honest answer of "I don't know their total scores because we were not the ones who totaled the points we gave them". I think it was actually a good way because biases can be avoided. The candidates were all beautiful and each one has a strength and a weakness. But of course, there will always be that one winner who stands out.

As for me, it really is never easy to be a judge. But it's fun! Questions regarding the results can't be avoided because they have their supporters and friends who would always want them to win. And I sincerely get that.

I'm also happy to have been there during the event and to somehow represent my Papa, who was invited but was not able to come.

"Our life can be likened to a beauty pageant. It has many portions... some lets us flaunt our strength but the other portions can test our weakness. Whatever happens, we must always possess the grace under pressure and poise with confidence... not for the judges nor the audience, but for ourselves and for us to be the inspiration to others." - gaylee 

The night was filled with beauty, confidence, glitz, and happiness. I am also happy to be one of the judges. Congrats to the lovely ladies (not just to the winner but to all of them), the different performers, and the organizing and working committees!

 

Outfit details
Dress - Pink Rose
Bag - Betsey Johnson
Watch - Fossil
Necklace - Charlotte Russe
Peep toe Wedge - Mossimo

Special thanks to my sissy, Gay Sophia (bag, dress, shoes) and to Mary Ann for my makeup.