Panic! At The Ticketbooth (Soon)

I wasn't at the disco this morning, but there certainly was PANIC when I read this headline by Ricky Lo.

They're coming!

And no way I'm gonna wait for a freebie for this. For this one, I'll pay. PANIC!

I Candy

I'm not much into sweets. I prefer un- or semi-sweetened dark chocolate over everything else. But Trolli gummi candies I love, love, love. Most especially the worms, because they're long enough to eat in two bites, for the prolonging of the pleasure. (I like how that sounds, by the way. Could be the title to something.) These are just P50 a pack at Watsons.

I Trolli candy. What do you candy?

--Morx


(Please email me your posts at mcmorco@gmail.com)

Monday Freebie

It has to be a good week if it starts with a great freebie. I was greeted today with a bag of Mister Donut coffee courtesy of my friend and officemate, MFQ, who read about my coffee habit in this blog. MFQ's husband, it turns out, is connected with the Mister Donuts parent company. Serendipity, indeed. So thank you, MFQ, for giving me the perfect start to the week.

Last Saturday in Receipts

Last Saturday was, in my standards, packed. It started with dinner in Tong Yang, because I've been craving for shabu shabu for some time, and I wanted Tong Yang because I can eat trays and trays of their grill-it-yourself beef.


In light of the current food crisis, buffets may seem a bit decadent, but I made sure I only got enough to get me stuffed. There was barely any leftover, so that's very good. I staggered out of the place very, very full and smelling like a kitchen, but I brought an extra shirt to change into for my good friend Kate Santos's art opening at Saguijo.

Kate's ironic pieces are white tables laden with the requisite items that litter the so-called high life (in both senses of "high"). Examples are empty bottles of alcohol, pearls, packets of unknown tablets and capsules, champagne flutes, shoes, condoms and a pair of handcuffs covered in fur.

Everything is painted white, making all these items oddly glamorous and decorative in their pristineness, and contrary to the empty mess that these things make out of those who worship them. In the light of current controversies surrounding so-called socialites, whose lives are outwardly pristine but are exposed to be decadent and abusive inside, Kate's pieces are dead-on and timely.

I especially loved the miniature French fries and hotdog sandwich--aptly the least whitewashed things in the tableau--dwarfed inside a big plate. It speaks directly about the wildly imbalanced diet of those people: a little food against tons of alcohol and drugs. All in all, I was very happy to see another side of Kate as an artist, one in which her point of view is very defined and convincing.

I decided to make a French exit and I tagged along with Chinkee, Jezer and Matt to Club Ascend in High Street because without them, my way out of the unfamiliar Guijo Street was uncertain. Besides, Kate was busy entertaining her other guests.

It was my first time in that club, which I thought was all around just dreary and uninspiring. And the people: None of them will be in any list any time soon, maybe not even on D. I had as much fun as I could in the company of good friends whom I haven't been seeing as regularly as I did before. They were as much fun as before. If anything, I'm the one who's becoming dowdy recently.



The night ended with a meal at Next Door in Makati Ave, and Matt, being Matt, put some blemish on a perfectly good night with a bit of tantrum. We all believed it's because he did not get to go to Tiesto, but who knows? We love Matt anyways.

My Friday in Receipts

It was great not to have to go to work last Friday. Although we were supposed to have dinner at 8, Che and I met up when there was still sun. We hung around in Italianni's and had fizzy lemonades, while amusing ourselves watching the people passing by, all except one were outshone by the adorable dogs being walked in the open area. The one shining person-moment came when Mama Rene Salud waltzed by, carrying an outsize bag (in banig material) that began at his/her armpit and ended at his/her knee. We thought he had to dive into that bag just to retrieve, say, his/her car key. And wished he/she won't drown in the deep abyss of that bag. (Too bad I didn't take a photo of him.)






When it was no longer too hot to walk around, Che and I did a bit of window shopping, which turned out (for her) to be actual shopping. She got three items from Topshop, while I got a copy of Joshua Ferris's acclaimed first novel, Then We Came to the End. I have begun reading it, and I'm finding it to be quite zippy and pitch-perfect. (More when I finish it.)





Dinner was at CAV, where I am still enjoying the newness of the auto wine dispenser concept. I brought out pen and paper to list down the price every time we got something from the dispenser. (Not so cool, but a great idea when the time comes to split the bill.)

I was the only one who actually had dinner. Che only had a cheese platter, Len and Angie were on a diet, and Corky had two slices of salmon pizza. I had a three-course meal from CAV's prefixe menu.

The corn soup with salmon pastrami, I thought, was quite good. The duck magrit on shiitake risotto was just okay (the risotto was better than the duck), and the chocolate souffle was a delight--maybe because chocolate is rarely not a delight to me.

I'm struggling to remember the name of the white wine I had (and I had four glasses!); I just know the name has "monkey" on it. Not a bad wine for P235 a glass.

It's an interesting age to be in, 28, not old yet but not very young either. I think it might be the time when we're preparing to become married and after that, parents. Because for a while now, we would call it a night at just 1 or 130 in the morning. It used to be so much later. And we used to get much more drunk.

PS. I just wanna remember this, but it was this night that a friend lost something very important. My sympathies. And hopefully, the eventual finder of that thing really, really needs the luck.

Suggestions, Anyone?

Hyacinth says: I want a receipt for the perfect pair of white jeans.

I want something, uhm, was supposed to say skinny, but with my figure, maybe not. Not for a white pair anyway! My search started when I saw Gretchen Baretto in Preview some time last year. She looked great in white jeans. Also, my good friend, Pam always looks good in skinny white pants! And I adore anything white--shoes, bags, pants, shorts, even headbands!

Back to my point, I do wear sort-of skinny dark jeans. But I am not sure if it would work with white. I have tried on quite a few pairs, and they were not perfect. I have considered having one custom-made, but what do I pattern it from?

I just want a sort of straight-skinny white jeans :) I tried one in Topshop, which fits nicely around the legs, but the fabric is kind of too thin (you could see the outline of the pockets!) and they're too big around the hips! I tried another at Zara in Japan, couldn't even zip them up! Yes, they don't carry the big sizes in Japan!

Sigh sigh sigh... Or maybe I haven't looked hard enough?

I Wish I Had a Receipt For... (by ChiC)

...a first class ticket to any destination in Western Europe!

Not that I'm dissing the less-glam eastern part (my German friends have been going to Prague on weekends and LOVE it there), but since I have only been to France, it would be nice to see some of the other great European cities.





Here's my fantasy itinerary: I land at Frankfurt and take the scenic route to Hamburg at the northern tip of Germany. Hamburg being Europe's 3rd richest city, I expect to hit a lot of designer shops (granted that I could still afford it after splurging on my first class ticket), lounge at the Atlantic Hotel, and grind against tall, blue-eyed Aryan hunks in the city's famous clubs.





Then I take the ICE again to Munich, which, if I plan my trip end of September, would be hopping with Oktoberfest revelers. There I could meet all of my college friends who have migrated there and my gorgeous German friends who took their internship and Manila and have since gone back to their Vaterland. We will drown ourselves in weissbier and gobble up bratwursts and sauerkraut. From there I can go further south and visit the more romantic spots in Europe (romantic only if I had someone special with me, of course) .





Italy is definitely a must-see for me. The gorgeous architecture of Rome, Milan and Venice... The glorious Tuscan countryside laden with future "Super Tuscans"... And that food! Do not get me started with the food! The birthplace of my most favorite carbohydrate of them all- pasta- will surely have nothing but memorable gastronomic experiences in store for me. Prosciutto, salsiccia, provolone, mozarella, parmigiano... all the good stuff that my wet dreams are made of (although it could occasionally include a random Italian stud).






After which we can move on to another country famous for their sultry, latin sex appeal- Spain! Bullfights in Madrid, the Gothic structures of Gaudi, the party beaches of Ibiza and Mallorca... Oh, and should we start talking about food again? Jamon Serrano and Paella Valenciana every single day!





If I still have enough euros in my (by now, probably tattered) wallet, I would also want to see the Greek isles. After the mandatory visit to the Parthenon, I am off to the sun-bleached hillsides of Santorini and the romantic coves of Mykonos. After the cholesterol-rich foods all throughout my euro trip, I think the healthy Greek diet of tomatoes and olive oil will be good for me.

If that receipt was real, you can bet that I'll have a much juicier story to tell. I'll surely let you know if it happens!

-- Chinkee Clemente

Another Freebie Moment: Duran Duran

What's with the recent lucky streak? Swing Out Sister last Monday, then Duran Duran last night--both free at the last minute. I hope I'm not using up my store of luck too soon. It's still just April, after all.

When my friend Annavi announced yesterday afternoon that she was going to the Duran Duran concert, I screamed, "Whaaaaat?"

She said, "Why? You wanna go?"

"Of course!" I said.

"You go, then. I'm tired anyway," she said.

And just like that, I was on my way to Araneta two hours later.

***

Pre-concert cheap thrill: I caught my longtime dream VB take notice of my vintage Defect Ate Guy shirt. Naks!

***

I was literally a kid during Duran Duran's heyday, so I can't claim to be a big fan. This is why it was a bit of a surprise how much I enjoyed the concert last night. I knew most of their songs pala, without knowing those were theirs. When the concert was over, I was happily exhausted from yelling, clapping and dancing. In Irene Cara's immortal words, "What a feeling!"

(Salamat, salamat, salamat, Annavi!)

-- Morx (Your contributions are sought and welcome here, my friends, so please write something and email me at mcmorco@gmail.com. Thanks!)

What a Girl Wants: S Wishes She Had a Receipt For...

Hay... I have a pretty long list and then suddenly, I wake up. So will just limit it to one first.

I want a receipt for… ta-da…

An Hermes Birkin! It’s an investment piece naman, right? I can hand this down to my daughter and her daughter’s daughter. I don’t expect this to actually come true, and that’s why I haven’t decided what color to get. Well, a girl can dream can’t she?

--S.

Wish I Had a Receipt For...

Let's do a bit of improvisation here and allow for our wish lists under the title above, shall we? This is mine at the moment.

***

Shoes are increasingly becoming my downfall. I can't stop wanting to have more. And this season, I'm itching to have the Fred Perry white canvas sneaker at Comme des Garçons ($180). I love the pop of colors on the soles.

I'm also loving the old-school vibe of the Nike Vandal high basketball shoe ($80).

Bags are not even a close second in my list of obsessions. That place goes to the long list of books I want to have. But once in a while, I get a tingling feeling for something like the LV Cabas Soana shopper in kangaroo leather, which costs--ta-dah!--$1,780. Holy crap. God help me.

Let's see what's in your wish list! Write to me at mcmorco@gmail.com

-- Morx

Freebie Moment: Swing Out Sister

First surprise was that I was going to get a free ticket to the Swing Out Sister concert after all. Second was that the Araneta was nearly full, which means Corinne Drewery--same hair as ever--still has asim. (I'm curious as to the origins of this expression, "may asim pa." What did it originally refer to?)

I was expecting to experience a full-blown blast from the past, but got only a one-third blast. I didn't know the concert was in support of a new album. After all, the concert was called Breakout! and not The Beautiful Mess Tour.

Still, I had fun. They saved "Breakout" for the last encore song, which is for the best, ending the concert on a great note.

Thanks going out to my friend LC for the free ticket!

--Morx (I'm eagerly awaiting all your contributions! Please email mcmorco@gmail.com okay?)

My "best-dressed" moment

I had my first made-to-order outfit made eleven years ago, back when Rajo Laurel was the bright young thing in Philippine fashion. For six grand, he made me a gray velvet-and-shiny-material suit which I wore to my high school prom. It looked very bold at the time, but seems foolish to me now. Look just how shiny it is!



Even if the pants weren't as ridiculous, it's completely useless now, since it won't fit. But it being what it is, I'm thinking it can serve some future usefulness if remade into a table runner. The jacket, however, just has an outdated silhouette and may still benefit from alteration.

I think my classmates simply equated "best-dressed" to "most strange", and so they gave me the best-dressed award. Plus I think I had it spread around how much trouble I went into to get this outfit. I cringe at the memory.

Incidentally, months after I wore this, I saw Boy Abunda wearing an almost identical suit, but with the fabrics reversed: shiny suit with velvet detail. I don't like designers repeating themselves, especially when it's so close in time and when the "original" was specially-designed for one customer.

A year after that first suit, I had Mr. Laurel make another suit (this time a "proper" one) for me. Guess how much inflation happened within one year. (Ivarluski Aseron charged me the same amount as below when he made me a suit last year!)

That second suit lasted one year. I couldn't bear the American football-player look (think shoulder pads) it gave me after that. Sayang.

--Morx (Share share share please! Email me at mcmorco@gmail.com with your own stories and I'll post them here.)

Chinkee's Freebie Moment

Nothing Beats a Free Manicure

Finally! After months of going to Dashing Diva every other week for my manicure and pedicure- with the occasional Spoiled or All-Out Pedicure thrown in- I was finally rewarded with my free basic manicure. For those who are familiar with loyalty cards, you know the drill: you have to fill up the card with the establishment’s choice of marker (sticker, stamp or cashier’s initial) up to a certain point where that establishment deems you worthy of some sort of freebie. In my case, my dedication to hand and feet pampering has gifted me with free nail polish, an emery board, confetti used as nail art, and of course, the much-coveted free manicure.

To most men and a small number of women, this seems to be a complete waste of time and money. Why sit on your bum for an hour-and-a-half, reading an outdated magazine, while some lady gingerly cuts away that little piece of dead skin around your toenails? And then after a week-and-a-half, you come back and do the whole thing all over again. It does not make sense. At least, to some people.

I was born into a family jam-packed with females. I have two sisters, and my mom has five sisters. From a very your age, I was thrust into the “Beauty Parlor Culture”. My earliest memories are peppered with my childhood salon experiences… getting my first professional haircut at Demure in Shaw Blvd., getting a bloody nose while demonstrating my pirouettes at Rudy’s, getting a very “punk” (actually looks more like a “siete”) haircut from Lito Katab at age four, suffering through that horrendous perm/mullet my sister and I got at the urging of one of our aunts.

This I believe is what got me hooked on salons. Having my nails done is not really something I have to do: I am not a model or celebutant wherein every inch of my body is under severe scrutiny; nor am I in a relationship with someone with a weird foot fetish (my last boyfriend was a leg/butt man). For me, these are things that I JUST DO. It is something that is practically imbedded in my DNA, being born into a family of women who believe that, hell, looks ARE important. No matter how intellectuals and free-spirits trivialize the importance of aesthetics and appearances in our lives, all these makeover shows on Lifestyle Network and E Channel prove otherwise. This is why I believe that the one-and-a-half hours I piss away on that cushy, custom-made pedicure couch is not just an indulgence, but a form of empowerment wherein I acknowledge the importance of self-love.
And I just like free manicures.

--ChiC

I was so broke I had to take a non-airconditioned bus

I get broke quite often, and I've taken non-airconditioned buses (in laymen's term, they're called "ordinary" buses) at least twice on other occasions; so that's not the news. What's new is the digital ticketing device I saw for the first time tonight.

I know I have friends who've never taken a commuter bus in their lives, so it's too bad I can't post a picture of the common "analog" bus tickets here. So I just have to say that they are small brown newsprint papers on which is printed a slew of denominations, e.g. P1, P2, P5 and so on.

At first I did not notice it. I just thought the conductor was kinda sosyal to have a Sony Ericsson P900 dangling from his wrist. But then he typed on it as the next passenger was being ticketed, and I saw a piece of paper coming out of the supposed phone. I looked at my ticket again and I was amazed.




I was shy at first to ask the conductor for a picture with the device; I was meant to just point out that the black pouch dangling from the man's arm contained said device.

But when he sat down, I finally asked to take a picture of the thing. He volunteered that it was called the M-Pad. I wonder now what "M" stands for.

Nice, don't you think? Anyway, Notice the long thumbnail on his right hand. (We've all seen jolog men with long pinkie nail before, which theoretically is handy in reaching inside small holes, e.g. the nose) He uses it as his stylus for his touchscreen device. Shocks!


--Morx (Share your interesting receipt moments with me! Email mcmorco@gmail.com with photo and text and I'll post it.)

Unexpected purchase by S.

Perennial hot momma S. sends this contribution: a P450.00 foldable chair WITH arm. It's a bit unexpected, but the problems of a hot momma are different from yours and mine, unless you're a hot momma yourself. So this is why she had to buy this item:

I am sure you would be thinking, “who goes around buying a foldable chair with arm”? Well, there is a story to this.

My kids go to the Ateneo and during our carpool days, the van with the driver and yaya wait around until it’s dismissal time. One of the carpool boys left his Nintendo DS on his seat. Apparently, the yaya fell asleep inside the van while the driver stepped away to eat lunch. In short, the DS was stolen.

So, we talked to the driver and the yaya and reminded them not to wait inside the car. Since we already had a foldable chair inside the van, we got another one for the yaya’s use.

There!

Much much thanks to S. for making the first contribution here. Follow S's lead and have your own story here. Email me: mcmorco@gmail.com

Mister Donuts Coffee

1. I love Mister Donuts' brewed coffee.

2. It's only P29.00. I used to have Starbucks every day, but at P75 a pop, that was just too much to have on a daily basis.

3. I buy Mister Donut because I can't stand the coffee in the office, which Manong Romy makes with the coffee maker I donated years ago. The machine now has a mismatched pot, which is sad.

4. But it's not the maker's fault that the office coffee tastes bad. It's the cheap coffee plus the feckless storage which degrades the coffee by the day.

Still on coffee, I found this entry in the Stuff White People Like amusing. Unlike white people, my coffee habit (brewed, black) came not from status anxiety. I got it from my yaya when I was 8 or 9. I used to drink the same barako she brewed for herself, with lots of sugar. I learned to drink coffee black in high school. Loved it and never went back.

--Morx

For your contributions, please email me at mcmorco@gmail.com

Welcome to Life in Receipts

Welcome to Life in Receipts, a site in which to share thoughts on our purchases, our tastes and preferences, enthusiasms and recommendations. Our, which means I'm hoping my friends will contribute and participate actively to make this a lively and illuminating blog. Sometimes, we are what we purchase, so it would be great to know ourselves by thinking a bit more on the things we buy.


I was inspired to keep my receipts when I got my Moleskine diary at the start of the year. Since I'm not a terribly busy person, I thought stapling the receipts from my purchases and meals would be a good way of filling up its pages. One spread looks like this



The receipts help me to recall the stories of a particular day, which I was too lazy to write down. And I thought this blog would prompt me to be keep a written record of interesting thoughts, ideas and stories.

But I don't want this to be all about me. I hope it would be a communal site. As I said at the beginning of this post, I'd love for this to become a forum where we can recommend stuff, argue sometimes, and share stories.

For your contributions, please email me at mcmorco@gmail.com

Morx