And I'm 28 and a geek.

Well, THIS cake ain't a lie at all.


My frabjous birthday cake, courtesy of my wonderful partner. If you're wondering about the inscription, it's because we've been very amused by the Panda Cheese commercials.

Subtitled versions here:



And now I go to work. [Vacation next week!]

Because I am a proud big sister...

...and because hail, hail, the family's all here.

Meet my family. From left to right, that would be Papa, me, Mommy, younger sister, and my younger brother.

Two days ago my sister graduated from high school. Near the top of her class, as you can tell from all the hardware dangling on her chest. That's a whopping eleven medals. And along with her diploma came citations for finishing extra-credit courses in math and science. (The way she explained them to me, it sounded a whole lot like Advanced Placement classes.)

Those awards even provided a couple of comedy moments at the graduation because she and all the similarly bemedaled ones clanked while they were walking! The audience of family and friends really got a good laugh out of the sound effects....

You're probably wondering, hang on, we know you're in your late twenties, how old is your sister if she's just graduating from high school? The answer is that the age gap between us is a whopping eleven years. My sister is young enough and so far away from me in terms of age that she IS in another generation entirely.

As for my brother, he and I were born about one year apart. He and his girlfriend flew in especially for the occasion of our sister's graduation, and he'll be staying for another couple of weeks before returning to their apartment and jobs in Singapore.

You can really tell in this picture who takes after whom, particularly around the faces and, rather more obviously, our heights!

Congratulations to my sister and best of luck on entering culinary school! And a great big welcome home to my brother!

Night shift teachers

I think I like this picture as a depiction of the life of the teacher, in particular the life of an English teacher. Dictionary + glasses + apple (okay, maybe the apple is optional, I'd rather have an orange or a chocolate bar.)

I'm back on the night shift in a few hours and am in fact writing this blog entry before I set off for the office. Going to be teaching English over the phone. I suppose I'm a bit stressed precisely because it's the first production shift.... I'll probably update this entry with some impressions later on.

(Oh, for a teaching wardrobe that includes, for choice,

HIS scarf,

HIS overcoat, and

HIS quirky style.)

What are you thankful for this 2009? // Crochet hooks get!

This year has been an amazing one for me in terms of learning new things. I've started to learn new techniques and things that I could use at work. [And even beyond it.] I opened this pop-culture-and-geeky-Pinay blog. [And am enjoying the experience immensely, even on those days when I sometimes have to look for something to write about.] I wrote a novel! [And I WILL edit it into a proper manuscript in January or die trying!] And now I am coming back to an old crafting love, crochet, so I'm set to learn a lot more in terms of making things that make people happy. [And I have to remember to take care of my hands in the process.]

I have also been grateful for the opportunities given to help and support others. I didn't do much in the wake of Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng, but was able to send money to the Philippine National Red Cross as a way of reaching out to everyone who was affected. I'm not saying my donations did any great works or marvels. I'm just grateful as it is that we were not affected and that we were able to help those who were in some little way.

I'm also very, very grateful that I've spent the best ten years of my life so far with my significant other. For his support and kindness and the challenges he presents to me, but most of all for his sense of humor and his unending light and love, I am very, very thankful indeed.

Musical shenanigans

I'm one of those people who tends to work better when there's something to listen to. And like some writers, I will listen to a track or a playlist over and over again in order to keep the inspiration flowing.

This iTunes playlist really has been around for quite some time - at least a year, I'd say. I've just trimmed out a few tracks that wore out their welcome. Mainly, though, this list exists to be expanded, and I'm always on the lookout for new tracks to try or old ones to revisit.



This is the music that accompanies me whether I'm writing for work or for play.

The highlighted track is Jonathan Coulton's "Space Doggity", an homage to David Bowie's "Space Oddity" that's also a tribute to Laika, the first dog in space and the first martyr of space. I'll be looking out for you among the stars, you sweet puppy you.

If you're allowed to listen to music at work, what do you like to listen to? Do you segregate your playlists for work, play, exercise, or whatever it is you do?

Introduction Post.

Hi. After an absence of about half a year from blogging, here I am again, ready to jump back in.

My name is PJ Punla. I used to go by the online handle "NineMoons" when I was blogging for the Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game Granado Espada.

Now I think I'll go ahead and blog under my real name, for a change.

This blog is as its blurb goes: me, a girl from the Philippines, talking about local and foreign pop culture for the most part. There may be lapses into sarcasm and attempts at photography. There will be quite a bit of fangirling. And there will be analysis and research. I may be here to be a fan but I'm also here to learn.

So, welcome to the blog; I hope to post something more substantial shortly. Hope you'll visit and stick around some. :)