The reason behind my collection

My most favourite album EVER

Some of my collection

First of all, I get several queries on why I spend money on records. There are thousands of sites which offer free downloads; hell, we can all even get it off Youtube without paying a single dime. Well here’s a simple answer: As a person who loves music, I really want the best quality. iPods don’t play FLAC files and it’s really frustrating because MP3 quality really sucks. Buying those expensive Beats headphones and whatnot won’t make a difference, trust me. 

After hours of researching and asking around, I’ve decided that the best solution for my problem is to buy my own record player - which happened to be the one of the greatest decisions I have ever made. Here are a few reasons why I fell in love with records:

• Natural sound quality: There is a lot of debate as to why records sound the way they do, and why so many people prefer the warm, natural sound of vinyl to CD and digital sources, especially when CD has more impressive technical specifications.  Whatever the reason, it doesn’t matter to me.  I prefer it and for a majority of audiophiles it is not even a matter of debate- vinyl offers the best sound quality.

• Wide variety of music available very inexpensively:  Once you have your turntable the fun really starts!  You will find it fun, easy and inexpensive (unless you dig the rare ones, it will cost you heaps..beyond heaps) to start collecting and expand your musical tastes.  There has been a tremendous amount of music issued on vinyl over the past 60 years and you can pick up records in many different stores from music specialists to thrift shops.
• Album art and liners: With a vinyl LP you get a nice-sized album cover that really lets you appreciate the art.  It’s beautiful to look at and easy to read.  Compare the LP to the CD and iPod above.  The iPod looks puny as it is, then consider the art is a tiny part of the display!  You will also often find your LPs include album liners with lyrics, ads for other records, and sometimes you find a poster too.  

If you’ve never played a record before, I do suggest that you ask your grandparents if they still have theirs and try it (just make sure that the needle is still in good condition or else it will damage your record and it won’t sound good) 

Don’t be silly, it’s not a CD player, it’s a record player so play it fucking loud. You will notice the big difference between the sound of your iPod and the record player. That’s the part when you choose whether to listen to the “good” quality or the “better” one.

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I finally know what I WANT to do! Now what?

For the past few years, I've been thinking whether my life's going to the right direction or not. I've been raised in a third world country so my parents never failed to remind me everyday that I need to make sure that my future is secured. When I was young, I thought it was gonna be easy - go to school, get a job, and earn money.

As I grew up, I realised that I need to make certain choices to ensure that I won't disappoint my parents, and of course, myself. We moved to New Zealand, started a new life, and adjusted to a whole lot of changes. My perspectives and goals changed, my direction diverted, and those things overwhelmed me. I found myself questioning a lot of things, why I need to do this and that, why I can't make my own decisons, and so many other stuff. 

For years, I felt completely lost. My "plan" has always been like this: finish high school, go to university, get a degree that would get me "great" jobs, and earn money. I never had any other alternative. There was a time when I told my parents that I wanted to learn photography because I could see myself traveling around the world and taking wonderful photos.. and guess what - they were horrified. They told me that there are no jobs for photographers and that photography is not even considered a degree. There was also a time when I told them that I might consider taking up Bachelors of Education because I've tutored several people in English and I really enjoyed it. Again, they quickly brainwashed me and told me that it was just a phase. 

Right now, I'm taking Marketing and Information Systems. I can't say that I hate it, but I don't love it either. I still feel that I need to do something else. Perhaps a sideline or a new hobby. Last week, I bought a new camera and I decided that I will take an online photography course (and upon completion, I will get a diploma! isn't that exciting?) I've been practicing like crazy ever since I laid my hands on my lovely Canon 60D. I told myself that I will take great photos someday, and hang those pictures proudly on my wall. As for now, the photography course remains as a goal. I still need to save up for tuition fees. So I came up with another plan, I will open up a shop before the year ends and hopefully, people will support it!

More details about the shop will be posted next month. I'm so excited about this. Now that I finally know what I want, it's time to work really hard and enjoy the things that I love doing!

To sum it all up, I'm glad that I chose to stick up with my personal instincts and decisions. The moment I started following my heart rather than my head, I felt way happier. I don't know where this direction will lead me but for now, all I can say is I AM SO FUCKING EXCITED!

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I spent my day at 3 different beaches :)

   All photos were taken in North Shore. I forgot the names of the beaches so the photos don't have captions.     

   Thank God it didn't rain! Now, all I really want to do is pack up my stuff and move to North Shore. I live at    

   Bucklands Beach but damn, it's nothing compared to what I've seen a while ago. 

   Does anyone want to come and live with me here? (Hint: I don't take no for an answer, just  

   saying!)

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Just because I didn't feel like wearing pants today (well, I actually hate pants)

Went to town with my friend :) I decided to wear a dress just because I'm feeling extra girly today!

 I love big rings! I feel like it compliments my outfits. I cannot go anywhere without a ring.

Well, I decided to include my good ol' friend on my update today! He looks so fierce, but don't worry, he doesn't bite at all.

He wanted to a solo pic so there you go buddy

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Quick Update!

I should be doing my Information Systems online assignment but... I really can't be bothered! I want to finish designing my blog today.

I just want to show you guys my 2 favourite necklaces :) 

I found this at a thrift store! Got it for $1. It's too cute so I bought it in a heart beat.

Some of my Star Wars collection :)

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• I used to be SUPER obsessed with Ryan Cabrera. I bought all of his albums, posters, signed up for his newsletters, and every shit that a fan girl would do for her idol. I even used up all my phone credits just to vote for him on MYX Channel (music channel in the Philippines). My blog’s layout was always him. Obsessed. Full stop.

• I have scoliosis and my back hurts every single day. I’m still hoping that I won’t need surgery because just the thought of it scares the shit out of me but…  yeah, we’ll see.

• When I was younger, I thought that children come automatically. Like, when 2 people get married, the heavens above would make the mum pregnant and, ta-da! babies are born. I think I got that idea because I asked my mum why some people have too many children and she said it was god’s plan. 

• I used to be extremely religious. I joined church choirs and whatnot, I was a dedicated Catholic back then. I grew up and my faith died, I now consider myself as an agnostic. It’s kinda hard, considering the fact that I grew up in a very religious country and all of my relatives (as well as the people around me) believe in God. 

• I still let my mum trim my finger/toe nails. She also cleans my ears. What would I do without her?

• I LOVE horror movies and it’s sad that all the guys I’ve dated despise those kind of films. When will I ever get the chance to snuggle my hubby whilst watching a very scary movie???

• I don’t know how to use chopsticks. I fail at being Asian :(

• Most of the time, I find myself rooting for the villain. For example, I wanted Voldemort to win… and for everyone to die in the film ‘2012’. No idea if it’s normal or not but I certainly hate it because obviously, protagonists win most of the time.

• My attention span is VERY SHORT. I cannot watch a movie without checking up on other stuff - it doesn’t matter whether the movie’s really great or not. It’s one of the reasons why I prefer going to the movie house; because that way, I have no option but to force myself to sit through the whole movie without checking my Facebook. My short attention span doesn’t only apply to movies, it pretty much affects my whole life. My friend Martin has come up with a way to at least try to lengthen my attention span; I’m also taking medications which would hopefully work :)

• I always day dream about having my own record label someday and signing up all the artists and bands on my iPod who aren’t signed (I have at least 10) I’m very business-minded and I can see myself doing this kind of stuff in the future. It’s also one of the reasons why I love giving commissions to freelancers :) 

Anything you’d like to share? :)

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So you see, I’m a very fickle-minded person. I can never decide what I REALLY want, I would rather 

have someone else make it for me. But thinking about what I’ll be doing for the rest of my life truly 

excites me… and scares  me too! I would like to share a few things that I can see myself doing in

the long run :)

• Part-time photographer. Yes, I know that I’m only in the beginner’s stage. Hell, I only got my camera on Aug. 23rd. I’ve borrowed several dslr’s from different people, and I realised that this could become my hobby. As I’ve mentioned, I have a very short attention span. I’m very impatient in learning stuff, I always wanna do it the fastest way. I’m aware that photography requires a lot of patience,time, and determination; and I’m confident to say that I’m willing to give my utmost best in getting this skill. I plan on getting a diploma in photography next year but let’s talk about that some other time.

• Own a cake shop! Martin and I always talk about setting up a business (which is a pretty great idea since we’re like partners in crime, so why not partners in cake???) I visualise it as a vintage shop with very cheerful staff and of course, very delicious, mouth-watering sweets! If you mention this post when you visit the shop, you get a free slice + coffee :)

• Own a record store. Again, imagine a vintage/retro store. Vinyl records everywhere and guest bands every week! Customers can request any song for the store’s background music. Oh, and a free vinyl record on your birthday!

• I’m taking Marketing and Information Systems, so if I manage to graduate uni, maybe I’ll consider staying here in NZ for a while to get some experience then move overseas. I’m not entirely sure about this one, who knows, maybe I’ll stay here all my life. I’m heading towards this direction at the moment so I really find it ironic that I have no idea how I’ll handle this one. 

• Have my own record label. I love supporting talented people, especially when they pour out their heart and soul into whatever they’re passionate about. 

I would love to hear about your goals and dreams! <3

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New Beginning

I’ve been contemplating for a while whether I should move to Blogger or not. I currently have a blog at Tumblr, but majority of my readers are from different blogging platforms. I’m also aware that Tumblr isn’t really the best place to host a lifestyle/personal blog, so here I am! 

To give you a quick overview of what I usually blog about, I will re-post some of my favourites updates from my previous blog. I hope that I could find more people who share the same interests as me! 

I’m still in the process of editing EVERYTHING and stuff. I’m currently on a 2-week break so I have all the time in the world to do those. Well, not really. I mean, I have 2 pending assignments that need to be done and 2 tests that I need to study for. We’ll see how it goes! If only I weren’t pressured to go to university and whatnot, I would dedicate all my energy and time for this.

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