.it’s snowing outside.

At the moment, I am warm and toasty in my hotel room. The only thing missing is a hot cup of coffee. Since I’m in the mood to blog about my whereabouts (diary style), here goes...

I am in a place I’ve never been before and it’s extremely cold outside. For the sake of trying to clarify for you really how cold it is—the current temperature outside is a whopping -10 degrees Fahrenheit. YES people, I said NEGATIVE 10! The moment I step outside of my hotel, it feels like I’ve opened my freezer and literally walked right into it. After only a couple of minutes (bundled up mind you), I start to feel like I'm becoming an icicle with my nose, ears, and toes turning numb. And did I mention that it is snowing too? Being that I live in sunny Southern California, this is definitely a unique experience. It’s pretty unreal that I’m in a city where it is actually snowing with piles of snow on every corner and sidewalk. Also, because everyone here speaks French, it’s a constant reminder that I’m far away from home.

Can you guess where I am yet?

Montreal, Quebec is a very pretty place. It has only been a day so I’m still learning about the downtown area. One of the most interesting things about Montreal is the underground malls. You can walk down various staircases all around the city (similar to a subway entrance in NYC) which leads you into a whole new world underground. Lucky for me, there is an entry right from my hotel. There are shops, bakeries, restaurants, and malls—including a train station. It’s much cooler seeing it in person than me trying to explain it.

So far the food had been ok. I had a good sandwich at a place on Rue St. Catherine (a main street in downtown) when I flew in last night. I think I want to visit this street again when all of the shops are open. I imagine that the shopping here might be good. :)

On a side note, the coffee has been much better than I had expected. I grabbed a Vanilla Latte from a place called Second Cup which was good. I have only seen one Starbucks since I’ve been here. The locals go to Tim Hortons (serving coffee and doughnuts) which is equivalent to our Starbucks. I’ll probably try that place tomorrow.

Until then—au revoir! :)
-c

.us against the world. [christina milian]

Meet one of my most FAVORITE entertainers. I have been a fan of hers for years. She is a gorgeous girl with an outgoing personality, not to mention very talented! She prides herself in being a role model for her fans by staying true to herself... "there are a lot of people who young girls look up to, but at the end of the day you have to be your own person and love yourself."

Christine Flores, born September 26, 1981 is better known by her stage name, Christina Milian. She is an R&B and Pop singer-songwriter, record producer, dancer, and actress. Born in Jersey City, NJ; Christina moved to Los Angeles when she was 13 years old with dreams of becoming an actress. By age 17, she had begun writing songs to help her obtain a recording contract. Christina has released three studio albums, and is currently recording a fourth album which is due April 2009. As for her acting career, Milian was cast in her first lead role in Love Don't Cost a Thing, played a main role in Be Cool and the horror film Pulse. She is set to appear in the upcoming film, The Ghosts of Girlfriends Past alongside Matthew McConaughey.

So... with that; please take a moment to listen to my favorite song of the moment. I've actually been playing this song in my car since November. The music video just released, so I wanted to share it with all of you! As always...enjoy~

.its go time.

.flashback 2008.

For some reason, I had this idea in my head that I really didn't do or accomplish much last year. After some reminiscing and digging through my digital archives, I realized I was very wrong. So with that, I decided to share with you some photographs highlighting some cool moments from my 2008.

It's pretty rare for me to allow people to take a peek into my personal photo albums but I figure...what's the point in freezing a single moment in time with a photo if they aren't shared as memories? Enjoy~



Peace,
Love, & 2008
-C

.it's beginning to look a lot like christmas + ffl championship + my nba ballot.

Please forgive me for being MIA for almost 2 weeks. Here I am! :) I’ve been busy with Christmas preparations and the start of a New Year. My quest to finish buying gifts early this year was not as easy as I thought. Last month (right around Thanksgiving), I wrote up a gift list and committed to getting through it as quick and painless as possible. I started off strong by doing some shopping over the weekend after Black Friday. I was able to get about half of the people on my list crossed off. Now I sit here a week before Christmas with presents that still need to be wrapped and gifts that still need to be bought. How did I get so behind? *sigh*

Anyhow, enough about my holiday stress. The good news is, I got my Christmas tree up a week ago and it makes me feel so warm and fuzzy inside when I see it. I love the twinkling lights and refreshing Christmas tree scent. This year I switched from the Noble Fir (which I bought for years) to my new favorite, the Fraser Fir. Wow, it is so beautiful. It's definitely beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here! Now on to sports! With my fantasy football league; I am on edge at the moment because I am in the Championship game this week. Yup, I made it to the big game and I’m so nervous because my team isn’t what it used to be. With Plaxico’s mess, Barber’s injury, and LT’s disappointing year, I’ve had to make some changes to my line-up. Wish me luck.

One thing that I haven’t touched on much is the NBA season. Just so you know, I’ve been watching and keeping tabs on the league. Mental notes are being taken by yours truly for future posts so I'll be chatting about that soon. Oh and yes, I know I promised you a NBA Rookie post; stay tuned for that as well. I can tell you that I am very excited for the Celtics vs. Lakers game on Christmas Day. You can bet I’ll be watching from the comfort of my home in my PJ’s with a warm cup of cocoa. Speaking of the NBA, I’ve cast my 2009 NBA All-Star Ballot. The game will be held in Phoenix, Arizona over Valentine’s Day weekend.
My NBA All-Star 2009 picks are:

Western Forwards:
Carmelo Anthony, Denver
Pau Gasol, LA Lakers

Western Guards:
Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers
Chris Paul, New Orleans

Western Center:
Greg Oden, Portland

Eastern Forwards:
LeBron James, Cleveland
Paul Pierce, Boston

Eastern Guards:
Devin Harris, New Jersey
Dwyane Wade, Miami

Eastern Center:
Dwight Howard, Orlando

If you wonder why those players, I have my reasons and I gave it a lot of thought. For instance, how could I leave out Melo after he tied an NBA record by scoring 33 points in a single quarter during his team's 116-105 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves last week? Or, how could I leave out Kobe who is still going strong all the while his 81 points scored versus Toronto back in 2006 is still fresh in my mind? I’ve also got silly reasons like; I think Greg Oden is hilarious. On top of that, he is finally playing some decent ball now that he’s back on the court, not to mention I met him (but I’ll save that one for another time...remind me though to explain the handshake, lol). Oh by the way, have you seen the 2008 ESPY performance by Justin Timberlake w/Oden?! Seriously, it's so great!



Love,
Christmas,
& Basketball~
-C

.it's a small world after all.

As you may know, I am a Filipino-American gal who was born and raised in San Diego, California. Who would have thought that Manny Pacquiao (the most famous boxer in the Phillipines) & Shawne Merriman (OLB from my hometown NFL team, the Chargers) would be hanging out enjoying a nice meal together? After discovering they are neighbors (in Los Angeles), the two became buddies. I'm sure that Merriman was quick to learn that Filipinos love to feed their guests. From the looks of it, Shawne is diggin' some Filipino food~

.torn. [letoya]

Hey Friends! First of all, WAY TO GO CHARGERS for a W (it's about time)!~ Secondly, I owe you a video of the week, so here it is. You've probably heard this artist sing before but you may not realize how or when. LeToya Luckett (known professionally as LeToya) was a founding member of the R&B female group Destiny's Child with whom she won 2 Grammys. Later she was unexpectedly replaced by Michelle Williams thus launching her successful solo career.

In the video you are about to see, there is a sports tie-in with my selection. Yes, a sports tie-in...LUCKY ME! Look out for an appearance by NFL FS Will Demps (currently with the Houston Texans #47). Some quick background info (so you can say you learned something new today)~ Demps was originally signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent after going undrafted in the 2002 NFL draft. He played college football at San Diego State and has also played for the the NY Giants. As a side note, he is the older brother of former NFL Safety Marcus Demps who was a member of the Detroit Lions practice squad in 2006. A non-related sports fact is that Will Demps has been known to do some modeling so I took the liberty of posting his photo for all of my gal pals. :) In case you are wondering, Demps' father is African American and his mother is Korean.

Enjoy the video~

P.S. My apologies if an advertisement pops up before the video starts. My intent is to post the highest quality videos for your viewing pleasure. Unfortunately, sometimes that means they'll include an ad. Thanks for your understanding...

-C