If Rachel Zoe can do it, so can I.

If uber A-list celebrity stylist Rachel Zoe could bet at the top of her game and dress mega-socialites (i.e. Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, among many others), I bet I could do the same thing too. You see, the stylist that all the stars are turning to in times of couture crisis has had no formal fashion training and relies on innate talent to turn rags to satin. Also, what interested me about her was that during her college years in Washington State University, she majored in sociology, and surprise surprise, psychology, which I am taking right now. I am so glad to know that you don't need to be a slave to fashion to be in the fashion business :) The little people like me actually have a chance!

Oh yes, lest I forget, congratulations to my bff Arvin who is now interning for mega-hot designer Gian Romano. You can do it, sweetheart, I am behind you all the way, waiting for my 30% discount on deconstructed coats and ties :)

Anyway, as I've said, if Rachel Zoe could do it, so can I! But I don't want to digress from the main piece of this essay.

There is this new guy that I am dating :) We've actually been dating for almost a month, and to be honest, it's a tornado of a romance. Let's call him Chuck (I noticed I've been using aliases when it comes to my partners, this time it's because the guy is straight - don't ask), an engineering student in UP-Los Banos. What I love about him is that he lives so near, meaning we would get to spend lots of time with each other, which we are doing. Although he dorms in Los Banos on weekdays, he doesn't make it an excuse not to meet with me even if it isn't a weekend. Like a few weeks ago, he went from Los Banos to Alabang (not an easy feat, mind you) just to teach me Physics for a couple of hours. I initially dismissed him as immature when he started ranting about pimples and how big of a deal it was, and I refused to text him for quite some time. But after going to the Madonnathon, I decided to give him a chance, and look at us now :) struggling, but happy.

The Madonnathon is an annual party at Government that showcased all of Madonna's hits, and being a die-hard Madonna fan, I went with my bff Arvin, and we partied hard after a 3-month hiatus. I didn't know what pushed me that night, but I bought a pack of cigarettes (I quit - or so I thought) and ended up smoking almost all of it. Going home that night (this was the opening party), I was suddenly aware of this thing that I've been feeling everytime I come home from a hard night's party. I usually flush these thoughts, but it hit me full force that particular night. It was that feeling of disgust when you've had too much to smoke, where you can smell the scent of the cigarette reeking in the entire car; mixed with cologne, sweat and alcohol. So while on the road, I decided not to go to the main party to get rid of this unpleasant feeling. Arvin couldn't go anyway, so why bother? I also decided to stop smoking ENTIRELY, and to limit my party nights to a bare minimum. I'm not going to give up my social life of course, I will still go out, but only to watch movies, have meals with friends and dates, or drinks with whomever. Saturday morning witnessed me having an interview with Kenneth, the sports editor for the school paper. He was screening me to check if I was capable of being the next sports editor. Of course, I wasn't, and I didn't really want to be the sports editor anyway. I wanted to be the features editor, but our editor-in-chief, Elydia, has been dropping gargantuan hint bombs that I'll be the editor-in-chief after Joan's (her successor) term. Arvin texted me, telling me it was on for tonight, so I decided to go. But I didn't forget my resolution. I decided to still party (not as much though), but I will go cold turkey on the Marlboros. So that night, armed with a casual cocktail and a hardboiled resolution, I partied the night away; safe, happy, and Madonnified.

What changed my perception about Chuck was the many people I've met in both parties of the Madonnathon. Before, when partying, I would usually meet people, random strangers and friends of friends, and there would be this awkward ambience when both of us know there is this attraction between us. There will be clipped conversations, cold auras as we try to hide our shit and analyze theirs, and the rest of the night would be spent sitting down, trying to make the proverbial ball roll. It's not an easy task to talk to a beautiful stranger amidst the loud music, trust me. So I settled to remain friends with everyone and flush away all sorts of attraction on my part and gently veer theirs away with friendly gestures. No more casual laying of hands on the knees, quick kisses, and discreet hand holding. So that night, I met many people, friends, and I enjoyed the night. Unlike meeting guys who share a mutual attraction with me - my newfound friends were warm, bright, and open. This is the kind of people I want in my life :)

With my resolution in mind, I found myself in Libis on a Friday night weeks after the Madonnathon with my UST friends Ysa and Kay (guys, I miss you. Kay, I so missed your cynicism. Ysa, I missed our bonding moments. You gained some weight, but you're still gorgeous. I love you both!). True to my word, I found myself seated the whole night in Jack's Loft having I D'eclair (try it - their desserts are awesome, yet easy on the pocket) and daquiris and weng wengs. We bonded the whole night, and I noticed that sitting down, having dinner, drinks, and a meaningful conversation with the people that matter was more fulfilling than dancing the night away with sweaty and ugly strangers and going home looking wasted.

So I texted Chuck. He was heavily flirting, but I decided to give him a chance so we could be friends. I don't know what happened exactly, but we ended up dating. We have our ups, and we've definitely have our downs, and although we fight almost everyday, I must give him credit for having so much patience with me. He has seen my mood swing from one end of the sprectrum to the other, often serving as the receiving end of my many fits. He's not very good at keeping up with me, but he's trying his best. And that's what I love about him :)