im grace. i have very common name that there was even a phase in my college life that i forced myself to spell it “grays” just to somewhat make it a little unique. my blog has revolved around the blogosphere for no reason in particular- from multiply to friendster to blogger. but all the same, it contains everything about me. well, not exactly everything but you get the picture.

im a BS Computer Science graduate from UP Diliman. but the previous statement is prone to misinterpretations. one, you may think i am a computer geek. two, you may think that i am at least a computer enthusiast. three, you may think that think that i am fascinated with anything related to a computer machine. you see, i am not. a few months after graduation, i came to a painful conclusion that i do not have what it takes to be a software programmer. it was depressing, seeing four years of my life wasted doing something i would regret. i thought about shifting into a more suitable (or maybe profitable) course. but i realized that i have no means to do that. it was at that moment that i realized that not all computer science graduates are pathed to be developers. i became a software test analyst. and i loved it. not only was i able to pick fights argue with the developers, i also started to appreciate my field and eventually my job.

i am the eldest of four siblings. almost always,i carry this aura of being mature, serious and responsible. but the people im closest to would attest that im childish, clumsy and simply crazy. i dont dance. i hate it – just the thought of dancing in front of a crowd makes me uneasy. i cant sing. and i am not into any sports. i am not into fashion. i dress without even a slight care in the world. simply put, i am one of those people who was unfortunate enough to lack any talent whatsoever. but i like to write. i write scribbles on small pieces of papers specially when i get emotional. i have some number of journals started but its not a constant thing. the notebooks i use tend to get lost all the time. i keep word documents containing my musings on whichever pc i have the moment i get depress. these files are eventually erased.

*update. this is a repost from my old blog.

10 things you probably dont know about me

1. i have a serious bout of inferiority complex. i lack self confidence. i dont really believe in myself. believe that? its true.

2. my most prized corporate possession is an orange little frog that rests on top of every pc (at work) that i had used. this little fella, “froggy”, for lack of any other name i could associate with it serves as my sidekick for every job that i had so far.

3. i’m musically ignorant because im a passive listener. i dont know usher or beyonce. i dont care about their music. i wont even recognize them on the television. much more would i know any of their songs. all this because i just listen to whatever comes my way.to me listening is different from most people i know.in my case, music is something that just comes and then go into thin air. that means that i dont remember the title or the artist or the album or anything about most of the song i “encounter”. i just listen to them, ask me the chorus or any part of the lyrics after a minute or so and i tell you, i wont be able to remember. that’s how hopeless i am when it comes to music.

4. i find it hard to throw away my trash. i am the kind of person who keeps the smallest peice of paper that i had used on my bag instead of throwing them in the bin. my wallet is usually full with old receipts, old pictures, old atm cards that i can not seem to get rid of. my inbox is full of year old messages that i can not delete unless maybe if i’ll close my eyes. my local drives are full of back up files that would stay there unless when windows force me to delete some. my notebooks are full of pages with useless doodles and wasted space that will never be torn.

5. i have this thing with the phonebook entries on my cell phone. i keep a standard on how the contact name should appear and i have a tendency to check the records repeatedly fearing that one entry may violate my sacred rules. what do i get from that stupid habit? nothing. but i do it nonetheless.

6. i like blog hopping. and reading other people’s personal messages, comments, thoughts and the works. for me it is a way to really get to know a person. it’s impossible to know what’s going on in another person’s mind at a given time. so even a glimpse of that, i would appreciate.
7. i’m a self confessed morning rush addict. yep, its kinda jologs. but listening to dell and chico’s top ten something’s every single day usually brings a big grin on my face on my way to work in the morning. and that in the middle of ayala morning traffic jam is really something, dont you think? i lost my phone that has a radio feature in it. and so… im a jdorama addict now.

8. whenever someone (usually my close friends and relatives) are leaving for another country, i ask for a mickey mouse key chain for pasalubong. and i always look forward for it when they come back. i has become a habbit.

9. i like to write. i’d like to think that i have a knack for writing feature articles. and i have developed this irritating habbit of being gramatically conscious. lately, i always find myself checking the grammar of everything i happen to be reading. would you believe that i even noted that upon checking harry potter and the halfblood prince has 9 typographical errors in it? Update: I’m re reading the half blood prince book and I realized that the typos are from the ebook only. The book is perfect. hahaha, geeky, ryt? anyway, i like writing stuff out of my head.

10. i dont want people calling me gracia (paging marco and aby). i hate it. i prefer to be called grace, grays or gracie would be even better (mas malambing). and whenever i have to write my name on paper… i would never ever be caught writing “grace dela Pena” – clearly, that’s somebody else like a news caster on ch7. it should always be “maria grace dela pena”. and definitely, i wont forgive anyone who will call me maria grace. be it written or spoken. i just care so much about how people name me that i think it’s hilarious.