Champagne Problems

I've never been into the science fiction genre. My knowledge on anything that remotely touches the subject is limited to what I deem interesting. Mostly, I don't understand it. But these days, I've been trying to follow the developments in the highly controversial technology known as CRISPR. 

Dress: Zara | Shoes: Manolo Blahnik Hangisi | Love bracelet: Cartier

In what I believe would be among my 5 favorite posts in this blog ever (read it again HERE), I agreed to Musk's question which roughly translates to "how come the brilliant minds who are supposed to ensure that advancements in science would progress seem to be missing?" Little did I know that in the works was an invention that would change the very foundation of life. CRISPR is a technology that is capable of editing our DNA. We all know that our DNA is responsible for everything that we are born with, meaning this is a result of supposedly uncontrolled combinations obtained from our biological parents. But with the existence of CRISPR, it is no longer comparable to winning a gene lottery because this technology works like a lotto ticket that ensures hitting the jackpot outright. Now imagine the implications. My brothers who have poor eyesight, which they inherited from my Mom, who inherited it from her Mom and so forth, wouldn't have to bother with this issue anymore thanks to CRISPR. Or consider those afflicted with genetic disorders, incompatible genes, and all other diseases that can be cured by altering the DNA including cancer and aids. I've watched plenty of documentaries about genetic diseases so somehow, I theoretically understand how difficult it is to be very limited by circumstances that we have no control over. I'm aware that I would not fully know the extent of the pain caused by diseases that I am fortunately not suffering from nor any of my close family and friends.

CRISPR can also make me taller. Instead of my diminutive height, I can be as tall as my 5"6' college best friend whom I've always encouraged to wear this and that only because I would've worn the same clothes had I been given her height (Hi Lina!). But what's stopping others from increasing their height alone when CRISPR can address specific issues at a molecular level? Instead of having good eye vision, why not get x-ray vision? Instead of curing bone diseases, why not make the person super-strong instead? I mean, with a few tweaks I'm sure that this isn't far from what this technology can do. So see, this is where the problem with CRISPR lies. It is now a question if the pros outweigh the cons. Once it's been out, a few creative minds would surely develop another use that may or may not be what the technology was initially intended for. History has proven this to be a regular occurrence. So who gets to make these decisions? Who should have the power to regulate it, to use it? The government, head doctors, or should it be democratized or be made available for everyone? Should it be handled by someone in a position that is so easily corruptible? 

with my parents

See how interesting and scary CRISPR is? It's scary because its implications are just supposed to be stuff of science fiction. I do believe that this technology is a big leap for mankind. Slowly, we are getting to the future that the only science fiction literature that I voluntarily read (school-required literature do not count) talk about: Isaac Asimov's The Last Question. It's just a short story, let's all give our brain a much-deserved break from the pop culture that it's subjected to daily. 

Anyway, let me round up this post by saying that the lockdown is frustrating. I've missed several trips abroad and local as well as life events meant to be celebrated with family and friends. It truly feels like my life has been put on hold for almost 2 years now. It frustrates me, especially since I'm only a couple of years away from leaving my twenties years. When someone said that the 20s are our selfish years, I fully embraced it. I did things according to what would benefit me the most (but nothing life-changing). I'm not sure if it's because I feel like I'm supposed to have more time to continue living with this mindset that for the first time that I can recall, I find myself bored. 

These photos were taken last January 2019 at Nobu Manila, during my birthday celebration with family. Let me share a funny anecdote and a somehow small achievement for me that night. This was the first birthday celebration that I had where I went and asked, "is it okay if I pay for our dinner tonight, Dad?" You can imagine how hearty his laugh was hahahahaha 

Lastly, the title is a Taylor Swift evermore song. I'll echo this author's wonderful question in this article (read it too and know why "Champagne Problems is one of the smartest songs I've heard in a long time").  

'I am cognizant of the fact that my problems not only look different than the problems of many other people in my county, state, country, but I also am aware that, truthfully, they do often pale in comparison to the problems that others have. How do I now reckon with my problems — that ones that do still exist — in the light of that knowledge?'

Off We Go!

I was just on the phone earlier with my friend Kim when she casually mentioned this blog. She said that she misses my diary-type telling of events with the sole intention of simply documenting my "clumsy reactions to life". And guess what, she has a point! Today's post would just be a long narration of one of the trips I went to last 2018. Also, it's because I miss my cousin Alissa. We were supposed to be reunited in 2020 since my family's Christmas vacation was supposed to be in Canada but alas, it's also among the trips we had to cancel because of the ongoing pandemic. 

For the 1st time, I celebrated the Christmas Season without my parents. They had to stay behind to sort out important business matters while everyone else flew to Canada to spend the 3 week 2018-2019 holiday there as planned. Ever the opportunist, my cousin and I took this circumstance to book our very own "holiday within the holiday". Thus our quick 5-day Las Vegas trip was born hahahahaha

Knowing that my Dad would've never agreed to this plan, Alissa and I planned the quick 27-31 Dec trip in secrecy. We only revealed our plans to the adults a week before the entire holiday began. At that point, they couldn't do anything anymore since everything had already been pre-paid. Disclaimer: I've done similar actions in the past with my friends and on those 3 occasions, my plane tickets, hotel bookings, visas, etc were all wasted because my Mom didn't let me go. I suppose it's because it's with my cousin this time and we used the "we haven't seen each other in a long time" card (despite going on another adventure just 6 months prior) so the parents eventually relented. See the lengths I have to go though just so I can get things done my way? I'm kidding!

Our entire trip could be best described as spontaneous and funny ; from the 1st day where we arrived at the airport 15mins pre-boarding time to the last day where we had to rush to the airport to avoid the barricades in time for the New Year's Eve celebration. On the 2nd day of the trip, I had to wake up at 5AM because I had decided to go on an adventure alone. I was already in Vegas so I might as well see the Grand Canyon. I booked a tour through Viator which included hotel pick-up and drop-off, meals for the entire day, and the highlight of that adventure, a helicopter ride. The only thing that I failed to check prior to leaving my room was the temperature. I assumed that even though it's winter, it wouldn't be too cold since I've always associated the place to a desert. I was surprised to see snow on the way to the destination. I was only wearing a wind-breaker on top of a thin sweater. Thank goodness I at least brought along a neck warmer scarf otherwise I would've probably stayed behind in the cozy van. 

I was seated next to the pilot so I had a front-view of the entire scenery. The Grand Canyon was magnificent!!! I enjoy going to new places because I'm in constant search for the feeling of being overwhelmed. I find comfort in knowing that I would never run out of things to marvel at, to be curious about. Traveling overwhelms me. It doesn't happen all the time but when it does, I get too stunned and glad that something as dazzling existed the same time that I did. Grand Canyon was simply beautiful. It should be included in everyone's itinerary. Although, the  couple whom I shared the same van with from and to Vegas, said that only those who rode the helicopter saw the places that I've seen. It took more than 4 hours to reach Arizona from my hotel plus another 4 hours going back, all within the same day. Pick a comfortable tour package from the plenty of available choices because it would matter. 

My uncultured self made the stupid mistake of not making a reservation at Hell's Kitchen before going there when it 's been my task to make the reservations whenever we eat at restaurants here in Manila. I have always wanted to try Gordon Ramsay's food so Alissa and I agreed that no matter what happens, we would eat at any of his restaurants scattered in different The Strip hotels. My 1st choice was Hell's Kitchen. We were already inside when the receptionist asked us if we have a reservation. She said that because it was the Christmas Season, bookings were usually made 1-2 weeks in advanced. Perhaps she saw my disappointment and my desperation so she mentioned that the nearby Gordon's Pub & Grill inside the Caesars Palace is on first-come-first-served basis. Off we went to the restaurant. We waited for an hour before finally getting a table but at that time, no one could stop me from eating there, not even my stomach which was begging for food already. Once seated and our orders arrived, an attendant came and routinely asked how our food was. I didn't know what came over me but for someone who's been a Gordon Ramsay fan after years of watching his Master Chef shows, I only came up with "it's well-seasoned". Mind you, I was pointing at the fries that we had for appetizers. When she asked for how the salmon or the chicken or the chicken tikka massala were, I still chose "well-seasoned" as my answer. My brain failed me at the worst time hahahahaha

Our choices of hotel accommodations were also out of a whim. Granted that we had limited budget since we couldn't have asked from our parents, we chose to split the 4 nights into 2 places. The 1st choice was Luxor Hotel & Casino along the Strip. She described the room that we got with "2 queen-sized beds for 2 queens". The 2nd room that we got was in Palms Casino Resort. It was bigger and had better amenities but it wasn't along The Strip anymore. This time, the room had 2 televisions and a very nice view of the entire city. 

Now, the best part about being in Vegas was that, no one would bat an eye if you go drinking at anytime of the day. I ordered a margarita to drink while watching Cirque du Soleil but I wasn't expecting to be given a 1L tumbler. All the drinks came in extra-large sizes so we didn't have a waking moment when we weren't tipsy. There's also this huge red tumbler which can be refilled at the stations located in all the hotels along The Strip, at a cost of course. These red tumblers were our everyday companion. In one afternoon, after proving our bad luck at the slot machines, we decided to ride the Linq High Roller. We convinced ourselves to make the best out of the 30min ride by ordering as many drinks as we can. Suffice to say, we got off the the ride giggling and slightly more tipsy than the previous days. So when we saw a make-shift tarot card reading place upon alighting from the High Roller, Alissa and I launched into long discussions about our future with them. Alissa even paid extra just to hear options B and C of her immediate future. 

We met a lot of people too, tourists like us who were out to have fun and to experience the crazy Las Vegas vibe that those who've been to usually rave about. We had so much fun and it was the best celebration to end 2018 with. Our return flight was on the 31st. We tried our luck when we booked our flights but pushing it even further by staying behind to join the NYE countdown would've been too much. Let me end this post with, I only posted about 3days' worth of stories. You can go as crazy as you want but what happens in Vegas HAS to stay in Vegas.