All I want for Christmas

November is upon us already, which means that crafty culprit Christmas is lurking just around the corner, waiting to spring on us with its extensive arsenal of tinsel and carols and fruitcake, effectively and efficiently unleashing holiday cheer-- that most potent virus-- throughout the world. No one is safe.

This year, what I want for Christmas are peace, joy and goodwill to all mankind... and these 3 babies.


The last time I fell in love at first sight with a Coach bag, it turned out to be a dud that left me heartbroken (the photo of a patchwork bag I had seen on the Coach website did not match the actual product being sold in stores). I'm hoping this one, the Graphic Op Art Julianne, won't disappoint, because it is so gorgeous I want to cross-breed it with my other bags so I can have a litter of pretty little Op Art pouchettes. I've decided this will be my Christmas gift to myself, and I've asked my friend Ria to buy it for me on her next business trip to the US at the end of this month. If the stores don't have it in stock anymore, I just might cry.

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I know I said the only thing I'd ever replace my beat-up Nokia 6108 with is another 6108, but unfortunately I have failed to find anyone in the whole of Metro Manila who's still selling it. In the first place it's a Hong Kong-exclusive model, not to mention it's already several years old, so it's really mission impossible. Even in Hong Kong, in all the cell phone shops I've inquired with, I received nothing but blank looks and the occasional derisive laugh ("Oh, old model!"). My dad did manage to source a 3108 from a friend of his who bought one but never used it, and since it's pretty much the same thing as a 6108 (except it doesn't have an English-Chinese, Chinese-English dictionary), I decided it would have to do for now, seeing as how my 6108's keypad is completely unresponsive already.

But then last week, I was having coffee with my former co-teachers Kat and Margaux, and like all my friends they were ribbing me about my low-tech phones and how they don't reflect my lifestyle (that of a jet-setting C.O.O.). I don't know if it was because I hadn't seen Margaux in a long while, but her exasperated amusement over how I still haven't upgraded to a better cell phone was the final nudge I needed to realize what all my friends have been telling me all along: I really do need a phone that's more versatile and projects a more presentable image (when I was still using my 6108, cracked casing and all, my mom always implored me not to bring it out in front of suppliers or clients, lest they think business was so bad that I couldn't afford a decent phone).

In that same conversation with Kat and Margaux, we got to talking about so-called smartphones (cell phones that double as PDAs), and Margaux gave me a rundown of the most popular brands and models. When Blackberries were mentioned and compared with other QWERTY keypad phones, it suddenly occurred to me that I never seriously entertained the idea of owning a QWERTY phone, which actually might be a good fit for someone like me who texts in full (and who's never been comfortable using a touchscreen-- I've all but abandoned my Palm Tungsten T5 and I returned the LG Viewty my parents got me for my last birthday). So over the weekend I did some research and came across the Nokia E71, which is amazingly compact for a QWERTY phone, and has all the features a busy working woman could need on the go, including WiFi and advanced email capabilities. The more online reviews I read on the E71, the more psyched I got at the prospect of owning a respectable and kickass phone for once in my life. Yes, I'm going to miss my 6108 but I think it's time to let go and move on, especially as I mature *ahem* and move up in the world.

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Before my brother left for Beijing, we bought an MSI Wind, one of those "netbooks" or mini-laptops that are becoming increasingly popular nowadays. Bens brought it with him, the plan being to let him use it while he's abroad, then pass it on for communal use in our office. However, I have a feeling Bens is now so attached to the Wind that he probably won't give it up when he returns. I am now very tempted to buy a netbook of my own, not only to serve the original purpose of having a laptop handy at the office for presentations, but also to have a portable laptop for my frequent trips abroad. True, my dad's Vaio would do, but I'm loath to subject such an expensive piece of hardware to all that grunt work. Besides, the Lenovo IdeaPad S10 is so cute! I'm hankering for a blue one, but the Philippine Lenovo site doesn't feature that color yet. I'm also hoping they release a 6-cell battery for this model, so I might hold out until 2009 to get it (in blue!).

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Yeah, yeah, I know Christmas isn't supposed to be a commercial holiday and we shouldn't lose sight of the true reason for the season, but come on, can't a girl push her luck with Santa (or spend her Christmas bonus on a luxury item or two)?