Kristine with a “K”

Hi there. My name is Kristine and this is my website. I’m 27 years old, Filipina, and I live in Dallas, TX where I’ve lived my entire life. So far. I was one of the early birds who grew up in the Internet boom and designed websites as a hobby. I even remember having my own e-zine at one point (yeah, totally geekish I know).

So after 10 years of of maintaining my own website and earning a degree in advertising, I set out to do what I’ve always wanted to do: design websites. I work at a small company doing a little bit of design and a little bit of project management. I love the people I work with. Despite some of the tear-out-my-hair-and-gouge-out-my-eyeballs frustrations some days, I still enjoy every bit of it.

When I’m Not At Work

I have way too many hobbies and interests. I’m an avid reader and will often read several books at a time. I also subscribe to a lot of magazines (though sometimes I don’t read them as often as I should). I also take pictures, which you can find here at Flickr, regularly with a Nikon D40 digital SLR camera. I’m not great at it yet, but I’m learning. In addition to that, I watch movies, TV, and listen to music. I automatically love any movie with Will Ferrell, Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, or Owen or Luke Wilson in it. A lot of my favorite music comes from movies, TV, or just browsing iTunes.

I’m crafty. I love to cook and entertain (and eat!), a characteristic that I inherited from my mom. I love trying new recipes and going to new restaurants. I enjoy hand made things and appreciate sophisticated high fashion at the same time. And despite the bad rep, I still secretly love Martha Stewart and everything she does. Hand made cards are one of my many many hobbies. I love coffee (Starbucks) even though I really shouldn’t drink it as often as I do.

I’m a little introverted when you first meet me. Once you get to know me, I can be funny, silly, and outspoken. I’m a city girl all the way and detest mundane life in middle-class suburbia. But I’ve become more environmentally conscious over the past couple years and have learned that this Earth is a living, breathing thing that we must respect and take care of because it’s the only one we have.

My boyfriend’s name is Jabari and he lives in Houston. We met online and have been dating for over 5 years now. He’s kind, generous, very intelligent, and makes me laugh. He says he’s a hacker-extraordinaire (or maybe just a glorified W.O.W. player). He gets this funny look on his face when I’m doing something retarded and it makes me laugh. Not just because I’m being retarded, but because he makes the funny face. He knows how to kiss me in such a way that I forget who I am. And no matter how often we talk, I still find myself missing him even more.

I have a dog named Izzie. She’s a white mini-schnauzer with a lot of energy and tons of character. I first met her when my sister got her as an itty bitty puppy. In December of 2006 my sister decided she could no longer take care of her kids and a dog at the same time, so she offered Izzie to me since she knew I’d been looking for a dog for a while. The day before Christmas Eve, Izzie came wrapped with a red satin bow tied around her collar and a tongue that couldn’t stop giving me kisses. She’s really sweet and playful and will try to put you in your place if she’s unfamiliar with you. You can find more photos of her here.

I have a huge family: 2 parents, 2 sisters, a brother, a sister in law, 3 nephews, a niece, and two canine-nephews. I see them almost every weekend when Izzie and I visit for dinner on Saturday nights. On top of that I have a huge extended family with tons of cousins, aunts, and uncles, all of whom live nearby. They’re like my extended network of support. They’re almost like backup siblings and parents.

That’s me in a nutshell.