Loving My Moments Now

It's been over a month since i stopped working and I'm loving every minute of not having to wake up early in the morning, drive for hours and endure the often heavy traffic, think about so many stuff at work, and so much more.

I'm enjoying each moment that i get enough sleep, cook food for my husband, fix our house, shop without thinking about time, and doing the two most recent stuff that are taking so much of my time - Scrapbooking and Blogging. I'm like glued already to my computer. I sometimes even forget to eat (good thing not to breathe). This is what I have always wanted in life and I just wish this can go on forever. I love not having to run against time, to be conscious of everybody around me, to think about fulfilling people's expections of me. I just love this. This moment. Now. I am savoring each moment that I get to converse with life and with people i love. I truly enjoy going 'deep' again in appreciating life, the arts, music, poetry. I love this. I love this life.

I realized just now, that Scrapbooking and Blogging are similar in the fact that both document my life and leave a trace of all my memories. Could it be, then, that subconciously, I am aware that my time is about to end soon? Or that I'm about to have alzeimer disease soon? Ha-ha-ha...I hope that's not the case... I still have lots to do, lots to learn, and lots of wants...

Reminiscing the Artist In Me

I have a natural inclination for the Arts. Unfortunately, it has been years - really long years, since i last held a paintbrush, charcoal, pencil or paints. I can see rust forming on my fingers already! The only artsy stuff i have now is my 64 pcs. crayola set, which i use to color my kiddish coloring book.

The Artists Group Of Subic (AGOS)

However, i still find it amusing to reminisce on the year 2001. The Year when i left Manila and stayed at Subic/SBMA. The year i just stopped working and just became an "artist" (many thanks to sister and mom for their moral and financial support...he he he). The year when we formed AGOS (Artists Group of Subic).

It was there that i got to paint and exhibited some of my works (together with the whole AGOS group). Of course, amateur level. But let me share some of my works with you...

Here are some of them:

My Version of Calla Lilies

My Nude Artworks. Patterned after Lucian Freud

My Lady at the Grapevine

And here are some of my nude rough sketches...

Ahh.... it has been a long time. I'm not sure when i'll get the "Artist Itch" again. As of the moment, i'm not too keen on painting or drawing again. I'm sure, though, sometime in the future, i'll start drawing and painting again. Unknown to many, Painting is an expensive hobby. You gotta have the right and expensive tools to paint well.

Happy Birthday to My Great Sister!!!

Happy Birthday To My Great Sis, Sheila!

My sister is the kindest among us, siblings. She has such a kind and thoughtful heart. Naks! In fact, she has given me so many shoes and clothes already! Thanks, thanks, thanks!!!

Inside scoop:

• She was a chubby (and clumsy) during her early years but has grown very lovely and slim now. (he he he)
• She's very discplined (aside from being really intelligent/smart, huh). Strictly gets her beauty sleep at at 9-10pm!

We love you sis and hope to see you and the gremlins soon!

Life Is a Series of Small Journeys

Life is a series of small journeys. Each journey ends when you’ve done or have learned enough already. Whenever one journey ends, we sometimes feel hurt and angry because normally, we don’t want to let go – of people we’ve grown to love and the situation we’ve been accustomed to. For whatever it is worth, we must learn to let go or we’ll forever be living our lives with fear and resentment. Let go of the people who left us or won’t love us back. Let go of the things that we wanted and but couldn’t have. Let go of the anger, hate, fear and insecurities… Just let go…

Let us teach ourselves to learn to choose how to react in each situation. For every situation, we have three choices: 1) feel good about it, 2) feel bad about it or 3) be indifferent about it. Choosing to feel good about it or trying hard to see what good lies beneath the situation makes things easier to accept and makes life easier to live. Choosing to feel bad only worsens the situation and makes us feel like we’re being treated like shit the more, which is a totally unpleasant feeling and choosing to be indifferent sometimes help us not become jaded or affected at all. But you tend to lose one important thing why you are a human being – to feel. And that can be dangerous… Criminals are usually indifferent about their victims, about their morbid acts, and sometimes even about their lives.

When we can’t find the strength to move on, let’s find a hard wall and bang our heads into that wall (J), and tell ourselves, “For sure, this is not new anymore. At some time someone, somewhere have experienced this already. I am not alone”. In fact, so many people have experienced the same thing. Some of them died already, some are still living, and some are living but looks dead anyway! Choose to live. Begin again. Continue with our lives. We are only as strong and as weak as we think we are. Therefore, think that we are strong. No one is holding our nose and mouth shut, hence say "I can still breathe, hence I can still do something” or better yet, “I think, therefore I am” Ha ha ha….

I’ve recently had one journey ended. What a journey it has been.

On The Book, 'Phra Farang'

I had just finished reading the book "Phra Farang" by Phra Peter Pannapadipo. He used to be a successful English man who decided to rid himself of all his material wealth and became a monk in Thailand. I thought it would be boring, but later found myself not able to put it down. It made me laugh and gave me a fascinating view of Buddhist practices.

Here's one excerpt from the book that i like the most:

Before breakfast, the monks chant for about half an hour and then, after eating, chant a short Pali verse about the impermanent nature of life. The verse translates as: 'Alas, transient are all compounded things. Having arisen, they cease. Being born, they die. The cessation of all compounding is true happiness.' That might sound a little bit odd but in fact it contains the essence of the Buddha's teachings: that there is no phenomenon which has any permanence, that all things must end and clinging or attaching to impermanent phenomena must eventually bring suffering of one kind or another.

Very much true but not that easy to live by specially when such impermanent phenomena refers to one of your loved ones.

I’ve been through so many difficult and challenging situations before. Over the years, I have learned to process things and turn them to something that I would eventually love or savor. In fact, I somehow now believe that bad times/days are actually opportunities and lucks “in disguise”. I also have this notion that Life is really good on me. That whenever I am in a situation where I can’t get out of easily and/or someone ridiculously hates me, Life seems to naturally sort things out for me. Things just happen to my benefit. Because of this, I actually don’t see the need for me to harbor ill feelings towards anybody because deep in my mind, I know the Life will handle that person or situation eventually. I don’t have sleepless nights or seething days. I get bothered at first, of course but the icky feeling doesn’t stay long on me. I always just go on. I don’t care; I just know something that’s supposed to happen does happen. Things happen the way they are meant to.

MY QUEST FOR THE RIGHT FACIAL CLEANSER


I have a really terrible vice or weakness. I must admit that this is something that I’m not too proud of but hey, if some girls collect shoes, dresses or bags, mine are cleansers and toiletries. These are my weaknesses. I can go for years without buying clothes or shoes, but I can’t last a month without buying toiletries. It’s a bit abnormal already.

When I was still single, I’d have around 9 combined soaps and cleansers ‘online’ in my bathroom. Now, that I’m married, I have 8 soaps (Seikisho, Belo, Sandalwood, Aveeno, Safeguard, Irishspring, Glutathione and Green Papaya) and 4 cleansers (Cethaphil, Clarins, Kiehls, Neutrogena) ‘online’!

One of my fantasies is to spend 100,000.00 pesos in duty free store and buy toiletries. And I’m sure, it’s still not enough for everything that I might want to buy! If not for this weakness, I could really be a low maintenance girl. Here's why... I get my shoes and sandals from my great sister. I just have 13 shoes/sandals and half of this (mostly Naturalizer and HeelCare) were from my sisters. The rest are cheap priced shoes – from 300 - 1,200 price range. My clothes – well, my sister almost puked on my pitiful wardrobe and decided to leave all her vacation clothes to me last February. If not for my sister, I wouldn’t have any nice casual clothes because I don’t really enjoy shopping for clothes and shoes - and that’s for real.


5 CLEANSERS IN 3 MONTHS !

I have always been a fan of CETAPHIL. I use this from time to time when my face gets dry and red. Can’t live without it. It's quite cheap also. Sells for P70-P250 - depends on the size.

Last December, my husband treated to a lite shopping spree at Duty Free and I bought CLARINS GEL NETTOYANT PURIFIANT (around US$15) among other toiletries (woohooo!!!). It is a great cleanser. It also has a very loveable light scent – smells sophisticated. It doesn’t irritate the skin but it doesn’t prevent acne as well. Good for morning use.

January, I started going to Belo med for facials and cleanings. I also bought their Acne-Free Set which includes the GLYCOLIC SOAP. It’s quite strong -Peels the skin; Makes it red; Makes the skin dry. It’s good to use when my face gets really oily. But it’s not for daily use.

I saw this SEIKISHO MEDICATED SOAP in Hongkong last February. It was selling for HK$ 129.00 at some Watsons and Bonjour stores but thought thrice about buying it because it was quite pricey for its size, until I finally decided to buy one but we were already at the airport by then and it wasn’t even available at the airport. Then I saw the Kiehl’s Booth and ended up buying instead the KIEHL’S RARE EARTH OATMEAL MILK FACIAL CLEANSER#1. I couldn’t recall the exact price anymore but it was somewhere between HK$ 139 to 190. In Philippine Peso it was around 900 – 1,500.00. But since my mind was set already on buying the SEIKISHO, upon arriving in Manila, I went to Rustans (luckily I found it there) I bought it for approximately P795 (without the case, around P900 if with case). Combining these cleansers and soap (Kiehl’s first followed by Seikisho) is by far the best for my sensitive and oily skin. They are both excellent and really make a difference on the skin. It somehow makes the skin healthier, tighter and whiter. You’ll notice the difference on the first use.

Right now, i'm quite satisfied with Kiehl's and Seikisho. These two might have already ended my insane quest for the right facial cleansers.