Coping skills

We all have our own sense of coping skills that we armour ourselves with. Whenever I feel down I would normally want to lift my spirit up and do something worthwhile to have that sense of worth. One of my compartmentalised skill is art-craft. I feel great satisfaction in creating something from scratch and then several hours after voila!

FF's

Friendship has a lot of angles. You either click or quit. They come and go and some hover around and slowly their shadows start to fade. BFF's are far and few, they can sense if you need to offload a bit, you know the usual thingy majig . Thanks for the lovely treat, chick!

Life

This really tells a touching story. It is between two generations. You can tell by their gestures that there is a true and endearing bond between them that is called unconditional love. They rely on each other, one is the nurturer and the other gives the reason to keep on being strong. You could tell that they have been through a lot, the good and the bad.

Pinoys thrive globally

I looked at the itinerary suggested by OMNIA. Medyo madugong lakaran ata and peg. Well Rome is a walking place, the stairs and uphill slopes will really make your back legs and bum FIT. Feeling ko I belong kasi I was wearing an Italian made leather jacket, coupled with Prada and Gucci brands at kung ano pang ek-ek, aba eh kung hindi pa naman ako maka receive the loyalty award from their Fashion Mogul, ewan ko na lang! Nakakaaliw lang kasi I saw Pinoys everywhere, mapa bus, mapa Metro at higit sa lahat and daming tambay with matching yosi. I did not feel alone at all, halos every corner may kababayan. However, modesty aside I can say am a street smart naman unless of course if the writings were say in Russian ibang drama yun , the only giveaway that turista ako was my Camera that I carry around my neck. Medyo irritating lang minsan kasi I found it creepy that some characters were up to no good, kaya I just keep a fixed smirk on my face and carried on walking with a purpose, parang feeling ko I am rushing to work. One thing I won't forget eh yung 2 yosi boys saying "Kabayan ano musta na?" while walking huh, deadma lang ako and overtook them and holding my breath (ang hirap kayang suminghap ng yosi, kainis!) walking towards St Peter's Square. I just heard them say na lang na " Ah baka di Pinay, Italyana siguro" I wanted to look back at them and say something uber out of this world. However at the back of my mind I could not help but LOL. There goes my congeniality down the roman drain, errr NOT!

There is a first time to everything

So I plunged into the unknown ( well, not really, of course I read trip advisor reviews and pointers and googled a lot about Roma) and did my very first solo sojourn. Off to Rome I went on a Thursday morning, I left London feeling excited, I had my to do list in my head. Will I be able to follow my itinerary as planned? 4 days seemed a long day, It is a matter of will and determination and see if I will have the energy to really accomplish and do all the those things I wanted to do and see. All the phrases and words I practiced ( crash course 101) vanished the minute I first attempted conversing in italian, even with my kodigo ( i-translate from my cell phone) tameme ako :). Kaya I had to resort to english lingo. My goal on day one was to get my ROMA PASS. So I asked the front desk how to get there. He advised me to take BUS 62, I looked at him suspiciously, I read from TRIP advisor that talamak and pickpocket at snatcher sa bus na ito dahil this bus goes to all the tourist spot. Anyway I asked him the second option, lakadin ko daw and Boncompagnio and then turn left sa via Veneto and take the Metro. Mas appealing sa akin ito. That shouldn't be a prob may tatalo pa ba sa London underground tube? Aba he forgot to tell me na downhill pala ito? It took me 15 minutes to get to it ( totoo nga and sabi ng mga previous review, malayo siya sa metro) Anyway when I reached Otttaviano and clap my eyes on the VATICAN CITY, na pa wow ako sa kanyang magnificence. Malaki nga siya as in.

Are we ever ready for anything?

Lately, there have been so many challenging scenarios coming my way. Work consumes a lot of my energy. I cannot stand negative energy, I need my Jade stone or my obsidian stone beside me all the time. Deep breathing is really not working for me anymore, I'd rather stroke my jade. But this is the reality of life you either swim or sink. There is a saying in my line of profession we eat our young. Yep, the true nature of carnivores we are indeed! I'd rather stick to green leafy veges, thank you very much!

it has been a while since I trawled this blog site. It is nice to reflect ones' thoughts and put these in writing. I will venture into something new and brave this wide world we live in and hope to fulfill my lifelong dream. And now that it is looming I cannot really put my finger to it. It's giving me a mixture of excitement and dread.

I am glad that my stolen Macbook has been replaced. I cannot however deny the fact that I am always reminded of that raw ache that I feel. I have lost a lot of my precious photos from those dirt low scum, I was in the process of backing up the photos, i only managed to transfer 8 out of 43 photo albums. I could never go back to those lovely places I have been, memories is all I've got ( sob and some more sob).

Shukran Jasilan ya sadika Tins

Everytime I see this bungisngis "Lea Salonga" look alike and used to have braces lady, I couldnt help but smile. There are loads of reasons why so, one of them is that we had so many wacky memories back in the Birmingham days, and whenever we meet up and reminisce we couldn't help but burst out giggling more of guffaw really. It doesn't end there mind you, there are bloopers that do occur at times even on the other side of the pond (Aremika). What I really appreciate most about Tins ( & Bobby of course) is her being sincere and thoughtful friend. Thanks for fetching me at the airport, driving me around SF and really taking out of your way despite your hectic schedule. Who could forget the lovely Baked salmon, thanks for partaking the recipe, I still have yet to find ground onion in one of the shops and make you proud. I consider you and Jhie as my strongest link (west coast) and the reason why I never get tired of visiting the lovely San Francisco kerchiiiing!. Sana di kayo magsawa sa aking kakulitan hee hee!!

The Girl with the golden aura

Meet Jhie I consider this beauteous Eve as one of the IT Girl when it comes to fashion. Well, she's got the flare and I must say despite being a yummy mummy already, she still maintains her eherm size 0 figure. Not that I am milking it to the hill, but she is one of those I consider amongst my very good friend and a confidant at that. I had fun in all of our outings especially Muir woods. Even if we don't communicate and don't see each other that much I know that I have a friend in her, nothing has wavered what so ever and for that I am indeed endearingly grateful. Thank you very much Mars & Von for welcoming me into your grand abode, and of course to Mummy Amparing who's so maasikaso and makwento as well. You guys made me feel so at home. And not to forget the very lovely kulits and the center of love and attention Clark and Ash. They bring such joy not only to you guys but to all of us as well. Thanks for organising the QEH east 4 c(-diff) reunion, it brought back so many fun filled memories ( wink, wink). It was such a special event (hikbi, kerchiiing!)

Broken Silence

It is quite obvious that I am not amongst the clan of religious blogger. Anywhow I have been rather hooked on cupcaking for the past 3 months or so. It's the kind of phase I go through from time to time to satiate my inclination to craft and baking. My friends would normally ask how I do certain things when it comes to ideas and stuffs. It is no secret that youtube is the HG for everyone, next to google of course!
This is how I do it, if I taste something I like to replicate ie Cinnamon pretzel (they cost £3 per pretzel, outrageous no?)

or nata (so tiny and priced at £2.79!),

I just tune in to youtube and voila!

Thank you ladies!

I have hit the 40 mark in my life and they say the 40 is the new 30 Hmmn whatever that means! It was a joint informal bash with fellow capricorn Diane.
Thank you very much Shella, Crissy and Pat for the beautiful cards and gifts, they were all made of a binding chemical component that would last a lifetime, I shall treasure your presies as you made the celebration memorable!

Bikram Yoga

So my supposed yoga buddy has backed out on me, I am however determined to progress and start with this challenge. Having said that after all the misconceptions and anticipations, my first yoga lesson was not bad at all.
They say the room is stifling hot, imagine yourself being in the beach or in an arid place at midday temperature cut that into half, that is the temperature setting in the room more like prickly heat. Our yoga teacher Lisa kindly introduced the newby in the block. We, the newby were located in the back corner of the room, this is so we could observe and watch what is going on. Bikram yoga is down to breathing technique, stretching and balance. With constant practice I shall be able to stretch those unused muscle that I never knew I have. I expected to see all people to be slim, I was glad to see that there were gents and ladies of varying shapes and sizes and some were even size 20 and they were as determined as the rest of the crowd. The fact that I started to sweat 10 minutes after starting was a satisfying thought. I was pleased with myself because I was able to accomplish 23 out of the 26 postures. Lisa however suggested that we should not leave it another week before we go for another class otherwise we start from scratch again. The teachers here are quite supportive and respectful on what you are capable of. Hopefully in a matter of months and once I have mastered all the moves, I could proudly be a fellow yogi :0).

Ageing gracefully

Meet Lola Nolly, she is the only living survivor amongst my late grandma's siblings from my mother side. I always make it a point to drop by her house and say a quick hello. I am always happy to see her. I used to "crash" in their house when I was job hunting in Manila some 16 years ago.

I was in elementary when during a family party I overheard one relative mentioned that the secret to her youthful look is due to religious usage of Chanel products. She reminds me of Japanese ladies who doesn't seem to have an inch of wrinkle showing at all. When we did our beso beso she still smelled fresh and that she still carry an air of elegance, which I think I don't stand the chance of gaining one. Would you believe that she is turning 90 next year? Our parting words were, that She hopes to still see me/us next time around when that would be I do not know.

Nice catch up

I had a chance to meet up with Gaylene, the last time we had a tete' a tete' was almost 4 years ago. We were classmates in high school. She is also a Nurse. What I admire about her is her dedication and work ethic. She has decided to stay in the Philippines and has made her mark in the Nursing field. We just basically discussed about life in general, reminisce about old times, about getting old err, rather mature and our hopes and aspirations for ourselves. We have so many things in common, could it be that because she is the same as me when it comes to Principles in life? We had to do the closing remarks at Red Ribbon, reluctantly got up we hoped

that the next time we see each other we shall be happily content in all corners of our life.

Something new

Now that I have tried such activities as ziplining and a bit of rock climbing, I kind of like the idea of being an adrenaline junkie. However, it also goes to show that I am indeed so unfit. When we finished venturing into the unknown crevices of the cave, I was panting and sweating like there was no tomorrow! I even had a bout of panic attack when at one point the guides told us we need to squeeze in to a tiny rugged hole in order to get through the other side and the other one was to go up stairless and use the rope as a handle. But boy did it feel good.

Now for the ziplining, I would say it is a 20 seconds of a free fall feeling. I was screaming from the word go till midpoint. It was a liberating experience!

Gem of Palawan

Meet Beth Gales, she was one of our tour guides when we explored Palawan. If only the rest of the Philippines promotes the way Puerto Princesa does it, perhaps we would have a better representation globally. Anyway going back to Beth, So I did a bit of enquiry about her, she has been doing this job for the past year, she used to be in the hotel business side. I could sense her passion and dedication and she truly believes in what they promote in Palawan, which is eco tourism. We met her on day one for the city tour, then again on day three for our Honda bay adventure. I was gobsmacked to find out that part of their job was to prepare our lunch at the beach. While we were busy snorkelling she was busy grilling pork barbeque, tuna fillets, king prawn and prepared salted eggs salad and aubergine, mum bought fresh blue crabs and requested for it to be steamed. We had a feast and everyone was happy with our picnic. I admired how they localised the system in order for each barangay to benefit from tourism industry. This is my first time to do this locally so I wonder if this kind of thing is also being done somewhere else. Next adventure: Bohol - TBA lol!

Nature at its best

last minute blip

So I went to Mac shop and had my password reset (Oo na umarya na naman ako!) when I got a call from my colleague who was getting nowhere in trying to find a missing client's folder. She was at her wits end. In the midst of our conversation regarding the missing folder, I had a sudden apparition and gut instinct that I must have had inadvertently picked it up amongst my folders and kept them in my locker( meaning it will be stuck there for a month and I will be totally screwed big time if I dont go back and try to find it myself!). I thought I bid farewell to work yesterday so I went back, Taddaah! Indeed I was right, the folder was merrily squeezed in amongst my belongings. I seriously need to chill, oh and that means when I arrive in Puerto Princessa by the beach, then could I really say I can truly have a proper sip of pina collada!

Now I can have a chillax! Well, Until OPODO ruined it BIG TIME!

It has been 18 months since I have been home. I am already anticipating the long haul cattle journey. This has been furtherly aggravated when Opodo texted me the other day saying there had been a major change with my flight details. As soon as I got home I immidiately tried to log-on to Macmate and see what this extremely vexing thing is all about. Surely there's a mistake somewher, well trying to convince myself. I must have been on "work mode" still because I tried logging on with my work password. And so, the battle begins in trying to get into my impenetrable fortress. For the nth time despite many attempts, my Mac turned its back on me, FFS it wouldnt let me in. I was so Frustrated and it was already almost 1 AM, I turned to Android, finally I saw that my connecting inbound flight from doha to heathrow will be over 12 and a half freaking HOURS. How the hell did this happen? I booked this as early as February. I thought I was going to have a burst aneurysm when I read this. I had to recheck, put my reading glasses on and then really stared at it for almost dunno 5 minutes. This is the most dreaded thing that I really really abhore! Ho ho ho Opodo hasn't heard the last of me yet, or is it Qatar Airways to blame?