My ordinary happiness

Ninang Joy

My good friend Meng, cousin JC and I went to Bulacan and attended a christening. Since Joy is out of Manila, I was her proxy. Though she's a novice in the field of Ninanghood, I know she can do the role well. I'm happy for her. Naks! After the event, I texted her, Congrats Joy, finally you're a legal ninang. Then she replied, KESO! Hahaha

House tripping

We made the most of our stay in Bulacan. We went to Malolos and had a house tripping. If only I have millions, I'll buy that dream house. It's a good location and the developer is good too. It's also a good deal that's why Meng is s0oo interested. Of course, bawal padalos-dalos ng desisyon when it comes to buying a house, we really have to think about it many times, ask many questions as we could, do our research and pray.

Congrats Research and Communications Committee

It's our third time to be the most consistent commitee in the fellowship. Like what ate Vicky said, kudos to the officers and members of R&C. Glory to God for that!! Grabe, R&C people, todo na 'to!!

Sabi nga sa Kungfu Panda, there's no secret recipe. We're just happy people combined in one committee. Naks, God's glory!

Dark Night

While driving, kuya Elvin told us na nakatulog daw siya sa film. So I thought, Dark Night's gonna be boring. Meng, ate Vicky and I were thinking to suggest other films. I thought of Mama Mia or maybe A Very Special Love (John Lloyd and Sarah Geronimo). Of course, things happened as planned. We watched Dark Night and hey, it's never boring. Though it's violent (what would you expect, it's Batman vs Joker), I love every scene. The late Heath Ledger did great (knock on wood) hehe. I really wanted to pee at the middle of the film but I can't go out because of the excitement that was in it. Grabe! So after watching I immediately excuse myself and ran to the toilet. Hehe

Lesson learned: Wag maging matakaw sa popcorn at lemonade, or else, kukuro chan mo! Ganyan nangyari samin ni Meng, hay naku! Well, she's fine now but me, oh no! I still need Lomotil . (Salamat pa rin kay Doc Billy sa free Popcorn and Lemonade, it was unforgettable! Hahaha)

Good deal

Thank God coz I have a new travel bag. It's North Face, Big Shot model and I l0oove it!! I bought it from a good friend. Thanks kuya David, nice making business with you. Excellent ang customer service mo!! Sobrang good deal sakin 'to! If only you're a girl, niyakap na kita. So million thanks kuya David!! May ma-i-erase na naman ako sa checklist ko. Hehe

LEFT:

Front view

RIGHT:

Back view

(Photos from kuya David)

I'm all set...

Don't make promises that you can't keep. Like what I promised Joy, I'll be visiting her, well... I am now packed and my feet are now ready to step on Cebu! S0oo Joy and Cebu, here I come!!!

Joy with Magellan's cross

These are my simple joys. My ordinary happiness.

Proverbs 14:13- A glad heart makes a happy face, a broken heart crushes the spirit.

Have a happy heart people.

Loving someone

I was in fourth year high school. I've read the essay part in my English test paper.

“Loving someone: Holding on or letting go?”

As far as I can remember, I answered holding on and explained my reasons. As years passed by, I’ve learned that loving someone is letting go. Hard?? Deep?? Painful?? Yes!! But it’s one way of showing how much you love a person. I want to answer that essay question again and explain that for me, Love is about making someone happy. If you love someone, set him/her free. It’s never easy, but sometimes we just have to do it. It’s hard enough to hold onto things especially if you’re holding on to something that isn’t there, sorry but it makes no sense. I understand that there are memories that will never fade and memories that could never be replaced. But let’s do the right thing, instead of dwelling on the past, let’s live for the future. So LET GO…like the picture below…

I grabbed this very nice photo from a very good artist and friend Jay. He captured the moment very well. He even broke the glass after the shoot, hahaha. Well, I think that’s an excellent illustration of letting go. Kudos Jay Suasin!! Keep those creative shots coming!! Cheers!!

Last Song Syndrome

There's this song that keeps on playing over and over and over in my head. That Knorr commercial, I heard it again and the outcome, it's LSS. Hehe

"Makulay and buhay, makulay ang buhay sa sinabawang gulay." Hay, Sharleen, Nash and Aaron, they're s0oo cute. I can still picture them in my head singing the song with actions. I remember when we were kids, our grade school teachers keep on telling us to eat vegetables coz those 'gulays' are good for our bodies. Sabi nga nila, vegetables make us strong!!

I don't eat 'gulays' when I was a kid but today, they're my favorite. (People change talaga!) Now I have an appetite for gulays unlike before. I eat Ampalaya, Okra, any gulay basta masarap ang luto. Of course, I have a favorite among the favorites. It's none other than, Broccoli!! Kaya naman sobrang saya ko ng makakita ko ng sobrang daming Broccolis when I went to Baguio last month. And take note, they're Super Fresh!! I bought four bundles and brought it home. Come on, para kong bata na nagkekwento sa lola ko with matching actions and facial expressions how I saw Fresh Broccolis. Hehehe

Broccolissss

Ang babaw ba? Hehe, sadyang mababaw lang talaga kaligayahan ko.

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By the way, if you have little cousins who don't eat vegetables, I recommend you buy them a book. There's a lot of children's literature about gulays. I bought one in National bookstore entitled Si Joey at ang Gulay Gang for Php69 only last year. After giving the book and narrating the story to him, my little cousin JC eats vegetables! Medyo mapili pa rin pero lahat ng gulay characters na nasa book, he knows it.

What's your motivation?

I'm gonna tell you an inspiring story. My elementary classmate and my long time friend ever, Jianicka, who is currently working in Australia called me yesterday. Honestly, I really had a great time talking with her. One reason is I miss her s0oo much (O walang iyakan ah, peace!) and the other reason is I was inspired as she tells me the story of her dieting. Believe it or not, she lost 24 Kilos! It's not a joke okay, it's 24 Kilos!! Hirap nun!!

This friend of mine is very content and happy of who she is. Though she receives pressure from her family sometimes or from her friends (isa na ko dun, hehe) to lose weight for healthy reasons and for aesthetic purpose as well. She doesn't mind it. She's a great cook (I miss her pasta!) that's why she loves eating scrumptious meals, chocolates and just everything she likes. Hayy, we give Jianicka advice to slow down and have some diet coz she's getting bigger and bigger as time passes by. Her dad bought her expensive equipment to help her lose weight. It helped in a way but not much. She even tried medicines and herbal life. It also helped but again, not that much. Until she went to Australia and the rest is history.

I was talking to her with a smile on my face. I kept asking her, "ilang kilos ulit?" Then she answeed me with pride (I can feel it), "24 kilos." I laughed and congratulated her! She also said, "sabi nga ni mama, dito lang pala ko papayat." Hehehe

As we talked continously, I asked the things that she did. She said, "Natural way ako. Usually, heavy breakfast then light ang lunch and dinner. Madalas prutas tsaka umiinom ako ng tea, green tea." Jianicka is also into sports these days, she's playing Squash and at the same time experienced Scuba Diving. That's definitely a WOW for Joy!!

Again, I congratulated her for achieving her goal. She told me, "Monette, iba talaga may motivation." That statement of Jianicka was added to my learning memory bank. I must be that motivated enough in order to achieve a certain goal. Thanks Jianicka for that great learning.

Photo: Yours truly, Sarah, Jianicka with our inaanak, Sarah's offspring Aze.

I think this picture was taken two years ago.

Parang Marie France model lang ah. So far...lost 24 kilos!! Call 894-BODY. Hehehe

The Motivation. Ehem!!

Now that's inspiring. AHA-AHA!!

Globalization...

All right, all right. This is it! It's a small world after all. Hehehe

(Just read it somewhere)

Princess Diana, an English Princess with an Egyptian fiancé, crashed in a French tunnel while riding in a German car with a Dutch engine, driven by a Belgian who was drunk on a Scottish whisky, chased by Italian paparazzi on Japanese motorcycles, treated by an American doctor using Brazilian medicines. This was created by a Filipino on a Finnish phone smuggled from China by a Pakistani!

Joy's welcome and farewell party

Ang gulo! Welcome tapos Farewell?? Waahh!!

Well, Joy stayed for a week in Manila so she decided to have a welcome party, at the same time a Despedida. My sister is one of the "most kuripot" in town okay (Lagot ako!)...

We prepared, invited few friends and bonded 'til 12am.

Photo cake

I'm in charge of the cake. And I wanted it to be different! I searched online and found some creative and good cakes but most of them were s0ooo far. Baka pag-uwi ko sa bahay, tunaw na. Then I went to MOA, entered the Red Ribbon. Thank God coz they have a photo cake. That will do. I gave Joy's photo to the manager then he smiled. Hehe, he asked me, "anong message mo?" He gave me a paper and I wrote it down. I gave him back the paper then said, "aasarin ko lang po kapatid ko." He smiled again. Hehehe

It's time to open the cake...Si Joy??? Asar to the max!! She kept on saying, "ate, bakit yang picture na yan (million times) !!"

Goal accomplished for me...Bwahahaha

Pakipot pa...kunyari ayaw-ayaw pa, at the end, todo picture naman! Ay sos!

Before going to bed, I gave her a gift (with my dramatic message), her long time request. I wrapped it in a way she won't have any idea what's inside. She's clueless. And when she opened it, I saw her exaggerated smile. It's Running shoes!! No idea why she wanted it s0oo bad!

So far, we've enjoyed the night. Nakakamiss!!

Mixed Emotions

There's a lot of things that can happen in a day. Also, within a day, a person can feel different emotions. Hayyy, yesterday...I felt s0oo happy and s0oo ashamed.

Happy because I found the Schu factory outlet in Makati. My eyes went huge and my ears almost clapped when I saw the 50% discount. Imagine, it's 50%!! I found the design I really liked and buti na lang, "sakto sa paa ko."

Now the shameful part...I went to The Landmark after buying the shoes. If you're a Citibank Visa card holder, you know that they have a promo, it's ZERO interest for every P3000 worth of purchase. Honestly I don't want credit cards coz I hate debts especially if your just splurging it on your wants. I never had one even though I started working until my aunt gave me a card with my name on it, I'm her authorized user. It means, she's the one responsible for the any expenses I could make. Of course, I have to pay it to her since I am now working.

I never used the card, EVER! Until I accompanied Meng to Greenbelt to get her FREE Kenneth Cole wallet! Okay, you know the story, I got tempted! I used the card last month. Then July came, I used it twice already. When I was at the Landmark, I went to Works, a store for office attires. I loved their designs and I know if Joy is with me, she'll like it too. I went there and fitted almost 10 blouses, I told myself I'll just purchase one, then it became two, then three until it reached four.

The sales lady was very accomodating too. I got connected to her immediately. I loved their service! She accompanied me to the cashier when I told her that I'll buy the blouses. When we reached the cashier area, I told them I'll pay in card and handed my card. She tried it once, then twice, then thrice. Oh no, it's not working. I suggested, "Ms., E kung pag hiwa-hiwalayin mo kaya?" It's still not working. I told her, I've used the card twice then asked her to try again for the last time. Then she told me, "ma'am, pleas call the bank."

I have a cash in hand but it's not enough to purchase those four blouses. Hayyy buhay...I really felt s0oo ashamed. I saw the pregnant sales lady who was so kind to me and I pitied her. After almost an hour of assisting me at the fitting room, di siya bumenta sakin. Hayyy, naku! Wala kong magawa kundi mag sorry. I told her, I'll be back within the week to purchase it.

Wish ko lang sana nandun pa ung mga blouses since most of the blouses I really liked were "one stock only."

Again, Ms. Pregnant sales lady, you may probably not read this...again with all my heart, I'm sorry...

Sushi and Siblings

It's Joy's last night in Manila. What do you think we did? We bonded as long as we can. We often do that (sa bahay, sa kalye, kahit saan basta kumpleto kami at masaya. Hehe) but this time since Joy is missing and craving for sushi s0oo much, we ate at Sakae Sushi. I remember my Nihongo professor when I asked her "ma'am, what's the meaning of SAKAE?" She answered me, "PROSPERITY." Wow! That's a nice Japanese name!! Hehe,

Joy craving for sushi and hand-rolled Californian Maki

Joy is leaving for Cebu City. I promise her that one of these months, I'll visit her. Hehe, so bago kami magkahiwa-hiwalay, we ate, we talked, we laughed out loud, we ate again, we talked again and we laughed out loud again, paulit-ulit, paulit-ulit...

SUSHIing...

Ramen and sushi masaya na kami! We ate six different kinds of sushi, sobrang sarap! We're not that sushi fanatic but it's good to eat sushi from time to time especially if you're with your makukulit at super kwelang siblings.

Maguro Sushi

Ooohhh

Siblings

I'm thinking hard about the comparison of sushi and siblings. I can't think of any. The difference? SUSHI-paminsan-minsan lang, okay na ko. SIBLINGS-ayokong paminsan-minsan. I want to see them everyday. Imagine the agony I'm in right now. Huhuhu

My two bestest of friends in the world!! I'm forever grateful

with my funny sister Joy

with my feeling-model brother Marc, hahahaha

We know each other's secrets...

Truly, silver and gold have I none, but having Joy and Marc, I have the most precious treasures. O di ba sobrang blessed ako?? Hoo! Thank you Lord!!

Ikaw, anong greatest blessing mo?

THE BEAUTY OF A WOMAN

Author: Unknown

The beauty of a woman; is not in the clothes she wears,

The figure that she carries; or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman; must be seen from in her eyes,

because that is the doorway to her heart, The place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman; is not in a facial mole,

But true beauty in a woman; is reflected in her soul.

It is the caring that she lovingly gives, The passion that she shows,

And the beauty of a woman, With passing years-only grows!

I miss youth days

There's so much energy and vigor in young people's lives. They could go on and on without sleep. Believe me!! They could do "movie marathon" in one seating and attend classes the next day. They could burn the midnight oil and still have all the energy for the next day. Also they could do super-duper-toxic-stressful-school-stuff yet they have time for their church activities and can laugh at the coming days, without worries! There's one of the great lessons I've learned during my Youth days and it's summed up in one word. It's BALANCE.

There's school time (projects, requirements, deadlines, etc.), there's ministry time (leadership, servanthood, etc.), there's family time (mom, lola, little bro and sis)-usually the most ignored area in a busy young person but it's a No-No! and there's NO EXCUSE! And then there's other extra-curricular, whether in school, ministry, family or just with your friends.

I miss my Youth days so much! Last night I bonded with Meng, Coy, Rica, Mark and Ron. We watched a very hilarious film. it was a Kungfu night for us! Hehe, we watched Kungfu Panda. (Salamat sa libre Mark and congrats ulit! )There are great lessons packed for the whole family especially the kids. Yes, I laughed hard (if you're my friend you know how loud I laugh, hehe) but after all those funny scenes, I've thought about the great insights, the lessons that made me think deeper. I remember the great verse I've learned during my Youth days.

My Youth days (I forgot the year)

A lesson I've learned from my pastors and at the same time from God Himself. "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in SPEECH, in LIFE, in LOVE, in FAITH and in PURITY. (I Timothy 4:12)

Yes, we've memorize verses by heart but I hugged this verse during my Youth days and now I'm seeing the fruits of it. As the eldest, I teach my sister Joy and my brother Marc who are also in the ministry to be very careful in what they say, to be cautious in how they view and live life, to be truly sincere in loving God's people and to be right and pure in their thinking.

There's s0oo much things to learn as a young person that's why if you're still in your youth days. Enjoy it my friend. I just want to reiterate what Pastor Sumrall said, "Serve God and make good decisions based on God's word."

Hay...Sobrang miss ko na ang Youth! I miss the good old days. The days I've known God more, the days I've met wise and good friends, the days of dreaming BIG dreams and the days I've realized my purpose in this life.

If you're a young person reading this blog, maybe it's time for you to reflect. I just did.

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By the way, someone asked me, how old are you na ba? I answered I'm 22. Then I realized I'm still on my Youth days, hehe. But I am attending Professional's now and am surrounded with people greater and older than me. Well, I'm happy with my co-professionals, time for learning in a new way but I just missed the youth days.

The Professionals (September 2007)