Monday, January 30, 2012

Gratitude # 2


I rarely blog about my work but today, one of the customers I spoke to reminded me why I am great at what I do. She said to me that I truly cared for her plight and she said that I am suited for what I do. All throughout the day, I kept hearing compliments from my callers and it just felt so good.

For this, I am grateful.  I wished for an awesome day and I did get it. Thank you Lord.

Monday Affirmations # 14


It's Monday once again and we need to be reminded that it is a beautiful day. Let yourself love what you do or if not, find something to love about what you do be it a small thing or a big thing.

What makes your Monday beautiful?

Saturday, January 28, 2012

once I was ....

I used to be gangly. I was awkwardly tall with hips that did not fit my young body, and people kept saying I was pretty but fat. Yep, it was always, "oh you're so pretty but you need to lose weight." Honestly, I didn't care because I wasn't really that hung up on the way I looked. 

My Mom was asked if I could be part of the Flores de Mayo where I'd be one of the queen and some evil spirit possessed her and she said yes. The result? I was one of the grumpiest queens of the night. It's a surprise they took me in twice.

1993
1994
The one below is me dancing in a cotillion. I wore the same gown because I couldn't understand the need to buy a new one where I only wore this one once. They had my hair down to change the "look."  

This last photo is of me playing muse to a basketball team. I want to say that I remembered this moment with fondness but I didn't. It was sweaty, hot, and we walked under the blistering sun for 2 hours. Not my idea of fun.

1995
Still, now that I am much older ... I can say that I appreciate that my Mom coerced me to doing these things as I am able to look back on it with a tinge, yes just a tinge, of fondness and amusement. I'm going to be like those women on TV that says, "once, I was HOT!"

Hahahahahaha! There. I said it.

Friday, January 27, 2012

the funny man ...

I met him two weeks ago. This year, I told myself that I'd be choosier in agreeing to go out and he was actually date # 1 for 2012. He didn't know this.

So there I was, not really dressed up but wearing killer heels that I was loving simply because it was 6 inches and had heels that could kill a vampire heart and it didn't fail me the entire day. It was comfy and I could walk without falling flat on my face. I was rockin' it.


A few minutes after the time we agreed to meet, I was walking along Valero. I was feeling confident that it would be a great night when the world dropped and I saw the pavement coming fast and furious. BAM! I had fallen.

Yep ... the heels of my shoe failed me and I fell face first. It was a good thing that my face did not kiss the ground but my knee received the brunt of my entire weight. Huhuhuhu. I was teary eyed. Still, date was waiting and so I picked up myself and my pride and dusted off the pain and the dirt.

When I saw him, I wasn't initially impressed. He looked like Vic Sotto and I didn't really get his charm. However, he was a true gentleman because he did not get mad that I was late and he laughed off the absurdness of the situation when we were walking towards where he parked his car. You see, he parked it in the area where the road was not smooth but full of gravel and rocks that are the worst enemies of shoes like mine. What happened then was a scene worthy of a romantic comedy.

There we were, walking in Makati, him looking dapper and I trying hard to save my wounded pride by ensuring that I do not fall flat again and add more pain to my throbbing knee. The funny / embarrassing part was that while we were walking, I was holding on to his arms for dear life. Yes, I was "clinging" to him. No, to say clinging is an understatement. I was like a tarsier (imagine a giant one) holding on to a tree (he's the branch.)

To save face, I cracked jokes. I was so happy that my mind was running at 180m/hour at that moment. I told him he could actually update his facebook status and say that he was such a hottie that on the first date, I fell for him (referring to the incident of me falling flat on my face on my way to our date) even before I saw him or that he was such a charmer that within 5 minutes, he had me holding on to him for dear life. Thankfully, he laughed and that set the tone for our date.

Date happened at Johnny Chow.  We talked about our lives, our situations and got to know a bit more. I was nervous actually. For all my bravado on dates, I am almost always nervous when I'm with someone who is actually decent, smart, and funny which he was.

Afterwards, we went around looking for Serenitea. I informed him of my addiction to milk tea and he indulged me.



We hanged out and chatted some more. I asked him to take a photo of me and then I asked him if it was okay to take a photo of us. By this time, we'd been wreaking havoc to the other customers because we were just laughing out loud withe the crazy stories we were sharing. After taking this photo, all hell broke loose. Even he laughed out loud.


See? It's funny right? This was a semi candid shot and up to this day, 2 weeks later, I can't decide if its funny or scary. Hahahahaha.

Afterwards, he took me home. Yes, he's a gentleman. I liked that actually. Overall, this is one of the nicest dates I've had in a long time. No off moments, no "what was I thinking going out with this guy" moment, and definitely no "touch me and I'll kill you" moments.

Would I go out with him again? Yep. In fact, we had date # 2 already and yes, I had lots of fun as well. I can say  that I would like to get to know him more. Still, it is all and will always be God's will.

The girl who silenced the world for 5 minutes

If you don't know how to fix it, then please stopo breaking it.

This is one video that EVERYONE in the world should watch. We need to learn from her. We need to do our part.

I may be only one, but still I am one. I can't do everything but I can do something. On my end, what I do to help the world is ...

1. I try not to use plastic. If I can, I bring my eco bag or just carry what I bought.
2. I don't litter and I teach the people I knew not to litter as well.
3. I promote these kind of videos. Awareness is key.

She is right. We need to be able to say to our children that "It is okay. I am taking care of this. The world will be a better place."

Pamana


Last week, I got the chance to eat at Pamana. My date at Johnny Chow was free on the same day that I was and we ended up at Pamana in Tagaytay.

My brother has mentioned this to me a lot of times in the past and I have passed by it so when date and I were deciding as to where we would spend time, I immediately thought of Pamana. After all, its in Tagaytay and Tagaytay is lovely and cool at this time of the year.

We  both haven't been to Pamana so it was a great surprise to be greeted by these when we entered the place.


After the resident photo shoot, date and I sat down and proceeded to order. Unlike with Johnny Chow, it did not take long for us to order at Pamana. This is what we ordered. 


This is actually our dessert. I wanted to try it because it was different. Its a good thing date indulged me. It was an assortment of Filipino delicacies which you can dip in chocolate. The puto did not go well but the espasol (2nd item) and suman (4th item) were a perfect pairing to the chocolate.


I loved their karekare. I have been trying to stay away from rice for quite some time but their karekare was so good that I had two cups of rice. Darn! It was that good. I liked the sauce and how it wasn't too "peanuty" nor was it too much of anything. To me, it was just right. 

The bagnet on the other hand was just okay. The taste was good but my jaw had a bit of an exercise because you need to chew extra hard to bring it down. Sigh. 

Overall, I'd still recommend Pamana and I'd still want to go back. There were too many things on the menu that I still wanted to try and it would be such a waste not to be able to have a bite again.

Thanks date for this opportunity to eat at Pamana.

PS: Budget per head I'd say would be Php500 if you're not PG. :)

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Johnny Chow

A couple of weeks ago, I had the chance to eat at Johnny Chow at Resorts World. It caught my attention because of the bright signage. Yes, I am that easy to persuade. You have colorful stuff, I'm in.


I didn't have any expectations on the food. My mind was too busy taking in the interiors and marveling at how good the mashup of colors were.




After I was done taking photos and basking in the warm colors, I proceeded to order. It was a good thing my date for the night was patient because it took me time to decide. There were so many choices and short of ordering food good for 8 people where there were only 2 of us, I had to ponder on what I really wanted. In the end, we ordered these:


The chicken dumpling was not that tasty in my opinion. The sauce was a bit of an overkill but the grape balanced the taste. It was cooked just right and I had fun eating it but I wouldn't order it again given the chance. 

Now this was very interesting to the taste. The crispiness of the veggies, coupled with the sauce and shrimp was just perfect. If I was with a friend instead of a date, I would have taken the entire platter and eaten each and every single one. Of course, since I was on a date and I did not want him to leave me stranded at Resorts World, I shared.


This is birthday noodles that we had as main course and this one, passed my taste buds. It was right, it was not soggy, and I missed eating it so I may be biased here. Haha.


Overall, I liked Johnny Chow and I think its worth a second shot.

Gratitude # 1


For some reason, I thought of doing a gratitude post. I thought of this earlier while I was at work. It was a random thought that passed by and now, I finally know why I thought of it and remembered it hours later.

My mind is currently running on empty and even though I have been pondering what I wanted to blog, I couldn't think of one. Mind you, I have a lot of things to blog ... I just can't make a coherent thought right now.

So for now, I will list the things that I am grateful for ...

1. I am grateful for my work.
2. I am grateful for my boss (its a good thing he doesn't read this or I will never hear the end of it, haha!)
3. I am grateful for my family who keeps me grounded
4. I am grateful for my friends who are always there when needed.
5. I am grateful for my son. You are my reason for persevering.
6. Milk tea! I heart it.


What are you grateful for?

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

portraitures of me



A friend of mine took this shot. I loved it. Simple, yet classy. What do you think it says about me?

remember ....


just add a little faith ...
just add a little prayer ...
and lots of hard work. :)

Saturday, January 21, 2012

coloring time ...

I got B a coloring book yesterday. I got him the crayons today. Here's the end result.




These are the moments that make up for the small heartbreaks that I experience still from time to time. I hope that one day B, you will treasure these moments just as much and you won't hate me for not having a Dad.

and B asked ...

"Mommy, why don't I have a Daddy? Why is my Daddy bad?"

I was expecting these questions to be asked. I even had ready made answers. I knew it was bound to happen. I knew it would happen. I knew because my son is smart. I just didn't expect it to happen tonight. I didn't expect it to happen while I was bleeding out a small wound he got from the bathroom. I certainly wasn't expecting it to just come out out of the blue.

I froze. I literally froze. I felt the tears coming and it took every ounce of willpower I had not to bawl my eyes out. It was unfair. It was so unfair.

I was a good partner. I did my part. I did what I had to do to make sure all needs were met. I didn't even have a social life back then. I was faithful, to a fault. I wasn't a nagger and I let him go out and do not pester him when he's with friends. I was understanding and forgiving. I was one hell of a great partner.

B should have a Dad. Instead, I had to leave because staying meant raising him in a hostile environment. I had to leave because he was also being hurt by his Dad already.I had to leave because if I don't, I might have ended 6 feet under the ground.

I had to leave; and as a result, B doesn't have a Dad.

But how do I explain that to a 6 year old child? Tell me, I don't know how.

PS: I just hugged B and apologized. Then I told him that I will be Mommy and Daddy and I hope that its enough.

dating your kids ...

I recently had a conversation with a Dad who had a son and a daughter. He told me that he would always allot his weekends with his kids and they bond pretty well. This was good, hearing something like this from a Dad. However, I asked him, "do you go on one on one dates with them?" He gave me a blank look.

Guess the answer's no.

I then started to ramble about why he should have one on one dates with his kids since they are of the opposite sex and the kids will benefit greatly from it. Happy kids = happy Daddy. Unhappy kids = receding hairline for Daddy. Besides, a one on one date once a month can't be all that time consuming.

One day later, I realized that I mouthed off on why he should do this (and yes, he agreed) but realized that since I posted Date # 4 with B, there were also other blogger parents who have asked me where they can take out their kids when they go on a date. Due to insistent demand (insistent daw o?) I am posting a few suggestions here to hopefully help out the Moms and most especially the Dads.

If you are bonding with your daughter, you can go to the following:
  • coffee shop - - as a start, you want to find out what she likes, what she prefers ... a coffee shop is a pretty safe place because they would have those caffeine free drinks as well as pastries 
  • movie house - - yes, it has to be something she likes and you have to pay for the popcorn 
  • arts and crafts store - - if your daughter is into this, there are a lot of kiosks in the mall that allows you to do artwork together 
  • art galleries and museums - - she learns something new, and you enrich her life by teaching her to love the arts
  • shopping ... best way to bond whether it be clothes or gadgets 
If you are bonding with your son, you can go to the following:
  • laser extreme - - no, I'm not talking about the laser for the eye or figure enhancement ... I am referring to laser extreme where you can play hide and seek but with flashing lights and music 
  • paintball and airsoft - - need I say more? 
  • basketball - - the all time father- son bonding 
  • anime conventions / comic conventions - - if he's into these kinda of things, this is the perfect bonding place 
  • photowalks 
So, there you go. You could of course use the suggestion for boys to go on dates with your little girls and vice versa. It really depends on the personality of your kid but whatever their personality is, I'm pretty sure that they will appreciate the one on one dates you will plan with them.

I know B does.

swimming and shopping

I took B and K out to our clubhouse today for some needed swimming time. They have been doing very well in school and have become a tad bit sluggish recently so I thought a dip in the pool just might help them become more active. I promised to take them at least 2x a month if not weekly.

They were ecstatic.





Afterwards, I went with the twins to do some shopping. We ended up at SM but had to eat first because we were all hungry. We had lunch at Shakeys and proceeded to eat. After, we bought pants from Bench for Karl and pants from People are People for Kirk.




They were happy. My wallet was very sad. Haha.

Overall, it was a pretty tiring but good Saturday morning and afternoon for me. I bonded with my siblings and my son and that's how I like my weekends spent.

Friday, January 20, 2012

31 Things Project: Date # 4

B and I went out yesterday. He badly needed a haircut and I took it as an opportunity for us to have some alone time together. Dates # 1 - 3 were all spent with other people and I thought that it would be best to have date # 4 with just the two of us.

We got lucky that we ended up at this new barber shop in our neighborhood. I loved Hairmasters and the concept of their shop. B enjoyed it too.


I'll do another post about the place. After the haircut, we went to Vanilla Cafe which was a few steps away from the barber shop.


We ordered Choco Banana Shake, hazelnut cafe, and walnut banana muffin. Out of the 3 items we had, only the walnut was a hit. The Choco Banana Shake was thin and watery. The Hazelnut coffee tasted really bitter even with 8 spoonfuls of sugar. It was that bad. However, the walnut banana muffin was delicious.


B and I spent time together by talking about his school and his programs. We looked at magazines and eventually, he got bored of talking to me. He chose this. Yes, can you see what he's holding?


After about 30 minutes, we decided that we'd wrap things up. He wanted to go home because he wanted to sleep. LOL. I was that boring a date I guess. Hahahaha.

Alamat 2012

I was lucky enough to have been chosen as one of the bloggers to watch Alamat, a stage play that was being done by students of University of Makati. I had some expectations about it because I saw that they have been restaging the play quite a few times but what I watched was beyond what I expected.

the only cover I could find of the show
My sister and I were 3-5 minutes late but luckily, our considerate and very charming contact reserved seats for us. Upon entering the Grand Theatre of University of Makati I was stunned with the set design of the stage. It was filled with colors and for a minute, I felt like I was in an episode of Twilight Zone where one minute you're in your reality and the next, you're in another realm.

The play looked promising right there and then.

The first few minutes was audio overload because the music and the mic of the actors were tyring to upstage each other. Luckily, this only lasted for one scene. On the next one, the sound director must have figured out he did something wrong and fixed it. From that point on, it was smooth sailing.

The actors were in character most of the time; they easily caught themselves when they missed or fumbled a line, and the execution of their scenes were truly believable. As with any play, some characters stood out more than others but what truly stood out for me with this play was the costumes.

I love how detailed they were with the costumes they had. The headpieces, the hand and leg adornment, the shawls ... were all simply amazing. It complemented the movements, the choreography, even the background set. The "curtains" they had on set shimmered at the right time and the effect of the falling leaves during the parting scene of the lovers tugged at the heart.

They had a very small stage and yet, they managed to maximize it. They had college students for actors and yet  they managed to make theater actors out of them. They didn't have a full house yet they way they performed was worthy of a standing ovation.

This is ART in its purest form; a bunch of people doing what they love and executing their craft simply because it is their passion. This is ART. This is ALAMAT.

with fellow bloggers
H of http://www.everydaydoll.com/
 John of http://kantolife.blogspot.com 

with my sister
the lovers
I look forward to watching more plays from the company that staged this, AGHAM Theater Company. For now, KUDOS on a job well done. I was blown away and I will definitely recommend this should there be another restaging.

To know more about AGHAM Theater Company, you can visit the following links:

Thursday, January 19, 2012

tug-o-tea

Every time I have work, I have to pass by you. I refuse to see you. You are no good for me. You destroy my plans and add layers to me. I try to stay away and sometimes I am successful. However, your call is stronger and I find myself giving in.

I let you in ... once, twice, at times even three times a day. I just have to have you. I can't seem to say no. With others, I have a strong willpower but when it comes to you, I just fail.

You are too addicting.


Sigh. I can never let you go Tea Farm. Why oh why?

- lamentations of my wallet and body :)

and the winners ARE ....

Do you remember the 6th anniversary blog contest I held last January 1 to celebrate 6 years of AWESOME (feeling ko lang) blogging? Well, its over now and I just drew the winnerS.

Yes, I said winners because I am so happy that instead of just one person winning, I am also including 4 consolation prizes (SURPRISE!) to 4 lucky AWESOME people. I say awesome because I was so overwhelmed that there were 64 people who took pity in my little contest and joined.

* I was very worried that my prizes were pathetic and no one would join but I was wrong. You guys rock!

And so, without further ado, here are the winners. I am starting off with the consolation prizes first. Now, you're probably wondering, "so what's the consolation prize?"

So here are the prizes and of course, you have every right to throw milk teas at me if you do not like it but I really hope you do. As we know, I try to stay positive amidst all of life's trials and I would like to share these positivity with you so I am giving away 4 framed positive quotes. Here they are below.





They are about about 5R in sizes but they shall be framed and ready to be put on display on your desk, wall, or room. It is just my way of reminding you that life is indeed kulayful and through the ups and downs of life, we need to remain positive and believe that good things are coming for us.


  1. Vivian Aguilar 
  2. Aida Villanueva
  3. Crystal Marie Canete
  4. Divine Caraedcle
Congratulations everyone! I hope you will like it and come to appreciate it. I will be sending an email to all of you later so that we can talk as to how you will claim your prizes. My dream is for all of us to meet and have milk tea. My treat. It would make for such a good blog entry and I always love meeting bloggers.


And now, for the winner of the MAJOR LOOT BAG ....

Joseph Paulo de Leon

Congratulations Sir! I shall email you as well so that we can discuss how you will claim your prize (1 demi set of Singapore mugs from Starbucks, 3 notebooks, 1 cube pad, 3 boxes of VIA coffee, and GC's from Starbucks and a date with me. Haha.) I am also hoping to have a meet up to hand it over. Milk tea, my treat as well.

With this, I close my first ever blog contest. Don't worry though. For those who joined, keep tabs and keep following me because I will be holding more contests. Promise! :)

I am actually cooking up February's contest already. So don't unfollow me or unlike my page. I have really good memory. Haha.

Again, thank you to everyone who joined from the bottom of my kulayful heart. :) MWAH!

PS. I had a mini contest in my facebook page, Life is Kulayful last Sunday and 3 people joined. Haha. They all win a pack of colorful postcards. To claim, please email me at kayinanutshell at gmail dot com.
  1. Theresa Montino
  2. Momee Gee
  3. Jay Rada Rafol 
Thank you again to everyone! :) Visit my page from time to time since I hold mini contests at random. :)