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Dec 29, 2014

You can't stop the waves...

But you can learn to crochet
Please like my nanay's crochet page http://facebook. com/pages/Crafty-Nanay/802152876521349

Karla of Damgo, the dreamcatcher fairy https://www.facebook.com/pages/Damgo/264098157124160, has been talking about crafting. I'm not into it. What i envisioned of "craft" are moms who are endlessly planning of the look and feel of their kids' birthday parties, and there's no way i look that part.

Anyhoo, karla's been carrying threads and needles/hooks with her. And i'm reminded me of my nanay/mother's crocheting back when i was younger. I have tops, dresses, and whatnots crocheted by her, which i never really put much attention back then because it was not unusual. My nanay crochets, our neighbor crochets, my aunt crochets, everybody does it - there was nothing so "pinteresty" about it. It's probably like the "facebook" back then. 

My nanay had a stroke 10 years ago which had her right part of her body underwent paralysis. Though she can move around well but her right part is not how it was before. 

So i was hesitant of asking her about crocheting again, but she's game. We're just waiting for the hook and some yarns from gantsilyoguru.com because there was just not much crochet supplies in consolacion, cebu. And, with holidays, i'm not yet in the mood to go to
Colon or bigger malls. :)

I'm excited because i already have pinned a lot of crochet items which i'll be asking her to do. And, meg seems to be interested too - from crocheting loombands to yarns. Yay!

Dec 28, 2014

The Comeback

After shopping for crochet hooks for my mother's crafting and yoga mats to make it to @PsstBuyNow box, i made dinner. Eeeewwww! That does not sound like me. Eeewww! 

But as a proof that i can be obsessive once i set my mind on doing it, here's my comeback to the culinary world:

I think that looked like a pesto overload on the dishes just because i got my hands on the food chopper. So it's not food processor, but a food chopper. 

(Youtubed it before i figured out how to use it again.)

So next will probably be a homemade ham for new year! 



Picking up old pieces: food processor

I found this food processor (moulinex) dumped together with unused items in the cupboard. I think this was the last kitchen "gear" i bought before i got so busy and heavily involved in aktib.

Food processor is used for "blending" veggies or fruits but you don't want to add water which the blender will require. Whatever. :) Or in short, it's the electronic version of mortar and pestle.
The most use i had of it was grinding onions for kebabs, stuff added to the yoghurt sauce (forgot the name), cutting tomato for pasta sauce, homemade butter, for mashing bananas for banana bread.

The past days/weeks had been quite hard/challenging - transitioning from one focus to another. The one thing embedded to me by aktib is becoming that "business-minded / entrepreneur" person whom it's totally not me before. So it was hard because i wanted to pursue yet another "money-involving" activities, and i just have to stop it, scratch it off from my system. I was trying to shake the feeling off because "priorities," and that i should stop bleeding the husband for money which i'm not sure i could get back -- it's already stupid to charge it as "learning cost."

So i plan of picking on the last activity i got busy before focusing on aktib. I was planting herbs and alugbati, trying to do "healthy" food, researching on organic stuff like frequenting Healthy Options store, making pita breads -- things i usually cringe on. :) But it actually started from a big scary necessity, which was slicing my mother for a major operAtion or trying the "food is medicine" route. So anyway, i ended up in "food" because i thought it's more affordable, but honestly it's so tedious that a medical surgery can be more cheaper. But i'm really more thnakful that i pick "food." 

So now that i have nothing in my hands, i'm picking up food again. This is not an easy decision because i seriously hate / loathe cooking! But i did enjoy it a lot back then, i hope to find the grove the soonest back again. 

And i promise not to be so preachy about it!

Dec 24, 2014

unGift giving

Mati: unsa ugma nga "pasti"? (Pasti means "pista" as fiesta.)
Me: Dili pista ugma. Pasko ugma.
Mati: So unsa na sya, naa ko toy or wala toy?
Me: Pasko is Jesus' birthday. Kinsa man tagaan og gift kon mag birthday?
Mati: Hahay. Wa ko toy. Dugay pa pasti.

"Pista" is when usually the time he can see vendors lining the street selling toys. So that's why he associates pista with him getting a toy. We have this rule that they can get toys surely from us on their birthday and "pasti." Hopefully, less toys balances the carbon footprint from the gadgets in this home.

So actually it's a Mark thing. Mark's scrooge-ness seems to rub off on the whole family. Somehow, him not being big on gift-giving just became the norm in this house.

But on the other side, i like to believe that we give / contribute to others not on Christmas or special occasions, but on a more frequent basis as needed. I mean i'd like to believe that "giving" must be a part of our daily existence, not just on special occasions.

Owkei, so there i'm just giving justification to our "cold" treatment on gifts on Christmas.


Thank you very mushroom!

Meg: ngano picture-an man jud na ni mama ang pagkaon?
Mark: I agree. 
Me: I just want to thank @marrihliesse for these yummy mushrooms straight from the foot of Mt. Fuji or some mountain in Japan! :) 

(Mushrooms not much visible coz they're all gobbled up.)

Dec 21, 2014

Therefore i conclude...

nothing comes easy.

I have been doing nothing since last wednesday after i canceled runnilla. And having a "productive paranoia," it's making it hard for me to enjoy the moment of doing nothing. So yes, doing nothing still seems hardwork. 

Then to make it feel worse, a friend proposed that we should go on a trip together. She said she will save for it. And, it kind of hit me that wtf, i have no means to save. I am seriously on the unemployment rate of this country. If i ever was able to "travel," it's because mark needed an "alalay" with him. And if he does not need one, i am not traveling any where. I have no say / command on when and where i can travel. It's not that i'm really big of a travel fan. But it still says how I'm so "erbof!" 

Of course, you would say i'm better off compared to others. And i'm thankful for that.

So it gets me to the next point: what should i do next? Should i get employed or do part-time stuff employment? Or should i go on another "entrepreneurial" experiment. Either way, it's not going to be easy.

So doing nothing is not easy. Startig a business is not easy. And getting employed is noy easy too. Therefore, nothing comes easy.

Well whining seems easy! :)

Dec 18, 2014

So why?!?

I canceled Runnilla 2015. I just had to make the hard call.

There were to-do items for the event that i scheduled to be done this week. And looking at it, there's just no way i can finish them this week. Bringing them over to next year, i'm going to be in such a juggle hustle that i will be really spreading my self so thin (hopefully, "thin" will also apply literally.) 

The previous night, i was rummaging thru my purse when i saw my mother's doctor's order. It was to get my mother's medical record in PSH, which i have been missing to do for a month already. So it kind of remind me of all those personal things/ family matters that i missed to do because of a very "busy" year of promoting fun runs. And then there's the kids' exams, and then mati's still lagging behind his reading skill, the Christmas week which  we don't really prepare for but nevertheless i feel the pinch of totally missing it, and all little details that have to take a back seat because of all the fun runs / racing events i'm helping with.

I guess i'm really bad at managing time, or delegating task which i dunno to whom should i delegate them to. I guess i'm just not really fit to organize races. 

To which i'm reminded that i miss running, i miss writing without selling or promoting any thing but just the story.

I do really feel bad about it because it was not just the race that i gave up. I gave up also on the dream of being able to put Cebu as an outdoor/trail adventure destination, of promoting that "mainstream" kind of outdoor community. But at the end of the day, there's probably another way of doing it.

So for now, i'll stuff my "misery" with junkfood while Mark celebrates that i'm finally over with my frenzy.

Dec 15, 2014

Back to back farties

Christmas parties with carebears. I'm really old or maybe jaded because I no longer loon forward to parties. Bug funny because i ended up attending 2 parties after one another

Saturday 

Among the 3 kids, only this boy tagged along with us to the party at Harm's resort-like house. :) he's very excited! :)
The carebears party without games is not carebears party. Our team lost!
Applying to be Ukelele Cebu's singer, or more of clown.

Sunday

At Maribago beach. We arrived to an empty party. Oh typical carebear's party again.
There were probably other 6 parties too. It was fun looking at this company's party presentationa. 
Resort was jampacked. Kids here lining for the shower.
Coffee
And off we went to Crosta Pizza after...




Meg's 1st

communion :)
And she showed me their bulletin board. :) Yay! #8



Dec 13, 2014

#obligatory #December #Parties

I think i'm becoming a grumpy old girl. Anyhoo, tomorrow or later:

* Buy gifts for the manito-manita 
* meg's 1st communion
* CS Christmas party

Then, sunday will be in Maribago for additional CS party or something like that! And, hopefully, we can drop by at Mercado Central for Crosta Pizza!!!

Dec 12, 2014

Was it not just #yesterday?

I It's the last stretch of the year, and I feel crying because my crazy days will not end until February, or maybe March.

#yesterday. I got an invite to join ARC running club's Christmas party with Lahug SPED school.
With the SPED teachers of Lahug Elementary School.
Then went straight to Minglanilla to present Runnilla to the beneficiary barangay Cadulawan.

How crazy fast this year was. I feel like it was just yesterday when i promoted Runnilla, and now i'm back at promoting it again. 

And, you think it's going to be easy the next time? No. As they, it does not get easier, you only get stronger. In this case, it does not get easier, i learned a lot from the experiences that i have now more things to do based on those learnings.



Dec 10, 2014

#headstand

Meg and I were in a yoga class with a substitute teacher. Then we got into this headstand pose part.

Other yoga teachers, that i'm familiar w/, know that i don't do headstand. I keep telling them that headstand is my 2020 goal. And so they would not mind me with headstand.

So anyhoo, this new teacher came to me to assist me, and i told her that i'd just pass. Then she asked how many yoga sessions I had attended. And, it made me realized that it's been some time ago already that i started yoga. I started yoga to prepare for my 1st AWUM, all-women ultra. So it was like almost 3 years ago.

Then i felt lame. @.@ Because i realized that some of my "class mates" when i started are already yoga teachers, and vegan convert. While, i'm still struggling doing a decent downward dog. @.@

On the other thought, it's meg's 3rd session. :) And I'm kind of oblige to do this headstand just to show to Meg that her mother is not that lame. @.@

Dec 1, 2014

Tinker- Bells

I'm always excited about apps.

Today, i took some time bothering some people at thetidecebu.com, a haven of web apps factory in cebu. :) But i dunno if it's either i'm excited to use some of the web apps there or i'm desperate to find ways of getting registrations for runnilla.com.

So i got an android device from http://www.pomelo-llc.com, which i need for the SMS system from engagespark.
And, i got access to our mlepay.com account.

So it's going to be SMS + money transfer, let's see how i can make this work @.@

Nov 30, 2014

Of Coffee Beans & BPO

70 beans = 1 cup of coffee. According to one of the coffee documentary films i watched this weekend inspired by "coffee appreciation" talk of paolo. (Movies were "the story of coffee" and "connected by coffee")

One of the baristas narrated in the film that the cup of coffee in our hands undergoes 3 stages: the farmers, the roasters (if i remember it right), and the barista/coffeemaker. And, most of the time including me, we only get to see the 3rd stage, which all looks so romantic.

So it was kind of weird to see the "first stage" in the film -- farmers toiling the farms, manually handpicking each of the beans / cleaning up / carrying sacks of beans on their back, while (in contrast) i whine about life over a cup of coffee in some well-lit airconditioned romantically set-up cafe. 

The documentaries made me feel guilty on one side - imagine the hardwork of farmers and roasters for that just 1 cup of coffee. but on the other side, the farmers are also very thankful of the coffee drinkers because they put food on their table. so i guess in the end, all is fair.

I guess the one point i learned from the films was that those "expensive beans" from specialty shops are somehow worth the price because they pay the farmers better. So if you can swallow paying a steeper price for those beans with "fair trade" on their packaging or those specialty shops known for being fair to the farmers, go for it.

But one of the scenes that tugged my heart was when this "Americans" (fair trade) buyers made and served coffee to the farmers, and told them how their beans make delicious coffee. It's heartwarming to see a glimmer of pride on the farmer's face.

How an appreciation directly received from the "consumer" can make a difference -- from being a mere source of income or a provider of beans to having that sense of pride that the beans you work hard for have made someone's day beautiful. 

And, looking at it, being a BPO country, we're not different from the coffee growers servicing the high-end coffee shops of different countries of which the farmers probably cannot go. 

My point is sometimes there's always that "lacking feeling" when you do a job for the sake of getting paid, which can just be filled up easily with seeing the sarisfaction from your "customers" face. 

And, i hope that my happinness in my "mug shots" will reach the coffee growers. :)


Nov 26, 2014

#Notebook

If Meg has a thing for books, migi has a thing for notebooks. Every now and then, he would request for a notebook.

So what's inside his notebooks. Mark don't want me to touch them because he said they're very private stuff for migi. Anyhoo, the girl in me cannot resist.
***
Those littany of "computer/video games is bad" is kinda true. Because it can lead to poor spelling skills. Well, at least he got the "terraria" part right.
Gawd, how i always try to avoid that "computer is bad" conversation because i'm very guilty of it. But as they say "kung ano pinakain sa mga anak, sya din ang bunga." This family feeds on software, what can i do? @.@

A whole notebook was filled with this "gibberish." I mean gibberish, but it probably means a lot to Migi.

#notebook



Nov 25, 2014

Edna Kahlo, the life of

I got a new haircut, boy-cut as usual.

As i posted in my facebook, mark's first comment when he saw my new hair was that I look like Edna. Edna is our neighbor, from outside the subdivision, who peddles items and services inside the subdivision. A neighbor actuAlly pointed out in my fb's comment that she also sells "budbud."

But Mark knows her mainly as "masiao dealer." Masiao is a cheaper version and more personalized lotto. 

And it got me thinking, how i'm not too different from her. She sells "masiao," I sell fun run. But she probably has a more interesting life.

See, before she targets every guard and carpenter / panday in the subdivision, she's known to be a "widow-maker." She burried 3 husbands already being left with 6 kids from different fathers.

And she's popular because almost all the guards and pandays became her lover (exaggeration maybe). But her latest lover was a panday in one of the houses inside the subdivision who underwent some renovation.

And, i truly wish that he is her true love that will last for a long time. She sometimes "tambay" at home with the "ate's" and somehow i saw her thru "kilig" and heartbroken moments; and, because raising 6 kids on her own, she deserves a good man beside her.

Love. Sex. Companionship. Hair. I are all no different from Edna. 
 




Alone

I'm alone naturally. 

There are things that Mark will explain them to me like I don't know about them. And, I would feel being insulted because how dare he talk to me like I don't think about "deep" stuff. But then I cannot totally blame him because I don't really talk about what i'm thinking.

There are moments that I cannot understand why people i've been with for a long time don't get how i want things to be done. And, then i would again realize is that because i don't really talk. 

And, funny because i always think that i'm very talkative.

Nov 23, 2014

Foodstamping #weekend

On a few times, i get a comment from "new" friends that they're surprised that i already have 3 kids because they said they don't see photos of my kids on facebook. While "old" friends from "multiply days" would tell me why i'm no longer posting photos of my kids on facebook. Because i posted every single day of my kids' life in multiply from their first bath, nail cutter, haircut, solid food, etc. I probably run out of firsts of my kids to post, that's why.

I don't think i stopped posting. They just don't know where i posted it, or plainly i'm not stalkable for them. Or they have more interesting stuff on their feeds than my posts.

So here's a photo of them this weekend. We went to maribago blue water on foodstamp.
And here are photos of foods.
And photo of the sold-out beach. All those "recliner seats" were taken. A lot are probably foodstamping too. 




Nov 22, 2014

When September ended

I woke up.

We lose big time in the last event but If there's any consolation from it was that we're able to pay other people a decent amount of money. It was not huge money, but it was decent (in my standards). We could have earned by slashing down a lot on the manpower's rate but we felt it was not worth cutting down on.

And i guess for that, we did something good. Of course, on top of having a relatively successful "fun run."

Funny things i fight for. 

Nov 20, 2014

i whine therefore i am

After 3 weeks of getting "busy" in Lapu-lapu, which I felt that I was also busy weeks before that and weeks before that, I'm feeling blah. A few tasks were left behind in the past weeks, and I need to catch up on them but my mind is just so hard to jumpstart. It just refused to do any thing.

Anyhoo, yesterday was the last meeting of the Lapu-lapu project, which was actually of going thru profit and loss. And, it was "loss" written all over the board.

I was thinking of skipping the "meeting" yesterday because "mood swings." But I'm so happy to own to it, and face it because "closure."

So any way, too many lessons there. I'm just happy I went thru it. Having survived that, I think I can go thru all sorts of hell in selling all kind of aphrodisiacs. But but but, of course, I'm no longer ignorant to be willingly go thru yet another kind of those.

That 12K event definitely did make a good spanking of wake-up call to me.

Dakong pasalamat ani nga bana who just went along with my "impractical" tasks.

Nov 16, 2014

Bask in glitters

There's so much feeling of "unfairness" inside of me now, but there's no point of wallowing in it. There was victory, but it feels so empty and devoid.

But I'd rather bask in sunshine and rainbow glitters! :)

I have friends. Period. Despite being that distant kind of person, i'm so happy that there are a lot of people who came to my side and back to help out. I guess that's why carrying that difficult event was somehow not that bad because there are people who do  truly wish me well.

And, there may be a few unfair people but i find more kind people. I'm so thankful for receiving a lot of help from people i don't know. Even if they were all last minute requests, they were nice to accommodate me.


How can i ever be BV with these? :)




Nov 12, 2014

A day in a life of a fun run promo girl

Hound on friends to secure a place for a registration booth! Thanks to @thirdteamph's the F.

Contract signing to secure a booth place.
Check on other booth. Thanks PTT oil station.
Set-up booth.
Fill in another's booth because someone can't make it.
Think "can we pull this off?!?" a million times, and wishing even one of the flyers will seAl a deal.
Making appearance at brand supporters :)
Trying to appear everything is going great in front of the "client." :)
Last x days, thank you, Lord!!!




Nov 9, 2014

Why do you run? Because real life is not hard enough.

According to paolo g lim. 

Now why do you organize a fun run? Because stupid is stupid does. 

Since January this year, every month, there is a fun run / event to promote. 

And, just when 2014 is about to end, i ended up with the hardest fun run to handle. Just when i thought, i figured it all out. It's a long story but this is probably the "fun" run that i became sleepless with anxiousness. Sleepless of doing endless tasks is different from being sleepless because of anxiety / panic.

Anyway, i'll put up another post about the drama of this. But one thing for certain though, i learned a lot! Horribly a lot! Thus, i'm still very thankful anyhow!

The funny thing though that after this hard problem, the next will be harder! @.@


Wooshaaa! Lez do this!

Nov 2, 2014

Beach Essentials

I hate marketing. Being a psych student, i  have an eeny weeny idea of how mental manipulation is done on it, deception, etc.

But from time to time, i would find myself doing marketing-related works, unconsciously or not. I guess it comes with my habit of writing. Writing is probably the easiest form of marketing. 

But this "marketing" thing gets more emphasize lately with my current "job" as fun run promoter. Either i'm doing good about it or there's just no other person doing it that i could feel the demand from others for me to do it. 

So lately, i'm thinking over and over if i should put up a marketing business. I already have a name for it - Colon Street Marketing - and bought the domain name colonstreet.com. 

No question that i can do it. But i have a preview already of what "marketing" is about, and i'm not really sure if i'm willing to be under the pressure. It does not help that there's no great financial motivation for me to do it (i'm being "hambug" at that but it's just my reality. I can flop a project, and i'll just be fine at the expense of a client.)

And most of all, i'm still not ready of creating marketing copies like "Beach Essentials."

As much as how you want to make your marketing approach as "intellectual," the "make you feel like hollywood celebrity" still sells best.

Backpack and Cats

Mark shared his albumful of photos of the bohol-camiguin-cdo trip. And, i think this is my most favorite! :) it somehow summarized my feelings of the experience. 

Having dinner, while waiting for Trans-Asia - our boat to CDO, at Tagbilaran port, Bohol. 

***
sidenote: Compared to airports, why are boat ports usually keep like it should be avoided?!? Though, that Cebu port for Bohol trips is doing a good job.

Nov 1, 2014

Maribago Sumilon Island Resort on a Food Stamp (Indulgence Card)

Mark got this maribago "indulgence card," which is discount card in simpler terms. It has this card with a booklet full of discount coupons, which looks like "food stamps" according to mark, on all sorts of their services -- spa, food, transpo service, and other things the product manager can think of throwing into it. :)

So finally, we got to use it. It's accepted in all maribago resorts i think. So we went to Sumilon as mark thought driving 4hours to the destination can make the trip more worthy.
It was our 2nd time but the kids can no longer remember the first time, even i only had a vague memory of the place. All i can remember was that we had too many babies. Mati was still small so all i can remember was carrying him from the ride to and from the city, carrying him all over the island. So it was not really such a pleasant experience. 

***
Is it the parent's obligation to get their kids to travel or not? It's one of the things lurking in my mind. I don't remember "traveling" when i was a kid except for going to cities, and some random being tagged by relatives in their travels. My point is that i did not travel when i was a kid but i don't feel "deprived." So yeah, i guess, it's kids' obligation? :) Thinking about this because i feel guilty when mark and i go to trips without the kids.
***

They're now bigger, and can certainly carry their bodies all over the island. And, though i kinda have this unfavorable feeling towards this kind of resort because it's too made-up with a lot of staff at your beck and call and zee lifestyle magazine all over the place giving you clues on how to be rich and fabulous... 

Anyway, this time i get to appreciate the place as a perfect place for kids. I mean it's "sanitized and cordoned" enough for kids to safely roam around, or more of parents to feel safe. 

And most important thing they have features that pushes you to move around -- like trekking, glamping, paddling, beach, pool -- on top of the hammocks and couches, massage places that just pull you to do nothing (which i think is not alsl bad but hey i can just do it at home).

Meg kind of made the itinerary for the following day: trekking, fish feeding, swimming pool. Among the 3, she's the BOSSY! @.@
Except for Meg, everyone gravitated towards the beach/sea with their snorkels instead of swimming pool.

For the first time, on my own will, i picked a snorkel from the resort's dive shop (for free). I put it on, and when i submerged myself into the water, i saw mati's little fat body wiggling swimming after wiggling fishes too!!! Mati's not good at swimming, but when i saw how he put effort to swim join the the fishes. I fell inlove! :) 

I fell inlove - maybe it was because i saw my kids chasing fishes, stared at "whatever broken dead corals" were scattered underwater and enjoying it. I really thought that when they insist on bringing their snorkels, and threw fits when i forgot to pack it when we'd go to beach were just being such bratty, and that they just inherit mark's "gadget-itis". It actually really means truly a lot to them. I feel ashamed! :| 


----

All in all, i LOVE Maribago Sumilon Island Resort except that their food is just "unforgive-able." I really think whining over food is too low and useless with africa still marketed as a continent of malnourished children for eternity, but let me make an exception for this. It's one of those "gourmet" restos offering these "couture" foods, but then their chef's experience was from a carenderia, and management probably did not put much effort of even at least exposing / letting them eat these couture dishes before letting them cook it. I'm not looking down at "carenderia" (hey, i love them) but if your chef is from a carenderia, you might as well offer carenderia types of dishes instead of those hard-to-pronounce dishes. "Humbang Bisaya" would make a better impact to the "tourists" than the Pork Stew in Soy Sauce & Vinegar (i made this up but their menu food was like giving your bisaya looking kids with american hollywood names.). (I hope this whining will come out as constructive criticism.)

So yeah, i will come back like this below in the photo. :) Paying a corkage fee for bringing food might be a good consideration, or maybe just ask nicely the staff to cook humba and inon-onan for you, and just ditch what's on their menu.