Moving Closer

Inch by inch we're moving closer

Feels like a fairytale ending

Take my heart, this is the moment

I'm moving closer to you...

                                                  -- Moving Closer, Never The Strangers

The Anchor, Bastille

You were the light that is blinding me

You're the anchor that I tie to my brain

'Cause when it feels like I'm lost at sea

You're the song I sing again and again

All the time, all the time

                            -- The Anchor, Bastille

When Love Arrives by Sarah Kay and Phil Kaye

I knew exactly what love looked like – in seventh grade

Even though I hadn’t met love yet, if love had wandered into my homeroom, I would’ve recognized him at first glance. Love wore a hemp necklace.
I would’ve recognized her at first glance, love wore a tight french braid.
Love played acoustic guitar and knew all my favorite Beatles songs.
Love wasn’t afraid to ride the bus with me.
And I knew, I just must be searching the wrong classrooms, just must be checking the wrong hallways, she was there, I was sure of it.
If only I could find him.

But when love finally showed up, she had a bow cut.
He wore the same clothes every day for a week.
Love hated the bus.
Love didn’t know anything about The Beatles.
Instead, every time I try to kiss love, our teeth got in the way.
Love became the reason I lied to my parents. I’m going to- Ben’s house.
Love had terrible rhythm on the dance floor, but made sure we never missed a slow song.
Love waited by the phone because she knew if her father picked up it would be: “Hello? Hello? I guess they hung up.”

And love grew, stretched like a trampoline.
Love changed. Love disappeared,
Slowly, like baby teeth, losing parts of me I thought I needed.
Love vanished like an amateur magician, and everyone could see the trapdoor but me.
Like a flat tire, there were other places I planned on going, but my plans didn’t matter.
Love stayed away for years, and when love finally reappeared, I barely recognized him.
Love smelt different now, had darker eyes, a broader back, love came with freckles I didn’t recognize.
New birthmarks, a softer voice.
Now there were new sleeping patterns, new favorite books.
Love had songs that reminded him of someone else, songs love didn’t like to listen to. So did I.

But we found a park bench that fit us perfectly
We found jokes that make us laugh.
And now, love makes me fresh homemade chocolate chip cookies.
But love will probably finish most of them for a midnight snack.
Love looks great in lingerie but still likes to wear her retainer.
Love is a terrible driver, but a great navigator.
Love knows where she’s going, it just might take her two hours longer than she planned.
Love is messier now, not as simple.
Love uses the words “boobs” in front of my parents.
Love chews too loud.
Love leaves the cap off the toothpaste.
Love uses smiley faces in her text messages.
And turns out, love shits!

But love also cries.
And love will tell you you are beautiful and mean it, over and over again. “You are beautiful.”
When you first wake up, “you are beautiful.”
When you’ve just been crying, “you are beautiful.”
When you don’t want to hear it, “you are beautiful.”
When you don’t believe it, “you are beautiful.”
When nobody else will tell you, “you are beautiful.”
Love still thinks you are beautiful.
But love is not perfect and will sometimes forget, when you need to hear it most, you are beautiful, do not forget this.

Love is not who you were expecting, love is not who you can predict.
Maybe love is in New York City, already asleep;
You are in California, Australia, wide awake.
Maybe love is always in the wrong time zone.
Maybe love is not ready for you.
Maybe you are not ready for love.
Maybe love just isn’t the marrying type.
Maybe the next time you see love is twenty years after the divorce, love is older now, but just as beautiful as you remembered.
Maybe love is only there for a month.
Maybe love is there for every firework, every birthday party, every hospital visit.
Maybe love stays- maybe love can’t.
Maybe love shouldn’t.

Love arrives exactly when love is supposed to,
And love leaves exactly when love must.
When love arrives, say, “Welcome. Make yourself comfortable.”
If love leaves, ask her to leave the door open behind her.
Turn off the music, listen to the quiet, whisper,
“Thank you for stopping by.”

--I just love this one! This poem says it all and...

"Love arrives exactly when love is supposed to, And love leaves exactly when love must."

That Thing Called Tadhana

This film is just ♥. All the positive reviews and praises are true. The actors are so natural, as if, they're just having a normal conversation and not acting. Angelica deserves that best actress award and JM is just naturally guapo and a great actor, too. At ang mga #hugot lines, panalo! :) This film will make you laugh and cry at the same time, tumatawa ka habang sinasaksak tagos sa puso. Kudos to all! This goes to the list of my fav rom-com film!

Of what ifs and second chances...

Some things are meant to be, some just aren’t. It’s not impossible to fall for you even with your complicated circumstances. Because I know you’re a good person, responsible even, and with a good personality to go with that. I was already open to the possibility of falling...and giving this thing a chance. Then, something happened and...well,  I guess it’s just not meant to be.  

Closure

Over the weekend I realized that we are not really like the characters in the book/movie that I thought we were...because;

1. I am no Rachel...

2. And, well, he's not Dex, not at all my kind of Dex!

3. But, she, well, she is definitely Darcy!

4. Ours is not "something borrowed" nor "something blue", we're just probably FRIENDS who fell apart...

the end.

i wanna see you be brave...

Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave
With what you want to say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave

#JustSayIt

The Emotional Bank Account

I came across this article written by M.J. Clark which discusses the 6 ways Stephen Covey identified how  to make deposits and withdrawals with our Emotional Bank Account. This is a good read that I think we should all contemplate and apply with our day to day interactions with people.

Here are some excerpts from the article...

1) Understanding the Individual. This means listening intently to what the other person is saying and empathizing with how they may feel. It’s important to care for others and act with kindness toward them.

2) Keeping Commitments. How do you feel when someone arrives right on time when you have a meeting? How about when people simply do what they say they will do? You build up an emotional reserve by keeping your commitments.

3) Clarifying Expectations. We are not mind readers, and yet we consistently expect others to know what we expect of them. Communicating our expectations can help create a higher level of trust. When we ask for what we want, and we get it, we can then trust a little more.

4) Attending to the Little Things. Don’t you find that the little things tend to become the BIG things when they do not receive our attention? Doing the little things is how we honor and show respect for others. Small kindnesses, a smile, a little extra effort, a hug, doing something you didn’t “have” to: these are the things that build trust.

5) Showing Personal Integrity. Integrity is the moral floor upon which trusting relationships are built. When we operate with sound moral character, it makes it so easy for others to trust us.

6) Apologizing When We Make a Withdrawal. We will make mistakes; it’s part of life. But when you see you have violated a trust, sincerely apologizing is how we make a deposit to counteract the damage we have done.

Something Borrowed...

That scene. At the bar... when Rachel and Dex went out on a date, then Darcy came over to join them? Yup! That's so us. You're so Darcy and I'm so Rachel!

I miss you, friend...but I still can't believe you can be Darcy to me because I just can't be like Rachel to you!

hello again!

I have not visited this account for sometime...my last post was in in October 2012! The past year has been a series of highs and lows. I finally got hold of my MS diploma, resigned from the project that I had worked for 7 years, got a new job, moved to the city, live alone, reunite with friends, believed in second chances and new beginnings, felt betrayed, disbelieved in second changes and new beginnings, believed again, starting over...and truly loving my old and new found "true" friends!

what i learned today....

-- Ang Carinthia, Austria pla ay isang ski destination, at meron silang ski map.
-- Salamat kay google, nalaman ko isa isa ang meaning ng symbols sa plastic containers. See below:

--

-- My sister is coming home this Friday! That means, she'll bring my new pink UCB bag home.
-- There is such a thing as CHAR SIU SAUCE (by Lee Kum Kee), and it is an important ingredient in making Yellow Cab's Charlie Chan pasta :)

high and lows

one down!! 1.5 to go??

verse of the day: For with God nothing is impossible (Luke 1:37)

quote of the day:  The blind leading the deaf...

HAPPINESS

HAPPINESS

(Inspired by the song of the same title)

♫♪♫ HAPPINESS IS BEING ALONE EVERY NOW AND THEN.

AND HAPPINESS IS COMING HOME AGAIN.

HAPPINESS IS MORNING AND EVENING,

DAY TIME AND NIGHT TIME TOO.

FOR HAPPINESS IS ANYONE AND ANYTHING AT ALL

THAT'S LOVED BY YOU♫♪♫

For me…

Happiness is...

- travelling...for free!

- meeting a new friend

- reading a good book

Happiness is...

- a "how are you?" greeting from a stranger

- having my favorite mustard from Germany

- knowing a secret *-)

Happiness is...

- going home everyday with Nanay and Tatay

- laughing out loud while "The Bunso" is nervously asking permission from my parents if she be allowed to go out on a date with the brightest boy in her class

- keeping in touch with my family

Happiness is...

- having a new set of tennis balls

- for free...and from the Boss!!

- and being allowed for at least an hour twice a week to play with it :)

Happiness is...

-freshly brewed coffee in the morning

-or a mocha frappe from Starbucks

-or an iced coffee, Vietnamese style

There are a lot of things to be happy about…and when I’m feeling super low, I just think good thoughts…yah, just think good thoughts! :D

Everything for a reason...

Today, like any other Monday mornings of my life, I had a hard time getting myself out of bed.

Not until when I realized that I need to write that email for my thesis adviser! It's been more than a week since I submitted my thesis manuscript's first draft. And that would be my first agenda for the day...

Just when I was about to click the "Compose mail" icon, a new email got into my inbox! FROM THE ADVISER no less! It says:

Please see me this afternoon at 4:30pm, 3 October 2011 to discuss your draft manuscript and my comments and suggestions.

I think my heart beat rate just went double. This is it!  Today, I will know the verdict whether I will graduate at the end of the month or not. From that moment on, I can't think of anything else but the time: 4.30. I've made up all possible scenarios in my mind. One of which is the possibility of not graduating this semester.

So, at around 4:25, just five minutes before the scheduled meeting, I was there in front of my adviser's room. The door was locked. I walked towards the Chairman's office… and there he was coming out of the room.  As I sat on at the visitor's chair in his office, I can't feel or think of anything. It's as if, I’m just ready to accept whatever he will say, good or bad. When he opened my manuscript and started discussing with me what his suggestions and recommendations are, I knew...I cannot finish everything before the month ends.

After about an hour, we finished the discussion. Suddenly I just blurted out: Sir, there is still so much I need to do :( The Adviser replied: You don't have to rush, take it slowly. Just organize what you need to do first...step by step. And, I agree!

There really must be a lot of reasons why it's better not to graduate this sem…

1)     This thesis MUST be really good and publishable to an international science journal;

2)     The panel committee's schedule is just super hectic that I cannot find a common time for them for a defense this semester;

3)     I'll be going out of the country for a research training soon which means, I won't be  available for clearance, printing etc.etc.;

4)     I'm organizing an international meeting and symposium for December which take most of my time when I'm not doing the databases;

5)     There are 21 databases to integrate for the Annual Checklist 2012 before the year ends!

6)     I just acquired copy of the Millenium trilogy...I must read during the night :P

Anyways, I'm still hoping I can submit the second (and final draft, I hope) before the year ends so that I can truly have a very merry Christmas and super happy birthday and New Year! And, by the way, the sponsoring agency for my MSc gave me the clearance to travel abroad and to extend another semester for my thesis! God is good!

Retail Theraphy.

According to Wikipedia, Retail therapy is shopping with the primary purpose of improving the buyer's mood or disposition. Often seen in people during periods of depression or transition, it is normally a short-lived habit. Items purchased during periods of retail therapy are sometimes referred to as "comfort buys".

This is the best (maybe not) therapy for me :) When I'm stressed, I shop! Just last Friday, I rushed to Alabang to have lunch with my sisters and then what, go shopping! At the end of the day, I had purchased a pair of jeans, 4 shirts, 2 blouses and a dress! And, yesterday, I accompanied may sister to buy shoes that she'll be bringing back to SG and... I ended up buying 2 pairs of wedges and a pair of ballet flats for myself. Thinking about it now, I don't have space for more shoes in the shoe rack! Maybe, I should buy a new shoe cabinet?? hahaha!

Oh dear, I think I should not visit the stores for at least 3 months. Maybe the next visit should be before the Christmas rush... But then, I had so much work to do which means more stress :( Errr, maybe that would make me more preoccupied. Or... maybe I should just play more tennis! :)

But anyways, for a moment there while shopping, I forgot all the things about my thesis and the symposium and the databases :D So, I guess, it's all good, very good, actually :)

Kasambahay, Habambuhay...

L.A. and I watched all the the 10 short films of Nestle Philippines Kasambuhay, Habangbuhay at CinemaOne last night. And, I must say, GOOD JOB! to all the people behind those films! The stories made us either roll on the floor laughing or wipe the tears falling on our cheeks. Among the ten, the "Tingala sa Baba" is my favorite :)

I sooo love the kids in the film and the story they are trying to tell, especially when Renzo said: "Alam ko naman yun e..." I think I can relate! hahaha! Here's the video from YouTube :) Enjoy!

I'm bored...

I have tons of work to do for  my thesis and loads of work at the office BUT I'm feeling bored! And, I don't know why :( I need something new to do, and need to finish this thesis SOON!! I want it DONE ASAP! I'm getting tired of it already, and I'm sounding like a broken record with my friends as well when I keep on saying that I'll do that or I'll do this when I'm done with my thesis :( So, please help me GOD...Give me the strength and the wisdom to finish this.

I agree...

People who critize a lot..(Are insecure.)
Who complain a lot..(Seldom take action.)
Who insult a lot ..(Are commonly ugly.)
Who flirt alot....(Lack love and attention.)
Who Gossip a lot..(Never had a true friend.)
On the other hand, people Who are Successful...(Strive.)
Who achieve a lot..(Are inspired.)
Who are happy..(Think of others.)

rainy days and tuesdays...

It's rainy day, typhoon season once again in this part of the world. And, it's very difficult to resist the smell of coffee and the blueberry muffins at any time of the day. They're just the perfect combination for the rainy days! Plus the macaroni soup too...and the arrozcaldo...and the champorado...ahhh, all I can think about right now is food :(

rain + food - tennis = +++ pounds for me :(

I ♥ Batanes...because...

of this...

and this

and this...

and this...

and this...

and this...

AND MORE! :) I shall return, promise!