decent food

The bus I took to work this morning passed by the bus terminal at Baclaran. And as the bus waited for the conductor (who was paying for something at the MMDA depot) I saw a woman scrounging for something among the trash on the sidewalk. Scenes like that abound around the metro.

sorry for the blurred pics, typhoon Frank just passed Metro Manila when it was taken

Though I’ve seen people picking through garbage and I’ve even watched them on TV, I was not prepared for what I saw.

It just rained all over the metro and the nearby provinces (typhoon Frank had a visit) and the pavement is wet, so whatever trash there was were really rain soaked. I thought that the woman was looking for plastics that can be sold at junk shops or whatever that can be sold. I noticed that she was putting whatever she picked inside a transparent bag. But I just can’t see what the contents of her plastic bag was, because the bus’ window was a bit hazy. Then I saw her examine something...I recognized it as a chicken leg with a lot of meat still on the bone. The woman dropped it inside her plastic bag. I realized that the bag was where she kept the food she picked up among the trash...

here's the woman picking "something"

I was heartbroken...I was at a loss. I am like that everytime I see people who are in dire need and yet I can't do a thing.

sense of touch

hubby has been giving me invites to a massage "corner" at Metro Point Mall beside MRT's EDSA-Taft station. but i am wary of strangers more so of the thought of letting them touch me. despite my initial negative view of the subject my husband kept on telling me of the good/light feeling he's been having from the massage he gets at "sense of touch."

one time hubby asked me to meet him there instead of him waiting for me at my work.

at first, i was a bit apprehensive of the place, i thought the place needed additional lights, it was a bit hot (the place was not enclosed it was open from the other end of their rented space to the other. maybe it was left that way to keep the prices more affordable.)

my apprehensions about the place then was more of not finding hubby within my peripheral vision. i was told by the receptionist (a girl with normal vision in her 20s) that my hubby is in one of the cubicles having a whole body massage. my wifey instincts told me to look for him pronto! so i really made kulit and went ahead to where hubby was! of course he was being massaged by a blind man in his 40s. who ever thought otherwise?! heheheee...

the next time we were there, i've brushed aside my apprehensions and their darky lurky lighting (gloomy). i was the first to get there, hubby was still on his way, traffic at Villamor is at its finest (irritatingly congested!). i asked (this time, a lot of what ifs were swimming in my head) if any of their masseuse is available (while kept on looking for my husband among the crowd, i want him to be there before i get a massage (my first)). i heard the teenaged receptionist/cashier (this time a boy) call for Auring, a blind masseuese. where's hubbbbyyyyyy!!! i had a short panic induced moment that time, maybe because i really am wary of strangers, a blind woman at that! i don't have anything bad against blind people. it's just that it was the first time that i will have such a close encounter with one. so close she had to touch me! well, that can't be helped i wanted some massage, crazy thoughts!

i wasn't able to get Auring's picture, but she really knew just where to and what muscle to knead. i felt my stresses9wor, travel, family related) vaporize from my sore muscles. yes, vaporized! i pointed to where i felt some pains and she obliged by firmly yet effectively relaxed my tired muscles, even 15-20 minutes beyond the alloted time.

each time my husband can meet me there, we always drop by and i always ask for Auring. i always have a hard time of keeping myself from sleeping whenever she gives me a body massage. yes, the massage is that soothing. the place may not be for the faint hearted. remember i had my apprehensions at first. but the prices are budget friendly and the place is very accessible.

one time Auring is not around and while i was waiting for hubby (he was having a whole body massage) i kept on looking around, window shopping at nearby electronic gadget shops. a bit bored and tired. i watched as this blind masseuse enter the place guided by a giggly teenage girl.
then one of the masseurs asked the blind woman to send a cellular phone load to his number. i was really surprised.

the blind woman proceeded to take her cellphone out of her body bag and proceeded to tap the blind man's number. her phone was set on speaker mode, she placed the phone near her ear and listened as the number she tapped was voiced out by her cellphone.

i thought of buying some cellphone load for my kid's yaya, so i asked her to send it for me and she cheerfully did so!. forgive me but i got carried away by my curiosity. so i tested her, i wanted to know how she changes people's money, will her guide do it for her? i gave her a larger bill than what i was supposed to pay. surprise! she groped again in her bag and took out her purse. she peered closely at my paper money (she held it cms away from her eyes, sooooo she is partially blind after all!) and proceeded to count my change by groping and peering).

here's her pic while handing me my change! :) her name by the way is Crisanta, a very cheerful lady who likes rock classics for ring tones.

Sushi USBs, anyone?

I can't explain it but I have this fascination with USBs. Maybe because they don't take up much space, they can fit in to any pocket, wallet, purse, whatevs.
Not to mention that with every geeky USB that comes out of the market the memory gets bigger and bigger. I even posted once about this geeky USB.
And just now I saw this luscious looking USBs at Urban Outfitters.

They look so fresh and real and ready for munching! Yaaargg! I got hungry just by looking at the pics of those USBs.

Here's the salmon usb

And, here's the tuna usb... looks real enough to munch on!

There's even a pizza USB, but it's not the same as the sushi, USBs. The pizza usb looks as plasticky as it is though (ooops, just my thought)...

By the way the USBs can store up to 1Gb only at $50 a piece.

seoeng...just trying!

Hello!

It’s been so many days since I last posted here. I know it’s a bit lame but I was and still am having a hard time in choosing what to post. Yup! I am trying to keep this blog in order (true ). And it seems that I am getting overwhelmed with all of the possible things to get this blog optimized. I am really having a hard time in keeping it cleaned up for seoeng (a term for search engine optimization, hope I get the term right though! hehee). And there’s my day time work, and the kids, and the house, and the hubby who I have/MUST attend to…

I will be posting some of my observations, newly learned infos, geeky gadgets, of course my outputs from my fave craft – wire jewelry, the kids, and ideas that catches my/your curiosity, soon.

First, on the list…meta tags! Whew! It’s my hardest topic these days > tags!

Smart pot!

I love plants and planting, even the mud and the care you have to give them each day. I can't explain it but somehow a bit of gardening/planting somehow comforts me. I feel a sense of happiness whenever I see a bud turn into a nice plant and flowers spring forth them more so when they bear fruits or when they're ready for picking and cooking...

So I was quite curious about this post and I know you plant lovers will too!

Junyi Heo's Pet Plant

Growing plants would be a lot easier if plants could express what it is they need from you. Fret not because that’s what the Pet Plant by Junyi Heo does. The very sleek looking pot measures soil conditions, temperature, humidity, and water - calculates those variables based on the need of said plant, and expresses its condition via a series of pictograms on an LCD display.

the Pet Plant is connected to computers through its USB port

It’s also smart enough to know if you’ve over watered and will systematically drain itself into a water vessel. All this high tech goodness does mean it needs power but a simple USB interface does double duty by charging and transmitting pertinent information to and from computer software.

icons that show your plant's needs

By the way, the pot's designer is Junyi Heo.

Realize by Colbie Caillat

Colbie Caillat Lyrics Realize [LyricsYouLove]

here's one of my faves of the moment... Realize by Colbie Caillat...

Bubbly....Colbie

Here's a song I would like to share with you. I like this song, this song is looped in my player, hehee!

Bubbly

-by

Colbie Caillat

I’ve been awake for a while now

you’ve got me feelin like a child now

cause every time i see your bubbly face

i get the tinglies in a silly place

It starts in my toes

and I crinkle my nose

where ever it goes i always know

that you make me smile

please stay for a while now

just take your time

where ever you go
The rain is fallin on my window pane

but we are hidin in a safer place

under covers stayin safe and warm

you give me feelins that i adore
They starts in my toesmake me crinkle my nose

where ever it goes i always knowt

hat you make me smile

please stay for a while now

just take your time

where ever you go

What am i gonna say

when you make me feel this way

I just……..mmmmmmmmmmm

It’ll start in my toes

makes me crinkle my nose

where ever it goes i always know

that you make me smile

please stay for a while now

just take your time

where ever you go

I’ve been asleep for a while now

You tucked me in just like a child now

Cause every time you hold me in your arms

Im comfortable enough to feel your warmth

It starts in my soul

And I lose all control

When you kiss my nose

The feelin shows

Cause you make me smile

Baby just take your time now

Holdin me tight

Where ever, where ever, where ever you go

Where ever, where ever, where ever you go...

I'll post the song itself later...

VERY SLIM PORTABLE PRINTER

I saw this post on techfresh and I am smitten! Hello, hubby! Buy me this!
Ooops I guess my birthday is still a couple of months away though...
Maybe you're interested too, check this out... :)!

At just 1″x 10.75″x 1.9″, the Printsilk Portable Printer from Planon is small enough to be stored in the bottom of your laptop bag for when those random ‘print emergencies’ come up while on the road. The printer features a USB port for connecting to a laptop as well as Bluetooth for printing documents directly off of a smartphone or PDA. Available now for

a mom's prerogative

Maybe the current state of our society made me think and ask silently in prayer for another son while I was infanticipating. May the Lord forgive me for entertaining such thoughts before. I so love my daughter. We all love her.

with the Hetty mascot at Jollibee (in her new look)

It’s just that cruelty and mindlessness are almost everywhere and I only feel really secure when me and my husband are looking after our kids.

at the mall while looking for new (school) shoes, while the store is holding a sale (heheee)

I can’t explain it, but my husband and of course mothers can relate when I say I love my daughter so much, that I can say she’s my fear factor. I love my son the same as my daughter. But I believe that my daughter needs my attention more. Are you one with me on that?

again, at the mall

I always tell our kasama sa bahay to always keep her eye on my daughter. Not to let her get out alone. I don’t mind if the place is dusty and she can’t finish her chores as long as she takes good care of my kids especially my daughter. Yeah, I don’t feel that she is safe whenever we are not around. Call me crazy, but I am her mother…

with ate Mirriam at Jollibee

Overprotective? I don’t think so, the daily newspapers can tell you that.

Last Mother’s Day, my husband made me feel special but I appreciated his being a good father and protector of our kids more than his very nice treatment of me on that day. Our kids look up to him, they always tag along with him whenever possible. He may be strict sometimes but he can’t be more strict to our daughter, he is a jell-o when it comes to our daughter. (And now that I remember, maybe the kids and I will think of something for him on Father’s Day. :-) hmmm...)

OLED passport!

A cousin asked me last week to call the US embassy regarding the policy on the new machine readable passports. I was a bit lost about it 'coz it was the first time somebody told me to ask about it and its vital rule in visa applications whatsoever. Besides I don't know where on the embassy's website should i check about the policy.

Well i got cross-eyed with the task anyway...hehee! And just now i saw this post on Gizmodo about OLED passports. I find this very convenient indeed! No more needless questions and shorter lines at airport counters! less frazzles! OLED and Gizmodo posted the following about the passport

"Samsung SDI and German security printer Bundesdruckerei have demonstrated a passport that features a slim and bendable OLED colour display within a polycarbonate data page. The display can be used to provide a raft of information including a video of the document holder.

According to the suppliers, tommorow’s ID documents will work without contact and without internal batteries. The integration of a display makes electronic ID documents even more difficult to forge and opens up the way for new security applications, they claim.

Samsung SDI developed the display to be just 300µm thick. However, even with the integrated colour display, the data page of the ePassport is still only 700µm thick, the companies claim.

The display comprises an active matrix display with organic light emitting diodes (AMOLED). This means that located behind every pixel of the display is an active electronic circuit with low power consumption. AMOLED displays are said to provide excellent colour images and can be produced in much thinner formats that conventional LCDs.

The materials used for the display are heat-resistant, so that the passport card can be laminated and hence protected against manipulation.

The display is activated via the power provided by a contactless reader, so that the document itself does not require any batteries. The suppliers say that it will be possible to retrieve all kinds of information via the display, for instance, a moving passport image of the document holder, as well as text-based information, such as the passport holder’s address."

kiddie weekend

On weekends it is our practice to at least visit the church, hear a bit of the mass, and mumble some prayer. Even before we can enter the church they start asking and being soo kulit as to where we will go next after mass! Hay naku!

The kids never fail to ask for some kiddie entertainment and some kiddie meal (fastfood!). Jollibee tops the list. I don’t know why but they always ask for Jollibee. And it seems that Filipino kids have the same thing in mind when it comes to eating out –– Jollibee! No need to say that there’s no empty table nor chair in any Jollibee outlet during weekends. It’s good my eldest loves Greenwich’ pizzas, so we ate at Greenwich.

mom and grouchy tabachinchin

It seems that Greenwich has stopped serving solo pizzas. I would have ordered 2 different solo pizzas for the kids but I was told that they don’t have solos anymore. I had to order 2 pizza bars, the kids can't consume much when there's chicken on the table. Don't know why but they LIKE chicken so much, I sometimes say they might grow feathers someday (hope not! que horror!).

bunso and Papa

And as usual bunso asked for "jump jump" (her term for the inflated rubber playplace inside the biggest mall in Dasmariñas, Cavite. They stayed there for an hour, jumping, and horsying around the place until their throats got parched. They got so thirsty they were able to finish more than 3 large cups of juice!

bunso (blurry in pink) jumping at "jump jump" hehee...

jaded!

I like wearing jade rings. Those semi-precious stones somehow gives me a warm feeling.

Do you know that jade rings are cool even when worn in summer? It may be sweltering hot outside but my jade rings still feel cool on my finger! Yep! I was a bit amused when I first realized it. ‘Coz constant use of my wedding ring (and other rings) leaves a mark on my finger, but the jade rings never did. I don’t know how and why.

one of my jade rings, it may not be priceless but i love it nonetheless

I heard (and read) that fine jade can buy you a whole nation (in ancient China). Some even fought with their lives for the possession of jades with superb quality.

I may not be able to describe fine jade or a bit of its history here but I would like to share some tips on how to take good care of your jade jewelries. Here are some tips:

1) Jade is delicate so as much as possible avoid bumping on hard surfaces. A crack may not be seen by the naked eye, but the interior structure may have been damaged. The tiniest crack will gradually appear and reduce the value of your jade accesory.

2) Keep your jade from dust or greasy dirt. Scrub each with a soft brush and mild soap (liquid is better) and wash with clean water.

3) Store the jade in a case or box to protect it from getting scratched or from cracks when bumped.

4) Keep your jade away from perfume, perspiration or chemicals. Jade corrodes easily when exposed to , especially emerald and other high quality jade, so it is better to clean it with a soft cloth after wearing it.

5) Take care not to wear or expose your jade to sunlight (ooops! heheee...) for long periods. It may expand and the quality will change slightly.

6) Jade has certain water content so keep it in an area of humidity to protect it from over-drying

Prayer

I found this very comforting blog today while surfing on things about my hometown. I am sharing it with you so you too will remember what to do when you need Him most...

"Prayer is the door to those great graces which our Lord bestowed upon me.

"If this door be shut, I do not see how He can bestow them; for even if He entered into a soul to take His delight therein, and to make that soul also delight in Him, there is no way by which He can do so; for His will is, that such a soul should be lonely and pure, with a great desire to receive His graces.

"If we put many hindrances in the way, and take no pains whatever to remove them, how can He come to us, and how can we have any desire that He should show us His great mercies?

"Above all I implore all for the love of our Lord, and for the great love with which He goeth about seeking our conversion to Himself, to beware of the occasions of sin: for once placed therein, we have no ground to rest on."

- St. Teresa of Avila, Life, 8:13, 14

sensibilities

i often wonder why do some people stay on the streets? why can't they clean themselves? why can't they get a job, so they don't have to beg or ask for alms? how do these people feel? where do they sleep? what do they eat? do they get sick? if something happens to them, what do they do? where do they go?
i feel so sad whenever i see them. 'coz i can't do more. more than giving some coins or small bills and sometimes food.
i know it's crazy, but i'm a dreamer. and one of my dreams is of me helping those people get some work, take a bath, wear clean clothes, get a permanent shelter, go to school, eat newly cooked meals, live on their own...
i sometimes see pregnant women, kids cuddling babies, disabled or people with deformities asking or begging on the streets. when the traffic lights stop vehicles, they go from one jeepney to a car to a truck begging, asking.
how can they survive?
to land a decent job in the city, you have to secure your birth certificate (sometimes an NSO certified birth certificate is required) clearances from the barangay, police, NBI, numbers from SSS, and your high school diploma or your transcript of records. you can avail of these things easily if you can validate your existence (birth certificate, clearances...). not to mention that college graduates diminish your hopes of landing a job even for customer service related jobs such as sales clerks, cashiers, even for security personnel positions.
no wonder crime statistics fluctuate more often than your electric bills...
i heard that some of them like the Badjao's (yes, the sea faring people) do beg because of necessity. but some does because they are forced to do so.
and yet here's the real ISSUE of all! -- the DSWD project of giving up to Php 1, 500.00 monthly stipend (thru the beneficiaries' Landbank atm cards) to "poor" families.
i have very strong emotions against that DSWD project!
it's not that i don't want these people to receive help, but my socks! the DSWD is encouraging those people to get lazy...to just wait until the next stipend can be withdrawn thru their atm cards!

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puzzling Rubik cube

my son always asks me for pasalubong everytime i come home from work. so i thought of buying him a Rubik cube

the cube kept him from playing outside (even at noon, hmmph!) with his neighborhood friends

i also got a bit hooked with it that i sometimes carry it with me to work just so i can rid off the ick i got from trying to solve the puzzle...

swimming again!

a kumare invited us to her son's birthday/swimming party last Sunday at the Jardin de Dasmariñas at Brgy. Salawag in Dasma. my kids shrieked upon hearing that were going. well i had no choice but to go, no weekend rest for me...

here's joy with friend angie

jb trying the adult's pool (at the shallow part)

the place is a bit small for a resort but it is nice if you're after kiddie fun only. even hubby promised us a day there, maybe next month (? ugh! rainy season month!)

the kids had a lot of fun. their sunburns can prove it!

here' some of our photos, yup that's my daughter, the kid who loves to have her photos taken!

my baby

joy and angie(one of her playmates. ate Ana's apo)

joy and jb loves the shower (having a shower outdoors is new to them, hehee)

this was taken at the empty hut next to the hut that our group rented, the huts are ok

joy and angie by the adult's pool, this was taken before we left

these two loves to pose, yup there's a tree house at the middle of the resort. you can see the whole resort at the top even beyond the resort's fence (another subdivision)

a bit tired(joy was scratching her eyes, a sure sign of a much needed nap) while angie can hardly smile