The Beauties of Friendship

The last few days have been great.
On Friday evening – 14th July, I met up with Joseph & Emmy at Raquel’s birthday at Dampa – Quezon Avenue.
That was such a fun night!
Sadly, Elbeth & Divine didn’t showed up.
How I missed those times that Joseph & I used to argue a lot.
Our friends even says, “Bakit hindi naging kayo?”
And then I answered, “Hello! Eh di wala kaming ginawa niyan kundi mag-away all our lives….”
They’ll respond back, “Eh hindi naman away yung senyo, it’s more of a like lambingan…Eh daig n'yo pa kaya ang mag-soulmates, huh!”
Well whatever!
He’s happily married, got a wonderful cutie son which it turned out to be my inaanak.
End of the story.

On Saturday evening – 15th July, I met up with Thea, Ricko, Voltz, Dan, Mel, Frietz & Honey at Jar’s place in Williamson St.
I practically slept the whole day & only got up at 6pm.
Thea said, she had an ‘aliw-giliw’ with my kuwento on my way to Jar’s place.
We’ve really enjoyed Jar’s pasta, her famous FIC's raspberry rapture & chix lollipop.
Frietz’s san mig light.
Ricko’s jugno’s pizza.
And Honey’s chardonnay.
Honey’s so makulit & madaldal – maybe because she was our hot seat candidate for the night.
Frietz – with his ‘true stories’ & ‘backseat sa likod ng kotse.’
Voltz with his ‘Ive never encounters inquisitions.’
Mel (wait, Mel ba or Mike, hehe!) with his ‘abandoned hospital suggestion.’
Jar with her 'Mimi - the rabbit & love birds love triangle story.’
As for Ricko & Thea who have been inseparable that night.
Dan, in his ‘my eyes are sweating.’
Whew, I swear, ‘twas such a blast!
For those who didn’t made it, am tellin’ you, you missed a great deal of your life!
Why, with all the laught trip & fun…we ‘ve decided to call it a night at past 2am..

On Sunday after lunch – 16th July, is Ken’s 2nd birthday at McDonald’s Philcoa.
Left home at 11am & went to Blue Magic at SM Fairview first to look for his gift & Raquel’s as well…
I found him a cute brown poodle stuff toy with ‘happy birthday’ on his chest.
The seven month heavy with her son – Divine came.
Joseph with his wife & son.
Emmylou, our NBSB conservative (she conserves water, energy & time, huh!) bio teacher.
Raquel with his sis & her niece.
‘Twas fun mingling with the kids & friends, of course!

As I journal, I continue to be reminded of the importance of friends in our lives.
Interacting with other human energies can be so fulfilling.
One can learn so much from others.
Fortunately, I’m surrounded with quality people with kindred spirits whom I can depend on.

Most importantly, friends will always be friends.
No matter what’s happening in our lives…where they are or what they’re doin’.
They are irreplaceable.

Friends are forever.
But only if you keep it that way.
Don't diss your buds, love them instead.
And when they drive you nuts, love them that much more for being just a little bit different and maybe just a little bit quirky!

The Beauties of Friendship by Samuel Francis Wooland.

"A Friend" The first person who comes in when the whole world has gone out.

A bank or credit on which we can draw supplies of confidence, counsel, sympathy, help and love.

One who combines for you alike the pleasures and benifitsof society and solitude.

A jewel whose lustre the strong acids of poverty and misfortune cannot dim.

One who multiplies joys, divides griefs, and whose honesty is inviolable.

One who loves the truth and you, and will tell the truth inspite of you.

The triple alliance of the three great powers, Love, Symathy, and Help.

A watch which beats true for all time, and never "runs down."

A permanent fortification when one's affairs are in a state of siege.

One who to himself is true, and therefore must be so to you.

A balancing pole to him who walks across the tight rope of life.

The link in life's long chain that bears the greatest strain.

A harbor of refuge from the stormy waves of adversity.

One who considers my need before my deserving.

The jewel that shines brightest in the darkness.

A stimulant to the nobler side of our nature.

A star of hope in the clouds of adversity.

A diamond in the ring of aquaintance.

A volume of sympathy bond in cloth.

Friendship-one soul in two bodies.

An insurance against misanthropy.

One truer to me than I am myself.

One who understands our silence.

A link of gold in the chain of life.

The essence of pure devotion.

The sunshine of calamity.

A second right hand.

How's Your Heart, My Dear?

I've attended Ken's 2nd birthday, my inaanak with a little amount of sleep last Sunday. But heck, who cares? I still have an inner child with me. I still enjoy watching kids running to & fro, eating their chocolates or ice creams (that are sometimes good for our soul). How I wish I'd never grown.

A fellow visitor surprisingly asked me (of all questions, huh!) "How is your heart, my dear?" I was a bit stunned...

Aired with confidence, I answered her, "fine & de-cluttered..."

Finally, I had the courage to dump all those "stuff" accumulated through the years. The frustrations, annoyances, fears, anger, apathy, compromises (name it..I have it...) piled up inside me. Sadly, I tolerated it for quite some time.

Apparently, so much had happened in the past:

I've known death and birth;


I've been brave and scared;


I've hurt, I've helped;


I've been honest, I've lied;


I've destroyed, I've created;


I've been with people, I've been lonely;


I've been loyal, I've betrayed;


I've decided, I've waffled;


I've laughed and I've cried.


Gone were my frail heart & my frayed history-


And now, another day begins...

To Those Who Have Loved and Lost

Thank God it’s Friday!
I loved Fridays.
Not just about its “Joe’s” day, but kinda relieving that it’s the last day of work.
And I’m sick: migraine, slight fever and severe cold, whew!
I just wanna rest & relax & enjoy my new fone & unfortunately, my number as well…
As I wait til work’s over, I am feelin’ a bit melancholic and just couldn’t help but ponder on what Deanne had sent me tru gmail. It goes:



To Those Who Have Loved and Lost:

Anyone who has gone through the agony of losing someone she loves so much will still wish against all odds to have that love back again.
But, sometimes a love lost is a love gone forever.
No amount of hope can bring to life a relationship that just died a natural death.
Set yourself free.
Let your heart spread its wings and fly.

Remember, it may rain for 40 days and 40 nights, but still will not rain forever.
One day the pouring will stop and there will be plenty of branches where you can find rest.
One of these is where you will build your nest and start over again.
It's never too late.
Remember, you may find love and lose it but, "When love dies, you never have to die with it.”

Remember that you cannot be a redeemer all your life.

The best way to weigh a relationship is out in the test of fire.
You cannot be a sooner of your mistake forever.
Remember, we all fail and make wrong decisions but our blunders are meant not to bury us deep in misery but to teach us the valued lessons of life.

Loving is always a learning process.

With love, we learn how to care and sacrifice.
We learn to share and reach out.
We learn to be unselfish and give more than we can.

And when everything doesn't end well, we learn how it feels to fall, we strive to get back on our feet and move on.
This is where we learn that "Life doesn't end where our heartaches begin".

There is no future in a relationship of lies and selfishness.
It's true, there's life in love.
But, there can still be life even after losing love if you leave the past behind and let your heart heal and give you the chance to find yourself again.

The success of a relationship lies not only in the beauty of its beginning but in its
consistency.
Make a choice not on impulse but a decision based on a healthy balance of mind and heart.
Let us always remember that "Happiness is not a matter of destiny but a matter of choice.”

There comes a time in our lives when we chance upon someone so nice and beautiful and we just find ourselves getting so intensely attracted to that person.
This feeling soon becomes part of our everyday lives and eventually consumes our thoughts and actions.
The sad part of it is when we begin to realize that this person feels nothing more for us than friendship.
We start our desperate attempt to get noticed and be closer but in the end our
efforts are still unrewarded and we end up being sorry for ourselves.

"You don’t have to forget someone you love.
What you need to learn is how to aceppt the verdict of reality without being bitter or sorry for yourself.
You would better off giving that dedication and love to someone more deserving.”
Don't let your heart run your life, be sensible and let your mind speak for itself.

Listen not only to your feelings but to reason as well.
Always remember that if you lose someone today, it means that someone better is coming tomorrow.

"If you lose love, that doesn’t mean that you have failed in love.
Cry if you have to, but make sure that the tear washes away the hurt and the bitterness that the past left you with.

Let go of yesterday and love will find it’s way back to you.”
And when it does, pray that it may be the love that will stay and last a lifetime.

A woman on the rebound could easily fall for sweeping emotions and be made to falsely believe that she finally stumbled upon the right man when what she just found is only someone to cover up for the love she lost.
A man who makes promises with words and not with actions may never live up to fulfill them.
"It’s true that love can wait forever but it is crazy to stubbornly hope for someone who doesn’t even care or understand how we feel.”

Loving someone is never a sin.
It is what people do out of love that sometimes makes it all wrong.
The selfish desire to want that person is what makes it a sin.
Don't think only of your feelings for real love doesn't have a place for selfish people.

When there is love, there is always sacrifice.

When we love someone, we never easily give up on that person.

Even if we get hurt badly we always try to find a way to ease the pain and learn to understand and forgive.
Loving too much doesn't hurt.
It is when we expect this love to be reciprocated that we begin to seek approval and acceptance of the things we have done and when we are taken for granted and rejected, we curse the very same love that we once freely and happily offered.

"Don’t waste your time waiting for someone who never really cared about how you would have felt.
Open your heart again and give yourself the chance to find the person whou would make loving worth the pain and sacrifice.
Just like anything else, our love grows weak and extent.
Beyond that, it withers without any hope of recovery and soon dies".

God wakes us up in the midst of a storm to teach us a lesson.
He takes away people we love, so we can learn to value love itself.
He makes us cry so hard so we can see clearly when we
open our eyes.
He makes us bitter so we can realize that there is no genuine happiness if we think only of our needs and not of others.

Relationships built on jealousy and selfishness is doomed from the very beginning.
The hardest part of losing love is letting go and moving on.
Most of us cry endlessly over things that could have been but never will be.

"God allows us to experience pain to make us stronger and better persons.
He will see us through the most trying and difficult times in our lives and only if we put our trust in Him we can learn to find joy in our tears and happiness in our sorrows".

In many failed relationships, separation comes as the inevitable choice but moving on always proves to be twice as difficult as letting go.
Sometimes, the end of a relationship is imposed on us, but our choice to hold on is always beyond the control of circumstances.

Letting go is a decision that can never be dictated on us.
It is a resolve we make ourselves.
Acceptance is the key to a new beginning and time is the healer of all wounds.
Even if the storm casts its fearful shadow, there will always be light after our darkness and lonely moments.
There is always a hope for those who believe.
There is always a chance for those who try.
"Losing someone we love may not be a loss at all but a blessing because someone even more is yet to come".

There is nothing wrong in expressing our feelings to someone we love, but "we must always be sensitive to the signals that tell us when to rationalize and be sensible."
There comes a time in our lives when we would fall for someone who wouldn't be as interested as we are because his attention is focused on someone else.

There are many times when we love but don't get loved in return.

There are times when the sign ahead says stop but we still stubbornly head on.
We would say our love is unconditional, but if it really is, then we should never feel bad.
But why do we get frustrated when love turns sour?
Because we still subconsciously seek acceptance and assurance from the people we care about.

Being in love can be the most wonderful thing we could experience but if the feeling begins to consume our whole beings, then we have to stop and let our minds and not our hearts dictate our actions.

Only when we learn to accept our fate and understand the meaning of our failures we can truly go on with life without having to look back and cry over the things that could have been but will never be......



--
"Of all the needs a lonely child has, the one that must be satisfied,
if there is going to be hope and a hope of wholeness, is the unshaking
need for an unshakable God."

- Maya Angelou, U.S. author, poet.
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, ch. 4 (1969).

True enough, right?

Little Things Mean A Lot

It's true what they say..little things mean a lot.

It really is the little things you do for others & others do for you make life more meaningful.

Little things mean a lot to me..

A nice book to read, good education, a cup of coffee.

Doting friends, bronze eyeshadow, perfect lip gloss, pretty when pinched cheek blush, bunch of accesories.

Strawberry daquiri, scented candles, furry & unique bags, (un) branded camisole, spoiling oneself once in awhile. Get-together with old friends.

Mango tarts, cinnamon rolls, hot loops donuts, avocado bliss, choco pearl shakes, strawberry iced tea, banana caramel, spaghetti bolognese, salted fries.

Unexpected kindness, winning moments.

E-mail, text or a phone call from friends...

Kindest bosses on earth...cool, funky officemates..

Never letting life end with "uh-ohs!"

Renewed faith, liberation, a new inspiration...

Whoa, life's been pretty so far...

Today, I've been grateful for all coming my way..be it good or 'not so good' things or events.

Yeah, everybody has a crap to deal with...But if we all took a few minutes to reflect on something in our lives that we should be grateful about, we'd all be much happier, even how small they are.....


Little Things Mean A Lot
~ words & music by Edith Lindeman & Carl Stutz
~ lyrics as recorded by Kitty Kalen


Blow me a kiss across the room
Say I look nice when I'm not
Touch my hair as you pass my chair
Little things mean a lot

Give me your arm as we cross the street
Call me at six on the dot
A line a day when you're far away
Little things mean a lot

Don't have to buy me diamonds or pearls
Champagne, sables or such
I never cared much for diamonds and pearls
'Cause honestly, honey, they just cost money

Give me your hand when I've lost my way
Give me your shoulder to cry on
Whether the day is bright or gray
Give me your heart to rely on

Send me the warmth of a secret smile
To show me you haven't forgot
For always and ever, now and forever
Little things mean a lot

Give me your hand when I've lost my way
Give me your shoulder to cry on
Whethe the day is bright or gray
Give me your heart to rely on

Send me the warmth of a secret smile
To show me you haven't forgot
For always and ever, now and forever
Little thinsg mean a lot

What Peach Needs!

Been tryin to decide what my ficklish mind could find to blog bout today.
Until I ran across to ‘Just Peachy’ site & inspired by what I read.
Following is my list of “What Peach Needs!”

1. Needs to be rescued. (Only if I get drowned, huh! Apparently, I don’t know how to swim.)

2. Needs to move fast. (On sluggish days like today.)

3. Needs to be remembered. (Admittedly, one of my greatest fears in life is to be utterly forgotten.)

4. Needs to run. (So fast…yet carefully. No one likes a crushed peach, right?)

5. Needs to show off more confidence. (One great reminder!)

6. Needs to follow-up bills. (Included in my job description)

7. Needs to prepare payroll. (Payday na naman!)

8. Needs at least 14-15% of sugar. (Yeah, I never got tired of eating sweets)

9. Needs supreme care….(You gotta take care of me gently & tenderly. No excessive bruising, please?)

10. Needs no adornment. (Accesory addict no more! Just bags, and slip-ons, and clothes, haha!)

11. Needs to meet with friends.

12. Needs to re-appraise life.

13. Needs to buy a nice book.

14. Needs to slow down on coffee intake & cut down on salts.

15. Needs to be fearless, bold & liberal-minded at times...

16. Like a fish, I sometimes need to find a peaceful, quiet place in which to hide.

17. Demands attention, affection, love, support & reassurance.

18. Needs to pray. (Need I say more? He wants me to be still & believe that He's just there, waiting patiently for my call...)

On Quarter-Life Crisis

"When I had journey half of our life's way, I found myself within a shadowed forest, for I had lost the path that does not stray." Dante

A mid-life crisis is an emotional state of doubt and anxiety in which a person becomes uncomfortable with the realization that life is halfway over. It commonly involves reflection on what the individual has done with his or her life up to that point, often with feelings that not enough was accomplished. The individuals experiencing such may feel boredom with their lives, jobs, or their partners, and may feel a strong desire to make changes in these areas. The condition is also called the beginning of individuation a process of self-actualization that continues on to death.

Often characterized by the following:

1. confusion of identity
2. insecurity regarding the near future
3. insecurity regarding present accomplishments
4. re-evaluation of close interpersonal relationships
5. disappointment with one's job
6. nostalgia for college life
7. tendency to hold stronger opinions
8. boredom with social interactions
9. financially-rooted stress
10. loneliness

A central issue in the lives of young adults is the anxiety and anticipation of a "mid-life transition" as they enter middle adulthood.

Arguably, this ‘transition’ is for many a ‘crisis’ since its means undergoing a time of struggle and a feeling of being struck down by life.

The period of middle-age is the time when adults take new responsibilities & therefore often feel a need "reappraise previous life structures with an eye to making revisions while there is still time."

For some, it represents a time of rebellion & turmoil caused by the stresses of life.

The term of "mid-life crisis" was originally coined by Jaques (1965) who claimed that people encounter a crisis as they realize their own mortality and a change in time frame from "time since birth" to "time left to live."





The Quarter-Life Crisis ~~ Author Unknown


It is when you stop going along with the crowd and start realizing that there are a lot of things about yourself that you didn't know and may or may not like. You start feeling insecure and wonder where you will be in a year or two, but then get scared because you barely know where you are now.

You start realizing that people are selfish and that, maybe, those friends that you thought you were so close to aren't exactly the greatest people you have ever met and the people you have lost touch with are some of the most important ones. What you do not realize is that they are realizing that too and are not really cold or catty or mean or insincere, but that they are as confused as you.

You look at your job. It is not even close to what you thought you would be doing or maybe you are looking for one and realizing that you are going to have to start at the bottom and are scared.
You miss the comforts of college, of groups, of socializing with the same people on a constant basis. But then you realize that maybe they weren't so great after all.

You are beginning to understand yourself and what you want and do not want. Your opinions have gotten stronger. You see what others are doing and find yourself judging a bit more than usual because suddenly you realize that you have certain boundaries in your life and add things to your list of what is acceptable and what is not. You are insecure and then secure. You laugh and cry with the greatest force of your life. You feel alone and scared and confused. Suddenly change is the enemy and you try and cling on to the past with dear life but soon realize that the past is drifting further and further away and there is nothing to do but stay where you are or move forward.

You get your heart broken and wonder how someone you loved could do such damage to you or you lay in bed and wonder why you can't meet anyone decent enough to get to know better. You love someone but maybe love someone else too and cannot figure out why you are doing this because you are not a bad person.

One night stands and random hook ups start to look cheap and getting wasted and acting like an idiot starts to look pathetic. You go through the same emotions and questions over and over and talk with your friends about the same topics because you cannot seem to make a decision.

You worry about loans and money and the future and making a life for yourself and while wining the race would be great, right now you'd just like to be a contender!

What you may not realize is that everyone reading this relates to it. We are in our best of times and our worst of times, trying as hard as we can to figure this whole thing out.


And now, I'm bout to ask...have been to mid-life reappraisal lately?

Please Don't Interrupt Me While I'm Ignoring You!

That's what my shirt says last Friday - 7th of July, 2006. Dan says, "Hey Peaches, I like your shirt, it's cute."

There was a classic EB (as Jar called it) scheduled last Friday & I've agreed to come. It's been ages since I've last attended. I think that was March on Ricko's birthday pool party celebration.

Logged out at work at around 7pm. Dropped by at the chapel first. Sneaked out at bookstore - bought a friendship bookmark. And found some interesting books such as:

1. Life A'la Mode
2. Being Committed
3. Size Does Matter
4. Missing Sanctuary
5. Mine Are Spectacular
6. Ex & The Single Girl
7. The Man Who Fell In Love with His Wife
8. Mates, Dates & Inflatable Bras
9. Never Say Never
10. It's Not Me, It's You - The Ultimate Break-Up Book
11. Why Men Marry Bitches?
12. Mars & Venus on a Date
13. Dress Your Family in Denim & Corduroy
14. Men are Clams, Women are Crowbars

I promised myself to make a necessary purchase when payday comes.

Afterwhich, I strolled down at Emerald Avenue while enjoying my grande choco-latte pearl shake.

When I reached 7-11, Dan, Ricko & Thea were already there. We ate our not so late barbecue dinner at Metrowalk. And headed out to Mini-Stop for our ice cream indulgence.

And then came Relene, she made some kuwento bout her 'baby' and 'its complicated' kind of thing. Not to mention, a tons & tons of pic, huh! Voltz texted that he can't make it anymore since he's stucked at work. Ruby's got her facial schedule. Naman, of all days! We've been texting Chris but to no avail, there hasn't been any single reply from him if he's coming or not. Then Sandy came, pretty in her xoxo & flip-flops.

We went off to Starbuck- Metrowalk afterwards.
The endless conversation bout Dan & Berna.
The menopause & andropause issues.
The 'what you can do & what you can't do for love' thing.
Plus an unnaturally, unenthusiastically silent, migraine-ish me on the side...
It's one helluva evening!
Bet you'll say, 'who could ask for more?'


P.S.
Deanne, Frietz & Jar...miss yah!

P.P.S.
Chris, Ruby & Dong...miss yah too!

Post Migraine Syndrome: Tweedle Doodle, Tweedle Dum & Tweedle Dee

As I recovered from a week's migraine marathon, I started reading Meg Cabot's "The Boy Next Door."

I find it pretty fun, witty & amusing.

It is a romantic comedy done in form of emails between the characters.

The story is about a break-in, mistaken identity, love, friendship and office mayhem.

No wonder, Deanne obliged me to read it in between "The Devil Wears Prada."

Here is where I got my title.

Tweedle Doodle, Dum & Dee are the names of Siamese cats of one of the characters, Helen Friedlander.

Anyways, I got inspired by the main character (Melissa) in one of her emails where she provided their HR Department her detailed whereabouts on full account.

So here's mine:


4:50am Mam Beck sent me a super early morning text but to sleepy to read it.

5:40am Alarm rings. Hit snooze button.

5:50am Alarm rings. Hit snooze button.

6:00am Alarm rings. Hit snooze button

6:10am My bro borrowed my facial moisturizer (can't he buy his own?).

6:15am My first cup of Taster's Choice.

6:30am Stagger to bathroom.

7:00am Head out to bathroom.

7:15am Second cup of coffee while fixin' myself up.

7:40am Put on brown slogan baby tee, black low-rise denims, cat-calling jacket, belt & white slip-ons.

7:45am Accesorized & transferred my stuff to a white & brown fluffy, furry bag.

7:50am Some mascara, bronze eyeshadow & pink blush cheek tint.

7:55am Splash on some cologne, put some lip gloss & voila, off to work!

8:25am MRT - Quezon Avenue Station

8:45am MRT - Ortigas Avenue Station

8:55am Reached office finally!

9:00am My third cup of coffee - it's Maxwell this time.

9:05am Reset internet (server's down).

9:10am Ate breakfast - fried rice & porkchop.

9:15am Opened my YM & yahoo, checked mails.

9:20am Got myself a glass of cold water & opened my friendster account.

9:25am Opened my GT.

9:35am Opened my gmail & digitel one account.

9:40am Sneaked on 'Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus' but apparently got no time to read it at the moment.

9:45am Went to washroom & retouched make-up.

9:50am Finally created my blogspot account.

9:55am Foodman arrived.

10:05am Talked to NZM personnel.

10:12am Followed-up checks.

10:15am Client call.

10:17am Joe's time baby! Lesson for the day: "Letting go is the most profound way of proving your love to someone."

10:28am Arranged archives.

10:35am Print Caltex scripts.

11:10am Print Colgate scripts.

11:20am Back to archives.

12:30pm Ate lunch while Mitch is VO-ing.

2:15pm Followed up check.

2:20pm Outlined my blog.

2:30pm Sent foxy_girlfriend of GT some ebooks.

2:40pm Checked if anyone has replied my posts in GT.

3:00pm Three o'clock habit.

5:00pm Deanne lend me 'Wise Follies' by Grace Wynne - Jones. Wipee, I've got something to read for weekends.

5:45pm My blog's finished! Have a migraine-free, happy & healthy weekend everyone!

Me and My Pink Sky

When the sky turns pink, the rain starts to fall.

I love rain.

It naturally 'cleanses' & 'refreshes.'

Provides life, gives moisture.

It suggests a period of renewal & fertility, reproduction or creativity.

However, dark clouds & heavy downpour indicate feelings of isolation & helplessness.

To some, trials & tribulations.

On the other hand, heavy downpour could represent unconscious materials & emotions, soul experiences attempting to enter our conscious mind.

It's a deeply spiritual symbol representing 'water of life.'

It symbolizes emotions & knowledge.

Water flowing downward thus describes God's way of transmitting His energy to us & represents the conduit through which our material existence & God interact.

The purpose of existence is to create unity between God & us.

The mystique of rain is precisely because of it's dual quality of heaven meeting earth, water meeting land.

Next time you look at raindrops gently fallin' from heaven, blanketing earth in it's embrace, remember that you are witnessing a kiss - the kiss of the Divine & the mundane.