I am thankful for so much I’m afraid if I list down everything I wouldn’t be able to stop.  But I will take a chance, here I go…

Family – people I didn’t choose but fit wonderfully.  Could be dysfunctional at times, makes me tear my own hair out but I know would stick with me forever.

Friends -  old and new; the reason for all the drama in the world! J Those I specifically picked and those that I have gracefully stumbled upon in this wacky lifetime.  All of them I chose.

Hugs – it’s the best thing in the world. You need it to celebrate and when you feel sad.

The seemingly mundane stuff of everyday life that makes it sweet and worth it:

©       Oldfriends.newfriends

©       phonecalls with clang

©       maldita thoughts with my girls

©       venting sessions with Z over YM

©       ym conferences

©       lifestories of people i get to share or listen to

©       conversations that left me thinking

©       pjtime with noel

©       Chat with Bianca

©       marlon’s dancing prowess

©       gracie’s incredible jokes

©       decisions I make and will be making in the future

©       pictures and the memories they represent

©       books.

©       Prayers

©       Owen time sa dating tagpuan

©       Laugh – the regular and the ‘till you cry type.

©       Mcdonalds

©       Starbucks chocolate cake

©       Salcedo Park

©       BM duties

©       Elite meets

©       Twitter and Facebook and Multiply and Tumblr

©       School and all the craziness involved in it

©       Lovebug

©       Gmail

©       Lamierda time

©       Movie dates with sibs

©       Silly songs for silly episodes of my life

©       ASAP.Ellen.GG.Glee.Brothers andSisters.How I Met Your Mother.

©       Cat/power naps

©       Trials/Tests – whether I passed with flying colors or miserably failed

©       Taylor Swift’s ‘you wear high heels, I wear sneakers, she’s cheer captain and I’m on the bleachers”

©       Tristan and Anne’s seldom messages and invite to have dinner or go drinking

©       One for the road sessions

©       Routines

©       Familiarity of Chucks

©       AMAZING Internet and Technology

©       SMS and MMS

©       Running water, indoor plumbing and airconditioning

©       Cyber high-five and rolling-eyes and hugging emoticons

©       heart-to-heart’s

©       confessions that warmed my heart

©       hirits

©       fan – for wind effex

©       cute notebooks and pens

©       original Pringles

©       bookstores

©       stars

©       random acts of kindness

quote-unquote

“Friends are people that touch your heart. You could spend hours with them doing nothing at all and it can be the best time of your life, just because it was with them. They’re the people you can share your secrets with, cry with, laugh with, and just have fun with. They don’t judge you or make you change. They accept you exactly as you are.You all share something in common and are tied together by memories, tears, laughs and smiles. Friendship is the strangest but greatest thing in the world. I find my time with my friends the best times of my life.”

Quote-Unquote

“Life changes every minute of every day. You lose friends. You gain friends. You realize your friend wasn’t ever really your friend, and that person you used to hate can make a really good friend. You look for love. You find love. You lose love. You realize all long that you’ve been loved. You laugh. You cry. You laugh so hard that you cry. You do this, you do that. You really wish you hadn’t done that. You then learn from that and are glad that you did. You have your ups. You have your downs. You see good movies. You see bad movies. You wonder if your life is just one big movie. You look at others and wish you were them. You then realize who they are and are glad that you’re you. You love life. You hate life. In the end, you just find yourself happy to be living life.”



I read it in one of the tumblrs i follow and loved it! :)

missing

Dear Clang and Z,

I should be working on my 2 case studies as I write this, but as usual am too tamad to do it.  I miss you both more everyday .  I do. I miss everything we do together.  All of it.  I miss preshift moviedates and aftershift mall adventures.  I miss our conversations from serious to crazy stuff.  The way we would laugh about everything, and i mean everything. Madita thoughts and what-would-you-do-if-you-win-the-lotto lists.  I miss text messages of lines from books we are currently reading and sharing new nail polish with each other.

  Things are fine but i guess i just really miss you.  Hugs! Ahlabshoons!

breathehope

dum spiro spero

i learned this latin phrase this week and luvluvluv it!

Our Lessons in Life

Tagged by Sunny in Facebook.  :)

I've learned that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.

I've learned that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.

I've learned that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. The same goes for true love.


I've learned that you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.

I've learned that you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.

I've learned that you can keep going long after you can't.

I've learned that we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.

I've learned that either you control your attitude or it controls you.

I've learned that regardless of how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, the passion fades and there had better be something else to take its place.


I've learned that sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.

I've learned that just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.

I've learned that maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them, and less to do with how many years you have lived.

I've learned that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.


I've learned that no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your grief.

I've learned that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.

I've learned that just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do love each other.

I've learned that you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change your life forever.

I've learned that two people can look at the same thing and see something totally different.

I've learned that your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.

I've learned that even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you you will find the strength to help.

I've learned that credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.

I've learned that the people you care about most in life are sometimes taken from you too soon.

I've learned that you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is be someone who can be loved. The rest is up to them.

I've learned that no matter how much I care, some people just don't care back.

I've learned that it takes years to build up trust, and only seconds to destroy it.

I've learned that it's not what you have in your life but who you have in your life that counts.

I've learned that learning to forgive takes practice.


I've learned that there are people who love you dearly, but just don't know how to show it.

I've learned that it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.

Just a quick note today

i have been having really good weeks lately and am thankful. :)

really thankful.

friends, they are the family we choose.

thankful for friends. Old and New.

good conversations, those that we would remember years from now.

Hirits. Yung funny and those that make me roll my eyes.

routines.  ilovethem.

thankyou. thankyou.

inmyhead

I have so much I want to write about.  Things that happened and things I realized.

But for some reason I just couldn’t find the right words, or make all the thoughts come together.

And so, I leave you with this picture.

Ilikeit

kinda draws a picture of whats in my head..

at least some of it.

hahaha.

Breakfast with my dear crazy katlin

Our planned breakfast after shift turned to be an all afternoon event.  We ate breakfast from 8a to about 11a.  Chika to death about everything and everybody.. kung hindi pa cguro kame binantayan ng waiter sa pancake house baka d pa kame umalis. Ü  We went to our very favorite store ever - National (greenbelt) then Powerbooks then National again (Glorietta) then BookSale.

Eksena sa powerbooks:
"stop reading those self help books.  It makes you look like sad. Unhappy and desperate!" - KAye.  Only her!  I had to answer back - "its not even self help! Mygawd." which she gave an answer of just a "yeah right" look. (sooo Katlin)

We came across the amazing "BOOK OF ANSWER".  Highschool pa lng pinagnanasaan na namen ni Kaye toh..
G: how much?
K: 700p
G: pa din? hellooo high school pa lng 700 na yan!
K: I know
G: lets ask a question...
K: cge! what should we ask?
G:(gave a meaningful look)
K: okay. (mumbled)
Book of answer: Learn more about it.
K: whaaaaaaaaaaaa
G: it doesnt mean anything...
K: it doesnt mean anything ka ngayon eh ikaw nagsabing magtanong! (SHEMPRE IN A PASIGAW VOICE)
G: hahahah
K: wag ka tumawa...

CLASSIC quotes from that day:

K: Gi, be sure na ayucin mo pkikinig sa instructions ni Andrew ha.  Hindi ung tipong oo ka pero pag-nagusap tayo, "ay Kaye i forgot". Nakooo.  I know you!

Txt from Jho: Have fun girls. DONT FORGET TO TALK ABOUT ME ha. I'll sleep na. Ikain nyo na lng ako..

K: hay nako G.. ampanget nya!
G: wahahaha

G: shet 330p na..
K: oo nga, sabi natin bfast lng.  Andaldal mo kace eh!
G: oo nga. ako lng kce ang panay kwento.

Before going home, we had to eat in MCdo.  Gutom na naman sha..kasalanan ko nanaman kce nanghina sha sa sagot ng mahiwagang book of answers!  Shempre mega chisms na naman.  Naalala pa namen ang P5 ice cream cone na pinagkaguluhan sa Mcdo UN (JHO do you remember?)  The entire time that we're together wala kame ginawa kundi mag-chika.  We started the visit with chismis and shempre ended it with chismis.  We reminisced and laughed and shempre nanlait c Katlin! hahaha.  Tpos 4p na pala.  May shift pa kame.  I had such a good time.

She's her and I'm me.  Sometimes I tend to forget who I am and what am all about, then i talk to Kaye and I remember.

To celebrate growing old

I think its only appropriate to re-post this as I just turned 26 and feel so mature! Hahaha.  I super love this list.

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio
“To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I’ve ever written.”


1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won’t take care of you when you’re sick. Your friends & family will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.
12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, and wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ‘In five years, will this matter?’
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone for everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

i've learned

By Omer B. Washington

I’ve learned that you cannot make someone love you.
All you can do is be someone who can be loved.
The rest is up to them.
I’ve learned that no matter how much I care,
some people just don’t care back.
I’ve learned that it takes years to build up trust
and only seconds to destroy it.
I’ve learned that it’s not what you have in your life
but who you have in your life that counts.
I’ve learned that you can get by on charm for about fifteen minutes.
After that, you’d better know something.

I’ve learned that you shouldn’t compare yourself
to the best others can do,
but to the best you can do.
I’ve learned that it’s not what happens to people,
It’s what they do about it that matters.
I’ve learned that no matter how thin you slice it,
there are always two sides.
I’ve learned that you should always talk to loved ones with loving words.
It may be the last time you’ll see them.
I’ve learned that you can keep going
long after you think you can’t.

I’ve learned that heroes are the people who do what has to be done
When it needs to be done,
regardless of the consequences.
I’ve learned that there are people who love you dearly,
but just don’t know how to show it.
I’ve learned that sometimes when I’m angry I have the right to be angry,
but that doesn’t give me the right to be cruel.
I’ve learned that true friendship continues to grow even over the longest distance.
Same goes for true love.
I’ve learned that just because someone doesn’t love you the way you want them to doesn’t mean they don’t love you with all they have.

I’ve learned that no matter how good a friend is,
they’re going to hurt you every once in a while
and you must forgive them for that.
I’ve learned that it isn’t always enough to be forgiven by others.
Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.
I’ve learned that no matter how bad your heart is broken,
the world doesn’t stop for your grief.
I’ve learned that our background and circumstances may influence who we are,
but we are responsible for who we become.
I’ve learned that just because two people argue, it doesn’t mean they don’t love each other.
And just because they don’t argue, it doesn’t mean they do.

I’ve learned that sometimes you have to put the individual
ahead of their actions.
I’ve learned that no matter the consequences,
those who are honest with themselves go farther in life.
I’ve learned that your life can be changed in a matter of hours
by people who don’t even know you.
I’ve learned that even when you think you have no more to give,
when a friend cries out to you,
you will find the strength to help.

I’ve learned that writing,
as well as talking,
can ease emotional pains.
I’ve learned that the people you care most about in life
are taken from you too soon.
I’ve learned that it’s hard to determine where to draw the line between being nice
and not hurting people’s feelings and standing up for what you believe.
I’ve learned to love
and be loved.



*from justbesplendid

It's official.

My Certificate of Matriculation was printed today.. and so my dear friends I am officially back in school!  Woohoo!   I scratched number 5 and added a few more to my list for the year. J


finish SCP
learn a new language
learn to cook with friends
watch Lloydy movie- UGENT!
go back to school
November target with Chai
watch ASAP live
Boracay with co-BMs and DB
 
I told Noel kinakabahan ako to start school again. Kinakabahan ako but its good kaba. J

rain.people.life.

It’s been raining really hard.  It would have been wonderful, except I don’t like rain.  Then, I read this and the rain isn’t such a problem. ♥



“ Sometimes it’s easy to feel like you’re the only one in the world who’s struggling, who’s frustrated, or unsatisfied, or barely letting by. But that feeling’s a lie. And if you just hold on, just find the courage to face it all for another day, someone or something will find you and make it all okay. Because we all need a little help sometimes. Someone to help us hear the music in the world, to remind us that it won’t always be this way. That someone is out there. And that someone will find you.



You ever look a picture of yourself, and see a stranger in the background?. It makes you wonder how many strangers have pictures of you. How many moments of other peoples life have we been in. Were we a part of someone’s life when their dream came true or were we there when their dream died. Did we keep trying to get in? As if we were somehow destined to be there or did the shot take us by surprise. Just think, you could be a big part of someone elses life, and not even know it



 Every once in a while people step up, they rise above themselves. Sometimes they surprise you, and sometimes they fall short. Life is funny sometimes, it can push pretty hard, but if you look close enough you find hope in the words of children, in the bars of a song and in the eyes of someone you love. And if you’re lucky, and if you’re the luckiest person on this entire planet, the person you love decides to love you back.”  Nathan Scott, One Tree Hill

a picture

I don’t know why, but I just love this picture! J
For a second, I thought I know exactly what she’s feeling.
I could almost imagine the millions of stuff running through her head.

now when i complain.. i think.. lemonade!

This week has been pretty good.  Really good.  Noel sent something that really made sense. Reading it, I realized that I complain a lot.  I know that I complain about walking, sa init, sa pagod.  I mean, I complain about stuff that most people complain about.  Haaaay.  Sometimes, I just couldn’t help it.  Although I would always count my blessings at the end of the day, I realized that I could cut back on bitching. J

Today at Mcdo..
Gian:  can I eat?
Noel:  yes.
Gian:  hmmm.. sawa na ko Mcdo..
Noel:  G, think lemonade
Gian:  lemonade.. lemonade.. lemonade.. J


I have been reminded that I am blessed and that I have so much to really be grateful and gracious about.  IMMA MAKE LEMONADE!



so here is a part of that email:

Life Is a Gift

Today before you say an unkind word - Think of someone who can't speak..

Before you complain about the taste of your food - Think of someone who has nothing to eat.

Before you complain about your husband or wife - Think of someone who's crying out to GOD for a companion.

Today before you complain about life - Think of someone who died too early on this earth.

  

Before you complain about your children - Think of someone who desires children but they're barren.

Before you argue about your dirty house someone didn't clean or sweep - Think of the people who are living in the streets.

  

Before whining about the distance you drive Think of someone who walks the same distance with their feet.

  

And when you are tired and complain about your job - Think of the unemployed, the disabled, and those who wish they had your job.

But before you think of pointing the finger or condemning another - Remember that not one of us is without sin.

  

And when depressing thoughts seem to get you down - Put a smile on your face and think: you’re alive and still around..

Do you ever feel

...like you’re losing grip on a part of your life when you’re finally able to get another part of it under control and you’re all happy about it?

I always feel that.  Sometimes, when everything starts to go okay, I find myself uneasy. Anxious and kind of wondering which part will fall apart next.

Why do you think that is?  Am just wondering...

Sobrang init grabe! ..I think my brain is already fried.

Words

Been thinking alot about words lately. how powerful they are.  How beautiful it can be if chosen carefully and grouped with the right kind.  How easily it can be misinterpreted and how deeply it can hurt.

CERULEAN, GRUNGE, PERIWINKLE, FINICKY, and CONVICTION are just some of my favorite words.  Conviction seems so serious and personal while Periwinkle is so whimsical.  Finicky sounds interesting and grunge sounds too cool to me. hehehe.  I like how cerulean rolls out of my mouth when i say it.

I dont like the word hate and indifferent.  The first one is too harsh while the other seems too blah. hahaha.

But of all the words, I think WHOLEHEARTED is the one i love most.   I just like it.  It sounds so positive and happy.  It sounds good too.  Wholehearted. Makes me smile.

So, what would be your favorite or not so favorite word? :P

Ways to Know if You're Growing Up

One of my favorite blogs to read is The Wild and Wily Ways of a Brunette Bombshell.  In her archives, she posted an entry entitled 9 ways I know I'm growing uP.  It Caught my attention because the first one was, 1. I've given up soda. Not entirely, but almost.  I love it.  I shared this with a friend who also liked the post and asked me what would be my 9 ways. As usual it made me think.  Wala akong maisip kahit isa.  I’m resigned to the idea that I may not be grown up yet.  I have a lot more growing up to do I guess.  A LOT MORE!

But this wonderful friend that I have amazingly wrote his 9 Ways in less than 6 mins.  Grabe noh?!  After he finishes typing his answers isa lang ang nasabi ko: shet grown-up ka na nga!  With his permission.. Instead of mine, I am posting HIS 9 Ways he knows he's growing up.

1. I become more realistic than idealistic
2. I become less self-conscious
3. I only mind people who matter
4. I learn to forgive
5. I let go of my convictions if I'm given a more logical reason to believe otherwise
6. I gave up my vices- soda, cigs, pork, beef.  Meaning I live a lot healthier with proper diet and exercise
7.  I spend less on clothes and more on things that will enrich my experience like traveling
8. I earn more and get to share more
9. I laugh at my old self and realize how I like what I have become over the years.

And so.. while I type this, hindi pa rin ako nakakaisip but I am not  in a hurry.  I wish i could answer the question as fast as he can.  Pero hindi I can't eh.  Not yet, i guess.  But It'll come to me.  I know it.

mygirls

our very first picture together. 

after teriyaki boy in Glorietta.

Our mall. 

First day today.

Wasn't as bad as i expected it to be.

 pero sad pa din. 

 I missed you girls.

sobra.

hugs.

Self-Portrait

Self-portrait
1. a representation of an artist, drawn, painted, photographed, or sculpted by the artist.
2. a verbal picture or description, especially of a person.

This is pretty much who I am at 25, defined by what I enjoy and what I always have lying around me.  Me in just everyday stuff that I know may be trivial sa iba, but is important to me.  These are not just stuff but symbols that try to characterize who and why and what I am.



Now let me explain why..

I can't leave home without water. Weird, but I always worry what will happen if I'm riding the bus going to or from the office, and I am really really thirsty or masamid ako.. i gotta have water dba? haha

I bought this heart pendant 4 years ago.. its one of the stuff i got for myself with my first pay.  I wear it everyday and I'm glad i got it.  The yabang pinoy band, I really love.  I don't go out without it now.  My first one was given by Clang and I have another by Jen. We all must be proud to be Pinoys. :)

my notebooks! I have loved writing, doodling, scribbling since forever.  I like collecting them.  I always have a notebook at hand.  When i was in HS, Kaye and I have this notebook that we pass back and forth during class.  Pag may nakabasa nun, patay! hahaha. The one on top is the notebook i got with Z and clang, the 2 colorful ones were Old Navy notebooks given to me by Kaye.  I think she got this from the states. and the one with banig cover is my scarpbook.  Filled with notes, receipts and pictures.

these are just some of the movies that i can watch over and over and over.  Some are like super old flicks that still makes me laugh so hard and those that make me cry like a baby.  Although, may nagsabi saken.. na lahat naman iniiyakan ko eh.. which is true. My best friend's wedding is my all time favorite of course.  I still get teary-eyed at the part of the movie when Jules told Michael that she had loved him for 9 god-damned years.  I still go aww when Michael told Jules that he is Crazy Jealous of George. I love Jules. :)  "Creme brulee can never be Jello, YOU can never be Jello." and of course.. White Chicks! hahaha. feeling ko gasgas na dvd ko.

i love books.  These are just a few of my latest acquisition.  I love the feeling of going to a bookstore and finding a good book.  I love the smell of it and i can almost hear the spine crack when you first open it. haha. Weird ba?

now this is patti, my laptop.   I have always wanted to get one in pink and last year i was able to buy it.  When i first saw her, i just knew i have to get her.  it took about 10 mins for me to decide that am getting her. hahaha.  She's pink and pretty.  One of my greatest buys of 2008!  do you like my wallpaper?  I know i do!  I'm inlove with Chuck.  Blair I like too.  GG makes me rush home during Tue mornings.

and of course, Bikoy my phone. I love the fact that i am able to do and keep tons of stuff with it.  make Phone calls and send text messages are the things i always always do.  I love the fact that some of the my year' greatest moment were captured on camera by Bikoy and that 6a everyday, I can listen to Chico and Del and listen to all of my fave mp3s with it too.  I can even check my mail, if patti's unavailable.



"Take the time to come home to yourself every day.  ~Robin Casarjean"