These Days

Last Sunday was Richard's birthday. Although he didn't want to make a big fuss about it, I had to make sure we do something out of the ordinary to remember the day by.  It was serendipitous that Next to Normal, the play I watched in New York, was being adapted in the Manila by Atlantis Productions.  I really liked it and wanted him to see it so I got us tickets a few days before the show.  That was our plan for the afternoon. In the morning, we attended service at Victory Fort. Naka-red! We just had enough time to have lunch and put Neil to bed before leaving for RCBC Plaza to claim the tickets and make sure we were there at the start of the show.   Thanks, Em and Tiara for watching Neil! Photos are not allowed inside the theater so these are all we got... Richard is a decoy in the photo below.=) Can you see Rovilson? Fan mode!  And Audie Gemora is in the frame, too.  Hehe... After the play, we went to Ayala Triangle Gardens to have dinner ...

Last March 19, we went to Cavite and Laguna to visit the properties. First stop was Greenwoods in Dasmarinas.  On the way, we saw this.  It was fiesta in the area so I think this is related to the festivities. I did not take a lot of photos in Greenwoods but here's one that fascinated Neil.  A dead dragonfly that was caught in the curtains.  He was afraid of it at first, but we just left it on the table and eventually, he touched it. On the way to Verdana, we saw this burning house somewhere in Carmona.  We didn't know it was Heart Evangleista's until two days later on TV...  Tragic.  I really can't imagine this kind of loss... It's still a good thing nobody was hurt. We were in Verdana early afternoon.  Visiting the place always refreshes me.  It's beautiful, peaceful and quiet.  A world of difference from the urban jungle that is Makati... It would be a good place to settle in.  The photo below is of our plot.=) At t...

This week has been extra-busy on the home front because Neil started going to Gymboree Kids' Camp.  It's 2.5 hours per session, 3x a week for the next 8 weeks.  We enrolled him because we want him to spend more time with kids his age, and experience a structured learning environment.   They do arts, music, dance, fitness, etc. Ready to go! Inside the car Free play time with daddy In class with mommy Group activity time with teacher   Parachute time He's learning to participate, pay attention, follow instructions and have fun, too.  Glad we made the investment. =)

This, ladies and gentlemen, was our ulam a few days ago.  It has bean sprouts, spinach, tofu, mushrooms and pork.   The most important piece of this post? Neil liked it!  Richard said he ate a lot.  I was at work though so I only heard about it and Rich forgot to take pictures...  I will have to do this again. ~One happy mommy/cook =)

Important lessons learned. Thank you, God for getting me through a tough fortnight at work and for my understanding and supportive family.

Two things that really used to stress me out was menu planning and home-cooking.  I did not start doing them when I got married, but only after Neil was born.  Pre-Neil, Richard and I ate out most of the time.  We would typically have breakfast and lunch at the office, then dinner out.  We justify that it's cheaper that way vs. cooking for two.  Plus, dinner was hangout time with friends typically after playing badminton.  When Neil was born, we knew had to step up the home-cooked meals. We bought a few cookbooks and I started doing the weekly menu and grocery list.  Like I said, this used to be a painful process.  I'd much rather write code in CPLEX.  But I roll up my sleeves and think through the menu for the whole week including planning for groceries.  In the end, it really is easier to plan ahead.  Delayed gratification of sorts.  You are assured that all needed ingredients are available and you just execute the plan the...

Much has been said about the Forever 21 launch in Manila July last year.  I've seen the store in US malls but just never bothered to check out what they have so now that it's here, I might as well check out what all the hype was about.  But the launch has come and gone and I still haven't stepped inside Megamall.  The curiosity may also have dissipated because I've finally been to the store in Orlando, where the only stuff I bought were gloves.  The displays were a mess so it wasn't very inviting. Then yesterday afternoon, we(?) all just decided to go to Forever21.  This trip was also spurred by how dark my closet looked after I hung all the newly-washed clothes from Suds. Black, dark blue, brown, gray. Were all the colors that I see.. And suddenly, I felt the need for color.  And Rich agreed.  Tell me, how many women out there can say their husbands encourage them to go shopping?=)  And he said I should get at least 3 things para sulit ang b...

February 2010 will be remembered as the month when I joined a photo contest (excluding online, "like" contests).  RCBC sponsored the contest in celebration of its 10th year anniversary and tenants were invited to join.  The theme was RCBC: Still Nothing Comes Close. So we knew it had to be shots of the building.  I had about 2 weeks to get the shot.  I actually walked around the building, noticed the details, and studied what might make a good subject.  Then one morning, I looked out the window and saw a guy cleaning the glass ceiling.  I took a picture and although I knew it was not very sharp (lens constraints) I submitted it because I also knew it would stand out just because no one else will have that shot. I was right. =)  The photo below was chosen as one of the finalists.  Happy!  Not bad for a first timer, eh? Thank you, God!   I was not around to see the exhibit at the RCBC lobby though because that was on the same week as ...

Photoshoot.  I really don't like this word. I think it's too America's Next Top Model so I'll use shoot instead.=) A small group of photography enthusiasts at the office decided to do a shoot last Sunday.  This is the same group that organized the first ever shoot I joined in January .  We chose the common areas at the condo as our venue this time around.  While I took care of the venue, the rest contacted people who were willing to model, and do makeup as well.  All pro bono because we were all just practicing.=) What I figured out from the January shoot is that I really like taking portraits.  I like documenting people at specific moments in their life.  I like my pictures to look as natural and unposed as possible, definitely not the highly stylized fashion editorial type. So even though our models were made up for fashion shoots, my photos are still mostly portraits and I gravitate towards the ones where they are not doing the model face. ...

Tony Hsieh is the CEO of Zappos , the leading online retailer of what started out as shoes, but now includes clothing and other lifestyle goods.  The company has differentiated itself from the endless mass of online retailers by putting the customers first and delivering excellent service with each transaction.  I heard about Zappos a few years ago, when an Intel colleague forwarded an article about the company... I have kind of followed their progress from afar.  I have seen the website, but since I was simply browsing, I did not experience the kind of customer service the company has been lauded for. Now on to the book... This book was one of the giveaways from the Americas Sales and Marketing conference in February.  During one of the general sessions, the case study presented was on Zappos.  What a treat it would have been if Tony was there to speak (which he did in last years Americas Investors' Conference in Las Vegas)!  What we got was a video pr...