Plastic or Paper?

More and more people are getting more aware of the impact of our day to day activities to our environment.  This is more evident in the new ordinances that some of the cities here in the Philippines have put into effect.  Like now, in Las Piñas City, when you go to the malls or groceries, they don't use plastic bags anymore.  Your purchases will be placed in paper bags or you bring your own recyclable bags.  At first, like most new things, it can be quite a hassle, specially if you forgot to bring your own bag and you have to commute carrying all your purchases in brown paper bags without handles.  But once you get used to it, and you think of how in your own little way, you have contributed to helping save our planet, then it definitely is worth the effort!

Temper

As a child (until I was in my early adult years), I have been known to succumb to the occasional temper tantrums.  Although, of course, they were much less often as I grew older.  I am not known for my patience but rather for the lack of it.  When I gave birth to my first child, my son, Adam, my friends and family told me that I was going to have to learn to be more patient and that there always has to be room for compromise.  They were right.  Specially now that Adam is already about to turn 3 years old and I have a newborn to take care of, being a mommy also means being a negotiator, a nurse, a playmate and a teacher.  All the said occupations require a certain amount of patience and understanding.  I cannot just lose my temper.  I cannot just launch into a shouting session or be angry at my kids.  Even as a wife, I have learned to control the sudden surge of emotions that come with not getting things to go the way you plan it.  Life just doesn't work that way.

Fresh

Since we are still at the beginning of 2012, I've decided to start fresh... at home, I have rearranged our bedroom furniture, bought new bedsheets and curtains (that compliment each other) and did a bit of general cleaning.  I even went as far as sorting the clothes in our closets.  I have "thrown out" those that we have not worn for quite some time either because they don't fit us anymore or we have just worn them out.  I still haven't touched our living areas yet since I plan on buying new furniture for that by summer, but there was still some "clean-up energy" left so I decided to rearrange my workplace also.  Of course I wouldn't be able to finish this in one work day because I still have to entertain clients that come to the office and there's just too much paperwork to be organized, but so far, so good!  My office table has been moved to a more favorable position and the sofa that serves as the waiting area for my clients (if I have more than one at a time) has also been placed better.  I'm lucky that I have my own office so that I don't have to take into consideration what my officemate would want instead of my preference.  My other co-workers were just surprised when they entered my office today but the general consensus is that the new arrangement is much more pleasing to the eye as well as more effective and dynamic.

Don't Quit

I just want to share this poem I found in a ceramic decor in my mom's house...

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,

And many a failure turns about,

When he might have won had he stuck it out;

Don't give up though the pace seems slow--

You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,

It seems to a faint and faltering man,

Often the struggler has given up,

When he might have captured the victor's cup,

And he learned too late when the night slipped down,

How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out--

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are,

It may be near when it seems so far,

So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--

It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

I Want A New Look!

Lately I have been browsing the net for a new layout for my blog... I guess I'm just irritated that my header image doesn't show anymore... But really, I want something less cluttered-looking and simple. Any suggestions as to where I could find a suitable layout for my blog? I would still like to retain the butterfly theme or maybe just add a simple butterfly picture in the header in keeping with the title "Winged Words". Help! I really want to have a new and cleaner look for my blog really soon!

The New Do

As always, I am late in posting this... but sometime in April I had a haircut (actually more of just a trim than a haircut) and here's the result:

Not much difference no? hehehe! Anyways, since it's been a while since my last Saturday Self-Portrait, this would have to do muna.

Global Business Etiquette Seminar

Normally, I would cringe at the thought of yet another seminar to attend... and yes, when we were informed that we were to attend an "Etiquette Seminar" I felt like, it was just going to be a waste of time because I felt like I knew how to act in the office already. Besides, most of our clients are "masa" anyway so I really didn't feel the urge to attend seminars that includes "fine dining etiquette" in the program. One more thing, the secondary appeal of a seminar, aside from it's topic and how it would affect you is the venue... And when we were told it was going to be in a conference hall in Ortigas, I thought, "how boring", couldn't they have chosen a hotel or somewhere scenic? But I'm really glad I attended, it was refreshingly informative and enjoyable at the same time. Our speaker, Ms. Valerie Cruz-Tapalla held her audience's (that's me, including 57 others) attention quite well. Her wit coupled with her being blunt was surprisingly the antidote for an otherwise boring subject. I mean, it really isn't rocket science, most of the subject we tackled there, we already studied during social graces class in college, but in terms of being reminded that times really have changed and you might not be changing in time to cope with the recent globalization of everything, it was quite an eye-opener. And it didn't even matter that we were not in a hotel or an idyllic resort or whatever... It was the topic that was engaging and the speaker who mattered the most. For me, if the seminar's objective was to show employees - be they in the government or in private companies that there is more to etiquette than just social gatherings or dealing with the elite. It is so much more! But what struck me the hardest was the realization that most working Filipinos, regardless of whether they belong to the group of employees or that of employers, practice working ethics based on customs and traditions that we, Filipinos have grown up with. It is but fitting that we update these practices to make us more globally competitive. Even the simple act of shaking hands could make or break one's impression of a business colleage or client. Besides, now I can brag about being an Emily Post Global Business Etiquette certificate-holder!

I enjoyed the seminar so much that I checked out the Wilma Cruz-Tapalla website for other similarly useful seminars or classes. Hopefully, I would be able to attend another soon... now I'm sounding like this is a paid advertisement of their academe, hehehe! But really, if you like to improve your working etiqutte, or even if you just want to attend a seminar or personality development, you should check out their site.

Mid-week Update

First of all, let me just say that it's good to be back... back to blogging I mean. I don't have a computer at home anymore because my trusty PC turned out not so Trusty anymore so it had to be hauled out of the house and into the computer museum (hehehe! I've had it since... hey, I can't even remember when!) Then our internet connection at the office is still non-existent (the antenna thingie as misaligned during the storm and no one has showed up yet to fix it) so now I am here at my parents' house so I could check my e-mail and sneak in a post or two while helping my sister with her school project.

Parlor Day

To take my mind off the the procedure that I was about to go through, I went to the Salon with my sisters... They had their hair cut and hair spa, while I had a foot spa and pedicure. Major sister bonding kasi afterwards, we ate at McDonald's and then super kwentuhan pa.

Hysterosalpingography

Hey, it's quite a mouthful to say that word but it's even harder to experience the procedure. First of all, boy was it painful! Grabe! You don't even know how to react pag nandun na... But I don't want to recall the sordid details of the procedure itself but the good result... My fallopian tubes aren't blocked so by Sunday this week, my doctor would be giving me new medications for to help us conceive. Yey!

Mall of Asia

Ok, so I was in pain and all but that didn't stop me from visiting this much talked about humongous mall. I didn't have the fortitude to make the rounds of the whole establishment but from what I saw, I would definitely come back for more, hehehe! Shopping galore for sure! I will have to choose a time when certain parts of my body aren't aching from a very recent procedure!

Could I be more in-love?

Yesterday, I stayed home all day and only got up from Bed for trips to the toilet... I still had aftershocks from the procedure... Actually major cramps... maybe because I didn't have medications anymore for the pain? Anyway, I felt crummy all day and when Charlie got home from work, he found me in bed, un-bathed, hair all messed up and the last time I brushed my teeth was that morning pa! yuck! Anyway, he was about to kiss me the usual "honey, i'm home" kiss but I refused, saying that I felt yucky, nakakahiya magpa-kiss (hehehe!) but charlie stood up and then out of the blue sang:

BEAUTIFUL IN MY EYES (Joshua Kadison)
You’re my piece of mind, in this crazy world You’re every thing I've tried to find Your love is a pearl You’re my Mona Lisa You’re my rainbow skies And my only prayer is that you realize You'll always be beautiful in my eyes...
The world will turn And the seasons will change And all the lessons we will learn Will be beautiful and strange We'll have our fell of tears Our share of sight My only prayer is that you realize You'll always be beautiful in my eyes...
You will always be beautiful in my eyes And the passing is the show That you will always grow Ever more beautiful in my eyes
And there are lines upon my face From a life time of smiles When the time comes to embrace For one long last wine We can laugh about how time really flies We won’t say goodbye ‘Cause true love never dies You'll always be beautiful in my eyes...
You will always be beautiful in my eyes And the passing is the show That you will always grow Ever more beautiful in my eyes
The passing is the show That you will always grow Ever more beautiful in my eyes...

...melted my heart right then and there...

(there were supposed to be pictures with this post but it seems something is wrong with I don't know what... natatapos mag-upload and I click the "done" button pero walang picture na lumalabas! well, I guess I would have to wait a different day to do that!)