remembering this today on 3 March 2020


there is always something to celebrate, be grateful for...

fun times with family and Filipino food while we were home away from home =)

remembering this day on 10 March 2020

It might be sunny but the weather is very cold. Or I might not just be used to it. I was even told that I'm dressed for winter weather. LOL.

Happy to spend the day with my loved ones =)

View of San Diego from the Cabrillo Monument

fiery red skies

What a fine view of a fiery red sky downtown late in the afternoon....

P.S. I just remembered one book that I like to read over and over - it describes a world where red skies mean a violation committed in the world beyond life...

good morning breakfast

So happy to be back at Oceanside after almost a year. And I was brought to a really nice place where they offer our kind of breakfast. So happy this morning.

Funny thing, though. When the waitress arrived with our food, she immediately placed the heavier breakfast in front of him while mine was the lighter one. I just really had to comment (jokingly) if that really means I cannot eat a hearty breakfast? She was apologetic and asked if she placed the orders wrong. We said if was fine and after she left, exchanged our plates.

remembering this day on 5/24/2019

hello, there!

we finally arrived and taking things slowly as our parents are in jetlagged mode. i think i am, too. my one of many wishes for this trip though is for me not to have an allergic attack. i am not sure if the meds my doctor prescribed to me are enough to last me until we go home... but anyways...

we are here and we are so glad to meet the newest member of our family and she is adorable!

our parents are just so in love and i don't think we can take her away from them for a while... unless they're overtaken by their sleepiness ;)

one of the first few things we did today was to show our parents what a pumpkin patch looks like. we headed to one patch near the house and its so worth it to see everyone enjoying and having a great time. of course, we took plenty of pictures to remember this first time for our parents...

maybe we will do pumpkin carving next time

written on 14/04/2019 to remember this date by

just an observation

after almost twelve hours of travel, we finally reached LAX. my mother was kinda apprehensive while on queue for the immigration and customs check because the officers were so (not strict, because we can understand strict)... unfriendly? (not in the job description)... maybe the words i can think of right now are abrupt and unaccommodating. we can see people asking questions so they can answer the questions in the machine properly, but most of them would just bellow, "read!" to my mother who only traveled this first time, it can be pretty daunting. but the customs officer was nice and spoke in a mellow tone. i wish everyone would be like that. one can do work efficiently without screaming at other people (feels like one is making others feel worse). imagine having traveled for more than twelve hours and when you arrive at your destination, you get bellowed at. but then again, not part of their job description to be nice (but i think being human, one is expected to be kind and helpful).

written on 14/04/2019 to remember the date by

on to the next leg

so my parents were so impressed with the size, cleanliness, and huge serving of food (with side dishes) at the incheon airport after coming back from our transit tour. inside, i decided to take a shower (because the airport has a shower facility complete with towel, hot shower, and all the things you need to refresh from and for a long journey). my father did not believe me and decided only to freshen up. when i was done, i was surprised that they were not out yet and my mother told me later that my father was so impressed with the space of the shower room that it made him comfortable to take a shower in a public area. i am so glad my parents could experience this.

my parents were also happy to see a short cultural show and hoped that one day, they could also witness the same in our own airports. it was just an exhibit of korean culture and for first time travelers like my parents, it was a good showcase of what one can expect from korea.

so see, airplane food isn't that bad - i liked the olive oil/balsamic vinegar dip. i didn't know that they can come in small packages =)

written on 2/5/2019 to remember things by

first autumn

... of my parents.

they were just so impressed with the colors south korea had shown them while on a free tour during our long layover at incheon (we visited the jeondeungsa temple and deokjinjin fortress). even though they cannot understand half of what the guide was saying, but their interest was peaked by the structures and very colorful trees. it was also their first time to see a persimmon (mine as well!) and they can't get over how the tree was leafless but the fruits were flourishing.

great first experience for my parents (and I), right? =)

my father could not help but ask me everytime to take his pictures and then calling my mother to have theirs together as well. they were so cute - even holding hands while going up the hill. that right right, at that moment, is a relationship goal.

ps my parents even liked airline food! =) but i must say, having traveled on that airline a couple of times, i can say that their food is actually good.

written on 2/5/2019 to remember things by (Kung Hei Fat Choi!)

off to a new adventure

... this time with my parents!

so happy to be able to bring them to their first international travel, to be able to have this time to enjoy each others' company while we all still can... i am grateful.

it was even cool to see my mother, for the very first time, wear a pair of comfortable sneakers in shade of pink =P

written on 2/5/2019 to remember things by

more time

I can't help but wish that there should be more hours in a day so I can do all the things I want and still be able to get enough sleep. As it is, I just realized (after making a 24-hour graph of my weekday activities) that I only have about three hours in one day as personal relaxation time! An with that personal time, I would have wanted to do a lot: garden, bake, try a new recipe, do or learn crafts, read a book, listen to music, watch tv, play on my xbox, exercise, and most especially, time to spend with my family. How I wish that my waiting and commute time be lessened to a more reasonable time. My commute to the office with no traffic should only be 45 minutes at most and waiting time should be zero. Oh well. How I wish I can maximize my time (I read, watch shows while on commute but that does not count as personal time but just whiling away time) and be more productive!

PS And as I write this, I am waiting for our meeting to start.

travel videos

So I had been thinking about this a long time - making videos of my travel pictures so I can share it with others. I was inspired to do some after seeing my cousin's really beautiful videos.

I started doing some through Windows 10 photo app but it is so limited with its editing options. The old Windows Movie Maker is so much better! However, I am not an expert so I am glad for its theme options and click and drag functionality. But I how I wish I can do more, especially with adding texts with animations.

I tried the free movie maker, Shotcut, and it looks easy to do after watching its basics tutorial. It will take up much time to master though and time is what I do not have for this activity. And I just realized, with these types of software (okay, app), I need to know about music! I should know about music that goes well with what I want to show. Omy! I just realized that editing is too much work and I am in awe of those who do this.

So for now, I am glad of the super basic theme-based movies I made.

I hope you enjoy this one!

reflections

Lately, I have been feeling a little down because of what's been happening at this point in my life. It feels like there are a lot more disappointments than good things going my way. But when I reflect on it, I know and I believe, always, that when bad things happen, it is because there will be something better. Maybe not in terms of the things I really want in the first place, but of things that is actuall good for me. I will just have to be patient and let God. Always, let go, and let God.

Sometimes, when I think of the things not going my way lately, I think of some stuff that brings out the rebel in me. I accept then, that I am a bad person for thinking about things and people in a bad way, but I always try to accept and still show a positive attitude towards other people who are making progress more than me. Maybe I am a fake person? But then again, I just don't want them to feel bad just because I feel bad. I just want to be positive always.

In all these reflections, I just try to let go, and not worry about things I have no control over. Things will fall into place (though it sounds so cliche). I will just have faith in God and let his miracle work on me.

Amen.

PS So I have a new software that makes me able to create short videos of my past travels. Nothing fancy but it makes me happy. So when I feel overwhelmed, I just face the screen and create a new video. Maybe I should post some here?

Years ago, someone called me persistent.

I guess, I am.

I will not budge, until I get the answer I want.

I will call you, text you, remind you, until you give me a reply.

I will insist, until you say yes (or no).

So yes, I guess, I am persistent.