Primum Regnum Dei

"First, the Kingdom of God."

The Latin phrase above is inscribed in my Dad's tombstone. He explained this during his speech when we celebrated their golden wedding anniversary. 

The phrase came to mind because of the flood control corruption issues. I checked Twitter err X just now and majority of the tweets are about it. My Dad explained during his speech that he led his life following the phrase. God first in everything.

My parents both worked hard to provide for us. Growing up they said the only legacy they could leave us is our education and life lessons. At a young age, Mom would always tell me, "What would you do when I'm gone?". She'd say that whenever I'm faced with a learning moment. 

Always pray.

Work hard.

Be disciplined.

Have integrity.

Be honest.

Live simply.

Love your family.

Uphold the truth.

At the end of the day, we all go back to Him and all the earthly stuff you have will be left here. My Dad was really good at it. While going through my childhood home I found very few of his earthly possessions. His treasure were his law books. They are all boxed up now to go to his Alma Mater where he learned about "Primum Regnum Dei".

#BeKind #StaySafe

Have You Ever Joined a Rally?

I'm a genXer, so rallies were pretty common back in the day. The first ones I participated in were the yellow confetti throwing on Ayala Avenue in the early 80s. 

I was 10 years old when my Kuya went to EDSA in 1986. We kept a vigil at home and prayed for his safety and Tito Ben's safety (he was in the military back then). I grew up aware of what's happening. Tito Ed also shared what they did during the Light a Fire Movement. He shared their acts were done to spark awareness and vigilance.

I did a lot of volunteer work in high school and college years. Sometimes it was helping pack goods for donations, oftentimes doing training. I did join some rallies in college, but the biggest one I joined was EDSA Dos. I went with my high school friends and we were there when Vice President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was sworn in to become president.

I think the younger generation today didn't need to have this "skill". They were shielded from having to do protests. Labor groups still do it, and as far as I remember the last biggest anti corruption rally was in 2013 (Million People March). 

I think it's important to bring the online protests to the streets. The percentage of people reading trending posts is just really a small percentage of our population. A rally is simply a gathering to make your point heard and historically usually peaceful in our country. Of course, make sure to get proper permits!

*My health won't allow me to join any physical rallies right now, so I'm taking the prayer warrior route for now. I wrote this post because I was wondering why today's generation isn't out on the streets yet. Maybe able bodies GenXers can provide guidance?

#BeKind #StaySafe

Birthdays Through the Years

I just celebrated a milestone birthday. We just stayed home and ordered some food. Friends sent my favorite Makati Supermart spaghetti, barbecue, and cake all the way from Calea! Woohoo! I felt the love 😘 

I prefer to celebrate at home since that's what I'm used to since I was a child. I found photos from my first birthday on my archive. I couldn't help but giggle because I was seated in top of the dining table. If I did that today it would probably break, haha.

My second birthday was the same.

Eventually, my siblings took charge of my birthday parties. My 13th birthday was hosted by Kuya and Ate Joy.

My 18th birthday was one of my happiest. God gave me the best gift of all, my Miggy.

I don't remember much about my birthdays for the next decade and only found these -

29th

30th, Mom and Dad ordered the cake reminiscent of my first birthday. It was coincidentally my first day at Google.

33rd

My 35th birthday was the last birthday my Dad was still around. I had several get-togethers that year. One, in my childhood home and two separate get togethers for two sets of friends.

I never had a party in McDonald's or Jollibee, but Sweetie' surprised me with one for my 39th birthday.

Things were going well back then and I'm glad I got to celebrate my 40th with a lot of loved ones.

43, in the office.

And a surprise party for my 44th hosted by friends.

*dunno why it's upside down haha

Then the pandemic came. 2020 at home with the Besties (very limited headcount allowed).

I was quite sick in 2021, so it was just me and Sweetie.

Was sick in 2022, so I had a special celebration with a few friends at Chef Tatung's private dining place in 2023.

And back home in 2024 -

And for my 50th (I'm still not very mobile) -

If celebrating was just left up to me, Is probably just order some spaghetti and be done with it. It's my boys and my friends who make my birthdays special. I had different plans for my milestone birthday, but it got derailed. Maybe I can still catch up next month :)

#BeKind #StaySafe

Level-up: Fifty

I spent a gazillion hours going through all my digital photos. It was a good chunk of my life, 30 years + scanned photos from childhood until I got a digicam. I was trying to see if there's a good way to curate 50 years of my life through photos. I selected almost 1,500 photos and realized it's impossible to tell a good story about the 5 decades I've been through. 

50

50

50

Yes, as of 12:15 pm today, I am 50 years old. Time does fly and I had been wracking my brain how best to celebrate this moment. I thought I'd write about life lessons, a chronicle of my life, a run-down of key moments, eras, and Sweetie suggested I write 50 things I'm grateful for. I'm a scatterbrain and I'm cramming this post before we head for bed. 

It's honestly hard to write a good piece when a fourth of your body is in pain. I had planned to have a good celebration. In fact, ten years ago the gaylas said they were going to plan my golden birthday. Things went bad over a month ago, so I told them no party for now. I'm still hopping around the house and will need to see my Ortho. Ugh, bummer. 

Anyway, I'm just grateful for life, my family, the blessings and a new chapter. Faith in God and love will continue to fuel the next chapter and the challenges I will face. Thank you Papa God for everything. 

Happy birthday to me!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Where to Buy Medical Supplies

A few days after my mishap, I knew it will take awhile for my leg to get better. I knew I have to follow the advise of my pulmo therapist and extend my capacity by getting a wheelchair.

I researched where to get one. The ones online are very affordable, but after I read reviews I decided to get it offline. The boys checked Mercury Drug, but they said the wheelchairs were too heavy. I just need one that can be used for traveling since I'm able to walk around the house albeit very slowly.

Someone we rode the elevator with in the hospital said she got her father's wheelchair from a store. I asked because it looked sturdy. I found the same wheelchair from Medical Depot. It seems like a good store since they have many branches across the metro.

After some back and forth with two branches, we decided to visit their branch in Taguig. The store was street level and it was a short walk from the car. They didn't have a PWD friendly entrance, so my boys had to half carry me up a step. 

I got to try what they had available and I got the one I saw from their page. I also got a discount since I had my PWD ID with me. I was happy we were able to have merienda after. Miggy got a cardio workout pushing me around, hehe.

#BeKind #StaySafe

Quilted Bags I Made Through the Years

I haven't been able to sew the past few weeks, so I thought I'd take this chance to look back on the bags I've made through the years. 

I was in high school when my Mom taught me how to quilt. We started with piecing together squares. I got hooked because she said I could make bags out of it. One summer I made these three bags which I used as school bags.

It was two decades later when I started to quilt again. This was when I started to experiment and make different types of bags. All of these were hand sewn.

Made this for Audrey

2016

I also made bags when I started to collect Yoda figures.

2016

2017

Some I made as gifts.

For Carissa 

For Ate Joy

For Shirni

My "make a useful bag era" (still made by hand)

Huge tote, Google colors

Cat experiment 

For Mom

For me

My half-machine, half-handsewn transition era.

With embroidery 

Machine sewing era

For Ms. Myna

For Gab

For Anne

The bag that saved me

I used to just go into making bags blindly (haha), them I discovered books, magazines and YouTube videos. I still have a lot to learn. The last bag I made using Mom's unfinished project saved me from further injury. I'm still hopping around the house and hope I can get back to regular activities soon!

#BeKind #StaySafe

The Drawer of Shame (Managing Clutter)

A few years ago, my neighbor gave me advise on how she deals with clutter. She places new packages or a random item that needs to be stored in a basket. Then she deals with them when she has time. 

I followed the advise and thought I'd extend it to bills, receipts and other papers that pile up monthly. The "drawer of shame" was then born. I assigned one of our drawers and stuffed in everything in it.

One bit of advise though, clear the drawer monthly or quarterly. I was so busy and left papers to pile up for almost a year (heh). It took me half a day to sort and organize all the bills, receipts and other papers in the drawer.

Here are the general categories I follow when I organize the drawer of shame:

- Utility bills: electricity, water, phone

- House related expenses: repairs, homeowners fees, pest control

- Receipts

- Manuals

- Other documents 

I have to set a reminder to sort the drawer of shame monthly so it doesn't pile up 😅

#BeKind #StaySafe

When the Unexpected Happens

It will be my birthday in a few days. To be honest I thought the weeks leading up to it would be riddled with small get-togethers to celebrate. I don't like huge parties, so I've been working out a schedule to see friends and family in parts.

Well, the unexpected happened and I ended up in the hospital by the end of July. It spilled over to the first week of August. After discharge it took awhile to feel better and I thought I could still proceed with my plans. Nope, I made a misstep and fell from the stairs. It's been 9 days and I'm still in pain and recovery has been slow.

Instead of feeling sorry for myself, I looked at the bright side. The accident helped postpone the scheduled surgery and I won't be spending my birthday in the hospital. We also have more time to prepare. I also felt the schedule was rushed because one of the doctors was leaving the day after. 

I still won't be able to celebrate how I originally planned, but at least I can probably have a nice meal outside with my boys. I'm grateful the injury was just enough for me to bear it. 

Thank you Lord 🙏

#BeKind #StaySafe

Papaya!

Miggy has been taking care of my plants for a few weeks now. I managed to check out the papaya the other day and was overjoyed to see the fruits continuing to grow. Woohoo! The rain has been helping to provide nutrients, but I know I need to add compost already. 

Here's how it looks this week:

Not being mobile is such a bummer. I have a long list of things to do for my garden. It has to wait for now until I can walk properly and carry more weight (arm still healing from the angiogram). In the meantime, I just peek through the window and make bilins  to Miggy. 

#BeKind #StaySafe