Home on Mondays: De-cluttering Me

Growing up, the only times I fixed my room was during exam season. I only moved to my own room when I was a senior in high school. Yes, you read that right, I was about 15 when I finally slept in my own room. I slept in my parents room, on the floor, until I was kicked out haha. I didn't have my own room because I wasn't born yet when our house was built. 

I remember keeping my toys under the bed of my parents. When I learned to type I slept with the typewriter beside me. I was always scolded for having so much kalat, but I realize now why... I didn't really have my own space. When I get tired of stuff, my Mom would just store them. And that's probably why I never really learned how to be organized (I'm entirely different when it comes to data though). 

Sweetie's the complete opposite. He likes having things organized and eversince we got married he takes care of stowing away the groceries. He can't sleep until everything is in order. Well, that's also the reason why I have a maker room -- to hopefully contain my clutter. 

I've been watching videos on de-cluttering since we have to drastically reduce the stuff we merged from all the homes we lived in. We easily have at least 50 or so mugs (Sweetie said about hundred...). Most were gifts and freebies from events. At least two closets full of clothes for each of us (SG + PH). Pairs of shoes from two homes and too many bed linens. 

De-cluttering is a journey. I started in 2019 with the data I kept in CDs. It took my whole break to finish moving all the data. That helped reduce the space the CDs were taking up. After that I tried the Marie Kondo method, but it didn't work out for me. I've been watching this vlog for tips and tricks and this is what I learned so far:

1. Clearing out your closet - realistically you only wear a small percentage of the clothes you own. I stowed away my "business clothes" since I haven't worn any of them since 2020. I'm seriously thinking of just donating them since I have no need for it. I've already gotten rid of most of the clothes I left in Manila since none of them fit, haha. I think it'll take me years to have a minimalist wardrobe like Kallie.

2. Shoes - I had a bad habit of keeping old pairs of sneakers. It was what I wore to work everyday so I switched them around. I've reduced my pairs of shoes to about 15. I think I can still reduce it since I rarely go out anyway. 

3. Kitchen - it's been pretty easy to choose what to keep in the kitchen. Keep the newer one or the sturdier one. I still dunno what to do with the gazillion mugs we collected through the years. Also, better to have a place for everything in your kitchen. Keep a smaller pantry and buy only what you need.

4. Increase what you bring out instead of what you bringing in - you don't notice it, but you probably bring in more stuff in a week than what you bring out (usually trash). I've been disciplining myself with the things I buy because more often than not I probably have a stock of it somewhere. I almost bought 5 meters of quilt wadding today. Sweetie pointed out to me that he found 3 boxes of it in the blackhole closet*. 

5. "Clean as you go". Pick up clutter as you move around. A friend told me years ago it's useful to have a basket or box where you can put stuff you're not ready yet to put away. I have a bag where I put "home papers" to file. I have another bag for other stuff to put away. 

De-cluttering is a journey and it will probably take me years to fix everything haha. 

*A huge closet we have in our basement which we've been filling up with odd items since we got home. 

Sunday Miracles: 365 Days

I was browsing IG when I saw a post made by Kumar (Kulas' bestie). He said in his post, "We all get the exact same 365 days. The only difference is what we do with them." I was reflecting on what Fr. Orven said in his post when I saw Kumar's post. Fr. Orven said, 

"In Suffering, endure for it won’t last 

In Blessing, enjoy while it lasts. 

In life we experience joy and sadness 

In eternal life we’ll enjoy bliss and wholeness."

We each get the same number of days per year. Everyday would be different. It can be a good day or a bad day. It's truly up to us how we deal with things everyday. I have bad days when I feel really unwell to do anything. I used to feel so frustrated when I couldn't do anything. 

I always go back to what Dr. Canlas, my allergologist, told me more than 15 years ago. Accept things and be flexible. I became allergic to chicken, chocolate, Coke and cockroach (just the smell triggers my allergies). It was hard for me since I love eating chicken, chocolate, crab and shrimp, and I was an avid Coke drinker at that time. Dr. Canlas though said that I was always mildly allergic to it. Pneumonia ruined my immunity. 

I followed his advised. Accepted it and worked on gaining my immunity back. It took years, but I was eventually able to eat my favorites. I eat chicken and chocolate often, up to 3 pieces of shrimp. Never regained my immunity for crab though. I keep my house clean to prevent roaches (those baits work well too). 

I treat bad days as a sign to do something else, like sleep and rest. I was so used to managing multiple projects at the same time. My doctors told me it was already a personality defect and it was likely going to eventually kill me (haha). I eventually understood what they meant. Embraced the defect and worked on changing. I may not be as productive as I used to be, but I now experience a different kind of joy. I'm just grateful I could make new memories with my boys everyday. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Plantita Saturdays: Garden Materials Shopping Online vs. In Person

I've been wanting to go to Mahogany Market for a few months now. We missed our chance when we went to Tagaytay last summer (got to busy eating!). We haven't gone back since Taal has been spewing SO2 (bad air quality). I want to go to Mahogany Market or at least visit nurseries in Tagaytay or Silang since they have really nice plants and have more affordable garden items (not that I need a lot). 

Got to visit a garden center near our home a few days ago. I always knew that buying from physical stores are cheaper than buying online. Unfortunately, I've had to buy stuff online since we've had to limit my movement. Well, here's what I found out about where best to buy garden materials:

1. Pots - I prefer terracotta pots since it allows plants to breathe better. I still use the plastic pots I got from Singapore, but some are already disintegrating. I wept when I saw the huge price difference of buying in person. I originally bought a huge pot for PhP550 each from a shop in FB. The same pot was just PhP400 at the garden center and probably much cheaper if I buy it outside of MM. 

2. Soil - bought some soil online from a shopping platform. It looked more like mud than loam soil. I still used it since the shop said it was real soil. All the plants I planted using it are dead. The that was better was from the shop on FB marketplace. They have a physical shop in the next barangay. I've been using their loam soil, but realized belatedly I should also treat the soil before using it. Buying in person is probably much, much cheaper (sorry forgot to ask when I went to the garden center). 

3. Compost and fertilizer - buying a kilo of compost or chicken manure online seems inexpensive at PhP46, but they're much cheaper buying in person (of course). There are shops on shopping platforms though that offer them much cheaper, but they're usually outside of MM and shipping would be very expensive (if available). 

4. Coco poles - the prices at the garden center were actually 2x more expensive than buying them online. Do look for a shop that's based outside of Manila. The secret to bringing down the shipping cost is to just buy the poles without other stuff (i.e. compost). 

5. Twist ties - got mine from the supermarket. I think the prices are similar whether you buy it online or in person. 

I guess this will be where I stop buying stuff online for garden stuff. I want to make this hobby more sustainable, so I've been watching tutorials on how to make my own compost and and fertilizer. I also want my plants to be healthy, so I'm limiting what I do based on what I can manage. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Lakwatsera Fridays: In-N-Out Burger

Saw from my stream that In-N-Out Burger had a pop-up station yesterday in BGC. It's a popular burger place in the US. Most of its branches are in California, so my friends there told me that I had to try it. I did whenever I was in Sunnyvale. The burger is certainly very tasty. 

The last time I went to In-N-Out was a lunch out of Sweetie's classmate who lived in the US. She thought it would be a good experience for the boys. The crew found out that we were visiting from another country and they provided us with cute In-N-Out hats, haha. 

The place was very busy when we went. I think it was a Sunday and people just kept poring in. We were lucky to find tables to fit all of us, haha. It was fun to experience dining-in and I got to observe how much food the kitchen produced. They were fast and I can't imagine how they were able to cook so much fries so fast! It's been 5 years since I've had it, all I remember now is it's good and juicy unlike other fastfood burgers. I also liked their milkshake. 

It was a really good burger and I wouldn't mind if they expanded here in the Philippines. They haven't expanded internationally though, so we'll likely just have pop-ups. This blog post though says that they have acquired trademark registrations in several countries, including the Philippines. More to protect its brand. Best way to try it is go to California :)

#BeKind #StaySafe

Throwback Thursdays: Career Advise for my Fresh Grad Self

Remember when you had your career orientation just before you graduated from college? They advised all of us to have a "plan". The only thing that stuck to me from that class was to chose your place of work that's close to your home and to gather skills as you go along. 

I graduated with two degrees, AB- Political Science and BS-Legal Management. A lot of people asked me how come I didn't pursue law. I didn't because I already found it hard to finish my LM degree. I wasn't into it and at that time I realized I should have taken up marketing instead. And that's the reason why I got a Masters in Business Administration. It gave me additional skills to understand better what else I needed to learn. 

So that's what I did with my career. I went through the 7Ps of marketing in the different jobs I had. Much as I didn't really have an "end goal" I was happy in the roles I had because I continued to learn. What probably helped me was being part of the market development team in my first job. Our role was to break in new products in the market and that's why I enjoyed doing. I never really cared much for titles and funnily used different titles on my business cards depending on the market I was serving. 

My career was cut short because of my illness. My doctors advised me it was time to slow down and rest. It was too late when I stopped. I should have probably stopped after my first PE four years ago. I was fired up though because I liked what I was doing. My only regret is not leaving some energy for myself. On the brightside, at least I'm not a financial burden to my family. 

This would be my advise to my fresh grad self -

• You can reach anything you want as long as you put your mind and hardwork to it
• Don't be a slave, leave something for yourself
• Focus on roles that would help others
• Just keep learning
• Don't be picky on what you need to do, but draw the line if it goes against your values
• Budget your money wisely
• Plan your retirement from the beginning

A lot of my friends grew tired of their corporate job already. Working abroad just happened for me and I always knew I wanted to go home as soon as Miggy finished his studies. I was just surprised my career ended this way. I blog everyday to keep my brain working. My doctors made me promise not to let my brain waste away.

I think it wasn't so bad I followed the learning path for my career. I was happy to just keep learning since it removed the pressure of going up the ladder. Whatever movements I had was because my work and skills were recognized. It would have probably helped though if I was a bit more noisy about my accomplishments, but it just never felt right. 

The only way I could work again or maybe have a business is if my quality of life improves. My doctors keep telling me I'm still young and they're hoping they could help me get better. In the meantime, I'll just keep writing 15 to 30 minutes a day. 

PS I had 10 jobs before I joined the last one. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Wellness Wednesdays: Dealing with Life's Mysteries

I have learned to accept the fact that doctors and science cannot explain everything. The best way is to live your life the best way you can. I made this comment last night in the pulmonary embolism patients group. I remember when I joined the group many years ago, I was confused and anxious about the diagnosis. Getting a PE is always a surprise to everyone. You only find out you have it when it happens. 

In my case, it took over a year and getting a second opinion before I was diagnosed with it. I was bewildered and realized if I didn't push to see another doctor I'd probably be gone now. I didn't dwell on it at that time because I was busy preparing for a trip. I was grounded by my doctor after that trip, haha. I went on with my life, but eventually had a second PE. 

I actively comment back to new patients who join the group. I know and understand what they're going through. They are often frustrated, bewildered and lost. Looking for answers on why you had it. Some are lucky to know why they had it. Some get it because it's in their genes. Some due to birth control. Others due to giving birth. But there are people like me who would never know why I had it. 

I've made peace with that and embraced it as a life mystery. Doctors don't have all the answers. I've seen a good number of them. I did so many tests and they generally told me to just monitor and don't let anyone open you up again. My focus now is to improve my quality of life. Here's what I've learned so far:

1. Not all your questions will be answered, just let it be. Treat it as a mystery and just let God take care of you. 

2. The Nile is not just a river in Egypt. Denial will just frustrate you further. Just accept it and focus on improving your quality of life. 

3. Not many people will understand what you're going through. Some would be sympathetic, others would be distant. Others would expect you to be "normal". Just focus on appreciating those who are around you. 

4. Don't beat yourself if you can't be what you used to be. Just be at least 1% better than yesterday. 

5. Find simple joys and be grateful of everything. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Creative Happy Tuesdays: My Christmas Quilt Projects

Finally got around to planning my Christmas projects. I spent an entire week after I finished the quilt cover I made for the O2 concentrator thinking about what I should make for Christmas. I found my idea notebook and poured over the list I made. After selecting what I want to make, I also looked at Pinterest for ideas. 

Since I don't have any Christmas quilts, I thought I'd make some for use at home. I want to make some place mats, potholders, a table runner, coasters and maybe mug rugs. I hope to finish also the tree skirt I started last year and if I still have time make some throw pillows, a lap quilt and maybe a Christmas sock.

Pinwheel lap quilt

 

In previous years, I was able to make gifts for my friends. I'm still thinking about what I can make this year that won't break my fingers (haha). The previous gifts I made were all hand sewn. I made a few lap quilts last year for my friends in Singapore and my doctors. It was a race to finish it in-between packing for our trip home. 

Lap quilt for my respiratory doctor :)

To warm up, I'll probably start making some potholders and then I'll work my way up to the table runner. I'm still figuring out how to properly do the tree skirt. I didn't finish the one I made last year because I'm not too happy with how it looks. I'll probably finish it since we're planning to put up multiple trees again this year. 

Hope I'll be more productive for the rest of the year. I spent too much time already just trying to gain more energy. 

#BeKind #StaySafe