Why Pinoys are Resilient

We've just experienced another super typhoon (Bavi with local name Inday). It brought strong winds and rain. I've never gotten used to it and I always wake up whenever the rain starts pounding on the roof. I'm also always creeped out when the wind howls. I keep reminding myself we're safe and we've taken precautions to prepare, but the worry never goes away when you've been through a lot of disasters.

And that made me think. They always say Filipinos are resilient. We are because you grow up needing to be prepared all the time. Here's what I grew up with:

• EDSA Revolution (x3), Coup d'etats
• Strong typhoons (Ondoy, Pepeng, Yolanda are just some, it's an annual thing)
• Flooding (queue memories of getting stuck in school and not being able to go home + walking in floodwater)
• Heavy forever traffic
• Increase in prices (gasoline/groceries/electricity)

We all just usually shrug it off as something that's common and an everyday thing. I was in Singapore when I realized it is a hard life we truly live. I was at an event and people were panicking because Orchard Road was flooded. I had to see it for myself so I stepped out of the hotel and saw it was just practically a puddle. An inch of clear water coursing through the street. The other attendees of the event were already saying they were stranded! 

The event has ended already, so I crossed the road to go to the MRT. My shoes didn't even get soaked! Ahh, for me, it wasn't a disaster. I would have probably waited for the water to subside if it reached gutter level, but it wasn't bothersome for me. Well, that's the sad thing. If we had things in place and if we weren't cheated by those who could make our lives easier, then our threshold for disaster would be much lower. 

I hope and pray everyone is safe and dry. There's going to be more rain for the next few days, so don't forget to bring your umbrella.

Have a blessed Sunday everyone. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Bloomed After 4 Years

My friend, Ate Rose, gave me a bunch of cacti and succulents 4 years ago. She gave me some tips how to care for them and I watched videos how best to care for them. She told me to re-pot them, so that's what I did 4 years ago. 

There were two gymnocalycium saglionis originally and I think I gave one to my Mom a week after I re-potted them. The other one that was left with me grew and I didn't even bother re-potting it. I would just give it some fertilizer when I remembered it. 

Gave some to my Mom :)

A month ago, I gave all the plants in the pocket garden some rice water with orange peels and then let Miggy do the watering the cacti and succulents weekly. I checked the plants early this month and was surprised to see something coming out of the gymnocalycium saglionis. My friend from Cebu pointed out that it was a flower. 

Oh! I didn't know that this particular cacti can produce flowers. I ignored the cacti as usual (it doesn't like that much attention) and told Miggy the other day to check if it already bloomed. He sent a photo to me and it looked like it was about to bloom. 

I checked the next day and was surprised to see it had bloomed! It took 4 years! I guess randomly giving it some diluted fermented rice water with orange peels encouraged it to bloom. My friend also said to put it under bright light the whole day. It gets morning sun and afternoon sun, so I guess it's just on the right spot. 

I'm really happy about this achievement because TBH I failed a lot on cacti and succculents. I usually overwater them, but I've managed to correct that and here we are today, haha. 

How's your garden?

#BeKind #StaySafe

Our Bistek Tagalog Recipe

Bistek Tagalog is one of the dishes I learned early on. I prefer making dishes that are marinated first since it allows me to rest between preparing and cooking. I've also been just preparing and having Miggy cook lately since he likes cooking. 

Here's our recipe:

500 grams beef (I normally use sirloin)

1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

2 cloves garlic

3 to 4 calamansi

2 Tbsp brown sugar

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 medium onion

And here's how we cook it -

It's very easy to make and that's why it's a staple in our home cooked meals!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Super Typhoon Preparations

After my therapy session, I went straight to the pocket garden to check the plants. I wanted to make sure they wouldn't be toppled over by the strong winds. Most were secure since I also had to make the area cat-proof (they like sleeping in pots!). 

Sweetie cut some of the bamboo this morning. He trimmed the top parts so they don't sway wildly while the typhoon is ongoing. He actually started a few days ago to make sure everything will be secure. 

The only thing I'm worried about are my bell pepper plants, tomatoes and two growing papaya trees. The bell peppers are still growing a number of fruits. I hope they don't get affected by the typhoon. I'm hopeful the papaya trees will stay put. One has flowers already and it takes months before they are ready to be harvested. 

I brought down some of the decorative plants. They were swaying wildly when I went out an hour ago. It was hard to grow them, so I set them in between larger plants to be protected from the wind. 

As for our cats, I added some beds that should warm them up in the next few days. They have hiding places and should be safe. Anakin and Grogu though loves the rain and they really like wiping their wet bodies on our legs, haha. We'll be ready with towels!

Stay safe and warm everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

Organizing

I was too tired yesterday to do anything. I just watched the impeachment trial the whole afternoon and watered the plants. I planned to organize some of my stuff since the clutter has been terrible. I usually get that urge to clean up when I'm in between projects.

I woke up rested today and after a hefty lunch, I puttered around while watching (again) the impeachment trial. After boxing some stuff, I started sorting documents from envelopes I put them in. These included bills, receipts, medical reports. 

My main goal this week is to reduce the clutter around me. When it hits a certain level I'm not able to do anything else because I get overwhelmed. I found it useful to target specific areas and then do another area if I still have time. 

Since I finished two "areas" today, I can move on to the "fun projects". It feels like I cleared the "cache" and can pile things up again, hahaha. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

My Craft Books Collection

I'm so sad. The nearest Booksale branch to me is gone. I had asked them several times if they were staying and they said they had no plans of leaving. Hubby went to the mall last Saturday and was surprised to see Booksale gone. 

A mix of books from Booksale, Big Bad Wolf, Kinokuniya, Amazon and trips

I've been collecting craft books the past few years and I buy at least one or two monthly from Booksale. It's hard to find craft books at regular bookstores, plus they're expensive, so we go to Booksale monthly. 

I enjoy going through the books. I usually do it while waiting for Miggy when he's at the gym. I use the books mainly for inspiration and when I'm stuck figuring out something. I know there are a gazillion sewing videos I can watch. I do that too, but going through books is a different experience. Aside from seeing designs, it also pushes me to be better at what I do. 

More than 50% of my collection are probably from Booksale. Some I buy at PhP15 to 30 only! Some are a bit more expensive. Part of my collection came from Kinokuniya, a few from National Bookstore/Fully Booked, Big Bad Wolf (here and Singapore), and a few from trips (especially the magazines). The collection started when the Gaylas gave me a boat-load of craft books for my 40th birthday, I just continued it :)

#BeKind #StaySafe

Where to Donate/Sell Pre-Loved Items/Appliances?

It took us more than two years to clear more than 50 years worth of accumulated stuff from my childhood home. We had meter+ deep cabinets, so you can just imagine how much storage my Mom had in the house. She kept everything and that meant finding appliances used when I was still a child! We didn't have the time or energy to host a garage sale, so we found ways to donate and sell the items best used by someone else. 

Here's a list of where we donated and sold the excess items from my childhood home -

Donation centers:

• Library Hub Philippines - for books and useful office/school supplies
• Goodwill Philippines - pre-loved items (clothes, kitchen items etc.). We donated more than 200 mugs that were mostly unused, plus useful kitchen items, bags, clothes etc.
• Ateneo de Naga - where we sent my Dad's law books (coordinated through my cousin in Naga)

Items sold:

• 
  A.C. Scrap - old airconditioners
• Fernando Delgado junk shop - other junk like very old appliances 
• Old furniture (cabinets/cribs) was bought by the contractor and some of the workers

The proceeds of the sale were used to pay for our decluttering coach whose team helped finally pack and clear everything from the house. Some of the proceeds were also used for the ground-breaking and blessing of the property.

I still have some items which will go to relatives (mostly plates and drinkware). I also gave some furniture away since there's a lot. I'm expecting to give away more once the construction is done (it's currently stored and un-movable). We'll be using most of the key furniture (like the dining set), but I'll need to have it refurbished. 

#BeKind #StaySafe