Unforgettable Beach Places

It's a bit hard to think about going to the beach when you are in the middle of a thunderstorm. My parents though started bringing me to the beach when I was just 8 months old. We went to the beach every year and they used to complain that it was so hard to get me out of the water. Back then I wanted to be a mermaid! Things change though. I still like going to the beach, but I don't spend as much time in the water. My attempts though to sunbathe are always futile because I only turn red. I love going to the beach and I try to go every first quarter of the year.

I have not been around that much and try to avoid the popular places, but here are some of the unforgettable beach places I've been to.

1. Camangui, Pasacao, Camarines Sur

My favorite Tita Olive.

Not a famous place to go to but this is home for me. This is where my family used to go to every single year together with neighbors. I have a lot of happy childhood memories here and this is where my Tita Olive lives. When we're here we live in a nipa hut and we use the poso to take a bath. I had my worst sunburn here haha. I'm really sad though that our neighbors in Camangui violated the zoning ordinance and built an illegal wharf beside our property. It's not as good as it used to be.

2. Carbin Reef (Sagay Marine Reserve)

Anne was the one who introduced me to Carbin Reef. It is a tiny reef found on the Sagay Marine Reserve. Just sand and water around. They have some tiny huts on the reef, but most of the reef disappears by late afternoon so you just go there to swim and eat your baon and then swim again and then leave. I super love this place because of the tranquility it brings. The tiny fish also like biting off my dead skin so it's like going to the spa haha. Carbin Reef is now on top of my list whenever I want to go to the beach.

3. Samal Island, Davao

It's been a long time since I went to Samal Island. I love though how easy it is to get there. The last time I went I was with my best friend and high school classmates. The water was clear and calm and since it was a resort it was easy and inexpensive to get lots of food! I think the place is unforgettable for me more because of the conversations we had while we were in the water.

4. Pambato Reef, Palawan

We joined an island tour a few years back and the bangka docked at Pambato Reef. The area is good for snorkeling. The water was really deep and my imagination run wild after I went in the water (immediately went back to the dock haha). It was unforgettable though because of the many types of fish I saw. I didn't get to see any turtles though.

5. Batangas (somewhere there)

When I was in college our student publication would take out of town trips for our writing seminars. We had gone on a short boat trip around the place and the boatmen brought us to a cove where they encouraged us to take a dip in the water. The water was so clear I immediately went in thinking that the water was shallow. I was wrong! My overactive imagination pushed me to get out of the water just after awhile. It's been more than 20 years since that happened but I remember the place very clearly.

6. The North Atlantic Ocean

I had the chance to visit Morocco in 2012. We had an event and was billeted at a resort hotel. My room overlooked the North Atlantic Ocean. The water had a different shade of blue and was so inviting. I had wanted to go to the water but I didn't have a chance because we were so busy and I noticed that only men would go swimming. The weather before and after work also was too cold for me. It was my first time to see the ocean from that part of the world so it's quite memorable. Maybe someday I'll be able to go back.

7. Panglao, Bohol

Beach holiday with the family. It's been more than 8 years though since the last time we've been to Bohol. I love going to the beach there because it has a lot of character! There's starfish, a lot of shells and other marine life. The sun also seem to be nicer in Bohol because I managed to get a slight tan there. Hope to go back soon!

8. Boracay

I think everyone has Boracay on their list. I had the chance to go island hopping in Boracay and that was memorable for me. The milky white sand also is a reason why I go back every few years.

9. Bali

Another place which everyone probably has on their list. Bali because I have a lot of fond family memories here.

10. Bintan and Batam

When you are based in Singapore and want a quick beach getaway you can easily just ride the ferry and be in Indonesia in an hour! We've tried both areas and usually spend time there when we want to get away from city life.

I have a preference though for beaches in the Philippines because it's home (and it's always not cold!) and I'm sure that the marine life is friendly. I'd like to visit other beaches too. I hope to be able to go to Potipot, the pink sand beach in Zamboanga and go back to Hundred Islands in Pangasinan since I was just a child the last time I was there. For international locations, I'd like to visit Langkawi and Bondi. Someday :)

Tipid Tips

I was only able to start saving when I was already in my 30s. I'm special because I had Miguel to take care of. I survived paying for grad school because my Aunt bailed me out of tuition fee-credit card debt. Since then I made sure that I would make sure I paid all my dues every month. My Mom also kept reminding me that it's important to have a good credit standing especially if you eventually need to get a mortgage or an auto loan. I've since completed payments for my tiny car and I hope to finish our mortgage soon.

Living in a tiny home helps a lot. When you don't have much space it means you should just buy the things that you will use. When I was living in a bigger place I tended to buy more groceries and my mother-in-law said that our pantry looked like a supermarket shelf. Of course, I then learned the lesson that you should only buy enough so that grocery items get used before it expires.

Here's what helped me become a spend-thrift:

1. Budget. Best to budget at the beginning of the year based on your expected salary. Allot payments for taxes and savings before other items. Travel and lakwatsa is unfortunately at the bottom of my list now because I have other priorities to focus on.

2. Live simply. Pope Francis keeps reminding us about this. All my expenses revolve around my family and what will make them happy. The only indulgence I have now is buying stuff for my hobby (quilting!).

3. Stop comparing yourself to others. Sometimes you end up buying stuff because you think you need it. And sometimes this is because you think you need an item to fit in. I know I'm different and oftentimes the odd person out. I have since embraced this and just live based on what makes me happy.

4. Think about your future and the future of your family. I always think about this and because I have a medical condition I want to make sure that my family will not have a hard time in the future if I get sick again.

5.  Identify what is important for you and prioritize your spending.

And make sure you don't let money take over your life. Have fun!

Do We Always Want to Focus on Darkness?

Asked the priest this morning during his homily in today's mass.

Do you always worry?

Do you always think about the bad things?

Do you spend more time noticing what's not good?

Do you always seek to find what's wrong?

The question brought me out of my daydream. My mind had wandered off to the last episode of TIMY and I was thinking about the issues of Ali and Stephen when I heard the question. I have that bad habit of zoning out when I'm supposed to be focusing on something (like homilies, sorry Papa God), but oftentimes snap right back at the moment when I'm supposed to listen. The priest went on and drilled to personal questions like do you worry about your health? Your finances? Your marriage? Everything?

Everyone worries the priest said, but that's not we should be focusing on. I realized then that I do tend to worry a lot and this stresses me out. I get sick when I get stressed (Dr. Koo won't be happy!). This thought brought me back to the time when I felt so much despair in my life. I had recovered from my broken heart at that time, but my life wasn't exactly where i wanted it to be. It was when I gave up and told God to please just take over and bring me where I should be.

After that I was directed to the right path and eventually found happiness. I had been worrying a lot the last few weeks and it's probably why my sinus infection is taking so long to clear up. Aside from personal stuff I've also been worrying about what's happening back home and what's happening to the world. I have been making it a point not to comment on current events in my social media accounts to lessen the stress (for me and for others). I told myself though that I would rather focus on finding solutions than ranting about it so that I could contribute to a better world in my own little way.

So I think what I will do is focus on the positive. I've asked my boys to help me on reaching my wellness goals by having them create their own targets too. Part of the goal is to collect a weekly "what I am thankful for" list and we'll read this for new year next year. And for the bad things I tend to think about, I'll practice the deep breathing technique Chade Meng Tan taught us last year.

Thinking About Going to the Beach

It was raining so hard today. Decided to just chill at home and work on my wellness bingo card. I hope to have time to go to the beach this quarter! 

How to Always have a Good Day

There are good days and there are bad days. Today was a great day. Based on my post yesterday, it wasn't a good day yesterday. I guess it really depends on which side of the bed you wake up on.

I've been having bad sleep the last few days, possibly because of the medicines I have been drinking to cure my sinus infection. Phil told me earlier that the meds should put me to sleep. I said I don't know why but my brain has been hyperactive the last few nights. My EENT will not be happy because he said that one must have good sleep every night. And to have that you should breathe freely (of course he's an EENT). My cardio would say, "No stress. Have a happy heart."

To commemorate today's happy day we decided to go to the beach to breathe in some fresh air. It's been a grueling work week for me full of ups and downs and being sick does not help. Since it was Friday the hubby suggested we go to the beach to relax, breathe fresh air and then have a good dinner. So off we went to Sentosa. We had a nice good walk at the beach side and had some snacks (Jaybucks!) by the water. It was a nice refreshing way to end the work week.

I try to meditate as Meng taught us, but my mind always wander off. It takes me awhile, but it eventually calms me down. What makes me happy and perky though is when I become thankful. I start being thankful with simple, tiny things (cute lady bugs count!) and then work my way up to the big stuff (like being alive!). What floors me though is when I wish happiness for others. Counting blessings will bring you out of any rut you are in :)

Happy TGIF!

How do We Bring Things Back to Order?

In elementary school one of the things I remember our teachers kept reiterating was the good values that we have as Filipinos. We were taught that Filipinos are always hospitable, family oriented, have debt of gratitude (utang na loob), being respectful, being simple, hard working, humorous, religious and the bayanihan attitude. On the flip side, there's also the bad stuff - crab mentality, being boastful (mayabang), ningas cogon, bahala na, Filipino time and gossiping. There are many more.

I never thought I would have the opportunity to work for a foreign company. I always thought that I would just be based back home. I assumed that being the youngest I would be the one to stay home with my parents since my siblings both live abroad already. Opportunity came and I found myself working with a diverse set of people and eventually found myself living far away from home. I found that Filipinos always put their best foot forward when abroad. It is when we show that we are hard workers. It's also when we are at our charming best. It's also when we always follow the rules.

When I went home last Christmas I noticed that we do tend to beat/ignore the red light (a lot of jeepney drivers do this). Pedestrians not following the signs. Throwing trash everywhere. And it's not just in Manila because I saw these things happen also in other cities in Northern Luzon. In the compound I live in Manila, my neighbors oftentimes rant in our FB group that there would be others who would just let their pets do their thing and then leave the dirt after without cleaning up. Or when others would just leave trash lying around to be scavenged on by cats. It's sad. It's really, really sad because we all want to have peace and order, but we do not follow these simple rules.

I wonder how we could bring back what the ancient barangay represented. The time when being part of a community meant being helpful and being good neighbors. I know it's going to be hard because life is hard especially in the city (i.e. getting to and from work is a daily struggle), but maybe if we love our neighbor a bit more, maybe we can bring things back to order.

Fire in Paranaque

I got sick and after reading the blogging attempts I did early this month I decided to rest and just re-start the challenge when I felt like doing it. My target was to start again on January 15, but I had a relapse over the weekend and had to use all my energy for our quarterly review. I survived the review, but hope I did not infect anyone else. Saw my favorite EENT right after my last review and he ordered me to take at least one day rest.

So yesterday I rested and as the day progressed I started to feel really sad that I've been sick for more than a week already. I was also sad because the doctor gave me antibiotics again. I know I need it to get well, but I was hoping I wouldn't need to drink antibiotics for several more months. I know that worrying is very unproductive so I took the time to sleep to help heal my body. My brain was also having a hard time anyway figuring out a new assignment that was given to me.

I was still sulking by evening and was quite masungit to my boys. I wanted to work on some projects but my body wasn't cooperating. Past ten in the evening I received a message from Phil about the fire that broke near our place in Paranaque. I immediately checked for news about it to identify the area. I realized that it's quite hard to get the exact area from Twitter because they usually just state the general location. I was starting to panic because the areas were near our place.

Photo by Myra, our neighbor.

After scouring through tweets I finally found the correct area that was on fire -- Sitio Pag-asa, Barangay Sun Valley. I immediately checked the map to see how near/far the area was. It was very near. I kept telling myself, DO NOT PANIC. I then checked on my Mom to see if they already knew about the fire. They did and they said that they could hear explosions coming from it. My neighbors who were chatting on our FB page also indicated that there were many explosions coming from the area. I then informed my other neighbors in Sun Valley about the fire.

Photo by our neighbor Daisy M.

The alarm was eventually set to 5. I did a bit of research to understand better what the alarm levels mean. It's mainly about what level of authority will be in-charge of the situation according to the Bureau of Fire Protection. Because it was already level 5, fire trucks from all over Metro Manila came to respond. Ate Luz said that there was a firetruck already in our street which is about a kilometer away from the fire. I really truly appreciate the hard work the fire fighters did to protect everyone and save properties.

According to GMA the fire was controlled at 12:07am and it was out at past 1 in the morning. Sixty houses and 150 families were affected by the fire. There were no casualties reported (thank God!). The fire hit very close to home. It was just a kilometer away from my home and my Mom's home. Being far away the only thing we could do is to pray that the fire fighters could put it out as soon as they could. I also took it upon myself to find accurate information to share to my family and get as much info to assuage my fears.

The work now is to help the families affected by the fire. My neighbors shared that the Marimar chapel and the school was also affected by the fire. If you would like to send donations, you may send it to the parish through Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary (+632-823-1210).