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So long, September

September went by like a blur. I have pages on my planner that were not written on.

Recall that I have had to go on leave while I undergo therapy for my back. It meant missing three weeks of September. I only left the house to go to the hospital. But I can’t say that it wasn’t time well spent.

Just as I say “So long, September!” I also say Thank You for:

  1. 12 physical therapy sessions. And getting acquainted with treatments and machines. One of which is this Ultrasound therapy machine:
  2. Time to read five books from cover to cover. Revolutionary Road. The Return Journey. Dear John. Certain Girls. Evening Class.
  3. Time to watch a lot of TV. I discovered and rediscovered shows I hadn’t had time to watch. One of them being Jane by Design.
  4. An opportunity to be treated like a baby again. My parents have been very supportive while I recover. No chores, haha. And at least one or both of them have brought me or picked me up from therapy. They also made sure I got my hot pack whenever the pain got too much to ignore. They made sure I ate and took meds when needed. Thank you God for my parents.
  5. My first Trollbeads bracelet.
  6. Books. I spent way too much on books at the Manila International Bookfair. And I don’t care. What makes it more memorable is that I went there when I was still NOT able to walk too far. Alfred was very supportive. Thank you God for Alfred.
  7. Becoming a godmother to Baby Sab. And seeing my friends Arianne and Y again so soon after the last time.
  8. Mayeen and Angelo’s first born Andrei. Looking forward to meeting that little cutie in person.
  9. Still having a job to go back to. And a new appreciation for having a job.
  10. Being liberated from pain. When August closed I was miserable. I was in so much pain. There was some pain in September, even a different kind of pain brought about by the breakout, but I choose to remember the gradual healing. Discovering that I could walk faster, and straighten my back more. That I could sleep lying down without getting uncomfortable. Freedom from excruciating pain. I never ever want to go back there.

There’s probably a lot more I should be thanking September for. There’s also a lot more that I would have wanted to do but didn’t. But I’m not complaining. It was the time for rest and recovery and I did just that.

How was your September?

Sarah Kay and Spoken Word Poetry

Cathy Zielske in her recent blog said it right, The Internet is Amazing. Without the Internet, I never would have heard of Sarah Kay. She is a young woman who travels to different schools performing and teaching open word poetry. She also writes plays/musicals and shoots documentaries.

I want to be her. She’s someone I could have been. Watch:

 

Isn’t she something? She co-heads Project VOICE with her friend Phil Kaye (you also have to watch their video “An Origin Story”), they envision to use Spoken Word to entertain, educate, and inspire. In this short talk, she certainly accomplished all three for me.

Once upon a time, I wrote poems. I was a fairly good writer. I tried short story writing too. Until now I still believe that, given time and the proper environment, I can still be a good writer. Or a poet. And I loved performing on stage. I may have been good too. So Spoken Word Poetry? It could totally have been my thing. Had I known there was such a thing.

What’s more important though is that I totally get how Spoken Word Poetry could be what many young people need. I’ve never had problems speaking out or finding ways to get myself heard. But I know it isn’t true for all young people. I hope they reach more audiences, even Filipino kids, and create opportunities for them too to engage with their environment, with the world. And this medium can be totally taken to the streets. Oh how fun and amazing that would be.

What inspires me from this talk isn’t the idea that I could be doing what she does, but the understanding that it’s not too late to be whatever that I want to be. Or whatever I wanted to be. The three steps she mentioned in her speech? Totally applicable to anything you want to do, not just being in Spoken Word.

First step: I Can.

It begins with the realization that I can do something. Or even that I am onto something magical and it is worth my time, and some people may be interested in what I can do.

Second step: I will.

Commitment. Willing to continue, to do it over and over until you find your voice. Until you find what makes something truly yours, or until you put your own stamp onto that something that you do.

Third step: Put all the things that you know so far into what you do.

This, Sarah says, is the step that never ends. And I realize that this is true not just for creative pursuits, but for anything that we do really. So I could decide that I could be the best boss, the best OM at work. It means having to put all my past experiences and all that I know into what I have to do at work. I can totally see how what I know about blogging or my experiences in theater could help me take my team to success.

When I hear about young women like Sarah Kay who are sharing their talents to the world, and helping change the world, I am overwhelmed with a feeling that I had my chance and didn’t take it. But I can’t reconcile that feeling with my conviction that I don’t regret any of the choices I have made in my life. So seeing this quote has recently given me hope –

 

 

It’s never too late to be who you might have been – George Eliot.

No, it is not too late for me. Thanks to Sarah’s three steps, I can still make things happen.

After all, local actor Richard Yap, popularly known as his characters Papa Chen and Sir Chief rose to fame at 44!

Custom Blog Design Giveaway

Mye De Leon is a digital scrapbooking artist that I’ve followed for awhile now. Seems like she has now ventured into professional blog design as well. And she has a giveaway!

mcz_giveaway2

I just learned about it today and there’s plenty of time to get your entry in. Image links to her blog post announcing the giveaway.

Oh I would love to win! My blog is desperate for a makeover Smile

Well, I could probably do it myself, but I can’t even decide on a new header or layout. I could also pay for a redesign, but aren’t freebies just the bomb? If I win this giveaway, I can save the money I would have spent and get the tele, or a piano. Or another blogging tool, a Macbook. Or just save the money. Period. Haha.

Turntable Kitchen

Connecting food with music, that’s what Turntable Kitchen does for its readers. I just saw the site today and was intrigued about their monthly pairings.

 

I think that is just really an awesome idea, no?

Getting a turntable and starting a vinyl collection has got to get on my 101 in 1001 list. Just because. Smile

Back to Work!

back to work2010

This week is all about being BACK.

Back to work.

Everything’s gone smoothly so far. I’d like to think I was welcomed back warmly by colleagues and friends at work. Still feel a little bit out of place sometimes, much like when you’re just starting anew. Three weeks of not doing much of anything does that to you, I guess. Smile

Been doing pretty much the same things as before. Except I try not to walk around as much because my back starts hurting after awhile. Walking all the way from my station to the parking lot isn’t a good idea, so I break that walk by finding somewhere to sit along the way. Coming in to work though, maybe because I still have all my energy, I don’t mind walking all the way thru.

I also try not to drink too much water so I won’t have to go to walk to the ladies room too much. This will have to change though because I really should actually hydrate more.

Before I started going to the office again on Monday night, I finished my first round of therapy on Thursday. Saw my doctor on Saturday and he recommended another 12 sessions of therapy. It’s been almost a week now since my last session and I think I’m feeling its toll.

Sometimes I wonder whether there’s such a thing as a full recovery from this without surgery. I hold on to the idea that there will be. After all, three weeks later I can stand straight and walk almost as well as I used to.

I’ve also been thinking a lot about finances lately. I guess having to pay for my next round of therapy really forces me to think about how much money that’s going to cost me (but nowhere nearly as what it would cost to go for surgery, so not complaining). Also, I’ve been spending unnecessarily, over compensating for saving food and gas money thanks to my three-week sick leave. With perfect timing, Pesos and Sense posts an ad for Module 2 of their seminar series: Time Value of Money. I attended Module 1: Make Your Money Grow, and I’m interested enough to consider paying the higher registration fee for this second class. If you want to learn about immediate annuity interest rates, or want to know enough to determine if Mutual Funds or Stocks are the right investments for you, the Pesos and Sense team is likely to have the answer you need.

 

*About the image used on this post: it’s not mine, I got it from this site after a Google search of ‘back to work’ images. All credit goes to the image owner.

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