7 more facts about me (verabear)

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I’ve been tagged by Angelica and Kimberly, who are both digiscrap designers. I was so surprised to see comments from both of them about the tag, I never would have expected it. This was the same tag that I did for Vicki awhile back, but I figured there’s gotta be more than 7 random facts about me right? Wouldn’t hurt to have another go! hehe.

1) Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
2) Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3) Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs (now this is the part I will be having a hard time with)
4) Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Here are 7 more random facts about me :

1. It is 3:05 AM as I start with this list and I am watching a movie online. It’s PS I Love You and it is an awesome movie. I love it! I cannot believe I didn’t go see it in the cinema. The first 13 minutes – wow! I am adding it to my list of favorite movies. Oh – I want me an Irish man! Hahaha 🙂
–> First random fact: PS I Love You is one of my favorite movies.

2. I had intended to look into the ad sites I signed up for in the past two days so I could carefully place them in my blogs, and consider how I can place them in my verabear.com site too. See, I seriously want to make extra money with all the time I spend online. I can’t for the life of me design anything for digital scrapbooking, so I had to find something else. Hopefully that really takes off soon.
–> Second random fact: I’m into making money online.

3. I think my boyfriend is really serious about marrying me in June of next year. I told him I won’t be making any plans until I get a ring. That was just a joke of course. We’ll see. 😉
–> Third fact: Plans to get married are underway. No one else knows but us. And YOU 🙂

4. I submitted an application at work today for a different position than the one I currently hold. If I get it, I’d be going back to training people – something I’ve really loved doing when I was doing it. I knew it was something I really wanted. But honestly, it was tearing me apart this afternoon deciding whether to turn in my papers or not. I’ve grown attached to my current team, it’s as if I don’t really want to leave them. And for once, I seem to be somewhere where things are going along just as planned. Oh, we’ll see.
–> Fourth fact: I think my calling is somewhere along the lines of education — in teaching, facilitating learning, training. My previous job was in this line too.

5. I will not make a very good housewife – I’m not good at cleaning house, I don’t cook. Both could change though. That’s the fifth fact — I am not domesticated.

6. There were photography classes in a Summer Workshop I attended when I was 8 years old. I believe I took really awesome pictures that summer. I wonder where those are. I don’t remember any of the things I learned then.
–> Fact number 6: I am a frustrated photograher. Hehe.

7. I secretly wish I was in Kris Aquino’s staff. I think she shares her blessings with her. Kris is a local celebrity. Read her Wikipedia article to know more. I am not happy that there is no single site that features her beautifully!

That took a long time to list. Weird. I hope you learned some new things about me 🙂
Here’s the very hard part, tagging 7 other people. Here goes (but going to their blogs and telling them they’re tagged will have to wait until tomorrow, I’m pooped!):

  1. Ganns
  2. Dette
  3. Dee (oh I hope you can find time for this)
  4. Hummie
  5. Arianne
  6. Dauphine
  7. Ugh. I am still one tag short!


RIP Ka Bel

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Rest in Peace Ka Crispin Beltran.

He is gone, but his spirit, his fight lives on.

Ka Bel died in a freak accident but I would not go as far as to say it was a senseless death. At 6 in the morning, he was up on his roof doing his job as the man of the house – checking on the roof that is supposed to protect his family from the coming rains. He is a Congressman, a Party List representative. Seated in Congress in behalf of the many workers, laborers and marginalized Filipino. Yet he has no qualms about going up the roof (with no safety equipment) to tend to what needs fixing.

What does that tell you about this man? How many Congressmen do you know who would do that (without cameras following them, that is)?

Since he first walked the halls of Congress as a lawmaker years ago, he’s been tagged the poorest solon. That did not change until his death.

He may not have died alongside his comrades during a rally; he may not have been shot dead; he did not have to suffer in a prison cell in the last days of his life, yet his death is just as meaningful.

We surely can learn a lot from this old man’s life, and the public officials specifically, can learn a lot from his death.

I first heard about Ka Bel and his struggles as a child. Though I did not have the privilege of meeting and working with him, I too mourn his passing.

Others have written about knowing and working with him, and remembering his legacy. If you want more, choose from a collection of links.

Hearing Mass. EcoWise at ShopWise. and a Boodle feast – Part II

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So hearing mass was the first part of the Sunday night. After the priest dismissed the congregation, Alfred and I parted with Joy. I would have wanted to take Joy up on her invitation to her new apartment and have some pasta that she prepared that afternoon. We had to turn her down though, for two reasons: Alfred really really wanted to eat at a particular restaurant, and we had some grocery shopping to do.

We’ve been to ShopWise several times already, mostly when we needed to buy Pedigree or Alpo for Zune. There was a also a time that we bought vegetables and fruits there for my week’s diet. I’ve seen the banners and adverts they have regarding their reusable eco-friendly bags and always thought that that was a fantastic idea. I never bought one before because we had no real intention to make ShopWise shopping a regular activity. Last night, we decided to buy the bag because, well, as it turns out, we do visit ShopWise almost every other week.

I took pictures of the bag but I’m having a hard time uploading using my mobile phone. Argh.

So we got the bag and the cashier started filling it up with our items (it’s a big bag) and then I read about the reusable bag and their double points promo. For ShopWise card holders, much like SM Advantage, you get points for your purchases. For people using the bag, they get double points for all items that fit in the bag. So the reusable bag has three purposes : 1) reduce the amount of plastic used by Shopwise customers; 2) have a sturdy big bag for your grocery items; and, 3) earn double points for your Wise card.

I really just bought the bag for it’s eco-friendly purpose. I’ve also been declining plastic bags from Ministop, often just carrying or pocketing the stuff I purchase. I also wish they would allow us to bring our own canvas bags when shopping at SM. Or perhaps SM should have their green bags available for clothing purchases, etc., and not just for use in their Supermarkets and with conditions at that.

Anywho, we’ve been really conscious about plastics and waste lately, it figured in quite a number of our recent conversations. I’ve mentioned that the Choco Oreo Truffles ala Bakerella are a big hit and people are actually ordering it from me now. I can’t help but think about how wasteful the packaging is. Yes, you’ve guessed it, it is plastic. So Alfred and I were thinking of alternatives and paper bags just don’t seem a good idea so we got the microwavable plastic stuff (more expensive than the ones I’ve used) and then we’ll just put tags on it to encourage buyers to reuse the container or give it back to us to take a small amount off their next purchase. We’ll see how that goes.

Finally, we could sit down for dinner after running around that massive grocery store. Alfred originally wanted to eat at Hap Chan but I wanted a Boodle feast at Seafood Island. Either way we would be spending around 500 pesos for the meal. Just as before, we thought about how gluttonous we looked ordering a feast for 3-4 persons, while there was just 2 of us. We looked at a family of about 3 adults and 2-3 kids who also ordered one of the boodle feasts. Are they having the 3-4 version, or the 5-6? Hopefully the latter. In fairness, they had additional orders.

Praise and Worship

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For my TT a post down I listed the things/thoughts I have wanted to post about but have not gotten to. Today, as I was bloghopping (late TT visits and going through my blogrolls), I chanced upon http://www.gannsdeen.com/ and read beyond his TT post.

At first I only thought of linking to his page for his David Cook Always be my baby stream because although I followed AI this season, I missed the Mariah episode. I am rooting for Cook. Archuleta is adorable but really, Cook has got it.

Then I read about the best decision he’s ever made.

Here’s item 5 on my TT: My thoughts on being a non-active Church member who does not attend Sunday mass (or any mass for that matter). I specifically want to dig through my thoughts and feelings about what I can do to be part of either the Youth movement or Sunday School. I know I have something to contribute, I’m just not making time.

See the connection? Okay, maybe you don’t because it’s all still in my head, and in my heart. This piece is probably just going to expose one part of it. I know there’s more.

It started with the music. He’s TT was about Christian songs that you should hear. One of which was his own composition. I listened to it and liked what I heard. Understand too that’s it’s early afternoon here and the toob is tuned to ASAP and they just had their GaryV 25th anniversary tribute/celebration. I have been singing along and my parents have had no choice but endure the sound of my voice. Hehe.

I went to an all-girl Catholic high school. Whether or not you were Catholic, you had to be around to attend the mass that would be celebrated every month or for every special occasion. I seriously didn’t mind because the services were much like our own Church services, they provided an opportunity NOT to be studying, and I liked singing along and learning their Church songs. That was really what I enjoyed most about having to attend mass with a multitude of girls – praise and worship through song. Mass without singing is just plain boring for me.

At Church, we sing hymns and people read the music from the Hymnal. I like those too. There’s also local, relatively recently composed songs that go into the Sunday Liturgy. I like listening to everyone’s voice mingling with each other. As a kid I wondered whether the older people actually attended classes to learn those hymns, everyone just blended perfectly.

In Sunday School, we would listen to and learn Kids Praise (another memory of my Aunt I wanted to write about last month but didn’t get to) – yes, Psalty was my friend and I am so going hunting for his CDs – the complete collection.

Really, isn’t singing praises like 5 times more wonderful? I mean compared to just sitting and listening and reciting stuff at Church?

Anyway, so that’s what got me to thinking (again) about what my beliefs are and how my faith manifests. I belong to a Church denomination that’s fairly small – The Episcopal Church in the Philippines, part of the Anglican Communion. My family history is intertwined with this Church’s history. Really, it’s more like an extended family. That’s what I like about our small Church, we are found scattered throughout the country from up north to down south, but it’s all just like one big family. Growing up in what I consider the heart of the Church just gave me an awareness of its life.

I distinctly remember the last summer I spent active at Church. It was the summer we moved house. I was with the SKEP, the Church youth group, and we sat with the Cathedral choir. Really, I went to rehearsals and sang at the Sunday Mass. We even had an Easter Cantata, I think the first and last that it was done. We had an awesome conductor. I truly enjoyed that time. It made me think that perhaps that was my place, my ministry – in music.

My Cooking Master Boy and Thursday Thirteen #11

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Cooking Master Boy – that is Alfred’s favorite anime. I enjoyed watching it too when it was on ABS-CBN but for Alfred, it’s like a how-to guide for cooking. Seriously. He’s been watching the series again, but this time through Youtube.com or Crunchyroll.com or some other video site that carry the any or all 52 episodes of the toon.

He’s been wanting to cook the perfect Yangchow fried rice, or even just to simply perfect the art of adding egg to rice. The other day, after watching an episode of Cooking Master Boy, he claimed to know the trick to get it done. For breakfast yesterday morning, he got up and tried his newly learned trick. In fairness, he didn’t disappoint. So breakfast was a big, fun event yesterday. 🙂

A couple of hours later, while we were at the mall looking for a chopper/food processor to make crushing Oreos an easier task for me, he still couldn’t forget about his wonderfully cooked fried rice. He was disappointed at not having taken a photo; I said we’ll capture it on film next time – if he can recreate it. 🙂

Today, I am bummed about NOT being able to post a decent TT in the past 3 or 4 weeks. Really, I had several ideas and posts written out in my mind but I never reached the keyboard to get them all out. Does that happen to you too? I think it happens to many of us – we actually think about stuff that’s happening around us and react to them, and then later think what a great post that would turn out to be – and then not get to post.

So here’s my thirteen posts I have yet to write.

  1. A post for or about my Mom and our relationship. Of course with Mother’s Day last Sunday, I thought about how we didn’t grow up as ‘good friends’ but having an ok relationship nonetheless. Instead of posting those thoughts right away, I stopped to look for her pictures that I can scrap and include in the post.
  2. My top freebie hunts for digital scrapbooking. I have long wanted to feature maybe two designer blogs at a time, as my little way of thanking them for all the wonderful designs they give away to cheap-o’s like me who grab every freebie that comes their way. 🙂 When I get to do this, the first one I would write about would be Susan of Raspberry Road.
  3. My follow up post about our day at the beach waves of Club Manila East. I have not finished my layouts of our pictures. And I MUST talk about the indestructible paper bracelet.
  4. Ramble about what I’m going to do for social change. As a young girl I was involved in many activities that contribute to society. I really was a child rights advocate and not just one who would talk about it. Now, I don’t really do anything in that front and I wish I could change that.
  5. My thoughts on being a non-active Church member who does not attend Sunday mass (or any mass for that matter). I specifically want to dig through my thoughts and feelings about what I can do to be part of either the Youth movement or Sunday School. I know I have something to contribute, I’m just not making time.
  6. Our third anniversary in the company. On the 23rd, Vanette, Edsel, Bea, Joey and I would be celebrating our 3rd year at NCO. We’re down to 3 from the original 24 (am I correct?) who started training as L2 TSRs. We were the special class that spent one week at Camelot Hotel. We were the class with a lot of potential.
  7. I wanted to share an inspirational video that I watched while I was at work the other day. It’s about how our attitude towards events and things in our everyday lives could be key to what becomes of us . At least that’s what I remember about it. I will watch it again and get the link up here someday.
  8. Ramble about friends and why I am not like others who spend so much time with friends. This is something I think about very often.
  9. Budgeting and saving money; making money. I really would love to travel and go on trips but don’t have the resources for it. I’ve been earning three times as much as I did three years ago and yet my bank account doesn’t have much. I know I can be thrifty if I wanted to, so why am I not so? I also make a little money through my blog over at http://verabear.bravejournal.com but I’d also like to explore how else I can earn online.
  10. Marriage/Wedding plans. Okay, there are no concrete plans yet
  11. I have not added Steve Berry’s The Third Secret to my bookcase. I read this weeks ago.
  12. How my luck is turning and my team is performing well at work now. I wanted to write about each team member to go with the pictures of our videoke night. That’s another item on my “to-scrap” list.
  13. The baking courses and schools and I read about online and why I want to sign up. Last month, I had plans to sign up for baking courses (which would have started in May).

I will post about these things SOON. If not, well, at least they’re on this list already. Hahaha!

Read my past TTs here and here.


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