Friday the 13th.I guess this is where it all began. This was such a hit horror movie in the 80s.

But realistically, some countries like the Philippines, Hungary, Belgium, Poland to name a few believe Friday the 13th to be a bad luck. Events could merely be a coincidence, but if it does happen often, I think it sure is a bad luck.

Just this morning I witnessed someone's bad luck. I rode a cab on my way to work when the cab driver started to feel uneasy. He sighs deeply and keeps on saying the local expression "aiyu." I ignored at first and just stared outside the window. But then, uncle driver just can't keep still. "Aiyu" some more meh! haha. I began to feel a li'l bothered. Maybe he couldn't take whatever he was feeling, until he stopped the meter and drove straight to a coffee shop. I was puzzled. It's definitely out of the way. I couldn't help but ask, "Uncle, what is wrong? Are you going to the toilet?" He said YES firmly. Ahh so now I know why he can't keep still. Haha. At first I was confused if I'll have to wait for him or take another cab. He couldn't think straight when I asked him but managed to give me my change after paying. I should have not paid in the first place because it was just a few blocks away from where I stay. Well, I can't blame uncle. I understand how difficult it is to hold something we can't hold. haha especially when all he could say was just "tsk, aiyu". Aaaw, poor uncle.

So instead of feeling pissed, as I was rushing to reach work before my taxi claim gets forfeited, I just had to put my worry behind because of uncle's unfortunate hour. hihi. I walked myself in the neighborhood boulevard and waited for another cab. Luckily, I got another, an auntie cab driver. Weee! I had to request her to drive a bit faster as I am chasing time. Luckily, I reached the office 3mins before call time. But! when I punched in, it was 06:30:59AM. By the time my card was read, it hit 06:31:00AM. Yikes! I'm doomed. Aiyu, uncle shared his bad luck to me. hihi. Well, true enough, Friday the 13th is a bad luck. What about you, anything bad happened today?

Cars and Girls. What is it about cars and girls? I was on my way home together with my colleagues when we saw the oldest car ever spotted in Singapore. One of my colleagues jokingly said that he wouldn't let his car old that long, like a junk-old. Haha. Me and Eve just laughed it off. Hypothetically, Eve said that maybe the car was from Malaysia. She thinks that people from Singapore would not keep a car for so long. hehe fair enough, I haven't seen much of old cars since I got here.

The funny thing about our small talks (while on our way to the bus terminal) was Richard started to compare girls with cars. He thinks that the older the car, the higher the maintenance. With girls, the longer you spent with them (gf to wife) the higher the expenses. Is it?

When I got home, I asked Archie. What is about cars and girls? What do they have in common? Surprisingly, answers came out. First, he said with stylish cars, people generally reacts in just one word, "wow" which is same with girls. Second, luxury cars are like "expensive" type of girls. Third, simple car yet relaxing to drive. Girls who are like me, mwehehe. I mean girls who are as simple as the word implies. And lastly, a junk car is alike to unappealing type of girls. Usually, junk cars always need repairs, etc. Just like girls, they need doctors to keep 'em look good. Whoa!

But! Hold your horses. hehe... Apparently, these kind of reactions only happens on first encounter. Eventually, we re-assess ourselves and begin to weigh things. Why buy something expensive when you can have another for a cheaper price, right? Why change an old car when you can innovate it to look different? Just like girls, why go for the "high-end" if you can be happier on lower ends? If I am to assess, the simile between cars and girls do not stop at what our eyes want to see, but with what our hearts feel too eventually. Well, first impression do not always last I think. Tell me, which car would you want to be, the stylish, luxury, simple or the junk? hehe

Dear friends, I didn't mean to confuse you by changing blog layouts and name. My apologies to that. I'm just contemplating on which to settle to as I am getting so fascinated with it. hehe

Please, link this up as I will surely update. Thank you! And feel free to write down your comments, I am not gonna bite! hehe...

UNIQUE. This is what we all are. As defined, unique is "being the only one of it's kind." I was chatting with my dear friend Joy when this topic came to mind. I told her to visit my blog as I have rekindled with my love for writing again. She said that I am lucky to have the skills to write, to put in words what I have in mind. But honestly, it is not always that easy to put everything in words. Why? because not everything means the exact same thing. It is a fact that no exact message is ever relayed correctly. Check on the process of communication to support this statement. Right now, I am still in the brink of improving my creative writing skills as I have been more exposed to straight news. Admittedly, I am trying so hard. I hope in time, I'd be as good as the people I admire in writing.

Moving on, Joy said she'd rather be the painter, the accountant, and make-up artist than a writer. I exactly reciprocate her talent. I am not a person who loves numbers. I kind of reject it in my mind instantly. I don't know why but it I'd rather be a debater, a TH-writer, an English tutor than a number-expert. Haha. Weird but I just feel this uncertainty when it comes to figures. I get so stressed.

The extremities between me and Joy makes us unique from each other. It makes us "one of a kind." In this world, billions of people are unique in their own ways. Our talents are incomparable. Either the impact is minute or enormous, we still stand out. I stand out, you stand out. I believe no person is dumb. I guess we all are smart, we're just not smart enough to use 'em right. Clearly, I'd like to convey the message that no matter what strengths and weaknesses each of us have, our capability as a whole person is not measured on it alone. Think of this, if we are all good in the same thing, who would care to do things that we're not good at? If we are all managers, who would want to be an assistant? The uniqueness in us balances the needs and wants in our world. So if you have the passion in what you do, go for it. Don't be stopped by what others would say. Succeed in what you are good at and be UNIQUE!

Food - Food - Food


People - People - People

Finally, training is over! Wahooo! Two of my Saturdays were spent at Singapore Orchid Country Club. I’d like to share you some tidbits. The training was all about the Art of Service. It aims to help us, Service Providers move a step up to what we already know. One of the highlights of the training that got me really so interested was about the behavioural styles. Our trainer, Sham, gave us an examination called CORE Profiling System. It is a self-test (no right or wrong answer) to check how we typically react to a situation. CORE is actually an acronym to four kinds of behavioural styles.

C – Conventional. A conventional kind of person likes stability and security. He expects cooperation among people and wants things to be clearly defined. Meanwhile, this person would definitely dislike uncertainty and last-minute drastic changes. He is not into conflicts, disorganized and disorderly places. If this person is under pressure, he gives in to others too easily.

O – Observant. To be an observant type, this person likes perfection and accuracy. He likes high standards and quality. On the contrary, this person extremely dislikes changes in procedure or if standards are not adhered to and being criticized by others. If under pressure, this person tends to become critical to himself and others.

R – Resolute. Challenges, variety, has control over everything, and achieve results are a few lists of the likes. Meanwhile, this person dislikes having no control of things. He is not a fan of routine and predictable situations. This person also dislikes not achieving results, details and being micromanaged. If he is under pressure, this person may show lack of concern for others’ views and feelings.

E – Expressive. If you are this person, you most likely want recognition by others. You like to interact with people and obtain approval and acceptance from others. However, you dislike working alone, being unfriendly and in a hostile environment. You also dislike being rejected and disapproved by others. If under pressure, you become disorganized.

I took the test, result showed that I am a high “O” person. True enough, I am a person who likes accuracy, high standards and quality. Admittedly, I’d like perfection. But I know for a fact that it’s never achievable. Although, being a high “O” would not mean I can’t be high on the other styles. We are high C-O-R-E in different ways. We have various roles in our lives, we behave differently to the place and with the people that we are dealing to. Over all, there is NO right or wrong answer.

This is aimed to give us pointers on how to approach people with different behaviours. Cool, right? It was indeed a well-ended training filled with new skills to practice both at work and in our daily lives. So tell me, which behaviour do you possess?

It's time to say goodbye to my old blog layout. I had been using the blog frocks skin courtesy of Ice's creativity for 4 years. This is the only time I had freely wanted to change to a new look. Nevertheless, thank you Ice for the beautiful layout I had been using to post moments of my life.

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Today was such a tedious day spent at work. So many things to do yet so little time. I'm glad to make it today. Wohoo! Except that I still have 3 more working days of torture at work. Huhu, I can't wait for next week. Ok guys, it's sleeping time. I'll post some more once I get a chance. Have a goodnight sleep y'all. Muah!

Whoa, time flies so fast I didn’t realize it took me over 2 weeks to update my blog. I’ve been caught up with work a lot lately. Sigh, I’m feeling pretty exhausted with just a little amount of time to spare. I only had a day to rest. Poor me, I had to stretch the day in doing all of my chores i.e. attend mass, going to the grocery, ironing clothes and the cooking. I think to multi-task is not only applied at work but also in our daily stuffs especially without anyone to rely on but ourselves. It sucks big time! I’d really like to trade places with Posh Beckham who multi-tasks in lavish ways i.e. being a mom, wife to famous husband, shopping shoes, bags, a jet-setter, etc. Haha!

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Last Friday May 23, Archie and I went to dine at Tony Roma’s in celebration to our 5th year together. Weee! It was definitely memorable. We had a sumptuous meal. Yum! I missed eating steak so much. We’re both a fan of steaks but I rarely see restaurants that cater to it here, or maybe I wasn’t too much of an explorer to check out all the places, I could be wrong though. I remember back in the Philippines we are one of the frequent diners of this local steakhouse in Baguio called Sizzling Plate. They serve the best Australian Porterhouse in the city. Well, no place like home they say, hehe. Anyway, I’d like to treasure that night not only for the superb meal but for the reason of celebrating. It is cliché but I gotta say, 5 years is FIVE years. Hehe, I’m grateful to have such a wonderful boyfriend who understands and accepts the best and WORST of me. I love you! Hugs and Kisses!

On Saturday, I attended our company sponsored training titled The Art of Service held at the Singapore Orchid Country Club. Goodness! The place is really at the far end of where I stay. Huhu, I had to wake up some 3-hours before call time to get ready, aiyu! But despite the hassle, I did enjoy the training. It was an added experience and an opportunity to mingle with colleagues. Oh and I love the place, it was so serene. Wish I could stay there longer. Hehe (in my dreams) One more thing, for the first time, I got to play soccer – in the car park. Haha! Nice, right? Overall, it was a fun-packed weekend. What about you, how did you spend your weekend? Ciao!

Clockwise from the top: at the famous Esplanade, at the Merlion

with Spiderman, at Raffles Place, with housemates, with Archie,

and the goofin face

Center: dinner with colleagues at Newton Circus

Hi, it’s been a long time since I visited my site. Thanks to Rona for the reminder. Sorry guys if you keep on visiting without any new update.

So what have I been up to lately? After my last post, a lot had happened.

I resigned, left home because I wanted so badly to move on after mom’s passing. I needed to be strong and left the place that reminds me of her to start anew. So I flew to Singapore, packed with just faith.

Initially, I planned to stay here for just a visit. But when I arrived, I was in complete awe. I fell in love with the place. And so I decided to look for a job. Luckily, I got one.

Let me share my experience in getting the job. At first I thought it was easy to outwit other races in getting a job for our Pinoy skills generally. But I was wrong. Even if we think we have the edge, it is not enough reason to risk and leave our comfort zones especially if we have families to support. I've learned that companies strictly follow a certain number of foreigners to hire. And I think the government prioritizes their own residents in getting employment. So if a company reaches its quota for foreigners, even if you are very much qualified, no way you are getting in. So it is not that easy after all.

Before I got the job, I was grilled so badly with questions that were practically irrelevant. Mind you, it was a 3-page list of questions. (Sigh) In my entire career, I never had such an interview; I went through an excruciating process i.e. an exam (for 1hr) then a 3-hour one-on-one interview with a manager. It was really helluva. It didn’t end there. On my way home, I got another phone call. I thought that call was to tell me I’m hired. Not so fast sweetie, it was the supervisor asking me to spare some more of my time. So I told the supervisor on the phone to call me back as I am a few blocks away from home. It would be better to have a conversation. So when I reached home, she called back. Darn, it was again an hour and a half follow-up interview. Whew! Exhausting like hell. Believe me, I cried after that call. I cried not because of the questions but because of exhaustion. I was emotionally traumatized for a few days. I couldn’t get over the manager and supervisor who grilled me to death.

There is nothing else more I can do of what happened, but to surrender everything to Him. It may have been tough but after a few weeks, I got a call. I got in! Praise God. I couldn’t refuse because the company is well-known. I know I will be secured. Who am I to dwell on that little drama and refuse the offer right? And so I took the offer, and thankfully everything ended up well, nothing personal. I think it all goes to what they say “No Pain, No Gain.”

So if some of you guys are planning to try your luck on your own abroad, make sure that you’re well-prepared to accept consequences. Don’t just be financially ready but emotionally, psychologically, physically and mentally ready as well because not all battles are won that easy. Sabi nga nila, dadaan ka muna sa butas ng karayom. True enough.

Life abroad is not as easy as what I thought before. I always had the impression that Filipinos residing out of the country are very lucky and that they never run out of money. Now that I’m here, I defy that impression. Haha

I’ve been here for 7 months now and things have been so different. Sometimes, there are moments when I wish I could go back to the “simple” life I had back home. The happy life I had when my mom was still around. I know it will never be simple again without her.

Tomorrow is mother’s day and mom has gone. She had her last mother’s day celebration last year. Sad, but I still feel like it was just yesterday. It is really tough to lose someone closest to us. And it breaks my heart remembering her. Though I know she is happier where she is right now.

Happy Mother’s Day to you Mama and to all the mothers out there! May you continue to shape the minds of your children to become better persons. Godbless!

Hi friends! I'm back but not quite. I'll post details later because it's time for bed *winks*

It’s time for me to let you know

Why I’m so glad that I have you through all these years

I am so thankful

Now that I’ve grown up

I’ll always be

Thinking of all the things

You’ve taught me so

Always remember

I’ll be alright

I’ll be okay

I will be good and

Loving you all the way

All from the heart

These things I do

I’ll make you proud

Because I love you

I’ll be alright

I’ll be okay

I will be fine and

I will be good all the way

All from the heart

These things I do I’ll make you proud

Because I do

I love you so

I will stand tall

And try not to fall

As I reach all my goal

I will go on

And I will move on

All because of you,For you...

I’ll be alright

I’ll be okay

I will be good and

Loving you all the way

All from the heart

These things I doI’ll make you proud

Because I love you

I’ll be alright I’ll be okay

I will be fine and I will be good all the way

All from the heart

These things I do I’ll make you proud

Because I do I love you so

I love you so

I love you so I love you

A part of me is still struggling to move on after you left. I try so hard to live , even away from where I could remember everything. I will forever have this torn heart, torn of longing to see the most important person in my life ever again. I have my dreams coming to reality, yet I dont have you to share with. It pains me to see all of it on my own. I wish I have Hiro Nakamura's power, so I could turn back time and spend each moment with you in bliss. You still inspire me in my heart and mind. I know that you are looking after me. And I thank each night that I dream of you, because it's the only thing I could get closest to you. I miss you, mama.

Last Monday, I couldn’t sleep. Strange but I was up all night. And I felt like maybe my mom was with me trying to say something or maybe just looking at me in bed. Since her death, I always imagined the movie Ghost. I feel like she is always here keeping an eye on things.

I had the broken heart for the passed two weeks. I grieved terribly each day because there’s a part of me that blames myself for what happened. And I cant stop thinking about it. I drowned myself believing it was my fault. Though I did say sorry to mom a thousand times but it just aint enough because I wanna know that she accepted it. I know it was meant to happen but I still feel this certain emotional baggage that is blocking some airway in my heart telling, what if things were different. I had this feeling because I don’t want my siblings to think that I didn’t take good care of her. I gave up my comfort zone a few years ago so I can look after her. And I often tell my friends how I value my mom that I have to be with her each time. So it is really hard to move on.

Others say, dead people will eventually reappear in dreams. And I waited for it to happen until Monday night. I had the chance to really say how sorry I was. Mom accepted my apology and hugged me so tight I almost felt it was true. She squeezed me and cried really hard on each others’ shoulders. Oh how I miss that warm hug from her L I really miss her. From then on, I felt relieved. If I think of her now, I don’t feel the ache in my heart as I did before, only a bit. I can freely think of her in bliss. I’m happy of what had become. Mama, I will miss you forever in this world. I love you so much!