anyway, we we’re having fun when we we’re taught about
traffic signs and other informations needed for
defensive driving…
we were the boisterous group…according to the instructor!

the discussion lasted for forty-five minutes only and
the actual lesson started…

thought it was easy…
well, it looked easy…
but i am enveloped with fear…
my hand trembled while the instructor taught me
how to change gears, when to step on the clutch, brake and accelerator…

perspiration covered my face (look, ma, no more make-up! hehehe…)
while i tried to complete five rounds of driving in “primera”…

my officemates were kidding me that i am a “kaskasera”… for driving the whole time in “primera”
(hurot ang gasolina!)

ha-ha… they were just mad because
what took them 4 minutes to complete the five
rounds of driving—i did in 20 minutes!

but, still… i congratulate myself for getting out of
the multicab—alive, though perspiring like hell!

next saturday, “segunda” here i come!

…well, i believe in the saying: “slowly but surely!”

well, i had lunch with my cousin anne and her lovely family
when she offered me a slice of her mango float…
let’s call it, mango float “ala-anne”

boy! i really love the taste…
maybe because it was prepared with love…
and her equally lovely daughters, Alex and Andy, helped her, too…!

anyways, she shared to me the ingredients needed to prepare my mango float “ala-anne”

a kilo of fresh sweet mango
one pack of crushed graham
one can of condensed milk (i bought Liberty Condensada…)
and one box of all-purpose cream

slice thinly the mango fruit then set aside
mix condensed milk and cream in another bowl then set aside

place crushed graham on a pan or plastic container
(just enough to cover the whole area of the pan)
then line mango slices over it then cover with your milk/cream mixture
do the same procedure again
but just make sure that crushed graham will be the last ingredient
to put into the pan

chill for an hour or two before serving.
but i prefer to chill the dessert overnight…

i can guarantee that it’s so yummy-licious! so, try it!

Is there a time in your life when you wanted something so much but you just can’t have it?

Well, I am in that situation right now. You see, a subdivision lot was offered to me. I find it very tempting. A structure was already built but the developer will waive the price of the structure. All I have to do is shell out Twenty Thousand Pesos as downpayment. Forty Thousand Pesos will be paid within a year without interest. And the remaining amount shall be paid through PAG-IBIG.

The figures were indeed tempting.

And so was the structure. All I need is to put a roof and a wall, and presto- I have MY house! Kahit magdildil nang asin, basta may bahay! (Calling Manny Villar! Help! I need 20k for the downpayment! lol)

Not really my dream house, but it’s still a HOUSE! And I can surely make it a HOME!

But I have no money! I have a huge debt to settle and I am planning to clean my long list of debts before the year ends. That’s one of my life-plans.

I am really resigned to the fact that I cannot have that property! But this morning, a friend sent me a text asking if i made up my mind already about the property. If I will not buy it, he will.

Imagine how I felt. All the while I thought I can live without buying that property. And here I am feeling so helpless. I wanted that property so much but I can’t have it.

I felt like crying.

But I have no choice. I have to let go of something that almost becomes mine but never did.

Gotta go. I still have to send a reply to this friend of mine….

the article impressed me so much and i want to share it with you. bet you will learn to appreciate the importance of a banana in our diet.

so, let’s have a banana now!

if you want a quick fix for flagging energy levels, there’s no better snack than a banana. containing three natural sugars – sucrose, fructose and glucose – combined with fiber, a banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy.

research proved that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. no wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world’s leading athletes. but energy isn’t the only way a banana can help us keep fit. it can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illness and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.

ANEMIA high in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia

BLOOD PRESSURE this unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it the perfect food for helping to beat blood pressure

BRAIN POWER research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert

CONSTIPATION high in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowl action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives

DEPRESSION according to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. this is because bananas contain trypotophan, a type of protein that the body converts in serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier

HANGOVERS one of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. the banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system

HEARTBURN bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief

MORNING SICKNESS snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness

MOSQUITO BITES before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation

NERVES bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system

PMS forget the pills, eat a banana. the vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels; which can affect your mood

ULCERS the banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. it is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over chroniculcer cases. it also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach

SEASONAL AFFECTIVE DISORDER (SAD) bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer, trypotophan

SMOKING bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking, as the high levels of Vitamin C, A1, B6, B12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, helps the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal

STRESS potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body’s water-balance. when we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, there by reducing our potassium levels. these can be re-balanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack

STROKES according to research in The New England Journal of Medicine, eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%

WARTS those keen on natural alternatives swear that, if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tape

overweight and at work? studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. the report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods such as bananas every two hours to keep levels steady

so you see, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills. when we compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrate, three times the phosphorus, five times the Vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. it is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around. so maybe it’s time to change that well-known phrase so that we say, “a banana a day keeps the doctor away!”

hmmm… amused? impressed? go buy a banana now.

i am sad.
i am lonely.
i felt like crying right now,
but i stopped myself.
i have to stop myself.

there are times in my life when
i felt like giving up with someone…
…whom i trusted so much
…whom i cared so much
…whom i valued so much
but everytime that thought crosses my mind
my heart, like a dictator, controls my mind!

i always asked myself how i fared through life
with someone who doesn’t want to make any
commitment with me?

how can i be in a long relationship
without any commitment?
how can i be in a long relationship
without knowing where i stand in his life?
how can i be in a long relationship with him
and yet nobody knows?
how can i care so much as to forget about
myself?

questions… and more questions to come.

aaaah… love!
it does perturbs me!

one peso coin

ten pesos coin

i gave seven pieces of one peso coins and was surprised when the conductor (assistant of the driver) asked me for another one peso coin. i was ashamed. i thought i gave the exact amount.

and was relieved when he told me that one of the coins that i gave him was a ten peso coin. he handed me my ten peso coin in exchange of my one peso coin. i thanked him for being honest.

why am i sharing this experience? because i can’t believe that there are still honest people out there.

two lessons that i’ve learned because of this experience. first, i should not judge a person right away (i have this thought that jeepney drivers and conductors are dishonest – sorry, but that’s my opinion) and second, honesty IS still the best policy!

have a great weekend!

so when my cousins told me that they are going to Simala last May 20, 2009, i tagged along to reflect and to find my inner self.

we fall in-line with the other devotees for the Holy Sculpture of Mother Mary. did a fast and a heartfelt prayer in front of Mother Mary’s sculpture because there were still hundreds of devotees behind me waiting for their turn.

Mother Mary

i’ll be sharing here some of the pictures that i took.

exquisite paintings on the ceiling

we left Simala at about 12:30pm. went directly to argao’s orange brutus for lunch. then dropped by the riverstone castle resort before heading home.

by the way, they also have Petition Candles for Mama Mary. Heres the symbol/meaning for every color.

petition candles

riverstone castle resort

the riverstone castle resort
argao, cebu

the riverstone castle resort was formed in april year 2002 by the galeos brothers, edgar and edsel. hence, it was conceived during a holy week family reunion on hilly farm of edgar with two foreign nationals, rune sande (norwegian national married to an argawanon) and raphael lemmens (belgian national).

castle

an old castle door

edsel galeos, a civil engineer, suggested to develop a family children’s park. a month later, the family agreed to develop it into an ecotourism industry.

the riverstone castle was designed by raphael lemmens.

a haunting image

a statue near the stairs

one of the hundred windows

please check my multiply account for more pictures of riverstone castle

if you have time, please visit the riverstone castle resort in argao. you will surely be amazed! …and don’t forget to order their homemade pizza! guaranteed to make you feel like a queen!

white powdery sand

hagonoy island

hagonoy island
…with its powdery white sand
and crystal blue water… who needs boracay, anyway?

found in the middle of bislig bay, hagonoy island is a thirty minutes pumpboat ride from mangagoy wharf (caramcam area)

mangagoy wharf

hagonoy island is a pear shaped island and one can circumnavigate the area in 10 or 15 minutes.

dong

besty

besty, baning and dong

stolen shot

inside a century old tree

visit hagonoy island to experience paradise!

tinuy-an falls

from the main road, one has to go through a
30minutes not-so-bumpy ride (about 18 kilometers)
along the way, you will be able to pass by borboanan reservoir
the serenity of the place will surely haunt you to come back again and again

at 95 meters in width, tinuy-an falls is considered as the widest falls in the country
it has three levels with a total height of 55 meters

tinuy-an or tinuyo-an is a vernacular word which means done intentionally
and, indeed, one can think that with the awesomeness of the place,
a magical hand must have intentionally placed every stones and boulders to create such an astounding beauty

last Christmas 2008, my dong, besty and baning paid a short vacation in Bislig City
we showed them hagonoy and tinuy-an falls
i hope these pictures will show how much they enjoyed the falls

at the foot of the second level

dong

besty

baning

visit tinuy-an falls and you will surely be dazzled!

note: the first picture was grabbed from www.gerryruiz.wordpress.com