Thoughts of the Dead

If you believe that a person's spirit comes back to check on you and watch over you, then I believe my mom comes back in the form of a dragonfly. Always, on special occasions and on not so special ones, I usually find one in the house and always in the same place. Like the past couple of days, there has always been a dragonfly in the house.. when the kids see it, they always say, "Hi, Lola Benggoy!" Lola Benggoy is what they call their grandma :)

I figured, it's nearing her favorite grandchild's birthday so she's dropping in and I miss her even more..

Anyway, yesterday we went out to Quiapo to get my debit card for Paypal. While walking the streets of Quiapo, I couldn't help but remember when my mom and I used to come here to go to church, buy really cheap clothes (yeah!) and eat at Ma Mon Luk. She really loved the noodles here and so do I and so do Den and the kids. It was funny, coz one of Den's friends, Richard also came with us and he hadn't heard of Ma Mon Luk (oh what a sacrilege!) so I felt it was my duty to educate him on the finer things about noodles hehehe and true enough, he loved it and will take his family and friends there as well hehehehe

So when we came home, I was thinking pretty nice things about Mom and Ma Mon Luk and while Den was opening the door, a strange thing happened. For no particular reason, I expected Shadow, my mom's dog to bark as he usually does when he hears us coming home. But Shadow has been dead for over a year! I felt a chill run up my spine. And even stranger, Den stopped opening the door and looked at me and said, "I was expecting to hear Shadow barking!".. imagine that, the same thought!! it was strange and creepy, yet kind of like part of the mood...

my mom said that when Shadow died, she could smell her all the way up in California.. At first, she didn't know what the smell in her office was until she saw my email about Shadow's death.. and then she realized it for what it was - Shadow was saying goodbye to her...

I miss my mom.. wish I had a new dog..

Dana's Artwork #2

I'm sure that when we were kids we used to occupy our time coloring pages and pages of these coloring books. It was fun and it was educational as well. This is a sample of Dana's recent coloring activity.

I was really surprised because she has a different technique than when I did when I was young. I remember I just used one color to fill in the outlines and I stuck with the color of the picture.. like I'd color a flower red, leaves green and so on.. So, it was refreshing to see her do this on her own and it's really quite lovely, if I do say so myself LOL

Dana's Artwork

From Blogger Pictures
Hello! Hello!

I just wanted to share one of my daughter's masterpieces :) She did this artwork on her own, especially the drawings and the writing.. She had help to cut the hearts but everything else, even the pasting, it's all her.. :)

Oh and here's a sample of her other writing works too :)
From Blogger Pictures


My baby's growing up so fast!! :)

3-Day Weekend

It was a 3-day weekend for us. In the Philippines, we have something called "holiday economics" in which holidays that land on the weekdays are automatically moved to either Monday or Friday to encourage domestic spending over the weekend. People who want to travel locally without having to file a day off from work which is great.

Anyway, I also took a break from my writing because I wanted to spend time with the kids. When I'm writing naturally I'm more focused on it and can sometimes neglect to give them the attention that they need. So to make up for it, we stayed at home, had fun watching movies and we experimented with some recipes we had :) Dana helped with the cooking :) Oh and I also had my hair cut which was really overdue! Now, my head feels lighter LOL

We watched The Dark Crystal, which has been a favorite of mine (and of Patrick) from our "younger" days LOL We wanted the kids to appreciate it as much as we did. Funny enough, even Den (the teen) liked the movie :)

Oh and we also watched "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" too hahaha I liked it! Now, if only I had Book 6, our collection will be complete hahaha

We also watched "The Golden Compass" and the kids loved it, especially Dylan because of the bear!

The movie, "Willow" was also a trip down memory lane :) This one starred Warwick Davis, Val Kilmer, Joanne Whalley and produced by George Lucas :)

Learning while Writing

For the couple of years or so, I've been writing web content as a ghost writer and I've found it a good experience. I get to write (which I love), get paid (wish they paid higher), and learn at the same time! Because of this part-time work, I've been able to research on things that normally I wouldn't even dream of looking up.

For instance, for the past weeks, I've been writing travel articles. In the process, I've learned about many cities, their history and what makes them tick.. it makes me wish that I was so rich I can go to all of them at my leisure hehe

Like yesterday, I was doing an article about Jerusalem. During the research about its geography (I'm a stickler for details) I've stumbled upon the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I have heard of it on the news but I never really thought about it. So I searched some more (never mind that it's really background for the article on Jerusalem but I got intrigued). I'm sure that everyone has their own opinion about what's going on but I think it's a matter of letting go and moving on so that there'll be peace.. I know, easier said than done.. and you have years and years of history to bury and that's not easy..

Anyway, I'm glad I'm doing this writing thing. I learn something new everyday :)

Zenni Optical: The Answer to your prayers!

Recently, I’ve been having these major headaches because I’ve taken up writing again. What that means is that I’m in front of the computer most of the time and it’s taking a strain on my eyes. My eyeglasses needed replacing which led me to look for a great source of affordable yet stylish eyeglasses and voila! Incredible Stylish New Frames From Zenni!!

I found that for as low as $8, I can get the frame that I want from so many frames to choose from. Check out that picture and the best part is that it even comes with FREE Anti Scratch coating, UV Protection and Lens Edge polishing and beveling! And get this - Zenni Optical was on FOX news!

If you’re like me and you’re always on the lookout for a good deal, why don’t you try Zenni Optical $8 Rx Eyeglasses? You’ve solved your eye problems, you look good and still managed to save some money. I think that’s a great bargain!!

The tooth is gone!! bwahahahaha

Okay, I have just returned from the dentist's clinic and am so happy to report that the bad tooth.. the very bad tooth.. that has been plaguing me for exactly a week now is gone and laid to rest.. dum-dum-dum-dum..

Of course, I was apprehensive and nervous but I was showing a brave face because Dana was with me and I didn't want to traumatize her by being all shaky and anxious. She was in the room when it all happened :)

The doctor came in and checked again if he can indeed remove the tooth now. And, yes, he said, let's proceed. Then, he shot me with something (most likely anesthesia and Adrenalin was the third one, as I later found out). It felt like my face was swollen but Dana said nothing is different on my face.. the numbness was creeping in.. Dana didn't even get scared from the needle, she even said, "Wow, that's a different injection, Mama"

After 5-10 minutes, the doctor came back and started doing something again to my mouth.. I didn't feel a thing! It was only when Dana said, "Mama, what did he take from your mouth?!" that I had an inkling it was over. And it was over, and all my fears were for naught!

He showed me the tooth (for a second I wanted to take a picture so you guys can see it but I didn't want to gross you out hehehe) and it was creepy! hahaha The root was longer than normal, the doctor said, so again, my tooth was a mutant! I'm such a mutant! hahaha

After that, he prescribed some pain killers for after the anesthetic wears off and I have to call him again on Monday just to check in. After 10 days, I have another free check up scheduled :)

whew! I'm glad it wasn't so scary that time. :) Thanks Doc!