Staying Young and Happy

I got this email from my sister and I loved it. Makes a lot of sense and it deserves a space in my blog. I believe in being happy and as I said before, this life is all I ever have and I'm living it to the fullest.

We all need to read this one over and over until it becomes part of who we are!

1. Try everything twice. On Madams tombstone (of Whelan's and Madam) she said she wanted this epitaph: Tried everything twice...loved it both times!

- I wouldn't mind traveling to the same place twice most especially if it's Europe. Would love to be back there.

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down. (keep this in mind if you are one of those grouches)

- As I grew older, I've learned to weed out people who don't do me any good. I really value those who are true.

3. Keep learning : Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain get idle. "An idle mind is the devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's!

- Never hurts to learn a new hobby. Might just have the hidden talent for it.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

- I've always believed in the basics. Nothing fancy. Just downright fun and nothing complicated.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath. And if you have a friend who makes you laugh, spend lots and lots of time with him / her.

- I have a bunch of friends who are as crazy as I am or even crazier.

6. The tears happen: endure, grieve, and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. LIVE while you are alive.

- Forgiveness is a process and it does take time. Those who do us bad would be hit twice as hard and I believe in the law of karma. What goes around comes around and I've seen it happen that I'm paid double for my trouble.

7. Surround yourself with what you love: Whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge. Dance around the house naked.

- Yup it does pay to be surrounded by people who love us but dancing around the house naked?! It doesn't work in the Philippines. Hahaha.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

- Health is wealth.

9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county, to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is.

- Live life. The only way to live life is to move forward. Guilt is only for those who have did us wrong.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

- I agree.

11. Forgive now those who made you cry. You might not get a second time.

- As I said, forgiving people is not easy but it takes time. What I do is to pray for the grace to forgive the people who have hurt me. I may reach the point of forgiving (I hope I do 0:-) ) but knowing me, I would always keep a distance as I can never open myself up again the same way as before.

Lost time can never be found. Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle. Have a wonderful Wednesday! It's a brand new day.

Friendships - A Reason, Season or A Lifetime

Today I was online checking my emails and wasn't really planning to chat that much. I just came from cake decorating class and I've been lacking sleep lately since I've been baking and decorating a lot. (I can't wait for my head to hit the pillow as I type.) On those days when I'm not in class, S, a chef consultant comes to the house and we try different recipes. It's really fun! S has been giving several baking tips and she is truly an angel. Though my schedule is packed lately, I've been enjoying my time learning so many things.

Going back to my friendships, as I was saying, I was able to get in touch with friends today and it has made me realize that some things never change. Friendship is a test of time and distance. Some friends come to us only for a reason, some stay only for a season and there are those that last a lifetime. I'm blessed to have met lifetime friends who share the same values as I do. To this day, I have kept friends I've met since I was four years old and they do complete my life as they keep me grounded and they know me inside out. I also have friends I've known for only a number of years yet they are really close to my heart.

There are also those friendships that only last for a season and they're only meant to be with me for a certain time. Friends do come and go. That's just the way it is. People may come to our lives only for a reason. Maybe to fulfill a purpose, teach us something or to allow us to show their true colors. I've had friends whom I've lost contact with and they turn out to be lasting friendships while there are those whom I've been constantly in contact with but end up to be untrue.

I'm grateful to enjoy a good support system from friends from wherever. Thanks for the friendship! I'm overwhelmed by the outpour of support and affection. There's always a bit of this friend and that in me. :-)

The Prayer of the Listening Heart

The Center for Ignatian Spirituality (CIS) launched its Retreat for Daily Life program yesterday. There were around 60 or so retreatants and it was a whole day affair where prayer and reflection were discussed. The program aims to teach the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises where a lot of focus is given on reflection. For me, this is a new way of walking down this spiritual path and my experience yesterday was calming and reassuring.

I did receive a handout from CIS and it details The Prayer of the Listening Heart. The exercise process was simple.

1. Choose a short passage.
2. The passage or text is read three times.
3. Read the passage slowly.
4. After the first reading, repeat a word or phrase that struck you personally.
5. After the second reading, try to make an application of the text, word or phrase in your life. For example, the Lord is calling me to some form of newness.
6. After the third reading, try to make a spontaneous vocal prayer to God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
7. End the prayer exercise by a short period of grateful silence on God's Presence.

Usually, after each prayer and reflection, the experience is documented through a journal. Needless to say, I'll be writing about my experience daily and how it has made me realize certain things and how God communicates. According to Fr. Celerino Reyes, SJ, intimacy happens when there is silence and it is only when we are silent that we truly hear what our heart is saying. I agree. I had an enlightening experience during the retreat and I somehow have an idea what God wants me to do.

I'm glad that I took the retreat. It has made me realize that I am blessed and protected. It has also affirmed that I'm on the right path. It does help that prayer and reflection is done daily. It's my personal moment with God and since I took this journey, I've been blessed many times over. God bless everyone! :-)

Reunited the Simple but Elegant Way

What better way to enjoy good food with the company of good friends. I organized a get together among former co-workers and it was well attended. Dinner was at Sentro in Greenbelt 3 and it was full of reminiscing and laughter. We all agreed that the next reunion will be for Christmas. Almost half of the group has already moved on and are pursuing other careers but somehow, the group has remained bonded. I do recall those years when there were several seminars and out of town events. We'd always have a night cap of beer or wine and we'd all stay together in a room laughing the night away. One of the most fun night caps we had was when we played Truth or Consequence. To this day, whatever truth was revealed that night will always remain in what we call our Circle of Trust.

Now that I'm writing this blog, I can't help but look forward to the next reunion. After all, I do miss them and last night was the start of more get togethers and maybe another game of Truth of Consequence. I miss you guys! (I'm sure namimiss nyo rin ako kasi #1 alaskador ako ng grupo. Aminin nyo na rin na kapag nasa abroad ako noon, nami-miss nyo mga hirit ko sa mga meetings.)

The 40 something men. Fitz, Mael and Haja. Fitz and Mael were enjoying San Mig Light while Haja was high on sago't gulaman. :-) Fitz is the perfect partner for a beer night as he can finish several bottles in one sitting. Mael is the group's barista and he gets everybody tipsy and drunk during night caps. Well for last night, everybody was sober. Haja is a sight to see when Mael gets him tipsy. Sober or not, I can exchange jokes with him the whole time.

Jon, Shar and Dante. Jon is a good dancer and he cracks me up on the dance floor. Shar is a good impersonator while Dante is natural with his comic lines without him knowing it. It was with Dante that the term Orange Party started. Orange Party is how we called our farewell parties. Our parties usually had a theme. Needless to say, Dante's despedida was themed orange. We all looked like popsicles that night. It was fun and we played Game Ka Na Ba for the Dante Trivia.

Dra. Tita Go and Bess. Dra. gives really good training and I learned so many things from her. Bess is still quiet as ever and is still free spirited. Case in point was her purse which she left lying around last night when she went out for a smoke. Si Madam talaga.

Tina (a.k.a Tippie - ewan ko bakit basta love nya yang name na yan), Teza and Chel. I miss Tina's laughter and how we joke around during our KS days. We'd spend more time laughing than discussing the agenda for the day. Teza is famous for her rendition of I Will Survive. She did survive and is happy with her job. Chel is now one of the big bosses in an Italian owned maritime company. She used to be the resident database where we used to work as she knew what was going on with everyone.

Tina, me and Teza. I don't think I need to describe myself as it may take forever to finish. :-p

The ladies. The one in white blazer is Haydee and the one seated in black is Arlene. Haydee has such a sweet voice and is always smiling. Arlene used to be my "classmate" in the pantry and we always finish lunch at the same time. Inaabutan kami ng ilang batches ng kumakain sa pantry dahil ang bagal namin kumain. Ako sa kakadaldal. Sya sa kakakinig. Arlene and I are both members of Pantrycom. It's how we call the group eating at the pantry. We have our own members and discussions about so many things. Not shown in picture is Sonia who wasn't able to attend. (Mother, asan ka ba nagpunta?) Understandably, Sheila also can't join the group because she's now happily married in New Jersey.

The men. It's a riot when you bring them together in one room. Too bad Edward, Ronald, Ryan and Arvin couldn't go. (They better show up for the Christmas party or else! Ron, ngayon pa lang magpaalam ka na ha para makapunta ka. Mga end of November or first week of December. Malapit na kitang sakalin dahil ilang parties na ang ini-indian mo. Hmp!)

Till the next simple but elegant reunion. This was taken in Greenbelt 5 but somehow, it doesn't quite look like it. We looked like tourists in the place happily taking shots. We moved from Greenbelt 3 to 5. Mobilizing the group was not a problem as I stick out my umbrella for them to follow. Follow the flag (or should I say umbrella)!

Cheers my friends! I miss the dynamics of our group.

Cerebral Conversation - Part 2

Remember the tough interview I had a few weeks ago? Fortunately I passed the second round of interviews. I got another one last night. I was only notified by my headhunter yesterday afternoon that I will have another phone interview. This time, the call will be coming from Stockholm. I was pretty anxious as I had to research on a foreign bank which I had little knowledge of. Let's call it XYZ Bank. Thank goodness I could surf the web using my phone. I was in class yesterday and that left me little time to go home and research online. On my way home, I took a cab and surfed until my phone rang. Uh oh. I hope I pretty much had a good understanding of XYZ Bank. I ended up having the phone interview inside the cab. The interview lasted around 40 minutes and just like the second round, it was just as thorough. The questions were somehow similar to the second but it was equally cerebral and situational. Here are the questions:

1. Given that you have not had any work experience with XYZ Bank, how will you start familiarizing yourself with their processes?
2. If you were to bring in a Swedish business delegation to the Philippines and they had to work with XYZ Bank, how will you organize it?
3. Since we will be working closely with XYZ Bank and it is a big organization, have you ever had any experience with bureaucracy and how do you handle it?
4. How do you think can Swedish businessmen win their project bids at XYZ Bank?
5. Have you ever worked with a difficult person? Describe the situation and how did you manage it? - Oh yes! I can count them with more than one hand.
6. What conditions should be in place for you to accept this position?

Thankfully, I think I fared well and I would know of the results early next week. On the other hand, another company is close to showing me the package I'll be receiving should I join their team. I'm glad I have 2 career options. Both are good positions and it all depends which among the two is aligned with my goals. I'll be receiving both job offers in a week or so. O:-)

A Piece of Cake

There are different ways to decorate a cake. Similar to painting, you can have several mediums to choose from - water color, oil etc. For cakes, there are varieties of icing depending on your design. There are icings that easily melt away and there are also those that harden up as it has more sugar content. I'm beginning to understand which icing goes best with what type of cake. Cakes differ too as some are not as soft. Initially, I thought all cakes are the same but as it turns out, it's not.

Today had me decorating a layer of cake. I choose to keep my design to a minimum. Cluttered designs are what I hate. There's just too much going on. Apart from the sponge cake that I had to decorate, I also worked on sugar mold. What we did were baskets and a baby crib all made of sugar. Have a sweet time looking at the pictures.

My lemon colored cake. On top of the cake is a flower made of gel. They call it the color flow technique. What I did was to first make an outline of the flower then once I'm done, I fill it in with colored gel. For the borders, I chose simple techniques. For the top, it's made of rosettes and stars which I alternated. For the bottom, I made use of shell borders.

A close up of the borders.

A baby crib all made of sugar. I call it funky since the hood had spiky blue tips on it.

A basket / bowl sugar mold. Once the icing dries out, you can place candies inside.

This is how the top of the sugar bowl looks like.

Colorful Cupcakes

At last, I was able to decorate on real cupcakes today. For the past 3 classes, I've been mostly working on parchment paper. Cupcakes are easy to decorate. It only becomes cumbersome to transport them from one place to another. I took several photos of the cupcakes I did and should anyone of you be interested to have me supply you with decorated cupcakes or cakes in any of your future events (birthdays, anniversaries, christening, weddings, Christmas, Valentines), I'd be glad to do so. :-) After my basic cake decorating class, I will also be enrolling in another course for fondant and gum paste as I'd like to advance my level of skills. (Di ba? Perfectionist talaga? Hahaha.)

For more information about the schedule of classes at the Sylvia Reynoso Gala Culinary Arts Studio, visit http://www.sylviareynosogala.com/class.php. Aside from cake decorating, they also offer other culinary and baking classes. It's definitely worth it.

A plateful of my own cupcakes.

Clowning around.

My rosettes and apple blossom.

I've perfected the lattice.

A rosebud.

Basket of flowers.

Cornelli lace on top of my cupcake. It's a very simple decoration yet I love how classy it looks.

Grapes on top. These are not made of icing but I used marzipan. It's like clay where I can mold it and just make anything I want to shape. After I've put the grapes together, I had to paint it.