Randomness in Manila

DARK & WET NITES!!!

Typhoon Season has hit Manila - Summer is Officially Over!!!! It is a WELCOME RELIEF as it makes for not too hot days and cooler summer nites..... the biggest drawback of course, is that it makes it even harder to get around.... especially when school officially starts - then it will be bumper to bumper traffic once more..... and sometimes the THUNDER and LIGHTNING show is quite SCARY..... Mom is fine.... Happy Moods..... High Spirits.... and eating well... so all's well there.... only complain is the HIGH COSTS of MEDS..... :( but NO ESCAPING that... so we deal.... So we enjoy each day.... we try to have nothing but laughter... doing everyday things... no matter how important or mindless they may be....

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Hope all is well with EVERYONE else.... Have Enjoyed/Enjoying/will Enjoy the Summer Months - depending where you are in the neck of the world.......

Leaving you with a few shots of things that caught my eyes this time around...FRIDA KAHLO Tees @ ZARA

(it was quite COOL to see this series of tees being offered by ZARA - if only they were not too pricey... surely would ahve picked up a couple or more...)

Love This Painting!Krispy Kreme's New Sweet Treat!!!

Happy Smiles

Spending hot afternoon and rainy nites in Manila once more.... been here since SUNDAY..... getting a lot done and yet, one gets the feeling not too much.... really just the PACE of life here... of the people... or everything.... no matter how you can think of ways for things to get done faster and less hassles - you just cannot get others to conform, even for just the day.... so you just need to give in and say to yourself: "When in Rome, do as the Romans do..." or at least, just let them do it their way and you still function your normal speed - and hopefully you will meet halfway....

Mom is fine.... she is able to get up and walk about for a bit on her own again.... and even fattened up a bit... the Breast Cancer Medicine she is taking - is really doing wonders for her physically..... and mentally to as it is keeping her spirits up.... she feels that she is getting better.... SADLY, it is all a lie in a way.... I was already told by the doctor that the med will dry up her lumps and help fight other lumps from appearing.... but it does nothing for the Cancer itself.... and with a bit of steroids thrown in, she will get a boost in energy....

I am really HAPPY seeing her Elated, Smiling and telling lots of stories.... but now and again, I cannot help but still let that sinking feeling get to me.... wondering how long will the meds keep this up... or how long before another part of her gives out.... and gives in to the Cancer.... still, i try to be strong and not show her anything.... i just keep on keeping on....

We've Got TEETH!!!

Jewel is 7 months and she's got teeth!!! 3 to be exact... 2 above and one below..... and this is both making us smile - as it is soooo funny to see... and making us wince as they do hurt when she bites you - and she loves biting fingers.....Jewel actually gave us a bit of a scare the a few days ago... for almost 3 days she was just moody, crying all the time and cannot seem to catch a good sleep.... am usually good at getting her to nap after our playtime and feeding time but the last couple of times I babysat her - it was just frustratingly impossible to get her to nap.... and the crying made it worse as I, nor Wu Papa did not know what to do.... we kept saying it must be the teeth coming in and the heat bothering her... as she was also sweating quite a bit a lot... Even her Mommy & Daddy did not know what was wrong.... just thought she was being moody....

Enter Wu Mama, who advised the she should see a doctor - as babies really do not cry that much for now reason at all... Lo and Behold - she had an ear infection that was actually hurting her so... and was making it impossible for her to sleep - as when she sleeps on that side - she is awaken right away from the pain.... The doctor right away gave her meds - some drops and within an hour she was fine.... and then she was back to smiling, playing and yes - NAPPING/SLEEPING properly!!!!Yesterday, she even behaved sooooooo well when we went for a rainy day trek to Yilan County... she was HAPPY... slept on my lap the whole drive over.... and just played and smiled with everyone - even strangers!!!
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As an added BONUS - Shaun's friend that we visited in the Yilan County took us on a bit of a tour... we got to see both the Ka Va Lan Whisky and Mr Brown Coffee factories.... plus some lovely housing in the are....For one totally rainy, gloomy day - it sure turned out to be a lovely fun nite....

COMPLETE PHOTOS HERE

Be@rbick X Jimmy Liao X 9 : Part II

WHOA!!!! Today is the first day that the 2nd Set of this Brand New Premium Bearbrick Collection for Hi*Life came out - and am soooo HAPPY to say - I was able to get all three already.... YES!!! These guys are just as CUTE as the first three I had blogged about recently....I was able to collect enough stickers for all three Jimmy Liao designed Bearbricks (30 stickers total!) - with the help of a few people, I have to admit:
-The Hi*Life shop girl who gives me a little extra whenever I shop... be it that she likes me or out of pity, matters not, am most appreciative.... Needless to say, I shop mostly when she is there...
-To Juliana for letting me know that a faster way than drinking coffee each day to get the stickers is to buy a certain brand of Cold Tea Drink... 4 bottles gets one 5 stickers!!! 3 more than if one gets a cup of coffee and a sandwich.... YES AGAIN!!!
-and of course, those who did not want their stickers and just threw them away in places I was able to find them!!! LOL..... Now on to collecting stickers for the last 3!!! Hahahahahahaha.....

iPhone Daddy, At Last!!!

WHOAH!!! after years of dreaming to have one - I am FINALLY the oh-too-thrilled owner of an iPhone 4G.... matters not that it is only 16GB and that it is not the newly released white version - I LOVE IT just the same.....

For years my nephew, nieces and friends kept telling me that I MUST have one of these - as a BLOGGER, 365er, and FBer - am totally one Perfect Candidate to have a SMART PHONE.... But being the not soooooo TECH SAVVY, that I am - I stayed away... in fears that I would not even know what to do with it - once I have it... Oh The Pressures... hahahahahahaha

But LUCK and KINDNESS intervened.... I got one as an early BDAY present.... after months of David offering me one as a present, I FINALLY broke down and agreed to ACCEPT... Can you believe it - I was actually turning down an iPhone for a while... LOL...

My very first, somewhat, artsy shot for 365 using my new baby... taken at a little ater 5:30AM this morning.... lovely skies to get up early for... :) Again, this is just a simple Point and Shoot one as I have lots to learn with this one - that's for sure...

HAPPY MOTHER's DAY!!!

"The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will

always find forgiveness. "
~Honoré de Balzac

"Youth fades; love droops; the leaves of friendship fall; A mother's secret hope outlives them all."
~Oliver Wendell Holmes

3 more MOVIES am DYING to see....

A CHINESE GHOST STORY 2011
A remake of the very first Chinese Movie I ever saw, loved and got me hooked...that was back in the mid 80's... this time with a 70Million HK $ BUDGET - and CGI talents on board, am sure it will be even MAGICAL and Mesmerizing....

Stupid Crazy Love
Steve Carel comedy and HUNKY Ryan gosling - even HUNKIER... "I have not problem with that..."

PRIEST
MAGGIE Q is in this one!!!! Based on the critically acclaimed TOKYOPOP Graphic Novel, Priest is the story of an outcast Priest warrior that goes into exile in order to rescue his niece from vampires. Priest releases in theaters everywhere May 13, 2011. And did I mention, Maggie Q is here....

if you KNEE(d) to know....

A month ago today is when I first suffered and posted about my first major physical injury... that I can remember, anyway... can read about it here: IN PAIN So much has happened since then, of course.... mainly what am going through with my MOM"s illness right now... so, though am still in pain now and again, I have just learned to live with it and even have forgotten about it, 'cept now and again when I end up moving my right leg a certain way that makes the knee ache once more....

Was going to have an X-RAY even while I was in Manila last, but with all the medical attention needed to be done with my Mom, I had completely forgotten about it... and it was time to leave... so when I came back to Taipei, I went back a few times to the ACUPUNCTURE treatment.... as well as, herbal home remedy courtesy of Wu Mama.... Stayed off and rested my legs a lot.... and AVOIDED STAIRS with a PASSION.... (so Jewel had to come to me - as I could not go up those 5 flights of stairs where she is... LOL)

Since then though, am happy to announce that I have gone back to swimming.... am able to walk much longer without limping right away... and though I have not tried running yet, am dying to.... so soon I will start with brisk walks on the thread mill or by the river..... and HOPE FOR THE BEST!!!

Early Bird, Oh My!!!

(Oh Well, it made for a nice 365 Project Entry anyway... )

Awoken at 6AM this morning by so much ruckus right in my front window.... pots moving about... water sprouting... and lovely, though a bit loud at 6AM, Taiwanese music coming from a cel phone... I knew it could only be Wu Papa...

I was right!!! He was up so early doing what he likes to do BEST: GARDENING!!!! Whenever he is up here in Taipei, from down south, for a few days you can be sure that he will be up early morning hours to BEAUTIFY our hopeless front garden....

He keeps a BEAUTIFUL ROOF TOP Garden in his Home in Kaohsiung.... and keeps us entertained by our ever changing front garden.... there are times when I come back from a trip and the Garden looks nothing like when I left.... in a span of a few days!!! LOL...

You can read more about him here:
http://baxter-ramblings.blogspot.com/2010/12/greening-of-our-home.html

Smile, Just Smile!

"Let us always meet each other with smile, for the smile is the beginning of love."

- Mother Teresa
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A Brand New Week... a Brand New Month.... I suppose am off to a good start already as the last few days, I have had little things catch my attention/come my way that makes me SMILE... take my MIND OFF stressful matters - even for a tad bit...

First of all, I got to end April with two relaxingly FUN days.... On the 29th was a very long lunch with Juliana at Capricciosa - yes, a new resto for us to try and enjoy very much... not forgetting that the main FUN part of the get together is always the looooong chats....

MORE PHOTOS HERE

The on the 30th, I had a great time seeing THOR, even on my own... and spending a bit of time people watching at Warner Viewshow - it was the weekend, so it is always crowded with shoppers, strollers, hawkers, and street performers...

MORE PHOTOS HERE

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and then Sunday, the 1st day of May, was just the usual Sunday for me.... attended MASS... feasted on Filipino food - lots of it, really.... and later in the evening - relaxed and enjoyed the Water Massage area of our local pool...even swam for 40 mins - now that was good, indeed....

Of course, there is always work... so in between I do all that... it does not get any easier... and with the way things are: the economy and the NEED for extra $$$ for MOM's Medical Expenses and Meds, it gets frustrating, scary, and stressful... but as always, I just try to take things one day at a time... praying and hoping that all will always work out just right... never losing hope....

and today was extra SPECIAL for me...as the woman at my neighborhood HI*LIFE shop, gave me not just two stickers (due to me for the coffee that I bought) but 5, yes 5 stickers... enough to redeem for another one.... and so now I have the first 3 of the NEW Jimmy Liao be@rbrick collection!!! This woman/clerk is also the one that makes sure I get to complete the sets of whatever Premium Program they are pushing that am collecting.... so am ALWAYS very much APPRECIATIVE....

and the BEST part, when I asked her why she was giving me 5 stickers, instead of the 2 due to me - she replied with: "...just because I find your smile always sweet and genuine... and I see such joy you get in collecting these little things..." WHOAH!!! I BLUSHED right there and then... even felt my face get hot and turn apple red... I was TRULY touched, and this episode just made the whole collection even more SPECIAL to me.... (Photos of the First 3 in the Collection Here)