Another thing is this ongoing project. It was last year when I came across the idea of keeping a memory jar. It's an interesting endeavor which I tried last year but got unsuccessful given the turn of events (read: getting both all to busy and exhausted that I just want to sleep when I get home). This year, I tried a hand at it again and luckily, I am able to religiously update it.

It's a good thing to find out that if there's one thing that this little project taught me, it's learning to see the good in everything; that despite of what has happened the whole day, it's a challenge to look for something worthy to be thankful for. It's good though that not all days are the same. If a day has been exhausting, you get to look for something worth thankful. And if a day contains a lot of good things, I get to pick one that's the best, write it and keep it in the jar.

I hope to maintain the habit though. At times it scares me to think, I had gone past two months with it and there are 10 months remaining. But something to be grateful has to be present every single day and that would be more than enough to keep me going. :-)

Between my brother JR and I, I would say that it is he who has patience as long as EDSA when it comes to some stuff including  toys that has to deal with problem solving. But a couple of months or so, I came across 3D puzzles of famous landmarks from Cubic Fun during my usual visit to the bookstore. I got intrigued and fascinated by it so after weeks of eyeing on it, I bought one and tried assembling one myself.

I purchase the puzzles at Toy Kingdom and I am working on the S-Series. Depending on the landmark you want to assemble, each kit contains less than 70 pieces of parts made of styrofoam and cardboard.

Finishing one is interesting and well, addictive so from an Eiffel Tower, I now have Big Ben and this morning, I finished the Empire State Building. While my reason for trying out assembling a 3D puzzle was just to test my patience (if I'll be able to finish one) I ended up adding and constructing more. My ultimate 3D puzzle project? St. Peter's Basilica and Neuschwanstein Castle.

The year is about to come to a close in a week and three days and checking this blog, I only wrote two entries for this month. As much as I loved writing, realizing that I never wrote anything much the past weeks is unbelievable.

As I write this, my parents are asleep. I'm the only person up hoping to be able to wait for my brother to come home from his stint at a wedding. My 10-day vacation from work for the Christmas season has started, and it has been something I've been waiting for.

I'd say I have been waiting for it. The last week before the office's Christmas closure has been agonizing both for us here in Manila and for the other folks in Australia. Compared to last year, it has been that toxic making each of the staff call in sick. Lucky for me, despite coming home literally crawling to bed for the last five nights, I survived the stress and exhaustion. Maybe because I just motivated myself that I am not entitled to call in sick on the last work week prior to a vacation.

And while I was able to survive the toxic week with the combined stress of Christmas rush, I had to miss the Simbang Gabi this year. As much as I want to complete it supposedly for the sixth year, I had to choose to let go. Yes, I felt bad and disappointed at myself for being unable to finish something I've started, but the exhaustion from the workload is way too high. And if I won't listen to my body, there's a high chance that I'd spend Christmas in a hospital bed in a hospital gown eating hospital food. Thus, giving up is the best way to go.

Save for my a few more preps for Christmas (which, oddly I could not feel much) and plans of embarking in another adventure in a few days, I'll be spending my holidays catching up on sleep -- I've been deprived of that luxury for a week after all.

It's another rainy day of August. I cannot say that it's the same as last year, because today, the torrential, persistent rains (running for three-four days now) is scarier than before. Manila is submerged in water, a lot of people are unable to go to work, others fleeing to safety against flood waters in their homes.

And I am among those who were unable to go to work, just like how it was last year. And if it was Mama who was sick then, this year's my turn. I did not risk coming to work given the flooding in Angono and since I am sick and entitled of a paid leave, I availed of an emergency leave given the circumstance. I have been unwell since yesterday (but I managed to go to work). However, today, I am staying home, cocktail of medicines ready in case the need arises.

But instead of complaining abut missing work, unable to go out, and the sick feeling, there are things to be thankful for: considerate bosses, kind officemates, food on the table, comfortable, dry clothes, a warm bed and a shelter above my head that serves as a refuge to someone else.

Let us all hope and pray that the situation will improve by tomorrow. 

While my female relatives were greeting each other Happy Mother's Day, it is still undeniable that half of it was a gloomy one. Yesterday, as I was at the mall, I looked around, while daughters walked hand-in-hand with their mothers, I was walking on my own attending to errands related to the wake. Still, I went on with my plan. But as soon as I handed the gift to my mom and greeted her, I was unable to hold those tears, I sobbed right on my mom's shoulders which caught her by surprise.

In the end, I hope this is going to be the first and the last time I shall write a lonely post on Mother's Day and will never have to do this again.