Burning

When leaves have fallen and tears

we’ve shed have dried let me

bring the letters you folded

into paper planes that

flew in open skies;

I kept it close

to this heart

until today –

Swing it

to the

open

fire!

the test

They only meant to set the bar high –

our hopeful looks was soon replaced

with a grimace staring at numerous options

multiple hurdles and possible scenarios

that only confused the examinee

if you stare at it for too long or

try to think about it

even harder.

The night before I spent the remaining hours

of my free time packing my brain

with more words that no longer

made sense to me.

In the attempt to soothe my nerves

I was forbidden to open another book

or peek into my notes

or even go out for fresh air.

More than just repeating lines, I asked myself

why I was even doing this;

why did it matter?

Should I recall the name

and work of someone

I have never met?

Should I find them lurking

at the back of my head

trying to prove their points

when the odds are stacked

against me and things

don’t match up

as I expect?

That day when we walked of the rooms

wiping the sweat off our brows,

no one dared to call it

a piece of cake.

February Finds

Ah February, the month when everywhere I go there are hearts and flowers I have to put up with. While I did not find love much to the disappointment of overly-enthusiastic friends, here are some consolations I also found:

The dress that launched a thousand looks

So perhaps a thousand looks may be a little exaggerated but perhaps it is possible to the creative mind!

Because I occasionally have a fancy event to attend to, I have to think carefully what to wear, especially when it requires me to wear a formal attire, forget about it and prance around doing my job. :) I have previously rented clothes for such occasions. Honestly, I found it to be quite pricey and time-consuming hopping dress shops and finding a perfect fit. No regrets for looking my best, though. On the other hand, being fashion and budget conscious myself prompts me to look for better alternatives.

So when a friend recently launched their enterprise Tying the Knot featuring this awesome Infinity Dress, I was really excited to try one. I was set on finding pieces I could just recreate or mix up instead of buying dresses to every glamorous occasion but there it was! They make quality & affordable wedding clothing, but even after the occasion, you can wear the dress again by reinventing your look. A good investment, if you ask me. If you're planning to dress up your entourage similarly, I bet bridesmaids would appreciate being able to customize their dress according to their body type, given the many ways the dress can be styled. Apart from this, the dresses are made by mothers trained by NGOs. Now that's a really good buy!

There are plenty of tutorials in Youtube showing you ways on how to wear the dress, but I also found out you make some sort of version yourself. Like the way I wore mine, with the slightly revealing back and flowing cape at the back slightly reminiscent of Emma Stone's dress in the movie Gangster Squad (or just a nod for Oscars 2015 Best Picture Birdman). For just a bit of drama and for the fun of wearing it. =D

The color Marsala won me over.

Down with Love, Up with Chocolate

I got an interesting bar of chocolate on Valentine's day which hilariously reminds me of that chocolate in that 1960s-inspired movie Down with Love starring Rene Zellweger and Ethan McGregor.

"Abstain from Love. Indulge in Chocolate."

Interestingly, the Seattle based JCOCO Couture Chocolates company also gives back to the community by serving fresh and healthy food to someone who would otherwise go hungry.

...which reminds me as well of the locally-produced artisan chocolate Theo & Philo. Getting their cacao beans straight from the farmers in Davao and sugar from Bacolod, this social enterprise champions the people over machines to make the high quality chocolates and proudly makes them from bean to bar right here in the Philippines.

Theo & Philo. Because of my love for chocolate, only the seal was left behind.

Trivia from Theo+Philo: European countries are well-known for their chocolates, but their climate doesn't actually allow it. The cacao plant can only grow in countries like the Philippines which is near the equator. Imagine our luck (not to mention our unleashed potential). As for its name, "Theo” comes from the cacao bean’s scientific name, Theobroma cacao while “Philo” means love, Thus it's “Chocolate & Love.” 

Both chocolates actually have other flavors to choose from but I prefer the 70-72% bitter/dark chocolates. Incidentally healthier for me. =)

Now ain't February sweet? ;D

Quaint Shops in Naga

Now that I need to hop on a jeep and travel at more than 30 minutes from home to work, I'm now more than familiar with certain landmarks along the Concepcion road I pass by almost everyday. I also realized I haven't talked much about the current city I live in, and other blogs can say something better about the food along Magsaysay Avenue and other great restaurants and the malls sprouting in Naga City (maybe when I when I'm completely raving about a certain delicacy or place, which I have already listed and will probably have to describe later). You can probably count on me for occasionally taking photos of food but that would make you hungry. =)

Instead, I'll be championing less popular shops along Maharlika Highway. If you're tired of seeing predictable items in the mall, here are some places you can check out for interesting stuff from abroad/past/heck, I don't care! As for me, I found these interesting just because 1) they're from Japan, 2) you never know what to find/expect here (Note: Surplus shops aren't quite rare, really, even in the Metro. You just gotta LOOK). Here are some photos from my bidding-adieu iPhone:

Eson Japan Surplus (located at the Rotonda going to Concepcion)

Japan Surplus Shop (Along Concepcion beside Ago Foundation)

 

I loved National Bookstore as a kid, Bookshop in my college days for their cheaper books and later on Fully Booked for funky titles and beautiful knick knacks under its belt. But this warehouse is just unbelievable cheap. That commercial asking you what can you get for P20? Well, more than just some ice cream, I'm sure.

Along with the books are things like VHS, medicines in boxes as well as clothes and shoes I suspect would end up in Ukay-ukay. Proceeds go to charity. Totally supporting that.