Pinoy Sweaters in the Mall

I saw this in the mall during the weekend. At the back are big letters that spell out my home country: PHILIPPINES

Could this have been inspired by Manny Pacquiao's multiple boxing titles? Most likely.

Go Pinoy!

Dreaming Bora Bora

Ahhhhh, Bora Bora... This is as close as I can get to my dream islands... Someday... Someday I will snorkel in your prestine waters... Someday I will dive in your luscious deep waters.... For now, I need to swim in my codes and dive into my defect list... Ngarsh!

A Bus Stop for Royalty

I saw this one morning while walking along Madison St, right next to the Civic Opera.

My "Chicago In a Day" Itinerary

My friends from all over the world (literally) were here to visit me and my beautiful city. I have come up with an itinerary that I have proven to work so great that I want to share it with you, my readers. (Do I really have readers? Anyhoo....)

Here are the benefits of this itinerary:

• They get to see most of the must-see's in a day.
• They take full advantage of the CTA Day Pass for only $5.75 for unlimited rides. (There's no fear in getting lost now, haha!)
• It benefits me because I can go to work the next day. What they do is take the same route as the previous day, but this time, go inside the museums or spend more time to enjoy the attractions.

Chicago-in-a-Day

1. Navy Pier. Start from the south part, of course, to show off the best part of the pier. You get to see the ships and a good view of the city's buildings. When you have reached the tip of the pier (eastern most), walk back through the building. Inside the building is a stained-glass and mosaic museum. Good opportunity to do some souvenir shopping. Get some snack or drinks if necessary.
2. Take the blue trolleys or any CTA bus to Michigan Ave. Walk south to Chicago Tribune and Wrigley Field. Cross the bridge and go downstairs to the riverwalk. Stop and rest by the riverwalk. Wave at the people taking the Architecture Cruise and encourage them to do that the next day. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
3. Walk back upstairs to Michigan Ave and walk north to be part of the shopping tourist crowd. Walk to the Water Tower and upto John Hancock Tower. Tell them that they have the option to go to the Observatory the next day or maybe have some cocktails at the Signature Lounge.
4. Walk a few blocks south for Chicago-Style Deep Dish pizza. Options are Gino's East, Giordano's -- all along Superior St. If they are willing to walk further, go to Pizzeria Uno along Ohio.
5. Go back to Michigan Ave and take a CTA bus to Millenium Park. Very important to take pictures at the Cloud Gate aka The Bean. Go to Crowne Plaza for the water fountain.
6. Cross the street to Madison and take a CTA bus to United Center. Seeing Michael Jordan at the United Center was a special request by my friend from Toronto. On the way across the loop (going West) try to show them the Willis Tower. Tell them that they can go to the Skydeck the next day for some more history and most especially, the clear ledge! If they are interested about Chicago's financial district, show them the CBOT and CME buildings.
7. Take the same bus route going back to the loop, then take another going to the Museum Campus. Tell them that this is where they can go back the next day and enjoy the Shedd Aquarium, Field Museum, and the Adler Planetarium. Most likely, the sun has started to set and it's getting dark. The best thing to do (actually, I have never done this before -- twas a happy accident) is hop out of the bus at the stop closest to the Adler Planetarium. Sit by the lake and enjoy the sunset -- great photo-op for photography enthusiasts! I must say this is my favorite part of the day's itinerary.

Stop and watch the ants

I finally had a free Saturday again so I decided to take it slow. I resisted to get out of bed and stared at the 18 red roses that my boyfriend has given me for our anniversary.

After an afternoon of cooking and lounging around, I decided to walk outside and enjoy the last few warmer days of the year. I walked to the lake in my flipflops, wondering the last time I saw the lake.

I stopped to admire the flowers. Some were bigger than my hand. Some were hanging from atop a tall tree! (I've been seeing a lot of gumamelas. I wonder if it's also called hisbiscus -- my latest tisane favorite.)

I stopped to stare at the branches and leaves above me.

I stood and sat barefoot at the rocks along the lake.

I touched the trunk of the trees in the park. Actually, I wanted to hug them but the trunks looked a little too dirty and buggy to hug. I watched the ants in the tree trunks move on with their daily life.

I smiled at dogs and their owners as I run into them walking back to my apartment.

Oh, what a relaxing day.

Pinoy Ako!

I got the United States Census form in my mail today. On the envelope was a big printed label that says "YOUR RESPONSE IS REQUIRED BY LAW". [Shudder. I just think it's funny.]

I must admit -- I am glad that my race, "Filipino" has its own box! In real life, I have somehow felt like my race is part of "Other Asian". It's rare for an acquaintance to identify me as Filipino. Rather, he or she would identify me as Thai, Korean (probably because of my current hairstyle), Chinese, or Vietnamese.

What Time Management?

Why do I always find my evenings too short? Quite frankly, I am more excited about going home from work than going to work. Ofcourse, I am very very very grateful to still be working in the middle of the recession. Not that I dread going to work -- I still look forward to work... but it's not as exciting as what I do after work.

I cook. I bake.

I plan my menu. I make a grocery list.

I skim through weekly ads, clip coupons, and again make my grocery list.

I go to the gym for Yoga or a 30-minute swim.

I watch TV or "watch TV" through my laptop. I love Desperate Housewives, Cougar Town, Shark Tank, House, sometimes Amazing Race.

I facebook. I google. I wikipedia. (Websites are now verbs!)

I organize. I mess things up just to reorganize them again. (I used to do this a lot when I had no TV nor laptop.)

I do my laundry (a necessary evil).

I manage my finances. Pay bills. More bills.

I blog when I can.

And the list goes on!

The funny thing is... I live alone, with no kids to take care of... yet I feel like I am preoccupied with too many things to do! I don't know how working mothers do it! They are superheroes!

Time Management? I badly need that. Now. Time is running out!

I Have High Cholesterol

I have something to celebrate today! I stepped out of my doctor's clinic with a big grin on my face. I have high cholesterol -- good cholesterol, that is!

When my doctor first analyzed my blood test results, she said everything is normal... my glucose level, sodium, insulin, etc... everything except for my cholesterol. As you can see in the image above, I have 229, which is above the range of 125 to 200. I was a bit surprised and I started to worry about the food I would have to give up! (And if you know me well enough, you would know that I love to eat. Fried rice, bagoong, beef stew, cheesecake... etc...)

And then I tell my doctor, I exercise once or twice a week. She says that's not enough. She says I should exercise atleast 30 minutes 5 days a week! I gulped.

And then, she looks at the test results again and says.... "Oh wait! Your cholesterol is high because your good cholesterol is high. And it is exceptionally high!" (See image above)

Whoaaaah! I said, I do eat a lot and I wonder where I got all that good cholesterol. The first words she mentioned were... "Fish... fish oil..." I interrupted her right there and then because I remember I have been taking the Norwegian Cod Liver Oil since summer of this year. She agreed. And she encourages me to continue to do what I do.

Ahhhh...... I feel elated!

Actually, I started taking cod liver oil after I watched a video on YouTube. This may sound funny... but the video was about how to improve one's skin. Yes, my intention was to improve my skin so applying makeup will look better on me.

See? I have shallow reasons that turned out to help me in the long run! Amazing, isn't it?

80 degrees

Today, we had the first 80(F) degrees of the year.  Wonderful!

As soon as I got home, I watered my plants (a new habit, I must mention) and packed myself some food.  I immediately left my apartment and walked to the lake.  Ahhh!  Every tree and flower seems to welcome me as I take steps towards the lake.  I feel relaxed already.

I sat on my favorite boulder when I reached the edge of the shore.  I opened my bag and enjoyed my little sweet snack.  I brought with me my iPod Shuffle so I could listen to music, but, I felt it's such a bad idea when all I really wanted to hear was the sound of rough water splashing onto the rocky shore.  I soaked in the beauty that surrounds me -- the birds flying over the water and then swooping in for a fish kill, the greenery of the park, the seemingly bare trees that have small leaves and flowers sprouting from its tips.

Being one with nature totally relaxes me after a long day at work.

Coupon Princess

This is what has been keeping me up all night.  Let me tell you a short story.

A high school friend in Ohio called me up and tells me about her day.  Then she asked me if I use coupons.  I say I do sometimes, but only when I have them.  She then tells me about her many shopping escapades where she walks out of CVS, several bags on hand, and paid a little less than a dollar!  She said, she's into coupons.  She said she saves a lot of money and has a stockpile of all sorts of toiletries.  She recommended that I read through slickdeals where I can find coupons I can print online.  Cool!

I told my sister about this.  She got hooked more than I did!  She scoured the internet and printed coupons like crazy!  We read though weekly ads of Walgreens and CVS, and we started to enjoy the fruits of our labor.  All it takes is being aware of the weekly discounts of these drugstores, finding coupons to match them up, and most of the time, we get the item for a few cents -- if not free!

I must say it takes time.  It takes time to clip coupons every week (Sunday paper).  It takes a lot of time to sort them and arrange them alphabetically.  (That's how my sister did it, and in three categories so far:  Food, Non-Food, Restaurants).  I takes time to read through weekly deals, read blogs, print coupons online, and match them up.  But hey, I feel like a Princess when I walk out the store and pay so little of the total cost of the items I got!  What's to complain about?