// morsels of life //

a simple yet very romantic surprise my husband created for me was last sunday midnight -- during my 27th birthday. he woke me up while singing the birthday song and with a slice of blueberry cheesecake on one hand and greeting card & box of guylian chocolates on the other. i was so touched and almost cried while reading his sweet message in the card. a very thoughtful one, indeed :) i gave him the warmest hug & kiss to show my appreciation.

saturday, nov 25: together with our trip companions (the family: vincent, joni & anya), we did "mall exploration" again. this time in the chadstone shopping center which they also call as "the fashion capital" of australia because it is the largest shopping spot in the country.

inside chadstone SC

the location of the mall is quite far from the cbd that we had to take the train and bus to get there. we even created a route planner to guide us. and we had to follow the train timetable strictly 'cause every schedule leads to a different route.

at the flinders railway station

we had fun strolling around and enjoyed the pleasant setting of the mall. then we stopped by krispy kreme to have some doughnuts for afternoon snack.

new endorsers?!

and despite of me being a bit queasy while on our way home, i think we all enjoyed the spree :)

last wednesday, i strolled around the cbd 'cause i was so bored. then, when i was in appliance section in myer store, i met a fellow filipina who i guess is also shopping around. she said she's from davao and already a permanent resident here since 1997 (if i remember it right).


our conversation started with simple questions of who & where. after a few minutes, i found myself just listening to what she's saying. she talked a lot about herself and even her experiences as a young davawenya. and she warned me about some filipinos here in australia. she said that i should be cautious in dealing with them 'cause most of them are opportunistic and fraudulent. honestly, it breaks my heart to hear those statements from a "kababayan". i didn't know how to deal with what i just heard. i respect a person's point of view, but sometimes what i can't understand is the nature of being so judgemental about somebody's personality. we have this tendency to remember most of the bad things and discard the good ones. oh well... it's not cricket...

thursday: cooked chopsuey for dinner. looks yummy, isn't it? tonton mumbled "tama ang timpla!" hehe :)

chopsuey espesyal

friday: tonton & i had dinner "date" at cafe cavallino. ordered bellina pizza & beef ravioli with napoli sauce. actually, we enjoyed it a lot. then, we had hot choco at koko black. i took a picture of my cup not knowing that drinking it would eventually trigger something bad.

the cup, the cup!

so while we were walking home, i felt that my tummy is so heavy. it's like i ate a kilo of nails. eiww!! exag nga but i felt so sick talaga :( so there, when we reached home, i threw up the hot choco and few pieces of what i've chomped. haayy, grabe! lesson learned: don't ever mix tomato sauce & hot choco in your stomach! hehe takaw kse eh! after that vomit incident, i found relief in a cup of hot green tea prepared by my hubby c",)

saturday: we went back to highpoint mall at maribyrnong to buy one more pair of speaker stand. we also checked if the willow tree 10-piece nativity set is still on sale in beville jewelry shop.

willow tree nativity

yes it is still on sale, but when we asked for a stocked set the saleslady told us that she can't find it so she's trying to give us the display set. i think that was a silly excuse. we did not get the set in that store, but instead we went to their branch at bourke street. luckily, we got the set we really wanted for $200 :) we've been eyeing this set because it's made of unique material. and we really want this is a gift perhaps for ourselves this christmas.

anyway, we also got the 4-disc DVD set of black adder show. tonton was so happy to finally find the set in one of JB hi-fi's stores. i also got 3 DVDs (clueless, the notebook, memoirs of a geisha)afterward, we went back home to drop the items we bought. then, we headed to collins street to await the christmas tree lighting show. we were entertained by the australian youth choir singing some christmas songs and the dancing mascots of the wiggles group. the event lasted two hours before they finally lit up the tree.

beneath the lighted tree

then, together with Vincent & family, we stopped by starbucks to have some cold frap & coffee. we didn't even notice the time passing so quickly because we were chatting a lot about house & csi, hehe :) we arrived home around midnight.

sunday: we woke up at almost 12 noon already. then, around 2pm, we went to market to buy meat & fish. and then, tonton assembled the speaker stand while i cook ground lamb with potato for dinner. then we checked in the internet who won on pacquiao-morales fight. yep, we bet it right! pacquiao won on 3rd round, yey! galeng, galeng! :)

when things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

when the road you're trudging seems all up hill,

when the funds are low, and the debts are high,

and you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

when care is pressing you down a bit,

rest if you must, but don't you quit.

life is queer with it's twists and turns,

as everyone of us sometimes learns, and many a failure turns about,

when he might have won had he stuck it out.

don't give up though the pace seems slow,

you may succeed with another blow.

success is failure turned inside out,

the silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

and you never can tell how close you are,

it may be near when it seems so far,

so stick to the fight when you're hardest hit,

it's when things seem worse, that you must not quit.

last monday night, together with my hubby, we watched "donnie darko" (starring jake gyllenhaal) on dvd. it's a suspense/pyscho type of film. jake was good in his acting in that movie, his dimmed eyes were effective. but i'm a bit scared with the mask of his imaginary friend, frank (played by james duval). it's like a skull of big rabbit with creepy teeth & eyes. well, the plot of the story was a bit puzzling but i can say it was not so dramatic.

then, yesterday, i watched "a lot like love" (starring ashton kutcher & amanda peet) on dvd again. this one is a typical romance/comedy movie, but i loved it. i really enjoyed it! :) my favorite scene there was when amanda was lost in the middle of a crowd doing a countdown to new year. then suddenly she saw her ex-boyfriend kissing another girl. she was so stunned & jealous. she looked so "kawawa". then ashton came to the rescue and gave her a very warm kiss on the lips. haay... grabe super kakilig!

here's a snapshot of the scene (courtesy of imdb.com):

it's definitely a feel-good movie :)

last weekend, we spent our saturday afternoon watching the christmas parade sponsored by two of the biggest retail companies here, myer & david jones. we were like kids enjoying the mascots marching the street.


the care bears...



strawberry shortcake...

all's set! :) we're going to sydney this christmas... yey!!! :) i've already got our plane tickets yesterday and we're scheduled to go there on dec 23 at 7AM. we'll be back on january 1.






our plane ticket to sydney











we will be staying in tita cely's (tonton's aunt) place and spending the holidays there. the travel consultant told me that sydney is a very nice spot to celebrate christmas. not sure if that was just a part of her "convincing" statement to impress me about sydney. i just smiled and responded "we'll see when we get there".

but honestly, im hoping that we will enjoy our first australian christmas despite of being away from our families. [sigh...] homesick strikes again...

nway, yesterday i saw some discounted scrapbooking materials in one of the stores here. i am thinking to compile all our pictures and create this craft for us. i believe it's a cool way to preserve the memories we wanna cherish. actually before we left for melbourne last august, tonton and i were really planning to make one. but we ran out of time to do it. sayang, i wasn't able to bring the scrapbooking stuff we bought in manila. oh well, probably i'll just try to find some more cute materials to get it started. :) excited na ko!

had hair cut last monday in a korean hair salon in cbd. the length is quite short that it shows half of my nape. it's called "bob" style dw shempre with the bangs. bangs kung bangs! i remembered tuloy how i looked like when i was in grade school. a classmate told me that i look like demi moore dw [her hairdo in the "ghost" movie], haha! i didn't take it seriously kse baka maniwala ako, hehe.







<--- bob style victim?!












but guess what's my husband's comment on the new look?! i look like catherine willows [of csi vegas during first season] daw. kumusta naman un?! i just said shempre minus the blonde & the pointed nose, hihi :)


speaking of, super puyat kame these past few nights because of the csi craze we have. nag-marathon kme of watching the first and second seasons. we got the dvd package for a cheaper price in jb hi-fi (a popular electronics/dvd shop here). i enjoyed all the episodes :) i also got sarah mclachlan's concert & mean girls dvds last weekend when we went to highpoint shopping center in west maribyrnong.
















































also last monday, we bought a 22-meter extension cable for our LG home speaker system which we got from harvey norman shop. tonton and i were discussing last sunday on how to put the two surround speakers at both sides of our couch without tangling wires on the floor. we tried to hide it using a medium-sized carpet mat (we got for almost 6 bucks), but still no good. so we just decided to buy a longer cable enough to hug the wall and extend the speakers. and it's damn cheaper rather than buying one more mat.

btw, last sunday was our 6th monthsary as married couple. we did not have a special celebration. we just prayed together before having lunch and thanked God for giving us all the blessings and keeping us safe always. and that's what made our day :)

yesterday was official holiday here in melbourne due to the annual melbourne cup. it's also called the "spring race" where everybody gathers to watch the horse racing. it's quite biggie thing here for australians 'cause that's one of the events of the year when they can dress up "glamorously" as if they will be going to an awards night. of course with all the feathered hats & fascinator. we just roamed around the city and bought star wars (episode 5 & 6) dvds in sale price as usual.

nway, that's all for now, till next post folks! :)

yesterday, i bought the badtzmaru stuff toy i saw in a korean store for 30 bucks. here's a pic [shempre kasama ako noh]...




cute, cute! :)












who is badtzmaru? follow this link.
he's my favorite sanrio character eversince college. why? simply because i rarely know people who like him. hindi sya common and that's what make him special :)

while listening to rx monster yesterday, i got the chance to list some of the entries for their morning rush's top ten which was "bad tagalog translation for english movie". i laughed like crazy [babaw lang ako eh, hehe]. here are some of kakaaliw entries:

million dollar baby = limampung libong milyong sanggol
blairwitch project = ang proyekto ng bruhang si blair
marry poppins = si mariang may putok
snake in a plane = ng-ahasan sa ere
the postman always rings twice = ang kartero pag dumutdot laging dalawa
sum of all fears = takot ko, takot mo, takot nting lahat
swordfish = talakitok
pretty woman = ganda ng lola mo!
gone with the wind = nagtago matapos umutot
robinhood: men in tights = robinhood at ang mga felix bakat
the good, the bad & the ugly = ako, ikaw, kayong lahat
harry potter & the sorcerer’s stone = adik si harry, tumira ng shabu
click = isang pindot ka lng
brokeback mountain =bumigay sa bundok
the day of the dead = ayaw tumayo.. ang mga patay
waterworld = basang-basa
there’s something about mary = may kwan sa ano ni maria
employee of the month- ang sipsip
resident evil = ang byenan
kill bill = kiliti sa bilbil
grudge = lintik lang ang walang ganti
nightmare before christmas = binangungot sa noche buena
never been kissed = pangit kase
gone in 60 seconds = isang round, tulog
the fast & the furious = ang bitin, galit
dude where’s my car = dong, sang level na tayo ngpark?
beauty & the beast = ang asawa ko at ang nanay nya
the lord of the rings = ang alahero

'nu daw?! na-lost ako dun pero aliw! :)

today's LSS [last song syndrome] lines... walang kokontra may pgka-mushy itoh, hehe :)

but with you
i can let my hair down
i can say anything crazy
i know you'll catch me right before i hit the ground
with nothing but a t-shirt on
i never felt so beautiful baby, as i do now
now that i'm with you...

-- with you by jessica simpson

last nyt, i was having these thoughts about the things happened to me early last year --before a "roller-coaster" relationship with an ex ended. i can't believe i was that girl who caught up in a "life & death" situation of deciding for my lovelife. 'twas the time that i always asked myself critical questions over & over. "should i stay despite of this mess?", "is it fair to let go of someone who broke your trust?" "should i give him the nth chance?" [sigh]...

but i have no regrets at all. i wouldn't attempt to rewrite it to make me feel better. i'm so thankful i've been through that turmoil 'cause i learned a lot of lessons. i believe God heard all my prayers and i felt that he prepared something new and good for me. well luckily, tonton was there to understand my sentiments. he was there to cheer me up when i feel so down. he was such a blessing to me...

I am a "Lisa Simpson"

A total child prodigy and super genius, you have the mind for world domination. But you prefer world peace, Buddhism, and tofu dogs. You will be remembered for: all your academic accomplishments Your life philosophy: "I refuse to believe that everybody refuses to believe the truth". The Simpsons Personality Test

well, no comment... :)

this year's d.s.t. [daylight saving time] in melbourne and some other parts of australia has started last oct 29. it means that the clocks here were adjusted one more hour ahead [if comparing to manila's time]. basically the purpose of this time adjustment is to conserve the use of energy in daytime.

personally, i liked the idea of setting the dst :) since it started this week, we did not have to turn on the lights even if it's 7pm already 'cause it's still bright outside. a very nice way to save energy huh :)

nway, today is the first day of my birth month. do i have to do a countdown to my special day? hmm hmm... eh parang mgiging countdown yata for another year older, wag na nga lng kaya! i'd probably just do it for christmas. ayun! im quite excited for that season kase we're planning to go to sydney. :)we're gonna visit tita cely [tonton's aunt] & her family. i've already asked bong castor about their trip two weeks ago and the flight booking stuff. we better do the booking as early as now, kse para cheaper daw. however, i think it will still all depend on the work schedule of tonton this coming yuletide. oh well.. i'll just keep my fingers crossed.