join the bandwagon! come one, come all!

i get inspiration from blogging friends as to what to write next or in future posts (that's how un-creative i am probably.) 

a must-read for me is jo's because she started her "happy list" posts that makes (read: compels) me to be more sensitive and be thankful for every day blessings, no matter how it seems babaw (jo's term, okay?) or everyday-ish and typical.  i have been meaning to do the same but having her posts for a standard intimidates me bigtime.  i actually emailed her about how admirable her writing was.  she continues to "bite" even when she is sweet. (peace, dear.)  then, there are the blogs of julia, cesz and che, which are great finds for kitchen recipes, home improvements, food and restaurant reviews, including a welcoming peek at their married lives and domestic bliss.  i am too lazy to cook lately, much more document those sporadic moments of my kitchen prowess.  i am far from marriage-generated bliss (but is nonetheless happy.  thank you Lord!) and home-improved abode means making the apartment dog accident-proof.  thus, these blogs balance my life and encourage me to still aspire towards homelife perfection.  of course, there are those insightful, almost philosophical musings, always thought-of entries from bing (although she hasn't blogged lately), gay and diane, which are true reflections of their really good selves (that obviously magnifies how far i am [from them] at the spectrum of goodness).  

and before all these dearies kill me for putting their "writing styles" in a box, i must say that they all write beautifully and are so generous in sharing themselves.  it's just that their recent posts allowed me to distinguish one from the other as these impressed on me.   (i am so bad in making excuses. *hay*)



since i have really been uber lazy to blog about MY life but want to post something personal now, let me share my daily uniform (from bath to out) as inspired by this.

during workdays (T-Th), i bathe after breakfast and because i'm far from being model employee, i always run late, not because i move slow or i bathe long but because i take my sweet time.  parang walang sense of urgency, ganun.  (crucify me.)

here are my hair care essentials.  i read somewhere so many years ago that we have to change brands (of our shampoo/conditioner) every so often so our hair does not get limp.  i don't know how true but i do practice that, thus the different brands in our bathroom.  by default, i use rejoice rich and cream silk.  i condition my hair every day and shampoo every other day.  dove therapy are my recent finds, and my hair looks better despite having a terrible 'do because i haven't had it styled and cut for the longest time.  (i am trying to grow it before i have it color-ed.)

my face and body bath essentials --- (the head and shoulders shampoo here is mr p's, which i use when i feel i have enough of all my shampoos above) ---

my default face care is cetaphil and body wash is st. ives.  the dove body wash here was my baon to dhaka because it was only PHP80.00 (less than USD2.00) that also came with a loofa.  i like the abrasive feel of a loofa, and my recent purchase from Handyman was this huge, siksik yet soft loofa and is now my favorite.  it is cheap too! it's less than PHP100.00.  believe it or not, i bathe for 10-15 minutes only (must be my UP dorm training!), and even if i decide to linger or go slow, i am done with my bath routine (hair-face-hair-body) in 12 minutes (average).

if there is one thing i cannot live without, it'd be my lotion and my scents!  i graduated from johnson's lotion (although it is my default baon when i'm traveling because its package is easy to pack) and progressed to nivea creams that already cover face and body.  i do not think i have the patience to have separate stuff for my face and body.  i'm also the type who gets so comfortable with things and routine that are no-frills, not labor-intensive and within my budget. i am so purita kalaw, and i cannot, in my wildest dreams, allow someone else to buy my toiletries for me.  (bottles of perfume given as gifts are exceptions to this rule!)  my everyday scent is clinique happy when i'm on the go, and para mi bebe (graduating from my denenes/nenuco phase!) after my shower-before-sleep.  also here (the long dark blue bottle) is the giorgio armani perfume i received from jenni epperson.  i prefer ribbed/spiral cotton buds, and those core-less tissue papers because they are space-savers.  i had to shift to oral b soft toothbrush as advised by my dentist.  i was told i brush my teeth too hard that is unhealthy for my teeth as it gets nipis  at the upper part of the crown.  i was also reminded that i have a nice set of teeth, which i have to take care of as not everyone is as blessed -- then i was told i have to wear braces to even the growth of my teeth.  to wear braces at 36!  i have yet to decide but i don't want to be the subject of tuksuhan.  on second thought, braces might be an alternative to diet pills. lol!

dressing up is another no-brainer activity for me.  i go to work in jeans (sometimes even in shorts), shirt (or a nice blouse, depending on my mood) and flipflops or my suelas flats.  for the past month, i have been wearing wedges because i was reminded that some height is good for my posture.  (a loss weight IS good for MY really thin heels and small feet!)

i'm a watch-earrings-necklace-ring girl.  i noticed in this picture that most of what i wear are from mr p, including the gold chain with the abs-cbn pendant, given by abs to employees when they celebrate 10 years at work.  i usually wear this chain with another chain (with a cross and heart pendant) that i bought from my first few months' salary in PMS.  i noticed that i like to wear two chains at the same time lately.  my peg is, i think, those rappers in the US. hahaha!  my band is actually the pendant of that chain but i decided to wear it as a ring (because it is!) and just use other pendants for it.  both my watch and chain-ring are christmas presents, while the silver/stainless steel earrings are mr p's (i bought it for him but he never got to wear them! yes, i'm so madugas.)  the pearls are my hoards from Palawan, which i had re-set to gold and silver to add value to it.   i am working my a** off right now because i want a "kate middleton engagement ring"-esque ruby ring for myself.  do i miss wearing my gold bands (WR and ER)? not at all.  except that the ER has a little brillante bling, which i find sayang.  (did i tell you that my WR and ER got stolen from my jewelry box in bulacan?)

my bag to work for the past week --- i coveted for this for the longest time because (1) the color (curry) is so in-demand that it gets sold out even in the LC boutique in HK airport, (2) its size is perfect for all my little bags inside (will show you in the next photos), and (3) i have been into LC as of late, which is something i cannot explain.  seriously.

i have been very lazy (what else is new?!) to bring my laptop with me so i just use whatever unit (notebook or desktop) is available at work.  inside this bag are little purses/pouch bags that have my gazillion and one things inside!

what's inside my bag --- these! (top left onwards)
1. red MNG purse that serves as my wallet and cards' holder, where you'd find coins, bills and IDs, business cards, dashing diva card, USD100 (not to be spent! lol!), ATM cards, old UP ID, receipts and other paper/s that need to be sorted (thrown away!)
2. bag with stripes for my toiletries (to be detailed later)
3. umbrella (a recent habit), which was proven useful during the "too sunny then very torrential rains" moments in dhaka
4. cath kidston-imitation-from landmark pouch, with polka dots, that houses my phone when i'm on the go.  i had to buy this because i like things polka-dotted even if i could get jailed for carrying a fake! (it's not LV or hermes that has to be all authentic! hello!)
5. my muji pouch, which i bought from HK airport (i haven't been to muji here!) -- thingies inside to be detailed later
6. my facial tissue, my mala-donya fan and my denman comb (i do not use a brush to avoid having split-ends)

inside my muji pouch

technically, my muji pouch is my feminine days' vault.  it has s. pads, extra undies and wash but normal days, it has these: coreless tissue paper, MRT card (that i don't really use when i travel to work because i take a cab), a really small jewelry pouch (in case i want to have a change of accessories), my phone's ear phones/handsfree thingy, house keys, barrette (so high school, i know!), my rosary (a present from a ninong, who did a pilgrimage in the vatican with his family) and a pen.  i can't find my notepad, more of post-it's, which is actually a freebie from dashing diva.

inside my "kikay" kit but more of a "for hygiene" pouch

you can now imagine why i need a big bag --- for the smaller bags i have inside.  i was told that i should just buy an "organizer" so everything is there, which i can easily pull out and transfer (as one) when i change bags.

so my kikay kit (a.k.a. hygiene bag) has cetaphil, my on-the-spot facial cleanser on the go since i can just clean my face with cetaphil using cotton balls, mala-eskinol sans the alcohol stingy feel.  (i have yet to replenish my cotton balls' supply though.); bath and body works' hand gel (in japanese cherry blossom scent), OA sa bango that i so like!);  lip stuff, that i seldom seldom use! (maybelline fruity tube gloss and human nature's island kiss); toothbrush and paste (i'm such a colgate person!); cotton buds; nivea cream and feminine wash-on-the-go. i don't wear make-up, and i'm just very thankful that my work does not require me to.  (i think, i look bading when i wear make-up.)  i end my day with a shower using all the bath/scent stuff above.  i'm so predictable. *hay* (but when i don't have work, which takes most of my week, i bathe late in the day and change to really pambahay clothes, consistent with my purita kalaw image.)

i'm almost done with this post ---- i feel so raw and so public sharing all these.  naku.  but i'm curious how it is with my girlfriends.  i hope they get to share theirs as well.