It's Free but Priceless

When was the last time I smiled to strangers? I can't really remember. I am not snobbish, though people told me I am.

I am NOT snobbish

Maybe I am living on a fast pace surrounding which made me forget that there's more to life than office work and stress.

Just want to share a short story which happened in a span of 30 minutes. Last week, I went home late from work. Needless to say I have no more time to cook my meal. There's no other options left for me than to buy my lunch on a fast food chain. So off I go and went directly to the line and ordered my food. The crew asked  for my order and asked me if its for "dine in" or "to go". I opted for the latter. 

While she's preparing for the food, the other crew prepared my drink which she put on a glass intended for dine in meals. When she gets to the counter, I told her it's for take out. I can tell that' she'd done a lot of work though the day just started - I saw it in her face. But she willingly went back to the food section and do the necessary revisions. Though I am really sleepy, I gave her a "HUGE SMILE" and said "THANK YOU". Mind you, I always say thank you but I seldom smile.

Seriously, she put my drink on the counter and went away, but she looked back to me after 3 steps realizing what I said and did...She smiled back. I know she's happy! 

Walking away from the counter I know I made one life happier with a simple gesture. I felt happy too. It's free yet priceless so why not give it away everyday. So from now on, I will always be like this:

it took me like forever to upload the picture

it seems like Google doesn't want to accept it

but in anyways, the upload became successful

maybe that means, I should be ready for shame. LOL.

So SMILE people, it's contagious!

Part 2 - An Adventure I won't Forget (Our Camping/Island Hopping)

if you missed part 1 it's here

Day 2 at Puting Buhangin Island ---supposed to be

After breakfast, we went sight seeing, took some pictures and collected shells, while the others are enjoying the cold water on the beach. I didn't tried cause there is no water available for us to rinse our body. We have to buy one container for a price of 35 pesos. But we did of course. We needed clean ourselves before heading to the next island. 

Below are some of the pictures taken before leaving Dampalitan

At around 10:00 p.m. May 29, 2011, Sunday, we loaded our things on the boat and off we go to the second Island - Puting Buhangin. It is the farthest of the 3 islands that's why we opted for it so we could settle and fix our camp there. The sea seems so calm and friendly but not until we're at the middle of our journey. 


The waves started to rise and somewhat ready to devour us in no time. My gal pals were shouting cause they're at the front row where the impact of the waves on the ship was very evident and alarming. I was relaxed until one of the big waves hit our boat sideward and that made me stand in fear. The boatmen shut off the engine so we wouldn't go any further and that's when we decided to go back. The problem was we're already at the middle and going back means risking our lives on the same big waves. I never thought that kind of fear would struck me. The boat was like a surfboard on top of the giant waves. 

to be continued again...the last part with more pictures to come.......

An Adventure I won't Forget (Our Camping/Island Hopping) Part 1

This is a post long overdue. The story about our island hopping in the province of Quezon.

Day 1 at Dampalitan Island: 

May 28, 2011, we packed our things and pushed through with our camping trip despite the pitiful weather condition.  It's not like were not minding it but the forecast seem unstable and that made our minds. This was an island hopping adventure with lots of fun as we anticipated it, but what we had was an adventure and not much of a fun. 

look at the sky that day

When we reached the seashore, the boat which will take us to the first island was not there. According to our contacts, it transported some tourist to another island but couldn't go back quickly because of the big waves. Needless to say, we have to wait for the boat to arrive and for the waves to settle.

After almost 2 hours in waiting, the boat finally did arrived. Sigh of relief for us and we immediately loaded our stuffs and off  we go to the first Island called Dampalitan at around 4:00 in the afternoon. We pinched the tent and cooked our food. Cause we came from a night shift before that, all of us were sleepless and tired so after eating my dinner I decided to take a rest before hanging out with the gang. But my anticipated few minutes of sleep lasted till midnight and I did awake with the sound of raindrops falling on my tent. The rain gets harder and harder and the water started to kill my tent, so I decided to move out and leave my camping bag in the middle to save it from getting wet. I sacrificed for the sake of my camping bag and the result for me was an aching body due to cold raindrops.

We thought it wouldn't last long but it did. Thank God one of the local folks there offered us  one of their nipa huts where we can stay for the night and wait till morning so we can fix our things and our camp. Well, that's how it goes for the first day. We're tired, wet and sleepless.

to be continued........

sorry for the picture quality, I was sooooo tired

Welcome Back to My Christmas Directory

Hello September! I know it's already half of the month and I barely noticed it, though I am staring at the calendar everyday.

It's Ber months again and that means taking your jackets and sweaters out of your closet because the wind is colder than it was during the rainy season. It's the time for a happy environment, merry makings, delicious food, sparkling lanterns, gigantic Christmas tress, gifts and the time of giving and loving. How could I possibly miss September 1?

But it's better late than never. Today September 16, 2011, (exactly 100 days before Christmas) I will give life to my Christmas Directory page for the second time. It's a page dedicated for Christmas where I put all the things I am planning to do until December 25th, the gifts I already collected and all the plans and preparations for Christmas. 

I hope with this simple manifesto I can continue showing kindness to people everyday eventhough the season ends - in any way the spirit of Christmas should always be present everyday. 

We have different cultures and traditions in celebrating Christmas but what is important is we're celebrating it's real essence - the birth of our savior.

Advance Merry Christmas everyone and I am hoping you could join me in my countdown.

source

McDonalds Delivery Bag

We have a long weekend because it's labor day on Monday. Someone sent me a text message but I am in doubt with his intentions. I don't have any idea what he's up to. Okay, now that I mentioned that, let's forget about it.

Today me and my office mates made fun with our flash drives. We searched our admin's cabinets (shhhh-these are spare and we have permission) for spare casings and we switch ours with trendy one. Will show 'em to you next time. What I would like you all to see was what I found inside the flash drive.

A huge bag where I can fit snugly.

Believe me when this bag is carried on my back properly, its length is almost 3/4 of my body height. And the bag itself is so heavy.