simplicity 2

And so the gift giving for the birthday people in my life isn't over yet...hardly. I've had 4 "gifted" people from the last post and was equally generous with them 'cuz they're all dear to me and though my gift were simple, they loved it! I'm glad to have friends who understands the misery of my pocket! ^^

Anyway, last night we were at another birthday party besides the 4 we had last Oct. 14, I have another close friend whose birthday was last night but this time, the hubby came to the rescue for the GIFT expenses. whew, sensing my distress of having too many friends celebrating in October, haha...I might consider that as a criteria before being friends with someone, I must impose NO MORE OCTOBER celebrant friends!^^ I'm fully-booked...^^...kidding! Of course no matter what, I'll be friends with people who are friends with me and are true, that's why I make such effort to be there for them and make them feel special regardless of my capacity to actually pay for anything GRAND because they deserve it!

The gifts this time were better, thanks to the hubby, he's nice isn't he? Buying all these presents for me...I mean NOT me but For me ...arrgh. That sounds complicated, but thanks to him I had no trouble choosing stuff that needs to go in the green bag.

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Happy Birthday REESE and Zamer!

simplicity

oh I know they deserve more than just a canvass shopping bag, chocolates and a birthday card but that's what I got my 4 friends on their birthday today, :( I really wish I had given more but you see, I have no money for a much expensive present. I'm broke and yes, I should be applying for a credit card but my "permit to carry" from my dear husband Ramil has not been approved yet, he treats it like a lethal weapon in my clumsy hands, I cannot blame him ...when he left me with his credit card to use for emergencies when he was out of the country I spent it on so many "emergencies" any woman will understand! I needed that red, red shoes you know to match the lipstick I have and bought so many lovely curtains, books and 3 pcs.of paintings for the house with a discount using his credit card! Oh he laughs at the thought that he'd bought the curtains while being on a business trip as I said "Honey, you bought wonderful curtains" upon his entrance to the living room arriving from the airport, "Really, I bought those curtains?" "why yes darling, aren't you proud of yourself that you've made such fine choices?" while I whirled around to showcase 3 fantastic masterpieces hanging on our previously bare wall, " and you bought paintings too." He was smiling but that smile translates to "you're unbelievable!" So I handed back the credit card very, very slowly and wished I could just run away to where he could not ask me WHY?!

So NO everyone I dont own a credit card at all! And have not applied for a single credit card from any bank or grocery. I have to regain his trust that I won't be a spending machine when he leaves me his card again. I have to prove first that I am capable of budgeting and wont spend on anything that my RAW money cannot buy. But also, I could've afforded to buy a much expensive gift and saved more if only their birthdays doesn't fall in one day! It's already like Christmas but I don't have my bonus yet! But you know, the best thing on having friends is: No matter what the price-tag is on your gift, they'll love it like you've given them the world! One was even in tears when she read the card I wrote her and was not touching the red ribbon I tied the bag with because she said it was very pretty. ^^

Well I guess "No gift is ever too cheap or too expensive if it comes from the heart." still applies.

Take care y'all!

Love,
Sassy.

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and ... here are the presents! tadaaaa! ~ aren't they too cute to be just a shopping bag? Maybe they can use it to carry around novels, or become a beach bag, or an art bag...whatever they can use it for actually, as long as the ultimate goal is to NEVER use plastic bags anymore, these bags will be awesome!

cat person

Paris

farmville

friends

is a guy

red ribbon and recycled paper cards

folded and ribboned.

plain and simple.

Happy Birthday!!!
che, angel, rose ann and elvien

Liza and the 50 year old woman who looks 18!

It's been a green day for us, as we celebrate our friend Liza's birthday. She turned 30! wahahaha ...*laughs* she can't believe she's 30! neither can we, she actually got held outside a casino one time for ID 'cuz she looks like 12! hahaha... that is outrageous! How come she gets all that ... "hey, you should get her a permit to work 'cuz she looks 15!" ... yeah right!!! grr... I'd like to look young too for my age, but heck ... I get like ... "you're 28, right?!" "...uhmm .. yeah" haha Well, whatever!

We wore her fave color GREEN, to work since it's also dress down Friday to surprise her and she liked it, giggled at how we looked so coordinated! We did the same for Ramil when we all wore RED ... So, it's kinda becoming a tradition! Anyway, Liza, is a nice person, she is the one I said about being like the Phoebe character in Friends. She says lots of funny stuff without realizing it, wears and says what she wants but one thing sets her apart from that character ... she's Phoebe meets Rebecca Bloomwood (the Shopaholic girl) who loves to shop for signature clothes and puts color into fashion? Yup. She's it! She may be like what she is towards shopping and spending her credit card away like it's nothing! But deep down inside she's a caring person, 'loves her family and friends, hard working and fun to be with.

SO, to celebrate her birthday, we all went to AMICI at the Megamall, for a superb Italian Cuisine! Yummy! I tell you, it's really one of the best Italian meals I had ... perfetto! Took lots of pictures and had Gelato (ice cream) for dessert! yum.... we were stuffed and laughing all the time not minding that the place was getting more and more crowded as the night falls. I've never been to Amici before but now I know why I should be there more often! Good food is hard to forget!

After Amici, we're ready to head home ... but passing by a Barbie Doll Exhibit in celebration of its 50th Birthday, made us drop by and took more pics ... it was all pink and fur and Barbie Doll Collections. I saw one Barbie that looks away ... a 1965 Barbie ... it has cat-like eyes that looks away unlike the Barbie we played with ... it's looking away! ( I just said that, right? it looks away!) How fun! Very nice collections, I'm glad they shared it 'cuz I wont be able to collect as many and as rare as what they have, 'minding the price tag! ... and besides, I don't have much room in the house for it ... as I was contemplating on starting my own collection! haha I had to stop myself and make reasons! It's beyond child's play really, to have one ... I'd be sooo sad to be a doll and NOT get played with ... or be even out of the box! But they were dolls made to be looked at, that's how they stay crisp, clean and shiny. There was this Barbie that looks like our Grandma's in the pictures of the 50's! With curly hair, tiny red pout lips and 1mm thin eyebrows ... cool! If I get one, I'd start my collection ... but if not, I wont. What's the use of collecting without the 1st editions?! haha Don't mind me, I'm just making reasons again.

Anyway, ciao for now. That's all I got! Funny, I thought I have something really long and cool, but now, words just wont tell about them all, 'cuz you know, they are memories kept to forever by the minute and words aren't that precise, we just get the closest detail and this is it for me about my Happy Day! =)

"have a good one!

Burp and Wonders

For some reason people would want to celebrate their birthdays even when its not...and in a world where there's freedom and equality, no one can stop you from doing just that!!! So we did! For Che, a friend who by her whim treated us on a hefty dinner the other night supposedly a birthday treat. Given the budget and friends who are willing to party, why not?! Even if her birthday is still in October, why not?! Because there is a special production number by the crew of the restaurant, why not?!!! ...and there are plenty more reasons that could be answered by "why not?" so we just never argued why! It's like a blessing you never prayed for but came, so why ask?

So we went, stuffed ourselves, had good laughs, she paid --- and then there were loads of leftovers. The rule is, if your leftovers still resemble the picture on the menu, you have to take it home! It's still good food. In a world with many hungry mouths, you just can't throw away food, it's as if "again" a blessing that has overflown and now you want to get rid of it... no, no, no, NO! We had them wrapped and then brought home, agreeing that we could still eat it for lunch the next day.

SO THE NEXT DAY... we did just that, ate them and shared some more of it too ... How weird that the food *slash* blessing seemed to have overflowed, that we had fed a room of people including ourselves?! We go wondering how much did we really ordered that night, or how much it could've costed our friend? ... well... were not really sure how much food we had on the table, but surely we had wasted none of it! Leftovers are good food ...(just don't let it go stale!)

Anyway, our generous friend was not finished with us ... she later again treated us to Starbucks for a drink of our choice! *coffee jelly=heaven* we really don't know what's gotten into her! But, there has to be a "moral lesson" in this, even if it seems to be vague that people would do random generosity! ...

The moral lesson? uhmmm... "To bring out the generosity in someone, you must be a charity case" ... aaaaccckkkkk.... not good! uhmmm ... "In order for blessings to come into your life, you must learn how to share it" that's pretty good, huh!...explain! Well, it's like a pail of water, when you don't throw out excess water, you wont be able to fill it again ... so let your Blessings flow! Let your hands, be at least "quarter" empty, so it'll be filled in again with things you need more in your life! Let your closet breathe, so you could shop again and fill it with great, new, in season stuff! ... uhmm.. kidding!, haha, but you get my point, right?

age are just numbers

Helen Sue turns 26
Liza is 31,Che is 30
Marc is 29, Giselle is 32
Shann is 31
Angel is 23, Fame is 37!

Helen Sue is a friend who's celebrating her birthday today, turning 26. When I asked her how she feels about being 26, she shrugged and said "I feel so old" haha ... she feels old at 26, that makes me feel heck a lot more older being 28! aarrgghhh... Anyway, she looked great in a Chinese inspired print of cherry blossoms dress shirt paired with a pencil cut skirt. It's her birthday she has to look good!

Well ... if it's just age and numbers were talking about, I know some people who seem to have defied aging. Yup, you heard me ... these people I know looks way younger than they actually are. I remember one time at Foxwoods in Connecticut, and were about to enter the Casino when the security approached us, asked for IDs and when we handed them our passports, he was like ... "1973! , 1977!, 1980?!" "does anyone age in your country?" whoa! flattering! really. but why? how do you think 30-ish people should look like?!

of bags and birthdays

Every girl should have a RED bag, it's flattering and an instant "pick-me up" color. It goes with anything too ... uhmmm yeah maybe not especially with purple! I don't know maybe for some it works but for me ... it's not an easy match. Anyway, I got this RED bag at my favorite mall, ST. Francis Square, which offers loads of great buys plus you can still haggle for the prices to go way down a bit more! yup! surprising isn't it? Well, they are usually direct suppliers which is great, they have their own products to showcase and I have a favorite store called Charice that makes their own clothing line, they can even customize a design to fit your size perfectly! Besides that, they also do imports from Hong Kong and Bangkok which is great 'coz I've always considered Bangkok a shopping paradise! Good quality at a great price! In fact, I still have this pair of khaki pants that's still looking new, after 4 years! hmmnn ... it could also be the detergent I'm using, but khaki pants are hard to maintain especially when you got a color that you don't ever wanna wore out! Like a perfect brown-beige that might easily fade by frequent washing... aahhh the joys of Chatuchak (night-market in Thailand).

SO, anyway... 'love this RED bag that's got pockets and room for all my stuff. 'Love the fact that it can also be a sling bag 'cuz it's got another strap that you can easily clip on to the sides ... great buy at 200 pesos! WHAAAATTTT???! 200 PESOS? yes, that is like 4. 16 in US dollars... I know. I know it's a steal!!! haha ... but what can I do? I've mastered the art of haggling!!! hehe ... of course they wouldn't give it away if they don't have something for it so trust me, don't feel guilty!!! ^-^

AND ... besides the fabulous find, I have a day to share with you. It was yesterday when my hubby decided to celebrate his birthday though his birthday was last March 20, he decided that we could have a lunch party in the office on April 3 ... aahhh you know the story, we were broke last month for his birthday that we only spent a dinner of soup and pasta with two of our best friends. BUT as you know, birthdays are ought to be celebrated! It's the wonder of life that we ought to celebrate each birthday, a blessing, a gift. So yeah, we had food brought in to the office c/o an officemate that has a catering business ... SUPERB food, the chicken barbecue with sauce is the best ever!!! Also the Pancit Malabon which is a recipe of noodle, seafood and veggies! yumyum! and for dessert ... we had Buko Pandan ... a green gelatin of Pandan leaves and shreds of young coconut meat. yummy! We were all stuffed and happy!

* To my husband, Happy 29th birthday! I wish you good health and wonderful things! Thanks for being a blessing to me.* kisses*kisses* MJ

it's a RED day Birthday!

My young husband and I are broke for his birthday and of course, no matter what there has to be some sort of celebration or at least make him feel special though a party is hardly an idea ... yep, we're that broke! ...

...besides broke, were still sad over the loss of Ramil's father, so a party? mmm ... maybe not.

But what our friends did to make his day special was to wear RED. very, very touching... in fact, one of those moments that I'm grateful for having them around! In bad and happy times, we know we got them and that's such a great feeling. Probably the best GIFT for Ramil is just having company, having fun chats, knowing that we will never have empty hands and lonesome shadows... oh we love them!

What's amazing is : I too had worn RED...without an idea that they too will. You see? when you're always with the same people everyday, you somehow get a "vibe" of what they think! hehe. So, what I got Ramil for a present is ... well, something I made. (broke, remember?) I made five (5) small picture cards, that I drew and colored with oil pastels, like a polaroid picture that I put messages at the bottom. It was simple but the thought was there ... I love him.

Anyway, that's just how life goes ... with or without money, friends will always be friends, lovers will always be lovers.

trying out the mini lappy

As I am writing this, I'm using the mini laptop that I had brought home and is considering to buy from a friend who rarely uses it because he is soooooo much fine in using his desktop, so now this mini is indeed mini ... only 9.5 inches and is like a real notebook in size and can easily be stashed away, perfect for my brother who is also an avid writer! He can write and go anywhere without the hassle of having to carry a special laptop bag for this thing. I am also considering this a gift for his birthday... wow! how I wish a have a sister like me! hehe ... Well, I think he deserves a "prize" for being a "good" boy! haha ... I think he's really cool and he likes cool stuff, he's into skimboarding, wakeboarding, mountain climbing ... art and is graduating with a degree in Industrial Engineering. PLUS, he's never shy to give his sisters and parents a kiss in public or a hug! He's just a cool, great guy ... of course he's my brother!^_^

I'm super excited to see his reaction when he gets this ... I think I'm gonna buy this!!! All I have to do is to fix the payment terms ... I don't come up with such cash instantly, like hey! I'm gonna buy a laptop as a gift! NO WAY! in fact, I'm gonna have to pay this for like 2-3 months... oh well, I love my brother and he is deserving.