Timeless Beauty

My roommate's older sister and her husband has just moved into the room next door yesterday. They had a lot of stuff, complete with a water cooler, TV, fridge, area rugs , mattress and all the kitchenware and dinnerware. Basically they look like they are bringing their whole house along. I don't mind having a guy in the boardinghouse. He's married and he's not attractive at all. Plus they are older and will not be tagging along with us anytime when we go out to party. The only down side is, of course, because they are older they will more likely complain about us girls going out too often too much. Hehehe! The older sis works at a shipping company while her husband is a sales agent for a health product company. Both of them appear serious, but from the times I've met and known them, they seem like good people. I think we will get along just fine.

Our urban lifestyle often leaves us with unhealthy body fat and losing it is one of the strongest concerns today. There are many ways of losing fat fast such as using fat burners like Leptovox , but losing it fast might be unhealthy for your body, and it's not certain you will be able to maintain the loss. However, if you go through organic dieting then it will be safer for you and the loss of fat will last longer because your body will have more time for the fat burning process. Here are some tips for a natural weight loss: Lessen the white carbs in your diet! White carbs are highly-processed carbohydrate rich foods. These would include anything made with refined flour and/or refined sugars. The most common examples are breads, cereals, and pastas. Other common foods to avoid are white potatoes and white rice. Obviously avoid all non-diet sodas/soft drinks and candies. Eat more lean proteins, veggies, beans/legumes and "good" fats. Maintaining one's energy level whil...

The Dinagyang festival has just ended and I still have a hangover. Wish I could have a digital signage over my head flashing "Don't Disturb! Headache Ongoing!" in red running lights, but then we all can't have what we wanted in life. So here I am feeling sick after 2 nights of fun and debauchery. It was a blast enjoying some fun time with friends. We went to the food festival and then later to Smallville where concerts were given for free and bars were all full-packed. Everyone who matters was there. But I had to go home early because a friend of mine is sick and needs a companion at home. It doesn't matter though. I still had fun the next day when we all joined in on the Dinagyang festivities and I had some henna tattoos done on my lower back, my navel and my ankle.

Because of the Dinagyang festival, some streets in the city have been blocked and no vehicle either private or public were allowed to pass through. It was difficult getting to the office this morning and yesterday. And I expect it will become more difficult this afternoon when everyone else is rushing to go home. I hope I can get out early to avoid the traffic, but I expect I won't. I will just have to prepare myself with the onslaught of human bodies and for feeling suffocated by the crowd. Ugh!

Have you ever experienced lucid dreaming? I do. Almost all of the time. And every time I wake up I always feel depleted of energy. It was nice having control over how you dream and where your dream story would lead to, but you have to be prepared of the consequence of losing also your energy. Sometimes I would dream of places I haven't seen yet, houses I haven't visited yet or lakes and ponds I haven't swum in yet. These places are beautiful and have an air of serenity. Clear blue waters and tall Elm trees flourishing along the road lends a feeling of peace. I always thought I could be in Heaven. After all, someone did say Heaven is a state of mind. But does dreaming contribute positive to your health? I know sleep does. Yet dreaming may be a way of unloading life's stressors so your mind can keep itself stable and balanced. A person who falls often into dreamless sleeps may be stressed, having a personal problem or is too exhausted at the end of the day. Also we often...

For those interested, here is a map of the Dinagyang 2009 Festival Route. There were some changes from last year's route. For more information on Dinagyang and other festivals in Iloilo City please visit www.dinagyangfestival.com

I'm out of foundation for my makeup regimen. I use a liquid foundation that is darker in shade. My sis recommended I use a shade lighter since my skin is morena. She also said I should check a Health and Beauty Guide on Cosmetics so I won't make a mistake in buying expensive stuff in the future. The best ones to use are the branded ones because the effect is almost always what they claim to be. In searching for whether the shade you use is right for your skin, you can check whether you have warm or cool undertones. Olive or tan skin usually have a warm undertone, while fair skin has a cool undertone. Gold and bronze will look good on my morena skin rather than lighter shades. The type of foundation to use will also depend on your skin type and the effect you want to achieve. If you have oily skin, you should try using a water-based or a matte foundation. You should avoid liquid foundation, illuminating foundation, sheer foundation and tinted moisturizers. While for dry skin, ...

Once again Dinagyang fever is sweeping the city! Dinagyang is a yearly celebration of street dancing and merrymaking in veneration of the child Jesus. We call Him the Santo Niño. Each year there are several tribes of dancers that participate in the annual competition. They dance to the beat of drums and bamboo instruments. The Dinagyang Festival is held during the third weekend of January each year. This 2009 it will be celebrated on January 24 and 25. On Saturday there will the Kasadyahan Festival and then on Sunday it will be the Dinagyang Festival. Following Dinagyang are two other big events: the Jaro Fiesta in February 2 (Monday) which is one of the biggest and most celebrated Fiesta in Iloilo City, and the Salakayan Festival in MIag-ao, one of the most beautiful and historic towns in the province of Iloilo.

The holiday season is gone but the pounds gained aren't. It's time to go on a diet to get rid of the extra weight I've gained. Myles and Yeyen have invited me to sign up with them at the Olympus gym in front of Libertad Plaza. Gym membership costs 600 pesos each month, which is a far better way of spending my money on, instead of spending it on drinks and dancing at our favorite bar. I'm very interested in using the gym's fitness facilities . I want to firm up my thighs and improve on my endurance. I get tired easily from short periods of exertion. Even climbing the stairs to the 5th floor at work (since the elevator still have not been fixed) is difficult on my lungs and my thighs. I was envisioning a Smooth Fitness kind of exercise machine . I was surfing around their site just now and found a nice bike that will do nicely even when I'm reading a book or watching TV. They say a few minutes on an exercise bike can get rid of cellulites and firm up thighs...

I'm ending my health insurance plan. The company (which I decline to name here) made some bogus promises when its agents were promoting their products. It was only after some of us in our company signed up that we found out we wouldn't be receiving the agreed amount when we get hospitalized or we won't be eligible to add a beneficiary to our subscriptions. Thus we all backed out of the health plan agreement. But before that I will use up all the money I have spent on contributions for the past year into a full General Check Up. I will have my kidney and bladder checked for urinary problems. I will have a pap smear. I will have a fertility test. And perhaps other blood tests for various diseases. I'll just have to find a way to convince the doctor that I needed these tests. In exchange I will probably start a life insurance plan. The term life insurance is the simplest form of life insurance and will be significantly more beneficial to me than a health insurance plan. T...

My mom has now retired from her job at the Provincial Capitol and is waiting for the release of her pension from GSIS. It's a government agency so expect that the funds will be delayed. As of now she is helped by my uncle in finding small business opportunities to occupy her time and help augment her measly budget. Lately they have put up a poultry and a piggery. All for keeping my mom busy and happy. However, the chickens got infected with flu and all of them died, including the ones used in cockfighting. The piggery and the ducks are still alive and healthy. Hope they don't die on us all.

The holidays have passed and we're back to reality! I am now back to working my nine to five job to earn a nice income for the time being. I have got to save yet again for the Dinagyang Festival come January 24 and 25 when the city once again blooms in a celebratory mood. Parties, parties all around! As part of the new year agenda we at the company are doing inventory from the coffee and cream to the office furniture . We also have a new on-the-job-training assistant from the University of the Philippines, Miss Katherine Abad (I hope I gother name right!) Of course, the rest of the admin will have to chip in once in a while. The listing and sticking are a real pain!