One Thousand Pesos = Happiness

I never thought one thousand pesos can make me this happy...

Got myself a beader book for my Tita J, a couple of yoga magazines for my cousin (yup, I admit, I will have to browse over them first before handing them over to her), a golf instruction mag for hubby, parents magazine (the article on “how to handle whining” caught my eye), an Oprah, and last but definitely the least… a crochet book (for the beginner stitcher). Yeheeey! Napapalundak ako sa tuwa, can you see me jumping for joy?

Then I found myself a (relatively) quiet nook with a comfy cushioned seat near the aircon in Jollibee. With an hour to spare while waiting for my ID pictures to get done, I was as happy as a lark.

Like Manna From Heaven

The other day, Mom and I were taking over dinner about wanting to try yoga. There was no yoga class in our hometown. My family and I, on the other hand, are to move into a new place in a couple of months and I knew, thru a cousin, that a yoga class was available. I felt excited. I’ve heard and read tons about the benefits of yoga – the way it helps relieve stressed muscles and minds, and about how it makes one limber. Mom and I laughed at how tight our muscles were. I then forgot about our conversation.

For days, weeks now even, I have been concerned about finding a good school for our three kids. Our first application into a ‘good’ school (or so we’ve heard) was pretty traumatic for me. A week after the exam, I was handed letters that said they were sorry to inform me that my kid was not accepted because he/she did not meet their requirements. And they thanked me for taking interest in their school. BS! It was painful for me and my ego. And I felt sorry for the kids whom I knew were smart, and curious, and inquisitive but have been exposed for the past two years to a school curriculum which was “unconventional”. (Others called it “non-traditional”).

For about a week after that, I hustled from one school to another in between my clinic hours. I busied myself over ID pictures, and birth and baptismal certificates, and teacher’s recommendations forms. Once, I found myself crying while driving. Are they nuts? How can they not accept my son and daughter? They’re preschoolers, c’mon, give them a break!

Yesterday, after my clinic, I went on an errand for hubby. As I drove in the mall parking lot, I failed to look into my rear view mirror as I made a wide turn and almost ran into a speeding car (driven by what looked like a teenager). My heart skipped a beat, my stomach sank, and my knees shook. I said thanks to God for sparing me in spite of my carelessness. Heaving a deep sigh of relief and thanks, I backed up into my parking space, then smiled at the security guard who was staring at my car, probably wanting to see who this idiot driver could be (I had dark tint).

After the short errand, I found myself walking into National Bookstore. I wanted to ease my nerves and what better place than the bookstore (I know, I’m a bit of a geek). Looking for nothing in particular, I loitered around and then found myself standing in front the shelf labeled “Parenting”. Staring right at me was this book entitled, “(A Parents’ Guide To) Preparing Your Child For School”. It was affordable and it was exactly what I needed. I thought - Wow. God does hear my prayers. I grabbed it.

A minute later, I saw “Yoga Bliss (Simple and Effective Routines for Chilling Out)” for only 299.50. Whoa! Father, God, You’re too much! You’re spoiling me! I scanned through the pages; it had great pictures and was obviously written for tight-muscled beginners like me. It fit my budget so I grabbed it, too.

I then picked up an issue of Pinoy Whiz English Edition for me and hubby (it’s a new hobby of ours, very cheap at 15 pesos and quite fun, too). And then I chanced upon a lone copy of “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff Omnibus (special Edition – three books in one) by Richard Carlson” at only 375.00. Quite a bargain! All my purchases amounted to less than a thousand pesos. I was as happy as a kid let loose in a candy store.

I thought to myself how thoughtful and generous God really is. I did not plan these purchases. I did not plan walking into the bookstore. But He graciously led me to where I could find what I really needed. Other people might call this serendipity. To me it’s God’s provision, plopped right in front me and ready for the picking – like manna from heaven! Wow.

As if these weren’t enough, as I walked past the lonely corners of the store, I overheard what sounded like a mom and a little kid girl reading. I allowed my curiosity to take over my usually reserved self and approached them. The mom was pointing at numerous short words on an MSA reading guide and the little girl was reading – pak, pak, pak – at full speed. She was so little and I was very much impressed. Engaging the mom in conversation (I’m glad she didn’t run away from me), I learned that the kid was only four, that she learned how to read at home, and that she’s been reading since age 3. Wow. I have been thinking a lot of Wow’s this past hour.

I picked up a few of the reading guides after the lady and the little girl had left. With a teeny-weeny bounce in my step, I rushed to the cashier and paid for my purchases (thank God, again, for the patients He sent to me the day before).

I have an aversion to this A-word because it’s been used and abused, but God really is awesome! As in. Praise God.

The Perfect Planner

Yehey! Today I have crossed out most of the urgent and/or important tasks on my to-do list. Some of them were musts that have been bugging me for days, even weeks (BIR, printing jobs,birthday presents for my sister, etc.). Others were errands – stuff related to the kids’ school activities, things to buy for an uncle, etc.

But the real highlight of my day was (okay, brace yourself… here comes the geekiness) having chanced upon the most perfect planner!

For more than two weeks, I have had this nagging, almost irrational urge to start hacking my spare notebook into a 2010 planner. It’s a black, pocket-size, lined Scribe notebook (a Moleskine knock-off) that has been sitting in the darkest corner of my closet for months. Inspired by things I’ve stumbled upon during hours of mindless web surfing, I wanted to turn it into a year of 2-pages-a-week planner with lots of spare pages for to-do lists, notes, and scribbles. More pressing demands (like sleep, for instance) have been keeping me from diving in.

I have made a few visits to my favorite bookstore and somehow the planners that were available then did not suit my needs. They were either too small, or too bulky, or downright unattractive, or too expensive. And none of them had enough space (at the end of the year) for notes. Once, I managed to gather enough courage to check out those red Moleskine 18-month planners but I can never make myself spend that much money for a notebook, no matter how fancy it is.

But today… ahhh. I cannot hide this silly grin on my face. I went to National Bookstore for some laminating jobs and found this:

It’s black, covered with decent-looking faux leather. It’s the right size – handy yet has enough space for each day for important dates, meetings, and tasks.

The paper quality is good enough for me as I only use ball-point pens or a mechanical pencil for writing. The bonus part was the second half of the planner which comprised of pages and pages of lined notes. I plan to split these into two parts using sticky tabs – To-do Lists and Notes/Important Things to Remember.

I am optimistic that these notes would be enough to last me through the year as I have a separate Hipster PDA for (3 x 5 index cards held together by a carabiner) that I use for special lists and MITs.

And here’s the best part: it’s very cheap. Only 79 pesos (or about one and a half dollars) and it’s locally made! It’s such a great steal… makes me look forward to a great year ahead.

My Own Non-Moleskine Notebook PDA, Finally!

It’s been 24 hours and I am still absolutely thrilled with my new notebook! Not the notebook notebook that I am typing on right now. Notebook as in paper, pages, pen… that kind of notebook. I managed to buy one last night from Fully Booked at Bonifacio High Street. Small, burgundy, roughly 4 x 6 inches. I know it’s not a Moleskine. It’s not real leather. But hey, it looked sturdy enough and it cost me only 220 pesos =) That’s a real steal… enough to make me very, very happy. Besides, no matter what other people say, I can never get myself to buy a Moleskine. Even if I had the money in my wallet, I just couldn’t/wouldn’t. There are more than enough good-enough, pretty enough substitutes out there. Kuripot talaga, hehe.

Using post-its, I split it into four sections: calendar (one week per page), next actions, projects, and notes. I haven’t had the chance to cross out any of my next actions/to-do’s yet BUT I am really pleased with the way it looked and I have a good feeling about it. I think the notebook PDA is going to do its job for me. Now, the rest is up to me.