I had a good slapping today from google. After months of trying to convince myself that I don’t need a page rank, that I could survive and have a quality blog without a high page rank, I was finally rewarded with a PR 2. Nice. Now, what do I do with it?

Because I’ve made decent moola when this blog was still a big fat egg. What are the advantages of a page rank, anyway? I mean, after my blog got weeded out of PPP, wherelse can I possibly get opps?

Why do I feel nervous like there are butterflies in my stomach? Is it because I’ll be in front of an audience tomorrow to read about the story of a frog named Tiddalik? Or is it because I will be criticized by discriminating and eager bunch of toddlers and preschoolers? Yes, you read it right. I will be storytelling for my little girl and her schoolmates. It’s my first time and I am really worried and nervous. But how hard can it be?

I mean, these little tots might not even heard of Tiddalik the Frog. Well, I haven’t. The characters I know are all Disney characters and these are just a few of my favorite characters:

1. Cinderella
2. Snow White
3. Sleeping Beauty
4. The Lion King
5. Mickey Mouse
6. Donald Duck
7. Little Mermaid
8. Tinker Bell
9. Nemo
10. Ratatouille
11. Aladdin
12. Princess Jasmine
13. Winnie the Pooh
14. Bambi
15. Pocahontas

How I miss being a kid and having someone read a story for me. Now, it’s the other way around. I guess it’s just my turn. If ever you miss your childhood, there’s this new game called Disney Bingo. And what’s even more amazing is you can play it with your kids and share with them your favorite Disney characters. This DVD is now available at Amazon.com and Drugstore.com.

By the way, what are your favorite Disney characters? Or even movies and music. Why don’t you list your top 5 and compare it with mine. I’m pretty sure we would have lots in common.

I went to see a dermatologist yesterday afternoon. I wanted to have my skin checked because of the little dark spots (freckles) sprouting like mushroom on my face. To tell you honestly, I haven’t been taking care of my skin religiously. Now I could face the heat of the sun bare and without protection whereas before, I could never go outside without any form of sunscreen.

Well, that probably explains it. Now, I look like a Dalmatian with spots all over. I’m that sensitive to UV rays. I’ve been using sunscreen protection since high school. My classmates would even tease me about it. And I’ve used the same brand ever since. But I plan to switch because I noticed that the brand I use clog my pores and I feel that it has somehow lost its efficacy.

The dermatologist gave me some products to condition my skin before undergoing any major treatment like glycolic peeling, spanish or obagi peeling. She just learned that it’s better to prep the skin first so that it can better react to any major treatment or absorb topical products you wish to administer. So, I have six weeks to condition my skin before I could have glycolic peeling. I just hope that my skin would improve after all these.

I just got back from a much-needed unplanned vacation. My sister, her kid, MG and I went to Baguio. We only planned to stay for one night but it got extended. Baguio in September is so refreshing. Bright and sunny mornings, rainy afternoons, and very cold evenings. Plus almost all hotels offer discounted rates on rooms. This is the off-peak season and by December room rates will be back to original.

Instead of visiting the usual tourist spots, we went to restaurants we haven’t tried. Cafe by the Ruins has homemade biscuits and breads which are best paired with their homemade pate and cheese spread. The ambience is also great . It’s well-lit and artworks by local artists are displayed on the walls.

We also went to Chocolate de Batirol at Club John Hay and sampled their signature choco drink concoction. It was so good and I wanted to have another serving but I restrained myself because chocolate and peanuts usually give me serious migraine episodes.

We would have wanted to visit other new restaurants but because of the rain, we just settled with hotel food. Which was not particularly bad. I hope to go back there and do some ukay-ukay shopping.

Here are some pics with the wrong date setting: =)

mg at manaoag church

I have a confession to make. I’m a bad friend. My close friend, Chi, who now lives in New Zealand with her new husband emails me practically every week just to check up on me.

Chi and I were very close. I have accepted her apparent choice in men, bugging her about it almost everyday when she was still here. But I don’t think she has ever really accepted my decision to stay in the Philippines. I think she’s convinced that I’m just being a coward, and clinging to what’s familiar and comfortable.

The reason she insists is that, knowing the benefits of getting out my comfort zone, she wants this for me. And it would make us closer geographically. Now that our lives are so different. She even wanted for us to live in their apartment.

People expect friends to get along, and I guess we did. But not always. When we were still young, we were actually enemies. She had her own set of friends and I had mine. Maybe it was partially because Chi was outgoing, noisy and playful while I was quiet, earning good grades and obeying all the rules. We didn’t realize that we would click later on. The world had become an unpredictable place.

By college, we were moving in different directions. Sure, we both had kids but while she finished college, I quit and began working. I don’t exactly remember how we renewed our ties. We were both involved in dead-end relationships and that probably what made closer. We got together a lot especially when one of us was dashing off to meet a boyfriend and the other one was trying to cover up to the parents. We were present at each other’s biggest mistakes and that created a special bond between us.

Now she’s abroad with a new husband while I’m still here with a new kid. Men, kids, jobs. Our lives keep drawing us apart. But we don’t go for long. ’til now. When I haven’t been returning her emails and not answering her calls. All because I didn’t send her a gift for her wedding day.

To give you an idea how serious the situation is, consider this: this morning I woke up with loose bowel movement (LBM). Perhaps you’re thinking: Oh no, an article on bowel movement. She’s gone too far this time.

This is not something an average person would like to talk about. But it has to be said, this is an important issue especially coming from a suspected hemorrhoids sufferer. This is huge. But don’t get me wrong. I’m not so skillful at looking into my own rectum. I offer no significant insights into prevention or treatment of this anal disorder. I’m just a normal person one could get about as much help as the person next to you.

What I do know is that a high-fiber diet like whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, beans and legumes, has been identified as the best preventive measure against hemorrhoids and other intestinal disorders. So giving up white flour, by far, is the best thing to do.

Which brings me to why I had LBM this morning. I thought that hemorrhoids are not likely to disappear overnight. But I know better now. Don’t eat a bowl of salad, papaya, whole wheat bread, and prune juice in one day. That’s why I want everyone reading this to consider that what goes in must come out. Eventually. Even overnight.

I don’t know how people dress these days. Me, I couldn’t care less about the way I look nowadays. I’m a mom who’s always rushing and dressing up is the last thing on my mind. People normally dress for two reasons–sex and success. I’m not seeking either one so I merely get dressed.

The last time I was with friends, we talked about how we would love to get made up and dressed up for an occasion. Not having any occasion to go to, we just did some window shopping. We were ’single’ when we met at work and became friends. The friendship lasted even after the work has gone. I guess we all found something in common in each other and two of them were fashion and the drama of our love life.

For us, the main fashion concession then seemed to be the corporate attire and high heels. There was a hint of shoulder pads in those days but much more incredible trends were scarves and stockings. Would you believe one had to wear stockings in those days? We dressed to please the clients and that basically what characterized our adult work life. We dressed for success.

Now, if we want to observe fashion as creative self-expression, we should look at how teenagers dress. They dress to create their own identity and are not afraid to be criticized. In fact, they love the attention. Style is their individuality. That’s what makes them different from all the rest. Whereas, moms dress just so we wouldn’t be naked while we run from here to there.

It’s been raining since last night. And this morning, I woke up not feeling very good. I think I might have a cold or something. So my breakfast today was a fever pill. Yum! It’s a good thing my little girl’s classes were suspended. With the heavy downpour, I wouldn’t go out even if they didn’t cancel the school. So we just stayed at home, ate spaghetti left-over from last night and slept.

When I woke up, I wanted pancakes badly so I made some. I dribbled the batter into the frying pan and watched it spread into a not so perfect circle. It was more like an eight or six figure. Some were thin and some were thick. I like the thin ones so I gave the thicker ones to MG who can’t tell the difference. She just wanted to spread butter on it and pour pancake syrup until it was all mushy.

A little while later, my son arrived announcing that he was not feeling well. I told him to drink ‘green tea’. This is not your regular green tea. We just call it that because the box is green. It’s actually a Chinese beverage that lets trapped body heat come out. I’m not really sure what it does but it sure nips the colds in the bud.

Later in the evening, I will make myself one. I don’t wanna get sick because when mama gets sick, nothing gets done. Rain or shine. Classes or no classes.