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Reviews.
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Sunday, 06 May 2012 |
I saw an old man fixing an outdoor ceiling fan on Saturday and I thought maybe he's just getting ready for summer time. He has all the tools at the foot of his ladder. But there's something odd-- no, make that weird, on how he is fixing the ceiling fan. Instead of screw drivers and maybe fliers, he is holding a spoon. Then I watched closer. The old man was staring at the ceiling fan in what I thought was an expression of a wondering man. Maybe he was confused, thinking, "what am I doing up here with this spoon?"
It was then that I remembered the book that I am currently reading-- Change Your Brain, Change Your Body by Daniel G. Amen. It's Science but I got interested on reading it. It explains how we kill or let our body live to its full potential in the past. We reap what we sow. What we think, how we act, how we decide, how we feel right now-- these and some more, would eventually lead us to a weak or strong brain.
I stopped reading it for I'd like to read it with Carlos. Aside from he's a man of science, I'd like us to be with this together, the way we read the Bible together, the way we solve a sudoko together.
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Reviews.
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Sunday, 06 May 2012 |
I found this site, The Starfall Store, while searching on how to teach a kid how to read. I was trying to gather data and materials for M. He is just two but I have such great faith in his ability to learn fast. When I presented some 42 words from the flashcards that I made for him (from the Dolch word list, which is 200+), he has learned them in 2 two days. I know he's associating the words with the images on the flashcard, but still, that was a good memory there. The Starfall Store has interesting teaching aids that I wish I could work on with M. If only he's allowed to. But since he's not allowed to watch TV or any gadget, I guess we're sticking to the flashcards.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Sunday, 06 May 2012 |
When the weather report says it is going to rain at this hour with 40% precipitation, it is 100% going to rain. so when I checked the weather before I went to work on Thursday last week (I always check the temperature before I leave the house), it says it is going to rain. Now, it shouldn't rain on Thursday mornings. We have to walk for 15 minutes to get to our gym combo class. So I prayed. I got the answer right away. It didn't rain. Then came more small blessings for the day-- I was sent home early. And since I don't bring my own keys at home, I prayed for another one-- someone opened the door for me (I believe in angels!). And to celebrate, I cooked baby spinach with cream and lemon zest for dinner and finally made my own version of siopao (pork bun) sauce, which Carlos loved.
For me, like the simplicity of cordless blinds, these are blessings. For me, it rained on me that day.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Sunday, 06 May 2012 |
I like my job right now. Not my passion (And at least I am not carrying a sign for hot tub covers for sale when the heat is outside is rising. Those are brave souls!); I put a lot of effort on it, making sure that I am doing what I am supposed to do, and more. But when you don't see you're able to do your purpose, you feel ineffective. That was how I felt one time. And I still feel it every now and then. I feel like quitting, asking myself, "what am I here for if I can't even do a simple thing?" But then I am dealing with people. With life. And we all have our freewill. We all have a right to choose. What we want to eat or not eat, what we want to do or not do. So I hold on. I should never make it personal. I am dealing with a behavior.
So how do I handle that feeling of "ineffectiveness" now? I don't. I just let go and move on.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Saturday, 28 April 2012 |
I remember playing yoyos when I was a kid. Some kids could do some exhibition with the toy while I was happy playing it the usual way, you throw it down and it comes back. For me that was fun. Looking for some old photos of this toy on the net, I found the yoyojam atmosphere. Wow! This made me want to buy one. But then again, I am not one of those who has made a professional career out of playing yoyo. So I think I am going to stick with the classic ones.
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Storm Cloud.
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Tuesday, 17 April 2012 |
If you can make a difference to a child's life, why not do it?
M has a hectic schedule lately, working with both the special instructor and the ABA instructor. He has a session from Monday to Friday. On Thursday, we are packed-- a Gym class from 9-10:30 in the morning and a session with the special instructor from 11am to 1pm. I was asked how he is doing. The sessions are working for him. He's being taught how to speak. He is aware that he has a mouth to use for speech-- to let us know what he wants or needs. He is 2 years and 3 months old.
The sessions made me think what else I could do to help this child. I taught him his ABCs and his numbers. He is a quick learner. Whenever we're on a shuttle-bus ride, I point at some words or numbers outside and ask him what letters or number he sees. He'd tell me. He knows that the earth is revolving around the sun.
Last week, I have decided to start teaching him how to read using sight words. In two days, he's learned the first 40 words. I am making the next batch now. It is exciting to watch a kid learn his/her first steps. It is tiring. But it will teach us patience.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Tuesday, 17 April 2012 |
Punk'd is something that I wouldn't want to watch. But I had no choice when one of the people at the hospital was on MTV channel on Sunday. The celebrity to be "punked" was Dianna Agron. There was an old man, pretending to be her friend's grandfather. Apparently, this man has testosterone issue, probably he knows about the top testosterone supplements. Dianna had no choice but to help the creepy grandfather with his "e" problem. She handled everything well with class and with dignity of manner. I liked her more for that.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Tuesday, 17 April 2012 |
I love leather. Leather bags, leather wallets, leather shoes, leather boots, leather anything. And so with Agatha, the cat. She loves leather, too.
When I bought this pair of leather boots and opened its box at home, she was watching. I removed it from the box and took a short break to the restroom and was shocked to hear a sound. Scratch. Scratch. Scratch. I hurriedly went outside to see Agatha lovingly scratching at the boots the way cats do their scratching on their scratch post. I panicked. It wasn't bad but I love the boots. So I started looking for leather repair. Carlos bought me a box of leather wipes last week. A relief.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Friday, 30 March 2012 |
There's a lot of things to be thankful of for the first quarter of this 2012 and they still keep on coming. In January, my mother flew in from the Philippines to be with us, her three children, in the US. She's currently with my youngest brother in Nevada. Sometime in February, I received the good news that my visa was approved for a few more years extension. In March, I received my documents. And today, we are filing a petition for a permanent residence visa. And with that came the news that I can go back to school even if I am not a student-visa holder and my mom or my siblings can file a petition for me, too. Really great news. And I do not want these bottled up in me. The world has to know how great God is and how loyal He is to those who stick to and depend on Him.
Open the eyes of the person who reads this, Oh, Lord. May my life be a living testimony of Your greatness.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Friday, 30 March 2012 |
In sales, in order to gain clients, you need to broaden your network. In order to do that, sadly, you need to get every person's (those who braves to enter your shop) email address, mobile phone numbers, or their home address. I have been receiving flyers and brochures of compression stockings because I, once, bought a pair of shoe from one of these stores. I don't mind throwing them away-- not even taking a look what is inside the brochure-- but I often wonder how can these people waste time and energy and of course money to produce such brochures? America is full of (paper) trash.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Sunday, 18 March 2012 |
Our patience was tested last week when we needed to buy something at the Korean supermarket before going home. We chose the shortest line, expecting we'd be done faster because we needed to catch our bus ride. They do have the cash register express there. The problem was that the two customers ahead of us were both having issues. In times like those, I am thankful that Carlos and I still have our sense of humor in tact. Sense of humor comes in handy. It is a stress-buster. A better way to save the day.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Sunday, 18 March 2012 |
I was told that I could have a week vacation soon. It's been a while since I had a long one. I thought of getting on a plane again and going to another state that I haven't been to. Some place where I know someone (one, it is good to reconnect with someone you haven't seen in a while; two, I cannot afford to check-in at a motel or hotel). I have been to California, Utah, and Nevada (Carlos says I should count New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut). I was thinking maybe I should go to Ohio this time. I do not know what they have there (do they have beautiful steel buildings like New York?). I would really love to be there, especially now that my friend needs a company.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Sunday, 18 March 2012 |
If you are a fan of Korean Telenovelas or movies (My Sassy Girl, I bet you know that) and you have a smart phone, I would suggest that you download the app called ViKi. Carlos and I have it in all of our gadgets-- iPhone, iTouch, and the Droid X. The first movie that I watched was from Spain called Carol's Journey. Of course it has an English subtitle. Carlos and I are watching Coffee Prince lately and I am watching Secret Garden in GreenApple since Secret Garden is not available at ViKi (you can check vlc free download for an alternative in watching movies or playing music, by the way). Playful Kiss and Boys Over Flowers are next on our list.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Sunday, 18 March 2012 |
I am not used to wearing a pair of eyeglasses or sunglasses. Even if you give me a pair of Calvin Klein Sunglasses I doubt if I am going to really use it. But I do own a pair or two and I like to collect them in different shades and colors. I use them when I feel like using them in the summer. I don't know. I feel like I get dizzy when I am wearing a pair for too long. I envy my friends who wears them as soon as they go out of their house during daytime. I know I need to protect my eyes from the burning sun, too, just like I should protect my skin. I guess I have what they call far-sight (or is it near-sight?). I am not sure. Maybe I should have my eyes checked soon.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Tuesday, 13 March 2012 |
I know I have mentioned before that we are looking at engagement rings and we are actually trying to shop for one. My thought was (or at least my hope was) we could soon get a priest for our planned "blessing." Given the circumstances, we haven't bought any ring yet. Lately I was thinking of getting one of those anniversary rings for women or one of those stackable bands instead of an engagement ring. We would still get one of course but since the chances of getting that "blessing" seem like impossible, I wanted to get something else to comfort me. Oh well...
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Tuesday, 13 March 2012 |
Looking at the Weather Channel's 10-day forecast, makes me wonder, is winter over now? Have we just gone through a winter season without snow? It snowed for one or two nights but that was it. I am into my four years of stay at Uncle Sam's east coast and this is, so far, one of the best winters for me. One of M's instructors (the one from an affiliate program) is disappointed on the other hand. She said she loves snow and the very cold temperature of winter. I just shut my mouth. To each his own.
We're back to our normal time last Sunday.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Tuesday, 13 March 2012 |
One of the things that we should teach our children is how to choose their friends. But when they are not yet in the age when they know what is good and what is bad, I say, we do the "choosing" for them.
When M was 18monts old, I was asked to get to know other nannies in the building so M could have some playdates with them. We found some good people around. But as days go by, some kids are showing their aggressive side already. We are okay but when F learned about it, she asked me if we could refrain from seeing these kinds of kids. I was heartbroken. The nanny is nice and have become a very good friend of ours already even sharing their playground play sets. I tried to minimize the meeting but when I realized that this kid is really out of control (and the nanny is letting me discipline the child), I told myself that I should stop. It is bringing out the worst in me and i am sure M could pick up soon.
The nanny is nice but if the kid is really bad, I would rather sacrifice the good times with the nanny than see M suffer. I am sure the nanny understands. She knows a lot of people doesn't like her "kid." But I am praying that he'll soon mellow down so we could hang out again. M adores the nanny, too.
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Tuesday, 13 March 2012 |
While waiting for my bus ride today, I saw a Chinese lady talking loudly on her mobile phone. I know sometimes it is hard to distinguish a normal Chinese person talking from a mad Chinese person. Both ways, they talk loud as if they are mad that you'd be afraid to walk near them when you are holding a utility knife. I am used to that since I have Chinese friends. But this lady was obviously really mad at someone. She speaks in Chinese but curses in English (the F word!). Made me think if they don't have bad words in their language.
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Some-Kinda-Blog-Stop
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Wednesday, 07 March 2012 |
One of the guitar centers in the city is closing and they are having a big sale. Most are ibanez guitars. I know someone who are into this brand. He is picky when it comes to buying his gears. I know these are good guitars but I do not think he will like to get another one knowing how practical he is in life. So I guess we have to let this sale go.
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I am Mae German. 34 years old. Born in Mangatarem, province of Pangasinan. I was taught and trained by Juan Dela Cruz, and I am currently being trained for more by Uncle Sam. Writing since the age of 12. Blogging since 2001. I keep a notebook and a pen in my bag, on my bedside table, and inside the bathroom. Misses a lot. Sometimes even my own voice. Loves to laugh. Sometimes even at myself. I am a work in progress. My ultimate dream is to be a SAHM. That is, if I am bound to have that chance in this lifetime... and I am.
