First Self-Reinvention.....Fashion Design

       Sometime, during my retirement rest in 2010, I finally found the most popular Fashion school very near my residence, Fashion Institute of the Philippines (FIP), branch in Ortigas, Pasig, Philippines. For a couple of months, I was viewing the courses and gallery of pictures and videos at their website. My niece, Manel and I decided to start the courses last January 2011.

During a presentation of designs

Manel and I with classmates at Fabric Warehouse

Me and Adrian

With classmates in one of our light moments in class

     Next blog...compilation of my experimental basic garments...

My Doggies....

Meet my doggies....Bambu, a cross-bred Japanese Spitz is 7 years old and Brandon, a pure-bred Golden Retriever is 5 years old (as of 2012).

 Bambu, just like any other jap spitz, is the jealous-type. Loves to terrorize Brandon whenever he gets attention from us.  He is usually the barker and would really attack people with just a wrong move. He  is usually annoyed by children's voices. But he is really sweet...he loves to wake me up in bed. Usually finds the right time to go inside the bedroom and jump right into my bed. He has so much lovable things about him that I really love. 

Brandon, however, is the ever-loving and sweet doggie. I just can't resist him when he makes the "face", usually when he has done something naughty. He loves to chew on things, even rocks and pebbles. He loves to eat my plants and adores his play ball. He is so crazy about frogs which worries me a lot. 

Bambu, making one of his sneaky faces when he enters my bedroom and rolls over so he won't be shooed away

Brandon, chewing on a towel..

     Really love these doggies so much!

     On to my next blog....

     

Our first 5-day out-of-town trip

     Summer of 2010, perfect time for our very first 5-day summer trip. We had planned to go to the northside of Luzon where the farthest destination was Pagudpud in Ilocos Norte. The trip usually takes about 12-14 hours. However, as we had numerous stop-overs (for comfort, meals and sight-seeing), it took us 16 hours to reach our 1st destination, the homestays in Pagudpud's town proper.  A sis-in-law was kind enough to give us a contact person there. Thanks to her we didn't have to bother scouting for a desirable place to stay.  

     I'd rather not bore you with so much stories about this place.  Only the pictures of the highlights of our trip are posted here..... (as I cannot seem to find the rest of the pictures hahahaha).

Blue Lagoon view from the hilltop entrance of the resort

    Among the famous beaches in Pagudpud, the Blue Lagoon was the most beautiful.  Or so we thought, as we did not bother to go to other beaches and check out. We heeded what our hosts had to tell about the place. And they were right....the place was heavenly.  It boasts with soft, white sand, fresh cool wind, fresh seafood and very hospitable people.  

Joel and myself getting ready for lunch,
our favorite meal

 Our beach host named Alex provided us with his fresh catch while his mother cooked for us and his wife took care of errands and posed as our waitstaff. The whole family was so accommodating, very kind and respectful.  Here, I don't have to worry about anything but our personal needs, really refreshing!!

It would not be enjoyable if there were no fish inihaw or sinigang  with tomatoes side dish, fresh Ilocano veggies sauteed in fish sauce (bagoong), fresh veggie salads and of course, perfectly-steamed rice, all cooked the Ilocano way. I must say though, enjoyment really has a price...gain weight!

My kids, my precious gems, enjoying what they love most.....

skim-boarding

and taking pictures

and snorkeling

                                                                                                            

While the kids enjoy the day away, Joel and I were having a blast.  We got to enjoy what we've been missing all these years...the real vacation....

Hmmmmm.....really love it!!

One memorable trip to Pagudpud.  

Priceless. 

Hope to do it again soon with the whole family.

THANK YOU LORD!!!

The first year of retirement

My first day as a retiree was spent at  Real, Quezon, Philippines. It was January 30, 2010 and it was my father's 84th birthday. Really enjoyed it, though I didn't get to swim that day. But, I cherished the morning sun, the afternoon nap, seafood for lunch and dinner, moonlighting at the beach and karaoke at midnight.  What a lovely day.

  

   This is our favorite spot in this resort in Real, Quezon. It's so peaceful there, having your drink (whatever it is, for me it was coffee), and enjoying the wild waves of the sea. The scent of the sea water was so refreshing and relaxing, I almost fell asleep. Good thing I had coffee.  Words really, cannot describe the feeling , knowing that finally, you will never have to go to work. 

This is my favorite afternoon nap spot hahahaha!  I think I slept here three times already. Our family really like the place because of its location and the accommodation is superb. The staff are all very helpful and friendly. Though, the beach is not really perfect for swimming or snorkeling, we really like the place anyhow.

Another view at the right side of the resort where the huts can accommodate a bigger group.

Just beside my favorite afternoon nap spot. 

     To this date, I am still enjoying being retired.  For one whole year, I had just enjoyed waking-up late, jogging at Tiendesitas at C5 or SM Marikina, cleaning the house, getting rid of clutters in the house, gardening, shopping and many, many more.    

     Next destination, the North of Luzon.

Things to do after retirement

     My retirement was already in its planning stage when I was on my 15th year in service. Had promised myself to retire at 20 years and was pretty sure and decided when it came.  I was so determined to do it as I was already drained-out from working, stressed-out of deadlines and pressured to do good work. What I want is to do the things I was not able to do in my younger years or try new things or even discover my hidden talents or skills (if there was any). I knew I will never be bored as I had already a lot of things in my mind when I was planning this. Besides, boredom is only a state of mind. It has no place in mine.

     A few things that I had planned to do during my retirement planning stage helped me overcome the fear of this almost dreadful decision of people my age. Some of these things I have already completed and some are still on-going. Here are just a few of them (not necessarily in chronological order):

     

      1.  Enjoy life and appreciate it.  Be it big, small or simple things in life, I enjoy it. I enjoy waking-up everyday a little later than I used to. I say my morning prayers and always thank God of another beautiful day (be it sunny or rainy). Then I do my simple stretching exercises. Make and eat breakfast with my hubby and sons. Feed the dogs, water the plants or do gardening, and my day is just starting!  It's really amazing to see and appreciate God's creations, graces and blessings. The wind, the sun, the flowers, the plants, the pebbles, countless things that give color to our lives. Oh, really, thank God!

     2.  Do something different every chance you get.  Explore. As I was about to embark on my golden years, I felt that I need to do something different. To give me more energy and keep my mind busy, to make a difference and be useful, to appreciate myself and boost confidence. Whatever it is, I'm gonna do something different. Having worked for almost 30 years made me realize that I have been deprived of so many things that I could have enjoyed when I was younger. However, I am not in a hurry here.  I take my time, pondering on what to do next. I've got lots of time to do this anyway. I won't do it in haste.    

     3.  Find your passion and do it.   Doing what you really like is one thing you would really enjoy.  No feelings of resentment, regret, stress and pressure even while doing it 24 hours a day for free. Doing things you're passionate about results to feelings of achievement, satisfaction, and eventually, happiness.

     4.  Be active, watch your diet and don't forget yourself.  Don't forget to exercise, do housework or chores.  Cook, wash the dishes, mop the floors, bathe the dogs, go to the grocery, do gardening. These things would really keep you going and would put to use those reserved energies. Don't forget yourself. Exfoliate, cleanse, tone and moisturize your skin.  And most of all, eat, live and think healthy.

     5.  Listen to the music.  Music adds color to our lives. It has always been one of my stress-busters. Keeps me relaxed and happy all the time. That's why, whenever possible, I carry with me my portable music player so I can listen to my faves anytime. This may be not be new to you, but, one thing I have learned last year, was to create a You Tube account and saved my favorite music pieces so I can both listen to its audio and see the video of the songs.

     6.  Explore on technology.   I used to be a mediocre "techie" person, who only explored on the Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Access for use in my office work. However, I think I have improved through the years. Primarily, because my children are growing-up to be techsavvy and I really need to keep up. Not to mention those young people around me in the office, in our neighborhood and in so many places I go to. Surprisingly, in a matter of one year, I have discovered lots of things in the internet. Funny but, up to now, technology still amazes me.

     7.  Lastly, be careful.  Take extra care when you do physical activities, particularly when already in the middle age. Once you retire, you will be doing a lot of it. Thereby, exposing you to accidents and injuries. One useful tip on this is, try to make your home accident-proof.

     
     I may have left-out a few more tips for self-reinvention after my retirement, but I think I have given you the general view of it.

     Till my next blog!!