Plant highlight: Bell Peppers

Bell peppers are known for their high vitamin C content, which is good for the immune system.  Aside from vitamin C, it's also packed with many other beneficial vitamins A, B6 and E.
These peppers come in a beautiful array of colors that can be eaten raw or cooked, it easily jazzes up a meal and can be served in a variety of ways.

Dear mama

In two days it'll be June 3, 2017.  365 days after you left this world and went home to heaven.
It brings me back to that dreadful day last year.  You didn't wait for me to get back to the hospital before you left, but it's okay ma, I know that until the end you were thinking of me,  I've been beside you almost 24/7 the last six months and you chose to leave at that moment when I wasn't around.  I understand.  I know you too well to know that it was extremely difficult for you leave as it was for me to be left behind.

8 benefits of growing your own vegetables

1. You save money

If I took note of the amount of vegetables we have thrown out, I'm sure it's already worth thousands.
Nobody wants to go back and forth the supermarket, so you have to purchase everything you need for the week or two, the vegetables sit on your shelves or the fridge and they go bad pretty quickly (That happens to us all the time!), especially when you live in a warm and humid country like the Philippines.
Vegetables usually end up in trash which is equivalent to throwing away money.
If you grow your own vegetables, it's available for picking just when you need them, you minimize the waste and save your hard earned money.

2. You eat fresh 

Since you're harvesting vegetables from your garden just when you need them, you are guaranteed freshness.
Fresh ingredients always taste best, obviously.

3. You eat healthy

It's so easy to eat junk when chips are just there in the pantry.
Same goes with eating healthy, it will be irresistible to pick and eat those vegetables when they're growing in your garden!
Many vegetables like peppers and tomatoes double in their vitamin content when they get to ripen on the plant, store bought ones are usually harvested prematurely to be processed and transported, and fully ripe ones sell at a higher price because it took more time before they were able to be harvested.

4. Food safety and less contaminants

You may be concerned that your backyard or balcony is not the most sanitized place to grow vegetables, but the good news is that you can do something about it.  You can clean the space to make it ideal for planting.
The thing with buying products off the shelves is that we totally have no clue as to where and what conditions it was grown in, even the process of handling and transport poses potential risks of contamination.
When you grow your own vegetables, you know what you're feeding your plant, you have control over it's growing conditions, you personally plant and harvest them giving you the peace of mind that what you are feeding your family is clean, free of pesticides and nutritious.

5. It's very rewarding

If you've tried growing anything from seed to a full grown, fruit bearing plant then you know what I mean.  Gardening for beginners is a hit or miss, there will be instances where seeds just won't germinate and it gets frustrating, and when they do, it's still survival of the fittest as not all will make it to a full grown plant, you will lose some plantlings along the way due to many different reasons (root rot, fungus,etc.) But when you are able to care and nurture them to a point where they are sturdy and healthy plants, it gives you a sense of pride and accomplishment.
It's also a great way to teach children the value of working for food, it will give them a better perspective as to the hard work it entails, and understand better why food shouldn't be wasted.

6. It's a lucrative hobby

If you have the space to grow plenty of vegetables, more than you need to feed your family, then you can sell the excess produce to your friends.  If it's still too much then you can sell them on weekend markets too!
You're pretty much making money out of a hobby.
Do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life, right?

7. It's good for your health and well-being

Gardening is good for your physical and psychological health.  It encourages you to get out of the house, get some sunlight, fresh air, and a light exercise--aids in fighting depression.
Tending to the plants also relaxes the mind, plants are amazing and interesting, it's a lot of fun watching them grow.
It also gives you a sense of responsibility and importance knowing that a living thing is dependent on your care to survive--just like that of having pets.

8. It's eco-friendly

By growing our share of produce, we are minimizing the bad effects of pollution caused by processing plants and factories.
In this little way, we are contributing to the efforts of saving mother Earth.  It may not cause a drastic change, but it starts from one home at a time.

Still hesitant to grow your own vegetables?
Given all these benefits, what else is stopping you?  

How to grow an endless supply of Basil without buying seeds again

Basil seeds are pretty cheap, they're only 75 pesos for a packet containing... a lot of seeds. (You think I'd count them? hahaha)
So, why would you bother saving seeds when you can just buy them right?
Well, if you're an extreme cheapskate then there is no need for an explanation why.
If you're practical, like me.  I would say why not?
Why would you buy something that you already have?
It only requires little work and you get an endless supply of seeds and plants for free!

The seeds come from the tiny flowers, each flower contains four seeds on average.  Imagine how many seeds you'll end up with with just a single plant!
You can't use up all of it, but you can always give them away to friends, which I plan to do in an effort to encourage them to start growing their own food as well.

Let's go back to the process of seed saving.
You can either cut off the stalk with the flowers and then let it dry, or just leave the plant alone until it dries up/dies.

Smells really good!

You see those black stuff? Those are the seeds.
Each tiny flower contains four of them.
It was very time consuming picking them out gracefully.
The best way is to just shake it and crush them lightly for the seeds to come out, then you can just sift it later to get rid of unwanted debris.

That is pretty much all you need to do.
Keep the seeds in an envelope, label it (name and month when you saved the seeds) and you have tons of seeds to replant, giveaway or sell if you want.

Plant highlight: Sweet Basil

We currently have five pots of sweet basil sitting on our balcony.
But since we are in need of more space for other plants, I am considering to uproot three of the five tomorrow.
The plants have started to flower, which means it is towards the end of its life anyway.
The leaves aren't looking very good and they're not growing to be as big as they did before.  But before I kill off my first herb plant, let me take you through the stages of growing sweet basil from seeds.

Sweet Basil is a pretty common herb plant, you can purchase a small plant at any garden center.  They sell for only 100php for three plants, more or less.  Pretty cheap right?  For such a versatile herb as basil, it's a great buy.
Though it is readily available, we prefer to grow almost everything from seed, just because it's fun.

It is a very easy plant to grow as the germination rate of seeds are very high. (That's also why we ended up with more than we needed).
The seeds were sown last November 2016 in individual cells with a regular potting mix.  Once the plantling emerges from the soil, it grows pretty quickly, you will see growth within the day.  This makes it the perfect plant for first time gardeners like me.  It's very encouraging when you see something you planted from seed blossom into a healthy plant.

Remember, each tiny plantling will grow into one basil plant.
I didn't think about that when I decided to bunch them up when I transplanted them into a bigger pot.  As the plants grow bigger, they need more space to spread their roots so make sure to transfer it in a rather spacious pot, per plant that is.

Just water it everyday, preferably early in the morning or in the late afternoons.
The plant thrives, even in shade.

Basil plant likes being topped off.
By topping off the plant, you will encourage side growths, this will make your plant bushier, meaning more leaves for you to use!
So please feel free to harvest from your plant often.

The plant will eventually throw out little white flowers in a stalk.  You can snip them out as they start to grow to delay the plant from flowering.
Frequent harvesting will also give you a longer harvest season off your plant.
The tiny white flowers are pretty and even decorative and edible, but the stem will start to turn woody and the leaves will be less flavorful once the plant starts to flower.

These flowers contain seeds that you can replant for another season.
I will share with you guys on another post how you can collect the seeds from the flowers and never have to buy Sweet Basil seeds ever again!

Are we nicer to friends than close family? Why?

Ever had a family member tell you to treat them like you treat strangers?--Cause you're way nicer to people you don't know than you are to your family?

It's painful to hear right?

This is not something we confront each other with but truth is that it's happening everyday.

There are times that we find ourselves being nicer to our friends, colleagues or even people we just randomly met than to close family.  I have pondered on that thought myself and honestly it brings forth a feeling of guilt and shame.  It reminds me of how mean, impolite, disrespectful and unappreciative I can be at times.

This does not mean we love our families less, no.  Family will always be special. We all know that it's a different dynamic when it comes to families.

Oftentimes it's a love and hate relationship, I guess that happens when you hang around with certain people for so long.

When I say we are "nicer", I am pertaining to behavioral factors such as the common courtesy, attitude, politeness, and so on.

So I asked some of my friends if they think sometimes they find themselves being nicer to their friends than to their family members, and I wasn't at all surprised that everyone answered yes.

Below are the top reasons why.

Familiarity 

Our family members have seen us through the good and the bad, literally.

From petty bad hair days, mood swings, awkward years, they've seen us through triumphs and failures, through our proudest moments to consequences of bad decision making.

Friends only know us from a certain beginning, they most likely haven't witnessed us at our weakest moments to base our actions on things we did in the past.

Families tend to bring up past mistakes and promises of change that has yet to be realized.

We know each other so well that we no longer fall for the 999th promise that has yet to be broken.

They know our character flaws and we know theirs, so it's unavoidable that we nitpick on each other's shortcomings at times.

Since we are together most times, we tend to get into each other's nerves over petty things more often and easily as we are in each other's way.

The ties that bind

We cannot unbrother our brother or unfather our father the way we can unfriend a friend.

Regardless of whether you're not in speaking terms with some family members, at the end of the day it's the same bloodline running through your veins.

Having said that, we are in some way stuck with each other whether we like it or not.

Friends come and go, we may even have different friends in different seasons of our lives.

We tend to be nicer to them because they have the option to cut us out if they can no longer tolerate our shortcomings.  Our relationships with our friends are actually a choice we made and not something that we are born in to and have no control over.

As for family, we have to love and bear with each other, regardless.  We tend to take them for granted because we expect them to accept us and understand us all the time.  It does not mean that it is right nor fair but that's the reality.

Expectations/Disappointments

The most important people in our lives tend to have the most expectations from us as we do from them.  In a family setting, we all play a certain role, and if someone in the family fails to play their part, it will affect the rest of its members.  Many problems arise from this.

Just like a child would expect love, care and nurturing from his/her parents, he/she will not have this same expectation from a stranger.  We play an essential and vital role in our own families.

When we encounter unmet expectations from people who matter most, it creates a little crack in our brick of trust and as these disappointments accumulate over time, the cracks will seem more visible.

Since there is no way to unrelate yourself to certain people in your lives, like family, the cracks manifest as little outbursts, arguments, disrespect and other unpleasant behavior.

This is because the people who matter the most can hurt you the most.

With friends, we have less expectations.  We don't expect them to raise us, provide for us, love us sacrificially or care for and nurture us to be good and decent individuals.

Being a good friend is no comparison to being a good mother/father/brother/sister/relative.

It's a different unit of measurement altogether.

Too comfortable

We are too at-home with family that we oftentimes forget being polite is still necessary.

We're less guarded with our words and our true colors just show through and through.

Home just feels like a safe place to throw a fit when things aren't going your way, without fear of being judged and shunned forever.

I remember last March in Boracay, while walking on the shore at sunset we passed by a Filipina mom and her (maybe) American raised son of 6 or 7 years old?  The mom mentioned something about "show Belle", then the kid answered "show belle? SHOVEL!" 

It was actually very funny, and I can somewhat relate to the kid on how quick he was to correct his mom, like it was nothing, no offense meant.  In relation to this point, I believe we are that much comfortable with family, we're not very restricted in terms of allowing ourselves to just be ourselves.  I would be extra cautious when correcting a friend or maybe not do that at all cause I will be concerned as to how he/she might take the correction, but with family, it's no holds barred.

We try to be in our best behaviour with our friends, careful with our words and conscious not to come off too bossy, offensive or irritable because we don't want to be judged by what we say and how we act.  Since nobody wants to be a social outcast, we put in an extra effort to be polite, likeable and pleasant.

At home, there are no judgements -- just another day in the life.

-

These are just some of the reasons (or excuses) I have gathered and related to as well as to why we tend to treat our families less nice than we ought to.

Having gone through the Glorious Hope program in CCF, I know that a lot of factors are at play as to why we do the things we do and behave the way we behave, most of which stems from the past as far as our childhood.

I am also aware that some families are way too dysfunctional that some people find it very difficult to cultivate a loving relationship with its members.

Even so, I believe that we can all improve in the aspect of treating our families more lovingly.

Effort is necessary in order for any relationship to work out.

Effort to be more polite, appreciative, grateful, kind, forgiving, thoughtful and sensitive.

If we fail today, let's try again tomorrow.  Let's not give up on ourselves and let's not be discouraged.  Just push on and keep trying because our families deserve our best effort.

Here are some pointers that I want to remind myself daily.

• I will be a valuable asset to my family.
• If I can be kind to strangers, I can be kind to the people around me.
• I am exactly where I am supposed to be.  
• I will bloom where I am planted.
• Charity begins at home.
• Everything begins at home.

Our family deserves to be treated like strangers. :)

*These are my random thoughts and opinions.  It does not speak for anybody else except myself.  If you feel the same way, feel free to comment.  If you don't agree, you are entitled to your opinion and I respect that.  Rude behaviour will not be tolerated, bring that somewhere else.

The birth of a new hobby

I have always been my dad's sidekick slash assistant in a couple of things—cooking, fixing broken things, anything that needs assembling (he's quite a handyman)—my role as sidekick even extends to his hobbies.
He's more encouraged to pursue something when I show interest in them as well.
I'd like to think that he enjoys having a hobby buddy.

HOW TO terminate your postpaid line with Globe Telecom

I finally took the plunge of completely downgrading from a postpaid to a prepaid sim.

It wasn't easy emotionally, more difficult than the actual process of terminating the account.  Look at the bill number, 214!  That's more than 17 years!

How we enjoyed a day trip in Rizal for only 50 pesos

Tanay, Rizal: Day trip at Sierra Madre Hotel and Resort

Plus a side trip to Cloud 9 in Antipolo...

If you have a few hours to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city, or perhaps you need to quiet down and have some alone time to realign, Sierra Madre Resort may just be the place to retreat to.

Located in Tanay, Rizal.  It's a relatively short drive from Quezon City.

We arrived at around 9:30am, the weather was comfortably cool.  A bit chilly but not cold.

F.Y.I. this is not a fancy hotel resort.  The lobby was very humble and homey, they didn't even have much lighting turned on.

We paid 50php for the "viewing fee", that covered for our roaming around and sight-seeing.  

We went there to just relax and did not really intend to explore the resort so I cannot tell you about the resort's complete amenities.  They did have rooms that you can rent for overnight stays, a swimming pool, a vast open field ideal for team building activities, zipline, picnic areas and a huge garden that can host a wedding ceremony/reception.

While we wait for breakfast to be served

Cheers to friends who listen to your crazy suggestions, like a fake banana boat ride... LOL

After chillin' at my favorite spot and doing crazy things, we decided to have late lunch at Cloud 9 in Antipolo.  I have heard of this place many times but never had the chance to visit.  You get a free pass to the 360 observation deck when you present your dining receipt.  Ideally, you take the hanging bridge going up the deck for the full experience as the view from the bridge climbing up was really wonderful.  If you're too afraid, you can take the stairs as an alternative.  Even as you exit the trail, you can never run out of beautiful sights.

Crossing another hanging bridge

All in all, it was worth the trip and the 50php entrance fee.

I highly recommend visiting these places if you're interested in some rest and relaxation time yet you don't want to spend too much.  All you need is gas money, pocket money for food (no need for this if you decided to bring your own and have a picnic!) and your friends for some good company!

Coron, Palawan: Day 4 & 5

Day 4

• Calauit Safari
• Concepcion falls

We had an early start on Day 4.  We left Jazmine's Place before the break of dawn, stopped halfway to eat our breakfast then sat in the van for another hour before reaching Calauit Safari Park.  It was more or less a 2-hour trip by land.  

I wasn't so excited about this part of the trip, mainly because I am not a fan of zoos and the like, I feel as though the animals are harassed in exchange of photo ops.  Then again, I haven't had a safari experience yet, so I thought let's see.  I expected that the safari tour would mean we'll ride a jeep and go around the property, you know... as you see it on television, I didn't expect that it was a safari on foot.

I like animals, I like observing them in their natural habitat, undisturb.  

Our tour guide said that there was more or less 20 giraffes in the sanctuary, but we only saw two adult giraffes and a baby, the rest of them were most likely not yet hungry so they didn't appear on the feeding ground.  The poor giraffes also had open wounds, which was also a difficult sight for me.  It's funny though that the giraffes seem to prefer taking food from one person than the other.  I remember us waving the branch at them and they would come sniff it but not eat it.  

Aside from giraffes, there were zebras and Calamian deers also freely roaming around the sanctuary.  The rest of the other animals were caged, just like you see them in the zoo. 

It hurts when the giraffe keeps ignoring the food you're offering them

Last stop for the trip is Concepcion falls,  it's a downhill trek from the main road, sad to say I wasn't able to swim because it's that time of the month!

There was plenty of people when we arrived, it was really crowded.  There wasn't much room to sit or stand.  At a glance, the place looked abused, and with bad sanitation.

There was three to four concrete pavilions which were all taken when we arrived, so for a while everyone kind of didn't know what to do.

There was also only one changing room/restroom which didn't look kept, it was kind of filthy to be honest. 

Nevertheless, they had to experience Concepcion falls.  So off they went as I watched the bags.  The falls was roughly about 10 feet high, it seemed to be famous with the locals.

Local kids climbed up the jump-off spot like a boss

After the Concepcion falls experience, the ladies were told that they can wash up in the residential kubo where the van was parked.
The owners were kind to let tourists use their wash room for free.

After a tiring day, we headed back to Jazmine's Place.
Some of the girls together with the guys went to the market to buy ingredients for our paluto dinner at Luis Bay.

There was too much food I could only wish I can continue eating what was left over right now.We went back and had our nightly devotion sharing.

I was assigned to share that night, I chose to discuss on the topic, why some prayers are unanswered.  

Around 11pm, we went back to Luis Bay for some Karaoke.  It was our last night afterall, we were also celebrating birthdays of Mimi and Vianca.

Super fun night!  What happened in Luis Bay stays in Luis Bay. ;p

We left at around 3am?  Bummed that they're not open 24 hours.  Hahaha!

We had our last breakfast together the next morning, most of them had to leave for the airport at 10:30am.

Mimi, Sam and I had a later 4pm flight so we were left behind.  We actually still had some time to visit Mt. Tapyas as we wait, but being the titas and tito that we were, we just hanged and watched television in our room, had lunch at a nearby place before leaving for the airport.

Photo credits: Stan, Mimi, Jean

Coron, Palawan: Day 3

Picture perfect at Barracuda Lake

Day 3 (In no particular order)

• Twin Lagoon
• Smith's coral garden and beach (snorkeling)
• Barracuda Lake
• Maquinit Hot Spring

Twin Lagoon has got to be my favorite spot of the entire trip.  The view was unlike any other, and it has this enchanting yet peaceful vibe to it.

We were welcomed by a breathtaking view of limestone rock formations, as the boat veered deeper into the picture perfect scenery comes the first lagoon.

The second lagoon is hidden, there is a passageway under the rock formation from which we entered.
During high tides, the passageway would be submerged under water, you can swim underneath the rocks if you're a swimmer.  But for none swimmers, there is a ladder that you can use to climb over to the other side.

Our tour guide asked us (the none swimmers/not so confident swimmers) to lay back in floating position and form a link, he then pulled our human link into the second lagoon, that was so much fun! (I wish we had pictures, but there is a video clip!)

Smith's coral garden was a whole lot nicer than the other coral garden we snorkeled in.

More fish, less sea urchins.  The view underwater was spectacular, you can swim between the shallow and the deep waters.

Barracuda Lake was a bit eerie for me.

The imagery was stunning as you can see in our photo above, but the rock formations underneath was kind of creepy.

Maquinit Hot Spring was our last stop, if you are taking this trip with a senior citizen or anyone who enjoys water spas, I am 99% sure that they will love it there.  As a safety precaution, remember to rest every 15 minutes so it doesn't get too hot.
It was the perfect way to soothe our sore muscles and that capped off our island adventure on Day 3. 

It's funny that we only have photos during our lunch stops.  That's how beautiful the place was.  You'll forget everything and find yourself really savoring the moment, taking it all in.  The sights, the smell and the tranquility.

Our tasty lunch

Taking a dip after eating lunch

That's it for our island adventure day

We are again ready to eat!